#HR #RRHH Making love and making personal #branding #leadership

At the age of 10, Benjamin Franklin left formal schooling to become an apprentice to his father. As a teenager, he showed no particular talent or aptitude aside from his love of books.

 

When he died a little over half a century later, he was America's most respected statesman, its most famous inventor, a prolific author, and a successful entrepreneur.

 

What happened between these two points to cause such a meteoric rise? Underlying the answer to this question is a success strategy for life that we can all use, and increasingly must use.

Via The Learning Factor

From political leaders like Bill Clinton (in his heyday, at least) and Margaret Thatcher to business legends like Herb Kelleher and Jack Dorsey, there's no shortage of stories of leaders who claim to get by on next to no sleep. Should you follow their lead, inspiring your followers with heroic feats of business endurance?

 

Probably not, suggests a new study. Not only does dragging yourself around on minimal sleep feel awful, it also apparently makes you a less inspiring leader.

Sleeplessness kills your charisma

To test how lack of sleep affects key leadership skills like persuasion and charm, a team of researchers led by University of Washington management professor Christopher Barnes asked 88 business school students to prepare a commencement speech designed to inspire listeners. Half of this group then gave their speech following a restless night (they were asked to complete a survey every hour) and half while they were adequately rested.

 

How did a panel of expert evaluators (as well as the students themselves) rate their performances? The results clearly show that sleeplessness is a charisma killer.

 

Via The Learning Factor

If you think you have a lot of meetings today, you're in good company. One Harvard Business School professor estimates that there will be 11 million meetings taking place today in the United States. The unproductive ones (an estimated third) can cost a company an astounding amount of money. In a 2014 study of time usage, Bain & Company found that just one meeting of mid-level managers per week could cost an organization as much as $15 million per year.

 

In an effort not to waste any more time—or money—on fruitless meetings, we’ve pulled together some pro tips for making any meeting more productive.

Via The Learning Factor

It’s 9 p.m. and you suddenly remember that you wanted to ask your employee about an upcoming project. Before you fire off an email, ask yourself, "Is this urgent?" If you’re sending the email simply because you don’t want to forget, your employee may not know your response expectations, and this can cause stress that negatively impacts your staff’s productivity and performance.

 

In a new report called "Exhausted But Unable to Disconnect," professors from Lehigh University, Virginia Tech, and Colorado State University found that an "always on" culture may prevent employees from fully disengaging from work, causing stress.

 

"It’s easy to depersonalize people when you’re using email, because you don’t see the effect you’re having," says coauthor William Becker, associate professor of management at Virginia Tech. "When boundaries are blurred, it can create all kinds of problems. A lot of companies see the good parts of using email, and don’t think beyond that."

 

 

In the study, participants reported spending an average of eight hours a week doing company-related emails after hours. The greater the amount of time spent on after-hours work, the less successful the employees were at detaching from work. This translated into poorer work-family balance, and even contributed to emotional exhaustion, which Becker says has been shown by prior research to negatively affect job performance.

 

Via The Learning Factor

Maybe you just bombed the bar exam. Or perhaps you’re terrified that you’re going to get laughed out of the room when you try to sell your product.

 

When the stakes–and your emotions–are high, it’s hard to think positive. But the thoughts that run through your head influence the way your body behaves and if you don’t think like a winner, you’ll struggle to be successful.

Via The Learning Factor

Everyone knows what it’s like to slog through Mondays.  Science backs up that they can be a grind. But I don’t think it has to be this way.  I believe Mondays are an opportunity to set the tone for the rest of the workweek. You can position yourself to thrive by being proactive with your time and energy. Here are five ways highly effective people turn the Monday Blues into an opportunity to succeed.

 

1. Plan Your Monday Ahead Of Time

In football, offensive coordinators usually have the first 10-15 plays that their offense will run scripted before the game even begins. After that, they begin to play call in response to what the defense is giving them and what the flow of their offense is.

 

This concept is great one for entrepreneurs that have difficulty getting into a rhythm on Mondays. You don’t have to have every second of the day planned, but having a predetermined schedule for at least the first few hours can help you hit your stride on Mondays. For some, dealing with more administrative work might be the best first thing. For others, it might be brainstorming with a creative team. Whatever it is, find what works for you and script it ahead of time.

The key to this is to plan your Monday before Monday. John Maxwell says, “Without a plan, you’re going nowhere.” This goes for Mondays and for the rest of your life. Use Friday as a planning day to prepare for Monday so that you can start your week effectively.

Via The Learning Factor

1. Stop Compromising on Quality

 

The level of quality you're working towards must be decided at the start of a project, not when staring down a deadline.

 

Each product has a different level of optimal quality. For example, if you're working on a mobile game, your attitude towards data integrity--one aspect of quality--will be far different than if you're working on a finance or healthcare application.

 

You must have this conversation up front and agree on what you'll measure and why. This is not just for the technical team, the business must agree as well.

 

Via The Learning Factor