Article: What Kind of Leader Are You? M. Moore

There are literally millions of words written and spoken each week on enlightened leadership yet the fact remains that low morale, high stress and job dissatisfaction continue to be three of the most serious problems facing the workplace. We seem to be so effectively socialized into top down leadership that we find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to change our autocratic ways. All this in spite of the many workshops and seminars on new leadership paradigms which are rooted in the empowerment of people.

Change is both slow and painful but it is happening. To facilitate this process of change requires both desire and commitment plus a sound understanding of what an enlightened leader looks like. It is necessary to visualize the type of leader we are striving to become.

AN ENLIGHTENED LEADER...
* values the ideas and opinions of others.
* listens attentively.
* affirms generously
* criticizes gently and privately.
* trusts the collective wisdom of the group.
* encourages others to achieve their enormous untapped potential.
* catches people doing things right.
* involves people in decisions which effect their destiny.
* keeps people informed.
* has a sense of humour.
* trusts the decisions of others.
* realizes that his/her opinion is just one among many.
* isn't threatened when people disagree with them.
* rejects the " my way or the highway" paradigm.
* cares about the total well being of those with whom she/he works.
* believes that the most valuable inventory of any business is people.

* seeks out and acts upon the advice of others.

* gives credit rather than takes credit.

These are a few of the characteristics of an enlightened leader which, if present in the workplace, result in decreased stress, improved morale and increased productivity.

It is in the best interest of any business to care about the well being of its employees.

Mike Moore is an international speaker/writer on Humor in the Workplace, Humor and Stress Management and Maximizing Staff Potential.

Mike Moore speaks throughout Canada and the United States on the physical and social benefits of humor. " Humor makes great things happen." MM

Download a FREE copy of my 40 page SPECIAL REPORT on Humour In the Workplace
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How to Use Humour to Solve Workplace Problems

People involved in interpersonal conflict in both business and industry are often too close to the problems to be of any great help in solving them. They feel insecure, uncomfortable and threatened when it comes to expressing their feelings and offering possible solutions. "What will the boss think if I rock the boat?" How will I be able to work with these people if I appear to be criticizing them?" "Will they think I'm a trouble maker?" "How can I hurt peoples' feelings?" The predictable answers to these questions will ensure that things remain the same. Nothing will change. Nobody wants to step outside their comfort zone and disturb the status quo no matter how much the status quo needs to be challenged. So stress continues to increase and morale continues to decline.

I have found cartoon humour helpful in solving relational problems in the workplace. They present real conflict situations and place them within a humorous context. By taking a cartoon and using it as the basis for discussion you accomplish a few things: You remove any personal connection between the problem and your personnel. They are discussing a cartoon situation not a situation related to them. The characters are not real and therefore you avoid hurt feelings or damaged egos. Analysing a cartoon results in a more lively discussion than if you were analysing an existing, identified problem. Workers are separated from the problem and therefore are less threatened and more willing to offer suggestions and solutions.

The humour in a cartoon is empathic humour. People laugh with the characters in the cartoon because they empathize with them and their plight. Call it the "been there, had it done to me" syndrome. When I use cartoons in my presentations I always hear people in my audience say, "Isn't that the truth?" When I hear this I know that something has connected with them.

A wise leader will ask questions about the cartoon which will not only address the conflict generally, but will open the possibility of a similar problem existing in their specific workplace. Such as, "Could such a problem ever occur here?" "If it ever did occur here, how would we handle it?" At some point the direct link between the cartoon and an existing problem will have to be made. Even when this is done the cartoon can still be used as a non-threatening way to discuss the situation without making direct references to people who are causing the dis-ease.

This is an excerpt from Mike's popular Special Report" Thank God It's Monday." ( Humour in the Workplace) For more FREE ideas on the use of humor to solve people problems visit http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?humorplace


To get Mike to speak to your organization visit http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?motplus

5 Workplace Dis-eases and What You Can Do About Them

5 Workplace Dis-eases and What You Can Do About Them         by Mike Moore

I think it was Henry Ford who said,” Why is it that when all I need is a good pair of hands, they have to come attached to a human being?” He too realized that workplace problems are inevitably people problems and when you begin to solve people problems you begin to solve problems in the workplace.

In a recent Ipsos-Reid poll it was revealed that 60 percent of all employees surveyed were dissatisfied with their job and that 43 percent of these were actively or passively looking for other employment.  The cause of this was discovered to be 5 workplace diseases list below.

* Stress

Employee stress is definitely on the rise and if not addressed can cause serious problems for both employers and employees.  I read recently that half of all Long Term Disability claims are stress related and that a good number of worker absentees throughout the year are stress induced.

* High Employee Turnover

When people have to function in an unhealthy stress filled work environment where appreciation and praise are absent they want out and begin to look elsewhere for meaningful and more satisfying employment.

* Low Morale

I believe that low morale is the inevitable result of a lack of personalism in the workplace. When your staff perceives that they and their well-being are priorities for management morale begins to improve.  It is in the best interest of management to care for the health, well-being and happiness of its employees.

* Low Productivity

People who don’t feel valued don’t produce as well as those who do.  This is a basic axiom in my opinion. It rings true in every area of human interaction.  I once had a woman approach me with glowing praise for her supervisor. When I asked why she felt this way she handed me a brief note written by the supervisor. It contained two lines and they said. Dear Joy, Just a note to let you know how much I appreciate your presence and hard work in our department. We are better for having you among us.”  That’s all it said, but the impact on this woman was profound. She would have walked over a field of razor blades in her bare feet for this person. Two little lines.  People produce when they feel cherished.

* Lack of Creative Problem Solving

When people work in a climate of encouragement, empowerment, appreciation and fun they are more willing to contribute their creativity to the solution of company problems.  Every organization needs creative employees and creativity thrives in a climate where people are listened to, valued and encouraged to laugh. Always remember that there is a huge reservoir of creative potential within the individual and collective wisdom of the group.  All one has to do is tap it.

 * Lack of Effective Communication                               

Communication is fundamentally the sharing of self with others. In an effective workplace employees need to be encouraged to honestly and comfortably say what is on their minds.  I once asked a manager, “Who tells you what you need to know and don’t want to hear?” He thought for a moment and said, “Nobody”.  This is a tragic situation but a very common one. Most workers keep their opinions to themselves for fear of being labelled a boat rocker.  I have news for you.  A company who wants to maximize the potential of its staff and reap the benefits of their collective wisdom must encourage people to be boat rockers. Boat rockers are a valuable asset to any company or organization.  Isn’t it sad that they are considered liabilities?  It is in the best interest of any company to encourage people to give their opinions whether they are dissenting or not.  No one person has a monopoly on wisdom, insight or correct thinking. We are richer when we access the attributes of the group.

 When you consider these 5 workplace dis-eases and their negative impact on your business or organization you will be hard pressed to find a more effective, cost efficient solution than a program including humour, laughter, appreciation and praise.  They fit together like hand and glove and are very simple to implement. All you need is a commitment from upper management and a few training sessions to teach the hows and whys of such a program. Once you have your people on board you will be able to see your workplace culture improve significantly.

 

Mike Moore speaks and writes on the power of humour, attitude and appreciation to help people in all walks of life maximize their unlimited potential and improve their relationships.

To consider Mike for a workshop or conference keynote visit http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?motplus

http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?mmspeaks

 

 

 

The 7 Best Benefits of Worklace Humour

1. PROMOTES BONDING
Humor has been called " Social Glue" because of its power to bond people to one another. People do gravitate to those who laugh easily and have a great sense of humor. Just watch the next time someone in your organization tells a funny story about something that happened to them. Not only are people eager to listen to a funny story but the shared laughter seems to bring the group closer together. When a supervisor tells a funny self-deprecating story to his/ her department the resulting laughter seems to promote a, " hey, we're all in this together" attitude.
When you consider what organizations spend to send their employees on team building seminars cultivating a climate of humor makes a lot of financial sense. It is the ultimate team builder.

2. BANISHES BOREDOM
Humor and laughter tend to banish boredom and boredom has been identified as a destructive reality within a workplace. Laughter, by its very definition, implies fun and fun is never boring. I once asked a member of my audience if he liked his job. He replied, " No I hate it, but I do enjoy coming to work. When I asked him why he said, " The people I work with are a lot of fun to be with and we have a lot of laughs." The most tedious of jobs can be enjoyable if humor, and fun are present.

3. HEALTH AND HAPPINESS
Health, happiness and humor go hand in hand. When you have a workplace where people laugh easily and often chances are that you are going to have a health and happy workplace. a place where employees like to be. This kind of positive environment is conducive to high morale and high productivity. The fact that humor cuts stress in half and enhances our immune system adds to its value.

4. FOSTERS FLEXIBILITY
People with a good sense of humor and a ready laugh tend to be more flexible. They usually take their job seriously but not themselves and therefore are more open and receptive to the ideas of others. People who take themselves too seriously are often difficult to work with and inflexible. The term uptight comes to mind. When a company's supervisors or managers have a great sense of humor and take delight in the humor of other staff members they give people the freedom to try and the freedom to fail. When this is present comfort levels, and creative achievement are high. People can soar to great heights of creativity when they know that they are free to fail. Wisdom helps us avoid mistakes and comes from making a ton of them.

5. RELAXATION
Laughter cuts stress levels in half thus lessening employee anxiety. If stress is a major cause of absenteeism among employees it is vital to reduce stress and in the process decrease a high rate of absentees. People don't want to stay away from a place that is fun and people who are fun to be with. When absentees are reduced you save money. Laughter also impacts positively on the bottom line when you consider that happy people tend to be more productive.

6. REDUCING CONFLICT
Earlier in this article I mentioned that all workplace problems are people problems and if you solve people problems you solve workplace problems. Well humor goes a long way in the solution of the inevitable conflicts that arises in human relationships. People that laugh together like one another. You don't laugh with people you don't like. When conflict does arise among people who like one another it is more easily handled. You might get angry at someone you like but odds are you won't stay angry long and in no time you will be back enjoying one another. One thing you can count on when employing a humor program and that is that you will have increase co-operation and mutual support among your staff.

7. INCREASED ENERGY
Humor increases the oxygen levels in our blood resulting in increased energy. What organization couldn't use a dose of increased employee energy at specific times throughout the day. To illustrate my point consider for a moment how tired you feel after a week of hard work on the job. You come home on a Friday night worn out. All you want is a quiet, restful weekend doing as little as possible.

Just as you walk through the door your significant other tells you that you have been invited to a party that evening. You immediately make it clear that you DON"T want to go. After being convinced that a party is just what you need you give in. At 1:00 a.m you return from the party. It was a lot of fun with a great deal of laughter and good company. You get into bed and you can't get to sleep. You are filled with energy and sleep is impossible. What happened to the fatigue that was plaguing you hours earlier?

CONCLUSION
When you consider workplace dis-ease and its negative impact on your business or organization you will be hard pressed to find a more effective, cost efficient solution than a program including humor, laughter, appreciation and praise. They fit together like hand and glove and are very simple to implement. All you need is a commitment from upper management and a few training sessions to teach the hows and whys of such a program. Once you have your people on board you will be able to see your workplace culture improve significantly.

Mike Moore is an international authority on humor in the workplace and humor and health. For 18 of Mike's original workplace cartoons FREE visit his website at
http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?begin
To enquirer about having Mike speak to your group visit http://www.mikemoorespeaks.com

WHY HUMOR IN THE WORKPLACE

WHY HUMOR IN THE WORKPLACE

by Mike Moore

1. Humor in the workplace reduces stress levels and stress is the number one problem confronting employees today.

2. Laughter boosts morale while stress erodes staff morale. It is in the best interest of any business to invest in the happiness of its employees. Laughter is an effective barometer of just how happy your people are.

Free Stress Busting Audio HERE

3. Keeping things in perspective tends to boost morale and humor helps us keep things in perspective.

4. Workplace humor helps facilitate change. Change is inevitable and people who laugh well and often tend to be more flexible and adaptable.

5. Communication improves when humor is used appropriately. The timely use of humor can get a point across effectively and assists in the process of problem solving.

6. Laughter and humor in the workplace relieve boredom and increase creative energy.

7. Humor builds confidence. When we laugh at ourselves we are less rigid and more spontaneous. We tend to bounce back more quickly when negative things happen. Humor also makes us less fearful of making mistakes and more confident about overcoming setbacks.

8. Laughter and humor promote positive relationships. When you hear a funny story your first impulse is to tell someone and share the laughter. When laughter is shared a natural bonding takes place.

9. Humor promotes happiness and joy. It's good to be alive.

10. Quality relationships are measured by the amount of laughter present. When relationships are good, people laugh a lot. The same applies to businesses. When employees enjoy one another and laugh easily and often, we see performance improve and profits increase.

11. The humor I speak of here must never be based on laughing at someone, racism, sexism, put downs, sarcasm or ridicule. These forms of humor are destructive attempts at making one look good by making another look and feel badly. There is enough good humor to last a lifetime. Just look for it.

THEY WHO LAUGH............LAST.

This is an excerpt from  Mike's latest e-book "Thank God It's Monday" ( Humor in the Workplace)

GET A COPY  of the complete 40 page report   HERE

Workplace Cartoon

Free Copy of Humor in the Workplace

Cartoon On Questions That Drive People Nuts

Have you ever noticed that there is one form of question that really threatens the heck out of people?
If you ever want to gain the upper hand just ask this question quietly and calmly and sit back and listen and observe.

For over 300 individual jpeg cartoons at a super price Click Here

Workplace Cartoon

There's a lesson in this for everyone.  MORE WORKPLACE CARTOONS HERE

2 Free Books on Humor in the Workplace

Hi. I would like to offer you, free of charge, two of my very popular e-books, Thank God It's Monday and Let the Laughter Begin ( 18 workplace cartoons)
To access your copies visit here