“Almost all conflict is a result of violated expectations” (Blaine Lee, The Power Principle) To avoid relational frustrations and mistrust, expectations between people need to be clarified. This is true at home as well as in business or dealings within other organisations. “Clean up your room and the bathroom before going out” sounds pretty straightforward…
“A microscope of faith is far better than a telescope of criticism” (Anon) While helpful feedback is aimed at improving or enhancing the performance of an employee or team and accelerating business results as a whole, such manager conversations often deteriorate into criticism, which is loosely defined as “the expression of disapproval of someone or…
All managers want their respective teams to function well and meet or supersede team goals. Getting the team to achieve over and above expectations, however, requires more than encouragement or inspiration. The manager will need to keep the team focused on the goals consistently if energy is going to be applied appropriately by each team…
We need to be aware as a manager, having adopted and implemented a 21st Century approach of truly engaging our employees with authenticity and care, that there might be one or two employees who pull the ring out of things and attempt to get as much out of the manager as possible. These specific employees,…
A friend of mine had the unfortunate experience of having a heart attack. He told me that it was like having an elephant sitting on his chest – the pain, the helplessness, the debilitation. Upon recovery, the doctor who had been attending him spoke of the new diet he would have to follow. Up to…
Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics, once said: “There are two things people want more than sex and money … recognition and praise”. Repeatedly, the one motivating factor that heads employee lists is appreciation for a job well executed. Good work not acknowledged seems to be a “demotivator” and results in employees not…
It is the main task of the CEO or business leader to establish the priorities that hopefully synergise to create a powerful money-making machine. Unless you are a one-person show (like a street vendor), you cannot personally implement them all – you need other key people to get them done. It was Walter Wriston who…
Sir William Edward Parry (1790 – 1855) was an English naval officer and record-setting explorer of the Arctic. He made one of the initial attempts to conquer the perilous trip to the North Pole and, in so doing, travelled further north than any other previous explorer – a record that stood for almost fifty years….
