Top Stories
Botched Award for Governor Idris: America lady raises alarm over SSS harassment
From CHUKS EHIRIM, Abuja
AN American lady; Hilda Josef, who is country representative of Kasha International Agriculture Development Organization... Reach Out Nigeria takes Independence celebration to next level
By KELECHI DECA
AS Shakespeare rightly points that there is a tide in the affairs of men, I believe there is also a tide in the affairs of a nation and the waves of that tide started rising in 2007...
 Importers of unregistered products now to pay N5m fine
By ANDREW OJIEZEL
WORRIED about reported cases of faking of registered products, despite persistent battle to curb the menace, the Director General of National for Food, Drug Administration and Control ...
Niger Delta Crisis: Shell, other oil companies face probe
By NWADIKE UGOCHUKWU
HARDER times await oil multinational companies operating in the Niger Delta region with the searchlight of the country's security agents now beaming on them even as the abduction of...  
Bankole, Almona-Isei troubles escalate
From OGBU NGENE, Abuja
WITH the House of Representatives set to resume sitting, more troubles are said to be laying siege for Speaker Hon. Dimeji Bankole. The high regard...
Ernest Chukwuka Anene Ndukwe @ 60: The measure of a man
IN his well talked of luminous memoir titled The Measure of a Man, actor, producer and American icon, Sidney Poitier said “I have no wish to...


News
• Yar'Adua identifies root cause of nation's under-development
• Christ Embassy unveils ReachOut Nigeria, Thursday
• Govt sacks residents of Imo parliamentary quarters  
• Constituency delimitation: Ideato leaders reject Rep member
• PTDF targets 70 per cent of Nigeria 's manpower needs
• Money bags blamed for nation's political crisis
• Stop parading yourself as monarch, Daniel warns Ijoko community leader
• Native doctor killed by angry youths 
• Rep member empowers 1,000 Ebonyi youths
• ‘Abscond from duty, lose your job’
• 20 killed in communal clash 
• Human trafficking uncheckable in Nigeria –Monarch
• 1,000 illegal structures demolished
• Commuters poised for war over 'Okada' helmets 
• Women empowerment gets boost
• Educationist wants children of public servants banned from private aschools
• Govt move against fresh outbreak of Bird flu

Relating Stories

•Teamwork tips to make you an MVP at work
•Moonlighting: Pros and Cons of a second job
•How to handle jealousy on the job
• Getting your way without Authority
• Why Leaders Fail
• The T.E.A.M. approach to teaching character
• Sharpen Your Ax
• The Application of Religion to Business

Sharpen Your Ax

BEN was a lumberjack who swung his ax with great power and could fell a tree in 20 strokes. In the first few days of a new job he produced twice as much lumber as anyone else. By week's end, he was working even harder, but his lead was dwindling.

One friend told him he had to swing harder. Another said he had to work longer. Neither idea worked. Finally, an old fellow asked Ben how often he sharpened his ax. He said he had no time; there was too much to do.
The lesson of this parable contains the remedy to ineffectiveness in today's workplace.

Dedicated executives may work enormous hours not realizing how much their failure to sharpen their ax by taking time off reduces their effectiveness. As one exceeds the limits of intellectual and physical stamina, both the quantity and quality of work suffer. Fatigue affects judgment and mental acuity, and the time and energy needed to fix errors can offset the extra time devoted to the task.

Organizations fail to sharpen their ax when they give short shrift to screening job applicants and training new hires. Burdened with heavy workloads, managers consumed by urgency to fill positions often succumb to the “warm body” fallacy: anyone is better than no one.

You need three things in a good employee: competence, commitment, and character. Shortcomings in any area can be costly, consume time and resources, and damage morale. Sharpening your ax in this setting means taking the time to be more diligent in background checks, more selective in hiring, more serious in training, and more demanding during probation.Without the right tools, hard work isn't enough.