Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Work smart, not just hard


Smart_Work_Vs_Hard_WorkHard work is something every organisation appreciates. But at times hard work becomes a matter of concern. Understanding the difference between hard work and smart work aids in achieving success at a faster pace…
“The ability of people to work hard, with emotional drive and concentration to achieve success is a wonderful thing. On the other hand, just like with all other good things, anything in excess can be harmful. Excessive hard work often turns people into workaholics, said Deepak Lamba, president, Times Centre For Learning & Times Conferences Ltd.
How is hard work dangerous?
The term “workaholic” has a bad connotation. If a person becomes so involved with work that it is an addiction that obliterates family obligations and even responsibility for one’s physical and mental health, then it is detrimental. Experts believe that working hard to earn a living must not be seen as a good thing if it means enduring long hours of drudgery and away from one’s family and friends.
Lamba believes that putting in hard work with a definite aim and an underlying reason is essential to sustain it on a long term. If one genuinely enjoys the kind of work one is involved in the hard work becomes meaningful and satisfying. “Humans need intermittent breaks to not only gather energy but also to end monotony. So, hard work becomes a gift if it is coupled with smart work. Merely working hard without a definite strategy or putting in hard work at things one does not enjoy, can leave one frustrated and exhausted,” he said.
The side effects
Workaholism is just another type of an addiction. It doesn’t look as dangerous or self-destructive as other life-threatening addictions but it is a threat to the overall well-being of an individual.
Repercussions of excessive hard work at a stretch may cause:
  • Stress
  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia
  • Inefficiency
  • Damage to family and personal life
  • Loss of wisdom               
The cure
The key is self-introspection and control. Some effective measures include:
Create rules: Set rules for yourself. Take measurable steps to avoid working on weekends. Set aside some time for fun. Spend time with family and friends everyday
Time-out: Take time-out from work. Even in office, take a walk, do some stretching or participate in casual conversations with colleagues to refresh yourself. Pick up a hobby that contrasts with the kind of work you do.
Get over that guilt: This is probably the most important step. Don’t feel guilty when you are not working. You deserve that time off from work.
Lamba believes that if you have been consistently working hard and yet unable to achieve the right results and satisfaction, then may be the nature of work is not best suited to your skills and abilities. He suggested that one should self-introspect and figure out the issue. “Life involves larger responsibilities, passions and goals and one should not lose sight of this. Hard work should be used as a tool to achieve this and not a means in itself,” he concluded.​
Apeksha Kaushik, TimesJobs.com Bureau

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Time management - MINUS ONE - a-remarkably-simple-way-to-save-time

If you never have enough time, invest just 90 seconds in this article and you can learn how to free up space in your daily schedule.
My solution is called minus one, and it is based on the observation that each of us does a lot of things that ultimately prove to be unimportant or unnecessary. The problem is that we find it hard to recognize in advance which tasks will fail to be worthwhile,
The goal of minus one is to do less but accomplish the same, or more
To benefit from minus one, you simply eliminate one task at a time from your schedule, then evaluate whether doing so had any negative consequences.
If eliminating the task did not cause a problem, you succeeded in saving time. If it did, just add the task back to your schedule. The risk is low, but the benefit of applying minus one can be great, if you stick to it over time.
No matter how efficient you are, the odds are high that there's fluff in your routine. Even CEOs and world leaders fall victim to activities that prove unbelievably useless to them.
You can minus one almost anything: a task, person, department, company or even entire country.
If every time you go to a meeting about, say, privacy policies, you feel like you just lost two hours of your life, try eliminating privacy meetings from your life.
You might conclude that it is a waste of time to try to sell your product to a particular Fortune 50 company, because - there's no way to say this politely - all they ever do is jerk you around.
You could decide that it is too logistically difficult at this stage to contemplate doing business with a country halfway around the world, especially given cultural and regulatory differences.
Be bold but prudent...
Don't just walk into the office one day and minus a dozen suspicious items from your schedule. That would be a recipe for chaos. Minus one item at a time, and pay attention to see what, if anything, happens.
There are many ways to do this where you are almost certain to avoid any problems. The most magical word in my personal life is "carpooling." By joining forces with the family down the street, over the past few years my wife and I eliminated about two hundred trips to the soccer fields.
For example, find someone at work who attends the same meeting you do - and who has a similar mindset - and see if you can take turns attending the meeting, instead of both going all the time.
Very important - don't label others
When using a tool like minus one, it's easy to slip into an overly judgmental mindset. Your role isn't to decide what is valuable to the world at large. You should not label people, meetings, or organizations as a waste of time in general. You should simply decide whether they are important towards the pursuit of your goals.
As you withdraw from certain activities, be sensitive to the feelings and perceptions of others. What's unimportant to you may be vitally important to them, so be tactful.

A Remarkably Simple Way to Save Time

If you never have enough time, invest just 90 seconds in this article and you can learn how to free up space in your daily schedule.
My solution is called minus one, and it is based on the observation that each of us does a lot of things that ultimately prove to be unimportant or unnecessary. The problem is that we find it hard to recognize in advance which tasks will fail to be worthwhile,
The goal of minus one is to do less but accomplish the same, or more
To benefit from minus one, you simply eliminate one task at a time from your schedule, then evaluate whether doing so had any negative consequences.
If eliminating the task did not cause a problem, you succeeded in saving time. If it did, just add the task back to your schedule. The risk is low, but the benefit of applying minus one can be great, if you stick to it over time.
No matter how efficient you are, the odds are high that there's fluff in your routine. Even CEOs and world leaders fall victim to activities that prove unbelievably useless to them.
You can minus one almost anything: a task, person, department, company or even entire country.
If every time you go to a meeting about, say, privacy policies, you feel like you just lost two hours of your life, try eliminating privacy meetings from your life.
You might conclude that it is a waste of time to try to sell your product to a particular Fortune 50 company, because - there's no way to say this politely - all they ever do is jerk you around.
You could decide that it is too logistically difficult at this stage to contemplate doing business with a country halfway around the world, especially given cultural and regulatory differences.
Be bold but prudent...
Don't just walk into the office one day and minus a dozen suspicious items from your schedule. That would be a recipe for chaos. Minus one item at a time, and pay attention to see what, if anything, happens.
There are many ways to do this where you are almost certain to avoid any problems. The most magical word in my personal life is "carpooling." By joining forces with the family down the street, over the past few years my wife and I eliminated about two hundred trips to the soccer fields.
For example, find someone at work who attends the same meeting you do - and who has a similar mindset - and see if you can take turns attending the meeting, instead of both going all the time.
Very important - don't label others
When using a tool like minus one, it's easy to slip into an overly judgmental mindset. Your role isn't to decide what is valuable to the world at large. You should not label people, meetings, or organizations as a waste of time in general. You should simply decide whether they are important towards the pursuit of your goals.
As you withdraw from certain activities, be sensitive to the feelings and perceptions of others. What's unimportant to you may be vitally important to them, so be tactful.
If you want to hear more from me,

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

6 Ways to Prove You're a Genuine Superstar at Work

Remarkable employees (here's how to tell if you are remarkable) spend significant time helping other people succeed: their company, their employees, their customers and vendors and suppliers...
But remarkable employees also spend a little time helping themselves succeed, both for "selfish" reasons and because their success creates success for others.
Want to stand out from the crowd? Want to stand out based on go, not show? Here are some great ways:
1. Be first, but with a purpose.
Many people try to be the first to arrive each day. That's great, but what do you actually do with that time? Organize your thoughts? Get a jump on your email?
Instead of taking care of your stuff, do something visibly worthwhile for the company. Take care of unresolved problems from the day before. Set things up so it's easier for other employees to hit the ground running when they come in. Chip away at an ongoing project others ignore.
Don't just be the one who turns on or off the lights – be the one who gets in early or stays latein order to get things done. Not only will your performance stand out, you'll also start to...
2. Master a specific -- and valuable -- skill.
Meeting standards, however lofty those standards may be, won't help you stand out.
So go above the norm. Be the leader known for turning around struggling employees. Be the shipping manager who makes a few deliveries a week to personally check in with customers. Be the VP who promotes from within. Be known as the employee who responds quicker, acts faster, or always follows up.
Pick a worthwhile mission and then excel at that mission. I promise people will notice.
3. Create your own side projects.
Excelling at an assigned project is expected. Excelling at a side project -- especially one you created -- helps you stand out.
For example, years ago I decided to create a Web-based employee handbook my then-employer could put on the company Intranet. I worked on it at home on my own time. Some managers liked it but the HR manager didn’t, so it died an inglorious death.
I was disappointed but the company wasn't "out" anything, and soon after I was selected for a high visibility company-wide process improvement team because my little project had made me "that guy."
Try it. For example, experiment on a new process or service with a particular customer in mind. The customer will appreciate how you tried, without being asked, to better meet their needs... and you'll never be forgotten.
4. Put your effort where your mouth is.
Lots of people take verbal stands. Few take a stand and put actual effort behind their opinions.
Say you think a project has gone off the rails; instead of just pointing out its flaws so you can show everyone how smart you are, jump in and help fix it.
Everyone talks about problems. The people who help fix problems are the few who stand out.
5. Show a little of your personal side.
Personal interests help other people know and remember you. That's a huge advantage for a new employee or a company competing in a crowded market.
Just make sure your personal interests don't overshadow professional accomplishments. Being "the guy who does triathlons" is fine, but being "the guy who is always training and traveling to triathlons so we can never reach him when we need him" is not.
Let people know a little about you; a few personal details add color and depth to your professional image. (Plus it makes you a lot more likeable.)
6. Work harder than everyone else.
Nothing – nothing – is a substitute for hard work. (Sure, you can also work smarter -- but why not do both?)
Look around: How many people are working as hard as they can? Very few.
One way you can always stand out -- regardless of talent, experience, or skill -- is by outworking everyone else.
It's also the easiest way to stand out, because I guarantee you'll be the only one trying that hard.
(photo flickr user Jason Csizmadi)
If you liked this post, you'll love my book based on four years of personal and professional advice --TransForm: Dramatically Improve Your Career, Business, Relationships, and Life -- One Simple Step At a Time. (PDF version here, Kindle version here.)
While I could go all hyperbolic on you, here's the deal: If after fifteen minutes you don't find at least 5 things you can do to make your life better I'll refund your money.
That way you have nothing to lose... and hopefully plenty to gain.

6 Bad Habits Holding You Back From Success

You always imagined your career would be like a rocket ship shooting you straight to the stars, but instead you seem to be stuck in one place, already out of gas. Before you blame your company, your coworkers, or your boss, it's time to take a good look in the mirror. Your bad habits might be the culprit holding you back from the corner office you’ve always dreamed about.
We all have bad habits, but bringing your baggage along to the office can be the difference between soaring or stalling in your career. Below are six common workplace bad habits to break if you want to continue moving up the career ladder:
Being a Lone Wolf
Collaboration is the key to workplace success, but you prefer to work solo. While being able to work independently is a valuable commodity in any workplace, working alone shouldn’t be your only speed. If you are constantly ducking out of team projects or asking to tackle a task without any help, your coworkers will take notice.
While those around you put their heads together, brainstorm great ideas, and form connections, you’re being left in the dust. You need to show you can play well with others. After all, managers and those in charge need to be able to lead a team. Getting ahead in any office is one part skills and one part connections, and your lone wolf nature means you’re contracting your professional network instead of expanding.
Break the habit: Find a project you’re interested in and ask to be part of the team. Do your best to keep everyone involved and in the loop, and stretch those collaboration muscles. It’ll show managers and coworkers you’re more than just a lone wolf.
Saying Sorry
Are you apologizing too much in the office? According to recent statistics, the word sorry is uttered approximately 368 million times per day in the UK. Women in particular seem to have a tough time ditching the word sorry, and apologize far more frequently than men. Saying sorry about every little thing implies you are constantly making mistakes, and can undercut your position in the office and with managers.
Break the habit: You need to take ownership of your mistakes. It’s time to stop over-apologizing. (Click to tweet.) Reserve the word sorry for big mistakes and cut it out of your everyday vocabulary.
Taking on Every Project
Do you get excited by new projects? Do you like jumping in with both feet and finding new challenges? These are great attributes to any employee, but it’s time to learn your limits. If you say yes to every single project, you might soon find yourself unhappy, burnt out, and badly overworked.
Break the habit: The word “no” is a powerful thing. It doesn’t make you look like a slacker or weak to turn down a project you just don’t have time for. Be protective of your time and abilities, and know when one more task is just too many.
Being Negative
No one likes a Debbie Downer, and if you come into work with a raincloud over your head each morning, it’s not surprising you haven’t moved up in your company. Enthusiasm and passion are traits managers look for in superstar employees who get promotions and excel within the company. No one wants to promote someone who looks miserable to step into the office each day.
Break the habit: Sit yourself down and ask the hard questions you’ve been avoiding. If you hate your job, it might be time to look for another opportunity. Or maybe you feel stalled and want to learn something new, in which case you can talk to your manager or boss about opportunities to shadow in different departments or take professional development courses.Ask yourself what would make you wake up excited about your workday, and chase after your dreams. (Click to tweet.)
Doing Things the Way They’ve Always Been Done
Innovation is the lifeblood of any company, yet many workers just come into the office to punch their time cards and collect their paychecks. And this isn’t only on employees:according to a survey by Fierce, Inc., less than one-third of employees felt their company would change practices based on employee feedback. (Click to tweet.) Lack of innovation in companies, it turns out, is a two-way street.
Break the habit: Sit down with your boss and ask for an open-door policy for employee feedback and ideas. Once a month, try to submit an idea for how your company can improve and grow. Not all of your suggestions will be implemented, but you’ll make yourself stand out as someone with big ideas who really cares about the company’s future.
Being Disorganized
Every year, Americans spend on average nine million hours looking for things they’ve misplaced. (Click to tweet.) Imagine how much of your work life is being frittered away every time you misplace a report under a pile of desktop debris. People walking past your cluttered workspace are judging you for your organizational chaos.
Break the habit: The next time you have a slow day, spend it organizing your office. Set up a plan to stay more organized and stick to it. Keep in mind, the hardest part of being organized is initially cleaning up the clutter and putting things in their places. Once the hard work of cleaning up is done, it should be a breeze to keep your workspace in good shape.
Your bad habits don’t have to hold you back from career success. If you tackle these habits head-on, you might just find yourself moving on up the ladder.
What do you think? What are the worst work habits you’ve noticed? Share in the comments!
Image Courtesy of Bigstock
About Ilya Pozin:
Serial entrepreneur, writer and investor. Founder of Pluto.TV, Open Me, and Ciplex. Writer for Forbes and Inc. Husband 1x, father 2x, entrepreneur 3x. Follow Ilya below to stay up-to-date.
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