Even the most brilliant leaders have flaws. The story of Civil Water General Stonewall Jackson, an extremely effective battlefield strategist, illustrates how flaws limit the potential of even the best leaders. Source: War History Online, October 30, 2016. Yet despite all these faults, Jackson played a vital role in the Confederate army and is rightly remembered as a … [Read more...]
Leave the work stress behind
Animal health pros frequently allow work stress to become home stress, often at the expense of families, relationships and our own health. Jackie Coleman and John Coleman share five tips for keeping work stress from becoming home stress: Confine your work to particular times and locations Develop good mobile device habits Establish a good support network Have an … [Read more...]
Vetted looks at tomorrow’s vet med
See the futurist views of veterinary industry specialists in these areas: The topic of cancer Critical care on another level A retrospective on the fantastic fate of feline medicine Dentistry The prominence of public health A vital future, with one caveat – student debt vs. salary potential Destiny of dermatology Source: Vetted, October 14, 2016. Stop … [Read more...]
Unlearning, not learning, is a real challenge
Many of us have experienced unlearning after buying a different automobile. The new key works differently, the gearshift is now on the column or the windows are controlled by a button not a crank handle. Mark Bonchek suggests that learning organizations have focused incorrectly. The problem isn’t learning: it’s unlearning. In every aspect of business, we are operating with … [Read more...]
Win the talent war with effective coaching
Developing talent in newly hired veterinary school graduates has long been a primary requirement in practice success. Mentoring a new graduate is challenging and often does not follow a defined plan. Magdalena Mook asserts that developing a strong coaching culture across all employee strata is an important element of retention and competitiveness. Source: Human Resource … [Read more...]
Develop effective elevator pitches
Presenting yourself effectively is an important skill. Whether networking, interviewing for a job or meeting with clients, being able to concisely communicate what you do is a critical success skill. Source: Personal Branding Blog, November 3, 2016. Outplacement organizations tell clients that in order to be prepared for different kinds of circumstances; they must have both … [Read more...]
Workplace mood management starts early
Paying attention to the morning moods of your employees can pay dividends, according to Nancy Rothbard, Professor of Management at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. A recent research effort showed employees who started out each day happy or calm usually stayed that way throughout the day. Interacting with customers tended to further enhance their mood. Source: … [Read more...]
Emotional agility can help you at work and in life
Emotional agility is the ability to be with yourself in a way that is courageous and curious and compassionate, says Susan David, PhD. But in a fast-paced world, we often get derailed or stuck. She says the things that we are upset about or angry about often contain information of what’s of value. People will often push these emotions and, with them, the learning … [Read more...]
Being nice wins
The nastiness of this year’s Presidential campaign is often excused by observing that “politics is a contact sport.” Plus, reality shows with the highest ratings seem to involve the nastiest people. Despite society’s current love affair with verbal thuggery, research proves you can win while being nice and you can disagree without being disagreeable. Source: Wall Street … [Read more...]
Being helpful at work can make you worse at your job
The title seems to fly in the face of logic. But University of Florida business professor Klodiana Lanaj recently outlined a major downside to this approach. Helping your colleagues is exhausting. In two recently published studies she and her colleagues discovered that helpfulness at work is something of a tightrope walk: It can boost your energy, but it can also leave you … [Read more...]
Being bold and making tough decisions
LaRae Quy was an FBI undercover and counterintelligence agent for 24 years. She is the author of “Secrets of a Strong Mind” and “Mental Toughness for Women Leaders: 52 Tips To Recognize and Utilize Your Greatest Strengths.” She says, “It’s no secret that business and life are not as simple as they were, either. Executives, business owners and entrepreneurs need to take a bold … [Read more...]
Providing corrective feedback correctly
Providing corrective feedback is challenging but it becomes more difficult when it gets emotional. Defensiveness, crying or yelling create an environment that most would rather avoid. However, it is part of the real world. So, tips on handling these types of situations are helpful. Source: LinkedIn Pulse, September 22, 2016. Remember the “why.” Focus on all the good reasons … [Read more...]
Warmth and competence critical to first impressions
When you put people into decision-making mode they are being influenced by logic and emotion. Additionally, the bigger the decision, the more emotion influences the final outcome. So, very often your technical competence as a DVM or vet tech will work against you when dealing with increasing customer compliance. Source: Business Insider, January 16, 2016. If someone you're … [Read more...]
Understanding accountability
Accountable. The word conjures up visions of bad annual reviews, pink slips, punishment or harder work. Jonathan Raymond suggests thinking about accountability in five steps: The mention The invitation The conversation The boundary The limit Source: Harvard Business Review, October 13, 2016. At work as in life, we all need the people who care about us to … [Read more...]
Understand negotiations, don’t kill them
Negotiations are a part of professional life whether you’re a veterinarian, a marketer, a salesperson or even a farmer. Top Producer’s Sara Schafer brings together the advice of three negotiators who offer worthwhile tips to use when negotiating anything you can imagine. Source: AgWeb, October 10, 2016. 'When people get in the heat of the moment during a negotiation, they … [Read more...]
Be confident. People will notice.
True confidence has a look all its own. We sense it and see it in people from all walks of life. As Dr. Travis Bradberry points out, truly confident people always have the upper hand. Plus, confidence is something that can learned. He offers nine habits we can emulate to strengthen our confidence. Source: LinkedIn Pulse, October 5 2016. Ford’s notion that your mentality has … [Read more...]
Talking politics at work is tricky
We’re often advised – with good reason – not to talk politics at the office. Yet, political topics are sometimes unavoidable. Here are four good tips to ensure the conversation doesn’t end in disaster. Source: Harvard Business Review, September 30, 2016. However strong your views are, you don’t want to alienate your coworkers. Here are some strategies for having a tactful, … [Read more...]
Remember names with practice
Remembering names can be a challenge. Some remember faces, but struggle to put names with them. Still others seem to always know the person and name. Nicolas Cole shares his name recall strategy which is basically conscious repetition to affect short term memory. Source: Inc., September 27, 2016. What makes remembering someone's name so hard? Well, it's usually because … [Read more...]
Debate sparks help for interruptions
Trying to have a conversation these days is a challenge. Interruptions seem constant. The recent presidential debate is a prime example. Interruptions are familiar behavior on sports and news panels, in the workplace and at home. The question is, how do you even talk to someone who won’t let you get a word in or finish a pair of sentences? Source: Science of US, September … [Read more...]
Kick your inner critic in the pants
In the post Self-talk is worth understanding, we offered two resources to address the inner self-talk that sometimes occupies and weakens our thinking. Dan Rockwell assertively approaches this topic by giving the inner critic a persona. He says, “Your inner critic believes you’re a failure and wants you to stay that way.” Various resources state humans have as many as 70,000 … [Read more...]
Self-talk is worth understanding
The responses to information about managing ourselves, teams and relationships continue to top the list of most-read posts at AHD. Bob Stahl explains how paying attention to your internal dialogue can free you from you self-doubt and help you become familiar with your own personal brand of autopilot. Source: Mindful, September 12, 2016. When you begin to bring mindfulness … [Read more...]
DVMs lie to themselves
Veterinarians lie to themselves, according to Dr. Andy Roark. He says, “There’s one particular lie that undermines the way we practice, communicate and provide patient care. It affects how we educate veterinarians and how we operate our clinics.” Here’s the lie: If we just tell average pet owners what’s best for their pets, they’ll do it. Source: Dr. Andy Roark, August 27, … [Read more...]
5 tips to help you negotiate with liars
Research tells us that people tell one or two lies every day. Additional studies report that half of negotiators will lie when they have motive and opportunity. Even more studies tell us we can only correctly identify lies about half the time. Fortunately, scientific examination tells us that we can conduct conversations in ways that make it difficult for our counterparts to … [Read more...]
Find out if you’re a jerk
We don’t typically ask ourselves, “Am I jerk?” That’s because most people tend to know themselves relatively well. We know if we’re talkative or quiet. We know if we’re creative. Yet, we don’t yet have a full understanding of jerkitude. There is no scientific designation that matches the range of the application of the term “jerk.” It’s hard to determine if the guy who cuts in … [Read more...]
Real empathy is not about you
In our self-centered society, empathy seems like an outdated concept. Even caring individuals often get it wrong when trying to be empathetic to another’s situation. Genuine empathy is difficult because it is all about the other person – not you. Source: Gordon Tredgold, August 1, 2016. This is something that I still struggle with because as a confident person when I put … [Read more...]
National Wellness Week in progress
National Wellness Week wraps up this Saturday. It was launched to inspire individuals and communities to incorporate the eight dimensions of wellness into their lives. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration supports embracing these dimensions — emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, physical, social and spiritual — to achieve … [Read more...]
Smiling depression is real
A subscriber sent this and commented, “This goes along with all the talk of suicide in our industry.” Smiling depression includes appearing happy to others and smiling through pain, keeping inner turmoil hidden. It is a recognized depressive disorder with atypical symptoms. As a result, many don’t know they’re depressed and don’t seek help. People with smiling depression are … [Read more...]
Expressing gratitude – it’s not about you
When we express our gratitude to others, we tend to talk about ourselves. Instead, we should think about our benefactors. When we get help, it is common to talk about how the favor made us feel. But expressing gratitude shouldn’t be about you. Thanking someone who helps you keeps them interested and invested in having a long-term relationship with you. It makes their time, … [Read more...]
Peer pressure and your beer of choice
Just for fun! Wharton professor Jonah Berger’s new book, Invisible Influence, is about the unseen ways the people around you shape your behavior. The beer anecdote is a brief rundown of a study conducted at a brewery by consumer psychologists Dan Ariely and Jonathan Levav. They argue with their paper that people are highly motivated to signal their uniqueness, even when it … [Read more...]
17 meaningless things the worst bosses say
Repeating platitudes, especially as a superior, shows you’re lazy in words and actions. These 17 examples show how not to lean on useless phrases. Source: Inc., September 1, 2016. 5. 'We're experiencing a paradigm shift.' Actually, we're experiencing a change you don't know how to deal with and "paradigm shift" sounds a lot better than "I have no idea what the (heck) is … [Read more...]