Profit from the Positive: Proven Leadership Strategies to Boost Productivity and Transform Your Business, with a foreword by Tom Rath

Book description

Profit from the Positive is a rare business book that is deeply credible and compels you to act right away. If you put its tools and techniques into practice, you will become a better leader.”
Tom Rath, from the Foreword

You're constantly challenged to grow your business, increase productivity, and improve quality—all while reducing or keeping budgets flat. So what's a manager to do?

You've streamlined processes. You've restructured. You’ve sought customer and employee feedback. You've tried everything. Now, try something that works. Profit from the Positive is a practical, groundbreaking guide for business leaders, managers, executive coaches, and human resource professionals. Whether you lead three employees or 3,000, this book shows you how to increase productivity, collaboration, and profitability using the simple yet powerful tools from the new field of Positive Psychology.

Featuring case studies of some of the most forward-thinking and successful companies today—Google, Zappos, and Amazon, to name a few—Profit from the Positive provides over two dozen evidence-based tools you can apply immediately. Learn how to:

  • Set habits, not just goals
  • Recognize the Achoo! effect
  • Stop asking the wrong questions
  • Hire for what's not on the resume
  • Turn strengths into a team sport
  • Preview, don't just review, performance

The best part? These strategies don't cost a dime to implement! Trained by Dr. Martin Seligman, who is known as the father of Positive Psychology, Margaret Greenberg and Senia Maymin translate the scientific research and make it accessible to the business world.

PRAISE FOR PROFIT FROM THE POSITIVE:

"Put it on your nightstand, bring it on the plane with you—however you do it—read this book. Profit from the Positive gives actionable steps for managers' biggest burning questions. As a twenty-first-century leader, you cannot do without it."—Marshall Goldsmith, New York Times bestselling author of MOJO and What Got You Here Won't Get You There

"Profit from the Positive gives the busy executive ways to improve performance immediately--in some cases by up to 50 percent--without restructuring the organization or bringing in any consultants. Finally, a leadership book that bridges the chasm between what science knows and what business needs!"—Chip Conley, founder of Joie de Vivre Hotels and New York Times bestselling author of PEAK and Emotional Equations

"Profit from the Positive is a thought-provoking and practical guide . . . an invaluable resource for anyone seeking to be an exceptional manager and contributor at work."—Gretchen Rubin, New York Times bestselling author of The Happiness Project

"Greenberg and Maymin--pioneers in the application of Positive Psychology to organizations--have built an exciting and important bridge between compelling evidence and actionable practice. Profit from the Positive is a valuable resource for anyone seeking to boost organizational productivity and the quality of work life."—Adam Grant, professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and New York Times bestselling author of Give and Take

"Profit from the Positive is a straightforward business book that offers tools, backed by solid research, which can help any manager and their team."—Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos.com, Inc., and New York Times bestselling author of Delivering Happiness

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. profit from the positive: Proven Leadership Strategies to Boost Productivity and Transform Your Business
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. CONTENTS
  6. FOREWORD by Tom Rath
  7. INTRODUCTION: You’ve Tried Everything. Now Try Something That Works
  8. PART I It’s About the Leader
    1. 1 THE PRODUCTIVE LEADER: It’s More Than Time Management
      1. Replace “Just Do It” with “Just Plan It”
      2. Trick Yourself into Getting Started
      3. Set Habits, Not Just Goals
      4. Work Less, Accomplish More
    2. 2 THE RESILIENT LEADER: Give Yourself a Psychological Kick in the Pants
      1. Don’t Quit, Just Quit Being an Expert
      2. Put on an Explorer’s Hat
      3. Win Debates Against Yourself
    3. 3 THE CONTAGIOUS LEADER: Control Your Emotions, Not Your Employees
      1. Recognize the Achoo! Effect
      2. Tame Your Oscar the Grouch If You Need To
      3. Don’t Be a Control Freak
    4. 4 THE STRENGTHS-BASED LEADER: Capitalize on What’s Right
      1. Stop Asking the Wrong Questions
      2. Find Solutions, Not Faults
      3. Know Your Strengths or No One Else Will
  9. PART II It’s About the Team
    1. 5 HIRING: The Fitness Test
      1. Hire for What’s Not on the Resume
      2. Predict the Future by Digging into the Past
      3. Don’t Overlook Your Culture’s Quirks
    2. 6 ENGAGING EMPLOYEES: Bring Out the Best Versus Get the Most
      1. Don’t Just Read the Book
      2. Turn Strengths into a Team Sport
      3. Don’t Fire Poor Performers; Fire ’Em Up
      4. Give FRE: Frequent Recognition and Encouragement
    3. 7 PERFORMANCE REVIEWS: Change ’Em or Chuck ’Em
      1. Obsess over Strengths but Don’t Ignore Weaknesses
      2. Don’t Make Goals Easy and Vague
      3. Preview, Don’t Just Review, Performance
      4. Chew the Fat; Don’t Chew Them Out
    4. 8 MEETINGS: From Energy Buster to Energy Booster
      1. Start with a Sizzle
      2. Practice the Peak-End Rule
      3. Play Your Whole Bench
  10. PART III Putting It All Together
    1. 9 THE POSITIVE DEVIANT: Three Things I Can Start Today
      1. Don’t Resist Resistance
      2. Start Small
      3. Drop the Lingo
      4. Use the Back Door
  11. APPENDIX A: All 31 Tools Featured in Profit from the Positive
  12. APPENDIX B: Is a Strengths-Based Approach a Good Fit for Me?
  13. APPENDIX C: Turn Strengths into a Team Sport
  14. APPENDIX D: Frequent Recognition and Encouragement (FRE)
  15. APPENDIX E: The Five FRESH Themes
  16. APPENDIX F: Good Reads
  17. REFERENCES
  18. READING AND DISCUSSION GUIDE
  19. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  20. INDEX

Product information

  • Title: Profit from the Positive: Proven Leadership Strategies to Boost Productivity and Transform Your Business, with a foreword by Tom Rath
  • Author(s): Margaret Greenberg, Senia Maymin
  • Release date: August 2013
  • Publisher(s): McGraw-Hill
  • ISBN: 9780071817448