Word-Of-the-Week #955: Personal Power

November 24, 2022 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #955: Personal Power

Personal Power – the ability to influence people and events.

How would it feel to be a happier, stronger, more accepting person? Do you enable others without needing any thanks or acknowledgement?

“This form of power comes from individual characteristics rather than formal authority. Personal power is more of an attitude or state of mind. Someone with strong personal power is focused on their self-efficacy and ability to cooperate with others.”

This week features feedback from subscriber Kim who wrote this about WOW #950 on Brighten. I felt was perfect fit for Thanksgiving!

“Nice one! I do enjoy getting and sending thank you notes. I have a few shoe boxes full of them because they are hard to throw away! Every once in a while, I pull a few out and get a good feeling boost of appreciation if I need inspiration to keep trying to help when I feel weary. I am a professor.

I recently went shopping in a small strip mall. The first stop was a small paint store. I walked in and was not greeted by the 2 young men behind the counter who were watching something on their cell phones. Finally, after walking around looking for some brushes, one finally said, I can check you out over here. I told him I wasn’t done and needed some paint; he was not excited to help me, and the other guy never looked up from his phone though he was 6 feet from me and closer than the other guy. I managed to stay happy, thinking my objective was to get what I needed, though it wasn’t easy because I wanted to chastise these 2 employees for being pathetic.

I then walked over to the local Deli and was greeted with a smile and attention from both behind the counter and at check out. It was a good feeling. The third stop was later that night to the Chinese takeout. The young gal greeted me with a big smile and such enthusiasm for my order, that I was actually laughing with her about how wonderful a night it was. I left thinking how wonderful it must be to be so happy wherever you are and whatever you are doing, it is all in YOUR attitude and not the responsibility of others.

I thought how earlier those 2 paint store guys kind of brought me down and made me mad, (actually I made myself mad) while the smiles of others brought me up.

I realized the power I had to buoy myself with my own attitude at all times. And it seems that gratitude is a game changer. The difference was in the gratitude of the employees, and it is easy to be warmed by someone’s gratitude, but better to be the source of gratitude.

So as much as my collection of letters warms me often, it is my daily and ever-present gratitude for whatever I am doing that really brightens my day. Just like the story below about the airport security employee, “I will have what she is having!”

This week’s all about having personal power. Are you happy to hear other views and not feel threatened by their own beliefs or convictions? How good are you at cooperating with others? Do you realize that you can buoy your attitude at all times? And choose to have a Happy Thanksgiving! And if you want more info on Personal Power click here.

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Word-Of-the-Week #954: Focus

November 17, 2022 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #954: Focus

Focus – close attention and concentration.

Do you get overwhelmed when you think about achieving a goal? Do you have a tendency to avoid completing certain tasks?

This week features the follow up to Marcel Schwantes, Inc. Union Tribune article, “Getting to the Goal: Here’s how achievers do it.”

They recognize when they’re procrastinating.

We’ve all suffered from procrastination in one form or another. It’s important to figure out the reasons for your procrastination. Some people find a particular task or job aimed toward attaining a goal unpleasant, and that becomes the source of their avoidance. Here are three instant strategies to help you out:

Have clearly prioritized to-do lists, schedules, time frames for completing a task, and deadlines for goals to help counter procrastination.

Work back from your deadlines to know how long you need, and when to get started so you’re not late.

Focus on one task at a time. Contrary to popular belief, multitasking is actually counterproductive. Finally, like all well-organized people, make sure your work is broken down into manageable steps.

They practice the 52 and 17 Rule.

When working toward your daily goal, try 52 minutes of work followed by 17 minutes of rest–what is known as “interval training” in sports. Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness, co-authors of Peak Performance, found that adopting an interval-based approach to productivity isn’t just for gifted athletes. One study found that its most productive employees preferred a work routine where they spent, on average, 52 minutes engrossed in their work, took a 17-minute break, and then returned to their work. Retaining the highest level of productivity toward achieving your goals in a day is not working longer; it’s working smarter with frequent breaks.

They listen to music for focus.

Music has been found to be a great way to maintain focus and stay productive for goal-attainment. The key is to experiment first, and find suitable music that helps you focus. A good tool to use is Focus at Will, which uses music scientifically driven to improve your concentration. Background noise also has also been proved to sharpen your focus. Try Coffitivity, a tool that emulates the ambient sounds of a cafe to boost your creativity and help you work better to get stuff done.

They don’t multitask.

There’s a myth out there that to be successful means to act with warp-speed urgency and do as many things as possible at the same time. Actually, the most successful people are very patient and avoid juggling many things. In fact, research says multitasking is a myth and can be damaging to our brains. You end up splitting your focus over many tasks, losing focus, lowering the quality of your work and taking longer to hit your goals. The 8 percent of people who nail down their goals are smart enough to work on several smaller chunks to complete a big goal. But they do it by knocking one down then moving on to the next one.

This week’s all about having focus. How would it feel to work smarter and not harder? Do you have a clearly prioritized to-do list? Are you able to work on one task at a time? Do you make time to take frequent breaks?

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Word-Of-the-Week #953: Achievers

November 10, 2022 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #953: Achievers

Achievers – one’s successful in accomplishing their goals.

Did you know that only 8 percent of people actually achieve their goals? Do you write down your goals? How specific and challenging are they?

This week features Marcel Schwantes, Inc. Union Tribune article, “Getting to the Goal: Here’s how achievers do it.”

“According to the University of Scranton, a whopping 92 percent of people who set New Year’s goals never actually achieve them. You can count me in that group. Failing to meet goals is pretty frustrating and can set you back.

That leaves 8 percent of us in a very elite category of goal-achievers. What do they do differently that 92 percent of us are missing out on? Most of the time, it comes down to simple habits to keep us accountable.

They begin with the end in mind.

When setting goals, you have to know where you’re headed. When writing down your goals, make sure that you understand the path to your final destination. After all, a goal without a clear roadmap is just a pipe dream. Once you have your goal on paper, write out what you’ll need to get there. These are your subgoals and the resources that you will need to support you along the way.

They build a support system around them.

High performers and productive people don’t do it alone. They understand that they can achieve more and do it quicker with the help of a mentor, coach, or adviser (or advisory team). If you wanted to get better at tennis, you would probably hire an instructor who would help you improve your serve or backhand volley. Setting and meeting larger goals is no different. Look for allies and build a network of experts who care about your success and keep you heading toward your goals. Meet with them regularly, seek their wisdom, ask for advice, and listen carefully.

They set specific and challenging goals.

Research by Edwin Locke and Gary Latham found that when people followed these two principles (specific and challenging goals), it led to higher performance 90 percent of the time. For example, if your goal is to lose 30 pounds by the end of the year, it may be challenging, but it’s too vague and not specific enough. Try this instead: “During the month of July, I will lose five pounds by reducing sugar, breads, and soda. I will also walk briskly for 20 minutes daily.” When you have that much clarity around your goal, your chances of hitting the mark increase dramatically.”

And I was taught to use present tense. So, on July 1^st I would say, “I briskly walk everyday for 20 minutes and I lost 5 pounds because I cut back on sugar, bread & soda.”

This week’s all about being an achiever. Do you have a clear roadmap for accomplishing your goal? Do you have a support system of mentors or advisers to help you? Is your goal challenging and have you made it clear and specific?

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