Book Review: Maverick by Ricardo Semler, 30 Years On
When I read Maverick in 1992, it transformed what was then Happy Computers.
I went from being a micro-managing boss, who rang every day from holiday to check things were going ok, to – eventually – a fully trust-based environment.
For me it is the best business book ever written. I have given copies to many of the staff at Happy and I have given over 500 copies away to others.
So, on my sabbatical I decided to re-read it, on its 30th anniversary.
Liz Wiseman: What are Impact Players and Why are They Important to Your Organisation?
Liz Wiseman is the CEO of The Wiseman Group, a talent development and research organisation in Silicon Valley, California. Liz is also the author of bestsellers Multipliers and Impact Players, and is consistently rated by Thinkers50 as a top ranked thinker.
In her book Impact Players, Liz identifies two types of people: Ordinary Contributors and Impact Players, and noted that there were five practices that differentiated the Impact Players from the Ordinary Contributors. In this video, from the 2022 Happy Workplaces Conference, Liz tells us more about the concept and takes us through the five characteristics of Impact Players.
How to Compare Lists of Data and Find Differences in Excel
Do you need to compare information in different lists? For example, you may need to find out which values exist in two lists and highlight differences.
There are several ways to compare two sheets or even workbooks in Excel. You can use functions like EXACT, IF, Lookup or Conditional Formatting to compare lists of data. In this blog, Happy’s trainers Sal and Ebbie will use Conditional Formatting to highlight values in one list that do not appear in another list.
Andrew Barnes: Why the 4 Day Week is the Future of Work
Andrew Barnes is the head of New Zealand’s biggest corporate trust company, Perpetual Guardian, but he’s probably better known as the father of the four-day week movement. Andrew trialled the four-day week at Perpetual Guardian in 2018, despite a lot of fear and opposition from his board and management team. It was a resounding success and has grown into a movement with unprecedented momentum.
In this video from the 2022 Happy Workplaces Conference, Andrew explores some of the data supporting the four-day working week and challenges you to think about how it would work in your organisation.
4 Fundamental Components for Effective Conflict Resolution
Conflict can arise in many situations, both in life and in business. Though tempting to avoid, a minor dispute can soon become oppressive for everyone if ignored. Learning effective conflict resolution is a vital skill for maintaining a happy workplace. In this blog, written by our Digital Marketing Assistant Dolly Osborne, we have some tips to help you become an accomplished peacemaker.
How to Stay Focused and Maintain Work/Life Balance When Working From Home
Working from home was often perceived by cynical bosses as a way for employees to take an unofficial day off. However, the Covid-19 pandemic saw many workers forced into home working and this displayed to employers and their staff that it was a feasible alternative.
Now more workers are seeking flexible working options and bosses are no longer suspicious of remote working.
In this blog, written by our Digital Marketing Assistant Dolly Osborne, we give you some tips on how to make working from home work for you.
The Art Of Coaching In The Workplace
As we move away from hierarchical workplaces we are seeing a conscious move from manager-employee relationship to a coaching relationship. When you hear the word coach it may bring to mind an authoritative figure who’ll make you work in your pants but do not fear, modern coaching is very different.
In this blog, written by our Digital Marketing Assistant Dolly Osborne, we’ll take you through some tips to perfect the art of workplace coaching.
4 Tips for Being Assertive, Not Aggressive
Assertiveness is about communicating confidently and in a positive way. You don’t need to be domineering or belligerent to get your voice heard.
In this blog, written by our Digital Marketing Assistant Dolly Osborne, we give you four helpful tips for being assertive, not aggressive in your interactions both in and out of the workplace.
5 Tips for Tackling Difficult Conversations
Often if a sensitive issue arises in the workplace it can cause huge anxiety for the person who needs to tackle it. Whilst it can be tempting to put your head in the sand, the resolution will only come if you have the difficult conversation that’s needed. Here are some tips, written by our Digital Marketing Assistant Dolly Osborne, to help you take it on with confidence.
3 Ways to Improve Your Active Listening Skills
Empathetic listening requires humility. It calls for us to set aside our own vanity and judgements to create space in our minds for the perspectives of others. Too often we listen to what feels comfortable and dispute what is unfamiliar or inconvenient.
In this blog, Nicole Martins gives some advice to improve your listening skills, so you can listen and understand others better — whether it’s in a meeting, on a phone call or chatting with friends and family.
