Finding and Expressing Your Voice
Each
of us has
a unique
and significant set
of traits, abilities, passions,
and skills
that we
offer to the world. This is our voice. When we
are expressing our voice we feel significant, valuable,
and joyful. We seek
and find
a sense
of meaning
in our work
and in our lives when we
are operating at this level. When we are expressing our voice we are
in alignment with
who we are.
I have met many
people in organizations who are doing this. They love
their jobs; they are passionate about what they do; they love making a contribution; they are constantly learning
and growing; and they feel fulfilled doing their work. When
you have
an organization where everyone has found their voice,
you have one great choir--harmonious and magnificent. You have
people supporting one another
to express greatness.
Recently
I read The Eighth Habit, by Stephen Covey. The
eighth habit is: "Find your voice and inspire
others to find theirs." This book is a must read
for all of you who
see yourselves as leaders. Dr. Covey presents some disturbing statistics
that demonstrate that most of us are
not in the choir. He presents the following
data collected in a survey of 23 thousand U.S. people employed in organizations.
37 % have clear understanding of what their organization is trying
to achieve.
20 % are enthusiastic about the organization goals.
20 % see how their tasks match up with the goals.
50 % are happy with what they have accomplished by the end of the week.
15 % feel their organization enables them to accomplish goals.
17% see open communication in their workplace.
10 % believe people are held accountable.
20 % trust the organization they work for.
Dr. Covey puts
it into perspective when
he imagines if a soccer team had these scores:
Only
four of the eleven players
would know
which goal was theirs.
Only
two of the eleven would care.
Only two would know which position they play.
Nine of the players would in some way be competing against their own team.
Covey attributes much of this to the fact that so many people do not find meaning
or joy in their work. The answer, he says, is to help
each person find their voice. I recommend you read the book. The Eighth Habit, through research and logic, presents a convincing case that the "carrot and stick"
method of management is not effective. It is not effective in our workplaces, nor is it effective at home
or at school.
Another recent book,
Unconditional Parenting, by Alfie Kohn, cites numerous research studies that authoritarian and punitive parenting is ineffective. The results of highly controlling parenting are children who are either overly compliant,
or overly
defiant. It seems that whether we are dealing with children or adults, the use of rewards and punishments creates more problems than it solves. The problem is that controlling people doesn't really teach them. Controlling others doesn't bring forth their best selves. It doesn't help them find their voice. As a result people are not internally motivated.
As I listen to people in various organizations, and as I read the literature from various fields, this is what I find:
People don't feel respected.
People don't feel valued.
People don't feel listened to.
Many people feel
directionless and powerless.
Many people are focused on external factors
such as punishments, rewards, grades, approval, disapproval, criticism, profits, and social recognition rather than internal factors such as personal responsibility, compassion for others, the desire to contribute and serve, and finding/expressing one's voice.
The thought occurs, "Somebody should do something." But who is somebody? Who will lead us? I suggest that it is
you. Yes, you the reader of this article, are the
leader we have been waiting for. Yes, CEO's, presidents, Executive Directors, and managers
need to
change, but we are all responsible. We are all responsible for looking within ourselves and finding meaning, finding our voice. It's time to eliminate the excuses, to stop blaming management; to stop blaming your parents; to stop blaming the government and
ask the big question:
"What can I do?" Whatever the situation is, we need to accept that it is what it is, and now we need to figure out what we can do about
it. Blaming
managers, blaming employees, and blaming circumstances are a waste of valuable energy and serve as excuses for not taking responsibility.
You can find your voice. You can help others to find theirs. You can realize that a paycheck is a result of doing good work, but it is not the reason you were hired or the reason you are in business. You are there to
serve. And when you are serving well, you enjoy your work. And when you serve well, most often you tend to be
paid well. And if your organization doesn't pay you
well in spite of your incredible service, your track record and your positive energy will get you work somewhere else where you are
compensated well. Or, you can utilize your tremendous skill and service orientation to create a lucrative sideline business. If your real dream is doing something else somewhere else, stop waiting,
start planning, and do it.
We wait for the right CEO or the right president to come in and "turn this place around" and start treating people with respect. The person who can turn this place around is you. Here is how:
Notice how you feel at work. The thoughts you think and the emotions you have are what you are giving to employees, managers, customers, and anyone else you meet. Is what you are thinking and feeling helpful to them? If not, are you willing to
imagine and become a more positive you?
Dig deep and find your passion. Don't let anyone talk you out of it.
Be honest, and compassionate with everyone, especially your boss.
Ask your manager, or whoever is above you, how you can help make the organization stronger--how you can help him/her create a more
successful organization.
Eliminate "I can't because..." from your vocabulary and focus your energy on
creative ways to get it done anyway. This means working smarter--not
harder. Ask your employees and coworkers how you can support them
-- and listen to them when they reply.
Treat each person you meet, whether they are an adult or a child, as a highly respected being. Do your best to understand their needs and concerns.
Focus your day on helping, on listening, and on being present in the moment.
Make sure that each word you speak, each action you take, contribute to the success of the people you are with and to the overall success of the
organization. That means stop the gossip and stop listening to the gossip. Move beyond
complaining to creative action. With your
speech and your
actions you are either building or destroying. Which do you prefer?
Stop whining! It is unbecoming of you.
Help others find their voice. It is the most rewarding thing you will ever do.
Excuses, blaming, and
"reasons" are all ways in which you give away your power. Claim your power by being a possibility thinker. Look at any situation and ask: "What possibilities can I find or create?"
Refuse to be a victim. Envision what can be and start taking action toward that vision.
No one you know needs fixing. They just need to learn who they are and find the confidence to be who they are. Help them be successful.
In conclusion, Jim Collins in his book, Good to Great, tells us about the most successful
companies and why they are great.
His comprehensive research shows that each and every company (there were eleven who had achieved
greatness) all had what he
calls Level Five leaders. Four of the traits
exhibited by Level Five
Leaders were:
1. They were humble and did not seek personal glory.
2. They were focused and driven to succeed, not for themselves, but for their company.
3. They refused to accept mediocrity, and took creative action.
4. They found successors who were as good or better than they were.
These are leaders who have found their voices and helped many others to find theirs. These are leaders who created organizations that were not codependent on them, but who were
empowered to succeed on their own.
You are capable of being such a leader if it is your intention. You are a light. When you bring your greatness forth you give others permission to be great too. It is a matter of choice--your choice.
William
Frank Diedrich is a speaker, executive coach, and the author of Beyond Blaming: Unleashing Power and Passion in People and Organizations. William offers keynotes and workshops on
leadership and moving beyond blaming. William also offers a free online newsletter, Transformation Times. Learn more about William at
http://noblaming.com.
Dogs Nature
Dog Training
- A Dog's Nature
Dogs
are surprisingly complex creatures.
Some
official estimates
of the number
of breeds reaches
as high
as 800
in Western countries alone. Even
given that distinguishing
one breed from another can
be carried
to absurd extremes,
the variety
is astonishing
from a human perspective, who have,
perhaps, a dozen 'breeds'.
Complicating the picture still further
is the well-known
fact that dogs
have descended from wolves but began domestic interaction with
humans over 10,000 years
ago. As
a consequence, there
are behaviours that develop regardless
of circumstances
and some that are as unique as the human the dog
is paired
with. Still, some
common traits stand out.
Dogs are predators.
That doesn't
mean they necessarily
hunt and attack
every passing cat
or rat, but the capacity is
always in them. With acute hearing
and head muscles that allow precise orientation
of their ears, dogs can pick up
a range
of sounds and locate the source quickly and with high accuracy.
A
dog's field
of vision is higher
than that of humans. Their field of view has been estimated from 180-270 degrees, by comparison
to a human's 100-150 degrees, allowing them
to track events better.
And, of course, there's that famous
sense of smell. Citing figures such as having 25
times as many scent-receptor cells
or being able to
sense concentrations 100 million times
smaller than humans conveys the fact one way.
Another is to report
behaviour. Golden Retrievers,
for example, can smell gophers through two feet of packed snow and a foot of frozen earth.
And, they'll dig through it to get to the gopher. That's predatory behaviour.
Dogs are social animals.
That's
common knowledge, of course. But, though known, it's often ignored. Individuals will often lock a lone dog away in a garage or pen, or on a rope in the yard for long periods. This isolation from contact with humans and other animals invariably leads to fear and/or
aggression and other forms of maladjustment. Dogs need companionship in order to develop healthy behaviour.
Isolating a dog for brief periods can be a useful training technique. Fear of
expulsion from the pack can incense overly assertive,
alpha-status seeking dogs
into alignment with the trainer's goals. In any human-dog
pair, the human must be the alpha (leader). The
alternative is
property destruction, human
frustration and unsafe conditions for people and dogs.
But excessive time devoid of social interaction with another dog, the human, or even a friendly cat harms the dog's psychology and leads to unwanted behaviour. Even
guard dogs have to be able to distinguish between external 'threats' and members of its own 'pack'.
Dogs are exploratory.
Like the two-year-old humans
at roughly their same mental level, dogs learn by
exploring their environment. And
like those humans, they can engage in destructive behaviour. Dogs are no
respecters of property. Training and an
appropriately selected set of objects and suitable area can channel that behaviour into something
acceptable to humans and healthy for the dog.
Providing toys with characteristics very distinct from human
property, such as rawhide bones rather than rubber balls that are hard to tell from children's, leads to less confusion and
misbehaviour. In many cases, however, the problem is solved by
scent. The dog's toys
may look like the child's, but smell very different.
Some amount of digging may be inevitable as part of the dog's exploration. Be prepared to patch holes in
lawn if the dog is unsupervised for very long. Plants can usually be protected with cayenne pepper paste, bitter
apple and other preparations.
Dogs are scavengers
Dogs will eat deer
droppings, even when they have perfectly sound and ample diets.
They'll chew on
dead rats, eat grass and ingest a wide variety of things that their own
experience shows causes upset stomachs. And they'll repeat the behaviour day
after day.
Acknowledging their limited
ability to connect
cause and effect when those are separated in time is a must in order to keep them healthy and safe.
Recognizing a dog's nature, and working within in it rather than against it leads to less frustration for both human and dog. Enjoying the
beneficial aspects, such as spontaneous dog hugs (leaning into a leg), paw
offering and a head laid on the lap are just a few of the rewards.
Valerie Dancer - I have
owned dogs for
42 years. Learning to train from my mother who trained to county level.
Over the years I have found that the old ways of training are not always the
best, that praise is the best form of training, and the
younger the dog, the easier it is to train.
http://www.dogtrainingproblems.biz.
Learning to Make Money from Raw Land Investments
Conventional wisdom says
that land investment
is usually a long-term investment that requires patience
and many years
of waiting before one
can reap substantial profits. The Land Institute, Inc
has dispelled this
long held notion
and is demonstrating
to the average investor that
raw land investment can reap substantial rewards
in the short term..if you know
how to.
The
land investment
experts at The Land Institute(TLI)
have demonstrated
through its courses that they can buy and sell a piece
of raw
land within 60 days for a
profit. They do this through a 5-step
process, which are as follows:
1. Locate
the land
2. Evaluate the lands
market value
3. Take control
of the land
4. Subdivide the
land into smaller parcels
5. Sell it
quickly for a profit
Raw land investment is an
excellent investment vehicle because 70%
of the country is
covered with vacant
land. With so
much land available, there is abundant opportunity for everyone
to make some money.
Some of the best land investment opportunities are
not advertised in the media and can be found
by simply
driving along the countryside, outside the
city and
looking for a land for sale sign.
According
to the land investment experts at TLI, one of the ways
to look for a
motivated seller is
to look for landowners who are
not locals.
Very often, people who are
not local
do not have the time
to manage and maintain
their land. They also often become
frustrated when dealing
with the local
county. An
easy way to look for a
non-local landowner is to visit the courthouse and check the
records there. Once the landowners have
been identified, the
next step is to contact them by phone
or mail to check
if they are interested to sell their land.
To
succeed in raw land
investment, it is important to network and build a
team of support associates
over time. It is important not to do
everything yourself. This is where
delegation and
outsourcing becomes an essential part of managing the deal.
As an investor, one will need people who can support us in diverse areas such as finance, law, sales, marketing, etc.
Many
sellers face
difficulty selling their land quickly as they do not know how to
package their land in such a way that it is
useful to potential
buyers. At TLI, students are taught how to
purchase land at a bargain and add
value to the land before selling it for a huge profit. They are also taught how to look for motivated sellers and deal with potential problems
related to zoning, bad contractors and county
approvals. For more info about these courses, visit
http://www.landbuyerpro.com.
Shanu
Srivastava has
been investing in real estate for over 5 years, and has been involved in over 200 properties.
He has completed all kinds of transactions ranging from a Subject To purchase to a pre-foreclosure short sale to raw land quick turns. He is
currently teaching students from around the country to find land
deals with virtually no competition.
How to Make Money from ATMs
With
ATM cash
machines currently costing anywhere
from $3,000
to $30,000, there
is no doubt that buying one for
your business
is costly. If you arrange
things right,
however, buying
an ATM can actually
be a very sound investment.
Provided
that you primarily manage
the machine yourself, ongoing
maintenance costs shouldnt
be too high. Youll
have to
pay for
the electricity to fun
the machine, as well as around $40/month for
a dedicated
phone line,
and $50
each time the
machine is professionally re-loaded.
There
may also be
a monthly charge
(usually $15 to $25 per
month), which
is required
by some vendors
but not
others. It
is important to take these fees into account when considering
different machines
and doing price
comparison research.
Once you have
paid all these
little fees, however, it is possible to
make money on
your ATM by collecting
a percentage of the surcharge. The
average charge for an ATM transaction is $1.60, and as the
owner of the machine, all
or a portion
of this money will
go to you.
Depending on your contract with the ATM vendor, and
how much of the maintenance
work you do yourself, your share of the money
can range from 35% to
100%. There is
also the
added benefit that customers will
never find themselves short of cash when making a purchase
at your store.
Therefore,
installing an ATM machine not
only helps your existing
business, but can become a fully
sustainable or
even profitable business in itself.
Jeremy Maddock is a
successful webmaster
who manages a number of informative websites,
including http://www.financeproducts.info/
Lottery Syndicates - Should You Participate?
There
are times
when youve got
to look up
to the power of One
and there are times
when you just have
to say Team. When talking
of lotteries, you increase
your chances of winning manifold
when you participate
in an
e-lottery syndicate.
An
online syndicate harnesses
the power of
the internet to enable
people participating in
a lottery to win
more frequently. This happens because when you purchase
a lottery via
a syndicate, you automatically make
yourself eligible for the winnings of other
members. In
essence you are entering a given lottery draw
multiple times at
no extra cost. Thus,
your chances of winning increase exponentially. Of course, the winnings are split between the participants. So, an
e-lottery syndicate is basically a trade-off between a potentially
huge lottery win against better chances of winning a smaller packet
Syndicates can span
many countries; for
example Virtual World Direct
(VWD), which runs a syndicated effort for the
Euro Millions lottery,
is available to citizens from Belgium,
France, Spain, Austria, Ireland, Portugal, Switzerland,
and Luxembourg.
The vast
player population along
with the combined
lotteries of different nations makes
Euro Millions the biggest bumper lottery
system out there.
By becoming a member of an e-lottery
syndicate you
get access to some of the largest tax-free lotteries in the world. Membership is easy; all that is
required is a
computer with an internet connection
and a credit
card. With an e-lottery syndicate you
do not need to keep purchasing tickets
every week and visit your lottery seller for checking results.
The whole system is computerized and when you win you are intimated by email. You do not have to go anywhere to collect your winnings, they are sent to your house.
There are several
online resources which review e-lottery syndicates. You can
refer these before you
decide upon the syndicate
most suited to your style and pocket. Membership fees may vary and the number of participants in a group can
also differ. You should also
check for member
reviews on different
online forums,
inputs from your countrymen can be especially
revealing. Check for the
kind of
customer service and back-office support offered by the
syndicate. Of course, scams abound and you should be alert and not fall prey to anything that sounds too good to be true.
Two
popular lottery syndicates are the
UK National Lottery syndicate and
Euro Millions syndicate run by
VWD. The UK National Lottery syndicate consists of multiple groups with 49
members in
each group. So, the winnings in a group are shared by 49 members. With just 5, you make yourself eligible to winning against 88
lines that open every
week. The
money is to be paid 4 weeks in advance. The draw occurs
twice a week. The VWU Euro Millions syndicate has 39 members to a group and there are 36 lines in each draw.
Finally, you could also take a look at the
range of
software available for lottery and gaming enthusiasts. This
includes syndicate
management software for syndicates,
entry management software, and lottery analysis software for the players.
Sveinn
Johannsson is an executive affiliate member of the e-lottery syndicate system that
effectively increases your chances of winning The UK National Lottery and The Euro Millions Lottery.
Shih Tzu The Hotly Contested Question Of Shih Tzu Size Part III
There
is a highly important
article presented by a Norweigan
Shih Tzu fancier
of which the authors name
is not given. It is thought
to be almost certain, however,
the article was written by Dr. Walter
Young, author
of Some Canine Breeds
of Asia.
The article was published
in Peiping shortly
before the first
Peking Kennel Club Show.
The articles states: at least
as common as good Pekingese
in Peiping
are the Tibetans,
the shock-headed long-coated little dogs which came
to China during the Manchu dynasty as gifts
from the grand lamas
at Lhasa. The writer
continues to say: it is a novel little breed,
and complained at
that time, no
effort is made to distinguish
what is quite evidently two distinct types, one
considerably larger and higher
on the leg
than the other.
These types
of dogs described as being considerably larger and higher on the leg than the other
were commonly
bred by Chinese
fanciers and sold in the
dog markets on fair days. The writer placed these dogs as
ones who must
be in the non-sporting group, and
admitted there was much confusion about the breed, and even in those days, was
very inaccurate information being spread about the different sizes of the Shih Tzu. The article does confirm the theory
regarding the existence of two types of Shih Tzu in Peking, at least as
far as the 1930s were concerned: one of a very small variety, in size more
or less similar to the Pekingese, the other larger and apparently
closely resembling what we now call the Apso, although smaller, and with shorter
legs. The writer was also aware of many
cases of crossing of Shih Tzu and Pekingese.
When Princess Der
Ling came to Peking and shared her knowledge with the Countess dAnjou, the full truth about the
palace dogs of old
began to emerge. Peking fanciers began to do their best to restore to the Shih Tzu something of the
imperial grandeur which had been its birthright in happier days. The Japanese occupation of Peking in the summer of 1937 which was
followed by the attack on Pearl Harbor 4 years later, brought an end to their hopes and dreams.
Some very valuable information
regarding Shih Tzu size and
weight is in the form of a personal letter, dated
May, 1955, written by the Countess dAnjou to Mrs. L.G. Widdrington, leading English fancier and widely recognized authority on palace lion
dog history. The letter in its entirety can be found in the American Shih Tzu News of March, 1967. The standard that was made out
for France
set weight limits
for the Shih Tzu of 11-22 pounds. The
whole standard is also said to have met with the complete approval of two other French fanciers from pre-Pearl Harbor Peking. It is highly unlikely either of them knew nearly as much about the breeds history as the Countess. The
available evidence suggest their experience of Shih Tzu dates from the confused period before the Princess Der Ling arrived in Peking to bring to light the full truth about the Imperial Lion Dogs as she had known them in the palace.
The Countess
went on in her letter to make it quite clear that she was far from
happy about the weight limits
permitted. She had
accepted them against her better judgement. She did
not regard such a weight range as historically correct or even as desirable. The Countesss letter to Mrs. Widdrington states: Yes,
I did think the Shih Tzu too big in England. They
really should be under
12 pounds. In fact, there were two classes in Peking, up to 12 pounds (which would include our little 6 pound teacups today) and over 12 pounds were
judged separately. They never had the big ones in the Imperial Palace
Presently, the American Kennel Club standard for size does not regard the weight of under 9 pounds as being appropriate for the ideal Shih Tzu, and to be accepted by the American Kennel Club show ring competitions. This size is not allowed in the AKC show ring. All who love this
size, must accept this fact as it is.
However, we must also
face the facts that these
smaller size Shih Tzu are the result of days gone-by breeding practices. It is not at
all true that the smaller Shih Tzu are sickly or have greater health problems than the larger Shih Tzu. It is not at all true that breeders who produce the smaller size Shih Tzu are guilty of being irresponsible, in-breeding and line-breeding with close
relatives to obtain the small size, and doing just about anything to get these small sizes for the sake of
more money.
Shih Tzu puppies from the standard size Shih Tzu show ring requirements are priced at much higher prices and are capable of having just as many, if not more, health problems due to the fact that anytime
animals are bred to
meet a specific weight, look and requirement, a type has to be set in. Type is set in by in-breeding and line-breeding. Negative attributes, such as any health problems in the bloodlines are passed onto
offspring just as the positive attributes of those that make a Shih Tzu beautiful for the Showring.
This article is FREE to publish with
resource box.
Connie Limon is a Shih Tzu breeder. She publishes a FREE
weekly newsletter. A professional newsletter with a focus
upon health and wellness for you and your pets. Discounts are offered to subscribers. Sign up
at: http://www.stainglassshihtzus.com
