by : In the News Attorney Articles, Attorney Jobs, Lawyer Articles, Lawyer Jobs, Legal Careers, Legal Recruiting

14 Things Ridiculously Successful People Do Every Day

By:  Travis Bradberry

Having close access to ultra-successful people can yield some pretty incredible information about who they really are, what makes them tick, and, most importantly, what makes them so successful and productive.

“Whenever you see a successful person, you only see the public glories, never the private sacrifices to reach them.” –Vaibhav Shah

Kevin Kruse is one such person. He recently interviewed over 200 ultra-successful people, including 7 billionaires, 13 Olympians, and a host of accomplished entrepreneurs. One of his most revealing sources of information came from their answers to a simple open-ended question:

“What is your number one secret to productivity?”

In analyzing their responses, Kruse coded the answers to yield some fascinating suggestions. What follows are some of my favorites from Kevin’s findings.

1. They focus on minutes, not hours.

Most people default to hour and half-hour blocks on their calendar; highly successful people know that there are 1,440 minutes in every day and that there is nothing more valuable than time. Money can be lost and made again, but time spent can never be reclaimed. As legendary Olympic gymnast Shannon Miller told Kevin, “To this day, I keep a schedule that is almost minute by minute.” You must master your minutes to master your life.

2. They focus on only one thing.

Ultra-productive people know what their “Most Important Task” is and work on it for one to two hours each morning, without interruptions. What task will have the biggest impact on reaching your goals? What accomplishment will get you promoted at work? That’s what you should dedicate your mornings to every day.

3. They don’t use to-do lists.

Throw away your to-do list; instead schedule everything on your calendar. It turns out that only 41 percent of items on to-do lists ever get done. All those undone items lead to stress and insomnia because of the Zeigarnik effect, which, in essence, means that uncompleted tasks will stay on your mind until you finish them. Highly productive people put everything on their calendar and then work and live by that calendar.

4. They beat procrastination with time travel.

Your future self can’t be trusted. That’s because we are time inconsistent. We buy veggies today because we think we’ll eat healthy salads all week; then we throw out green rotting mush in the future. Successful people figure out what they can do now to make certain their future selves will do the right thing. Anticipate how you will self-sabotage in the future, and come up with a solution today to defeat your future self.

5. They make it home for dinner.

Kevin first learned this one from Intel’s Andy Grove, who said, “There is always more to be done, more that should be done, always more than can be done.” Highly successful people know what they value in life. Yes, work, but also what else they value. There is no right answer, but for many, these other values include family time, exercise, and giving back. They consciously allocate their 1,440 minutes a day to each area they value (i.e., they put them on their calendar), and then they stick to that schedule.

6. They use a notebook.

Richard Branson has said on more than one occasion that he wouldn’t have been able to build Virgin without a simple notebook, which he takes with him wherever he goes. In one interview, Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis said, “Always carry a notebook. Write everything down… That is a million dollar lesson they don’t teach you in business school!” Ultra-productive people free their minds by writing everything down as the thoughts come to them.

7. They process e-mails only a few times a day.

Ultra-productive people don’t “check” their e-mail throughout the day. They don’t respond to each vibration or ding to see who has intruded into their inbox. Instead, like everything else, they schedule time to process their e-mails quickly and efficiently. For some, that’s only once a day; for others, it’s morning, noon, and night.

8. They avoid meetings at all costs.

When Kevin asked Mark Cuban to give his best productivity advice, he quickly responded, “Never take meetings unless someone is writing a check.” Meetings are notorious time killers. They start late, have the wrong people in them, meander around their topics, and run long. You should get out of meetings whenever you can and hold fewer of them yourself. If you do run a meeting, keep it short and to the point.

9. They say “no” to almost everything.

Billionaire Warren Buffet once said, “The difference between successful people and very successful people is that very successful people say ‘no’ to almost everything.” And James Altucher colorfully gave Kevin this tip: “If something is not a ‘Hell Yeah!’ then it’s a no.” Remember, you only have 1,440 minutes in a day. Don’t give them away easily.

10. They follow the 80/20 rule.

Known as the Pareto Principle, in most cases, 80 percent of results come from only 20 percent of activities. Ultra-productive people know which activities drive the greatest results. Focus on those and ignore the rest.

11. They delegate almost everything.

Ultra-productive people don’t ask, “How can I do this task?” Instead, they ask, “How can this task get done?” They take the I out of it as much as possible. Ultra-productive people don’t have control issues, and they are not micro-managers. In many cases, good enough is, well, good enough.

12. They touch things only once.

How many times have you opened a piece of regular mail — a bill perhaps — and then put it down, only to deal with it again later? How often do you read an e-mail and then close it and leave it in your inbox to deal with later? Highly successful people try to “touch it once.” If it takes less than five or ten minutes — whatever it is — they deal with it right then and there. It reduces stress, since it won’t be in the back of their minds, and it is more efficient, since they won’t have to re-read or re-evaluate the item again in the future.

13. They practice a consistent morning routine.

Kevin’s single greatest surprise while interviewing over 200 highly successful people was how many of them wanted to share their morning ritual with him. While he heard about a wide variety of habits, most nurtured their bodies in the morning with water, a healthy breakfast, and light exercise, and they nurtured their minds with meditation or prayer, inspirational reading, or journaling.

14. Energy is everything.

You can’t make more minutes in the day, but you can increase your energy to increase your attention, focus, and productivity. Highly successful people don’t skip meals, sleep, or breaks in the pursuit of more, more, more. Instead, they view food as fuel, sleep as recovery, and breaks as opportunities to recharge in order to get even more done.

Bringing It All Together

You might not be an entrepreneur, an Olympian, or a billionaire (or even want to be), but their secrets just might help you to get more done in less time and assist you to stop feeling so overworked and overwhelmed.

 

Read more: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/275718

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by : In the News Attorney Articles, Attorney Jobs, Lawyer Articles, Lawyer Jobs

How to identify — and survive — a toxic boss

By: Shelley Moench-Kelly

I’ve had many bosses in my life, but only two of them have been true mentors who later turned into lifelong friends. The others — all five of them — were toxic.

Recognizing a toxic boss isn’t easy. She might actually seem nice at first, but beware: This is just the honeymoon phase. All my toxic bosses were on their best behavior at the beginning. It could take a week, a few months, or even years before their true nature came alive. But it always did, every time. Still, as with most abusive relationships — romantic or professional — it’s hard to know objectively if you’re in one. Here are what I’ve found to be the top traits to look for in a toxic boss, and some suggestions for surviving the ordeal.

THE SYMPTOMS

1. A Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality
The toxic boss frequently has two sides to his personality. He may kiss up to upper management while simultaneously treating his staff badly. He may shower his staff with respect in public, but be hostile toward them in private. She might flip from good to evil just with the staff and not others. These unpredictable behavioral shifts can vary from several times a day to longer expanses of days or weeks of friendly behavior followed by weeks of negative behavior.

2. Passive-aggressive behavior is the mood du jour
A toxic boss might dole out backhanded compliments: “That was great work you did, considering you’re not too great with numbers,” or “I’m glad you got the report in on time. Too bad you didn’t include a summary page.” Passive-aggressive behavior also reveals itself when your boss doesn’t back you up in company meetings or acknowledge your achievements when someone outside the company praises you. He may even go so far as to take credit for your achievements himself. Many times this trait shows up when you sense something is wrong and ask your boss if everything is okay, only to have him answer with a terse, “Of course.” It’s a mind game.

3. The blame game
There’s a bus. I’m throwing you under it. Toxic bosses will rarely take responsibility for their mistakes and frequently will find a subordinate to blame for them. What bosses don’t realize is this: There are only so many buses and there are only so many times they can use this tactic before the employee retaliates or upper management clues in on what’s happening. It might work a few times, but then, the jig is up.

4. Narcissism
Narcissistic Personality Disorder (or NPD) is an actual mental illness. Those afflicted exhibit an inability to accept responsibility for mistakes, a constant craving for attention, a feeling of superiority over all others, a belief that their presence should always be praised by others, and that everything in the world — or at least his world — revolves around them. NPD can manifest itself in something as simple as a sociable exchange: “Hey Bob, how was your weekend?” your boss might ask. “It was great. We went s…” and before you have a chance to finish, you’re interrupted. “Hey awesome. You know, Kathy and I went wine tasting…” blah blah blah. He didn’t actually want to know how your weekend was, he just wanted to tell you how his weekend was.

So, if your boss ticks some of the above boxes and is indeed an abusive, toxic manager, what can you do? If you can move to another department or to another company, that’s the best option. But not all of us have the luxury of being able to quit our jobs. If you’re stuck, there are a few ways to protect yourself, your career, and your sanity:

THE SOLUTIONS

1. Keep a work diary
You should always document your interactions with — and directives from — your boss, even when you don’t think it’s necessary. If conditions are bad enough to warrant a lawsuit, you will need documentation. So while it may bum you out to start building a case against your boss early on, it could prove worthwhile in the end. You can do this at the end of your day: Designate 10 or 15 minutes to jotting down your interactions with your boss. This could also come in handy if you’re forced to quit because of a hostile working environment and have to file for unemployment insurance. Generally, unemployment isn’t awarded to employees who quit of their own accord, but if you have documentation that proves your case, you may be eligible.

2. Roll with the punches
Understand that your boss will never change. If you can prevent her from getting under your skin, you’ve won the battle. This can buy you some time to look for other work. Be agreeable, ask for directives in writing, and most importantly, resist the urge to give your boss some of her own medicine.

3. Always be on the lookout for work
Update your resume. Network. And if during an interview, you’re asked why you’re leaving your current role, for example, never criticize your boss. If you find yourself complaining to others (as you inevitably will), do your best to downplay any negativity toward your boss or the company.

4. Talk to HR
But be careful. You don’t want to come across as a disgruntled employee. Remember that HR works for the company and is out to protect it from any harm — physical, legal, or otherwise. Threats never work, whether they’re made toward your boss or come in the form of “I’ll leave this place and then you’ll miss me!” Present your case, provide documentation, and most importantly, approach HR with kid gloves. State that you’ve tried your best to deal with a difficult situation and ask HR for its help. That way, you won’t be tagged as a potentially dangerous employee.

Toxic bosses will always be around, and dealing with them isn’t easy. Keeping these tips in mind will hopefully make your day-to-day interactions a little better, and help you identify negative traits in future bosses so you can navigate your way to a successful career with mentors who truly support you.

Read more at: http://theweek.com/articles/635674/how-identify–survive–toxic-boss

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by : In the News Attorney Articles, Legal Humor

You’ll Love This!!! Hiring Partners Interview War Stories

By: Leigh Jones

After sitting through hundreds of interviews with twenty-somethings, these lawyers know what the future of the profession looks like. Often, it’s inspiring. Occasionally, it’s terrifying.

Law.com spoke with a hiring partner from K&L Gates and another from Ropes & Gray, in separate interviews. They’ve identified some major blunders made by students over the years during those brief, but career-defining summer-associate interviews. They’ve also shared the characteristics that catch their attention—in a good way.

R. Charles Miller Managing Partner, US K&L Gates
R. Charles Miller
Managing Partner, US
K&L Gates

How long have you been interviewing law students in OCI?

I’ve been in the trenches for 25 years.

What are some big mistakes you’ve seen students make?

Ninety-five percent are students are well prepared and attentive. It’s always the 5 percent. I had one guy come into an interview. It was a hot day. I had taken off my jacket. He saunters in and says, “Guess I better lose the jacket,” and he kicked his feet up on the desk. Much more common are people who come in—they may have 20 interviews—and they ask about things that our firm doesn’t do. They’ll say, “I’m so impressed with your First Amendment practice.” That’s not exactly our specialty.

There are a lot of “K” firms—Kirkland & Ellis, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, King & Spalding, Katten. People will call our firm by the wrong name. I feel bad for them. Some of them have 20 interviews in a week.

What are the biggest changes you’ve seen?

The global financial crisis threw a scare into everybody. The kids are just more prepared. They come in they’ve actually gone to our website.

What impresses you in an interview?

One of the things I find really appealing is people who are willing to go off script. That to me is the best. The hardest interviews are when you get three-word answers. If I’ve been doing interviews for eight hours straight, hold up their end of the conversation.

What else?

What I really like at the end of the interview is a question or two that’s clearly targeted at our firm, which is different from other firms, something that shows me that not only have they done their research but also that they’re thinking about the other side of the table.

What have you learned from conducting all of those interviews?

I’m not as constrained by having to ask exactly the same question to each candidate as I used to be. I’m more comfortable going where the conversation leads.

Another thing, something I learned pretty quickly, when you’re interviewing 16 people plus a couple at lunch. After every interview, I ask the next person to wait 90 seconds, and I write just some thoughts on the person I just interviewed. Then I go through notes that night. I can keep 20 people in my head for about eight hours, but if I go to sleep, they’re just gone.

Richard Batchelder Jr. Partner Ropes & Gray
Richard Batchelder Jr.
Partner
Ropes & Gray

 

 

How many interviews have you done?

Over a thousand.

What big flubs have you seen students make?

I’ve seen students put Latin honors on their résumé when they went to a school that doesn’t award Latin honors. I’ve had students who transfer [after their first year] but they don’t identify their first law school. I had a student from [Massachusetts Institute of Technology] put that he had a 4.0 grade-point average without identifying that it was on a 5-point grading scale.

Then there are substantive mistakes. Students will put down [on a résumé] a personal interest that’s not really a personal interest, and it becomes clear. Sometimes, the personal interest is so out there—they’re trying to be too cute. One student said his personal interest was catching crabs.

One student had “dogs” as his personal interest. When I brought that up, he said, “I don’t have a dog.” I asked him if he had dogs as a kid. He said that he didn’t. I asked him if he [grew up around] dogs. He said, “I didn’t play with dogs growing up.” And then he said, “I guess that’s not a very good personal interest.”

The very next person I interviewed had “raising miniature schnauzers” on her résumé. I asked, “How many miniature schnauzers have you raised?” She said, “Oh, just one.” I said, “I assumed when you said ‘raising’ you did that often.” She said, “I guess that’s a little misleading.”

What impresses you from a student’s answer?

You want them to show passion. If you’re going to be practicing law for a long period of time you need to continue to have that passion—if they’re talking as if they would with a friend, where it’s more of a conversation as opposed to a pingpong match. It’s really terrific if the candidate is doing more of talking.

What else do you look for?

We don’t have a GPA cutoff. I give much more weight to undergraduate performance than I do law school performance. Undergraduate is four years instead of two, with a lot going on.

We love to see students who come in and don’t have a sense of entitlement and love coming to work every day.

» View more of our on-campus interview coverage

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by : Pixie Meredith Attorney Articles

6 weird ways Olympians prep for competition

By: Leah Samuel

Athletes have always had special ways of preparing for, and recovering from, competition.  And elite athletes are no exception. (Witness the cupping craze that’s got Michael Phelps and other Olympians in Rio dotted with circular black and blue marks.)

Here’s a rundown of six other ways Olympic competitors hope to get an edge — and what science has to say about them.

Electrify the noggin

Athletes, including some of this year’s track and field Olympians, are putting on odd-looking headphones hoping that a noninvasive brain stimulation technique can improve their performance.

In transcranial direct current stimulation, or tDCS, electrical currents are applied to the brain via electrodes placed on the scalp. The idea is that, depending on which part of the brain is stimulated, the currents can improve motor skills or reduce perception of fatigue.

So far, studies are showing only preliminary results, and the treatment is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

But that hasn’t stopped athletes like the Golden State Warriors’s James Michael McAdoo, from trying it.

Slap on some cheese curd

Skier Lindsey Vonn caused a stir back in the 2010 Winter Olympics when she put cheese curds on her injured shin. The topfen cheese curd, sometimes called quark, was meant to ease swelling, Vonn told reporters. She went on to win gold and bronze medals.

Slathering cheese curds on injuries is not entirely unheard of — Austrian athletes have been known to do it — but it hasn’t been studied extensively, either. The most that food scientists can say is that if such poultices do relieve swelling, it could be because of the medium-chain triglycerides in cheese curds. But that’s really just a guess.

“The body does like these fats, which are like what is found in breast milk,” said Randy Evans, a registered dietitian at the University of Kansas Medical Center. “They are very easily absorbed.”

Soak up the mustard

If long days of training have left you aching and your teammates have used up all the cheese curds, you could always try a mustard bath. Swimmer Natalie Coughlin fills her tub with hot water, adds mustard seed powder and several essential oils, and settles in for a muscle-soothing soak. (If you’re too worn down to make your own concoction, you can buy ready-made versions.)

Dr. Benjamin Alman, professor of orthopedic surgery at Duke University Medical School, suggested that this may be a new version of an old therapy.

“In the old days, there was the mustard plaster, which we used for aches and injuries and all kinds of ailments,” he said. “And we know that spices were medicines for us for a long time, particularly the ones that help by creating heat.”

He added that while the spices may perhaps help, a hot bath would probably ease aches regardless of whether it contained mustard.

Inject some super-cells

Athletes hoping to stay in the game are now getting healthy tissue cells injected into their injured knees, backs, and other areas to reduce pain and inflammation or to help repair torn cartilage.

“These cells have some really interesting properties,” Alman said.

“When you get an injury, inflammation is part of the healing process,” he said. “Without inflammation, you won’t heal at all. But with too much inflammation, you might not heal as well. These cells may somehow keep it at the right level.”

The operative word here is “may.”

“None of this has been proven,” Alman said. “It’s all theoretical. But there’s no incentive to do a large-scale trial because people are just going to use it anyway. And if it works, more people will use it.”

Hop into an oxygen chamber

Yet another favorite tactic for athletes: stepping into what’s essentially a large can.

Hyperbaric chambers use high-pressure air to force pure oxygen into tissues. Hospitals use this kind of oxygen therapy to reverse decompression sickness and carbon monoxide poisoning. But the procedure can also speed healing time for injuries. Facilities like the Mayo Clinic use it to accelerate wound healing in diabetics and those with severe burns or skin infections.

Read more here:  http://theweek.com/articles/642203/6-weird-ways-olympians-prep-competition 

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Friday Fun & Interesting Facts — Which is YOUR favorite?

  • The book, Les Miserables was once banned by the Catholic Church.
  • Leonardo Da Vinci signed his initials on the right eye of the Mona Lisa.
  • Louis XIV of France had a coat with 123 diamond buttons on it.
  • The famous Louvre of France was built in 1190 as a defense against Viking raids.
  • Lord of the Rings: Return of the King has the highest body count of any movie ever made, with 836 on-screen deaths.  By comparison, Saving Private Ryan had 255 screen deaths and Rambo III had 127 screen deaths.
  • Licorice (the black kind) can actually be hazardous to your health. If you eat too much, it can cause a rapid drop in your body’s potassium levels, causing an irregular heart rhythm as well as high blood pressure, edema (swelling) and congestive heart failure.
  • Lamborghini provides two Gallardos to the Italian state police.  Those cars are reserved for delivering organ transplants to patients.
  • A group of lemurs is called a “conspiracy.”
  • The lava lamp was invented by a nudist.
  • A loofah is not a sponge from the ocean as is most often believed. Instead the “sponges” come from the luffa gourd that is similar to a cucumber.
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by : In the News Lawyer Articles, Uncategorized

Getting Comfortable With Uncertainty

By: 

 Jeena ChoIt was almost four years ago when I finally said the words that I was terrified of uttering but desperately needed to be said — you no longer have to be a lawyer. That simple phrase was both liberating, and at the time, felt completely insane.

As a Korean-American immigrant, I have achieved the ultimate dream of becoming a lawyer (not as great as a doctor, but my parents approved). Like many immigrant families, we valued hard work, getting good grades, and being “successful.”

After four years, I didn’t exactly quit being a lawyer. I still practice law, although on a very limited basis. I wrote a book for the American Bar Association, The Anxious Lawyer, which I am delighted to say is being sent off to the printer this week! Six weeks ago, I signed contracts to write for Forbes and Bloomberg.

Perhaps as an outsider looking in, all of these events may seem like it was by design. Nothing could be further from reality. When I gave myself permission to leave law, I had no idea what the future would hold. I didn’t know what my next job title would be, how I would make a living, or what I would tell my parents. All I knew was this: something needed to change.

I meet a lot of lawyers who are in similar situations. They are incredibly unhappy where they are at, yet, they don’t want to leave because they are afraid of uncertainty. I believe the most important lesson one must learn is letting go of resisting uncertainty.

For me, having a daily meditation practice helps me to get more comfortable with uncertainty. Each day, I intentionally carve out a bit of quiet space to practice not doing anything, but rather, practice simply being. I’m not planning my day, week ahead, or writing my 10-year plan. I’m just focusing on one breath, followed by the next.
I find this to be extremely soothing. It calms the nervous system and I can show up to unexpected challenges and life’s delights with ease, clarity, and compassion.

I saw this interesting diagram which said that your life’s purpose is the intersection of four elements:

  1. Work that you love;
  2. Work you’re great at;
  3. Work the world needs; and
  4. Work you can get paid for.

I find that most lawyers who are dissatisfied are actually quite good at their job, the work is needed in the world and of course, they are paid for it. The hardest part is the first prong — doing work that you love. For many, we have become so habitualized to doing work that makes us completely miserable, it’s hard to fathom having work that we absolutely love.

Four years into my journey into finding, defining, and living my purpose, I am learning to be comfortable with uncertainty. I’m also figuring out what I love doing. The work that makes my life feel full, joyous, and meaningful. At the moment, it’s collaborating with three amazing lawyers to plan an Unconference, writing, running workshops, and doing one-on-one work with lawyers.

If you’ve been resisting change because uncertainty makes you feel anxious, welcome to the club. You’re in extremely good company. The first step is to simply acknowledge that this is how you feel. Saying to yourself, “I know I have to make some big changes but I am afraid of uncertainty,” can make it feel less daunting. Also, recognizing that being uncomfortable with uncertainty is a common human experience, shared by all — this also helped me to feel less afraid.

My invitation to you is this. Find your purpose. Find that sweet spot of work you love, are good at, the world needs, and you can get paid to do. Consider that you have a unique set of skills and talents that is completely your own, that no one else in the world has. Figure out what that is and bring it out into the world — without apology, without needing permission.

P.S. If you’re a woman attorney in the Bay Area, please join us for a Shape the Law Unconference on April 29th. We’ll be spending the afternoon discussing questions around wellness, wealth, and wisdom.

Read More:  http://abovethelaw.com/2016/04/getting-comfortable-with-uncertainty/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=28066213&_hsenc=p2ANqtz–DPZBuNmBoNotv-oSUJNkfUEzJ61PV0ZojIbHdjecLcVUJ3wt6sEUoBJWZbRVIO7RG2AsGugFPZ7tvpT66_Z6SutDC0w&_hsmi=28066213&rf=1

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by : In the News Attorney Articles, Legal Jobs

Finding Work-Life Balance Between the Margins

By: Peter Hirst

The 40-hour work week is dead. Work-life balance is impossible, and our always-on mentality is exploiting our personal lives. We’ve heard this all before and will continue to hear it from executives across industries and the mediums in which we receive our news. It’s no question that employee stress levels are a major problem for organizations, regardless of size. While some look to implement inter-office benefits that appear to help, I often wonder whether we’re looking in the right place at all.

A common complaint of professionals is that there’s not enough time in the day to meet both work and personal responsibilities, resulting in a lopsided work-life balance. We often focus on the efficiency of the typical 9-to-5 work day, but neglect to consider that many professionals tack on long commutes, constant connection to email and time spent catching up on work after hours. Aided by the ubiquity of easy, instant communication technologies, the average work day has gradually crept into our home lives. This is, of course, prevalent in families who have many tasks waiting for them at home — there are meals to be prepared, car pools to manage, sports and extra curricular schedules to keep.

Looking at this issue further, I notice that these commitments, combined with the responsibilities of work, can lead to lives that feel out of control. Employers need to address these burdens not by seeing how time at work can be more enjoyable, but by identifying the ways that work requirements make life less manageable — something that can’t be solved by a refrigerator stocked with coconut water or complimentary dry cleaning.

For almost two years now, my team of 35 at MIT Sloan Executive Education has had the option of working remotely at least two days a week as part of our flexible work program. This experiment-turned-policy stemmed from a number of factors — one being construction occurring on the MIT campus, but also the misconception that employees who took advantage of MIT’s existing flexible work offering were considered to be less invested in the organization.

To effectively execute and measure the benefits of this program, we began with a consensus that most, if not all, of our employees have the ability to fulfill the responsibilities of their roles remotely. That’s not the case for every office, but autonomy and an entrepreneurial spirit are both strong pillars of our office culture. Creating a support infrastructure for flexible work is key, however. In planning for the implementation of this program, we identified key upgrades and adjustments needed for our staff. The most important resources are, naturally, related to inter-office communication. To foster collaboration and maintain productivity, we started to use shared calendars, reliable video chat and telepresence robots. These have not only maintained productivity and collaboration, but in many cases provided a drastic improvement to existing resources.

This did not come without some hesitation from staff members who either enjoy the structure of a 9-to-5 work schedule or value the face-to-face collaboration that can only fully be experienced when colleagues are in the same room together. As a result, we added in some parameters that make working remotely or off-hours viable. We encouraged all meetings to be held between the core hours of 10:30 am and 4:00 pm. And because in-person meetings are also a necessity on occasion, we established a policy that all face-to-face interactions be scheduled on Wednesdays, with exceptions for special cases.

While we anticipated this new program would be of value to our teams, the extremely positive results for the organization were even more pronounced. We now have 100 percent participation from employees and an anonymous survey of our staff reported that 86 percent of employees felt reduced stress levels and 90 percent saw improved support for family/personal life. Additionally, 79 percent have recorded an increase in employee morale and engagement and 62 percent responded that their workload management had improved.

While our program has certainly come with new rules and expectations, it’s clear to me that when you allow your employees to better organize their home lives, they can greatly improve their time at work and vice versa. Many organizations look at ways to give up company time to improve work-life balance, but few look at the time employees give up to the company outside of regular office hours. By eliminating things like commutes to the office, you’re able to give employees back valuable time outside of their normal work requirements. It may seem small at first, but you’ll be surprised what even two days without sitting in rush hour can do to someone’s stress level and productivity.

It’s my firm belief that a strong company culture goes beyond what occurs within the confines of the office. No amount of perks within the work day will make employees happy and productive if they’re still burdened by life outside of the company. As senior leaders, it is our duty to make employee’s time within the office fulfilling without masking the stress we put upon them with hollow work perks. Instead of looking inward, it’s important to consider life outside the office walls and recognize that professionals with healthy and happy personal lives come to work with productive, positive attitudes.

Read More: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/278334

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