Many of you may know the classic film, “A Christmas Carol” and how the importance of its message still rings true today in society and nearly every part of our daily lives. If you think back to this old tale, Fezziwig was Scrooge’s employer, and Scrooge was well known for his bad workplace attitude. But over time, Scrooge became a better person because of the powerful presence Fezziwig had as a leader. Have you ever thought about Fezziwig’s character and how he influenced Scrooge as a leader, or the idea of how the positive power of Fezziwig made a difference in the progressive change in Scrooge? How did Fezziwig inspire Scrooge’s behavior to change within the workplace? Let’s dig in.
Creating a Positive Culture
Despite Scrooge’s sour demeanor over the years, Fezziwig still chose to create an uplifting environment. He participated in community-building activities such as holiday parties and social events with his employees to establish that trust, joy, and hope. When Scrooge sees the holiday events and the fond memories when he travels through his past, his eyes begin to open, and it’s then that he realizes that he needs to make some huge changes in his character.
The main message from this story is learning a few important and insightful factors of what it really takes to be a good leader. One of the key factors that make a leader, according to Fezziwig, is providing a welcoming, inclusive environment and letting people know that you are a normal human being going through the same things just as everyone else. Providing a caring environment where you are there for them and openly showing you have the best of intentions for them.
The way you can do this is by getting to know the people that you are leading and providing large amounts of support to them so that they begin to respect you and establish that necessary foundational trust that is needed to have a healthy workplace. It takes guts to be an organizational leader because you will constantly run into roadblocks and obstacles on the way. But when it comes to building connections with the people you are leading, you may also run into a few Scrooges on the way – those refusing to show courtesy and respect to you as a leader. Therefore, it is super important to follow the tactics of Fezziwig when it comes to leadership because his employees ultimately respected him with the support of the charismatic environment he created.
Bring People Joy
There is nothing like a workplace environment where you can be a happy day in and day out. Another takeaway we can learn from Fezziwig is to radiate a passionate and joyful personality to the people you are leading. Whether they are your employees or other people you work with, it still makes a difference to how you carry yourself because that within itself tells those you are leading the type of person you are and if they should allow you to lead them or not.
If you radiate an authentic and engaging personality when you listen to the feedback from your employees, it’s easier to do so more clearly. Plus, good moods always put forth productivity, and from that stems your very best actions and responses to that feedback. In turn, you will not just get respect from the people around you, but you will also attract more people because of the type of leader people say you are.
Last but not least, Fezziwig was an excellent leader because he established his authority, respectfully. Everyone knew he was in charge. When Fezziwig addressed his employees, he made an entrance. Nothing was started until he was there, and he led the pace of the events that took place. When you establish authority, try to not be too extreme about it, but just incorporate it into tasks and points discussed. Show your people that you are the leader, but also show the necessary compassion that comes with the job. Eliminate the demand by spreading gratitude to your employees working and showing appreciation to them as human beings. This is how you establish relationships with those whom you are leading and to show them what caring leadership really is.