Tag Archives: Success

Jul19

Five Essential Leadership Skills for a Successful Business

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Five Essential Leadership Skills for a Successful Business

Last week, we talked about “Three Essential Skills for a Successful Business.” We all have this idea that a boss sits back and relaxes as other people do their roles in the company. The truth is, it takes a lot of work to be able to get to this level as a leader. And even then, people will always need management and opportunities and resources for growth. To get to the level of handling a well-oiled machine, leaders must be extra efficient in leading. It is a leader’s job to influence people to see a common goal for the company and equip them with the career development tools and resources to hone their skills.

Leadership is not about telling people what to do but about influence by example and action. The previous article mentions these 5 powerful skills that every leader needs to master the art of powerful and positive leadership. Let’s dive into each:

1. Communication
The art of communication is very hard to master. Good leaders know how to convey a message using the appropriate words, language, and tone. Body language is also as important as spoken words.

2. Empathy
Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. The best way to describe it is to “put yourself in another’s shoes.” Good leaders have the ability to be a good listener and keep an open mind to accommodate differences in points of views.

3. Delegation
Every hiring manager knows the difficult job of placing the right person in the right role. But once hired, people can go both ways – be the perfect fit, or be unfit for the role. Every leader is essentially assessing their employees’ superpowers and weaknesses at all times in order to be able to delegate the correct job to the right person. The success of the project depends on how well leaders manage their employees strengths and weaknesses.

4. Practical thinking
Basically, leaders must be able to make informed, data based, critical decisions quickly and efficiently without letting their personal biases or emotions influence them.

5. Risk management and foresight
The pandemic has taught a lot of leaders the value of having a business continuity program. Very few imagined the coronavirus scenario. Most are prepared for disaster and cyber risks, but not for a virus that could wipe out entire populations. Now, leaders are more prepared and armed with data in order to map out a business continuity program that includes health and safety scenarios.

To some people, good leadership abilities come naturally. For most of us, it is a learned skill. One that you can hone by reading books, taking courses, and watching and adopting the ways of those who have built successful business empires through diligence, the right cast and crew, and good leadership. What are the leadership skills that you think are essential for every business owner? Share your tips with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

Jul19

5 Easy Ways To Be More Productive Today

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5 Easy Ways To Be More Productive Today

If you’re like us over here at The Help HQ, you probably have quite a full workday ahead of you and are thinking of ways to be as productive as you can with the little time you have. Here’s something we all know but have a hard time putting in practice: productivity is not about spending more time working BUT rather, it is working on things that matter to your work.

Here are 5 tips to improve your focus and be more productive today:

Scan your surroundings

If your environment itself is distracting, then you surely are going to be distracted. Take control of your surroundings so that you can focus on work that matters. If you work in an office, clear your desk of visual noise. If you work from home, have a dedicated workspace and try not to work on the dinner table. Remove clutter. All you really need is your laptop – or monitor, mouse, and keyboard, the rest are aesthetics. 

Try time management strategies

If you don’t have a favorite time management strategy yet, we’ve outlined 6 of the best time management strategies here. pick one and try it on for size. See which one works best with your work style.

Eliminate “busy” work

Busy work is doing tasks for the sake of being busy. However, these tasks do not add any value to your work goals. Some examples are: making copies, typing texts that can be copy-pasted, doing design work that can be created from templates, etc. We’re all guilty of doing this. You know which ones you’re guilty of. Do an audit of your daily tasks and eliminate those that are unimportant so that you have more time to get real work done. There’s no point in doing busy work for the sake of being busy.

Know your peak productivity hours

If you have the ability to schedule your meeting, schedule them in blocks around your most productive times so that you can take advantage of your peak productivity hours. If you’re more productive in the morning, schedule meetings in the afternoon and vice versa. This way you have uninterrupted time to focus on important work.

Say NO

If you’re overwhelmed with work, say NO. get into the habit of saying no to things, people, projects, favors, suggestions, etc that do not add value to your work goals. If you want to increase productivity, you must be clear about your priorities. Don’t say yes to things that will overfill your plate or do not even have time for right now. This isn’t about you not being a team player, this is about you having boundaries and focusing on your purpose. If you can’t say no, at least learn to say “not right now” until you learn to decline new work.

What are your top productivity tips that guarantee success? Share them with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

Jun3

Why Consistency Is The Key To Achieving Your Goals

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Why Consistency Is The Key To Achieving Your Goals

When we see successful people, we may think that they probably are able to spot opportunities at every turn and act on these opportunities accordingly. Successful people may have inspirational stories of overcoming adversity, having incredible natural abilities, having access to resources, or having pure luck. Sure, it can be one or all of those. It can also be great genes, the perfect environment, or serendipity. The stars have aligned perfectly for them.

It’s easier to think that the universe conspired to make these billionaires, athletes, world leaders, and any other famous person successful because it takes the responsibility of having to work for our success off of our hands. Here’s an open secret: consistency in practicing goal-aligned behaviors is the key to success. THAT is something we all have control over, and we can choose to practice.

The brain does not like uncertainty. It looks for order, predictability, and regularity. This is why your brain finds comfort in consistency, because consistency reduces uncertainty and makes things regular and predictable.

Don’t get me wrong, your brain also loves things that are new…and easy. It’s wired to learn but also wired to find the easiest path to success. So if you struggle to stay consistent, let these tips help you:

Be clear about your goals

We always hear about creating SMART goals. That is actually based on sound science. When you have goals that are too vague, the brain depletes its resources in trying to figure out things. Essentially, you are not doing your brain any favors by creating vague goals.

Don’t create your own obstacles

To stay consistent, you have to remove all the stuff that makes reaching your goals hard. Make it as easy on yourself as possible to reach your goals. Prepare your environment. For example, if you want to consistently practice yoga every morning, make it easy by laying out your gear and mat the night before. All you have to do is wake up and practice yoga.

Don’t be too focused on the outcome

Outcomes are important when you’re trying to reach a goal BUT you have to allow room for flexibility. It helps you to be able to think on your feet and re-adjust when necessary.

Don’t rely on willpower alone

Routine and regularity help with consistency for this reason – you will never have to use willpower if you establish a routine. Willpower is a finite resource. Conserve for important scenarios such as decision-making etc. Also, help yourself by eliminating temptation. For example, if your phone is causing you to be distracted at work – put it away or download an app that will block certain social media sites for a while. If you have a serious phone addiction, contemplate locking it in a safe that has a timer to help you stay off your phone while you get work done.

How about you, what are your consistency tips? In which instance has consistency helped you successfully achieve your goals? Share them with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

Oct21

How do you measure your career success?

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How do you measure your career success?

It’s hard to measure success. Others perceive success as an amazing job title, others define it by a big salary, while some believe they’ve made it when they get the corner office. A lot of us fall into the trap of measuring success against other people’s standards. However, like any other area of our life, career success should be defined entirely by your own standards. Each has their own career path to embark on and what works for others may not be a perfect fit for you. 

So what should be the measure of career success if it’s not to be measured by salary, job title, or office real estate? Here are some questions to ask yourself to help you measure if you’re successful in your career.

No Sunday Night Blues

Do you dread going to work on a Monday morning? Do you experience Sunday night blues? Are you thinking of quitting your job at the slightest provocation? If you feel like getting a root canal is better than another day at the office, you are unhappy at work. Something different happens to people who are successful in their careers. They are excited to come to work and look forward to the week ahead. If you can honestly answer “are you happy at work?” with a resounding “yes!”, then congratulations to you. 

Making Waves

One of the biggest motivations for employees is relevance or how much clout they could exercise. Do you feel like just another cog in the wheel or do you think you’re making an impact at work? The answer to this will probably be the bar for how you measure career success. You see, people who know that they are influencing change and feel that they are making valuable contributions to the business go on to have successful careers. If you can confidently say that your opinions are valued and that you are appreciated at work, then congratulations to you.

Learning and Growing

Over time, you will develop a unique set of skills that makes you good at what you do. No one else will have the exact same skillset as you. The lessons you have learned and the experiences you have acquired will help you along your career path. However, trainings, certificates, and accolades will not only get you so far. The true measure of success is how you use your skills and what you have learned to improve yourself and help the people around you. Do you use your learnings to improve the business? Do you inspire and nurture future leaders? Do you create opportunities for yourself and for others? How do you react to failure? What challenges have you overcome and did you improve as a result? If you are still learning and continuing to challenge yourself to grow and improve, then congratulations to you.

How about you? How do you measure career success? We’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave us a comment. Stay humble and hustle hard.

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp