id33b1: Up Market

duminică, 5 februarie 2012

Up Market

Up Market

Flex Time: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Posted: 05 Feb 2012 09:00 AM PST

Late nights

Flex time is a double-edged sword for managers, teams, and employees – a great idea in theory, that also comes with its own challenges for everyone involved. However, as an essential tool for happy, healthy, and productive teams – it is worth learning to manage effectively.

The Good

Flex time, when done well, is one of the best tools I've ever seen for creating happy and productive teams.

  • Lets people manage their lives on their schedule. It's a whole lot more productive in the long run to give someone an hour to run home to meet the handyman than have them spend hours on the phone trying to find someone that can come outside of business hours.
  • Facilitates working during their most productive hours. Morning people get the early shift, non-morning people get the late shift.
  • Creates trust and goodwill. You boost these two critical business success factors in and amongst your team when you develop a culture that allows for flex time.

The Bad and the Ugly

But, creating an environment that supports flex time can be a challenge. From not being able to find the "right" people when you need them, to having a hard time calling meetings, to basic trust issues around not being able to "see" people working, a flex-time environment has unique challenges that must be addressed.

  • Off-hours emails. One of the smartest managers I know once said to me, "Well, I was working on a Sunday, but I didn't send the email to my team until Monday morning because I didn't want them to feel obligated to work on the weekend." She was one of those rare tuned-in people that truly "gets" that not only are we all connected 24×7, but also that the manager sets the tone for the team. And, if she started sending emails outside of traditional business hours that she would be setting a precedent she did not want her team to adopt. Can you, instead, save your email in drafts until business hours and send it then?
  • Core hours. This takes some of the "flex" out of flex time, but for some teams, or teams at a critical point in a project, creating core hours when everyone is expected to be in the office is the best way to allow for the advantages of flex time without hamstringing a team. If necessary, set core hours (say between 11 and 3) when all employees are expected to be there. 
  • Calendars. You already know that managing expectations is key to any businesses success, and doing the same with work schedules is critical for flex time to succeed. By making use of online calendars, your team can mark their out-of-office times so you know – at-a-glance – who is in and out of the office, as well as when you can expect someone back. There are a lot of online team calendar tools, many of them free, that you can take advantage of that will also sync to your desktop calendar and smartphone.

Does your team take advantage of flex hours? What other tips and tricks could you suggest?

Work From Home Survival Guide

Posted: 05 Feb 2012 06:00 AM PST

Check out these tips to keep in mind when you start working from home.

Stepping Up Your Game: Why What You Do With Your Downtime Is Important

Posted: 04 Feb 2012 05:00 PM PST

January is traditionally a slow month for me. The chaos of the Holidays has subsided, my work schedule is lighter, and tax prep time is back again. But I also use this time to brush up on and learn some new skills. I plan to invest in my personal and professional growth, and reevaluate my goals to make 2012 not just a good year, but a great year.

So why not just veg out and catch up on some TV time? I’ll admit I DID do that a bit (down with a cold), but it’s important to stay on top of things in order to remain competitive, especially in an online work environment. My education and skill levels will directly affect my future income levels, the level of service I can provide for my clients and the acquisition of new clients. It’s not just to maintain the status quo, but to grow my business to better and higher levels. As a freelancer, it’s an imperative.

If you don't believe me, ask Robert St John:

But, you say to yourself, I’m not a freelancer. I don’t need to do worry about it.

Newsflash! If you are in the brick and mortar workforce, you certainly do! With major cutbacks going on in all sectors of business, there are no guarantees or job security. Perhaps your willingness to spend time improving your job skills and education will make the difference should pink slip time come along, or increase the likelihood of finding a new position someplace else. Ask your employer about the possibility of educational training for you and your coworkers, as many companies will help pay for classes. Be proactive, and don’t wait until you’re forced into an adverse situation.

What if I’m already unemployed, you say?

Here’s when what you do in your downtime REALLY makes a difference. If you haven’t had success finding a new place in your current field, perhaps it’s time to consider a different position within that field or do something completely different. Think about the things that interest you, and how you could learn more about them. Then take action.

Make continuing education a lifestyle. Don’t get locked into the traditional paradigm of taking night classes at a local college (but don’t rule it out, either!). There are plenty of opportunities to learn through volunteer work, seasonal work and temp agencies, and some may even lead to full time employment with a new company. If nothing else, a consistent listing of educational activities on your résumé over a long period looks better than “UNEMPLOYED”.

Who knows? You might even enjoy it.

Being Proficient in Bad Habits

Posted: 04 Feb 2012 01:30 PM PST

There's an old axiom of "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." It's also the knee-jerk response from someone whom either doesn't want to change, or by someone who can't get another to change. Either way the statement is for the lazy, not for the dogs. (Dogs actually like new challenges.)

Although some will use this phrase as to not engage in trying something new, what they will do is unconsciously learn, adapt, practice, and reinforce bad habits all the while never knowing they ever acquired any. One of the main reasons this goes on unnoticed is they relate time dedicated to a pursuit, to time equals expertise. It doesn't. Just because you've been doing something for years doesn't mean that you've improved. What can also happen is the longer you've been doing something you may unwittingly be getting worse. Discomforts you may be feeling from tasks might not be that you no longer like or can't do something. Rather the underlying problem causing you pain can actually be from a bad habit you don't realize you ever picked up. I'll use myself as an example.

I have been running on average 5 miles daily for decades. However I was starting to have injuries far too frequently. I was starting to believe what I hear so many people say –"Well you are getting older" or "You just can't be doing that stuff forever" and all the others. The problem was, I was starting to think maybe they had a point. I wore only the best shoes. I was disciplined in taking recovery time between days on and off. I guess hanging up the shoes was inevitable. But really, was that it? Stop? Give it up? The answer was no. Here's what happened next.

When the New York City Marathon was taking place there was a story about barefoot running. I had heard about this technique, however I discounted it. I mean after all, I had been running for decades and have also invested in the finest footwear brands (and most expensive!) available. What became apparent was that I didn't need to learn anything new. I needed to drop some bad habits I never realized had been acquired.

It all made sense when I watched a video and noticed the technique they were demonstrating was quite similar to how I would run when nursing myself after an injury. Then it clicked. Instead of running the way I previously did that was very similar to the pain-free way, I had not noticed over time I had changed my style to something dramatically different that was now causing me pain. And I had been reinforcing the discipline over and over again for so long it was now what I thought was proper or the correct way. It's not often we have an epiphany, but here was one that cuts right across so many situations.

Just how many times have we found ourselves wondering why something in business or in life that we once truly loved doing is now causing us distress to the point that we want to "just hang it up" as another cliché goes. Or, are the things causing us trouble some form of a bad habit we never realized we acquired, and that is the true reason for our discomfort?

After going through a little more pain to re-educate myself and modify my running style, I'm not only running more comfortably, I'm re-evaluating and applying the same principle and technique to other parts of my life. Because one thing that's great about a habit, it's totally under your control to change it from bad to good.

© 2012 Mark St.Cyr

Photo Credit: looseends
Publicat de la 09:22

Niciun comentariu:

Trimiteți un comentariu

Abonați-vă la: Postare comentarii (Atom)