A Society for Human Resource Management survey revealed that 94% of Human Resource professionals believe vacations are important. Many unknowingly, however, undermine the practice of employees taking vacation. Some organizations allow employees to rollover unused vacation days to the following year. When organizations rollover vacation days, only 65% of their employees use the majority of their vacation time. But, for […]

The “tools” I was given for my first job in public accounting included an adding machine, pencils, and a pad of green columnar paper. The only computer I recall was a $1 million albatross at a client’s office that no one could figure out how to use.  Today, my laptop is about the size of my former adding machine and […]

Data is a word in business that has become common, but wasn’t common all that long ago. Dictionary.com defines “data” as “individual facts, statistics, or items of information.” Computers have allowed us to gather more information faster than ever before. This information can be used to make better decisions when diligently analyzed and applied. Unfortunately, many overlook the basic data […]

Each Saturday, I take our son to his restaurant of choice for lunch. Often times, his choice is Chick-fil-a.  Over the last several months, their drive through has been frequently backed-up for a block or more, causing traffic problems. Last week was different.  As I pulled in, I realized that Chick-fil-a had made a change. Rather than accepting their situation, […]

Teamwork is an important aspect of growing organizations. An article by Sandler Training states, “Tackling obstacles and creating notable work together makes team members feel fulfilled.” Teamwork builds camaraderie around achieving a common goal. The possible rewards from teamwork are vast. Job fulfillment and satisfaction for the employees and a greater level of loyalty for the company provides the ultimate […]

Nehemiah’s vision for rebuilding Jerusalem is only two verses long, but it identifies four elements helpful in casting vision to others. The fourth and final element is “sharing your reason for hope.” Nehemiah was a newcomer to Jerusalem tackling a project that had been tried multiple times over a period of 93 years unsuccessfully. Nehemiah, however, had great hope because […]

Nehemiah’s vision for rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem is only two verses long, but it identifies four elements helpful to us in our own vision casting opportunities. The third element is to “make an emotional appeal.” People typically get behind a project based on their emotional connection to the project.  In Nehemiah 2:17, Nehemiah said, “You see the bad situation […]

Nehemiah successfully rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem partly because of his effectiveness in casting vision. Nehemiah’s vision casting is only two verses long, but it identifies four elements helpful to us in our own vision casting opportunities.  The second element is to “propose the solution.” People don’t want to work on a futile project. Your solution doesn’t have to be […]

Nehemiah needed to convince the Jews to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem. A poor job of casting vision could have stopped or hindered his project. Nehemiah’s vision casting is only two verses long, but it identifies four elements that may be helpful to us in our own vision casting opportunities. The first element is to “clearly state the problem.” Nehemiah […]

Psychology Today published an article titled, “Are you really listening, or just waiting to talk?” In this article the researcher states, “Only about 10 percent of us listen effectively.” The researcher also notes that there is a difference between hearing and listening. “Hearing is a physiological act; listening involves our ability to unpack the meaning of words, and the silences in […]