Recently, my wife and I were remarking about how much better we feel the day after we’ve spent the evening with friends. For several evenings, I searched the internet looking for a possible cause–was it the company, the conversation or the laughter. It didn’t take me to long to figure out that the laughter which…
Many people have a hard time accepting compliments. When you tell one of these people they look great, they brush off your compliment with something like, “Yeah, right!” Or, “You certainly need a new pair of glasses.” Similarly, if you compliment them on something they’ve done, they come back with, “Any idiot could have done what I…
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal talked about Lars Dalgaard, chief executive of SuccessFactors, a software company based in San Mateo, California. As a young man working his way up the ranks of a consumer products company, Mr. Dalgaard was so nasty to his subordinates that a coach had to pull him aside…
I recently climbed into a bloodmobile to donate a pint of blood. As I looked around, everyone there was either about to be stuck with a large needle, in the process of being stuck, having blood withdrawn or having a needle removed from their arm. To someone who has never donated blood, this may sound…
The summer vacation time is fast approaching. Vacations are good things: they help us get back to feeling our best, make us more creative and productive and, for a number of reasons, make us healthier. The problem is that all too many people look at vacations as luxuries rather than necessities. I just came off…
A recent article in USA Today revealed the lengths to which some companies go to electronically monitor their employees’ behavior at work. Some not only monitor their emails, social network and internet use, but their location and physical activity as well. The article stated that the primary reason for the monitoring was to increase productivity…
Myra de la Vega is a cashier at a Jewel-Osco in Evanston, IL. Dan Coyne is a social worker for Chicago Public Schools. Dan always got in Myra’s checkout line because she was so friendly and cheerful. One day, Myra looked sick and Dan asked what was wrong. She said her kidneys were failing and…
A recent article in USA Today revealed the lengths to which some companies go to electronically monitor their employees’ behavior at work. Some not only monitor their emails, social network and internet use, but their location and physical activity as well. The article stated that the primary reason for the monitoring was to increase productivity…
Not long ago, a group of friends and I went to hear a presentation by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love. Since I had read the book, I was eager to hear her reflections on the year when she spent four months eating her way through Italy, four months seeking communion with the divine…
A recent article in the Arizona Republic contained some sound advice for getting ahead at work. The article mentioned things like adding to your technical skills, pursuing additional education, networking and demonstrating integrity in everything you do. Then the article quoted Scott Smith, a managing partner at the executive search firm of TowerHunter, Inc., who…