Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Our wellbeing is important. A big part of that is sleeping well. So, it only makes sense to examine how we wind down at the end of the day. Good evening routines lead to good mornings and so on … 

Some of the activities that we do as a part of our morning routine could also be part of our evening routine. For example, including an element of fun. However, there are a few other considerations. Here’s a list of ten activities to think about when trying to create or improve on your evening routine. 

1. Figure out how much sleep you need. This is going to vary by individual, but all of us should know how much sleep we need to be our best the next day. Are you going to get that amount every single night? Probably not. But should we try to get that amount on a regular basis? Yes, we should. 

2. Identify your ideal sleep environment. I think this might be one of the reasons that people say they never sleep the same when they’re traveling. Because at home, they have their ideal sleep environment – the room is the right temperature, the bed and bedding are exactly the way they like it, and the ambient noise is something they’ve become used to. Take time to identify your ideal sleep environment. 

3. Evaluate if using a sleep tracker makes sense. Sleep tracking is quite popular, whether it’s using an electronic device or just making note of it in a journal. It’s possible that by tracking our sleep, we might learn a few things about ourselves that would be helpful in creating the right sleep environment (see #2). 

4. Decide how much screen time you want before bed. Personally, I try not to look at the news before bed. It will be there in the morning. But I’m totally fine with playing an online game – usually one that’s low key and not very competitive so it doesn’t interrupt my sleep. 

5. Find something fun to end the day. Speaking of games, it might be fun to work on a puzzle or read a book or something completely different. Maybe listening to your favorite music. Ending your day with a fun activity can clear your head and help you have a good night’s sleep. 

6. Consider journaling. In the past, we’ve talked about journaling to express gratitude and record our career accomplishments. Journaling could also be a great way to let go of any “stuff” from the day and enjoy the rest of your evening. 

7. Think about evening beverages. I’m going to lump all the beverages into one category – caffeinated, alcoholic, etc. Again, every individual is different but knowing how beverages affect your sleep is important and something to consider. I love a cuppa tea before bed, and it really helps me relax. But I’m careful not to drink anything caffeinated. 

8. Determine if you want to include any physical activity. Typically, I exercise in the morning but sometimes, I like doing some light stretching before bed. Everyone is different so decide what works best for you and helps you sleep well, and wake refreshed. 

9. Practice self-care. I’m not into big elaborate skincare rituals but I do try to use some sort of night cream / moisturizer both in the morning and evening because I find it to be beneficial. Oh, and this brings up one more thing. I’m very careful about scented products because I want the scent to be something I can tolerate all night. 

10. Remember there will be days when you can’t do it all. When I’m traveling, I don’t get to do all these things. Sometimes, when Mr. Bartender and I go out to a movie or show in the evening, I don’t get to do all these things. That’s okay. I focus on the ones I feel are most important to helping me sleep well and enjoy my full evening routine the next night. 

I hope this list is a reminder that getting a good night’s sleep matters. And a lack of sleep can impact our work and our relationships. According to a study from the Sleep Foundation, insufficient sleep has an estimated economic impact of more than $411 billion each year in the United States alone. One thing that can help us get better sleep is to think about our evening routine and the activities we can do to make it better.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Fort Lauderdale, FL

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Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

If you haven’t seen it, the 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals that 70% of individuals are unwilling or hesitant to trust someone who has different values, facts, problem-solving approaches, or cultural background. Creating trust is hard. Restoring trust when it’s been broken is even harder. But trust can be improved. Whether you’re an individual or an organization, here are a few things you can do. 

1. Have an ethical compass. I realize that ethics might have a level of subjectivity. What I believe is unethical, someone else might feel is fine. The good news is that most organizations and professional associations have ethical standards that we can turn to for guidance. Ethics help us define appropriate behavior. Inappropriate behavior erodes trust. If we want employees, managers, and organizations to act ethically, then we need to know their ethical standard and hold them accountable to it.

2. Know when to confront an issue and when to let it go. Everything isn’t meant to be a battle. Sometimes people say things just to see if they can “push a few buttons”. Knowing when to ignore someone’s antics is important. Equally important is knowing when to stand up for something. Just because someone is a client, customer, manager, or co-worker doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be held accountable for their actions. People do not have to be shamed publicly but they do need to account.

3. Respect people even when you disagree with them. I believe it’s possible to hold someone accountable and still be respectful. Accountability is not a form of punishment. At least, it doesn’t have to be. When we disagree, we can still express our differences in a respectful way. If we find ourselves constantly disagreeing, then we might need to make some other decisions. But even then, we can treat each other in a respectful fashion. 

4. Keep confidential things confidential. And when you can’t, tell the other person in advance. People want to know that when they say, “Let’s keep this between us.” that the other person will respect their wishes. Now I will admit, this can be especially challenging in human resources. If someone says something like “I’m being harassed.”, HR cannot keep it secret. But they can tell the person why they can’t maintain confidentiality. Building trust is about being honest. 

5. When your views change, let others know. I’m not saying that people aren’t entitled to change their mind. If your position on something changes or evolves, let those who need to know…know. Let’s say you’re a manager. What’s confusing to employees is when the manager has one opinion on Tuesday and a different one on Wednesday, with absolutely no conversation in between. They don’t know what the manager stands for. More importantly, they don’t know when the manager is going to support them. 

6. Be organized and follow through. If I had a dollar for every time someone said, “I’m going to send you…” or “I’m going to do this…” – but they don’t – then I’d be rich by now. I’m sure you know people who do the same thing. Building trust is about doing what you say you’re going to do. If you say that you’re going to send something…send it. If you promise an employee something, do it. They expect you to keep your word. 

While I hope this list is easy to read, it’s not an easy to do list. I don’t know that any of us will be able to simply check these actions off like a grocery list. It will take time and regular reminders. But it’s worth the effort because our trustworthiness is too important. 

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Orlando, FL

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Regardless of what’s happening in the job market, organizations should be still focused on hiring, engaging, and retaining the best talent. With the emphasis on retention. No organization wants to spend valuable resources hiring talent only to have them leave within weeks or months after their start. 

While it’s an older study, I do find this statistic from Korn Ferry to still be applicable today –  98% of executives said that onboarding programs are a key factor in employee retention efforts. It only seems logical if an employee starts their employment off well that will set them up for success with the organization. And success can translate into retention. 

This is where preboarding comes in. It’s probably safe to say that most organizations conduct orientation and some form of onboarding. Preboarding is that period between when a candidate has accepted the job but hasn’t started yet. It’s not long – maybe just a couple of weeks. But this time can be valuable in building positive work relationships and setting new hires up for success. Here are five components to consider in creating a preboarding experience.

1. Establish the purpose. Since preboarding time is limited, organizations should be intentional in what they are trying to accomplish. Onboarding programs in general are designed to welcome new hires and help them to become productive. Preboarding activities should align with the goal of the program. Everything does not have to be in a preboarding program. 

2. Develop a communications plan. Once the candidate accepts the job offer, organizations should let them know that they will be sending some communications over the span of a couple of weeks. Let candidates know that the communications are designed to make their transition to their new role successful. 

3. Create excitement. One of the most exciting aspects of joining a new company is getting to meet the new team. Preboarding activities should create some excitement by including welcomes – maybe a video from the CEO, a card or email from co-workers, and a quick check-in from the hiring manager. 

4. Inform. Don’t overwhelm. Candidates have a lot going on during the preboarding time frame. They could be trying to wrap up projects at their soon-to-be former employer and they’re getting ready for their new role. Preboarding activities should be easy to consume like watching a quick video, reading an FAQ, or completing a form.

5. Set expectations. New employees want to know when certain activities will happen such as getting paid, signing up for benefits, etc. Use preboarding as a way to set expectations with employees regarding those activities – especially if they don’t happen on the first day. Telling employees when to expect things says that the organization hasn’t forgotten about them.

The good news is today’s technology solutions are well-equipped to help organizations facilitate preboarding activities. It could be a video call or automated series of emails from an onboarding software solution.

Preboarding is a great activity to stay engaged with candidates before they become employees. Think of preboarding as a “bridge” between the candidate experience and the employee experience. It can also serve as a way to reduce incidents of “ghosting”, where candidates disengage with the organization. Unfortunately, sometimes organizations don’t find out that they’ve been ghosted until it’s too late.

Preboarding is a small part of the overall onboarding experience. But when designed thoughtfully, preboarding can provide a big impact to help new employees feel welcome and engaged.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Nashville, TN

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Every once in a while, we need to take a look at ourselves, our performance, and our careers. Think of it as a self-audit. Sometimes we do this before our annual performance review. Before our manager tells us how we’re doing, we reflect back on the year and come up with our own thoughts. 

Well, instead of just reflecting back on the last year for a performance review, think about taking a broader approach. Audit your entire career and use that information to develop career goals. These goals can help you stay focused and ultimately achieve what you want. 

To get you started, I’ve put together a list of articles that you might find useful when doing your self-audit. You can ask yourself, “How am I doing in this area?” and “Are there things that I would like to improve on?”

The Difference Between Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Confession: I tend to use these terms interchangeably at times. Truth is, I shouldn’t. Knowledge, skills, and abilities (aka KSAs) are three different things. The reason we sometimes use the terms interchangeably is because they are all “must-haves” in our career. However, it will be important to understand the difference because the way we obtain knowledge, skills, and abilities can vary. 

Having Media Literacy is a Business Competency

We’ve all been exposed to the notion of misinformation and/or disinformation. and it won’t be the last time. This is our new normal and not something to be ashamed or embarrassed about. Even professional journalists have experienced it. The answer isn’t to stop using the internet. It’s to get better about questioning what we read and see. 

Networking: 7 Proven Ways to Grow Your Career

I’ve seen articles stating that up to 70% of jobs are never advertised and filled through a networking contact. Building a professional network takes time. It’s so important to think long-term when it comes to networking. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve seen people ignore their network only to regret it later. 

Be a Good Meeting Participant

We spend a lot of time in meetings. I don’t know the exact number of hours. I’ve seen statistics ranging from 3 hours a week all the way up to 23 hours a week. Regardless, it’s a lot. Participants have a role in the meeting. It could be beneficial to think about how to be a good meeting participant. 

How to Work with Manipulative People

At work and in life, we encounter all types of people. And some might be manipulative. Sometimes we can chat with the person, explain our point of view, and move on without another incident happening again. Other times, we might need help because the person who is being manipulative is the boss or a leader in the organization. 

I mentioned at the beginning of this article that doing a self-audit on your career can lead to developing and / or updating career goals. It’s important to recognize that goals, objectives and outcomes are different, depending on what you’re trying to accomplish. If someone has been struggling to achieve a goal, does it make sense to redefine it? 

We spend way too much time working not to be working for the things that really matter. Regularly auditing your career can lead to greater clarity about what we’re trying to accomplish. It can keep us focused and on track to be successful.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Fort Lauderdale, FL

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Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

A job analysis is a structured process for gathering information about a job’s requirements. Organizations use a job analysis to make sure job descriptions are current. They can also use them to design learning activities. Right now, some organizations might be using a job analysis to determine what tasks can be automated or performed by artificial intelligence (versus which ones will be completed by employees or contractors). 

It’s important to remember that a job analysis isn’t a guessing exercise. It’s amazing how many times an employee says that they’re doing a task that the organization didn’t realize they were doing. This is why there needs to be a structure to doing a job analysis. Here are four ways to collect data and information:

1. Interviews are a great way to get first-hand information from employees who are doing the work. The interview can be done in-person, over the phone, or via video. Each of these mediums has its own advantages and challenges. One advantage to all of them is the ability to hear the employee describe their work. The interviewer can ask follow-up questions to gather additional information. A challenge they all share is this method is time consuming and requires a skilled interviewer. 

2. Focus groups could be a way to reduce some of the challenges with individual interviews. Get a group of employees together to talk about the work. This could be very efficient when you have a lot of employees who hold the same job title, like customer service representative. The challenge with this method is the same with any focus group. Organizations will want a skilled facilitator who is able to engage the group and not have one person dominate the conversation.

3. Surveys and questionnaires are another way to solicit information directly from employees. These can be completed online or via paper, which makes them very efficient. They can also be designed for a confidential and/or anonymous reply – which could encourage greater participation. The downside of using surveys and questionnaires is design and fatigue. Poorly designed surveys produce poor results. And frankly, people get surveys all.the.time, so managing survey fatigue is another consideration. 

4. Observation is the final method for gathering job-related information. One the surface, the process is simple – observe the employee doing the work. What can be a significant upside to this method is it’s possible the employee might do something that they otherwise would forget to mention during an interview or focus group. The downside is that if the employee knows they’re being watched, will they change the way they work? Also, the observer needs to be skilled using this method. 

Of course, there’s no reason that a job analysis couldn’t include each of these methods. For example, an organization might do a survey before having a focus group or interviews. Or conduct an observation and follow-up with an interview. This does bring up another consideration about job analysis. If an organization is conducting a job analysis and doesn’t tell employees, the effort could come across as sneaky or suspicious, which could erode trust. And if employees don’t trust the process, what level of cooperation in gathering information will you get? I’m not saying employees will deliberately withhold information … but we all know what happens to processes that are not supported by the workforce. 

The results of a job analysis help the organization hire, engage, and retain the best employees. We need to know the job to effectively recruit for it. We need to know the job to train employees. And we need to know the job to accurately evaluate performance. All things that the organization – and employees – want.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Orlando, FL

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

The goal of a training session is for employees to learn the content. So, it’s important to have a mechanism in place that confirms such. If the organization is using Kirkpatrick’s Levels of Evaluation, this is referred to as level two evaluation (learning). Here’s a quick reminder about the Kirkpatrick Model’s four levels:

• REACTION: In the reaction level, participants are asked for their “reaction” to training. Often this is done with a paper or online course evaluation. The training team can review reactions and make updates to training based on employee feedback. 

• LEARNING: In this level, participants are often given a pre- and post-training test. Ideally, the participant scores in post-training should be better to indicate that “learning” took place. But the training team can also review scores to spot trends – like every participant got one question wrong or that aggregate scores weren’t as high as expected. 

• BEHAVIOR: The behavior level of evaluation says that participants are doing what they learned in training. For example, let’s say a company has a decision-making class where everyone learns how to create a force field analysis. After the training, senior management sees employees using force fields. That’s a sign that training was impactful. 

• RESULTS: In the fourth level of the Kirkpatrick model, the organization sees a measurable outcome as a “result” of training. An example would be if the organization was seeing errors in a particular assembly, and they decide to conduct training. Ideally, after training, the errors should be reduced. 

Today, I want to focus on the level two evaluation – learning. Specifically, what kind of testing options are available. Here are four options:

1. Pencil / Paper: Let’s talk about this one first because it’s probably the thing that initially comes to mind when we say “test”. And there’s nothing wrong with having participants take a short quiz at the beginning and again at the end of training. The test can be multiple choice, true / false, or fill-in the blanks. 

2. Participation: Depending on the topic, it’s possible that training instructors might be asked to provide feedback about whether a participant meets the criteria for completing the training. The “test” might be an essay or short answer where the instructor evaluates the participants response for accuracy. 

3. Verbal: Participants are asked to talk-through the steps to complete a task, process, or procedure. It’s possible that the training instructor or subject matter experts might ask follow-up questions to “test” the participant’s knowledge on the subject.

4. Skills: Participants are asked to physically complete a task. This allows the training instructor to see that the participant can perform the skill they just learned. Often, participants are also asked to explain what they’re doing at the same time to show they understand the steps.

Each of these four testing options has advantages and challenges in terms of design, cost, time, and performance measurements. The last thing that training designers want to do is design a test that takes too long, costs too much to administer, or that no one can successfully pass. I’m not implying that tests need to be super easy either. They should be at the level necessary to show mastery of the subject.

That’s really what this is about. When employees go to training, organizations want to know that employees learned what they were supposed to learn. So, how does that happen? With a test. The good news is that there’s more than one way to test and confirm learning took place.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Washington, DC 

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

We’ve all probably run across at least one article or presentation that talks about three learning styles: visual, audio, and kinesthetic. I want to elaborate on them today and talk about why it’s important that learners understand their preferred learning styles. But, before we talk about the “why”, let’s add to the three learning styles.

1. Visual learners like slides, videos, pictures, graphs, etc. 

2. Print learners enjoy texts and traditional paper/pen activities.

3. Lectures, audiotapes, and recordings appeal to audio learners.

4. Some learners enjoy listening to interactive discussions and Q&A sessions.

5. Kinesthetic learning involves role plays, games, and activities.

6. Tactile learning allows the learner to participate in hands-on activities or model building. 

I realize these distinctions are subtle, but it really emphasizes the need for learners to understand the specifics of how they like to learn. I could see a learner saying that they enjoy audio … but they want discussion over lecture. Or a learner saying they like visual learning … but they prefer books over PowerPoint. 

The other reason that learners need to understand their learning preferences is because sometimes it makes sense not to use your learning preference. A learner might enjoy print learning but the best way to learn the topic is via games (kinesthetic). Or a person with a preference for tactile learning might find it helpful to listen to a recording (audio) before doing a hands-on activity. Understanding your preferred learning style can help someone recognize when they need to do something they typically do not gravitate toward. Because if someone goes into a learning activity with the wrong mindset, it could influence the results. 

This level of understanding can also help learners when they are making decisions about learning opportunities. An employee might want to propose learning something new to their manager. It helps to be able to say, “Here’s what I’d like to learn. And I believe this is the best way of doing it.” From a practicality standpoint, there’s a big difference between the cost of a book and a conference. So, knowing the best way to learn something can help with the proposal. Even when the proposal is expensive like going to a conference, the employee can show they’ve done the research, and this is the best option. 

Conversely, when instructional designers are creating training, it’s important to look at the best way to teach the subject. Maybe even build into the training design an explanation of why the participants are learning something a particular way. For instance, in management development programs, it could make sense to share with participants that we’re going to discuss a topic like positive reinforcement and then everyone will have the chance to practice it. The discussion part is interactive then the practice part is kinesthetic. Another example would be an instructional designer could ask learners to read an article and come to the training session prepared to discuss. The reading part could be visual or print, and the discussion part is interactive. 

There’s more than one way to learn something. Understanding the best way to learn the topic and how it relates to a learner’s preferred style can set the session up for success. And isn’t that the goal? Learning success. 

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Lake Buena Vista, FL

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