Category Archives: Business Development

Assessing the Dignity of Work

A lofty phrase that has been around for awhile, but has gained newly found prominence in recent years is the term “dignity of work”. It is uttered across the political spectrum, because it is widely thought to have universal respect and acceptance.

Who could possibly argue with a concept which conveys cherishment of commitment, skill development, and above all personal responsibility to provide for oneself and their family?

Dignity of work harkens not only to a pride of traditional labor honestly performed, but can also inspire and motivate all working-aged adults to do their part for the economy and community.

 

Dignity of work is seen as a sublime end in itself. We were raised to accept a lifetime of work. Work is contributing. Work is doing your duty. Work is good and more selfless work is better.

Achievement of a profound sense of satisfaction that comes from a doing job well is the ultimate reward for our labors we are told.

The grateful pat on the back from a coworker, the smile and nod from the boss, the eloquent testimonial from a delighted customer represent just some of the energizing commendations that make work invaluable.

 

So why then is work not felt so favorable or worthwhile for so many? We don’t have to look far to see people unhappy with their work.

Dignity of work is elusive for more workers than it should be. An HBR survey in 2019 of 500+ workers found the vast majority (90%) expected to find joy in their work, but given time on the job only 37% actually experienced joy.

A few years ago Gallup reported only 30% of workers engaged with their jobs. Forbes cited a survey of 411 workers, 19% of whom were satisfied with their jobs. I could go on.

 

Dignity is not inherent in work. Labor cannot be dignified unless some basic conditions are met. The US Conference of Catholic Bishops advocates for fundamental worker rights as a prerequisite for work dignity such as availability of productive work, fair and sufficient compensation, and a permission structure allowing for organizing and unionization among other rights.

Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio calls for enhancements of wages and benefits, healthcare costs, and retirement programs as a way of assuring dignity.

Ezra Klein in the New York Times points to elimination of harmful and oppressive workplaces and for management to encourage workers to remain healthy and have leisure and family time.

 

I would add removal of tyrannical management, toxic coworkers, and workplace cultures that devalue portions of the workforce. However, beyond stating what is not wanted to engender dignity in work, let us focus on practices likely to lead to dignity.

Workers by and large want the chance to be self-motivated. There are three key situations which encourage this. As pointed out by Daniel Pink in his book Drive, fostering an environment where workers are urged to develop mastery of their profession, exercise autonomy in decision making, and define personal and professional purpose in what they do matter greatly.

 

Workers want to be respected and given the freedom to grow. They want to be able to sustain reasonable financial needs by working only one 40-hour per week job. They want an executive management who understand the principal capital in their firms are their employees, who need to know they are valued.

They want the support of customers who intentionally direct their dollars toward businesses who treat their employees with dignity. (It begs the question, is a business model that requires employees working for only $7.25 per hour worthy of staying in business in this day and age?)

 

Dignity of work should continue to be a universal value, but let’s not cling to some notion it arises spontaneously, especially under adverse conditions. It does not. Dignity may be felt individually, but it takes a community to see it is broadly shared.

 

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Bill_Ryan/317681

 

 

 

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10424984

How to Get Better at Time Management?

The greatest time stealer between the phone, the visitor, the prolonged break, the e-mail and the chit-chat is the never ending “do you have a minute?” approach. Whenever possible say no. Allow a time each day that is dedicated to projected time lost. Find out why you are wasting time and have a realistic plan not to fall into the same pattern. When they start on a work, they rarely stop until it is finished, doing the most difficult things first thing in the morning.

Phone calls and mails are done in one lump of time. Breaks and easier jobs are usually done on times that they know they are least effective. The main idea is to plan time spent for each job section and protect the plan. The changes in real time management is fast as the application of real time statistics and information on international commerce that needs to be processed for more accurate decisions are constantly shifting.

What are the Benefits of Time Management? Aside from the fulfillment that one derives out of being more efficient and productive the effective practice of time management allows the following benefits: A sense of achievement in the workplace, man’s worth to the company is measured against the amount of output that is contributed and the influence that it creates. Let us say here (just for illustration) that lecture time is 25 hours. What remains is about 60 hours. Here’s the sweet part. Once you take away the time to review and do the assignments in each lesson, becomes your free time. If you use your time well during class, you would not be reviewing as much and those are hours added to your personal time.

Time Management Lessons

It is often ironic that individuals who focus on the end results and not in being busy ends up in doing much and still have time enough for themselves. Today, time management courses have been developed that encompasses practically all the hours in our daily affairs. All time management courses differ on the titles and settings but are basically designed the same.

Time management courses are meant to keep us functioning effectively and cope with the expectations of the present and our expectations of ourselves. It analyses your to do list and offers prioritization of work that keeps the user constantly on track of tasks at hand and those that needs doing next. Time management software provides easy networking without the need for servers and allows the user to share data with those that are on the same network. – At the end of the day, have a to do list for the following morning and stick to it. – Use time management tolls. Different softwars are available on the net.

Attend time management programs. If your company does not sponsor these, spend a little, you will gain more. It is a misnomer to say that there is not enough time.

Most businessmen will tell you that no matter how well or bad the plan was in starting out, there usually is an initial success followed immediately by problems. This is what they call the beginners luck. When the problems begin to seem to be overwhelming, that is the point where most quit. This is also similar to time management that is at work.

Time Management Techniques for Better Time Utilization Since time is the only real resource that one has, it has often been said that people who have managed this resource are also usually good at managing other things. The time management techniques that they have applied to themselves are also the parameters that they apply in other modes of their behavior.

Home Business Blueprint: The Building Blocks When Starting Your Home Business Blueprint

We have all been there… trying to figure out the best ways to get ahead. We are always in search of the next “big thing”… We are constantly trying to find that edge that can separate us from the competition. Why do some people achieve elite success and others, well, others just flounder? There are specific steps we all must do in order to stand high and mighty, on top of that hill. These can and will create a tremendous foundation for anyone navigating through their home business blueprint:

1. Brand Yourself!

The biggest challenge when starting your home based business is understanding that you must create & cultivate a brand… a brand of YOU! When I first started my home business (and had no idea of what the industry entails), I figured I could be that guy behind my computer, growing my business without anyone knowing me. That could not be further from the truth! Set up a Facebook page, a Twitter account, Google+, LinkedIn and start a website with YOU as the focus. People want to know who and what you stand for-the faster you can build your brand, the faster you will ascend within your home business blueprint. Continue reading