From the BlogSubscribe Now

Home » Happywork

Happywork TV Episode 14: Owners May Be More Enthusiastic About The Business Than Employees

Posted on November 16, 2014 // 1 Comment

LOL HIT “PLAY” ON MY FOREHEAD!

In Episode 14 of Happywork TV, I introduce the next commitment contained in the work code of conduct I’ve created called “The Happywork Agreement.” (which is in the book! The Agreement itself was where the whole idea for this book started)

Here it is: “I will keep in mind that my employees may not be as excited about the organization as I am. This is natural, as this business is my dream and not necessarily theirs.”

Key in on the word “natural” here. As an owner or manager, you can wish all day that your employees had an internal motor that ran at 200% like yours does. You can wish it all you want, but it’s not often going to be so. You started the business; it’s your dream. Who could possibly be more excited about it than you?

By the way, when I was a marketing and communication consultant, I used to hate the question some prospects would ask: “Are you going to love my business as much as I do?” What are you, nuts? That’s just impossible, and a seriously lazy question. Ask better questions!

I digress.

If Mr Owner or Mrs Manager is wondering why their employees aren’t as excited as they are, they should first understand that it’s completely natural to have more energy, drive, and excitement for your business than your employees. And if you want to change that, work hard at it! Train your people. Coach them up. Give them a great place to work. Give them a reason to be excited to come to work! Don’t just sit there and wish everyone loved your business as much as you do. Work your ass off to make it so!

And, I would ask that you avoid making us employees feel guilty for not loving your business as much as you do. That’s what I’d call “coaching down,” and if you’re doing this, you’re going on the wrong direction.

— — — — —

Watch Episode 13 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Merci!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

I Heart Kenny Wallace!

Posted on November 14, 2014 // Leave a Comment

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , ,

Happywork TV Episode 13: Employers May Have Skillsets That Employees Do Not

Posted on November 14, 2014 // 1 Comment

In Episode 13 of Happywork TV, I introduce yet another commitment contained in the work code of conduct I’ve created called “The Happywork Agreement.” (which is in the book!)

Here it is: “I will remember that I may possess certain skillsets that my employees do not. Therefore, it may not be reasonable to expect from others sterling performance in areas where I excel. I will be patient. There was only one Michael Jordan on the Bulls.”

In the video, I bring up the example of Magic Johnson. He excelled at just about everything on the court – he was tall, he could pass, he could shoot, he was an amazing floor general and leader. However, when he was handed the Lakers coaching job, he didn’t do so well.

Why? One reason bandied about was that he got frustrated when players didn’t execute plays that he was so able to make himself during his playing career. He wasn’t patient with his players, and it shoed. Jordan did the same thing during his playing career, and it didn’t seem to affect the Bulls’ performance. However, I have to question whether or not it was fun to be Jordan’s teammate. Kobe Bryant is finding out right now how lonely it is when no one wants to come play with you. Guys, it’s Los Angeles. It’s the Lakers! Who in their right mind wouldn’t want to play in L.A.? Here’s your answer: NBA players who don’t feel like putting up with Kobe Bryant’s management style.

Owners and managers will more often than not possess a deeper skillset than the people who work for them. Yes, it’s a generalization, but it will be true more times than not. When I was a CPA, I certainly possessed more skills than junior accountants. It would have been unfair to expect them to be able to do all of the cool accounting things I was able to do. (did I really just say that?)

Smart owners and managers will hire the best people they can, and will then train them, coach them up, send them to seminars, and give them as many chances to acquire the skills necessary to excel. Before you know it, those employees may be ready to shoulder more responsibility. But until they are, you need to be patient, and you need to teach, teach, teach. If you’re riding some junior person’s ass because they can’t do it as well as you, you’re just being a short-sighted jerk.

— — — — —

Watch Episode 12 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Merci!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 12: Owners, Take Your Arguments Behind Closed Doors

Posted on November 11, 2014 // 1 Comment

In Episode 12 of Happywork TV, I introduce yet another commitment contained in the work code of conduct I’ve created called “The Happywork Agreement.” (which is in the book!)

Here it is: “I promise to take arguments between owners, or between owners and upper management, behind closed doors. Employees do not need to see or hear such things. Often, such strife can hurt employee morale, and can even make employees fear for their future. I need to keep that in mind.”

When upper management and owners fight among themselves out in the open, it’s just an ugly scene, and you’re adversely affecting employee morale. When you guys fight, we’re scared for our jobs. We live in fear when we work in such situations. If two or three owners aren’t getting along, which is bound to happen, take it behind closed doors. Or take it offsite. Don’t fight in front of us. Yes, disagree with each other, but do not be disagreeable. It unnecessarily adds stress to the workplace (unnecessarily being the operative word there).

— — — — —

Watch Episode 11 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Merci!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 11: Don’t Keep Dead Weight Around

Posted on November 10, 2014 // 1 Comment

In Episode 11 of Happywork TV, I introduce the next commitment in my work code of conduct, “The Happywork Agreement.”

Here it is: “I will not keep dead weight around … One should not have to pick up the slack for underperforming employees … And we’re not going to use Jack Welch-style stack rankings. Annually firing 10% of one’s workforce is an apathetic, lackadaisical way to build a team.”

When running a company, there’s the fun stuff – plotting and executing strategy, making big sales, opening new locations, notable PR breakthroughs, and such and such. What’s not fun? Firing people. Even if they deserve it because they’re big jerks, it’s not fun. Sometimes you have to fire a nice person because they aren’t performing, and that’s even less fun.

So you know what happens? Sometimes, those people don’t get fired. They stick around … for years. And you have great employees who get to work with these under-performers, and that’s arguably unfair. In fact, I’ve noticed that the good workers sometimes get more work assigned to them, because their managers know they’re so good at what they do, they’ll get it done. Those high performers will eventually leave, because no one wants to be overworked because under-performing employees aren’t pulling their weight.

So yes, managers and owners – please build us a strong workforce, and don’t keep dead weight around. As mean and cutthroat as that sounds, it’s actually the fairest way to build a great team.

— — — — —

Watch Episode 10 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Thanks!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 10: Hire People Smarter Than You

Posted on November 6, 2014 // 1 Comment

In Episode 10 of Happywork TV, I discuss commitment 8 in the list of 46 commitments in my book Happywork. Here it is: I implore you, Mr. Manager and Miss Owner, to hire people smarter than you! As I say in the video, it’s the sign of a great owner and a confident manager.

Reasons why this doesn’t happen more often? Control and ego, I think. Ego = for some entrepreneurs and leaders, it’s difficult to fathom that anyone is more talented than them. It’s this bravado that might allow them to take the risk of starting a business in the first place. Control = in certain situations, you don’t want to bring in someone who could challenge you for control of a situation, or worse, control of a company. It would be like LeBron and Kobe on the same team – they’d win tons of games! Or would they? Who’s the alpha dog? Who’s more talented?

We enjoy when ESPN pundits get into such sports discussions, but you may not have realized that this same situation happens (perhaps on a slightly smaller scale) in businesses every day! It’s not just about accomplishment as a team. It’s WHO accomplished it. Some of us are constantly scratching and clawing for recognition – we don’t want to merely succeed. We want the credit for the success of the business. And we absolutely do NOT want anyone else getting ANY credit for stuff we did. So, to avoid this, we consciously or subconsciously ensure that such situations do not rear their ugly heads – we don’t bring talented people who could challenge us for supremacy.

So that’s my take on this. However, guys, this is the episode I need some comments on! I can speculate as to why a person in power wouldn’t want to bring in someone of similar ability and intellect, but WHY would that person decide not to do so?

(By the way, at the beginning at this video, I explain something that I probably should have already explained. I keep referring to these commitments and this “work code of conduct.” Without giving too much away, this work code of conduct is used to fix Vunorri Inc., the incredibly broken company in my story. My two main characters write the code of conduct, and they call it “The Happywork Agreement.” My book was almost titled “The Happywork Agreement,” but we decided on Happywork instead.)

— — — — —

Watch Episode 9 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Merci!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 8: Give Your Employees Variety in Their Work Day

Posted on October 28, 2014 // 1 Comment

p.s. Really sorry about the sound on this one. I was using my shotgun mic, but it was quite windy. Some gusts of wind really cut into the audio quality a few times. My bad!

In Episode 8 of Happywork TV, I discuss the sixth of 46 commitments in my upcoming book “Happywork.”

Here it is: “I will try to provide some variety in my employees’ work days. Working at Vunorri does not have to be like some Henry Ford assembly line. Cross-training would be helpful. I respect my employees’ curiosity to know how things work, even in other departments.”

If you’re running a company and you’re not giving your employees a little variety in their work day, or you’re not cross-training them, I don’t think you’re committing one of the cardinal sins of management. You’re not firing someone because they’re the wrong color, or sexually harassing them, or threatening them, or sabotaging their work. As I say in the video, providing some variety to your employees isn’t completely necessary. Let’s admit that.

By the same token, let’s also admit that, if we want to cut down on turnover — keep our good employees — and have a workforce working to excel on our behalf, we might do well to keep those employees engaged and interested in what they’re doing. If you don’t care about this, and you just want to keep hammering the square peg into the round hole, you can do that. But please don’t! Boredom is one of the big reasons good people leave their jobs.

So consider the notion that we can build a more cohesive workforce by keeping our best employees, and we can do that by respecting their desire to learn and grow.

— — — — —

Watch Episode 7 here!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Merci!

And subscribe on YouTube!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 7: Provide Performance Reviews to Your Employees

Posted on October 27, 2014 // 1 Comment

In Episode 7 of Happywork TV, I discuss the fifth of 46 work commitments in my new book, “Happywork.”

Here it is: “I will give my employees constructive feedback, taking both their career advancement and feelings into consideration. Such feedback will be provided during the course of everyday business, or in an official performance review, or both.”

Some businesses don’t provide official performance reviews, which I’ve always found odd. Some people are scared to get reviewed. Maybe that’s because they’re doing a poor job, or maybe they think the system is rigged, or maybe the advice isn’t that great.

Here’s a real tough one – I’ve worked at businesses that only told me what they thought of me after I quit. I once quit a job and the damn meeting took three hours. What???? Only after I resign do I start hearing about all the crap I’m not doing right? This is a business that’s being mismanaged.

And when it comes to feedback, if you’re not going to do annual reviews, try to give some feedback every now and then. Note: doing this via email is very dangerous. The intended tone of the emails you send is often completely lost.

Employees don’t just come to work to get their job done. Many of us want to excel at work. We want to achieve. Managers and owners, help us get there!

— — — — —

Click here to watch Episode 6!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Gracias!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 6: Give Your Employees a Chance to Improve and Succeed

Posted on October 23, 2014 // Leave a Comment

In Episode 6 of Happywork TV, I discuss the fourth of 46 work commitments in my new book, “Happywork.”

Here it is: “I will provide my employees the tools and training they need to have a chance to succeed … I will remember that it’s not just the business owner who comes to work everyday to achieve great things. Employees want to get better at what they do without having to leave our organization.”

How often have you or someone you know left a job because, “There was no room for advancement?” True, not all companies are large enough to offer robust options for promotions, pay increases, and advancement. However, too many companies have owners and managers who don’t take their employees’ careers into account AT ALL. It is inefficient to have great people leave your employ. If you have an HR department, it keeps them unnecessarily busy. If you don’t have an HR department, who is working to hire new people to come in and replace these great employees?

You might think most employees just want to do their jobs, but I would submit to you that most of them also want to achieve great things at work. It is only the hardest soul whose heart wouldn’t be warmed by a huge success at work.

Owners and managers, give your peeps the tools they need to get the job done, and take a genuine interest in their careers and lives.

— — — — —

Click here to watch Episode 5!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Gracias!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Happywork TV Episode 5: Be Kind to Others

Posted on October 21, 2014 // Leave a Comment

In Episode 5 of Happywork TV, I share a quote I read on SI.com. Most NFL players don’t help their opponents up off the field when a play is over, but one player does. And he catches some criticism for it. He doesn’t care, and I love that. Yes, two teams are trying to beat each other, but helping a fellow human being up off the ground isn’t going to make or break your chances of winning. Get real.

Lesson for work: lend a hand when you can. Less competing with each other, and more cooperating.

— — — — —

Click here to watch Episode 4!

— — — — —

Happywork is available for pre-order on Amazon – HERE!

Please SUBSCRIBE to my email newsletter! Pretty please – you’ll get these blog posts delivered to you automatically. Thanks!

Filed Under: Book - Happywork // Tagged: , , , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »