Monthly Archives: February 2015

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An Effective Way To Apologize

When’s the last time you screwed up and owed someone an apology? It’s probably fairly recently.

We all mess up and hurt those we care about and lead. I know I’ve needed to apologize recently.

That’s not to say I’m perfect at apologizing. Oh, no! Far from it. I’m not even good.

Ask my wife and she’ll probably tell you that I suck at apologizing. (But that’s a discussion for another time and also a reason I’m writing this post)

Frankly, I’m not good at apologizing. Words fumble out of my mouth and they don’t even sound like an apology.

But I was reading Chris Brogan’s book The Freaks Shall Inherit The Earth: Entrepreneurship For Weirdos, Misfits, And World Dominators and came across a section that made me pause and think.  Read more...

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5 Questions Leaders Should Ask Themselves

Leadership is full of questions. Especially questions leaders should ask themselves.

These days it seems far too few leaders are asking themselves questions. They’re going with the flow and they’re missing the big picture.

Are you asking yourself questions?

Image by JD Hancock

Why Leaders Should Question Themselves

Leadership isn’t without pitfalls. We can easily find ourselves in compromising situations or making bad decisions.

This happens when we stop asking ourselves vital questions. Questions that look deep into our motives and propel us in the proper direction.

When leaders ask questions of themselves, they’re able to look within. And every leader could use a little more of this introspection.

The Questions Leaders Should Be Asking Themselves

1. Why am I really leading?: Asking ourselves why we lead cuts to the heart of the matter. We begin to see our motives.  Read more...

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4 Steps To Overcoming Mistakes

“Ugh! I can’t believe this is happening!”

I found myself lamenting another bad decision. “Who makes mistakes like this?!”

I was feeling embarrassed and inadequate especially since the mistake wasn’t particularly major. However, itwas a silly mistake and now I was beating myself up for it.

Everyone readily admits that making mistakes are part of life. Unfortunately the aftermath of a mistake can be worse than the mistake itself.

The feelings of guilt, embarrassment and self-doubt can deplete the emotional reserves very quickly. Insecurity floats to the surface: “How could I let this happen?” “Even an idiot would have seen this coming.” “I’m never making another [big] decision.” Sadly, this last self-talk decision is subconscious and we say it over and over until it is a reality.

Without warning these emotional downers can erode someone’s confidence to such a large degree that they are paralyzed when making another major decision.  Read more...

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Make People Smile

One of the greatest joys in life is the pleasure you can receive from making someone smile.

Not only is making someone smile free or cheap, doing so helps you out. Yes, that’s right. Getting people to smile can improve your mood!

Make others smile!

Image by Edoardo Costa

So, why don’t we try to make others smile more often? There’s plenty of reasons:

We’re in a bad mood ourselves

Our day has been hectic and we’re in a rush

Someone was just rude to you

You can’t figure out a way to make someone smile

Yeah, it’s true. Our days aren’t always pleasant. We don’t always carry a happy face with us. People can be jerks. And sometimes we just don’t know of a way to make someone smile.  Read more...

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There’s Nothing Wrong With Not Hitting Your Goal

They say the biggest fear most people have is the fear of public speaking. I can relate to that fear but I’m not sure public speaking is the biggest fear people really have.

The real fear is not hitting the goals they set.

hitting the goal isn't the point

Image via Joe Jukes

Public speaking is an easy fear to gravitate to. It’s an obvious fear. I mean, who isn’t scared of getting up in front of a crowd of people and sharing their message? I know I’m scared to death to do it.

But it’s not the greatest fear I have. Like many others, I fear failing to meet the goals I set.

The Purpose Of Goal Setting

With the fear of failing to meet goals, many people won’t even set goals. They figure “Why set a goal if I won’t accomplish it?” In theory, this line of thinking seems to make sense.  Read more...