December 5, 2025 • 42 mins
Heather is an employee engagement expert, speaker, and author of "The Tazie Effect". She has a Masters degree in Organizational Leadership. She is also the creator of a program titled PAWS for Effect. Inspired by Taz and Tinker, her adorable little 6-lb Miniature Pinschers, PAWS for Effect teaches the basic principles of employee engagement... Passion, People, and Purpose. Website: www.pentechprofessional.com
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Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-x-zone-radio-tv-show--1078348/support.
Please note that all XZBN radio and/or television shows are Copyright © REL-MAR McConnell Meda Company, Niagara, Ontario, Canada – www.rel-mar.com. For more Episodes of this show and all shows produced, broadcasted and syndicated from REL-MAR McConell Media Company and The 'X' Zone Broadcast Network and the 'X' Zone TV Channell, visit www.xzbn.net. For programming, distribution, and syndication inquiries, email programming@xzbn.net.
We are proud to announce the we have launched TWATNews.com, launched in August 2025.
TWATNews.com is an independent online news platform dedicated to uncovering the truth about Donald Trump and his ongoing influence in politics, business, and society. Unlike mainstream outlets that often sanitize, soften, or ignore stories that challenge Trump and his allies, TWATNews digs deeper to deliver hard-hitting articles, investigative features, and sharp commentary that mainstream media won’t touch
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These are stories and articles that you will not read anywhere else.Our mission is simple: to expose corruption, lies, and authoritarian tendencies while giving voice to the perspectives and evidence that are often marginalized or buried by corporate-controlled media
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
The Xzone Radio Show with Rob McConnell is largely an
opinion talk show. All opinions, comments, or statements of fact
expressed by Rob McConnell's guests are strictly their own and
are not to be construed as those of The X
Zone Radio Show or endorsed in any manner by Rob McConnell,
Realmar McConnell Media Company, the X Zone Broadcast Network, It's
(00:23):
affiliated networks, stations, employees or advertisers.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
All hit.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Welcome to the X Zone, a place where fact is
fiction and fiction is reality.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
Now here's your host, Rob McConnell, and welcome to the
Xcell everyone. My name is Rob McConnell. And that's right.
For the next four hours, I'm your host and your
guide as together we cross the time space continuum to
this place that I call the X Zone. It's a
place where people dare to believe and dare to be heard.
It's a place where fact is fiction and fiction is reality.
(01:14):
And the Xzone comes you Monday through Friday from ten
pm Eastern until two m Eastern on the Talkstar Radio Network,
xone Broadcast Network, UK High Definition Radio, euro High Definition
Radio Starcable. You stream and xzonetv dot com. If you'd
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and six ten seven zero three five. My email address
(01:36):
is xzone at xxone Radio TV dot com, on MSN messenger,
xone Radio TV at hotmail dot com, and our website
www dot Xzone Radio tv dot com. My first guest
tonight Xonation is Heather Whitaker. We're going to be talking
about the Tassie Effect now. Heather is an emplay ploye
(02:00):
engagement expert, speaker and author of the Tazzi Effect. She
has a master's degree in organizational leadership. She is also
the creator. She's also the creator of the program entitled
Pause for Effect and she was inspired by Taz and
Tinker her adorable little six pound miniature pinchers. Pause for
(02:23):
Effect teaches the basic principles I would imagine getting along
with your employees as well as employees getting along with
their bosses. Her website is www dot pin tech professional
dot com. That's www dot pen tech professional dot com.
And joining me now is Heather Whitaker. Hey, Heather, how
are you.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
I'm doing well? How are you?
Speaker 4 (02:45):
I'm doing great? Thanks. The Tazzi Effect was the inspiration
your two doggies.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Yes, absolutely. The stories are based on the life of
Tinker and they teach management and leadership principle. So my
tagline for people is management has gone to the dogs.
Speaker 4 (03:07):
You know, I was going to use that, but I figured, Nah,
that would probably insult the poor lady, and we don't
want to do that. So management has gone to the dogs.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Absolutely, that's where it belongs.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
So have flight attendants on certain airlines who like to
grab beer, yell at customers, and slide down the emergency shoots.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I hear.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
That's another story. Does that pling in anywhere here as well?
Can we use that example of the flight of the
flight attendant who went ballistic?
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yeah, you could, absolutely. That would be the equivalent of
probably a German shepherd or a Doberman pincher when you
walk into their yard and they startle and bark and
are just rude and nasty.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Yeah, they're the kind that you really don't want to
tick off.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
That's right, all right.
Speaker 4 (03:53):
You and I have to take a commercial break for
two minutes, but you know what, we'll be back right
after that. Looking forward to sharing the next hour with you, Heather,
So please stand by x O Nation Heather Whittaker is
our special guest. Her website www dot pentech professional dot com.
That's www dot pen tech professional dot com. This is
(04:15):
the X Zone, a place where people dared to believe
and dare to be heard. For Friday, August the thirteenth,
the only Friday the thirteenth this year. And I don't
know about you, but I've always found out that Friday
the thirteenth is a very lucky day for me. Well,
I do the show, don't I, each and every night
Monday through Friday from ten pm Eastern until two am Eastern.
(04:37):
My name is Rob mccondonell Heather Whittaker, and I will
be back on the other side of this two minute
commercial break. Don't go away. Did you know that when
you're on the road with limited data or Wi Fi,
you can still listen to the Xzone Radio Show with
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(04:58):
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twenty four seven, three sixty five. Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here,
(05:40):
and I wanted to spend a moment on Internet streaming.
Everybody has heard about Internet streaming, but not many know
much about it. Did you know? The Internet streams just
about everything, from new releases to old classics, almost every show,
every episode, and much more. But the question has always
been how do you do it? Well? Now, thanks to
(06:01):
the folks at one two three Ready TV, I have
the answer for you. They have developed a simple program
app one two three Ready TV that you install on
your Windows PC, Android smartphone or Android tablet that can
have you streaming like a pro in less than five minutes.
You truly won't believe how much is available or how
(06:22):
easy it is to do until you try. And for
a one time cost of only nineteen dollars and ninety
nine cents, this product is a real winner. To learn
more about one two three Ready TV. Visit our website
at www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Hello, I'm Justina Marsh and with my dad Pete, we
are going to present a new show called Too Good
to Be True. Together, we are aiming to discover more
truth about this world and beyond. Do you have unanswered
questions about the world? Do you ever wonder about alien
conspiracy theories or the universe? There are many shows discussing
subjects such as pyramids or UFOs, but we want to
(07:07):
relay this information based on our own research, including from
spiritual means. Hopefully listeners will be helped with our own
beliefs and will appreciate the psychic insights that add to
the previous research and information. We both look forward to
sharing this insight and beginning this journey with our listeners.
Visit ZBN dot net for more information about when to listen.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
Heather, whatacurs my special guest. Your website is www dot
pen tech professional dot com, and Heather tell us a
little bit regarding you and your program.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
The program is titled Pause for Effect and that's the
LPAWS and that is intentioned known because the basis of
everything that I teach is related through dog stories. I
do employee engagement consulting and leadership development training and do
it through metaphors and stories of my dogs. Reason being,
(08:09):
it becomes a very memorable, tangible something that people can
easily grab onto and remember, and therefore it's easy to
transition into the workplace where you can apply it immediately,
versus go to school and spend four year studying and
read ten textbooks that are five hundred pages.
Speaker 4 (08:24):
Thick, gotcha, Now, how did you come up with this idea?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Came up with it actually as a result of being
downsized from my own job, needed something to new And
at the time that that happened, Taz, my little black dog,
went blind. So I was homeworking through her blindness with her,
training her, getting her acclimated, and through a conversation, came
(08:49):
up with the idea that her life really should be
documented because she's had an amazing life. She's had health
problems and struggle for her entire life and she's overcome
all of them and that was just kind of a
story we wanted to get down on paper. So once
I had that documented and on paper, it said, okay,
now what am I supposed to do with it? You know,
I've got this great story here, but now what and
(09:11):
business is what I know. I've worked in operations management
for fifteen years. So we took all those stories and
spun them into business and related each of them to
a foundational leadership principle, and a book was born.
Speaker 4 (09:22):
In a way, we went all right, is there anything
you can share with listeners around the world tonight who
may have been the subject of downsizing?
Speaker 2 (09:35):
It sucks?
Speaker 4 (09:38):
Yeah, I can see you're a lady of many words.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
First statement of empathy. It really just cut of lights
when you're downsized. No, seriously, it's it's a bad thing. Yes,
when it happens, it's traumatic. For me in particular, that
was my identity. So it was really a dig to
my self esteems I have to deal with, you know,
am I going to do? But it's really something that
(10:03):
if you can find some motivation or inspiration around you,
you can find something that is probably going to be
better for you. There are just so many people in
the world that get caught in jobs that are just
that jobs, and without being pushed and without being cajoled
a little bit, they would never take the leap to
try to do something that they truly love to do.
(10:25):
And that would truly make them happy. So my first
word of advice would be to try to be optimistic.
Try to look for the things that you love to
do and go out and do them, and take advantage
of the time that you now have because you never
know what it'll turn into. And second piece of advice
would be to get out and network as much as
you possibly can with people. And networking is something that
(10:46):
should happen before you ever get downsized. I mean, you
should always be doing that in your professional life, but
it becomes particularly important when you are downsized because now
you just don't know who knows who and has connection
that they can put you in touch with that's going
to lead actually to employment for you. So it became
very important for me just to get out and talk
(11:09):
to people, to meet people from different industries because the
skills that I had in a call center background may
be applicable in a different industry. You know, you just
can't turn away from any possibility that's out there. You
need to go and try to find them.
Speaker 4 (11:25):
Yeah, you are saying that people need inspiration, Well, I
think in today's society and in today's economy, losing your
house is one of the biggest you know, reasons why
you need to find another job as well as to
pay your bills, feed the family. Don't people think of
these as as methods or reasons of inspiration to get
off their butts and find something else.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
You would think that they would, and a lot of
people don't do.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
They expect money to fall from heaven and their pockets
to be filled with gold.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Some do, yes, for it's sad, it's really very sad.
But there's an emotional issue that goes along with being
downsized that sends a lot of people into depression. And
there's the thought from a lot of people as well
that they've never had to be accountable for their life
and for their decisions and for things that happen around them. So, yes,
(12:13):
jobs should just happen. You should be able to go
and get one, or you know, you shouldn't have to
go network. You should be able to just post a
resume and someone should come and find you. And that
may have worked twenty years ago, it doesn't work anymore, no.
Speaker 4 (12:24):
And I would imagine that's why so many entrepreneurs are
very successful is because they have that drive twenty four
hours a day to be successful.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
Absolutely, they're willing to take a risk. They are fully
accountable for their own situation, and they know that they
have to grow that business and turn it into something
in order to pay the bills and keep their mortgage
and move and on top of that, you know, entrepreneurism
is just it's innovation for our country. It's those are
the people that are actually going to drive the economy
(12:53):
and create jobs. You know, you Microsoft doesn't happen overnight.
You don't just happen in to a huge corporation and
a huge company. You have to start small and you
have to grow it, and that's where the economy comes from.
So I encourage people to do whatever they can as entrepreneurial.
It's not only good for the economy, it's just great
for your spirit.
Speaker 4 (13:14):
It's been my experience that nothing is an overnight success.
Everything takes hard work, dedication, sacrifice that you you know,
everybody looks at these high rise office towers with the
names on the side and say, wow, you know, isn't
this great, But they don't know the story behind it.
And I don't know any any success story that was
(13:36):
an overnight success unless you know something I don't.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
No, No, everything starts with the hard work you know,
the the dot com boom was about the closest thing
that came to overnight success and or we else alve
for that one.
Speaker 4 (13:49):
So exactly, listen, let's shift gears a bit here and
talk about your program. Who would benefit from Pause for
Effect and do you have a certain market?
Speaker 2 (14:00):
The program that's targeted at entrepreneurs and small businesses for
two reasons. One because of the content itself. The program
is designed to be a quick hit, something that is
very tangible that you can grab onto and you can
implement quickly and easily. And when dealing with entrepreneurs and
small businesses, time is something that they don't have. They
(14:22):
can't afford to go and take classes at the local
university per year, they can't afford to pay for fighty
seminars and have these training units come in and do
things like that because they are in that situation. So
it's targeted at those customers in order to help them
build and grow their business and have that piece of
knowledge that's at least going to build the foundation for
(14:44):
them and allow them to move forward. Not that they
shouldn't someday go to school and expand their knowledge and
do all of those things. This just gives them the
base to grow and to hopefully get off on the
right foot with their employees. The second reason it's targeted
at them is actually because of the clas that I
try to keep it very affordable, because, again, as an
entrepreneur and small business owner, you can't pay fifteen thousand
(15:07):
dollars to have a consultant come in and do leadership
training for your managers and supervisors. That's just not anything
that's anywhere near your business plan.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
Well, I don't know of any business person who actually
goes into business thinking that they're going to have to
call in a leadership coach or a business coach as
their business is progressing. All these people really believe that,
you know, they've got what it takes, and it takes
a very smart business person to realize, hey, we don't
know everything that we think we know or that we
should know in order to make our business a success.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Oh. Absolutely. The great thing about entrepreneurism and small business
ownership is that you're really good at what you're good at.
You're not so good at legal, accounting, leadership, you know
all the other stuff that goes along with that, And
that's where the idea comes from. But then how do
you build on that idea and how do you make
(15:58):
sure that those things happen. One of the transitional problems
for small businesses is when you're in that that zone
of I've got you know, five, maybe ten employees, and
I'm growing to where I'm getting just a little bit bigger,
and now you've got leadership issues. You've got to go
hire your first manager that's going to take care of
that one piece of the business for you you focus
(16:19):
on sales and development, or you know, you're in that
expansion mode. It's not that simple to say, well, I
can still do all of these things, because now you
cannot be all things to all people. You have to
find someone that you trust to take over certain pieces
of your business that are going to go out and
do those things. And it's logical for a small business
person to say, I need an accountant. Absolutely, I need
(16:39):
somebody that's going to do my finances. I'm no good
with money. It's very easy for a small business person
to say, you know, I absolutely have to have an
attorney because if somebody excues me for product liability, I
can't handle that. Those things they understand and that they
know and what a lot of people don't grab onto
as quickly. Is that management of people is something that
you don't necessarily know either. It's not as easy as
(17:02):
I'm just going to hire my brother in law and
because we're family, we get along and everything's going to
be okay. That's not always the best situation.
Speaker 4 (17:09):
I would imagine if a manager or a business owner
is a control freak, the last thing he really wants
to do is give up control to somebody else.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Very true, and it's the one thing that he should do,
is give up some control because it allows him to
control what's important to the business, which may be sales,
it may be a market development, it may be the
actual creation of his product. You know, there just might
be something about what that business owner does that is
critical to the niche market. That is why customers come
(17:40):
to them versus their competitors, and that should be what
he's focusing on, making sure that he maintains that and
let somebody else come in and do with the people's stuff.
Let you know, let us help you get that portion underway.
Speaker 4 (17:50):
I would imagine then a good idea for anyone who
is contemplating of going into their own business and that
they feel at one time or another, there is going
to be the growth that is required in order for
the company to go forward and prosper is to look
at themselves and to evaluate themselves to see if they
have leadership capabilities, leadership qualities, if they have what it
(18:14):
takes to be in business, and number four, if they're
a control freak, will they be willing to give up
control of their employees and part of their business to
a total stranger.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
And that's one of the things that I do with
Cause for Effect is coaching and mentoring versus actual you know, leading.
A lot of business owners just need that little bit
of you know, I've got this problem employee, how do
I deal with that person? Or Okay, I've had to
hire my first manager and I'm a control freak and
I need to trust him. How do I do that?
(18:48):
You know? What controls can I put in place so
that I'm happy that he's doing what he's supposed to
be doing and I have enough knowledge that I need,
But yet I can step away and let him do
what he has to do. Uh, it's figuring out when
you have ten employees and all of a sudden, one
of them is difficult for you to motivate. You just
can't get this person to think the way you want
them to think. And you know, a lot of managers
(19:10):
don't understand that. It might not be that you can't
get them to think the way you want. It might
be that you just had a bad hire. They might
not be a fit for the job. They might not
be clear about your expectations. And engagement isn't all about
my relationship with you. It's about my relationship with you
as well as your relationship for the job.
Speaker 4 (19:28):
All right, Heather, stand by you and I have to
take our commercial break at the bottom of the hour
for the news, and we'll be right back. Heather Whitakers
our special guest. I'll beww dot pen tech professional dot com.
She is the author of the Tazzi Effect. We'll be
back on the other side of the news as the
exone continues from our studios here in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
(19:50):
My name is Rob McConnell. Don't go away.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
This is the Excellent Broadcast Network Broadcasting old ward On
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(20:18):
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Speaker 4 (20:31):
Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here, and I wanted to spend
a moment on Internet streaming. Everybody has heard about Internet streaming,
but not many know much about it. Did you know?
The Internet streams just about everything, from new releases to
old classics, almost every show, every episode, and much more.
But the question has always been how do you do it? Well? Now,
(20:53):
thanks to the folks at one two three Ready TV,
I have the answer for you. They have developed a
simple program app one two three Ready TV that you
install on your Windows PC, Android smartphone or Android tablet
that can have you streaming like a pro in less
than five minutes. You truly won't believe how much is
available or how easy it is to do until you try.
(21:17):
And for a one time cost of only nineteen dollars
and ninety nine cents, this product is a real winner.
To learn more about one two three Ready TV, visit
our website at www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
HEATHERA.
Speaker 4 (21:31):
Ritker's my special guest. This our explanation www dot pen
tech professional dot com. Can you give us a few
examples of how the stories relate between the canines and
the unemployed.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Sure, let's say you're out walking your dog. You're just
going through the neighborhood. Everything is grand, You're going down
the street to the neighbors. All of a sudden, the
dog takes off running across. You're holding out of this least,
you're pumping back, You're doing everything you can to control them,
and the dog is just totally not in your control anymore.
(22:12):
That dog saw a rabbit, saw a squirrel, saw something
that it had to kill, and it took off and ran.
Did that because dogs live in the moment. They are
absolutely one hundred percent in the moment. They don't worry
about what's up ahead of them, they don't worry about
what was behind them. They live right here and now.
When it comes to leading people and engaging your employees,
you have to live not only in the moment, you
(22:34):
have to live in their moment. You need to be
in tune to what's going on in their life. You
need to understand what's going on in your business to
know if they're having a bad day, why they're having
a bad day, how it's impacting productivity. You need to
recognize the little changes that happen and notice them to
create value so that they know that they're an important
part to your business. It is very critical that you
(22:57):
are always in their moment as well as in the
moment of your business.
Speaker 4 (23:03):
But what happens if you know, I can't understand my
employee because he's looking at the relationship of that's my boss,
I'm the employee when I come to work. My personal
life is my personal life.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
That's okay if you, as the boss understand that about
that employee. And that's one of the keys to employee
engagement is there's no one answer that works for every individual.
You can't apply things on an even scale across the
team and say, Okay, this is just the way I am,
and now you all have to deal with that. You
really need to be in tune to each person's personality
(23:41):
and their own style to understand that if I have
an employee who is my personal life is my personal life,
I'm at work, I do work, and I don't want
to mix the two. I don't want to go down
that road, then I, as the boss need to respect
that and know that that.
Speaker 6 (23:56):
Is the rule.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
When it comes to dealing with him and I treat
him that way. Versus an employee who brings their personal
life to work with them and it's on their shoulder
all the time, then it's okay for you to connect
with that employee and understand what's going on and see
if there's a way that you can accommodate and work
through that with them. So it's really a balancing act
with each individual and knowing them on that personal level
(24:17):
and how to interact with their personality and understanding someone's
communication style, their personality style, their leadership style, all of
those things come together for you as a leader to
understand how to make sure you have the right employee
in the right position.
Speaker 4 (24:34):
All right, that's okay for the small business person who
has more than themselves as a workforce. But what happens
to the single employer employee, the man of many hats,
the lady who does it all in their own business.
(24:55):
How do you get them to keep motivated? Because I
must imagine when you' bring all the hats running your
own business, there must be times where you say, what's
it all about? Alphae?
Speaker 2 (25:08):
There are for the individual if it's just you running
your business, or you have maybe one employee at that point,
it's really about your customer. It's about understanding the vision
and mission of your business and what the purposes that
you're out there for. So the example I'll give you
there is I don't know if you've ever been to
like a pet expo or an outdoor show or something
(25:31):
where they have dogs that are called dock dogs, And
these are dogs that jump off of a dock and
they chase a ball up in the water, they catch
the ball, they bring it back. These dogs are absolutely
so passionate about what they do that if they even
see a lake, they go into an anxiety attack. They
start yelping and barking, and it's just there's so much
passion for what they do. All they want to do
(25:53):
is get on the dock and go. And the only
way to control them is to cover their head and
not let them see the water, because if they see
the water, there's a passion for what they do and
there's a purpose for what they do. You cannot take
my miniature pincher, for example, put them on a dock
and say go get the ball. They will sit down
and look at you and go, why out of your
minder's water out there? I'm gonna get wet. I'm not
(26:14):
gonna one in there. It's kind of the same with
you as the business owner or you and one employee.
You have to understand the purpose of why you're doing
what you're doing, a clear vision statement, a clear understanding
of the mission of your organization and how you're helping people,
what it is that you're providing to the public and
to your customer, and then understanding what that means in return.
(26:35):
For you, it's the passion for what you do. If
you're in business just because you're in business. If you
know you were unemployed and you signed up for a
franchise or something and you said, Okay, this is what
I'm going to do now, you don't have a drive
for that. You don't have a reason for why you're
doing what you're doing. You're going to fail. I don't
care how much you put into it. You are going
to fail. Might not be today, might not be a
(26:56):
week from now, but today is going to come when
you are so miserable and what you do that even
if the business is successful, you as an individual has
failed because you are not happy in what you're doing.
You're not engaged in what you're doing.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
All right, So tell me the value of engagement.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Engagement gets employers two things. It gets them increased productivity
and reduced attrition or turnover, so reduced expenses. It's a
happy employee basically. And when people are not just happy
about what they're doing, but when they clearly understand the
vision for why they're doing what they're doing, and they
(27:33):
feel like they're a valued part of your organization and
that they are giving back to you or to the
community or to whatever it is that they're involved in,
they are naturally more productive, so you're going to get
more out of them in the time that they're there.
Those employees are willing to do things on their own
time because there's dedication and there's loyalty, and those employees
(27:55):
are truly happy in their job, even though they may
be making less money or they may be doing something
that is, you know, less stature than what they were
trained to do, because there's a personal happiness that they're
taking home with them. So it's worth it in what
they're getting back in return to stay there, and you
get loyalty out of them. So that's reduced attrition and
(28:15):
reduced expenses. You know, it's a partnership. Between you and
your employee, which goes a lot farther than me dictating
to you what you have to do and what your
productivity goals are going to be and what you in
turn need to produce in.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Your professional opinion, what is the major downfall in business
today in the United States.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Oof, that's a big question. I think the biggest downfall
is really undervaluing the human capital that they have within
their organization. Companies get really caught up in especially corporate America,
when you're in these big companies, they get really really
caught up in and I've got one position, I've got
(29:01):
one employee, and if you are not a fit in
that position, then I'm going to get rid of you.
If i need to reduce my expenses or something, I'm
going to downsize and I'm going to, you know, merge
two departments, or I'm going to cut five people out,
and this is what I'm going to do. They get
so caught up in the numbers of what they're doing.
They don't realize that you may have a very talented
(29:22):
individual and you it's just the position they're in doesn't
fit their personality or doesn't fit what they're really really
good at. So if you were willing to take the
risk to move that employee to some place that is
a better fit, that makes them happy, you're going to
get exponential return on their productivity and loyalty in the company.
(29:42):
But we don't do that in business. We look at
it strictly as a numbers game and say, okay, you're
not hacking it in the position that I hire you for.
You need to go because you know, you don't get
along with the boss, you don't get along with your coworkers,
or whatever the situation may be. We just need to
fix that and get rid of that person. Well, that
person has a lot of value. You've already invested in them,
You've trained them, you've you know, given them benefits. You
(30:06):
have all this expense wrapped up into this person. Why
not find somewhere where they're going to be happy and
more productive for you and then it's a win win
for both of you. So I think business overlooks the
value of their human capital.
Speaker 4 (30:19):
When we see what has happened with the banking industry,
the insurance industry, the auto industry. Do you find that
more and more employees are you know, they're kind of
feeling well, how secure is my job? What should I
be doing? How can I better secure my job? And
do I really need to bust my butt twelve hours
(30:40):
a day, six or seven days a week to make
things happen? Like you know, we're overworked, under underpaid, and
a lot of cases mom and dad have to work
two jobs in order to pay all the bills. And
you know, work isn't the way it was ten years ago.
How do we compensate for all these changes that we've
(31:02):
had to endure over the ten years, which is not
a which is not a long period of time in
the grand scheme of things, No, it's.
Speaker 2 (31:09):
Not not at all. The struggle is Engagement is probably
at an all time low as far as employees are concerned. Yes,
there's a lot of people worried about losing their jobs,
and rightfully so they should be. You know, there's a
lot of work that has moved overseas in the last
ten years. There's a lot of change to industry and
to service that have resulted in the combining of departments
(31:34):
and reduction of employees, and that creates fear in itself.
Managers can overcome that a little bit in working with
employees to help develop them regardless of the position that
they're in. So you know, I may have hired you
as a call center manager and that's what you're doing. However,
you have aspirations to maybe someday work in IT. Well,
(31:56):
if I can help develop some IT skills in you,
you might be a value for my organization down the
road that I can transition you. And that's really what
it's about. For employees. It's about making sure that you
are a resource that can be moved to other places
in the company, not that you only have one job
in one fit and there's only one thing that you
can do, being a value that they see as someone
that they want to hold on to and maybe you
(32:18):
somewhere else.
Speaker 7 (32:19):
See, I've been very lucky because every job that I've had,
I've had wonderful bosses who went beyond and said, you know,
for example, in broadcasting, well you know, learn how to
be an engineer, learn how to do production, learn how
to do promotions, learn how to do marketing, know how
the sales department functions work with the people in it.
Speaker 4 (32:40):
And it was always a gratifying experience when I was
able to learn something, and to me as an employee,
it made me feel better that my supervisors and my
bosses thought that I had the potential that I could
actually learn more, and you know, here I am today
with my own company.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
A lot of managers don't like to go down that
road because the theory is, if I encourage you to
learn something else and you're going to leave, so or
about to happen, I need to hold on to my employees.
Speaker 4 (33:14):
Or it could it be that the manager is insecure
of their own job and they may be afraid that
you'll do a better job than they will and you'll
end up with their job and they'll be out on
their butt.
Speaker 2 (33:23):
Gets Oh, absolutely, yep. It runs two ways.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
There's also the employees who feel that, you know, or
the managers who feel that I can't train anybody to
do my job, because yes, then they would get my job,
and then I'm at the door. It's kind of counterintuitive though,
because really it's about you can't be promoted unless you
know other things, and then you can't be promoted unless
somebody knows how to do your job. So it's that
(33:49):
two way give and take, and there has to be
a certain amount of trust involved. And that's where, especially
in corporate America, we lose it. There's not enough open, honest,
two way communication going out, and there's not enough trust
between managers and their staff to understand that if I
do this, what's going to happen to me? So we
all get into that comfort zone of well, I'm just
going to fly low under the radar. I'm going to
(34:09):
try and hold on to my job. I'm going to
stay right where I am, and life will be good
and that's all what.
Speaker 7 (34:13):
I want, all right.
Speaker 4 (34:14):
So, when you're out, when you're out doing public speaking,
when you're out doing your you know, the the leadership
coaching that you do, what is the number one question
that you get repeatedly asked by the people that you
talk to.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
The biggest question that I get is really typically related
to just motivating employees. It's how do I get them
to be happy and like their job, you know, And
where leaders disconnect in that area is that motivation is
not about prizes and awards. It's not about recognition that
(34:57):
I give you, it's not about paying you know, it's
not about those extrinsic touchable things. It's about the intrinsic
value that the employee thinks that they provide to the company.
So if you have an employee that you just can't motivate,
you just can't get them to hit their goals, you
just can't get them to be happy about what they're doing. Well,
my question back would be, what have you done to
(35:20):
recognize that employee in a way that's intrinsic that builds
value in them. Have you actually identified things that that
employee has done in the last thirty days that have
been good for the company, and have you told them
how it was good for the company. Most leaders and
managers recognize employees by saying, hey, good job, Rob, thanks
for that. Well that lasted about three seconds for me.
(35:43):
That didn't do anything. If you can compound that with hey,
good job, Rob, I appreciate how you did that presentation
because it's going to result in more sales for the company.
You're really helping our bottom line. I just put value
in my compliment to you. Now you know that you
actually are helping to drive the company. So it's it's
really about rewards and recognition. It's not about actual motivations.
(36:05):
And you know, it's not something physical you have to
go and do for someone. It's not about a certificate,
it's not about an employee of the year. You know,
all of those things only last literally minutes. They don't
get you what you want long term, as far as
an employee is concerned in their level of engagement with
your organization.
Speaker 4 (36:22):
All right, you and I have to take our final
break for this hour. Please stand by x O Nation.
Heather Whitaker is our special guest and her website is
www Dot pen tech Professional dot com. That's www Dot
pen tech Professional dot com. And we'll be back on
the other side of this commercial break as we continue
(36:42):
here in the X Zone with yours truly, Rob McConnell,
don't go away.
Speaker 3 (36:49):
This is the Excellent Broadcast Network broadcasting worldwide on Broadcast
affiliates and Savoy program providers including CNN Broadcast Network, Sound
Like Network, Star Media, Good News Radio Network, Angel Broadcast Network,
WIKI Broadcast Network, and WPB and TV. For more information
(37:11):
on the on Broadcast Network, visitors at www dot x
zber dott.
Speaker 6 (37:24):
Hello. I'm Pete Marsh with my daughter Justina. We will
be presenting the new radio show Too Good to Be True.
If something seems too good to be true, it usually is.
But with the help of Justina's amazing gifts, we're going
to gain insight into questions that don't yet have complete answers.
Have you wondered who built Stonehenge and for what reason?
Why are crop circles found in the same region as
(37:46):
Stonehenge and elsewhere? Are crop circles a hoax? Or are
they created with technologies that we have little knowledge of?
Who built the pyramids in Egypt and also in other countries?
How and why were they built? Was the Titanic switch
with a Britannic as part of the Gigantic insurance fraud?
Or for more insidious reasons? What closed the Tungu Guska
event when trees were flattened over an eight hundred square
(38:07):
mile area in Siberia. Will the new insights be too
good to be true? Well, that will depend on what
you're prepared to believe. Please join us as we start
on this journey together. For more information on too good
to be True, visit www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 4 (38:24):
Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here, and I wanted to spend
a moment on Internet streaming. Everybody has heard about Internet streaming,
but not many know much about it. Did you know
the Internet streams just about everything, from new releases to
old classics, almost every show, every episode, and much more.
But the question has always been how do you do
(38:46):
it well? Now, thanks to the folks at one two
three Ready TV, I have the answer for you. They
have developed a simple program app one two three Ready
TV that you install on your Windows PC, Android smartphone
or Android tablet that can have you streaming like a
pro in less than five minutes. You truly won't believe
how much is available or how easy it is to
(39:09):
do until you try. And for a one time cost
of only nineteen dollars and ninety nine cents, this product
is a real winner. To learn more about one two
three Ready TV, visit our website at www dot XZBN
dot net. The reason I played that song was that
our guest this hour, Heather Whittaker, is from the beautiful
(39:30):
state of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin is known for its dairy
products and cheese. So that was my way of saluting
the state of Wisconsin with cheeseburger in Paradise. Ah, Jimmy Buffett,
what a guy, Heather. I want to thank you so
much for joining us tonight here in the xzon. It's
almost a great pleasure talking to people who help other
people and how has what you're doing changed your life?
Speaker 2 (39:56):
It was actually pretty Germanic for me because in the
position I had before I was downsized, I was very
happy in corporate America. That's where you know, I wanted
to be. What I didn't realize was that I myself
had become disengaged in the job that I was in.
I was going through the motions, I was collecting my fallory.
I wasn't driving the team and the way I used to.
(40:19):
I wasn't happy with what I did. It was okay,
I wasn't unhappy, but it was just a job. And
when I first went into management, it wasn't just a
job for me. It was a passion. It was what
I love to do. So the position I was put
in was kind of a good thing for me in
the long run because it pushed me over that edge.
It was that little step that I needed to go, Okay,
(40:40):
you know what, this is my life and I need
to get it back and I need to make it
what I wanted to be, not what the corporate pigwins
wanted it to be. So the whole creation of this program,
and you know, the creativity behind it, was just energy
for me and talking about my dogs is something that
I absolutely love to do, so it fit with public speaking,
(41:01):
which is something that I love to do, and it
just kind of all came together to define me as
a person and bringing that piece of happiness back to
what I do. So that's what I try to help
my clients with is to understand that engagement is really
about finding a passion for what you do, and it
starts with you. If you're not happy in your job
(41:21):
and you're not happy with what you do, you aren't
going to be successful engaging your employees. So it was
a good thing. I tell people. You know, bad things
happen to us, but you have to try to be optimistic.
You have to find the good in it.
Speaker 4 (41:34):
And it's okay, all right for we've got about forty
seconds left before we have to say so long, But
I do want to thank you once again for joining us.
What words of encouragement you have for those people listening
around the world tonight.
Speaker 2 (41:48):
I would say it's actually an excerpt out of my book.
It's be open, be willing to consider alternative, and be creative.
Speaker 4 (41:54):
You have only greatness to achieve, plain and simple, Plain
and simple. Heather, thank you very much for joining us.
Let our listeners know how they can get a copy
of your book.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
It's available on my website, which is www dot pen
tech Professional. That's spelled p e n T e c
H and it is also available through Amazon dot com.
Speaker 4 (42:20):
All right, thanks very much Heather for joining us. Continued
success and hopefully we'll speak to you again here in
the X Zone, all the way from Wisconsin.
Speaker 2 (42:27):
Thank you very much for Rob. I appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (42:29):
Take care of yourself now, Heather Whitaker, www dot pen
tech Professional dot com. That's www dot pen tech professional
dot com. I'll be back on the other side of
this commercial break with the news as the Xzone continues
from our beautiful studios in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. My name
is Rob McConnell. This is the X Zone. Speak to
you on the other side of the news.
The Xzone Radio Show with Rob McConnell is largely an
opinion talk show. All opinions, comments, or statements of fact
expressed by Rob McConnell's guests are strictly their own and
are not to be construed as those of The X
Zone Radio Show or endorsed in any manner by Rob McConnell,
Realmar McConnell Media Company, the X Zone Broadcast Network, It's
(00:23):
affiliated networks, stations, employees or advertisers.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
All hit.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Welcome to the X Zone, a place where fact is
fiction and fiction is reality.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
Now here's your host, Rob McConnell, and welcome to the
Xcell everyone. My name is Rob McConnell. And that's right.
For the next four hours, I'm your host and your
guide as together we cross the time space continuum to
this place that I call the X Zone. It's a
place where people dare to believe and dare to be heard.
It's a place where fact is fiction and fiction is reality.
(01:14):
And the Xzone comes you Monday through Friday from ten
pm Eastern until two m Eastern on the Talkstar Radio Network,
xone Broadcast Network, UK High Definition Radio, euro High Definition
Radio Starcable. You stream and xzonetv dot com. If you'd
like to give us call toll free one eight hundred
and six ten seven zero three five. My email address
(01:36):
is xzone at xxone Radio TV dot com, on MSN messenger,
xone Radio TV at hotmail dot com, and our website
www dot Xzone Radio tv dot com. My first guest
tonight Xonation is Heather Whitaker. We're going to be talking
about the Tassie Effect now. Heather is an emplay ploye
(02:00):
engagement expert, speaker and author of the Tazzi Effect. She
has a master's degree in organizational leadership. She is also
the creator. She's also the creator of the program entitled
Pause for Effect and she was inspired by Taz and
Tinker her adorable little six pound miniature pinchers. Pause for
(02:23):
Effect teaches the basic principles I would imagine getting along
with your employees as well as employees getting along with
their bosses. Her website is www dot pin tech professional
dot com. That's www dot pen tech professional dot com.
And joining me now is Heather Whitaker. Hey, Heather, how
are you.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
I'm doing well? How are you?
Speaker 4 (02:45):
I'm doing great? Thanks. The Tazzi Effect was the inspiration
your two doggies.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Yes, absolutely. The stories are based on the life of
Tinker and they teach management and leadership principle. So my
tagline for people is management has gone to the dogs.
Speaker 4 (03:07):
You know, I was going to use that, but I figured, Nah,
that would probably insult the poor lady, and we don't
want to do that. So management has gone to the dogs.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Absolutely, that's where it belongs.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
So have flight attendants on certain airlines who like to
grab beer, yell at customers, and slide down the emergency shoots.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I hear.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
That's another story. Does that pling in anywhere here as well?
Can we use that example of the flight of the
flight attendant who went ballistic?
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yeah, you could, absolutely. That would be the equivalent of
probably a German shepherd or a Doberman pincher when you
walk into their yard and they startle and bark and
are just rude and nasty.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Yeah, they're the kind that you really don't want to
tick off.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
That's right, all right.
Speaker 4 (03:53):
You and I have to take a commercial break for
two minutes, but you know what, we'll be back right
after that. Looking forward to sharing the next hour with you, Heather,
So please stand by x O Nation Heather Whittaker is
our special guest. Her website www dot pentech professional dot com.
That's www dot pen tech professional dot com. This is
(04:15):
the X Zone, a place where people dared to believe
and dare to be heard. For Friday, August the thirteenth,
the only Friday the thirteenth this year. And I don't
know about you, but I've always found out that Friday
the thirteenth is a very lucky day for me. Well,
I do the show, don't I, each and every night
Monday through Friday from ten pm Eastern until two am Eastern.
(04:37):
My name is Rob mccondonell Heather Whittaker, and I will
be back on the other side of this two minute
commercial break. Don't go away. Did you know that when
you're on the road with limited data or Wi Fi,
you can still listen to the Xzone Radio Show with
Rob McConnell, The Science of Magic with gwildowiaka X minus
(04:58):
one Dimension Space Patrol, and every minute of the xone
Broadcast Network by calling two one, three four zero one
zero zero eight zero courtesy of Audio Now, No smartphone
app or Internet needed. It saves your data plan and
it's free if you have unlimited minutes. Call two to
(05:19):
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listen on any phone, anytime, anywhere. Remember two one three
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of the paranormal, parapsychology and sci fi radio programming anywhere
twenty four seven, three sixty five. Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here,
(05:40):
and I wanted to spend a moment on Internet streaming.
Everybody has heard about Internet streaming, but not many know
much about it. Did you know? The Internet streams just
about everything, from new releases to old classics, almost every show,
every episode, and much more. But the question has always
been how do you do it? Well? Now, thanks to
(06:01):
the folks at one two three Ready TV, I have
the answer for you. They have developed a simple program
app one two three Ready TV that you install on
your Windows PC, Android smartphone or Android tablet that can
have you streaming like a pro in less than five minutes.
You truly won't believe how much is available or how
(06:22):
easy it is to do until you try. And for
a one time cost of only nineteen dollars and ninety
nine cents, this product is a real winner. To learn
more about one two three Ready TV. Visit our website
at www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Hello, I'm Justina Marsh and with my dad Pete, we
are going to present a new show called Too Good
to Be True. Together, we are aiming to discover more
truth about this world and beyond. Do you have unanswered
questions about the world? Do you ever wonder about alien
conspiracy theories or the universe? There are many shows discussing
subjects such as pyramids or UFOs, but we want to
(07:07):
relay this information based on our own research, including from
spiritual means. Hopefully listeners will be helped with our own
beliefs and will appreciate the psychic insights that add to
the previous research and information. We both look forward to
sharing this insight and beginning this journey with our listeners.
Visit ZBN dot net for more information about when to listen.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
Heather, whatacurs my special guest. Your website is www dot
pen tech professional dot com, and Heather tell us a
little bit regarding you and your program.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
The program is titled Pause for Effect and that's the
LPAWS and that is intentioned known because the basis of
everything that I teach is related through dog stories. I
do employee engagement consulting and leadership development training and do
it through metaphors and stories of my dogs. Reason being,
(08:09):
it becomes a very memorable, tangible something that people can
easily grab onto and remember, and therefore it's easy to
transition into the workplace where you can apply it immediately,
versus go to school and spend four year studying and
read ten textbooks that are five hundred pages.
Speaker 4 (08:24):
Thick, gotcha, Now, how did you come up with this idea?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Came up with it actually as a result of being
downsized from my own job, needed something to new And
at the time that that happened, Taz, my little black dog,
went blind. So I was homeworking through her blindness with her,
training her, getting her acclimated, and through a conversation, came
(08:49):
up with the idea that her life really should be
documented because she's had an amazing life. She's had health
problems and struggle for her entire life and she's overcome
all of them and that was just kind of a
story we wanted to get down on paper. So once
I had that documented and on paper, it said, okay,
now what am I supposed to do with it? You know,
I've got this great story here, but now what and
(09:11):
business is what I know. I've worked in operations management
for fifteen years. So we took all those stories and
spun them into business and related each of them to
a foundational leadership principle, and a book was born.
Speaker 4 (09:22):
In a way, we went all right, is there anything
you can share with listeners around the world tonight who
may have been the subject of downsizing?
Speaker 2 (09:35):
It sucks?
Speaker 4 (09:38):
Yeah, I can see you're a lady of many words.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
First statement of empathy. It really just cut of lights
when you're downsized. No, seriously, it's it's a bad thing. Yes,
when it happens, it's traumatic. For me in particular, that
was my identity. So it was really a dig to
my self esteems I have to deal with, you know,
am I going to do? But it's really something that
(10:03):
if you can find some motivation or inspiration around you,
you can find something that is probably going to be
better for you. There are just so many people in
the world that get caught in jobs that are just
that jobs, and without being pushed and without being cajoled
a little bit, they would never take the leap to
try to do something that they truly love to do.
(10:25):
And that would truly make them happy. So my first
word of advice would be to try to be optimistic.
Try to look for the things that you love to
do and go out and do them, and take advantage
of the time that you now have because you never
know what it'll turn into. And second piece of advice
would be to get out and network as much as
you possibly can with people. And networking is something that
(10:46):
should happen before you ever get downsized. I mean, you
should always be doing that in your professional life, but
it becomes particularly important when you are downsized because now
you just don't know who knows who and has connection
that they can put you in touch with that's going
to lead actually to employment for you. So it became
very important for me just to get out and talk
(11:09):
to people, to meet people from different industries because the
skills that I had in a call center background may
be applicable in a different industry. You know, you just
can't turn away from any possibility that's out there. You
need to go and try to find them.
Speaker 4 (11:25):
Yeah, you are saying that people need inspiration, Well, I
think in today's society and in today's economy, losing your
house is one of the biggest you know, reasons why
you need to find another job as well as to
pay your bills, feed the family. Don't people think of
these as as methods or reasons of inspiration to get
off their butts and find something else.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
You would think that they would, and a lot of
people don't do.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
They expect money to fall from heaven and their pockets
to be filled with gold.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Some do, yes, for it's sad, it's really very sad.
But there's an emotional issue that goes along with being
downsized that sends a lot of people into depression. And
there's the thought from a lot of people as well
that they've never had to be accountable for their life
and for their decisions and for things that happen around them. So, yes,
(12:13):
jobs should just happen. You should be able to go
and get one, or you know, you shouldn't have to
go network. You should be able to just post a
resume and someone should come and find you. And that
may have worked twenty years ago, it doesn't work anymore, no.
Speaker 4 (12:24):
And I would imagine that's why so many entrepreneurs are
very successful is because they have that drive twenty four
hours a day to be successful.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
Absolutely, they're willing to take a risk. They are fully
accountable for their own situation, and they know that they
have to grow that business and turn it into something
in order to pay the bills and keep their mortgage
and move and on top of that, you know, entrepreneurism
is just it's innovation for our country. It's those are
the people that are actually going to drive the economy
(12:53):
and create jobs. You know, you Microsoft doesn't happen overnight.
You don't just happen in to a huge corporation and
a huge company. You have to start small and you
have to grow it, and that's where the economy comes from.
So I encourage people to do whatever they can as entrepreneurial.
It's not only good for the economy, it's just great
for your spirit.
Speaker 4 (13:14):
It's been my experience that nothing is an overnight success.
Everything takes hard work, dedication, sacrifice that you you know,
everybody looks at these high rise office towers with the
names on the side and say, wow, you know, isn't
this great, But they don't know the story behind it.
And I don't know any any success story that was
(13:36):
an overnight success unless you know something I don't.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
No, No, everything starts with the hard work you know,
the the dot com boom was about the closest thing
that came to overnight success and or we else alve
for that one.
Speaker 4 (13:49):
So exactly, listen, let's shift gears a bit here and
talk about your program. Who would benefit from Pause for
Effect and do you have a certain market?
Speaker 2 (14:00):
The program that's targeted at entrepreneurs and small businesses for
two reasons. One because of the content itself. The program
is designed to be a quick hit, something that is
very tangible that you can grab onto and you can
implement quickly and easily. And when dealing with entrepreneurs and
small businesses, time is something that they don't have. They
(14:22):
can't afford to go and take classes at the local
university per year, they can't afford to pay for fighty
seminars and have these training units come in and do
things like that because they are in that situation. So
it's targeted at those customers in order to help them
build and grow their business and have that piece of
knowledge that's at least going to build the foundation for
(14:44):
them and allow them to move forward. Not that they
shouldn't someday go to school and expand their knowledge and
do all of those things. This just gives them the
base to grow and to hopefully get off on the
right foot with their employees. The second reason it's targeted
at them is actually because of the clas that I
try to keep it very affordable, because, again, as an
entrepreneur and small business owner, you can't pay fifteen thousand
(15:07):
dollars to have a consultant come in and do leadership
training for your managers and supervisors. That's just not anything
that's anywhere near your business plan.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
Well, I don't know of any business person who actually
goes into business thinking that they're going to have to
call in a leadership coach or a business coach as
their business is progressing. All these people really believe that,
you know, they've got what it takes, and it takes
a very smart business person to realize, hey, we don't
know everything that we think we know or that we
should know in order to make our business a success.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Oh. Absolutely. The great thing about entrepreneurism and small business
ownership is that you're really good at what you're good at.
You're not so good at legal, accounting, leadership, you know
all the other stuff that goes along with that, And
that's where the idea comes from. But then how do
you build on that idea and how do you make
(15:58):
sure that those things happen. One of the transitional problems
for small businesses is when you're in that that zone
of I've got you know, five, maybe ten employees, and
I'm growing to where I'm getting just a little bit bigger,
and now you've got leadership issues. You've got to go
hire your first manager that's going to take care of
that one piece of the business for you you focus
(16:19):
on sales and development, or you know, you're in that
expansion mode. It's not that simple to say, well, I
can still do all of these things, because now you
cannot be all things to all people. You have to
find someone that you trust to take over certain pieces
of your business that are going to go out and
do those things. And it's logical for a small business
person to say, I need an accountant. Absolutely, I need
(16:39):
somebody that's going to do my finances. I'm no good
with money. It's very easy for a small business person
to say, you know, I absolutely have to have an
attorney because if somebody excues me for product liability, I
can't handle that. Those things they understand and that they
know and what a lot of people don't grab onto
as quickly. Is that management of people is something that
you don't necessarily know either. It's not as easy as
(17:02):
I'm just going to hire my brother in law and
because we're family, we get along and everything's going to
be okay. That's not always the best situation.
Speaker 4 (17:09):
I would imagine if a manager or a business owner
is a control freak, the last thing he really wants
to do is give up control to somebody else.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Very true, and it's the one thing that he should do,
is give up some control because it allows him to
control what's important to the business, which may be sales,
it may be a market development, it may be the
actual creation of his product. You know, there just might
be something about what that business owner does that is
critical to the niche market. That is why customers come
(17:40):
to them versus their competitors, and that should be what
he's focusing on, making sure that he maintains that and
let somebody else come in and do with the people's stuff.
Let you know, let us help you get that portion underway.
Speaker 4 (17:50):
I would imagine then a good idea for anyone who
is contemplating of going into their own business and that
they feel at one time or another, there is going
to be the growth that is required in order for
the company to go forward and prosper is to look
at themselves and to evaluate themselves to see if they
have leadership capabilities, leadership qualities, if they have what it
(18:14):
takes to be in business, and number four, if they're
a control freak, will they be willing to give up
control of their employees and part of their business to
a total stranger.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
And that's one of the things that I do with
Cause for Effect is coaching and mentoring versus actual you know, leading.
A lot of business owners just need that little bit
of you know, I've got this problem employee, how do
I deal with that person? Or Okay, I've had to
hire my first manager and I'm a control freak and
I need to trust him. How do I do that?
(18:48):
You know? What controls can I put in place so
that I'm happy that he's doing what he's supposed to
be doing and I have enough knowledge that I need,
But yet I can step away and let him do
what he has to do. Uh, it's figuring out when
you have ten employees and all of a sudden, one
of them is difficult for you to motivate. You just
can't get this person to think the way you want
them to think. And you know, a lot of managers
(19:10):
don't understand that. It might not be that you can't
get them to think the way you want. It might
be that you just had a bad hire. They might
not be a fit for the job. They might not
be clear about your expectations. And engagement isn't all about
my relationship with you. It's about my relationship with you
as well as your relationship for the job.
Speaker 4 (19:28):
All right, Heather, stand by you and I have to
take our commercial break at the bottom of the hour
for the news, and we'll be right back. Heather Whitakers
our special guest. I'll beww dot pen tech professional dot com.
She is the author of the Tazzi Effect. We'll be
back on the other side of the news as the
exone continues from our studios here in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
(19:50):
My name is Rob McConnell. Don't go away.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
This is the Excellent Broadcast Network Broadcasting old ward On
broadcast affiliates and Savellite program providers including CNN Broadcast Network,
Serious Satellite Network, Star Media, Good News Radio Network, Angel
Broadcast Network, Wiki broadcast Network and WPBMTV. For more information
(20:18):
on the own broadcast network, visit us at www dot
XCBM dot net.
Speaker 4 (20:31):
Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here, and I wanted to spend
a moment on Internet streaming. Everybody has heard about Internet streaming,
but not many know much about it. Did you know?
The Internet streams just about everything, from new releases to
old classics, almost every show, every episode, and much more.
But the question has always been how do you do it? Well? Now,
(20:53):
thanks to the folks at one two three Ready TV,
I have the answer for you. They have developed a
simple program app one two three Ready TV that you
install on your Windows PC, Android smartphone or Android tablet
that can have you streaming like a pro in less
than five minutes. You truly won't believe how much is
available or how easy it is to do until you try.
(21:17):
And for a one time cost of only nineteen dollars
and ninety nine cents, this product is a real winner.
To learn more about one two three Ready TV, visit
our website at www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
HEATHERA.
Speaker 4 (21:31):
Ritker's my special guest. This our explanation www dot pen
tech professional dot com. Can you give us a few
examples of how the stories relate between the canines and
the unemployed.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Sure, let's say you're out walking your dog. You're just
going through the neighborhood. Everything is grand, You're going down
the street to the neighbors. All of a sudden, the
dog takes off running across. You're holding out of this least,
you're pumping back, You're doing everything you can to control them,
and the dog is just totally not in your control anymore.
(22:12):
That dog saw a rabbit, saw a squirrel, saw something
that it had to kill, and it took off and ran.
Did that because dogs live in the moment. They are
absolutely one hundred percent in the moment. They don't worry
about what's up ahead of them, they don't worry about
what was behind them. They live right here and now.
When it comes to leading people and engaging your employees,
you have to live not only in the moment, you
(22:34):
have to live in their moment. You need to be
in tune to what's going on in their life. You
need to understand what's going on in your business to
know if they're having a bad day, why they're having
a bad day, how it's impacting productivity. You need to
recognize the little changes that happen and notice them to
create value so that they know that they're an important
part to your business. It is very critical that you
(22:57):
are always in their moment as well as in the
moment of your business.
Speaker 4 (23:03):
But what happens if you know, I can't understand my
employee because he's looking at the relationship of that's my boss,
I'm the employee when I come to work. My personal
life is my personal life.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
That's okay if you, as the boss understand that about
that employee. And that's one of the keys to employee
engagement is there's no one answer that works for every individual.
You can't apply things on an even scale across the
team and say, Okay, this is just the way I am,
and now you all have to deal with that. You
really need to be in tune to each person's personality
(23:41):
and their own style to understand that if I have
an employee who is my personal life is my personal life,
I'm at work, I do work, and I don't want
to mix the two. I don't want to go down
that road, then I, as the boss need to respect
that and know that that.
Speaker 6 (23:56):
Is the rule.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
When it comes to dealing with him and I treat
him that way. Versus an employee who brings their personal
life to work with them and it's on their shoulder
all the time, then it's okay for you to connect
with that employee and understand what's going on and see
if there's a way that you can accommodate and work
through that with them. So it's really a balancing act
with each individual and knowing them on that personal level
(24:17):
and how to interact with their personality and understanding someone's
communication style, their personality style, their leadership style, all of
those things come together for you as a leader to
understand how to make sure you have the right employee
in the right position.
Speaker 4 (24:34):
All right, that's okay for the small business person who
has more than themselves as a workforce. But what happens
to the single employer employee, the man of many hats,
the lady who does it all in their own business.
(24:55):
How do you get them to keep motivated? Because I
must imagine when you' bring all the hats running your
own business, there must be times where you say, what's
it all about? Alphae?
Speaker 2 (25:08):
There are for the individual if it's just you running
your business, or you have maybe one employee at that point,
it's really about your customer. It's about understanding the vision
and mission of your business and what the purposes that
you're out there for. So the example I'll give you
there is I don't know if you've ever been to
like a pet expo or an outdoor show or something
(25:31):
where they have dogs that are called dock dogs, And
these are dogs that jump off of a dock and
they chase a ball up in the water, they catch
the ball, they bring it back. These dogs are absolutely
so passionate about what they do that if they even
see a lake, they go into an anxiety attack. They
start yelping and barking, and it's just there's so much
passion for what they do. All they want to do
(25:53):
is get on the dock and go. And the only
way to control them is to cover their head and
not let them see the water, because if they see
the water, there's a passion for what they do and
there's a purpose for what they do. You cannot take
my miniature pincher, for example, put them on a dock
and say go get the ball. They will sit down
and look at you and go, why out of your
minder's water out there? I'm gonna get wet. I'm not
(26:14):
gonna one in there. It's kind of the same with
you as the business owner or you and one employee.
You have to understand the purpose of why you're doing
what you're doing, a clear vision statement, a clear understanding
of the mission of your organization and how you're helping people,
what it is that you're providing to the public and
to your customer, and then understanding what that means in return.
(26:35):
For you, it's the passion for what you do. If
you're in business just because you're in business. If you
know you were unemployed and you signed up for a
franchise or something and you said, Okay, this is what
I'm going to do now, you don't have a drive
for that. You don't have a reason for why you're
doing what you're doing. You're going to fail. I don't
care how much you put into it. You are going
to fail. Might not be today, might not be a
(26:56):
week from now, but today is going to come when
you are so miserable and what you do that even
if the business is successful, you as an individual has
failed because you are not happy in what you're doing.
You're not engaged in what you're doing.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
All right, So tell me the value of engagement.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Engagement gets employers two things. It gets them increased productivity
and reduced attrition or turnover, so reduced expenses. It's a
happy employee basically. And when people are not just happy
about what they're doing, but when they clearly understand the
vision for why they're doing what they're doing, and they
(27:33):
feel like they're a valued part of your organization and
that they are giving back to you or to the
community or to whatever it is that they're involved in,
they are naturally more productive, so you're going to get
more out of them in the time that they're there.
Those employees are willing to do things on their own
time because there's dedication and there's loyalty, and those employees
(27:55):
are truly happy in their job, even though they may
be making less money or they may be doing something
that is, you know, less stature than what they were
trained to do, because there's a personal happiness that they're
taking home with them. So it's worth it in what
they're getting back in return to stay there, and you
get loyalty out of them. So that's reduced attrition and
(28:15):
reduced expenses. You know, it's a partnership. Between you and
your employee, which goes a lot farther than me dictating
to you what you have to do and what your
productivity goals are going to be and what you in
turn need to produce in.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Your professional opinion, what is the major downfall in business
today in the United States.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Oof, that's a big question. I think the biggest downfall
is really undervaluing the human capital that they have within
their organization. Companies get really caught up in especially corporate America,
when you're in these big companies, they get really really
caught up in and I've got one position, I've got
(29:01):
one employee, and if you are not a fit in
that position, then I'm going to get rid of you.
If i need to reduce my expenses or something, I'm
going to downsize and I'm going to, you know, merge
two departments, or I'm going to cut five people out,
and this is what I'm going to do. They get
so caught up in the numbers of what they're doing.
They don't realize that you may have a very talented
(29:22):
individual and you it's just the position they're in doesn't
fit their personality or doesn't fit what they're really really
good at. So if you were willing to take the
risk to move that employee to some place that is
a better fit, that makes them happy, you're going to
get exponential return on their productivity and loyalty in the company.
(29:42):
But we don't do that in business. We look at
it strictly as a numbers game and say, okay, you're
not hacking it in the position that I hire you for.
You need to go because you know, you don't get
along with the boss, you don't get along with your coworkers,
or whatever the situation may be. We just need to
fix that and get rid of that person. Well, that
person has a lot of value. You've already invested in them,
You've trained them, you've you know, given them benefits. You
(30:06):
have all this expense wrapped up into this person. Why
not find somewhere where they're going to be happy and
more productive for you and then it's a win win
for both of you. So I think business overlooks the
value of their human capital.
Speaker 4 (30:19):
When we see what has happened with the banking industry,
the insurance industry, the auto industry. Do you find that
more and more employees are you know, they're kind of
feeling well, how secure is my job? What should I
be doing? How can I better secure my job? And
do I really need to bust my butt twelve hours
(30:40):
a day, six or seven days a week to make
things happen? Like you know, we're overworked, under underpaid, and
a lot of cases mom and dad have to work
two jobs in order to pay all the bills. And
you know, work isn't the way it was ten years ago.
How do we compensate for all these changes that we've
(31:02):
had to endure over the ten years, which is not
a which is not a long period of time in
the grand scheme of things, No, it's.
Speaker 2 (31:09):
Not not at all. The struggle is Engagement is probably
at an all time low as far as employees are concerned. Yes,
there's a lot of people worried about losing their jobs,
and rightfully so they should be. You know, there's a
lot of work that has moved overseas in the last
ten years. There's a lot of change to industry and
to service that have resulted in the combining of departments
(31:34):
and reduction of employees, and that creates fear in itself.
Managers can overcome that a little bit in working with
employees to help develop them regardless of the position that
they're in. So you know, I may have hired you
as a call center manager and that's what you're doing. However,
you have aspirations to maybe someday work in IT. Well,
(31:56):
if I can help develop some IT skills in you,
you might be a value for my organization down the
road that I can transition you. And that's really what
it's about. For employees. It's about making sure that you
are a resource that can be moved to other places
in the company, not that you only have one job
in one fit and there's only one thing that you
can do, being a value that they see as someone
that they want to hold on to and maybe you
(32:18):
somewhere else.
Speaker 7 (32:19):
See, I've been very lucky because every job that I've had,
I've had wonderful bosses who went beyond and said, you know,
for example, in broadcasting, well you know, learn how to
be an engineer, learn how to do production, learn how
to do promotions, learn how to do marketing, know how
the sales department functions work with the people in it.
Speaker 4 (32:40):
And it was always a gratifying experience when I was
able to learn something, and to me as an employee,
it made me feel better that my supervisors and my
bosses thought that I had the potential that I could
actually learn more, and you know, here I am today
with my own company.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
A lot of managers don't like to go down that
road because the theory is, if I encourage you to
learn something else and you're going to leave, so or
about to happen, I need to hold on to my employees.
Speaker 4 (33:14):
Or it could it be that the manager is insecure
of their own job and they may be afraid that
you'll do a better job than they will and you'll
end up with their job and they'll be out on
their butt.
Speaker 2 (33:23):
Gets Oh, absolutely, yep. It runs two ways.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
There's also the employees who feel that, you know, or
the managers who feel that I can't train anybody to
do my job, because yes, then they would get my job,
and then I'm at the door. It's kind of counterintuitive though,
because really it's about you can't be promoted unless you
know other things, and then you can't be promoted unless
somebody knows how to do your job. So it's that
(33:49):
two way give and take, and there has to be
a certain amount of trust involved. And that's where, especially
in corporate America, we lose it. There's not enough open, honest,
two way communication going out, and there's not enough trust
between managers and their staff to understand that if I
do this, what's going to happen to me? So we
all get into that comfort zone of well, I'm just
going to fly low under the radar. I'm going to
(34:09):
try and hold on to my job. I'm going to
stay right where I am, and life will be good
and that's all what.
Speaker 7 (34:13):
I want, all right.
Speaker 4 (34:14):
So, when you're out, when you're out doing public speaking,
when you're out doing your you know, the the leadership
coaching that you do, what is the number one question
that you get repeatedly asked by the people that you
talk to.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
The biggest question that I get is really typically related
to just motivating employees. It's how do I get them
to be happy and like their job, you know, And
where leaders disconnect in that area is that motivation is
not about prizes and awards. It's not about recognition that
(34:57):
I give you, it's not about paying you know, it's
not about those extrinsic touchable things. It's about the intrinsic
value that the employee thinks that they provide to the company.
So if you have an employee that you just can't motivate,
you just can't get them to hit their goals, you
just can't get them to be happy about what they're doing. Well,
my question back would be, what have you done to
(35:20):
recognize that employee in a way that's intrinsic that builds
value in them. Have you actually identified things that that
employee has done in the last thirty days that have
been good for the company, and have you told them
how it was good for the company. Most leaders and
managers recognize employees by saying, hey, good job, Rob, thanks
for that. Well that lasted about three seconds for me.
(35:43):
That didn't do anything. If you can compound that with hey,
good job, Rob, I appreciate how you did that presentation
because it's going to result in more sales for the company.
You're really helping our bottom line. I just put value
in my compliment to you. Now you know that you
actually are helping to drive the company. So it's it's
really about rewards and recognition. It's not about actual motivations.
(36:05):
And you know, it's not something physical you have to
go and do for someone. It's not about a certificate,
it's not about an employee of the year. You know,
all of those things only last literally minutes. They don't
get you what you want long term, as far as
an employee is concerned in their level of engagement with
your organization.
Speaker 4 (36:22):
All right, you and I have to take our final
break for this hour. Please stand by x O Nation.
Heather Whitaker is our special guest and her website is
www Dot pen tech Professional dot com. That's www Dot
pen tech Professional dot com. And we'll be back on
the other side of this commercial break as we continue
(36:42):
here in the X Zone with yours truly, Rob McConnell,
don't go away.
Speaker 3 (36:49):
This is the Excellent Broadcast Network broadcasting worldwide on Broadcast
affiliates and Savoy program providers including CNN Broadcast Network, Sound
Like Network, Star Media, Good News Radio Network, Angel Broadcast Network,
WIKI Broadcast Network, and WPB and TV. For more information
(37:11):
on the on Broadcast Network, visitors at www dot x
zber dott.
Speaker 6 (37:24):
Hello. I'm Pete Marsh with my daughter Justina. We will
be presenting the new radio show Too Good to Be True.
If something seems too good to be true, it usually is.
But with the help of Justina's amazing gifts, we're going
to gain insight into questions that don't yet have complete answers.
Have you wondered who built Stonehenge and for what reason?
Why are crop circles found in the same region as
(37:46):
Stonehenge and elsewhere? Are crop circles a hoax? Or are
they created with technologies that we have little knowledge of?
Who built the pyramids in Egypt and also in other countries?
How and why were they built? Was the Titanic switch
with a Britannic as part of the Gigantic insurance fraud?
Or for more insidious reasons? What closed the Tungu Guska
event when trees were flattened over an eight hundred square
(38:07):
mile area in Siberia. Will the new insights be too
good to be true? Well, that will depend on what
you're prepared to believe. Please join us as we start
on this journey together. For more information on too good
to be True, visit www dot XZBN dot net.
Speaker 4 (38:24):
Hi everyone, Rob McConnell here, and I wanted to spend
a moment on Internet streaming. Everybody has heard about Internet streaming,
but not many know much about it. Did you know
the Internet streams just about everything, from new releases to
old classics, almost every show, every episode, and much more.
But the question has always been how do you do
(38:46):
it well? Now, thanks to the folks at one two
three Ready TV, I have the answer for you. They
have developed a simple program app one two three Ready
TV that you install on your Windows PC, Android smartphone
or Android tablet that can have you streaming like a
pro in less than five minutes. You truly won't believe
how much is available or how easy it is to
(39:09):
do until you try. And for a one time cost
of only nineteen dollars and ninety nine cents, this product
is a real winner. To learn more about one two
three Ready TV, visit our website at www dot XZBN
dot net. The reason I played that song was that
our guest this hour, Heather Whittaker, is from the beautiful
(39:30):
state of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin is known for its dairy
products and cheese. So that was my way of saluting
the state of Wisconsin with cheeseburger in Paradise. Ah, Jimmy Buffett,
what a guy, Heather. I want to thank you so
much for joining us tonight here in the xzon. It's
almost a great pleasure talking to people who help other
people and how has what you're doing changed your life?
Speaker 2 (39:56):
It was actually pretty Germanic for me because in the
position I had before I was downsized, I was very
happy in corporate America. That's where you know, I wanted
to be. What I didn't realize was that I myself
had become disengaged in the job that I was in.
I was going through the motions, I was collecting my fallory.
I wasn't driving the team and the way I used to.
(40:19):
I wasn't happy with what I did. It was okay,
I wasn't unhappy, but it was just a job. And
when I first went into management, it wasn't just a
job for me. It was a passion. It was what
I love to do. So the position I was put
in was kind of a good thing for me in
the long run because it pushed me over that edge.
It was that little step that I needed to go, Okay,
(40:40):
you know what, this is my life and I need
to get it back and I need to make it
what I wanted to be, not what the corporate pigwins
wanted it to be. So the whole creation of this program,
and you know, the creativity behind it, was just energy
for me and talking about my dogs is something that
I absolutely love to do, so it fit with public speaking,
(41:01):
which is something that I love to do, and it
just kind of all came together to define me as
a person and bringing that piece of happiness back to
what I do. So that's what I try to help
my clients with is to understand that engagement is really
about finding a passion for what you do, and it
starts with you. If you're not happy in your job
(41:21):
and you're not happy with what you do, you aren't
going to be successful engaging your employees. So it was
a good thing. I tell people. You know, bad things
happen to us, but you have to try to be optimistic.
You have to find the good in it.
Speaker 4 (41:34):
And it's okay, all right for we've got about forty
seconds left before we have to say so long, But
I do want to thank you once again for joining us.
What words of encouragement you have for those people listening
around the world tonight.
Speaker 2 (41:48):
I would say it's actually an excerpt out of my book.
It's be open, be willing to consider alternative, and be creative.
Speaker 4 (41:54):
You have only greatness to achieve, plain and simple, Plain
and simple. Heather, thank you very much for joining us.
Let our listeners know how they can get a copy
of your book.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
It's available on my website, which is www dot pen
tech Professional. That's spelled p e n T e c
H and it is also available through Amazon dot com.
Speaker 4 (42:20):
All right, thanks very much Heather for joining us. Continued
success and hopefully we'll speak to you again here in
the X Zone, all the way from Wisconsin.
Speaker 2 (42:27):
Thank you very much for Rob. I appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (42:29):
Take care of yourself now, Heather Whitaker, www dot pen
tech Professional dot com. That's www dot pen tech professional
dot com. I'll be back on the other side of
this commercial break with the news as the Xzone continues
from our beautiful studios in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. My name
is Rob McConnell. This is the X Zone. Speak to
you on the other side of the news.
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