Skip to content

UXL Blog

“Creating Successful Leaders”

Category Archives: Uncategorized

September 25, 2013 On Taking Risks

Looking back on your experience to-date, how much has your life gone as planned? Did everything line up for you in the exact way you were hoping it would? Can you honestly say your life has been completely in your control?

If you’re anything like the vast majority of us, hindsight probably reveals how little you actually predicted and controlled in your life. And this isn’t a bad thing. Opportunities in life seem to present themselves to you on their own timescale.

With this in mind, taking a risk is a smart move long term. Why, you ask?

1. Opportunities abound for the person who takes a risk. An employer is much more impressed by someone who dives into the unknown, and word will spread quickly about your willingness to venture into new territory. This will snowball and provide for you many more opportunities.

2. Failures are temporary, while regrets linger. “When speaking to people in their forties and beyond, many tell me that if they could do their career over again, they’d have taken more risks, settled less and spoken up more often,” writes Margie Warrell in this Forbes article. It is always better to have tried and faltered than to have never gone for it.

3. You’re probably overestimating the odds against you. Warrell points out that we tend to magnify the negative consequences in our minds, to the point where we no longer think about positive outcomes, which makes for a warped view of reality.

4. As a rule, you are capable of more than you think you are. This is probably a result of having been conditioned early on to always be modest. But it’s okay to recognize your strengths and feel confident about them. And you’ll never know your ability until you take risks.

Tags: , , , , , ,

September 19, 2013 The Tale of The Noisy Heels: self-awareness and public speaking

A talk I gave a few months back was video taped, and I looked forward to getting a chance to critique myself. While I was speaking, I felt that I was doing a fine job connecting with my audience and delivering my message in a composed, articulate manner. I’m afraid to say I still don’t know how true this is, because when I watched the video, I was horrified to discover that my high heels upstaged me.

I like to walk around and use the room when I give talks. It helps me connect with individual members of the audience and keeps me focused, since I tend to be a high-energy person. The room I was in had a hardwood floor and a high ceiling–the recipe for cavernous acoustics. I wasn’t exactly sure going in what kind of room I’d be speaking in, so I never took the time to factor this in to what I would be wearing that day. And that turned out to be a big mistake.

As I walked around on that floor, every step I took was transformed from normal, forgettable clicks high heels make, to echoing, thundering gallops. If I was distracted, watching myself on videotape, I can’t imagine how distracting my heels were to the poor audience.

This experience was a bit discouraging and embarrassing, but I’m grateful for that videotape, because now I know that there are other variables to consider before giving a talk.

1. Video Tape Yourself. The way you speak sounds different to you than it does to everyone else. This has been proven time and time again. Watching yourself on video lets reveals the things about your mannerisms that you overlook. And, as it was true for me, a video can highlight little oddities you’d never predict on your own.

2. When Possible, Become Familiar With The Room. Walk around the space before your speech. Get a feel for the acoustics, the size, and make a mental game plan for how you’ll use the room to your advantage.

3. Your Attire Isn’t Always Just Visual! Avoid clunky boots and noisy heels if you know you’ll be in a space that echoes.

Tags: , , ,

September 11, 2013 The Best Learners Keep Their Minds Open

Image via Maurice Kerrigan

With school back in session, you’ve probably seen kids with backpacks and lunchboxes waiting for the bus, or noticed the huge “back to school” section at your local Target, or maybe you’ve been one of those brave souls frantically rushing your kids out the door each morning. Whatever it may be, it’s likely September has reminded you of your own time in school, be it grade school, high school, or college, wherein your sole job was to learn.

It’s easy to slip into the mindset that that was then, this is now. We had school for learning, now it’s time for applying that knowledge in the real world. While this is true, adhering too strongly to such thinking can actually hinder your ability to excel. Because the world is continuously changing, we must embrace a mentality of continuous learning, and the way we pull that off is by keeping an open mind.

I know, “keeping an open mind” is about as cliché as it gets. It’s a phrase that can mean a whole heap of things and rarely gets questioned. So what do I mean when I say we must keep an open mind?

1. Put flexibility into practice. Be willing to change plans on the fly. Try out other people’s ideas. Don’t assume you know the answer right away.

2. Self-assessment is key. Are listening to others? Have you applied what you’ve most recently learned in any meaningful way?

3. There is no perfect way to do things. Strategies and methods need to be adapted to each new situation. The best learners use their environments to come up with a concoction of many different methods, tailored to the situation at hand.

4. Change is the only constant. And this is okay. Too often we wage a losing battle trying to control everything around us. You don’t need to fight that battle.

Don’t get entrenched in a one size fits all approach. You’ll only become frustrated. Be willing to listen, experiment and place yourself in the firing line of new experiences.

Tags: , , , , ,