Shortform Books

The Focus Question: How to Identify the Real Problem

What is the focus question that all coaches, managers, and leaders should ask? How can they help their team get to the heart of the issue? When you’re coaching, you want to start by asking fairly open-ended questions to get the conversation flowing. However, there comes a time when you need to hone in and identify the heart of the matter. That’s when it’s time to ask the focus question. Continue reading to learn the focus question that all coaches should ask.

Design Your Life Dashboard: Take Stock of Your Life

When is the last time you took stock of your life? How could designing your life dashboard help? You want to take a certain direction in life. But, before you can know which direction to go, you must clarify where you are right now. Designing your life dashboard can help you take stock of your life and figure out what’s working and what isn’t. Read more to learn how to design your life dashboard and use it to find direction.

How to Overcome Bias When It Gets in Your Way

Is bias holding you back from achieving your goals? How can you overcome bias? Everyone has biases of one kind or another. Those who strive to achieve great things have to find a way to overcome bias so that it doesn’t get in the way of clear thinking and action. Author and former rocket scientist Ozan Varol suggests two ways you can get these blind spots out of your way. Read more to learn how to overcome bias.

Grant Cardone’s 5-Step Sales Process

What is the 5-step sales process? Who should adopt Grant Cardone’s 5 step process? The 5-step sales process is Grant Cardone’s sales formula for figuring out customer needs and presenting a product in a way that will convince the customer to make the purchase. You will need Cardone’s formula if your existing sales process is dysfunctional or you simply want to try something new. Read on to discover Grant Cardone’s 5-step sales process.

How to Get Customers and Grow Your Business

How do you get customers for your business? Why should you start with selling to people you know? Businesses that figure out how to get customers maximize their networks and leverage cold calling. Your network is the list of people you already know that will be willing to buy from you, while cold calling involves reaching out to potential buyers that you don’t know personally. You should always start with people you know because they want you to succeed and you are already familiar with their expectations. Read on to learn more about how to get customers for your business.

Happiness and Success: Which Comes First?

What is the connection between happiness and success? Can being happy increase your chances of success? In The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor shows that happier people tend to be more successful. It’s often thought that success brings us happiness, but it’s actually the other way around. Here’s the connection between happiness and success.

Happiness in Positive Psychology: What We Can Learn

What is said about happiness in positive psychology? What can we learn from studying the science of happiness? The field of psychology has historically been uninterested in studying happiness. Instead, it’s focused on unhappiness and mental health challenges. The relatively new field of positive psychology inverts the lens: Instead of focusing on why unhappy people are suffering, positive psychology asks why happy people are thriving. Keep reading for more about happiness in positive psychology.

Russia’s Shock Therapy: Neoliberalizing Russia

Who instituted Russia’s shock therapy? How did economic shock therapy affect the Russian economy? In Russia, shock therapy didn’t have the promised results. Yeltsin swore that there would be around six bad months, but by the end of his year of emergency powers, Russia would recover and be a world superpower again. However, a year later, millions of Russians had lost their life savings and a full third of the people had fallen into poverty. In this article, you’ll learn how shock therapy unfolded in Russia, and what happened in its aftermath.

Attributes of a Great Leader: Would You Make the Cut?

What makes a great leader? What qualities would you ascribe to a leader you’d be willing to follow? Since the mid-1980s, Barry Posner and James Kouzes, the authors of The Leadership Challenge, have been conducting studies asking people in both business and government what qualities they value in a leader. They’ve found that consistently people want the same qualities in a leader whose leadership they would be willing to follow. Here are the four attributes of a great leader, according to Posner and Kouzes.

How to Stop Being a Nice Guy: The Ultimate Guide

Do you want to know how to stop being a Nice Guy? What effective tips can help you overcome Nice Guy Syndrome? In the face of struggle, dissatisfied men use the tactic they know best: Be nice. However, according to Dr. Robert Glover, “being nice” rarely yields the desired outcome, and Nice Guys’ insecurities frequently emerge as passive-aggressive or dishonest behavior. In No More Mr. Nice Guy, he offers a step-by-step plan that tells you how to stop being a Nice Guy in your personal life, career, and relationships. Find out how to stop being a Nice Guy below.