Posts from — April 2009

One of the most common complaints that comes up in job satisfaction surveys is, “I never get useful feedback about how I am doing my job.”

Most companies today use a performance appraisal system or an annual performance review system that was invented decades ago in a much slower business economy. So the assessment that is given to employees in annual, semi-annual, or even quarterly reviews tends to be outdated by the time it is received by the person who could benefit most from the information — the employee.

How would you describe meetings you have attended in the past? Last Tuesday, I was facilitating a workshop on how to facilitate more successful meetings, and to start things off, I asked the group that very question. The answers that they provided were very similar to answers that I have received from hundreds of workshop participants over the last ten years.

The first two responses were…
“Meetings are looooooooooong,” and
“Meetings are BOW-ring (this workshop was actually held in my hometown of Fort Worth, Texas – thus the Texas twang.)”

A great new idea is like striking gold for any leader and team. It can be collected, examined, enriched and sold. But the process of finding the gold can be difficult even for the best of leaders and managers.

Creative Filters that thwart creativity - “I will not offer my idea until I am sure it’s what my boss is really looking for.” “The last time I offered an idea my colleagues ridiculed me.” “My ideas are too off the wall for my manager.” “My ideas never get accepted, so I will not try.”

Global warming. Water shortages. Terrorism. Failing health care system. Wars around the globe. Gas prices. Severe economic downturn. Look at the headlines and it’s enough to make you stay in bed.

But wait! There is hope. It’s not the cock-eyed optimism sung about in South Pacific, the hottest show on Broadway. Rather it’s what psychologists in France are calling “intelligent optimism.” Such optimism does not deny the reality of today’s world, but rather seeks to Learn how to fashion a life amid such difficulties. Martin Seligman, the psychologist who had made optimism and happiness his life’s work, would agree with the French: optimism can be taught.