“Managing energy instead of time is a much more global, contemporary idea. It’s much more applicable to the global context that we’re living in,” says Michael Schell, CEO, RW3 CultureWizard.

Time management has long focused on how to get the most done in as little time as possible. But now the focus is changing from number of hours worked to the level of energy invested. Based on, among others, 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction and Get the Right Things Done by Peter Bregman (Business Plus, September 2011); The 3 Secrets to Effective Time Investment: How to Achieve More Success With Less Stress by Elizabeth Grace Saunders (McGraw-Hill, December 2012); and the Interview with Michael Schell, CEO, RW3 CultureWizard, March 2013.

40% of our actions result from habits, good and bad, not conscious decisions. Recognizing this makes it possible to take control of our habits and change them if necessary. Based on The Power of Habit, Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change by Charles Duhigg (Random House, February 2012) and How: Why How We Do Anything Means Everything...in Business (and in Life) by Dov Seidman (Wiley, July 2007).

Employees, managers, and leaders: we all participate in transactional exchanges on a daily basis. What do the best salespeople have to teach us about how to communicate our ideas and motivate our teams more effectively? Based on To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth about Moving Others by Daniel Pink (Riverhead, December 2012), We are all salespeople (“Nous sommes tous des vendeurs”) by Evelyne Platnic Cohen (Eyrolles, January 2013), and the interview with Paul Lebon, CEO of Vertical Software (Canada), February 2013.

Pessimism, cynicism, and negative work environments paralyze business. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, negativity costs U.S. companies $300 billion a year. When the office turns gloomy, leaders cannot put their heads in the sand. They must act. Based on “How to respond to negativity” by Peter Bregman (Forbes, October 2012), “Contre le pessimism ambient, l’optimisme stratégique” by Jean-Claude Guillebaud (Le Nouvel Economiste, October 2012), “Five Ways to Decrease Negativity at Work” by Val Kinjerski (Rethinking Your Work, March 2011), l’Observatoire Social de l’Entreprise (Corporate Social Observatory) (Ipsos/Logica Business Consulting, 2012), and the Baromètre Edenred Ipsos, 2012.

What do companies at the top of the Great Place to Work® Institute’s ranking have in common? Supportive management that fosters trusting relationships, infuses the work of employees with purpose, and promotes a positive working environment — ongoing processes that depend primarily on the daily attitudes and behaviors of immediate managers. Based on, among others, The Great Workplace: How to Build It, How to Keep It and Why It Matters by Michael Burchell and Jennifer Robin (Pearson, May 2011) and “Flipping the switch: who is responsible for getting employees to take a break?” (Knoweldge@Wharton, February 2012).

A risk-taker at heart, Chan Suh (founder of AGENCY.com and Broome Crosby) pushes his boundaries for the sake of personal and professional development. What is his secret? He can take a leap when necessary and can trust in the support of a brutally honest circle of friends and advisors.

Do those motivated by an insatiable need for success unknowingly sabotage their work lives? As a self-declared former success addict, Thomas DeLong describes the mechanisms at work that can turn ambition against us and explains how to overcome them. His ultimate message is to let go of the need to feel in control at all times and accept that imperfection is an unescapable aspect of learning and progress! Based on Flying Without a Net: Turn Fear of Change into Fuel for Success by Thomas J. DeLong (June 2011, Harvard Business Review Press) and the interview with Chan Suh, AGENCY.COM cofounder (today The Designory) and Broome Crosby Ltd, February 2012.

Kindness has a concrete impact on bottom-line business results: it increases motivation, retains the best talent, facilitates collaboration, and improves morale and performance in the face of uncertainty or even disaster. And leaders have a decisive role to play in developing a culture of kindness! Based on Leading with Kindness, William F. Baker and Michael O’Malley (AMACOM, August 2008); “Peut-on être gentil et réussir? (Management, December 2011); “La bienveillance est superproductive,” (Le JDD, November 11, 2009).