How much of what you do each day is because it’s what you are expected to do as opposed to what you feel you really should do?
I believe if people were to really give this question some thought they would find they are wasting a great deal of time and resources trying to impress or please others as opposed to doing what they believe they should.
Give this some thought and then make some adjustments in your life if needed
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Some people want an organization to be clearly delineated. I do A and you do B. I’m in charge of X and you are in charge of Y.
The reality is most organizations are more like amoebas. They adapt when needed and are constantly changing shapes.
The ability to be flexible is what frequently separates successful from unsuccessful. Being willing to change on the fly can make you different from the rest.
Be willing to adapt, be flexible and be amoeba like. It might make you invaluable.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
If I can read it, I don’t need you
If you are making a speech and everything you say can be read on the PowerPoint slides then you as a speaker are not needed
If you are making a sales pitch and everything is covered in the brochures then you are not needed
PowerPoint presentations, sales brochures and other graphics should compliment your pitch not be able to replace you. The pictures should make your words stronger. The words should make your pictures more persuasive. If not, something is no longer needed and it might be you
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Appreciate what you have
So many of us are determined to get something better.
A better job
A better house
A better car
A better life
We are so determined to get something better that we don’t realize what we currently have is pretty darn good.
Sometimes it’s worth slowing down, taking a look around and appreciate what we already have. If you really take an inventory of what you have you might realize it’s already pretty impressive
Just something to think about
Have a great day?
Lawrence
One of the issues people complain about is there being different standards for different people. They say “that isn’t the way I was treated” or “that isn’t fair, I had to do more” or something similar. The reality is, people are different, life isn’t fair and we do have different expectations for different people.
The thing to realize is we also have different standards for the same person. For example, if someone is a gourmet chef, we expect them to do a great job cooking in the kitchen. On the other hand, we might not expect them to be great on a computer or building a house. So we have high standards and expectations for them in one area of their life and lower in other areas. If a person is a computer programmer, the expectations of them in the kitchen or with tools might be low but the standards with computers would be quite high.
This means not only do different people have different standards to achieve but also the same person will have different standards depending upon the aspect of their life.
This is just something to keep in mind when you see people being treated differently.
Remember, we don’t have to treat people all the same, we should treat them all fairly
Have a great day!
Lawrence
When you chose a location for a meeting do you take into consideration the “home field advantage”?
If the meeting is in your office you have the home field advantage (it’s your office, your comfort zone etc). If the meeting is in the other persons office they have the home field advantage. This seems pretty obvious.
When meeting at a “neutral” location do you still try to maintain home field advantage? As an example, if you decide to meet at a coffee shop, do you chose one you are most comfortable at or one they might be more comfortable? When choosing a restaurant do you choose one where you know the menu, you know the servers and you feel at home or do you choose a truly neutral one so both parties are on equal standing?
There are times when you do want to keep the home field advantage even if you are choosing a supposedly neutral location and other times when you might want to concede the home field advantage or choose a location that truly is neutral. There is no right or wrong but I do believe it’s important to know why you are choosing a location and why others might be choosing their locations.
This might seem like a small thing but it can be the difference between achieving your goal or not
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
You can’t teach desire
You can teach fundamentals
You can teach strategies
You can teach skills
You can teach tactics
You can teach balance
You can teach character
You can teach chemistry
You can teach a lot of things but you can’t teach desire.
If someone doesn’t have the desire to do what they are doing, help them find what they truly have the desire for and see what wonderful things they can accomplish.
Trying to motivate someone without the desire to accomplish something is both frustrating and pointless. Helping someone find what they have the desire to do is one of the most important things you can do for a person.
You can’t teach desire but you can help people find what they have the desire to do. If you get the opportunity, please do so
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Do the people you surround yourself with challenge you?
Do the people you spend time with have the same views on religion, politics, business etc?
Do you avoid situations and people who disagree with you?
One of the best ways to grow as a person is to surround yourself with people who challenge you. Do you do this?
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Three ways people take action
They React
They Respond
They Initiate
The first is easy to do
The second is more difficult but still relatively easy
The third is the challenge because it requires your own thought, your own motivation and your own willingness to take a risk and take action.
It’s easy to get caught in always reacting and responding and never have time to initiate but at some point, make the time and initiate something. You might be amazed at what ou can accomplish
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Many times when a person says “not now” it’s their polite way of saying “no”. A vendor comes into a store and wants the store to sell their product and the manager says “not now”, in most cases this is their way of saying “no”. When a fundraiser asks if you want to participate in their cause and you say “not now” it usually means “no”.
The thing we do forget is other times, “not now” really does mean “not now”. Their organization might not be ready to help but in 6 months or a year, things might be different and the answer then might be “now”.
When you hear “not now” do you set up a time in the future to follow up to determine if that time might be better? If not, you might be losing a lot of opportunities in the future.
Sometimes “not now” means “no” however other times, “not now” simply means another time might work. If you assume it always means “no” that might be quite unfortunate.
Think of it this way. If “not now” really meant “no” and you follow up with them you simply get a confirmation of a “no”. You really didn’t lose anything. If “not now” really meant there would be a better time in the future, follow up and find the right time. Either way, you really don’t lose anything.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
If there is one thing Lawrence Fine is most passionate about it's teaching. From sharing his knowledge about soccer as a soccer coach, he now shares his expertise in the field of human resources and the Internet. (More...)