The dogs barking, the beeping, announcing yourselves, talking while on mute, hold music, can make conference calls feel painful. In this day of constant mobility, we are all on conference calls frequently. The more time we spend on them, the more important it becomes to find a way to make them the best they can be. Your conference calls do not need to be boring or dreaded, I have some ideas to help you take charge and make it a better experience for everyone.
Read MoreWhat an amazing experience it is to attend a conference surrounded by smart passionate people in your industry. Do you ever feel like you have the conference crash? It is the adult brain is not used to sitting in a classroom actively listening for 3 days? Is it that we are overloaded with how to come home and implement all the good ideas and not know where to start? Maybe a little lack of sleep and an extra cookie at the break do not help either. If you are like me I come home and feel exhausted and completely ecstatic at the same time.
Read MoreTake a moment to think about your organization’s vision. What are your short-term and long-term goals? In what ways are you struggling? What are you doing well? What mountain peak do you want to climb?
While these questions should be easy to answer, the direction they provide may be harder to figure out. Sometimes it is hard to know where to go next and what is going to help you achieve your goals.
Read MoreIt’s a snow day today in Central Ohio. I can remember when I was a kid going to sleep seeing snow falling and wishing for a day like this. At that time – the only way to find out if you had a snow day was to get up early, turn on the radio and listen to the alphabetical list of school districts being read. If you missed it – you had to wait 15 minutes or so (which seemed like an hour) until they read it again.
Read MoreCindy Dean, MS., Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Senior Consultant, Grays Peak Strategies
Years ago leaders of large companies seldom turned outside of the organization for help in solving problems. Today, however, with more and more diverse work forces, changing technology and global markets, leaders need help with many aspects of organizational day-to-day functions. The list of topics for which they seek help is endless and consultation within organizations is a fast growing enterprise. Whatever the topic, it is help that is being solicited and understanding how to help is important to any consultant.
Read MoreThere are a million platitudes about how to be a leader. As a self-admitted leadership junky, I am always interested in learning about different perspectives and ideas from books, Ted Talks, you name it. This summer at a child support leadership conference in Arizona, I learned that the greatest inspiration in leadership strength is surrounding yourself with mentors and great leaders. It started out as an interesting conversation at dinner about a friend’s son who recently attended blacksmith school. There were a lot of questions about what blacksmiths do today and what a lost art it is.
Read MoreWhat are the skills and characteristics needed to do your job? Would you consider empathy as being one of them?
Empathy goes beyond what sympathy is; if a person is empathetic they are able to experience and relate to the other person’s thoughts, emotions, and experiences rather than just understand them (Center for Creative Leadership, 2016). While being empathetic may come naturally to some people, it is a skill that can be learned.
So why do you need empathy in a work setting?
Read MoreIn the “The Power of Full Engagement” Jim Loehr and Tony Swartz initially looked at well-being through the lens of professional athletes. Our culture values busyness and constant movement. A professional and life marathon basically. But here is the thing: even a professional marathon runner needs a break. And in fact the very best and elite athletes understand and practice intentional and even ritualistic disengagement in order to be fully engaged when most needed. Instead of a marathon maybe we have to see our life as a series of sprints with equally intense moments of disengagement and rejuvenation.
Read MoreThe United States was created by immigrants settling the Atlantic coast and wave after wave of immigrants after that to the present day. One important attribute of American culture is the process of assimilation into the existing culture and the input into the evolution of our culture.
Read MoreWe’ve all heard the wildly disappointing stereotypes about this generation: “millennials are so lazy,” “millennials are too self-absorbed,” “millennials only care about themselves,” etc. Sadly, as this happens far too often, the unfavorable actions of a few have tarnished the reputation of the entire generation.
Read MoreHaving a new business is somewhat like having a new baby. I don’t mean to undermine the significance of having a baby, I have had three and two are teenagers now. But like having a baby, starting a business sometimes keeps you up at night, it needs constant supervision, it’s hard, sometimes you feel overwhelmed and feel like you are doing it all wrong.
Read MoreThe child support system is full of acronyms and legalese language that can be confusing and overwhelming to parents. Like the medical field was to my family, we are discussing stressful and life altering events and facts that can’t really be changed. Child support impacts, children, money, relationships, and employment. These are often of the biggest stressors in life. Empathy means listening, being open, and displaying understanding. We may not realize it, but we can make a lasting impact and difference on the outcome of a case by treating our child support clients with empathy.
Read More“I walked out of the meeting with a smile, motivated and excited to get working on the project”…. Or “I walked out and wanted that hour of my life back.” If you are in charge of the meeting, you get to help decide what people’s mindset it after they leave your meeting. The gооd nеwѕ is that there are 5 easy steps to help ensure you have a meeting that people will want to come back to. When done wеll, a structured meeting саn bе a valuable tооl for pushing your tеаm’ѕ progress forward. You are the leader, so ensure you have a set agenda, gather feedback ahead of time, invite the right people and manage to the clock.
Read MoreCol·lab·o·ra·tion is by definition the action of working with someone to produce or create something. It is not working on the same project separately. It seems in the world that we operate today that collaboration is more than a “nice to have”, but a “must have”.
Read MoreA recent study published in the Harvard Business Review shows that happier employees are more productive, innovative and help to create a work environment that your competition would be envious of[1]. There are increased demands on employees and the stress can take a toll on their health and resiliency. There are small and inexpensive things that we as leaders can to do increase workplace positivity:
Read MoreHiring the perfect candidate is difficult. First you need an updated and meaningful job description and particularly in the Public Sector where responsibilities tend to shift over time, that is harder than you would think.
Read MoreWhenever I am planning a training I like to visualize a funnel. I start at the top with the largest amount of information and number of ideas and then work my way to the bottom to fine tune the focus of the material and approach. Planning for this training seemed to neatly follow my imagery but what was surprising to me was what ended up at the end. Maureen and I spoke to several key leaders about what they wanted to see in this customer service training. They gave us really great recommendations to build on and develop. We also spent time talking about context as an influence to high quality customer service. We heard from leaders from MAXUMUS that the Baltimore office had experienced a lot of change in a short period of time including changes in leadership. Any change, even good change, requires energy and can take a toll on people. So we asked ourselves, “What if we use part of the training to allow them to talk about their passions and the importance of self-care?”. What?!? How is this related to customer service? What will they think? Will they stand up mid-training and leave? Well, we took the risk. We took the risk to go off script a little and tune into the people.
Read MoreRecently I was asked to coordinate a workshop on Women in Leadership to take place at a Child Support Conference. Child Support is a field with a lot of women in leadership roles, and this seemed like a great place to have this discussion. In preparation for this session, I have been reflecting on my own story. I have spent time discussing these concepts with successful women, listening to TED talks, listening to podcast, and reading a lot of articles. I have become interested in women’s experiences, how they’ve overcome obstacles, how they find balancing of motherhood, and how they have stuck with their vision. In having these conversations, I am learning a lot from not only the women in leadership roles that I admire, but I have learned a lot about myself. Everyone defines success differently and there is not one path to success. This is true and in my mind it has come down to three top themes:
Read MoreIf уоu talk аbоut орtіmіѕm, you will find no shortage of quotes, clichés, proverbs or stories to guide уоu. Орtіmіѕm is the original Amеrісаn drеаm. Have you ever had a period of time in your job where you felt like everything was right and hopeful? Why did you have those positive feelings? Were you connected to the mission of the organization, felt like you had purpose, felt valued as a whole person, or all of the above?
Read MoreHоw dо you hіrе mіllеnnіаlѕ tо work fоr government аgеnсіеѕ? Like any good huntеr, you nееd to go where the object of your search lives. Recruiting millennials does require some rethinking of old methods. This technology-dependent crowd are not only enticed by money but also a job with a purpose. Here are some key strategies to attract this generation to your workforce.
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