Tag Archives: Margaret Smith life coach
August 23, 2017 6 Ways MN State Fair food teaches us about LIFE (seriously!)
To wrap up my series of Minnesota State Fair blog posts, I have to talk about fair food. MN State Fair food is a huge part of the attraction. I even know people who attend the fair solely for the food! There are crowd-pleasing favorites, such as turkey legs, buckets of chocolate chip cookies, and sno cones…but there are also inventive and daring concoctions that make you wonder, “Who would actually eat that?” This category includes everything from “hotdish on a stick” to deep fried spaghetti to BBQ alligator.
To say the least, state fair food is always a surprise. It may delight or disgust the senses, but no matter what you think of it, there are a few life lessons we can take away from fair food.
Here are my top six:
1. It doesn’t take itself too seriously
Italian meatloaf on a stick? Bacon donut sliders? Spam sushi?! This is food you won’t see at a Michelin star restaurant, but that’s kind of the point. State fair food doesn’t take itself seriously. It’s fun, creative, and over-the-top. We could all learn to laugh a little more at ourselves and not worry about obtaining perfection (perfection is subjective term, after all!).
2. It’s daring
When was the last time you took a risk in your workplace or personal life? You’ll never know if your gamble will pay off unless you do it. Vocalize your ideas; try new things; make bold decisions. State fair food isn’t shy and it’s time we emulated its audacity.
3. It’s adaptable
The state fair is proof that almost anything can be adapted to be on a stick. There’s macaroni and cheese on a stick, deep fried candy bars on a stick, and pizza on a stick. It’s portable, and fits the state fair palate. In the same way, we can all try to be a little more adaptable. It’s all about making the best of a situation, going with the flow, and creating new solutions.
4. It’s has range
From corn on the cob and whole fruits to deep fried mozzarella, state fair food runs the gambit between healthy and heart attack! Similarly, each person has the capacity to develop a range of skills and talents (including emotional range). If we challenge ourselves and dare to do things outside our comfort zones, we will grow our abilities and become more well-rounded.
5. It’s creative
It’s hard to deny the creativity of state fair food. Sometimes new ideas work, and sometimes they’re an utter flop. You never know unless you try. Workplaces that encourage creativity don’t always get things right, but at least they’re thinking outside the box and seeking inventive solutions. Remember that creativity isn’t always about arts and innovation—it could be as simple as coming up with a creative new way of gathering customer surveys or plotting out financial data.
6. It’s abundant
Everywhere you turn in the MN state fair, you’ll find food. There’s no shortage of sweet and savory treats. In our own lives, it’s great to live large and be bold. Life is too short to constantly hold back. Express your emotions, vocalize your ideas, and engage others in conversation (even if you have something difficult to discuss). If you’re facing difficulties and you don’t articulate how you’re feeling, chances are things will remain the same.
State fair food can teach us an extraordinary number of life lessons. What can you learn from your favorite state fair food? Feel free to comment below!
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS®DISCOVERY LICENSED PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: daring mn state fair food, life lessons from MN state fair food, Margaret Smith life coach, MN state fair food and life, mn state fair lessons, st. paul career coach, st. paul state fair, state fair food and life, unlikely life lessons
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- Posted under Advice from a Life Coach, Goals, Thrive at Work
February 8, 2017 Hey you! Look up from your phone! (Improving modern communication)
Technology can be a wonderful thing. It helps us connect people from across the country (or world) through a video conference or virtual chat. It allows us to easily create charts and map out data. It allows us to better serve our customers.
But there is a dark side to technology. It’s the side that affects our everyday interactions with people—the side that completely sucks us in and tethers us to our devices.
Have you ever walked into a restaurant and noticed friends, couples, or even entire families absorbed in their smart phones? Or noticed people out for a walk, with their heads buried in their devices?
Are you guilty of this too? Do you catch yourself shooting your co-worker an email when you could just walk to her office and ask a quick question? Do you find yourself flipping through social media or the news or weather instead of engaging those around you in conversation?
Yes, technology does great things, but it’s also killing our communication skills. According to MIT sociologist Sherry Turkle, author of the book Reclaiming Conversation, our deep absorption in our devices has caused us to lose our ability to have deeper, more spontaneous conversations with others. We begin to lose our capacity for “empathy, introspection, creativity, and intimacy.”[1]
With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, I think about the implications this has for our relationships. Are our conversations lacking the depth they used to have? Are we missing opportunities to look others in the eye and truly connect with them?
Looking at it from another angle, are we missing opportunities at work because we’ve greatly reduced the number of face-to-face interactions we have with others? Sherry Turkle says YES. She points to many studies that indicate that when people are allowed to talk to each other, they do better—they’re more collaborative, they’re more creative, they get more done.
And what about networking? I’ve talked with many people who say that the younger generation has difficulty with face-to-face networking. It’s a skill that doesn’t come easily for them because so many of their interactions are digital. That’s troubling because, according to Hubspot, 85% of people say they build stronger, more meaningful business relationships during in-person business meetings and conferences.
Face-to-face still matters!
It’s time we stop multi-tasking, set our cell phones aside, and rediscover meaningful conversation with others. Our relationships—both personal and professional—will be better for it.
[1] Suttie, J. (December 7, 2015). How Smartphones Are Killing Conversation. The Greater Good Science Center at Berkeley. http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_smartphones_are_killing_conversation. Accessed 12/19/16.
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS®DISCOVERY LICENSED PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: better communication, business coach Margaret Smith, improve communication, improve interaction, improve networking skills, Margaret Smith life coach, networking and communication, Technology and communication, technology damaging communication
January 18, 2017 Making the Job Hunt Personal Again
Hunting for and landing a job seems more complicated now than ever before. Most people hunt online for potential openings and therefore have to compete with, essentially, the entire world. It’s tough to stand out from the crowd with impersonal, uniformed job applications. Many online forms leave no room for creativity and, with many HR departments overwhelmed by the number of applicants, something as trivial as a certificate of completion or the college you attended can either make or break you.
How do you cut through the noise?
One of the solutions is to make the job hunt personal again. Here are four ways to do that:
1. Pick up the phone
The phone, you say? Like, an actual call?
Absolutely. With email and messaging, we’ve begun to develop a phobia of talking over the phone. Your phone call to an HR recruiter could make a huge difference. Just be sure to plan out what you’re going to say and put your best self forward. Don’t sound too “salesy;” be your wonderful, genuine self.
And don’t forget to have a purpose for the call. If you have a specific question, that’s a great reason to pick up the phone.
2. Tailor your resume to the position
You’re more likely to get noticed if your resume is tailored to fit the position for which you are applying. There is nothing wrong with highlighting certain parts of your experience, as long as the information is true. If you’re interested in a job and think it would be an excellent fit, take the extra time to refocus your resume around relevant areas of experience.
3. Find a referral
Most people now have a vast network of connections through social media. Use it! If a friend or acquaintance works at a company that you’d like to apply to, don’t be afraid to ask for a referral. A personal recommendation can go a long way and most HR professionals don’t mind getting them (personal recs can actually make the hiring process a little easier!).
Even if you don’t have any direct connections to an organization, you may have a secondary connection. You can see your secondary (or tertiary) connections on LinkedIn and ask a primary connection to introduce you to a secondary connection. This may seem like a stretch, but the generosity of others never ceases to amaze me.
4. Schedule an informational meeting
If you’re trying to break into a new industry, or would like to make a switch to a radically different company, consider setting up an informational meeting. Even if your company of choice isn’t currently hiring, reach out and see if someone will meet with you over a cup of coffee or lunch. Once you have the meeting arranged, be sure to prepare a list of thoughtful questions. Ask about the company, their mission, a typical work day, the ideal skill set someone in your dream position needs, etc.
Even if your meeting doesn’t lead to something right away, it may help your dream company keep you top-of-mind when they are looking to hire. OR, if nothing else, you will have gained some valuable information about a company and/or position that you idolize.
Set yourself apart by making the job hunt personal! Even in our age of technology, the hiring process is still very much built on human connections.
MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS®DISCOVERY LICENSED PRACTITIONER, FOUNDER OF UXL, AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE TAG TEAM. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. YOU CAN VISIT HER WEBSITE AT WWW.YOUEXCELNOW.COM
Tags: find a referral, get hired, Job hunt tips, margaret smith career coach, Margaret Smith life coach, personal job hunt, pick up the phone, tailoring your resume, you can get hired
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- Posted under Interview Tips, Tips for the Job Hunt
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