3 reasons your employees might be afraid of you

Your employees aren’t afraid of you. Are they? Your office is easily accessible and your door is always open. But you’re still feared. Why? Because you’re the boss. Sometimes, you say or do things that create fear in your employees without even knowing it. Here are three reasons your employees might be afraid of you…

You’re a little mysterious: You’re super busy with a million things going on and your employees don’t always feel that you’re a part of the team. This is normal. As the overseer of all things, you will undoubtedly be on a different level of focus than everyone else. The downside is that your employees see you as the authority figure who makes all the big decisions. Try finding ways to be more involved, and maybe they’ll accept you as one of their own.

Your focus can be intimidating: You’re in charge. You stay hyper-focused and you get sh*t done. You’re not unhappy, but you’re not spending your days walking around smiling at people. Don’t feel bad for being busy, just know that it might take a little extra effort if you want to seem like a more approachable human being with emotions.

Your help feels like a command: The next time an employee comes to you for help, think about how you respond. Do you engage in conversation that leads to the employee solving the problem on their own, or do you simply tell them what to do? If you give an employee the chance to solve a problem on their own, they’ll feel more valued.