‘Intentional’ Articles at Everyday People

Set the Tone

This past week was just like most weeks. My wife and I got up early, got ready for the day, and went to work. When we got home we greeted each other and then figured out dinner. One of those days I was able to get home a bit early and I started dinner. I wanted to have things ready for Debbie before she got home herself. Things were almost ready to be served when she arrived.

She greeted me warmly but I didn’t reciprocate. There was no reason for that. She hadn’t done anything other than open the door and say, “Hello.” I was in a dark, somber mood out of nowhere. Nothing had caused it. The dinner was easy to make. There was no reason at all. It just happened. Unknowingly, I had set the tone for the rest of the night. I’m not proud of that but it happened.

Ironically, later that night I was watching a DVD (yes, a real DVD) to get ready to teach as a substitute for a couple’s group we’re in at church. In the video, the speaker shared the most astounding fact. He said, “You set the tone for the night within the first 30 seconds of when you arrive home.” My heart sank. His sage words could not have been more timely. I don’t think it was even 30 seconds before my somberness set the stage.

I share this because we often talk about wellbeing at work. It’s the hot topic at conferences and also in blogs. All of this focus is needed and has been for years. What I don’t see being talked about though is our wellbeing outside of work. We’re all far too busy if we were honest with ourselves. From the moment we wake up, we’re “on.” Our minds start to race and we grab for our phone to see if we missed anything after another night of restless sleep. We convince ourselves that every, single second has to be accounted for, and we can’t afford one wasted moment

We make each situation we encounter monumental whether it is or not. We feel this gives us purpose, drive, and value. There’s rarely any example where we slow down and catch our breath. Then, we head back home after this unending pace. (Note that this same hurriedness is true for those in remote and hybrid roles.) Work is “done” for the day and we return to our lives outside of our regular working hours. We may go back to a spouse, a partner, kids, our pets or just our abode.

Without pausing and winding down somewhat, we’re sure to come in hot. There’s no reason to do this. You can make the time to pause. You can. The question is – Do you want to?

For me, the answer is “Yes.” I started this discipline that day. First, I apologized to my wife for being in a funk. Secondly, I shared this story with our group so they heard a real-world example of what we were learning. Third, I’ve been pausing and making sure to remember that I can set the tone quickly. I want those first 30 seconds to be great from now on.

It’s working and I’m also starting to use this approach to interactions at work. Taking just a moment to break the pace is a simple practice, but it will take discipline. I would rather set the tone versus having people feel they have to react. How about you? Are you willing to set the tone?

We Should All Be More Fair

Last weekend my wife and I got to visit one of my favorite places on the planet – the Indiana State Fair. We went with our daughter who lives in Indy along with two of her close friends. We made sure to get to the fairgrounds early and even then there was a line of cars over a mile long slowly crawling to find a place to park. We missed our turn and ended up going down a side road through our own slow crawl. A police officer who was helping with the traffic snarl asked me if we minded veering off to the right and parking in a person’s yard. He told us we’d have to walk awhile to get into the fair, but we were thankful to get out of the mass of cars.

We made our way toward the gate which ended up being about a ten-minute walk, and then entered the throng of people. It was packed and I thought that was wonderful. You could see people wandering from location to location full of excitement and anticipation. The sights, sounds, and smells of the fair encompassed you and made the experience even better.

I am so enamored by the State Fair environment because I grew up around a farm. I was raised with my brother by my Grandpa and Grandma who ran a dairy farm. We had an aunt and uncle who had another farm a few miles away that was a mixture of raising sheep, cattle, chicken, and pigs along with acres of land growing corn, wheat, hay, and soybeans. Returning to the fairgrounds brought back all of those great memories and I was once again in my element.

The young adults who were with us were somewhat patient, but I don’t think they were ready for how I wanted to take in every aspect of the fair at a measured pace. We compromised a bit so I could wander through the rows of classic tractors and take my time in each of the livestock barns. Those are my favorites because the young kids who raise these beautiful animals live in the barn with them during the fair.

If you’ve never seen how the kids care for the animals, you really should. They take time to check on them regularly, give them baths, feed them throughout the day, and groom them so they look their best. When the kids take them to the arena to “show” them, you can’t measure the pride they exhibit. They have worked for months and months for the few moments they are in front of the judges. They’re competing for a ribbon. Yes, a ribbon. That is the pinnacle of all of their hours and hours of preparation. If they are fortunate to be in the top three of their class, they’ll get that ribbon. You should see their exuberance.

We also took our time in the 4H buildings where young people put together amazing projects ranging from decorative cake making to sewing to woodworking to art and photography (just to mention a few.) There are three buildings with multiple floors filled with rows and rows of these projects. Again, their prize – a ribbon.

As we took time to experiment and try fair food, including fried Oreos and fried cookie dough, I paused to wonder what our workplaces would look like if we took the same “fair” approach that all of the young people did. If we made sure to give all of our people undivided attention and ensured their basic needs were met so that they could perform, what would happen? If we allowed people the time needed to be creative with all the materials they needed, what would they be able to produce?

We are so focused on just getting things done in our organizations, that we don’t feel we have time to care for, equip, and believe in our people. “Work” gets the spotlight and not people doing the work. This has never been effective and never will be.

We could learn from the young people at the State Fair. They do all they can for a few moments and a small prize. However, their passion, dedication, and determination are built into seeing their good work come to life. From now on, let’s see how all of our cultures can emulate being a little more “fair.”

Shed Shopping

This weekend I personally crossed a threshold. I have always enjoyed mowing my yard by walking it using a self-propelled mower. When we first owned our house, I could mow the entire 1/2 acre in about 1 1/2 hours and on one tank of gas. It was invigorating and I looked forward to every cut. Now, Father Time is winning and what was once a task I enjoyed has turned into a chore.

I still love being outside and working in my yard. I hope that desire never wanes. However, mowing has now turned into a several-hour task where I end up spent and exhausted. I have resisted the purchase of a riding lawn mower. I have been defiant and stubborn because I never wanted to admit defeat. The time has come to accept that I need an alternative so that mowing never becomes a health issue.

To get this elusive piece of equipment to assist me in my yardwork calls for a new addition – a shed. We don’t have enough room in our garage for a riding lawn mower with our cars. I know I could park outside, but we have enough room to add this new structure. (Please note that I know we’re fortunate to have the home and property we have and don’t take it for granted.)

To find a location that sells sheds, I searched online and found a location that was a mere five miles from my house. That seemed ideal and too good to be true. My wife and I jumped into the car and trekked over to hopefully find what we were looking for. When we pulled up to the drive, we were a bit concerned. There were examples of sheds lined up along the right side of the drive, but we didn’t see anyone we could talk to. We saw one of the buildings that had a small clock sign on it with hands saying people would be back at 10:00 am. It was 10:30 am. We didn’t feel confident about this location or experience. It was disappointing, but we weren’t defeated.

We looked for other places throughout the city we could venture to. One site looked promising but it was quite a drive to get there. Undeterred, we headed out. As we pulled into the location at Miller Barns, we felt more at ease and thought we’d potentially find a shed. The buildings were more spread out and there was a main office right as you entered the property. We were able to meander in and out of as many buildings as we liked. We checked out sheds of every style and size. Inside each one was pricing information and dimensions.

After almost an hour, we went into the office and were greeted by two young, eager, and engaged men. They started with, “Hi there !! What brings you in?”

“We’d like to buy a shed,” I replied. “Well, then I think you came to the best place for that,” said the lead manager. I know this sounds cliche but it wasn’t. The two staff were full of passion and couldn’t wait to answer every question we posed. They asked what our time frame was and tried to gauge our interest. They were fairly sure we weren’t going to make an impulse buy, but they wanted to do their best to get us closer to making a purchase.

We thanked them for their time and reassured them we’d be back to get a shed after we did some measuring back home. To try to ply us one last time they offered us some delectable donuts on the way out. (We passed . . . this time.) The experience with the team who loved their job made our decision easy. We’ll definitely be back to get the new house for the impending riding lawn mower.

Do you see what a difference it makes when you encounter people who love their job? The first place we visited was run down, sketchy, and virtually abandoned. The second place was warm, welcoming, informed, and prepared to provide a great customer encounter. What is it like where you work? How about you personally?

You see, I think we focus so much on what’s wrong at work. Or, we complain about how others aren’t as good producers as they should be. The two gentlemen did none of that. It’s going to end up in a sale. What if we took on their approach and loved what we did instead? What would our companies look like if we expected this from others as well?

I know it makes a difference by loving the work I do. I believe that if you can see this shed shopping, you can make it come to life everywhere !!

On Being a Dad . . .

It’s Father’s Day.

I know taking a day to recognize fathers may not bring up the best sentiments or memories for people. Whenever I hear of someone who didn’t, or currently doesn’t, have a good relationship with their father it’s hard. It’s also a shame because a healthy father/child relationship is the best. Please know that I genuinely ache when I hear someone hasn’t had a healthy relationship with their father. I know a multitude of reasons, decisions, and actions can be the cause for this to occur. I don’t dare to try to comprehend what this has meant to people.

What I would like to share though is something more encouraging and positive. I’ve been very fortunate to have had two dads in my life. My biological dad was wonderful but I only knew him for the first four years of my life because he passed away when he was 24 years old. My second dad entered my life when I was at the challenging age of 13. He was wonderful since the time he married my mom and was for 44 years until he passed in 2020.

I have been a father for 30+ years now and I’m genuinely more grateful and excited now to have this opportunity than when it first occurred. My two kids are becoming fascinating adults and I’m grateful they want both myself and my wife in their lives. I don’t take it for granted because I don’t want to miss a moment of the adventures they’re taking.

I grew up around a dad who was always present. It was such a powerful image and model when I experienced his support, encouragement, discipline, advice, and direction just by having him in the activities I was involved in. His visibility spoke louder than any feedback or critique I’d receive. I would look out into the audience or stands just to make sure he was there. I’ve followed that model and have done all I can to be present for both of my kids when they were young and even more so now that they’re out on their own.

When I look at the time I’ve been a dad, my kids and I have surely had ups, downs, challenges, arguments, and times to ask each other for forgiveness. I’ve tried to be a dad who doesn’t put on airs, or show a different face at work, home, or in the community. I’ve wanted my kids to see the power of being humble, honest, fun, and vulnerable. Each day I know I’m going to be watched for how I talk, treat others, and react in various situations.

If I could share a list of what I hope they get from me being their dad, it would be this:

I want them to know that I am a man of faith who believes in the best of others.

I want them to know that people are worth my time, attention, and empathy.

I want them to know I will fail. When I do, I want them to see how I face failure and work through it.

More than anything, I want them to know how grateful I am to be their dad. My life wouldn’t be nearly as full without them.

I want them to know I will be there for them regardless of what life brings. They have my love forever.

I love being a dad. It’s the greatest job I will ever get to do !!

I Just Need a Stick !!

Life is complicated. We don’t want it to be but it is. If we had our way, we’d eliminate all of the challenges and obstacles we could. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?

One of the areas of our lives that compounds this feeling of endless complications is work. Ironically, the place where we spend the most time during our waking hours is layered, convoluted, and nearly impossible to navigate. An additional impediment is people. Seriously. We are all carrying our own bundle of complexity. If you do the math and try to calculate just how intertwined work is, you’d need to use the following formula.

Take the number of people working in a department + the number of responsibilities they have + the distractions we all experience that keep us from our jobs + the infinite number of interruptions and unknowns and finally add the factor of everyone having different priorities. That comes out to one “normal” day.

It’s no wonder people feel frustrated and stuck. Honestly, it’s also fairly astonishing we get anything done. Thankfully, people have learned how to find a path that works most of the time and we’re good with that. In the midst of all of the activity occurring around us and the activity we’re trying to do, work happens (sort of). There’s another factor that aggravates this situation and all of the great people doing their best to perform. Instead of simplifying the work we have on our plate, we offer solutions which only add and add and add and . . .

I was having lunch this past week with a co-worker and we were talking about how we have people who are sinking in quicksand. Every time they try to address one situation it seems like ten more pop out of nowhere. It’s exponential and never-ending. We started our conversation like many that have happened before when we tried to assess what was happening when my co-worker just stopped. He paused, took a deep breath, and said the most astute thing I’ve heard in ages. “Steve, they just need a stick. They’re sinking and we keep coming up with multiple approaches and potential solutions when all they want is a stick to get them out of the quicksand.”

I sat there stunned. He was on point. It’s astonishing that the simple answers always seem to elude us. We’re as caught up in the many hairballs of work as anyone else. We should come up with the simple option, but we forget that simple is hard. So, here’s a way to offer a stick to our good folks who truly want to do good work.

S – Simplify. We don’t have to continually keep layering work. It takes more discipline to simplify work, but it is worth the time and effort. Strip away steps which pull people further into the weeds.

T – Talk to folks. You need to talk to your people about how they feel and where they feel stuck. Without assessing what they think they’re facing, you’re just going to come up with an approach that will be another burden to handle.

I – Intentionality. We often skirt around the edges of situations instead of being respectfully direct. We fool ourselves into thinking that people will arrive at conclusions if we just hint at what should be done. It has never worked. Be intentional to reach your people.

C- Change. At some point we need to get out of the cul-de-sac of coming up with the next best thing because someone will say, “Well, what if . . .” Change is a constant. Figure out when you’re close enough and then step into the change needed.

K – Keep at it. Work is a continuum and as soon as you get someone unstuck, there is sure to be someone else who has found their pit of quicksand. This is somewhat daunting, but being diligent and agile works against the trap of being stagnant.

This week take a look around and see who’s sinking. When you find them, fight the urge to create the next best system and procedure. Pause. Breathe. Then offer them a stick !!

Be a People Lifter

People are frustrating, aren’t they? Seriously. Everywhere you go you have people distracting you, pulling you down, or are just flat disappointing. It could be at home, while you’re driving, at work or even just milling around a public place.

A few weeks ago I went grocery shopping. Normally, my wife and I go together because we enjoy it and we can knock it out. I don’t know what was in the air, but it seemed like every single person was just in the way. A few people were using their carts like a life support system dragging their feet along behind. Others were staring at their screens oblivious to any movement happening around them.

At the end of each aisle, I was hoping for either a stop sign or a traffic signal. Instead, people jerked suddenly as each person’s cart narrowly missed from slamming into each other. As I wandered down each aisle with my list in hand, I felt like I was trying to maneuver through an unreasonable obstacle course. There were folks just standing and lost in contemplation and others checking out each label with incredible concentration. I could feel the pulse in my neck rise to an unhealthy level because of how no one was considering others. I felt they were acting as if the only person in the store was them.

I’ll skip how I glared at the various checkout lines which added another layer of what I perceived as ineptitude. I finally paid, went to my car and zoomed home. As I slammed the bags of groceries on the kitchen island while unloading them, I regaled my story and experience to my wife (recovering from total knee surgery.) She was patient in letting me dump my bucket, but when I finished she innocently asked, “Do you know what those other people were thinking or going through?”

She was spot on. I was so perplexed why others who were “in my way” weren’t thinking about others without realizing how selfish I was being myself. Her simple question deflated my self-righteousness and reframed my head. You see we tend to look at and talk about people in 3rd person. EVERYONE else is frustrating (not me). EVERYONE is just an unnecessary obstacle to me getting real work done (not me). I think you see where this is going . . .

I’m ashamed I let the circumstances around me get me so worked up. Instead of enjoying being in a crowd of strangers trying to accomplish a common goal, I thought they were a nuisance. Sound familiar? If you step back and listen to the conversations happening at work, at home, or out in public, you’ll hear people tearing each other down versus lifting them up. It’s easier. It makes us “feel good” to be above others, but it is the worst thing we can do.

We live in a day and age where demeaning others is valued far more than encouraging others. I don’t know when this happened but it’s awful. We are fortunate to have others in our lives. We truly are. We’re also fortunate to be surrounded by talented and unique people at work. In order for us to stem the divisiveness that tries to overcome every conversation, stop, pause, breathe, and then – lift others up.

You can do this. You know when others lift you up it brings joy and a break from what you’re normally experiencing. Being a people lifter takes more effort, energy, and intention to act against the tide of how most people treat and view others. Trust me, I try to be a people lifter most of the time. It’s draining but worth it.

I needed my wife’s simple admonition and I’m grateful she broke through the ugly approach I had taken that day. I needed someone to show me how to “break with” so I could “break through.” This week let this post be the “break with” for you and those around you. It’s time to be a people lifter – so we all can rise !!

Check on Your Icicles !!

I have lived in Ohio for the majority of my life. I love that in this part of the Midwest, I get to experience all four seasons of the year. Each season has its pluses and minuses. I have to admit that I do love a good snow !! This past Friday afternoon a legit snowstorm took over for several hours. It was part of my commute home and I was able to get back and enjoy the flakes floating down from the sky. When it was over, we had 3 inches covering everything in a smooth white blanket.

I am one of the odd people who regularly yearns for more snow. I think it paints a beautiful landscape of Winter. I knew the picturesque scenery would be short-lived because Spring is doing its best to arrive and start the second season of the year. As the snow began its inevitable melt, the conditions were just right for icicles to form. I LOVE icicles !! They are a wonderful creation but they don’t always appear after every snow. So, when they occur I make sure to cherish them.

Icicles are fascinating because they form while melting. They cling precipitously off the edge of something or other. There is no rhyme or reason to how long or short they’ll be. Also, some just seem to build and build until they become a massively thick structure reaching down as far as they possibly can. As rarely as icicles form in our area during the winter, their time is limited as well. As the outside temperature rises, the icicle begins the end of its “life” by slowly dripping from its tip. You hope for it to melt completely, but more often than not, the icicle detaches from its edge and it rapidly freefalls to shatter on the ground below. As I’m writing this blog, there is a barrage of icicles falling and smashing on the back patio.

It’s a shame that they don’t stay around longer than they do. I understand that everything has its time and life cycle. However, they are so magnificent and make such a visual impact that it’s brighter when they’re around.

As I take a look at these dangling masterpieces, it makes me think of people. You’ll hear the term “well-being” being used more regularly these days in the workplace. Unfortunately, it took a global pandemic for organizations to realize the well-being of our people has ALWAYS been something that deserved our focus and attention. Now, hang with me here (pun intended). I think many of our employees act just like icicles on a daily basis.

You don’t see them before they appear magically from the crowd. It’s just like icicles that emerge from the “crowd” of a fresh snowfall. Once they show up and are visible, you see them as the talented and unique people they’ve always been. What you don’t notice is they may be hanging on a ledge and you don’t even realize they are. On the outside, they glisten and are on display while also melting on the inside at the same time.

Most likely, our great people will detach and fall as well before they reach out. That shouldn’t happen. We should be in a position to not only enjoy them for all they bring to the company, but we should make sure they’re more anchored all the time so they don’t fall. Making sure we are intentional in knowing our people all. the. time. needs to be our baseline as HR pros. They should never be oversights that get in the way of our work.

People are looking for someone who will be there for them all the time and not just in times of crisis. Taking note of a person’s well-being is a full-time endeavor. The more we embrace this, the healthier people will be. Let’s turn the tide and take care of our icicles. Value them every day and give them the awe and attention they deserve. Then you’re sure to have them with you year-round.

The Future Workplace

This past week I had the incredible opportunity to speak to an auditorium filled with college students. I’ve become accustomed to speaking, but this time I was a bit anxious. You see, I’m almost 40 years older than all of the young students in the room. I wasn’t quite sure I’d connect with them. I was hopeful but it wasn’t a sure thing. Even though I’ve been speaking for several years in a variety of venues, I still have that tinge of uncertainty which I welcome. I never want to take it for granted or be so self-assured that I overlook the reason I speak – the audience.

The topic was fascinating because I was tagged to speak about the Future Workplace !! (Cue space music in the background.) I wanted to see where the mindset was of the students so I asked them using Slido.

(Quick aside – If you’ve never used Slido as a presenter, I highly recommend it because it allows full participation from the group you’re in front of anonymously. Check it out !!)

The kids pulled out their phones, clicked on the QR code, and started typing. I chose a WordCloud for them to populate. There were nearly two hundred responses and the top answers were: Money, Work-Life Balance and Flexibility. So, the newest folks who will be entering the workplace would like to get paid and not work all the time !! I agree that is a need even today.

Once I knew where they stood, I turned the tables on what they expected. Instead of lecturing to them about my decades of vast experience, I talked about topics to look for and expect in the workplace. The tone was more about encouraging them to be intentional and create the workplace of the future themselves. I didn’t want them to be subject to what others define for them. My generation did that and I felt that the majority of my career was filled with traditional boxes following a top/down approach.

The workplace of the future is going to be people-centric and people-first. Since the auditorium was filled with people, I shared that they had the foundation already sitting in front of them. We talked about culture, behavior, contribution, adding value, and more. The message I wanted to make sure stuck with them was this – Embrace all that they are as people and all that they’ll bring to the workplace from their vantage point. Also, I emphasized to NEVER let people from other generations put them down or degrade who they are or how they approach work.

I closed by encouraging them to connect with current businesspeople to establish mentors to be resources for them. Yes, I also told them they should network, but I wanted them to know that networking is a business skill and not a job-seeking skill. I kept with my style of having my accompanying office table filled with toys and even got some laughs despite our age difference.

At the end of the presentation, I was touched by how many students stayed to chat. Several of them said, “I didn’t know what to expect when I came tonight. I thought it might be dull and boring, but it was fun.” My favorite comment was, “I had a picture in my head of what an executive from a company looks like and sounds like. I was floored to see you dressed in a colorful shirt, fun shoes, and jeans. You were down-to-earth and authentic. You changed my perspective on what C-Suite people could be.”

It was reassuring and ironic at the same time. My nervous assumption about our significant age differences was unwarranted. We connected because of the common fact – we’re all humans. I think we should continue to focus on the human factor of the workplace now and into the future. The “things” like AI, HR Tech, new processes, and systems will always be evolving into something new. We’ll never fully be ahead of the curve and any predictions will have some things right and others will be missed.

I’m sure people will be speaking far more about the “things” of work instead of the humans. That’s a shame because the workplace of the future will include people. People frame the culture. People design the strategy. People make work come to life through the systems and processes.

I encourage all of us to embrace those who will make up the future workplace. It will be exciting to see what they do and what is invented next. Believing in them now and lifting them up is how WE can impact the future. We don’t have to keep focusing on the How and What is coming. We will be successful now and into the future for years to come if we focus on the Who !!

I’m geeked about the future. I can’t wait to see what all of those students will do. I hope you are geeked as well !!

Simple is Hard

This past week, I was fortunate to return to the speaking circuit for the first time in 2024. Whenever I get to speak to a group of my HR peers, my bucket is instantly filled. I never take it for granted. As soon as the obligatory speaker introduction ends, I can hit the first slide, and time seems to disappear.

I can feel the energy of the room ramp up when I introduce a few of the concepts I wanted to cover during my time. You see, I believe in and have practiced a stripped-down version of HR throughout my career. When I began practicing several decades ago, it wasn’t even called Human Resources it was Personnel. What was interesting was the old name of the field was a more accurate description of how most of the work was done. It was impersonal distant and heavily process-driven.

People are probably reading this and screaming that little has changed. That may be true in pockets or in companies that don’t value HR. I hate to hear that. I can’t tell you how many times people have come up to me after presentations sharing that they are faced with roles that still value the Personnel approach. Interestingly enough, there is this constant push to rename and rebrand the profession yet again. Instead of focusing on doing good work with people, we’re worried about what we’re called as an industry. I really am not concerned with what HR is or isn’t called as long as we try something that works.

Great HR is best when it is simplified. When we strip back the layers of the muck that have been built in over the years we make true progress. We thought our purpose had been to continue to build system upon system, process upon process, and policy upon policy. The more we wrote and implemented, we assured ourselves that our work and relationships with people would go smoothly. We have tricked ourselves into believing that we can have the perfect model with a set number of prescriptive steps to refer to for any situation we face.

There are still speakers, books, blogs, and podcasts that propose this ineffective and archaic belief system. Isn’t it ironic that if we only needed one true system then there wouldn’t be the need for any others? Have you stepped back to consider that?

Simplifying HR is needed because people are complicated. Each individual on this planet is unique. They can’t be, and shouldn’t be, crammed into a box of any sort in order to comply and conform. But, as Martin Scorcese so aptly stated, “Simple is hard.” You think it would be just the opposite. However, creating more and more and more layers of do’s and don’ts (mainly don’ts if we were honest) is easy. Having the discipline to keep things simple and not allow the layer building to occur takes considerably more effort.

The key to understanding here though is this – Keeping HR simple allows you and your employees to thrive. You have to trust me that you unleash more of the inherent talent people want to bring to work if you focus on allowing them to perform. How that looks where you work is up to you.

This is the baseline message of almost every talk I give. I’m out to deconstruct the past in order to build up the profession. Pulling the layers back and eliminating them reveals amazing people who have been there all the time. We just haven’t seen them because we’ve been lulled to sleep doing work building matrixes.

This week find one thing to strip back. Just one. The next week find two to three more and so on. Have faith and know that simplified HR can work for you. Taking these steps will be far more impactful than building the next great initiative. Enable the people you have working at your company to perform. You’ll find when you do this, they will.

Put Your Spin On It !!

I love those painting places where you can go and have someone teach you to paint a picture. Everyone in the class starts with the same blank canvas. The instructor stands in the front of the room and shows you what a finished product could look like.

Instructions are given and everyone hears the same things. However, once a brush dips in the paint and is applied to the canvas, something happens. Not one person does it like another person. Not one. Why is that? They all heard the same instruction and they all viewed the same picture. Wouldn’t it make sense that you’d see a room full of identical pictures? Logically, it would but creativity isn’t logical.

That doesn’t dissuade anyone from taking the class. In fact, everyone loves taking a peek at everyone else’s canvas to see how they interpreted the painting. They are unique – just like each person. There wasn’t any hope of any two canvases turning out to be alike.

(These are two of my interpretations . . .)

Now, compare this to the workplace. I was talking virtually with a friend from the UK and we were lamenting the ongoing insistence of companies copying other companies. We call it “best practices.” There are countless speakers and consultants who encourage you to adopt best practices in order to be more successful. They have good intentions, but best practices don’t work. And, if we’re honest, they’re behind.

We shouldn’t be mimics trying to recreate the culture, procedures, or approaches of other companies. Can we learn from them? Absolutely. Have they accomplished impressive things? You bet. Do you work for exactly the same company with the exact make-up of employees and have the same resources they do? No. No, you do not. Since that is our reality, why do we think we can recreate how those companies do work?

I’d like to propose a different approach with two components for you to consider. The first is this – Know that your workplace is your own blank canvas. You can see the painting someone else did before you on an easel. Start painting what YOU see. Whatever the outcome is be good with it. It’s your creation. You learned from the best practices that are exhibited on the easel and you added your own touch.

At my workplace, we call this LaRosaifying something. We look externally to see how others do things well because you can learn from good work. Taking pieces from these practices and molding them to fit how we do work with our talented people is very successful. We won’t ever be (insert name of well-known company here) and we don’t want to be.

Secondly, create the “next practice” instead of trying to replicate the work of others. You are creative !! You may not think so, or you may not think you have time in your full day to be creative, but that’s just not true. Every good idea had to start somewhere. Why not from where you work? The best practices we’ve been talking about were created somewhere by someone else. Why can’t your idea be something that inspires others?

We sell ourselves short far too often. We are consumed with production and results which keep our heads down. We don’t see the paint, brushes, and canvas just waiting to be used. If we’d be willing to pause, breathe, and lift our heads up from the day-to-day, we’d see countless canvases waiting for us to add our creations to them.

This week stop the mimicry, pick up your brush, and start painting. Put your spin on the good work you do. You’ll be surprised by the masterpiece that is just waiting to be completed.