Catch your employees doing things right...

People often asked how I trained employees to smile – the short answer: I didn’t; they smiled in the interview, so I hired them. The rest of the answer, and story, is more telling. When offering them the job, I explained that because they smiled in the interview, I knew they could, and we'd be looking for it every day on the job. And when they attended orientation, we reminded everyone there that they were all known smilers and should start immediately showing it to the people on their left and right. And then their new supervisors told them they too knew of their propensity to smile and began the routine of reminding and encouraging them to keep doing it. Thereafter, they thanked them every time they caught them smiling. That’s how you hire for and get this or whatever other attitudes you want. After that, you can confidently train for skills, knowing those employees have the right attitude(s). Today’s quoter is spot-on: skills can be taught but character and other innate attitudes are either there or they’re not. If you want your employees to use and display the attitude(s) you hired them for,  say "thank you" every time they display them. Follow this formula if you want your employees to have and display the attitudes you want today.

 

Anthony Bourdain (1956 – 2018): American celebrity chef, author, and travel documentarian, who starred in programs focusing on the exploration of international culture, cuisine, and the human condition

Be effective...

Like many my age, I am aware of the phenomenon of social media influencers… and don’t altogether get it. While Ms. Kardashian's quote is presumably referring to physical fitness, we might want to expand that to many other kinds of personal and professional fitness. Like being fit at being effective. Effective people don't just know what to do--they know why. They have a long-term goal. They have short-term goals that support their long-term goals. In short, they have purpose--and that purpose informs everything they do. For business leaders, that includes (but is certainly not limited to) practicing emotional intelligence effectively, being an effective coach and communicator, being an effective strategist, and continually improving those skills. A leader is responsible for being effective themselves and for the effectiveness of all who report to them, and for continually improving everyone’s individual and collective levels of effectiveness. To do that, they should focus on continuous learning, networking, and so many other initiatives that go into self-improvement. And then practicing what they learn to improve their skills and those of those they supervise. Plan to be fit in every way today.

 

Khloe Kardashian (born 1984): American Media Personality, Internet Influencer, and Model

Don't forget to care...

Just before the lockdown last year we rescued a small 3-legged dog: she’d been thrown out of a car by her previous owner and, after surgery, we were lucky enough to find each other. Like today’s author, she is injured but indefatigable… so we named her Frida. Dogs rescued during the lockdown became inseparable companions to people like us as we sheltered in place, a fancy term for being suddenly and involuntarily shut in. This little dog makes me get out for a 5 mile walk each a day, whether I like it or not, and taught me that social distancing doesn’t mean doing nothing. And now, as I get back on the road with my consulting practice, I am mindful of another of the lessons she taught me this year: “just because something is difficult doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it”. The airports are crowded, and the planes are full, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try to make the best of this transition back to a new normal. And even though we’re anxious about this transition, everyone is careful and seems to genuinely care about each other. No matter what, that’s what we’re responsible to do today.

 

Frida Kahlo (1907 – 1954): Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico

Stand by me...

As businesses remained closed during the recent pandemic, their customers were dispersed far and wide, sometimes to other businesses that hadn’t seen them before; those chance meetings became unexpected marketing opportunities. Many of my casino clients were on both sides of this unusual phenomenon and I watched how each reacted and responded in pursuit of customers both new and old. Those with pre-pandemic relationships tried to retain them while those that didn’t tried to capitalize on the chance encounters. They both tried using a multitude of marketing gimmicks, hoping time and reflection would win the hearts and minds of the customers who were caught in the middle. It was a real marketing war, mostly waged with lots of email and text offers. It was a real test of the strength of long-term customer relationships that were unexpectedly interrupted. Who won or lost is less important here than the lessons learned about the value of personal relationships in marketing and the value of face-to-face (or live voice-to-voice) contacts had on the loyalty of customers. Every company runs the risk of customers occasionally kicking the tires of their competitors for a variety of reasons. The bottom line: points and gimmicks come and go but true people to people relationships endure. Double down on your people to people marketing strategies and loyalty programs today.

 

Paul Cézanne (1839 – 1906): French artist and post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of a new and radically different world of art in the 20th century.

Shake it up baby now...

Relationships can grow stale over time – falling into routines and taking things for granted. This can certainly happen at work: companies make a lot of promises during recruitment and put on a big show during onboarding… but after that it’s just work. Do your job, don’t make waves, and you’ll probably never get noticed. That’s when smart supervisors can upset those habits: say “hi” at the start of every shift, catch employees doing things right, throw in some coaching when needed, and say “goodbye” and “thank you” at the end of every shift. Add emotional intelligence into that mix and an otherwise bland work environment starts to become a culture of engagement. People caring about one another, seeing who can make the biggest impact, wowing customers, creating legendary customer and employee satisfaction, increasing customer and employee loyalty, reducing customer attrition and employee turnover, and making the workplace that special kind of place where everyone wants to be. That all starts when one engaged employee goes against the grain of declining expectations and inspires others to want to make a difference. Be that one employee today.

 

Hayao Miyazaki (born 1941): Japanese animator, director, producer, screenwriter, author, and manga artist.

There's no shame in being truthful...

As people step back out into the hospitality world, the shortage of employees is painfully evident. Hotels don’t have enough guest room attendants to clean rooms; restaurants don’t have enough cooks and servers to prepare and deliver food; casinos don’t have enough dealers to shuffle and deal cards.  It’s the same in retail stores, museums, call centers, and manufacturing plants. Since the news is full of stories about these and other shortages, I think that gives the management of all affected businesses the right (and the responsibility) to be more up-front with customers about their ability to meet expectations. And they should temporarily adjust the services and work they are realistically able to provide. According to my own half-baked survey this week, I watched some customers get angry when nothing was said and, conversely, saw others waiting patiently when the truth was told. Management should stop wringing their hands about these staffing shortages and (1) adjust production and workloads accordingly and appropriately and creatively and, (2) be truthful with their customers about the impacts of these shortages.  This is just one more bump along this road back to a new normal. When these unforeseen circumstances occur, the truth is the kindest thing we can give folks today.  

 

Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811 – 1896): American abolitionist and author best known for her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852); this quote came from her book "The Pearl of Orr's Island"

Don't be complacent...

One of the things I’m seeing as the pandemic’s restrictions are being lifted is a wariness on the part of many employees to return to work. Before the pandemic, employees were mostly content with and loyal to their employers. But last year’s closures and furloughs deeply affected their sense of security and loyalty, to the point that they’re now questioning whether they still feel any loyalty to their previous employers. You’re probably experiencing this if you’re currently trying to fill open positions. In response, business leaders are examining their company’s policies, management styles, and practices to see if they’re relevant and appropriate today. This review should include wages rates and ranges, the need for sign-on bonuses, whether changing pay policies for some creates compression for others, the need for flexible or hybrid scheduling strategies to augment standard scheduling procedures, management’s competencies with using emotional intelligence, and whether your time-off benefits are sufficient to meet people’s changing needs. Loyalties will not be won by being the first to re-open or offer jobs; they will be won by being the best at adjusting to these changing dynamics and needs. Which means getting creative and proving to former and potential employees that you genuinely care about them and their wellbeing and are appropriately responding appropriately. Help former and prospective employee navigate their way back to feeling secure and loyal today. 

 

Carl Stefan Erling Persson (born 1947): Swedish billionaire businessman who was the chairman of fashion company H&M

Make work fun and motivating...

“All adventures, especially into new territory, are scary.” Sally Ride

 

Not everyone gets to experience an adventure like being an astronaut, but most of us experience the adventure of starting (or re-starting) a job. Realistically, both are filled with the anxious moments of an adventure into the unknown. As business leaders, we have the means and methods to make work fun, engaging and fulfilling, especially during onboarding when new employees get their job offer, fill out new hire paperwork, arrive for the first day of work, attend orientation, get introduced to their new department and co-workers, go through job training, and get feedback from their supervisors. Do an honest review of each of those onboarding processes; better yet, schedule yourself to go through the entire process just like any new hire, and then rate how, informative, exciting, motivating, inspiring each was. Keep in mind that when your new hire goes home after any of those experiences, they will be asked “how was it”? If the answer to any of those isn’t “GREAT”, you’ve missed a big opportunity to make a lasting first impression. Each should be a celebration of adventure and achievement, and a warm embrace by the company, its people, and culture. If you’re wondering why some employees aren’t positive or engaged, or why they may not be as loyal or long-term as you’d like, that may be reflective of these first new adventures. If you want great employees, make fun and motivating today.

 

Sally Ride (1951 – 2012): American astronaut and physicist. She joined NASA in 1978, and in 1983 became the first American woman in space

Don't try to be something you're not...

We all watch others to see what they do best; sometimes their best doesn’t work for others. But we’re often able to pick up characteristics big and small that do. I’ve always watched people speaking in public – how they gesture with their hands, where they focus, whether they tell stories or stick to a script, how easily they smile, and how they pace their delivery. Those who know me know I like getting up and speaking but I realize that many others do not. Years ago, I created an employee of the month program and asked the nominees’ supervisors to stand up and talk about them. Right off the bat the first supervisor froze at the podium, and I quickly had to intercede and rescue him. That’s when I realized that some people are far less comfortable than I am at public speaking. Then we started a storytelling program where people were encouraged to talk about their own experiences and found they were comfortable with that. The moral of this story is that not everyone can be like someone else, but they can always be like themselves. And that’s good enough. Catch people being a first-rate version of themselves today.

 

Judy Garland (1922 – 1969): American actress, singer, vaudevillian, and dancer

Focus on what's important...

There are good instincts and bad, and it’s the bad ones that often drive us to do things we regret. Or to avoid things we should be doing. Either way, we should learn from our experiences, take the best of what we see in others, and make (as my friend Jon Ponder likes to teach us) the rest of our lives the best of our lives. A lot of people I know re-evaluated their priorities and basic instincts this past year. And committed to re-learning how to live. Things we used to think important, now seem less so. And other things we used to ignore or put off, now are priorities. If we learned anything this past year, it’s that family and health are the most important things in our lives. The trick now is not to forget that as things rush back to normal. Don’t ignore your good instincts today. 

 

Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (1898 – 1936): Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director

Be curious...

When walking around and managing, I find it best to ask employees “how they are doing” – an open-ended question that allows them to say whatever they want. It’s best not to interrupt, and often it helps to just say: “tell me more”.  Whether employees or applicants, people love to talk about themselves and their experiences, or problems, and a good listener can learn a lot this way. We sometimes tend to over-think our interaction with others, and this is an example where less usually becomes more – just go with the flow of the answers your questions elicit. Effective leaders are never afraid to ask questions, and this is an example of how to get the most out of that exercise. And if you’re part of a team, it’s likewise good to ask pertinent and open-ended questions to make sure you understand the group’s dynamics and plans. Don’t worry that you might appear uninformed – good questions lead to increased discussions and engagement, which ultimately leads to a more successful effort by everyone. One good question usually leads to others, and that too leads to a more effective effort. Being appropriately curious is an effective management practice. If you’re trying to think of the right way to interact with others, remember to ask good questions today.

 

Ruby Dee (1922 – 2014): American actress, poet, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and civil rights activist

Go for a walk...

What a difference a year makes… summer 2020 was all about sheltering in place, and now everyone wants to see and be seen. For consultants like me, last year was connecting, if at all, on Zoom; this year it’s about on-site visits. And for managers, last year, most were furloughed; this year it’s back to managing by walking around. This is especially true for HR leaders: going to where the employees are working builds confidence, respect, and trust… both ways. Like going to the principal’s office for students. Employees are more comfortable in their own work areas and are usually surprised to see HR staff there, and more open to asking questions on ‘their own turf’. And it’s the same for any leaders; employees are always observing and ‘sizing-up’ leaders and seeing them differently when they’re out ‘on the floor’. Perceptions and perspectives being what they are, leaders who manage by walking around learn and know more and are generally trusted more. Get up and out of your office regularly: it’s the right thing to do. The view, along with the trust and respect it engenders, ultimately enhances employee morale and satisfaction. And your effectiveness. Don't underestimate the power of your visibility today.

 

Margaret Cho (born 1968): American actress, musician, stand-up comedian, fashion designer and author

Find the right tool for the job...

A week ago, the temperature in Las Vegas reached 109 degrees and we decamped to the Adirondack Mountains. These mountains are part of the largest and oldest state park in the US, established in 1892 for “the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure”. The park's 6.1 million acres include more than 10,000 lakes, 30,000 miles of rivers and streams, and a wide variety of habitats including wetlands and an estimated 200,000 acres of old-growth forests. We come here to be soothed and healed, and to have our senses put in order. And it seems many others need that too. After more than a year of business closings, job insecurity, and uncertainty about the future, many are burned out and not yet ready to return to work. But, as companies continue to reopen and look for people to fill their rosters, unemployed people need and want additional time to put their lives in order. I’m not sure that the sign-on bonuses that companies are offering will be enough to get people back to work in the short term. Those same companies should consider implementing programs to help their former employees deal with this burnout and uncertainty. Now is the time to promote the use of emotional intelligence – it’s the right tool for the job.  Help your employees put their senses in order today.

 

John Burroughs (1837-1921): American Naturalist and Essayist

What will you create today...

I tell HR leaders to dream big. After a long HR career, I know how hard it is to find time each day to dream – there are always so many transactions to complete and people to coach (and fires to put out). But the real fun in this, or any job, is to see things as they could be, not just as they are. I’m working with an HR director now who forwarded me an employee handbook – that always says volumes about an organization, and its style and culture. Lots of don’ts in that handbook – so I asked if they would consider flipping those around and listing the do’s instead. I could see a light come on. And about the employment-at-will statement on page two, I asked if they’d ever terminated anyone for no reason; the answer of course, was “no” … and more light began to shine. And when I asked whether they might consider putting a picture in the Appearance policy about how employees should look (instead of another list of don’ts) … the high beams came on. And we were only on page 3 of 30; imagine what other opportunities might be found. It was a good handbook, and it covered all the key topics the lawyers said had to addressed; but it had very little that would inspire employees to become engaged or aspire to greatness. And isn’t that what leaders (and their handbooks) are supposed to do? Take something you work with and transform it into a masterpiece today.

 

John Wooden (1910 – 2010): American basketball coach and player.

Remember to say thank you...

We all do lots of things each day throughout our careers. Some are our basic duties while others are far more than that; but all should be praised by supervisors attuned to catching people doing things right. I recently booked a ticket online with one of the major airlines (not Southwest). My plans changed and I tried to change my tickets online, and the search came back with an additional cost of $1100.00 (the original ticket was $800). That didn’t seem right so I dialed their reservation number and a recording told me they were experiencing heavy volumes and if my travel wasn’t in the next 72 hours I should hang up and call back closer to my travel date; and because of Covid-19, it said, the wait times would be up to 4 hours.  I couldn’t believe that, so I opted to wait, doing other things in the meantime, and finally hanging up after 3+ hours. That was unreal, so the next day I tried again, with the same results. I really needed to change my tickets, so I drove more than 2 hours to the nearest airport and told the ticket agent my story; she made a call and after 2 minutes told me it was all taken care of. Just like that. No hassle, no extra charges. After all I’d been through to change this ticket, that was like a miracle. I was dumbstruck and couldn’t stop thanking her. She smiled sheepishly and said how nice it was to be able to do her job and not get yelled at. I guess life as a service employee is like that these days. Remember to thank people for the miracles, big and small, they perform today.

 

Walter Whitman (1819 – 1892): American poet, essayist, and journalist

Make sure what you're communicating is important...

Maybe we should ask how well Turner’s leap of faith worked out. Do you remember TV before cable? 3 networks with different programming, and all of it entertaining. Then there was Cable TV: way more than anyone needed… and most of anything good you had to pay extra for. And how about the news before CNN? People waited until 6pm to get the nightly 30-minute news shows and, if you were up for it, the local news at 11pm: news waited to be reported. Then came CNN: breaking news 24 hours a day, and when there was nothing breaking, they kept repeating stories over and over. With too many stories that were meaningless until someone told us it was important. But still meaningless to most people. TV networks back then had programming that was entertaining and a separate division that produced the news: then someone thought ratings might go up if they made it all entertaining. That blurred everything and now nothing and everything is important… a sad unintended result. That’s no way to communicate. The real problem is that companies and their leaders compete against endless and pervasive news cycle, the internet, and smartphones that serve up anything anytime. Try this leap of faith: next time you have a meeting, tell everyone to shut off their phones and lose their ear buds; then ask them what’s important to the people in the room at that very moment. They might not know. But that would be a good first step in getting them to focus on where they are, what they’re doing, and what’s important today.

 

Robert Edward “Ted” Turner III (born 1938): American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor (CNN and TBS), and philanthropist. 

Get up on your tip toes, look over the horizon, and get started...

I’ve never played professional sports, so I can only imagine how hard it is to begin a new season with hopes of a championship. I suspect it’s like starting a new hotel project every 3 or4 years, knowing how hard the last one was and starting all over again. Maybe it’s like getting up and going to work every day. In each, there’s a coach or leader managing or inspiring someone or a group of individuals to put themselves fully into the effort. Knowing how hard it’s going to be. Buying into the project. All going in the same direction. Done right, it’s an effort that grows each day towards a big final ending. The payoff is the big ending, but even if that’s less than a championship-like finale, everyone needs to know they’ve achieved more than they ever thought possible. I still recall telling employees on the day before the Mirage opened that it was likely to be something they told their grandchildren about. And all these years later that’s exactly what we’re all doing. Remembering and trying to convey that feeling of completion and achievement. As hard as starting the climb might seem, the view from the top is always worth it. Get started on your climb today.

 

Mary Abigail Wambach (born 1980): American retired soccer player, coach, Olympic gold medalist, Women's World Cup champion, Soccer Athlete of the Year, and member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame 

Communicate changes appropriately...

From an early age, we learned in school that Thoreau lived an idyllic life on Walden Pond, and that image inspired many of us to follow our dreams. Many years later I followed mine and bought a cabin on a little lake in the Adirondack Mountains, a place that seemed like Walden Pond to me. I’ve been coming to those mountains my whole life and, like many, know the roads there, as they say, like the back of my hands. There’s a 4-way corner near our cabin there that has always had a simple blinking yellow light; except this year they had to temporarily change that light to a 4-way stop light because of a significant detour around a bridge that was being replaced. Some highway engineers determined that changing that light would be a good safety idea... and it probably would have been if that change had been effectively communicated. Habits die hard and most of the old timers around there failed to take sufficient notice and kept proceeding through that intersection as if no change had been made to that light. To them – same intersection, same looking lights, etc. – and first week it was there, someone who’d driven through that intersection countless times before treated it like the old blinking light and died in the ensuing accident. The same highway engineers then hastily installed speed bumps and blinking signage to alert people to what they had assumed would be such an obvious change. I heard that story as we travelled there this past weekend, and immediately recalled the fact that change is hard, especially when it involves old habits. Don’t overlook that simple truth today.

 

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862): American Naturalist, Author, and Philosopher

Learn from your mistakes and continue to grow...

While recruiting at Cornell’s hospitality school in the 90s, I became friends with Professor Tom Kelley. On one of his trips to Las Vegas he asked if we would be interested in talking to Sirio Maccioni about opening a restaurant in Bellagio. One thing led to another and, just like that, we got into the celebrity chef business. We went on to recruit many more noted chefs and restauranteurs and the world of food in Las Vegas was never the same. The elder Maccioni and his son Mario were the first and opened Le Cirque in Bellagio, and because Sirio was so well-known, we’d all listen up when he visited and gave us his advice – he told us his motto was to learn from your mistakes and quickly move on. When you’re successful or famous, that’s not so easy because everyone tells you how right you always are; the good ones, however, are super self-critical and never stop learning and growing. As you grow your career to whatever greatness you seek, remember to continue learning, ask lots of questions, listen to everyone you talk to, stay humble, and never stop striving. In all that we did over the years, I’d have to say one of the most rewarding was associating with those celebrity chefs: we learned from each other and grew in ways we never imagined. Listen and learn today.

 

Sirio Maccioni (1932 – 2020): Italian restaurateur and author known for opening Le Cirque

Out of the mouths of babes (oft times come gems)...

Some ordinary inventions become great: like 3Ms Post-it Note or Tsai’s N95 respirator. The first became so widely used and recognized that it endured long beyond its original patent, and the second was invented by the author of today’s quote in 1995 as an OSHA-approved safety product that didn’t gain widespread use and notoriety until this year’s pandemic. As they say: “who’d a thought”? Or like The Mirage: it was a pretty good idea that was panned by everyone before it opened and set Las Vegas on a huge and seemingly endless expansion boom afterward. Or like the applicant tracking and paperless HR computer systems I pioneered: initially they were just in response to basic administrative needs but then the publicity both received here in Las Vegas inspired others to push them into the mainstream. Or this: UNLV’s International Gaming Institute runs a college course in their gaming lab where students are encouraged to develop and patent game ideas and pitch them to investors – ordinary students producing some very extraordinary games (and revenues). Ordinary people come up with ideas every day that have the potential to be great. The bottom line is that every idea has the potential to be great – just because you don’t think yours is doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pursue it. Don’t be so quick to dismiss any ideas today.

 

Peter Tsai (born 1952): Taiwanese American material scientist and inventor who is best known for creating and patenting the N95 mask filter

Learn more about psychological safety in the workplace...

I was saddened to learn that Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open Tennis Tournament because of depression. She’s a very public person in a very public sport, trained and practiced at playing at the top of her game. And yet the pressures of work got to her. She was hard working, constantly striving for excellence, susceptible to public and professional scrutiny, and human. Sound familiar? We’ve been talking a lot about the well-being of employees and the use of emotional intelligence when dealing with the stress of this past (or any) year. Competition – personal and organizational, can be brutal, and it can leave us isolated and groping for psychological safety and trust. Professional tennis has its contracts and rules, and yet you’d think this would have been a moment for them to empathize and set a good example. In the everyday world of work that most of us occupy, there’s probably more of this going on than we care to admit. Be aware of the signs of personal struggle in your workplace, talk about it, and let your team know it’s okay to seek help before it becomes an emergency. Google emotional intelligence and educate yourself or reach out to professionals who can guide you and your organization appropriately. Be ready to deal with employee well-being today.

 

Arnold H. Glasow (1905-1998): American Businessman and Humorist

Be alert for good ideas...

Businesses often seek line employees’ advice about how to improve productivity, the theory being that those employees know best how workflow should be designed. Unfortunately, companies often impose practices and processes from the top down; but once implemented, those usually need adjusting. By that time, however, workspaces have been built and procedure manuals have been printed, and leaders may be resistant to change. Continuous improvement, however, is an iterative process that shouldn’t be unduly influenced by inflexibility. I recall the front desk at the Mirage – when we opened, it had been beautifully designed and built, but almost completely backwards from a service perspective. The desk agents there were trained to make and maintain eye contact, but they had to turn their backs on customers to retrieve forms and materials needed to complete their tasks. They explained this to us and, because our boss also believed that employees knew best, the company redesigned the entire registration area, making sure that the service strategies were aligned with the workspace and workflow. Many things in life and business are like this iterative process, and leaders should be flexible enough to adjust to appropriate changes: they should regularly ask employees for process and productivity improvements and be open to that input. Because you never know where the next great idea is going to come from. Listen to your employee ideas today.

 

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882): American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century