Attention

Listen Up!

Are you a great listener?  For some this comes so naturally – for others, we get caught up in our own world and find it difficult to really listen to others.  Time to check in with ourselves!

There are three levels of listening.  

1. Surface listening.  This is when you’re distracted and not really paying attention.  You know that you’re doing this when the person talking to you keeps repeating themselves.  Whether you’re on the phone or in person, talking to someone and checking email, cleaning the kitchen or folding laundry.  You think you’re multi-tasking, you’re actually disrespecting the… Continue reading

Blah Blah Blah

Do you have any “talkers” in your life?  You know what I mean, people who just keep talking and won’t let you get a word in?  We’ve all got them, at work, at home, neighbors, friends, even people we run into at the grocery store!  What do you do when you’ve got to actually communicate something?  Check out these tips to see what might work:

Tip 1:  Remember, when dealing with a talker it’s about them, not about you.  They want to be heard and won’t be… Continue reading

Self Promotion

When you look at that phrase “self promotion” what comes to mind?  Bragging?  Arrogant?  Something your mother told you not to do?

Facts are facts – if you’re not going to promote yourself, who is?  To get ahead in business, whether you’re in a corporate environment or own your own… Continue reading

Interruptions

Do you ever get interrupted when you’re trying to get something done?  Have you ever not been interrupted when you’ve tried to get something done?

I read a scary statistic the other day.  An office worker is productive, working on a task, activity or project, on average  1 ½ hours per 8 hour workday.   The rest of the time is spent on email, phone calls, meetings, chatting, looking for files, surfing the net, staring into space, going to the restroom, you name it.

Increasing your productivity is not that hard.  The last post had tips to help you with… Continue reading

Negative Attitudes

I surveyed a group of managers and supervisors recently to be ready for my first day of training with the group.  The question was:  “What is your single biggest frustration that you find at work?”  The most frequent answer was – negative attitudes at work.  

When you work with someone who has a negative attitude it’s a drag.  You don’t want to go anywhere near that person.  You may walk on egg shells because you don’t know what might come out of their mouth.  
 
Managers and supervisors can’t have a negative attitude.  You know how you feel… Continue reading