Professional development

Ingraining the 7 habits of highly effective people

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I recently had the pleasure of attending a seminar based upon Stephen R. Covey’s landmark book, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” I was intrigued when I heard about the seminar, because I have a copy of the book. Sadly, it sits on my bookshelf only partially read. I found the book a bit challenging; to me, it reads more like an academic text. Fortunately, the presenter distilled the major themes  – the 7 Habits – into material I could understand and digest.

Here are the notes I took from that presentation. You can see how powerful his suggestions are and why Covey’s book is a must read. It’s impossible to do justice to the book with just a few lines for each Habit.  I encourage you to purchase a copy for the complete discussion.

Habit 1: Be Proactive. Stop and think before reacting. Act based upon sound principles, not emotion (which could be heated at the time). Avoid getting sucked into the emotion of the moment.

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Ring in the new year with a renewed commitment to success

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It’s that time of year again. Time to start implementing all those grand resolutions we make every year. On the professional side, we set new goals for ourselves, hoping again to do better than the year before.

I realize this sounds a bit sarcastic, and in a way it is. But that’s because many of our resolutions, especially those having to do with diet and exercise, tend to fall by the wayside rather quickly. Professional goals usually are taken more seriously, if only because the bottom line is on the line.

If you’re in network marketing / MLM, you have an extra set of responsibilities: that of your teammates. That may sound like a heavy burden, but remind yourself this: the more successful your teammates are, the more successful you are.

Let’s discuss how you can recommit to your teammates, then take a look at some goals for yourself.

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Need to make a decision? Get SMART

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In life, as in business, we’re constantly making decisions. Decisions about what to do next. Where to go. What to buy. How to spend our time.

For the most part, the decision-making process isn’t very long or involved. Some decisions can be made quickly, while others require a bit more thought.

Sometimes a particular task or project is more involved or very important. You don’t want to be too quick about it. Some people have a systematic process for deciding what to do. If you don’t, and you often find yourself mulling over an issue for a lot longer than you should, consider the SMART principles.

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Create a successful webinar

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Webinars have fast become a popular form of presenting. They are relatively inexpensive to host – even free, with the right platform – and let you reach out to the world from the comfort of your home or office.

Those with limited public speaking experience.sometimes find hosting a webinar intimidating, even frightening. It shouldn’t be. In fact, you’ll find it a fun exercise once you start hosting your own webinars. These tips will help ensure your webinars are successful.

1. Treat it like any other presentation. A webinar is essentially a seminar given remotely. The biggest difference (which can work in your favor; more on that later) is that your audience isn’t right in front of you. Even so, you must follow the same steps you take for a standard presentation. They include:

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How to be a good manager

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Good management goes beyond just making the monthly numbers. Organizations are run by people, so it’s your people skills that help determine whether you are a good manager and good leader.

Whole course are taught on this subject. I can only scratch the surface here. As one who spent many years in the “trenches” (that is, as a junior employee), I have a pretty good perspective on the qualities that make a good manager.

Most of these are common sense, but all deserve to be reviewed on occasion. Managers, like everyone else, slip into a groove at times. That’s when leadership consistency slides, and productivity drops along with morale. Review this list several times in the coming days. Do you find yourself violating any of these principles? Make the necessary changes. Your team and organization will be the better for it.

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