Understand how leading with love can elevate you from a positional leader to a permissional leader Positional Leader: People follow you because they have to, in order to keep their job. Permissional Leader: People follow you because they want to (regardless of position). As the season of love ends and oozes into the workweek, Post-Singles Appreciation day (I mean Valentine's Day), leaders can use this aligned energy of love and appreciation to their benefit! Whether you are a leader in an organization, a leader in life or guiding an organization; endowing lessons of love that have helped us flourish romantically, to the relationships we spend our most time surrounded by, can flourish your leadership just the same. Your office relationships are arguably, some of the most potentially powerful relationships you have. These relationships not only solidify the advancement (or retrogression) of you and your team, but also the mental health of the people involved. Including and especially, YOUR sanity. Can we all agree when close relationships are incubated in the workplace, we become more excited to work hard, and are more inclined to reach our goals? If not for ourselves, then for others. “You can impress people from a distance, to influence, you must get close”. - John C. Maxwell Leadership at its core is influencing others. In taking action to influence, you must care for and stimulate the personal growth of a living being, separate from yourself. GASP! This living force, by nature, holds continuous and ever-changing dynamics. So… how do you maintain access to these dynamics? Well, you actually have to get to know the internality of another person. DOUBLE GASP!! This is called having an authentic relationship with someone. Oh, you thought this leadership thing was all about you? You see, the leadership process involves continuous focus and helpfulness towards others. Period. A huge part of the process is listening. This involves being present and attentive with others. As a leader, your job is to initiate a relationship with your team. You have the opportunity of learning the people who encircle your daily activities. It's your time to express genuine value and appreciation. It is vacancy to express your love language. And wouldn’t it be entirely effortless for your teammates to receive your leadership if you knew how to understand, translate, and communicate their love language? If performed daily (shown in big or small ways) each team member individually would then determine you as a credible power. That's daily compounding dedication!! In other words, you would gain the trust of each and every one of your team members everyday... Which just so happens to be the foundation for any and every healthy relationship. So, do you think you have the leadership skills to lead with love? The 5 love languages, according to Gary Chapman (the author of the best-selling 5 love languages) include: words of affirmation, quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service and physical touch. Apart of LL appreciation to another person, is the ability to recognize it first. Someone will most likely always demonstrate their LL first, only assuming they love the way they learned to accept love. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule. Generally, each person is going to have a primary love language and a secondary one. Some may score evenly for 3 or 4 LL (to find out your love language you can click here). That simply means 1 of 2 things: they need an even amount of all of these love languages to feel loved OR they are less particular about the way they would like to receive love. Any effort is fully received. These are our low maintenance lovers. God bless their hearts. Let's see if you can find yourself or any of your team members in these 5 love languages: Acts of service: Acts of service is all about demonstrating your love and kindness through service. Acts of service is a bit tricky because there are some things that a person dislikes doing more than others. The thing that this person absolutely doesn’t enjoy will most likely be the go to, to show this person you care. That is also called being attentive to my friends! Something you will need to be in tune for when evaluating what someone's love language may be.If someone on your team has verbalised how they are less than thrilled of cleaning the office kitchen again, they would probably appreciate an act of service in that realm. Maybe they are not the type to complain, they are always the first to pick up everyone's Starbucks orders, but you can tell they are over being the go to runner for the job . Unless this is a part of their job title, this is your chance to show value to this person with an act of service. Acts of service in the office is an unending list of easy shots. If you have picked up a hint that acts of service is an individual's primary LL, you want to play around with the different types. Is this person interested in acts of service relating to their comfortability? This means picking up coffee, lunch, or making sure they don't have to carry that heavy box across the office. Or, is this person more interested in assistance with a tidy office space? Would this person simply enjoy someone listening to their proposal while they are going through the beginning drafts?  Acts of service does not have to be as laborious as it sounds, in fact depending on what that particular person values, they may weigh the benefit most by the acts of service that simply provide a listening ear to a question. A leader doesn’t always need to, but should be available to take the biggest load. Sometimes that means taking a load off of others just because you want to show appreciation. This is also very humbling and grounding for any leader. Your team will notice this and mad respect points will be given! Words of affirmation: Is for those who light up everytime they receive a compliment. For the lover of affirmations, verbalizing is everything! You will notice the lovers of this love language, may value clarity, over-communication and transparency over anything else. Showing love to this language in the office involves using language to build others up. Building someone up generally comes in the manifestation of encouragement, affirmations, or a mix of both. Encouragement is more of a verbalized approval. For example, telling someone ”I think you got this all by yourself!”. While, an affirmation is more of a statement. For example, ”You are gonna crush this project with your tenacity to win!”. Notice that the affirmation is very specific. You want specificity when you affirm someone because you give the other person less reason to doubt the genuinely of the affirmation. As a leader, going out of your way to communicate value to someone on your team, shows you have interest in this person. Acknowledging someone for something they did right, past the bare minimum, goes a long way. Most people are used to only being approached about the things they did wrong. Team members will be inclined to fulfill this affirmation and work for the team that much harder. Quality time: This may be a team members love language if they seem to communicate better one on one, love sharing their experiences, or have a lot of ideas. I would try this one out first on the most unengaged members of your team. Chances are this person doesn't feel connected to you, or maybe they feel ignored or left out of your attention completely. Quality time LL is all about thoughts, sharing experiences, feelings and desires in an uninterrupted context. This is called undivided attention and communication. Action required for this LL in the office may be: monthly one on one check ins or asking a specific person their opinion on a topic in the next group meeting. Although one on one is recommended, team bonding events could work as well! As long as the activity is one you can get some type of one on one with everyone. Examples of this are bowling; where there is time to chat with everyone.  There's also, the game where everyone holds hands and gets out of the knot, and trust me everyone will be talking!! Facilitate appropriately so each person gets their moment to have the spotlight and be heard. ”Leaders listen with their ears, eyes, heart, & undivided attention”- John C Maxwell As a leader, you must train yourself to be present and in tune when others are speaking. One on one's are an opportunity to find out the “why” for each individual on the team. The main motivator behind everything they do. Understanding their why, through sharing and discussion, you can get a clear picture of how their why can fit in with the vision you have for the team within the organization.This also, gives you the moment to express this vision to others. At this point you would have a high chance of that vision gaining acceptance. Permission from the individual, of their role in helping the team get there, will most likely be granted. In addition, it is a great way to stay in tune with the ever- changing dynamics of your team. Everyone appreciates open communication and a platform to express their ideas on. Receiving Gifts: The lover of receiving gifts may talk a lot about the things they enjoy. They may also be the type to bring in things for the office. Frequently baking things to bring in or making coffee runs on the house. This is their way of showing love, because they would like to receive that love in the same way. This is an easy one to show in the office, as long as you have got a couple bucks. No seriously! A quick run to the dollar store and 20 minutes later the whole office is filled with some fun appreciation cards, a couple silly games, & candy galore to get the team through the rest of their day smiling. Every leader knows keeping the office an environment that welcomes fun, keeps employees enjoying their days, which retains high quality people who are happy to work. Just ask Google, Spotify, & Amazon about their office culture. Physical touch: The lover of physical touch is an open spirit. They are not reclused and will almost always initiate this engagement. PLEASE be aware and recognize signs of someone who is actually opposed to this LL and actually rather not. Anyone who says physical touch is inappropriate for the office is a WeirDO. Physical touch is usually involved in all of our close relationships since the beginning of time. There are those of us who don't get down with this LL. For the people who prefer to opt out of this one. IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS WHO THEY ARE GUYS. (I hope you felt my eye roll on that one, with all due gratitude and respect). If you are not sure about if someone receives this LL start out with a high five or even better a first pump. Cleanliness is indeed the next thing to godliness. Very few people will deny these two. Hugging is cool too! Once proper boundary testing has signaled this is a go! If you are still uncomfortable with this, a nice (light but felt) pat on the back works. Even better, a shoulder squeeze with SOME eye contact. It is a very affirming gesture without too much ”touch”. Let me express that, if you are not comfortable with this one, but want to try it, practice on some of your personal relationships. If you do this while being uncomfortable with the idea, you might grip a little too hard or make eye contact a little too long. That's SUPER WEirD for all parties involved. My best tip for you in this one is to do what's most comfortable. Touching is a type of closeness that allows your team to physically see, their leader doesn't mind residing on the same plane as them. A nice handshake with both hands cupped around the other persons hand, is also a humble gesture of connectivity. There is also a thing called ”matching” for handshakes, you can find that here. Observing, understanding and applying these 5 LL to your office culture, is an amazing way to demonstrate to your team the appreciation you have. The best thing you can do as a leader is making sure your team is aware of the value they bring to the organization. Showing appreciation builds trust, which is the foundation for any and every relationship. Accordingly, you gain access to leading others not because of your position, but because your tribe wants to follow your lead. By: Jamése Ellis, Contributor Brainz Magazine Golden Hoops writes from the space and perspective of the multifaceted millennial boss babe, about her business! She promotes and embodies this lifestyle through her up-and-coming clothing and oil line: @bohobossyllc. We know Golden Hoops for spitting mental health gems poetically on her social media handle @goldenhoopswrites; encompassing her passions of the written art form, fashion, business, songwriting, & personal activism.

How do we build trust in a fast-changing world? How do we adapt to change and lead our organizations, employees, and ourselves to efficiency and empowerment? Many companies and organizations have goals and policies in place, but the real challenges are when implementing and integrating those into the organizational culture. The reason why many employees feel restrained or defensive, is that they do not feel safe at work— lack of security results in employees not contributing fully with their thoughts and ideas, which inhibit creativity and innovation. The purpose with Social Sustainability Leadership is to develop conscious and courageous leaders; Leaders with a unique approach when faced with differences and challenges, leaders who can create a non-blame culture, leaders who are able to support others and themselves amid adversity. Leaders who are able and willing to take responsibility for leading towards a sustainable society. The components of Social Sustainability Leadership Psychological safety The most crucial, and probably most important factor in Social Sustainability Leadership is called psychological safety. In teams with high psychological safety members dare to aim high by challenging themselves and others and persisting even when there are obstacles. In teams with high psychological safety members have confidence in each other, believing in and being open to each other. In teams with high psychological safety failure is seen as a possibility to learn, which enables them to be successfully innovative together. This creates a culture built on inclusion, where everybody’s contribution is valued. Leader-member exchange The quality of the Leader-Member Exchange between employees and managers is the single most important explanatory variable for employee performance and job satisfaction. This was found in the largest meta-study of managers' behavior (Kelley School of Business, Indiana University). Maybe not so surprising, but what components are crucial in an excellent leader-employee relationship, or in any relationship for that matter? First and foremost, a good relationship means that both parties experience a mutual exchange. Four components of this mutual exchange appear to be of particular importance: Contribution - confidence in that the other party can be trusted Loyalty - both parties feel supported by each other Affection - there are mutually positive feelings and affection between both parties in the relationship Professional respect - both parties have a humble approach to what the other person has achieved and is able to achieve Fulfilling human potential Social sustainability leadership concerns people's opportunities to fulfill their potential. Depending on where in the world we live and at what stage in life we find ourselves, our needs look different. It may concern fundamental human rights or finding balance in our everyday life. It may involve the possibility to educate ourselves, to provide for ourselves, or to live in peace. Based on the UN Sustainability Goals in Agenda 2030, the Swedish government has proposed five new social sustainability measurements for Sweden instead of only the Gross Development Product - GDP. One of the measurements proposed is interpersonal trust. This indicates an increased awareness of the link between interpersonal relationships and organizational effectiveness. "Social Sustainability Leadership starts with development of the individual; Openness to yourself and others are key ingredients when building trust. To lead others, first you need to understand yourself and others, the driving forces behind behavior and how behavior impacts the situation." How to use Social Sustainability Leadership to build trust within the organization Social Sustainability Leadership starts with development of the individual; Openness to self and others are key ingredients when building trust. In order to effectively lead others, you need to understand yourself first. The better you understand yourself, the easier it will be to understand other people, the driving forces behind their behavior and how it impacts you and the situation. Leaders with a deeper and broader perspective are able to act and adapt differently. Sustainability leaders as individuals are compelled to make a difference by deepening their awareness of themselves in relation to the world around them. When working with Social Sustainability Leadership, we concentrate on four key factors: Openness Openness is the ability to acknowledge and talk openly at the moment any difficulty arises. With a high degree of awareness, leaders are more fit to adapt to and handle complex situations. Openness increases awareness, which leads to people making more conscious choices, pay more attention to the outcome and being more willing to take responsibility for their own contribution. Trust In a culture built on trust, employees experience a high degree of psychological safety. People support each other through success and failure. They believe in each other’s ability to handle any given situation. Increased relationship management has a positive effect on the team member’s ability and willingness to help each other, which increases creativity. When relationships in a team improve, effectiveness and quality in delivery will follow. Self-esteem There is a clear link between self-esteem, productivity, and the bottom-line result. When self-esteem grows, so does the self-mastery; you become better at handling yourself. As we become better at handling our attitude and motivation, the ability to manage our relationships increases. Purpose All people need to find their own “why”. In an organization it is of crucial importance to develop a common purpose that everyone can buy into. In order to inspire the team, the leader needs to start with a deeply anchored “why”. Influencing employees to strive towards set goals are common elements in all businesses. In the same way, when setting social sustainability goals that are in line with the shared purpose, the organization will start its journey towards greater social sustainability. It is vital to recognize how each group of related factors, such as people, norms, goals, processes etc, are connected and impact each other. Social sustainability leadership integrates individual, cultural, behavioral, and structural change to achieve sustainable objectives. The result is socially sustainable organizations built on participation, empowerment, openness, recognition, and humanity. By: Kajsa Fasth and Marie Sjöberg - Contributors, Brainz Magazine Kajsa Fasth and Marie Sjöberg work as leadership and organizational consultants. They focus on building effective organizations through creating an understanding of how individuals, culture, systems and goals work together. They both have a genuine interest in people’s behavior and underlying driving forces. Kajsa is used to perform in both conflict areas and complex crises around the world. She has led multicultural teams and worked as international head delegate for the Red Cross in Haiti, China and Iran. Communication, organizational development and sustainability are her areas of expertise. Marie is a trained therapist with a Bachelor’s Degree in Social science with psychology as her main field of study.

In collaboration with TXP - Tillväxtpartner It seems like everyone is talking about the importance of corporate culture within companies. And I agree, it’s crucial for a company’s capacity to execute and deliver. I would even go so far as to say that it’s the main strategy if you have decided to change the world and create a thriving workplace. In order to implement a distinct corporate culture, you have to get everyone on board, but you cannot let everyone on board, says Claes Knutson, author of the books Challengers! Welcome to the world of Game Changers (2018) and Change Makers and It’s all about the attitude! (2012) Attitudes are something you have, not something you learn The idea of excluding someone because they don’t share the common attitudes held by a company can be provoking. I’m however convinced that if you think in those terms, you’re not looking to build a company. In fact, you must have a different agenda. If you have decided to grow and change the world you cannot do it on your own or through help from disbelievers. Of course, I believe that you can change behaviors if you really want to. But there are so many things that indicate that if you’re not truly convinced and own that certain attitude, it won’t work no matter how hard we try to achieve that genuine change of behavior. In clarity: if you don’t have the attitudes within yourself naturally, your company will most likely not reach all the way through. Find the corporate culture ambassadors It’s the leader’s responsibility to provide clarity within the framework To achieve a common corporate culture, it’s crucial that the company – leaders and management – are crystal clear about what behaviors apply at the company. By being clear and about with this, people will be able to make conscious actions. Do I want to be a part of this journey or not? Answers such as ”Yes, maybe” and ”We’ll see” are not good enough. It’s the leader’s responsibility to provide clarity within the framework, until everyone has found answers to their questions. After that, it is up to the coworkers to make an active choice. When you have reached this point, it is necessary to thank any opponent at the workplace for their interest and wish them good luck somewhere else. When the corporate culture is embedded, you can accelerate The culture of a company can be compared to our common sense. That common sense is required when decisions – large or small – are made by anyone and with a pace that won’t make you loose speed or focus. If we all share the same commons sense, then there’s nothing that can keep you from letting anyone make decisions, take control of something and act without checking with the boss first. If the common sense is well embedded, it even becomes a part of our subconsciousness. At that point, we have created a real strong directed force. You need clarity in the company’s direction, behaviors and attitudes In conclusion; in order for the corporate culture to have an effect, you need everyone in the company to sign up for it. If you have opponents within the company, then the force will decrease, and not give you the expected effects. You need clarity in the company’s direction, behaviors and attitudes. Keep the ones who value the same and you will be able to increase the pace and become a real corporate force. The result will be a strong brand that will be clear for customers, for the labor market and for investors. Claes Knutson Challenger Guide and Founder of TXP – Tillväxtpartner At TXP we work with companies that want to challenge, change the world, and grow - Challenger companies. Many companies are very skilled at their business but have difficulties seeing what needs to be done to increase growth. But TXP can help with that. We help the whole organization to find the passion - the direction - and build a corporate culture with self-driven employees. It is a culture that creates tempo, growth and innovation. Together, we create the conditions for you to work more efficiently with your main business. We acquire knowledge from our own and the customer's experiences as well as from studies and research. With us, you get a powerful, competent, passionate, and fruitful collaboration. In short, we want to be your growth partner to help you challenge and grow!

Our society is moving faster than ever before and the combination of the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’, the rapid change in peoples’ life styles, new preferences and other socio-economic and demographic factors is resulting in major disruptions to the labour markets and how we think of the concept of working. New categories of jobs are and will continue to emerge and partly or wholly displacing others. The skill sets required in both old and new occupations will also change in most industries and transform how and where people will work in the coming years. In the World Economic Forums report “The Future of Jobs”, it is estimated that 65 % of all children entering primary school today will ultimately end up working in completely new job types that don’t yet exist. Many of the major drivers of transformation currently affecting global industries, technological and societal, are ultimately expected to have a significant impact on job creation, job displacement, labour productivity and skill gaps. This might seem like frightening news to many; however, this is nothing new to us. When thinking about it, we have been in this changing climate for a while now. In many industries and countries, the most in-demand occupations or specialties today did not even exist ten or five years ago, and it is said that since the internet was born it has created about three new jobs for every one job taken away. And already today, many of us can look back at our childhood dreams of what we wanted to be when we grew up, with the knowledge that our dream job today wasn’t even possible to imagine when we were kids. Even tough we have been through a rapidly changing labour market, it is now accelerating and will go in a much faster speed going forward. Many predict that we will just within a couple of years, have to have multiple careers, re-educate ourselves more than once in our life time and that it will be absolutely necessary for us to change both roles, employers and disciplines continuously over time in order to stay relevant. "Lifelong learning is the ongoing pursuit of knowledge for either personal or professional reasons." Therefore, the concept of lifelong learning is becoming increasingly important in the knowledge-intensive, complex and global world in which we are living. So what is then “lifelong learning” all about? Lifelong learning is the ongoing pursuit of knowledge for either personal or professional reasons. A concept that has been around for a long time but have perhaps now become more relevant than ever before - since we know that it will be absolute key for us to fast and easy learn new things and fields going forward. "This will require changes in everything from how the education system works, what human resources functions looks for in a candidate, how we think of talent scouting and how companies work with internal learnings, coaching and talk about career plans." Lifelong learning is in many ways harder and more complex than one would think of, since it not only requires us to have an open mind-set and willingness to learn, but also the right access to gather new knowledge. Therefore, all parts of society need to start mobilizing and prepare for how we will be able to ensure that everyone have the possibility to be relevant also in the future and having the chance to discover new trends and be aware of the different options that will emerge while the market is continuing to change. This will require changes in everything from how the education system works, what human resources functions looks for in a candidate, how we think of talent scouting and how companies work with internal learnings, coaching and talk about career plans. But what can you do already today in order to start adapting to the concept of lifelong learning and being prepared for the fast shifting future labour market? Here are 6 tips that can be a starting point on your path of continuous learning: Set a plan for your learning Start off by setting your intentions for what you want to learn and if you have any milestones or goals related to it. Ask yourself: What areas are you interested in? How much time are you ready to spend every week on new learnings? And how could you use your new learnings in your everyday work? Make "learning new things" a part of you daily work routine An efficient way to integrate learnings in to your daily routine, is to schedule it in your work calendar. It doesn’t have to be any large sacrifice in time, a 10-minute TED Talk every Monday or a 30-minute reading or watching a Youtube clip on a new topic per week, the most important part is that you make it happen and see it as important as other tasks at work. Have fun while learning new things It is absolute key to bring the fun into learning new things. Making this into something that you feel motivated and driven by and want to continue with. Therefore, make sure to reward yourself every time you reach a goal or a milestone. You could also bring your learnings into your private life, by arranging “theme” dinners and invite friends to discuss a specific topic or arrange a book club with others around a theme and thereby learn together. Involve others Involving others is a good way to stick to your goals. Reach out to your network and share your journey, your new learnings and make them involved by welcoming suggestions of things you should look into or people you should meet. Another way is to start arranging trend sessions at work, encouraging others to share new knowledge with you. Challenge yourself by working in new ways and at new places It is very easy to become comfortable and doing things as you always have. But just by changing the atmosphere or work space once a week or month, new ideas will come to you. Another effective way is to be curious of other functions and colleagues at work. This can be done by desk shadowing a colleague at another department for a day or schedule lunch with someone that works with something else than you do. Meet people from another industries or areas A great way to be more motivated and inspired by a new field or area is to meet and talk to others that are already in that field. Make sure to look for meet ups or conferences that involves the areas you want to learn more about. You could also get a “knowledge” mentor; someone that you meet and only discuss that specific field with. Annie Lindmark, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Annie Lindmark is working with innovation and funding for innovative projects within companies and research. She has received the title as “Innovator of the year” at Universum Excellence Award and is often a key note speaker and a panelist on topics as Open innovation, Social innovation, Emerging technology and Entrepreneurship. She is a Steering Committee Member for Hack for Sweden, a government mission raised to increase the awareness and use of open data. She is also the founder of the female network W.Empowerment that aims to promote self leadership and entrepreneurship and supports many other initiatives that want to encourage more women in to entrepreneurship.

By: Brainz Magazine “If you evaluate situations, yourself and other people based on what truly drives humanity forward, you lose all traces of doubt, dishonesty, victimhood and inactivity. It sort of becomes binary; either you create and push forward, or you observe and criticize from a far.” - Oscar Eriksson When we meet Oscar Eriksson, it’s not without any previous knowledge or rumour. We knew about his past achievements and skills. We knew he likes to cover a lot of subjects and almost “surf” between philosophy, strategy and super-specific tactical execution within the same minute. Often with four analogies in parallel, making it a challenge keeping up with his train of thought. When we met him at Diplomat in central Stockholm however, we didn’t know we were going to enter altruistic arguments in such a tight mix with our business-focused discussion. – I’m sorry for that… I wander off sometimes. But discussions become so much more valuable on deep purpose-levels. We met with the serial super-entrepreneur and what some call “Sweden’s superior digital strategist” to talk a bit about his adventures, his views on building organizations, efficiency, creativity, inspiration and the future. What are you currently focusing on? – I’m a bit here and there to be honest. I’ve spent the last year building a portfolio-like setup of cases together with my main partner. We’ve launched a new digital lifestyle solution, transparently solving the brand’s needs for authentic reach and engagement. We’re beta testing a global platform for sports fans, getting them closer to their favourite teams and players through content, challenges and match-like gamification. We’ve also built and launched brands within luxury beds at non-luxury prices. And a few cases in the exciting wine industry, focusing on sustainability and the “secondary market” for wines. The newest addition to the portfolio evolves around the rapidly growing sport of padel. I also run my own growth agency L7G which is a modern data science partner helping CEO’s at large companies to create predictive, cutting-edge algorithms solving complex business problems in new ways. These algorithms and models often create new takes on advanced marketing, hyper-personalization, assortment modelling or end-to-end distribution optimization. – Apart from that, I’m a board member for a few apps and digital brands. That’s a responsibility that adds another stakeholder perspective than to be the entrepreneur and creator. I really enjoy those opportunities. That sure sounds like a mouthful. How do you stay above it? – I guess you mean how I manage time or stress. For me, it’s always been about pushing limits and discovering what we’re capable of. My experience is that you magically get more time as you take on more responsibility, not the other way around. I am also ridiculously structured and systematic when I need to be. Working out daily helps setting the frame and focus for what needs to be done. Practicing and developing real self-awareness also helps recognizing when you experience “good” and “bad” stress, because there are both versions. How did you get to this point in life - any specific event or have you had a plan all the time? – Wow, I’ve had so many plans. They change all the time. I think plans are secondary to vision and end-state… The plan will work itself out. “Just get going and adjust course along the way”, has always been my strategy. I can’t stand inactivity or decision paralysis. But I guess one very deciding event was some 10 years ago while having lunch with my first-ever “mentor”. Back then, I was in the finance industry, working my ass of at a large bank when faced with a serious discussion about how I wanted to live my life, what actually means something and the difference between time, money and freedom. I remember he gave me the book “The Four-Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferriss - and I was hooked. Not necessarily by everything that Ferriss talks about, but rather the general attitude of analyzing input/output relationships, efficiency, and most of all the concept of freedom in all levels of life. I’ve been very passionate about what they call “lifestyle design” and creating the “work” life that you really want. You build several digital businesses and you have helped some of the largest companies in the world with growth strategies. What are the main trends you see? – Those are many… But to add value here and now, I would say “polarization”. Polarization of customer purchasing patterns, which means we see a clearer gap between “boring buys” such as subscriptions or commodities, and “inspirational buys” which are more value, identity and tribe-driven. Polarization of available platforms is real too. We know that Amazon-like platforms eat the world on all “boring buys”. Why would they not take 99% market share on commodity purchases in a connected society? Then, the other end of the spectra becomes niche, D2C, value-based brands taking market share in the digital transformation. The giants in between this spectrum will die off in a rapid pace, at least with current business models and operations. “The shallow, "+1" influencers will die out as brands finally start to measure this in a sober way as any other marketing initiative. The polarization is everywhere and will have massive effects on how we work with positioning, strategy and market fit.” – The polarization of market channels is there too…. Let’s just look at the phenomena of “influencers”, or “opinion-leaders” as we called it back in 2008. This field will be polarized such that the authentic, strong power nodes will get even more power and eventually pivot into creating their own brands with a lot of help from Facebook/Instagram’s shopping functionalities and the live video shopping trend finally making it from Asia to the west. Instead of making brand deals, they’ll become the brands. The shallow, “+1” influencers will die out as brands finally start to measure this in a sober way as any other marketing initiative. The polarization is everywhere and will have massive effects on how we work with positioning, strategy and market fit. Any particular trends within e-commerce or retail? – I would look out for the diffusion of the storefronts. We’re in many ways past basic “e-commerce” now. We’re living in “social commerce” where there can’t be any differences between a social live video, story, picture and a “shop button”. It’s all intertwined and if your business is not built for letting go of your traditional point of conversion, you’re in a bad place. Let go of trying to control the actual shopping moment, it’s not in your hands anymore. I think voice tech takes some time to really establish in the Scandinavian markets, but it’s a hygiene factor for the future. Why are viral and organic strategies crucial? – I’m simply passionate about creating viral or at least organic brands because it’s an absolute necessity. Whenever you have a monopoly or duopoly in society, things become expensive. And that’s what we have with Google and Facebook in the game of paid traffic today. It simply becomes too expensive being addicted to these platforms, and this is why viral loops and strategies are so vital for creating recurring and organic users of your brand. You’ve said that we don’t live in an age of data; we live in the age of talents. What does that mean? – Well, that means many things. But mainly it’s so obvious that everyone has all the data one could ask for. But we’re starving for talents and artists that actually can create value from data. “I think we see too many "experts" simply leveraging the digital- and data anxiety out there and trying to make things really complex. Solid intuition and talent are as important as quant and data.” We can build algorithms, fancy UX or automate any customer journey to the end of time. But at the end of the day, it’s about being talented and using artistry on top of data streams. I think we see too many “experts” simply leveraging the digital- and data anxiety out there and trying to make things really complex. Solid intuition and talent are as important as quant and data. How does retail and consumption look in 50 years? – I don’t think we have that much consumption at all to be honest. Except for fast-consumer and perishable goods of course. But in general, I don’t see ownership as a concept. Not even houses, apartments or cars. Why would you aim to own things in an age where you spend 90% of your time in virtual places and virtual realities? We will be much more fluid as individuals and the concept of owning materialistic stuff will be gone as we know it. You have built several organizations. How do you motivate your employees? – Actually, I don’t. I try to recruit solid people, and those people need to be self-motivated. I’d rather focus on being the hardest worker in the room and lead by example in that way instead. If employees or partners aren’t on the same level, we solve it from there. Working actively with motivation feels like covering up for poor talent recruitment or bad overall company culture. You have mentioned “alpha waves” in a couple of keynotes related to creativity and efficiency. What does that mean? – That is basically a wavelength frequency at which our brains optimize for creativity and problem solving. The last few years I’ve been working a lot on setting the brain up for those conditions. It completely re-defines what “work” and “free time” means and should mean for most companies. We actually solve most problems in a creative way when we are relaxing or stepping back from intense work or pressure. During a hot shower, a steam sauna, while exercising, playing video games or in certain stages of sleep. In short, it’s like working a muscle. Naturally, you need to put tension and effort for it to adjust, but it’s during recovery or rest you get the benefits. I’ve sort of created techniques and routines for myself and the companies I help to maximize performance by brain waves. Wow, that sounds really weird saying out loud to be honest. What are you planning for the future? Any dreams or new projects? – Great question. Short-term, we’re expanding a few projects to new countries focusing on USA, Germany and parts of Asia. Those are always interesting adventures where everything that could possibly go wrong, will go wrong. Generally, it would be fun to start working on projects within a field of passion. Retail or e-commerce is so extremely boring. I just happen to have been working with it, but I have zero passion for this field. I have some vague ideas of projects out in space, but now we’re talking 20-30 years horizons. For now, however, working with fun people and having a global workplace with total freedom will do. You get to invite 3 people to a dinner. Who would be your dream guests? – Ricky Gervais has a spot of course. The most brilliant guy alive. Elon Musk needs to come as well. And of course, my girlfriend Fanny. She just makes everything better. Favourite books or podcasts? – Anything with Andreessen Horowitz, like the “a16z” podcast. I’m always big on written autobiographies and keynotes by role models, could be athletes or entrepreneurs. I try to come back and re-read the works of Tim Ferriss, Jordan Peterson and stoic philosophers like Seneca every year to refresh perspectives. If I had to recommend a single individual of whom to consume all content, I’d say Naval.

In today’s digital world, we are busier than we’ve ever been before. Between managing stressful jobs, running businesses, maintaining a social media presence, working out, cooking, cleaning, looking after families etc. it’s no wonder we are exhausted by the time the weekend comes around. “Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning and focused effort.” – Paul J. Meyer. It’s equally important to note that we make time for the things that are important to us. As Debbie Millman said, “busy is a decision.” We are now living in a society that uses busy as a badge. It has become a cultural cache to use the excuse “I am too busy” for anything we don’t feel like doing. When we use busy as an excuse for not doing something, what we are really saying is that it’s not a priority. It’s important to be honest with yourself, determine what’s important to you, and simply make the time to do it. There are a few tips and tricks to ensuring you make the most out of your day, week and year. If you want to make 2020 your most productive year yet, you are going to have to start by understanding exactly where your 24 hours are going each day: 1. ASSESS HOW YOU ARE SPENDING YOUR TIME Keep a record over the course of the next week to determine how your are spending your time each week. For example: Monday 7:00am- 7:30am: Wake up, check emails and scroll through social media. 7:30am: Shower, get ready. 8:00am: Commute to work whilst looking at media sites, catching up on the latest gossip. 9:00am- 5pm: Work. 5:00pm – 6:00pm: Commute home whilst scrolling through instagram. 6:00pm: Prepare dinner. 7:00pm: Eat dinner whilst watching Netflix. 10:00pm: Get into bed and look at social media and emails on your phone. 11:00pm: Go to sleep. Does some or all of this routine sound familiar to you? Sure, you may engage in some other activities such as going to the gym, bathing and putting your kids to sleep etc. but just how exactly many hours in the day are you wasting? It’s important to understand exactly how and where your time is being spent. 2. DIGITAL DETOXING How many hours do you spend absorbed in your phone each day scrolling through instagram or binge watching the latest Netflix series? I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with those things. However, if you want to make 2020 your most productive year yet, you are going to have to assess and determine exactly where your 24 hours are going each day. Once you have an understanding on how and where you spend your time, it’s not difficult to see that a majority of our time aside from work and sleep is spent consuming media. Anything from social media, to watching random videos on YouTube, to reading gossip articles on the web counts. Recent research from BankMyCell demonstrates that the average time spent on smartphones is 2.51 hours per day. Could you imagine what else you could accomplish in that 2.5 hours? Both Apple and Android have now released software that will help you monitor your addiction and minimise your phone usage. Instil discipline when it comes to your digital consumption and set some parameters as to who and when you check social media. 3. LIMIT EMAIL CHECKING Emails are another big factor when it comes to time-sucking activities. With the volume of emails I receive at work, I could spend my entire day checking and responding to emails, and accomplish nothing else. Allocate a couple of times in the day where you check and respond to emails, for example between 12-1pm, and then again between 4-5pm. This way, you are able to focus your time on the other, more important tasks of the day. ​Turning off email notifications is another important aspect when it comes to managing your time. We can not resist the ‘bing’ or ‘whoosh’ sound when an exciting new email appears in our inbox. Do yourself a favour and turn off all app and email notifications on your computer and phone. Not only will it significantly increase your productivity levels, however reduce anxiety levels as well. 4. UTILISE CALENDARS & TO-TO LISTS Ensure you plan out your day and week by utilising a to-do list and writing down the tasks and projects you absolutely must finalise or accomplish. What are the top 1-3 priorities you absolutely must achieve that day? Ensure you block out time first thing in the morning to tackle the harder, more important tasks whilst your mind is fresh and free from distractions. Schedule in all meetings and appointments using a diary or your phone / outlook calendar. This will ensure you don’t miss any important dates or deadlines. 5. AUTOMATE DECISIONS How much time do you spend each day, thinking about what you’re going to wear or what you’re going to eat for dinner? We waste valuable time and energy each day asking and agonising over these seemingly simple questions. Arianna Huffington leads the way when it comes to outfit repeats and being more productive with our time. She ways “Men have a competitive advantage. They don’t have to waste the kind of energy we waste.” This concept has been owned by many successful men over the years. Steve Job’s black turtleneck, Mark Zuckerberg’s grey t-shirt and Barack Obama’s grey or blue suits are all ‘uniforms’ that have taken the guesswork out of deciding what to wear. In a 2012 Vanity Fair interview, Obama said “I’m trying to pare down decisions… I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing, because I have too many other decisions to make.” By batching and automating certain tasks, such as food prep and choosing outfits for the work week, you can save a significant amount of time and energy which can be invested into achieving your goals and dreams for the year. MAKING 2020 YOUR MOST PRODUCTIVE YEAR YET What are some of the tools and strategies you’ll be implementing to make 2020 your most productive year yet? By: Lara Nercessian, Contributor Brainz Magazine Lara Nercessian is the brains behind Boss in Heels. What initially started as a passion project after receiving tonnes of queries and requests for advice, has turned into a personal branding blog. Lara is a psychology graduate and has spent the last 10+ years establishing her career as a Head of Human Resources. Through investing in her own personal development and dedicating years to self-learning, she aims to share her insights, experiences and lessons through her blog and speaking engagements. Her passion and purpose in life is to help people realize their full potential and become the best version they can possibly be.

By: Madeleine Mofjärd Are you doing more to avoid fear than to get pleasure? We all have fears. It isn't necessarily something negative unless we become a victim of them. The questions is: how would your life look like if you made more decisions based on your desired outcomes than on the emotions that you fear feeling? There are two primal fears that we feel as human beings. The fear of not being loved and the fear of not being good enough. These are both fears that can diminish our experience on this planet if we make decisions based on how to avoid them. I am here to inspire you to a new thought pattern and change your relationship to fear. ”If you don’t sacrifice for what you want, then what you want becomes the sacrifice” Step 1: Identify the thought that is creating the fear The fear that you feel in your body doesn't come from nowhere. Every feeling that you feel is a result of a thought that you've decided to think. 50% of all change is awareness, when you become aware of the thought that triggered the emotion you also have the power to insert a new thought. To give you an example from my own life: whenever I fear speaking my truth in front of a group of people I am triggered by the following thoughts: “I am too young” “I am not experienced enough to talk” By being aware of the limiting thoughts and questioning them I'm able to choose my new truth. I truly believe that they way we live our lives is a result of the story that we believe about ourselves - like the one and only Les Brown once said. This gives us the power to choose whatever story to believe. My new truth is: “My voice empowers others” “I am chosen to spread this message” What thought is creating the fear that you're feeling? Is it really true? Step 2: Interrupt the thought pattern with a compelling question The easiest way to change a thought pattern is to ask yourself a new set of questions. This will take your mind on a ride of trying to find an answer, so make sure to ask a compelling question. Here are the questions that I ask myself in moments of fear: “If fear didn't exist, would I want to see myself do this?” “What would it make me feel to overcome the fear?” Step 3: Take one step of action When you've identified and interrupted the thought pattern you're ready to take the first step of action. Make sure to carry the new thoughts with you, the new story of what you're capable of and why. Leave the old story behind - it doesn't serve you no more. You will be scared and you will feel fearful, just allow yourself to feel the emotions that flows thru you. What is one step of action that you could take to move forward, in the direction of your fear? Schedule it and get started! How would your life look like if you made more decisions based on desired outcomes than on the emotions that you fear feeling? Madeleine Mofjärd is a podcast host, producer and social media manager. Listen to The Mofjrdtalks Podcast or find out more HERE.

By: Serena Mon de Vienne Navigating the power dynamics in a workplace can be hard. If you want to be a valued leader and colleague at the same time, you need to focus on your style of communication. The most valued leaders are the ones who communicate so that the employee always feels respected, no matter how much power they possess. Many leaders tend to get stuck in constant listening and seek consensus–no matter the task or subject. Here they lose both speed for the group and trust from the group. The key to a happy workplace is maintaining a balanced dialogue in the group, and it demands that you as a leader communicate in a way that is perceived as equal. What I mean to say by that is, that all your colleagues need to be met on the same level. No matter what phase the group is in, or what situation might arise, the way of communicating should be constant. The equal dialogue happens when everyone is aloud to think and feel whatever it is they do–whenever they do. How does one do this? Well, the equal dialogue happens when everyone is aloud to think and feel whatever it is they do–whenever they do. An open minded atmosphere might be another way to put it. Where everyone’s feelings and thoughts are important, but you are not always allowed to act on them. As a leader you will sometimes have to try to handle people's behavior when it crosses a line. Just know that you should never question or downplay that person's feelings or thoughts. This sounds easy in theory, but can be very tricky in the daily dialogues. So here are some practical examples: 1. When giving directions, clarify who made the decision. If an employee says: ”I don't understand the plan, I feel like it’s a bit unclear", be careful not to say something like ”You’re wrong, it’s clear". In order to have a constructive dialogue, the best thing is to clarify who is behind this decision. You could say ”The management team has made this decision, what is it that you feel is unclear, maybe I can explain?”. 2. Make room for negotiations. If an employee says "I don’t want to do this project”, it would be bad for a manager to give an impatient answer like ”This project really isn't boring nor hard!”. Often, this type of response comes out because managers themselves become uncertain cause the employee is uncertain. However, if the manager can lean into the emotion and put words on it, the discomfort will decrease (up to 50 %) and it will be easier to handle the issue constructively. So to make a situation like this clear, you first have to know if it’s at all possible for the employee to say no to the project. If there is no other alternative, and it needs to be done this way, the manager needs to be firm but understanding. You could say ”I really see that you would prefer not to do this project. Unfortunately we will have to lead this project for the next six months and it isn't something we can change. Now, how can we make this project feel better for you?” 3. Accept any feeling, but don't accept any behavior. People have feelings, this isn’t something we need to change. Rather we need to learn to handle the result of those feelings. As a manager you can promote certain types of behavior and let employees know that other types of behavior is unacceptable. Example 1: An angry employee screams: "I don't understand how you can ..." Manager (wrong answer): "Don't get angry now." Manager (a better answer may be): "You get to be as angry as you want, but I don’t want you to scream at our office." Example 2: Employee: "I know I got a pay raise last month, but I’m not happy and I want to revisit the conversation again." Manager (wrong answer): "How can you even ask for that? What are you even thinking?" Manager (a better answer may be): "I hear you would like a raise again, but there will be no more salary discussions until next year.” The key is never shying away from a hard discussion. Don’t close the door on your colleagues when he or she is giving emotions or thoughts that are odd or provocated. Keep it open and instead repeat something they are saying, give your observation on their reactions or ask them a question that will go deeper in their emotion or thought. When they feel heard and respected by you they will also respect you as a leader. If you succeed in this you have set the foundation for a culture that encourages openness and responsibility, and you will be a popular leader. Good luck! About the author: Serena Mon de Vienne is Vice President and a Rhetoric consultant at ”Snacka Snyggt” She has a bachelor's degree in rhetoric from Södertörn University, as well as a degree from the Ballet Academy in Stockholm.

To remember and honor Kobe Bryant, we celebrate his life and legacy through his own inspiring words. You don't have to be a basketball fan to have been hit by the shocking and sad news about the tragic death of five-time world-champion Kobe Bryant. Kobe had a 20-season career with the Lakers, earned the title of Most Valuable Player in the NBA in 2008, became an 18-time NBA All-Star and a member of the All-NBA Team 15 times. But Kobe wasn't just a wealthy high-profile athlete, he was also an inspiring role model, leader and entrepreneur. To celebrate Kobe's legacy, we honor him by collecting 10 of his most inspiring quotes that will live on forever and help inspire people everywhere. DREAMS “Those times when you get up early and you work hard, those times when you stay up late and you work hard, those times when you don’t feel like working, you’re too tired, you don’t want to push yourself, but you do it anyway. That is actually the dream. That’s the dream. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey. And if you guys can understand that, then what you’ll see happen is you won’t accomplish your dreams, your dreams won’t come true; something greater will.” — Kobe Bryant From his jersey retirement speech, 2017 SUCESS "When you make a choice and say, 'Come hell or high water, I am going to be this,' then you should not be surprised when you are that. It should not be something that is intoxicating or out of character because you have seen this moment for so long that ... when that moment comes, of course it is here because it has been here the whole time, because it has been [in your mind] the whole time." — Kobe Bryant HARD WORK "I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses." — Kobe Bryant TEAM WORK "The important thing is that your teammates have to know you're pulling for them and you really want them to be successful." — Kobe Bryant LEADERSHIP "The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great at whatever they want to do." — Kobe Bryant FAILURE "When we are saying this cannot be accomplished, this cannot be done, then we are short-changing ourselves. My brain, it cannot process failure. It will not process failure. Because if I have to sit there and face myself and tell myself, 'You are a failure,' I think that is almost worse than dying." — Kobe Bryant FEAR "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s--less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn't kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn't really exist if you're in the right frame of mind." — Kobe Bryant WINNING "I'll do whatever it takes to win games, whether it's sitting on a bench waving a towel, handing a cup of water to a teammate, or hitting the game-winning shot." — Kobe Bryant INFLUENCE "Use your success, wealth and influence to put them in the best position to realize their own dreams and find their true purpose." — Kobe Bryant LIFE "It’s the one thing you can control. You are responsible for how people remember you—or don’t. So don’t take it lightly." — Kobe Bryant Always remembered, never forgotten.

By: Sara Nyström Lennqvist Did you know that most people attend their business meetings blindfolded? Of course, not literally, but metaphorically speaking. We tend to focus on what is being said and miss many of the non-verbal signals that are constantly given to us and that are of great value. We all have some sort of gut feeling that tells us whether something is positive or negative. For some of us it is easier to read other peoples’ emotions than for others. If you belong to the latter group there is no need to worry as everybody can train this skill. Actually, most people need to practice in order to be able to distinguish the very brief facial expressions that we all have, called micro expressions. Micro expressions – a good way to recognize emotions Micro expressions are involuntary facial muscle movements that last for half a second or shorter and reveal hidden emotions. Research has been conducted for over 50 years and show that micro expressions are universal, meaning that we all have them no matter where we come from. They are also subconscious and innate. This means that small babies don’t learn this skill. They know already from birth how to show emotions (even when born blind or deaf). Micro expressions are distinct from facial expressions in general in that they are universal, spontaneous, tough to fake, and last for only a fraction of second. As a consequence, they represent a very good way to recognize human feelings and emotions. Emotions play an important role in negotiations Most of us see ourselves as rational decision makers. However, research shows that emotions play an important role in negotiations. To be able to negotiate well we need to be able to deal with those emotions and utilize them to our advantage. For example, people may become afraid during negotiations that they will be outwitted by the other party. They may become anxious about the consequences of the negotiations should they go against their goals. They may be hopeful that they will get what they want or surprised when they discover an aspect they were not aware of before the negotiations started. They may experience elation that they have prevailed through the negotiations, and equally, disappointed if they didn’t get what they had hoped for. When we are able to recognize those emotions, we will gain an advantage as we are able to base our negotiation on the real needs. Therefore, we also increase the chances of finding a common ground. As a matter of fact, if you can’t read what your counterpart is feeling and instead focus only on what he or she is saying, you’re highly unlikely to achieve everything you could have. An honest window into how your counterpart is feeling Experienced negotiators have learned how to mask their true feelings. They choose their words, tone, body language, and expressions carefully. To most observers, they often appear neutral. Or they are able to convincingly fake an emotion if they think it will help them advance their own interests. However, there is a way to read what your counterpart is feeling even if they are deliberately trying to hide it from you. The secret is to pay attention to the spontaneous and involuntary micro expressions, that rapidly flit across everyone’s faces at times of intense emotion. If you know what to look for, they can provide an instant, honest window into how your counterpart is feeling. Here are some examples of common micro expressions: It is quite easy to recognize the meaning behind the expression on a still photo. However, in a real-life situation, when the stakes are high and the micro expression lasts for as little as one 25th of a second, it’s an entirely different game. Effective negotiators are naturally good readers of micro expressions One might theorize that one of the key differences between exceptional negotiators or salespeople and those who are merely average is the ability to read these micro expressions and strategically steer them toward a preferred outcome. Studies conducted in various companies, in different countries, have shown precisely this. Those who score high on a non-verbal recognition test sell 20% more. In an international pharmaceutical company, the top three sales representatives scored on average 50% on the first Micro Expressions Test, while the lower-end sellers scored on average 5%. The persons who scored the best on the Micro Expressions Test also sold on average 25% more products compared to low scorers. In a top insurance company, it was found that the top-half of sales representatives had a 20% higher Micro Expressions Test score than the lower-half sellers. Furthermore, a study conducted at a BMW showroom in Rome, Italy, showed that high performers (who had sold more than 60 automobiles in the most recent quarter) scored almost twice as high on the test as low performers. From all these studies we can conclude that effective negotiators seem to be naturally good readers of micro expressions. "Emotional Intelligence is twice more important for success than technical and cognitive skills combined." – Daniel Goleman The ability to read other peoples’ emotions can be improved What if you don’t have this natural ability to read others? There is good news! Reading micro expressions isn’t an ability you either have or don’t have. Just like riding a bicycle or driving a car, you can learn it, practice, and get better at it over time. Actually, studies have shown that interactive training in reading micro expressions can increase your emotional intelligence (EQ) by an average of 10% in just four hours! The IQ you were born with remains the same throughout life, but your EQ can be increased. 3 Tips on How to Excel in Negotiations: Pay attention to the face of your counterpart. When you ask an important question in a negotiation, make sure to pay attention to your counterpart’s face for at least four seconds, instead of just listening to the words. This is often a moment of surprise which the client is not prepared for. Your client must first decipher the meaning of your question before giving a verbal answer to it. By then, he or she has, subconciously, already shown a first true emotional reaction with the facial muscles. Make your counterpart listen. During a negotiation it is easier to control our expressions when we are talking. So, don’t ask too many open questions. Instead, make your counterpart listen by describing what you want or share an anecdote about another negotiating partner who shared similar concerns and watch the response as he or she listens. The guard will lower a little and you’ll be able to see the honest reactions to what you’re saying. Make use of these reactions to plan the next phase of the conversation. Give your counterparts alternatives to choose from. As you present a list of choices to your counterparts, their micro expressions will reveal which they like and which they don’t, sometimes even before they’re consciously aware of their preferences. Watch closely to see what their faces tell you about each option and use this information as you proceed in the conversation. "I sincerely believe that humanity is in great need of upgrading its ability to communicate. We need to understand each other better. Our world needs more emotional intelligence." – Sara Nyström Lennqvist How might this work in practice? Imagine you’re a consultant who has proposed a certain fee for your services: “Based on your requirements, we can propose $100,000 as the consultancy fee for this project.” If you see your potential client show the micro expression of disgust, you can calibrate accordingly and lower your price without skipping a beat: “But because we anticipate a longer term collaboration and are excited about the direction your business is heading in, we can offer you 25% discount.” What if you instead recognized an expression of happiness or contempt after the initial offer? Maybe your counterpart expected a higher price, or doubts that you’re offering the premium level of service. You could quickly adjust your price in the opposite direction: “That’s the basic fee which covers X and Y. For your project I also recommend our entire suite of services including A, B and C, which means the total price would be closer to $150,000.” By reading other peoples’ body language and micro expressions we are simply able to respond to the feedback they don’t even realize they are giving. This way we stay in control of the dialogue and achieve better outcomes during our negotiations. Sara Nyström Lennqvist is the Executive Director of the world’s leading certification training organization in Body Language for business and also runs her own business within the same field. Sara is a certified Body Language Master Trainer and Micro Expressions Trainer, Certified Impact Coach and Licensed Mental Trainer. She has an extensive experience in communication from various sectors (tourism, diplomacy, government, leadership), has an abundant international life and working experience and speaks 8 languages. She regularly conducts Body Language trainings around the world and has also given a training at the UN.

Is your inbox always full? Uh-oh! As the public awareness grows of how we humans negatively affect the planet, the "blame game" has never been more intense. But is judging and blaming each others’ habits really the best way forward? While it might be hard to admit, we all have habits that harm the planet in one way or another. So instead of focusing on what others do wrong, it might be time to focus on things that we can do right, and look for ways in which to contribute that suits our individual lifestyle. We're all different people with different ways of living. Some things that one person is willing to give up might be completely different from what another person is willing to give up. While it might be relatively easy for one person to give up driving, flying, and eating meat, giving up those particular things might present an insurmountable challenge for someone else. There are, however, plenty of other things that a person can do to decrease their environmental footprint. We have listed five things most people don't even think about that affects our planet negatively. Which one would you be willing to give up and which one is a big no-no? 1 - STRESS Yep, you read that right - Stress is an environmental hazard. When we are stressed, we tend to make more short-sighted decisions - such as taking the car rather than the bus to work, picking up fast-food in favour of cooking something more environmentally-friendly at home, or buying loads of things we don’t really need. Stress is also the bad guy behind excessive travelling, as the reason so many of us chose to jet off for the weekend is - you guessed it - to get a break from the stress in our everyday lives. 2 - A FULL INBOX That's right! E-mail takes up a lot of server space, and servers require huge amounts of electricity to run. By sticking to an “inbox-zero”-approach, you will save on server-storage and electricity. A study by ICF International and McAfee revealed that storing 1GB of e-mail consumes 32.1 kWh a year. How crazy is that? 3 - FLUSHING THE TOILET Do you flush every time you use the toilet? Most of us do–even if we live alone. While this might be far down on the list of adjustments you’re willing to make to decrease your environmental footprint, the fact is that by tweaking your flushing habits, you could save gallons of water. Did you know, for example, that peeing in the shower is actually more hygienic, and better for the environment, than using the toilet? 4 - DRINKING COFFEE If you're a coffee lover, the idea of giving up coffee might be another one of those adjustments you’re simply not willing to make. Unfortunately, the coffee trade isn’t easy on our planet. Not only does it cause deforestation, but the process of turning the fruit of the coffea plant into ready-to-brew, ground coffee, also produces a lot of waste. 5 - BUYING NEW JEANS It might surprise you to learn that the production of Jeans, a staple item in pretty much everyone’s closet, has a huge environmental impact, as they require tons of water and chemicals to produce. To produce a single pair requires approximately 2,900 gallons - or about seventy bathtubs - of water!  So instead of buying a new pair of jeans, consider getting them second hand, or through clothes-swapping with someone else. What did you think about this list? Share your thoughts by sharing!

Talent attraction and retention will continue to be some of the biggest work-place challenges in 2020, so selling a positive Employee Experience is essential for helping to solve these problems. Employer Branding is one of the newest and most promising ways for companies to promote themselves, their culture, and their values, to potential employees. With very little cost, a company can present its workplace, teams and activities, by simply using the growing power of social networking sites – bringing in a steady flow of new talent ‘fans’ who want to work at a company that matches their own personal values and goals. At WorkLife Arena, Employee Experience will be a major focus. Until then, here are 5 useful tips, so you can get started with Employer Branding in your company – big or small. 1 – Low Cost Action Companies do not always need to build a dedicated website in order to communicate what amazing employers they are. This makes Employer Branding, through social media, a great and affordable communication strategy for companies that need to attract talent, grow fast, and keep their teams onboard, at a low cost. You can see some amazing examples of companies, such as Starbucks Jobs on Instagram, showing their teams at work – and play, which gives a great insight into the culture and values of the organisation. 2 – Plan Ahead Creating a plan before you start your Employer Branding communication is essential. Decide on what message you want to present – and who do you want to see it. Think WHAT, HOW, WHERE and WHEN. You must also think about who will manage the social media pages, what kind of posts are best for getting your message across, and the amount of time that needs to be invested in the tasks, so that you reach your goals. As with any marketing campaign, you should also set a timeline, track results v goals – tweaking, and improving, the messaging, as you go. 3 – Research Trends When looking into building a Facebook or LinkedIn page for your company, research how similar companies to yours, are using their pages on social networks. Find out what videos they’ve created, promotions they’re running, and what other kinds of content they’re using. Make sure that your page is unique though, don’t just copy them! 4 – Be Relevant Consider sharing other people’s content, related to your industry. Being a resource for the curation of the latest industry news, shows that you are in touch with current trends and have an opinion on the things that matter in your sector – be known as a “Thought Leader”. 5 – Tell your story You must communicate on a regular basis, WHY people work for your company. Share genuine stories from your teams; let them show how they work day-to-day, what motivates them, and what common goal they are working towards. It’s clear that a positive Employee Experience can actually start from the moment someone discovers your company and starts to follow you on social media. Their opinion of your company becomes more intense once they apply for a job, become employed, and then lasts right up until the moment they leave the company, on their final day. Or does it really just stop there? Some people even become alumni and ambassadors for their former employers – so perhaps the Employee Experience never really ends! Listen to experts such as the Rock Star Professor, Micael Dahlén from Stockholm School of Economics talk about improving Employee Experience on April 24th. You can find more information and sign up for tickets here: WorkLife Arena event page!