Free Resources

Free Newsletter

Winter Newsletter (Newsletter Archives)

Update From Eileen

We made it into 2000, with Y2K being a non-event and celebrations around the globe leaving us breathless in their scope, imagery, diversity and sheer joy. Joy was the ode echoed in lower case letters in my mind and in upper case letters when played by a German orchestra as December 31 slid from view. In fact, I penned a spontaneous greeting to a few of you about the paradox of emotions when I heard Beethoven's music.

Point: that music was our beloved Noam's personal theme song and played at the celebration of his life. My heart still aches intensely for my sister's loss of her soul mate in February of this past year. Counterpoint: I love to sing it at the top of my lungs in church and to hum it when cuddling children or when running across the bluff top that curves like a spine connecting the ocean to Dana Point Harbor.

I walked that spine at dawn on the morning of December 23. You might remember that the Winter Solstice moon rising on December 22 was the closest to the earth and therefore the largest in over 100 plus years. At daybreak, both an enormous moon and an equally enormous sun hung in the sky at the same time. On one side, sunlight was pulling away the covers of darkness while on the other, moon glow rippled in a saltwater pillar.

What a perfect metaphor for winter and an even better one for this new century! One hand promises activity, change and pulsing life while the other offers contemplation, stillness, rest and renewal. It is so easy to live solely in either place.

I don't think I can. In fact, I don't want to-not if my goal is to create a life of abundance, love, learning and legacy. My challenge is to respect the "moon phase" or as Walt Whitman said, "loaf and invite my soul."

Perhaps you'll join me in spirit. From that place we'll create ideas and dreams for an amazing century. Happy 2000!

A Quick Energizer

Sign on a pasture fence: "If you cross this field, you should do it in 4.9 seconds because the bull does it in 5 seconds flat."

Energizing Others

In an effort to retain employees in a super-tight job market, Quick Solutions, Inc. has decided to make a clean sweep.of employees' houses, that is.

For employees who have been with the company at least three years, Quick Solutions now foots the bill for monthly maid service. Yep-from top to bottom, employees can get their homes cleaned and with no co-pay. For this 300-employee software firm in Ohio, the results are already having a positive impact. The firm also offers a $1200 vacation bonus for employees who have been with the firm for three years or more. Makes you want to stay, umm?

Or if you want someone else to handle an incentive, think of YAPA (Young Adult Professional Association). YAPA now offers a vacation club at a discounted cost of $300-$800 to employees. With a prescribed value of twice that amount, employers find YAPA a turnkey operation, managing everything for employee vacations from start to finish, including providing material advertising the benefit or reward to the employees.

The Spirit Moves and Profits Rise

There is a old hymn with the words, "the Spirit is 'a 'moving, a' moving all over this land." And so it seems that spirituality is taking a larger place at corporate tables.

Employees who bring their entire selves to the job-body mind AND spirit—are more productive and will give a much-needed competitive edge. So says Boeing's manager of creativity and applied thinking. Boeing workers at the Seattle headquarters participate in a training program designed to open a dialogue about the spiritual nature of work.

The American Management included a session on corporate spirituality at its annual meeting in 1999. And the heavy- hitting gathering of the corporate power elite discussed "spiritual anchors for the new millennium" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Bottom line: people want meaning in their job beyond a paycheck. They want to count, to be valued and to do fulfilling work that extends beyond a balance sheet. And they want a company that understands life outside the office is as important as the one within it.

This also means that workplace expressions of religious or spiritual beliefs will increase. Businesses will need to accommodate different observances and practices. TrendLetter states, "Companies that support and encourage such pursuits are likely to see profits and productivity rise."

P.S. Just released this fall, Bright Productions produced Engaging the Spirit of Nurse Leadership. I am the proud mother. This three-part video series is a combination of one of my live presentations, direct conversation with the audience and a facilitator's guide. Although aimed at health professionals, the ideas hold true for any organization.

Beautiful young people are acts of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Must Read Books

THE EXPERIENCE ECONOMY: Work Is Theatre & Every Business A Stage by B. Joseph Pine II and James Gilmore (Harvard Business School Press, 254 pg, $24.95, ISBN 0875848192). Shakespeare's contention that 'All the world's a stage' is spilling over into business. Deliver your products and services wrapped in a unique experience, says Pine and Gilmore, and customers will pay you to sell to them. The consultants make a strong, and entertaining, case themselves in the most intriguing book this month.

CHOCOLATE FOR A WOMAN'S SOUL, Kay Allenbaugh, 1997, Fireside, reviewed by Bonnie Jo Davis. This is a wonderful heart warming book that could inspire and soothe even the hardest heart. The 77 stories in this book written by real women are not sappy or too good to be true. They're gritty, realistic and true to life but yet tell the tale of how the authors found inspiration and love even in the darkest moments of their life. The topics covered are contemporary and include motherhood, commitment, relationships, divorce, passion and yes, even death. These women invite you into their lives and share their most personal experiences and how they managed to survive and even to thrive. This is a great book to buy for you or to give as a gift. You won't be disappointed.

WORDS MY MOTHER NEVER GAVE ME

Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in his shoes. That way, when you criticize him, you are a mile away from him and you have his shoes.

If quitters never win, and winners never quit, what fool came up with, "Quit while you're ahead?"

Employment application blanks always ask who is to be notified in case of an emergency. I think you should write "A very good doctor".

Life is a symphony, not a sound byte.

Welcome To The McDargh Clan

AT&T Southern Region
Office of Inspector General, USPS
Farmers Insurance Field Offices
ICAN—women's conference
Truckload Carriers Association

Pass Along The Newsletter—FREE

A couple of clients posed this question to me: "Eileen, how can we get your newsletter in the hands of our employees and management team?"

Great question! Here's the answer. You can send out an e-mail blast, asking if they'd like to receive a BRIEF, practical yet fun e-newsletter four times a year. If they say yes, just have them go to any page on my site to sign-up.

MISSION STATEMENT

McDargh Enterprises—Energizing the Human Spirit since 1980

Our mission is to transform the life of work and the work of your life.

We work with and speak for organizations that want people to create meaningful relationships with all their stakeholders and to develop a resilient leadership capacity for living a life of balance, engagement, productivity, and meaning in a changing world. We value laughter, life-long learning, and leadership through service.

Archived Newsletters

Testimonials

"Thank you for being such a professional, organized speaker. Your initiative made my responsibilities for conference planning that much easier! Your contribution as our work/life balance seminar speaker was so valuable to our attendees, especially as evidenced by the filled-to- capacity room. Thanks for sharing your stories, your expertise, and your wonderful self at the Greater Dallas Chamber's Women's Business Conference."

- Greater Dallas Chamber