The Positive Energy Workplace

Okay, I've gotta write this post for the gentleman I just got off the phone with (you know who you are.) If he allows me, I'll give him attribution for inspiration, for now, I shall call him "Guido". Seven (yep 7) solid reasons for climbing on the receive wagon await you at the end of this post, but allow me to build up to them with some context and drama.

I have a little rule and it goes something like this...if I am experiencing extreme gratitude, awe or respect for someone, I do everything I can to let them know. (Many a friend/client/colleague/child/family member has received a spontaneous call, text, or shout out of such - not enough, but many.) I don't do it every time (that would be almost impossible because I feel this way about 73% of the day for the people in my life), BUT, if it comes up a couple of times, or if I have a strong sense to do something about it; a call, a note, or a text is bound to happen.

And when I do honor this sense, the only job of the recipient, the only thing I ask, is that they receive it. Really receive it. I mean...LET. IT. IN. They don't even have to say thanks - I just want them to feel it, and to know that they've had impact; they've "changed" me, in some way, for the better...

When they receive and let it in, I feel it. And I feel good. My being is impacted. I have connected and shared my truth, and it has landed "over there." Someone knows they matter - a lot. My day is better. They are likely energized. They're bound to pay that energy forward in some way. The world is a better place.

But this art of receiving...this is not always easy. I say this as a teacher and a student...receiving is a leadership skill.

When people think of health, they tend to think of physical and emotional health. Energy, vitality, healthy eating, exercise, etc. are all very important things and something that I've been integrating into my leadership work with execs for years. But there's also the "organizational health" --- the health of the whole organization.

Of course there's the physical component and benefits - less lost time, injuries, health care costs, etc. but there's also the mental, spiritual and leadership component. If you look at the DTE Bootist Leadership® Model, and specifically "Tenet Three" of Bootism™ (to receive my latest publication please opt in on the right hand side), which is about "health, vitality and personal nourishment of the leader and organization," you'll see that creating a healthy organization means not only that you're attending to your own health, and your employees' health, but also to the health of your organization as a whole, its spirit, and relationships.

Is your organization “healthy”? How about your team? If you knew that the beliefs you held and the actions you took today (even small), would positively impact the health of your organization tomorrow, would you do it? I'm guessing you would.

While many think of "health" in the more traditional sense as "health & productivity," or fitness and wellness, it actually goes much deeper than that, offering tremendous opportunities for impacting your organization's emotional, energetic, and fiscal well being. Just like with attending to a personal fitness program, where you do something for your health every day to move you towards greater wellness, you can do little "somethings" everyday to move you towards organizational wellness. It doesn't take a lot, but it does take intention and focus.

This short article is about creating organizational health from the "inside out." Having a somewhat eclectic background in kinesiology, health & productivity, energy management, and leadership development, this is a topic near and dear to my heart, and one I find that provides lots of opportunity to help leaders stay on their "edge."