If you had to save something from a neighbour’s house that was on fire, what would you retrieve to help them out – one of their prized possessions or a coat?

For most of us, the answer is obvious since we view this scenario in terms of what we’d like others to help us save when faced with the risk of losing our home to a fire. However, as revealed in a story shared by Mark Bezos, sometimes these assumptions can obscure our vision of what’s really needed by those we’re trying to help.

During the work week, Mark heads the Development and Communications department at the non-profit organization, Robin Hood, but in his off-hours, he also serves as the assistant captain for a volunteer fire company which provides support to the town’s fire department.

As Mark points out, when you’re a volunteer firefighter, you have to get to the fire scene as soon as you can if you’re to have any chance “to get in on any action” and he certainly managed to get himself an interesting piece of that at his first fire scene.

When Mark arrived at the scene of this particular fire, he found the fire chief talking with a woman standing under an umbrella wearing pyjamas and no shoes, someone he’d later find out was the owner of the burning house. Before he could reach the fire chief to offer his assistance, another volunteer firefighter approached the fire chief and was given the task of saving the woman’s dog. When Mark got to the fire chief and asked what he could do to help, the fire chief looked at Mark and told him he needed Mark to go into the house to get the homeowner a pair of shoes.

Mark and the other volunteer firefighter went into the burning house and searched for the items they were told to locate. As they exited from the house, the other volunteer firefighter understandably received all the attention as he handed the saved dog to the homeowner while Mark gave the woman the pair of shoes he ‘rescued’ from the flames.

A few weeks after the fire, the fire department received a letter from the homeowner in which she Click here to continue reading »”Do You Lead Your Organization To Meet Or Exceed Expectations?”

Why do the goals that you’ve set out for your team to accomplish matter?

At first, the answer to this question might seem obvious – the goals you’ve established are meant to ensure your organization’s continued profitability, to increase or sustain your market share, create a new demand for your products or services, and so forth.

And yet, if we examine this answer closer, it becomes clear that the measures above are merely the outcomes of your organization’s shared efforts and not the real driving force which motivates your employees to contribute their full talents and abilities. For that, employees require something deeper and more meaningful – a noble cause which they are internally driven to rally around and bring to fruition.

Our noble cause is that shared purpose that allows us to move past focusing only on the ‘how’ and seeking to answer the ‘why’, fostering a deeper sense of meaning in what we do and an understanding of how our efforts can impact others beyond our office walls.

It’s the reason why some companies have managed to thrive and expand their market base despite the uncertainties present in today’s global economy, because they’re not simply Click here to continue reading »”Have You Tied Your Organization’s Goals To Your Noble Cause?”

I’m pleased to announce that I have joined in partnership with Sprint to highlight and share some of the valuable content being provided on their new small business information and community site, Business on Main, which can be found on the MSN Network.

On the surface, most leaders will agree that encouraging a workplace where employees feel valued and engaged is important to their organization’s growth and success. Indeed, a recent study by Aon Hewitt has shown that companies with high levels of employee engagement outperformed the total stock market index despite the current economic difficulties.

And yet, despite this understanding of the correlation between employee engagement and financial gains, a recent Gallup poll revealed that more than 70% of employees are “not engaged” or “actively disengaged”.

In the article “Empower Your Employees … Your Business Depends on It“, business consultant and customer service expert John Tschohl, author of the book “Empowerment: A Way of Life”, points out that part of the problem is that the concept of empowering employees is more of a myth as most “business owners think they’ve empowered their employees when in reality they haven’t.”

While corporations have access to a greater number of resources to tackle this issue, if not the ability to offer their employees more opportunities and challenges, how can small businesses address the issue of a disengaged workforce? Check out this article “Empower Your Employees … Your Business Depends on It” to find out what measures small business owners can take to empower their employees and read some of the results other business owners have had with engaging their team to succeed.

Disclaimer: My blog is a part of an online influencer network for Business on Main. I receive monthly incentives to share my views on content I find noteworthy and relevant for my audience.

As we slowly make our way through the remaining weeks of the year, many organizations are now shifting their focus to an exercise that is often met with disdain and apprehension – the annual performance review. Regardless of whether you’re on the receiving or giving end, most of us tend to view these feedback exercises as unconstructive or a waste of time, in large part because we approach the conversation from the wrong vantage point. Participating at a recent awards gala for one of the regional high schools helped to not only shed some light on this issue, but also on how leaders can make the act of giving feedback to others more instructive and beneficial.

I was invited by the school principal to give a speech and help present awards as part of a ceremony to recognize students who had maintained a high academic standing throughout the previous school year. Although I was honoured and delighted to take part, I have to admit that I did feel some hesitation because I wasn’t an active member of this community when these students achieved these accomplishments. As such, I felt that any recognition on my part of their efforts wouldn’t exactly carry much weight because of that lack of connection.

So I decided to take another approach to my involvement where I used my role in this ceremony to serve as a source of encouragement and support for how these students could build on and attain a similar achievement over the course of the current academic year.

Following the ceremony, I was pleasantly surprised to hear from both the parents and the students of how much they appreciated my participation, and in particular the ideas I had shared in my speech and in the brief comments made to every student as they came up on stage to accept their award.

What I began to realize is that Click here to continue reading »”Are You Following These 3 Rules For Giving Effective Feedback?”