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Michelle Ray

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Business Motivation

How to tell people at work what you really think of them

June 4, 2015 by Michelle Ray

Act One Scene One:  Learning a brand new way of implementing: “Don’t get mad, get even.”

During a recent training session regarding workplace relationships, I asked attendees to think of a time when a co-worker, client or manager’s words left them absolutely speechless.  Shock waves filled the room as participants willingly shared their stories. One example in particular threw everyone for a loop. As one of the attendees revealed the details of an encounter with a VP, the workshop discussion quickly heated up as people chimed in with their best comebacks. The collective “you have got to be kidding” sentiment made me think about the importance of knowing how to respond professionally to a disparaging remark in order to keep one’s credibility and composure, as well managing as the ramifications of unpleasant business interactions spiralling out of control.

What were the words that left everyone aghast? [Read more…] about How to tell people at work what you really think of them

Filed Under: Article Analysis, attitude, attiude, best places to work, Best workplaces, Business, Business Motivation, Communication, Conflict, employee engagement, Leadership, Uncategorized, values in business, workplace wellness programs Tagged With: business conference speakers, Communication, customer service, Lead Yourself First Institute, Michelle Ray, teamwork, trends, workplace

Seven deadly mistakes that destroy employee motivation

May 30, 2015 by Michelle Ray

Originally published in the Globe and Mail Leadership Lab Column

Don is the CEO of a family run business. His entrepreneurial roots span three generations and he is fiercely proud of his lineage . When “the good times” recently came to a grinding halt and the business headed into a rapid decline, a foreboding cloud of doom overtook a once, happy thriving workplace. With seventy employees on his payroll and a shrinking customer base, Don’s anxiety skyrocketed with each passing day. No one was immune from Don’s tongue-lashing as he grappled to manage his emotions and prevent his business from collapsing. [Read more…] about Seven deadly mistakes that destroy employee motivation

Filed Under: Business Motivation, career, economy, employee engagement, Leadership, Uncategorized Tagged With: business conference speakers, future of work, Lead Yourself First Institute, Michelle Ray, workplace

Five ways to take the help when your leader abandons ship

April 17, 2015 by Michelle Ray

Better the devil you know…. The reaction was predictable as the shock waves spread quickly. Dave, our beloved leader, was leaving after 20 years. As soon as the news began to sink in, panic spread throughout our entire organization. The fear was palpable and the gossip attempting to explain his departure, albeit deliciously juicy, proved totally unfounded.

The competition had not snapped him up, he was not fired, nor was there any scandal. Dave, the most charismatic and beloved leader in our company, simply decided it was time to ride into the sunset and enjoy his well-earned retirement. Unfortunately the impending cloud of uncertainty over the plans of his successor became darker by the hour.

Many organizations are surprisingly unprepared for this scenario, whether the departing leader is in a C-Suite or a pivotal middle management position. In addition, the manner in which a leader’s departure is handled leaves many scrambling as they attempt to fill the void.

As the successor, your immediate response is critical, especially when the departing leader was adored, astute and exceptionally good. You are now no longer the understudy… and you had better be ready. [Read more…] about Five ways to take the help when your leader abandons ship

Filed Under: Business, Business Motivation, change, HR, Leadership, Uncategorized Tagged With: Lead Yourself First Institute, Michelle Ray

Why New Year Resolutions Fail: Five ways to lead yourself in 2015

December 31, 2014 by Michelle Ray

image: group of people giving the thumbs up

re·solve verb \ri-ˈzälv, -ˈzȯlv also -ˈzäv or -ˈzȯv\ :To make a definite and serious decision to do something.

Eat less. Exercise more. Get a new job. Start a savings plan. Ditch your partner…whatever lofty goal you decide to set for yourself, it is likely you will give up before the first month of 2015 comes to an end, if not sooner. Sadly, the statistics aren’t good. Although millions will start the year with the best intentions, only eight percent will achieve their new year’s resolutions.

How does one explain the fact that year after year, the vast majority who set resolutions succumb to the comfort of the status quo?

[Read more…] about Why New Year Resolutions Fail: Five ways to lead yourself in 2015

Filed Under: attitude, Business Motivation, career, change, healthy living, Leadership, Motivational Stories, New Year Resolutions, positive thinking, professional development, Quick Quips, self-improvement, Uncategorized Tagged With: Lead Yourself First Institute, leadership speakers, Michelle Ray, Motivational Speakers, new books, personal leadership

Remembering the heroes in our lives – Tribute to my father

November 11, 2014 by Michelle Ray

image: MIchelle Ray's Dad August 2010

“My legs are swollen and I don’t feel like going up to the coffee shop today.”

As soon as I heard my father utter those words on the telephone, thousands of miles away from his bed in the nursing home in Sydney, I knew that everything was different, even though I didn’t want to believe what was happening. Dad was no longer able to dial my number, so I would call him instead, all too often finding him in his room. Time was slipping away.

[Read more…] about Remembering the heroes in our lives – Tribute to my father

Filed Under: Business Motivation, change, Leadership, Motivational Stories, overcoming adversity, Uncategorized Tagged With: business keynote speakers, changemakers books, Lead Yourself First Institute, Michelle Ray, Motivational Speakers, new books

The trouble with leadership: It’s Time to Lead Yourself First

September 23, 2014 by Michelle Ray

Leadership is always a subject that finds its way into the headlines. Unfortunately, we are witnessing a decline in the high standards that we expect to see from our leaders. Whether we are talking about sports, politics, business or religion, why are we so often profoundly disappointed in our leaders? Why do so many fall from grace and how does it come to pass that character becomes secondary to title?

[Read more…] about The trouble with leadership: It’s Time to Lead Yourself First

Filed Under: Business Motivation, change, economy, Leadership, personal leadership, Uncategorized Tagged With: business conference speakers, business keynote speakers, changemakers books, Lead Yourself First Institute, Lead Yourself First Institute. Leadership Keynote Speakers, leadership speakers, Michelle Ray, Michelle Ray author, Motivational Speakers, new books

Do you manage change or does change manage you?

May 29, 2014 by Michelle Ray

image: book cover saying 'change your mindset'

Addressing the subject of change instills fear in many people. The very thought of disruption to the status quo brings up feelings of anxiety and distress in many individuals and organizations. Pending gloom and doom consumes the collective consciousness as people grapple with the new reality. Viewing change positively isn’t usually the norm, although it could represent an exciting opportunity to do things differently.

[Read more…] about Do you manage change or does change manage you?

Filed Under: Business Motivation, change, Motivational Stories, personal leadership, Uncategorized Tagged With: Lead Yourself First Institute, leadership speakers, Michelle Ray, motivation, positive thinking, workplace

Are you feeling the love? Five tips to be happier, productive and inspired at work

February 14, 2014 by Michelle Ray

image: boy and girl holding valentines

I will always remember the antics of one of my co-workers whose desk was beside mine at my first corporate job. Dan would saunter into the office whenever it suited him and immediately announce his arrival to the entire staff. In a bellowing voice, he would ask the same question every morning: “Who can I annoy today?”  [Read more…] about Are you feeling the love? Five tips to be happier, productive and inspired at work

Filed Under: attitude, Business, Business Motivation, career, change, healthy living, Motivational Stories, personal leadership, Quick Quips, Uncategorized, values in business, work-life balance Tagged With: business keynote speakers, Lead Yourself First Institute, leadership speakers, Michelle Ray, motivation, personal leadership, positive thinking, workplace

The fear of success is bigger than the fear of failure

November 29, 2013 by Michelle Ray

Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough – Og Mandino

“My goodness! What would it be like if I had the life I always wanted! How would I cope if everything I desired to achieve actually came true! Wouldn’t that be terrible?” This kind of self-talk is an example of someone who possesses a “fear of success.” Sounds a little silly, doesn’t it? While “fear of failure” is an all-too-familiar term in modern-day ethos, we don’t often hear about the “fear of success.” At first glance, these phrases look different, but, in fact, they have similar interpretation. It is not unusual for people to be afraid of success because of the connotations attached to the word. The idea of success can elicit an equal, if not greater “fear” response as failure. Furthermore, many people cannot “cope” with success and, as a result, they unconsciously sabotage it. How does this happen? It is important to understand the ramifications of such thinking, as well as the rationale (or should I say the “irrational”) behind it.

Allowing your inner critic to surface on occasion in human. However, if it becomes a way of life and you continue to move in a downward spiral, your journey to success will become even more daunting. By interpreting setbacks as a sign of the universe conspiring against you, the potential risk of sabotaging your own success increases as negative thoughts intensify. Many of us maintain a personal belief system that keeps working against us, without understanding its origins.

The fear of success is based on three factors:

1. Regard we have for ourselves (self-concept)

A individual’s belief system cultivates either a positive or negative self-concept. Based on the internal lens we use to view ourselves, we attribute meaning to the terms “success” and “failure.” Self-concept goes beyond being placed under the “self-esteem” umbrella. Psychologist Albert Bandura says: “Self-efficacy is the belief in one’s capabilities to organize and execute the sources of action required to manage prospective situations.” In other words, if you believe in your capabilities to manage and overcome whatever life throws at you, you will find success in your life . . . however you choose to define “success”.

2. Lack of clarification in relation to success values

Just as the word “money” is laden with values attachments, the same can be said about the word “success.”  It is essential to achieve clarity around your personal, uniquely individual definition of success in order to actually live it. There are widely held assumptions in our society that success and wealth are synonymous, almost interchangeable terms. It is at the core of many a values struggle! However, not everyone measures “success” and “wealth” in financial terms. Once we achieve clarity regarding what success actually means on a deeply personal level, the experience is invigorating.

3. The Impact of Conditioning

We are conditioned to think of ourselves, our values, and other people in terms of either/or. By polarizing our thoughts into society’s concept of good or bad, right or wrong, etc., it becomes difficult to discern our own unique value proposition regarding work, career, family, money, success, politics, institutions, etc. A powerful set of influencers have shaped our ideas throughout our lives, either subtly or otherwise. Examples of these influencers include our family of origin, culture, education system, religious credo, media, etc. When we are able to identify those influencers and in turn, recognize their impact, we can see our own version of the truth through a fresh set of eyes.

Now is as good a time as any to examine what you think about yourself, to look through that internal lens and focus on how you manage your life in the world. Change any self-perceptions that are fueling a fear of success.  Equipped with a healthy self-concept and clarity regarding your values, you will find success in your career, your business, and your life.

About the Author: Michelle Ray is the CEO & Founder of the Lead Yourself First Institute

Filed Under: attitude, Business, Business Motivation, change, economy, Leadership, Motivational Stories, overcoming adversity, resiliency, success, Uncategorized, uncertainty, values in business Tagged With: business keynote speakers, Lead Yourself First Institute, leadership, Michelle Ray, Motivational Speakers, personal leadership

When Customers Walk – The Business Consequences of Disengagement

August 30, 2013 by Michelle Ray

After a seventeen hour journey from Australia to Canada, plus forty-five frustrating minutes talking to airline staff about a pair of prescription glasses that were left on board, our friends left Vancouver International Airport knowing that the chances of anyone caring enough to resolve their concern was almost zero. A young woman who listened to their plight while repeatedly attempting not to yawn informed them that if found, the glasses would be taken to the appropriate location for lost articles. She scribbled down the company’s website name and told them to fill out the on-line form for lost and found articles. It was time to go on her break and there was nothing else she could do. The fact that their airplane was still at the gate, and the fact that the “at your service” agent could have easily communicated with airline’s ground staff to check for the glasses seemed all too difficult.

This scenario is not merely an example of poor customer service. It demonstrates something much deeper…a problem that is reaching endemic proportions in many workplaces of every description: Skyrocketing levels of employee disengagement. The results of a new Aon Hewitt study, reported in HRM Online, found 47% of workers are disengaged from their work – the lowest employee engagement levels in North America in five years.

Healthy levels of workplace engagement indicate discretionary effort, i.e. wanting to do, rather than having to do a job. HRM online also noted that “the drops in areas such as diversity, customer experience and leadership lead to an overall decrease in how employees felt about their overall work experience.” In the case of my friend’s lost pair of glasses, she encountered an individual who was not only unwilling to ask another colleague at the gate about the status of the glasses in that moment, but gave no thought to the bigger picture regarding the future buying decisions of an unhappy customer in her highly competitive industry.

Workplace cultures, together with employees’ perceptions of their role in the grand scheme of impacting the bottom line are key indicators of engagement. A recently published report entitled: The impact of the new long-term employee…Dealing with the Increasingly Shorter Definition of “a Long Time with the Company” defined engagement as: “the degree to which employees are psychologically invested in your organization and motivated to contribute to its success.”

The above definition ought to become the new benchmark for assessing the entire spectrum of organizational effectiveness. Employers of any size and industry that continue to ignore the significance of their staff remaining disengaged do so at their own peril. Unfortunately, the front line is not the only cohort who is psychologically “checking out” on the job. Management are also disconnecting for a host of reasons that include pressures to achieve higher performance and productivity with reduced staffing levels, limited resources, and increased workloads. As a result of being pulled in divergent directions, they are compromising their own abilities to lead, inspire, and motivate in order to meet or exceed senior leadership’s expectations.

Sadly, the story of my friend’s lost pair of glasses continued on a downward spiral. Email communications with supervisors and managers proved futile, as it became evident that their apologetic responses were obligatory rather than empathetic. At no time did my friend get a sense that there was a genuine desire to resolve her concern, from the top down.

When individuals at every level of an organization lose sight of the “how” and “why” of their job function, the disengagement cycle continues to build, job satisfaction wanes, client service is affected and opportunities for business growth are lost. As a leader, are you personally setting the example for your team to be highly engaged? Is your customer service a reflection of a team doing what they do because they have to or want to? Disengagement is not only evident within your internal operations; it is also evident to your customers who may ultimately experience its consequences and take their business elsewhere.

 

Filed Under: Absenteeism, attitude, attiude, Australia, Business Motivation, change, employee engagement, Leadership, personal leadership, Uncategorized Tagged With: bad attitudes, business keynote speakers, customer service, customer service trends, first impressions, leadership, Michelle Ray, workplace

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