TPCL

07/03/2015

07/03/2015

11/02/2015

Are you a prisoner of your mood?

Too often we let ourselves be ruled by our moods — which leads to procrastination, a lack of exercise, eating poorly, constant online distractions, and more.

Mood is a poor indicator of whether you should do something.

Consider the following examples:

You want to write a book, and you commit to writing every morning. When it comes time to write, you feel like checking your favorite online sites instead, and don’t really feel like writing. So you put off writing. All procrastination works this way.

You tell yourself you’re going to work out today … but when it comes time to do it, you’re tired. So you put it off and say you’ll do it tomorrow.

You plan to meditate, but instead get distracted by your phone. Checking your phone is always something you’re in the mood for, but meditation rarely is.

You create a healthy meal plan for yourself, but in the afternoon you feel like a snack, so you eat some chips or a pastry. You aren’t usually in the mood for vegetables, but you’re always up for fried, salty, fatty, or sweet things.

Allowing our moods to dictate our actions leads to procrastination, distraction, lack of exercise, unhealthy eating, and bad habits.

What’s a better way? Use smarter things to decide your actions: whether something will lead to accomplishing what you want, whether it’s good for you, whether it will help others. Make these decisions ahead of time, and don’t listen to your mood.

When the time comes for action, instead of saying
“I don’t feel like it” (or not saying anything but just following your mood), say one or more of these instead:

It’s on my plan, I gotta do it.

Past Me said to do it, and Future Me will thank me, so let’s do it.

Once I start, I’ll be glad I did. All I have to do is take the first small step.

I don’t need to decide on this, or think about it. It’s already decided.

This is a compassionate act for myself. An act of love. Let’s get to the loving.

I am doing this for others, to set an example for others, to make the world better.

Yes, “just this once” does hurt. Let’s not fall for our old thinking traps.

It’s time, let’s get to work like a pro.

The best writers, best athletes, best entrepreneurs … they don’t just do their work or workouts when they feel like it. When it strikes their fancy. They show up every day and get to work. That’s how you’re going to approach your decisions from now on: show up as planned and do it.

10/01/2015

Be the best....or the greatest?

10/01/2015

http://www.mytrainingcontent.com/Free-Downloads/

10/01/2015

www.mytrainingcontent.com

06/08/2014

Take some time today to ponder on these questions, so you can feel curious again about the world -- and your role in it.

What is love?

Love can be one of the most challenging sentiments to define, and it without a doubt varies from person to person. Yet taking time to explore its various forms and implications can provide a deeper understanding of what it means for you.

Where do I want to be?

Asking yourself this question can not only hone in on the current landscape of your life, but also unearth the trajectory you want to follow. You can also broaden the scope of the question beyond career goals, and imagine where a home, family, friends and hobbies fit in. Take time to paint several versions of the picture, and accept that the vision is going to change countless times. As long as you aren't living by someone else's vision, you will end up where you want to be.

The late Steve Jobs once said, "Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma -- which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

What happens when I die?

Yes, it feels uncomfortable, even morbid, to contemplate the idea of death. However, research has found that thinking about it can actually be a good thing. An awareness of mortality can not only improve one's physical health, but also help a person re-prioritize life goals and values accordingly.

The dance with death can be a delicate but potentially elegant stride toward living the good life.

What makes me come alive?

Don’t worry about what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

Discovering a passion that fuels that inner fire is often easier said than done, which is all the more reason to take the time to ask yourself this question. Let your imagination run wild, and try not to impose any self-restrictions on the possibilities. Being honest with yourself and embracing a little soul-searching is often just what it takes to discover what's missing.

How do I want to be remembered?

Many people spend their days living by their resumes, their lists of accolades that translate to the power they have accumulated throughout their lives. However, spend more time living by its pending eulogies instead.

Have you noticed that when people die, their eulogies celebrate life very differently from the way we define success in our everyday existence?

No matter how much a person spends his or her life burning the candle at both ends, chasing a toxic definition of success and generally missing out on life, the eulogy is always about the other stuff: what they gave, how they connected, how much they meant to the lives of the real people around them, small kindnesses, lifelong passions and what made them laugh."

Am I truly happy?

If you're thinking about happiness beyond the present moment, you have to take a broad view of your life and overall contentment and happiness. Working through these details not only helps you to realize whether you're thriving and flourishing as much as possible, but it can also increase your ability to be happier.

The Dalai Lama perhaps puts it best, when he said, "Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.” And what is happiness? "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony," he said.

What is my purpose in life?

This question often arises during moments of transition. Whether due to mid-life crisis, a major career change or new unfolding\ unexpected scenario, you may find yourself asking this question as a means to find stability within yourself.

While this philosophical pondering can take on several forms -- "What is the meaning of life?" or "Why am I here?" may sound more familiar to you -- the answer is always relative to the person asking it.

There is only one meaning we each give to our life, an individual meaning, an individual plot, like an individual novel, a book for each person.

It does not matter how long you are spending on the earth, how much money you have gathered or how much attention you have received. It is the amount of positive vibration you have radiated in life that matters.

26/09/2013

Danger! Corporate Training Initiative Ahead

On occasion I come across organizations that feel that they must set up training programs to meet some identified (or ill-identified) corporate need. Whether it is sales, leadership, outbound team building programs, multi-cultural interventions, or any other topic, these across organization programs tend to be top-down driven. That means that the impetus for training comes from senior executives or management, sometimes in conjunction with human resource units.


Is there anything wrong with such initiatives? First, it makes sense that efforts be made to develop a more cohesive organizational culture, or new set of skills across the organization. The problem is that executives are not always in touch with the needs and wishes of employees who will be attending training sessions, and may forget that learning will only take place when attendees see that the training is relevant and useful to their own lives. When participants see the training as irrelevant, or worse, suggestive of skill/attitude deficits on their parts, the result can be wasted resources or worse.


A recent incident illustrates the point. A large MNC arranged for two day seminars for sixty of their employees (human resources employee) in "anger management, mediation, conflict resolution, gender awareness \ diversity, mind mapping and sexual harassment issues". Two anonymous employees in the building emailed to all, including the chairman and board members "What does this have to do with our jobs? This blatant waste must be stopped".


This may be an example of training that has been decided without participant input, and motivated by factors other than enhancing the skills of employee. And it certainly is an example of training which is perceived as unnecessary, irrelevant, and possibly insulting. So what are the consequences?


The top management looks foolish, attracting negative attention from all. Second, what are the effects on the credibility of these, and other training initiatives? In this particular case we don't know, but we can make the general suggestion that training which is not driven by participants, or is communicated badly will have a significant negative impact on the credibility of those that have arranged for the training (management, human resources, etc).


Some Tips:

1. As a general rule, whether training is top-down driven, or driven by properly designed focus groups, surveys or other needs assessment processes, potential participants should be consulted as to the relevance and usefulness of the proposed training. Input is required, not only to keep the training relevant, but also to ensure some level of employee "buy-in" to the issues and the training.

2. In cases where training is mandated by new or revised corporate initiatives (eg. respectful workplace, technological change, new policies, etc) we MUST remember that marketing and framing of the training is critical to ensure that it will be perceived as useful and relevant. Just because management feels the training is necessary does not mean that employee will see it the same way. So the critical part is framing/marketing the initiatives from the point of view of the participants.

In practical terms, these means a communication strategy that focuses on how the training will help employee succeed -- do their jobs better, with less frustration. On occasion, it may seem on the surface that some training endeavors won't bring benefits to employee, but the truth is that almost every training initiative can be framed in a way that focuses on employee benefits.
Look for those benefits, and communicate the purpose of the training in terms of the benefits participants will receive, not just the benefits the organization will receive. Keep in mind that you may have different communication strategies for employee and your customers. The reasons why some change may benefit customers will be different from the benefits to employee.

3. Be aware that employee can be offended by the notion that some manager or executive thinks they need a particular kind of training. This is because the presupposition is that employee need this training because they aren't good enough at something. Most people don't like to admit they aren't good at something! So, it becomes very important, especially when dealing with interpersonal skill development, or attitudinal development, to be vigilant and consistent in affirming the existing expertise while suggesting that "we can all get better".

4. In some situations it may be advisable for managers and executives to attend the same training sessions as employee, and as full participants, not observers. This sends and re-affirms the message that managers and executives recognize that they too can benefit from training on the relevant issues, and helps break down organizational barriers.

5. In some situations, training may be mandated for all employee members. There may be reasons why we might want ALL employees to participate, and sometimes there may be legal reasons why this is necessary (eg sexual harassment). However, when possible, present the training as optional. Allow employee to self-select. At the least, this will confirm your sense that the training is necessary or desired by some.

Conclusion

Setting up training properly, with needs assessments and proper marketing/framing is critical to avoiding the kind of situation cited earlier in this article. That is one reason why we in TPCL ASKS participants ahead of time what they need with respect to their area of development. Yes, the needs assessments guide us, but they also help employee buy-in to the process, and reduce the possibility that employee will be insulted by being asked to participate. We also counsel our management clients that attendance at such workshops should be voluntary, or marketed in terms of employee benefits, not corporate benefits.

The consequences of ignoring basic principles is that large amounts of money can be wasted on employee who feel insulted and demeaned, and resist the training. In addition, considerable embarrassment can occur, when employee take an active hand in resistance.
Cheers
George

The biggest block to progress is not ignorance--it is the illusion of knowledge- AWG

[email protected]

14/09/2013

Changing Mindsets for Workplace Excellence

The greatest setback in organisations is the trapped mindsets of its people. A trapped mind is unable to adapt, change and thus stifles the capability of a person. People with trapped mindsets become unimaginative and cannot think creatively to provide new solutions. Their views are so entrenched, they practically operate in an auto mode.
Our mental processes--our "cognition "--play a complex and dramatic role in our lives. Our cognition makes us human. We can cope only by first sensing and understanding the environment. Sometimes we misperceive and wrongly interpret the situation, causing problems. Our expectations and response sets partly determine how we see the world. Our attitudes, suspicions, and conclusions about others also determine how we relate to people.

Our hopes, dreams, and/or fears become self-fulfilling prophesies and determine the future to some extent. Our values and goals determine the directions our lives take. Our knowledge of human behaviour and our rational planning partly determine our success in achieving our life goals.

Our motivation also determines how far we go in the directions set by our needs and values. The discrepancies between reality and our ideals will determine how satisfied we are with ourselves and our lives. Most importantly, humans are the only species which can systematically study its own thought processes; we know some of our inner selves.

All of this phenomenal world of cognition is due to 2 1/2 pounds of 100 billion nerve cells inside each human head. The brain weighs less than 3% of our total weight but burns 25% of our total oxygen intake. It is a busy, powerful, phenomenal, mysterious place.

Sun Tzu wrote his classic book, The Art of War, 2500 years ago. In it he said, "If you know the enemy and you know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself, but not the enemy, for every victory gained, you'll also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will lose every battle."

Between you and me, Sun Tzu had it easy. In 500 BC, all he had to do was learn about himself and his enemy

Honestly looking at ourselves and changing may be stressful, but we need to do it.

It is often comfortable and easy to stay the way we are. Changing may be gratifying or stressful and is frequently both. Temporary stress is a natural, necessary part of recognizing a weakness or feeling we had previously hidden from ourselves, trying out a new behaviour, facing a fear, releasing a pent-up emotion, and changing.

Many of our attempts to change ourselves fail because we are unwilling to put in the time and effort necessary. Our entire culture expects quick, easy solutions. Related to this is my experience that many managers do not make efforts to understand. It is not because the methods are too complex to be understood but because many managers are careless humans and in a hurry. They think they understand, but they often don’t realize that they need to revisit the concept again and discuss it with someone else. Trust me.....This takes time.

Don't wait for magical solutions. DO SOMETHING to help yourself. Be strong! Confront any resistance to change and challenge all your defeatist attitudes. Learn to believe you can change things.

There are many reasons why people like us avoid change--fears, lack of motivation, resentment of pressure, helpless feelings, procrastination, wanting to fail and/or avoid responsibility, wanting to live spontaneously without planned change, wanting sympathy and to be taken care of, feeling that it's too much trouble to change, pride and stubbornness, being willing to accept our own rationalizations ("it runs in my family"), being inflexible and "set in our ways," feeling that we are not okay and deserve to be miserable, and other motives.

It may be hard to understand your reasons for avoiding change if you are a procrastinator, but remember, there are reasons for everything Look for your reasons (it's likely to be several reasons). For example, shyness may enable you to avoid the stress of socializing; being irresponsible may get other people "off your back" since they are likely to stop expecting you to be a mature, capable, dependable person

If you decide some self-improvement is especially important but haven't made plans for changing within a day or two, then focus on the reasons for your inactivity. If you can't be sure of the reason(s), then guess at it. Try to deal with the possible resistance to change like any other problem, i.e. develop a plan of attack by analyzing your resistance to change as well as the problem itself. Question the validity of your pessimism. And, people who have failed to change in the past won't believe they can change until they have drafted a good plan and done it. So, give it a try.


As Epictetus said 2000 years ago, "No man is free who is not master of himself"

13/09/2013

A wealthy man requested an old scholar to wean his son away from his bad habits.

The scholar took the youth for a stroll through a garden. Stopping suddenly he asked the boy to pull out a tiny plant growing there. The youth held the plant between his thumb and forefinger and pulled it out.

The old man then asked him to pull out a slightly bigger plant. The youth pulled hard and the plant came out, roots and all.

"Now pull out that one," said the old man pointing to a bush. The boy had to use all his strength to pull it out.

"Now take this one out," said the old man, indicating a guava tree. The youth grasped the trunk and tried to pull it out. But it would not budge.

"I – It's impossible," said the boy, panting with the effort.

"So it is with bad habits," said the sage. "When they are young it is easy to pull them out but when they take hold they cannot be uprooted."

The session with the old man changed the boy's life.

REFLECTION

Habits form character and character is destiny- we sow our thoughts and reap our actions; we sow our actions and reap our habits; we sow our habits and reap our characters; we sow our character and reap our destiny. Thus, first we form habits, then habits form us.

Bad habits are like a comfortable bed, easy to get into, but hard to get out of. It is easier to prevent bad habits than to break them.

There is an old saying that, one can't kill a frog by dropping him into hot water. As we drop him into the hot water, he reacts so quickly that he immediately jumps out unharmed. But if we put him in cold water and gradually warm it up until it is scalding hot, we have him cooked before he knows it. The encroachment of bad habits in our lives is very much like this.The chains of bad habits are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.

Conquer your bad habits soon or very soon they will conquer you