Category: motivation

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motivation

Where are the Facts?

close up of eyeglasses on book
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Have you ever been tempted to throw out a fact you didn’t like? Of course, you did! We are all prone to ignoring the facts we don’t like. And it doesn’t take long to find more appealing facts, as Peter Drucker reminded me.

We all fall victim to confirmation bias. And we frequently have a hard time distinguishing facts from opinions. It’s in our nature to prove we were right all along.

The problem is when we aren’t honest with ourselves, we make rash decisions based on flawed information. We turn opinions into facts and when we face brutal reality, our opinions and decisions fall apart.

If you find fact-finding to be easy, you may want to readjust and reconsider what you have. Sincerely ask yourself, “Where are the facts?”

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Inspiration Cartoons motivation

Why couldn’t I see that?

jigsaw puzzle
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Have you ever thought that? I can spend a long time on a puzzle, trying this and that solution. I may conclude there is no answer.
But when the solution finally comes, it seems so obvious. It was staring at me the whole time. Why couldn’t I see that?

Alas, we may be convinced we are stuck when that may not be the case. Don’t believe you are permanently stuck!

Illustration of a skier stuck in the snow. I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "snow."

A good story leads us to believe the plot is going one way when it swerves the other. And yet, the ending is believable. It leads us to say, “Why couldn’t I see that?” We love a creative plot twist.

The world is searching for a solution to life’s puzzle. You may have the one unique story that can inspire someone and cause them to see there is a solution after all. You may prompt them to say, “Of course! Why couldn’t I see that?”

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motivation

Finding and Fighting Our Faults

boy in beige hoodie covering his face
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It’s one thing to find faults in others; it’s entirely another to recognize and fix our own faults.

I was reading a biography of John Wesley when I came across this passage:

A quote on finding and fighting our faults by Marianne Kirlew

Although the author geared her biography toward children, that nugget was invaluable to me.

The author knew about emotional intelligence and self-awareness before we had names for these qualities.

The only effective fault-finding is when we identify our faults and take action to defeat them.

Looking at somebody else and pointing out their faults is too easy. But our blind spots make it incredibly difficult to do the same for ourselves. Be merciful to others and relentless in finding our faults.

But don’t stop there. Take action and fight our faults into submission! Now if you excuse me, I need to have a serious finding and fighting session. And this time, I give myself no excuses!

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Business motivation

Habitually Practicing Effectiveness

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Too often, we believe that to be effective at anything is a natural gift. And while it’s true some of us are gifted in administration, visionary leadership, or charisma, it still takes effective practice to get anything done.

"Effectiveness, in other words, is a habit; that is, a complex of practices. And pratices can always be learned" Peter Drucker in "The Essential Drucker"

What do you mean we have to practice being effective? Peter Drucker addresses this in the book. He equates it to the musician playing scales. It’s getting to the basics and doing the hard work.

Manual workers need only to be efficient. Knowledge workers can only be effective if they are efficient at the right things.

For me, that leads me to consider what is effective communication in the information age. And what does it look like to effectively communicate to internal and external audiences.

As I start the work week, I am asking myself, “How can I be most effective to my organiztion?” Perhaps, I should ask that at each start of the week.

So how about you? How are you habitually practiving effectiveness?

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motivation

What’s Your Story?

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We all have one. You may think it’s boring because you lived it. It may not be ready for the world, or perhaps you don’t want the world to know it… yet.

We have all faced incredible challenges. Some of us ran crying from our fifth birthday party because you showed off with a stunt, only to have the swing hit you in the back and knock you to the ground. At five years old, I felt humiliated and in pain. Wait a minute, did I say that was me?

You may be tempted to belittle and ignore it, but we all have stories to tell. And your story may be just what someone needs to hear. What’s your story?