How to Nail Your Career Decisions

Introduction

Nail your career decisions with a process

Do you feel you nail your career decisions?  Some workers assert, that in its simplest form, your career is a series of choices. This is, in some sense, true.

Except …

However  it’s not that simple, because your work life itself is not that simple. The complexity of your career or, rather, flourishing in your career, means that the choices the average worker faces over the course of a career are equally complex. These choices range from simple operational decisions (Should I work in the office or work remote tomorrow?), to difficult moral personal choices (Should I speak out against a discrimination I personally observed, and experience increased personal risk)?

Either way, you need to nail your career decisions.

In business, decision-making is a critical skill that an organization must have if it hopes to advance, or even endure. It really does not matter what business a firm is in.  It will always use decision-making in the daily work life.

Nail your career decisions

Common Elements of Decisions

Obviously, you want to nail your career decisions.  The one thing that all these decisions have in common is the option of choosing action and outcome. However, because the nature of these various actions, and their potential outcomes vary wildly, no single strategy can encompass the process of deciding between them.  This is where it becomes important for employees up and down the organization to have an understanding of what a correct decision is and how to improve them.

Make more confident decisions to nail your career decisions

Decision Definition

A decision is, of course, the action of deciding something. A person faced with a job choice, makes a choice. The most basic example of this is the proverbial fork in the road. When facing a fork in the road, you have the choice of taking the left fork or going right. You stop for a period of time while you think, then you decide to go either left or right. Once the decision has been made you take the path you’ve chosen.

That is straightforward and obvious, right? To some extent, the answer to that question is yes. To a greater extent, however, the answer is no. To become a more efficient and more focused decision maker, you need to understand all the processes that went into making the simple decision above.

Steps in the Decision Process You Must Follow To Nail Your Career Decisions
  1. First, there was a problem. The course you were pursuing divided into two separate directions.
  2. Second, there was the character of the problem. Because the decision path divided, you were forced to go either left or right to reach your destination.
  3. Third, you needed to choose between these two options in order to continue.
  4. Fourth, you utilized your experience, knowledge, and intuition to decide which option was best suited to your needs.
  5. Fifth, you actually made the decision.
  6. Finally, you, once again, began moving forward towards your destination based on that decision.

As you can see, the simplest of decisions entails a number of steps. In most cases, we handle these steps subconsciously, without really being aware of what it is we are doing. When the decision we are faced with is simple, this “autopilot” method of choosing is not a problem. However, when more complex decisions need to be made, not understanding the process can give rise to difficulties.

Conclusion

In conclusion, strong decision-making is essential in any workplace due to its ability to positively impact outcomes. It is an invaluable asset. It can help guide individual personnel, teams and entire organizations through difficult decisions and ensure that they achieve the best outcome.  It ensures that employees and leaders make informed choices, which have the best chance of leading to a successful outcome.

Furthermore, it helps to foster a culture of accountability and responsibility within the organization. By improving their decision-making skills, workers can ensure that their workplace remains productive and successful.  That supports career advancement. Leaders should strive to empower employees with critical decision-making skills and foster an environment of mutual trust and respect. Finally, robust decision-making capabilities are essential for developing strong leaders who will be able to make sound decisions in times of uncertainty or crisis.  And have subordinates and co-workers trust enough to follow those decisions.

Nail your career decisions and be a leader that workers follow

With these elements in place, strong decision-making can be an invaluable asset in any organization and allow you personally to nail your career decisions.

Flexicrew Support

Employers:  If you need assistance finding individuals who possess higher level decision making qualities, contact one of our recruitment professionals Today.

Flexicrew supports hiring decisions

Job seekers:  if you are a looking for the ideal employer who cares about diligent workers like you, who can make strategic decisions without fear give us a call. We may be able to direct you to a workplace that ideally fits and recognizes your strengths.

6 Tips Handling Naysayers at Work

Introduction

Many workplaces must deal with naysayers.  This article offers 6 tips handling naysayers in your workplace.  Accomplishing your work goals can already be daunting and challenging. Naysayers only make your job that much more difficult. You do not need their pessimism, nor do you have to deal with it. Do not let negativity or workplace naysayers be your kryptonite.  If you can relate to this, we have some suggestions below to overcome naysayers and their negativity.

6 tips for handling naysayers at work

6 Tips Handling Naysayers in Your Workplace

We recommend 6 tips handling naysayers in your company so you can move past them to make your job easier, more satisfying and help avoid distractions:

  1. Create distance from negative coworkers
  2. Build yourself a support system
  3. Do not justify your actions
  4. Do not discuss your plans around negative coworkers
  5. Turn naysayers’ doubts into motivation
  6. Use alone time to reflect on your goals and your actions create

6 tips handling naysayers at work

1. Distance from Negative Coworkers

T is tohe first of 6 tips handling naysayers put space between those Negative Nellies and your work assignments whenever you can, . Continually hearing, or worse, paying attention to naysayers’ doubts will eventually become roadblocks or challenges to your goals. So keep perennially negative personnel at arm’s length. If you cannot distance yourself from a naysayer, have an honest conversation with them. Explain that you don’t require their support, but you not welcome their discouragement is. Be polite but firm!

2. Build Yourself a Support System

Support team for handling naysayers at work

Once you have deflected or ignored the negative opinions or treatment, assemble a support group. Surround yourself with positive associates that share and believe in your goals.  That will allow you to map out and go after the goals and results you want without the negativity. Positive associates who support you will act as reassurance on the path you are taking.  And they will help pick you up when times are tough.  Listen to their constructive criticism and suggestions that move ‘the ball forward.’

3. Do Not Justify Your Actions

You do not need to justify yourself, your goals, or the path you take to anyone – particularly  not negative personnel. Every employee is different.  No two workers approach assignments the same in the same manner nor achieve their goals in the same ways. If someone questions you, simply say, “This is what I choose.”

4. Don’t Discuss Your Plans Around Negative Coworkers

Another one of the 6 tips handling naysayers is more subtle.  Some fellow worker may disparage your approach but never seems to contribute a positive alternative. Don’t give him or her ammunition. Avoid talking about your plans around him, and if he  tries to bring it up, take the discussion in a different direction.

5. Turn Naysayers’ Doubts into Motivation

Handling naysayers at work to gain motivation

If a coworker doubts you, use their doubt as motivation. Maybe that means promising yourself that you’ll prove him or her wrong. Either way, do not let the uncertainty of others weigh you down. Most likely, what they think doesn’t really make a difference.

6. Use Alone Time to Reflect on Your Goals and Actions

Reflection for handling naysayers at work with work is one of daily routines for productivity

Maintaining your direction and motivating yourself to achieve your goals can sometimes be a solitary path. Give yourself downtime to reflect on your goals in solitude, how far you have come, and reaffirm your plan of action. Step aside, take a break from your project and just think it through. This quiet time will also let you form new ideas and keep you motivated.

Summary

Unfortunately, naysayers are everywhere in every workplace, in all types of business small or large. They may even be on your team, your supervisor, or maybe even your friend group. This does not mean that you must work within the parameters of their negative beliefs or attitudes. You can overcome or avoid their negativity and crush your goals with persistent drive, commitment and belief you will achieve desired results.

Follow the above 6 tips handling naysayers to reach your objectives and achieve your most productive results possible.

Flexicrew Support

Employers, if you need assistance finding individuals who possess greater productivity qualities, contact one of our recruitment professionals Today.

Employees, If you are a looking for the ideal employer who cares about diligent workers like you, give us a call. We may be able to direct you to a workplace that ideally fits and recognizes your strengths.

Mentors Help Leaders Grow

 How Mentors Help Leaders Grow

Just how do mentors help leaders grow?

Mentors help leaders grow in their career advancement

Mentors help leaders grow and lift them up.  Being a mentor is a wonderful thing. Helping lift up on-the-rise leaders and help them grow through a mentorship relationship helps the mentor and the mentee.

Outside of mentorship, leaders can help one another out too. Your colleagues need your support to help them thrive and grow….because leadership isn’t for the weak.

Mentors inspire leaders to grow
 Obstacles in Business

Everyone faces tough times. Businesses close, projects fall apart, new launches are delayed, and poor relationships on your team can impact many other elements of the workplace . Leaders need other leaders to help. No one understands the struggles that leaders face better than other leaders. It’s important to lift leaders up and help them grow in the process.

Be There When Your Colleagues Need You

Leadership is its own club. People who lead need other people who lead to be there when times are hard…whether they ask or not. If you see someone in the leadership community struggle, get in there and offer your support. Reaching out and letting someone know you care can make all the difference in how well they cope during a tough time.

Note- leaders aren’t just work folk. A struggling mother or father is a leader. If you see someone who needs support, reach out and help lift them up.

Celebrate When Your Colleagues Win

It’s natural to feel a tinge of jealousy when your “competition” gets a win. Great leaders celebrate big wins whether they’re for the competition or their friends. Your genuine enthusiasm for other people’s success will only make yours stronger. There’s no limit to the amount of success available to you and those you are in leadership with. Get excited about their successes and genuinely congratulate and celebrate with them.

Step in When Your Colleagues Fall

Sometimes most workers as well as leaders have a setback or run into a hurdle they cannot overcome. An illness, injury, or even a discredit can set someone in leadership back. Be willing and able to step in when your colleagues falter. Offer to take some of their workload, offer to assist them in practical ways, or take the initiative and mentor for them in their absence. You’re a leader and there’s no better time to lead than when your fellow leader can’t.

Being in leadership is a sisterhood and brotherhood unlike any other. There’s a comradery between leaders who have worked hard to encourage, mentor, and motivate their teams. They need the same encouragement themselves. Leaders lean on leaders who ‘have been there.’  These understand and have the unique abilities to support them and help them grow too.

Who Can be a Mentor?

Reliable mentors can be anyone with the willingness to offer help. They could be a trusted colleague, supervisor, or manager. They could also be peers or even subordinates who have exhibited leadership qualities you admire. There are many ways to become a mentor and the most important thing is that you take the time to do it.

There’s no harm in starting small. Offer to help out with a task that’s not too difficult or time-consuming. This will give you an opportunity to get to know your mentee and see if there’s a potential for more. As you build relationships with those you mentor, they may be more likely to reach out for your help when they need it most.

Mentorship doesn’t have to be confined to the workplace. Anyone can be a mentor, whether they’re family members, friends, or even strangers. The most important thing is that you have the willingness and the time to offer help.

Conclusion
Summing up, good mentors help leaders grow especially early in their career and elevate them to new levels. A mentor provides support, guidance, and advice when needed to make their mentees better managers or leaders. They can help a young leader learn new skills and navigate through difficult situations. In times of struggle, a mentor can be a valuable listening ear and provide helpful feedback. A good mentor relationship is one that is mutually beneficial, with both parties gaining knowledge and growth from the experience. Are you ready to become a mentor?
Flexicrew Support

If you need assistance finding and recruiting quality candidates who possess either mentoring or leadership qualities, contact one of our recruitment professionals Today.

Always be Leading – 10 Must Traits On and Off Duty

Introduction

Do you believe that you must always be leading both when on-duty and off-duty?

Explanation

Always be leading on and off duty

Being a leader isn’t something you put on and remove like a shirt. Leadership skills and operating from a leadership perspective is something leaders do on and off duty. That’s because the skill sets that make a great business leader also make for great…

  • Spouses
  • Parents
  • Community partners
  • Volunteers

AND

Areas Where Leaders Will Always be Leading

Great leaders don’t go to work and put on their leadership hats only to take them off when they leave.  Truly great leaders lead in all that they do. They lead by how they…

  • Solve problems
  • Approach conflict
  • Prioritize their schedule
  • Treat subordinates and other people in their lives with respect

And…

  • Considerably more!
Leadership Success

Great leaders succeed in their leadership because their leadership skills are engrained in their everyday life. How you see them when they lead is also how you’ll see them when they’re behind closed doors.

In the truest sense, everyone is a leader one way or another. Your title might not officially place you in a leadership role, but you are leading. Whether it’s leading your family, friends, or a small group of people volunteering in the community, you are leading. Taking on a leadership mindset to always be leading on and off duty can help you be a more effective work leader.  That’s the type of leader that people willingly and enthusiastically follow.

Monitoring Leadership Behaviors

It’s important to realize that people are always watching, and in doing so they are evaluating one another’s leadership skills.  Based on these observations, workers will get behind the managers or even coworkers who are leading the way. People feel comfortable with others who are confident, considerate, and consistent in their behavior and their attitude.

Not all leaders desire to lead. Some people are placed in situations where they are required to lead despite their preference to blend into the crowd. Leadership is important though, and having the courage to lead…even when you don’t want to…is important too. Sometimes you’ve got to take the reins and do what’s best for the situation.

Whether you plan to lead or find yourself leading unexpectedly, you may well be  thrust into a leadership role at some point. Everyone is leading somehow and making things better for others in the process. Be cognizant of the importance of leadership and having a leadership mindset whether you are at work, at home, or in the community. Be aware of your impact on others and be sure that your leadership style is motivating and encouraging so you aren’t overrunning others or making them feel inadequate. The best leaders consistently make those they lead feel empowered and capable of whatever tasks need to be done.  In other words, they will always be leading whether on-duty or off-duty.

How to Become a Great Leader

So how do you become a great leader who will always be leading?

Leadership Traits

Always be leading to inspire subordinates

It’s certainly not always easy to be a leader, one who will always be leading.  But it is essential. Here we share with you the 10 traits of great leaders.

1: They are Inspirational

2: They Set Goals for Their Teams

3: They Manage their Time Wisely

4: They Motivate Others

5: They Encourage Creativity in Others

6: They Give Feedback Constructively

7: They Communicate Clearly and Openly

8: They Build Relationships with People on Their Teams

9: They Lead by Example

10: They Delegate Responsibility When Needed

Being a leader isn’t always easy, but it is essential. These are 10 traits that every good leader should have.

Summing Up
In conclusion, being a leader is not something that can be switched on and off. It is an ongoing way of living and behaving. Leaders are always learning and growing, and they never stop working to improve their skills. Those who aspire to be leaders should keep these things in mind, and continue to work on becoming the best leaders they can be.
Of course, while it is important to be a leader both on and off-duty, it is also necessary to be able to switch off from work and relax. It is essential to have a good work-life balance in order to be effective when always leading at work.

Real Leaders Boost Subordinates

Serve Others – Even When You’re the Leader

It’s a given that real leaders boost subordinates.  Most leaders started out as followers. Leadership comes from mastery of a concept or idea and inspiring and motivating others to achieve a common goal.   The best leaders have spent significant time in the trenches and never stop, even after they’re promoted.

Being a leader means more than being the boss. It requires a willingness to take on more responsibilities than the team and to be willing to work just as hard, if not harder. Sadly, leadership can get a bad name if they appear disengaged.

When it comes to boosting employees, it’s important that you don’t forget about them even when you’re the boss.

Four Ways Real Leaders Boost Subordinates

Here are four ways to boost subordinates even when you’re in charge:

1. Give feedback consistently and openly. This is one of the most important things a leader can do for their team. Feedback should be timely, accurate and actionable. If a subordinate isn’t getting feedback, they may not know how to improve their performance.

2. Listen carefully. It can be hard to listen when there are other demands on our time, but it’s crucial that we pay attention to what our team members are saying. Hearing what our employees have to say will help us understand their needs and better plan for the future.

3. Encourage your team members to take risks. Sometimes the best way to learn is by doing something new—even if it’s risky. Giving your team members the freedom to try new things is one way of encouraging innovation and creativity in the workplace.

4. Make sure your policies reflect the values of your company culture and the goals of your team members. Policies that are fair and equitable will help foster a positive work environment for all staff members.

Being a leader means more than being the manager. It requires a willingness to take on more responsibilities than the team and to be willing to work just as hard, if not harder. Sadly, leadership can get a bad name if they appear disengaged.

Managers Can Give Off a Bad Vibe

The imagery of someone sitting at a desk with their feet up while others do the work that they claim for themselves leaves a bad taste in your mouth. The idea is that leaders have paid their dues and don’t have to work hard anymore. Sadly, this is a way that leadership gets a bad name. In addition, some leaders lose touch with what it takes to be on the front lines and diminish or discount the hard work of the people they lead. In both cases, this can cause a rift between leaders and teammates.

train your team to focus and avoid electronics distractions

3 Ways Real Leaders Boost Subordinates

The best leaders have a heart for service and never stop. No matter how high their leadership title, great leaders serve others and seek to better understand the needs of the people they are leading. Here are 3 easy ways real leaders boost subordinates and continue to serve, even when you’re the boss:

Boosting subordinates' efficiency so you don't lose motivation

1.Don’t be afraid to do the work too

2. Seek to determine what others need

3. Ask more questions

1. Delegate, but be sure to do the work too

The best leaders make time to get alongside the people they serve and do the work too. Delegating is an important function of leadership. You can’t lead if you are doing all the work but it’s important to keep morale high and keep your skills polished too. You can do both by working alongside the people you lead and showing them there’s nothing you aren’t too important to do.

Real leaders boost subordinates and keep employees engaged

2, Find out what people need to make things easier

The people you lead have a lot on their plate. They have on and off duty lives too. Keeping your finger on the pulse of what they need offers opportunities for you to serve them and build their trust and respect for you. Great leaders know when their teams need something to make their work easier or to offset troubles they have off the clock. Stay in touch and in tune with your teams and you’ll transform your leadership skills exponentially.

3. Always ask questions

Leaders have to hand down a lot of policies and procedures that their teams have to follow. Whether it’s your family or people you lead for work, asking them questions and getting their input can help everyone feel heard and valued. Sometimes someone you lead might have an idea or a process that is better than the one you came up with. Great leaders include their wealth of resources in their leadership. This includes asking questions of the people they lead, keeping an open mind,- and really listening to feedback.

real leaders boost subordinates by being a better listener

Serving others, even when you’re the leader, is vital. There’s no title too high that excludes someone from service. There are many ways to lead and many ways to serve and the two always go hand in hand.

Even More Ways to Boost Subordinates

Here are four ways real leaders boost subordinates even when you’re in charge:

1. Give feedback consistently and openly

This is one of the most important things a leader can do for their team. Feedback should be timely, accurate and actionable. If a subordinate isn’t getting feedback, they may not know how to improve their performance.

2. Listen carefully

It can be hard to listen when there are other demands on our time, but it’s crucial that we pay attention to what our team members are saying. Hearing what our employees have to say will help us understand their needs and better plan for the future.

3. Encourage your team members to take risks

Mentoring boosts subordinates and trains them to take prudent risks

Sometimes the best way to learn is by doing something new—even if it’s risky. Giving your team members the freedom to try new things is one way of encouraging innovation and creativity in the workplace.

4. Your policies reflect values of your company culture and your team members’ goals

Policies that are fair and equitable will help foster a positive work environment for all staff members.

Conclusion
There are many ways real leaders boost subordinates and continue to grow as a leader. It is critical to continue to develop your skills in this regard. Be open to feedback and and continually work to upgrade your communication and problem-solving abilities. As a leader, you play an important role in the success of your team and organization. By growing and developing your own skills, you can continue to boost employees and help them reach their potential as well.
It is important to find what works best for you and continue to strengthen your skill in nurturing subordinates to improve their engagement and your effectiveness.
Flexicrew Support
If you need assistance finding individuals who possess these leadership qualities, contact one of our recruitment professionals Today.

Flexicrew , founded in 2008, focuses on fast and flexible staffing solutions. Flexicrew uses technology and industry best-practices to deliver the most talented and qualified workers–skilled and entry level to employers within most major industries. Headquartered in Chattanooga, TN with current branches  in the Tennessee, northwest Georgia, Indiana, and north Alabama markets.

 

Mentoring Builds Better Leaders

Leadership Question

What would you say if I told you mentoring builds better leaders?  It’s been researched and proven that mentoring others makes you a better leader.

When mentors share their expertise and operational knowledge with other employees (including those they do not manage), it can build their credibility within their company.

Why?

A leader’s willingness to build up employees shows confidence in the leader’s own competence and indicates strong leadership. It also builds trust because they support the success of their subordinate employees.

Mentoring Builds Better Leaders

Become a better leader

If you’re in a leadership role, you didn’t arrive at that level on your own. Someone at some point mentored you and helped shape you into the people manager you have become. Having a mentor can make all the difference when it comes to being an effective leader. Being a mentor helps pay forward the help you’ve been given and the career’s worth of knowledge you’ve accumulated.

Mentoring others makes you a better leader because it helps you:

  • Teach a wider range of skills
  • Motivate new leaders
  • Keeps you grounded

Mentoring builds better leaders

Mentoring Teaches More than the Obvious

But, coaching an up and coming leader requires more than basic skills. Teaching someone to do a task in and of itself is a great thing to do. Passing on traditions and skills has been a form of teaching for generations. Mentoring someone in leadership surpasses practical skills and includes esoteric skills that go beyond the technical aspects of a trade. Mentoring teaches the psychological and inter-personal skills that make great leaders.  Another reason why mentoring builds better leaders.

Mentoring Motives New Leaders

Mentoring leadership builds motivation quickly

 Part of the role of leadership is motivating others. Getting them excited about the possibilities and feeling confident about what they can accomplish. Mentoring new leaders is the epitome of motivating. Sure, you’ll have to cover the challenges of leadership- which are many, but overall you can help motivate a new leader to be their best. This in turn, motivates you and helps remind you of the benefits of being a leader as well.

Mentoring Keeps Leaders Grounded Also

leadership inspires

 Being in leadership should be humbling. Serving others is what leadership is all about. Being a leader has perks and advantages, but it also has tough realities those who aren’t in leadership don’t have to face. Mentoring others keeps you grounded and reminds you that leadership is an important responsibility and that the well-being of those you lead is in a leader’s hands.

Mentoring is a wonderful way to sharpen your leadership skills and transform you as a leader. Instructing up-and-coming leaders the nuances of their roles can help them become better leaders in a shorter amount of time. Remember those who taught you along the way and be sure to pay it forward to the people you are fortunate enough to impact. Your teaching time can be learning time for you too because your mentee will surely have something new to teach you as well. Celebrate your mentees and help them achieve their best by mentoring them and pouring into their futures.

Summing Up

Mentoring builds better leaders

Mentoring builds better leaders because, put simply, it brings the best out of the people you lead. Great leaders who mentor inspire their team members to go beyond what they might do on their own.  Mentoring generates confidence, inspires trust and enhances team development. A big part of your own leadership development is determining what sort of a leader you want to be and mentoring other up-and-coming employees.

Retain Top Employees – 9 Useful Tips

Introduction

Retaining top employees is challenging employers

Keeping your productive workers is a challenge during this overall work environment . Here are 9 ways to make it easier to retain top employees.

How to Retain Top Employees – 9 Tips
1. Ensure Employees Feel Appreciated
Engaged workers are productive. 9 tips to retain your top employees.

One way to keep your top employees satisfied and motivated is to make sure they feel appreciated. Praise them for their hard work and successes.  Tell them you value their contributions. Make it a regular practice to communicate with your employees about the company’s goals and objectives.  Let them  know where they fit into the bigger picture. Additionally, offer flexible work hours, flexible vacation policies, and other benefits that will make them feel appreciated and valued.

2. Promote from Within

people in a meeting with laptops in front of them

When it comes to retaining employees, many organizations focus on hiring new talent. However, this is not always the best solution. In fact, research has shown that promoting from within is one of the most effective ways to retain top talent.

One reason promoting from within is so successful is because it creates a sense of continuity and familiarity for employees. They know the culture and how things work at their workplace.  This makes them more likely to stay with the organization. Additionally, promoting from within also sends a message that the organization values and respects its employees. This can help maintain morale and encourage employees to give their best effort.

Overall, promoting from within is an effective way to retain top talent. It creates continuity and familiarity in your workforce.

3. Provide Excellent Customer Service

Providing excellent customer service is essential to retaining top employees. When customers are satisfied with the service they receive, it sends a message to employees that their work is valued and important. Additionally, providing great customer service can help attract new customers and keep current ones happy.

4. Welcoming Workplace Culture

Top employees engaged with welcoming workplace culture

It’s no secret that retaining top talent is a challenge for businesses of all sizes. One way to help you retain top employees is to create a welcoming and positive workplace culture. Here are four ways to do just that:

  1. Encourage employee feedback and participation in decision making. This encourages communication and collaboration, two key ingredients in creating a positive workplace culture.
  2. Make sure your policies and procedures are clear and consistent. This will help employees know what they’re expected of, both in terms of job duties and company values, and make it easier for them to follow instructions.
  3. Reward employee performance consistently, no matter the situation or circumstance. This will encourage employees to put their best foot forward.
5. Competitive Pay and Benefits

One way to retain your top employees is to offer them competitive pay and benefits. This will help keep them satisfied and motivated.  It may also lead to them staying with your company for a longer period of time. Additionally, offering excellent benefits can make your company stand out from the competition.  That can help you both attract quality new candidates and retain top  employees currently on board.

6. Encourage Creativity and Innovation

Group of employees practicing creativity and innovation

Encouraging creativity and innovation in your workplace can be a great way to keep your top employees happy and engaged. By encouraging your employees to think outside the box, you can help them develop new ideas and find new ways to improve your company’s performance. Additionally, promoting creativity and innovation can also lead to increased employee productivity.

7. Proper Work-Life Balance

Proper work-life balance helps retain top employees

It is important to make sure the work-life balance is right for your top employees. This means balancing work with personal time, family, and other responsibilities. Of course, it can be difficult to find the right balance.  But it is important to do so in order to keep your top employees happy and motivated.

8. Provide Challenging Opportunities for Growth and Development

Provide employees challenging opportunities for growth and development

Employees want to feel like their work is meaningful and contributes to the organization’s goals. Providing opportunities for growth and development not only keeps employees engaged.  But you also ensure that they contribute their best efforts. Challenging employees on their skills and abilities can help them develop in new ways. You also help your organization achieve its goals.

9. Confidence in Employees

It is important to show confidence in your employees’ abilities and let them do their best work. This will help to keep them motivated and ensure that they are putting their all into their work. Additionally, it will help to build trust between you and your employees.  That is essential for a successful workplace where you retain top employees.

Conclusion

Offer competitive pay rates, excellent benefits, a welcoming workplace, and challenging projects and opportunities. You can ensure that your employees stay loyal and don’t head for the exits.

By following these tips, you can improve your employee retention rate and retain top employees in your business.

Expediting Your Career Success with SMARTER Goals

SMARTER Goals To Make 2022 Your Best Year

Make 2022  the best year yet with SMARTER goals for you or your team.

SMARTER Goals

Get SMARTER Goals

HR professionals should have an important objective in mind: make 2022 the best year it can be.

It should be simple to do, right? Work teams can meet and brainstorm on various activities for  goal setting.

But unfortunately, the amount of effort needed to achieve a goal can be much more than you think. It can feel daunting and even overpowering.  Also. teams could instead end up identifying various random objectives. Or worse, with nothing concrete or doable.  Or. they may not even be aligned with the company’s vision for the business.

Frankly, to make it your best year possible, it’s not enough to just have a list of any old goals. You need the right objectives, the actions that will get you there, and, most of all, the consistency that forms these actionable steps into habits everyone can follow.

To do all these, you need SMARTER goals.

Why Are SMARTER Goals Important?

SMART, and its more comprehensive variant, SMARTER, are acronyms. You will learn more about what they stand for shortly.

Michael Hyatt, a  best-selling author, developed the concept. To what purpose?  As a means to make goals a reality by making them into actionable and measurable steps.  In other words, a repeatable process.  With consistency and practice, you can make these steps into habits.

To understand the importance of SMARTER, you only have to look the number of people who make, but fail to keep New Year’s resolutions.  People start off each year brimming with hope and a “can-do” attitude. Here’s the issue, though: by the time February comes around, more than half of them can no longer stick to their list of resolutions and a Franklin Covey survey found only 23% keep their resolutions.

Why?

There are myriad excuses, but they can be summarized into 1 significant reason:  They didn’t plan well when it comes to their goals.

In spite of their well-meaning objectives, they set themselves up for failure..

Creating SMARTER Goals

Using the   SMARTER definition and approach, here are seven goals that may apply to you. They will certainly play a part in making 2022 your great year.

We  also provided some SMARTER goals examples to make each point clearer:

Your Career Success through the S.M.A.R.T.E.R. Project

S.M.A.R.T.E.R is an acronym that stands for:

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Relevant

Time-Bound

Evaluation

Readjust

Your Career Success with Project S.M.A.R.T.E.R.

Here’s a detailed elaboration of this approach and the 7 steps involved:

SMARTER Goals for 2022

1. Specific

Your goal should be specific and crystal clear and identify exactly what you want to achieve.  You should be able to know what success looks like here. The more specific you can get, the better. A good tip here is to ask yourself the 5 W questions below:

What do I want to accomplish?

Why is this goal important?

Who is involved?

Where is it located?

Which resources or limits are involved?

2. Measurable

Useful goals you set for yourself or your team should be measurable and let you quantify the result. This is so you can track your progress and performance properly. Being able to see progress is a great motivator – it gets you excited knowing that you are on your way to success. Not only that, this helps your focus.  Also you want to ensure you are placing your energy behind goals that result in the best returns.  To help clarify a goal that is measurable, here is an example:

BAD:  I will clean up our candidate database.

GOOD:  I will review all the candidates in the file from A to F all next week and discard any that are over 6 months old.

3. Achievable

A successful goals should be one that is realistic and achievable. A goal with no action is wishful thinking.  But lying to yourself and aiming for a goal that is beyond your abilities will only result in failure to reach that goal.  That being said – this is not an excuse for you to be complacent here. You should set goals that will stretch your abilities but also remain possible for you to achieve.

Also, you should consider factors that will affect the achievability of the goal, like financial and time constraints.  A  goal example would be:

BAD:  I want to be more consistent with recruiting.

GOOD:  Spend two hours every morning calling candidates who applied to our Indeed ad.

4. Relevant and Realistic

Your goal should be relevant. It should matter to you, and in line with your priorities and beliefs.  And also be aligned with other company goals and vision. This step keeps you from focusing on the wrong things.  Many  HR professionals fail to achieve their goals because the goals are not consistent with reality.  Most HR personnel don’t have a problem setting big goals.  Experts recommend making your goals realistic, putting them in writing, and keeping track of your progress.

5. Time-Bound

Every goal you set should have a specific deadline – this gives you something to work towards. However, aiming to hit a goal in 5 to 7 years is not considered a proper deadline. Sure, it contains a time element – but it’s not specific enough.

Your plan to reach a goal in 5 years will be quite different from your plan to reach a goal within 7 years.

Setting a more specific date for your goals allows you to develop a clearer plan to achieve it. This also prevents you from letting other everyday matters take priority over your goals.  If you don’t set a deadline for your goals you won’t be able to measure milestones or how close you are to achieving your goal.  Look at these examples:

BAD:  I am going to rewrite our company Employee Handbook.

GOOD:  I will write an updated draft, edit and finalize our Employee Handbook by June 30th.

6. Evaluate

The only way to be better is to learn from past experiences, mistakes, and successes..  Over time, things happen and goals change. Look over your goals from time to time and evaluate them ; check if they need changing to fit your current situation. Constant evaluation of you goals is essential for you to reach your goals.  Be sure to congratulate yourself on the small wins. After all, you accomplished them and that should fuel your motivation.

7. Revise

Upon evaluation, if you find that your goals need readjusting, revise them accordingly.

The most important thing to do is to make revisions to your goals where you see opportunities for growth. This will also help you stay focused.

Even if you are confident with how things are going, there’s always room for improvement. Take this opportunity to analyze your performance or that of your team and make changes where needed!

Setting SMARTER team goals effectively

Finally

Stating your goals in the SMARTER way can make them easy to understand. What is measurable can be improved and compared, and the SMARTER methodology helps HR leaders align their critical decisions to the overall company goal.

How to Achieve Your Career Success – Skip at your Risk

Your career success goals highway
Expediting Your Career Success – a Necessary Blueprint

Consider your career success as a worklife journey.  To embark on a major journey, you should first have a real idea of your destination.

This way, you’ll be able to plan adequately for your journey – directions, mode of transport, estimated costs, time, etc.

Skip that, and you’d end up wandering aimlessly. Or find yourself lost somewhere in middle of Timbuktu. Sure, you’re on a journey alright…but where?

Similarly, when it comes to planning for your career success, you will need a “destination” and a “roadmap”. That would be a clear vision of what you want, and specific goals to help you on your way to achieve your idea of success.

Creating A Vision of Your Career Success

Vision of your career success

To be truly effective in your pursuit of career success, you should first be able to visualize your “destination” – a clear vision of where you want to be in the future. It’s what you desire, your passion, your purpose in doing something.

Creating a vision is important. That gives you direction, a compass to direct you in making the best decisions, and taking the right actions that will propel you towards success. It’s what gets you excited and motivated to push beyond your self-imposed boundaries. It’s what keeps you focused and on top of the game.

At the start, take some time to envision how you see your career in your ideal future. Reflect on your passions, core principles and values you live by, and your purpose in working.

Remember to define your vision – make sure your vision is specific and clear. That becomes your starting point – the very foundation you will be building on. It is the ideal you will be striving for, to get close to.

It should be something that is in line with your values and principles, as well as your view of the future. Simply coming up with a vague vision of wanting to be “promoted” or “get ahead in your career” is not enough; it should be something more solid, tangible, and specific.

Examples of Your Career Success and tie to Mentorship

An example here would be:

Get financially free by age 30.

To work only 30 hours a week.

Become a healthier individual – both mentally and physically.

You can also think of the people in your company or in your industry that you admire and look up to – the kind of characteristics or habits you wish to emulate yourself. In fact, you can even ask them to be your mentor, to help you think things through on certain areas and advise you on what has worked for them.

Again, don’t restrain yourself too much when creating your own vision. Your vision is personal and unique – there is no right or wrong. It’s something that only you can decide for yourself, and this also is dependent on what you want to achieve in your career.

Remember, the point of creating a vision is to know your reason for doing something, and to help you be more focused and motivated.

Setting Your Goals for Your Career Success

Setting your career success

But simply envisioning the future is not enough – that just reduces your vision to little more than a pleasant wish or dream.

Visions will remain unattainable when not coupled with goals. And this is where goals come in.

Goals are more specific and quantifiable targets – it’s the “roadmap” to your journey of career success. They act as benchmarks or milestones, aiding you in laying the path for the proper achievement of your vision. This also includes the tactics as well as strategies you use to work towards your vision.

To explain it simply, goals are a tool to help you take conscious steps each day to help you realize your vision of your career success.

Again, we have to emphasize here that a solid, clear vision first is important. The goals you set and work towards achieving should be in line with your vision. This keeps you focused on the big picture as to why you should complete your goals.

And a good approach to use when it comes to setting your work goals is the S.M.A.R.T.E.R approach to goal setting.  We will review the S.M.A.R.T.E.R. approach to goal setting in the next article.

Flexicrew Support

Flexicrew identifies job opportunities for workers and talks them through the best job that matches their goals and their backgrounds.  Contact us Today to gain our support.

4 Ways to Prioritize Time Management at Work

Time management is the ability to use your time productively, effectively, and efficiently to achieve the desired outcome. When you learn how to prioritize time management you become the key to achieve the best results out of your daily responsibilities. Time never changes. Everyone has 24 hours in a day; no one has more than that and no one has less than that. Why is it that so many people struggle to manage their time and achieve so little?  Conversely others manage to achieve so much in one single day. Those who achieve the most out of their days attain that because they simply learned how to prioritize time management! It is therefore important to learn ‘why’ it’s essential to prioritize time management and most importantly how you prioritize time management.

Benefits of Time Management

Accomplish greater results at work in a short period with the help of good time management. You have more free time available to take on more opportunities to do other activities you may want to do for career growth or other activities. Prioritize time management to enhance focus, lower your stress, and deliver work on time.  When you prioritize time management you provide a better quality of work, capably handle more responsibility, procrastinate less and enjoy work life better.

.Prioritize time management and bolster productivity

How to Prioritize Time Management:
1.Identify your Time-Wasters

Time wasters are people, habits, or activities that distract you from achieving your desired goals within a specific time. These time-wasters could be too much socializing, poor planning, perfectionism, lack of skills, trying to do everything yourself.  They also include poor delegation, not valuing your own time, being indecisive, saying yes to everyone’s needs, interruptions and distractions.

Once supervisors identify time-wasters they must simply train workers to delete or at least defer them.  That is, workers should complete lower priorities only after they accomplish the most important and urgent tasks first. Habits are other time-wasters which result from personality flaws.  Hence. you must learn how to overcome bad habits.  That will help you to know how to prioritize time much better.

2. Follow Pareto’s Principle: the 80/20 Rule

Pareto’s 80-20 rule is an aphorism that asserts that 80% of outcomes (or outputs) result from 20% of all causes (or inputs) for any given event. So this means you can identify and put your efforts (20% actions) where they will make the most difference (give you 80% results). This is certainly a very effective method to save time.  And you must invest your efforts only in things that foster greater results than the amount of time you spent  accomplishing that work.

3. Avoid Procrastination

Procrastination is the avoidance of doing a task that needs to be accomplished. It is the practice of doing more pleasurable things in place of the less pleasurable ones. It also entails carrying out less urgent tasks instead of more urgent ones. This results in putting off impending tasks to a later   Not wise!

Ways to Overcome Procrastination:

Depending on the nature of what needs to be done, to overcome procrastination, these are options to consider:

  • either delete the task if it’s not that important
  • delegate
  • set a reward for yourself for motivating you to complete the task
  • remove distractions
  • set a deadline to get it done and practice discipline in completing it
  • break it down into smaller manageable tasks to avoid being overwhelmed by the magnitude of the task.
4. Create your Productivity Time Log

Prioritizing time management is almost impossible without having effective ways to plan well and be organized. A productivity time log is simply a record for the day-to-day work activities you have to do until the time you’re finished work for the day. It’s actually best to have a professional journal and a personal journal. Use these two daily to achieve the best results. Include the date, time, and day before writing what the time log consists of. Always prioritize at least the first three most important tasks each day. When you don’t prioritize important tasks, they become unnecessarily urgent tasks.  They will end up stressing you as you try to rush to complete them.

To maximize the power of your productivity log, always plan it the night before. This way you also help your subconscious mind to prepare you to get it done soon the following day. Next, never forget to prioritize your tasks. After completing each task, cross it off. This is very motivating as it helps you to see your progress and have the energy to complete the rest. Carryover unfinished tasks and complete them before tackling new ones for a new day.

Tips for Making a to-do List:
  1.  Capture everything you need to do.
  2.  Prioritize the most important and urgent tasks first.
  3.  Determine how long each task or activity takes.
  4.  Cross-off the action when done.
Conclusion

“Time management is a misnomer – the challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves. The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule but to schedule your priorities.” Stephen Covey