Archives for December 2008

Happy New Year!

I just returned from a week’s vacation with my family in the Dominican Republic.

I loved the Island art and went to a one hour art session at the resort. I decided to do my own thing even though everyone else was trying to copy an Island scene. I was encouraged by a nine year old boy who said, “good job.” We should never overlook the power of encouragement at work even from a nine year old.

It was intriguing to see how engaged I could be painting for an hour. It didn’t matter if it was good or bad — I fully enjoyed the process and was completely engaged in the painting.

It made me realize how important it is that we find or create work that capitalizes on intrinsic engagement.

How much do you enjoy your work and how well does it sustain you?

I trust that you will be fully engaged in your work in 2009 as your work becomes your art (even if in my case, my art will never become my work).

All the best in 2009.

Here are 6 questions about employee engagement for 2009.

I would love to read your responses as I ponder my own responses to these questions.

1. Given the current economic mayhem, what will the challenges for employee engagement be in 2009?
2. Do you think employee engagement will trend upwards or downwards in 2009?
3. What will organizations need to do to foster higher levels of engagement in 2009?
4. What will individuals need to do enhance their own engagement?
5. Leaders and managers will have increasing demands on their time in 2009…how can they find time to ensure that employee engagement gets both the energy and attention it will require in 2009?
6. What do you personally plan to do during 2009 to improve your personal level of engagement for work?

We have had a challenging fall season in 2008. I sincerely hope you will be able and willing to fully celebrate this holiday season as you prepare yourself and others for 2009.

Carry on caring…

Stay engaged…

Take care…

Photo credit: 402_2008 by http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmydavao/3090895407/

I have been very moved by Thich Nhat Hanh‘s approach to peace and life. One of his statements that will always stay with me is: there is now way to peace, peace is the way.

The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Di Smith wrote an article on engagement: Spending on employee engagement set to rise in 2009. But only a third of workers believe their organization engages them to perform well. I was writing a comment on this post when I found myself paraphrasing Hahn’s approach to peace by stating: There is no way to engagement, engagement is the way.

I believe we are too quick to look for external measures, fixes, tips, techniques, methods, and solutions to engagement. This tends to simultaneously blind us to the engagement that resides within us.

We must change the question from how do we engage employees to how engaged am I and how does my engagement create engagement in others?

Here are 5 invitations on how to engage engagement:

1. Take time each day to be centered, balanced, and mindful.
2. If you are working with someone who is disengaged don’t catch their disengagement contagion.
3. Ensure that you keep renewing your mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual energy.
4. Notice the power and impact on others as you model authentic engagement.
5. Keep engaging others and don’t make your engagement contingent upon their becoming engaged.

What do you think? Are you ready to take full ownership of engagement?

Engage along with me, the best is yet to be.

David Zinger

Here are some euphemisms for how organizations have disengaged employees (read layoffs) from BusinessWeek:

• synergy-related headcount
• adjustment goal
• actions to simplify our organization
• offboarding
• rationalizing
• surplusing
• de-verticalization
• strategic review of strategies
• in Hong Kong a term used is chao youyu “to have one’s squid cooked”
• French managers contemplate un plan social

I think it would be better to use the term layoff or fired and for the organization to admit they failed their employees. Employee engagement will require honesty on the part of both the organization and employees.

Let’s start talking the real talk so we can begin walking the real walk towards full engagement for all.