“I’m sorry you find communicating so difficult,
next time I’ll read your mind.”
– Anonymous
Maybe you sometimes feel like saying this to the people around you?
Or perhaps you’re guilty of it too?
It’s so easy to operate in our own little bubble and
think that everyone understands what we’re thinking.
A lot of problems in business and life would disappear
if we took the time to really communicate.
And that doesn’t mean just giving information.
Someone said to me recently: “I know I’m not the best communicator
but that’s just the way I am.”
That attitude is just asking for trouble. And it’s not fair on the people that
interact with you.
For a bit of fun, I’m running a competition from 20th August to Friday 4th September. Prizes are worth over €2,000 and include free coaching sessions, educational audios and some inspirational books. A coaching session can be used for you, personally or for your business – or you may choose to give it as a gift to a friend. How […]
“I am…defined by my curiosity and thirst for learning…
I buy more books than I can finish.
I sign up for more online courses than I can complete.
I fundamentally believe that if you are not learning new things,
you stop doing great and useful things.”
Satya Nadella, CEO Microsoft
The best that I know are probably defined by two words – ‘curious’ and ‘hungry’.
Their curiosity is reflected in their approach to creating new things, solving
problems and a genuine openness to different points of view.
Their hunger is reflected in their drive to learn new things, always
seeking ways to do things better and perhaps most of all in
being incredibly persistent.
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world.
Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”
– Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi – 1207-1273, Persian Poet
It’s perhaps what I am most fascinated with as a person.
Can you be in a situation and change nothing other
than your mindset or attitude, and as a result change
everything for the better?
My experience tells me that this is indeed the case,
both with businesses and people.
And yet it’s so easy to do the opposite.
‘You don’t understand Shane…
“Most of the important things in the world have been
accomplished by people who have kept on trying when
they’re seemed to be no help at all.”
– Dale Carnegie
One thing we can all be sure of is that life and business
will throw punches at us. And the strongest punches are usually unseen
until they hit.
I’ve been lucky enough to have experienced a few traumatic events in
my business and personal life – lucky because without those events I
probably wouldn’t be enjoying the career or life I now have.
Here’s a few insights I’ve learned from those traumas.
Top 5 Tips To Withstand The Tough Times:
I was kept on my toes last week as I organised a dinner for business women in my network. Fantastic food and cocktails in Saba Dublin were mixed with plenty of interesting chat and contact sharing.
It’s great when you can merge business with play… Which is just what we managed to do at our annual Thrive Forum get together this year. A bbq on the beach with family. Plenty of fun, great food and enjoyable conversation. Life is good.
“Help me… help you.
Help me, help you.”
– Tom Cruise as Jerry Maguire in the Movie ‘Jerry Maguire’
3 Ways You Can Help Your CEO/Leader
1. Be Visual:
Most leaders in business are visual thinkers. So lean on that.
Draw on a white-board to show a situation, get them involved.
If using slides use simple graphics. A picture tells a thousand words etc.
2. Be Concise:
Your leader wants it punchy. Do the hard work for them by being
clear on what you want them to know. Forget the 3 page report – What are the 3 things they need to know/remember from your meeting? If you make it easy for them it’s appreciated and noted.
“People don’t understand that when I grew up,
I was never the most talented. I was never the biggest.
I was never the fastest. I certainly was never the strongest.
The only thing I had was my work ethic,
and that’s been what has gotten me this far.”
– Tiger Woods
As I write this email, in a few hours time,
Paul Dunne, a young 22 year old amateur golfer from a club
a few miles from where I live in Wicklow,
will tee off as the leader of one of the most prestigious
professional golf competitions in the world, The British Open.
He has broken all sorts of records on his journey this weekend
– and it has been very inspiring to watch.
“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy,
not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”
– Socrates
If you run a business or a team, watch this one.
It’s one of the things I have to focus on the most with new clients,
because their minds are often so caught up with fighting the old.
So much time can be spent thinking about
and working on the inevitable problems we encounter
in our businesses and lives.
The problem with problems… is that they are never ending.
And they are energy sapping.
It’s vital that in your day and week you craft out some time
to focus on building the new – and that might just be time
to think about what the new might look like.
