19 minute read
Guest Columns
GUEST COLUMN Molly McCoy 3 tips for promoting employee happiness
Promoting happiness and overall well-being in your workplace can lead to employees who are more committed, driven and even more effective leaders.
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Our teams spend most of their day at work, and the difference between a bad day and a great day often can be as simple as being happy. Happy employees are more likeable, creative and cope better with work strain. They also have a deeper sense of purpose and find true meaning in their work. It seems so simple — yet happiness is tied to nearly every positive outcome we could hope for in our organizations.
So, how do you create a happier workplace? Here are three tips for promoting happiness and workplace well-being in your organization.
Overcome negativity
It’s quite natural for humans to identify the negative, but negativity makes it harder to find solutions and to problem solve.
Move away from negativity quickly by encouraging and empowering your team to brainstorm solutions or ideas when they present a less than ideal observation. One easy way to do this in the moment is by responding to a complaint with the question: “So, what solutions can we come up with to make this better?” It automatically turns negativity into a challenge to collaborate on ways to fix a problem.
Using that creative side of your brain can stimulate new insights and analytical thinking. In the end, the organization wins, and a problem has been solved thanks to a creative and empowered team.
Use strengths
It sounds simple, right? Research has shown that people who use their strengths are six times more likely to be engaged at work and are three times more likely to report having an excellent quality of life. Encouraging your employees to pursue their purpose and shine in areas that bring them joy leads to a more satisfied and productive team.
You may want to take advantage of one of the many strengths-finder assessments online, host a workshop or simply sit down and have a one-on-one conversation. Follow-up by creating mentoring or enrichment opportunities based on your findings. Then sit back, relax and watch your team shine.
Make time for fun
Resurrect casual Fridays or a new “dress for your day” policy. Celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and promotions. Create a “Fun Committee” and task them with creating culture-enriching engagement experiences this summer, and throughout the year. The ideas can be as small or as large as budget allows.
Whether you have a cookout during lunch or schedule one-onone conversations, make your employees’ happiness a priority — and you can watch the wins from this effort through their ongoing performance.
As an employer, it’s important to have a vested interest in the mental health and happiness of your workforce and ensure employees have access to the opportunities they need to be happier, more productive employees. Talk to your health insurance company about the many well-being options available to you and consider utilizing Headspace, an employee mental health solution that can be tailored to fit your organization.
Molly McCoy is the director of sales and client services at Priority Health. She also holds a certification in mental health first aid.
MI VIEW WEST Garth Kriewall Michigan journalist, kriewall@hotmail.com
Grand Rapids is the craft beverage capital of America. If someone can grow it, we can brew it, ferment it, distill it, squeeze it, blend it, foam it, fizz it, mix it, or infuse it!
GUEST COLUMN Brian L. Mortimore Let’s put an end to generational discrimination
Let’s stop generational discrimination. It’s time. In fact, it is as overdue as that book you checked out from your high-school library and never returned before graduation.
It is time to stop generational discrimination and recognize the damage that it does. I’m sure you’ve seen it happen where an individual is part of a team or a work group, and their age is different than that of the majority, and in some manner or another, they’re called out for it.
Perhaps the comment is complementary (e.g., “It’s good to have a young person with new energy and fresh ideas in the room with us.”), but often it is not. I suspect many make such comments out of an unconscious fear of the unknown. Social psychology identifies the “similarity effect” as those who are similar tend to like one another. This helps explain how people choose their friends, spouses and groups they tend to follow in social media. When personality, interests and past experiences in life are shared, people take comfort in knowing the person they are interacting with is of a similar background. Naturally, generational and age differences can get in the way of the similarity effect.
It’s not hard to relate to this concept. Just think about how someone’s face lights up when they discover they have a mutual acquaintance or are from the same hometown. If they enjoy the same hobbies, political ideology, or attended the same school, they tend to naturally like one another.
To illustrate this, I know I remember exactly where I was when the space shuttle Challenger exploded, but I can’t relate to the feeling of pride others had when they watched astronauts walk on the moon.
Big events tend to bring people together because we all share them in our common experience. If we were alive in 2001, we probably remember seeing the twin towers fall, the day the hostages were released in Iran (1981), the ticker-tape parade in New York following the end of World War II (1945), and hearing Al Michaels say, “Do you believe in miracles?!” when the U.S. Olympic Hockey Team forever became known as “the miracle on ice” (1980).
But what if we’ve only heard of these events, or worse, had no idea about them at all? These are some notable dates and history, and odds are most readers are familiar with them, but others, perhaps less significant, are probably generational specific.
Do you remember when McDonald’s used Styrofoam packaging? Pop culture is loaded with references that in many cases transcend generations and in other cases, simply don’t. Recently I explained to my children that older cars in the 1970s had ashtrays and cigarette lighters; which was hard for them to imagine in an era where tobacco use is strongly discouraged. Once at work I used the phrase, “We’re gonna need a bigger boat,” and the entire room of people, made up of multiple generations, understood I was conveying that a problem was bigger than we could handle on our own (e.g., like Roy Schneider did as Chief Brady in the 1975 film “Jaws”). Why? Because the movie has spanned generations. Conversely, another time I walked into the office and said, “It’s time to make the donuts,” and two of our younger team members looked at me, puzzled. Only those who happened to be dialed into TV commercials in the early 1980s will know I’m suggesting I need to get to work, just like the day before, and the day before that... (e.g., like the Dunkin’ Donuts baker in the famed commercials).
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These references are fun (much of the time) as they help us to relate to one another and convey concepts or feelings, but they can create a divide as well.
I’m not suggesting there’s no place in business for pop-culture references; rather, that we need to be more sensitive to our audience and be prepared to explain them in a manner that doesn’t call someone out or make them appear to be uninformed or naïve.
There are currently five defined generations working side by side across a myriad of industries. Most articles written on the subject tend to offer insights as to the nuance and differences between each of the five groups, attempting to help the reader to navigate this seemingly complex pattern of behavior based on who they’re dealing with. There’s no problem with that. Rather, the problem rests in the stereotypes and prejudice that have become so pervasive among groups based on age.
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GUEST COLUMN Tom Blanck 5 tips to effectively market your business and grow operations
West Michigan is a fantastic region. In fact, Grand Rapids is one of the fastest growing cities in the Midwest. The city and surrounding communities are economically diverse and there is lots of great talent here. But Grand Rapids will never be Detroit. It won’t be the next Austin, nor the next New York, or Chicago. Thankfully!
Grand Rapids is its own thing, with its friendly, down-to-earth people and entrepreneurial spirit that are the foundation for this thriving community. To avoid stalling out as we come out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the West Michigan business community needs to step up its marketing game, which is the recipe behind other booming cities.
I work with dozens of West Michigan businesses, and here are some key aspects I recommend business owners should keep in mind:
1. Step back to move forward: Integrated marketing is the sustained, comprehensive analysis of a brand. It means delivering consistent messages about the brand through a comprehensive study of the brand. Before addressing a symptom (such as an outdated brochure or clunky website), consider implementing a brand audit. This will allow you to make the most of your marketing resources and investments.
2. Invest in a cohesive marketing strategy
both online and offline: Many companies still rely on word-of-mouth and established relationships. It’s worked for decades, but what happens when leadership changes or when a client doesn’t have time to go through their rolodex or supplier contact list? They google the service. And if your business is not ranked at the top, you might not be the client’s first call. For example: Chances are your business has been serving West Michigan customers at an unrivaled value for decades. However, some customers may simply not be aware of your suite of services. Why is your company not able to get the message across to local businesses? Does your website effectively communicate all services? Once it does, you will see the benefit through increased sales.
3. Avoid a Band-aid fix: The “easy” solution is to hire one of the hundreds of digital marketing firms offering quick (and expensive) fixes in hopes of getting customers through the door. But unless a company takes a holistic view of its brand, strengths and value proposition, the company would be wasting money on a short-term fix. The script is always the same: The digital marketing firm overwhelms business leaders with jargon and gimmicks, and since the goal is to sell, not to serve, the firm inevitably becomes a source of disappointment. Try going beyond the easy data-driven digital solutions to target customers. Good leaders understand that they need assistance to manage their digital marketing efforts while also creating clearer communication strategies that allow their customers to better understand their product and service offerings. Through an integrated marketing analysis with a marketing partner that’s focused on a long-term strategy, a company’s investment can lead to massive results beyond their short-term goals.
4. Stand up to the big box stores: Local businesses face this challenge throughout the country: How to stand up against larger corporate competition. Start with an extensive brand audit to understand what advantages you offer that a big box doesn’t. Leverage that to define a brand strategy and revisit your marketing efforts to support the organization’s growth. This may include a combination of new brand strategies and marketing material creation. In addition to product offerings or services that only you can provide, if you have multiple locations with unique local audiences, be sure to personalize your strategy and tailor it directly to them.
4. Launch a customized landing page: At some point, all businesses need to rebrand and relaunch their websites. It’s part of ensuring your brand stays fresh and up to date. Large corporations go through this process regularly. That being said, redesigning a website is a bill that most small and medium-sized businesses cannot afford to pay. A proven way out of this conundrum is developing a customized landing page, a standalone web page designed to increase the success of your online presence while avoiding a complete overhaul of your website. Unlike a website, which encourages exploration, a landing page is optimized to drive visitors to complete specific goal conversions (book a session, purchase a ticket, or rent equipment). This tactic will save you money, deliver results, and allow you to tackle the bigger project down the road.
Grand Rapids no doubt will continue to grow. It’s in its DNA. But to fight strong competition and stand out as a region, businesses need to address some important marketing issues hindering them. Before you hire a digital marketing firm, consider an integrated, holistic approach, which will look into your company’s whole brand ecosystem and offer recommendations based on your specific needs, as opposed to cookie-cutter products and hands-off service.
Tom Blanck is founder and creative director at TMBPartners.
Lenders are creeping out from beneath pandemic
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those card purchases were low, which indicated that people were sitting on their money. There was nothing to really buy because everything was closed, and people were hunkering down and not really doing a whole lot. Now people are out doing things again. They are going on vacations, they are buying more gas (and) gas costs more too. All those types of things (are) showing people are out there spending their money again when they weren’t, especially this time last year.”
Henion said he believes the increase in loan demand will depend on what the interest and inflation rates are.
“If the feds can keep inflation rates in check and interest rates at a low level, I think this fall and into next year we’ll see expansion. But if inflation ticks up and the fed has to raise interest rates, I can foresee caution on that, on the business community expanding and borrowing funds.”
It’s our business to help you build yours.
We are in the business of making sure we earn your trust and keep it. We don’t want to be your financial institution — we want to be your trusted financial partner. We’ll deliver the financing you need, when you need it — so materials can get delivered and you can start building. Our experienced lenders learn your business and recommend customized banking, borrowing, investing, and insurance solutions to position your company’s future success.
It starts with a simple conversation. Jeff VanderMeulen Vice President Commercial Lending (616) 265-3138 Jeff.VanderMeulen@LMCU.org
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When we go to great lengths to try to define a person by their age, using stereotypical observations, we reinforce those stereotypes and create a non-inclusive environment for those individuals. In my years working in human resources, there are some universal desires that I’ve observed in people across all generations. Most fundamental to all of these desires is to be respected in the workplace. If we take the time and effort to avoid labeling the generations and/or refrain from addressing team members differently based upon their age, we will promote a more positive workplace culture that leverages the best in everyone.
Recently I asked members of our management team if they have witnessed or had ever experienced feelings of being excluded based on age and generational differences and several indicated they had and offered to share their insights.
Morgan Hanks, KDL’s manager of user experience, shared, “As the youngest person on the management team, I have often faced the eyerolls or shared laughter at my expense. When making a suggestion for the good of our organization, I have been met with comments such as, ‘Hah! We tried that back in 1999, probably before you were even born!’ or ‘I have been doing this job longer than you have been alive.’ From my experience, these types of comments are meant to be good-natured and to poke a bit of fun at the newbie, but at what expense? In these moments I am left feeling like I am outside of a good joke looking in, or as if I am not respected due to my age. I value institutional knowledge and respect those who have paved the way before me. To create a more inclusive environment, these comments could be reframed by saying, ‘I’d be curious to explore that again. We did try it back in 1999, but so much has changed since then!’ Cross-generational work is imperative to moving our services forward. We can contentiously learn from the past while looking forward for solutions. I would never want to risk stunting someone’s creative idea because they felt they did not have the years of service to speak up.”
Regional Manager Eric DeHaan adds; “I’ll admit, the first time I became aware of the “OK, boomer” meme, I think I chuckled. While most of us have encountered people of a certain generation that aren’t comfortable with newer technology, it’s an absurd notion to assume this always holds true. It’s a caricature. Often, caricatures are intended to make us laugh, but the reality is they can also enforce unhealthy or untrue stereotypes and, unfortunately, after enough exposure, these caricatures can become perception. While I don’t believe there was any true malice in its original intent, the reinforcement of the inept ‘boomer’ stereotype has no doubt led to false assumptions and most likely, poor decisions. These same errors in judgment can be applied to other generations as well.”
While some employers have long promoted a culture where workers across multiple generations are valued and not put down or mocked, others are increasingly taking notice that inclusiveness includes showing respect to all persons, regardless of age.
By eliminating the labels, stereotypes, caricatures, or assumptions that go with them, we can all work together to lift our teams up, ensuring they truly belong, all while leveraging the value that each person brings to work every day, be it their first year on the job, their 10th, or their 40th.
Brian Mortimore, SPHR-SCP, is the director of human resources and organizational development at Kent District Library. He has taught classes, consulted, and has been published on a variety of topics related to human resources and business management.
Lab-grown meats are possible
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were over age 40.
Few Americans have had the opportunity to try cultured meat since it’s not approved for public consumption in the United States.
Singapore was the first government to allow cultured meat to be sold to the public in December 2020. The meat was a product of Eat Just Inc. No other country has yet approved cultured meat for public sale.
Kirshenbaum said she had the opportunity to eat cell-cultured seafood while working on Capitol Hill and is willing to try cultured meat in the future.
“Meat isn’t going anywhere, so I don’t see cultured meat as a threat to the agricultural industry,” she said.
“I suspect that it will appeal to consumers interested in conserving water and energy and providing fewer greenhouse gas emissions, as well as those concerned about animal welfare or antibiotics and hormones,” she said.
One supportive consumer is Ireland Ingram, a master’s student studying health and risk communication at MSU.
“For me, being vegetarian is truly about the ethical and moral implications the meat industry poses on animal welfare,” Ingram said.
“From that standpoint, I would support cultured meat being served since it would translate to less animals being killed for the purpose of consumption,” she said.
“I also believe that this would be a much more sustainable approach to providing meat since it takes almost 1,800 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef,” she said.
Ingram said that although she supports cell-cultured meat as an alternative to farmed livestock, she doesn’t think she would eat it.
“I know it is unrealistic to ask everyone to be vegetarian to save the planet, but cultured meat could be a new sustainable approach that also improves animal welfare,” Ingram said.
