Self Improvement Tips

At twelve years old I didn’t have a good attitude. I didn’t understand input, output and reward. On this particular day I had a bad attitude. It was normal for this day every year. As a young boy who loved to play there were other things I would rather be doing. Work around the house was not for me. Every Spring my Dad and I would go out on our half acre and clean up the property after the Winter storms. There were always many tree limbs and sometimes fallen trees. We did not have a chain saw and I had to chop all the limbs and trees with an axe. It was very hard work. And here was the worst part. My Dad always picked the first nice weekend day in Spring when all of my other friends were out playing. Oh, did I mention, I hated chopping wood. And once we finished chopping and stacking the wood we had to rake the yard. This particular Spring day was no different than in past years. I wanted to play with my friends and here I was in work prison. This particular morning the more I t...

As we saw in the previous post, the word “network” was first used in England in the 1550’s to describe a finished product, a fish net.  A fish net was a piece of network. When you think about it, a nice piece of network is about catching more fish, and as time went on, bigger fish.  In personal business coaching in The Woodlands and in personal business coaching in Houston , I collaborate with many different business owners and types of businesses.  They are all casting their nets to market their business, and in many cases, to expand it. Some small businesses do not need or want to grow.  Even the owners of these businesses still network.  Yet, instead of doing it to bring in more business, they are doing their networking with their professional contacts, the salespeople and suppliers they deal with, to be able to be on the cutting edge of introducing new products at competitive prices as well as keeping a cost advantage and even supply of the foundational...

Networking is something all of us do in one way or another.  It could be with business associates, the checker at the grocery store and the list goes on and on.  When collaborating with small businesses as a business coach in The Woodlands one of the things that is brought up is networking. Specifically, the owner wants to know if he or she needs to do it.  And, if it is needed, how to be most effective in going about it.  Yet, before we get into whether or not to network, let’s take a look in this post as to the origins of the word networking. Depending on the research, it appears that the first use of the word “network” was in the 1550’s in England.  Some sources say it was earlier.  In any event, the word network comes from two words, net and work. Now the word net, the first half of the word network, has been around since ancient times.  And, it referred to nets to catch fish.  In England, in the 1550’s when someone constructed a net it...

In the last post I spoke about some of the foundational components to building a strong culture. It is necessary for people to feel safe and to believe they belong to something bigger than themselves. Also, for a culture to thrive it needs a clear mission, vision and an established purpose. As a business coach in the Woodlands and as a business coach in Houston, a clear sense of purpose makes the possibilities for growth and advancement of an organization much clearer. Why? With clarity comes pointed and focused action. The individuals and teams who make up the culture have a clear purpose. Several years ago, a designer and engineer, Peter Skillman, held a competition to find out the following: Why do certain groups add up to be greater than the sum of their parts, while others add up to be less? To this end he assembled a series of four-person groups at three major universities and a few other places. He challenged each group to build the tallest possible structure using the fo...

A college professor prepared a test for his soon to be graduating seniors.  The test questions were divided into three categories and the students were instructed to choose questions from only one of the categories.  The first category of questions was the hardest and worth fifty points.  The second, which was easier, was worth forty points.  The third, the simplest, was worth thirty points. Upon completion of the test, students who had chosen the hardest fifty-point questions were given As.  The students who had chosen the forty-point questions received Bs.  Those who settled for the easiest thirty-pointers were given Cs. The students were frustrated with the grading of their papers and asked the professor what he was looking for.  The professor leaned over the podium, smiled, and explained, “I wasn’t testing your book knowledge.  I was testing your aim.” An anonymous writer once commented, “Make no small plans for they have no power to st...

There is some gold to be mined during the Holidays in discovering your keys to success in life. For most of us, the normal routine is gone. It disappeared during the Christmas. And it was good. Now we have entered that twilight zone. What is the twilight zone? It is a time and place where the rhythm of business, life or both has changed. For most, it is a time where things have slowed down. If you have children in school you will not get to enter the twilight zone until after they go back. The twilight zone is a time for reflection and evaluation. It is a time, with the coming of the new year, to take stock of who you are and where you are at. It is a time to reflect on what has been and what is to come. It is a time of transition as we move from a Holiday mode back into our normal every day routines. One of the keys to success, whether you are a self-employed business owner, entrepreneur, solo professional or an individual, working or not, is to enjoy and learn from your time i...

For your self-improvement to benefit you for the long term you must be regularly evaluating your performance. Here are some tips on self improvement. One Down, Three to Go! The first quarter of 2018 is gone. In today’s world, danger awaits those who wait for the once-a-year performance review. Before the second quarter gets too far away from you, I strongly recommend that you evaluate your current performance and associated results. Right now, yes, right this second: ask yourself these very important questions to set up your personal development goals: 1. Concerning my year to date performance, how am I doing? 2. If I continue along with my current strategies and performance, how will I be doing at the end of the second quarter? 3. What am I going to do starting today to get myself back on target? 4. What new strategies and habits must I implement in order to improve my performance? The reality is that at this very moment, you are in one of these three positions – ...