August 2007

MARK'S DAILY THOUGHTS: August 2007

2007-08-01 - Never Underestimate the Power of Influence
You can see this every day in your life. People with the ability to influence others have much more power than other people. They have learned the skills to connect both emotionally and intellectually with others. How is your power of influence? If it could be better, why not make it one of your personal development goals for this year.

2007-08-02 - You Never Do Anything Perfect at the Start
Perfectionists often do not accomplish all that they could in life, as they wait until they are able to do things perfectly before taking any action. Highly successful people know that they will never do anything perfect at the start. They just begin by taking action and make the necessary adjustments along the way.

2007-08-03 - Visualise and Feed your Sub-Conscious Mind
Your sub-conscious mind is really the servant part of your mind, as it can only work on what you give it. To use the full power of your sub-conscious mind, you need to visualise what you want in as much detail as you can. The more colourful details, the more powerful the picture you are giving your sub-conscious mind and thus the more power you get. Are you feeding your sub-conscious mind a powerful picture of what you want?

2007-08-04 - Problems Come to Teach Us
People look at problems in two different ways. One group always looks at problems as something negative and always look to others to solve their problems for them. The second group looks at problems as something they can learn and grow from. They know that problems come to teach us. Which group would you say you are in, as the people in the second group are always more successful.

2007-08-05 - Living out your Values, even under Stress
One of the best definitions of character is "Living out your values, and even under stress. Everyone is good on their values and behaviours when things are going great. However, the people of real character continue with those good values and behaviours even when they are under great stress. Keep this definition of character in mind as you go through your stressful times.

2007-08-06 - Build Social Skills for Success
The higher you climb in your career; it is usually your social skills that have enabled your success the most. The ability to get in and out of difficult conversations in positive ways can be one of the biggest factors of success. Everything we accomplish is done through people and relationships we have grown, so build your social skills for even greater success.

2007-08-07 - How Could the Opposite be True?
There's a great way to develop the arguments for any position you take. Invest a few minutes time to think about how the opposite might be true. When you have an idea of what others might think against you, you will be better prepared to justify your position.

2007-08-08 - Never Focus on What You Don't Want
Many people spend more time thinking and focusing on what they don't want, than what they do want. This type of thinking is damaging, as they are constantly putting the picture of what they don't want at the front of their mind. It is important to remember that we always look for evidence of our thoughts (and these type of people will be looking for evidence of what they don't want). The solution is to always focus on "What you do want".

2007-08-09 - The Power of a Good Story
Take a look at the good speakers and you will notice one key success factor common in all of them. It's that they are all very good storytellers. Whenever you leave the room after hearing a great speech, you are always replaying the great stories that you have heard. Remember the power of a good story in making an impact on others.

2007-08-10 - Sometimes It is Good to Sleep on It
How many times have you gone to bed with a problems and wake up the next morning with the answer? Many times I guess. What has happened is that you have given the problem to your sub-conscious mind clear enough for it to find the answer. When sleeping, your conscious mind is at rest, and your subconscious mind is put to work. Remember, your subconscious mind provides the answers when presented with very clear problems.

2007-08-11 - Attitudes of your People Builds your Culture
A very good way of describing your company's culture is that it is the sum total of the attitudes of your people. Therefore, changing attitudes is the leaders role and changing cultures requires a top-down focus. Focus on changing attitudes and culture change will come along with it.

2007-08-12 - Passion Comes When You See your Potential
The people without passion for their job or their life do not really see the potential inside them. You could say that the best leaders help their people see the potential inside them that they could not have seen themselves. Why not ask yourself the question... What potential is inside me that I am currently not doing anything about?

2007-08-13 - The Road to the Heart is the Ear
The best way to connect with others is to really listen to them. Giving others your full attention and being interested in what they are talking about will always create a stronger link. This is the best way to develop friendships, as the road to the heart is the ear.

2007-08-14 - Taking Responsibility Creates Freedom
People often view responsibility as a burden. However, it is actually just the opposite. If you don't take responsibility, you always end up doing what other people tell you to do. If you take responsibility, you get the freedom to decide how you will accomplish what you are responsible for. Remember, taking responsibility creates freedom.

2007-08-15 - Lead Yourself First
The first step in every approach to increase your leadership skills is to lead yourself first. There's something from a credibility point of view if you are not doing what you are inspiring others to do. In everything you do as a leader, be the best example you can by leading yourself first.

2007-08-16 - Build your Motivation by Taking Action
There are so many people who really want to get motivated, and are always looking to others for help. However, motivation is really built by taking action first. The very step of taking action creates the motivation to then complete the task. Remember, don't wait for motivation to come to you, take "Action" and go get it.

2007-08-17 - What You are Doing when No One is Looking
True integrity is invisible, as it is what you do with no one is looking. A great goal to have in life is to be proud of all your actions, and that you wouldn't mind others seeing all of them as well. Remember, what we do when no one else is looking shows to ourselves our true integrity.

2007-08-18 - Teaching You Who You Need to Be
One of the best skills for leaders to have is the skill of listening. When you listen to your people, you not only understand what's happening in your organisation better; but you also learn more about what motivates each of them. The real benefit by listening is that your people teach you whom you need to be in order to get the most out of them.

2007-08-19 - The Future is nothing but Possibilities
A great way to look at the future is that it is full of possibilities. Anything can happen and we are the creator of those possibilities. The past is out of our control and is gone forever. Focus your mind and energy on the possibilities of the future.

2007-08-20 - Prioritisation and Balance
There are two key words to remember to get more accomplished and with less stress. First, prioritisation: There's always too much to do, but people who set priorities focus on the most important things. Second, everything in life has to have balance. All work and no play leave a person looking at their work problems as larger than what they really are. Remember, prioritisation and balance.

2007-08-21 - Look No Further than in the Mirror
Too many people are always looking for the help of others or lucky breaks to achieve what they want. However, success always comes when we look no further than what is in the mirror. Taking personal responsibility for your life is the key to gaining the success you desire. No one has a bigger stake in you than you.

2007-08-22 - Using the Heart and the Head
Your best leaders understand this one very well. They know that they get the commitment and action from their people only when they reach both the heart and the head. Having both an emotional and intellectual link is always the more powerful combination to inspire others to action and success.

2007-08-23 - Change is the Only Constant
In today's world, everything is changing at a fast pace. Yet, most people do not like change. Why not turn your thinking and your attitude about change upside down? Think of change as a constant and be worried if things are not changing enough!

2007-08-24 - From Will Power to Pull Power
There's so much talk about having the will power to give up a bad habit. Will power is tough because you are always thinking of what you are giving up. How about "Pull" Power? Why not think of the benefits you will gain, and make them as big in your mind as you can. Those images of the benefits will create "Pull" Power, as you now have to have it (it pulls you towards it).

2007-08-25 - Leaders Focus on What Could Be
There's an interesting difference between the focus of a leader and a manager. A manager's focus is on making work what is (and stops there), while the leader continues and also has a focus on what could be. You could say that a leader's focus is on the potential that gets the most value out of the organisation he or she leads.

2007-08-26 - Turn Big Tasks into Smaller Tasks
The best way to take action on your big projects is to break them down into smaller tasks. Smaller tasks look more achievable, and by doing them on a consistent basis; you get that consistent feeling of achievement. Start breaking those big tasks into smaller tasks today, and make faster progress on your big projects.

2007-08-27 - What's Your Next Challenge?
For each of us, it is the challenges we face in our lives that help us to grow. When we lack challenges, we become bored and suddenly we are not taking action like we used to. Basically, things just get too comfortable. If you ever get into this situation, ask yourself: What's my next challenge?

2007-08-28 - Practise Before You Forget the Lesson
We often read something interesting or hear something in training that could help us improve. However, unless we put into practise right away what we learned, we often forget it. Strive to put into practise what you learn as soon as possible after you first read it or hear it. It makes a huge difference.

2007-08-29 - The Key to Listening is Remembering
We all struggle at times to listen effectively to others. If you think about it, the true indication of whether you were listening is whether you remember what you heard. Asking about something weeks later indicates to others that you were listening (because you remembered).

2007-08-30 - Once You Commit, the How Will Come
There are many people who never really set goals to the level of their potential. They are always feeling that they need to know how to get there before they commit. However, it really works the other way around. Once you commit yourself to a goal, the how will come.

2007-08-31 - There's Always a Tail on our Strengths
We all have strengths and weaknesses. However, sometimes our strengths can become a weakness if taken to an extreme. Being determined to stick with something until success comes can be one of our strengths. Take it to an extreme and not include others in the right ways and suddenly it is a weakness as well. Remember, there's always a tail on our strengths.

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