Welcome to Merge's Monthly Mega Minute - a bite-sized, yet substantial and practical, nugget of information that you can use immediately to enhance your professional and personal success.

The paradox of ice cream

In our professional and personal lives, there are a myriad of situations when we don't get what we want – either the person we are dealing with, for whatever reason, doesn't give us what we want, or we get unexpected bad news.  A common response is to lash out at the messenger.  A close friend of mine explains it by saying "Well, I get it off my chest, and then I feel better."

This reminds me of the paradox of ice cream. Many people eat ice cream to cool them off on a hot summer day.  Ironically though, ice cream is not a cooler.  Oh, it may fleetingly cool your taste buds, and its psychological effect may convince you that you're cooling off!  But ice cream is chock-a-block with calories, a basic unit of measurement of heat.  So the ultimate effect of that frosty ice cream cone is to make you warmer, not cooler!

Much like the scenario I just described about the person who cannot (or will not) give you what you want. Giving this person a piece of your mind may make you feel better; it may fleetingly cool you off and its psychological effect may convince you that you are better off.  Ultimately however, the effect of those hasty words is to heat up the situation, and ironically worsen it.  The next time you are inclined to "get if off your chest", remember the paradox of ice cream, and hold back your impulsive words.

Does this make sense?  Or is the immediate effect of the “ice cream” worth it?  I’d love to hear what you think.  Please add your comment directly on the blog at  www.turningmanagersintoleaders.com/blog.

In The Globe: 15 Ways to overcome interruptions

Interruptions are so ubiquitous that they can’t be eliminated.  But …there are several actions you can take to minimize their negative impact.  Which is exactly why Merge wrote her latest column in The Globe and Mail. Read Productivity hacks: 15 ways to overcome interruptions in office and home workspaces

Turning Managers Into Leaders

• Influence employee behaviour by using the Convenient Fruit Principle.  If you are thinking about how to change employee (or anyone else’s) behaviour, think about how you can put the Convenient Fruit Principle to work for you
• Video: Practical strategies for empowering team members.  Empowering team members doesn't have to be difficult -- here are three ideas that are not hard to put into practice
• A sailboat as a metaphor for continuous learning and workplace change.  If a sailboat is a metaphor for workplace change, then you, the leader, are its skipper who promotes continuous learning
  

That our blog turns 15 years old this month?! 

Fifteen!!  Can you believe it?!  When Merge started the Turning Managers Into Leaders blog in August 2009, she was hesitant.  In fact, she only did it only because her team told her that she should.  Of course, back then we had no idea that it would turn into something bigger than anyone of us had ever imagined. We thought that it would be a great platform on which to create a learning community where people could both share and learn about leadership.  And today, over a thousand posts later, we’re proud to say that our blog is a valuable resource for leaders in Canada, the United States, and around the world. Whether you're seeking tips on how to deal with a specific leadership or workplace communication issue, or if you just want to dialogue with other like-minded leaders who understand the joys and challenges of your professional world, chances are your issue has been covered in the blog at some point or another. Use the Keyword search or the Categories functions to find what you need. And if you can't find the answer to your leadership question or issue, please let us know, because Merge will probably address it in a future blog post!