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FranklinCovey Blog | March, 2010
How to Change Your Paradigms
I was passing through the family room when a horse jockey on TV shared with a new co-worker that the photo on his clipboard was of his 18 year old daughter. I have a 17-year-old daughter so I stopped to listen. His daughter had died nine months ago. At the end of the show, the race track at which he worked named the spring racing series in honor of the jockey’s daughter. I was sobbing, at a reality show. And I finally understood: this is why people love reality shows. They love the story—success, failure, villainy, and redemption.
Reality show stories may stretch the truth or overemphasize some facts over others, but no more than the stories we tell about ourselves to ourselves. Stephen Covey calls this our paradigms, the way we see the world. Jim Loehr, the author of The Power of Full Engagement, the best Habit 7/Sharpen the Saw book out there, says that we have stories about our work, our families, our health; about what we’re capable of achieving. In his book, The Power of Story, Dr. Loehr says that editing our dysfunctional stories can transform our business and personal lives. › Continue reading
New Great Work, Great Career Webinars with Jennifer Colosimo
Please join me for one or two or even three great webinars on building a Great Career! Click here to register. These webinars are based on content from the recently released book Great Work, Great Career. See you there!
Career Advantage is about getting a great job now and enjoying a great career for life. In this webinar, participants look at the contribution they would like to make through the lens of talents, passion, and conscience and then at defining career, project, and current-role contribution in a way that’s a win for them and their organization. The end in mind is becoming more employable and advancing one’s career. Click here to learn more.
Traditional resumes are like a product brochure with you as the product. Unless the prospect is actively looking for just that product, the brochure goes in the trash. Resume Advantage teaches participants to design a unique resume based on the problems the employer needs solved and how participants’ background and experience demonstrate their ability to meet specific employer needs. Click here to learn more. › Continue reading
Podcast: The Career Clinic
I had a really great time talking about networking and building a great career with Maureen Anderson on The Career Clinic. Click here to check out her blog and the podcast of the interview. Visit: http://bit.ly/a9QfGe
Author: Jennifer Colosimo, Chief Learning Officer at FranklinCovey
Follow Jennifer on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jencolosimo
Bringing 2010 in Focus: Five Vital Time Management Tips
Looking for some tips to help manage your time?
Join Jeff Anderson and Sean Covey, FranklinCovey’s Chief Innovations Officer in this 23-minute pre-recorded video webinar, as they discuss five vital time management tips and their relevance in 2010. Jeff also provides some tangible take-away ideas that you can implement now to keep your life organized and be more productive.
In this webinar Jeff will cover:
Bringing 2010 in Focus: Five Vital Time Management Tips
- Giving Importance a Home
- Turning Things into What They Are
- The Brain’s Limitations and Plan Accordingly
- Learning to Focus on the Wildly Important
- Living in QII
Click here to view webinar. What are time management tips are vital to you? We would love to hear from you.
Dealing with Career Setbacks
I was about to be fired from my job waiting tables at a Mexican restaurant when I quit. I refused to serve more than one jumbo margarita to a pregnant woman and later in the week a burrito platter was knocked from my hands onto another diner’s new coat. In one case I made an unpopular point, in another, it wasn’t my fault. However, I needed a night job so I could finish my graduate degree and I was finally getting Friday night shifts (big tips!) after a year at the restaurant. Financial setback. And a hit to my morale (“it isn’t fair”).
Previously, during my undergraduate degree, I was a salesperson in the Juniors department at a big department store. I had a full-time job with a full-time school schedule and was living away from home for the first time. I was tired. When traffic slowed down one night, I laid down on the sale table, covered myself with $9.00 dollar t-shirts, and fell asleep. Until the screams of an unwitting customer looking for a t-shirt woke me up. My manager lectured me, but gave me a second chance. But it impacted the trust I had with my manager and my colleagues. I was no longer on the “high potential” list to become a manager. I was watched closely, which was embarrassing.
We’ve all had setbacks, whether we made a mistake, or we made a stand, or something happened we had absolutely no control over. The point is: what do you do next? Does the situation begin to stand for who you are, what you can contribute, your outlook on life? Or do you learn something, make amends as best you can, and move on. Resilience is a key character trait for a great career.
Author: Jennifer Colosimo, Chief Learning Officer at FranklinCovey
Follow Jennifer on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jencolosimo
Saying “No” Effectively
Sometimes a request may come your way, but it doesn’t align with highest priorities. At work, it is a cubicle drive-by, an IM, or an e-mail:
“Lisa, could your team . . .”
And you think, “We could, but it doesn’t align with what is important to the organization right now or my team’s critical path.” Don’t say that, not unless you think you can get results without relationships (you can’t, not long-term anyway) OR as a last result.
At home, it is a phone call at 7:00 p.m.: “Hi Teresa, the Girl Scout cookie mom can’t do it again this year. Can I put you down for it?”
And your mind races: “But I already volunteered to chaperone the camping trip, and help with the school carnival, not to mention my work on the Food Bank fundraiser . . .but wouldn’t a good mother, a mother who didn’t work, wouldn’t she say yes?”
Let me be clear, Executive Mamas don’t say “yes” to everything. They sometimes say “no”—EFFECTIVELY, in a way that builds relationships and reputation, not in a way that destroys them.
Here’s some suggestions:
To a boss:
“I’d be happy to. I am currently working on x, y, and z. Could we re-visit the timing on those so I could complete this project?”
“Of course. This looks like about 3 days worth of work. Should I table x, y, and z and work on this for the next three days? Or is b an acceptable completion date?”
“Could you tell me a little bit more so I could see how this fits in with my other commitments?”
To a colleague:
“I’m not sure. Let’s talk about deadlines, scope, final product so I can tell you if I could help.”
“I can’t do it by x. Is y soon enough?”
“I have to tell you—I don’t know that I can. Maybe I can offer up some thoughts as to how you might accomplish that without me?”
To a child who wants to add another after school activity to their already packed schedule:
“No, no, a thousand times no! Don’t you see that this overlaps with basketball practice? How can you expect to add another drop off/pick up to your already Presidential schedule?” (OK, that one was a bit autobiographical and not very effective. But I strongly believe you should tell them the truth. I know a woman who refuses to accept that little Sally might miss one activity, one party, one experience. Sally is a horrible child because she believes the entire world revolves around her desires. )
Executive Mamas say no. With grace.
Author: Jennifer Colosimo, Chief Learning Officer at FranklinCovey
Follow Jennifer on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jencolosimo
FranklinCovey and The Center for Advancement of Jewish Education-Miami Announce Partnership
FranklinCovey and The Center for Advancement of Jewish Education-Miami today announced they are embarking upon a ten-year partnership to bring The Leader in Me, FranklinCovey’s education process for teaching leadership at the elementary school level, to South Florida Jewish day schools and throughout the United States and Canada.
Together, FranklinCovey and CAJE-Miami will design, develop and disseminate a customized solution for Jewish day schools that integrates existing school curricula and Jewish principles with the world-renowned The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The partnership links Jewish texts and teachings with FranklinCovey’s leadership training to create a Jewish day school culture imbued with Jewish values, character development and leadership skills. › Continue reading