“I need a raise,” said one of my employees. I nodded my head and waited for the justification. No justification was offered other than there should be more pay for the job being done. I thought of all my employees and did a comparison. The employee standing in front of me was not doing more than was being asked; no being pro-active; no solution oriented thinking. Nothing about this employee stood out as being better, more...
Do you ever get weeds, like plantain, in your turf areas? Or, do you ever get the feeling that an attitude of negativity is growing among your team? What do the two have in common and what does this tell us? I walked the Ole Miss Grove, a 10 acre green space in the center of campus, and share what I have learned. Nature lets us know when things are out of balance and needs attention. Feel...
“Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.” ~Mahatma Gandhi I prefer to give humanity the benefit of the doubt and believe most of us don’t truly enjoy disagreeing with anyone - especially at work. After all, as a team you have one another’s back; are supportive and encouraging. In building team unity, voicing disagreement may feel rude or seem out of place. However, after seeing a project fail, the feeling of regret for having said nothing...
“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” ~Harry S. Truman Were you, like me, a kid who did not like to read? I never enjoyed sitting down long enough to get into reading. Most people in our industry can have a negative reaction to reading. “We are too busy to read a book,” or “If I’m not moving, I’m sleeping!” or the usual blank stare when I refer a good book. But what if I...
Who is going to make you more successful in life? A few weeks ago while running in the woods I did a short video to encourage you as I learned from one of the greats John Maxwell. Feel free to share this video with a friend. Enjoy. I am looking forward to doing a Landscape University class with some great companies and schools real soon. We sold out for 2017. Cultivate Your Greatness! Jeff...
“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” ~Henry Ford Recently I set up some forms to pour a well needed sidewalk in front of home. It has only been 5 years since we removed the old sidewalk, why rush? With a little encouragement from my family, I set to work. The sidewalk had to follow a curving, sloping contour. I knew I needed a flexible material to use on my forms. I had seen...
The definition of insanity, according to Albert Einstein, is when you keep doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results. In the early years, our team consistently acted insane! We would have equipment suddenly disappear; become frustrated with tools being broken and unready to use; waste valuable productivity trying to “fix” the problem. We would point fingers, blaming others for their neglect and continue putting up tools and equipment the same way...
The drama-nators….you know the type. They enjoy stirring things up – spreading a few rumors – treating the job as a form of personal entertainment. The drama-nators are rarely the best at what they do on the job, but let someone else make a mistake and their face lights up in anticipation. Unfortunately, we all know the type and dealing with the negative behavior or sub-par work practices among team members is something we would all...
Have you heard of Jane Helser? For 48 years Aunt Jane, as she is affectionately called, worked at the Wilson factory sowing NFL footballs in Ada, Ohio. Every football we have seen on TV for the last 48 years was sewn by Jane. Yes, she's good at sewing footballs, but its Jane's work ethic and attitude that model the spirit of so many people we get to work with each day. Once while sowing these thick rough...
Recently, I posted a blog on trust and in it I spoke about actions that breed trust. I heard that message again yesterday as a few of us on staff were discussing the definition of loyalty. The answers I related to best were straight from our front line team members. “To be trusted, to do the right thing no matter the cost….sticking together through the good and bad….not giving up, staying committed….always being there….they’ve got your...
