Ted Tuesday: The Key to Success: Grit

“Grit is sticking with your future — day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years — and working really hard to make that future a reality.”

Good Morning Folks,

Every Tuesday we bring you one of my favorite TED talks. TED.com is a treasure trove of inspiration, and I promise you whenever you are feeling down, you can go there and find a few smart words that will cheer you right up.

Today though the message is "Never give up! It's more than just a platitude.

Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “grit” as a predictor of success.

Assistant professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, Angela Lee Duckworth studies intangible concepts such as self-control and grit to determine how they might predict both academic and professional success.

In her extensive research, psychologist Angela Lee Duckworth found that more than IQ or talent or any other factor, the #1 predictor of a person's success is their unflagging commitment to a long-term goal... in other words, their grit.

Find out why... WATCH: The Surprising Trait That's MUCH More Important Than IQ

Have a GREAT day. Love LIFE!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“The secret to happiness is low expectations.” 
— Barry Schwartz 
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Inspire ME Friday ==>The Best Are Always Striving To Get Better.

"Training Camp by Jon Gordon is a touching story about one man who faces his fears on his path to greatness. Along the way, he learns a valuable lesson about who is really in control. Grow your faith. Read Training Camp." —Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager® and Lead Like Jesus

Good Morning Folks,

Training Camp is an inspirational story filled with invaluable lessons and insights on bringing out the best in yourself and your team. The story follows Martin, an un-drafted rookie trying to make it in the NFL. He’s spent his entire life proving to the critics that a small guy with a big heart can succeed against all odds. After spraining his ankle in the pre-season, Martin thinks his dream is lost when he happens to meet a very special coach who shares eleven life-changing lessons that keep his dream alive—and might even make him the best of the best. If you want to be your best—Training Camp offers an inspirational story and real-world wisdom on what it takes to reach true excellence and how you and your team (your work team, school team, church team and family team) can achieve it.

Excerpted from “Training Camp: What the Best Do Better Than Everyone Else”, by Jon Gordon, these eleven traits of the Best of the Best that apply to every one with a dream and ambition:

==>The Best know what they truly want.
At some point in their lives, the best have a "Eureka!" moment when their vision becomes clear. Suddenly they realize what they really, truly want to achieve. They find their passion. When that happens they are ready to strive for greatness. They are ready to pay the price.

==>The Best want it more. We all want to be great.
But only the best of the best are willing to do what it takes to be great. The best don't just think about their desire for greatness; they act on it. They have a high capacity for work. They do the things that others won't do, and they spend more time doing it. When everyone else is sleeping, the best are practicing and thinking and improving.

==>The Best are always striving to get better.
They are always looking for ways to learn, apply, improve, and grow. They stay humble and hungry. They are lifelong learners. They never think they have "arrived"—because they know that once they think that, they'll start sliding back to the place from which they came.

==>The Best do ordinary things better than everyone else.
For all their greatness, the best aren't that much better than the others. They are simply a little better at a lot of things. Everyone thinks that success is complicated, but it's really simple. In fact, the best don't do anything different. They just do the ordinary things better.

==>The Best zoom focus.
Success is all about the fundamentals, and the fundamentals are little and ordinary and often boring. It's not just about practice, but focused practice. It's not just about taking action, but taking zoom-focused action. It's about practicing and perfecting the fundamentals.

==>The Best are mentally stronger.
Today's world is no longer a sprint or a marathon. It's a series of sprints combined with a boxing match. You're not just running; you are getting hit along the way. The best are able to respond to and overcome all of this with mental and emotional toughness. They are able to tune out the distractions and stay calm, focused, and energized when it counts.

==>The Best overcome their fear.
Everyone has fears. The best of the best all have fear, but they overcome it. To beat your enemy, you must know your enemy. Average people shy away from their fears. They either ignore them or hide from them. However, the best seek them out and face them with the intent of conquering them.

==>The Best seize the moment.
When the best are in the middle of their performance, they are not thinking "What if I win?" or "What if I lose?" They are not thinking "What if I make a mistake or miss the shot?" They are not interested in what the moment produces but are concerned only with what they produce in the moment. When all eyes are watching, they rise to the occasion. As a result, the best define the moment rather than letting the moment define them.

==>The Best tap into a power greater than themselves.
The best are conductors, not resistors. They don't generate their own power, but act as conduits for the greatest power source in the world. It's not always politically correct, but you can't talk about greatness without talking about God. It would be like talking about breathing without mentioning the importance of air.

==>The Best leave a legacy.
The best live and work with a bigger purpose. They leave a legacy by making their lives about more than them. This larger purpose is what inspires them to be the best and strive for greatness over the long term. It helps them move from success to significance.

==>The Best make everyone around them better.
They do this through their own pursuit of excellence and in the excellence they inspire in others. One person in pursuit of excellence raises the standards of everyone around them. And they do this in both their work and life. ...The point is to strive to be your best and inspire others to be their best, because it's in the striving where you find greatness, not in the outcome.

Get the book HERE.

And have a GREAT weekend.

Make a difference folks!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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“The expert in anything was once a beginner”

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Getting On Well With People You Work With The Most Fulfilling Part of a Job

"Positive working relationships and feeling good while at work are really important when looking at overall employee health and well being."

Good Morning Folks,

Just under half (42%) of workers felt positive relationships helped them to feel good at work, compared with a mere 14% for hitting their targets.

In the survey of more than 1,400 workers by HR Magazine in the UK, "having a good work/life balance was the second (40%) most common reason for feeling good at work, followed by receiving praise (26%) and earning the trust (16%) of their boss."

The survey also revealed only 4% of workers felt team activities including 'away-days' made them feel good at work.

Organizations with healthy, happy employees can find they see improvements in productivity and results. The survey results demonstrate how looking out for each other's well being and having a good work / life balance is essential."

Ar FSO, It’s to the credit of our fast-paced and results-oriented environment. Our team members are all energized by our growth, leadership position in the marketplace and the integral role they play in our success. At FSO, every team member matters. In fact, due to the very nature of our business, without our people and their unique skill sets and perspective, FSO would not be the leader that it is today.

The FSO culture celebrates the differences of our people and what we all collectively bring to the table. One of our most important characteristics is the diversity of our team members… our backgrounds… the way we think… the way we see the world. All of these different perspectives are critical to our success and speak directly to the culture here.

Clients also say that our company excels at attracting people with a great work ethic and an upbeat attitude. “They are very positive and incredibly helpful, considerate and kind,” said the COO of New York-based media giant, who uses FSO to staff the mailroom and front desk and fill administrative posts. “The first candidate they send me usually nails the criteria I’m looking for, so my time isn’t wasted meeting five people in order to hire the right one.”

This is what underlies the difference between the happiest jobs and the most hated jobs. One set of jobs feels worthwhile, while in the other jobs, people can’t see the point.

The problems in the most hated jobs can’t be solved by job redesign or clearer career paths. Instead the organizations must undertake fundamental change to manage themselves in a radically different way with a focus on delighting the customer through continuous innovation and all the consequent changes that are needed to accomplish that.

We believe in lavishing praise, giving sincere thanks, looking for the best in everyone, never criticizing and catch ‘em being good! We set the precedent, telling people what they are doing right, and specifically why they are of value— raising the bar to a higher level.

The result of this philosophy is happy customers, workers who can see meaning in their contributions and soaring profits for those clients who place their trust in us.

In the spirit of the season.... CHEERS!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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"Not happy with their job? Then let me have it. I just want to work."

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Ted Tuesday: Without Self-Meaning, Money Means Nothing

"This is the battle cry of the millennial generation who is shaping the future of the workplace, here at FSO, and everywhere."

Good Morning Folks,

When I shared a Wharton Americus Reed, II's (the Whitney M. Young Jr., Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania) take on today's TED Talk on LinkedIn, a colleague  stood up and took immediate notice.

Her takeaway was that money, in the abstract, is meaningless. Just chits on the digital page, dollars in the trading account.

It's a tool, like a hammer.

A hammer is meaningless until you lift it and build a house, or smash a skull. A hammer can be good, or bad.

Likewise, money.

It means nothing until you do something with it.

Bad, frivolous, or good.

Opined Professor Reed in a Huffington Post review of this Ted talk, "If I had a dime for every business student who entered my office; lamenting the self-described drudgery that is their work-life. They thought that a career on Wall Street or in heavy duty consulting would bring that pristine pot of gold. They were right. And wrong. Yes, those hundred plus hour weeks catapult you into that illusive 5% earner stratosphere. But if I had a dime for every student who would later confide in me: "it just was not fulfilling," ironically, I would be as wealthy as the financial institutions from which they feverishly depart.

"

Enter social psychologist Paul Piff and his provocative TEDx talk "Does money make you mean?" Sixteen and a half minutes of summarized laboratory and field data show an association between wealth, and lack of compassion, empathy and pro-social motivation.

It's amazing what a rigged game of Monopoly can reveal. In this entertaining but sobering talk, social psychologist Paul Piff shares his research into how people behave when they feel wealthy. (Hint: badly.) But while the problem of inequality is a complex and daunting challenge, there's good news too. (Filmed at TEDxMarin.)



Professor Reed, II observes, "This Isn't Your Father's Business Person Identity--therein lies the paradigm shift. There is a new model of business and business student afoot: The student who enters my office with a deep passion to do two things. Make money and do good. Business schools are "rebranding" themselves to welcome this new identity. It's being called "social impact." The identity of the student, who has realized that mindless self-investment into the false idol of material things for their sake, is an empty void--a fast track to an empty soul--is changing. Business students are becoming much more aware, and self-reflective."

This is the battle cry of the millennial generation who is shaping the future of the workplace, here at FSO, and everywhere.

Watch the short 16 minute presentation and see if you don't agree.

Whatever your takeaway is, it takes a brave person to take on the Corporate interests in today's world, because they are global and pernicious - just like they have always been. Bravo Paul for helping us (re)IMAGINE new and different possibilities.

Let’s have some fun.. ITS OUR TIME, together we can do it.

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE. 

It's Your Career.

"No one is going to serve you a career on a silver platter. Your career will be what you make it. No more, no less."

Good Morning Folks,

Often I hear candidates say they want to leave a job, because their current employer is not ‘looking after my career’.

Sure, it’s important to work for a company like FSO where you can thrive, but you must above all understand this:

The person who will always care most about your career is you!

All of which reminds me of this post I saved from a recruiter I know...

==>  You Own Your Career, No-One Else! By: Alexey Fursov

The biggest mistake you can make in your work life is leave your career to your employer, or anyone else. You have to work at your career goal, plan it, and drive it where you want it to go.

Please understand that just having the qualifications is not enough anymore. Gone are the days where ‘getting the right degree will set up your career’. A degree just gets you the chance to get on the field, not win the game.

Ponder this. Success in your career will never be just a matter of qualifications or skills. It will always be a matter of motivation.

No one is going to serve you a career on a silver platter. Your career will be what you make it. No more, no less.

And so, as clichéd as it sounds, the starting point is to find what you like doing.

A career without passion and enthusiasm will have no meaning, no joy, and little hope of long-term success.

Indeed, does your career goal keep you awake at night?

If not, maybe you need to start to worry. You have 30 more years at work, and trust me on this.

No one else is having sleepless nights about what happens to your career.

So that means no one is steering your career ship.

Bottom line: You are always afforded a career, not just a job at FSO. But it's not a free ride.  Whether you have the motivation to apply and invest in yourself to learn and grow into future opportunities, is your part of the deal.

So, just a quick good morning. Great inspiration and motivation. Thanks for listening. Have fun and love life folks. We have lots to be thankful for. 

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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"If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time."
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Ted Tuesday: Kelly McGonigal: Making Stress Your Friend

"Kelly McGonigal is a leader driven by compassion and pragmatism.” – Forbes.com 20 Inspiring Women

Good Morning Folks,

Something very cool for you today that weaves nicely into this morning's FISH curriculum, for those who participated: the science of resilience and compassion. Things don't create meaning in life. You, your thoughts, your paradigms, create meaning. You are the active meaning maker of the show. It's all about our-self confidence!

This morning FISH taught us, "Each day we come to work we bring an attitude. We can bring a bad attitude and have a depressing day. We can bring a grouchy attitude and irritate our colleagues and clients. Or we can bring a happy, playful, cheerful attitude and have a great day. We can choose the kind of day we will have. Think about it. As long as we are going to be at work, we might as well have the best day we can have, but everyone must be on board!"

Those who believes that life is fun, that’s how life becomes. Those who believe life is difficult, that’s how life turns out. Those who believe that only honest way to be rich is to work hard, can never make a lot of money without working long hours, but those who believes that money comes to them effortlessly & easily tend to earn honestly but from comparatively less effort. Same is for health, relationship everything. Don’t you know some who eat fast food & doesn’t exercise much, but still maintain a healthy & fit physique?

Stress. It makes your heart pound, your breathing quicken and your forehead sweat. But while stress has been made into a public health enemy, new research suggests that stress may only be bad for you if you believe that to be the case. Psychologist Kelly McGonigal urges us to see stress as a positive, and introduces us to an unsung mechanism for stress reduction: reaching out to others.

Stanford University psychologist Kelly McGonigal is a leader in the growing field of “science-help.” Through books, articles, courses and workshops, McGonigal works to help us understand and implement the latest scientific findings in psychology, neuroscience and medicine.She is now researching a new book about the "upside of stress," which will look at both why stress is good for us, and what makes us good at stress. In her words: "The old understanding of stress as a unhelpful relic of our animal instincts is being replaced by the understanding that stress actually makes us socially smart -- it's what allows us to be fully human."

I couldn't stop watching her talk:


So kids, now that you know how, rid the stress and rock it today!.

Have a GREAT day, be happy and…

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

*TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences -- the TED Conference on the West Coast each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer -- TED includes the award-winning TED Talks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversations, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.  More at TED.com

Uncovering Your Company's True Culture

"Invest in individual mastery and market value . . . culture is to attracting high impact talent as a great product is to attracting good customers."

Good Morning Folks,

As you know I am a firm believer in continuing education by asking my team to read business books. Tom Peters is one of my favorites.

But now, thanks to the Internet, there are much shorter reads with just as powerful takeaways.

Here are a few I found in my library to share with the leaders among us this morning:

Jack Welch: Star Wars: When to Let a Top Performer Walk

How to Get Employees to Embrace Social Media

How To Uncover Your Company's True Culture

The Most Powerful Habit You Can Imagine

The Future of Work

Some thoughts on the culture article: Give me a team I can bring together in person now and then and watch the synergy pay off. 

As an people / talent professional, I have been astounded by how often senior leaders don’t “get” that culture is a living thing, unique to a company or organization. I once heard a fairly new leader describe the corporate culture of our organization to candidates but what he described was the culture of his previous company. He truly thought that if he said it, it would be so. As hard as I tried, I could not convince him that one organization’s culture could not simply be grafted onto a new organization and its employees.

The article linked above proffers that "... many companies have tried to adopt, say, the Zappos culture or the Google culture… but in most cases those attempts fail because culture is something that can be mimicked but almost never successfully copied."  

Within every organization, decision making drives performance. Every employee comes to work every day and makes decisions that impact performance.   The workplace has many temptations that employees must resist, from the petty impulse to claim credit for someone else's work, to the unscrupulous lapse of lying in a negotiation, to the criminal act of misrepresenting financial numbers.   

These decisions, at every level of the organization, define the corporate culture and drive performance.   

In 2008, Harvard Business School Professor Robert S. Kaplan and his Palladium Group colleague David P. Norton wrote The Execution Premium: Linking Strategy to Operations for Competitive Advantage.   There are ten (10) steps to define the corporate culture and drive performance, including:  

Step 1: Visualize the strategy.   

Step 2: Communicate the strategy. 

Step 3: Identify strategic projects.   

Step 4: Align projects with strategy.   

Step 5: Align individual roles and provide incentives.  

Step 6: Manage projects.   

Step 7: Make decisions aligned with strategy.   

Step 8: Measure the strategy.   

Step 9: Report progress.  

Step 10: Reward performance.  

To make change, leaders must identify behaviors that are in line with the desired culture and find ways to reward or reinforce them

I will like to say these idea is common among young growing companies regardless of years in existence, they are still learning, but when they get to certain points in their growth, they begin to value employees much as the value the customer, quite really, they realize that the employees also make the hearth of the company much as the customer do, it's a matter of time, if the company as a future or big dreams.

Industry training, incentives, rewards, recognition and a TRUE career path sit at the heart of a successful company culture centered on service. At FSO, our Future Leaders Program (FLP) identifies and develops business leaders across the FSO enterprise and ensures a strong bench to fill our national expansion

Have a GREAT day. Love LIFE!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“Never, never, never give up.” – Winston Churchill
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TED Tuesday: Simon Sinek's ‘Start With Why.’

"Why do some companies achieve things that completely exceed our expectations, defying all our assumptions for what's possible?'

Good Morning Folks,

I’m a big fan on Simon Sinek and it seems like you agree. When we presented his talk "How Great Leaders Inspire Action" on an earlier TED Tuesday, your reaction was overwhelming.  "How Great Leaders Inspire Action" is an amazing, inspiring and thought provoking talk from TEDxPugetSound.

Today's TEDTalk is a shorter variation on that theme.

You may have also seen my presentations based on Simon's ‘golden circle of human emotion,’ which explains the greatest motivation behind why people buy.

Simply put, he proves that people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.

Why do some companies achieve things that completely exceed our expectations, defying all our assumptions for what's possible?  Apple starts with "why" when defining their company, they are able to attract customers who share their fundamental beliefs. As Sinek puts it, "People don't buy what you do. They buy why you do it." Starting with "why" makes Apple, for example, more than just a computer company selling features, and that's why their products have flourished while their competitors' products with similar technology and capabilities have often flopped.

As a consultant and author, his books and presentations have provided inspiration to major organizations, corporations, non-profits, and businesses like ours to reshape our thinking, and by doing so, make us more responsive to the needs of our teams and our customers, and grow ourselves by the very process.

So now, here’s a treat for you: Sinek’s TED talk, ‘Start With Why.’

It occurred to me, that while many of you may be familiar with his TED Talks, you my be less familiar with his books: “Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action”, and “Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t.” Find them at Amazon.com.

I think the concept of starting with why hits the nail on the head regarding the trust economy. Most businesses have very comparable competitors, and it's trust and loyalty that will differentiate them in the markets through customer retention, word-of-mouth and the ZMOT. Starting with why allows businesses to go beyond what they're selling and connect on an emotional level that's much more moving that a few key features. Don't tell the world how you're going to change it, show the world.

At FSO, our strategy team also starts with the why and never loses its childlike curiosity to keep asking questions all with the goal on enabling our customers to find better ways, more options, more efficient resources and talent to enable what was not possible before.

Perhaps that's why we are the fastest growing company in outsourcing and have been so distinguished with inclusion on the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America for the past three consecutive years. Only a tiny fraction of the nation's companies have demonstrated such remarkably consistent high growth, particularly in the difficult economic environment of the past few years. This achievement truly puts you in rarefied company.

Have a GREAT Day,



Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer  

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE.  

About FSO Onsite Outsourcing
Recognized on the Inc. 5000 list of the nation's fastest growing companies for the third consecutive year, and lead by industry pioneer, Mitch Weiner, FSO's growth and success can be attributed to making a positive and powerful impact on their clients' bottom lines, as well as their employees' careers and lives.

Celebrating a Historic Soccer Win and Fearless Women Chasing Their Goals

"To the women of the World Cup, the Crain's honorees, and women everywhere who are making vital, significant contributions to their businesses, families and the health and well-being of the world at large, I salute you."

Good Morning Folks,

Welcome back from what I trust was a great 4th of July and holiday weekend for all. I hope everyone had an awesome long weekend and was able celebrate and enjoy some FUN with family and friends.

For all the blood, sweat and tears, Americans join me this morning celebrating our country's historic soccer win which roused the nation Sunday, sparking celebrations far and wide, online and off. Today we are World Cup champions, and forever we are World Cup champions!

Whereas women playing soccer was novelty the first time around, this time it validated women as sportsmen. Individuals who trained for years to kick off in top condition and come together as each instrument does in an orchestra in perfect harmony. The power of many succeeding as one. 

As one fan tweeted, "For all the heartbreak #USWNT has experienced since last World Cup victory, my 3yo daughter only sees a team of superheroes."

A perfect example to young girls everywhere of the power of human potential. And opportunity to capitalize on that potential regardless of gender.

It was different when I started in the outsourcing business. It was a man's world. Today we are proud that women make powerful contributions to our company across all roles. From the ELT leaders we have in Finance, People Solutions, and Strategy. To the top-level management in Training, Hospitality, Sales and leading our sites. To our clients themselves whom we report to, many of them strong women leading large profit centers.

And we are so delighted that Crain's honored some of our clients and many more on their just-released list of New York's 50 Most Powerful Women, celebrating whole new crop of leaders reshaping the Big Apple. They wrote:

"From banking to the arts, technology to health care, New York's female leaders cover every aspect of business, and this year, they have risen to even greater heights—leaving that glass ceiling in the dust. For the first time ever this year, women were appointed to lead two of the Big 4 accounting firms. 

In a hypercompetitive city jam-packed with talent, it was difficult for Crain’s editorial team to choose—and rank—the 50 women on this list. We weighed many factors, from their job titles and chains of command, to their organizations’ revenues and scope, to their civic engagement. In the following profiles we salute them all—and hope that anyone striving to join them someday at the top will be inspired by their successes.

What great examples you are setting for young women everywhere. We congratulate all of the winners.

Of course no one woman in any organization can do it alone. Like what was required to take the World Cup, it's about grit, determination, training, practice, perfection, teamwork, coaching, motivation and communication. The same qualities each of our teams at FSO aspire to in order to perform at peak for you.

At FSO, like in Professional Sports, everyone is here to support each other to achieve greatness. We ensure that our teams have the necessary skills to perform their jobs successfully and if there are gaps, we provide the training to fill those gaps. Once we've confirmed they have the skills to perform their job, we hold folks accountable, providing them with all the motivation in the world to ensure they are super successful. 

There is a saying, "The woman I was yesterday. introduced me to the woman I am today; which makes me very excited about meeting the woman I will be tomorrow."

To the women of the World Cup, the Crain's honorees, and women everywhere who are making vital, significant contributions to their businesses, families and the health and well-being of the world at large, I salute you.

Love Life! I am looking forward to seeing you soon.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing.” 

~~Socrates

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