Why Do Ambitious Women Have Flat Heads ...

Great TED Talk from Dame Stephanie Shirley ... whose two secrets for success are : 

Surround yourself with first class people, and people that you like 
Choose your partner very, very carefully !

5 Interactive Ways to Convert Website Visitors into Customers

Written by Steve Nelson - http://www.startupguys.net/author/snelson/

Website conversion is a concept that expresses the ability to make visitors do what we want, namely purchase a certain product or service. The most common misconception about increasing conversions is to increase the website traffic.

Well, I disagree to this to an extent. I believe, converting the existing visitors on priority and then working on acquiring targeted traffic only. 

This article will focus on converting the visitors into clients and to do so, all you need to to do is to build a strong relationship with the visitor.

Building a relationship with people you already know is fairly easy, but the key to building a relationship with a visitor about whom you do not know much (except some stats, i.e. the IP, location, time he spent on the website, pages he browsed and so on) and converting visitors into clients is to engage them on your website interactively, so you can know more about them!

Let’s see how we can do so:

Step 1: Offer help through related content; probably the easiest way to do this is to develop FAQs and link them to all the landing pages, so the visitors should not leave the website due to unavailability of information. Along with FAQs, attach a contact form for questions that FAQs do not answer.

Step 2: Offer a free /trial product; of course you should not offer without grabbing the visitors’ basic information, i.e. name, email, phone, company etc.

Step 3: Have Call to Action on all pages; whatever action you want your visitor to take, make sure you have a call for that action on the page. You can have multiple calls to action, depending on the page content.

Step 4: Phone contact; a great way to stay in touch with people is to offer them a phone number that can be accessed without any money. Your main goal is for visitors to call, so use large font and place your number in a visible spot.

Step 5: Live chat; a crucial tool for you is the live chat. This means that you have the possibility of talking to your clients in real time, without the need for a phone. Younger visitors are likely to use this option more. When a person gets on the chat, use your first name and be polite.

Try and build up a strong relationship because customers acquired on a 'relationship' basis are not just customers - their word of mouth can bring you more business!

http://www.startupguys.net/5-interactive-ways-to-convert-website-visitors-into-customers/

Are You Using Perfectionism As A Means Of Procrastination ?

How To Develop The Soft Skills Of The Successful Entrepreneur

Written by Lindsay Broder - The Occupreneur Coach

Can you really teach entrepreneurship? That question gets asked a lot, both in business and academia. Some claim you can learn the skills necessary to be a successful entrepreneur. Others say you either have “it” or you don’t, whatever "it" is.

But I think we're asking the wrong question. It's not about whether you can teach skills to be a successful entrepreneur, but rather what skills need to be taught or learned. For instance, when it comes to the hard skills, anyone can learn them, either in a classroom or on the job. These include things like finance and accounting or branding and marketing or legal. They are the skills that lead to specific action… the “doing” of running your business.

But, more important are the soft skills. These are trickier to learn. They don't come in a textbook or a webinar. They don't even necessarily come from working hard at your job. They come from inside you.

Rather than be taught them, you need to unlock them and foster them. 

Fostering (or "learning") soft skills that don’t come naturally to you might seem challenging and even very uncomfortable. But know that you have more soft skills available to you than you’re currently using. Perhaps you’ve never considered some of them. Or maybe you’ve not had the opportunity to work with a mentor or boss to show you by example. But if you’re willing to look inside yourself and you’re open to making significant changes, you can learn to access and use the many soft skills available to you within yourself. Here are a few examples:

Drive, Ambition and Stamina.

Let’s face it -- being an entrepreneur is really hard at times. You have to push yourself every day to be better when things aren’t going your way. It’s a major effort to keep going when you feel like nothing is right. But that’s why drive, ambition and stamina are necessary. We all have it. We’re born with it. Some have more than others, but you can strengthen yours by looking for inspiration from those with a ton of it and following their lead. It’s like a muscle that if you exercise regularly, it will become stronger.

The Temperament to Manage Adversity.

It’s no secret that entrepreneurship is full of adversity. That’s why people with unbelievable ideas never take the plunge into the entrepreneurial sea. Some entrepreneurs have such trouble managing tough times that they go grey, gain weight, lose their hair and age 20 years from the experience. Then there are those who’ve never looked or felt better from it. These are the people who approach entrepreneurship with joy and who remain calm even in the worst of situations. They don’t let the worst of it get the best of them. While it looks like some people are just born with this kind of temperament, I can tell you that I’ve known many people who have learned how to be this way as they’ve grown as people and as entrepreneurs. They learned to let go and have faith that everything will be OK.

The Capacity to Embrace Change.

If you don’t evolve with the world around you, specifically with your customers’ ever-changing needs, your success will be short-lived. Most people hit a ceiling on growth and become stuck in their ways. Nothing can be more detrimental to running a business. If this is something you struggle with, consider forcing yourself to engage in one activity every day or every week that you’ve never done before that kicks you out of your comfort zone. Or perhaps try taking a new path to work, stopping at a new coffee shop or trying a new food that you’ve never had before.

A Ton of Chutzpah.

You’ve heard the term, “Fake it til you make it?" Some people are just really good at this. We usually call them bullshit artists. But even if you think you’re well prepared for your entrepreneurial journey, you’ll more than likely uncover a few holes that you’ll have to mend on the go. At some point you’ll likely find yourself pitching for business that you are pretty sure is out of your league or you might have to pull out all the stops and get in front of people to sell your business who might expect you to be much more experienced than you are. I never advocate for lying about anything but there is a way to message your business that isn’t lying but makes you sound pretty darn good! But if you aren’t willing to fake it, you’ll never make it or it will take you a much longer time to.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/243059

Do You Have Entrepreneurial DNA ?

The Founder Institute, a start up training and launch program in the U.S, has developed a test to identify entrepreneurial personality traits. Take the abbreviated quiz below for a quick evaluation of your entrepreneurial prowess.

PART 1: Each puzzle has three rows and three columns of designs.
One pattern in each group on the left is missing and has been replaced by a question mark. Choose the missing pattern from the eight on the right.

PART 2: For each pair of personality statements below, select the one that describes you the best. You: 

8
a. Have a good word for everyone    
b. Carry the conversation to a higher level

9 
a. Have a vivid imagination
b. Pay attention to details

10 
a. Get excited by new ideas 
b. Are not easily bothered by things   

11 
a. Believe that others have good intentions
b. Have a rich vocabulary

12
a. Make friends easily 

b. Can say things beautifully

To take the full test, visit fi.co/dna.

TALLY YOUR SCORE:
For each of the following correct answers, give yourself one point. 

10-12 POINTS: You have very strong entrepreneurial DNA. You have the curiosity and originality necessary to challenge accepted norms, and you can quickly solve complex problems in a constantly changing playing field. 

6-9 POINTS: You have moderate entrepreneurial DNA. You have curiosity and the ability to be original, and you are a good problem solver. However, some of your interests and abilities lie outside the entrepreneurial realm.  

3-5 POINTS: You have some entrepreneurial traits, but many of your talents appear to lie outside the entrepreneurial realm. You might be interested in caring for others, or on paying careful attention and working hard at the job you already have. 

1-2 POINTS: Like more than 95 percent of people, your interests and abilities appear to lie outside the entrepreneurial realm. 

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/243059

Is Being An Entrepreneur Like Learning To Fly While You're In The Air ?

I’ve heard it said that being an entrepreneur is like flying an aeroplane whilst learning how to do it and whilst still building it. There’s no manual in other words, so you fly by the seat of your pants making it up as you go. It’s a good analogy although unless you are literally doing that, no-one’s going to die from your mistakes !

The truth is though from man’s earliest days to now, everything we have is a result of a small percentage of the population having the balls to fly by the seat of their pants. That’s one definition of being an entrepreneur. As time goes by however we have the opportunity to study what others have done. We can learn from their mistakes and successes.

In our present era we now have a massive amount of that collected experience to refer to being an entrepreneur. We don’t always have to be the inventor. We can calculate our risks and we can find mentors – people who have trodden the path we’re about to start out on.

Being An Entrepreneur In The Modern World

There are loads of stats out there that show a huge increase in entrepreneurialism. People of all ages and backgrounds are taking their first steps into business and self-reliance. That’s been made possible by technology, in particular the internet – all of which was created by …… you guessed it – entrepreneurs.

We might tend to think of these pioneers as dreamers, scientists, engineers and inventors but in reality all of these things are based on someone being an entrepreneur. Read any of their stories and you’ll realise that along the way they were also on a voyage of self- discovery.

That’s why there’s so much personal and self-development intertwined in so much of the self-help information available about being an entrepreneur. It’s part of the process. After all if you’re moving into self-employment from employment things are going to be very different. That’s why so many people basically give up too soon.

It doesn’t take much effort to just keep turning up for a job after all and getting that guaranteed pay check at the end of every month – even if that pay packet hasn’t changed much for years. Entrepreneurs can’t afford to just turn up and usually there’s no one but themselves breathing down their necks to get things done.

Another piece of wisdom suggests that successful entrepreneurs tend to be the ones who are prepared to stay in a state of no result longest. That’s outside most people’s comfort zone but that’s where the magic happens !

Can You Buy a Manual About Being An Entrepreneur? 

With an online business the financial risks of being an entrepreneur are far less than with a traditional one. That’s why so many are doing it these days. The failure rate though is high if you decide to go it alone. So again it’s wise to benefit from the experience and mentorship of those who have gone before.

It’s still a young industry but the pioneers of digital marketing have been around for a good number of years now. Luckily some of them are prepared to share their knowledge and experience.

Not many of them however dole out that experience with the generosity of Six Figure Mentors (SFM) and Digital Experts Academy (DEA). Their set up is like a real world university for online entrepreneurs.

What they’ve done is taken apart two massively successful online marketing careers – those of co-founders Stuart Ross and Jay Kubassek. They’ve looked at the mistakes they made along the way and the systems and strategies they used to overcome them.

They then reverse engineered all that and built it back into a proven system that combines nuts and bolts business systems, self-development and cutting edge education. The result is a community based platform that anyone can enter as fledgling or experienced entrepreneurs keen to take advantage of the technological world we now live in.

Anyone who is focussed on being an entrepreneur can join on whatever basis they like. They can simply be students and use the training and systems to their own ends, building online businesses in any field they like. For those looking for a business in a box, there are options to partner with SFM and DEA and earn high commissions as they learn.

Being An Entrepreneur Online 

The beauty of this is that it can all be done at a pace to suit an individual’s circumstances. There’s no need to take a massive leap of faith, give up the day job and jump in all guns blazing. Being an entrepreneur online is fairly risk free.

Those who aspire to building 6, 7 or even 8 figure online empires are catered for with a multi-level partnership programme. Those who just want to create some extra revenue or to boost an existing business through learning digital marketing are also catered for.

Whatever the ambition the benefits of leveraging this platform are huge. Yes there are costs but I can’t think of any offline business that wouldn’t cost far more to start or maintain.

SFM and DEA provide a free 7-day video workshop for anyone who wants to look at what they do. It includes a lot of downloadable in itself quite valuable, with no strings attached. So if you are ready to fly but don’t fancy building the plane yourself grab those videos by clicking on the link below.

http://davemenzies.com/starting-a-business/being-an-entrepreneur/

10 Steps To Business Growth - Steps 9 & 10

10 Steps To Business Growth - Steps 7 & 8

10 Steps To Business Growth - Steps 5 & 6

10 Steps To Business Growth - Steps 3 & 4

10 Steps To Business Growth - Steps 1 & 2

Three Ways Successful Leaders Stay Grounded

Written by Andrew Spence - andrewspenceonline.com

Being in charge of people, an organization, and the most important outcomes of that organization can be the most rewarding but also the most challenging of all roles.

Truth be told, there is no shortage of stress for leaders whether they are in charge of a team of two or a company of twenty. While heading a team at the workplace, they also have roles to play in their families at home and within their own social networks.

Yet the most successful leaders are those who have the ability to balance it all—to maintain a sense of passion and vision at work and to remain authentic in their personal lives.

This is what successful leaders do to stay grounded in the face of the many challenges of leadership:

They balance out their sources of motivation

There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Due to the nature of leadership, many leaders derive their motivation largely from extrinsic sources—from being praised by others, accumulating material possession, accomplishing more and more, or taking on more projects.

These external factors are great and they offer personal validation. However, they are also very fleeting. If you are no longer able to receive a large paycheck or people are no longer validating you as you wish they would, would you break? Would you lose your passion and your leadership vision in times of cutbacks or organizational adversity?

Grounded leaders are not only motivated by external elements; more importantly, they are driven by intrinsic values such as personal happiness, morality, and care for others.

Just because you care about your sense of inner happiness does not mean you are softie—it actually means that you are adequately self-aware to be able to conscientiously deal with challenges.

They have a strong support network

No man is an island; this euphemism has never been truer for leaders. More than anyone, a leader requires a trustworthy team of people that he can go back to for support during good and bad times.

A leader’s support network typically entails many people including a significant other, family members, peers, business advisors, mentors and coaches.

Without a network, it can become very difficult to effectively manage emotions, deal with difficult decisions, and lead with perspective.

Just knowing you are not alone is enough to give you the courage to go on with your work, knowing someone has your back.

They nurture their emotional wellbeing

To quote Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, emotional intelligence (EI) is the ‘sine qua non of leadership.’ While technical skills and intelligence are important to perform the job, Goleman found that:

Goleman’s five components of emotional intelligence include:

1. Self-awareness- the ability to know your weaknesses, strengths, emotions, drives, and needs
2. Self-regulation- The ability to control emotions and impulses and to channel them in a useful a way
3. Motivation- The drive to achieve beyond expectations, regardless of the circumstances
4. Empathy- The ability to consider other people’s feelings while making smart decisions
5. Social skill- The ability to find common ground with others and then inspire them to move in the same direction

All five of these skills are extremely valuable especially when a leader is faced with a personal affliction and still expected to play the leadership role, and during work-related crises where your team still looks up to you to give guidance.

How to Stay Grounded

It is a time of great change — there are so many opportunities for entrepreneurial ventures, so many young people are getting into the workforce, and technology has broken seemingly insurmountable barriers. But it is also a time when the economic outlook is unstable and workplace dynamics are changing fast. There is a great need for leaders to practice habits that enable them to stay grounded in the face of all these good and challenging times. These grounded leaders are the ones who will be able to transition their teams to better times ahead.

http://www.andrewspenceonline.com/3-ways-successful-leaders-stay-grounded/

Meet The Mums Who Are Setting Up Their Own Businesses

"The term 'mumpreneur' dates back about 15 years to a feature in Practical Parenting magazine, I think," explains mother, entrepreneur and writer Antonia Chitty, author of many books, including 129 Brilliant Business Ideas for Mums and The Mumpreneur Guide. "When I started writing, 'work-at-home mum' was another often-used term, but that didn't tell the full story."

Chitty says the number of mothers with babies and young children who run businesses has grown enormously in recent years. "It's become mainstream and more recently there's been a bit of a backlash against the mumpreneur label, because women want to be seen as businesspeople in their own right."

Such women come from all walks of life, but, according to Chitty, they all share a determination to make a better life for themselves and their families. "Many women are spurred on to start their own business because their employment circumstances aren't sufficiently family-friendly. Self-employment gives mums the control they need over their working hours, while enabling them to generate income. And many of them come up with business ideas after finding solutions to challenges they face as a parent."

Mother of invention

One such example is Surrey-based Cara Sayer, 41-year-old managing director of Really Simple Ideas Ltd, whose most successful trademark is SnoozeShade, an award-winning range of sun and sleep shades for prams. She started her business in 2008, following a 20-year career in marketing and events and the birth of her daughter, Holly.  "I got fed up with blankets falling off Holly's pram when we were out and she needed to sleep, so I decided to make my own shade. Other people thought it was great and wanted one, so I had a prototype made and took it to a trade show.

"The response was overwhelmingly positive – I even secured an order from JoJo Maman Bébé, a leading baby and toddler retailer started by the mother and entrepreneur Laura Tenison. I had to quickly go into full-scale production to achieve their four-month delivery deadline."

Sayer also impressed buyers from John Lewis, Mothercare and others: "It just sort of snowballed," she smiles. Guided by customers' feedback, she developed 10 products in three years. The business now turns over more than £250,000, selling more than 40,000 units to customers in 20 countries.

"Anyone who says juggling being a mother and primary childcarer with running a business is easy is either fibbing or has a full-time nanny. It's a struggle to balance time spent on the business and time with Holly. However, as a businesswoman, I hope I'm setting a positive example for her. She's very proud of her mummy and loves the fact she's pictured on the packaging."

Maternal instinct

Another successful entrepreneur and mum (to Barnaby, 10, Maisy, 8 and Monty, 3) is 39-year-old Wendy Shand, who runs Lincolnshire-based Tots to Travel, a family-friendly holiday villa company.

"I set the business up in 2006, following a near disastrous holiday in 2005 to France with my husband, son and baby daughter. Barnaby was two-and-a-half and fell into an unenclosed swimming pool, but thankfully he came to no harm," Shand recounts. "The property wasn't equipped for small children, while having to take so much stuff from home with you is a logistical nightmare for parents.

"I recognised the business opportunity – and was certainly looking for one. I'd worked in PR and marketing and had got married to my husband, who was in the RAF, so I had to move away from London. I needed something that offered greater flexibility, so I became a reception teacher for a while, but working in the public sector was very frustrating.

Greater flexibility

"I always wanted to run my own business and was just waiting for the right opportunity. I knew it had to be something that was scalable. If you are to successfully combine your career with children you need flexibility, but often you don't get it while working for someone else."

Initially, Shand's startup offered family-friendly breaks to nine carefully selected gîtes in France, but now customers can choose from almost 400 child-friendly properties in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Canaries and the Balearics. The business has turned over £4m in seven years and now employs six office-based staff in the UK, with six representatives overseas who carry out property inspections.

Enormous opportunities

"I've grown my business slowly – deliberately so – because development has been planned 

around having and bringing up my children. The older they became, the more time I could dedicate to my business. Balancing both roles is difficult at times, but you have to keep plugging away.

"You must have a good business idea, but you don't have to come up with something entirely new, just something that's better. I didn't invent the holiday lettings business, I just created a business tailored to a market that wasn't being catered for. There are enormous opportunities out there for mothers who want to start their own business."

 http://www.theguardian.com/small-business-network/2013/may/31/meet-mums-mothers-small-business-mumpreneur

What Traits Do You Need to Start Your Own Small Business ?

Jeff Burnham is a freelancer and business owner who writes about careers, personal finance,
and tips for making money on the side.

For the longest time, I thought that the best path to career and financial success was to get in with a company and slowly but surely climb the corporate ladder. I did that in several industries, and although I did achieve some successes, I never was in a position that I truly enjoyed. Then it occurred to me that I’ll never get rich by working for someone else. Although I don’t consider myself to be wealthy financially, I have launched several small businesses and earn a comfortable living with a lot of flexibility.

When it comes to starting your own venture, there are certain character traits that are essential. Here are five traits you need to successfully start your own small business:

1. Work Ethic

You’re going to need a solid work ethic for two reasons: First, if you’re smart, you’ll begin your small business while still working at your current career. That takes a ton of pressure off you in the beginning regarding revenue generation. Many businesses take some time to turn a profit, so it helps to keep cash flow coming in from another source until that happens. And second, starting a small business requires a ton of hard work – regardless of any overnight Internet sensation success stories you may have read about.

2. Time Management

Again, if you start your biz while at your current job, you’ll need to maximize each and every minute of your working day. Create a to-do list, cut off all Internet distractions such as social media or fantasy sports leagues, and take care of personal errands like grocery shopping or dry cleaning on your daily trek to and from work. Proper time management is crucial, as every minute you can free up is one more minute you can devote to your small business.

3. Passion

If you don’t truly believe in what you’re doing, your chances of success are minimized. My passion is helping others with personal finance issues (among other things), but if you’re not supporting a cause you truly feel enthusiastic about, you’ll have a hard time staying motivated. Often, the joy it brings you is the only thing you’ll have to fall back on when times get hard.

4. Ingenuity and Flexibility

Being creative and ingenious are also parts of small business success. You might think about starting a landscaping business, but later find that organic gardening is more popular than landscaping with ornamentals. If you thought your ticket to success was social media marketing, but that hasn’t worked out, you might have to branch out into other advertising options. Being willing and able to change is a key asset in small business success.

5. Perseverance

Unless you’re extremely lucky and find success rather early on, you’ll need to be patient. I wrote a book about personal finance and paid for it to be published myself, yet never generated much revenue. However, about six months following publication, I was recognized and eventually hired by a more popular personal finance website – and that’s where I draw the majority of my income today. Realize that patience is a virtue when it comes to launching your small business idea.

If you’ve thought about launching your own small business, but have neither the funds nor the time to devote to it, consider using Fiverr^® to get yourself out of the starting blocks. It’s a stellar strategy if you want to get into small business ownership while still working at a traditional career, and you never know what might come of it. Although there are certainly other methods to small business success, don’t discount Fiverr as a way to break into the world of entrepreneurship.

http://blog.fiverr.com/traits-need-start-small-business/

How To Cure Entrepreneurial Brain Freeze

Written by Ami Kassar - small business advocate & founder of multifunding.com 

Some entrepreneurs spend months trying to raise more money than they actually need to achieve proof of concept. Many get stuck on the grand vision of their company's future instead of deploying the resources and assets at their disposal. I call this entrepreneurial brain freeze.

When I started my first venture, it took me six months to get a meeting with angel investors. I was so excited that I spent 72 hours straight marathon writing a business plan and financial forecast in order to convince the investors why I needed $2 million to start my company.

I showed up in a fancy suit and tie, and the first thing that the investors did was rip up my forecast and ask me what I could do with just $200,000. I was initially shocked that they would lowball me like that, but in the end, realized they were right. This experience taught me, in retrospect, that if I had just tried to raise $200,000 instead of $2 million months earlier, I would have reached the starting line much faster. I had to cure my own case of entrepreneurial brain freeze.

At my loan-advisory office, we speak with business owners who show the common symptoms of brain freeze: they’re stuck within the confines of their company vision and unwilling to stray from their buttoned up business plans. Before discussing funding options, we first ask them what they need the money for and why. The reality is that usually there is a way to meet their objectives with much less money.

The business owner might be foregoing short-term profits by seeking less startup capital, but they are moving commerce sooner, and that is what's important. The best proof of a viable business is active commerce, not funding.

A few weeks ago, I met an entrepreneur who wanted to start a golf simulator business. He wanted to raise money for his own facility, with two owned or leased machines, and also wanted more capital to market his business. At the time of the call, though, he didn’t even have a proof of concept, no customers on the horizon and yet wanted to borrow or raise a couple of hundred thousand dollars in equity.

I had to take a step back with this entrepreneur instead of pushing him toward a loan that he would later regret. A better option was to partner with local golf stores by installing his simulators in their shops. By piggybacking off of the store’s existing customer base, the entrepreneur was drastically cutting his marketing dollars while also achieving a proof of concept in exchange for profit sharing with the existing golf store.

Instead of seeking $500,000 to launch his business, the entrepreneur only needed $50,000 to get started. This is a much more reasonable goal.

If you’re trying to borrow money before you’ve gotten one customer, you’re likely going to give away more equity than you have to, or it’s going to cost you way too much to borrow money. There can be huge benefit in shrinking a grandiose vision, shaking off the entrepreneurial brain freeze and proceeding with calculated baby steps rather than rushing a new business to the finish line.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/241770

How To Find Your Passion And Discover Your Inner Self

5 Steps To The Elusive "Work Life Balance"

Work-life balance. We all aim for it. We all want to work hard but still get enough time for our hobbies and interests, and most importantly, our personal relationships. But work-life balance can feel like an impossible dream for most of us.

Well, not really. Actually, it may be easier than you think to find work-life balance by following these simple steps:

Figure out what it is that keeps you inspired.

It’s hard to get up in the morning knowing that you are going through another difficult and stressful day. But if you have something positive – a source of inspiration – to look forward to at the end of the day or at the end of the week, you wake up every day with zeal and enthusiasm. You wake up feeling determined and motivated to get all your tasks done. Because when you are motivated, you release a lot of energy. When you arrive home, whilst you may feel tired, you won’t feel drained. You still feel thankful that another day has gone.

Make a “today” list.

Having a to-do list is a great strategy to liberate your mind from thinking too much and having to remember it all. However, most of us are fond of making a long “to-do” list, which consists of their present and future plans. Creating a long list is not really a good idea. It can only make you feel stressed and overwhelmed. Another thing, you may also run the risk of having to lose sight of the few things that are more important. So come up with your daily list. Before you start your day, come up with a list of at least three things that you want to get done. Accomplishing them gives you more satisfaction than focusing on a lot of tasks that can be done on other days.

Just walk out the door.

Are you one of the many workers who used to go home late because they still have to finish stuff in the office? Do you hate doing overtime work but feel obligated too? Once the bell rings, signalling you to go home, just walk out the door and leave. You don’t have to be an ideal employee who has to wait for others to go before you leave. The company will not fall into pieces if you delay reading one email until the next day, or if you don’t clean your desk before you go. Don’t fret about unfinished tasks. You will be back tomorrow, anyway.

Focus when at work.

Many people think that the more hours they spend working, the more productive and successful they become. Unfortunately, it isn’t the case. Did you know that when you are in a state of ‘flow’, you actually become up to 10 times more productive than when you are distracted? Starting today, try to rearrange your schedule so you can work in a ‘flow’. It is a wonderful state wherein you are feeling totally immersed in the task at hand – as if nothing’s ever existed apart from you and what you are doing. Take a break when you need it. Don’t force yourself to work when you can’t. Make sure that no matter how busy you are, you still give enough time to recharge your batteries. Remember, you are not a robot. You do need time to rest as well.

Be fully present when spending ‘quality time’.

Whether you’re spending quality time with yourself or with your friends and family, make sure you are being mindful. Otherwise, it will not make a difference. For example, if you’re having a dinner with your family and all you do is eat and check emails, then you are not observing a good life-work balance. Technically, you are still working. Be more physically and emotionally present when with your loved ones. You can only experience real fun and joy when you are immersed in the present moment.

Engage in a creative task.

Many jobs today require analytical thinking more than creativity. But no matter what your job is, you should keep going after creative pursuits. Whether it’s writing, sketching, baking or cooking – whatever it is that keeps your creative juices flowing – do it. Creative thinking goes a long way in keeping your stress levels low. At the same time, it boosts your mental health too.

http://blog.naturaltherapyforall.com/2015/01/14/5-steps-to-the-elusive-work-life-balance/

How Shorter Brainstorming Sessions Can Help With Developing Great Ideas

Written by Andrew Spence - andrewspenceonline.com

Did you know that the brain is able to generate 75 % of ideas within the first 50% of a brainstorming session?

What happens in the rest or latter 50% of the time? Well, several things tend to happen:

·         People get stuck on one seemingly ‘good’ idea and stop thinking about other innovative ideas- this is also known as anchoring or conformity pressure

·         Those who have a propensity to talk more and to strongly defend their ideas often take over the meeting and sideline those who are less inclined to present their ideas in a crowd

·         The session swirls out of control and into a black hole of too many ideas

Are brainstorming sessions necessary? Yes, especially if you care about innovation as a way of staying competitive.

Some of the largest companies including Apple and Google have dedicated entire groups to brainstorm and come up with feasible ideas that will help the companies stay ahead of the game for many years to come.

A great way to productively make the most of ideation sessions is to actually make them shorter to avoid the pitfalls presented above.

Here are some practicable ideas for shortening your brainstorming sessions to come up with truly innovative and implementable ideas:

Keep it intimate

If you have ever been to a meeting that has one too many people tagging along, you know that the experience is often overwhelming. Such meetings end without any tangible results or bounce off points for subsequent meetings. When it comes to generating ideas or problem solving, one of the best ways to keep the sessions short and to tap the best ideas is to have a maximum of the five most relevant people in attendance.

To ensure that these sessions are productive, try to invite team members who are not characteristically contrarian or too domineering as they could unnecessarily prolong the meetings.

There’s need for a designated leader

Just like in any meeting, brainstorming sessions need a leader who will set the parameters for discussion. Of course, the goal of brainstorming is to generate several ideas before discussing and implementing the most feasible one. However, too many ideas generated in an unstructured meeting often creates a black hole of protracted sessions that are ultimately futile.

A designated leader will be able to point out when a discussion is going beyond the parameters, thereby refocusing the meeting to maximize on the time allotment.

Practice brainwriting

Research shows that brainwriting sessions are 40% more productive than a typical, think-out-loud brainstorming gathering. As the name suggests, brainwriting entails writing out ideas prior to coming together to discuss them.

Why is this process more effective than the traditional method of ideation?

First, brainwriting solves the black hole scenario. Instead of having too many people talking over each other and presenting different ideas all at once, brainwriting allows team members to present their ideas systematically, each one at a time. More importantly, presenting and discussing ideas systematically helps to eliminate overwhelm and save time.

Second, brainwriting eliminates the problem of anchoring. During a brainstorming session, the first ideas that are presented typically set pace for the rest of the meeting and subsequent ones. The problem with clinging onto these first ideas or succumbing to the pressure to conform is that it erases the spirit of innovation and true ideation.

Third, done right, brainwriting can reduce the competitive nature of traditional brainstorming sessions, for example by requiring participants to anonymously present their ideas to a team leader prior to coming together to discuss the ideas.

Void of competitiveness, brainstorming sessions tend to be more productive and unbiased.

Lastly, brainwriting allows team members to think through their ideas before presenting them. A major problem with the traditional brainstorming session is that it encourages participants to blurt out ideas that are not thought through or are simply not feasible. In effect, a lot of time is wasted sifting through these unprocessed ideas. On the contrary, writing before speaking creates an atmosphere of relatively refined ideas that can be polished up for implementation.

Brainstorming Tips

With teams facing a lot of pressure on their time, there is greater need to reduce the time spent on meetings while still supporting innovation. Cutting your brainstorming time into half is not only feasible; it also allows team members to focus on producing the best ideas that are anchored on a spirit of invention.

http://www.andrewspenceonline.com/how-shorter-brainstorming-sessions-can-help-with-developing-great-ideas/