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Monday, October 25, 2010

What do you do when things don’t line up between all three—your head, your heart and your gut?

What do you do when things don’t line up between all three—your head, your heart and your gut?

 
Realization is the epiphany. It’s when you realize your happiness and success, even survival, begin with you. I’ve been down on my luck plenty of times, and I know it’s easy to blame others. But that moment of realization is when I get honest with myself and take responsibility for my actions. That may mean saying I’m sorry, or evaluating my involvement in a situation.

Assessment is the process of taking stock—not in what you have, but in who you are. If your self-esteem is telling you that you are anything other than priceless, you’ve got to make some changes. Assess your skills, your attitude, your beliefs, and if you don’t like what you see, don’t be afraid to remodel. Tear things down and start over if you need to. Give yourself an appraisal and allow yourself to see who you are—and then trust who you are.

It's all about motivation. You may know people who aren’t all that talented but are exceptionally successful. Those who aren’t successful aren’t motivated. The key to finding success is to find your motivation. Your motivation is the fuel that will keep you going.

To find your motivation and to acquire and maintain the creativity and positivity required for success, you have to find a method of self-renewal. When you’re stuck, take yourself out of the situation. Get away for a day or two. Stop and smell the roses. That pause gives you the time you need for self-renewal. And it gives you the space you need in order to get a clear perspective and to find your motivation.

Once you have your head, your heart, and your gut in order, you have to take action. You can’t just talk about it; you have to step up to the plate and take your best shot.

Are You In the Driver's Seat? Six Steps to Turn Desires into Gold

Understand the difference in being the driver and being in the passenger seat.

You see, passengers are free to do a lot of things the driver cannot do.  As a driver, your focus needs to be on the road and not on the distractions.  As the driver, you no longer have the right to "mess around", such as listening to loud music, even though it seems ok to do that as a passenger. 




The same principle applies when you become a leader. You are no longer a passenger, you become the driver. Even though your responsibilities increase when you become a manager, you lose some of the rights and freedoms you may have enjoyed in the past. 

As a leader, you must identify accountability to:


  • Your dreams
  • Your goals
  • Your family
  • Your future


In the following are six definite, practice steps, used as a method by which desire for riches can be transmuted into its financial equivalent. These instructions are taken from the classic book, "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. You will notice how detail oriented you must be. Saying you're going to do something is not enough. In actuality, when you write things down you commit to doing them If you simply say what you want to do, there is really no commitment to getting it done.

Step 1             

Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient to merely say "I want plenty of money." Be definite as to the amount. (There is a psychological reason from definiteness.)

Step 2             

Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. (There is no such reality as "something for nothing.")

Step 3             

Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.

Step 4             

Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.

Step 5             

Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it.

Step 6           

Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after rising in the morning. As you read, see, feel, and believe yourself already in possession of the money.

Overall, be a driver, not a passenger. Until you accept total responsibility, no matter what- you will not be able to put plans in place to accomplish your goals.

How To Grow Your Action Habit


In the following is some content pulled from "7 Ways to Grow the Action Habit".

Don’t wait until conditions are perfect – If you’re waiting to start until conditions are perfect, you probably never will. There will always be something that isn’t quite right. Either the timing is off, the market is down, or there’s too much competition. In the real world there is no perfect time to start. You have to take action and deal with problems as they arise.

The best time to start was last year. The second best time is right now.

Distractions

Get down to business immediately – It’s common practice for people to socialize and make small talk at the beginning of meetings. The same is true for individual workers. How often do you check email or RSS feeds before doing any real work? These distractions will cost you serious time if you don’t bypass them and get down to business immediately. By becoming someone who gets to the point you’ll be more productive and people will look to you as a leader.


Seize the Initiative

It takes courage to take action without instructions from the person in charge. Perhaps that’s why initiative is a rare quality that’s coveted by managers and executives everywhere. When you have a good idea, start implementing it without being told. Once people see you’re serious about getting things done they’ll want to join in. The people at the top don’t have anyone telling them what to do. If you want to join them, you should get used to acting independently.

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Be accountable. If you can’t be accountable to yourself, than find someone who will make you get it done.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

How to Master the Art of Focus and Decision-making




Time-Management is not only something for managers and leaders. It is a topic that everyone can benefit from, especially if we want to get ahead and make a difference in our lives: "Where should I spend my time on? What is important?"
Everyone also has questions such as, "How can I spend my time in the best way possible? How can I get the most out of it?"

It is the the art of focus and decision-making combined with effective productivity.


Overall, it boils down to the the art of focus and decision-making combined with effective productivity.


I had a bad habit of wanting to please everyone and having a hard time saying "No". So what happens is that the last person to hand you a “priority” gets bumped to the top of your to do list. However I have found that if you don’t set your own priorities, you will be tossed like a bottle on the sea. 

Stephen Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and First Things First popularized the concept of a Time Management Matrix. This book has been one of the cornerstones in personal development and success strategies.  

The Matrix helps me focus on the most important tasks by letting me classify them as important vs. unimportant and urgent vs. non-urgent.

First define: 

What is urgent? Urgent are all tasks determined by external pressures and requirements that need your immediate attention. But are they important or not important?
What is important? Important are the tasks that are in harmony with our goals and our life-balance. In essence, what is important are tasks that contribute the very most to your long term future. 

In the process of managing your time, separate and list the urgent from the important. 

You will have a lot that fall in the category of urgent but not important, and these type of activities take place during the work day and are easily confused with "real work" because no matter how many urgent but unimportant tasks you engage in, you contribute nothing to your work or your company.

Other activities such as reading the newspaper at work or taking a long lunch are neither urgent nor important. Be aware that spending too much time on these activities can be harmful to your career because they consume your valuable time which could otherwise be invested towards getting results for which you are paid and upon which your future depends!


For those who are not familiar with it, here’s a picture and a brief overview.

Covey's matrix allows any individual who uses it to easily see where they are spending their time so they can make adjustments. 
 
Let's recap. Here's how to develop time management skills using the matrix.
  • Important & Urgent - Do them now the best you can
  • Important & Not Urgent - Set focus here, whenever you can
  • Not Important & Urgent - Learn to say "No" or delegate tasks in order to maintain focus on the important; not urgent
  • Not Important & Not Urgent -Avoid these for sure
"The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” – Stephen Covey

Monday, October 4, 2010

What kind of leader are you?


Today, and especially in my generation, there are many that want to be leaders. Many want positions, but no one wants to put in the work to develop the character and skills that are crucial for effectiveness. 

I'm sure you've all heard of the saying, wearing too many hats is bad for business. Everyone wants to be a leader but they're afraid to delegate and hire people smarter than them because they maybe think it will make them look too small. Does that sound like you?



In fact, the opposite is true. Let's help identify, what type of leader are you? Understanding this will guarantee you to see better and work smarter.

To be honest, I’ve probably been all four of the following types of leaders at some point in my life. However, for the past several years I’ve made the decision to develop as a “Skillful Servant.”

  • The “There’s No One Else” Leader. This is the person that is in a position because for any number of reasons, there is no one else that can do it. They aren’t necessarily qualified or possibly even interested. Most of us have been and will have to be that leader at some point because we may be specialized and have those "God given" skills and talents. 
  • The “Passion Without Preparation” Leader. This is the leader that is given leadership responsibility because of their passion for an area and then finds themselves in over their heads because they are unprepared for the totality of the position. The heart is there but they’re lacking the skill. This person has hope.
  • The “Ego Without the Expertise” Leader. This is probably my least favorite. This is the leader that thinks they know everything there is to know about their area of responsibility, however everyone else knows (and clearly sees) the real truth — they have no idea what they’re doing. They’re erroneously correcting everyone and everything all the time. They’re unteachable and unfruitful.  Who wants to follow a leader like this? Not many, because people follow a leader's actions not their words. 
  • The “Skillful Servant” Leader. This leader is competent and prepared, and has the character to match. They are teachable, open, and flexible. They utilize the strengths of their team members, and are not threatened by the skills of others. They lead by serving with humility and in result, they leave a legacy.
Which category do you fall into?