Personal Excellence - April 2022

APRIL 2022 • Vol. 27 • No. 04 (ISSN 2564-1948)

6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not - David Cutler,

CEO, The Puzzler Company

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Trust And Following Or Breaking The Rules - Yoram Solomon, Ph.D.,

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Why Innovation Should Be More Like Easter Eggs

Personal Excellence presented by HR.com Trust and Trustworthiness Researcher

2022 1 -April Susan Robertson, Sharpen Innovation

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Planting the Seeds For Success One Person At A Time - Kate Zabriskie, Business Training Works, Inc.

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4 Self-Inflicting Career Mistakes - Dr. Eli Joseph,

Columbia University School Submit Your Articles of Professional Studies

INDEX

Personal Excellence APRIL 2022

Vol.27

No.03

(ISSN 2564-1948)

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On the Cover

6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not Learning begins with play

- David Cutler,

CEO, The Puzzler Company

Articles 12 A Warning For You! Focus on what could happen, not on what should happen

- Jim Stovall, President, Narrative Television Network 18 How Managers Can Look After Their Own Mental Health

23 You've Heard Of FOMO, But What About FOMMO? 7 tips to engage your disconnected employees

- Jeremy Beament, Co-Founder & Director, nudge 27 How To Thrive Amidst The Darkest Challenges Today

Make sure you keep an eye on your feelings and act accordingly

Staying resilient against the mental health challenges of the pandemic

Westfield Health

Wellbeing, Gallup

- Vicky Walker, Group Director of People,

- Jim Harter, Ph.D., Chief Scientist, Workplace and

29 Who Should Run Your Mentoring Program?

Eight things to look for in a mentoring champion

- Dr. Sherry Hartnett, Professor, Consultant, Mentor, and Author; Bert Thornton, Former President and COO,

Waffle House

Top Picks

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INDEX

Trust And Following Or Breaking The Rules What happens when there are no rules?

- Yoram Solomon, Founder, The Innovation

Culture Institute™ LLC

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Why Innovation Should Be More Like Easter Eggs

Tips to help you think more creatively - Susan Robertson, Harvard

21

Instructor

Planting The Seeds For Success One Person At A Time The power of potential - Kate Zabriskie, President, Business Training

Works, Inc.

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4 Self-Inflicting Career Mistakes Some mistakes provide key lessons that will help benefit our careers in the future - Dr. Eli Joseph, Columbia University School of Professional Studies

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EDITOR’S NOTE Editorial Purpose Babitha Balakrishnan

Debbie Mcgrath

Our mission is to promote personal and

Publisher, HR.com

professional development based on

Editor, Personal Excellence

constructive values, sound ethics, and timeless principles.

Excellence Publications Debbie McGrath

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Personal Excellence Team Babitha Balakrishnan Editor

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Submissions & Correspondence Please send any correspondence, articles, letters to the editor, and requests to reprint, republish, or excerpt articles to ePubEditors@hr.com.

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Why Investing in Yourself is the Best Ever Investment

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he past two years have been a whirlwind. As we are in the third year of the pandemic, with things looking slightly better than the previous years, it’s the perfect time to revisit our personal and professional goals for the year ahead. It is important to be mindful of our habits and routines that can help us maintain our wellbeing along with a healthy mindset.

Kate Zabriskie’s article, Planting the Seeds For Success One Person At A Time, points out how by following a few steps, anyone can learn to see the future success in others.

The April issue of Personal Excellence includes expert articles that focus on ways to improve one’s personal and professional growth and wellness.

Should you trust people who follow rules or those who know when to break them? What happens when there are no rules? Yoram Solomon’s article, Trust And Following Or Breaking The Rules, discusses the relationship between trust and following or breaking rules.

Are you a leader seeking fresh ideas to engage and motivate your team?

Where might you turn for inspiration?

Kindergarten is a good idea, says David Cutler in his article, 6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not. Check out this cover article to learn more about how kindergarten offers intriguing perspectives for leaders hoping to amplify institutional creativity, productivity, and buy-in.

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Why Innovation Should Be More Like Easter Eggs by Susan Robertson offers tips to help you think more creatively and come up with innovative solutions.

In brief, we have hand-picked 10 articles that can help you as you begin, or continue your journey toward personal and professional excellence. We hope you enjoy reading all the articles and get back to us with your valuable feedback.

Happy Reading!

Vicky Walker’s article, How Managers Can Look After Their Own Mental Health, highlights the importance of taking a few breaks from work to put your mental and physical wellbeing first.

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COVER ARTICLE

6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not Learning begins with play

By David Cutler, The Puzzler Company

S

uppose you’re a leader seeking fresh ideas to engage and motivate your team. Where might you turn for inspiration?

How about kindergarten?

Kindergarten feels like the opposite of most businesses. The physical environment, culture, and approach to learning seem to draw from another playbook altogether. What do kindergarten teachers know that most CEOs do not?

Learning Begins with Play

Suppose a kindergarten class is tasked to work with LEGOs. A typical lesson might begin, “Today, we will build the biggest castles you can imagine. Go!” Students dive in immediately. A common practice involves stacking blocks until they fall, and trying again. Throughout this hands-on process, learners quickly discover what works and what doesn’t.

Progress, driven by curiosity and experimentation, is steady.

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April 2022

Most organizations function differently. Creative challenges are introduced with extensive instruction and planning. It may take hours, weeks, or even months before participants get their hands dirty. Unfortunately, all that preamble may offer little more than wasted time. Untested assumptions and the realities of implementation regularly indicate far different solutions than those suggested theoretically.

Oddly, this phenomenon is typical of even leadership seminars. A common scene involves expert lecturers sharing personal morsels of wisdom in painstaking detail. The words may inspire. But all too often, folks in the room have zero opportunity to pursue the one thing likeliest to pay big dividends: actually leading something.

Effective learning often begins with trial-and-error practice. What if the next time your community

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needs to solve a problem, they jump in as soon as possible?

Sitting Too Long is Boring According to child development experts, the average attention span of a 5-year old range somewhere between 10 to 15 minutes. Well aware of this reality, kindergarten teachers regularly switch topics, activities, and modalities. Stand up, sit down, read along, move about, jump around, reflect alone, sing together. Variety is crucial.

Adults aren’t much different.

Multiple studies have shown that grownups struggle to focus on a given task for more than around 20-minutes. In fact, that duration is plummeting, thanks in part to quick-paced, unlimited content available online.

Unfortunately, too many jobs are defined by a sea of sameness.

Employees often work from an unaltered physical environment

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6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not

day in and out, pursuing a limited set of assignments. Although rote repetitiveness may minimize the chance of error, it also diminishes ownership, engagement, and enjoyment.

To keep employees energized, variation is every bit as necessary as with children. Whether you are charged with running a meeting or defining workloads, how might shaking things up amplify productivity, creativity, and morale?

Walls are Opportunities

When entering a kindergarten classroom, something special becomes immediately evident.

Teachers understand that walls are assets, presenting an opportunity to showcase: ●● Values. Posters and other artwork articulate cultural priorities (e.g., “Play, Learn, and Grow Together;” “You Are Loved!;” “Accept and Respect We Are All Different”). ●● Creativity. Murals, finger paintings, bag puppets, and other visible projects suggest the importance of imaginative visioning.

Walls immediately forecast a story about priorities, perceptions, and people. What message does yours broadcast?

Pictures Convey More Than Words Alone

Perhaps because kindergarteners are just learning to read, blocks of time are dedicated to creating, sharing, viewing, and analyzing imagery. Doing so teaches a host of skills while allowing individual student voices to shine.

As schooling continues, however, “art” is downgraded to an elective, pursued primarily by those with deep commitment and aptitude.

In its place, reading, writing, and speaking take center stage as favored modes of communication.

These word-centric frameworks persist in work environments, where employees regularly: ●● Read word-only books.

●● Talent. Offering more than aesthetic value, displayed work represents output of “creative geniuses” from this community.

In the vast majority of organizations, on the other hand, walls are afterthoughts. At best, they feature interesting colors, non-offensive paintings, and photos of historic significance.

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At worst, they are ignored, remaining uncomfortably bare save the occasional video monitor.

April 2022

●● Write word-only reports. ●● View/present word-heavy slide decks. ●● Take “minutes” and other notes by typing/writing rather than drawing. ●● Share big ideas and complex models without any visual assistance.

Outstanding written and verbal skills are undoubtedly valuable.

Yet they may not be enough.

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According to the Social Science Research Network, 65% of people are visual learners. In order to effectively digest or analyze anything, the majority of humans “just need to see it.”

Visual communication stimulates the imagination. It makes ideas stickier and easier to digest. Even crude pictograms or storyboards convey sophisticated messaging that would require extensive verbiage to approximate. While a picture truly can paint a thousand words, a thousand words often fail to paint any picture whatsoever.

Most adults have been conditioned to believe they can’t draw. That’s a myth. Every kindergartener can do it; so can you and your teammates.

A growing number of available resources offer accessible, easy-to-master guidance.

Investing even an hour can be transformative.

Whether writing an ad, sharing a vision, or teaching a lesson, pictures convey far more than words alone. How might visual communication be elevated within your ranks?

Music Makes Memories

Kindergarten teachers have long used this trick. If you want people to remember something, set it to music. Who didn’t learn their ABCs through the alphabet song?

That’s right, even 26 pieces of random data can be internalized by five-year olds with the assistance of a catchy tune.

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6 Things Kindergarten Teachers Know That Most CEOs Do Not

Collaborative music making builds a sense of community and pride in the organization.

It triggers the imagination, emotions, and memory in ways that words alone do not. How might musical activities enliven your environment?

Naptime Matters

As we age, many people maintain a fondness for singing. They frequent Karaoke nights, watch vocal reality competitions, and warble in the shower. Unlimited music streaming provides a soundtrack for life. Religious establishments and sports stadiums regularly incorporate music, understanding the immense power it carries.

But most businesses do not.

Singing at work is considered heresy. Groups brainstorm in silence. The only musical cameos are cheesy 80s songs piped through lobby speakers and elevators.

Committees work for weeks crafting mission statements, customer protocols, or value statements, only to be quickly forgotten by even the primary authors. Imagine if instead this critical content were set to memorable melodies. True, a few cynics might dismiss the exercise as naive. But years later, this is what people will remember: the “Mission Statement Tune,” and maybe little else . . .

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April 2022

It sometimes feels as if kindergarteners have unlimited energy.

But they can’t go nonstop. Once or twice per day, nap/quiet time is scheduled. This sacred ritual does not waste minutes. Rather, it allows students to relax and rejuvenate. Ultimately, children are happier and higher performing when periods of intense action are balanced with a calm repose.

Adults are no different. Corporate jobs can be exhausting, and not just because of responsibilities requiring focused concentration.

Commutes, questionably relevant meetings, endless Zoom calls, and personal stress all contribute to fatigue.

Yet in most work environments, the notion “Don’t just sit there, do something” runs rampant. Those who zone out even momentarily are assumed to be apathetic slackers, derelict of duty.

In his book When, Daniel Pink argues that napping improves cognitive performance as well as mental and physical health. But if workplace dozing seems a step too far, something less dramatic may work wonders. Coffee breaks, quiet time, or incenseinfused chair yoga can relieve the

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tedium and go a long way toward recharging one’s batteries.

Getting more from your community doesn’t mean pushing to exhaustion. It does require working smart. What if downtime in the workplace were permitted, encouraged, or even mandated?

Kindergarten does a lot to shape children during a crucial phase of primary socialization. But it also offers intriguing perspectives for leaders hoping to amplify institutional creativity, productivity, and buy-in.

Whether augmenting play, varying activity, transforming walls, integrating visuals, setting words to music, or scheduling downtime, which transferable lessons might make the biggest difference within your organization?

David Cutler, author of THE GAME OF INNOVATION: Conquer Challenges | Level Up Your Team | Play to Win, is the Founder and CEO of The Puzzler Company, a Distinguished Professor at the University of South Carolina, where he teaches innovation and entrepreneurship, and an award-winning, multi-genre musician and Yamaha Master Educator.

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Top Pick

Trust And Following Or Breaking The Rules What happens when there are no rules?

By Yoram Solomon, Ph.D., Trust and Trustworthiness Researcher

S

hould you trust people who follow the rules or those who know when to break them? What happens when there are no rules? This article will discuss the relationship between trust and following or breaking rules. It will also broaden the scope of the discussion and discuss ethics, too.

Should You Be Trusted to Know When to Break the Rules?

The dictionary definition of anarchy includes “lack of obedience to an authority.” That’s what breaking rules mean. The first question to ask is: when you decide to break the rules, are you willing to accept the consequences?

Generally, people should be trusted to follow rules for several reasons. Rules provide predictability because you assume that other people will follow them. Rules protect us from each other and the arbitrariness of the government.

When you consider breaking the rules, ask yourself if it’s OK if other people break the rules in a way that might hurt you? Is it OK if the government or the company you work for, breaks the rules and hurts you in the process?

What Happens When You Don’t Follow Rules?

In the court scene from A Few Good Men, Colonel Jessep says, “we follow orders, son. We follow orders, or people die. It’s that simple.” Those who served in combat military units never challenge an order given

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to them, for exactly that reason. Can you imagine what would happen if every soldier would decide which orders they follow and which orders they ignore?

How about air traffic control? Can you imagine pilots deciding unilaterally which directions to follow and which to ignore?

How Do You Know If You Can Break the Rules?

Not all rules make sense. Some are archaic, and may not cover modern situations. How do you know if you can break them or not? One of John F. Kennedy’s favorite quotes was from G. K. Chesterton’s 1929 book, The Thing: “Do not remove a fence until you know why it was put up in the first place.” Before breaking a rule, ask yourself—do you know why this rule was created in the first place? Could the reason the rule was created still be valid, and you simply may not know it?

One of the most important components of your trustworthiness is fairness. If you break the rule while someone else follows it, it puts them in a disadvantaged state. If you decide to drive faster than the speed limit while the other person follows it, you will get to places faster than they would, which is unfair to them.

What if you break the rules simply because you can afford the consequences, consider them “the cost of doing business,” and the other person can’t? Wouldn’t that be unfair?

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believe they were put there out of the arbitrariness of rule-makers.

What should we do? First, we should behave above the ethical bar, even though actions below the ethical bar are not illegal. Don’t rely on rule-makers to tell you what’s right and wrong. Second, we should start raising our own ethical bar. Do more good.

Breaking the Rules … and TRUST What would be a good enough reason to break the rules? Because they don’t suit you? Even if you breaking the rules might hurt other people? How about when it hurts those who can’t defend themselves?

People with disabilities? Minorities? Is it enough that most people prefer to break the rules?

What If There Are No Rules?

Let’s broaden the scope of the discussion to include ethics. To be clear, the word ethics here doesn’t refer to a Code of Ethics that many organizations put in place. Those have extrinsic consequences, and therefore should be considered rules.

The range of actions you may take varies from very bad to very good. Somewhere on that range is the legal bar. Anything below it is illegal. The legal bar is extrinsic, as the consequences of operating below the legal bar are not natural consequences of your actions (i.e., the consequences are imposed by other people artificially). Somewhere (hopefully higher) on that range is the ethical bar. Anything you do above the ethical bar is ethical or good.

What would you call those actions that are above the legal bar, but below the ethical bar? We typically call them “grey area.” Those are things you know you shouldn’t do, but you do them anyway because they are not illegal.

The government’s response to those actions is to raise the legal bar, but that has several unintended consequences. First, we relegate our decision-making to rules. Why should we think for ourselves if the government does it for us? Second, we rationalize breaking the rules. We break the rules because we

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When you operate above another person’s ethical bar, you meet the requirements of the Personality Compatibility component of trustworthiness, which has the strongest correlation to trust (86%). To be trusted, you must operate above the ethical bar of the person you want to be trusted by. That bar might differ for different people and in different contexts.

It’s different from yours. For that reason, focus on the other person’s bar and not your own because trust is asymmetrical. Besides, when you break the rules, and the other person doesn’t, it puts them in an unfair situation, and fairness is another important factor in your trustworthiness.

If a rule is not good for you, don’t just break it. Find out why it was put there in the first place and what effect breaking it will have on other people before you decide to break it.

But if the rule is not good for anyone, do something about it! If those are company rules, quit the company!

If those are government rules, speak with your legislators! Remember that legislators are put in office by you during elections. Replace them in the next election cycle, or run for office yourself!

Yoram Solomon, Ph.D., MBA, LLB, is the author of The Book of Trust®, host of The Trust Show podcast, founder of the Innovation Culture Institute™ LLC, and facilitator of the Trust Habits™ workshop. T

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A Warning For You! Focus on what could happen, not on what should happen

By Jim Stovall, Narrative Television Network

H

ere in the 21st century, we have the ability to easily communicate with almost anyone, but the number of miscommunications, misunderstandings, and mishaps are multiplying rapidly. Often we

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assume something is so obvious that it goes without saying.

Not only do we need to say it, but we need to communicate clearly and repeatedly to avoid misunderstandings and the resulting disasters.

April 2022

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Following are just a few real warnings that have been put on various products. These warnings are not random or fictitious. They are put in place because someone didn’t heed the advice and suffered the consequences.

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A Warning For You!

does not enable flight or super strength.

●● Label on a sleep aid: May cause drowsiness.

●● Label on an iron: Do not iron clothes on body.

●● Label on a chainsaw: Do not hold the wrong end of the chainsaw. ●● Label on a jet ski: Never use lit match or open flame to check fuel level.

●● Warning on website for iPod Shuffle: Do not eat. ●● Label on a wheelbarrow: Not intended for highway use.

●● Label on hairdryer: Do not use while sleeping.

●● Warning on a baby stroller: Remove child before folding.

●● Label on blow torch gas bottle: Contents may catch fire.

●● Label on a bottle of dog medication: May cause drowsiness. Use care when operating a car.

●● Label on cardboard sunshade for car dashboard: Do not drive with sun shield in place. ●● Label on a letter opener: Safety goggles recommended.

As you go through your day today, focus on what could happen, not on what should happen.

●● Label on a dishwasher: Do not allow children to play in dishwasher. ●● Label on a brass fishing hook: Harmful if swallowed.

●● Label on a washing machine: Do not put any person in this washer. ●● Label on Dremel power tool: This product is not intended for use as a dental tool. ●● Label on a Superman costume: This product

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will gravitate in that direction.

However, if there’s a wrong way to do something, there are those among us who have to learn everything the hard way. In your communications, I’m warning you that you need to warn them.

April 2022

In addition to being sad, funny, and keeping lawyers happy, warning labels like those above remind us that we need to be clear, specific, and never take anything for granted. If there’s a right way to do something, most people

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Jim Stovall is the President of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books including The Ultimate Gift. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker.

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Top Pick

Why Innovation Should Be More Like Easter Eggs Tips to help you think more creatively

By Susan Robertson, Sharpen Innovation

E

very year in the spring, Amy B., a buyer for a large retail chain store, hosts an Easter egg decorating team building party, where she and a bunch of her suppliers spend an entire afternoon coloring and bedazzling hard-boiled eggs. None of them bring their kids—they do this for the sheer pleasure of out-of-the office bonding, creating interesting and attractive objects. The group is always amazed at the creativity of the resulting eggs. (And in case you’re wondering, no, none of them are artists.)

So why, as adults, people don't exercise their inner child-like creativity more often? And what is it about the Easter egg party that allows them to so freely generate and express such a range and diversity of ideas? There are several factors—all of which also apply to innovation.

Each egg represents a very low commitment. It is cheap in both time and materials to try any idea they think of, so they try lots of ideas. If one doesn’t work, it doesn’t matter—it’s just one egg.

Similarly, in your innovation work, you need to consider and try out many ideas, to ensure that only the best ones move forward. As innovation projects proceed through a company, they get more expensive—in money, time, and labor—at each successive phase.

Developing Fail Fast, Fail Cheap methodologies

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allows you to try out lots of ideas early on, while it’s still cheap.

They leverage not only individual creativity, but also use the power of the group. Someone will think of an idea to try, and then toss it out to the group.

Then everyone contributes ideas for how best to accomplish it. No one ever says, “Yes, but that won’t work.” Everyone just thinks of ways to help make it better. The resulting final solutions are nearly always significantly better than what the person would have tried originally.

In many companies, the “Yes, But” phenomenon is all too common, and can be very damaging to creativity and innovation. Most ideas aren’t perfect when they’re first conceived, but teams act like they should be.

They point out all the problems in an emerging idea before they ever attempt to find out if there’s anything good about it. For innovation and creative problem solving to thrive, it’s critical to create an environment that nurtures ideas rather than stifles them, so you get the benefit of the best thinking of the entire team.

They are willing to start over when something clearly isn’t working. One woman brought eggs that were not naturally white; instead, they were brown. It wasn’t clear that dyeing them would work very well, if at all.

And, in fact, the first few attempts didn’t work. So,

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Why Innovation Should Be More Like Easter Eggs

she scraped off all the color on her unsuccessful eggs several times. But when she chose red, yellow, and orange colors and left them in the dye bath long enough, she got some of the most uniquely rich and vividly colored eggs anyone had ever seen.

Unfortunately, in large organizations, too many innovation projects that aren’t quite hitting the mark proceed too far. It’s important to recognize when an idea isn’t working, and then be willing to start again when you need to.

Reframing the goal results in more divergent ideas.

The woman with the brown eggs also tried other methods of decorating the eggs, not just coloring them with dye. Once she reframed the problem from coloring eggs to decorating eggs, everyone else also began creating the most innovative and unusual eggs of all.

This reframing of the problem is a critical step in effective problem-solving and innovation. This is because the way a problem is stated affects the potential solutions you will think of. So when addressing any obstacle, it’s a good idea to question the way the challenge or problem is worded, to see if you can reframe it to get to different and better solutions.

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So the next time you find yourself with eggs to decorate—or a challenge to meet—keep these tips in mind to help you think more creatively and come up with more innovative solutions. ●● Fail fast, fail cheap. Test many possible ideas. ●● Leverage individual and group creativity; “Yes, and” instead of “Yes, but”. ●● Be willing to start over when the idea isn’t working. ●● Reframe the opportunity to expand your thinking.

Susan Robertson empowers individuals, teams, and organizations to more nimbly adapt to change, by transforming thinking from “why we can’t” to “how might we?” She is a creative thinking expert with over 20 years of experience speaking and coaching in Fortune 500 companies. As an instructor on applied creativity at Harvard, Susan brings a scientific foundation to enhancing human creativity. She is also the CEO at Sharpen Innovation

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How Managers Can Look After Their Own Mental Health Make sure you keep an eye on your feelings and act accordingly

By Vicky Walker, Westfield Health

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ocus on employees’ wellbeing is often at the forefront of forward-thinking, caring businesses. In fact, as company owners or managers, you have a duty to ensure that your team is comfortable. Not only is this vital for their own physical and mental health, but it can also help uplift the productivity and efficiency of the business too.

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However, it is common for people in a higher position of responsibility to forget or neglect their own wellbeing. This shouldn’t happen, as it is crucial to remember that we are all human and that workloads can become challenging for everyone.

Of course, we are all different and we all handle pressing situations

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differently, but your mental health must never be overlooked.

We explore the importance of looking after your workplace wellbeing as a manager or business owner while offering tips on how to make sure you keep an eye on your feelings and act accordingly.

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How Managers Can Look After Their Own Mental Health

Unplug from Time to Time

What do you do when your laptop is not cooperating? Before seeking assistance, the first port of call is to switch it off and allow it to rest for a few minutes. As it reboots, software and programmes will usually start working again the way they should.

In the same way, it is fair to say that humans deserve to unplug from time to time too. With the pressures and challenges of managing a team of people, it is important to take a few breaks throughout the day. Whether it is listening to your favorite music or just taking a moment of calm, detaching from your duties for a short while will do your mental wellbeing the world of good.

Balance Your Work Hours

As a business owner or manager, it is easy to feel forced to work

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for hours on end. In fact, running a company can be all-consuming, and it can truly take over your life.

You may enjoy cultivating your business, and its progression could be a big source of satisfaction, but it shouldn’t preclude you from practicing other activities as well. In fact, prolonged work hours can lead to poor mental health, burnout and increased fatigue.

Spending time with family and friends is just as essential, and setting aside some time to embrace a hobby will work wonders for your wellbeing. This will help you stay connected with the outer world and effectively tackle feelings of isolation.

Note Down Your Feelings Every workday comes with its fair share of obstacles. How

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are you feeling? Overwhelmed?

Upset? Frustrated? Or happy?

Sometimes, it is natural to disregard your emotions and carry on with your duties.

However, taking regular intervals to reflect on both your mood and feelings can help you clear your mind. Keeping a personal journal in your office, for instance, can relieve stress and aid in understanding your sentiments.

By jotting down your thoughts in a diary and determining patterns related to different scenarios, you will soon become mindful of your feelings. This is a useful tip you may wish to share with your employees too.

Get Moving

Exercise is always an excellent way to declutter your brain.

Intense workdays can put you to the test, but doses of physical

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How Managers Can Look After Their Own Mental Health

activity can help you restore your overall wellbeing.

A short walk or a 10-minute workout is all you need.

Encourage your team members to join you and get moving to enhance your physical and mental health.

Eat and Drink Well

If you are having a very busy day, the temptation to just skip your lunch break can be difficult to ignore. The truth is, though, that regardless of the amount of work you have, you should always have a healthy meal to keep you going. Your employees have a well-deserved food and drink break, so why shouldn’t you?

Business owners and managers need just as much energy as their employees.

Healthy snacks throughout the day will ensure that your concentration levels are consistent. Eat some fruit and drink plenty of water. A hydrated body and a full stomach will keep you happy and ready to master your tasks.

measures. If you are struggling to sleep at night, it may be down to your many work responsibilities.

Ultimately, as a business owner or manager, you have a lot on your plate. If that’s the case, chat to someone or try some meditation sessions to free your mind from your job duties.

Likewise, if you are finding it difficult to concentrate, leave your desk and go for a short stroll in the fresh air. This will help you soothe your feelings of stress, pressure, anger or frustration. By taking immediate action, you can avoid damaging consequences in the long term.

Wellbeing in the workplace is an essential prerogative. As well as taking care of their people, business owners and managers should keep in check their own mental health too. From jotting down your emotions to exercising and unplugging at regular intervals, there are many ways to always put your all-important mental and physical wellbeing first.

●● https://thriveglobal.com/stories/ ways-small-business-owners-canlook-after-their-mental-health/ ●● https://www.headsup.org.au/ your-mental-health/mentalhealth-and-small-business/ looking-after-yourself-as-a-smallbusiness-owner#:~:text=%20 Looking%20after%20your%20 mental%20health%20 %E2%80%93%20for,living%20that%20 is%20good%20for%20our...%20 More%20 ●● https://www.managementtoday. co.uk/leaders-tips-looking-ownmental-health/leadership-lessons/ article/1696910 ●● https://www.apm.org.uk/blog/ how-project-managers-can-lookafter-their-mental-health-in-tryingtimes/#:~:text=%20How%20 project%20managers%20can%20 look%20after%20their,easy%20to%20 ignore%20how%20we%20feel.%20 More%20

Vicky Walker is Group Director of People at Westfield Health.

Sources

Stay on Top of Warnings

Another important piece of advice is to react to your body’s messages and take action. In fact, neglecting signs of stress and burnout can lead to a gradual deterioration of your mental and physical wellbeing.

●● https://www.forbes.com/sites/ davidhowell1/2020/09/30/ small-business-owners-how-tolook-after-your-physical-and-mentalhealth/?sh=334dcba35423

Instead, ensure that you take notice of possible warning signs, understand what is happening, and embrace preventive

●● https://www.onrec.com/ news/news-archive/ the-importance-of-looking-after-yourmental-health-in-business

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●● https://www.businessleader.co.uk/ world-mental-health-day-how-business-leaders-can-look-after-themselves-and-their-staff/

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Top Pick

Planting The Seeds For Success One Person At A Time The power of potential

By Kate Zabriskie, Business Training Works, Inc.,

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endra, I think you are going to do wonderfully at this next task. You have a good idea for detail, and that’s exactly what’s required here.

Tom, you have a real knack with people, and I’d like you to take on a temporary role in account management. I think you will thrive based on what I’ve seen you do with our internal customers.

When I was asked to recommend someone to head the new department. I immediately thought of you. You learn quickly, you work hard, and you’re good at bringing a team together. These next few months are going to be a heavy lift, and I can’t think of anyone else better suited to the task.

Like gardeners planting seeds, people who spot potential can help others produce results they may never have imagined for themselves. By following a few steps, anyone can learn to see the future success in others.

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Step One: Start with Strengths

Pay attention to what’s special.

Everyone has talents, and great potential spotters zero in on those gifts. Is someone organized, great with people, quick to pick on new activities, or mechanically inclined?

Step Two: Look in Less Obvious Areas

Once you’ve identified the visible strengths, start looking in less obvious places. You may uncover a hidden talent. An average performer may become an exception with a little help from the power of suggestion.

Step Three: Stick with Sincerity

It’s one thing to recognize a spark before you see it. It’s another to tell people they’re good at something when there is significant evidence to the contrary. Most people can spot insincerity from a mile away, so it’s important to remain sincere

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Step Four: Identify Opportunities

In addition to recognizing possibility, great potential spotters are on the lookout for places where others can shine. They know opportunities come in all shapes and sizes: Sometimes the opportunity is a task or a project.

Other times it’s a position or some other responsibility.

Step Five: Bring the Person and the Opportunity Together in the Right Place

Great potential spotters understand not only who and what to pair, but how to introduce the opportunity. Sometimes these conversations are casual, and other times they are formal meetings. The type to hold largely depends on the person and the task. And because every circumstance is different, it’s important to be deliberate. If the task is part of routine work, a short conversation held in public may be appropriate. Conversely,

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it, and they’re well on their way toward finding additional opportunities to build on what’s been achieved. On the other hand, when people and opportunities don’t come together well, a good potential spotter takes the situation in stride and finds other avenues for people to thrive.

when presenting a large project or new position, a formal meeting might be a better option.

Step Six: Connect What and Why

Potential spotters follow a formula. They recognize a person’s strength, how it fits with the opportunity, and why the match makes sense.

Julie, you’ve always done well with spreadsheets. I think you’d be a good fit for the position that’s opening in inventory management.

Their system is similar to what you’ve been working with. In the role, not only would you be able to use what you currently know, but you’d also grow your skillset and open yourself to additional opportunities.

Ben, I’ve been watching you work. You know how to follow the SOP, and now I think you’re ready to increase your speed.

You’re diligent in your approach to what you do, and your attitude is certainly one of “can do”. I’d like to get you some additional time on the line later today. I know you could be one of our top performers with some practice.

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Step Ten: Make Time for Spotting Step Seven: Prepare for a Range of Reactions

People react to potential spotters in a range of ways. Some embrace what they’re told and look forward to tackling whatever opportunity the spotter highlights. Others get bogged down in self-doubt and require additional reassurance.

And from time to time, the spotter meets with rejection when the person with the potential does not immediately or, for that matter, ever embrace the opportunity. A good potential spotter is ready for anything.

Potential spotting can happen organically, but it can happen more often when you set aside time to think about it.

Scheduling spotting time can yield great results. Great potential is in everyone, and when it’s unleashed it compounds. Success builds success.

Imagine if everyone in your workplace realized even half of his or her potential. What could people achieve alone and together? Probably more than they do now. So, whose potential do you need to spot today?

Step Eight: Set the Stage for Success

Sometimes, people with great potential fail because of factors that have nothing to do with the person or the opportunity.

Exceptional potential spotters keep this in mind. And to the extent they can, they pave the way for success with training, exposure to information, time to practice new skills, and other appropriate resources.

Kate Zabriskie is the president of Business Training Works, Inc., a Maryland-based talent development firm. She and her team provide onsite, virtual, and online soft-skills training courses and workshops to clients in the United States and internationally.

Step Nine: Embrace All Results

When people meet with success, potential spotters acknowledge

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You've Heard Of FOMO, But What About FOMMO? 7 tips to engage your disconnected employees

By Jeremy Beament, nudge

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e’ve all heard of FOMO, but what about FOMMO? The fear of missing money opportunities.

people are disengaged - only then can provide and fill the knowledge gaps.

We don’t tend to think of poor financial health in the traditional sense of ‘illness,’ but financial unwellness has an impact on overall holistic wellbeing. In fact, 45% of people globally feel anxious about their financial situation. And unfortunately, anxiety can lead to avoidance.

Offering your people an education-first financial wellness solution allows you to be more inclusive.

Why? Because an education-first model doesn’t assume what your people know about money management. Instead, it allows individuals to self-select topics more relevant to them and provides an experience that is tailored to their knowledge level, guiding people through at a pace that suits them.

Poor financial health isn’t always visible on the surface - so opening up the conversation around money and supporting your people with financial wellbeing has never been more important.

How Can You Nudge Everyone Toward Financial Wellness?

We’ve outlined 7 ways you can help your less financially stable employees build stronger relationships with their money.

#1 Collate Data to Better Understand Their Needs When you’re faced with a challenge, your starting point should always be data. If you’re finding your financial wellness program uptake hasn’t achieved the results you expected - start by analyzing who is and isn’t engaging. Then deep dive into the disparate needs of the disengaged group to identify their challenges. #2 Choose an Education-First Model Once you have identified and understand why your

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#3 Design a Simple and Accessible Solution When it comes to employee benefits, there’s no need for complexities. You have a short window to engage and onboard your people. Historically, people have been hit with lengthy pension packs that are hard to digest. Or faced with complicated health insurance sign-in processes and little guidance on where to start.

Those days are gone. In a world where attention spans are shortened, the employee benefits experience needs to be simple, straightforward and accessible to all. Employees want personalized and regular communication, single-sign-on, simple signposting, visual guidance (ie. videos), and inclusive technology that’s designed to be accessible to all needs and capabilities. #4 Take Your People on a Journey What does this mean in a practical sense? It’s all about communication - being regular and personalized.

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Find out what they like, what they don’t - and tailor accordingly. It will become obvious when a benefit hasn’t landed effectively because no one will be using it.

of your recent retirement planning learning module - we thought this event would be perfect for you.’

You can then follow up with some helpful nuggets of information from the event.

Take your time to introduce the concept and offer training or masterclasses. Check-in with your people, highlight useful program features, and issue reminders through multiple channels.

Personalization takes a little more thought than a ‘one size fits all’ approach - but that extra effort will pay off in your engagement results.

You could even line up program or community advocates within each team to help with the adoption.

Try not to launch straight into a product or a solution without any warm-up or education – a launch party is always encouraged! #5 Offer Access Anytime, Anywhere Remove any barriers to engagement. The first step is to ask your people’s preferences, not just for communication, but for learning and development.

We’ve found that harder-to-reach groups tend to engage better through personal devices. Ensure your offering is designed to work seamlessly on mobile and consider utilizing WhatsApp, SMS, Slack or MicrosoftTeams (and email, of course). Encourage your people to share and bookmark useful content, so they can come back to it whenever they please. #6 Provide an Interactive Toolkit Behavioral psychology tells us that self-selection and incentivizing action are both important elements of positive reinforcement. When it comes to financial wellness, educational tools and badges to reward positive action are excellent ways to address this need. Consider tools that will give your team the ability to plan, prepare and organize their finances, from the unexpected to the expected. #7 Personalization is Key Although simple, personalization is often overlooked. If you know what your people are interested in, and give them more of the same, then engagement improves.

Though be sure to stay within the parameters of usefulness. Useful is saying, ‘following the completion

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#8 Avoid Advice When it comes to engagement, dishing out advice is risky because it’s likely to be tied into products and services - so the intention is misplaced. Financial advice is, as defined by FCA, the distribution of a product. The fear is that there’s a conflict between ‘trusted’ advice and the underlining adviser model.

FCA is aware of this and FAMR (FCA’s annual review) identified 13 ways employers can help employees.

The reality is, there are groups of people within your organization that need more financial wellness support.

And often, these are the people who are least likely to ask for help.

By utilizing the steps we’ve outlined to reach these people, and starting the financial wellbeing conversation, you’re making an impact that will last a lifetime - as people who receive high-quality financial education continue pursuing even more learning in this area over time.

Jeremy Beament is the Co-Founder & Director at nudge. With over 18 years’ experience in HR and reward, Jeremy Beament has been at the forefront of innovation in the industry. Prior to nudge, Jeremy was part of the team at Thomsons Online Benefits (now Darwin), the global benefits platform that brought employee benefits online. In his time at Thomsons, Jeremy worked with HR and reward leaders from the world’s leading companies to shape market-leading employee benefit strategies.

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4 Self-Inflicting Career Mistakes Some mistakes provide key lessons that will help benefit our careers in the future

By Dr. Eli Joseph, Columbia University School of Professional Studies

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hether we are just getting started in our careers, or we are seasoned executives in our careers, we are prone to make inevitable mistakes.

On one hand, some mistakes are minor. Overcoming minor mistakes is important and these mistakes provide key lessons that will help benefit our careers in the future. These are the mistakes that we look forward to because it makes us stronger and wiser.

On the other hand, some mistakes can be detrimental to our careers and the organizations that we represent. Most of the mistakes that we experience in our professional careers are predicated upon self-harm, caused by the burden of our wrongdoings.

As we navigate through our careers, we try our best to avoid such pitfalls that may have been caused by events that are out of our control. Yet, we often overlook the mistakes that we create ourselves.

Here are some of the self-inflicting mistakes that we tend to stumble upon:

1. Making the Same Mistakes Twice

Mark Twain said it best when he said “it ain’t what you don’t know that gets you in trouble, it’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.”

We are all human and everyone makes mistakes.

However, this self-inflicting error of making the same

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mistakes twice demonstrates that we did not learn our lesson from the previous mistake.

2. Burning Bridges and Having Fallouts with Your Network

It’s no secret that having a solid network is a crucial instrument to your career. There are many upsides to having a network of advisors- a group of people that are willing to offer valuable feedback that will benefit your career, mentors- a group of people that are willing to support when you are in the room and sponsors- a group of people that are willing to support you when you are not in the room.

If you are pursuing new opportunities while closing one chapter of your career and opening another chapter, you can’t afford to shoot yourself in the foot and burn bridges with the network that you’ve invested in throughout your career.

3. Providing Too Much Information

Whether we are having a small talk with senior executives in an elevator, or we are participating in an hour-long conference meeting with our co-workers, communication is very important in every professional sector.

You are bound to make self-inflicting mistakes when you don’t know how to gauge the line between civil conversation and providing too much information by way of unnecessary gossip or sharing private/

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proprietary information. You are hurting yourself when you overindulge in conversations that are meaningless to a productive work environment.

The most challenging part about sharing information is you have no idea what they do to you until after they escape your mouth. Even if you have good intentions, they can deliver the wrong impression at times. If you made words into steps, you could take three steps forward with the right words and four steps back with using the wrong choice of words one time.

4. Violating Explicit Company Rules

When you are first starting your new position at a firm, you are given an employee handbook during orientation. This handbook consists of policies within the organization that every employee and partner must abide by. The minimum requirement for career progression is following corporate policies. Violating this set of rules is the ultimate career suicide, which may be detrimental to not only the organization but your career moving forward.

In a world where we strive for perfection, we understand that mistakes are bound to occur throughout our careers. Although we are welcome to make these mistakes so we can cultivate the lessons

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that come from them, we can’t make self-inflicting mistakes that can jeopardize our careers.

Dr. Eli Joseph is a founder who works with Fortune 500 companies, American academic, and a faculty member of Columbia University and Queens college, who has built his life based on 1,2000 resume rejections. He shares his journey in his book, The Perfect Rejection Resume: A Reader’s Guide to Building a Career Through Failure. During 2014 – 2019, Dr. Eli Joseph submitted over 1,200 applications to various schools, courses, colleges, and jobs. He credits these rejections as the driving force to where he is today: a faculty member at the Columbia University School of Professional Studies, partner and medical examiner at a Quest Diagnostics company, a member of TED, For(bes) The Culture, and the Grammy Recording Academy.

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How To Thrive Amidst The Darkest Challenges Today Staying resilient against the mental health challenges of the pandemic

By Jim Harter, Ph.D., Gallup

A

nger, stress, worry and sadness have been on the rise globally for the past decade -- long before the Covid-19 pandemic -- and all reached record highs in 2020, according to Gallup, which is working with Magellan Health to execute the world’s largest ongoing wellbeing study.

But about half of Americans and 29% globally are still thriving in their lives: They view their current state positively and have high hopes for the future. What traits do these thriving people have in common that we can emulate so we can face Omicron, inflation and other rising challenges?

Many thriving people found proactive ways to stay resilient against the mental health challenges of the pandemic. They discovered modes of working that might be better than before, especially blending remote and office work. They found new ways to use technology to connect with loved ones. They started to make financial plans based on what’s most important to them and also became more conscious of improving their health. They redoubled efforts to give back to their communities, many of which suffered greatly during the pandemic.

An effective way to emulate those thriving and resilient people – and to improve your wellbeing -- is

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to identify and capitalize on your strengths instead of seeking remedies for your weaknesses. Gallup defines strengths as “naturally occurring patterns of thought, feeling and behavior that can be productively applied.”

For example, an individual who is great at turning thoughts into action may improve their social wellbeing by rallying friends together. Someone who is strategic may apply that strength to helping to run a charity in their community. Someone who is competitive may be motivated to improve their financial wellbeing through gamification or by comparing themselves to others. Our Gallup research showed that when you are using your strengths and aiming them at improving your own and others’ wellbeing, you have a clearer purpose and more energy throughout each day. It’s possible -- right now, today -- to improve your wellbeing in ways that you find interesting, engaging and important.

Some people seem to be naturally happier than others, and studies suggest that about half of individual wellbeing is due to genetics. These predispositions are often referred to as “set points.” But our environment and choices influence a wide variation above and below those set points, which means we’re not doomed by our DNA. Recent research in the field

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of epigenetics shows that the expression of DNA codes can be altered by the choices people make. So, individuals have many opportunities to change their wellbeing. How? By capitalizing on their strengths.

It seems obvious that working on your physical wellbeing would improve your health outcomes -- but focusing on physical health is not sufficient.

For example, compared with those who score high on physical wellbeing alone, those who also score high on other elements of wellbeing report 41% fewer unhealthy days. Disease burden, work burnout and anxiety are lower the more you attend to all the elements of your wellbeing, including career, social, financial, community and emotional wellbeing.

Combining strengths and wellbeing is potentially the most transformational treatment yet in the urgent pursuit of resiliency, mental health and ultimately,

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thriving lives for all of us. It’s understandable if your wellbeing isn’t optimal right now, but if you proactively capitalize on your strengths, you’ll stay thriving amidst even the darkest challenges our world faces today.

Jim Harter, Ph.D., is Chief Scientist of Workplace and Wellbeing at Gallup.

He has led more than 1,000 studies of workplace effectiveness, including the largest ongoing meta-analysis of human potential and business unit performance. He is the author of three bestselling books including, Wellbeing at Work.

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Who Should Run Your Mentoring Program?

Eight things to look for in a mentoring champion

By Dr. Sherry Hartnett, University of West Florida and Bert Thornton, Waffle House, Inc.

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o your company has decided to start a mentoring program. That’s great. A well-designed, well-executed, scalable mentoring program can help you attract and retain talent, improve employee satisfaction, drive organizational performance, build a deep bench, and more. Now…who’s going to lead it?

You’d better not rush this decision. A mentoring champion is the foundation on which all else is built. The person you choose will make or break your program.

In a nutshell, a mentoring champion leads the effort to organize, oversee, and administrate your program from the ground up. They set goals with senior leaders and create materials and resources. They recruit, match, and train mentors and mentees. And through it all, they continually promote, nurture, and improve the mentoring program to ensure results.

Alternatively, you might select a division or department leader to be the program champion. With their team’s support, the workload can be divided and prioritized among multiple people.

They need business experience. Whether your program champion is an external hire or is recruited from within the organization, they should have business experience and credentials. In many ways, a mentoring champion performs the same functions as any other department head, especially if they have a support staff. This person will also be required to liaise and collaborate with other leaders in the organization, and they’ll need to be familiar with your organization’s structure, procedures, and strategic goals.

Check out eight “must-have” qualities to look for when choosing a champion of your own:

A champion should have a broad, diverse network…

Your champion will be in charge of recruiting mentors and mentees, as well as heavily involved in matching these pairs. The more connections they have within and outside of your company, the better!

A champion must have the time and the desire to lead your program. A major reason why many mentoring programs fail is because they’re thrown together and led by overextended people who may not have wanted the responsibility in the first place. It would be good to hire a full-time program champion, because it takes time and focus to create, maintain, and continually improve a robust mentoring program.

…and be a good judge of character. In a large corporation, it would be difficult for one person to know every mentor and mentee, especially if they are coming from 20 or 30 different departments.

Therefore, the program champion should be a good judge of character, someone who quickly and easily establishes rapport with others. Even in a smaller company, there will probably be some participants

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Who Should Run Your Mentoring Program?

your champion won’t know well, so having good intuition about others is a plus.

A champion must be a connector. Your champion will need to “connect the dots” between people and opportunities, and bring them together in a meaningful way. Most “connector” personalities in this role are affable, energetic, optimistic, willing to take chances, and enjoy collaborating.

Successful champions also understand that connecting is different from networking. Where networking is often regarded as a means to an end, connecting is driven by a genuine interest in other people. Connectors want to better support and assist others, while making a difference in their lives and careers.

A champion is also a doer. This ability to influence and connect with people must be balanced with the ability to get things done. A sociable “big idea” person who has trouble executing will not serve your company well in this role. The champion must emphasize results and accountability. They need to be able to see the big picture, accept challenges, and get straight to the point.

Look for leaders who are tenacious and who possess enough willpower to drive not only themselves, but the whole group, toward goals. A big part of their role is building, not maintaining the status quo.

They should be able to think strategically. A successful champion must have a long-term perspective. They need to be able to visualize where your program is going while executing each step of the plan with determination and precision—all while communicating their vision to others.

A champion needs the full support of the organization’s leaders. To create a thriving mentoring program, you’ll need buy-in from your organization’s top stakeholders (e.g., board of directors, senior management team, or C-suite). Therefore, your champion must be someone who has the full, unwavering support of these people, and who can convince them that a mentoring program is aligned with your organization’s business objectives and strategic goals.

Your champion will be in charge of garnering initial support from leaders, yes—but they’ll also need to regularly report in, share stories and metrics, and ensure that organizational and financial support for the program continues to be a priority.

Who helms your program has a profound impact on its strategy, execution, and, ultimately, its performance and success. It may take a little while to find and appoint your champion—and that’s okay. When you get this part right, your mentoring program will have the solid foundation it needs to grow and thrive.

Dr. Sherry Hartnett is coauthor along with Bert Thornton of the new book, High-Impact Mentoring: A Practical Guide to Creating Value in Other People’s Lives (BookLogix, 2021, ISBN: 978-1-6653-0344-6, $19.95). She is a marketing and leadership professor, consultant, author, and mentor. At the University of West Florida, she founded the pioneering, high-impact experiential learning Executive Mentor Program.

Bert Thornton is the former president and COO of Waffle House. His fi­rst book, Find an Old Gorilla: Pathways Through the Jungle of Business and Life, is a well-received leadership handbook for rising high achievers and emerging leaders.

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