In many workplaces, workaholics rule the roost. Just yesterday, the most emailed article from the NY Times was “How Some Men Fake an 80-Hour Workweek, and Why It Matters”. The article cites research that shows that some employees (particularly men) have learned how to “pass” as workaholics to receive higher ratings on performance reviews. The … Read more
Has this happened to you? Growing up, you came home from school having received a 98 on a test. You tell your Mom or Dad. They reply, “What happened to the other 2 points?” You bring your report card home. You’ve got all A’s except for one B+. What does the conversation focus on? The … Read more
Are you tired of spinning your wheels? Working hard to get ahead, only to find yourself in the same place yet again? Progress is the mother of all motivators. According to research, when you feel you’re moving forward in your job, you feel and perform at your best. Conversely, those times when you spin your wheels drain your drive … Read more
Appreciation matters. But you knew that already. Because it matters to you. We all want to feel valued and recognized for our contributions. Appreciation is one of the most powerful accelerators of employee engagement. For example, research conducted by the O.C. Tanner Company shows that adding appreciation boosts scores at low-trust companies from 35% engaged to … Read more
Meetings.(Cue the groans and eye rolls.) Nobody loves them. Let’s face it, most people would rather be anywhere else than in a business meeting. Are meetings doomed to be inherently horrible? Or have we just settled for mediocrity because we know no better way? This subject of “meeting madness” came with two groups I worked with … Read more
Who wouldn’t want to be an All-Star? We’re not talking strictly sports here: let’s broaden the definition of an All-Star as someone who’s recognized for being an outstanding performer. All-Stars aren’t just especially lucky. Their achievements are based on some key fundamentals, ones that we can all replicate. My 10 year old son, Alexander, has played … Read more
I’ve traveled to Europe twice in the last month: to France and Germany. Both times, I stayed in hotels with a master key. You can see it in the picture above. (This is from my hotel in Munich.) The master key works like this: when you get into your room, you put the … Read more
Sometimes connections show up in the most unlikely of places. This past Saturday, my family played the chore game for the first time in a very long time. The chore game works like this: All of the household chores are written up on strips of paper. All the strips are put in a bucket. Each … Read more
