Previously I've written that I disagree with the term of work/life balance; work should naturally be part of our lives and the semantic suggestion that life doesn't begin until after work is inaccurate and non-productive. Yesterday, this link featuring Soledad O'Brien appeared in the Huffington Post and she sums it up beautifully.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/soledad-obrien-work-life-balance_us_56ccb224e4b0ec6725e42911
It is unrealistic to separate work and life. Is the time we spend at work a major portion of our lives? Absolutely. Consider the time spent apart from a traditional work environment (time spent at home) are we still working (doing laundry, helping the kids with homework, gardening)? Yes. Work is inextricably linked with life.
The disfavor we do ourselves by suggesting otherwise is to deprive ourselves of both a richer and fuller work experience and fully dimensional lives. We should not actively label work as drudgery - it should bring purpose to our lives (and if it truly doesn't, then we need to find different work). In our society, we tend to denigrate all work as something that we just have to trudge through so that we can afford the things that we want and need. We should be more accepting of work as an integral part of our lives; that working is more than a necessity, it is a purpose. It is our personal contribution to a better and thriving society.
And as a note to those who have the responsibility of leading a workforce, it is part of our job to ensure that work does have purpose and that it does enrich the lives of the team members. And whether team leader or member of the team, we should strive to make our work as enjoyable as possible.
Just as eating and breathing and playing is integrated into our lives, work should be as well. We should enjoy it as much.
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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
Friday, February 26, 2016
Friday, February 19, 2016
What Do You Feed Your Team?
Culturally, we have been schooled in good nutrition. From our formal learning to the labeling on packages, we emphasize the value of putting good things in our bodies knowing that this will make us healthier, more productive individuals. We spend countless hours ensuring that our children have the right nutrients so that we minimize the potential impact of disease and maximize the opportunity for healthier lives.
Shouldn't our communication in the workplace do the same?
Instead, much of the feedback overheard in the office is made up of toxic substances: "You didn't do this. . ." "I don't really believe you have the right. . ." "Your work on this project was well below standard."
Where is the good nutrition in any of this? Where is the communication that builds strong professionals? Where is the positive input with which the individual can grow?
Yes, there is a point in which corrective action is necessary. . .but so often we are focused on solely that. There should be at least, if not more, emphasis on the positive; we need to provide our teams with strong, nutritional communication that allows them to minimize the impact of that which might damage them and maximize their professional growth.
Just as our bodies need positive nutrients to thrive. . . our professional lives need the same. "Great job on the Connelly project - I especially appreciated the detail." "Every day you bring such a positive work ethic to our team - and I am so grateful for that contribution." "Your consistency in assuring we always have the right product is really what keeps this team going."
Strong bodies are built by providing the right stuff. . .strong teams and strong bodies of work are built the same way.
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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
Shouldn't our communication in the workplace do the same?
Instead, much of the feedback overheard in the office is made up of toxic substances: "You didn't do this. . ." "I don't really believe you have the right. . ." "Your work on this project was well below standard."
Where is the good nutrition in any of this? Where is the communication that builds strong professionals? Where is the positive input with which the individual can grow?
Yes, there is a point in which corrective action is necessary. . .but so often we are focused on solely that. There should be at least, if not more, emphasis on the positive; we need to provide our teams with strong, nutritional communication that allows them to minimize the impact of that which might damage them and maximize their professional growth.
Just as our bodies need positive nutrients to thrive. . . our professional lives need the same. "Great job on the Connelly project - I especially appreciated the detail." "Every day you bring such a positive work ethic to our team - and I am so grateful for that contribution." "Your consistency in assuring we always have the right product is really what keeps this team going."
Strong bodies are built by providing the right stuff. . .strong teams and strong bodies of work are built the same way.
Like it? Share it!
My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
Friday, February 12, 2016
Glue: 11 Things that Hold a Team Together
Great teams hold together. Great teams are bonded. What, however are those bonds? What enables a team to work and live together. . .enjoy each other's personalities and revel in their talents? These simple, eleven concepts explain it all.
Common Purpose - all pulling together, same direction to the same goal.
Honesty - not "Real Housewives I feel I must share how much I hate what you're wearing. . ." but instead the ability to relate, comprehend and honor what's real.
Humor - you've got to laugh.
Work Ethic - some will always work hard than others, but all must contribute.
Principled - you all will do what's right.
Sense of Accomplishment - at the end of the day, you all realize that what you're doing is important,
Trust - like a family, maybe better than a family.
Loyalty - loyal to the cause and to the team.
Empathy - walking in the other person's shoes.
Compassion - the ability to understand.
Joy - Yes, joy!
This is what I've experienced and this is what I know to be true. . .if you're team has these things - you really are a team for the ages.
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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
Common Purpose - all pulling together, same direction to the same goal.
Honesty - not "Real Housewives I feel I must share how much I hate what you're wearing. . ." but instead the ability to relate, comprehend and honor what's real.
Humor - you've got to laugh.
Work Ethic - some will always work hard than others, but all must contribute.
Principled - you all will do what's right.
Sense of Accomplishment - at the end of the day, you all realize that what you're doing is important,
Trust - like a family, maybe better than a family.
Loyalty - loyal to the cause and to the team.
Empathy - walking in the other person's shoes.
Compassion - the ability to understand.
Joy - Yes, joy!
This is what I've experienced and this is what I know to be true. . .if you're team has these things - you really are a team for the ages.
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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
Friday, February 5, 2016
You Got This!
From personal experience, I vouch this happens.
There is a large meeting for which one needs to prepare. And there are three smaller meetings in the way. And someone just asked you to research something you really haven't worked on in. . .oh, about a decade. And there is the most impossible conversation with the most impossible colleague at the most inopportune time. . .
And you start to panic. You wonder how you can possibly get this all done. You start to doubt yourself. . .and things start to get worse. . .
Here's the thing, though. You've done this. . .maybe a thousand times before. More than likely, you did it quite successfully. You know most of the pieces. . .you know how to fit it all together. . .you've got a great skill set.
You got this.
In the past you've done the large meeting. . .and the three small meetings. . .and on your way to a fourth meeting you gave a colleague the decade old fact they were seeking. Heck, you've probably even ducked out of one meeting to attend another.
You got this.
The uncomfortable situations. . .the difficult conversations. You know what's worked before. . .you know how people have responded in the past. You know how to relate and be relatable.
You got this.
The impossible schedule. . .you've re-worked hundreds of schedules and you'll re-work hundreds more. Quite successfully we might add.
You got this.
I've come to the conclusion that a large part of faith (and comfort) is comprised of personal experience. So when an uncertain future looms, take it on with the confidence that everything you've learned before will serve you, and those that surround you, very well.
Indeed. . .you got this.
Like it? Share it!
My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle. Get it.
There is a large meeting for which one needs to prepare. And there are three smaller meetings in the way. And someone just asked you to research something you really haven't worked on in. . .oh, about a decade. And there is the most impossible conversation with the most impossible colleague at the most inopportune time. . .
And you start to panic. You wonder how you can possibly get this all done. You start to doubt yourself. . .and things start to get worse. . .
Here's the thing, though. You've done this. . .maybe a thousand times before. More than likely, you did it quite successfully. You know most of the pieces. . .you know how to fit it all together. . .you've got a great skill set.
You got this.
In the past you've done the large meeting. . .and the three small meetings. . .and on your way to a fourth meeting you gave a colleague the decade old fact they were seeking. Heck, you've probably even ducked out of one meeting to attend another.
You got this.
The uncomfortable situations. . .the difficult conversations. You know what's worked before. . .you know how people have responded in the past. You know how to relate and be relatable.
You got this.
The impossible schedule. . .you've re-worked hundreds of schedules and you'll re-work hundreds more. Quite successfully we might add.
You got this.
I've come to the conclusion that a large part of faith (and comfort) is comprised of personal experience. So when an uncertain future looms, take it on with the confidence that everything you've learned before will serve you, and those that surround you, very well.
Indeed. . .you got this.
Like it? Share it!
My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle. Get it.
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