In this humorous segment of the "Honor Roll" show, host Mike Michalowicz—author of Toilet Paper Entrepreneur and The Pumpkin Plan—opens with sponsor acknowledgments before diving into a tongue‑in‑cheek discussion on employee discipline. He jokes about extreme, illegal punishments (e.g., torture in Pakistan) to highlight the absurdity of harsh treatment, then pivots to his core, actionable advice: when hiring, ask each new employee how they prefer to receive disciplinary feedback. By recording this preference in the HR file, managers can later address performance issues in the employee’s chosen format—whether that’s a private office conversation, an off‑site meeting, or an email—making the corrective process feel respectful and, paradoxically, “happy.” The segment blends satire with practical HR guidance, encouraging managers to personalize discipline to maintain morale.
Chapters
Welcome to Honor Roll, and now here's your host, Mike Michalowicz. Hey kiddos, welcome back to Honor Roll. I appreciate you being here. I'm your host, Mike Michalowicz, and I am the author of those great little books, Toilet Paper Entrepreneur and The Pumpkin Plan. I got a good tip for you today. First, I want to start off with our sponsors. So thank you to Skype. Thank you to Lavenda's Group. Thank you to Amex. Thank you to XDigital. And thank you to our newest sponsor, Nextiva. Now, there was a reason I was throwing things at you over there. Why? Because I want to teach you how to discipline employees. Now, I think you're asking to yourself, you know, could I take my employee, hang upside down, you know, hit him with chains and stuff like that in a torture room? The answer, unfortunately, is Yes, of course you can! If you're in Pakistan. Now, I presume you're not watching the video from Pakistan, known for their employee torture. Oh no! But you probably are watching from a country that prohibits that. There's another way just for you. And this is the technique: ask them in advance to disciplining them how they want to be disciplined. Now, this isn't after they make this egregious mistake or error that you need to fix. This is when you first bring them on board. You say, "Hey, welcome to our company, and by the way, if we ever have challenges that we face together, what's the best way to notify you of a challenge?" They tell you, you're staged for it, you write in your HR folder, and then the next time the issue comes up, you present the challenge, the discipline, to them the way they want it. Some people want to be pulled into a private room in your office. Others want to go off-site. Some would like to get it by email first. Find out how they prefer it most, and the rest is toast. Or gross. Or drost. Which is not even a word, it's someone's name. Now, while you can't torture people, you can use enhanced interrogation techniques. Like this.
