How many of us always have great days? I suppose that how we define a “great” day is subjective depending on what a great day means to each of us individually. More often I find myself hearing people say in response to their day, “Well today, at least I’m vertical” or “I’m on the right side of the grass.” I usually find these kinds of responses really humorous, but a little sad.
One thing that I am beginning to value more often is time. I am realizing that time is the one gift we receive that is so incredibly valuable. Our days consist of 24 hours of time which must be used wisely. How horrible it would be to live each day in a state of sadness or despair. However, we all have “bad” days from time to time. It’s all a part of life, and each of us face irritations throughout the day. Traffic congestion, poor customer service, car problems, a difficult person that we’re dealing with, etc. can cause us to think that this is turning out to be a really bad day. ......
There is a universal truth, however, that says in order to get what you want, you have to give. When you give, you get. What you sow, you shall reap. If this is true, then what is it that we have to give? ......
As of the time this blog is being written, the stock market is in the “green” and all is looking good for an incredible finish to a record breaking year for the American stock market. This has certainly been a historical year for the stock market and the American economy as a whole. As most everyone knows, stock markets around the world reflect, to a tremendous degree, the impact and value of investments that have been made in companies, new innovations, and inventions throughout the year. ......
We frequently hear comments around this time each year about how quickly the year went by. “Where in the world did the year go?” “I can’t believe the year went by this quickly!” “Where did time go?” The fact of the matter is that life moves along at a breakneck pace and seems to pick up speed all the time. Most of us will certainly find this to be the case as we get older.
However, now may be a good time to call a strategic “timeout” to assess our success this year. In other words, how do we think we have performed in all facets of our life throughout the year? This assessment should include all areas that are of major importance to us personally and professionally. Our discussion today will focus on the importance of taking a strategic timeout to do two things which can lead to success. ......
One of the most difficult responsibilities that a manager must take care of is conducting performance reviews for his or her employees. How many times do you think this responsibility is dreaded or intentionally overlooked?
I would suspect more times than we can possibly count! ......
Abraham Lincoln said that the best way to predict the future is to create it.
A great first step to creating the future is to harness the ability to generate new ideas. Then turning those ideas into reality is a powerful competitive advantage for any business. ......
There are people from all walks of life whom we consider to be successful in whatever way we personally may define success. When you study these individuals and how they manage their lives, many times you’ll find interesting things they do that set them apart from others. First of all, their confidence in the face of hardships is driven by their ability to let go of the negativity that holds so many individuals back from being successful. It seems that successful individuals are those who in many ways thrive on facing obstacles and how they overcome them. Their mantra in life could be summed of with “Obstacles do not block the path; they are the path.”
This perspective helps successful people think differently from most everyone else. This unique way of thinking is important because, if you think like everyone else, no matter how smart or talented you are, you will hit the same “ceiling.” By thinking outside the box and being different (going against the grain), successful people are on track to rise above their limitations. So let’s take a look at some of the ways that successful people go against the grain. ......
The older I get, the more I realize that almost all progress in life is not accomplished by individuals but by teams. We hear about the achievements of business superstars such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg on an ongoing basis. What we don’t hear about is that the achievement of these individuals is due primarily to their respective teams. These are the groups of individuals who work in concert with each other to see visions, ideas, and projects through to completion for miraculous results. Of course, someone had to dream and communicate the vision of what in their own mind was possible. This is where much credit can be given to Musk, Bezos, and Zuckerberg.
The ability to lead teams and draw out the best in teams is a tremendous talent to have. Additionally, the ability to effectively facilitate communication within a team can quickly identify someone as a superstar leader. This team could be as diverse as a church group, a volunteer community organization, or a committee/task force within a corporate setting. Regardless of what type of team we may be a part of, we know that effective communication is essential. Without it, the team’s goals could be misunderstood, its efforts uncoordinated, and eventually ineffective communication could lead to extreme frustration with little to no hope of achieving the desired cohesive final result. We all know that communication is a good thing. However, when we are working with a group of people—rather than in a one-on-one setting—there are unique challenges and strategies to consider. ......
The older I get the more I think about all the “small stuff I have sweated” about over the years. These are the things that at one time seemed to be tremendously important and major priorities for me. At particular times of my life, some of these things actually were priorities. However, when looking back over the years (hindsight is always 20/20), I now realize that those “old” priorities turned out not meaning a thing in terms of their lifetime value to me or to others. In essence they were only insignificant, inconsequential things (small stuff) that I unnecessarily worried about at the time.
I recently read a fantastic book by Richard Carlson, Ph.D. called Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff for Men. This book identified fifty-two simple things that we can do to minimize stress in today’s mega-busy, tech-driven environment. A side note here is that Dr. Carlson has authored several “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” books that have become bestsellers. For today’s blog, we won’t have time to talk about all fifty-two things Dr. Carlson identifies. We will cover just a few of the most significant “takeaways” that I feel are most applicable to each of us: ......
Most of us have likely used a Burt’s Bees product at some point over the past 10 - 15 years. Burt’s Bees is a personal-care products company that was founded in 1984 in Maine and is now headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. Burt’s Bees was purchased by the Clorox Company in 2007 for a whopping $925 million in cash. Its original, “flagship” product was the famous Burt’s Bees lip balm which led to the company growing its unique personal-care products line globally. Burt’s Bees has now expanded its footprint into 19 different countries. A consumer can find Burt’s Bees products in most supermarkets, pharmacies, and even restaurants.
I recently read an article from the September 18, 2017 Encouragement Wired newsletter that talked about the high pressure growth environment that Burt’s Bees was able to successfully manage. In many companies, a high growth scenario means numerous meetings, flooded e-mail boxes, and constant urgent demands. The Burt’s Bees team has been able to successfully avoid operating in the expected “state of high anxiety” environment which tends to effect a group’s problem solving capabilities. The secret to this success has been an encouragement for Burt’s Bees employees to work with a positive mind-set. Research shows that when people work with a positive mind-set, performance on nearly every level related to productivity, creativity, and engagement – improves. Most individuals equate a positive mindset with personal happiness which is the assumption that we’ll take in this blog. By the way, this will be the first of four blogs related to achieving what is called “Positive Intelligence.” ......
