December 2006

Happy New Year!

We want to wish you a very happy and prosperous new year...

I hope your plans are big for 2007...

And you are ready to achieve all your dreams and goals for the new year...

Happy New Year,

December 29th is Tick Tock Day! Are You Mastering Your Time Management Skills?

Tick tock, tick tock, time marches on as we see the end of 2006 and the beginning of 2007. Are you ready? How well do you management time?

Benjamin Franklin said, "If we take care of the minutes, the years will take care of themselves." One minute. It doesn't seem like much. However, never underestimate the cumulative effect of each minute we live.

Let's suppose, for example, a minute is worth one penny. You see a penny lying on the street but pass it by because it is hardly worth the effort of leaning over to pick it up. But suppose you began to double that penny each day for a month. At the end of a week, you would only have sixty-four pennies. I know that's not much but at the end of a month you would have 536,870,912 pennies. Translated in dollars, that's $5,368,709.12.

The value we place on each minute of every day will have a cumulative impact on the remainder of our lives.

Take the time to improve your time management skills. For additional time management information, go to Time Management.

What is the Secret to Having a Great Conversation?

Watch as Joy shares the secret to a great conversation.

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Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to All!

Wishing you a healthy, wealthy, happy, and safe holiday season.

Make Winter a Powerful Tool for Success

December 22nd is Winter Solace Day. Winter is a wonderful time of the year to "recharge you emotional, mental, and physical batteries." Winter presents a special stillness or quietness that is not present during the rest of the year. Use this wonderful stillness or quietness to connect with your inner self and enjoy more success in life.

The following are seven ways to recharge your batteries and make everyday Winter Solace Day:

1. Wake up one hour earlier each morning, find a quiet place in your house, and take time to...think. You will be amazed with the answers that come to you.

2. Go for a brisk walk. I find it especially peaceful and mentally rejuvenating taking a walk at 8 or 9 p.m. during the winter.

3. Read a challenging, inspirational, or interesting book you normally wouldn't find time to read during the year.

4. Listen to classical, jazz, or new age music to enhance your thinking, writing, or reading.

5. Take time to enjoy an afternoon bath. Soak up the afternoon winter sunlight as you immerse yourself in a warm bath.

6. Take time to learn yoga. Yoga increases your ability to meditate, your ability to breathe correctly, and increase the flow of oxygen to the brain.

1. Take time to write down your accomplishments, blessing, and challenges you have overcome.

Apply just one of the above suggestions and you will enjoy a wonderful life.

Career Advice: Three Secrets to Telling Your Story for Career and Job Success

When was the last time you received a job promotion? You are doing a great job at work but everyone else seems to get the promotion you want. You may even start making excuses as to why you are not getting the career promotions you deserve. Well, I ask you the following question:

The following career advice story will show you how to put your career on the fast track:

Recently, I was facilitating an oceanfront retreat for over two hundred employees of a university. During this session, I had the participants think of something or somebody they appreciate. I then asked for volunteers to share with the group whom or what they appreciate and why this is important to them.

Lonnie volunteered and stood up in front of the group to share his thoughts of appreciation. Lonnie explained that in his job he helps children improve their lives. He mentioned that whatever the lowest pay and title scale was, he was at that level. However, he said that was all right because of the joy he received from helping the children. You could hear and sense the passion in his words as he shared his experiences with the audience.

About a month later, Lonnie was in another workshop I was facilitating, and he asked to speak with me before the start of the session. I could see the excitement in his eyes as he explained what had happened to him since the oceanfront retreat. One week after sharing his story at the retreat, he received a call from the Office of Academic Affairs. Someone of influence, who was impressed with Lonnie's speech and the way he told his story that day, wanted Lonnie to come in for a job interview. Lonnie went to the interview and received the job of Assistant to the Dean of Academic Affairs, with a substantial increase in pay and title. That was a career quantum leap from just a couple of weeks earlier.

Lonnie told his story for career success. Like so many of you, you are toiling away in your careers everyday and making a difference for your organization. But if no one knows about your successes, your passions, and your ideas, you will not achieve job and career success.

The following are three secrets to putting you on the fast track to career and job advancement:

1. It's Not What You Know... - I'm sure you have heard the old saying, "It's not what you know, it's who you know," when talking about getting ahead in life. Well, in this new age of information and self responsibility, I am declaring that this saying is dead. Instead, I always say the following:
   
   

   "It's not what you know. It's not who you know. It's who knows what you know that creates success for you."

   
   There are people doing a great job everyday. There are people everyday that know people of influence. Yet, unless these people of influence know what you know (your skills, your knowledge, your ideas), you won't be put in a position for success. Lonnie, during his two-minute presentation, let people of influence know that he was passionate about helping children at his job and he was willing to do it for little compensation. That's a powerful message. It moved people to help him and make him a part of their team.

2. Prepare Yourself for Powerful Story Telling - When the opportunity comes to tell your story, will you be prepared? Lonnie was prepared and made the most of his opportunity. However, I have seen many opportunities vanish for a person to tell his/her story because of the fear of speaking in front of a group or in a meeting. Whether it's in a job interview, monthly meeting, or at a conference, have the confidence to tell your story. You may never get another opportunity to do so. Have the courage to work on your presentation skills. There are various resources for improving your presentation skills. You can take a class, join Toastmasters, or hire a presentation skills coach.
   
   Also, outline what you will tell in your story. Think of your successes and how you achieved those successes. Thinks of the challenges you faced and how you overcame them. Express the joy you felt while achieving your goals. Relate how your activities helped you develop your skills, your creativity, and your determination. Let your passion show in your story.

3. Create Opportunities to Tell Your Story - When Lonnie volunteered, he created an opportunity to tell his story. How can you create opportunities to tell your story? You can volunteer for job-related assignments and give reports during management briefings. You can be active in workshops or seminars and tell your story among a variety of people that normally might not be exposed to your story. Join various associations and groups and tell your story. This is a great way to network among people who are active in their industries. Contribute your story to your in-house publication, local newspaper, or magazine. Create a blog or website and tell your story. The more you tell your story to a wide variety of people, the greater the opportunity to increase your success.

Apply these powerful career advice secrets and put your career advancement on the fast track. Tell your story and others will sit up and take notice.

Extraordinary Work Team Recognition Day!

Today is "Extraordinary Work Team Recognition Day!" I had a client appointment at 7:30 a.m. this morning and her number one concern was how to implement an employee recognition program to motivate her employees.

Whether it is first thing in the morning or late at night, great organizations realize that employee motivation and recognition is at the top of the list when it comes to organization success. The benefits of motivated employees are the following:

• Increased motivation

• Increased employee satisfaction

• Increased profit margin

• Increased customer satisfaction

Those are just some of the benefits of recognizing your employees for extraordinary work. Take the time today to recognize to motivate your team. For ideas to recognize to motivate your team, go to the following link:

Recognize Your Employee