And it’s simply this: “Have fun. If I’m not having fun, the audience is definitely not going to have fun.”

It’s an old maxim that a speaker’s emotional state and energy level is mirrored by the audience.

The same could be said of leaders.

We know, as trite as it may sound on the surface, that attitudes and emotions are incredibly contagious.  Think of the energy-sapping potential of just one team member to bring down an entire office.

This applies triply so for leaders.  Leaders are far more likely to infect the mood of a workplace with whatever attitude and energy level they are bringing into work.

So check your attitude every morning before you go into work.

Tell you’re face you are genuinely happy to be there.

Walk with a sense of purpose – be aware of the energy level your body language and gestures are giving off.

Create a morning ritual that forces you to reflect on your own attitude and that puts you into a positive frame of mind.

Remind yourself that no matter what is going on at work, true leaders understand how important it is for them to model the attitudes, emotional state and energy level they want to see in their own team.

Because like any great speaker, as a leader you are always in the spotlight.

Michael Kerr,  July, 2011

1.  “We can’t find ‘good help’ anywhere.”

Well, guess what? The “good help” exists. They are out there somewhere, perhaps working for your competitor.  The question is, why?

2. “Great employees need to sell themselves and prove to us why we need to hire them.”

Partially true, but the challenge is that those so called great employees, by virtue of the fact that they are great, can work anywhere they please.  They want to know why they should come and work for you?

So what are you doing to sell your organization to them?

3. “Employee loyalty is dead.”

No, employee loyalty is only dead in those organizations that have surrendered. It’s dead in organizations that aren’t doing the things they’ve need to be doing all along to build and sustain an inspiring culture. Employee loyalty is only dead if you choose to smother the life out it!

Michael Kerr,  Humor at Work, www.humoratwork.com

If one of the roles of a vision statement is to unite people in a common goal, and another goal is to inspire folks, then here’s a thought: shouldn’t vision statements be easy to grasp and well, inspiring? Shouldn’t they cause excitement?  Shouldn’t they stir souls or ignite passions or spark curiosity or fire up the neurons?

So how about using some everyday, but powerful language in your vision statement?

And how about having vision questions or conversations or visionary ideas? After all, it’s a bit challenging to get excited about a statement.   I mean, really, who even uses the term statement anymore? Statements are what politicians  give when they testify before a committee.

So by all means, co-create a truly inspiring vision for your team and your customers, but please, stop already with the vision statements. Any leader can read off a statement.

What your workplace needs, what the world needs, are more true visionaries.

Michael Kerr, June, 2011,  www.humoratwork.com

Yet when I tell leaders about this 70% figure, many of them laugh.  At me!  Now I can take being laughed at, that’s what I do partly for a living.  But the reasons for their laughter of course is that they think spending 70% of their time on this “stuff” is totally unrealistic.

Usually becasue their days are filled up with….

1. Meetings

2. Meetings

3. Meetings about meetings

4. Paperwork

5. Meetings about paperwork.

6. Paperwork about meetings.

So devoting 70% of your time to this “stuff” isn’t going to happen unless there’s a major shift in thinking. It’s not going to happen until everyone realizes how important this “stuff” is, and until everyone stops doing (or substantially reduces the amount of time they are doing) all the other stuff that eats up your time, drains your energy and takes you away from the real task at hand.

The task of being an incredibly inspiring, successful, happy and productive leader.

Michael Kerr, 2011

www.inspiringworkplaces.com * www.humoratwork.com

Which got me thinking: I wonder what the ad would look like if the employees wrote it without any spin doctoring:

“As part of the management team you will attend countless, meaningless meetings where your ideas will be constantly shot down or ignored and work tirelessly in a fun-sucking, soul-destroying work environment . . .”

You get the drift.

Now this may sound harsh, but my point is, are you able to write an inspiring, glowing and HONEST employee help wanted ad that truly does reflect your workplace culture with no spin on it?

What if your veteran employees or customers wrote your help wanted ads, how different would the ads look?

Have a look at your help wanted ads and see if your workplace really holds up to the promise being sold to your new employees.

Copyright Michael Kerr, 2011. www.mikekerr.com

And just one of those important differences is that truly loyal customers won’t be easily swayed to switch alliances based on price alone. A loyal customer or client will be so passionate about doing business with you or your company (and there may be a difference in their mind!) that they not only will become raving advocates of your business, they are not easily (if at all) swayed to jump ship.

And certainly, they won’t jump ship just to save a few bucks.

Return customers, however, don’t necessarily get to sit at the loyalty table.

A repeat customer hasn’t necessarily developed an emotional connection to your organization. They don’t necessarily tell everyone and everyone’s dog about how fabulous you are to work with.  In fact, they might only be repeat customers simply because they are too lazy to go elsewhere!

But can they be lured away with a sale or special coupon or when a competitor’s business opens up shop ten minutes closer to their home? If the answer’s yes, then they aren’t as loyal as you need them to be!

Ditto for employees.

Never make the mistake for assuming a long term employee is loyal. They might be long term because of inertia. They might be long term because no one else will hire them – for now!

But what are they really saying about your workplace?Are they raving fans that are truly proud to work there, or on their off-hours are they warning their own family members to never apply for work at your company? Are they discouraging their friends from doing business with you? Can they be easily lured away when another prospective employer offers them a few more bucks?

If you want truly loyal customers, then it helps to have truly loyal employees (and vice versa!)

And to foster loyal employees and loyal customers you need to nurture a great, inspiring, innovative and fun workplace culture!

You need to value humor, diversity, creativity and service.

You need to build the kind of business where people really do feel valued, trusted and respected.

Workplace culture drives success, and a successful, inspiring culture generates the kind of loyalty that even money can’t always buy.

Copyright Michael Kerr, 2011   www.mikekerr.com



This of course makes sense.  The reason strong, successful organizations known for their great workplace cultures are so successful is because they value training. They value and invest in continuous improvement, training and developing their people.

And they don’t  sit on their laurels. They don’t get complacent.  The best constantly strive to get even better, which is what makes them the best.

This holds true for professional athletes, professional musicians, workplaces and individuals.

So the question is, “Are you serious about your people, about your customers, about your culture?”

If the answer is yes, then you better get serious about investing in continuous learning and development, otherwise the answer is really no.

A party!

A heath and wellness day to show the staff we care!

An employee appreciation event!

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m a huge believer and supporter of traditions, rituals, parties and social events in the workplace – they are key ways to build trust, maintain morale, create a sense of shared history, reduce stress and give employees something to look forward to and reminisce about.

But, and it’s a big but, if your employees really ARE  feeling angry, ignored and frustrated, then it better not be the only thing you do, otherwise you are merely window decorating and doing nothing to address the real issues.

So if employees are feeling angry and frustrated, I’d strongly suggest you take the following questions to heart:

1.  Do they deserve to feel angry and frustrated?

2.  Has senior management acknowledged their concerns in a genuine way?

3.  Has senior management empathized with the employees in a sincere way?

4. Have employees been given opportunities for real dialogue (rather than just talking at them)?

5. Has anyone, gulp, actually considered apologizing to them?

Stories of truly dysfunctional workplaces abound, and what always staggers me about some of these stories is how out of touch the management team is about the true level of morale in their workplace.  What also amazes me is how rarely one hears stories of anyone from senior management listening and actually apologizing to employees when an organization has gone through a period of turmoil.

So the next time you hear grumblings of low morale in your workplace, take a step back and consider the possibility as to whether there’s a valid reason for the low morale.



Great words to lead by coach.

If you are trying to motivate your employees, I want to suggest that something has gone horribly wrong.   Most likely, you hired the wrong folks. You hired people that weren’t already motivated or people that weren’t a proper fit for your particular purpose or workplace culture.

It’s brutally hard to “motivate” another human being,  less so to inspire them.

You may think I am splitting hairs here, but I think it’s an important distinction. When we think of terms like “employee motivation” we fall in the trap of focusing too much on external rewards, on developing a system of carrots and sticks (rewards and punishments) or we look to temporary solutions (team building event, anyone?).

To me the word inspire has a much deeper meaning.

Inspiring people suggests that people will become intrinsically motivated to do their best, to develop creative, innovative solutions and provide insanely fabulous customer service because they feel a deeper connection to your organization’s vision and mission (or, in plain English, the reason you exist).

So think of ways you can inspire your people: through a deeper sense of purpose, through stories and especially through inspiring deeds that make employees feel connected to a bigger idea that simply picking up a pay cheque at the end of the week.

Video message:  Inspire or Motivate?

Michael Kerr,  The Way Work Ought to Be!    www.humoratwork.com

Which means leaders must take the pulse of their workplace environment on a regular basis:

How are people feeling? How are people coping?  What are people saying about the level of stress at work when the leader is NOT in the room?  Are employees feeling overworked and underplayed?  Are some employees feeling under utilized and stressed because they are too bored? (Hey, it happens!) What are the sources of stress?

I am constantly amazed/stunned/shocked at how often leaders appear to be completely clueless about what the level of stress is in their workplace, either because they have isolated themselves in a bubble at the top, or because they don’t recognize the symptoms or because they haven’t created an open enough environment where employees feel they can talk about it or because they are simply, well, clueless and not seeing what’s happening around them.

Given the enormous cost of stress in the workplace, and not just the bottom line bucks in terms of absenteeism and reduced productivity, but also the loss of creativity and the impact on customer service and morale,  leaders need to consider the management of stress at work as one of their primary duties.

Which means leaders need to take an active role in reducing stress at work, by modeling appropriate behaviors and attitudes, by creating an environment that truly is respectful, by setting appropriate work/life balance boundaries, by setting clearly defined and supported goals, and by creating an environment that really does value humor and fun in the workplace.

And if you truly value fun and humor as a leader, then it means learning to lighten up, taking yourself less seriously and laughing at yourself from time to time.

And it means not getting in the way of the spontaneous fun and humor that arises organically in most workplaces.

Remember, a leader is much like an orchestra conductor – they set the tone and pace for the rest of the ensemble!

Michael Kerr,  20120, Inspiring Workplaces – The Way Work Ought to Be!