At some point, every leader has dealt with a person — or, worse, a group of people — who has lost motivation. It’s frustrating, isn’t it? As much as we’ve been there ourselves, sometimes it’s hard to sympathize with others who are disengaged from work and unproductive as a result. Sometimes, we view their unhappiness as a bug in their...

An employee’s relationship with their manager sets the tone for their level of commitment to the organization’s success. Gallup research shows that a mind-boggling 70% of an employee’s motivation is influenced by his or her manager. It’s no wonder employees don’t leave companies; they leave managers. Disengaged employees can cost companies millions of dollars from lost productivity, damages from employee...

What kind of ‘Oh’ is in your Onboarding? Is it an “Oh, fantastic!” or is it an “Oh Noooo…?” True Story: It’s Day 1 of Michelle’s new job. She’s arrived 15 minutes early to make the best possible first-day impression. Two hours later, Michelle is still sitting in reception, waiting for someone to collect her and show her the ropes....

We’ve all been in the awkward situation of meeting someone new and having to build rapport quickly — at networking events, industry conferences, charity events, dinner parties, and other social-professional situations. If you’re like many people — especially most Americans — you break the awkward silence with a pretty standard question: “So, what do you do?” But that question might...

You constantly hear how bad stress is for you: it’s damaging your health, jeopardizing your relationships, and hurting your performance. While these risks are real, recent research is showing that work strain, when managed correctly, can actually have a positive impact on productivity and performance. So how can you take the stress you thought was killing you and make it...

The loss of a staff member can have serious implications for a business. In fact, research suggests it can cost a business as much as £30k per employee due to a decrease in output, additional training, and resourcing. Conflicts with managers or co-workers often top the list of reasons why staff may leave a job. To help you navigate the...

David Bowie by Gareth Evans The word LISTEN contains the same letters as the word SILENT. ~ Alfred Brendel Pisssst. Listen up! Good leaders are good listeners. They know they can shape organizational culture simply by listening. They know that listening to and respecting others builds working relationships and that relationships make things work. In short, they know that listening...

In 1963, a pair of researchers named Robert Rosenthal and Kermit Fode assigned a dozen psychology students an experiment: Train rats to solve their way out of a maze. Rosenthal and Fode told half the students that they would be training “maze bright” rats, selectively bred for their exceptional maze-running prowess, and the other half that they had on their...