Leader Snips, Scholz and Associates, Inc.

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2010-04-07T11:20:00.001-04:00

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What's the Best Way to Bring Out the Best in People?

2010-03-11T08:10:00.007-05:00

In the eighty years that have passed since the Hawthorne study, observations of people at work reveal much the same thing: in order to tap into the potential of human capital, executives and leaders must pay attention to their employees.And that attention should be on a level that respects their basic human nature and individual differences.If you're a manager, you intuitively know what research

How Do You Motivate People at Work?

2010-03-09T06:30:00.002-05:00

One of the earliest studies of human behavior at work was done at AT&T's Western Electric Hawthorne Plant from 1927 by Harvard's Elton Mayo and published in a report by F. J. Roethlisberger and W. Dickson, Management and the Worker.Their principle findings are still relevant today: when workers have an opportunity to contribute their thinking and learning to workplace issues, their job

Is Motivation an Inside or Outside Job?

2010-03-05T07:25:00.001-05:00

Motivating others is surprisingly difficult. It's more complex than it appears. The most basic solution suggests that all motivation is intrinsic (i.e., found within the person you are trying to motivate).But knowing what motivates each employee on a personal level is impractical.To inspire your people to excel, you need to help them find meaning in their work and to feel productive on the job.

8 Career Anchors: What Matters Most

2010-03-03T06:39:00.000-05:00

More than 30 years ago, Edgar Schein, a Sloan Fellows Professor of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, proposed that people are primarily motivated by one of eight career anchors:1. Technical/functional competence2. General managerial competence3. Autonomy/independence4. Security/stability5. Entrepreneurial creativity6. Sense of service7. Pure challenge8.

How Can You Help Find Meaning at Work?

2010-03-01T06:22:00.003-05:00

Do your employees find meaning and purpose in their work? If you're like most companies, according to Gallup, only about a third of people working are really engaged. So, what can you do to help them achieve meaning and purpose?You don't need expensive training programs or complex compensation plans to connect your people to what really matters to them. Instead, create a sense of "we're all in

3 Motivators at Work

2010-02-25T15:00:00.004-05:00

Most companies have it all wrong. They don't know how to motivate their employees. What about yours? Are your people at work motivated, I mean really, from the inside out? Are you?The most employees are quite enthusiastic when they start a new job. But in about 85 percent of companies, research finds employees' morale sharply declines after their first six months?and continues to deteriorate for

Power Plays

2010-02-16T08:01:00.009-05:00

Some workplaces encourage everyone to act competitively. Enron, for example, had an organizational culture in which winning and making the numbers counted more than relationships.People like basketball coach Bobby Knight and Terrell Owens got away with more than would be tolerated in normal circumstances because we embrace clich�s like "winning isn?t everything; it's the only thing" in the

Rules of Engagement for Non-Jerks

2010-02-12T07:08:00.001-05:00

What can we do to help prevent jerks at work?I agree with Robert Sutton and his book, The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn?t (Warner Business Books, 2007). If you haven't read it yet, you should.Perhaps companies should be clearer about what it takes to keep a workplace free of jerk-like behaviors. Sutton suggests that if new hires were required to take a

Secondhand Jerk Effects

2010-02-10T07:47:00.001-05:00

Engaging in joking and sarcasm will get you a few chuckles. Lord knows we need humor to get through some workdays. But there's almost always an element of negativity in funny remarks.It's hard to be funny and not cross that fine line into backstabbing. Like everything in life, it's the way that you do it that carries weight, and reveals your intentions. A gentle poke at someone's weakspot can be

It's Easy Being a Jerk

2010-02-08T07:06:00.001-05:00

I've been rereading The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn?t (Warner Business Books, 2007). Stanford Professor Robert I. Sutton argues that variations of terms like creep, jerk and bully don?t carry the same impact as the A-word, and he may be right.But I wonder if it becomes too easy to slap the A-label on a boss or co-worker, when we don't see eye-to-eye

The Brain Science of the Quarterback Pass

2010-02-05T08:15:00.000-05:00

Years ago, scientists were studying nerve cells in Macaque monkeys' prefrontal cortices and found that specific cells fired when the monkeys threw a ball or ate a banana. To their surprise, these same cells fired when the monkeys watched another monkey perform these acts.Fast forward to SuperBowl 2010, and you'll find millions of fans excited for the same reason when their favorite quarterback

Do You Put People in Boxes?

2010-02-03T10:22:00.001-05:00

How well do you listen to your colleagues? Or for that matter, your close relationships in your family? Really? Maybe not...We don't actually listen because we think we know someone so well, we already know what they're saying and thinking... or so we think!As a result, we mistake insecurity for arrogance, fear for stubborness, and legitimate anger for things like "he's just a jerk." We talk

How to Calm Down in 2 Minutes...

2010-01-27T08:14:00.005-05:00

You probably already know how to handle a tense situation intelligently. You wouldn't be in your position today if you didn't. At least subconsciously, inside your brain, you're already experienced in going from attack mode to emotional mode to smart mode.Every difficult conversation involves all three of these parts: your snake brain, your rabbit brain, and your human brain. Unfortunately, much

It's Tough Talking...

2010-01-26T07:39:00.001-05:00

Every difficult conversation involves grappling with these three components:FactsFeelingsIdentity & contextConversing successfully requires learning to manage all three simultaneously. When you consider each of these factors before having a difficult conversation, it?s a first step to better conversations.Here are five more steps to consider when engaging in difficult conversations:Decipher the

3 Types of Difficult Conversations

2010-01-22T07:27:00.003-05:00

Fifteen years of research at the Harvard Negotiation Project has produced some interesting information about what goes on during conflict. The book, Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most, is written by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, Sheila Heen and Roger Fisher (Penguin Books, 2000).Given that we prepare ourselves extensively for almost everything including our educations and

Sticks and Stones in the Workplace

2010-01-15T06:57:00.005-05:00

Some conversations are so difficult that we do anything to avoid them. Then, when things have really built up, we finally have no choice but to confront the issue, and along with it, the colleague, our spouse, or the other person involved."We need to talk," usually precedes an argument rather than a conversation. Why are such conversations difficult?Because we are stuck between knowing what we

Is that the Best You've Got?

2009-12-18T05:40:00.003-05:00

Have you ever completed a presentation knowing it wasn't your best? I'm sure you have. At other times, I've really knocked myself out but fallen flat anyway. The difference is enormous. When you know you've done the best you could have with what you had to work with, you stand tall. Don Miguel Ruiz states in his fourth and final agreement this important principle to live by: Always do your best.

Do You Jump to Conclusions?

2009-12-16T05:58:00.002-05:00

The third agreement written about in Don Miguel Ruiz' Four Agreements is this:Don't make assumptions. Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one principle, you can completely transform your life.We make assumptions about everything, believe them to be true

It's Not About You, One More Time...

2009-12-14T06:29:00.002-05:00

I don't know about you, but I fall into this trap on occasion: Someone makes a critical comment, and I jump in to defend it, only to find out they were talking about something different that doesn't involve me at all. I can hear a voice in my head saying "It's not about you, doofus, get down off your high horse."In Don Miguel Ruiz' Four Agreements, the second agreement is Don't take anything

Do Your Words Build and Connect?

2009-12-11T03:06:00.001-05:00

At this time of year there are many occasions to get together socially with colleagues. Social conversations often involve talking about other people, and often not always in a positive light. We use sarcasm and humor to show our wit and to share amusing stories about one another.I'm reminded of the first of Don Miguel Ruiz's Four Agreements:Be impeccable with your word. Speak with integrity. Say

Does sarcasm serve a purpose?

2009-12-03T09:27:00.002-05:00

Hypothesis: "There is a great need for sarcasm font."In The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, one of the four agreements is "Be impeccable with your word". The jacket cover offers this short description of the agreement:"Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in

Put Yourself on a Word Diet: No More 'No Buts'

2009-11-30T07:03:00.001-05:00

Here's an annoying habit we all engage in, some of us more than others:Starting a sentence with "No," "But," or "However..."Whenever you begin with "no," "but," "however," or any other variation of this, you send a message to the person that they are wrong. No matter how you phrase it, however you may throw in a polite phrase or two, it comes out as bluntly negating what the person has

Let Me Tell You How It Could Be Better...

2009-11-27T05:02:00.001-05:00

I've been re-reading Marshall Goldsmith's What Got You Here Won't Get You There. In it, he lists 21 habits most successful people need to stop. There are some real gems on the list. I've already mentioned not saying "thank you" or "I'm sorry". Here's another one: adding too much value. It's when someone comes to you with an idea, and you respond by telling them how it would be even better. Here's

You're Not Listening

2009-11-23T07:30:00.006-05:00

The habit of not listening is rampant and often goes undetected. It doesn't take much work to pretend we're listening, even give lip service by saying things like, "Oh really, that's interesting."Not listening is a silent, invisible activity; all you have to do is keep your mouth closed, smile, maintain eye contact, nod at the right moments, and mutter agreements. Many times you can get away with