Author Archive
The Worst Excuse for Poor Time Management
Short article #31
On the heels of making resolutions for 2010, there’s a good chance that better time management is on the list for many professionals.
After our resolutions are cast in plaster, however, the excuses usually start their grand entry as we concave to old ways and habits under increasing pressure to get more done.
So, what’s the worst excuse for poor time management?
Here are a few possibilities, see what you think.
A. I never have enough time.
B. There are too many things I’m trying to juggle all at once.
C. I’m disorganized by nature, but I can find whatever paperwork I need to put my hands on, so what’s the big deal?
D. People are pulling me in so many directions right now.
What’s the right answer? What’s your answer?
Motivating “Distance Employees”
Blogger Jason Christensen linked to a recent BNET.com article interview I gave regarding “Can’t Pay Your Employees What You Like? Praise Them Instead“
You might want to check out Jason’s article on motivating and building the morale of remote employees, I found it pertinent. He offers up a number of useful ideas especially if you have employees scattered about. See: ON A BUDGET: Motivating your team, bolstering loyalty & elevating morale. (Full Series) « “Life as a Remote User”
Motivating, managing distance employees presents a few unique challenges like…
- Less face time to create open dialogue about work goals, problems, feedback, updates, etc.
- Communication is relationship and distance can impact building relationship and trust.
4 Powerful Words to Employees’ Ears
Short Article #29
“What do you think?” asked the manager to her employee. Surprised, the employee responded, “Well, I don’t know if this would work or not but I think…”
Those four words posed in the question, “What do you think?” may be more telling of one’s management style than any other sign.
Why? Here are four possible reasons, you may want to add one in a comment yourself:
- It’s a sign of whether you genuinely care to hear the opinions of others, or just want to appear like you do.
- It’s a sign of whether you lead by “getting others to want to do” OR “getting others to do” what you believe should be done.
Employee Disengagement or Low Morale?
Short article # 28
Is there a difference in disengagement and low morale? Perhaps, as author Terry Kabachnick asserts in her book, I Quit But Forgot To Tell You.
Low morale is not disengagement. Low morale occurs when an employee gets frustrated with the work load, the work environment or their supervisor. Disengagement occurs when an employee ceases to care, ie. Their heart’s just not in it anymore…!
How bad is disengagement? A Gallup poll a few years ago revealed that 74% of American workers admit to being disengaged, this costs U.S. organizations $350 billion annually in lost productivity.
What are some of the signs of disengagement?
Meet Intrinsic Needs
People make improvements for their own reasons and that includes making efforts to increase job performance. You can certainly influence this transformation and have astounding results, if you understand the intrinsic (natural, innate) motivations you need to meet.
One well-researched study (Deci & Ryan, 1985; 2000) maintained that people have three innate needs: the need for competence (ability to attain desired results), the need for autonomy (work independence) as well as the need for
People Remember Our “Words”
The reader comment by RStone below, referencing a quote-gem by Mother Theresa (see post 10 Inspiring Quotes On Leadership | Manage My Employees) provides an apt reminder that our ‘words etch in the minds’ of our employees.
RStone:
January 9, 2010 at 9:00 am (Edit)
“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”
- Mother Theresa
I’ve led a number of seminars on “Giving Praise” and I’m struck by how many managers, can recall years later, the words spoken to them by a former supervisor, military commander or other authority figure. Those words, as Mother Theresa put it, still ‘echoed’ in their minds and more often than not, merely recalling those words stimulated
Motivating Employees in Tough Economic Times
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Everyone knows times are tough, but what will your organization do exactly to keep employee morale and performance high?
I’ve provided a link (Engaging Employees Tops Leadership Priorities in Tough Economic Times) to a nice article on what leaders can do to rev up workplace attitudes. In addition, I’ve added a few tips you might want to comment on…
Definitely, be a straight shooter on what these tough times mean to your company, and the department. Don’t spin the truth one iota.
Battling Low Employee Morale
One industry, healthcare, has all but escaped the draconian impact of the economic recession. However, healthcare is, as other industries are—battling low employee morale.
According to a survey by CareerBuilder (referenced in this article: Healthcare employers battle low employee morale | Healthcare Finance News) nearly 4 of 10 healthcare employees report low motivation and 1 in 4 say they have no loyalty to their employers.
Losing good employees costs the leaders of any organization dearly. This is especially true in healthcare where job knowledge and experience is valued so highly (or it should be).
What can healthcare employers, or any employer for that matter do to ramp up morale:
Get innovative about employee incentives. Think in terms of low-cost but meaningful rewards. Don’t stop your recognition program just because the budget doesn’t permit you to reward like you once did, instead revamp.
The Cost of Losing Your Top Employees
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Recently I was asked in a media interview whether losing employees was something businesses really needed to focus on that much, today. The reporter (from CBS) was curious whether or not employees, given the current 10 percent-plus unemployment, would really be looking around that much for another job?
I told him, “There’s always the threat of losing your top performers, they’re more marketable, and savvy competitors may be waiting for the right opportunity to lure them away.”
I also shared with him that businesses simply cannot afford to lose better employees, the cost is exorbitant and the damage left behind can be devastating to the bottom-line with a ripple effect sent throughout the team.
Here are four of the points he and I discussed in that interview (see what you think about them and comment back if you like):
Lost expertise. When good employees leave you, they take their ideas, knowledge, problem-solving abilities, relationships, and creativity to another employer.
Revamp Customer Care in 2010
Adapt your business to the changes for 2010. Mainly I’m referring to:
- Uncertain economies (we ‘hope’ the recession is giving way to better times… but we don’t know yet).
- Cautious consumers + cautious business owners and executives means more hesitancy to spend or invest.
- Customer power. Customers, have more suppliers pursuing their business than ever before and consequently enjoy more leverage.
To me, this establishes the need for revamped customer care strategies in 2010. Here are three pertinent strategies that have immediate merit:
Reassess the steps your customers must customarily take to purchase from your business. Honestly assess whether those steps are designed to make it easier or more efficient for your operation, versus make it more pleasant and time efficient for your customer. There’s a delicate balance between the two—make sure you’ve taken this into account in 2010.
