Career

It’s Your Performance Evaluation – Own it!

Creating effective performance evaluations is factual, not the place for “fluff”. For you and your boss to be pleased with the results takes work and time. The advantage is that you both benefit from the results. They have selected positive information to include in their report to upper management and you have submitted data specifically tied to monetary compensation and/or negotiated benefits for the coming year. Let’s look at your bosses’ role and the part you play: Do you have an annual or quarterly performance evaluation? Is it written or oral or a combination? Does your boss write it and send it to you for comment before the formal evaluation?  If your answer to some or all of these is “no”, then what? The Role of the Boss Your employer generally is paid to solve problems, creating an efficient and effective work environment. Many larger organizations have specific forms relating.

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Your Productivity Unleashed – What a Gen X and Baby Boomer Have Discovered

Your Productivity Unleashed – What a Gen X and Baby Boomer Have Discovered I have been in business many years and have used a variety of methods to set and achieve goals for every area of my life each year. I found over the past few years, that the traditional methods I had used no longer worked. Then, in December 2016, I found a program developed by Michael Hyatt (Baby Boomer), whose program is titled “5 Days to Your Best Year Ever”. His passion, he says, is creating a step by step guide for anyone with something to say or sell. Michael’s program goes far beyond the SMART goal concept (specific, measurable, actionable, risky and time-keyed). After reviewing the product, which covers every area of life, I purchased it and spent five full days working on plans for the next year. I set my goals up in a format easily.

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Growth In Life Is A Choice

  “Life is change.  Growth is Optional.  Choose Wisely.” says Karen Kaiser Clark, world-renowned lecturer, consultant, educator and author.  For those who struggle, at least occasionally, with change, Karen’s advice may have a bit of a sting in it.  Yet, when you reflect on the difficult circumstances in your life, some provoking life-altering change, you begin to see when, where and how you changed as the result.  What lessons did you learn and how did you choose to share the wisdom you gained? If you are in corporate America and have been there over ten years, you have seen tumultuous changes, affecting you, your team mates and most importantly your family.  You may have been laid off, perhaps multiple times, due simply to corporate reorganizations.  You may have been placed in situations where you had to make decisions you disagreed with, simply to keep your job.  Are you sleeping poorly,.

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Facing Trouble

In Lewis Timberlake’s book, First Thing Every Morning, he talks about trouble and how to deal with it effectively. He quotes Michael Jordan: “If it turns out that my best wasn’t good enough, at least I won’t look back and say that I was afraid to try; failure makes me work even harder”. This quote reminds me of ‘mental muscle’, where what you think over time can determine how you act. So, if your first instinct is negative (and I have been guilty), your actions will usually follow the same pattern. How do you change it? From my perspective, it takes a deliberate decision to change, daily practice with the goal of positive reaction to trouble, patience, and taking a few deep breaths to calm the mind down. Try repetition of positive thoughts –

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Will Rogers’ Formula for Success

“In order to succeed, you must know what you are doing, like what you are doing and believe in what you are doing.” – Will Rogers.  For those who may not know him, Will Rogers was an American cowboy, newspaper columnist, stage and motion picture actor, and humorist.  He certainly was not afraid to try new things and gave us his wisdom in simple, direct terms. His advice on success is no exception.  Knowing what you are doing says you have a specific goal in mind – at this point, you don’t have to know how you are going to get there.  If you decide, for example, that being an industrial engineer serving large companies does not feel like what you were meant to do, you look at options and see that small business coaching looks like a better fit. How to get there – you have a friend who.

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SETTING GOALS AND ACHIEVING SUCCESS

I have been a member of Michael Hyatt’s Platform University for several years now.  For those who do not know about Michael, today he styles himself as a virtual mentor, whose mission is to help high achievers win at work and succeed at life.  In his previous life, he was the Chairman and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, the 7th largest trade book publishing company in the U.S.  He is the author of a number of books, several of which landed on the New York Times bestseller list. Among his other talents, his blogging expertise and willingness to share puts him at the top of my “go to” list. In early January I began reading about another program of his titled 5 DAYS TO YOUR BEST YEAR EVER.  His approach to goal setting incorporates the most reliable methods, including the SMART formula (specific, measurable, actionable, risky, and time-keyed).  Then he.

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Consistency in Today’s World?

Consistency can be defined as adherence to the same principles, course, etc. Why is this concept so hard for us to grasp, much less maintain?  From my perspective, it involves a number of factors – age, attitude, persistence, self-discipline, responsibility, and lifestyle, to name a few. As with other things, it can lead to boredom – when practiced in the extreme. But, for now, let’s just assume we need more of it – not less. We are told it is a key tool in training children and animals – so they know what to expect, each and every time. That can lead to a sense of security, setting boundaries, and creating stability. Ok, I will say that in the 1950’s, consistency was practiced and approved generally in society, especially in America. Vector forward to 2016 and our life today – the changes in technology alone have created massive distractions and.

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How to Maximize 24 Hours – The Paris Love Way

Paris Love, Amazon’s best-selling author, coach, speaker, and entrepreneur, has written a book that should be in your home library – dog-eared and highlighted! This 192-page book can easily be read in a few hours – the first time. She clearly understands the need for – and resistance to – our taking control of our time and organization. Using humor and insight, she guides us through five key areas of resistance, with simple, practical solutions to move us forward. What sets this book apart from many others on this topic (and I have read many!) is her ability to see the issues through our eyes, anticipating our fears with gentle humor. I have personally tested many of her practical suggestions and they quite simply WORK. Paris shows the reader that the desire for a rewarding life is truly achievable; we simply have to begin. Let me know what you think.

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New Entrepreneurs

Many entrepreneurs share common histories of their first year in business, noting their mistakes at the beginning of the business ventures and the lessons they learned – the hard way. 3 Things to Avoid Kathy, a new entrepreneur, shared that her dream was to open a crafts store in her small town. She had graduated from a liberal arts college and wanted to build a business around her artistic talents. She shared her story, noting her mistakes and what she could and should have done to begin her business differently. No money. Kathy had a small savings account, no retirement funds, and no collateral for a possible bank loan. She did not have a financial statement of any kind. No appropriate work space. Kathy began working out of a corner of her garage, which was neither heated nor cooled. No clients. Kathy did not have a social media presence, was.

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Initiative

Initiative is a word typically used to describe a positive event. As we reach adulthood, we have dreams of how we may shape our future. Unfortunately, too many people love to pour cold water on our dreams, talking about all of the reasons why our ideas will not work. There are three steps we can use to take ownership of initiative, in spite of the naysayers. STEP 1: Recognize it! Do we know initiative when we see it? Let’s look at the following examples: When a child builds a sand castle on his own for the very first time, how do we respond? Do we giggle because it is lopsided, or mention all the ways it could have been built better? Or do we take pictures and praise the child for using his imagination in building something all alone? When an employee cleans up a spill in the office, which.

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