Tag Archives: leadership
I was walking along at a pretty good clip, a quarter of the way through my daily walk around the neighborhood when our paths crossed. Almost clear of the driveway, I caught, out of the corner of my eye, a sedan barreling my way. Its pilot blissfully unaware that I existed, her hair the same shade of blue as her car, she backed out onto the street probably thinking of a million things that she needed to accomplish that day……
In honor of Random Acts of Kindness Day, today I’ll share a few ways you can show kindness in your every day life. At their essence, manners are the recognition and respect of self in other. When we use good manners, we are actually acknowledging our own worthiness of being treated well and with respect. In so saying, I of course realize that not everyone practices good manners. There are many rude (and psychologically wounded) people walking the planet. Whenever…..
The most important aspect of being a great listener is being fully present during your conversations. You must be “here” in order to hear at the highest level. “How do I listen to others? As if everyone were my Master speaking to me His cherished last words.”— Hafiz There’s a saying: that in order to learn, we must listen more and to speak less. The proverb of having two ears and one mouth dictating the ratio of listening to speaking…..
[ALT TEXT: Did you know: The first poor grade I ever received was from Mrs. Ring in the fourth grade. It was for my penmanship, which she deemed, “borderline illegible.” I vowed to improve my technique. A lesson I took away from that experience is that even the best message is useless unless it can be effectively communicated]. I lived in Iowa when Barack Obama was running for president (both terms). As someone with over three decades of media experience,…..
If you’re an entrepreneur, or have an entrepreneurial spirit, you are probably driven by your vision. Even if it’s not fully formed, this vision is your focus, inspiration and fuel. But how do you transition from the imagination to the real? “First you jump off the cliff and you build wings on the way down.” —Ray Bradbury This sounds crazy, right? Conventional wisdom says that you should look before you leap, but if you have an iota of entrepreneurial essence…..
Do you believe in luck? According to Joyce Carol Oates, “The worst cynicism: a belief in luck.” Lots of folks who haven’t achieved the success they say they hope to achieve blame their situation on luck. They ascribe their circumstances to “bad luck” and dismiss the success of others as “good luck.” This attitude keeps them from reaching their full potential. As long as you are in any way guilty of blaming someone else for a situation in your own…..
Early on, when I first established a nonprofit to provide cars to women in transition, I had an opportunity to explain a central tenet of the organization. One of our first recipients was a single mother of seven children. She was 29 years old. The only reason I mention these statistics (especially as it relates to the quantity of her children) is because these facts about her circumstances were used by some as a cudgel against her and given as…..
Periodically on this blog, I’ll share a journaling prompt designed to help you dig through the mental matter bouncing around your head. Not all of these exercises may seem applicable, but chances are good they will. I’ll repeat the following introduction before each exercise, because there may be people joining the process at different points of the process. INTRO: Journaling is a way to engage the subconscious mind and to allow your inner wisdom to float to the surface of your…..
What is the secret to success? That’s the $64,000 question, isn’t it (BTW, adjusted for inflation it’s equivalent to the purchasing power of about $642,853.73). From the dawn of time, people have been trying to figure out how to succeed, usually via the quickest and most painless route possible. For example, depending on the source cited, Americans spend between $18 and $40 billion (that’s with a B) on diet and weight loss aids each year. “How to Succeed in Business…..
Did you know: Happiness is a state of being that you can adjust, like a thermostat on your wall. Everyone is born with a pre-determined Happiness Set Point®. Some of us have a higher setting, while some of us are natural-born Eeyores. The good news is that you have the power to change yours, regardless of the external circumstances in your life. About four and a half years ago, I got my heart broken, but good. It took me three…..