When I heard – most Americans feel that Washington is broken. Well, that is my opinion. I don’t care which side of the liberal or conservative beliefs you are on… The fact is Washington is broken. There is no what that anyone is going to get anything really done in the current way Washington is working today. When the President was talking to the very simplest ideas of how things could be better. We all got to see that many stood and applauded and others sat and did nothing. There were a lot of examples of this. For me, I wanted to know where my Congressional folks were sitting and to see if they were in support or just sitting idly on their soft spot.  Why? Would let me know if my elected officials were doing the job that “I” want them to do. I was someone sickened by the way the display of the Congress is showing support for making America better.

How I am going to make it better? Well, that is a tough one – as I am only one person. I believe that actions have to start somewhere. I believe that I need to do something on my part to make where I live a better place. I owe it to my kids, grand kids and the future that comes. Back to my question, how am I going to make it better!

• I have to first educate myself better on the overall reality of what I hear. I know that there is more ways to report out statistics and facts can get shifted a bit. I need to understand reality. I need to know more! Time to be an informed voter…
• Understand how my elected representatives are doing with their voices and voting on those important topics. I need to see who is doing what, by their actions.  Asking the all important question, “are they acting on my behalf or their own?”
• When it is time to vote… VOTE. The only way my actions are going to be heard is by voting. Doing my homework on the candidates, their past actions, promises that they make (and have kept) and the stance on “my beliefs”. I am only one vote, but if we all get out their and do our part, then change can happen.
• Get involved… Spend time meeting with or corresponding with your elected officials. Time for them to hear my voice… If I think they are doing a good job on something – let them know. If I think they are off base – let them know (with options).

I hope to never witness a sight like I saw last night. When we see the party lines being drawn in a State of the Union address. Has this been going on forever? Yes, but it is time to stop. The President used an analogy to the US soldiers and how they must work together to accomplish their mission – or it will fail and people could get killed. He was trying to call out each branch of government on this. We are at a crisis level on almost everything – it is time to really work together to insure that America is the best it can be.

So, I am putting on notice to all of my elected officials: I am going to learn more, review your performance and let you know my thoughts. You want to stay working for me – you better be doing what is in my best interest (I am just like every other 98% of America).

Step up or get out of the way…

Photo: Copyright (c) 123RF Stock Photos

How do you know that you are providing or increasing your worth to the organization? Here is some of that discussion and some additional thoughts from writing this blog post.

•  Make sure that your work is part of the bottom line. Make money for the company and you will be valued. Think of it as a return on investment. Think of your work and make sure that you are providing an ROI on everything that you offer (time, skills and so on).
• An oldie but goodie, time is money. Watch your organization and see is everyone valuing time is money? Spend your time wisely. Would you invest 8 hours doing something that you can deliver in less time with the same results? I think of presentations as an example, putting in way too much time putting pretty charts, pictures and words that add no value to your work. We all can spot fluff when we see it. Make sure you are not producing fluff.
• Only you can sing your praises. This one is a hard one, sing too loudly and you cause harm. For me, I always made the comment that my work should speak for itself. Well, that is not the case. Make sure that your manager understands the effort you put into the job and the results that were produced. It is a delicate balancing act. If you don’t do it, you will lose out…
• Learn to say “no!” I used to think that “no” was a bad thing. From my many years of experience, most managers love to heap on the work to those that deliver. Getting on that treadmill will have an overall effect on your work. Start missing deadlines or having quality issues – that will have a bigger effect on your value. Only takes a few mistakes to wipe out your hard work.
• Listen and learn. If you don’t know what you don’t know, then seek out some knowledgeable advice. Do we all really know everything? We all know people that think they know and dance around it. How does that really look? Saying you don’t know now, but will get the knowledge soon, will be valued over dancing on that topic. Most people dance pretty bad.
• Everyone needs to know sales. Not sales in the sense of selling a product, but you do need to sell yourself. This is not making yourself better than you are. If you are pitching an idea to your organization, you have to be convincing and sound. You have to know how to talk about the overall value, what is needed and defend your ideas with solid research and passion.
• Have a life! A couple of items come to mind quickly. I have written about vacations that turn out to be working vacations. As a manager, you set an example that your organization will follow (or at least the expectation has been set). You need your time off.. The other one, sometimes is hard to pinpoint. I have learned a valuable lesson since retiring. I am not measured only by my job and my accomplishments. Life is short and there is so much out there. Getting that life will give you lessons that maybe will apply at work. At the very least, the rest will do you good.

There probably are more, we just ran out of time… Do you have any to add? Please share!

Photo Copyright (c) 123RF Stock Photos

As many know, I have been looking for a “second” career. I heard someone use the term that I was semi-retired. I guess that is true. I really am not ready for “real” retirement. I have way too much to give and learn. Not finished by no means. So, I was thinking about what I would be looking for in that next organization or company. Here are my top three things I hope to encounter on my search.

Organizational Culture: Is it defined? Can I get a sense of what the culture is from looking at the organizations website, social media presence or networking with employee’s both present and past? I really want to understand the culture of the organization. It is extremely important to me that I find something that matches up to my skills and passions when I looking for that second career. When I am being interviewed, I also sit and learn from the interviewer. Get a sense of the teams culture within the larger organizations culture. Is it the same? Gives you some questions later on.

Reviewing the hiring process: There is much to be learned from experiencing the hiring process from the beginning. How difficult was it for you to get into the job req system and apply. Nothing worse than getting in and almost submitting to have the system just fail at the end. I know many companies use an automated system for this work. The question that comes to my mind is, “did they pick one that is user friendly, or just not?” Many larger companies may outsource their recruiting process and only pass on the reqs that they feel fit. This sometimes will frustrate job applicants because everything seems to go into cyberspace. When I get passed all that, I usually am observing how everything goes. Is it smooth? Organized? All of the process is the organizations audition for you. Bad experience there, may kick off a bad experience later on.

Respected Leadership: In this day and age, we get information from many different sources. Finding out about the organizations leadership and how they train their future leaders is pretty simple to find. Do some simple searches. What I am looking for is an organization that has some respected leaders in their industry. Look at the vision of the organization, the people that work there and training for those leaders.

Finding information is easy – you just have to look. Using that information and what you know about yourself – well, that is where you can put yourself in the best situation. When I am sitting down doing my due diligence, I am looking at those three factors. It starts with organization research on culture (fit me, go to apply). Apply and the hiring process should allow you the opportunity to audition the organization. Basically answering #2 and #3. Hopefully all works out…

I got a few questions that I thought I would take some time to write my thoughts on.

1. Are you happy with your decide to retire? Answer: Most definitely! I have had plenty of time to do many things, that I would not have time for, if I was still working. I have done plenty of volunteering! I have done plenty of reading! I have been able to dedicated more time to my family. I have been busier in some areas than if I was still employed.

2. What do you miss most? Answer: The people! I have met a lot of smart and dedicated people over my 28 years. Some of those folks, I stay in contact with even after I have retired. Not to say that I haven’t met some great people in all of my volunteering, because I have. I had built relationships over many years with folks that are all over the globe. I just can’t keep those relationships going as they were. So, I have new relationships that I am building to few that void.

3. What are you plans moving into year 2? Answer: More volunteering and getting back into the workforce. Let’s face it, with my wife working and me not – the dynamic of retirement is not really what I want. So, I have rested for a year. Got healthier! Refocused my priorities! My second career will be a joint relationship… What I mean by that is, the company or organization and myself will be a great fit for each other. I don’t want a job! I want to have a real partnership. Which brings out the best in both of us… I also will not stop volunteering. It has been a very rewarding experience that I want to continue. I will make “time” – that is a promise.

I had a great experience over my work history. I have given plenty to the company, to the organizations that I worked for and the people that I have met along the way. I have gotten plenty back as well. I still feel like that is what I want in the future. I look forward to  what the future holds.

Here are those that want to leave 2011:

10. Transparency… What is that really? If you were trying to figure it out, you would have to be like a spelling bee contestant. “Can I have that in a sentence please?”

9. Thinking Outside the Box… I know this one has been around for quite sometime, it is definitely time to hang that one out to dry.

8. Drill Down… This is for the folks that don’t understand the concept at a higher level. Hence you have to drill down for them to understand. Well, as the manager this truly makes you look pretty dumb (at least to your folks).

7. Reaching Out… The only thing that should reach out is a baby asking to be picked up or hugged. Otherwise, just say, “Get in contact with xxxx.”

6. Thought Leadership… Let’s not make up terms that just dummy down their overall intent. This one comes across as an oxymoron, just like military intelligence. Sorry – stop it!

5. Boil the Ocean… Why would you think about boiling the ocean? I think we all understand that the task at hand is going to be difficult – or maybe not (just say – “this is going to be difficult.”)

4. Going Green… This is one that is fashionable and we all want to seem hip and cool. After the first time, this gets very old.

3. Internalize… Another one of those that I am sure have been around for a couple of years. Are you asking me to think about it some more? If so, then say that.

2. Let’s ask out stakeholders community… Maybe it is me, but I have already discussed with those folks in the know and what I am saying is with their comments in mind. Should be part of all discussions that information is gathered before a recommendation is come up. Once a recommendation is ready, no need to ask the stakeholders again. Sorry, waste of time. Or maybe you really don’t trust your folks.. Whichever – stop!

1. Drink the Kool-aid, Eat Our Own Dog Food… Or anything else that just means we have to try it before we ask others too. So sick of these…

Have any that drive you nuts?