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“GOOD MORNING HUMAN RESOURCE PROFESSIONALS!”

In my five years working in the human resources field I have met a variety of personalities.  Some have made me excited to be an HR professional while others made me want to play hooky like Ferris Bueler.  A few even prompted thoughts of violently shaking the poor attitude out of them.  Seriously people, check your poor attitude at the door!

One thing I have tried to improve upon in my career is the ability to manage my attitude and reaction to others in the workplace in order to accomplish communication.  You can never fully prepare yourself to handle everything that may be thrown at you in human resources; all you can do is control yourself.

Volunteers (That's me on the left!)

This past spring I was a volunteer coordinator for ABC’s Extreme Makeover:  Home Edition for a build here in Tallahassee, FL.  The experience was one I will never forget; thousands of volunteers working around the clock to build a house for a family in need – in seven days!  Since I was “in transition” during that time, I took the night shift from 12 am to 8am, went home, slept, got up and headed back to the site every day.  One thing that stood out from this experience was the overall attitude of our volunteers.  Each day they showed up to donate their time and had to deal with extremes – cold weather, hot weather, sleep deprivation, dust, aches, pains, grumpiness and everything else one may come across on a construction site.  Most of the volunteers have full time jobs and other regular commitments but they continued to be invested in a project they were passionate about.  Regardless of these obstacles the morale of the volunteers remained positive.  These volunteers cared about the family and were invested in their work.  Shouldn’t this be how your employees feel about your workplace?

Establish relationships with colleagues in the office that you work with on a regular basis.  You do not have to be best friends with everyone but take the time to learn and figure out what makes your colleagues tick.  What do they complain about?  What makes them laugh?  What standards do they hold themselves to?  You will begin to learn how to best present things to these individuals.  Some you may be able to be blunt with and let them take initiative to complete a project.  Others you will have to hold their hand through execution.  In the end you should be able to develop a unique delivery mechanism for any interaction with these individuals.

By establishing these relationships and learning how to handle your attitude towards your colleagues, you will take a huge step towards a happier workforce who is typically more productive.  Regardless of why you work, the attitude you portray in the workplace is up to you.  Whether positive or negative the work will still be there.  Help create an environment employees care about and are invested in.  Don’t let the Debbie Downers ruin it for everyone else!

Now come on, get to work!  Say it with me HR professionals! “Move that bus!”

Keith Ferrazzi

Anyone who read my earlier post is aware of how much I have been looking forward to hearing Keith Ferrazzi speak at HR Florida.  Keith presented one of the Masters’ Sessions entitled “Relationships for Group Success”.  He is the author of two bestselling books emphasizing the importance of relationships in our personal and professional lives.

Keith’s two hour presentation included several “group work” sessions in which we were encouraged to use his relationship development ideas.  Each attendee’s experience was affected by what they learned through listening and interacting with others. It has taken several days of reflection to summarize my “take homes.”  Here they are:

*Relationships are fundamental to our success!

*Deep social bonding among team members will result in greater success for the team.

*It is essential to develop a strategic plan for our lives.  What do we want to achieve in 30 days? 3 years? Long term? (We must know where we’re going before we can map out a route to get there.)

*Find two people with whom to develop “lifeline relationships.”  Lifeline Relationships incorporate peers who we care for and respect. These relationships should be mutually beneficial and include the core values of honesty, transparency, and accountability. (Note the concept of “mutual relationship” – people are not a commodity to be used and tossed aside.)

*Ask for help: “What do you see me doing that holds me back?” (Friends can help someone recognize and move beyond negative behaviors and subliminal patterns.)

*Remember feedback is a gift. It is information to be processed just like all other experience.  Take it or leave it, but always say “Thank you”. 

We often hear the saying – “It’s not what you know, but who you know.” There is some truth in this statement; we are who we are because of our relationships with others. The relationships we develop at work, chapter meetings, conferences, and volunteering in the community help us to grow personally and professionally.  In Human Resources, as in life, “what you know” is critical, but it is in relationships with others that we are able to leverage that knowledge to make a difference.