Staying focused

5 tips to be a successful leader

organizationalhabits Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Productivity tips for work, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused, Working with your guides , , , , , , , , , ,

When I was working my way up through the business world, I had very few bosses I emulated. It appeared to me that to “make it” to the top, you had to work 100 hours a week and expect your employees to do the same. You had to be somewhat cut-throat and keenly competitive with others at your level within the organization. And it didn’t appear that empathy had anything to do with business.

I know a lot of that still goes on but was encouraged to read an article today in The Washington Post by Aaron Gregg and Thomas Heath about three executives from the DC area who were rated “the highest” by their employees. These are bosses you can look up for who they are – as well as for what they accomplish.

What’s cool is that these principles apply whether you’re running a small, medium, or large company. And they apply if you aren’t running a company at all! They’re simply great life ideas. Continue reading →

Are you participating, or visiting?

organizationalhabits Building your personal brand, Decision making, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused , , , , , ,

I’m traveling this week spending time with family at a quiet beach on the “forgotten coast” of Florida. My work consists of chatting, eating, kayaking, biking, walking, writing, and reading. It’s bliss :).

Here’s a quick reminder from poet Mary Oliver about how important it is to participate, truly participate, in your life. Thanks to Jonathan Fields at The Good Life Project for posting this earlier this week. Continue reading →

Eyerolls and sighs

organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’m a big believer in following a high energy path with anything you’re working on. If you don’t feel energy at the center of your body when you think about next steps in what you’re doing, it may be time for a change.

Eye rolls and sighs are your body’s clue that you’re on a low energy path. Sometimes these are obvious – oh, my! But sometimes only you can see and hear them like maybe when: Continue reading →

Finding joy in caregiving

organizationalhabits Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Changing habits, Decision making, Staying focused, Working with your guides , , , ,

One of the cool things about bringing programs to our library is that I get to choose the topics and speakers, and I get to attend! I have learned so much over the last two years about squirrels, birds, writing, songwriting, democracy, art, travel, and much more.

Last week I had a new author in, John Eric Baugher, to talk about his book Contemplative Caregiving: Finding Healing, Compassion, and Spiritual Growth Through End-of-Life Care. Here are seven things I learned from John’s 25+ years of working in hospice that every end-of-life caregiver should know.

And honestly, I’m posting these today because they’re great advice for all of us no matter what we’re tasked with. Continue reading →

The importance of being playful

organizationalhabits Building your personal brand, Business tips, Decision making, Finding your "why", Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused , , , , , , , , , ,

We had Christopher Phillips in as a speaker at the library this week. Chris is the author of Socrates Cafe and Democracy Cafe which we used to model some of our programs at the library. Chris is an interesting, engaging, fun guy so we asked him back to talk about his latest book, A Child at Heart: Unlocking Your Creativity, Curiosity, and Reason at Every Age and Stage of Life. 

Here are some of my favorite take-aways from Chris’s talk: Continue reading →

What do you do?

organizationalhabits Building your personal brand, Decision making, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused, Working with your guides , , , , , , , ,

For those of us who have a number of jobs, it’s tricky answering the simple question, “What do you do?” People like clarity and telling someone “what you do” helps them understand who you are and how you fit within the community. If you hesitate answering, you see them smile and take a step away. People who can’t say what they do are suspicious!

But what if you’re retired? Then you end up explaining “what you used to do.”

What if you don’t have a job? How do you define yourself then?

And what if you do volunteer work. Is that “what you do?”

And how about when the job you have doesn’t define you in any way? “Well, this is what I do but I don’t really like it.” Continue reading →

Add some G-BOMBS to your diet

organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Building your personal brand, Changing habits, Decision making, Planning impacts on your health, Staying focused , , , , , , , , , ,

Healthy people get stuff done. We are focused. We have good energy. We are productive.

A huge, huge part of being healthy and feeling great depends on the food you put in your body. If you feel bad after eating – you’re tired, acidic, foggy – that’s your body’s way of telling you that something is not right. If this is happening to you, track what you eat and how you feel after eating for a week or so, and then start experimenting to isolate the variables. Continue reading →

Out of a rut and onto a curious path

organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused , , , , , , , ,

When you’re in a rut it’s a great idea to get off the path you’re on. You never know what cool thing is just around the corner. Or maybe your next great idea is hiding in front of you in plain sight. All it takes to find it is a little curiosity.

Here are a few ideas to jump-start your energy and get you onto a new, curious path. Continue reading →

Do one lovely thing

organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Building your personal brand, Changing habits, Decision making, Organizational Exercises, Planning impacts on your health, Staying focused , , , , ,

My Artist’s Way task for the week is to do one lovely thing each day.

  • I love this for the simplicity: it’s just one thing.
  • I love it for the lightness: this isn’t one ground-breaking, thought-provoking, change-the-world thing – it’s just a “lovely” thing.
  • I love it because it feels kind.
  • I love it because it’s creative – what will I come up with for 7 lovely things over the course of the week?
  • I love it because each day is a deadline.

Continue reading →