Workplaces usually focus more on their business—producing products or delivering services—than worrying about how their willing workers are getting along.
However, “getting along” at work isn’t just a feel-good concept; it can have a significant impact on productivity.
At work, it’s unlikely that you will be surrounded by people just like you. It’s also improbable that your colleagues were carefully chosen to complement your specific strengths and preferences! Continue reading
Different people are different. OK, you knew that already. Something else you may know is that there are people who think, believe, and act in ways that can seem baffling.
At some point, you will likely find yourself working, interacting, perhaps even living with (or married to) someone who is quite different from you. How can you cope with these differences? Continue reading
In my last column, I discussed the influence of Dr. William Glasser. His books and the training that’s offered in choice theory and reality therapy has an impact on folks all over the world.
However, it’s not only world-renowned authors, psychiatrists, or speakers who have influence! Each of us, through the actions we choose, has influence.
Long ago, well before I had heard of Dr. Glasser or reality therapy, I remember spending coffee break bellyaching to Ian, a fellow instructor. “Is all this extra work that we do worthwhile? Do the students or their employers know? Does going the extra mile to prepare this workforce really matter?” Continue reading
Dr. William Glasser passed away recently. Even though it’s less than a decade since I first became aware of choice theory and reality therapy, Dr. Glasser’s work now influences almost everything I do.
There are plenty of theories about why humans behave as we do, and you can find lots of advice about how to live a happier, more satisfying life. Some advice conflicts with other advice! How can you know what will work for you? Continue reading
An apology is often an effective response when someone has been wronged. Yet, there are also unsatisfying apology scenarios where someone—the victim, the offender, or both—walk away feeling, well…unsatisfied. You know something is still not OK, even if you can’t quite put a finger on what it is.
Does an apology make things right? Here are two cases where you can decide whether an apology is the answer. Continue reading
Have you ever said or done something thoughtless that ended up hurting somebody you care deeply about? If so, join the club! Whether it was a massive error or a minor blunder, we’re human and are known to make mistakes. But after the deed is done, then what? We can take action only in the present, and as much as we might want to undo what we did, we can’t.
Apologizing can sometimes help make things better for both of you. While it may be satisfying for the person you have wronged to receive your apology, it may be even more satisfying for you to offer it. Continue reading
Like many of you during this wonderful time of the year, I’ve been getting plenty of opportunities to sit around watching other people work. Of course, I’m talking about being stuck in road construction lineups!
One can choose to be frustrated by construction delays, or one can choose a different response. Continue reading
A long time ago, in a workplace far away, there was a poster taped above my workbench. It read, “Engage brain before putting mouth in gear.” I choose to believe that the poster wasn’t put there specifically for me, by the way.
Can we control when we “put our mouths in gear,” so to speak? If you read my columns regularly, then you know that choice theory says we can only control our own behaviour, not that of others. But can we even control our own behaviour? Continue reading
Last post, I suggested that one of the “wants” identified by the Laasers in their book, “The Seven Desires of Every Heart” applies to the workplace. That’s the desire each of us has to be heard and understood.
Another of the desires identified by the Laasers also has a place in the workplace—the desire to be safe. Continue reading
