Observations in Human Effectiveness

The Importance of Encouraging Enthusiasm In traveling the US and Canada performing speaking and training engagements, I run across a common theme shared with many up and coming construction leaders.  That theme seems to be that the concepts are a great idea, but their companies would likely not adopt them.  Or, that they wish their companies could implement large, meaningful change.  I wish I could say that I only hear these quotes occasionally.  I hear them EVERY SINGLE COURSE I've ever taught.  So, what does that say? It says that there is an intrinsic resistance to change, and a culture that could likely use some improvement.  Either way, it's lost opportunity and, frankly, lost profitability. The enthusiasm that comes from learning is palpable.  It is easy to see if you're looking and listening.  Nothing fuels a trainer's passion for their craft more than watching the light bulb go off or seeing people get excited about concepts that are n...

Sometimes in our efforts to be super detailed and impactful, we become part of our own challenge.  We become an obstacle that we, ourselves, place in the path of our own success.  Many people who are seriously driven are motivated by doing "as much work" as we possibly can.  That motivation, however, prevents us from doing one very important thing to maintain perspective:  Breathe. When a challenge arises, especially in the construction industry, we rush to solve.  This is generally a good thing, as problems in this business escalate exponentially with time, it would seem.  The conflict  arises when we are too close to the problem and too close to the emotions, anxiety, and overall state of being busy that we have lost our perspective. Today, I'm going to discuss the first option to being able to effectively solve.  That is simply to BREATHE.  We must take a pause in our busy work day, stop, and take a step back from the situation in ord...