Work Success – Building Connections

Conquer Low Self-Esteem: Four Tips to Increase Your Confidence

You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it again, confidence is key! But what if you are struggling with low self-esteem? You can overcome it. Chances are it won’t happen overnight, but it you work at it, you can conquer low self-esteem.

Having the utmost positive impression of yourself can change your entire life from the way you talk, to the way you dress at your job, your health, and your love life. Yes, your love life!

It is proven that people who are truly confident are living the most successful and fulfilling lives. I want you to be not only successful in your career, but in every aspect of your life.

Low self-esteem can drag down all the relationships you have, especially your romantic relationships, by attracting and maintaining that special person it can drastically change your outlook. Sometimes when you are successful in one area of your life it fuels your confidence and courage to tackle the other areas that are not as successful.

For example, I grew up stuttering. For me, it was a confidence issue. It may not be for other stutterers, but for me, I was a timid kid; and the fear of speaking followed me for years until I developed the confidence to overcome it.

Here are four tips to conquer low self-esteem:

1. Know that you’re one of a kind
You must always remember that you are unique and you were created for a reason. God doesn’t make junk. One of the ways to build internal confidence is by not comparing yourself to others. Focus on your strengths, abilities, and what makes you different. Embrace who you are. Once you embrace you, then you give others the chance to accept and love you for you. But please know, everyone will not like you, but that’s another post.
Understanding that you have gifts and talents that make you different can translate in profession and in your personal relationships.

2. Look people in the eyes
When you make eye contact, it communicates to that person you are someone to reckon with! It doesn’t have to be negative or seductive. Eye contact is a way to connect with people. It also communicates that you’re not afraid.

If you are a person that finds it difficult to make and maintain eye contact, practice, practice, practice.

<br />

3. Look the part
Appearance is one of the biggest factors of confidence and self-esteem. The amazing thing is that the power of appearance is universal. Taking pride in your appearance translates well in most regions around the world.
Improving your physical appearance by going to the gym and eating healthy will do wonders for your inner confidence and will make you feel better both physically and emotionally. Exercising often is a great way to make you feel better and look better. The more you take care of yourself the more powerful and confident your will be.
Have you ever heard the saying look good, feel good? There is a lot of truth behind that statement. When you dress well, it boosts your confidence and makes you feel more confident.

4. Join Toastmasters
I joined Toastmasters in 2006. It was by far the best confidence booster I’ve encountered. Toastmasters is a worldwide organization geared to help its members become better speakers and leaders.
For me Toastmasters has given me a platform practice all these tips I’ve provided you and more. If you’re interested in developing your confidence, improving your communication and leadership skills, then find a Toastmasters near you and attend the meeting. It’s free to visit the club. The member does cost. It’s the least expensive membership I’ve had. It has tremendous value.

These four tips have done wonders in my life. Also read The Way to Develop Confidence.

<br />
For more information on low self-esteem click this helpful article.

What do you need to do to get ahead at work?

When you want to get ahead at work, it can be challenging to know exactly what to do. Most people think that if you just work harder, then your effort will result in a promotion.

Below is Rebecca’s story in her pursuit to get ahead.

Rebecca had no desire to leave her job, she wanted to get promoted in her current position. In her words, she’d been doing “everything” that was asked of her, but no one noticed her efforts, let alone rewarded them.

Meanwhile, some of her peers were flying past her with promotions and raises.

What was the problem with Rebecca, and how was she going to get ahead?

Rebecca enlisted some help by asking HR to refer a mentor. After a few coaching sessions from her mentor, they identified that Rebecca was not connecting with management. The company she worked for was small and casual, but Rebecca shied away from engaging her senior leadership.

How could Rebecca ever convince her leadership that she cared about the business if she wouldn’t make any effort to interact with them?

The reality is that the people who get promoted are doing more than just getting the work done. Studies show that how we value an employee’s competence changes according to how much we like or dislike that person.

In other words, being really good at your job isn’t enough.

For an employee to stand out, being likeable is a huge indicator for success. The good news is that the biggest hindrance to likeability is apathy. The good news is that if you are like Rebecca, you can change how others perceive you simply by making the choice to care about other people.

Here are 7 steps you can implement immediately regardless of your circumstances that will put you back on the promotion path, where you belong:

Take initiative

Volunteer for assignments. Are there any tasks that have been lingering on your boss’ to-do list for a few weeks? A great way to get noticed is by taking on a project that no one wants to tackle, but that has to get done.

Connect with everyone

People who get big things done are people who know people, but the Rebecca’s of the world have a tendency to think that inter-office relationship building is too time-consuming and draining to be worthwhile.

Every aspect of your professional life will improve if you get to know your colleagues and making them feel comfortable getting to know you. This can be challenging if you are introverted. Push through this and connect with people one-by-one. Once you’ve broken the ice, you won’t feel nearly as uncomfortable about initiating a conversation in the elevator.

Participate in the office’s extracurricular activities.

Work hard and enjoy your job too if you want to get ahead at work. Participate in the company’s fundraising walk or bake sale. Whatever your organization is doing, participate and do #2, connect.

For the extroverts that love to socialize and party, when it comes to office events, never put more effort into your social persona than you’re putting into your professional persona.

Accomplish the organization’s goal

Every organization has a bottom line or a mission, and if you’re bringing in new business opportunities, you will always be seen as an asset. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been hired for marketing; it’s all about contributing in a bigger way. This doesn’t mean you need to be a walking billboard for your employer, but you should maintain a keen awareness of the opportunities that surround you, whether you’re in a coffee line or a board meeting.

Whatever your organization’s mission is, make sure you are working toward its achievement.

Be a team player

Look for ways to collaborate and work in harmony. Bring your strengths to projects and assignments. Accept and embrace the diversity of talent within your team. Everyone won’t see things the way you do. That’s ok. Learn to work in diverse teams.

You don’t need to be a martyr of self-sacrifice by staying late every single night to do someone else’s work, but stepping up without expecting any personal benefit will never go unnoticed or unappreciated.

Steer clear of negativity

Negativity is highly toxic. No one really wants to hear it, especially senior leaders. Focus on being helpful and solving problems not causing problems.

Speak up.

Toastmasters is a great way to learn and practice your speaking skills.

Side note: Most of the interviews I’ve been on, the interviewer normally asks me about Toastmasters. It has given me a leg up.

Make sure you practice speaking well. If you struggle with grammar, improve. Take a class. If you are shy and/or introverted, practice speaking up. Make sure when you speak, you are not covering your mouth by resting your chin on your hand. Sit up straight and project your voice.

Back to Rebecca, over the course of a few months, Rebecca started to realize that having a voice in the workforce is like a muscle that grows stronger with frequent use. With each step forward, her self-consciousness loosened its grip and she became confident about seizing opportunities. She felt empowered to step up, regardless of whether it was to run a meeting or populate the spreadsheet.

The standout employees are the ones who behave like leaders, even when their title is Intern. The irony is that when you’re more focused on the results than the promotion, your title will change faster than you can even imagine. This is how you get ahead at work.

If you don’t believe me, guess who’s now managing her company’s brand new office in London?

That would be—you guessed it—Rebecca!

10 Steps to Setting and Achieving Work Goals

Goal setting is a great way to strategically move your career forward. Having work goals and reaching your goals can be challenging, and below are 10 steps to help you better achieve your work goals.

Get clarity on what you are trying to achieve

First things first – understand what you want to pursue. What do you want? It might be a good idea to start with your performance plan or a set of work goals that your manager has for you. If you don’t have this level of support or structure, maybe the first thing is to have a conversation with your manager to find out what you need to focus on.

If you already know what you want, go for it!

Get some help

You might need help to achieve your goal. By understanding your team, you can pull from their strengths to help you to reach your goals. You team might be your staff members, your project team, or just co-workers.

When you understand the people around you, you can ask the right people for the help you need to achieve more. If you are a supervisor, team lead, or a project manager, you especially need the help of your teammates.

Get your supervisor on your side

Maybe your goal is to get on your supervisor’s good side. If that’s the case, attempt to make their job easier. Have a conversation with your manager and ask what you can do to help out. Do what they tell you. Don’t over think it and don’t do what you think will be better. If you want to introduce a new way or whatever you think is better, do what they ask first and then do what you think is better. Then let your boss have a choice between the two products. When in doubt, ask first before you go off and try to predict what your boss wants. Wait until they trust you to try to innovate.

Focus on what you can control

For every workplace goal, there are factors you can control and factors out of your hands. Be clear on the distinction, and have a plan for what to do if the out-of-your-control factors don’t line up.

In project management, most times project managers are responsible for completing a project, but don’t have total autonomy over the people assigned to their project to get things done. This is a most challenging part of project management. Focusing on things that a project manager can control might be the budget. Things the project manager can’t control might be how quickly team members complete tasks. In this example, the project manage might add extra time in the schedule to allow for team members to complete tasks. Sometimes you got to be strategic on how you accomplish your goals.

Consider your long term career goals

Where do you want to be in 5 years? What would you need to do to get to that position? Do you need to get a certification? Maybe you might need some additional experience. What is your ideal next professional role? Which success stories will make you a suitable and impressive candidate? Figure out what you want to do and begin to make a plan.

Go beyond and think of the big picture

You might have opportunities to do other assignments at work. Think about what you want for your career for the future and take on some of those extra projects if you think it might give you the experience or exposure you need to get to where you want to be.

Visualize as often as possible

See yourself where you want to be. Get a detailed vision. You might create a vision board by adding pictures of things that look like what you want your future to look like. Sometimes you may not know what your typical day will look like in your dream job. But don’t allow that to stop you.

I envisioned getting my project management professional certification. I saw myself passing the rigorous exam and throwing my hands up when I got my score. I saw myself celebrating. While I was studying for the exam, periodically I would close my eyes that think about how I was going to tell my mom. Everything that I saw in my mind, I did.

What can you visualize that will pull you closer to your dream?

Goals are dreams with deadlines – motivational phrase on a vintage blackboard

Get some accountability

If you can get your supervisors support, that would be great. However, if you want to get a new job, your supervisor may or may not be rooting for you. It’s tricky when it comes to new positions and having supervisors support.

Having an accountable person to encourage you and help to keep you on track can make the difference. A mentor could potentially give you the support you need to accomplish your work goals.

Check-in often

Do you know the saying “out of sight, out of mind”? Well, it’s not enough to just set work goals. How many times have you have resolutions and then forgot about them by Valentine’s Day?

It’s important to review your work goals often. Write them down and put them in a place where you will look at them often.

Schedule times to evaluate how well you are doing in terms of reaching your goals. You can do this monthly or quarterly depending on the work goal.

Align what you do daily with your goals

Do a periodic check on how well your daily to-do list aligns with your big-picture workplace goals. If the two have nothing to do with each other, talk to your manager and take action.

Maybe your work goal is to become bilingual, then your daily to-do-list should include some sort of foreign language classes, foreign language tutorials, practicing the foreign language, etc.

If this is one of your work goals, you won’t just wake up one day completely fluent in a foreign language if you’re not putting in the work.

Track your progress

It feels great when you can look back over a period of time and see that you are moving toward where you want to be. Tracking your progress will help you to see if you are actually getting closer to your goals or moving away from them.

Goal setting is an art. It takes practice and follow through. It’s wonderful when you can achieve your work goals. The major takeaway is that you want to know what you want, keep it in front of you, visualize achieving it, get support, and track your progress.

New Year’s Resolution Ideas to Improve Your Work Life: 18 Workplace Goals That Will Propel Your Career

It’s the NEW YEAR! Don’t let this year’s resolutions be empty promises to yourself. This year take your career to the next level.

Even though the year has begun, it’s certainly not too late to make workplace resolutions. The most important part in setting these resolutions is keeping them. But if you’re like most people, that probably means seeing those resolutions fly out the window before Valentine’s Day. Let’s do something different and see them through.

To have a better chance of achieving your resolutions, here are a few tips:

Plan to stay on track- Schedule your goals or resolutions. For example, if you want to get a better job this year, figure out what you need to do. Your first step might be to update your resume. Write down what you need to do and when you need to do it. Add these tasks to your calendar. Do this for all your resolutions or goals.

Get an accountability partner- Find someone that you can be accountable to. It helps me to have family or friends to join together to have an accountability goals group. The important thing is doing what you said you’d do and if not, you pay up. You can setup a Venmo account or some other payment system to exchange money for not accomplishing goals.

This year, look at your career and set some goals you can track and achieve. Here are 18 workplace goals for the New Year that will make it your best work year ever.

Take care of your body

It’s popular to say you want to lose weight for the New Year. How about having a few healthy habits that you can do at work? For example, take the stairs, walk during your breaks, bring a healthy lunch and snacks, or set your printer a little farther than the closest to your desk. Get a fitness tracking device and see how many more steps you can take just by adding more steps to the printer.

I’ve been caught by my co-workers doing lungs or swats. I also walk the stairs while I’m waiting for food to warm in the microwave. Every little bit counts.

Learn something new

Taking your skills to the next level can position you for a promotion or a pay increase. However, I wouldn’t recommend just doing it for the chance at financial gains. Learning new things can be exciting and increase your self-esteem, this is priceless. No matter what field you are in, there are hundreds of new skills you can learn that could benefit your career.

Read a book

Reading something career related or motivational can rejuvenate and give you ideas on how to improve the way you work or give you a new perspective. Reading does wonders for your brain. No matter your job or industry, there are books out there that can improve your performance, your outlook, or your personal habits. Even if you think you already know what you need to know, reading a great book on professional development can give you tools to get the edge in the workplace.

Dust off your resume

Updating your resume is always a great idea. Even if you are happy with your current job. Get prepared for new opportunities. What’s the harm?

As you review your resume, ask the following questions: Is the style current? Is the information up to date? Have I added all my most recent classes/skills/certifications?

Network monthly

Make a goal to build new professional connections every month. There’s no downside to increasing the size of your professional network. You probably meet people all the time, but do you take the time to listen, grab their business card, and connect with them? Connect with these new friends on LinkedIn so that you can keep up with them.

Update your LinkedIn profile

Speaking of LinkedIn, is your profile up to date? In the professional world, LinkedIn is crucial to your overall personal brand. Just like your resume, you need to keep the information, tone, and look of it reverent.

Make a new friend at work

Making new friends can be very beneficial depending on the person you decide to befriend. Look for someone that has a great attitude and that can help you be better in some way. It’s great to have people that can challenge you to be a better you.

Clean up your work space

This New Year’s resolution idea can double as one for home too! Many of us have hundreds of emails in our inbox, file cabinets or desk drawers that are filled with old papers, or just cluttered work spaces. It doesn’t take long to start organizing and cleaning out irrelevant information. Weed through those files, recycle what you don’t need, and organize the rest. This goes for your computer files, too. You will feel so accomplished.

Follow a blog

We live in a world with free information, insider tips, and great motivational writers online. Find a blog that you enjoy, whether it’s specific to your industry or just someone who puts a little pep in your step, and sign up to follow it. Don’t know where to find one? Subscribe to Building Connections. This blog often has links to other great blog sites as well.

Get a mentor

This is my favorite. I have had some really great mentors. The right mentor can be a powerful tool to propel your career forward. Is there a person at your company who you highly respect? Don’t just look up to them. Ask if he or she is willing to be your work mentor. It works best if it is a recognized relationship between the two of you. Set workplace goals together for the New Year and have a little fun while you’re at it. In addition to one-on-one meetings, go for coffee or a walk. You can also join a networking group together. There are many ways to connect with your mentor in a way that will be mutually enjoyable, rewarding, and fun.

Get a new headshot

A new year could mean a new professional photo for your social media profiles. Depending on your career goals and the type of company culture, your profile photo may be casual or professional in its nature. The key is to select a photo that is high quality — at least 400 x 400 pixels, no larger than 8MB in file size, and does not exceed 20,000 pixels in height or width. Most importantly, you want a picture that truly represents who you are both personally and professionally. A lot of organizations have profile pictures linked to email. Instead of not adding a photo or using some random graphic of a flower, pet, or the sunset. Add a professional picture.

Give thank you notes

Appreciate people with a handwritten thank you note. By doing this it will make you standout, and it feels good too. All you have do is buy a box of thank-you notes. Then, each month or when you feel inspired, think of someone who did something nice for you. This will help build your connections at work.

Join a professional organization

This is a terrific way to make connections with people that you may not otherwise meet. This resolution does require a financial commitment, however the benefits you can receive from the connections you’ll make and what you can learn is often well worth the cost. There are tons of professional organizations. You can explore gender specific organizations, race and ethnicity clubs, industry specific, or hobby specific. Another way to search for an organization is to look for one that is focused on your favorite part of your job and check out any conferences they hold. A good conference can help you expand your network significantly and boost your work energy for weeks. Not sure how to find a professional association that’s right for you? Start by finding out which groups your colleagues and managers are active in. You can also check out resources like Meetup.com, 10times, and the Directory of Associations for more options.

Balance your life

In order to be your best, you have to have balance with work and your personal life. Contrary to what you might see in your leadership chain, it is healthy to have work-life balance. We all hear about work-life balance, but how to you master it? You can master it by working at it. You might not be able to do everything you want in one day or accomplish all of your resolutions in one year, but the key is working at it and being flexible. Therefore, you might miss out on some things, but make sure you make a conscience decision to choose the events or things that you do strategically. Meaning, if you have children, try your very best to be there for their big things in life. Take vacations, and when you go, be present. Don’t take your work with you unless it is absolutely necessary. Try very hard to delegate your responsibilities when you are away or get all your big tasks done prior to leaving.

Volunteer

Volunteering your time is a great thing to do. If you don’t have time, you can be creative and make time. Look for ways to volunteer at work. A lot of organizations have projects that help other people. You can volunteer to do a can food drive or coat drive. You can become a mentor to someone at work. Volunteering is a great way to positively affect the world, and it’s also another way you can feel good about yourself.

Get one new professional certification

Take a look at your resume and imagine that you are adding a new certification. Figure out what certification you’d like on your resume and get moving to earn it.

Give more compliments

Believe it or not, both men and women like receiving compliments. When you are at work, stick to compliments about work. You can be safe by complimenting haircuts or styles. Don’t get weird because this can really blowup on you if you get too personal or start to cross the line.

Develop better public speaking skills

Join Toastmasters. Work on your presentation and leadership skills. Joining Toastmasters is one of the best ways to reach several of these resolutions. You will be joining a professional organization, learning new skills, developing existing skills, networking, making friends, volunteering and serving in an organization, learning to give evaluations (compliments and helpful feedback), and you can work to earn a professional speaking or leadership certification. All of this for a very little financial and time investment.

Now that you’ve made your New Year’s work resolutions, it’s time get moving on your excellent year.

Resiliency at Work

What is it to have resiliency at work? Simply put― when you get knocked down, you come back up. I think about that little toy punching bag, the bop bag. I’m certainly not saying that you should take abuse at work. Being bullied at work is not going to help you in any way.

Resiliency at work is about being able to handle adversity and bounce back. It might be a really tough blow, but the important thing is that you don’t let the situation break your spirit.

When it’s performance evaluation time, unless you got what you think you desire, it can cause you to be discouraged. Especially, if there is a bonus attached to your performance. What’s really crazy is if you start spending the money that you think you’re going to get. It sounds ridiculous, but I use to do that.

I wouldn’t actually spend it before I got my score, I’d spend it after I got my score and I tried to gauge how much it was based on the prior year. Here’s what I didn’t know, there was a pool of money and it changed every year. It just depended on the budget, which I had no insight. Most of the time that money was drastically lower than I thought, especially after taxes. Of course, I was left feeling angry. Especially when I’d hear about the bonuses my family and friends would get from their employers.

I’ve learned not to allow the review or the bonus to make me feel a certain way; and most importantly I stopped spending the money before I have it. Financial education is a power tool to resiliency.

Another thing that can knock the wind out of your sail is when people talk about you behind your back at work. Some people are mean and hateful. You should almost expect them to be nasty. But what happens when someone that you trust is talking about you to other people? It can blindside and leave you devastated.

What you don’t want to do is to say you’ll never trust anyone again, shut down and be cold to people. In the meantime, your heart is protected from hurt, however with your heart closed you won’t be able to experience love. Plus, all this does is make you really angry and jaded over time.

The best thing to do is to learn from the situation. Don’t close yourself off completely. Maybe next time guard your heart a little longer until you get to know your co-workers. If you decide not to share a lot of personal things, that’s fine. But it’s really hard to get people to like you if you’re too guarded. You can share things about your personal life that you don’t care if everyone knows. Maybe you talk to people about your pet. If you are thinking, “I don’t need people to like me at work.” True! However, if you want to advance your career, you need to make some friends along the way. Also, remember that people don’t want to work with people they don’t feel comfortable with. Letting people in is a big part of that. Remember, it doesn’t have to be all the way in.

Another big reason for someone getting knocked down is not getting the promotion they wanted. Getting passed over for a promotion is tough. This is enough to knock the wind out of anyone. Especially, if you’ve been doing the work for that higher paying position. This is hard to rebound from, but it’s possible. When this happens you have to keep trying. If you are in an organization where you have to interview for promotions, ask for feedback on why you didn’t get the position or feedback on your interview. Make the changes. Sometimes we can do everything right and still not get the job because someone else was handpicked for the job. Keep applying for other jobs. Something is bound to open up.

The worst thing to do is to take your anger and frustration out on your co-workers. Maybe think about it in a different way, it might be a bad fit for you. There are better opportunities to come.

Are you resilient?

Overwhelmed at Work

When you’re overwhelmed at work, it can be easy to feel like you’re drowning in your to-do-list. It is very challenging to be on your A game. When you’re overwhelmed, you’re barely surviving day-to-day.

It’s really hard to be creative and think critically when you’re submerged with all the responsibilities of day-to-day life. You tend to make bad decisions when you are inundated. Not to mention, your attitude is not great.

Doug was a senior executive with 3 small kids. His wife was also an executive and they shared the responsibilities of raising the children, taking care of the home, and caring for her elderly parents. One of their sons started playing baseball. He never thought that his son’s involvement would be so demanding. During the first baseball season, the family spent every weekend going to games and baseball practice several days a week. Doug also had a part-time real estate company. His plate was stacked up with so many responsibilities.

For Doug and his wife, they couldn’t wait until baseball season was over. Unfortunately, his work on his job started to suffer. He wanted to be there for his son and attend every game and practice, but there just wasn’t enough time in the day. Doug started to get further behind at work. Finally, Doug’s boss called him to a meeting and told him to “step it up”. Then, Doug shifted his priorities to catch up at work. He was so stressed out. Plus, he felt guilty because he was no longer available to take his son to baseball practice.

Many busy professionals find themselves in this situation where there are just so many things to do and not enough time and energy to do them.

Next time you’re not sure where to start with your to-do list, try these strategies below.

Create a plan of attack

When the work starts to pile up, stop and take time to get organized and create a plan of attack. Sorting and prioritizing your work load is a great way to break it down.

Write down what you need to do. Getting your list out of your head and onto paper, is a great start. Why? Thinking about all you have to do is exhausting when you have a lot to accomplish in a small window of time. At least if you write it down, you can give your brain a break and then you can put a plan together to actually start getting things done.

Get out

When you are submerged, interrupt your mental thought patterns by taking a break. Go for a walk. You will be much more effective if you get your body moving. Make sure you’re taking deep breaths. Being in the office can quickly become the worst place to be when you are stressed and your adrenaline is high.

If you have the liberty, take your laptop and go somewhere calm and peaceful.

Talk it out

Depending on your personality type, talking about your feeling of being overwhelmed might be a great solution to mentally decomposing your work load. Sometimes you just need someone to listen and your brain starts to work to figure out how to get your list done.

Get some rest

It’s really easy to be overwhelmed if you’re sleep deprived. Do your very best to get enough rest at night. If you are having trouble sleeping check out this animated video. .

Work on the weekend or holiday

If you need to get something done and it’s making you stressed, crave out some time on an off day. If you work on a project and finish it, maybe you can get ahead and avoid the continuous pattern of being under the gun. I don’t recommend always working on your off days. You should have balance and enjoy life.

Finally, remember—it will all get done. Work these tips. Try to start early and refrain from procrastinating.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed?

Racism at Work

It seems like the country is more comfortable vocalizing racism. I’ve seen a lot of posts about the rise in racist activity.

I want to share with you a great article to help to identify if this is going on at the place you work.

4-signs-that-racism-may-be-an-issue-in-your workplace

Share this information. It might be very helpful for someone dealing with racism on their job.

Are any of the 4 signs of racism happening on your job? Racism at work is very real.

Good Times at Work

When I saw this video, I thought “OMG, this is how it is at my job!”

Being in project management, people want some really crazy projects done. The way we go about gathering requirements is so much like this video. These are good times at work.

I hope that you enjoy the video. I also hope that your workplace is far more productive.

Have you have any experiences like this?

The Secret to Change

“The secret to change is one step at a time.” —Mark Twain

One small change can be the result of massive change in your life.

The Secret to change for me is the way I manage my time.
One thing I recently changed is the way I approach my day in order to be more productive. I stopped doing a to-do list after watching the video below.

After having my 2nd child, my to-do list got massive. I found myself drowning in things left undone. My youngest son, Austin, is only a year and a half and I still have a lot to do, but the difference is that I’m only focused on outcomes and results, rather than tasks.

It’s somewhat challenging to articulate the difference in the processes. One major thing that I have noticed is that my mind is focused on achieving results verses checking off to-do tasks. It has been a complete mind shift on how I approach my day. With having a family with 2 small kids, a house to maintain, a blog, writing a 2nd book, a full-time job, ect. I use to struggle with the balance and trying to accomplish all that I was doing.

Let me know you what idea or concept is think is amazing from the video.

written by Tamaria Allen

Dreams Transformed into Goals

Don’t you wish you could just snap your fingers and have what you want or achieve great things? Unfortunately that’s not the case.
In order to realize our dreams, we must transform them in to goals-well, realistic goals.

Here are six things that can help turn dreams into reality:

1. Close your eyes and see your dream

This is about seeing yourself do or being what you want. When I was studying for my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, I saw myself celebrating after it was over. I rehearse my victory dance in my mind over and over again in between studying for the exam. As a result, I passed it on my first try with flying colors! I danced and danced just like I envisioned.

Now I’m visualizing what I will look like at my ideal weight.

2. Prioritize your dreams.
Decide what order you’d like to accomplish your dreams. Sometimes dreams happen when they happen, but it’s always good to put a time on when you want to accomplish certain things.

3. Set key milestones.
When your dreams are big, the best thing to do is to chunk them down into smaller milestones.
Maybe if your dream is a higher degree. A major milestone might be to get accepted into a program. The next milestone might be to complete the 1st semester, and so on. A milestone is an action or event marking a significant change.

4. Check your progress.
This is simply seeing where you are in terms of realizing your dream. Monitoring your progress is a great exercise to do regularly. It’s really motivating to look back and see progress. On the other hand, it’s a little frustrating or down right depressing when you are not moving toward your goal. It’s like going to the doctor and stepping on the scale for the first time in months and realizing you are 10lbs heavier!
If you are checking your progress regularly, you can see what’s working and what’s not working, and make adjustments to the way you’re going about realizing your dream.

5. Find some help.

You might need someone to coach or mentor you. Enlisting help is smart. Some people see asking for help as a weakness, but it’s what successful people do. Maybe you get your help from a book or a blog. I’m consistently on YouTube trying to learn how to do things.

Keep dreaming!

Written by Tamaria Allen