Continuing Education for Technical Professionals

   THE LEARNING PROFESSIONAL

           Project Performance and Career Advancement Tips

                                                                                                      Volume 4, Issue 5

In This Issue:

AuxTips^TM

You Can't Motivate Employees

Second of a three part series by Susan de la Vergne.

Featured Seminar

Fostering Commitment in the Workplace

The Negotiation Mentor

Tips from Preston Michie about connecting before negotiating.

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AuxTips^TM

Quick tips you can start implementing immediately.

Too much work?  Not enough time?  Multiple #1 priorities?  You're not alone.  Managing many priorities requires making the best use of your time, but more importantly, not wasting your most productive hours of the day.  Make sure you understand when you're most productive (for most people between 10:00 a.m. and noon) and schedule your most difficult (not most urgent) tasks during the time of day when your mental skills are at their peak.

You Can't Motivate Employees!

Part 2 of a 3 part series - Leadership

by Susan de la Vergne                                       Read Full Text

Now, Where Were We?

For those of you who missed part 1 of this series, let me summarize where we were:

You can’t motivate employees. Employees motivate themselves. You can, however, create the best conditions under which they do so.

Last time, we talked about how finding a sense of purpose in the work goes a long way towards fostering enthusiasm for the job. An employee who’s blasé about the job isn’t motivated, so keeping focus on what the workplace contributes to the world – purpose beyond profit – is essential.

As Bill George said in Authentic Leadership, “You cannot inspire employees by urging them to … get the company’s stock price up.” It’s about more than money; it’s about meaning.

But beyond that, creating a workplace where people are engaged and enthusiastic also needs inspired leadership. It’s an important influence that looks like this: Competent, trustworthy, genuine, conscientious innovators who are glad to be on the job.

Using Power Well

Let’s start by examining a formidable force in management circles: Positional power, also known as “authority.” The generally accepted paradigm is that people in management call shots because they’re in positions of authority. They have, then, positional power, power they’re awarded because of their position.

Click here to read the complete article.

Featured Seminar

Fostering Commitment in the Workplace

This class helps to create the best conditions under which people find their own motivation on the job.  This isn’t a class about “how to motivate employees” because, frankly, it’s not possible.  People motivate themselves.  We explore the elements of the work environment – organizational culture, sense of purpose and the role of leadership - that help people find their own inspiration for the jobs they do.  And we discuss the practical things leaders can do every day to assess commitment and adjust the work environment to best ensure productive, engaged employees who are enthusiastic about what they do.