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People collect everything from McDonalds Happy Meal toys to antique guns to books to cars. Of all the things you’ve heard of people collecting, perhaps questions isn’t on that list. nnCollecting questions might seem unusual, but consider this: people typically collect things for at least on of three reasons: nnWhat they are collecting is meaningful. nWhat they are collecting is valuable. nGreat use or pleasure is derived from the pursuit of collecting, or the use of what

Just like a fingerprint, you have a unique sound. You vocal cords developed during puberty to a certain length and mass which gives you the pitch that you use. The shape and mass of your vocal tract (the back of the throat, the tongue, the lips, etx) is where the sound is configured. You are limited in how much you ...

Did you know that the number one desired outcome of communication skills coaching is to increase self-confidence speaking? Whether the situation is to speak to the boss, a roomful of people or a large massive crowd, having the self-confidence to deliver the message in a way that resonates is priority. Leaders know ...

When I first started road biking in 2016, I loved the feeling of freedom when the air passed my wet skin and became a natural air conditioner. I also loved to ride downhills at a very fast speed. It was an incredible thrill to let go and fly down those hills. It was truly exhilarating!

Conducting a good strategic planning session is critical to the success of a solid strategic plan; one that includes specific and measurable goals and objectives, providing a clear direction for the organization. To ensure that the actual planning retreat is as productive as it can be, ground rules should be established and discussed prior to commencement. This article provides a list of 11 ground rules I believe are imperative in managing a successful planning retreat. 1. Present the written agenda or schedule for the day so everyone is aware of the day’s activities.

Over the years, I have observed people who are real friends and people who claim to be friends. As I get older, I truly believe the old saying that you can count your real friends on one hand. So, you may be asking what makes a person a real friend. I have identified my top eight characteristics of what I feel constitutes a true friend, or what I feel I need most in a friendship. In observing your relationships with other people, whether they are family members, people you went to school with, coworkers, or colleagues, how many of them are real friends?

How motivated are your employees? Are they fully engaged and passionate about their work? In challenging economic times it is natural for most people to lose some level of enthusiasm. When we cut costs and people around us lose jobs and even their homes, our desire to take on the "biggest and baddest" challenge at work can falter. But in these times, the last thing we need is lost productivity and less passion. In fact, what we really need is to raise the bar and get more productivity and creativity from our people. Can you motivate your employees to do more?

When setting goals to get us to where we want to be in life it is so important that we always honor our core values in all we do. WHAT ARE CORE VALUES? Firstly values are the things in life which are most important to you but core values go even deeper still. These are the qualities and characteristics that you hold dear to you. The characteristics and qualities you wish to embody in everything you do e.g. honesty, compassion, integrity, courage, loving, sincerity,caring. Eve

Nonprofit organizations are always looking for ways in which to raise money to support their respective operation. The following list provides some traditional methods for generating revenue but it also includes some ideas you may not have previously thought about or considered.

Ernest Hemingway once said “When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.” How true that is. How many times has someone asked you how you were, but doesn’t take the time to listen to your response? They may cut you off, start talking about themselves, or walk away. If you’re like most people, this behavior probably leaves a sour taste in your mouth. People want to be heard and listened to; they want to feel like someone cares. Be honest with yourself.

Have you ever wondered why someone's words don't always match their body language? Observing the way people communicate, both verbally and nonverbally, can help you to assess what they might be feeling at the present moment. It can also help you to get to the heart of the issue, make someone feel more comfortable, or diffuse a potentially explosive situation. This article provides some tips on recognizing and understanding verbal and nonverbal cues, and using this information to improve communication.

No matter how positive you are, there is probably at least one negative feeling or thought that creeps into your mind on a daily basis. Negative thoughts have many origins. They can develop from not feeling well, experiencing low self-esteem, or doubting one's self. Considering the fact that this happens to everyone, how do some people appear to be more successful at turning negative thoughts into positive ones before the negativity grows and becomes counterproductive? This article provides some tips on squelching negative thoughts before they have a chance to fester and erupt. 1.

"Are you kidding me - how can I be optimistic? There is nothing to be optimistic about in this economy." With the constant stream of bad economic news it is very easy to get caught up in thinking that nothing positive is happening. We start to believe that there is little that we can do to improve our circumstances; we withdraw, play it safe, feel concern, and fear about our future. We become especially vigilant for further signs that we are at risk. Optimistic leadership is not about seeing the world through rose colored glasses.

In life, we are all survivors, whether or not we think of ourselves that way. When we experience our first love and break up, our hearts are broken and we don't think that we will ever survive. But somehow we do, and eventually we meet someone new. When we lose our first job, whether we are fired or laid off, we may wonder if anyone will ever hire us again. But we ultimately find another job and, thus, we survive again. Other traumatic events may occur in life that challenge our survival, such as going through a divorce, acquiring a disability, or losing a child, parent, or loved one.

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, integrity means to have a “firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values.” My Oxford American Dictionary defines it as “honesty, incorruptibility.” From these two simple definitions, it is obvious that one of the highest compliments you can pay an individual is to say that s/he has a high degree of integrity.

There are certain components of the strategic planning process that should be in place to develop, implement, and effectively monitor a strategic plan. This article provides a brief overview of the steps involved in strategic planning. The first component is preparing for the strategic planning session. Prior to engaging in strategic planning, the organization should conduct a SWOTT analysis.

Is EVERY member of your team contributing SIGIFICANTLY to your strategic goals? By EVERY member of your team, I mea EVERY member, including front-line talent that you pay by the hour. By significantly, I mean directly to your bottom-line in the form of tens of thousands to millions of dollars in revenue or savings.r

Are you a master of doing it all, juggling priorities, constant meetings and email overload? When I ask leaders what change they could make to become more effective, one of the most common responses is that they need to delegate more. They recognize the need to delegate most of what comes across their desk but they don't always do it. There is just too much work to go around and as the business can least afford a misstep, we become more hands-on.

How do you Envision your Life? Do you see yourself: • Being your own boss? • Being the CEO of a company? • Having your own Law Firm? • Living in Europe? • Having a vacation house in the Caribbean? • Working from home? • Being a Judge? • Being able to work from any place in the world? Why do people give up power over their own life? You’d be amazed at how many people don’t really know what they truly want out of life.

When you're upset or depressed, should you analyze your feelings to figure out what's wrong? Or should you just forget about it and move on? New research and theories suggests if you do want to think about your problems, do so from a detached perspective, rather than reliving the experience. This answer is related to a psychological paradox: Processing emotions is supposed to help you facilitate coping, but attempts to understand painful feelings often backfire and perpetuate or strengthen negative moods and emotions.

In this fast paced world, we are continually challenged to fit more work into the same time frames that we all have. One of the most challenging parts of "fitting it all in" is deciding what is important and what is not. Of all the dilemmas I've experienced in my coaching practice, just about every client has struggled with their time and life management. Their “to -- do" lists have "to -- do" lists. So how do we get it ALL done? My first question is why do we need to get it all done?

Tired of working for somebody else and ready to try your hand being a business owner? Or are you an accidental entrepreneur that has already leapt into business for yourself? Well, You’re not alone! Starting and running your own successful business is one of the most rewarding, exciting and nerve-racking adventures you will set out on. It has its joys and it certainly has its challenges, all of which will push you outside your comfort zone, spur your creative thinking and give you a few more gray hairs!

Collaborative efforts with other agencies are valuable and can have many advantages. However, there are some items you need to consider prior to entering into any type of collaborative relationship. You’ll want to ensure that when you enter into a collaborative relationship, it is a win-win situation for your clients, your organization, other stakeholders, and for your collaborative partner. This article addresses some questions you need to ask and issues you need to consider before establishing a collaborative relationship.

You’ve wanted to know the secret to meeting management success? Look no further… Here is YOUR answer to getting things DONE at alllll those meetings we attend. All it takes is three little words. Here are the “three little words” that will change your meeting life forever. Who knows, they may even bolster your career! 1. WHO 2. WHAT 3. WHEN Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest. This is one of those times. Read on…r

Strategic planning is critical to a nonprofit organization's future direction and survival. As such, it is important to understand what strategic planning is and why it is so important. This article provides a definition of strategic planning and why it is important to nonprofit organizations. Wikipedia defines strategic planning as “an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people.” Strategic planning is the formal consideration of an organization's future course.

Nonprofit organizations have a myriad of issues they need to deal with on a daily basis, leaving them with little time to focus on branding their mission and organization. However, it is important that they allocate some time and money to branding, as good branding will establish a solid identify, making it easier for clients and stakeholders to recognize and grasp the organization’s mission. In addition, recognition helps organizations to solicit clients, raise funds, and improve collaborative relationships.

“Where there is no leadership the people fall, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.”- Proverbs 11:14

Having managed or worked for nonprofits most of my career, I have seen effective and ineffective boards of directors. Good boards of directors are clear about their roles and responsibilities versus those of the Executive Director, and don't overstep their boundaries. I feel that the five most important responsibilities of board members are as follows: 1. Board members are responsible for recruiting, hiring, and evaluating the organization’s Executive Director.

Today’s economic landscape has been a bit unsteady to say the least. We’ve all heard about it and certainly have seen the effects of it on our bottom line. No matter if you’re a CEO, manager or a one-man-band business owner, today’s economy has sent tremors through us all in different ways. Here are some time tested keys to growth to help you stay focused and moving forward in a positive direction.

As a social work and psychology student, Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs was a theory in which we focused a great deal of time. According to Maslow, there are five levels of needs, ranging from physiological to self-actualization. It is difficult to move from one level to the next without first meeting your needs at the lower level.

My last Competitive Edge Report article “Is the Key Still in Your Ignition?” hit a sweet cord with a number of you and sour note with others. I thought I’d continue the discussion this week by looking back as well as forward.

Traditional business practice was based on the principle of developing a great product or service and then finding customers to buy it. Then came the marketing and promotion so as many people knew about your product or service through advertising, promotion, stores, etc. The same kind of ...

Struggling with people resisting making the changes you know you need to make in your organization or group? Don't know how to get buy-in from people so that you can change things for the better? Challenged by an undercurrent of resistance to your attempts to move your organization forward? Have you ever tried to change anyone? Everyone knows how difficult it is to change their spouses (ever TRIED it? Not a pretty sight!) Even more, have you ever tried to change something about yourself? Not an easy task, is it?!

Social networks are a great tool to leverage when you need to find new clients for business but some social networks are much more effective at helping you find new clients than others, take LinkedIn for example. Unlike the odd bunch you find on Facebook usually there to have fun and interact with their friends, LinkedIn is a business-oriented social network people join in order to make business connections and find new opportunities in their fields of endeavor. LinkedIn: One of the best small business resources to discover new business opportunitiesr

Do you get up from bed each morning with dread and anxiety about what faces you at work? • Do you feel like you have to make “through” each day? • Are you completely exhausted by the time you get home each night? • Do you see life as a merry go round over which you have no control? • Do you find yourself wishing you had a clone or more time to get everything you need done? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, its very likely you have a work life in-balance.

Sometimes, it's feast or famine with business. So to help you stay on top of your game it's important to have your short term goals defined to keep you focused and on track. The more you can focus on the actions you need to take, the more likely you will reach your vision and your goals. Energy is key – you must gain and maintain momentum. Your actions must be immediate and aligned with your core values and passions. Use your ideal day activity to identify a 1-year vision.

Why doesn’t everyone just get along???? We hear this all the time. Whether it is differing values or conflicts or misunderstandings, some people have a harder time than others just getting along. And even worse, when they aren’t getting along, they’re the ones who expect the other person to change, so that they DO get along! Now, I don’t know about you, but over the years, I have had absolutely no success in getting others to change.

We began our "Project Management . . . by the Numbers" Project Management Lifecycle with Phase One - Concept and Feasibility where we secured agreement with our Project Customer on the definition of the project's objectives and a high level time and cost against those objectives. Then we finished our detailed planning of the project with Phase Two - Organization/Schedule where we created our Work Breakdown Structure and Critical Path Analysis to get all stakeholder buy-in to the executable tasks.

I was sitting wondering the other day, ‘why do people still need executive coaches?’. Working in this field for over 20 years, I’m sometimes surprised that the need for coaching continues to grow. Why I wonder? What’s going on that is requiring more coaches to be in the world than in the past?

Do you realize that first impressions are important? I’d like to tell you that, important or not, you make them and you receive them every single day of your life. Impressions have become habitual and you are no longer conscious of those you get when observing new people in your experience, like the person in the office next to yours. You see them, you form an opinion, and you rapidly forget about them, unless their appearance or their smell or their words impress themselves on you. You’re on auto-pilot when you meet a new co-worker or a new manager. They make an impression.

Last month we began discussing the tasks associated with "Project Management . . . by the Numbers" Phase One - Concept and Feasibility: • Project Customer Definition • Functional Team Review • Kick-off Meeting • Communication Plan • Objective Definition This month we will begin where we left off and complete the Phase One tasks with: • Project Definition Document • Project Management Plan • Project Team Time and Cost Estimates +/- 50% • Agreement to Proceed with Project Customer Project Definition Document and/or Project Management Plan

Writing and delivering invitations to customers, potential customers, or colleagues to attend your important business-related occasions requires careful attention: While great opportunities lie therein, if done improperly, it can cause undesired results that it’s wise to avoid.nnWhen you plan a launch, a professional conference, or even an Open Day at the office, naturally you want to make it special; you also know that its success and effectiveness depend on how many of yo

As a real estate agent, it is important to know your value. Your value is determined by what you have to offer the consumer. It is important to remember that consumer perception is consumer reality. Every agent on the path of success must be able to answer the following question from a consumers point of view. (We all need to answer a version of this very basic question and answer it very, very well.) The question is: Why should a consumer work with you instead of another age

At the end of June 2003, I chose to leave a very secure job in banking to start over as an executive coach. Although I’d been in business for myself prior to joining the bank, it had been almost five years. During my time there, I had the privilege of working with a great team that cared deeply for their clients and believed in the direction we were heading. But it wasn’t enough for me, and I knew it was time to become a full-time executive coach.

I had an experience recently that I would like to share with you. While speaking with a friend in a casual conversatio I was asked my opinion. I immediately shifted out of friend mode and put my trusted adviser hat on. I noticed that my listening intensified. I became more present than in the previous 8 or 10 minutes of our chat. My ability to clearly and provide his next best step will undoubtedly avert costly business and personal repercussions. There was a tremendous sense of personal satisfaction in my spirit!

600+ Resource links for Career Management, Executive Coaching and Getting On A Board.

Rapid. Deep. Practical. These are just three of the words that describe Dr. Sharon Melnick's ground-breaking coaching style. Her innovative system delivers fast and lasting results to people from all walks of life.

The Nielson Group equips leading organizations with tools, research and expertise that foster leadership growth and create more effective organizations. Leadership development, team development, coaching skills training, hire-for-fit strategies.

Learn to speak more clearly to be better understood by reducing a foreign or regional accent. Learn techniques to increase your speech and voice image and learn how to care for the professional voice. Increase your credibility and confidence with improved speaking skills!

Online resource for speaking more clearly in the workplace including foreign accent reduction, regional accent, diction, presentation skills and delivery, speech and voice image control, voice care. Resources include weekly podcasts, webinars, membership site, and ono-on-one coaching.