What Every Essential Employee Needs to Know

Unlike many, I relish my air travel time!  No, it’s not the appeal of having my picture taken by TSA or the long security lines.  I don’t particularly love the loading process either.  What I love is the requirement to disconnect while on the plane.  It’s an “enforced” time when I can’t talk on my cell phone, send emails, or participate in the many outside distractions that happen every day.

So I treasure this “down time” that I can spend any way I like.  I often read, sometimes watch the movie, take a nap, work a Sudoku puzzle, or even write.  And sometimes I just think about a situation I’m dealing with.  If I’m traveling west in the evening, I spend a lot of time looking at a beautiful sunset.  Regardless, I’m having alone time–which is unusual and very meditative–even while riding in the same vehicle as several hundred other people.

Now, you  may wonder how this relates to workplace success.  Well, it’s very important for each of us to spend “down time” so that we can think more strategically, solve problems, and consider the future of our careers.  I use the airplane as down time, but we all need to carve that time for ourselves regardless of whether we have a trip scheduled.

How might you find some “meditative” time during your busy work day?  What do you need to think about?  What complex problems are you dealing with that you haven’t found a solution to yet?  Who do you need to build relationships with–and how might you do that?  Where is your career going in the next few years?  Where does your organization need an infusion of creativity?

Let us know how much “down” time you get–or how much you need.  And share your strategies for getting it. They might help someone else think more strategically in the workplace.

On this 8th day of 2012 I feel hope that we are at the doorstep of economic recovery in this country.  I believe that the key to accelerating economic recovery is to ignite human potential in organizations.  

During periods of economic recession the positive feelings and actions that promote growth, innovation, and success in organizations are atrophied, stifled, squashed, or even set aside.  Energy is focused toward survival and staying out of the line of fire.

It’s time for CEOs and senior executes to wake up the sleeping giant!   They need to reignite the human potential to move beyond recovery to GREATNESS!  Aligned and energized employees make the unimaginable possible.  What is it going to take to unleash the beast of human potential in your organization?

Well, it’s official–we have passed the winter solstice and the days are getting longer!  Even this morning–only 4 days after the solstice–I noticed that the sun is coming up just a bit earlier.  It’s very encouraging, isn’t it?  We have passed the “longest night” and are heading toward the light.

My guess is that many workplaces will be happy to see 2011 in the rear view mirror.  It was a pretty terrible year economically all around the world.  But finances aren’t the only measure of success.  By other measures, we may have reached a turning point.  When finances are bad, we start to consider what is really important.  How much “stuff” do we really need?  How do we really want to treat others–and ourselves?

As the days start to grow, the New Year is fast approaching.  This is a great time to think about your own turning point.  What do you want to do differently–at work or at home?  I’m trying to pare my turning points down to just a couple.  It’s tempting to want to change LOTS of things, but trying to turn many things around all at once can just have you spinning in circles.  I have found that focusing on just one or two is much more effective and gives a much greater chance for success.

What will be your focus for 2012?  Maybe pick one for business, and one for yourself.  I think my personal one will be to take better care of myself (after the eating and drinking of the holidays have padded my middle a bit too much).  And for work?  I think I’ll focus on doing the work I love most–writing and getting the word out about workplace success.  I have a few more days to finalize these ideas, but they’re a good place to start.

Let me know what you want to turn around this year.  Let’s work on it together!  I’ll report my progress here, and you can too.

Photo courtesy David Maddox

I just got back from a fantastic ski!  But it didn’t start out that way.  This morning was the coldest of the new winter, -10 degrees at our house.  The high was only 15 degrees today, and it was one of those days that felt bone-chilling from the first moment.

So I didn’t really want to go skiing.  Aside from the cold that I’m not used to yet, we haven’t had any appreciable snow accumulation in over a week.  That means hard, crusty snow in most places–not very fun to ski on.

And it was getting late.  We had to wait for a delivery person, so we wouldn’t even get a start until almost 4 p.m.  That means we would end our ski after the sun set.  Strike three, right?

Wrong!  On the positive side of deciding to ski was the dog and husband who needed a run, the fact that I didn’t get any exercise yesterday, and that I might as well get used to the cold because it’s not going away.

So we went, heading into the backcountry for an hour.  Surprisingly, the snow was pretty great and very soft most of the way, we got a great workout, and we came back to our vehicle by the light of a 3/4 moon and Jupiter shining in the sky.  Yes, it was cold, but more than that it was magical and fun and totally worth the effort.  And the hot tub felt even better after some time outside!

 This little story is timely because we’re heading so quickly toward the end of 2011.  It’s a great time to assess where we’re making excuses and where we need to find that elusive motivation that we have allowed to hide–in a closet, under our desk, wherever.  Dig your motivation out, dust it off, and decide to tackle your goal.  And you don’t even have to wait until 2012 to start.  You may find it’s the most rewarding experience that you ever avoided!

Write back–let me know what goal you’re going to strive for.  You have my support!

Kaiser Motivation Commercial

  I watched the Emmy’s last night.  I always seem to get sucked into them, and  I’m wondering why.  Is it the beautiful dresses, fabulous jewelry, and amazingly high heels?  Is it the men–looking dashing in their tuxedos?  Is it the fun of watching actors out of their element (funny how they have a hard time making a speech of their own writing)?  Or is it the entertainment that is sometimes great–sometimes not?  (Loved the Canadian Tenors and Jane Lynch.  Didn’t love the mid-Emmy song with Michael Bolton or the singing intros.)

  I don’t think it’s any of these things for me–although I do love looking at the fashion.  The appeal is really watching people who are at the top of their games.  The Emmy’s is really a celebration of great talent and hard work.  Nobody gets there by accident.  Even the “Modern Family” writers said they had worked for a long time to get the show on TV.  The amazing thing is that all these people are passionate about their craft–and are willing to do what it takes to get there.  I love that they celebrate the best and brightest in their fields.

  So, what are you passionate about–enough to really dedicate yourself to it?  What work do you want to be recognized for?  What game do you want to be at the top of?  Once you figure that out–you can start taking steps toward getting there!