Let's Work Together to Make Workplaces Better

?? I’ve Been Thinking…

…about good habits. I recently read Atomic Habits and have been integrating new habits into my life one at a time. Walking every day was the first one, now I’m into movement with weights each day. Next up is tai chi. I like this approach, it’s working– success is breeding success. ??

Atomic Habits can be applied to your workplace too. When you’re guiding your workplace culture to more respectful behaviors, it’s best to tackle one challenge or one aspect of a bigger challenge at a time. This will make the better behavior a habit, so you can build on that win as you move forward.

?? Stories to Help You Drive Change

Here are my shares for this week:

SPECIAL NOTE: If you hit a paywall on any of the stories I share, go to Google Search, enter the name of the publication and something about the story (author, title, subject) to get a natural search link that usually by-passes the pay wall. And hey, if you like the publication, consider subscribing to it—that’s how they keep the good info rolling! I’m hearing some paywalls are impenetrable, so for pubs like The Wall Street Journal and the NY Times, I’ll share a bit more here for those of you without subscriptions.

• Companies may think layoffs are the answer, but they seldom factor the long-term impact on the morale, engagement, and loyalty of employees who remain. A new study of 146 companies that experienced layoffs between March 2020 and November 2022 shows the repercussions. The researchers expanded their work to look at the effects on companies that had layoffs in 2023 and found the negative impacts were even greater. This link should get you the entire article and the audio file, too. You won’t want to miss this; it includes tips on how to humanize layoffs when they are your only option.

• Decision fatigue is real, and its effects may surprise you. A Stanford Graduate School of Business professor’s case study revealed that court judges were more apt to grant parole to people earlier in the day than those they saw–for identical crimes–later in the day. Judges tended to parole 70% of the people earlier in the day versus 10% in the late afternoon! Now that I have your attention, read about how decision fatigue affects you and your team and how you can counteract it.

• I don’t know anyone who likes to micromanage or who likes being micromanaged. But this simple graph explains why sometimes a manager feels the need to stay close. It’s about their perception of the skills and the internal drive of the person they’re managing. What do you think of this simplification?

• Maybe this experiment on victim mindset can help someone you know who is stuck in victim mode.

• Remember the walk you took last week? The benefits can last well into the next week according to research shared by Good News Network. Learn about those lasting boosts.

• In a move to increase awareness of the challenges in-store employees face, Home Depot is requiring all corporate staff to work one 8-hour shift per quarter in one of its retail locations.

• Speaking of increasing awareness, our intention and reflection journal is designed for helping you raise and your co-workers to raise your awareness of yourselves and others to improve your workplace culture. It’s free, it’s digital, it’s downloadable and it’s right here.

?? Do Good Spotlight: The Wayback Machine

This nonprofit is building a digital library of internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. It’s fabulous when you need to reference an older version of a website. The kicker is that they allow you to do it for free. See more about what they do and how you can help: The Wayback Machine.

?? Noteworthy: Quick Study

I just love the genius of this strategy company, Quick Study. They’ve taken complex, time-consuming processes for brand relaunches and product introductions and streamlined them–without sacrificing results. In only 6 weeks, they will audit existing research, conduct additional research, home in on the brand story your audiences need to hear now, and develop a game plan for your marketing/creative agencies to execute.

Just 2 years old, with years of big agency experience as their foundation, Quick Study is already earning repeat business from clients including Major League Soccer, Keurig, Adidas, GoDaddy, and more.

If you can’t waste time or money experimenting with what messages your audience needs to hear to get the sales you brand deserves, a conversation with Quick Study should be next on your “to do” list.

?? On a Personal Note

Every year, my daughter chides me for being so vocal about it getting darker sooner. I think there’s a part of me that secretly hopes somehow the light of day will last longer. But there’s a cycle to everything and joy to be found in it all, so I guess it’s time to make a pot of chili, grab some blankets, and invite a few people over to hang out around the fire pit. And for some reason, this year more so than usual, I’m remembering my mom on her birthday and hoping she’s got the love and peace she deserves.

?Until Next Time…

When was the last time you spent a few hours with a really good friend. In person. Just the two of you? Might I suggest you do it again, soon. One of the most therapeutic things you can do for your self-care, and they will love it too!

Enjoy the rest of the week and the weekend too!

Niki