by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 30, 2008 | Empowerment, Other Stuff, Vision
The tradition of the New Year's Resolutions goes all the way back to
153 B.C. Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of
the calendar. With two faces, Janus could look back on past
events and forward to the future.
Janus became the ancient symbol for
resolutions and many Romans looked for forgiveness from their enemies
and also exchanged gifts before the beginning of each year. January 1 became the beginning of
the New Year in 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar developed a calendar that
would more accurately reflect the seasons than previous calendars had.
What if I suggested that you make ONLY ONE Resolution for the upcoming year and that it will CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR THE BETTER? Interested?
***CREATE A NOT-TO-DO-LIST***
The idea is to list all the activities you are intentionally going to stop doing for the sake of greater productivity.
Here’s why this is important. As people succeed at work, they attract more and more assignments. It’s like they become a task magnet.
The problem is that people are a
finite resource. I don’t care how good you are, you only have so much
energy and so much time. It’s true for me. It’s true for you.
The
only way for these super-productive people to continue to grow
professionally without going crazy is periodically to decide what they
are not going to do.
Here’s how:
- Find a quiet place where you can think.
- Look at your previous month’s calendar activities. Write down anything you’re not sure really fits your current job description.
- Look at your upcoming appointments for the next month. Again, write
down things that are questionable in terms of your current job
description.
- Go through your to-do list(s) and do the same thing. Write down the questionable activities.
- You should now have a list of “not to-do candidates.” Good work! You’re almost done.
- Now go through the list and put an asterisk beside each item that
is significant enough that you want to add it to your official “Not
To-Do List.”
Let's share a few of our "not-to-do-list" items to help stimulate the thinking of others!
Here's My Not-To-Do-List (as of today)
- Spend time with people who complain, gossip, and are critical of others
- Book my own travel
- Travel by car to other cities unless they are less than one hour a way
- Read unfiltered e-mail
- Attend annual convention meetings unless there’s a compelling reason for me to be there
- Attend conferences for more than three days
- Engage in anything that hinders my ability to give the best to the greatest church in the world – Mars Hill Baptist Church of Chicago
by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 4, 2008 | Book Reviews, Communication, Empowerment, Leadership
One of our members asked me for a list of my favorite business books. I thought I'd share my list here.
These are in no particular order. I may think of others, but these are the ones that come to mind first.
What are some of your favorites/recommendations that you'd like to share?
by Clarence E. Stowers | Dec 1, 2008 | College Life, Communication, Empowerment, Tools
The VisualCV makes a traditional resume come alive with video,
pictures and a portfolio of your best work samples and other supporting
documents. Informational pop-ups provide background data on the
companies you’ve worked at and the colleges you’ve attended. You can
securely share different versions with your own network of employers,
colleagues and friends, and control who sees what.
The Curriculum vitae (CV) dates back to 1902. The shortened form used in the United States and referred to as a resume was adopted shortly after World War 2. Either way, it’s a document format that
has not changed in decades, even though the Internet has revolutionized
the way in which we use and share resumes.
In a practice that continues in some professions today, job candidates used to bring to a first interview a portfolio
of compelling samples of their work, along with written references,
college transcripts, and documents detailing things like personality
tests, awards and even salary details.
Employers
typically screen candidates through phone and in-person first
interviews. Typically these interviews cover a standard set of
questions, which today can easily be captured in a video or audio file
housed on the Web.
VisualCV brings
both the CV and the resume into the modern Web 2.0 world by
transforming the way in which resume data is presented, accessed and
shared.
HERE'S MY VISUAL CV
by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 19, 2008 | Conference/Workshops, Empowerment, Events, Leadership, Vision
Guess what?
Since some of you will not be able to attend the leadership conference,
I'll keep you posted as if you were there & you'll be able to talk LIVE to me in REAL TIME!
PLEASE SEND YOURSELF A REMINDER (above box) AND JOIN ME THIS THURSDAY!
by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 14, 2008 | Communication, Current Affairs, Empowerment, Leadership, Vision
Thankfully, the election is over. We now have clarity about who is going to lead our country for the next four years. I have never personally witnessed such excitement and hopefulness following an election (though I acknowledge that not everyone shared that sentiment).
However, the problems still remain. The stock market continues to remain volatile. I am not sure that this is so much a response to President-Elect Obama as it is a reflection of the fact that the economic environment is still enormously turbulent.
So is the glass half empty or half full? The truth is, both.
In times like these, leaders must do two things simultaneously:
- Confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they may be.
- Retain faith that you will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties.
This is what author Jim Collins refers to as “The Stockdale Paradox.” In his book, Good to Great, he tells the story of Admiral James Stockdale, who was a prisoner of war for eight years during the Vietnam War.
After his release, a reporter asked Admiral Stockdale, “How in the world did you survive eight years in a prisoner of war camp?”
He replied,
I never lost faith in the end of the story. I never doubted not only that we would get out, but also that I would prevail in the end and turn the experience into the defining event in my life, which, in retrospect, I would not trade.
The reporter then asked, “Who didn’t make it out?” Admiral Stockdale replied,
Oh, that’s easy, the optimists. They were the ones who said, “We’re going to be out by Christmas.” And Christmas would come and go. Then they’d say, “We’re going to be out by Easter.” And Easter would come, and Easter would go. And then Thanksgiving, and then it would be Christmas again. And they died of a broken heart.”
Collins then goes onto state that an attribute of truly great companies and great leaders is that they are able to embrace simultaneously these twin truths of their current reality and their ultimate triumph.
Questions: Are you embracing the Stockdale Paradox in your leadership? If so, how?
© 2008, Michael S. Hyatt. Used by Permission. Originally posted at www.michaelhyatt.com.
