Success Connections

With Deep Appreciation

Whether you celebrate Thanksgiving this week or not, I wanted to take just a moment to let you know how much you mean to me. 

You, dear readers, give me the courage to write even when I think I can't. 
Your comments and personal emails remind me why my writing matters. 
And your attention and loyalty in this time of "information overload", humbles me. 

Thank you for choosing Success Connections. I appreciate you.

With that, I'd like to share this little movie from my heart to yours, courtesy...Cherished Blessings. 
The name of the movie is, Has Anyone Told You

In gratitude,

Lora

Farewell President Ford

I’m honored to say that President Ford and I share the hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan.  As I write this, just a few miles away from my condo, the Gerald R. Ford Museum is feverishly preparing to bring him home one last time.

As the news broadcasts from the TV in the background I’m hearing announcements about the official funeral and burial schedule, friends sending their condolences, and people sobbing through interviews as they share a memory of “their boy Jerry” as he was affectionately known.  Almost everyone has a fond memory of an experience with him or one of the family.

If you remember the angst the country was feeling as the Nixon administration exited the white house, you probably know that Ford’s presence was exactly what the doctor ordered.  Much work needed to be done to rebuild the trust of the nation. 

He stood up and pardoned Nixon from his crimes as a wise father might say, “It’s time to forgive and forget”.  And even though you may have disagreed with his decision there was something about his character, his values and his calming presence that made it just a little easier to swallow.

And with that, I bid my own farewell to President Ford.  Thank you for the memories and for making me proud to share Grand Rapids with you.  Thank you for carrying us through some trying times.  Welcome home!  We’re proud to have you back home with us.

Fine Tuning Direction

I've been re-evaluating what matters most!  If you don't do that on a regular basis, it might be time to start.

In case you just received a rush of posts, I'm in the process of combining 2 blogs.  I'm merging Get Your Career In Gear with the Essential Connections blog.  You may notice some changes to the front page as well.

Stay tuned for more details!  The momentum is building!

Lora

Likeability Factor Is The Tiebreaker In Life

Tim Sanders, Yahoo's famous leadership coach spoke here in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  Tim's messages are heartwarming and inspiring.  I believe he's on a mission to transform corporate commandos into caring human beings.  Remember that thing called "the human touch"?  I wasn't able to personally attend the event, so I'll share excerpts from the Grand Rapids Press article written by Elizabeth Slowik.

In part, Slowik quotes Sanders as saying "Your likeability reflects your capacity to consistently produce positive emotional experiences in the lives of other people - room in your life for other people's feelings, room in your life for other people's success."

Really good stuff, as always Tim!  If you haven't read either of his books yet, you can find them right here at Amazon:

Love Is The Killer App

The Likeability Factor

Let me ask you this...What do you do to make room in your life for other people's feelings and successes?  Share your stories!

A Gold Mine Of Articles On Communicating

As I was digging through my little gold mine of resources I ran across this posting at Forbes.  It's a special report they did last October, but it's timeless.  Take a few minutes and go check it out so you can add it to your toolbox.  You can find it right here.

 

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Your Career Is Your Business

Dave Lorenzo from the Career Intensity blog recently posted a great piece called "Your Career IS Your Business".  What I loved about it is that it reminded me so much of Dan Pink's "Free Agent Thinking", and Tom Peters' "Brand You".

When you work "as an employee" for a long time, it's really easy to forget that you are in control.  What I mean by that is...you are there by choice, and you are free to leave if the gig stops working for you.  This is especially true for people who have worked for the same company for several years.  You forget about your choices, and sometimes you even feel like the company "owns" you. 

Dave gives you 3 pointers for managing your career like you would manage a business.  Briefly, they are:

• It makes sense to diversify income streams
• We should always prospect for new opportunities
• Keep growing and improving

Go visit his post and see what you think of the rest of his wisdom.

Let me ask you this...  If your job was eliminated tomorrow, how prepared would you be to move on?

Video Coaching By Business Gurus

Have you ever thought how cool it would be to get a coaching session with Tom Peters?  How about Tony Robbins?  Well now you can...courtesy of AOL.

I'm not an AOL fan, but I have to admit they've set up a pretty cool site for video coaching.  The topics cover just about anything you can think of, but of course I zeroed in on the Business/Career section.

I've been a huge fan of Tom Peters for years, but one of my favorites is his theory of "Brand YOU".  You know how you have your favorite brand of shampoo?  Well Brand YOU is the same concept, only it's about branding your reputation in the world of business.  Tom's quick videos are a must see.  You can find them here:  Brand YOU

Here are a few more videos that are worth checking out too!

Stephen Covey

Lois Frankel

Jeffery Gitomer

Brian Tracy

Let me ask you this....Who do you turn to when you need career advice?

Cheers!

What Good People Do To Bad Bosses

Life is way too short to put up with bad bosses.  Take a look at how one group of employees in Vancouver took matters into their own hands.  Right here!

Caution!  If you're sensitive to colorful language, don't read the comments section.

Let me ask you this...How do you handle bad bosses?

Will This Be The Year?

Will this be the year that you "Get Your Career In Gear"?  If you've decided it's time to move from whining to action, welcome aboard!  Set up your RSS feed and get ready for tips, tools, advice, programs and resources that will help you Get Your Career In Gear!

A Very Public Display Of Selfishness - Randall The Apprentice

If you've been following Donald Trump's show "The Apprentice", you've probably already heard about Randall's first big decision as the new Apprentice.  Trump offered to hire Rebecca (the first runner up) for another project he had in the works.  He left the final decision up to Randall, his new Apprentice.  Randall's response..."There is only ONE Apprentice Mr. Trump...".  From there he finished his denial by using some conjured up word he called the "Apprenti" (referring to more than one Apprentice).

Trump honored Randall's decision, but the internet continues to buzz about it.

Randall's first decision as the Apprentice ...a totally selfish move...and one he made publicly in front of the entire country.

It makes me wonder...if Randall will make such a selfish decision so early in the game, in what other circumstances will he choose selfishness over selflessness?  How might that impact the Trump organization?

Let me ask you this...what's your take on this?