The Sykes Group's OnPoint

Five Secrets to Creating Your Dream Career

There are countless career opportunities in this economy for you to create your dream job. Why be unhappy with your career when you can create the perfect job that leads to a happy fulfilling career using a little creativity?

Read the following seven secrets to creating your dream job and very successful career: 

Five Secrets to Creating Your Dream Career

National Appreciation Week - Got Appreciation for Someone?

We are in the middle of National Appreciation Week, March 1-7. Sincere appreciation is one of the most powerful tools to motivating others. Take the time to personally show appreciation to a friend, colleague, employee, and family member or even the store clerk that gave you good service. You will never know how much it means to that person on a particular day and time. Here are some great resources to make it easier for you to start appreciating today:

http://scrnch.me/Appreciation 

Start appreciating today!

Jump Start Your Progressive Thinking with TEDxNASA!

Watch the following video to jump start your progressive thinking for a more successful live:

Enjoy!

How to Give Outstanding Speaker Introductions in Five Easy Steps

During the recent National Football Association Hall of Fame ceremonies, I had an opportunity to listen to heart-felt, insightful, and funny speeches. However, what stood out was one speaker's introduction of and inductee. The introduction took away the attention and thunder from the inductee and made the introduction speech more about the speaker than the inductee. The introducer's speech was twice as long as the award winner's speech, and I could see audience members grow weary of the introducer as he sapped the energy from the ceremony before the hall of fame inductee even said the first word of his speech.

Whether you are introducing an award winner or introducing the next presenter in your sales presentation, the following five secrets to introducing the speaker will make the audience motivated to listen to them:

1. Keep Your Speaker Introduction Short
   Your introduction of the speaker should never be longer than the speaker's actual presentation. Keep your introductions from thirty seconds to two minutes depending on the situation. Remember, your job is get the audience excited about the next speaker in the shortest amount of time possible. If you must tell a short story, keep it short.

2. Work With the Speaker
   Communicate with the speaker you are introducing to find out if they have a basic introduction they want you to follow. If they do, take time to familiarize yourself with the introduction so that it sounds natural when you read it. Unless authorized by the speaker, do not ad lib and add something into the introduction that could possibly embarrass the speaker or take away from their presentation. I remember seeing the horror on a speaker's face as his introducer deviated from the planned introduction and started to tell a story in the introduction that the presenter was well known for giving in his presentation. Stick with the introduction.
   
   If the presenter whom you are introducing doesn’t have a standard introduction they use, ask them what their goals are for their speech, what they want covered in the introduction, what subjects they might want to stay away from, and how to pronounce names and/or places pertaining to the speaker or the speech.

3. Don't Tell Secrets
   You may know the presenter on a personal basis and would like to tell the audience a funny story of personal embarrassment to the presenter. Don't do it unless the speaker approves the story. What you find funny may take away the presenter's credibility with the audience.

4. Sell the Speaker
   Sell the speaker to the audience. Talk about the speaker's experience and credentials, and the benefits the audience will receive by listening to the speaker. Your speaker introduction should answer the following question for the audience, "How will it benefit me to listen to the following speaker?"

5. Don't Steal the Speaker's Thunder
   Remember, it's not about the introducer. It's about the speaker. I have seen some introducers, who know that they will be introducing a dynamic speaker and try to be more dynamic than them. Your job as the introducer is to get the audience excited about the speaker without taking away the speaker's thunder. Once you know the style of speaker, work to compliment the speaker so that they are the star of the show.

Remember, giving a speaker introduction is never about you as an introducer, it's about the setting the stage for the speaker so that they are successful. Follow the five secrets to giving outstanding speaker introductions and you will create motivated audience members while making your presenters happy.

Stress Management: "Time To Let Go" or "Ready, Set, Let Go! How to Relieve Stress and Enjoy Life!

In the last couple of weeks my body has decided to remind me of my aging physicality. Translation - I’ve been on the mend from lower back pain. Fortunately for me, my very kind-hearted and thoughtful spouse arranged for a massage therapy session to aid my pain relief.

During the session, my very proficient and wise therapist gave me much food for thought. During the session she gave me what she thought was a very simple instruction - relax, go limp like a Raggedy Ann Doll, and let her guide my healing. For a moment I seemed unable to process her request. I had a clear intellectual understanding yet at the same time emotionally this seemed to be a tall order to fill. All she had asked was for the two of us to collaboratively work together to heal my body. She shared with me that I was not her only client who was hesitant to comply with her request. As a firm believer in asking better questions in order to arrive at better answers in life I asked myself "Why did my auto-pilot immediately register resistance and discomfort?"

There are as many fingerprints in the world as there are reasons why at one time or another we may have greeted a "guiding hand' with resistance and discomfort. It could be because we thought accepting help is a sign of weakness, or if we let our guard down we'll be too vulnerable, or worst yet why would someone want to help me? This is a question only you can answer for yourself. What can we enjoy when we learn to let go and accept a helping hand:

• Stress reduction - it's nice to know you don't have to go it alone

• Frees the mind to be more receptive to the answers you seek

• Validates personal strength - accepting help is a sign of strength not weakness

• Being large and in charge can be exhausting - enjoy the rest and companionship

• Reaffirms there is strength in numbers - who better to seek aid from than someone who not only understands your plight and wisdom to share

The next time you are asked to relax and aid you're healing, my hope is you will enthusiastically say "thank you" to your escort and latch onto the hands that heal.

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How to Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking in Seven Powerful Steps

Have you ever avoided a career or business opportunity because it required you to speak publicly? Did you ever have a great idea you wanted to share in a group setting but didn't because of your fear of speaking in front of a group of people?

You are not alone in the fear of public speaking. In my travels, I have seen where the fear of public speaking have kept otherwise very successful people in all walks of life from achieving their full potential. When you let this fear dominate your life, you lose out on promotions, business opportunities, community activities, and most of all self-confidence.

The following are seven powerful secrets to empowering you to overcome your fear of public speaking and achieving a new level of success in your career, your business, and your life:

1. Ask Yourself the Important Question
   Ask yourself, "Where does my fear come from and is it real?" Was there a public speaking opportunity in the past that you think didn't go well or that you felt was poorly prepared? Maybe you had to stand up in front of your classmates in high school or college and someone made what you perceived as a negative comment concerning your presentation. Maybe you gave a good speech but you started to over analyze every detail of the speech.
   
   First, realize that whatever happened did so at another time and place and you are no longer that person. With new experiences, you have grown into a more confident person with much to offer. Second, embrace feedback, extract the true areas of improvement from the feedback and work to improve your public speaking ability. Be honest and fair with yourself and determine if the feedback is coming from someone who is qualified to give quality feedback. I had one presentation skills student whose manager told her she was a poor speaker because she moved her hands and arms during the presentation. Was the manager giving qualified feedback? Doubtful. Yet, this manager's feedback affected this employee in a negative way for years until the employee became my coaching student.
   
   Again, separate qualified feedback from unqualified feedback and learn from it. Also, don't allow negative public speaking situations that happen in the past apply to your present or future public speaking opportunities.

2. Face Your Fear of Public Speaking
   The fastest way to overcome any fear, much less the fear of public speaking, is to face your fear and attack it. Look for and embrace opportunities to make presentations. Start with non-threatening opportunities such as your children's school meeting or a non-work related situation and work your way up to more important, high pressure situations such as work meetings.
   
   Realize that each time you speak is an opportunity to improve your speaking ability. Look at your public speaking skills as a muscle. The more you exercise your public speaking muscle, the stronger it becomes and you will improve your speaking abilities.
   
   Go into each public speaking opportunity with a clear set of goals. Maybe for your first speech, you may have a goal of eliminating "hums" and "ahs." For another speech you may have a goal of completing your speech with a powerful ending.

3. Visualize Your Public Speaking Success
   Invest time the night before you speak to visualize what a successful speech looks, sounds, and feels like and how you will feel while giving it. If you don't see it yourself, it won't happen. Most presentations can be dramatically improved just by investing time ahead of the presentation to visualize a successful outcome.

4. Master the Material
   Invest the time to know what you are presenting. Invest time to rehearse several variations of your speech. Rehearse your speech as if something goes wrong. What if your PowerPoint goes down, you forget a section in your speech, or someone heckles you? How will you react? If you know your material well enough, you will be able to overcome any presentation challenge.

5. Master Your Public Speaking Mind
   During a group coaching session, a presenter started speaking, made a mistake and promptly announced, "I hate speaking in public!" In this instance, she did not manage her public speaking mind, and let her fear of public speaking take over her performance.
   
   When you make negative statements concerning public speaking, it will reinforce your fear of public speaking. Take the time to replace negative statements with positive public speaking affirmations.

6. Take Time to Analyze Your Performance
   In most cases, we are our own toughest critics when speaking. Whenever you speak, videotape or audiotape your presentations, sit down, and honestly analyze your performance. Once you start to record your presentations, you will realize that some of the issues you were worried about aren't in your speech and you will instantly see areas of improvement and address them accordingly. As the old saying goes, "The video doesn't lie."
   
   Ask for feedback from people you respect and who can give you quality, supportive feedback that will empower you to want apply the feedback in your next speech. Before your speech, tell the person you ask to give you feedback what your public speaking goals are and what you are working to improve.
   
   Once you analyze your areas of improvement, immediately go out and exercise your public speaking muscle and apply the improvement.

7. Reward Yourself
   Reward yourself for any improvements in your public speaking skills. The reward is up to you, but make sure to immediately reward yourself.

Bonus Public Speaking Secret: If you forget a word or a phrase during your speech, never apologize and keep speaking as though nothing happened. Unless the audience has a detailed transcript of your speech, they won't know what you forgot. Don’t let the fear of forgetting something in your speech keep you from giving great speeches.

Now, go out and exercise your public speaking muscle to give outstanding presentations. When you apply the seven secrets to overcoming your fear of public speaking, you will realize more opportunities and gain a new level of confidence.

public+speaking presentation+skills overcoming+fear public+speaking+anxiety presentation

Are You Singing Your Song of Success? Five Secrets to Following Your Dreams and Achieving More Success in Your Life!

Recently, Susan Boyle, an unemployed forty-seven year old single woman from the small village of Blackburn, Scotland decided to compete in the television program, "Britain's Got Talent." She did not look like the typical "star quality" contestant. So, when she first walked out on the stage, the audience and judges started laughing and giving her cynical looks. Then she sang. The audience and judges were instantly won over and she continued to the next round of competition. Because the program was on television and the video of her program appeared on YouTube, she won over millions of additional fans with her unique talent. Whether she wins the competition or not, she already won by living her dream. By taking the bold step of competing, Susan won over millions while creating unlimited opportunities to sing her song of success.

So I ask you the following:

Are You Singing Your Song of Success?

Are you letting your song of success go silent? The following are five secrets that will guarantee that your song of success is heard and you can also live your dreams:

1. Create Powerful Goals to Be Successful
   Take the time to set clear, concise life and success goals that you can be excited about on a daily basis. Refer to your goals every day so that you can stay on course to achieve your dreams. Make your goals S-M-A-R-T-E-R: specific, measureable, attainable, realistic, time-based, encouraging, and rewarded.

To read the rest of the article and see Susan Boyle in action, go to Success

Ed Sykes Shares How You Can Increase Career Opportunities in this Challenging Economy

I was recently on the radio program, Career Mechanic with Dave Horne, sharing how you can create more career opportunities in a changing economy. To listen how you can use social marketing secrets to find the perfect job, go to the following: Career Opportunities

career job career+opportunities job+opportunities social+marketing blogging Twitter Facebook Linkedin

The Luck of the Irish Is Not Just For the Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

The term,"Luck of Irish," is not only for the Irish. Your luck can be created by the following:

Preparation + Opportunity = Luck

Here are five tips to creating ongoing luck each and every day:

1. Positive Attitude - Work to maintain your positive attitude everyday. Look at challenges as opportunities to develop your skills and prepare you for a future opportunities.

2. Knowledge - Take the time to learn, read, and ask questions. Embrace new methods and technologies.

3. Network - Develop your people skills so that you are comfortable in any social situation. Take a sincere interest in what other people are doing. Also, provide solutions to others so that you are regarded as the person in the know.

4. Tell Your Story - Let others know about accomplishments and skills. Be humble, yet be honest in what you achieved, the skills used to achieve them, and the outcome of the situation. If you don't talk about your achievements, who else will?

5. Embrace New Situations - Constantly look for new situations that are challenging and educational. While others will hesitate, be the person who is progressive and willing to tackle difficult situations. By tackling new projects, you will achieve a new confidence level.

Apply these simple techniques and you too will experience the "Luck of the Irish."

To learn how to create your own luck, go to Luck for more resources.

St.+Patrick's+Day Luck+of+the+Irish luck shamrock success

Ed Sykes Featured in New Technology Series on National Public Radio

Get motivated to learn how to use social networking tools Facebook and Twitter to maximize your career, your business, and your life opportunities Listen as I discuss on National Public Radio's program HearSay With Cathy Lewis on how to use Twitter and Facebook to create more success in life.

For additional resources, go to Twitter Success.

National+Public+Radio Facebook Twitter Twitter+Videos Ed+Sykes Cathy+Lewis HearSay+With+Cathy+Lewis

Major Snow Storm Hits Virginia Beach!

Major snowstorm hits Virginia Beach, VA...well not exactly.

The unpredictable happened! It finally snowed in Virginia Beach for the winter. It snowed on my daughter's school snow makeup day. This is the snow makeup day for the day it was predicted to snow, January 20th, but didn't.

You see, a light dusting of snow in our area equates to a major snowstorm elsewhere. Look hard and you can see the snow in the pictures. When it is predicted to snow, we closed down schools, delay military base openings, and practically close down our area. However, this snow had no effect on our area.

You never know...go figure.

Create a Great Day!

snow snowstorm Virginia+Beach

Has This Ever Happened During Your Conversations?

"It is impossible to overemphasize the immense need humans have to be really listened to, to be taken seriously, to be understood. Listen to all conversations in our world between nations as well as those between couples. They are for the most part dialogues of the deaf." - Paul Tournier-Swiss Psychiatrist

That happened yesterday. I did this at the gym yesterday. I was exercising at the gym when I ran into the gym director. I wanted to have a conversation with her for the longest time. The conversation went like this:

Ed: "Hey Taryn!"

Taryn: "Hello Ed!"

Ed: "How are you doing today?"

Ed: "I need to talk with you for a couple of minutes."

Taryn: "Sure Ed, I just need to check on my ride."

If you noticed, I didn't wait for Tayrn's answer to, "How are you doing today?," before going into my conversation and "my wants." How many times have you had this happen to you? How did it make you feel? Or maybe, you did this to someone else?

Great communication skills involve two-way communication that is respectful. My sure you are checking yourself during the conversation so that both parties have a mutually beneficial conversation. Two great resources to enhance your communication skills are the following:

Enhance Your Conversation

Bite Your Tongue! 10 Ways to Be an Effective Listener

Has this ever happened to you at work, home, or with friends? Share your story with us.

P.S.-I apologized to Taryn when I met with her and we had a very production conversation.

conversation conversation+skills talk talking listen listening listening+skills

What to Learn How the Internet Can Bring More Success to Your Business or Career?

What to learn how to use the internet to increase opportunities for you? Then listen to the Feb. 2nd National Public Radio program "HearSay with Cathy Lewis" as I share ideas on how you can use the internet to create opportunities for you. Here is the listening information:

Within Hampton Roads: 89.5 FM

Outside Hampton Roads or if you want to listen through your computer: http://www.whro.com/home/publicradio/whrv/localprogramming/hearsay/

If you enjoyed the program, please e-mail the station and let them know at info@whro.org

Happy Holidays from Ed and Joy!

Happy Holidays!

May the joys of the Season
lead the way
to a bright and prosperous
New Year

Best wishes from Ed Sykes and Joy Fisher-Sykes

Ed+Sykes Joy+Fisher+Sykes Holiday+Greetings Seasons+Greetings

Happy Thanksgiving!

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven. ~Johannes A. Gaertner

Whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not as a holiday, please take the time to appreciate the blessings, challenges, and people who make you special everyday.

Thank you for being an important part of The Sykes Group in 2008. We are looking forward to bringing more success techniques your way in 2009.

Have a Great, Safe, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Warmly,

Ed & Joy

Thanksgiving, giving thanks, thanksgiving harvest

Leadership Starts with Tough Decisions: Five Leadership Skills for Outstanding Team Building

Leadership starts with tough decisions. Let me share with you my recent leadership challenge and the leadership secrets you can use in any team building situation for great leadership results.

I have the honor and pleasure of volunteering for many groups and causes. In many situations, I am called upon to lead as chairperson or co-chairperson. Recently, I had the honor of co-chairing an event that involved leading and motivating a team of volunteers to work together for a successful result. Overall, the team volunteers are leaders in health care, education, business, media, the arts, and faith-based organizations, etc. In other words, this team of volunteers consisted of very motivated and accomplished people who wanted to make a difference.

One committee member became increasingly negative in her communication and actions at the expense of the other committee members. She behaved in a manner that was not in line with our overall mission. After a coaching session agreeing on what was expected from her in relationship to our mission, her behavior became increasingly worse. The final straw was a very negative e-mail that stated she was the only committee member who was doing anything and personally attacked the other committee members.

After consulting with the event organizers to gain agreement on a plan of action, I called this person to let her know that this was not acceptable behavior and invited her to meet with me to discuss how we could bring her behavior more in line with the mission of our project. She rejected my invite, and I let her know that by not excepting my invite, she was no longer a participant in our event. I followed up with an e-mail and letter reiterating my verbal statement. She made the choice to "fire herself."

As leader of the event, I made telephone calls to committee members to explain the committee change, let each committee member know the wonderful job they were doing, and shared with them where we were in relationship to our mission and goals. While making these calls, I soon found out that some committee members were not as involved in the project because of the one negative committee member.  Some members had stopped attending meetings, stopped communicating, and weren't giving 100% for the event. After assuring them that they were valuable team members of the project and that this "negative member" would not be involved in the project's going forward, we experienced a new level of motivation and participation that took our event to a new level of success and broke a record for attendance.

You may be in a similar leadership position whereby the success of the organization, project, or team depends on how well and how fast you make decisions when faced with challenging situations. The following five leadership skills will keep you on the leadership track during challenging situations, no matter whether your organization is for profit or non-profit, so that you can achieve your goals:

1. Live the Mission When Making Leadership Decisions
   Live the mission by constantly communicating the mission so that everyone of the team understands the mission and acts to live the mission. Ask team members the following question, "What did you do today to live the mission and achieve the goals of the mission?" Develop clear and concise team member descriptions so that everyone understands how they make a difference. Motivate and reward team members based on how well they lived the mission.

To read the rest of the article, go to Leadership.

leadership leadership+skills leader leadership+decisions

Five Stress Management Secrets for Challenging Times: How to Use Stress for Your Career Success

The way we handle stress is always a factor in our success in challenging times. Unmanaged, stress can hold us back from being successful Once managed, stress propels us to new levels of success.

When you learn how to manage stress, you benefit in the following ways:

• Improved health and decreased incidence of disease

• Improved mood

• Improved memory and thinking

• Improved sleep

• Improved relationships

• Reduced absenteeism

• Improved productivity

• Improved workplace environment

The following are five stress management secrets that will allow you to fulfill your career, business, and life ambitions while living a happier life:

1. Set Realistic Goals
   Many times, I ask people, "What do you want in your career?" Frequently, I receive an answer stating what they don't want. They do not realize that this is not the same as focusing on what they want to include in their career. If you don't have a clear, concise vision of what you want in your career, business or life, you can easily be lead down a path which will cause stress for you in the future.
   
   Set clear goals in several areas of your life: family, health, career, finance, and spiritual, among others. By setting realistic goals in each area, you will create balance in your life, have a clear direction of what you want to accomplish in each area, and reduce your stress level because you will have purpose.

To read the rest of the article, go to Stress Management

stress stress+management stress+relief

Leadership Starts With Giving!

What a beautiful day! I just finished speaking and Joy finished volunteering at the American Cancer Society's (ACS) Making Strides Against Beast Cancer Event in Norfolk, VA. With over six thousand participants (including cancer survivors), the American Cancer Society was able to raise $350,000 to fight beast cancer and provide services to those in need.

The participants were excited and my job was to keep them excited and motivate them to get involved in other events throughout the year. You see, cancer won't wait to our next event! As I spoke to a sea of faces, I could feel the positive energy in the crowd knowing that they had made a difference. And you can too!

Please take the time to go to http://www.cancer.org and read about the wonderful work ACS is doing everyday to help your families (possible your mother, sister, aunt, grandmother, etc), your friends, and your community members beat this terrible disease. I challenge each person reading this post to give your time and/or money so that possibly someone you know and love can beat this disease.

Go to http://www.cancer.org today and make a difference!

Leadership Cancer American+Cancer+Society Making+Strides+Against+Breast+Cancer Volunteer Norfolk

How to Master Interview Questions and Think on Your Feet!

You may never be in front of Katie Curic of CBS News answering questions like Sarah Palin, but there will be opportunities in your life where you will be asked questions on the spot. How will you handle those situations? As you can see in the above video, Sarah Palin had a difficult time being clear and concise in her answers.

You may never find yourself on national television, but you may find yourself in a similar high pressure situation at work, in business, or in the community. Simply follow the below link for five techniques you can use to master impromptu speaking so that you can master your thinking on your feet skills:

Thinking on Your Feet

Sarah+ Palin Katie+Curic interview+questions thinking+on+your+feet impromptu answering+questions

Michael Phelps, Goal Setting, and You Equal Success!

You don't need to be fourteen time Olympic gold medal winner Michael Phelps to achieve your goals. However, you can learn the goal setting secrets Michael Phelps used to achieve his success by reading the following article:

Recently, Joy and I had the pleasure of speaking at a conference of Educational Office Professionals in Baltimore, MD. The other speakers included Ms. Deborah Phelps, mother of six-time gold medalist (Now fourteen-time goal medalist) in the 2004 Summer Olympics swimmer Michael Phelps, and Agatha von Trapp, the 91-year-old daughter of Captain and Maria von Trapp, the family on which the movie "Sound of Music" was based. To say the least, there were a variety of subjects discussed that day.

As I listened to Ms. Phelps describe Michael's achievements, I realized that his story had many of the secrets of success mentioned in my September article, Five Secrets to Creating a 'Goal' Medal Life.

Let's go over these goal setting five secrets again and see how you can apply them:

1. Create Passion with Goal Setting
   Ms. Phelps mentioned that Michael, after competing in the 2000 Summer Olympics, was excited about the experience. Michael told her he wanted to compete again in the 2004 Summer Olympics. He had that burning desire to compete and win. So they sat down, developed goals, and mapped out a detailed plan for his success.
   

   What do you have passion about in your career, your life? Have you put pen to paper and developed goals to achieve what you want in life?

To read the rest of the article, go to "Goal Medal Success."

Michael+Phelps goals goal goal+setting success success+secrets

JumpStart Your Employee Motivation: Ten Motivation Secrets to Empower Your Team

One of the important keys to employee motivation is to empower your employees to be successful. An empowered employee leads to the following benefits:

• Increased creativity

• Increased productivity

• Increased teamwork and motivation

• Increased initiative

• Increased ownership of work

• Reduced employee turnover

• Reduced human resources situations

• Better work environment

• Increased results for your organization

• Increased career opportunities

The following are ten motivation techniques to jumpstarting your employee motivation and empowering your team to outstanding results:

1. Motivate Your Employees to Find Solutions
   Encourage your employees to be solution creators instead of problem creators. When employees communicate a problem to you, look at it as an opportunity to empower the employees. Ask the employees how they would solve the problem, express your confidence that they are the person to solve the problems, give them the tools to solve the problem, and follow up with them. You have just empowered those employees to find ways in the future to create solutions and made your team more productive at the same time.

2. Motivate Your Employees by Soliciting Opinions
   Many times during our busy work day, we find it difficult to ask for opinions from our employees. But just the act of asking for their opinions tells your employees that you value their input and motivates them to accomplish more. Just imagine, it may be the first time that an employer has ever asked them for their opinion, and they appreciate it.

3. Motivate Your Employees by Managing to Their Level
   Learn your employees' skill, experience, and motivation levels for performing workplace tasks. Then assign the task and follow-up based on your findings. For example, you may need to follow up more frequently with an employee who is fairly new to the project or organization as opposed to the "veteran" employee who doesn't need much follow-up. Remember, the most skilled employee may not be the most motivated for performing the task you request.

To read the rest of the article, go to Employee Motivation.

motivation employee+motivation techniques motivate+team

Eight Customer Service Secrets to "Jumpstarting" Your Customer Service During Challenging Times!

Outstanding customer service is the key to creating a successful organization during any economic time... but especially during challenging economic times.

It's amazing how most organizations will invest millions, if not billions, of dollars on new computer systems, new displays, new phone systems, and new marketing campaigns to try to acquire new customers. The moment of truth comes, however, when the new customer has first contact with these organizations. If the customer is ignored, disrespected, and disappointed with the customer service experience, that customer may never come back. When this occurs, these organizations apparently haven't heard the old saying, "You only get one chance to make a great first impression."

What about the present customer base? Many times these customers are treated with indifference and, in many cases, quietly go away to do business with a competitor.

Why not jumpstart your organization's success with outstanding customer service? It doesn't matter if you are involved in retail, restaurant management, consumer products, or even the government, customer service is being recognized as the key to increasing productivity, decreasing employee turnover, and increasing an organization's bottom line. Especially during challenging economic times, the quality of your customer service determines if you remain in business to serve customers or cease to exist.

The following are eight secrets to giving outstanding customer service so that your organization will be successful:

1. Hire Right for Outstanding Customer Service
   Organizations that give outstanding customer service invest in hiring right each and every time. They realize that they want the best employees interacting with their customers. Who is the best customer service employee to hire? Hire for attitude, not for aptitude. Hire the employee that has a great customer service attitude and has a great personality, takes initiative, has great communication skills, can show empathy, and has an eye for detail. If a prospective customer service employee has a great attitude, you can always train that employee to learn the skills. Also, the employee should be a solution creator, not a problem maker.

2. Make Outstanding Customer Service Your Mission
   What is your organization's mission statement? What does the mission statement say about how you should treat your customer? Are you communicating this to all your employees, no matter what position they have in the organization? Take the time during meetings, e-mails, phone calls, and other communication opportunities to express the mission statement and how it relates to giving outstanding customer service. Ask during your meeting, "What did we do this week to live our mission statement and its customer service values?"

Go to the following link to read the rest: Jumpstarting Customer Service

Customer+service customer customer+retention customer+satisfaction

Randy Pausch of The Last Lecture Passes Away

Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist whose "last lecture" about facing terminal cancer became an Internet sensation (see previous post) and a best-selling book, died on July 25. He was 47.

What a great gift of hope and inspiration he left with us before and after his passing.

motivational+speech inspirational+speech Randy +Pausch the+last+lecture

What Would You Do If You Had Two Months to Live?

What Would You Do If You Had Two Months to Live? Would you forget about the little things in life that hold you back? Would you change the way you think and decide to change your life? Take the time to invest in your success by watching the following eleven minute motivational video:

or watch full 76 minute lecture at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxS

Randy+Pausch+Last+Lecture motivational+speech success inspirational+speech

Customer Service Expert Ed Sykes Shares How You Can Give Great Customer Service on National Public Radio Program

I recently had the pleasure of being on the popular National Public Radio program, HearSay with host Cathy Lewis. The theme of the program was customer service.

Customer service expert Bob Livingston and I discussed how to provide great customer service so that the customer experience brings the customer back again and again.

To listen to the customer service tips we shared on the program, please click on the following link:

Customer Service Tips

Customer+Service Customer+Care Customer+Satisfaction Customer+Experience National+Public+Radio Customer+Service+Tips

Happy 4th of July!

Wishing everyone a happy and safe 4th of July!

This is a time to reflect on our blessings and ask ourselves the following questions:

What does independence really mean?

Does it mean freedom of thought? Does it mean freedom of action? Does it mean the freedom to express yourself?

Take time to appreciate the independence we experience and fight to maintain this independence! It takes true leadership to hold yourself and others accountable for this high standard.

Enjoy the 4th of July!

4th+of+July Independence+Day Leadership

Public Speaking Skills Prepare You for Future Opportunities!

Recently, during my presentation skills workshops or public speaking coaching session, I was asked the following question:

Mr. Sykes, who do you think is the better public speaker, Barack Obama or John McCain?

First, I always start by saying "Taking the politics out of it (I am asking the same of those who are reading this post), it's Barack Obama."

It's because Senator Obama exhibits the following traits of a great speaker:

• He is comfortable speaking in front on two or several thousand people.

• He is in control of the stage all the time.

• He is a master of vocal variety, inflection, tonality, and also a lost art ... the pause.

• He makes the audience feel he is personally talking to each member of the crowd.

• He is able to communicate a vision that others want to buy into.

• He, from a leadership standpoint, moves people to action with his speaking style.

John McCain is the master of the town hall presentation. He feels comfortable with small, intimate gatherings where he is quite engaging. However, when he is giving a speech, it is summed up by a recent Newsday.com (by way of Politico.com's Jonathan Martin) article:

"Why McCain should be so bad at giving speeches is fairly mystifying since he is actually a very good conversationalist, clearly at ease with reporters and the countless voters he's appeared before at town-hall meetings."

I mention the above quote because I hear many times from students, "Speaking one-on-one I'm fine, but when I am in front of an audience, I just freeze or fall apart." Senator McCain is not the only person who finds public speaking a challenge. It is a very common challenge that many people have when it comes to public speaking.

Well, it's important to understand that developing outstanding public speaking skills prepares you for opportunities on a future "big stage." You may never know what these opportunities are today, but they are coming in the future. Why not prepare for them?

If you want to start your journey to overcoming public speaking fear and start your journey to giving outstanding presentations, read this interesting article at Overcome Fear.

Maybe some day you will be able to become President ... of your company, association, business, or even the country.

public+speaking presentation+skills overcoming+fear outstanding+presentations Barack+Obama John+McCain

NFL Legend Bruce Smith Talks About Health

We are honored to be involved of the third annual American Cancer Society's African American Men's Health Forum at the Marriott Waterside Hotel in Norfolk, VA on April 19th. As a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, I implore everyone to be proactive in taking care of their health. As Co-Chairman of this important event, I am especially happy that NFL Legend Bruce Smith has become a spokesperson for this event. See the following commercial with Bruce:

For additional information, go to www.cancerhealthforums.org. Get the information to make a difference for your love ones and for yourself.

American+Cancer+Society Bruce+Smith African+American+Men's+Health+Forum Norfolk+VA

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

Happy New Year and Let's Start Goal Setting!

Just a quick note to wish each of you a Happy New Year. We sincerely hope that 2007 was the best year of your life, and that 2008 is even better!

There have been a lot of changes at The Sykes Group in the past year, and we have many more great additions planned for the coming year.

In the next week we'll announce the beginning of "Jump Out the Gate in 2008" program, so stay tune!

P.S.-The following are some six quick tips to goal-setting:

1. Put Your Goals in Writing - Your goals aren't real unless you put in down on paper.

2. Make Your Goals Attainable - Realistic goals are attainable goals.

3. Qualify Your Goals - What exactly do you want to achieve?

4. Have a Time Frame - Forces you to keep track of your goals and allows you make corrections.

5. Develop a Strategic Action Plan - What exactly are you going to do to achieve your goals?

6. Make Achieving Your Goals Personal - Create meaning and passion for your goals.

For additional goal setting and success resources, go to Goal Setting.

goal+setting goal goals

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

It's My Birthday and Thanksgiving All in One!

I hope all is well and we wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving today.

Even if it's not a holiday in your part of the world... it's always nice to be thankful for the people, opportunities, and things we have in our lives. Take a moment today to call, e-mail, or text message the special people in your life and let them know how you appreciate them.

Thank you for your continued interest and support in The Sykes Group. We hope our postings have made a difference in your lives and will continue to make a difference in the future.

Also it is my birthday today. It's a big one (I'll let you guess which one). As a friend wrote in her card, "Nice that the entire nation has declared it a holiday."

Have a Great and safe Happy Thanksgiving today!

Giving+Thanks Happy+Thanksgiving Thanksgiving+Day Happy+Birthday

Create a Great Funeral Day!

Today is "Create a Great Funeral Day!"

Why would I be talking about this day? Well, about five years ago I had the pleasure of helping a client through a challenging situation. This client was a major university who was just starting a Funeral Services Management program and degree. The instructor, who was teaching the business side of funeral services, had other priorities come up and had to leave. The client asked me if I would step in and teach this course for the seminar. To say the least, I was quite surprised. The only information I knew about the funeral business was the men in the black suits, the open caskets, and the limousines.

After great consideration, I accepted the challenge and took the course book and researched everything there was about funeral service management. My classes were alive (Ha! Ha! That's the joke) with interaction and involved the students as they were looking to jump into the business. I had guest speakers who were in the business come in to speak to the students. I also took the students on field trips to funeral homes to learn what goes on behind the scenes to make a successful funeral.

I enjoyed teaching this course as I could see that the students were absorbing the information. I went on to teach the course for a total of three seminars until they actually found a Funeral Director/Instructor to teach the course. Out of the five Funeral Services Management courses taught during this period, my courses were consistently rated the highest.

What did I learn from this experience? I learned the following:

• When you do quality work for your client, they will have confidence in you for other areas.

• Opportunities in one area with prepare you for other opportunities in other areas.

• You can perform a good quality funeral for only three to five thousand dollars. Anything more than that is just extras/add-ons.

• Funeral directors perform their jobs to the best of their abilities to give great customer service.

What an experience! I am so glad I accepted the opportunity to teach at that time. The client and university regarded me in a whole new level of respect and hired me for additional projects. I can see how this past experience helped me today to give even greater service to my clients.

Create a Great Funeral Day!

Create+a+Great+Funeral+Day management success opportunity

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

Blog Action Day! You Can Make a Difference

Today is Blog Action Day! Blog Action Day is a day where individual bloggers can make a difference for the environment.

On Saturday, I took all the old computers and components date back to the 486 processor (us older folks know what I am talking about) and went to the local computer recycling location at our National Public Radio station (WHRO) in Norfolk, VA.

It was extremely fast and easy. The person in charge requested that I stay in my car and his helpers would take all the equipment. Before I could turn around, his helpers swooped upon my car and took away the components in less than a minute. I was happy, Joy is happy, and we both feel good that we made a difference for the environment.

So make more room in your office, house, or apartment and recycle those old computers. You will be surprised how often there are programs available for you to recycle.

Blog+Action+Day environment recycling

October 1-5 is Customer Service Week.

Happy Customer Service Week!

October 1-5 is Customer Service Week. In an environment that so few organizations do it well, I would like to recognize an organization that understands what great customer service is, and more importantly, applies it each and every time. The name of that organization is the supermarket chain, Harris Teeter.

The following are twelve reasons why I enjoy my customer experiences when shopping at Harris Teeter and don't mind paying a little extra for the food I buy:

1. Harris Teeter provides consistently great service no matter what store you shop.

2. Harris Teeter employees have smiles on their faces each and every time.

3. Harris Teeter employees give eye contact when interacting with customers.

4. Every Harris Teeter cashier will ask you "did you find everything you needed" and wait for the answer and provide a solution if you didn't before proceeding to ring you up.

5. Every Harris Teeter employee shows a "we're here to serve you" attitude.

6. Every Harris Teeter employee shows a "we will be more than glad to find it for you" attitude.

7. Every Harris Teeter store has a clean and inviting environment.

8. Every Harris Teeter makes checkout easy and fast even during rush hour.

9. Harris Teeter is focused on hiring service oriented employees.

10. All Harris Teeter employees are trained to understand and show great customer service.

11. Harris Teeter employees explain each time at end of check out how much you saved by shopping at Harris Teeter.

12. Harris Teeter employees always say "thank you for shopping at Harris Teeter."

Harris Teeter understands that the customer is willing to go out their way and pay more if the customer is given great customer service and feels appreciated. Whenever I go to Harris Teeter, it is a "shopping event." Thus, for Harris Teeter, it increases their bottom line. Hooray for Harris Teeter! They understand the right way to run a business.

customer+service customer+service+week customer+relations

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

So Much Reading, So Little Time, What is One to Do? RapidReader Increases Reading Speed in Minutes!

"Help! I need to increase my reading speed now!"

If you're like me, you have information coming at you 24/7 from a variety of sources: e-mails, books, special reports, magazines, training manuals, vendor information, etc. and it keeps growing. We are under pressure to quickly assimilate this information so that we can make business, career, and life decisions better and faster than ever before.

I have tried various speed reading programs with very little success. I have learned the systems, scanned the pages, used the "index finger" to keep myself on track and not increased my reading speed at all. The problem with these programs is that they force us to learn a reading system that is not natural to us, thereby causing us to fail.

Then it happened that I was exposed to the solution. A vendor, who wanted me to quickly read his product information, explained in his follow-up e-mail that he understands that I am busy and offered a win-win solution---the RapidReader program. The very first time I used RapidReader I fell in love. I found that I was able to instantly increase my reading speed and read the vendor's manual in a matter of minutes.

RapidReader is based on a ten-year research project by John Hopkins University which studied barriers to faster reading. The results revealed that for over 5,000 years we humans set ourselves up for failure by requiring our eyes to move to where written words are instead of letting the words that we read come to us. Not only do we work too hard to read when we must move our eyes to read a page, but we also increase our risk of being distracted during the reading process, both resulting in slower reading speed. RapidReader eliminates the two main barriers to reading speed: eye movement and sounding out words.

RapidReader's "Speed Reading on Demand" is software that easily integrates into applications you use the most, including Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Outlook, and Web Browsers. RapidReader can be installed on your personal computer, laptop, Palm, or mobile phone. Once installed, you simply select a document to read, select the desired reading speed from 100 to 950 wpm, sit back, and your document is converted into a moving panorama of flashing words, much like looking at a movie. The John Hopkins study found that subjects who read text flashed like a movie in one location on a screen read at incredible speeds of up to 1200 wpm. A similar study at the University of Southern California revealed that 86% of subjects significantly increased their reading comprehension over reading on paper when using RapidReader at 300 wpm.

RapidReader takes reading into the 21st century to help us meet today's demands to process information at a breakneck pace. I highly recommend RapidReader for business owners, executives, managers, students, teachers, and anyone else who must process huge amounts of information to succeed. See for yourself by trying a free trial copy of RapidReader at Free RapidReader Trial.

timemanagement time+management time+management+techniques Speed+Reading reading+speed speedreading

National Get Out the Doghouse Day!

July 16th is National Get Out the Doghouse Day! Refer to my previous National Get the Doghouse Day posting to let those dogs out of the doghouse and enjoy life.

national get out the doghouse day

Ed Sykes Motivating African American Men to Take Control of Their Health on National Public Radio

As mentioned before, I am volunteering as spokesperson for the American Cancer Society's African American Men's Health Forum coming to Norfolk, VA on June 16, 2007. I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed about the forum on National Public Radio's HearSay program. The following is the audio segment from the show.

Please click on the banner below to register for the forum or go to the American Cancer Society's web site to find out how you can take control of your health!

American+Cancer+Society National+Public+Radio African+American+Men+Health+Forum Ed+Sykes Motivational+Speaker

Motivate Your Employees to be Healthy and Fit!

Motivate your employees to be healthy and fit everyday! Today is National Employee Health and Fitness Day. When you motivate your employees to be healthy and fit, your organization will benefit in the following ways:

• Increased energy and productivity

• Increased self-esteem and self-worth resulting in better personal, sexual, and work relationships

• Decreased heart problems (look at the passing of Yolanda King at age 51 from heart failure)

• Lower health insurance costs

• Better customer relationships

• Increased bottom line

Need I say more?

We are working with the Hampton Roads American Cancer Society to bring awareness to the ever increasing challenge of cancer, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Overall it is a big concern and especially in the African American community where the cancer, high blood pressure, and diabetes rates are substantially higher than other ethnic groups. Please click on the following link for additional information on the free African American Men's Health Forum coming to Norfolk, VA and information on other programs to keep everyone healthy:

Get motivated, go give someone you care about "the boot," and encourage them to see their doctor, eat healthy, go to the gym, ride their bike, or simply take a walk around the block or building. You will be amazing how simple it is to get started and the benefits are enormous.

National+Employee+Health+and+Fitness+Day running healthy activities fitness Hampton Roads American Cancer Society

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

First, 82 Degrees, then Bill O'Reilly, and Now Snow in April in Virginia Beach, VA

In Virginia Beach this week, it was 82 degrees and I was talking about turning on the air conditioning. Later in the week, Bill O'Reilly was taking advantage of a very unfortunate situation in Virginia Beach to further his agenda. Today, it's 32 degrees and snowing. Who would have thought all this would happen all in one week?

Snow Virginia+Beach Bill+O'Reilly

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

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

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,

Ed & Joy

What is the Secret to Having a Great Conversation?

Watch as Joy shares the secret to a great conversation.

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Conversation communication+skills listen listening +skills Joy+Fisher+Sykes

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.

stress+managment success winter+solace+day

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.

So what happened?

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.

career+advice promotion+skills career+development career presentation+skills

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!

Sharing a Great Holiday Stress Management Message for Work Life Balance

Next time we feel stressed (whether holiday stress or other stress) and need to complain about life, think of the following message:

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain-looking, some expensive, and some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

After all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is but normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress."

"Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases, it's just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups, and then began eyeing each other's cups."

"Now consider this: Life is the coffee, and the jobs, houses, cars, things, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us."

God brews the coffee, not the cups . . . enjoy your coffee.

"Being happy :) doesn't mean everything's perfect, It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections"

Live in peace and peace will live in you.

Think of this story during challlenging times at work or as you travel during the holidays.

Holiday+Stress Life+balance work+life+balance Self+Help Self+Improvement Stress+Management

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

May I Have Your Attention, Please? Five Ways to Retain Focus and Stay in the Moment

Today many of us frequently feel stuck in overdrive - days crammed with too much to do mixed with an unhealthy dose of frequent distractions, all vying for our attention at the same time. This can cause our minds to be constantly racing which, in turn, can make focusing our attention seem like an impossible task. Is it any wonder we find it difficult to pay attention for more than ten seconds at a time without a sense of dread that we might miss something?

When our attention is spread too thin, we run the risk of putting our relationships in peril. Once others believe you have willingly disregarded their presence, whether intentional or not, your inattentiveness can foster ill-feelings including anger, annoyance or resentment. Whether you find it difficult to remain attentive with customers, peers, family or yourself, the ability to remain connected without daydreaming is possible. So how do you stay present and in the moment? The following are five ways to help keep your head in the game and strengthen your attentiveness skills:

• Practice doing one thing at a time
  Whenever possible, do one thing at a time. Whether it's your children describing their day or your partner boosting about a big accomplishment, stop what you are doing and focus solely, giving this person your undivided attention.

• Make contact
  As you focus solely on the conversation, make eye contact. You'll find it's difficult to maintain eye contact and multitask at the same time. Listen with your entire being (mind, body, spirit) and show others you are present and completely focused on the conversation - smile, nod, raise your eyebrows, shrug your shoulders, light up your eyes.

• Slow down
  Many of us are conditioned to be in a rushed state of mind because we live in a society that demands achievement be attained quickly. This is precisely the reason many of us find it so difficult to concentrate on one thing at a time. In the rush of "doing," the special moments pass us by. Make a commitment to slow down and focus on the here and now.

• Commit yourself
  There are conversations we anticipate will progress quickly, and others we know will be time-consuming. When engaged in conversation, commit yourself to the time necessary to complete the dialogue. If you find the time allotted is insufficient to conclude the talk, arrange for a mutually beneficial time to complete the discussion.

• See every interaction as an opportunity to connect
  Every contact you have with someone presents an opportunity to connect with that person, to learn a bit more about them. It's important to remember you can choose to relate with others positively or negatively. Whenever you come upon someone, always ask yourself this question - "What will I miss if I choose to tune out?" Listen to your response, and let this guide your actions and your choice.

The ability to remain in the moment is a matter of personal choice. Make a commitment and follow these simple steps and you'll expand your interpersonal skills to new heights of success.

focus communication communication+skills interpersonal+skills listen listening+skills

October 3-9 is "Get Organized Week." Take time to organize yourself to achieve more success in your business, your career, your life!

Take time learn how to be more productive, less stressed by listening to my recent interview with organizing expert Brian Hill, His clients in the leaders in business, government, newscasters, and actors and actresses.

He was recently on the Martha Stewart sharing his unique secrets with Martha discussing how to be more productive in life.

Please click on the following link to listen to our interview: Organize

It's Take a Long Walk Day!

Take time to take a long walk today. This walk can be leisurely or brisk.

The benefits are countless. For me it's an opportunity to "check myself" mentally, physically, and recharge my batteries. It's amazing how many good ideas come to me while walking.

Take thirty minutes to escape the rat race and take a long walk!

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!

Ernesto Puts Rain, Rain Everywhere...But I Don't Care!

Ernesto has hit us! This is what I saw when I looked out the front door in an attempt to go to the office.

That is O.K. It's Friday of a holiday weekend and a good time to do some writing, reading, and heat up a tasty bowl of soup. But especially, if the electricity stays on, watch a good movie with popcorn with Joy and our daughter. If Joy has her way, it would be any Dentzel Washington movie.

By tomorrow I may be able to inflate the raft and float into the office.

Everyone be safe and enjoy the holiday weekend!

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.

Today is Sit Back and Relax Day!

It's August, it's hot, and it's summer. It must be Sit Back and Relax Day!

Take the time to sit back and relax and take a "productivity break" from work and life. Take a few minutes to manage your stress, recharge your batteries, and stir your creative juices.

Take the time to read how to sit back and relax in our stress management session of this blog.

It's Always Live Better Than Yesterday Day!

Today is Always Live Better Than Yesterday day! Here are ten tips to living your life better than yesterday:

1. Set goals and create passion

2. Look at any challenge as a learning opportunity

3. Constantly ask yourself, "How can I do it better?"

4. Embrace education and stay ahead of the curve

5. Give back to your community, friends, and family

1. Create wealth for yourself and others

7. Create balance in your life

8. Learn to forgive and move on

9. Make your health a priority

10. Always take time to appreciate someone

Take time to follow these success tips and you will always live better than yesterday!

Career Advice: Five Career Advice Secrets for Being the Perfect Employee Everyone Wants on Their Team - Part 2

The following are five career advice secrets for being the perfect, motivated employee that everyone wants on their team, putting your career on the fast track, and creating great relationship with management:

1. Be Enthusiastic
   Be known as an employee who has a great attitude and is enthusiastic about his/her job and work. Enthusiasm is contagious and spreads quickly in the workplace. Just the opposite, constantly whining and complaining deplete valuable resources of energy in the workplace. Think of people you know at work and ask the following questions:
   
   
   • Who energizes me at work? Who has a can do attitude?
   • Who drains the energy out of the day? Whom do I hate to see come through the door in the morning?
   • How do my co-workers and managers see me?
   
   
   Positive and negative employees, when presented with the same situation, have two different ways of handling the situation. The positive employee looks for the positive solutions. The positive employee is a proactive person who looks at change and challenges as opportunities to grow and develop new skills. The negative person looks at the same situations as being taken advantage of and has the "why is this happening to me" attitude. The negative employee tends to gossip and participate in unhealthy competition. Obviously, management feels more confident with the positive, enthusiastic employee with the "can do" attitude. Be known as the positive employee who creates solutions.

2. Know Management
   You will avoid career landmines and be favored by management by taking the time to "manage your manager." Find out and understand your manager's strengths and weaknesses, priorities and communication style, and how he/she manages people.

   When I was rising up the corporate ranks, I worked for a vice president who was uncomfortable speaking in front of a group of people. Whenever he had a department meeting, you could always see he was nervous and tense, especially when he had to persuade us to accept a very challenging situation. There would always be a team member who would challenge this vice president in front of the group. To say the least, this did not go well for the employee who challenged him. However, I recognized the vice president's weakness, never questioned him in public, and waited until the meeting was over and went to his office to discuss the challenging situations of the day. Behind our closed-door discussions, this same vice president was very open, conversational, and confident. We were able to create solutions for the company and when it came time for promotion to vice president, my name was at the top of the list.

   Remember, to get what you want in your career, you must help your manager succeed. Focus on what is important to your manager and provide the solution. If customer service is important, speak with your manager in terms of creating customer solutions. If your manager is a numbers person, quantify all your results, etc.

3. Walk the Talk
   Show integrity in everything you do at work. Be the employee that management can depend on to get things done. When you prove you are an employee who consistently delivers on his/her promises, this will impress management and you will go to the top of the list for choice assignments and promotions. If you are someone who is known as undependable, you will lose the respect of management, and your opportunities for promotions will decrease.

   Also, the employee with integrity owes up to his/her mistakes. The employee that doesn't have the courage to own up to his or her mistakes and take responsibility is very frustrating for managers. If you make a mistake, do the following:

   • Own it
   • Apologize for it
   • Explain what you learned from the mistake
   • Ask your manager for input
   • Tell what actions you will take in the future so the mistake won't happen again

   This benefits you because it shows you have integrity, you take ownership for your actions, you can learn from challenges and mistakes, and you are developing a relationship with your manager by asking for input and assistance.

   Last, but not least, integrity is also not taking credit for someone else's work. Take credit for your own work and acknowledge others for their accomplishments. Fellow employees have a long memory, and you may need these same people when it comes time for a promotion.

4. Take Risks and Grow Rich
   There are employees who do a good job everyday and do not advance in their careers. The employees who stretch themselves and their abilities are the ones who advance in their careers. Risk takers are comfortable with the challenges of taking the risk and know how to adapt to job situations when they arise. They also know that there may be some challenges that they may not accomplish the first time. However, they will take responsibility for the results, learn from these challenges, and prosper in future opportunities.

   The following are some ways to take risks and grow rich:

   • Volunteer for high exposure, high risk projects
   • Get agreement and an understanding as to the resources needed to succeed
   • Combine questions with solutions in meetings
   • Actively find work challenges and provide solutions

5. Be the Team Player
   Managers look for employees who are not only talented, but work to make the entire team better. Team players work well with other team members and support them emotionally. Team members are proactive about pitching in when and where needed.
   
   They also understand what the team mission is and work with other team members to accomplish its goals and values. Because of this understanding, team players are competitive for the team not within the team.

When it comes to your career, talent helps but is not the sole factor for success. Take time to apply these five career advice secrets and you too will be the perfect employee everyone wants on their team.

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.

Today is Father Daughter Take a Walk Day!

Take the time today and celebrate Father Daughter Take a Walk Day! It's a wonderful way to strengthen the bond between your daughter and you. Take time to stop, jump off the "rat race," leave all technology at home; iPods, cell phones, and Walkmans for us older folks, and find out what is going on in your daughter's life and how you can make a difference.

That's enough for now. We're out the door so that I can walk along the oceanfront with my daughter and our dog and create a special moment. You can too!

It's Workaholic Day!

Today is Workaholic Day. However, the workaholics are too busy working to notice or enjoy the day.

Find time to take the CareerJournal.com quiz at the following link to see you might be a workaholic:

CareerJournal.com Workaholic Quiz

If you are a workaholic, relax. I really mean it, relax! The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute states that workaholics, especially those with Type A habits, are prime candidates for stress-related illnesses including ulcers, high blood pressure, and heart attacks.

Take steps to create more balance in your life and reduce stress. We have some stress management, stress relief, and relaxation tips and techniques in our stress management catagory you can apply today.

Please post to this article and share you workaholic stories with us. Please relax because we want you around for a while.

Enjoy International Time Out Day!

April 17th is International Time Out Day.

Remember when you were a child and your parent(s) asked you to take a "time out?" Your parent was really asking you to think about the consequences of your actions and come up with better actions.

As an adult we need to take a time out. We race from one activity to another caught up in the "rat race." Sometime we may have a difficult time finding the answers we need to solve a problem.

Maybe we find ourselves cutting our conversations with others short while multitasking with two cell phones, the laptop, and the blackberry. Because of this our relationships at work and home suffer.

Take a Time Out!

Climb off the rat race for a few minutes and invest in you. You will find greater peace of mind, you will find better solutions to your challenges, and you will develop better relationships.

Do the following for ten to fifteen minutes:

1. Go to or create (turn off your radio, TV, cell phone, etc.) a quiet place. Get away from distractions.

1. Close your eyes.

2. Slow your breathing.

3. Think of something you would enjoy doing. This could be a hobby, take a vacation, play sports, interact with friends or family, etc.

4. Concentrate on the positive feelings and confidence you receive from these thoughts.

5. Think about a challenge you need solved and let the answer come to you.

6. Open you eyes and you will be better prepared to handle your world.

Happy Time Out Day!

Coaching: How to Succeed in Half the Time Using a Personal Coach

I love watching the top sports individuals and teams; especially, the ones who consistently year in and year out maintain the highest level of excellence. What is the common factor of these successful individuals and teams? Great coaching! Great coaches analyze the talent they presently have and work to maximize the athlete's strengths, while minimizing or eliminating the athlete's weaknesses. This makes the individual and team better at what they do; while, at the same time, it identifies obstacles or challenges and helps the athlete and team overcome these challenges.

What do top business professionals such as Donald Trump and Bill Gates (especially in their early days) have in common with these top notch athletes? They realize that to accomplish their goals faster, they enlist the help of coaches. Whether it is presentation coaching, success coaching, or executive coaching, the coach assists the professionals realize their full potential, maximize their assets, minimize and eliminate their weaknesses, and helps them realize their opportunities in career, business, and life.

What are the qualities of a great coach? It's the same qualities you see in the great coaches in the athletic arena everyday. The following are some of the qualities to seek when enlisting the services of an effective coach:

1. Positive Communication
   When communicating with you, the coach will use communication that shows ownership and empowerment. Instead of saying, "I think...," "I hope...," "we kinda...," "maybe we could...," "I like to...," the coach will use words and phrases such as "we can...," "we will...," and "we need to...." These words and phrases convey a sense of ownership, empowerment, and expectancy of positive change.

2. Clear Goal-Setting
   Your coach will ask variations of these questions, "Where are you now?" and "Where do you want to be in one year, five years, 10 years, etc.?" The coach will work with you to develop a personalized plan or proven system that is flexible and fits your special needs. The coach will hold you accountable for achieving the plan and help you find ways to accomplish the plan.

3. Motivational Ability
   Your coach will find the motivating factors that are important to you and keep you focused on your goals based on these factors. Having established a close relationship with you, your coach will know when and how much to motivate you.

4. Honest Feedback
   Your coach will give you constructive, honest feedback so that you can take the steps to go to the next level in your career, business, and life. Many times when I coach individuals in organizations, the number one concern employees have is one or more of the following: "I never receive feedback on my performance," "I only receive negative feedback," or "I only receive feedback during my once-a-year performance review." Feedback is important for improvement.
   
   Could you imagine a basketball coach never giving his team any feedback during the basketball game or season? Or even worse...only negative feedback? How would the individuals on the team know what areas to improve upon to succeed? Your coach's feedback will keep you on track to be more successful.
   
   Another important benefit of coaching is that it is confidential in nature. Just you and your coach will know what your goals are for success. Often the reason individuals don't ask for help or guidance is because they don't want others to know their weaknesses. Your coaching sessions are confidential and all feedback is kept between the participants.

5. Making the Future Now
   Your coach will help you see your future opportunities today and jumpstart you to take action immediately. Many times we will see our future opportunities but don't know how to get there. The coach provides a "bridge" to help you move toward your opportunities and goals. Like the old saying goes, "If you can conceive it and believe it, you can achieve it." The coach helps you achieve it by seeing the future now and having you act on it.
   
   Enjoy the benefits of successful individuals and organizations if you are serious about creating success in your business, career, and life. Do what successful people do and find a coach that meets your unique needs and helps you accomplish your goals quickly. You will be amazed at the results.

THIS IS OUR LAST ENTRY!

Thank you to all our loyal readers. This is our last posting. We are joining the S-L-O-W group and giving up all forms of technology so that we can improve our lives. We are also selling our home and moving to a piece of property in Montana so we can farm off the earth.

You will be able to contact us by the United States Postal Service when we figure out the address. Goodbye to all!

April Fools Day!

Only kidding, how would I watch March Madness and tennis?

Happy Let's Laugh Day!

March 19th is Let's Laugh Day. Find a reason to laugh and share laughter with others. Laughter does the following:

• Decreases your stress level

• Improves your health

• Increases your positive outlook on life

Let's find a way to laugh by doing the following:

• Read the comics

• Call a friend and share a funny situation from the past

• Watch a funny television show or movie

• Listen to a funny CD or radio show

• Think about something that has been worrying you and ask, "How serious is this?" Find a funny side to the situation.

• Send a funny e-card to a friend or family member

• Share a joke with a neighbor or co-worker

• Put on a funny mask or costume

Have a good laugh on me!

Chinese New Year: The Year of the Dog

Happy Chinese New Year!

This year is the year of the dog. As you can see, our dog Sonic is energized, motivated, and ready to take full advantage of the Chinese New Year: Year of the Dog. He may move from that spot by 2007.

Make your Dreams Come True/Make Your Mark/Blame Someone Else Days!

It's funny that January 11th is "Make Your Dreams Come True Day," January 12th is "Make Your Mark Day," and January 13th is "Blame Someone Else Day." Believe it or not these are real holidays.

I believe that if we don't sit down and plan your goals and act on them you won't achieve your dreams. If we don't achieve our dreams we won't make our mark in life, work, and the community. Many times if we don't achieve our dreams and make your mark we often put the blame on someone or something else. See how the days are connected?

Here are some resources to make it easier for you to achieve your dreams and leave the blame for someone else:

Free Articles

• Five Secrets to Creating a "Goal" Medal Life - Part One

• Five Secrets to Creating a "Goal" Medal Life - Part Two

• 10 Action Steps to Motivate Yourself to Great Accomplishments

• Connect the Dots! Your Roadmap for Success

• Adversity: Your Seed of Greatness (Three Secrets to Using Adversity to Become Great)

• The Greatest Gift of All - The Gift of Empowerment

So let's achieve our dreams everyday and make our mark!

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, and have a Great Holiday Season to the Rest of the Great Religions in the World!

We are wishing everyone (whether you celebrate a holiday or not) a happy, healthy, and prosperous time of year and an outstanding New Year. It's a great time of year to take a step back, be with family, assess your accomplishments for the year, and become excited about the new opportunities in 2006.

Be Thankful

Here is something special to share with you whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not.

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire,
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don't know something,
For it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,
Because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge,
Because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes,
They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary,
Because it means you've made a difference.

It is easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.

GRATITUDE can turn a negative into a positive. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings.

- Author Unknown -

Here's a Halloween Idea!

Why don't we collect for the less fortunate in additional to going from house to house tomorrow and collecting candy (resulting in upset stomachs and large dental bills)? Especially this year, with many people still suffering from the after effects of the various hurricanes, we need more than ever to reach out and help others.

This would also teach our children that Halloween is not just about getting candy and costumes, but also it's a time of giving to others. It's a wonderful way to teach our children they can have fun and make a difference in life. The high school is our community is collecting food on Halloween for the needy. Our neighborhood board passed out flyers asking homeowners to leave food for the hungry so the children can collect it (one bag for candy, one bag for food) and bring it to the local school to distribute to the needy.

Just an idea. Happy Halloween!