15 Ways to Live, and Not Merely Exist
http://www.marcandangel.com/2012/03/19/15-ways-to-live-and-not-merely-exist/
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
15 Ways to Live, and Not Merely Exist
Monday, March 19, 2012
Article: Unlimited Vacation Doesn't Create Slackers--It Ensures Productivity
Unlimited Vacation Doesn't Create Slackers--It Ensures Productivity
http://www.fastcompany.com/1823415/why-unlimited-vacation-policies-ensure-productivity
How Leadership at Home Affects the Rest of Life
How Leadership at Home Affects the Rest of Life
http://michaelhyatt.com/how-leadership-at-home-affects-the-rest-of-life.html
Friday, March 16, 2012
Article: 22 Executives Share The Best Advice They Ever Got
22 Executives Share The Best Advice They Ever Got
http://www.businessinsider.com/executives-share-the-best-advice-they-ever-got-2012-3
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Do You Agree With Your Facebook Friends' Politics? Not Likely
http://mashable.com/2012/03/12/social-media-friends-politics/
This is so true in my case. The political beliefs of my Twitter "friends" are more closely aligned to my own, yet I know my Facebook friends much better.
I hypothesize this is because of the following reasons:
1. I didn't choose most of my Facebook friends and they didn't choose me. That is to say, my Facebook friends are primarily family and friends I grew up with or met at points during my life. We were brought together by happenstance. We didn't actively seek one another nor were our politics the reason we chose to be friends/acquaintances.
2. On Twitter, I choose whom to follow and they choose to follow me. Most of the time we choose to follow each other because of similar interests.
How do your different social media communities correspond to your way of thinking?
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Why behavior change is hard - and why you should keep trying
Why behavior change is hard - and why you should keep trying
http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Womens_Health_Watch/2012/March/why-behavior-change-is-hard-and-why-you-should-keep-trying
Saturday, March 10, 2012
The Secret to Living Well on Less
The Secret to Living Well on Less
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/223091
Friday, March 9, 2012
Article: Why Did Depression Evolve? It May Have A "Purpose" After All
Why Did Depression Evolve? It May Have A "Purpose" After All
http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2012/03/08/why-did-depression-evolve-it-may-have-a-purpose-after-all/
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Article: Low-Cost Ways To Show Employees They're Highly Valued
Low-Cost Ways To Show Employees They're Highly Valued
http://www.fastcompany.com/1822943/low-cost-ways-to-show-your-employees-they-are-highly-valued
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Article: How to Get More Time on Your Side
How to Get More Time on Your Side
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/6-tips-to-get-more-time-on-your-side.html
Article: Are You Smart Enough to Work at Google?
Are You Smart Enough to Work at Google?
http://moneyland.time.com/2012/01/11/are-you-smart-enough-to-work-at-google/
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
How to Find Your Purpose and Do What You Love
How to Find Your Purpose and Do What You Love
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/02/27/purpose-work-love/
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Article: 10-Second Health Tips to Live Stronger, Longer
10-Second Health Tips to Live Stronger, Longer
http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/feel_good_to_do_list/
Monday, February 20, 2012
Article: 10 Inspiring Quotes From Our Favorite TEDTalks
10 Inspiring Quotes From Our Favorite TEDTalks
http://mashable.com/2012/02/17/ted-talks-quotes/#48933Paola-Antonelli
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
Article: 10 Tips on Writing Well from David Ogilvy
10 Tips on Writing Well from David Ogilvy
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/02/07/david-ogilvy-on-writing/
Thursday, February 9, 2012
It's 10 P.M., Do You Know Where Your Employees Are? 4 Steps To Set After-Hours Work Expectations
http://www.fastcompany.com/1814467/4-steps-to-clarify-after-hours-work-expectations-for-employees
Important conversation to have but so many of our managers grew up during a time when this wasn't an issue, so I doubt we have ever given it much thought.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Kasserian Ingera! (How are the children?)
Attended a luncheon today where the honored guest told the story of this Maasai greeting. I was interested to learn more and found this excerpt of a sermon that included a little about the greeting and what it signifies in Maasai culture.
Masai Greeting
A sermon delivered to Live Oak U U Church of Austin
December 31, 2000
By Mary K. Isaacs and Martin Bryant.
Kasserian Ingera!
Among the tribes of Africa, few have warriors traditionally more fearsome or more cunning than the Masai of Kenya. It is perhaps surprising, then, to learn the traditional greeting among Masai warriors. One warrior would always say to another, “Kasserian Ingera,” which, in Swahili, means, “How are the children?”
It is still the traditional greeting among the Masai, acknowledging the high value of the Masai for the well-being of children. Even modern Masai with no children of their own always give the traditional answer, “All the children are well,” meaning, of course, that peace and safety prevail – that the priorities of protecting the young and powerless are in place, that Masai society has not forgotten its reason for being and its responsibilities. “All the children are well” means that life is good. It means that the daily struggles of existence do not preclude proper care for the young.
This story, I think, is moving, illustrating a society that values its children so highly that a reminder of them is part of every greeting. The story is also sobering – the fact that it’s surprising illustrates how very far our own culture is from valuing children in this way.
Article: Just Say Thanks: Why Accepting Compliments is Good for Your Career
Just Say Thanks: Why Accepting Compliments is Good for Your Career
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2012/02/06/just-say-thanks-why-accepting-compliments-is-good-for-your-career/
Monday, February 6, 2012
One Simple Step to Clearing Your Desk and Mind
Image via Wikipedia
Is your desk a mess of papers, sticky notes, torn sheets of paper with scribbled notes on them, reminders that make no sense, and stacks of papers and folders that you haven't looked at in months?
You don't realize it but this kind of clutter is causing you mental stress. Seeing that mess everyday sends signals to your brain that cause confusion, anxiety, and a feeling of being overwhelmed. Whether consciously or subconsciously, this is keeping you from being at your best and most productive...and happiest.
The good news is there is one question to ask about each piece of paper on your desk that will clear it off your desk FOREVER! Up to now, that overwhelmed feeling in your brain has kept you from acting on it because you did not know where to start. This one simple question enables you to regain your power over the clutter and it frees you to do your best work in a less stressful and more productive environment. This is the key behind Getting Things Done.
Take all that mess on your desk and put it in a pile (or several piles if one pile begins to topple before reaching the ceiling). Now take the first item in that pile(s) and hold it in your hand. As you look at the information it contains, ask yourself this one simple question:
WHAT ACTION STEP MUST I TAKE TO GET THIS OFF MY DESK?
That's it! That's all there is to it. Look at the contents on the page or in the folder or on the sticky note, decide what needs to happen to move this off your desk, and most importantly, TAKE ACTION.
What you will find is that you will have three options for every item in your pile(s):
1. Take action and then throw this away (or file it).
2. No action necessary but I should file this for future reference.
3. No action necessary and this can be thrown away IMMEDIATELY.
If the action can be taken in two minutes or less, do it NOW! Make the call, write the email, or delegate the action item. If it will take a little more time, add this to your TO DO list (productivity management software) for action at a specific time.
For those items that need no action, either file them (not back in a pile of your desk) in your file folder or scan the information into electronic files OR throw them away. You'll be surprised how many things you were "saving" that required NO action at all. Either they never did or the action has taken care of itself over time.
Take a few minutes, or a few hours, or even a few days, depending on the size of your piles, and go through this exercise. When you finish, you will have a sense of power and freedom you have not felt in a long while. And now that you have the "secret" to greater efficiency and productivity, you can keep this feeling forever. You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish and your employers and clients (and even your family) will notice the difference...not only in your productivity but also in your attitude for work and life.
(PS This same process can be used at home and in working through the 10,000 messages in your email inbox.)
Article: 5 Early Birds Share Everyday Productivity Strategies
5 Early Birds Share Everyday Productivity Strategies
http://www.fastcompany.com/1813898/go-get-your-worm-productivity-strategies-from-overachieving-early-birds
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Article: The Biggest Mistake A Leader Can Make
The Biggest Mistake A Leader Can Make
http://www.forbes.com/sites/trustedadvisor/2012/01/31/the-biggest-mistake-a-leader-can-make/
Monday, January 30, 2012
The One Question That Will Make All Your Meetings More Productive
Image via Wikipedia
Most of us dislike meetings. And we especially dislike those meetings that accomplish nothing. Think about how many times you've left a meeting and wondered, "What was that for? We decided nothing. We just talked for the last hour. What a waste of time!" And what's worse is that you know that this lack of decision means another meeting will be called again to discuss the exact same thing. Isn't that frustrating?
Well, there is one simple question that someone needs to have the courage to ask at the end of every meeting. As a matter of fact, the person(s) calling the meeting should ask this question BEFORE they plan the meeting, because this question determines whether a meeting is even necessary. The question that should be asked is:
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS?
This simple but powerful question demands that SOMETHING happen. This question causes ACTION to be taken. This question ensures that the meeting will PRODUCE a result.
If you are planning a business meeting and you don't see action steps coming out of the meeting, you should reconsider having the meeting. If all you are going to do is share information, perhaps there is a better medium.
There are two additional questions that will make this most important question even more valuable:
WHO IS ACCOUNTABLE FOR EACH STEP?
WHAT IS THE DEADLINE FOR RESULTS FROM THE NEXT STEPS?
Starting today, try asking these 3 questions before leaving any meeting you attend. I guarantee your meetings will be more useful and productive.
Article: 5 Lessons From A Professional Change Agent
5 Lessons From A Professional Change Agent
http://www.forbes.com/sites/carolkinseygoman/2012/01/23/5-lessons-from-a-professional-change-agent/
Friday, January 27, 2012
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Article: The Social Media Cheat Sheet [INFOGRAPHIC]
The Social Media Cheat Sheet [INFOGRAPHIC]
http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/social-media-cheat-sheet_b17969
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Article: The Biggest Myth in Time Management
The Biggest Myth in Time Management
http://blogs.hbr.org/bregman/2012/01/the-biggest-myth-in-time-manag.html
Article: Why It's Healthy to Sometimes Settle for What's Good Enough
Why It's Healthy to Sometimes Settle for What's Good Enough
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/01/why-its-healthy-to-sometimes-settle-for-whats-good-enough/251632/
Monday, January 23, 2012
3 Tools That Led Me To Throw Away My Rolodex and Everyone's Business Cards
1. Plaxo This tool allows me to import information from email, phone numbers, and social networks to consolidate all my contact information (over 2500 contacts) in one place that I can access from anywhere. Plaxo has an app for Android, iPhone, and Windows mobile. My old address book had hundreds of duplicate files and Plaxo consolidated them all with its cool "de-duper" tool. It even alerts me when information becomes outdated or incorrect. The birthday calendar updates you of your contact's upcoming special day and you can send e-cards directly through Plaxo. I use the FREE option but there are paid options that provide more syncing and other additional functionality.
2. CardMunch This FREE iPhone app was great even before LinkedIn acquired it but now it is even better. With CardMunch, you take a photo of a business card with the app and it automatically converts it into a LinkedIn contact. And since Plaxo is connected to my LinkedIn contacts, it downloads it and updates my address book instantly. The business card is thrown in the recycling bin.
3. Email and Gmail With Plaxo and CardMunch, I can easily share my contact information immediately and without the need for a business card. Whether from my iPhone, laptop, or desktop, I can email/gmail my contact information to anyone who needs it. They can then add it to their address book, many times with just the push of a button.
Gone are the days of keeping stacks of business cards on your desk, in a rolodex, or in business card organizers. Use your business card budget for other priorities.
What other tools do you use?
Friday, January 20, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
How Celebrity Appearances at CES Backfired...And What I Would Have Done Differently
http://mashable.com/2012/01/18/celebrities-ces-brands-infographic/
Read this article and infographic with great interest this morning because I was one of the hundreds who lined up for Justin Bieber's autograph at the Tosy event at CES. Now, before you ask me to give back my "man card," you need to know I have a daughter for whom I was a hero when I got back home with her personalized, signed Bieber autograph. (NOTE: I also went to the Snooki autograph session the previous day, but I decided the ROI for waiting in that line was not worth the effort.)
As I stood in line, my public relations/social media brain couldn't help but notice all the things I would have done differently to get the most out of this incredible opportunity. I have to believe the money Tosy spent to have Justin (and his entourage) there for several hours was considerable. And this is on top of the cost of a CES booth space (extra-large, by the way) and the cost of the public relations firm they hired to assist with the event.
Here are the top five things I would have done:
1. Create Social Media Profiles: Tosy has no social media channels: no Twitter account, no Facebook account, no YouTube account, no Google+ account, NONE! Not having at least a couple of these is bad enough, but the fact they did not establish some channels in preparation for this event was very shortsighted. As a matter of fact, the fact their public relations firm did not demand it and help them set them up borders on malpractice. I would have made sure they had these established well in advance in order to build a following and start the "buzz" around this event.
2. Make It Easy for People to Publicize Your Event: Because they had no social media channels, there was nothing at the event encouraging people to Tweet with a special hashtag, nowhere to post their comments and photos on their Facebook page, no place to share videos of the event, and nowhere for them to blog the event LIVE (live-tweets, Facebook updates, YouTube videos, blog posts, etc.).
3. Know Your (Potential) Audience:They had no idea who was in the audience. I'm not sure if they took it for granted that there would not be a lot of teenage girls attending CES, but they certainly downplayed the response they would get. When my two friends and I arrived (all parents of little girls for whom we wanted to be a hero) three hours early for the event, there were two other people waiting in line. One of the Tosy employees actually encouraged us to come back in two hours, which if we had done, we would have been too far back in line to even see Justin. They had to reconfigure the line at least three times because it was much larger than they had planned for. What they forgot was the fact that while there wouldn't be many tween and teenage girls in the audience, there would be THOUSANDS of parents of tween and teenage girls in attendance. And some of us were so thrilled with this opportunity, we were willing to tweet and Facebook and Google+ about Tosy all day long for the chance at that coveted autograph. All they had to do was ASK and make it easy for me (hashtag).
4. Make it Worthwhile for People to Publicize Your Event: As the event was going on, I would have offered prizes to some lucky people in line just for being there. I would have offered a chance for a free robot to a lucky Twitter follower and/or Facebook friend (for a LIKE) and/or Google+ follower. We would have staff live Tweeting, posting photos and video, retweeting our followers in attendance, commenting on posts throughout the social mediasphere. One tweet about Bieber gets retweeted numerous times. They could have been the trending topic in a matter of minutes.
5. Share Before, During, and After and Do It Immediately and Constantly: Finally, after the event (IMMEDIATELY after), I would have all our photos, video, social media pages, and media links updated and highlighted on our website. I would continue commenting and retweeting and reposting and sharing. I would announce our contest winners. I would have LOTS of photos and video of Justin with our robot.
You see, it's not that the celebrity endorsement is a bad investment. It's that the companies don't understand that having the celebrity there is only the beginning. It's what you do with their appearance that makes the difference. That's what gets you word-of-mouth. That's what makes you the trending topic. That's what gets you a mention on Entertainment Tonight and TMZ and GMA and all the places that aren't just technology news outlets.
This was a golden opportunity that only received a small fraction of the attention it could, and should, have. Nonetheless, I'm a hero to my daughter for at least a few more days. Thank you, Tosy and Justin Bieber!
(Photo of my friends with JB)
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Article: 14 Ideas for Busting Bureaucracy
14 Ideas for Busting Bureaucracy
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/01/14_ideas_for_busting_bureaucra.html
Monday, January 16, 2012
Article: Top 100 Motivational Quotes of All Time!
Top 100 Motivational Quotes of All Time!
http://billcrosby.com/socialmedia/top-100-motivational-quotes-of-all-time/
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
5 Ways to Improve Your Company's Customer Service on Twitter in 2012
More and more people are discovering the power of social media to share their happiness and disgust with the companies they do business with. How your company reacts to those messages can impact the retention of your current customers and the acquisition of new ones.
Twitter is a convenient yet powerful medium for clients to use in sharing their experiences with your brand. Whether they are communicating directly with you (@reply or DM) or communicating about you in their tweet, you have the potential of increasing their happiness with you or making lemon from lemonade depending on how you use these five strategies.
1. Create a Twitter account. Creating an account is the first step to improving your Twitter customer service. You can't do Twitter customer service through Facebook or Google + or LinkedIn. Twitter is one of the most ubiquitous and powerful social media tools available. If you are not using it as a business advantage, you are being left behind. People are having discussions with you and about you in which you are not involved. There are plenty of articles out there on the use of Twitter for business and many Tweeple willing to help you if you just ask. I'm still amazed by the number of times I search a business on Twitter and don't find them. That in itself gives people an impression that you are behind the times. If once you create your Twitter account all you do is use it to listen (more on that in #3), it will be well worth the small amount of effort you have to put into it.
2. Use your account. I can't tell you the number of times I sent a tweet to the account of a business I frequent and received no reply. There is one giant computer software maker from the Northwest that I tweeted directly three times and NEVER received a reply. Another huge department store chain who recently announced the closing of hundreds of stores has never responded to my tweets about the terrible customer service at one of their eye care partners. It makes me wonder why they even created a Twitter account if they are never going to use it. If you create a business account and people go through the trouble of finding it in order to mention you and/or tweet you, then the least you can do is acknowledge them. The new Twitter makes it easier than ever to see when people are mentioning and retweeting you. There should be no excuse for you not to acknowledge that.
3. LISTEN. If people are celebrating you, then thank them for the kudos. If people are not happy with you, then acknowledge them and see what you can do to help. Anyone in the customer care business knows that most of the time all people want is someone to listen to them. Imagine if every time I called your customer service center, my call never went through or I was put on hold for 30 minutes. Oh wait, that does happen when I call some of your customer service centers. That's why I'm using Twitter to contact you instead! Just like when I call your customer service center, the same goes for Twitter. Answer my call and listen to me.
4. If you have more than one corporate account, coordinate and communicate between them. My cable company, Time Warner Cable, has numerous Twitter accounts. Some are regional accounts, some are general information accounts, and others are help/service accounts. I tweet TWC occasionally and have always received excellent assistance quickly. It is obvious that their accounts not only listen to their customers, but each account listens to the other accounts and understands what each of them does. If I tweet the wrong account, they will forward my message to the appropriate Twitter account so they can take care of me. They don't expect me to know or figure out which account to tweet.
If you create several corporate accounts, be sure to coordinate among them (what is the mission of each account) and ensure that they communicate with each other and know where to relay questions most appropriately. It's not the customer’s job to make sense of your strategy.
5. If we ask you a question, please answer it. I recently tweeted a huge furniture retailer to ask if they had a store near my in-laws in Nashville, TN. What I received was a tweet pointing me to their website store locator. Oh, gee, thanks. Like I couldn't have done that on my own. All they had to do was reply something like this, "No, we do not. The closest store would be in Atlanta or Cincinnati. You can see all our store locations here: http://website store locator." Now, I not only have my answer, but I can knock myself out finding locations across the globe. Remember that many times when we tweet you, we are on our mobile devices. We are probably also in a hurry for the information or we would take the time to look it up ourselves. I bet most Twitter users are quite adept at the use of Bing and Google. Please make it convenient for us. Don't answer us by giving us more work to do.
Using these five Twitter customer service strategies will put you leaps ahead of most of your competition. I and many of the people I know have made social media our number one choice when seeking customer service. It's also where we celebrate the fun and positive experiences with your product or from our last trip inside your store. We are not waiting until we get home to visit your website or post the comment to your blog. Twitter is the place we do this most. If you aren't using Twitter at all or not listening, then you are missing our interactions with you. Multiply me and my two friends (OK, one friend...OK, my wife) by the hundreds and thousands of customers you have on Twitter and you can see where this can make a huge difference for us.
And wait until you get the "listening" down and then you begin more proactively engaging with us on Twitter. That's when the real magic happens.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Baby steps.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Article: 13 Horrifying Things You Eat Without Knowing It
13 Horrifying Things You Eat Without Knowing It
http://www.chacha.com/topic/weird-fact/gallery/1221/13-horrifying-things-you-eat-without-knowing-it
Sunday, January 1, 2012
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