Tag: improvement

Posted on

We All Believe We Know Ourselves Very Well!

Do I know myself well?

I was walking around with blind spots, fully convinced that I was driving with perfect vision!

This was when I was in the corporate world.

I believed I knew myself very well.

And how wrong I was…

We all believe we know ourselves very well!

But we hardly do!

Only 10-15% of people are truly self-aware, despite 95% of people believing they possess this quality.

And this is according to organisational psychologist Tasha Eurich, who studied over 5,000 professionals.

Surprising…but this is the uncomfortable truth.

We do not know ourselves as well as we think we do.

Self-awareness is very critical!

I did little study on this. I aligned it with my corporate experience. I discovered that self-awareness and some emotional intelligence involve understanding the four critical dimensions. These dimensions greatly impact our professional journey, especially for leaders.

And these four dimensions are: –

  1. Your Triggers– what affects you and, in the process, derails your performance. This could be due to the spoken words of others, such as your colleagues or boss. It could also be their behavior or even when you are questioned or challenged. Let not these triggers hijack your ‘rational thinking’ and turn you into a reactive version of yourself!  

The objective is not to eliminate triggers as they are part of being human. The goal should be to recognise them quickly. This allows you to choose your response instead of being hijacked by it.

  • Your Patterns– The behaviour that you repeat without being conscious about it. These patterns are the behavioural loops that you used many times and have now become comfortable with. But these patterns might not serve you anymore…like slogging (overworking), being a perfectionist, being an individual operator (no delegation etc.).

Remember, what got you here will not get you there! – Marshal Goldsmith. Your patterns got you here, but now they might be the biggest obstacles to your future growth.

  1. Your blind spots – The gaps between how you see yourself and how others experience you. Blind spots are the aspects of your professional presence that are obvious to everyone except you! One example I can think of myself is when I thought I was adequately confident. However, my colleagues, and for that matter, my Bosses, perceived me as arrogant! You may believe you have strong relationships with your colleagues. They, however, might consider you an acquaintance at best!
  1. Your feedback loops – How you process information about your impact. Create a system for yourself to receive continuous feedback and ensure timely action on it. And when you receive feedback, do not become defensive by explaining, justifying, or rationalising every piece of critical feedback. And also, do not cherry-pick (only accepting feedback that confirms your existing self-image while dismissing anything that challenges it!).

Self-awareness is uncomfortable as it requires looking at parts of yourself that you would rather ignore.

Don’t ignore!

Cheers!

Posted on

Revitalize Your Career: Tips for Success

How are you doing on your career’s treadmill?

You started on a high speed. You were chasing targets and deadlines. You initiated new projects and realigned people and processes. Then it so happened that the treadmill seemed to slow down. Your enthusiasm started slowly fading away. Your routine became monotonous and your chase appeared futile! And then complacency slowly crept in…

Are you experiencing this in your daily routine?

If you are, then it is time to get your momentum back and rekindle your motivation once again!

How do you do that?

First and foremost, realize the rut that you have got into! Take a break, reflect on your feelings towards your work, and identify the signs of disinterest, procrastination, and maybe fatigue.

Revisit the purpose and the passion that you began with. I am sure you will find your sense of direction again! Break the monotony by setting new goals that will ignite your sense of accomplishment and purpose.

Invest in upskilling and learning new things. Encourage yourself to explore new ideas. Adapt to the changes that are taking place around you.

Rebuild your relationships with your peers, seniors, and mentors. Get involved with your subordinates to explore new challenges.

Take stock of your wellness. Mental health is as important as physical health. Incorporate changes in your lifestyle that you think are necessary for your overall well-being.

And lastly, challenge your comfort zones. Embrace discomfort by accepting challenges that will stimulate you and make your routine much more exciting!

Remember, complacency will lead you to stagnation. Recognize and address it proactively. This way, you can steer your ship back on course. You will be cruising towards a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Posted on

Office Meetings…How to make them meaningful!

Once upon a time, in a bustling office, there was a weekly meeting that everyone dreaded. It was notorious for its long duration and seemingly endless discussions.

One day, the office manager decided to spice things up. He entered the meeting room with a huge jar filled with colourful marbles. He announced, “Today, we’re going to make this meeting more interactive. For every unnecessary tangent or off-topic discussion, I’m going to drop a marble into this jar.”

As the meeting progressed, the marbles started piling up surprisingly quickly. It did not take long for the jar to become a colourful tower of marbles, resembling a modern art sculpture.

With each “ping” of a marble hitting the jar, people could not help but suppress laughter. It became a challenge to keep the marbles from overflowing. Even the most verbose contributors started self-regulating their comments, trying to avoid being the cause of another “marble moment.”

By the end of the meeting, the jar of marbles had become the meeting’s unofficial mascot. It served as a quirky reminder that time was precious and that staying on topic was a collective effort.

From then on, the meetings were known as the “Marble Meetings,” and they became more efficient and engaging. People realized that humour could be a powerful tool to remind them to stay focused and make the most of their time together.

And so, amid marbles and laughter, the team learned that a little fun could go a long way in making even the most dreaded meetings a bit more enjoyable.

Cheers!

Posted on

Make Your Life Meaningful!

Often we forget the reason of our living!

We get so busy in the rat race that it becomes a ‘habitual living’ rather than a ‘meaningful living’!

Pause and reflect!

You can definitely make your life more beautiful when you focus on the following:

Purpose: Having a sense of purpose in life can provide direction and motivation. It can be anything from pursuing a career that aligns with your passions, making a difference in your community, or raising a family.

Relationships: Building and nurturing relationships with others can bring joy, love, and support. It’s important to cultivate meaningful connections with family, friends, colleagues, and others in your community.

Personal Growth: Learning and growing as an individual can help you develop new skills, gain knowledge, and expand your perspectives. It can be achieved through reading, attending courses, trying new things, or traveling.

Health and Wellness: Taking care of your physical and mental health can improve your overall well-being, giving you the energy and vitality to pursue your goals and enjoy life.

Contribution: Contributing to the greater good and making a positive impact in the world can give you a sense of fulfillment and purpose. This can be achieved by volunteering, donating to charity, or supporting causes you care about.

Posted on

Why You Can’t Change?

The Key to Change lies with YOU!

“I am like that…I cannot change!”

“We have been doing this for years…!”

“Why do you want to rock the boat?”

Often, we hear this from the people around us or we might use or have used these phrases.

So, how true is that?

Not at all true!!

Why you cannot change when the change can do you much better compared to the harm the status quo is doing to you? And you can change at any point in your life…  

You might have been doing it for years but if it is not producing results or not meeting expectations then what is the use of continuing to do the same thing over and over again?

You need to rock the boat if the boat is not taking you anywhere!

Yes, as simple as that!

The bottom line is that we need to change…change for the good.

Change the habits that are harming you, change your friends if they don’t make you happy, change the environment if it does not let you grow…and lastly, change your old self if you are not happy with yourself.

Embrace the change!

Fall, fail, and hurt yourself…but in the end, you will be thankful to yourself and feel proud that you dared to change the status quo.

Do not reach that stage where the pain of maintaining the status quo becomes much more than the pain of embracing the change!

Cheers!

Posted on

Keep Going!

This too shall pass…don’t give up!

Keep going!

You must have heard it many a times!

But many a times situations are such that it really becomes difficult to keep going!

So, how do we keep going then?

Simple…just keep going!!

Now, that ‘keep going’ can be even following your normal routine without taking any action. In fact, ‘not taking any action’ is also a form of ‘action’ as you are just not sure what action to take! When you have multiple stakeholders to take care of and if it is really tough to act without any idea of the what the results would be…what action can you take?

But that is the beauty of life and the challenges that it throws all the time!

So, the best option is…still to keep going.

How?

Continue doing what you have been doing (follow your normal routine) and at the same time, pause whenever you can, and look at the bigger picture of what is happening around you. Try to find out where is the issue or the real mess. Pinpoint the major obstacle(s) and attack it (kill it) first. Every problem has a solution howsoever big it may appear or actually might be. Giving away or giving up is the simplest solution and the most stupid one. 

Keep going…you are getting there!

Cheers!