How To Control Your Stress In The Workplace

Pressure situations are present during both good and bad economic times. However, when times are tough the situations can be magnified. Problems at home can directly influence issues in the workplace. It is important as a manager to recognize that your team might have outside stressors affecting their job performance. It is your job to create an environment that reduces stress and promotes engagement. In a workplace environment like this, employees will be more apt to reach their full potential and drive results. Here are 8 tips to help you and your team control stress and worry in tough situations:

1. Live in a compartment of the present. The professional with a commitment to service seals off each interaction with a customer so that negative experiences don't poison future interactions. Don't allow past successes or failures or future anticipated success or difficulties influence your current performance. When it comes to customer service, live in the moment.

2. Don't fuss about trifles. A "trifle" is something that is insignificant in comparison to other things in your life. When you focus on trifles, you lose perspective. Keep the big picture in mind. Doing so will help you objectively sort out the small stuff from the important issues.

3. Cooperate with the inevitable. Realize when your situation is inevitable. If you can learn to recognize situations where you have no control, you can gain some control over the emotional aspects of the situation. By cooperating with the outcome, you are making a conscious choice about how to respond to an inevitable situation.

4. Decide just how much anxiety a situation is worth and refuse to give it any more of your energy. Once you make this decision, it is easier to find ways you can improve on the situation or let it go and move on.

5. Create happiness for others. This principle appeals to your nobler motives. It is difficult to sustain a negative attitude when you are doing something good or helpful for someone else. Simply put: Doing good for others makes you feel better.

6. Expect ingratitude. In your job, you provide many diverse services. When you do so, you probably expect in return some signal of gratitude for your assistance. This expectation is rarely met. If you do receive heartfelt thanks from someone, you should count yourself lucky; you are dealing with a grateful person. Most people are simply not accustomed to being grateful, even when you provide them with excellent service. You shouldn't let ingratitude deter you from providing top-quality service.

7. Put enthusiasm into your work. Enthusiasm is the positive energy and sustained effort that keeps you driving toward your goals. Making a decision to have a positive outlook can be critical in enjoying your job and working with your internal and external customers.

8. Do the very best you can. It can be difficult to deal with criticism, especially if you feel it is undeserved or if it hurts your self-esteem. One way to put criticism in perspective is to ask yourself if you are doing the very best you can with what you know and are able to do. If you are, then you can avoid taking the criticism personally. If there is room for improvement in your performance, you can look at the criticism objectively and take responsibility for improving your performance.


Contributed by Dale Carnegie Training.

8 Quick Tips For Building Your Networking Skills

Networking events can seem very intimidating, but they can be a resource that will help propel your career to new heights. It is always important to go into a networking event with enthusiasm and a set goal in mind. Use these ideas to help make your next networking experience a successful one.

1. Network online - According to recent research by The Institute For Corporate Productivity, 64% of business professionals network online. In today's Web 2.0 environment, you cannot afford to ignore this networking opportunity and potential leads you could generate via social networking sites.

2. Start with LinkedIn.com, the leading business networking - Membership is free, and you can pro-actively search for and connect with customers and prospects. Also, Linkedin.com users can post questions to the "Answers" section on the site. Make an effort to answer questions relevant to your area of expertise. Not only will you add value to your connections, but you will also get additional exposure and attract prospective customers who will seek you out!

3. Arrive early - Treat the event like an important appointment. By arriving early, you get comfortable in a more intimate setting with the other early arrivals. It can be intimidating to walk into a room filled with people, so go early and let the room fill up around you.

4. Show confidence - Speak confidently, decisively, and with authority. If you are confident in your conversations and support your ideas with evidence, people will take notice and respect that you know what you are talking about and that you mean business.

5. Circulate - Don't just talk to the people that you know. Get out there and go network!

6. Meet with VIPs or speakers - If there are VIPs or speakers at the event, prepare ahead of time. Do some research on the individual(s) so that you are informed when you talk with them. Compliment them on their speech or talk to them about how the topic of their speech or their field relates to what you do.

7. Stay late - When you stay late, the smaller crowd also gives you the opportunity to circulate in a more intimate setting. It also provides you with an opportunity to connect with the event's coordinator. Thank him or her for hosting the event. The event coordinator can give you some additional insight about who attended the event and who might be at the next event. It's never too early to prepare for the next event.

8. Have a robust profile on the networking site - Put in as much relevant information as you can that demonstrates the value you bring to your customers. Put in all the keywords you think prospective customers may use to search for a service provider in your field. Remember, on a social networking site, you want to make it easy for people to find you!


Contributed by Dale Carnegie Training.

Persuasion Tips To Help You Reach Your Goals

This article is all about goals and persuasion. I think the best kind of persuasion is to manage to persuade and motivate yourself to achieve your goals and dreams.

Having exceptional persuasion skills is one of the most essential abilities to possess in today's fast-paced society. We need the support and cooperation of other people to help us in our goal setting efforts. The saying "No man is an island" is an undeniable truth.

Here are some hot tips to effectively influence and persuade anyone you desire.

1) Be Nice and Friendly.

Smile to brighten up the day. Make a sincere compliment to encourage and raise their spirits. Simple little things like these count a lot.

Make them feel that whenever they need support or just someone who can give them guidance, you'll always be there to lend a hand. They would tend to be more receptive to people that they trust and respect.

If you want to ask your boss a favor, do everything you can to please him. Over-deliver and exceed his expectations. Soon, he will notice your efforts and can easily be receptive to your persuasion efforts.

2) Enter their world.

You must understand the situation according to their point of view. Set aside your personal interests and focus on them.

Just pretend that if you are them, what would you do? What would be your suggestion? Then take the appropriate action that would be beneficial to them.

Copy them. Observe how they act, how they speak, and how they think. If they rub their hands while they talk to you, act like them. If they speak at a clear and slow pace, try to do the same thing. This is called mirroring.

In due time, the people you're mirroring will subconsciously feel more comfortable with you. It's as if they see themselves in you.

However, you must proceed with caution. Mirroring is different from mimicry. Do not let them be aware that you are copying them. They might interpret it as mockery and you'll just get into hot water.

3) Provide them with undeniable proof or evidence.

Explain to them how your ideas or opinions could be the most effective methods to implement. Show them undeniable proof that you have the best product by way of testimonials, before and after scenarios, and detailed comparisons against your competitors. Just make sure that all your claims are true and verifiable. Always maintain a good reputation.

4) Satisfy their existing needs and wants.

People are self-centered. They are initially concerned with their own well-being before others. If you can prove that your proposal will provide more advantages to them than to your own, then they will probably accept it.

If you could concentrate more on their interests, desires, needs, and expectations, then you would satisfy their cravings for attention. Moreover, it would show that you really care about them. Mutual trust and respect would be established.

This is the most important thing to remember when persuading anyone. No matter how close you are to becoming like them or how compelling your evidence is, if it does not satisfy the "What's In It For Me?" test, your persuasion endeavors will not produce satisfactory results. Always bear in mind how they will benefit from your actions.

If you liked this article, you'll love how Michael Lee's "How To Be An Expert Persuader In 20 Days Or Less" can make you a better person. See for yourself.

Using Persuasion and Influence to Lead

Here's another article by Michael Lee and I think you're going to like it. It's about leading your life and others using persuasion and influence.

There is a direct link between persuasion and influence, yet they are not exactly the same thing. Persuasion happens with a person purposely or subliminally trying to get somebody else to agree with him or her. That is, there is obvious and deliberate effort.

On the other hand, influence happens when another person agrees with you, not because you deliberately took the effort but because he or she has confidence in you and believes your opinions and suggestions are of importance. You hold a great influence in the way other people think, probably because of your status or your reputation.

Leaders use both persuasion and influence to manage the people under them. It doesn't matter if this 'leader' is at the near bottom or the top part of the organizational hierarchy. As long as there are people whose job is to follow, there are people who lead—and the people being led expect to be given a plan toward success. This can be more effectively done using persuasive leadership strategies. For the person who has the influence, it is his or her game plan or program for success that is being sought and heeded.

It is a common misconception that only those who belong to the senior management team can come up with a vision for the company. In truth, studies show that rank and file members often turn to their immediate bosses to gain a sense of direction. Thus, even the small bosses can have influence over their staff.

When we really think about it, influence and power to lead are not exclusive to bosses. Anybody, even the office janitor, has the capacity to affect how the people around him or her think, feel, and act. If others view your opinion as valuable and are willing to stop for a while to listen to what you have to say, then you have influence over them.

For instance, toddlers are able to influence their parents to buy them new toys just by being cute and charming, and just by being kids. But if they attempt to get what they want by throwing tantrums, that's another story. It's called coercion and, well, just plain brattiness.

When you ask other people to do something for you, regardless how politely you ask, they will always ask "why". More often than not, they will also be wondering how they will benefit from following you, though most wouldn't say that out loud.

In order for you to influence people or persuade them to give their agreement, you have to be ready to justify the reason why what you want to happen should happen. After this, you should be prepared to negotiate and be open to compromise.

Some people confuse influence with bribery because both involve the offering of something to gain favor. However, it should be made clear that bribery always involves a payback or an offer, while influence can happen even without anything on the table. Influence can be based on good faith alone.

To be an effective leader, not only will you need to be good at persuading people, you must, at least, have enough charisma to influence them without much effort. The key to good management is to have people who will willingly listen to you and follow (sometimes without question or hesitation). You want to lead without having to coerce others to follow. If you have influence, order in the ranks will not be a problem.

If you liked this article, you'll love how Michael Lee's "How To Be An Expert Persuader In 20 Days Or Less" can make you a better person. See for yourself.

How To Win Friends And Influence People

My friend Michael Lee wrote this article today and I think you're going to like it because it's all about how to win friends and influence people.

People who know how to influence friends are usually the leaders of the pack. They're the ones who walk ahead of the group, the ones who aren't afraid to speak up first. However, there are also times when the person you least expect to be the leader is the one who manipulates all the strings.

Both types may be poles apart and yet their strategies have the same end goal. If you want to know their strategies on how to influence friends, read on!

Influence Technique # 1: Make Sound Suggestions.

A great way to exert your influence over your friends is by being the one who comes up with the best suggestions.

For example, when deciding where to eat for dinner, you can either be the first to say, "Let's have dinner at X restaurant and then dessert over at Y café," or you can wait until your friends throw a bunch of half-baked suggestions before swooping in with your own.

Once they see how decisive you can be (without being too controlling), they'll end up turning to you whenever a decision needs to be made.

Influence Technique # 2: Know What Makes Them Tick.

One effective way on how to influence friends is by paying them a lot of attention. Know what they like and what they don't like. Know their needs and their wants. Once you have all this information, you can use it to persuade them to do anything.

For example, if you know that Friend A likes dogs, you can use it to convince him or her to go to the annual country fair with you by saying that there would be an animal show there. Just make sure you're telling the truth, or you could lose your friend faster than you could say "sorry".

Influence Technique # 3: Be the One Who Listens.

Being a good listener gives you automatic influential points. When people feel like they can trust you (and that's what usually happens when you give them the chance to confide in you), they're also more likely to trust your judgment. After all, they've already poured their heart and soul out to you.

So the next time your friend feels the need to talk about her lousy family life, listen. It just might pay off in
the long run.

Learning how to influence friends can come quite in handy in the future. I'm not just talking about you having a say on this summer's road trip. I'm talking about being able to use your persuasion skills in a more professional setting. The influence you have over your friends can transcend over to a meeting with your client or with your boss.

If you liked this article, you'll love how Michael Lee's "How To Be An Expert Persuader In 20 Days Or Less" can make you a better person. See for yourself.

10 Powerful Success Principles

1. Recognize and tell the truth.
2. Market your talents shamelessly.
3. Develop more character than you need.
4. Unhook yourself from the future.
5. Add value just for the joy of it.
6. Thrive on the details.
7. Deliver twice what you promise.
8. Affect others profoundly.
9. Become unconditionally constructive.
10. Master your craft.

Source: Thomas Leonard, "The 28 Principles of Attraction", Nightingale-Conant.

Success without stress

Here are 10 tips for living less with stress, from "Loving and Leaving the Good Life" by Helen Nearing:

1. Do the best you can, whatever arises.

2. Be at peace with yourself.

3. Find a job you enjoy.

4. Live in simple conditions; get rid of clutter.

5. Contact nature every day; find the earth under your feet.

6. Take physical exercise.

7. Don't worry; live one day at a time.

8. Share something every day with someone else; help someone else somehow.

9. Take time to wonder at the world and at life; see some humor in life where you can.

10. Be kind.

36 Top Quality Self Improvement Products

If you've ever wanted to tap into a market where there's PLENTY of room to make some money online, with MILLIONS of people searching in this niche every day, then this message will cut to the chase and let you in on an AWESOME secret...

I'm going to tell you about a HUGE niche that you absolutely NEED to be a part of if you want to boost your chances of making money online.

What is it? It’s the Self Improvement Niche!

Listen: there are TONS of people making money in self-improvement every year...from big guys on infomercials to "underground" marketers in the comfort of their OWN homes.

Why? Because there's a HUGE demand for it. 36 top-selling self-help products that you can resell for profit—the work has been done for you already, including hot new graphic sets.

Check out Self Improvement Kits today!

What price success?

Would you like to know the secrets to success? If you had the power to control all aspects of your life, to become successful financially, personally and more, what would you do? How would your life be transformed?

Well I will let you into a secret...we already have the power. But what so many of us don't know, is how to use it, how to make it work for us, how to control our own minds.

But no worries, this extensive success video seminar package called "Master The Success Secrets" will show you:

* How to control & change subconscious habits.
* Character building techniques for powerful results.
* How to transform your mind to generate wealth & success.
* How to connect with your inner mind. & change negative mindset.
* How to generate wealth from nothing.
* The golden rules to making money. & the 13 steps to riches.
* Transforming failure into success.
* The secrets to setting goals that really work.
* How to create mental influence over others.
* How to mold your mind for success.
* How to incorporate visualization and belief to get what you really desire
* How to use your knowledge to get what you want professionally and personally

Discover the secrets to success now.

Have you ever gotten paid for telling your life story?

A few months ago I heard about a guy who was taking the world by storm. He came from nowhere and suddenly he was on Tony Robbins' stage and then sharing the stage with the Dalai Lama, all the while making millions through speeches, seminars, products, coaching, and memberships.

What's insane about his story is that 24 months ago he was in bankruptcy. Since then he's up $4 million by leveraging five little known "expert strategies".

Watch how he QUICKLY positioned, promoted and got paid like a "guru".

Anyone can take their life's story and their strategies for success and build a million-dollar empire—that's what Brendon Burchard believes and he's proven it himself.

Have you been paid yet for your story or how-to advice? In the video Brendon shows you 5 secrets for doing that.

- Tony Robbins thinks Brendon is "smarter than hell"

- Brian Tracy says Brendon is the "smartest, nicest, most creative marketers I've ever met".

- Paula Abdul says he's "captivating, present, magnetic and awesome".

- NY-Times best-seller Dr. Daniel Amen "wishes I would have met him 20 years ago...it would have put my business and myself as an expert in hyperspeed".

So just go to this site, watch Brendon's complimentary video, and ask him any questions you have on his blog. Brendon told me he's personally replying to as many posts as he can and creating more training videos answering the most common questions.

Forget "resolutions" and do this...

OK, so it's February and if you're like most people, guess what has happened to your well-intentioned New Year's resolutions?

They've disappeared into the dark valley of
 shame, regret, and discouragement.

Hey, I'm not any pinnacle of virtue either, that's for sure.

But I really do not like feeling like yet another statistic when it comes to making lasting and positive changes in life.

That's why when I previewed this, I immediately wanted to tell you all about it too, because this IS the answer!

Forget resolutions and do THIS instead!

The reality is, my colleague Natalie Ledwell (one of the creators of Mind Movies) has hit the nail on the head with this video.

Nat has worked closely with people who were involved with "The Secret". In fact, she has used the law of attraction to reach a number of really phenomenal achievements in life.

But she quickly realized that something extremely important was missing from the message of The Secret.

And it was causing a LOT of disappointment among those 
of us who want with all our hearts to attract our deepest desires into our lives—but can't seem to get there from here.

The difference between Natalie and "the rest of us" is that she set out on a mission to figure this out. And she did!

Simply by putting her philosophy to work and PROVING it to herself first.

And when she saw how incredibly reliably this works, she knew what she had to do: Make it available to anyone who wanted to fully access the incredible power of the law of attraction...so you can actually get RESULTS by implementing a few very easy-to-understand concepts.

It all starts with four steps you can take right now to get started.

And you know what? It makes so much sense, it is so easy to do, and it WORKS!

You'll see when you do it—things just seem to start falling into place to deliver your goals to you. But they key is actually DOING this...

Natalie shows you the way right here.

She clearly explains the four steps, and it's super easy to begin.

Actually, I'm still shocked that she's giving this away, but she is.

I watched this video twice, just to make sure I could jot 
down some notes on the steps—and I have to tell you, I was so excited to get started with it, I began immediately.

I'm already seeing and feeling the difference this 
makes. Once you do this, anything is possible for you if you just follow these four easy steps!

I'm totally stoked about this, and I think you will be 
too. Because once you see how effective this is for ANY goal you want to achieve, I believe you'll be applying this simple but powerful formula to accomplish ANYTHING.

So watch the video—and don't forget to leave your e-mail to get 3 other awesome gifts Natalie has for you. No funny business or small print—she just wants to get this into the hands of as many people as possible so you can 
realize your dreams too.

Oh and by the way, this takes all the struggle out of trying to keep your New Year's resolutions. It's a whole different way of going after what you want with one big difference...

It WORKS!

How To Be The Rock Star In Your Biz

I've studied personal transformation and good business strategies for years.

Every once in awhile a 'new' voice comes along. Sandy Grason is just such a special lady. Sandy has a fun and fantastic way of sharing how the "perennial truths" of human growth and potential can actually transform your business, too.

She actually speaks of the paradigm shift happening in business today and the vital role small biz entrepreneurs like us will play in the new, spiritually minded economy.

I learned a lot from listening to her and had a ton of fun doing it (and you know how hard an act that is to pull off). Well, Sandy just created a series of video reports sharing the "cliff-notes" of her Fabulous Formula.

Watch the 1st video in her Fabulous Formula series showing you a simple, but powerful three-step exercise to revolutionize your business.

8 Master Steps Towards Becoming The Leader You Need To Be by Diego Ortiz

An important part of success in life is the ability to lead. It is important that we not only be able to lead others but be willing to lead ourselves. No one succeeds in life by simply following others. Sometimes we simply must strike a bold new path for ourselves.

Being a good leader is more than simply being at the forefront of the crowd. A leader must act. Too often in America, we simply accept that someone looks or sounds like a leader and too rarely do we actually look at the actions that leader performs—and that is the true test of leadership.

However, in order to become good leaders ourselves, we need to concentrate on actions rather than simple appearances. The title of this article refers to eight steps, but do not think of these as progressive steps like so many recipes or instruction manuals describe. Instead, think of these as actions that you must take on a regular basis.

First, be alert to new potentials. “Reality” is not absolute but rather subject to constant change. Think about inventors, explorers, and agents of social change who have achieved greatness. Some might simply say that certain people are successful because they are lucky to be in the right place at the right time. Maybe so, but if they hadn’t had their eyes open for the opportunity, then it wouldn’t have mattered if they were in the right place.

Second, accept inspiration from wherever it comes; even your opponents. The wisest leaders constantly study their competition. In war, politics, and business we constantly see examples of this research and reconnaissance. Too many times though a certain study, many concentrate on finding a weakness to exploit. If you want to a be a leader of positive change don’t fall victim to this trend. Instead, if you find a weakness, make sure to avoid that pitfall yourself. If you find the strength then find a way to strengthen your own qualities to match.

Third, learn something new and promote in new ways every day. This means you must continually seek to expand your horizons, internally and externally. Feed your mind with new lessons and knowledge, but constantly expand your social horizons as well. Seek out and meet new people and immerse yourself in new social situations. You never know when these new experiences will help you in your leadership role.

Fourth, search for and find answers in subtle clues. Look beneath the surface and constantly question. This is an extension of the third step in that you are seeking new knowledge. But this also means that you will need to step off the traditional paths of knowledge. Don’t simply read books in the literary canon or the bestsellers list. Take seminars rather than classes as there is more room for questioning and debate. Seek out the unconventional thinkers, teachers, and writers.

Fifth, improvise if no existing solutions are available. No excuses. Necessity is the mother of invention. How do you know it won’t work if you’ve never tried it before? Remember, not all approaches need to come from the front. Look at your problem from all sides and systematically attempt different solutions in various combinations.

Six, make at least one person you care about happy every day. If you make it a point to be thoughtful and caring for one person every day then soon this thoughtful, caring behavior will become a habit and that habit will spread to the others around you. Making someone else happy also feeds your own personal happiness. Just imagine how much better the world would be if we all did a little bit more to spread happiness.

Seven, offer help, even if there’s no apparent advantage to you. This means more than writing a check. It means giving of your time and energy and yourself. Sometimes it will mean helping someone you don’t know and sometimes it can be a very personal action.

Finally, never let negativity be your last word on the subject. If your final words are negative than no matter how hopeful you may be about the potential of a project or action the lasting impression you give to others is one of negativity. Accentuate the positive and you are more likely to see a positive outcome.

If you follow these eight action steps not only you will be a better leader but also lead yourself to a more successful life.

Diego Ortiz is a professional coach and founder and CEO of Ortiz Research International.

Special Recession-Busting Offer On Mind Movies!

You are not going to believe the exciting news I just got from my friend Ryan at Mind Movies...

I’m not sure if this applies to you but Ryan was sharing with me how he’s heard from so many people that they are immensely happy that 2009 is over at last.

It’s really tough reaching all your goals when you’re looking down the barrel of a world wide economic crisis.

Now you may not know this about Ryan but he is a really good guy and genuinely wants to help as many people as possible turn the tables and make 2010 a rewarding, happy and amazing year.

This is where the exciting part comes in.

So after Ryan and the whole Mind Movies team racked their brains together they came up with an awesome Recession Busting Mind Movies Offer...

The entire online version of the Mind Movies Creation Kit for only…wait for it…$20!

Yep, you heard right, $20…PLUS he’s throwing in $1000 worth of additional bonuses!

Of course he’s not offering this to the whole world, just Mind Movie subscribers and close friends of Mind Movies and only for a very limited time.

Plus, Ryan is also including 6 pre-made Mind Movies so you can start watching these right NOW.

This honestly takes applying the Law of Attraction to a whole new level.

So…if you’re determined to make 2010 your best year yet, grab your Mind Movie Creation Kit for $20 plus $1000 in FREE bonuses here.

How Happiness Happens by Marshall Goldsmith

Most parents will tell you they just want their kids to grow up to be happy (even if they're nudging them toward the Ivy League). But how does an adult achieve a high level of contentment while living a frenetic and distraction-packed life? The two of us have just reviewed results from our new survey designed to elicit insights into short-term satisfaction (happiness) and long-term benefit (meaning)—both at work and away from it. Our respondents weren't randomly chosen. They're well-educated (more than 60% have graduate degrees) managers, entrepreneurs, and professionals (split almost evenly between the sexes), numbering over 3,000.

Our findings were in many cases unexpected but clear-cut. There is an incredibly high correlation between people's happiness and meaning at work and at home. In other words, those who experience happiness and meaning at work tend also to experience them outside of work. Those who are miserable on the job are usually miserable at home.

The implication is unmistakable. Since work and home are very different environments, our experience of happiness and meaning in life appears to have more to do with who we are than where we are. Rather than blaming our jobs, our managers, and our customers—or our friends, family members, and communities—for our negative worklife experience, we might be better served by looking in the mirror.

One commonly expressed excuse for not getting more happiness and meaning out of life is: "I'm working too many hours." But our results show that the number of hours worked had no significant correlation with happiness or meaning experienced at work or at home. So much for that excuse.

Part of our survey asked respondents to rate their overall satisfaction level at work. Again, our findings paint a clear picture. The amount of time respondents spent solely on stimulating activities (high short-term satisfaction but low long-term benefit) had no bearing on their satisfaction at work. The same was true of more purposeful activities (low short-term satisfaction but high long-term benefit). Overall satisfaction at work increased only if both the amount of happiness and meaning experienced by employees simultaneously increased. This indicates that professionals don't gain satisfaction at work either by being "martyrs" or by "just having fun". Companies may want to reduce communications designed to encourage employees to make sacrifices for the larger cause. They may also want to cut out "fun" morale-building events that lack a meaningful purpose.

We had (mistakenly) guessed that those who spent more time outside of work in activities that produced more short-term satisfaction might score higher on overall satisfaction. After all, we assumed, people don't go home to find meaning; they want to relax. We were wrong. The correlations between happiness, meaning, and overall satisfaction at work and home were very similar. Those who were more satisfied with life outside of work were the respondents who reported spending more time on activities that produced both happiness and meaning.

These links between how we spend our time and how we feel may seem confusing, but specific patterns arose—some commonsensical, some not. Here are a few quick takeaways from our initial research:

- Reduce TV watching. It's stimulating but doesn't increase overall satisfaction with life—at work or home.

- Cut back on surfing the Web for non-professional reasons. It's negatively correlated with the experience of both happiness and meaning.

- Do as few chores as you can (whatever that word means to you).

- Spend time exercising and with people you love (respondents who did this had more satisfaction with life at work and at home).

- Feeling challenged is linked to greater satisfaction, so challenge yourself.

What can companies do differently? They might stop asking, "What can the company do to increase employees' experience of happiness and meaning at work?" which encourages dependency. Instead, managers can encourage employees to ask themselves, "What can I do to increase my experience of happiness and meaning at work?" This strategy may produce a higher return in employee commitment—and do so at a lower cost.


Marshall Goldsmith is an executive coach and a New York Times best-selling author. His forthcoming book is Mojo: How to Get It, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back When You Need It. Kelly Goldsmith is assistant professor of marketing at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.

How To Inspire People

It is not easy to instill such work ethic and leadership abilities in others. It's very important to also understand that some people do not share the same goals and aspirations as you might. Keep and open mind and learn to use different techniques to inspire different people. Here are few ways that you can inspire your managers to stand up and lead.

- Challenge - Issue a challenge to motivate people. By laying down a challenge you also create a very clear and measurable goals for the manager to achieve.

- Appeal to more noble motives - Many employees can think that their work does not make a difference. By appealing to a noble motive you can increase morale while also setting higher standards for your managers.

- Be sympathetic - Never tell a person they are wrong. Rather listen and be empathetic to the other person ideas and desires.

- Evidence - Back up your ideas with proof. By providing evidence you can give instant credibility to your ideas. If you have evidence even the most hard to reach managers will take notice.

- Listen - Listen to what your managers have to say. Some employees may not have aspirations to reach top corporate positions, rather they are content if their opinions and ideas are valued.

"Keep your mind open to change all the time. Welcome it. Court it. It is only by examining and re-examining your opinions and ideas that you can progress." – Dale Carnegie


Contributed by Dale Carnegie Training.