I know there are so many people who ask themselves a question: “What do I really love to do?”. And trust me, this question is a million dollar question – and it is tough. Once you have this answer, you will be more satisfied with the work you have done and actually enjoyed it in…

Wayyyyyy back when, Covey told us in the 7 HABITS that we should imagine our funeral. What would people be saying about us at that funeral? Morbid but useful, the exercise is meant to have us focus on what we hope the sum of our life would sound like coming out of a loved one’s…

Sport and competition go together. Taking the competition away from sport would reduce it to a pointless, illogical activity. Competition and business go together too, and many links are made between sporting achievement and business success. But work and business are not games. Competition is no longer healthy in the workplace when it gets out…

I’ve been thinking a lot this week about why people do things, and what they have in mind when they ask others to act in a particular way. It’s common to find that what people say is the reasoning behind their actions or requests isn’t the real motivation for either. I may do or say…

Dave Cheong is churning out thoughtful posts about his own experiences of moving his focus from being an engineer to becoming an entrepreneur. One recent post was about developing positive patterns. If you feel you’re going to be late, you will be. If you think you’re always broke, you tend to be.The trick to achieving your…

John Watson has created a fun online tool that allows you to create your own motivational poster. Enter the URL or upload your own image, put in a title, motivational text and press “Motivate”. Voila! A motivational poster for you to download. For instance: Armed with a digital camera and that non-stop wit of yours, you…

Fourteen months after the first one, I tried to put together a Reinvention Forum with the Ho‘ohana Community of my Talking Story blog (which by the way, is a virtual community you are warmly welcomed to join into). I’ll be frank: I had my doubts that I could pull it off, and as things do…

Before Apple, personal computers seemed like a stupid idea. eBay was founded by some people looking for a web-facing way to trade and sell parts of their PEZ collection. Getting Things Done is nothing more than practical wisdom, years old in content, reskinned to meet the needs of people’s current conditions. So, how did they…

If you want learning to work for you, you must create the conditions in which exploration can take place and discoveries can be made. It’s very clear what these are. Without them, all your efforts to learn and grown will be in vain.

Robert Webb, in his web page, Motivation Tool Chest, has many tips on motivation. One of the pages that caught my attention is his seven rules of motivation. He described 7 quick tips motivating yourself: Set a major goal, but follow a path Finish what you start Socialize with others of similar interest Learn how to learn Harmonize natural talent…

Warning: Your Mileage May Vary on this specific post. Consider this an open idea, or a hack in progress. I work best when I thread my professional efforts and my personal projects together in the same space. I might have a window open on the computer and in it, I’m defining a process flow for a…

Financial needs that are a large part of what makes people seek employment, but the money side of work doesn’t go far in making a job feel like something worth doing. It won’t make up for a job that is frustrating, boring, inconsequential or just plain dull.

Kathy Sierra is willing to call you out regarding this issue of your intentions versus what you really are going to get done. You can’t keep up. There is no way. And trying to keep up will probably just make you dumber.You can never be current on everything you think you should be. You can’t…

David Sirota, Louis A. Mischkind, and Michael Irwin Meltzer at Harvard Business School has identified why employees lose motivation and morale decline over time. They found out employees are often looking for three key goals at work: Equity, Achievement and Camaraderie. They suggested numbers of practice that can improve those goals: Instill an inspiring purpose Provide recognition Be…

You have more options than you think. Whenever something happens, you have a choice about how to respond. No one can take that away.