How can I get more time?

As you find yourself headed back to the office, your time efficiency may change. When I work with leadership teams or individual leaders, one of their biggest frustrations is managing time. There are a multitude of books, articles and resources on how to be more efficient in managing your time.

Do you ever complain about having so many meetings? In the past couple of years, Zoom (an online virtual meeting tool) has recorded over 3.3 trillion annual meeting minutes. This number will decrease as you get back into the office and meet with your team members in person. What meetings do you have on a regular basis? How have you tried to make them more efficient, creative and impactful?

One of the best ways to be efficient in meeting with your project teams, for status reports, is to engage in stand-up status meetings. Some of the benefits are:

– Saves time with fewer meetings
– Strengthens the team’s concept of common goals
– Reduces roadblocks
– Promotes transparency and teamwork
– Improves collaboration and communication
– Measures progress
– Increases accountability

The first time I experienced a stand-up meeting was on a project where I was in charge of the creation of a new product. This product needed web development and the webmaster and his team utilized this process of meetings. It was so effective. Everyone reported on their status and shared wins and challenges.

This type of meeting may not apply to every type of scenario in your day. For instance, holding an employee review meeting will be more impactful if you are sitting down and showing open body language that indicates you are listening and interested in what is being said. Whenever you have the chance to stand, you are increasing your energy by simply getting up.

Even if you are not the leader, make a suggestion to implement this tool. You will be glad you did and minutes will be saved to your day!

What should I wear?

What should I wear today? Is this a question that plagues you? I have to admit that I struggle with this time and time again. I have several suggestions for how to overcome this dilemma:

1. Make space in your closet. By making space you will be able to see what you have and that will aid you in your daily decisions.
2. Organize your closet in colors. Then as you are pulling items together you will know where they are located to see if they compliment the items you have chosen.
3. Put your choices together the night before you need them. This takes the decision time out when you are getting ready for the next day.
4. Make sure your clothing items are clean and in good shape. You don’t want any surprises when you are rushing to put something together.
5. Select items that meet your purpose for the day. If you have a bunch of meetings or errands, what is the message you want your clothes to convey?

Implementing the above tips will greatly reduce your frustration and get you out the door sooner.

When traveling, select your clothes with repeating items to wear. Use the same pair of pants multiple times throughout the trip. Coordinating your color scheme is a great way to create a different look and use fewer items. The term “capsule wardrobe” is a limited selection of interchangeable clothing items that work well together. The basis of a capsule wardrobe is generated from classic pieces that are easy to interchange.

My starting inspiration for putting clothes together every day is to start with my shoes and then work up. It’s all about the shoes! I am getting better at traveling with fewer shoes. I have to admit that I used to travel with 12 pair of shoes for a week’s business conference. Now, I would be paying a fortune in baggage fees. Streamlining has helped me greatly.

What are your favorite, go-to pieces? How do you start formulating outfits? I would love to hear. Happy dressing!

What empowers you?

What a ride the last couple of years has been! The one constant that I have found to be empowering is focusing on my health. Specifically, what I fuel my body with and the exercise I engage in.

When the pandemic hit the United States, I came down with COVID-19. Right before I started showing symptoms, my husband, Doug and I had just signed up to FasterWay to begin a 6-week round of their subscribed methodology and system. When everybody was buying pasta off the shelf, we were buying produce and plant-based items that we had never tried.

Part of this system is a daily workout. When I got sick, I could not even walk out the door. I knew I was finally getting better when I could walk down the street in our neighborhood.

Eating healthy, exercising and getting good sleep can take time. The benefits outweigh the time and effort. Drinking plenty amounts of water each day will step up your energy and digestive system. What are your superfoods that make you feel good when you eat them? Mine is salmon, spinach and strawberries. What type of exercise do you enjoy? Eating food that fuels, moving your body and getting to bed earlier will all assist in improving your life and work.

There is a lot in life that you can’t control. You can’t control what happens in the world, your family, or the price of gas. If you are a control freak like me, that is extremely frustrating.

Pandemics, illness, or any other catastrophe can knock you off your game. When these challenges pop up, focus on what you CAN do. If you keep your focus on the “can” rather than the “can’t”, you will be able to overcome and find the lesson in the journey. What can you do today to step up your energy? How will more energy impact your ability to reach your goals? It’s all up to you. I know you can do it!

Reflecting – “WOW, I did that!”

Happy-Valentines-Red-Rose-Tracy-Hall

How do you celebrate accomplishing a goal or fulfilling a dream? Do you take time to stop and reflect or do you move on to the next goal? The other day I was going through some files and found my “Wow, I did that!” list. I realized that I hadn’t updated it. Stopping to reflect on your accomplishments is important. It will help motivate you in reaching the new goals that you are setting.

As the year gets ready to wrap up, write down your wins. The power of this reflecting session will unlock the following for you:

1. Joy in achieving your goals.
2. Momentum to keep moving forward with your goals and objectives for the New Year.
3. Reminder to refer to when days may seem dark or discouraging.
4. Proof that you have more potential than you realize.

Reflecting is a necessary tool for keeping that winning edge mindset. You will be able to design your life and business in a way that aligns with your guiding principles.

As I have gone through this exercise, I have experienced the following:
a. Pride and humility at the same time.
b. Gratitude that so much of what I desired to do was possible and achievable.
c. Determination to stretch higher next year.

This is the season for celebration! “Wow, I did that” is something to celebrate, remember and embrace. Take time this next week to reflect on your past accomplishments.

Clothes Build Confidence

How do you feel when you put on new clothes? Your clothes can build your confidence. When you build your confidence your self-image increases.

What you wear impacts how others see you and more importantly how you see yourself. When you have soiled, sticky or worn clothing your self-image is lowered. Caring for your clothing builds confidence. Confidence attracts opportunities and growth.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel in order to get all the latest tips to energize your image so that you can uncover, realize and accomplish your potential.

Thank you for watching this tip! Sign up for more image and success tips here: www.LindaHYates.com – Have a wonderful day!

Music provided by FREESFX
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Linda H. Yates – The Image Energizer is a highly-sought Keynote Speaker, Executive Coach and Corporate Trainer. She has produced over 250 educational seminars on helping individuals and businesses uncover, realize and accomplish their goals. Author of Beyond the Clothes and the audio course and workbook 6 Steps to ENERGIZE Your Personal Brand, Linda Yates believes that NOTHING is Impossible!

Kicking Doubts

Self-Doubt

How are you kicking your doubts today? The word doubt is not as strong as the word fear. Yet, if you let doubt fill your mind and heart then fear can take over. I’ve heard it said that what you write and speak about is what you are currently struggling with. I am a positive person. I have also struggled with doubt and fear throughout my life and business.

Mindset and controlling your mind are subjects that fascinate me. I guess it is because I believe deep down that nothing is impossible. I believe that you each can achieve more than what you think possible.

When an innovative idea or even a dream comes to mind, it can be easy to dismiss the idea. Letting your doubts form is a surefire way to stopping growth.

Here are some of the doubts that I have:

1. I’m not good enough
2. That is not my reality
3. I need more resources
4. Will those I love approve?
5. Will I have time?

Perhaps you can relate to some or all. Why is it that doubts can creep in? Are you believing or buying into someone else’s doubts and insecurities? If you are to uncover, realize and accomplish your potential then it is critical that you learn to starve your doubts.

Here are five strategies that you can implement:

1. Look at your goal’s morning and night
2. Change negative thoughts to positive affirmations
3. Disengage from naysayers
4. Reflect on past wins
5. Ask “what if” questions

I know that if you integrate these strategies into your life you will be able to accomplish more than you ever dreamed. Kicking doubts will become a skill that will open up energy in every aspect of your life.

Moving Onward After Loss With Goals

Moving onward after loss with goals. Over the last several years I’ve experienced great loss. I’ve been grieving my parents passing. My children moving on and needing me less. A location move from dear friends. Aging. Lately, I’ve realized that setting goals has taken a backseat. Have you ever felt this way? I find myself at another crossroad of reinventing myself. Here’s what I’m learning and thought you would enjoy:

1. No goals – no energy. When you have a goal your creative sub-conscious is uncomfortable until you achieve it.
2. Little goals are okay. Start working on your goal. The momentum will help you feel motivated.
3. Share your goals with an accountability partner. By being accountable you are making a commitment to your success.
4. It’s okay to change your goals. When starting down a particular path you may find that it’s not the path you want to be on. It’s okay to pivot.
5. Belief is the first step to achieving your goals. Your self-talk is the major indicator of whether you will reach your desired outcomes.

What do you want? Nothing is impossible. Reinvention can be scary, and I know you can do scary things. It’s all up to you.

How To Write A Speech

Do you struggle when starting to write a speech? In this week’s success tip, Linda Yates, The Image Energizer shares how to start writing a speech that will engage your audience. Hint: there’s a rhythm.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel in order to get all the latest tips to energize your image so that you can uncover, realize and accomplish your potential.

Thank you for watching this tip! Sign up for more image and success tips here: www.LindaHYates.com – Have a wonderful day!

Music provided by FREESFX
_____________________________________________________________

Linda H. Yates – The Image Energizer is a highly-sought Keynote Speaker, Executive Coach and Corporate Trainer. She has produced over 250 educational seminars on helping individuals and businesses uncover, realize and accomplish their goals. Author of Beyond the Clothes and the audio course and workbook 6 Steps to ENERGIZE Your Personal Brand, Linda Yates believes that NOTHING is Impossible!

Our Life Changing Remodel

Our Life Changing Remodel

One of my mantras throughout my life has been to live and love without regret. As with most statistics, the 80/20 principle probably would apply as well to my personal regret factor. Life changing remodels occur in a variety of ways.

It was the mid 90s and we finally owned a home that my husband had dreamed of owning for most of his life. We had purchased this house from a close relative and set down the path of making it ours and creating the dream home – little did we realize how it would be our life changing remodel. To give you a little background; my husband’s training was in design and he loves creating beauty. He is also very good at it.

As we looked at the master plan of this project, we decided to tackle the oldest looking issues of the property. We began with the yard. One would think you could do this inexpensively but we had grand ideas. If you have ever watched those design shows that illustrate how starting one project leads to another project that describes the situation perfectly. Instead of planting a few bushes here and removing a tree there; we ripped out 30-year-old shrubs that were the retaining wall for our house on the hill and lowered the yard in some of the areas over a foot to ease the occasional flooding from sprinklers or rainwater.

This landscaping project was a large financial and time investment. It looked beautiful when we were done and we enjoyed the new, young look of our yard and large outdoor entertainment area. Through this experience we involved our children to pull weeds and rip out brick walkways. They dreaded Saturday mornings as we would get up and out early to take advantage of the daylight.

At the same time as our landscape project we ripped up wool carpet and refinished hardwood floors in the main living space. This home was about a 4,000 square foot home. At one point I hired a painter to come in and paint; however, because my husband is a perfectionist, he redid the entire project that we had paid good money to have completed. Again, at the end of the day, it was beautiful and very enjoyable to live in. After finishing this project, we then decided to look at building a home and put our home on the market. We had at one point a very interested buyer but they decided to live closer to their children. So, we took the home off the market. We loved this home. We had put hard work, money and emotion into the four walls.

A couple of years passed, and you guessed it we decided to start updating again. In fact, in the time that we lived in this home we had undergone a total of 5 major remodeling projects and a sum of money that could have purchased two homes in the area. We realized when we attempted to sell our home that we were the biggest home in the neighborhood and that was a disadvantage in selling. We decided that we might as well create the home we desired and continue to go all out.

All out is definitely what we did. After putting another substantial investment into our latest remodel, we enjoyed and added on a master bathroom and closet suite, updated guest bathrooms, remodeled staircase, remodeled bedrooms and an updated family room. This period was short lived; however, and as they say, “life happens” (this is a “G” rated article). Financial calamity hit and our income was reduced by half. We did not know what to do.

Needless to say, the inevitable happened and we lost this dream and closed the door on one of the biggest mistakes (or lessons depending on the view) in our lives.

Because the human spirit is strong and I was taught that when one door closes a window opens, we were open to change and watched and welcomed it as it blew our way.

We downsized for a period of time to get back on our feet. Employment changes also occurred. In reality we took large steps back and down, but still in the end we took a step. Last but not least we surrendered to God that we would look at other opportunities to grow and go where we were needed.

That humble attitude took us 2800 miles from family and friends but what a blessing this mistake has resulted in. So many blessings, that it is hard to keep track of them all.

What did we learn? The biggest lesson was that a material possession is just a thing, and people and relationships are what counts. We learned we went way overboard in investing emotion into a home and that we should have strategized more and sold the home with minor repairs (“lipstick” if you will). We also learned that when purchasing a home, we should never have bought from a relative. Dynamics in a business relationship are often strained when dealing with relatives and the concern for how the relative would feel should not be a factor in a business relationship. Finally, we learned that we should have a plan, whether or not the whole plan gets implemented or not. By planning you can forego a lot of mistakes and prepare for the future.

It has become a personal mission for me that whenever possible I need to share my voice with others in educating them on how one decision effects so many other areas of their lives and that achieving clarity is paramount to their success. I also want to impress that if you can laugh at yourself, the challenges and mistakes that will happen can be bearable and you can deal with changes and disappointments as they occur.

My biggest mistake, “not selling” also turned out to be one of the greatest lessons in my life and in the end, I would not trade what I have learned. Opposition in all things is where we find what we are made of and where we have the opportunity to grow and learn.

I hope that my mistake will be something that you can learn from. Here’s to your growth and development!

Never Ending Possibilities

As birthdays, New Years and transitional events such as graduation, job changes, death, marriage, or divorce occur we have choices.

You can either:
a. focus on the negative aspects
b. stir yourself up with worry

or

c. embrace the moment and look for the never ending possibilities and opportunities.

One of the past conferences I presented at had an author who spoke of the possibilities and endless opportunities. When I was listening to this presenter I was awestruck with his passion and love that emanated from his eyes. I felt the power of his words.

Benjamin Zander

We may feel like the world has let us down. If you take a chance and find the possibilities that exist, you will have a happier business and life. Stuff happens and challenges are a part of life, but looking for the possibilities; it is where our internal power muscles will grow and expand.

Often when a New Year approaches it is a great time to take stock of what was accomplished in the past year and what the possibilities are for the next. Those possibilities 9 times out of 10 touch another human being. Staying connected and engaged to influencers and decision makers will speed the potential opportunities along in whatever you decide to pursue.

Social media is an incredible tool, and if used with a well thought plan, can assist in maintaining contact and achieving your goals. The more you give the more you receive. Keep an abundance mentality. Care less about being in control or the perception of losing control. Take more risks. With more risks comes more opportunities, growth and happiness.

I was blessed to achieve a lifelong dream of moving to the beach. I was born and raised on a farm in humble circumstances. I have experienced financial loss and gain, but I knew deep down that achieving this goal of moving to the water was possible, and more importantly, believed to be probable.

I share this with you because I’m a true believer of nothing is impossible. I was raised with this basic principle. I was also raised with a strong work ethic. It has recently occurred to me that as I reach for the next possibility that I should record those goals and dreams that I have achieved. By physically putting pen to paper and reflecting on what I have achieved provides me hope, drive and inspiration on how to achieve the next goals.

You can start on this journey by doing what Benjamin Zander advises, “give yourself an A.” There is no failure – there is only experience. And with that experience comes wisdom. If we have already achieved an “A” then we can be in the moment and engage totally without the pressure or fear of failing.

Lastly, when you experience a challenge or set-back use these two words to turn it around, “how fascinating!”

What possibilities are there for you?