Greater Milwaukee Jobs

day: a white silk shirt with a diagonal button line from Zara – 15 of them, in fact – and a few pairs of black pants. "To add something extra, I had the black neck bow made by hand as a tribute to my mother, who always put bows in my hair as a child," she added. She started getting international attention when she wrote about her decision for Harper's Bazaar last month. While many employ- ers require some kind of uniform – whether its a company-issued outfit for a fast food chain or even a corporate dress code – the practice of a personal uniform can be unusual, especially for women. Apple CEO Steve Jobs had his signature black turtleneck. Face- book CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been questioned on whether he wears jeans and a grey T-shirt every day. Many workplaces have allowed employees to take an informal style to workplace attire, which lets people show- case their personal taste. But maybe sartorial choices get too much attention. "People take great effort into what they wear and think people will judge them upon their appearance," Kahl said. "This is exactly what I am trying to step away from. "When I'm at work, I want to be able to focus on that, and just that. I have so many creative challenges that I want to dedicate myself to, so why should anything come in the way of that?" An added benefit, it has saved her the time and money of buying clothes out of panic when "you have an important day coming up and you feel like your entire wardrobe is boring." "Cutting down on my yearly consumerism has definitely been a huge plus in all of this," she said. The choice to wear the same ensemble every It's hard to succeed by faking it 2 GREATERmilwaukeeJOBS • May 28, 2015 uniform . . . from page 1 see UNIFORM . . . page 6 Liz Reyer is a credentialed coach with more than 20 years of business experience. Her company, Reyer Coaching & Consulting, offers services for organiza- tions of all sizes. Submit questions or comments about this column at www.deliverchange.com/coachscorner or email her at lizdeliverchange.com. What to do if you think a project is headed toward failure By Liz Reyer Tribune News Service (TNS) & A Q Q. I was on a project last year that was eventually shelved because it was losing money, wasn't properly staffed, and was generally not meeting its objectives. Now this year, the project has been restarted and I'm back on it. Nothing much has changed; what can I do to help it go better this time around? A. This is a great chance to use "lessons learned" to guide your efforts. THE INNER GAME First of all, although things may not appear to have changed, if you look under the surface, there are probably some differences. These will warrant substantial focus, because they'll be your leverage points. One thing that will be different is you. Start with your understanding of your work environment. What experiences have you had within the company in the past year that will help you be better prepared to get this project off the ground? Consider your understanding of the company's culture and the politics that drive action. Then look inward. Did you use your strengths as fully as you might have last time around? And reflect on whether there are ways you need to grow in order to be better able to get the results you seek. For example, if there are team conflicts that interfere with getting the work done, you'll need strong negotiation and leadership capabilities to get people to rally around a shared vision. Now look at changes within the company itself.Who has departed? Who is new? How has the balance of power shifted? Determine if the reasons for doing the work have changed and identify any modifica- tions in the objectives. OUTER GAME Even though there is a history for this project, you'll increase your chances of success if your actions are based, at least in part, on a "clean slate" approach. Even though you may have known all of the key stakeholders for some time, set up meetings to interview them about their hopes, goals and concerns related to the project. You'll need to revisit your project plan, too. Question your assump- tions about what needs to be done, the staffing models, timelines and resources. While any changes may be subtle, your new plan will be a better fit with current circum- stances. Get your team on board. If people are skeptical, explore their concerns respectfully and look for ways for this to spur improvement. If you can't build support with cer- tain individuals, try to get them replaced on the team, because you're going to need people's enthusiasm. Mark out a lot of milestones, including some that are fairly easy to achieve. Use recognition and cel- ebration to build momentum among team members and confi- dence among company executives. If you can't get yourself on board – if you don't believe in the project – you need to do some soul searching on whether it's the right fit for you. Look for ways to com- municate your concerns about the fit of the role with your boss, ideally also identifying a different way you could contribute at your firm. Or, if absolutely necessary, consider whether a move would be the right thing. THE LAST WORD It's a challenging situation, but viewing it with fresh eyes will increase your chances of success. A publication of Conley Media Distributed by: Conley Distribution 262-513-2646 ©2004 by Conley Media, LLC Waukesha County Independent and Locally Owned GREATERmilwaukeeJOBS is published weekly by Conley Media – Waukesha County, 801 N. Barstow St., Waukesha, WI 53186. Contents of this publication may not be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the publisher. GREATERmilwaukeeJOBS assumes no liability for any error in copy or content. It is the advertiser's responsibility to be aware of the laws pertaining to employment advertising. Subscriptions are available for $34 (non-refundable) for a 6-month subscription. Call 262-306-5008 for information. Call Center Director: Cindy Shaske 262-306-5016 cshaske@conleynet.com Account Executive: Julie Sears 262-306-5008 jsears@conleynet.com Story Coordinator: Dan Muckelbauer 262-513-2626 dmuck@conleynet.com Production: Patricia Scheel 262-513-2690 GREATERmilwaukeeJOBS Volume 17 • Number 37 May 28, 2015 To place an ad: Call us at 262-306-5008 or fax us at 262-542-6082 deadline: Noon on Wednesdays Most people in the work- place are hungry for one of two things and maybe both of them. They want to have respect from others, and they want to respect their bosses. The ingredients to gain or deserve either are easily recounted: Work hard. Work well. Be honest. Keep counsel. Communi- cate. Be a team player. Share credit. Here's one more: Speak from your heart. That's the underlying advice from Joe Plumeri, a former CEO of Willis Group, Citibank North America and Primerica. Plumeri, now vice chair- man on the board of pay- ment technology company First Data, is on the speak- er and author circuit, extolling the value of being yourself. Even in the highest-pow- ered board rooms, he says, it's OK to show your feel- ings and passion. When they're well reasoned and sincere, most people will respect you for it. And it's a requirement for leadership – to be able to transfer your passion to others and make them feel good. "Harry Truman standing on the back of the train had no Teleprompter," Plumeri wrote in "The Power of Being Yourself." "He spoke in honest, plain- spoken language, and he spoke directly to the people, directly from his heart." A lot of how-to-succeed advice counsels against revealing emotion. Never let them see you cry. Don't raise your voice. Keep your feelings to yourself. Play it close to the vest. Plumeri disagrees. If you "put your true self out there" people will "have an authentic sense of who you are," he wrote, believing that in the long run it's worth the risk. You can probably come up with plenty of work- place examples about times when displays of emotion hurt rather than helped career advancement. Obvi- see IT'S HARD . . . page 6 By Diane Stafford The Kansas City Star (TNS)

• Cover