One of my closest friends recently sent an email to some of her closest friends about the difficulty she had dealing with a temporary change of work stations at her job. The change came suddenly and unexpectedly due to some IT issues. My friend was open and honest about how the necessity to uproot was very disruptive to her and nearly caused a panic attack, though everything worked out well.
I replied to the email and later on my dear friend and I talked about how change can impact our lives in a phone conversation. We shared some thoughts and she gave me a very high compliment when she told me how she admired how I handled big changes in my life. She brought up how, during one span of five years or so, I had several different jobs while she still worked at the same place. I appreciated the compliment and let her know that those changes in job or career didn't always come about by choice. I was never asked to leave any of those jobs I had, but something was going on that told me I needed to move on, and I did.
The key to handle major changes in your life, be they professional, financial, or social, is to accept the fact that the change happened. After that, it is a simple matter of figuring out the best way to move on and move forward. All change isn't good, yet all change brings with it some type of opportunity to make yourself better.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
KEEP AN EYE ON THE CLOCK
I enjoy playing video games. I play them for fun, to relax, as well as to get my strategic and productive juices flowing. My favorite games to play are the sports games, primarily football and basketball because though the rule of the game stay the same, you control the dynamics of the team, including who is on your team and how your team meets challenges they face.
While playing these video games, there are times when I allow my mind to drift and I only pay attention to the plays on the field or on the court. By doing this, I may end up missing out on a great opportunity to score because I run out of time. I'm not talking about time running out for the game, I'm talking about time running out in a quarter or in a half. When this happens, I only find out after the fact and there's no going back.
If I stay focused on the game and also constantly keep myself aware of the time I have left on the clock, I can adjust my strategy properly to make the best use of the time available to me.
Apply this lesson to real-life issues. Whether working from home or in an office, whether playing on a team or playing a video game, we all have clock we have to keep track of because we all have deadlines and due dates for important matters in our lives. Keeping an eye on the clock will help you be a more aware and more responsible person.
While playing these video games, there are times when I allow my mind to drift and I only pay attention to the plays on the field or on the court. By doing this, I may end up missing out on a great opportunity to score because I run out of time. I'm not talking about time running out for the game, I'm talking about time running out in a quarter or in a half. When this happens, I only find out after the fact and there's no going back.
If I stay focused on the game and also constantly keep myself aware of the time I have left on the clock, I can adjust my strategy properly to make the best use of the time available to me.
Apply this lesson to real-life issues. Whether working from home or in an office, whether playing on a team or playing a video game, we all have clock we have to keep track of because we all have deadlines and due dates for important matters in our lives. Keeping an eye on the clock will help you be a more aware and more responsible person.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
DON'T GET MAD, GET GLAD!
As a kid, I can remember commercials for Glad plastic bags. "The Man from Glad" character was super-cool. I also remember a catchy slogan from some other Glad commercials that said, "Don't get mad, get Glad." The story behind the slogan was that instead of getting upset that your cheap plastic bags didn't hold your food properly, you could use Glad plastic bags, and your items would stay securely in place.
This lesson hit me hard, this week, as I canceled two services I subscribed to. With one, I had been a loyal customer for over two years. The reason I canceled the subscriptions is because I didn't think I was getting what I felt was my money's worth from them. I also discovered that I could subscribe to another service, where I wouldn't get the exact same thing, but I would get a much better value for a much smaller monthly charge.
At first, I was really upset with myself, thinking of all the money I wasted on the other services and how I could have used that money for other things, or better yet, how I could have just saved that money. But then it came to me that I got what I perceived to be a great value from those services for the time I had them. I used both services to help me with my personal development and I received great customer service while I had them. Now, I have a new subscription to something that serves my immediate and future needs much better for a much lower price.
The most important lesson learned: Instead of continuously kicking yourself for a mistake you made or lapse in judgment you had, praise yourself for taking control, ridding yourself of what's not working for you, and putting yourself in a more promising situation so that you don't make those same mistakes, again.
This lesson hit me hard, this week, as I canceled two services I subscribed to. With one, I had been a loyal customer for over two years. The reason I canceled the subscriptions is because I didn't think I was getting what I felt was my money's worth from them. I also discovered that I could subscribe to another service, where I wouldn't get the exact same thing, but I would get a much better value for a much smaller monthly charge.
At first, I was really upset with myself, thinking of all the money I wasted on the other services and how I could have used that money for other things, or better yet, how I could have just saved that money. But then it came to me that I got what I perceived to be a great value from those services for the time I had them. I used both services to help me with my personal development and I received great customer service while I had them. Now, I have a new subscription to something that serves my immediate and future needs much better for a much lower price.
The most important lesson learned: Instead of continuously kicking yourself for a mistake you made or lapse in judgment you had, praise yourself for taking control, ridding yourself of what's not working for you, and putting yourself in a more promising situation so that you don't make those same mistakes, again.
Monday, May 10, 2010
THERE'S ALWAYS A PRICE
I'm sure you've heard the expression, "You get what you pay for," many, many times. Well, it is true.
If you reverse that thought, it is also very true. You pay for what you get. Even if you don't do something that would bring about a desired result, say you don't study properly for an exam; you are paying a price for that. The price could be earning a high grade. The price could be just passing the test. But those are the types of "fees" you will by charged by electing to do something else with your time and not doing what you know you needed to do.
I was very proud of myself for getting all of my online students' mid-term grades posted 12 hours before the deadline professors were given. What is most important to remember with that accomplishment is that in order to do that, I had to sacrifice and miss out on doing some other things and while I was grading, commenting and posting, I couldn't allow myself to get distracted.
It's not enough to know what you want. You have to also decide what you're willing to do, as well as give up, to accomplish it.
If you reverse that thought, it is also very true. You pay for what you get. Even if you don't do something that would bring about a desired result, say you don't study properly for an exam; you are paying a price for that. The price could be earning a high grade. The price could be just passing the test. But those are the types of "fees" you will by charged by electing to do something else with your time and not doing what you know you needed to do.
I was very proud of myself for getting all of my online students' mid-term grades posted 12 hours before the deadline professors were given. What is most important to remember with that accomplishment is that in order to do that, I had to sacrifice and miss out on doing some other things and while I was grading, commenting and posting, I couldn't allow myself to get distracted.
It's not enough to know what you want. You have to also decide what you're willing to do, as well as give up, to accomplish it.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
FOCUS
I just started a new book called "The Power of Focus," by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Les Hewitt. So far, the book is great.
Do you ever stop and really think about where your focus is? From the time you wake up in the morning to the time you lay your head on your pillow, you are focusing on something or someone. It's unrealistic to think that all of your thoughts can be positive or that you can stay totally focused and never get distracted each day. However, you can do your best to focus on what is most important to you. You can train yourself develop productive habits that keep you in line with what you are striving to achieve.
I developed a new personal policy that helps me immensely with my focus. When I am working on activities for my profession, I only allow emergencies to take me away from completing what I am working on at the time. Not only does that put the necessary action into getting my tasks completed, it also sends a message to others that I won't tolerate interruptions during my work time. After all, there are times when they don't want to be disturbed, and their time is no more important to them than my time is important to me.
Do you ever stop and really think about where your focus is? From the time you wake up in the morning to the time you lay your head on your pillow, you are focusing on something or someone. It's unrealistic to think that all of your thoughts can be positive or that you can stay totally focused and never get distracted each day. However, you can do your best to focus on what is most important to you. You can train yourself develop productive habits that keep you in line with what you are striving to achieve.
I developed a new personal policy that helps me immensely with my focus. When I am working on activities for my profession, I only allow emergencies to take me away from completing what I am working on at the time. Not only does that put the necessary action into getting my tasks completed, it also sends a message to others that I won't tolerate interruptions during my work time. After all, there are times when they don't want to be disturbed, and their time is no more important to them than my time is important to me.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
EXCELLENCE
A thought hit me, today, and I’m giving myself credit for it because I don’t remember hearing it anywhere else. Here it is: Excellence is its own reward.
Excellence is a topic that almost everybody can relate to because we all can think of someone that we think is or was excellent at what he or she does or did. We can also think of a product, service, result, activity, or thing that we believe is excellent.
But when it comes to ourselves, how many areas of our lives would we rate as excellent? How much of what we do or provide would we say is excellent? It is true that nobody is perfect, yet we can always strive for excellence in something. By attempting to do or be the best you are able, you have already rewarded yourself by the fact that you gave it your all.
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