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Category: Women In Business

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Growth Health and Wellness Management Women In Business

Kill Your “To Do” List Now

Why do you attempt to do the impossible?  How many things are on your “to do” list this week?  Ten?  Twelve? Thirty-two?

As you look at the list are you already in anticipatory fear of what you won’t complete.  Are you stressing if the things you did last we are “good enough?”  Most of us are. This fear, not being in the present moment is killing you and your ability to lead effectively.

This one simple choice, building and attempting to accomplish impossible “to do” lists is hurting your morale, engagement and money.  Make a new choice mindfully reduce your stress monotask today. Stop rewarding yourself for driving, eating, and talking on the phone at the same time.  All this adds up to mind-less-ness.

Admit it you have parked at your office then suddenly realized you do not remember leaving your driveway or any part of the drive to work?  Mindless.

Admit it you look at the clock and wonder where they day has gone with your “to do” list left unchecked.  Mindless.

This week.  Try Mindful mono-tasking.  Yes.  Mindfulness, the practice of being fully present in the moment can meet your “to do” list.  Here’s your practice:

Write a “to complete” list not a “to do” list. 

When I write a “to do” list it gets filled with every single thing I need to do this hour, day week, month, heck even year.  When the “to do” list is filled I look down and realize I’m overwhelmed and do nothing.  My head starts spinning.

A mindful “to complete” list is the 1-3 items that I will complete that day.  Nothing more, nothing less goes on the list.  I look at the list and my calendar to make sure those things are on the calendar.  Looking at this list gets my heart and purpose engaged again.

Once my “to complete list is complete, I breathe and know the things I need to do are on the list and the things not on the list are either not mine to do, or can wait. Then, as a leader, get fully in the present get to your being so the doing can get done also.

When, and only when all those things are done on your” to complete” list can you add something else to the list.

The practice of mindful “mono tasking” takes some practice. Yes I have days that things sneak back on the list, you will also.  You have to trust that the items that do not get on your ‘to complete” list will show up on the date/time that you must complete them.

Over time this activity will help you practice setting firm boundaries of what you will do and what you will not.  You may even hear yourself saying the most powerful complete sentence in our language.  No. When someone approaches you with a task that you cannot complete that day.  You will hear yourself building a more manageable life to lead and expectation for yourself and the culture of your organization.

Mindfulness is the practice of becoming fully present. When you are mindful, you can be your best in the world.  Give mono-tasking a try this week.  Let me know how this expands your good in the world.

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Entrepreneurship Human Resources Management Marketing Personal Development Women In Business

The Importance of Understanding Personalities in the Workplace

Onward Nation’s Stephen Woessner, recently interviewed me regarding the importance of understanding personality in the workplace.

To listen, go to: https://predictiveroi.com/podcasts/dr-diane-hamilton/ 

On this episode we talked about:

  • When a painful experience can lead to something that is better
  • Why you should just take action instead of overanalyzing something
  • The benefits of finding a mentor who is super-efficient & does things differently than you
  • How effective leaders create leaders from the people that they lead
  • Staying true to your personality when having conversations with people
  • Treating people how they want to be treated
  • The problem with having a team that is not diverse
  • Why personality tests can be extremely beneficial
  • Some of the biggest issues with soft skills in business settings
  • Learning everything you can about what it is you want to do
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Best Practices Entrepreneurship Human Resources Management Skills Women In Business

4 Action Steps to Protect Your Reputation Monday to Monday®

Click here to watch 4 Action Steps to Protect Your Reputation Monday to Monday® 

Your reputation – good or bad – precedes you. Your reputation enters the room, your clients’ offices, your meetings and your one-on-one conversations before you ever get there. Your reputation enters your readers inbox before you hit send on that email.

You’re always on display, and your reputation is always on the line. The big question is, are you okay with the reputation you’ve created?

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Accounting Best Practices Body Language Economics Entrepreneurship Investing Management Marketing Negotiations News and Politics Skills Women In Business

8 Words That Will Make You a Better Negotiator – Part 2

“Words have an impact! Choose impactful words carefully when negotiating, they’ll determine your degree of effectiveness.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert

This article is part 2 of a two-part article. It contains an explanation of the second group of 4 words that complete the 8 words you can use to become a better negotiator. Here’s the link to part 1 of this 2 part article  http://www.themasternegotiator.com/8-words-will-make-better-negotiator-part-1-2-negotiation-tip-week/

Now imagine the new you, not limited, because you are instantly free.

There are 4 words contained in the sentence above that will make you a better negotiator. Do you know which words they are, how to use them, and why they’ll give you an advantage when negotiating? After reading this article, you’ll know why those 4 words have such power, and how to use them in your negotiations.

Communications can be challenging when negotiating. That’s one reason why you should always be mindful of the words you use, the impact they’ll have, and how such words will position you in a negotiation.

The 4 words are, now, imagine, limited, and instantly.

4. Now – The word, ‘now’, implies in the moment. You’re not in the past or future, you’re in the present moment. That’s the power of ‘now’. It makes you focus on the situation at hand while clearing the cloudiness that other aspects of the negotiation might present.

Use the word, ‘now’, to focus the other negotiator’s attention on what’s being discussed in that moment. The word can also be used to distract from items that may attempt to conflate matters that may or may not have relevance to the negotiation.

6. Imagine – ‘Imagine’ is a wonderful word to use in a negotiation. It can take the negotiation from the here-and-now to a place where happiness or dread awaits.

You can use the word, ‘imagine’ when you want to transform the other negotiator’s perspective from a more or less agreeable point to one that is more aligned with what you seek from the negotiation. Use the word, ‘imagine’, to allow him to become transfixed in an emotional state where harm does not exist or where it looms voluminously.

7. Limited – This word implies that there’s not a lot of what you’re discussing; “if you don’t grab this soon, it’ll be gone and you’ll miss out.” That’s what, ‘limited’ implies.

Good negotiators will test you when you state that something is limited. Still, if your boast is proven to be true, you’ll move the other negotiator to action by using this word as a call to action. Just be mindful of how and when you use it. If its use is proven to be untrue, you might cause irreversible harm to the negotiation.

8. Instantly – Everyone seeks gratification. For some, the need for such acquisition is greater than others. The word, ‘instantly’, implies that you can have what you seek, right now.

You can enhance a negotiation by giving the other negotiator a sample of what he seeks from the negotiation; make sure it’s something that he really wants. By doing that, you’ll be instantly giving him a taste of what he can acquire if he adopts your position. If this tactic works with him, you will have also uncovered his need for gratification, and to what degree he’s willing to control it to obtain what he wants from the negotiation.

You now have new insights into how the above words can instantly increase your negotiation abilities, and just imagine, you acquired these words for free because you read this article. Imagine what this new knowledge will do for you. Don’t let yourself be limited, use these words in your negotiations … and everything will be right with the world.

 

After reading this article, what are you thinking? I’d really like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

To receive Greg’s free 5-minute video on reading body language or to sign up for the “Negotiation Tip of the Week” and the “Sunday Negotiation Insight” click here http://www.themasternegotiator.com/greg-williams/

Remember, you’re always negotiating.

#HowToNegotiateBetter #CSuite #TheMasterNegotiator #psychology

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Best Practices Entrepreneurship Health and Wellness Human Resources Management Marketing Skills Women In Business

Too Much of A Good Thing? New Strategies to Enjoy Real Work-Life Harmony in the C-Suite

Early morning board meetings, late evening client dinners, conference calls, international travel, a jam-packed family and personal schedule. It’s all good, but it may seem like constant non-stop busyness all the time. Are you doing more, but feeling less satisfied and more frustrated?

Fortunately, there are strategies to increase the real goodness and harmony in your life. Your ability to prioritize and optimize all the abundance you enjoy comes from making the right decisions about what is “important to do” rather than what is simply “nice to do.”

Evaluate and set your criteria. Determine the key professional and personal priorities, causes and activities that are truly aligned with your core values and highest intentions for the short and longer term. Turn inward and evaluate where you are accomplishing the most good and receiving the most personal satisfaction. Are you saying “Yes” more often and “No” less frequently because you are afraid of being left out? Learn to say “No” to the ordinary to be able to say “Yes” to the outstanding. Take a stand for what you really want!

Plan and prioritize. Look at your week and month and list your intentions and commitments. Sort the important from the merely workable. Think of your life in three pillars: career/business, health/family, faith/education/renewal and consider adopting the 8-8-8 model for your daily schedule. Designate eight hours for work and business, eight hours for yourself and your family priorities and eight hours for rest.

Make time for yourself every day. Part of your personal pillar should include some “me time” for peace, quiet, reflection and rejuvenation. Consider rising thirty minutes earlier and starting the day off with some movement, stretching, meditation, self-hypnosis or quiet contemplation. You will feel more successful and grounded versus feeling scattered and off balance.

Be consistent. Make regular deposits into your body’s energy savings and reserves account by eating whole, real food and engaging in regular physical activity and prioritizing restorative sleep. Inevitably you will need to make energy withdrawals when you are involved in challenging projects or are working long hours. With enough reserves, you have enough goodness to draw upon and your energy account will be charged and healthy!

Real work-life harmony takes courage and awareness. Model these traits for yourself, your family and your organization. Your life will be better for it!

Kathleen Caldwell, is CEO of Caldwell Consulting Group, an Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist, a C-Suite Network Advisor, Women Who Dare Council Member and the founder of the WHEE Leadership Institute ® (Wealthy, Healthy, Energetic Edge) of Woodstock, Illinois. She works with leaders and teams to energetically and enjoyably produce record breaking results. For more information, Caldwell can be reached at www.caldwellconsulting.biz, Kathleen@caldwellconsulting.biz or by phone at 773-562-1061.

Copyright © 2018. Caldwell Consulting Group, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Best Practices Human Resources Management Marketing Skills Women In Business

There’s No Crying in Baseball – Or Business

“Are you crying?… There’s no crying in baseball!” That line was immortalized forever by Tom Hanks as baseball coach Jimmy Dugan in the 1992 hit movie A League Of Their Own about the women in professional baseball during World War II. The sentiment was echoed by a panel of executive women last night at an event I attended. When the moderator asked, “Is it ever okay to cry at work?” all four women gave an instant and simultaneous thumbs-down. This started me thinking about other emotional behaviors that are not acceptable for women or men, and how to express them more appropriately in the workplace.

Beyond tears, I think the most challenging one is anger. Anger is an emotion that we all feel at times, but how can it be expressed appropriately? We’ve all probably had the misfortune of witnessing a boss berating an employee, often in sight or earshot of others. While the employee is momentarily humiliated, the person who loses more respect is the boss who lost control and felt compelled to tear someone down in public. Regardless of the error made or how justifiably furious you are, there are right ways and wrong ways to express it.

First, you need to ensure that the language stays professional, not personal. Asking (even if not calmly) “How could this have happened?!” is very different from yelling “How could you be so stupid?!” Even if you’ve had multiple conversations with the person about costly, sloppy work in the past, it’s important to keep the discussion focused on the behaviors: “This is the second time you have missed critical details that have cost us time and a significant amount of money. You got an oral warning the first time, so this time I need to make a formal note in your records. If it happens again, I’ll be required to escalate it with HR.” If you want to curse and scream and call him every name in the book, fine – but do it in your car on the drive home when nobody can hear you, or take out your frustrations on the heavy bag at the gym. When you return to the office the next day, keep discourse civil and focus on finding solutions.

Anger is also toxic because it tends to lead to other destructive communication behavior, particularly scapegoating. Maybe nobody on your team made an egregious error, but perhaps a client backed out of a deal you were desperately counting on. Or a blizzard in the Midwest wreaked havoc on your delivery schedule across the region. While these kinds of situations are understandably stressful, it’s important to manage that stress and be careful not to take out your frustrations on others, whether your peers, employees, vendors, other clients, or family.

If you know that you get short-tempered and tend to snap at people when you’re in a bad mood, proactively communicate this to those around you: “I know we’re all working as hard as we can to solve this problem, and none of us caused it. For the next day or so, if I seem particularly short with you, let me apologize in advance; please know that it is not about you so do not take it personally. Thanks for your diligent efforts and patience at this difficult time.” Then, of course, make sure that you don’t make the language personal, and if you do speak harshly to someone who didn’t deserve it, be sure to apologize to them personally afterwards.

Of course, as with all communication, context is key. Someone else on yesterday’s panel made reference to a double standard in which it was okay for Joe Biden to cry in public, but it would not have been okay for Hillary Clinton to do so. I think that was an overstatement, given that Joe Biden wasn’t crying time and again out of frustration because the Republicans were pushing back on the Affordable Care Act. He only cried once in public, and it was while talking about the tragic loss of his son. It was a moment of palpable grief, and the country mourned with him. In a similar situation, if – heaven forbid – something equally awful had happened to Chelsea, and Hillary had wept as Joe did in the moment as a parent overcome with grief, I think it actually would have helped her. Ironically, it would have made her appear more human and relatable, which were two deficits that plagued her campaign. There is a time and a place for everything.

In the end, there are certain emotional behaviors that have no place in business. Recognizing what they are is crucial, but so is having coping mechanisms in place to deal with those triggering emotions when they arise. Not only does incorporating these mechanisms help you do your job more effectively, but doing so transparently and explicitly so others understand your intention is a great opportunity to mentor and teach leadership by example.

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Do you or does someone you know struggle with managing how they express their emotions in the workplace? Or do you have other questions or feedback about this issue? If so, contact me at laura@vocalimpactproductions.com or click here to schedule a 20-minute focus call to discuss it with me personally!

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Best Practices Growth Health and Wellness Human Resources Management Technology Women In Business

Use Technology to Unplug from Technology

Distractions are everywhere. For a lot of employers – they are killing productivity. A recent study by CareerBuilder offers the top productivity roadblocks in the workplace.

  • Cell Phones/texting
  • The Internet
  • Gossip
  • Social media
  • Email
  • Interruptions from coworkers
  • Meetings
  • Smoke breaks/snack breaks
  • Noisy coworkers
  • Sitting in a cubicle

If you’re ready to increase your daily value and the contributions you bring to the workplace, reduce your stress and contribute to boosting profits? Pay attention to these seven strategies productivity strategies and stop killing time:

Extinguish Email. Too many of us are guilty of allowing email to dictate our daily tasks and priorities. It winds up stealing focus and tempts us to venture down paths that aren’t aligned with the priorities we’ve established necessary for the day. Utilize tools, such as Glip, to minimize the back and forth unnecessary chatter email creates. It cuts down on keystrokes required to draft and send messages, the clutter endless back-and-forth emails generates and helps teams get organized in their communication strategies.

Own it. Be honest with yourself. Consider what you’re allowing to become a distraction, keeping you from remaining focused. Is your phone, with their never-ending barrage of text messages, personal phone calls and messages distracting you? Consider implementing the the Moment app. It tracks just how much you’re on your device and allows you to set time limits so you start to step away from the 24/7 phone attachment and step into the present, productive moment.

Be hyper-conscious to what is on your task list this week and prioritize, prioritize, prioritize. What five things are non-negotiables and absolutely have to be accomplished first? What can you delegate? What is just a time-waster and not vital to your vision? Knock those projects out first. The accomplishment will reduce your stress, give you a sense of completion and allow you to move on to other tasks requiring more time and creativity.

Nix the Internet. If you’re anything like me, it’s easy to put off what needs to be done in exchange for a few moments surfing Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube or checking personal emails. Before you know it, you’ve been sucked into a time warp, sacrificing productivity and valuable time. Take a look at the Freedom app to block certain personal websites (including time-draining social media) and allows you to set controls so you can stay on task.

Time-Block. Use your schedule to work with you. Carve out times for periodic breaks where you can check personal messages, social media, get a stretch or go for a walk. Taking mindful breaks will allow you to maximize your focus when it is time to work.

Be clear. In some of the most productive workspaces I know of, team members get creative about sharing when they are in focus mode. Clearly communicating when you are in “do not disturb” mode is vital. Some have signs up when they are on prospecting calls for example. Others use headsets to buffer the noise around them and signal they are “in the zone”. My organization uses Glip’s feature of indicate when we are not to be disturbed, away or available. Using the tools feature helps share with coworkers when you are ready to chat or when you’re in focus mode.

Be mindful. Getting caught in a trap of office politics, gossip or personal chatter can not only be unproductive to your reputation, it can be a real time suck. Utilize days of the week or hours within the day to work remotely when possible. Capitalize on tools like Glip to stay connected without being physically interrupted and side tracked in your day.

Pay attention to what’s pulling at you. What’s taking you away from bringing your best and brightest self to the workplace. Don’t let daily time killers get the best of you and your ability to accomplish what is necessary for success. Which of these strategies can you put in place today to change how you deal with distractions?

 

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Entrepreneurship Health and Wellness Women In Business

Olympic Performance, Business Performance: One in the Same

I love the Olympics! From the pomp and circumstance of the Opening Ceremonies, to the stories of the individual athletes to the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Given that I’m a “people person,” I’m always wondering about the “back story” of Olympians and their performance.

What’s going on in the mind of the athlete? I’d like to interview each one of them and ask, “What did you do to train your mind? How are you thinking – or are you thinking – during the heat of the competition? How do you talk to yourself when you lose – when the dream passes you by?”

These athletes are people, just like you and me. Let’s look at what sets them apart and see how can you achieve that level of greatness in your life and your work. Perhaps you are at the pinnacle of your career and have mastered a great many of the mental skills that are necessary to be calm in the heat of moment. Or possibly, you are in an enviable professional position, but the stress is taking its toll.

Or you may be on your way towards higher goals, but don’t know how to harness your energy in the manner of a true Olympian. Many highly competitive people like athletes, business leaders and entrepreneurs think that success is about working harder. While you cannot achieve lofty goals without hard work, it’s the mental training that makes the difference.

Here are 3 skills that you can begin to cultivate. Many of them you have heard about before. I frequently say that this information is “common knowledge, but not common
practice.” If you want to upgrade your level of performance under pressure, you will need to take it on with the same level of commitment as with any other skill you want to master.

1. Meditation

Meditation is simply “focused concentration,” Pick a sound, a word, an image, your breath, a candle…anything that you can bring your attention back to every time it wanders. One of the hallmarks of great athletes and great leaders is their ability to assess a situation in a split second. They don’t get flustered under intense pressure; they see possibilities where others don’t.

Meditation works on both the mind and the body in profound ways. When we quiet down the nervous system, we also quiet down the part of the brain that is always chattering. At the same time, we are strengthening the pre-frontal cortex, which is the executive part of the brain that we want onboard in pressured situations. I frequently hear people say, “I can’t meditate. I can’t quiet my mind.” Just remember, that the “monkey mind” is our natural state when the mind is untrained. Meditation is one of the keys to changing that situation.

2. Change Your Thoughts to “Productive Thinking.”

Again, I’m sure you’ve heard that you need to speak to yourself in a positive way, yet the mind is prone to offering us “worst case scenarios.” Just telling yourself to stop thinking in a certain way is easier said than done. Rather than glibly telling myself to think positively (because I don’t always believe it), I ask myself, “Do my thoughts produce something useful for me?” For example, If I’ve inadvertently missed an important appointment, rather than beating myself up, I ask myself in a non-judgmental way, “How did this happen and what can I learn from it?”

3. Commit

Every great achievement starts with a commitment to the self. We can’t know how things will turn out, because in taking big risks, we are subject to many variables that are out of our control. But we can control our thoughts and our actions and make that life-changing decision that we’ll do “whatever it takes” to reach our dreams.

While you’re watching the Olympics and marveling at the thrilling performances of the athletes, just know that you, too, have the potential for greatness. Learn how to harness your mind through peak performance training.

If you’d like to see where you are on the level of peak performance skills, I invite you to take my quiz here.

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Accounting Economics Entrepreneurship Human Resources Management Marketing Negotiations News and Politics Women In Business

Opportunity Can Reside Inside of Confusion – Negotiation Insight

“Confusion is a time for reflection. Use it to slow down your thoughts. In doing so, you’ll see what’s been speeding past you.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert

Have you ever caught yourself, or caught someone else, in a state of confusion? I’m talking about being truly perplexed and in a quandary about what action to engage in next. Confusion may have shown on the face or been revealed in some non-action. If it was you, you may have felt embarrassed, a sense of anxiety, or just an emotional tug to get out of that state of mind. At such times, in such actions, an opportunity may be lurking. Here’s why I say that.

When someone is confused, they become unsure of what to do next. That will usually cause them to go into a state of reflection, one in which they assess their circumstances, in an attempt to decide what action to engage in next. That’s the time that people are most susceptible to suggestions and external influence. If you’re the person in that state, be aware of your susceptibility. That’s not to say that being susceptible is bad at such a time, it’s simply to say, be aware of your environment, what suggestions are being offered, and how you feel at that moment about making decisions. You should understand when others are in such a mindset because they too are susceptible to being influenced by you.

Here’s the point, the more aware you are about the stimuli that motivate you to address one set of actions versus another, the better you’ll be able to adopt actions that are beneficial. So, don’t shun confusion when you encounter it, embrace it for the potential value it may contain. Then, use that to your advantage … and everything will be right with the world.

What does this have to do with negotiations?

“He had an expression on his face that said, ‘he was hanging around like a dangling participle.’ You could see that he didn’t know what to do next.”

In a negotiation, a state of confusion can be good when induced in the other negotiator, such can be the case when it’s induced in you, too. Per confusion being of benefit when induced in the other negotiator, it depends on the type of person with whom you’re negotiating (i.e. Open – I’ll follow your lead because I trust you. Easy – willing to go along to get along). These types of negotiators are initially more open and willing to work with you than the ‘Hard’ or ‘Closed’ style of negotiators. Thus, you can elicit empathy from the opposing negotiator when you’re in a state of confusion, and lead him from his dilemma when he’s in that state.

In your negotiations, don’t be dismayed by confusion. View it as an opportunity and be prepared to utilize it as the gift that it might present.

What are you thinking? I’d really like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

To receive Greg’s free 5-minute video on reading body language or to sign up for the “Negotiation Tip of the Week” and the “Sunday Negotiation Insight” click here http://www.themasternegotiator.com/greg-williams/

Remember, you’re always negotiating.

#HowToNegotiateBetter #CSuite #TheMasterNegotiator #ControlEmotions #Psychology #Truth #Perception #Confusion

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Accounting Best Practices Entrepreneurship Health and Wellness Industries Management Marketing Skills Technology Women In Business

Maximize the First 30 Minutes of Each Day

How do you set the tone and maximize productivity at the beginning of each day? Do you give yourself space to map things out or are you more of a wing-it kind of person? I believe how you START your day, sets the intention and momentum for how the rest of the day’s will transpire. When you begin with 30-minutes of focused attention to what really matters most –  that time will pay generous dividends by the end of the day.

Here are strategies maximize productivity and ensure a successful day in the first 30 minutes:

  1. Turn OFF your phones. It’s all right. That magical device that is glued to hands seemingly every waking minute of the day, delivering phone calls, chats, text messages and emails at an often-alarming rate does turn off. So does the desk phone! Take 30 minutes to create space for focus. It will all be there when you turn it back on. It’s just an hour. And there’s voicemail! If it’s important, they’ll leave a message or call back.  If you want to maximize productivity – turn off your phones.
  2. Close your door. If you’ve got one. This sends a signal to your team (or your family if you are a work-from-home entrepreneur) that you are unavailable unless there is an emergency. If you are new to the practice, educate your team what procedures you want to have in place when your door is closed. Once everyone is on board that this is your time to create, get strategic, work a business plan, and map out your day, they’ll recognize the importance. Especially when they see the RESULTS.  If you are forced to work in an open environment, consider headphones. I used this technique in one organization, and people eventually got the idea that when your headphones are in, it’s the equivalent of a do-not-disturb sign.
  3. Use smart time-blocking. My recommendations? Book all meetings to start after 9.00 am. If you’ve always had early morning meetings, this might be a tough change, but if needed, can you start your “clock” an hour earlier to ensure that you have a full 30 minutes to complete your planning?
  4. Start off-site if possible.  Can you complete your 30-minute mindset and strategy session BEFORE you walk through your office doors? That way when you are actually in office – you hit the ground running. Once you’ve mastered this, teach your team. Once they’ve mastered it – your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will go through the roof. A study done by Ctrip shared that remote workers are able to complete 13.5% more than their comparable office workers. How’s that for food for thought.
  5. Quit the clutter. Seriously. Inboxes. Coffee cups. Paperwork piles. These distractions are stealing brain bandwidth and steering your attention away from streamlining your day. Out with them!  Maximize productivity by decreasing visual distractions.
  6. Check off that early morning workout. If you can muster it, get your exercise out of the way first thing. Start small if you have (15-30-minute increments) but do start. You’ll feel like you’ve already checked one big daily goal off your to-do list! Cheers!
  7. Nix the gossip in the bud. Honestly, gossip is one of the biggest time, energy, and productivity drains an organization can have. We Aussies call a gossip a “flibbertigibbet”. Studies show that 39% of workers admit that gossip and workplace chat are their biggest productivity killers. Another study conducted by Equisys also shared that the average employee spends 65 hours a year gossiping in the workplace! Cull this invasive “thief” from your company if you truly want to maximize productivity.

Starting your day in planning mode will help you stay focused, on track, and set the right tone for not just your day – but that of those around you. Lead by example. Pay ATTENTION to the INTENTION you set for each day. Your productivity, profitability, and bottom-line results will reflect your efforts!