“There is no Glory Without Sacrifice”, this was the theme during one of our Flag Raising Ceremonies last month.

This is an adage that means if ever we want to do or complete something in life there is always something that would be hard to do in order to get there. Someone said that “sacrifice” means forfeiture of something highly valued for the sake of one considered to have a greater value or claim.

This means that there is something that we must give up in order to be successful or triumphant. For example, when I started blogging, I gave up my time for workouts at the gym during off-hours and bonding with family on weekends in order to read books and other resource materials to write articles for my blog posts.

I realized that this isn’t proper, so I decided to temporarily stop blogging for more than two months and give time to the activities which I had to give up in favor of blogging. At least, that realization and short rest had taught me to balance and manage my time well.

Bonding time with kids.

I remember the sacrifices I made to be where I am now. To finish my studies with flying colors, I had to give up some of my sleeping hours, bonding time with family and friends and perhaps even good health in order to burn the midnight candle.

Sometimes, people sacrifice family time and even time for self, friendship and good health in order to get the desired job promotion, dream house or success in their endeavors.

How about you, what sacrifices have you made to be successful or triumphant?

I’m inviting you give  your list by leaving your comments below this article.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

You probably became the person you are today because somebody had patience with you at some critical points in your life…When you are patient with a person, you make a long-term investment in them.- Blaine Lee

On November 25, 2009, I posted an article titled Leaders Pay Attention to the Details. It stressed that there are projects which fail due to the leader’s failure to be attentive to details.

Most projects and problems encountered by us are not as simple as they seem.  It needs patience to dig into the details of each task and issue.  Much more, it takes a lot of patience to deal with the people doing the task or causing the issue –  people of varied attitude, work habits and experiences.

We develop the people we lead because people is the life of the organization .  We have to study the details of the project or of the job to help our people improve their performance. We could not teach what we don’t know.  Helping people grow requires patience.  We don’t keep digging up a  plant to know how it’s growing.

A Director is discussing the details of the job with her employees.

When I was  new in supervising people, I was so impatient with the slow learners,  slow workers and those who always commit mistakes.  I wanted everyone to be efficient and high achievers to meet and even exceed our goals.  But, I realized that my impatience has affected our relationship and didn’t motivate them to do better. Later on, I learned to be a good coach to them and most of them thanked me for the learnings they got from me.

In his book, The Power Principle: Influence with Honor, Blaine Lee suggests the following words to say to ourselves to check for patience:

Are their efforts acceptable as a place to start?

Must it really be done now?  This way?

Are the deadlines real?

Where are the pressures coming from?

Are the pressures real?

Is this good enough for now?

Are they good enough for now?

Am I open to their opinions?

How do you demonstrate patience to your people and to your peers?  Please let me hear from you by leaving your comments below this article.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

To make no mistakes is not in the power of man; but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future. Plutarch

As a leader, one of the challenges you must face in the workplace is handling mistakes, especially those of your people because control over others is not as easy as control over yourself.

When you say to your people, “Don’t commit any mistake in your job, otherwise you will suffer the consequences if it will happen,” , your people will be extra careful in doing the task. But, he might not take the initiative to perform beyond his functions, such as improvement activities, for fear of committing mistakes. People who fear mistakes, says Molly Napier, make no progress.

Encourage your people to tell you immediately if mistakes occur so that they could be corrected immediately. Encourage them to admit their mistakes.  Forgive them for their mistakes, let them learn lessons from them and  resolve not to commit the same mistakes again. Stephen Covey says: People will forgive mistakes, because mistakes are usually of the mind, mistakes of judgment.  But people will not easily forgive the mistakes of the heart, the ill intention, the bad motives, the prideful justifying cover-up of the first mistake.

At work, I always tell my people to ask for some clarifications, if instructions are not clear to minimize mistakes,  because they involve costs to the company in terms of time, money and energy.  They must not pretend that they know everything. Ask, ask, ask!

Stop blamestorming. John Wooden says, A man may make mistakes, but he isn’t a failure until he starts blaming someone else.

While you must assure your people that making mistakes is no cause for worry and trembling, never allow them to believe that mistakes themselves are  “okay.” Otherwise, mistakes become a habit.

Face mistakes at work and create a task force composed of the best brains you have available to focus on and recommend solutions to the problem.  Some of the best systems and procedures were formulated and implemented out of the lessons learned from mistakes.

You might also some ideas in your mind and I’m inviting you to share them to us by leaving your comments below this article.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

Leaders need to be motivated everyday in order to fuel their enthusiasm to achieve their goals and exceed their performance targets efficiently and effectively.

This is my choice of the 101 best motivational quotes from the top writers and speakers.

Anthony Robbins

1.  A real decision is measured by the fact that you’ve taken a new action. If there’s no action, you haven’t truly decided.

2.  How am I going to live today in order to create the tomorrow I’m committed to?

3.  I challenge you to make your life a masterpiece. I challenge you to join the ranks of those people who live what they teach, who walk their talk.

4.  I’ve come to believe that all my past failure and frustration were actually laying the foundation for the understandings that have created the new level of living I now enjoy.

5.  Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.

Brian Tracy

6.  Your greatest asset is your earning ability. Your greatest resource is your time.

7.  You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.

8.  Whatever you believe with feeling becomes your reality.

9.  All successful people men and women are big dreamers. They imagine what their future could be, ideal in every respect, and then they work every day toward their distant vision, that goal or purpose.

10.  Communication is a skill that you can learn. It’s like riding a bicycle or typing. If you’re willing to work at it, you can rapidly improve the quality of evry part of your life.

Robert Kiyosaki

11.  When people are lame, they love to blame.

12.  The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire; the size of your dream; and how you handle disappointment along the way.

13.  A lot of people are afraid to tell the truth, to say no. That’s where toughness comes into play. Toughness is not being a bully. It’s having backbone.

14.  If you want to go somewhere, it is best to find someone who has already been there.

Deepak Chopra

15.  There are no extra pieces in the universe. Everyone is here because he or she has a place to fill, and every piece must fit itself into the big jigsaw puzzle.

16.  The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.

17.  The way you think, the way you behave, the way you eat, can influence your life by 30 to 50 years.

18.  If you and I are having a single thought of violence or hatred against anyone in the world at this moment, we are contributing to the wounding of the world.

19.  Our thinking and our behaviour are always in anticipation of a response. It is therefore fear-based.

20.  To think is to practice brain chemistry.

Suze Orman

21.  If the boss is a jerk, get over it. First of all, don’t you think there’s a good chance that your boss’s boss knows what’s going on? If so, just keep your head down and do the work. Usually, if you put in maximum effort and produce excellent results, someone in the company is going to take notice. Either you will get promoted or your jerky boss will get the heave-ho. It happens all the time.

22.  A big part of financial freedom is having your heart and mind free from worry about the what-ifs of life.

23.  Try handling problems in the office as dispassionately as you can and I guarantee you will have a better time of it; not least because when you bring emotion into the conversation, you furnish your colleagues with an easy “out” for dismissing you. If you are able to strip out the emotion, however, people have to deal with you based on the facts.

24.  Whenever you’re confronted with a tough work situation, stop for a second and try to honestly answer this question: Am I approaching this emotionally or am I approaching this professionally?

Stephen Covey

25.  Motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly.

26.  While we are free to choose our actions, we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.

27.  We are not human beings on a spiritual journey. We are spiritual beings on a human journey.

28.  Don’t argue for other people’s weaknesses. Don’t argue for your own. When you make a mistake, admit it, correct it, and learn from it / immediately.

29.  We may be very busy, we may be very efficient, but we will also be truly effective only when we begin with the end in mind.

30.  Until a person can say deeply and honestly, “I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,” that person cannot say, “I choose otherwise.”

Jim Rohn

31.  When you know what you want, and want it bad enough, you will find a way to get it.

32.  You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.

33.  You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.

34.  Success is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.

35.  If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us.

Zig Ziglar

36.  Every choice you make has an end result.

37.  Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street.

38.  If you wait until all the lights are “green” before you leave home, you’ll never get started on your trip to the top.

39.  If you want to reach a goal, you must ’see the reaching’ in your own mind before you actually arrive at your goal.

40.  People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.

Jack Canfield

41.  People who ask confidently get more than those who are hesitant and uncertain. When you’ve figured out what you want to ask for, do it with certainty, boldness and confidence.

42.  One of the things that may get in the way of people being lifelong learners is that they’re not in touch with their passion. If you’re passionate about what it is you do, then you’re going to be looking for everything you can to get better at it.

43.  Some people fold after making one timid request. They quit too soon. Keep asking until you find the answers. In sales there are usually four or five “no’s” before you get a “yes.”

44.  Success depends on getting good at saying no without feeling guilty. You cannot get ahead with your own goals if you are always saying yes to someone else’s projects. You can only get ahead with your desired lifestyle if you are focused on the things that will produce that lifestyle.

45.  As you begin to take action toward the fulfillment of your goals and dreams, you must realize that not every action will be perfect. Not every action will produce the desired result. Not every action will work. Making mistakes, getting it almost right, and experimenting to see what happens are all part of the process of eventually getting it right.

Mark Victor Hansen

46.  Big goals get big results. No goals gets no results or somebody else’s results.

47.  Dedicate yourself to the good you deserve and desire for yourself. Give yourself peace of mind. You deserve to be happy. You deserve delight.

48.  Ideas attract money, time, talents, skills, energy and other complementary ideas that will bring them into reality.

49.  Improve your business, your life, your relationships, your finances and your health. When you do the whole world improves.

50.  You control your future, your destiny. What you think about comes about. By recording your dreams and goals on paper, you set in motion the process of becoming the person you most want to be. Put your future in good hands – your own.

Dale Carnegie

51.  You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.

52.  If you can’t sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It’s the worry that gets you, not the lack of sleep.

53.  You’ll never achieve real success unless you like what you’re doing.

54.  Flaming enthusiasm backed by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success.

55.  There are four ways, and only four ways, in which we have contact with the world. We are evaluated and classified by these four contacts: what we do, how we look,
what we say, and how we say it.

Joe Vitale

56.  Finally, what I really want is to be happy in this moment, where the magic and miracles happen. Stay in the moment and all gifts are added as you breathe and take inspired action.

57.  It’s really important that you feel good. Because this feeling good is what goes out as a signal into the universe and starts to attract more of itself to you. So the more you can feel good, the more you will attract the things that help you feel good and that will keep bringing you up higher and higher.

58.  Start each day off on the right foot.

59.  Thoughts are sending out that magnetic signal that is drawing the parallel back to you.

60.  The thing is, we have to let go of all blame, all attacking, all judging, to free our inner selves to attract what we say we want. Until we do, we are hamsters in a cage chasing our own tails and wondering why we aren’t getting the results we seek.

Norman Vincent Peale

61.  Practice hope. As hopefulness becomes a habit, you can achieve a permanently happy spirit.

62.  Live your life and forget your age.

63.  Change your thoughts and you change your world.

64.  How you think about a problem is more important than the problem itself – so always think positively.

65.  Those who are fired with an enthusiastic idea and who allow it to take hold and dominate their thoughts find that new worlds open for them. As long as enthusiasm holds out, so will new opportunities.

Jeffrey Gitomer

66.  Obstacles can’t stop you. Problems can’t stop you. Most of all other people can’t stop you. Only you can stop you.

67.  Your job is to meet the right people and read the right books.

68.  When you begin to give value to the world, somehow the people you affect will find a way to tell you. Even if it takes a couple of years.

69.  The key is not to “call the decision maker.” The key is to “have the decision maker call you.”
Napoleon Hill

70.  The best job goes to the person who can get it done without passing the buck or coming back with excuses.

71.  Action is the real measure of intelligence.

72.  Do not wait; the time will never be ”just right.” Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.

73.  The world has the habit of making room for the man whose actions show that he knows where he is going.

74.  Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.

75.  What ever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.

Leo Buscaglia

76.  It’s not enough to have lived. We should be determined to live for something.

77.  Love is always changing and unless we stay aware and change with it, it eludes us.

78.  To live in love is to live in life, and to live in life is to live in love.

79.  Life is our greatest possession and love its greatest affirmation.

80.  We are all born with God-given, unique traits and skills. But as with all possibilities they will remain unrealized unless they are developed, nurtured and put into practice.

Og Mandino

81.  Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later.

82.  Always seek out the seed of triumph in every adversity.

83.  I am here for a purpose and that purpose is to grow into a mountain, not to shrink to a grain of sand. Henceforth will I apply ALL my efforts to become the highest mountain of all and I will strain my potential until it cries for mercy.

84.  The victory of success is half won when one gains the habit of setting goals and achieving them. Even the most tedious chore will become endurable as you parade through each day convinced that every task, no matter how menial or boring, brings you closer to fulfilling your dreams.

85.  The only people who never fail are those who never try.

Ken Blanchard

86.  Don’t quack like a duck, soar like an eagle.

87.  People who produce good results feel good about themselves.

88.  The best way to teach people is by telling a story.

Earl Nightingale

89.  Creativity is a natural extension of our enthusiasm.

90.  People with goals succeed because they know where they’re going.

91.  All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination.

92.  Everything begins with an idea.

93.  Our attitude towards others determines their attitude towards us.

Robert Allen

94.  You don’t drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

95.  Don’t let the opinions of the average man sway you. Dream, and he thinks you’re crazy. Succeed, and he thinks you’re lucky. Acquire wealth, and he thinks you’re greedy. Pay no attention. He simply doesn’t understand.

96.  The future you see is the future you get.

97.  If service is the rent you pay for your existence on this earth, are you behind in your rent?

98.  Fear melts when you take action towards a goal you really want.

Les Brown

99.  Life takes on meaning when you become motivated, set goals and charge after them in an unstoppable manner.

100.  If you fall, fall on your back. If you can look up, you can get up.
101.  Don’t let someone else’s opinion of you become your reality.

I hope this list has inspired you and I’m happy if you could share your favorites by leaving your comments below this post.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

Life is like a roller-coaster.  Sometimes you’re up, sometimes you’re down. It matters not whether you’re very down, as long as, you strive to get up every time you fall.

I experienced an unforgettable trial in my life and career in the mid of 2002.  I was relieved as Department Manager of the government corporation where I work, when the former incumbent reassumed office upon returning home after finishing her scholarship grant at a foreign country.

At first, I felt depressed, especially, when I was just reassigned as a staff of a top executive.  However, I didn’t lose hope and I looked for ways to go on with my life.

Here are the ways I adopted to survive from this trial:

1.  Never Blame and Hate Anybody. Everything happens for a reason and we are responsible for our own lives.  Stop blaming others, if you want to make the most of your talent and be successful.

If you keep on hating somebody, you couldn’t keep your focus on your self-improvement. Life is too short, so don’t spend it wastefully by hating others.

When I was relieved, I could have sought the assistance of  the Civil Service Commission or the CES board for my case, as I have a CESO rank.  But, I didn’t do that because I didn’t want to spoil my relationship with my big bosses.  In this case, stirring up the waters might not enable me to catch fish.

2.  Think Positive. Look at the positive in every trial.  There are no negative incidents only incidents which help in your improvement and strengthen your character so that you may rise to new altitude. There are no failures, only lessons.

Troubles and trials make life more interesting.  Keep in mind that nothing lasts forever.  These, too, will pass.

3.  Think of the Opportunity it Can Give. When I was relieved, I used it as an opportunity to complete my Executive Leadership Program with the CESboard.

Likewise, I used it as an opportunity to research on latest updates pertaining to my field of work so that I will have the right knowledge when the time for me to head an office comes.

4.  Devote Time to Personal and Career Development Activities. Invest in yourself.  Sharpen your saw. Organize your time.  Devote at least one hour in the morning for your personal and career development activities so that when you are given again another opportunity to hold a higher position, you are prepared for it.

Your daily personal and career development activities include meditation, visualization of your day and what you want to become, reading of inspirational books and articles and listening to motivational CDs and tapes.

At the start of 2003, I wrote my career development plan.  My goal was to be a Regional Director and the target date was not later than December 31, 2003.  I listed down my activities and worked on it, to attain my goal.

5.  Persevere. At that time, bringing my goal to reality seemed impossible as I was still frozen as staff of a top executive, with no assurance of being placed to a managerial position in the near future.

But I carried on as these words of Napoleon Hill inspired me:

“whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, he can achieve.”

I believed that if I have a written plan and persist in developing myself and my career, I can achieve my goal.

6.  Have a Strong Faith in the Divine Providence. I believe that God has a purpose for everything that happens in our life.  If we place everything in the Lord’s hands, whatever happens, it is the Lord’s will and it is for our own good.

Always bear in mind that the darkest part of the night is just before dawn.

In April 2003, I received an order designating me again as Department Manager.  In May 2003, I was promoted to a position which is one salary grade higher than my present position.  On November 25, 2003, I was assigned as Regional Director of a Regional Office whose head retired from the service.  I attained my goal before the target date.

Life’s journey is not always easy.  Now and then, we pass through bumpy roads and stormy seas and we have to survive all these to attain our goal.

I know you also have your own survival ways to tell and I’m glad if you could share it with us by leaving your comments below this article.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

In my previous article, I emphasize that your secretary can make or break you. Your secretary is the extension of your hands and feet in just getting all the things done that you can’t take time “mechanically” to do yourself.

Here are the five ways to manage your secretary, for you to operate at peak performance:

1.  Your secretary must be specially selected by you. He or she must be specially or carefully selected by you to suit your temperament.

However, if you are in government offices, whenever you are assigned to your new office, you usually inherit the secretary of your predecessor.  So, it takes a lot of patience and perseverance to adjust to each other.

2.  Establish warm and friendly relation with your secretary. Although a majority of you are aloof at some people, you must have a harmonious working relationship with your secretary in order to perform effectively.

3.  Keep your secretary informed. As anticipated, he or she will be handling confidential information, it’s important to stress to your secretary the need for a tight lip.  It is quite futile, however, to anticipate him or her to assist in the management of your office without being aware of what they need to know to get the job done.

4.  Know what your secretary is doing. This is one of your basic requirements in using a secretary.

5.  Make your secretary adapt to you. The main requirement of a secretary is that he or she be flexible in adapting his or her work habits to those of the executive.  In other words, a good secretary requires the personality of a chameleon.

I know you have also some ways in your list and I will be glad to read your thoughts by leaving your comments below this post.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

In the book, Creating Confidence, Rex Johnson and David Swindley define self-esteem as the feeling of worth you have about yourself; the value you place on you.  Like oxygen or electricity, you can’t see, hear, taste or smell it, but you know when it’s not there.

Lack of self-esteem means you feel yourself worthless and valueless.  It is important that we know who among our associates or co-workers lack self-esteem so that we know how to deal with them and help them.  This deficiency can cause low motivation, low energy levels, low physical activity and poor relationship with people.

Mistakably, we think that loud, arrogant people have high self-esteem and quiet people have not.  Generally, the most confident people are quiet about their achievements, get on with their lives, doing as they please and enjoying themselves.  Still waters run deep!

According to psychotherapists Rex Johnson and David Swindley, many desperately try to cover up their lack of self-esteem, but a well-tuned observer can spot the truth quite easily.

Here are the ten behavior patterns resorted to by people to hide a lack of self-esteem:

1.  The Critic

He is fond of criticizing and belittling people, especially those who are more successful than him; an unhappy way to justify himself.  He is unable to come up with constructive suggestion or positive action of his own.

2,  The Shrinking Violet

He avoids the limelight and shrinks into the background, convinced that he’s not worth anyone’s attention.  He could not accept a compliment because he’s spent many years believing he is inadequate.

3.  The Complainer

He can’t stop himself complaining, get great pleasure from it, and take every opportunity to practice his art.  Whatever happens, he’s not happy.

4.  The Addict

Eating disorders, phobias and addictive habits such as anorexia, bulimia, smoking and alcoholism are usually behaviors of a person who lack self-esteem.

5.  The Mouse

He is afraid to expose his true feelings because he cannot face possible rejection.  He creeps around like a mouse, too timid to express an opinion.  He avoids complaining even when he has every reason to do so.

6.  The Sheep

He follows the herd in order to be accepted into certain circles or groups.  He doesn’t trust his own individuality enough to go his own way.

7.  The Big Mouth

On the face of it, he is the opposite of the mouse.  He cannot stop talking, and this behavior comes in two categories.  The first is worried that he won’t get another chance to say his piece; once he engages you in conversation it is hard to get away.  The second is a habitual braggart, with little regard for truth.  He boasts and promises on anything he could not afford to fulfill.

8.  The Put-Down Expert

He has a quick insult, a barbed comment for everybody who crossed his path.  He thinks the only way he could impress is by using his sharp cleverness to put others down.

9.  The Begrudger

He is the jealous individual who feels that anyone who has something he wants doesn’t really deserve it.  Through jealousy, he dislikes people who are successful.  He doesn’t have the sufficient self-confidence to be able to say ‘Well done, I’m pleased for you,’ and mean it.

10.  The Blamer

He is always looking for scapegoats.  If something goes wrong, it’s somebody else’s fault.  He always finds someone to be blamed for any wrongdoings or failures even if he knows that he is responsible for his own actions.

I know there are literally hundreds of behavior patterns and I invite you to share your own list by leaving your comments below this post.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

My previous article talks on the importance of the secretary to the executive.  Realizing this significance, I find it appropriate to list down these tips on how the secretary shall handle the mail and paperwork with efficiency.

1. Opens and Sorts  Incoming Mail

The secretary shall read diligently all incoming mail. Mail, such as routinary reports and other documents which do not require decision,  shall be immediately endorsed to offices concerned.

Mail received and endorsed shall be accurately recorded by the secretary and signed by the endorsee or his or her receiving clerk.  This is to facilitate tracing of documents.

Mail which need the decision or approval by the executive shall be placed under the “IN” basket items.

2.  Handles and analyzes  “IN” basket items

Items that could not be handled with confidence could be carefully organized, prioritized, and brought to the executive with a recommendation or a note or a previous communication on the issue which serves as a guide to the executive on the action to be taken on the item.

This requires that the secretary shall keep himself or herself abreast of the happenings in the office.  He or she shall keep a journal of the daily office activities, which he or she or the executive could glance from time to time.

3.  Handles routine inquiries

The secretary shall equip himself or herself all the basic data in the office which the clients shall initially need.  For example, he or she shall have ready data on the prices of products and services, number and location of branches, the contact information for each branch and other basic data.

He or she shall act with courtesy and politeness in dealing with clients and employees.

4. Reviews communications, reports and other documents which require signature of the executive

The secretary shall make a review and preliminary correction of the communications before bringing them to the executive.  He or she shall check the grammatical errors and whether the subject and body of the letter or memorandum jibe with each other.

A secretary reviews a paper before bringing to the executive.

So it is important that the secretary shall be focused on his or her job and has a good command of the English language.  There are many English books which the secretary may use for his or her review of the vocabulary and grammar.  One good book to use as reference is English for Business by Stewart, Lanham and Zimmer.

He or she shall meticulously review reports and other documents before bringing them to the executive for signature or approval.  He or she shall see to it that all other signatures are complete and in order.

5. Serves as confidential journalist and caretaker of most critical secrets in the corporate body

This one is added by my good friend and former classmate, Steve Hermosisima. Steve is a  Licensed TourGuide/Conductor atOldTown TrolleyTours in the USA.

It is necessary that the secretary is discreet, cautious, trustworthy and loyal to the company.

If these tips are followed, the busy executive shall be relieved of the paperwork and effectively perform his or her planning and decision-making function.

If you have any other tips to include in this list, I shall be very glad if you write them down by leaving your comments below this article.

Your friend,

Nimia Acebes

We are either the masters or the victims of our attitudes.  It is a matter of personal choice.  Who we are today is the result of choices made yesterday.  Tomorrow we will become what we choose today.  To change means to choose to change. – John C. Maxwell

Everyone desires to be successful in his career,  relationship or in life as a whole and  he is only an attitude away from realizing his desires.  To improve, he must choose to change his negative attitudes, as well as, his habits and thoughts into positive ones.  The desired change would only be successful if he begins it with himself, because it is the only person whom he has full control with.

I came across a very beautiful poem on starting with yourself and I hope it motivates us to take the choice to change. Here it is:

Start With Yourself

Author Unknown

When I was young and free and my imagination had no limits, I dreamed of changing the world.

As I grew older and wiser, I discovered the world would not change, so I shortened my sights somewhat and decided to change only my country. But it, too, seemed immovable.

As I grew into my twilight years, in one last desperate attempt, I settled for changing only my family, those closest to me, but alas, they would have none of it.

And now as I lie on my deathbed, I suddenly realized: If I had only changed myself first, then by example I would have changed my family. From their inspiration and encouragement, I would then have been able to better my country and, who knows, I may have even changed the world.

Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.
Zig  Ziglar

The word attitude is always mentioned in everyday conversations, anytime and anywhere, whether it be a complaint or compliment.  It’s hard to define attitude but it is often  expressed by our body language and by the looks on our faces.

Our attitude dictates our performance.

At school, there are pupils or students who excel in aptitude tests but their report cards reflect low grades and sometimes failing grades.  When asked by the parents, the teachers usually suggest that the pupils or students have bad attitude in class.

At work, we wonder why an employee who has high intellectual capacity could not be given high position in office.  When asked, the CEO usually answers that he or she has a bad working attitude which oftentimes affect his or her work performance and relationship with his or her co-workers and clients.

In the book Fish, Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen said:

“You always have a choice about the attitude you bring to work each day.  That choice determines the way you are at work.  We can bring a moody attitude and have a depressing day.  We can bring a grouchy attitude and irritate our co-workers and customers.  Or we can bring a sunny, playful, cheerful attitude and have a great day.  We can choose the kind of day we will have.”

During one of my trips, I saw a sign which reads:

WHY CUSTOMERS QUIT

1% die

3% move away

5% other friendships

9% competitive reasons (price)

14% product dissatisfaction

BUT…

68% quit because of an attitude of indifference

toward them by some employees.

In his book, the Winning Attitude, author John C. Maxwell said:

“There is very little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference.  The little difference is attitude.  The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.”

To attain high altitude in life, we must strive to have a positive attitude.  The CHOICE is yours.