The Frustration Factor

Can you work in an extra five minutes a day to make a difference to people who make a difference to you? Is it OK if not all of them are people you know or will likely pass by again? Oh well, if five minutes is too much, can you work in one minute a day for starters? That will let you work in two of the ten people for whom you could make a difference. Even at one minute, two is better than none. You will be sharing a half minute of your time with each person and 30 seconds make a difference.

Do you want to know how it works, how to make a difference in 30 seconds? Well, learning the secret takes closer to 10 minutes; but once you know the trick, it’s yours forever. Please listen and learn.

Did Mr. Spock have the right idea when it comes to handling one’s emotions? That would be staying emotionally incognito. Emotions, if he had any, were pretty well hidden. How well do you think that would work for you? You could be totally cool, as emotionally flat as a pancake.

In this episode of Audio Tidbits Podcast, I acknowledge that there are times when keeping our emotions hidden is the best approach to the particular situation. Most of the time though, that is far from the best way to relate to others, especially if our goal is to make a difference to those people who make a difference to us. A far better strategy is to keep cool but don’t freeze. Our emotions are an important element of who we are and keeping them under cover is a serious misrepresentation. Please listen and decide for yourself.

Now and then, just going along to get along is a really good idea. It’s the easiest and most hassle-free way to deal with some people and some situations. The key here is “some.” The problem starts when “some” transitions to “most” or even to “all.” Just going along to get along becomes a serious commitment to eventually disappearing as a valuable, important person who matters to you and who should matter to others. In this episode of Audio Tidbits Podcast, I discuss the down side of just going along to get along and suggest a healthier alternative. Please listen and consider where you come down on just going along to get along.

Here we are, picking ourselves back up and brushing ourselves off. It’s that crazy horse again.

Have you been there and done that? I’ll bet you have. I’ve been there and done that myself, more than once.

Was it failure or perhaps it was just one more of those things that wasn’t working out as we had hoped? At least it wasn’t working out on that particular dusty day. Failure is something to be reserved for very specific circumstances and getting tossed off that horse definitely didn’t qualify. Please listen as I discuss when not succeeding is a far cry from failure. It’s just that crazy horse again.

Are you a fan of work/home balance or other versions of the balanced life? Keeping your life in balance is certainly a popular notion, especially work/home balance. As appealing as the idea is, I suspect it is probably not possible and is definitely not something to aspire to. More to my point, a balanced life would be silly.

a non-neglecting life would also be good, as would a life where every aspect gets its due, all the time, every time, no exceptions, no excuses. That too is simply not possible and trying to achieve it would be equally silly.

In this episode of Audio Tidbits Podcast, I discuss the why and what of the silliness and suggest a reasonable and doable alternative. Please listen and judge just how well a dynamic life would work for you as an alternative to that balanced life you hear so much about.

If this is a hammer, then that has to be a nail. Sure, it’s just a twist on that old saying you already know quite well. Unfortunately, it’s generally truer than not. Although I discuss the notion in a management context, it applies most any time there is a job to do or a new situation to deal with in your family, community, or anywhere else you find yourself. Please listen for a tip about avoiding this little quirk of human nature.

Have you ever experienced a life changing event? I’m not talking about an event that prompted change in how you do something, think about things or how you handle some situations or circumstances. I am thinking about a fundamental change in who you are and how you perceive yourself and the world around you. You suddenly become a different person, someone who thinks, feels and behaves unlike the person you were. The notion is worth a careful thought or so. Please listen and see if you agree with my perspective on life changing events and real personal change.

Have you ever heard someone say, “No one intimidates me?” What do you think? Perhaps you have said that yourself.

I suspect that the person who makes such a declaration is somehow missing the obvious or maybe just doesn’t get it. Even if we are the best in the world at something we do, we aren’t the best in the world at everything we do. In this episode, I discuss those times when we aren’t the best and know it. There is someone or many someones who are much better at what we want to do than we are.

What do you do or want to do, knowing that you aren’t the best and most likely won’t ever come close to being the best? Who do you know that is much better at it than you are? That is where to look when trying to decide who intimidates you.

If this all rings a little bell for you, press play and listen. I have a tip you may find helpful.

Do you know the difference between real and fake delegation? Have you ever been told that a job or other responsibility was being delegated to you only to learn that the person doing the delegating was looking over your shoulder, second guessing you and criticizing what you were doing and how you were doing it? Even worse, have you ever been the delegator who was doing the looking over the shoulder and second guessing? In either case, you know all there is to know about fake delegation.

In this episode of Audio Tidbits Podcast, I discuss fake delegation, real delegation, and what it takes to be real. It’s not nearly as easy as it might seem. Please listen and see what your conclusion is.

How do you deal with your stress? You ask, “What makes you think I have stress?” Well, it’s pretty simple. We all have times of stress. It may be very stressful or only a little stressful, but stress it is. It may be what they call good stress that helps us deal with important situations and people, or it may be the bad kind that gets us down and is hard to handle. Nonetheless, stress is not something any of us can avoid.

In this episode of Audio Tidbits Podcast, I discuss how to handle the bad stress in our lives. Please listen. You may find the tip I share helpful as you deal with the stress in your life, as you appreciate the real value for all of us in having someone we can lean on.