As America’s hybrid workplace motivational speaker, I was recently delivering a keynote speech on the new hybrid way of working to an association when I said, “You know, the hybrid workplace is going to get more complicated.” A collective groan went up through the in-person and remote office. Then I added, “Unless you do this one thing.” They demanded to know the answer. “It’s simple,” I said. “Negotiate.” My...
Change Management Meets the Hybrid Workplace As a motivational speaker on change management and the hybrid workplace, I hate to say, “I-told-you-so,” but I predicted the hybrid workplace well before anyone had heard of COVID-19. In fact, as a hybrid workplace, change management speaker, I remember an HR director at least two years before the lockdown introducing me as America’s Hybrid Workplace Motivational Speaker. There was a lot of...
Why you want to hire a Safety Day Speaker for your company‘s Safety Day Event Hiring a Safety Day Speaker at your company's safety day is a great opportunity to educate employees on the importance of safety in the workplace. By having a Safety Day Speaker, you can guarantee that your employees are getting the most out of the event. When it comes to choosing a Safety Day Speaker,...
Learn about the hybrid workplace and how to best manage a sales team in this rapidly changing environment. What is the hybrid workplace? A hybrid workplace is a work environment that is a mix of both remote and in-office work. With the rise of technology, more and more companies are offering their employees the ability to work from home, at least some of the time. This can be a...
As America’s Hybrid Workplace Keynote Speaker, I understand that telling everyone in a pre-pandemic, in-person office that they must now go hybrid is filled with challenges. As I do so much research in this area, let me quickly recommend a Harvard Business Review piece from February 2022, that does a great job of touching on five of the challenges. In speaking on the “new” hybrid workplace as a motivational...
At no time in recent memory as a negotiation skills speaker, has the economy been more fragile than it is now. I make that statement based on my 30-years’ experience as a negotiation skills speaker, negotiation skills consultant and book author. If the hybrid workplace wasn’t confusing enough, we have inflation (with the looming possibility of recession), supply-chain issues, shortages of everything from computer chips to wheat, and most...
Speaking to groups across the country as a stress and safety speaker, I realize that among the many effects of the COVID pandemic, was the amount of stress ratcheted up on workers in construction, manufacturing and transportation. The problem with stress is that it diverts awareness. That fact may not mean much in an accounting office or insurance agency, but to a person driving a forklift in a busy...
As a negotiation skills speaker and negotiation skills consultant, a frequent question that comes up in the Q&A sessions on negotiation is if the act of negotiation is just to reach agreement on contracts or the dialog between a sales organization and client. The question was far more meaningful than we might imagine especially in the present day where it is difficult to hire and retain exceptional people. The...
As a negotiation skills keynote speaker, I often have audience members ask questions such as, “How do I resolve conflicts?” or “How do I cool down an emotional meeting?” In speaking to executives about sales and negotiation skills for more than 20 years, I stress the same negotiation skills used between manufacturer and supplier, are applicable to delivering bad news to a client or employees. The need to reach...
My specialty, as a negotiation skills speaker and negotiation skills consultant often involve asking groups the following question: “Do you think you’re the good guy or the bad guy?” The usual answer from audience members in my negotiation skills speeches is, “I try to be the good guy. I guess it depends.” Bad guys are not necessarily bad Many executives, business and tradespeople believe that negotiation needs to be...
As a negotiation skills keynote speaker and negotiation skills consultant, the question most frequently asked of me in breakout sessions is: why are negotiation skills in business important in 2022? Negotiation skills are not only important in our day-to-day interactions, but in helping sales, marketing and management teams to set policy, maintain a sense of direction and, I would argue, to establish a clear and consistent corporate vision. Truly,...
What about the Day after Safety Day? My greatest honor as a safety day motivational speaker, is when I hear that my safety day keynote speaking advice was remembered long after the event. In fact, I like to learn that my motivational safety day talk saved an injury or two weeks and months later. Don’t get me wrong, me a Safety Speaker like BBQ and free T-shirts as much...
(Part 4 of a 5 Part Series) When I as a hybrid workplace keynote speaker speak with organizations about the “new hybrid workplace,” there is more confusion over the topic than ever before. Often, I ask groups in my hybrid workplace talks what hybrid working means to them? I am met with several answers and a lot of shoulder shrugging. So, in this, the fourth part of a five-part...
“Dear Boss: My Greatest Joy is Sitting in Traffic 4 Hours a Day.” (Part 3 of a 5 Part Series) As a keynote speaker and motivational Hybrid Workplace Speaker, I understand that these are tough and uncertain times. As an executive leader, you want to keep good people, but there is a great deal of confusion as to how to do that. In my talks on hybrid workplaces, I...
Remote Workers Like Working Remote; Sometimes, Maybe (Part 2 of a 5 Part Series) As a keynote speaker and in my keynote and seminar talks as a keynote speaker for hybrid workplaces, I am often asked if remote work is here to stay. The quick answer is: “Bet on it.” At least half of remote workers polled have flat-out stated they will leave any organization that does not allow...
Hybrid Workplaces Have Been Knocking on Your Door for Years, Let them in, already! (Part 1 of a 5 Part Series) As a keynote speaker on hybrid workplaces, I am thrilled to see that organizations are finally awakening to the possibilities of what hybrid workplaces can bring. Before we kick-off this 5-part series on hybrid work, let me just say as a motivational speaker on hybrid workplaces that hybrid...
Change for the Sake of Change is a Bad Look As a change management speaker who speaks to groups across America about negotiating and responding to workplace transformation, I am well-aware of the tumultuous times owing to inflation, mergers, acquisitions and business failures. Change in the Workplace is everywhere, but is it always a good thing? The Boomerang In my last post, I talked about the so-called “Great Walkout”...
The Workplace Balance Has Changed, Is Your Organization Prepared? It has argued that COVID-19 “changed everything.” As a national change management speaker, my counter argument is that COVID changed nothing but accelerated everything. In my keynote talks on change management, I point out that as the Omicron variant began to subside, the workplace would be re-balanced and employees would become not more powerful, but more heard and prone to...
As a Negotiation Skills Keynote Speaker, one of my interests is listening to other negotiation skills keynote speakers from diverse fields, talking about their industries. We should never feel we are too old to learn. With that in mind, not all that long ago, I was captivated by hearing Formula I racecar legend Mario Andretti talk about the business of racing. In a question-and-answer period, Andretti talked about how...
As a negotiation skills keynote speaker who teaches skills such as “don’t qualify your price,” I remember the old quote about those who negotiate the price of a product or service before the negotiation. “Qualifying price” is a negotiation skills mistake that far too many inexperienced negotiators make, and it has harmed thousands of businesses. Many Names, Same Result In teaching negotiation skills, as a keynote speaker I am...