What’s your procrastination style?

What's your procrastination style?

Six Styles. Read ‘Em. Try ‘Em On. Pick Out A Procrastination Style That Fits You Best.

For most of us, getting through the day means getting through your work. Whether you work at home or in an office, there is always something to do and something that needs to be completed. But sometimes we would rather do almost anything than the one thing that needs do get done the most.

For those of you who may find you procrastinate, here’s a way to determine what procrastination style you have. This was developed by Dr. Linda Sapadin and is called, “The 6 Styles of Procrastination and How to Overcome Them.”

The Perfectionist Procrastinator…But I want it to be perfect!

* Do I have difficulty starting or completing tasks because my standards are too high?
* Am I reluctant to delegate tasks or work with others unless they do things my way?
* Do I get preoccupied with details, rules or schedules that others don’t care about?

The Dreamer Procrastinator…But I hate dealing with all those bothersome details!

* Do I think a lot about what I’d like to accomplish but rarely get projects off the ground?
* Do I wait for opportunities to drop into my lap rather than take an active “go get ’em” * approach?
* Do I long to be able to go from “A” to “Z” without having to deal with all the stuff in * between?

Communication: Talk To The Bottom Line To Grow It

Being smart about business means being smart about all aspects of business, including who you hire and keeping your employees connected to the bottom line. One objective to business success is to consider your employees as the bottom line.

While these economic times make it an “employer’s market,” this does not mean you want to take advantage of those you need to grow your business. For instance, you have to stay connected with your staff and allow them to share what’s working and what your employees consider as stumbling blocks to get their jobs done effectively. There are many great resources available online. A list of questions to get you started is available through IMT (Industry Marketing Trends).

Ridiculous! Insane! Oh Right. It’s Our Future Leaders Being ‘Schooled.’

If you wonder where communication goes wrong, when things change and alter the boys and girls who will be in the workforce as supposedly well-educated men and women, just visit a middle school in North Carolina. Maybe you can relate to what I faced today. And maybe there are other middle schools just as inept, unorganized and pathetic when it comes to helping parents and students begin the new school year during what is called, ‘Open House.’

My 12 year-old turns 13 this Saturday. But today, Monday my son’s ‘Open House’ was held from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. My son is in 7th grade. He is playing football for the first time. So, let’s talk about tonight’s chaos. It begins with the fact that football practice was scheduled from 6pm to 8pm. You may be saying, wait a minute. I thought you said that your son’s school ‘Open House’ was from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. And I would say, ‘you are correct!’ So, at the same time my son is supposed to visit seven different rooms and meet seven new teachers, he is also supposed to be ready to practice football in full gear by 6pm. I will call this Cluster #1.

When Poor Communication From Football Coaches Can Lead to Physical Injury To Your Children

Last night, my sons and I attended a parent/player meeting at my 12 year-old son’s school auditorium for the upcoming football season. Earlier that day, the coach had decided my 12 year-old would be helpful to the team by playing the tailback position for the season. I was very proud of him. I had looked up the term “tailback” on the Internet to know what a tailback’s responsibility was on the football team.

Anyway, we were listening to the coach share how the football program worked at my son’s middle school. The head coach went over what the expectations were for both the players and the students. He talked about ways to help raise money to help the team purchase more uniforms and gear. For now he said that there was enough gear for the number of players currently part of the team. He said that players didn’t need to purchase any gear except for their cleats. This was the same statement he informed parents at the parent/player meeting at the end of the school year last year. He also said the same thing at the football mini camp my son had attended that week.

Back-To-School Time & It’s “Grammar Gone Wild” With Football Coaches Needing Serious Grammar Coaching!

My 12 year-old son is going to be playing football this year. When I dropped him off this morning for his first day of mini-camp before regular practice begins for the season next week, I could only wonder if my son was about to be playing with the high school team. The boys were mammoth in size. These boys were, for the most part, not overweight. These were just big boys who would probably be throwing their competition down in the dirt a lot this season. Anyway, as I reviewed the forms and paperwork I was asked to fill out, I noticed something that I have become all to familiar with, when it comes to communication from certain areas of the public school system.

When Tragedy Strikes, Poor Communication Is Unacceptable

I live in an apartment complex in North Carolina. Something horrible happened a couple of days ago where I live. I knew nothing about it.

I found a piece of paper clipped to the outside of my door. The communication from the management office was very poor, indeed. Thinking of the importance of clear communication in a crisis, here is an example of what not to do – EVER. Please note I have copied the document word for word. Typos and inaccuracies were not changed.

7.9 Million Jobs Lost. Many Forever.* In The Job Market, Effective Communication Matters. But How Much Do You Really Know?

You’re probably familiar with the saying, ‘it’s not what you say but how you say it.’ With the job market still extremely weak, and reports from CNNMoney.com suggesting full-time jobs may be a thing of the past while part-time and freelance positions may be the job market of the future, what we say at work and how we communicate what we say may mean more than ever when it comes to maintaining a paycheck.

For those with a job, remember the millions who are still unemployed and have been unemployed, in many cases for 2 years or more. Unless there are illegal activities taking place where you work, this is not the time to whine or complain. But you may be communicating negatively without even saying a word.

Want to See Effective Communication In Action? Hang With Arborists

Bernd

Kathy Holzer - First Female ITCC Winner

My first introduction to arborists was through SherrillTree, a company based in Greensboro, NC that provides quality tree gear and supplies to arborists worldwide. With facilitators on hand, I learned how to climb trees with a rope-assisted method that does no harm to the trees at all. That’s right. No spikes! It’s called, recreational tree climbing. It’s a great activity for the entire family. My 9 and 12 year old boys have climbed a few times and are mini pros at this outdoor activity. Better tree climbing with a rope-assisted system than climbing up on your own. It’s also a terrific and healthy alternative to all the electronic toys kids spend hours playing.

Anyway, working with SherrillTree on website copy and connecting with trade publications to land editorial placement for new products and articles, I had the opportunity to attend my first ITCC (International Tree Climbing Competition).

Performance Evaluations: Eliminate the Stress Before It Takes a Bite Out of Your Bottom Line

http://www.veer.com

Whether you’re a business owner, a supervisor or manager, more than likely you have people who report to you and look to you for leadership, direction and continuous communication on what is expected on the job. One very effective and common method of maintaining a healthy dialogue between employees and their supervisors/managers is a performance evaluation conducted by you and each employee you oversee on a one-on-one basis at least once a year but hopefully two or more times a year. Employees often become anxious prior to such a performance evaluation.

Generally, emotions such as anxiety and stress come from past negative experiences or by fear of the unknown. And if you are in charge of communicating to these employees, it is your responsibility to significantly reduce, or better yet eliminate employee stress and anxiety through clear communication between you and each staff member you oversee on a regular basis. Otherwise, employee stress and anxiety can negatively impact the quality of products and services your company produces. And if all you can serve is lower quality products, expect to see your hearty bottom line dwindle away before your eyes.

To Eliminate Stress & Anxiety: Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.
Management has the ability to maintain and even improve the quality of products and services produced by informing employees about the following areas of business that are relevant to employees’ daily work and overall employment with the company:
-Business goals
-Significant company milestones
-New business victories
-Ongoing customer feedback
-Continuous employee performance communication

Sad But True Examples of Poor Communication:
1) An ad agency going through some growth spurts was building its new business database while also continuing to offer quality service to its current client base. The owner of the company was very pleased to share several testimonials from current satisfied customers. However, when I asked one of the company’s art directors what a client thought about some work she had recently completed, she said she had no idea. She told me she never knew what the clients said. It was just her job to design.

2) Working on a global internal communications campaign, I was privy to sales figures and heard directly from top management that overall, the continued growth in sales in certain product categories was making a meaningful difference to the company’s bottom line. So, when I met with a few hundred employees responsible for the quality of the product produced, I was floored when not one of these employees knew what exactly the products did, what companies purchased the products and who the end users were. Amazingly, the products improved the quality of life in millions of people’s lives.

Click here to provide your senior management team with a course on:
Effective Communication: From Business Goals to Employee Evaluations

‘What Do You Do For A Living?’ Your Employees’ Answers May Be Impacting Your Bottom Line More Than You Realize!

http://www.veer.com/

With so many responsibilities each of us is tasked with in one day alone, having a clear answer as to what it is you do at your company may not be so easy. But if you are the owner of the business, the answer your employees provide their colleagues, friends and family is much more important than you may realize. Keep in mind, your employees are walking and talking billboards. These men and women are ambassadors for your company and its products and services. When someone asks one of your employees what he or she does and this person says, ‘I am an accountant or an executive with XYZ business,’ you have just lost an opportunity to educate someone else about your business and possibly lost a sale through the additional contacts this recipient of the answer may speak to next.

Take a minute and ask yourself the following:

1. What does your company do?
2. How does what your company do impact others?
3. What is a meaningful and relatable way to communicate the value of your company’s end result from product/service to end user?

Once you have decided on a company-wide message that effectively answers the questions above, make it mandatory that each employee knows what the message is and is prepared to answer that all-too-often asked, ‘what do you do for a living?’

For more information on effective messaging, click here.