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Your Company’s Purpose Matters More Than What You Sell

May 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

A while back we shared a TED Talk named “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” given by Simon Sinek. Sinek’s 18-minute message can be boiled down to one sentence: People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. In essence, your purpose is more important than the products or services you offer when selling to a client.

Sinek is not alone in his thinking, as other leaders have echoed this sentiment. Most recently was Bill Taylor in an article, “It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What You Believe,” for the Harvard Business Review Blog.

How To Motivate Employees

March 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Last week we discussed the foundation of employee motivation, which is trust. In order for an employee to be motivated at all, they must first have faith in their manager and the company they work for, believing that upper management and the owners will follow through on their promises. Once you’ve established trust with your staff, you can then do other things to improve your staff’s motivation. We’ll focus on how to motivate employees today.

Key Items to Include in your Employee Training Program

February 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

If you research the cost of training a new employee, you’ll discover a variety of answers. But there’s one similarity throughout them all – it’s not cheap. Whether it’s hiring an employee for a brand new position or replacing a departed staff member, every business owner and manager wants his or her new employee training to be effective.

Here are two things that an effective employee training program can’t be without.

How Great Leaders And Companies Inspire Action [Video]

January 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

A colleague recently sent me a link to a TED talk by Simon Sinek named “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” In less than 20 minutes, Simon succinctly conveys how great leaders inspire those around them and how companies’ marketing departments can do the same.

In a nutshell, inspirational leaders all start with why.

I’ve crafted a summary of his presentation below, but if you have 18 minutes, I encourage you to listen, as Simon is a great storyteller and teacher.

Procrastination and Work: A Deadly Combination

October 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

“I’ll do that later.”

Those words might be harmless. Or they might indicate a huge problem—procrastination.

Last week Derick offered a framework for you, the private business owner, about how to get things done. Today we’re going to discuss one reason why your employees don’t get things done.

I’ll walk you through why people procrastinate, signs of procrastination in the workplace, its impact, and what to do about it.

Collaboration – Key to Workplace Success

October 17, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Many of you operate highly successful, growing companies—places where the work environment is energized and your teams work hard, have fun, and enjoy their jobs. Unfortunately, this type of workplace is too often in the minority.

In survey after survey, many Americans report that they simply do not like their jobs. In fact, according to the Conference Board’s latest survey, only 45% reported that they were satisfied with their jobs, a big decline from the 61% who were satisfied 20 years earlier. This is sad because if you are going to spend the majority of your life doing something, you should enjoy it.

So I got to thinking about the places where I enjoyed my job the most. As I considered them, I realized that the jobs I have enjoyed were ones where the environment was positive and the workplace was collaborative. In general, these were places where employees actually enjoyed working together to achieve common goals.

How do successful leaders create environments where collaboration is the norm and encouraged? Is that even possible in today’s workplace given the pace of work, quantity of the work, and productivity demands placed on today’s workers?

I would say yes it is possible and, in fact, probably what our businesses need now more than ever before. Chances are good if you can create a collaborative work environment for your company, you will see a dramatic increase in productivity and, in turn, job satisfaction (which we all know leads to employees staying with you longer).

Silence Is A Communication Tool

August 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

When a business owner works with employees in order to grow their soft skills, one area of focus is often communication. A business owner wants an employee to ask the right questions, provide concise answers, and even diffuse an upset customer or vendor when the situation demands it. Moreover, good communication training focuses heavily on listening skills.

Still, one communication skill that is often overlooked is the use of silence.

Empowerment: A Simple Act That Leads To More Ethical Behavior In The Workplace

August 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Empower is defined by Merriam-Webster as “to give official authority or legal power; to enable.” The word has such a powerful impact when implemented in the workplace.

Empowered employees are crucial to running a successful business. They have the authority to make decisions, are able to take responsibility for their work, and are generally happier and more productive; they feel like a critical member of the team.

There’s one important reason why managers should strive to empower employees: it leads to more ethical decision-making.

Conducting Meetings That Will Make Employees Weep With Joy

August 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

We all value our time. It’s not like money—there aren’t other ways to create more. So why do we call meetings just for the sake of having a meeting or take precious working hours to sit in a boardroom and shoot the breeze?

Meetings are necessary in business, but they don’t have to be the bane of our existence. While bad meetings drive us crazy, good meetings can inspire and motivate employees. Gretchen Rubin, author of best-seller The Happiness Project, recalled a friend that worked at the Department of Justice. Rubin’s friend once told her, “Jamie Gorelick runs a meeting so well, it brings tears to my eyes.”

That’s the goal.

Conducting productive meetings takes skill. I’ve compiled a list of traits that all productive meetings have. Of course this list isn’t comprehensive, but you’re headed in the right direction if you can check these off at your next meeting.

How to Find & Retain People for Jobs No One Wants

August 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Let’s all be honest here. Every company has them, jobs that are so “miserable” that it is almost impossible to find anyone to do them. And if you are lucky enough to hire someone for that miserable job, you then have to work really hard to retain them.

I use the word “miserable” here as a term to describe those jobs that you probably wouldn’t want to do yourself but usually are critical and vital for the your daily operations to run smoothly. The sad reality is that these jobs are usually some of the most important you could fill because the role is critical in keeping your business functioning.

So how do you do it?

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