Tag: workplace
What’s the Business Equivalent of Making the Bed?
The right ritual can get your day off to a productive start. For me, the best mornings begin in a quiet house, making and drinking my coffee just the way I like it. Everybody’s got... Continue reading
How to Keep Your Staff from Heading for the Exits
My office is on the fifth floor of a five-floor building and, although I take the elevator up, I usually take the stairs down. Every so often, I find someone from another office standing somewhere... Continue reading
This Is Why Leaders’ Work Is Never Done
Team development never ends -- not if you want a well-functioning, effective team. Sometimes when a team has recently averted a crisis or resolved a significant problem, they exclaim in a kind of relief: “We... Continue reading
How to Get Out from “Under the Bus”
“They threw me under the bus” is one of the most common expressions of complaint among employees who see themselves as the victims of intra- or inter-team sniping. Whenever I hear it, I picture tire... Continue reading
There’s a Right Way to Empower Employees Effectively
We often talk about empowerment when we want to indicate that we trust our people to make their own decisions, handle their own work, and do what’s best for the organization. But much too frequently,... Continue reading
Why Being Clear Is Even More Important Than Being Nice
It’s always risky for employees when managers are “too nice” and don’t give clear feedback about expectations, preferences, or necessary improvements. In effect, these managers stand by as employees go off the track rather than... Continue reading
How to Avoid the Downside of Workplace Sharing
It’s not easy to share responsibility. Getting a given job or project done well depends on having both appropriate structural underpinnings and the right combination of people, with the right meshing of values, commitments, personal... Continue reading
Why You Have to Deal with the Problem of Role Clarity
Organizational life can be confusing, what with changes in job roles or organizational structure, turnover in management or peers, or even the positive circumstance of company growth. But in too many companies, middle managers are... Continue reading