Personal Growth Cafe

December 16, 2018February 20, 2018

When you are not practicing, remember someone somewhere is practicing, and when you meet him, he will win. – Ed Macauley

December 15, 2018February 20, 2018

He who believes in nobody knows that he himself is not to be trusted. – Bertold Auerbach

December 14, 2018February 20, 2018

How to Work Well In Teams

Whether you’re working in a job that requires teamwork or you have a family with children, it’s important to know how to work well in teams.

It’s not always easy to work in teams but the rewards can be worth it.

The key to working well in teams is to have great communication among everyone involved.

As a team member, communication is critically important.

If you have a problem with other team members, talk to them directly.

If you can’t talk and listen to other team members you might as well be working individually.

Communicating effectively can also make your team, as a whole, work better and accomplish your given tasks quicker.

Here are some other ideas to help you work well with team members:

1. First focus on the work assigned to you.

If you finish with your task before other team members, ask other members if they need your help.

2. Meet your deadlines.

If you must miss a deadline, apologize for not meeting it, tell your team when they’ll have your part, and then make sure you meet that deadline.

The rest of the team will respect you more for owning up to your problem rather than blaming someone else.

3. Be supportive of your team members.

When discussing ideas for the project you’re working on, be sure to consider other team members’ suggestions, even if you don’t think they’ll work.

Considering other ideas shows you’re interested in someone else’s opinion.

4. Realize the project is a collaborative effort.

It doesn’t belong to any one person. It’s important that each team member can claim ownership of some part of the project.

By having ownership they’re more likely to put forth the effort to make the project a success.

If you’re leading the team, let the team members know what’s expected of them.

Establish clear objectives and how each person will contribute.

Be open to making changes if someone else can do a certain aspect of the job better than the person you assigned to do it.

5. Motivate the team.

Work on establishing and maintaining each team member’s morale and their motivation to succeed as a team.

Give them a reason to want the team to succeed rather than riding off into the project sunset like the Lone Ranger.

6. Work together on the plan.

The team will feel more ownership of the project if everyone works together to set goals and establish deadlines for the various aspects of the job.

Meet together periodically to check on progress.

Switch jobs among team members if necessary.

Everyone needs to pitch in to be sure the job is done correctly and on time.

Learning how to work well in teams is so important, not only in business, but also in families.

Children need to learn how to cooperate for the greater good instead of being concerned only with their own good.

If you teach children about teamwork when they’re young, chances are good that they’ll be better team players when they grow up.

Practice these teamwork tips, and soon you’ll find better team cooperation and more successful team projects both in the workplace and at home.

How can you be happy for others without feeling the need to compete?

How have you communicated your feelings in a safe and honest way?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Also, as your gift for taking this to heart – and this is profoundly important… to us ALL – go to UnitingPlanetEarth.com/ignition/ and do the Uniting Planet Earth 7-Day Quick-Start Ignition Program… and Allow it to Transform Your Life.

Before you leave…

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December 13, 2018February 20, 2018

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. – Carl Bard

December 13, 2018February 20, 2018

How To Transform Your Anxiety Into Opportunity

If you suffer from anxiety or panic attacks, there are ways you can transform that anxiety into opportunity.

These strategies are rather like turning lemons into lemonade.

What you start out with is sour, but what you end up with is sweet!

These tips can help you deal with your anxiety in positive ways.

Plus, they can even help reduce it by providing you new outlets for your nervous energy.

Here are some techniques to help you transform your anxiety into opportunity:

1. Re-focus your excess energy.

If you have the excessive energy that comes with anxiety and its moods, focus this energy toward doing something productive.

For example, you may have been putting off doing some household tasks, such as cleaning out those closets.

Putting your energy into one of these projects will enable you to get it done in record time!

While you might have to concentrate harder to re-focus, you’re actually lowering the anxiety level in your body.

2. Write about your anxiety.

Write down everything you’re feeling.

Many times you’ll be surprised at what you’ve written and find you can share it with others or use it to help you in the future when you’re overly anxious.

3. Exercise.

We all have said month after month that we’re going to start a new exercise regimen, but have we?

Probably not, but you can use your anxious energy as the force that propels you to start your new exercise routine.

Have an exercise routine already planned so you have it ready to begin the moment you need it.

The endorphins your body releases during exercise can actually stop an anxiety attack.

4. Try painting.

Although painting a picture of pretty trees may help you, this particular technique refers to room painting!

Painting has long been known to relax people.

If you have a room that could use a new look, get out the paint and start painting.

Any big home improvement project can get you involved, diminish your panic feelings, and give you a sense of accomplishment when you’re done.

5. Sing.

Even if you don’t possess the voice of a musical superstar, the way your body reacts when you sing, the force of breathing in and out, is a natural way to heal panic attacks.

Focusing your excess energy on playing a musical instrument, or learning how to play one, can also help your anxiety.

Turn your anxious time into a musical time.

6. Help others.

Volunteer at a family shelter or senior center.

Focusing on helping others can use some of that excess energy, take your mind off your worries, give you a different perspective on life, and bring you satisfaction.

7. Do something about it.

Find ways you can help solve particular problems you worry about.

Any worrisome issues you have can be handled this way.

For example, if you worry about the environment, you can start a recycling center or hold green meetings in your home to discuss ways you can reduce your personal carbon footprint.

These are just a few of the ways you can transform your anxiety into opportunity.

Try some of these strategies today to help you use that excess energy in a positive way and reduce your anxiety at the same time.

What can you do now to be calm when challenges arise?

What is the first step you need to take to do so?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Before you leave…

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December 12, 2018February 19, 2018

How to Shed the Winter Weight Gain

If you’ve indulged over the holiday season or cut down on your activity during the winter months, you may have packed on a few extra pounds.

Wouldn’t you like to shed that winter weight gain before the warm weather returns?

Rather than choosing the latest diet of the week, you could, instead, implement some sound strategies that have been proven to be effective in losing weight and keeping it off.

Here are some tips to help you say “good bye” to those extra pounds forever:

1. Exercise

Staying indoors more during the winter doesn’t mean you need to be less active!

Follow these exercise techniques to bring you a variety of activities to tone up and slim down.

Begin slowly.

Don’t overdo it when you begin to exercise – you’ll only strain muscles!

Invest in a good pair of walking shoes and begin by walking for fifteen minutes per day.

When you feel your body adjusting to the fifteen minutes, walk longer.

Do this with any exercise, inside or out, to build a healthy, strong, and slimmer body.

2. Enjoy variety.

Doing the same exercise over and over again is a good way to fail before you begin. Include an assortment of exercises in your plan.

Make it fun!

For example, combine yoga with strength training.

If you don’t have strength training equipment, use canned foods or other items as your weights.

Any activity that gets you moving is an exercise.

Play actively with your pets or children.

Put on some music and dance while you cook or clean house.

Instead of sitting on the couch, ride an exercise bike while you watch TV.

Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

3. Enlist a friend.

The easiest way to keep up with your exercise routine is to have someone by your side who also wants to lose weight.

Remind each other how important your weight loss goals are.

4. Set goals and keep track of them.

Get a diary or notebook and write down your goals.

Keep track of how much weight you’re losing and what types of exercises you’re doing.

How to Eat Well Year-Round

Eating nutritiously year-round is the best way to keep off those extra winter pounds.

It will also help you lose excess weight, give your body the nutrients it craves, and make you feel good!

Here are some simple healthy eating tips:

1. Try to stick to a 1,500 to 2,000 a day calorie diet.

Yes, calories do count.

If you’re unsure what your caloric intake should be (as it can vary from age, sex, and even height), enlist your doctor’s help or ask a nutritionist.

2. Eat a well-balanced variety of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

You don’t need to become a vegetarian, but including as many fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet as possible will bring you a plethora of benefits.

Substitute fruits and vegetables for unhealthy snacks and calorie-laden desserts.

Can’t find fresh fruits during the winter months? Frozen fruits with no added sugar are a good backup choice.

3. Keep your portions at acceptable levels.

Don’t pile on that food!

Just because fast-food restaurants are supersizing everything, it doesn’t mean you should too.

4. Eat good carbs.

Many fruits, veggies, legumes, and grains are full of the good carbohydrates your body needs.

They’re also high in vitamins, fibers, and minerals and free of cholesterol.

5. Drink water.

Every cell in your body needs water to function properly.

Drinking lots of water will not only keep you well hydrated, but it also can help you lose weight.

For example, a glass of water before a meal can help you control overeating.

Shedding that winter weight is a reachable goal if you follow these tips.

However, don’t feel like you have to make each of these changes tomorrow.

Sometimes when people make too many drastic changes at once they have a harder time sticking with their plan.

Work on making one or two of these changes each week to get used to them.

Before you know it, these weight loss strategies will be second nature to you and you’ll avoid those winter pounds altogether!

What steps do you take to get your weight back?

What motivates you to continue to do so?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Before you leave…

Please share the link to this post on your Facebook, Twitter, etc., and like it, and comment right here – THANKS!

December 12, 2018February 19, 2018

When you learn not to want things so badly, life comes to you. – Jessica Lange

December 11, 2018February 19, 2018

How to Resolve a Disagreement with a Colleague

Workplace conflicts do more than cause stress among the people in conflict; that stress can spill into other relationships at work and affect the atmosphere of the whole office.

It’s important that all employees learn how to resolve a disagreement with a colleague.

When you encounter disagreements, try these tips to help resolve conflicts and bring peace back to your workplace:

1. Remember that most disagreements are a perceived problem.

One person expected that the other would act, react, or respond in a particular way.

When the expected response wasn’t given, the first person feels annoyed, slighted, frustrated, or angry.

The person you have a disagreement with is not the problem.

Can you explain to someone not involved what the conflict is about without blaming the other person?

2. Gather each person involved in the disagreement, plus someone who can act as a mediator, and discuss the issue at hand.

Brainstorm together and try to find a number of solutions for the problem.

Write down all the solutions you discuss.

Instead of attacking the person, attack the common problem.

Go back to the solution list and analyze each possible solution until you reach one that will benefit both parties.

3. Address conflicts as soon as possible.

Allowing a conflict to continue will only worsen it.

Conflicts are bound to happen when groups of people work closely together.

The trick is to stop the process before it has a chance to snowball into something more.

4. Never assume that people act a particular way or say something just to annoy you.

They may not have realized their action, inaction, or speech affected you the way it did.

If in doubt, ask the person to clarify their actions rather than assuming why they did it.

5. If you’re not involved in the problem, avoid taking sides.

Instead, look for common ground that both parties share.

Finding common ground on as many things as possible will help both parties see that they aren’t so different after all.

This will pave the way for finding a solution that both can be satisfied with.

Similarities don’t have to be only work related; however it would be better if they were.

At this point, find and write down anything that you can think of that is shared between the people involved in the conflict.

6. Use specific, appropriate terms when talking things out.

Coming in five minutes late regularly is much different than never being present for meetings.

Be sure to use facts to back up statements rather than making generalities.

7. Focus on finding a solution to the problem.

Don’t keep re-hashing what happened over and over until emotions get riled up again.

By keeping the focus on the present, it will keep communications from becoming heated or destructive.

8. Take the high road and apologize, even if you don’t feel that the conflict is your fault.

You can still apologize for your part in the disagreement.

It’s not necessary for you to take the entire blame, but you do share a certain amount of responsibility.

Your best bet in resolving a disagreement with your colleague is to sit down calmly, with a mediator, and discuss the perceived problem.

Allow each person to speak without interruption.

Working together to find a mutually beneficial solution is not only in the best interest of each party, but it’s also in the best interest of the workplace.

What kind of relationship do you have with your colleagues?

How can this help you work more efficiently?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Before you leave…

Please share the link to this post on your Facebook, Twitter, etc., and like it, and comment right here – THANKS!

December 11, 2018February 19, 2018

Posts

When you are not practicing, remember someone somewhere is practicing, and when you meet him, he will win. – Ed Macauley

I dance without reservations.

He who believes in nobody knows that he himself is not to be trusted. – Bertold Auerbach

How to Work Well In Teams

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. – Carl Bard

How To Transform Your Anxiety Into Opportunity

How to Shed the Winter Weight Gain

When you learn not to want things so badly, life comes to you. – Jessica Lange

How to Resolve a Disagreement with a Colleague

I have sufficient strength to overcome my situation.