Archive for the 'Self Improvement' Category

In Dale Carnegie’s own words: “Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain…and most fools do…” This in essence is what criticism is all about, and how we take criticism depends on our general attitude towards life, and how we see ourselves.

When someone criticizes, for instance, some work that you have done, even though you have put in several long hours to complete it, you may think, “Why is it that he is smarter than me? Am I that stupid?” or you may think, “I have had enough. I quit!” or, “I will kill him for what he has said to me! Who does he think he is? I know better than him!!!”

Don’t worry; these are all typical reactions and there is nothing at all wrong with you. However, it would help you greatly if you were to learn a few tips on how to handle criticism and take things in your stride.

• First and foremost, learn to enjoy criticism. Take everything with a sense of humor, and also make up your mind that you will try to avoid making the same mistake the next time.

There seems to be nearly endless tips out there that exist to boost creativity.

This is fantastic since there are always times when creativity simply will not come.

Since everyone is different and since different days bring different strains on creativity, the more creativity boosting techniques the better.

Listed below are 12 creativity techniques that have worked for me:

1. Brainstorming

This is a classic technique that works especially well in groups. Within a time frame, everyone gives ideas that might solve a problem. No matter what the idea, there must be no criticism [Dealing With Criticism]. Just write the idea down and criticize it later.

Then choose 5 ideas that might be the most effective, most efficient and/or the cheapest. Then rank these ideas in order from most feasible to least feasible. The most feasible idea will be the one that you should try first.

2. Keep a notebook with you

Always write down ideas that come to you. You never know how useful this idea might be later.

3. Go for a walk

For some reason, walking always helps me think better. Whenever I reach a point where I can’t come up with a solution to a problem, I immediately start walking and the ideas begin flowing in.

People who have a too high esteem of themselves can cause quite a few problems to those living and working around them and to themselves as well.

If you are a person with too much self esteem you will find that you have difficulty in relating to people around you and will often come up with obstacles that could be avoided with a little more thought for others.

These kinds of people also cause damage to those, who, on the contrary have a low self esteem of themselves.

The main characteristics of those suffering from high self-esteem are generally those people who show off a lot and are usually self-satisfied.

They are apt to feel they are superior to others and are arrogant about it, they abuse relationships putting themselves in front of others and can become harassed and annoyed if they do not get what they want.

Those with a high self-esteem will automatically assume an air of egotism if they have a particular talent or are successful in life, they will not realise they too have faults and therefore, are not likely to improve them.

Can you recall the last time you were in an emotional slump, such that your beliefs in yourself and your abilities were slipping away? How can we maintain the beliefs we have in ourselves, such that we can live with less anxiety and more joy?

Just imagine the things we would accomplish if we had the belief that we could do absolutely anything, especially if we could maintain a level of self-esteem that no circumstance could shake. What would you be doing?

Self-esteem comes from positive self-imaging, and it is something that we proactively build for ourselves. Self-esteem doesn’t happen while we wait passively.

When we leave it up to external factors, we build our self-esteem on sandy ground. What we want is a rock-solid foundation, and this only comes from building it within.

Throughout our daily routines, our minds are very good at picking up all the things we’ve done wrong, and it makes sure we are aware of them.

With such a counter-productive force at work, we can benefit greatly by regularly working towards establishing and building our own self image.

Whatever you experience at your workplace, negative environment certainly effects productivity, success and job satisfaction.

If you want to succeed in your career, overcoming or counteracting negativity at workplace is very important.

There are few things that you can actually do to overcome negativity at your workplace.

4 Tips to counteract negativity at workplace

1. Develop positive or problem solving attitude

React positively to whatever happens with you and try to find out right solution for your problem. This is the best way to overcome negativity at your workplace.

2. Improve quality of your work

Concentrate more on your work and try to improve quality of your work so that you don’t give any chance to point out.

3. Control your frustration

Don’t show your frustration at work or other people surrounding you, which can have negative impact in addition. When you are disturbed, stop speaking with others and relax yourself for few minutes.

4. Learn new things

There will be no end for learning new things in life or at your work. So, start learning new things at your work, which can not only divert your negative feelings, but also enhances your productivity at work.

An impression is an effect, emotion or representation gained as a result of experience.

As the saying goes, first impression is the best impression: try to make an everlasting impression [Positive Impression] and imagine that it will last forever, whenever you meet important people.

Pay attention to every minute detail to ensure you always leave your best impression. The steps to follow to make a lasting impression include:

1. Have strong emotions: The stronger your emotions, the better will be your impression. Try to arouse a sense of positive emotion in the other person to create a better impact.
2. Be practical: To make a lasting impression, be practical in the examples that you use to talk to them. Relate your topics with everyday life examples so that the other person will remember you.
3. Be unique: Try to be different from others. Think differently from what others are doing to ensure you are clearly noticed and are appreciated. Be confident in what you are thinking and never be afraid to choose a different path. Be creative and imaginative and think differently to make a remarkable impression.

The other day, there was a ruckus in the office, with one colleague shouting, no, screaming at the other, while the rest of us looked on or looked away in frank embarrassment, and apprehension.

This was when our Manager walked in. He appeared unruffled, and retained his cool through the episode, and although he did not take sides or argue for one against the other, he still managed to resolve the conflict peacefully, and restored peace. The two colleagues are almost friends today.

How did this happen? How is it that some people are capable of solving conflicts within minutes, and peacefully at that, while some others helplessly join in the fray and shout and scream like the others?

Here are some tried and tested tips offered by experts, on how exactly to handle a conflict so that peace is restored.

• Stay calm, no matter what the situation is, and let the storm run its course. Quite often, the angry person is trying to provoke you, and if you don’t react, the entire thing will fizzle out in a short while.

Every one experiences tough times at different times of their lives. Facing them with a positive attitude, though not always easy helps you get back on track towards success.

The best way to keep a positive attitude during tough times is to realize that they don’t last forever.

However, implementing them is not always so easy. To make the problem easier to surmount for you, here are a few steps that will help you develop positive attitude in the face of adversity:

1. Stay calm

A natural reaction to tough situations in your professional or personal life is to feel scared, angry or nervous. The first step is to acknowledge the feelings and realize that they won’t help you in any way. Giving in to emotion also makes you less capable. Try not to let such discouraging overwhelm you. Instead, try to remain calm in order to let your mind work efficiently and constructively.

2. Smile often

This is the best way to get rid of worries from your life. Even if you don’t feel like smiling, start by smiling at yourself in the mirror. Ensure that you don’t do it in a pessimistic or sarcastic way. Or watch a funny movie or hang out with someone with whom you can be silly.