We all have our favorite Thanksgiving traditions. It could be eating turkey and pumpkin pie, spending quality time with family, watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, cheering on your favorite football team, preparing for Black Friday shopping, or perhaps you’re someone who loves to start the day by running in a local turkey trot race. This week is a time to gather with friends and family, and to give thanks for our blessings.
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Dr. Julie Lauck, Superintendent of Valparaiso Community Schools. We hope you enjoy Dr. Lauck’s wisdom and perspective.
Great ideas often come from simple beginnings. Much like the beginning of a favorite movie of mine, Out of Africa begins with “I had a farm in Africa…” the story of an initiative we started this year in our district begins like this, “I had a Yorkie with a tummy ache.”
I took my dog to the vet late last spring. Dr. Bill Donohue and I began talking about his sponsorship of our one and only therapy dog. My comment to Dr. Donohue was that I would have a therapy dog in every school if I could. Dr. Donohue offered to sponsor any dog we could place. He added that he had a patient expecting a litter of ten English Cream Golden Retrievers. I looked at him and said, “I’ll get every single one placed.” He provided me with the contact information… and so it began.
“The single most significant strategic strength that an organization can have is not a good strategic plan but a commitment to strategic listening on the part of every member of the organization.” – Tom Peters
Those are some pretty strong words. I think we all know listening is important, but are we treating it as Peters says, “the bedrock of leadership excellence,” and thus giving it the attention it deserves? Are we truly being effective listeners?
We all struggle to get ahead of the talent challenges of today's workplace. At Gibson, we care so much about this topic that we have partnered with employee engagement software leader, Emplify, to bring insights and tools to the table as trusted advisors.
In this webinar, we’ll be joined by Emplify CEO and Co-founder, Santiago Jaramillo, as he shares actionable takeaways to build your own personalized culture framework to help you not only mitigate culture challenges, but get ahead of them.
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Joel Swanson, Certified EOS Implementer and Speaker. We hope you enjoy Joel’s wisdom and perspective.
It has almost certainly happened to each of us - you’re driving down the road on cruise control. You’re not doing anything reckless, but your mind is on a million things besides the stretch of road you’re on. You’re thinking about your destination, how long it will take to get there, whether you have enough gas, what’s for lunch, and why no one seems to know how to use a turn signal any more.
The next thing you know, you’re literally shaken back into focus by the rumble strip just on the other side of the white line. You’ve drifted a bit, so you make a slight course correction to straighten things out, and continue on your way with more focused direction.
No big deal, right? Right. But things could have gotten really dicey if it weren’t for that rumble strip.
The rumble strip was there to serve a purpose: it let you know that you were off course before you barreled into the ditch. It nudged you into making a small adjustment so you could avoid disaster.
There are rumble strips available to your business. Are you using them?
Do you have a best friend at work?
I heard this for the first time three years ago. I’d just started at Gibson and was becoming familiar with employee wellbeing and engagement surveys. I came across this question from the Gallup Q12 survey and remember thinking how strange I thought it was. Honestly, I’d never thought about it before.
Many people have the same reaction. In surveys, some employees comment that they already have a best friend and they don't need to spend extra time with the people they work with outside of work.
Having a best friend at work simply relates to having someone at work that you can confide in or share an experience with.
Turns out… it can be one of the most important factors in employee engagement and happiness at work. Having a best friend at work can lead to increased:
Let’s consider the impact this can have beyond employee satisfaction and employee engagement. What if your “best friend at work” was your saving grace when it comes to your mental health? Sometimes, we struggle sharing details of personal relationships or personal challenges with our closest friends out of fear of judgement or not wanting to feel like a burden, but at times a work friend can be the best person to open up to. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly one in five U.S. adults live with mental illness. More workdays are lost to mental health-related absenteeism than any other injury or illness. A study from the “Mental Health in the Workplace Summit” found mental illness is the leading cause of disability for U.S. adults aged 15 to 44.
Recognize the signs. It is important for managers/team leaders and co-workers to know and recognize the common signs listed below:
No one should, or has to, handle a mental health challenge on their own. You may be all the help they need or may be the one who can encourage them to get more help. Here’s how:
Given the prevalence of mental illness, you can expect that employees at your organization are experiencing mental health challenges. That’s why it’s important for your organization to create a culture that supports employees’ mental health. While this may sound complicated, creating a workplace that is supportive of mental health is easier than it seems. Here are five simple ways that your company can support employees and their mental health.
When you openly talk about mental health, the ways you support mental health, and communicate the resources available, employees are more likely to feel comfortable and ask for help if they’re struggling.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts, talk about how you are feeling with someone you trust. Do not be ashamed to admit you need help. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is always staffed and ready to listen at 1-800-273-TALK(8255).
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger, Nicole MacLean, Director of Relationship Marketing at Emplify. We hope you enjoy Nicole’s wisdom and perspective.
Nobody thrives in a plague or does their best work while fending off lions. And it doesn’t take a catastrophe to throw stress reactions into overdrive. When people don’t trust that they’ll be able to complete their work without surprises — especially those that come with negative consequences — engagement is nearly impossible.
Being prepared to maintain employee engagement by addressing the difficulties that come with change is mission critical when triggers arise. Change is tough to absorb individually and as a company; keeping tabs on exactly how it affects your team should guide your efforts to maintain engagement through the shift. Without this feedback, you risk adding to your difficulties by setting the stage for disengagement and its costly sidekicks — low productivity, absenteeism, subpar customer service, and turnover.
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Renea Boots, EVP & Chief Administration Officer for Farmers State Bank. We hope you enjoy Renea’s wisdom and perspective.
I recently ran across the following quote.
“Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don’t interfere.” – Ronald Reagan
Reading these words, I felt myself smiling, remembering that I have often said “Get great people, empower them, and get out of their way!” Maybe I read this quote earlier in my career and stole it from President Reagan, or maybe it just made sense and great minds think alike (except that I don’t consider my mind great).
Regardless, there is tremendous truth in the statement. As my career has morphed from HR into corporate leadership, I’ve learned that developing self-confidence in people, removing hurdles when needed, praising good work, and occasionally cleaning up a mess is really the true day-to-day nature of my role. The other focus of corporate leadership is looking out to next month, next quarter, next year - and preparing the organization for what lies ahead.
Mid-level managers are best equipped to handle most challenges an organization faces each day. The question is - are you letting them?
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger René Boer, a Certified Implementer of EOS. We hope you enjoy René's wisdom and perspective.
It’s probably no surprise that employees would prefer feedback to be positive. But what may surprise you is that employees would rather have negative feedback than no feedback at all. Despite this, many bosses confess that they’re not particularly good at giving genuine praise or helpful criticism.
Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Peter Welsh, Director of Retirement Services for Thurston Springer. We hope you enjoy Peter's wisdom and perspective.
