Succumbing to distraction One of the biggest problems of working from home is being exposed to a lot of distractions. Pets, crying children, TV, fridge and all the other things are just waiting to steal your attention. Distractions didn’t just appear when we started working from home. They were already there before, in our offices. …
Category: Leadership
Remote Scrum Master: how to make it work?
If you’re a Scrum Master trying to follow the best Agile practices, I bet you are a bit confused about your role nowadays. During every course and workshop Agile trainers emphasize how important collocated teams and face-to-face interactions are. Since 2001 the official Agile Manifesto position has been that: “The most efficient and effective method …
How to keep Millennials motivated in the workplace: What do Millennials want?
Each generation is a bit different. They have distinct expectations, priorities, cultural norms, levels of education, family status, and these issues, among others, affect the employment trends. It’s because shared generational memories of key events and experiences contribute to shaping attitudes and values. That’s why if you describe the differences between these groups, you can …
Remote work: does it improve productivity?
Remote work is getting more popular each year. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, between 2005 and 2015 the number of U.S. employees who telecommuted increased by 115%. That’s a lot! There are many concerns about allowing employees to work from home. That’s why, in this article I’d like to demonstrate how working …
Leading the team of junior software engineers
There is a moment in each leader’s career when they need to take care of a team consisting of inexperienced people. It can be an overwhelming task in the beginning, and not every leader will be able to cope with it. Many leaders, especially those who have only been working with experienced staff before, might …
Coping with complainers at work
We all know at least one chronic complainer. These are the people who truly believe that the whole world out to get them and they have to speak about that loud and clear all the time. They love to complain about everything. You can notice them quite easily, because they tend to use strict qualifiers, …
Developing leaders within a team
When your team grows, it’s typically a good sign. It means that there is a demand from the business, the project itself is getting bigger and it’s probably because the pace needs to be faster. It’s also a great opportunity for you as a leader or manager, because it gives you a chance to improve …
The Halo Effect kills your team’s engagement
It starts early, at school, in fact. A student, who scored the best grade on an assignment, is the one who instantly becomes a “teacher’s pet”. And there are couple of benefits of that position. If such a student is 5 minutes late to class, it’s not a big deal. A teacher will find it …
Strategies for dealing with narcissists in the workplace
The best way to effectively deal with a narcissist is to not deal with them at all. That’s what you can read in many professional books or articles. But sometimes it’s just impossible. A narcissist can be your boss or someone you’re not able to get rid of in your company. He or she can …
How to spot narcissists in the workplace?
Although it’s not possible to define a complete list of narcissistic attributes, there are some common qualities which are widely noticed among narcissists. And just to be clear, working with narcissists doesn’t necessarily have only negative consequences. If you notice that someone has narcissistic features, that person can still be your great colleague, manager or …