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Contagious Joy

December 8th, 2011

Maria Helm

As the days get shorter and colder, my thoughts turn to cozy nights in front of the fire, hot cocoa, and of course, meals shared with loved ones. The air practically vibrates with good feelings–and not just figuratively.

A study conducted by UC San Diego found that positive emotions–such as happiness felt during the holidays–are contagious. Researchers learned that one person’s joy spread to not only those in his or her immediate circle but also extended to friends of friends too. What they discovered was that happiness creates a domino effect through social networks, and the good feelings that are passed along can last for up to one year.

So I did an experiment of my own to test this theory. I met friends for happy hour. As we traded stories, our conversation was punctuated by outbursts of laughter. A woman not in our group turned to us and said, “You guys are having such a great time, it’s making me feel happy, too!” Apparently our joy that evening was palpable, and her comment proved that our happiness during our happy hour directly impacted more than just those immediately connected with us. Now I may never know if she in turn passed it along to others in her own network. But even if I was able to simply brighten that woman’s evening, I’d call that a success.

Just imagine how many people could be affected this holiday season if each of us spread a little joy to those around us; the positive repercussions are limitless. If our moods have the ability to spread like a virus, it means we’re accountable to more than just ourselves. The old adage “Always remember to be happy. You never know who’s falling in love with your smile’ now takes on a new level of meaning.

Photo Credit: adwriter

Posted in Communication, Motivation

Tags: Attitude, Joy

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How To Motivate Employees To Do The Right Thing

September 6th, 2011

Maria Helm

As a follow-up to my previous post “How to Motivate Clients To Do The Right Thing,” I thought that it will be beneficial for small business owners to motivate their employees to do the same. After all, employees are considered your business’ most valuable asset, right? You want your employees to put in a good day’s work, stick around and help build your business Even better, you want them to want to. So, here’s the carrot approach to consider.

Recognition. Although a raise is always nice, you may be surprised to hear that a little recognition and TLC will go a long way. People don’t always know what the carrot it. A lot of companies think they have to give more money. The real carrot is often announcing at a meeting that this employee has done something special, or a handwritten note from the CEO or owner will do the magic.

Food, glorious food. Food and drink go a long way toward making people feel taken care of. Stock up on snacks like microwave popcorn, chocolate, and flavored water.

Time will get them on your side. A lot of businesses close between Christmas and New Year’s. That works out to three to five bonus days a year. It’s usually a dead time for most businesses anyway, so consider giving your employees a chance to recharge their batteries at the end of the year.

Fit the perk to the workplace. Obviously a policy that works great in one workplace can be a disaster in another. For example if your company is a children clothing manufacturer consider allowing new parents to come to work with their babies; you may find that this practice actually increases productivity of your staff.

And the stick? if an employee is dishonest or consistently deliver poor performance and you think that you’ve given the proper training/coaching, then it’s time to to let the employee go. Before the ultimate decision to terminate is made, company management should spend a few minutes discussing the proposed termination with the company’s general counsel, outside labor counsel or the company’s human resources department. These professionals will see potential pitfalls that the management team may have missed and they can provide a reality check on the reason for termination.

Photo Credit: Bruce Thomson

Posted in Communication

Tags: Attitude, Leadership, productivity, Small Business, Stay motivated, Values

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How To Motivate Clients To Do The Right Thing

August 10th, 2011

Maria Helm

As business owners, we want our clients to stay with our company and to pay their bills on time, or even early. While you may consider penalties or the proverbial stick for bad behavior most of the time the true motivator for clients is the carrot. Not to worry–that carrot is often inexpensive or even free.

Reward clients for paying on time and for staying. If I want a late-paying client to pay on time, I would give him a bonus to pay on time. That’s more likely to give him an incentive to do it. For long-term contracts of a year and more, why not give 10 percent off your hourly rate?
Celebrate their success. If you learned that one client is a voracious reader and is marking his 10th anniversary with your company, then get him a first-edition book signed by the author. This will make such a good impression. When your clients do something special in their volunteer work or achieve another milestone, write a note or otherwise highlight the accomplishment.
Combine a carrot with your follow-up invoice. When needed, offer clients a carrot along with a subtle reminder that payment is due. Here’s how that combination might work:

Posted in Communication, Customer Service, Motivation

Tags: Small Business, Stay motivated, Tips, Values

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How to Communicate If Your Workload is Too Much

April 21st, 2011

Maria Helm

You never want to tell your boss that you can’t do something. In fact, at times you probably feel honored and good about the fact that he or she thinks you can handle so many responsibilities; but sometimes, it’s crucial to communicate that your workload is too much.

You know your workload is too much when you are making Excel documents in your dream. You know your workload is too much when you are watching TV and words like “revenue” and “products” appear louder than the rest. You know your workload is too much when you keep checking your work email …on the weekends.

There is a difference between being dedicated to your work and being overwhelmed by your workload. When it does get overwhelming, its important (and healthy) to communicate your needs to your boss.

Here’s how:

Schedule a meeting

This type of discussion isn’t something you do via email or at a moment’s notice. It’s something that you think about. If you were to walk over to your manager’s desk and ask, “Can we talk right now?” they will interpret that as you not thinking their time is valuable; this isn’t the best way to start of a conversation about how you don’t have enough time to do everything.

In addition, scheduling a meeting will also give you time to prepare exactly what you want to say.

Posted in Communication

Tags: Career, Communicate, Communications, Workload

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E-Mail Time Saver Tips

January 13th, 2011

Maria Helm

Not many would argue that e-mail management is a big time waster. It’s necessary to stay on top of it, though, or else it piles up and becomes overwhelming.

But what if there were far fewer e-emails to begin with?

There would be if it weren’t for the indiscriminate use of “Reply All.” E-mail volume would drop suddenly and significantly were offices to outlaw “Reply All” or at least use it sparingly. Here are two things you can do:

1. Adopt time-saving protocols, such as adding an I, A, or R to the subject line of every e-email sent out to indicate whether the e-mail requires an action, a reply, or purely informational.

2. Download a NoReplyAll Outlook add-in that eliminates Reply All and Forward options to email you send from Outlook.

Feel free to comment or add your e-mail time saver tips.

“Diamonds are forever. E-mail comes close.” June Kronholz

Photo Credit: dampeebe

Posted in Communication, Virtual Office

Tags: E-mail, productivity, Time, Tips

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