We have participated in webcasts and podcasts for the American Management Association (AMA) and the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). You can access the AMA webcast by clicking here and the AMA podcast by clicking here. The download to the ASTD webcast and slides is here.
Perdido, the award winning magazine on leadership, features an article in its current edition entitled “Encouraging Knowledge Flow.” The article is based on the Knowledge Flow chapters from Fired Up or Burned Out. To see a summary of the article click on employee engagement.
"Stallard and Pankau article appears in Leadership Excellence"
Leadership Excellence
November 2007
Leadership Excellence featured an article entitled “Connection Cultures” in its November 2007 edition.
"Pragmatic…not PollyAnnaish…The soft stuff counts and Stallard’s book helps fluff the pillows…It’s impossible not to find some example that will make you rethink your own approach to other people in your working life."
Michael Fitzgerald
Columnist, The New York Times (from his "Big Think" blog)
One of my managers once told me I wasn’t at work to make friends. But connecting with co-workers is a key to fruitful work environments. In Fired up or Burned Out, author Michael Stallard begins by citing Gallup research showing that only three in ten Americans are engaged in their jobs. Worse, 22 million workers are what Gallup called “actively disengaged” or negative about their firm. Gallup says that costs American businesses $250 billion to $300 billion a year. Stallard’s book is about how business leaders can engage their employees at all levels.
Stallard’s theme is connection, and he doesn’t mean connection of the social networking kind. He thinks businesses, from the CEO on down, need to develop a culture that encourage employees – all employees – to feel like they’re valuable. He argues that it comes down to connecting with employees, and helping them connect with customers and partners. Stallard says that takes a vision, an ability to make other people feel valued, and to give employees a voice.
So Stallard has a vision thing, a value thing and a voice thing. There is in fact a kind of Chicken Soup for the Soul feel to Stallard’s book – it is chock full of people becoming great by connecting with the people around them.
But, the sheer volume of those stories makes it seem pragmatic, not PollyAnnaish. Stallard mixes in stories from big businesses and small, from healthcare, the sports world and from history to support his thesis. It’s impossible not to find some example that will make you rethink your own approach to other people in your working life.
The importance of connection was reinforced when I went to a technology transfer conference and sat in on a panel about, of all things, how startups can raise a “B” (or second) round of venture capital funding. The panelists, all involved in some aspect of the venture capital business, somehow got off on the subject of how new rounds of funding can affect the composition of a board, and how disruptive that can be if it changes the connections that exist at a young company.
Roger L. Krakoff, a partner at VC firm Sigma Partners, told the crowd that “(In business school) I thought organizational behavior was soft, and goofy. Give me finance! But now I know, I’ve seen that interpersonal stuff can wreck a CEO, ruin a company.”
He and the other venture capitalists on the panel all agreed that they’d seen good young companies fall apart because executives or board members degenerated into backstabbing and other kinds of ill behavior.
So the soft stuff counts, and Stallard’s book helps fluff the pillows.
"Enthralling and impressive work"
Russell Reynolds, Jr.
Founder and Former CEO, Russell Reynolds Associates
Chairman, RSR Partners
“An enthralling and impressive work. I am completely convinced that the basic precepts in this book will stand the test of time for many centuries to come, indeed, probably forever. It shows how to empower people and create great societies, corporations and cultures. I’m giving it to everyone at my own firm.”
"800-CEO-READ selects Fired Up or Burned Out as “one of the very best new titles”"
September 27, 2007
Jack Covert Selects - Fired Up or Burned Out
Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity, and Productivity
By: Michael Lee Stallard, with Carolyn Dewing-Hommes and Jason Pankau, Thomas Nelson, 230 pages, $22.99 Hardcover, July 2007. ISBN 9780785223580
Great leadership is something we think is easy to recognize, but it can be a hard thing to define. In Fired Up or Burned Out, Michael Lee Stallard does just that by explaining the type of culture great leaders create, and also the traits leaders use to create it. As Stallard himself states, we only remain motivated and engaged at work for so long using traditional motivational speeches and incentives. He suggests altering the workplace itself, creating an organization connecting employees with each other and the mission, values, and outlook of the organization. Given a goal and a vision, the workforce of such an organization will organically inspire and engage itself. We like to think that we have created this kind of company in a third floor office in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, and that this has had everything to do with our success.
Explaining early on why it’s so important to create a workplace culture that engages workers (and where they engage each other), he states:
The Gallup Organization conservatively estimates the annual economic cost to the American economy from the approximately 22 million American workers who are extremely negative or “actively disengaged” to be between $250 and $300 billion. This figure doesn’t include the cost for employees who are disengaged but have not spiraled down to the level of active disengagement.
Beyond that sobering fact, government and private research organizations are expecting a shortage of between 10 to 35 million workers in the American market lasting through the first half of the century. Stallard’s 230 pages pack plenty of inspiration to lead the kind of organization that can attract and retain workers in this difficult environment, and he discusses the practical skills necessary to do it. The book is broken up into four parts. In the first three sections, Stallard discusses how to engage workers in the workplace, how to create a great overall work culture, and the traits that make a great leader. In the fourth part, “Learn from Twenty Great Leaders Over Twenty Days,” he shares twenty stories of great leadership, along with quick applications of each one. His stories aren’t confined to this part of the book, though. He illustrates his ideas throughout the book using a wealth of historical examples and with stories from sports and the business world. If you feel like you or your organization is burned out and needs to be reignited, pick up this title.
"Interview on New York City’s WCBS-AM News Radio 880"
Pat Farnack
Host, WCBS News Radio 880-AM
Daytime host Pat Farnack of New York City’s WCBS News Radio 880-AM interviewed Michael Stallard about Fired Up or Burned Out. To hear the interview click employee engagement.
"New book helps people get fired up at the office"
The Greenwich Post article
Click employee engagement for a pdf file of the article on Fired Up or Burned Out that appeared in The Greenwich Post on September 6. 2007.
Copyright 2007 Greenwich Post Hersam Acorn Newspapers LLC. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
"Choc full of wisdom…very well done"
Midwest Book Review
It is always a pleasure to read and review a book where you can feel the passion of the author for his subject matter in his words, and this is what I experienced reading, “Fired Up or Burned Out,” by author Michael Lee Stallard.
This book is about team-work, attitudes and using all of your potential in the job set before you. I believe this work is geared towards those in the corporate work force; however the advice put forth can be used by anyone to better their working environment, bring enthusiasm to themselves, and those working with them, and enjoy the work set before them not just for the day but for the duration. Simply written but chock full of wisdom that can be attained by all, the author takes you through some simple steps to stop the burn out and get fired up. A very useful book especially for those wanting team spirit among their workers. Very well done!
"Stallard Join’s Small Business Advocate Brain Trust"
Jim Blasingame
Radio Host, The Small Business Advocate
Michael Stallard joined Steve Forbes, Tom Peters, Stephen Covey and other business thought leaders as a member of Jim Blasingame’s Brain Trust on his popular nationwide syndicated radio program “The Small Business Advocate.” Click employee engagement for the interview.
"This book isn’t about getting people hyped-up or about turning everyone into a lemming. It is about the nuts and bolts of having people work together and be engaged."
Michael Stallard is interviewed by Brian Oates of www.Daxle.net for his Imprint podcast, which features interviews with business authors.
A company who has employees who show up and do their job and go home is no where near as effective as a company whose employees are connected to each other. From your perspective you may see that gap but you might not know how to change the culture to get your team fired up. This book isn’t about getting people hyped-up or about turning everyone into a lemming. It is about the nuts and bolts of having people work together and be engaged. And the stories about real-life leaders at the end of the book are fantastic.
"An excellent read for those who lead, those who want to lead, and even for those who do not lead"
Catholic Business Journal, September 15, 2007
Are you a connector or a disconnector? Does it matter? Author Michael Stallard in his recently published Fired Up or Burned Out thinks so.
Stallard has had an interest in work cultures throughout his career as he wanted to understand the culture that would bring out the best in him. His interest led to a generalized notion of what would bring out the best in all, and he left Wall Street in 2002 (Morgan Stanley) to start a think tank, E Pluribus Partners, to assist people and organizations in becoming the best they could be.
Michael Stallard’s Fired Up or Burned Out addresses organizational and personal passion, creativity, and productivity. Stallard notes in his introduction that fewer than three in 10 Americans are engaged in their jobs (surviving rather than thriving), and sets about to explain why and how it can be fixed.
Fired Up is organized into four sections (and 15 chapters): what fires us up; the keys to connecting a team and lighting their fires; where it begins; and lessons from 20 great leaders. Each section begins with a “What you will learn guide,” and each chapter ends with a “Review, Reflection, and Application” summary. The former provides the theme and the latter provides an excellent reference for future re”view.
Highlights of this well-written book include:
- Why a sense of emotional connection is necessary for people and organizations to thrive.
- How the oft-discussed elements of vision, value and voice are reflected in the richer concepts of inspiring identity, human value, and knowledge flow.
- Why connection depends on the right kind of people whose actions increase connection.
- The three types of people who affect connection: intentional disconnectors, unintentional disconnectors, and intentional connectors.
Stallard centers his book on the fundamental belief that all people want and need to feel valued and shows how the “Power of Connection” works to this end. “Connection meets basic human psychological needs for respect, recognition, belonging, autonomy, personal growth, and meaning.” People with a higher degree of connection experience superior mental and physical (and I suspect spiritual) health, improving the performance of both. And the lack of connection will gradually diminish both, leading to burn out.
Psychiatrists have also observed that the lack of connection leads to feelings of loneliness, isolation, and confusion resulting in behaviors of distrust, disrespect, and dissatisfaction. And at a time when the public is concerned about organizational ethics, it has been noted that in cultures where large numbers of people are disconnected, unethical behavior is more likely to occur.
Stallard links connection to vision, value and voice. Many business authors have underscored the value of the first two elements but less has been written on “voice.”
I found the discussion of “voice” to be one of the most interesting and refreshing aspects of this excellent book. Stallard explains in detail how “voice” or knowledge flow increases connection and fires up people, helps people to make better decisions (the wisdom of the crowd), and increases creativity and innovation. He then suggests several strategies to increase knowledge flow within the organization - top to bottom, bottom to top, and across all functions.
The final section, “Learn from Twenty Great Leaders Over Twenty Days” provides excellent examples of Stallard’s principles in practice by great leaders - Marquis de Lafayette, George Washington, John Wooden, Howard Schultz, and many others.
Fired Up is an excellent read for those who lead, those who want to lead, and even for those who do not lead. We all need to avoid the traps that lead to failure, disillusionment, and darkness. Fired Up provides a practical way to avoid these traps and to live a full, productive life. While this book is not characterized as a “Christian” book, it is based on sound Christian values.
_______________
Thomas M. Loarie, Chairman and CEO, Mercator MedSystems tloarie@catholicbusinessjournal.biz
"Stallard appears on Lifestyle Network Radio"
Michael Dresser
Host, The Michael Dresser Show
Michael Stallard appeared on the nationally syndicated Michael Dresser Show on Lifestyle Network Radio.
"Prestigious magazines invite Stallard to contribute"
Leader to Leader, Leadership Excellence, and Knowledge Leadership at Thomas Group
Leader to Leader, the magazine of the Leader to Leader Institute founded by the late Peter Drucker and Frances Hesselbein and Leadership Excellence, a magazine founded by Stephen R. Covey and Ken Blanchard, recently invited Michael Stallard to contribute articles adapted from Fired Up or Burned Out. A new magazine that is getting considerable attention these days is Knowledge Leadership at Thomas Group. An interview of Michael Stallard will appear alongside interviews with Bill George and Noel Tichey in KL@TG’s first issue of 2008.
"I was extremely fired up…after reading Fired Up or Burned Out"
Sabrina Sumsion
Widely read literary publicist
Book Review by Sabrina Review Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Fired Up or Burned Out by Michael Lee Stallard, Carolyn Dewing-Hommes and Jason Pankau
I have been a fan of Zig Ziggler since my father went to a conference and learned many interpersonal skills. That night, he called me and for the first time since I was a young child SAID, “I love you.” This was a very big step for him and it drastically changed our relationship for the better. After reading Fired Up or Burned Out, I have added these authors to the podium I placed Zig 10+ years ago.
While Michael Stallard, Carolyn Dewing-Hommes and Jason Pankau don’t focus on fixing your relationships at home first, they are right on track when they say you need to relate to the people around you in the work place or you are going to lose them to other jobs or a change of career.
Using current studies, Fired Up or Burned Out clearly shows the desperate situation companies are in for loyalty and worker motivation. The scariest part is the prediction that it will be even harder to keep vital positions filled by 2010 because of the increase of retirements coming up. In other words, companies better start showing employees some incentive to stay or we’ll have a situation like the dotcom era with workers jumping from job to job as the whim struck them.
The great part is the authors clearly show several points to engaging employees and retaining them. Some of the tools are Vision, Value and Voice. The most valuable tool used for me is the comparisons and contrasts between great leaders and not so great leaders. Pulling from the past and present, the examples are well laid out and easy to connect with.
I do have to say the most enjoyable part of the book was the last part of the book. This part has write ups on 20 great leaders. The idea is to read about one each day for 20 days to help motivate and inspire you to lead your employees more effectively. I was extremely fired up and ready to inspire after reading Fired Up or Burned Out. Unfortunately, I don’t have anyone to order around at work as I work for a smaller company and everyone is either equal or has a different task and my kids are still too young to see the grand, big picture. Maybe I’ll just have to start my own business so I can put into effect these great tips! (Any venture capitalists out there wanting to invest in a wedding mansion?)
Seriously, this is a must read for any employer or manager who wants to retain great employees and increase productivity. I personally will be recommending it to several managers I know.
"The indispensible leadership guide"
Frances Hesselbein
Chairman and Founding President The Peter Drucker Foundation (Renamed the Leader to Leader Institute)
“In our turbulent times, leaders who are searching for ways to develop the healthy work environment that releases the energy of their people, releases the human spirit, could not find a more inspiring support than this great new resource for leaders in the corporate, government and social sectors. Fired Up or Burned Out will be the indispensable leadership guide for leaders everywhere.”
"Readers are compelled to emerge smarter"
Regina Fazio Maruca
Former Senior Editor, Harvard Business Review
“Reading this book is like having a great conversation; new and interesting people join in along the way, adding their own personal and varied insights, and encouraging an increasingly smart and useful dialogue. Readers are compelled to emerge smarter, more thoughtful, and more energized and engaging with this book.”
"Gives business owners the tools to energize and strengthen their employees"
Shep & Ian Murray
Co-Founders and CEOs of vineyard vines
“Stallard’s strategy gives business owners the tools to energize and strengthen their employees. Fired Up or Burned Out is a must-read for leaders who are looking for new ways to inspire spirit in the workplace.”
"Convinced me of the power of connection"
Marian Chapman Moore
Professor, Academic Director, Darden MBA for Executives Darden Graduate School of Business, University of Virginia
“Through fascinating stories, Fired Up or Burned Out convinced me of the power of connection, in life and in work. It helped me see what is missing in so many organizations. Just as important, I learned what to do about it.”
"A fabulous book, a must read!"
Jack Mitchell
Chairman and CEO of Mitchells/Richards/Marshs Author of Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results
“A fabulous book, a must-read! People are hungry to learn more about the one-to-one connection to enhance their businesses and lives. Read Michael’s book and learn from others who are successfully making the human connection a reality in their businesses.”
"Companies that embrace [these] principles…will ultimately reap the benefits of successful competition in the new ‘flat world’"
Eric J. Cooper, Ed.D.
President, National Urban Alliance for Effective Education
“There are few business leaders who understand the power of human connection. Given the shifting demographics in this country, it must be understood that virtually all people have the potential to achieve sufficiently to succeed in life. The broad principles and concepts in this book provide me with hope that American business leaders might begin to understand that ALL people have the potential to learn enough so that they have met the thresholds of competition in the global community. It is a renewed belief in humankind’s capacity that provides the wellspring of what others can begin to follow. If our hope is for a world that provides fair opportunities for individuals, companies and their communities, then we must be determined to work it make it so. Those companies that embrace the principles advocated in Fired Up or Burned Out, will ultimately reap the benefits of successful competition in the new “flat world.”
"Clearly outlines how executives can focus their energies"
E. Pendleton James
Chairman, Pendleton James Associates
Former Assistant to President Reagan for Presidential Personnel
“The greatest assets in an organization are the employees, and engaging them is the most direct way to improve your business. Fired Up or Burned Out clearly outlines how executives can focus their energies, not only to improve their individual leadership abilities, but also to add to the effectiveness of the entire team in achieving the organization’s goals.”
"Illustrated by examples of great leaders throughout history"
Keith A. VanderVeen
Midwest Regional President, Wachovia Securities, LLC
“Fired Up or Burned Out is a must-read for anyone in a leadership role. Leadership can seem so complex and often times confusing when, in fact, following ‘core principles’ that focus on ‘basic needs’ of every individual will always guide a leader to the truth! This book describes these core principles and basic needs in an easy-to-remember model that should be displayed on every leader’s desk. The model is beautifully explained and wonderfully illustrated by examples of great leaders throughout history in every walk of life.”
"There’s no other book like it"
Richard Murphy
Founder and Former CEO, ODI International
“This is a must-read for any leader or anyone aspiring to be in a leadership role. Lessons drawn uniquely from acclaimed personalities of the past become the foundation for strong leadership in tomorrow’s world. There’s no other book like it.”
"Will show you exactly how to ignite [employees’] passion"
B. Joseph Pine II
Co-author, The Experience Economy, and co-founder, Strategic Horizons LLP
“One of the things I’ve learned is that for employees to stage engaging experiences for a company’s customers, they have to be engaged themselves in that company and what it stands for. Read Fired Up or Burned Out and Michael Stallard will show you exactly how to ignite their passion by connecting them to your purpose.”
"I enjoyed and learned from this book"
"Reflections from the Lamp," Fall 2007
A publication of The Dingman Group Executive Search Firm
I first picked this book up with the idea that it might be a good resource for our clients. Initially, my impression was that the reading proved to be predictable, ordinary, and basic common sense—BUT ONLY FOR A WHILE! Was this book so simplistic that it was profound?
The main premise in Fired Up is that connection within the organization counts. Throughout the book, the lead author, Michael Stallard, quotes and follows the lives of both successful, connecting leaders like John Wooden (UCLA basketball coach), Marquis de Lafayette (a Frenchman who selflessly served our country), Anne Mulcahy (CEO of Xerox), and Harriet Beecher Stowe (the author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin), while contrasting the poor examples of leadership characteristics in Howell Raines (former executive editor of the New York Times) and Dirk Jager (former CEO of Proctor and Gamble). The difference between successful leaders and disgraced leaders lies in their ability to use their character to inspire connection.
Connection, according to Stallard, is the leverage that sets apart “good” from “best” organizations. Without a sense of connection at work, there is job dissatisfaction and burnout. A “Connection Culture” is one where Vision + Value + Voice = Connection. Vision is defined as being motivated by the organization’s mission, unified by its values and proud of its reputation. Value is described as understanding the basic psychological needs of people, appreciating their positive, unique contributions, and helping them achieve their potential. The third element of connection, Voice, is determined by seeking the ideas of others, sharing ideas and opinions honestly and safeguarding relational connections.
The book goes on to list the leadership steps required to foster a “connection environment.” They include inspiring identity, creating meaning within your organization, deleting what devalues, dialing up the value, and increasing knowledge flow. Probably my favorite portions of the book were the application exercise at the end of each chapter as well as the mini biographical section that details twenty “Connecting Leaders.” Both of these substantiated the concept of connection and its importance in “firing people up” and helping to eliminate burn-out.
In summary, I enjoyed and learned from this book. Don’t under estimate its lessons. Even if you have a sterling track record and seemingly accurate sense of your own leadership or “connection ability’, you can learn much from Fired Up Or Burned Out.