How Much is Too Much?

There were stretches in my career when I gave almost more than I had to my employer. I traveled constantly, pulled all-nighters, worked seven days a week, and worked around chemotherapy treatments when I had cancer. I always felt like it was worth it. However, I married at thirty-five, never had children, and retired from corporate life at fifty-two. My situation is not the norm.

In this era of high-unemployment and high expectations for productivity, how do you decide whether your professional efforts are worth the personal cost? There is no definitive answer, but I can spotlight some warning signs that fall into two major categories:

YOUR HEALTH IS SUFFERING

• You don’t get enough sleep, because you have some degree of insomnia. Your work responsibilities intrude into your “offline” thoughts and don’t allow you to relax.

• Weight gain is an issue, for a number of reasons. For example, you eat out too much because of travel, or you get home too late to make a decent meal, or you are seriously hating life and feel like you deserve to eat what makes you happy.

• You “don’t have time” to work out.

• Digestion issues plague you. Indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, heartburn, and/or ulcers.

• Self-Medication issues, including over-consumption of alcohol or painkillers, which you “need” to relax.

• You ignore worrying symptoms, because you would rather not know if you have a serious health issue.

YOUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOVED ONES ARE AFFECTED

• Your most important relations are jeopardized. Specifically, you don’t have enough quality time to spend with your significant other – intimately, socially, or at leisure.

• Family events just cannot get purchase on your calendar, because of work commitments.

• You rarely get to see your children play, perform, or achieve, although they are rapidly growing up.

• Birthday, Anniversary, Graduation, and Confirmation wishes are missed or belated, because you just can’t keep up.

• Vacations are paid time off that is sacrificed. There is no time.

• You are ALWAYS “connected” to work, via email or text messages. Your boss expects an immediate answer.

There should be boundaries to employment’s intrusion on your personal life. There may be an exception if you are a CEO or an Executive Vice President (in which case you ARE your job). How much of your life blood do you plan to sacrifice for a paycheck? Sometimes, there is a point where too much is asked. That is the time to explore alternatives for your life and your loved ones.

Time to Hunker Down

The holidays are but a memory, the Super Bowl has ended the NFL season, and even January White Sales are a thing of the past. Spring Training and March Madness are a tantalizing month away. Most of the country is locked inside the grip of winter’s snow, ice, slush, gray, and chill. This time of year is kind of a bummer.

It’s a great time to hunker down and be productive at work! C’mon, what else is there to do? You have finished all the end-of-calendar-year insanity, like annual reviews, evaluation of performance against goals, bonus recommendations, and analysis of actual spending against budgets. It’s been over a month since you rang in the New Year with an exhausted sigh. Now it’s the Chinese Year of the Rabbit – so get hopping!

With a fresh budget, newly established goals, and fewer fun distractions, it’s time to hunker down and be productive. You’re already well into the first quarter of the year, and you need something to show for it. Be sure your goals are prioritized, that your team understands where to spend their individual and collective energy, and has bought into the importance of project deadlines.

Don’t forget… People may still feel a little let down after the end of the year. You can do something for them that costs you nothing. Express kind thanks for their efforts and earned results. Be specific about what you appreciate. They need to know that what they do is noticed, and not taken for granted. You would be surprised at the positive impact that can come from a little kindness and recognition. I once delivered hand-written, personalized Thank You notes to everyone on my project team. Many of those notes were displayed on cubical walls for years afterward.

Pulling together to accomplish goals and celebrating successes is what builds a team. Take advantage of the natural lull in the air this time of year to hunker down and get things done.

GIVE and GAIN

Much of our life experience conditions us to expect to gain something in return for what we give. We give – we get. What is sown in a work environment is reaped over long periods of time, in subtle ways. Give, be patient, and have faith that you will gain in the long run.

GIVE A FULL DAY’S WORK FOR A DAY’S PAY

Project management professionals assume 6 to 6.5 productive hours a day when scheduling manpower and estimating the duration of tasks. Start with an 8 hour workday, then factor in reasonable meal and bio breaks, and that number sounds about right. Add personal phone calls and email, surfing the internet, and your social networking updates; and your actual work time erodes alarmingly. Get back to work. Gain a reputation for being productive.

GIVE OPPORTUNITIES TO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

When feeling under the gun, it often seems easier to do things yourself. Instead, work with your inexperienced team members. Give them responsibility and guidance. Implement accountability. Gain an experienced, valuable employee.

GIVE A HAND TO A CO-WORKER

A corporate environment is a team environment. You can be successful on your own only to a point. Reach out to others when they need support. Gain the prospect of help repaid in kind.

GIVE YOUR BOSS YOUR TRUE OPINIONS
Strong teams are made up of people with diverse experience and viewpoints. Don’t be a “yes man”. When you feel strongly about something, fight to have your opinions heard. Gain respect for having your own mind.

GIVE HONEST FEEDBACK TO YOUR EMPLOYEES
Provide praise when earned, and coaching when warranted. Be honest, specific, straightforward, and consistent with your feedback. Gain productive behavior from your team.

GIVE OTHERS IDEAS CONSIDERATION
I don’t care how smart you are. Often someone else will have a better idea. Stop talking and start listening and sharing. Pay attention and be open-minded. Gain value from a team effort.

GIVE “CRAZY” IDEAS A CHANCE
Brainstorm liberally. Your next stellar success could start as a “crazy” idea. Be sure your team feels safe to throw thoughts out into the wind. Gain excitement and creativity.

GIVE EMPATHY TO EMPLOYEES IN PERSONAL DISTRESS
When personal issues encroach into someone’s work life, be sure you understand what is going on. Be considerate, generous, and fair to allow a valued employee to overcome a temporary challenge. Gain trust and loyalty.

GIVE THE BENEFIT OF YOUR WISDOM TO A PROTÉGÉ
You won’t be around forever. Share the lessons you’ve learned and counsel someone eager to learn from your experience. Someone surely helped you early in your career. Now you are in a position to help. Gain the satisfaction of paying it forward.

Encouraging Productivity Like Farmers Do

I just read an article that summarized a surprising study published in an academic journal called Anthrozoos. The research showed that “by giving a cow a name and treating her as an individual, farmers can increase their annual milk yield by almost 500 pints”. Some quick Googling and calculating of my own revealed that 500 pints reflects approximately a 3.4% increase in productivity. That's fairly good payback from a little free bovine TLC.

To me, the report was not only interesting, but oddly heartwarming. Even cows (who my husband sadly assures me are not the brightest of God’s creatures), respond to being treated as more than a number. It made me think of those commercials for California Cheese, whose tag line is, “Great Cheese Comes from Happy Cows”.

Immediately I made the connection to management practices… If even cows are more productive when called by name and treated with empathy, why don’t all managers understand how important it is to interact with their employees with personal warmth and respect?? You don’t have to be friends with everyone with whom you work. I understand that you don’t necessarily even like everyone with whom you work. But we all respond better to a little kindness, recognition, and appreciation.

Wandering through the office giving a distracted nod to your co-workers does not create relationships nor build a team. Even a hearty “thank you” doesn’t cut it, without personalizing your appreciation to make it meaningful. Let people know you see them as individuals! Make it your business to know enough and be perceptive enough to be able to show a little personal interest.

“Susan, I was impressed by your preparation for yesterday's meeting."
“Mark, I heard you just got back from vacation. Did you enjoy your visit with your family in Florida?”
“Tracy, I heard you made those cookies in the break room.  They were awesome.”
“Bill and Martha, you did an incredible job resolving that issue yesterday. I really appreciate all the time and effort you put into taking care of the customer.”

Your job as a manager is more than planning, scheduling, writing reports, facilitating meetings, and responding to email. You are responsible for guiding and nurturing the growth of your team. It can be one of the more rewarding aspects of your career. Start by knowing – really knowing – who your players are and what they bring to the table. Call them by name. Recognize and express appreciation of their accomplishments. Show that you are paying attention.

Dairy farmers know how to encourage enhanced productivity, greater employee job satisfaction, and the respect and loyalty of their herd. So do we.

When Do You THINK?

Most of us are relentlessly connected to business today, via email, text messages, IM, cell phones. With wireless coverage almost everywhere, now including many flights, we can be away - but rarely truly disconnected.

It's fantastic to be able to be so productive - to respond to a business associate's or client's inquiry immediately. But it has become very difficult to know when and how to draw the line between work and personal time. You can't help but glance at your Blackberry or iPhone when your boss causes it to buzz at 8:30pm. Do they expect a response tonight, or can it wait until morning? Won't you seem more efficient if you answer right away?

The danger is that responding to and fending off random communications fragments focus and results in poor prioritization of energy and efforts. When do you have time to THINK? Just think? When do you make task lists, document plans, research ideas, read work published by thought leaders, bounce concepts off a team, and/or brainstorm?

This week, try carving out some thinking time. Turn off your cell phone, shut down email for a while, and turn down some meeting invitations. Block out your calendar for 2 or 3 hours and clear your mind for some productive thinking. Wrestle a tough problem to the ground. Write a detailed, thoughtful report of which you can be proud. Document a plan. Birth a creative idea.

Take a deep breath. Disconnect. Think. Be really productive.

Motivating Others is Tricky Business

All managers have occasionally struggled with how to get the maximum effort out of their team. What drives people to perform productively? Conversely, what de-motivates them and keeps them from doing their best?

Motivating others is tricky business, because people’s motivations are very personal. To reach your team in a way that will enhance their self-motivation, you need to know them well. There’s no simple answer. Some people are simply motivated by money. Most others needs are more complex. Many appreciate public recognition. Tangible accomplishments in themselves are motivation for goal-oriented people. Those who treasure their ability to make a difference find motivation in having their suggestions considered and their ideas implemented. There are those who are so self-motivated that all management needs to do is be careful not to inadvertently de-motivate them. Everyone wants to be recognized as an individual and treated with respect.

A DOZEN THINGS TO DO IF YOU WANT THE MOST FROM YOUR TEAM

1. Know all your team members by name, and know what they do. As often as possible, thank them in a specific way for their contributions.
2. Be aware of people’s personal struggles. You probably don’t need to be involved, but you may need to offer a word of encouragement, or make the occasional special concession to help them get through a tough time.
3. When you need to rally the troops, leave your cheerleading pom-pom’s at home. Appeal to their professional pride, honestly explain the issue in terms to which they will relate, and ask sincerely for their help.
4. Show your team by your actions that you are working with them (not just waving a whip at them).
5. Motivation through fear is counterproductive, but occasionally you may have to kick some butt to get things moving with urgency.
6. Give individuals public credit for team successes, and for work they do that makes you successful. Do not accept credit personally for work done by others.
7. Give people opportunities to grow. Mentor them, and open the budget purse strings for training activities.
8. Provide constant feedback. An annual performance review isn’t enough. Even if you have to raise issues, providing constructive feedback and improvement opportunities will be appreciated in the long term.
9. Explain tasks and priorities to everyone, so they know how what they do contributes to big picture strategy and goals.
10. Celebrate team victories. This may be solving a tough problem, completing a project, coming up with an innovative idea, or just getting through a challenging year.
11. Clear obstacles from your team’s path, so they can move with speed. This may include obtaining management support, diffusing company politics, securing funding, or providing tools and resources to accomplish tasks.
12. Introduce a little fun and lightheartedness into your environment. Work doesn’t always have to be so serious.

Regroup, Refuel, Recharge

The curse of having a passion for work is that sometimes we OVERwork ourselves, get run down and become less effective or inconsistent. We have to be smart about marshalling our physical resources for the long haul, which could be a single busy day or a project of weeks, months or even years. When there is a goal to reach and the work is exciting and stimulating, we may just want buckle down, kick butt, get results, and reap the reward. But in order to be truly successful, more attention must be paid to nurturing our energy for maximum performance. When possessed by a challenge do you sometimes skip a meal, forgo your normal workout, postpone going to the restroom, or work late into the night? If so, you may have trouble with insomnia, fatigue, nervous anxiety, and exhaustion. Taking care of yourself has to come first – even if you want to give your all to your career. Demanding positions may require you to work long hours and meet pressing deadlines. But there are basic things you should do to mitigate the effect of stress on your body and mind – steps you can take to ensure you stay effective: · Take a brief break every 90 to 120 minutes to refresh your focus. · Eat regular meals and healthy snacks in between. Food is fuel and you need it for energy. · Drink lots of water to avoid the ill effects of insidious dehydration. · Make time for exercise. Studies show a link between fitness and productivity/performance. · Get enough sleep (7 to 8 hours) on a regular basis. You are pushing yourself too hard when problems seem overwhelming, ideas elusive, and decisions impossible to make. Take steps to regroup, refuel, and recharge. This is not selfish – it’s just smart. For more information and inspiration, I recommend reading The Power of Full Engagement, by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz.