Guest blog article written by Kathleen Sexton, Career Counselor, Founder & CEO of Kairos Learning

Can you list your top 5 strengths easily if someone asked you?  Being able to acknowledge your top strengths is very helpful during different phases of your career path.

Informational interviewing/networking
During informational interviewing to explore new career opportunities, it’s very helpful to ask the people you’re talking with a question like “I’m very good at strength #1, #2, & #3.  Where do you think I could put those to use?  What type of career fields or jobs would let me use them frequently?”

Resume development
When you’re creating your resume, you want to highlight your strengths frequently.  You can use accomplishment statements to demonstrate your strengths.

Job interviewing
You want to showcase your strengths in your responses to interview questions.

Performance reviews
When you’re talking with your manager about your development plans for the next year, it’s helpful to articulate your top strengths. Talk about how you’d like to use them more and the benefits of doing that for the team as well as your career satisfaction.

If you would like to assess your skills, check out these websites’ online tools:

• VIA Signature Strengths Assessment is a free, online assessment through the University of Pennsylvania’s homepage of Dr. Martin Seligman, Director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania and founder of positive psychology, a branch of psychology which focuses on the empirical study of such things as positive emotions, strengths-based character, and healthy institutions.  http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu
• Skillscan’s Career Driver is an online, self-directed skills assessment tool that provides you with a profile of your transferable skills and preferences — knowledge essential to identifying satisfying work options, creating a career development plan or strategizing your next career move.  There are 2 different reports you can get -- Career Launcher Report for individuals planning their first careers or Career Transitioner Report – individuals considering a career change.  It’s $14.95.  http://www.skillscan.com/
• Marcus Buckingham, a leader the strengths movement, has several assessments out and a new one being released this September.  Access to the assessments requires that you to buy his books and then get a link to the online assessments.  Now, Discover Your Strengths (Clifton Strengths Finder) and Go Put Your Strengths to Work (Strengths Engagement Test)

Additional Resources

Discovering Your Strengths and Putting Them to Work (60-minute webinar, 7/27, 8:00 am PT)

Career Management in the Age of the Apps (2x60-minute webinars, 7/11, 7/18, 12:00 pm PT)

Social Networking for Career Development (2x90-minute webinars, 8/12, 8/19, 9:30 am PT)

Guest blog article written by Alicia R. Maher, M.D., Founder of ScienceForTheJourney.com

“I prefer strawberry,” the little girl said, as I tried to hand her pomegranate juice. Such a simple statement but I was struck with how easily she knew her preference and expressed it.  It often seemed like I spent thirty years trying to figure out what was acceptable to want, with the end result being that I had no idea what I really wanted.  If I didn’t like what others did, I either tried to force myself to go along with it, convince the others why what I wanted was better or analyze what was wrong with me for having different preferences.

I see this with so many adults.  We are often trying to ‘grin and bear’ a situation because that is what is expected of us.  However, we weren’t designed to repress our feelings.  In fact, emotional repression is experienced within our bodies as stress, causing the release of the stress hormone, cortisol.  When we continually repress our emotions, cortisol remains at high levels causing a decrease in immunity and making us more vulnerable to injury.  It is almost as if the body has this built-in mechanism for causing physical problems to get us to take notice, when we refuse to listen to our emotions.

A large part of our ability to be at peace with situations that bother us is to get in touch with an internal reference point. Whether we choose to focus on what is going on around us or within us determines our relationship with ourselves and with the world.  If we’ve lived our lives trying to figure out what the world wants from us, we become like falling leaves, moving whichever way the wind blows.  How we feel depends on whatever is going on around us. If things seem to be going well in our external world, we feel great. If something isn’t, we don’t.  But what if we could establish a connection to the deepest aspect of our being, the place where we are grounded and content, regardless of people, events and circumstances?  What if we could experience tranquility, despite the inevitable ups and downs of our external environment?  Luckily, we can.

This has been compared to the ocean. If you have ever been scuba diving, you know that despite waves and turbulence on the surface, as you descend into the deeper part of the water, there is stillness.  But how do we dive beneath the choppy surface of what is going on around us, to access that calm deep within?

One way is through mindfulness.  Minfulness is calm awareness of one's body functions, feelings, content of thought, or awareness of being aware.  It is the ability to live in the present moment, without distraction. Mindfulness techniques cause one to pay attention to his or her present emotions, thoughts and body sensations without passing judgment or reacting.  This can involve calmly observing the breath as it goes in and out. Another technique is to engage the senses, taking note of the sounds, smells and sights around them.  As thoughts come through one’s mind, they can be labeled “thought” and allowed to pass on through like clouds in the sky, without judgement or attachment.

Minfulness techniques, such as these, are another way that we can actually rewire the brain.  A study in the journal Psychological Science demonstrated how this occurs.  Researchers put people into a scanner that revealed which part of their brains were active as the researchers showed them photographs.  When the photographs were of angry or fearful stimuli, the instinctual, reactive part of their brains would light up.  The researchers then had these subjects do a mindfulness practice for several weeks.  Whenever the subjects noticed anger or fear, they would label it “This is anger”, “This is fear”.  When the researchers tested them again with the same photographs, they found that a different part of the brain was now lighting up.  Now, angry and fearful photographs were activating the higher order parts of the brain, the part associated with thinking in words about emotional experiences. So, instead of experiencing reactivity upon these stimuli, their brains were now taking a step back from it.  You can imagine the profound advantage of this change.  When stimuli activate this part of the brain, you can choose an effective response, rather than just react.

Additional Resources

The Stress Management upcoming workshop: 7/18 and 7/25 (10:00 am to 11:00 am Pacific Time)

The Wellness Track special offer: Join now for only $35!

Guest blog article written by Deanna Moncrief, Nutritionist, Founder & CEO of Benchmark Wellness

I will share the top 3 nutrition decisions you can make to feel better, age slower, and, well, that’s it.  Is there anything more important?  Here we go:

1. Avoid Red #40.  And Blue #1.  And Yellow #5.  There is much debate on whether these artificial colors commonly added to foods should be banned from the FDA’s Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) list, but my reasoning is much simpler.  Besides the arguments for and against any cancer-causing or attention-deficiency effects in humans, foods to which artificial colors are added are typically lower in nutrition quality and high in sugar (although perfect for office pranks).  A notable exception is fresh oranges, which are commonly sprayed with a chemical called Citrus Red #2.  This colorant is known to cause cancer, but luckily it doesn’t penetrate orange peels into the pulp.  Lucky us (sarcasm added).

2. Eat no trans fats.  Trans… transportation?  No, for you organic chemistry geeks like me, trans fat is the common name for the trans – as opposed to cis – isomer of unsaturated fat (think Crisco).  This particular type of fat is known to increase “bad” cholesterol while lowering “good” cholesterol.  This combination of cholesterol changes leads to clogged arteries which lead to heart disease and stroke.  Two things surely to hamper your ability to live well and look great.

3. Eat 9-11 servings of vegetables and fruits daily.  Wow!  Nine to eleven?  Don’t hyperventilate; you might be surprised to learn how small a serving is (the fact that a majority of American adults are overweight is a testament to how few of us know what constitutes a serving size).  Close your fist.  Look at it.  Now imagine a nice bowl of cherries the size of your fist.  Or a crown of broccoli.  Or a big, juicy slice of watermelon.  A Frisbee-sized plate filled with lettuce, sliced beets, carrots, yellow bell peppers and tomatoes would contain 5-7 servings by itself, so eat a salad for lunch and you still have time to meet your quota by dinner time.

Feeling and looking great depends largely on what we eat, and eating well doesn’t have to be difficult or confusing, just deliberate.

Additional Resources

The Eat Well to Work Well upcoming workshop: 7/26 (11:30 am to 1:00 pm Pacific Time)
The Wellness Track special offer: Join now for only $35!

I mentioned to you a few weeks ago that I attended a presentation by Christine Heckart, CMO of NetApp, in which she shared some valuable insights, ranging from high level concepts to practical advice on how to lead, manage, and get results. I also talked about one of her insights which was "THINK BIG, start small, move fast!" I reflected on how THINK BIG applies to our daily productivity effort and provided related tips and techniques from our Accomplishing More With Less methodology. Now it is time to consider "start small."

start small

Here are some "start small" tips and techniques that will help you undertake significant projects and initiatives with ease and elegance:

• 40 minutes at a time: When people ask me, how long did it take to write your book? I use this opportunity to tell them "40 minutes" which takes them by surprise at first, until I add "at a time." The 40 minute chunks and working in bursts are powerful technique that can help us move mountains one bucket at a time and feel rewarded after every bucket.
• Micro-Planning™: This is a journal technique that is simply but very powerful. It consists of breaking down the task that we are undertaking into small steps, and jotting these steps down. This is ideally done at the beginning of the 40 minute period, for the 40 minute period. We are talking "small!" But we are also talking "BIG" because this micro-plan helps us stay focused like never before, recover from unexpected interruptions like never before, and reach meaningful accomplishments like never before.
• Immediate Priorities Matrix™: This consists of listing our immediate priorities in a matrix, and breaking them down into steps, including estimates of how long each step will take, and the related deadlines. The matrix turns ambiguity and stress into action. It helps dissolve the illusions and bottleneck and puts us on the road to implementation, one step at a time.

Stay tuned for the "move fast" tips and insights. For now, THINK BIG and start small and share your thoughts with us in the comments section below!

Additional Resources

• 40 minute focus for breakthrough results
• Live Interview with BNET--The Accomplishing More With Less Workbook
• The Accomplising More With Less Workbook at Amazon.com

Wanting things to be right, especially right the first time around, can be stressful or even exhausting and not to mention counter-productive. This is a trap that we all fall into and those of us who may admit to be procrastinators and/or perfectionists are likely to fall into it more often.

One strategy to fight this phenomenon back is to work in iterations. I described this strategy a while back and outlined 5 iterations that can get us going swiftly and help shatter procrastination and perfectionism. Most recently, I used this strategy and adapted it as follows.

• Iteration #1: This worked wonders. My project, which seemed daunting at first, transformed into a fun and exciting endeavor. This iteration gave me the permission to be creative and to approach the work from a problem solving perspective. Ideas started to flow without being restricted by filters and critical judgment. When there were gaps in my information or knowledge, I made a note of it, and kept going without that information. I was unstoppable during this time.
• I skipped iteration #2 because I didn't have much time and my project was short term.
• Iteration #3: Now this iteration started to flow easily. It is still in my opinion the more difficult iteration but a lot less daunting than if this work was approach all at once without iterations 1 & 2. Iteration #3 is when we take our original playful work and take it to the next level. This is where we fill in some of the gaps and address the issues in more depth. This is however also the most rewarding iteration because this is when results start to shape up and become more concrete.
• Iteration #4: In this case, this involved sharing my plan with others and discussing them via a virtual meeting. Involving others helped get some alignment on the goals and implementation plan, and avoided having me invest time in areas that weren’t consistent with the stakeholder’s vision and desired outcome.
• Iteration #5: This is still going on. Refinements are underway. This iteration is turning out to be more fun and relaxed than anticipated.

Rediscover fun and excitement in your work! let the power of iterations work for you and overcome stress, procrastination, and perfectionism! Try this out and report back in the comments section below!

Christine Heckart, CMO of NetApp, shared some valuable insights with us at the BMA meeting yesterday.  These ranged from high level concepts to practical advice on how to lead, manage, and get results and get differentiated in a world where everyone is trying to claim they are the one. One of Christine's insight was:

THINK BIG, start small, move fast!

So how do we apply this in our daily productivity effort? I would like to take this approach and translate it to some of the tips and techniques that I have been practicing with business professionals from all walks of life and seeing some breakthrough results.

THINK BIG

Stop for a few minutes, and imagine what success "would" look like! It helps to have a time period in mind. Usually, I ask my participants to select 3 months or 6 months (after all we live in a rapidly changing work environment). Describe success vividly. See it. Hear it. Feel it. Unlimit yourself. Once you are excited about the vision of success that you create it, write it down, and refine it.

Now, the real work starts. Translate this vision of success into 3 to 5 key results. Keep refining these results until they are specific. Then start the brainstorming process. Ask yourself: "How do I get there?" Expand on this until you have narrowed it down to specific activities that are likely to get you there. Start to schedule these on your calendar to bring them to life . Without Thinking Big, we stay busy with the small stuff. But without flushing out the details and getting them onto the calendar, we stay at wishful thinking!

Stay tuned for the "start small" and then the "move fast" tips and insights. For now, THINK BIG! And share with us your thoughts!

We sit for too long! Way too long! And not only our bodies suffer but our brain and our overall mood and energy! So let us put a stop to this and get energy flowing and get re-invigorated.

Movement does wonders

I am not referring to the structured exercise and sports activities here (even though these do wonders as well), but to the few minutes of stretching, walking around, climbing a few flights of stairs, or whatever movement you can fit in in a few minutes to get re-energized and ready for the next task. Here are some basic ideas as a starter and I would also like to help you design your own breakthrough movement routine--so stay tuned for a follow-up blog article on the topic:

1. Adopt a stretching routine that you like or design your own. If you search for "stretching videos" on the web, you get about 14,000,000 results. So plenty of ideas out there. I included 3 of these results below to get you started.
2. Walk to the other side of the office, or office complex, or maybe around the block! Fresh air would be a highly desirable added benefit if at all possible.
3. Go up and down a few flights of stairs and do it intentionally as if you had a purpose. By the way, you "do" have a great purpose.
4. Go to the kitchen area, but this time go briskly and instead of food or coffee, get some water, and get back briskly!
5. Organize your desk and your files but again, do it with intention and with energy.
6. In addition, when on the phone, or in a web conference, stand up, move around, and stretch. Take advantage of the web in a different way!
7. Finally, find a companion who likes to do this with you a few times a day, so you can remind and encourage each other.

Most importantly, it would help to have a variety of these movement activities ready so you can spontaneously use the one that is most applicable to the situation at hand. Keep a list handy. Maybe post one closeby. Put a check mark every time you do one.

When making your list, have some activities that are short for times when all you have is a minute or two. Have others that are longer for these 5 or 10 minute stretches. Maybe one or two that are even longer for when you really need to get away from that chair!

Remember to not let more than 40 minutes go by without invoking movement! If you guess why 40 minutes, you will get a copy of my Accomplishing More With Less book!

So two questions for you: Why 40 minutes? And what is (or will be) your favorite movement exercise?

Additional Resources

• Free Flexibility Video: 5-Minute Stretch Routine
• Neck stretches for the office
• Easy Stretching Exercises

In my recent blog article (can "volunteering" help you get more energized and productive at work?) I shared some insights on this topic including one of the compelling answers I received when I posted this question on LinkedIn.

Yet another compelling answer came later from my friend and colleague Pradeep Bhutan who said:

"I feel it is the other way around. If I am energized and productive, I feel like volunteering and then I get further energized and more productive. 

Having said that, volunteering does help. 

For a person who is not motivated enough though, the challenge would be to break through the resistance and start doing something productive. This person may not be motivated enough to volunteer and help others. 

In a team setting, where the idea is to improve the overall team productivity, a good strategy would be to get volunteering STARTED by an already motivated and productive person. This can get the rest of the team motivated and enable them to reap the benefits of volunteering. 

The key thing is to GET STARTED."

Pradeep summed it up really well and touched on some key principles relating to motivation and productivity.

What do you think? Which comes first? Let us know by contributing your comments below!

Yes, Thor!

"At the center of the story is The Mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero and ends up protecting humans when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth."

What can we learn from Thor?

We can learn about "change" and more importantly changing our outlook on things to achieve meaningful things!

Two years ago, Dr. Carol Dweck, author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, addressed the same issue at our lunch & learn webinars. In her presentation, she described two types of mindsets. One that she calls the Fixed Mindset and the other the Growth Mindset. The Fixed Mindset is characterized by a belief that our abilities are fixed and either we have "it" or we don't. While the Growth Mindset believes that we can learn and we can change. While we (and Thor) might seem initially to have a Fixed Mindset, it is possible that circumstances can open our mind to learn and change and adopt the Growth Mindset--a lesson that Thor had to learn by visiting us, humans.

When it comes to productivity and to accomplishing meaningful things, embracing change and adopting the Growth Mindset are critical. One of my opening statements at the Accomplishing More With Less workshop is that we cannot make significant improvements, not to mention breakthroughs, if we don't do things differently (in other words undergo change)!

Let us welcome and embrace what may seem to be initially difficult (even a punishment in the case of Thor) and see what mindset this might open!

Is there a link between volunteering (any kind of volunteering that is oriented towards helping others or a cause of some sort) and being energized, engaged, and productive at work? 

I posed this question recently to a number of business professionals and discussed it with friends and colleagues. I heard many personal stories which seem to support this link between "volunteering" and "productivity." Furthermore the stories go beyond personal productivity to talk about group productivity, team building, better organizational culture, all as a result of volunteering.

One of the answers that I would like to share (from Alex Dail) indicated that:

"There are three key criteria to engaging in volunteer work that will energize you:

1. It has to be something you genuinely care about. You need to feel somewhat like you are willing to bit the rear end of a bear to do it. 
2. You need to be able to commit the time without it being a burden to you, your family or close friends. 
3. It must be something you are getting something in exchange for doing; is it satisfying you intellectually, emotionally, etc.? "

Thanks you Alex for these insights!

As I continue to explore innovative ways to create breakthrough engagement and accomplishments in the workplace, I would like to hear from you! Please share your volunteering experiences and their impact on your productivity at work and beyond!