SEVEN WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR LISTENING SKILLS

Effective listening may be the most crucial skill for managers because it is required to do it so often. Unfortunately, listening also may be the most difficult skill to master.

Effective listening is challenging, in part, because people often are more focused on what they're saying than on what they're hearing in return. According to a recent study by the Harvard Business Review, people think the voice mail they send is more important than the voice mail they receive. Generally, senders think that their message is more helpful and urgent than do the people who receive it.

CREATIVE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES FOR IMPROVING WORK ENVIRONMENT

Smart companies are coming up with bold ideas to keep employees engaged, while offering them ways to facilitate career and lifestyle changes

“The 2009 Guide to Bold New Ideas for Making Work Work”, published by the Families and Work Institute (FWI),  reveals that even in the midst of a turbulent economy, best employers are creating imaginative workplace approaches for improving the work environment and for helping employees navigate the shifting demands of their work and personal lives. They are offering assistance, for example, on how to manage job stress and overwork, welcome a new baby, or cope when a spouse loses a job. What is key (and perhaps surprising) is that these strategies help these companies achieve business results and respond to fluctuations in the economy. They help companies create effective and flexible workplaces, where work "works" for both the employer and employees.