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#Leadership : 4 Warning Signs You Have A Toxic Company Culture…Make a Point of Practicing Early Detection, Because If you Protect your Culture, you’ll Protect your Future.

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When I took my first job leading a large team, I was sure I knew how to spot a toxic culture. And I was sure that I didn’t have it in my team.  I was wrong.

Free- Rusted Tanker

We had issues (many of them were my fault). It wasn’t long until I was a young leader with a toxic staff situation. If you’ve found yourself in that situation, know that you’re not alone.

Just like our bodies, most teams don’t stay healthy without a disciplined effort. I have come to believe that teams will drift toward some level of unhealth unless their leaders are watching vigilantly for the warning signs.

Now that I’ve helped several hundred clients build their teams, I’ve come to recognize there are several early warning signs to toxicity. And just like our physical health, early detection can be the difference maker between staying healthy and becoming terminal.

Here are four early warning signs to look for, and what you can do to fix them.

Sign #1: Rapid Growth Is Killing Your Culture

Believe it or not growth can be the root of toxicity. Growth is great. It’s fun. It’s the goal of all entrepreneurs. But when growth hits breakneck speed, culture is almost always at risk.

Just ask the folks at Zenefits, the three year old Silicon Valley startup that had a $4.5 billion valuation last year. A recent Forbes article outlined the CEO’s troubles that led to his resignation, and a Vanity Fair article outlined some of the cultural mishaps that have made a bad problem even worse.

David Sacks, the company’s new C.E.O. said, “It is no secret that Zenefits grew too fast, stretching both our culture and our controls.” A memo that was sent to the Zenefits staff banning use of the stairwells for smoking, drinking, eating, or inappropriate physical interactions in the stairwell were just a few of the major red flags that their culture was toxic. Many are speculating that the loss of their culture may end up being the death knell of a company with a great idea.

Are you in growth mode?

Take an inventory and make sure your culture can keep pace with your rate of growth. Double down your efforts to guard culture, even if it means slowing down a bit. Assign someone on staff the job of auditing how well your cultural values are being lived out. Growth is an addictive drug. But just as good culture is a Petri dish for growth, rapid growth can be the casket for culture.

 

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Sign #2: Nobody Talks About Problems

If nobody on your team is vocalizing the issues they see, or suggesting ways of improvement, one of two things is probably happening.

Either you’ve created the most successful company in the history of business and you know everything, or people don’t feel valued enough to think their opinions matter.

Transparency and the ability to raise issues is a hallmark of good culture and a smart team.

At Google GOOGL +0.06%, transparency is a cornerstone of the culture. As Lazlo Bock, head of People at Google, said in a recent interview, “The benefit of [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][transparency] is not just that people feel trusted…The other benefit is they’ll know what’s going on. They’ll make better decisions and they’ll create better products.”

When people feel that they can speak up appropriately without a fear of retribution, they feel valued. The culture goes from a toxic one to an innovative and energetic one. Giving your staff a platform to voice their thoughts lets them know that their ideas matter, which in turn leads to them innovating and creating better ways of doing things.

What vehicles are in place in your company that allow team members to bring up concerns and be transparent? How could you improve awareness of those vehicles to the whole team?

Sign #3: Everybody Talks About Problems

While you want to give people a place to feel heard and valued, the number one toxin I see kill culture is gossip. A workplace full of complaining, negativity, and back talk is a workplace that will have high turnover and low productivity.

 The solution?

Declare war on gossip.

My friend and client Dave Ramsey has a “zero tolerance” policy at his office about gossip. They simply do not tolerate it. Does this mean that nobody can bring up concerns? Not at all. He and his team have a motto: “Negatives go up; positives come down.” That means when there are problems, people are encouraged to take that problem “up” to their superiors instead of gossiping with colleagues.

When there is positive feedback, team members are strongly encouraged to send those “down” to team member under them on the org chart. It makes the staff feel valued, keeps the leadership informed of potential issues, and creates a sense of unity for the team. Most of all, it provides solutions to problems. Sideways complaining and blame shifting not only spreads ill will, it leaves problems festering with no real solution.

Do you have a clear policy on how complaints and concerns should be handled? How can you reiterate that among your team?

Sign #4: The System Becomes More Important Than the Mission

Many well meaning leaders hire, fire, strategize, and conduct business in a way that puts old systems ahead of their mission.

I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard something along the lines of “that’s the way it’s always been done,” as a reason for leaders making the decisions they do.

There’s certainly a place for sticking to the things that have been successful in the past, but doing things out of habit instead of mission will suck the life from your team and create a toxic culture.

People are rallied to vision and work hard for a mission they believe in. They want to be part of a company that stands by values, but isn’t a slave to systems that block achieving goals. The key to striking that balance is having a litmus test that can be used to decide whether to follow the system or not.

Ed Young is a pastor and friend who has a great test. He says, “Every church is a non-profit, but it has a profit. And that profit is life change.”

If a decision that will affect great life change means circumventing a system, they go for it. But if there isn’t enough potential life change to warrant breaking the system, they go forward with their proven processes.

What litmus test could you implement to tell people when to follow a system and when to ignore it?

I’ve seen these warning signs take root in really great teams over the years. The teams that address them early are able to make change and charge ahead. Those who don’t, suffer the consequences.

Make a point of practicing early detection, because if you protect your culture, you’ll protect your future.

 

Forbes.com | March 16, 2016 | William Vanderbloemen

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Your #Career : What to Do If you Think you’re About to Be Fired…Employees Often See the Signs a Termination is Coming Long Before it Actually Happens. Supervisors Avoid Them. Coworkers May Even Avoid Eye Contact.

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In Many Cases, a Worker is Subject to Repeat Disciplinary Meetings & May Even be Cautioned that If Behaviors Don’t Improve within a Certain Time Period, Dismissal is Guaranteed.

Employees often see the signs a termination is coming long before it actually happens. Supervisors avoid them. Coworkers may even avoid eye contact. In many cases, a worker is subject to repeat disciplinary meetings and may even be cautioned that if behaviors don’t improve within a certain time period, dismissal is guaranteed.

But whether an employee is braced for being fired or it comes as a complete surprise, the impact is usually just as devastating.

In instances where an employee sees it coming, it can be easy to wonder if action can be taken to prevent it from happening. Here are a few things you can do if you fear termination of employment is in your immediate future.

Don’t assume

Before you start desperately scrambling to save your job, take time to figure out what brought this fear on in the first place. Are you listening to rumors or is it just a general feeling in the air? Unless you’re absolutely certain your job is in jeopardy, don’t approach your employer or initiate any fact-finding missions with your co-workers.

Instead, spend your energy working as hard as you can to do the best job possible. If you’re concerned about your performance, speak to your supervisor about what you can do to improve without mentioning your fear of being fired. You’ll likely gain valuable feedback that you can put to use.

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Change your behavior

Of course, the best thing you can do is change the behavior that might lead to the end of your employment. Do you perpetually miss deadlines or turn in substandard work? Is your negative attitude impacting the employees around you?

Take time to determine the behaviors that are putting your job in jeopardy and do everything you can to prove to your employers you’ve changed. Pay close attention to your business’s superstar employees and ask for their advice. You’ll likely find your coworkers are more than happy to help a struggling team member, especially if you phrase it in a way that indicates you look up to them.

Clean up

When it becomes fairly clear your days are numbered, go through your work-issued devices and remove any personal information. Clean up your email inbox, as well. Your employer likely will lock your accounts on the day of your termination, so if you have any personal information you need, save it and take it home.

Begin discreetly taking home personal items like knickknacks and family photos, since you’ll likely be asked to box everything up in mere minutes before being escorted from the building. Try not to make your clean-up effort obvious to avoid alerting coworkers and supervisors to the fact that you’re preparing for a speedy exit.

Stay classy

No matter what happens, remain professional and classy at all times. The coworkers who watch your exit today could be the very people who help you later in your career.

Aside from maintaining your reputation, being professional is much more likely to lead your employer to think he might have made a mistake than being unprofessional, which only confirms the wisdom of the termination. Even after you’ve put the termination behind you, refrain from maligning your former employer in any way. This only reflects poorly on you.

A termination can be grueling, but if you take the right steps, you may be able to avoid it. If you can’t avoid it, you should still take measures to make the process as painless as possible.

Being fired can actually open the door to opportunities you never would have had otherwise, leading you to your next big challenge.

John Boitnott is a journalist and digital consultant who has worked in TV, newspapers, radio and internet companies in the U.S. for 20 years. He’s an advisor at StartupGrind and has written for NBC, Fast Company, Inc. Magazine, Entrepreneur, USAToday, and VentureBeat, among others.

Businessinsider.com | October 12, 2015 | John Boitnott

#Strategy : 3 Reasons Why America Is Ready For a 4-Day Workweek…A 4-Day Workweek is Often Met with Differing Reactions From Workers & #Employers.

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The first thing that springs to mind as a potential byproduct of its implementation is a loss of productivity for businesses, and on the worker’s side, losses in the form of wages and benefits. However, a quick look at other nations with more worker friendly business climates indicate that that might not necessarily be the case.

Workers’ rights groups have been making headlines lately, with lots of pushback from unions and activists regarding issues like the minimum wage and healthcare. There have been some big victories on behalf of workers, such as when Seattle passed a $15 per hour minimum wage (and now San Francisco, as well), a number of wage increases for the lowest earners were passed by voters during the 2014 midterm election, and construction workers were awarded more protections in New York City. With progress slowly being made on behalf of employees across the country and around the world, advocates may soon set their sights on a new goal: establishing a four-day workweek.

Source: ThinkstockSource: Thinkstock

A four-day workweek is often met with differing reactions from workers and employers. The first thing that springs to mind as a potential byproduct of its implementation is a loss of productivity for businesses, and on the worker’s side, losses in the form of wages and benefits. However, a quick look at other nations with more worker friendly business climates indicate that that might not necessarily be the case.

According to CNN, the country whose citizens work the shortest hours on average per week is the Netherlands with 29. Coming in behind it are Denmark and Norway, both averaging 33 hours per week. Despite these low figures, all three of these countries’ citizens have an average annual income landing somewhere in the mid-$40,000 range. For comparison, the median annual income in the U.S. is around $54,000.

These countries also dominate the rest of the globe when it comes to employee friendly labor laws, with mandatory vacation days for both full- and part-time workers, extensive maternity and paternity leave, and flexible schedules being commonplace.

In the United States, big industries have led large lobbying campaigns to keep the rights of workers to a minimum in order to maximize productivity while minimizing labor costs. Big business has also engaged in campaigns to dismantle unions and fight against protective labor laws by increasing the use of temporary and contract workers, many of whom don’t qualify for benefits, time off, or employer-sponsored healthcare. Flexible scheduling  has been on the rise in some sectors, making life easier for many Americans as the work-life paradigm starts to take a new form. Many tech companies — like Amazon, Facebook, and Google — have made waves for offering employees more flexible schedules, but so far the trend hasn’t become mainstream.

As far as the four-day workweek is concerned, the concept —  for many American workers —  is still in gestation. As the benefits become more known and the idea permeates, expect to see workers’ rights advocates bring the issue to local representatives. For now, analysts are keeping a watchful eye on northern European countries that are experimenting with it already. If the experiments are successful, as many expect them to be, look for the American push to gain steam.

Is it possible that the United States could duplicate the successes of a stunted workweek? Though it would be extremely difficult from a political and legislative perspective to get the ball rolling, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about it. Here are the top three reasons the implementation of a four-day workweek in the U.S. would be beneficial.

1. Countries That Work Less Are Happier

Source: Thinkstock
Source: Thinkstock

When it comes to happiness, no other area in the world tops the charts like northern European and Scandinavian countries. According to data from the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the top five happiest nations in the world are Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Most of these countries have implemented many policies that Americans would probably be quick to associate with socialism, and also have relatively high taxation rates. However, their citizens are happier than any other, and after a quick cross-reference with average hourly workweek data, some very obvious overlap can be found.
As the U.N. states, “the report also shows the major beneficial side-effects of happiness. Happy people live longer, are more productive, earn more, and are also better citizens. Well-being should be developed both for its own sake and for its side-effects.” The U.N. points out that productivity and happiness appear to be linked, and that is something economists and industry leaders should pay close attention to.

 It may be obvious that spending less time at work leads to happier employees, but with the U.N.’s data, there is some discernible proof in hard data. Happiness can also be tied to wages and many other factors, such as quality of life and life expectancy. There are plenty of other things in play, but overall, the report shows that worker friendly business atmospheres produce healthier populations.

 

2. The Economic Data Shows Shorter Workweeks Don’t Hurt

Source: Thinkstock

If shorter workweeks are leading to happier citizens who should be more productive, then what exactly does the hard data have to say? A look at the World Bank‘s GDP data shows some interesting trends. For starters, the United States has seen growth for the past five or six years, starting in 2009, right after the financial crisis hit. During that time, many people lost their jobs and wages stagnated or even decreased, possibly leading to a portrait of higher productivity for that time period. As the U.S. economy has recovered, jobs have returned and more people are back to work, but wages have not gone back up, leading to increased inequality, a shrinking middle class, andpoor morale

So worker contentment in the U.S. has shifted downward while productivity has trended up. The Netherlands has not seen a similar story, as the country’s GDP has fluctuated wildly over the past few years. Denmark has seen similar turbulence, although not the extent of the Dutch. Norway, on the other hand, has seen steady growth similar to the United States. All three of these European countries face a vastly different set of challenges than the United States, which could play a factor in the fluctuations.

 Taking GDP into account, it’s hard to draw a solid conclusion from data over the past few years. Although it looks like American industry is seeing growth, it is coming at the expense of employee morale and overall happiness of its citizens. Shorter workweeks certainly haven’t tanked any of the leading three countries’ economies.

3. Increased Productivity and Other Savings

Source: Thinkstock

Is there a relationship between working longer hours and increasing productivity? Certain data appears to point to the contrary. According to European productivity data compiled by The Guardian, countries like the Netherlands show high productivity numbers, while also posting a low hourly average for workers. These numbers indicate that the happier employees are, and the shorter their average workweek, the more productive they turn out to be. As Uri Friedman of The Atlantic points out, the relationships can be complex, but the underlying point is that more hours spent at work doesn’t always mean productivity will go up.

American data shows a different story. Although productivity has gone up over the past year by 1.4%, it has come with an average increase in hours worked by 3.2%, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Once again, America is seeing productivity go up, but at a cost of more hours worked.

 What other savings might a shorter workweek afford? Employers could save in lost productivity costs as employees would have more time to handle outside responsibilities. Instead of missing time at the office for doctor’s appointments or taking care of their children, employees would have more time and flexibility to focus on those things with an extra weekday off. There will also be a savings on employee’s part with a reduction in costs related to commuting, in the form of public transportation fees or fuel for their vehicles.

The U.S. economy is an entirely different animal from smaller European nations, but as American employers have decided to head one direction with policies relating to employees, countries like the Netherlands, Norway, and Denmark have gone the opposite route. What those European nations have been able to do is raise their citizens’ happiness levels while increasing productivity, all while keeping their economies afloat.

An extra free day for American workers could make a huge difference for a large part of the population. While there are definite drawbacks and concerns to take into account, a four-day workweek is something politicians and industry leaders should take a serious look at. Not only could it improve morale and productivity, but also have enormous economic benefit over the long run.

 

Cheatsheet.com | September 18, 2015 | Sam Becker

http://www.cheatsheet.com/business/3-reasons-to-embrace-a-4-day-workweek.html/?a=viewall#ixzz3mBd8TGjq

#Strategy : Here’s How to Know If your CoWorkers Secretly Despise You…So, If your CoWorkers Don’t Like You, You’ll Want to Figure It Out & Turn Things Around Immediately.

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Being well-liked in the office has its perks. The experts say you’re more productive and creative when you have healthy workplace relationships; you can ask for and get favors more easily; and people will volunteer to help in times of need, just to name a few.

 

So, if your coworkers don’t like you, you’ll want to figure it out and turn things around immediately.

 

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Here are some subtle signs your coworkers all secretly hate you. Keep in mind that you may just be misreading their body language or tone — but if you notice you’re the only victim of these behaviors, it probably means they’re not your biggest fans.

 

BI_Graphics_Signs Your Coworkers Secretly Hate You

 

Businessinsider.com | September 16, 2015 | Jacquelyn Smith and Dylan Roach

Your #Career : 6 Ways To Win At Office Politics…The Key to Winning at Office Politics is to Stop Wishing it Will Go Away & to Start Learning How to Thrive in your Workplace’s Political Environment.

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Deciding to Stay Out of Office Politics Altogether Isn’t an Effective Strategy. As long as it’s going on around you, you’re going to be affected by it. It’s a lot better to be a competent, conscious player than to be a bystander or a pawn in the game.

 

Here we are, more than 14 months away from the next U.S. presidential election, and the way the media is carrying on about the candidates, you’d think it was right around the corner. Heck, even the primaries can’t run for another four months.

With the endless cycle of media coverage, the frequent candidate faux pas, and all those awkward moments when friends and family force their political opinions upon us, it’s no wonder politics gets a bad rap.

The other kind of politics—Office Politics—are just as fraught with difficulty. Almost nobody likes dealing with office politics, and it’s the people who do enjoy it that you have to worry about.And just like regular politics, office politics is an unavoidable element of human behavior—bring people together and the jockeying begins.

A lot of the advice about how to handle office politics boils down to “Just Don’t Play,” as if avoiding the political system in your office will protect you and your career.

It Won’t.

Saying you’re not affected by office politics is like saying you’re not affected by politics at large. It makes a difference, even if you close your eyes and hope it goes away.

The key to winning at office politics is to stop wishing it will go away and to start learning how to thrive in your workplace’s political environment. You don’t have to dive right into the seedy underbelly of office politics to win the game; you win by playing smart and knowing when and how it’s worth getting involved. Here’s six ways to make that happen.

1. Learn the lay of the land.

Whether you just started a new job or just realized that avoiding office politics is detrimental to your career, you have to begin by figuring out exactly what’s going on. Your office is full of allies and rivals, and, if you watch and listen closely, you can get a pretty good sense of who’s aligned with whom:

  • Who has lunch together?
  • Who gets invited to important meetings, and who doesn’t?
  • Who always seems to be the first to know about coming changes, and who always seems to be last to know?
  • What are the cultural hot buttons that get tempers boiling?

The answers to these questions define your political landscape. This doesn’t mean that you should choose a side—that would be counterproductive—but it’s smart to understand the rules and the players and their strategies before you jump into the fray. Otherwise, you could find yourself unintentionally caught up in a long, simmering rivalry.

 

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2. Build broad alliances.

One of the smartest things you can do is to build alliances throughout the company so that you’ll have a foot in as many of the political camps as possible. If you accomplish this and show people across the board that they can rely on you, you’ll stand a good chance of coming out ahead, no matter which political camp is currently “winning.” You also won’t be left out of the cold if a group of allies leaves the company.

3. Keep your eyes on the goal.

Remind yourself, as many times as it takes, that you’re not engaging in office politics for fun or to be one of “them;” you’re doing it for two reasons: career success and job fulfillment. When you get caught up emotionally, you run the risk of making decisions you’ll regret down the road. Gossiping, backstabbing, manipulating, and the rest are not needed to win at office politics. Keeping your eyes on the goal lets you develop and maintain a strategic approach for dealing with your workplace’s unique political atmosphere.

4. Make things win-win.

Part of what gives office politics such a bad reputation is the perception that there’s always a winner and a loser and that you only win if your opponent limps off the battlefield, bloody and bruised. But, done correctly, this isn’t a zero-sum game. Navigating office politics works best when you follow the golden rule of negotiating: end with everybody feeling like they won. Instead of trying to defeat an opponent, spend that time and energy thinking about how you can both get what you want. This is how you play the game smart.

5. Never pit rivals against one another.

One situation that everybody dreads is getting caught between two warring parties. In a situation like that, it’s easy to tell each of them what they want to hear, even if that’s just nodding in agreement when they bad-mouth each other. But fake allegiances are always exposed in the long run, and then, neither of the people you were trying to impress will trust you again. Instead, steer your conversations back to the facts: What decisions need to be made? What are the next steps? What can I do to help improve this situation?

 6. Stick to your principles, without fail.

Before taking any action that’s fueled by office politics, ask yourself why you’re doing it. If you’re motivated by fear, revenge, or jealousy, don’t do it. If it conflicts with your values and beliefs about fair behavior, it’s better not to get involved.

Bringing It All Together

Deciding to stay out of office politics altogether isn’t an effective strategy. As long as it’s going on around you, you’re going to be affected by it. It’s a lot better to be a competent, conscious player than to be a bystander or a pawn in the game.

The key is to understand the players and the rules and then to play the game in a way that aligns with your personal values and principles. Don’t be fooled into compromising “just this once,” because once is all it takes to lose control.

What are your experiences in dealing with office politics? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.

 

Forbes.com | September 15, 2015 | Travis Bradberry

 

 

#Leadership : The Pernicious Myth of the 80-20 Rule…While it’s Easy to See Why Managers Still Believe That 20% of a Company’s Workforce does 80% of the Work, the 80-20 Rule is a Corrosive Myth that Often Does More Harm Than Good.

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Management Consultants Insist that a 20% Vital Few really Matter in Companies, a Large Middle Just do their Jobs, & Another 10%  or 20% Should be Encouraged to Leave or Be Fired.

 

Back in the late 19th century, Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto observed that 80 percent of the land was owned by 20 percent of the people. In the 1940s management consultant Joseph Juran argued that the 80-20 rule applied to management in general, concluding that there were the “vital few and the trivial many.” That seemed a bit harsh, so he later revised it to the “vital few and the useful many.”

The principle seems to be having a revival these days. Management consultants insist that a 20 percent vital few really matter in companies, a large middle just do their jobs, and another 10 percent or 20 percent should be encouraged to leave or be fired. Recent data from Mercer Consulting shows that employers are now focusing most of their bonuses on just a small number of people, while about 30 percent of companies that had broad-based equity plans have dropped them to focus on “the people who really matter.” So the new corporate mantra, I suppose, is that “20 percent of our people are our most important asset.”

This rule never made much sense to me. After all, if we focus rewards on the 20 percent, the other 80 percent would be most unhappy. Of course, that might demotivate them enough to make the 80-20 rule actually work. That is especially true because surveys consistently show that about 70 percent of employees believe they are in the top 10 percent of performers (admit it, you think you are, right?).

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It is easy to see why people are attracted to the 80-20 rule for management. First, everyone who writes and reads about it, I’d wager, believes they are in the 20 percent. Second, it justifies maximizing the rewards that go to the top. Third, if you treat people as if they don’t matter that much, you may well end up with an organization where they don’t. So your brilliance in following the 80-20 rules is self-fulfilling. In fact, why not take the 80-20 rule a little farther? If 80 percent of the results come from 20 percent of the people, then shouldn’t 80 percent of the results from the top 20 percent of the company come from 4 percent? And 80 percent of what the 4 percent produce from 0.8 percent? After all, this is a rule.

Curious about this, I spent an hour Googling for research on it in anything related to human resource management that prove the 80-20 rule. There may be something out there, but I couldn’t find it. Of the hundreds of links I did find, all but a handful just accepted the rule as some kind of unrepealable law of nature.

The 80-20 rule is corrosive. It deters management from finding ways to get as many people as possible in an organization to contribute ideas, information, and effort that help the company move forward. It creates too much competition between people for scarce rewards, thus discouraging teamwork. And while it is certainly true that people make unequal contributions to organizational success, to assume this follows an arbitrary division of any kind is lazy and ineffective. So I am herewith creating the Rosen rule. If in your organization 80 percent of the results come from 20 percent of the people, your organization is very badly mismanaged.

That’s how Doug Smith of Lumber Traders, an ESOP-owned company in Port Angeles, Washington sees it. He told us that “the establishment of the 80/20 rule is a benchmark of bad management. Our society always looks to the dark side, self-interest and fear. No wonder so many people are only looking out for themselves. We take a different approach. Yes we do have some percentage of ‘vital few’, and we do have pockets of perfection, but our overriding goal is to identify these resources and to propagate them.” Smith’s concept is that these star performers should be focusing their efforts not on distinguishing themselves from everyone else, but working to bring the other 80 percent up to their level.”

Great business leaders are humble. That humility is what makes I possible for people around them to be confident they can express ideas and disagree. Rather than trying to rely on the ideas and energy of just a small percentage of their workforce, they seek to engage everyone and put them all in the top 20 percent.

PUBLISHED ON: SEP 7, 2015
BY COREY ROSEN

Founder, National Center for Employee Ownership

#Leadership : The Daily Habits of 19 High-Achieving CEOs …Success in Business & Life is All about Being Intentional About How you Use your Time.

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Think about the Most Successful People you Know. Chances are they Didn’t get Where they Are Because of a Lucky Break, but rather possess characteristics or a state of mind that sets them apart from people leading average lives.

 

Check out these quotes from 19 successful CEOs who credit simple daily habits for helping them get ahead in business and life.

1. Take a few 30-minute breaks to walk around the whole company and talk to people.

“Often I’ll overhear a problem that I didn’t know about that we’ll need to solve some day. And while [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][it may be] a bit nerve-racking to have the CEO running around asking questions at first, [you’re more] approachable over the longer-term as long as you don’t over-react.”

–Suhail Doshi, CEO of Mixpanel, an analytics platform for mobile and web that tracks 50 billion actions people take in applications per month to help companies gain insights into user activity.

2. Talk to at least one customer.

“I try to never let a day go by where I don’t speak with at least one of our current customers. No one is better equipped to let us know where our services are succeeding and failing, and where we can improve. This is also why we have a client success team, but hearing it directly from the horse’s mouth can provide greater context.”

–Michael Ortner, CEO of Capterra, a web service that has helped companies such as Coca-Cola, Walmart, and Home Depot find and purchase business software.

 

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3. Limit meetings.

“I never have more than five meetings in the average day and usually only two or three. The reason is I believe you can create a daily work life where you are too busy to grow. I spend much of the day just thinking about the business–the product offering, the sales and marketing strategy, the industry. Taking time to think about your business gives you the best chance of growing [it].”

–Matt Godard, CEO of R2Integrated, one of the largest independent marketing agencies in the country.

4. Don’t leave things for later.

“We tend to save the more complicated tasks for later, but that’s an efficiency killer. Solve things right away. This goes for emails too. Email still is the most used tool and by far preferable to phone calls. It has, however, the most undeveloped functions. Try to use the basic set of filters and sorting on your next batch of emails. It helps.”

–Serban Enache, CEO of global stock photo site Dreamstime.com.

5. Run to work and back.

“I bookend my day with exercise by jogging to the office and back. It’s a great way to clear your mind and get the creative juices flowing. Naturally you need a shower at work to pull this off and a reasonably short commute. It means exercise is built into each day, and it beats sitting in a car or a bus. Plus, audiobooks!”

–Jay Simons, president of software company Atlassian, which offers team collaboration products including JIRA, Confluence, Bitbucket, and HipChat, which are collectively used by more than 48,000 companies worldwide.

6. Wake up an hour early and stay up an hour late.

“I find that I have the most time for myself to think during the hours of the early morning as well as late at night. During the early morning, I often think about the priorities for the day ahead and what communications to the team I must relay in order to ensure everyone continues to be fully aligned and on the same page. Then, at night, as everyone else goes to sleep and the distractions of email and phone calls dissipate, I allow my mind the freedom to be fully creative and think bigger picture, exploring our organization’s vision for the future and the overarching path we will take to get there.”

–Tiffany Pham, founder and CEO of MOGUL, an award-winning technology platform for women.

7. Be willing to meet with anyone at any time.

“I meet with people–usually via phone and computer–at all times of the day and night. [It might be] 5 in the morning for meetings in India or Sunday night for meetings in Singapore. I find that without doubt the harder I work and the more flexible I am about meeting someone’s schedule, the more people I reach and the luckier I get.”

–Eric Frankel, founder and CEO of AdGreetz, a cloud-based SaaS platform that empowers brands such as Intel, NBC, and Toyota to deploy relevant, personalized video messages.

8. Work your to-do list.

“In the morning or the night before, I write down a to-do list, a sort of priority of what I intend to accomplish that day. As the day progresses I scratch off items completed and open room for others. I find this helps me keep focused on the most important goals and not lose sight of what I primarily intended to accomplish that day.”

–Payman Taei, CEO and founder of Visme, a DIY online tool that has empowered over 200,000 businesses and nonprofits create better presentations and infographics. He is also the founder of HindSite Interactive, an award-winning web agency that helps companies improve their online presence.

9. Work out hard every day.

“I’m driven when it comes to sports and fitness. I have a regular 5 a.m. workout consisting of Insanity, Asylum and a five-mile run regardless of where I am in the world and the time zone. Since so much of my job is unpredictable, the workout helps keep my mind and body fresh and at least I have a predictable start to my day.”

–Don Joos, CEO of global telecommunications company ShoreTel.

10. Be a servant.

“Once you get to any reasonable size, the team is running the company. Your job is to be a servant–to make sure people have the resources to do the job, to eliminate friction, and to drive the strategy that sets everyone up to succeed.”

–Greg Schott, CEO of MuleSoft, a software company valued at $1.5 billion.

11. Don’t be afraid of failure.

“The biggest mistake any leader can make is to avoid taking risks because they are afraid of failing. It’s best to fail fast, quickly learn and re-do versus wasting years in trying to perfect and losing a key opportunity. And, sharing the failures with your team is even more important as you build a culture that fosters out-of-the-box thinking without obsessing about the worst-case scenarios.”

–Faizan Buzdar, CEO of Convo, an enterprise-mobile messaging and collaboration platform used by 15,000 businesses and 25 percent of the Fortune 500 companies.

12. Leverage all of your staff.

“Understand that you and your sales personnel don’t necessarily have all the knowledge in the world. Constantly ask the company staff and external advisers, ‘How else can we be bringing value to prospective customers?’ There are always new clients and revenue models that can be explored and a holistic approach to BI and BD can provide substantial results.”

–Joel Zamel, CEO and founder of Wikistrat, which operates a global network of more than 2,000 subject-matter experts specializing in national security and geopolitics, operating on a virtual platform to conduct wargaming simulations and data modeling for enterprise clients.

13. Be a collector.

“I have always had a love for one-of-a-kind collectible action figures. It’s a great passion of mine. Maybe it’s something I do subconsciously to connect to my inner kid. It’s a great reminder to maintain a degree of levity and balance.”

–Moshe Hogeg, founder and CEO of Mobli Media, a technology company that creates products leveraging crowd-based activities that benefit people through content sharing and social media.

14. Exercise during your break.

“Science has told us countless times that sitting at a desk all day will doom our bodies to eternal suffering and not only will getting up and moving around during the day significantly lessen the damage, it also boosts productivity. Instead of simply taking my lunch break to eat food in another chair, I make sure to duck out at least three times a week to get my limbs stretched and my blood pumping. My personal favorites for this are a 45-minute spin class or cross-fit training.”

–Shaul Olmert, CEO and co-founder of Playbuzz, a free online content platform that enables publishers, marketers, bloggers, and brands to create, distribute, and embed quizzes, polls, lists, and other content on websites, social pages, or mobile apps.

15. Have pointless conversations.

“Especially when it comes to the fast-moving tech industry, it’s easy to fall into a trap where urgency takes over and every conversation, interaction, or meeting has to fulfill a particular purpose. While staying focused and effective is important, I’ve found it’s equally important to take the time to have pointless or no-action-item conversations with people about how they are doing and what’s going on in their lives. This is key in building a strong bond with the people in your company, but equally important, it allows you to learn more about the people you’re working with, and knowing what makes them tick will make you a more successful manager.”

–Tomer Bar-Zeev, co-founder and CEO of ironSource, a global technology company that helps developers connect with users across devices and platforms.

16. Cross things off the to do list, but don’t delete them.

“I was keeping a Google doc and just deleting things of the to-do list. However, it was difficult to feel a sense of accomplishment, especially on days when the list actually grew longer. I find that when you cross items off the list, and don’t delete them until the end of the day, that you see the progress and feel the satisfaction of moving forward.”

–Eric Narcisco, founder of Effective Coverage, a national online renter’s insurance site that recently launched a mobile platform for buying renters insurance via a partnership with Traveler’s.

17. Meditate every morning.

“I begin each morning with an hour of deep meditation. I’ve learned to remain calm when the world strikes a stressful blow, which happens frequently as a businessowner. It’s amazing how much easier it is to lead a ship through stormy seas when the captain is calm and confident. I can’t imagine my life or running a business without meditation.”

–Jeremy Hallett, CEO of online term life insurance company Quotacy.

18. Go out for coffee several times a week.

“I don’t even like coffee but it’s a great excuse to go out and meet people I can learn from, and hopefully, who I can then help in return. My network is the most important asset I have, but I have to work it by getting out of the office and meeting people. It’s how I raised $1.2 million in funding and met some of our big-name clients.”

–Kristi Zuhlke, co-founder and CEO of KnowledgeHound, a market research data retrieval and visualization technology that serves large consumer brands like Pepsi and Procter & Gamble.

19. Listen to podcasts.

“Every night I listen to podcasts that feature ideas on entrepreneurship, interviews with successful founders, or industry news. I’m a huge believer in lifelong learning, and I find these podcasts to be incredibly helpful in sparking new ideas, inspiring me to improve, and learning from the mistakes of others.” (His favorite: The Startup Podcast.)

–Matt Mickiewicz, co-founder of online IT recruiter Hired.

What daily habits help you succeed in business and life?

The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.
PUBLISHED ON: SEP 2, 2015

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#Strategy : 6 Ways to Respond to your #Boss Yelling at You …Your Reaction to your Boss Yelling at you Should be Contingent on Why They are Yelling at You.

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Getting Yelled at By a Boss: We’ve All Been there, Right? It’s hard to know exactly how to react and what you should say and do when your boss yells at you, First & Foremost because they’re your Boss.

angry boss

Unless they’re harassing or bullying you (in which case you should skip the reaction and go straight to HR/a lawyer), even if they’re wrong on a point of work, they’re probably going to end up being right.

And depending on how they hold grudges and scrutinize you, your reaction could cost you a job or in the long term have them riding your ass even harder.

You’re beholden to your boss in a lot of ways, which means you can’t fly off the handle even when you want to. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stand up for yourself when they’re throwing a tantrum in your direction.

Your reaction to your boss yelling at you should be contingent on why they are yelling at you. Are you at fault? Or are you the scapegoat? Is their yelling because of general frustration? Or are they specifically targeting you, possibly unfairly?

It’s true that cooler heads prevail, so if you start by assessing why there is yelling going on in the first place, you can navigate a clear reaction to it. Here are some suggestions for ways to react and what you can say when your boss is yelling at you:

1. Ask To Schedule A Private Meeting

boss meetingMasaIsrael/Flickr

If someone is yelling, it’s probably because they’re at their wit’s end. They feel cornered by whatever conundrum they’re facing, and might have become irrational about dealing with it. Whether your boss’s concerns are legitimate or frivolous, you can diffuse the situation by calmly asking for a private meeting at which to discuss the meeting at hand. Make it formal: book a conference room and schedule a time that day so you two can sit down and hash out the problem, as it’s most likely a solvable work challenge.

 

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2. Explain Yourself

Again, remain calm, but speak up. If your boss has the wrong idea about something you’ve done, say so. Don’t be vindictive or petty in your speech. Keep it matter-of-fact, and explain yourself. If your boss is demanding answers, give them. Be clear and succinct, and keep to the point without waffling on. If you can be direct in your communication chances are your shouting boss will calm down and meet you at your timbre.

3. Own Up To Your Mistakes

Don’t make excuses. If you’re getting yelled at because you messed up, own it. Denying your responsibility will only make your boss madder. Don’t be combative when you’re in the wrong, it won’t serve you in the long run. Let your boss know that you understand your mistake, are very sorry, and will work as hard as you can to fix the problem as fast as possible. Chances are the more repentant you are about your mistake and the more willing to fix it, your yelling boss will soften and even feel bad about coming down on you so hard. We’re all human, even bosses.

4. Offer A Solution

boss meeting conferenceVFS Digital Design/Flickr

Whatever’s going on, whether it’s because of your folly or something out of your control, offer a solution. Yelling comes from frustration, so chances are your boss feels cornered, and is ironically probably terrified of being yelled at by their own boss. If you can be creative and show initiative in moving forward, you might be offering your boss a solution they couldn’t see on their own.

5. Never Yell Back

Never, under any circumstances, yell back at your boss. I once had a boss yell at me over something that wasn’t my fault, and I sat calmly and took it. Sometimes, with your boss, you just can’t take it personally, and you can’t let it get under your skin. I waited until he was finished, and then explained myself, and offered him a solution (see above).

I could have become emotional and yelled back, sure (I actually went and cried in the bathroom from the adrenaline afterwards), but it would have gotten me nowhere. It would not only have made him madder, but it would have put me at fault in a situation where I wasn’t. Don’t give your angry boss a reason to be angrier. Even when they should be more professional, you need to be the bigger person. It might seem unfair in the short term but it will serve you better in the long run.

6. Always Follow Up

When you’ve had a conflict at work, always follow up to see that it’s resolved. After you’ve been yelled at by your boss, follow up the next day to make sure everything is square. Whether that’s working towards the solution, or finalizing the solution, stay on top of it, and show that you care about your job and making things work. No one wants to be in their boss’s bad books, especially when that boss is prone to flying off the hook, so be proactive (which you should be anyway at work!) to earn your good graces back.

Read the original article on Bustle. You can also check them out on Facebook and Pinterest. Copyright 2015. Follow Bustle on Twitter.

 

Businessinsider.com | August 30, 2015 | Kat George, Bustle

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#Leadership : How To Make Your Company’s Culture of Innovation More Than Just A Nice Idea…In the #Workplace, Encouraging Creative Problem-solving is far easier in theory. By Taking the Needed Steps to Alleviate any Overpowering Fear of Failure, You can Steer your Team Onto the Right Path.

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Here’s what I Did to Turn our Office Culture Around & Encourage Employees to Share their Ideas Without Worrying about Rejection. – Manpreet Singh, Founder and President of TalkLocal

Develop an Effective Knowledge Transfer System

As a startup founder & investor, it’s not enough for me to merely value innovation and creativity: I must also manage the hazards associated with new ideas. After all, employees who routinely bring novel ideas to their colleagues are likely to experience more rejection, failure and even embarrassment than others in their career. The question is, how do you encourage your team TISI NaN% to innovate despite the risks?

Ultimately, I’ve learned that my personal values alone can’t create a robust culture of innovation. For example, at my company, a social media editor recently started noticing a persistently dismissive attitude coming from certain quarters regarding her collaborative projects. In one extreme case, she was mortified when a project (a stylized promotional video) was scrapped over what boiled down to the employee’s editing choices. Team members lambasted the video, getting it pulled without offering constructive criticism beforehand.

Imagine if that were our response to every lost sales lead or dip in quarterly performance: it would be both paralyzing and counter-productive.

In the workplace, encouraging creative problem-solving is far easier in theory. By taking the needed steps to alleviate any overpowering fear of failure, you can steer your team onto the right path. Here’s what I did to turn our office culture around and encourage employees to share their ideas without worrying about rejection.

Lead by Consensus: Put Feedback on the Meeting Agenda

My team used to email one another to get feedback. Besides being inefficient, emails offered an easy out for those who preferred to avoid confrontations. Ironically, this silence only increases the risk of failure and can still hurt feelings. To nip this communication method in the bud, we’ve placed all projects on the weekly meeting agenda to mandate those uncomfortable conversations. There are now face-to-face discussions about each project, which makes the office a safe space for critical engagement with one another. This in turn also produces shared clarity on project design and purpose while generating ideas for improvement and greater results. And with more engagement comes more shared responsibility for both successes and failures.

 

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Have the Last Word

Another barrier to direct critical feedback among team members was my own presence. I’m less risk-averse than most, yet my very vocal feedback made some team members too reliant upon me to catch every possible pitfall. Given my position and involvement, it was easy for team members to bring their concerns to management rather than have that possibly awkward dialogue with the project leads themselves. Now, my silence during meetings opens the door for the voices of other team members. Of course, I maintain the last word at every step of the process, but the emphasis is on last – and that makes all of the difference.

Make the Non-Starter a Conversation Starter

Most off-the-wall ideas never get implemented, so giving a constructive response to unviable suggestions early on can help your team members come up with more effective plans in the future (as opposed to shutting down their creative thinking). It’s critical that everyone has an evolving understanding of company goals, priorities and resources. At TalkLocal, we now deliver more frequent and detailed reports on our analytics, resource allocation, and where improvement is most needed. As a result, team members feel more empowered to offer informed feedback, and rather than falling silent, they are ushered towards a new way of critical thinking that allows them to produce more sophisticated and viable ideas over time.

Highlight the Anonymous Idea Box

As employees grew more seasoned, I saw fewer of those enthusiastic but naive suggestions, which was a problem in and of itself. In order to encourage new employees to not fall into a similar trap, we decided to dust off our suggestion box and encourage the team to bring up and discuss any anonymously submitted ideas. Through this process, we’re bringing new employees into our growing culture of innovation, while still helping them shape their thinking as they grow with the company.

Today, our social media editor remains creative, recently reducing our e-marketing costs while increasing click rates through better targeting, proving that one success is worth a dozen failures. Furthermore, not a day goes by that a team member doesn’t propose a way to change the company for the better — which makes us better regardless of whether the idea is implemented or not. As the inherent value of an innovation-powered workplace continues to energize and inspire our team, I’m confident that our tangible value will continue to grow as well.

Manpreet Singh is Founder and President of TalkLocal, a home services marketplace that turns online service requests into a live conversation with the right available business in minutes.

 

Forbes.com | August 7, 2015 |  Young Entrepreneur Council