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“Creating Successful Leaders”

Tag Archives: Career Coaching

June 19, 2013 The Myth of Multitasking

The motive behind multitasking is noble. If we have a lot on our plates, it makes sense to try to take on many tasks at once so we give each task equal time and effort.

The problem is, this doesn’t work. What’s more, multitasking actually lessens the quality of your work.

We multitask to feel emotionally productive, according to a study mentioned in a Huffington Post article, even though we aren’t actually being productive. So while we might feel better about ourselves when we multitask, the truth is it adversely effects our productivity.

Here are a few ways to get yourself out of the habit of multitasking:

1. Prioritize

The worst thing you can do when bombarded by obligations is address them equally and simultaneously, even though we’re naturally inclined to do so. Decide what task is most important, and then do that.

2. Focus and Finish

You might feel yourself getting pulled out of this first, most important task and back into the pile of others things. Don’t get sucked back in! You have one thing to do now; nothing else matters. Do not allow yourself to be distracted until the most urgent task gets checked off the list. Then, move on.

3. Let go of the  little things

Under stress, it’s natural to lump a bunch of unrelated stressors into one big, scary beast that wants you to fail. In reality, most of the time you may have 3-5 very important things to do, and then perhaps another handful of not-so-important things to do. By prioritizing, focusing and finishing, you’ll begin to discern between the big things and the little things, and the scary beast will start to evaporate (since it was all in your mind anyway). Then, you’ll be able to let go of the things that merely add to your stress but don’t necessarily need immediate addressing.

If you’re used to multitasking, at first you may feel less productive after adopting a singularly-focused work-style. But soon you’ll get used to it, and see how much more efficient you are when you give one thing your undivided attention.

Huffington Post. “Multitasking Makes People Feel Better, Even Though It’s Not Efficient: Study.” Posted May 1, 2012. Accessed June 17, 2013. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/01/multitasking-emotional-feel-better-_n_1467945.html

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June 5, 2013 Save Money And Gain Knowledge With Online Courses

Paying for college is a drag, and although the job market is much better now than it was when I first began coaching a few years back, it’s still tough to know whether getting another degree is a smart investment.

The good news is Massive Open Online Courses, or “MOOC’s,” are providing people the world over with quality courses, free of charge. These classes are taught by real professors from some top notch schools, and MOOCs take advantage of video chat technology to create a sense of community.

Perhaps the company that’s making the biggest waves is Coursera. Having teamed up with universities like Stanford, University of Pennsylvania and Princeton, Coursera provides five undergrad courses that the American Council on Education has approved to count toward college credit.

What excites me isn’t free college credit, even though this is a big step toward an affordable education. I’m excited about the opportunity this gives anyone who wants accessible, flexible and personal learning. Classes typically run from 6-12 weeks, and you are free to take as many or as few as you’d like. This gives even the busiest of us the chance to advance our education. And we can do it however we want.

If you’ve always been meaning to get caught up on the classic novels, for instance, take a literature course! If you’re crummy at math and don’t want to be anymore, there are math classes as basic as geometry 1. Or, you can develop the skills you apply everyday at work. Coursera offers economics courses, marketing courses and integrated technology courses, to name a few, all of which address real-world needs.

Oh, and did I mention it’s free?

 

The Next Web. “Online learning goes official as five Coursera courses get approved by the American Council on Education.”  Accessed June 4, 2013. http://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/02/07/online-learning-goes-official-as-five-coursera-courses-get-approved-by-the-american-council-on-education/

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February 27, 2013 Take Another Look At Your Weak Points

The fact is, you have strengths. But you also have weaknesses that can get in the way of your goals. I’ve talked a lot about the importance of finding your strengths and developing the skill of being able to plug these into the world around you.

Today, I want to address your weaknesses.

Remember in high school, when your counselor encouraged you to be “well-rounded?” “Pick up an instrument if you’re an athlete,” they said. “Take up painting if you’ve never done it before.” Essentially, they prompted you to flesh out your world and your experiences.

At a certain point, whether we were in high school or college, we honed in on our strengths. We polished them, trained to be able to apply them and, as a result, our focus was taken away from other potential strengths.

I want to talk about the areas in our lives that we’ve abandoned during our drive toward our strengths. It is true we have strengths and weaknesses, yes, but this does not mean that we shouldn’t expand into other areas of interest.

And I don’t mean just pick up another hobby. Hobbies are great, but I’m thinking a bit bigger here. I’m thinking about treading into the dangerous waters. The places you’ve avoided because they were places that made you uncomfortable.

These are the places that truly test you and spurn growth. Staying attached to one strength or skill-set has its advantages, that’s for sure. You can become one of the best at whatever it is you do well. But in the meantime–and this is the downside–you lose a greater perspective of the world. This one life on this Earth contains an immense amount of opportunity, so why would you stick to one bitty corner the whole time?

You know by now that you’re not good at everything. But that doesn’t give you license to simply throw your hands up and say, “This isn’t my strong point,” every time you encounter a situation that plays to your weak points.

This week, consider things you aren’t so good at, and give them another try. You may surprise yourself; the story goes that Einstein failed math in grade school.

Keep on growing!

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