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Employee Engagement: Engage the Year Ahead with 2-Simple Rules

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Are 2 simple rules powerful enough to guide a year of work and interaction?

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2 Simple Engagement Rules

Simple rules. I have become enamoured with simple rules to guide and govern behavior and actions. It is a bit ironic as I always stated that rules were not engaging but somehow simple rules feels more inviting and not commandment-like at all.

A New Year’s Guide. This post outlines 2 simple rules I am using to guide my work and wellbeing from September 1, 2015 to August 31, 2016. Even at 60 years of age, September 1st. always feels like the first day of the New Year. In my mind and experience, September marks the beginning of the school year in Canada.

Moving on from a 3 word theme. For the past 7 years I have used a 3-word theme to govern the year ahead. I loved the focus and simplicity of it. I was reluctant to give it up but I was looking for a more active approach to the year ahead wedded with specificity. The three word theme was a nice beacon or personal north star while 2-simple rules is a detailed daily road map through work and wellbeing. I am craving a more behavioral action guide for 2015/16. I was planning to write 3 simple rules but in drafting the rules, and my love of small and simple, I decided I only required two rules.

My two daily rules are:

Rule 1: Action – 15

Start and record fifteen 15-minute periods of engaged work or wellbeing sustained with resilient grit.

Rule 2: People Artistry – 5

Draw out the best in others or myself 5 times through connection and expression of appreciation, curiosity, or recognition.

Rule 1 is focused on using short engaged time zones to maximize productivity and well-being. The key moment for me with this simple rule is to just start. I start each period of work or wellbeing by pushing the button on my watch timer already preset for 15 minutes. A second challenge is to sustain engagement for the full 15 minutes. To do this I added resilient grit into the rule. I want to bounce back after inevitable setbacks and I want the grit and gumption to stick with this rule for the year. I know that a big factor in success for me is to keep recording the periods. I don’t need to conduct detailed assessment and analysis but I know that I often become derailed when I stop recording.

Rule 2 is inspired by the new book I wrote with Peter W. Hart on People Artists: Drawing Out the Best in Others at Work. This book will be released in October of 2015. The image on the one page guide at the start of this post is taken from the cover of the book and was painted by Peter Hart. I did not want to just write the book and offer the book to others, I plan to make it a personal daily practice. This rule will bring the concepts and practices of the book to life while also offering a trigger for 5 daily acts of people artistry. Most of those acts will take the form of appreciation, curiosity, or recognition.

Background. Some of  the background for this change in approach from a 3-word theme to 2-simple rules came from the literature on Kaizen and a recent book  by Donald Sull and Kathleeen M. Eisenhardt on, Simple Rules: How to Thrive in a Complex World.

Rule your own world of work, wellbeing and engagement. The primary purpose of this post is to encourage you to develop a few simple rules to improve your work and wellbeing. My rules are not your rules. You are welcome to use mine as a starting point or a launching pad to design your own rules. Later this year and in 2016 I will be writing more about behavioral employee engagement and simple rules. You will learn guidance on how to formulate and apply the concepts of simple rules. I encourage you to read Sull and Eisenhardt’s book to develop a deeper understanding of how simple rules have been used in a variety of setting and how you can use simple rules.

Your next action. I encourage you, for now, to think about what rules would help you engage more fully with your work and wellbeing. As you think this through I encourage you to take a few notes and to write down some early drafts of the rules.

David Zinger is an employee engagement speaker and expert who is pairing the behaviors from the pyramid of employee engagement with simple rules to make a difference to engagement in 2016.

Employee Engagement 3 Word Theme for 2014/2015: Engage, Engage, Engage

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Engage Logo David Zinger

History of the 3-word theme. I first read about the 3 word theme from Chris Brogan. I have been using a 3-word theme for my work for six years and will be entering year seven in 10 days. Previous themes included:

  1. In 2009 my theme was: authentic, connect, engage
  2. In 2010 my theme was: engage, mobilize, produce.
  3. In 2011 my theme was: engage, educate, enliven.
  4. In 2012 my theme was: stop, focus, and finish.
  5. In 2012/2013 my theme was: discern, invite, engage
  6. In 2013/2014 my theme was spark, grow, write

Benefits of a 3 word theme. A three word theme is succinct, easy to remember and leverage as a tool for work. It offers a quick guide and evaluation for work completed. It is a nice reflection tool for work and progress. It is also a great planning tool to get a tighter focus on the year ahead while offering flexibility in how those 3 themes are actualized.

3-Word Theme for 2013/2014. My new 3-word working theme is: engage, engage, engage. I know, this is the same word used three times. In my mind, the repetition adds emphasis. Also, this is the last year I will construct a three word theme. After this year I will reduce and simplify to a one word theme.  Engage, engage, engage will govern my work from September 1, 2014  to August 31, 2015.

Why I chose engage, engage, engage. I have spent the proverbial 10,000 hours towards expertise on engagement over the past 10 years. It has been my primary focus and frequently my exclusive focus over this time. I am much fonder of the word engage, a quick verb to initiate action, than the longer noun of engagement that seems more passive and removed. During the year ahead I plan to engage myself fully in my work, I want to help others engage fully in their work, and I want to expand the depth and breadth of engage in our workplaces and our wellbeing. Using just one word three times is easier to remember and provides a more succinct focus for my efforts. So engage along with me, the best is yet to be.

A sample of engage projects for 2014/2015

  • I will engage fully in thousands of fifteen minute periods of work.
  • I will be presenting  in Singapore on employee engagement
  • I will be speaking and conducting a Master Class on engagement in Dubai in December
  • I am creating a virtual three week intensive course on engagement in conjunction with a university for February 2015
  • I will continue to write about engagement at this site, further refining the term and practices.
  • I am in the midst of writing a twelve part series on the Halogen blog on the wheel of engagement
  • I plan to unite people in Manitoba interested in engagement/engage into a community of support and practice
  • There will be many more projects, tasks, and endeavors that embrace the theme of engage.

How to Write Your Own Three Word Theme. I encourage you to compose and act on your own 3-word theme for work. Here are 9 steps to create and apply your own unique 3 word theme:

  1. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. Take time to mull over 3 words that are personally meaningful.
  2. The process of doing this may be of equal value to the outcome.
  3. View a number of other people’s 3-word themes by clicking here.
  4. Voice your intended 3-word theme to other people to get their impressions and input.
  5. Once you find the 3-words that fit for you for the year ahead declare them to both other people and yourself.
  6. Create an image for your theme to keep it in focus for the year ahead.
  7. Leverage the 3-words to contemplate more focused and productive work.
  8. Apply the 3-word theme as your internal work GPS.
  9. Use the 3-words to evaluate your work.
David Zinger is an employee engagement speaker and expert.

Employee Engagement: My 3 Word Theme – Spark Grow Write

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Three Word Theme for 2013/2014: Spark, Grow, Write

SPARK GROW WRITE 3 WORD THEME

History of the 3-word theme. I first heard of the 3 word theme from Chris Brogan. I have been using a 3-word theme for my work for five  years and will be entering year six this month.  Previous themes were:

  1. In 2009 my theme was: authentic, connect, engage
  2. In 2010 my theme was: engage, mobilize, produce.
  3. In 2011 my theme was: engage, educate, enliven.
  4. In 2012 my theme was: stop, focus, and finish.
  5. In 2012/2013 my theme was: discern, invite, engage

Benefits of a 3 word theme. A three word theme is succinct and easy to remember and leverage as a tool for work. It offers a quick guide and evaluation for work completed. It is a nice reflection tool for work and progress. It is also a great planning tool to get a tighter focus on the year ahead while offering flexibility in how those 3 themes are actualized.

3-Word Theme for 2013/2014. My new 3-word working theme is: spark, grow, write. These 3 words will govern my work from September 1, 2013  to August 31, 2014.

Spark. I like the the compact and cogent image of a spark. I love what we can do in moments to spark ourselves and others at work. A spark, to me, can range from a word of encouragement or a few moments of conversation to a short e-book or one hour keynote. I will focus very strongly on creating many sparks over this year.

Grow. I want to grow both myself and others. One change in my career this year is to grow others through individual coaching. My growth theme is moving in two directions at once: singularity and community. I will grow others through individual coaching and development and I have committed a strong focus to grow the global work on employee engagement and to grow the 6000 member Employee Engagement Network.

Write. Writing has been both growing and sparking me. I have spent well over 10,000 hours writing and it is getting a little easier. I enjoy the medium. I enjoy the impact it can have on others. I believe writing is one of my gifts to my employee engagement community. Look for multiple publications coming from me this year and most of them will be small e-books intended to grow and spark others (always nice to braid the three themes into the various ways I work).

Write Your Own Three Word Theme. I encourage you to compose and act on your own 3-word theme for work. Here are 9 steps to create and apply your own unique 3 word theme.

  1. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. Take time to mull over 3 words that are personally meaningful.
  2. The process of doing this may be of equal value to the outcome.
  3. View a number of other people’s 3-word themes by clicking here.
  4. Voice your intended 3-word theme to other people to get their impressions and input.
  5. Once you find the 3-words that fit for you for the year ahead declare them to both other people and yourself.
  6. Create an image for your theme to keep it in focus for the year ahead.
  7. Leverage the 3-words to contemplate more focused and productive work.
  8. Apply the 3-word theme as your internal work GPS.
  9. Use the 3-words to evaluate your work.
David Zinger from Canada is an employee engagement speaker and expert. To access his services and workshops email him at david@davidzinger.com

Employee Engagement and the 3-Word Theme: Discern, Invite, Engage

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David Zinger’s 3 word theme for 2012/2013

History of the 3-word theme. I first heard of the 3 word theme from Chris Brogan. I have been using a 3-word theme for my work for four years and will be entering year five this month.  Previous themes were:

  1. In 2009 my theme was: authentic, connect, engage
  2. In 2010 my theme was: engage, mobilize, produce.
  3. In 2011 my theme was: engage, educate, enliven.
  4. In 2012 my theme was: stop, focus, and finish.

Benefits of a 3 word theme. A three word theme is succinct and easy to remember and leverage as a tool for work. It offers a quick guide and evaluation for work completed. It is a nice reflection tool for work and progress. It is also a great planning tool to get a tighter focus on the year ahead while offering flexibility in how those 3 themes are actualized.

2012/2013  3-Word Theme. My new 3-word working theme is: discern, invite, and engage. These 3 words will govern my work from September 1, 2012 to August 31, 2013.

Discern. This word will guide me to distinguish what is important from what is unimportant. I will exercise more judgement with my social media time. I will ensure I know my audiences better for presentations. I will look at all the information I encounter with much more discernment. Overall, I look forward to being more discerning in the coming year.

Invite. I don’t impose, I invite. I don’t like being told what to do but I am always open to an invitation. I will ensure that I extend more invitations during 2012/13. I will invite my audiences to take action. I will invite my readers to engage with me and take action. I will invite new clients to engage with me and invite old clients to re-engage. I love the idea of inviting and inviting more into my life with full discernment.

Engage. Engagement is a noun while engage is a verb. This will be the fourth year out of five that engage has been one of my key 3 words. My close alliance with engage is what sustains me in my work in employee engagement, engaging management, and engaged leadership. I love the final word to start a rugby scrum, “engage.” Engage is a word that strongly invites both connection and action.

DIE? You may have noticed that this year’s 3-word theme create the acronym “DIE.” This is deliberate on my part. Embedded within discernment is to let unimportant projects and activities die – to separate the wheat from the chaff. Being more invitational in my work will require that I accept that many invitations will die or not be accepted. As powerful as engage is, we can only engage for so long without letting our engagement die to allow for change, rest, recovery, and rejuvenation.

Invitation. I invite you with a sense of discernment to engage in writing and acting on your own 3-word theme for work. Here are 9 steps to create and apply your own unique 3 word theme.

  1. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. Take time to mull over 3 words that are personally meaningful.
  2. The process of doing this may be of equal value to the outcome.
  3. View a number of other people’s 3-word themes by clicking here.
  4. Voice your intended 3-word theme to other people to get their impressions and input.
  5. Once you find the 3-words that fit for you for the year ahead declare them to both other people and yourself.
  6. Make an image for your theme to keep it in focus for the year ahead.
  7. Leverage the 3-words to contemplate more focused and productive work.
  8. Apply the 3-word theme as your internal work GPS.
  9. Use the 3-words to evaluate your work.
David Zinger is an work engagement expert who will be operating with a full sense of discernment, invitation, and engagement for the coming year. To access his services and workshops email him at david@davidzinger.com