This is a guest post by Career and Executive Coach, Dean Karrel. Dialogue about the importance of soft skills and social skills in business settings is nothing new. There have been books written on the subject, articles on business websites, and many stories in magazines. You’ve probably received emails about seminars or courses offered at local colleges. If you attend any … [Read more...]
About Guest Blogger
5 Leadership Tips to Improve Your Bottom Line
I recently came across the article "Five Human Resource Tips to Improve Your Bottom Line," by Charlotte Canning, Vice President of Brand and Culture at Hoffer Plastics Corporation and while it absolutely applies to HR professionals, the advice is perfect for leaders, too. Here is Charlotte's best advice, as it relates to your leadership role. Protect employees' quality of … [Read more...]
Want Employees to Love What They Do? Here Are 4 Ways to Get There
Insights from Shawn Burcham, author of Keeping Score with GRITT: Straight Talk Strategies for Success Bosses might want to take notice if employees view their jobs as “the daily grind.” A disgruntled and disengaged workforce can undermine production and harm customer relations, while a happy, engaged workforce does the opposite. “If you take care of your employees, they … [Read more...]
Ensure Vacation Success With Candid Conversations
Summer is slipping by, so if you or your employees are part of the more than 50 percent of U.S. employees who leave vacation days on the table at the end of the year, it's time to encourage everyone (including yourself) to plan a vacation before the days of summer are long gone. But, first. Let's talk about why so many people don't use their earned vacation time. In a study … [Read more...]
The Rules for Approaching Leadership Decisions
You make decisions all the time, from the trivial ones, like what to eat and what route to take to work, to more serious ones, like where to buy home or whether to accept that promotion. For most decisions, the choice is easy. You have the experience and knowledge necessary to make a quick decision. When it comes to leadership, says Art Markman, author of Bring Your Brain to … [Read more...]
3 Teamwork Lessons from Our Founding Fathers
Quint Studer, author of Building a Vibrant Community: How Citizen-Powered Change Is Reshaping America has traveled across America observing communities, from the smallest towns to the largest cities. As he interacts with so many diverse Americans, he has seen a predominant theme: People who work together, win together. "In communities where people come together, put their … [Read more...]
Learning to Say “Yes” and “No”
This is an excerpt from Bring Your Brain to Work: Using Cognitive Science to Get a Job, Do it Well, and Advance Your Career, a brand-new leadership book by Art Markman. Think about the requests people make of you. How do you generally respond? If you’re like most of us, you have a dominant response. Some people are prone to assent to requests. For example, Greg told me … [Read more...]
Would You Get an “F” on Employee Development?
Seventy percent of U.S. employees say they’re at least somewhat likely to leave their current company and accept an offer with a new company that’s known for investing in employee learning and development, according to a study from Instructure conducted by The Harris Poll. That statistic is a pretty clear indicator that employees (likely your employees) want opportunities … [Read more...]
Warning Signs Your Staff Lacks Purpose (and What to Do About It)
This is a guest post by personal development coach Bernardo Moya and author of The Question: Find Your True Purpose. It's all too easy, in the drive to grow your bottom line and build your customer base, to lose sight of keeping your staff motivated. That can have a bad effect on business. Ask yourself: Does your business have any of these symptoms: Unhappy staff are … [Read more...]
10 Things Your Employees are Thinking
This is a guest post from Roberta Chinsky Matuson. If you think it’s tough being a manager these days, try being an employee. Most are in the position of having to go with the flow, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they do so with a smile on their face. Here are 10 things your employees wish you knew about them: "We are happy to have a job." But that doesn’t necessarily … [Read more...]