Fantastic rules for effective meetings

Check out the below link from Bob Suttons awesome blog (http://bobsutton.typepad.com/) about Kelly from http://www.humansatwork.com/ - she shares some awesome tips about running effective meetings.

The only thing I'd add to it, if you want a really effective meeting, is to ensure the room is freezing cold and there are no chairs. Some businesses use this tatic and they get all their work done in record time and have more time to do what is really important rather than sitting in meetings talking about it.

http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/05/kelley-eskridges-wise-advice-on-running-meetings.html

Silverware, tattoos and your bosses shoes: how and why you should read between the lines

Here is a random blog entry of a few great stories I want to share (and a joke at the end).

Good and bad ways to start a word-of-mouth frenzy:
http://kirstydunphey.blogspot.com/2009/04/crazy-about-clean-why-did-you-get.html

What your bosses shoes can teach you: http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/03/interesting-shoes.html

Signs you should hide the good silverware:
http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/03/the-enron-code-of-ethics-something-every-boss-should-read.html

And now for a leadership joke…

“There are four keys to leadership:
1. Confidence
2. A folder
3. A pencil with a rubber on the end
4 The ability to say "ok guys" after a single hand clap”

The effect beauty has on hiring staff

Check out the below great blog post about 'Hiring and Promoting Good-Looking People' by the magnificent James Adonis (www.jamesadonis.com) who is a leading expert on employee engagement and the author of ‘Employee Enragement: Why people hate working for you’.

Even if we don't think we are being swayed by someones good looks, it seems at some 'science-y' level we can't help it. Feel free to share your thoughts, stories or questions about this in the comments below :)

http://www.dynamicbusiness.com/articles/articles-blogs/hiring-and-promoting-good-looking-people3470.html

8 ways the workplace has changed

1. There seems to be an increased interest in career breaks as no one knows when they'll retire anymore.

2. Workers are having career ‘turning points’ at ages like 25, 40, 50 or 65.

3. Values driven work (i.e. with charities) is being mixed in to their career portfolio.

4. The demands of top talent are:

- to be treated like a member not an employee
- to have values lived not laminated
- that there is direction beyond the top end of a learning curve
- that the employer brand promises are fulfilled

5. There is a lot of talk about the differences between the generations. Some people believe that it is a case of a new ‘career mindset’ rather than it being a generation thing. The argument is that people of all ages have worked in companies that don’t understand them. The new career mindset involves a belief that the past generations paid too high a price for success. Lots of workers these days, regardless of generation are trying to work smarter not harder.

6. Years ago people were quite passive about career planning. They would trust their employer to manage their career and just work hard keeping their head down. They would take opportunities as they presented themselves without a real plan. When such people get made redundant, it is often the first time they've had to think about what they love and what they want in a career.

7. Job sculpting is important. People need to change their thinking from 'I hate my job' into 'this is how I want my job to be' – then get fixing it.

8. Bosses need to focus on different things. Rather than watching people who leave, bosses should watch high performers who are still motivated after a long time, if they start to lose motivation, bosses should focus on fixing whatever changed.