Home of the Brave
Is America still the home of the brave?
Yes, Yes it is.
I will admit that she lacks the luster and shine of years past. America also lacks the brave hero's that walked her streets in the recent past. Not the sensational hero's that are portrayed in TV or the movies but the everyday hero's that make up the heart and soul of America.
Are you the pillar of the community? Are you the person people come to in times of trouble? When someone is in need, do they seek you out? I hope so.
Being brave does not mean invincible or unerring or even perfect. It just means that you are willing to fight for the right things. It means that you are willing to stand up and be counted when things get tough. You will not shrink into the background when the situation becomes uncomfortable.
Being brave also means that you have integrity and character. That you can be trusted, with a little or a lot. That you are a man of your word.
My father is that kind of man. He is willing to listen, then say no. He has had to make many difficult decisions in the past. Some he would like to forget and some great decisions. He is a brave man because when he faced a difficult decision he did not back away from it. He took it head on and made the best of what ever happened. He never gave up. He always did the right thing.
There are other men like this in America, lots of them. Probably you are one of them.
I'm asking you to show it, by taking your family to do something, instead of watching TV. Run around the block and lose that extra 40 lbs. Eat a salad once in a while, instead of the manly burger. Cut back on beer and excesses. Get back into your fighting shape. At work, do the 10% more. Be 5 minutes early. Smile and get to work.
The land of the brave is made up of you and me. Lets be the examples for the kids of this generation. Always think that someone is watching and be a manly man of discipline and honor.
Maybe then... We (men) will not be characterized by the insane world of TV where every man is an idiot, drunk, womanizer or cheat. And, everyone else will see us in the same light that we see ourselves in the Land of the Brave.
55 Quotes To Inspire Creativity, Innovation and Action
“The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanely sensitive. To them… a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death. Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create — so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, their very breath is cut off… They must create, must pour out creation. By some strange, unknown, inward urgency they are not really alive unless they are creating.” - Pearl Buck
“F@*# self-doubt. I despise it. I hold it in contempt, along with the hell-spawned ooze-pit of Resistance from which it crawled. I will NEVER back off. I will NEVER give the work anything less than 100%. If I go down in flames, so be it. I’ll be back.” -Steven Pressfield
“Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work.” -Rita Mae Brown
“Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution”—Clay Shirky
“I am not afraid…I was born to do this.” - Joan of Arc
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” ~Antoine De Saint Exupery
“It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but even more to stand up to your friends.” - J. K. Rowling
“Do not be critics, you people, I beg you. I was a critic and I wish I could take it all back because it came from a smelly and ignorant place in me, and spoke with a voice that was all rage and envy. Do not dismiss a book until you have written one, and do not dismiss a movie until you have made one, and do not dismiss a person until you have met them. It is a f@*$%load of work to be open-minded and generous and understanding and forgiving and accepting, but Christ, that is what matters. What matters is saying yes.” - Dave Eggers
“Adversity is just change that we haven’t adapted ourselves to yet.” -Aimee Mullins
“The secret of life…is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.” - Paulo Coelho, from The Alchemist
“Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.” - Helen Keller
“Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get — only what you are expecting to give — which is everything. What you will receive in return varies. But it really has no connection with what you give. You give because you love and cannot help giving.” - Katharine Hepburn
“Far better to live your own path imperfectly than to live another’s perfectly.” -Bhagavad Gita
“I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others… I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent” – Thomas Edison
“The soul should always stand ajar. Ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.” - Emily Dickinson
“To get the truth, you want to get your own heart to pound while you write.” - Robert McKee
“There is something deep within us that responds to those who level with us, who don’t suggest or compromise for us.” -Susan Scott, Fierce Leadership
“Each moment of our life, we either invoke or destroy our dreams.” -Stuart Wilde
“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.” -Pearl S. Buck
“Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward; they may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.” -Goethe
“When I was in the middle of writing Eat Pray Love and I fell into one of those pits of despair that we will fall into when we’re working on something that’s not coming and we think ‘this is going to be a disaster, this is going to be the worst book I’ve ever written — not just that but the worst book ever written … So I just lifted my face up from the manuscript and I directed my comments to an empty corner of the room and I said aloud ‘ Listen you, thing! You and I both know that if this book isn’t brilliant that is not entirely my fault, right? Because you can see I am putting everything I have into this, I don’t have any more than this, so if you want it to be better then you’ve got to show up and do your part of the deal, OK? But you know what? If you don’t do that then I’m going to keep writing because that’s my job and I would please like the record to reflect today that I showed up and did my part of the job!” — Elizabeth Gilbert
”We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality. It cannot lead; it can only serve” -Albert Einstein
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can chagne the world.” - Margaret Mead
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking, and don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart,…you’ll know when you find it.” — Steve Jobs
“Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom.” -Soren Kierkegaard
“I thought how unpleasant it is to be locked out; and I thought how it is worse, perhaps, to be locked in.” -Virginia Woolf
“People who don’t take risks generally make about 2 big mistakes a year, people who do take risks generally make about 2 big mistakes a year” -Peter Drucker
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” -Maya Angelou
“It’s not about breaking the rules. It is about abandoning the concept of rules altogether” - Paul Lemberg
“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people.” -Leo Burnett
“You can make mistakes, but you are not a failure until you blame others for those mistakes.” -John Wooden
“There’s only us, There’s only this, Forget regret, Or life is your to miss” - Mimi, Rent
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” -Marianne Williamson
“Don’t hire a dog, then bark yourself” -David Ogilvy
“Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance. Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion.” - Martha Graham
“The only thing all successful people have in common is that they’re successful, so don’t waste your time copying “the successful strategies” of others.” -Seth Godin
“…before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World test everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. It’s the point at which most people give up. It’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one ‘dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.’” -Paulo Coehlo
“Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to follow the talent to the dark place where it leads.” - Erica Jong
“The day you say “that SOB stole my idea” is the day you need to face your own inability to execute” - Jonathan Fields
“The only thing I fear more than change is no change. The business of being static makes me nuts.” -Twyla Tharp
“A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” - George Bernard Shaw
“Everything we say signifies; everything counts, that we put out into the world. It impacts on kids, it impacts on the zeitgeist of the time.” -Meryl Streep
“What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Before you agree to do anything that might add even the smallest amount of stress to your life, ask yourself: What is my truest intention? Give yourself time to let a yes resound within you. When it’s right, I guarantee that your entire body will feel it.” -Oprah Winfrey
“To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.” — Aristotle
“Never allow a person to tell you no who doesn’t have the power to say yes.” - Eleanor Roosevelt
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” - Mark Twain
“I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.” – Diane Ackerman
“It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago, but will soon be out of date.” — Roger von Oech
“We all operate in two contrasting modes, which might be called open and closed. The open mode is more relaxed, more receptive, more exploratory, more democratic, more playful and more humorous. The closed mode is the tighter, more rigid, more hierarchical, more tunnel-visioned. Most people, unfortunately spend most of their time in the closed mode. Not that the closed mode cannot be helpful. If you are leaping a ravine, the moment of takeoff is a bad time for considering alternative strategies. When you charge the enemy machine-gun post, don’t waste energy trying to see the funny side of it. Do it in the “closed” mode. But the moment the action is over, try to return to the “open” mode—to open your mind again to all the feedback from our action that enables us to tell whether the action has been successful, or whether further action is need to improve on what we have done. In other words, we must return to the open mode, because in that mode we are the most aware, most receptive, most creative, and therefore at our most intelligent.” -John Cleese
“The things we fear most in organizations—fluctuations, disturbances, imbalances—re the primary sources of creativity.” — Margaret J. Wheatley
“Too much of our work amounts to the drudgery of arranging means toward ends, mechanically placing the right foot in front of the left and the left in front of the right, moving down narrow corridors toward narrow goals. Play widens the halls. Work will always be with us, and many works are worthy. But the worthiest works of all often reflect an artful creativity that looks more like play than work.”— James Ogilvy
“In my experience, if you steer clear of dogma and muster up more love than you thought you had to give, then your vitality increases, satisfaction sets in, sweetness surfaces. I believe in the creative power of good feelings. I’m convinced that the desire to be real is everyone’s divine imperative.” -Danielle LaPorte
“Don’t worry, be crappy. Revolutionary means you ship and then test… Lots of things made the first Mac in 1984 a piece of crap – but it was a revolutionary piece of crap.” -Guy Kawasaki
“Clarity of painting comes from clarity of vision. A painter has to be emotionally right out there and present, both to perceive and to express.” -Kate Palmer
11 Reasons Why You Aren’t Getting Results - Stepcase Lifehack
All of us have goals. Goals like losing weight, earning more money, finding a life partner, setting up our business, achieving performance targets, being fitter, building better relationships, and so on. Some people seem to have no problem achieving their goals. Some, on the other hand, don’t seem to be able to make any progress.
I’ve a good amount of experience with goal achievement, having been actively setting goals since 10 years ago. I’ve experienced setbacks and successes in my goal pursuits. Running The Personal Excellence Blog (which is all about how to live in excellence and achieve our highest potential), I often receive reader mail seeking help for situations they are stuck in. I work with clients who are not getting results in life and want to turn things around. This has given me a lot of insights on what keeps people from success.
At the end of the day, if you find yourself stuck in your goals, it boils down to one (or some) of these 11 reasons:
- You Procrastinate. You keep putting things off. You talk about how you want to do something but you don’t act on it. You are like the howling dog. I recently wrote the story of the howling dog at The Personal Excellence Blog. The story refers to this dog, who keeps howling because it’s sitting on a nail. However, he refuses to get up from the nail. Why? Because it’s not painful enough. You procrastinate on taking action because the situation is not painful enough for you yet. However, the times when it does become painful enough are often the times when it’s too late to do anything. Either you start taking action, or you forever lay in peace. Your call, I’ll leave it to you.
- You underestimate your goal. Achieving a goal is about getting from point A to B. From point A, you create an action plan that gets you to point B. Sounds foolproof, except the action plan isn’t 100% valid. That’s because you’re setting the plan from point A. You haven’t even been to point B, so how do you even know if it’ll get you to B? At most it’ll be help to bring you closer to point B, but it’s not going to be 100% accurate. Almost all the time, people fail because they underestimate what it takes to achieve their goals. What should you do then? Over-commit your resources and review your progress constantly. (See Step #11 of 13 Strategies To Jumpstart Your Productivity). Adjust your plan of action and adapt accordingly.
- You spend more time defending your problems than taking action. You complain how you are not getting XYZ results. When people try to give you suggestions, you spend more time justifying why their suggestions will not work and defending your lack of results than brainstorm with them on how to get out of your rut. Spend less time talking about your problems and use that time to think about solutions. Then act on them. You’ll get a lot more results this way, and you’ll be happier.
- You’re too enclosed in your own world. You don’t venture out beyond your normal routine. You do the same things, talk to the same old friends, act the same way, circle around the same issues. It’s no wonder you stagnate. Open yourself up – take active steps to grow. Get to know more people – people who are driven, positive and focused. Get new, refreshing perspectives. Read new books. Add new blogs to your subscription. Ask for feedback on how you can improve. Read my other lifehack guestpost – 42 Practical Ways To Improve Yourself.
- You’re not working smart. You do the same thing over and over, even when you don’t get results. You apply brute strength to your goals, without strategizing how you can apply this strength more effectively. If you are not getting what you want, it’s a signal it’s time to change what you have been doing. See how you can do this in a different, smarter, more effective way.Look at people who have achieved the same results before, and learn from them.
- Avoidance (Fear). You avoid taking action because some of the things you have to do intimidate you. You rather delay the process as much as possible. Unfortunately, results are not going to come automatically from delaying. Results come to people who pay their dues, not people who avoid the work. The fear isn’t going to go away by waiting it out. Face the fear and do it anyway.
- You’re easily distracted. You get distracted by things thrown in your way. Your attention gets diverted from your goals. Your ability to stay focused is instrumental to achieving your results. Be clear of what you want and stick to it. Don’t let anything (or anyone) distract you. These are the obstacles the universe sends your way to see how serious you are about getting what you want.
- You over-complicate situations. Common among the neurotic perfectionists. If you are a neurotic perfectionist, you blow the situation out of proportion and create this mental image that’s so complicated that it’s no wonder you don’t get anything done. Things are usually simpler than you think – be conscious when you are adding unnecessarily complications for yourself. I wrote about this in detail in Why Being A Perfectionist May Not Be So Perfect.
- You give up too easily. You give up before you even get anywhere. If you read “The Dip”, you’ll know all big goals comes with a dipping point – a chasm where it seems nothing you do is giving you results. It’s normal. This is the point that differentiates those who deserve the goal and those who are just taking a casual stab at it. I’ve a client who has a penchant for giving up in his goals early on. He realized soon that there’s no “easy” way out, and all goals have their own set of obstacles to be overcome. Persevere, press on, and it’s a matter of time before you reap the fruits of your labor.
- You lose sight of your goals. You settle for less, forgetting the goals you once set. That’s bad because then you are just stifling yourself and making do with what you have – and this isn’t who you are meant to be. You have to first reconnect with your inner desires. If you cannot fail at all, what would you want to do? What are your biggest hopes and dreams for your future? What is the future you want to create for yourself? Reignite your vision and don’t ever lose sight of it. It’s your fuel to your success.Read more about goal-setting in Step #1 of 13 Strategies To Jumpstart Your Productivity.
- You’re too stuck in your ways. You insist on doing things a certain way. You don’t open yourself up to new ideas. Guess what? You’ll remain stuck in your situation, too. Open yourself to new methods. Experiment. You can only improve if you are willing to try new things.
If you haven’t noticed, these 11 reasons are self-created problems – you can easily dismiss them just as you have created them. The more accurate title for this post should be “11 Reasons Why You Aren’t Successful – Yet“. Your goals are in your hands – you can achieve them as long as you strive for them. Address the 11 things blocking you from your success, and it’s a matter of time before you achieve results you seek.
Five Ways to Become a More Confident Job Seeker | My Global Career
One of the most common problems I notice among entry-level job seekers is a lack of confidence. Since most entry-level candidates have little experience in the industry, and minimal experience with the nuances of the job search process as a whole, it is no surprise that recent college graduates get nervous in professional situations. On the contrary, confident and articulate candidates stand out among the crowd and are a highly valuable resource to any company.
Here are five ways to prepare yourself for professional situations and become a more confident job seeker:
- Read the (industry) news. Many recent graduates struggle in professional situations because they feel so different from the people they are meeting with. Well, one of the easiest ways to find common knowledge is to talk about current events taking place in the news. Not only will you portray yourself as an informed individual who is in tune with the goings-on of the world, but you will also notice yourself forming opinions on current events and topics and gain personal confidence through your knowledge.Even better? Read news directly related to the industry you’re entering so that you can speak on even more relevant topics. Even if your knowledge isn’t impressive, you can show an initiative and desire to learn that other candidates may not display.
- Do background research. You should always enter a professional situation with some research under your belt because if you know what you’re dealing with, you will be much more comfortable and confident. Spend some time on the company Web site learning as much as you can about the company. Formulate some questions that show you did some preparation. Look at it like studying for a test: If you put a lot of effort into preparing and you are comfortable with the information, are you going to be nervous? No.
- Practice with strangers. This is a fairly easy way to become more comfortable meeting and talking with people whom you just met. Make small talk with the bank teller, start a conversation with the woman next to you at the bus stop, or introduce yourself to your neighbors in the apartment down the hall. Get used to introducing yourself and talking to people you don’t know because you will get a good feel for the easiest ways to enter, continue and exit conversations. Pretty soon it will come naturally.
- Get a tailored suit (or the female equivalent). I’m not saying that you have to go out and spend a lot of money on professional attire (you can get suits for under $100), but you should wear something that at least fits you properly. Although true self-confidence must come from within, you don’t want to be worrying about your appearance when you go in for the interview. If you are happy with the way you look, you will radiate self-confidence.
- Take every interview. This is just about getting practice in an interview setting. You will notice that many of the questions you are asked in interviews are the same—or at least similar—and getting practice. Nothing works as well as the real thing, so treat every interview as a learning experience and get as much exposure to the job search process as you can.
It is natural to be nervous in unfamiliar situations, but the more exposure and practice you have with the job search process, the better you will become and, more importantly, the more confident you will feel. So get out there, get some practice and soon you will be wondering why you were so nervous in the first place.
Mario Schulzke is the creator of CareerSparx, an online course that helps recent college graduates begin their careers. For more information, download a free 61-page guide on how to start your career.
12 Life Lessons from Warren Buffett to Being a More Compassionate Writer | Write to Done
Guest post by Scott Dinsmore of ReadingForYourSuccess
Last week I spent a day with Warren Buffett at his annual meeting. The education was profound, and surprisingly serves to make us all better writers, bloggers and entrepreneurs.
12 Life Lessons from Warren Buffett:
1. Lose money and I will forgive you, but lose even a shred of reputation and I will be ruthless. This has been echoed across the business world for years and it applies to us all. Life is too short to cut corners to make an extra buck. Wealth can always be recreated but reputation takes a lifetime to build and often only a moment to destroy. As Warren says, “we will not trade reputation for money.” In the world of blogging, we are writing because we love it. It’s not for the money. This makes reputation more important than anything. Remember this when you are contemplating rushing to monetize your site by filling it with ads, links, etc.
2. The best defense in a tough economy is to add the most you can to society. Your money can be inflated away but your knowledge and talent cannot. No matter the external circumstances, you are always in control of your talent, learning and passion for life. There will always be opportunities for talent. This is the most empowering thing about web entrepreneurship and blogging. Develop those skills with the constant focus on helping others and you will never be without a job.
3. We get worried when people start to agree with us. The best fruit is found out on the limbs. The road less traveled makes all the difference. Make a rule to always stay on the side of the minority in your life’s path and you will be greatly rewarded. Not to mention it will be magnitudes more exciting. These are exactly the topics that people want to read about. Get a little edgy with your posts. Say something fresh. It will stick with your visitors and they’re likely to come back.
4. We celebrate wealth only when it’s been fairly won and wisely used. The goal is not to make money at all costs. It’s easy to forget that in a lot of industries and sub-cultures around the world where everyone is in constant competition. And this can especially be the case when so many of us spend hours upon hours writing and developing our web services for free. Do not rush it and do not get greedy. Help others and the fruit will be there. Wealth is worthless if you’ve destroyed all your relationships to attain it. Take the high road. It’s far less crowded. A bit sad but often true. Makes it pretty easy to stand out.
5. When you are exceptional you jump off the page. There really isn’t that much competition there. Be your own best competitive advantage. Then it doesn’t make a difference what others are doing. You are in control. In blogging, entrepreneurship and life, there are few people really willing to give it their all. Do this and your supporters will love you for it (they will also likely multiply).
6. Do what you’re passionate about. If you do this, there will be few people competing or running faster than you. The best way to be exceptional is with passion! As Tony Robbins says every day of his life, “Live with Passion!” And trust me, life is a lot more fun this way. I cannot think of a better motivator to get you to write for free and love it, than to jump out of bed dying to teach and help others.
7. I think I developed courage when I learned I could deal with hardship. You need to get your feet wet and get some failure under your belt. Courage does not grow on its own. Just like a muscle, it must be constantly worked out and developed. Life begins outside your comfort zone and that’s where courage is developed. Most people don’t succeed because they’re afraid to fail. Failure isn’t that bad anyway. It will make you tougher and more likely to win the next time around. If I had a dime for every time I heard someone tell me about an idea they wanted to pursue or how much they would like to give blogging a shot, without an ounce of action to follow…well, I might own a few more shares of Berkshire Hathaway stock. No one has succeeded without going through their own failures at some point. To try and to fail is much better than to never try. Why not get started early and get some of them out of the way! What’s the worst that could happen? As big wave surfer Laird Hamilton says “If you’re not falling then you’re not learning.”
8. There’s no better way to be happier than getting your expectations down. Most unhappiness comes from misaligned and unrealistic expectations of life. Expect the world of yourself, but expect nothing of the world. Then you cannot help but live your life pleasantly surprised. When I first started blogging a few years ago, I had these huge aspirations of how quickly I’d have a massive following. When it didn’t happen immediately, it got me down. Write and develop your business online with the expectation of it being a charity project to help others. Anything in addition will be icing on the cake.
9. If the only reason you find for doing something is because others are doing it then that’s not good enough. In fact, if everyone else is writing on a topic, maybe that’s the one best to avoid. Tim Ferriss is a master at evading the majority with his 4-Hour Work Week philosophy. Learn to be comfortable on your own path.
10. Decide early in life to make your money by selling things that you really believe are good for the customers. Make this a rule before you write another word to your readers or offer another product to your customers. Life is too short and your reputation too fragile to not have your audience first and foremost in your mind and in your heart. Rules like this make it very difficult to lose.
11. We’ve done a lot of stupid things but we’ve avoided a small subset of stupidity and that subset is important. It’s about avoiding the dumb things. Warren’s success does not come from doing so many things right. It comes from avoiding the things that are terribly wrong. Some say this is two sides of the same coin. It’s not. It requires a fundamental shift in psychology. The stories are endless of people who did a few things right and were massively successful, but then did something stupid that took them back to zero. Before Warren does anything, he and his partner “invert, always invert.” They list every way imaginable in which they could fail at a particular task and then take massive effort to avoid those failures. Do this for your blog or business and the success will come automatically. Always ask yourself, what would disappoint my readers or customers? Then don’t do it.
12. Go to bed a little wiser than when you woke up. This is the crux of the whole meeting. Life is about learning. If you are always learning you can never lose. Keep this as your only rule for the day and the world will be yours for the taking. There has been no better way for me to continue to add value to my readers and followers than this life maxim. Follow it and you will never run out of posts to write or people to serve.
The lessons from Warren are endless. We all stand to learn to be better people, writers and entrepreneurs from what he’s willing to share. He doesn’t charge any money or ask for anything in return. Except of course that we live a life with a burning desire to learn and do all we can to be valuable additions to society. Keep this as the foremost mission of your business or blog and your time spent will be well rewarded.
Read more action-provoking posts by Scott Dinsmore, a writer, and entrepreneur. You can read more by Scott at Reading For Your Success.
It’s Easy to Get Discouraged
Not Rocket Surgery
One repeat criticism of my work is that I’m not telling anyone anything new, that it’s all common sense. That’s actually reasonably true. You don’t spend time with me, read a few lines, and then smack your forehead and say, “I’ve got it!” Most of my ideas are basically reminders for us to do the things we don’t do, but know we should.
I’m okay with this criticism most days, because it’s true. I’m not innovating by creating new methods. I’m innovating by holding us to the standards of treating people like they’re human beings instead of prospects or targets. It’s not rocket surgery, as my Boston friends say.
Don’t Need a Pep Talk
I didn’t write this post to get your kind words of support. To be honest, I’m pretty confident that I’m headed in the right direction. For everyone telling me that I’m not all that interesting, I’m evidently the number 1 uninteresting guy writing about marketing.
What I wrote this piece for was to tell you that it’s easy to look at what you do as uninteresting, or unimportant, or just the same old thing. And maybe there’s some truth to it. If I look out at the top social media blogs right now, a good many of them are covering all the same software applications and a lot of the same stories. Maybe we could all dig a little deeper to innovate more.
But don’t let that stop you, if you’re following a vision, and if you’ve got a sense of where you’re headed.
Michael Jordan worked on the uninteresting task of pushing a ball through a net. Eleanor Roosevelt worked on the uninteresting task of writing articles and visiting people. Mohandas Gandhi worked on the uninteresting task of sitting down and saying no.
Me? I’m a typist. I’m just typing and talking about typing. And I’m not all that discouraged any more.
3 Simple Ways to Exceed Expectations | Brand-Yourself.com Blog
“Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else expects of you. Never excuse yourself. Never pity yourself. Be a hard master to yourself – and be lenient to everybody else.” – Henry Ward Beecher
Success in life often hinges on two key elements: your ability to push yourself to greatness, and to exceed the expectations of others. Being a champion takes effort. The payoff is wonderful and builds your personal brand and repertoire.
Whether you are in an academic setting, professional setting, or life situation, there are certain expectations. We have expectations of our own. We expect the sun to rise and the sun to set. Sometimes our expectations are exceed by an awesome sunset or sunrise.
Typical societal expectations are punctuality, clear communication, respect for others, good attitude and being a team player. Professors in academia may set high standards for students to push them to what seems beyond the limit. They do this to drive the point home and stretch the minds of those learning. Managers review an employee’s progress, evaluating where they were, where they are, and where they should be. Goals are often set together.
As you can see, there are many opportunities not just to meet, but to exceed expectations. The direct benefit of doing so often comes with a greater sense of self worth, an open mind, and new doors opening themselves to you.
Three simple ways you can exceed the expectations of others
1. Understand the expectation
Some may say that curiosity killed the cat, but that is far from the truth. It makes creativity happen. Creativity will in turn open your mind to assist you in your efforts to do your best. Ask questions! Don’t assume, because you know what happens when you do. Nothing. Don’t stifle yourself by not asking questions. Even if you think you know it all, be humble, and use the resources available to you.
2. Put in the effort
Yes, it can be tempting to do the bare minimum. But what will separate you from the others? Somewhere in your body there is a competitive bone. Put it into action. Think of a farmer. When they till the field, plant the seed, maintain and protect, the finished product is ripe and ready to harvest. It’s no different in your effort. Put in the preparation, then progress through and reap the final benefit.
3. Strut your stuff
No one really likes someone with a big head, but it is OK and encouraged to let your accomplishments be known. Yes, being humble is important, but don’t let it totally overshadow your hard earned credentials! The very fact that you took the time to understand the expectation and put in the work gives you the right to strut just a little bit.
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Don’t walk away from this post thinking, oh well I already knew that! That’s the point. You did already know this. But have you been putting it in to action? As simple as some things may be, we often neglect to follow them. Try remembering this as you dig in to your next project and plant that seed.
Question: What are you doing now to exceed expectations?
About the Author: Mark Mathson regularly exceeds expectations through helping individuals and organizations get found on the Internet, initiate more leads and convert a higher amount of those leads into customers through implementing Internet marketing campaigns. He enjoys conversing on Twitter and growing and adding value to his network on LinkedIn.
(Photo credit: vfowler)
Bud Bilanich: Failure, Criticism and Rejection are the Price You Pay for Success
Self confidence is one of the keys to career success in my Career Success GPS System. If you want to become self confident you need to do three things. 1) Become an optimist. 2) Face your fears and act. 3) Surround yourself with positive people.
Fear is the enemy of self confidence – and success. Most people fear failure, criticism and rejection. It’s only normal. We all want to feel good about ourselves. Failure, criticism and rejection are not pleasant experiences. They lower our self esteem and make us feel bad about ourselves, so we often avoid doing things that we think might lead to failure, criticism or rejection. As a career success coach, I advise my clients to have to have the courage to do things that might result in failure, criticism or rejection.
Failure, criticism and rejection provide you with the opportunity to grow and develop – to become a career success. You can’t take failure, criticism and rejection personally. Failure, criticism and rejection are outcomes. They are a result of things you have done. They are not who you are. Remember that. We all make mistakes and fail on occasion. We all do things that cause others to criticize or reject us. This doesn’t mean that we are failures. It means that we have made some poor choices and done some dumb things.
Failure, criticism and rejection provide the opportunity to start over – hopefully a little smarter. Buckminster Fuller once said, “Whatever humans have learned had to be learned as a consequence of trial and error experience. Humans have learned only through mistakes.” As a career success coach I agree with him.
That’s why fear is the enemy of self confidence and career success. If your fear of failure, criticism, and rejection paralyzes you to the point where you aren’t willing to take calculated risks, you’ll never learn anything or accomplish any of your goals.
Don’t be too hard on yourself when you fail, or when others criticize or reject you. Instead, put your energy into figuring out why you failed and then do something different. Here are my four career success coach questions to ask yourself the next time you fail, or get criticized or rejected.
- Why did I fail? Why did I get criticized or rejected? What did I do to cause the failure, criticism or rejection?
- What could I have done to prevent the failure, criticism or rejection?
- What have I learned from this situation?
- What will I do differently the next time?
If you do this, you’ll be using failure, criticism and rejection to your advantage. In Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill says, “Every adversity, every failure and every heartache carries with it the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit.” I know it’s hard to see the benefit or opportunity in failure, criticism and rejection. But it’s there – you just have to look hard enough. But it all begins by facing your fear and acting.
A year ago, my niece Brett and her move from Florida to San Diego. She left a good job in Florida. She had no job lined up in San Diego when she moved. Several people criticized her for making such an audacious move. I thought that she demonstrated amazing optimism in making such a long move in such a difficult economy. I’m happy to report that 17 days after she arrived in San Diego Brett landed a job as an account manager for an athletic apparel manufacturer. She has received two promotions since. I’m proud of her. She didn’t let her fear of failure, criticism or rejection stop her from pursuing her dreams.
The common sense point here is simple. Successful people are self confident. Self confident people face their fears and act. Our most common fears are failure, criticism and rejection. However, if you choose to find and use the learning opportunity in failure, criticism and rejection you will not only become more self confident, you will become more successful. It’s sad but true – failure, criticism and rejection are the price you pay for becoming a personal and professional success. Facing your fear of failure, criticism and rejection and acting will pay big dividends in your life and career.
That’s my take on the importance of facing your fears and acting. What’s yours? What have you learned from facing your fears? How has it helped you become more self confident? Please leave a comment sharing your story with us. As always, thanks for reading.
Bud
No One Bats a 1000!
If you’re a baseball fan, you know that even the best hitters in Major League Baseball actually get a hit significantly less than 40% of the time they step up to the plate. That obviously means they try, and fail, over 60% of the time!
Over a 60% failure rate! However, anyone that’s close to ‘only’ a 60% failure rate earns several million dollars per season!
Everyone knows… NO ONE bats a 1000!
Joe Mauer, last years best batter in the Major Leagues, averaged .365. That’s considered an extraordinary year. However, it still means that 63.5% of the time he got an ‘at bat’, he failed!
Whether you’re a baseball player, a sales person, an investor, an engineer, or in a job search… the same thing is true! You will not be successful in every call, or in every effort you make. Unfortunately, that’s not how most people approach their search.
Job seekers regularly hear that the vast majority of jobs are filled through ‘networking’. That means you have to actually connect with real people, make an introduction, and ask for referrals. Applying to positions online or some other way, and just waiting for a call are not likely to get results in today’s job market.
However, too many people make a phone call or send an email to someone new, get no response or no results, and become convinced that “networking doesn’t work for me.”
Setting expectations properly goes a long way to being able to continue on toward results. You’re not going to get a job lead or another networking referral from each person you talk to, perhaps not even from every 5 people you talk to. However, you may get a great name or lead from the 3rd, 5th, 6th, or 8th person you connect with. You’ll never get that name or lead though without getting to that 8th person. Persistence pays, and with each contact you make, you get better at your approach and your numbers improve.
Don’t get discouraged, slow down, or give up after a few ‘strikes’. Keep swinging away. The more you do, the closer you get to a base hit or a home run!
Remember, no one bats 1000!
How Long Have You Been Job Searching?
What many job seekers don’t realize from jobmob
When I ask job seekers how long it’s been since their job search began, a typical reply is “too long.”
Yeah, I know what you mean.
Sometimes people will say “well, I just started looking…” but almost NO ONE ever says “for the position I’m looking for, in today’s market, in this city, it takes 4-6 months on the average to find a new job. I’ve been looking for 3 months, so it’s still early…”
After I resigned from my job at Amazon in the summer of 2001, I thought it would take 1 month to find a new job. And that was just after I’d moved back to Jerusalem and had no idea how much (lack of) demand there was for my skillset there at the time. I was so clueless. I thought employers would be impressed by my Amazon achievements and I’d have my pick of offers.
Really.
Why did I think it would only take me just 1 month? Because my previous job had taken about that long to find. Having been my first full-time career job, I didn’t know any better.
Now I know better… but that’s a topic for an upcoming article.
13 Best Firefox Job Search Add-ons
I’m not just saying that. Google Chrome only has a few extensions for searching job boards, while Internet Explorer has no specific job search add-ons at all.How to use this guide
All the add-ons mentioned here can be found in the Best Job Search Add-ons collection I created on mozilla.org.
Search plugins
Search plugins add a specific search engine to your browser’s search box.
Indeed Job Search: search Indeed.com, one of the biggest job search engines in the USA.
Jobtweet.de – Twitter Job Search engine (English version): search Twitter for job openings from English-speaking countries. Other versions of this add-on search for jobs in Russian, French and German.
TwitterJobSearch: Search Twitter for job listings.
CharityJOB: search for fundraising jobs, charity jobs, and third sector jobs in the UK.
DoNanza Freelance Job Search: search the “world’s biggest search engine for online freelance jobs.”
oDesk Jobs: “from within your Firefox search bar, simply type a query and browse through matching oDesk assignments.” Another freelance job search add-on.
Curriculum for Professionals: “search directly from your browser the exact job post you are looking for.” (Brazil)
Jobexpress.pl : search job listings on this Polish job board. (Poland)
Zarplata.ru – instant search: search job offers from top Russian companies. (Russia)
Super add-on tip: use the terrific Add to Search Bar add-on so you can search any website directly from Firefox’s search box.
Toolbars
I try to avoid installing toolbars because they’re rarely worth the space they take up on your screen. Just remember you can hide each toolbar until you need it (right-click in the toolbar area, and then uncheck the name of the toolbar to hide).
Linkedin Companion for Firefox: Search for a job by seeing who in your network can connect you while browsing major online job sites. Most useful for the LinkedIn JobInsider sidebar panel that will show you contacts on LinkedIn from the company whose job listing you’re viewing.
Firefox Super Search – “over 160 of the best people search and web search engines in one handy add-on, including 67 searches that can be done right from the toolbar, without having to visit each site and retype the name or search term that you are searching.” Most useful for the built-in, US-based search engines and people searches, most of which I told you about in my 200+ Resources and Tips To Help Manage Your Reputation Online.
Other
JobSpeaker: helps you manage your job search by allowing you to save, rate and track jobs that interest you and also lets you forward or tweet jobs to your friends. A nice idea.
pBot, job applicant: “pBot was a project conceived out of frustration with the job application process; specifically the pseudoscientific ‘personality test’ that seems to tacked on the end of every application for even the lowest level jobs. Instead, pBot will fill out Unicru job application ‘personality tests’ for you.” More information at the add-on’s official site. I’m not recommending you use this tool, but it’s worth knowing that it’s out there.
If you liked this article, you’ll enjoy RSS: The Best Job Search Tool You’re Not Using Enough.
13 Best Firefox Job Search Add-ons [JobMob]
Too old to get hired?
One comment I hear often from people over 50 is that it’s very tough for them to get a new job because of their age. When they aren’t getting a new job in the timeframe they hoped, the assumption is that some form of age discrimination is taking place.
That kind of thinking is reinforced by ads for “Just For Men” hair coloring, news stories I’ve seen of people getting plastic surgery to look younger for job interviews, or frequent advice I hear “experts” give to truncate your resume to the last 10 years so as not to give away your true age.
Are these things warranted? Is age discrimination dominant in the job market? If you are over 50… or over 60, are you doomed?
Short answer: NO!
You want more explanation? Sure…
I’ve been in the employment placement industry for over 23 years. In that time I’ve seen blatant discrimination, and I’ve seen real and dramatic changes in the market as well. I can definitely say that in today’s market age discrimination exists much more in people’s minds than in reality.
I’m not naive enough to say it never occurs anymore, and at times it can be difficult to discern if a decision was made based on age or other factors. However, I can point to several key things that demonstrate that age is not the brick wall many believe it is.
20 years ago, as a recruiter, there were many times I would get subtle, and not so subtle requests that were clearly formed out of age discrimination. Although I never accepted orders like that, it was obvious that their hiring objective was going to be slanted. Certainly it had been even much worse 30 or 40 years ago. Most of the legal protections and public lawsuits had already occurred by the mid-80’s. Legally, people already knew then, as now, that there was great potential liability in discriminatory practices.
Times have changed though, and in the last several years I’ve seen a real switch in perceptions and practices. Particularly once the dot-com bubble burst in 2000, there began a shift in most of my clients in what was more highly valued. During the boom times of the late 90’s, because of incredible growth for most companies, people were promoted and hired into senior roles at younger and younger ages. The need was there for leadership, and in so many cases, people that showed any potential were moved into leadership roles. Unfortunately, because of the lack of experience, a great many projects and initiatives were poorly managed right down the drain. As long as the market continued to grow, companies could afford to absorb those mis-steps and keep going. Once the bubble burst, 9/11 came along, and we plunged into a recession… there no longer was any such thing as ‘acceptable losses’.
Clients began to talk to me about needing someone that’s ‘been around the block a few times’. They wanted people that had ‘been there and done that’ when looking for a new project manager or business leader. They needed experience to be able to know how to look for speed bumps and how to successfully navigate around them. No longer were they looking for the 30 year old ‘up and comer’, but were much more interested in the 50 year old proven performer.
That has, in my experience, continued to this day. Of course it’s not universal, there are always exceptions and always will be. However, seeking solid, successful prior experience has become by far the norm rather than the exception. We are in an era where companies are no longer looking for a new hire that will stay with the organization for the next 20 or 30 years. In many cases, they feel fortunate if they can get someone for the next two. Someone that shows them that they will be a true asset for the next year or 2 will be far more attractive than someone that appears they will be a dead weight in the company for the next 10.
Although age is not the barrier it once was, being ‘old’ is! Being ‘old’ is a state of mind that can be as prevalent in 30 year olds as it is in 60 year olds. When a hiring manager is interviewing candidates, almost without exception they are attracted to someone that comes across as professional, humble, passionate, enthusiastic, technically and functionally current, coachable, and articulate. I have personally interviewed people well into their 60’s that exude all of these characteristics, and have interviewed many people in their 20’s and 30’s that exhibit hardly any. A burned out, or cynical 25 year old can come across as way to ‘old’ compared to a gray haired 60 year old that has a spark and desire for new opportunities.
There’s an instance where a hiring manager interviewed several people for a position. Two people in their 50’s that were both passed over each commented that they were sure it was because of their age. They each lamented the challenges they face because of ‘blatant’ age discrimination whenever they go to an interview. What they didn’t know is that the person that actually was hired for the role was nearly 60. It wasn’t their age that was hurting them, it was how ‘old’ they were.
There is an IT Business Analyst I know well that is nearly 65 years old. In the last several years he’s gotten caught up in a series of layoffs. Not due to his own fault, however, due to corporate mergers, cut backs, and reorganizations. Unfortunately, that is often the norm these days. He, however, has always been able to land a new position within a matter of weeks because as soon as anyone meets him, age never becomes an issue.
He networks constantly. He takes initiative in contacting people whenever he finds an attractive job opportunity. He presents himself with energy and enthusiasm. Although he’s all gray and balding, he dresses with well fitting, well pressed, professional, and up to date clothing. He expresses sincere interest in listening to others, to new ideas, and to different ways of doing things. He comes across as coachable and with a desire to succeed. Those are the characteristics any hiring manager is looking for in a new employee regardless of age.
So, if you are in your late 40’s, 50’s, or 60’s… what do you do?
Determine to set your own mind straight! Don’t allow yourself to wallow in excuses. Will you occasionally run into a situation where you are not chosen purely because of your age? Possibly. However, is that a company you would have really wanted to work at then? Move on to find another opportunity. Whether it’s challenges because of age, sex, disability, poor work history, or anything else… they can be overcome with the right attitude and extra effort. For every person that says they can’t get a job because of a particular challenge, there is someone else with the same situation that did get a job. Determine you will be an over-comer!
Take a look at how ‘old’ you might be! Whether you are 25 or 75 be honest with yourself as to how you may come across to others. Do you have a cocky attitude that says “I know more about this than you do”? Do you come across as inflexible or stuck in how you’ve ‘always done things’? Do you show enthusiasm for your career and opportunity? Do you listen effectively, or only want to tell? Do you show that you care about your professional appearance? Do you have a positive, optimistic attitude and outlook, or do you have a tendency to always point out why something may not work? The image you portray may make you appear too ‘old’ for any position. Be sure to present yourself in the best way you can.
Don’t allow the negative influence of others that are convinced they are being discriminated against because of their age affect you. Present a positive attitude, apply effective job search techniques, network relentlessly, and you too can land your next job soon!
The Ability to Learn is Your Most Important Skill
image by Steve Punter
When employers talk about desirable skills they look for in new hires, they usually mean things like marketing, IT, budgeting, and project management. But what about the ability to learn?
I’m not kidding. Let’s say a 20-something employee, we’ll call her Amy, starts a new job as a sales representative at a Fortune 500 software company. She graduated from college fairly recently and has never done sales before, so her boss expects her to have lots of questions as she proceeds to develop her first client relationships. He guides her through the process patiently, explaining in detail how to communicate the product’s value proposition, and how she should go about getting a meeting with a decision maker.
After all the time he spends, the boss hopes that Amy can take what he told her and apply it to her next sales situation. But the boss is taking for granted the fact that Amy has the ability to assimilate new information, and that she instinctively knows how to harness it in a variety of circumstances. However, this is actually a pretty rare skill. Most people will need to hear similar instructions repeated time and time again, just because the scenario is slightly different than last time.
Employers frequently test for this skill during the hiring process, often in the form of behavioral interview. This type of interview demonstrates how a candidate acted in past job situations. How should you prepare for it? First, think of a project with which you were tasked in a prior job.
Consider the details, including the type of assignment and the expected result. Next, create a list of the steps you took to complete the task and solve any problems that came up during the course of the task. Finally, practice explaining your results and what you learned from the initiative. This last part is the most important because employers want to know that you can put all your terrific experience to use for them and dive right in on your start date.
One big lesson from the Olympics for your job search!
There have been a few articles I’ve seen using the Olympics to make a point related to a job search. However, I believe there’s one point that’s been fascinating to me but lost in many of the other discussions.One of the most amazing things to me as I watch these elite athletes compete for a hunk of precious metal, is how some perform at their peak when it matters most, and how others fail!
Think about that… in any sport you choose to examine, the top 3 to 5 contenders are pretty close to equal ability. You know that in their practices and training sessions they’ve achieved their ‘perfect’ performance many times over. They wouldn’t attempt a particular feat in competition if they didn’t believe they’ve mastered it in practice. Yet, when the moment comes, some nail it, and others crumble.
Certainly sometimes there are unfortunate circumstances beyond their control that cause them to fail. Perhaps a competitor crashes into them, a piece of equipment breaks, or some other fluke occurs and they can’t do a thing about it. However, most of the time when one of them fails it’s because of mistakes they made themselves. Pressure, lack of confidence, insufficient preparation, or carelessness caused them to perform far below their ability.
Often, job seekers do the same thing.
They have a marketable background in their career, they get an interview for the job of their dreams, and they perform poorly at the interview and don’t get the job. What happened?
Although, from time to time, there may be other reasons… I believe the biggest reason athletes falter and job seekers bomb an interview is a lack of enough preparation!
The amount of preparation needed will vary from one person to another, however, it’s virtually impossible to be ‘over prepared’. Evan Lysecek’s coach said that in all the years he had been coaching skaters, he never had anyone that worked as hard as Evan. He had to tell him to quit practicing on some days. When it came time to execute his routine for the medal he gave the performance of his life and won the gold.
Larry Bird, the hall-of-fame basketball great used to say he never had much natural ability for the game. However he could determine to work harder than anyone else. He figured that if the best players in the league were practicing 100 free throws a week, he would practice 1,000.
In an interview, a candidate that is well prepared stands out dramatically from all the others that give answers off the cuff.
Success = Opportunity + Preparation
Practice, practice, and more practice sets up a successful performance. Sufficient practice creates confidence. It helps you learn how to compensate for a slight misstep. It makes the performance become second nature and doesn’t require as much thought when it counts. It reduces pressure, tension, and stress because you know you’ve done it dozens of times before.
Preparation is so key. It’s something everyone can do, yet most people don’t prepare nearly enough. Even athletes at the Olympic level often only do enough to perform well. However, those that win the gold prepare enough to excel and to be the best.
In this market companies are interviewing more candidates than ever for an open position because they have so much more to choose from. If they interview 5, or 10 candidates, someone will have prepared, and practiced extensively prior to the meeting. Will you be one of them? Will you have prepared more thoroughly than the others did? Did you practice answers to tough questions enough times so that they come naturally to you, or only enough so that you know approximately how you will answer?
Most people prepare by simply thinking “If I’m asked this question, I’ll talk about ____.” A well prepared person writes out their answer, hones the answer to make it as concise and substantive as they can, practices it, hones it further, then practices it further. They practice it into a recorder and listen back to themselves. They practice it to a friend, or relative, or spouse and get feedback. They practice questions from their kids over dinner. They practice in front of a mirror.
Sounds like a lot of work! It is… but you may be competing for the job against someone else that has gone to those lengths. Will you?
Success = Opportunity + Preparation
How prepared will you be for your next interview?
Create Your Own Luck by Changing Your Perspective - Luck is a Skill
Think you have no control over how lucky you are in life? Psychologist Richard Wiseman says think again. Turns out you can learn to be a luckier person just by changing how you look at the world around you.
Photo by superfantastic.
Wiseman studied the lives of 400 people over the course of 10 years and watched for any lucky breaks or chance encounters—both good and bad—they had along the way. He discovered that some people are prone to worse luck than others, but it may be possible to create your own good fortune by tweaking your perspective on things.
In interviews with the study's volunteers, he realized that unlucky people are typically more anxious and tend to more hyperfocused on the specifics of a situation. Lucky people, on the other hand, are more laid-back and open to whatever opportunities present themselves.
My research revealed that lucky people generate good fortune via four basic principles. They are skilled at creating and noticing chance opportunities, make lucky decisions by listening to their intuition, create self-fulfilling prophesies via positive expectations, and adopt a resilient attitude that transforms bad luck into good.
Wiseman says by honing skills like listening to your intuition and simply expecting to be lucky, you can actually increase the chance good fortune will find its way to you. In fact, 80% of the volunteers in his study group who tried this approach, ended up feeling like their luck had changed for the better.
What's your take on creating your own luck in life? Do you think it's possible to break out of a pattern of misfortune, or are we pretty much destined to just deal with whatever life has in store for us? Share your thoughts in the comments.
