Carol Merlo Called It “A Must Read”

June 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment

This week, my virtual book tour continues with a “stop” at Carol Merlo’s health and wellness blog. She reviewed A Forgiveness Journal and even called it “A Must Read”! You can check out her review at theeightkeystowellness.com.


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Posted by Carma | Filed Under Forgiveness, Virtual Book Tour, blog 

Two Views Of Forgiveness: Virtual Book Tour Week in Review

June 19, 2009 | Leave a Comment

As my virtual book tour starts to pick up steam, I’ve had the opportunity to “stop” by a couple of blogs this week.

The first was at the Keener Financial Planning blog, where Jean Keener talked about how forgiveness can help you with your financial life, especially in this down economy. My article, Forgiveness: 5 Reasons It’s Good for You was also posted to the blog.

Then, today, my pastor posted a review of my book at the Sunflower Chalice blog.


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Posted by Carma | Filed Under Forgiveness, Virtual Book Tour, blog 

Virtual Book Tour Week in Review

June 13, 2009 | Leave a Comment

This past week, I stopped by the Planting God Communities blog managed by Rev. Ron Robinson. His post talked about Letting Go of the Past, Forgiveness, and Planting. He even talked about William Faulkner! Good company to be in, I think.


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Posted by Carma | Filed Under Virtual Book Tour, blog 

The Most Ignored Task on your Job Search To-do List

June 11, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Have you been laid-off or fired from your last job? Are you looking for work and not having much success? Standard advice to job seekers includes updating the resume, attending networking events, calling your contacts, etc. What is seldom mentioned is the need to work on forgiving your last employer or manager who laid you off. Without fully processing your anger and resentment toward your last job, company or boss, you will have a hard time convincing a new employer to hire you.

What happens if you are lucky enough to get an interview and you are still full of bitterness toward your last manager? Even if you don’t say something overtly derogatory about your last job, your resentment will be felt on an unconscious level by the interviewer. What interviewer, in a very tight job market, wants to hire someone who is full of negative emotions? In a recession, employers have the pick of the field in hiring, and will almost always choose a candidate who exudes confidence, forgiveness of past employers and a broad perspective of market conditions and human frailty.

During a period of unemployment, your time would be well spent in working through your feelings about how and why you were terminated. Writing down your deepest thoughts and feelings is a good way to extract them from the inside closet of your mind and apply them to paper. In that way, your analytical brain can process them, see patterns, gain perspective and forgive the past. Forgiving yourself will be part of this process for those who feel some responsibility for losing their job.

For how-to advice on forgiving, please refer to my book, A Forgiveness Journal: Letting Go of the Past, found at www.aforgivenessjournal.com


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Posted by admin | Filed Under Forgiveness 

May 28, 2009

June 11, 2009 | Leave a Comment

I listen to and read the news with great interest these days, scanning for items about positive values such as forgiveness and compassion. I’m delighted when I find something that shows the benefits of practicing these values. For example, Elizabeth Edwards, in her interviews with Oprah and Larry King this month, described the pain and heartbreak she endured after learning of her husband’s infidelity. Even so, she says she forgave him to reduce her emotional pain. Thank you, Elizabeth, for your courage and strength in practicing forgiveness and working to re-build trust in your marriage.

Another example is the quote I use in the beginning of the featured article this month. It is from the Prime Minister of Bhutan, a small country in the Himalayan mountains that is dwarfed by its two neighboring countries, India and China. This country is pursuing and attempting to measure happiness within its borders. Instead of the Gross National Product, Bhutan has identified 72 indicators that measure the Gross National Happiness index.

It’s heartening to read about countries and people that are making a difference and setting an example for the rest of us.


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Posted by admin | Filed Under Greetings from Kristin 

A Forgiveness Journal Virtual Book Tour Re-cap

June 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment

The virtual book tour for my new book, A Forgiveness Journal: Letting Go of the Past, is now underway. Last week, I “stopped by” The Women’s Business Gallery. Carma Spence-Pothitt, the owner of the site, promoted my book and discussed how forgiveness can help you break through barriers that might be holding you back in your business.

You can see that the stops on my tour are starting to fill in. They are regularly updated on my official Virtual Book Tour page, as well as in the sidebar of this website.

If you would like to participate in the tour … there are some perks, including the chance to win a copy of my book, as well as being spotlighted on my webistes … just contact my assistants at info@brioleadership.com.


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Posted by Carma | Filed Under Forgiveness, Virtual Book Tour, blog 

Valuable Workplaces: Constructing a Values-Based Business

June 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment

clip_image001[6]Recently, the Prime Minister of Bhutan, Jigme Thinley, was asked the cause of the current economic crisis. His answer: “Greed, insatiable human greed.” This statement is significant coming from a country where government programs are justified on their ability to produce happiness.

This highlights the contrast between values such as the pursuit of happiness (a value first espoused in the United States’ Declaration of Independence) and greed. In order to resolve the current economic crisis, businesses must inspect their operational values and ensure that greed or profitability is not the only one in evidence. It seems that we didn’t learn this during the early 2000’s when we watched corporations such as Enron and WorldCom self-destruct under the influence of greed and the pursuit of profits, at the expense of integrity, honesty and compassion. It is time that we learned to do better. Being an unabashedly proud capitalist, I am the first to espouse profitability as an important corporate value (otherwise, there would be no corporation) but there is trouble when profitability is the foremost – or only – value in operation.

The trouble is, valuing profitability above all else may create short-term benefits but produces long-term disadvantages. It does nothing to contribute to employee engagement and happiness. Employees need to find meaning in their work and understand how it helps others. Modeling values such as integrity, wisdom, compassion and forgiveness creates a positive, happy work environment and contributes to the long-term profitability of the company. James Collins and Jerry Porras document the exceptional financial performance of what they call visionary companies in their book, Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies.

How can an organization create a positive, values-based climate? It employs a balancing act that creates organizational well-being. The five elements that need balancing are represented in the holistic well-being diagram shown above: values, body, heart, mind and spirit. Some of you may recognize this diagram from a previous article I wrote about individual well-being. What can be applied to the person can also be applied to the organization. Let’s explore these elements briefly:

  1. Values: An organization defines its values through its vision and mission statements and perhaps a values statement. These strategic documents are common to most companies and need no further explanation. However, what is uncommon is a dedication to living the espoused values, using them to make everyday decisions, and executive commitment to walking the talk. We know that when leaders model the organization’s values and explicitly use them in their decision-making, the rest of the organization follows suit.
    • Self-assessment questions: Leaders, are you modeling the values of your organization? Do you consciously base your decisions on corporate values? Do you hold people accountable to the organizational values, and recognize others when they do?
  1. Body: The corporation or organization must take care of the basic physical needs of its employees. This includes paying fair wages, providing adequate employee benefits and creating a safe and comfortable work environment. This includes also making sound business and financial decisions, which contribute to the fiscal health of the organization.
    • Self-assessment questions: Is your work environment ergonomically sound? Are your employees paid at or above marketplace averages? Is the organization using its financial resources wisely and producing a healthy profit margin?
  1. Heart: The heart pillar represents the emotional intelligence and the quality of interpersonal relationships in the organization. It assumes that leaders treat employees with compassion, respect, forgiveness and fairness. This element can be measured by the number of positive values in operation in the workplace, which contribute to employee loyalty and therefore customer loyalty. This progression looks like this:

Employee treatment = Employee loyalty = Customer treatment = Customer loyalty

    • Self-assessment questions: Is there an absence of fear and suspicion in your workplace? Are employees comfortable expressing their opinions and offering suggestions? Do managers create an environment of trust and respect?
  1. Mind: The organization can create an environment of continuous learning and discovery. This is accomplished on both an individual and corporate level. The organization should be open to feedback and take action upon receiving it. For employees, it is important to know that the employer will offer job-related training and the opportunity to advance in their careers.
    • Self-assessment questions: Is there a defined career path for all employees? Are employees offered continual learning and training opportunities? Does the organization seek feedback on its performance from both employees and customers? Do managers act on the feedback received?
  1. Spirit: The human spirit longs to serve others, find meaning in work and to make a difference in the world. In order for work to be meaningful, it must provide an opportunity to serve others, both inside and outside the organization. The spirit is fed by working for an organization that stands true to its vision and mission and lives its values everyday.
    • Self-assessment questions: Do employees understand the overall mission of the company? Do employees understand how they contribute to the mission? Are employees provided opportunities to serve their community through their actual work and through charitable activities? Does the leadership discuss and act on ways to make a difference in the local and global community?

Construct your organization on the solid foundation of values while caring for the body, heart, mind and spirit, and you will create a sustainable and ethical business that enjoys long-term profitability!


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Posted by admin | Filed Under Leadership