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Now is not a typical economy. The scale of change eclipses anything that as professional advisors we ever anticipated.

Life is “… a lot like walking into the ocean, and a big wave comes and knocks you over. And you find yourself lying on the bottom with sand in your nose and in your mouth. And you are lying there, and you have a choice. You can either lie there, or you can stand up and start to keep walking out to sea”. “So the waves keep coming … and you keep cultivating your courage and bravery and sense of humour to relate to this situation of the waves, and you keep getting up and going forward”.

As a boss, you have a lot of power. But you need to be smart about how you use it. Here are seven things you need to avoid:

1. You make employees evaluate themselves

Self-evaluations may sound empowering or inclusive but are almost always a waste of time.

They’re too close to the
situation. Lack of objectivity or
perspective is probably the most common reason, but not the only one, by any
means.

John C. Maxwell says no
one climbs a mountain without preparation, hard work and a crystal-clear
picture of what it’ll take to survive the trek and reach the top of the
mountain.

Jane Dutton, professor of business administration at the University of
Michigan and author of the 2003 book, “Energize
Your Workplace: How to Create and Sustain High-Quality Connections at Work”,
says the key to building a healthy and energizing

John Ruhlin, the founder and CEO of the Ruhlin Group, a North Canton, Ohio based firm that specialises in high-level gifting plans to build relationships and acquire new clients tells you not to plead, bribe or send chintzy gift cards!

I recently came across an old article by Sherre Campbell where she identifies 15 Qualities of “Smart” Business People. This definitely gets you thinking about your own qualities and those in your team. Well worth a read.

When you plan
and prepare carefully, you can legitimately expect to have success in your
efforts.