Are you a leader who needs the whole-hearted support of people who don’t report to you? In a survey I just completed, I found this to be a huge problem. The people whose support you need could be your boss, … Read More..
Employee Engagement (Blog)
How You Can Shift Energy in Your Favor – or Not!
(Part of The Energy Bar series #12) People tell me how challenging it is to run meetings and conference calls that get people energized and engaged. So, I started thinking about all of the approaches that I’ve actually seen work. … Read More..
Why Don’t People Tell Their Bosses the Truth?
(#9 in The Energy Bar series) There is one major reason why people don’t tell you the truth: they aren’t idiots. (You might want to write that down.) A senior manager in a small privately-owned company told me they would … Read More..
Adding Life to Conference Calls
(#8 in The Energy Bar series) Conference calls can be deadly, although they do provide great opportunities to increase your skills at Candy Crush and Spider Solitaire. People tune out when they don’t think they need to be tuned in. … Read More..
How to Keep People Awake and Focused During Webinars
#5 in The Enregy Bar series As I write this, I am attending a webinar on how to conduct effective webinars! (Really, I am not making this up!). You can see that I am multi-tasking, which means that I am … Read More..
Why Use the Energy Bar?
[To gain a quick understanding of The Energy Bar, please watch this 3-minute animated video. The Energy Bar} I’m a big fan of theories and approaches on influence and change (in fact, I even developed a couple of my own), … Read More..
More on The Energy Bar
I have gotten more responses (and all of them quite positive) on The Energy Bar than any other newsletter/blog/social media post in my career. I am delighted. I did get a suggestion to improve the sound quality and add music. … Read More..
What Can Free Jazz Teach Us About Working on Teams?
My friend, Karl Berger, was artist in residence at The Stone last week. The Stone is a New York club dedicated to the experimental and avant garde. I got to perform in his improvisational orchestra on the final night, and … Read More..
Rewards May Actually Hurt Performance
Rewards May Actually Hurt Performance A study by Amy Wrzesniewski and Barry Schwartz found that when instrumental motivation is combined with internal motivation, it can work against good performance. Someone may go to West Point because she wants to become … Read More..
A Way to Calculate Enthusiasm for Change
A Way to Calculate Enthusiasm for Change I was reading a detailed breakdown of yesterday’s playoff game between the Nationals and Cardinals. (Cardinals won 8-0. I am accepting notes of condolence.) Tucked into the play-by-play description was a little arrow … Read More..