growth Archives - Page 4 of 4 - Dennis E. Gilbert

20
Jul 17
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Career Shift: Moving Past the Easy Stuff

Tags : career change growth mind-set shift

You see some interesting things in my line of work. Many people proclaiming to be eager about making a difference for their business, their career, and their life. Certainly, I see many businesses and people improve, but do they really make a business or career shift that meets or exceeds their potential?

The expression that hindsight is 20/20 or that it is easy to be a Monday morning quarterback has truth but the biggest gap I often see is another expression, “Talk is cheap.”

Motivation for Change

It is not uncommon when I engage in a generational differences discussion that someone will bring up the concept of being lazy or lacking motivation.

Often the generations of people who have been around longer are passing judgment or stereotypes on those generations newest in our workforce. Regardless of where the finger is being pointed, the accusations are still present.

The presenting question often is, “How do we motivate these people?” Answers aren’t really that difficult. On the other hand, creating the change necessary to execute the required behaviors or culture is the challenge.

It seems that there is a trend for easy. Relax more, work less, and enjoy life. Maybe everyone wants that, it sounds very inviting.

More Than Talk

People who want to change their life, change their career, or change their business must be committed to change. I’ll often ask clients if they are committed and time and time again they tell the story and say the right words, but, “Talk is cheap.”

Change can often happen without any growth or control over your own fate. So you can change without growth but you’ll never grow without making some changes.

People and businesses settle into habits, habits that generate daily activities, thought processes, and attitudes. When it really comes down to the effort for change, they don’t realize that they must change those habits and traditions to get a different result.

Talking about change, planning for change, or seeing the goal is not the act of creating change.

Change often sounds simple. Just like the idea that everyone knows the concepts of customer service or how to be a leader. Knowing the concepts and successfully executing them are two completely different things.

Career Shift

People who are on the move, the ones who are really changing, they’ve moved past the easy stuff. They are finished talking. Talking wastes their time.

If you really want a career shift, you’ll have to decide what you are going to give up, throw away, or move to the side.

You’ll have to move past the easy stuff, the cheap stuff, and the daydreams.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and corporate trainer that specializes in helping businesses and individuals accelerate their leadership, their team, and their success. He is a four-time author and some of his work includes, Forgotten Respect, Navigating A Multigenerational Workforce and Pivot and Accelerate, The Next Move Is Yours! Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

26
Apr 17
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create your career appreciative strategies

Habits Create Your Career

Tags : career growth habits investment motivation

Chances are good you’ve probably encountered this idea, “To change your circumstances you have to change your habits.” Have you thought about how habits create your career?

I’m fortunate to work with a lot of different people who are all in some way connected with a workplace, a job, or shaping their career. Much of my work is focused on helping to shape business outcomes as compared with individual performance, but I do some of both.

Individual Efforts and Outcomes

Considering individual efforts, I often see frustration from people who are truly trying to make a difference. They aren’t looking for Easy Street and they don’t want a free ride. Yet they often feel stuck.

As a society I believe we are becoming more programmed to hurry up, then wait, and then hurry up, and then wait some more. Things happen fast, the pace is brisk. We feel like waiting for anything, is a waste of time.

The reality is that when it comes to your job, a business venture, or your career, it is still one step at a time. There really aren’t any fast tracks, quick fixes, or short cuts.

Ask yourself, “What did I accomplish yesterday?”

What about last week or last month? Where were you six months ago? And if you’ve been in the workforce for a while, how were you positioned five years ago or even ten?

I’m not asking you to relive everything that went wrong. I’m asking you to consider what things looked like then. Maybe they seemed better or maybe they seemed a little worse.

What is most important is where you are going!

Chances are you’re reading this because you care about your career. You’ve worked hard but there is still more to accomplish. Your career doesn’t just happen overnight, it is based on actions and behaviors repeated over time. The results develop from what you invest in.

Create Your Career

If you invest in reading a book, watching a video, or in some way connecting with new (quality) information and learning about something connected with your career each day you’ll become better. It should be each day, progressively, across time.

Think about what you do and what you talk about. What do you read, write, or send via text. What do your social media interests look like? How are you spending your time?

When you think about what you want for your future it might be helpful to consider the evidence from your past. Who you were a few years ago might not be who you are today. The difference is created by how you’ve spent your time.

Chances are you’re becoming someone. You’re creating something.

Habits create your career.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and corporate trainer that specializes in helping businesses and individuals accelerate their leadership, their team, and their success. He is a four-time author and some of his work includes, Forgotten Respect, Navigating A Multigenerational Workforce and Pivot and Accelerate, The Next Move Is Yours! Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

10
Apr 17
-

Sometimes Learning is Fundamental

Tags : career growth learning motivation

Career minded individuals are always interested in learning. Do you believe learning is fundamental?

Many people read books, participate in seminars, or attend a university.

There is little doubt that there is great value in all of those activities. Is that where the best learning takes place?

Perhaps this is good for some things in life. Perhaps this type of learning expands our knowledge, and we know that absorbing more information can be beneficial, even powerful. Is that all there is to it?

Learning from Results

I can still remember when I learned how to tie my shoes, count money, and ride a bike.

I learned by someone showing me the way, giving me encouragement, and maybe a little push. On the surface I guess it would seem that I learned by doing it.

Looking back though, it probably wasn’t by doing it. It was by learning from the missed attempts. I learned from the knots in the strings, getting the math wrong, or by the scratched up knee.

I didn’t tie the strings right the first time because I first had to listen and see the way.

Counting the money correctly was challenging, because first I needed to learn the denomination represented by each coin.

I couldn’t balance the bike, peddle, and steer all at the same time, but I watched others do it and immediately knew it was something I wanted to try.

All of those were components of my success, but they didn’t create it.

It wasn’t until I tried it for myself. Until I risked something, made myself vulnerable, and was willing to accept failed attempts.

Learning is Fundamental

It’s really no different today. Gaining all of the fundamentals are important, but if you’re really going to do something worthwhile you’re going to have to put in a little bit more.

You’re going to have to make yourself vulnerable, accept some risk, and be prepared for failed attempts.

More importantly, you’re going to have to learn from them.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and corporate trainer that specializes in helping businesses and individuals accelerate their leadership, their team, and their success. He is a four-time author and some of his work includes, Forgotten Respect, Navigating A Multigenerational Workforce and Pivot and Accelerate, The Next Move Is Yours! Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

05
Apr 17
-

Leaving Your Career to Chance

Tags : career chance growth opportunity risk

So many people are hustling to build their reputation, stand out, and improve their career. Many people are in search of opportunities, or better yet, creating some. Are you leaving your career to chance?

It’s a smart move to put effort into your career. If you are career focused chances are good that you spend well over 2,000 hours per year working on it. The hard pushers might spend more than 3,000 hours.

Career conscious individuals are also probably allocating at least 1% of their time on continuing education. Some will spend much more. They’re learning, growing, and adapting through training, coaching, or even just reading. Do these smart hustlers leave their career to chance?

Career to Chance

Your chance of a lifetime might come today, or it might be tomorrow. Actually, when you’re really focused you can make nearly any day the chance of a lifetime.

Many people work really hard preparing for the big meeting, the deal locking client engagement, or exploring opportunities with a prospective employer. All of that hard work is critical and important. It makes you prepared and conditions you for what you expect to happen next.

The truth is that your next chance, the chance of your lifetime, might just pop-up out of nowhere. Those chances happen when you are open and receptive to change. They happen when you are ready and able to embrace that next challenge.

Pink Volkswagens

A good friend once asked me, “How many pink Volkswagens have you seen?”

Many of you reading this might know this story, but I’ll bust open the plot for you. It is that likely you haven’t noticed many, but now that you are looking, you’ll see more.

At least there always that chance.

Your Next Chance

Be on the lookout for your next chance. Be conscious of your next moves. Get prepared.

Consider who you’ll reach out to or what relationships you’ll discover and build. Think about who can you inspire or who might inspire you?

Make the connections, find new leads. Build a system. Present ideas and transform efforts.

Leaving your career to chance?

Your chance might be right now.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and culture expert. He is a five-time author and the founder of Appreciative Strategies, LLC. His business focuses on positive human performance improvement solutions through Appreciative Strategies®. Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

12
Jan 17
-

How to Stick With Your Plan

Tags : growth motivation results sales strategic plan

Have you ever asked yourself, “How will I stick with my plan?” Often the plan is not too complex, the timeline is reasonable, and the level of personal or professional growth is attainable. So what limits your success? Why do so many still come up short?

Coming Up Short

Much of my business is focused on helping individual people or entire organizations reach for more. I work with clients to do coaching programs, training and development, and even create some incredible strategic plans, but not all of them will accomplish their goals.

Often the hardest thing for us to do as people is to stay focused and committed to the plan. That doesn’t mean that the plan cannot change, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t fluid, and it doesn’t mean that it won’t be hard, but a lack of commit to the plan is almost always the beginning of a looming failure to achieve the goal.

Blame

Many will find situations or circumstances to blame, they might cite a lack of motivation, discipline, or even blame it on a lack of time. The truth is that while all of those things might be a factor, they aren’t the real reason.

The real reason is that you or the employee teams responsible for the goals and outcomes didn’t follow through.

You fell back to old habits, made excuses to abort activities or tasks because they felt awkward, cumbersome, or simply not within your comfort zone. Time is often blamed, there isn’t enough or the old way was faster.

If you’re going to make changes you are going to have to stick with your plan.

Becoming Sticky

How do you make that happen? Here are a few tips:

Be realistic. Make sure that your goals are worthy of stretching and reaching, but they must also be realistic. Losing 10 pounds in two days probably isn’t realistic and neither is increasing sales or production efficiencies by triple digit percentages within a very narrow window of time. Stretch is good, unrealistic is not.
Check results. You must always be measuring to your goal. Smaller goals that are progressive are often much better than larger goals that feel overwhelming and cause people to stall or stop. Provide visual aids as reminders, put it on your calendar if that makes sense, and frequently measure your distance to a milestone or the goal.
Stay focused. Don’t stray from your plan or the activities associated with it. It will be easy to tell yourself that something else is more important, or that the timing isn’t right, or you’re just not in the right mood. If you are so compelled to talk yourself out of the actions that support your plan, revisit the plan, make an adjustment if necessary, and stick with the new plan.

Nearly all people and organizations will face hurdles, obstacles, and other scenarios that may result in shortcomings or failures, but that doesn’t mean that it’s time to stop, quit, or send the plan to the recycle bin.

Keep your plan fluid and flexible, but make sure you don’t lose sight of the bigger picture.

Even the goal can change, but it must still be something that pulls you towards it and draws you in.

Will you stick with your plan?

The answer is easy—only if you want to.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and corporate trainer that specializes in helping businesses and individuals accelerate their leadership, their team, and their success. He is a four-time author and some of his work includes, Forgotten Respect, Navigating A Multigenerational Workforce and Pivot and Accelerate, The Next Move Is Yours! Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

15
Dec 16
-

5 Ways to Grow Your Career

Tags : career growth job promotion pivot

Growth in your career or job role isn’t always about waiting patiently, getting lucky, or being someone’s buddy. While any one of those might help out, they don’t represent what allows most people to move forward. Do you want to grow your career?

Through my consulting and coaching practice I come across a lot of people who tell me that they want job or career growth. They will often deliver a very compelling story to me about how they’ve waited in line, paid their dues, and still they find themselves stuck.

Sure, sometimes we might see someone who appears to have good luck give them a helping hand or someone in their family provided a connection, or their opportunities come from family money, but there are plenty of ways to grow your career without any of those.

Grow Your Career

Here are five of my favorites:

Extend your network. Today more than ever before we have options to create a broader reach. It’s important to get to conferences, association events, and seminars, but you also have to make the best use of your time while there. Purposely meet some new people, introduce yourself, and then be sure to secure the future of that effort by connecting in your social media network such as LinkedIn.
Read. Some people believe we are operating in an information overload environment but that is really the good news. You have millions of opportunities and choices to read something every day. It doesn’t matter what platform you choose (digital or more traditional hard copy) but you should try to squeeze some of this in every day or at least weekly. Subscribe to blogs that offer both validity and reliability, download a book, go to a library, or buy a book from a retail bookstore or Amazon.
Be more visible. I swear there are many great people out there who go completely unnoticed. It’s true, there are plenty. Extending your network will help and you can even find some additional tips online. Consider attending meetings, asking a question or two, and sometimes even tooting your own horn. In many circles anyone can be just another face in the crowd unless they engage with others.
Listen better. It might feel like you’ve heard this too many times, but you must always strive to listen more and listen better. Listening is not the same as hearing and as such you have to develop good listening skills. Listening takes a lot of energy and because of this we often don’t listen well. Fatigue is sometimes a factor, so no kidding, get your rest, but also be patient, don’t form quick judgments, be sure to appropriately paraphrase, and avoid bias.
Role model. One of the best things you can do is select one or more good role models. Find someone you admire and look up to, consider how they interact with others, how they are building their network and what they’ve done to progressively accomplish more. It doesn’t mean you agree with all of their actions or behaviors but there is definitely something positive you can learn.

Create Goals

If you’re reading this improving your job role or improving your career is probably important to you. Don’t stop with just reading this, don’t think about it off and on today or tomorrow and then go right back into your same old routine.

Create some goals for all five of these areas, or at least pick three of the five. Have specific measurements such as identifying (which ones, how many?) and attending meetings, meeting (5, 10, or 100) new people, or selecting one or two role models for observation. Each day, week, or month check in on your goals.

Hold yourself accountable. Grow your career.

– DEG

Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSP^TM), and corporate trainer that specializes in helping businesses and individuals accelerate their leadership, their team, and their success. He is a four-time author and some of his work includes, Forgotten Respect, Navigating A Multigenerational Workforce and Pivot and Accelerate, The Next Move Is Yours! Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.

Dennis Gilbert on Google+

Tag Archives: growth

Jul 17

-

Motivation for Change

More Than Talk

Career Shift

Apr 17

-

Individual Efforts and Outcomes

Create Your Career

Apr 17

-

Learning from Results

Learning is Fundamental

Apr 17

-

Career to Chance

Pink Volkswagens

Your Next Chance

Jan 17

-

Dec 16

-

Grow Your Career

Create Goals

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