How to Stay Hired

We have all been there. Sweaty palms. Crinkled resumes. Scuffed shoes. It’s job interview day and despite sticking those germ-infested hooves in our mouth during an intense question, we snagged ourselves an illustrious position at our dream job. 

You see, several years ago, that was me. I remember what I was wearing, the weather, a few of the interview Q&A's.

After a while I got comfortable with everyone and work life proceeds. The mantra practice makes perfect fueled me through the day. However, a nagging question snuck in, how do I keep the dream alive? How do I stay hired?

And now I’ve planted it in your head…

Be On Time: Punctuality is equivalent to reliability. Not only should you be on time to plopping your fine rear anatomy at your desk in the morning (seriously, how many traffic jams can your encounter in a week. Seriously.) but you should be on time with handing your work into your boss and to your clients.

Be Honest: Own up to your mistakes. While it is a globally known fact that America is in crisis mode for an ever-growing debt, (you didn’t really think that was was a national secret, did you?) that is not the only deficit we own. We are deficient when it comes to taking responsibility.

Be Likeable: What does that even mean? If your coworkers grimace when you talk, that’s a strong indicator you are on the wrong spectrum of likeability. If you extend a BBQ invite and 80% of the office shows, you’re on the right track. Listen to people, share your food (be respective to food allergies and try not to get people severely harmed) and respect boundaries.

Be Open: Whether it’s opening up to others, being open to ideas or critique or helping others open up, shutting down means you lose out. Allow people to explore alongside you.

Be Proactive: Don’t wait for someone to ask you to do something. If you see the water is about to run over the sink ledge, for Niagara Fall’s sake, get up and shut it off even if you didn’t leave it on. A cautious person with a good set of eyes in the future who has the team’s back (quite the visual) is always an asset.

Be Versatile: Let people know about your multi-faceted skills and your willingness to use them whenever, however, and wherever needed. This may be your dream job in an illustrious team, but it takes many moving parts to make mighty things happen. Moreover, it takes all kinds of special too.

So finally, how to stay hired is to be hired. While being on time is essential, don’t just show up because it’s your dream. Be hired. And stay hired.

Here’s to many more years at Worx…because it just Worx for me.

Branding Abroad

One of the things we as a team are most passionate about is communication. If you can see someone, if you talk to someone, if you pick up the phone, if you email someone, ultimately, someone will answer. You just have to find that someone’s way of communication.

By putting an emphasis on not having cubicles – taking away the physical and emotional barriers that keep our interoffice relations from moving forward, we found our way was speaking up, reaching out and initiating face-to-face time. Consequently, we then are able to combat inertia.

That communication policy is equally integral with our clients. Like the classic lyrics of The King and I song go, “Getting to know you, getting to know all about you…”

We fully immerse ourselves in your company culture not just knowing about your favorite things, but about who you as a people are collectively and individually. We get to know where you are going, where you came from and what you are in the moment.

Whom have you created as a community? Whom do you come from as a community?

The four-worded expression, it’s a small world should never discredit any unique facet from which we derive our legacy.

Whether we visit your hometown or your home turf whenever we cross borders between our brand and yours, we take the time to learn what makes you tick. Branding abroad – no matter how many miles separate our company and yours – means respecting your customs.

First Impression: Each culture appreciates meeting over business differently. Some bow, some nod, some hug, some high-five some shake hands between opposite genders some take great offense and then some give cheek-kisses when then see us as part of their brand family.

Brand Arsenal: Business cards. Don’t like telephones? Email us. Don’t like typing? Schedule an in-person meeting because we’ve conveniently added our studio address on Side B. It all channels back to finding someone’s preferred method of connectivity. No matter where you go, if the world truly is a small place then we never know where we’ll meet someone who needs our services.

Core Values: Communication is organic. No one wants to hear us recite a bullet point list of our services in comparison to his or her issues. Knowing our core values to our core and believing it like this is the best way to allow conversations evolve naturally without sounding rehearsed or close-ended.

Brand Out Loud: It’s okay to turn it off. It’s okay to take a vacation. It’s okay to close your eyes and close out your emails. However, the difference between what we do and others is we don’t just have a job, we have a passion. So like we say over and over again, our personal and professional brands are often direct reflections of each other. We are the same people from 5-9 as we are from 9-5. When we go abroad, we live what we are. We are walking talking business cards. So even when we have off-time, we are still us. Moreover, we are the definition of Worx. That’s what makes up company culture and makes up a brand. That’s what makes branding abroad an unforgettable experience; two people from two brands meet and find out what their method of communication is.

The Formula to Company Culture

How tragic is it to have a job that you commute to every single day with the sole purpose of getting to the next paycheck? At some point or another, we’ve all been there. We let our priorities become unbalanced and have somehow after months found ourselves just running through the motions. Your happiness and self-fulfillment is the top priority. No one can live off of coffee and energy drinks forever. Believe it or not, there is a formula to happiness that if practiced by a company will lead to ultimate success in all avenues. That formula is (WC=Team > Individual) otherwise known as company culture. 

At Worx we've come to the conclusion that we have to do things differently. Company culture is the direct influence on how smoothly the ship is sailing. Effects derived from poor company culture are often missed deadlines, negative employee body language, tension, lack of ambition and static routine. If a company is not happy, it will reflect in many aspects of the workplace, unfortunately and most crucially the clients. Your company culture IS your brand. 

Now, culture is not something that just happens overnight. Culture is something that happens naturally. Every person is born and raised with a set of unique beliefs, taboos and values. It governs the ways in which a person thinks and acts. For a company to be successful, there has to be a blending, an assimilation of individual into team. Embrace the differences and utilize multiple perspectives into one positive driving force.
Our company culture is kept alive and breathing because we make a conscious effort to keep it at the forefront. Here are some things that we practice day-to-day: 

The Worx Family Manifesto

Share Core Values:
When the members in a company shares core values everything runs in complete cohesiveness. The objective remains constant and everyone strives to achieve the same mission. Productivity is greater and value is placed on the end goal.  

Knowing Your Purpose:
Don't just work for the paycheck; do something that you genuinely love. Everyone should feel a sense of purpose to the team and to each other. Our mission is our client’s success.

Make Time For Quality Time:
It is so important to take your working relationships beyond the desk. Do things that will give your employees the opportunity to interact and let their personalities free. Team building exercises such as 5Ks, mud runs, adventure parks and volunteer events within your field or community are a great way of giving everyone the chance to let down a few walls and learn about each other.

Celebrate Achievements:
People want to be part of an organization that they can be proud of. No one wants to feel like what they are doing isn't enough or is insignificant. Take a moment to celebrate each other's as well as the team's accomplishments even if they are small steps. Go out to dinner for meeting your monthly goals and congratulate someone on their new home. Celebrate team accomplishments and acknowledge the personal ones as well. Positivity is fuel. 

Understand Each Other's Strengths and Weaknesses:
At Worx we have taken multiple strength and weakness tests as well as have noted them in work situations. We know what each other excel in and where we struggle. We know each other's pet peeves and what makes us uncomfortable. By diving deeper into each other's personalities, we can create a work culture in which everyone produces their best work. 

Meet Often:
Communication is key to a good work environment. It is imperative to not just hear, but also listen to each other. This is a great practice to get comfortable with everyone on the team as well as to learn a wealth of information about how a member works, their stress level threshold, their brilliant ideas, and how they can best be utilized to showcase their skills while elevating the company. 

Eliminate Hierarchical BS:
Of course, there is a chain of command, but this is never used as a weapon to designate where the power is. It is crucial to recognize that each person has a significance and reason for being there. When a member feels that they have worth in a company, the positivity is almost contagious and the level of respect soars astronomically. A team should be one congruent moving gear that if one cog is missing, the operation fails. At Worx, everyone is an essential part of what makes Worx, work. There is a level of mutual respect, trust and appreciation that is displayed to one another. When a company works together through controversy and success, the outcome is powerful.

Throw Peanuts:
Not every day is a good day no matter how hard we try. Don't let someone harvest frustration. Take time to grab coffee, have a lunch meeting out of the office or throw stress peanuts at each other if necessary (adorable plushy stress relievers in the shape of peanuts, courtesy of our wonderful client, Food Safety Training Solutions, INC.) Whatever method works best. 

Cultivate The Future:
A strong company culture helps to cultivate your future team. The vibes you put out attract folks with the same positivity and values who are seeking such an atmosphere. Your work culture is also a marketing tool and can be used to bring together like-minded individuals to help grow your company's future. 

Once a company keeps in mind the balance between team and individual, a different atmosphere will noticeably take shape. Daily practices become integrated and fluid with the motions of everyday life. We are not a Utopian society that is in perfect harmony with perfect results and perfect lives. But we have created a culture that fits– a defined destination of who we are now, and who we aspire to be.

BAE Branding

At Worx, there are many components to ensure that the immune system of our Brand stays healthy. However, if you’ve seen, heard, read or been around us for a substantial amount of time, you known that every experience between seeing, hearing, reading and being a successful company is contingent on consistency. Doing it over and over again - everywhere – so everyone becomes involved and does the same.

Every year, nationwide, we as people brand words through consistency. By seeing, hearing, reading and being around people who do it over and over again - everywhere – so everyone becomes involved and does the same.

What it is that we are branding? Slogans. This year our lips have caught ahold of adjectives such as:

“Thirsty.” (Nothing a beverage can quench.)

“On fleek.”

And

“Basic.” (Basically what you think it means.)

We’ve taken these words by storm and made them household staples.

They are truly our BAE vocabulary preference.

Ah! The noun that encompasses our heart’s rawest emotions. 

It took me approximately half of 2015 to decode the acronym that is BAE, and until now the correct pronunciation. However, dialects that they are – that is subjective.

Although I have decoded it, in theory, intellectually, I did not emotionally grasp its true intentions until I tried to implement it. So rather than apply it in a romantic or platonic relationship, I’ve created a scenario where I could enhance our brand through a BEA checklist.

It takes much hard work to make a brand approachable and keep it alive. While it may seem beautiful, there’s much work that needs to happen in the background.

To ensure you can see, hear, read and experience the same in every encounter, we have to check through Before Anyone Else, or in this case, Before Anything Else immune system nourishment.

BAE Branding:

• Make sure your social media is not stagnant: No news is good news? That may apply to your doctor, but not around here. Our clients want to know what’s going on. We cannot depend on other avenues to keep everyone up to date.

• Answer your emails: No matter how quick the question, we’ve found sending someone a brief response acknowledging their presence, even if you can’t give their question full attention in the moment, adds value to the relationship because they feel like they have been heard.

• Have internal focus groups: If we do not know what’s going on, who will? Every Monday morning we kick-off the week with status updates. Where we currently are with projects; the creative direction and deadline; the good news the bad news – by openly sharing this, we not only can help each other, but our work culture is more focused.

• Front and center reminders: Whether it is goal oriented, calendars, mini client rundowns or timelines, having a system in front of us as a team is a constant reminder of what BAE represents.

• Attend networking events: We do not know it all, and there’s always someone smarter than you in the room. The great thing about life is that we can learn from people outside of our industry, be inspired by their story and use it to help us succeed. 

• Talk about what we do: We love what we do. So it’s easy to talk about our collective works. Remember how when school was out of session, summer tended to overpower our senses and everything we learned was forgotten? Around here we keep things fresh and top of mind. So from blogs to press releases, it is important to keep the general audience informed.

• Clean the clutter: Not only do we respect each other’s workspaces, but the material with which we work. Our client’s files do not deserve to get disorganized – neither virtual nor physical.

Whatever your company, you have a brand. And where there is a brand you have a BAE relationship to nurture. What are your priorities when it comes to ensuring your brand’s immune system remains in its prime?

Blackout day

You may be familiar with the concept of Blackout Days if you travel for business or pleasure. This is typically when your discounts, promotions or specials are unavailable, specifically around holidays or heavy travel times. We’ve taken the positive aspect of this, with the help of our business coach, and adapted the concept to our company culture. Blackout Days for us are not a negative; they’re an opportunity to thrive.

It’s very easy to get caught up in the answering game – answering emails, phone calls, internal questions, the meaning of life (ok, maybe that doesn’t cross our minds every day, but it happens). Every time we stop what we’re doing to answer a red dot and a ding, we are breaking concentration from what we’re intending to work on. That’s where Blackout Day comes into play.

The concept is for one day each month we eliminate all outside communication and solely focus on our success list. What needs our most attention? What have we been wanting to work on? What has a deadline that needs my focus on? Blackout Day is a chance to dig in our heels and get ahead. It allows us to better serve our clients.

There are 5 simple rules:

• No email – we close our emails for the entire day, eliminating the feeling, “I’ll just answer that quickly.”
• No phones – we turn off the ringer to the office and our cell phones.
• No meetings – with clients or with one another.
•  Create a success list – what do you want to accomplish during your time?
• Adhere to the rules – that means everyone, including the boss.

The result? Happy people who feel accomplished. We recap at the end of the day about what we each accomplished, celebrating each person. Everyone feels like they’ve put in a solid day and leaves feeling like they’ve gotten ahead. It clears our minds for the next day, knowing we’ve set one another and ourselves up for success.

When Blackout Day is not in full swing, we still try to practice similar habits. When there is a project or deadline that needs our full attention, we eliminate the distractions that would take us away from achieving those goals. Sometimes that means turning off our email for a few hours. Sometimes that means plugging in, listening to music and knocking it out. Each person has his or her own style.

I encourage you and your team to give it a shot. It may seem weird at first, but once you get in the groove of the day, you’ll experience just how much you actually can cross off your list. Don’t feel guilty for not answering people – you’re doing something to serve them better. You’re creating a healthy atmosphere for your team to thrive.