Happy Thanksgiving
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A happy and blessed Thanksgiving to family and friends in the U.S.
“Develop an ‘attitude of gratitude.’ Say thank you to everyone you meet for everything they do for you.” — Brian Tracy
“There is no better opportunity to receive more than to be thankful for what you already have. Thanksgiving opens the windows of opportunity for ideas to flow you way.” — Jim Rohn
“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all others.” — Marcus Cicero
“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” — William Arthur Ward
email2friend 5 Time Management Lies
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Posted in Productivity
Within the world of work flow and productivity, there are a number of common lies we use to fool others and ourselves. It’s not that we’re deliberately trying to mislead, it’s just that we feel a need to sugar-coat the requests we’re making.
To avoid the time traps they cause, here are five time-management lies to avoid:
This will just take a minute. Has anyone asked for your help with that line? Does it ever just take a minute? Rarely. Even if the task itself takes only a minute, the interruption to your work flow will probably be fifteen minutes.
I want this now. In our “always on” world, we are under a sense of artificial pressure to get it done [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend How to Say that Name.com
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As follow-up to my previous post, here is a useful resource.
A comment from Elizabeth Bojang points to the website, How to Say that Name.com. From the front page,
Have you ever picked up the phone to call someone, only to realize that you didn’t know how to pronounce that person’s name? Have you ever read a name but had no clue how to say it? Is your name commonly mispronounced? If you have ever been in any of these situations, we have the solution for you. Our database lets you learn how to pronounce names as a native speaker would say them. Not sure how to pronounce the name “Nguyen”? Listen to a native Vietnamese speaker pronounce it. If you can’t find a [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend 10 Tricks to Help Remember Names
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Posted in Communication
There was a doctor by the name of Bradey, who had a difficult patient by the name of Mrs. Hall. She was forever getting his name wrong and calling him Doctor Brodey. No matter how often he corrected her, she got it wrong.
One visit he was more annoyed than usual, and was a short-tempered as he corrected her, once again. She became defensive and asked what difference it made.
The doctor replied, “Mrs. Hell, it makes a hall of a difference!”
Okay, that’s not the greatest joke in the world, but we are sensitive about our names. Everybody wants to be seen as an individual, to feel special and respected. When you use a person’s preferred name, you honour them [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend What is motivation?
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Posted in Motivation
Like most complex subjects, motivation can be reduced to a simple definition. However, if being motivated was that simple, everyone would be motivated all the time. For many of us, it’s a few minutes to define, but a lifetime of practice.
Motivation is a your ability to find the energy to achieve a chosen goal. There are two types of motivation:
Intrinsic - The desire to do something for the sake of doing it. Example: reading a book because you find it interesting.
Extrinsic - Completing a task to receive a reward or avoid punishment. Example: reading a book because you don’t want to fail the exam.
These two types of motivation affect your choices. Are the goals you’re trying to [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend Monday Motivation Quote - November 24
“How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these.” —George Washington Carver
email2friend Discover Your Blog Myers-Briggs Type
You know about the Myers Briggs Personality Test? Well, now there’s a version of that for blogs. Visit Typealyzer, enter the URL of your blog, and see what you get.
Ian’s Messy Desk is ESTP - The Doers
The active and play-ful type. They are especially attuned to people and things around them and often full of energy, talking, joking and engaging in physical out-door activities.
The Doers are happiest with action-filled work which craves their full attention and focus. They might be very impulsive and more keen on starting something new than following it through. They might have a problem with sitting still or remaining inactive for any period of time.
Hopefully ESTP can co-exist with ISFP, because that’s what I am. 
Apparently, these parts of my [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend Understanding Retail-Sales Speak
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Posted in Friday Funny
Many of you are up to your neck in Christmas shopping. One week from today is Black Friday, a day of shopping madness. As you are out and about in stores, use this handy guide to help you understand what retail-sales clerks really mean.
1. “Can I help you find a size?”
(Don’t touch that, I just spent an hour folding it and I don’t need your hands messing it up again.)
2. “Do you need help with anything?”
(Quick, my manager is coming around the corner and I need to look busy.)
3. “Welcome to __________”
(Good, another customer to mess up my entire store just to buy a pair of socks.)
4. “Have a nice day!”
(Now that you ruined mine.)
5. “Thank you [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend Prepare for the Holidays by Purging Your Possessions
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Posted in The Simple Life
One of the key parts of the holiday season is giving and receiving gifts. How that plays out in your life, depends on the degree of simplicity you embrace. Unless you have decided against gift-giving altogether—and some do—you’ll find yourself with a new load of things. With all the stuff will come the need to find storage. A simple step is to designate some time in the fall to sort through your possessions and get rid of things you now longer need. This will free up space for what you will receive at Christmas.
Reduce the amount of stuff you have by examining each item you own and asking yourself if you really need it. Look at an item [...] Continue Reading…
email2friend 101 Tips for Getting Organized
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Posted in Productivity
Many of these tips come from Smead, with a smattering of mine thrown in for good measure.
Get Started
Generally, the most difficult step in getting organized is getting started.
1. Analyze your situation or hire a professional organizer
2. Research storage options
3. Choose organizing products you like
4. Consider daily activities
5. Know why you want to get organized
6. Set long-term and short-term goals
7. Develop a system for paper flow
8. Keep your organizing simple
9. Learn how to throw things away
10. Plan ahead
Enhance Your Organization Skills
You need a consistent approach to organizing.
11. Spend a few minutes each day organizing
12. Write down “how to” instructions
13. Create a comfortable environment to work in
14. Don’t throw too much away
15. Organize gradually
16. Stay ahead of yourself
17. Admit [...] Continue Reading…
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