When the other frogs looked into that pit and gauged it as a rather deep one, they informed the two hapless victims in the deep pit that they were as good as dead.The two frogs deep inside the pit decided to ignore the comments and advice offered by bystanders.

They tried and attempted to jump out of that pit with all their might. While they were doing that the other frogs outside the pit kept telling the two that there was no point in attempting to escape as it was a forgone conclusion that they would ultimately die…as the pit was out of the possible scaling limit of the frogs by froggy standards.

One of the confined frogs, while attempting to jump out, began to pay heed to these comments. His efforts showed less zeal and he began to tire out as well… much sooner than his trapped mate. He exhausted himself quickly with every attempt that he made, and in due course fell dead.

The other frog continued to jump with the same zeal and with every attempt that he made he would gain a few more inches. He continued to jump and persevered in the the true spirit of the proverb: Try and try till you succeed. The crowd of frogs on seeing the other one dead continued to dissuade the surviving one, beseeching him to give up else he would drop dead too! They were croaking all the time, advising him to not go through the painful experience of trying so hard. They wanted him to lay down and die peacefully instead.

The frog however, did not heed to them at all and he continued to try…he tried and tried till he finally did jump out of that pit!

When he was out of the pit all the frogs accosted him and inquired from him why he did not pay heed to their croaky and well throated advice. “Did you not hear us?” they exclaimed.

There was no response from the exhausted frog. After some more vocal and deliberate attempts the frogs discovered that they were croaking at a partially deaf frog!

When the frog finally understood what they were asking of him, he responded and told them that he continued to jump as he thought the others were encouraging him to do better with every jump! He did that precisely. And here he was outside the pit.

Mission Impossible accomplished! Thanks to his misinterpretation of that croaky ‘encouragement’ from the entire group of pessimists!

The story as such teaches us a few well meaning lessons:

1) We should strive to attempt and fail rather than fail to attempt as life is full of pitfalls.

2) Our power of speech both as an individual and as a collective team, has the power of life and death within it. It encourages all the time when used properly and sincerely. An encouraging word or two to anyone whom we know  is down and low, can help lift his/her spirits and make him/her move on.

3) A destructive word or piece of advice to someone is ‘down in the dumps’ can be what it takes to kill the individual rather than will/fill him/her with much needed hope and encouragement.

4) We must listen to one and all if need be; but must do what we feel needs to be done vis a vis the situation on hand.

5) We must open our minds before we open our mouths.

If we have to speak we must speak carefully all the time. Our speech should always speak of life and hope to all whom cross our paths. We should desist and refrain from speaking about negativity as such! The power of words is awesome.

It is very easy for any one to speak discouraging words to others so remember those who take time and put in conscious efforts to encourage others in times of need are indeed very special friends…. in need and in deed too!

Birthdays are a big deal. Monumental. Sacred. What could be bigger in your life than the day you were born?! I always feel pouty for someone who thinks birthdays are no biggie. Sadness. Every birthday is an opportunity to celebrate, get mushy, root down into your essence and be reflective, to think highly of yourself, and party hearty. I mean really, if you can’t have fun on your birthday, you’re doomed for the next 355 days of the year.

FREE BIRTHDAY RITUALS
1. Chant your name twelve times. Do it in the shower if you’re worried about the neighbours listening in. It’s amazing how grounding and moving this exercise can be. Claim your space in the universe.
2. Look into the mirror. Beyond checking for new wrinkles or spots, look into your own eyes and give your love to the person you see. She may be glowing. He may be full of regret. She or he is all you’ve got. Pour kindness onto your image.
3. Make some outlandish wishes based on how you want to FEEL in the coming year. Desired. Free. Top of your game…
4. Call your parents and thank them for being your parents. No them, no you.
5. Cry if you need to.
6. Get drunk if you want to.
7. Wear something special.
8. If the previous year was a tough one, scribble out the reasons and burn the page.
9. If the previous year was an amazing one, scribble out the reasons and burn the page. I think every birthday needs to involve fire of some kind.
10. Tell everyone (the cab driver, the barista, your teacher) that it’s your birthday. You’ll get free stuff, lots of positive attention, and people will tolerate your “I’m a righteous babe” attitude.

Of course, with the exception of #10 – you can do all of these rituals any ol’ day, like tomorrow. Because life is short and there is no one alive who is Youer than You.

How To Give A Compliment:

1. Sincerity is paramount.

Fake compliments are very bad juju. The good news is that you shouldn’t have to look too hard to find reasons to compliment the people around you.

2. Compliments on how great someone looks are an easy way to spread the love.

I was standing in line at The Gap and there was a 30-something woman ahead of me – cute as a button with pixie hair cut and red nails. She was wearing a hounds’ tooth knit poncho, skinny jeans, patent leather ankle boots and an over-sized men’s watch. She had it goin’ on. I waited until she was snapping her wallet shut and leaned forward and said, “You look great,” and gave her that chick-to-chick “well done” nod.

“Oh really? she said. “I don’t feel great.” And then her eyes filled with tears. “Gee, that was so nice to hear, thanks.” And I just nodded, a bit taken aback myself, my own eyes a bit misty. I hoped she walked a bit taller all the way home.

3. Compliments are a tiny but potent form of intimacy.

If you’re complimenting a total stranger, make it brief and quick so your pure intentions don’t get misconstrued as a come on. Sometimes, it’s best to compliment someone as a “drive by” or last minute gesture. And use your best intuition for the vibe.

I once walked up to a woman in a food court and said, “You look freaking fabulous.” She just about choked on her salad roll, but she did smile from ear to ear and I saw her grinning and nodding to herself as I walked away.

4. Compliments for good customer service are a joy to give, especially when you go out of your way to give them.

Last week I called customer service to open a new bank account online. “Just keep clicking ‘other’,” the guy prompted me. “And be sure to transfer this there before you do that or you’ll get dinged a fee.” He was my hero. “Robert,” I said, “This was such great service. Do you have a supervisor I can talk to? I’d like to tell them that you’re great.”

Well I thought Robert was going to break out into a show tune he was so happy. And, get this, when I spoke to his manager, he told me that staff with the most positive customer feedback will win a free cruise this year. So my one minute compliment may land Robert a good tan and some pina coladas when he most needs them.

5. Keep it simple.

Send love through your eyes and voice. Imagine things blooming from your lil’ gesture of goodness.

I’ll check in with you next week and I want to hear how you rocked the force of positivity for universal good. We can do it. We’re amazing human beings, each of us. Don’t need to look too far to comment on that.

 ”The heart of motivation is to give people what they really want most from work. The more you are able to provide what they want, the more you should expect what you really want, namely: productivity, quality, and service.”

The topic motivation is extremely important for employers. Motivated employees can create a climate that is conductive to performance, do their best and help the organization to achieve the targets. While a stressed out and grumpy person with a frown on his face cannot perform well on work and so cannot help the organization to achieve their goals. I can share the example of one of my managers who enters the office with energy, enthusiasms and a big smile on his face. With same positive motivation he spends some moments with all of his team members, shares happiness, discusses new tasks, and new expectations. This is an extremely simple activity but it is the key of high motivation and morale of his team members.

Each employee gets motivated by different things. As the heart of motivation is to give people what they really want most from their work, it is very important to find out the “heart”. If some of them are interested in sports, provide them facility for it. If some want to go a hill station then arrange hill station trips on weekends twice a year. These all are very small things but vital for employees’ motivation.

Here are some steps and suggestions to find your employees’ heart of motivation.

1. Define your organizational hierarchy.

2. Measure your team members’ performance systematically without favouritism. Individual goals and targets must be realistically defined and discussed with team at the start of the year. Performance factors e.g. quality of work, target achievement, productivity, dedication, innovation, discipline, dependence of members etc. must be considered. At the end of performance evaluation all successes and failures of team member must be discussed with him/her to make a clear picture of his performance in his/her mind.

3. Also consider previous years’ performances while evaluating current year’s performance.

4. Allocate a certain amount of money to use for compensating the teams on good performance. For example, team members’ dinner on good work or target achievement.

5. Provide them proper feedback of their work.

6. Provide employees with ample opportunities to learn new and advanced skills. They should be supported by the company for higher/further education as well.

7. Get to know your employees, families, children, their birthdays, wedding anniversaries, hobbies, favourite restaurants and food. Do change the nature of relationship with your employees. Care for them, thank them and appreciate them.

8. Celebrate their birthdays.

9. Informal gatherings like trips, dinners, visits must be arranged by the company to improve communication between teams. Organize quarterly, two to three days’ trips.

10. Listen to and act upon employees’ ideas and suggestions. In the words of Roy E. Moody, a motivational speaker, “The greatest motivational act one person can do for another is to listen.”

11. Provide employees with appropriate authority to make decisions about how they do their jobs.

12. Policy for annual vacation with family supported by the company on draw basis must be introduced.

13. Introduce employee of the month, employee of the quarter and employee of the year awards to keep employees motivated.

14. Announce bonuses in team meetings so that all of the other members know who got some extra reward and why.

15. Start some in-house recreational activities like table tennis, badminton and volley ball.

16. Company policies must be defined, well communicated and user friendly.

17. Try to eliminate extra working by managing tasks, estimations, executions and trends. Late sitting due to work burden must be compensated with leave as well as monetary reward (bonuses based on productivity) and facilities (refreshment, dinner).

18. Organize monthly employee meetings for better coordination.

19. Sponsor your employees’ certifications/short courses. 

There are so many other small activities that can keep your team motivated. Sustainability of the motivation is very important and to sustain its high level you are required to establish reliable and comprehensive systems, policies and process in the workplace. It will ensure long-term motivation of your people to contribute to a desired development of organization.

Much of this issue stems from practices embedded within an organizational culture affecting morale and productivity. These include:

•    Leadership not serving as exemplars – some leaders today are narcissists, demeaning and ruthless. More importantly, leaders’ salaries can exceed employee pay by 425 times the average worker. Leaders need to act in harmony with employees and ensure equal treatment of all. Cultures where this practice occurs frequently include McDonalds, Fed Ex and UPS where employees and management are one.

•    Little or no accountability – the United States economic system is currently in financial turmoil and no one is accountable.

•    Career planning and succession planning is null – simply put there is no succession planning. Most CEOs and senior managers join an organization from competitive industries and companies. Whatever happened to the mailroom climb?

•    Too many silos and departmental infighting – companies are in business for one reason – to create clients. End the infighting and focus on the most vital asset! When the fighting ends (and everybody understands their reason for being employed) perhaps harmony arrives.

Causes of low morale correlate to the organization, its culture, and its management. After 25 years of research in this area, we find five factors contributing to organizational morale. A study by the Corporate Leadership Council reveals the tremendous impact managers have on an employee’s level of commitment. It is imperative to note that individuals do not leave companies – they leave poor managers. Organizational mismanagement contributes to negative morale. As recent as 2006 the Gallup Organization estimated there were 32 million actively disengaged employees costing the American economy up to $350 billion per year in lost productivity. Such loss includes absenteeism, tardiness, and poor work.

To dilute the productivity impact, research shows that taking time to build relationships with employees through personal interaction, is a key step managers can take to keep morale high. Employees need to feel trust and respect from their managers. Employees desire feedback from management to understand their work matters.

Ending the morale issue is not easy but there are cures.

1.    Begin with talent acquisition – start with the right people. No firm we work with ever hires on a proactive basis. Most firms conduct employment searches reactively. Seek employees that fit with the organizational culture and with the obligatory skills. Never wait!

2.    Hire for skill – talent is innate. Organizations hire for personality and behavior first and skill second. Skill is not interchangeable, behavior is. A great hire might have a wonderful temperament and lack the skill to plug a socket into an outlet. I recall a five star hotel that sought advice to correct housekeeping flaws. After five minutes, it was easy enough to terminate staff and find those without flaws.

3.    Look at best practices from best people – management focuses on “fixing those that cannot” rather than “improving those that can”. Icons of performance exist in your organization. Discover what they do right and encourage others to emulate it.

4.    Passion –in the 1980’s Sylvester Stallone appeared again as Rocky this time with a theme, “Eye of the Tiger”. What a great metaphor for valuable talent. Seek to acquire talent that truly loves work. Passion too is innate. Employees must love what they do and how they do it. When passion is high, so too is morale.

5.  Focus on the customer – managers, the organization, and the employees must vehemently focus on the customer. Remember Winnie the Pooh, try finding Eeyore amongst staff at Disney; Southwest Airlines and FedEx, all intensely focus on servicing the client.

Lastly, managers must constantly strive to provide feedback to employees. Feedback is not an annual performance review event. It is imperative that daily communication exists for good information and improvement. Coaching, counseling, and mentoring are components of organizational morale. In addition, many attend church and hear the words, “It is right to give thanks and praise”. Many watch professional sports and view coaches coddling athletes. We can learn something here; simple words of thanks and praise constantly improve morale and employee relationships.

Finally, the first item terminated during economic volatility is training. Research finds that employees are assets and require that treatment. Never stop training; this improves productivity and morale at all times.

Issues of low morale and productivity are onerous, volatile, and difficult to control. There is a need for management, the organization, and the individual to assist with success factors. Much is dependent on the desire to change; methods chosen and consistent follow through. However, if you do nothing you still have a morale issue. Take the time, seek remedies, and keep morale high. Doing so, lowers attrition, improves productivity, increases profitability and most importantly- reduces stress.

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Drew Stevens is a business growth expert. He speaks and consults around the world for organizations that require expertise in leadership and marketing. Visit Drew at www.drewstevensconsulting.com/freestuff and get hundreds of dollars in FREE selling tips.