This Week's Fuel for Better Workplaces

?? I’ve Been Thinking…

…about being at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Cleveland Saturday evening. My husband is a super fan of Dave Matthews, so we got lucky with some great tickets. (No, not in the VIP section. I didn’t rub elbows with Ozzie Osborne, but good seats nonetheless.)

My mind keeps circling back to the acceptance speeches. Most of them contained messaging around never quitting, coming back from falls, and believing in themselves when no one else did. Each inductee had something powerful to say and I am grateful to have heard them in person. It was special. Also, kick-ass concert, one long, eclectic playlist all night (5.5 hours)!

How are you writing your own history? How are you chronicling the tough times and how you managed through them? Sometimes I like to pretend my 16-year-old self is asking the current me questions about how “we” got from there to here. It’s amusing, it’s also inspiring in a funny way. Because through it all, I learned to learn from every experience and that has gotten me through a lot. A. Lot.

What kind of questions does your 16-year-old self have for you, and, perhaps more importantly, what are you telling them?

?? 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.

• It’s an understatement to say there’s a lot at stake about getting AI right. It would be wonderful if we learned from our collective mistakes with social media and applied our learnings to AI. Social media was a playground compared to what’s at stake with AI. So I want to share this NY Times opinion piece by Andrew Kassoy. As a co-founder and co-chair of B Lab , the nonprofit that oversees B Corp certification, he helped write and advocate benefit corporation legislation. He doesn’t think OpenAI is going far enough pledging to be a benefit corporation . Please take a read and let me know what you think.

• Why is motivation at a crisis point in the workplace? Business writer and entrepreneur Joe Procopio has perspectives to share about workplace toxicity and its effect on workplace motivation. Workplace toxicity is one of the things we’re working hard to eradicate, so I’m sharing his POV with you. It’s a Medium member only story, but this link should get you the whole article .

• Grind culture has got to stop . How? Here are some tips from Tristan Handy for Fast Company.

• Yes! Bonobos co-founder Andy Dunn, who has been open about his mental health challenges, shares why he thinks therapists can be valued resources for business owners . I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: therapy is awesome self-care, and the time to take advantage of its benefits is before you need them. This goes for everyone—the world is tough—be tougher. Rise above, embrace kindness, spread strength. Doing this every day takes a healthy perspective. Build one.

• How much is $100 worth in your state? Find out here .

• What are leaders getting wrong with RTO mandates supposedly based on the need for in-person connectivity? This Harvard Business Review article talks about the 4 kinds of workplace connections: employee connections with their colleagues, leader, employer, and role… acronym alert! CLEAR

?? Hey, What’s This?!?

It’s a page from our Kinder Workplace Planner and Reflection Journal! There are 52 weeks of prompts like this. You plan ahead for being intentional about self awareness and your impact on others and at the end of each week, you reflect on what transpired. Powerful stuff, designed to help you bring your best self every day. Oh, and it’s free, so download here .

This week’s prompt is: How can you be more cognizant of what’s happening with your team members inside and outside of work? (Ex: show more understanding, listen more, exude more patience)? Write 2-3 ways you can incorporate this intention this week.

Our interpretation: Did someone mention their mom has been ill? Is a new assignment from the boss stressing out one of your colleagues? Is someone on your team nervous about their new dog sitter? By being tuned into others, we can more easily identify ways to help them, even if indirectly. For the last colleague mentioned, you might share an article with questions to ask dog sitters to show you’re listening to and caring about them.

Download the Journal

?? Do Good Spotlight: Sightsavers

Sightsavers’ vision is “a world where no one is blind from avoidable causes and where people with disabilities can participate equally in society.” This organization works in 30+ countries treating eye conditions like cataracts, improving local health and wellness services, and advocating for the rights of people with disabilities. Learn more about them and how you can help: Sightsavers .

?? Noteworthy: Crayola Flowers

This is exactly the kind of company I love featuring in my “Noteworthy” section: Crayola Flowers . Sure, they allow you to purchase and send flowers, but they are so much more. In truth, there’s a lot to unpack as you move through their website. You’ll find yourself trying to put them in a bucket, and they’ll keep popping out. They also help create fundraisers. And they only work with growers who provide their employees and families with fair wages, healthcare services, and a safe work environment. Seriously, just click over to their website and feel the smile grow on your face. Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about!

?? On a Personal Note

I mentioned the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony earlier. We also went to the museum Saturday morning. It was filled with exhibits of legendary musicians, many of which featured their stage wear. My biggest takeaway? OMG, so many of these performers are/were tiny! The outfits were almost all size 0-5. Seriously. So of course I’m wondering about the correlation between performers and height. I also may be influenced by my daughter, who is a performer and who is just shy of 5’ (in height, not personality… BIG personality). ??

?Until Next Time…

Wishing you a wonderful weekend, I hope you find time to refresh and recharge.

Niki