Last year, the American Psychological Association (APA) conducted  a stress study and determined the top 7 causes of stress in the U.S.   As this Statistic Brain screenshot shows, everything from job pressure to poor eating habits to excessive media consumption can create stress.     Understanding stress can be just as difficult as stopping it. Stress is tricky, something that is a trigger for one person, isn’t a trigger for another person.  There are things that don’t stress you out but they send your co-worker into a panic.  It’s important to identify what sets you off so you can better handle your stress.   Bringing stress to work or leaving with it is not healthy in the long run.   Sometimes we get so busy with our day to day, keeping our head above water, that we don’t pay attention to some of the signs that we are really stressed out!  We do things to "manage" our stress so we can keep producing but we don’t focus enough on the root cause to eliminate the stress.     You don’t have to change all your stress-inducing habits too quickly (because the thought of transition can be stressful in its own right), but you should at least be aware of what makes you more irritable at work, why you’re easily fatigued when you get home, and what exactly causes stress to go from being a one-time thing into a worrisome pattern. Once you know, then work to eliminate the stress over time.   Find more helpful answers in the first part of our Stress Management series, which you can view in its entirety right now as our Featured Course of the Month! The post April is National Stress Awareness Month appeared first on .

Asking questions when pitching an idea to clients shouldn’t be thought of as a secret weapon - because it’s one of the most valuable assets for salespeople. So it must be common sense, right? Wrong!       So here’s a challenge for Q2: Ask your prospect questions about themselves, and just do that.  Chances are your competitors aren’t doing that and you will see a difference.  But it’s going to be hard for you not to jump in with your own stories or information about your product.   Start off with questions that build rapport.  Get the prospect talking about themselves - people love talking about themselves. Shine the light on them and let them give you a need that you never thought was there.   Here’s a great example.   In one of my first jobs out of college, I worked as a marketing manager. I once had someone sell me without saying what their company did beyond the name. His name was Joe and he introduced himself as a salesperson for "X" software company. He never said one word about why they were the #1 "blah, blah, blah" in their industry. Or how they sold over $9 million memberships last year.   He just asked questions the entire time in a stealthy manner of budget, authority, need, time (B.A.N.T.). He asked what the company I worked for spent on advertising last year (Budget). I said I didn’t know but I’d probably be able to look. He then asked what I did in that department, and what I liked most about the job (Authority). Then he asked if I could share a little bit about what the company did. He asked about our customer base. I told him we dealt mainly with e-commerce and sold "X" products to "Y" customers from all over the world. In talking about the company, I hinted at how targeting the right buyers quickly was hit and miss sometimes. How we had a cool promotion one month and a goose egg promotion the next (Need). Then I went on about how the holidays were still five months away, but we like to get a head start on planning so the department isn’t running ragged from procrastination (Time).   The whole thing took probably 20 minutes.  The best part, was that it didn’t FEEL like a sales call.  Just a conversation with a nice guy.   Then he put his company’s software to work to show me exactly where the company was missing out. It was a simple .PDF showing red areas (bad) and green areas (good). How we were throwing away money at "X" and should devote more time to "Y." He knew he found a hook and just had to move toward talking about his company just an inch, not a mile.   Curiosity from a prospect will be the driving force if the questions and attention make them feel at ease. That curiosity soon manifested into a deal with Joe’s company that helped move more product online in, during and after the holiday season. And if I had to guess what the word count totals were between Joe and I, I’d say it was something like, 200 to 20,000, with myself as the unanimous winner.   All because the questions asked were not only the right ones, but they were continually about me, the client, and not about them.   Learn more tips on asking the right questions with our brand new, award-winning sales series, "Territory Development." Sign up for a free trial of Thinkzoom to watch "The Realities of Selling in the 21st Century" now.   The post It’s Not About You: How to Ask The Right Questions appeared first on .

Do you remember public speaking class back in high school? Were you terrified? Did you stammer your way through the speech, or did your hands shake as you drew on the chalkboard or fiddled with the projector?   I know I did. A lot. I stared at the ground like it was my safety net. I didn’t stand up straight, causing my voice to sound more muffled than it really was. And I was so backwards from nerves I was showing different slides, forgetting what other slides meant to my speech, and just had about as awful an experience as you could imagine.  I was so frustrated and scared the audience was judging me, which just takes whatever ounce of confidence you might’ve had, put it in a lockbox and tossed it into the ocean, never to be seen again.     Presenting - whether it’s in front of your leadership team or in front of potential clients - needs a certain degree of confidence to go along with expert organizational skills. Learn to build your confidence quickly with these 4 tips.   Prepare Like There’s Always More to Learn   You might’ve "winged it" with your high school speech, but you cannot "wing it" with presentations about your company’s product. Even if the slides on your PowerPoint are laid out flawlessly with key information, you still need to walk through every inch, anticipate questions and have answers ready.   That takes plenty of rehearsing and reviewing key benefits against possible objections. The slideshow could have soothing music or well-crafted videos meant to drum up excitement to your audience - but if you don’t know what you’re talking about, your confidence will dip, you might start to talk faster, your body language will fail and the audience will tune out.   Tone Down Your Fear With Exercise   This post would be way too long if I went over the benefits of exercise and how it relates to feeling better and performing better at work. Rather, I’ll just say that when you exercise before going to a presentation, your body releases enough dopamine to make you feel like you’re walking on air at times. You feel happier, your voice projects more clearly and you have that sense that you’re ready to take on whatever’s in front of you.   So consider doing a few jumping jacks. Run in place. If the presentation’s early in the morning or right after lunch, hit the gym or go for a run and take that energy with you.   Because it’s a fleeting thing, this dopamine kick, which is why you must use the limited window to extract every ounce of energy and confidence to help knock your presentation out of the park.   Stamp Out Negative Thoughts   Confidence and negativity do not go together well. Negativity just makes failing seem easier to you if you let it. If you have an "Aw Shucks" moment with a failed presentation and try to paint excuses that, "Well maybe this prospect wasn’t as warm to begin with," or "The product’s great sales will speak for themselves, so my so-so presentation doesn’t reflect that badly" or whatever saying you tell yourself to basically cloud your judgement.   From the time you greet the receptionist to the time you shake hands and introduce yourself to the prospect, be positive every step of the way.   It’s All In The Eyes   As a kid, your parents and teachers preached the importance of eye contact when socializing. That’s because eye contact helps make you appear more powerful, more personable, more trustworthy, more qualified and more emotionally stable - even if you’re secretly neither one of those five. And like any skill, eye contact takes continual practice. The more you experiment in social settings, the easier it becomes to strike a chord with your viewing audience. And during any presentation, make sure you’re constantly shifting your eyes around the room to make every person listening feel more involved.   Final Thoughts   Whether it’s a big presentation or a big face-to-face meeting, your confidence says a lot about not just your selling skills, but the company you stand behind. That’s why you must develop it and know there’s always something else to add to it.   Beginning May 1st, the ej4 learning campus welcomes two new upgraded series to the fold, Presentation Skills and Nonverbal Communication! It’s all a part of our second biggest content launch of the year! Sign up for a free trial of Thinkzoom or speak with a member of our sales team for more information. The post Presentation Skills: How Confident Are You? appeared first on .

A 2013 HuffPost/YouGov poll found that of the employees who said they’ve experienced sexual harassment, 70 percent did not report it. One of the reasons employees don’t report harassment is fear of retaliation or fear of not being taken seriously. Harassment claims are nothing to take lightly, and businesses must be able to communicate zero-tolerance policies, what an employee can do if they feel they were harassed and provide other assurances to help keep your business harassment free and avoid costly mitigation issues.   With our upgraded Anti-Harassment series, we’ve change the tone and look to deliver a greater impact toward educating businesses on anti-harassment.  Don’t create an environment where employees fear harassment or retaliation. Check out a quick preview of this 6-part series below.     Sign up for a free 15-day trial of Thinkzoom to watch the first part of our Anti-Harassment series! The post Our New Anti-Harassment Series is Live! appeared first on .

There are plenty of metaphors for sales; battles and sports are among the most used. The reasoning is pretty obvious. While sales don’t have the life-or-death stakes and aren’t as trivial as a sporting event, the importance of preparation for battle cannot be understated. Preparing for each customer, client, or prospect call is slightly different, but a lot of the elements are the same:   Research Industry Competition Understanding the prospects current situation Knowing the influencers from the decision makers Setting the agenda Planning the outcome   It’s important to get the right people in the room, and know whom the decision maker and influencers are. If there’s not a decision maker in the room, you may be wasting your time. Prior to the meeting, ask questions like: Who controls the budget? Will we need to involve someone from purchasing or procurement in the meeting? Are there other in-house subject matter experts that should be in the meeting with us?     Prepare a list of questions in advance that can help you identify your prospect’s needs. Make sure the questions are open-ended and don’t sound over-rehearsed or canned. You want to be relaxed and have a conversation - not an interrogation.   Perhaps one of the best outcomes of planning is confidence. A plan is only perfect on paper. But, having done the preparation, you should be able to adjust and adapt to most any situation.   To get a clear understanding of pre-call planning and make sure you make the most of every opportunity, watch our short, educational video and you’ll never be caught off-guard again.   The post Can’t-Miss Tips for Pre-call Planning appeared first on .

Did you know nearly 75% of people are glossophobic?  That means they’re terrified of public speaking!! Presenting - whether it’s in front of an audience of 5 or 5,000 - requires a combination of skills to succeed and make a positive impact. Our new 14-part Presentation Skills series covers everything from gathering talking points to  closing with a bang.  It has everything you need to make you deliver the best presentation possible.   Check out this quick preview below.     Want a longer experience? Sign up now for a free 15-day trial of Thinkzoom to see one of the courses, Basic Questions, in its entirety! The post We’ve Upgraded Our Presentation Skills Series! appeared first on .

Sales opportunities don’t just spring up out of thin air. You have to uncover them. If you aren’t prepared to ask the right questions, they could be precious opportunities lost.   Finding the problem will lead you to the best solution for your client. Here are four important reminders when uncovering leads.     1. Build trust and rapport Nobody likes to be interrogated with questions; it can make them uncomfortable - or even worse- defensive. Start the meeting casually, as if you were meeting with friends, but don’t be overly familiar or waste their time. People like doing business with people they know, like and trust. Let the prospect know the purpose of your questions - they should see that you’re trying to genuinely understand their business and determine if there’s a solution you can offer.   2. Ask the right questions at the right time Have a list of questions prepared before the meeting, but don’t be a slave to your script. Their answers to your questions will likely bring up follow-up questions. By being prepared in advance, you can shift the conversation in the direction that will uncover their true need. Remember to always ask open-ended questions (who, what, when, where, why, how). Questions that can be answered with a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ won’t necessarily get you the information you need - you don’t want to limit their ability to answer in any way. Take notes, it’s a sign that you’re truly interested and engaged.   3. Dig deeper Once you’ve uncovered areas of opportunity, continue to ask questions, repeating some of the words that they’ve used to show that you are listening and understand what they are really saying. Delve into the opportunity, and continue to ask open-ended questions. The more they talk, the more you’ll learn.   4. Summarize and set the stage Once you’ve uncovered the opportunity, state it to your prospect clearly - again, trying to use as many of their words as possible. Confirm that you ‘got it right’ and then suggest how you could help solve this problem. If they agree that your solution may be a fit, set a clear expectation of what happens next.   It’s one thing to assume you have their needs, it’s another to know you do. Time is precious, and your chances of getting the right deal from a qualified buyer requires the right questions from the get-go. Go deeper into discovering your client’s needs with ej4. Click the link below to watch the course, "Asking the Right Questions," now!   The post 4 Quick Tips to Uncover Your Customer’s Needs appeared first on .

Right now there’s someone nervously shifting their feet so much that it’s distracting another employee. There’s a salesperson forgetting to keep proper eye contact at the negotiation table, or there’s an executive whose facial expressions are inadvertently giving off bad vibes. Whether it’s first impressions or everyday interaction with co-workers, nonverbal communication is essential to success on many levels.     Yet, nonverbal communication is so much more than gestures, facial expressions, and body position. In our new 5-part series, Nonverbal Communication, we zero in on the often overlooked aspects of nonverbals, and how it all can impact your success in the workplace.   Here’s a preview.     Find out more about this new series and other courses on better communication at work with a free 15-day trial of ej4′s Thinkzoom. The post Our New Nonverbal Communication Series is Here! appeared first on .

"Sales success is the unique combination of having the right product, projecting your personality and working with a sales system that fits."   In Christine Harvey’s Secrets of the World’s Top Sales Performers, learn about the best kept secrets of cold calling, the perfect pitch, the close, and other key sales strategies in between. The post [Download] Secrets From Top Sales Performers appeared first on .

An Inside Sales study shows the average salesperson only fulfills 68% of their quota. So where’s the rest? And how do you, as a sales manager, help your team push those numbers up?   In our new video, we outline the benefits of Thinkzoom for your sales team to help them get the sales training they need, when they need it, to become well-versed in finding the true needs of prospects, getting prospects to see your product as a savior, and pushing them to the dotted line faster than ever before.   Take a look!     Access our award-winning Sales Curriculum with your sales team today with a free 15-day trial. The post [New Video] Thinkzoom and Better Sales Quotas appeared first on .

The Daily Muse recently wrote an article about how employees should answer this famous question posed during most interviews:   Where do you see yourself in 5 years?   And it’s still a great question to ask; you need to know what this potential employee’s aspirations are, whether they want to be challenged with a promotion, etc.   However, while the hiring manager is asking that question, they should also be asking themselves this question:     It’s no surprise that hiring a replacement costs companies a lot of money. While it’s hard to gauge during the interview whether an employee has long-term staying power, companies should still have a 5-year plan (at least) in place to make every new hire think twice about leaving.   Here are some important steps to add to that plan:   Onboarding with a purpose: If you ruin a new hire’s first day with a complex onboarding system - or no onboarding program at all - you’re painting a bleak picture of your company. You need a quick - but continual - way to train new hires on company goals, job expectations, open enrollment information, and other areas that help newbies stay afloat, informed and satisfied. Ensure management actively communicates: Supervisors must be active and upfront with new hires, helping them adjust to their role, setting them up to learn new, career-building skills, and just continually mentoring them to be greater than they were a day ago. Remain true to career progression: New hires should not expect to be on the career progression train the day they’re hired, but they need a signal sooner or later or they’ll leave the station. If, during the interview, you spoke glowingly about employees moving up the company ladder, you shouldn’t be surprised if they ask when their turn is - if their work merits it - and how the company attempts to stay true to their word. Remove red tape: No matter the size of the company, unnecessary red tape is a morale killer for employees. Policies that stunt productivity - like having to communicate to 5 people to get to 1 supervisor to sign off on something, or having unnecessary pre-meetings about future meetings - can cause some employees to look for an escape hatch after a while. If there are important policies that are proven to raise accountability and profitability, then obviously keep those; but unnecessary policies that don’t reflect either of those two themes should be examined (and modified, if need be) and communicated to employees.   That’s just a sample of ways to see your staff in a 5-year plan and beyond. The important thing is you build an effective new hire training program that sets them up for success the minute they adjust to their workspace. From there, it’s about building open and honest communication of company goals, and trying your best to eliminate unnecessary roadblocks that put the competition one rung up on an employee’s wish list.   See how ej4’s New Hire Curriculum can set your new employees up for a lengthier stay with a free 15-day trial of Thinkzoom. The post Why HR Should Be Asking "How Do I See This Employee Here in 5 Years?" appeared first on .

"Coming together is the beginning… Keeping together is progress… Working together is success." - Henry Ford   No company is truly successful with a lone-wolf mentality; you need teams to build employee morale and boost productivity. But as a team is assembled, many questions come to mind: Why do some teams go right to the top while others fall flat? What specific characteristics make up a winning team? How do teams diffuse conflict?   This 6-part series highlights the essentials of teamwork, what makes effective team members, and much more.   Press play to preview the series now!     This brand new Team Building series is now live on ej4’s learning campus. Contact us today to hear more about it! The post New eLearning Series: Team Building appeared first on .

No finance background? No problem. We created this 34-part series of short (1-5 minutes) videos to summarize business finance and accounting for any layperson. We take you through relevant finance topics like income statements, budgeting and even common accounting terms, just to name a few. More importantly, we do it in a fun way that doesn’t talk over your head, confuse you or put you to sleep.   Press play to preview the series now!     Once you’ve finished watching, why not check out a full episode? Sign up now for a free 15-day trial of Thinkzoom to watch the course, Common Accounting Terms, in its entirety. The post New eLearning Series: Finance for Non-Financial Employees appeared first on .

If big data can influence eLearning platforms by deciding optimal times for employees to learn, what’s the real payoff if they’re still learning under an umbrella of hour-long courses?   Our big data response is simple: See why time is on your side with ej4’s courses that begin and end in 10 minutes or less. Watch our latest video below for more!     See what short, targeted content can do for your learners today with a .

June is Effective Communications Month. One skill we can all improve is our ability to effectively communicate. Whether it’s at work or away from it, how we communicate is key for obvious reasons. It forges relationships, diffuses conflict and puts both parties on an even keel. But when done poorly, it does the opposite. It can upend relationships, create conflict where there wasn’t one to begin with, and create uncertainty.   At work, we communicate everything from how a project needs to be done to company goals to sales objectives and so forth. It might be an email requesting status updates, or a conference call for a department meeting, or a face-to-face discussion with a new employee on how well they’re settling in with the company.     With that said, how well do you communicate at work? Do co-workers or your boss receive every message clearly? Can you pinpoint one example of a time when you communicated something poorly? If the answer’s "Yes" to the latter, here’s a quick rundown on ways to improve communication:   Write emails the way you want to receive them: If you’re prone to using all caps to make a point, know that there’s a good chance that email will be received poorly. Make emails short, include a warm salutation and closing and get to your point quickly. And if the email is 3 sentences or more, maybe you need a better mode of communication.   Don’t let a simple misunderstanding linger: If you or your co-worker feel there’s some disconnect, resolve it quickly, and don’t be afraid to ask why the message went south. The more you know, the easier you can prevent future communication disasters.   Understand your schedule isn’t the same as theirs: If you’re trying to complete your end of a project and need a second pair of eyes, make sure your request is understanding of their time. Don’t be short and say, "I need this approved now," and hit "Send." Every employee has their own schedule. They’re working on multiple tasks or requests and when they’re busy, they are busy. Don’t constantly engulf their time with your agenda. Trust your co-worker to get to your task on time.   Stop the gossip: Internal office gossip is not good communication (or productive, for that matter). Does it form a certain bond between co-workers? Maybe, but is that really a healthy bond? Because if the gossip is aimed at others in the company, it’s creating a division whether you know it or not. It’s understandable that not every employee will get along with one another, but airing your grievances with others just builds negativity. And color me shocked the day negative communications ever boost productivity.   That’s just a start. Learn how you can communicate better with your employees with our Communication Styles courseware. Everything from D.I.S.C. (know what type of communicator you are) to Emotional Intelligence (understand your emotions to communicate effectively) will help you avoid communication pitfalls and forge better bonds between yourself and your co-workers. Try our learning platform, Thinkzoom, today to learn more.   The post June is Effective Communications Month appeared first on .

A new study of 1,000 employees who quit their job after just 6 months revealed plenty. Everything from how perks don’t mean as much as some companies think they do to how they new hires appreciate feedback early, but not to the point it feels like management is hovering over them.   Yet the statistic that stands out the most is how 76% of respondents screamed for a competent onboarding program. Now compare that to a familiar stat line we’ve talked about before: 58% of new hires are more likely to stay with a company if there’s a successful onboarding system.     The demand for onboarding is clear: Train me to fit in and do my job properly or I’m going to have  my resume ready. close by. And it’s not like there isn’t competition out there waiting to scoop up your deserters. If their skillset is there, companies will overlook the preconceived notion that they’re a job hopper. They aren’t job hopping, they are marketable and in demand.   Because like it or not, if you don’t have a legitimate way to express your company’s strengths to new hires, or an easy method to bring them up to speed on their role and look in on them to make sure they’re doing what you want them to properly, it could spell doom sooner rather than later.   So first things first: Review your current onboarding program and ask yourself a few questions:   ● Can you say for certain how many new employees leave the company within the first year? ● Does your onboarding program monitor new hires from the first day through the next 90 and beyond that? ● What is the single most valuable part of your onboarding program? ● If onboarding includes eLearning courses, how much time do new hires invest watching and applying? ● Are supervisors being supportive enough to know when the new hire is comfortable and happy, and not still feeling a tad alienated?   If the answers are less than stellar, how can you fix it?   Let us help. Contact us today to learn more about why our New Hire Curriculum has helped thousands of new hires feel welcomed and more productive with their company. The post 76% of New Hires Demand Competent Onboarding appeared first on .

Your palms start to sweat. You blink rapidly. Your breathing becomes tense and heavy. The audience seems like a hundred Jack Nicholsons judging your every move.     Then the lights in the conference room start to play mind tricks on you. For a moment you’re stuck in presentation limbo, and all of the important characters are there to see you either fail or succeed spectacularly.   Because let’s face it: Whether it’s internal presentations on quarterly targets or product demos for prospects, every presentation counts. And as the presenter, you need the confidence and clarity to deliver perfection every time. Here are a few reminders to help avoid presentation jitters.   Manage Your Stress - Stressful environments or situations will bring a confident person to their knees. You could try and fake your way through a presentation if you’ve just gone through a stressful period - or still are - but that’s not healthy in the long run. Managing your stress doesn’t just get you through the presentation; it helps you plan your presentation better, allows you to practice your speech with a clear head, and just helps you be you better.   No Matter What, Speak Slowly - When you’re nervous or excited, your speech patterns rise. The faster they rise, the more you start to think about it . The more you think about it, the less you’re focusing on the presentation. The less you think about the presentation, well… you get the idea.   Always. Speak. Slowly. The slower your speech, the more you enunciate every syllable and avoid confusing the audience. And speaking of articulation…   Keep Up With Articulation Exercises - When you speak more clearly, you gain tiny amounts of confidence. Now, I’ve always struggled at some point to not cross my words when talking to friends, family, co-workers, etc. It was because I naturally tense up for no other reason than just because I tense up when it’s my turn to talk. And while my speech patterns aren’t exactly crystal clear, they’re leaps and bounds better than they were because I went back to speech exercises.   Here are six phrases I’ve always returned to that help hit  vowels and consonants of every word that comes out.   Elmo eats eggplant with Eleanor the elephant Green tea ice cream is a treat to eat Cedar shingles should be shaved and saved Irish wristwatch Around the rugged rocks the ragged rascal ran Six short slow shepherds   And obviously understanding your product or whatever you’re pitching, how to outline your presentation and other major presentation talking points are key. For that, we point you to our newly updated series, Presentation Skills.     But when the jitters come up, when your emotions start to play tricks on you, and you feel you’re about to unleash jumbled sentence after jumbled sentence, take these reminders with you and build clear communication from start to finish.   The post How to Avoid Stage Fright During a Big Presentation appeared first on .

Companies spend close to $2 billion dollars a year on wellness programs, and you want to make sure that money is invested wisely and employees are actively participating. With June being National Employee Wellness Month, here are some tips to creating a great company wellness plan that your employees would happily get behind.     Diversify Wellness Goals - As I’ve mentioned already, wellness doesn’t just focus on being healthy from a physical standpoint; it should branch out. If you’re creating a year-long wellness program, don’t have every month, or activity, center on exercising. Throw in different milestones such as giving back to the community, starting and maintaining a company fundraiser, and other achievements that aren’t suggesting employees run half-marathons every month.   Offer Incentives That Employees Would Want to Win - If employees are competing for monthly or weekly challenges, and the grand prize is a set of steak knives, you’ll likely turn away a good chunk of participation. There’s even a bell curve on cash prizes: a Lockton Benefit Group poll found incentives with a dollar amount starting at $100 are likely to get 75% employee approval/participation. Any amount south of that was lucky to get between 30-50% participation.   Clearly Communicate the Program - If employees don’t know the program exists, they won’t participate. Using Thinkzoom, the head of your wellness program could create and record content around wellness achievements from the previous month, what this month’s goals are, and talk about how well the company is participating. Add a leaderboard of who’s gaining the most ground. At ej4, we’ve obviously had our wellness program live and breathe within Thinkzoom, and the ways tips/achievements are presented continue to improve month over month. Employees have taken the social aspect of Thinkzoom to comment on videos, share links to other wellness tips, and so forth.   The point is, clear communication lines and a platform for employees to go and view/interact with your wellness program is a brilliant way to get consistently higher utilization rates, which helps create a healthier workforce, which helps your company in more ways than just better health premiums down the road.   See how easy it is to create and communicate your company’s wellness plan for this month and beyond with a free 15-day trial of Thinkzoom. The post How to Craft a Great Employee Wellness Program appeared first on .

Breathe in. Breathe out. Focus on cute puppies or kittens.   Quick! Look at this picture:     Still angry?     How about now?   If so, learn how to control your anger when things heat up, know why you get angry and how you can keep a level head and be more productive and happier at work in our new 5-part series, Keep Your Cool.   Here’s a preview:     Check out the first episode in its entirety right now with a free trial of Thinkzoom. The post New eLearning Series: Keep Your Cool appeared first on .

Being nice doesn’t mean you’re passive, it means you’re nice.  Here’s what I mean:   Another lane opens up at the grocery store. It’s clearly your turn, but someone jumps in front of you. You shrug it off.   Friends ask you to carpool them to a party for the 5th time in a row because your car has "more room." You oblige.   You want to add your two cents to something at work, but don’t want to come off as being too critical, so you say nothing.   You’re out to dinner and the steak you ordered is well done, not medium rare. You contemplate the wait time, the inconvenience and other scenarios instead of just ask for the correct steak.   There are so many "passive" scenarios out there. Some of us are comfortable with them because we don’t want to disrupt the balance. But being assertive doesn’t mean you need to be angry or aggressive. You don’t have to raise your voice or threaten to get what you want. And you don’t have to over explain why you want what you want - just get to the point quickly.     Our updated, 3-part series Assertive Verbal Skills shows you how to be more direct and get what you want at work, and away from it. Contact us today to learn more about this series! The post Be More Assertive at Work appeared first on .

Not sure about you, but around the ej4 West and East offices, the weather has been pretty reasonable for the most part. Although like many cities across the country, summer is just starting to heat up. July and August typically show the hottest temperatures, and whether you’re working outdoors or indoors, you need to take steps to make sure you avoid potential dangers such as heat stroke, or worse.   Check out our Course of the Month for July, Working in Hot Weather now! Click the image below to go directly to our eLearning Videos page to watch the course from start to finish.     The post ej4’s Course of the Month for July is… appeared first on .

See why Hillyard continues to use ej4 for their training needs and points to our short, targeted courses as a reason their employees embrace training now more than ever.     How can we help you with your training needs? Contact us today for more details or go ahead and take a trial of ej4’s content right now. The post Why Hillyard Chooses ej4 appeared first on .

When you leave for work in the morning, you expect to return home safely that evening. Loss of life is the furthest thing from our minds, but it does happen, no matter what industry. Between 1992-2012, there were nearly 120,000 fatal work injuries. There are plenty of scenarios - from falling objects to driving accidents - that make up workplace accidents.   In our latest video, we cover the 4 most cited workplace injuries of the last year, and discuss how your company can keep your employees and the workplace safer.     With Thinkzoom and our Workplace Safety Curriculum, you have the easiest way to communicate safety training and awareness to your staff. Check it out now with a free 15-day trial. The post New Video: Top Workplace Injuries appeared first on .

If you say "No" at work do you immediately think you’ll be viewed as a slacker?  That you aren’t a team player if you say "No"? That you’ll be labeled as "difficult to work with"? Or worst of all, that you’ve disappointed your boss!  So instead, you say "Yes" to everything, because you fear that tidal wave of criticism.     The "do-everything-that’s-asked" approach  isn’t realistic and over time, it will get to you. You’ll feel overwhelmed, stressed out and you might even see a dip in your productivity, morale and overall performance.   So how do you spot the "do-everything" symptoms? Here are two types that come to mind:   The Newbie: This employee wants to make a great impression straight out of the gate!  They have an enthusiasm for the job but they don’t even really know what the job is.  This is the person that comes in early and stays late, volunteers for projects and is always offering to help out where they can.  They’re enthusiastic, but in some instances incompetent because they just don’t know anything yet. Did we have that attitude when we were the new hire? Sure. But most of us didn’t stretch ourselves thin by continuing to up the ante. We took some time to acclimate to our surroundings and learn from our peers and co-workers.  Helping new employees establish a routine to become familiar with their team and their day to day tasks is critical to keeping burnout levels low.   The Frantic: This employee is constantly on the edge. Their motor is always running, but it’s a nervous energy. Tasks - whether weeks out or last minute - are accepted with both a "Yay!" and a "Agghhhhh!" and the more it goes on, the two emotions soon intersect and that employee is frantically working to finish everything and will make mistakes along the way - rather than pump the brakes, adjust their workflow and find a happy medium that’s beneficial to the end product.   In the end, hard work is having the energy to be great at your job, and you’ll expend vital mental energy (and feel physically exhausted) saying yes to everything like you’re a parrot. Being productive isn’t about accepting every request; it’s about dissecting your To-Do list, putting off requests that aren’t critical, and doing quality work. The post Why The "Do-Everything" Approach to Work Isn’t Sustainable appeared first on .