Resolve to add something this year

Each year at this time my most frequent request from clients and others is the topic of resolutions.
How to make them, how to keep them, who to tell, etc.
This year I starting thinking about resolutions in November. I was looking at all the stuff going on in the world and watching the media focus on food and drink for the holidays and of course the month-long shopping rush that begins around Thanksgiving.  Juxtaposing this eating/drinking/spending with the standard resolutions of losing weight, reducing alcohol consumption, getting finances under control, left me shaking my head.
So I decided to focus on changing the type of resolution rather than rehashing the standard ones.
I propose that this year, when you make your resolution, make it a positive one; one that adds something to your life, rather than focusing on removing something or reducing something.
Here are some of the ideas I had:

Learn a language

Volunteer work

Take a course, learn something

Start a new family tradition (or re-ignite an old one)

Have a reading hour (or half hour) with the whole family

Try new foods (especially healthy foods!)

Reconnect with people you've lost contact with

Re-engage with a passion you've left behind

Pursue a new interest

Set aside time for yourself

Reconnect with your religion or spirituality

I am sure you can think of many more. Once you decide on your resolution I do recommend writing it down and making it SMART.
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time bound

Here's a short piece I did on the local news the other day. (Three days post flu!)

Conflict, Change and Stagnation

Last week I asked what people's perception of these three terms were. (I asked my followers on Facebook - join the conversation here)
Overwhelmingly the response was that all three: conflict, change, and stagnation, were negative.
I completely understand why the perception is that they are negative but let's delve a bit further.

Conflict is essentially about opposition. It might be conflict in the Middle East that is war or it might be trying to decide between two apples in the grocery store; which apple is better?
Conflict in the workplace may be as simple as a difference of opinion on what coffee to buy or as complex as what the organization is doing right or wrong.

Many years ago conflict was presented to me as the motivation for learning.
In these terms conflict is internal for each of us.
What inspires you to go look something up?..........for me I'd say it is because I find it unsettling to not know (this is my conflict), so I go find out. Once I find the indisputable information I can relax - I have no conflict (well about that particular issue).

In organizations, conflict can be damaging and it can be beneficial. It all depends on how 'conflict' is treated. I know we have all been in tense situations at work because we don't agree with someone or something, but we must remain silent.  Disagreeing isn't acceptable/tolerated/or allowed.
Clearly in these settings conflict is a negative. It causes internal stress, angst and has no positive value.

However if it was OK to safely discuss ideas - even conflicting ideas - perhaps change could occur, positive change.
Great things are typically born of conflict, it leads to discussion, debate, collaboration and invention.

But wait, you say, everything is just fine as it is.
"Why reinvent the wheel?"
Well because there are new innovations that might be an improvement.
"But it will cause me conflict - I am used to doing things a certain way - I don't want to learn a new way."
We all know people that refuse to move forward, are you one?

Although he isn't as successful as he once was, I am reminded of Tiger Woods who at the peak of his career decided to make a swing change. This is a huge undertaking for a golfer and one that can derail a career. He was asked why he wanted to make a radical change when he was so successful with his current swing. His response was that he was as good as he could be with THAT swing, however he believed he could be better and to be better he had to adopt a new swing.
His conflict was that he believed he had the ability to be better than he was, he wasn't good enough in his eyes. He realized he had reached a plateau, so he changed. Even though his game did suffer initially and it was really hard work he stuck with it. In the end he did emerge better than he had been before.

The concepts of conflict and change apply to businesses, individuals, teams, and relationships. Whether it seems that 'everything is just fine' or it is clear that things aren't fine, having an avenue to safely discuss conflict which creates the opportunity for change (improvement) is a very good thing.

Without conflict there is no change; without change there is stagnation.

To stagnate is to cease motion, activity, or progress; to come to rest; to cease to advance or change; to become idle or cease to flow. Think stagnant pond.

No way that's a good thing, so change must be good :)
And since conflict is the precursor of change, it must be a good thing too!

I hope I have created conflict with regard to your beliefs about conflict and change!

Do you think about the past or the future?

This post is aimed toward individuals 40+ but may have some good thoughts for all. Enjoy!

I was thinking the other day as I was listening to someone talking about events that were 20 years ago, that I rarely hear this person talk about things in the future.
I then started to think about other people in my life that when given an opportunity to take the spotlight or to guide the conversation, they talk about things from decades ago.
I then started to think of people that consistently talk about the things they are going to do.  I am not talking about the person who is always 'going to do' something but never does, I mean the person who has lived a full life and has every intention to keep living a full life.

I can tell you that the people that focused on the past are individuals that one would typically call a pessimist.  Often I sense they feel older than they are, they long for the old days, and don't really look forward to or at least talk about the future.
I am not saying they don't want to have a future, I just mean they don't seem to set goals for the future or dream of things they will do down the road.

On the other hand, the people who seem to have goals and dreams to pursue 'in the future' tend to be optimistic and thankful people. These people will look at the past and appreciate those good times but don't have a desire for it to still be 'those days'. These individuals seem to focus more on today but also have desires and dreams they are pursuing for future good times.

When we are young, the vast majority of us have clear goals and exciting dreams to fulfill, as we age I believe this can slip away as we are busy dealing with life day in and day out. I can't help but believe that having dreams to pursue, regardless of your age, and focusing on future achievements will serve you better than reliving your 'glory days' over and over.

The next time you are in a social gathering with friends or family, think about what you share or talk about.
Is it memories from decades or years ago that you have likely shared before, with the same folks?
Or is the conversation driven by things you hope to do down the road?

Google search tips, that really will help!

Think you're a Google Search power user?

You might not know all the ways to get faster, more focused search results. Here are five tips:

1. Exclude terms. If you're looking for information on Vikings, the old Norse explorers, you don't want pages on football's Minnesota Vikings. Use a minus sign to tell Google to exclude pages that contain a certain word, like this: Vikings - Minnesota
2. Site search. Limit your search to a single website or a specific group of sites, by using site: followed by a Web address or ending. For example, type site:latimes.com in your search and you'll get results only from the Los Angeles Times website. To get results only from U.S. government sites — which have Web addresses ending in ".gov" — add site:gov to your search. Use site:edu for colleges or site:mil forU.S. military sites.
3. Wildcard search. Use the asterisk to substitute for any word in a phrase. This can be handy for identifying a particular fact or finding a missing word in a song lyric. Put phrases in quotes. For instance, "Perris is in * county" or "in Penny Lane there is a * showing photographs."
4. Math and conversions. Enter a math problem into Google Search and it will give you the answer (use * for multiplication and / for division). It will also convert currencies and temperatures. Enter, for example, $100 in euros or 72 Fahrenheit in Celsius.
5. More shortcuts. Put "define" before any word (for example, define photobomb), and Google will give you a definition at the top of the results. Similarly, entering "movies" or "weather" before a ZIP Code or a city name will produce a list of films playing nearby or a weather forecast for that area.

scott.wilson@latimes.com

originally printed on

April 27, 2012|By Scott J. Wilson, Los Angeles Times

Are you an inspiring leader?

I was working with a client the other day who consistently complains about the lack of energy in their workplace. It is an organization that has its problems and lack of energy is definitely one of them, however,  I did start wondering what this person was doing - in their leadership opportunities - to motivate people.
If tasked with standing in front of a group of disengaged people how do you respond?
Do you see it as hopeless?
Do you go through the motions with no expectation that anyone will become engaged or be interested?
Or do you take a deep breath, hitch up your pants (figuratively if not literally) and set out to connect, engage and motivate the group in front of you?

Having been a trainer for adults, a middle school and high school teacher and a counselor for troubled teens I have many years of experience of standing in front of disengaged and disinterested 'learners'.
Without question there have been days that I looked at the slump-shouldered people in front of me and thought, "forget it, nothing will happen today". But then I would remind myself that my 'job' was to get my message across.
I would recall successful training sessions where the room was buzzing and light bulbs were popping on the entire time. I can feel that energy just thinking about those times.
Bottom line is that I change my mindset from feeling defeated by the dark cloud in front of me to seeing it as a challenge.
Sometimes its a really, really big challenge.
For me a challenge is really motivating, it energizes me and starts my wheels spinning to find ways to use my energy to ignite my audience.

In my mind I am trying to inspire. I am trying to move the disinterested to be interested. I want to motivate those that have stopped caring about the quality of their work and their contribution to the organization to start caring again.
Because if the fifteen people in front of me become inspired and motivated they take that positive energy back to their teams and that offers potential for others to become more caring and motivated.

So how do you inspire the uninspired?

Why you and your team should know your DiSC

Since becoming an Inscape Publishing Distributor I have been asked many times what Everything DiSC is and what it can do for you or your team/workplace.
I've been told 'we did this assessment or that assessment and its a fun thing to know but it didn't change anything.'
Many people have done the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator at some point (or used a knock-off assessment) to determine your 'type'. Learning type is fabulously interesting and CAN be very useful in the workplace but applying it in the workplace is a long process. As a certified MBTI practitioner I fully support the usefulness of the tool WHEN the organization dedicates appropriate time and money to the process.

The Everything DiSC products are different. First of all they aren't assessing 'type'; they are assessing how you process/operate/communicate in the workplace, they call it your 'style'.

Unlike the MBTI you answer the questions relative to how you are at work.
The assessment is short and sweet and the profile you receive offers an abundance of information on each style enabling you to get a picture of others as well as yourself.
In fact, it will describe how best to interact with each 'style', how you may perceive other styles, what motivates you, and what you find stressful.

Ideally having taken the assessment you receive the results from a qualified and experienced DiSC professional, HOWEVER, the report is so thorough that you can gain a tremendous amount of knowledge by reading it closely.
Taking the assessment in isolation - meaning you take it but others in your workplace don't - is a very valuable experience.  You will increase your ability to successfully communicate. I guarantee that, if you allow me to facilitate your report.
Successful communication is the key to success in life.

In team settings, the reports are facilitated and the discussions are always lively.  People always seem to have 'aha' moments when they discover more about their own style but especially about other people's style.
Once you learn that team member A is a 'D'  and thus prefers to make decisions swiftly and to work independently you will spend less time giving them a host of options and debating the positives and negatives of each option.  Usually when you do this with someone who has a 'D' style you can actually watch them begin to boil or get so turned off by the task that they do a poor job or don't do it at all.

If it turns out your team has a preponderance of 'C's' you will no longer wonder why every task takes so long - they are done to perfection, but things are falling behind. A team that is heavy with C's will need someone else monitoring deadlines and pushing things along.

And a team heavy in 'D', 'S' or 'i' will need some C influence to ensure that steps weren't skipped or information processed too swiftly/inaccurately.

My belief is that the Everything DiSC assessments provide practical knowledge that, once applied, will increase communication; awareness and delivery of information will be done with more skill and that will lead to greater success.

And a lot more pleasant workplace!

Call (919)336-2324 or email today for more information!

a new trend in therapy - crybabies be gone!

This was published in the Wall Street Journal on May 15, 2012. I thought it was an interesting read and that these tips may be useful for all when faced with 'whiners'

Often, people don't realize they are whining. the trick: Raise their self-awareness without using accusatory or sarcastic language.

Go gently: Even therapists say this conversation sometimes ends with the client walking out. Start by telling the person who is whining how much you appreciate him or her.

Use a tone of genuine curiosity.  You want to get to the bottom of the problem together. You may want to mirror the negative communication. 'I don't know if you hear yourself, but listen to what you just said.'

Point out there's a pattern.   Say, 'Do you realize it's the fifth night in a row you've talked about this?' Offer to tape future conversations so the person can hear for him or herself.

Open up the conversation.  A person whining about work may be feeling unwell, or stuck in his career.  Ask, 'Is there something else that's wrong?' Explain that it is hard for you to hear the real issue because the person's tone and attitude are getting in the way.

Ask the person what he or she plans to do about the problem.  Hold them accountable.

Suggest alternatives. The person might want to write down a list of complaints and leave it in a drawer. Or keep a journal and circle repeated complaints in red pen. Or spend an hour at the gym, or do something outdoors with you.

Set a time limit.  For 10 minutes a day the person can whine unfettered - and you will listen.  Then time is up.  Do this once a day, once a week - or challenge the person to a 'whine-free day'.

Give positive reinforcement.  Say, 'I love to hear good things about your job.'  praise each increment toward healthy communication.

Is your team performing at its best?

One of the services Carolina Life Coaching offers is Team Development. We use a variety of tools to ensure a customized training solution that will take your team to the next level.
Optimally we start with each member of the team completing a MBTI Form Q or Step II assessment. Each member then has a personalized feedback session, facilitated by a certified MBTI practitioner, to ensure they choose their own best-fit type and also have an understanding of type as defined by the MBTI.
Another option to set the table for the team discussion and development is to use the Everything DiSC Workplace assessment.
Similar to the application of the MBTI, each individual would complete an assessment, followed by a coached feedback session to ensure they understand the instrument and their assessed type.
After each member of the team has been assessed and had a personal session it's time to work on TEAM.
I believe that Patrick Lencioni's "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" offers an excellent model for development and scrutiny, however, I do prefer to put a positive spin on the title and say we'll work on the 'Five keys for a successful team'.

I have a very effective group of activities that help teams explore, debate and grow as they work through this model.
All in all with a better understanding of themselves, a better understanding of other members of the team and a better understanding of effective and successful teamwork; team production increases substantively.
Call (919-336-2324) or email us today to learn more and to get the process of improving your team's production started now!

Our first contest! Winner receives a free Everything DiSC profile ($50 value)

I'm working on www.whatsyourdisc.com and want to replace the photo of the building with something that has: more color and is relevant to the assessment tool - which focuses on communication styles and workplace behaviors.

The Everything DiSC products use this image to represent the concept that underpins their products.
I am thinking it would be good to incorporate this image into a background to replace the 'skyscraper' but am not beholden to this concept.

Please send entries to:
karen@whatsyourdisc.com

Contest will end on Tuesday May 8, 2012

If you don't want to formally submit an entry I would still love to hear your ideas, which you can post on our Facebook page or in a response to this blog post.

Thanks!

Here is a sample profile so you can see what it is you can win!

What criteria do YOU think are important before you take advice from these marketing, management, advertising, personal development consultants/coaches/specialists?

This question was posed in one of the groups I belong to on LinkedIn. I found it an excellent question and posted this response.

I am a business and personal coach. My background is in education, counseling, training and development, change management and coaching. I have helped companies and individuals in fields and areas completely outside my areas of experience. As a coach I am not an expert in your specific field (as mentioned mentors are!) I am an expert in people. Motivating, communicating, questioning, strategizing, facilitating, etc. My clients have come to me for a vast array of issues and from a variety of fields/organizations.
My point is that at least from the perspective of what to look for in a coach, it isn't their knowledge of your specific area, it is their track record of helping individuals, teams and organizations perform better. There are also different areas of coaching to consider too and what tools they are authorized to use to facilitate their coaching. What I mean here is say with a sales team I like to use the Everything DiSC Sales assessment and facilitation, someone else may use other tools.
Bottom line is if you hired a coach, mentor or other consultant what would you want them to 'fix' or improve? Then decide which discipline offers the tools to help you with your chosen area of improvement.

How would you answer this question?

Coaching and mentoring: what's the difference?

Ask this question and you will get a different answer from each person who gives you an answer. How can this be?
There is much talk in the workplace about both of these disciplines yet no consensus; therefore this post is not to define them but to offer my understanding/application/and personal definitions.

Mentoring, to me, is something a senior worker offers a junior worker.
Many years ago as I was leaving a post I was tasked with mentoring my replacement for a few weeks so that they could step in to the role fully upon my departure.
I have recently worked with a client who was formally asked to mentor a new hire - ensuring he understood the software, projects, hierarchy of tasks and other parameters of his new post.
Mentors offer support and guidance and advice. They will help you learn your job or specific tasks better. They often act as a role model.
I see mentors as being experts in specific skills related to performance, being experienced in an area with established networks.

So what is coaching? (For clarification I am discussing business or executive coaching.)
Coaching is about increasing performance, improving soft skills, and upping efficiency.
A coach is an expert listener and questioner but may not be an expert in a specific field or task: as a mentor often is. A coach should be an expert in adult learning, communication, motivation, psychology/human dynamics and generally understanding what makes a person tick.
Coaching will include self-evaluation and self-discovery. Guided, yes, but not so much directed.
A coach will have a targeted outcome related to optimization of potential.
In a coaching relationship the 'answers' should come from the client whereas in mentoring the mentor will usually provide the 'answers'.

These definitions were provided on another forum:
Coaching is a facilitated, reflective learning process involving semi-structured, focused interaction with an individual (or group) aimed at promoting sustainable change for the benefit of the individual and potentially other stakeholders.

Mentoring is a method of guidance whereby one person shares their knowledge, skills and experience to assist another to make progress in their own lives and careers.

I think those are excellent functional definitions that match my practical understanding of mentoring and coaching.

I would love to hear more about your understanding and applications of these techniques and what you think about what I've said.

Introductory offer: Everything DiSC® Workplace profile $39.95!

As a newly authorized Inscape Publishing distributor I have decided to offer the Everything DiSC® Workplace profile for $39.95 (RRP $50.25) for a limited time.
You may be wondering what this profile is, what it can do for you or why it should be of interest to you.
Everything DiSC® Workplace profile is an assessment of your manner of connecting to people; how do you process the world, what are your strengths, what can you contribute to a team effort and how can you maximize your ability to have productive interactions with others.
The Workplace profile is the basic profile in the suite of assessments (there are separate profiles for Sales, Management and Leaders); the information from it can be used in many areas of one's life. I believe that it offers the individual a greater understanding of how they operate, offers suggestions on using your strengths and perhaps most beneficial is the part of the report that indicates how you (with your style of communicating) will best get along with individuals with different communication styles than your own.
After completion of the questions (which takes about 20 minutes) a 20 page report is generated that provides a tremendous amount of information. This report includes some basic information about the four main styles (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness) discusses your style in greater detail, shows strengths and weaknesses of your style, how your style interacts with other styles, and much more!

Having used the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator I feel that the Everything DiSC® Workplace profile is a more useful profile, has at least as much depth but presents it in a less complex manner. Both the MBTI and the DiSC profiles have a unique purpose, however I see the DiSC as having a more immediate upside by increasing your productivity and communication skills through providing the information it does.
Here is a link to a sample profile report

If you want to take advantage of this price you need to click through this blog post!
If you want to purchase other Inscape products please see www.whatsyourdisc.com

Everything DiSC® - our new endeavor

Carolina Life Coaching is now an authorized Inscape Publishing distributor for all DiSC® products (and several other products).
DiSC® is an assessment tool that looks at how you interact with the world and provides an informative 20 page report that will help you to improve your interactions with others. That is a VERY simple description, way too simple but its a start. Here's a bit more http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DISC_assessment
Further information can be found here www.whatsyourdisc.com
That site is under construction but will be updated every other day until completed.

I am super excited to integrate this tool into my coaching and training as I have been extremely impressed with the results of the profiles I seen.
Individuals can start with the Everything Workplace DiSC® or one of the targeted profiles such as Everything Workplace DiSC® Management, Everything Workplace DiSC® Sales, or Everything Workplace DiSC® Work of Leaders.
The profiles work wonderfully when used with groups and facilitated to help individuals to better understand how to communicate more efficiently with their group members.
I want to keep this entry short and sweet so will leave it here for now. But in time I will dedicate space here to provide additional information.

Please visit www.whatsyourdisc.com and send an email or call to find out more.

Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning our home typically means doing a complete top to bottom clean including all the things we don't normally do.

Where does one start? How do I find the time? What about motivation? How many cleaning products to I need? Some of those are pricey, how can I keep costs down? I HATE cleaning! Why do it, it will be a mess soon enough!

Not knowing where to start is probably the biggest barrier to actually starting. I recommend setting a date and time that you WILL start and in the room you feel best prepared to conquer. For some of us that might be the room that needs it the most and for others it may be the room that needs it the least.

Or you may start with a specific task. Cleaning baseboards or dusting picture frames or sorting through the coat closet. I am reminded of a line from the movie The Patriot – "aim small, miss small"

Create a very specific target – and you have a much better chance of hitting it.

I am going to deep clean the entire house! I am going to organize the linen closet.

Which is more manageable? Which is less daunting? Which are you more likely to complete?

This chart may help you determine your start point. List the tasks that you want to achieve in the appropriate boxes. Then start with the Urgent box.

PRIORITIES
Urgent:	Important:
Can wait:	Unlikely:

So…………..Pick a start time , pick a start location and pick a task - then schedule it!

Decide how much time you are going to spend on any given day on your spring cleaning? Are you going to try and tackle it all or are you going to go room by room? Task by task?

Most of us will be trying to find the time to do this extra deep clean and therefore can't get lost in the process. A few may be in a position to start on a Saturday morning and work right through, my hat is off to those you who can do that! For the rest of us look at your schedule and literally pencil in time to clean. Try to accomplish three tasks each time you clean.

Scheduling appointments for the mundane, for fun and for stuff we keep saying we want to do but don't do, is a common recommendation from me. If we put an appointment on our calendar you are much more likely to make sure it happens.

How often will you ignore an appointment that is on your calendar? I hope not too often!!

Back to the cleaning….

Get everyone involved

Recruit family members……………all of them that reside in the home. There is no reason that Spring Cleaning should fall on one set of shoulders, ask the kids to clean their room, organize their dresser and closets, go through their toys and consider giving some to a charity. Sure you may have to review what they have done but they are capable of the first pass!

Same goes for your spouse or partner – I ask my husband to start with the garage since that contains mostly his stuff.

Another tip is to set an egg timer for 15 minutes and spend those 15 minutes in a chosen room. Better yet get everyone to spend 15 minutes in a different room. Bit by bit, step by step.

Add a little fun – put music on, have a little competition (who can have the tidiest room, who can have the neatest closet, etc.) order some pizzas! Do something to make it more enjoyable.

Keep track of your progress – make a list of the things that are DONE

We so often have a to- do list but how often do we keep track of the things we've done? It will give you a sense of accomplishment to see how much you have completed.

Consider additional reasons why spring cleaning is a good thing.

It is all well and good to have a wonderfully clean and organized home but that may not be enough motivation for you.

• A clean home can positively impact allergies,
  
• you may find things that need repair before they are a disaster,
  
• you may find plenty to donate to a charity and therefore create a tax deduction,
  
• your kitchen cupboard will be free of crumbs (which can attract ants and other insects) and out of date foods.
  
• A clean frig is less likely to house harmful bacteria.
  
• The clear dryer vent is less likely to cause fire issues.
  
• Less clutter means more living space.
  

I am sure you can think of others.



To recap:

Pick a start time, pick a start location, pick a task - then schedule it!

Get everyone involved, don't try and do it all yourself

Add a little fun; music, take out food, competitions

Keep track of your progress – make a list of the things that are DONE

Consider the additional benefits of spring cleaning

Restart or reboot your New Year's resolutions

We are just over a month into the new year and I wonder how many of you are going strong with your resolutions?
How many have fallen and given up?
And how many are still trying to get started?
Those of you who are going strong, congrats!! You obviously have a successful strategy for achieving your goal and I encourage you to keep on keeping on. Also I recommend considering long term motivational techniques to help keep you going when you feel things slowing down.
I don’t want to slight those of you who are making good progress however I am going to focus on the people that either haven’t gotten started or who slipped up and threw in the towel.
First of all there is approximately 92% of the year left. So there is plenty of time!
Review the goal you originally set: was it really something you wanted to achieve? Or was it something you felt you should achieve due to external pressure? If it isn’t something you really want, choose something you do want to achieve. Then define that goal in positive terms, create a SMART* framework for it, share it with others and reinforce it where and whenever you can. If it is a large goal break it up into smaller steps and acknowledge your successes as you move along
Slip-ups happen, but slip-ups should not equal the end of your resolution. Think of them as a bump in the road or an obstacle, dust yourself off and get back on track!
Re-write your goal(s) if necessary – make them more realistic, tone them down a bit so as to ensure they don’t intimidate you. Then as you achieve this more realistic goal you can create a subsequent one that gets you further along. Repeat as necessary to achieve your ultimate goal!
Create a whole new target (goal, resolution) – start from scratch, perhaps the goalposts have changed.
Make a short-term and/or small resolution –
I am going to reduce my soda/coffee/alcohol intake this week.
I will spend 15 minutes a day relaxing and clearing my mind
I will do something positive for my partner/children/parents/friends each day
Every Sunday morning I will pay my bills
We all get focused on New Year resolutions but there is no reason to limit them to the 1st of January.
Any day is the best day to resolve to lose weight, repair relationships, clean out clutter, volunteer with a charity, become more active, be more patient, …..this list can go on and on.
Choose something, commit to it, make a plan to achieve it and go to it! Every single one of us has it in us to improve ourselves. Believe in yourself.
*SMART = Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timebound

Resolve to be more thankful

I read a short piece the other day that talked about increasing your gratitude. So many of us spend a lot of our energy considering what we don't have or what we aren't and what others aren't.
Instead use that energy to look around you and be grateful for what you have and are.
Say thank you to people that make a difference in your life or who make a simple transaction pleasant. Better yet, right a personal thank you note. Nothing long just a personal message. Make it specific. Send a note of thanks for a gift you may have received during the holidays.

I realized a while back that customer service employees must get a lot of disgruntled customers so I try to keep that in mind when I phone them up. When I get one that is particularly helpful or who makes my transaction/correction/interaction simple and painless, I make a point to say thank you for helping me get a resolution so easily and simply. The reaction I get lets me know that not many people bother to say thanks.

A great read on this topic is by John Kralik, "A Simple Act of Gratitude"

Hey and thanks for reading my blog :)