Three tips for maintaining your equanimity at work
Maintaining your equanimity, composure and internal sense of balance is a skill than anyone can develop.
I call it a secret weapon of the successful who seem to be able to navigate their way through an office environment that is studded with booby traps and minefields cunningly disguised as work colleagues; from the hypochondriac who painstakingly documents and broadcasts their every ache and pain (and bodily functions) to the angst ridden determined to share their life story and every other possible combination in between.
Our external world mirrors what goes on for us at the subconscious level. We attract into our immediate environment people and situations that remind us of what we focus on most within ourselves.
Ask yourself as you are reading this, what has been ticking over in your mind today. Was it a pleasant and happy conversation or encounter with another person, or was it you wishing you had the last word in an argument. Our best comeback lines are usually after the fact, sad but true.
Do you also notice that the same incident plays on high rotation in a loop fashion in your head, much like background muzak in a restaurant? It is just barely noticeable but it is there, insidious isn’t it.
So, the three circuit breaker tips I suggest are:
1) Check in on yourself
By that I mean, pause regularly during your work day and breathe; yes literally notice yourself breathing in and then gently exhaling. This is designed to slow down brain activity for 20 seconds, long enough for you to pay attention to your body instead of rushing headlong to meeting external deadlines.
This 20 seconds can be the difference between having a productive day or having a tense exchange with a co worker.
2) Eat your lunch away from your desk or work station
Being the office burning martyr will not get you a medal; removing yourself physically from your desk even if lunch is 20 minutes allows your brain to recalibrate.
Great for problem solving because it gives you time to mull over the facts (as you chew your food) without consciously thinking about coming up with a solution.
3) Remind yourself of what is important in your life
Keep a motivational quote on a 3 x 5 card by your computer as a reminder that you have a choice about how you are going to feel today; you choose how you wish to respond to your present circumstances.
Just reminding all you good people that I have a website devoted to mindset and financial freedom if you are wondering where some of the interviews have gone. Please head over to
Dal LaMagna Interview: Failure Is Not Final
If you subscribe to self-development eNewsletters, round about this time of the year, (late January of 2011), your inbox will be inundated with a ton of emails with subject headings like “10 reasons why your new year’s resolutions have failed” and that is usually followed by an offer of “How we can help”.
If you have stuck with your resolution to improve your health, fitness, finances, and personal relationships then kudos to you.
Okay, so the title of this article may sound like one of those motivational, “Come on people, pick yourself up when you’re down” types.
Maybe it is, may be it isn’t. It all depends on your perspective.
Dal LaMagna Interview You can download the mp3 recording and pdf transcript of this interview by going to http://yourmoneyandyourmindset.com/online-store/
You see, we often make the mistake that successful people (millionaires) burst on to the scene as readymade straight out of the box (overnight) successes.
Some of these erroneous assumptions are engineered by the popular press because of the higher drama impact it has on the reader and hence circulation, and revenue (ooh, isn’t that cynical).
The reality is more boring, but nevertheless equally important.
It isn’t sexy to talk about the hard yards, sacrifices and sense of self belief and faith these people showed in the face of adversity.
Show me a person who claims to have just thought up an idea, implemented it and cashed in the millions of dollars without breaking into a sweat and I will show you Pinocchio.
So, I am going to throw you this idea. If you don’t fail, you will not know how to succeed. No, it’s not a mind bender, it actually occurs with predictable frequency.
I have made it my mission to ask self made millionaires how they arrived at their current situation.
Not a single millionaire has glossed over their multiple attempts before finally getting the right business plan, system or model to work well for them. Their candour and honesty is indeed refreshing.
Therefore, I would like to share with you the following interview with Mr Dal LaMagna, the founder of Tweezerman. He is actually a funny guy.
Mr Tweezerman
I have included a synopsis and titled the interview: How to fail your way to success
Dal LaMagna speaks honestly about his sixteen failed business ventures including turning down an offer from Coca Cola and saying no to being involved with the Woodstock Music Festival before he made his fortune from his company Tweezerman.
Tweezerman started as a one-man operation with seed capital of $500. By using head and heart business principles to grow his venture, he was able to walk away with millions when he sold it years later.
Dal shares his wisdom and insights on how to succeed as an entrepreneur in his new book Raising Eyebrows: A Failed Entrepreneur Finally Gets It Right (John Wiley & Sons).
He has done a huge favor to all the budding business tycoons out there by being up front and authentic when he tells it like it is which means you have to do the hard yards and own up to your mistakes, and that’s just for starters.
What more, the man shows that you can be a capitalist and have a social conscience.
I found Dal’s leadership style inspirational-there aren’t many CEOs who genuinely care and will take onboard every employee’s suggestion to grow a business.
Tweezerman flourished because Dal had the foresight to make each and every employee a partner in the business. Yes folks, they got a share of the revenue, not just a monthly pay check.
Do yourself a favor, get the book and read Dal’s many tips on how to succeed in business, and maybe just maybe you will not need to fail 16 times before hitting the mother lode.
Find him at his website:
http://www.dallamagna.com
Book Review-7 Strategies for Wealth and Happiness
A timeless classic by Jim Rohn a motivator extraordinaire, that is written in an easy reading style for anyone who has had enough of being average (read beige) and wants a better life.
This includes health, material success and most importantly a deeply satisfying sense of contentment.
Click here to listen Book Review-7 Strategies for Wealth and Happiness
or read on
Jim Rohn’s own journey started when at the age of 25 he met his mentor Earl Schoaff who asked him the uncomfortable question of where his life was headed.
To his credit, Rohn replied with an honest “No where” and that was the start of the years of learning everything he could from his mentor.
He has distilled his years of experience into the seven strategies of goal setting, being a sponge and soaking it up, having the determination to change and forming new habits, staying on top of your spending, making time a priority, seeking out like minded associates and learning the art of living well.
These strategies if faithfully applied are your keys to a magnificent life.
Let’s Play “What if..”
We all know what is best for us to do in order to get where we want to go, and what we want in life.
You don’t have to be Einstein to know that that regular exercise keeps your body fit and healthy. Same deal with what we eat, the double choc chip ice cream with hot fudge sauce sprinkled with toasted peanuts tastes great while we are busily shovelling it down the cake hole but has that helped us with maintaining a healthy weight?
The maxim that Knowledge is Power isn’t quite what it is cracked up to be. Actually, applied knowledge is power. There’s that “A” word again, applied.
Doesn’t matter that you have read up all the theory in the world about swimming in a pool, but if you don’t do it ie the action of moving your arms and legs in a rhythmic fashion to propel you forwards, you’ll sink like a stone.
When I am procrastinating and occupying my time doing things to displace such as answering emails or net surfing, I eventually get to the stage where I have to ask myself “What if I do focus on getting my business plan written like I planned, what is the result of doing this”.
I immediately get a very strong positive feeling (humans are a swarming pool of emotions and feelings, like it or not) and I start to feel the sense of accomplishment that comes with completing a task that moves me one step closer to my personal goals and dreams.
And then, I actually make a start on this project!
Secondly, it gives me momentum to do to the next task that requires my attention without me being distracted by the television, or the latest online “news” about another Hollywood star’s fifth nip and tuck and third relationship in as many years.
So, for the next two days (Thursday and Friday) before we cut loose for the weekend, just take the time to play “What if…” Please comment next week about your experience with this little exercise, because I am all ears!
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
Blessed are the List Makers
It’s been two weeks since Easter and here in Australia, the kids are going back to school. As much as we love the little dears, we can now turn our attention to more pressing things like getting some semblance of a routine back.
Whilst we lament that God gave us only 24 of those precious hours, we have also been given the smarts to organize our busy lives around it.
Here is a great tip for doing that-all you need is a pen and a piece of paper and if you are technologically savvy, use your cell phone.
Every morning as you are sitting down to your first cup of coffee, WRITE DOWN EVERYTHING you need to 1) DO (client/business phone calls), 2) GET (groceries), 3) BE AT (meetings or dropping the kids off or picking them up) and 4) PAY (power, phone bills) for the day.
Yep, it is that easy. You see what happens is that you are focusing on task completion. This means less stress because you don’t have to REMEMBER everything and it allows your brain to address other more interesting problem solving issues like how to have better relationships with your spouse and children (I kid you not).
Try it for a week and see how much more relaxed and serene you feel and if you don’t like it you can go back to where you were before.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness