Stretching Your Focus

Time management intrigues me. Way back when, when I was a bed and breakfast innkeeper, I learned from a time management expert that everyone needed to block their time, and be committed to those time blocks. Since then, I’ve felt there has to be a better way. That was further reinforced when I was a real estate agent. My broker followed the advice, blocking his time — and that meant we couldn’t get his input on contracts except during specific times. That seemed just as crazy. I felt then that when you are in the service industry, time management took on a different tenor than it did for those in traditional office jobs.

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Checking In For Success

When I was a bed and breakfast innkeeper I created a checklist for the staff so that each of the jobs around the inn was done completely, correctly, and consistently — regardless of who was working which shift. There was a checklist for each of the breakfast, housekeeping, and evening shifts. We had a great team to start with and I knew these checklists were going to make their contributions and the inn shine even better.

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Reading Gifts

I used to think of reading as a way of passing time, entertaining myself, or learning new things. Little did I realize how much more I’ve been gaining from reading — until I read an article expounding on the numerous benefits of reading. My favorite phrase was “Read for the revolution of your spirit.”

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Look! Up In The Sky!

When I repeatedly hear reference to the same thing, be it a book, person, or technique, I pay attention. The most recent thing I heard repeatedly was a technique to harness the alter ego to help buoy yourself in uncomfortable or difficult situations.

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Negative Cycles

Years ago I went through a period where I was stuck in a negative reaction cycle. I’d let someone’s opinion of me, or a perceived slight, get under my skin, or I’d get annoyed by actions and mistakes people made. My brain would endlessly chew on the “slight” or behavior and spin around and around it. It was driving me crazy! Probably literally. I didn’t enjoy this cycle, to say the least.

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