I think we can all agree that leadership is an art form: a dance, a painting, a well-executed pass play. The best leaders know the moments in which to interact. More to the point, an employee’s valuation of their company comes down to a few moments (and their direct report is usually part of them).…
Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties. – Helen Keller A story is told of a young Greek artist named Timanthes studied who under a respected tutor some 2,000 years ago. After several years the teacher’s efforts seemed to…
It’s been a smart idea for years. When good employees leave your organization for greener pastures and the departure is amicable, why not keep in contact? You never know, some may find that that grass isn’t, in fact, greener and that your firm was a pretty good place to work after all. A recent WSJ…
Words do two major things: They provide food for the mind and create light for understanding and awareness. – Jim Rohn Listed on the Merriam-Webster website is the 2011: The Year in Words. The list reveals defining moments in politics, culture, sports and more that spiked lookups in words because of events in news. A…
Vision is the world’s most desperate need. There are no hopeless situations, only people who think hopelessly. – Winfred Newman About 350 years ago, as the story is told, a shipload of travelers landed on the northeast coast of America. The first year they established a town site. The next year they elected a town…
When I hear the term perseverance, it’s hard not to think of those “motivational” posters proudly displayed in so many offices. You know what I mean; the posters usually showcase a mountain or a sailboat with a slogan that says something about persevering no matter the hurdles, etc., etc. I don’t know about you, but…
As we increasingly live in the fast lane, a few road signs might be useful to guide us along the way-words warning us when good connections are being overlooked, threatened, or endangered. Some possibilities might include: Yield to Connection, Stop to Connect, or Use Caution … Relationships at Work! Following these signs could make the…
My alma mater, the Industrial and Labor Relations School of Cornell University recently hosted a conference on “The Quality of Jobs.” They looked at how trends in what they call the “intensification” of work, the restructuring of jobs, and classic downsizing have impacted the quality of jobs and the levels of satisfaction employees (who are…
Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other. – Abraham Lincoln In Readers Digest, a story is told about Mercedes Ruehl seeing her first Broadway show when she was in grade school. Her family was in New York visiting relatives and driving through Times Square. On the…
So the Fall routine has set in, leaves are turning yellow and drifting off the trees in my backyard, and I feel like I haven’t quite settled into an optimum routine…. somehow, I should have accomplished more, I should feel more “energy” in my day-to-day doings. How do I get myself re-energized and refocused? 1)…
In a recent survey titled, why do people give up on your company? it was noted that 68% quit because of an attitude of indifference toward the client by the owner, manager or employee. This indifference comes about because we tend to forget that to stay employed and succeed in our business or organization we…
Reading about Steve Jobs’ management style is like reading about exactly how you are not supposed to manage people. He openly and viciously criticized the work of employees and then would take some of those ideas and present them as his own. When he couldn’t persuade or seduce someone into doing what he wanted he…
When the eagles are silent, the parrots begin to jabber. – Winston Churchill A story is told about a man who went to the doctor to get the results of his test. The doctor sat him down and told him, “I have some very bad news for you. I’m afraid that you are afflicted with…
The BBC’s Katty Kay and ABC’s Claire Shipman co-authored a book a couple of years back called Womenomics. In it they cite, among other things, a number of companies where the presence of women in among top leadership had a positive effect on the firm’s financial success. For example: Accounting firm Ernst & Young’s research…
Thanksgiving is when one species ceases to gobble and another begins.– -R.E. Marion A story is told of two men who were walking through a field one day when they spotted an enraged bull. Instantly they darted toward the nearest fence. The storming bull followed in hot pursuit, and it was soon apparent that…
There isn’t much news lately about the NBA, other than the whole lockout fiasco and I don’t feel like getting into that mess. However, I happened to read that Shaquille O’Neal is about to release his autobiography, and news outlets are buzzing about the fact that in the book Shaq revisits his feud with former…
I can live for two months on a good compliment – Mark Twain A story is told how one day the great Italian artist Michelangelo happened to overhear a group of people admiring his Pieta, a statue of Christ on His mother’s kneeafter His death on the cross. One man attributed the work to another…
When I was a child, I was often awakened by rumblings in the back of the house while the sun was still down. Occasionally, I would brave the cold air in my Incredible Hulk underwear to see my father suiting up for work. He was up early, home late and always in a suit. I…
Edgar Schein, a titan of the field of organizational development, says in his recent book, Helping, that there are four questions on the minds of new members of any team. While these concerns operate at a subconscious level, nevertheless, any team member must become comfortable with the answers before he or she can relax and…
The real test of a man is not when he plays the role that he wants for himself but when he plays the role destiny has for him. – V´aclav Havel For movie buffs, it is one of the most memorable scenes in movie lore. James Callahan, the lead character in Dirty Harry portrayed by Clint Eastwood,…