Motivation on the Run

 

 Motivation38 [23:18m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

I rolled out a new feature this week and used one from last week again. I cover the March schedule for the Get Motivated seminar, and cover a few news stories that you might have missed, if you skimmed the headlines in a hurry. Positive thinking is the focus at the end of the day, so remember to keep that positive attitude to deal with that stress at work.

Here are the links to the news stories I talked about this week. For more detail, link over and read the entire articles and then come back and read a few more.

The PSP Game
Web based Calendar
Human Recourses Conference
Study on Office Distraction

Reading the 13 virtues, that Benjamin Franklin worked on his entire life, left me feeling like a slacker. Franklin spent his life working on his personal improvement and witnessed the difference it made in his life.

Not only was he a great example of a leader, he was a great example for we that seek to better ourselves. Philippians 4:8 is a verse that always requires me to re-evaluate how I spend my time. Click over and read the entire page and you will be encouraged to take it to the next level.

Benjamin Franklin

You probably know him as one of the Fathers of the United States, a great leader and diplomat. He signed the major documents of the founding of the U.S. including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Maybe you know him as an inventor, or as a scientist who flew kites in lightning storms, or as a writer and printing press operator.

But did you know that in 1726, at the age of 20, while on an 80-day ocean voyage from London back to Philadelphia, he developed a “Plan” for regulating his future conduct? He was partially motivated by Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.”

His “Plan” was made up of 13 virtues, each with short descriptions:

1. Temperance
2. Silence
3. Order
4. Resolution
5. Frugality
6. Industry
7. Sincerity
8. Justice
9. Moderation
10. Cleanliness
11. Chastity
12. Tranquility
13. Humility

He committed to giving strict attention to one virtue each week so after 13 weeks he moved through all 13. After 13 weeks he would start the process over again so in one year he would complete the course a total of 4 times.

Thanks to Lifehacker for the link

What is the most important aspect of success?
Motivation? Goal Setting? Skills? No!
These are not the beginning, they are the results of a POSITIVE ATTITUDE! Without the right attitude, you will not be able to motivate yourself to get started. Without the right attitude, you will not be able to set and goals, yet alone, achieve them. No, the positive attitude is the starting point and all other things build on it.

Henry Ford said: “Whether you think that you can, or that you can’t, you are usually right.”

That’s right, before motivation, before goal setting, and before skill improvement, you must get your attitude right. Here are a few quotes that drive home the point.

“Having a positive mental attitude is asking how something can be done rather than saying it can’t be done.” Bo Bennett

“There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.” W. Clement Stone

“A positive attitude may not solve every problem but it makes solving any problem a more pleasant experience.” Grant Fairley

“Nothing is impossible. With the right attitude, you can do anything you want. It’s all about choosing to be positive instead of being negative about things. Like I can look at “not working” as being “no one’s hiring me and no one will give me a job.” Or I can look at “not working” as being “a fantastic vacation.”" Minnie Driver

How could I improve on these? The only way I know is to give you a few more for good measure. Attitude is not the main thing, it’s the only thing …

“You cannot tailor make the situations in life, but you can tailor make the attitudes to fit those situations before they arise.” Zig Ziglar

“Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what people do or say. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. ” Charles Swindoll

That is why attitude is the most important aspect of success. Maintain the attitude and you will see success.

Yesterday morning I answered the telephone at work and a voice on the other end said something about Toastmasters and a speech contest. Since I was about to leave for the weekly Toastmaster meeting, and we were holding our contest at noon, and I was the Toastmaster for the contest, I thought I should hear what she had to say.

Shirley was calling on behalf of an organization that sponsored speech contests for high school students and it followed the Toastmaster contest rules and forms. She said they recruited Toastmasters to judge the contest and asked if I would be willing to be a judge that evening at 6:00. I couldn’t resist the invitation and told her I would see her in a few hours.

You see, I had been calling all over the south side of Houston and Clear Lake the last week, asking people to come to our noon meeting and judge our speech contest, so I knew the hardship she was in. Three people graciously agreed to judge our contest, so how could I turn down this request for my services. It seemed only right.

Was I ever in for a treat as I became the one receiving the favor. There were five high school students giving four to six minute, prepared speeches, on the stated topic of American Enterprise. Their ages ranged from fourteen to seventeen and all I can say is they were fantastic. They trooped to the front of the room and delivered the speeches like seasoned pros. I was to find out later … they were.

The contest was a little different to Toastmaster’s contests in that the participants were only introduced as speaker #1, speaker #2 and so on until #5 spoke. As they were introduced, they appeared through a doorway and walked to the stage and began their speech. Our only criteria for judging them was the content and quality of their speech and the only personality that we knew about, came through the presentation. I understand the need is to insure fairness and it produces those results.

After the contest completed and the places were awarded, everyone adjourned to the breakroom for refreshments, complimented by conversation. I sat down at the table with a man and three of the contestants and discovered that the three were sisters, and the man was their Dad. We spent about twenty minutes visiting and it was such a joy to have that time with these young ladies. They were polite and articulate and I worked to steer the conversation to find out more about them.

I discovered they were a family of nine children, stretching from age three to seventeen. They lived west of Houston and were avid speech and debate pros having participated in contests for many years. Seasoned pros, as stated above, turned out to understate their credentials in the area of speaking.

I was inspired by their passion for speech and debate and their participation in events all over the area, as well in a club they started three years ago which is a part of the National Home schoolers Association. In fact, their club is hosting a speech and debate contest next week, with contestants from all over Texas coming to compete. With ten different contests, and a restriction of participation in a maximum of five (which they were all doing), I think they will do just fine, thank you very much…

What impressed me the most about the speakers and the speeches? Eye contact. One of the hardest things to coach speakers on, is maintaining good eye contact with the audience members. That was not an issue with any of the five contestants last night. They were expressive, prepared and seemed to very much enjoy the time in front of the audience. They looked me and the others in the eye, and delivered home runs.

Hope, Joy, Ura, Anna, and Grace will do well in life. They were inspired and were inspirational at the same time. When you are around young ladies of the caliber I met, you gain hope for the future. Not all are like the ones I wrote about earlier in the week.

There is definitely hope for the future and leaders to be made. Yes, I was inspired …

This article give a great overview of Zig Ziglar’s life and background. It always help to understand where you’re going when you know where you’ve been. Head on over and read the complete story.

Overcoming Adversity and Leadership: Profile of “Zig” Ziglar

This Zig Ziglar’s story:

Zig Ziglar was born in 1926, in what he termed “very modest circumstances” to a family that was “financially challenged in many ways.” He was “the tenth of twelve children born to a family living in rural Mississippi.”

He lost his father at the age of five. Zig worked from an early age to support his family. He shared that he “had what was known as an inferiority complex.” Until “Judge” Ziglar’s untimely death, he worked hard in a very depressed economy to provide for his large family. Zig said his Papa “was a thoughtful man possessed of great confidence. Everyone respected his intelligence, fairness, and judgment.”

Two days after his father’s funeral, Zig’s 14-month-old baby sister also died.

 

 Motivation37 [21:15m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Motivation on the Run is proud to present #37 for download. Last weeks podcast was a recording of my Toastmaster speech, but I am back again with the normal workings. Thanks for your support.

Here is the list of books I am reading (or listening) at this moment

Self-Help – Samuel Smiles

The Essential Drucker – Peter Drucker

This years Science Fiction Nebula Award Nominees

Here is a list of the seminars I mentioned on the show.

Get Motivated Birmingham, AL Feb 27

Zig Ziglar – Born to Win Dallas, TX March 23-25

Jack Canfield Phoenix, AZ March 24

Jeffrey Gitomer – March 9, 2006 8 – 11:30 a.m Hyatt Regency Rochester –

Motivation and procrastination are two polar opposites and I don’t believe they can live at the same time. Motivation has been explored here a lot, but procrastination is something I have never talked about.

Motivation is “the act of getting psyched about doing something or attaining something through actions” or “that which gives purpose and direction to behavior.”

Procrastination is defined as “delaying, deferring, or putting off an action” and we are all guilty of it at times (some more than others (times and people)).

I usually make the assumption, on this blog, that you are as interested in motivation as I am and using it to direct our behavior. But I admit, I can procrastinate with the best of them sometimes.

So what happens? A lot of it has to do with task or “chores” we don’t want to do, but know we have to. In my case, work around the house is my Achilles’ heel. It is hard to set a goal and work toward accomplishing something that is thought to be contrary to productivity.

You see, it’s hard to gear up to mow the lawn, I have all these important goals to achieve. Also, there’s all this work I have to get caught up on before Monday and also …

It is so easy to do, and yet it is so anti-motivation in our lives. There are a lot of remedies for these problems, and I want to talk about some tips on handling these situations, but today, it’s your turn.

How do you handle these situation? After you tell me how you take care of undesirable tasks, at home or at work, we can discuss the solutions. Let the conversation begin.

What role does “pride in a job well done” play in motivating employees these days? Is it even a consideration with those around you in the workplace today?

Growing up, pride in one’s work was drilled into me by my dad. “If you were going to take a man’s money,” he would say, “you needed to give him a full days work.” And a full days work meant that the boss got more than he was paying for. Always a little extra … a pride in one’s work. That was it, and I learned it well. I’m not sure where my dad got it, but probably from his dad, and he from his. It was likely passed down from father to son, as an inheritance along with other principles like honor in a handshake and a raw honesty that cut across corporate titles. It was OK to tell the boss your honest opinion, and in fact, it was appreciated.

The Redhead, years ago, cut out a cartoon that sums up my life fairly well. Two guys are walking into an office building and one says to the other, “I tried not going to work once, and it just didn’t feel right.” That’s me to a tee and many others in my age range, I would presume.

I don’t know where this philosophy started, but it would not surprise me to learn that it started with the generation that was a part of WWI and on into WWII. The Great Depression (1929-1941) was such a terrible time for work, that if you got a job, you worked hard in gratitude. As we moved out of WWII, the sons of those men, entered the workplace and began to create wealth with hard work.

Of course, Louis L’Amour always had several cowboys that “rode for the brand” in his books, and that too meant they put it on the line, everyday, for the man they worked for. It was honorable, it was natural. It was done without thinking, it’s just what you did.

I’m not usually nostalgic, but this is one trait I would like to see return. I miss it … a lot.

I love surveys that answer questions I have. This one has several good pieces of data as part of the study. I have highlighted a few in the quote, but others are in the full article. Some I suspected, some I didn’t. It just goes to show, it’s always something…

Kansas City Star | 02/16/2006 | Midday Business Report: Worker happiness called essential

Warren Winer, a Towers Perrin consultant, used bigger words when he spoke this morning to members of the Kansas City Compensation and Benefits Association, but the message was clear:

According to a Towers Perrin survey last year of more than 86,000 employees in large companies, employee “engagement” drives company productivity and financial success.

That engagement is not easy to get, the human resource consultant warned.

“Company loyalty is not a prime motivator, especially among younger workers,” Winer said. “Their attitude is more ‘get it now or move on’… But you need employees who are willing and able to help the company succeed.”

Towers Perrin, which every other year conducts a global workforce study, found in its 2005 survey that only one in five U.S. workers is “highly engaged.”

It found that only slightly more than one-third plan to stay with their current employers.

And it found that just under half respect their company’s leadership enough to say that management acts in a way consistent with stated company values.

(emphasis mine)

Motivation is a state of mind that an individual uses to encourage themselves to attain their goals, and at its base form, motivation can only be applied at the personal level. “What about business or company goals?” you ask. Let’s take a look at the company goal.

Common company goals are to increase revenue, increase profits, or lower costs, but upon examination, a company is nothing but a collection of individuals that (may or may not) meet at the same place every day, and if the company is to achieve it’s goals, the people must meet them with individual effort.

The company goals are put together by people that look at different factors they believe are needed for the company to succeed. They develop the goals and then determine what actions are needed to achieve them. At this point, they are helpless to achieve the goals because, by themselves, it is impossible. They must have help from the employees and this requires the employees to see the goals as desirable to meet their own goals.

The means that corporate management and company employees must cooperate if company goals are to be reached. Because of the many layers of management that are present in many of todays companies, this makes the middle and lower managers critical to the success of a company, because they know the people and, in turn, should know how to motivate them to achieve the goals.

This is the only way a company can meet its goals, through the effort of individuals.