Browse published articles attributed to cedric rice, with full-archive search.
When I talk about a leader’s IQ I am not talking about the above average intelligence of the honor student. It is one thing to be an honor student but quite another to be an intelligent leader. Leadership sense is a combination of common sense, knowledge, and wisdom.
I don’t know how true that this saying is but I have heard that snakes can’t stand altitude. They story goes that a pilot was flying a plane only to discover that it was filled with rattlesnakes after he had taken off. When he called the control tower his instructions were to go higher because snakes can’t stand altitude.
Military discipline can be administered in many ways and it is normally a harsh discipline when administered by the military. The military administers discipline as a make or break type proposition. The troop who makes it through military training has learned to adhere to and embrace this new lifestyle. Embracing it enables the troop to survive and even flourish in his military environment. Military discipline is all encompassing in that it is designed to touch every aspect of the life of the soldier. When the soldier enters the military all vestiges of the old life are removed.
The world is made up of different individuals. No two people are exactly the same in any respect. This is the thing which makes life so wonderful and interesting. Your personality is the way that you think and act and it is unique to you. Experience plays a big part in personality development and no two people have the same experiences in life. Our personality is shaped by the things that we see and do from the time that we are born into this world. It is also shaped by the everyday encounters that we have in life.
The Development of Communication Skills Communication is nothing more than getting people to understand what’s on your mind or understanding exactly what they are thinking. The successful communicator is also able to get people to follow because they understand how to motivate people to do what they want. Communication skills begin to develop in childhood as soon as the baby understands that he or she is a person also and that they need to find a way to let people know exactly what’s on their mind.
Some people are effective listeners and some are not. The difference between being a good listener and a bad one lies in the way that you interact with the speaker. A good listener is intimate with the speaker in that he or she listens on a whole different level. An average listener will hear with the ears but a great listener listens with the entire soul.
Are you afraid to be the person that you really are? If so why? Most people will define themselves by the perceived reactions of others rather than their own individual accomplishments and abilities. Don't judge yourself by the actions of others. Many times other people have something to gain by putting you down and if you are not confident in your abilities you will fall prey to their devices. You are a unique individual and your uniqueness is what describes you.
There is a new mentality in the industrialized world which I call the microwave mentality. It is a result of the information age and will only grow with industrialization. I call it the microwave mentality.
This term has become popular within the last few years and makes a lot of sense but my question to you is this: Are you capable of thinking out of the box? We generally solve problems based on what we know to be true and what has worked or seemed to work in past experiences. Now generally this is good but at times it can be detrimental. If you look back at past armed conflicts you will see that most casualties occur during the first few months of the conflict.
Now I’m first going to say that there is no textbook answer here. A wife who seems to be good for one husband may not in fact be good for the next one. The thing which makes any mate good whether it be a husband or wife is their compatibility to the other. My trash may be your treasure. I’m not going to try to make a laundry list of qualities here for you to look at and check off to make sure that you are doing everything right. The right thing is whatever is right for you and your spouse.
Success is not something that is haphazard or that happens quickly in life. People who are successful generally find success after they have worked hard and persevered through many trying times. The thing that makes people successful is when opportunity meets hard work.
Organization in the workplace or anywhere else is crucial to our efficiency and peace of mind. There is nothing worse than being unorganized and running around looking for something wasting valuable time. There is a saying that if you want to get something done give it to a busy man. The busy man has probably learned to manage his work load so that you can count on him to come through. He is organized and doing a whole lot more than the lazy man. You can’t shake him off of his game because he is too organized. He is working while the lazy man has his heels propped up on the desk.
How many times have emotional outbursts destroyed a life or career? Our emotions can either work for us or against us depending on how we handle them. Gaining control of your emotions is a practice which requires maturity and experience. We have to learn to recognize the emotions which seek to propel us into action and respond accordingly rather than to react as they tell us which is often not good. We can’t prevent emotions but we can choose to not allow them to cause us to perform negative behaviors.
For the purpose of this article let me give you my definition of situational stress. Situational stress is the stress associated with being near or around a particular person, place, or thing. There will always be a negative event associated with this type of stress. One example for me was an event which happened when I was a karate student. One night we were doing a running jump kick into a punching bag and I kicked up instead of into the bag. This caused me to have a terrible fall which was extremely painful.
Do you want to have a multitude of friends? If you don’t the only reason is that you haven’t invested the amount of time that you need to. It doesn’t matter how you look. Whether you are attractive or not or how big or small that you are not things that add to or detract from the equation. Have you ever known someone who was not good looking at all but had a multitude of friends? The only thing that made that person popular was the fact that they invested their time in the making of friends. The bible says that he who has a multitude of friends must show himself friendly.
I just want to take this time and opportunity to write this article to the friend that I have never seen. One thing about life is that we can live for all of our life and think that we don’t have any friends but regardless of who you are you do have one friend that you have not seen. Thank you so much for protecting me over the years, even when I didn’t know that you were there. I am still standing here today only because you have been there for me. Now I trust you more because you have brought me through so much. I have learned to trust you with all things that pertain to my life.
This article simply expresses my own thoughts and ideas on parent child relationships. It is certainly an intelligent dissertation based on my own education and experience. I would not however use my beliefs to counter anyone else’s beliefs. Relationships are not exact and can’t be approached with formulas which might work for mathematical equations and scientific experiments. Relationships are personal and there are too many variables involved for me to attempt to dictate what yours should be. Let’s keep those thoughts in mind as we go forward.
One thing that I believe many of us forget about is the fact that in order to be successful we need to have people to support us in our cause. In the military a paratrooper needs to have people who are specialists in packing parachutes to pack their chutes for them. The trooper does not have the time to learn how to pack his own chute because he has a million other conce s to worry about. This most critical operation has to be performed by someone who he doesn’t even know.
Let me clarify exactly what I mean when I talk about a correct frame of mind. When I say correct frame of mind I am referring to whatever frame of mind that it takes to help you get through a bad situation. A correct frame of mind has to be positive. I have heard of stories of people who were lost in the wilde ess. There are several accounts that I have read where those involved made up in their minds that they would not die. There was even one account where the lost gentleman repeated over and over to himself that he would not die.
Many of us are just good natured people who don’t think twice about doing for others when they need help. There is nothing wrong with being good natured and we should maintain our integrity but there are times that we just need to learn to say no. We can be too giving in our relationships with others. Now I realize that many of you are givers by nature and that is perfectly fine. Giving is what you live to do. I’m not saying that you should attempt to change from what God has created you to be but you can certainly find people to give to who will appreciate the things that you do for them.
The first time a person looks at you and even talks to you he or she forms an impression of who you are and what you are about. You are the one who gives credibility to what that person thinks and contrary to popular belief it is difficult to change. The first impression is a lasting impression so if you make an impression on another person when you are having a bad day that impression unfortunately will follow you throughout the entire time that you are acquainted with that person.
I am sure that you all have heard the old adage that if you want respect you have to earn it. That saying is so true but I want to add onto it from the things that I have learned during my life experiences. You have to earn it, give it, and demand it all at the same time. If you do these things you are guaranteed to get respect. Now you may not be liked very much at all but you will be respected. Don’t confuse the two. I would rather people hate me and respect me than like me and take me for a chump.
A practical article connected into the broader SelfGrowth topic graph.
This is an article that I can write with some authority because I have been there and done that. I used to have a serious anger management problem. It was so serious that it encompassed all areas of my life and had serious negative effects on my friendships. This problem was not natural and not normal but as with all people who have an anger management problem I felt in every case that the anger was justified. I would get angry at perceived indiscretions of other people. Most of the time the indiscretions were real, some times they were imagined.
Communication skills are vital to each and every one of us and I sincerely believe that the earlier we begin to master these skills in life the better off we will be. I believe that the adult should put all of his or her energies into developing the mind of the child beginning in infancy. Most of the child’s communication skills are the result of it’s temperament but there is much that we can do to help out in the formative years. These years are so important in a child’s life and are more often than not the difference between success and failure in the later years of its life.
Jealousy is the result of our feelings when we have a personal problem with a possession, or a perceived possession, or position that another person has. The jealous man or woman may feel that he or she is more deserving of the possession and has more ownership rights.
Decisiveness is more important than making good decisions many times. Most times people miss out when they make their decisions because they allow conditions to dictate their decisions. Yes we must pay careful attention to the conditions which will have an effect on our decisions but we need to remember that conditions will never be exactly what we need for them to be. We can end up waiting until the opportune time to make a decision has past.
I think that people gravitate towards those who are decisive because it shows a confidence in their own knowledge and abilities. We choose a leader whom we have confidence in because we like the safety and security of being around someone who seems to be in control. We want a leader who has the confidence to get us to the place where we want to go. This is why decisiveness is important as a leadership trait.
The single most important factor in any type of successful relationship between any two people is trust. People can have professional or business relationships where they don't trust each other but those relationships are for convenience only and are not personally satisfying to either party. The man or woman who wants a successful personal relationship has to begin with trust. Trust is first and foremost even in dysfunctional relationships.
The main thing is to learn to relax. Even the most confident person in the world will have problems the first few times that they speak in public. You must practice speaking in order to get it right. I suggest you start with a very small audience. Use one or two people who will give you an honest assessment of where you are. You should then videotape your session so that you can observe your own bad habits first hand. This is the thing which helped me the most. The way that I thought I sounded was totally different from what I saw when we played the tape.
Why is it so hard for some of us to say that we are sorry even when we know that our actions were wrong? If you don’t know this, allow me to educate you on a fact of life. We are all human so there is not a person in this world who has never made a mistake. We are all capable of making mistakes in the future so they are no big deal. If you live you will make bad judgments and wrong decisions. There is no way to escape that fact.
We are all different people and we all fit somewhere in the mosaic of life. If any two of us were the same then there would be no need for one of the two. Differences are the spice of life. The insecure person will attempt to ridicule others who are different. The person who is confident doesn’t have any qualms about who they are and their abilities. They don’t have to lash out at those who are different because they are not threatened by those differences.
It is essential for a leader to have the respect of his or her followers. Respect is the key ingredient in the effectiveness of a leader. The leader whose followers respect him will go beyond the call to accomplish whatever they need to accomplish to get the job done. Most people equate being respected with being liked. Often the two are not related. It is good to be liked but you must first be respected. A leader can also be liked but not respected as a leader. Typically this is the type of leader who will not enforce standards but will allow his followers to follow their own whims.
Excuse me while I Kiss the Sky The words of the title of this article are words which were made famous by the late Rock musician named Jimmi Hendrix. He was talking about a totally different type of experience tha I am but I like the wording so excuse me while I kiss the sky. This has got to be the mindset that the winner maintains. If you look up you will go up, but if you look down you will go down. Keep your head up and you will remain in that realm. If you want to rise above you need to keep your mind above. Wherever the head goes the body will follow.
It’s best to be a Peacemaker The bible says blessed be the peacemakers which is so true. Now the peacemaker may be blessed because he or she attempts to smooth over things which are not right but I believe that they are blessed because of their state of mind. The peacemaker has to be an individual who is different in character from the people at war.
Tips to Overcoming Anxiety Anxiety can rob us of much of the pleasure that life entitles us to. In most cases it can be helped by combining a few changes in your daily routine. Anxiety can be handled like any sickness or disease although I wouldn’t classify it as a mental illness. There are times however when it should be considered a mental illness but most times it depends on the situation. Prolonged anxiety or stress can lead to long term health and mental illness problems.
A wise man will learn from his mistakes and the mistakes of others. I once listened to a Special Forces Sergeant who related his Vietnam experiences to me. One thing that he told me is that he would never be the first to try something new. He would stand clear and see if it worked. If it did he knew that it was safe to do.
Are you carrying around a bunch of excess mental baggage which you don’t really need to carry? You need to travel as lightly as you possibly can in order to make better distance. Mental baggage will slow you down and prevent you from reaching your goals just the same as a heavy physical load. I like to use the analogy of the jockey who guides a race horse to victory as well as the soldier or hiker who has to carry a heavy backpack. They can’t make good time if they carry excess baggage and neither can you.
The biggest hindrance that most of us face in not achieving our goals and objectives is that we don’t act aggressively enough to accomplish them. I used to think that if God is on my side every accomplishment would be easy. There is nothing further from the truth and I have learned better now. I have missed out on many opportunities in life and many accomplishments because I would falter at the first sign of difficulty and figure that since there were so many problems I must be doing the wrong thing.
The brain is a muscle which needs to be nourished just like the rest of the body. The brain needs nutrition and oxygen just like the rest of the human body. If the cells are not fed they will atrophy and die. When we exercise the rest of the body the heart pumps blood to the entire body including the brain. The blood flowing to the brain feeds the brain with oxygen and nutrients while it removes waste products. This is vitally important to brain function and is an overlooked aspect of brain condition.
Most of you probably know this but a diamond is one of the hardest substances available to man. Most of you do know that diamonds are coveted above all natural precious stones. Women value diamonds and we see them on TV all of the time. The size of the diamond on a ring or other piece of jewelry is a status symbol which tells a story about the person who is wearing. Bigger diamonds are coveted by all and are used as a measure of high social standing. Most women will equate the size of their diamond engagement ring with the amount of love that their fiancée has for them.
The true leader is the one who is more self motivated out of the group. If you can’t motivate yourself there is no way that you will be able to motivate subordinates. Sometimes the leader motivates by actions rather than words. When you look at the leader on athletic teams you will note that they are normally the best athletes on the team. They are the ones who will whip the team up to meet a challenge on the playing field.
Most times handling your reaction is just about the most unnatural thing that you can do. It can be done however with a lot of practice and patience. Once you master getting over the urge to react you can win every emotional battle that you will have to go through in life.
The first few years of a child’s development are the most important. It is extremely critical that the right values are instilled in the child at this time. Parents must realize that the values that they instill in the child are critical. The child will learn from what he or she observes. It is during this time that the child learns how to deal with situations and circumstances and it will get its cues from you. Everything that you do during this time is extremely important and will be the basis for success or failure later on in the child’s life.
Growth in all Dimensions The most effective person is the well rounded person. Being well rounded means that you are able to function on many different levels in life. You can be good at one thing but not good at others. When you have a glaring weakness in one area it effectively diminishes the strength that you seem to have in others. No one is good at everything but we can have excellence in one or two areas and be good in many others.
Now in this article I will really put myself on the line because I am terribly guilty of being resistant to change. Change isn’t always good but it is good most of the time. I like to feel like I have mastered my daily routine which is the exact cause of my problem. We like routine because it gives us a sense of comfort. Living an ordered routine like is easy because it seems to put us in control of our situation. When change happens it upsets the apple cart and confuses our ordered mentality.
I have noticed as I have grown older that there just doesn’t seem to be enough time. Time flies by so quickly and once it’s gone it won’t come back again. I have developed a very low tolerance in my latter years for people or activities which waste time. I grow irritated when I deal with people who just don’t have their stuff together and waste my valuable time. I am always looking for ways to do more with the time that I have but there just don’t seem to be enough hours in the day to do all that I want or need to do.