Nope, am not on a book-review spree but have to write a HR review on this one...before I ’forget’ what its about, isn’t that what happens with all this self-help motivational books? :o) This is yet another parable following the much read ’’Who moved my cheese?’’, a little better coz this one is a simple, practical & easy to understand book that offers tips to help not only our work place but also helps with our daily lives.
FISH! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results aims to spread the message of enjoying our while & increasing productivity in a way that so that the mantra of workers should be ’’Thank God it’s Monday’’, instead of eagerly looking forward to Fridays.
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Toxic Energy Dump!
Imagine the place where we spent most of our waking & working hours being labeled as a Toxic Energy Dump!
Mary Jane Ramirez, a manager at First Guarantee Financial, has just been transferred to this third floor of operations department that has ineffective & unfriendly people as its staff, people who have long back stopped believing they can make a difference to their organisation & are so disconnected with their work that they have no idea of terms like teamwork or customer service.
Mary herself isn’t in good spirits as she is a recent widow & mother of two, badly in need of this job but suffering from a low morale. When her boss orders her to makeover her TED department, Mary is challenged to find ways to get her staff & herself motivated & to turn her dump into a work place that is more fun & effective.
Simple, practical wisdom to improve her work atmosphere comes to Mary Jane from a very unlikely source -- a fish market! A chance visit to the Seattle’s Pike Place Market & meeting with a fun-loving fishmonger Lonnie, who shows Mary how the fishmongers enjoy their work even though it is in a stinky place, leads to Mary’s journey of self discovery & team motivation.
Mary observes that the fishmongers are lively & joyful people, who are passionate about their work & always ready to help customers. After learning the Pike Place Fish Market’s secrets for success & improved attitude Mary is encouraged to help her staff find their way to a fun n happy workplace.
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The Book:
FISH! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results is written by Stephen C. Lundin Ph.D., Harry Paul & John Christensen for the millions of workers who savor the thought of having a more playful & productive work atmosphere. The four secrets & suggested strategies the book offers are:
Choose your attitude:
When doing any job chose your attitude; we have the power to create the workplace of our dreams through the choices we make every day. As you enter this place of work please choose to make today a great day. Our positive attitude would be appreciated [and followed] by our colleagues, customers and team members.
Play:
Have fun while you work; find ways to play. This is important because happy people treat others well & fun leads to creativity. Working in a happy environment our work becomes a reward & not just a way to rewards.
Make their day:
Make the day of the people around you; co-workers, customers. Serving the customers right would give a satisfaction that should come from any work, it is healthy, feels good & will unleash more energy.
Be Present:
One needs to be fully present at their job; to stay focused in order to be present when your customers or team members most need you.
The book has explained how the above strategies can improve morale in workplace. These four nuggets are so simple n practical that they can be applied in any department of almost any field because we all would like to work in an environment that is fun, energizing, where we can make a difference. It helps one in finding the deep sources of energy/creativity within ourselves by learning to love what we do, even if at times we may not be doing the work we love. The Fish! Philosophy is a quick & effective way to get us motivated to change our attitude & workplace too.
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My Word:
Being a fish sign, the name of this book was enough to grab my attention. The book is just 100 pages; an easy read & it ends on a mushy note! It’s interesting to know about Mary’s unlikely business consultants- the fishmongers! With the actual World Famous Pike Place Fish Market as its background the story gives such ordinary advice in a very interesting format; Catch the Energy & Release the Potential.
Well, I still hate monday mornings but hope it won’t remain the same for long :o) As the book says ’’When we choose to love the work we do, we can catch our limit of happiness, meaning, and fulfillment every day.’’