What Is CLASS Leadership?

What Is CLASS Leadership?

By Richard Brody

In nearly every aspect of our lives, and in most activities and scenarios, we engage in endless conversations about the need for individuals or groups to have and show more class. We often refer to this as a sort of catchall phrase to encompass personal traits, integrity, and mostly, doing the right thing, in an honorable way on a consistent basis. However, when it comes to effective leadership, there is a need to formalize the needed traits that we refer to as CLASS, and to be far more specific about achieving the desired results. CLASS stands for: creativity and caring; lead by example; analyze and assess needs; strength of character; and strategic thinking.

1. You will never actually be a leader if you don't care deeply and sincerely. This means that one must prioritize creating and enhancing value for constituents, followers, and all other stakeholders, that are or might be impacted by one's actions. In order to effectively address the needs, a leader must be willing, able and prepared to think outside the box, and explore alternatives that might help the group evolve as it must to, in order to be sustainable and remain relevant.

2. No one is really a leader unless and until he commits to lead by example. While most leadership trainers emphasize the need for leaders to delegate responsibilities and get others involved, unless someone steps forward himself, in a meaningful manner by doing so first, few individuals will become motivated to follow. Far too many in leadership roles view the delegation process as a way to avoid personal responsibility and in some cases believe they may avoid personal effort by giving someone else the duties. True leaders realize that delegating means closely working with an overseeing others, so that those that they delegate to, become an extension of themselves. However, they realize and understand that they must always maintain personal responsibility and absolute integrity.

3. How can you consider yourself a leader unless you analyze and assess needs? This means that a classy leader plans according to a careful review of the strengths, weaknesses, historic perspective and future needs of his organization, as well as the demographics and desires of his group's members.

4. It's often easier to refer to strength of character than to carry ourselves accordingly. True leaders must prioritize what they perceive as the group's needs, as opposed to constantly doubting themselves and reacting to conflicts, objections and concerns, by resorting to a desire to be more popular and settling for continuous and constant crisis management.

5. Great leadership requires strategic thinking. No matter how well intentioned someone may be, unless they evaluate needs and necessities, and continuously strive for relevance and reliability, combined with fulfilling their mission in line with their vital vision, they are not providing the class leadership that organizations need and deserve!

Do your leaders possess CLASS? Wouldn't it be nice, and wouldn't your group be better served, if they did?

Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, and Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has professionally run events, consulted to over a thousand leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for over 30 years. Rich has written three books and well over a thousand articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://Facebook.com/Plan2lead
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What Does Winning Mean To A Winner?

What Does Winning Mean To A Winner?

By Richard Brody

Whenever there is any discussion about winning or the need/ desire to win, there are generally diverse points of view, as to what that actually means and indicates. This discussion is often a challenging one, but when it relates to leadership, can often be an essential one as well. While great leaders are distinguished by the fact that for them winning is directly related to achievement of their priorities and goals, and the forward impetus that the organization receives as a result, others often have less lofty ideals and for them winning is about personal gain, etc. The contrast is between the positive traits versus the more negative ones. Positive traits include positive values (placing the interests and needs of others first), worthwhile dreams and goals, and a proactive perspective. Contrast these to the negative ones which include prioritizing personal gain (the me - first attitude), a lack of clearcut perspective or goals, and a reactive rather than proactive approach (which generally leads to crisis management rather than leadership).

1. Great leaders distinguish themselves with their positivity, as well as their positive values. They realize that they will only succeed when they make others do so to a greater degree. To these rare but distinguished individuals, winning means motivating others to work with them toward loftier goals and values. Contrast that to the far more commonly observed negative model, where someone perceives problems from every obstacles, and permits those perceptions to dominate him. He often so needs the approval of others that he resorts to excuses and blaming others, often spending more time on these "solutions" rather than attempting to resolve challenges and transform them to opportunities.

2. A winning leader always has worthwhile and often far reaching dreams, that motivates him to develop goals that propels him forward to do more and better for his organization. He focuses on how things should be and how to get there, as opposed to the negative, mediocre one who lacks any clearcut direction, and permits outside forces to dominate him, rather than emphasing the best approaches and plans to be a real winner.

3. In the end analysis, great leadership often relates directly to planning and taking action. The winner is the individual who is proactive and acts before he must, while the loser is unwilling to take timely action and behaves reactively rather than proactively.

How someone in a position of leadership perceives winning is often indicative of his eventual effectiveness. Only those that are led by the positive model achieve and proceed at the level where they actually become a true leader!

Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, and Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has professionally run events, consulted to over a thousand leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for over 30 years. Rich has written three books and well over a thousand articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://Facebook.com/Plan2lead
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Does Your Leadership Battery Need a Re-Charge?

Does Your Leadership Battery Need a Re-Charge?

By Susan S Freeman

Last week I was coaching a new client who was facing a personal leadership challenge. Promoted from a technical to management role, he was becoming increasingly frustrated. Not having yet learned the skills to make this easier, he found himself becoming more short-tempered. Not surprisingly, this took a physical toll as his blood pressure spiked.

Does this sound familiar? If so, you may need a re-charge to your leadership battery.

Isn't it strange that we have entire set-ups to re-charge our technological devices nightly, at home and on the move. We face battery drains at our own peril; out of reach, out of touch, unable to complete tasks and communicate in real-time.

Apply the metaphor to your leadership battery. Are you learning the competencies to keep it from getting drained? Are you re-charging it daily?

Many of us were fortunate to have gotten a bit of a summer break, whether it was near or far. We believe that vacations are the re-charge for our batteries. While they are often effective at doing that, we simply cannot afford to wait that long.

Why is taking a vacation not enough?

The human body was designed to be at "homeostasis." We have the ability regulate our physical, emotional and mental processes if we learn and practice.

When we are in our conscious, waking state, we activate the sympathetic nervous system. This helps us get things done. The problem comes when this is our ONLY state of being. We require the balancing of the parasympathetic nervous system; the part where we access our deeply relaxed state of brainwaves; alpha or perhaps even delta or theta. Access to this deeply relaxed brain-wave state allows us to experience creativity, synthetic thinking, intuition, visualizations, etc.

Activating the parasympathetic nervous system can be done daily through a breath practice. Learning (and practicing) allows your mental, physical and emotional states to "re-charge."

1. Make a commitment (preferably to someone who will hold you accountable)

2. Set aside time in your calendar to create a routine. Intend to turn this into a habit

3. Practice belly breathing, just a few minutes at first, gradually working up to longer periods.

4. Notice what you observe in your body, state of mind, emotions

5. Write it down in a journal or notebook; remark on patterns and what changes for you.

Remember to give as much care to re-charging yourself daily as you do to your electronic devices.

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What Satanism Is and What It Isn't

What Satanism Is and What It Isn't

By Ilya Shambat

There are plenty of people around the world who have been claimed to be Satanic or Satanists at one or another time. Having examined the matter I have come up with three groups of people who have been claimed this. I refer to them as:

Quasi-Satanists

Pseudo-Satanists

Real Satanists.

The quasi-Satanists are for the most part teenagers and young men raised in Christian backgrounds who are rebelling against Christianity. Most of them do not actually worship Satan; but they may do some rituals or get some tattoos. As they get older, most of them stop calling themselves Satanists and either go back to Christianity or explore other paths. For the most part, the quasi-Satanists are kids who are going through a phase and will go into a different direction as they grow out of that phase.

A larger group is the pseudo-Satanists. These are people who are not Satanists, but get falsely branded as such. One group of non-Satanists who constantly get branded as Satanists are the Wiccans and pagans who do not believe that there is such a thing as Satan, much less worship the same. Buddhists, Hinduists, Taoists, also get falsely portrayed as being Satanists - once again, these religions do not believe in Satan; and while some in these religions believe that there are demons and hells, they treat them as undesirables or as things to avoid. Atheists and agnostics get branded as Satanist though they believe neither in Satan nor in God. Gnostics and metaphysians get accused of being Satanists when they likewise don't worship Satan: most of them believe in God but have chosen to practice the path of knowledge rather than faith. And then of course there is constant accusation and counter-accusation among Christians, Muslims, Mormons and different denominations within Christianity, each portraying the other as Satanist.

In all cases these claims are ridiculous.

Why are these claims ridiculous? Because there is such a thing as real Satanists. And once one has known real Satanists, one is no more likely to call the next person a Satanist than a man who's known real Communists is likely to call his liberal wife a Communist, or a woman who's known real Nazis is likely to call her conservative husband a Nazi.

And to accuse all these other people of being Satanic is an insult not only to them, but to anyone who's had to deal with people who actually practice real Satanism.

There was, for example, a kid in a Southern Baptist community who believed that he was a Satanist because he believed in revenge. A therapist familiar with different religions asked him some educated questions; after which the poor boy was in total shock. Here was someone who practiced the Christian worldview, but had one disagreement with Christian orthodoxy, who because of this one disagreement was led to believe that he was a Satanist. A dogma this authoritarian, assimilative and intolerant cannot be good and is unsuitable for freedom. In fact, the boy was significantly more sincere than were his neighbors; for of course Southern Baptists practice revenge even though they claim not to believe in it.

Satanism has been described as shadow Christianity; and for most quasi-Satanists it is. For real Satanists it is a religion in its own right. They believe that Satan genetically engineered humanity and that God then stole the credit. I can say with full certainty that the vast majority of people who get accused of being Satanic do not believe in any such thing. Not Hindus, not Taoists, not Buddhists, not pagans, not metaphysicians, not atheists, not skeptics, not liberals, not materialists, not scientists, not feminists, not transsexuals, not agnostics, not kids who believe in revenge, have any such convictions.

So before one mouths off to claim that such-and-such is Satanic, may one be alerted of what Satanism actually is. And may one's claims then be put into perspective. Knowing what something is makes it possible to know what it is not. And knowing what Satanism is makes it possible to know all the many things that it isn't.

Ilya Shambat
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How You Can, Versus Why You Can't

How You Can, Versus Why You Can't

By Richard Brody

How do you face the inevitable obstacles that we each face every day? Is your initial reaction to adopt the negative perspective of focusing on the reasons that you might fail and what might go wrong, or do you take the positive path of seeking what you need to do to assure that you can? This difference in approach often impacts our results as well as our effectiveness, because one methodology propels us forward and enhances our potential, while the other one is self - defeating, demoralizing, and a sort of self fulfilling negative prophesy.

1. Do you perceive obstacles as problems or as challeneges? This perception often is the most significant precursor in determing our inevitable results, because merely focusing on something as a problem conjures up an unpleasant image that makes most of us want to avoid and escape from. On the other hand, when we conceive of things as challenges, it helps us to expend our energies expeditiously and efficiently. The visualization of a challenge is productive because it creates a positive mindset, and challenges are often viewed as an adventure, while problems are considered a sort of disaster.

2. Why you can philosophy uses our energies in a productive and proactive manner, while the why you can't approach generally produces worry and anxiety! We must realize that worrying about things and having anxiety never solves anything. All these behaviors do is bring on additional stress, which, for those who ponder on the negative, is counter - productive and self - defeating.

3. Do you learn from your stress, or do you let stresses control and manipulate you? Nobel Prize recipient Dr. Hans Selye describe the two types of stress as positive stress (he labelled it as eustress) and negative stress. While eustress is valuable and enriching, negative stress is debilitating and destructive. It is how we react to stressful circumstances that determines our end result! Stress used productively moves us to greater heights, because it teaches us how to do things better and more effectively. On the other hand, when stress is permitted to control us, we achieve less, and attempt less, often giving up and giving in to obstacles that we face.

Each of us control our destinies to the degree that our mindsets place in either the position to succeed or to not only fail, but to contribute to that failure. Only an absolute commitment to a can - do philosophy and performance enhances us!

Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, and Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has professionally run events, consulted to over a thousand leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for over 30 years. Rich has written three books and well over a thousand articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://Facebook.com/Plan2lead
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Value Counts More Than Price Alone!

Value Counts More Than Price Alone!

By Richard Brody

Whether it is about selling or marketing a product, service, oneself, or effectively and meaningfully leading an organization, there is invariably a choice that must be made between simply addressing the price (or costs/ expense areas), or rather providing better value that justifies any expense and makes others believe that whatever something costs is well worth the expense. This requires a mindset that understands and perceives these four prerequisites: 1. It's not about what you pay, but what you get/ receive for that cost; 2. That value means different things to different people, and so both true value as well as perceived value must be addressed; 3. That whatever the expense or cost, that it fits a need and motivates others; 4. That it shows that you care!

1. Nearly everything that is done has some sort of associated expenditure involved. Those that lack vision (I often refer to these types of individuals as myopic leaders) focus merely on the costs and act to slash costs, often without examining or understanding potential ramifications and/ or alternatives. On the other hand, the better approach is generally examining expenses with the focus on productivity and purpose, and addressing what the expenses bring forth that is meaningful or needed. In other words, what do you get for the monies expended and is this the best use of those funds?

2. There is both real value, as well as perceived value. Often, those in positions of leadership focus on the expenditures merely in terms of how the monies were spent and whether they paid the right amount. Perceived value is not simply based on whether the correct amount was paid, but rather whether stakeholders received valuable services, etc., as a result of these expenses. In most cases, members of organization are far more interested in how they perceive the value that they receive for their money, than merely the absolute costs.

3. Does the program, service, or any other expenditure fit the needs, and thus motivate others to get more involved, care more, and are positive about their membership? Is the cost addressing either a need or some sort of niche that distinguishes the organization in a significant manner, which makes it more attractive to either belong to, or support in some other meaningful way?

4. When others perceive membership as being valuable, and it is combined with a leader with the attitude, integrity and desire to serve others, it is indicative of caring. In order for someone to lead effectively, he must prioritize value, and show how much he cares. Every organization fares better when its leaders care.

While price may sell a product once, it never attracts loyal customers, clients or members! On the other hand, when there is a perception of value, the result is generally more far reaching and longer lasting!

Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, and Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has professionally run events, consulted to over a thousand leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for over 30 years. Rich has written three books and well over a thousand articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://Facebook.com/Plan2lead
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The ABCDE Of Effective Planning

The ABCDE Of Effective Planning

By Richard Brody

Nearly every individual who ascends to a position of leadership at least gives lip service to the need for effective planning, only those who become true leaders commit to the needed process to achieve this. The ABCDE requires: analyze; budget wisely; creativity; delegate responsibilties carefully; and executing one's plan in a proactive and meaningful manner. Anyone unwilling or unable to commit to prioritizing effective planning not only hinders but often mortally wounds his potential effectiveness. Think of effectiveness as getting it done in a productive, efficient and meaningful manner!

1. Analyze what your organization needs, requires, and where it presently is and where it wants to be. There is often a fine line and a needed balance between procrastination and careful review. However, those that procrastinate never lead because their unwarranted delays generally exacerbate difficulties and make challenges and obstacles more difficult and costly to address properly. Positive analysis is using wisdom and judgment to review alternatives, and expeditiously decide the best approach.

2. While it is nice to say you will plan, unless a leader learns to budget wisely, his approach will lack an essential component that is extremely relevant to the realities of achievement. A budget can either be a leader's friend or enemy, and wise leaders use these instruments in conjunction with their plan and agenda.

3. Effective leaders realize and understand that they can never afford to bore their constituents, but must rather continuously seek ways to motivate and increase involvement and commitment of others. This seeks what is often referred to as a willingness to think outside the box, but in practice means being open minded enough to consider alternatives without prior bias or prejudice. There are almost always more than one way to achieve goals, and wise leaders understand that this often requires creativity and enhancing the appeal and message to better attract others to listen and care more.

4. How many times have you heard someone discuss how important it is for a leader to delegate responsibilities and duties to others? However, this must be done carefully, because only when one first identifies and locates the right individuals, then trains and qualifies them, and then fully explains what the goals and commitment he is seeking, does delegating achieve its desired results. The potential is only achieved when there is a simultaneous commitment to support these individuals and back their missions consistently!

5. Nothing meaningful will ever occur unless someone executes his plan. It is never enough to just talk the talk, but effectiveness and impact requires a willingness and ability to walk the walk, too!

Anyone can talk about planning, but only when we effectively plan and carry it out to fruition, do we accomplish and reap the potential benefits and goals that we seek. Those that commit to the process are nearly always the most capable leaders.

Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, and Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has professionally run events, consulted to over a thousand leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for over 30 years. Rich has written three books and well over a thousand articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://Facebook.com/Plan2lead
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Working Hard Vs. Working Smart

Working Hard Vs. Working Smart

By Ilya Shambat

When people get asked what builds prosperity, the most frequent response is "working hard." That however is not always the case. India has a billion people, most of whom work hard, and most of whom are poor.

What actually builds prosperity is working smart.

America was not born wealthy. It became wealthy through not only working hard, but through working smart. It became wealthy through identifying market needs; through implementing science and technology; through figuring out what people may want and supplying it - while tapping into scientific knowledge and applying it toward that effect.

It is this - working smart - that actually creates prosperity. We have seen a very powerful example of that with China in the last three decades. The Chinese worked as hard under Mao or under Empress Dowager as they do now. Only now, the Chinese are, for the most part, a lot wealthier than they were just 33 years ago.

How did the Chinese do it? Once again, by working smart. They realized that they had a country of a billion hard-working people who were, at the time, very poor. This created an obvious solution: Become the manufacturing shop of the world. So now, China is the world's second-largest economy and has some of its biggest buildings and supercomputers, as well as the biggest vehicle market in the world.

India has all the potentialities that does China; but there is too much bureaucratic red tape and too many people who think that poverty is righteous. I do not see how the latter idea has any currency at all. I've known people from all levels of income, and I absolutely did not find the poor to be more righteous than the wealthy. In fact, the worst abuses I've seen were among the poorer people. And on global scale, we see the worst abuses likewise in the poorer places such as Afghanistan and Somalia and much less so in Scandinavia, Canada or Japan.

The Indians need to do what has worked for others. They need to learn to work smart. They need to identify what people may want to buy, that they can produce, and produce it. The software industry has worked for many people; but there are still hundreds of millions people in India who are dirt-poor. As Chinese people grow wealthier, the low-end jobs will need to go to other countries; and that creates an obvious market potential for India's poor.

Nobody who is not a jerk wants to see people having to live in abject poverty. And to this, there are real solutions. America had one solution: Spontaneous development. China had another solution: Growth through exports. India, Africa and any number of other places stand to learn from both and arrive at their own way to work smart.

The more this is done, the more is there progress against poverty and the better the lives of people all across the board.

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WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

CRACKED OR PERFECT

A water bearer in India had two large pots. Each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house.

The cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master's house.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, and want to apologize to you."

"Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"

"I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again he expressed his feeling to the water bearer.

He replied by saying, "Did you notice that flowers were only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side?

That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."

The moral of this story is that we all have out faults, but we all have a path to follow and that path we make must have a reason to our being.

- Author Unknown

LET THE LIGHT SHINE

Bill was driving home one evening, on a two-lane country road. Work, in this small Midwestern community, was almost as slow as his beat-up Pontiac, but he never quit looking. Ever since the factory closed, he'd been unemployed, and with winter raging on, the chill had finally hit home.

It was a lonely road. Not very many people had a reason to be on it, unless they were leaving. Most of his friends had already left. They had families to feed and dreams to fulfill, but he stayed on.

After all, this was where he buried his mother and father. He was born here and knew the country. He could go down this road blind, and tell you what was on each side, and with his headlights not working, that came in handy.

It was starting to get dark and light snow flurries were coming down. He'd better get a move on. You know, he almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help.

So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn't look safe, he looked poor and hungry.

He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill that only fear can put in you. He said, "I'm here to help you ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm? By the way, my name is Bill."

Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bill crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire, but he had to get dirty and his hands hurt.

As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down her window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid.

Bill just smiled as he closed her trunk. She asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She had already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped.

Bill never thought twice about the money. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way.

He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance that they needed, and Bill added "...and think of me".

He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.

A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her.

The cash register was like the telephone of an out of work actor-it didn't ring much. Her waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn't erase.

The lady noticed that the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Bill.

After the lady finished her meal, and the waitress went to get her change from a hundred dollar bill, the lady slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. She wondered where the lady could be, then she noticed something written on a napkin.

There were tears in her eyes, when she read what the lady wrote. It said, "You don't owe me a thing, I've been there too. Someone once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here's what you do... " Don't let the chain of love end with you."

Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day.

That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could she have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard. She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered in a soft, and low voice, "Everything's gonna be all right; I love you Bill."

- Author Unknown

Top 11 Roles of Human Resource Management

Top 11 Roles of Human Resource Management

By Saeed Yasir

Human Resource Management is an important department of any organization that wants to hire and retain top employees. Due to increasing problems of managing people at workplace, having a department that ensures compliance with laws has become the top most priority for organizations. Gone were the days when HR managers used to hire and fire employees. Today, these roles have changed tremendously. HR department has challenging roles that no other department can perform efficiently. Some of these are:

1. Posting jobs accurately matching requirements of an organization

2. Shortlisting candidates based upon a certain standard

3. Scheduling interviews

4. Interviewing potential candidates for the best positions

5. Finalizing the hiring process

6. Developing training programs for newly hired employees

7. Ensuring diversity at workplace

8. Retaining current employees through various policies

9. Measuring performance and promoting employees as per company policies

10. Restructuring departments to get the best output

11. Ensuring compliance with employment laws

These are just some of the roles for HR management. If you are working as HR manager at an organization and want to excel forward, then getting certified HR professional is a surefire way to land you on better posts. Today, most of the organizations take pride by stating that they have one of the most diverse workplaces.

Organizations that realize the importance of having sound workforce know that without an efficient HR department, employees cannot work up to their best potential. Employees are the best assets of a company and getting output from them in line with organizational policies is the job of HR professionals.

Why get certified?

If you are a certified professional in the field of Human Resource Management, your organization would be at a competitive advantage as compared with other companies in the same industry. As a certified HR professional, you are making sure that the best policies are designed to reduce employee motivation and turnover rate.

It is important that organizations comply with the employment laws to avoid getting bad reputation in the market. HR certified professionals help ensure that the company is implementing all employment laws to prosper a vibrant and highly motivated workforce.

Conclusion

I would like to conclude this article that if you have the skills to work in HR department of an organization, now is the right time to get a job. After gaining some years of experience, it is important that you get certified to be recognized as HR leader. The competition is very high, due to which you need to get certified.

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The Graceful Art of Termination

The Graceful Art of Termination

By Thomas E Daubert

During a prayer session at our church, a couple asked us to keep some friends of theirs in prayer. Apparently, they had moved a great distance across Canada to work at this particular place of employment. After working there for only a month or two, the couple was dismissed from their duties without warning. As sad as this situation was, I knew exactly how this couple felt. Three years ago, the same thing happened to my wife and me. What was thought to be a routine staff evaluation turned into termination of employment. I knew we were having troubles, but my wife and I were oblivious to the fact that our employers were dissatisfied with our work to the point of dismissal. We even received a moderately good evaluation less than six months ago with no indication of areas of improvement. Cases like these are both tragic and commonplace, particularly in areas of ministry. Nobody relishes the prospect of being fired, and I flatter myself to think that effective leaders do not relish the prospect of firing employees. Frankly, there is no easy way to terminate employment. However, if it is done discreetly, professionally, and even compassionately, the pain of termination could be alleviated significantly.

First of all, ample time should always be given for training with mistakes addressed in private. When my wife and I started working at the youth care facility, we weren't really trained properly. Instead of being informed of how to do things properly or appropriately, we were simply chided by the powers that be, sometimes even in front of the clientele. If there are issues that need to be addressed, they should always be addressed behind closed doors and out of earshot of other people. Talking about mistakes should be learning experiences, and not lessons in humiliation and frustration.

Secondly, employees should always be made aware of their mistakes and shortcomings. A few months back, I made a mistake that was noticed by my interim supervisor. When she addressed my mistake, she mentioned that the supervisor before her was ready to terminate my employment. I realized that I erred, but I was oblivious to the fact that my employment was in jeopardy. In fact, I received a glowing staff evaluation a few months prior. Had I known this, I would have been a lot more careful not to repeat this offense twice. When I was a supervisor, a mentor told me to always leave a paper trail. Any infractions needed to be addressed in a timely fashion, documented with a copy going to the employee, and a copy kept on record. That way, if the worker does it again, it gives the employer more ground for termination, should it ever get that severe. Moreover, the employee is made more aware of his actions and will hopefully be not repeat the infraction again, whatever it may be.

I have seen cases, like the one mentioned at the beginning, where the employers are terminated for no reason at all. They go into work one day and the next day they are let go. A friend of mine who was a principal was let go from his position by a school board who gave him no reason for letting him go. I could even mention several others who were subjected to this kind of treatment. Not only is this demoralizing, it is also unprofessional, and for those who are Christians, it is totally unacceptable. Any supervisor that does not have the decency and strength of character to do give someone sufficient reason for termination is not worth working for.

Most importantly, an effective supervisor should always have the desire to keep their employees for as long as possible and improve them in a way that is discreet and edifying. Unfortunately, there are those whom you can't improve or have no desire to improve. There are also those who do things that are illegal, unethical, and blatantly harmful to the organization. Even with those people, an employer should make the concerted effort to restore those people, unless it is absolutely impossible.

Being an effective leader is definitely not an easy task, especially when it comes to human resources. Unless the manager is despotic in nature (and I have worked with some like that), firing people or confronting them is not something any person desires to do. Being let go is definitely demoralizing and discouraging, so the supervisor has a great responsibility to make the process a little less so. As the Golden Rule states: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Thomas Daubert has worked in residential youth care for nearly twenty years and has written a book entitled "Your House Their House" available through Authorhouse Publishing or amazon.com. He currently is an ESL teacher in Shawnee,Oklahoma.

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ATTITUDES ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN FACTS

It is your attitude at the beginning of a task more than anything else that will determine your success or failure.

It is your attitude towards life that will determine life's attitude towards you. Despite many people's belief to the contrary, life plays no favorites.

You control your attitude. If you are negative it is because you have decided to be negative and not because of other people or circumstances.

Act as if you have a good attitude. Remember actions trigger feelings just as feelings trigger actions.

Before a person can achieve the kind of results he wants, he must first become that person. He must then think, walk, talk, act and conduct himself in all of his affairs, as would the person he wishes to become.

Treat everybody as the most important person in the world.

Attitudes are based on assumptions. In order to change attitudes one must first change one's assumptions.

Develop the attitude that there are more reasons why you should succeed than reasons why you should fail.

When you are faced with a problem, adopt the attitude that you can and will solve it.

We become what we think about. Control your thoughts and you will control your life.

Radiate the attitude of confidence, of well being, of a person who knows where he is going. You will then find good things happening to you right away.

In order to develop a good attitude, take charge first thing in the morning. Do you say, "Good morning, Lord" or "Good Lord, morning?"

Read these twelve points every day for the next thirty days and see how your life changes.

ATTITUDES ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN FACTS

- Unknown Author
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DOES GOD STILL SPEAK TO US?

DOES GOD STILL SPEAK TO US?

A young man had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, "Does God still speak to people?"

After service he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, "God.. If you still speak to people speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey."

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought, stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, "God is that you?" He didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. "Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk." It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk.

He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home. As he passed Seventh street, he again felt the urge, "Turn down that street." This is crazy he thought and drove on past the intersection.

Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, "Okay, God, I will". He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop.

He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in semi-commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed.

Again, they sensed something, "Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street." The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep.

He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat. "Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid."

Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the door, "Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here."

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, Who is it? What do you want?" Then the door opened before the young man could get away.

The man was standing there in his jeans and t-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. "What is it?" The young man thrust out the gallon of milk,"Here, I brought this to you."

The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway speaking loudly in Spanish. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, "We Were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk."

His wife in the kitchen yelled out, "I ask him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?" The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man's hand.

He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face. He knew that God still answers prayers.

- Author Unknown
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All the faces in the world are mirrors

Long ago in a small, far away village, there was place known as the House of 1000 Mirrors. A small, happy little dog learned of this place and decided to visit. When he arrived, he bounced happily up the stairs to the doorway of the house. He looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could.

To his great surprise, he found himself staring at 1000 other happy little dogs with their tails wagging just as fast as his. He smiled a great smile, and was answered with 1000 great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the House, he thought to himself, "This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit it often."

In this same village, another little dog, who was not quite as happy as the first one, decided to visit the house. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw the 1000 unfriendly looking dogs staring back at him, he growled at them and was horrified to see 1000 little dogs growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, "That is a horrible place, and I will never go back there again."

All the faces in the world are mirrors. What kind of reflections do you see in the faces of the people you meet?

-Unknown Author

Because God is thinking of something better to give you

Once upon a mountain top, three little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when they grew up. The first little tree looked up at the stars and said: "I want to hold treasure. I want to be covered with gold and filled with precious stones. I'll be the most beautiful treasure chest in the world!"

The second little tree looked out at the small stream trickling by on it's way to the ocean. "I want to be traveling mighty waters and carrying powerful kings. I'll be the strongest ship in the world!"

The third little tree looked down into the valley below where busy men and women worked in a busy town. "I don't want to leave the mountain top at all. I want to grow so tall that when people stop to look at me, they'll raise their eyes to heaven and think of God. I will be the tallest tree in the world."
Years passed. The rain came, the sun shone, and the little trees grew tall. One day three woodcutters climbed the mountain. The first woodcutter looked at the first tree and said, "This tree is beautiful. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining ax, the first tree fell. "Now I shall be made into a beautiful chest, I shall hold wonderful treasure!" The first tree said.

The second woodcutter looked at the second tree and said, "This tree is strong. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining ax, the second tree fell. "Now I shall sail mighty waters!" thought the second tree. "I shall be a strong ship for mighty kings!"

The third tree felt her heart sink when the last woodcutter looked her way. She stood straight and tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the woodcutter looked up. "Any kind of tree will do for me." He muttered. With a swoop of his shining ax the third tree fell.

The first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter brought her to a carpenter's shop. But the carpenter fashioned the tree into a feed box for animals. The once beautiful tree was not covered with gold, nor with treasure. She was coated with saw dust and filled with hay for hungry farm animals.

The second tree smiled when the woodcutter took her to a shipyard, but no mighty sailing ship was made that day. Instead the once strong tree was hammered and sawed into a simple fishing boat. She was too small and too weak to sail to an ocean, or even river; instead she was taken to a little lake.

The third tree was confused when the woodcutter cut her into strong beams and left her in a lumberyard. "What happened?" The once tall tree wondered. "All I ever wanted was to stay on the mountain top and point to God...

"Many days and nights passed. The three trees nearly forgot their dreams. But one night, golden starlight poured over the first tree as a young woman placed her newborn baby in the feed box. "I wish I could make a cradle for him." Her husband whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth and the sturdy wood. "This manger is beautiful." She said. And suddenly the first tree knew he was holding the greatest treasure in the world.

One evening a tired traveler and his friends crowded into the old fishing boat. The traveler fell asleep as the second tree quietly sailed out into the lake. Soon a thundering and thrashing storm arose. The little tree shuddered. She knew she did not have the strength to carry so many passengers safely through with the wind and the rain. The tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched out his hand, and said, "Peace." The storm stopped as quickly as it had begun. And suddenly the second tree knew he was carrying the king of heaven and earth.

One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when her beam was Yanked from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as she was carried through an angry jeering crowd. She shuddered when soldiers nailed a man's hands to her. She felt ugly and harsh and cruel. But on Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the earth trembled with joy beneath her, the third tree knew that God's love had changed everything. It had made the third tree strong. And Every time people thought of the third tree, they would think of God. That was better than being the tallest tree in the world.

So next time you feel down because you didn't get what you want, just sit tight and be happy because God is thinking of something better to give you.

- The Tale of Three Trees - (A traditional Folktale)

THE BRIDGE

There was once a bridge which spanned a large river. During most of the day the bridge sat with its length running up and down the river paralleled with the banks, allowing ships to pass through freely on both sides of the bridge.

But at certain times each day, a train would come along and the bridge would be turned sideways across the river, allowing a train to cross it. A switchman sat in a small shack on one side of the river where he operated the controls to turn the bridge and lock it into place as the train crossed.

One evening as the switchman was waiting for the last train of the day to come, he looked off into the distance through the dimming twilight and caught sight of the train lights. He stepped to the control and waited until the train was within a prescribed distance when he was to turn the bridge. He turned the bridge into position, but, to his horror, he found the locking control did not work.

If the bridge was not securely in position it would wobble back and forth at the ends when the train came onto it, causing the train to jump the track and go crashing into the river. This would be a passenger train with many people aboard.

He left the bridge, turned across the river, and hurried across the bridge to the other side of the river where there was a lever switch he could hold to operate the lock manually.

He would have to hold the lever back firmly as the train crossed. He could hear the rumble of the train now, and he took hold of the lever and leaned backward to apply his weight to it, locking the bridge. He kept applying the pressure to keep the mechanism locked. Many lives depended on this man's strength.

Then, coming across the bridge from the direction of his control shack, he heard a sound that made his blood run cold. "Daddy, where are you?" His four-year-old son was crossing the bridge to look for him.

His first impulse was to cry out to the child, "Run! Run!" But the train was too close; the tiny legs would never make it across the bridge in time. The man almost left his lever to run and snatch up his son and carry him to safety. But he realized that he could not get back to the lever.

Either the people on the train or his little son must die. He took a moment to make his decision.

The train sped safely and swiftly on its way, and no one aboard was even aware of the tiny broken body thrown mercilessly into the river by the on rushing train. Nor were they aware of the pitiful figure of the sobbing man, still clinging tightly to the locking lever long after the train had passed.

They did not see him walking home more slowly than he had ever walked: to tell his wife how their son had brutally died.

Now if you comprehend the emotions which went this man's heart, you can begin to understand the feelings of our Father in Heaven when He sacrificed His Son to bridge the gap between us and eternal life.

Can there be any wonder that He caused the earth to tremble and the skies to darken when His Son died? How does He feel when we speed along through life without giving a thought to what was done for us through Jesus Christ?

When was the last time we thanked Him for the sacrifice of His Son?

- Author Unknown

Can Knowledge Bring Me Spiritual Well Being?

By Carl Serapian

Some of us can cite beautiful citations from holy books or even know by heart the story of Buddha. Can this knowledge bring spiritual well being? Let's explore this.

Knowledge is basically an accumulation of information. The nature of the mind is that it is always looking to accumulate things. When we accumulate knowledge, we can proudly say that we "know". We can have interesting conversations and debates with other people. We are excited to continuously learn, it's a beautiful thing.

Having said that, the spiritual path is somehow different. Spiritual well being is not rooted in knowledge; it is your experience as it is really happening from within. What does that mean? You can be sitting down, having a conversation with someone about what Buddha has said to his disciples, feel good for a few moments but still you know the burden that is waiting for you once you leave this conversation. Your wife, your boss or your troublesome child is waiting for you and you know you can't escape them! In this situation, we can say that what is happening in the background, behind your wishes for well being and your knowledge about well being is your true experience. You might try to hide that experience with beautiful thoughts, drugs or work but it will never last. Sooner or later you will fall down and experience sadness or whatever emotion you have been bottling inside of you.

To answer the question: Can knowledge bring me spiritual well being? I would say that knowledge can be a great introduction to it but by itself it would never bring you to it. Curiosity and the yearning have certainly their place on the spiritual path. But the real yearning, beneath the one to learn is the one of liberation. Knowledge doesn't liberate you for too long. In the long run it can actually get you further and further away from the spiritual path.

So if you are in a place where you are trying to feel better by learning more, you're still in a good place. There's never a "bad" place to be. You have a desire, that's for sure. You want more. Imagine how it would be if you can experience what you actually know. Imagine if you can make that feeling of liberation last for minutes, hours and days at a time. Imagine how it would be to actually know from within.

How will it be if you're in touch with a constant "knowing", a moment to moment "knowing", always there in your experience no matter what impossible situation is happening in your life?

Carl Serapian is an innovator in the field of personal growth with over a decade of research. For a limited time and for free, he's sharing his discovery of a simple powerful meditation rooted deeply in the yogic science of spiritual well being. It's available from his latest website that teaches taking and sustaining the spiritual path without having to change your current lifestyle.
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There Are Two Ways to Make Decisions - By Gut Instinct, or by CarefullyStudying All of the Facts

By Tom L Randle

"Right is not right; so is not so. If right were really right, it would differ so clearly from not right that there would be no need for argument. If so were really so, it would differ so clearly from not so that there would be no need for argument. Forget the years; forget distinctions. Leap into the boundless and make it your home."

--- Chuang-Tzu

Gut instinct is really a function of experience. The more something has worked for you in the past, the more likely you are to use the same strategy again in the future. Sometimes you can use both methods and come up with two different courses of action. The easiest decisions are those in which your gut instincts and the facts point to the same course of action. Good decisions come from experience and experience comes from making bad decisions.

The tough calls come when these two things point in opposite directions and there was no other choice to be made.

Don't force it as instincts come naturally. If you have to deliberate for days whether something is really the right move, then your instincts are not clear.

• In my role as CEO of a large credit union in SW Florida, there was a director who did not share the approved governance policy and had tried for a decade to reshape it to his liking despite getting no support from others.

Take right action when opportunity presents itself. Getting the facts to back up your instincts is prudent; but there are situations that require swiftness. Waiting for more supporting data is not always an option. If your instincts say go for it, then take action.

• It was time for this person to go. He was damaging the organization. The board had known that for years in their gut.

Do not let fear of past mistakes cripple your decision-making. The best leaders in the world are not right 100 percent of the time. Sometimes your instincts may be wrong. Learn why you were incorrect in a particular situation and move on. Don't let past errors scare you into missing future opportunities.

• The board of directors is human and wished to extend an opportunity to this person to be successful as a director. They overlooked ten years of undesirable behavior because on occasion the person was a contributing part of the board. The fear of confrontation and of forcing a resignation ran contrary to their values and personality.

Showing moral courage and taking a stand against inappropriate behavior is a hallmark of an ethical leader. The standard you walk past is the standard you accept. The more often you walk past someone or something that your instincts tell you are wrong, the more emboldened that person becomes. They may have gone their entire life without anyone saying to them that their actions, words or deeds are unacceptable, wrong and offensive to your values and honor code.

We have heard the expression should have, could have, would have, if only and next time. These all point to wanting another chance in how we handled a particular situation. Sometimes important life and work issues don't come with a second chance to do the right thing.

What are you attracting into your life? If the results are less than satisfactory the issue may be that you have come to accept a standard that does not represent who you are, and you are better than that. Achieving a work-life balance forces you to ask are you moving toward what you want or simply away from what you don't? Not taking a stand and doing the right thing increases internal discord.

Where do you need more integrity? What do you feel is holding you back?

To receive a FREE Leadership Talents Assessment, contact us at http://www.kesgroupllc.com/index.php/contact-us
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Don't Study Too Much History - No One Will Understand Your ReferencesWhen You Talk

By Lance Winslow

The other day, I noted that one of my neighbors down the block had a garage door open and some ping-pong table set up. I asked them; "are you inviting over some Chinese to do a little international diplomacy and negotiation?" They laughed with me because they understood the reference. The reality is not many would, a good number of younger people in our society were not around when Nixon was president, or they didn't follow the news recently when Warren Buffett went to Asia and played table tennis as part of an international business affair.

One thing I found is that if you study history too much, and if you know too much about it, you are liable to catch people off guard who don't understand those references. They might think you are weird, or even strange, they won't understand what on earth you are talking about. Does this mean we shouldn't study history; because no one will understand the references we talk? No, I think you should study history, and it's unfortunate that more people don't. If they didn't understand the references, but they probably wouldn't make the same mistakes over and over that humans often make.

The pattern doesn't always repeat itself, but all too often it does, history really does repeat, but if you don't study your history, or if you study a false history with politically correct blinders, then I would say that old quote is correct; "you are doomed to repeat." Maybe more people should use such references when they have intellectual conversations in public, and maybe more people who don't understand what they're talking about might ask, maybe in that way we can transfer information to others and subsequent generations can learn from us.

It might be difficult to explain a historical reference in 145 characters in a tweet, but it's not impossible to do in one-on-one conversation, you can learn a lot when you study history, or when you talk to someone who has, even better someone who's lived through it. In fact, you learn more when you talk to people who have lived through it, lived to tell about it, and came back with personal lessons and personal perspectives because of it. It changes the way we live in the future of our society in so many ways.

With all of this said, it doesn't make sense to make people look stupid in public because they don't know what you're talking about, often attorneys do this, and esoteric university professors. It's probably why people don't like to talk to them very much. But everyone likes to hear a story, and when we hear stories we tend to remember them better, sometimes better than even our own history. Please consider all this and think on it.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on the Future of Education. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net

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Winning A Battle Is Not Winning The War

By Joshua Clayton

Some of the greatest battle wins have happened, and wars were lost after those small battles were won in a great way. Why? Because, in winning any war, including every day wars and struggles of life, what is worth it has to be picked, chosen, and clear strategies must be made clear as to when and why to take action in any matter. Small battles that are not worth it and large battles that are genuinely worth winning must be delineated clearly and fully. In short, leaping without looking is the most foolish thing that can be done.

Anything that is worth doing is worth doing right, and successfully. This is a key to what I mean by when you win, you must choose why you win it, what you when and how you win, in that order. Why you win is most important, because without the proper why, the rest will not work. Sacrificing for nothing is the most foolish thing you can do, you betray your reason why you are doing it as a whole. But when you have a good reason and know why you are doing it genuinely, you are that much closer to genuine success and greatness. When you do not know why or are not sure, you are that much farther from success. Genuine failure is simply not having a strong enough reason why to succeed. With that said, a success that is genuine knows absolutely why success is needed and wanted. A success that is phony or fake just wants success to "look good". So, I will impart this: This is where looking good and genuinely being good are two different things genuinely.

Living by what others think successfully is the epitome or highest ideal of looking good. Being good in your own genuine estimation is genuine success. That is a strong enough reason why that naturally combines with the how and creates the reason for you. Looking good is just empty success, being good is successful, it does not matter how you look at it, then. A genuine fool wants to look good for others. A genuinely astute and wise person wants to be good for themselves. In this sense, I can honestly say that life is as good as we make it for ourselves, but if dishonesty were the case, the "wisdom" of a genuine fool in my opinion would be: "They who die with the most toys, money, and clout wins." I believe in my first statement avowedly, life is as good as we make it for ourselves, and I would like to add this Aristotelian statement: Happiness is real power and the sadness lies in living purely by what others think and say. This is where the sadness happens of "winning" the battle that does not count, and not the war that does count. So, I will end on a politically honest note: Polls do not cause happiness, actions do cause happiness though when done right.

My name is Joshua Clayton, I am a freelance writer based in Inglewood, California. I also write under a few pen-names and aliases, but Joshua Clayton is my real name, and I write by that for the most part now. I am a philosophical writer and objective thinker and honest action taker. I also work at a senior center in Gardena, California as my day job, among other things, but primarily I am a writer.

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Trophies and Awards - Motivating Employees With Non-Cash Incentives

By Tim M Lee

Money alone is not enough to motivate employees. It is more of a 'cold' reward for working and does not connect well at an emotional level. To encourage people to really exert discretionary effort you need to engage them in their roles. Employee engagement levels have been consistently linked to improved performance and profitability. Non cash incentives such as vouchers, social events, trophies, plaques and awards are all excellent ways to boost engagement levels amongst your team. The goal is to turn your employees into team members, striving to win that championship trophy.

So how do you go about implementing a non cash incentive program? There are two key elements to this. Firstly what behaviours are you looking to enforce, and what rewards you are going to give to reward those behaviours.

The most important element of employee engagement is showing discretionary effort in one's role. This is going above and beyond what is expected of them and really giving their best. The opposite is a disengaged employee, who shows up everyday to do the bare minimum or just enough to not get fired. The advantages of high engagement are obvious, as are the downfalls of disengaged employees.

Reinforcing engagement behaviour can be difficult especially if the behaviour can not be easily measured. High engagement leading to increased sales figures is easy to recognise and reward. Excellent customer service or teamwork are more difficult. For these more difficult measures, trophies and awards make great solutions. Customer service and teamwork are both very emotional behaviours and rewarding these with cash incentives is not ideal. Trophies, plaques and awards can fill this emotional gap as they provide emotional reward through praise and recognition from others. As social beings this is a very strong reward and more fitting than financial incentives.

Trophies, awards and plaques are also effective in the workplace for the same reason that they are so coveted in the sporting arena. Sports teams show extremely high levels of engagement. Even at the local club level where players are not paid, individuals show up to training religiously and give their all at every game. Even at the top professional level players are happier to win a trophy than their multi-million dollar salary. The trophy for them is the ultimate achievement that drives them to work hard. Translating this kind of engagement into the workplace can produce outstanding results. Through creating a sense of belonging to a team you can instill this sense of team pride in your workforce.

By presenting a monthly trophy, award or plaque you can instill this sense of striving and teamwork in your employees. It will incent them to go above and beyond to 'win' the trophy' as well as instilling a strong teamwork ethic if you are presenting both team and individual awards. These programmes when run in conjunction with cash incentives are powerful tools in increasing engagement, productivity and profit.

Xpress Awards NZ are specialists in corporate trophies. Visit Tim M Lee's Google Plus page

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Attitudes and the Choices

"Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today."

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer/contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.
The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done it differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project."

Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.
Author Unknown
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