Some employees just aren’t into their jobs. In fact, that may be true for most of them. The Gallup organization, which regularly measures employee engagement across the country, reports that just 32% of employees say they’re enthusiastic about and committed to their work and workplace.

However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Successful leaders are the ones who intentionally use their behavior as a positive example. If you expect employees to work overtime for important deadlines, for example, they’re much more inclined to do their best if you also stay and work the overtime.

To really get those employees engaged, a leader also must commit to supporting the growth of people and not just systems, products or processes. With the right approach business leaders can improve their corporate culture and motivate employees to perform at their highest capacity.

Here are four ways business leaders - managers, executives, team and project heads, and small business owners and entrepreneurs - can engage employees and coworkers:

1. Insist on a Healthy Work/Life Balance. When your life is well-balanced, you’ll be more satisfied, more motivated, happier and healthier. To achieve that balance, lead by example, and set boundaries and handle issues as they arise so you aren’t thinking about them at home.

2. Practice Effective Communication. Be an active listener that tries to understand the complete message being sent. Do this via empathy, focusing your attention, signaling you’re listening via verbal and non-verbal responses, suspending judgment, asking questions and verifying the meaning of the person’s message.

3. Focus on Your People. If employees are happy, then customers will have a better experience. Achieve that by hiring the right people, providing a generous benefits package, and prioritizing wellness efforts.

4. Regularly Conduct Employee Surveys. It’s important to ask employees about what’s working and what’s not working. Then provide detailed results back to your team and create an implementation plan that includes some of your employees’ ideas.

– Kerry Alison Wekelo

About the Author: Wekelo, kerryalison.com, is managing director of human resources and operations for Actualize Consulting. A yoga teacher, life coach, award-winning author of children’s books and the founder of Zendoway, a company that encourages holistic wellness, she’s also author of Culture Infusion: Nine Principles to Create and Maintain a Thriving Organizational Culture.