Infusing Ethics Into Your Organization

•The Secret to Motivation Recognition
If you'd like to have energized and motivated employees or members, people who love what they are doing, and a thriving organization, then ask yourself how much of a recognition culture you have in your organization. Recognition and appreciation are not once and done events. To build a recognition culture in your organization, you need to do it regularly and often. And not only you. If you have a recognition culture in your organization, people at all levels of the organization regularly...

•Five Great Ways to Sabotage Your Career
So many times, people don't realize how easily they can sabotage their careers, unknowingly, they will do or not do things that hold them back. Here are five cautionary behaviors: Pretending that there are no politics: sometimes people take the view that they are not going to acknowledge or participate in the political framework of their organization. This is definitely career limiting. People need to be aware of the political aspects; they do not necessarily have to be political. It is...

•Do You Promote A Culture Of Creativity
? In today's fast-paced culture of constant change and innovation, organizations that want to grow and prosper need to be flexible and malleable to keep up with the pace, especially if they not only want to stay with the pack, but be leaders in their field. The rigid command and control structures of yesteryear are a barrier to moving with the times. I firmly believe that the companies that will lead the way now and in the future and truly 'hit the jackpot' are those who promote flexible and...

•How Strong is Your Leadership Bench
? Many times the coaches with the stronger benches are more successful. And with more and more talk about the need for the leaders of organizations to also be great coaches, it is interesting to consider the sports analogy of building a bench with that of planning for future leaders of your organization. So many organizations are very sophisticated in how they control their financials and their processes. Yet the same organizations may fall down in developing one of their most important...

•Trust Speeds Progress
Have you ever stopped to think how much time is wasted in organizations, with people watching their backs? How many of those emails that you receive are really just the sender's way of covering his or her tracks? How much filing space is taken to maintain the proof that something was said or assigned? What a waste of resources! Time... effort... space... * Just think what our world would be like if everyone we work with had the TRUST to avoid this unnecessary waste of resource! * Just...

•Is Your Email Culture Strangling You
? Email. Our lives wouldn't be the same without it. It is a tool that has revolutionized the workplace, improved communication, and allowed employees to accomplish more in less time. However, if mismanaged, it can have a devastating effect on productivity and profits. Have you ever stopped to think of what your organization's email culture is? How do your employees use email? How do they manage it? How do they send it? How do they save it? The habits they adopt, whether they are positive or...

•Do You Play Positive Politics
? How many of you have heard the expression positive politics? This is the opposite negative politics and I believe you can see a shift in political positioning and behavior as your move to the higher levels in just about any organization. As you go up the corporate ladder, or any organizational structural ladder, you're going to find that the people who are higher to the top are rarely engaged in what I consider to be negative politicking. Negative politicking is where the overt back stabbing...

•Think About Networking in a NEW Way
Instead of thinking about a network, let's envision a net. If you place yourself at the center of this net, you can see how your direct links, or connections, extends outward. And each of those links extend outward as well. Yet they are all interconnected. This is what we want our net to look like, and even more, to work. I meet too many entrepreneurs and business people who believe or act as though their selling efforts are all direct one on one transactions with their prospects and...

•Meetings Can Make or Break Your Career
Oh, how much time do we all spend in meetings???! Some are effective; some aren't. They take time away from our abilities to do other things. Some times they're boring and wasteful. Sometimes they're not. But one thing they all have: opportunities for you to showcase your abilities. With all the time I've spent in meetings over the years, I've wondered how many people have considered this side of their participation in meetings. Some people sure haven't acted that way. Here are some...

•Career Strategy Ask For Help
People who have more luck than others aren't afraid to ask others for help. While some might think that this is a sign of weakness, it really isn't. It is a signal of success. Asking people for help in terms of a referral to someone or opening the door for a possible meeting with someone is totally acceptable behavior. Asking others for constructive criticism is another form of requesting help. The same goes for asking for assistance in an area where you are not an expert. People who are...