Tagged: SuccessHawaii
How Positive Psychology Can Boost Your Business
When I came across the following article in the February 13th, 2009, edition of BusinessWeek, I was compelled and intrigued. As a businessowner, the succinct title definitely captured my attention, especially given these challenging economic times in which we find ourselves looking for ways to thrive, and not merely survive. And since it directly relates to one aspect of the consulting services SuccessHawaii provides organizations, I was duty-bound to learn more and read onward.
In essence, it’s about understanding how positive psychology–the so-called science of happiness–is actually being used by entrepreneurs and businesspeople.
According to the article, consultants who specialize in positive psychology are selling a twofold promise:
“One is that optimism and cheerfulness have a measurable effect on the bottom line. The other is that happiness is a muscle you can strengthen.”
In this piece, the author, Jill Hamburg Coplan, cites thirty years worth of surveys at Gallup which, “have found that the most successful companies are ones whose employees believe they get to do what they do best every day. (Only one-third of working people do.)”
After nearly 20 years in the personnel training and HR development business with The Human Connection, Successories and now, SuccessHawaii, tracking results empirically has always remained a challenge for us. We know it works and makes an impact on the bottomline because we utilize tools to measure the results. But the best indicator is the fact that clients tell us of the organizational improvements, and most telling, they ask us to return.
In the BusinessWeek article, Coplan said, “If all this sounds too fuzzy for you, well, just speak with Juan Humberto Young, the founder of seven-person consulting firm Positive Decision Analysis, in Zürich. A positive psychology consultant…Young hears one criticism most: Positive psychology is too soft for numbers-obsessed business owners.”
But it’s not just empirical-minded business owners that this business is a little too soft for. I still remember a Hawaii state government contract that The Human Connection had back in 1993. It required more documentation (“red tape”) and post-analysis than the actual time spent interacting and training personnel. Although it was more “numbers crunching” than I ever experienced in the private sector; it was a state contract that required the ultimate “justification” at our expense.
To read more, check out Coplan’s well-written article for yourself: “How Positive Psychology Can Boost Your Business…In tough times, entrepreneurs try the so-called science of happiness to build thriving companies”
And to learn more about our training and consulting services at SuccessHawaii, visit our website today.
Motivating Your Team In These Challenging Times
Surprise, surprise: According to a research study from the Ceridian Corporation in 2008, employees are most productive when they enjoy their work. But as you may know, even the most engaged employees can start to lose their drive if they feel overwhelmed, under-appreciated or panicking about job layoffs. So how can you as a manager keep your team members motivated when the workplace becomes stressful?
According to Ceridian, if everyone is working harder than usual because of layoffs and other cutbacks, talk openly with your team members about the situation. Acknowledge that times are difficult and let them know that you notice and appreciate their efforts. Here are some ways to keep up your team’s commitment and morale during difficult times.
Customers Appreciate SuccessHawaii’s Quick Turnaround!
Here’s just one example of how our customers appreciate our quick turnaround at SuccessHawaii:
Yesterday, I received a call from one of our loyal, longtime Successories of Hawaii customers, Derrick Wong. After catching-up with this successful pharmaceutical sales professional, I explained how we now have transitioned to delivering our high-quality island motivational merchandise strictly through our online store, SuccessHawaii.
Priority #1: Managing Yourself and Your Time
This month marks the seven-year point of my stint working with military personnel based here in Hawaii. I consider myself fortunate to play a small role in helping our fighting men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces achieve their financial goals.
By doing what I do, they are given the peace of mind and the assurance that they can provide for their families on a long-term basis. For me this is why I do the thing I do.
There are great parallels between what we have created at SuccessHawaii and what I do at The Wheeler Group LLC through our association with the military. Like SuccessHawaii, our goal is simple–“to help our clients reach theirs.”
Priority #1: Managing Yourself and Your Time
This month marks the seven-year point of my stint working with military personnel based here in Hawaii. I consider myself fortunate to play a small role in helping our fighting men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces achieve their financial goals. By doing what I do, they are given the peace of mind and the assurance that they can provide for their families on a long-term basis. For me this is why I do the thing I do.
There are great parallels between what we have created at SuccessHawaii and what I do at The Wheeler Group LLC through our association with the military. Like SuccessHawaii, our goal is simple–to help our clients reach theirs.
When meeting with prospective customers, I share with them the concept and idea that my mom, Dr. Linda Andrade Wheeler, passed on to me: If you don’t have a dream, you can’t make a dream come true. It all begins with goals. This is the beginning point. Without having a clear idea of what they want in life, the point of meeting with me is lost. They, like all of us, need a crystal clear vision of where they want to be financially in the future. Once we nail that down, we can move forward breaking their financial goals into manageable, realistic steps that will get them where they want to be.
“If you don’t have a dream, you can’t make a dream come true.”
In the past, Dr. Wheeler has given of herself and has conducted free seminars for the troops here in Hawaii. The emphasis of these classes is not simply money management, but rather a much more comprehensive approach to managing one’s life. It all starts with the notion of self-management. The core element in all of this is the empowering concept of developing a personal philosophy that makes you the owner of your own destiny, and not the victim of your circumstances.
In order to make this work, you need to develop a specific and practical plan of action for personal development. Your personal belief about yourself and what you deserve in life greatly impacts the actions you take in designing your destiny. In this day and age, it is all about balancing everything: mentally, emotionally, intellectually, physically and financially. In the Hawaiian language, there is a term that sums this up quite nicely. In essence the term, “Hookaulike”, means to bring into balance all the things to make you feel in harmony with the universe.
The second element she addresses in the seminar is the component of managing your time; ever critical in this fast-paced world we live in. A primary focus in this approach to time management is to plan your work; and work your plan. As she succinctly puts it,
“Goals without action is daydreaming; action without goals is spinning your wheels; but action with goals will get results.”
I don’t know about you, but I’ve daydreamed and spinned my wheels many times. I appreciate the simple and constant reminder that we all need to put goals on paper, and then figure out the best way to make them come true.
So what does it take to accomplish your goals and meet with the success you’re looking for?
Well, the next time I conduct seminars–for the 500th Military Intelligence division at Schofield Barracks (through Sgt. Major Marty Glenn) on October 17th, and in November for MSgt. Noel DeMello and his crew at the Hawaii Air National Guard–I will share that it takes desire, discipline and dedication. Like anything else, you don’t get anything for nothing. When it comes to wealth accumulation, you never get anywhere if you don’t have the savings habit. ‘Pay yourself first and what you don’t see, you won’t miss,’ is the old cliché, but altogether correct. But when you give something, you’re more likely to get something back. You’ve got to give to get what you desire. Like everything else in this world, it begins with you.
Helping Kamaaina Prepare for Retirement Since 2001 