Where Are All The Great Careers? Hiding Right Here.

We all know the common and famous careers out there. Did you know there are many great career paths that are 'hidden' from the normal news mainstream? Careers we probably know exist if we really thought about it, but we tend to forget them when we look at the entire career picture.

Put on your seatbelt — here we go!

Welding - From many schools, you can graduate with a welding degree. The average salary for a welding engineer is $48K to $101K. That's not too good for some people, but if you had a wife who worked the same job as well, and only spent half of each others pay check. Hey, you'd have 1 million in 10 years.

School Administration - Most people think education degrees can only lead to being a teacher but if you get your masters in administration you will be a principal making well over six figures.

Technical Writing - There is a wide variety of sub-specializations which lean more toward engineering, how-to's, or investigations. Even at a little company, there's more random stuff than you would think (DNA, DEA, bacteria, electrical engineering, IT, etc.) Most get a BA, but people who just have AAs that work in the field.

The U.S. Coast Guard - Most people don't know that it's an actual military service or that it even exists. All the military benefits and living by the ocean or water your entire career with very few exceptions.

Bioinformatics - Seriously, perfect for young people who know how to use computers and love looking at a screen all day. Why not do that working for Pharma or the Government? $100k+ entry-level if you set yourself up the right way.

Real Estate Appraisal - Combines an interest in real estate and allows for a guaranteed paycheck. Paid on a type of "commission" basis, but you  earn a percentage of the fee a client pays the company (most clients are banks, at least at my company). So unlike a lot of sales positions, you TRULY make as much money (to a point) as you'd like. Because you're paid on "commission" or fee split as we call it, your schedule can be busy or quiet, and you're also practically guaranteed work.

Car Sales - If you get into the game, you can quickly become a finance or desk manager making $120+ a year. If you keep moving up you can triple that as a General Manager. If you work hard enough and own your own dealership you can rake it in without doing much anymore.

The Army - I don't think people realize that Army will pay for your ENTIRE COLLEGE fund, send you to a great school, and offer the best benefits in the United States arsenal. Also their MOS's transfer fantastically into the civilian world. You will always have a leg up on people for being in the military. And if you're worried about dying out there, note that you're statistically more likely to drive than you are going to war.

Power Line Technician - Everyone needs power, even in recessions. A past client of mine makes about $150k a year and his job is not dependent on the economy.

Physician's Assistant - I know a lot of young people want to be a doctor, but PA's get a lot of medical training and can function as near autonomous primary care physicians in the right setting, or essentially as permanent resident physicians. Doctor's love having you around; once you're in a practice long enough, I've heard many doctor's will give your opinions equal if not more weight than other physicians. The pay is also excellent; I've heard people say it's half the work/training for 90% of the pay of a physician - it's food for thought.

Electrofishing - A pal of mine performs fisheries research in Canada and gets to catch fish all day with electricity to determine populations, tag the fish and release them back into the wild. Spend all summer in the mountains and write reports on your findings in the winter. BEST JOB EVER.

Low Voltage Technician (a.k.a. Satellite / Cable guy/gal) - You're out on your own, virtually unsupervised after training. See different sites every day. Decent career path to management or senior tech. New technology all the time. And as much talk as there is about cord cutting, a vast majority of households still have some form of copper to their home for tv or internet. They make more than some of my friends who have degrees, and there's no certificate or college program required. Show an interest, and your local cable, satellite or phone company will probably hire you. It's a recession-resistant career, and you can find work anywhere in the world.

Railroading - Railroads are hiring like crazy. You don't need a degree for most of the jobs in the field. If you do want a degree they'll pay for you to go to school once you've been with the company for a year. It's easy to move up and they don't pay into social security - they have a completely separate retirement fund. A 20-year old locomotive engineer makes around $100k a year with no prior work experience.

Math - Take math as far as it can possibly go, no matter what your major is, because to be an EXPERT in any field means to know the math behind it. You can do EVERYTHING with advanced mathematics. Even if you don't become a scientist, at the very least you'll quickly be a department or regional manager.

Optical Engineering - 100% job placement, 6-figure average starting salaries with 4 years of schooling/training, entirely because of the mismatch in demand/supply of qualified people. Designing and building optical systems for everything from your SLR camera's lens, to MRI medical imaging, to Heads-up displays like the Oculus Rift. The best part about it is how diverse the field is - a mixture of engineering, science, computer programming, and hands-on fabrication trade skills all centered around simple trigonometric equations - it's mostly triangles. The work is fun and the pay is great no matter what level of schooling you get, whether it's a Bachelors, Masters or even PhD. There are three premier optics programs in the US at the UArizona, URochester, and CREOL - but plenty of other smaller programs around the US and the world.

Welding - Welders are in great demand and will make $80k starting out and have the potential to be making over $100k with experience. A friend of mine is a chemical plant manager and he said that he pays his engineers $110k and he is worried that they aren't paying enough.

HVAC - Heating and Air. It's a skilled trade which requires minimal physical labor and pays $75-$95K starting wages. Takes 2 years to get your education and the courses are dirt cheap and the jobs are in huge demand. Employers are asking job seekers to join the organization, they  pay for the education, and they'll wait for them to get certified.

Food Science - It's a growing industry because as the population increase more and more people must eat, and everyone has to eat! Because of this, it's very rewarding, and if you weren't aware, the food industry has lots of cash. A client of mine is paid exponentially more than many of my friends do, and it's only her first year out of college. In fact, she's well ahead of the average US salary. Additionally, the employment rate is near 100%, and for graduating students in food science have 100% job placement (which few majors can say). Also, it's one of those majors that will never trend or be posted on Yahoo as a growing area, so the market never gets flooded for food scientists and they are always in high demand.

Patent Analyst - Most patent analysts love their job. They wake up every morning with a new analytic problem to solve and get paid for using their brain power. They learn about the newest tech while it's still in a 'skunkworks' phase and try to describe how they will change the world. What better job is there?

Industrial/Organizational Psychologist - Amazingly great job that lets you branch into academia, organizations, or consulting. Allows you to focus on different aspects of organizations - restructuring, selection, retention, leadership development, etc. Can also go into "Data Scientist" roles. These pay $100K-$250K starting off.

Actuary - Only if you're good with math. You need a bachelor's degree - you can start working and taking tests to become fully certified. While you work, you get time on the job to study for exams. Pay depends on how many exams you have passed. If you have all of the exams completed, minimum pay of around $150k. You can make well more than that and there is lots of room for promotion. Probably the easiest and fastest route to becoming a VP of a company if you're a hard worker.

Image provided by bpsusf at Flickr. Info gleaned from research on Reddit.

Top 10 Reasons Why You're Not Getting A Job.

As a business and career coach, I run into so many different people every day. I attend conferences and events, I run workshops and webinars, and I host team masterminds for all types of professionals. And guess what? When I talk to the unemployed, I've heard all the excuses why you don't have a job. Here are the top ten realities of your job search today:

1. You're waiting for the phone to ring or the limo to pull up to your house and whisk you off to your new position.

This is my #1 pet peeve when I host job-search workshops. People say they are busy, they're sending out resumes, but the reality is they are mentally waiting for a knight in shining armor to whisk them away to a new cushy position. Guest what . . . it's never going to happen. NEVER.

Unless you're a recently fired CEO with massive connections to firms who want to hire you and subsequently ruin their company, no one is going to call and no one is driving up with a black stretch limo. Once you realize you are on your own and only YOU can change your situation, it's time for a mental ass-kick to get your head on straight.

What To Do: You want an mental ass-kick? Start listening to motivational speakers to keep your mental energy level up and constant. Check out Zig Ziglar, Dale Carnegie, Jeffrey Gitomer, and my favorite Bennie Hsu at Get Busy Living Podcast. He's the best!

2. You rarely go out.

You get up at 9 AM, you probably don't take a shower, you get dressed in your old geriatric Adidas sweatsuit, and sit in front of your laptop. WRONG!

What To Do: Get up at 5 AM, go for a walk/run outside, take a shower, and get dressed in real clothes. You don't like it? TOUGH. This is your workday and for the next 8-10 hours, I am your drill sergeant and you will deliver 110% looking for a job every Monday through Friday. Set up a schedule which takes you outside every single day. Meet people for coffee, hit the library, go to the gym, walk around the park. Strike up conversations with people — you never know who you will meet.

3. You check the web for postings, send out a few resumes, and watch Ellen, Rachael, and Jerry the rest of the day.

Unemployment is not a vacation. You have to attack your job search like any project you've ever delivered at work.

What To Do: You have to:

• Focus on the marketplace - What companies are doing well? Where are the growth areas? Who are the movers and shakers?
• Analyze your attributes against your competition - Do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis on YOU. Figure out how you leverage your strengths and opportunities.
• Develop key targets to go after - Analyze your commuting radius, find out all the potential industries and organizations within your circle, and begin to make a hit list.
• Execute - Go after each one incrementally in a cascade pattern to ensure you are not inundated with tasks, but your search is progressing in a healthy fashion.

4. Your industry has changed.

You actually thought people were going to buy slide-rules FOREVER. Yes, that's right, you're industry is changing. And guess what? Everyone's industry is changing. Some are morphing into other forms, some are merging, many are shrinking, and a lot are just plum going out of business. If you thought you could keep your job or profession for 30 years, I have a DeLorean to sell you.

What To Do: Figure out where your industry is going and either stick around for the very bumpy ride or jump off at the station for the next train. Get to thee library, my dear young minstrel and start understanding what is really happening in the marketplace. Read the WSJ, Medium, BusinessWeek, Fast Company, Inc, and Foundr. Also meeting with industry luminaries doesn't hurt either.

5. You're too old.

Where did the time go? You were having so much fun as an executive in a corner office working on strategy and mergers, you never saw the axe coming for you until it was too late. Now you're 55 and no one wants you. Let me rephrase that — no 20-year old in HR wants you. The minute they do the college graduate math in their head (or on their calculator), your résumé is flying faster than a 767 into the circular file. And the funny thing is you keep doing it.

What To Do: Stop repeating something which doesn't work and expecting something different. You have to get out of the HR/Recruiter trap and move up the ladder and meet/engage/schmooze the hiring managers. Go to industry events, reach out to them via LinkedIn/Twitter, and google their name to get to know them. Then reach out and try to meet them.

6. You're too young.

Where did the time go? You were just in college wowing them with your 4.0 GPA and now no one will take your calls because you have no experience.

What To Do: It's time for you to get some experience! You need to call in every chip on the poker table of life and have them connect you with possible paid intern/entry level positions. Let's get real — you might have a little bit of knowledge, but your don't have the experience to hit deadlines consistently, run a meeting, handle an angry client, manage a boss, or run a complex project. You have to take a small hit position/salary-wise and build up those talents before you really hit the big leagues of life.

7. You're unrealistic about your position and your salary.

"Look, I was Vice President of Strategic Initiatives with a yearly base salary of $275K. Why doesn't anyone want me?"

What To Do: There are a finite number of positions out there which might fit your position/salary requirements, but you will never find them in time. I know, you might run into them, but most likely, NOT. You have to be a bit flexible on the Who/What/Where/How Much in the current marketplace. Try to broaden your scope and see what else is out there. It might not be a VP position, or one drowning in strategy. It might be a bit lower than $275K a year — but then again, it's higher than the $0/year you're pulling in now (great tax benefits though).

8. You have a glass-half-empty mentality.

No one likes a whiner. I just spoke with a prospect this week who could not stop talking about all the bad bosses and decisions they've made in the past 10 years. The first rule of your job search: Never, ever, say bad things about your past. Not only does it cloud anyone's opinion of you, it brings your mental state down into the basement.

What To Do: Start imagining what life would be like if you had that wonderful position RIGHT NOW. Where would you be? Who would you be working with? What would you be doing? How would you get there. Stop thinking and feeling guilty about the past and start preparing for your glorious future. Get your head half-full immediately.

9. You're afraid of Thinking Big and reaching out to the real power-brokers.

No one is going to think big for you (except me). You hamstring your search and actions by being risk-averse. You're afraid of rejection and will never put yourself in a position of actually touching key movers and shakers in your industry. No . . . you will continue to interview with 20-year-old HR reps who text more than they think and wonder why you don't have a killer position.

What To Do: Get a piece of paper and write down what would be your PERFECT job. Now actualize it in your universe — find those companies who fit the bill and reach out to the key people who run those positions. The funny thing is . . . these same people are always on the lookout for new talent. You're just not putting yourself onto their radar.

10. You've given up.

You've tried again and again to get a job offer, an interview or even a solid connection and it seems the cards are stacked against you. It's been years since you've worked and you're draining your savings account to keep your household afloat.

What To Do: You can always try again. Take a different tack, work on an alternate strategy, reach out to new people. In fact, I just worked with a client who was unemployed for two years and within three months, he had a number of offers and took an incredible job. You never know where your next break will occur.

Free image provided by iStockPhoto.

How To Survive In A High Performance Workplace.

Been there, done that. Because of the economy and marketplace, many seemingly normal environments are slowly turning into ‘high-performance’ workplaces (HPW). In addition, if you are working at a startup or within a certain industry (PR, Advertising, Tech, etc.), you might encounter this situation all the time. Here are some tips to help you understand, cope, and succeed in your career:

Compare You vs. Them. Do you fit in this environment? This is usually the first question I ask when clients are not fitting in at their place of work. I first get a good idea about who they are and what a typical day involves and then compare/contrast it with the demands/expectations of their organization. If the two don’t fit, we see how big the chasm is and then decide on next steps. Sometimes, you need to leave.

You are not going to know everything. This is one of the biggest issues many executives run into. In HPW, things/people/projects are moving at light-speed. Decisions need to be made in one-tenth the time and sometimes you’re put on the spot by your boss or peers. You are going to catch yourself saying, “I know that.” or “I’ll handle that”, while deep in the recesses of your head you know you have no idea what they are talking about. This is huge with new employees and young workers. Be honest. Say, “I don’t know,” or “I don’t know, but I can find out.” rather than lying. I find it’s usually worse if you say you do know it and you screw it up. Again, tell the truth.

Streamline everything you do. This is huge — your job is to streamline everything you do to allow you to take on more responsibility and projects. Constantly look at all the elements and see which ones can go away or can be reduced in size, time, or resources. If you do this consistently, you will be regarded as invaluable to the organization and fit in perfectly.

Make things happen NOW. Don’t wait until tomorrow — what can you do right now to move your project, task, or activity along? Who do you need to call? This leads into:

Sit on people to get their part done. This is hard for many people. When working with your peers and team members, it might be difficult to move them faster than their highest gear. Guess what? It’s their job. We tend to forget this — many positions within an organization cater to internal customers, like you. Be demanding, listen to their excuse, but then PUSH. Ask for a due date and hold them to it. Check in before the deadline to see their progress. If they become an obstacle, go around them. I do this ALL the time.

Practice excellent time management. You also need to keep your act in order. If you are sloppy time-wise, you’ll never get anything done on time and that is a death-warrant in a HPW. Figure out some behavior change — Franklin Planner, Pomodoro, Getting Things Done, etc. (just Google: Time Management)— stick to it and use it faithfully. If you don’t, you’ll find yourself falling farther and farther away from the pack and you begin to forget/drop important tasks.

How do you cope in your high performance workplace?

Image provided by SuperFantastic at Flickr.

How To Deal With Stress At Work.

As a coach, I deal with client stress issues all the time. It comes with the job. I  help my clients by focusing in on three simple philosophies from a book called Self-Powerment — written by Dr. Faye Mandell, an incredible woman and friend (go out and buy her book TODAY!).

Let’s get down to the facts: There are three stressors which tend to hit us when we least expect it — Fear, Anger and Guilt. What Faye tries to do is to get you back into your original human emotional needs we all experience — Security, Being In Control, and Feeling Adequate.

Here’s how your body and mind work (this will sound repetitive, it is, but stay with me):

Security

We all need to feel some sense of  security at home, on the street and at work. If your security is threatened, your natural feeling moves from security to anxiety. This is your body telling you something is wrong with your natural state of security. But it’s okay — your job is to understand you are anxious and you have to move back to some sort of security, by thinking of options or taking action.

Unfortunately, we let our brain take over and let our feelings ‘corrupt’ our anxiety and turn it into FEAR. Our mind has taken our present need and projected it in the FUTURE. We are no longer living in the present, but fearing for the future.

Example: Fear of speaking in public. You have a speech to give and you begin to develop stories about how you will fail and the audience's reaction.

Being In Control

We all need to be in control at some level in our lives.If we get out of control, our emotions move from Conrol to Frustration. Again, this is your body telling you something is wrong - you’re not in control of something you usually control. You need to realize something (or someone) is frustrating you and you have get back and take control of the situation.

Once again, we let our brain take over and let our feelings ‘corrupt’ our frustration and turn it into ANGER. Our mind has taken our present need and has allowed OTHER PEOPLE & THINGS to take control. We are no longer in control of our own life, we are letting other people and things take over.

Example: Your kids. They mess up the kitchen, you get frustrated, and your mind moves to anger. It happens to me ALL the time (they're boys).

Feeling Adequate

Feeling adequate is a strong emotional need in our lives. If we suddenly feel inadequate, we quickly start feeling disappointed or sad. Again, it's fine — your sadness is telling you to move back and regain your adequacy in one way or another.

And once again, we let our brain take over and let our feelings ‘corrupt’ our adequacy and turn it into GUILT. Our mind has taken our present need and has projected it in the PAST. We are no longer living in the present, but worrying about the past.

Example: Someone says something you don’t quickly grasp. You begin to feel sad you never received a graduate degree, and you feel guilty.

Got it? Dr. Mandell’s position is to move quickly from the past, future, & people/things and get into the “I AM” or present state.

The way I interpret it: You can’t change the past, it’s difficult to change people/things, and stop worrying about the future — live in the present and take action.

What do you do when you are insecure, not in control, or feeling inadequate at work?

Image provided by Jonas Nilsson Lee at Unsplash.

5 Easy Ways To Give Great Customer Service.

I ordered new running shoes from Zappos the other day. If you've ever ordered from Zappos — you'll know they sometimes don't have the best prices. But they do deliver the best customer service.

When I say "CUSTOMER SERVICE", it isn't specific to business owners. If you work in corporate, CUSTOMER SERVICE is critical — you have CUSTOMERS above you, along side you, and below you. When you work at an organization, it's formal Human Resources name is "interpersonal communication".

To survive, you need to keep your customers engaged, happy, and wanting more of your products and services. So without further ado — here they are:

1. Deliver WOW during the whole process.

From the initial screens, to the multiple angles, to the highly-descriptive videos Zappos makes you feel right at home choosing your merchandise. Everything is clear, and open and they really don't try to hard-sell you. In addition, they promote their core values at the bottom of every page to let the customer know what philosophies are guiding every business interaction.

When I say WOW, I want you to look at everything you do for your boss, customer, or client. At every juncture, how can you do a little bit better? How can you elevate every touchpoint and anticipate their needs? How can you reach out and make every interaction more streamlined and pleasurable?

2. Make the customer feel special by personalizing the process.

Zappos remembers ALL of your purchases. A year after I bought a pair of Merrell Jungle Mocs, I received an email to let me know it's been a year and if I'd like to buy another pair. Although my pair is in good shape and I didn't need another pair just yet — the thought of receiving a card is impressive.

When was the last time you reached out to your current client base to remind them of a service or product? How about a new service or product? How about a simple card appreciating their business? You can do almost anything and make the customer feel special.

3. Be responsive. 4. If something goes wrong, ask questions and listen. 5. If you screwed up, give them a token of appreciation.

I had a slight snafu with one of my orders — I ordered it on the regular Zappos site and not the VIP site (we order a lot of shoes). The end result — shoes I thought were arriving that day were delayed by a few days. On the phone, the Zappos representative was helpful and was able to expedite the shipment. In addition, they sent me an email with a $25 credit to apply to my next purchase. WOW.

If something goes wrong — fix it immediately. Don't wait for it to 'go away'.

First, you need to be instantly accessible to allow your clients to access you. All of my clients have a direct line to me — so they can either call or email me. If it's an emergency, I get back the them ASAP. If it's just a question, 24 hours is fine. But I am there — they don't sit in my inbox for weeks or are relegated to my voicemail for eternity. I get back to them. And they can access me instantly.

Second, if there is something wrong, ask questions and then LISTEN. Most people try to fix the problem without listening to the entire story. Your customer first and foremost want you to empathize with their situation. So your job is to ask questions for clarification and listen to them until they run out of steam. Then empathize with them — "I'm so sorry to hear that happened." or "Let's see what we can do to solve your problem."

Finally, if YOU screwed up — apologize and give them a token of appreciation. A discount, a gift, flowers, take them out to lunch, whatever. A small token of acknowledgement and a gift will not only go the distance, they will be your customer forever.

"If You Don't Build Your Dream . . . Someone Else Will Hire You To Build Theirs."

A number of years ago, I turned 40 and for my birthday, a good buddy from college sent me a book. I read that book in two days and it totally changed my vision, my perspective and my life. That book was "Tuesdays With Morrie". If you haven't read it, pick it up TODAY. It taught me that life is fleeting and to spend each day enjoying life, your work, your family, and your friends. I spent too much time worrying at my job and seeing too many projects deferred by bad management. I experienced too many manager making too many bad decisions based on emotions and politics and not on facts and ethics. I realized I was no longer doing what I really wanted to do.

It took three 'insights' to help me realize my situation and deliver a solution.

My first insight was Tuesdays With Morrie.

My second insight was signing up for the Dale Carnegie course and attending all 12 sessions. Not only did I meet 50 wonderful professionals from all walks of life, I had an incredible instructor who helped me better understand my future career.

My third was hiring a coach to help me make the transition. He helped me rationalize the erratic fears of leaving a six-figure position for an unknown coaching practice that might fail. But he helped me understand what needed to be done, put goals and activities in place, and make the jump.

And many years later, I'm doing better every year — blowing away my past salaries and making more than I've ever dreamed. Yes — I have to work harder sometimes — but this is MY business. On the other hand, I am in COMPLETE CONTROL of my products, my promotions, what I write, what I do — and I have the flexibility many people wish for.

And the best part? I've helped hundreds of clients make the same jump from crazy corporate to owning their own business. And they hug and thank me every time they see me (they're my best cheerleaders).

So — take the plunge — step out of your comfort zone and start your own business. Come on in — the water's fine.

I leave you with Emerson, who also said (in Self Reliance): "In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty. Great works of art have no more affecting lesson for us than this. They teach us to abide by our spontaneous impression with good-humored inflexibility then most when the whole cry of voices is on the other side. Else, to-morrow a stranger will say with masterly good sense precisely what we have thought and felt all the time, and we shall be forced to take with shame our own opinion from another."

Image provided by Monika Majkowska at Unsplash.

Stupid Things People Do . . . Your Email.

Who loves their email? Lovin' those 150-200 emails you receive each day? I expect your answer to be "NO". But why do we put so much emphasis on it then? Why do we check it whenever we get a spare moment?

Why do we treat each email equally? That's STUPID.

Email is not a good communication platform. Actually, it's really not communicating - good communication happens in real-time and is between two or more people. How many misunderstood emails have you sent or received in your lifetime?

This is SMART:

Prioritize your email. Use Rules to assign colors to important emails (Red for the Boss or Clients, Blue for emails with you on the TO: line) and Gray for all other email. Trash any CC: email - trust me, it's not important.

Check your email 3 times a day. In the morning, after lunch, and right before you leave. Instead of responding by email - call. If there is something important or an emergency, they should call you.

Use the phone more often. Leave 20-30 second messages and only talk to someone for no longer than 3-5 minutes. If you need longer, set up a 10-15 minute meeting, no longer.

Stop by offices more often. You then control the time you talk. Make the 'drive-by' 3-5 minutes and then be off.

At the end of the day, email will suck the living daylights out of your productivity, motivation, and life. Trust me.

Love to hear your thoughts - comment below or email me anytime! - Rich

Image provided by In 30 Minutes Guides at Flickr.

10 Simple Tips To Attract The Best Clients.

Getting clients is easy, hard, fun, frustrating, energizing and enervating. Most of all, you never know what to expect — one day no one is saying yes and the next, you close five clients. Here are my ten top strategies I use every day to make clients knock on my door:

1. Communicate effectively with your potential client base.

You need a killer web site — not just one that sits there. It must actively reach out and grab prospects. So it will take a lot of work, but you'll see results immediately. In addition, design great business cards, brochures (sometimes), and a powerful 30-second talk about what you do.

2. Work with people smarter than yourself.

This has two angles:

1. If you don't know how to execute something critical for your business, hire someone. I know it will cost money, but most people think they can do it themselves. Result: it takes forever to build/implement, it's wrong, and then they ultimately hire someone to clean up the mess.
2. Get clients who add to your knowledge base — help them in one area, but be a knowledge vampire and suck out key strategies, tips, and avenues you will embed into your company.

3. Develop a networking relationship with your competitors.

I actively court coaches, while most of my counterparts are wary and shun theirs. Not only is it a 'good' thing to do (embrace everyone), but you find the differences between your vocations and allows you to give referrals to one another.

4. Create packages to meet your client’s needs.

The first time out of the gate, you usually have to guess what your clients requires — so you need to remain flexible and change your offerings slowly. Initially, I used to coach for an hour, but found the extra 15 minutes turned into a coffee klatch, so I shortened my sessions to 45 minutes. It's perfect — and if I really need extra time for an extra-special client, I have it.

5. Do pro-bono work for charitable organizations.

The bigger, the better. Not only does it position you in a wonderful light, it throws you into a mix of influencers who truly appreciate your skills. The more visibility you have, the more people know about you. In addition, always take on a number of pro-bono clients each month — it's just the right thing to do.

6. Write an eBook for your target market — and give it away.

You need to harness the knowledge/experience in your brain and spread it out into the marketplace. Most businesspeople tend to hoard it like a miser — successful people freely expose it to the world and clients come banging at their door. It doesn't have to be long — just put a few powerful ideas in a short article, give it a snappy title, and offer it for free on your site. Also, have copies made and hand it to anyone who breathes.

7. Set Up “Power Meetings”.

Master the act of  networking with the right people. Most men and women tend to meet with anyone — you'll quickly find out there are many 'time-wasters' who might be fun initially, but in the end, suck valuable money from your pockets (time is money). You know who your target market is (if you don't, call me) — chase and connect with them.

8. Work at least two hours a day to get clients.

"Rich are you crazy?" No, I'm not. You should be meeting, setting up lunches, expanding your website, talking on the phone and a myriad of other strategies to get clients. My motto — if business is good, slowly power down your marketing. If business is bad, rocket up your marketing. But always find at least two hours a day to keep your client pipeline full and healthy.

9. Master the cold call approach.

Face it — ultimately you will need to reach out to strangers to get the business you want. Don't procrastinate and never do it — learn how to reach out to key targets, entice them, and get in front of them. If you do your homework, for every strikeout you will hit a home run (and sometimes a grand slam), trust me.

10. MCA - take massive action.

MCA stands for Massive Client Acquisition — the state of mind where you need to target, hunt, and capture large swaths of your client base. Take the necessary steps to grow your clientele — get out and network, reach out via a killer website, thrill people with your abilities, give away your intellectual capital, wear huge holes in your shoes, and lose your voice from all the talking you will do.

Bottom line: Think like a salesperson — you need to get up every day and get your butt out the door. Stop putting distance between you and your prospects — close the gap and you'll have to begin turning them away.

What else do you do to get clients? If you've tried any of these tools, how did they work?

Image provided by Marjorie Lipan at Flickr.

Why Your Email Is Holding You Back.

I spent the better part of this morning entering a bevy of business cards into my database so every person I meet can receive an eBlast and other info from the mind of Rich Gee. Candidly, it's not fun. In fact it sucks. But I break it up into manageable piles and quickly do it. I should purchase a business card scanner — but the idea of shelling out $250-$300 for a single purpose scanner makes my blood boil. Until they hit $99 (a reasonable price), I will continue to enter them myself. Sorry - it's just me.

Here's my dilemma — most business cards stink, and the biggest 'fault line' item of all is your email address. Why?

Don't Make It Complex.

I hate when people use an algorithm of their name, initials, or cute words to compose their email address. Odds are, I will probably get it wrong when entering it into my database or sending an email to you. The result — "You don't getta No Coke!" (a famous line from Caddyshack) - in other words - you get nothing from me.

I LOVE when people have firstname.lastname@company.com — short, simple, easy to read and understand. Like richgee@richgee.com — I actually repeated the URL in my name. EVERYONE gets it the first time — and I promise you, they probably don't forget it either.

By the way, I totally understand if you work for a corporation whose IT department made the erroneous decision years ago to make a complex email system. I feel for you. I especially love the ones where they require a middle initial (like rcgee@advo.com, my old one) and it you didn't have a middle name, they gave you an 'X'. How much fun is it during initial meetings when clients pick that one up? ("rich.x.gee . . . what does the 'x' stand for?")

Stick With .COM.

Maybe this is my OCD coming out, but I hate it when someone has a .NET or .BIZ or .US or some other weird domain the powers that be dreamed up. Unless you are a non-profit or educational institution (.EDU or . ORG), I am going to write .COM — and if I have to delete and type something else, it says to me you haven't taken the time to go and get a .COM for your business.

If you can't develop an basic URL for your business, buy one - they usually cost between $200-$500, a worthy investment for any business.

While you're at it, purchase your kid's URL's too — it's cheap and they will thank you 10-20 years from now.

Get Your Own Domain.

I don't know about you — but if I see @comcast, @optonline, @aol, @hotmail, or even @gmail, it clearly communicates to me you aren't really serious about your business. Specifically — you are a hobbyist who is running their business part-time or you have no clue about how the web works. Get serious and get your domain immediately.

Make Your Email HUGE.

I hate it when people make their email smaller than their address on their cards. Or they handwrite it on the back of the card because they either made a mistake and have 5000 cards left. Throw them out and lay out your card in this fashion: Name — Company — Direct Phone — Email — Website. No fax number, no multiple numbers, just give me your direct contact line — I also hate it when people have three numbers on their card and I get voicemail on all three. Give me one.

Sorry for this diatribe — but I've been pointing this out for 10+ years and people are STILL making these stupid business mistakes. And then they wonder why they aren't getting business.

What other problems do you have with email addresses?

Image provided by Martin Wessley at Unsplash.

How To Have A Perfect Day, Every Day.

Did you ever have a day not only hit your expectations, but surpass them? Yesterday was one of those days for me. I started out meeting with my sales team (all 45) who were engaged, enthusiastic, and ready to hear what I had to say and what to do next for my company. In addition, one of my dear friends, BJ Flagg, president of Nurenu Brand Marketing, was my guest (her team developed and runs this site).

I then contacted my favorite barbershop - Montana For Men in Stamford and was quickly given a perfectly-timed spot to get a haircut (even though I have little to work with!).

Met with two dear colleagues for lunch — it was an introductory meeting for both of them to see if their businesses might work well together. Guess what? They both loved each other and we're planning subsequent meetings to see how we will work together as a team!

Finally, I had a two-hour, power-hour strategy session with a new client. This not only gets us off on the right foot, it allows me to clearly understand their career and make an impact immediately.

Whew - started the day at 4:30 AM and arrived home at 8:00 PM - a long day, but I'm still energized from it. The hours don't really matter — it's what I accomplished.

WHAT MAKES AN EFFECTIVE DAY FOR YOU?

Think back — when was the last time you were firing on all cylinders? When your day exceeded all of your expectations? Where everyone you worked with energized you?

Now here's the hard part — what elements contributed to that day? Was it the people you worked with? The project? Your scheduling? What was it?

CAN YOU REPLICATE IT?

If it was such a good day — you were effective, efficient, and energized — can you put those pieces into play again and produce another powerful day? And another? And another?

Most of the time — we have a day which stands out — and then we go back to the old grind. I say — BREAK THE MOLD! Or in this case KEEP THE RIGHT MOLD and use it every day.

Try it — you might get addicted.

POST YOUR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS BELOW

Image provided by Alex Talmon at Unsplash.

Where There's A Will . . . There's Bill.

Many people tend to put things off in life. And the bigger the decision, the harder it is to make a choice. Especially when it comes to your families' estate. Be it yours, or your parents, a lot of people tend to either  make quick, emotional decisions, or no decision at all. And that's a bad thing.

That's why you need a trusts and estates attorney. They design and implement your plan to preserve, protect, and transfer assets is most effective when completed BEFORE a crisis occurs.

The crisis, however, sometimes arrives without warning, demanding immediate responses to complex legal, tax, business, and health care decisions. Inadequate preparation for life transitions and delayed response often lead to increased costs and loss of control over important personal and financial choices.

When I run into a great resource, my marketing and advertising hat appears, and I want to tell the world about them. If you have an estate, or know someone who has an estate, you need to meet William Tanzi. For over 25 years, Bill has conducted a sophisticated private client and wealth preservation practice centered on providing experienced and effective legal counsel to high and ultra-high net worth individuals and their families.

Bill is a good friend, colleague, and all-around great guy. I don't blog about friends often, but when I do — I know my readers will benefit.

He emphasizes dynamic estate and gift planning, multi-generational wealth preservation and specialized tax and non-tax private client services for high and ultra-high net worth individuals.

So if you want to keep what you have and ensure your kids are protected too — you need to call Bill.

How I Beat Procrastination Every Day.

I just hit 650 articles this morning. About one article every other day for five years*. WOW.

Here's the hard truth — there are two types of people in the world:

1. One who quickly writes a blog post every day. Easily. It flows out of them like a skittles rainbow.
2. One who tries to write every day. It's hard. You start to question yourself — did I write this already? Definitely not a rainbow happening here.

I'm #2. But to have a growing and robust practice, I made a commitment to myself, my clients, and my readers that I would write every other day.

I get up every morning at 4:30 AM, sit down at my laptop, and write (okay — I shower first). And I say this mantra to myself:

• Get it done.
• Don't put it off.
• Make it happen.

And at first, my 'worry' brain takes over and begins to toss out obstacles:

• You have NO ideas. You have an empty brain.
• No one is reading your stuff. Why write it and waste your time?
• You're wasting time on this. Don't you have to check email?
• You are a failure. Think of all the times you screwed up . . .
• Your old friend Procrastination stops by for a visit (the guest who would never leave). Do it later — you'll be better at it.

But then, I wipe all those BS thoughts out of my brain (because they aren't true) and TAKE ACTION. I sit down, open my laptop, and start writing. And guess what? Withing 20-30 minutes, I have a article to edit!

Yes, it's that easy.

As Eckhart Tolle calls it, The Power of Now. "Be present as the watcher of your mind -- of your thoughts and emotions as well as your reactions in various situations."

My interpretation — Don't let the 'busyness' of your worries take over, don't let fear creep in, and above all, don't procrastinate.

As Nike says, "Just Do It." So I write. And write. And write. And guess what?

It sucked at first. But after six months, it's a lot easier. So I keep at it.

Now to YOU:

What one thing are you procrastinating on right now? What are you putting off?

Take the first step and start getting it done. You'll find it's not that hard, or time consuming.

That's just your ego speaking.

*Here's my math:

• 104 Saturdays/Sundays and two weeks vacation give me an approximate balance of 250 working days each year.
• Total working days in 5 years: 1250.
• 1250 days divided by 650 articles equals 1.92 days. So rounding up we get every other day.

The Top 10 Commandments Of Work.

I’ve been making a list over the past six months of commandments about work. I get requests all the time to bundle them up into a post. So here they are:

1. Be the go-to person in your area.

Know your industry inside and out, you won't do well if you just know your job. Learn what's happening, who's up, who's down, any new processes and practices, who are the stars, etc.

2. Cultivate and consistently grow your contacts.

You can never have too many friends, colleagues, or connections.Learn how to communicate, both written and verbal. Most people stop once they start a job — this is death for any career. It's not only what you know — it's who you know too.

3. Ensure your superiors and clients ALWAYS look good.

This is not the same as brown-nosing — do the right thing and take care of the people that sign your check. When they move on to bigger and better things they will call, every time.

4. Know your strengths and weaknesses well.

Strengthen your strengths and keep a tab on your weaknesses so they don’t sabotage you.

5. Be totally honest in everything you do.

Even if it hurts in the short run. Solid ethics always trumps sharky snarkiness.

6. Don't ever get trapped into a dead-end position because you're scared of change.

Move. Change is good and will open new doors. Trust me.

7. Treat everyone from the CEO to the janitor with the utmost respect.

Yes, you do have time for everyone — I start conversations with security guards. When my battery is dead, guess who offers a quick jump?

8. Never stop learning.

Stay hungry for knowledge and experience. Not only does it feed itself, it becomes fun.

9. Listen. Don't talk all the time.

People you meet everyday have the most interesting and powerful things to say that can change your life.

10. Mix with other successful people.

To play better tennis you must play tennis with better tennis players. Seek their advice, listen to what they say, and apply it. Go find where they live.

Can you think of any others? Which ones have rung true for you in your career so far?

Top 10 Tools I Use To Work Anywhere.

Ever since I left my corporate gig (so many years ago), I've had to modify my practice to work on the go and be 100% effective. I can't 'forget' anything, I can't carry around stacks of paper, and I certainly can't lose any important information.

What do I do? I have a number of systems and tools to help me be my best at any time for my clients and also be able to boot up my office virtually — anywhere at anytime:

1. Dropbox

Dropbox is a my online file manager which lets me store up to 100GB, plus it’s also a good way to sync my files across my various work and home computers and mobile devices. I can share files for collaboration, store and share photo and video galleries, and my data will all be safely backed up on Dropbox's secure servers. It connect seamlessly with my file manager, so it acts just like a hard drive — but it's virtual. And when a client needs a big file, I can grant them access to my Dropbox temporarily, let them grab the file, and then lock it down again. It's easy, cheap, and it's never failed me. Check out Dropbox.

2. Crashplan & iCloud

This is my online backup and as my tech team has instructed me, I should have it in two places. So I initially have all of my files regularly backed up to iCloud, Apple's proprietary cloud-based platform. It's transparent and I never notice it working in the background, surreptitiously copying my files and storing them offsite on one of their super-server farms somewhere in Utah. In addition, I use Crashplan, a continuous offsite backup platform with anywhere mobile app access. Even though both have been tested and proven, I have lived through file-loss and hard drive failures, so I have the scars. That's why I use two systems. Check out Crashplan & iCloud.

3. WD 1TB HD & 1TB Portable HD

Now let's move from virtual to actual hard drive backup. This is where I've earned all of my scars. Many years ago, I had an Iomega HD hooked to my laptop and thought the world was all pink and rosy. Then one day, it started to make a funny noise and suddenly, I couldn't access that drive anymore in file manager. All of my files and music were stored on that HD. It took three weeks and $600 to have a service recover most of the info and transfer it to DVD's. Never again. Today, I have two desktop 1TB hard drives from Western Digital (they come highly rated). Their redundancy allows me to ensure if one HD dies, the other has a mirror image at all times. In addition, I carry around a 1TB portable HD to hold many older files that cannot fit on my cherished MacBook Air. Check out my WD 1TB HD and 1TB Portable HD.

4. Macbook Air

My baby. This is the glue that holds my business together. Ever since I started my business, I've been on Apple products. Why? THEY DON'T BREAK. And if there is a problem, Apple is right there on the phone and at the store ready and willing to give me first-class service to fix it immediately. Why the Air? It is ungodly light — it's almost like my iPad. And since it has a 128GB SSD, it boots up within SECONDS. And it's scary fast too. Yes, there is a trade-off with graphics cards and HD space, but all of these weaknesses fall away when you pick it up and start working with it.

The 11-inch Air’s trackpad is still smooth, responsive, and easily the best in its class while the 13-inch display is brighter, clearer, and so vivid over ANY other laptop (other than the retina models). Battery life is phenomenal — I get at least 8 hours on a single charge, so I don't have to run around with my power cord all the time. Check out my Macbook Air.

5. iWork - Pages, Numbers, Keynote

These are the tools which make my business hum. For over 20 years, I worked on a PC and voraciously toiled with MS Office Word, Excel, and Powerpoint. They're great programs, but they're expensive and bloated. Honestly, looking back to my actual usage of each program, it was:

• Word - 30% - I did letters, newsletters, and one-sheet flyers. That's it. No mail-merge.
• Excel - 25% - I ran my financials and linked spreadsheets. But I was no CPA - no pivot tables, etc.
• Powerpoint - 100% - I ran this into the ground and used up all of its features.

Why did I move to iWork? First, it's much cheaper. iWork is $49.00 where MS Office used to run me $300-$400. And no bloatware - each module allows me to all that I could do with Office, but so much more.

• Pages - So much easier to use, the graphics look great, and there aren't a million items to choose from. Fonts are phenomenal and the template layout is easy to execute.
• Numbers - Think of it as Excel Lite. It's perfect for my practice - I never get into trouble and it's easy to develop a quick pie chart or graph for a presentation.
• Keynote - The real power-player of iWork. Hands down superior to Powerpoint - when I give presentations with Keynote, attendees flock to me and ask, "Who does your presentations? I've never seen them before."

Check out iWork.

6. Wordpress

This is the platform I use to run my website, blog to my readers, and get clients. It's robust, the leader in the industry, and it always has additional features to allow me to upgrade immediately. Not only that, it is so easy to use — logon, click 'New Post' and I'm off and running! I use the Thesis template and had Nurenu Brand Marketing design and build it. Check out Wordpress.

7. iPhone & IPad

Too much has been written on both the iPhone and iPad (and today you're probably going to see a lot more). But I use them EVERY day:

iPhone - this is my portable computer. I check it at least once every 10-15 minutes and I use over 70 apps to make my business and personal life easier. I've owned the original iPhone, the 3Gs, and now the 5. All three have been consummate workhorses and have allowed me to be the best coach I can be. Check out the Apple iPhone.

iPad - I use my iPad both as a personal tool (reading, surfing, movies, music) and a professional tool (presentations, training, blogging, email, etc.). Even though I have a Macbook Air, my iPad allows me to instantaneously access information and make decisions within seconds. It too has 60-70 key apps that help me navigate the web for info. Check out the Apple iPad.

8. Go To Webinar

This is my online tool to host my various Masterclasses (Get Tough!, and soon: Bulletproof Your Career & Accelerate Your Coaching Practice) and reach hundreds of members weekly. I can host teleconferences, webinars with presentations, or full video. It's reasonable ($99/month), reliable, and the interface is intuitive. Most competitors to GTW have terrible usability and are all but impossible to use — just ask anyone who uses these tools. Check out Go To Webinar.

9. Get Response

When I started my coaching practice, I used to send out PDF newsletters via email. What I started to find is a severe drop-off of readership because corporate mail servers began to interpret my emails as spam (even though their employees requested them). I had to turn to an automated service. Initially, for many years, I was with a cool service called Emma. They got the job done and their interface and look gave my messages a real elegance. Unfortunately, they became pricey if I wanted to send out multiple messages during a month. I then moved to Constant Contact. I found their interface and design wanting and ultimately realized they were nickel and dime-ing me for every little service. I then found Get Response. The perfect mix of Emma and Constant Contact — taking the best of both worlds and delivering them for less than $20 a month (and it has SO much more!). Check out Get Response.

10. Thule Crossover Sling Pack

I've been professionally working since 1984 and I've carried scores of briefcases, bags, backpacks, etc. back and forth to work. Lately, I've noticed many people pulling back on all the crap we carry and really culling down to what we really need to get the job done. That's why I bought the Thule Sling Pack. It's light, fits comfortably on my back, frees both hands if I need them, and holds ALL the stuff I need to be a traveling professional warrior. It has many pockets and is thoughtfully designed to organize all of the errant cables, pens, papers and electronics I carry. It's sitting on my table as I type (see photo). Check out the Thule Crossover Sling Pack.

Well . . . that's it. I hope you've enjoyed my extended post this morning and it gave you a little insight into the powerful tools I use to keep my practice running smoothly. If you have any questions about any of the tools I listed, feel free to contact me or leave a comment below (I LOVE comments!).

Do You Have Career ADD?

I've been wanting to write this post for many months because there's been an exponential increase in what I see happening out there in business. Are you paying ATTENTION? Are you PRESENT when you work? Do you solve PROBLEMS or do you put them off?

More and more, I see a clear divide between two types of people:

One type, let's call them the Makers & Shakers, come to work early, work with excellence, think outside of the box, take calculated risks, deliver on-time (or early), and stay true to their promises. The get the job done and ensure their bosses and teams respect them. Their clients, customers, and vendors sing their praises and they come to the job with a big smile and a positive attitude.

The other type, let's call them the Slackers & Fakers, don't live up to and fall quite short of the Makers & Shakers' level. They are late to every engagement, they do 'just enough to get by' at work, they do the same thing every day without improvement, they are usually late with all deliverables, and over-promise and under-deliver. They rarely complete what they say they're going to do and their bosses and teams regularly have issues with their performance and decisions. Their clients, customers, and vendors are slowly going away or shunning them. Finally, they come to the job with a huge weight on their shoulders and complain incessantly about all the bad luck they're having.

Which one are you? You probably say to yourself, "I'm a Maker & Shaker!". But there's a trick here.

This delineation is not a light switch — it's a spectrum. At one end are the Maker & Shakers and at the other the Slackers & Fakers. Somewhere on that spectrum line falls your present state and your future.

Look back at your current performance (it doesn't matter if you have your own business or if you work for an organization) and score where you fall within the BIG 7:

1. Regularly come to work (or meetings) early or arrive late?
2. Think outside of the box or just get by with the same old stuff?
3. Stay true to all of your promises or over-promise and under-deliver?
4. Get the job done or procrastinate and miss deadlines?
5. Boss & team respects you or they have issues with your performance/decisions?
6. Client/Customers/Vendors love or shun you?
7. A positive and enthusiastic attitude every day or a negative and complaining attitude?

ACTION: Draw a line on a piece of paper and chart where you fall on each of the BIG 7 items. Be honest!

If you have Career ADD, most of your BIG 7 items fall closer to the Slackers & Fakers end. You need to start addressing some of the more serious areas — but the best part? It's a simple choice and your state of mind. Any one of the BIG 7 can be turned around with a concerted, willful effort and repeated attention to not slack back to the dark side of the BIG 7.

It's easy to make the decision — unfortunately, it's hard to make it a habit. You have a lot of work to do.

P.S. In no way is the use of the term ADD in this blog a denigration of people who suffer from ADD. I used the term to capture an associative behavior that impacts the typical executive or business owner.

Image provided by gemsling at Flickr.

How To Say Goodbye To Co-Workers On The Last Day Of Your Internship.

I work with a LOT of interns and they always have the BEST questions!

I thought I would give back to all the interns who have worked for me and have coached with me . . . here are some great responses (from colleagues) who experienced a classy goodbye from an intern:

Intern:

"You can say farewell to everyone individually, you can send a mass email with all of your contact information, or, what I recommend, do both."

Long-ago Intern, Now Employed:

"The ones you are familiar with, say goodbye, the ones you dont talk to, to hell with them, and to your boss give them wine/candy and a thank you card (they may want to hire you after that!)."

Current Intern:

"Most people will come in to your office and say something to you throughout the day. You can give a general "thank you so much for making me feel welcome and making this a great experience". You bring up specific instances when they helped you like "Thank you for teaching me all those Excel commands!" or refer to an inside joke you might share. I was always told "hopefully we'll see you around here full-time next year".

A Past Intern, Now an Executive:

"During one internship, I walked around throughout the afternoon and stopped to chat with each person and said goodbye. I wrote a personalized thank-you note to every employee I interacted with to thank them for the various things they did for me and left it at their desk at the end of the day. When I ran into coworkers and bosses later on, every one of them brought up those thank-you notes and said they were impressed and everyone was so excited to receive one."

So take the time and say goodbye personally and send a thank-you note. It works.

What Is The One Simple Change That Made Your Life Better?

I did some research on the web and then asked a number of colleagues, past and present clients about what they changed to make their life better. Not surprisingly, this list delivers many simple changes one can easily do.

This is what I came up with:

I stopped watching the news. It is all over-hyped drivel designed to keep you afraid. It's not good for you.

I stopped worrying about what other people thought. It's like I've been set free from a mental prison. I realized that not having the approval of others had zero affect on my life. 

I quit smoking. I stopped slinking around and feeling like a pariah.

I ride my bike to work. It's such an improvement in so many ways. I'm healthier, look better and I arrive in a much better mood. All that and I'm saving lots of money.

I put a hook beside the front door and ALWAYS put my keys on the hook. This small thing has made my life simpler and better.

I started taking myself more seriously. I've found out how good it feels to pursue my goals despite anyone else's opinions.

I stopped spending so much time around toxic, needlessly negative people. I have a fresh, new outlook on life!

I try to be mindful throughout the day, especially if I become frustrated. The conflict of an unnecessary desire is usually to blame. I try to recognize these instances and correct my perception to appreciate what is right here now at the moment.

I do yoga. I'm becoming fitter and more mindful. I am palpably more stressed in the weeks I didn't make it to yoga.

I only drink plain water with meals. My life really is better (not to mention my skin, GI, overall health.) So simple, but a big difference.

I make my bed every morning. Makes my room tidier and therefore I don't feel so stressed in the mornings. Also stops me from going back to bed.

I cut my Facebook use by 95%. I check it monthly to catch up on what my friends are doing AND I've cut out all the narcissistic people who focus all of their posts on themselves.

I made a conscious decision to never again buy, pick up or flip through another beauty magazine again. Made me feel 10x better about life and myself and relationships.

I take the stairs at work. Floor 2 to floor 10. It is quiet. I let my mind wander. A few times a week I hear somebody complaining about the elevator. They don't know what they are missing.

I started being myself. Exactly 100% do what I want when I want. I stopped trying to change to make a certain woman like me. I did this two years ago. Met my fiancee 18 months ago and I know that she loves me completely for me and I love her for her.

I leave ten minutes earlier than I "have to" no matter where I'm going. I get there early and I'm NEVER late.

I get up early, like REALLY early . . . 4:30 AM. I not only have time to workout or meditate or read, I'm also getting to work early and getting all of my tasks done. I'm SUPER productive.

I realized that the problems in my life had two solutions. Either they were fixable and within my control, or they were outside of my control and not worth stressing over. The second kind of problem, I can still control my reactions to it and how much it affects my life.

Intermittent fasting. I don't eat Mondays or Thursdays. Lost a whole bunch of weight and really appreciate the food I eat the rest of the time.

Giving up the idea that working 40-60 hour weeks would make me more money and a better Mother to provide. Once I gave that up to live a simple life I couldn't be more happy. I'm a stay at home Mom and a self employed crafty Woman. Time with my family is priceless! Money can't buy you memories.

Journaling. It's a very unique opportunity to pose questions to yourself that no one else has. I've had breakthroughs in my journal, and thoughts that've changed my behavior dramatically.

I used to be very interested in politics. Now, I really don't care about it. First of all, because nothing major is going on - ever.

I got rid of my TV. If I want to watch a particular show, I'll stream it. I work from home so I usually have a show in the background for ambience (Dirty Jobs, etc.) if I'm not in the mood for music.

Image provided by Moyan_Brenn_BE_BACK_IN_SEPTEMBER from Flickr.

3 Clues You're About To Be Fired.

You go to work every day. You put in long hours. You get your tasks done. Everyone is happy. You think you're doing a great job — your position is safe — your expecting that promotion or raise.

You're WRONG.

A lot of people are in this mindset right now. Just keep your head down, do your work, don't make waves, and good things will be coming your way. It's the mistake many people are making.

All is well and good until there's a knock on your door or you're asked to a conference room at 7 AM. Oh look! It's your boss with someone from HR!

What happened? What did I do? OMG — I'm let go?

Here are the three most prevalent clues one received when things start to get "hinky" at work:

1. Communication is severely restricted.

Suddenly, the people you rely on the most are suddenly not available. You set up meetings, they cancel. That crucial status update meeting you scheduled? Postponed. It seems many things around you are starting to circle and enclose you.

What to do: Start prodding and poking the communication bubble. Look for a way to 'pop' it. Sometimes people find they just need to alter the way they communicate and instantly everyone notices your message or concerns. Maybe other people are yelling and screaming — so they get the attention. You need to get it back.

2. Projects and initiatives you are spearheading are suddenly downgraded.

You're at the top — everything is going fine and then, over a period of weeks or months, some of your projects are cancelled, you might lose a key resource, or the regular interest paid towards your work is moved from critical to on-hold.

What to do: Step back and take a broad view of your situation. Are all projects and initiative on hold? Maybe it's just not you. But if it is, try to understand the WHY of the downgrade — maybe it was too expensive, moving too slow, or your project was too strategic, too out there. Maybe you really didn't get the right buy-in from the important people at the top. Make that happen . . . today.

3. You get a 'different' vibe or tonality from your superiors.

Your great relationship with your boss suddenly changes. He/She speaks and directs you from email rather than meetings. Everything suddenly is in writing. His or her peers are standoffish or act weird around you.

What to do: I always start out by turning the mirror on myself. Is there anything I'm doing differently? Did I change anything? Sometimes, it could be as simple as a clothes-change or style modification. Second, check out if something personal is happening to your boss. Ask around or more importantly, ask them politely. You might find out their spouse is ill or their child was just diagnosed. Sometimes it's not you.

Then again — It's YOU.

If these things are happening and some of the suggestions don't work, your name might be on a short list somewhere. If two or all three of these things are happening — start taking steps to secure possible new digs somewhere else. Get your resume in order, start reaching out to key influencers, and start getting out and meeting recruiters.

You've received a message — take action!

POST YOUR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS BELOW

P.S. The alarm bells are ringing at work — and you don't know what to do next. Don't worry - you and I can work on it together so you instantly develop a plan of attack - Let’s talk. I’ve worked with thousands of people who wanted to take assertive steps in this area — call or email me to schedule a complimentary session.

Image provided by fczuardi at Flickr.

How To Be Successful 80% Of The Time.

“Eighty percent of success is showing up.” One of my favorite quotes from Woody Allen. Most people forget that to be successful, you have to get out of your office chair and meet people. To go to functions where you mingle with professionals. And be on time for appointments with those people.

That’s it. Show up.

This week, one of my clients told me a powerful story about a monthly gathering of executives that I introduced her to — this time she brought a friend along.

Her friend (we’ll call him John) works for a major consulting firm — a huge one. While at this event, John introduces himself to another attendee and proceeds to find out that this person is a major partner his firm.

This partner is impressed that John is out networking for the firm. They have a great conversation and the partner proceeds to ask him out to lunch.

What just happened to John’s career? It went through the roof and is currently in the stratosphere. Why? Because he showed up.

Over the next week or so, start looking for opportunities to get out and meet people. Spread your wings — start making friends and bringing home gobs of business cards.

You never know who you might meet. At the very least, it allows you to get out of that stale office and into the sunlight. You get to interact with people in various vocations — the ideas will start flowing — and then magic happens.

You’ll thank me.

Who have you met (at a function, meeting, etc.) that changed your life?

Image provided by Dell's Official Flickr Page at Flickr.

Work Twice As Hard As Others.

A great interview (2 minutes) with Elon Musk, founder of PayPal, Tesla Motors, and SpaceX.