ray williams

The Age of Empathy

BY Ray WilliamsMon Oct 26, 2009 at 12:19 AM

Greed is out. Empathy is in. That's how Frans de Waal begins his book, The Age of Empathy: Nature's Lessons For A Kinder Society. De Waal is a biologist, professor of psychology and director of the Living Link Center at Emory University. In 2007, Time magazine selected him as one of the world's most influential people. The global financial crisis of 2008, together with the election of a new American President representing a vastly different political and social perspective, has produced a "seismic shift in society," argues de Waal.READ»

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Want To Stay Healthy After Retirement? Keep Working

BY Ray WilliamsSat Oct 24, 2009 at 5:51 PM

Since the Great Depression, a commonly held perspective on the good life is that we can all look forward to retirement, when we didn't have to work any more. We would be more relaxed and healthier away from the stresses of work. There's a couple of flaws in that argument. For one thing, retirement, like pensions, was an invention of the depression, intended to deal with the problem of unemployment. Prior to the depression the concept of retirement didn't exist. And for the most part, people are viewing retirement in a very different way today. AARP in the U.S., report from a survey done in 2008 that 70% of workers plan to continue working past their retirement age.Now recent research questions the assumption that not working anymore will improve your health. READ»

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Is Management Efficiency A Myth?

BY Ray WilliamsMon Oct 19, 2009 at 12:55 AM

The current recession has produced a flood of management "experts" and many leaders of organizations whose only strategy for dealing with the downturn in the economy is cutting costs, layoffs and more efficiency based strategies. The mantra for business for much of the last century has been operational efficiency. So leaders look for ways to cut costs and make the operations lean and mean. Yet much of the rationale for and evidence supporting efficiency as a key management strategy is questionable.READ»

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Leadership Mindset May Determine Long Term Success

BY Ray WilliamsSun Oct 4, 2009 at 6:58 PM

A leader's "mindset" may determine success. Mindsets that are characterized by a commitment to growth, flexibility and adaptability continue to develop the leader's brain and develop reservoirs of untapped potential.READ»

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How Can Positive Affirmations Work?

BY Ray WilliamsSun Oct 4, 2009 at 2:18 PM

Positive affirmations can be a benefit to personal growth, if done in the right context, thus avoiding the damaging consequences of the wrong approach, as shown in recent researchREAD»

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Management Rewired: What CAn Brain Science Tell Us About Leadership?

BY Ray WilliamsFri Sep 25, 2009 at 12:17 AM

Research on how the human brain can affect behaviors--called neuroscience, or the popular term, brain science--has yet to be fully appreciated by leaders of organizations. That knowledge could have a significant impact on how leaders are trained and what they doREAD»

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Management Wired: What Can Brain Science Tell Us About Leadership?

BY Ray WilliamsSun Sep 20, 2009 at 10:36 AM

Research on how the human brain can affect behaviors--called neuroscience, or the popular term, brain science--has yet to be fully appreciated by leaders of organizations. That knowledge could have a significant impact on how leaders are trained and what they do. In the past few decades, Scientists have gained new and more accurate scientific views of human behavior, studying the human brain. Organizational change that takes into account the physiological nature of the brain and ways that predisposes people to resist or cooperate with leaders can be extremely useful for leaders.READ»

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Time To Reconsider Executive Education Courtesy of the Recession

BY Ray WilliamsTue Sep 1, 2009 at 12:59 AM

As a result of the recession many organizations have instituted staff reductions and reorganizations at the management levels. In doing so, leaders have an opportune time to rethink management structure, leadership styles and involvement in executive education.READ»

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Leadership For A New Era

BY Ray WilliamsMon Aug 24, 2009 at 1:51 PM

In times of crisis, people's behaviors and perspectives--both in their personal and work lives--change irrevocably. Those that adapt to the changes have the best chance for success. As a result of the current economic crisis, our economic system will fundamentally change and will not return to the "way it was." Our organizations will need leaders who understand that and provide the kind of leadership necessary for the new era.READ»

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Using Social Networking for Talent Recruitment and Training

BY Ray WilliamsTue Aug 11, 2009 at 3:18 PM

Social networking such as Facebook, LinkedIn and others are now being used by recruiters to recruit talent and implement training.READ»

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Stress: What You and Your Boss Can Do About It

BY Ray WilliamsMon Aug 10, 2009 at 7:33 PM

We all hear about how the fast pace of life today, and how economic pressures have increased stress levels. While the bad news about stress is familiar to most of us, the good news about stress is rarely heard.READ»

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Why Kindness is a Necessary Leadership Characteristic

BY Ray WilliamsSun Aug 9, 2009 at 5:03 PM

The criticisms of leaders in business and government in recent times often focus on issues of integrity, morality and emotional intelligence. North American culture still is drawn to the individualistic, strong man image of leaders and leaders who have analytical ability, decision-making skills or proficiency in execution. So-called "soft-skills" or traits, such as kindness and compassion in leaders have often been seen as weaknesses. Yet there is increasing evidence that questions that image.READ»

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Why Don't I Feel Better: The Truth About Positive Affirmations and Self Help Books?

BY Ray WilliamsMon Aug 3, 2009 at 6:16 PM

"I am successful," "I am a wonderful person," "I will find love again," many other similar phrases that students, the broken-hearted and unfulfilled employees may repeat to themselves over and over again, hoping to change their lives. Self-help books through the ages, from Norman Vincent Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking all the way to the latest, The Secret, have encouraged people with low self-esteem to make positive self-statements or affirmations. New research suggests it may do more harm than good to many people.READ»

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Why Every CEO Needs A Coach-revised

BY Ray WilliamsSun Jul 19, 2009 at 1:59 PM

In my National Post articles, Top Dogs are Lonely,The Second Fastest Growing Profession and The Seven Deadly Habits of CEOs, I outlined what is now common practice for CEOs--hiring a personal executive coach--and how that helps them perform better.READ»

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Why Every CEO Needs a Coach-revised

BY Ray WilliamsSun Jul 19, 2009 at 1:38 PM

In my National Post articles, Top Dogs are Lonely,The Second Fastest Growing Profession and The Seven Deadly Habits of CEOs, I outlined what is now common practice for CEOs--hiring a personal executive coach--and how that helps them perform better.READ»

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Why Every CEO Needs A Coach

BY Ray WilliamsSun Jul 19, 2009 at 1:11 AM

In my previous post, Why Every CEO Needs A Coach, I said the following :“Executives who rise to the C-suite do so largely based upon their ability to consistently make sound decisions. However while it may take years of solid ...READ»

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Self-Confidence: Nature or Nurture?

BY Ray WilliamsTue Jul 14, 2009 at 12:29 PM

Is self-confidence something that you're born with or is it taught and developed? It's the classic nature vs. nurture question. While current wisdom has been for some time that it's mostly nurture, there's some surprising research out that indicates we may be genetically predisposed to be self-confident.READ»

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Baby Boomers A Key To Economic Recovery

BY Ray WilliamsTue Jul 14, 2009 at 12:00 PM

Much has been written and discussed about the massive number of Baby Boomers who are retiring or about to retire, and the impact on the workplace. What are Boomers going to do with their lives? Here's two developing trends that may have a significant impact on the workplace and our economy: Temp workers and entrepreneurial start ups.READ»

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How To Stay Happy During the Recession

BY Ray WilliamsSun Jul 12, 2009 at 3:57 PM

How can we be happy when our investment savings have dwindled, we've lost our job, or your house. The recession has had a negative impact on the lives of many people. Is it possible to be or remain happy?READ»

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Self-Confidence: Nature or Nurture?

BY Ray WilliamsFri Jul 10, 2009 at 6:54 PM

Is self-confidence something that you're born with or is it taught and developed? It's the classic nature vs. nurture question. While current wisdom has been for some time that it's mostly nurture, there's some surprising research out that indicates we may be genetically predisposed to be self-confidentREAD»

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The Hidden Costs of Workaholism

BY Ray WilliamsThu Jul 9, 2009 at 9:07 PM

Workaholism is the respectable addiction in our society but it's costing organizations in terms of loss of productivity, poor relationships and employee engagement. During this recession, with the increased pressure on workers to perform, the problem is getting worse.READ»

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Job Test Ruling May Create Hiring Havoc

BY Ray WilliamsSun Jul 5, 2009 at 6:00 PM

Many employers across North America are cheered by the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark employment-discrimination ruling, as reported in the Wall Street Journal, July 1, 2009, in which the court ruled 5-4 in favor of white firefighters in New Haven, Connecticut, who challenged the city's decision to reject the results of a promotion exam because no black candidates scored well enough to advance.READ»

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Why Every CEO Needs A Coach

BY Ray WilliamsSat Jul 4, 2009 at 4:40 PM

CEO or executive coaches are now commonplace in organizations because CEOs recognize the demands and stress of the job require it. Smart CEOs understand their longevity and success may depend on a dynamic and productive partnership with a coach.READ»

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Can Positivity Increase Productivity?

BY Ray WilliamsFri Jul 3, 2009 at 7:58 PM

Can a positive frame of mind and emotional state improve an individual's performance on the job and in relationshipsour emotions are connected to our outlooks via a cause-and-effect relationship. The answer is yes! As positivity (as defined as love, joy, gratitude, serenity, hope and optimism) flows through our hearts, it simultaneously broadens our minds, allowing us to see the forest and the trees.READ»

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The Chemistry of Stress and Manager Behavior

BY Ray WilliamsTue Jun 30, 2009 at 12:19 AM

Under stress, hormones such as cortisol surge and severely affect people's reasoning and cognition. When both employees and managers are under stress, their cortisol levels are creating both an opportunity to take action, or conversely "be frozen," in a stressful state.READ»