Spread Smiles

Spread Smiles

May 13, 2019

Spread Smiles.   Actions speak louder than words and so do smiles! When you smile at someone, it sends the message that you like them and you are happy to see them. It’s hard not to smile back when someone smiles at you. That’s because smiles are contagious.  When someone makes a gesture to you, especially a nice one, who can resist responding in kind? Have you ever been greeted at the door by a dog, almost excited out of their skin because they have missed you? It makes you feel pretty special, doesn’t it? Imagine if everyone you met throughout
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Build Team Spirit in Your Workforce

Build Team Spirit in Your Workforce

February 19, 2019

Let’s Build Your Team Spirit! Employees don’t work in isolation, whatever their jobs are. They’re part of a team, large or small, and your efforts to motivate them should be team-based. Emphasize the connections among individual employees and between employees’ home and work lives. Here are three ways to accomplish this:   Build high opinions of one another’s skills and strengths. Encourage your staff to praise their colleagues at meetings with questions like, “Who helped you out this week?” Public praise from peers redirects focus away from the boss/worker relationship and extends accountability to the entire team, which in turn
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Hire Team Members Who Are Committed to Out-Of-This-World Customer Service

Hire Team Members Who Are Committed to Out-Of-This-World Customer Service

August 13, 2018

Recruit Team Members Who Deliver Exceptional Service! Attitudes are contagious and bad ones are like the flu bug: You don’t want it going around the office! One of the great things about Out-Of-This-World Customer Service is that it creates happy attitudes. When you set clear expectations and give team members the power to make clients happy, they will love their job. Team members with great attitudes can make filling a position easy. Why is that? They will tell like-minded friends and acquaintances when you are adding a team member. They won’t refer people with bad attitudes who won’t be committed
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Set Goals and Revisit Them Often (Part I)

Set Goals and Revisit Them Often (Part I)

February 6, 2018

Set Goals for Increased Profitability and Productivity Business owners who set goals and visit them often usually see: Higher productivity overall. Lower unnecessary costs Shorter timeframes between starts and finishes. Greater profitability. A Potential Problem Setting goals is one thing, knowing how to revisit them is another. Goal-setting and performance monitoring should be everyone’s responsibility. If goal-setting stays with the business owner, revisiting them often stays with the business owner too. By encouraging everyone to take ownership of goals success becomes more certain because everyone can revisit their own goals. The Solution Use two simple and effective ideas that have
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Grow Your Brand and Your Business in 10 Seconds

Grow Your Brand and Your Business in 10 Seconds

December 19, 2017

Perfect Your Elevator Pitch We have all been standing or sitting next to someone who looks at you and says: “What do you do?” or “What business are you in?” or “Not seen you at this event before; what made you come?” This is an invitation to make a great impression and perfect your elevator pitch. This person may need exactly what you’re in business for, or they may know someone who does. Their question gives you two choices, you can: Say something obvious, that produces an “Oh, thanks.” Or you can say something that makes them sit up and
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Know What Employees Want from You

Know What Employees Want from You

November 7, 2017

Finding out what your employees want will make you a better manager!  What do your employees really want? Jumping to conclusions is never safe. To be a better manager, remember these basic truths about everyone who works for you: “I want to feel important.” No one wants to feel like a number, interchangeable, or easy to forget. Get to know your employees as people; find out what makes each one unique and show them you’re paying attention to their individuality. “I need encouragement.” Even the best employees continue to flourish with positive feedback. Let them know what they’re doing right
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Make Every Minute Count During the Workday 

Make Every Minute Count During the Workday 

October 24, 2017

Prep Work Is The Key To Positive Feedback  Time is your most valuable asset at work. If you struggle to get everything done on time and accurately, consider this advice for managing your day more efficiently: Question everything. Look at each task and ask, “Is this the best use of my time right now?” Delay or eliminate anything that’s unrelated to your most important responsibilities. Eliminate distractions. If you have an office with a door, close it to prevent interruptions. If you’re in a cubicle, consider posting a “Do not disturb” sign when you need to concentrate or finding an
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Rev Up the Disengaged Employees in Your Workforce

Rev Up the Disengaged Employees in Your Workforce

September 26, 2017

Motivate Employees That Are Unproductive  Some employees come to work every morning, leave promptly at 5:00 p.m., and do just enough work to get by. Frequently they’re the remains of formerly enthusiastic and productive employees who are burned out or just feel forgotten. Here’s how to change that: Explain roles. Make a point of telling employees why you need them to do what they do. A thorough understanding of the role they play will help them find greater value in the work they do.   Communicate customer feedback. Most employees enjoy hearing from customers. Share information and feedback about how
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Start the Day Inspired

Start the Day Inspired

September 19, 2017

Be Inspired Many people start the day not so much inspired as angry, frustrated, grumpy and irritated at having to get out of bed in the morning. Happily, there are some changes you can make to your morning routine to try to change those morning blues into something more positive.   For instance, one method of preventing yourself from starting to stress out the moment you open your eyes is to avoid looking at phone messages or emails for at least 15 minutes after you wake. Whatever it is, it can wait.   Another good piece of advice is to
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