PROACTIVE CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE

2012 #gratitude makes us feel good

2011-12-31T23:59:00.001-08:00

Mental sunshine will cause the flowers of peace, happiness, and prosperity to grow upon the face of the Earth. Be a creator of mental sunshine.

- Graffitti on a wall in Berkeley, California

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The Deepening Journey

2011-12-22T19:27:00.001-08:00

What amazes me is that before we can count we are taught to be grateful for what others do. As we are broken open by our experience, we begin to be grateful for what is, and if we live long enough and deep enough and authentically enough, gratitude becomes a way of life.

- MARK NEPO

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The Practices of Gratitude

2011-12-15T20:30:00.001-08:00

Beginning to tune in to even the minutest feelings of... gratitude softens us... If we begin to acknowledge these moments and cherish them... then no matter how fleeting and tiny this good heart may seem, it will gradually, at its own speed, expand.

- Pema Chodron

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Life Is a Miracle

2011-12-05T17:28:00.001-08:00

The Zen master Ling Chi said that the miracle is not to walk on burning charcoal or in the thin air or on the water; the miracle is just to walk on earth. You breath in. You become aware of the fact that you are alive. You are still alive and you are walking on this beautiful planet... The greatest of all miracles is to be alive. - Thich Nhat Hanh

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Not to be forgotten

2011-11-14T20:09:00.001-08:00

Sometimes our thoughts turn back toward a corner in a forest, or the end of a bank, or an orchard powdered with flowers, seen but single time yet remaining in our hearts and leaving in soul and body an unappeased desire which is not to be forgotten, a feeling we have just rubbed elbows with happiness. - Guy De Maupassant

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Gratitude

2011-11-10T17:43:00.001-08:00

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. - Melody Beattie

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Thoughts on the Gifts of a Lifetime - William Gates SR.

2011-10-16T19:03:00.001-07:00

Life is the ulitmate teacher, but it is usually through experience and not scientific research that we discover its deeper lessons. We are all here for a single purpose: to grow in wisdom and learn to love. We can do this through losing as well as through winning, by having and by not having, by succeeding or by failing. All we need to do is to show up openhearted for class... So fulfilling life's purpose may depend more on how we play than what we are dealt. You have to be present to win.

The message, perhaps?

It all begins with showing up.

from; Showing Up for Life - Bill Gates SR.

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LEAN MANUFACTURING AND SIX SIGMA

2010-07-14T19:37:00.001-07:00

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

LEAN MANUFACTURING AND SIX SIGMA

View more presentations from Srinu M.

Facebook connects people: “Email is probably going away.”

2010-06-18T15:03:00.001-07:00

A welcome news to Facebook and others looking to rake in the online advertising.

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CBS Video recommendation from levs_aguelo@yahoo.com

2010-06-18T14:01:00.001-07:00

Your friend wants you to check out this free video from CBS.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6592885n&tag=api

Watch it now!

Your friend wrote:

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Top 40 Useful Sites To Learn New Skills

2010-05-29T03:55:00.001-07:00

Top 40 Useful Sites To Learn New Skills

via Marc and Angel Hack Life by Marc on 5/23/10

The web is a powerful resource that can easily help you learn new skills. You just have to know where to look. Sure, you can use Google, Yahoo, or Bing to search for sites where you can learn new skills, but I figured I’d save you some time.

Here are the top 40 sites I have personally used over the last few years when I want to learn something new.

Hack a Day - Hack a Day serves up fresh hacks (short tutorials) every day from around the web and one in-depth ‘How-To hack’ guide each week.

eHow - eHow is an online community dedicated to providing visitors the ability to research, share, and discuss solutions and tips for completing day-to-day tasks and projects.

Wired How-To Wiki - Collaborate with Wired editors and help them build their extensive library of projects, hacks, tricks and tips. Browse through hundreds how-to articles and then add to them, or start a new one.

MAKE Magazine - Brings the do-it-yourself (DIY) mindset to all of the technology in your life. MAKE is loaded with cool DIY projects that help you make the most of the technology you already own.

50 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do - While not totally comprehensive, here is a list of 50 things everyone should know how to do. It’s a great starting point to learn new skills.

wikiHow - A user based collaboration to build and share the world’s largest, highest quality how-to manual.

Lifehacker - An award-winning daily blog that features tips, shortcuts, and downloads that help you get things done smarter and more efficiently.

100+ Google Tricks That Will Save You Time - Today, knowing how to use Google effectively is a vital skill. This list links out to enough Google related resources to make you an elite Google hacker.

Instructables - Similar to MAKE, Instructables is a web-based documentation platform where passionate people share what they do and how they do it, and learn from and collaborate with others as the tackle new projects and learn new skills.

Merriam-Webster Online - In this digital age, your ability to communicate with written English is paramount skill. And M-W.com is the perfect resource to improve your English now.

Lumosity - Learn to improve your memory by playing a series of fun and educational brain training games.

100 Skills Every Man Should Know - Another compilation article with instructions to help you learn new skills. This one says it’s geared for men, but I think most of these skills are applicable to women as well.

5min Life Videopedia - Lot’s of great tutorials and DIY videos.

HowStuffWorks - Knowledge is power. While this site isn’t exactly geared to help you learn new skills, it contains so much useful information that you’re bound to learn a skill or two while you browse.

StumbleUpon - A collective set of recommendations from thousands of hours of searching by web users who share your interests. It’s basically a recommendation engine. Users add to this engine by providing their personal recommendations on what sites are worth your time. If you select topics and tags of interest like ‘Self-Improvement‘ and ‘DIY,’ you’ll be learning new skills in no time.

Work.com - An extensive directory of how-to guides for beginning entrepreneurs.

Howcast - Hosts professional how-to videos as well as how-to wiki tutorials. Howcast combines user ideas with the expertise of professional studio video to deliver what is nothing short of amazing, informative content.

VideoJug - The video content on this site covers a variety of topics including informative ‘How To’ and ‘Ask The Expert’ films that guide you step-by-step through everything and anything in life.

MakeUseOf - A booming daily blog that features cool websites, computer tips, and downloads that make you more productive. Lot’s of insightful tips and tricks to learn.

WonderHowTo - This site is focused on one clear organizing principle: aggregating and linking to truly great, free how-to videos from which you can learn new skills.

SuTree - Another useful aggregator of how-to videos from all around the web.

Zen Habits - The ultimate productivity and self-improvement blog. Zen Habits is about finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives. It’s about clearing the clutter so we can focus on what’s important, create something amazing, and find happiness. Lot’s of learning material here.

Academic Earth - Online degrees and video courses from leading universities.

About.com Videos - Another solid collection of how-to video tutorials.

PCWorld How-To - Lot’s of useful tutorials and guides related to fixing and modifying computers and other electronic gadgets.

Spreeder - This site is focused on teaching you one new skill: speed reading. And it does a great job of doing so.

Woopid - Watch free technology training videos. Get help and answer your computer and gadget questions with thousands of video tutorials for PCs, Macs, and various software applications.

DIY Network - A go-to destination for rip-up, knock-out home improvement projects. The site offers expert answers the most sought-after questions regarding creative projects for DIY enthusiasts.

Scitable - A free science library and personal learning tool that currently concentrates on genetics, the study of evolution, variation, and the rich complexity of living organisms. The site also expects to expand into other topics of learning and education.

All Recipes - A complete guide to recipes and cooking tips. If you’d like to learn to be a better cook, this site is for you.

43 Folders - This site is more about inspiring you to follow-through with your goals than it is about learning new skills. But I think following-through with your goals is a skill. Most people never quite get there.

Dumb Little Man - Another awesome productivity and self-improvement blog hosting lots of useful information.

iTunes U - Hundreds of universities — including Stanford, Yale and MIT — distribute lectures, slide shows, PDFs, films, exhibit tours and audio books through iTunes U. The Science section alone contains content on topics including agriculture, astronomy, biology, chemistry, physics, ecology and geography.

American Sign Language Browser - Teach yourself sign language online.

BBC Languages - Teach yourself a new spoken language online.

Delicious Popular DIY - Lots of popular DIY articles bookmarked by users from all over the web.

Khan Academy - Over 1200 videos lessons covering everything from basic arithmetic and algebra to differential equations, physics, chemistry, biology and finance. Lot’s of educational material to help you learn new skills.

The Happiness Project - Learn the skills necessary to create happiness in your life.

How To Do Things - Another solid collection of how-to tutorials.

ShowMeDo - A peer-produced video-tutorials and screencasts site for free and open-source software. The large majority are free to watch and download.

Also, check out these books for more ideas on pertinent life skills:

3,684 Things You Should Have Learned but Probably Didn’t

The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge

The Experts’ Guide to 100 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do

Photo by: vramak

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What's the greatest tool to wear? SMILE. : )

2010-05-22T19:10:00.001-07:00

Sometimes we experience some sadness and anxieties in life. We strive to be optimistic, even when events and situations make it unbelievably hard to be happy. There are times when something around us happens that we cannot control and we do not immediately know the reason why for its occurrence, but along the journey the positive aspects that results from the situation are suddenly clear. The moment that you start to accept that the world works in funny ways, you learn to find this feeling of freedom—a freedom from within your ego, as you are often your own worst enemy. Now it's time to make a SMILE. : )

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Lost Finale Trailer

2010-05-19T19:28:00.001-07:00

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Yahoo! Shine - 5 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires

2010-05-03T18:38:00.001-07:00

(levs_aguelo@yahoo.com) has sent you this information from Yahoo! Shine.

(Email address has not been verified.)

Personal message:

I saw this blog post on Yahoo! Shine and thought that you might be interested.

5 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires on Shine
http://shine.yahoo.com/event/financiallyfit/5-secrets-of-self-made-millionaires-1370279/

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Bill Gates on life

2010-05-01T06:54:00.001-07:00

Bill Gates on life

via Harvard Gazette Online » Multimedia by on 4/23/10

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Motivation

2010-04-30T16:20:00.001-07:00

Theory of Motivation

http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm

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Cadillac V Day in Shanghai: Amazing stunts

2010-04-26T15:43:00.001-07:00

Absolutely Incredible!

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Leadership Lessons: Leading by Fierce

2010-04-26T14:01:00.001-07:00

via leadershipnow.com

Leaders don’t push others they push themselves they have their level 5 confidence. Remember what Jim Collins book "Good to great built to last". Leaders need to built trust to their people in order to deliver the good solutions to their organization. “Kitchen cabinet” Certainty and purpose to the organization is to Keep your hand on the tiller. “Control what you can control. Roll with that which is beyond your control" It's like nature you can't control it. Never Forget the third Shift. This is like the eight habit of Stephen Covey. The same idea to calibrate the habit to turn to action. -"polish"

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unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;

2010-04-13T20:21:00.001-07:00

people are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;

forgive them anyway.

if you are kind,
people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
be kind anyway.

if you are successful,
you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
succeed anyway.

if you are honest and frank,
people may cheat you;
be honest and frank anyway.

what you spend years building,
someone could destroy overnight.
build anyway.

if you find serenity and happiness,
they may be jealous;
be happy anyway.

the good you do today,
people will often forget tomorrow;
do good anyway.

give the world the best you have,
and it may never be enough;
give the best you’ve got anyway.

you see, in the final analysis
it is between you and god
it was never between you and them anyway.

— mother theresa

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LETTERS TO GOD. Now showing inspired by a True Story

2010-04-13T15:26:00.001-07:00

Inspired by a true story, Letters to God is an intimate, moving and often funny story about the galvanizing effect one child’s belief can have on his family, friends and community.

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Be God's by Danielle Rose w/lyrics

2010-04-06T19:52:00.001-07:00

Where the world is merciless, be God's mercy.
Where the world is hopeless, be God's hope.
Where there is injustice, be God's justice.
Where there is sadness, be God's joy.

Where the world is doubting, be God's faith.
Where there is ingratitude, be God's grace.
Where there is confusion, be God's truth.
Where there is weakness, be God's strength.

LET YOUR LIFE CHANGE THE WORLD
ONE PERSON AT A TIME.
LET YOUR LIFE BE THE PRESENCE
OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
AS THE BREAD BECOMES HIS BODY,
WE CAN BE A LIVING SIGN
WITH GOD'S LOVE, CHANGE THE WORLD WITH YOUR LIFE.

Where the world is wounded, be God's healing.
Where the world is weeping, be God's song.
Where there is despairing, be God's beauty.
Where the world is crumbling, be God's rock.

Where there is no tenderness, be God's child.
Where there is loneliness, be God's smile.
Where the world is dying, be God's life.
Where these is darkness, be God's light.

If you want the world to change, be God's love.
Use your gifts to bless this day, be God's love.
God has greater plans for you, be God's love.
Plans to make a saint of you! Be God's love!

Heaven will fall down to earth, thank you, Father.
When you live a life of love, thank you, Son.
THe lame will walk, the blind will see,
thank you Spirit.
Jesus dwells in me!

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What is Key to Success: Motivation

2010-04-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

Marginalize idea is a key to success but sometimes you experience the derailment. Motivation is something you need everyday. It's motivation is like a railroad to keep the train on track. If life is a train trip, then motivation is the tracks that will lead your train. Nothing happens without motivation. Are you motivated? cho-cho-cho!!

Today I want to share with you the dumb little man tips for life.

IRON MAN 2 NEW TRAILER...

2010-03-14T17:13:00.001-07:00

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Email from a Friend

2010-03-11T17:58:00.001-08:00

Lent

See the video at http://vidego.multicastmedia.com/player.php?v=bgni9633

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Ghost Writer

2010-03-06T15:21:00.001-08:00

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A Great Leader: Martin Luther King, JR.

2010-01-18T15:14:00.001-08:00

A special day of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Today, we celebrate the life and work of one of the greatest leaders the world has ever known Martin Luther King, Jr. in the United States. One of his best schema " I have a dream" made a difference to the people of United States of America.

Popout

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”- Martin Luther King, Jr.

A successful leader who reduces, planned and delegated the important dilemma by monitoring the people for a higher impact activities. A great leader who was motivated to give a vision to his people. A leader who stands firm that there was always a higher initiative to every human kind.

Born: 15 January 1929
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia
Died: 4 April 1968 (assassination by gunshot)
Best Known As: The civil rights hero who said "I have a dream"

A wonderful collection of quotes by Martin Luther King, Jr. from his many speeches, this is a must read!

The Measures of Man, 1959

Wall Street Journal, November 13, 1962.

Strength to Love, 1963.

Martin Luther King, Jr., speech, Detroit, Michigan, June 23, 1963.

Why We Can't Wait, 1963.

Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Stockholm, Sweden, December 11, 1964.

Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, 1967.

The Trumpet of Conscience, 1967

Martin Luther King, Jr., speech, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, August 16, 1967.

In my reflection: I have dream a bigger picture that, one day, future leaders will be known not just by their status quo or accomplishments but also to stimulate the common good in their organization and society . Martin Luther King can make all of us pause to dream.

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Golden Globe best Picture

2010-01-17T20:13:00.001-08:00

http://makingof.com/posts/watch/928/behind-the-scenes-of-avatar

Behind the scenes of "Avatar" Thumbs Up!

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"Who I am"

2010-01-10T19:38:00.001-08:00

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My Dimensional Model of Behavior

2010-01-10T17:08:00.000-08:00

Dimensional Model of Behavior

My characteristics behavior toward the Peers:

I took the evaluation and it embodies my behavior that generates synergy. I am open, have a candid communication style that creates intellectual cross-fertilization. I use conflict as a springboard to better decisions. I promote collaboration and interplay. I also see any of these Q4 behaviors seem familiar to myself:

Open communicator. Uses discussion to exchange information and views — not to politick or play games. Judges ideas on merit, not their origin. Listens and promotes involvement.

Team player. Im a good collaborator. Who actively seeks the views of my peers. I see peer relationships in terms of work — a shared effort toward a shared goal.

Openness to disagreement. I use constructive contention to resolve differences and as a source for new thinking and direction. I know disagreements are bound to arise, and understand that getting them out in the open can not only clear the air but also shed new light on a situation.

Commitment to top performance. More focus on results. A good goal setter and goal achiever. I am tough on myself as I am on my peers.

These are the words that best describes me of The Dimensional Model Behavior of Q4: synergy, collaboration, work, efficiency, and productivity.

And these are the results of my Dimension.

Motivation = Moral values + Reality Principle

2010-01-05T19:21:00.001-08:00

Howard Shore is leading executive coach and business coach who is sought after to help leaders and their teams to improve and accelerate performance and to create stake values to their business:

1. Create a clear vision. Identify the organization’s mission and goals, and make sure that everyone understands the rationale behind them and how they contribute toward achieving them.
2. Clearly communicate departmental objectives, and solicit input from your employees on what they can do to help achieve them.
3. Make an effort to compliment each of your direct reports on at least a weekly basis.
4. Make employee development and retention a primary objective of each manager and leader and reward their success accordingly.
5. Ask employees for advice in areas where they have expertise.
6. Involve everyone at all levels in the goal-setting and planning processes, particularly if they are responsible for the results.
7. Let people know what is expected of them, and do everything you can to make them successful.
8. Develop a “servant leader” attitude, and be there for your people rather than having them there for you.
9. Treat everyone with dignity and respect.
10. Stand behind your employees and back their decisions.
11. Show the courage to let your employees learn from their mistakes.
12. Take time to listen carefully to other people’s interests, opinions, concerns, and goals.
13. Meet individually with your employees; help them clarify their personal goals and values; and assist them in identifying the skills they need to achieve their goals.
14. Find ways to enrich the jobs of your employees by increasing their authority or span of control.
15. Encourage employees to expand their comfort zone.

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Motivating Your Team – What To Do (And What To Avoid)

2010-01-05T17:41:00.001-08:00

Sent to you by levs_aguelo via Google Reader:

Motivating Your Team – What To Do (And What To Avoid)

via Dumb Little Man - Tips for Life by Ali on 10/8/09

Are you ever in charge of other people? You might have a team under you at work, or you might have to motivate people in a less formal capacity: perhaps in a volunteering role or in a community or religious organization.

We all know how hard it can be to motivate ourselves – motivating other people, and inspiring them to work jointly towards a goal, can be even trickier. Here are some thoughts on how you might want to go about it. First, a couple of points to be cautious about:

The Carrot Is Always Better Than The Stick
Some schools of thought – thankfully, ones which seem to be a bit outdated now – suggest that employers need to force their employees to work hard. This might be through constant checks, comprehensive rules, micro-management or all sorts of other time-consuming and ultimately unproductive methods.

No-one is motivated by being bullied, or by being treated like an idiot. These methods may work in the short-term, but they build up long-term resentment. Do you really want employees who work grudgingly, and who have no loyalty to you and your company?

The very essence of fear is negative and over time has diminishing effects as employees develop attitudes that lead to a decrease in quality, commitment, and productivity. (Evan Carmichael, How To Motivate Your Staff, Young Entrepreneur)
Money May Not Be The Answer
Most of us are motivated to some extent by financial reward – but hefty bonuses may not be the best answer. If you dole out a big bonus in 2009, people will expect the same in 2010 – and they'll be disappointed if they don't receive it.

Schemes which involve commission, or performance-related pay, can have the side-effect of making people competitive to the point of deliberately undermining one another. They can also lead to employees cutting corners everywhere possible, to focus solely on meeting the conditions for an extra pay out.

Instead of ruling with an iron fist – or dishing out wads of notes – try these ways of motivating your staff or volunteers:

Say Thank You
This is particularly important in a voluntary role, where there is no pay, but it's also important in the workplace. Thank employees (or volunteers etc) for their contributions, on a regular basis. Make a particular point of thanking them for anything above and beyond the call of duty: perhaps one of your staff stayed late every night for a week to finish a project. Let them know that you noticed, and that you're grateful.

Bring A Team-Wide Gift
An inexpensive gift for your team – such as a box of donuts, a selection of good chocolates, or a company lunch out – can be a great way to reward people and to make them feel appreciated. Unexpected gifts go a long way towards building a friendly and motivating office environment.

Consider A Results-Only Work Environment
You may have come across the term ROWE – Results-Only Work Environment. Some forward-looking companies are switching over to this work model, which asks employees to produce a certain amount of work ("results") rather than asking them to work for a certain amount of time (the traditional 8-4 or 9-5, five days a week, model).

An easy way to try something similar might be to tell your team that if a certain milestone is reached by Friday lunchtime, everyone can have the afternoon off. (You might be surprised how productive people can be!)

Share Your Vision
It's easy to feel isolated as a single employee or volunteer, separated from the big picture. Employees doing fairly routine tasks may not have much understanding of the role they're playing within the company or team as a whole. Bring everyone together once in a while (ideally with some nice food or drink!) to share progress and explain how everyone's actions are building to something greater.

Employees often feel strong fulfillment from realizing that they're actually making a difference. This realization often requires clear communication about organizational goals, employee progress toward those goals and celebration when the goals are met. (Carter McNamara, Basics About Employee Motivation, ManagementHelp.org)
Talk To Your Team Members
Make time to chat with your team members. Ask them about any concerns or problems that they have, and ask what would make their life easier. Often, quite simple, cheap things can be done that will really improve people's day to day experience of work. If realistic changes are suggested, make an effort to put these into practice: this can generate a huge amount of goodwill. If you're accommodating towards your team, they're much more likely to go the extra mile for you.

Do you have to manage or motivate a team, whether at work, in school, or in a voluntary capacity? What tips would you add?

Written on 10/8/2009 by Ali Hale. Ali is a professional writer and blogger, and a part-time postgraduate student of creative writing. If you need a hand with any sort of written project, drop her a line (ali@aliventures.com) or check out her website at Aliventures.

Photo Credit: Kumar Appaiah

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How to Become More Intelligent

2010-01-05T17:23:00.001-08:00

Sent to you by levs_aguelo via Google Reader:

How to Become More Intelligent

via Dumb Little Man - Tips for Life by Mr. Self Development on 11/12/09

Intelligence is your capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding and mastery. It's your aptitude in grasping truths, relationships, facts and meanings.

Knowing a great deal is not the same as being intelligent; intelligence is not information "alone," but also judgment, the manner in which information is collected and used. -Dr. Carl Sagan

This article will offer you five ways to increase your intelligence by showing you how to enhance your capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding and mastery.

5 Ways to Become More Intelligent

Read Often
Do you realize that through reading you can learn in a few hours what took someone decades to learn? Reading not only informs, but it also increases your capacity for learning, thereby increasing your intelligence.

Although knowledge is not the summation of intelligence, it is the foundation of intelligence, so it's crucial that we cultivate the joy of reading.

It's an amazing thing, people who become successful write down how they did it, and then sell that information for a few dollars. For a few dollars and a few hours you can literally pick someone's brain; you can buy a piece of their intelligence.

Reading gives you insight into great minds and sharpens your intellect. This allows you the ability to make greater logical connections because reading gives you more pieces of life's puzzle. By reading from a multiplicity of sources, you gain the wisdom of many.

Reading (blogs like this one) is a great way to increase your intelligence. Remember, readers are leaders, and leaders are usually intelligent.

Teach Others

"Those that understand, teach."- Aristotle

Teaching increases your capacity for reasoning, a critical aspect of intelligence.
Anyone who's ever successfully taught anything realizes that teaching increases your capacity to reason. When you teach, you're often required to view what you're teaching from a variety of perspectives.

"I've always felt that a person's intelligence is directly reflected by the number of conflicting points of view he can entertain simultaneously on the same topic."-Abigail Adams

When you teach, it's often essential that you question what you believe in order to deal with objections and oppositions that are sure to arise. Teaching is often more beneficial to the teacher than the student.

Get Into Action
Action increases your capacity to understand a subject. As the old proverb goes, "In all thy getting, get understanding."

You can have information, and you can teach what you know, but you will never fully understand a subject until you put it into practice. If you want to significantly increase your intelligence related to cooking, don't just watch the Cooking Channel and don't just tell someone how to cook; you must master cooking yourself by trying, failing, and perfecting the act of cooking.

You will always understand things better when you do them yourself. Knowledge gives you the pieces of the puzzle; understanding helps you put the puzzle together.

"A truly good book teaches me better than to read it. I must soon lay it down, and commence living on its hint. What I began by reading, I must finish by acting."-Henry David Thoreau

Master One Subject
Mastery is a sign of intelligence. Mastery comes from focusing on one subject until you fully understand it. If you can fully understand one subject, it will help you to better understand other subjects. In other words, mastery will increase your aptitude for grasping truths. If you can master playing the piano, you will better understand music in general.

Additionally, if you can master any subject, you will understand what it takes to succeed.

Bonus: Watch More Television
You probably didn't see this one coming.

By watching more television, you can become more "well-rounded." Of course I'm not referring to watching more of the The Simpsons, I'm talking about watching television shows that offer an educational message such as political shows or shows on The Discovery Channel or The History Channel. These shows can increase your capacity for learning, reasoning, and understanding as long as you don't choose educational shows that also stress you out.

By putting these principles into practice on a consistent basis, you will begin to take on the characteristics of an intellectual. Your capacity to learn will be stretched, your reasoning skills will be utilized, your understanding will increase, and you will master at least one subject.

Written on 11/05/2009 by Mr. Self Development who is a motivational author that offers a practical guide to success and wealth; support him by visiting his blog at mrselfdevelopment.com. .

Photo Credit: Kamil Porembiński

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HOW to THINK

2010-01-04T20:13:00.000-08:00

There are many ways to classify a genius. But if you look at the historical figures whom most people would consider geniuses, such as Albert Einstein, Leonardo DaVinci, and Beethoven, you can see one thing they all share in common: they were all able to think in a way different from the mainstream, and thus made connections that no one else did. Based on that pattern, this article will address some of the ways you can think like a genius.

_Steps_

# 1 Become a [[Widen Your Logic and Knowledge|knowledge]] glutton. [[Read a Book|Read]], [[Listen|listen]], observe, and [[Remember Important Things|remember]]. The more information you can store in your mind, the more connections you can make. That does not necessarily mean you should spend most of your time reading! You can take an active approach to learning no matter what you are doing. Anyone can watch a cartoon and be none the wiser. A genius can watch a cartoon and think about what kind of animation is used, how the characters are developed, how the plot relates to real life, why the cartoon is popular, and practically [[Write a Dissertation|write a dissertation]] discussing various facets of that single cartoon!

# 2 When you learn something new, try to apply it and connect it to what you already know. You will remember the information better and you might come up with a new idea. For example, if somebody shows you a new kind of jam, think about how it would taste on your favorite type of sandwich. If you're trying to [[Learn Any Language|learn a language]], use what you have learned to write or say new sentences that aren't in the book.

# 3 Learn about Bloom's Taxonomy. Bloom's Taxonomy is a breakdown of the six levels of thinking, from the lowest level to the highest. Can you challenge yourself to think about everything in your life at the deepest level?

Knowledge: Knowing a fact. Knowing 2 + 2 = 4, doesn't mean you know what 2 + 2 = 4 means.
Comprehension: Understanding a fact: You understand the concept of addition and how 2 + 2 = 4.
Application: Knowing how to use the fact. You can determine that 2 cats plus 2 cats equals 4 cats. You don't know what 2 + 2 = 4 means, but you can apply it.
Analysis: Breaking down information into its parts. 4 - 2 =2 ;(1 + 1) + (1 + 1) = 2 + 2 = 4
Synthesis: Creating something new, writing a book, etc.
Evaluation: Discussion of the merits of 2 + 2 = 4.

# 4 Learn how you learn. Different people learn differently. Major ways of learning include seeing, hearing, talking, listening, touching, manipulating, reading, interpreting ideas and writing. Feel free to doodle, talk out loud, or touch and play with the item you're thinking about. Any of these activities can help facilitate your thought process. See [[Make the Most of Your Learning Style|How to Make the Most of Your Learning Style]]

# 5 Embrace change, uncertainty, and doubt. It is on these edges of knowledge that innovation and discovery happen. Question conventional [[Gain Wisdom|wisdom]]. Most people will violently oppose challenges to "conventional" wisdom. They will ignore facts that challenge their beliefs. Geniuses think critically. They do not ignore facts, even when it conflicts with conventional wisdom. Below are some examples.

# 6 People once believed the world was flat. Eratosthenes (400 B.C.) showed it was round.
#* Ptolemy's view of the solar system held sway for 2000 years. Copernicus was forced to recant his view that the Sun was at the center.
#Be prolific. Try for quantity before quality. To produce exceptionally good work, do a lot of whatever you're doing. It increases your chances for success and it means you will get more practice along the way. It also takes the pressure off, knowing that while an effort may be your first, it will likely not be your last. Most geniuses in history, whatever they were doing, they did a LOT of it, and not all of it was genius!
#*There is a theory that to become a "master" in any subject, you need 10,000 hours of practice. Professional orchestra players, computer programmers all demonstrate this idea. (Citation: Malcom Gladwell's book ''Outliers'')

Micro Christmas

2009-12-17T19:36:00.001-08:00

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

IRON 2 MAN

2009-12-16T21:37:00.001-08:00

Coming Soon! May 2010

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

Effective people and Innovative people

2009-12-16T13:37:00.000-08:00

In Business we have 7 habits of highly effective people by Stephen Covey and also we have 7 habits of highly innovative people by Tina Su Can anyone compare the difference??...

Innovation: Great thinkers

2009-12-16T13:19:00.000-08:00

There are many ways how to improve management morale. Finding management great thinkers by G. Michael Maddock and Raphael Louis Viton is a brilliant idea on how to connect, acknowledges and share each others profile to create a sweet spot to the whole organization.

Think A BIGGER Picture

2009-12-15T16:56:00.000-08:00

I like the way John Baldoni's point of view about how to align yourself in the right direction. The strategic way how you think consistently is a guide map not only to yourself but for the whole common good. "Learning to think strategically is a good way to become noticed, as well as to demonstrate that you have what it takes to lead at a more senior level."(John Baldoni,2009)

LEXUS: LFA

2009-12-14T21:52:00.001-08:00

Interior Front View.. Lexus LFA V10<div style='clear:both; text-align:CENTER'></div>

COMING SOON! THE NEW LEXUS LFA

THE TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IF YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT SPORT CARS THIS IS IT!!

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

2009-12-14T21:37:00.000-08:00

Coming Soon the new LFA... V10 engine the evolution of new Lexus design

FOX on Demand

2009-12-13T23:19:00.000-08:00

FOX on Demand

2009-12-13T23:06:00.001-08:00

Glee \ Video Extras Season 1

Preview of "Sectionals"

Season 1:

Episode 13 (00:59)

25

Crazy in Love

Season 1:

Episode (02:00)

21

Glee Chevy Party

Season 1:

Episode (01:45)

84

Day in the Life: Jayma

Season 1:

Episode (02:05)

11

Mercedes' Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:20)

5

Tina's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:05)

159

Will's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:45)

43

Glee Chevy Party

Season 1:

Episode (01:45)

84

Defying Gravity

Season 1:

Episode (01:45)

28

Glee-Motional Fan: Spencer

Season 1:

Episode (00:41)

4

Glee-Wind: Episode 5

Season 1:

Episode (02:53)

43

Glee-Wind: Episode 4

Season 1:

Episode (02:51)

0

Glee-Wind: Episode 3

Season 1:

Episode (02:56)

2

Glee-Wind: Episode 2

Season 1:

Episode (03:07)

1

Quinn's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:09)

29

Artie's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (00:55)

11

Kurt's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:10)

22

Postcard: Boston

Season 1:

Episode (01:20)

204

Off the Record

Season 1:

Episode (00:30)

2

Wheelchair Number

Season 1:

Episode (00:39)

6

It's On

Season 1:

Episode (00:34)

3

Dancing With Myself

Season 1:

Episode (01:52)

53

Chocolate Thunder

Season 1:

Episode (00:42)

40

Finn's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (01:05)

123

Rachel's Casting

Season 1:

Episode (02:35)

557

Rollercoaster

Season 1:

Episode (01:50)

79

Will & Sue: Swingers

Season 1:

Episode (01:57)

16

Keep Holding On

Season 1:

Episode (02:28)

522

No Air

Season 1:

Episode (02:15)

419

10 Things About Lea

Season 1:

Episode (01:20)

731

Jenna's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (02:45)

19

Jane's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (01:30)

72

Cheerios

Season 1:

Episode (00:30)

37

Kevin's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (02:48)

202

Amber Riley Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (02:30)

49

NY Post Photo Shoot

Season 1:

Episode (02:20)

292

Ashley Greene = Gleek

Season 1:

Episode (00:10)

462

Glee Reacts to Comic-Con

Season 1:

Episode (01:15)

144

Glee at Upfronts Part 1

Season 1:

Episode (01:39)

30

Glee at Upfronts Part 2

Season 1:

Episode (02:15)

416

Dianna's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (02:10)

721

Lea's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (01:50)

1699

Matt's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (02:09)

25

Bust Your Windows

Season 1:

Episode (02:19)

216

I'm a Gleek

Season 1:

Episode (00:15)

70

5 Things You Don't Know About Jayma

Season 1:

Episode (00:36)

11

7 Things You Don't Know About Cory

Season 1:

Episode (00:57)

101

Cory's Video Diary

Season 1:

Episode (03:17)

151

6 Things You Don't Know About Amber

Season 1:

Episode (00:54)

116

7 Things You Don't Know About Chris

Season 1:

Episode (00:38)

33

Glee Screening Event Panel 1

Season 1:

Episode (02:07)

29

Glee Screening Event Panel 2

Season 1:

Episode (02:39)

28

Pilot Screening at Santa Monica HS

Season 1:

Episode (02:01)

36

Cast Photoshoot

Season 1:

Episode (02:26)

111

via fox.com

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The most viral nonprofit video EVER???

2009-12-11T21:21:00.000-08:00

Sent to you by levs_aguelo via Google Reader:

The most viral nonprofit video EVER???

via Citizentube by Ramya on 12/9/09

It's a lofty title, but the Pink Glove Dance video may just have claimed the spot as the most viral nonprofit video in YouTube history.

At 4.4 million views and dozens of press mentions, this inspiring and catchy video that features the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center staff dancing to raise awareness of breast cancer, is setting an example of what really works on YouTube (they obviously took copious notes during the JKWedding video!). If you haven't seen it yet, take a look here:

If you tell me you're not smiling now, you're probably lying. What makes this video even more heartwarming is that you can see that the entire staff had an amazing time making the video and promoting the cause. It's an A+ effort that other nonprofits should take note of.

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10 Must-Read Articles

2009-12-09T21:48:00.000-08:00

1) "Meeting the Challenge of Disruptive Change," by Clayton M. Christensen and Michael Overdorf, explains why so few established companies innovate successfully.

2) "Competing on Analytics," by Thomas H. Davenport, explains how to use data-collection technology and analysis to discern what your customers want, how much they're willing to pay, and what keeps them loyal.

3) "Managing Oneself," by Peter F. Drucker, encourages us to carve our own paths by asking questions such as, "What are my strengths?" and "Where do I belong?"

4) "What Makes a Leader?" Not IQ or technical skills, says Daniel Goleman, but emotional intelligence.

5) "Putting the Balanced Scorecard to Work," by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, includes practical steps and examples from companies that use the balanced scorecard to measure performance and set strategy.

6) "Innovation: The Classic Traps," by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, advocates applying lessons from past failures to your innovation efforts. She explores four problems and offers remedies for each.

7) "Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail," by John P. Kotter, argues that transformation is a process, not an event. It takes years, not weeks, and you can't skip any steps.

8) "Marketing Myopia," by Theodore Levitt, introduces the quintessential strategy question, "What business are you really in?"

9) "What Is Strategy?" by Michael E. Porter, argues that rivals can easily copy your operational effectiveness, but they can't copy your strategic positioning--what distinguishes you from all the rest.

10) "The Core Competence of the Corporation," by C.K. Prahalad and Gary Hamel, argues that a diversified company is like a tree: the trunk and major limbs its core products, branches its business units, leaves and fruit its end products. Nourishing and stabilizing everything is the root system: its core competencies.

Why Entrepreneurs Sabotage the Succession Process

2009-12-09T21:00:00.001-08:00

Why Entrepreneurs Sabotage the Succession Process

via Marshall Goldsmith by Marshall Goldsmith on 10/15/09

This week's question for Ask the Coach:

In your book, Succession: Are You Ready? you describe the challenge of succession for the CEOs of major corporations. What unique challenges do you see for succession in entrepreneurial family businesses?

My good friend and colleague, Dr. Steven Berglas, and I are currently writing a book that addresses this specific question. Given major demographic trends in the United States, this topic has become more critical today than at any time in our country's history.

Millions of aging Baby Boomers who have founded businesses are now past or approaching the age of sixty. In a related vein, more than half of all family businesses expect a leadership change by 2013.

Steven and I would like to answer this question in two different posts. This post will describe how entrepreneurial founders can unwittingly sabotage the succession process. Our second post provides suggestions that may help founders navigate succession in a positive way.

While it is often challenging for major corporate executives to pass the baton of leadership, Steven and I believe that the succession process can be even more difficult for entrepreneurial leaders — especially founders. Whereas corporate CEOs are taught to consider the care and feeding of a successor part of their job description, entrepreneurial founders often avoid even considering succession until those around them start clamoring for the process to begin.

Similarly, corporate leaders are accustomed to making career transitions. They typically start in operational roles or first-line management and work their way up the ladder to the top. By the time they become CEOs they have made many transitions. The same cannot be said for founders. After they start their companies they often remain exclusively committed to the CEO role for decades. On one hand, the extended tenure as "top dog" provides founders great benefits, both personally and professionally. On the other hand, after being in charge of a business for decades, when they contemplate passing the baton they react as anyone would to something very unfamiliar: with trepidation and avoidance.

How Sabotage Occurs

Successful entrepreneurial founders:

Are usually driven people. They like to win. They are used to relying on themselves — and taking personal responsibility for decisions. It can be very difficult for a driven winner to let go and create an environment where others take the lead and do the winning. This hesitancy can inhibit successful transition — even in cases when the incumbent leader has every intention for the succession to work.
Are a big deal in their communities. They often play important roles in local society. Leading a successful business brings social prestige and status. It can be hard to give up adoration and respect. While many founders claim to have little interest in social status — they are just as human as the rest of us. The prospect of facing a decline in status can make unconscious sabotage a real possibility.
Are the go-to people in their world. They are not accustomed to asking for help, assistance, or directions while working their way out of a morass. Unlike corporate CEOs who have many advisors — both right- and left-hand men and women — assisting them. This may seem like a trivial concern — how hard is it to learn to ask for help — but if you have never said, "gimme a hand with this," doing so for the first time at age 60 may feel like an admission of weakness — or even worse — old age!
Have usually focused on one market over a long period time. They are not jacks-of-all-trades. Corporate leaders generally have to deal with a wide range of products, markets and geographies and get exposed to a variety of jobs (or Boards) they can segue into should they wish to work after passing the baton. Not so for founders. Their specialization and focus on a restricted market niche can make it hard for them to transition to a new role in a different type of business. Facing the prospect of leaving — with no place to go — founders may feel their interests are better served by staying right where they are.
Often have their name on the door of the business. Even if they don't literally have their name on the door, they are personally identified with the business. It is their business. For founders, leaving the business can feel like leaving an important part of their personal identity. It is hard to be replaced, especially when the replacement is not only doing what you did but becoming who you were.
Are often parents, whose children may be involved in the succession process. While it can be difficult for corporate leaders to choose between two candidates who are equally respected, it can be much more difficult for founders to choose between two children who they equally love. This Sophie's Choice dilemma may make it harder to decide and easier to postpone the selection decision.

The good news for entrepreneurial business founders is that they are inherently less risk averse than "corporate types." In fact, we believe that there exists a direct correlation between the success of the business they must plan to cede control of and their ability to take, or at least tolerate, risks. Therefore, we are confident that once founders makes the decision to engage in succession planning, they can do so with the same passion and commitment that drove them to achieve success in the first place.

In our next post, Steve and I will present a few tips we believe will help any entrepreneur or family business-builder tackle the challenges inherent in the nuts-and-bolts aspects of ceding control of their other child — the business. After letting go, founders will usually need to prepare for encore careers, find novel ways of being constructive, and move on to create great new lives.

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Leadership Isn't About You

2009-12-09T20:44:00.001-08:00

Leadership Isn't About You

via Marshall Goldsmith by Marshall Goldsmith on 11/17/09

This week's question for Ask the Coach:

I am having a difficult time leading my team. The team members will not follow my instructions, which I am sure would make our project much more successful. What am I doing wrong?

What you're doing wrong is very simple: you have simply forgotten that your team is more critical to the success of your project than you are.

Over the years, I have worked with many great leaders as an executive educator and coach. One client, Charlie (not his real name), in particular is still one of my favorites. He is the one who showed the most improvement — and he is the one who I spent the least amount of time with.

Charlie was president of a division with more than 50,000 employees. His CEO recognized his talents and asked me to help Charlie expand his role, provide more leadership, and build synergy across the organization. Charlie eagerly involved his team in this project. Each person took responsibility for creating positive synergy with cross-organizational colleagues. They regularly reported their efforts, learned from their colleagues, and shared what they learned. They thanked people for ideas and suggestions and followed up to ensure effective implementation.

What I find interesting is that of all the clients I have every coached, Charlie is the client I spent the least amount of time with. This inverse relationship between our spending time together and he and his team getting better was very humbling. At the end of our project, I told Charlie about this observation. "I think that I spent less time with you and your team than any team I have ever coached, yet you and your team produced the most dramatic, positive results. What should I learn from my experience?"

Charlie thought about my question. "As a coach," he said, "you should realize that success with your clients isn't all about you. It's about the people who choose to work with you." He chuckled; then he continued: "In a way, I am the same. The success of my organization isn't about me. It's all about the great people who are working with me."

What an insight! This isn't what most of the conventional wisdom of leadership dictates. Most leadership literature exaggerates, even glamorizes, the leader's contribution. The implication being that everything begins with the leader, that she is responsible for your improvement, she guides you to victory, without the leader there is no navigator.

This isn't true. An oft-quoted proverb says: "The best leader, the people do not notice. When the best leader's work is done, the people say, 'We did it ourselves.'"

Truly great leaders, like Charlie, recognize how silly it is to believe that a coach or a leader is the key to an organization's success. The best leaders understand that long-term results are created by all of the great people doing the work — not just the one person who has the privilege of being at the top.

Readers: Please share your stories about teamwork and leadership. How do you lead your teams successfully? Is it about you or them?

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PROACTIVE CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE : Leadership isn't about your "Ego"

2009-12-09T20:39:00.001-08:00

Leo Aguelo has sent you a link to a blog:

Blog: PROACTIVE CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE
Post: Leadership isn't about your "Ego"
Link: http://levsaguelo.blogspot.com/2009/12/leadership-isnt-about-your-ego.html

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Leadership isn't about your "Ego"

2009-12-09T20:16:00.000-08:00

What am I doing wrong? How come my team will not follow my command. Ask the Learning Coach by MARSHALL GOLDSMITH. You have to build synergy across the organization. It's not about me but It's all about the great people who are working with me."

The Word of God Moves Human History

2009-12-08T20:40:00.000-08:00

EWTN.com - The Word of God Moves Human History

Startegic Planning A.Egros

2009-12-07T20:29:00.001-08:00

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Startegic Planning A.Egros

View more presentations from Anne Egros.

Innovation Idea: can 15-minute competitive advantage increase productivity?

2009-12-07T20:08:00.001-08:00

Innovators who take risks must reduce the risk for others. Think long-term trends but short-term steps -15 minutes at a time.

Revolutionary Ideas + Evolutionary change = Congruent with future direction

Divisible

Familiar

Fits prior investments

Positive publicity value

Reversible

Tangible

Trial-able

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Games for Trainers

2009-12-02T21:16:00.000-08:00

Encyclopedia of games for trainers by Andy Kirby

Delman's "Unleashing The Possible"

2009-12-02T20:11:00.000-08:00

As a Manager and a Leader:

Beyond your employees' routinely assigned task-work lies the most untapped, leveragable source of knowledge that your company has - yet I find it to be consistently the most under-utilized. You guessed it - your workers' wisdom. I call their collective wisdom your organization's "brain trust." This brain trust is comprised of all of the experience, knowledge, and insight that workers bring to the office every day along with their coffee and doughnut. You will find they are anxious to share their knowledge if you allow them to give you a piece of their mind. And it doesn't cost you one payroll-cent more! (Not surprisingly, people are awarded college credit for life experiences yet most employers don't ever seek to put this experience to good use.)

Your Collective workforce more than you or I do

Sometimes it's about their daily jobs. Yet surprisingly often it is about other functions of your business - fiscal improvements, customer service, marketing, even corporate culture. Whatever they know that can help your organization reach its objectives, you want to know about now. Using this priceless information will be a key factor to your success as a manager and an organizational leader.

To this end I created a way to get the information from your brain trust into your hands with very little work on your part.

Yet, there is a huge leveraged payback. It is called "Unleashing The Possible," a consulting program I developed over many years and use with incredible success. The program is so simple and inspirational that every worker enthusiastically participates. Contributions abound and the harvest of useful information is abundant.

Basically all you need to do is ask your employees to give you a piece of their mind...

…regarding the important aspects of your business, marketplace, working conditions, products, how the company is managed, the sales process, customer service, client relationships, productivity, co-worker relationships, and so on. You get the idea. Then ask them how they would improve your organization's performance in the key areas you choose to pursue. They will tell you willingly the first time. When you "close the loop" with 720-degree feedback, they will likely tell you the next time you ask as well. Get them involved in these improvements and they will be enthusiastic and motivated. All of a sudden, you have expanded the "brain trust" of your organization to include your entire workforce. Hmmm. Seems pretty valuable. IT IS.

"Unleashing The Possible" does even more.

When workers get feedback on their suggestions and are involved in developing and implementing improvements they recommended (that you sanction, of course), their understanding of overall business, and your organization and industry, evolve. They learn to be better at their job and beyond. They subsequently bring this additional knowledge to work each and every day, yet it does not cost one cent more of your payroll dollars. In fact, productivity goes up and so does the bottom line. Period.

by: Scott Delman

JOB DESCRIPTION

2009-12-02T20:04:00.000-08:00

What is the general rule today in large companies concerning job descriptions, and their real existence on paper?
A job title is mostly generated first, because this is what comes up front on the business card.

Then, if the job description exists, what is the behaviour of employees when it comes to (all or not frequently) exceeding the requirements of their job description.

To be sure on a maximum of good return on this question,
I repeat 4 major subjects on this to be sure we're on the same wavelength about the question :
1. Purposes of a job description
2. Defining a job description, describing
3. Level of maturity and independency
4. Frequency of the different defined tasks

Below I put the details of the above outlined items :

O1. Purposes of a job description

- overview of the structure of an organisation (who does what, where and what targets)

- base definition document in place when recruiting and selection new employees (what knowledge, what capacities and what level of experience is necessary to be able to carry out the job successfully?)

- what does my new employer potentially expects from me? Is this a new function in his company?

- once operational, what's the base for evaluation and judgement on the delivered work afterwards?
- how is the evaluation on how well the job is done (or will be done)
- what's the policy in cases of unclear matters within operational matters, who is responsible for things vs. who has the power to change things
- what's the basis for communication between employee and their manager, what's the rule of communication between the employee and their fellow colleagues, or people at the work floor?
- what about self evaluation

about item O2, O3 and O4 there's much too tell, but maybe yet beyond the initial scope of this question.. (...)

Keen to learn about the valuable reactions...
Tom
Clarification added March 24, 2007:
>>> here's an additional detail O2 & O3 of the mentioned outlines. Thanks to those that already responded. <<

O2. Defining a job description
- job title (this is what's on the business card)
- purpose of the job
- place in the organisation
- what contacts will the employee have within the company
- summary of the tasks
- description of the tasks (= not the same as the summary)
- knowledge
- ability to express one selves (an operator of a machine is probably not required to do so).
- social awareness
- personal qualities
- able to work independently
- what's the spirit at work?
- economical risks

O3. Level of independency

- Level A:
> Employee has no independency, he carries out the tasks asked to him and routinely handles those tasks already defined previously.
Planning and priorities are determined by someone else.

- Level B:
> Employee makes suggestions concerning execution of tasks. Thinks along with every-ones ideas concerning planning and priorities but follows for the majority of time the instructions of his superior.

- Level C:
> Employee makes preparation of the actions to take, gathers information, makes suggestions concerning the priorities, sorts incoming information. Al these tasks happen in sync with the superior.

- Level D:

> Employee takes care of planning and preparation of thins, and puts procedures in place as far as it concerns matters where things have already been defined (either by existing job description or by approval by the superior).
> Employee directly reports to the superior or manager, informs him, and the decisions are made by the manager..

- Level E:

> Employee takes care of the assigned tasks, carries out the necessary things and puts procedures into place. He takes decisions or actions that he only communicates later to his manager/superior. He operates according to his own insight and experience with things in the past, while not forgetting to inform the chief. If it concerns non-routine issues the chief is involved to help interact.

- Level F:

> Employee is 100% independent and is fully responsible for the assigned tasks and the daily operations.
Planning, decision making, defining priorities, and carrying out tasks are handled to own good judgement. Reporting or the need to this is only required in exceptional cases.
Permission to do things is only required when it comes to the level of major decisions requiring major change.

Want to Measure your Emotional Intelligence?...

2009-12-02T19:18:00.001-08:00

Strength and Weakness: The Emotional Intelligence Test will evaluate several aspects of your emotional intelligence and will suggest ways to improve it. click here for the snapshot

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

How to identify people's intelligence ?

2009-12-02T17:59:00.000-08:00

Education:
IQ is no longer the only indicator to identify a person's intelligence.

There are at least 8 intelligences from the book "Intelligence" by Linda Wasmer Andrews, who examines various theories and types of intelligence with historical data for people who have made significant contributions to the field, i.e.,

- Linguistic intelligence ("word smart")

- Logical-mathematical intelligence ("number/reasoning smart")

- Spatial intelligence ("picture smart")

- Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence ("body smart")

- Musical intelligence ("music smart")

- Interpersonal intelligence ("people smart")

- Intrapersonal intelligence ("self smart")

- Naturalist intelligence ("nature smart")
Clarification added March 26, 2008:
Many countries in Asia, for youths to get good jobs in future is to study hard to excel on national exam, which is primarily measuring intelligence through IQ. However, there was a saying in China, that the big bosses usually didn't have college degrees, or even high school degrees...
Clarification added March 26, 2008:
Robert, thanks for your question. I wanted to educate myself along with other global parents and youths since I am father of two boys. Besides IQ, what should we explore ?

Easy Ways to Beat Negative Stereotypes as an Older Worker

2009-12-02T17:43:00.000-08:00

Despite legislation prohibiting it, age is a common factor in hiring decisions. This is especially true for older workers who must combat a number of negative stereotypes, specifically that they are less energetic, enthusiastic and creative. Recruiting managers have confirmed that companies often will note that they would prefer a younger candidate. What is a mature job seeker to do in the face of this reticence? Last year, the BBC ran an informative article with practical job search suggestions for the middle aged job seekers with seven key tips paraphrased below.

1. Know the stereotype and confront it

Stereotypes exist for workers of all ages. Generally speaking, younger workers are considered:

Physically more able and healthy
Easier to supervise
Lower salary expectations
Willing to use new technology
Creative
Energetic
While mature workers are considered:

Experienced
Reliable
Stable
Loyal
Have good practical knowledge
Mature
You might think that the best strategy is to extenuate the positive qualities associated with your age group. According to the experts cited in the BBC article, this is the worst possible strategy. Prospective employers will already assume that you offer loyalty, stability, etc. and saying so will just reinforce the negative biases as well. What employers don't know (unless you tell them) is that you are creative, energetic, comfortable with new technology, etc. These "young" qualities are exactly the types of things you will want to emphasize.

2. Don't stereotype yourself

Whether you are in or out of work, push to receive training to keep up with important trends. Technology has become a critical element of almost every industry. If there is something you are not comfortable with then get comfortable with it--even if it means asking your kids!

3. Try something new

Don't feel that you must stay in the same industry you just left. While it's true that your relationships and experience are most applicable to the same industry, if your industry is contracting you might be forced to look outward. Odds are you have skills that are transferable to other industries and industries that are growing are more apt to hire from outside. (LifeTwo recommends Marci Alboher's book on multiple careers).

4. Look after yourself

While your focus will be on finding a new job, this is a particularly important time to be looking after yourself. You will want to present an image of being "healthy, motivated and confident" and the best way to do this is to be these. You should be eating well, exercising, and keeping in touch with contacts and friends. Now is the time to be networking even more than when you were employed. (LifeTwo recommends the book "Never Eat Alone" for networking tips).

5. Appearance matters

Appearance really does matter in job interviews. For mature workers you will want to once again confront the stereotype of being an older person. This doesn't mean dressing to look young, but instead looking up-to-date and modern. The BBC article also emphasizes the importance of not coming off as condescending if interviewed by a younger person and make sure the interviewer walks away with the feeling that you are at ease working with people of all ages.

6. Don't let the process get to you

Make no mistake about it, looking for a job (regardless of your age) is a grind. Make the best of it and understand that it is numbers game. The more resumes you put in the hands of qualified people and the more interviews you go on, the higher the likelihood you will get a job.

7. Leverage external resources

There are incredible number of resources available on the Internet (including the job/career section on LifeTwo). The BBC article also has links to numerous relevant sites as well.

Source: BBC

Facebook, Google & Twitter Unite for World AIDS Day Around the Web

2009-12-01T19:00:00.001-08:00

via readwriteweb.com

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

2009-11-21T15:55:00.000-08:00

Writing Research Papers

2009-11-21T13:49:00.001-08:00

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Writing Research Papers

via Stepcase Lifehack by Art Carden on 9/25/09

No matter where you are in your intellectual journey, the ability to assemble and analyze large amounts of complex information is a skill that can pay large dividends both in monetary terms and in terms of your overall satisfaction with life. What follows is a very short guide and template for writing excellent research papers.

Re-Evaluating Road-Crossing: The Chicken Was Pushed

A Short Guide to Writing a Research Paper

Abstract

The Abstract is usually 100-150 words long. The abstract tells the reader what you have done and why it is important. Your abstract tells the reader what you do, how you do it, and what it implies. Here, you're saying the chicken was pushed, that you demonstrate this statistically or anecdotally, and that it implies we have to re-evaluate our understanding of chicken road-crossings.

I. Introduction

The introduction sets the stage for your analysis. You tell the audience what you are doing and why it is important. An introduction here would say that previous generations of scholars believed that the chicken crossed the road to get to the other side. Your paper shows that the chicken was pushed. In the introduction, you give a brief outline of the argument and the evidence used to support it. As much fun as it is to write long, twisting narratives filled with subtlety and nuance, it is important to remember that a research paper on a technical topic is not a mystery novel. Your readers are not reading for leisure. They are reading because they think your ideas are worth considering and factoring into their own research and decisions.

II. Literature Review

The literature review places your research in context. You aren't the first person to ask why the chicken crossed the road. What questions do previous researchers ask? What questions remain unanswered? How does your idea fit? In this case, previous scholars have also argued that the turtle crossed the road "to get to the Shell station." Is this relevant for your research? Why or why not? As tempting as it is, don't include too much in the literature review. The literature review is a place to highlight relevant contributions that address the question you are asking and to show how your contribution either fills gaps in our knowledge by answering questions we haven't answered yet or creates gaps in our knowledge by showing that something we thought we knew is false. What does the reader take from the literature review? Is it a sense of the important questions that others have asked and how your research helps answer them? Or does the reader just come away with the knowledge that you've read a lot of stuff? Revise the latter until it becomes the former.

III. Theory

Your theory lays out the logical reasons for why we might believe your hypothesis to be true. It also explains why other hypotheses are unlikely to be true. Road-crossing is dangerous, and people have never explained what was on the other side that would have made it more attractive to the chicken. We can't rule out the hypothesis that the chicken was pushed, and there are a lot of plausible conditions under which this might be the best explanation.

IV. Evidence

Here you report and explain the evidence you will use to verify that the chicken was pushed. Evidence can be statistical, anecdotal, narrative, or descriptive. Remember that not all good evidence is statistical, and not all statistical evidence is good. Perhaps you can show that chicken road-crossings are correlated with something, or maybe you find the chicken's personal papers in which he, in a diary and a series of letters, accuses the cow of pushing him into the road.

V. Conclusion

The conclusion summarizes your results and lays out very carefully exactly what needs to be done next. It is likely that your conclusion will be tentative. However, a well-written conclusion will elucidate the next steps that need to be taken before we can be absolutely certain as to whether the chicken crossed the road of his own volition or whether he was pushed.

Art Carden is Assistant Professor of Economics and Business at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee and an Adjunct Fellow with the Oakland, California-based Independent Institute. His research papers have been published or are forthcoming in Public Choice, Contemporary Economic Policy, the International Journal of Social Economics, the Business and Society Review, the Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, the Review of Austrian Economics, and other outlets, and they can be found on his SSRN Author Page. His commentaries appear regularly atwww.mises.org and in newspapers around the country, and he is a regular contributor to Division of Labour. He and his wife, Shannon, had their first child in July, 2008.

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Scoring 100% in Time Management

2009-11-21T12:42:00.001-08:00

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Scoring 100% in Time Management

via Stepcase Lifehack by Francis Wade on 10/9/09

"Most people who attempt to learn a new time management system fail."

I can't prove the above statement with hard facts, but I have a sense that it's true, based on my personal experience and observations. If success is defined as 100% successful implementation, then that statistic is most certainly true.

On the other hand, perhaps 99% of the people who take a time management program put down the book, or drive back home, agreeing with 100% of the ideas.

So, the million dollar question is: what's the problem?

Did the time management gurus blind them with their brilliance? Or does it prove that we are all a bunch of lazy good-for-nothings with short attention spans, suffering from various degrees of ADHD?

The problem is not something that's addressed by the gurus, and it's actually something that is being ignored by gurus and devotees alike.

It's a problem in what we think time management IS.

Learning a new time management system is not like learning differential calculus, financial accounting or particle physics. Each of these subject-areas are new to most people, who typically come to them like a blank canvas, and without any homegrown capability whatsoever. Most of us haven't figured out our own system of computing depreciation before stepping into accounting 101.

Ironically, our ignorance helps.. A new system of thinking is easier to learn when it's completely fresh to us, and only requires us to be ready, willing and able.

Learning a new approach to time management is much more difficult, because standing in the way of a shiny new system is the one that we are already using.

That's the same one we first put together when we entered high school, refined when we were in college, adapted when we got our first job, and started suffered with when we got married and found a bunch of stuff falling through the cracks for the first time.

That's "the time management system we never knew we had."

(For some of us, calling it a system might be too much of a mental leap, but it's tough to get through college without having put something in place.)

This "system we never knew we had" is comprised of habits, practices and rituals that have been practiced over the years and are now built into our neuro-muscular systems. In this sense, we are more like smokers trying to quit some dangerous behaviors, than we are mathematicians learning some brand new techniques.

Ask President Obama, or any smoker, and they'll tell you… quitting is tough.

But time management gurus don't tell you that changing the habits that make up your current time management system is just as challenging. They don't get you to appreciate what you are up against as you try to reverse decades of practice, reinforced by some positive results that convinced your subconscious that you had this time management thing beaten.

Not only don't you know all this, but most people try to learn a new time management system when they KNOW that their system is no longer successful. As you ponder your latest failure, you are driven crazy with desire for the new system being offered that seems to be so logical, sensible and easy to understand.

This only adds to the frustration. It appears to be easy, but isn't.

Here's a concept: Forget about learning a new time management system, and instead take a program in "Habit Changing 101." Discover the unique set of actions you must take to change your ingrained habits so that they stay changed. Figure out the unique blend of goal-setting, community support, backup plans, rewards, punishments, reminders, coaching, etc. that you need to succeed.

Once your special cocktail is figured out, then take any time management program that you want, implement the changes slowly (one habit at a time,) and take enough time to ensure that you won't lapse into the old habits when the inevitable crises hit.

You may still be failing to implement THEIR system the way it "should" be done, but you'll be 100% effective at upgrading your own.

I own a management consulting firm in Florida, and I recently moved to live in Jamaica. Shortly after arriving, I began to study time management techniques when I found that my old system didn't work. I eventually coined the term "Time Management 2.0" for people who create their own, custom approaches.Find out more about Time Management 2.0.I am also the author of the e-book "The 6 Surprising Mistakes that GTDers Make."

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The Nature of Commitment

2009-11-21T12:31:00.003-08:00

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The Nature of Commitment

via Stepcase Lifehack by Dustin Wax on 10/14/09

In a comment on my recent post about breaking up, someone asked if I'd write a follow-up about staying together. I've actually written about successful relationships before, based less on my own experience than on the work of relationship psychologists, so I'll just refer you there if you're looking for relationship advice. But thinking about what goes into a committed relationship got me thinking about the nature of commitment itself. What does it mean to be committed to something, whether to a person, a cause, a project, a government, a job, or an institution?

It's funny how many of the words that we use to describe devotion are also used to describe insanity. The word "fan", for instance, refers to someone who is a devoted admirer of an artist, musician, author, or other creator (or a piece of their work), but it comes from "fanatic", a maniacal follower of some cause or leader. The guy in line at the Stephen King signing is a fan; the guy who follows him around from signing to signing claiming King killed John Lennon is a fanatic.

Likewise, we use the same word, "committed", to describe someone's devotion to a cause or person as we use to describe their incarceration in a mental institution. Is there a similarity? Well, to be committed means to pledge, bind, or oblige one's self to something: a course of action, a system of beliefs, or indeed a medical treatment facility.

So, is being committed a sort of insanity? Well, no — but certainly there are some similarities between the kind of obsession that leads us to do horrible things to ourselves or others and the kind of obsession that leads us to greatness. We can look at someone like Steve Jobs and see that at work, the single-minded commitment to a vision of how the world should and could work, and the refusal to acknowledge other, "lesser" ways.

OK, enough prologue. What is commitment, then?

1. Commitment is passion.

Obsessive passion, maybe. Someone who is truly committed to something can't not do it. You can't live without accomplishing your cause or being with your significant other. Fulfilling that commitment gives you great pleasure — being with the person you love, pushing forward a project you believe in, creating a tiny pocket of betterness in the world, these are deeply satisfying to the person who is committed.

2. Commitment is action.

Actions speak louder than words, right? A person who is committed shows that commitment, over and over, in his or her actions. If your actions don't match your commitment, you simply aren't committed to it. You may have a belief, a hunch, a preference, a desire, but not a commitment.

3. Commitment is obligation.

What separates the truly committed from the rest of us is the way they embrace the crappiest parts of the job, setting their jaw and taking on the work that the rest of us wouldn't dream of. It's the parent scrubbing puke from the carpet at 4 in the morning, the doting spouse helping their aged partner on and off the toilet, the executive who flies halfway around the room to apologize in person for a badly flubbed marketing campaign, the firefighter who charges into a dangerous fire because he or she hears screaming, the soldier who holds his or her ground while the rest of company flees. You do these things not because they are fun or pleasurable in their own right, but because your commitment demands you do them.

4. Commitment is larger than the self.

Commitments are personal, but they're also about relationships. The committed artist sacrifices everything to express his or her inner vision to the world. The committed lover cares first and foremost for the emotional and physical well-being of his or her partner. The committed performer takes the stage in the service of the audience. The committed activist creates a better world not for him- or herself but for the generations to come. True commitment embraces and engages the world.

5. Commitment is voluntary.

Commitment is obligation, yes, but it's freely chosen obligation. Even the draftee chooses to be a hero in the heat of combat — or not to be. The environmentalist huddling shivering in a cold boat in arctic waters, protecting a pod of whales from a whaling ship, can take refuge in the fact that they chose to be there. The parent chooses to have and keep a child, no matter how accidental the pregnancy; the spouse chooses to stay in the marriage; the worker chooses to stay on the job. It is that choice that makes it a commitment — without the choice it's just slavery.

(Ironically, being committed to a mental institution is not voluntary. Oh well…)

When we feel forced into something, when we feel obligations hanging on us like an albatross, when our actions fail to match our beliefs — these are signs that we aren't as committed as maybe we thought we were. Maybe not committed at all. Pay attention to those signs — it's easy to convince ourselves of a commitment that isn't really a commitment at all.

So, what did I miss? And what are you committed to? Let's talk about commitment in the comments.

Dustin M. Wax is a freelance writer and project manager at Stepcase Lifehack. He is also the creator of The Writer's Technology Companion, a site devoted to the tools of the writing trade. When he's not writing, he teaches anthropology and gender studies in Las Vegas, NV. He is the author of Don't Be Stupid: A Guide to Learning, Studying, and Succeeding at College.

Follow him on Twitter: @dwax.

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Getting Things (Re-)Started: Dealing with Mental Blocks

2009-11-21T12:31:00.001-08:00

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Getting Things (Re-)Started: Dealing with Mental Blocks

via Stepcase Lifehack by Dustin Wax on 10/20/09

In any significantly big project, there are bound to be times when you lose the track of what you're doing, when for whatever reason you stop moving forward and, what's worse, can't seem to find the motivation to get going again. When we "fall off the wagon" like that, a kind of psychological wall starts building up, making getting back in the swing of things seem more and more daunting. An ugly cycle develops: as the wall gets higher, we get more anxious about climbing it, which makes the wall higher still.

The only real solution is to do something, anything, but that's small consolation when a project is taunting you with its unfinishedness. So here are a few little tricks to help you take a running start at that wall – you may not clear it in a single bound, but if you can just sink your toes into its cracks you might well find that climbing it wasn't quite the chore you thought it was. And when you discover that, the wall itself often comes crumbling down before you.

1. Take it on the road.

A powerful approach to getting re-started is to switch up the scenery by tackling your project in a new place. If you're sitting in your cubicle at work staring at the foam-and-fuzz walls, try taking a work-from-home day. If the butt-print in your chair has this project's name on it, try going to a coffee shop or co-working space or even a park bench.

The point is, change your scenery. The mind builds powerful associations between places and certain activities – and unfortunately, being frustrated and unproductive is just as much an "activity" to the mind as being happily productive. The longer you stew in frustration at the same place, the more likely your mind is to fall into an unproductive state just by entering that space. Moving to a new site gives you a clean slate to work with, a place with no associations, and is often enough to break whatever mental block your mind is throwing in your way.

2. Do 20 minutes.

This is my favorite procrastination-killer: set a timer for 20 minutes and promise yourself to work until the dinger goes "ding". This is useful for projects that aren't beyond you creatively or conceptually but are simply too dull to look forward too, like data entry. (Or, I confess, grading exams…) But no matter how hateful the task, just about anyone can manage 20 minutes of it. And the beauty of this is, once the timer goes off, you often find that you've got some momentum and really just want to get the job done – which may well be far more preferable than going back to dreading and putting off the work yet again.

3. Limit yourself.

This is the opposite of #2 – instead of forcing yourself to do at least a set amount of time, limit yourself to doing no more than 30 minutes, or an hour, or 4 hours, or whatever is reasonable. Set a timer and try to work, but when the timer goes off, stop. Even if you haven't made a lick of progress. Oh, you'll be stressed. You'll want to sit there and stew for 30 more minutes. You'll metaphorically rend your garments and gnash your teeth. But DO NOT DO ANY MORE WORK on that project. Force yourself to wait until tomorrow (or whenever you can schedule another block of time).

The mind thrives on limits, though it might take some training. If you know you only have x amount of time to work on something, and if the alternative is even more frustration, the mind will adapt. By depriving yourself of time to work on your project, you're turning it from a chore that you have to spend so much time on to something you only get to spend so much time on – you turn a punishment into a reward.

4. Skip the hard stuff.

A lot of projects stop dead when we hit a point where we don't know how to move forward. One way to get past that is to just set that sticky bit aside and proceed as if you'd figured it out. For instance, while writing a business plan, you may get hung up on income projections, with no idea how to figure that part out. Leave that bit, for now, and continue with the next part. If you need figures to work with, make them up* – you'll replace them with more accurate figures later. I do this all the time when writing academic papers where I don't have a reference on hand to flesh out some part; I just skip it, and if I need to refer to that part later in the paper, I put in nonsense and highlight it with the word processor's "highlight" function so I remember where I need to make changes later. Often, the hard stuff is easier once you've finished the easier bits – you develop the expertise to handle parts that earlier were beyond your abilities.

* You'd be surprised how many financial projections in business plans were made up anyway…

5. Tend to your knitting.

Or fly a kite. Or build a birdhouse. Draw caricatures of minor celebrities. Just drop whatever you're working on and do something totally random, totally different, and totally non-stressful. The brain is a funny thing – it often freezes up under pressure and then, when you're least expecting it, starts churning out solutions to whatever thorny problems are holding things up. Ironically, letting go of the problem is sometimes the only way to solve it.

Do you have any tips for getting back into the flow of things? Let us know about them in the comments.

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The Science of Motivation

2009-11-21T12:30:00.001-08:00

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The Science of Motivation

via Stepcase Lifehack by Dustin Wax on 10/22/09

What motivates you?

While there are thousands, millions, maybe billions of answers to that question, a growing body of research, some of it dating back 50 years, shows two things that don't motivate us very well – the promise of rewards and the threat of punishment.

It seems counter-intuitive, since after all we take it for granted that we need incentives to do work. It's the basis of our whole economic system, for crying out loud! And yet, the research is abundantly clear: once a reasonable standard of living is achieved, rewards and punishment not only don't motivate us to do more, better, or faster, they often demotivate us.

One classic example of this is a study involving lawyers asked to provide legal services for low-income persons. One group was asked to do so for a low fee, $10 or $20 an hour, while the other was asked to do so for free. Interestingly, the subjects asked to provide services for a fraction of their typical rate were unwilling to do so, while those asked to do so for free were overwhelmingly willing. By offering a small fee, the subjects were actually less motivated, since they could only think of the work in relation to their normal, much larger fees. The other subjects were not pushed to think about their work as an economic transaction (in which the fee was nothing) and so were able to imagine other ways in which the work itself was its own reward.

Rewards force us to consider our work in a limited way, even work that we might gain great satisfaction from doing without the promise of reward. In fact, offering incentives can limit not only one's perception of the work but one's ability to even do the work. Consider the "candle problem" (watch author Dan Pink's TED talk on the candle problem for more information). Subjects are seated at a table against a wall, given a candle, some matches, and a box of tacks, and told to work out a way to burn the candle without getting wax on the table. In one study, one group was offered money for figuring the puzzle out, while another wasn't – and the subjects who were not offered any reward did remarkably better.

(The solution, by the way, is to empty the box of tacks and set the candle up inside of the box – most people ignore the box at first, because they see it only as a holder for the tacks and not as part of the equipment available to them. People working for a reward have a much harder time making the creative leap to seeing the box as part of the puzzle than people who are not being incentivized except by the pleasure of solving the puzzle itself.)

I should clarify here: it should be clear by now that it's not rewards in the abstract that demotivate us, it's rewards that are external to the task at hand. We are actually very easily motivated by any sort of challenging work, which is why so many of our hobbies involve complex problem-solving (working on motorcycles, woodworking, gourmet cooking, reading mysteries, sailing, training pets, collecting rare things, fantasy sports, and so on). But when someone else offers us money (or some other reward) to complete the same problems, it gets shunted into the category of "work" and our creativity shuts down.

The trick to motivation, then, is to find the intrinsic reward in our work and to enjoy it. Note that this doesn't mean that nobody should ever accept money for anything – before our drive for mastery and personal challenge lies our drive to survive! But there's a reason why so many painters are willing to suffer for their art while so few people are willing to become hobby investment bankers – one kind of work has its own intrinsic motivation while the other, except for a very rare few of us, does not.

Knowing all that, there are a few things you can do to keep yourself motivated.

1. Have a mission.

Perhaps the single most motivating factor in our lives is the sense that we're fulfilling a greater purpose. That's why lawyers will do for free what they won't do for cheap – the sense that they're contributing to something greater than themselves. A lot of people have taken a page from the corporate world and written a short, one- or at most two-sentence mission statement, against which their actions can be evaluated. If your mission is, for example, "to make the world a better place" (which is maybe too vague to be all that effective, but it'll do for illustration purposes) then knowing that some task is helping to make the world better can be very motivating, indeed!

2. Measure improvement.

While work that engages with the rest of the world can be very intrinsically rewarding and thus very motivating, so too can work that makes us better people. Personal growth is an important motivating factor. But most of us take little time to determine just what constitutes being "better" – we set goals like "be more moral", "spend more time with family", or "do my job better" but those aren't very powerful motivators because they're not concrete. This is the idea behind S.M.A.R.T. goals, goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Set goals whose progress you can measure – according to whatever metric matters most to you! – and keep track of your progress.

3. Make learning a primary goal.

An important part of personal growth is achieving or moving towards mastery – of a body of knowledge, of a tool or system, of a particular task. Work that helps us move closer to mastery is generally rewarding in its own right.

But it's not always clear what, if anything, we're learning. So I'd like to borrow an idea from marketing "guru" Seth Godin. Godin advises readers of business books, to "Decide, before you start, that you're going to change three things about what you do all day at work. Then, as you're reading, find the three things and do it." This can apply to just about anything: ask yourself, as you start a new project or a new job or anything else, "What three things am I going to learn from doing this?" This will put you in a mastery frame of mind so that you're aware of the learning you're doing as you move through your various tasks.

4. Examine your life.

Alan Webber, the founder of Fast Company, keeps two lists in his pocket on index cards. One is a list of things that get him up in the morning, the other of things that keep him awake at night. Ask yourself what gets you out of bed in the morning, and what keeps you up at night. If your answers are positive things, you're in pretty good shape – but if they're not, you're begging for a motivation problem. When you get out of bed eager to tackle the challenges of the day, and lay awake at night dreaming up new challenges, new projects, and new directions to take your life in, motivation comes pretty easily!

5. Separate work from rewards.

This is a tough one, because we often battle procrastination by depriving ourselves of something positive and promising ourselves we can have it once we've gotten some work done. The problem is that it paints the work we're doing as something undesirable, something we wouldn't do unless we had that grand latte, trip to the mall, or afternoon swim as a reward. In his classic, The Now Habit, Neil Fiore suggests that procrastination comes not from the nature of the work but from our relationship with it – work we see as drudgery that we have to do in order to get something we want is ripe for procrastination. Instead, he suggests we change the very language we use to talk about our work, emphasizing that we choose to work on a task or project. Work we choose to do – like hobbies – rarely suffers from motivation problems!

With all that we've discovered about what motivates people, it will be interesting to see how businesses, who have until now depended on perks, stock options, and other bonuses to increase motivation, will adapt. It's become clear that, while rewards and punishments might have increased productivity on the factory floor, it actually hinders the kind of knowledge work that makes up the vast bulk of our economy these days. Already a few companies are experimenting, quite successfully, with ways of helping employees to discover the intrinsic rewards of their own work – Google's 20% time, which gives engineers one day a week to work on whatever project they choose and which has resulted in products as crucial to the company as Gmail, AdSense, and Google News, is one prominent example – most managers remain convinced that their employees will never do work without the promise of a reward or the threat of punishment.

Which is kind of a sad commentary on all of our lives, isn't it?

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11 Ways to Think Outside the Box

2009-11-21T12:04:00.001-08:00

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11 Ways to Think Outside the Box

via Stepcase Lifehack by Dustin Wax on 11/6/09

Thinking outside the box is more than just a business cliché. It means approaching problems in new, innovative ways; conceptualizing problems differently; and understanding your position in relation to any particular situation in a way you'd never thought of before. Ironically, its a cliché that means to think of clichéd situations in ways that aren't clichéd.

We're told to "think outside the box" all the time, but how exactly do we do that? How do we develop the ability to confront problems in ways other than the ways we normally confront problems? How do we cultivate the ability to look at things differently from the way we typically look at things?

Thinking outside the box starts well before we're "boxed in" – that is, well before we confront a unique situation and start forcing it into a familiar "box" that we already know how to deal with. Or at least think we know how to deal with.

Here are 11 ways to beef up your out-of-the-box thinking skills. Make an effort to push your thinking up to and beyond its limit every now and again – the talents you develop may come in handy the next time you face a situation that "everybody knows" how to solve.

1. Study another industry.

I've learned as much about teaching from learning about marketing as I have from studying pedagogy – maybe more. Go to the library and pick up a trade magazine in an industry other than your own, or grab a few books from the library, and learn about how things are done in other industries. You might find that many of the problems people in other industries face are similar to the problems in your own, but that they've developed really quite different ways of dealing with them. Or you might well find new linkages between your own industry and the new one, linkages that might well be the basis of innovative partnerships in the future.

2. Learn about another religion.

Religions are the way that humans organize and understand their relationships not only with the supernatural or divine but with each other. Learning about how such relations are structured can teach you a lot about how people relate to each other and the world around them. Starting to see the reason in another religion can also help you develop mental flexibility – when you really look at all the different ways people comprehend the same mysteries, and the fact that they generally manage to survive regardless of what they believe, you start to see the limitations of whatever dogma or doxy you follow, a revelation that will transfer quite a bit into the non-religious parts of your life.

3. Take a class.

Learning a new topic will not only teach you a new set of facts and figures, it will teach you a new way of looking at and making sense of aspects of your everyday life or of the society or natural world you live in. This in turn will help expand both how you look at problems and the breadth of possible solutions you can come up with.

4. Read a novel in an unfamiliar genre.

Reading is one of the great mental stimulators in our society, but it's easy to get into a rut. Try reading something you'd never have touched otherwise – if you read literary fiction, try a mystery or science fiction novel; if you read a lot of hard-boiled detective novels, try a romance; and so on. Pay attention not only to the story but to the particular problems the author has to deal with. For instance, how does the fantasy author bypass your normal skepticism about magic and pull you into their story? Try to connect those problems to problems you face in your own field. For example, how might your marketing team overcome your audiences normal reticence about a new "miracle" product?

5. Write a poem.

While most problem-solving leans heavily on our brain's logical centers, poetry neatly bridges our more rational left-brain though processes and our more creative right-brain processes. Though it may feel foolish (and getting comfortable with feeling foolish might be another way to think outside the box), try writing a poem about the problem you're working on. Your poem doesn't necessarily have to propose a solution – the idea is to shift your thinking away from your brain's logic centers and into a more creative part of the brain, where it can be mulled over in a non-rational way. Remember, nobody has to ever see your poem…

6. Draw a picture.

Drawing a picture is even more right-brained, and can help break your logical left-brain's hold on a problem the same way a poem can. Also, visualizing a problem engages other modes of thinking that we don't normally use, bringing you another creative boost.

7. Turn it upside down.

Turning something upside-down, whether physically by flipping a piece of paper around or metaphorically by re-imagining it can help you see patterns that wouldn't otherwise be apparent. The brain has a bunch of pattern-making habits that often obscure other, more subtle patterns at work; changing the orientation of things can hide the more obvious patterns and make other patterns emerge. For example, you might ask what a problem would look like if the least important outcome were the most important, and how you'd then try to solve it.

8. Work backwards.

Just like turning a thing upside down, working backwards breaks the brain's normal conception of causality. This is the key to backwards planning, for example, where you start with a goal and think back through the steps needed to reach it until you get to where you are right now.

9. Ask a child for advice.

I don't buy into the notion that children are inherently ore creative before society "ruins" them, but I do know that children think and speak with a n ignorance of convention that is often helpful. Ask a child how they might tackle a problem, or if you don't have a child around think about how you might reformulate a problem so that a child could understand it if one was available. Don't run out and build a boat made out of cookies because a child told you to, though – the idea isn't to do what the child says, necessarily, but to jog your own thinking into a more unconventional path.

10. Invite randomness.

If you've ever seen video of Jackson Pollock painting, you have seen a masterful painter consciously inviting randomness into his work. Pollock exercises a great deal of control over his brushes and paddles, in the service of capturing the stray drips and splashes of paint that make up his work. Embracing mistakes and incorporating them into your projects, developing strategies that allow for random input, working amid chaotic juxtapositions of sound and form – all of these can help to move beyond everyday patterns of thinking into the sublime.

11. Take a shower.

There's some kind of weird psychic link between showering and creativity. Who knows why? Maybe it's because your mind is on other things, maybe it's because you're naked, maybe it's the warm water relaxing you – it's a mystery. But a lot of people swear by it. So maybe when the status quo response to some circumstance just isn't working, try taking a shower and see if something remarkable doesn't occur to you!

Do you have strategies for thinking differently? Share your tips with us in the comments.

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How to Give a Great Speech: Part 2 Delivery

2009-11-21T11:59:00.003-08:00

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How to Give a Great Speech: Part 2 Delivery

via Stepcase Lifehack by Paul Sloane on 10/26/09

An important speech can be a worry. The keys for success are good preparation and confident delivery. If you have prepared your talk well and memorised the key points then you are ready to give a great performance. And it is a performance. Giving a talk should be much more than simply conveying information – it involves an element of drama and of theatre. Here are some tips:

1. Be confident.

You will be nervous and that is natural. The best antidote is to rehearse a clear and confident opening to your talk. The audience can read your demeanour instantly. They will be sad to see a quiet, diffident start so please them with a bright, confident opening. You could ask a question, throw down a challenge, quote a famous person, tell a joke or state an interesting fact. Your start sets the tone and a good start will lift you and the audience.

2. Look them in the eye.

Do not hide behind a lectern or read from your notes. Walk about the stage, look directly at people and talk to them from your heart. Eye contact is important. It engages the audience and raises the level of the talk.

3. Speak clearly.

Your voice is the tool that does the job so use it well. You should not rush or mumble. Use clear short sentences and speak with conviction. Make sure that you can he heard. For larger audiences always use a microphone. Vary your voice. Practise altering the volume, pitch and speed of your delivery. Variety of delivery adds interest especially if it is done in such a way as to reinforce the message.

4. Use some rhetoric.

Barack Obama is a master of using rhetorical devices such as contrast and the list of three. Simple contrasts work well e.g. 'We come not in fear, but in hope.' The list of three items is very powerful e.g. 'We can do this thing, we should do this thing and we must do this thing.' These well-established methods of delivery may sound a little contrived when you practise them but the audience will respond.

5. Pause.

The most powerful weapon in the speaker's armoury is the pause. Use it carefully and it will rivet your listeners. For example use it before an important item, after a question or before delivering the punch line to your story.

6. Don't worry if you forget something.

If you speak from memory and without notes then you will often forget some item that you had intended to say. Don't worry. The audience does not know that you missed anything so don't apologise or scramble around. If your speech is short and with a clear message then it is fine.

7. Finish strongly.

Signal that you are concluding and then give a simple summary. End with the one clear message that you want people to take away and then thank them for their attention.

Speaking in public can be daunting but exhilarating too. Enjoy it.

Paul Sloane is an author and speaker on leadership, innovation and lateral thinking. His most recent book is The Innovative Leader. He helps organizations improve innovation, creativity and leadership. He is the founder of Destination Innovation. He has written 15 books of lateral thinking puzzles and hosts the lateral puzzles forum.

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What Will You Learn Today?

2009-11-21T11:59:00.001-08:00

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What Will You Learn Today?

via Stepcase Lifehack by Craig Harper on 10/23/09

A Typical Life?

I gotta be honest, I really like my life. Of course I have my moments (being human and all), but for the most part, it rocks. Not a day goes by where I am not thankful for, or totally aware of, what I have and what I've been given. Of course it's not always a normal, conventional or typical life by any means (but who has that?) – and sure, I've disappointed my long-suffering mother by not providing her with the expected grandchildren to this point in time – but it's a fun life nonetheless. Sorry about that, Mary. I'll do better.

Naah, I probably won't.

What do You Like Most About Your Life?

Anyhoozle… someone asked me recently what I like most about my life. "Good question", I replied. I pondered for a moment and while I get to do lots of cool things, I concluded that the funnest (a word) thing about my life right now is the people I get to meet and learn from. To say I meet a broad cross-section of people would be a massive understatement. From elite athletes to fat business people. From celebrities to people battling life-threatening diseases. From the arrogant to the humble. From the powerless to the powerful. From the well-known to the unknown. From the financially rich to the spiritually rich. From prisoners to prophets. From the angry to the enlightened. And from the obsessed to the apathetic. Yep, they have all taught me something. Knowingly or not. Intentionally or not.

Interestingly, some of the most negative, self-obsessed, self-destructive and problem-focused people have taught me the most. Specifically, how not to be and what not to do.

Where we Choose to Learn

I have always been a keen observer of people and a passionate student of human behaviour; even as a young boy. Long before I understood what the term behavioural psychology meant, I was studying people, absorbing and processing information and learning lessons. Life lessons. People lessons. Communication lessons. Leadership lessons. Management lessons. Lessons about manipulation, influence, power, humility, fear, health, success, attitude, happiness… and a whole lot more. While I enjoyed school and university (to a point), I have always understood that (for me) there were many more valuable truths to be uncovered beyond the (traditional) classroom. I have always found people to be fascinating, inspiring, curious, amazing, confusing, selfish, selfless, fearful, courageous and profoundly interesting creatures.

I have learned that being a student is a choice. As is humility. As is honesty. As is personal growth.

My Philosophy on Learning

I have a somewhat "cheesy" mantra that I wheel out periodically and while I hate the over-used, self-help cliches that typify so much of what's painful and annoying about the field of personal development, the following statement is an accurate and honest representation of my attitude towards learning:

"The world is my classroom, each day is a new lesson and every person I meet is my teacher."

As trite as it might sound, the above ideology can be both enlightening and transformational when we truly understand and embrace the power and potential that comes from living in this kind of paradigm.

The Non-Learner

In truth, some people have not learned (listened, changed, grown, improved, adapted, paid attention, asked a question) in twenty years; just take a look at the kind of results they produce, how little of their ability they use, how much of their time they waste and how their existence is typically one of repetition, frustration and mediocrity. And complaining. Groundhog Day for the perpetually miserable and unfulfilled. For a range of reasons, they have chosen not to learn new things. It seems that some people are too proud, fearful, arrogant, busy, distracted, insecure or lazy to learn. What a pity, what a waste (of everything) and what an unnecessary reality to inhabit.

Opening Our Eyes

If we so choose, our world (the one we create and inhabit) can be different from now… or like too many others, we can keep living our life in a holding pattern. We can be problem-focused or lesson-focused; it's a choice. It's a mindset. Some choose to whine and bitch, others to learn. From right now we can open our eyes, shift our attitude, learn new things and produce better results, simply by looking at old things in new ways. Internal shift produces external shift. That is, transformation always works from the inside-out. If there's a genuine desire to learn, the lessons will always be there. In fact, they are always there but we fail to pay attention. If only we would listen to what life (God, the universe, subconscious us) is saying. The wisdom is there. The truth is there. The joy is there. And the lessons are there for anyone who chooses to be a seeker and a student.

So what have you learned lately? Do tell! Feel free to teach the rest of us something by sharing any recent revelations, insights, life-lessons or moments of clarity. And as always, feel free to share your thoughts on this article.

Craig Harper (B.Ex.Sci.) is a qualified exercise scientist, author, columnist, radio presenter, television host, motivational speaker and university lecturer. For the past 25 years he has been a leading presenter, educator, motivator and commentator in the areas of personal and professional development. You can visit Craig's blog at Motivational Speaker.FREE eBook – So… You've Decided to Get in Shape (Again) Craig's FREE eBook takes 20 – 30 minutes to read, and addresses the REAL getting-in-shape issues based on his 25 years of experience. To get Craig's FREE eBook click here, weight loss books.

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10 Best Productivity Books of 2009

2009-11-21T09:48:00.001-08:00

10 Best Productivity Books of 2009

via Stepcase Lifehack by Dustin Wax on 11/18/09

Granted, the year’s not done yet, but publishers start to slow down new releases right about now, so it’s not likely we’ll see another contender for “best of 2009” until January. Plus, Christmas is coming up, and I wanted to give you plenty of time to read some of these books before you give copies to your friends and relatives.

But really? It’s never the wrong time to recommend a list of great books.

These are 10 books I read this year that made a powerful impression. I read a ton of non-fiction – not only do I read for my own pleasure but I’m a non-fiction reviewer for Publishers Weekly and I’m also regularly approached with titles to review for Lifehack. Of course, not everything I read has anything to do with personal productivity – I also quite enjoyed Timothy Egan’s The Big Burn and Michael Chabon’s Manhood for Amateurs this year – but given my role here you can expect that my reading tends to lean rather in a Lifehack-y direction.

Out of the stack of books I’ve finished this year, then, these are the 10 I think have “legs” – they have a lot to say and their ideas will be around for a long time to come. As always, I’m using “productivity” loosely here, measured in units of happiness achieved not units of work finished. The books in this list talk about the psychology of motivation, decision-making, and happiness, the importance of good old-fashioned handiwork, launching a business, the meaning of risk, and, of course, piracy, among other topics. While they may not offer easy-to-digest lessons in list-making and project planning, all of them are jam-packed full of information that can help you build a better business, career, and life. And that’s what this is all about.

Since I’m writing this in November, and since end-of-the-year publications often get overlooked in annual best-of lists (which are generally also written in November, even if they’re published later), I’ve decided to include books published back to November 1, 2008. So, here they are, in no particular order:

1. Making It All Work by David Allen

It would be hard to justify not including David Allen’s latest contribution to the Getting Things Done canon. Making It All Work expands and deepens the central GTD concepts, addressing concerns many have had about setting priorities, work-life balance issues, and the runway-50,000 foot views. I wrote an extensive 3-part review of this book; start with Part 1 here. A paperback version is due out on Dec 29.

2. Shop Class as Soulcraft by Matthew B. Crawford

This is the best non-fiction book I’ve read all year. Maybe the best I’ve read in this decade! Crawford is a philosophy professor and motorcycle repairman, and here he sings the praises of working with your hands, or what he calls “manual competence”. The reason so many of us are unsatisfied, he argues, is that we do deeply unsatisfying work – work that alienates us not just from the product of our labor (whatever that is – what does a derivatives broker, marketing director, or currency trader make, anyway?) but from each other (with our relationships mediated by layers of BS and managerial protocol) and ultimately ourselves. Working with our hands connects us physically to the material world we’ve taken largely for granted in these years of abundance and consumption. This book will inspire and enlighten you, regardless of your politics or faith.

3. Career Renegade by Jonathan Fields

Jonathan Fields had a dream career – and it was killing him. So he dropped everything and started over, eventually building one of the most successful yoga studios in New York City. Along the way, he learned a thing or two about chasing a dream, and shares those lessons here. Being a career renegade isn’t just about changing your job, it’s about changing your career – both in the sense of shifting from one career to another but also in the sense of transforming what you’re already doing. By turns practical and inspiring. Read my full review for more.

4. The Big Idea by Donny Deutsch

Donny Deutsch is best known as the host of the TV show, also called The Big Idea, in which he helps fledgling entrepreneurs bring their big ideas to market. This book collects the things he’s learned from interacting with hundreds of entrepreneurs over the year, as well as from his own experience building up his father’s advertising agency to a hundreds-of-millions-dollar business. This is hardnosed, practical advice, with plenty of resources both online and off- to point you in the right direction.

5. The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economy of Pirates by Peter T. Leeson

Arrrr! This is an oddball book, applying classical economic theory to pirate life and business. Yes, business – turns out pirates were quite the business people! This book offers a fun and interesting introduction to economics (and “fun” and “interesting” are two words you rarely hear in connection with the field…) and some surprisingly good ideas about how to make a contemporary business run.

6. One Year to an Organized Work Life by Regina Leeds

I interviewed Leeds back in 2008 for Lifehack Live about her then-current book, One Year to an Organized Life. This year, she returned with a follow-up, applying the same principles of self-discovery and limited, focused organizing projects to the office. Divided into 12 sections, one per month, this book walks readers though a series of easy-on-their-own steps that, taken together, create a system for workplace organization and a mindset to match it. Plus, there are rubber ducks on the cover, which are awesome. Thursday Bram wrote a review of Organized Work Life when it came out in January.

7. Dance with Chance by Spyros Makridakis, Robin Hogarth, and Anil Gaba

A book about luck – and how it’s more powerful than we think. This book will likely blow your mind with its analyses of the role luck plays in health care, investment banking, and business administration – and how rarely doctors, investment bankers, business leaders, and everyone else ever beat the odds. The practical sections are a little weak – like the authors felt they needed to write a how-to book instead of a thought-provoking one – but the book overall is well worth your time.

8. What the Dog Saw and Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

I put these two together, since I didn’t want one author to hog up space on the list. What can you say about a genius who put out two books full of his trademark craziness in less than a year? Outliers explores all the factors beside raw talent that go into creating success, putting individual accomplishment in the larger social context that makes it possible. What the Dog Saw is a collection of Gladwell’s essays, focusing on all sorts of random but always interesting aspects of our culture. I haven’t finished it yet – it just came out, people! – but it’s Gladwell.

9. Start-Up Nation by Dan Senor and Saul Singer

Israel leads the world in start-ups, particularly in the tech sector, and Senor and Singer explain why in this compelling book. Among the reasons: The social networks and educational opportunities afforded by near-universal military service; lax immigration laws that create a diversity of thought and experience; and an authority-questioning worldview that keeps complacency at bay and hierarchies relatively flat. As a strictly non-Zionist Jew (that means I feel no cultural connection with Israel or with the notion of a homeland), even I was considering emigration when I finished this book!

10. Drive by Daniel H. Pink

Pink is the author of The Adventures of Johnny Bunko, a guide to career change in the form of an anime novel (which I reviewed here). In Drive, he delves into the psychology of motivation, showing that virtually everything businesses do to motivate employees (and that we do to motivate ourselves) is wrong. In the end, motivation is about doing work that fulfills us as people, and that it boils down to three things: Autonomy (the ability to work at our own pace on projects of our own choosing), Mastery (the ability to develop our skills and perform at our highest level), and Purpose (working in the service of something larger than ourselves). A perfect message as we enter the season of goodwill towards all.

Of course, I can’t read everything – I’m only superhuman, after all – so I’m sure there are good books that came out in the last year that I’ve missed. Ori and Rom Brafman’s Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior, for example, sounds, well… irresistible. Let us know your picks in the comments – and what you thought of any of the books above you might have read.

Follow him on Twitter: @dwax.

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Top 7 Steps for Career Change

2009-11-21T09:25:00.001-08:00

Whether you want your dream job, achieve a better work-life balance or simply need the challenge, this 7 step career decision making advice will help you think through your midlife career change.

1. What skills and experience do you have?
List exactly your skills and experience, focussing on what you CAN do not on what you can’t. These are commonly called “transferable skills” as no matter what line of work you’re in, you can use them. You’ve probably got unique talents or knowledge – go ahead and list that too. These may end up differentiating you from the rest, and land your dream job.
Okay, so there may be some gaps between you and your dream job, but if you could do it all already, why bother changing career? It’s highly likely you can close those gaps without going back to school full-time. Sounds unlikely? Well, have you heard of secondments, job shadowing, or learning on the job? And what about taking a sabbatical to work in the voluntary sector to test things out? All of these allow a mid life career change without going back to school.

Need some help with this? Try the free 7-minute career test

2. What field would you like to work in?
So now we know what you can do. Maybe you want to stay doing what you do, but in a different field? My uncle moved from a high flying banking job to become a financial director of a large theatre, fulfilling his love of the arts whilst still getting his “fix” of numbers.
Science, medicine, government, working from home, military…. There are so many choices it can be overwhelming. Luckily the next step will help narrow it down.

3. What lifestyle do you want?
Your lifestyle aspirations change as your circumstances change. What suits as a foot loose fancy free twenty something may no longer hold water as a thirty something with 2.4 children, dog and pet rabbit. What is your ideal day? Who do you see? What kind of people are around you?

4. Where do you want to live?
Choosing to live in a remote community may be tough going if you have super niche skills. Maybe you can market those skills online – just check out if you can get broadband before you move :>)
Travelling is another consideration, be it the daily commute or international globe-trotting. Does this figure in your dream job? If so, you need to consider the dull reality of trains, planes and automobiles.

5. What salary fits your lifestyle?
Let’s talk money. How much money do you need to live your life, now and when you retire? It’s a sorry truth that most of us have to work to get bread on the table. Don’t let dollar signs cloud your dream job though. My sister-in-law took a massive pay cut to move from corporate life to the public sector (and give back her Mini Cooper, ouch) but one year later is earning more than her corporate salary.

6. What career progression is there?
Are you painting yourself into a corner career-wise? Does your dream job have a finite life span or are there opportunities to grow and develop? Lack of career progression may be why you are looking to change careers now! I certainly moved from one job as the glass ceiling was firmly fixed above my head.

7. How will you progress this?
Right, here’s the really difficult bit. I never said it was going to be easy :>) In fact, I’ll spill the beans now. Making a midlife career change is slow, hard work, and requires you to do some tough thinking. But consider the alternative – wasting your life in a dead end job, unfulfilled and embarrassed about how your obituary will read.
How will you progress this?
Yep, you heard me. How are you going to land that dream job? Who do you need to speak to? What research needs done? Who can help? Just like fishing, you can only catch a fish when you have a line in the water. Your dream job is out there waiting to be caught.
It’s never too late to make a midlife career change. Vincent Van Gogh was an art dealer, schoolmaster, student priest, and missionary before he taught himself how to paint. Indeed, he was well into his thirties before his artistic talents were recognised. Not bad for a midlife career change!
Midlife career change advice is easy - it’s up to you to make it happen. Pull together an action plan and do it, no excuses.
Was this article useful to you? Why not subscribe for free to get more?
Lyndsay Swinton is an experienced team leader, people manager and business coach. Her website is http://www.mftrou.com - 'Management for the rest of us'. Subscribe to her free no-nonsense Management Tips newsletter at mftrou.com today.

http://Top7Business.com/?expert=Lyndsay-Swinton

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Social Networking And Recruitment

2009-11-21T08:50:00.001-08:00

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Social Networking And Recruitment

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2009-11-15T20:38:00.001-08:00

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2009-11-14T09:37:00.001-08:00

levs_aguelo@yahoo.com has shared the following link with you via AddToAny:

http://linked2leadership.com/2009/11/13/leaders-are-you-embracing-life/

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Barack Obama’s Authentic Personal Brand

2009-11-11T19:00:00.000-08:00

Having an authentic dream and a related personal brand is a very important asset in today's online, virtual, and individual age

Having an authentic dream and a related personal brand is a very important asset in today's online, virtual, and individual age. This is the key to personal success. It is the positioning strategy behind the world's most successful people, like Barack Obama. It's therefore important to be your own brand based on your authentic dream. This will help you to actively grow and distinguish yourself. Remember what Walt Disney said; "If you can dream it, you can do it".
Barack Obama's dream is-Bring about real change, change that we can believe in. His passion for change is the pillar of his authentic Personal Brand. Parts of his speeches: "America is a land of big dreamers and big hopes. It is this hope that has sustained us through revolution and civil war, depression and world war, a struggle for civil and social rights and the brink of nuclear crisis. And it is because our dreamers dreamed that we have emerged from each challenge more united, more prosperous, and more admired than before.......The true test of the American ideal is whether we're able to recognize our failings and then rise together to meet the challenges of our time. Whether we allow ourselves to be shaped by events and history, or whether we act to shape them. Whether chance of birth or circumstance decides life's big winners and losers, or whether we build a community where, at the very least, everyone has a chance to work hard, get ahead, and reach their dreams....Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.... I don't want to settle for anything less than real change, fundamental change - change we need - change that we can believe in. It's change that I've been fighting for over two decades ago. Because those dreams - American dreams - are worth fighting for".
He:
identified and leveraged his authentic, relevant, meaningful, inspiring, enduring, ambitiousdream and hope
responses to his dream/hope with love and passion and adds value to others
knows what make him unique, special, different and outstanding
recognized and identified his genius and expanded his limits based on this
succeeded by living according to his dream and doing related work he loves
has faith in himself and the courage to pursue his dream and hope, and based on this delivered peak performances and is exceptional
Remember this (Rampersad, 2009):
Dream it, hope it, believe it, fix it in your mind, visualize it, accept it, respond to it with love, passion, and integrity, give your peak performance to it and you will achieve it
Barack Obama is a man of hope, integrity, and vision, who is fighting for change. We admire him because of his genius, achievements, success, and added value to others. Anyone can deliver peak performances and be successful in life, because all of us have the genius within us to do so. Success is not something that will come automatically or something that the world will define for you. It's what you define in your ambitious dream (hope) and in the way you pursue this dream. Remember what Marva Collins said; ‘Success doesn't come to you ...you go to it'. You must have a dream in life, follow your heart and love what you do, if you expect exceptional success. You will surely have it, since people who ask for it, wish it, dream it, hope it, fix it in their mind, visualize it, feel it, allow it, give your peak performance to it, respond to it with love, passion and integrity, attract success. Obama has proven that if someone has a clear authenticdream, responds to it with love and passion, has the courage to pursue this dream, has faith in him/herself, and lives according to their dream, this dream will guide that person's life and will result in purposeful and resolute actions. He took the responsibility to identify his dreams and hope, and to respond to them with love and passion. Stop complaining and do not blame others for your failures. Take the initiative and the responsibility to develop, implement, and cultivate your authentic dream and hope as well, and keep it at the forefront of your mind each day. You should have faith in yourself. Also remember this (Rampersad, 2009):
no dream + no hope +no faith + no self-knowledge + no thinking + no mindset change + no integrity + no passion + no trust + no love = NO SUSTAINABLE CHANGE
Love is an important element in this equation. It is about loving yourself (self-love), loving others, and loving what you do. You should love yourself in at least equal measure to others or things. This can be found in most religions: "to love others as you love yourself". Remember what Abraham Maslow said: "We can only respect others when we respect ourselves. We can only give, when we give to ourselves. We can only love, when we love ourselves". Without knowing who you are (self-knowledge), it's very difficult to love yourself and others. You need to make a positive emotional connection with yourself and find yourself interesting first, otherwise others you will not make a positive emotional connection with you and will not find you interesting. With an authentic Personal Brand (based on your dream), your strongest characteristics, attributes, and values can separate you from the crowd. Without this, you look just like everyone else.
This article is based on Dr. Hubert Rampersad's new book "Authentic Personal Branding: A new blueprint for building and aligning a powerful leadership brand' (Information Age Publishing, USA, 2009 Pearson Malaysia, 2008 ). He is president of TPS International Inc. (Miami Beach, USA). He can be reached at: h.rampersad@tps-international.com, www.Total-Performance-Scorecard.com

Barack Obama’s Authentic Personal Brand | Hubert Rampersad

2009-11-11T18:59:00.001-08:00

via rampersad.ulitzer.com

Posted via web from My Proactive Circle of Influence: Advance

Barack Obama’s Authentic Personal Brand | Hubert Rampersad

2009-11-11T18:58:00.000-08:00

Barack Obama’s Authentic Personal Brand | Hubert Rampersad

A 4-Point Survival Guide for Turning Personal Financial Crisis into Opportunity | Ulitzer

2009-11-11T18:54:00.000-08:00

A 4-Point Survival Guide for Turning Personal Financial Crisis into Opportunity | Ulitzer

Personal Branding Book Review by Marshall Goldsmith | Virtualization Journal

2009-11-11T18:50:00.000-08:00

Personal Branding Book Review by Marshall Goldsmith | Virtualization Journal

A Balancing Act for Life | CRM Developer's Journal

2009-11-11T18:46:00.000-08:00

A Balancing Act for Life | CRM Developer's Journal

Be the CEO of Your Life | CRM Developer's Journal

2009-11-11T18:45:00.000-08:00

Be the CEO of Your Life | CRM Developer's Journal

Personal Branding Book Review by Marshall Goldsmith | Virtualization Journal

2009-11-11T18:43:00.000-08:00

Personal Branding Book Review by Marshall Goldsmith | Virtualization Journal

Aligning Personal Brand with Corporate Brand | Hubert Rampersad

2009-11-11T18:28:00.000-08:00

Aligning Personal Brand with Corporate Brand | Hubert Rampersad

14 Cool Tea and Coffee Mugs

2009-11-10T22:09:00.001-08:00

14 Cool Tea and Coffee Mugs

via Toxel.com by Toxel.com on 11/10/09

The most creative coffee and tea mug designs from all over the globe. Animal Face Mug Taz-ah are white bone china mugs with printed images on the underside. While in use a dog, rabbit, pig, tiger and monkey faces can be reviled. [link] Tea or Coffee Mug Fantastic way to let everyone know how the drinker takes their tea [...]

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Top 10 approaches to enjoy work

2009-11-09T19:27:00.001-08:00

Top 10 approaches to enjoy work

via Tough Guide to work by Alan on 10/29/09

Time to read this post: 6 minutes

It's time to take a position. Why do some people consistently love their work? After multiple degrees, hundreds of academic books & articles, years of interviewing people in their work, I want to summarize what actually works. For people who love their work, what is it that they do? What are their tricks? Their secrets? This may eventually turn something more than a blog posting. For now I want to share the ten most effective approaches that I have learned on my journey thus far.

Three is the magic number. Most self-help books will tell you that there are three rules, three secrets, three pathways to happiness. A holy trinity. Three is a good number because most of us can't remember more than that. I can't recall the names of the seven dwarfs let alone the fifty ways to leave your lover. But what bothered me was that each each academic or book that I read cited a different three. One has Pleasure, Engagement & Meaning. The next has Strengths, Flow and Mindfulness. Or Achievement, Savoring and Love.

What seems to be the problem? Imagine a company that is losing money. Before we can assess what to do, we need to understand the firm's current situation. What is its competitive position? How much money does it have in the bank? What do its customers think of the products they sell? Do employees enjoy working there? Only then can we offer an initial opinion. And yet with people, authors and academics ignore all of that and tell us there are only three things to consider. I'm sorry, but life's more complicated than that.

I have tried to synthesize every major theory about what influences how we enjoy our work. It draws from behavioral economics and Greek philosophy to top athletic coaching and Positive Psychology. It's not a comprehensive list but it's my best starter. I have boiled it down to the ten most important approaches. And I bet that three of them are highly relevant to you. But it probably won't overlap with the three on my list. Over the coming weeks I will explore each of these in turn.

Top 10 approaches to enjoying work (as of October 2010)

1. REFRAME: One way to enjoy work more is to reframe your challenges and time in a more positive light. You might ask yourself each morning "What's going to be good about work today" or start a meeting with "What's going well on our project?". You do acknowledge where you are behind, or what's going wrong but your positive perspectives notably outweigh the negative.

2. STRUGGLE: work needs to be tough enough. We need challenge and without it we get bored. It is about having goals that your really have to stretch for; about pushing yourself, about time flying by as you are absorbed in your work. People who excel here have mastered how to set goals well, who jump into projects that both scare and energize them, who let themselves get lost in the moment.

3. STRENGTHS: focus on using your strengths each day not just shoring up your weaknesses. People who excel here understand what energizes them and reframe their daily work to use their strengths in new ways. These people know the cards that life has dealt them and they lead with their strong suits. They do know their weaknesses but don't obsess over them. For example if they are highly creative but in a non-creative role they still invent excuses to brainstorm and to let their imaginations run wild each day.

4. SIMPLIFY: declutter both physically & mentally. Life is awash with choices and it's easy to drown. People who excel here don't try and do everything perfectly. They compare the prices of three products not three hundred. They delegate less important decisions to other people. They outsource repetitive tasks to personal assistants. They keep one master 'to do' list so they don't have to remember everything going on. They are happy with 'good enough', it frees up time to do other activities they really enjoy.

5. QUIET PLEASE: dampen the constant chatter that runs through your head. We are so used to the running commentary in our brain that we tend not to notice it. People who excel here might practice meditation or they might do active exercise. They are quick to notice if they are ruminating and they know how to stop. If a colleague calls them incompetent they don't take the bait. They can let it wash over them. They have a sense of calmness and serentity about them.

6. CONNECT: make sure you have colleagues who you trust. Actively develop friendships at work. Other people matter to our happiness much more than we realise. People who excel here have colleagues who they can go to for great advice. They have friends who will look out for them and who have their backs. They share the values of their co-workers. They genuinely care about the well-being of those around them. They allow their true selves to shine through and not feel like they are suppressing their true identity

7. GIVE: help other people. This is about making other people successful and happy - both co-workers and customers. People who reframe their work as bringing value to the lives of individuals (colleagues and clients) find they have more meaning in their working lives. They find excuses to do favors for others. They are aware of what they are uniquely good at and use that as a way to offer assistance. Although this is rewarding in itself, these people then find the reciprocity of others overwhelming. They find this approach offers both personal success and happiness

8. REHEARSE: practice all important conversations, presentations and interactions you have. Rehearsing can be boring and so we decide to wing it instead - it'll be alright on the night. People who excel at this approach tend to be obsessive in their preparation for important events. They role-play sales pitches with their colleages who play devil's advocate. They video themselves delivering a keynote speech on their Flip camera and watch it. They brainstorm all the things that could go wrong and plan their response. They walk into the room well-prepared. They find this approach leads to both success and enjoyment.

9. SMELL: appreciate the here and now. Day after day of back-to-back meetings, monotonous commutes, growing to-do lists, it is challenging to remember to enjoy the journey. People who excel at this have mastered the art of being fully present in the moment. When you meet with them, you have their rapt attention. Their lives are busy but they make time to enjoy the small stuff. To make time to enjoy lunch. To switch up their route to work. To stand in the sun in the carpark taking in the view and inhaling deeply. To retain their sense of wonder and fascination with the beauty of the world

10. IMAGINE: have a compelling vision of the future that you are drawn towards. Many of us are stuck in the past, haunted by our past failings, ruled by our fear of failure. People who excel at this approach are not stuck in the past but pulled forward by the future. They are climbing a ladder but know that it's leaning against the right wall. Their vision gets them energized through the tough times. They understand how the current chapter of their life fits into the overall story. They respond to question about "what do you do?" with tales of where they are heading.

Each of these approaches can sound trite. They get boiled down to meaningless catchphrases. I plan to explore each of these approaches over the coming weeks. I will share the theory, the challenges, the tricks & techniques that work for people that I've interviewed.

Tough questions
i) Which of these approaches do you already follow successfully?
ii) Which would most benefit you in your work?
iii) What is the smallest thing that you can do that would make the biggest difference?

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http://www.leadershipnow.com

2009-11-08T18:27:00.001-08:00

via leadershipnow.com

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How Boston Scientific Accelerates Innovation

2009-11-07T15:49:00.003-08:00

How Boston Scientific Accelerates Innovation

via Working Knowledge ® by Andrea Meyer on 10/26/09

Point: Capture, share and reuse knowledge to make R&D engineers more productive

Story:

At Power to Innovate 2009, Boston Scientific’s Randy Schiestl (VP of R&D) and Jude Currier (Cardiovascular Knowledge Management & Innovation Practices Lead) described how Boston Scientific is redesigning its innovation processes. The goal: to accelerate time to market, increase the productivity of innovators, and reduce costs and risks.

Boston Scientific is an $8 billion company committed to delivering innovative medical technologies that improve the quality of patient care as well as healthcare productivity. The company has a broad portfolio of 13,000 products. The new products in its pipeline include drug coated stents, bare metal stents, catheter and bio-absorbable technology.

In the past, Boston Scientific drove innovation from business strategy to technology development to product development. In this staged approach, engineers created technology-driven products that were then shown to business units and customers at the prototype stage. The trouble with this process was that the later groups often found gaps or risks in the proposed product late in the product development process. As a result, the company had to spend more money than expected putting out fires while trying to hold to a launch schedule. Boston Scientific decided to change its innovation process to bring more knowledge and resources into the earlier stages of innovation.

As part of the new innovation process, Boston Scientific began bringing in key “voices” into the innovation process earlier. By getting these voices — the voice of the customer, the voice of the business unit, and the voice of regulatory bodies — earlier, the company uncovered its knowledge gaps and risks much sooner. The second part of Boston Scientific’s innovation process redesign gave employees access and pointers to relevant information, whether that information resided in a document or in the tacit knowledge of an expert. The goal here was to reduce the amount of time engineers spend looking for knowledge. Schiestl said engineers spend 30% of their time looking for relavant knowledge. To improve upon that, Boston Scientific used Goldfire (innovation software from Invention Machine) to capture, share and reuse knowledge. Goldfire’s semantic technology automatically categorizes concepts can and ties relevant intelligence to specific innovation initiatives. For example, engineers used Goldfire to identify past research and then validate whether that research could be repurposed. The result: Boston Scientific engineers who used Goldfire spent only 10 percent of their time researching intelligence, compared to 20-30 percent by non-Goldfire users.

Boston Scientific’s new innovation process illustrates what Mark Atkins, CEO of Invention Machine, called an innovation intelligence ecosystem. This ecosystem represents the aggregate of information, communities, and processes that collectively contribute to innovation. Here’s how it works: using innovation software like Invention Machine’s Goldfire, companies capture and reuse information and intellectual capital created by employees as well as by external sources. Goldfire further enables collaboration by accurately reconstructing a user’s past thinking and research process, making it visible and explicit to other users. Employees avoid reinventing or duplicating research already done, thus saving time and improving innovation productivity.

Boston Scientific shared two examples of its success using Goldfire and the company’s new innovation processes. First, the company improved the design of cardiac stents to reduce a patient’s injury-response to the device. By combining knowledge from across the innovation ecosystem, the company mapped key clinical knowledge about heart disease and how different heart artery conditions affect the patient outcomes with different stent designs.

In the second example, Boston Scientific used Goldfire to solve a technical problem in manufacturing that was reducing product yields. Using Goldfire, Boston Scientific found that previously undocumented thermocapillary effects were leading to clogged spray nozzles. By understanding the physics of the cause, Boston Scientific was able to make a simple change to the manufacturing line to eliminate the clogging and thereby improve yields.

Action:

Uncover all the “voices” that have a say in the success of innovations (the voice of the customer, voice of technologists, voice of manufacturing, voice of regulatory compliance, etc.). Connect key people and communities in a more collaborative, sharing-oriented environment
Identify, organize, and access information (internal and external) needed by these communities to do their innovation-related work.
Develop knowledge and innovation processes that find and resolve knowledge gaps or risks early in the innovation process.

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Lencioni: Arguing for Innovation

2009-11-07T15:49:00.001-08:00

Lencioni: Arguing for Innovation

via Working Knowledge ® by Andrea Meyer on 11/4/09

Point: Teams that create the best innovations know how to disagree about ideas without interpreting the disagreement as a personal affront.

Story: “I feel good when I see that engineering, advertising and manufacturing are really surfacing and talking about their differences,” said the VP of Technology at a successful $100 million firm. “It’s my job to keep the dialectic alive.”

When we see companies moving swiftly, anticipating changes in the marketplace and developing new products or services to meet the change, we’re tempted to think of the company as moving in harmonious agreement toward that new product or service.

But the surprising fact is that companies that innovate the fastest are actually those that invite debate over ideas. It’s not a destructive conflict, but an airing of different views on a topic. Whereas conflict based on personality differences is destructive, healthy conflict focuses on refining a proposed idea. Healthy conflict gets a team out of group-think. It tests and challenges assumptions. Team members share different points of view. As Patrick Lencioni, speaking at the 2009 World Business Forum said, “productive debate over issues is good for a team.” Disagreeing on issues make things uncomfortable but it builds clarity. “If you don’t have conflict on a team, you don’t get commitment,” Lencioni said. “If people don’t weigh in, they won’t buy in.” When team members challenge assumptions and point out the flaws of an idea, they improve the idea; the end result is a more robust idea.

To ensure that the conflict stays at the level of idea, not personal attack, Lencioni advises using a team assessment. Using an instrument like Myers-Briggs, team members learn their own communication styles and the styles of others. Knowing each other’s personality style helps avoid personal conflict. If you know that Joe is generally quiet or that Jane always bulldozes in, you’re less likely to take offense at what is actually that person’s communication style.

Action:
* Don’t suppress or circumvent conflict – the best ideas are forged during the “working out” of such conflicts.
* Give the team an assessment tool like Myers-Briggs to help member understand each other’s styles communication styles, strengths and weaknesses
* Encourage healthy debate. Peter Drucker recounted how Alfred P. Sloan, legendary CEO of GM, handled this:

“Gentlemen, I take it we are all in complete agreement on the decision here,” Sloan said. After everyone around the table nodded affirmatively, Sloan continued: “Then I propose we postpone further discussion of this matter until our next meeting to give ourselves time to develop disagreement and perhaps gain some understanding of what the decision is all about.”

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Amazing soda shop

2009-11-07T15:38:00.001-08:00

via videos.komando.com

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3D Self Portrait made from Paper

2009-11-07T11:22:00.003-08:00

3D Self Portrait made from Paper

via Toxel.com by Toxel.com on 11/6/09

Inspired by big-head mode seen in video games, Eric Testroete has created this cool 3d paper head Halloween costume. Modeled in 3ds Max, the head was designed so that it could fit over Eric’s real head, sit on his shoulders and then be held down by a jacket. For more creative projects by Eric Testroete, visit testroete.com

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30 Innovative Product Designs and Gadget Gimme-Gimmes

2009-11-03T16:15:00.001-08:00

Sent to you by levs_aguelo via Google Reader:

30 Innovative Product Designs and Gadget Gimme-Gimmes

via iSmashPhone - Turn your Phone into your MyPhone by Julia May on 11/2/09

We are living in times when the futuristic, techno-perfect environment seen in sci-fi movies is, step by step, becoming a reality. Robots become smarter, devices are getting more ingenious, tons of gizmos intended to make diverse life spheres easier appear every day. However, few upcoming product technologies and gadgets get credit from people. Quoting graphic designer Frank Chimero, people ignore design that ignores people. At the same time, pure utility without an attractive and handy interface has less chance to provoke the end-user to say "Gimme that gadget!" Obviously, the ability to combine helpful capacity and nifty design is a perfect mix that makes a winning product in the user's eyes.

Below you can find a collection of smart gadgets and gizmos that are available to enhance your user-experience today. We are also showcasing some exquisite innovative product concepts that may obsess all the geeks and technology lovers before long.

Top-notch gadgets and devices

CableDrop
These small neat clips can help you rein in the chaos of all those power and peripheral cords. Forget about stumbling over all those cables and crawling for the necessary one just to plug in a device. Holders come in stylish color schemes, either bright or muted, so they can even become a part of your décor. Price: $9.95 for a package of 6 items.

Qlocktwo
This beautiful (and unique!) handmade LED clock from Germany's Biergert & Funk is a godsend for people who suffer from numerofobia (fear of numbers): it tells time in words, displayed as text in five minute intervals. There's even a brightness sensor to automatically adjusted the letters' luminosity. However, this readability doesn't come cheap - expect to drop €885 (about $1,270) for one. Right now, there are a few background color options -- maybe the next step is a typography-change option? (We thing that would be all kinds of awesome, how about you?)

E-supply Japan USB Microscope
This digital USB microscope may be not good enough for a serious scientific research -- or even the gun-toting lab rats of the CSI franchise -- but its 2Mpix censor and 5x to 150x zoom will be great to capture higher-resolution images, get your kid busy with some backyard exploration, or help aid your home crimescene investigations of "who stole my sandwich?." The arm has a mirror which can be brought close to any area for a closer look, for example, your teeth and ears. Sadly, this gadget is Japan internal -- which means that, even if you want it badly enough to fork over its MSRP of US$130, you'll have to import it.

iPhone Horn
Forward, into the past! Designer Matt Richmond managed to join past and future technologies via his vintage iPhone Horn - a wooden iPhone dock connected by a channel with an old-fashioned Magnavox gramophone. This construction acoustically amplifies the iPhone's tiny speaker and provides a nostalgic mono sound. Watch the video to see how it works. This accessory probably won't be mass-produced (due to the general rarity of gramophones), but once you get one, it'll add a uniquely retro flavor to your room decor. Price: $160-200. (via dwell.com)

Terminator: Salvation T-600 USB Skull
Repeat after me, in your best Ah-nuld the Barbarian voice: "I'll be back...ing up my data." Get your sci-fi geek on with this officially licensed USB drive designed to mimic the T-600 skull from the film Terminator: Salvation. It holds 2GB of storage, weighs 42g and supports Windows XP/Vista and MacOS 10.2 and up. The eyes of the T600 are genuine Swarowski rhinestones -- which might be why the price of this gizmo is $150. Currently available in Japan only -- but really, is that a barrier for a true Terminator fan? (via crunchgear)

Grassy Lawn Charging Station
Artificial grass on the top of this container will hide all the cables and adapters while your gadgets are charging. This power station is quite refreshing, both for devices and your decor, and the price is quite "green" as well: only $24.99.

JVC GD-32X1
Back in June, JVC introduced a new ultra slim LCD TV for business use. The GD-32X1 is 6.4 mm in its thinnest place (the TV's hardware and ports are located in the rear brick), beating the 8.9 mm Samsung OLED TV. The unit also boasts 4,000:1 contrast and full 1920x1080 HD viewing. According to JVC USA, the GD-32X1 is scheduled to hit US sales channels in November '09 -- with a not-so-slim MSRP of around US$3,000.

LiveScribe Pulse Smart Pen
LiveScribe Pulse Smart Pen can be a godsend for regular hand-writers, such as students and journalists. It records and links audio to what you write. These functions are connected, so you can use the pen to tap the notes and then quickly access the audio. Recorded data is uploaded to your computer and archived by the Livescribe Desktop software, making your notes fully searchable. These and other neat functions can be had for $199.95 (2 Gb memory model).

Jigsaw Cookie Cutter
An edible jigsaw puzzle can bring tons of fun to a home party, as well as being an easy and pleasant way to brighten up the daily life routine. £3.40 for the item, but this jigsaw piece becomes an unsolvable puzzle for those who live out of United Kingdom, as delivery cost increases up to threefold.

Steampunk Skull Mouse
This steampunk-styled mouse looks creepy and classy at the same time; definitely NOT a choice of peripheral if you're nervous -- or work for PETA, as it's made from a real sheep skull. (Creator Ivan Mavrov claims the sheep died a natural death.) Although this device does not really follow strict ergonomics guidelines, it is definitely a piece of art. Check out more Mavrov's steampunk gadgets and accessories here.

Belkin Cushtop Laptop Desk
This comfy laptop cushion, done in a modern minimalist style, can be quite handy when using your laptop on your couch, bed or floor. You can keep mouse and cables in a convenient storage sleeve and simply flip over the cushion, if needed, to put on a larger laptop. Price: $35

Twitter Dunks
And now the latest geek fashion rage - Twitter Dunks. This is an exclusive pair made by Daniel Reese at the request of some passionate tweeter. This is the only Twitter-related sneaker design made by Daniel so far -- which still gives you have a chance to order your own unique design, for example, sneakers depicting the new Twitter home page design.

Makerbot
Makerbot is a 3D printer that takes blobs of plastic and shapes them into almost any object you desire. Using this device, you can create toys, plastic miniatures, iPhone docks or any other handicrafts you can imagine. Although it's not a completely unique innovation, Makerbot is one of the first open-source desktop prototyping devices that are fairly inexpensive and supported by a vigorous community that is happy to share designs, tips and mods. Hobbyists call it "having China on your desktop". The basic Makerbot kit costs $750. (via wired.com)

Gorillatorch
The Gorillatorch Flashlight absolutely justifies its $30 price by combining the convenience of a tripod and the flexibility of a snake. Flexible tripods, magnetized feet, even the way it is packed into the box make it look lively, like some kind of small, fidgety bot. Water-resistant and collapsible, it works up to 20 hours at maximum brightness on three AAA batteries. Surely a must-have for your household.

Always Innovating Touch Book
Touch Book from Always Innovating is a compromise for those who dream about an Apple Tablet, but don't have the patience to wait for it. This extremely multi-functional touchscreen netbook is available now for $299 (an optional detachable keyboard increases the price another hundred bucks). It can be a laptop or an e-book reader, or even a kitchen computer (thanks to the special magnet system included by design). Notice that Touch Book is based on all open-source software, and is probably a choice-not for those who regularly use Adobe Photoshop or some other Windows or Mac-based software.

iPhone 3G/3Gs Solar Recharger
Multi-gadget solar charging stations are not a rarity today, but this compact recharger for iPhone has a neat snap-on panel which completely matches the iPhone design. Besides, no extra cables or wires are required for use. There are two color options: black, or white. Of course, while a solar recharger can't be used as primary source of power for your iPhone, it's still a nice thing to keep in the bag. Price: approximately US$22. (via technabob)

USB Hidden Flash Drive Watch
Good morning, Mr. Phelps: here's a gadget from the spy arsenal. It has a diminutive 8Gb memory flash drive slipped neatly into the watch case. The watch itself features Japanese quartz movement and luminescent hands. $50, and you're ready to conduct your own secret missions.

Rock Radio
This cool radio was created by Guus Oosterbaan, and is literally a ROCK radio. Initially it was supposed to have a brick shape, but a thick layer of cement prevented the radio from working. The failure inspired Guus for the new idea - he took a hammer and gave the radio a pure natural stone look. Read on the details of the creation process in Oosterbaan's blog.

Most awaited upcoming products

Nokia Booklet 3G
With its recent Booklet 3G announcement, Nokia introduced anything but an ordinary netbook. Along with its typical-for-netbooks Atom processor and 10.1-inch display, Booklet features some really unique characteristics, like an HD screen, integrated 3G wireless and a hot-swappable SIM card. It looks to be running Windows 7, which isn't particularly netbook-y -- and typical of Nokia in general. This tiny, sophisticated laptop should make most Nokia fans really happy. The price was recently announced as US$299 -- with a two-year, $60/month data plan from AT&T. Don't wanna owe your soul to the Death Star's company store? An unsubsidized Booklet'll set you back US$600.

Android Desktop Phone PHOTO
Cloud Telecomputers has announced their 'Glass Platform' Android desktop Phone, which features the 8″ touch screen, tap to dial, Email via Outlook integration, Bluetooth, voice dialing, voice notes, HD Speakerphone, and of course, Android OS for open development . Cloud Telecomputers also expects lots of third party Android apps to be built especially for the business phone platform. The Glass Platform Android Desktop Phone will go on sale in 2010, with an expected price between $600 and $700.

Asus Eee Keyboard
A fully functional PC in a keyboard? Yes, Asus is going to rock the world with this innovative gadget. The Eee Keyboard includes WiFi (and Ethernet), speaker, microphone, and 5-inch interactive display and touch screen. It weighs less than 2 pounds and connects to existing displays. There are still no details on the release date or pricing, but the keyboard is near a final prototype and will definitely going into production. (release was scheduled for October 2009, still not available)

Innovative concepts

Touch Color
Touch Color is a device that allows a blind person to paint colorful pictures with their fingers on the panel. The set consists of two gears - Thermal digital tablet and a Rainbow Color picking ring. The 24 colors on the ring are differentiated by Braille dots and varied temperature generated by the embedded LED bulbs. Hopefully, this concept will find sponsors and go into production, because it's hard to find a more worthy idea to be realized.

CRISTAL
Universal remotes have become popular in the last few years, but there is still much ground in this field available for the research. A remote control can be super powerful and multifunctional, but until it can be accessible for several people simultaneously, it's not perfect. CRISTAL is a multi-touch coffee table that allows users to control multimedia devices and home automation systems. The tabletop itself is a screen displaying a streaming video view of the room and all devices in it, including lamps and digital photo frames. The video image of the device is the interface, so a sliding gesture on the image can turn up the volume of the TV, for instance. The project in the development stage, but the managers are confident the idea has all chances to go into consumer production in a few years, especially if it can be blended with Microsoft's Surface product.

FieldCREW
The Field Contextual Research Workstation (FieldCREW) tablet concept by the Bressler Group's Rob Tannen is geared to the needs of user researchers gathering product design feedback. This nifty device features remotely controlled tracking cameras via wireless that will observe user interaction, wireless taggers and microphones that record voice memos of scientists - tagging is synched to a common timeline on the tablet. Plus, subvocalization sensor allows the researcher to silently dictate notes that are automatically transcribed to text and stored on the tablet. The concept is the finalist of the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) 2009.

Last Drop
The Last Drop is a genuine and extremely useful package concept which is especially urgent in times of world economy recession. The bottom of the Last Drop container is designed the way that the finishing liquids flow down into a cone where the dispenser can easily reach and lets the user have even the last drop of liquid. It enables to avoid product wastage and is a great solution in terms of recycling and anti-water pollution. All these useful functions and the elegant design make the Last Drop to be an amazing product concept.

Window Phone
This is probably the most unbelievable gadget in our collection. Window Phone is a concept mobile phone that reflects the weather conditions actually like a window - it remains clear if the day is sunny, turns frosty when the weather is cold, and during a rainy day it gets covered with tiny droplets. You can also blow your breath on the interactive screen and write messages or draw pictures on the misty window. Doubtless it will take quite much time before we see this phone for real, but the concept is indeed extraordinary and intriguing.

Smile Generating Devices

Twittering Devices
Want to stay informed about what your household gadgets do when you are out? Well, you can make your gadgets tweet you all their latest news. You will need simple hardware platforms called microcontrollers. These small computers that can be put into different device modules and programmed to send an alert whenever something specific changes. There is even a Wired How-To Wiki that contains instructions on using microcontrollers and Twitter. So now you can receive tweets from toaster when the toast is ready, from washing machine when the laundry is clean and from the toilet, each time it flushes... And yes, if your gadgets are doing well, don't forget to recommend them on FollowFriday. Gosh!

i.Saw
The world's first USB chainsaw is an indispensible thing in various life situations. It can help settle some controversial issues in the office, or come in handy in case you are a geek with a woodsman inside -- after all, you can always boast to your friends you have the deadliest USB-powered gadget ever. The shipping for the i.Saw starts this fall. Pre-order price: $59.95

Bumblebee Transformer Costume
This awesome Bumblebee costume was used at car dealerships as some sort of promotion. Interesting if that guy is still wearing it. We doubt it -- because now that the video is popular on the web, some extremely desperate Transformers fans might have already conducted a confiscation mission.

Buddah Phone
Advertised as being the phone for Buddhists, it comes with a 2.0 inch display screen, 1.3-megapixel camera, FM radio, dual SIM support, audio and video player, microSD slot, even a Buddhistic music box. This fancy gadget hardly fits the central concept of Buddhism, which is Suffering. Then again, maybe it is the influence of the time we live in - even religion dogmas should adapt to the technology era to stay afloat. However, if not taken too serious, the Buddah phone can be a nice gift for those who love Eastern culture elements in design. Price: $123

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