This week has been a real exceptional week. I had the distinct pleasure of working with youth ranging in ages from 17 to 18. In addition to that, my 20 year old daughter co-facilitated with me. She impressed me with her passion and confidence as she immersed herself into her topic of managing conflict. In the afternoon, she presented the same topic to an entirely different group but this time presented solo as I was presenting in another room to 30 young adults speaking on building personal resilience. What a great day!
Ah the gauntlet of challenge from my youth. The ultimate test of ego and testosterone all rolled up into two sentences: I Dare you! I Double Dog Dare You!
It’s amazing some of the stupid decisions and actions that resulted from these dares being uttered by someone who probably wouldn’t accept the dare themselves but would love to see me humiliate myself with the dare.
For those of you that watch the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, the title of the article states how Barney Stinson (a character on the show) says the word legendary when something great is going to happen.
The company Nike has it right. The simplicity of their slogan should be embraced on a daily basis; Just Do It! How many times have you lost out on something you wanted because of indecision or a fear of just making the decision?
It’s been so much fun walking the streets in the downtown core by my office these last few days. There is a bounce in everyone’s step. Smiles are greeted by more smiles. Families are walking holding their kids hands. Even watching the comments on FaceBook, people are talking around increased energy and productivity. What is causing all this positive change? An incredible burst of spring weather!
Stress is a word that we hear or have used often in our daily lives. Doing more with less, getting deadlines out for a customer, and rushing through dinner to get the kids to their hockey game all can lead to increased stress levels. Stress is nothing new but when the stress becomes excessive and unwanted it can quickly become an overwhelming factor in our lives. This stress can have far reaching implications physically, emotionally, financially and socially, leaving scars in both our personal and professional lives.
My co-worker just got back from a Caribbean vacation. He had an incredible time. He said it was great and he planned it perfectly. In fact he spent a lot of time researching and planning the perfect vacation.
Self sabotage can be heard all around you. Excuses. Doubt. Fear. They all can be heard in the words people say or the actions people do. I’m sure we have all used words like ‘I can’t, I’m not sure, maybe, I’ll try, if only I had’; these are all words and thoughts that are based on insecurities and doubt. When we use them often, they reinforce an attitude of self sabotage. The problem with self sabotage is that if you believe what you say long enough, it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.
Celebrating New Year’s was especially rewarding this year. My family and I created a lasting memory by ringing in the New Year in the Dominican Republic. After an exceptional dinner including grilled lobster, we attended an outdoor concert and screamed with hundreds of others as the countdown to midnight transpired. At the strike of twelve we watched bright, colourful fireworks explode in the star filled sky up and down the beach from the different resorts. The celebrating continued on for hours with music, laughter and lots of pictures.
Well it’s that time of year again. That one time of year where we continually hear the question; what’s your New Year Resolution? This is also the time of year where so many great intentions get blindsided by old habits. Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of formalizing a New Year Resolution. Heck I’m an advocate of setting resolutions throughout the year. But it’s something about the tradition (and peer pressure) of having a New Year Resolution that causes even some of the die hard to pony up and identify at least one goal.
In my book the Power of RE I discuss Reclaiming control of your life. Far too often, we get busy and fail to make choices. In essence we let life control us. We can become like puppets with life pulling our strings. It becomes difficult to enjoy what life has to offer when we are reacting from one event to the next. One of my favourite movies is City Slickers starring Billy Crystal. Billy played the role of Mitch who had lost control of his life and wasn’t sure how to get it back.
Busy. Busy. Busy. I’ve got no time for anything. I’m exhausted at the end of the day.
How many times have you heard this in a day when talking to others? How many times have you said it yourself? No doubt that life is busy. At work we hear we have to do more with less. At home we might be busy running the kids to their sporting events, taking care of an ill parent or participating in a church group. Regardless of what is draining your time, it still can create a sense of loss of self or imbalance in daily life leading to considerable stress.
I was with a client the other day and he was frustrated with the lack of accountability with some of his team members. He commented how there always seems to be an excuse for poor performance or it was always someone else’s fault.
Surprise! You have a guest writer this week, and yes, by guest I mean Gary’s amazing and talented daughter, Hannah. I’ve asked my father’s permission to write this article as I am back from University for my first reading week. I thought it would bring a different perspective to this article and let everyone hear about my beginning experience of University life…I’ll leave out the wild stories, don’t worry.
When looking up the definition of forgiveness I found this: Forgiveness is defined as the process of concluding resentment, indignation or anger as a result of a perceived offense, difference or mistake, or ceasing to demand punishment or restitution. I guess the easiest way to define forgiveness is to ‘decide to let it go and move on’.
I was travelling the other week on business. In the morning I ventured down from my hotel room to grab some breakfast before starting another day. I had some notes to review that I took with me to read while munching down on some eggs, toast and juice. The room was filled with business travellers, most reading their morning newspaper or watching the news on the television. It wasn’t long until some discussions started happening between strangers. Small talk at first but some were quickly willing to give further opinions. I noticed a pattern appear.
Have you ever stopped and noticed that you talk to yourself on a daily basis? When you’re looking in the mirror or about to give a big presentation? If not, don’t worry because it’s a very difficult action to pick up on, but is very important in your life. Strange how talking to yourself can be so important, right?
Throughout my travels I always seem to come across people who only look for the faults within their lives. They’re so busy focusing on the negatives that when something amazing happens to them; they miss it and can’t enjoy it because they struggle with accepting anything positive. You are a special individual and deserve to feel great about your life. When negativity makes an appearance, don’t let it take control, just remember these ways to feel good about your life, no matter what stage you are in.
Have you ever been asked “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” and been completely stumped on how to answer? If so, then it is time to start taking control and understanding the ins and outs of your strengths and weaknesses. By taking the time to learn about yourself you will in turn become more balanced and focused.
“Use your imagination.” This is phrase that every child has probably heard hundreds of times, but how often is it said to you? How often do you say it to yourself? If you are like most adults, you are not saying it enough. Once we reach a certain age, most of us don’t see a need or use for our imaginations. However, this is a highly underrated ability.
On May 21st the world was supposed to end. Obviously, it didn’t.
The vast majority of the world’s population shrugged off the suggestion of impending doom and went about their day as they normally do. Here in Canada, the predicted end of the world corresponded with our first long weekend of the summer, so many Canadians could be found doing yard work, attending barbecues, camping and going to the lake. I spent the day completing odd jobs around the house.
The other day I watched a video that showed the power of empathy. I recommend you watch it as well. You can see it by clicking here.
Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our own lives – our wants and needs – that we forget that those around us need us to recognize theirs sometimes; to help them celebrate their accomplishments and comfort them when they fall.
Empathy is a potent ability. Simon Baron-Cohen, director of the Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University, says:
This may seem like a harsh statement, but I’m going to say it anyway. You’re a loser. But that’s okay because I’m a loser too. Everyone is. At one point or another (and more than likely more than one point) we are all losers. Despite what people might say to the contrary, being a loser is a good thing. Being a loser is what makes you a winner. I’ll tell you why.
• Until you’ve lost something, you don’t know how to appreciate what you have.
• If you win all the time, you never learn how to work hard.
Yesterday I took my SUV to the car wash close to where our office is. Now that spring is upon us, we’ve been dealing with a lot of rain, mud and bugs. My vehicle was in dire need of a good cleaning.
While I was watching TV the other night with my wife Jane, a commercial for one of those new fabric softener bars came on. You know the ones I'm talking about, the bar you stick in your dryer instead of adding a dryer sheet.
I hear a lot of people these days talking about how it’s important that you find work you are passionate about. They say you need to do work that you love. Well, I would like to disagree with those people. True, some people derive great pleasure from their work and this helps define them. That’s fine. However, I think it is a misconception that we need to all strive to have a business card that explains who we are and what we stand for. We don’t all need to define ourselves through our work. For one, it isn’t necessary and for two, it’s not possible.
When it comes to stress, we all have different ways of coping, and for some, meditation is the solution. If you haven’t tried it already, keep reading and give it a shot. A person who is enduring stress can find it hard to focus and may make more mistakes. Meditation techniques can help you achieve a calm state of mind without relying on drugs or relaxation tools and implements.
People have goals of different sizes and types that they are working to achieve. If you really want to be successful with your goals, you need to have the right attitude and mindset to achieve them. There are many ways to keep yourself focused and you’ll be surprised to know that you already have everything you need to do so.
First of all, it’s important to visualize your goals.
If you really want to be successful with your goals, then you will need to harbor the right habits and attitudes to keep you on track. There are a number of positive traits you should maintain throughout your life in order to discover the many opportunities and good things out there. Here are some of the attitudes and traits that goal achievers should have:
When searching for happiness, we often have to look beyond the obvious. Sometimes it involves a little bit of giving to really get that feeling of accomplishment. I’m not talking about giving gifts or giving away materialistic items, I’m talking about giving time and effort to make a difference in someone’s life. Putting some effort into giving and helping others can be much more rewarding than always taking.
We all know that our world is made up of many different types of people. There are the ones who like to stir things up, complain and always see things in a negative light. There whole life is filled with problems and they never seem to see the good in anything. Then there are others, who always search for solutions, believe there is something good in the situation and never give up when things get tough. They are always positive and try their hardest to keep their heads up, they are full of optimism.
Let’s face it, stress can be dangerous. It’s a constant part of most of our lives, but needs to be dealt with carefully as it can have an impact on an individual’s health condition. What some people don’t realize is that having stress present means your body is producing chemical changes in your brain that could affect your health.
It’s not always easy looking for the bright side in every situation. Right now, I know our area is experiencing heavy snow, gloomy days and early hours of the day reaching darkness. Most people are experiencing the same, or some sort of weather change that makes them want to hibernate until summer. The worst part, this is only the peak of what millions of people look forward to. So, the ultimate question is, how do you get past those gloomy days, and any road blocks along the way, to face the day feeling optimistic?
Time management... those same two words that keep popping up. With such limiting time in our days, as much as we hate to admit it, time management may be the only solution to help us get through stress free. If you’re not a person who already uses time management to their advantage, there are a lot of ways to get you started. Here are a few tips to successfully become a time management master.
If you had an opportunity to boost your brain power would you say no? Of course not. We’d all love to think better, react better and appear more knowledgeable. Here are a few steps to get your started.
There are lots of people who believe that if they conquer themselves than they can improve their way of life and achieve a more positive outlook. Through personal mastery, you can learn to understand who you are and start working towards who you want to be. Here is a quick article to explain exactly what personal mastery is and how it can improve your life.
Even though there are many safety measure and precautions conducted by airline officers and owners, there are still numbers of people who have a hard time overcoming their fear of flying. Experts say that some of these people acquire this fear from a bad experience from former flights. Others, acquire it because they have never flown before and aren’t sure what to expect.
Being happy is easy, right? Okay, it is when life is going well for you. But what about when an uncontrollable circumstance spins out of way and it seems as if your whole world is crashing down on you? It’s one thing after another and it doesn’t seem to be going away.
We all have those moments. We feel hopeless and can’t get out from under the clouds. Every time we start to look up again something brings us back down. Two steps forward and one step back. How do people manage to stay happy during those tough times?
What happens when you ask a successful person how they achieved their status? Of course they could say I was lucky, I knew the right people or I worked really hard and had a good education. But, the one thing they will forget to tell you, that is very important, is that they were good at personal time management.
So, what is personal time management?
You can define time management in several different ways. It is usually associated with the idea that you use your time to its maximum potential.
It’s that time of year again. We reflect on the past year and everything we accomplished. More importantly though, we focus on the year ahead and what we would like to achieve. We fill our resolution list with several items and start out slowly saying, “as soon as the holidays are over I will start”. Days go by, sometimes weeks and months, and nothing has budged to the completed side on our lists. Well, this year, let’s make it simple.
Most people have decided that they will never speak in front of a crowd. All they know is that they aren’t comfortable doing so and they aren’t going to risk stepping outside their comfort zone. But, what most people don’t know is that there are a few keys that may just help them overcome their fear of public speaking.
It’s important that you find your passion. Passion brings personal power and awakens yourself to the beauty of the world. It will lead your heart into a journey as it changes your thoughts, perceptions and feelings. Finding your passion does not mean you’ll have an easy life, instead your life will be rich as it opens up to hope and possibilities.
Developing a stress management plan is not necessarily going to require a lot of time and energy. Many times, you just need to make a commitment to reduce the level of stress in your life by taking a few small, but meaningful steps. Not necessarily hard, those few steps in the right direction will lead to an improvement in your overall health and well-being.
Holidays, sometimes very hectic, yet we are very thankful for them. They mean time spent with family and friends, time spent relaxing, time to spend a few minutes on ourselves. With any holiday that approaches, I know I get excited. I can’t wait to spend that extra time with my family. Because I’m on the road a lot and getting home at late hours, I look forward to a holiday that can be spent relaxing. It’s true, when I wake up on a holiday, I’m excited, feeling anxious and actually looking forward to the day ahead of me.
“Doust thou love life? Then do not squander time; for that’s the stuff life is made of.”
This quote by Benjamin Franklin sums up the dilemma that is, work/life balance. Time can work in your favour or against you and it’s up to you to determine which choice to make.
Once in a while, I put friends to the task of letting me see there thoughts on certain topics. When it comes to enjoying life, everyone has a different meaning or a different way of doing it. So for today, I am going to share with you, what a recent friend told me about her thoughts on enjoying life. Enjoy! (As told by Anna.)
Life is hectic isn’t it? We seem to run, run and run some more, essentially, feeling as though we are accomplishing nothing. It’s like a cycle we run through every day, the rush before work to get everyone ready, fed, lunches made and to school or the sitters. Then there’s the rush during work to get to all the meetings, make the phone calls, answer emails and work on a project whose deadline is fast approaching. And, what about the rush after work to get everyone fed, to hockey practice, then home, unwound and ready for bed.
