Have you ever had that dull feeling or lack of ambition that keeps you from getting much accomplished?

Sometimes one of the most difficult things we can do as individuals is gather up enough drive for a particular task, let alone bottle it and take it with us for the long haul.

Whether its a simple chore around the house or working towards your lifelong goals, motivation gives you the push that is needed to get it done. Ramping it up is like adding horsepower to your internal engine. It gives you the power to achieve and make the switch from good to great.

If you wish to refine and develop your life, part of doing so is understanding the important and direct impact that motivation has on the results you achieve.

Why The Desire Has Deserted You

There are many internal and external reasons for not having the energy to push on and tackle your tasks with the energy that we’d like.

In dealing with yourself it could be a self-esteem or belief issue. Fear, doubt, and limiting beliefs can also play a significant role. I’ve personally faced problems in that area when I sat on the fence for a few years before finally deciding to get proactive with my personal and professional life.

Stress, anxiety, and nerves are something we’ve all dealt with at one point or another and are typical when it comes to eating away at your inclination to excel.

On the external front, many of us have extremely busy lives and delicate circumstances to deal with on a daily basis. School, work, children, finances and the economy, you name it! Sometimes it all piles up leaving you with that overwhelmed and disillusioned sense that it’s “never going to end.”

Making The Adjustments And Finding Inspiration

1) Identify the issue. The number one solution for overcoming a lack of motivation is becoming aware of the characteristic(s) holding you back. It could potentially be more than one, but the only way to get beyond them is to identify what they are, so that you can work towards a solution.

You can’t find an answer without knowing what the problem is and a great way to solve a problem is by eliminating the root cause.

2) Discover your compelling reason. Inspiration is another key factor in finding enthusiasm and motivation. Big or small, you’ve got to have a reason to move and take action.

Ask yourself how clear your goals and dreams are. Are they defined? If they’re comprehensive and impactful then you’ll surely see the reason for getting behind them with all you’ve got.

3) Consider taking a time out. Now, if you’re able to plan a trip or vacation to clear your head, great! But sometimes that’s just not practical or manageable right away so the next best thing you can do is take an internal vacation.

Just clear some time, any amount, to sit back and relax. Breathe. Grant yourself the ability to let it all go momentarily and focus on yourself and what you can do for you. Its a very simple exercise but can mean the difference between your breaking point and regathering the strength to make it to the finish line.

A super-charged life is much easier than you think with a few adjustments! It is my sincere hope that in your quest to accomplish your goals and define your dreams that these simple ideas and philosophies might make some sense or trigger an idea to help you along the way.

Jason Anthony is the founder of EvenMinds. He shares time-tested principles and ideas with others so they might be inspired to design an extraordinary life for themselves. Visit today to learn about the difference between good and great.

As a result of low self confidence many people never see reality correctly but they just see a reflection of their own beliefs.

If a person who lacks self confidence wasn’t treated in a nice way then he might assume that one who didn’t treat him well didn’t like him while in fact reality might be way different than this meaning he gave to that situation.

Because each situation that a person goes through either lowers or increases his self confidence its extremely important that people learn how to see things correctly so that they don’t mistakenly lower their self confidence.

In this article I will talk about some common situations that most people get incorrectly and as a result lower their self confidence.

Are those people mean? Or are they insecure?

1) Showy people: Most people hate show offs but do you know that people who show off feel overlooked and unnoticed? Showy people don’t show off in front of everyone but they show off in front of the ones they care about their opinion the most! This means that a showy person actually cares about you more than you think!

2) Arrogant people: Some people are unsure of themselves and as a result they decided not to take the risk of rejection by acting in an arrogant way. Some arrogant people are acting that way because they are too afraid to get rejected. Their biggest fear is acting in a friendly way then getting rejected and so they decided to reject others first but being arrogant in order to protect their egos!

3) Aggressive people: Most aggressive people feel insecure. Some of them even have doubts about their own masculinity and that’s why they act in an aggressive way in order to prove to people that they are real men. Again if you interpreted this situation correctly you might feel bad because someone is treating you in a bad way but when you see his real intention you will pity him instead of feeling bad.

4) Critical people: most people feel bad when someone criticizes them in a bad way without realizing people can criticize others out of jealousy or even lack of self confidence. Some people criticize others just to feel good about themselves because they already think that they are less worthy than others. While this is not a good intention by any means still it shows that some people are in need of help and that’s why they criticize others in a bad way. Of course I am not talking about constructive criticism but I am talking about people who criticize others just to make them feel down.

I think its now clear that our incorrect perception of reality can make us see things that don’t exist. Yes some people might treat us in a bad way but if we looked behind their intention we will find that in many cases that they just need help!

Learn how to see reality correctly so that you know how to deal with people perfectly.

Written by M.Farouk Radwan

The founder of http://www.2knowmyself.com

Image by dcpassengerseat

Madonna – Express yourself, Like a Prayer

Christina Aguilera – Car Wash, Shark Tale

The Pussycat Dolls – Sway, Shall We Dance?

Sergio Mendes “Mas Que Nada” feat. The Black Eyed Peas, Mas Que Nada Pt.1

Black Eyed Peas – Sexy, Elephunk

KLF – Justified & Ancient, The White Room / Justified & Ancient

C+C Music Factory – Things That Make Me Go Hmmm…, Gonna Make You Sweat

C+C Music Factory – Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now), Gonna Make You Sweat

Snap – Power, Power: Greatest Hits

Crystal Waters – Gypsy Woman, Gypsy Woman: The Collection

Crystal Waters – 100% Pure Love, Gypsy Woman: The Collection

Alex Gaudino – Destination Unknown, Destination Calabria Pt.2

Alex Gaudino – Wtch Out, Watch Out Pt. 1

Soul II Soul – Back To Life, Keep on Movin

BONUS RELAXING TUNES:

• Broken Silence by Shilts
• What Cha Gonna Do? by Brian Simpson

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Apple iPad(16GB, Wifi)

Getting Results the Agile Way: A Personal Results System for Work and Life in printed version. The book is available completely for free online at www.GettingResults.com.

If you are still wondering what gift to buy for the holidays to your friend, wife, son,  colleague, or anyone who’s dear to your heart look no further.

It’s my secret weapon that helped me to get promoted twice, take names with customers, get networked with key people, avoid stress and burn out, hit my numbers and beyond, and almost never work more than 40 hours a week. And much more.

What Is In The Book?

The book does not show “Look Inside” feature on Amazon. But that should not prevent you going online at www.GettingResults.com and enjoy the entire contents of the book, here is the table of contents:

• Acknowledgements
• Contents at a Glance
• Foreword
• A Word from the Author
• Introduction
• Chapter 1 – Why Agile Results
• Chapter 2 – Agile Results Overview
• Chapter 3 – Values, Principles, and Practices
• Chapter 4 – Hot Spots
• Chapter 5 – Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, and Friday Reflection
• Chapter 6 – Design Your Day
• Chapter 7 – Design Your Week
• Chapter 8 – Design Your Month
• Chapter 9 – Design Your Year
• Chapter 10 – Results Frame, Personas, and Pitfalls
• Chapter 11 – 25 Keys to Results
• Chapter 12 – 25 Strategies for Results
• Chapter 13 – Motivation
• Chapter 14 – Mindsets and Metaphors

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Kindle Wireless 6″

It’s Not Just Another GTD

The biggest difference for me when I compare J.D.’s approach to others such as  Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity or The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich is that Getting Results focuses on core principles first versus on techniques on how to keep up with work overload. Another big thing is that the book is a reference – you do not have to read it all to start applying the practices outlined there in order to get instant results. Want to get motivated? – jump to Motivation chapter. Want to change your mindset and adopt relevant mindset? – no problem, jump to Mindsets and Metaphors. Want to outline your annual portfolio of results? – go ahead and jump to Design Your Year chapter.

I practice this and it gets me results instantly, the agile way. So anyone can. If you wish giving a great present on the holidays Getting Results is the one you should be looking at.

by wwarby

How do I quickly improve performance at work and in my life?

In the book The Three Laws of Performance: Rewriting the Future of Your Organization and Your Life Steve Zaffron and Dave Logan outline three simple laws of performance you need to follow to get instant results.

It is about how the situations occur to you and what language you use to reflect on the situation. The promise of the three laws of performance is rewriting your default future. I tried it – it works for me.

The First Law of performance

Zaffron and Logan write:

The First Law of Performance: How people perform correlates to how situations occur to them.

In other words, to start perform better you need to read the situation the way it encourages better performance. Do you see a problem or a challenge? Do you see the world through negative or through positive lens? Do you feel screwed or stretched? Do you feel exhausted or accomplished? This is what helps me when approaching a situation at hand – be it at work or in my personal life. I decide how the situation occurs to me. If I can positively reflect on the situation I am motivated and I am all set for high performance. I am all set to providing first class service to my customers. If not – I drain my energy and usually achieve nothing or very little.

“We don’t see the things the way they are. We see things the way WE are.” – Talmud

The Second Law of Performance

Zaffron and Logan write:

The Second Law of Performance: How a situation occurs arises in language.

Here is a little story.  I was consulting to a project with few distributed teams. One team lead was flaming the other guy for not getting things done on time and on spec. On contrary, the other guy was calm, he was reflecting on the situation trying to spot the high priority issues and asking for help on how to resolve it. Obviously, the same situation occurred differently to both fellows. As a result each team performed quite differently – can you guess who’s performance was better?

The Third Law of Performance

Zaffron and Logan write:

The Third Law of Performance: Future-based language transforms how situation occur to people.

Let me test you. When shit hits the fan, what’s your reaction? “Who did that?”, “Why have you done that?”, “I know who did it.”, “We are lost!”, “We are never gonna get out of it.” Notice that all of these are focused on past or a person. It is self destroying. A better way to admit the situation and think about how to get out of it. I observe way too many people dwelling on the past, presenting themselves victims of the circumstances. Here is what I say to myself:

• Admit the situation – It happened. It is in the past. I cannot control the past.
• Who’s in control? – I can influence the future. At least I can try my best.
• What’s next? – what I can do to make the situation better? What can I do to make sure it never happens again?

Have you noticed the focus shifted to the future situation?

“Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Practice This – Get Results

• Reflect on the situation with positive language – avoid draining your energy for nothing.
• Think in future – see the better station through.
• What’s you best next move? – be actionable, start improving your performance right now. Waste no time.
• Read The Three Laws of Performance: Rewriting the Future of Your Organization and Your Life – the book is choked with real world examples.

My Related Posts

• 4 Dimensions Of Personal Power
• Emotional Intelligence – Core Skills
• Become The Next Great Mind – Now
• Successful Consultant Puts Positive Spin On Everything

 
by seanmcgrath

If you are into personal development like me you must have a mentor or two.

J.D. goes even further making everyone his mentor.

Why having a mentor? What do they do to us? And how it helps us to grow?

I like how Sr. Ken Robinson explains it in his book The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything. Sr. Robinson says mentors are about recognition, encouragement, facilitating, and stretching.

My mentors are my secret weapon that helps me get quickly back into the saddle when I fall, it helps me find my track and keep up with it, it helps me grow exponentially.

Recognition

Mentors are  in the know. They can identify a diamond in the rough. Have not you had that feeling “I really want to do it, but will I succeed?” Good mentor will tell you simply – “You can do it. I can see it in you. You have everything to succeed in it.”

Encouragement

So you go ahead and make your move and… fail. Good mentor will tell you it means nothing. He will tell you the story about himself and his mentor and how he was failing again and again until he figured out the right path to the dream of success. He might also send you Michael Jordan’s Nike Failure commercial as a proof.

Facilitating

Good mentor does not only pushes you forward with encouragements. He also gives you the tools for your success. Any good mentor has a wealth of tools to share. The tools that facilitate you to achieve more, faster, better results. Ask your mentor for the tool of trade. Ask him about how he manages his time, ask him about how he prioritize, ask him about how he influences without authority, ask him how he recreates himself. Ask him tons of questions. Being mentee is driving, not being driven.

Stretching

Success is about constant growth. One time achievement only proves you are on the right path. Today’s achievement is tomorrow’s commodity. How do you continue to keep succeeding? The way you do it is by setting new goals and objectives. Good mentor won’t let you set average mediocre goals. Good mentor will stretch you to the next level, something you have never thought you could do. Listen to him and apply practices that worked, ask for more tools for success.

Practice This – Get Results

• Get yourself a mentor – make sure he is not only in the know but also he knows how to recognize the talent.
• Ask your mentor for tools for success – get equipped properly before investing your time and energy.
• Get stretched – you either grow or die, there is no in between.
• Read The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything – you will be overwhelmed with true stories of success and how to apply it to your life.

My Related Posts

• Secret Revealed: The Power to Change Anything
• Meet Me 2.0

 
by wili_hybrid

J.D published incredibly insightful yet very dense e-Book called You 2.0. The promise is simple but powerful:

• Success by design.
• Living your purpose.
• Living your values.
• Playing to your strengths. 
• Improved results.

It was enough for me to go through it and see where I stand. Meet Me 2.0!

Step 1 – Find Your Purpose

What’s my purpose in life?

What sticks with me is something that is related to distilling massive information into practical/pragmatic approach and spreading it as wider as possible. Something that goes along these lines (I truly believe I belong to Levite tribe as per my last name and according to my passion for teaching):

“When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe who received cities but no tribal land "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their possession".  The Tribe of Levi served particular religious duties for the Israelites and had political responsibilities as well.” – Wikipedia

Here is my purpose in life:

• Serve the masses by spread pragmatic practices.

I know that today religion and politics have very little in common with “pragmatic”. But I believe that back thenitI has a lot to do with practical guidance.

Step 2 – Find Your Why

Why do I do what I do?

While I am far from being a fatalist I strongly believe in my life purpose as it was set by Deity [read previous subtitle and the Wikipedia’s quote]. I tried many ways to express myself. The only true fulfilling way for me is sharing the experience with people and making them successful. That explains why I love so much consultancy – I am field software consultant working day and night with my customers to solve their small, medium, and supersized problems.

Step 3 – Find Your How

How do I get my best results … what’s the pattern?

Since I treat everybody as my customers – my family (my best and the first customer), my managers, my colleagues and friends, my real customers – I can safely apply the same pattern/approach to everyone:

• Understand and speak their language.
• Feel the pain.
• Offer the solution – do not prolong the problem.
• Grow together.
• Emotional Intelligence is your best friend – apply it constantly.
• Distill working patterns and reuse – AND SHARE THEM!
• Celebrate joint wins, analyze losses to avoid them in the future.
• Time is most precious and scarcest resource – prioritize it for investing in most impactful stuff that matters.

Step 4 – Find Your Values

What are my top 5 values?

I have chosen the following values from the list J.D. offers in his e-Book:

• Family Happiness
• Achievement
• Freedom
• Inner Harmony
• Personal Development

Step 5 – Find Your Strengths

• What are you really good at?
• What comes naturally for you?
• What activities make you feel great?

I have completed this exercise some time ago – Find Your Strengths, Know Your Life Purpose. I have reviewed the strengths I identified back then and it seems to stick so far:

• Achiever – You have a relentless need for achievement.
• Analytical  – Your Analytical theme challenges other people.
• Communication – You like to explain, to describe, to host, to speak in public, and to write.
• Focus  – “Where am I headed?”
• Arrange – You are a conductor.

Tagline

My tagline is “Take you life for a test drive”. No, it is not about crashing into a wall, it is about testing new ways, sticking with what works, tossing what is not.

My most motivational quote comes from Thomas A. Edison:

“The value of an idea lies in the using of it. “

Metaphors

Metaphor for me:

“I am Winston Wolf – I solve problems.” – Pulp Fiction.

Metaphor for life – You Are 95 And You Are Dying.

Practice This – Get Results

• Read J.D.’s You 2.0 – find out whether you are set for success or for failure.

 
by WordRidden

Working hard is not going to help you to fly right any more. Working smart is the name of the game. Change your mindset from “doing” to “achieving.”

Change is no easy, especially when it comes to changing a mindset. A famous book by Spencer Johnson Who Moved My Cheese?: An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life helped me to focus on dealing with Change and focusing on Productivity vs. Activity.

”They were disappointed but believed they could solve the problem. So they started earlier, stayed longer, and worked harder. But after a while, all they had was a large hole in the wall.”

“Haw was beginning to realize the difference between activity and productivity.”

Change To Keep Growing

Johnson writes:

”If You Do Not Change, You Can Become Extinct”

• Family. If you do not change you relationships become boring. If you do not change your kids adopt the wrong role model. If you do not change you stop driving, you become driven.
• Work. If you do not change your skills become obsolete. If you do not change you miss career opportunity. If you do not change you create the wrong personal brand. 
• Network. If you do not change your network disappears. If you do not change you have less to outsource. If you do not change you become weaker in the Age of Social Power.

Enjoy Your Cheese

Johnson writes:

Imagining Yourself Enjoying Your New Cheese Leads You To It.

• Family. Imagine dating your wife weekly. Imagine you prepare a home work with your 4th grade. Imagine you spend an hour daily with your preschooler. Imagine you go outdoors weekly with the whole family. Imagine you move to a bigger house in a better neighborhood. Imagine your vacation next summer.
• Work. Imagine you work on stuff that matters. Imagine you are part of the team of top performers. Imagine you ask for a rise. Imagine you get a promotion. Imagine you take a break. Imagine you retire.
• Network. Imagine you meet an old friend. Imagine you become a member of the professional community. Imagine you get a mentor. Imagine you become a mentor.

What stops you from achieving all that? Stop doing, start achieving.

Keep Searching

Johnsons writes:

It Is Safer To Search In The Maze, Than Remain In A Cheeseless Situation.

• Family. Had a fight? – Argue, Do Not Fight! Improve Your Outcomes By Changing Your Responses.
• Work. Stuck at work? – Do You Have The Dream Job? Fear No Recession – Surpass Your Career Potential Do you have The Courage To Quit?
• Network. Attract more people by Putting Positive Spin On Everything

Cheese Rules

Change happens. Your next Change is just around the corner. Adopt Johnson’s rules of Cheese:

• Change Happens.The Keep Moving The Cheese.
• Anticipate Change. Get Ready For The Cheese To Move.
• Monitor Change. Smell The Cheese Often So You Know When It Is Getting Old.
• Adapt To Change Quickly. The Quicker You Let Go Of Old Cheese, The Sooner You Can Enjoy New Cheese.
• Change. Move With The Cheese.
• Enjoy Change! Savor The Adventure And Enjoy The Taste Of New Cheese!
• Be Ready To Change Quickly And Enjoy It Again & Again. They Keep Moving The Cheese.

Practice This – Get Results

• The only constant is Change – keep growing. 
• Imagine your cheese – see your success through.
• Keep searching for the Cheese – he who searches will always find.
• Read  Who Moved My Cheese? – it is a classic book they must teach in schools but they don’t.

My Related Posts

• Apply 80/20 Principle – Focus On Stuff That Matters
• You Are 95 And You Are Dying
• Team Of Top Performers

 
by foxypar4

Are you living life you won’t regret about when you are 95?

It is simple yet powerful question that you should answer before it is too late.

Marshall Goldsmith and  Mark Reiter, the authors of the book What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful ask it very colorfully:

“Imagine you’re 95 years old and ready to die.
…The 95-year-old you understands what was really important and what wasn’t, what mattered and what didn’t  What advice would this wise “old you” have for the “you” who is reading this page? ”

They also provide the answer. It is about doing meaningful work, being surrounded by beloved ones, and following the dream. The answer is based on surveying most talented leaders among 120 organization. It is also based on the intervening people on their deathbed…

Happiness And Meaning Now

Goldsmith and Reiter write:

One recurring theme was to “reflect upon life, to find happiness and meaning now,” not next month or next year.

Either your are a leaf or a manager, are you investing yourself in something meaningful? Does it make you feel happy? Do you make an impact?

It is helpful to have a clear career model as described in Fear No Recession – Surpass Your Career Potential. It helps to Apply 80/20 Principle. When you focused you get results, you make the difference, you create something meaningful. How does it feel? Happy?

Family And Friends

Goldsmith and Reiter write:

A second recurring theme was “friends and family”. Consider this: You may work for a wonderful company, and you may think that your contribution to that organization is very important. When you are 95 years old and you look at the people around your deathbed, very few of your fellow employees will be there waving good bye. Your friends and family will probably be there only people who care. Appreciate them now and share a large part of your life with them.

One of the career models is about “What do you want to do more/less of each day?”

I adopted this model lately. I want to “do” my kids more. I want to do my “wife” more. I want to “do” myself more. As I started to do that more I realized how powerful and meaningful it is both ways. What I need to do more is to “work” less each day, and that can be accomplished by productizing myself. I need to package myself and massively reuse myself. That way I get predicted results faster which should lead to more free time with beloved ones.

Follow Your Dream

Goldsmith and Reiter write:

Yet another recurring theme was “follow your dream”…Figure out your true purpose in life, and go for it! This doesn’t apply just to big dreams; it is also true for little dreams. Buy the sports car your always wanted, go to that exotic locale that’s always held your fascination, learn how to play the piano or speak Italian, If some people think your vision of a well liver life is a bit goofy or off-beat, who cares? It isn’t their life. It’s yours.

That is the hardest part. I am having hard times to define what dream is for me. Can you? On other hand I can relate the dream definition to success, and success for me is John Wooden’s:

“Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best of which you are capable”

My mind is peaceful (it wasn’t until not long ago). Does it mean I am successful? Does it mean I am living my dream?

Practice This – Get Results

• Work on meaningful stuff that matters – be happy. 
• Invest in your first and the best customers – your family and your friends.
• Read What Got You Here Won’t Get You There - make your dream come true.

My Related Posts

• John Wooden’s 12 Lessons In Leadership [For Kids]
• Do You Have The Dream Job?
• One, Two , Three – Is This Manager For Me?

by kwerfeldein

The 80/20 Individual: How to Build on the 20% of What You do Best by Richard Koch is the book I needed to read long ago. If you still have not read it do it now. Do not postpone it. It is engaging read and it is full of practical insights from successful entrepreneur.

For some reason I think it served (or could serve) Tim Ferris as a good prototype when he was writing his The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich.

In this post I share few ideas from the book.

Creating Is Rearranging

Koch writes:

Creation is rearranging things that already exist.

The best example for it is www.Wikipedia.org. It is huge value created by rearranging the information that already exists somewhere else.

What could you do to create by rearranging? You could collect your best practices and publish it is a free eBook. I have done it recently. I published a small PDF file that consolidates some of my professional practices. The result was quite incredible – few customers called me asking for a service after reading it.

Be An Oddball

Koch writes:

The psychologist wants unusual characters who have a few fantastic strengths. If you have these, the corporation couldn’t care less about a long laundry list of things you can’t do well or even do at all.

I cannot speak for myself how crazy I am [I know many who knows me would] and how it helps me to survive corporate jungle life. The best way to affirm it is calling out that successful companies indeed embrace weirdness as a strength.

Belong

Koch writes:

To create you must belong.

Oh… this one is essential. The best prove for it is Maslow Hierarchy of needs for self realization. One of the needs is “Love/Belonging”. Does it explain the burst of social networks recently? I think so. People want to belong to their communities. Now they have the tools that break the limits of time and space. He who wants to realize himself cannot do it on his own, he needs to belong to his community of like minded.

Making  A Difference

Koch writes:

His greatest reward , as with all 80/20 individuals, was in making a difference.

When your basic needs are fulfilled, when you belong to community of like minded, you want to make an impact – the difference. For me, it is about sticking to my values and doing the right thing for my family, for my customers, for my employer, for my friends. It is not uncommon that doing the right thing leaves you without the reward you deserve. Fight hard for the reward, but if you lose no one can take away your own pride about the fact that you made the difference. Make the difference.

Life Is An Experiment

Koch writes:

Life is an experiment. We are running in a maze, and the 80/20 principle signposts the exit.

This one breaks the mold of common wisdom about first impressions. The best example I can think of is getting hired with my current employer. When I first got into HR department for an interview it was a complete fiasco. I left a seriously damaged first impression. It taught me a lesson. But I did not give up. Next time I came prepared. The result was twofold. #1 – I got hired with a company I wanted to work badly. #2 – I started this blog and the first post was just about that – Prepare For Job Interview.

Practice This – Get Results

• Experiment with your life – make a solid collection of life time experiences.
• Read The 80/20 Individual: How to Build on the 20% of What You do Best – identify your stuff that matters and focus on it.

One of the pearls I really loved is Dr. Daniel Amen’s 18/40/60 rule Canfield shares in the book:

When you’re 18, you worry about what everybody is thinking of you; when you 40, you don’t give a darn what anybody thinks of you; when you’re 60, you realize nobody’s been thinking about you at all.

One thing is being worried about what they think about you the other is asking for a feedback. Don’t be worried – ask for a feedback. Help the other guy to give you a constructive feedback. Canfield has another great advice for this one too. Canfield writes: On scale 1 to 10 how would you rate my…? …Any answer less than 10 gets the follow up question: What would it take to make it a 10? Simple and practical. I have lived a long life and had many troubles, most of which never happened. – Mark Twain Practice This – Get Results Stop worrying what they think of you – ask for a feedback. Transform the feedback into your improvement plan. Read The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. My Related Posts Ask Your Customers’ Friends – Your Growth Hides There Basic Instincts And Marketing Become The Next Great Mind – Now

]]> http://practicethis.com/adopt-184060-rule-and-stop-worrying-about-what-they-think-about-you/feed/ 16 http://practicethis.com/improve-your-outcomes-by-changing-your-responses/ http://practicethis.com/improve-your-outcomes-by-changing-your-responses/#comments Tue, 31 Mar 2009 12:32:12 +0000 alik levin http://practicethis.com/2009/03/31/improve-your-outcomes-by-changing-your-responses/

Are you satisfied with you outcomes? If you are not you better grab Jack Canfield’s book The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. Canfield shares many simple yet practical methods for improving your personal performance.

For example::

If you do not like your outcomes, change your responses.

This advice can sound too obvious, but how many times you witnessed people change their approaches? How many times you changed yours?…

Change Response To Failures What’s the usual response to a failure? Regret, anger, emptiness. None of these help to succeed next time. Worse, it consumes your energy for nothing draining your personal power. Change response to a failure! Ask yourself questions. Admit. Say it – “I failed”. Stop lying to yourself. Reflect. Where did I go wrong? Refocus. Adjust yourself. Set yourself for success with realistic goals. Plan. What do I need to do to make it successful next time? Reward yourself. Even when failed reward yourself. “No matter what, I gave it a try!”, “Now I know better!”, “Hey, I am still alive and kicking!”. “I have not failed. I have just found ten thousand ways that won’t work” – Thomas A. Edison. Change Response To Customers In consulting your ultimate goal is making your customer happy. It is not about proving you are right. It is not uncommon customers treat you the way that is far from what you’d expect it to be. What can you do? Explain customer he is wrong? Prove you are right?  Your goal is to keep the customer happy while keeping the profitability of the gig. Arguing and creating conflict situation is a surest path to lose the customer. Adopt a “hero” mindset. Tell the customer – “It was pleasure serving your”. Tell yourself – “I did the right thing”. Smile. Change Response To Managers The simplest yet effective change of mindset I have made was moving focus from “How can I excel?” to “What’s your biggest problem?”. The meaning is the same but the perception is… everything. It is easier for manager to spit out his challenges off top of his head vs. trying to deeply understand you so that he can pave your path to the excellence. You become low maintenance employee, the one who gets desired results with minimum investment. Managers appreciate it. Change Response To Kids You are your kids leader. One of my favorite leadership lessons from John Wooden is “Call Yourself A Teacher“. Not a preacher. Stop preaching, start teaching, start leading. Lead by example. My Related Posts 3 Easy Steps To Become A Superhero Consultants, Beware Of Procrastinators, Disengaged, And Distracters! Effective Techniques To Handle Your Kid’s Temper Tantrum John Wooden’s 12 Lessons In Leadership [For Kids]

]]> http://practicethis.com/improve-your-outcomes-by-changing-your-responses/feed/ 17 http://practicethis.com/mark-twain-quotes-your-motivation-and-emotional-steroids-warning-addicting/ http://practicethis.com/mark-twain-quotes-your-motivation-and-emotional-steroids-warning-addicting/#comments Fri, 13 Feb 2009 07:01:05 +0000 alik levin http://practicethis.com/2009/02/13/mark-twain-quotes-your-motivation-and-emotional-steroids-warning-addicting/ When I feel drained, when I feel my emotional reservoir need a refill I scan Mark Twain’s quotes. I LOL (Laugh Out Loud) and I feel the positive energy overwhelming me all over.
What A Power Of Word!
These are my favorite Mark Twain’s quotes:  
by sfjalar

“Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more.”

“Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”

“Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.”

“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.”

“Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are more pliable.”

“Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please.”

“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.”

“”It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

“All generalizations are false, including this one.”

“Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”

“The more things are forbidden, the more popular they become”

“It is easier to stay out than get out.”

“Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often”

“To succeed in life, you need two things: ignorance and confidence.”

“When you fish for love, bait with your heart, not your brain”

“When angry, count to four. When very angry, swear.”

“Thunder is good, thunder is impressive; but it is lightning that does all the work”

“The more you explain it, the more I don’t understand it”

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.”

“It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not to deserve them.”

” We have the best government that money can buy.”

And the all time winner is:

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”

Practice This – Get Results

• When you feel down, it’s only your interpretation of the world – snap out of it, switch to the better wave on your dial.

“We don’t see the things the way they are. We see things the way WE are.” – Talmud

My Related Posts

• 4 Dimensions Of Personal Power
• Meet My Mentors – Bruce Lee, Abraham Lincoln, Mark Twain, and Thomas Edison
• The Courage To Quit

Why is it so hard to quit? How do I know when to quit and when to stick? If I decide to quit, would I look back with guilt or anger?

J.D. pointed me to Seth’s book – The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick). Now I got few answers to my questions now. I also have few more questions too…

by zone41

Why It Is So Hard To Quit?

Seth writes:

Most People Are Afraid To Quit

     It’s better to be mediocre than it is to confront  reality  and quit.

     Quitting is difficult. Quitting requires you to acknowledge that you’re never going to be #1 in the world. At least not at this. So it’s easier to put it off, not admit it, settle for mediocre.

     What a waste.

Say, Quit What?

• If you cannot be #1 smoker then quit smoking?
• If you cannot be #1 blogger then quit blogging?
• If you cannot be #1 swimmer then quit swimming?
• If you cannot be #1 consultant then quit consultancy?
• If you cannot be #1 developer then quit developing?
• If you cannot be #1 dad then quit parenting?
• If you cannot be #1 husband then quit marriage?
• If you cannot be #1 lover then quit making love?
• If you cannot be #1 driver then quit driving?
• If you cannot be #1 dog owner then quit owning a dog?
• If you cannot be #1 citizen then quit citizenship?
• If you cannot be #1 problem solver then quit problem solving?
• If you cannot be #1 team player then quit the team?
• If you cannot be #1 employee then quit the company?
• If you cannot be #1 freelancer then quit freelancing?
• If you cannot be #1 achiever then quit achieving?
• If you cannot be #1 gamer then quit playing games?
• If you cannot be #1 son then quit the family circle?
• If you cannot be #1 brother then quit brotherhood?
• …

Is It That Hard To Become #1?

My take is “No”. Create your own niche and declare yourself as #1 there. And stick. And do not quit.

What’s your niche? Are you going to stick or quit?

I clearly realized these are not just a quotes, these are my guiding lights, my mentors.

Bruce Lee and Abraham Lincoln Help Me Focus

"Absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is specifically your own." -Bruce Lee

I adopted this Bruce Lee’s quote from JD and it really helps me stay away from time wasters. To me it is short version of Covey’s prioritization discipline.

"Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe" – Abraham Lincoln

Does not it resonate with Covey’s Habit 7 – Sharpen the saw?

Mark Twain and Thomas Edison Help Me Grow

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause and reflect” – Mark Twain

This is great quote directs me to the places that are less crowded, with more potential to do something new, something interesting, something no one did before.

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." – Thomas Alva Edison

The last but not the least, the quote by Thomas Edison, keeps me on the surface. It keeps me from not losing faith in better me. It helps me get up and fight when I am knocked off my horse.

Got quote?

My answer was simple – Engineer Yourself for Peak Performance

by (nutmeg)

Quick Tips For Personal Growth

In order to Engineer Yourself for Peak Performance you need to pay attention to 4 Dimensions Of Personal Power – this is the high level and most important strategy. You must constantly stretch and recover these 4 critical areas of your life – Intellectual, Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual.

When you go to your new place you need to follow these simple practices – Patterns and Practices for New Hires – this is tactical and daily stuff.

To do all these you must allocate time properly. Time Is Not Money. Time Is Budget. Manage it wisely.

To manage it wisely you need to Prioritize What You Do – Steven Covey Way [The Way That Works]

Comprehensive Guide For Personal Effectiveness

J.D. Meier posted recently a comprehensive list of practices for effectiveness. He learned it from his mentors and now he shares it with the rest of the world here – Effectiveness Post Roundup. Timeless stuff.

Self Test

• Are stumbling or growing?
• Are you waiting for the opportunity or you are building one?
• Do you follow proven practices or just go with the flow?

I’ve got the answers from Lt. Col. Frank Slade.

by Topo .

What If I Fail?

“I think I’d be a little afraid.”  – Donna
”Of what ?”  – Frank
”Afraid of making a mistake.”  – Donna
”No mistakes in the tango, not like life. It’s simple. That’s what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, get all tangled up, just tango on. Why don’t you try ?”  – Frank.

THE Answer To All “I-am-stuck” Situations

The following quote is my guiding light when I get stuck.(Emphasis is mine):

“Any particular beer ?” – Waiter.
"Schlitz. No Schlitz ? Blatz. No Blatz ? Improvise." – Lt.Col. Frank Slade

Another one that I really like is by JD Meier as he writes in his Start with something simple:

Start with what you know.
What you know, don’t know, need to know next.

What’s Next?

“Would you like to learn to tango, Donna ?” – Frank
”Right now? “ – Donna
”I’m offering you my services… free of charge. What do you say ?“ – Frank

Meet Lt. Col. Frank Slade (Al Pacino in “Scent of a Woman”)

Would you like to learn to live?
Take your life for a test drive. Do not be afraid to fail.

Improvise.

Self Test

• Do you dream to do things you afraid to fail?
• Do you really really want it?
• How do you cope with the fear of failure?
• How do you cope with the failure?

Wrong.

It is completely wrong, unless you are joining them to beat them. Beat them either harder or smarter. Better both.

by TOMOYOSHI

You are not a quitter. But sometimes you get to the point where you want to give up on your dream. You feed yourself with ton of excuses why you can’t do it. You want to quit and move on.

Do not quit, you can beat them. You can beat them all.

Struggle is the meaning

When I was reading Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich I stumbled on a very motivational quote:

If you don’t make mistakes, you’re not working on hard enough problems. And that’s a big mistake. – Frank Wilczek, 2004 Nobel Prize winner in physics.

It really made an impact on me and every time I feel down, this one helps me to get up and move forward toward what I believe, The Dream.

It takes time to win

I am a big fan of “Fail Fast” approach. In a nutshell it means that investing in something must gain fast results. If the investment does not gain any results, if it fails – stop doing it, change the approach. It helps avoiding Pyrrhic Victory. However, never give up on the bigger goal, The Dream.

It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. -Albert Einstein

Struggle is your source of energy

In the The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal the authors identify 4 Dimensions Of Personal Power: Physical, Emotional, Mental, Spiritual. Their approach is based on tens of years of research and applied practice – they actually Practice This . Their take is that our Physical, Emotional, Mental, and Spiritual muscles must be periodically stretched in order to refill our personal power reservoirs. Keep fighting to be stronger.

What’s not killing me only makes me stronger – Friedrich Nietzsche

Beating smarter

How do I become a smarter fighter?

Try applying ancient proven patterns & practices of martial arts – take, for example, Judo – my favorite sport :

The word "judo" …  may mean "gentleness", "softness", "suppleness", and even "easy", depending on its context

The soft method is characterized by the indirect application of force to defeat an opponent. More specifically, it is the principle of using one’s opponent’s strength against him and adapting well to changing circumstances

Here is another great source of techniques to beating them smarter – The Thirty Six Strategies:

Whereas other Chinese military texts such as Sun Tzu The Art of War focus on military organization, leadership, and battlefield tactics, the Thirty Six Strategies are more suitably applied in the fields of politics, diplomacy, and espionage.

Take, fore example, this one:

19. Remove the firewood under the cooking pot.
When faced with an enemy too powerful to engage directly you must first weaken him by undermining his foundation and attacking his source of power.

The foundation

My take is that the foundation to becoming a smarter fighter is Emotional Intelligence.

Emotion Is Your Enemy – coach John Wooden.

Fight your enemy, become Emotionally Intelligent:

• Emotional Intelligence – Core Skills
• Emotional Intelligence – Higher Order Skills

Self test

• Do you have a Dream?
• Have you ever gave up on your Dream? How did you feel? Drained?
• Have you ever fulfilled your dream? How did you feel? Empowered, ready for another fight?
• Do you want to become a smarter fighter?
• Do you want to win you Dream?

I found the answers in the book by Marcus Buckinghamand  Curt Coffman – First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently.

by Duke LeNoir

The book is “Based on in-depth interviews by the Gallup organization of over 80,000 managers in over 400 companies – the largest study of its kind ever undertaken”.

In the book the authors share 12 questions that in my opinion should provide very sharp answers to the questions – “Do I have The Dream Job?” or “What must be done to make it one?”. They group the questions according to the employees “maturity” – new on the job role, on track, up-and-running, thirsty for growth [my interpretation]. The authors compare this journey of career development to mountain climbing thus dividing it into 4 camps. 4 camps toward the summit – the dream job.

Below are the questions.

Base camp – “What do I get?”

• Do I know what is expected of me at work?
• Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?

Camp 1 – “What do I give?”

• At work, do I have the opportunity to do my work best every day?
• In the last 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work?
• Does my supervisor or someone at work seem to care of me as a person?
• Is the someone who encourages my development?

Camp 2 – “Do I belong here?”

• At work, do my opinions seem to count?
• Does the mission or purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important?
• Are my co-workers committed to do quality work?
• Do I have a best friend at work?

Camp 3 – “How can we all grow?”

• In the last 6 months have I talked w/someone about my progress?
• This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?

Ask yourself. Ask your employees. Most of the answers you already know. If the answers are YES – you or the employee being asked have reached the summit, the dream job. Those questions that answered NO are the gaps. Take a look at the gaps? The most important question to ask is – “Can these gaps be closed?”. If the answer is YES, you have exciting times to come. If the answer is NO here is what happens next:

• If you are the employee… my advice to you – find another job.
• If you are the manager, it should explain this turnover thing you have. You may want to read The Dream Manager book right away.

I found the answers to almost all the questions in Gerald M. Weinberg book – Becoming a Technical Leader: An Organic Problem-Solving Approach.

My favorite is how he defines leadership.

by JessicaFairchild.com

Leadership is the process of creating an environment in which people become empowered. – Gerald M. Weinberg.

I found out that this definition can be easily applied not only to technical leadership but to any kind of leadership.

Family

Are you creating an environment in which your kids and your partner become empowered? 

• Is your home a place where your family members long to be? Or each one seeks a reason to sneak outside if it?
• Are your kids passionately share their experiences they had in kindergarten or in the school? Or when you ask “How was your day?” you hear just “Fine”?
• Is you partner shares her deepest feelings, thoughts on life and work. Do you discuss a deeper meaning and then make love? Or you have transactional conversations and actions that sometimes concluded by just sex?

Work

Are you creating an environment in which your colleagues, managers, reports become empowered?

• Do you like coming to your work? Why?
• Do you like your office? Why?
• Do you like your colleagues? Why?
• Do your colleagues like you? Why?
• Are you writing emotionally intelligent emails that build rapport?
• Did you receive “Thank you!” email privately lately?
• Did you send “Thank you!” email privately lately?
• Are you genuinely interested in listening to what you colleague has to say?
• What’s your “street creds”?
• What nickname your co-workers gave you?
• What significant change you drove lately? How many followed?
• Are you “go-to” person for any subject of your interest/expertise?

Blogging

Are you creating an environment in which your blogofriends (real and virtual) become empowered?

• Are you commenting on other underdog blogs?
• Do your comments encourage discussion or are they self centric and self promotional?
• Are you giving link love?
• How many comments you get?
• Do you get link love back?
• Do you have loyal readers? How do you know?
• Did you get recently emails from your blogofriends asking for advice or help?

Self

Are you creating an environment in which you become empowered?

• Do you carve time for your life projects?
• Do you give priorities to do what you passionate about?
• Can you quickly list your goals?
• Can you quickly list your latest achievements in life and work?

Footnote

Becoming a leader looks actionable and attainable to me. I think you can easily become a leader. It is all about developing skills of creating environment that empowers people.

Mr. Universe doesn’t have more muscles than I do, just better developed ones. – Gerald M. Weinberg.