Jazzed About Work

Today’s guest, Debby Cole, was brought up to “be a Southern lady.” But she stepped away from that role and became an entrepreneur. Starting small, she created a landscaping and construction business, then spent 35 years building it into a thriving organization, and managing multi-million-dollar projects. Next, she pivoted again, to become a speaker, writer, photographer and passionate champion of women who dream about flourishing businesses, and lives. Debby tells us about her beautiful new book, She (Believed She Could So She Did), which presents portraits of 35 Texas women who – by design or circumstances – found themselves creating or leading companies. She also talks about ways to help women thrive as entrepreneurs.

Read more: https://www.deborahcoleconnections.com/
See her book: https://amzn.to/360Tnt1

This episode focuses on one habit with surprising power to slow you down, in work and in life. We’re talking about sitting, or, more precisely, the widespread trend of sitting down during way too much of the workday. Our guest is Doctor of Physical Therapy Stefan Zavalin. In his new book, Sit Less, Stefan explains how reducing the time you spend sitting could improve both your health and your productivity. Today we talk about how and why you should create a new habit of getting up and moving around more often. And we explore Stefan’s vision, which includes changing organizational cultures to bring more movement to the everyday life of office workers. Read more: https://amzn.to/3AZErqv Visit Love to Move: https://www.ltmmtl.com

Today’s topic is how to be a strong team member and thrive at work, even when your coworkers are across the country. Our guest, Kevin Eikenberry, is an engaging speaker and podcaster, a well-known leadership expert, and the co-author (with Wayne Turmel) of the best-selling book, The Long-Distance Teammate. Kevin offers helpful tips about how to stay motivated and connected with your team when you work remotely. He says the key to leadership these days is flexibility. And he explains how you can succeed at work by managing your productivity, potential and proactivity. For more information go to The Kevin Eikenberry Group site: https://www.kevineikenberry.com/

Today’s guest, Karen Hager, started as a child actor and grew up to be a publishing professional. At the same time, she studied at an Episcopal seminary. But instead of being called to the ministry, she stepped away to forge her career as an intuitive guide. She is passionate about teaching people to connect with their own natural intuitive awareness, and says sometimes becoming more intuitive starts with showing ourselves compassion. Today she shares no-nonsense advice about developing your intuition. And we talk about why compassion, collaboration and curiosity about the needs and aspirations of our colleagues are so important in the workplace.

Find out more about Karen and her work at https://karenhager.com.

How an organization performs on societal and ethical issues greatly influences the willingness of its employees to stay on the team and be committed players, suggests today’s guest, Ethan McCarty. He’s the founder and CEO of Integral, a prize-winning communications agency which helps clients enhance organizational cultures and activate employees to do their best work. Here, Ethan describes results of the Employee Activation Index, a survey of how workers perceive their employers’ performance, undertaken by Integral and The Harris Poll. And he explains how people who understand and support their employer’s values are more likely to push for its success, including by speaking up on social media.

Download the Index here: https://www.teamintegral.com/insights/

The workplace is in the midst of huge change, including the shift to remote and hybrid workers, and it’s time to rethink what human resource programs do, and how they do it. That’s the view of today’s guest, Brandon Laws, senior director of marketing & product at Xenium HR. The U.S. is experiencing a job seeker’s market, and workers have more power and want more options. Brandon says the future offers promise for both organizations and the people they hire, but there are challenges, and leaders need to find new ways of managing. For more insights, listen to Brandon’s “Transform Your Workplace” podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id533673516 Or download Xenium’s free eBook on 7 ways to step up your HR strategy: https://xeniumhr.com/blog/human-resources/ebook-seven-ways-to-step-up-your-hr-strategy/

The average job search brings many ups and downs, twists and turns, and emotional challenges, say leadership and career coaches Cathy Wasserman and Lauren Weinstein. But you can prepare yourself, and find smart ways to navigate the transition. In their book, The Empowered Job Search, the two say that a job hunt is inherently disempowering, but there are ways you can cultivate a new mindset and keep your search on a smooth path. In this episode, the authors talk about how to recognize your feelings, develop a better understanding of what you want in a job, and cultivate positivity. See more: https://www.theempoweredjobsearch.com

Charlie Schilling is a senior executive with Emeritus, a global company that is partnering with leading universities to create new ways to deliver professional education. In this episode, he discusses the vital need to upskill and reskill the American workforce. We talk about the millions of workers who want to change their careers. Charlie says Emeritus is focused on delivering workers affordable, accessible coursework and certifications, sometimes partnering with employers who offer learning opportunities as a way to attract and retain top talent. And we discuss new ways of delivering learning, like the company’s bite-sized video lessons. See more: https://emeritus.org/

As millions of workers walk away from their jobs, or at least explore new options, many companies are exploring ways to better motivate their people. Our guest today, Liza Haffenberg, has worked around the world as a branding and culture change expert, and now she’s a leader at the marketing firm StrawberryFrog. Here she describes how employers can transform their cultures in ways that encourage their people to stay. She says promoting employee engagement and professional development leads to more productivity and organizational success. And she explains why an effective way to transform your culture is to turn your mission statement into action, thus creating a “movement” that can activate both employees and customers. See more: https://strawberryfrog.com

The pandemic has accelerated an already budding trend: the expansion of remote work. And some professionals who can work from anywhere are opting to move to communities that offer lower costs, more space or different lifestyles. In this show, Evan Hock, COO of MakeMyMove, explains how towns with declining populations are willing to pay remote workers to relocate. Evan’s company has created a marketplace that matches unfettered workers with communities that are seeking new families who will support local businesses and activities, buy houses, and pay taxes. See more: https://www.makemymove.com