Ali Heathfield

Multitasking, distractions…….

A New York Times headline read the other day:

Multitasking Takes Toll On Memory, Study Finds

It went on to say:

“A growing body of research shows that juggling many tasks, as so many people do in this technological era, can divide attention and hurt learning and performance. Does it also hinder short-term memory?”

Following on from this I was reading a blog (Andrew Mcaffee) where he speaks of distractions…..

The right strategy, surely, is to realize that the distractions and temptations of modern technology are just another set of temptations, and to react to them accordingly. This often means turning away from them or turning them off, at least for large chunks of time, so that real thinking can get done and we don’t spend all out time wading in the shallows.

Why do we find this so hard to do? Is it because today’s technologies are more seductive and addictive than what’s been available before? Because our bosses, customers, and colleagues are more demanding than ever? Because our IQs and coping skills re inferior to those of previous generations?

I don’t think so. I think we find technology hard to resist for the same old simple reason: temptations are hard to resist, and we prefer not to.

To what effect…..

There is more information and resources available to each of us individually than there ever has before!  Is this helpful or is it a hindrance and just how much is all the information affecting our memories?

Are we so busy multi tasking that we are missing the laser beam like focus that gets the job done efficiently and effectively?

What’s important……

It is also important to keep up to date on technology and it is key that you can multi task.

Yet,  business owners, executives and key personnel who are successful find that all important balance..…… They learn when to tune in and when to tune out, when to turn on and when to turn off, have  you?

Contact me to find out more on 01628 566112,  email me at blog@apbusinesscoach.co.uk  www.apbusinesscoach.co.uk

I recently read this post from Medical Billing and Coding.  It is certainly well worth reading and does make some interesting points. Please read it and I look forward to hearing your views.

Via: Medical Billing and Coding.org

Contact me to find out more on 01628 566112,  email me at blog@apbusinesscoach.co.uk  www.apbusinesscoach.co.uk

Keep Fit Personal

One of the most important aspects of my ‘keep fit’ campaign is attitude.

What is my attitude to keep fit?

What is my attitude to exercise?

What is my attitude to myself?

What is my attitude to my diet?

Attitude is:

“A complex mental state involving belief and feelings and values and disposition to act in  certain ways.”

I use my: beliefs, feelings values and disposition (temperament) to keep me on target, to encourage me when the going gets tough and to support and motivate me when things are going well.

Keep Fit Business

In business we all have attitude! The difference is whether the attitude we have is empowering or disempowering to us individually and to us corporately in business. When we know and understand our own beliefs, feelings values and disposition then we have the ability to temper these with our output in business.  We can choose to harness our natural tendencies and them to learn and grow. Working within our own attitudinal limits may have a positive or negative effect on business.  If you would like to find out more about how we can harness the power of business and personal attitude to get more from business then I’d love to talk with  you.

Contact me to find out more on 01628 566112,  email me at blog@apbusinesscoach.co.uk  www.apbusinesscoach.co.uk

Confidence

Confidence affects every area of our life.

The way we dress

The way we shop

The way we handle bills and  money

Our relationships

Our work

Our colleagues

Our clients

When we have  less confidence or at worse no confidence sometimes we allow people to tread over our boundaries. We don’t  stand up for ourselves  which may lead to depression, anger, frustrations, stress and illness!

Act as if……

We all have an ‘inner actor’ that part of us that can ‘act as if”.

We see it in everyday life all the time, for instance my behaviour and appearance is different when I am talking to my children at home and when I am at work with colleagues or clients.

Another example of this is the way we choose to style ourselves dependant on what we are doing. My hair, makeup, clothes, styles, language and behaviour are tailored towards my role and that helps my confidence for the ‘role’ that I am about to take.

Some actions or reactions are made out of habit and when we bring these into our awareness we can choose to make decisions as to whether they help or whether they are a hindrance.

Many times we have to ‘act as if’ or in other words ‘ fake it to make it’ in order to grow and try on the behaviour that we want to do or achieve!

Practice

Building confidence is about practicing. Years ago I was shy and found group settings difficult and challenging until I realised that nobody actually knew what I was actually feeling.  If I acted as if I was confident then to all intents and purposes to the ‘outside world’ I was.  People saw my actions and reactions outwardly and labeled me confident. After some time I was no longer ‘acting’ I had practiced until the ‘act’ became real and even more surprising I no longer knew how to do ‘shy’!

Inner Actor

Find your inner actor and build your confidence in the work place.  If you would like to find out more then please contact me 01628 566112 or email me blog@apbusinesscoach.co.uk Read  more about what we offer at www.apbusinesscoach.co.uk

How do we know we’re improving?

As part of my keep fit project I ask myself “where am I now’ and in answer to that question I measure various parts of my body, take my blood pressure and record my resting and active pulse.  I note the number of repetitions I perform across a range of exercises within a set time period. This gives me a starting point. It provides me with a range of information that I will use to measure my performance and improvement.

In business we ask the same question “where are we now’  and in doing this  we take measurements of various activities so we have a starting point. These measurements are the life blood of the business. The body of the business includes the;  product, people, customers, stakeholders and assets. We also assess and measure  the blood pressure and pulse of the business which includes; money in, money out, money owed, profit.  These measurements are  shared with our teams who will then also ask themselves the question ‘where are we now’ they will then put measurements in place measuring;  sales, performance, customer service etc.

Measurement…..

Just as I have meaningful measurements for me, so too a business has meaningful measurements for it. Through those measurements,  we  determine improvements and make adjustments.  If we continue to measure and keep note we will assess our improvement on a day to day, week to week, month to month and year to year basis.

Presence

In a world where we have endless calls on our time and find we have got used to multi tasking, the importance of ‘presence’ improves our chances of success.

Being completely present is to give our total attention and energy to what we are doing, choosing to concentrate on one task until it is completed.  I once worked with a financial director who was successful and efficient and he chose to never have more papers on his desk then he needed for the task he was doing!  He concentrated totally on the task at hand before he started another. This may seem counter intuitive in today’s multi tasking environment however,  those who are successful know that to be fully present allows them to commit to what they are doing totally giving 100%.

Listen

Successful people know how to listen.  When they choose to listen they forget themselves.  To listen with your whole being you become open to what the other person is saying. You give them the opportunity to be heard and without ‘you’ getting in the way , you allow what they are saying to be understood from their viewpoint.  Too often many of us find ourselves thinking about what we want to say or, what we think the other person should be saying or thinking.  When we do this it is possible to miss important and key information.  The secret to listening is to suspend  yourself from the equation, be totally open to what is being said and be totally present.

Imagine for a minute a trapeze artist who is hanging at a great height waiting to catch their partner who is about launch themselves toward them.  Neither artists can, at that point, be a little bit absent! They have to be fully present and have total awareness of what is going on around them.

To be a good listener we too should suspend ourselves and be fully present in the moment and this will give us the greatest chance of success.

Wait

Know when it’s time to wait and  take lessons from nature.  Trees wait and know when it’s time to bear fruit. Animals hibernate and know when it’s time to wake. The sun knows when it’s time to rise and the birds wait.  The old has gone and the new is coming.  Waiting is about being prepared and then letting go and trusting that you will know when it’s the right time. Waiting requires patience,  understanding, preparation and acceptance.  Successful people know that they have to understand the people, markets, products around them. They know that there is preparation before anything can happen, they understand what is required and make plans for success and they know that sometimes it is as important to wait as it is to take action.

Three Keys……

Be present, listen and be willing to wait when it’s appropriate.   Success is about getting things done and  about giving yourself the best opportunity for succeeding.

Getting fit is as important in Business as it is for each of us individually.

I suddenly had a realisation that I wasn’t as flexible as I used to be.  When I crouched down to get something out of the fridge I didn’t find it quite as easy to get up. When did that happen?  How is it we suddenly seem to notice? It doesn’t usually happen overnight!

Slowly over a period of time we take things for granted and stop noticing until something brings it to our attention.

With my fitness it was a serious of little things that all began to add up.  I didn’t feel comfortable walking up steep hills, I found that I wasn’t enjoying walking and I took my bicycle out only to find that it was really hard.  How is that possible, every child just seems to jump on a bicycle and go?  Come to that have you noticed how flexible children are?  When did it start to become more difficult for me to put my hands flat on the floor?  I remember when I was very young lying on the floor and taking my feet over my head.  When did I stop being able to do that?

So what does fitness mean to me?

I am sure that it is different from my friend Nicola Joyce or my friend Sarah Winckless.  Both are athletes in their own way and both are far beyond my level of fitness.  But wait a minute, when I check in with myself I realise that the comparison isn’t a fair one!  Even in my best times I wasn’t that fit.  I am not an athlete, I don’t want to be practicing and exercising to excess and I don’t have competitions to enter and achieve. So what is it that I do want? Now I can put my coaches hat on.

Questions to ask…..

• Where am I now?
• Where was I before?
• Where do I want to be in the future?

Three excellent questions and ones that need answers if I am going to have any chance of achieving my goal of being fit.

I need to understand what fit means to me and what is achievable.  Once I know that then I can start planning how to get there.

So it is with business…..

Can we compare with others?  Yes, we certainly can and yet only if we are comparing like for like.  If as a small business owner I am comparing my business to a large corporation such as Microsoft, or Apple then it is not a fair comparison. I will not have the resources, experience, infrastructure and culture to be able to achieve in the same way.  (That doesn’t mean that I can’t learn from some of the things they do and have done in the past.)

Getting fit in business we have to start to notice what we are able to do and what we are not able to do. What is expected, what is missing, what we excel at and what areas we need help with?  Most of all we need to ask ourselves what is the purpose? Why are we in business and are we meeting those needs?

A great start to all of this is to ask the same three questions that I asked myself as an individual with a project to get fit!

• Where am I now?
• Where was I before?
• Where do I want to be in the future?

Answers…..

Once we have asked those three questions we will have the beginning of the what and why!

Coming Next…..

Watch out for more to follow on in the Getting Fit Series of Blogs……. How am I going to know that I am improving?

Please feel free to leave comments or contact me on 01628 566112

Busy Doing

Have you ever thought to yourself “It’s time to get serious!”  As a  coach I know only too well how easy it is to get distracted by ‘doing’ and normally doing things in the business rather than on the business.

Most of us will have experienced a time when we have been busy all day and when we finally reach the end we look back knowing that we were busy and yet we have no idea as to what we have actually achieved.

I have no doubt that some people choose to go through the whole of their life like that.  I’m not one of them and deep down neither are my clients.  I coach individuals who want to make changes. They may not always know what those changes are, they may just have a gut feel that something has to change. Change they will and they choose to make a commitment to make that change happen.

Getting Stuck…..

So it is with the businesses that I coach.  Often they find themselves ‘stuck’.  Not necessarily doing anything wrong and yet they know that their business can be so much better, they just don’t know how yet?

The executives I coach often know what the problem appears to be and sometimes have an idea of what the solution(s) might be. What they are looking for is support, encouragement, motivation, and a helping hand to find ways and solutions that will work for them (and their teams).

There is always such a lot to write about that sometime it is not easy to see how it all ties together.  So I have decided that one of the best ways I can demonstrate what I do as a coach is to link my coaching to one of my own projects and demonstrate the true trials and tribulations faced by us all.

Getting Fit…..

I have a friend and colleague Nicola Joyce who is one of the best copy writers I know and her love and passion is fitness and she undertakes the most amazing challenges.  Nicola is someone who is fit! Most people who meet me probably wouldn’t  describe me as fit but  may describe me as someone who appears outgoing and for those who know me well someone who likes do something different.   My challenge was and is to get fit . It is this project that I am going to use to illustrate the challenges we all face across differing areas of our lives.

Coming Next…..

Watch out for my next blog where I will be looking at the What and Why?  Great questions to ask in terms of our business and our personal lives.

Please feel free to leave comments or contact me on 01628 566112

Whilst at an open air picnic concert I found my mind wondering around personal space and boundaries.

As more and more and more people arrived so the space between parties lessened.  Some people completely oblivious to their neighbours others quietly shuffling forward and some  giving “looks”

How does this relate to business?

I wondered what boundaries and personal space we

a) Expect

b) Take for granted

c) Are aware of

d) React when crossed

When meeting people are we aware of their needs and or requirements?  Do we  make them feel comfortable or do we increasingly invade their personal space or boundaries?

Next time you are in a meeting, networking or involved in working with a group of people, be aware not only to your own needs but theirs as well.

Have you ever been in a meeting when someone has come out and complained they were talked over?  Have you  returned from being away and found that someone else has been using your desk and left things in the wrong place!

Have you experienced a time when you are talking with someone new and they seem to get closer and closer and,  when you step back they just move forward again.

How do you deal with these situations?

Asses your own reactions

1. Is it acceptable
2. Are your expectations appropriate
3. Is it appropriate to do / say something in the moment

If you truly feel, think, or  see that the situation is not acceptable then

1. First work out what is appropriate for you
2. Explain to the person concerned what you would prefer

What do we do when someone questions or crosses your boundaries

If we look at particular situations:

1. Being in a situation where someone is talking over you

If possible take the person to one side and where appropriate thank them for their enthusiasm and then ask that they let you finish so that you don’t loose your train of thought and that will allow you to get your full message across.

If that doesn’t work or is not possible then at an appropriate point in time address the chair and ask

“In order to aid better understanding amongst us all it might be helpful if we allow each other to finish before interrupting so that we can all be sure to have heard all the information, that would certainly be helpful wouldn’t it?”

2. Desk Boundaries

When someone has been using your desk and it has been left in a state that you are unhappy with:

If it is unlikely the person will use the desk  probably best not to say anything.  However, make sure next time you are away for a length of time or you know that if you are not at your desk someone else will be, leave a friendly not such as:

Dear desk user,

Really happy that my desk is useful and it will be great if you can make sure that it is left as you find it.  If you need any materials or desk organising tools “xxxxxx” will be pleased to help you find them.  Thanks

3.Invasion of personal space

When someone constantly invades your personal space by coming forward to standing too close.

If you get on well and have a great rapport then you can just say:

“ Hey would be good if you give me a little more room, I like a little more space around me ”

If you don’t know the person – just carry on talking but put your hand up a little and out with your palm faced towards the person (halt signal) – this needs to be done  fairly quickly ( but smoothly) and the person will usually stop moving forward. (Only do this if  you can make a smooth quick movement that isn’t too high – although it is a halt signal you don’t want to look as if you are directing traffic)

Another good way is to use your hand to explain things using the space in front of you and to the side and the other person you are talking to will normally step back.  If not,  it should makes it easier to ask them to give you more space.

Awareness

I have only just started to look at  personal space and boundaries and there is lots more to discuss.  Hopefully this will help you to become more aware of your own needs in terms of personal space and boundaries and more importantly become aware of the needs and requirements of others.