I recently read a humorous NPR article about theft deterrent notes that people leave on their food in community fridges- like an office or apartment. I had a good chuckle as I thought back on “disappearing cereal and sandwiches. As I reflected I thought of 6 standards of etiquette we should all strive to observe. Quick disclaimer, I am not Emily Post and I do occasionally burp at the table.

1-      Make time for those you work and associate with– We have all had that experience when we tap on the door frame or the top of a neighbor’s cubicle and they are too busy staring at who knows what to even turn and acknowledge your presence. Fostering a collaborative relationship in the office (could be apartment) means taking a moment to look up.

2-      Don’t be that guy (gal)– The person who comes by and interrupts your hard work to tell you about their new baby kittens, how the season finale of (input favorite show here) or how you can save 15% on your car insurance….and then stays for 15 minutes (or more) blah blah blahing. Don’t be him/her. Respect your associates time and keep your cat news for the lunch break or your Facebook status update.

3-      Leave my sandwich alone– I couldn’t write a post about office etiquette without at least mentioning the community fridge. I get hungry and that is why I brought the sandwich. Please do me the courtesy of allowing me to eat it. As an additional piece of advice- if it looks rotten it probably is. If it doesn’t look rotten I still want it. If you work from home and your spouse eats your sandwich just move on…

4-      Headphones (and related… pause the Pandora)– we all have our own tastes in music and while I may not be able to comprehend how you accept that jumble of screaming and whiny guitar as pleasurable listening I do respect your decision to subject yourself to it. However I do not want to hear it. So might I suggest that you turn the volume down a smidge, pop in headphones or patiently wait for the privacy of your own automobile? Thanks. Also- if you do listen to music in your private office, when a co-worker comes in for a meeting or an update hit that pause button. I find it a bit difficult to communicate with a Backstreet Boys serenade.

5-      Mobile devices– Everybody has a cell phone. Even that guy who proudly shows off his original flip phone has a cell phone. And for some reason cell phone discussions occur at volumes higher than normal conversations. So if you need to take a call, especially in a common area, walk away to a quiet corner. You may think we want to know the intimate details of your personal life but we don’t. I shouldn’t have to add this but I will; the restroom is not a “quiet corner”. Related: when we are talking and you peek at a text or email I consider it rude- thanks.

6-      Grandiose claims– I love to celebrate success and share with the team. It builds trust and inspires others to reach higher and do more. I only ask that you wait until the success actually happens. Deals fall apart and exciting news can turn out not quite exciting. In group settings everybody freely shares success and opportunity but we never revisit the topic if details change or facts are misquoted. I really dislike the feeling of sharing my team’s successes with clients and then finding out it didn’t actually happen that “exact” way.

Wow- what started out this morning as a humorous NPR article morphed into a little rant about office etiquette. At different points in my life and career I have been guilty of almost every one of the above mentioned standards (except, of course, eating someone else’s sandwich). I think we could all do a little bit better professionally respecting our colleagues

Question:  Did I miss any? Do you have an office etiquette standard that should be observed? Leave your comment below or click here.

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Have the hours in my night been reduced?

When my alarm went off this morning I was still really tired. I recently heard someone say they couldn’t remember the last time that they weren’t just little bit tired. We all have tremendously busy schedules. It’s the new economy right, do more with less people? We have our professional responsibilities, our family responsibilities, our personal responsibilities, our leisure and then some time for sleep. To me it feels like we are being asked to give up more and more of our remaining leisure time and sleep. The hours between “good night” and “hello sunshine” go by in a blink.

The weekends are no better. We just shift the hours we sleep, staying up a little later and sleeping in a bit in the morning (if we don’t have kids). With the seemingly never ending routine we continue to live, it is no wonder that so many of us experience burnout.

For many years growing up my grandfather suffered from debilitating multiple sclerosis. He fought a great fight and lived many years, mentally strong as his body deteriorated. In his later years he needed help getting out of bed and into his wheel chair. At the end of the day he needed help getting back into his bed. While he had professional nurses help in the morning, for over 10 years my father helped with the evening routine. I am certain that my grandparents had the ability to bring in help in the evenings, but my dad was glad to do it. The two of them grew very close over the years.
Between the nightly assistance and the demands of his own personal and work life it was not uncommon for my dad to operate on 5-ish hours of sleep. In fact it was rare indeed when sleep exceeded 6 hours… for 10 years. During all those years he never complained of burnout.

Since we all go through periods of fatigue and burnout here are 5 steps to reducing burnout’s impact:

1- Proper diet. I am not suggesting “going on a diet” or weight loss, only you and your physician can make that determination. I am suggesting a conscious decision to reduce junk food and soda, limit the amount of refined and processed foods. My wife has been a real help to me in learning the proper foods I should be consuming. As I have focused more on fruits and vegetables I have found an extra little skip in my step and an ability power through fatigue. She has a lot of great tips and suggestions on health and exercise over at fittingitinfitness.com

2- Take a little break. Burnout can be reduced if I consistently take little breaks and do things I enjoy. Take a little walk around the office, watch a few minutes of tv, call, email, or text a friend or play a quick game on my phone. Anything to give your mind a break. You can’t just save all of your break time for the weekends or the effects won’t last. Try for a few minutes every day to find your bliss.

3- Set work limits. Are you tethered to work by your smart phone? I am. If you look at my business card or my email signature you will see that it has my cell phone number. Of course my email goes right to my phone and my office phone even forwards directly to my pocket. I have been trained as Maslow’s dogs to reach in and peek at every slight vibration or “bing”. In avoiding burnout it is important to set work limits and take real breaks. You may set 1hr to work on this project and then at the end of that hour take a 10 minute break. I try to be home by 6pm each night to have dinner with the family even though I have to do more work later in the evening.

4- Get 7-8 hours of sleep. It is nearly universally believed in the medical community that an “appropriate” amount of sleep is important for health and our ability to operate at peak levels. While optimum amounts of sleep are not always possible, strive for the amount that you personally need (typically at least 7 hours). Hard? Yes. Impossible? No. I have a goal to get to bed by 11pm at least 4 nights a week and to sleep in at least once a week. That still allows me to get up at 5:30 and write.

5- Set accomplishable “mini” goals. My final step for avoiding burnout is to celebrate your small victories. When you have a big project or a task with multiple steps and stages, celebrate the minor accomplishments. If you have the goal of email inbox zero, celebrate after every 50 or 100 you closeout. If you have to make 25 phone calls, take a break after 10 or 15. Reach back and pat yourself on the back or pump your fist in the air. Will you feel foolish? Maybe. Will it energize you for round two? Most definitely.

Burn out happens (put that on a bumper sticker). If we take the few steps listed above we can reduce how often it happens and the length of time it affects us. As that great poet Jimmy Buffett says, “I can’t run at this pace for very long, maybe 10 more years”.

Question: Do you have a burnout out busting technique that you like to use? Leave your comments below or click here.

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A year and a half ago I read the Compound Effect, by Darren Hardy. The book talks about Darren’s 30 day challenges. He gives up something or takes something on for 30 days to “prove to himself” that he is in charge.

I love the idea

We can control our own destiny and that sometimes we need to show that negative little voice in our heads that we are in charge. Since my first (of many) readings I have taken on many 30 day challenges. They have all had varying positive impacts in my life. The very first one that I attempted was a 30 day “no soda” fast. For some of you this may be a no-brainer and quite easy but for me and my over 60oz a day it was a “challenge”. As a disclaimer, I am not a nutritionist or a health food junkie and I choose my challenges as things that will make me stretch a little (or a lot) and not necessarily on what is best for my health.

Admittedly, I often count down the days until the challenge is over. On day 31 I always celebrate. I think it would be great if my challenges resulted in longer term changes in behavior but truthfully, that is not my real intention. I get satisfaction knowing that I took on the challenge and completed it.

My 30 day challenges tend to be stronger and elicit more of a commitment for completion than many of my other goals and objectives. What does this have to do with today? As I write this I am beginning my newest 30 day challenge, a challenge that is likely the “most” difficult challenge I have attempted to date (and that’s with 18 completed challenges under my belt). The challenge is to write 500 words a day for 30 days. (word count this month, 334, so far).

I chose this challenge because I recently launched my platform here at familybeforefortune.com and I want good quality content. I want to share inspiring and life changing ideas. If not for you then for me. I call myself a writer. I want to write and inspire through great literary insights. One of my mentors, and a very talented writer, Michael Malone challenged me to write 1000 words a day. To not go to bed at night until I have cranked out my 1000 words. That is a huge leap from casual writing to committed 1000 worder. I have committed to him at various times, started and stumbled and not excelled.

Introduce baby steps

I think that I can make the 500 word objective this month and then maybe bump to 1000 in the next.  I admit that this challenge makes me nervous. Most days cranking out 500-1000 words will not be a problem but this particular month I have family coming into town for a visit and then I am taking the family to Southern California for eight days (including the 2 days in the car). This will really force me to prepare my time, get up early, go to bed later and forgo an activity or two. But what better challenge then to take on a busy month with a challenging challenge? Ultimately I want to make this a habit, not just a 30 day challenge. Wish me luck (word count before edits 598, day 1 in the books)

Question: If you could challenge yourself to give something up or take something on for 30 consecutive days what would it be? How would it change your life? Leave your comments below or by clicking here

Jim Rohn said “If you want to have more, you have to become more”. Success is not merely a doing process, it is a becoming process. You need to become the type of person that attracts success. 97% percent of the population spends more time each week planning their grocery trip than planning their life (scary). This means that for most people, peas, carrots and ice cream are more important than passion, goals and success. It may surprise you the reason for this has very little to do with desire. Most people want to do more, to have more, and be more but are unable to make the leap. To break that mold, you need to become a “top 3%er”, part of the elite group that focuses their energy on a goal.

In 1899 the greatest archer to ever live was born in Alabama, Howard Hill. Hill was so good that he was never beaten in competition, winning 196 in a row. He could draw, aim and hit the bull’s-eye dead center. Then, with the next arrow split the first. But, what if I told you that by applying the principles I lay out below you could be more accurate and win more tournaments than Howard Hill could ever have? Of course we would have to blind fold Hill and turn him around so he does not know which direction to shoot. I can hear you chuckling and saying “of course he cannot hit a target he cannot see”. How about you- could you hit a target you could not see? How about a target you do not have? Having a goal to go after is essential.

Here are three steps that you can take to make sure you always have a target to shoot for.

1-      Don’t just think it- ink it. It’s been said before and may sound cliché but it is true. Goals become more real when they appear on your paper. Recent studies have shown that the simple act of writing a goal down makes it 42% more likely to be completed. More than any other factor, writing influences completion.

2-      Dream big, to go big. Play above your level. Napoleon Hill famously quipped that whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve. Do not limit yourself, reach higher. Or, as Norman Vincent Peale stated, “shoot for the moon and even if you miss you will wind up among the stars.

3-      Review goals often. I recommend reviewing your goals on a daily basis (or twice daily). Keep them fresh and real and actionable. Go to bed thinking of your dreams and wake up invigorated to accomplish them

As a bonus step- share your goals selectively. You are surrounded by people who will try to tear you down. Not that they consciously want to see you fail, but subconsciously they are jealous of your growth and accomplishments. They want to keep you at their level. I caution you in sharing your goals with those not fully supportive of your efforts.

Following these three (four) simple steps will put you on the right course to becoming a success. Remember to ink your goals, dream big and review often. Watch out- you are on the road to becoming.

What is your preferred goal tracking process? Leave a comment below or click here.