Soft skills

How to Be Grateful – Remember Your Current Situation is Someone’s Dream

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your life someone's dream

My friend shared this quote with me over lunch today.  I love its simplicity.  “Your current situation is someone’s dream!”  What a great reminder to be grateful.

I don’t know about you.  I think it’s almost a national pass time to focus on looking up and comparing ourselves to someone who has a bigger house,  more luxurious car, or more skills etc…  This is especially true for us over-achievers who are trained to look for where we are still lacking – what is it that we are still not good at? ...  read more

Train My Mind – A Critical Soft Skill and My Focus for 2018

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train my mind

Have you made any New Year resolutions yet?  “Eat Healthier” and “Get More Exercise” are 2018’s top 2 New Year resolutions.  It’s interesting how training our body with better nutrition or exercise always seem to garner the most focus.  This year, I have a better one to propose to you – train your mind. Let me tell you a story and you will see why. ...  read more

The Power of Words – Speak Wisely at Work and at Home

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My husband sent me this video last week and I was blown away by its message.  It Is < 5 minutes, but carries a powerful reminder for us all – the power of our words and why we should speak wisely.  Here is the video and what it meant for me.   I look forward to hearing your reactions. ...  read more

Are You on the Right Career Path? Ask Yourself These 4 Questions

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I just found out a close friend has cancer.  I was shocked by the news.  Although her cancer is highly treatable, it was a complete surprise.  She will need to go through 6 months of chemo and hell to recover.  I share this with you to help you step back from the daily grind and see the big picture.  Life is short and finite. ...  read more

How to Become an Extraordinary Leader – 3 Unexpected Lessons

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When I was nominated for a leadership training at work, I was honored but skeptical I would learn anything substantial.   I am glad however to be proven wrong.  In the last five months, I have learned more about my leadership style and leadership brand than I had ever expected.   Even better, I am already applying what I learned at work and seeing results.  Here are the three unexpected leadership lessons I learned about how to become an extraordinary leader. ...  read more

Soft Skills Workout – Who is More Confident – Cindy or Jack?

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workout

Workout Objective:  A lesson in self-confidence.
Prerequisite: None.
Recommended Frequency: Just once.
Workout steps:  Read the scenario below and vote.

Who do you think is more confident in this scenario?  Let’s assume that Cindy and Jack are equally qualified and capable .

  • Well educated – Cindy graduated from Berkeley with a 3.4 GPA and majored in electrical engineering and Jack graduated from SF state with a 2.7  GPA and majored in marketing.
  • Extensive work experience – Both have worked for 15+ years.   Cindy worked in consulting and now for a fortune 100 company as a product management leader.   Jack worked mainly in started up and is in his 8th start up as director of marketing.
  • Had some setbacks – Cindy has been laid off once in her career.  Jack has experienced about 4 lay offs so far.

Who do you think is more confident – Jack or Cindy? ...  read more