Choosing to Succeed by Ross Reck, Ph D

We Need To Take Responsibility For Our Attitude

Recently I was passing through a security check point at the Phoenix airport.  As a security employee was checking my driver's license, I asked how his day was going.  His response caught me pleasantly by surprise.  He said:  "Great!  If it isn't, it's my own fault, right?"  His response points out that all of us choose the kind of day we have.  If you wake up in the morning and say:  "I'm going to have a great day," guess what?  You're going to have a great day.  In addition, your up beat attitude is going to rub off on those around you and many of them are going to have a great day as well.  As phychiatrist and Nazi concentration camp survivor, Viktor Frankl put it:  "Choosing our attitude is the one freedom than nobody can take away from us."  Let's make it a point to exercise that freedom every day.

Improving Your Popularity At Work

Some people, when they accomplish something at work, feel a strong need to tell others about it.  They think this will somehow improve their popularity among fellow employees.  In reality, nothing could be further from the truth.  Talking about yourself is bragging.  Bragging about your accomplishments not only turns people off, it also tells your boss that you're self-centered and not a team player.  If you truly want to improve your popularity at work, one of the best ways is to call attention to the accomplishments of your fellow employees.  If you do this, your peers will absolutely love you and your boss will think you have leadership potential.

Bosses Who Say "Thank You" Get Better Performance Reviews

As a boss, by yourself, you can't make yourself successful.  Instead, your success is determined by the efforts of the people who work for you.  It's a very simple formula: the harder they work, the better you look.  It's also a fact that employees work hardest when they feel their efforts are appreciated by their boss.  As Philosopher William James put it: "The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated."  This means that if you give your employees the appreciation they are looking for, they'll do just about anything for you. So, if you want a better performance reveiw, all you need to do is remember to tell your employees "thank you" for a job well done.   Not exactly rocket science, is it?

Everyone Needs A Positive Nudge Once In A While

Today's Weekly Reminder comes from a subscriber.  It points out how receiving positive nudges from others can help keep us on track and how providing those nudges can make a big difference in other people's lives.  I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did.

"Ross

I just read this week's Weekly Reminder.  So often your Reminders inspire me to 'get up and get at 'em.'  It is great to get a positive nudge during the day.

Too often we become bogged down by today's incessant burden of work and the negativism of the media.  It's as if society is deliberately trying to drain each individual of their personal motivations, energy and inspiration.  I'd like to think that I have lots of internal drive and self-motivation, but enough 'zaps' from the world out there and even I can start down the wrong path during my work day.

Thank you for bucking that trend and providing me with regular doses of positive energy without adding extra caffeine, organic supplements, or calories!  Maybe you should give yourself the nickname, Ross "Red Bull" Reck?

Thanks."

The Road To Success Is Paved With Failures

Many people are afraid to try new things or take chances because they're afraid they might fail.  If they only understood the critical role that failure plays in their success, they would definitely change their attitude.  The truth is that it's impossible to achieve a high level of success without experiencing a fair amount of failure.  As James Dale points out in his book, The Obvious, entrepreneurs fail an average of 3.8 times before they finally succeed.  And, it's the things they learned from those failures that made their ultimate success possible.  Thomas Watson Sr., the founder of IBM, summed up this relationship between failure and success very accurately when he said: "If you want to increase your success rate, double your failure rate."  So, if you want to succeed in a big way, never forget that failure is your best friend.

Fun Is A Key Component Of A Productive Workplace

We've all heard the cliché: "If you're having fun, you can't be working."  As it turns out, that cliché is totally untrue.  People who have fun while they're working actually work much harder than people who don't.  The reason is that people are made for fun.  Fun recharges our batteries and releases our energy thus making it possible for us to work harder.  On the other hand, if fun is restricted or prohibited in the workplace, some unhealthy symptoms quickly appear: we become bored and disinterested in our work so we turn to the internet for our fun.  Our batteries are no longer getting recharged, so there's less energy available for us to apply to our work.  As a result, a lot less work gets done.  So, if you want to significantly improve the productivity of your team or department, let people know that it's okay to have fun while they work.  And, if you want to kick the productivity up even further, set the example by joining in the fun yourself.

A Positive Way to Get Noticed by Your Boss

Some people attempt to get noticed by their boss by calling attention to themselves--things they've accomplished, places they've been, people the know and so forth.  The problem with such behavior is that it makes you come across as self-centered, arrogant and/or competitive--you might as well hang a sign around your neck that screams: "I'm not a team player!"  A better way to call attention to yourself is to find a job or project that no one wants to do or is afraid to do and utter that wonderful phrase that every boss loves to hear: "No problem, I'll take care of it."  Then, make sure you follow through in an exceptional manner.  I guarantee, nothing will turn your boss' head quicker.  Your coworkers will also be impressed that you took on such an undesireable job which means they're more willing to come through for you when you need it.

Available from Amazon.com

Getting to Yes by Roger Fisher and William Ury

This book is full of excellent advice on how to negotiate agreements that make both parties better off.

My Weekly Reminder

Most companies have the goal of building a loyal base of customers who come back again and again and enthusiastically refer new customers to them.  Many of these companies embrace slogans like: "The customer is king."  Or, "The customer is always right."  Or, "Spoil the customer."  The problem with this approach is that slogans don't deliver customer service; front line employees do.  If a company expects to deliver world class customer service, it's the front line employee that needs to be pampered and spoiled.  The better they feel about how they're being treated by their company, the stronger their sense of loyalty and the better that level of service is going to be.  As former Southwest Airlines CEO, Herb Kelleher said many times:  "You can't have great customer service unless you recognize that your front line employees come first." 

You Might As Well Embrace Change Because It's Going To Happen Anyway

It's truly amazing how many people resent even the smallest of changes.  You hear them whining around and saying things like: "I just got settled into a comfortable routine and then this change came along and ruined it.  I wish things would just stay as they are."  The problem with this attitude is that change is inevitable--you can't stop it.  So, you might as well get used to it and learn to embrace it.  To say that you don't want change is to admit you don't want to grow--that you're will to sit back and let life pass you by.  As a result, you wind up missing out on many of the wonderful and exciting things that life has to offer.  That's a huge price to pay for the shallow and fleeting comfort of a routine.  So, lighten up and give change a chance.  You'll find your life will be a lot more fun and interesting when you do. - RossReck.com

I would love to hear your comments.  Click on the COMMENTS link below.

An Example Of An Effective Manager

I would like to share an excerpt from an email I received from a recent seminar participant about a highly successful manager:

"I have been reading the manuscript of your new book Instant Turnaround!  The concept is so simple, yet it's amazing how most people do not understand it or have time for it--not even in their own families!  It reminds me of a super effective manager I once had.  Daily he would visit as many people in our department as he could with a never empty cup of coffee.  He would sit with the person he was visiting for up to 15 or 20 minutes exchanging information about himself and listening to obtain information from the worker.  This created a very happy workforce and everyone went more than the extra mile necessary to accomplish their work.  Needless to say, this manager was sorely missed when he was promoted." - RossReck.com

I would love to hear your comments.  Click on the COMMENTS link below.