Workers of all types enjoy a good workplace with friendly colleagues and a competent management team. Morale is a by-product of company culture. That culture has to be nurtured by top-tier leadership. It’s a duty. But a good culture is not something that develops overnight. It takes time and a conscious effort.
Morale, however, can be…
As with all generations, each has its own vocabulary. Generation Z is no exception: “Main character energy” is being your true self. “Touching grass” is dropping the phone and going outside to get some fresh air. And that’s a good practice so one is not “Chronically online.”
A new idiom is to “See and be seen.”…
The boss comes up to your desk in the software development department and asks about a new product you have been working on for the past few months. Last week, he told you the deadline for the software launch was getting close, so you expected this. He then introduces you to Carol from marketing who…
In considering the future of the Human Resource Departments in American business, there is a lot of talk about automation or the elimination of HR altogether. Over the past few decades, those teams have already undergone transitions, from industrial best practices to new regulations and with several names changes in between. What will be their…
Every few years, there are those in the media who declare real estate agent’s make too much money. Of course, a Realtor® would see it differently. Nonetheless, the idea of paid commission is something foreign perhaps even mysterious to consumers. Especially those who have never been an independent contractor before.
About 20 years ago, Lesley Stahl*…
In a previous post, I mentioned five stumbling blocks for managers. One of those was a boss micromanaging the team. Micromanagement doesn’t necessarily begin with bad intentions. Many times, it begins with a leader who genuinely wants to help. Unfortunately, the result is often the opposite.
Some supervisors mistakenly believe that continual oversight will produce…
Whenever I hear the words: “Creative Financing”, my mind goes back to the last scene of the 1987 film, Wall Street. The main character played by Charlie Sheen, walks into his Manhattan office to find it filled with Federal agents waiting to arrest him for fraud and several security violations. As he’s escorted out of…
I've written before about the shortcomings of so-called higher education. That's not because I'm opposed to education. Quite the opposite. Learning, formal or informal, is essential to personal growth, so long as it doesn't discourage critical thinking or real-world application.
When I was in college working toward my Bachelor’s in Business Management in…
I'm a man in my 50s who completed 75 HARD for the first time in 2025. 75 HARD for those not familiar is a challenge developed by gym owner and podcaster Andy Frisella. It’s a seventy-five day training regimen or “challenge” which consists of half a dozen tasks that must be carried out every single…
In May of this year, a financial tech company out of Silicon Valley known simply as Bolt downsized their workforce. Considerably. It’s one of those meta data tracking companies online retailers love so much. You know, like the ones who make national news every year or so for exposing all of our credit card information…
Organizations often promote their best performers into management with the best of intentions. It feels fair. It feels logical. It feels earned. And yet, this well-meaning decision frequently produces the opposite result.
In fact, many employees find themselves…
Ever hear the phrase, “It’s a worthy goal”? What exactly is a worthy goal? Is it worthy to us or to others who tell us it is an admirable feat? What exactly is a goal, anyway? And what if we do not accomplish all of our little projects? Does that mean…
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) was once pitched as the business world’s moral compass — a way to create workplaces that were fair, respectful, and representative of society at large. In theory, few would argue against the ideals. I've written about them in previous articles. In…
Five years ago, remote work was a stopgap—a temporary fix to an urgent problem. Today, it’s a fixture of the modern workplace. Around 22% of the workforce now works remotely, a statistic that surprises many. For countless employees, the office has become a tool rather than a default.
From my perspective as a corporate trainer, thriving…
Remember when “Personnel” sounded like someone who actually knew your name? I do — I worked in the Tennessee Department of Personnel in the 1990s, back when the role still felt personal. When did employees stop being people and start becoming “resources” or worse, commodities? Are these departments still people-centric?
A century ago, the personnel department…