Archive | July, 2010

Create Your Own Network

By on July 29, 2010 in Success

Don’t be afraid to ask for what you want or what you need! Chances are good that you will get it and you might just help someone else out in the process.

My quick story: My regular readers know that my husband is deployed to the Middle East; that’s just background information. Last week I received an email from our local family services coordinator at the base that went out to all of the spouses/partners of the deployed service members. It’s great that we have communication from the base, but what was lacking was a community of support for the wives. No support network existed, so I suggested to the base that we start one, offered my assistance and they agreed.  Now we have our own network; a private Facebook group where we can share thoughts, concerns and ask for help from one another. We are growing quickly and are slowly developing a broader reach and a valuable connection. Who knows what may come of this; parenting help, career assistance, sharing of skills, mentoring and of course friendship.

Another result of this project was that I decided that more sharing of information and support was needed by military spouses as a whole and knew that I could fill that need. So, out of this experience came not only a new support network, but a new website – GuardWife.com – and a book on deployment from the family’s perspective is in progress.

Lessons learned:

  • Speak up and ask for what you want!
  • Chances are good that someone else needs the same resource that you are looking for.
  • If the network doesn’t exist; create it yourself.
  • If you find a need out there that is not being met; FILL IT!

You may be able to make money from your innovations and ideas or maybe not. You never know where they will lead you. The important thing is that your need will be filled and you will most likely have added to your network and helped others along the way.

If you want to read more on stepping outside your comfort zone, read Key Questions: What Are Your Limitations?

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Key Questions: What Are Your Limits?

By on July 27, 2010 in Success

Are you limiting yourself? Do you even realize that you are doing it? Most of us don’t. It’s certainly not intentional, but most of us are guilty of it at one point or another, myself included. We just have in our mind the belief that we can’t do something; we aren’t talented enough, strong enough, smart enough, whatever the reason. We think this belief is fact, but in reality it is only our thought and it is not set in stone. If you are willing to take a fresh look at these self-imposed limitations and honestly question them, you’d be surprised at what you might discover.

This past weekend I really wanted to go for my morning run, but it had been raining horrendously and it was threatening to start again. Normally I would have dismissed the idea out of hand. I’m a fair weather runner. I only like to run or walk outside when it is sunny and 60 degrees. You will not find me with my hat and gloves or rain slicker. Just for a moment I had a flash of daring and I thought why not? What is the worst that will happen? I may get soaked. I may have to cut my exercise short. I may be uncomfortable and hate it. Just once I decided to take a chance and go for it.

I laced up my shoes and off I went. About 5 minutes in it started sprinkling. I got a little nervous, but decided it wasn’t too bad and I could keep going. After about 15 minutes the rain started coming down harder, but I was at the halfway point and far from my home. There was nothing I could do now so I kept going, determined to make the best of it. It felt unfamiliar, but not awful. All of the sudden it occurred to me that I was running in the rain; something I thought I never would do and never could do. Huh….imagine that. At the 30 minute mark I rounded the corner toward home, pumped my fists in the air like a gold medal Olympic runner and felt victorious.

If you had told me last week that I would not only manage to run for 30 minutes in inclement weather, but set a personal best time while doing it, I would have said that you were crazy. Today, that limit no longer exists for me and has opened my mind to a whole new set of possibilities. I started to question myself. Where else am I limiting myself? What else can I do that I thought was not conceivable?

victory

This is transferable to all areas of our lives and work. Ask yourself:

What limitations have you placed on yourself?

Could you stretch them just a little?

Is there something that you would like to do that you just don’t think you can manage?

Why is it not possible?

Is it a fact of reality or just a thought or perception that you hold?

Stretch yourself and be open to all of the new possibilities!

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Absolute Minimums are a Must to Improve Productivity

By on July 23, 2010 in Personal Growth, Success

If you consistently accomplish your absolute minimum in each of your critical core concentration areas each day you will make significant progress toward you goals over time.

Remember, slow and steady wins the race. You can always do more than the minimum and I hope you will, but even small amounts of advancement add up. Too often we get caught up in the mental trap of believing that if we can’t commit a substantial amount of time and energy then we might as well not bother to take action at all. That is a myth.

Take a look at what you have identified as your current critical areas of focus and determine what your absolute minimums are.

What is the least amount of time, effort or action you need to take to see progress?

Each person will have different answers and only you as an individual can reasonably define what they are. It is also helpful to note which focus area they address. To get you started, here is an example based on my current focus list, of the absolute minimums that I must do with consistency; both to achieve progress towards my goals and also to feel satisfied with my life and work:

  • Exercise a minimum of 20 minutes daily – physical health
  • Write one hour – career
  • Email my husband daily summary & encouragement – family
  • Work a minimum of 6 hours each day during the summer – career
  • Social media (10 Twitter posts and 1 Facebook post daily, update LinkedIn status weekly) – career
  • Connect with at least one child each day (one on one time, phone call or email/text communication) – family
  • Take 30 minutes of alone time (crucial to my sanity) – mental health
  • Check in with my Facebook community (especially group for spouses of deployed military members) – friends

Your list may be very different and it should be since your life situation is dissimilar to mine. This list will then become a structure for new habits you want to implement. The amount and complexity is up to you, but remember to keep it reasonable or you won’t be able to maintain your momentum.

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Critical Core Concentrations

By on July 20, 2010 in Life Balance, Personal Growth, Success

You must concentrate your focus on the critical core components of your life in order to increase your overall effectiveness.

magnifying glassThis is a crucial strategy in your quest for improved productivity, efficiency and success. The first and arguably the most important step is to determine what your critical core concentrations are, or rather what you want them to be. Take a look at your goals or think about your long term plans in each area of your life. To give you a frame of reference; think about what you’d really like to accomplish or what’s important in the next three months. I recommend re-evaluating quarterly as plans and priorities change. Consider all the relevant areas of your life and work:

  • Self – mental, emotional & physical health – includes personal growth and creativity
  • Relationships – marriage, children, family, friends
  • Spirituality – in whatever definition that means to you
  • Community – local or global, contribution
  • Home – purchase and/or care
  • Career – job, business, education
  • Finances – income, investments, debt, retirement, etc.

To illustrate this, I am willing to share my personal and professional second quarter core list as an example:

Mental & physical health – Focus on increasing endurance and strength, eat to maximize energy and health, and take time alone every day to decompress.

Family – Focus on maintaining communications and reinforcing my relationship with my husband during military deployment and support and deepen the connection with my children.

Career – Focus on building my business, writing productivity and deployment books and building my reputation.

Finances – Focus on planning and conducting my savings and investment plans in a more disciplined fashion.

Friends – Focus on strengthening my network of support and companionship, both in-person and virtual.

Keep in mind that everyone’s list will be different and will vary depending on the life and work situation that you are currently in. My list will be different in 6 months and was certainly different last year. Also, many business owners create a separate list for their business as an entity in addition to their personal list.

Once you have this list save it, print it or write it on an index card, tape it to your desk, hang it on the wall, whatever you need to have a constant reminder. You will then use this list as the basis for setting goals, determining weekly and daily priorities and selecting which projects and activities make the cut.

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Nature’s Path to Gratitude

By on July 13, 2010 in Personal Growth

If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive.  ~Eleonora Duse

We are surrounded by the beauty of nature every day. It is free, available and takes nothing from us. Instead it only asks for us to open our eyes and enjoy. The work I do in the garden is a labor of love; a respite from the demands of the world.

Your slice of nature may be a sprawling country home with majestic gardens or a city park; even a potted plant in your window will do. Whenever you need a reminder to be grateful for all this life has to offer, immerse yourself in nature and be reminded…

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Time Wasters: Top 5 things I Don’t Do That Increase Productivity

By on July 13, 2010 in Success

timeI don’t watch TV – Well ok, I watch a little, but in all honesty it is usually limited to 2 or 3 evening shows during the week and a movie with the kids on Friday night (which I often read during anyway.) If I have to exercise indoors, I will put on Morning Joe. That means I average 5 hours of TV watching per week; considerably less than the average American who watches 28 hours. Look at all of the time wasted!

I don’t play games on the internet – I limit computer usage to work, email and one hour of social media per day (that would be less if it was not necessary for business.) I do not surf the internet, play solitaire or Farmville on Facebook. That is not a productive use of my time.

I do not spend time gossiping around the water cooler (or over the “hedge row”)- This one is an easy one for me since I work from home and my water cooler conversations are limited to 140 characters on our Twitter account! Bonus: It also allows you to stay out of office or neighborhood drama.

I do not watch the news or read a daily newspaper – I know that’s blasphemous for some. Rest assured that I still know what’s going on in the world and my community. I do subscribe to RSS feeds and Twitter accounts from a couple of national news outlets and a couple of local ones as well. That allows me to get the news in real time and scroll through quicker to the items that interest me. I do subscribe to the Sunday paper which I thoroughly enjoy and immerse myself in the delight of the printed news, lifestyle and comics once a week.

I do not over-commit myself – I have learned to say no to activities that do not add value or are not the best use of my skills and time. For example I do not volunteer to work all school events, but I do the bookkeeping for the school PTO (It is easy for me with my business background and I can do it around my schedule, therefore it’s a good fit.) As an add on to this, I do not allow my children to over commit either, which makes for less stress and teaches them the value of making choices.

There were others that are on my list of “Don’ts,” but did not make the top 5. Watch for more time wasters in a future post…

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Know Yourself – Critical Productivity Success Strategy

By on July 7, 2010 in Success

Do you really know yourself? Have you thoroughly identified, examined and analyzed your thought patterns, activity routines, preferences, abilities and comfort zones? Probably not. Most people never take the time to truly understand how and why they do what they do. Are they afraid of what they will find? Do they judge themselves too harshly? Find too many areas that fall short?

What if we look at it in another way? What if instead of judging,  berating and spending time and effort trying to improve and change everything that you or current business wisdom thinks is wrong;  you instead just decide to go with what you’ve got and learn to make it work for you? Why do we have to label everything good or bad? How about, it just is! This does not mean that you stop striving for efficiency, growth, knowledge and success, but just don’t place quite so much focus on it.

Perhaps one of the most overlooked, but often most critical component of maximizing your productivity and business and personal success is finding and using what works best for you as an individual or your company as an entity. The news is full of both people and organizations that seem to break all the rules, yet in spite of or maybe because of their quirks still become wildly successful and seem incredibly content. What if your comfort zone isn’t such a bad place to spend maybe 80% of your time?

What’s comfortable for you?

Some preferences or styles to consider:

  • Time
  • Temperature
  • Pace
  • Atmosphere
  • Work style
  • Life style
  • Social style
  • Communication preferences

For example, my husband prefers to run outside in any weather, at 4AM, in 45 degrees at a moderate pace; while I prefer to run outside as long as it is reasonably nice, at 7AM, in 60 degrees at a good clip, but I take walk breaks if I need them. Both work.

I prefer to work at a very fast, focused pace in a solitary environment with music in the background or on my iPod to shut out the world. I also work in comfortable clothes and sometimes in my pajamas and slippers. Others work at a slower, but steady pace and prefer noise or co-workers around them. Many people feel better working in professional attire and make-up.  I’ll admit that the “experts” including me on occasion have been proponents of “dressing for success” and I still agree on the whole, but if you are one of the few for whom that doesn’t feel right then by all means ignore that piece of advice.  Many a best-selling novel or million dollar deal has been made while wearing flannels!

Do you prefer to start work early at 5AM, keep office hours starting at 9 or are you most productive in the evening?

Do you separate each job, client or project and draw a clear boundary between each as well as your private life or do you intersperse all types of work, play and family and that seems to work for you?

Do you prefer to communicate in person, via phone or by email? All are valid and have different advantages and disadvantages.

The key to this strategy is to know what is most effective for you. If something is not working for you, i.e. you really could get more done if you got up and started working before the kids woke, but you stay up too late watching TV and don’t get out of bed, then by all means CHANGE IT! But if you enjoy conducting business in your bathrobe at noon in your bunny slippers, then just don’t use video conferencing please!

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