For employees to become fully engaged, they need to know that the person they report to directly cares about them as a human being, and not just as a cog in their system. 

Listening so people feel respected, showing up non-defensively, controlling our emotional impulses and owning our mistakes – these skills are vital to the health of our relationships.

Any time a group of research subjects are asked what they want or need from their manager/boss at work, some version of “caring and respect” usually comes out on top.

One of the only contexts in which we as adults consciously enter into relationships characterized by actual “authority” (where one person is “superior” to the other in rank and decision-making control) is at work.

When someone is in relationship with someone else who has power over them AND that person believes that the more powerful person doesn’t really care about them…well, that’s (literally) scary.

Morale isn’t the only thing that matters in the workplace, but here’s the bottom line: If employees aren’t “volunteering” their hearts and minds – if they’re just showing up to get a paycheck – you’ll never get the things you really want.

Tact does not always make its way into corporate e-mail, and what may seem like an innocent announcement from your perspective could be a morale-crushing message to the people on the other end.

Most effective in motivating employees aren't rewards or compensations made by the company at-large, but rather encouragement and recognition initiated by managers or supervisors.  

We often find that agencies that have experienced positive culture change attribute a large part of their success to the fact that every employee is regularly meeting with his/her direct supervisor.

There is a style of management that can better guide and encourage people to successfully and efficiently perform their jobs: MACRO-managing.

Being aware of your company or organization's culture is the first step to bringing about effective and long-lasting change, and building a healthier and happier work family.

We're sitting on a planet spinning around in the middle of absolutely nowhere, and our time here is SO brief. The least we can do for ourselves, for others and for the world is find the beauty and the richness and the pleasure in the dailyness of life.

Does an “Open Door Policy" mean that your boss’s door is literally always open and that you're always welcome to interrupt whatever she's doing at any time?

Create this simple 15 item survey (plus two "narrative questions" at the end), distribute it to your employees, and find out where you're strong and where you might need some attention in terms of these research-based "big bang for the buck" management skills.