This is just a sample of the words that clients and crowds have used to describe the work of Dr. Tait Martin.

Here are just a few examples of how clients are currently collaborating with Tait:

When organizations need a speaker who brings razor-sharp insight, academic credentials, “real world” experience and the ability to present complex subjects in a humorous and logical manner, they work with Tait.

When companies need a marketing and communication strategist who uses cutting-edge research to enhance their organization’s ability to recruit customers, retain members or re-frame their mission, they work with Tait.

When professionals needs a social marketing practitioner who has helped some of the country’s most prominent nonprofit organizations and government agencies develop behavior change campaigns that keep the world healthier, safer and environmentally sound, they work with Tait.

Explore this site to see how Tait can help you focus your outreach messages, build a stronger image and create lasting relationships with the people who matter most to you and your organization.

When groups need a professional who is engaging, innovative, authentic and astute, they work with Dr. Tait Martin.

“So much of what we call management consists in making it difficult for people to work.”
~ Peter Drucker, social ecologist and management guru

Rarely do I feel the need to “write a note” on Facebook, but this afternoon felt like one of those times.  Within the past three days, I’ve had multiple conversations with clients, colleagues and friends about how their bosses made doing their jobs difficult. Most said it was poor management.  Some said it was lack of vision. Many said there was a complete void of leadership.

While my boss can be irksome at times - I’m self-employed - I completely understood where they were coming from…hence, the motivation to dig into the “Tait Martin Archives” and post this boss “self-evaluation” that I’ve used in previous consultations.

Now’s the time when you should figure out how to get the remainder of this post in front of your boss.  Might I suggest printing it out and taping it in all of the bathroom stalls in your office; “accidently” leaving it in the copy machine; stick it under his/her windshield wiper like a parking ticket; or my favorite – hand it to him/her and say, “I think you may want to read this.”

Seven…maybe Eight…Signs You’re a Bad Boss

(Source:  http://is.gd/YdJATJ )

1. The staff has developed guidelines for dealing with you and quietly passes them to new employees. “Never suggest that there might be another way of doing something,” they might say. Or “Act self-deprecating so he doesn’t feel threatened.”
2. You have one or two fanatical acolytes. Yes, such devotion may be a testament to your fabulousness. But often when a boss is perceived as universally loathed, the staff opportunist offers herself up as sole confidante and friend, seeking power and favor at the expense of more honest, critical employees.
3. You never see people walk by. Employees would rather circumnavigate the entire office to get to the coffee machine or bathroom than take the shortcut past your door and risk being invited in.
4. Your 360-degree evaluations come back short and full of generically positive comments, with one very mild criticism (“Sometimes she works too [bleep] hard for her own good”) thrown in for credibility’s sake.
5. People don’t volunteer for your pet projects. The idea sucks, and they’re afraid to tell you, or it’s brilliant, but the consequences for letting you down are too terrible to imagine. And, of course, if it’s your pet project, you’ll probably work on it as well. Which means more time spent…gulp…with you.
6. You have legions of former employees, but they rarely give your name as a reference for new jobs. Either they don’t trust you to give them their due, or they worry that because they were so miserable working for you, your recollections will also be dismal.
7. You have legions of former employees, period. If your staff falls away like linty Post-it notes, ask yourself: Is high turnover the problem? Or am I?
8. (Not on the original list, but a good indication that something’s wrong) Someone on your staff made sure you saw this post.

If you are a boss and this list hits a little too close to home, here are three books that can help reframe your management…and relationship…approach: (Note: I don’t get a kickback from any of these books…I’m recommending them because I think they’re pretty useful.)

• Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions by Guy Kawasaki. In it, he explains how to influence people while maintaining the highest standards of ethics. (Order it here: http://is.gd/mO86e2 )
• Fish! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen. While many offices swear they are adhering to “The FISH Philosophy,” it only works if you truly utilize it.  (Order it here: http://is.gd/RB0KrU )
• How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie. The strength of this book is Carnegie’s explanation of handling people without making them feel manipulated. (Order it here: http://is.gd/86hse4 )

If you’ve already come up with nine excuses as to why you can’t take the time to read these books or think you don’t have a management problem, take a few seconds to reflect on this quote from entrepreneur and author Paul Hawken:

“Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them.”

And if that quote doesn’t work, try this one from author Ambrose Bierce:

“A man (or woman) is known by the company he (she) organizes.”

Take some time today to genuinely reconnect with the people in your organization.

Your business depends on it.