Monthly Archive for May, 2022

5 Ways That You Can Be A Better Leader

Published
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M Jacks
on May 25, 2022
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Being a good leader is difficult. Most of us, during our working lives will have many managers and supervisors. Of these, those that we might consider really good leaders might be quite a small number. Leadership, however, like anything else, is a skill that can be learned. Becoming a good leader can have a massive impact on the success of both your own team and that of your organisation. Here are some of the ways that you can improve your supervisory skills:

Connect with your team

Leading a group of people requires a mutual sense of trust and understanding between the leader and their team members. To achieve this, leaders should learn to connect with each team member individually.

Try focusing on getting to know them as a person; their personality, interests, strengths, weaknesses and their motivations. This understanding will enable a manager to help develop team members and increase their autonomy in areas where their skills are high. This in turn will increase the employee’s engagement, motivation, investment in, and trust of, you as a leader.

Encourage professional and personal growth

It is probably already part of your Job, but acting as your team’s champion is a vital part of being an effective leader. You should be completely invested in their success and growth both professionally and personally.

This makes complete sense, because, as a leader your job is to get the very best results you can out of your team. By giving employees the opportunity to learn and develop, to upskill and move into new areas, you will increase their satisfaction, work-rate and buy-in. The old adage goes that if you, as a leader, are the smartest person in the room, then you are in the wrong room. Be the best leader and developer of people in the room. Let your team be the best at everything else.

Keep a positive attitude

As much as leaders wish their team’s day-to-day operations could run smoothly all the time, things will go wrong. Human error, unforeseen occurrences and outside forces can all, potentially, put things off track. Whether it is a minor miscommunication or a major incident, how you respond to the issue is key. Negative situations will have an effect on everyone, including you as a leader and on your team, but it is your job to remain calm and positive, even if you don’t necessarily feel that way at the time. This is exactly when your team will look to you to tell them what to do. You need to do that as effectively and positively as possible.

Give direct and honest feedback

It’s important as a leader that you give honest feedback. It is the best way to guide your team in the right direction. Again, it may be part of your job, but you need to ensure that you are constantly and regularly providing constructive feedback and performance reviews. Obviously, to give correct feedback to your team, you need to know exactly where the business is headed, it’s goals and how your own team fits into them. Part of feedback is making sure that your team also know what it is that your organisation is trying to do. The fact that they are not meeting goals might just be because they don’t understand this correctly. If you’re not direct, people won’t understand where they are not meeting set standards and won’t be able to improve

Remember to also highlight employee accomplishments. Celebrate if a team member does something great and let them know. Positive recognition has been shown to improve engagement and productivity.

Be open to new ideas

Good leaders have the emotional intelligence to understand and accept that change is inevitable and that their team may have a different way of doing things, a method which could be more effective than their own. Remember, you don’t have to be the best at anything, apart from being the best leader. Always actively encourage innovation and better work practices suggested by your team. That is what a good leader does.

Encouraging your team members to provide their insights and ideas will increase their engagement and commitment and make them work better and smarter. Remember that you are not judged by what you, personally, accomplish as a leader, but by what your team can achieve.

For a more in-depth look into how to develop your leadership skills to gain the most of your team, consider checking out our leadership courses for the best insight.

Global Employee Health and Fitness Month

Published
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M Jacks
on May 18, 2022
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May is Global Employee Health and Fitness Month, which emphasises looking after yourself, both physically and mentally. Something that will be of benefit both at work and in all other parts of our lives.

History

We all know that maintaining our health and fitness will improve the overall quality of our lives, but as we grow older, we can get stuck in our routines and habits, whether they are good or bad, and it’s easy to neglect our mental and physical well-being. This is one of the reasons that the Global Employee and Fitness Month was launched in 1989, to provide an opportunity for workers to reflect on their lives and inspire employers to come up with new, innovative ideas to motivate employees around the world to improve their health and fitness.

As the Global Employee Health & Fitness Month (GEHFM) says on it’s website:

“Global Employee Health & Fitness Month is an international observance of health and fitness in the workplace. The goal of GEHFM is to promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle to employers and their employees through worksite health promotion activities and environments.”

The role of employers is emphasised, as they are the ones who create the initiatives, to not only spread awareness of how essential good health is, but to also urge their employees to participate in projects and activities that have real physical and mental health benefits. It is not just employers who get involved in the month, however. Universities, local governments, hospitals, and health departments also play a great role in the successful celebration of this month.

How to Observe

Arrange a yoga session at your workplace: There are many forms of exercise that can help both physically and mentally. Yoga is one of the oldest and most proven. Perhaps arrange a yoga session in your work place, or,  if you work from home,  set aside half an hour for some yoga yourself. It can definitely help your body, but might also bring some peace to your hectic day.

Host an event with a variety of physical activities: If yoga isn’t your thing, persuade your employer to host an event with trials of many activities, such as swimming, running or weight lifting. The broader the options the better and the more people who are likely to get involved.

Bike to Work Scheme: Many companies have a bike to work scheme, which can benefit both employees and employers when the latter choose to cycle rather than drive to work. Whilst the health benefits to employees may be self-evident, Employers who have started such a scheme have reported less sick days amongst those who cycle, a lower carbon footprint; with the added financial incentive that  employers can save up to 13.1% in NI contributions.

Find out more about the bike to work scheme.

The Benefits of the Month

A Healthy mind is a productive mind: Living a healthier lifestyle, through a balanced diet and exercise will almost certainly mean an improvement in mental wellbeing, which can itself lead to a more productive lifestyle. Regular exercise can release dopamine, a chemical than makes us feel happier and satisfied, an important factor in regards to how hard we work.

Improving your health can make you less stressed: Sustained exercise will increase blood flow and pumps up endorphin production, the body’s natural painkillers, directly linked to reducing your stress. Being stressed can lead to de-motivation and burn-out, so adding a short exercise to your daily routine could really make a difference in both your work and home life.

Becoming energetic and motivated: Since exercise and healthy food provide energy, you are much more likely to be motivated to take on new projects and follow them through. If you need help with time management to help fit in extra time for your fitness and well-being, check out our Time Management courses.

Easy 3D Models in PowerPoint, Word and Excel

Published
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M Jacks
on May 11, 2022
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It may have escaped your attention, but it is now possible to insert 3D models into Office documents. The feature is available to Office 365 subscribers and to anyone who has the 2019 or 2021 Desktop versions of MS Office and it allows the easy insertion of 3D models into any PowerPoint, Word, or Excel file.

Key Features of 3D Models

  • 3D objects can be moved and resized in the same way as images, but can also be rotated along 3 different axes using a very simple control.
  • 3D models can be animated within PowerPoint using aminations like Turntable, Swing and Jump & Turn
  • If the same 3D object is used on consecutive slides in PowerPoint and combined with a Morph transition, the object is animated in 3D.

It is very easy to get a 3D model into your Word Document, PowerPoint Presentation or Excel Workbook. On the Ribbon at the top of any of the applications, simply click on the Insert tab and look for the Illustrations group, which is on the left-hand side of the Tab.

Although the Illustrations group is configured slightly differently, in Word, Excel and PowerPoint, this is always where you will find the 3D Model command.

Once the 3D object is inserted, manipulate the built-in tools to allow you to easily rotate, flip, spin, pan, and zoom for ideal placement.

3D Models in PowerPoint

Since you are most likely to use 3D Models in PowerPoint, we will concentrate on that, but inserting and manipulating 3D models in any of the other Office programmes will work in exactly the same way. Just follow the same steps that you would use to insert photos or videos in PowerPoint. Go to Insert → Select 3D Models and from the drop-down menu, choose how you want to insert a 3D file.

If you already have a 3D model that you have created or downloaded, then you can use the This Device option. A number of different 3D file formats can be inserted into PowerPoint slide. Just select the format that your 3D model is in.

Select the format that your 3D model is in.

If you don’t have an existing 3D Model, then you can opt for the Stock 3D Models command, where there are many options of pre-existing models. You can even search for exactly what you want.

Once the 3D model is inserted, rotate the model to the angle that you wish it to appear on the slide. This is done by clicking on the 3D model itself, which will cause a 3D rotation control to appear at the object’s centre, which can then be used to rotate the object as you wish. You can still use the normal rotation handle at the top of the object to rotate your image clockwise or counter-clockwise, but you’ll get a much better experience using the 3D rotation control.

3D Model in Various Views

Any 3D object can be moved, resized and aligned just like a normal picture, shape, icon or any object that is normally inserted into a PowerPoint slide. It isn’t yet possible to edit the 3D models themselves within PowerPoint, but if you have Paint 3D, it can be done with this programme.

When a 3D model is selected a 3D Model contextual tab appears on the Ribbon.

This includes options to reset the model, switch it to set views and arrange it relative to other objects on the slide. There are also controls for sizing the object including Pan and Zoom.

3D objects are very easily inserted into Slides and have multiple uses.

Six Ways That You Can Improve Your Communication Skills

Published
by
M Jacks
on May 4, 2022
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. 0 Comments

Improving your communication skills is advantageous to you and everyone around you. Good communicators are seen as confident and trustworthy and these skills can help in both your professional and personal life.

Here are 6 ways that you can improve your communication skills:

Listening Effectively:

This is one of the most important, yet overlooked, aspects of communication. It is natural to try to think of a response to the other person while they are still talking, but taking time to let them finish and trying to fully understand what they are saying can pay dividends. If you are unsure about something that has been said, ask for clarification, or for the person to repeat their point again.

And when listening, stick to one communication at a time. It’s always tempting when speaking to someone on the phone, to, perhaps, respond to an email at the same time. But it is very likely that you will miss something the other person is saying. Trying to do both things at once may mean that you end up doing neither of them particularly well.

Body language:

This is something that we all are aware of, but which, surprisingly, most of us still don’t think about when we are communicating. A few simple things in this area can make a great deal of difference in our communication with others. Don’t cross your arms, keep eye contact, sit up straight so you look professional and be as open as possible. We don’t have to be body language experts to use it effectively in communication.

Be Concise

In written and verbal communication, try to be as brief and concise as possible, whilst still conveying all the information required. Try not to ramble or go into areas of information that are just not needed.

Maintain a positive attitude and smile:

This one is simple. Smile and be positive. Smile even when speaking on the phone, because the other person will know it. Smile often and exude a positive attitude and people will respond positively to you.

Empathy:

Being able to understand the feelings of those around you is an integral part of being an effective communicator. Empathising means both understanding and relating to someone else’s feelings. Having high emotional intelligence and demonstrating an ability to empathise builds rapport between you and others and increases your ability to communicate.

Practice public speaking:

Public speaking may sound daunting, but there’s no better way to develop good communication skills. Good communicators are able to clearly articulate their feelings, whether speaking to a large group or talking face-to-face with one other person. Speaking in front of a group will highlight your strengths, as well as letting you know those areas that you need to improve on.

Our course in Advanced Communication Skills will show you how to apply advanced verbal and written communication techniques in your workplace.