Parcel - August 2008 - (Page 39) industry news from mark taylor their major reasons. The most common problem areas we have encountered are meeting skills, setting agendas, determining the meeting’s roles and responsibilities, setting and keeping ground rules and facilitative behaviors.” These are the basics, and the key is facilitative behavior, what author Daniel Goleman calls emotional intelligence. As studies on learning have demonstrated, we don’t learn effectively when we are stressed, anxious or afraid. Threatening people, explicit or implied, simply does not work. We need to create a safe, trusting environment for employees to be productive. After analyzing 181 competence models from 121 organizations worldwide, Goleman concluded, “I found that 67% — two out of three — of the abilities deemed essential for effective performance were emotional competencies. Compared to IQ and expertise, emotional competence mattered twice as much.” Emotional intelligence, in a nutshell, is awareness of your own emotions, self regulation and appropriate expression. For example, when you are angry, instead of yelling at someone or calling them names, you get your anger under control and then have a conversation. It means that instead of barking orders, you make requests. It means saying please and thank you. It is about taking care of the people on the team, as hu- man beings, that have feelings instead of machines. It is also about dignity and respect. Jim Collins and Jerry Porras, authors of the book Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, spent six years in researching “visionary” companies to determine what’s special about them. To get on the list, a company had to be world famous, have a stellar brand image and be at least 50 years old. They concluded, “Contrary to business school doctrine, ‘maximizing shareholder wealth’ or ‘profit maximization’ has not been the dominant driving force of exceptional companies. Yes, they seek profits, but they’re equally guided by core values and a sense of purpose beyond just making money. Yet paradoxically, the visionary companies make more money than the more purely profit-driven comparison companies.” So the next time someone asks why, tell them. Share your vision and values. Help them to see a sense of purpose. Take care of your relationship. We all really want to make a difference. Mark A. Taylor, DLP, is the Chief Logistics Officer of RedRoller and the President of TAYLOR Systems Engineering Corporation. Mark can be contacted by phone at 734-420-7447 or via email at Mark@RedRoller.com. ■ www.PARCELindustry.com August 2008 39 http://www.PARCELindustry.com http://www.PARCELindustry.com http://www.PARCELindustry.com
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