tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32743567494894025712011-07-07T22:56:07.336-07:00Straight Talk focuses on the UPwords Inc "tell it like it is" perspective on various people and business topics, including: leadership; motivation; talent acquisition; talent management; communication; development; advancement; best practices; and success factors.UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-54542675063827466842010-07-07T07:58:00.000-07:002010-07-07T08:18:17.819-07:002010-07-07T08:18:17.819-07:00

Over the years, I have worked with many professionals hoping to advance their careers, and it has been extremely interesting to see the thought process behind "the job search". Less tenured candidates are more likely to jump at the first opportunity that sounds mildly interesting and meets their financial expectations. As candidates "mature" (I use that term ever so affectionately), they start to

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-37684020961409348672010-05-22T06:28:00.000-07:002010-05-22T06:35:05.545-07:002010-05-22T06:35:05.545-07:00

This past week, I was invited to present a networking segment at the InForum meeting (click here for the InForum website). The energy was palpable as 200+ women (and a few men!) gathered for the "Good Morning Inforum!" event. I have to say, I was quite impressed by the turnout. Everyone was there to network - to talk about networking, to learn more about networking, to practice networking, TO

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-57131970831095043712010-04-27T09:09:00.000-07:002010-04-28T06:49:44.906-07:002010-04-28T06:49:44.906-07:00

As I work with business leaders, I am always trying (I say trying because the stack of books is very tall!) to stay on top of current business theories and books. A couple of topics that are extremely motivating to me are "Motivation" and "Engagement". So I was very excited to pick up Daniel Pink's newest book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us!! Based on the evidence he offers

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-91274459445598404592010-03-30T14:50:00.000-07:002010-03-30T14:50:52.646-07:002010-03-30T14:50:52.646-07:00

I have the good fortune of meeting with business leaders to discuss the health, or unhealth, of their companies. Very often - very often, when asked about the source of their problems, leaders point "down". The problems are happening down below, in the rank and file....or so they say. And, most leaders are really frustrated with the discord - can't people just get along?! Well, here's the thing..

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-9347096700279578372010-03-14T17:14:00.000-07:002010-03-14T17:14:31.870-07:002010-03-14T17:14:31.870-07:00

Have you ever been in a meeting, let's say an all-day retreat or planning session, where you've thrown out what you thought was a really great idea, an insightful, brilliant comment, and rather than the "hurrah's" and "high-fives" you were expecting, you were met with icy glares from your peers...as if you were speaking out of the mouth centered in middle of your alien-forehead? Then hours later,

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-17324177154926557352010-02-18T09:48:00.000-08:002010-02-18T09:48:35.203-08:002010-02-18T09:48:35.203-08:00

Have you ever been SO engrossed in your own fury, your own irritation regarding a situation, YOUR OWN REACTION, that your perception got distorted? Your perception changes the way you are able to deal with the way things really are. Maybe one of these situations has sparked a reaction in you: the doors to the plane close just as you are running toward the gate; it rains on your trip to Sedona...

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-82036751043888891172010-01-29T10:23:00.001-08:002010-02-14T20:17:19.962-08:002010-02-14T20:17:19.962-08:00

Recently I was invited to be a guest speaker for a college undergrad senior class. The topic was recruiting. The class was engaged and asked a lot of great questions - very fun.  I had two interesting take-aways...This "opportunity" re-affirmed my direction on experiential-learning, or action-learning. I was hoping to help the class better understand the intricacies and nuances of the recruiting

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-8431192157561902642010-01-18T09:35:00.000-08:002010-01-18T09:35:47.275-08:002010-01-18T09:35:47.275-08:00

As I am an avid reader, a friend and colleague just recommended a book to me - Dare to Prepare by Ron Shapiro. Interesting title, so I checked it out on-line and found numerous 5-star ratings...which prompted me to pick up the phone, call him back, and enter into a conversation about the topic of "preparation"....  Now we didn't solve the world's problems, but it did get me thinking about

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-31260339665015197112010-01-04T09:38:00.000-08:002010-01-04T10:10:10.102-08:002010-01-04T10:10:10.102-08:00

Happy New Year! I don't know about you, but I am thrilled to see 2009 in my rear-view mirror - bring it on 2010!! ...and it seems many people share the sentiment! 2009 was an exhausting year....for me anyway. We made it - and for that I am grateful. As many people in our industry struggled to cross the finish line, the new year couldn't come fast enough. Well, it's a new year and a new race.

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-36142274546239437832009-12-11T18:12:00.000-08:002009-12-11T18:12:41.880-08:002009-12-11T18:12:41.880-08:00

Way back in my Xerox days I remember one of our high-ranking leaders telling us we wouldn't be able to score A's in all categories of our lives. "You can get 2 A's and a C, or all B's, but you can't get A's across the board." This was especially disheartening given we were a group of self-motivated, high achievers. Of course, we were ambitious and idealistic and thought "Well, maybe she can't,

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-84646660932183992442009-12-01T11:31:00.000-08:002009-12-01T11:34:42.954-08:002009-12-01T11:34:42.954-08:00

Our local High School won their 4th consecutive state football championship Thanksgiving weekend (Go EGR Pioneers!). As we were watching a recording of the game the next day, I was noticing how much bigger the opponents players were...and how fast their offensive line was, so I asked my husband, "their players are so much bigger, their Running Back is so fast, why do you think we won? What was

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-50047251435719783962009-11-06T09:50:00.000-08:002009-11-06T10:50:20.566-08:002009-11-06T10:50:20.566-08:00

One of my clients suffered a devastating loss last week - a house fire. Yes, the family is safe. A few personal items were salvaged...but most of the house has been gutted. The furniture is gone, as is the roof over their heads. Unimaginable!!! I got a call from her yesterday and I was so inspired by her attitude! She has chosen to handle the situation by not focusing on the uncontrollable

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3274356749489402571.post-85892905763324110592009-10-28T07:33:00.000-07:002009-10-30T13:10:59.233-07:002009-10-30T13:10:59.233-07:00

I recently facilitated a Conflict Resolution workshop for a U of M department's annual retreat (post doc program). This was a very activity-based program, and one of the exercise outcomes literally left me speechless (if you know me at all, this does not happen very often!). Some of the learning elements from this exercise are trust, leadership, and the one I was working toward at this particular

UPwords Inc. - Heidihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03870392295736753068noreply@blogger.com0