As a motivational speaker, I have the opportunity to speak to many folks in the business world.  Today’s successful heads of businesses and corporations not only have to spend time and energy worrying about their bottom lines but about the spirit and soul of their work.  That spirit encompasses not only what they do, but how they do it and who they hire to do it!  We have all seen the negative backlash  about individuals, companies and corporations that have  focused only  on their bottom lines without regard to ethics, personal and professional integrity.  One of the questions to ask is who is making up the rules that govern the work situation? Following the rules is not only expected; it is necessary.  Individuals and teams of employees and employers make up the rules that create their worlds of work.  All employees and employers need to examine these rules and the resulting climates these rules create. This is the real bottom line.

How often have we heard this reply when the casual morning greeting is “Hey ____, how are you today”?  At a motivational speaking engagement in Asheville NC I had the opportunity to share my reply to the response of “I’m here”.  It seems in our work worlds that “THERE” often times looks better than “HERE”. But let’s think a moment…… if we decide to go “THERE”, wherever “there” is,  in time it will become “HERE” once again!  So when  those well intentioned greetings are replied to with “I’m here”, my standard reply is “It’s better than being there”, at least I know where I am!

LISTEN WATCH LEARN…these are three actions I encourage people to use daily in their work worlds.  As a motivational speaker I am often asked to address work place climate and productivity.  Each one of us knows who leads and who follows in our work worlds.  Approaching every day as a challenge, an opportunity to learn something enables us all to continue to grow.  We need to think about what we value in ourselves so that we can recognize what we value in others. We need to dare to ask ourselves “what is my hope, where do I see myself in 3 years?” Speaking to an Asheville NC group recently I challenged them to take a hard look and answer the question “Am I just going through the paces or do I have purpose in what I am doing?”  Opportunities to listen, watch and learn  encompass us every day, seldom do we consciously  acknowledge them.  Recognize and LWL!

As a motivational speaker who lives in Asheville North Carolina, my “home range” can easily place me in Charlotte, Raleigh, Columbia SC, Atlanta GA and many places along the way. It seems that no matter where I speak or to whom I speak when the topic is the world of work, the same important issue is front and center…personal trust and integrity.  Every day we work with bosses, supervisors, managers, colleagues, advisories and allies.  We want to be valued and trusted in our conversations and exchanges. How often have we felt or seen the “silent treatment” from our boss or heard one of our supervisors blaming someone else in order to cover up their mistake? What about the manager who makes negative comments about an employee to other employees?  These events can and do rip the rug of trust out from underneath us all. We find out a great deal about people. My observations in the world of work leave no doubt that many times when employees leave their jobs, it is not because they do not like what they do but rather they feel the need to leave their supervisors, managers and bosses!  Success can not be sustained in anything without personal trust and integrity.  For those who choose to stay in these difficult situations, and many folks do,  know that you must keep grinding away, stay visible, stay positive and rise above those questionable leaders!

Not only is this the time to clean out the closets, garages and basements but it’s a perfect time to do a mental cleaning as well.  Plowing through “stuff” is a great way to spend time talking with ourselves about how things are going!  Are we taking the time to see what’s important?  Are we treating those we love and care for well? Do we like ourselves? Our jobs? The people we surround ourselves with?  This could be the time to “keep the best and throw out the rest”….this is the time to make necessary adjustments.  As a motivational speaker I challenge people everyday to bring the best of whatever they have forward.  Stepping up and making a difference, being valued because we contribute.  Success will not happen or be maintained without doing some “Spring Cleaning”.