Blog Posts

Fear of public speaking is a very common form of anxiety. It can range from sweaty palms, shaky hands, a blushed face, a quivering voice, or a stomach tied in knots, to outright panic. But by using the following proven public speaking tips, you can not only overcome your public speaking anxiety, but also deliver high-quality and memorable presentations.   1. Passionately know and fully understand your topic. The following prerequisites can ensure that you select the right subject: - The topic energizes you and is something you are absolutely passionate about. - The subject has had a major impact ...

The #MeToo movement has shined a powerful spotlight on the gender gap in the workplace.  Not only did it reveal the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace, but it also highlighted the continued persistence of gender inequality. A recent survey by McKinsey & Co. and LeanIn.Org provides clear evidence of how men and women come into the working world in roughly equal numbers, but women immediately fall behind. (And these plummeting career ladder numbers are even worse for women who are minorities.) Women’s share of jobs at the following steps “up” the career ladder: Entry Level:  ...

Do you have your B.S. Radar turned on?  In today’s digital and multi-media age, the ability of identifying “fake news” and false information could never be more important.  Underscoring the importance of this skill is social media’s effect on accelerating the spread of false information.  Thus, the need to teach people how to identify and refute the fake information has become a new and burgeoning workplace trend. It’s not that all of the people spreading the misinformation are liars.  In fact, many of the culprits unknowingly spread the fake news, since they believe the information ...

“ONCE YOU STOP LEARNING, YOU START DYING.” - Albert Einstein It is not uncommon for Chief Learning Officers (CLOs) to struggle trying to secure funds and commitment for leadership development programs, despite the value that organizations see from such programs. I’ve been surprised and disappointed to read so many recent articles that assail the value of these programs versus the amount of money spent on them, including a Wall Street Journal article entitled “So much training, so little to show for it,” and a 2016 Harvard Business Review article calling leadership development programs “the great train robbery.” ...

You may work at one of the most positive workplaces in the world, but invariably, there will be times when you must deliver bad news at work to a team or a colleague. We’ve all been there. Probably the most visceral example of this is when you have to lay someone off. Many of us have been the recipient. Just in November 2016 alone, more than 26,000 workers were terminated.1 Certainly, it is never easy to deliver bad news to a colleague. With that said, here are 3 useful tips for “softening the blow” to the colleague: 1. Put ...

I was saddened to hear the news of Gene Wilder’s passing on August 29th, from complications of Alzheimer’s disease, a terrible illness that my Father has as well. Born on June 11, 1933, in Milwaukee as Jerome Silberman, Gene Wilder touched the hearts of millions as the character Willy Wonka, in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Although the film was not a commercial success, it later gained a cult following and an Oscar Nomination for Best Score. Wilder also earned a Golden Globe award nomination. In Wilder’s memory, I’d like to highlight nine best practice lessons on employee engagement ...

This inspiring quote about perseverance comes from an inspiring man—Vince Lombardi, Head Coach of The Green Bay Packers. You and your team can take these words off the football field and into your conference room. While I was CEO of HR Solutions, I had the pleasure of consulting with hundreds of world-class organizations and seeing firsthand what contributed to their success. Those who scored in the top 10% on their employee engagement surveys were considered “Best-in-Class” and were always an inspiration to me. Interestingly, they shared one uncanny commonality: they chose perseverance over victimhood. Many of these organizations had faced ...

We have all witnessed it. Some really well-liked, productive employee suddenly tenders his or her resignation, or maybe just doesn’t show up for work one day. The workplace quickly becomes abuzz with rumors of why the person quit. If the rumors are accurate then the reason most often lies with the newly resigned employee’s manager. After all, there is a whole heck of a lot of truth to the old adage that “Employees don’t leave companies, they leave managers.” And here are the 7 Deadly Sins that managers commit to cause these resignations. Sadly, all of these can be ...

This is the first video of a series of tips for managers and employees on how to reach best-in-class levels of employee engagement. It reveals the single most important way to positively influence employee engagement as well as some of the best practices on that key driver of engagement. If you are as passionate about employee engagement as I am, then you will definitely will want to share these with your team....

One of my most popular blogs this year was 19 Ways to be a Bad Boss. So I thought it would be equally as valuable to outline behaviors and traits of a Best Boss as well. As fortune would have it, I discovered a fascinating leadership study conducted by Lead Well LLC in partnership with Chicago-based Vantage Leadership Consulting. The 2013 study identified five common traits of a Best Boss: Leads From a Higher Purpose – The Best Boss demonstrates a purpose beyond self-interest and self-profit and/or a purpose beyond the organization that is put into action on behalf of ...

I have long admired Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos for his out-of-the-box thinking and workplace innovation. Hsieh pioneered the practice of paying people to quit, which is one very effective way of transitioning unengaged employees to other pastures. He and his team also adjusted Zappos’ interview process to increase the focus on a candidate’s attitude, rather than just aptitude. Assessing these two metrics became tasks for two separate interview teams; a spot-on best practice. Then he introduced Holacracy to Zappos, and I started questioning whether his success streak will come to an end. The idea behind Holacracy is that there ...

About 18 years ago, I began an athletic journey called “The Seven Summits,” a quest to climb and summit the highest mountain on every continent. Early on in the ascent of my first, Mt. Kilimanjaro (19,740 feet), I realized the uncanny similarities between high altitude mountaineering and an organization’s or leader’s journey to reach the summit of Employee Engagement, which is typically defined as reaching Best-in-Class or Award-winning status (the top 10% of all employers). One of the most striking similarities is in leadership qualities. Pick your expedition leader or manager carefully—it is the single most important factor in determining ...