Make Steady Progress on Your Goals

Make Steady Progress on Your Goals

It can be tempting to rely on deadline-induced adrenaline rushes to reach major work milestones. But how can you make productivity more habitual and sustainable? The first step is to understand that being productive means optimizing your entire life. A well-designed personal life supports your efforts at work, and vice versa. For example, instead of eating alone at your desk, meet a colleague for lunch. Eating together will benefit both of your professional and personal lives. Next, when planning your to-do list, try to match the task to the amount of focus needed. Schedule your most challenging work for when your energy levels are highest. Use short bursts of time well by having a list of “microgoals” you can accomplish in your spare minutes throughout the week, such as booking that flight or writing that recommendation letter. By leveraging even short amounts of time, you can make steady progress on your most important goals.

Don’t Get Fooled by a First Impression When Hiring

April 06, 2016 Don’t Get Fooled by a First Impression When Hiring Disastrous hires can happen when managers are fooled by first impressions. But how can you get beyond the superficial during a brief interview? The key is to focus on behaviors rather than traits. For example, if the interviewee describes themself as a “team player,” do they credit other people when discussing their work? Look beyond what the candidate is saying and focus on how they are they saying it. Watch for nonverbal cues that signal contempt, superiority, and disrespect: eye contact when speaking to another person but not when listening to them or invading another’s space. Another telling question: Ask them to describe their least preferred coworker. Listen for whether they reduce the person to a one-word label (e.g., “difficult” or “micromanager”) or reveal a more complex view of the situation (e.g., “we disagreed about how to get the job done because we were trained in different ways”).

Build a Passionate Company

Build a Passionate Company

To build a great business, companies need a purpose — one that transcends the traditional bottom line. People want to be passionate about their work, and they want to be surrounded by others who feel the same. But how can managers actually foster passion? Here are five ways:

• Let people show their emotions. If you ask your people to check their emotions at the door, you can’t tap into their passion.
• Hire passionate people. One way to get passionate people into your organization is to incentivize current employees to refer people they want to work with.
• Fan the flames. Find plenty of ways to celebrate joint accomplishments.
• Don’t stifle your rock stars. Give your people the autonomy to do the work that interests them most.
• Share context. Connect job functions to the organization’s broader mission, and remind people why they do what they do.

Cool Down a Heated Negotiation

April 04, 2016

Cool Down a Heated Negotiation

Emotions can get heated during a high-stakes negotiation. But there are a few ways to defuse a tense conversation:

• Focus on your physical reaction. Breathe deeply to send a message to your brain to remain calm.
• Listen to what your counterpart is saying. Don’t always feel you need to respond to an outburst. If you can, let it go and move on.
• Show you’ve heard him. Calmly paraphrase your counterpart’s argument. Sometimes people just want to be heard.
• Show some empathy. Acknowledge that this is a tough situation.
• Find out more. If you’re the cause of the other person’s frustration, dig deeper to find out why.
• Take a break. If you’re the one getting angry or emotional, step out, go for a walk, and come back when you’re feeling more grounded.

Measuring values for recruitment and cultural fit

Measuring Values

We define values as those core beliefs that motivate us to get out of bed in the morning. We begin with a list of over 100 terms and ask employees to narrow their core values down to three. Articulating what drives you can help determine if you will be a good fit for a company.

If your core values are making a difference, kindness, and joy, and you see an employer whose core values are power, competition, and innovation, it is obvious it may not be the best fit. When values are misaligned, employees can feel alienated and unfulfilled. Our values give us purpose and carrying out our purpose leads to happiness.

Break Your Work Addiction

June 02, 2016 Break Your Work Addiction For many of us, working compulsively feels good. And there’s a line of recent research that theorizes that this is one of the reasons we’re addicted to work. But just because it feeds your ego or makes you feel important, doesn’t mean it’s good for you. How do you break the cycle of long hours at the office and the constant checking of email at home? Start by rethinking how you define success. Your self-worth should not revolve around your status, paycheck, and prestige; it should take into account the quality of your relationships, your engagement in your community, and your physical and emotional well-being. Enlist the help of colleagues, family, and friends by showing them how it’s in their best interest to help you disengage from work. And stop using your phone as a time-filler. Resist this impulse by doing something you enjoy or look forward to instead.

" Dissent is good for Team's Mental Health "

Team Management 
 " Dissent is good for Team's Mental Health " 

Most teams have at least one “opposer” — that person who always plays the devil’s advocate. 
The opposer may be brilliant and driven, but their pattern of critiquing and disagreeing can wear a team down. 
And yet opposition is essential for effective, productive teams ! 

 So what can a manager do to welcome a naysayer’s contributions without personalizing what feels like an attack?
 First, understand that these people almost NEVER have bad intentions — they are usually trying very hard to do something they see as valuable and crucial for the good of the team. 
Encourage everyone on the team to share an opposing view to normalize and operationalize dissenting opinions.
 Then really listen to, consider, and evaluate the ideas. 
And ask everyone to articulate when they are in agreement so their comments will be seen as balanced. 

Ultimately, you should try to see opposing views as a sign of team health.