What Is It About Henry or Mary?
By Bill Cottringer
“Defensiveness is usually someone silently screaming that they need you to value and respect them in disguise. When you look for deeper meanings behind someone’s pain you can then begin to heal not only yourself, but others.” ~Shannon L. ... Views: 1271
Ten Best Ways to Build a Quality Work Culture
By
Dr. Bill Cottringer
“To win in the marketplace, you must first win in the workplace.” ~Doug Conant, Campbell Soup.
There has been a revolutionary interest in looking for ways to improve the quality of work environments, which lead ... Views: 1395
Redefining Success: Seven New Super-Sized Success Secrets
By
Bill Cottringer
“Success is simple. Do what's right, the right way, at the right time.” ~Arnold H. Glasow.
There are literally thousands of good books and articles already available regarding what to do and how to do it, ... Views: 1388
When Your Back is Against the Wall…
by Bill Cottringer
…Or when you are caught between a rock and hard place and can’t get any lower because you are already lower than a snake’s belly. This is a horrible place to be in life, but only the lucky few escape these painful experiences. Most of ... Views: 1616
“Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means” ~Ronald Reagan.
The transition from the Manufacturing Age to the Information Age brought is a value revolution. The current values revolution has turned the traditional workplace upside down and ... Views: 1436
The Easiest Management Trap to Fall Into & The Hardest One to Avoid
by
Bill Cottringer
“The first rule of business: Control the few controllables and manage the rest the best you can.” ~The author.
This number one rule actually applies to both the public and private sectors equally ... Views: 1236
Are There Still Differences Between Male and Female Psyches?
By
Bill Cottringer
After John Gray’s Book “Men Are From Mars and Women Are From Venus” came out decades ago, significant mental and emotional differences between the sexes explained many of the difficulties that caused ... Views: 1624
Common Sense Or Good Sense?
By
Bill Cottringer
“Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.”― Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
It seems to be a sad common consensus today that common sense is not so common anymore. But, the validity of that conclusion really depends ... Views: 1334
“P” Point Photography: Seven Success Sources
By
Bill Cottringer
“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” ~Dorothea Lange
Learning the art of good photography offers valuable life lessons that can bring success in other endeavors. Here are seven ... Views: 1340
Lost in Translation
By
Bill Cottringer
Hagar the Horrible was giving worldly advice to his your Viking son. He says, “The secret of happiness is be content with what you got,” …so, he continues, “get enough.” ~Dik Browne.
John married Mary, his high school sweetheart, and after 20 ... Views: 1369
SEVEN COMMUNICATION PROBLEMS
By
Bill Cottringer
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” ~George Bernard Shaw.
Communication, like time, is one of our most important resources, but is becoming less cost-effective in usage by the minute, ... Views: 1320
“The Truth About Success That Most Of Us Need To Know.”
By
Bill Cottringer
“To succeed in life you need two things: Ignorance and confidence.” ~Mark Twain.
I have been an avid student of the success phenomenon for nearly 5 decades now, and the deeper I dig in studying this phenomenon, ... Views: 1343
IF YOU CAN’T KEEP AN OPEN MIND, ARE YOU SURE YOU HAVE ONE?
BY
Bill Cottringer
“Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin.
Here are the few important realities in life that have held to be true long enough to be the exception to this ... Views: 1813
A New Year’s Resolution Worth Considering
By
Bill Cottringer
Normally, I am not one for making or suggesting good New Year’s resolutions, maybe because I have seen too many short-lived ones dissolving after just a few weeks. However, I am going to make an exception to my own rule this ... Views: 1352
A Mission Every Employer Has with Every Employee
By
Dr. Bill Cottringer
“The obscure takes a while to see, but the obvious even longer.” ~Anonymous.
The above quote relates to a lesson I seem to have to keep relearning and remembering from the first book I wrote several years ... Views: 1509
Managing Better Work Performance
By Bill Cottringer
“Compelling trust is the highest form of human motivation” ~Stephen Covey.
We have always known that excellent work performance has to be driven by strong motivation. But in the beginning, motivational experts were only scratching ... Views: 1246
Five Realizations of Good Relationships
By
Bill Cottringer
“Life is not happening to you. It is responding to you.” ~Author Unknown.
In order to create good relationships, correct bad ones or continue good ones, there are a five things, that when realized, can help set up more ... Views: 1273
TIT 4 TAT: The Basic Backdrop of Life.
By Bill Cottringer
“Reputation is not of enough value to sacrifice character for it.” Miss Clark.
All of life, upon due reflection, seems to be a variation of one very basic rule commonly known as—Tit for Tat (literally blow for blow). This a ... Views: 1336
An Ever-Growing Gap Between Managers And Employees In The Information Age
By
William Cottringer
When we first started on the path of the Information Age in the early eighties, we had no earthly idea where it was going to take us. Ironically, here in 2014, we still don’t know the answer ... Views: 1446
THREE GOOD RELATIONSHIPS TO HAVE
By
Bill Cottringer
“We've got this gift of love, but love is like a precious plant. You can't just accept it and leave it in the cupboard or just think it's going to get on by itself. You've got to keep watering it. You've got to really look after it ... Views: 1123
Brain and Heart Management for Better Success
By
Bill Cottringer
The lion’s share of success and failure is mostly due to how well we manage our brains and hearts—specifically how we learn, grow and improve the thinking and feeling which drives our behavior. Psychologists have never ... Views: 1562
Five Questions We All Have At Work
By
Bill Cottringer
“All good work has magic in it, and addresses the mind in a subtle way.” ~Duane Michals.
There are five questions we all have at work which need reasonable answers to, as guided by effective management. These questions were ... Views: 1426
Three Questions to Answer in Measuring the Success of Your Relationship
By
Bill Cottringer
“Don't marry the person you think you can live with; marry only the individual you think you can't live without.” ~James Dobson.
A writing colleague and dear friend of mine who is ... Views: 1351
Lessons From Early Team-Building
By
Bill Cottringer
“The ratio of We’s to I’s is the best indicator of the development of a team. ~Lewis B. Ergen.
Effective team-building has always been known as essential to any success, whether we are talking about work teams, sports teams, ... Views: 1789
Ten Easy Ways to Have Hard Conversations
By
Bill Cottringer
“Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.” ~Ronald Reagan.
Even normal communication, which should be easy conversation, is an enormous challenge today. The sad reality is ... Views: 1603
There Is No Quick & Easy One-Size Fits All Success Prescription. So Why Do You Keep Looking?
By
Bill Cottringer
Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson.
There is a very fundamental principle of psychology that ... Views: 1414
20 Writing Tips for Better Results
By Bill Cottringer
Excellent writing has never happened by chance. It takes open-mindedness and an insatiable drive to continually learn how to improve what you are trying to say and the hard work that goes along with that challenge. Excellent writing ... Views: 1684
Thinking Your Way to Success
By
Bill Cottringer
“I want to know all God’s thoughts; all the rest are just details.” ~Albert Einstein.
In today’s Information Age, quality thinking is the success currency of choice. Have you thought about the quality of your own thinking lately? I ... Views: 1785
Trust: The Stuff That Holds Relationships Together
By
Bill Cottringer
“You don't develop courage by being happy in your relationships every day. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity.”
~Epicurus
Successful relationships are built on unconditional ... Views: 1231
25 Sure Ways to Improve Communication
By
Bill Cottringer
“The greatest problem with communication is the illusion it has taken place.” ~George Bernard Shaw.
Communication is the main currency in the today’s Information Age, but sadly, miscommunication is our number one failing ... Views: 1748
What Is The Moral of Your Story?
By
Bill Cottringer
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson.
The answer to this intriguing title question ... Views: 1827
ACCEPT ADVERSITY, BOUNCE BACK & GET GOING
By
Bill Cottringer
“All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me... You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”
~Walt Disney.
... Views: 1977
Making Relationships Less Difficult
By
Bill Cottringer
“Consider how hard it is to change yourself and you'll understand what little chance you have in trying to change others.” ~Anonymous.
It is not easy to be successful at anything today because of the many obstacles that ... Views: 1676
The Most Difficult Thing About Managing Others Is…
By
Bill Cottringer
“Mis-management of others is usually a symptom of mismanaging yourself.” ~An older, wiser, unnamed manager of sorts.
Managing others in today’s work environment is no simple or easy task for the weak-minded. It ... Views: 1455
#1 Success & Happiness Solution: Rubber Band Thinking
By
Bill Cottringer
“I wouldn’t give a fig for the simplicity on this side of complexity, but for the simplicity just on the other side of complexity, I would give my life.” ~Oliver Wendell Holmes.
There is no shortage of good ... Views: 1604
FIVE PILLARS OF HAPPINESS
by
Bill Cottringer
“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.” ~Dalai Lama.
Happiness is the end game goal of living. Whatever it is you are doing, it is to secure happiness. In a paradoxical way, how you define happiness ... Views: 2405
Relationship Facts That Get In The Way of Relating
By
Bill Cottringer
“Relationships are the real test to find out if you are as good as you think you are.” ~The author.
Relationships are the real test in life to see if you can be successful in applying all you have learned ... Views: 1275
Synthesize and Simplify Your Way to Job and Relationship Success
By
Bill Cottringer
I will make two bold statements that I am confident will get 100% agreement. And that is always a good starting point to build upon to make things better at work or in relationships. These two agreeable ... Views: 1334
BANDWIDTH AND “P” POINTS FOR SUPER SUCCESS
By
Bill Cottringer
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” ~Winston Churchill.
We are all on a super success quest race with an unfortunate delusion that there are quick cures and instant ... Views: 1326
WHY PARENTING TODAY IS SO DIFFICULT
By
Bill Cottringer
Why is parenting today so difficult (besides being so expensive and all of us being so busy doing other things)? The answer to this question involves the main parenting role—teaching our children the basic skills that are necessary to ... Views: 2564
Best Perspective For Success In Closing The Gap That Matters Most
By
Bill Cottringer
Success is not—
What you do,
What you get,
Or what you have;
But what you attract,
From being who you are.
“Success is a certain sense of progress accumulated from making all the right little ... Views: 1671
Resolving The Clash Between Younger and Older Workers
By
Bill Cottringer
“Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional.” ~Max Lucade.
Because of today’s economic uncertainty, earlier entry into occupations and delayed retirements, there is a growing gap and conflict emerging in ... Views: 1570
CONTROLLING VS. MANAGING BEHAVIOR
By
Bill Cottringer
“One of the biggest sources of frustration comes from trying to control the uncontrollables; on the other hand, great satisfaction comes from gradually learning to manage the controllables better.” ~The author.
Control: To exercise ... Views: 1737
Anticipating and Avoiding Getting Fired
By
Bill Cottringer
“If you intend to go to work there is no better place than right where you are; if you do not intend to go to work you cannot get along anywhere. Squirming and crawling about from place to place can do no good.” ~Abraham ... Views: 1970
Ten Right Attitudes to Have About Love to Get More
By
Bill Cottringer
“Love is the gentle touching of two souls without the clamor of their external equipment.” ~The Author.
Want more love? Consider adopting these ten right attitudes that will help you enjoy more love:
1. Keep Things ... Views: 1189
Facts of Life That Get In The Way Of Living
By
Bill Cottringer
“It is nothing to die. It is frightful not to live.” ~Victor Hugo, Les Misérables.
If we didn’t think and feel so much about living, believe certain things to be true and others not, expect certain outcomes, and try to ... Views: 1487
Little Laws 4 BIG SUCCESS
By
Bill Cottringer
“We don't see things as they are; we see things as we are.” ~Anais Nin.
A long time ago an MIT Math professor friend introduced me to a very intriguing engineering term called perturbation point. These are the few key stress points in a ... Views: 1635
Do You Know Who You Really Are?
“Most of the things you think you know may not be so.” ~The author.
From the beginning days of Philosophy and Psychology to the billions of sources of information we have today trying to answer this question, it may be time to pause and reflect upon the ... Views: 2450
Don’t Let Your Ability Get In The Way Of Your Capability
By
Bill Cottringer
“You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, 'Why not?'” ~ George Bernard Shaw.
Is your current limited ability interfering with your desire and effort to explode into ... Views: 1633
FROM KNOWING TO DOING
By
Bill Cottringer
“What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” ~Napoleon Hill.
But will I actually do it—go from knowing to doing—is the dangling question after Napoleon Hill’s quote above. Great self-development and self-help sources of ... Views: 2591