- ask "Who do I need to become in order to accomplish this?" Maybe you need to become a person who prioritizes and plans better, or a person who calls upon their courage to try new things
- ask "What will support me best in learning this skill?" Do you want a mentor? A class? To join an organization like Toastmasters?
- ask "How do I want to build this into my weekly routine?" How much time are you willing to spend, and when and where?
- ask "How will I know I have achieved my goal?" Will you measure success in terms of your comfort in presentations? By feedback from those on the receiving end? By how much you enjoy making presentations? What are the qualifiers that let you know you have succeeded?
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Design The Environment to Support You in Your Game
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Playing to Win
- A winnable game challenges me to bring my best strengths and skills into play and stretch a little. Maybe even a lot.
- A winnable game has clearly defined objectives and a way to keep score. Although it's challenging, I have skills that I can use to play a good game.
- A winnable game has a beginning and end, which gives me excitement during play and a chance to rest and look at how I can improve between games. Too many of us set up unwinnable games that drag on for years.
- A winnable game involves other players with great skill and love for the game who are fun to play with and inspire me.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Rewarding Key Employees When Cash is Tight
- Praise from their supervisor. Genuine acknowledgment of a job well done is always a boost to those who are striving to do their best. This costs nothing and only requires a few minutes to deliver. The payoff in terms of employee satisfaction and retention is huge.
- Assignment to a task force or special project lead. This sends the message that your employee is valued for his or her abilities and creative problem solving. It gives them the opportunity to gain valuable experience and visibility, which can pay dividends in the longer term when money is not so tight.
- Time spent with senior leadership. When valued employees are sought out for their ideas and opinions by the senior leaders in a organization, they feel seen, heard, appreciated. This can be as simple as saying, "Leslie, I'd like to hear your ideas on how we might approach a new project in the works."
Monday, May 3, 2010
Are You Having a Grand Adventure?
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Join Me in The Fifty Minute Experiment
Monday, April 12, 2010
The Art of Acknowledgment
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Is it Time to Update Your Self Image?
Quarterly Review
As an executive/business coach, I participate in a peer-coaching program that runs quarter to quarter, and as we approach the end of first quarter, 2010, I had the opportunity to review with my coach the progress we’ve made this past quarter. I was surprised at how much clarity was gained, how many step-by-step plans were laid out and how many actions were taken toward completing those plans in such a short period.
As we celebrated the realized goals and progress toward other objectives, it occurred to me that this was a powerful exercise in keeping my self image up to date. You see, I don’t always have a quarterly review with my coach because we often keep renewing our agreement quarter to quarter. This time, my coach was taking a break to complete a radio project and I’ll be starting with a new coach, so we set aside an hour to review and celebrate our accomplishments.
Pause for Reflection
Most of us are constantly on the move, crossing off the next line item on our perpetual to-do lists. It can be (and was) so valuable to pause and look at how much we have learned and grown over a three-month period. I invite you to take a look at your accomplishments over the quarter, looking for evidence of:
- Clarity gained – where are you clearer on what your objectives are and what you stand for? There are likely areas that have become much more in focus for you than before. Take a moment to acknowledge those.
- Acceptance – what or who might you have made peace with over the last few months. Is there an aspect of someone or something that used to torture you that you have come to appreciate and accept?
- Roadmap – What plans have you laid out for yourself that will facilitate something important to your life, your work or relationships? Creating a step-by-step plan takes time but pays off exponentially in supporting your long-term goals.
- Action Taken – What steps have you completed toward some of your closely held intentions? Be sure to acknowledge all the progress you make, not just the arrival, or the end result. It takes courage and discipline to keep moving steadily toward a goal. You deserve some kudos for that.
- Learning – We learn every day. Imagine how much you have expanded your skills and awareness in the last three months. What classes have you taken or software have you learned more about? What subjects are you more informed about now?
In short, you have expanded and grown as a person this quarter. You are not the same person you were when the year began—you are more polished, aware and prepared that you were before. Allow that to sink into the image you hold of yourself, and remember to pause for this kind of acknowledgement at least quarterly. We’ll talk next time about how to course correct and mine the learning, but for now bask in appreciation for what you have become and accomplished.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
True Currency and How We Control It
Thought is the real currency of life. Directed, deliberate thought is the stuff from which everything flows. We act as if it all comes from the dollars in our bank accounts, and later down the creation pipeline, it does show up there. But that isn't where it began. All abundance we consider to be good, whether money, love, health, friends--all of it began with thought. Stay with me, I know this will be as good a reminder to some of you as it was to me.
There are days when we feel great: smart, capable and believing that life is good. From that place, we agree to do something that is a bit of a stretch for us. As the day to deliver on that promise comes closer, let's say we are in a bit of a funk emotionally and we cannot imagine what persuaded us to make such a commitment. We literally don't have access to the perspective that gave birth to that idea. What?
I'll say it again: in every moment, we have a certain perspective on life, ourselves, our world. When we feel good and are thinking uplifting thoughts, like "life is good," and "I am capable and intelligent," we have access to a point of view that vanishes when we are plugged into less positive thoughts like, "Life sucks!" or "I'm a loser."
Every time we consciously direct our thoughts to looking for the best in ourselves, others and the world, we are in a creative mode, generating positive energy that eventually becomes and idea we act on and somewhere down the line generates the cash that lands in our bank account. But it all began with a single, deliberate thought.