Making Work Fun "or" Fun at Work ?

"To have a really happy workforce, you've got to do more than pass out party hats and serve birthday cake."

Beyond Party Balloons And Birthday Cakes
Over the years, I've tried a lot of things to make work a crazy, fun, and wild place. I've tried playing rock music in the morning, having group lunches at noon, throwing parties later in the day, and arranging for sports after work. But whatever crazy thing we try, it loses its novelty after a while and people tire of it. Yeah-they're good now and then to bring your office alive, give people a chance to have some fun together, add a human face to your management style, and as another way to show people that you care about them.

But I find that the bottom line is that people come to work because they want to work-not just to play games and have silly parties. Beyond the money, people expect more and more out of their work today. They want to contribute; they want to see that their contribution is making a difference; they want to learn; they want to grow; and they want to feel that they are part of a successful enterprise that is making a difference in the world. It's achieving these kinds of satisfactions that really keeps people coming back to work every day-not just the party balloons and birthday cakes.

Making Work Rewarding
Here are some specifics that you need to make sure you are doing to help ensure that their work is satisfying to the people who report to you:

* Today's workers at all levels want to know why they are doing something. Don't just say, "Drop everything you're doing and rush this shipment out." Instead, take two minutes to explain why.
* Today's workers want to work hard and have pride in their work-but they need appreciation and recognition for their contribution. Be generous with compliments.
* Today's workers want input and accessibility to their managers-but many shy away from giving input unless you make it easy for them. Small group meetings where you ask for suggestions are a good way to get people involved.
* Today's workers want to feel that their work is making a difference. Explain why their work matters. Tell them success stories about people who use your products and post press clippings on the bulletin board.

Helping Employees Progress
For many employees it's important to feel that they are always growing, learning, and progressing. With the few employees at small firms and flatter management structures at larger ones, it's a challenge to fulfill this need. But it's important you do-because often it's the best employees who most feel the need to learn.

Recently our Web master-the person who runs our World Wide Web site-left for another job. The manager of this area wanted to get a qualified candidate from the outside because none of the four internal candidates had all the necessary skills.

On paper he was right: the best candidate would be from the outside. But I want our company to go out of our way to retain people, give them new challenges, and make work fun for them. So we divided the Web-master job among several people, giving them all a great chance to grow and learn something new. In the short term it might be inefficient-but in the long run a highly motivated staff is priceless!

Remember, You Set The Tone!
Recently one of my managers pointed out to me that when I, as owner of my company, make a comment on people's work, they pay a lot of attention to it-something I tend to forget.

Another time, another manager told me that when I'm in a good mood it helps boost up everyone else-but when I'm not, it darkens people's days.

As a manager at any level, you've got to try to project a positive attitude no matter how crummy a day you are having-and you've got to go out of your way to be sure your comments have a positive effect on people. I've even got a little yellow stick 'em posted on my computer reminding me to always be positive!

First thing in the morning is a great time to pass some positive energy and appreciation on to others with an enthusiastic greeting and a little small talk.

And at the end of the day, no matter how rough it's been, I always try to wrap up with people on a positive note.

How Often Should You Party?
My experience is that about once or twice a week during working hours is the right time to spend on those silly, frivolous activities.

Here's some of the diversions that have worked for us:

* Friday morning bagels.
* Friday afternoon theme parties.
* Occasional lunch outings such as mini-golf, bowling, or billiards.
* Seasonal decorations at the entrance.
* Company crosswords and contests.

I've tried a lot of elaborate events outside of working hours, but they've almost always been disappointing. Attendance was mixed; people would arrive late; and managers felt pressured to attend.

A high-level technical manager told me that the single thing that impressed him the most about our company during his first month was that he went bowling and played miniature golf during company hours.

Positive Thinking and Your Creative Mind - 7 Steps to Succes

dear all,

Positive Thinking and Your Creative Mind - 7 Steps to Success

You have a bright idea hidden somewhere in the back of your mind that you just can't wait to test out. The question is, do you really want to bring it out into the light? What could motivate you to churn your creative, inspiring juices to their utmost flavor?

Did you know that it always helps to set a time limit to your personal goals? Set yourself up so you can accomplish the most tasks in record time. For example, mowing the lawn in an hour before the big game on TV. A correct and positive attitude in whatever you do will make things easier, and even enjoyable.

It's simple. If you begin to allow yourself a bit of positive thinking then you will begin to realize things that you never thought possible. Thinking big is indeed the American Way and that what made our country prosperous. You can follow other great Americans who tapped into their creative mind and began to thing big..

Discover some tips to make it through your first week of possibility thinking even if you're just sitting in your favorite couch. Your mind is constantly at work for you. Tap into it's great resource while doing everyday activities.

1. Act. You must take passionate action towards living your life by design. Talk is cheap. Action = deposits in the bank of a passionately authentic future. My mother (probably quoting someone else) always said, "Action speaks louder than words". Without action, passion is void.

Dreams become reality when you simply start by tinkering with your mind, then with your hands. And if the idea weakens or falters you can always go back to it later until you finish it. Thomas Edison and his Dream Team had to go back to the idea of a light bulb and recalculate it over 1,000 times before the first working light bulb begin to light the world.

2. Love. Commit to yourself. Then commit to those you love to powerfully create a life you can love. Instead of reacting, commit to creating from your heart and soul, out of love rather than fear. The American Dream will always be there, but a dream will still be a dream without motion. Be amazed as the transformation begins.

3. Live. Embrace moments and opportunities. Recognize and embrace the thought that each moment is perfect regardless of its outcome. Every time you hit on something that may appear too extreme why not give it a shot anyway. See if it will work. You may be surprised with the results. If you are not then decide to use that moment to learn from it and make the appropriate shift. Learning and growing from mistakes and failures is a part of living.

4. Be grateful. Dwell completely in a place of gratitude. Learn to utilize what you have in your hands and make use of it in the most constructive way. Necessity is the mother of invention. Have you ever been stuck without something you needed and had to make do with something else? (MacGyver,from the famous tv show, was famous for that!) How grateful were you that you had the means to solve your situation? Slipping into neediness will become less of a habit when you repeatedly shift towards gratitude and away from poverty consciousness.

5. Be Passionate. Use a Passion Formula of Recognize/Reevaluate/Restore in place of the Shoulda/Woulda/Coulda whirlwind. The former is based on increased knowledge and abundance while the latter focuses on scarcity and lack. As you face people or tasks that may seem harder than scaling the summit of the Himalayas, allow yourself to realize that the task is just as important as giving out orders to your subordinates. You would rather be richly passionate!

6. Laugh. Keep humor at the forefront of thought, laughing at and with yourself whenever possible. You may find yourself quite entertaining when you loosen up! I have yet to see a comedian ever go hungry even though his jokes are as 'old as great-grandma'. Life has too much to offer to allow yourself to mope around in self pity. Humor is very attractive, very passionate: life-giving.

7. Discover Your Purpose. Believe that you are the architect of your destiny. Realizing how you wish to be remembered when you pass from this life is a truly driving force. Your purpose for being can be a seemingly simple as being a great parent to as elaborate as discovering miraculous cures.

When you have a strong purpose no one can take your passionate future from you except for you! Truly, as long as there's still breath in your body, there is no end to how much you can accomplish in a lifetime. Discovering and following your purpose will enable you to enjoy your work. Celebrate in the discovery that acting on your creative mind's thoughts is fulfilling your purpose. Watch everything flow into place with perfect, passionate precision.

Activate your positive thinking. Stretch your imagination. Think bigger than you feel comfortable. Act on your thoughts. The number one tip here is action. You want to start practicing these steps.

Think about this: It is unfortunate that so many people still do not use a computer because it appears too complicated to begin using. Or maybe they just keep putting it off till a more convenient time. These are just a couple of limitations one can set up for themselves. Limitations and failure to act on ideas and opportunities leave many as a dim bulb in a dark corner.

Alert! You are not doomed to darkness. You are interested in living a life of purpose and love. The wonderful, creative idea in you is about to be released. You are interested in doing this because you are reading this article. Fortunately if you truly desire something, the will to attain it will open your creative mind to find a way.

Now you need only to begin to act on your desire to create. Act now! Make your path to creativity and follow your purpose. Take your first step today with a positive attitude. (succes4u)

What Do You Mind about Succes In Life?

What do you mind about succes in life? And How To Achieve It? Everyone has a different definition to what is success in life. To some, success in life would mean to have great mansions and luxurious cars to decorate the house porch and credit cards to accompany the shopping trips. Whereas others would think that success in life is when you are able to scram out of your parents' lounging and stand on your own two feet. If you ask a 16-year-old kid what is success in life then she will say it is when she is accepted into college. Everyone has a different success pictures painted in front of them. But despite all these different views, all of this success in life can be attained y using the very same technique.

Success in life does not come easily. If you think that you are not up to the challenge, then there are possibilities that you are going to struggle with accomplish your goals.

Talking about goals, you probably heard of goal setting back then in the olden days when you were just in junior high. It might seem kind of ridiculous to you to adhere to this junior high method of meeting up with you goals, but did you know that this method is recognized as one of the most effective methods to achieve success in life?

Instead of letting your goals and aims linger around your mind, set them straight and set them right, just by using the primitive tools of paper and paper. Doesn't seem too tough to puff does it?

By why is it that by scribbling down your goals and aim will make you be successful. I mean it's just paper and pen after all. This is where people go wrong. Other than the obvious reason, did you know that by jotting your goals down onto paper allows your mind to work hand in hand with you towards the goal? While you might not read it word for word every day, you subconscious mind will tell you that there are goals to complete and hence subconsciously you will work towards the goal.

Don't ever doubt the power of the mind. With just a tweak of the mind, you are able to move mountains. That is also the reason why people are using self-hypnosis techniques to help them to reprogram the mind to help them to work towards to goals faster.

However, do not mistake it as a technique used to fool the mind for the selfish purpose of achieving your goals. By using self-hypnosis, it means that you are able keep your focus and attention towards a goal and hence giving you the extra push to keep you moving towards your goal.

There are D-I-Y self-hypnosis books available off the shelves. So you might want to refer to them to learn more about the hypnosis techniques that you can use to keep yourself always on the roll for some yummy goals.

Alternatively, there is self-hypnosis Success CDs that are meant to reprogram your mind with positive affirmations that will help you to acquire the right kind of attitude to help you work your way to success.

It seems ridiculously easy doesn't it? But of course to top it all up, you will need your discipline and determination to achieve the things you want in life. Remember, these Success CDs are there just to give you the extra push. It is still up to you to determine how successful you will be.
(succes4u)