Liz Ryan wrote a wonderful article at Business Week on the 6 Signs You Don’t Care about Workers. Many companies make an ASSet of themselves when they glibly state: Employees are our greatest asset.

Liz outlined the following 6 signs or failures:

1. The talent chief is a half-chief.
2. HR is a finance function.
3. Recruitment is a black hole.
4. HR is a cost reduction unit.
5. You’ve outsourced the most critical people functions.
6. Org development and HR aren’t one.

Click here to comment. Read Liz’s powerful article and return here to write a comment about any other signs you see of employee engagement lip service.

This post originally appeared on this site 2 years ago. I believe Erich Fromm has much to teach leaders and people involved in employee engagement. His book is called The Art of Loving and he stresses the key variables of love being discipline, concentration, and patience. When we concentrate we are engaged.

The second practice in Fromm’s The Art of Loving is concentration. I am drawn to the focused archer on the cover of Lisa Haneberg’s new book, Focus Like A Laser Beam. Thank you Lisa for giving me permission to use this wonderful cover.

To lead is to lose sight of oneself as we unite with our people and our target.

Fromm encourages leaders to practice meditating to increase their concentration or mindfulness. The following quote from Fromm reminds me of Jon Kabat-Zinn’s current work on mindfulness: one must learn to be concentrated in everything one does…the activity at this very moment must be the only thing that matters… things assume a new dimension of reality, because they have one’s full attention.

The archer has so much concentration that she has become one with the target. The cover of the book reminded me of Eugene Herrigel’s 1953 classic on Zen and the Art of Archery.

To develop concentration Fromm maintained that a leader needs to be comfortable being alone without distractions. Fromm’s book was written 50 years ago and our distractions have increased exponentially with technological time savers transforming into technological intruders breaking into our nanosecond span of concentration.

Concentrate on these 8 leadership questions:

1. As a leader where is your focus?

2. Are you able to concentrate on this article or are you already thinking of linking away?

3. When is the last time you “retreated” from leadership to step back, reflect, and gain a sharper focus?

4. In a sentence can you state your organizational target with vision and accuracy?

5. Do you fully engage with each person you lead to create a high-quality interaction that energizes both of you and demonstrates active concentration on the person in front of you at this very moment?

6. Are you easily distracted by tasks that interfere with your central purpose in leadership?

7. Do you find yourself in two places at once as your head is bowed and you become a “thumbody” typing out messages on your blackberry – disconnected from what is going on right in front of you?

8. Are you comfortable being alone without distractions and can you fully give yourself to the art of leadership as your concentration fuses you with your target and followers.

Here are 2 sources to enhance your concentration:

Read Mike Stock’s brief sports psychology piece on The nature of concentration. What can we as leaders learn about concentration from elite athletes and their practice of sports psychology?

Tune into Lisa Haneberg’s webcast on focus and read her book, Focus Like a Laser Beam. Practice Lisa’s invitations to excite and energize, tune your dialogue, and zoom in.

Alan Watts wrote a line years ago that has always stuck in my consciousness: If you make where you are going more important than where you are, there may be no point in going.

May the force of concentration be with you…here and in the next moment of your work.

The Employee Engagement Network has now swelled to over 400 members. This took place in exactly 6 months from inception.

If you have not joined already you are missing out on the leading eclectic resource on employee engagement. We have over 100 forums, members from around the world, special groups ranging from manager tools to social media and engagement. We have a list of employee engagement feeds and a free e-book with over 300 A to Z employee engagement tidbits.

Join us as we grow stronger together to make a very significant contribution to employee engagement.

Click here to view and join our employee engagement network.

How well do you get things done. If you are not familiar with David Allen and his Getting Things Done (GTD) approach I encourage you to watch his presentation for Google.

Click here if the video does not load in this post.

In addition I encourage you to read his book or visit his website.

Click here for a free to get some free tips and tools from his site.

Note: I have update to the latest version of Word Press Let Me know if you are having any problems viewing the video or using the site. Thank you.

When we laugh we may both engage and disengage. Laughter can lighten the load and if you can laugh, you can last.

Watch this hilarious 3 and 1/2 minute video of Dick Van Dyke on slapstick.

Click here if the video does not open in this post.

Take it Out

by David Zinger

What do we need to remove or take out to foster more employee engagement in our organizations? If you have done this already, I would especially love to read your answer and you can click on the comment link right under the title of this post and let me know what you have done. Of course, I would also love to hear what you think should be done even if it has not been done yet.

Here is a partial list from my perspective.

Fear. We need to remove fear as much as possible. Fear of each other and fear of the leadership. Fear of not measuring up. Fear of creativity. Fear of engagement. Fear of failure and its subtle twin – fear of success.

Isolation. We need to remove isolation. Isolation from each other. Isolation from customers. Isolation from play at work.

Meaninglessness. We need to remove meaningless work.

Blind focus on results. We need to remove a focus on results at the cost of relationship.

Simple solutions. We need to overcome the idea that there is a magic elixir or a simple solution to employee engagement.

Blame. We need to remove blame when things go wrong. We need to stop blaming employees if they are not engaged. Each person is responsible but we are all accountable for employee engagement.

This list must continue and I need your help.

What else do we need to remove to create more engagement? Please comment.

Watch and listen to this one minute video as Daniel Pink encourages you to exercise your creativity at work.

Click here if the video does not  open in this window.

There is a very engaging employee engagement conference in Chicago on July 31 to August 1. Michael Lee Stallard, will be providing a keynote address and his book for all participants during lunch on the second day. Click here for more information and if you enter the following code iee2for1dz – two participants can register for the price of one.

We’ve got to stop leaving like this…

by David Zinger

Leigh Branham with the cooperation of the Saratoga Institute wrote The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave. 

This book is based on research of over 19,000 employees. the book is almost 3 years old but I believe many of the reasons employees leave still seem to be “hidden” from many organizations and leaders.

I appreciated the 13 step engagement-to-departure process from start the job with enthusiasm to quit without a job, or stay and disengage.

Leigh has written a very informative and helpful book that is very important is your are involved in employee retention. Included in the book is 54 item checklist of employer-of-choice engagement practices.

I strong encourage you to purchase the book and learn more about these 7 reasons employees leave:

1. The job or workplace was not as expected.
2. There was a mismatch between job and person
3. There was too little coaching and feedback
4. There were too few growth and advancement opportunities.
5. Employees feel devalued and unrecognized
6. Employees are stressed from overwork and work-life imbalance.
7. A loss of trust and confidence in senior leaders.

This book is a classic book in the library of anyone involved in employee engagement.

I received the following comment from Michael Lee Stallard on the Peter Drucker article I wrote earlier this week.

Thank you for this post. Reading Peter Drucker’s “Managing Oneself” and his biography “Adventures of Bystander” had a profound effect on me. I wrote a tribute to him following his death. Here’s the link:
http://www.epluribuspartners.com/pages/articles/DruckerRemembered.pdf

Michael stated that Drucker’s work forever changed how he looked at organizations and the responsibilities of leadership. I encourage you to read all of this 2 page article. Michael, using Peter Drucker’s biography stated:

the theme underlying all of his writings was a belief in protecting the diversity of individuals from the tendency of those in power to force uniformity, conformity, and centralization…

This post from April 2006 outlined my 3rd strength from the VIA Signature Strength Inventory. When we live our strengths we are more engaged.

I love this inventory as there is not charge to complete it and the strengths are general enough that you can use them in many situations. I hope this article encourage you to:

• take the inventory yourself,
• get to know your strengths,
• use your strengths daily,
• and leverage your strengths in the service of others.

Creativity is my third signature strength. The VIA Signature Strength inventory defines creativity as thinking of novel and productive ways to conceptualize and do things. Related terms for creativity include originality and ingenuity.

I have always loved the visual example of ambiguity contained in the Necker cube shown above. The cube keeps shifting foreground and background. I believe that creativity is making quick shifts from one way of seeing situations or performing to a new way of seeing or performing.

I am tired of the hackneyed injunction to think outside of the box. Abundant creative thinking can occur thinking inside “the box” or context we inhabit with others. For example, can you shift your perspective in problems from your own concerns as a leader to empathy for the people you lead? Can we find ways to make new sense out of a tough event? I often gain perspective during a tough experience by fast-forwarding and thinking this will make a good story in the future. I find it helpful to to take a distant view of close things and a close view of distant things.

Click hereto see a more elaborate visual explanation and demonstration of the Necker cube.In 1964 Arthur Koestler wrote The Act of Creation and coined the term bisociation. Bisociation means the ability to bring two things together to create something new. I believe it is vital and important to pay attention to our frequently overlooked acts of bisociation-creation. Creativity is often as simple as joining two things together to create a new synergy.

For example, I think it is important in career development to do what you love. Sometimes this seems quite difficult when you are “stuck” in a job. Regardless of your work, I think you can bring what you love to what you do. If you love flying yet work in a job that is not taking off you can bring your love of flying to your work.You might not be able to taxi a Cessna in the office but you can develop work checklists, conduct practice simulations, avoid incipient spins of downward spiraling relationships, or navigate into a new career destination. I think transfer of learning is not always trying to make the learning the same as performance but looking at how you bring different ideas, concepts, and practices into each performance.

Here are 3 ways I leverage the signature strength of creativity and contribute to my authentic happiness.

Although humor is my number one signature strength creativity is the engine that drives most of my humor and playfulness. I create humor in my other blog. Even when I am linking to another amusing site or story I like to add my own creative input.

I teach numerous courses and workshops. While I always keep the goals in mind, I spontaneously create new tools and methods as the workshop progresses. I love to find creative way of working with material to keep it fresh for me and unique for my participants. Some of the best PowerPoint slides I have ever used were created as the presentation unfolded not something prepared in advance of the presentation.

I work for many different organizations each year. What I learn in one context may be helpful in a new context. I love to cross-pollinate something I learned with police officers on Monday into my work with call center managers on Thursday.

I appreciate the creative and fresh approach of children. For example, yesterday we were out for brunch with 7 adults and the 10 year old girl from next door came along with her mother. My wife was talking about a special meal we were planning and the 10 year old from next door asked if she could come too. My wife, not wanting to disappoint the girl, responded with the adult euphemism for no. ” We’ll see,” my wife said. The little girl, not to be denied, beamed at my wife and proudly declared, “THAT’S CLOSE TO A YES.”

What a creative negotiation response to “we’ll see.” I guarantee the next time I work on conflict management or negotiation skills with leaders they will hear that story, be encouraged to move to yes, and no doubt my wife and I will see that 10 year old girl at our house for supper.

What about your third signature strength?

What is it and how do you live it?

Don’t wait by saying “We’ll see.” Examine your strength today and live it the rest of your life.

Bisociate your strengths with your life to enhance your happiness. Draw upon the strengths of others you lead to create new and fulfilling synergies of performance.