Kurt Blazek

Trust is about predictability. It is perhaps the most basic tenet of social behavior. The more predictable someone is, the more you know them. The more you know a person, the more you like them. This is true in both personal and business life.
However, business life offers an element of formality missing from ordinary social life. There is also an element of high stakes and sometimes implicit fear that complicate the picture of trust and make trust in the workplace more difficult to develop. Years ago, business dealings were done over a handshake. Now any business relationship is developed over pages of signed legal documents.
If employees don’t trust each other or their managers, collaboration and communication stagnates. Employee engagement drops. Productivity falls. The workplace becomes unpleasant, even toxic.

Nobody wants to spend extra time at work, but getting everything done in a workday can seem monumental, if not impossible, especially in our digital age when it can feel like we’re on-call 24/7. The key to a happier and more efficient workday is to increase your level of productivity. This means taking a long hard look at how you actually spend your time at work, and then strategically eliminating all of those unnecessary time suckers that you get roped into day in and day out. In addition, planning ahead and setting limits for yourself can go a long way towards getting more done in a shorter amount of time. Here are 5 steps you can start incorporating today to get more done without logging in any extra hours:

Employees as excited about work as the Seven Dwarfs were, whistles and skips included, might be too high an expectation. It could happen, with a cup or two of coffee, but it’s not likely. Fortunately, what bosses want in an employee is simple: strong work ethics, desire to perform well, ability to work with others and alone, and the necessary skills to get the job done. When these people come along, you want to hold on to them. Part of that is, aside from a full coffee pot, understanding and respecting their need for a work-life balance. Not only will it help retain those valuable employees, it increases productivity.

Have you noticed increased absentee, tardy, and turnover rates in your office? When employees are bored and fatigued from the same daily repetition in the office, they become burned out and simply don’t want to go to work. This can make a person feel disconnected from their company, and lead to more absences and sometimes even push an employee to start looking for a more interesting and challenging job. How can you create a more stimulating work environment that will keep your employees happy and focused?

As the hit TV show Mad Men comes to an end, here is a look back at some of the more memorable and inspirational quotes that come from the show’s main character Don Draper. Sure, Don has issues with adultery, alcohol, and his own identity. So, yeah, on a personal level, he’s basically morally corrupt. But as a business leader, he’s actually quite successful. Just look at the team he has developed over the years—particularly up-and-coming star writer Peggy Olson. As displayed in her character’s growth throughout the show, one of Don’s skills is to see talent and help it develop to its potential. Plus he can also incite (in a good way) and inspire his team.