Bring Hope Back to Your Company
Thursday, March 12th, 2009
(If you can’t view this video then click here and visit Work Happy Now to view it.)
Hope seems to have dissipated within many of our companies. We have latched on to the fear and we don’t want to let go.
Enough already!
Let’s bring the happiness back into the workplace. That means spreading positive news, ideas and conversations with each other. It will take time to build our confidence back up, but we have to start sometime, so it may as well be today.
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Blogging for one blog is a lot of fun, but imagine blogging for two blogs that focus on work happiness. It’s a blast!
Over at the Chief Happiness Officer’s blog, PositiveSharing.com, I’ve taken over and posted some cool posts. I’ve posted two posts so far and gotten some mixed feedback. The people have been mostly positive, but a few don’t like my ideas. This is actually good. I’m learning a lot from an audience that isn’t used to my style.
Check out the two posts on Alex’s blog:
If you liked this video cast you’ll like these too:
You’re very right.
I have to admit, I’m pretty hoped out lately. That’s a word thats been a little overused in the last year.
Can we change “hope” to “encouraged”
I agree. We need to actively pursue positive thinking, even if the only things we find are small. Small is good too! I find that when I focus on what I appreciate, I’m more positive – even if it’s just finding a parking space or a good joke during a long meeting. Thanks, Karl, for helping us to remember to not only look for the positive, but to ‘be’ the positive.
Hi Johanne, thanks for commenting. I’ll take a “you are right” any day of the week.
Hi Pat, Good point. I guess Obama overused it. I like the word “hope” because it’s what we need in business. If you like encouraged I say go for it. It’s really how we frame a situation that determines how we feel about it. If we can find a way for employees to frame their fear in a more positive light, we can turn around this recession in no time at all.
Hi Laurie, meetings can be rough. I know a good joke always makes me feel good. If we can keep “encouraging” each other to laugh and be creative it makes the day so much more enjoyable.
Great post Karl! some really useful information here, and ill be sure to use a few of these ideas myself! thanks alot. Anyway sorry if this is inappropiate, but if you have time, please have a look at http://www.australiaworks.com.au, its a job seekers community, full of great tips on resumes, interviews and job searching, as well as a forum dedicated to latest job vacancies. We’ve had over 1,500 posts in less than 2 weeks, so please have a look, would love to see you there and even greater if you can share a few things!
Hey Karl, your video reminds me of a research by psychologists on the somewhat “new agey” habit of keeping a gratitude journal. The results confirmed what many people suspected – by writing down what you are grateful for, they actually managed to boost their “resistance” to depression and hopelessness. So there you go, it’s scientific
I think it’s all a matter of personal mindset. I work for a major corporation who just announced that everyone in the company will have to take a 1 week MULA (mandatory unpaid leave of absence). The day the MULA was announced, some people were angry, some people were scared, and some were accepting. I was a bit worried at first, then I thought about it – and realized ‘why worry about something I have no control over?’
When I sat back and thought about it, I will get to enjoy a week at home with my wife, and I will have a job to return to. By having 80,000 people take a week off they are saving approximately 1600 jobs (and the executives have agreed to take two weeks off). That is a true display of corporate egalitarianism. It is an admirable approach that makes me proud to be their employee.
However, that’s just my perspective. The guy down the hall is still grumbling about it.
Thanks for your post,
Derek @ NüHabits
Hi Karl, congratulations on doubling the happiness with your posts on PositiveSharing.com. The world is a happier place with you in it!
Great video! I should try making a video sometime.
The negative news is the reason why I don’t look go to CNN and watch the news in general. I don’t feel that hearing about how the Dow went down X number of points is going to benefit me.
Some things that I do to keep keep my happiness level up and to keep moral up at our household is to exercise. It always makes me feel good about myself. I also think about how grateful I should be for what I do have in my life.
Good thoughts in, good thoughts out.
Great post Karl!