The blog highlighted a trip I took around my neighbourhood, looking for craft supplies in the garbage of my neighbours. In this blog I wrote about finding an old wooden drawer and wrote about my plans to turn it into a jewelry box.

That was a great project. I worked with my stepfather on it, at our family cottage in Wisconsin. Our cottage is great because my stepfather is a tinkerer in his own right, and he has all sorts of tools needed to make things like extra trim pieces, glue and vice grips. He helped me sand it down, paint it, and add some doodads to it. I had found this awesome knob at a Worldmarket in South Carolina on a business trip, and some old looking contact paper while at an end-of-season sale at Michaels. There are two pieces–one that hangs on the wall and the other on my dresser. It looks very similar to something I saw in the craft ideas section of a Midwest Living magazine. I love it!

This year I plan on making two more jewelry boxes while at the cottage. I don’t actually need more jewelry boxes, but I have friends who might want one. The drawers came from our bathroom renovation last Fall, and I picked up some free paint from a sampler coupon at Lowes this Spring. I’m sure my stepfather has some hooks I can use out in the garage. One thing that is important to me in crafts is generally I try not too spend much money–in fact, being thrifty is part of the thrill of doing them. (And my technical skills at crafts are not that great, so I don’t feel like anything is lost if a craft project is a disaster).

I mention my projects to say this–if you’re in HR, sometimes you need a diversion from HR. I really like to do crafts because they require a brief focus and you have an accomplishment when you are finished.

Wellness is a subject that Human Resources professes to know a lot about and we HR folk create programs to improve wellness in the workplace. I just want to remind you all, as we get into the summer season, to find some things to do that will improve your own wellness. It doesn’t have to be doing a craft, but it does have to be something that makes you happy.

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While amongst some audience members, clearly this is presenting good TV, unfortunately this is not necessarily presenting what is indeed good for you!

The shows labelled as “Reality TV” convey the message that they are depicting not only the workplace, but as well, how often difficult workplace situations should be dealt with. Concluding with the famous line “You’re Fired!”, may make for a dramatic ending but is off the mark in terms of representing what goes on behind the scenes in what is required of an HR Professional in terms of preparation, any due process or for that matter satisfying legal requirements.

Additionally, while drawing out sympathetic feelings from viewers witnessing the difficult struggles confronted by employees outside of the working world may make for interesting TV. On the other hand it raises real internal equity issues for HR Total Rewards practitioners when it comes to some of the monetary rewards and relief that the Undercover Boss dispenses in more of a Game Show fashion than what might happen in any actual workplace.

While these shows at times serve up some sentimental stories and perhaps entertaining conflict, they must be taken with a significant grain of or better still “chunk” of salt as HR Professionals will profess at the end of the day, the so called reality in reality TV, is far from the truth!

The post Reality TV… I Don’t Think So! appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

In one scene, Nuke, the pitcher, wants to throw fast balls and not a mixture of pitches. He tells Crash, the catcher, I want to “announce my presence with authority!”.

Well we all know how that strategy played out. The batter got a free steak.

You need a curve ball.

I live and work in a country where in an HR association context, SHRM is a minor player. Yes, from time-to-time I meet fellow SHRM members, but SHRM doesn’t seem to have much of a presence. I find this so interesting, given that:

1. SHRM is an international association.
2. SHRM has a development strategy that includes continued expansion.
3. Toronto is home to so many U.S.-based corporations in which you need to understand international business culture.
4. There is an appetite for something different.

My advice to SHRM: come to Canada; I mean really, come to Canada. Announce your presence with authority. Use your fast ball. And, change it up. Throw a deuce. Add a new dynamic to our industry. Find your niche in the international space.

The timing is perfect.

After all, “the road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom. William Blake.”

William Blake?

The post Advice to SHRM–Announce Your Presence With Authority appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

On my 20th anniversary, I wrote a sappy blog called “You Hired Their Spouse Too“. In it, I wrote about how it takes two people to go to work these days and how an employer benefits from the extra volunteer labour by hiring an employee with a significant other.

I got a lot of feedback from that blog, and strangely not all positive. Some felt that not all employers get the benefit of additional volunteer labour from a spouse. Some even suggested that a spouse is possibly more of a productivity distraction in an unbalanced relationship. They pointed to the number of e-mails, phone calls, text messages and Facebook posts from a spouse we’ve all come to accept as being part of managing a person’s day.

In thinking of this, one thing comes to mind. It has become impossible to encapsulate “work” into regular work hours. Despite many attempts to “turn off” work at night, there are still those who chase me. During the day, sometimes there are lulls and I fill them with quick mind clearers (let the dog out, make a hair appointment, write a blog). Despite my status as a business owner, I do feel an obligation to my partners to ensure I’ve put in a real day for my pay cheque but I know some days are not entirely balanced.

I think it would be best moving forward if we could all, as a society, get to the point where we are paid based upon outcomes vs. hours. Unfortunately, as long as employment standards legislation exists, we will continue to have to revert to hours, and the guilt associated with less than perfect daytime focus.

In truth, my spouse rarely sends me jokes during the day (but the ones he does send are really funny!) or calls about frivolous news (did you feel the earthquake?). But he is there, on my mind always, and he does interact with me in a happy way that brings me a sense of well-being. If you don’t like the reality of the pros and cons of the spouse in your employee’s life, phooey. You’re missing out on so much benefit a spouse can bring.

As for my spouse, babe, I’m cutting out early today and will be home soon. Looking forward to dinner.

The post You Hired Their Spouse–Revisited appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

Last week I was at the BOBAA awards and heard David Chilton (The Wealthy Barber) speak. In his speech, he commented on how much Canadians complain about EVERYTHING. We don’t seem to be happy about our circumstances. We complain about politics, taxes, traffic, our cable plan, the climate at work–the list doesn’t end.

But we have so many things that make us fortunate–a beautiful country, safety, as well as wealth and prosperity and opportunity. He reminded us of our fortune by saying this one powerful statement:

“Here in Canada our pets live better lives than half the humans on the planet”.

It’s true. Actually, I think my dogs live better lives than I do, and truth be told, I live a pretty good life.

But let’s put this in a dog’s perspective for a moment. Recognize your fortune this way:

• You have a home. It may not be the fanciest or with the latest inventions, but it is your turf. You’ve marked it. You do not have to guard it with such vigilance that being there is stressful. Sleep peacefully at night with the voracity of a dog and greet the next day with cheerful glee.
• You have food. You may not be eating foie gras (substitute salad if you’re vegan) for dinner every night but you didn’t have to walk ten miles to stand in line to get food. Preparation was as easy as you wanted it to be. There is probably more food in front of you than you should eat. With that in mind, enjoy every bite and be thankful for the ability to nourish yourself without the need to hoard or fight for food.
• You have friends. Well, even if you don’t, you live in a place where it is possible to make friends. Despite my dog Daphne’s “independent” personality, she has really come to appreciate having Mars around, as she gets to experience more things as part of a group than she did alone. Learn how to be a dog-style friend. Don’t talk, listen, and just be happy to be there.
• You have an ability to have fun. What you characterize as having fun is up to you, but there are a myriad of things you can do that are enjoyable. Whether it is to play frisbee or compete in spelling bees, you don’t have to sit at home and do nothing. In fact, in my house, thanks to the dogs, doing nothing at my house is not an option. If we’re not out of bed early enough in the morning on the weekends, we are promptly awoken by our dogs to ensure we experience the most of the day.

Remember, it is difficult to turn down a wagging tail. Like a wagging tail, happiness is infectious. Think about this the next time you feel like being a downer.

The post Be the Wagging Tail! appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

Yes, still in this day and age there are HR Ladies.  It is a personality type or more aptly “personnelity type”.

In fact, I have many, many good friends, colleagues and mentors who probably directly relate to and are flattered by the term “HR Lady”. Sometimes I myself feel like an HR Lady.  Indeed, because there is so much progesterone in the mix, we do end up with a profession of Mother Hens.

On this Mothers’ Day, I want to make a profound statement though–the workplace is no place for HR Mothers.  Keep motherhood to your own two and four-legged brood.  The HR Lady has to stop behaving like a mother at the workplace.

To be clear, I’m not saying that you can’t be a mother and work in HR, in fact we’d have a skills shortage if that were to occur, however, I’d like to highlight the problems of being too “motherly” in a workplace.  Among these problems:

• Employees are not children, and we should not treat them as such.
• Don’t use “baby talk” to explain the obvious to adults.
• Employees don’t need to be protected; they need to be encouraged to self-manage, and learn from mistakes.
• Employees should clean up after themselves.
• Do not use the crutch of nagging to get things done (a strategy often used by mothers).
• HR Professionals need to use more than just their intuition to identify problems.

Enjoy your special day, with your family and not at work.

That is all.

The post The “Mother” of All HR Problems appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

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I could say something like, “we don’t start out trying to be HR Knobs in the workplace, we just end up that way”, but that wouldn’t be true.

I think it has something to do with our training.  Too much about HR training has to do with ensuring compliance with laws and regulations, ensuring uniformity with the brand.  Performance management.  BORING!  Let there never be a complex social topic discussed at the office. Must everything always be pleasant all the time?

I get really frustrated when I see that an HR Knob has turned a perfectly unique, upbeat, effective, slightly politically incorrect team into a group of people who no longer interact well because they’ve been told to “cut it out”.

Here is an example of something an HR Knob would do.  Suppose there is too much foul language at work. The HR Knob would introduce a cute little swear jar to provide an incentive to quit.  Then the Knob would personally remove it when she/he finds out that the swear jar concept has taken on unexpected life of its own.

Sort of like this–

I dare any HR Knob to write me to remind me that it isn’t appropriate to promote the use of foul language in the workplace, or drinking in the workplace, or for that matter, that you were offended by the use of the commercial as an example. I also dare any HR folk who agrees with me to Like this on Facebook so that all your friends can see it because this might suggest you’re daring enough to break-free of being a knob!  Good on you!

The post Stop Being an HR Knob! appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

Indulge me.

Today, let me do a bit of stream of consciousness blogging. I promise to get to a point about HR somewhere in here, eventually.

Last night I came across a video on Funny or Die.  It is of Michael Shannon of Boardwalk Empire fame reciting an e-mail from Delta Gamma sorority member Rebecca Martinson to members of her Chapter.

It is unknown exactly what culminating events occurred that inspired Rebecca’s to write that e-mail.

The content of her e-mail is not for the faint-of-heart.  Having been a sorority girl myself at one point in my life, I feel obligated to try and explain Michael, I mean Rebecca, to my Canadian readers whose only exposure to sorority life is in the movie Animal House.  In a form of prose unusual to the circumstances she composes an e-mail regarding attendance at an upcoming mixer with Sigma Nu.  Regarding social interaction, she suggests the following:

• The point of mixers is to enable boys and girls to meet and get to know one another.
• Don’t stand in the corner during the mixer, be social.
• It isn’t nice to talk about going to other fraternity parties with the men of Sigma Nu.
• Our Chapter doesn’t want a reputation of being prudish, rude or anti-social.
• Don’t attend the mixer if you think you’re unable to meet the expectation to be social.
• If you don’t understand what I’m saying, please let me know and I’ll try and explain it differently.

Now the video.  Please be forewarned that you will not want to watch this video if you dislike vulgarity.

We often preach that e-mails are one dimensional and that the message and tone can easily be misunderstood.  Apparently not, in this case.  This is made real for me in how Michael Shannon interpreted her message, as in watching the video I felt just like I might have if I had been the intended recipient of the actual e-mail.  I would love to give him an award because the acting is superb.

What would you do if you were in a decision-making capacity at Delta Gamma?  Applaud her methods?  Press charges?  Remove her from office?

What should Rebecca do?  Resign?  Enter rehab? Write a book?  Become a motivational speaker?  Seek employment in certain industries? Take Delta Gamma’s membership to a new level?

What would you do if Rebecca were your employee?  Would her approach be cause for celebration?  Immediate termination? Would it be a Jerry Maguire moment?  Would you perform a technical analysis of it?  Or would you make it an example of what NEVER to do?

I’m not sure why I’m so shocked that a sorority girl would use so many explicative deleteds.

If you are older, you probably will view her e-mail more harshly than if you are younger.  The profanity, the vulgarity, it is so much more the norm today.  Is there any room for it in the workplace, especially a welcoming diverse workplace?  Guess what, this pressure is coming, and I predict stormy weather.

And did vulgar behaviour ever leave?  Back in my day, we certainly didn’t use the language, but the issues at hand regarding decorum at mixers are no different than they were thirty years ago.  And, hey, I was watching Mad Men the other night.  Long before the modern era there was plenty of wild stuff going on in plain view. Only some things have been toned down.

Which brings me to social media.  What lessons are there in here about the power of social media?

I’m not sure what, but I think I am about to find out!

The post Making a Point appeared first on The Employment Opportunities List.

The blog was successful at increasing awareness. In the days following the posting, there were more than 1000 pageviews on our blogsite, 77 Retweets, and 19 LinkedIn shares– and this is for The EO List alone.  Other blogsites who were a part of this “crowdsourcing” experiment also reported lots of traffic on their sites. Victorio has even reported that the process has generated some initial leads (including something in Canada).

While they are exciting results, the truth is that so far none of these activities has yet produced an actual tangible result for Victorio.  He hasn’t found a likely opportunity yet and traction has not been instantaneous.  He is looking for full-time as well as contract or consulting gigs.  He has a particular expertise in talent sourcing in the retail and food industries.

Perhaps I’m impatient; perhaps it is early in the process, but when we tried this experiment in 2010 to help my friend Brian Oughton, the support seemed to come much faster and more freely.  It scares me because if this doesn’t work, and soon, I think it is a commentary on the capabilities of crowdsourcing a job search.

But before we give up, let’s kick it into overdrive.  I would like Victorio’s job search to be a “Top of Mind” thing for you.

First, if you didn’t spend the four minutes before, do it now.  Second, if you haven’t yet attempted to personalize this and connect with Victorio now, do it!  Here are some ways to get to know him better:

• Read Victorio’s blog at http://victoriomilian.com.
• Read Victorio’s Twitter feed at @victorio_m.
• View his LinkedIn Profile.  Invite him to connect.  Tell him why.
• Connect with him directly, over Twitter DM or even old-fashioned e-mail or telephone.
• Let the relationship grow.

I have only known Victorio for about two years, but in that time I’ve come to know him as a man with integrity, humour and professionalism.  Don’t take my word for it though. Meet him, engage with him, and help him.  I bet you will find something useful for yourself in the process.

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