Self-Improvement Archives

The Challenge of Starting a Challenging Conversation

How do you start a challenging conversation? What can you say to raise the issue in a way that sets the tone for an open and constructive discussion? Starting a challenging conversation is nerve-wracking. Most of us treat it like we treat swimming—we close our eyes and just jump in, but this is hardly the best way to go about it. Here is how to start a challenging conversation in a way that sets the tone for an open and non-judgemental exchange.

How to Set Meaningful Professional Goals in 3 Steps

What career path is right for me? How do I find a job that’s rewarding, meaningful, and satisfying? What professional goals should I aspire to? These are all important questions to ask. To have a rewarding and satisfying career, it’s important to set professional goals that are in alignment with both your passions (what you like and care about) and your talents (what you are good at) and devise a strategy to achieve them. Here’s a step-by-step guide to evaluating your options and setting meaningful professional goals.

What Is the Eat the Frog Technique?

What is the Eat the Frog technique from Brian Tracy’s Eat That Frog? How can learning this technique help you manage your time better? Eat That Frog is based on Mark Twain’s metaphor for getting hard things done: if you have to eat a live frog, do it right away and everything after that will be easier by comparison. Brian Tracy used that metaphor to create the Eat the Frog technique in his time management book. Keep reading to learn about the Eat the Frog technique.

Failure Makes You Stronger: Learn From Your Mistakes

How does failure make you stronger? How did Navy SEAL Admiral McRaven break free of his cycle of failure to become successful? In McRaven’s book, Make Your Bed, he describes two events that took place while he was in the SEALs that solidified the belief that failure makes you stronger. Thanks to those lessons, he was eventually able to prove himself as a strong SEAL leader. Keep reading to learn about McRaven’s journey and how failure makes you stronger.

How to Form a Habit: Cues, Rewards, and Cravings

Do you want to know how to form a habit? How does the system of cravings and rewards help us form habits? Knowing how to form a habit can help you break bad habits and form good new habits for the future. To make the most of your habits, you need to understand cravings and the reward cycle. Keep reading to find out how to form a habit.

Don’t Choose the Easy Way Out: Refuse to Quit

What can you learn from Make Your Bed author McRaven about refusing to quit? How can you apply these lessons to your own life? If Navy SEAL Admiral McRaven could take away one lesson from the SEALs, he said it would be the refusing to quit. He learned that quitting is the easy way out, but it didn’t make life easier. Keep reading McRaven’s story to learn why he refuses to quit.

The Two-Minute Rule of Behavior Change

What is the two-minute rule of behavior change? How can it help you make positive behavior changes and stick to them over the long-term? The two-minute rule is a simple principle of behavior change that states that a new habit should take no more than two minutes to perform. The point of the two-minute rule is not to only do the easiest thing. The point is to make a habit of showing up for your desired goal and identity. Keep reading to learn about the two-minute rule of behavior change.

The Art of the Deal: 11 Steps to Business Success

What are the 11 steps from The Art of the Deal? What can you learn from Donald Trump’s approach to business negotiation? In 1987, Donald Trump wrote a book about 11 principles that have guided him through his business decisions. The 11 steps of The Art of the Deal encapsulate these principles in the context of Trump’s real estate projects. Keep reading for Donald Trump’s The Art of the Deal 11 steps.

Prochaska’s Stages of Change: Transtheoretical Model

What is Prochaska’s Stages of Change Model? How does it conceptualize successful behavior change? What are the characteristics of each stage? Prochaska’s Stages of Change Model is an integrative framework that describes the temporal dimension of behavioral change. It stipulates that successful behavior change happens in five stages: pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Read about James Prochaska’s Stages of Change Model.

Goldilocks Rule: Achieve Peak Motivation

What is the Goldilocks Rule? How can it help you stick to new habits and stay focused even when you are running low on motivation? The Goldilocks Rule states that peak motivation is achieved when the task is at the level of just manageable difficulty: not too easy, not too hard. If the challenge is too hard, you will be unsuccessful in your behavior attempts and shy away from trying. Keep reading to learn about the Goldilocks Rule.