New Year, New Beginnings!

With a new year in front of us I thought this would be a good time for us to do some dreaming.   All great accomplishments, the light bulb, the computer, the iPad, to name just a few, began with an idea, a seed, a dream.  Why not take some to time to build your own Dream Inventory.   Jot down your ideas, no matter how small or extravagant, whether you can achieve them now or not.   They can be materialistic (owning a fancy sports car or handbag) or about the person you would like to become.   As you begin to grow and achieve, some of your dreams may become goals.

Have fun dreaming!

Your Personal Growth

Your success is dependent upon your ability to set meaningful goals and the achievement of those goals.  Knowing who you are and where you are going is the foundation for your growth.   You can expand your personal growth by focusing on developing key leadership traits.  Here are a few suggestions to help you chart your developmental path.

1. Self-Discipline- making the commitment to pursuing your goals and maintaining a positive attitude at the same time.
2. Self-Confidence/Self-Esteem- believe in yourself and your capabilities. 
3. Be empathetic- by understanding and appreciating others you empower them and in return gain power yourself.
4. Have integrity- set high standards, select strong values and have a clearly defined purpose.

Self-development is a journey not a destination.  Enjoy the trip!     

How to Make the Best Decisions

Quite often life presents us with challenges that require us to make decisions.  So, what can you do to make sure you are making the best decision you can?  Try and follow the steps outlined in this blog and see what results you are able to achieve.

1. Clearly define the issue before you go about solving it and making decisions.
2. Do your due diligence.  What sort of information will you need to gather and review before making this decision?
3. What are your options?   Don’t necessarily settle for the first thing that comes to mind.  Take the time to think through all the possible alternatives and then select the best one.
4. Move forward.  Once you have identified the best alternative think through the details of how you are going to execute this task.   What are the potential risks, the resources needed, timelines, etc.   Also make sure to identify how you will measure your progress.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

When you stop and think about it we make an extraordinary number of decisions in a day.  Most of these decisions are the execution of our subconscious.   This may be ok for things like deciding what to wear, what to eat, etc.   But what about the other decisions we make during the day?   Are we really making quality decisions in our lives?  Not sure.  Try this exercise on for size.   List a few important decisions you have made over the past 2-3 years.  Now evaluate those decisions.  Did they produce the results you wanted? If not, which ones would you change?

2 Ears and 1 Mouth, What should this be telling us?

Most of our careers we focus on developing our communication skills.  But it is typically our verbal skills, public speaking capabilities that we focus our attention.   Many of us would benefit from directing our efforts and enhancing our capacities for the other element of communication, listening.   So, how can one become a better listener, by following these simple steps.

1. Make the time to listen.  Don’t pretend to be listening. Maintain eye contact if you are in the presence of the other person.
2. Don’t speak while others are speaking.  Go one step further and concentrate on what the person is saying.  When you are formulating your response in your head while they are still speaking you aren’t listening to them anymore. 
3.  Pay attention to what people are saying.  They tend to repeat the things that are of most importance to them.   What emotions are they using to communicate their message?
4. Don’t fall prey to selective listening.   Listen to the WHOLE conversation and not just the parts that match your views and interests.
5. Listen with the purpose of retaining the information. 

By becoming an active listener you become a more empathetic listener and will gain the respect of others and develop the ability to establish strong relationships that will enable you to achieve your goals.