Many of us are seeing cuts where we never thought we would. People are losing their jobs. GM is breaking apart, Chrysler in bankruptcy, Ford still struggling. Banks trying to raise money, credit card companies raising interest rates on people with good credit.

The game has become challenging. For some, going to work has become a anxiety-filled part of life. No one really knows what lies around the corner. It has become hard to to predict the market, even based on historical trends.

Despite all of the uncertainty, we must learn to choose our attitude. I admit this has been a struggle for me over the past year. But after months of riding the roller coaster, I decided that it was time to restore my optimism.

I discovered that the security we all felt back a year or two ago was just an illusion. This illusion was revealed last September when Wall Street started its meltdown. We all could be optimistic when the DOW was breaking records and our 401ks were up 30% in a year.

If I could be optimistic while living through an economic bubble, why should I not be optimistic during a realistic correction in our entire economy? Although reality is not pretty, it is not an illusion.

So, today I chose my attitude by updating my status on FaceBook as “optimistic.” I love the snarky remarks I am getting from people. Maybe I will even “tweet” some optimism on Twitter.

If I do not concentrate on the opportunities ahead, I will get stuck in the present. That is not a place where I want to stay.

The economy has everyone concerned.

The other day, a friend of mine told me that their office got rid of their Starbucks coffee and replaced it with a cheaper brand. The intention was good - they wanted to save money.

We all need to watch what we spend. I always say spend the company’s money as if it were your own.

The more I thought about this though, the more I realized that we may be contributing to the economic downturn without even realizing it. The example of eliminating Starbucks seems like a small thing, doesn’t it?

On Wednesday, I read that Starbucks had missed their numbers by 69% and they were laying off over 6000 people.

In a very small way, a cost saving measure for one company contributes to the economic pain for another.

Have a great weekend and don’t forget to drop by your local Starbucks and have a cup.

Patrick uses a fable to teach about teams and how critical they are to the success of an organization. Most of us tend to prioritize other things higher than investing in creating a highly effective and functional team. It is not as visible as a million dollar sale or software release.

I won’t spoil the story for those of you who have not read the book, but I want to highlight one particular part that I think is poignant.

Patrick introduces the characters of his story one by one and just briefly describes their strengths and weaknesses. Jeff, the 37 year old CEO is asked to step down and accept a demotion. His replacement: a retired woman, Kathryn, who is described as a surprise pick hand-selected by a board member who had a hunch she was the one to get this fictitious company back on its feet again.

Martin, the chief engineer sends an email out to the executive leadership announcing a potential great sales opportunity. The problem: Kathyrn, the new CEO had already scheduled a leadership executive retreat in Napa Valley during the week that the potential customer wanted to meet with them.

Go after the sale right? This company is losing money and is in jeopardy of failing. They need the money. How can they go to Napa and potentially lose this sale?

Kathryn, the new CEO asks them to reschedule after several attempts by Martin and the ex-CEO, Jeff to miss the first day of the retreat.

Bottom line: Kathryn feels that building the team is more important than running after the sale. She suggests they schedule a meeting with the company a week later.

This is an incredible message to this dysfunctional executive team. If they do not learn how to work effectively and functionally, great sales are not likely to keep them from ultimately failing as a company.

This reminded me of Circuit City. Everyone is saying, “Look what the downturn of the economy has done to the #2 electronics retailer.” Circuit City declared bankruptcy and then weeks later, was forced to close the remaining 567 stores.

Why?

The company didn’t have a Kathyrn I bet. Critics have declared that Circuit City has been mismanaged for years. One critic, George Whalin, president and CEO of Retail Management Consultants said the company had made massive management mistakes.

Lack of leadership and an effective management team cost 34,000 people their jobs.

I’ll be posting more about this issue over the next several weeks.

These goals need to be:

• Achievable
• Something you are passionate about
• Measurable

What do you really want to accomplish in 2009? Maybe it was something you did not achieve in 2008. Don’t let unmet goals from the past keep you from reaching them in the future.

You should be passionate about these goals. Examples of goals that do not qualify:

“Going to keep the garage clean this year.”

“Will call my mother more this year.”

“Will be less grumpy.”

These are worthy goals, but probably not ones that really get you fired up.

Pick three goals that you can measure and say “yeah, accomplished that one!”

So here are my three goals for 2009:

1. Finish my children’s picture book and start to shop it around.

2. Finish my options trading training and trade and make some money in the market in 2009!

3. Take a great vacation with the family somewhere.

My first goal is something that I have been giving birth to for about a year now. I have a very rough draft and now I need to fine tune and get it ready for publishers. It is a tough market, but noting ventured, nothing gained.

My second goal is not to get back the money I lost in the market this year (although that would be fantastic). This is something that I have wanted to do for three years now. If there is one thing that the market of 2008 has shown me is to take investing into my own hands. My mutual fund manager hasn’t done it for me. I love to trade stocks and I want to do it like some of my financially smarter friends.

My third goal is one that I am deeply passionate about. You may think that it is hardly a goal. However, in this economic climate, spending money on a nice family vacation is something I have had to think twice about. I have not renewed the lease on our condo at the beach this year. Maybe we will end up back at the beach, or maybe somewhere completely different. My goal is to have a blast with the wonderful family God has blessed me with.

Happy New Year!

Forget about the housing market.

Forget about the auto industry woes.

Forget about the bailouts.

Forget about the stock market.

Forget about retail sales.

Forget about the stress at work.

Forget about it all.

It is Christmas, time to pause and think about all we have to be thankful for.

Have a Merry Christmas!!!

None of us should assume our jobs are secure. Now is the time to be proactive and think outside of the box. Here are some thoughts that we all have from time to time, but could prove lethal in hard economic times:

 - My department is not responsible for that.

 - That is not something I am responsible for.

 - I can’t change that, it is too political.

 - What can I do about that?

 - I don’t have the time.

 - Let them fix their own problem.

 - My customer is too demanding.

Get the picture?

When times get tough, collaboration should be part of culture. If not, there will be trouble ahead. The businesses that ride through the storm with their assets (their people) still intact, will be positioned far ahead of their competition.

Now is the time to position yourself for the incredible opportunity that lies ahead.

“Currently I work half time and am paid on an hourly basis.  Because I
am required to cover other employee’s absences, I earned approximately
25% more than I would if I kept to the hours for which I was hired.

I can see that this will require many more hours for much less pay. Am
I required to accept this change, even though it is greatly to my
disadvantage?”


If this reader had a legitimate HR department which is doubtful, he should blow the whistle on the clock out requests. The reader is non-exempt and is paid hourly. That means every hour he works he gets paid. If he works more than 40 actual hours, then he gets overtime.

When this reader is converted to an exempt employee, he correct in assuming that it will be to his disadvantage based on his history.

Again, I can’t stress this enough. If there is a good solid HR department, the abuse should be reported.

“Lay-offs mount”

“November: Most jobs lost in 34 years”

“11 month decline hits 1.9 million”

“Lower mortgage rates no silver bullet”

“Investors drain $12 billion from mutual funds”

“More say recession is serious”

The economy is not good and we now know that we are in a recession and have been in one for a year. Not sure why it took us a year to realize that, but nonetheless we are in one.

The press really feeds on bad news and they have a way to really make it seem worse. The press is really de”press”ing. I think I am going to stop ready the headlines. It is not a great way to start the day.

It is Friday and I am thankful for all that I have. I am also feeling the pain of all of those who are walking into work and walking out with boxes and a little severance.

I think I will start posting about successes that are actually happening now in the midst of all the doom and gloom. There are those who are convinced we are headed into depression. If we keep feeding ourselves with the negativity that the press is dishing out, I am sure we can make it a self-fulfilled prophecy.

I am not sure, but my posting has become more sporadic. Things have been busy on many fronts, and so posting has been pushed under the radar.

I have thought a lot about what I should do with this blog over the last six months. When I started this three years ago, my goal was simple. I wanted to create a place where people could turn for help when they have been mismanaged. There are a lot of websites dedicated to management and leadership, but I did not see many dedicated to helping those who are either under-managed or over-managed.

So, my first topic was micromanagement and my views on that issue caught the attention of the syndicated columnist Joyce Kennedy. She called me up and said, “I love what you had to say on this topic and I want to share it with my readers.” My 5 points on micromanagement appeared in over a hundred newspapers across the country.

I was interviewed and quoted in Fortune Small Business (CNNMoney.com), have done several interviews for public radio, was approached by NPR “All Things Considered.” It is interesting how a small piece of real estate in the virtual world can connect you to mainstream media.

I am not satisfied though. I do not feel like I am really making much of a difference.

There are millions of voices in the great chaotic world wide web - all striving to be heard. Most of it, this site included, could be considered noise. The signal to noise ratio is getting worse on the internet. I think Google is getting worse at presenting the most relevant results because it is getting hard to find the signal.

Until I fine tune my voice, my posting will be spotty at best. If you have a topic that you want me to write about, send me an email.

As always, I am open to suggestions.

Have a great week.

If you have never read the book “Working With Emotional Intelligence” by Daniel Goleman, you should pick up a copy. This book belongs in your library. When I am mentoring new managers, this is a “must” read.

What is emotional intelligence?

It is:

- managing feelings so that they are expressed appropriately and effectively

- learning how to handle emotions and impulses in a mature way

- learning open communication that is effective

There are five elements:

1. self-awareness

2. motivation

3. self-regulation

4. empathy

5. adeptness in relationships (social skills)

Here are few things that Daniel Goleman taught me:

1. IQ has zero or even a negative correlation to someone’s eventual career success.

2. Expertise is a baseline measurement for competence. How you do your job and other competencies that you bring to your expertise determines performance.

3. Emotional intelligence skills are synergistic with cognitive ones in that top performers have both.

4. The reason why people do not reach their full potential is emotional incompetence.

5. The most convincing and powerful arguments speak to the heart as well as the head.

6. If someone is deficient in social skills, they will be inept as persuading and inspiring others.

7. If someone has little self-awareness, they will be oblivious to their own weaknesses and lack self-confidence that comes from certainty about their strengths.

I checked Amazon.com  and you can pick up a copy of the 2000 edition for $12. That is a phenomenal return on investment.