It’s the simplest of words, made up of two letters (or four, depending on the style you use, so we’ll use both in this post.) But it’s also a powerful one, for many reasons, particularly because of its versatility. And because of that, it must be handled with care. It’s the word OK. OK is …
My thanks to Jessica Pyykkonen for this guest post. Picture this: you’re on your lunch break and have been invited to sit with a group of coworkers who appear to be deep in passionate discussion. When you sit down and ask what’s new, two colleagues on opposing sides of the table begin disparaging each other. You …
“Samantha” and “Matilda” were close colleagues.* They met for lunch once a week, and one day, Matilda told Samantha about an opportunity in another department that she was considering. This possibility became a major topic of conversation between them. Each week, they discussed the journey together as Matilda processed whether to apply, prepared for the …
Warning: Four Strong Words that can Trigger Conflict Read More »
Occasionally I hear an interesting, unfamiliar word that can enrich the vocabulary of a professional. Here are a few for you to enjoy! (Click on the word to read more about it.) Hatmada is a Hebrew word for perseverance, this can remind us to press on through the inevitable challenges that can face us at …
Email is part of life. It gets unfairly criticized sometimes, but it is a challenge to many people. You can find tons of tips to help you manage your email, but here is one simple suggestion. Whenever possible, remove yourself from the “CC”–or in other words, internal lists. I’m not talking about email newsletters. For …
Hope received an early morning text from her colleague, Von.* “Please don’t forget to (insert task here) sometime early this week.” Sigh. She’d already put a note on her desk as a reminder to do the task when she got to work. He’d already talked with her on the weekend about the task. He’d already texted …
We’ve all let out the snippy retort or the thoughtless response to an email. But a true professional will be conscientious about how he/she responds to others at work, knowing that good relationships are the foundation of professional effectiveness. The following examples are based on real-life dialogues I’ve experienced or heard about. “You obviously missed …
Five Things a Real Professional Should Not Say (3 minute read) Read More »
You’ve sent an email to that client or customer multiple times, and you haven’t received an answer. Or you’ve called someone, and left more than one message (or found their voice mail box to be full.) You may have even resorted to sending snail mail, to no avail.What do you do now? The fact remains, that …
How to Communicate with Non-Responsive People (3 Minute Read) Read More »
Do you like to have the last word? Let’s consider that concept.
“No” is a hard word to say. Most of us don’t like the idea of disappointing someone else, but the fact remains that unless we want to live a life of sustained stress, we cannot say yes to everything. This is particularly hard when the opportunity in front of us is a positive one. Let’s …
Thanks for Asking, But That Won’t Work for Me (3 minute read) Read More »