Teeco Solutions Oct 2017

By the time the last flame of the Great Chicago Fire fizzled out on October 10, 1871, 300 people were dead, a third of Chicago’s population were homeless, and 4 square miles of city were destroyed. Reflecting on the disaster begs the question: Was it the most bizarre tragedy ever? By October, 1871, Chicago only had 1 inch of rain all year, which is far less than the annual average of 35 inches. While the exact cause is unclear, historians commonly accept that a cow belonging to a Mrs. O’Leary started the fire in a barn on DeKoven Street by kicking over a lantern. Firemen responded immediately, but a watchman sent them to the wrong place by mistake, giving the unusual Southwest winds time to send the fire roaring toward the heart of the city. Most of Chicago’s buildings were made of wood, and the newly developed tar on the rooftops was incredibly flammable.

As the fire grew, the firefighters hoped the Chicago River would be a natural firebreak, but the city’s riverside had recently gained more lumber and coal yards, causing the fire to jump the river. As the air over the city overheated, it came into contact with cooler air, and a spinning fire tornado developed. After the fire jumped the river, a burning piece of timber lodged on the roof of the city’s waterworks building, destroying it and halting the city’s water supply. By the time the fire died over a day later, 73 miles of roads and $4 billion (in 2017 dollars) of property were destroyed. All this came about because of a cow, a drought, a bad watchman, some short-lived building materials, and a literal fire tornado. Modern safeguards wouldn’t allow this to happen today, which is very fortunate. If the disaster happened the same way today, it wouldn’t displace 1,000 people; it would displace 1 million.

AND INCREASE PROFITS

Every entrepreneur shares the fear of losing their best people. Hiring the right employees is difficult and expensive. Replacing a valuable team member is even harder. Limiting turnover won’t just benefit your company culture and productivity; it will help raise your company’s bottom line. For all these reasons, you should consistently seek out ways to keep your employees happy, motivated, and committed. Obviously, competitive pay and benefits are a must when it comes to retaining your top talent. You could be the best boss in the world, but if you’re not willing to pay the market average in your area, your employees will go somewhere that does. That said, there are many other motivators that you can offer that won’t raise costs to an unsustainable extent. LEAD, ACKNOWLEDGE, INSPIRE “The best way to motivate is to lead by example and encourage creativity,” says Jim Koch, founder of the Boston Beer Company. If you’re a passionate, engaged boss, your staff will recognize your effort. Challenging your team to innovate and giving them credit for their ideas will make them feel supported and acknowledged. If an employee wants to help improve your business, empower them to take charge. When a team member feels like they contribute, they are much more likely to be satisfied with their work.

A JOYFUL WORKPLACE The environment you create is another huge factor in limiting the churn of employees. If employees love coming to work every day, they will be hesitant to leave. Finding a great atmosphere is hard, and employees won’t sacrifice it for the unknown. How do you go about creating this type of workplace? Well, dreary and anonymous is the wrong way to go. Employees should feel like they can bring their personality to the job and not be worried about looking over their shoulder constantly. Ted Mathas, head of insurance giant New York Life, notes, “When I was appointed CEO, my biggest concern was, would this [job] allow me to truly say what I think? I needed to be myself to do a good job. Everybody does.” If you acknowledge wins and create an enticing, inclusive company culture, you’ll notice the mood of your staff lift. Nobody wants to work at a place that makes them dread the sound of their alarm in the morning. Don’t be afraid to ask employees what they need. It’s better to find out before their exit interview — when it’s already too late.

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