by Beth | Mar 3, 2021 | Lifestyle
When I grew up, if we knew of anyone who was going through a life transition, we took a casserole over to their house. We took casseroles to people who were sick, who had a relative that died, had a surgical procedure or when someone had a baby. It was our way of showing support for people in our community. It was how we showed people that we cared about them, and that they could count on us when it mattered. We were a part of their “casserole community.”
For those of you who don’t know, I contracted COVID-19 over the Christmas holidays. It was a brutal 3 weeks. At 10:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve, I was having trouble breathing and decided to call 9-1-1. I sat down on the bed to rest for a minute until I could gather enough strength to go get my cell phone, and the next thing I knew, it was 5:30 in the morning. All the lights were on, and I had made it through the night. I had turned a corner.
At one point, I was feeling particularly sorry for myself for being sick over the Christmas break, and my girlfriend texted me to see if I was okay. I texted back that I was getting better, and that I appreciated her checking in. She offered to send me groceries on Instacart. She was not the only one. My friends and neighbors showed up (virtually) in droves to send food, to check in, to offer moral support. My self-pity turned into gratitude for my “Casserole/Instacart” Community.
Here is the deal, people: we are in the middle of a global pandemic. We need each other. So, ask yourself this question: who is in your casserole community? Whose casserole community are you a part of? Who can you count on when you need help/support? Who can count on you? Even in the best of times, we all need a community, and these are definitely not the best of times for many people. However, being there for each other can make it infinitely more bearable.
Power thought: Think about who needs you to order them some groceries on Instacart. Or think about two people that you need to check in on today. You never know if you will make someone’s day with a small gesture of kindness and caring.
by Beth | Sep 9, 2020 | Leadership, Lifestyle
I have a friend/colleague named Beth Boen, who is the owner of SHE Leads Group, a business networking group for women business owners. A few weeks ago, Beth called me out of the blue. She does this approximately once a year. She picks up the phone, dials my number and asks one simple question:
“How are you?”
She has no other agenda than that. I always love our conversations: we talk about business, we talk about our families, what is going on with our kids… And every time I get off the phone with her, I think to myself “I am going to do more of this. I am going to reach out to others like Beth does to me.”
As it turns out, “water cooler” talk helps make employees feel more connected to their co-workers and executives. According to this article in the Denver Business Journal, https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2020/06/missing-office-small-talk-researchers-say-it-impa.html these conversations to connect with each other really do affect your well-being at work. “Water cooler” talk can bridge the gap, so that controversial topics are easier to work through. Think about it: when you have a connection to someone, the hard conversation can be easier and the outcomes more innovative. The folks that are more successful at work are ones that engage and connect with each other.
If I am honest with myself, I know that Beth and I have a strong connection, because she reaches out to me every year. And let’s be clear: she is the one that has reached out to me, and it always makes me have a better day.
Let’s all make a commitment to engage in more meaningful conversation like Beth Boen, starting now. Make 2 calls a day for the next 4 days and see how you feel about the state of the world.
I’ll start.
by Beth | Aug 12, 2020 | Lifestyle
I have a killer tan. I am especially proud of it this year, because the world is in collusion for me to not have a tan. I have been to 3 different beaches on the east and west coast and all 3 were in some sort of closure. “You can’t sit here ma’am. You can only walk on the beach ma’am.” UGH.
In addition, my neighborhood pool is closed. No water in the pool, and all of the lounge chairs still stacked up neatly along the fence… except for 1 lone lounge chair sitting by itself facing the sun with the best side table right next to it. I have been sneaking into the pool area several times a week and sitting next to the waterless hole in the ground enjoying the sun.
Not much of a summer vacation.
Or is it?
We as Americans are terrible at resting! We have a built in “I must appear busy to the world!” attitude that doesn’t serve us long-term. Just ask the authors of this article on how to build a rest ethic: https://www.fastcompany.com/90515476/how-to-build-a-rest-ethic-that-is-as-strong-as-your-work-one
Taking pockets of time to rest and play is equally as important as working hard. You don’t have to have an exotic vacation to rest and feel rejuvenated. Take a drive. Walk your neighborhood and pretend that you have never been there before. What or who do you see? Sit on your patio and yell across the street to your neighbor. Unplug.
Or you can sneak into your neighborhood water-less pool and work on your tan.
And it is a GREAT tan!
by Beth | Dec 11, 2019 | Company Culture, Leadership, Lifestyle
A few weeks ago, I had lunch with a retired consultant who had been a big wig at Sears in the 1980’s. Back then, Sears was in its hey-day and was worth about 6 billion as a company. I asked this gentleman what he thought made them so successful back then. His response really surprised me. “The CEO had a full time ‘Atta-Boy’ Girl.’
Ummm… what?
The CEO at the time instructed his personal assistant to start looking for people in the company who had done good work, because he wanted to promote great customer service in Sears. She began soliciting the stores to communicate with her stories of people who had gone above and beyond the standard to provide great customer service. Then, the CEO would write a personalized, hand-written thank you note. Eventually her job as the ‘Atta-Boy Girl’ became a full-time job. She would hear about these stories, type up the note, and every day at 4:30, she would take these letters to the CEO, he would read them, sign his name to them, and she would send them out.
Can you imagine what commitment it took for him to do that? Can you imagine what impact that made? Sears ultimately replaced that CEO with another who was not committed to the thank you letter writing campaign and look at their current status. Coincidence?
During the holiday season, during the time of gratitude and gratefulness, If you want to improve your company culture, start with a simple thank you, and grow it to needing a full-time ‘Atta Boy Girl’/ ‘Atta Girl Boy’/whatever.
There is quite simply no better use of your time.
by Beth | Aug 14, 2019 | Good Management, Leadership, Lifestyle
This year, I’m taking two weeks off work to move my daughter to college. While this brings about a mix of emotions for my family, I know how important it is for me to be there with her to start her journey as a college student. It brings up an important topic that I preach to my clients often – everyone needs time away from work, whether it be for important milestones in their personal lives, or for a vacation that allows them time to rejuvenate, recuperate, and come back to work in a better place!
The fact remains that people need time away from work, even when you own the company, like me. Some of my clients get really excited when a candidate will tell us in an interview that they NEVER take vacations. I actually think that this is a negative. Inspiration rarely comes to someone sitting in their office answering emails. Inspiration comes from experiences and usually those come after office hours.
As a nation, we are not good at taking vacation anyway. We feel that we can’t get away, we can’t unplug or we might miss something. I think we miss things when we DON’T take time off.
So, when your employees want to take vacation time, praise them for it. Say thank you. Then ask them what you can do to help facilitate their vacation time so they are not performing work while away. Not only will they think that you are the greatest boss ever, but they will come back recharged, renewed and inspired. Your business will benefit, and therefore, so will you. Maybe then you can take some time off too.
I will be back in the saddle soon enough, grateful I took the time to be with my daughter on her journey to college, and ready to tackle work with renewed energy and vision. And, with any luck, I will have that killer tan!
by Beth | Oct 17, 2016 | Attitude, Lifestyle
For various reasons, I have driven across Kansas several times in the last 3 months. Holy cow, is it boring! Driving east from Colorado on I-70, you soon find yourself with very little to see and even less to do. By the time you get to Hays, Kansas, your entertainment options are limited to the barrage of billboards near the highway or one of the three radio stations within range (two religious and one that plays both kinds of music: country AND western). You are talked out, tired and sick of reading. Internet connection is iffy (at best). There is nothing to see but fields and fields of various grains. You change lanes merely because you need a change of scenery. You contemplate the meaning of “Rock Chalk Jay Hawk”.
You become bored.
And then… something miraculous happens.
Just about the time that I think I am going to pull my hair out one strand at a time, I get an idea. I solve a problem that I have been working on forever or I have a flash of insight into a situation I’ve been frustrated by. I am suddenly inspired about what to do next, and I spend the rest of the trip fleshing out that idea or inspiration.
It. Happens. Every. Time.
In the age of digital media, we don’t allow ourselves to get bored. It’s too easy to distract ourselves with endless TV shows, multiple social media platforms and an infinite number of ways to play solitaire. But we need to be bored: out of boredom comes creativity! When we empty our brains of all our obligations, work, home, family… then and only then are our minds free to move creatively.
The next time you have a problem to solve, drive across Kansas. Leave your phone / TV / computer off for a whole day. Stare at corn fields. Think about the meaning of “Rock Chalk Jay Hawk”. Think about billboards. Think about nothing.
(And if you happen to figure out the whole “Rock Chalk Jay Hawk” thing, come explain it to me when you do.)
Cheers!
