Never Stop Learning

 

Do you think people really mean it when they say we learn something new every day?  They should.  Too often we treat the learning process as something with a specific end to it.  We tend to say we "went to school" or "received our education".  That sounds like we are done learning!  Often in fact we hardly begin learning about life until we are finished with our formal education.  Perhaps we need to think of our education as an ongoing process not something that we have completed in the past.  We really can learn something new every day, and, we should.  Think about what you will learn today!

Volume

 

Does it help for anger and frustration to be expressed through increased volume? Do strong leaders become loud to convey important facts? Is yelling truly a better way to communicate urgency? I suggest the answer to all of these questions is no.

 

Yet, despite knowing this, I do not always live that way. It is a very human reaction to “get loud” in certain circumstances. Other than large crowds or great distances, and of course sporting events, what good is loud screaming? The person you are communicating with was probably hearing you just fine before you got emotional and turned up the volume.

 

Sure, voice inflection and some degree of volume change can be used in communicating a message, but outright yelling? Not at all. Communication with excess volume can foster anger and disrespect. It can undermine good leadership. It is demeaning and degrading to the listener. Next time you feel the urge to get loud, pause and ask yourself if it really necessary?

Fans

 

It is an exciting time of year for sports fans. Baseball is heading to the playoffs, the NFL is building momentum, and college football is in full swing. Fans are sporting their favorite teams gear, yelling at TVs, and sweating their fantasy line-ups. They are passionate, invested, and all bought in.

Are your employees or team members passionate fans of your company or organization? Think about that. Imagine if they felt the same level of excitement about your business as they do for their favorite sports team. What would it be like to have a team full of dedicated, passionate fans?

This is likely easier said than done. I mean it is work, and it does not include cold beer and wings. It is also way more than just branded gear and a company happy hour. True fans are invested. They feel like they have something at stake, and they feel a tie to their team.  We should want employees and team members to feel that way. We want them to be all in on our team winning.

Are your employees rabid fans of your business?

Tweaking Your Trajectory

 

Where is your current trajectory taking you?  The ongoing process of self-improvement is all about trajectory.  We owe it to ourselves to check our current direction and see if we are headed where we want!  This requires honesty, transparency, and objective self-analysis. Whether this process is pleasant or not, we should take it seriously. Some changes require significant admissions and major life changes.  However, for many of us our trajectory just needs to be tweaked.  We need to slightly increase our positive habits and back off the more negative ones. Just because they are only tweaks does not mean they will be easy.  Change is hard.  Bad habits are hard to break, and good ones are difficult to become routine.  Change is how you alter the direction your life is taking.

 

Think about where you are headed and ask yourself these questions. Are you happy with that direction? Could your trajectory use some adjustments?