Top Stories
ICPC swoops on Imo LG Bureau Officials
By CHUKS EHIRIM, Abuja
THE game is up for corrupt officials of the Bureau of local government and chieftaincy Affairs, the body that oversees the management and disbursement of funds to local government councils in Imo State, as they are now chatting with the...
 Iwu in fresh trouble
From CHUKS EHIRIM, Abuja
AS dust raised by the controversial 2007 election are yet to settle, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Maurice Iwu, appears headed for yet another storm with....
Tribal war looms in Cross River
CROSS River is gradually on the edge of a precipice as the two dominant tribal groups, the Efik and Atan, are deeply divided in a seeming war of political hegemony in the State. This is believed not to be unconnected with the political colouration that Liyel Imoke introduced during the brief period he was governor before his...  
Raymond Obieri: Good to Great
By KELECHI DECA
“He who sacrifices a whole offering shall be rewarded for a whole offering; he who offers a burnt offering shall have the reward of a burnt offering; but he who offers humility to God and man shall be rewarded with a reward...
Huawei Nigeria:The Innovative Edge
By KELECHI DECA
IF you take a good look at that CDMA cell phone is your hand or the desk phone on your table, there is a surety it has a Huawei logo or name emblazoned on it. Almost 70% of all such...


News

• Ohakim, Udenwa in cold war
• Seven UNIMAID students arraigned for cultism
• Labour leader advocates raise in NYSC members allowances  
• Ibru advocates capacity building among youths
• Seven stores, eight houses razed
• New Law on House rent for Enugu passed
• Yar'Adua commends NYSC on nation building
• Okiro's friends donate office complex to FUTO  
• Wamakko orders N1.7b rice for sale to public
• Ebonyi Radio GM, two others charged with attempted murder
• ICPC blows own trumpent 
• Media reports can jeopardize national security –Army Commander
• NYSC member donates writing materials to school
•Polio cripples 68 children  
• Border clashes imminent between C/River, Abia
• Four docked for alleged armed robbery
• PDP chieftain rallies support for Daniel
• NLC boss escapes lynching
• Court bars Speaker from swearing in APGA candidate
• Fashola wants prisons relocated from residential areas
• Lady Nyako tackles Girl- child education
• Wamakko trains 25,000 unemployed youths

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.