The Sykes Group's OnPoint

Success Lessons I Learned on the Way to NCAA Championship Game!

If you are a basketball fan like I am, then you have given up all your worldly goods other then your television set, and have been watching the NCAA Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, otherwise known as "March Madness." The best college basketball teams in the United States compete to play in the men's and women's NCCA Championship Game. The winner of that men's NCAA Championship Game played tonight and the women's NCCA Championship Games are declared the 2008 NCAA Men's and Women's Basketball Champions, respectively, and receives all the glory with this very special win.

As I watch NCAA basketball tournaments, I realized that the teams exhibited many success techniques that can easily be applied to your business, your career, and your life. The following are many of the success techniques you can use by watching the NCAA Championship Games tonight and tomorrow:

• Develop a Powerful Mission Statement for Success

• Visualize Your Goals for Success

• Create Passion for Success

• Practice, Practice, Practice for Success

• Organize Yourself for Success

• Learn from Every Setback

• Develop a Strong Sense of Team

To learn how to apply these success keys to your business, your career, and your life, go to Success.

You know where I will be tonight and tomorrow. I will be watching the NCAA Championship Games at 9 p.m. EST. May the best teams win!

NCAA+Championship+Game success men's+basketball goal+setting teamwork

March Madness is Here!

March Madness is here! I am not talking about the NCAA Men's College Basketball Tournament. I am talking about the free bonuses offered with our new success e-book, "Jumpstart Your Greatness!"

Find out more about this success system and bonuses at Success.

March+Madness success successful+people Jumpstart+Your+Greatness

Leader Brett Favre's Retires

All-Pro, record breaking quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, Brett Favre, has decided to retire from the National Football League.

He achieved many of his accomplishments by being a great leader. Well, what are the characteristics of a great leader? The following are just some of the leadership traits important to leading people that Brett Favre exhibited:

• Leaders communicate clear goals

• Leaders provide ongoing communicate

• Leaders take adversity and create opportunity

• Leaders are not afraid to make mistakes

• Leaders bounce back up after taking a hit

• Leaders constantly motivate others

• Leaders develop teams

• Leaders inspire people to accomplish more than they realize

We know Brett will enjoy just as much success in his retirement.

Technorati Tags: Leader, leadership, leadership techniques, Brett Favre, Green Bay Packers
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Pay A Compliment Day - Take Time to Appreciate Someone

What's the greatest investment you can make at work or in life? What is the one investment that doesn't cost you anything, yet you receive enormous benefits from it? What can you do to motivate a person to achieve a new level of success?

A Sincere Compliment

Take the time today, "Pay a Compliment Day," and everyday to "find something good" that an employee, a family member, a friend doing and compliment them on it. It may be the first time the person you are complimenting may ever have been complimented. On account of that special moment, you can make a real difference in their life.

For information on how to give a sincere compliment and praise someone, go to Appreciation.

Martin Luther King Jr. Motivating Millions with the "I Have a Dream" Speech

January 21st is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the United States. His "I Have a Dream" speech motivated millions to dream and take action to make the United States a better place.

Many of my presentation coaching students think that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave that speech for the first time on the Washington Mall. My students are surprised to learn that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had been practicing by giving different variations of that speech for over a year. He consistently made changes until the speech became the masterpiece that changed the world.

Great presentations start with great preparation! Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: presentation skills, motivator, motivational speaker, Dr. Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King Day, "I Have a Dream"

Extraordinary Work Team Recognition Day: Take Time to Appreciate to Motivate Your Employees!

Today is Extraordinary Work Team Recognition Day! First, let me say, you should as a motivator always "invest" in the time to appreciate and motivate your team. I use the word "invest" because it is an investment in the overall performance and success of your team. By taking the time to show appreciation for a job well done, you motivate your team to go to the next level of success. Sam Walton said the following:

"Outstanding leaders go out of the way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it's amazing what they can accomplish."

I challenge you to always find the time to appreciate to motivate your employees in a timely and meaningful manner. The following link will provide you with vast motivation resources to help you start today:

Employee Motivation and Appreciation Resources

employee+motivation employee+recognition employee+appreciation team+building teambuilding

The Secret to Living Your Dreams: Five Success Techniques to Achieving More Success in Your Life!

How many times in our lives have we said the following?

If I had more time, I would have acted on my dream...
If I didn't need this job, I would have pursued my dream of...
If only I had (you fill in the blank) ten years ago, I would have achieved my dream of...

I am sure you can add a dozen more "If I" dream statements. There are people going through life everyday working at jobs they hate, in situations they tolerate, and living a life that they disown because they settled for an "If I" mindset.

What is the secret between the person who is achieving his/her dream life and the person who is just wishing for a dream life? The following are five techniques for living your dream and achieving more in life:

1. Understand Your Options and Live Your Dreams
   We have options in our life. Do we follow the road everyone else is taking or do we travel the road less traveled to achieve our dreams? We have the option to look at life's challenges as a way to find creative solutions or to look at challenges as a negative barrier to achieving one's dreams. Take the positive option to develop yourself and achieve your dreams.

2. Fight Your Fears and Live Your Dreams
   Most fears we constantly think about and which sometimes paralyze us never happen. Yet we will spend 75-90% of our thoughts on our fears. F-E-A-R is nothing more than False Evidence Appearing Real. Get the facts and act accordingly. Let's "flip our mental script" and concentrate on the upside of any situation so that we can concentrate on achieving our dreams. Fight though your fears and build your courage to live your dreams.

3. Concentrate on Your Goals and Live Your Dreams
   If you are not living your dream, you are living someone else's dream. How do you make your dreams come true? Create and concentrate on your goals to achieving your dreams. Start with your main goal and then break this goal down into smaller pieces so that you can digest and act on these goals. Most importantly, write down your goals and keep them in a place where you can see and read them any time of the day. This is important because there will be times you will feel you are not achieving your goals and will need a "dream booster shot" to keep you motivated toward achieving your goals.

4. Eliminate Barriers to Living Your Dreams
   You need to eliminate barriers to living your dreams. This could be eliminating expenses, gaining knowledge, or gaining the technology for living your dreams. One of the biggest barriers to eliminate could be very close to you. This barrier to living your dreams could be your family, your friends, and your co-workers who create reasons why you shouldn't live your dreams. They may not even realize they are a barrier to your dreams by their words or actions.
   
   Some people are living in their own misery and want you to give up your dreams and join them in their misery. Remember, some people may not have high expectations for themselves, much less for you. So when you express your lofty dreams, they will look and speak to you expressing their low expectations for you. Break away from them and their misery so that you can live your dreams. Bond with people of like mind so that you can form a synergy and have a positive group of people who are helping each other and moving toward their goals and living their dreams.

5. Act on Your Dreams!
   Your dream will be just that...a dream unless you act on it. An amazing thing happens when you keep acting on your dreams. You will keep growing stronger and will become better prepared to achieve even more in life.

Take the time to apply these five techniques for living your dreams and you, too, will achieve more in life.

dreams dream the+secret self-help

The Secret to Living Your Dreams and Achieving Your Goals!

The secret to living your dreams? Do what you fear most. Watch this very inspirational video, focus on your goals, and achieve your dreams!

living+your+dreams the+secret goal+setting self+improvement self+help

Develop an Attitude of Gratitude! Show Your Gratitude on World Gratitude Day!

Take the time today to develop an attitude of gratitude. Take the time to do it not because you want to keep score, because it is the right time to do. Take the time to show your appreciation to someone in your life: your family, your friends, your co-workers. You will never know what a difference it could make in someone's life when you take the time to say "thank you," "job well done," or "I appreciate you and everything you do."

Don't want till tomorrow or next year, do it today and make a difference in someone's life.

World+Gratitude+Day Appreciation Gratitude Attitude+of+Gratitude Appreciate

Are You Building Your Foundation of Success: Six Secrets of Motivating Yourself for Success

Are you creating your foundation of success? Are you motivated to take on challenges that others are not willing to do? The following is a story of someone who did and achieved great success in his life and how you can, too!

There once was a young man who grew up in Crawford, Mississippi. His father worked as a brick mason building home foundations. Everyday after school and during the summers, this young man would help his father build foundations. It's not the most glamorous job by any stretch of the imagination, but it's an honest, backbreaking, and low paying job that put food on the table and paid the bills. The father would start by throwing bricks towards the son in the area where they would build a housing foundation. Under the hot, sweltering Mississippi sun, his son would catch brick after brick with his hands, day after day. While most other kids were enjoying their summers or working in less strenuous jobs, this young man was motivated to work long and hard with his father, while catching those bricks and building a foundation for success in more ways than one.

You see, each time that young man caught bricks, he was not only making his hands stronger, he was building character and the foundation for success in his later years. With each brick he caught, he was even more determined to be successful in life. When he wasn't helping his father and going to school, he was pushing himself through football workouts to be better than any other football player. You see the young man's name is Jerry Rice, and he went on to become the most successful NFL All-Pro wide receiver of all time with the San Francisco 49ers. Some of you non-football fans may know him as a contestant from the television program, "Dancing with the Stars."

The following are the six success secrets that Jerry Rice used that can easily motivate you to achieve success in any aspect of your business, career, and life:

1. Motivate Yourself to See Opportunities in Every Challenge
   Jerry could have looked at the job of catching bricks as a chore that was a waste of his time. But he saw the big picture and made the chore more enjoyable by developing games out of the activities. Many times in life, we are thrown bricks and complain and miss the opportunity it presents to us. The person who can find solutions in the challenges they are faced with can write their own ticket for success. When you take on a challenge, it's preparing you for an opportunity in the future. You may not know when the opportunity is coming, how it is coming, or what the opportunity will look like, but it is coming; and will you be prepared? Embrace your challenges so you will be prepared.

2. Motivate Yourself to See That It's Normal to Experience a Little Pain
   As Jerry was experiencing the pain of catching bricks each day, this pain was actually building him to becoming a stronger person. Each brick was fueling Jerry's internal desire to be successful. Think of some situation at work, in business, or in life that was painful. Your pain may be an embarrassing moment, it may be a learning experience, and it may be a setback. How can you use this setback to motivate you to become more successful? We achieve success in our businesses, careers, and life when we develop the success tools of using our "pains" as a learning experience and a springboard to success.

3. Motivate Yourself to Take on Unpopular Tasks
   Catching bricks all day is not the most glamorous job in the world. Many times we are thrown bricks in life and avoid them like the plague. Volunteer to catch these bricks while others decline. This will allow people of influence to see your special skills and offer you opportunities for success. It is what I always say, "It's not what you know, it's not who you know, it's who knows what you know." When you volunteer to catch those bricks, you allow others to now know and see the special skills and talent you exhibit.

4. Motivate Yourself To Take Action
   Just the simple act of taking action will make you more successful than 98% of other people. Many times people are waiting for "just the right moment" or "more resources." Motivate yourself to take action where you are at today and make the appropriate corrections as needed.

5. Motivate Yourself to Go the Extra Mile
   Jerry Rice's off-season personal football workouts were legendary. He would train six days a week running five miles, along with running wind sprints up the steepest mountains in his community. He didn't need to do this grueling workout, but he wanted to be in better physical shape than any other professional football player. He went the extra mile to be the best.
   
   What are you doing to go the extra mile? Do you have a continuous learning program in place? Do you give of yourself to make your employees better? Do you give your clients something extra to show appreciation of their business? These are all opportunities to put you above the rest and to succeed in your business, in your career, and in your life.

6. Motivate Yourself to Create a Masterpiece
   Jerry Rice wanted to be the best professional wide receiver ever in football, and he achieved that title. He was motivated to pay the price to achieve that goal.
   
   Are you motivated and ready to create a masterpiece? Do you have a vision of what your business, career, or life masterpiece looks, feels, or sounds like? Are you willing to sustain the quality effort, attitude, and determination to create your masterpiece? What are you willing to give up in order to achieve your masterpiece? Until you are ready to answer these questions, you can't lay the foundation for achieving your masterpiece.
   
   After you answer the above questions, create S-M-A-R-T-E-R goals as your roadmap for success. If it's not on paper, your goals don't exist. Be motivated to create, write, and act on your goals.

Follow these six success secrets and you, too, will be motivated to lay the foundation for your success.

motivation motivate bricks+of+success foundation+of+success success motivate+yourself

Get Motivated to Live Your Passions!

Today is Dance like a Chicken Day! How many times have you wanted to "cut loose" and just dance like a chicken without a care in the world? Most of the time in life we are told what not to do and that only staying between the lines is right, and you can do that if you wish. But, I say to dance like a chicken. Every time I dance, my daughter covers her eyes, puts her hand up, and pleads with me to stop dancing like a tormented chicken. But, it doesn't actually need to be a "dance." You can do anything you have passion about just because it feels good.

Passion Motivation Motivated Self+Improvement Self+Help Dance+Like+a+Chicken+Day

Employee Motivation, Don Imus, and: Team Building: Five Secrets to Creating Successful, Motivated Teams

Don Imus, a shock jock (someone who shocks their listening audience by saying outrageous statements), was fired from his jobs on WCBS radio and MSNBC television for crossing the line of decency and making racist and sexist remarks regarding the Rutgers University women's basketball team. From a team building and employee motivational point of view, there are tidbits of motivational wisdom to be learned from this situation.

First, let me ask you, how many "Don Imuses" do you have in your organization, your team, or your department? You know what I mean, the employees, whether they are women or male employees, who continuously cross the line when it comes to behavior; perhaps being overbearing or the bully at work. They make insensitive comments without respect for other people's feelings, and then say the following when you discuss their conduct:

Yet, they proceed to exhibit this inappropriate behavior. Because of this "Don Imus" behavior, productivity decreases, employees are less motivated, transfers and personnel issues increase, and soon you stop accomplishing your goals. Bottom line is that these kinds of people can tear apart your organization and team with their words or behavior.

The following are five secrets to handling the "Don Imuses" on your team so that you keep employee motivation high, build a strong, self-directed team, and achieve a higher level of organizational success:

1. Live Your Mission - When you continuously communicate and act upon the organization's mission, values, and goals, your employees will be motivated to live the mission and maintain a high standard of behavior and productivity. This communication must start at the top and be communicated and acted upon at every level at every opportunity.
   
   One of your organization's top values should be--respect. When you allow an employee to disrespect other team members through words or actions, you are not living your organization's mission, which will lead to organizational and team turmoil, productivity issues, and possible harassment issues.
   
   We know when working with top organizations, the more organizational values are communicated and reinforced, the more success the organization will achieve. This creates a motivated work environment and rewards employees based on the mission.

2. Be Consistent - Whenever you observe this bad behavior, you must address it each and every time. Many times I will hear managers say, "Well, they just said it once" or "It will go away eventually." Well, it doesn't go away. By not addressing this inappropriate conduct each and every time, you enable or empower the individual expressing this behavior. Your "Don Imus" person is thinking, "Well, no one said anything, so it must be acceptable," or "If I can get away with this, then let me overstep the boundaries even further." All the while the other employees, who are conducting themselves in a positive manner, are less motivated to produce. They will retreat to a safe environment where they won't need to communicate with this person and communication fundamental to a successful work environment ceases.
   
   Be consistent each and every time! Have the courage to conduct a private coaching session with the "Don Imus" personality and explain what is acceptable communication and behavior each and every time. Explain in detail what the reward for good employee behavior is and the penalty for continued bad employee behavior.

3. Remember That Words Hurt - "Sticks and Stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me" is the phrase many of us heard growing up. Well, words do hurt. The best advertising copywriters, political experts, speech writers, and screen writers are paid millions of dollars to create emotions with words so that we are persuaded to act in certain and various ways.
   
   Realize that once we say something that is hurtful or can alienate our fellow employees, we can never take it back. Or, as the old expression goes, "It's hard to get the horses back in the barn once the door is opened."
   
   

   We should all be careful with the words we use. You might ask yourself the following:

   Is my language positive or motivating toward my fellow employees?
   Am I showing respect toward my team members with the words I use?
   Do the jokes I use uplift or motivate or tear down and de-motivate my team members?
   
   
   Note: Always use honest communication that respects the recipient of your message. When you are "frank" (Let me be frank with you...), this means you are giving an opinion at the expense of the person receiving your "frankness." Let's leave "frank" out of our conversation and be more honest and respectful.

4. Motivate Towards Good Behavior - Always encourage positive, motivating behavior and recognize good behavior whenever you can. Recognize the person(s) exhibiting positive behavior in team meetings, a memo, or letter from the vice president, etc.
   
   Most of all, your employees will emulate the behavior you show. Always be on your best motivating, respectful, and positive behavior. When it comes to behavior as a manager, you receive what you send out.

5. Be Prepared to Take Corrective Action - If you have a meeting and/or coaching with the employees that are exhibiting the "Don Imus" behavior and they choose to continue with their inappropriate behavior, it's time to take action. Make sure that you, as the supervisor or manager, document, document, and document all discussions relating to this unacceptable behavior. Confer with human resources to receive expert advice on the next steps in the corrective action procedure. Remember, you are never alone when dealing with this kind of employee. Then start implementing the corrective action and follow-up to ensure there is a positive change in behavior. Be timely in your follow-ups so that there is no lapse in time between the next situation of unacceptable behavior and the next level of corrective action. Also, immediately motivate and reinforce positive behavior changes.
   
   Remember, if you show you are quick to take action for unacceptable behavior, this sends a message to your team members that you respect them as employees, individuals, and team members; and they will be far more motivated because of your actions.

Apply the above five employee motivational secrets and eliminate the "Don Imus" personalities from your team, and you will create a motivated workplace that achieves team and organizational goals.

motivation motivate employees motivate team employee motivation team building Don Imus

We are Hokies, We Are Virginia Tech!

Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia has declared that we observe a moment of silent and a statewide day of mourning for the fallen students of Virginia Tech University. As I understand it, many other states are joining Virginia in the moment of silent. Even though I am a Blackbird (Long Island University), since this tragic happened, I am a Hokie.

We went to the gym early this morning and many people were wearing the Hokie colors. Afterward, we went to the supermarket and the grocery bagger was wearing a Hokie t-shirt that read "Hokie Hope."

Hope is the common theme of today and every day going forward. We hope and pray that the families, friends, and community will find the strength to overcome the tragic loss of loved ones. We hope that our freedom to live life will not be eliminated the act of one troubled soul. We hope the heroic stories are not forgotten. We hope that we will learn from this tragic situation so that we become a better, stronger society by taking the time to help all those who are weak and in need of help.

The following was written and read by Poet Emeritus and Distinguished Professor of English Nikki Giovanni at the convocation held the day following the tragedy at Virginia Tech:

We Are Virginia Tech

We are Virginia Tech
We are sad today
And we will be sad for quite a while
We are not moving on
We are embracing our mourning
We are Virginia Tech
We are strong enough to stand tall fearlessly
We are brave enough to bend to cry ...
And sad enough to know we must laugh again
We are Virginia Tech
We do not understand this tragedy
We know we did nothing to deserve it
But neither does a child in Africa dying of aids
Neither do the invisible children walking the night away to avoid being captured by a rogue army
Neither does the baby elephant watching his community being devastated for ivory
Neither does the Mexican child looking for fresh water
Neither does the Appalachian infant killed in the middle of night in his crib in the home its father built with his own hands being run over by a boulder because the land was destablized
No one deserves a tragedy
We are Virginia Tech
The Hokie nation embraces our own and reaches out with open heart and hands to those who offer their hearts and minds
We are strong and brave and innocent and unafraid
We are better than we think
and not quite what we want to be
We are alive to the imagination and the possibility
We will continue to invent the future
Through our blood and tears
Through all this sadness
We are the Hokies
We will prevail
We will prevail
We will prevail
We are Virginia Tech

We are Hokies, We are Virginia Tech!

Virginia+Tech+Day+of+Mourning Governor+Tim+Kaine Virginia+Tech Nikki+Giovanni overcoming+adversity

How is Your Friday the 13th?

How is your Friday the 13th? Is it like the movie with the character Jason? Is it one of your best days ever? Is it somewhere in between?

The fear of Friday the 13th is called Paraskevidekatriaphobia. I now have a fear of pronouncing that word. There may be as many as 21 millions Americans inflicted with Paraskevidekatriaphobia.

Simply amazing how so many people allow a day of month to determine whether they have a bad day or great day. So I challenge you to blast through your fear of Friday the 13th and always make it a great day.

Create a Great Friday the 13th!

Positive+Attitude Friday+the+13th

Today is Empowered Women Entrepreneurs Day!

Today is Empowered Women Entrepreneurs Day!

More and more women are gaining the knowledge and resources and becoming entrepreneurs. This enables them to be empowered, take action, and embrace new opportunities in their lives.

I would like to recognize my partner, Joy, and especially my sister, Cheryl for being empowered entrepreneurs. Cheryl recently had her second baby. Her husband is disabled because of an unfortunate job related accident. Instead of sitting back and accepting her situation, she researched different entrepreneurial opportunities, and started a striving eBay business with enough income to live comfortably.

Obtain the knowledge, take the action, make opportunities happen, and be empowered for more success in your lives!

For additional resources, go to Empowered Women

Empowered+Women+Entrepreneurs success opportunity

Motivation, PBS, a Big Thumb, and Clifford the Big Red Dog

Joy and I were recently invited to tape a Public Broadcast Service (PBS) television segment about interesting people making a different in society. Well, to say the least, we were honored, excited, and motivated about the opportunity.

We drove up to the television studio, I opened the back door to the retrieve my bag and bam; I closed the car door on my thumb (See my thumb to the left). Joy eyes exploded with fear as she covered her mouth to keep from screaming. I calmly opened the car door and reassured Joy that the thumb was not broken and all I needed was some ice to control the swelling. You see, I was motivated and wasn't going to let a big thumb get in the way of an opportunity.

By the time we arrived at the television studio, which was unusually hot, my thumb was throbbing with pain and I was dizzy from the heat. I forgot about the pain and the dizziness once they said we were able to tape the segment. As they say, "The show must go on."

The taping was a success and I couldn't wait to put the ice back on my thumb. Joy asked the our contact when the segment would show. She mentioned that the segment would show in late April after "Clifford the Big Red Dog." At that time, I didn't know who "Clifford the Big Red Dog" was, but Joy quickly let me know that everyone knows Clifford and what cave was I living in not to know of Clifford.

We will keep you posted when the video when it is available. I need to go now to take care of the big thumb.

motivation, motivated, PBS, Clifford the Big Red Dog

Happy Smile Rejuvenation Day!

I just finished facilitating an exciting employee motivation program with a group of supervisors and managers. During one of the exercises, the group agreed that as supervisors and managers, they needed to set the tone for a motivated workplace. They discussed one way to set the tone is to have a pleasing smile when interacting with their employees.

How many of you have felt motivated to work first thing in the morning and you see your supervisor or manager walk into the office looking like the picture to the left. Are you still motivated? Are you distracted from producing your best work? Are you wondering, "What's going to happen next?"

Wouldn't you rather walk in an environment that looks like the picture to the right? Remember, as supervisors, managers, and leaders, we set the tone for the work environment. If you want a motivated work environment, it starts at the top.

So rejuvenate your smile and set the tone for the day!

motivation motivating others motivated+employees employee+motivation smile team+motivation

Happy St. Patrick's Day! - Eight Secrets to Creating Your Luck Everyday

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day is associated with having luck as in "the luck of the Irish." Well, you don't have to wait until St. Patrick's day to create your own luck. Everyday has a pot of gold waiting for you. The following are eight secrets to creating your own luck and receiving your pot of gold everyday:

• Expect the best and prepare for the worst

• Develop a pleasing personality

• Seek knowledge and understanding

• Take action and make things happen

• Develop your goals and move toward them and others will help you

• Appreciate every blessing and challenge

• Create balance in your life

• Look at every setback as a learning experience

Apply these secrets in your life and you too will achieve success and everyday find your pot of gold!

Success St.+Patrick's+Day luck Positive+Attitude luck+of+the+Irish Goal+setting

Appreciate to Motivate Your Employees!

Today is Employee Appreciation Day!

Take time today to show your employees how much you appreciate their efforts. It could be as simple as saying "thank you." The following resource will give you the techniques to appreciating your employees so that they become more motivated and become more productive:

Appreciate to Motivate

Employee+Appreciation+Day appreciate+employee appreciate+motivate motivate employee+motivation motivation

Presentation Skills: Seven Presentation Secrets Learned from the Academy Awards

Academy Awards come and go, but one thing is a constant: bad acceptance speeches. You may never win an Academy Award, but you may be asked to give an acceptance speech for an accomplishment in your business, your career, your community, or your organization. Sometimes your acceptance speech will be for what you accomplished, or for what your team has accomplished.

Will you be ready when it is your time to give an acceptance speech?

The following are seven presentation secrets to giving an outstanding acceptance speech in any situation:

1. Prepare For the Moment- You may have heard the Oscar winners say, "I really didn't think I would win," or "I really didn't think I would be standing here tonight," and then give an acceptance speech like they didn't think they would win. Well, my question is, "Why did you think you were invited to this gala event?"
   
   Most likely, you will know ahead of time that you will be possibly winning an award, so take the time to prepare your presentation. Practice your speech using a tape recorder or, better yet, a video camcorder. Also, if you can, give a dress rehearsal of your speech in front of friends, family, or colleagues.

2. Agree Who Will Give the Speech- Time and time during the Academy Awards Ceremony, the first person to the microphone will speak for the full thirty second time limit and not allow the other winners in the group (many seen clutching their own acceptance speech notes) the opportunity to give their acceptance speeches. Where this moment should be one of the happiest moments in their lives, you can see the disappointment on the faces of the winners who didn't have the opportunity to speak.
   
   When you are working as a team on a project and are receiving an award, agree in advance who the acceptance speaker will be. This might be the team leader, the manager, vice president, etc., but work this out before giving the speech.
   
   If you decide on one person to give the speech, then you need to decide on who will be recognized during the time this person gives the presentation. Also, when speaking for the group, make sure the "I's" are changed to "We's." For example, when speaking for the group say, "We would like to acknowledge the following people..." instead of saying, "I would like to acknowledge the following people..." Remember, the designated speaker is representing the group.
   
   If decision is to have several team members speak, achieve consensus on how much time each person will have to speak so that each person has an equal opportunity to express appreciation.

3. Use Notes to Enhance Your Presentation- At the Academy Awards Ceremony, one person read his entire speech from his notes, not once looking at the audience. What he had to say was very heartfelt and sincere; however, his sincerity didn't translate to the audience because his notes were in the way.

   When giving an acceptance speech, use notes as a tool to enhance your presentation and not as a crutch. Only use notes for remembering the opening sentence, important names to thanks, or whatever facts you need to mention. Don't have the entire speech on notes.

   The following are some quick tips for working with notes:

   • Practice with your notes so that your speech is natural.
   • Type your notes. In the heat of the moment and sometimes bad lighting, our eyesight can become a little challenged. Type your notes in 16-18 point fonts.
   • Double space your sentences so that you can easily read your notes.
   • Type only on the top half of a full page so that you are less likely to lose your place after looking up at the audience.
   • Look up at the audience after every two or three sentences to maintain rapport with the audience.
   • Number your notes in case they fall and become scrambled so that you can quickly recover.
   • Practice a smooth transition for pulling your notes out of your pocket or portfolio.
   • Don't flip your notes because the flipping noise will cause a distraction for your audience. Practice sliding your notes.

4. Share the Wealth- How many times have we seen at the Academy Awards ceremony where some persons went on about how they personally achieved the reward or, worst yet, forgot to acknowledge the most important person for whom they would not have achieved the award (Remember Hillary Swank not remembering to thank her husband?).

   Take the time to give appreciation to the organization giving you the award and to those who helped you achieve the award. No person is an island. You achieved the goal through the help of someone(s), so acknowledge and appreciate them. To save time, if it is a few people, acknowledge them by name. If it is a large group of people, department, or organization, mention the group by name. For example, you might say, "I would like to acknowledge the people in marketing for their hard work on the Peterson project for making this moment happen. If it were not for their time and effort, we would not have won the XYZ account. Thank you."

   Also, only thank the necessary people during your acceptance speech. Don't thank Guttenberg for inviting the printing press if he has nothing to do with why you accomplished your achievement. Stay focused on only those people who had a direct effect on your achievement.

5. Let Sincerity Flow Through Your Speech- Let your appreciations come from the heart. Briefly convey your own feelings regarding your appreciation of the award and all that it represents. Be honest and don't over exaggerate your feelings while accepting the award.

   Be clear and concise in your showing of appreciation because you will most likely be under time constraints.

6. Value the Award- Many times during the Academy Awards Ceremony, you will hear the winner of an award say, "I really don't deserve this award," or "I really shouldn't be standing here." When you make statements like that, you devalue the award and recognition given to you. Also you question the judgment of the people who chose you to accept the award. Simply acknowledge their judgment and recognition and continue your speech.

7. Stay Within the Time- At the Academy Awards, the Oscar winners have thirty seconds before the band starts playing the "wrap it up" music. In many cases, the winner attempts to speak over the music. Between the band and the Oscar recipient, who do you think wins? Of course, it is the band. As soon as the band starts playing the music, the audience stops listening to the recipient.

   Many times when you are given an award during a meeting, conference, etc., you are also under time restrictions. In most cases, you will have longer than thirty seconds. Take the time to ask the person in charge of the meeting how much time you have for your speech. Also, make it a habit to look at the agenda ahead of time to see how much time you have been allotted. It may be only three minutes, 10 minutes, or 30 minutes, but find out ahead of time. By finding out ahead of time and staying within the time given to you, you show respect to your audience, the people in charge of the meeting, and most of all yourself. Once you go over the time allotted, you can see the audience members start looking at their watches and stop listening to your important speech.

   Note: If you can't find out ahead of time how much time you have to make your speech, assume you have very limited time and keep you comments brief.

Take the time to apply these seven acceptance speech secrets and you will give an outstanding presentation each and every time you receive an award.

presentation presentation+skills speech acceptance+speech public+speaking Academy+Awards Oscar

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

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate Thanksgiving!

It's a time to step back, appreciate, and give thanks for all the wonderful moments in your life. One great way to do this is start a gratitude journal. Write down 5 things you are grateful every day. This will keep you balanced and focused on what is really important in your life during the most difficult times of your life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Increase Workplace Productivity: November 7-13 is World Kindness Week

November 7-13 is "World Kindness Week." We can all use a little more kindness in workplaces all across the world.

Acts of workplace kindness can increase workplace productivity and morale, decrease organizational conflict, and create a vibrant, growing work environment. The following are twelve acts of workplace kindness that you can apply today:

• East lunch with a new co-worker

• Say "hello" in the morning

• Bring someone coffee

• Write a note of appreciation

• Celebrate birthdays and other special events

• Give a compliment

• Help someone when they least expect it

• Cheer up a co-worker having a tough day

• Smile

• Forgive mistakes

• Respect others

• Offer to share a ride

So act today! As you can see most of the acts doesn't require money. It will produce big dividends for you and others.

Tell us about your acts of workplace kindness.

acts+of+kindness team+building teambuilding employee+morale employee+motivation appreciate+employees

It's "Make a Difference Day!"

Make a difference today and everyday by doing the following:

• Motivate your employees to go the next level

• Volunteer for community activities

• Volunteer in your local school

• Volunteer to mentor students, employees, family members

• Take time to exercise your mind and body

• Call or visit a friend or family member just because you want to say hello

• Share a smile or joke with someone

• Do a random act of kindness

• Take time to appreciate your spouse or love one

• Tell your children that they are destine for greatness in their lives and that there is responsibility that comes with this greatness

• Take time to think

• Take time to read behind the news headlines to get the facts and don't accept the "spin"

• Get involved in the process

Each act to make a difference will not only enrich others, but also prepare you for future opportunities.

success motivation motivate difference motivate+others self+help self+improvement

Motivate Your Team for Outstanding Customer Service: Six Secrets of Customer Service Motivation

Providing outstanding customer service is one of the most rewarding yet challenging activities within your organization. Exceptional organizations that provide outstanding customer service will experience the following benefits:

• Increased customer satisfaction

• Increased revenues

• Increased repeat and referral customer traffic

• Less employee turnover

• Increased profits

So how do we support and motivate our customer service team to give outstanding customer service? The following are six secrets to motivate your customer service team to give exceptional customer service to your customers:

1. Provide Ongoing Learning - It's important that you not only provide training on organizational policies and technology, but also how to handle customers. Create an ongoing system for training and feedback. Request continuous feedback and have the "courage to listen" to your customer service team's responses. Your customer service team members, because they are on the frontline, can provide you with excellent information on how to service your customer. Market conditions are changing all the time and the one piece of information your customer service team can share with you can make the difference between success and failure. After receiving the information from your customer service rep, if necessary, provide the training to your customer service team so that they can provide outstanding customer service.

2. Adjust the Attitude - Constantly work on your own attitude and your team's attitude to providing outstanding customer service. As a customer service leader, always be aware of the tone you set and how your customer service team will be motivated by your attitude. If you are upbeat, your team will follow the lead and provide outstanding customer service. If you have a negative attitude, your customer service team will follow your lead and communicate this negative attitude to the customers they serve.
   
   Work with your customer service team members to create a positive attitude in the following ways:
   
   
   • Look at every customer service experience as a learning experience that is preparing them for future opportunities.
   • Put your team in the customer's shoes to understand the customer's "pain" and create empathy for outstanding customer service solutions
   • Have your customer service team take on the persona of a positive individual they admire to help them through a difficult customer service situation.
   • Create "positive triggers" to remind your customer service team why it is important to give outstanding service. Your trigger could be as simple as a family picture or a picture of an item (new car, home, etc.) that is important to you.

3. Give Incentives - Motivate your customer service team by giving incentives based on meeting your organization's mission, goals, and values. Be timely, fair, and public with your incentives. Also, when putting together an incentive program, ask your customer service team what they would like as incentives. Many times organizations will invest thousands of dollars on incentives which are not the ones their customer service team wants. Just ask!

4. Show Appreciation - Appreciate to motivate your customer service team as much as possible. Remember, many times they are facing very challenging customer service situations everyday. Keep them motivated by sharing your appreciation in a timely, sincere, fair, and encouraging way. For more detail on this, go to my article, Appreciate to Motivate, on my website. By consistently showing appreciation, you will motivate your customer service team to excel when it is most difficult for them to do so.

5. Support Outstanding Customer Service - Support and motivate your customer service team in a number of ways. You can support and motivate your customer service team by making sure the technology supports them and the customers. For example, I recently called my internet broadband company about a mistake on a bill. The automated system disconnected my call five times before I finally spoke with a customer service representative; and I told him that he must experience many upset customers if they experience the same. The customer service representative agreed and said it made his job very difficult.
   
   Support your customer service team by "cheer leading" their concerns to upper management. Champion their concerns to upper management and let your customer service team know the progress of each concern.
   
   Support and motivate your customer service team by keeping standards high for customer service. When your organization is facing challenging times, it is very tempting to lower standards. That's the last action you should take. By lowering standards, you decrease customer satisfaction, increase customer service turnover, and muddy your organization’s name in the marketplace.

Apply these customer service motivation secrets with your customer service team and you will have highly motivated customer service teams and happy customers, and your organization's bottom line will increase.

motivate motivation motivate+your+team motivate+customer+service+team customer+service

Keynotes and Sessions in Los Angeles, Oh My!

We just returned from Los Angeles after doing a motivational keynote titled "Moments, Miracles, and Masterpieces: Seven Secrets of Motivation" and a breakout session on change management for the California Association for Education of Young Children. They are a great group of people making a difference with our children everyday. They are inspired, motivated, and ready for any changes in the future. As always, it was just another beautiful day(s) in LA.

One of the many highlights of the trip was getting together with Jim, my old high school friend, and enjoying the old and new times with him. It made me realize how we need to step back, "smell the roses," and always take time to cherish the important people in our life.

Create a Great Day!

Today is "Write Your Own Headline Day!"

Today is "Write Your Own Headline Day!" Be your own newspaper, letter, radio or television news. Instead of reading other people's headlines, live your own headlines. The great thing about creating your own headline is that you don't need to wait until 6 or 11 p.m. to "get the full story" because you are the story. The following are some headlines to give you a few ideas:

Manager (your name) Motivates Team to New Level of Success!

(Your name) Wows Customer with Outstanding Customer Service Techniques!

Business Leader (your name) Creates a Fun Environment While Exceeding Goals!

(Your name) Creates a Lasting Moment With Daughter/Son!

(Your name) Helps Stranded Motorist on Highway to Safety! (This happened to me yesterday)

High School Freshman (your name) Makes the Right Decision!

We are creating exciting headlines everyday by creating positive moments. Go out and write your own headlines!

Today is Tell a Joke Day!

Take time to put a smile on someone's face and tell a joke to lighten up a heavy moment at work. The following is a joke my daughter shared with me (she was definitely giving me a hint) this morning:

You know you're getting old when you stoop to tie your shoes and wonder what else you can do while you're down there.

-George Burns

Since she shared the joke with me, I have been able to achieve more when I bend over to tie my shoes.

Share your good and bad jokes (as long as they are clean) with us.

Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes are Featured Leadership Speakers at Toastmaster International Convention

Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes will be featured speakers at the 2006 Toastmasters International Convention held at the Washington Hilton in Washington, DC, on August 26th. The title of their presentation is "The Business of Toastmasters: How to Create a Vibrant, Motivated and Profitable Club."

Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes will share secrets for treating your club, association, or group as a growing business. Ed and Joy, while volunteering for Toastmasters as Club Extension Specialist and District Public Relations Officer, respectively, have created and mentored five new clubs in 2006: Norfolk Naval Shipyard HRSC, GEICO, Booz, Allen and Hamilton, Verizon, and Johnson Controls, with vibrant starting memberships of over thirty plus and growing. They are currently working with State Farm Insurance to start a new club. These organizations realize that outstanding communication skills improve employee morale, customer relations, and, ultimately, better performance and bottom line.

"Many non-profit groups act like they are non-profits," says Ed Sykes. "However, they have an obligation as leaders to market, provide the product or service guaranteed in their "contract" (the membership application), and take care of their "customers" (the members). "Just like a corporation," says Joy Fisher-Sykes, "you are responsible for working with your "shareholders" (your area, division, and district officers) to provide the best product or service for your customers to grow your "business" (the organization).

Happy National Get Out of the Dog House Day!

July 17th is National Get Out of the Doghouse Day! Are you in someone's doghouse? Is someone in your doghouse?

Being in the doghouse or keeping someone in the doghouse leads to the following:

• Added stress and anxiety to your life which leads to illness and disease

• Lost concentration and focus

• Lost of career and life opportunities

Make the effort to get out of the doghouse. Take the first steps to:

1. Talk it out

2. Apologize, if needed

3. End with a promise for improvement

If you put someone in the doghouse, ask these questions:

• Is it worth all the physical and mental energy to keep this person(s) in the doghouse?

• What am I getting by keeping this person in the doghouse?

• Is my pride getting in the way of reconciling our relationship?

• What's the big picture compared to why this person is in the doghouse?

Remember, as a good friend recently told me, life is way too short to let disagreements get in the way of good relationships.

Take the steps to get out of the doghouse or let someone out of the doghouse!

Click here to read additional information on how to empower yourself or others.

July 11th is Cheer Up Day

Today is Cheer Up Day!

Take time to motivate and cheer up yourself and others by doing the following:

• Look at every challenge as a learning opportunity

• Compliment others on their habits, appearance, and how they make a difference

• Treat yourself to extra break, if permitted

• Help someone who needs help without being asked

• Take a moment to sit back and think of something you recently did especially well

• Say your blessings for the good things that you have in your life

• Do something special for someone who seems a little under the weather

• Call your spouse and say, "I love you"

• Go play with your children

• Be as silly as possible while reading "Cat in the Hat" or "Green Eggs and Ham" to your children or to yourself

• Listen to your favorite upbeat music

• View an inspirational movie

• Read a motivational book

• Play your favorite song and dance like you don't care who sees you

• Remember the saying, "This too will pass."

• Remember the saying, "If it doesn't kill me, it makes me stronger."

• Stretch or do some form of exercise

• Jump out of the "rat race" and take time to meditate

When you cheer up, others around you will cheer up. You never know the difference you may make in another person's life.

Success Starts with a Can Do Attitude: Three Secrets to Creating More Success in Your Business, Career, and Life

Recently, I was watching a women's professional tennis match on TV. One of the players, Nadia Petrova, was having a spectacular tennis season, either winning or playing for the championship in several tournaments in recent months.

The TV interviewer interviewed Nadia's new coach and mentioned that Nadia, who was rated in the top twenty players in past years, was fast becoming one of the top five players in the world. The interviewer asked Nadia's coach about this, and the coach said, "In the past, Nadia had people around her that concentrated on what she 'can't do.' So Nadia would concentrate on what she couldn't do, especially in challenging situations on the court, and it would frustrate her. I am concentrating on what she 'can do, and she is a much better, confident player and is mentally much happier."

So I ask you, do you concentrate on the "can't dos" or the "can dos?" The following are three secrets to creating a "can do" attitude that produces positive results and more success in your life, business, and career:

1. Set Can Do Goals
   Set goals that move you toward successful results. People fail because they don't know what they want or what they don't want. Ask a friend, family member, or associate what they want in life. In most cases, they will pause and really think about what they want. Sometimes they can't come up with an answer. Sometimes they may come up with a weak response. However, ask the following question, "What don't you want in life?" and, in most situations, you will receive multiple, clear, and quick answers to your question. That's because we concentrate on what we don't want to happen instead of what we want to happen. In life, as in sports, we concentrate on "not losing" instead of concentrating how to "in."
   
   Set S-M-A-R-T-E-R (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely, Encouraging, Rewarding) goals that create a crystal clear roadmap for your success, and work to achieve these goals everyday.

2. Take Care of Your N-E-T-S
   N-E-T-S stands for Network with Everyone Today for Success. Fill your NETS with positive people that will support your positive "can do" attitude. These people, while supporting your goals, will also help you pass roadblocks to achieve your goals. You will also make your NETS stronger by supporting their goals to create a mutually supportive situation.
   
   Joy Fisher-Sykes always says, "Clean your NETS of people who have a "can't do," negative attitude, and who don't support your quest to achieve your goals." The more junk (negative people) in your NETS, the less room you have for more treasure (positive people). Take a close look at "friends," family and co-workers and ask, "Do they support me and my "can do" attitude?" If they don't, remove them from your NET. Keep your NET strong with positive people.

3. Concentrate on the Positive
   Recent research shows that 75-80% of daily communication is negative. This would include negative self-talk, conversations with others, or the media (TV, radio, the internet, etc.).
   
   Take back control of your mind and be responsible for your "can do" attitude. You can start with the following:
   
   
   • Concentrate on self-talk with positive solutions
     Start your mornings with meditation. Concentrate on positive thoughts with positive results. Visualize, involving as many senses as possible, to intensify the visualization and make it real for you. Ask, "What does your success feel, look, sound, and taste like?" Be aware of negative self-talk, and replace it with positive self-talk.
   
   
   • Control the Communication
     If it is a conversation, reframe the negative conversation into a more positive conversation. If someone is complaining endlessly, say, "Mike, I hear what you are saying. What solutions to you see to this problem?"
     
     If the media is negative, tune it out or turn it off.
     
     You can always walk away. You have that right.
   
   
   • Walk the Talk
     Be consistent in your behavior, and act on your "can do" attitude.
   
   
   • Fake It Till You Make It
     Act like you are already achieving your goals, and you will rise to a higher level. Others will also see you as achieving your goals and interact with you accordingly.

Follow these "can do" techniques and you will also achieve more success in your life. I know Nadia does. As of this writing, she has won two additional tournaments, with no end in sight. She has a "can do" attitude that creates success, and you can, too.

Leadership Techniques for Anyone: How Kermit Shared Five Leadership Secrets with the World

Recently, I had the pleasure of attending the funeral of my friend Kermit. A pleasure, you ask? Yes, a pleasure and a honor, because it was a great celebration of Kermit's life and the passion and spirit he brought to living it.

Usually, when I go to funerals, the spiritual leader (pastor, minister, rabbi, cleric, etc.) goes on and on about the deceased, a person he barely knows; and maybe one or two friends or associates might say something about the deceased. Well, Kermit's funeral was special. The pastor spoke briefly, a singer sang a hymn, and then the pastor asked for comments from the audience. That's when the funeral became really special. After one and a half hours later, over forty people had gotten up and shared their positive experiences and what Kermit meant to them. People from their 20's to well over 60-year-old people from different spiritual, ethnic, social, and economic backgrounds stood up to make comments. People who served with him in the Navy (Kermit retired as a Commander) stood up and spoke about how Kermit changed their lives.

There was story after story about how Kermit made the speakers overcome obstacles and made them believe they could do better, and did this with passion. Some of them were as follows:

1. Past ballplayers talked about Kermit's cowbell as a rallying cry at their ballgames.

2. A woman told of having a flat tire on a busy roadway and Kermit, whom she didn't know at the time, stopped and helped her fix the tire; and then they became friends.

3. A businessperson talked about how Kermit volunteered his time to help him launch a business that is still going strong after ten years.

4. A previous player described how he was motivated by Kermit to make something of himself. He went to college and is a very successful basketball coach teaching the same principles that Kermit taught him.

5. A man explained that he was going through a divorce and bankruptcy and was thinking of committing suicide. Kermit heard about his troubles, called him, and helped him through these dark times. Now this person helps others through their challenging moments in life.

Wow! It moved me. Here are five leadership and success secrets Kermit shared with us. How can you apply them to become more successful and outstanding leaders?

1. What is Your Cowbell? Create Passion!
   Kermit truly enjoyed working with people to make them better. It was not just the cowbell, but the emotion and excitement he experienced when seeing other people succeed. The cowbell was just the tool that Kermit used to show his passion so that others became passionate. Let your passion show. Let people know that you are excited about their accomplishments, and the passion will multiple.

2. Expect the Best. Excellence Will Take Care of the Rest.
   It was said about Kermit that when meeting people, he never met a stranger. In his mind they were already someone he knew. Kermit always expected the best when interacting with people, and they eventually rose to his expectations.
   
   Expect the best out of people, and they will rise to your standards.

3. Understand So That You Are Understood
   Kermit's conversations were always centered on understanding the other person. For all the years I knew him, I never knew he was a commander in the Navy. He didn't make his title the focus of the conversation. You see, it wasn't about him; it was always about the other person's interests, needs, etc. Because of this, people naturally wanted to become involved in Kermit's projects and help Kermit make other people successful.
   
   So my question is: How well do you understand your employees?
   
   Take the time to understand their goals, wants, needs, hobbies, etc. The more you take time to understand them, the more your employees will want to help you succeed.

4. Give of Yourself
   Kermit always gave his time, energy, and passion without "keeping score." In return, the people he helped not only helped him, but went on to make a difference in other people's lives.
   
   Take the time to go the extra mile to see how you can help your employees, your team, and/or your organization without "keeping score." Your employees will feel that you care, and then they will go to a new level of caring.

5. Share the Knowledge
   Kermit took the time to share his knowledge with others so that they become more successful. Whether it was coaching a sports team, helping a friend start a business, or sharing his experiences to get a person through a difficult time, Kermit took the time to share his knowledge with others. Because Kermit shared his knowledge, other people became more successful and they shared their knowledge with others so that they could be more successful.
   
   What special knowledge do you have that can help others succeed? Don't hoard your knowledge, share it. By sharing your knowledge, you multiply yourself and become known as a developer of people. Your knowledge, once you share it, will live on after you are gone.

Apply these five leadership techniques and create success in your business, with your team, in your community, and your life. Just like Kermit, you will also see instant results.

Thanks for sharing, Kermit, and making the world a better place.

March 3rd is Employee Appreciation Day

It's Friday, it's March 3rd, what better time to appreciate your employees. Invest the time to show your employees how much you appreciate them. The follow are forty-five no cost/low cost ways to appreciate to motivate your employees:

1. Call an employee into your office just to say thank you; don't discuss any other issue. Keep it "pure."

2. Create a "Pat on the Back" Award for employees who do an outstanding job. Send a notice of the award to the employee's file.

3. Post a thank-you note on the employee's office door.

4. Create business card size "Thanks," "Good job," "Bravo," and "Keep it up." Write specifically what they did in two or three words. Put the person's name on the card.

5. Volunteer to do another person's least desirable work task for a day.

Read the rest of the article.

Eight Leadership Techniques for Outstanding Teams

Apply the following eight leadership techniques to create highly motivated, self-directed, and extremely productive employees and teams:

1. Provide Clear Expectations
   Winning organizations know where they are going and what is required to get there. Employees constantly need to know what they need to accomplish. Communicating expectations in a clear, concise manner is important. It's also important to communicate your expectations on an individual, department, and organizational level. Continue communicating your expectations on an ongoing basis. Whether one-on-one, through memos, or in a team meeting, keep communicating your expectations. Read more...

Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes are Keynote Speakers at Big Brothers Big Sisters Appreciation Banquet

Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes were the keynote speakers during the Big Brothers Big Sisters Appreciation Banquet on February 3rd at the Little Creek Naval Base Chief Petty Officer Club in Norfolk, VA. The banquet was to acknowledge the Big Brothers and Big Sisters for their efforts in making a difference with their "little brothers" and "little sisters."

Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Hampton Roads is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a positive future for at-risk children. They match children, the little brothers or sisters known as "littles," with a mentor or Big Brother or Sister known as the "bigs," to invest time and provide guidance to their mentees to create a positive future for the "littles."

The banquet was attended by Rep. Thelma Drake (R-VA) and Portsmouth Mayor Bill Holley among others. Ed and Joy gave the speech, "Make a Difference," highlighting the positive experiences they had mentoring children. Ed let the volunteers know that they were heroes because they invest their time and effort to make a difference in the lives of the children, their little brothers and sisters. Ed also said, "We make a difference by setting positive expectations for children who have negative influences in their lives." Joy spoke about the need for the children to be comfortable with themselves. "We must teach our children that they don't need to have the most expensive clothes, cars, and jewelry to be great and be successful. They must be 'comfortable in their own skin' so that they make the right decisions because it's the right thing to do, not based on what other people want them to do." Joy also mentioned that the volunteers benefit from their experiences because they develop a new perspective