What does it mean to “Manage Up” and Should You?
Note:This article contains 1584 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 6 minutes.
You’ve probably heard the expression: people don’t quit jobs, but they quit managers and that’s a basic fact. For most people, the major component of job satisfaction is not the office layout or resource tools. When you think about it even further, it’s not even about bonuses, benefits or workload, but instead it is more about the relationship they have with their manager. Interestingly, according to a study, conducted by psychologist Michelle McQuaid, the author of Five Reasons to Tell Your ManagerTo Go F**k Themselves, revealed that more than 65% of workers surveyed would choose a new manager over a pay raise. In her research she’s found that employees who dislike their managers take an average of 15 more sick days per year than other workers. More than that, they even slow down on the job, don’t... read more ❯
Quick Tip to Increase Revenue
Note:This article contains 894 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 3 minutes.
There’s a lot of emphasis on making sales, increasing revenue in the business world. However, a crucial aspect (and arguably more important) key to business success is retaining your clients. Granted, new customers are key to the success and growth of your business. But smart business owners realize the importance of retaining existing clients as they offer huge potential for continuous revenue.
According to the Harvard Business Review, selling to a new client costs on an average 25 times more than to an existing client. It’s more expensive to acquire new clients than it is to keep an existing one. In fact, long-term customers provide more value than a single-deal client. Keeping customers for the long haul provides a solid foundation of revenue that has created incredible wealth for businesses.
Existing customers have already done business with... read more ❯
Are You Successful at Recruiting but Not at Retention?
Note:This article contains 1,875 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 8 minutes.
Most savvy business owners and leaders alike understand the importance of finding and retaining top employees especially when it comes to business success. This is specifically true for small businesses with limited budgets competing with larger corporations for top talent. It’s not just enough to recruit top talent, it’s critical and more cost-effective to retain those top performers for years to come.
Companies that replace employees as fast as they recruit them often have to contend with fluctuating productivity levels and that could culminate in reduced revenue. The demand for companies to retain top talent is intensifying and is often one of the most important issues leadership contends with globally. Employee retention is becoming increasingly challenging. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; the average worker’s tenure on average is about 4.4 years.... read more ❯
Move from being “Busy” to being Productive
Note:This article contains 1,134 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 5 minutes.
Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” -–Paul J. Meyer.
Right from the early 1970s, productivity (generally referred to as the total amount of output per hour worked) has been consistently increasing in North America. According to the Economic Policy Institute, between the years 1973 and 2011 there has been an amazing 80 percent increase in the productivity of the American worker. This rise in productivity has been a direct result of implementing new tools to bolster our efficiency and focus. However, while it’s obvious that the average level of productivity for American workers has improved significantly, top CEOs, business owners, entrepreneurs are still looking for ways to increase their productivity. So what practices and strategies do highly successful people incorporate into their... read more ❯
Little Things That Make A Big Difference
Happy New Year everyone!
As we start off a New Year, I think most of us take the time to ponder and envision the things that are important to us. Some call them resolutions, or goals, or plans – whatever resonates for you – but they are all about what and where we want to put our focus and precious energy this year.
Recently, I was in the company of a group of amazing ladies as we discussed life, what works, what doesn’t and what makes us feel better and how to make that happen going forward!
We all had common complaints: lack of sleep, waking up in the night and trying to solve all of our challenges – real and perceived (and realizing the list is very long!); wanting everyone in our lives to be well and thriving, and the lengths we will go to try to make that happen, sometimes to... read more ❯
Why Your Employees will Never Trust you
Have you ever felt that your employees do not trust you? Well, you’re definitely not alone. Feelings of trust towards managers, team leaders, CEOs have fallen in recent years. Edelman Trust Barometer statistics revealed that average trust in organizations is at an all-time low of 52 percent. The issue of trust in the workplace and organizations has been attracting a lot of attention lately as there seem to be no imminent changes in the statistics. Another piece of research found out that one-fifth (20%) of employees do not trust their management and senior leaders. It’s therefore imperative to examine some factors that can cause distrust in the workplace. As an employer trust is a crucial part of your business as it can have a significant on business growth. Trust is especially important in business; it affects employee productivity and retention.
A study conducted by the Chartered Management Institute and leadership events... read more ❯
Is Fear the Most Powerful Motivator?
Note: This article contains 1,240 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 5 minutes.
Fear is an emotion induced by a perceived threat; it arises from the ability to recognize a risk of significant loss of wealth, health, power, status, security or anything of value leading to an urge to either flee from it or confront it. Fear has always been a very powerful emotion since the evolution of mankind and has been very crucial in the survival of the human race. It has saved us from predators, disasters and has kept us alive. It’s a primal instinct that served us as cave dwellers and today.
There is nothing that makes us more uncomfortable than fear, and there are so many of them from fear of failure, disease, missing an opportunity, being conned and a lot more. Our best experiences are borne out of fear. Think about the happiest, growth-oriented... read more ❯
5 Common Business Problems Every Business Owner Faces
Note: This article contains 1,453 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 6 minutes.
In my role as a business coach, I sometimes meet with well-educated and intelligent people who run businesses but are not very adept at solving problems. Many people start businesses only to find out that it’s quite challenging to solve business problems. As a business owner, you probably believe you should be able to solve all your business problems, but that is not often the case. That’s why it is important to know when you need the expertise and support of others and where and how to get it. This is where business coaching comes in.
Business coaches provide the help needed to solve some common problems in business, giving you the opportunity to focus on other important aspect of the business. Most times the underlying problem is that you are too close to the situation,... read more ❯
The Leaders Challenge: Fear of Failure
Note: This article contains 1,365 words and 1 image, with an estimated read time of 5 minutes.
“My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” - Abraham Lincoln
Sometime ago I came across a portrait taken on the morning of the D-day landings. It pictures an army Regimental Sergeant Major standing courageously while those around him cowered in fear as they try to find cover from the bullets raining down on them. Undoubtedly, he was fearful, but his body language portrays something else entirely. He is seen calling his troops to come with him into battle; without knowing what the eventual outcome will be, and with the odds clearly against them.
The aura of confidence around this leader, bravely leading his troops on showed that for him failure is not an option. He made a decision to keep moving forward, regardless of the uncertainty of... read more ❯
LEADERS: Stop Obsessing Over Loyalty, focus on Team Envy and Cohesion Instead
Each year organizations lose billions of dollars due to employee turnover. Quite surprisingly, most of it is actually voluntary, and one starts to wonder, what has happened to employee loyalty. In a workforce survey conducted recently, more than 91% of the respondents agreed that they can’t stay with their current organization for more than three years.
The definition of employee loyalty has changed in recent years. More and more employees now define loyalty as it relates to the job at hand. The workplace has become transactional for the employee. Once hired to perform specific tasks, they give their very best. And after mastering it they seek out new roles and opportunities in order to earn more and/or have more responsibility. Whether this opportunity comes from within their current organization or they have to make a move, they have loyally fulfilled their obligation. Employees generally expect to get much more than just... read more ❯