I sit here this morning feeling good about some of the things I have done recently, like learning how to set up posts on Facebook so that each hour there is a post, and being more dedicated to posting on my blog.
However when I got up this morning and realized that today is the 4th and that in order to get paid at the end of the month my invoices need to be in by Monday, my heart sank. It is unlikely that Canada Post will get my package there in time.
But I can't really blame them. It was my lack of time management, of setting a note in my Day Timer earlier in the week that said "Do Closures".
I am self-employed, working from home, on contract with an EAP. Each month I have to have my closures in by the 7th and the 23rd in order to get paid on time. If I had perfected my Time Management skills, I would never have to work. Alas, despite the fact that I teach Time Management skills, I sometimes fail.
That's the way it is in the world. Often despite our best intentions, we fail. So what we need to do is fail forward. Take a look at what happened and take steps to ensure that it won't happen again. So today I am entering a note into my Day Timer on the 18th of this month that says "Closures". That will ensure that I will get them done on time.
Right now I will get back to working on my closures and send them away today with hope and prayers that they will arrive in time.
BANABU
Fran Watson
P.S. If you would like some information on Time Management, or get a copy of a Time Management log, email me or comment below
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Friday, March 4, 2016
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Ten Commandments of Human Relations
1.
Speak to people.
There is nothing as nice as a cheerful word.
2.
Smile at people.
It takes 72 muscles to frown, only 14 to smile.
3.
Call people by name.
The sweetest music to anyone’s ears is the sound of his/her name.
4.
Be friendly and helpful. If you would have friends, be friendly.
5.
Be cordial.
Speak and act as if everything you do were a pleasure.
6.
Be genuinely interested in people. You can like every body if you try.
7.
Be generous with praise – cautious with criticism.
8.
Be considerate with the feelings of others – it s
appreciated.,
9.
Be thoughtful of the opinions of others – there are
three sides to a controversy – yours, the other person’s and the right one.
10. Be
alert to give service. What counts most
in life is what we do for others.
Be kind to one another
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Inspirational THoughts
How many times have you had a thought about contacting someone, but didn't follow through?
I read a post this morning about someone who had a good friend that she had lost touch with and then had the chance to reconnect with, but then found out the friend had cancer. She thought about writing a card to say how much she appreciated her friendship, but just couldn't seem to get started...and then it was too late, her friend was gone.
How many times have you held on to something saying, "I'm keeping it for something special." You may have read a story about a husband finding a beautiful red slip in his wife's lingerie drawer that she was saving for "just the right time", but now she was gone.
Too often we let the moments pass, the moments that can change not only our life, but the life of the person we share with. Too often we let our busyness get in the way of reaching out and touching someone.
As I sit here typing this, I am reminded of my good neighbour down the road who is 96 and in failing health. Why am I not down there visiting her instead of sitting at my computer? Why not, indeed. I think I will call her up and see if she feels like a visit from me. I could certainly use a visit with her.
Stop and think for a moment....who do you need to reach out to right now?
Now, do it.
Fran
I read a post this morning about someone who had a good friend that she had lost touch with and then had the chance to reconnect with, but then found out the friend had cancer. She thought about writing a card to say how much she appreciated her friendship, but just couldn't seem to get started...and then it was too late, her friend was gone.
How many times have you held on to something saying, "I'm keeping it for something special." You may have read a story about a husband finding a beautiful red slip in his wife's lingerie drawer that she was saving for "just the right time", but now she was gone.
Too often we let the moments pass, the moments that can change not only our life, but the life of the person we share with. Too often we let our busyness get in the way of reaching out and touching someone.
As I sit here typing this, I am reminded of my good neighbour down the road who is 96 and in failing health. Why am I not down there visiting her instead of sitting at my computer? Why not, indeed. I think I will call her up and see if she feels like a visit from me. I could certainly use a visit with her.
Stop and think for a moment....who do you need to reach out to right now?
Now, do it.
Fran
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
How Do You See The World?
"There is no objective reality. We don't see the world as it is, we see the world as we are."
Sean was filling out a university questionnaire to help determine roommate compatibility. Beside the questions, "Do you make your bed every day?" and "Do you consider yourself a neat person?" he checked "Yes." Later his mother reviewed the questionnaire. Knowing those answers were far from the truth, she asked Sean why he'd lied. "What do you expect me to do," he retorted. "I don't want to get stuck living with some slob!"
The gap between what we say we value and how we live can get pretty big. This hypocrisy could be because I am trying to fool others. Some people don't try to do what's right, they try to guess what other people think is right. For example, when someone says it's not about the money, but the principle of the thing, it's usually about the money. The manager of a large bookstore once told me that the book they have stolen the most is the Bible. Hypocrites climb the social, organizational, or career ladder 'wrong' by 'wrong' while trying to justify, excuse, or disguise their behavior. Like Mae West in Klondike Annie, when choosing between two evils, they pick the one they haven't tried before.
More often hypocrisy is because I am fooling myself. I am not being true to me. I am not authentic. Lack of authenticity often stems from lack of awareness of the values or beliefs that are really at the core of who I am. When we're not centered with a solid core, change is often a threat. It's also harder to accumulate the positive choices that vaccinate us against the Victimitis Virus and keep us from living in Pity City. Lacking a firm focal point, passion is weak and commitment is soft. Without a strong set of core values we're more likely to lead our lives from the outside in rather than the inside out. A centered leader grows his or her inner space and provides spirit and meaning to others. When our values aren't in focus our energy is easily scattered. That makes it tougher to mobilize ourselves never mind anyone else. Core values provide a context for continuous growth and development that takes us toward our dreams. Our core values project forward to become our vision. How we see the world is what we project from ourselves.
In Going Deep, Ian Percy writes, "Most business people I know are much more concerned with the quality of their customer service than they are with the quality of their parenting and spousing." In one highly successful company we consulted with executives proudly declared they had the highest divorce rate of any major corporation in the country. Many wore their divorces as a badge of honor to show their commitment to the company. When the company suddenly tosses them aside or they reach retirement, is a broken family the price that most of these executives will feel glad they paid for their career success? No one can judge someone else's values, but is that really what they value? Is career success at all costs their core essence?
Our core values show themselves in many ways. One is at points of crisis, disaster, or adversity. That's often when our actions move us unconsciously from the depth of our heart. Any masks we may be wearing are torn off to reveal our true face. Money is often another powerful way a person's core essence is revealed to him or herself and/or others. It's amazing to hear some people proclaim family values and then trash their "loved ones" over an inheritance. Greed is responsible for some mighty creative rationalizations. It's great to have money and the good life that money can buy. But we need to ensure that we haven't lost the invaluable things that money can't buy.
Excerpted from Jim's fourth international best-seller, Growing the Distance: Timeless Principles for Personal, Career, and Family Success. Jim Clemmer’s practical leadership books, keynote presentations, workshops, and team retreats have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide improve personal, team, and organizational leadership. Visit his web site, www.clemmer.net, for a huge selection of free practical resources including nearly 300 articles, dozens of video clips, team assessments, leadership newsletter, Improvement Points service, and popular leadership blog.
Sean was filling out a university questionnaire to help determine roommate compatibility. Beside the questions, "Do you make your bed every day?" and "Do you consider yourself a neat person?" he checked "Yes." Later his mother reviewed the questionnaire. Knowing those answers were far from the truth, she asked Sean why he'd lied. "What do you expect me to do," he retorted. "I don't want to get stuck living with some slob!"
The gap between what we say we value and how we live can get pretty big. This hypocrisy could be because I am trying to fool others. Some people don't try to do what's right, they try to guess what other people think is right. For example, when someone says it's not about the money, but the principle of the thing, it's usually about the money. The manager of a large bookstore once told me that the book they have stolen the most is the Bible. Hypocrites climb the social, organizational, or career ladder 'wrong' by 'wrong' while trying to justify, excuse, or disguise their behavior. Like Mae West in Klondike Annie, when choosing between two evils, they pick the one they haven't tried before.
More often hypocrisy is because I am fooling myself. I am not being true to me. I am not authentic. Lack of authenticity often stems from lack of awareness of the values or beliefs that are really at the core of who I am. When we're not centered with a solid core, change is often a threat. It's also harder to accumulate the positive choices that vaccinate us against the Victimitis Virus and keep us from living in Pity City. Lacking a firm focal point, passion is weak and commitment is soft. Without a strong set of core values we're more likely to lead our lives from the outside in rather than the inside out. A centered leader grows his or her inner space and provides spirit and meaning to others. When our values aren't in focus our energy is easily scattered. That makes it tougher to mobilize ourselves never mind anyone else. Core values provide a context for continuous growth and development that takes us toward our dreams. Our core values project forward to become our vision. How we see the world is what we project from ourselves.
In Going Deep, Ian Percy writes, "Most business people I know are much more concerned with the quality of their customer service than they are with the quality of their parenting and spousing." In one highly successful company we consulted with executives proudly declared they had the highest divorce rate of any major corporation in the country. Many wore their divorces as a badge of honor to show their commitment to the company. When the company suddenly tosses them aside or they reach retirement, is a broken family the price that most of these executives will feel glad they paid for their career success? No one can judge someone else's values, but is that really what they value? Is career success at all costs their core essence?
Our core values show themselves in many ways. One is at points of crisis, disaster, or adversity. That's often when our actions move us unconsciously from the depth of our heart. Any masks we may be wearing are torn off to reveal our true face. Money is often another powerful way a person's core essence is revealed to him or herself and/or others. It's amazing to hear some people proclaim family values and then trash their "loved ones" over an inheritance. Greed is responsible for some mighty creative rationalizations. It's great to have money and the good life that money can buy. But we need to ensure that we haven't lost the invaluable things that money can't buy.
Excerpted from Jim's fourth international best-seller, Growing the Distance: Timeless Principles for Personal, Career, and Family Success. Jim Clemmer’s practical leadership books, keynote presentations, workshops, and team retreats have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide improve personal, team, and organizational leadership. Visit his web site, www.clemmer.net, for a huge selection of free practical resources including nearly 300 articles, dozens of video clips, team assessments, leadership newsletter, Improvement Points service, and popular leadership blog.
Lifelong Learning
"Continuous learning, growing, and developing helps us find the path that is personal and unique to us. Ways of doing things depend upon tools and techniques.. There are no tools or techniques for ways of being. We all need to keep searching, growing, and developing those ways that are true to our inner selves and take us where we want to go."
- from Jim Clemmer's article, "Blazing Our Own Improvement Path"
Click here to read the full article now
- from Jim Clemmer's article, "Blazing Our Own Improvement Path"
Click here to read the full article now
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