Thought of the Day for Work: Planting Seeds

 Ponderings  1 Response »
Jan 022013
 


Today, I was a bit inspired by a guest post on Modest Money called Little Acorns can Grow into Giant Oaks.

I agree with the idea of persistence in investing, but I would apply it even more generally to life as a whole. I’ve never thought of it in the context of oaks, but I always think of the work I do as planting seeds. In any type of workplace, there are “big kill” people, the sales people or marketers who work to make massive deals happen, similar to hunters stalking and killing a giant animal for food. Then, there are people who build systems and processes… they plant seeds.

Thought for the Day of Work

Planting seeds is less glamorous, and it can require a LOT of patience, but it it leads to more reliable results. It’s a strategy that doesn’t depend on a single person.

So, try to plant more seeds and go on fewer hunts. While a windfall of money, a surprise sale, or some other “big kill” can certainly be exciting, it is the patient and persistent planting of seeds that makes fundamental changes in your world.

What can you do in your life to take out the risk and start setting yourself up for victories of patience and persistence?

Thought of the Day: Don’t stop growing

 Ponderings  1 Response »
Aug 222012
 


It’s amazing how a simple statement can keep inspiring me. I keep thinking back to a previous thought of the day I had about making no little plans.

Today, my thought of the day is is to not stop growing.

The feeling of growth is freeing and liberating. Many annoyances and challenges can be overcome or just ignored if you feel like you’re growing.

Growth is a vital part of life. So, today on this humpday morning, as you commute to work, think of how you’re growing.

Is your job helping you grow? If not, is it staying out of your way as you grow in the rest of your life?

You don’t need to do something that completely terrifies you to grow, but if you don’t feel a little bit of fear every once in a while, you might not be pushing yourself hard enough in this game we call life.

Thought for the Day for Work

 Ponderings  No Responses »
Jul 052012
 

We often view the benefits of helping others at work in direct terms. However, the biggest benefits of stepping up to help out where it’s needed at work might be completely intangible.

There’s an invisible balance of credit that exists in the workplace. Sure, some people take advantage of that in a bad way, but often it works quite well. You pay into the system, building credit that is advantageous to have when you’re in need.

So, the thought for the day for work: are you working to build your balance of credit, or are you drawing it down?

Thought for the Day for Work – Generosity

 Ponderings  No Responses »
Apr 262012
 

As I might have mentioned in the past, I’m a TED talk addict. TED talks are an amazingly entertaining and easy to digest way that you can learn more about the world around you.

Recently, a new TED talk by Michael Norton was posted to Ted.com, called How to Buy Happiness. It has an interesting message that inspired my thought for the day for work.

My Thought for the Day for Work

Michael Norton puts forth some pretty interesting concepts. I think the most interesting one is how generosity can impact the performance of a team.

The idea of putting a price tag, or more appropriately a return on investment (ROI) on generosity is kind of mind blowing. It’s not a way we normally think about generosity, but if our morals and our pocket books both agree on a situation, does that make it wrong?

So, today, think generosity. Buy a coworker a coffee, or better yet, bring in donuts for your team. You might be pleasantly surprised with the results!