• When making a presentation
• Talking with a client or prospect
• In a meeting with your boss

I might even suggest that in some circumstances, it is a sign of disrespect.  So do yourself a big favor… if you do chew gum, be thoughtful about where you’re chewing.  It might make a difference to your credibility and your career!

When do you think we should swallow our gum?

Lately I’m hoping people think of me as “generous.”  I’ve decided I really like that word — and it doesn’t only apply to money.  We can be (and should be) generous with so much more than cash. We can be generous with:

• Time
• Praise
• Love
• Affection
• Wisdom
• Knowledge
• Advice
• Feedback
• Constructive criticism
• …and so much more.

And generosity doesn’t only apply in our personal lives.  We should be generous at work, as well. 

Think about the people with whom you like to work.  Are they generous?  Tell me how.  Please share examples of co-worker generosity.

Well that has changed.  Everyone has access to so much valuable information.  That information gives us all the opportunity to innovate and collaborate with our co-workers.  That’s the good news.  But the bad news is, there is so much information a few things can get in our way:

• Sorting through all of the valuable information is a challenge.  It’s easy to sort through the latest celebrity gossip, but how do we get to the relevant stuff when we are faced with tons of articles and blog posts that apply to what we do?
• I don’t believe that knowledge is power any more.  I believe that sharing knowledge is where the power lies.  So, how do we efficiently and effectively share relevant information with our colleagues?
• And, finally, how do we find the time to read everything that’s put in front of us?

I don’t have the answer to the time issue — there simply aren’t enough hours in the day.  But I’d like to hear from you on the other two issues:

1. How do you sort through what you have access to — to distill it down to what’s relevant and useful?
2. How do you share information with your colleagues?

Looking forward to hearing from you!

• Multi-tasking
• Negotiating
• Giving (and getting) feedback
• Patience
• Project management
• Time management
• Balancing a budget
• Teaching
• …this list is endless

Now she’s facing a challenge.  She wants to start working outside the home.  She has been a mom.  She has managed a household.  She has been a volunteer.  She has mastered many, many marketable skills.  But without actual work experience, her resume has been ignored.  Fair or unfair, it is what it is!

So what advice can we offer her?  How do you think she can successfully break into the job market?

• In the U.K., gasoline costs nearly $10 a gallon.
• If you don’t water plants, they die – take a look in my office.
• I really, really don’t like two Splendas in my morning latte (an honest mistake made by a new barista).

I took a more deliberate step in my long life of learning by going back to school at age 53.  After a bunch of research, taking the GMAT (4 times!) and extensive interviewing, I enrolled in the Executive MBA program at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL.

 My decision to go back to school was strictly personal.  I’ve always been interested in learning – I’m an avid reader, I pay attention to what’s going on around me, I watch way too much TV and I ask a lot of questions.  But I hadn’t had any formal education in more than 30 years and until I thought about it, I didn’t realize how much I missed that classroom experience.

 Throughout my career, I’ve spent a lot of time administering training to adults – I’ve always been “in charge” while in the front of a classroom or an audience.  What a luxury to sit back and listen; the only pressure on my part was to pay attention, remain engaged and participate when appropriate.  And, the older I got, the more I realized how much I didn’t know.

 So here’s what those two years at Kellogg did for me.

 I got a much broader understanding of economics, finance and accounting concepts.  Some new subjects were fascinating for me… game theory, commodities, logistics, change management.  I don’t necessarily apply what I learned each day, but understanding these concepts has given me tremendous respect for those who do.

What my MBA didn’t do for me was get me a new job or a raise — neither of which was my goal.  What it did do was give me a level of confidence that has changed nearly everything about the way I interact with those around me.

 So the lessons for all of us: 

• Don’t ever turn down an opportunity to learn — whether formally or informally.
• Throughout the process, remain engaged and inquisitive; don’t waste the opportunity you’ve been given.
• Don’t set unrealistic expectations about what happens next — do it for personal development.
• Continue to search for opportunities to learn more.  It can only enrich your life.
• Have fun while you’re at it! 

Finally, after successfully earning that MBA, I’m even more aware of what I still don’t know.  So what’s next?  Should I tackle nuclear physics?

Now it’s your turn… what have you learned lately?

Instead of a New Years’ resolution, I hereby commit to a May Day resolution:  I will become a regular blogger again.  If you choose to read my posts, I’ll continue to blog about my world and the world of work.  World of work:  unemployment, the talent shortage, women in the workplace, diversity, employee engagement, leadership, the job hunt… the list goes on.  My world:  the ridiculous amount of TV I watch, my obsession with my dogs, my travels, what I’m reading, my metastatic breast cancer treatment, etc.  I’ll try to relate nearly everything to work and I’ll try to be engaging.

So my May Day promises to you:

• I’ll become a regular blogger again.
• I’ll continue to cover a variety of subjects, but I’ll try to relate most of them to working.
• I’ll have fun!

The promises I want from you:

• Comment on my posts.  I want (and actually need) the feedback.  And I’ll be particularly excited to start a dialogue about a subject that interests you. 
• And have fun!!

So here goes…  Watch the new and improved blog.  Here’s a good place to start commenting — what subjects interest you?  I look forward to hearing from you.

P.S.  May Day resolution?  That got me thinking.  Where does the term “Mayday” — the universal distress signal — come from?  I learned something today — it comes from the French phrase m’aider which means “help me.”

In these uncertain economic times, those of us who are working have reason to celebrate ourselves, but employers who have the talent they need to get their work done should be celebrating as well.

So if you’re an employee, make sure you are conscientious, work hard and add value to your job.  And if you’re an employer, say ‘thanks’ to your associates — without them you would not be serving your customers or filling orders.

Based on ManpowerGroup’s recent research, we see that there is.  52% of the employers we interviewed are having trouble filling key position.  The counterpoint to my point was a woman from the UCLA Institute for Research on Jobs and Employment.  She tried to argue that there was no evicence of a talent mismatch — but I didn’t feel her arguments were very strong.

And those who called into the radio program — and most of those who have commented on the story — agree with me.  Employers are having trouble finding people with the skills they need.  And employees who have been well trained and who have the education required for today’s jobs are finding they have their pick of positions.

So what do you think?  Is there a skills mismatch?

First, about the K-12 Standards.  Here is the mission:  The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. With American students fully prepared for the future, our communities will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.

The Standards developed so far include math and literacy.  Forty-six states have pledged to adopt the Standards by 2014 and the New York school district has been in pilot stage.

Second, this is big!  It will dramatically change K-12 education for the better (in my humble opinion).  One thing that I particularly like about the initiative is that it focuses on mastery of skills — not just knowledge and memorization.  It goes deep into smaller bits of information before moving on to the next, more complex concepts.  That’s the good news.

But the bad news is, curricula will change.  Teachers will have to be trained.  Assessments will be more meaningful, but the scores — particularly early on — may be lower.  Parents will have to get on board.  School Administrators will lose some autonomy.  The list of challenges goes on and on.

My interest in the initiative echoes that of the GE Foundation as well as all the business leaders  present at the meeting.  We are facing a talent shortage right now and we know it will get way worse before it gets better.  Every business and every community needs a career-ready workforce, so we need to do everything we can to help young people prepare for either a sustainable job or post-secondary education.

So finally, do me a big favor, please.  Watch for news of this initiative in your local community.  Learn everything you can about it.  Then support it!

But as I’ve thought about the phrase and how often I say it, I’ve pondered its meaning for me.  It’s not that I’ve given up responsiblity for things that happen.  Rather, the bad things that challenge us can, indeed, make us stronger.  I’m in charge of how I handle those bad things — I can choose to react negatively and make myself even more miserable, OR I can figure out how to find something positive in the challenge.

So next time something bad happens to you, ask yourself, “what’s the reason?”  Then, work hard to make it positive.