Soft skills. It’s a term you’ve probably heard before. From executives and consultants, to Seth Godin and Inc Magazine, people are talking about the importance of soft skills so much it feels like a new diet craze.

However, when you take some time to investigate, it becomes clear that “soft skills” just means “likeable”, “conscientious”, or “admirable”. It’s a broad term used to describe almost all non-technical skills.

A consistent training regimen is important for you and your team. Effective training provides new hires and existing employees with the skills and knowledge they need to not only do their job but improve their performance. However, like many companies, you may not be sure how to train your employees, when to train them, and when to retrain them on previous skills.

One of the famous sayings of American author Edwin Louis Cole is, “You don't drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there.”

Where are you underwater?

Some of the definitions for “treadmill” on Dictionary.com is:  “an exercise machine…. (or) any monotonous, wearisome routine...”

Do you have time each day, or an entire daily routine, that feels like you’re on a treadmill?

Just when you thought employee engagement could not get worse…  it has.

Previously it was believed the average number of employees who are fully engaged was 18-20%.  That left 80-82% less engaged or totally disengaged.

It is simple.  The best people are not looking for work.  They are fully employed and succeeding elsewhere.

However, these passive candidates are often the best people to hire.  How do you reach them?

Most organizations do not regularly recognize employees for their contributions.  Others do minimum recognition.  However, one rapidly growing IT managed services provider does minion recognition.

More on that in a moment…

Lincoln’s presidential nomination at the Republican party convention in 1860 took many by surprise, including his three primary rivals at that convention: William H. Seward, Edward Bates, and Salmon P. Chase.

The country lawyer and failed senate candidate did not have the pedigree of other candidates. However, he also didn’t have their political baggage.

Psychology Today reports that more than 80% of lies go undetected. 

Lie to Me was a TV show that ran from 2009-2011.It was based on the work of Paul Ekman, an expert in lie detection.According to the producers of the television show…

I was driving the other day and was struck by a number of toxic behaviors our Clients are experiencing in leaders and staff.  This inspired me to write again about narcissism and similar behaviors. When you catch someone behaving disrespectfully or unethically, realize it is much worse than that one instance. You have to take action…

The last time you made a mistake, did you blame someone else?

There have been a few times when one of my Clients’ employees have not liked something that their boss did, and then just did not show-up at work the next day.  They called-in “sick” and blamed their boss rather than own the fact their behavior is wrong…

Let’s cut to the chase: It is completely legal to use a personality assessment in your hiring process as long as it is not the sole basis for evaluating the candidate.

Satisfied? Get back to work! For the rest of you, read on.

How can you combine team bonding, education, and training?

And laughs?  Lots of laughs!

Ryan McFarland, Service Desk Manager at vertikal6 has a solution.

One of my goals for this year is to automate as many things as possible at Manage 2 Win. In the past we have been bogged down with so many manual tasks it has been difficult to actually focus on work that matters most.

Emailing emailing each newsletter and podcast episode. Changing customer credit card information over the phone. Manually requesting information for talent assessments. What a waste of time!

“If I knew what to do, then I would do it.”

Have you ever said this?

How long have these words delayed action, or tough decisions?  How many times have you hurt someone by postponing?  How much time have you lost?  How many opportunities missed?

Are your days overflowing with firefighting, reacting to interruptions, and a lot of drama?

… As Charlie Brown would say, “AAUGH!”

When our lives are like this, time passes quickly.  Opportunities are lost.

About two years ago my beloved Mazda Tribute was fading fast. The transmission was clunky at best, and the engine ran super rough. It sounded like the automobile version of strep throat.

It was time for a new car.

After a lot of thought and effort, we have changed our name to Manage 2 Win. It is a slight change, perhaps insignificant to you, but it means a lot to us.

We wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your business, your support, and your friendship.

Last year I read 13 books. It was the first year in which I kept track of the books I read. I stacked each one on top of my Ikea Kallax 4x4 shelf until all of them together created an unstable tower of literature by December 31st (ok fine, not that big of a tower, not that unstable).

This year one of my goals is to…

Last year you were unable to live some of your dreams. 

Hopefully you are thankful for what you were able to achieve.  No disappointment should block out the joy of sincere gratitude for what you have.

However, how can we improve our game this year?

Here is an option for you.