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In one of the most compelling TED Talks, Simon Sinek provides insight into what separates great leaders from the rest. In it, he explains that great leaders inspire others by starting with why and that people don’t buy what you do, they buy “why” you do it – excellent food for thought for our personal and professional lives.
When you are in a conversation and share something in common, your first instinct is to jump out and say “me too!” Instead, hold off and let the person finish sharing their story. Then you can share your similar experience. If you say “me too” right away, you come across as trying to impress or you take away from the other person’s moment. When you hold off a short while, you’ll appear confident and considerate. Just make sure you don’t wait too long, or you’ll miss a perfect opportunity to build a relationship.
Source: Ragesoss at Wikimedia Commons
Daniel Pink provides amazing insight into what motivates us. The conventional wisdom that people are motivated by the hope to gain or by the fear of loss is only temporary. Daniel takes a deeper look to find that it’s autonomy, mastery, and purpose that motivate us for the long haul.
@CoryWelsh9 asked on Twitter how best should I learn and inspire? It’s a good question and there is no one size fits all. It depends on your own personal goals. In general though, I’ve found that one of the best ways to learn is to put yourself in situations that stretch you and make you a little uncomfortable. Think of it as going to the gym… if you are not sweating and sore the next day you didn’t get a good work out. Learning is similar. If you are comfortable and not pushing yourself, then you are not learning and growing. The inspiration then comes when people see what you are doing and are motivated to the same.
Source: Ianare at Wikimedia Commons
A fascinating look at how our ideas are often obvious to us, but amazing to others. So don’t hold back. Share your ideas and see what happens.
Have you ever been in a meeting or conversation where the person speaks as though the point they are making is fact when in reality it’s their opinion? Who hasn’t? It’s common for people to mistake opinion for fact; many just don’t know the difference between assessments (opinions) and assertions (facts).
Who cares? I do it. It’s not a big deal, right?
Well, it’s actually a pretty big deal and can lead to misunderstandings and bad decisions. A great trick I picked up is to ask the person flat out, “Do you think or do you know?” It’s a simple and powerful way to find out quickly if what the person is saying is fact or opinion. Then if it’s an opinion, your next move is to have the assessment grounded by getting facts to either support or oppose the person’s assessment.
The more often we distinguish between “thinking” and “knowing,” the better we understand each other and make the right decisions.
Source: Uababluba at Wikimedia Commons
There are those that will view a situation as hopeless and others that will view the same situation as a glorious opportunity. In this passionate TED Talk the brilliant Benjamin Zander explains how to make possibility the norm. It’s not the circumstance that matters; it’s how we approach it.
@Kallol5276 asked a really good question on Twitter, but unfortunately 140 characters couldn’t do it justice so I’m taking it to the blogosphere. He asked “on what value can candidates seek leverage to negotiate and succeed <when negotiating salary>?”
Even if you’re not a CEO there is enormous value that you can provide, and you can leverage this when negotiating salary . It could be a Roledex of contacts, relationships with key customers, personal expertise, or many others. Most folks do not have an all star Roledex, but they do have some sort of an expertise. It could be expertise in the form of technical expertise (Oracle database administration, virtualization, LAMP), business expertise (Supply Chain Management, Finance, Marketing), or experiential (turnaround, global management, out-sourcing). Figure out what the company is looking for, determine which of your skills will help most, and then show them how your experience will help achieve their goals.
To prepare yourself for the negotiating table, you’ll also need to do the following:
Source: Lucas at Wikimedia Commons
Steve Jobs was notoriously private. Yet in 2005 he gave a very personal Commencement address at Stanford University where he told three stories from his life that are truly pearls of wisdom. Learn all you can and connect the dots, do what you love, don’t give up, and live every day like it’s your last.
Bill Gates said of Jobs, “The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.” So true, Steve was a true visionary. Thanks for all you gave us Steve.
Goals in life are important, no doubt. They keep us focused and moving ahead. But it’s tough to stay interested in goals and they often fade away with the busyness of life. So what is a person in the age of Twitter, a never ending in-box, and late night conference calls supposed to do? If they are smart, they find two quotes to live by and stick to them. To select the right quotes you’ll need to make sure they are simple, memorable, inspirational, attainable, and stretch you as a person. Then head to Google and start looking for quotes that align to your personal goals.
My quotes to live by are “when you’re green you grow, when you’re ripe you rot” and “everything should be as simple as possible, but not simpler.” The first quote is a reminder that when I find myself getting complacent, I am no longer growing and I need put myself in a new environment that will challenge me to grow no matter how uncomfortable it may be. The second quote ensures I don’t over complicate things, and that I communicate to others in a way that is easy for them understand —being in high tech, this one is important to me.
So there you go, an easy way to set and achieve your life goals. Hopefully you find this as useful as I have. If you’d like to share your quotes to live by, just post them in the comments. I’d love to see them. Best of luck in achieving your goals!
Source: Cory Doctorow at Wikimedia Commons
Some of the best insights on what makes success and my favorite TEDtalk. It only took Richard St. John seven years of research and 500 interviews to show what really leads to success.
Last week my five year old son asked my wife how her day was at work. It was classic. He must have picked it up from when we ask him how his day went at school. What was really amazing though, was how engaged and interested he was in the conversation. He hung on every word, never took his eyes off of my wife and asked lots of really good questions. You could tell he wasn’t distracted or thinking of anything else. His questions also showed how truly interested he was. Afterwards I asked my wife how she felt during the conversation. She said it made her feel good inside and want to keep the conversation going since he was so interested. A week later, my wife still remembers the conversation.
If you want to make a memorable impression, remember to listen like a five year old.
Source: Gary Gerbrandt at Wikimedia Commons
Several folks have hit me up on must have iPad apps, so I’ve created a list of the essentials. Enjoy!
Honorable mentions- Yelp, TED, MLB.com At Bat, Epicurious, Truphone, Angry Birds, NinJump DX.
Image Source: Jon Mountjoy at Wikimedia Commons
I love Chinese food: the spices, salt, dark sauces, noodles. Normally the only let down is the fortune cookie fortune. Out of hundreds of fortunes I’ve received over the years only one has ever been memorable. The fortune was “The greatest joy in life is in creation.” At the time I thought it was great, but had no idea how great it really was. Not long after, my son was born and I learned the true wisdom of the fortune. A few years later my daughter was born, I created my first large organization and I started my own company. It was the busiest year of my life and at the same time one of the best. The fortune rang true again – creating is the greatest joy.
There is something about creating a something from a nothing that is extremely fulfilling. Taking an idea that is only a thought, and then making it real. Whether it is art, kids, a blog post, or business it’s one of life’s greatest gifts. Fortunately, we live in the best times for creation. Knowledge is easy to obtain, barriers of entry/set-up are extremely low and the business need for creators is vast. When life needs more zest – try creation.
The lens you choose to view the world with determines how you live life. If you find yourself thinking life has thrown you lemons watch this video from Nick, a man with no arms and no legs, that shows how a positive outlook and focusing on what you do have makes a world of difference.
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Inspirational, Leadership, TED
Jeff McLeod