Engagement and Communication

Four Ways Criticism is Good for You

I still remember being called into the Dean’s office in college. This goody-two-shoe gal, who rarely got in trouble, was being scolded by the Dean of Women for gossip. It isn’t fun to be called on the carpet–criticized for how you behave. Even smaller criticisms can zap the energy from your day–that snide comment you overheard […]

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There IS an "I" in "TEAM"

There is a well-known quip that there is no “I” in the word “team.” After all, team is spelled  T-E-A-M. One catalog for team building materials uses TEAM to mean “Together Everyone Achieves More.” There’s truth to that. In real life though, using team building language, giving out mugs or hanging posters doesn’t automatically lead to a

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Four Questions to Ask When You Notice Problems on Your Team

Every manager faces it–those times when your team is not behaving like a well-oiled machine and you finally have to step in to do something about it–or him, or her, or the situation. Before you make any decisions, get away from the noise and ask yourself a few questions, like these. Is this a short

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Gossip in the Workplace: Why Does it Exist?

[featured-image size=”pinterest” single_newwindow=”false”] “Did you hear about Ryan’s performance review?” Sally whispered to Dan. “No,” Dan replied, curious. “What about it?” “Well, I heard that…” And there is the beginning of gossip. Some define gossip as only spreading untruths about others. But the dictionary defines it also as “idle talk, especially about the affairs of

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Gossip in the Workplace: What Can We Do About It?

[featured-image size=”pinterest” single_newwindow=”false”] Gossip. It’s everywhere. It’s harmful, yet nearly everyone participates in it at some time or another. [callout]A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.[biblegateway passage=”Proverbs 16:28″][/callout] Gossip can be defined as idle talk,* or talking negatively behind someone’s back, to someone who is not part of the problem

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Gossip in the Workplace: Should We Have a Zero-Tolerance Policy?

[featured-image size=”pinterest” single_newwindow=”false”] “Of course we don’t tolerate gossip.” Is that what your company would tell me? If you have people working for you, you probably have gossip, at least in small degrees. Some companies, knowing how damaging gossip can be, decide to have a “zero-tolerance” policy about it. In other words, you get caught

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10 Things I Learned in 10 Years of Business, Part 1

[featured-image single_newwindow=”false”] Ten years. Wow. It’s time for a big birthday celebration and that’s going to happen in April! In fact, there will be a special announcement later this week about how we are going to celebrate, which includes the giveaway of 10 Chick-Fil-A gift cards (worth $10 each!) Why am I doing this? Read

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10 Tips to Celebrate 10 Years

What are your top tips for overwhelmed professionals? Before I give you mine, I’m happy to share that the first entry in my business checkbook is 4/22/2005 and we’ve been celebrating the 10th Birthday of HOPE all month. (Did you enter the drawing for the Chick-Fil-A gift cards yet?) Thought it’d be fun to list 10

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