Is Your Power Making You Lose Your Heart?
Jonas recently was promoted to a manager position at a nationwide furniture store. One of his responsibilities was to oversee the internship program for the company. In his first performance review as manager, his biggest complaint was how taxing overseeing the internship program was for him. He ranted about how long it took for the […]
Is Batman in Your Organization?: Creating Affinity Groups
A common practice of mine during my trainings to greet as many of the participants ahead of time. During one training, a guy walked in wearing a unique looking Batman shirt, so I made a comment. His face lit up, and he excitedly said to me, “Did you know that today is International Batman Day?” […]
Party for One – The Value of Social Proof
Sylvia is the kind of person that wants to make a difference. When she sees an issue, she takes action. So when it was finals week at her university and she knew everyone was going to be stressed, she woke up early and drew the words “Free Hugs” on a large poster board. Then, she […]
The Importance of Creating Your Secondary Family
When I was 11, Mom got the call that Gram was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. In that moment, Mom promised that she would never put Gram in a nursing home. Two weeks later, Gram moved in. For the next seven years until she died, we spent our days dressing her, feeding her and chasing after her […]
Weak Ties Get You the Job
In 1973, Mark Granovetter, a sociological researcher made a simple claim, that “….when it comes to finding out about new jobs – or, for that matter, new information, or new ideas – “weak ties” are always more important than strong ties.” When using the phrase “social network” now, we tend to think about the folks […]
Better than a Raise: Connections are the Key to Employee Happiness
“From now on, we’ll use this white board to track every interaction you have had with a client. If you don’t meet your quota, not only will everyone see, but there will be repercussions.” “The funeral is in the morning, so you’ll be back in office in the afternoon, right?” “I heard you did poorly […]
Your Graphic T-Shirt is Begging for Connection
My brother and I were visiting a relative in the hospital. When it was time for me to go home, my brother offered to walk me to my car. As we walked down the shiny corridors, we passed a room that had the door open. We noticed a younger man straight up staring at us […]
Apply Two Hat Theory for Better Customer Service
I don’t usually show annoyance in my face, but the flight attendant on a recent flight was so oblivious to how she was treating me, that I couldn’t help myself. It all started on a six-hour flight from Seattle to NYC. Within an hour of taking off, I finished the water in my canteen. I […]
The Essential Sameness of Camino de Santiago and Free Hugs
This post was written by Martine De Matteo, a graduate from Fordham University. Martine is the sister of Sabina, Swift Kick’s Community Manager. We are thrilled to share her beautifully written experience with our readers. Imagine waking up every morning at 6am for Free Hugs Day. That’s essentially what walking the Camino de Santiago is […]
Work is More Than Your Next Deadline: How to Create High Quality Connections in the Workplace
Fun fact: I knew Sam before she came to work at Swift Kick. She and I are cast members of an on-demand online workout show called Daily Burn 365. We would wake up early to have a trainer beat us up. On camera. In full makeup. Along with another friend Jen, these early mornings led […]