THE TRUTH ABOUT EMPLOYEE FUN DAY
from the article “Employee Fun Day” Won’t Create Job Satisfaction
By Kelly Goldsmith and Marshall Goldsmith | August 25, 2010
http://www.bnet.com/blog/marshall-goldsmith/-8220employee-fun-day-8221-won-8217t-create-job-satisfaction/131?tag=content;drawer-container
"Over the last year, we surveyed thousands of respondents on their experience of happiness and meaning — both at work and outside of work. While many of our findings were consistent with our expectations, one was a surprise.
We asked respondents to note the percentage of time they spent on activities that produced high amounts of short-term gratification (or happiness) but low amounts of long-term benefit (or meaning). We classified these activities — things like gossiping and watching TV — under the category “stimulating.” Then we conducted an analysis, comparing the number of hours respondents spent on the “stimulating” activities to their overall satisfaction with life at work and at home.
Companies that invest in activities that are supposed to be “fun” but are also meaningless are probably squandering their money and their employees’ time. “Employee fun day” may well be a waste — it only leads to increased cynicism. Most professionals are extremely busy. They don’t need to go to work to be entertained. They can do that at home."
"While a little fun time is great, a lot of it can do more harm than good. Rather than watching another TV show, it might be good if we challenged ourselves by finding ways to help other people in need. Finding meaning can be more important than finding amusement.
As always, we would love to get your thoughts on this topic. What is meaningful for you? How does your own search for meaning lead to higher overall satisfaction with your life?"
MY THOUGHTS
Yes, a little fun won't hurt. A day away from work can do some wonders. Short term. If the bigger issues are not handled, employee fun day becomes meaningless.
Showing posts with label workplace solutions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label workplace solutions. Show all posts
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
SPOT A DYSFUNCTIONAL MANAGER
How to Spot a Dysfunctional Manager
By Steve Tobak | December 28, 2009
Does your boss act out and throw tantrums like a spoiled child? Are you afraid to bring up certain hot-button issues in meetings for fear of being humiliated? Does your company’s strategy change weekly? Daily?
These are all signs of a dysfunctional workplace, but you know what? Workplaces don’t become dysfunctional by themselves. People make them that way. More specifically, management people: CEOs, VPs, middle managers, your boss. Know how to spot them? Here’s a handy guide, but there’s a surprise at the end.
20 Ways to Spot a Dysfunctional Manager
1.Rants like a raving lunatic.
2.Tells you to do something you don’t want to do, blames you when it goes south.
3.Freaks out over nothing, but when disaster strikes, becomes eerily calm.
4.Says she wants you to take responsibility, then publicly overrides your decisions.
5.Intimidates with aggressive words and posture, backs down like a wimp when confronted by a bigger bully.
6.Spends more time covering his ass than he does sitting on it.
7.Verbally approves new requisitions, later denies doing it, aka selective memory.
8.Laughs uncomfortably at inappropriate times.
9.Makes hallway decisions that affect your group … when you’re not there.
10.A single data point sends him off in a completely new direction.
11.Gives in when pushed into a corner, then does what she wants anyway, aka passive aggressive.
12.Swoops into meetings and takes over.
13.Revels in the invention of creative curses for just the right occasion.
14.Gets way, way too personal.
15.Sticks you right in the middle of feuds with his peers.
16.Rides you mercilessly while pet employees can do no wrong.
17.Fanatically obsessive about minutia.
18.Always right: when confronted with mistakes, blames them on someone else.
19.Fiercely protective of dumb pet projects.
20.At the first sign of trouble throws allies under the bus.
Well, those are my 20, but I’m sure you’ve got a lot more of your own. Let’s hear ‘em.
Almost forgot, I promised you a surprise at the end. Well, you know how I know all this about dysfunctional managers? Well, not only have I observed all this behavior in others, but I’ve done half of this stuff myself! Top that for honesty.
MY THOUGHTS
Same here. Same here. Who hasn't done 1 or 2. Maybe 3. But if you're doing all of them, time to make a turn - 90, 180, 360.
By Steve Tobak | December 28, 2009
Does your boss act out and throw tantrums like a spoiled child? Are you afraid to bring up certain hot-button issues in meetings for fear of being humiliated? Does your company’s strategy change weekly? Daily?
These are all signs of a dysfunctional workplace, but you know what? Workplaces don’t become dysfunctional by themselves. People make them that way. More specifically, management people: CEOs, VPs, middle managers, your boss. Know how to spot them? Here’s a handy guide, but there’s a surprise at the end.
20 Ways to Spot a Dysfunctional Manager
1.Rants like a raving lunatic.
2.Tells you to do something you don’t want to do, blames you when it goes south.
3.Freaks out over nothing, but when disaster strikes, becomes eerily calm.
4.Says she wants you to take responsibility, then publicly overrides your decisions.
5.Intimidates with aggressive words and posture, backs down like a wimp when confronted by a bigger bully.
6.Spends more time covering his ass than he does sitting on it.
7.Verbally approves new requisitions, later denies doing it, aka selective memory.
8.Laughs uncomfortably at inappropriate times.
9.Makes hallway decisions that affect your group … when you’re not there.
10.A single data point sends him off in a completely new direction.
11.Gives in when pushed into a corner, then does what she wants anyway, aka passive aggressive.
12.Swoops into meetings and takes over.
13.Revels in the invention of creative curses for just the right occasion.
14.Gets way, way too personal.
15.Sticks you right in the middle of feuds with his peers.
16.Rides you mercilessly while pet employees can do no wrong.
17.Fanatically obsessive about minutia.
18.Always right: when confronted with mistakes, blames them on someone else.
19.Fiercely protective of dumb pet projects.
20.At the first sign of trouble throws allies under the bus.
Well, those are my 20, but I’m sure you’ve got a lot more of your own. Let’s hear ‘em.
Almost forgot, I promised you a surprise at the end. Well, you know how I know all this about dysfunctional managers? Well, not only have I observed all this behavior in others, but I’ve done half of this stuff myself! Top that for honesty.
MY THOUGHTS
Same here. Same here. Who hasn't done 1 or 2. Maybe 3. But if you're doing all of them, time to make a turn - 90, 180, 360.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Win Over Your Boss
How to Win Over Your Boss
By Steve Tobak | January 20, 2011
In Getting a New Boss? Interview Again for Your Job, career coach Priscilla Claman outlines three steps to get yourself “rehired,” as she calls it. Since BNET blogger Sean Silverthorne called her advice “absolutely brilliant,” I thought I’d check out the three steps:
1. Update your resume.
2. Set up a meeting.
3. Present yourself.
Now, I happen to think that this sort of “me-centric” approach can easily backfire. But, the original post does have some decent points and Claman herself has a disclaimer at the end, “I find that the higher up you are, the less successful the “rehiring” method is.”
In any case, if your boss isn’t behind you 100 percent, it can make your life miserable. Believe it or not, you can win him over just by asking a few questions that show him you “get it” and are management or senior management material. Whether he’s newly promoted, newly hired, the result of a merger or acquisition, or has been your boss forever, here are:
10 Simple Questions That Will Win Over Your Boss
1. Ask what he thinks you can do to be more effective.
2. Ask what her top three priorities or goals are.
3. Ask what you can do to make him more effective.
4. Ask what you can do to make the team more effective.
5. Ask if he’s interested in knowing what will make your job easier.
6. Ask what her take is on the company’s top priorities and goals.
7. Ask what he thinks you should do differently or improve upon to be more effective.
8. Ask if she’d like to meet periodically, one-on-one, and if so, how frequently and what format would she like the meeting to take. Then set it up.
9. Ask what his philosophy is on your shared functional responsibility, whatever that is, i.e. marketing, HR, IT, engineering, finance.
10. And, if the meeting’s open-form and you feel it’s appropriate, ask about her background. Most people like to talk about themselves and how they got there, as long as they don’t feel like they’re being grilled, pumped for information, or played in some way.
In case it isn’t obvious, you don’t just plop down in your boss’s office with a notepad and start an inquisition. Ask for a one-on-one meeting because you’d like to know what you can do to be more effective and help him be more effective, wherein you ask a few questions, as appropriate, etc.
And, contrary to the aforementioned HBR advice, do not tell her about your role and your team. Instead, ask if she’d like to hear your perspective on your and your team’s role. If she says, “absolutely,” then set it up. But I still say it’s better to ask for her perspective on your and your team’s role. Get the difference?
And whatever you do, don’t present yourself, your resume, or your achievements either. Frankly, your boss, new or old, isn’t primarily interested in any of that stuff. He’s primarily interested in meeting his objectives and helping his boss meet hers.
The closer you come to demonstrating that that’s your priority as well, the sooner you’ll win him over because you “get it.” And the sooner you’ll be viewed as management or senior management material.
MY THOUGHTS
hmmm. food for thought. calls for some heavy thinking. i remember asking a new boss what my job description was. he said - "NONE". i wanted to resign right then and there. i stayed. wise decision. he said he didn't want to limit what i can do by having a list of tasks. i figured, from where he's from, the term "perform other tasks that may be assigned" does not appear in JDs. demanding as he was, he was also very wise. true enough, my stint with him proved to be very rewarding. there was no limit to what he wanted to achieve. i worked along side him. in other words, i won him over. and he won me over,too.
By Steve Tobak | January 20, 2011
In Getting a New Boss? Interview Again for Your Job, career coach Priscilla Claman outlines three steps to get yourself “rehired,” as she calls it. Since BNET blogger Sean Silverthorne called her advice “absolutely brilliant,” I thought I’d check out the three steps:
1. Update your resume.
2. Set up a meeting.
3. Present yourself.
Now, I happen to think that this sort of “me-centric” approach can easily backfire. But, the original post does have some decent points and Claman herself has a disclaimer at the end, “I find that the higher up you are, the less successful the “rehiring” method is.”
In any case, if your boss isn’t behind you 100 percent, it can make your life miserable. Believe it or not, you can win him over just by asking a few questions that show him you “get it” and are management or senior management material. Whether he’s newly promoted, newly hired, the result of a merger or acquisition, or has been your boss forever, here are:
10 Simple Questions That Will Win Over Your Boss
1. Ask what he thinks you can do to be more effective.
2. Ask what her top three priorities or goals are.
3. Ask what you can do to make him more effective.
4. Ask what you can do to make the team more effective.
5. Ask if he’s interested in knowing what will make your job easier.
6. Ask what her take is on the company’s top priorities and goals.
7. Ask what he thinks you should do differently or improve upon to be more effective.
8. Ask if she’d like to meet periodically, one-on-one, and if so, how frequently and what format would she like the meeting to take. Then set it up.
9. Ask what his philosophy is on your shared functional responsibility, whatever that is, i.e. marketing, HR, IT, engineering, finance.
10. And, if the meeting’s open-form and you feel it’s appropriate, ask about her background. Most people like to talk about themselves and how they got there, as long as they don’t feel like they’re being grilled, pumped for information, or played in some way.
In case it isn’t obvious, you don’t just plop down in your boss’s office with a notepad and start an inquisition. Ask for a one-on-one meeting because you’d like to know what you can do to be more effective and help him be more effective, wherein you ask a few questions, as appropriate, etc.
And, contrary to the aforementioned HBR advice, do not tell her about your role and your team. Instead, ask if she’d like to hear your perspective on your and your team’s role. If she says, “absolutely,” then set it up. But I still say it’s better to ask for her perspective on your and your team’s role. Get the difference?
And whatever you do, don’t present yourself, your resume, or your achievements either. Frankly, your boss, new or old, isn’t primarily interested in any of that stuff. He’s primarily interested in meeting his objectives and helping his boss meet hers.
The closer you come to demonstrating that that’s your priority as well, the sooner you’ll win him over because you “get it.” And the sooner you’ll be viewed as management or senior management material.
MY THOUGHTS
hmmm. food for thought. calls for some heavy thinking. i remember asking a new boss what my job description was. he said - "NONE". i wanted to resign right then and there. i stayed. wise decision. he said he didn't want to limit what i can do by having a list of tasks. i figured, from where he's from, the term "perform other tasks that may be assigned" does not appear in JDs. demanding as he was, he was also very wise. true enough, my stint with him proved to be very rewarding. there was no limit to what he wanted to achieve. i worked along side him. in other words, i won him over. and he won me over,too.
Friday, July 2, 2010
11 Ways to be Productive When You're Brain Dead
11 Ways to be Productive When You're Brain Dead
By Steve Tobak
Ever have one of those days when you wake up but your brain doesn’t? Come on; tell the truth. Hell, it happens to me all the time. There are dozens of causes: overwork, overstress, lack of sleep, too much fun the night before, temporary depression, sick of a never-ending project, or just plain lazy, to name a few. Sometimes the old noggin just doesn’t want to work. Do you blame it?
On days like that, you essentially have four choices: Stay home, try to have a normal day and probably screw it up, exercise, or adjust. Since I don’t consider the first two choices real options, at least not for me or most executives, and when I don’t feel like thinking I sure as hell don’t feel like exercising, I decided long ago to find ways to adjust, to make the most of those days when my brain’s on autopilot.
As it turns out, there are certain types of tasks that most of us either have to do or should do, even managers and top level executives, that don’t require you to be at the top of your game. Of course, you may have to crank up your willpower to get started, but the point is that, once you do - get started - you’ll cruise right through these ….
11 Ways to be Productive When You’re Brain Dead
1.Work on the graphics, special effects, or slide show timing of a Powerpoint presentation. Creative work that doesn’t require intense thought.
2.Hold one-on-one meetings with your staff or peers, ask them how you can improve, and really listen to what they have to say.
3.Let your mind wonder and brainstorm. You see, when you’re conscious mind is tired, your subconscious sort of kicks in and takes up the slack. You’d be amazed at what you can tap into. I get some of my best ideas when I’m half asleep or not even thinking.
4.Walk around, talk to people, let your guard down, be yourself.
5.If you happen to be writing something, do an outline. The final product always turns out better that way and outlining is methodical work that doesn’t require a lot of brainpower.
6.Check out what the competition is doing. Do a little digging, call some contacts to get some competitive G2.
7.Try a change of scenery, like working outside for a change.
8.Schmooze with some vendors or partners. No, I’m not saying completely waste people’s time, I’m talking about checking in and asking open questions that you usually don’t ask.
9.Take your administrative assistant or favorite employee out for a long lunch and really get to know them.
10.Do your expense reports. Yes, my least favorite too, but it is more or less brainless work.
11.Clean off your desk. Granted, this one really sucks, but you feel such a sense of accomplishment when you’re done, it almost makes it worthwhile.
Now, assuming that each one of you has a brain, which I sincerely hope isn’t too much of a stretch, and that’s it’s not always operating at peak efficiency, what do you do to make the best of it?
MY THOUGHTS
of course it happens - your brain just stopped working. and quite often when you're not happy about what you're doing. or when there are just too many things happening at the same time. it's good to know there are at least 11 ways of switching on your brain that went somewhere. personally, i think it's good to be brain dead once in a while. just for the overworked brain to rest. but not when you have a board meeting the next day and you end up fouling up your report. that's not gonna be brain dead. that's gonna be simply - dead!!!!
By Steve Tobak
Ever have one of those days when you wake up but your brain doesn’t? Come on; tell the truth. Hell, it happens to me all the time. There are dozens of causes: overwork, overstress, lack of sleep, too much fun the night before, temporary depression, sick of a never-ending project, or just plain lazy, to name a few. Sometimes the old noggin just doesn’t want to work. Do you blame it?
On days like that, you essentially have four choices: Stay home, try to have a normal day and probably screw it up, exercise, or adjust. Since I don’t consider the first two choices real options, at least not for me or most executives, and when I don’t feel like thinking I sure as hell don’t feel like exercising, I decided long ago to find ways to adjust, to make the most of those days when my brain’s on autopilot.
As it turns out, there are certain types of tasks that most of us either have to do or should do, even managers and top level executives, that don’t require you to be at the top of your game. Of course, you may have to crank up your willpower to get started, but the point is that, once you do - get started - you’ll cruise right through these ….
11 Ways to be Productive When You’re Brain Dead
1.Work on the graphics, special effects, or slide show timing of a Powerpoint presentation. Creative work that doesn’t require intense thought.
2.Hold one-on-one meetings with your staff or peers, ask them how you can improve, and really listen to what they have to say.
3.Let your mind wonder and brainstorm. You see, when you’re conscious mind is tired, your subconscious sort of kicks in and takes up the slack. You’d be amazed at what you can tap into. I get some of my best ideas when I’m half asleep or not even thinking.
4.Walk around, talk to people, let your guard down, be yourself.
5.If you happen to be writing something, do an outline. The final product always turns out better that way and outlining is methodical work that doesn’t require a lot of brainpower.
6.Check out what the competition is doing. Do a little digging, call some contacts to get some competitive G2.
7.Try a change of scenery, like working outside for a change.
8.Schmooze with some vendors or partners. No, I’m not saying completely waste people’s time, I’m talking about checking in and asking open questions that you usually don’t ask.
9.Take your administrative assistant or favorite employee out for a long lunch and really get to know them.
10.Do your expense reports. Yes, my least favorite too, but it is more or less brainless work.
11.Clean off your desk. Granted, this one really sucks, but you feel such a sense of accomplishment when you’re done, it almost makes it worthwhile.
Now, assuming that each one of you has a brain, which I sincerely hope isn’t too much of a stretch, and that’s it’s not always operating at peak efficiency, what do you do to make the best of it?
MY THOUGHTS
of course it happens - your brain just stopped working. and quite often when you're not happy about what you're doing. or when there are just too many things happening at the same time. it's good to know there are at least 11 ways of switching on your brain that went somewhere. personally, i think it's good to be brain dead once in a while. just for the overworked brain to rest. but not when you have a board meeting the next day and you end up fouling up your report. that's not gonna be brain dead. that's gonna be simply - dead!!!!
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