Category: Improving Yourself

I read an article recently where the author said that Success belonged to the secular world and Faith belonged to the spiritual world. –What?? — Really?!?!

What do you think?

• · Is Success only allowed, important, relevant in the secular world?
• · Is Faith only allowed, important, relevant in the spiritual world (matters of spirit)?

It should be no surprise to you that I think success and faith co-exist in the same world- indeed I’d argue if they didn’t, our secular (material) world would be far worse off.

And I believe I’m in good company. I have this quote by Gandhi in my office – “If I should find God in a Himalayan cave, I would proceed there immediately. But I cannot find God apart from Humanity”.

Successful Spirituality

I think of success as accomplishing what you set out to do. So with that broad definition, evangelists are successful when they win over a new convert. Preachers are successful when they get people to focus on, remember, or surrender to God (Allah, Jehovah). Buddhist monks are successful when they help initiates become more mindful and compassionate. Shamans are successful when they heal an illness or complete a soul retrieval and integration. Jains are successful when they prevent the loss of a single bug. And so on…

Faithful Daily Life

On the flip side, in order to be successful in the secular world – business, family, relationships – one needs faith in something. Perhaps it’s faith in medicine, loved ones to do the right thing, people to be honest and kind. If you don’t have faith that your life will be good now or in the future, you’ll give up in despair. If you don’t have faith that you can have caring, supportive relationships, you’ll withdraw from others. Here, I’m defining faith as positive expectation, belief in a Higher Power or Benevolent Universe.

What’s Faith Got to Do With It?

I remember in graduate school my minister asked me a pivotal question that has served me over the years. I was going through a challenging relationship at the time. She asked – “What does your faith have to do with this?” Clearly she knew that faith played a role in our daily life, whether we are aware of it or not.

So, no I don’t think Success and Faith are two different worlds- separate but equal. They are inextricably linked together. We need both to move through our day, week, life. They both are relevant and important to be better people, more loving and kind, more compassionate and forgiving – for our work, our family, our community.

Faith helps us move forward towards our goals. Success helps us gauge how Faith is operating in our life.

How do you see Success and Faith connected in your life? Do you think of them as separate?

Please share your comments below. Let’s start a discussion on this.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Visit Linda’s website- www.lindajferguson.com for information about her coaching work, keynote presentations, seminar topics, and books.

We all know that it’s essential to be professional if we want to be successful in the workplace. But what does “being professional” actually mean? What is professorial behavior?

For some, it might mean dressing smartly at work or staying late until the job gets done. For others, it means having advanced degrees or other industry-related certifications that they proudly display. Professionalism encompasses all of these definitions. But, it also covers much more.

So what is professionalism and why does it matter? I asked that question in a recent career management seminar. Here are seven characteristics that define professionalism

1. Competency
   First and foremost, professionals have the qualification s and skills get the job done. They’ve made a deep personal commitment to develop and improve their skills. In some fields it’s vital to have degrees and certifications . In other’s it’s not. What matters, though, is that professionals continues to gain further knowledge and experience throughout their career.
2. Honesty and integrity
   Professionals keep their word and they can be trusted to do what they say they’re going to do. If circumstances arise that prevent them from delivering on their promises, they manage expectations up front and don’t make excuses or play the blame game. Rather they focus on finding a solution..
3. Continual improvement
   Professionals don’t let their skills or knowledge get outdated. They’re committed to staying up-to-date with trends related to their industry and field so that they can continue to provide the best quality of work possible. They manage their competitive edge.
4. Accountability
   Professionals hold themselves accountable for their words and actions, especially when they’ve made a mistake. If a project or job falls outside their scope of expertise, they’re not afraid to admit this. They immediately ask for help when they need it, and they’re willing to learn from others.
5. Self-Regulation
   They also stay professional under pressure. For instance, imagine a customer service employee who’s faced with an irate customer. Instead of getting upset or angry in return, the employee exhibits true professionalism by maintaining a calm, business-like demeanor, and by doing everything that she can to make the situation right.
6. Image
   Professionals look the part – they don’t show up to work sloppily dressed, with unkempt hair. They’re polished and they dress appropriately for the situation. Because if this, they exude an air of confidence.
7. Emotional intelligence
   Genuine professionals show respect for the people around them no matter what their role or situation. They consider the emotions and needs of others and they don’t let a bad day impact how they interact with colleagues or clients. They know how to influence effectively.

Career Success Tip:

As you can see from these characteristics, professionals are the kind of people that others respect and value. This is why it’s so important that we work to earn a professional reputation. True professionals are usually the first to be considered for promotions; they are awarded valuable projects or clients; and they are routinely successful in their careers. Now do a quick self-assessment:

Do you feel that you demonstrate these characteristics to the people around you? Pick one of the characteristics that you want to improve. What one thing can you do right now to move you to being more professional?

Do you want to develop Career Smarts?

The Situation

I’m driving this morning to take my son and a few of his buddies to golf lessons. It’s a new golf course about 20 minutes away. I generally know the area where it’s located, but am excited to use my new Garmin to take me there.

Lessons Learned

The Example

Golden Nugget

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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I recently led a drumming circle that was very rejuvenating. We enjoyed listening to and feeling the pulses, rhythms, and vibrations of the drums. Our drumming was in synch with each other and I could feel the power and pulse of the group beat. It was almost hypnotic at times.

Then as one person changed the rhythms, the beat shifted and the vibration was out of balance until we all adjusted to the new rhythm. We listened to each other’s beats and had to respond accordingly to re-connect the rhythms. I was aware of the times of concordance and times of discordance.

Teamwork as a Drum Circle

I got to thinking how that is true for teams as well. Sometimes you move to the same beat and feel in synch with what others are doing. Sometimes you move at different paces and there is discord. If the team has worked together for a while, they usually know the rhythm of the office. If the team works together well, they know when and how to get back into balance if one or several of the members are out of balance. Some teams never quite gel and they stay in discord most of the time.

I think drumming and rhythms are a good metaphor for what happens with teams. A formal or informal leader sets the rhythm for the team. Others respond to that beat. Sometimes that rhythm changes due to different players changing the beat or other ‘instruments’ affecting the beat. It takes awareness for team members to listen to one another, to find the rhythm that comes from the collective effort, and adjust accordingly.

Gauge your Team Harmony

Leaders and managers would do well to stop, listen, and pay attention to the rhythm of the beat at their offices. You can learn about the rhythm of your team by paying attention to these items:

1. How are the vibrations and pulses of your team members matching up?
2. What brings about times of harmony and balance?
3. What creates times of discord or imbalance?
4. What kind of tune-up does your group need to get in synch with each other?
5. Who’s listening to the beat and who’s off playing their own rhythm?

I got to thinking that doing a drum circle at work would be a good team exercise. It would be a way to demonstrate how people play together, listen to each other, or not. Who leads, who’s willing to change the beat, who responds to the new rhythm. It would be a different type of team building exercise, one that could glean some interesting insights for your group.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Leave a comment below to let us know what ideas resonate here for you.

Visit Linda’s website- www.lindajferguson.com for information about her coaching, books, and presentations.

“Like” Linda’s Fan Page – https://www.facebook.com/LindaJFerguson to get notices of these blog posts and other updates of Linda’s work.

Click this link to order Linda’s 10^th Anniversary edition of “Path for Greatness: Work as Spiritual Service”.

Have you ever thought of starting your own business or becoming self-employed? Almost everyone has wanted to be his or her own boss at some point in a career. But what does it actually take to make a success of it? And is it really the route that you should take?

If you’re seriously considering taking the plunge, here are three things to consider before making this very important decision:

1. What’s your motivation? Is it because:

• You’ve had a brainwave about a new product or service idea, and you’re certain it will take the market by storm.
• You’ve acquired certain skills, know-how and contacts in your current area of operation that make for a winning combination if you strike out on your own.
• The industry has some untapped potential you can exploit, given your special talents.
• You’re not satisfied with the way your career has been shaping up so far.

Whatever the reasons, make sure you make the change for positive rather than for negative reasons: The grass is not always greener on the other side, and you need to make sure that this isn’t just a way of “running away” from situations you really should deal with.

2. What assumptions are you making?

When you decide to move from a regular office-going career to full-time self-employment, it’s easy to gloss over the reality of what that entails. Here are a few insights into the world of self-employment that you may have overlooked in your enthusiasm.

• I’m not accountable to anyone but myself. When you run your own business, you still are answerable to a number of people – your customers, suppliers, employees and other stakeholders, like bankers or government authorities. As an owner, you have much greater responsibility thrust on you.
• I’ll have more control over my time. Many people who work from home or have a start-up business find that they work much longer hours than their office-going counterparts. You’ll spend time with both details and major issues that crop up. Be prepared to work very hard!
• It’s easier to run your own business than to work for a company. Working in an organization usually means that you’re responsible for just one of the functions of the business, whether in sales, marketing, accounts or production. But when you’re on your own, you have to manage the whole show down to some of the smallest details (until you can hire others.)

3. Do you have what it takes to succeed?
There are certain key personal qualities for success that you, as the owner of the enterprise, must possess. They are:

• Self-motivation. If you work alone, you can drift aimlessly without a boss or a team motivating you. Therefore you need both drive and discipline to stay on track and not get side-tracked.
• Business acumen. You must understand everything about your business – the products or services their applications, the realities of the market, the finanacials, etc. You need facts and figures plus good instincts to make wise decisions.
• Manage multiple priorities. You’ll be wearing many hats and will need to know how to plan, organize your work, manage your time and deal with the unexpected. You also will need to let go of certain things by delegating or by outsourcing.
• Risk taking. When you give up your existing job, you run the risk of not being able to get it back if you need it later. You also may lose the capital you’ve invested to get your business off the ground. How much of a risk taker are you?

Career Success Tip:

Weigh the pros and cons of your business idea and the realities of self-employment before jumping onto the bandwagon. Make your decisions and preparations wisely, and if self-employment is really for you, work hard and enjoy the success you deserve. Also see Career Change: Don’t Jump From the Frying Pan into the Fire.

Do you want to develop Career Smarts?

He is a financial manager, whose his job typically means supervising other salespeople and involves extensive use of presenting materials to people.

He says, “As a manager or employer, I want people who are good at PowerPoints. It’s an essential skill. What do you think?”

The above quote is from a colleague on Gov Loop. I am always caught when someone tries to make PowerPoint more than it is: a tool to enhance communication.

“I personally consider Microsoft PowerPoint presentation development a unique skill. To be an effective PowerPoint jockey, you must be able to structure content, develop clear and persuasive messages, and integrate relevant and meaningful graphics/visuals. It’s not as easy as you think. And it’s critically important because it’s a near fact that business is done on PowerPoint.”

I consider myself a communicator and I teach communication–even using PowerPoint. The famous presentation’s tool should never be an excuse for what we can say with authority but highlight and emphasize what we want people to go away with. There are people who can manipulate PowerPoint to an art, and indeed, I tell students hitting that button at a particular time will enhance their presentation. I’m good at it; I’m also a good speaker.

Can I manipulate sure and I will to make my presentation get the attention it deserves. But it’s not about me, it’s about the right mix. Some speakers need PowerPoint to even be heard. Everyone needs training in good communication and that includes the tools we use. Some will always be better than us, but there’s experience and others to helps be the best we can do. It is a unique skill and I am appalled when people are expected (and in my case graded on their ability to use it).

My discussions include both. I teach college classes in public speaking and creative thinking these days. What we need are classes that make communicators experts at it. If it works the other way, fine–a PowerPoint expert who can be a master communicator, but sell that to the schools for accreditation.

PowerPoint in the right hands can make a poor speaker a better one, a good speaker an excellent one, but in itself, it is no excuse for bad presenting or bad communication, or bad writing or bad organization. I have found it a tremendous help in what I do. I don’t grade the quality of the PowerPoints; I probably would–if they were a serious part of the curriculum, which they are not, but it seems a required or preferred way of presenting material.

Teaching school is always an eye-opener. We certainly didn’t use PowerPoint when I was going to school and I am self-taught out of necessity. I became one of the experts in my organization and ironically the reason I was hired became secondary as I helped others develop presentations.

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For more resources about training, see the Training library.

Today I teach communication, both written and spoken, and write books. I have an E-novel out now that is available with coupon code MF47C until June 19 for $0.99 called In Makr’s Shadow, which I assure you is not a religious book, but a science fiction adventure of tomorrow.

I also have a short non-novel called The Cave Man Guide for Training and Development. It, too, is available for a pittance, but it is designed for beginning or non-trainers to the most experienced ones who may be interested in a different view. Hope to see you again on another fine training related topic. Happy Training.

A friend sent me a devotion today by Mary Southerland that was focused around eagles. The eagle this year continues to be an amazing teacher and guide in my life. I went on a special trip with my mom a few weeks ago and at one point there were three eagles soaring above us (two of them pictured). This devotion speaks so much to me and I hope you’ll relate as well. It even talked about how the important change of rebirth an eagle must make in its’ 40’s, which I’ll be turning in Sept. May this give you the faith and rebirth you need to soar to the greatest heights of your life!

Devotion Insights

My Reflections

Your thoughts

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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You’ve wanted this position for quite a while and you’ve now been invited to interview for the role of your dreams. There’s just one catch you’re not going to be facing one interviewer, you’ll be facing four all at the same time!

A coaching client contacted me recently asking for help. He just found out he was one of three candidates vying for a position that he really wanted. And a panel would be interviewing each one. He’s confident doing one-on-one interviews but was concerned about how he should handle a panel.

If visions of being put in front of a firing squad leap into your mind, you’re not alone. Panel interviews with three, four, even seven people are becoming the norm. This process allows those who will be directly involved with the new hire to give and get input. It also cuts down the cost and time associated with several rounds of traditional interviews.

So what I told my client is that a panel interview is really just an expanded version of the one-on-one interview. So keep in mind the success factors for traditional interviews – be prepared, show enthusiasm, connect your experience to the job qualifications, answer questions clearly and precisely, etc.

However, there are some differences. You will be facing a variety of different people, all of whom have different interests and different ways of evaluating you. Therefore,

1. Find out if possible who (name and position) will be part of the panel.
Will it be your boss and other managers? What about peers – people or the team you’ll be working with? Will HR also be represented? Then do research and each person so you can connect better with them.

2. Identify the leader and pay attention to him or her.
The person who brings you to the room or first greets you in the room may not be the leader. The leader is typically the one who explains the process and gets the interview underway. Give this person extra deference when answering the questions.

3. Build rapport with each person.
If comfortable, shake every one’s hand when you are introduced or at least smile and say something like “How do you do, I’m glad to meet you.” Listen carefully when you are introduced so you can use people’s names when you answer their questions. Continue to make eye contact with each one during the entire interview.

4. Don’t focus just on one person.
When a specific panel member asks a question, address your answer to him or her first and then the others. Realize each interviewer has his or her own issues they want addressed but you need to continually ‘work” the group.

5. Link questions together.
If Joe asks a question that touches on what Ann asked earlier, acknowledge how the questions, and your answers, are interrelated. The more you can address the needs of all panel members the better!

Career Success Tip:

A panel interview is an opportunity to impress many different people in the organization. It can be a great advantage if you get the job. You’ll have a head start in building relationships within the organization that can propel your career. So seize the opportunity with confidence and make the most of it.

Do you want to develop Career Smarts?

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself, any direction you choose.” Dr Seuss

Dr. Seuss has been providing great advice to children for years. And while the above mentioned passage is great advice, it assumes that one realizes their own control in situations. It requires personal accountability. Personal accountability seems to be missing far too often in organizations today. Consider the number of conversations you have had with those in your organization about missed deadlines, failed projects, or performance misses. How often do those conversations result in a list of excuses?

• If my boss just understood how it really is….
• The economy has really hurt….
• Well if the customers would just….
• I’m doing the job of four people with no extra pay….

The list continues and I am sure we could fill pages with all of the reasons why people can’t meet their objectives. When the focus is here, the behavior will continue. The deadlines will continue to get missed, and the projects will continue to fail. And the fingers will continue to point.

The good news is that when the focus shifts to what is possible and what can be done, change can occur. The challenge is making the choice and helping those in your organization assume the personal accountability to make the choice to move out of the victim cycle of excuses and focus on action. Teach them what personal accountability is and how to put it into to action. You can start today with the next excuse.

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For more resources, See the Human Resources library.

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Sheri Mazurek is a training and human resource professional with over 16 years of management experience, and is skilled in all areas of employee management and human resource functions, with a specialty in learning and development. She is available to help you with your Human Resources and Training needs on a contract basis. For more information send an email to smazurek0615@gmail.com or visit www.sherimazurek.com. Follow me on twitter @Sherimaz

I was asked once to review some automated programming services a state was offering. Funny thing, there was a statement that said, “If someone is available to answer your call, they will–if not call call later.” Good customer service? Someone thought so. I was appalled.

This has to do with both customer service and training.

Some days are meant for pet peeves and I think you may agree with mine when you’ve read this. Tell me you hate it when someone presumes you agree with them when it comes to the quality of their own customer service. Besides the little tidbit above, where the server asks you the pad question while your mouth is full and it’s just easier to shake your head in the affirmative than deal with uneaten food. Besides the server is already gone after giving the company the answer they want to hear, seemingly never to be heard from since.

One day, maybe I’ll pretend to eat and not have a full mouth when the server comes by and let he or she have it, providing it’s warranted, of course.

No offense intended to my friends down under, but I recall many years ago when I visited Sydney, I bought a soda in a subway kiosk and received the price and thanks all in one breath. After that the transaction was over. By the way the kiosk wasn’t busy so I think this manner was simply a business or cultural practice. Again, no offense intended, many people (many Americans included) do not do well on the one-to-one or face-to-face sale.

This is only one example relating to customer service and training. The point I am trying to make is not to tout your excellent customer service when it is not and don’t have customers agree to fill out a document asking the questions only you want to have answered.

How many times have you encountered online, the customers service automated system that gives you a multitude of choices, buttons to push and other numbers to call or websites to locate and “good” customer service starts over. Really, now? Is good customer service defined by eventually getting you to a person who can help; more often it has nothing really to do with the customer but the company that wants to economize time and people who work for them. Its system–all the while they are bragging what a good job they are doing in customer service. They are getting your buy-in. I’ve always thought customer service was holding on to customers, not getting their buy-in.

I may be getting old but I still want to dial one number, talk to a person and be forwarded to someone who can help if this person cannot. If I have to continue to surf the web, write phone numbers down and otherwise continue my research, I have not received good customer service and am ticked that I have to listen to someone tell me what great customer service they have every time I have push another button.

For those training customer service, we have to ask ourselves what is good customer service. I know some companies that say getting the customer the answer they want if we can help with a minimum of personal contact is the essence. But then there is the going over-the-top customer service that makes people come back to your company that is a joy to work with. Good customer service should make it easy for the customer and not “a problem” for the organization. Of course, the only way you know if you’ve done well is to ask us? Is it? Of course not. If business is up and many more people than a stated statistic about surveys will be more willingly take it.

For my money customer service is about people not how fast you resolve their problems on your terms. Talk to me. Tell me you are working on it. Assure me you’ll fix the problem, but don’t give me another phone number to call. Call me back personally; that will really impress me. Corporations should know better, but then if they all seem to gang up and say “automated is the way to go” we’ve lost.

What has this to do with training? Well, it appears that training could have a hand in training what good customer service is or should be. You know, the world class stuff. That would mean telling a client a product or plan is not good customer service when it is not. That client may come back and say to you, if they come back at all, that you steered them wrong. Then again, maybe it is management’s fault all along in proposing the cheaper side of customer service–a win-lose–that I hate to talk about.

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For more resources about training, see the Training library.