Work to live. Live to work. We’ve heard that before.
Nigel Marsh is the author of “Fat, Forty and Fired” and “Overworked and Underlaid.” In this TED Talk video, Nigel has an interesting approach to the concept of work-life balance, and really gets down to the core of what is really important.
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged career, happiness, Human Resources, meaningful work, TED Talk, video, work life balance
Have you ever contemplated a drastic career change? Sometimes the thought could be frightening or exhilarating. Jobs come and go. As well, specific responsibilities and the scope of some jobs change. What we want out of work also changes, with our values shifting as we get older. Are we all happy doing what we’re doing right now, this very moment? Could we think of doing anything else?
I was watching TV the other night, and caught the last 20 minutes of the classic 1984 mock ‘rockumentary’ This is Spinal Tap. This funny movie left us with many iconic pop culture lines such as “It’s like, how much more black could this be? and the answer is none. None more black.” and “Put it up to eleven.”
“Eleven. Exactly. One louder.”
Some of the best lines are at the end when they are running the credits. The documentary filmmaker, Marty DiBergi, played by Rob Reiner asks the bandmembers “If you could not play Rock and Roll, what would you do?” Some of the answers are hilarious, but my favourite is the exchange between Marty DiBergi and lead guitarist Nigel Tufnel played by Christopher Guest at the very end. Start watching at 4:30
Nigel Tufnel: [on what he would do if he couldn't be a rock star] Well, I suppose I could, uh, work in a shop of some kind, or… or do, uh, freelance, uh, selling of some sort of, uh, product. You know…
Marty DiBergi: A salesman?
Nigel Tufnel: A salesman, like maybe in a, uh, haberdasher, or maybe like a, uh, um… a chapeau shop or something. You know, like, “Would you… what size do you wear, sir?” And then you answer me.
Marty DiBergi: Uh… seven and a quarter.
Nigel Tufnel: “I think we have that.” See, something like that I could do.
Marty DiBergi: Yeah… you think you’d be happy doing something like-…
Nigel Tufnel: “No; we’re all out. Do you wear black?” See, that sort of thing I think I could probably… muster up.
Marty DiBergi: Do you think you’d be happy doing that?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, I don’t know – wh-wh-… what’re the hours?
I don’t know about you, I just can’t picture Nigel Tufnel being happy selling hats. 
Posted in career
Tagged career, happiness, laughter, Marty DiBergi, Nigel Tufnel, Rob Reiner, This Is Spinal Tap, Up to eleven, video
When I was little, I was taught about responsibility by owning pets. First it was goldfish, then it was lizards and salamanders that I picked up from the forest behind my house before I graduated onto hamsters, and then to dogs.
The hamsters taught me a lot about uncertainty.
See, they lived in a cage.
It looked the same day in and day out. That spinning wheel stayed in the same place every day. The cage always had two floors to it. They got food and water from the same spot.
They explored that cage every day as if it was new to them. As if that wheel was finally gonna break them free and that food finally going to taste that much better.
When I would open the cage door, to “set them free,” they ran – ran to a safe spot in their cage or that awkward place under the ladder where I couldn’t reach them. They dug into the wood chips. They hid. They flared their teeth at me. They became scared of leaving the same cage they were held captive in.
The only way they would come out was to wait. I waited until they calmed down, regained that sense of curiosity about their surroundings, and found the open door themselves. And there I would be, ready to pat and play with the happy little critters as they ran around our living room floor.
When I am introduced to new situations at work, new people, or new development distinctions, I can sometimes become that hamster – digging into my own jail and hiding in fear from what I don’t know.
The magic happens when I discover the newness “on my own.”
It resonates more with me.
I make it an adventure.
It builds up my confidence in handling the unknown.
When we want to set another person free, just leave the door open.
This guest post was written by Matt Corker - International Operations Specialist, lululemon athletica
Matt Corker has a serious addiction to big ideas, bold goals, and strong communities. After working for the University of British Columbia in alumni and student affairs, Matt was drawn to lululemon athletica – a yoga-inspired athletic apparel company that creates components for people to live long, healthy, and fun lives. After working first in Leadership Development creating opportunities 
that empower their great staff to achieve their dreams and live a life they LOVE, he moved into a new role supporting the global goals of the company. Matt has a Bachelor of Commerce in Human Resource Management and International Business from the Sauder School of Business at UBC and his MBA from the Copenhagen Business School in Denmark. He has a strong background in leadership and development and a big heart for new technologies, inspiring minds, and giving out great high fives. More information about Matt can be found at http://thatsacorker.com.
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged business, career, empowering, happiness, Matt Corker, motivation
After watching this video, think about it thoroughly and share in the comments what you would want to do with your life if money didn’t matter.
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged Alan Watts, career, empowering, happiness, inspiration, Money, video
Yes, we’ve heard about company perks that big employers like Google and Facebook can offer their employees. But, what can smaller companies do? With limited budgets, it can be challenging, but offering attractive low-cost perks encourages creative ideas that will keep employees engaged and happy.
Some good perks to many employees are flexible schedules, telecommuting, and extra vacation days. Depending on the environment and culture, some employees enjoy the benefits of Take Your Dog to Work Day. There is also job sharing for new parents, or a paid day off per year to volunteer for a favourite charity. These are just some of the benefits that enable employees to work well and live well.
Many years ago, I worked at a company where the Director of our branch office did a lot of corporate travel. He racked up the air miles points, enough to be rewarded a long haul flight, and every year at the staff holiday party he drew a name out of a hat. I remember one year, the winning staff member was our long time receptionist who used the air miles to go on her honeymoon to the Caribbean. Although only one person really benefited from this perk, we all felt great about it. It did wonders for morale.
A tricky thing about introducing a new perk, is the sustainability of it. When financial times are tough, sometimes it’s those little perks that go away first. It can be awfully hard to take back those pizza Fridays that everybody enjoyed for the past year. Outrage may occur, and companies don’t like being the bad guy.
That being said, it can be fun to change things up a bit. Replace one perk with another one. A great morale booster is a peer-led recognition system, whereas the staff nominates one of their fellow co-workers as a star employee for going above and beyond their regular work. The company provides the prize – anything from a paid day off or gift cards. With a values-driven culture, the company should be in tune to their employees’ interests, and the awards can be highly personalized.
While going above and beyond the standard benefits can help boost moral and create a loyal workforce, keep in mind that it is not the dollar amount that matters. Taking a philosophical approach to values and culture, and the thought you put into it will create a culture of happiness and fun in the long run.
Posted in corporate culture, Uncategorized
Tagged business, employee retention, Employment, happiness, human capital, motivation, Paid time off, recognition, work perks
Quick. Think back to early this morning.
What was the first thing you did? Hit the snooze button? Check work email on your phone? Creep on facebook?
Let’s try to switch up some habits, and incorporate new, healthy ones. I’m totally guilty for grabbing my iPhone from the bedside table and checking the weather app etc. Next thing I know I’m checking email, reading the news etc. I’ve got to stop this habit as it is eating into some precious time. And really, am I better for it when I check stuff online on my phone from the comfort of my bed – when I could be doing that during my commute to the office?
I should just get up, and get started on my day in a healthy way. After all, I seemed to get by several years ago when I didn’t own a smart phone.
The choices we make regarding our daily routines can define
our state of mind and focus for the rest of the day. Why not get a jump-start on our day by focusing on morning rituals that will provide us with balance, improved health, focus and self-discipline.
They say the best way to rid of a bad habit is to replace it with a good habit. No matter your morning routine, here are a few habits that would add benefits to your day:
meditate – reduced stress, improved job performance, improved relationships. These are just a fraction of benefits one can attain from meditation. Even if you just give yourself 1 or 2 minutes of silence and focus, that’s a start.
stretch – actively stretch in the morning to loosen muscles, increase circulation, increase balance and coordination, attain better posture and boost your mood.
smile - A study in England revels that a warm smile can create a “halo” effect, helping us “feel more optimistic, more positive, and more motivated.”
hydrate – drink a tall glass of water before you eat or drink anything else. Even better, add lemon to reap the many benefits that lemon juice provides including vitamin C, aiding digestion, and fight hunger cravings
When we start the day off right, it’s easier to make the best choices for ourselves the rest of the day.
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged goal setting, good habit, happiness, Health, healthy-living, high performance, Meditation, morning rituals, motivation
I think that once viewing this video, actually twice (couldn’t help myself!), I felt happier and inspired to take this challenge on in my own life. I’ve always fallen on laughter as a key part of keeping happiness alive when facing stress or adversity. Shawn’s presentation has led me to consider happiness and success differently.
“ It’s the lens through which your brain views the world that shapes your reality. And if we can change the lens, not only can we change your happiness, we can change every single educational and business outcome at the same time.” Sage advice Shawn!
Shawn’s video shares an insightful message on how we need to reverse the formula for happiness and success. Bring happiness back and this act of raising positivity will naturally make a person more productive than those whose brains operate under negative, neutral or stress. What a difference place we’d live and work if we could rewire our brains to work as Shawn demonstrates. Let’s move the benchmark for average up!
Posted in corporate culture, Inspiration
Tagged happiness, Positive psychology, Shawn Achor, TED Talk, video
Image via Wikipedia
Research shows that people who are happy at work, are better performers, have strong relationships with colleagues, and open communication with their managers. All of this leads to high employee retention, work satisfaction and a healthy corporate culture.
In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, we ask you one quick question…
Posted in career
Tagged communication, corporate culture, employee retention, happiness, Valentine Day
“Change your thoughts, and you change your world.” – Norman Vincent Peale
I recently challenged myself to changing how my mind works. I am an over analytical, one-step-ahead, worrying type of person and I made it my personal, internal goal to be more positive and focus on what I want out of life rather than focus on the current hardships I have going on. I have been reading a lot of books and blogs about how powerful the mind really is and it’s astonishing to think how a small change of thought can lead to big changes in life. Now, somewhere deep down I knew just how powerful the mind was because my father is an avid “positive-thinker”. He has always taught me that by thinking positively and being grateful for what you do have, you can shape your future by the simple power of positive thought. Basically asking the universe for what you want, knowing inside that you can get it, and taking the steps to achieve what you want.
Most people go through a bad situation and dwell on the negative experience – and in doing so they manifest more bad. Very few people go through a bad situation and think about the good that has come from that negative incident or how worse off things could have been. It’s those few people who put things into perspective and make a negative into a positive that have success in life. And I do not mean just financial success, but success in relationships, career, health, and emotional wellbeing.
Within my research I have found that it is simply up to you to decide how you feel and in turn shape where you want to go in life. You have to actively train your brain to think positively and be grateful for the things you have. This positive thinking will bring you good things. It will be a challenge to retrain your brain, but I can guarantee you that it’s worth it.
This short animated YouTube movie depicts just how powerful the mind is and by focusing on something good, even if it’s just a distant thought can bring you peace and positivity.
I think we all lose sight of how powerful our minds are and how important it is to be happy and positive at all times. Like attracts like – so shape your own world by thinking positive!
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged Change Your Thoughts, happiness, motivation, Norman Vincent Peale, Optimism, video
You’ve probably have heard this before, ‘We need to change our corporate culture’ and ‘our people just aren’t motivated’. And suddenly new signage and new mantras and motivational carrots begin to pop up throughout the corporation. And the same dysfunction lives on. Turnover and poor engagement continue to plague. The machine may look shiny on the outside but the core is out of alignment.
Daniel Pink , author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, said that for the 21st century, there exists an evidence based approach to motivation for complex work. Daniel says that you can’t manage people into engagement. His recommendation is to pay them enough and then give them sufficient amounts of autonomy, mastery and purpose. So the secret to workplace happiness is not found in the carrots or external motivators to do great work.
People in complex jobs, which seem, these days, to make up the better part of the corporate workforce, require self direction. They also find a great deal of reward in the mastery of their work. The desire to get better at stuff and see real progress at work is highly satisfying. The only catch is that these people need to know the context of what they are doing and why what they do every business day really matters.
Time Magazine recently quoted Nobel winning economist Daniel Kahneman saying that ‘when you analyze happiness, it turns out that the way you spend your time is extremely important.’
When work is meaningful time passes quickly. The wheels of enterprise move in a kind of synchronized motion and teams are truly happier. Engagement? – check. Great corporate culture? – check. What better place to spend half of your daily life but in a workplace where you actually feel happy and enjoy the company of others feeling the same.
Posted in corporate culture
