Bosses: Here are 7 New Year’s resolutions to help retain your talent
Originally posted on December 16, 2013 by Tim Loh on https://blog.ctnews.com
Each year, employees make career-related New Year’s resolutions much more frequently than their bosses — but their top resolution is to find a new job, according to Danbury’s OI Partners-Cunis & Gontin, a coaching and leadership development consulting firm.
And so, Cunis & Gontin has put together a list of New Year’s resolutions for bosses that should help them retain their top talent.
“If more managers resolved to develop their employees’ leadership skills, invite their input, demonstrate continued interest in their careers and recognize their contributions, fewer workers would be determining to find new jobs each year,” said Mary Ann Gontin, Managing Partner with OI Partners-Cunis & Gontin.
Retaining talented employees has become a higher priority in an improving job market, the firm said, as more than three-fourths of employers worry about losing key employees, according to a survey by OI Partners.
Here are the top seven resolutions managers can make to help retain talent:
1. Coach workers in how to become more influential and persuasive. “Explain the implications of their actions and decisions on internal politics and help them become savvier. Provide training and guidance in how to craft their messages to meet the needs of others. Managers are too often frustrated by employees’ inability to work effectively through others. Teach them how to win over people in appropriate ways,” said Gontin.
2. Develop employees’ leadership skills. “Use challenging ‘stretch assignments’ that motivate workers, require them to learn new skills and build coalitions. Look for opportunities where members of your team can step into leadership roles. That may mean you have to be in the background more and become comfortable with sharing the spotlight,” said Gontin.
3. Improve your feedback and increase their accountability. Most managers are inconsistent in communicating expectations and holding people accountable. Be clear about your expectations and give timely feedback to your team when they do a good job or miss the mark.
4. Tap into employees’ wealth of knowledge and experience. Encourage employees at all levels to suggest, create and communicate new ideas based on the direct experience of those on the line. Personally ask people for their input to get the best recommendations.
5. Demonstrate continued interest in employees’ careers. Reassure employees that they are appreciated for the work they’re doing. Increase the frequency of discussions about their careers and one-on-one meetings with their managers.
6. Recognize and reward contributions. Managers should be certain they recognize employee contributions, both big and small. A compliment from the boss can be as effective as a monetary reward. Many employees feel that their managers do not spend enough time thanking them for a job well done, but are too quick to criticize them for making mistakes.
7. Build teamwork and provide developmental coaching to workers.
Look for ways to partner employees on projects and concentrate on assembling compatible teams. Include ground rules on how they should work together, check in with them periodically throughout the assignment and facilitate a discussion on what’s working and what’s not. Coordinate a debriefing at the end of the project for overall feedback and lessons learned. Developmental coaching sharpens employees’ leadership skills and helps retain the most talented workers.
13 Different Ways to Cook a Turkey
Originally posted on https://www.food.com
Roasting, brining, frying — there are as many ways to cook a turkey as there are side dishes. Browse our top methods and find your favorite way to best that bird. Find more turkey recipes here »
"I was the hero of our Thanksgiving dinner! This turkey was fantastic — even my mom mentioned that the meat was cooked to perfection!" -Barb Witherspoon
Slow Cooker: Turkey Breast with Fail-Proof Gravy
"We loved this way of cooking turkey! It came out very tender. We love a lot of seasoning, so I added a mixture of olive oil, minced garlic, onion powder and herbs under the skin." -slickchick
Brined: Alton Brown's Brined Turkey
"Hands down, the best turkey we've ever had! A saltwater brine allows the turkey to hold in tons of moisture and absorb the seasonings deep into the meat." -**Tinkerbell**
Easy: Roast Turkey for Beginners
"This was my first attempt at a Thanksgiving turkey and it was amazing — so moist and delicious! My guests devoured it." -Mrs. Beckman
"I love this turkey! The spice mixture isn't too hot, but you can definitely tell there's some zip to it — and the meat is so juicy." -Shelby Jo
Brown Bag: Famous Brown Bag Turkey
"Everyone (including me) was skeptical about this recipe's paper bag technique, but the turkey turned out awesome. It was by far the best I've ever had, and all of my Thanksgiving guests agreed!" -izbryte
Grilled: Basil Lemon Turkey Breast
"My family and friends enjoyed the flavorful layer of basil, lemon, garlic and Romano cheese in this recipe!" -WiGal
For Two: Stuffed Turkey Breast with Cranberry Glaze
"We made this turkey the night before Thanksgiving, and it was so easy to put together! The cranberry glaze really makes the dish." -Impera_Magna
"Nicely seasoned, moist and delicious — this turkey was a huge hit at Thanksgiving dinner!" -PaulaG
Glazed: Apricot-Glazed Turkey with Onion & Shallot Gravy
"Don't pass this beautiful bird by; you will get so many rave reviews! One tip: The glaze makes the bird brown very fast, so cover it with foil as soon as you need to." -Scoutie
"Awesome! Our family has deep-fried our Thanksgiving turkey for a few years now, and this was the best recipe I've found! The meat was tender and juicy with a nice apple flavor." -Isanti Tigress
Herb-Roasted: Mouthwatering Herb Turkey
"I've used this turkey recipe for two Thanksgivings in a row because it's delicious, and the hot water trick really works to keep the meat moist! It never fails to satisfy." -LizzyGirl09
"I went in search of an amazing turkey recipe when I got a new roaster, and, boy, did I find it! It's perfect for a Thanksgiving feast — the meat retains so much of its juice that it just falls off the bone." -Xanaeq
’Tis the Season for a Slice of Wellness Training
Originally posted November 29, 2013 by Chris Kilbourne on https://safetydailyadvisor.blr.com
At the beginning of this year's holiday season, take a moment to remind your employees that good nutrition is important to good health. Use the video in today's Advisor as a concise and fun way to drop nutrition reminders in among the holiday festivities.
In order to get the nutrition they need every day to stay healthy, employees must develop and maintain healthy eating habits. Here's a video that takes a light-hearted approach toward providing facts about nutrition and the important employee wellness topic of having healthy eating habits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv66ItR_F24&feature=player_embedded
I'm sure you’ve heard that good nutrition is important to good health. But how?
Well, good nutrition helps you in many important ways. For example, eating healthy food helps to prevent diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure and maintain a healthy weight.
In order to get the nutrition you need every day to stay healthy, you must develop and maintain healthy eating habits. Unfortunately, many Americans have very unhealthy eating habits.
Healthy eating means eating three nutritious meals a day, consuming reasonable portion sizes, limiting intake of fat, sugar, and salt, snacking sensibly between meals, avoiding fad diets, and balancing calorie intake with physical activity.
Proper nutrition depends on a well-balanced diet that includes carbohydrates, fiber, protein, and some unsaturated fat. Carbohydrates give your body the energy it needs to function effectively all day. Carbohydrates are found in fruits, vegetables, bread, cereal, pasta, rice, and milk and milk products. In fact, 45 percent to 65 percent of your daily calorie intake should come from carbohydrates. You also need about 14 grams of dietary fiber for every 1,000 calories you eat. Protein is another essential nutrient, and you should get 10 percent to 35 percent of daily calories from proteins.
Most Americans eat more protein than they really need to stay healthy. Protein is found in meat, poultry, fish, eggs, nuts, milk and milk products, grains, and some vegetables and fruits.
Some protein-rich foods such as meat are also high in fat and cholesterol. To keep healthy, you should consume less than 10 percent of your daily calorie intake as fat. Most of your fat intake should be unsaturated, as opposed to saturated, fat. Saturated fat is found in foods such as high-fat cheese, high-fat meat, butter, and ice cream.
Nuts, vegetable oil, and fish are good sources of poly- and monounsaturated fats.
Health experts also say you should consume less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day. Cholesterol is a fatty substance found in animal-based foods such as meat, eggs, and whole milk.
Sugar is found naturally in foods such as fruits, vegetables, and milk and milk products. Some foods include added sugar, and these foods are less nutritious than foods containing only natural sugar. To keep healthy, try to avoid added sugar, which provides no nutritional value and also contributes to tooth decay.
Also, remember that fluids, vitamins, and minerals are part of good nutrition, too. You need about eight glasses of water or other low-sugar fluids a day.
Finally, even though you've got a lot of great choices here in your fridge, I'm sure you eat out sometimes. When you do, remember to make healthy choices. Restaurant or takeout food can be high in fat, sugar, and salt, and low in required nutrients. When you eat food prepared outside your home, try to pick lower-fat foods, choose smaller portions, go broiled or baked instead of fried, order a vegetables or salad, and skip dessert.
For more information on nutrition, visit www.blr.com. Here you’ll find lots of information on wellness. BLR® specializes in employee training, so be sure to check out all of their employee wellness training resources as well as other training topics.
Why It Matters
- Giving your employees nutrition information can help keep them healthy and on the job.
- Healthy employees will cut down on your sick leave costs and your healthcare insurance expenses.
- Healthy employees who are eating the right balance of nutritious foods are more likely to be more productive as well.
- The bottom line is that a healthy amount of wellness training can provide a healthy return on investment for your organization.