Posted by
Tim Eckstrom on Tuesday, August 05, 2008 at 11:08 AM
Categories:
Miscellaneous,
Performance
I think that we would all agree that an important component to being effective at our occupations is maintaining a work/life balance that allows us to get our ‘batteries recharged’ on a regular basis. There are things we need to do on a daily, weekly and monthly basis (not taking work home, getting enough sleep, etc.). Most would agree that getting away from work for an extended period of time is also important. That is what I am doing right now.
A year ago my family made plans to take a boating trip through the San Juan Islands in Washington State…I am writing from that trip. We rented a 49’ yacht out of Bellingham and have been on the water throughout the islands for a few days now. The weather has been beautiful. Having grown up in western Washington for most of my life I am well aware that the crystal clear skies that we are experiencing are extremely rare (although the chances in increase the first week of August) and for them we are grateful. 
We are currently at the Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island. The past few days have been filled with exploring islands, a lot of ‘attempts’ at fishing (not much luck though), pulling up quite a few crabs, watching whales and overall a lot of messing around with my kids, a son in law and one of his friends (Skipper Dan).
It has been a great time to wind down from the busy work schedule that I keep and think about other things for a change. I am ‘pretty sure’ that I will return to work, but for now it has been great to watch the boats go by, Puffins and seals dive for food and enjoy the blue, glassy smooth waters and play card and board games with my ‘game addict’ kids. I have yet to win!
I hope that you all have vacation plans for before the summer is out. I know that the time away has been very good for me.
Posted by
Lynn McConnell on Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 3:31 PM
Categories:
Strategic Planning,
Leadership Development,
Miscellaneous,
Performance
I believe that corporations should take a pointer or two from the “Super Nanny”.
If you haven’t watched this show (on ABC) you should because it’s a great example of changing an organizational culture. Granted, ‘JoJo’ does it one family at a time, but she uses the same techniques that would work to change the culture in any organization.
First she comes in and talks with each parent, asking for their input into what the problems are and what outcomes they would like to achieve. She also gets their buy-in into making the changes in the household. Next, she observes behavior—how the ‘team’ interacts with each other, how they react to problems and stress, and how they go about resolving these problems.
She then gets the team leaders (parents) back together to discuss her findings and offer suggestions for changes. Together they develop an implementation strategy, for which she will hold them accountable, and again obtains their buy-in and commitment.
What happens next?
The plan is communicated to the team (the kids). Expectations are clearly outlined and process changes explained. Everyone is given tasks and roles to fulfill and there is usually a visual way of tracking successes and failures that everyone can refer back to. Then they go to work!
Do things instantly fall into place? NO! Expectations must be restated, processes re-explained and re-worked, and sometimes people end up on the “naughty chair” because they can’t seem to accept the new culture. Sometimes the leaders slip back into their old habits. But do they give up? Not usually. They realize that no matter how painful the process, falling back into old behaviors is more painful and more damaging. So, they re-group, talk about the problems they’ve experienced, redefine or rework the processes, re-commit to the process and realize that if things are going to change it is up to each of them to set the standards and commit to reaching them.
It is never an overnight process, but even when there are set backs, these eventually become less severe, and the team now has the tools in place for solving problems as they arise without placing blame and flying off the handle. These habits and processes soon become ingrained into the culture of the family (team) so that they eventually begin to go from a dysfunctional, out of control family to a high functioning, supportive team where everyone understands their roles and what is expected of them. They each begin to hold themselves and each other accountable and they understand the role that they each individually play in helping their family (organization) succeed.
Don’t you think every organization could use a Super Nanny?
Posted by
Bruce Moore on Monday, February 11, 2008 at 10:50 AM
Categories:
Miscellaneous
A considerable amount of planning is required to make your wedding day a success. But that day signals just the start of planning issues that affect the two of you. Among them is planning your finances--an important process that can’t be overlooked in getting your marriage off on the right foot.
If you are accustomed to making financial decisions on your own, working as a team on money management issues can mean breaking new ground. As you make the merger, here are some issues to consider:
Deciding what’s “yours, mine and ours.” While some newlyweds have no problem dumping all their money into a family pool, totally combining finances can be drastic--particularly if you and your spouse have unequal incomes and different philosophies about spending and saving. A compromise may be to maintain a household account for joint expenses and to each handle some of your own money separately. Even though the law recognizes that all of a couple’s assets acquired during the marriage are owned jointly, particularly in community property states, you may decide that it’s important for each of you to make some independent purchasing decisions.
Posted by
Tim Eckstrom on Wednesday, November 21, 2007 at 3:30 PM
Categories:
Miscellaneous
Funerals have a way of giving us renewed perspective on life. I attended one this past weekend. Several hundred people in our community gathered together to remember Jack Alban, a man who had a tremendous impact on a lot of people over the course of his 61 years (by the way, 61 seems younger and younger all the time). Jack was very involved in his church, having taught Sunday School for over 20 years. He had been a college professor for many years and a counselor/psychologist until he retired just about a year ago. He was an avid sports fan until his last day.
Among the many people who had glowing things to say about this man who had helped to changed their lives were his two sons, David and Dan, both in their 20's. They both struggled to hold back the tears as they told story after story of life with their dad. They told of Cubs games at Wrigley Field in Chicago and countless wresting matches that he watched them compete in. We all laughed and cried with them as they made it crystal clear to us how grateful they were for the years they did have with their dad.
It is not an easy thing to make Thanksgiving a part of our lifestyle, instead of just another holiday. "Life comes at you fast!" is a marketing line that a national insurance company is using currently. Hopes and dreams come and go...sometimes they are completely dashed. Life rarely turns out the way we thought it would. The truth of the matter is that it is a whole lot easier to be 'disappointed' than 'thankful'.
During this Thanksgiving season, I hope to remind you that the fight is worth it. I have not conducted a scientific study on this subject, but I am convinced that there is a direct correlation between our attitude towards life and our ability to be genuinely thankful each and every day. Thankfulness has a direct impact on how we see the world, no matter what comes at us. And how we see the world and how we handle tough circumstances (attitude) determines what kind of impact we have on those around us.
I know of two young men who have great attitudes, even now, during the toughest of times. There can be little doubt that their dad's impact on them has shaped their outlook on life. Jack's love and encouragement is still with them today. I know that I am more thankful today. The challenge is to be so tomorrow as well.
Posted by
Tim Eckstrom on Friday, October 12, 2007 at 7:38 AM
Categories:
Miscellaneous
The calls day after day. People stopping me in the street. The stress, the guilt. When am I going to get some sleep?
Emails at all hours of the day and night. All of them, all of you, wondering the same thing...
"When are you guys going to join the real world and start blogging?"
Well, here you have it...our first blog.
Initially Ron and I will be writing about topics that we are passionate about and that (hopefully) will be helpful to you and your business. Eventually, others in our organization will join the party. Part of the goal is to include you in a community of discussion about topics such as Talent Management, Strategic Planning, Hiring Top Performers and Succession Management. We want to hear about how it is going in your world so that we can all benefit from your insight as well.
You will have the ability to login to our site and to post comments about what we write and join the discussion. Simply click on the comments link below to get started.
We are not planning to post 10 blogs a day! I know that other, more 'advanced', sites are doing so (what do those people do for a living anyway?!?!). With our current schedules, if we get one to two blogs posted a week, we think that will be great.
We hope that you will find this addition to our site helpful...and maybe a little entertaining at times as well. Blog On!!