Contented Cows is a great blog about how to facilitate cooperation in the workplace. The premise is simple: contented cows produce more and better milk. While not looking to produce milk, as a leader I am interested in how to create an environment where people can be productive, feel appreciated, and accomplish great things. In that spirit, I pass along this post entitled "Stop Being Ordinary!" ****************** Have you seen the YouTube video of the Thomson Airways (a UK carrier) safety video? If not, click on it (above), take 3 and a half minutes to look at it, then keep reading. Sure, it’s cute. The kids are really good. Adorable. And the creative team that put it together is brilliant. But what makes it work is that it’s anything but ordinary. Thomson passengers actually watch the thing, and I have to believe that retention of the material is off the…
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Do you have stray gift cards laying around (or in your wallet) that have small balances left on them? Instead of throwing them away, considering sending them to GiftCardGiver.com and let them route them to a non-profit that can use them to benefit others. Here's an excerpt from their story: Four friends had an idea to collect gift cards and give them to people in need. They went to a gathering and asked 8 people how much money in unused Gift Cards they had in their wallets and walked away with $50 in Gift Cards to help people in need. GiftCardGiver.com was born. Gift Card Giver is a new form of giving. The Gift Card industry has risen to be a 60 billion dollar industry. Ever wonder how many gift cards are unused? More than 10%. That means billions of dollars are waiting to be used for good on Gift…
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Greg Stielstra at the PyroMarketing blog has an interesting article entitled "Are You a Stuntman?" In it he explores the difference between people who fall and break a bone and stuntmen who fall and spring right back up. Why? Two basic factors: Surprise vs. Expectation Stopping the fall vs. Starting to land Those who get hurt by falling are usually those who never expected to fall. In other words, they are surprised by the fall. Because they are surprised, they are also unprepared. The life lessons are innumerable. Stielstra also does a good job building off the old joke, "It's not the fall that kills you, it's the sudden stop." As they are falling, stuntmen are planning how they will land. It might look ugly but it's planned and thought out. Take a trip over to the article. Read it and think about how to apply it.
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The average distance between the head and the heart is 18 inches. That is, unless you have a really long or short neck. When it comes to our relationship with Jesus, he wants both our head and our heart. God's desire for us is that our love may "abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight" (Philippians 1:9-10). A life that bears fruit is one that grows in its "knowledge of God" (Colossians 1:9-11). The problem lies when there is a disconnect between our head and our heart. It's not enough to simply believe an assortment of facts -- or even to know all the right answers to all the right questions. Why? Because Jesus wants your heart, not just your head. Isaiah addressed this problem centuries before the birth of Christ: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but…
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I can remember when having a pair of shoes with velcro was considered cool; I can foresee another time in life when having shoes with velcro will be practical! Velcro is used in a variety of products and settings because it's an effective way of linking together two objects. It's replaced zippers, shoe laces, and more. It has the familiar "ripping" sound when pulled apart. When it comes to relationships, compliments and criticisms are like velcro strips ... once we've said either one, we're linked to the person on the receiving end. Compliments reinforce and rebuild. A well-placed compliment recognizes a strength and reinforces it. It takes latent potential and brings it closer to the surface. It also rebuilds, breathing new life into a damaged relationship or wounded dream. Criticisms live on in the heart well after they've left the mouth. Intentional or unintentional, they fasten themselves to previous hurts…
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