Good morning,
Happy Friday! We’ve probably all heard some version of the concept that it’s insane to repeat the same behavior and expect different results. This of course implies that repeating the same behavior will in fact produce the same results. However, these days we can only wish that doing the same thing would produce the same results. Instead, in the business world the reality is this.
Doing the same things we’ve always done WILL NOT produce the same results we’ve always gotten.
Today’s fast-moving business environment demands that we tune up our game and learn new plays if we want to achieve the same results in the current economy that we used to achieve during better economic times. This is even more critical if we want to achieve superior results.
Today, companies are at risk if they assume that the same old marketing or customer service techniques from past years will continue to produce the same results. Likewise, employees are at risk if they think the skills they had when they got the job are the same skills that will be required keep the job. We absolutely must continually “brush up” to improve our competitiveness or risk becoming irrelevant.
Just look around. Many college students graduating today have great new skills. Many veteran employees getting laid off have great professional experience. For those of us with a job who want to stay at the front of our field, it’s game on. People who are unemployed already know how competitive the marketplace is. It’s those of us who are currently employed that need to wake up and smell the new economy – or risk getting benched.
So today, let’s ask ourselves what enhancements we can make to our skills – or what improvements we can make to our businesses – to ensure that we remain the top choice for our employers and customers.
Let’s stay in the game and have a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Albert Einstein, according to some internet sources. This quote has been attributed to other people as well after Einstein.
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
MetroMichigan.com
Friday, March 26, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
A Kind Word
Good morning,
Happy Friday! Dare I say it? Spring is HERE. Never mind the fact that we'll probably get a little more snow. The bulbs peeking their heads out in our front yard assure me it's Spring. On this fine morning, here's my thought for the day.
Do we really know what impact our words or actions have on others?
Most of the time, the answer probably is no. Today it's on my mind because earlier this week I heard Roxanne Emmerich share the following story during her seminar presented by The Yes Network.
One day an elderly gentleman walked into a bank. He was greeted by a teller who was very nice to him. The next day he came back and told the teller, “Yesterday I came in to withdraw money because I wanted to buy a gun to take my own life. But when you were so nice to me, it gave me hope that life was worth living after all and I decided not to. So I wanted to thank you.”
What a powerful reminder that every interaction we have with another person creates an impact for better or worse, and most often we’ll never know how small or great that impact might be. Life is full of excuses we could point to for being a grouch, but this incident underscores the importance of rising above our own frustrations to help spread joy.
Smiles are contagious; I hope you find lots of reasons to smile today and have a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. If you're interested in seeing a lot more notes and ideas I collected from this week's Yes Network seminars featuring Roxanne Emmerich and Dan Coughlin, you're welcome to visit this link. I'm providing you this information with the permission of Yes Network president, Michael Jeffreys. Because I regularly attend the seminars, Mr. Jeffreys recently invited me to start writing reviews of the seminars to share with the network's members. It was fun and challenging trying my hand at this for this first time and I'd love your feedback or suggestions if you're so inclined. Mr. Jeffreys also offers complimentary workshops that can take place at your business, networking group or association meeting. For more information, you can visit YesMidwest.com.
P.S. "There are givers and takers in life. Life always seems to work better for the givers." Roxanne Emmerich
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
MetroMichigan.com
Happy Friday! Dare I say it? Spring is HERE. Never mind the fact that we'll probably get a little more snow. The bulbs peeking their heads out in our front yard assure me it's Spring. On this fine morning, here's my thought for the day.
Do we really know what impact our words or actions have on others?
Most of the time, the answer probably is no. Today it's on my mind because earlier this week I heard Roxanne Emmerich share the following story during her seminar presented by The Yes Network.
One day an elderly gentleman walked into a bank. He was greeted by a teller who was very nice to him. The next day he came back and told the teller, “Yesterday I came in to withdraw money because I wanted to buy a gun to take my own life. But when you were so nice to me, it gave me hope that life was worth living after all and I decided not to. So I wanted to thank you.”
What a powerful reminder that every interaction we have with another person creates an impact for better or worse, and most often we’ll never know how small or great that impact might be. Life is full of excuses we could point to for being a grouch, but this incident underscores the importance of rising above our own frustrations to help spread joy.
Smiles are contagious; I hope you find lots of reasons to smile today and have a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. If you're interested in seeing a lot more notes and ideas I collected from this week's Yes Network seminars featuring Roxanne Emmerich and Dan Coughlin, you're welcome to visit this link. I'm providing you this information with the permission of Yes Network president, Michael Jeffreys. Because I regularly attend the seminars, Mr. Jeffreys recently invited me to start writing reviews of the seminars to share with the network's members. It was fun and challenging trying my hand at this for this first time and I'd love your feedback or suggestions if you're so inclined. Mr. Jeffreys also offers complimentary workshops that can take place at your business, networking group or association meeting. For more information, you can visit YesMidwest.com.
P.S. "There are givers and takers in life. Life always seems to work better for the givers." Roxanne Emmerich
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
MetroMichigan.com
Friday, March 12, 2010
Motivate Me, Please
Good morning,
Happy Friday! The sunshine we enjoyed this week makes me feel like spring really is coming soon. And a new season – like a new day - brings new challenges, i.e. opportunities. But to accomplish much of anything, we need motivation. So where does it come from?
The key to motivation is the WHY factor.
Why? Why? Why? Most of us began torturing our parents with this question as soon we learned to talk. We were obsessed with it. Why - because it’s the most important question.
Everything we do has a WHY factor. I eat because I’m hungry; I pay the gas bill because I want heat, etc. If we don’t have a reason for doing something, chances are we won’t do it.
So here’s the point, the key to motivation. Accomplishing something great - anything that we aspire to - requires a Red Hot Why. RED HOT. That’s how success coach James Malinchak describes it.
Just focusing on the goal, such as “I want to be a millionaire,” isn’t sufficient motivation. We need a burning reason “why,” a reason so hot it keeps us going through all the struggles we’ll face on our way to our goal. Some experts suggest creating photo collages for your computer’s screen saver or other visual reminders of the reasons why, such as the house you’ll build with the extra money or the exotic destination you’ll visit.
Determining “what” you want to accomplish will help you get out of the starting gate but determining “why” will help you cross the finish line.
Why do I write sunny notes? Because I want to be helpful and reliable, bringing you cheer each Friday morning. So I’m here to say I hope you have a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. “Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” Arnold H. Glasow
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
http://www.metromichigan.com/
Happy Friday! The sunshine we enjoyed this week makes me feel like spring really is coming soon. And a new season – like a new day - brings new challenges, i.e. opportunities. But to accomplish much of anything, we need motivation. So where does it come from?
The key to motivation is the WHY factor.
Why? Why? Why? Most of us began torturing our parents with this question as soon we learned to talk. We were obsessed with it. Why - because it’s the most important question.
Everything we do has a WHY factor. I eat because I’m hungry; I pay the gas bill because I want heat, etc. If we don’t have a reason for doing something, chances are we won’t do it.
So here’s the point, the key to motivation. Accomplishing something great - anything that we aspire to - requires a Red Hot Why. RED HOT. That’s how success coach James Malinchak describes it.
Just focusing on the goal, such as “I want to be a millionaire,” isn’t sufficient motivation. We need a burning reason “why,” a reason so hot it keeps us going through all the struggles we’ll face on our way to our goal. Some experts suggest creating photo collages for your computer’s screen saver or other visual reminders of the reasons why, such as the house you’ll build with the extra money or the exotic destination you’ll visit.
Determining “what” you want to accomplish will help you get out of the starting gate but determining “why” will help you cross the finish line.
Why do I write sunny notes? Because I want to be helpful and reliable, bringing you cheer each Friday morning. So I’m here to say I hope you have a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. “Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” Arnold H. Glasow
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
http://www.metromichigan.com/
Friday, March 5, 2010
The Fear Factor
Good morning,
Happy Friday! We’re finally getting a little real sunshine, too. Reflecting on last week’s topic, if we don’t want to give up on our goals, how come we frequently do?
Often the factor is fear.
Fear sometimes helps – prompting us to drive more cautiously or hold the stairway handrail – but most of the time fear just gets in the way of living up to our potential.
Author Timothy Ferriss points out, “What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do. That phone call, that conversation, whatever the action might be – it is fear of unknown outcomes that prevents us from doing what we need to do.”
The most nagging “unknown outcome” we’re afraid of is failure, by whatever standards we define for ourselves. Most of us are geniuses at conjuring up “what if” scenarios leading to our definition of failure. “What if I get rejected,” “what if it doesn’t work out,” etc.
Ferriss says, “Define the worst case, accept it, and then do [what you need to do].” Usually the worst case scenario isn’t that bad, furthermore it’s not the most likely outcome.
A word of warning - beware of discouraging words from people who think they have your best interests at heart. Loved ones who don’t want to see us hurt sometimes try to temper our dreams with (their version of) “reality.” Instead, show them that you’re not afraid of failure because you’re tough enough to try again.
The topic of fear also came up recently when I had the pleasure of hearing Bob Fish, CEO of Biggby Coffee (yummy), speak to the Livonia Chamber of Commerce about his fast growing coffee business. Fish said, “People limit their own personal or professional growth because they let fear get in the way.” And he reminded us about the importance of courage, which he defined as “doing something you're afraid of, anyway.”
While it’s safe to say, if we don't try we won't fail, we surely won’t succeed either.
I wish you courage – and a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. “Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall.” Confucius
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
http://www.metromichigan.com/
Happy Friday! We’re finally getting a little real sunshine, too. Reflecting on last week’s topic, if we don’t want to give up on our goals, how come we frequently do?
Often the factor is fear.
Fear sometimes helps – prompting us to drive more cautiously or hold the stairway handrail – but most of the time fear just gets in the way of living up to our potential.
Author Timothy Ferriss points out, “What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do. That phone call, that conversation, whatever the action might be – it is fear of unknown outcomes that prevents us from doing what we need to do.”
The most nagging “unknown outcome” we’re afraid of is failure, by whatever standards we define for ourselves. Most of us are geniuses at conjuring up “what if” scenarios leading to our definition of failure. “What if I get rejected,” “what if it doesn’t work out,” etc.
Ferriss says, “Define the worst case, accept it, and then do [what you need to do].” Usually the worst case scenario isn’t that bad, furthermore it’s not the most likely outcome.
A word of warning - beware of discouraging words from people who think they have your best interests at heart. Loved ones who don’t want to see us hurt sometimes try to temper our dreams with (their version of) “reality.” Instead, show them that you’re not afraid of failure because you’re tough enough to try again.
The topic of fear also came up recently when I had the pleasure of hearing Bob Fish, CEO of Biggby Coffee (yummy), speak to the Livonia Chamber of Commerce about his fast growing coffee business. Fish said, “People limit their own personal or professional growth because they let fear get in the way.” And he reminded us about the importance of courage, which he defined as “doing something you're afraid of, anyway.”
While it’s safe to say, if we don't try we won't fail, we surely won’t succeed either.
I wish you courage – and a sunny day!
Clarity
P.S. “Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall.” Confucius
P.P.S. Thank you for visiting www.MySunnyNotes.com. If you’re new to Sunny Notes and would like to receive my sunny email each Friday, visit www.JoinSunnyNotes.com.
Clarity Patton Newhouse
Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury
32000 Ford Road
Garden City, MI 48135
313-670-7505
http://www.metromichigan.com/
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