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Posts Tagged ‘Taking action’

What window are you bumping up against?

Posted in Food for Thought, tagged , , , , , , on June 23, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Perception = Reality.

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This beautiful bird spent the better part of four weeks fluttering up and down this window. You see, it thought it was flying into a tree. And it was persistent! It literally fluttered up and down this window most of the day; occasionally flying off into the trees you can see beyond it. The window has reflective film on it, to keep the heat of the sun out of the office. If you look at the window from the outside, you see the trees and bushes (which you can see as you look beyond the bird in this photo) reflected in the glass — pretty clearly, too. No wonder the bird thought it was flying into a tree…and behaved in a frustrated manner that it couldn’t get into the tree. It’s perception was that the window was a tree, and so it continued to try to find a way into the tree, because that was its reality.

Clearly…it wasn’t a tree and the bird was unsuccessful!

This is one of the key concepts I teach when I’m teaching communication skills. It fits in nicely with my two key lessons — self-awareness and intentionality are key to your success.

Understanding the power of perception is important because someone is always watching you, especially when you are a leader. And they make up stories about what’s going on based on snippets of information — often incomplete — combined with their beliefs, values, past experiences, and rumors. What they come up with may be accurate, close to accurate, or a million miles away from the truth, but because they don’t have access to the whole story, the one they create makes sense to them, and they move forward based on it.

My question to you is, how is someone’s else’s perception of you affecting your performance and chances of success? How is it impacting  your relationships?

What about your own perception about yourself? About your abilities, skills, and talents?

Whether you believe you can or your can’t, you’re right. ~Henry Ford

This quote says it all. What you believe to be true about yourself will determine your future. Knowing that, it’s important to examine how you perceive yourself and understand why it is so. Then, what can you do to make it different, if you need to make some changes to move forward into your potential?

And, what perceptions do you have about others that may be affecting your path forward?

Please, don’t waste your time and energy fluttering up against a window that is NOT a tree, and expect it to magically become what you want it to be! Make the effort to have clear vision and understanding about who you are and what’s going on in your life…and then move forward with confidence!

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Are you just going along for the ride?

Posted in Food for Thought, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 21, 2013| Leave a Comment »

I’ve been thinking about this for a few weeks now. Originally, my thought was “are you hitchhiking through your life?” But as I thought about hitchhiking, it didn’t make as much sense.

You see, hitchhikers often have a specific destination in mind, as they step out onto the road and stick out their thumbs, or hold up their sign about where they want to go. And they accept rides with folks, usually headed in the same direction…getting at least a few miles closer to their chosen destination. But, truly, they are pretty much at the mercy (in more ways than one) of whomever’s car/truck they climb into when they accept a ride. Meaning, they may get closer to where they want to go, or they may just get farther away from where they want to get away from…and may simply end up wherever the driver happens to be heading.

What spurred this line of thinking was a number of conversations with people in recent weeks — some of whom I work with in coaching or mentoring relationships — about where they are headed in their careers. One conversation with a young woman about 3 weeks ago, really brought this idea into the front of my thinking. I worked with her, planning an event, and asked her how long she thought she would stay in event planning. (As an aside, if you’ve never been in this line of work, it’s very stressful — being responsible for a lot of details to pull events together, when often times you have little to no control over many of the pieces required for your event to be a success. And event planners often do not allow themselves to actually enjoy the event they have exchanged so much of their life energy to plan!)

She shared some thoughts on things going on in the organization she works with, and hopes to have the opportunity to move up, as her manager will be retiring in the next 12-18 months. She talked about her education and previous work experience and then said the thing that raised my alarms!

She said, there might be some opportunities in other departments of her organization, but that she would probably wait to see what the others above her thought she would be good at and what positions they might consider her for.

I said that was well and good, but wondered what she thought she was good at and what she was interested in…what was she striving to accomplish in her career? She seemed surprised by the question and it was obvious she’d not given it any thought, but said she probably should think about it.

I’m not sure why this particular conversation struck me so, as I have similar conversations with many people at a frighteningly frequent rate. I’m astonished by the people who give very little thought to what they want to do in life and are so willing to just go along for the ride, allowing someone else to define who they are, what they are good at, and what they should be doing with their time and life energy!

So, my question to you this evening is this: Are you the driver and navigator on your life’s journey, or are you just going along for the ride?

If you aren’t clear about what you long to do, are called to do, are passionate about doing, find satisfaction in doing…someone else will plan your life for you, but he’s the scary part: What they plan for you will be more focused on meeting their needs, not yours, and while you may be capable of doing certain things, and may even be quite good at doing them…they may leave you feeling empty, dissatisfied…Just because you “can” doesn’t always mean you “should.”

Clearly, the choice is yours. I encourage you to make this decision thoughtfully and intentionally. The answer is really the difference between choosing to be a victim or victorious, choosing to live your passion or just passing time helping someone else live theirs.

I look forward to hearing what you decide.

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Intentional Leadership — D5, W3, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , on June 21, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Wow! It’s hard to believe it’s Friday, again, so fast! I don’t know about you, but the last two weeks feel like they’ve just flown past.

As you know, last week, I was in Guatemala with the John Maxwell Team, teaching a new transformational leadership process, and it was a lot of fun! It was also an all-consuming week. You know what it feels like to be fully engaged — emotionally, spiritually, and mentally — right? Well, when I’m with this group of people, that’s how I feel, and it’s energizing and stimulating…and when I come back home, the environment is completely different. It’s like disconnecting from a power source — an extremely powerful energy source. And, so, all week, I have been really tired! Good tired…I spent a week doing something significant tired!

So, I am looking forward to getting a little extra sleep this weekend. But it won’t be a totally leisurely weekend — I have lots to do! I’m working with a new coach, and we had our initial call today. I committed to drafting the base of a strategic actions plan for the next five weeks to really accelerate my studies, content preparation, and client interaction. I have a lot to do, and I’m very much excited about being to dedicate almost the entire weekend to this important work.

I’ll go for at least one long walk, weed my flower beds, and maybe even take a nap!

Looking ahead, I’m planning a couple of trips, so need to spend some time on the details.

Finally, I have some letter to write. I love getting handwritten correspondence, so I try to send some to others on a regular basis.

What are your plans for the weekend?

Who will benefit from some time with you?

What do you have going on in the coming weeks?

What could you be doing now to prepare for those things, that will save you some time and anxiety later?

Whatever you do with your weekend, I hope you make it an intentional one!

“See” you Monday!

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Intentional Leadership — D4, W3, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 20, 2013| Leave a Comment »

By refusing to give up when life’s circumstances conspire against us, we powerfully model the value of perseverance.

Who is watching when you go through hard times in life?

How can you inspire them by the way you act?

What will they learn by watching you?

In 2002, I went through a life-changing leadership training program. During the five weeks I spent in this program, I was made aware that as a leader, one is always “on stage,” so to speak. Meaning, someone is always watching. Think of yourself as a role model, because you are influencing others around you about how to behave in certain situations.

So, will you teach them to persevere? Or to give up when times get tough?

You get to choose. I hope you choose wisely.

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Intentional Leadership — D3, W3, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 19, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Today is a good day to learn more about others who have persevered. Spend some time online searching for stories of people who made it through adversity.

Think of a traumatic experience: The Great Depression, the Holocaust, or something you witnessed personally. Read or think about the accounts of hardships and what was learned from them.

What did you learn from reading these accounts?

How can you apply these principles to what you are facing today?

Last year, I read the Little House on the Prairie series of books with my son. There are some stories of perseverance! I can’t recall how many times the Ingalls family lost pretty much everything they had worked for (homes, crops, etc…), including very nearly losing their lives on several occasions, mostly due to weather and other natural events. But they continued to get up every day and work to build their home, sow and raise crops and animals, trying to build a good life.

I believe that when we are working toward the right and true things, toward our dreams, there is no other choice but to persevere.

What do you think?

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Intentional Leadership — D2, W3, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on June 18, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Perseverance can make or break people. When you persevere, you learn a lot about yourself and others. Spend some time now writing a few lessons you’ve learned about perseverance in each area of your life:

Lessons from family members

Lessons from education

Lessons from friends

Lessons from professional life

What two or three principles can you create to remind you of the lessons you have learned from perseverance?

I’ll share one of my stories with you.

I always knew education would be my ticket to a better future. So, I worked hard through high school. I earned a small scholarship through the Jr. Miss program (it was a scholarship program, pretty prevalent in high school, with many programs throughout the US), and qualified for some financial aid for college. I went to school my first year, and was told by the financial aid office at my university that I no longer qualified for aid because my parents earned too much money.

Regardless of what the Financial Aid office thought, my parents were not in a position to help me with school, and I was determined to finish my degree. So, I found a job babysitting a couple of kids for a woman who worked at my university, for about nine months, until I had been independent of my parents long enough to apply for FA on my own merits.

After missing nearly all of what should have been my second year of college, I was able to get some student loans and start classes, again. Because my loans weren’t enough to pay for everything thing, I worked. In fact, I worked three different jobs (cleaning the administration building at my school — part time thru the school year and full time over the summer, cleaning the home of one of the professors, and taking care of the live plants in one of the school buildings) while taking a full load of classes. While the jobs I held changed over the next three years, I worked my way through school. I know I was blessed to have access to financial aid, grants, and loans to earn my Bachelor’s degree.

While having a college education doesn’t guarantee anyone a good job or a successful career, it has certainly opened a lot of doors for me. In fact, in many cases, it was the required minimum to even be considered for some positions. And, after I had been working in my field for several years, I started missing new job opportunities because the level of positions I was becoming qualified for stated “Master’s degree preferred.” Not required, just preferred. Nonetheless, I missed a number of job offers, because the positions were offered to someone with a Master’s degree. So, I realized, if I wanted to move up, I would need to go back to school and earn my Master’s degree.

This wasn’t a daunting task for me, as I love learning. In fact, if I could be in a learning environment all the time, I would be there in a heartbeat! So, I did go back to school. This time, the money wasn’t the biggest challenge; I was working a full-time job and attended school several nights a week, plus some weekend workshops. It wasn’t always easy and it wasn’t always fun…but I persevered and emerged from that time in my life victorious!

I am proud to list myself as Laura Prisc, MSC (Master of Science in Communication).

Try it…you’ll like how you feel about yourself when you finish what you set out to do, and especially if you had to persevere through difficult times.

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Intentional Leadership — D1, W3, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Do you remember the days before photocopiers were everywhere? I do…I remember in Junior High School, being a teacher’s aid for the elementary school across the street. The teacher asked me to make copies of something she was planning to share with her students. I had to use what was called the “mimeo” machine (short for mimeograph, if I recall correctly). The original was a carbon copy with tracing-paper thin pages, and there had to be fluid in the machine, and you had to line the page up straight and catch the top in this “gripper” thing…ooof! It was a difficult and annoying exercise, to say the least!

Well, others had just as difficult a time, if not more so, duplicating documents. Chester Carlson worked in a patent office as a young man. He routinely experienced the costly and time-consuming process of obtaining copies. Motivated by his frustrations, he set out to discover an alternate way to make copies.

Through intense research and experimentation, he patented an inventive way to make copies. His patent was ingenious, but marketing it proved to be quite difficult. After all, he was a newlywed, earning a modest salary, studying law, and living with his in-laws (just a few challenges and constraints, wouldn’t you say?!).

While he could see the commercial applications for his invention, he had trouble selling the merits. IBM, RCA, and Kodak all turned him down. Even fellow scientists at the National Inventors Council dismissed his ideas as impractical. As anyone would have been, he grew more and more discouraged and nearly gave up on his interest in photocopying several times, but just couldn’t quite get it out of his system.

Eventually, Carlson had an experience similar to that of Theodor Geisel in trying to get his first children’s book published; Carlson was rejected by about twenty organizations before he happened upon Haloid, a tiny company in Rochester, New York. Haloid invested research funding to develop Carlson’s patent and over time created the first copying machines. Haloid would turn the business world upside down with the new machines, essentially vindicating Carlson, making him a multi-millionaire 21 years after he secured his patent. You may not recognize the name Haloid, but surely you are familiar with Chester Carlson’s company, Xerox!

When leading, others may not initially see your vision as clearly as you, and some never will. Like Chester Carlson, and millions of others before and after him, you may spin your wheels for some time…weeks, months, even years, before your vision gains traction. To find success, you must find and display a bulldog-like tenacity to stick with what you believe in.

Today, journal about someone who has inspired you to persevere through unfavorable conditions. What have you learned from this person?

How can you use those lessons to help you persevere?

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Intentional Leadership — D4, W2, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 13, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As we near the end of week two, month six, look at the team of people working around you. What do you think are the most difficult aspects of their jobs?

As you consider this question, write down the top two or three biggest challenges you think they face.

Now, consider what simple actions could you take to help your co-workers persevere through the challenges of their daily work?

Plan it out and take action. You’ll make a huge difference in their day and you may be surprised by how good you feel…and how much easier it might now be for you to work through some of your own challenges.

The test of character is not ‘hanging in’ when you expect light at the end of the tunnel, but performance of duty and persistence of example when you know no light is coming.   ~Admiral James Stockdale

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Intentional Leadership — D2, W2, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , on June 11, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Spend some time today with your journal, considering your responses to these questions:

In what area of your personal or professional life have you been persevering?

What small steps have you taken in this situation?

What have you learned so far in this situation?

What are some ways you can build momentum and not become discouraged?

Who can walk with you through this time?

I won’t color your responses by sharing any of the details of my responses to these questions today; I will share the story with you in the coming months, I’m sure…but today, I can say with absolute conviction, this month’s topic and these questions are really pulling on me.

When you’re ready to share your story, I’ll be here waiting to hear it.

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Intentional Leadership — D1, W2, M6 — Perseverance

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , on June 10, 2013| Leave a Comment »

One day at a time, one step at a time. That’s what perseverance takes. Place one foot in front of the other, repeat; keep moving forward. Taking these small steps forward will help to counteract the headwinds of resistance.

Let’s take a journey back in time and consider the story of James Stockdale, American Prisoner of War (POW) in Vietnam. Commander Stockdale was a pilot during the Vietnam war. His plan was shot down and he parachuted into the jungle. Captured by the Vietcong, he spent seven years in the Hoa Lo prison, where the prisoners were subjected to severe brutality.

Despite his conditions and circumstances, Stockdale did not give in. In fact, he helped his fellow POWs remain strong by leading them through small but meaningful acts that helped them preserve their dignity.

One of his first initiatives was to devise a communication system the POWs could use to “talk” to each other, by tapping on the walls or floor. Before he arrived, captives had been isolates from each other and anyone who spoke was tortured by the guards. Thanks to Stockdale’s resourcefulness, the POWs could now communicate with each other and know they were not alone, as they endured their captivity.

He helped them persevere by creating a code of honor for POWs who were tortured. As you are probably aware, it was humiliating for American soldiers to give information to their captors. As the soldiers maintained their silence, their captors increased their extreme torture measures; and total silence typically led to a death sentence. Stockdale led the prisoners to a mutual pledge to resist as long as possible, and he gave them an outlet for confessing anything they had been forced to reveal. Through these simple confessionals, the soldiers unloaded their guilt, which allowed them to not be overcome with shame.

Today, think about your resourcefulness and how it could help someone else endure adversity. In your circle, who could you creatively support by giving them the encouragement they need to face another day?

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