Early on in his latest book, Thank You for Being Late – An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations, author and Pulitzer prize winning, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, embeds some tips for writing opinion pieces.
While this aspect of the book is precipitated by a chance encounter with a New York parking attendant who is also an Ethiopian blogger, his advice is widely both cogent and timely, especially for those of us striving for relevance in the blogging sphere. (more…)
An article in the November issue of Toastmaster magazine puts under a humourous light the normally unnerving experience of oneself under an evaluative microscope.
The author relates a traumatic instance of a job performance review. When he hears about the subjects he expects to be discussed, namely effective performance, efficient specializing, and exhibiting professionalism, what he hears his boss really talking about is ‘doing his job well x 3’. Focusing on strengths is still in vogue, but what used to be weaknesses are now potential improvements. (more…)
Often one of the most challenging exercises in dealing with presentations from others is providing feedback, AKA a ‘positive critique’.
How to word comments so that, on the one hand, one is not too critical of what’s been stated, and, on the other hand, not ‘whitewashing’ one’s response so as not to risk offending, is a tricky balancing act. The ultimate goal ideally is to focus on the message, not the messenger, with language which encourages the effort but suggests points that could make it more effective. (more…)
The fourth and final part of a series of mini-articles under the umbrella of ‘Life Lessons’ in October’s Psychology Today focuses on the idea of being open to life experiences.
Therefore, let us benefit (even if vicariously) from the comments of the contributing authors: (more…)
Like it or not, in one manner or another, we are all sales people.
For many of us, this is (or has been) literally true. Even in businesses where corporate mission statements exemplify other, i.e. lofty, aspects of service relationships, the ultimate determination of success or failure generally comes down to whether or not sales are made.
For the population at large, not dependent on successfully adhering to the sales process to make a living, variations of selling still infiltrate daily living. (more…)
the watch of time 
Motivation Tied to Incentives
Those familiar with Freakonomics will likely recall one of the pivotal observations delved into about human behaviour: people’s actions are greatly, if not primarily, influenced by incentives.
This caveat is revisited in the new issue of Psychology Today. A major article discusses the links between human motivation and incentives which may be laid, sometimes waylaid, in its path. (more…)
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Behaviour & Relationships, Personal Development, Social & political commentary, Uncategorized
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