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Category: 1-Minute Strategy

‘What would you do if I weren’t here?’

When colleagues come to you with problems to solve, resist offering them a solution. Instead, ask, “How would you handle this if I weren’t here today?” Often you’ll hear that the person could solve the problem after all. And at the very least, their answers will give you a glimpse into their creative thinking process—or […]

How good a speller are you?

Go to merriam-webster.com/word-games/spell-it to test your spelling ability. You’ll get 10 words that you’ll hear sounded out and used in a sentence. You’ll have 15 seconds for each word, but the faster you answer, the higher your score. You can then see how you rank among others.

Leave that mistake in the rearview mirror

Not only will admitting an error make you seem bigger in the eyes of your colleagues, but it’s absolutely the fastest way to cruise right on past it, reducing stress and clearing your mind. Make a confession your first order of business even if there’s a clear way out of trouble. Then consider buying yourself […]

The walls have ears … and eyes

At work, many of us have occasional conversations in hushed tones about something that bothers us, or closed-door discussions we don’t want others to hear. The bad news is that though the words might be kept secret, passersby notice and remember the sight of those closed doors and don’t forget seeing us making an effort […]

Beware of stereotyping by department

We all know not to judge people based on accent, skin color, gender, etc. But one insidious form of prejudice is harder to detect: judging employees by the department in which they work. Examples: accounting = number cruncher; IT = systems nerd; engineering = socially awkward; sales = pushy, big talkers. Aside from the fact […]

Defuse a hothead’s phone call

Ever get a call from an employee who immediately launches into an angry diatribe? This trick might tone them down: Before they go on too long, ask them to hang up, calm down a little, and call back in 60 seconds. That short breather period often acts as a natural sedative, and rationality returns.

Ctrl+F to the rescue

Many people assume that the Ctrl+F function is just a great way to scan and find words and phrases in a text document. Remember that it’ll also work for almost any web page and a great many PDFs too. The general rule is, if something’s on your computer screen, it’s a good bet Ctrl+F is […]

A solution for an overloaded mind

Face it. We’re all deluged with passwords. Now there’s some help in relieving the frustration and fatigue that comes with password overload. LastPass securely remembers all your passwords, and you can use it on all your devices, free. All you need is one master password and LastPass locks up the others. You can upgrade to […]

Who’s benefiting from the tube?

Got a TV on in the break room at work? Letting it default to a news channel unfortunately gives people passing through a quick dose of the tension, controversy and cynicism going on in the world 24/7, turning conversation quickly toward terrible things are. What workplace needs that? Think about turning on something like a […]