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janhoistad@drjanhoistad.com

Should You be Outsourcing Everyday Tasks?

DJHP /Careers Not too long ago, my brother had his first child. We’re close and talk regularly. But since the birth of his child, the conversations have changed a bit, and there’s definitely a trending topic: working while raising a baby. All the things that were so easy before have suddenly become really, really hard. Even finding time to go the grocery store, filling up his car’s gas tank, or grabbing a bite to eat seems like big events. So, me not completely understanding the situation, I asked others for their opinions, and who better to ask than my parents? I talked to my mom about how I couldn’t imagine working and having a child. Finding a balance between my personal and professional life is already difficult. To throw a child in the mix, I’d be lost. Though difficult, she reassured me that it could be done. Naturally, I take the idea one step further. What happens if you’re a single parent? How in the world do you find the time to support a family and do everything you need to do to raise a child? One of my clients is in this exact situation. She’s a Super Woman! But hey, even Super Women need assistance sometimes, right? I’ve been helping her teenage kids get ready for the next steps in their lives. One is a senior in high school and starting the college application process. The other is only a sophomore, so there’s a little time. But we’re teaching [...]

7 Ways to Manage for Innovation in Intergenerational Workplaces

DJHP / Leaders Companies often believe innovation comes from the individual — a notion likely stemming from the startup space. A fledgling company starts disrupting the marketplace, and the big guys on the block look to the founder as the source of the disruption. While the brainchild might be the individual’s, it doesn’t end with him or her. The true source of innovation came from a network of people, all working together toward a common goal. And that’s exactly how you should approach your leadership if you hope to encourage innovation within a team. Here are six ways I’ve found to be successful in encouraging innovation: 1. Trust your team. It’s easy to go in and micromanage a project. You came up with it after all. But this does nothing to encourage innovation. Trust the people you brought together enough to let them take the reigns and run with it. In fact, your trust in them allows the team to trust themselves and trust each other. This can then lead to greater transparency, promoting self-expression among the group and a group think-tank that brings out the best in one another. 2. Build in diversity. Some of the most productive and innovative teams are also the most diverse. Pull together people with different backgrounds and capabilities to create cross-specialty teams. The diversity can encourage out-of-the-box thinking to solve problems in more innovative ways. What’s more, the diverse approaches to business can push forward innovation in a more efficient manner. 3. Flatten [...]

Set Yourself Apart from the Competition. Invest In Company Culture

DJHP /Leaders Culture does more for a company than provide employees a great place to work. It can set you on the track for long-term success. When you actively develop your culture based on a clear set of values, beliefs, principles, and expectations, you’re essentially establishing a personality for your business, and that personality helps to differentiate you in a number of different ways: Supports recruitment efforts. Developing and cultivating a company culture has two main advantages for your recruitment efforts. The first relates to your company. When taking the time to define the unique characteristics of your company, like vision, values, purpose, and guiding principles, it’s much easier to identify the right candidates. You know who fits and who doesn’t. The second advantage is all about the talent. A clearly defined culture can be used as a recruitment tool. It’s a benefit of working for your organization. If part of your culture involves community outreach, which I’d recommend, you’ll attract that young, socially connected, and well-educated talent who want to commit to a bigger cause. With them comes a fresh energy, new ideas, and a desire to innovate. Improves retention rates. Companies with rich organizational cultures are more likely to experience turnover rates of just 13.9 percent, while those with not-so-rich cultures can often expect a turnover of 48.4 percent. Why the huge difference? Culture influences the happiness of your staff. Investing in your culture is like investing in your employees. You’re telling staff exactly what your company stands [...]

How to Retain Employees by Transforming Feedback into Learning

DJHP /Leaders Sociologists and marketers tell us that Millennials are a fun-seeking, forward-thinking, and fearless bunch. They’re willing to tackle any project at any hour of the day if they find it interesting. That’s the vibrant upside. But as with most things, that upside comes with a downside. Generally, younger workers almost always seek constant communication and a fast learning curve. When you’re unable to provide it, they won’t stay engaged, making it difficult to not just grow employees but retain them. Leadership is now facing a challenge: to provide learning opportunities in a continuous, fast-paced and engaging way. The key lies in fully embracing this need for continuous feedback and turning it on its head for everyone in your organization. You do this by creating a company that places a high value on communication, but you do this through the company’s vision and culture — a culture where communication is educational. Here are 6 ways you do it: 1. Start off employees on the right foot. Hiring talent whose values closely align to those of your own is only half the equation. The onboarding process is just as important to their growth — and shouldn’t be confused with training. Onboarding mainly focuses on what the new hire feels, sees, and hears in relation to your organization. Be upfront about the company culture, explaining your expectations and the necessity of adopting the growth mindset. Make sure you, your team, and your company engage with the individual. Follow up with him [...]

Employer Values: How to Make Work Meaningful

DJHP / Leaders Today’s workforce looks a lot different than it did even two years ago. Between 2013 and 2015, the number of Millennials in the workplace surpassed that of both Gen Xers and Boomers. We’re now looking at nearly 54 million Gen Yers employed in the U.S. That’s more than one-in-three workers. With this change comes a shift in priorities. No longer is job security, compensation, or time off the most important reasons to take a job. It’s culture, and for many companies, culture is their greatest challenge. Today's employees want to work for an employer that has a clear vision of its values. They want to know that their work has meaning — and if not the work itself, then that the company is doing something greater to benefit the community at large. In other words, your company culture is more important than it ever was before. To attract, retain, and engage today’s workforce, you need to develop a strong culture. And this often starts by asking yourself, “ What do my employees value in their jobs?” But don’t just look to Millennials. You need to be inclusive with your culture, so take stock in what all those non-Millennials value in their jobs, too. When actively developing your culture, I suggest you consider the following: 1. Seamlessness. Work and life are seamless for the younger generations. Seamlessness often means finding ways to add more flexibility into the work environment. Consider instituting flexible work hours or providing the option [...]

Walking the Line: Feedback Vs. Micromanagement

DJHP / Leaders Millennials grew up with the Internet. They also grew up in a world of texting, tweeting, posting, pinning, liking, and following — all of which provide almost instantaneous feedback. Now that they’ve entered the workplace, their expectations are virtually the same for this environment, which has posed a problem for employers. Is this person just needy? Or, is he asking for feedback in hopes of improving his performance and growing in a career? What’s more, will this continuous feedback lead to the micromanaging of employees? To walk that fine line between feedback and micromanagement, I suggest the following: 1. Practice reflective listening. Reflective listening is all about trying to understand exactly what the person is asking, and then offering that question back before your response. It’s a way of clarifying a question or idea prior to providing your feedback as to not confuse the situation. Once you know what they’re seeking, respond with concretes. 2. Role-model behavior. Employees have always looked to leadership in how to behave in the workplace. Follow up and follow through on objectives and promises. Demonstrate integrity by listening actively and communicating appropriately. Be authentic in your interactions with everyone on your team. By role-modeling behavior, fewer questions remain about what’s appropriate (and not appropriate) in the workplace. 3. Own up to mistakes. This really goes hand-in-hand with role-modeling. When you own up to mistakes yourself, and provide an explanation of intent going forward, you’re not just showing your human side but giving [...]

Impartial Management: Doing Away with Favorites

DJHP / Leaders Nothing is more disheartening for employees than being on a team where its leader just seems to play favorites — unless, of course, you’re one of the chosen few. You get your pick of projects, find yourself constantly tapped for input, and may even enjoy a little preferential treatment when it comes time for promotions. Even then you might not feel you can trust the spotlight, especially if your leader shows any fickleness. But that’s really a story for another day. The thing about favoritism is that it’s become almost an epidemic. Sounds alarmist, I know. But according to a survey by McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University,92 percent of senior business executives have seen some level of favoritism in the workplace. While this number may appear high, it does stand to reason. If you click, you just click, and this can inadvertently lead to favoritism when you’re in an advisory role. Even something as innocent as a standing lunch date can turn into bias toward subordinates. We’re human, after all, and it’s difficult not to let our emotions hold sway over our decisions. To determine whether or not your attitude and actions are led by favoritism, I recommend taking stock of the following: Feedback. Everyone has his or her own managerial style. There’s nothing wrong with that, and this style inevitably affects how you deliver feedback. But this feedback should always be constructive in nature. It should set consistent expectations for every member of your [...]

5 Cultural Shifts to Improve Business Outcomes

DJHP / Leaders There’s not a business around that doesn’t have a culture. Some companies actively develop their cultures while in the startup phase, whereas others leave culture to chance, never settling on their vision for the company beyond what products or services they intend to sell. If you weren’t an active participant in the cultural development of a company, it may be in need of a cultural shift. And as a leader, here’s what you need to do to make it possible: 1. Commit to the shift. Shifting a company’s culture takes time and patience. Don’t start unless you intend to see it through to fruition. Doing anything otherwise can cost you staff, and those who do stay will likely feel discouraged, which can erode your employee engagement, lower productivity levels, and stifle innovation. Before tackling a cultural shift, evaluate your current company culture with key decision makers in your business. Look at its strengths and weaknesses, as well as your priorities, such as growth or profitability. Then, settle on your vision for an organization that lives its values and gather the resources to make it possible. 2. Embrace new values. Cultural shifts start from the top, so you must start talking the talk and walking the walk if you ever hope to make a positive change in your business. Adopt these new values as your own. It’s an opportunity to not just improve a culture but set the stage for your own professional growth. To help with this [...]

When Being A Cog-In-the-Wheel Can Be a Good Thing

DJHP / Leaders / Careers Many years ago, as a young professional, part of an expert team, I was called on to give my first important presentation in a difficult negotiation. The sale was tough. The stakes were high. It was for a highly valued client.  We were up against other highly qualified competition and we wanted to win. I prepared my presentation and materials with all the expertise I could muster, integrating feedback from my superiors and team mates. Then I mentally played and replayed the argumentative questioning I suspected I’d face.  I’d have to think on my feet and defend my point of view. Do it fast, be smart, rat-a-tat-tat. It felt exciting. But the responsibility felt s-c-a-r-y! Though knowledgeable about my position, my confidence was peppered with the self-doubts found to be common among women.  I was young and not fully grown into my own sense of presence and roller-coastered through waves of anxiety. Amy Cuddy had not yet appeared on TED with her talk about how you just need to fake it til you become it.  She had yet to demonstrated her“power poses” and research that allays body responses that can hijack the mind, leaving it blank, voice shaky, weak and knees quivering. Nor had she writtenher bookPresence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges in which she states that "Presence is the state of being attuned to and able to  comfortably express true thoughts, feelings values and potential. That's it. It is not a [...]

Emancipating – It’s Never Too Late for Millennials

DJHP /Careers / Generations Becoming a fully independent young adult is challenging for many millennials. Emancipating one's self from the restrictions of living with parents or 5 friends sharing a house requires patience, goal setting and specific action steps to achieve the financial, emotional and physical freedoms that are all aspects of becoming autonomous and creating a life. Here are thoughts from Emily Hinderaker, one millennial on the DJHP Team. In my late twenties, it may come as a surprise to hear that I still live at home. I’m the first to admit this isn’t the best of situations, and I’d much more prefer to emancipate myself. In fact, that’s exactly what I’ve been working on for the past few months. But before I dig into how, I’d like to give my perspective on the situation and let you in on what goes on in my mind as I move toward creating the independence I want. Saving Money Comes at a Cost Yes, it’s true, I do not pay rent, but I pay in privacy and adulthood. There is a fine line between the parent/child roles and the roommate living situation. Although I am very thankful, I am also very afraid because I have never truly lived on my own, I constantly ask myself, “Can I even do it?” Dating is Right Out the Window I’m single. I have been single for a very long time. I feel that I am not in a position to date, mainly due to [...]

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