Time and focus and enery Sooner or later, theyre all finite. And the way we allocate our time and emotional energy determines what gets done. If we audited your day in six-minute increments, what would we find? By the clock, how did you actually spend the time you given to you (we each get the […]
You are browsing archives for
Category: Stimulating Break of the day…
Mind Challenge of the day….
Where do jobs come from..?
It must be more than a coincidence that there are almost enough jobs for everyonea billion more jobs on Earth than there were a generation ago. Unemployment is debilitating and a real problem, but even high unemployment in many countries still means that most people have a job. Many times, its a job that didnt […]
Snake handling…
This is a very different task than snake charming. The first is far more common, but it requires heavy equipment and is often dangerous On the other hand, if you have empathy and patience, its possible to learn to charm the snakes instead
Efficient or productive?
When time gets short (for new parents or startup founders, for example) we naturally focus on getting efficient. We can remove extraneous details and distractions and magically get much faster at getting tasks done. But being efficient is not the same as being productive. Productive is the skill of getting the right things done, so […]
Three types of kindness
There is the kindness of please and thank you. And the kindness of I was wrong, I’m sorry. The small kindnesses that smooth our interactions and help other people feel as though you’re aware of them. These don’t cost us much, in fact, in most settings, engaging with kindness is an essential part of connection, […]
A different urgency
For many people, work consists of a series of urgencies. Set them up and knock them down. Empty the in-box, answer the boss, make the deadline. Over the next few weeks, there may be fewer urgencies than usual. Thats the nature of coming back from a break. What if we used the time to move […]
Must-Have Skills For An E commerce Leade...
Must-Have Skills For An E commerce Leader E commerce has come a very long way in a relatively short period of time. What began as a pioneering role in the nascent world of online commerce is now a position that sits at the table with the senior most strategic decision makers of an organization, […]
How to manage the challenges created by ...
HELPFUL LINKS & INFORMATION (This section will be continually growing & evolving) A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE ———————————————————————————————————— LEADING DURING A CRISIS 5 (Practical) Cs for Leading in a Crisis/Downturn by Verne Harnish > 5 (Practical) Cs for Leading in a Crisis/Downturn by Verne Harnish (EN ESPANOL / IN SPANISH)> Facing a Company Crisis? Follow […]
Winning on the uphills
Interesting business lesson learned on a bicycle: it’s very difficult to improve your performance on the downhills. I used to dread the uphill parts of my ride. On a recumbent bike, they’re particularly difficult. So I’d slog through, barely surviving, looking forward to the superspeedy downhill parts. Unfortunately, I had a serious accident a few […]
The posture of a communicator
If you buy my product but dont read the instructions, thats not your fault, its mine. If you read a blog post and misinterpret what I said, thats my choice, not your error. If you attend my presentation and youre bored, thats my failure. If you are a student in my class and you dont […]
Debt, equity and a third thing that migh...
If your business needs money, it seems as though you have two choices: Get a loan from a bank Raise equity from an investor, giving up part of your company in exchange Banks are everywhere, so the idea that they can loan us money seems obvious. And venture capitalists and the companies they fund are […]
Its not the rats you need to worry about
If you want to know if a ship is going to sink, watch what the richest passengers do. iTunes and file sharing killed Tower Records. The key symptom: the best customers switched. Of course people who were buying 200 records a year would switch. They had the most incentive. The alternatives were cheaper and faster […]
Projects vs tasks
Your job might be a series of tasks. Tasks are work where money is traded for time and effort. You put in a fixed amount of time, expending effort along the way, and you get paid. In the end, tasks are completed and its up to the boss to weave those tasks together into something […]
Initiative
The only way to get initiative is to take it. Its never given. And some people hesitate to take it, perhaps because theyre worried that well somehow run out. Were not going to run out. Its a self-renewing resource. From an early age, most of us were taught to avoid it. Do your homework. Take […]
The travel agents problem
Not just travel agents, but all agents. Information scarcity is disappearing. Forty years ago, passengers didnt know which airline flew where and when. And forty years ago, airlines had no easy way to find out who wanted to fly somewhere. Today, of course, theres no shortage of information or ability to connect. So paying 10% […]
Two buttons on offer
Every person in your organization needs to wear a button. And they can choose one of two. The choice is up to them, but they have to own it. One button says, I dont care. The other button says, Id like to help. Its entirely possible that youve managed your way into a bureaucracy that […]
Make a habit/break a habit
If youre trying to help yourself (or those you serve), the most effective thing you can do is create long-term habits. They become unseen foundations of who we will become. The goal of running a marathon in six weeks is audacious, but its not a habit. You might succeed, but with all that pressure, its […]
29 Motivational Quotes for Business and ...
Some days a motivational quote can provide a quick pick-me-up for employees and even management. They can be a breath of fresh air when it comes to a drab afternoon. These are also a great way to jazz up a newsletter or a memo or even to simply print and attach to a bulletin board. […]
This one simple trick makes everything f...
Here it is, tested, effective and worthwhile: Stop chasing shortcuts. Personal finance, weight loss, marketing, careers, beating traffic, relationships, education, everything that matters to someone often comes with heavily promoted shortcuts as an alternative. Fast, risk-free, effortless secrets that magically work, often at someone elses expense. But if the shortcuts worked as promised, they wouldnt […]
Success is a state of mind = integrity +...
Life is what you make it but it only occurs in the present: NOW. No one forces us to do anything, but every decision that we make has an impact on the quality of our present moment. Success is a state of mind! and not only of mind but also of body and soul Successful […]
Top 10: Ways To Show Confidence With You...
They say a picture is worth a thousand words; now picture yourself, a prospective client, walking into a board meeting or a party. How do you look? What message do you communicate the moment you walk into a room? What are your eyes, hands and shoulders saying? What information can people gather about you […]
Why Its Important To Keep a Daily To-Do ...
One simple way to improve your productivity is to keep an agenda, whether by hand or via a day by day to-do list app. It may not sound like brilliant advice, but this small change can have effect that cannot be overstated. This guide indicates some reasons you should consider keeping to-do lists. Today we […]
The Importance of Advanced Excel Skills ...
The Importance of Advanced Excel Skills for Working Professionals Are you proficient in Microsoft Excel? If so, how proficient are you really? In todays job market, this term is commonly tossed around by administrative professionals in order to highlight their technical skills within Excel, but far too often, candidates are realizing that they arent as […]
The Ten Commandments of Great Customer S...
Customer service is an integral part of our job and should not be seen as an extension of it. A companys most vital asset is its customers. Without them, we would not and could not exist in business. When you satisfy our customers, they not only help us grow by continuing to do business with […]
7 Ways To Captivate A Corporate Audience...
We’re all presenting virtually all the time. Interviewing for a new job? That’s a presentation, and you’re the brand. Giving a PowerPoint demonstration to your supervisor or board? That’s a presentation, quite possibly one that could catapult your career or set you back a few notches. Don’t let those opportunities go by without maximizing […]
Innovation is guts plus generosity
Guts, because it might not work. And generosity, because guts without seeking to make things better is merely hustle. The innovator shows up with something she knows might not work (pause for a second, and contrast that with everyone else, who has been trained to show up with a proven, verified, approved, deniable answer that […]
Quality or effort,which one is for you.....
It seems as though the opposite of careless ought to be careful. That the best way to avoid avoidable errors is to try harder, to put more care into the work. This means that if surgeons were more careful, there would be fewer errors. And that so many of the mistakes that mess things up […]
Choosing your fuel…
The work is difficult. Overcoming obstacles, facing rejection, exploring the unknown – many of us need a narrative to fuel our forward motion, something to keep us insisting on the next cycle, on better results, on doing work that matters even more. The fuel you choose, though, determines how you will spend your days. You […]
True professionals dont fear amateurs…
Professional farmers dont begrudge the backyard gardener his tomato harvest. Thats silly. And talented mechanics certainly dont mind the antics of the Car Talk guys (or their listeners). Sooner or later, if you need a real mechanic, youll find one, and if you dont, well, thats fine too. A few years ago, typesetting, wedding photography, […]
People dont change
(Unless they want to) Humans are unique in their ability to willingly change. We can change our attitude, our appearance and our skillset. But only when we want to. The hard part, then, isnt the changing it. Its the wanting it.
The solo marathon…
The usual marathons, the popular ones, are done in a group. They have a start time. A finish line. A way to qualify. A route. A crowd. And a date announced a year in advance. Mostly, they have excitement, energy and peer pressure. The other kind of marathon is one that anyone can run, any […]
Trapped by the incoming
The incoming is coming to you because a while ago, you did something brave and generous and risky. Incoming is great. Its a reward for your impact. Its a chance to serve and to make a difference. And it enables you to go to work every day. If you spend all your time dealing with […]
Think Consumption Is The ‘Engine’ Of Our
There is a fundamental illogic to the notion that an economy can be grown by encouraging consumption. When a person consumes, by definition, they use things up. The very process leaves us with less than before. Growing the availability of valuable goods and services for society by using them up is not just an […]
Caring is free…
In the short run, of course, not caring can save you some money. Don’t bother making the facilities quite so clean. Save time and hassle and let the display get a little messy. Don’t worry so much about one particular customer, because you’re busy and hiring more people takes time and money. But in the […]
You cant outtrain a bad diet
Its way easier to eat lousy food than it is to exercise it off. Your effort is undermined by your inputs. And the same thing is true for corporate culture. You can work as hard as you like to create expectations and policies. But the people you begin with their dreams, their narratives and their […]
Getting the word out…
For some, this is the holy grail of marketing. If only more people knew what you know. If only they were aware of what you have to offer, of the work you can share. Perhaps you can get more people to click on your video, read your tweet or see your Instagram. Alas, awareness is […]