Monday, June 18, 2007
The Value of Coaching
In his Get The Edge audio programme, the global proponent of success coaching, Tony Robbins says, ‘Coaching is the most valuable resource I have and it’s the thing that makes people succeed. If you set a goal and you don’t measure it again for six months, it ain’t gonna happen but if you measure it twice a month with somebody else who’s the best at what they do, you know you’re gonna achieve it.’
Monday, June 4, 2007
On Listening
Listening is an act of love,
An act of caring,
A committment of ourselves to another.
We should listen with every sense -
That is, sensitively -
If we are responsibly and reverently to participate
In the mystery of another human being.
The other person calls to us
In all kinds of ways.
He wants to be heard,
Because to be heard is to be known,
And to be known is to live.
Listening should always be two-sided;
The speaker respects the listener
By trying to speak his meanings
Clearly and honestly,
And the listener respects the speaker
By giving his whole attention
To what the speaker is trying to say.
In our very listening we have the power
To increase or diminish
The lives and meanings
Of the people associated with us.
Rouel L. Howe
Listening is an act of love,
An act of caring,
A committment of ourselves to another.
We should listen with every sense -
That is, sensitively -
If we are responsibly and reverently to participate
In the mystery of another human being.
The other person calls to us
In all kinds of ways.
He wants to be heard,
Because to be heard is to be known,
And to be known is to live.
Listening should always be two-sided;
The speaker respects the listener
By trying to speak his meanings
Clearly and honestly,
And the listener respects the speaker
By giving his whole attention
To what the speaker is trying to say.
In our very listening we have the power
To increase or diminish
The lives and meanings
Of the people associated with us.
Rouel L. Howe
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
My Top 5 Talents/Strengths
Talent (a natural way of thinking, feeling or behaving)
X
Investment (time spent practicing, developing your skills, and building your knowledge base)
=
Strength (the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance)
BELIEF
If you possess a strong Belief theme, you have certain core values that are enduring. These values vary from one person to another, but ordinarily your Belief theme causes you to be family-oriented, altruistic, even spiritual, and to value responsibility and high ethics - both in yourself and others. These core values affect your behaviour in many ways. They give your life meaning and satisfaction; in your view, success is more than money or prestige. They provide you with direction, guiding you through the temptations and distractions of life toward a consistent set of priorities. This consistency is the foundation of all your relationships. Your friends call you dependable. " I know where you stand," they say. Your Belief makes you easy to trust. It also demands that you find work that meshes with your values. Your work must be meaningful; it must matter to you. And guided by your Belief theme it will matter only if it gives you a chance to live out your values.
CONNECTEDNESS
Things happen for a reason. You are sure of it. You are sure of it because in your soul you know that we are all connected. Yes, we are individuals, responsible of our own judgements and in possession of our own free will, but nonetheless we are part of something larger. Some may call it the collective unconsciousness. Others may label it spirit or life force. But whatever your word of choice, you gain confidence from knowing we are not isolated from one another or from the earth and the life on it. This feeling of connectedness implies certain responsibilities. If we are all part of a larger picture, then we must not harm others or we will be harming ourselves. We must not exploit because we will be exploiting ourselves. Your awareness of these responsibilities creates your value system. You are considerate, caring and accepting. Certain of the unity of humankind, you are a bridge builder for people of different cultures. Sensitive to the invisible hand, you can give others comfort that there is a purpose beyond our humdrum lives. The exact articles of your faith will depend on your upbringing and your culture, but your faith is strong. It sustains you and your close friends in the face of life's mysteries.
INCLUDER
"Stretch the circle wider." This is the philosophy aruond which you orient your life. You want to include people and make them feel part of the group. In direct contrast to those who are drawn only to exclusive groups, you actively avoid those groups that exclude others. You want to expand the group so that as many people as possible can benefit from the support. You hate the sight of someone on the outside looking in. You want to draw them in so that they can feel the warmth of the group. You are an instinctively accepting person. Regardless of race or sex of nationality or personality or faith, you cast few judgements. Judgements can hurt a person's feelings. Why do that if you don't have to? Your accepting nature does not necessarily rest on a belief that each of us is different and that one should respect these differences. Rather, it rests on your conviction that fundamentally we are all the same. We are all equally important. Thus, no one should be ignored. Each of us should be included. It is the least we all deserve.
INPUT
You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information - words, facts, books and quotations - or you might collect tangible objects such as butterflies, baseball cards, porcelain dolls, or sepia photographs. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. The world is exciting precisely because of its infinite variety and complexity. If you read a great deal, it is not necessarily to define your theories but, rather, to add more information to your archives. If you like to travel, it is because each new location offers novel artifacts and facts. These can be acquired and stored away. Why are they worth storing? At the time of storing it is often hard to say exactly when or why you might need them, but who know when they might become useful? With al those possible uses in mind, you really don't feel comfortable throwing anything away. So you keep acquiring and compiling and filing stuff away. It's interesting. It keeps your mind fresh. And perhaps one day some of it will prove valuable.
LEARNER
You love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill master - this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences - yoga or piano lessons, or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments where you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the "getting there."
X
Investment (time spent practicing, developing your skills, and building your knowledge base)
=
Strength (the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance)
BELIEF
If you possess a strong Belief theme, you have certain core values that are enduring. These values vary from one person to another, but ordinarily your Belief theme causes you to be family-oriented, altruistic, even spiritual, and to value responsibility and high ethics - both in yourself and others. These core values affect your behaviour in many ways. They give your life meaning and satisfaction; in your view, success is more than money or prestige. They provide you with direction, guiding you through the temptations and distractions of life toward a consistent set of priorities. This consistency is the foundation of all your relationships. Your friends call you dependable. " I know where you stand," they say. Your Belief makes you easy to trust. It also demands that you find work that meshes with your values. Your work must be meaningful; it must matter to you. And guided by your Belief theme it will matter only if it gives you a chance to live out your values.
CONNECTEDNESS
Things happen for a reason. You are sure of it. You are sure of it because in your soul you know that we are all connected. Yes, we are individuals, responsible of our own judgements and in possession of our own free will, but nonetheless we are part of something larger. Some may call it the collective unconsciousness. Others may label it spirit or life force. But whatever your word of choice, you gain confidence from knowing we are not isolated from one another or from the earth and the life on it. This feeling of connectedness implies certain responsibilities. If we are all part of a larger picture, then we must not harm others or we will be harming ourselves. We must not exploit because we will be exploiting ourselves. Your awareness of these responsibilities creates your value system. You are considerate, caring and accepting. Certain of the unity of humankind, you are a bridge builder for people of different cultures. Sensitive to the invisible hand, you can give others comfort that there is a purpose beyond our humdrum lives. The exact articles of your faith will depend on your upbringing and your culture, but your faith is strong. It sustains you and your close friends in the face of life's mysteries.
INCLUDER
"Stretch the circle wider." This is the philosophy aruond which you orient your life. You want to include people and make them feel part of the group. In direct contrast to those who are drawn only to exclusive groups, you actively avoid those groups that exclude others. You want to expand the group so that as many people as possible can benefit from the support. You hate the sight of someone on the outside looking in. You want to draw them in so that they can feel the warmth of the group. You are an instinctively accepting person. Regardless of race or sex of nationality or personality or faith, you cast few judgements. Judgements can hurt a person's feelings. Why do that if you don't have to? Your accepting nature does not necessarily rest on a belief that each of us is different and that one should respect these differences. Rather, it rests on your conviction that fundamentally we are all the same. We are all equally important. Thus, no one should be ignored. Each of us should be included. It is the least we all deserve.
INPUT
You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information - words, facts, books and quotations - or you might collect tangible objects such as butterflies, baseball cards, porcelain dolls, or sepia photographs. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. The world is exciting precisely because of its infinite variety and complexity. If you read a great deal, it is not necessarily to define your theories but, rather, to add more information to your archives. If you like to travel, it is because each new location offers novel artifacts and facts. These can be acquired and stored away. Why are they worth storing? At the time of storing it is often hard to say exactly when or why you might need them, but who know when they might become useful? With al those possible uses in mind, you really don't feel comfortable throwing anything away. So you keep acquiring and compiling and filing stuff away. It's interesting. It keeps your mind fresh. And perhaps one day some of it will prove valuable.
LEARNER
You love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill master - this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences - yoga or piano lessons, or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments where you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the "getting there."
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Creating a Vision
Create a vision for the rest of your life. We all already have a vision for what our lives will be like in the future. If we envision a scenario that is pretty much the same as the one we have right now in our lives, apathy will result in making it so. If we are negative and pessimistic, feeling that our future can only get worse, we will act in a way that sabotages our success and happiness. If instead, we create a vision that inspires us, we will be self-motivated to make it happen. In other words, we get what we expect.Create a vision for every aspect of your life. Where will you live? What will you do on a typical day? With whom will you do it? What will you have for possessions, wealth and surroundings? To whom will you contribute your gifts? What qualities will you be known for?Be clear and specific about what every part of your life will look like. Write out your vision, like a movie script, explaining just what it will be like. Write your vision in first person, present tense. "I am....."When you have finished writing it, share your vision with those closest to you. Commit to reading your vision every day in the morning when you wake up and at night before bed - for at least 30 days straight. Doing so will transform your life.
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