Effective Delegation

Delegation helps develop employees, build team capacity, and free managers to work on key corporate initiatives. Yet many of us still choose to hold on to work that others can do. Take a look at your calendar, to-do list, and project plans. See if there are items you can delegate to others with:

1. A clear objective
2. A deadline for the delegation to be complete
3. Training to do the task or project (if necessary)

As you review your list for work you can delegate, keep this in mind: If you are doing something somebody else can do, it's keeping you from doing only the things you can do.

Get Unstuck!

Get Yourself Unstuck from the Muck  - Somehow you are stuck in some real muck. It doesn’t matter what the muck is, or why you are there, or even how you got there. Put all of that aside for right now. Do not analyze the muck or beat yourself for being in muck in this moment.
The only constructive thing you can do you when you are stuck in muck is to get unstuck.

Here are 5 great strategies to get unstuck from the muck. Any or all five may be needed. You won’t know what works for you until you do it. On any given day, one strategy will work better than another. Be flexible and trust yourself to use any or all these strategies as the circumstances dictate.

1. Revisit Your Why - Why does this even matter to you? How meaningful is the thing you are trying to accomplish. It is so easy to get distracted and tied up into things that are not necessarily meaningful to you. If you are honest with yourself and realize it is not meaningful, this is the time to begin your exit strategy. However, if it is meaningful to you, there will at least be some tiny bit of inspiration, some motivation, and some hope attached to why you want to make this happen. Focus on your why.
2. Write Down a Plan - There are a million thoughts running through your head about this situation. Some useful, some not so useful. Do a quick brain dump and help yourself begin sorting out the helpful ideas and thoughts. Even if the plan is a simple list of projects to do, writing it down helps you to stop trying to work it all at once. It shifts your brain into action mode and away from running in circles fretting. Prioritize your plan of action and get moving.
3. Take 1 Step in the Right Direction - Now that you are operating from your most powerful purposeful self, this one is simple. Ask yourself what makes the most sense for you to do right now. Do it.
4. Be Positive - Once you start moving, you may begin to shift back into thinking and fretting. Pay attention to your thoughts and how you are speaking about this situation and life in general. Challenge any and all negative thoughts and self-defeating statements with positive statements of hope, peace, joy, and success.
5. Do Something Fun - Perhaps the only thing you need to get unstuck from the muck is to allow yourself to have a bit of uplifting fun. Every overachiever needs a break. Be creative. Be simple. Be honest with yourself about what you need right now to feel laughter, fun. It can literally lift your spirits. Getting yourself unstuck from muck can be as simple as allowing a bit more space for you to feel good even for just a moment. Try it.

Don't Give Up.......

Now is NOT the time to give up or give in. You are purposeful and wonderfully made. This moment may be terrible. It may be the worst that you ever thought it could get. This is a temporary situation. There is always hope and you’re stronger than your current circumstances.

Yes, of course it’s difficult. It may even be terrifying. And that’s okay. There is always hope and you are stronger than your current circumstances. You’ve made some terrible awful horrible choices to get to where you are right now. And guess what? We all have. Do you know what we have learned from making terrible awful horrible choices?

There is always hope and we are stronger than our current circumstances. So are you. We learned that at any given moment, we can choose to make better decisions. So can you. We can choose to learn enough about how we made this bed to know how to lie in it just long enough to get up out of it. So can you.

You’re not the first person to royally utterly and totally fail. I know that doesn’t help because right now where you are, it seems like this is the most hopeless situation that ever was. You have no clue how to get up or if there is any way to make things better. You’re over your head and clearly in need of a miracle.

It’s a good thing there is always hope and you are stronger than your current circumstances, right?! Just take a moment from beating yourself up or looking for someone else to blame and just…breathe. Really, it’s okay. Just enjoy some deep cleansing breaths right now. Allow yourself to relax just a bit.

There is always hope and you are stronger than your current circumstances. Say that with me: There is always HOPE and I am STRONGER than my current circumstances.

So what if you allowed yourself the possibility of being in this mess without judgment – just for today. Consider it a temporary reprieve. Remember that time you realized there was hope where you saw no hope? Remember that time you proved to be stronger than those circumstances? Yes, remember how awesome that felt? Remember how great it was to move past that place?

So what could you do in this moment to begin making better decisions? Don’t look behind you. Look ahead. Focus on where you want to be and how you want to feel. Get up out of your own issues for a moment and look to see what you can do to help someone else. You might just find that helping others, in a strange way, helps you in ways you didn’t imagine.

Guess what. There is always hope and you are stronger than your current circumstances.

Detox Your Mind

     We hear a lot about detoxing our bodies and how there are chemicals in our food that can be harmful, certain hormones and bacteria that can build up, even pesticides in the air. Many people don’t realize their bodies are full of harmful toxins and that’s what is causing them to feel bad. Most experts recommend you go through a deep cleansing where you put yourself on a fast and then eat a certain diet, staying away from things that are harmful. They say over time you’ll rid yourself of those toxins and begin to feel better.
     In the same way, there are all kinds of toxins that can build up in your mind. When you dwell on what you can’t do and the hurts you’ve felt and the challenges you face, you are focusing on toxic thoughts that can do as much damage as toxins in your body.
     Toxic thoughts build up and become like toxic waste that will eventually contaminate your whole life. They affect your attitude, your self-esteem and your confidence. They become part of who you are. Above all else, guard your heart for everything that you do flows from it. You probably know someone who is bitter, cynical and has a sour attitude. They expect the worst. Why is that? They’ve allowed toxic thoughts to take root. These negative thoughts are poisoning their future.
      Make guarding your mind a priority, put it at the top of your to-do list. If your mind is polluted, your whole life will be damaged. If you ignore toxic thoughts and keep your mind filled with thoughts of hope, thoughts of faith, then those toxic thoughts will be starved and will grow weaker, and before long they won’t have any effect on you.

What is Leadership?

When asked which employees they would keep when it comes to leadership skills, employers say, "The ones who are willing and able to assume a leadership role and take charge when necessary and appropriate." So, what is leadership in today's organizations? Traditional organizations of the past had "bosses" who told their employees what to do. Then these bosses found that employees would do just that and nothing more!

In today's organizations, most "bosses" have taken on new roles. They realize that "bossing" others can destroy an employee's sense of ownership and pride. Today's organizations need leaders rather than "bosses".

♦ A boss possesses a title. A leader sets an example.
♦ A boss demands respect. A leader earns respect.
♦ A boss tells employees what to do. A leader inspires action in others and demonstrates the right way to do something.
♦ A boss focuses on "I". A leader focuses on "we".

Continual Personal Development

Your continual self-improvement is essential for personal development in life. A healthy child does not stop progressing after learning to crawl. He or she goes on to walk, and ultimately learns to run within his or her capacity. Each day is an opportunity to learn something new and to pursue knowledge about areas of interest and purpose in which you are passionate.

There is valuable wisdom within sound experience, but it is not recommended that you always totally rely upon what you may have learned or experienced eons ago. In every area of life, improvements and changes are continually taking place.

Below are four simple points to keep in mind for daily self-improvement:

1. Read books, trade magazines, journals, blogs and research articles pertinent to your area of interest.
2. Network and socialize with diverse individuals who share your interests and passions for living to keep abreast of new trends and areas of thought surrounding your interests.
3. Take courses available to you to advance your field of knowledge in your area of expertise or field of interest.
4. Travel internationally to learn about different customs, cultures and traditions surrounding your area of interest.

 

Discover Joy...

What lights your fire, floats your boat, puts a spring in your step? What makes time disappear for you? What motivates you to happily get out of bed in the morning?     
    It is great to discover why we do what we do, work where we work, engage in the business we do and find joy in our lives every day.  If you are fortunate enough to have family and friends around you who love you, we hope you share your time and hearts with them and embrace that joy fully.
    If you are in the group of people who also love your work and find joy in the everyday tasks and events associated with your work, you are doubly fortunate because you have discovered a secret-when work is fun, it is not work.
    We hope that you are in that group of people who love what they do. And if you are not in that group, maybe it is time to make a change and do something that will float your boat and make you happy while you work. It's OK to make a change, really it is. Scary, perhaps, but life is too short to be doing something every day and not be happy.
Here's to your happiness and Welcome To Living!