Tag Archives: Career

Remembering Names the Easy Way

Remembering people as individuals is the cornerstone to building powerful personal and professional relationships. Start with remembering their name with a word picture. Our minds usually think in pictures. And it helps to exaggerate your picture so you will remember it quickly. Remember this picture is just for you – don’t share it.

Now that you remember someone’s name, let’s have a meaningful conversation with this person. Pretend you are at a business event and you are talking to someone new. Practice on them. Stop any distractions by maintaining good eye content with the person. Listen closely and really hear what they are saying. Be curious and focus, focus, focus!

  • Listen for information about these six general areas: where they live, family and friends, paid and community work, travel adventures, unique interest and finally their ideas.
  • Ask about any other areas that you are curious about – be interested in them as an individual.

Now create a word picture in your mind to remember what you just heard. Dale Carnegie calls this “conversation links”. Create a picture – the more exaggerated the better- that links together these pieces of information. Dale Carnegie trainers give hysterical examples in the live training. It works! You don’t forget the picture or the individual and their unique story.

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Create An Upward Spiral for Yourself

Initiating changes in our lives takes work. And it’s easy to get discouraged if we are striving for a big goal that seems overwhelming to achieve. We may even be tempted to not start in the first place justifying it to ourselves in multiple ways.

But we can be successful in attaining these bigger goals if we are willing to use our time, energy and creativity on a daily basis in a very strategic way. Using the core philosophy of Tom Roth in his newest book Eat, Move, Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to Big Changes we can use the power of choice to build upward momentum. Here’s how . . .

  1. Clarify one thing that is really important to you right now. For example, physical health may be a priority for you at this time.
  2. Identify three choices you could make on a daily basis that would complement each other and lead to improved physical health. For example, eating more fruits & vegetables; walking each morning and increasing sleep by 30 minutes each night.
  3. Commit to doing these three actions each day for one week. Keep a written log or use another accountability system (ex. check-in with a friend) that works for you. Do all three each day giving each equal attention.

How do you feel now? Hopefully, your efforts have had a significant ripple effect all week so that each subsequent day was even better than the day before. It’s amazing how the momentum of one change affects the other changes you are making. You are sleeping better so you feel like walking in the morning and then the exercise helps you chose healthier food throughout the day.

The result is you feel better all day long and into the next day as well. Each choice works together rather than in isolation increasing your success rate substantially.

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Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-Being

Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-Being, Martin Seligman PhD, Free Press, Simon & Schuster Inc. 2011.

Martin Seligman’s newest book is fascinating! Seligman (world renown for his work in positive psychology) takes his past extensive studies of “authentic happiness” and expands it into the concept of “well-being”.

Seligman’s believes that one’s own sense of well-being has five measurable and sustainable elements: positive emotion, engagement, relationship, meaning and achievement. And this is not only true for individuals but equally measurable in businesses, teams, families, neighbor communities and even for whole countries. I was intrigued to read the research findings on which of 23 EU countries ranked the highest in citizen “well-being”. Pick up the book to see where we all should be moving! Leadership.

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360 Degrees of Influence

360 Degrees of Influence: Get Everyone to Follow Your Lead on Your Way to the Top, by Harrison Monarth, McGraw-Hill Publishers, New York, New York, 2012. 

Okay, I admit it! I haven’t finished reading this book cover to cover because it is that good. I’ve only had it for a week but I keep finding new chapters to read each day that I can apply immediately to my executive leadership coaching work.

In this brand new book, Monarth tackles the complex challenge of how to initiate significant organizational change through the power of influence.  I applaud his 360° approach which encourages all of us to gain the trust and respect of those around us – up, across and down – to expand our spheres of influence.  My favorite chapters are on how to break through resistance; organizational politics; influencing your boss, how to use your words to change minds and Monarth’s emphasis on becoming EQ smart.  So if you are a seasoned professional in a well-defined leadership role already or a rapidly raising young professional that wants to rock the boat this book is for you.  I loved it!

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Three Ways to Begin to Influence Others at Work!

Are you ready to have more influence at work? Maybe you are new in your position or maybe you are an “old timer” and now are itching to make some organizational changes that could take your department or company to a new and improved performance level. But are you a person of influence?  Do others look to you for clarity on the company’s future and direction on how best to meet performance goals? Are you sought out for your ideas, your wisdom, your ability to manage organizational change and finally to fully engage and motivate others?

You may have some homework to do to become that kind of influential leader. Here are my favorite three ways to start.

  • Practice your speaking skills (with individuals, small groups & large audiences)
  • Sharpen your writing skills (share your ideas, connect with others)
  • Invest in experiences and reading (to expand your awareness, interests & conversation)

And now watch others in your workplace . . . how do they persuade, inspire and influence others?  What is it about them that speaks to others in an unique way?  You can learn so much from just observing them in action!

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