Learning: The Magic of Making Training FUN

A hero is no braver than an ordinary man but he is braver five minutes longer - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Can we get people to be happy and enjoy their work? Can we move them from TGIF ( Thank God, it is Friday to Thank God, it is Monday.) Yes, we can if we apply the principles of happiness. So, what is happiness? “Happiness is a way of life – an overriding outlook composed of qualities such as optimism, courage, love and fulfillment.” The goal is to enjoy every day irrespective of what the challenges are. What is the enemy of being happy? It is the fear system, a biologically based response derived from our lower brain. This is often known as the reptilian brain as we share this with the reptiles. The fear system initially developed as a survival mechanism to respond to threats is triggered faster than rational thoughts such as feelings of love. Anger, pessimism, anxiety, depression and feelings of isolation are some forms of fear among us. The goal is to focus on positives in a negative world and in negative times like these to build greater motivation and employee engagement. This morni

Just like millions of others I waited for the results of the US Presidential election. Well, the historic event happened, America chose a new President not because he was black but because of his appeal to a majority of Americans. As I said in my last e news some loved him, some did not like him and some really thought it was McCain’s turn. There is a famous expression in the community where I grew up. When the time is right, nothing can stop change. Whatever happened is immaterial. The important thing is the character of America.America is truly the land where everyone and anyone can aim for the impossible. The majority white population proved they could vote for a person from another race. It is not the color of the skin but the policies of the candidate. Secondly, the gracious concession speech by the defeated candidate McCain said so much about the person. Thirdly, Obama’s acceptance speech was equally gracious Read the book Say it like Barack Obama. Fourthly, America is indeed abl

What got you here won't get you there The motives behind people's self interest usually can be narrowed down to four items: 1. Money 2. Power 3. Status 4. Popularity Marshall Goldsmith says that people will not resist change if we invoke the natural law i.e touch their hot button - their self interest.

I had the opportunity to travel with six airlines during my three week trip to six countries. I have often wondered why is it that some airlines are consistently tops on the service provided. They are just outstanding while some are brilliant in flashes. Some are just forgettable. On one of the sectors, I was served beef as that was the only option available. Chicken and fish were over. As I do not take any beef, I was left starving for the entire flight. I asked to see the Manager but she just did not show up. I had to go and see her to register my complaint but the seven hour flight was over. I took a flight from London to Chicago and often wondered how these airlines can preach about service to others. They did everything right to the basics, showed us how to get out of the aircraft in the event of an emergency and served us food as a mandatory task. They did not care how customers were treated or felt. No smiles, no eye contact, no thank you, no feeling that they wanted customers

I was travelling with Joyce Gioia. A US based author and speaker when she talked to me about Marshall Goldstein’s , What got you here won’t get you there.I was intrigued and I went on to read about him. Just after I did that, I went on to re - read Malcolm Gladwell’s book - Tipping Point. As they say he is "just a thinker." But what a thinker. . His provocative ideas are taking the business world by storm. So who is this person, and what can he teach us about business. What can we learn? Danielle Sacks talks about the Accidental Guru and I produce the excerpts from the article: "I really like that term 'momentary autism,' " a woman says softly into the mike. She is in the back of the Times Square Studios speaking to a room of some 200 people, and more important, Malcolm Gladwell, who's standing solo onstage. It's the second day of the fifth annual New Yorker Festival, and Gladwell has just finished a detailed reprise of the seven seconds that led to

Making Innovation work for you I had the opportunity this morning to review Martin Lee’s article in the morning newspaper. The second paragraph quoting Jeff Immelt of General Electric made a lot of sense - the only source of profit, the only reason to invest in companies is their ability to innovate and differentiate. Five simple principles made the article readable: 1. Lead the way, as a leader walk the talk and show that you are an innovator. 2. Look for good ideas – as they say in Procter and Gamble – search and re apply. 3. Check out your assumptions – the business school professors gave a C to Fred Smith’s idea of overnight packaging service FEDEX. He went to create history. 4. Acquire the habit of creative thinking, set aside some time for brainstorming. 5. Innovation is not about mega ideas; it could be about small things too.

Yesterday, I heard a great trainer Yazdi speak on the subject of Values. He talked about aligning vision to values. The three messages he left behind for the audience to take away was interesting: 1. Personal gaps - the gap between the person you want to be and you are. 2. Relationships gaps - the gaps between what you aspire to have in the relationships with your work colleagues and what you have. 3. Organisations - the gaps between your ideal organisation and what it really is It was worth knowing some salient points - Values with a context is important and High Values and High Vision is essential. We should all work towards that. It was worth listening to Yazdi. Made my weekend.

The critical importance of Talent We may have the stage, the orchestra, the props, the script and the actors but do we have a hit. Not necessarily. Unless the actors are talented and play the right roles and they are directed appropriately, we do not have a hit film. To relate this to organisations, just because we have systems, processes and employees, we are far away from running a successful organisation. Only when we appropriately hire, develop, evaluate, reward, mobilize employees and align the Talent with the business goals, can we have the organisation live up to its potential. Talent Management is driven by competencies. Talent today may be the buzz word but in reality – superior performers or talented people have always been in demand. How do we go about attracting them to our organisations? How do we develop them? How do we evaluate their performance? How do we integrate talent management with workforce and succession planning? How do we compensate them? These are questions t

I had dinner with a CEO this evening who shared with me 5 principles, he shares with his team: 1. Consistent Profitability & gGowth 2. Quality Excellence 3. Customer delight 4. Engage your employees sincerely and regularly 5. Make the place of work a FUN place.

Tragedies in both countries. Watching the television made me very sad. Chinese officials have responded very well but in Myanmar, the aid work has not been great. Hope we can all pray for speedy relief and God's kindness to the affected people.

I have been reading this book by Clive Chajet and Tom Shachtman. Dr. Venkata Majeti was kind enough to let me have it and I have been enjoying the book very much. There is always a question I am asked - if I am a FUN facilitator, will that not give me a rather different image. Some executives often want to be feared as they want that image. Images mean so many things to so many people. A company’s image is indeed a vital corporate asset and can make all the difference in a competitive marketplace. We live in a world full of business images. McDonalds, Apple, IBM, Dell, Singapore Airlines. A Company’s image is what is perceived by its various audiences. A Company’s identity is what it chooses to shape those perceptions. One learning point from the book – corporate images must reflect reality not distort reality, if they are to positively impact its audiences. A friend Ed Jackson always used to tell me – the product or service must do what it says it will do. Good image making marries

Vietnam is a country gripped by fierce patriotism. The goal on the top of each Vietnamese mind is to recover from the war that destroyed generations. I had the opportunity to speak at The Talent Management Conference organized by SMR Group and our local partners AITC at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce. Simultaneous translation was provided and the focus of the event was unique – make Vietnamese talent a premier one in the region. The 250 participants were exposed to a variety of speakers. The number of government enterprises is going down substantially and free enterprise is blossoming in Vietnam. Our local partner bought a book to understand Vietnamese history and I had the chance to take a photograph with the legendary President Ho Chi Minh. Organisations that have focused on their people and on their future people needs are likely to be the winners in the next expansion cycle.

Tomorrow I speak at a CSR(Corporate Social Responsibility) event - the Trainers Meet Trainers KL. The subject - Collaborative Learning. I will focus on three areas: Intentional design Co-Labour Meaningful learning

I have been in the Middle East for the last two weeks. Fascinating and incredible are words that I can use to describe my experience.While the oil is hitting the $110/- a barrel, the US$ is falling to an all time low and there is a talk about the dollar peg with most of the Middle East countries being discontinued, the growth in the region just left me speechless. The quest to be the best and to learn faster than the neighbours is evident in every citizen in these countries. Their investments in education are substantial just as they are putting up the infrastructure. I also had the chance to read the book the secrets of a millionaire mind. You must read it - simple and easy to read book.

It is quite a while since I posted the last blog. I have been travelling through to four countries. While navigating through the cold weather of Chicago, I found two motivating incidents: 1. The momentum of Barack Obama in the US elections was staggering; he is very likely to be the next president of the United States of America. 2. He seemed to sell the idea that“The best performance improvement is the transition from the non-working state to the working state.” There is certainly a lot of excitement in the air and as Senator Ted Kennedy said " I feel change is in the air."

Appraisals get done by now for most organisations. The question now is how to translate these performance objectives into reality. Until now many organisations have focused on looking at historical performance management methods. If we drive looking at the rear mirror, we are very likely to crash. With plans in place, there is a need to look forward resulting in forward looking performance management. Anthony Politan says you can integrate what if scenarios with traditional budgeting and planning systems to change faster than industry norms and acquire a competitive advantage, Such an approach he says takes performance management to the next level. Visit this webpage to get to know more about taking performance management tot he enxt level. http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/articles_taking_performance_management_next_level.html

2008 is here. I like to wish all of you a very Happy New Year.