Archive for the Knowing Yourself Category
Jeez! Baby Steps! BABY STEPS!
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Sometimes I feel like I need to scream at myself. I’ve always been tough on myself and it’s a big reason I started Work Happy Now back in 2008. I wanted to research and test out ideas that helped me become happier and more productive.
I know getting mad at myself doesn’t solve anything. It’s just such an ingrained habit that’s hard to break.Every now and again it sneaks back in. Then I take a deep breath and tell myself it’s up to me to create more positive habits.
So I’ve been taking more time to apply Active Relaxation to my workday. I also tell my clients don’t compare yourself to others, take baby steps and enjoy the process. I haven’t been doing any of these things. I’ve been beating myself up by letting my arch nemesis dictate my happiness.
Trying to be…
As I take my 15th sip of coffee this morning I realize that I’m not happy with how I write. I want to write ideas like Seth Godin. I want to write like Johnny B. Truant. I want a readership like Chris Guillebeau.
Sigh.
As I try to get everything in my brain out I want it to be inspiring, enlightening and entertaining. That’s a lot of ing’s.
I’ve been upset that I don’t write as well as a few great writers that I truly love to read.
How can I compare myself to greatness? It’s not fair.
There is nothing wrong with finding inspiration from great people, but wanting to be like them is a fool’s wish. Don’t try to write, think or act like others because you’ll always be a little short of your goal. Don’t let the jealousy game tear down your confidence.
Look at what you do well and be more of this. Enjoy how you use these superskills and measure your success against yourself. If you started a blog this year and are finding ways to connect with your audience then good for you. Keep going. The only way to be truly happy with your work and your career is finding ways to be more you.
Every time the jealousy bug starts to bite you, acknowledge these thoughts and very quickly let them go by putting your focus back on you. Look at what you’ve done well and how you can dig just a little deeper to get better results.
Have you let jealous thoughts bring down your confidence?
How to Get Your Workday Back on Track
Have you ever gotten into your workday and realized that the day was half over and you barely got anything done?
It’s a common trend with a lot of my coaching clients. They are creative types that just can’t get off to a fast start. Believe me I still have my days where the words aren’t flowing or I can’t seem to stay on task. These days are frustrating and when this happens I always turn to the greatest tool that the working man and women have turned to for decades.
Music that fits the mood of the task.
For example I love to write while listening to jazz. There is something energizing about jazz. When I put it on I know that I’ll have a good writing session.
Next time you are struggling to get your work accomplished try putting on some energizing music that helps lift your spirits and improves your focus.
The one catch is you can’t just put on music and let your thoughts stay distracted. You have to purposeful with what song you pick and how you expect to feel as you listen to the music. By setting this intention before you turn on the music, you are setting yourself up for getting back on track.
What type of music do you like to listen to while working?
Understanding Your Superpowers
Your superpowers are right before you every single minute of every day. The key is listening.
That means listening to your thoughts. Your surface (scared monkey brain) and deep (true self) thoughts are always going strong.
When you walk into a room do you look at how the design could be improved?
When you talk to a co-worker what are your thoughts focusing on? Are they focusing on improving productivity of your communication or building deeper connections?
I’m not talking about surface stuff. The scared monkey brain stuff. I’m talking about the deeper stuff that many people don’t listen well to.
Your brain is always working, you can’t help it. A lot of times you ignore these thoughts because they scare you. Once you stop ignoring these thoughts you’ll see what your thoughts and feelings are gravitating to on a daily basis. It’s these thoughts that you need to explore and use them to help others (AKA superpowers).
10 Steps to Starting Your Next Career
“That’s something that is almost accidental at the beginning of a career, but the more you write, the more trained you are to recognize the little signals.” – Stephen King
If you want to know what your next career might be, then start experimenting. That means starting a side business, blog, or volunteering at local organizations. You have to take action on what you think will make you happy, so you can find out if this potential career will fulfill your needs.
You have to visualize your goal. Feel it. See yourself working on the small steps to make this goal a reality.
If your best guess isn’t right, I guarantee that you will get closer to meeting your needs after failing. It’s the best way to discover your next career.
Fail, adjust and try something new.
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The Subconscious Connection Exercise
Have you ever had trouble making a decision?
Everyone has. There are usually so many factors to a tough decision you don’t even know where to begin.
So instead of beginning, you procrastinate.
I’ve created a simple exercise that has helped my coaching clients as well as myself make a tough decision a little easier.
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How to Create Emotional Space at Work
Building an emotional buffer is vital to surviving the working world. If we take every complaint, compliment and comment to heart we get too caught up in our emotions. When we are attached to how we feel we get pushed around by the most dominant emotion.
Anger
I had an old boss that was an emotional roller coaster. Every day was a new type of ride. A lot of times I had trouble interpreting her emails. For example I sent her an update on a project that I’ve been working on for the past couple weeks. I thought it was thorough and quite good.
She did not see it this way.
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A Hard Look at Your Career
I recently asked you to look at how you really want to feel while you work. I was pleasantly surprised by the reactions in the comment section. One comment was almost as long as the original post.
Too often we don’t think about how we really want to feel and what it takes to make this a reality. We put our heads down and keep ignoring what is happening in our careers.
I know this is the technique very well, I used it for the longest time. Ignorance is bliss, right?
It is until you keep grinding and you look up and realize how much you dislike your life and career. That’s when your life is spinning so fast and out of control that you don’t know how to make it stop.
If you are unhappy at work you need to create a plan to change this.
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How do You Really want to Feel while you work?
Until you understand how you really want to feel you are running in the dark.
Believe me it hurts.
When you know how you want to feel then you can work backwards to reach this goal.
I struggled with my work happiness for the longest time because I thought that no one listened to my ideas, which was partially true. But it was also my fault because I didn’t believe in my own ideas. I didn’t fight to make them a reality. I let other people dictate my day instead of going after my own happiness.
You have to look at what brings you the most happiness and fight for it.
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Work is Killing You and 10 Ways to Stop It From Happening!
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from Gus Zambrano.
Every morning, you awaken to a new day and you launch into your familiar routines as you hustle to meet your daily obligations.
Ideally, your work excites you, energizes you, and brings joy to your life. If your work brings you more stress and fatigue than joy then now is the time to make some changes. You can introduce a renewed vigor into your work and upgrade your attitude.
You know that taking care of yourself should be your number one priority. Yet you often let your health and fitness levels fall by the wayside if you are consistently working 50 or more hours a week.
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