Angling for Management Tips?
Harry Paul brings Fish! philosophy to Erie region on December 6
Fish! philosopher Harry Paul will be the next lecturer in the Speaker Series at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. His presentation, which is free an open to the public, will be December 6, at 7:30 p.m. in McGarvey Commons.
Paul is co-author of Fish! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results (2000, Hyperion), a management guide that advocates revitalizing a “toxic energy dump” workplace by creating a playful environment that encourages creativity and fosters an ability to “love the work you are doing, even if you aren’t always doing work you love.”
Fish! philosophy is based on Paul’s study of Seattle’s Pike Place Fish Market, where, he says, “despite working 14-hour days in cold, wet, and smelly conditions, the Pike Place fishmongers bring incredible joy, enthusiasm, and accountability to work every day and have a ‘Thank God it’s Monday’ attitude.” Paul maintains that the fishmongers find joy in their work by choosing to find it; “Choose Your Attitude,” is, in fact, one of the four tenets of the Fish! philosophy. The other three: “Play” (have fun and create energy), “Make Their Day” (how can you engage colleagues and clients?) and “Be Present” (be fully available and aware in your conversations to create intimacy).
“The college’s student peer leadership group, Leadership Unlimited, adopted the Fish! philosophy a few years ago,” Kris Motta Torok, director of student activities and Speaker Series organizer, said. “There’s a Fish! kit created especially for college students that these leadership consultants use when they work with campus clubs and organizations. They’re able to present information in a fun and interactive manner.”
Harry Paul’s Speaker Series lecture is sponsored by the Janet Neff Sample Center for Manners and Civility, the Penn State Behrend Student Activity Fee, the Office of Student Affairs, and the Harriet Behrend Ninow Memorial Lecture Series Fund. Speaker Series lectures scheduled in 2007 are:
Martin Luther King III, humanitarian, Thursday, January 18
Zanny Minton Beddoes, global economist, Thursday, February 22
Lisa Ling, host, National Geographic Ultimate Explorer, Monday, March 26
Christopher McKay, NASA planetary scientist, Tuesday, April 17
For more information about the series or to arrange special accommodations for participation, phone the Penn State Behrend Office of Student Activities at 814-898-6171.