Zap the toleration

Today is the start of the 4th of July weekend in the USA. Fabulous firework displays light up the skies in most towns around our home, despite the unseasonal rain that we have experienced this past week.

4th of July celebrates Independence day in the USA, when American citizens stopped tolerating the British. Essentially, they said "Enough is enough" and they zapped the toleration.

As you celebrate this weekend, take a few minutes to consider having your own personal Independence day. What is bothering you that is draining your energy? What are you tolerating in your office, on your desk, or you home that you want to repair or replace but haven't gotten to it yet?

I will purchase a new paper shredder over the weekend, and declare independence from the toleration. My current shredder squeaks and requires cajoling to do it's job. It is draining my energy now, and I will zap this toleration over the weekend.

If your desk is a mess, your home needs cleaning, or your workshop has tools on the floor, then this weekend gives you a little extra time to zap those tolerations. Go ahead and remove the things in your life that are draining your energy. Then enjoy the celebration of Independence day and the accompanying festivities.

Take control of your time in 2009

Do you ever review your "to do" list, only to find that the day is done and your "to do" list is untouched. Do you have 12 hours of work left over at the end of each day.

I don't have silver bullets, but I do have a collection of time management tips to help you make the most of this new year. Take control of your time in 2009 by following the tips in this article.

As you may have heard - If you believe that you control your time, then you are correct. If you believe that you have no control over your time, you are correct.

Your special dysfunction is your special function in life

Are you sometimes frustrated when you face challenges? Do you struggle to decide which speaking engagements to take, and which ones to turn down?

Think of it this way. Every challenge and problem you face may be a similar problem that someone else is facing as well. When you learn how to overcome this obstacle, you can share your knowledge with someone who is facing the same obstacle, and help them in their journey through life.

This is when your special dysfunction becomes your special function.

Your special dysfunction does not have to be "conquering cancer" magnitude of import. It can be as simple as struggling to choose the best option from a range of similar options.

In this past week, I was given the opportunity to make two important decisions in my life. In both cases, it was hard to choose between the options. I struggled and eventually made the decisions, but I got to thinking "What if there are tools that could have helped me make the decisions, beyond the simplistic method of listing all the pros and cons of each option?"

It turns out that my special dysfunction is also my special function because I found an enviable toolbox to help you make decisions. Go to mindtools.com and you will benefit from these tools when making your next decision.

Are you at a verbal disadvantage?

What are you doing to improve your vocabulary? As presenters, our diction (choice of words that we use) is a large part of our performance to our audience. I recently discovered Verbal Advantage and highly recommend that you purchase a copy for your speaking tools library.

PMA For Speakers

PMA stands for Positive Mental Attitude. Speakers need to have PMA to:

1. Visualize presentation success.
2. Radiate Positive Mental energy to your audience.
3. Attract positive situations and success into your life.
4. Look for the silver lining of difficult situations.

Have you ever been attracted to a negative speaker on stage? I doubt it. A speaker who gets in front of you and complains about the weather, his physical health, the inadequacy of his fee, the state of the world and his presentation cannot attract future audiences. No one pays money to share this negativity.

The best speakers implement PMA, every day. Best speakers have energy, are enthusiastic and provide benefits to the audience.

I recently encountered a woman - I will call her Dumpy who stands out because of the NMA (Negative Mental Attitude) she drowns herself in. In Toastmasters we are learning and growing together. Toastmasters are mostly people who have PMA and are bringing good to their audiences through personal stories and humor.

I listened to Dumpy for five minutes (seemed like the Eternity described by Hell-and-Brimstone preachers). Dumpy loudly proclaimed that her employer did not pay her enough money, her desk at work was not suitable for someone with her station in life and the sun shone too brightly.

I believe that Dumpy does not even realize that she is dragging herself into this level of NMA. She is hard to listen to and a drain on her colleagues at the office. I am sure you have met your own version of Dumpy.

On reflection, I wondered why Dumpy shocked me so much. I have come across Dumpy in other people before. Then I realized that I am among Toastmasters with so much PMA that NMA is foreign. This is what makes Dumpy stand out so much - the contrast to most people I interact with each day.

Here is your challenge for today. Are you a Dumpy and not know it? Are you exuding PMA from every pore when you are on the platform? You don't want to hear about a speaker's problems all the time - do you think your audience wants to constantly hear about your adversities? Take some time to reflect - watch some of your recorded speeches. Look for PMA and NMA.


P.S. Dumpy is not a Toastmaster yet. I will report out her reaction when I ask her to attend an Open House at my Toastmaster club this week.

What's in your wallet?

A popular TV Commercial in the USA advertising a credit card has the tag line "What's in your wallet".

As we think about goals for 2008, and review the goals we achieved, (or not) in 2007, what is on your list? What is on your list to achieve in 2008? Are you going to try again to:
1. Lose weight
2. Exercise more
3. Save more money
4. Reduce your credit card debt
5. Spend more time with my family.
and so on?

I want to try something new to me this year. Instead of yet another "To Do" list, with too many tasks that never get "To Done", I have started a "Not TO DO" list. My theory is that if I can identify habits that consume time out of proportion with the value of the benefit I get, I will stop doing them. (Hey don't laugh, it is worth a shot. Not trying something new will provide the same old result)

What are your plans for 2008? What will you do differently in 2008 that you did not do in 2007?

In short, we have a lot of choice in how we invested our limited time on this earth. Life is too short to zealously create and adhere to To Do lists.

I will leverage my accountability partnership with Liz Trendowski more in 2008 to stay focused on the few tasks that make a difference each week, so that I can free up time to exercise more, be with my family more.

What are your thoughts on reaching your new year resolutions and goals for 2008?

Do you want to get more done?

Do you want to get more done? Do you have to-do lists, prioritized with short term goals, medium term goals and long-term goals, color coded in your day-planner, yet struggle to finish even a few tasks a week?

Yeah, yeah, I know. These are urgent, not important tasks. Don't sweat the small stuff, and so on. I have attended the hip time management courses, bought the fancy planning systems and was still frustrated at not getting tasks done.

Well, earlier this year, Liz Trendowski implemented a system to finish tasks. And it works. Very well. We have each published books using this system during this year. We have achieved numerous personal goals with the system. We are now excited to announce that we are formalizing our system and making a product to share with a wider audience than we can teach in person to show you how to finish what you start and get things done. Watch this space for details.