Reduce stress if your wallet is stolen

Posted on May 15, 2011 by Sandy
stolen_wallet
Reduce stress if your wallet is stolen!

One of the nicest things you can do to create a WOWplace anywhere, whether at work or at home, is to share valuable information with others as you receive it.

So, today it’s my turn: my dad shared some great information with me today regarding what to do if you lose your wallet, credit cards, etc. that I wanted to pass along.  We all know what we should do, but here’s a little checklist to help us plan ahead, ensure we don’t miss a step, and react quickly if the need arises:

BEFORE your information is lost or stolen:

  1. Make copies of your driver’s license, credit cards, passport, social security card – and any other important documents (front and back) and store the copies in a safe place (not that safe place that you can never find again… but an easily remembered and accessible one)!  This will create a record of all pertinent account and ID numbers and the phone numbers to call in case they’re lost or stolen.
  2. Don’t sign the back of your credit cards (and don’t leave this area blank). Instead, write “Photo ID required” and have them use your photo ID and signature to verify that it’s you signing the slip at the checkout station.
  3. Don’t put your Social Security number on your checks (you can always add it if needed).

If your information is lost or stolen:

  1. File a local police report immediately to show due diligence
  2. Contact your credit card companies to inform them of the lost or stolen number(s).
  3. Call the three credit reporting agencies to put a fraud alert on your account (I’ve listsed their numbers below). This way, if anyone tries to request credit in your name (including yourself, by the way), they must call you first to verify that it’s actually you requesting the credit.
  4. Inform the appropriate authorities pertaining to your driving record and driver’s license information.
  5. Call the Social Security Administration’s fraud line to inform them of the theft.

Pertinent phone numbers are below for your reference.

  1. Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
  2. Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742 1
  3. Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289
  4. Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271

Let’s hope you never need to use this information… but it’s good to be prepared, just in case! If you have any other tips to help prevent or deal with this stressful situation, please share them!

Posted in Time & Stress Management | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Never Assume When It comes to E-Mail

Posted on May 5, 2011 by Sandy

Maintain E-Mail Credibility

Have you ever sent an e-mail that wasn’t received? Or heard that someone replied to your e-mail, but you never received the reply? This ever-increasing occurrence can result in loss of credibility, lowered confidence and loss of business – not to mention time lost doing “damage control.”

I once received an “Unsubscribe” e-mail from a newsletter subscriber, an unusual occurrence. I replied, saying I was sorry to lose her. She told me she’d recently e-mailed me a question, but “since I didn’t care enough to reply, she no longer cared to receive my tips.” Ouch! I’d lost all credibility with her. The sad thing is that I never received her initial e-mail.

I apologized, explained what happened, and offered to answer her question, but she’d found her answer elsewhere; end of story. This was a lost opportunity to reach out to someone and possibly earn new business.

Here are a few tips to avoid losing credibility regarding e-mail:

  1. Create a habit of answering e-mails promptly (within a few hours; at least within one business day).
  2. Tell everyone this is your habit, your COMMITMENT. Tell new acquaintances at the first mention of exchanging e-mails; you can even put it in your e-mail signature so people know this is your practice. I say this: “I want you to know I never ignore e-mail or voice mail. So if you send me one and I don’t get back to you within 1 day (at most), something is wrong. Please try again.” Not only does this preserve my credibility if an e-mail is lost in cyberspace, but people appreciate knowing I have a strong a commitment to providing common courtesy to others.
  3. Request a read receipt on critical outgoing messages (not a Delivery Receipt, which simply means it was delivered, but a Read Receipt, which means it was opened).
  4. BCC yourself on critical communications to create an electronic “reminder” in your InBox. If its existence there is not reminder enough, drag it to the Task Bar (Outlook) and create a reminder for yourself to look for the Receipt and/or follow-up if they do not follow up with you.

A WOWplace cannot exist if its members don’t have credibility Establishing a habit, proving it with your actions, and creating automated systems to assist your memory and help you keep your promises will help establish and maintain credibility… and help you avoid losing time doing damage control.

Posted in Time & Stress Management | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Telephone Tag Kills Time Management

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Sandy

Make the machines work for you!

Have you ever played a lengthy game of telephone tag? Of course you have! We’ve all been there and done that. Telephone tag is time-consuming enough when it’s necessary, but many times can it be completely avoided by following one small tip: leave the recipient all the information needed to take the next step without having to call you back multiple times.

For example, when I was a REALTOR, I’d often receive calls from agents who wanted to show my listed homes to their buyers. They would call and leave me a message: “This is Agent (whomever). I’d like to show your listing at 123 Smith Street. Please call me so we can set up a time.”

I would then call, and you can imagine what happened. I got the agent’s voice mail and have to leave a message, “Sorry I missed you. What time(s) are you looking for?” The agent would call back and… well, you can see that this probably got us nowhere fast!

How much more effective would it have been if the messages had gone like this:

“This is Agent (whomever). I’d like to show your home at 123 Smith Street. The dates and times I have available are Monday at 1:00 or 2:00 p.m. and Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. Please call me to confirm a time or give me an alternate time.” I could have then called back and confirmed one of those times (transaction complete with two calls), or offered a couple of alternate times which the agent could confirm back to me (transaction probably complete in three calls).

Although e-mail has alleviated much of this situation, e-mail is not always reliable, either, is it? Besides, there are times when phone calls are necessary and more expedient than e-mail… provided they are done correctly. While there are times when we cannot complete a transaction solely by voice mail, there are other times when we can. Looking for opportunities to do this can cut a telephone tag session down to 2-3 calls… a vast improvement over the time and effort delays seen when we force people to return calls with incomplete information.

Next time you’re in this situation, help the WOWplace along by allowing the machines to do most of the work for you (and your co-workers). After all, that’s why they were invented, isn’t it?

Posted in Time & Stress Management | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

What If I Try… And Fail?

Posted on April 5, 2011 by Sandy
Success_Failure

Don't shut down your choices!

Have you ever let the question, “What if I try, and fail?” stop you from attempting (or completing) a goal?  Instead of letting this question stop you, ask yourself instead, “What if I never try at all?”

A young woman I know comes from a tough background. She’s had to be physically tough to survive. While her background has prepared her well for a life of physical toughness on the streets, it hasn’t prepared her at all for the mental toughness necessary to survive and thrive in business.

She is currently in the process of applying for several different jobs. Every time she comes to a potential stumbling block, she allows it to stop her dead in her tracks.  “They’ll probably say ‘No’ because of this,” or “They won’t consider me because of that,” are the excuses she uses to justify quitting and trying something different. She has 5 different applications in process, but has finished none of them, causing her to actually fail at all of them, rather than simply being at the point of fearing failure in any one of them.

Have you ever let this type of thinking stop you in the pursuit of your career aspirations or personal dreams? Do you enable constant failure, rather than risk temporary setbacks on your way to permanent success?

I’ve fallen victim to this, too. At one point my husband encouraged me to apply for a Systems Analyst position. I almost didn’t “because I’d never done that before,” assuming I’d never be hired for that reason. He told me the skills I used in my current position were also necessary for the new position, so I should try.  I still balked.  Frustrated, he exclaimed, “Sandy! Just go for the interview; if you’re not right for the job, let THEM tell you that.  Don’t assume!”  (Sound familiar?)  So, I went for it, and guess what? My husband was right; I got the job!  Lesson learned – I no longer let assumptions stop me from trying something new.

Please keep this in mind: Many people would rather experience the hope that a dream could happen rather than risk the reality that it doesn’t. However, what they fail to realize is that, in the meantime, this causes them to consistently fall short of their dreams – always continuing to “hope” for them to happen but never actually achieving them.

Stop the cycle of assuming you know what’s going to happen, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure in the process. Instead, begin a cycle of finding out what actually does happen by seeing each dream through to its conclusion.  You may not always reach the answer you desire… or you may just have to persist through many obstacles in order to reach your dreams.

Either way, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that the outcome is real – and not just an assumption manufactured in your mind that creates a false result.

Posted in Leadership/Employee Engagement, Rule #1: A WOWplace is Safe, Rule #4: A WOWplace is Innovative, Creative & Fun! | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Humor Creates a Bond

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Sandy

Four friends and I were recently enjoying lunch at a Sweet Tomatoes restaurant in the Tampa, FL area when a woman approached our table.  She worked for the restaurant and was bussing the tables.  With a big smile on her face, she asked us, “Are you folks enjoying yourselves today?”

“We sure are!” came the enthusiastic and unanimous reply.

“Well, I’m here to put a stop to that!” she said with a big grin.  We all burst into laughter… and a small, but fun, bond was formed!  She began a conversation with us that pretty quickly led to her asking if we were part of the “Sweet Tomatoes” family and were receiving e-mails from the company about specials, coupons and other offers.  One of us was; the other four were not.

Long story short: While none of us were sure we needed more e-mails from anyone, all four of us signed up to receive them, in order to help this fun lady!

What a win-win!  Even though we were unsure about the e-mails, there’s a good chance something will capture our attention and cause us to re-visit the restaurant (we loved the food and our experience had been VERY positive!)  The company also knows they can greatly increase the chances of us visiting again if they keep in touch from time to time, keeping their restaurant “top of mind.”

We can all use our sense of humor to create a bond with customers, and take small, consistent steps like this one toward creating great experiences for them.  We should aso encourage all our co-workers to create the same kinds of experiences (each in their own unique way) because all employees contribute to the customer experience. Help them remember that even though the old song says, “One bad apple don’t spoil the whole bunch,” – if that’s the only “apple” the customer interacts with, their whole experience is spoiled!

Even though you’re not going to win a $3million contract with a joke and a smile, sharing many small fun (WOW!) experiences with potential customers creates a bond that helps you get – and keep – your foot in the door so they’ll more readily listen to what you have to say and give you a better chance at getting that $3million contract than if you’d never bonded with them at all…

Posted in Humor Eases All!, Leadership/Employee Engagement, Rule #4: A WOWplace is Innovative, Creative & Fun! | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

There are no small positions – only small expectations

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Sandy

Small changes can have HUGE impact

Creating WOW experiences at work can sometimes seem daunting.  In fact, have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m just a ‘peon’ here. No one will listen to me… what can I do?”

Once we begin to expect more from ourselves (and each other) and get rid of the mindset that we can’t accomplish anything in our organization because we’re not high up enough in rank to have the “title” of manager, supervisor or executive, we can actually get to the point of creating impact in our organization.  And once managers eliminate the belief  (or fear) that lower level employees are simply “marking time” and don’t care about the organization, and begin expecting (and rewarding) more high-level results, those results are encouraged and enabled.

Maybe no one can do it individually, but read below how a group of administrative professionals was able to create very desirable results by putting their heads together and making one small change that led to HUGE savings in their organization:

During my presentation at their Administrative Professionals Day celebration, the Admins told me they had discovered that different departments, buildings, and locations were buying office supplies from several different vendors, with price ranges varying greatly from group to group.  They decided to request bids from all current suppliers, then selected the vendor with the best prices, service, and terms and started ordering all their supplies from that one vendor.

This one change saved the organization over $1M per year in office supply costs!

The next time you begin to believe that you can’t effect change because you’re “just one person,” remember this lesson, and think about ways you can help yourself, your colleagues and your organization by banding together, brainstorming ways to create WOW’s in your organization, and then getting a group dynamic going that can have a huge impact through a coordinated effort.

Posted in Leadership/Employee Engagement, Rule #2: A WOWplace is Respectful, Rule #3: A WOWplace is Human... Not Humanoid!, Rule #4: A WOWplace is Innovative, Creative & Fun! | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Humor Eases Difficult Messages

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Sandy

Have you ever had to deliver a difficult message?  Or a boring one?  Remember that a little dose of humor may just be the “spoonful of honey that makes the medicine go down.”  For example, does anyone enjoy the messages that the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) has to give to let people know what to do at airports?  Well, the TSA in San Diego did just that with this fun, short video… take a look (it starts out like usual, but quickly turns FUN!):

What can you do to make difficult messages easier to take?

  • Set the stage ahead of time.  Laugh at yourself whenever you make a mistake.  No one is perfect, so we shouldn’t try to make people think we are… and we definitely shouldn’t give other people the impression that we think we are.  Being “human” always beats being “perfect.”  And difficult messages are much easier for others to take when they’re delivered by someone who is human, rather than by a perfect “humanoid” who doesn’t seem to know what it feels like to make a mistake.
  • Use your sense of humor, whether verbally or in writing… or even in film!  Depending on your business, you may be able to create (or at least suggest) brief videos or longer training videos that use a sense of humor to deliver its message. You don’t have to become the “office clown”, but you can use your sense of humor in personal interactions, e-mails, announcements, newsletters, blogs… everywhere you have an opportunity to appropriately connect with others on another level – through their funny bone!
Posted in Communication, Humor Eases All!, Leadership/Employee Engagement, Rule #4: A WOWplace is Innovative, Creative & Fun! | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Human Duties Always Accompany Job Duties

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Sandy

Are you often so focused on that task at hand at work that you forget to be “human”? Remember, even though we have job duties to accomplish at work, we also have human duties that accompany our jobs.  Take a look at the video below that describes how we can avoid allowing our human compassion and common courtesy to be “turned to the OFF setting” while accomplishing our job duties.

Posted in Rule #3: A WOWplace is Human... Not Humanoid! | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Talk About Encouragement!

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Sandy

“Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is; treat him as he could and should be and you help him become so.”
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Several years ago, my sister, whose last name is Ball, decided to get her Ph.D., which she understood would be an arduous process.  At one point, one of her professors addressed her in class by calling her “Dr. Ball”, offering her a small, but powerful glimpse of what it would be like to earn that title.  Hearing her name as it would be used when she accomplished the goal created a strong reaction in her and gave her something tangible to hold onto while she worked toward her degree.  This is a great example of the “Act as if” principle which tells us to act as if we’ve already accomplished our goals.

What a creative way to encourage someone!  This professor knew that calling her Dr. Ball (and continuing to do so throughout every class she took with him) would help her maintain her focus on the goal, which is an important factor in achieving long-term dreams.  By allowing her to feel the pride of being called “Dr. Ball” even before she earned the title, this professor also helped her visualize and actually experience what it would be like to attain that dream.

How can you take a lesson from this professor to create a WOWplace in your organization (or even in your personal life)?  Get creative!  You can:

  • “Act as if” others have already achieved their dreams and help them to see and feel how wonderful it will be when they do;
  • recognize and openly acknowledge the talents you see in others, rather than just noticing and ignoring them;
  • from time to time, ask someone about a dream they’ve mentioned;
  • ask if they need any help or advice as they work toward a goal;
  • congratulate them when they achieve portions of their goals – even give them a little “reward”, such as a card, e-card, or other reward such as candy, a flower, or something else they would appreciate.

Every little bit helps when we’re trying to reach stretch goals.  Turn your workplace into a WOWplace by letting everyone know that their personal accomplishments are noticed, and are just as valued and valuable as their business ones.

Posted in Rule #4: A WOWplace is Innovative, Creative & Fun! | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

“Backing Off” Does Not Equal “Backing Down”

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Sandy

Back off

Backing off doesn't mean "losing face"

IBM vs. Mac?  Cat person or dog person?  Democrat, Republican or Independent?

How many times do we fail to “back off” on an opinion, comment, or even our own food, computer or pet preferences, simply because we equate “backing off” with “backing down”?  How many situations blow up and cause all involved parties to lose due to their respective efforts to win and avoid “losing face”?  Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve had sleepless nights, excessive worry, agitation, and fear – all due to someone’s (another person’s or your own) need to win at all costs?

Contrary to popular belief, allowing another person to have their own opinion, in other words, showing them respect by backing off and realizing they are entitled to that opinion, is not the same as backing down and changing our own.  Actually, we should all practice being open-minded enough to consider viewpoints that differ from ours and see if they might offer enlightenment.  They may cause us to change our minds, or they may actually strengthen our own position… but the worst thing we can do is to close our mind and refuse to show respect to those who hold other opinions.

This situation is difficult enough in our personal lives, but when we allow disrespectful interactions to occur at work, it damages our work relationships, as well as our work product and work environment, reducing the effectiveness of everyone there if allowed to become widespread and damaging enough.

So, instead of arguing our opinions “to the death” at all costs, can we agree to:

  1. Pick our battles:  don’t argue every point, simply because there’s a difference of opinion.  Does it really matter if they like Mac and we like IBM – or vice versa?  Is it worth the aggravation all parties will feel by becoming involved in unnecessary arguments?  If it’s small – who cares?  Let them have their opinion and let’s all just get along.  After all, just allowing someone to have an opinion doesn’t mean you agree with it!  It just means you respect their right to have it.
  2. When the matter is important enough, remember that regardless of how “wrong” they are (said “tongue-in-cheek”), remember that they have as much right to their opinion as you do to yours.  Remain respectful as you listen to their position and explain yours.  If you show respect during a disagreement, the other party will be more willing to listen and reciprocate with respect, enabling a possible learning experience rather than just a debilitating exercise in frustration!
  3. If it becomes apparent (which it rather quickly will, if this is the case) that you will not see eye-to-eye on the issue, find a way to “agree to disagree”, find a compromise that poses a solution where you can both “win”, and move on.

There are many ways to “skin a cat” (and no, I don’t mean literally!).  So, let’s remember that we’re not put on this earth to “put other people in their place” or to “slam them down so hard that they stay there” simply because their opinion differs from ours.  Our goal in life should not be to belittle, embarrass or berate others.  It should be to lift others up, encourage them, and make them feel valued, as we create a better world together.

Our world – and our workplaces – will become a much bigger WOWplace if we just keep in mind how we feel when others berate us, and stop equating backing off out of respect for others’ opinions with backing down and losing face with regard to our own.

Posted in Rule #2: A WOWplace is Respectful | 2 Comments