How to Criticize Employees | inc.com

Even if you’re an experienced executive, it’s likely you often find it very difficult to tell other people where they need to improve. Praising a good performance is easy; everyone likes to receive a compliment. But what do you do when a kick in the butt seems more appropriate than a pat on the back? Here’s how to do this effectively:

1. Treat criticism as a form of feedback.

The term “criticism,” while accurate, carries the baggage of negativity. By contrast, the term “feedback” implies the participation of both parties–a two-way give and take where both people learn and grow. Feedback is an opportunity for mutual growth. You learn by getting feedback, and you learn by giving feedback. The moment you reposition your criticism into the context of feedback, both you and your employee will feel more relaxed and receptive.

2. Provide criticism on an ongoing basis. Leer más “How to Criticize Employees | inc.com”

2012 Digital Music Sales on Pace to Break Record

So far this year, digital album sales in the U.S. are up 15 percent from the same period last year. And Americans have already purchased one billion digital tracks, a pace that is set to break 2011’s record of 1.3 billion sold, according to Nielsen. A look back at music sales over the past few years found that the explosion of devices on the market– such as smartphones and tablets– and their increasing role in consumers’ everyday lives has played a major factor in the growth of digital music.

Leer más “2012 Digital Music Sales on Pace to Break Record”

3 Sure-Fire Ways to Generate New and Great Ideas | via pickthebrain.com

pickthebrain.com

Written by Robert Chen

Do you want new and great ideas?

The kind that makes people

Smile in wonder and possibility after you introduce it
Question why they don’t ask for your opinion more often
Recognize how intelligent, creative and brilliant you really are

If you’re nodding your head, I have a question for you:

What’s the problem?

Why aren’t you coming up with awesome ideas?

Why do you have trouble coming up with even good ideas?

It’s probably because you believe that great ideas are reserved for a lucky few.

I have some good news and bad news for you.

First, the bad (that’s the way I prefer it): To have new and great ideas require work. The belief that an excellent idea just pops into your head in an AHA! moment is wrong. Eureka, like overnight success, takes time.

Now the good: It is possible for anyone to generate great ideas. Stop thinking that you can’t be creative and realize that you just don’t know how. You have all the resources you need to create awesome ideas and lucky for you, this article will show you how to do it.

Broaden Your Horizons… Leer más “3 Sure-Fire Ways to Generate New and Great Ideas | via pickthebrain.com”

Start your presentation with PUNCH

The primacy effect, when applied to presentations, suggests that we remember more strongly what happens at the beginning of a presentation. In order to establish a connection with an audience, we must grab their attention right from the beginning. A punchy opening that gets the audience’s attention is paramount. Granville N. Toogood, author of The Articulate Executive also stresses the idea of starting off quickly and beginning with punch. “To make sure you don’t get off on the wrong foot, plunge right in,” he says. “To galvanize the mind of the audience, you’ve got to strike quickly.” There are many ways to strike quickly and start with punch to make a strong initial connection. Conveniently, at least five proven ways to begin a talk form the acronym PUNCH. Some of the best openings include content which is Personal, Unexpected, Novel, Challenging, or Humorous. Some of the best presentations contain at least one or more of these elements.

http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2010/10/start-your-presentation-with-punch.html

PERSONAL
Make it Personal. I once saw an amazing presentation on work-place safety at a company whose employees have dangerous jobs. The presenter started off his presentation with a high resolution image of some cute children. After talking about how import “our children” are (most people in the audience had children), he confessed that the children on screen were his and that his main concern in his life was being around a great long while to take of them. We all have a responsibility, he said, to our families and to each other to make sure we pay careful attention to safety procedures and rules so that no one’s children here ever have to be told that their mommy or daddy are not coming home. This opening was emotional, personal, and relevant. It got everyone’s attention and set the stage for the presentation. What could have been a presentation simply listing safety rules in bullet points to be scanned now was something far more personal.

There are many ways to make the opening personal, but personal in this case does not mean a long self-introduction about your background complete with org charts or why you are qualified to speak. However, a personal story can be very effective opening so long as it illustrates a key engaging point or sets the theme in a memorable way. Leer más “Start your presentation with PUNCH”

Multi-tasking is a waste of time!

by: Andrew Cox

http://www.addtodesign.com/freelance/multi-tasking-is-a-waste-of-time

My desk is a mess. My desktop is full of icons. My in-box is overflowing. I have a list of people to get in touch with. I have what feels like a hundred decisions to make…. does this sound familiar? I have a horrible case of Multi-tasking-itis…

In the same boat? Click here for a fantastic FREE remedy – Simpleology

I don’t know what has happened… work seemed to creep up on me… like the grey hairs invading my scalp!

It feels like I’m working three or more jobs. Paperwork, administration, design, accounting, writing, marketing, coach and local tech consultant.

While it is great to be ‘busy’ and to have lots of things on the go – I’m not complaining 🙂 – one thing has become clearly apparent… MULTI-TASKING IS A WASTE OF TIME!!

I know that this is not a breakthrough discovery, however, it is a great reminder – we produce mediocre results when we don’t give things our full attention.

Moreover, we waste time as we move from one task to another… losing our place… avoiding aspects of a ‘boring’ task… procrastinating… wearing down our enthusiasm… brain farting… building up stress etc.

If you want to do great work, avoid multi-tasking and focus on one thing at a time. Finish it and move on to the next thing.

Yes, it means some things aren’t going to get done as fast as some people may want. It means some people aren’t going to get your full attention for a while. But producing a lot of mediocre work, or making a heap of poorly considered decisions just to get through the pile isn’t worth it.

Stop… take a break… stretch… walk around and then come back to finish one task – then give yourself a pat on the back and move on to the next one. You will feel better – I guarantee it!

7 websites (in no particular order) to help you slow down, get focused and prioritise…

by: Andrew Cox

http://www.addtodesign.com/freelance/multi-tasking-is-a-waste-of-time

In the same boat? Click here for a fantastic FREE remedy – Simpleology

I don’t know what has happened… work seemed to creep up on me… like the grey hairs invading my scalp!

It feels like I’m working three or more jobs. Paperwork, administration, design, accounting, writing, marketing, coach and local tech consultant.

While it is great to be ‘busy’ and to have lots of things on the go – I’m not complaining – one thing has become clearly apparent… MULTI-TASKING IS A WASTE OF TIME!!

I know that this is not a breakthrough discovery, however, it is a great reminder – we produce mediocre results when we don’t give things our full attention.

If you want to do great work, avoid multi-tasking and focus on one thing at a time. Finish it and move on to the next thing.

Stop… take a break… stretch… walk around and then come back to finish one task – then give yourself a pat on the back and move on to the next one. You will feel better – I guarantee it!

7 websites (in no particular order) to help you slow down, get focused and prioritise… Leer más “Multi-tasking is a waste of time!”

Positive Attitude – 5 Steps to a Happy Life

We all want a happy life, and we all know that having a positive attitude feels better than a negative one. But for some reason, we are all attracted to and can be easily drawn to the negative side. How do we go about to establish a more positive attitude as a daily habit?

Even for someone like me, who thinks about and writes about positivity on an almost daily basis, having a positive attitude is not always easy.

I still sometimes see the world through a negative perspective, focusing on the bad and ignoring the good — especially when things aren’t going the way I had hoped. As I’ve been struggling with this lately, I’ve been reminding myself that it really is possible to change my perspective.

About a year and a half ago, I decided I was going to make a change in my life. I was going to start looking for the good, seeking the positive, and striving to make every day a joyful experience.

Positive Attitude 5 Steps to Happy Life

By Dani of PositivelyPresent.com

We all want a happy life, and we all know that having a positive attitude feels better than a negative one. But for some reason, we are all attracted to and can be easily drawn to the negative side. How do we go about to establish a more positive attitude as a daily habit?

Even for someone like me, who thinks about and writes about positivity on an almost daily basis, having a positive attitude is not always easy.

About a year and a half ago, I decided I was going to make a change in my life. I was going to start looking for the good, seeking the positive, and striving to make every day a joyful experience.

Leer más “Positive Attitude – 5 Steps to a Happy Life”

How to identify competent (and incompetent) managers

Effective managers do more than just supervise employees: they take responsibility for ensuring that an individual succeeds, and that the team, department or business unit achieves expected results.

The most productive companies provide their managers with the information and tools they need to understand the capabilities and styles of their teams. This gives managers a solid foundation for more effective coaching relationships.

Over the years we have identified eight signs of incompetent managers:

1. Poor communication skills

2. Weak leadership capabilities

3. Inability or unwillingness to adapt to change

4. Poor relationship-building skills

5. Ineffective task management

6. Poor productivity

7. Poor development of others

8. Neglectful of own personal development

Sound familiar? Let’s take a look at each of the signs in detail.

By Martin Goodwill, managing director of employment testing service, Profiles International

Effective managers do more than just supervise employees: they take responsibility for ensuring that an individual succeeds, and that the team, department or business unit achieves expected results.

Over the years we have identified eight signs of incompetent managers: Leer más “How to identify competent (and incompetent) managers”

How to get over the bad boss blues

“My first boss hated me so much that I think I must have killed her mother in a former life,” says Alexandra Levit, syndicated columnist and author of several career books including They Don’t Teach You Corporate in College. “She raked me over the coals…But it’s true in life that we have endings that are not ideal, and just like any relationship, it’s important to get closure in order to put it behind you.”

KARI MOLVAR, FORBES.COM

Tips for getting over a bad boss.

The hardest part is moving past the hard feelings and rebuilding your ego. Here’s how.

Working for a toxic boss – the type that bullies you, criticises everything you touch and makes you wish for an invisibility cloak every time she walks past your office – is not a person you can easily forget. Or get over, even weeks or months after you’ve parted ways.

Being subjected to a constant stream of negative feedback takes its toll and grinds you down to the point where you eventually begin to believe: Wow, maybe I really do have zero talent. Maybe a child could do my job better. It’s called buying into the brainwashing.

Cut to the point where you come to your senses. That is, you were fired or you quit. Regardless, the hardest part is moving beyond the experience and rebuilding your ego so you can walk into your next job and not feel like you have a kick-me sign on your back or a deer-in-the-headlights mentality every time you get an email from your new boss.

// “My first boss hated me so much that I think I must have killed her mother in a former life,” says Alexandra Levit, syndicated columnist and author of several career books including They Don’t Teach You Corporate in College. “She raked me over the coals…But it’s true in life that we have endings that are not ideal, and just like any relationship, it’s important to get closure in order to put it behind you.”

In fact, the sooner you can let go of the anger and resentment, the better shape your head will be in, says Mark Goulston, MD, author of Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone. “Even if your gripes are legitimate, continuing to blame your boss turns off others and will quickly cause people to lose respect for you,” he says. Not the desired outcome.

So while you can’t ransack your bosses office (tempting) or change the past, you can learn from the ordeal of a toxic boss, points out Harvey Mackay, a business advice columnist and author of We Got Fired!…And It’s The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Us. Begin with an often-used stroke on your keypad: delete. Get rid of any reminders, including old emails and memos.

Don’t let your anger or bitterness get the best of you. Before you leave the job – or soon thereafter – take a moment to send your boss a quick note or email with your new contact information, mentioning also that you hope you can stay in touch. No matter if you never hear back; at least you did your part. Also, take the high road when people ask you about your former boss. Gossiping and bad-mouthing him brings back negative thoughts and doesn’t serve your reputation in the long run, says Mackay. Leer más “How to get over the bad boss blues”