Category: Organization Communication
Resolve Conflict and Get More Done
fabulous | March 19, 2010 | 6:03 am | Organization Communication, leadership | No comments

Conflict in the workplace happens, even among the best of friends. That doesn’t mean you can’t find ways to resolve conflict and get a positive outcome from the situation.  A few steps should be taken as soon a possible so you can resolve your conflict and start getting things done again.  Here are some suggestions to help. 

#1. Don’t Wait. 

When conflict happens, take care of it as soon as possible. Don’t wait until it starts festering and getting out of control. For instance, if there’s been a miscommunication or a difference in how to reach goals, address these issues immediately.  Communication problems and goal ambiguity are two of the most common causes for conflict in the workplace. Knowing this is important because you can be more conscious of when these problems are occurring. Address these issues as soon as you realize they’ve occurred and you’ll prevent a small conflict from snowballing into a big one. 

#2. Get Clarity. 

When you’re in doubt about what’s causing a problem, ask question and get clarity. You can tell if someone is upset but you may not know why.  Instead of waiting, start asking questions.  Ask the other person what’s upsetting him or her so you can discover if there’s been a misunderstanding.  Ask about their opinion on the problem, it you’ve been misunderstood, or if you’ve misunderstood them. Just be sure to get clarity so you can clear the air.    

#3. Restate the Issues. 

A great lesson in communication is restating an issue that you hear to be sure you are clear on it.  To make sure you heard what was stated and that you and the other person are understanding things in a similar manner, mirror what they’ve said back to them.  An example is, “It sounds to me that you’re saying,” or “I understand you’re saying.  This will help bring  quick clarification and prevent real conflicts from sparking. 

#4. Be Ready to Apologize.  

Saying you’re sorry is not a easy thing to do. But taking the high and admitting a mistake or just being the first to end the conflict by offering an apology can go a long ways.  An apology goes miles towards lowering someone’s defenses. It doesn’t have to be long and drawn out; just a simple, “I’m sorry we’ve had this misunderstanding,” lowers the tension and puts the other party in a more compatible frame of mind.  

#5. Criticize with Care. 

The art of giving constructive criticism is necessary in the workplace. To give constructive criticism use the sandwich principle. That means you’ll sandwich any criticism between two bookends of praise. For example, “You have a wonderful way of motivating the team.  I think if you could work on following up with them regularly our projects will run more smoothly.  You know your team well so I’m sure they’ll be responsive.” 

#6. Share Expectations. 

Not knowing what the other person wants or needs can be the beginning of conflict.  Be sure to be clear about your workplace expectations if you’re the boss or the one carrying out the work. Use clear and concise language to avoid people misunderstanding you. Remember it’s okay to ask for clarification because you really want to be sure you’re understood.  

#7. Stay Positive. 

Nothing helps to beat conflict like a good positive outlook.  Even though you can expect conflicts to show their ugly face almost daily in the workplace, you can take the position to approach each day, task, and co-worker with a positive attitude. As a result, you’ll find that many potential conflicts will simply fade away.  Being position has a contagious effect so share that positive feeling with everyone and make the whole workplace experience a better thing. 

Still can’t get along?  When all else fails, don’t be afraid to ask for mediation.  Sometimes people just can’t get along or they just don’t communicate well.  This means working together is going to be extra difficult.  If a situation arises and the steps you’ve taken to remedy the conflict aren’t working, ask for help.  Many larger companies offer mediation services or you can bring in a superior to help clear up the situation.

Confidence Through Mastermind Groups
fabulous | March 3, 2010 | 10:28 pm | Organization Communication, Personal Changes | 2 Comments

Confidence in business is a necessary characteristic for success.  But staying focused and ready for success is not always easy.  Working with a mastermind group can be one of the most important business decisions a professional can make in a business career. These ideas give ways working a mastermind group can build confidence for business success.

1. Mastermind groups consist of a group of people with the same goals that come together to support each other to reach their individual goals. Finding a mastermind that works for you provides an effective ways for you to stay focused on your goals. If you have a problem setting goals the mastermind group can help.  

2. Mastermind groups help you to maintain the self-discipline to get moving towards your purpose each day. Being in business often means feeling tired and burned out. If you feel like stopping in your business pursuits, your mastermind members are there to keep you on track and help you develop business routines for success.  

3. Mastermind groups provide a place where you can be accountable to reach your goals. Because you check in on a regular basis with your group, you will soon begin to feel accountable to report on your goals to the group. You will enjoy having the other members recognize the efforts you made to reach your stated goals. This helps to build your self-esteem because you will be sharing your successes on a regular basis. They can also help you through the tough spots without being judgmental.    

4. Mastermind groups hold you to the expectation of doing what you set out to do in business. They are supportive when you want to implement new ideas or try creative concepts. You have a sounding board of people who can let you know whether or not they feel your idea needs some tweaking or is fine as is. This lets you have more confidence to try something innovative before introducing it the world without this type of feedback.  

5. Mastermind groups often share insider information that you wouldn’t be able to find in other settings. That is because the focus is usually very tight and the members are professionals in the same area. You can expect a level of confidentiality that is respected by each group member so you can speak freely bout your issues. Of course, be sure this idea of being confidential is a stated policy in your mastermind group before sharing too much.  

6. Mastermind groups provide a mentoring atmosphere which means you are supported to understand the nuances of your profession that only come through a close mentoring relationship. Everything can’t be taught or passed along through books or even public training sessions. Some have to come through a mentoring situation and the mastermind can provide that setting in your industry.  

 7. Mastermind groups could help you to establish life long friendships and business partners that you wouldn’t find in other situations. Mastermind mind members get to know each other in a way the general population doesn’t. Members want to see each other succeed and often provide support and resources only with other mastermind members that could make the difference in building a business quickly an defectively.  

Mastermind groups are one of the most important concepts for helping a professional grow a business and build personal self-esteem and confidence to succeed. When you know you are working with a select group of people who care about your success, hold you accountable and support you no matter what, you naturally grow in the confidence to reach you stated business goals.

Internet Marketing for Smart Businesses
fabulous | March 3, 2010 | 10:21 pm | Organization Communication | 1 Comment

Internet marketing can be fun and low cost when you use written content as the key to driving traffic to your websites.  Even if you don’t like to write, you can write enough to bring attention to your websites. That’s because you don’t have to write long articles or posts. In fact, the more brief the better in most incidences. These 7 top tips for marketing on the Internet tell you how to use writing skills to get your marketing done.   

1. Articles. These are the number one written resource for the Internet. Learn to write an SEO rich Internet based article and you will have the ability to draw people to your website. You will also be able to develop content whenever you need it.   

2. Ecourses. Writing an ecourse is a great way to keep the attention of people on your mailing list. Use the ecourse as a free gift to give to subscribers instead of writing an eBook. It is fast and easy to prepare an ecourse that you load into your autoresponder and deliver on a scheduled basis.   

3. Ebook. Once you know how to write an Internet based article or even an ecourse you are on the way to being an ebook author. You can design an ebook by putting 10 articles together or compiling the individual lessons from the ecourse into one document. Convert the document to PDF and upload to your website for sell or as a free download.  

4. Blog Posts. Putting fresh posts on your blog will be a great way to draw attention to your web business. Be sure to insert keywords for your topic. Get listed in Technorati and other blog directories where you will generate a lot of traffic and interest.  

5. Short Reports. Short reports are similar to ebooks but much shorter. You can get a short report written by using only one long article or two or three shorter articles. Combine these into a report with a heading and summary. Put your name and URL and convert to a PDF format. Upload to your website and you have a product to promote your site.  

6. Ezines. Even if people have loads of ezines subscriptions, you can still find your place in the email box of interested subscribers by producing an informative ezine in your topic. The most important thing to do is stay consistent with your ezines. Use an autoresponder that lets you schedule mailings ahead of time if necessary and prepare several emails at once.   

7. Testimonials. Providing a testimonial on the website of someone whose products you have tried is a good way to get some marketing exposure. People often want to be sure the person giving the testimonial is real. By including your URL you could get people clicking through to see your site or copying and pasting the URL into a search browser for the same purpose. Write a good testimonial and refer to what you do and it could be a great marketing tool.  

Internet marketing doesn’t have to be difficult. Use brief writing skills and you are on your way to driving traffic to your site. The best thing about these Internet marketing tools is that they are free or low-cost and only require your time and effort to complete.

Build an Effective Business Website
fabulous | March 3, 2010 | 9:27 pm | Organization Communication | No comments

An Internet presence has become a standard necessity in any business.  Just having a website is not going to do.  An effective website must work to bring in the business you need to succeed. Here are ways a business can design a website that works to attract the clients and business. 

1. Show the Real You. When you say you are a caring company, people want to see that reflected in your website. That means carefully selecting everything that goes on it including photos and the web copy that let you portray the professionals that you say you are.  

2. Have a Simple Layout. Make it easy for web visitors to navigate your site. This doesn’t mean you have to hire an expensive website designer, it means being sure people can see how to go between pages without getting lost. Be sure you basic contact information appears on every page.

3. Make it Attractive. Make your website attractive to your target audience. If you are in a serious profession, don’t use a cartoon or comic look but instead opt for the professional look even using professional settings or people in the graphics. Of course, use the cartoons or other images if that fits your audience.  

4. Consider Demographics. Always think about the age and generation of your target group. If you focus on an older audience such as senior citizens, avoid flashing icons and a lot of clip art that will make the site look busy and overwhelming. If you have a young audience this might work just fine. For the Boomer professional audience, consider either a well-suited business professional or keep the design casual if it works for your business.  

5. Use SEO.  Use search engine optimization (SEO) techniques in your writing and web content. Good web content lets your web visitor immediately know what your company is about and what’s available for the consumer. SEO means using the right keywords that you site visitor will look for when they land on your home page. Keep your content fresh and updated. Research the keywords that work best for your content and webpage headings and use them  

6. Make it Fast. Be sure the web pages load quickly. Web research says you a web visitor will often click away in as little as four to seven seconds. That means if the person has to wait a long time for you site to load, she might click away. Use small optimized photos to show your products that don’t take a long time to load.  

7. Keep Focused. Keep your site focused on the obvious topic of the site. Visitors will get confused on a site that splits its focus between several different topics.  If you are selling coaching, resist the urge to also sell crafts and jewelry. Maintaining a tight focus helps to build a customer base. If you want to sell another product, place each on a separate webpage or start another website for it.  

Creating an effective website is important for business success. Some consumers are still intimidated by the Internet so opt for a simple point and click method of navigation instead of using fancy graphics that are not obviously links and navigation menu items. If your site looks complicated, many customers will pass. Use these tips to design a business website that works to build your business bottom line.

Talking Organization Culture
fabulous | March 3, 2010 | 8:44 pm | Organization Change, Organization Communication | No comments

If you had to explain the culture of your organization to someone would you be able to do it easily? That can be a difficult question if you’ve never stopped to consider that organization culture influence what makes your company function on a daily basis. You might be so involved in the culture that you really can’t see it. Here are 7 ways that a organization leader can tell others about your organization culture.

1.  Who is most important in the organization? Tell people if the leaders, managers or employees are considered the most important people in the company. This lets them know the type of activities and recognition people get involved with in the company as well as where most of the resources will be allocated.   

2. Do you ever see the managers? Relate how accessible management is to workers on a daily basis and how formal or informal the interactions are between workers and management. This lets people know to sharpen their business etiquette in case they have a chance to meet the managers on a regular basis.   

3. What are the work expectations? Let people know if employees are expected to work after regular work hours to complete their work or if overtime work is frowned on. This lets people know if they can plan activities for after work hours or expect to put those extra hours in at the office.

4. How are people welcomed? Talk about how new people are brought into the organization. Are they provided with an orientation or left to fend for themselves? This will affect the retention rates of employees at many companies. Workers that experience a good orientation usually stay longer.  

5. What is the satisfaction factor? Talk about how satisfied the general workforce seems to be throughout all areas of the organization. Are people generally happy or disgruntled? People want to work where others are happy. A dissatisfied work staff can be a motivation buster.

6. Who do people like the most? Talk about the special people in the organization. It might be someone who is still there or a person who was the organizational “hero” from long ago.  This gives a good view of the type of characteristics and values that are considered to be important in the organization.

7. What type of activities do you have? Tell whether people are expected to get involved with company picnics or parties or if people barely know each other’s names or anything personal. Some personality types will have a difficult time in an environment that is not social or welcoming.

These 7 top tips give you quick talking points that help explain your organization culture to other people. By sharing this type of information, you can quickly convey what is expected in the organization and the regular norms and behaviors of company members.

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