Our company is having difficulties finding and growing good machinist for our machine shop.   Business has grown so rapidly that we now having troubles keeping our customers happy.   It is very difficult to find qualified machinists.  

I have read the books, been to a couple of Marcus' talks and have found it very valuable to discover and grow my strengths.   Now I want to build it into our organization.   However I am a little unsure about the plan of action to take.

Thanks is…

“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” 

~  Will Rogers 

This week's challenge: What right track are you "just sitting there" on? What do…

So last night I decided, on a bit of a whim, to re-setup the furniture in my bedroom.  I've lived in my apartment for just about two years now and just...kinda felt like it was time for a change.

It's amazing how just moving a dresser to a different wall (or into the closet in my case) can just…

Is it safe to talk about mindfulness as an important leadership quality yet? Can we start to talk about the importance of meditation and introduce it into mainstream management training? I'm thinking yes. Well, almost. I was so encouraged to read about the University of Massachusett's Center for Mindfulness and…

Though it is often invoked in debates over religion and politics in the U.S., the phrase "separation of church and state" does not appear anywhere in the U.S. constitution. Its origin is a letter from Thomas Jefferson describing the effects of the first amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court eventually evoked the phrase in settling a case, and it has become a kind of shorthand for referring to the religious aspects of the first amendment ever since.…

I manage a small group of employees and I have done pretty well at getting them interested in their strengths and how they can use them to be more effective and happier at work. People are especially excited about the part where they get to do more of their strengths. But here's my problem: some of them, when I ask what strengths they would like to use more, mention things that I don't think they're…

"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and…

My new years resolution this year was a pretty simple one - to really focus in on doing projects on the side that get me going and really draw out the creative side of me. 

And, sure enough, three exciting opportunities have presented themselves. …

Jim,

I really appreciate you spending some time with us this morning.

Your thoughts and passion around the Strengths Essentials workshop is very helpful as we get ready to teach it to our Company.

I'll keep you posted.

Kenny

Reading recommendation for this week: Can you build a better brain?

Always of interest, what is happening in our brains when we're working on our strengths? We know that where we already have a strong synaptic network, the easier it is to build that network, right? Interesting information…

For a guy who's always telling his wife she's too rigid about following the rules, I sure seem to be obsessed with them in this blog. This week's target? People who keep using their electronic devices on the plane during takeoff and landing. That's one rule I always follow, and I really wish…

After working in my editorial department for 5 years, I just got promoted to be manager of the team. I'm excited, but I'm also nervous. While I have the advantage of knowing the company and the work really…

"The time is always right to do what is right."

~Martin Luther King,…

We've finished the StandOut commercial. You can see it all finished…

Anyone else out there read Talent Management? Free publication from Human Capital Media: good for all you OD, talent, learning and dev managers out there. Go to www.talentmgt.com to subscribe. OK, plug for TM over- but I'm all about the free resources you…

You may have heard about the recent Wall Street Journal article titled "Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior." The author, Amy Chua, is a Chinese-American mother who has created a…

I've just started out in my career. My employer encourages us to cross-train in different departments. They seem to value employees who can jump into different positions when needed. Would this be a good strategy for me to round out my skills, opening up more opportunities in the future?

If your manager is telling you to cross-train, don’t fight it. Do as she suggests and try to gain as much experience as you can…

At my company, we are trying to assessed two different functional areas:  (1) in one area, we are using a Strengths-Based approach, including Appreciative Inquiry, as our operational base/functionality.  This includes our operations with the workings of our area, as well as working with others.

(2) in another area, the business as usual approach is begin deployed. 

We are looking for any research anyone knows of that compares  Strengths-based operations vs.…

“Many people spend more time in planning the wedding than they do in planning the marriage.”

~Zig Ziglar

That's a bracing quote for an engaged couple. It's also an eye-opener when you apply it to…

I come from a very musical family.  My Brother plays music, my dad plays music, and pretty much all of my aunts and uncles play music.  Me?  Not so much.  I like music, but as I've mentioned a few billion times here, I'm more in love with creating the visual.  And - with that, I created a visual to help showcase my dad's strength:  Drumming.  (Warning, it has a PG rating due to two curse-words towards the…