“In the hiring process, hurry calmly!”

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🌟 Kathy Fyock writes in the book 53 Strategies for Hiring the Best: Some time ago, the CFO of an insurance company told me an interesting story. He had received a résumé that looked excellent and complete. The candidate’s qualifications and education were perfect. After a phone conversation with the candidate, the CFO became even more convinced that this was exactly the person he wanted.

🌟 Since he had been searching for such a candidate for months—and was sure someone like that wouldn’t stay unemployed for long and competitors would quickly hire him—he decided to move forward with the hire.

🌟 However, the insurance company had strict hiring policies, and the background‑check process was long and time‑consuming. The CFO worried that he might lose the candidate.

🌟 Still, with no other choice, he waited for HR to complete the background check. The results revealed that the candidate had been imprisoned for embezzlement and had sent the résumé from prison—and that his extensive experience in embezzlement had made him quite knowledgeable in financial matters.

🌟 This experience, and others like it, reminds us that even when we feel pressure to hire quickly, we must not rush the hiring process—especially the background‑check stage.

🌟 Psychologists confirm this as well, noting that the best predictor of a person’s future performance is their past performance.

🌟 Since only a small part of a candidate’s past appears on their résumé, we must calmly and patiently investigate the rest of their background.

“HR experts say loyalty no longer has any meaning!”

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🌟 According to a survey conducted in May by the platform WorkProud with 1,000 full‑time employees, only 23% of workers aged 42 and under expressed interest in staying long‑term at their company. For employees aged 30 and under, this number dropped to 18%. In the 1980s and 1990s, things were completely different. People were simply satisfied to have a job and receive a paycheck. But today, attitudes toward work have changed.

🌟 Rick Garlick, senior researcher at WorkProud, says: “These findings highlight the changing nature of loyalty in the workplace, especially among younger employees. Since younger workers prioritize factors such as work‑life balance and company culture, employers must adapt their strategies to meet the evolving needs and expectations of this generation.”

🌟 How much is loyalty worth? In an era where job‑hopping—especially among young people—is on the rise, does loyalty even mean anything in the corporate world? Jerome Zapata, HR director at the investment firm Kickstart Ventures, says “no.” Employees who frequently change jobs often receive better pay because when they join a new company, they have more leverage to negotiate from a position of strength. Additionally, when a job candidate switches roles frequently, they gain a competitive advantage because they acquire new experiences in each previous job.

🌟 Of course, constant job‑hopping can also be a negative sign. For those who are new to the job market, moving from one job to another is acceptable. But for individuals in senior or leadership roles, loyalty is an important trait that companies look for. Therefore, employees must weigh the pros and cons of frequent job changes and make a thoughtful decision.

“On persuading with statistics and figures”

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🌟 Kevin Hogan writes in 53 Principles of Persuasion: Without a doubt, the more precise your statements are, the more believable they become—especially when you use numbers and data in your arguments.

🌟 In fact, when you present statistics with detail and at the right moment, your claims become easier to believe, your position becomes stronger, and it becomes harder for the other side to challenge you.

🌟 Just remember: people don’t like vague or approximate numbers—they prefer precise information. To understand this better, imagine you’re a car salesperson introducing a fuel‑efficient vehicle to a customer.

🌟 If you simply say, “This car has low fuel consumption—around 7 to 8 liters,” it will be difficult to persuade the customer.

🌟 But if you say, “This car consumes 8.2 liters per 100 km with regular gasoline and 7.6 liters per 100 km with premium gasoline,” you can persuade the customer much more easily.

🌟 That’s why professional salespeople always carry a notebook where they record the exact date and time of all previous agreements with customers—so they can refer to them and influence the customer more effectively.

🌟 For example, imagine you previously agreed on a 4% discount, but the customer now asks for more.

🌟 To persuade this customer, you could say: “Mr. Smith, are you sure about that? Because I have notes from our phone call at 3:10 p.m. on September 14 indicating that we agreed on a 4% discount.”

“Six effective ways to motivate employees”

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🌟 Companies like Google and Netflix know how to unlock talent and attract younger generations. Their success shows how valuable it is to offer various rewards and benefits to employees.

🌟 But when we talk about companies that aren’t as large as Google, the challenge is implementing ideas that are practical and realistic. If you want to bring transformative cultural elements into your own organization, try one of the simple and low‑cost ideas in this article.

1⃣ Hold meetings outside the office Work meetings usually aren’t on employees’ list of favorite activities. By doing something simple—like holding meetings at a nearby café—you can surprise your employees. This change of environment boosts their mood and increases the productivity of your meeting.

2⃣ Buy food for employees The ideal company provides meals for employees every day. If that’s not possible, you can still show appreciation by providing a ready meal on a busy workday. Is your accounting department buried in tax‑season tasks? During these long workweeks, buy them a few meals and brighten their day!

3⃣ Be flexible with working hours Strict 9‑to‑5 schedules are slowly becoming outdated. A modern approach is to let employees manage their own working hours. Instead of evaluating daily output, assign weekly tasks and let them decide how to allocate their time. If by Wednesday afternoon the week’s work is done—and done well—why not let them leave early and still pay them for a full day?

4⃣ Organize friendly competitions A little competition works wonders! If your company has a sales department, run a monthly “Employee of the Month” contest. Healthy competition plus the chance to earn rewards significantly boosts motivation.

5⃣ Prioritize employee wellness Health is something everyone worries about but rarely finds time for. Encouraging employees to prioritize their well‑being leads to greater happiness and higher productivity. You can even partner with a nearby gym to offer special discounts to your staff.

6⃣ Bring outdoor fun into the workplace If space is limited, this idea may be challenging—but it’s still a great way to energize the workday. Set up a few fun activities in the office and watch employees interact and enjoy themselves. Lunch hour can become a time when employees laugh, relax, and recharge—eliminating that sluggish post‑lunch feeling.

“How to win people’s trust by asking a simple question”

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🌟 Simon Sinek, bestselling author and leadership expert, suggests that you can earn people’s trust by asking a simple question: “Can you help me?” He believes there is a misconception that asking for help makes you look weak, while in reality, people trust you more when you ask for their help.

🌟 Sinek raised this point at the 2024 Brilliant Minds conference, explaining that when you ask others for help, they feel more respected and trusted. He says that when friends or colleagues face challenges and you don’t ask for their help, they may feel ignored or think you don’t trust them.

🌟 He explains that trust is built when people ask for help—even when it’s not absolutely necessary. This matters not only in personal relationships but also in professional environments.

🌟 Emotional‑intelligence researchers believe that people with high emotional intelligence are not afraid to share their failures and struggles, and they see vulnerability as a strength. Asking questions like “What do you think about…?” helps expand conversations, increase trust, and deepen workplace relationships.

🌟 Requesting help in small matters—like asking for dinner suggestions or recommendations for walking spots—can be the first step toward building connection and trust. Over time, this trust makes it easier to seek help in more difficult or sensitive situations, strengthening relationships even further.

“The secret of sales: make your customers laugh”

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🌟 Jim Blyth writes in 100 Great Marketing Ideas: Making people laugh has always been an excellent way to attract them. For this reason, companies can also use this principle to market more effectively.

🌟 Although humor is used in marketing and advertising for certain products—such as toys, food, and similar items—it is used far less for promoting many other types of products.

🌟 Without a doubt, jokes and humorous lines aimed at educated and high‑end audiences can generate strong word‑of‑mouth marketing for us, provided we use them with the right level of subtlety.

🌟 For example, BMW, which produces high‑priced cars for wealthy customers, releases a humorous advertisement every year on April 1st alongside its serious and luxurious campaigns—usually about the company’s innovations in car design.

🌟 In one such ad, the company announced that, due to new EU regulations banning right‑hand‑drive cars, it had invested in producing cars without steering wheels that would be controlled by the driver’s head movements.

🌟 In another year, the German company claimed it had designed a windshield wiper that scares away flies. In yet another ad, BMW said it had created a car that allows the driver to call their home microwave so their meal would be ready before they arrive.

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“Strategies for working smart instead of working more”

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✍🏻 John Maxwell

1⃣ The Leverage Strategy Leverage is the art of using tools to increase the quality of work or productivity. These tools may be technologies—such as computer software—or organizational strategies like improved systems. What tools do you usually use to maximize your results? For example, a salesperson who sells through seminars or televised conferences will clearly achieve more sales than someone who sells one‑to‑one. What can you do to make your time, knowledge, or skills your leverage?

2⃣ The Delegation Strategy A specific form of leverage is delegation—engaging others to handle parts of your work so your time is freed for more profitable activities. Let’s revisit the salesperson example: if a salesperson excels at closing deals, they might delegate administrative tasks so they can spend more time selling. If the profit from increased sales exceeds the cost of delegation, then you have an effective system. I’m always surprised to hear business owners complain that their salespeople dislike planning ahead and feel bad about it.

3⃣ The Time‑Management Strategy I often hear business owners say that private‑sector employees are too many because they waste hours getting work done. I disagree. If you can’t complete your work in a normal business day, you likely lack skills in focus, leverage, and delegation—or you’re a manager who uses time poorly. Time management is the art of organizing yourself so you can complete all your tasks within a standard workday.

🌟 Organizing your day begins at the end of the previous day. If you plan during your downtime, your brain will help you work more efficiently. It’s estimated that 50% of rest time is spent organizing the brain and structuring the knowledge and experiences gained throughout the day.

4⃣ The Strategy of Distinguishing Between Activities I’m sure you know the 80/20 rule: 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts. The reason this applies to so many people is that they don’t know which efforts produce the best results. If you track your good outcomes, you can adjust the 80/20 rule to work more effectively for you.

🌟 If you knew which 20% of your activities produced the best results, you could organize yourself to spend more time on those tasks—thus increasing your profit per hour. If you knew the characteristics of the 20% of your customers who generate 80% of your business, you could target that group more effectively.

“Go to where your customers gather”

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🌟 Jim Blyth writes in 100 Great Marketing Ideas: Customers do not come to us magically or on their own. They think about buying our product because they need it. Therefore, identifying the right time, place, or situation in which a customer needs our product is one of the marketer’s most important responsibilities.

🌟 For example, the Ikarus C42 is an ultralight aircraft, but compared to other ultralight planes, it has several technical advantages. It has a cabin heater, more space, and a more attractive appearance.

🌟 The main problem is its price—the fully equipped version sells for £500,000. Because of this, the aircraft is not appealing to most people who are interested in ultralight flying.

🌟 For this reason, Aerosport, the company that owns and sells Ikarus aircraft, decided to offer it at a discount to flight schools so that their students could learn to fly using this model.

🌟 The logic was simple: once students received their pilot licenses, flying the Ikarus C42 would feel easy and familiar, making them more likely to buy one—either individually or jointly with other pilots.

🌟 After implementing this strategy, some flight schools even purchased additional aircraft to rent them out by the hour to students with lower budgets.

🌟 This example emphasizes that we must be present where many potential customers are gathered—and where they are most likely to need our product.

“Is it better to be loved or feared?”

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🌟 Psychological findings show that two factors—warmth and power—explain more than 90% of the variation in our positive or negative impressions of people around us. Which one is better?

🌟 Most leaders today emphasize their power, competence, and authority in the workplace; however, this approach is mistaken. Leaders who display power before building trust risk triggering fear—and consequently, dysfunctional behavior.

🌟 In a study of 51,836 leaders, only 27 of them ranked in the bottom quartile for likability and the top quartile for overall effectiveness. In other words, the likelihood that a highly disliked manager is also considered a highly effective one is one in two thousand. So: connection first, leadership second.

“Introduce your product properly!”

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🌟 Tim Connor writes in 91 Common Mistakes Salespeople Make: One of the mistakes weak salespeople make is talking too much when introducing their product. They assume that if they present “an ocean of features” to the customer, they will surely succeed.

🌟 But professional salespeople know that a proper product introduction is a kind of conversation in which both sides must participate—not a monologue where we speak and the customer listens.

🌟 For this reason, professional salespeople manage the product‑presentation meeting based on one key principle: listening and discovering the customer’s needs, wants, and concerns, and then linking them to the product’s core features.

🌟 That’s why, when you accompany professional salespeople—say, attending four product‑presentation meetings in one day—you notice that they introduce their product differently in each meeting, rather than repeating the same memorized lines like a cassette tape.

🌟 Based on this, to introduce the product we sell professionally, we must follow these principles:

1️⃣ Introduce the product briefly and clearly, focusing on a few key features.

2️⃣ Present the product from the customer’s point of view, not your own.

3️⃣ Create a two‑way, interactive conversation with the customer.

4️⃣ Focus on both the emotional and technical features of the product.

5️⃣ Engage the customer with the product so they feel a sense of ownership.

6️⃣ Periodically ask for the customer’s opinion about what you’ve said, so you can clarify any questions or concerns.

7️⃣ Select your talking points based on the customer’s specific situation.