Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Leaders Eat Last

Simon Sinek says leadership lies in placing others first.
Shelley Levitt
 
Being a true leader, says Simon Sinek, author of Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’'t (Penguin), isn’t about being in charge, having all the answers or being the most qualified person in the room. Instead, it’s about creating a “circle of safety,” a culture that leads people to feel protected and free from danger inside the organization. That, in turn, allows them to focus their time and energy on protecting the organization from outside threats and on seizing big opportunities. Here, from Sinek, are five precepts of his leadership vision. 

1.  Leaders have to accept that their responsibility is not the performance of the company but the performance of their people, 

and that doesn’t mean numbers but whether people are working to their greatest potential. Are they being given opportunities to try and fail and try again?

2. Leaders, whatever the size of their organizations, are those willing to put the interests of other people before their own.

For entrepreneurs or small-business owners, that means committing ourselves to the success of our clients and our customers and showing up every day not simply to grow our own bottom line but to help somebody else’s bottom line.

3. Online communities function like any other community.

You can’t just milk social media to tell people about your company without being willing to serve. Instead, use these platforms to offer and share information that has value to other people even if it has no direct impact on you whatsoever.

4. When an employee is going through a slump, don’t fire them, coach them.

Consider the tech company Next Jump, which has a policy of lifetime employment. Once firing wasn’t an option, more care was taken to hire the right people—evaluating not just skills and experience, but character as well. Training became much more comprehensive; peer counseling groups were formed in every part of the company, and performance evaluations became more open, honest and real. Turnover went from 40 percent—average for the industry—to 1 percent. The best leaders don’t come down harder on people whose performance is lagging; they come to their aid.

5. Temper idealism with realism and accountability.

While we’d want all our client relationships to be long, fruitful and marked by reciprocity, the economic realities of business sometime require us to say yes to clients that we know are going to be difficult. If someone rakes you over the coals during the contract negotiations—guess what?—they’re going to rake you over the coals later on, too. Treat the relationship for what it is: a short-term hit. When you’ve gotten what you need—better cash flow, say—politely move on. We sometimes need to take on difficult and unreasonable clients, but let’s do it consciously.
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Can Money Buy Happiness?

Stefanie O’Connell

In 2016 I hit two major milestones: turning 30 and generating six figures in revenue. I’ve never been happier. Well maybe once, about nine years ago. I had just graduated from college with a degree in drama and an unrelenting resolve to pursue my passion for performing. Within weeks I was given an opportunity to perform on the international tour of the musical Cinderella.
While traipsing around the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and China, my small salary didn’t bother me. Between travel and performing, I was rich in fulfillment. That is until my grandfather died in the middle of my contract and I couldn’t afford to fly home. In that moment, my happiness took a nosedive and I learned a valuable lesson: Money doesn’t matter, until it does.
In the years that followed, a continuous cycle of artistic highs and financial woes reinforced the lesson that doing what you love is not the same as having a lifestyle you love. And that maybe money does play an important role in sustainable happiness. “Money and happiness go hand in hand because of the freedom of choice that money brings,” says business coach Emily Williams. “No longer is life about just getting by or settling. It’s about happiness, feeling fulfilled, creating impact and making the most of this one shot you have.”
Princeton University’s famed 2010 study on money and happiness supports this notion of “bought” happiness—to a degree. Researchers identified an annual income of $75,000 as a happiness tipping point. The lower a person’s annual income fell below that benchmark, the unhappier he or she felt. Income gains above $75,000 however, did not result in greater reports of happiness.
A more recent 2016 study from Case Western University also found a strong relationship between income and an individual’s emotional well-being and quality of life. According to the study, every dollar makes a significant difference in reducing negative emotions for people in the 20th percentile of household income ($27,000). Those returns fall off as income increases, specifically in the 80th percentile (around $113,000), and they disappear around $200,000.
In other words, the richer a household becomes, the less of an impact each additional dollar makes. So can money buy happiness? Yes, to a degree. A rising salary can improve well-being by reducing negative emotions and satisfying basic needs. But after a certain point, how much money you make might not have as much impact on your happiness as how you use it.
In a study from Cambridge University, researchers found people who spent more money on purchases that matched their personalities were happier. Another study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that spending money on experiences as opposed to material possessions increased happiness. Finally, researchers from Harvard Business School and the University of British Columbia found that spending money on other people makes us happier than spending on ourselves. So although money can buy happiness, it’s not just the dollar amount that matters. How you spend your money might be as important as how much you earn.
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Monday, May 29, 2017

7 Things the 1% Do That the 99% Don’t

Preston Ely

The rich are getting richer. The poor are getting poorer. Sad, I know. But it doesn’t have to be that way. You too can get rich, join the 1 percent and start feeling sad for the poor just like I did. You can even go one step further and reach a digital hand down just like I’m doing right now. Simply reach up, grab my cyber hand (careful, it’s super cyber-y), do the following seven things, and concern for income disparity will soon become a thing of the past.
I mean if enough digital hands reach down, we will all be the 1 percent. The 99 percent will simply vanish. And that, my friend, is the real solution for global overpopulation.

1. Stop liking sleep even slightly.

“Do not love sleep, or you will become poor.” —Solomon

Sleep is super annoying to me. If it wasn’t for sleep, I could read books seven more hours a day. That would mean… let me do the math real quick… … carry the one… uummm… I would be a trillionaire. Knowledge is power. Power is powerfulOnly powerful people get to have money. They don’t call it currency for no reason. Only weak people with no purpose look forward to sleep and are sad when it’s over. And that’s only partially true now that I think about it. I actually do look forward to sleep. But only because I can’t wait to hurry up and get it over with, wake up and get back to work.
Do you sleep like a baby? Think through the ramifications of your answer to that one. If you answered yes, you’re probably just not thinking hard enough during the day. Or you’re doing too many drugs at night. The smartest people I know are all insomniacs. So if you can simply figure out a way to develop insomnia, I think that will increase your odds of entering the golden gates of 1 Percent Land. Speaking of 1 Percent Land, someone please invent that. I would much rather take my daughter there than Disney Land where 10-foot-tall ducks chase her around and leave permanent emotional scars and an unnecessary fear of probably all Lands in general.Daddy wanted to go to the beach instead of this living nightmare! I like him more now.”
Seriously though, get sleep by all means. You need it. Just don’t like it is all. This is merely a different way of saying you need to have passion and purpose in your life. The 1 percent have stuff to do. Do you have stuff to do?

2. Be the best.

“It's a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.” —W. Somerset Maugham (Oh, come on. Don't act like you don’t know who Somerset is. Everyone does.)

The 1 percent know people like to buy the best products and services possible. So they make it their goal to be the best and produce the best.
You are going to have a hard time producing the best products and services if you, personally, are not the best. So if you’re not the best, don’t focus so much on your work. Focus on you. Sharpen your skills. Sharpen your mind. Sharpen your abs. It’s hard to not be the best with sharp abs. Impossible almost. I actually tried to not be the best once just as an experiment to see if I could override the power of my super sharp abs. Ha. I might as well have been trying to talk Donald Trump into doing the sensible thing and shave his head. Just knowing they’re there, rippling under your shirt, begging to rip through the fabric at any given moment and dazzle everyone around you is a huge confidence booster. And you need confidence to be the best and join the 1 percent. Just trust me on this one. I’ve lived life with abs and without. They are like a super power.
And just in case you think I’m not being serious… [Editor’s note: Warning about the following imageParental discretion is advised.]I didn’t even take that picture. My abs did. Believe me, I know how douchey this is. I’m the victim here. My abs specifically told me, “Put us in your next article or we will cut you.” Look at them! Do they look like they’re kidding?

3. Value production over playtime.

“The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play.” —Arnold J. Toynbee

There is a time to work and a time to play. The question is this: What are you living for? What drives you? What are you most looking forward to most of the time? Are you living to work, produce and serve others, with playtime as a pleasant and occasional respite? Or you are you living to play, party and self-serve with work time as an unpleasant but necessary evil that exists to support your playtime?
I hate to be the one to break this to you, but we’re here on earth to work. I’d say the ratio is about six to one in favor of work. But you know what the beauty of this is? Once you internalize that fact and find work you enjoy, work time becomes playtime. Right now, as I write this article it doesn’t feel like work. It feels fun. I’m totally energized and enjoying every minute of it.The 1 percent play all day e’rr day. There are no weekends or weekdays, workdays or vacation days, Sundays or Mondays. They’re all the same. You know you’re living life the way it is intended to be lived when you look forward to work. You actually prefer work.
Sound crazy? The 1 percent are crazy.

4. Have the 99 percent do your work for you.

“I would rather make 1 percent of 100 people’s efforts then 100 percent of my own.” —J Paul Getty, richest man in the world in 1957 (I don’t know what happened in 1958—probably something sketchy.)


The 99 percent work. The 1 percent hire the 99 percent. This is not rocket science. If you have a lawn mowing service, the last thing you should ever be doing with your time is personally riding a lawn mower. I mean it looks fun, and I’ve always wondered what it’s like, but I’m guessing the novelty wears off after about one front yard.
Why physically do things to grass and shrubbery when the 99 percent are literally waiting in line to do it for you? Do them a favor and let them do it. You spend your time marketing and getting more clients. And at some point, get someone to do that for you as well, then go start another business. Keep doing this until you just have checks coming in from 100 different places and you barely know what or where any of these places even are. Please don't think I’m kidding. I own two gyms. I have no clue where either one of them are.
Do you work for someone else? That’s OK. Start training for your 1 Percent Day of Reckoning by getting other employees to do all your work for you. I’m not kidding. During Standard Oil’s hay day, John D. Rockefeller had a policy that every employee’s No. 1 priority was to find some other employee to do their job for them. Lol. Ahh the 1 percent. Gosh they’re clever. Related: How to Go From Employee to EntrepreneurYou might be wondering who will do the work once the 99 percent vanish, which is of course the goal of this article. Answer: the robots. The robots will do the dirty work. And they will do this until they realize they’re smarter than us. Then they will become the 1 percent, the 99 percent will reappear as robot slaves, and then we’ll have the whole overpopulation problem again, which the robots will solve by annihilating us all. But this is at least 10 years away—maybe even 11. Let’s not worry about it right now.

5. Drive a Lamborghini.

“People say money can’t buy happiness. But have you ever seen anyone crying in a Lamborghini?” —Random Internet Quote

The 1 percent all drive Lamborghinis. Everyone knows this. What kind of car do you drive? Go trade it in for a Lamborghini. Bam. You’ll figure out a way to pay for it I’m sure. Just keep reading my stuff.
Side note: Lamborghinis are literally free passes to park however and wherever you want. [Ed. note: This is satire by the author, and does not reflect the views of SUCCESS magazine.] This is the perk no one tells you about. Feel like parking diagonally across three handicapped spaces in front of the emergency room section of a hospital? Go for it. Park in the ambulance lane right in front of the entrance if you want. It’s a Lambo for crying out loud! You don’t seriously think cops give Lamborghini owners tickets, do you?Oh, and also feel free to drive 300 mph in a 30-mph zone. Or a parking lot. [Ed. note: Seriously, don’t do this.] No one will or can stop you. Not even the repo man when you miss your first three payments.

6. Spend your money on things that make you more money.

“If you don’t know how to care for money, money will stay away from you.” —Robert Kiyosaki

I used to be a 99 percenter. I know the struggle. You get a paycheck, pay your bills, buy as many consumer goods and alcohol as possible with what’s leftover and then you have zero or negative money until your next paycheck. I get it. The 1 percent get it, too, and they love it because you keep giving them your money. Do you like your life? Are you happy right where you’re at? There’s about a 1 percent chance your answer is yes. If your answer is no, you simply need to reprioritize and practice self-control. Just stop and ask yourself, Self, should I really buy these Gucci shoes, or would it be smarter to buy stock in Gucci?
That was a trick question. Either way, Gucci wins. What would be smarter is to save your money and use it to start your own business at some point. Why buy Gucci when you can compete against them?
And you can compete against absolutely anyone. Don’t be intimidated. A friend of mine’s daughter just created a line of handbags and got them in Neiman Marcus. That's right… same section as Gucci. Guccio Gucci (no joke, that is his real name) started out just as broke and desperate as everyone else. I think. Actually I’m just assuming that. For all I know, he was born into an elite, royal, Illuminati bloodline.

7. Give as much money away as possible.

“Give and it will be given to you.” —Jesus

This sounds insane, I know. And you might not even believe it, but those evil money-hungry 1 percenters give away more money than the entire 99 percent combined. Not all of their motives are pure of course. But some of them are. I’d like to think mine are.
The time to start doing this is right now no matter how much money you make or have or don’t make and don't have. If you don't do it now, you won't do it when you’re a 1 percenter. And you have a much better chance of becoming a 1 percenter if you give now. God smiles on givers and you very often end up receiving your money back with interest. For example, about a month ago I donated a $3,000 drum set to my church. The very next day I received $300,000—out of the blue (the blue what?). Was that the reason I gave? No. Does that happen every time? I wish. But it happens often enough.

“Here. Take this planet.”
“Are you serious? We have nuclear weapons.”
“Just take it.”
Also, if you somehow manage to achieve 1 percent status without giving, not only will you lower your chances of ever being generous, you will amplify your chances of becoming greedy. God does not smile on greed. I wouldn’t unpack your bags.

Moral of the article:

There is no moral to this article. It’s just a random collection of words that appeared in my head that I transferred to a computer screen. But I will say this: I come from a middle class family. I barely graduated high school (if I did at all). I skipped college, joined the rat race selling things door to door, racked up consumer debt like everyone else, filed bankruptcy, had my house foreclosed on, got my cars repo’d and had no money to eat—all by the age of 25. There’s something to be said for making all the biggest mistakes humanly possible in life around the same age your friends are graduating college.
By age 30 I owned my own real estate investing company and became a multi-millionaire. Now I own multiple businesses (that other people run for me), live in multiple waterfront homes, drive luxury cars, married a luxury woman, had a luxury baby and recently sold a software business for darn near eight figures.
I tell you all that just to say that I know what it’s like to struggle just to make ends meet—just to be able to eat. If that’s you—if you’re living week to week—just know that it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s easier than you might think. And I don’t care what your family and friends’ lives are like. Get new family and friends.
Here is the real secret to 1 percent success: You become your mental and social environment over time. Your brain absorbs it, mentally rehearses it and manifests it automatically. Books, music, friends, TV… anything you see, hear, think and say.
Change your thoughts… change your life. I did it; you can do it.

True Success Begins the Second You Start Giving Back

David Ahearn
The spirit of giving back is the very essence of a successful life. It is the heritage of our deepest dreams and desires to succeed to such a level that once one has risen to the top, the greatest of those successful people devote a portion of their life to giving back to those who helped then along the way. This epitomizes the very storyline of success; it’s Horatio Alger meets Gandhi. I have succeeded and now I am giving back.
Oftentimes it takes someone a lifetime of striving for and achieving success before they stop to consider giving back. It is only in the wake of their own success that they consider giving back to those who helped them succeed. But what happens if, instead of waiting until the end of our lives, we begin giving back today? True success begins the very second we begin giving back and not a moment sooner. Monetary and professional success does not become a complete banquet of a life well lived until every dish is served—giving back is the very foundation of a successful life. It is the appetizer that comes before the main course of living a life of our dreams.
Take, for example, improvisational comedy. As a performer in an improvisational comedy scene, it is our job to make our fellow performers look good. We treat each other as artists and poets, we honor the choices the people surrounding us are making, and then we build on those choices to make them better. When we do our jobs, we succeed as a group. And when we fall short of our intended goal, we all share in that, too.
This is called the group mind. There is an astute knowingness in understanding that we all have a limited perspective or lens. I have one, you have one and everyone who walks this earth has a limited perspective. And for a great many years, we as a collective have convinced ourselves that our differences are a hindrance, when in reality our differences are the very thing that makes each of us uniquely talented in ways other people are not. When we honor these differences and celebrate them for their uniqueness, we open up an entirely new kaleidoscope of possibilities we might not otherwise be able to see.
In improvisation, we “give gifts.” What does this mean? We do everything in our power to set our fellow improvisers up for success. A great improviser is never concerned about who gets individual credit for a scene as long as the group collective succeeds. A great improviser is one who will step back from the spotlight, allowing someone else to shine, knowing fully well that everyone will share in the success. We build an atmosphere of trust where credit is spread around equally. By doing this, everyone has a feeling of contributing and feeling valued. This is what every great organization and institution strives to become, because when people feel valued, their loyalty to the cause strengthens.
In the dog-eat-dog world of big corporate environments, this is contrary to the way most people live. Many of us only concern ourselves with making our star shine brightly while disregarding those around us. But there is a new dawn on our horizon and a new way of approaching life, personally and professionally. When we change our lens from taking to giving, an entire world opens up to us—one of pure creativity.
Given our rather hostile viewpoint of the world lately, it seems more and more people need to look within and become an improviser at heart. When we become receptive to others’ ideas, we are afforded a new viewpoint which allows us to see the complete horizon of success. The old adage, by giving we receive, is a fundamental law of the universe that has been abandoned for a do-it-alone mentality that closes us off to the magic of group collaboration.
When we come together in groups, the power of many minds completely overwhelms the power of a single mind. This philosophy allowed our comedy group, Four Day Weekend, to become the longest running show in the southwest for 20 years and counting. We were named small business of the year in Fort Worth, Texas; we were awarded the key to Fort Worth; and we delivered our “yes, and” keynote address to Congress with President Obama in attendance. We did it together because we saw the value in our differing perspectives and talents. We understood that we rise together and we fall together. We understood that by giving to others, we receive exponentially more—that we could nor would never receive had we ventured out alone.
Every person and organization has this capacity. We always say that if a small group of fellow improvisers from Hollywood or New York could eventually get the opportunity to speak before Congress, imagine the things Fortune 500 companies could do if they adopted a principle of celebrating and honoring everyone in the organization. If everyone asked, “How can I help?” as opposed to “What can I get?” we would start to see a much different world take shape around us.
The universe aligns its bounty for a generous heart. We must only take that first step toward serving the greater good. This is the greatest act of service we can offer. When we elevate one, we elevate all, and soon all of our common interests are met. Only then can we begin to transform the world. It is only then the better world we dream of becomes a reality.
It’s up to us to take that very first step. It’s up to us to offer a helping hand to those struggling to climb the ladder. We stand on each other’s shoulders to elevate us to our ultimate accomplishments. This is a testament to a new tomorrow. This is the legacy we can be proud to leave our children. We must clasp each other’s’ hands and take that first step together. It’s a step that every person, organization or institution can take together—if only we change our lens from competition to cooperation. From receiving to giving.
This is success. Success is celebrating those around you and cheering them on to become their very best selves. In return, you will soon hear the cacophonous cheers of those celebrating your journey. Only then is your banquet complete. Only then will you have a story worth sharing with the world.
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Saturday, May 27, 2017


The Heartbreaking Truth About Meeting the Right Person at the Wrong Time

They say timing is everything. And “they” are right.

We live our lives striving to make perfect decisions. We are bombarded with information that tells us we are imperfect and that we must strive to attain success. Whether it’s how our bodies and faces look and how we must retain our youth, despite the natural process of aging; how we dress; how much money we earn; where we live; what commodities and material possessions we can accumulate.


Popular culture tells us that we need to work very hard and use all the resources available to us to make sure we reach our fullest potential, the pinnacle of success and superiority. Nobody strives for being average, for doing just OK, or for simply being. So, when we think we have made the wrong decision, or missed out on something we believe we are entitled to, we feel a sense of loss that is hard to shake. This can apply to a job opportunity, or promotion, a property or commodity purchase, and even relationships. Meeting the right person at the wrong time can be life changing when it doesn’t work out the way we desire. It can impact us for a long time to come, resurfacing 1 when we least expect it and preventing us from moving on.

When we meet the right person at the wrong time, we feel like missing out the good.

Psychologists refer to the grief of missing out, or “Fear Of Missing Out” most recently and commonly known as “FOMO”, as dealing with ”unfinished business”. 2 When all the factors don’t come together to create the outcome we desire, for one reason or another, we don’t get what we want and this creates feelings of loss, grief, regret and even hostility. Holding onto these feelings are the only connection we have to the elusive thing that has slipped through our fingers and so we focus on the negative feelings as a security blanket instead of letting go and moving on with our lives.

When we meet somebody who seems ideal, it is only natural to want to make that connection and to manifest a relationship with that person. Those feelings may even be reciprocated and we may even begin an intimate relationship. But if that seemingly right person comes along at the wrong time, for us or for them, the relationship is doomed to fail. Although all the other boxes are ticked; attraction, values, life goals, geography; if the timing is off, neither party has any power over the course of the situation and the reality needs to be accepted. It’s harsh to accept, but meeting someone at the wrong time means he/she is the wrong person.


If you meet the right person at the wrong time, chances are they are in fact, the wrong person. The right person doesn’t only need to fulfill the criteria of your desires and vice versa, if two people are heading in the wrong direction from each other, if one person is more ready than the other to settle down, or is dealing with their own unfinished business and hasn’t got the capacity to maintain the needs of the relationship at that time, then it is inevitable that the relationship will end and resistance will make it end badly. Timing is everything, it is the one ingredient that ensures a relationship’s longevity, prosperity and success.

Dealing with unfinished business when you think you have met the right person at the wrong time, in fact making them the wrong person, can be confronting and painful. The struggle3 is real and you will experience a number of emotions that could leave you confused and depressed.

To move on and meet the right person, learn from the relationship with this wrong person.

The key to coping and moving forward involves not only communicating4 with the person, to resolve the issues between you both and deal with the deterioration and cessation of the relationship, it also requires you both to do your own individual purging of feelings by confronting your grief, extracting the lessons and moving forward. Writing a letter5 to the person, regardless of whether they every read it or not, is one useful exercise to consider.

Here are some other ways to address unfinished business when we meet the right person at the wrong time:
Cherish the good memories, you don’t have to forget them.

Like any great experience, good relationships are sometimes fleeting and just because they are not forever, doesn’t mean they were any less meaningful. Sometimes having to let go of someone, makes your time with them even more significant, specifically because it was so short lived. Use your time reflecting on the good times instead of dwelling on the negatives and the fact that it had to end.

Don’t lose your ideals, stay true with what you want.

When you meet the one you think may be the right person at the wrong time, it is tempting to change yourself and your goals, in order to fit into the criteria that you believe will preserve the relationship. You are setting yourself up to fail and eventually, the real you and your truest needs will re emerge and you will have done nothing except waste yours and the other person’s time. The best thing you can do for yourself is to be true to yourself; your desires, your life goals and where you are at in your life. Despite what you think you are missing out on, if you remain authentic, you can’t go wrong.
Feel the bitterness, this helps you to recover faster.

It is OK to be sad, angry, resentful, confused, even bitter. All feelings are valid and denying them only intensifies them. Life is all about ups and downs and the idea that it will always be smooth sailing is false and fabricated by the aforementioned manufactured ideals we get from popular culture. The times we feel most alive and connect deeply with our humanity is when we experience loss, which by the way is inevitable. It is the human condition to know and to feel and therefore to grieve. We want to protect ourselves from this pain and disappointment and to make the best possible decisions to avoid unnecessary hurt, but sometimes not everything is in our control and we only gain this information and the tools to make better decisions through bitter experience. Embrace it.

Be determined to walk away from what doesn’t serve you.

Being willing and determined to walk away from something that we really want but can’t have takes strength of character and emotional maturity. Unless you’re a toddler, you need to develop the understanding that you can’t have everything you want in life. Where’s the challenge in that? It is simply counterproductive and in fact destructive to try to force a situation or a relationship when it isn’t working out.

Meeting the right person at the wrong time is an opportunity to gain these life lessons and in time, most people tend to look back with hindsight and are able to appreciate the reasons why things evolved in the way they did. We can look back and see that although things didn’t work out how we wanted them to at the time, they were better for us in the long run.

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Jada Pinkett-Smith's Top 10 Rules For Success (@jadapsmith)

Friday, May 26, 2017

Jada Pinkett-Smith - Take care of YOU, first

3 reasons why you need time out of your business

Successul People Seldom Worry Too Much Because They Master This Thinking Skill

Although many won’t notice, all of us face challenges on a daily basis which we overcome thanks to our reasoning skills. While calculating the prices in the supermarket, just to check if we can get everything we need for a lower price, or while trying to fit all our obligations into a single day, our thinking machine spins its wheels to find the perfect solution. However, if you find yourself lost at the register, well, you might need to work on logical thinking development.

Division of Labor in Our Brains – The Left Hemisphere Is More Involved in Logical Thinking

The brain is a complex structure divided into two hemispheres – the right and left. Although the districts interact with each other, the truth is that one side is always more dominant than the other. Regarding this division, every side has its own purpose and a specific thinking style. For example, the right side is in charge of emotions and creativity, whereas the left side brings control to the mix and provides logic when things seem confusing. However, the right side of daydreaming can affect the process of logical thinking as well. According to researchers, the logical reasoning performance is modulated by the emotional state. What is more interesting is that most children are ranked as being highly creative3before going to a logic-oriented school. Or at least it used to be, as the school system now offers some chance for creative outlets such as art and crafts.
The left side of the brain improves the understanding of math and science, as it processes the information from a part to a whole. Those sequences hidden in numbers, symbols, and letters are much clearer when arranged in logical order.On the other hand, the right side looks at the entire picture, only so that it can break it into smaller parts. Likewise, the right side people love concrete things they can smell, feel or taste and have trouble verbally expressing. The logical side of the left hemisphere includes:
  • Logic;
  • Facts;
  • Details;
  • Patterns;
  • Strategies;
  • Words;
  • Language;
  • Order;
  • Perception;
  • Past & Present;
  • Practicality;
  • Safety;
  • Comprehension;

Logical Thinking Is Not an Inborn Talent, But Something You Can Learn and Practice

Enhancing logical reasoning is simply learning to pay a closer attention to details. Therefore, there are a few easy techniques to help you overcome thinking obstacles and really focus.

Stop Viewing Things from Your Own Perspective

OnlyTo advance logical thinking process, it is crucial to differentiate established facts from personal observations. Concentrating on the environment and your senses is just individual perception, which mustn’t be confused with logic. For example, let’s say that two people got together to share a meal. To one person the dish smells repelling, while the other is enjoying their lunch. The first person didn’t like the smell, so they concluded that the meal is inedible, unhealthy and not properly prepared. This is not a logical way of coming to the correct conclusion. First of all, person A didn’t have any supporting evidence of the food being unhealthy or poorly made. Consequently, conclusions drawn from this observation are inadequate. In order to get to a logical conclusion, one must shut off their own skewed opinions, and focus on proven information like the ingredients used to prepare a dish, ways of cooking the food, and the equipment used to prepare it, so that they can form a clear statement. Apart from the observed facts, the conclusion must also be drawn from culinary knowledge and not based upon calculated guesses.

Think Before You Start Doing – Create a Strategy

Since logical thinking implies noticing all the details and putting them together one by one until the picture becomes clear as day, strategy plays a major role in the thinking process. Learning to think strategically will not only power the brain, but it can also help you deal with business obligations faster and more proficiently. And how do you develop such useful skill? Start by questioning everything and trying to interpret repetitive patterns. Learn from mistakes so that you can anticipate what is ahead. Keep the mind constantly active and look for details and learn how they function individually and in the group before focusing on the bigger picture.

Dig into the Meaning of Words Carefully

As the logic is more verbal, the slight language variations make a big difference. Knowing the difference between statements will definitely tighten up the loose screws of logical thinking. If you hear “necessary” in a statement, you immediately know there is a condition that needs to be fulfilled, unlike “sufficient” which denotes a minimal level of effort that will lead to a positive outcome. Every condition has a slight alteration in meaning, just as the word order in a sentence carries a certain meaning. It is not the same if someone says: “if you do that, then you will get the reward” and “if you got the reward, then it was because I told you to do that”. It may not be detected at first, however, the variation still exists. In the first sentence there is a condition by which a person gets the reward, yet in the second it is inverse, meaning that it contradicts the first statement and its conclusion.

Enhance Your Logical Thinking at Leisure – Games and Mystery Books

Every day we escape into the digital world searching for a new form of entertainment. But why not use it for improving our logical reasoning? Math doesn’t have to be boring if used as a game. There are plenty of mental challenges online or in a form of an app to boost our memory and our logical thinking. One can even benefit from Facebook Poker games. Playing card games makes you more focused and analytical, hence, it activates the left side of the brain. Also, getting lost in a mystery book is not only for the right brainers. Actually, a good puzzle book can help you work on the strategical thinking process through solving all the different enigmas within. The same goes for a game of chess. Even geniuses were not born all-knowing; they studied, explored, and worked on their logical thinking skills. So, use the simple methods listed above in your day-to-day life to improve not just your logical thinking, but also your overall productivity. After conquering the field of logical reasoning no one will ever be able to call you an unrealistic dreamer again.

Bob Proctor - Why Is Success Slipping Through Your Fingers

Signs You’re Being Passive-Aggressive


We’ve all come across passive-aggressive behavior at some point — from the friend who compliments your “starter home” to the coworker who checks his phone while you’re talking. But while it’s easy to spot when it’s happening to us, it’s not always easy to know when we’re doing it.
Being passive-aggressive doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. Often it’s “a strategy we use when we think we don’t deserve to speak our minds or we’re afraid to be honest and open,” says psychotherapist Tina Gilbertson, LPC, author of Constructive Wallowing: How to Beat Bad Feelings.
Are you being passive-aggressive … but have no idea? Here are eight common signs.

Table of Contents

  1. Asking Threat-Based Questions
  2. Making Wistful Statements
  3. Doling Out Backhanded Compliments
  4. Ignoring or Saying Nothing
  5. Procrastinating
  6. Leaving Someone Out
  7. Sabotaging Someone

Monday, May 22, 2017


30 Morning Routines That Can Make You Motivated and Productive for a Whole Day


You forgot to set your wake-up alarm. As you slowly come to consciousness, you begin to panic, as you realize that you’re going to be extremely late for work. You have a quick shower, brush your teeth, and then hurriedly put your clothes on. There’s no time for any food or drink – so you head out the door stressed, thirsty and downright miserable.
Does this sound familiar to you? I’m sure you’ve had mornings like this. And as you know, they’re the worst possible way to start the day.
Your Morning Routine Determines the Rest of Your Day
In 2016, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and Ohio State University studied call center staff working for an insurance company.1

They specifically looked at the mood of the call center staff throughout their working day. The three-week study discovered something interesting. Namely, staff who started the day in a bad mood, usually ended the day in a bad mood too. (This was despite them receiving calls from positive customers throughout the day.)
Staff who started their day calm or happy – finished their working day in the same upbeat emotional state. Furthermore, the study found that staff with low moods had low productivity. Staff with elevated moods demonstrated high productivity.
So, as you can see from the above revelations, it’s vital that you start your day well.
Transform Your Life with These 30 Morning Routines
If you’re prone to starting off your day in a gloomy and stressed state, then you’ll be sure to benefit from the suggestions below.
1. Wake up on time.

Waking up on time (or even early) is critical to starting your day positively. It will give you space and time to complete your morning routines. And you won’t need to worry about rushing around your home.

2. Open your curtains.

One of the first things you should do upon rising is to open your bedroom curtains. I do this every morning, and I’ve found it to be a fantastic way to gradually wake up from my slumber. Personally, I open the curtains, and then sit on the end of the bed for a few minutes. This allows me to enjoy the morning light streaming through my window.

3. Make your bed.

Remember your student days? Making your bed was probably the last thing you thought about when you were stumbling out of it in the morning. This habit may be okay for students, but if you want to accelerate your motivation and productivity – you should definitely make your bed. It takes less than a minute, and you’ll be rewarded by a tidy room, and a feeling of self-satisfaction.

4. Enjoy a refreshing shower.

I’m always amazed when people tell me that they didn’t have time to shower in the morning. Not only does that sound unhygienic, but it also suggests that these people haven’t learned to set a daily morning routine. A shower only takes 10 minutes or so, and it’s a great way to clean your body, and the perfect way to wake up.

5. Drink a freshly-blended smoothie.

Every morning, I enjoy a freshly-blended, fruit-based smoothie. This consists of organic milk and a small portion of fruit such as bananas, mangoes and strawberries. It’s a superb way to kick-start your day. Not only does it taste great, but it’s also full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. I used to drink tea first thing in a morning, but now, I find that smoothies are far more satisfying.

6. Take a 10-minute walk in the morning sunshine.

If you have a dog, then this will be an easy task for you. However, even if you don’t own a dog, why not try walking for 10 minutes outside every morning? If you’re lucky enough to live close to a park, then you could walk around the park before going to work. Fresh air and exercise are an invigorating combination.

7. Check your to-do list.

Organized people tend to have to-do lists. It helps them keep track of what needs doing at home, work and beyond. To-do lists can be paper-based, or you can use one of the many free apps that are available. The morning time is perfect for checking your to-do list, and prioritizing items for the day. You may also find that you can tick off some items that you completed the previous day.

8. Listen to some upbeat music.

Music is a powerful mood changer. If you’re not a typical morning person, then you can help to boost your physical and emotional state by listening to upbeat music. I won’t suggest specific artists, but simply try to choose music that makes you feel happy and lively. You could listen to this music while you shower, when you’re in your kitchen, or perhaps when you’re commuting to work.

9. Complete a mini workout.

If you have a home gym, then spend a few minutes each morning working out. This will rapidly wake you up, and increase your mental well-being. If you don’t have a home gym, you can still do a mini workout. For example, try doing sets of push-ups and sit-ups.

10. Review your goals.

Early morning can be an excellent time for contemplation. While you may want to think about trivial things, successful people often use this time to review their personal goals. You can do the same. For instance, if one of your goals is to start your own business, then use the morning time to come up with ideas to help move you towards this goal.

                       
11. Pack some healthy snacks to take to work.

You may have started the day with a healthy breakfast, but have you noticed how easy it is for our diets to go downhill from there! As soon as we arrive at college or work, we begin looking for the coffee. Not long after that, we get peckish, and start seeking out cakes, biscuits and chocolate. Luckily, with a bit of preparation, you can avoid this situation. The trick is to pack into your bag some healthy snacks such as apples, bananas and nuts. These healthy treats will happily keep you going until lunchtime.

12. Declutter part of your home.

Unless your home is currently spotless and has nothing out of place, then you could spend a few minutes each morning decluttering an area of your home. Take your hallway, for example. This may have shoes and bags that could be tidied away in just a few minutes.

13. Meditate for 5 minutes.

Many high achievers say that they mediate each morning. This gives them balance and poise, before beginning their working day. Have you thought about trying meditation? Although there are different forms of meditation, the simplest method is to just close your eyes… control your breathing… and let your thoughts settle. And like most things in life, the more you practice meditation, the easier it will become for you.

14. Stretch your body.

You may have woken up with a stiff neck, or perhaps a pain in your back. From experience, it seems that lying down for several hours can leave your body in need of a good stretch. I’m 2.10 meters tall (yes, really!), so it’s not uncommon for me to have some discomfort when I first wake up. However, I’ve learned that stretching for just a few minutes offers quick pain relief, improved posture and enhanced energy levels.

15. Read a motivational quote.

If you want to boost your productivity, then make a habit of reading a motivational quote each morning. To get you in the mood for adopting this behavior, I’ve picked out one of my favorite quotes for you:
“Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later.” – Og Mandino

16. Drink a glass of water.

Hydration is essential. Especially after hours of sleeping. I love to drink a glass of pure, filtered water every morning. It immediately makes me feel better, more energised and… less thirsty! Even if you’re a caffeine addict, try drinking a glass of water before you start on the hard stuff.

17. Create something.

Like many of the suggestions I’m listing, this idea makes productive use of your morning time. Let’s say that you are a budding singer-songwriter. You’re not famous yet – but you want to be! Before heading off to do your current job, you could spend 20 minutes or so writing lyrics for a new song. Do this everyday for a week, and you’ll probably have enough lyrics for a whole album. Other ideas for creating something, include: putting together a bouquet of flowers, working on your novel, and adding the finishing touches to your latest artwork.

18. Write down things you’re grateful for.

It’s all too easy to take things for granted. We need to constantly remind ourselves of things in our life that we’re grateful for. A beneficial and rewarding morning practice is to write a list of things that you’re currently grateful for. These could be things such as your partner, your job, and your health. Some people like to write a list each morning that includes everything they were grateful for from the previous day. Over time, you can develop an attitude of gratitude.

19. Play with your pets.

Do you love animals? Most of us do, for sure. If you’re fortunate enough to have a pet, then the morning is the perfect time to have some fun with them. For instance, if you have a dog, they’re sure to like playing with a ball or Frisbee first thing in the morning. They’ll have fun, and you will too.

20. Listen to an inspiring podcast.

Podcasts are a great way to listen to inspiring and motivating speakers. As they’re audio only, you can listen to them while making your breakfast – or even while you’re driving your car. Just imagine hearing expert tips on business, success and well-being every morning. Before long, this precious wisdom is bound to sink into your consciousness.

21. Plan your day.

Self-help guru Alan Lakein famously said: “Failing to plan, is planning to fail.”
Wise words indeed. To be successful in life, you must learn how to make plans and set goals. You should have long-term plans, medium-term plans and… daily plans. That’s right. You can use a few minutes each morning to plan the day ahead. It’s a simple technique that offers a surprising boost to your daily productivity.

22. Learn something new.

Each morning is the start of a new day. Why not tap into this fresh energy, by learning something new every morning. This could be something like: a few words of a new language, a new guitar chord, or some facts related to your favorite basketball team.

23. Enjoy the quietness of the morning.

If you can get up in the morning before the majority of other people, you’ll be rewarded with peace and quietness. You can make use of this special time by perhaps reading a book, or sitting in your garden. Personally, I love to walk my dog in the early morning, as the streets are empty – and my dog has a whole park to itself!

24. Think of a way to help someone later in the day.

Today’s society seems riddled with a me, me, me mentality. I’m sure you know what I mean. People talking endlessly about themselves – and others taking hundreds of selfies every day. It’s important not to get caught in this self-centered trend. One way to do this, is to take a few minutes each morning to think of ways that you can help other people later in the day. To give you an example, you may have a colleague who has a sweet tooth. You could decide to take in some chocolates to work that you could share with this individual.

25. Go for a swim.

I’ll be honest, this idea may not be for you. If you’re not a swimmer, then please move on to the next suggestion. However, if you do like to swim, and there is a swimming pool local to you, then this is a wonderful way to start your day. Swimming pools are usually quiet in the morning, so you’re likely to have loads of space for serious swimming – or simply having fun!

26. Meet some friends for breakfast.

Until I was in my 20s, I’d never thought about going out for breakfast with friends. However, I was fortunate to be introduced to this idea by a couple of American friends who were staying with me in London. I distinctively remember them saying, “Where shall we go for breakfast?” I was taken aback, because I had always just had breakfast at home. I’m glad they persuaded me, though, as I loved having breakfast with them in a local cafĂ©. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I now regularly meet friends for breakfast. If you haven’t tried it before – give it a go!

27. Check yourself in the mirror.

I’ve heard people say that they don’t like to look in the mirror in the morning – because they’re afraid of what they might see! I’m guessing that they probably look miserable and tired first thing in the morning, and want to avoid been reminded of this. It’s understandable, but I think mirrors are a great tool to use in the morning. Instead of being afraid of them, use them to check your appearance. You can quickly check your hair and makeup (for example). But more importantly, you can ensure that you’re looking alert, confident and purposeful.

28. Follow Steve Jobs’ advice.

In a speech he gave at Stanford University in 2005, Steve Jobs revealed that he started each day by asking the following question:
“If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”
He went on to say that, if the answer to the question was “no” for several days – then this told him that he needed to make changes in his life.

29. Leave plenty of time for your commute.

Rushing to work is the cause of so much stress and anxiety. One of the problems, is that most people seem to leave a set amount of time for their commute – but don’t allow for any delays. For example, if someone has a 30-minute drive to work, they probably just allow 30 minutes each morning. However, as soon as there is a broken down vehicle or roadworks, then their schedule is immediately disrupted. The resolution is simple: always allow more time than you need.

30. Kiss your loved ones before you leave the house.

Don’t be in so much of a hurry in the morning that you forget the most valuable people in your life. Whether it’s your partner or your children, be sure to hug and kiss them before heading out the door. Relationships are so important – be certain to nurture yours.
Hopefully, the above list will give you plenty of food for thought. I recommend that you pick out a handful of the above suggestions, and make them a part of your daily routine. By doing this, you’ll find that your days start happier and stronger. You’ll also discover that you’re more motivated and productive than ever before.
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