Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Jon Rhodes

Timeboxing is a clever little technique that I have been intuitively using for years before I even knew it had  name. It is great for helping those who are working for themselves to avoid procrastination and get things done.

In a nutshell, it is giving yourself a deadline in which to complete a task, then doing it to the best you can with the time you have available. Here is an example of how I use this technique with my daughter to encourage her to tidy her room.

Examples Of Timeboxing

My daughter is 13 and not the tidiest of creatures, so her room is often a “tip”. When faced with the task it can understandably be daunting, and she doesn’t want to tackle it. However I have solved this by saying to her I will time her and she has only 10 minutes to make it as good as she can. It’s like a challenge, a sort of a game. I say you don’t need to finish it, just make it as good as you can in 10 minutes.

This makes her happier because she knows that she won’t be spending hours laboriously tidying. It’s only 10 minutes. Plus it makes it more fun as there is a game element to it, plus she will get praise for how much she has accomplished in such a short space of time. Every time we have done this she finished tidying her room and it is immaculate. It’s amazing what you can do with this technique.

Recently my wife got up late (around 11am) and needed to do her college homework, then go into town to buy a Christmas present. She also had college early that evening, so didn’t have a great deal of time to play with. I suggested to her that she does an hour homework right now, then we will go into town together and pick a present, then go to lunch. Although her homework was only half complete, we were eating lunch by 1pm with a present on the floor next to us. By 2.30pm we were home and she had more time to finish her homework. What could have been an unpleasant and stressful day was turned into a nice day with some leisure time, plus she achieved her objectives.  Without this technique she could have instead spent the day worrying, and getting little done.

Applications To Work

You can use timeboxing to help you with almost any given task. If your desk is untidy, then you might give yourself 10 minutes to make it look as good as you can. A big stack of filing can be made into a game if you give yourself 20 minutes to file as many as you can.

You can also use it to write articles, which is what I often do. Of course you want to write high quality articles (or at least I hope you do!), but this is OK. You can give yourself a realistic time line to complete a draft of an article. Somewhere around 2 hours is good. Then once it is finished, you can take a break, or give yourself some sort of a reward, before re-drafting. You may even want to give yourself a time limit for each redraft. I don’t seem to need to do this, as when I have finished an article, I actively enjoy the process of redrafting – sad I know! The point is that we are all different, and as you get to know yourself better, you will use this technique more and more effectively.

Why Timeboxing Works

Timeboxing works because it helps you get started with something, instead of worrying about how you are going to do it. It also helps bypass the pressures of perfectionism, which can hamper us from starting, continuing, and finishing a task. Jobs that at first appear intimidating can seem far simpler with timeboxing.

About the Author

Jon Rhodes is a clinical hypnotherapist, plus a successful internet marketer in the hypnotherapy field. In his blog he shares some of his secrets. Find more of his tips for successful business on his blog Affiliate Help.

* Image courtesy of KWDesigns

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

I’m getting very tired of people not believing in their superpowers. It’s why I hate the word strengths. It’s the most overused word in business today.

We focus on things we are good at instead of doing work that we care about.

You may crunch numbers because you are good at it. You may sell toner because it’s what you know. You manage projects because people keep asking you to do it again and again.

This is so wrong on many levels. You shouldn’t be doing work based on your strengths. Yes, this should be a factor, but not the whole basis of your work. It’s also why I hate strengths test. They don’t make you think about the work that excites you. They force you to fit your work into square holes.

You have powers to change people’s lives.

It’s why we are here – to affect people by making their lives better.

The only way you are going to change people’s lives it to do work that you are good at, you care about and gets you in the zone. It’s why I created the Unlock Your (Marketing) Superpowers manifesto. There are people that are using their superpowers to change the world. It’s this connection that brings them more joy than they ever thought possible.

You need all three factors. If you don’t care and you just want to coast so be it, but it’s the worst way of living. Of course you need down time; you can’t create 24/7 or even 8/7. You need to find your time that gets you in your hot zones. Those zones when you can’t do any wrong. You must feel like your work is just plain fun.

When we are kids we learned by experimenting, failing, then trying again. We didn’t care about perfection. Then there was this point that we got it in our heads that failure is bad. We gain this conscious that holds us back from using our superpowers. We stop believing in the infinite and start limiting our imaginations.

You have to stop letting your arch nemesis hold you back. YOU HAVE SUPERPOWERS. It’s these powers that you need to share with the world.

It’s really not that hard. It takes a little work each day, but it’s the fun type of work.

Ask yourself these 3 questions:

1. What type of work gets you in the zone? (List at least 10)
2. What type of work matters to you? (List at least 10)
3. What type of work comes naturally to you? (List at least 10)

By digging deep into where your past successes are you can find work that will help you unleash your superpowers that will change the world.

Now you look at your list. Which actions show up on all 3 lists? It’s these actions that you have to use every single day.

Your fear may hold you back at first, but just ask yourself, are you using your superpowers to make a difference? Does making this difference matter more than your fears? If the answer is yes you know what you need to do.

If you want to learn more about your superpowers check out my free manifesto – Unlock Your (Marketing) Superpowers. Marketing is in the title because it’s what I help people do. I help them connect with people so they can change the world.

You must start using your superpowers right away otherwise you won’t accomplish the great work that will change lives.

Once you are living your superpowers that’s when your career starts becoming fun. People can leverage your superpowers and you can leverage theirs. That’s the key to a happy career. You learn to trust other people’s superpowers and they trust yours, creating life changing stuff together.

So you need to promise me to find one small task each day that you love to do, gets you in the zone, and comes easy for you then email me [karl (AT) partybizconnect (DOT) com] in one week and let me know how your career/life is improving.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Mike Bundrant of iNLP.

“Do it, Mike! Just do it! Stop your whining and get off your butt!”

This is how I used to motivate myself. I carried around an inner high school football coach to bark at me whenever he thought I was slacking. The problem was, I constantly stressed myself out. Worse, half the time I “rebelled” against this inner dictator and became passive aggressive toward my own goals. How’s that for nutty?

Patterns

Actually, this is a common pattern. A “dictator” style of motivation has an undermining effect in the long run. Most people don’t like to be ordered around. In the workplace it leads to low morale and a low productivity, high-turnover workforce. Dictator-style parents tend to divide families and create harsh rivalries in the home. Ordering yourself around leads to the number one killer of personal development goals: self-sabotage.

Think about it. To your mind and body, a harsh, loud voice ordering you around is jarring, regardless of the source. You respond with stress and resistance whether from an outsider imposing his will or you imposing your will upon yourself. In the end, your brain experiences the commands in a similar fashion. Your mind places a lot less emphasis on the origin of an experience than you may think. All of us can make our mouths water just by imagining a delectable dessert. We’ve all reacted with fear to inner thoughts that had no basis in external reality. Ordering yourself around is being ordered around, period. Chances are, you don’t like it and will shut down, refusing to take any action at all.

The stress and resistance of dictatorial self-motivation is an expressway to self-sabotage. “I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do!” is the common response to inappropriate commands, even when those commands are self-generated. It’s a perfect set up.

A New Way

Zen Motivation changes all this. The need to bark orders and force yourself to do things doesn’t even arise in a Zen motivation state. Motivating yourself to do things, even unpleasant things, is a normal part of living and comes quite naturally when in a more Zen-like state, connected to the present moment. Do this exercise and see what I mean.

1. Consider one thing that you need to motivate yourself to do, such as exercise, pull weeds, meet with a difficult colleague, and so forth. If you can, write down the name of the task in the middle of a piece of paper (if you have a pen and paper).

2. Become aware how you would typically motivate yourself to do this and write down (if you can) the thoughts and feelings that come next. For example, “Get it done!” or “Let’s move!” or “I just have to get this done!” or “Come on, Mike!” or (feelings, too) “Tension in chest and shoulders.” Write freely for a minute or so and don’t censor yourself.

3. Just clear your mind for a few moments. Shake it off.

4. Forget everything and enter a more present, grounded state by tuning into a mundane sound, such as the sound of distant traffic, the hum of your computer (or the white noise of a fan, refrigerator, running water, etc…). Don’t do anything else or try to relax – just tune into the sound. Keep listening for a minute or more, until you feel settled.

5. When you feel more settled, reconsider the task you need to get done. Write it down on a clean sheet of paper and notice the thoughts and feelings that come to your mind and body. Do you notice the difference? In this more calm state, what words can you choose to gently motivate yourself? How much easier is it to avoid ordering yourself around while you are feeling more settled and connected to the outside world?

For managers, the key to motivating employees rests with the quality of the relationship – how well do they treat their employees? Likewise, the key to motivating yourself is correlated with how well you treat yourself. Zen motivation allows you to motivate yourself from a more grounded, connected state. When you do, your tendency to order yourself around will vanish and your productivity will increase. Best of all, you’ll be respecting yourself more.

Mike Bundrant is an NLP trainer with the iNLP Center. Visit iNLP for a free personal development mini course and learn more about the Zen Motivation Twitter Party.

Image courtesy of phoeric.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Almost everyone loves the story of the tortoise and the hare. It’s a classic.

I hate it!

It’s too limiting.

If everyone thinks of themselves at the tortoise, nothing would get done. Yes, I understand the story’s concept. If you stick with something you’ll win the marathon in the end.

The rabbit has the superpower of speed and that’s great, but like any great strength he lacks passion and focus. This is where I actually love the book.

Yes, I admit. I love the book too!

Superpowers

The book makes the perfect case for making better use of your superpowers. If you love something it doesn’t mean you should actually make a career out of it because it may not be a strength of yours.

As you know I don’t like people who just center on their strengths. They forget about the passion and the focus that it takes do great work.

Too often we think that because we love something that we can turn it into a strength. This is possible, but usually very painful.

You wouldn’t tell a 10^th grader with weak math skills to stick with it and try to become an engineer. The same thing goes for a 10^th grader who hates math, but is good at. You would tell a 10^th grader who has great math skills and is interested in the concepts to try to become an engineer because they have strength and passion to make it happen.

Aesop should have focused on the rabbit’s lack of focus and passion. I know it wouldn’t have made such an inspiring story. Even though it would have been more true to life.

Your perspective

When you look at yourself as the tortoise you are conceding that you don’t have the speed to keep up, but you hope that everyone around you falters. This negative perspective will hold you back. There are plenty of rabbits out there who are passionate and focused. You can’t rely on other people to falter to win the race.

You have to look at yourself as a rabbit. Look at what core superpowers you possess and how you can do work that you are passionate about and gets you in the zone. It’s these powers that will help you create a career that brings happiness and success.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Whenever I’m asked to interview someone I only do it if I have a burning desire to ask that person a certain question. Peter Buffett fell into this category, so when his publicist contacted me about a possible interview I jumped on it.

I wanted to ask Peter if people were jealous that his family was rich. Being the son of Warren Buffett one of the most famous people on the planet can draw a lot of attention, positive and negative, so I was curious about his experiences.

I was amazed by Peter’s grounded nature and willingness to think before he speaks. I should have known he would be a great interview.

I recorded the interview for all of you to listen to:

Click here to listen to the Peter Buffett interview

(Right click to download the audio to your computer for later use.)

Some of the highlights in the Peter Buffett interview is:

• Happiness comes not from where you are, but your take on life.
• Money doesn’t fill those empty holes.
• Pay attention or pay with tension.
• No matter how good we think someone else has it they struggle too.
• Everyone has something to teach you. As long as you are willing to listen you will walk away from any interaction a better person.

The audio is a lot better than my highlights, so check it out when you have a chance. There are some really good gems in there to help your career and life.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Editor’s note: this is a guest post from Kaley Klemp the Co-Author of The Drama-Free Office

It’s gossip, turf wars, water cooler talk, and the chronic complainer no one can stand. When you talk with people about the organizations they work for, it’s common to hear about the “Drama” plaguing their companies: the energy-draining behaviors that keep people from focusing on the creative projects and basic business practices that make the company successful.

If we could just get through the drama, the business decisions and real work isn’t that hard…

Blame Game

It’s easy to blame drama on others.  After all, you’re the good guy in these dynamics; why don’t they get it?  One of the most difficult challenges for aspiring leaders is to “own their stuff”—to acknowledge that they are equally responsible for creating any situation where drama exists.

I learned this lesson working on a writing project with another author – my dad. He had some great ideas that I was happy to work with. But then he became controlling. It was easy for me to see how things were falling apart – and it was his fault! He was the one who wasn’t listening. He was the one who was setting impossible deadlines. I was ready to take all I knew about eliminating drama and apply it to him.

Four Energy-draining Personalities

Most drama is caused by four primary energy-draining personalities that sabotage workplace collaboration and synergy:

• Complainer
• Controller
• Cynic
• Caretaker.

The Complainer is the one who is never at fault – not enough time, resources or support. The Controller has to be in charge – perhaps micromanaging, sometimes being the bully. The Cynic must be right; often pointing out how others’ ideas will never work and making fun of the person who brought it up. The Caretaker wants to be liked so much that they say yes to everything, which becomes a problem when they bite off more than they can chew and they miss deadlines.

Like me, most people want to start with the question: how do I help others change? But, we have found that before you can guide others, you have to take inventory of your interaction strengths and the ways you sabotage relationships. The strength inventory is usually easy. It’s fun to appreciate your talent and amazing ability to do what you do. The sabotage inventory is more difficult. It requires the vulnerability and courage to seek others’ candid observations and advice about your behavior.

Watch Yourself

Taking my own advice, I asked myself what my part was in creating the drama. I wondered which Drama personalities I was using that were sabotaging us. I noticed how I had fallen into Complainer. I didn’t have enough time to do everything he asked and his requests were too hard. I realized that I would have micromanaged someone acting the way I was. Then I saw my Cynic. The enthusiasm I had at the beginning of the project had become critical… I saw everything wrong with what we were doing, but didn’t offer any suggestions to change. Once I saw myself in these drama roles, I could shift into taking responsibility – renegotiating our deadlines and making suggestions for how we could change the writing to be better.

By identifying and correcting the four drama roles (Complainer, Controller, Cynic, Caretaker), you are well on your way to eliminating drama. If you want even more clarity, invite your work colleagues, family members, and friends to give you timely, direct feedback.

Quick Drama Reducing Tips

Here is a quick way to start looking at how these drama roles show up for you.  Ask friends and coworkers:

• Where do you see me complaining? Not taking responsibility for my situation?
• Where do you see me controlling? Taking over and micromanaging?
• Where do you see be being cynical? Discounting others or being sarcastic?
• Where do you seem me care-taking? Rescuing others instead of letting them do things on their own?

You can also take a free drama assessment for yourself. Let me know what you find out about yourself. And what can you do to change?

Kaley Klemp and Jim Warner are the authors of The Drama-Free Office: A Guide to Healthy Collaboration with Your Team, Coworkers, and Boss.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Editor’s note: this is a guest post from Michael Schnippering of Feng Shui at Work.

Feng Shui helps with a variety of different problems. It can even help with problems in the business. They give many tips on how to make a business successful and stay successful.

For example, Andrew was a small business owner who complained about having lost his level of concentration. “It all started quickly after I moved into his new office,” Andrew said.  His desk was split by two different magnetic chi fields resulting in migraines. His loss of concentration was caused by Andrew not sitting in one of his supporting directions. We moved his desk according to the principles of Feng Shui, and shortly after Andrew felt relief from the negative effects which had impacted his energies before.

1. It is good to have good back support for the back in the desk chair. Lack of support creates unneeded stress on your back. This could make a person fill strained and irritable. This could make business meetings and meeting with clients very unbearable. Good back support in desk chairs prevents these problems from occurring.

2. All clutter should be cleared from office space. Clutter brings bad Feng Shui to the office. Clutter creates confusion and chaos. It also creates unneeded and unwanted stress. Everything should be filed away and organized to help make a business successful. This also helps a person remain stress free in the work environment. Being clutter free also helps a person stay on top of their products and businesses.

3. A person should set up their office the way they feel more comfortable. Each person has their own success set up. Many Feng Shui websites tell a person their ideal set up. Having the proper set up will ensure success because the person feels relaxed in their own setting. They are more confident and ready to face everything that comes their way.

4. Placing a small potted healthy plant on the desk is a very good idea. Many healthy plants have been known to absorb toxins that are in the air. Many toxins make a person sick and unable to work. There are many healthy plans that are known as money plants. These plants are believed to ward off negative situations that may come into the person’s office.

5. A person should never set their desk facing someone another person’s desk. This leads to bad Feng Shui. It could also lead to many arguments and complications. This is especially vital to people who share an office. If they want to get along better, they need to remember not to have their desks face each other.

6. It is not a good idea to use brightly lit lights in an office. The bright lights can make a person become irritable. It can also make them work very impulsive. Lights on flat ceilings are better for lighting than ones that are dimensional.

7. A person should always keep their office space and their bedroom space separated. The bedroom is a place to sleep, and mixing it up with office space can cause insomnia or the person to be increasingly sleepy while working. If a person has to set up their office in their bedroom, they should set up a divider between the desk and the bed. This keeps both separate enough to avoid causing any problems.

8. A person should hang crystals around their office. Crystals absorb negative energies in the work space. This ensures many smooth days at work. Putting crystals on the person’s desk makes this outcome more likely.

9. It is best to only use one door in a person’s office. Even if the person has more than one door, they should keep all doors but they one they want to enter closed. This is the Feng Shui method of keeping money coming in, but not leaving.

10. A person should always carry a Jade Cicada around with them, especially in their office. The Jade Cicada keeps away confrontations in the office. It is also known to be a great source of good luck in the office.

There are many other Feng Shui methods that work well in the office space. They can be found anywhere you look online. These are some of the common ones. They are proven to work very well. Feng Shui is also been proven to help more than just office and work problems as well.

Comments? Doubts? Ask us on Twitter @fengshuiatwork

BIO: Michael Schnippering is the founder of Feng Shui at Work. After more than 12 years of practice he is committed to the true art and science of Feng Shui.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

I’m afraid of failure. I’m not so afraid of failure that my creativity locks up. I have a popular blog, social media accounts, and I’ve interviewed superheroes in the business world. I’m putting stuff out into the world to help people, but I’m still holding back.

I recently hopped on Twitter tried to think of something cool and insightful, gave up and went to watch an old episode of The Office. Then as I watched the episode my arch nemesis was whispering at me for being so lame and worthless. I hate when that little voice inside me whispers to me instead of screams. It’s so much harder to ignore him. Why is that?

Still Nothing

I turned off the TV, hopped back on Twitter and still nothing came to me.

I’ve been afraid to tell you my insecurities for fear of you thinking I’m a fraud. I’m a fraud who teaches work happiness, but can’t seem to find any happiness myself.

Then when I was at my lowest and ready to give up I realized something profound. The whole point of a career/business is to find people who love our ideas, love our work, and love what we do. It’s that simple.

Ok it’s simple to say, but so very hard to do.

Born This Way

I’ve found that I am what I am. As Lady Gaga likes to say, “BornThisWay.”

I can tell you about my childhood, complaining about what went wrong or I can own this life and not apologize for who I am.

You need to own your career and not be afraid to be you.  You are you because of many reasons, but denying these reasons is pointless.

You have superpowers that are probably underutilized. It’s your job to figure out how to utilize them more efficiently.

The Reality

I felt like I was searching in all the wrong places, but really I’ve been heading in the right direction without even knowing it. It’s amazing how the subconscious mind has desires and the ability to act on them. I’m an expert in work happiness because I lived in the trenches. I still live in the trenches and every now and again I get out and enjoy the moment. It’s these insights that I bring to you because I’ve been there and I know how to help you.

I’m not the perfect business coach. I have a lot of faults, but that doesn’t mean I’m not good at what I do.

You have faults too, but it can’t stop you from using our superpowers. Tim Brownson wrote about this here. It’s not about the faults that you have. You can’t focus on these. You need to concentrate on your skills that you are passionate about, get you in the zone, and play to your strengths.

Your Turn

You may be here because you feel that you’ve been heading in the wrong direction, but in reality you aren’t that far from your happiness. All that needs to happen is a small shift in your thinking and actions.

You probably are like me and don’t realize how far you’ve come and how many superpowers you’ve accumulated over the years.

Take a look at what you’ve accomplished. How your superpowers have helped build a business, support clients, and teach new methods that have saved people hundreds of hours of time.

You are probably doing a lot of good things that you can add on to and leverage into a happier career.

What small tweak can you make that will help you use more of your superpowers in your career/business?

* I’ve been much happier helping people supercharge their business instead of their career. It plays more to my superpowers. Plus throwing Twitter parties are so much fun. Finding my career happiness has been a nonstop journey. It’s why you can’t give up because once you find your career groove it’s like sliding on warm butter.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Lisa H. (aka RunningBear) of Getting to Zen

If you charge for your work, then you know the dilemma between charging hourly versus charging by the project. There are arguments for and against both. For example, if you charge by the project, you could end up doing a lot more work than the project is worth and if you charge by the hour, you many lose clients to the variability of the cost. Knowing the personality type of the persons you are working with can not only help you in deciding how to charge for your efforts but make your working relationships a whole lot smoother.

The project

When most of my clients ask me to design a web site, I quote them a price, design the site and post it for review a few days later. For the most part, the design elements (layout, font, colors, pictures) are left to me. And so when Tom, whom I had designed four club web sites for in this way came to me and asked me to design one for his company, I quoted a price and off I went.

The players

Tom was happy with the final design, however, Sara, who I had not met and seemed to be in charge of the project, was not. She gave me a few pointers and with that I designed a second site. The same thing happened. Tom was happy with it and Sara once again was not. Now, instead of designing one site for the quoted price, I had designed two and would have to design a third to satisfy her.

The drama

After a phone conversation with Sara, I realized that she wanted the project to be more of a collaborative effort. Not only did she have a specific way that she worked, but she had a specific vision of how she wanted the site to look. Sara wanted to select the layout, fonts, colors, images and image were used and then get input from everyone else in the company.

The awakening

After speaking with Sara, I knew that even after the third site was created there could be several more changes to it. I had already put in double the work I had expected and was beginning to feel taken advantage of.

The epiphany

And then it occurred to me that Sara wasn’t trying to make the project difficult. We worked differently and she was just being herself. In that instant I knew I would needed to change my approach to the work. The next day I sent an email to the company telling them that from now on, I would charge hourly. Problem solved.

The resolution

This way Sara could ask me to make as many changes as she wanted to and I would not mind because I knew that I would get compensated for making them.

What I learned is how important it is to know the personality type of those who you work with. According to the SELF profile by National Press Publications, there are four broad types of personalities in the business world.

I have provided a snapshot of each of them below.

Do you know which one you fit into most? How about your coworkers?

“S” Personalities

Type: creative, enthusiastic, sociable, impatient, gregarious involved

Strengths: original, conceptual, warm, approachable, flexible

Weaknesses: unrealistic, devious, impractical, undisciplined, uncontrolled

Preferences: adventure, fun, excitement, getting to the point

Allow sociable people the flexibility to be creative. They seek recognition. Reward their work with enthusiasm. Make sure they get lots of credit and respect their need to be social.

“E” Personalities

Type: task-oriented, results-focused, action-oriented, workaholic, hard charging

Strengths: pragmatic, assertive, directive, competitive, confident, open to options

Weaknesses: domineering, arrogant, status-seeking

Preference: The bottom line

Take advantage of this personality types need to be in control and clean up messes. When business gets bad, they are the ones to call on.

“L” Personalities

Type: emotional, caring introspection, melancholy, sympathetic, diplomatic

Strengths: persuasive, probing, loyal, warm, sensitive, supportive

Weakness: Impulsive, procrastinating, subjective, overcautious

Preference: no threat or conflict, avoids making decisions or risking offending others

Treat this personality type fairly, supportively and openly. Compromise and strive for consensus. They are team players and want what is best for everyone.

“F” Personalities

Type: analytical, logical, self controlled, detail oriented, aloof, skeptical, conservative

Strengths: perfectionist, well-organized, objective, relational, conceptual, persistent

Weakness: withdrawn, sullen, dull, shy, passive

Preference: facts, figures, proof, thoroughness

Acknowledge this personality type’s expertise. Give them factual data and be consistent. Provide them with well-thought out plans of action.

While reading through the personality types you may have found that you fit into more than one category. This is common. We all have traits of each of the personality types; however, one is usually dominant. Remember, no one personality type is better than the other, they are just different. Keep this article in mind the next time you encounter someone, it will make your relating to them a whole lot easier.

Lisa H. (aka RunningBear) is the founder of Getting to Zen-a personal development blog dedicated to those in pursuit of authentic happiness through purposeful living. You can sign up for her RSS feed or follow her on Twitter.

Image courtesy of Ghostboy.

Download the Free eBook Work Happy the Google Way * Post from: Work Happy Now!

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Barry Demp of Demp Coaching

In the military, rather than waiting passively for the enemy to attack, you attack first – this is called a pre-emptive strike.

The pre-emptive strike isn’t just useful in the military, though: it’s also a powerful technique that I use with my coaching clients in the business world.

You may have certain high-maintenance employees and co-workers who tend to interrupt a lot and ruin your momentum. Maybe you get a phone call, or they pop into your office – however the interruption comes, it breaks your flow. This is when a pre-emptive strike is warranted.

Why Interruptions Are So Disruptive

If you think back to your physics lessons, you’ll remember that something in motion tends to stays in motion – but something that starts and stops loses its momentum. This is exactly what happens to you when your work day is constantly interrupted.

Think of driving a vehicle. If you drive 200 miles without stopping, your gas mileage will be pretty good. But if you drive 200 miles and have to start and stop at lights, because of traffic, and so on … it’ll take much longer and your gas mileage will be much worse.

How to Conduct a Pre-Emptive Strike Against Interruptions

Identify the time thieves of your day, particularly when they happen to be people. Which clients phone you eight times a day? Which colleagues constantly want your advice?

Find out who those folks are and proactively engage them on your timeline. If they usually call at 10:00AM,  consider establishing a time earlier in the day to discuss a mutually agreed upon list of tasks and priorities.

I was coaching a woman who was an executive at a public relations firm and she had a very high-maintenance marketing director at an automotive supplier. Although she spent a good portion of the day working on his project, he would call five or more times a day and interrupt her.

We introduced a pre-emptive strike: she would have a call with him first thing in the morning and tell him in detail what they were doing for him and his account. She’d also ask whether there was anything else he needed from her. After that conversation, he was out of ammunition: there was nothing more he wanted, expected or needed. He was satisfied knowing that his needs – and his whims – were being taken care of.

How the Pre-Emptive Strike Can Help

A pre-emptive strike allows you and your client or colleague to prepare a list of needs  or problems to discuss: instead of having to deal with those things throughout the day, you can ask people to save them for when you’re going to meet.

Many times, your pre-emptive strike strategy will help others to solve their own problems: they may come up with their own ideas rather than turning straight to you.

We’re all time-crunched and pulled in so many directions – let’s have every interaction be as meaningful and effective as possible.

Pre-Emptive Strikes Aren’t Just For Work

You can use pre-emptive strikes in your personal life, too. For instance, if you have family members who call you when you get home and just want to relax, try calling them first, while you’re driving home. That way, Mom or Dad won’t call in the middle of your favorite TV show.

What if Your High-Maintenance Client / Colleague Isn’t Responsive?

You won’t eliminate interruptions by using the pre-emptive strike – but you can create some boundaries and agreements.

For instance, you could tell people “I’m really busy today and won’t be available by phone, but you’re welcome to send a text or email.” If they still interrupt, you can ask them “Can it wait?” and encourage them to work through the issues on their own.

You may need to introduce two or three pre-emptive strikes: first thing in the morning, just before lunch, and at the end of the day for closure. Three phone calls are still better than ten!

By being proactive and using a pre-emptive strike – instead of being reactive and constantly being interrupted – you’re able to take better control of your day.

Do you have a high-maintenance client, colleague or family member? What are you going to do to take back control?

Barry Demp is a highly-skilled Michigan Business and Personal coach. He specializes in helping small business owners, executives, consultants and other professionals to boost their productivity, profitability, and life balance.

Image courtesy of Chris_Britton

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