Episode 164 – How do I fit into your movie?

Episode 164 – How do I fit into your movie?
by | October 30, 2020

Years ago, I read the book The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.  One concept that greatly impacted me was that each of us is running our own movie in our heads.  In that movie, we are the writer, director, producer, and main star.  Everyone else is a supporting cast member in our movies. Here’s the kicker:  everyone else is also running their own movie in their heads, and we are but supporting cast members in their movies. How do the individual movies impact one another?  Listen in as I share stories and examples as well as how we can
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We’re not selling shovels

We’re not selling shovels
by | October 29, 2020

Last I checked, I did not see anyone selling shovels on LinkedIn. Why not? Don’t shovels have just as much right to be sold as a $20,000 re-vamp-your-company’s-entire-marketing-strategy package? The answer is, yes, shovels get sold as much (actually lots more) as a $20,000 headhunting “Get exactly the right person in the right seat” campaign. Most of us do not plunk down $20K just because someone else says, “You should do this… it’s a really good deal…. take my word for it.” We would like a little more information and… oh, yes, perhaps get to know the person selling/delivering the
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Episode 149 – Empowerment does not mean perfection

Episode 149 – Empowerment does not mean perfection
by | July 8, 2020

As a manager, you’re expected to manage others, as well as do your own job.  If you’re responsible for an entire team or department, how do you make sure your staff delivers results? Do you micromanage? (No.)  If you empower people to do their jobs, what if they make mistakes? Other podcast episodes referenced:  Are you an A, B, or C player?, Right people in the right seats, and 10 traits of effective leaders
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Don’t Just Say Something…Stand There!

Don’t Just Say Something…Stand There!
by | June 8, 2020

I call it therapist mode.   In therapist school we called it “active listening,” meaning listen to understand, not necessarily to comment.  And, if necessary, in an opportune moment repeat what they said back to them so they KNOW you were listening.   One of the credos that stuck with me when I was involved with the Red Cross Disaster Mental health Division was, “Don’t just say something…..stand there!” In other words: don’t talk, just be present and listen.   In any crisis people want to be heard, not given advice, sympathetic prose, or anecdotal stories about how the same
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Episode 142 – Do I say something?

Episode 142 – Do I say something?
by | April 28, 2020

Since we are proponents of a strengths-based workplace and culture, we firmly believe in employees working and playing to their strengths.  We also recommend a collaborative communication and feedback model where employees ask for and constructively receive feedback, and managers productively communicate and give said constructive feedback. That being said, what happens when an employee plays to her strengths and takes initiative when her manager is too overwhelmed to notice? Does she say something? Does she point it out? Listen in as Dawn Shuler recounts an actual experience with a client and their recommended solution. What would you recommend? Other
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Episode 135 – 9 questions you need to ask your employees during COVID-19

Episode 135 – 9 questions you need to ask your employees during COVID-19
by | March 24, 2020

“For the times they are a-changin’” ~ Bob Dylan We are in unprecedented times where things are changing, not just on a daily basis, but sometimes an hourly basis.  Everything from dining out to children being home from school, and so much in between, looks different today from how it looked two weeks ago. And then there is the emotional component.  There’s general worry and tension.  Some people are separated from their families.  None of us know what to expect. Pick a thing, and that thing has been affected.   Here’s what we’re noticing, in our company, as well as
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Episode 131 – Do not engage

Episode 131 – Do not engage
by | March 6, 2020

Dawn Shuler recounts a time as a young mother with a two-year-old and the “do not engage” strategy she used during the “terrible two’s.”  While hopefully people are not throwing tantrums in the workplace, there may be times where a “do not engage” strategy is called for.  At its foundation, not engaging can be used in subtle to gross ways – in order to create forward motion instead of getting stuck in the emotions of the situation. Other podcast episodes referenced:  Are you purpose driven?, Reactive vs. Proactive, Proactive vs. Reactive revisited, and Forward motion
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Episode 125 – Positivity vs. Negativity – with guests from MindTeam Solutions

Episode 125 – Positivity vs. Negativity – with guests from MindTeam Solutions
by | February 4, 2020

In another of our regular collaborations with our partners from MindTeam Solutions, we discuss the importance of positivity in the workplace. Listen in as Dawn and Mark with The Shuler Group and Sylvia and Josh of MindTeam Solutions explore how important it is to focus on positivity, and not just decrease negativity. Research that it takes four positive experiences to counter a negative one The difference between reducing the negative as opposed to emphasizing the positive Being motivated by fear rather than pursuing pleasure Positivity in teams 75% of of most people’s thoughts are negative – and catching yourself in
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Episode 121 – Change your perspective – create an exchange program

Episode 121 – Change your perspective – create an exchange program
by | January 14, 2020

When I recently visited Texas for my high school reunion, I observed the differences in relationships, culture, and environment, and I had some epiphanies regarding how we relate to one another, how we operate, and how others do things differently. What if we created an exchange program to really understand the differences (and value) of other departments and even other organizations?
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