Joyce Weiss

I work with organizations and individuals who want to kick conflict and chaos to the curb - Communication Strategist and Master Coach

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How to Repair Generational Conflict: Part Four

This is the 4th article in my 6 part series on How to Repair Generational Conflict.  You will learn or relearn information about Generation X.  They are the latchkey and MTV generation.  They grew up with 24/7 news.  They heard about scandals including Nixon, Clinton, Enron, and OJ Simpson.  They ate breakfast or lunch looking at photos of missing children on milk cartons.  Gen X grew up skeptical and learned to be self-reliant.

Generation X:   How to Repair Generational Conflict Idea #1

Gen X Legacy in the Workplace

They bring the following to the workplace:

  • Independence – They like to do things on their own and don’t like to be micromanaged
  • Work/life balance – not like their workaholic baby boomer parents who are workaholics
  • Targeted action to get off work on time

Generation X:  How to Repair Generational Conflict Idea #2

Key Events that impacted Generation X repair generational issues

  • Dot.com boom and bust
  • Video games
  • Michael Jordan
  • Latchkey kids
  • 24-hour media
  • Challenger explosion

Generation X:  How to Repair Generational Conflict Idea #3

Gen X Traits repair generational issues

Resourceful
Independent
Skeptical
Entrepreneurial

Generation X:  How to Repair Generational Issues Idea #4

Gen X Values

  • Transparency
  • Independence
  • Work-life balance
  • Growth

I want to Hear from You

Add a comment to my blog on how you repair generational conflict at work.

You will receive a response from me because I enjoy connecting with my readers! 🙂  You are always welcome to send me a private email
with concerns that you are experiencing at work.

Until next time,

Joyce Weiss, M.A., CSP
Career Coach and Corporate Communication Strategist

Have a great week.

Remember, YOU Get What You Tolerate!  

PS  Read part 1 on how to repair generational conflict HERE
Read part 2 (traditionalists) on how to repair generational conflict HERE
Read part 3 (baby boomers) on how to repair generational conflict HERE

 

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How to Repair Generational Conflicts: Part 1

Hello again! 🙂

The next few blogs will address how to repair generational conflicts.  We now have 5 generations in the workplace and at times the differences get in the way of morale and communication in general.  You will see how each generation has been impacted by specific experiences shared in each generation. The five generations are traditionalists, baby boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and  Gen Edge.

I’m working hard not to judge me. I wish you’d do the same.
  Tastee, Character on Orange is the New Black

Repair Generational Conflicts Idea #1

Do these comments sound familiar?

  • “They don’t have a good work ethic”
  • “They are set in their ways”
  • “They are deadwood”
  • “They have no desire to learn new technology”
  • “They are workaholics and don’t have a life”

Repair Generational Conflicts Idea #2 repair generational conflict

  • Organizations miss out on numerous opportunities if boomers and traditionalist are not on teams solving workplace issues with generation X and Millennials.
  • Failing to sit down together and learn from each other carriers a heavy cost.
  • Joyce’s diversity motto is: Different equals different.  Different does not equal wrong!

Repair Generational Conflict Idea #3 

Discuss how each generation views the following:

  • Rewards
  • Empowerment
  • Work Ethic
  • Collaboration
  • Organizational Structure
  • Work Formality
  • Feedback
  • Burnout
  • Communication
  • Community Involvement

You will hear a variety of opinions, values, and beliefs from your diverse team. There will be a lot of laughter as long as no one is judging anyone! 🙂

More Thoughts from Joyce on how to Repair Generational Conflict

Prejudice, discrimination, cliques, ignorance on generational, cultural, racial, and gender differences are building walls between team members.  Tearing down barriers and building relationships are necessary to increase morale.  Knowledge alone won’t reduce prejudice, yet it is a good first step.

I want to hear from you

Add a comment to my blog on how you repair generational conflict at work.  What issues exist?

You will receive a response from me because I enjoy connecting with my readers! 🙂  You are always welcome to send me a private email
with concerns that you are experiencing at work.

Next week look for interesting information about the traditionalist generation.

Until next time,

Joyce Weiss
Career Coach and Corporate Communication Strategist

Have a great week.

Remember, YOU Get What YOU Tolerate!

 

 

 

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Is There a Bully at Work Who Makes Your Life Miserable?

Experiencing a bully at work is more prevalent these days.  I’m talking about not playing nice in the sandbox at work.  Bullying doesn’t happen only at school or on social media!

Were you bullied as a child?
Are you a target for a bully at work?

I asked these questions while facilitating a Dealing with Difficult People Workshop.  It was apparent that bullies still roam freely in today’s workplace.  We went from sharing experiences to how to gain control with bullies.  Several participants didn’t realize that they were targets for a bully at work.  This article covers who bullies target and information about bullies.  Future blogs will cover how to handle the bully at work.  

Can we talk?  I teach these strategies and I was caught off guard by someone who I’ve known for a long time.  It took me a few weeks to realize that I became a target.  It took me a while to figure out how to handle the bully.  We had a productive conversation and I called it to her attention.  She didn’t realize that her behavior was bullying and even got defensive at first.  This was to be expected.  We finally had a breakthrough and resolved the issue once I was firm and did not allow her to use an excuse that she was only being sarcastic.  She thanked me at the end.  That is when I knew this corporate communication strategist walked my talk.  🙂

Dealing With a Bully Question #1:  Are You a Target? bully at work

Ask yourself the following questions:

  • Are you miserable at your job because of a bully?
  • Is your work sabotaged?
  • Do others think you are exaggerating about the bully?

The best and brightest are targeted.  You may pose a threat somehow to someone who is not developed as a moral human being.

Who gets targeted?

  • Targets are more technically skilled than the bully
  • Targets are better liked and have better social skills
  • Targets have a sense of integrity

Dealing with a Bully at Work Question #2:  Are You Aware of How Serious Bullying Has Become? bully at work

  • Bullies don’t have to throw a single punch to do lasting damage to another person’s health-or your organization’s fiscal health
  • Bullying is experienced by more the 1/3 of the US workforce
  • Bullying is severe enough to compromise a worker’s health – especially if the culprit is your boss
  • Bullying is more prevalent than illegal harassment
  • 40% of targets never tell their employers
  • Bullying is erroneously branded as conflict or difference in personality styles
  • Bullying is a form of violence

Let’s Get Real

Bullies are not punished and are allowed to thrive in the workplace.  Many leaders don’t know how to control them or even help targeted employees.  Companies don’t have the will to stop them.  Don’t give up; find someone at work who will listen to you.  The only way we initiate change is when we don’t give in to these difficult people.

Think of someone at work who may be a target of a bully.  What can you do about this especially if you are on the leadership team?

If You Are a Target, Remember That You:

  • Are not to blame
  • Must not feel it’s acceptable
  • Have a right to get it stopped
  • Have a right to confidentiality

My personal story above illustrates that at times bullies are not aware that their mean boy or girl behavior hurt others.  I’m not making excuses for bullies!  I am mentioning this because your tough conversation may go better than you think – especially if your bully was unaware of how his or her communication caused others stress.

If you deal with a TRUE bully, you may be able to resolve the issue, you must discuss this with someone who you trust so you can start living your life again.  Don’t forget that you have your personal corporate communication strategist right here, waiting for your email.  🙂  I charge my clients for in-depth coaching phone calls, but not for one or two emails from my readers.

Look for my article on Dealing with Narcissists next week along with strategies to help work or even live with these challenging people.

I want to Hear From You

Add a comment to my blog on how you overcame a bully or what he or she did to make you a target.  You will receive a response from me because I enjoy connecting with my readers! 🙂  You are always welcome to send me a private email with concerns that you are experiencing at work.

Please share this and any article that speaks to you or your company.

Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts. Help us help them reduce conflict and improve leadership skills and quality of life.

 

This is Joyce Weiss
Corporate Communication Strategist and Career Coach

Until next time, Remember…“You Get What You Tolerate!”

Learn how I can leverage my 30+ years of leadership consulting and coaching experience to help your organization address workplace bullying here.

READ more articles and listen to podcasts at our knowledge base bullying in the workplace here.

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Hiring Strategies to Improve Communication in the Workplace

How to improve communication is always a topic that my clients want me to cover in training or coaching projects.
Here are 3 questions to get us started:

  1.  Have you ever hired a loser?
  2. What did you learn from this experience?
  3. What are your favorite interview questions?

The answers to the questions above were discussed in my last group coaching training with HR Professionals.  This article will cover all 3 questions.  I look forward to hearing about your own best practices that work for your company.

Hiring Strategies to Improve Communication #1:  Know the Cost of a Bad Hire improve communication

  • Interview time
  • Reference checking time
  • Manager training time
  • Potential customer problems

The important thing is to realize the cost of a bad hire.  This happens to all of us at times.  We were caught off guard because the person came so highly recommended or you may have needed a body immediately because of a timely project and the person in charge just quit.

Hiring Strategies to Improve Communication #2:  Learn From the Experience improve communication

Participants in the training shared the following mistakes and what they learned:

  • To evaluate the candidate even if he or she is a close friend
  • To put your ego aside and don’t hire a candidate just because he or she is like you
  • To look at both the personality and skill set of the candidate
  • To make sure that the hiring manager has enough information about the job

I can see many of you shake your heads right now, because you may have made the same mistakes.

An Hr Professional told us that he hired someone because he was so impressed with the resume and missed obvious flaws in the candidate’s personality.  We can teach skills, it’s a challenge to show someone how to be a good team player.

Hiring Strategies to Improve Communication #3:  Use Creative Interview Questions

  • Describe a typical workday at your previous/current job.
    This is the time when you can hear if there’s a lot of blame or negativity.
  • Tell me about the best boss that you ever had.
    You can see if there’s leadership potential.
  • How would your coworkers describe you?
    Go deep here.  Ask the candidate for specific examples when he or she tells you about the positive qualities.
  • Did you ever have to deal with a coworker who didn’t pull his or her weight?
    This question may uncover how the candidate handles conflict.

Share these 3 hiring strategies to improve communication with your team to discuss new ways to make the hiring process as productive as possible.  Stay tuned for future articles that contain information about interviewing strategies, orientation options, and performance appraisals.

I want to hear from you!
Send me your biggest mistake in hiring or interviewing candidates.  Let us know your best hiring practices. You can respond directly to the blog or send me an email HERE.  

 

This is Joyce Weiss
Corporate Communication Strategist and Career Coach

 

Remember…You Get What You Tolerate!

P.S.  Read more articles and listen to podcasts at our Team Building Strategies Knowledge Base

 

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How Effective Communication Affects the Bottom Line

Here’s breaking news –  Even the BEST communicators need to constantly work on their effective communication!   Larry Henry, Owner/Producer of Two Floors Down Productions interviewed me on why I created the patented strategy – Be Direct with Respect®.  This week’s post contains information on why effective communication affects the bottom line.  Please listen to the short podcast below.

      

I developed Be Direct with Respect because many of clients were having a hard time getting their team to speak directly with each other when there was a conflict.  Being honest in a direct way is difficult for some of them.  They were either too direct and didn’t know any other way to communicate.  Or they didn’t tell the truth due to fear of retaliation or getting fired.

It became apparent that effective communication was lacking for both leaders and employees. The biggest reason was that they didn’t know how to be direct.  They never learned this skill in school.  Some of them were told that it was rude to be blunt.

Ignoring conflict will affect the bottom line.  Do you work in a culture where every team member speaks directly yet respectfully to anyone on the team when a customer is treated with disrespect or phone calls are ignored?  Most of the people who I interviewed laughed when I asked them the question about effective communication.  They told me the team is silent during meetings because leaders don’t encourage honest communication. Ouch!

Leaders need to decide how to communicate effectively to their team with both good and bad news especially when there will be budget cuts or certain team members don’t pull their weight.

The next few sentences will be a review for many of you who are loyal readers.  After you read the examples decide if you need a refresher on how to use be direct with respect.  You will find more articles on effective communication by searching past blog posts.

Effective Communication Case Scenario #1 effective communication

Several team members are complaining more than ever.  It doesn’t matter if you are a leader or not.  The main idea is the negativity is starting to get old and becoming the norm.

Here is one possible effective communication strategy:
I am frustrated when I hear all the complaining because this is affecting the entire team.  Let’s reboot and start to look at what the company is doing for us.   

Effective Communication Case Scenario #2 effective communication

Certain team members roll their eyes when others speak at weekly meetings.  This negative behavior goes on way too much in the workplace.

Here’s one possible effective communication strategy:
I am concerned when ideas are discounted because we decided as a team to start accepting each other’s differences.  We need more work in this area.

Let’s Get Real

The two effective communication case scenarios are examples of how productive be direct with respect can be once the skill is mastered.  My clients ask me to coach their team and leaders to improve morale, communication, and even unproductive meetings.  I encourage them to practice these skills with each other during the training and long after our time together is over.  Companies have the best success when they constantly practice being open and honest with each other in a productive way.  Humor sure does help!

I want to hear from you

Please add your comments or send me your questions on what is and what is not working with your company’s communication.
You will receive a response from me because I enjoy connecting with my loyal readers! 🙂

Please share this and any article that speaks to you or your company

Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts. Help us help them reduce conflict and improve leadership skills and quality of life.

This is Joyce Weiss
Corporate Communication Strategist and Career Coach

Until next time, Remember…”You Get What You Tolerate!”

PS Learn how I can leverage my 30+ years of communication and leadership consulting experience to help your organization experience my customized workshops here.

 

Contact Joyce

Email: joyce@joyceweiss.com
Phone: 248-681-5831

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Kick Conflict to the Curb: Stomp Out Your Stress

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