I’m an introvert. There I’ve admitted it in public! It’s difficult and uncomfortable for me to talk to people at team gatherings or company meetings. Even just talking to folks that report to one of my managers or directors is hard.

Yet, I find that if I sit closed off in my office, which I prefer to give myself some peace and quiet, this results in people thinking I am aloof and distant and uncaring. I’m always surprised when people think these things of me because I DO care.

So the question is how, as a manager, do I show people I care? Well, here is my recipe for showing folks you do care.

Find ways to show you care.

First, I began scheduling skip-level meetings. Instead of meeting with someone on my direct staff, I meet with those that report to my managers or to one of their managers.

Now I should note, this practice does freak my employees out at first. They don’t understand why I am meeting with them. They don’t expect an upper level manager to take the time to meet with them so they don’t always know what to say or what is expected of them and initial meetings can feel awkward on both sides of the desk.

However, I find that when I continue to meet with staff members, they start talking to me. And this is where it gets good. Because when I start considering what they say and implement some of their ideas, a really cool dialog begins. After all, they are the ones doing the actual work and often have ideas that I could never have because I’m not on the front lines like they are.

I really enjoy these skip-level meetings. I find the people I meet are interesting and have good ideas. If you want to build trust with your staff, this is a great way to do it.

Once I have skip-level meetings in place, then I begin leaving my office door open. And when folks walk by, I say hi. If they linger, I invite them in. This promotes even more of that great dialog.

I also walk around the office. I stop and talk to people. This is really tough for me because I really am an introvert and meeting folks for the first time is scary. Out there on the office floor, I have to talk to people I might not know. Serious eek!

However, I find as I keep doing it, I get to know people and what they are working on. Best off all, the feedback from their managers are those employees really appreciate me taking the time to stop and talk. They feel like I care. And I do. Doing this builds connections for me too.

Why should I care whether they think I care? Everyone wants to feel valued and seen. By seen, I mean really seeing the people that are working for me; the people making the organization and me successful. They aren’t just replaceable widgets. They’re humans with hearts and lives and feelings. And I care about every single one of them.