Insurance Leaders

RSS URL Correction for Dream.Learn.Do.Become Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:09:00 -0400

A Note From Jim

As an update to my previous 3/11/2013 post (pasted below), for RSS subscribers, please note that the correct new URL for our Blog's RSS feed is:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/Jims-Blog

Again, many thanks for your ongoing "followship". I welcome your comments.

Also, note our new "Ask Jim" feature. Your submissions are encouraged.

Best Always - Jim

***
3/11/2013

A Note From Jim

Dear Readers:

Thanks for your enthusiastic and ongoing “followship”.

Please note that a new URL has been established for my Blog: “Dream.Learn.Do.Become.” The new URL is: http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

If you previously subscribed to the Blog via email, last week you should have received in your inbox, an advice informing of the URL change and requesting that you confirm your free subscription by clicking the link provided.

Alternatively, you may also re-subscribe directly at the new Blog URL: http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

If you previously subscribed to the Blog via a RRS feed, please update the feed address to : http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

Feel free to email me at jjacobs@jacobsadvisors.com if you’re experiencing any difficulty with the changeover. Many thanks. Happy flourishing!

Dream.Learn.Do.Become Blog - New Design & New URL

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 18:13:00 -0400

A Note From Jim

Dear Readers:

Thanks for your enthusiastic and ongoing “followship”.

Please note that a new URL has been established for my Blog: “Dream.Learn.Do.Become.” The new URL is: http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

If you previously subscribed to the Blog via email, last week you should have received in your inbox, an advice informing of the URL change and requesting that you confirm your free subscription by clicking the link provided.

Alternatively, you may also re-subscribe directly at the new Blog URL: http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

If you previously subscribed to the Blog via a RRS feed, please update the feed address to : http://jacobsadvisors.com/jims-blog

Feel free to email me at jjacobs@jacobsadvisors.com if you’re experiencing any difficulty with the changeover. Many thanks. Happy flourishing!

The Positivity Project - Monday and Thursday Evenings - 7:00-8:15pm (EST) - March 4 - May 2

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Fri, 1 Mar 2013 09:06:00 -0500

Note From Jim

Folks, you may know that for a number of years I've had a keen interest in a new branch of scientific study known as Positive Psychology. The aim of this body of study is to identify and enhance factors that lead to human flourishing and resilience - at home, in schools, at work, and in our communities.

Advancement in the study of Positive Psychology is credited to Martin Seligman, a recent former President of The American Psychological Association. Martin and colleagues created the first masters program in Positive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.

For free, on Monday and Thursday evenings at 7:00 - 8:15PM, from March 4 - May 2nd you are invited to learn from subject matter experts, how to enhance your own flourishing and the flourishing of those around you. Read below.

*****
The Positivity Project

a FREE world-changing event. Monday and Thursday Evenings - 7:00-8:15pm (EST) - March 4 - May 2.

Listen live as scientists, sociologists, psychologists, business leaders, best-selling authors, community activists and others share the secrets of how positivity promotes both success and a more connected, fulfilling life.

20 Inspiring Thought Leaders in the World of Positive Psychology and Neuroscience will show you how to:

Develop skills for building resilience and optimism
Understand and change brain chemistry
Create positive and satisfying work environments
Be a positive and influential parent, educator, or partner
Be the change you want to see in the world

These speakers will reveal their wisdom and suggestions in the following key areas:

The neuroscience behind happiness and positivity
How to be more positive through loss and grief
Positive education
Positivity and the media
How positivity builds courage and resilience
Staying positive through illness
Positive thoughts and the body
Positive leadership
Creating a positive corporate culture
Positive approaches to difficult conversations
The positive effect of Feminine Principles
Efforts to develop global coherence and peace
Positive parenting
Positivity and personal power

What science has learned about the brain and happiness

Why positive education builds better communities
How to trust your own power
How to build resilience and courage
What helps us through illness, grief and loss
When to effectively utilize feminine principles
Finding the positivity in conflict
Creating global coherence
Humanizing the business environment

You can improve your life and the lives of those around you, and it can all start with The Positivity Project.

If you can change your perception, you can change your life... if you can change your life, you can change the world!

We will be focusing on such life areas as:

positivity and the brain (the neuroscience of happiness)
positivity in the workplace (corporate and entrepreneurial)
positivity in relationships and in parenting
positivity and the spirit, creativity, innovation, and humor
positivity and the body

You can be the change you want to see in the world, and it can change you in a deeper, more profound way than you ever imagined!

Obtain Information &/Or Sign-Up For the Positivity Project: http://thepositivityproject.info/

Jim, congratulations! You have one of the top 1% most viewed LinkedIn profiles for 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Fri, 8 Feb 2013 11:05:00 -0500

Email To Jim From Linked-In

Jim, congratulations!

You have one of the top 1% most viewed LinkedIn profiles for 2012.

****************
From: LinkedIn [mailto:linkedin@e.linkedin.com]

Sent: Thursday, February 07, 2013 4:03 PM
To: jjacobs@jacobsadvisors.com
Subject: Congratulations! You have one of the top 1% most viewed LinkedIn profiles for 2012.

You have one of the top 1% most viewed LinkedIn profiles for 2012. http://www.linkedin.com/pub/profile/0/560/aa9

This email was intended for Jim Jacobs (President & CEO, Jacobs Executive Advisors).
Hi Jim,

Recently, LinkedIn reached a new milestone: 200 million members. But this isn't just our achievement to celebrate — it's also yours.

I want to personally thank you for being part of our community. Your journey is part of our journey, and we're delighted and humbled when we hear stories of how our members are using LinkedIn to connect, learn, and find opportunity.

All of us come to work each day focused on our shared mission of connecting the world's professionals to make them more productive and successful. We're excited to show you what's next.

With sincere thanks,

Deep Nishar
Senior Vice President, Products & User Experience

Hurray! I have one of the top 1% most viewed @LinkedIn profiles for 2012. http://www.linkedin.com/pub/profile/0/560/aa9

Share Share on LinkedIn Share on Twitter Share on Facebook My Part in LinkedIn's 200 Million Member Milestone LinkedIn Corporation ©2013. LinkedIn, the LinkedIn logo and InMail are registered trademarks of LinkedIn Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

© 2013, LinkedIn Corporation. 2029 Stierlin Ct., Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.

The Secret to Flourishing (In Relationships, At Work and Health)

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 4 Feb 2013 10:37:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Unless you’ve fully mastered the art and science of “Human Flourishing”, the article below about your conscious use of words and actions, is a must to read.

The lessons conveyed are imperative for your self, for the special people in your life, for your business colleagues, for your business team, for your subordinates, and for your relations with bosses.

Ken Nowack of Envisa has given me ongoing permission to repost his work at my Blog. I do so below because of the important lessons that his most recent work brings to light.

I’ve listed some excerpted items to tickle your intellectual curiosity but a full read of Ken’s article will most certainly be required in order to advance your own mastery.

Excerpts:

…if you really want to flourish, emphasize the positive at least three times more than the negative… studies demonstrate the power of positive emotions and behaviors individuals, relationships and team functioning. They even suggest an upper and lower “tipping point” for all of us to consider.

[It is possible]… to actually predict how long relationships will last, how healthy we will be or how well teams will be high performers just based on the ration of positive to negative interactions with others…

… a common positive-to-negative ratio of emotions and behaviors of about 3:1 (sometimes called the Losada ratio).
… individuals, partnerships and teams appear to flourish when this “tipping point” is reached.

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Happy Relationships…John Gottman’s pioneering research on marriages suggests that there is a “magic ratio” of 5 to 1 — in terms of our balance of positive to negative interactions. Gottman found that marriages are significantly more likely to succeed when the couple’s interactions are near that 5 to 1 ratio of positive to negative. When the ratio approaches 1 to 1, marriages “cascade to divorce.”

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Team Performance…accurately predict how well teams perform … Maricial Losada and his team in 1999… Their analysis suggested that the high performing or flourishing teams could be categorized as those have at least a 2.9 to 1 ratio of positive to negative interactions among team members.

[But] So, for team productivity and performance there appears to be an upper limit to just how many times team members can be positive before it has a detrimental impact on the functioning of the team.

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Mental Health… the importance of the positive-to-negative ratio for mental health and well-being comes from Robert Schwartz and colleagues from the University of Pittsburg… Schwartz and colleagues reported that among patients who showed optimal remission, indexed by both self-report and clinical ratings, mean post-treatment positivity ratios were 4.3 to 1. Among those who showed typical remission by the same criteria, mean post-treatment positivity ratios were 2.3…. Recent research by Barbara Fedickson at the University of Michigan provides one more bit of evidence about the 3:1 positivity-to-negativity ratio with mental health. She followed 188 participants for 28 days asking them to keep a daily report of positive and negative emotions they experienced. Results showed that the mean ratio of positive to negative affect was above 2.9 for individuals classified as flourishing and below that threshold for those not flourishing.

Positive Emotions and Physical Health… Three important studies also suggest that emphasizing positive emotions play a direct role on our physical health and well-being and even predict longevity

Taken together, these studies demonstrate the power of positive emotions and behaviors individuals, relationships and team functioning. They even suggest an upper and lower “tipping point” for all of us to consider.

… if you really want to flourish, emphasize the positive at least three times more than the negative

------------------------------------------------------------------

The Secret to Flourishing (In Relationships, At Work and Health) February 3, 2013 by Ken Nowack

“Fall seven times; stand up eight.”
Japanese proverb

Is it possible to actually predict how long relationships will last, how healthy we will be or how well teams will be high performers just based on the ration of positive to negative interactions with others?

It appears that we can and that all of the above share a common positive-to-negative ratio of emotions and behaviors of about 3:1 (sometimes called the Losada ratio).

In fact, individuals, partnerships and teams appear to flourish when this “tipping point” is reached.

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Happy Relationships

John Gottman’s pioneering research on marriages suggests that there is a “magic ratio” of 5 to 1 — in terms of our balance of positive to negative interactions. Gottman found that marriages are significantly more likely to succeed when the couple’s interactions are near that 5 to 1 ratio of positive to negative. When the ratio approaches 1 to 1, marriages “cascade to divorce.” In a fascinating study, Gottman teamed up with two mathematicians to test this model. Starting in 1992, they recruited 700 couples who had just received their marriage licenses. For each couple, the researchers videotaped a 15-minute conversation between husband and wife and counted the number of positive and negative interactions. Then, based on the 5 to 1 ratio, they predicted whether each couple would stay together or divorce. Ten years later, Gottman and his colleagues followed up with each couple to determine the accuracy of their original predictions. The results were stunning. They had predicted divorce with 94% accuracy — based on scoring the couples’ interactions for 15 minutes.

Evidence corroborating the idea that this positivity ratio separates flourishing from languishing can be drawn from other research by John Gottman1. He and his colleagues observed 73 couples discussing an area of conflict in their relationship.

Researchers measured positivity and negativity using two coding schemes: one focused on positive and negative speech acts and another focused on observable positive and negative emotions. Gottman reported that among marriages that last and that both partners find to be satisfying (N=3)—what might be called flourishing marriages—mean positivity ratios were 5.1 for speech acts and 4.7 for observed emotions.

By contrast, among marriages identified as being on cascades toward dissolution—languishing marriages at best—mean positivity ratios were 0.9 for speech acts and 0.7 for observed emotions (Gottman, 1994). Summarizing two decades of observational research on marriages, Gottman (1994) concluded that unless a couple is able to maintain a high ratio of positive to negative affect (5 to 1), it is highly likely that their marriage will end.

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Team Performance

Can we accurately predict how well teams perform by counting the positive to negative interactions of team members?

From behind one-way mirrors, researcher Maricial Losada and his team in 1999 observed 60 management teams crafting their annual strategic plans and rated every interpersonal interaction of team members. Communications were coded as “positive” if team members showed support, encouragement, or appreciation towards others, and they were coded as “negative” if team members showed disapproval, sarcasm, or cynicism. They were coded as “inquiry” if they asked questions aimed at exploring a position and as “advocacy” if they provided logic or arguments in favor of the team member’s viewpoint. They were coded as “self” if they referred to the team member speaking, and they were coded as “other” if they referenced a person or group who was neither present nor part of the company.

Thje researchers identified 15 flourishing teams, defined as showing uniformly high performance across three indicators: profitability, customer satisfaction, and evaluations by superiors, peers, and subordinates2. Other teams had mixed (n=26) or uniformly low performance (n=19). Their analysis suggested that the high performing or flourishing teams could be categorized as those have at least a 2.9 to 1 ratio of positive to negative interactions among team members.

Interestingly, signs of disintegration of team performance appeared with a positivity ratio of 11.6. So, for team productivity and performance there appears to be an upper limit to just how many times team members can be positive before it has a detrimental impact on the functioning of the team.

The Magic Positive-to-Negative Ratio for Mental Health

Research on the importance of the positive-to-negative ratio for mental health and well-being comes from Robert Schwartz and colleagues from the University of Pittsburg3. They tracked the outcomes of 66 men undergoing treatment for depression and measured positivity ratios before and after treatment. Before treatment, positivity ratios were very low at 0.5. Schwartz and colleagues reported that among patients who showed optimal remission, indexed by both self-report and clinical ratings, mean post-treatment positivity ratios were 4.3 to 1. Among those who showed typical remission by the same criteria, mean post-treatment positivity ratios were 2.3.

Recent research by Barbara Fedickson at the University of Michigan provides one more bit of evidence about the 3:1 positivity-to-negativity ratio with mental health4. She followed 188 participants for 28 days asking them to keep a daily report of positive and negative emotions they experienced. Results showed that the mean ratio of positive to negative affect was above 2.9 for individuals classified as flourishing and below that threshold for those not flourishing.

Positive Emotions and Physical Health

Three important studies also suggest that emphasizing positive emotions play a direct role on our physical health and well-being and even predict longevity:

Nuns whose autobiographies contained the most sentences expressing positive emotions lived an average of seven years longer than nuns whose stories contained the fewest5.

Psychological well-being is associated with reduced risk of CHD–Whitehall II Study; 4 year study; N = 7,9426.

Subjective well-being/happiness, but not negative emotions, significantly predicted a 10 year increase in longevity–Alameda County Study; 28 year study; N = 6,8567.

Taken together, these studies demonstrate the power of positive emotions and behaviors individuals, relationships and team functioning. They even suggest an upper and lower “tipping point” for all of us to consider.

So, if you really want to flourish, emphasize the positive at least three times more than the negative…..Be well…..

1.Gottman, J. M. (1994). What predicts divorce? The relationship between marital processes and marital outcomes. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum [↩]

2.Losada, M., & Heaphy, E. (2004). The role of positivity and connectivity in the performance of business teams: A nonlinear dynamics model. American Behavioral Scientist, 47(6), 740–765 [↩]

3.Schwartz, R. M., Reynolds, C. F., III, Thase, M. E., Frank, E., Fasiczka, A. L., & Haaga, D. A. F. (2002). Optimal and normal affect balance in psychotherapy of major depression: Evaluation of the balanced states of mind model. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 30, 439–450 [↩]

4.Fredrickson, B. L. & Losada, M. (2005). Positive affect and the complex dynamics of human flourishing. American Psychologist, 60, 678-686 [↩]

5.Danner, D. et al. (2001). Positive emotions in early life and longevity: Findings from the nun study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82-804-813 [↩]

6.Boehm, J. et al. (2011). A prospective study of positive psychological well-being and coronary heart disease. Health Psychology, 30, 259-267 [↩]

7.Xu, J. et al. (2010). The power of positive emotions: It’s a matter of life or death—subjective well-being and longevity over 20 years in a general population. Health Psychology, 29, 9-19 [↩]

Access Article And Other Great Stuff: http://results.envisialearning.com/the-secret-to-flourishing-in-relationships-at-work-and-health/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ResultsVsActivities+%28Results+vs.+Activities%29

That Loving Feeling Takes a Lot of Work - NY Times

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 09:31:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

In recent years I have taken a keen interest in research from the field of "Positive Psychology", a segment of Psychology that has been championed by a former president of the American Psychological Association, Martin Seligman. Serious work in the disciple of Positive Psychology and the Psychology of Happiness has determined that we all have the power to make ourselves happier, more optimistic, more grateful, and more fulfilled. This applies to our relationships at home and at work. With regard to our personal relationships, the article below shares best practices recommended by top researchers and academics in this field. Make a difference starting now!

****
Excerpts:
That Loving Feeling Takes a Lot of Work
By JANE E. BRODY

Studies by Richard E. Lucas and colleagues at Michigan State University... Research reported by Sonja Lyubomirsky, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Riverside.... Studies by Barbara L. Fredrickson, a social psychologist and professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

[Apply important] effort to keep the embers of love alive... Infatuation and passion have even shorter life spans, and must evolve into "companionate love, composed more of deep affection, connection and liking,"

Building Companionship

... strategies include making time to be together and talk, truly listening to each other, and expressing admiration and affection.

"the importance of appreciation" [and expressions of gratefulness]: count your blessings and resist taking a spouse for granted. Routinely remind yourself and your partner of what you appreciate about the person and the marriage.

Also important is variety, which is innately stimulating and rewarding and "critical if we want to stave off adaptation," ... Mix things up, be spontaneous, change how you do things with your partner to keep your relationship "fresh, meaningful and positive."...Novelty is a powerful aphrodisiac that can also enhance the pleasures of marital sex. Variety goes hand in hand with another tip: surprise. With time, partners tend to get to know each other all too well, and they can fall into routines that become stultifying. Shake it up. Try new activities, new places, new friends. Learn new skills together.
"A pat on the back, a squeeze of the hand, a hug, an arm around the shoulder - the science of touch suggests that it can save a so-so marriage," Dr. Lyubomirsky writes. "Introducing more (nonsexual) touching and affection on a daily basis will go a long way in rekindling the warmth and tenderness."

Support your partner's values, goals and dreams, and greet his or her good news with interest and delight.

Positive Energy

Even a marriage that has been marred by negative, angry or hurtful remarks can often be rescued by filling the home with words and actions that elicit positive emotions, psychology research has shown.

... cultivating positive energy everyday "motivates us to reach out for a hug more often or share and inspiring or silly idea or image."... happily married couples average five positive verbal and emotional expressions toward one another for every negative expression, but "very unhappy couples display ratios of less than one to one."

[Work towards] striving to increase the ratio of positive to negative [to 5:1].

[Work towards] asking yourself each morning, "What can I do for five minutes today to make my partner's life better?" The simplest acts, like sharing an amusing event, smiling, or being playful, can enhance marital happiness.
--------------

Access Article and Other Great Content: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/14/that-loving-feeling-takes-a-lot-of-work/?emc=eta1

Human Capital Metrics can Predict Stock Price Changes - Human Capital Management Institute

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 08:49:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

I've previously spoken with Jeff Higgens, CEO Human Capital Management Institute. I’ve found his research to be both insightful and powerful. HCMI's Human Capital Financial Statements, and its Human Capital Metrics provide organizations with a new tool to directly measure and transform organizational performance.

I encourage you to obtain a copy of HCMI's new whitepaper. From HCMI, Discover how the metrics of "cost-per-hire" and "time-to-fill" compromise financial performance. And among other concepts, also learn how to calculate and measure the "Quality-Of-hire Multiplier" or the "Talent Managment Index".

For a preview of HCMI's upcoming white paper, see the news release below.

----------------------------
HCMI has Evidence that Human Capital Metrics can Predict Stock Price Changes

HCMI’s new white paper shows the impact human capital metrics have in predicting a company’s future stock price movement.

Marina del Rey, California (PRWEB) January 14, 2013

A preview of a new white paper by Human Capital Management Institute (HCMI) discusses the contribution of human capital metrics to a company’s stock price and continues to challenge the exclusion of human capital data in traditional public company reporting. For this paper, over 22,000 companies were analyzed and six human capital metrics were tested using 16 years of public company data from 1996 to 2011. Results include findings such as the following: a 10% increase in selected human capital metrics is associated with stock price gains ranging from 3% - 19% and the Total Cost of Workforce metric is superior to the standard headcount metric.

While Finance and Human Resources are separate business functions, the white paper’s findings provide common ground on which the two areas can collaborate. Per HCMI’s previous white papers, workforce metrics don’t stop at “headcount”. Rather, intangible assets (a.k.a “human capital”) play a major role in a company’s financial performance.

Jeff Higgins, CEO of HCMI says: “We can now answer the question not of ‘if’ effectively managing human capital using the right metrics impacts stock price, but how much it impacts stock price. HCMI believes these metrics from Human Capital Financial Statements (HCF$™) are the most definitive means to quantify workforce productivity in existence.”

According to Dr. Don Atwater of Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, Department of Economics, “The old news is that ‘people are our greatest assets (and costs)’, but what our research is showing is that there is a connection between companies that actually show that with their actions and those that do not in terms of shareholder value. There really are leaders and laggards.”

“HCMI’s Human Capital Financial Statements (HCFS ™) represent the endpoint HR has been searching for to standardize measurement and enable comparison of human capital performance across industry, and geography,” states Dr. Jac Fitz-enz, CEO, Human Capital Source and also known as the “father” of workforce analytics.

Look for the entire white paper (due out in January 2013), which contains a more detailed breakdown of the analysis and findings. For previous white papers on related topics, please visit http://www.hcminst.com.

About HCMI

The Human Capital Management Institute was founded on the belief that organizations can, and must, find better ways of measuring their investments in human capital. We strive to fundamentally change the way organizations make decisions about their workforce, and our vision of the future is one in which human capital measurement and information is as integral to business decision making as financial information is today. Serving global clients, HCMI delivers workforce analytics and planning training, risk assessments, consulting, and analytics and workforce planning technology tools including SOLVE Workforce Intelligence Software

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/1/prweb10309469.htm

http://www.hcminst.com.

Authentic Power! - Happiness Newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 20:50:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

What can you do to flourish? Lionel Ketchian always inspires. I recommend that you subscribe to his free newsletter. In his most recent issue, Lionel comments that personal happiness is a duty, one that requires practice and discipline. And when practice and discipline are applied to the state of happiness, the state of happiness will surely makes us authentically powerful. What does authentic power deliver? Find the answer below:

Excerpts:

Authentic power is the power that comes from Being Happy. Being happy means realizing that you cannot be happy unless you are in control of yourself.

This power allows you to experience being stronger, smarter, freer and more comfortable and fully yourself. It allows you to take action. It is the power TO DO IT! It is A CAN DO attitude even if you think you can't. It lets you decide what is good for you. It means doing what you can, when you can, rather than waiting for someone or something to change on it's own. It is a method of taking charge of your life and being responsible for yourself. It means finding the solutions to a problem, and making the best choice now.

Authentic power means never volunteering to make yourself a victim. It means that you do not try to control other people. It means that you do not allow yourself to be forced into acting the way that others think you should act. It allows you to feel like you can change the world because you are taking control of yourself. It allows you to deal with difficult people and anger when it arises. It gives you the ability to cope with fear and anxiety, forgive people and stop labeling them. Free yourself from self-doubt and despair, stop feeling guilty, and let go of the past so you don't react to the moment from your past conditioning. It means you become proactive to allow your wisdom and common sense to make the change you want to see in the next moment.

Authentic power is a mechanism to access new habits to self-empowerment. This power must always include wisdom because without wisdom power is unwieldy and hard to handle. Wisdom is nothing more than having the discipline to do the right thing at the right time.

January 15, 2013 Happiness Newsletter

Celebrate Your Independence. Experience your freedom from external circumstances. Declare Your Freedom with the Happiness Decision. Life's complicated, happiness isn't

Be Happy Zone

Authentic Power!

By Lionel Ketchian

Access The Happiness Zone And Its Great Content: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=svx5mvcab&v=001rxOp_4aBK0prxjqTfv3vzev3vb7ov2q_i_bVEge6kytNKTM-xknm5_R-8Osm1SNBnGVtxH5MbYfSmzmUKxJiF6XBSDHIE9woWUtcKLrwg5b_PM4ZrtnVrw%3D%3D

Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2013 - Conference Board Governance Center Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 21:38:00 -0500

Note From Jim:
To Board Director, CEO, and GC subscribers: About emerging governance issues for 2013, get ahead of the curve. Follow the link below and carefully read a thoughtful piece authored by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, an alert which was subsequently republished by the Conference Board Governance Center Blog. Are you ready to address these issues?

Conference Board Governance Center Blog

http://tcbblogs.org/governance/2013/01/12/selected-issues-for-boards-of-directors-in-2013/

Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2013

Excerpts:

1. Board Composition

2. Executive Compensation Design

3. Selling the Company and “Standstill” Agreements

4. Selection of Board Advisors and Conflicts

5. Litigation Against Officers and Directors

6. Dual Fiduciaries

7. Developments of Interest to Audit Committees

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP

Access Article And Other Great Content: http://tcbblogs.org/governance/2013/01/12/selected-issues-for-boards-of-directors-in-2013/

Americans Relocate More Amid Torpid Recovery - WSJ.com

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 9 Jan 2013 08:51:00 -0500

Note From Jim:
Hiring Trends. In seeking out best-in-class talent, are you finding candidates to be more reticent about relocation? If so, why? This very interesting WSJ article contains trend data which provides great insights for employers. Reading the entire article is a must. For enticement purposes, here are some of its key points:

Excerpts:

About 3.9% of the population, or 11.8 million people, moved to a different county in 2011, new Census figures show. That was the highest level since before the recession, and up from 3.5% in 2010 and 2009—the lowest level since the government began the tally in 1948.
Movement between counties largely reflects people moving because of jobs, demographers said. Overall, the increase signals both a healthier economy and future growth because it means more workers are being matched with jobs that suit their skills.

However, the 3.9% rate remains low historically

Among those moving more were 25-to-29-year-olds, indicating that many young people who were stymied by the weak labor market of recent years were finding jobs and moving on with their lives,...

Retirees also began to move more in 2011... Among the states that gained population in 2011 from domestic moves—rather than from immigration or births—were Florida and Nevada...

The U.S. rate of movement between counties peaked at 7.1% in 1950 and stayed above 6% through 1991.

The U.S. rate drifted lower in the 1990s and fell steeply through the 2000s. The 2011 increase in inter-county moves was the first in a decade

The U.S. mobility rate—a broader measure that includes movement of any distance—also declined during the 2000s

The U.S. is almost alone among developed countries in experiencing this decline

Several factors could be contributing to the long-term decline in U.S. movement between counties. It could be partly due to the aging of the population, with middle-aged workers and retirees less likely to move than people in their 20s, some economists say. In addition, the increase in two-earner households has made it harder for some families to relocate.... the long-term trend appears to be linked to a decline in pay increases that workers receive when they switch employers. Smaller raises give workers less incentive to switch jobs and move house.... "It suggests that people have fewer choices," Ms. Wozniak said, which also leads to employers having fewer job candidates. "You're constrained in some way and that may mean you're not reaching your full potential as a worker, as a firm or as an economy."

[Demographics:] people ages 18 through 24 move around more than people in other age groups. People born in the U.S. move at a slightly higher rate than foreign-born residents. The rate is lower for households with two earners than one, and for those with children than those without. And the rate rises with the level of a person's education, with college graduates moving to a different state at roughly twice the rate of high school graduates.

Access Full Article: Americans Relocate More Amid Torpid Recovery - WSJ.com

Who’s Feedback Should Count (or NOT) in 360-Degree Feedback by Sandra Mashihi - Envisia

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Fri, 4 Jan 2013 08:45:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Trying to process advice about your performance? So whose feedback matters most, especially when it's conflicting? Sandra Mashini will help you reconcile this question. Follow the link below.

by Sandra Mashihi

Excerpts:

Self-ratings are typically weakly to moderately correlated with other rater perspectives with greater convergence between peer and supervisor ratings (Nowack, 1992). It seems intuitive to expect that some differences in perspectives will occur across rater groups. According to Ken Nowack, Ph.D. in his 2002 and 2009 publications, the following patterns of perceptions exist between raters:

Direct reports tend to emphasize and filter interpersonal and relationship behaviors
Superiors tend to focus more on performance-oriented behaviors
Peers tend to be most accurate at predicting future leadership potential

These rater group differences cause confusion in the interpretation of 360-degree feedback
Discussing the differences between rater group perceptions led to the revelation of an underlying issue

So, as a lesson, all variations of feedback results can provide meaningful insights and lessons. In fact, a core learning message may be revealed regardless of whether there are differences or similarities between perceptions of different raters.

“Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted.”- Albert Einstein

Access Article And Other Great Stuff: http://results.envisialearning.com/whos-feedback-should-count-or-not-in-360-degree-feedback/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ResultsVsActivities+%28Results+vs.+Activities%29

The Happiness Connection

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Thu, 3 Jan 2013 21:10:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Discover how powerful you will become by making the conscious choice, despite circumstance, to be happy. It's a decision and commitment that only you can make. Read Lionel Ketchien's Happiness Column. I look forward to his weekly newsletter, "The Happiness Zone." It always inspires me. Does it do the same for you?

Excepts:

There is another way to live your life. Decide to be happy no matter what. Wake up in the morning and decide to be happy. You go through the day and experience people and events that would make most people unhappy, but not you! You're too smart for that. You know that only you are in charge of your happiness. You would not want anyone else to be in charge of your happiness.

Access The Happiness Zone: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=svx5mvcab&v=001QYDB14zrJ48K4eXTPl4-LY86Q575ae7CuGQs0kN5S3KDlN4RqFzh3-VNt_pzPZbM6PF3USQCs7yfwVk1XmjuBWLW0_7GcHUQADdppMwkKtuUMMnIt7ERHA%3D%3D

Nine Ways Successful People Defeat Stress

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 2 Jan 2013 21:17:00 -0500

Note From Jim: I’m a follower and fan of Heidi Grant Halverson’s work. Want to enhance the success of your own goal achievement or that of your teams? Embrace Nancy's advice, all of which is drawn from research. Click on the link below.

Excerpts – Nine Ways:

1. Have self-compassion

2. Think about the “Big Picture”

3. Rely on routines

4. Take five (or ten) minutes to do something you find interesting

5. Add where and when to your To Do List

6. Use if-thens for positive self-talk

7. See your work in terms of progress, not perfection

8. Think about the progress that you’ve already made

9. Know whether optimism or defensive pessimism works for you

***
Access Article And Other Great Stuff At Nancy's Website: http://www.heidigranthalvorson.com/
***
Heidi Grant Halvorson is a rising star in the field of motivational science. She is a an expert blogger for Fast Company, WSJ.com, Forbes, The Huffington Post, and Psychology Today, as well as a regular contributor to the BBC World Service's Business Daily, the Harvard Business Review, and SmartBrief's SmartBlog on Leadership. Her writing has also been featured on CNN Living and Mamapedia.

Heidi is also Associate Director of the Motivation Science Center at the Columbia University Business School.

3 Ways To Reduce Bad Hires - Recruiter.com

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 10:00:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

3 Ways To Reduce Bad Hires

As you'll note in the attached article, prioritizing "Quality of Hire" over "Speed Of Hire" will likley become the more compelling metric of staffing success. See Below.

Excerpts:

70 percent of employers have reported that they have been affected by a bad hire this year. And what constituted a bad hire?

1.Employee didn’t produce the proper quality of work – 67 percent

2.Employee didn’t work well with other employees – 60 percent

3.Employee had a negative attitude – 59 percent

4.Employee had immediate attendance problems – 54 percent

5.Customers complained about the employee – 44 percent

6.Employee didn’t meet deadlines – 44 percent

... set out several changes to a hiring process that can raise quality and minimize bad hires, while at the same time being mindful, but not held hostage to the need for speed.

1. Prioritize quality over speed

2. Focus on employee referral

3. Focus on the softer competencies during selection

Access Article: http://www.recruiter.com/i/3-ways-to-reduce-bad-hires/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=linkedin

Learning to Prevail: When Dreams Disappoint and Hopes Fail - Leadership Wired

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 20:09:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Do you embrace failure in a heatlhy way? Follow John Maxwell's sage advice. Access his artcile to find out. Follow the teaser below:

By The John Maxwell Company.

Excerpts:
How should a leader respond when her dream dies? How does a leader recover when his hopes are dashed?

1) A failed dream doesn’t make you a failure.

... possess an internal self-image that’s unaffected by outcomes. People with an unhealthy view of failure personalize it, seeing the failure as a reflection of their inadequacy. Conversely, those with a healthy outlook on life externalize failure. They understand its inevitability, and they look for the lessons it brings. One mindset wallows in the emotions of failure; the other works through them in anticipation of future triumphs.

2) Even when dreams die, our purpose remains.

... you will never exhaust your capacity to grow toward your potential, nor will you run out of opportunities to help others. Your dreams may not come true, but the purpose for which you were created always endures.

3) By reflecting on our purpose, we can birth new dreams.

Peering into our life’s purpose inspires us to revise our dreams or to give birth to new ones... The specific dream I choose to follow may not work out, but I still have a purpose, and I can keep exploring new avenues to realize it.

Access Article & Blog: http://www.johnmaxwell.com/blog/learning-to-prevail-when-dreams-disappoint-and-hopes-fail

"This article is used by permission from Leadership Wired, John Maxwell's premiere leadership newsletter, available for free subscription at www.johnmaxwell.com/newsletters."

The Power of Concentration - NYTimes - MARIA KONNIKOVA

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 20:34:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Learn from Columbia Doctoral student Maria Konnikova, how "Mindfulness" can enhance personal and professional emotional states as well as human performance - now and in your senior years.

Best Always - Jim

****

Excerpts:
Published: December 15, 2012

... the very thing that cognitive psychologists mean when they say mindfulness.

... when it comes to experimental psychology, mindfulness is less about spirituality and more about concentration: the ability to quiet your mind, focus your attention on the present, and dismiss any distractions that come your way. The formulation dates from the work of the psychologist Ellen Langer, who demonstrated in the 1970s that mindful thought could lead to improvements on measures of cognitive function and even vital functions in older adults.

Even in small doses, mindfulness can effect impressive changes in how we feel and think — and it does so at a basic neural level.

... meditation-like thought could shift frontal brain activity toward a pattern that is associated with what cognitive scientists call positive, approach-oriented emotional states — states that make us more likely to engage the world rather than to withdraw from it.

As little as five minutes a day of intense Holmes-like inactivity, and a happier outlook is yours for the taking

mindfulness goes beyond improving emotion regulation. An exercise in mindfulness can also help with that plague of modern existence: multitasking.

The only participants to show improvement were those who had received the mindfulness training. Not only did they report fewer negative emotions at the end of the assignment, but their ability to concentrate improved significantly. They could stay on task longer and they switched between tasks less frequently. While the overall time they devoted to the assignment didn’t differ much from that of other groups, they spent it more efficiently

The concentration benefits of mindfulness training aren’t just behavioral; they’re physical. In recent years, mindfulness has been shown to improve connectivity inside our brain’s attentional networks, as well as between attentional and medial frontal regions — changes that save us from distraction. Mindfulness, in other words, helps our attention networks communicate better and with fewer interruptions than they otherwise would.

... how well we can monitor our own feelings and thoughts and that is considered a key waypoint between our two major attention networks, the default and the executive.

...the core of mindfulness is the ability to pay attention.

That’s the thing about mindfulness. It seems to slow you down, but it actually gives you the resources you need to speed up your thinking.

... new evidence suggests that not only can we learn into old age, but the structure of our brains can continue to change and develop. In 2006, a team of psychologists demonstrated that the neural activation patterns of older adults (specifically, activation in the prefrontal cortex), began to resemble those of much younger subjects after just five one-hour training sessions on a task of attentional control. Their brains became more efficient at coordinating multiple tasks — and the benefit transferred to untrained activities, suggesting that it was symptomatic of general improvement.

Similar changes have been observed in the default network (the brain’s resting-state activity).

The precise areas that show increased connectivity with mindfulness are also known to be pathophysiological sites of Alzheimer’s disease.

The implications are tantalizing. Mindfulness may have a prophylactic effect: it can strengthen the areas that are most susceptible to cognitive decline

Maria Konnikova is the author of “Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes” and a doctoral candidate in psychology at Columbia.

Access Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/16/opinion/sunday/the-power-of-concentration.html?smid=pl-share

Modest pay increases the new normal - Articles - Employee Benefit News

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:17:00 -0500

Note from Jim:

And the survey says: 3%. Folks set your expectations for 2013 around 3%. See the referenced article from Employee Benefit News. This article references the results of a recent Buck Consulting compensation planning survey.

Modest pay increases the new normal - Articles - Employee Benefit News

Best Always - Jim

50 Ways to Foster a Sustainable Culture of Innovation - Idea Champions - Mitch Ditkoff

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 08:44:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Are you innovative? Do you foster innovation? The 50 suggestions made by the very impressive Mitch Ditkoff are sure to assist your mastery.

Of these 50, my top 10 favorites:

2. Wherever you can, whenever you can, always drive fear out of the workplace. Fear is "Public Enemy #1" of an innovative culture.

5. Make new mistakes.

6. As far as the future is concerned, don't speculate on what might happen, but imagine what you can make happen.

14. Embrace and celebrate failure. 50 to 70 per cent of all new product innovations fail at even the most successful companies. The main difference between companies who succeed at innovation and those who don't isn't their rate of success -- it's the fact that successful companies have a LOT of ideas, pilots, and product innovations in the pipeline.

23. Make sure people are working on the right issues. Identify specific business challenges to focus on. Be able to frame these issues as questions that start with the words, "How can we?"

27. Make customers your innovation partners, while realizing that customers are often limited to incremental innovations, not breakthrough ones.

32. Avoid analysis paralysis. Chaotic action is preferable to orderly inaction

33. Before reaching closure on any course of action, seek alternatives. Make it a discipline to seek the idea after the "best" idea emerges.

35. A great source of new ideas are people that are new to the company. Get new hires together and tap their brainpower and imagination.

42. Give your people specific, compelling, and measurable innovation goals.

Best everyway & always - Jim

*****
Access Mitch's Article: http://www.ideachampions.com/weblogs/archives/2012/12/50_ways_to_fost_1.shtml

Mitch Ditkoff is the co-founder and President of Idea Champions, a highly acclaimed management consulting and training company, headquartered in Woodstock, NY. He specializes in helping forward thinking organizations go beyond business as usual, originate breakthrough products and services, and establish dynamic, sustainable cultures of innovation.

Educated at Lafayette College and Brown University, Mitch has worked with a wide variety of Fortune 500 and mid-sized companies who have realized the need to do something different in order to succeed in today's rapidly changing marketplace. These clients include: GE, Merck, AT&T, Allianz, Lucent Technologies, NBC Universal, Goodyear, A&E Television Networks, General Mills, MTV Networks, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and a host of others.

Try Meditation to Strengthen Your Resilience - Peter Bregman - HBR

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Sat, 8 Dec 2012 12:21:00 -0500

Note from Jim: Great and quick lessons below from Peter Bregman.

Try It. Just 10 minutes a day. Separate your self from the messages that your mind produces.

Find your self. Watch / observe your breadth. Your breathing happens unconsciously. So does your thinking.

Observe what you mind is doing… what is it that your mind is thinking and saying. Don't engage with the thoughts or the emotions they create. Just be a witness. The witness is your self, not your mind, or the thinking, the messages, and the images that your mind produces.

Best Always - Jim
-------------------
Try Meditation to Strengthen Your Resilience
by Peter Bregman - Harvard Business Review

http://blogs.hbr.org/bregman/2012/12/try-meditation-to-strengthen-y.html?referral=00563&cm_mmc=email-_-newsletter-_-daily_alert-_-alert_date&utm_source=newsletter_daily_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert_date

Excerpts:

One of the great gifts of meditation is that it exposes your Self. As it turns out, it's surprisingly easy to find because it's always there, watching.

Follow your breath as it goes in and out of your body without thinking about anything in particular except your breath. soon enough, you will notice that your mind is thinking about something

The person noticing those thoughts? That's you. That's your Self. Your Self just noticed "thinking".

... no matter what happens,... you'll be fine. Even though everything around you may change — how much money you have, whether you have a job, whether you're married, and so on — your Self will still be there, observing.

... even in failure, you'll be able to let the part of you that did not change as a result of the failure see what it feels like to fail. Then, when you realize your Self is still intact, you'll get up and try again.

[REPEAT] The person noticing those thoughts? That's you. That's your Self. Your Self just noticed "thinking".

You are not your thinking. You are the person watching your thinking. That little distinction is the difference between feeling your feelings and being them — and it's critically important. When you feel anger, you're in control of what you do next. When you are angry, you've lost control.

The part of you that observes your thoughts and feelings is steady and wise and trustworthy. Identifying with your stable, predictable Self makes you a stable, predictable person and leader, one who doesn't get tossed around by random events and the decisions of the people around you.

PETER BREGMAN
Peter Bregman is a strategic advisor to CEOs and their leadership teams. His latest book is 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done.

http://blogs.hbr.org/bregman/2012/12/try-meditation-to-strengthen-y.html?referral=00563&cm_mmc=email-_-newsletter-_-daily_alert-_-alert_date&utm_source=newsletter_daily_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert_date

Thrive - You are What You Believe

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 08:59:00 -0500

Note From Jim:

Ken and Denise offer inspiring wisdom that if believed, will enhance our ability to thrive personally and professionally. Believe! With good fortune, Ken Norwack of Envisa Learning invites me to regularly share his work with our readers. Many thanks to Ken and to you. Best Always - Jim

http://results.envisialearning.com/giving-thanks-you-are-what-you-belive/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ResultsVsActivities+%28Results+vs.+Activities%29

Giving Thanks….You are What You Believe
November 25, 2012 by Ken Nowack

“It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.”

W.C. Fields

I’d like to thank all my family and friends and repeat a Blog from a few years ago that hopefully will be inspiring during this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday……

You are What You Believe…. by Denise and Ken Nowack

Believe that most “breaks” and “luck” in life happen at the intersection between preparation and opportunity…

Believe in the good of people (belief in God is optional)…

Believe that we all need things in life that we don’t want and want things in life we don’t need…

Believe that things wind up being the very best for those who make the very best of how things wind up…

Believe that few things in life are as bad as we anticipate they will be nor quite as good as we count on them to be…

Believe that we should always strive to feel good, rather than, to just have good feelings…

Believe that if at first you don’t succeed—you are pretty much about average…

Believe that some people dream of success and others work hard to make it happen…

Believe that the two most difficult things in life to handle are failure and success…

Believe that all families are a little bit like brownies—mostly sweet with a few nuts part of the mix…

Believe that when life tests us it’s always best to turn to family and friends…

Believe and cherish the moment you are in, as yesterday has died and tomorrow has not yet arrived…

Believe that forgiveness is the fertilizer to enhancing personal relations and intimacy…

Believe that giving gratitude for what you have is the true secret of happiness…

Believe that the best vitamin to take to become a compassionate person is B1…

Believe that jumping for joy is really a good form of exercise …

Believe that you can’t get what you want from others in life if you don’t risk to at least ask for it…

Believe that the simplest act of kindness can make a big difference to others…

Believe that “richness” is measured not by how much money we have but how much others love us…

Believe that life fulfillment comes from doing what you have the greatest passion for and what you most believe in …

Believe that the three words, “I am sorry” can almost always mend and improve relationships with others…

Believe that the only real power people have over us is what we give them…

Believe that the right path is always to follow your own heart…

Believe in yourself and others will always believe in you…

You are what you believe…Be well….

*** Kenneth M. Nowack, Ph.D.President & Chief Research Officer, Co-Founder
Dr. Ken Nowack is a licensed psychologist (PSY 13758) and President & Chief Research Officer of Envisia Learning. He provides strategic vision/leadership, conceptual product design and development, research, public relations, and advanced client relations.

Make It a Habit to Give Thanks - HBR - Ron Ashkenas

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 08:51:00 -0500

Note From Jim: Ron, this advice is priceless. Thank you!!!

by Ron Ashkenas
12:00 PM November 20, 2012

Excerpts:

It's also a good reminder that "thankfulness" and "appreciation" are important managerial behaviors in effective organizations — behaviors that need to be fostered throughout the year, not just when there's a holiday.
[First] Interpersonal appreciation is the day-to-day ability to genuinely and graciously thank other people for what they do.... all of us need affirmation and positive feedback, at least occasionally... without some measure of day-to-day appreciation it's difficult to build relationships and trust, which are essential to a well-functioning workplace.... The challenge though is how to make the process of giving thanks more routine, so that it occurs without a reminder.

The second type of thanksgiving is appreciating how effectively your organization solves problems and gets things done. Many managers have a tendency to focus on the things that are not working well, the shortfalls and the misses. On the other hand, much of the power and potential in organizations is revealed by its success stories. By identifying these vignettes and shining a spotlight on them, managers can help to tease out important lessons, reinforce innovation, and unlock tremendous value.... an approach called positive deviance shows that finding people who succeed, when everyone else is struggling, can be a key to large-scale innovation.
... perhaps if all of us were more thankful and appreciative throughout the year, we'd have much more to be thankful for.

***Ron Ashkenas is a managing partner of Schaffer Consulting and a co-author of The GE Work-Out and The Boundaryless Organization. His latest book is Simply Effective.

***Access Article, HBR Website and Great Content: http://blogs.hbr.org/ashkenas/2012/11/make-it-a-habit-to-give-thanks.html?referral=00563&cm_mmc=email-_-newsletter-_-daily_alert-_-alert_date&utm_source=newsletter_daily_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert_date

Embracing Uncertainty - Be Happy Zone - Lionel Ketchien

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:50:00 -0500

November 12th, 2012

[The Wisdom Of Dr.] Susan Jeffers

One truth that we can all agree on is the fact that we live in an uncertain world. It seems that this is true now more than ever before. Maybe we have always lived in an uncertain world and it is only now with the events we experience these days that seem to make that fact even more real to us.

In 2003 I finished reading a really great book called: Embracing Uncertainty by Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. This book is about exploring, understanding, and coping with the anxiety most people feel about the uncertain nature of everyday life. Susan wrote another great book that you may recognize. It is called Feel The Fear And Do It Anyway, It was also a truly wonderful and empowering book, and was the first of many books she has written.

I had the opportunity of doing an hour phone interview with Dr. Jeffers in April 2003. Susan lived with her husband in Los Angeles, California. Some of the things you should know about Susan is that she was great thinker and she has a wonderful way of putting her thoughts into a book for you to benefit from the wisdom acquired from her experiences. Dr. Jeffers really understands the basis of happiness, and explains, "Always remember that how we live our lives is a personal decision, not something that is put upon us from the outside world."

She discusses ways to create a "WONDERING LIFE" instead of a "HOPING LIFE." Instead of hoping things are different you can learn to create a wondering mind and wonder how things will turn out rather than worry about how they will turn out. This gives you the power of detaching from the outcome and reducing your stress and anxiousness, worry and fear. Dr. Jeffers recommends that people, "CHOOSE THE PATH OF TRUST." What does she mean by choosing the path of trust? This is what she says, "When you fully understand that you have little control in the external world, you then have two choices: you can choose to see yourself as a poor-me victim at the mercy of circumstances...or you can choose to develop the trust that, no matter what happens in your life or in the world, you will have the inner strength to create something good from it all. Hopefully you will choose the latter!"

I have found so much agreement with the things Dr. Jeffers talks about, such as this: "It makes us so much happier when we don't have the need to be right. Trust me when I tell you that you will feel so much freer with the power of MAYBE." Susan introduces us to this interesting concept, "the power of MAYBE." In her book Susan goes on to say, "You notice that I haven't mentioned peace of mind, joy, fun, creativity, or spontaneity. That is because these wonderful feelings go with a lack of expectations. The irony is that while we think our expectations are giving us a measure of control, our expectations are really controlling us!"

Can you imagine not letting worry get the best of you? You will if you understand what Dr. Jeffers says, "When you're feeling lousy about something happening in your life or in the world, it isn't about the something happening that is the problem, it's your inability to let go of the expectation of how it's supposed to be." She gives us the wisdom to understand that we can have more control by realizing we do not have control of the outside world and the many things that can happen that we wish did not happen.

Dr. Jeffers teaches us, "When attached to outcomes, by definition, we are attached to unhappiness. As hard as we try, as fast as we go, we can never feel the security of being in control of the outside world. When we break our attachment to our expectations of control, we become happier people. If you knew you could find happiness in whatever state you found yourself -- ill health or good health, rich or poor, in a great relationship or not, and so on -- then your worry about the uncertainty in your life would be greatly diminished."

Dr. Jeffers advises us to, "INCREASE YOUR INNER SENSE OF POWER. One way to help you develop trust in yourself is to cut off the negativity in the mind by saying to yourself over and over again, Whatever happens in my life, I'll handle it! While we can't control the world around us, we can certainly learn how to respond to all things -- yes, ALL THINGS - in a health-affirming way. We have the power to create a life that feels good, rather than one that feels bad -- despite the actual circumstances in our lives and in our world." Do you feel that life has treated you less than fairly? Well, as Dr. Jeffers says, "The prime cause of our suffering is our wanting things to be different than they are! Happiness is the best revenge!"

Access The Happiness Newsletter And Its Inspiring Content: - http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=svx5mvcab&v=001UIzoyTILna2iyLBFB7y5Hqjz5R-XYTSoSNmTkCIj5VmQsLQf8i5c0VkAp-cgQY8a0s3zj1wiXCMJgc7v5XLoDKepM6h9t9il4TWlZmAb7Xn5xC5oALEHIw%3D%3D

HBR Blog Network.Where You Sit Determines What You See - Ron Ashkenas

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 7 Nov 2012 09:13:00 -0500

by Ron Ashkenas
8:00 AM November 6, 2012

Excerpts:

... all of us have biases that influence how we interpret events. To some extent we see what we unconsciously want to see

If you assume that these people perceive the assignment or challenge in the same way that you do, you'll be severely frustrated or disappointed. In fact, you'll be on much firmer ground if you start with the assumption that each person comes to the table with a different spin on the situation.
... [with] different perceptions of "the problem" the team easily could have become trapped in unproductive blaming or hardened their positions. Fortunately, the team leader understood the different perceptions and encouraged everyone to listen, repeat, and appreciate each others' starting points. Eventually each side realized that both positions were valid, which opened up the possibility of joint problem solving.

Of course, overcoming perceptual bias is not a one-time exercise. Just because the people in our example learned how to work together on one project doesn't mean that they won't revert back to their earlier blinders when they reenter their regular environments. In fact, there is a Stockholm syndrome effect for most people in organizations, in which they take on the biases and attitudes of those around them.

All of us see the world in different ways — which may make alignment that much harder, but at least makes things a lot more interesting.

Ron Ashkenas is a managing partner of Schaffer Consulting and a co-author of The GE Work-Out and The Boundaryless Organization. His latest book is Simply Effective.
More blog posts by Ron Ashkenas ...More on: Execution, Leading teams, Managing yourself :
http://blogs.hbr.org/ashkenas/2012/11/where-you-sit-determines-what.html?referral=00563&cm_mmc=email-_-newsletter-_-daily_alert-_-alert_date&utm_source=newsletter_daily_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert_date

The Heart Grows Smarter - By DAVID BROOKS, New York Times

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Wed, 7 Nov 2012 08:56:00 -0500

November 5, 2012

"The Men kept changing..... In case after case, the magic formula is capacity for intimacy combined with persistence, discipline, order and dependability. The men who could be affectionate about people and organized about things had very enjoyable lives."

Excerpts

... as this study — the Grant Study — progressed, the power of relationships became clear. The men who grew up in homes with warm parents were much more likely to become first lieutenants and majors in World War II. The men who grew up in cold, barren homes were much more likely to finish the war as privates.

... having a warm childhood was powerful. As George Vaillant, the study director, sums it up in “Triumphs of Experience,” his most recent summary of the research, “It was the capacity for intimate relationships that predicted flourishing in all aspects of these men’s lives.”

... as [George George Vaillant, the study director, “Triumphs of Experience,” his most recent summary of the research, ] Vaillant puts it, “What goes right is more important than what goes wrong.” The positive effect of one loving relative, mentor or friend can overwhelm the negative effects of the bad things that happen.

In case after case, the magic formula is capacity for intimacy combined with persistence, discipline, order and dependability. The men who could be affectionate about people and organized about things had very enjoyable lives.

But a childhood does not totally determine a life. The beauty of the Grant Study is that, as Vaillant emphasizes, it has followed its subjects for nine decades. The big finding is that you can teach an old dog new tricks. The men kept changing all the way through, even in their 80s and 90s.

Access Full Article and David Brook's Other Inspiring Content: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/06/opinion/brooks-the-heart-grows-smarter.html?emc=eta1&_r=0&pagewanted=print

The Unhappiness Conspiracy - Lionel Ketchian

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jacobs) — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 09:45:00 -0400

Be Happy Zone October 15th, 2012

Welcome to the Happiness Zone my Extraordinary Friend!

by Lionel Ketchian

I have uncovered The Unhappiness Conspiracy! People are conspiring against you and they are engaged in a "system" that is "designed" to take your power away from you. If you like "intrigue," this story is for you! It may cause you to want to take action to change things so you can take back your power.

You may start saying, "I'm Unhappy As Hell, And I'm Not Going To Take It Any More!

The plot thickens because you are not going to believe who is behind this conspiracy. The "story" of this conspiracy will amaze you. Everything we know is part of The Unhappiness Conspiracy. Such as government, politics, wars, religion, justice, psychology, medical, news reports, businesses and advertising commercials. Without giving it much thought, you could probably add many more categories to this list.

But first you will have to understand the "arrangement" that is made against you. There is a complete "system" at work against you, and you will need to learn the "format" for the conspiracy. If you don't learn how the "scheme" works you can't get free. There really is a "method" to the madness, but you need the ability to decipher it.

The Unhappiness Conspiracy is a "pain plan." There is plenty of preparation for the "TUC." There is a complete "strategy" to make it all work out "unhappily." The "idea" has been to keep you unhappy now. For generations the "design" has been worked out and engineered by the best minds in the world. You could make a "map out" the unhappiness that has been "contrived against you!"

But did you know who the main conspirator is? I am almost afraid to tell you who it is because my life could be in danger. If I tell you who it is, do you promise to protect me? If I don't tell you, than we are all in danger. I have no choice but to tell you who the main conspirator is. I am in danger either way, but at least you will be saved from the danger that exists. Will you promise not to keep it a secret?

The Unhappiness Conspiracy is alive and well. It breeds on thoughts of fear. It maintains power by manipulating others to hand over their power by using your unhappiness as a tool of choice. The Unhappiness Conspiracy only works because people go along with it. They do this willingly because they don't know how it conspires against them. The Unhappiness Conspiracy needs the cooperation of each and every one of you. That means you...most especially you! Without you The Unhappiness Conspiracy would collapse, because the scheme would be revealed.

Do you know who the prime suspect is? Let's play CSI; lets do a Crime Scene Investigation. Okay, we have someone who is experiencing unhappiness. This is a crime and we have to get to the bottom of it to find out...who done it! When we question the suspect we find no evidence linking anyone to this unhappiness crime seen but the suspect themselves. We find that the suspect has committed the crime all by himself but why would he or she commit a crime against him or her self?

Let's investigate this further. We have a human being that wants something. They can't seem to get what they think they want at the moment. So what do they do, they commit a crime, they become unhappy! It's an open and shut case. It is the basic motive of all crimes. Who stands to gain from getting what they wanted? You do! You were the one who wanted something, or did not get something you wanted! As a result of not getting what you wanted or getting what you didn't want, you did the crime! You made yourself unhappy.

As they say, "if you can't do the time, don't do the crime." Unhappiness is a crime, and it is punishable by life. Anyone who is unhappy will be imprisoned with himself or herself for a life sentence. I know it does not seem fair, but who says life is fair for the unhappy!

So if you want to know the facts and just the facts about The Unhappiness Conspiracy. Listen closely to me...You Are The Unhappiness Conspiracy! The conspiracy is real as long as you feed it with your thoughts about the unhappiness story you keep with you always. It is time to get rid of the "story line" so you can get rid of The Unhappiness Conspiracy.

The Unhappiness Conspiracy works to keep you a prisoner of your own crime so that others can get you to do what they want you to do. Since they are unhappy as well they need you to keep them in power by giving up your power to them.

If you are ever going to be free, then you need to become aware that The Unhappiness Conspiracy is going to include you. Why do others join in The Unhappiness Conspiracy? The reason is they do not know they are responsible for doing it. They are not aware they are dong it. They do not realize the consequences of their actions. Most of all they are not conscious of being unhappy. In fact, only a happy person is conscious.

So you are under a spell of The Unhappiness Conspiracy. The real crime is that you have put yourself there. Some good news for you is that if you have put yourself there, then you can take yourself out of there. Your parents, teachers, schools, businesses, religious institutions and the world has made you think you must be unhappy to get what you want. You were happy when you were a child. Become a child again and free yourself.

Cast off the chains of illusion and crawl out of the cave of craving. It is time to stand up strong and be counted amongst the happy. As few as we are The Unhappiness Conspiracy is being threatened with extinction by the happy. The numbers of happy people are growing stronger every hour and every day. Join Us, and Become One Of The Happy Freedom Fighters Overcoming The Unhappiness Conspiracy!

There is another conspiracy that has always been in effect. When you can live simply and happily you will have everything you need and really want. Realize you have enough and you have just added more to your life. But don't be fooled into thinking I am just a dreamer. You are witnessing the birth of "The Universal Happiness Conspiracy."

"The Universal Happiness Conspiracy," is a worldwide international sweeping whole, it is entire and complete and it is present and infinite and becoming widely accepted and very common indeed! Thank God! When you are happy the universe conspires to give you what you need.

Access The Happiness Zone And It's Great Content: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=svx5mvcab&v=001qNpDsySIaELtXYLfc_XpNvCXz7ZvgtEw4_MUKfN56hFhMigkN-_kpVdegDKVdEV1ZelFdLwGVvS0_-jsp_to5PS70w4P-fI9eQn7JErLacDEle3rX8suGA%3D%3D