"Did I tell you that you are doing a great job?" Encouraging words are especially meaningful to your employees right now. You have a lot on your mind while you are maintaining your business and moving forward. You are doing your best to keep and project a positive attitude.
   At the same time, your employees feel the pressure of the downturn. They know if business has fallen off whether you have directly shared the fact with them or not. They have friends and family members (if not co-workers) who have lost their jobs. They think, "It could happen to me."
   Encouraging words are the most cost-effective investment you can make in your company right now. It's such a small thing, but so easily overlooked and taken for granted.
   Compensation isn't all about money, benefits, contests or prizes. Showing your appreciation will increase smiles and limit complaining. It will also increase productivity. Feeling appreciated is a powerful motivator. It's more important now than ever. (Share your thoughts here.)
   When PRIME meets in Chicago on September 14, discussions will focus on important issues such as "how to manage change in difficult times."  We will explore ways to identify the source and find solutions to those issues that bother you and bring down your employees.
   Also on the agenda, "how to stop wasting your marketing dollars." How do you create a message that gets through to a public that is not in a spending mood?
   PRIME members will take one day to be away from the urgent cries of the office and focus on those issues that are important to the ongoing success of their business...not just for today, but for tomorrow and in the coming weeks and months.
   People will find a leader. Leadership is about learning. Stop learning and you'll soon find your followers looking elsewhere.
   Learn more about PRIME