Should I give my staff a Christmas Bonus this year?

Staff with Christmas Gift

Should I give my staff a Christmas Bonus this year?

Are you giving your staff a Christmas bonus this year? How about a holiday party or other recognition this month? Many small business owners struggle with deciding exactly how to share the spirit of the holiday season with their teams — and very often they also struggle with figuring out how to pay for these extra one-time-a-year expenses.

Over the years I have witnessed everything from the business owner bringing in sandwiches for the staff to share all the way up to expensive all-weekend destination parties. I’ve seen Christmas bonuses range from a grocery store gift card for a turkey up to tens of thousands of dollars paid annually around this time of year.

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One Cool Strategy for the Holiday-Sidetracked Entrepreneur

Making a visual to-do list

One Cool Strategy for the Holiday-Sidetracked Entrepreneur

I don’t know about you but while I am working, I am constantly fighting distractions — from the web, my kids, a co-worker or just my mind wandering off. It takes incredible discipline, focus and great systems to keep on task as an entrepreneur. Now add to the mix the holidays and busy times between Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. Despite our best intentions, with all the shopping, parties, cooking, cleaning and holiday events (whew!), staying on top of business goals gets even more difficult.

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Why do you put things off?

One thing at a time from start to finish

Why do you put things off?

5.5 Steps to “Doing it Now”

– Prioritize. Before you even check your e-mail make a list of 4 things you want to accomplish today.
– Do ONE thing at a time
– Take a physical break where you step outside at least every 90 minutes
– Allow yourself to fully focus on the project in front of you
– Ask yourself “What will I have if I finish this now?”

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When tragedy strikes

When Tragedy Strikes

When tragedy strikes

Last summer I was in a store shopping for a birthday present for one of my kids when I got the call.  My brother, sobbing on the phone tells me his son had just drowned. My nephew Jacob was gone.  At 21 he had his whole life ahead of him.  Jacob was strong and funny,

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Never too late to get started

It's never too late to get started

Never too late to get started

Ok so you didn’t do it yet…it’s never too late to get started.    The wonderful thing about life is that today is a new day and today you can choose your actions in this moment.  One small action at a time towards your goal. I recently read an e-mail  I wrote to my own

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Why the focus on Systems?

Why focus on business systems

Why the focus on Systems?

“The greatest promise of the systems perspective is the unification of knowledge across fields” ~Peter Senge Everything is a system. The very breath we take is a wonderful, complex, magical system. A system is simply the way something happens. As a business owner your systems determine your success. The way you do things in your

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Hiring on ODesk

Hiring on oDesk

Hiring on ODesk

Taking the time before posting your job on ODesk to define EXACTLY what you need your new team member to be accountable for is the first step to adding an “A” player to your team. Considerations could include the cost, the timing, the quality, expectations around communication, and trial periods for new hires. When hiring

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International Day of Peace.

International Day of Peace

International Day of Peace.

(Sept. 21, 2012) Today is International Day of Peace. I believe that if each human on this precious earth felt seen, heard and understood then there would be peace. Peace in our families, peace in our communities, peace in the world. On this International Day of Peace I challenge you to look around you to

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A game worth playing

A game worth playing

A game worth playing

Do you remember a time as a child trying to play a game without a set of rules? At first everyone enthusiastically adds their interpretation of how the game is suppose to be played and often their would be agreement enough to get started. But then what happens? Before long there is chaos, resentment, and

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