Self-Awareness, Blind Spots & the Johari Window

5 Ways to Better Understand Yourself, and Grow

If you were an executive coach who interacted with
thousands of clients over 30 years…                                                        

… you would probably see certain characteristics emerging over and over that were “make or break” qualities in one’s success.

Dave Yarnes is just such a coach.

One of the qualities he noticed in countless individuals that seriously limited (or accelerated) their ability to succeed:

Self-Awareness – Understanding and addressing who you really are, and how you come across to others (but you can’t see)… yet everyone else can see.

In fact, this quality of “self-awareness” is so crucial that researcher Dr. Tasha Eurich called it, “The Most Important Skill of the 21st Century.”

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Positivity Downside: What Helps You Can Hurt Others

How a Positive Attitude Nearly Ruined My Close Relationships

Do you have a positive outlook on life?

Having a positive attitude can make a
HUGE difference in the quality of your life.

  • Greater energy with less stress
  • Better health and longer life
  • Greater feelings of well-being
  • Higher levels of success

It’s all good, right? Well, for all the good a positive outlook can have on YOUR life, it can potentially hurt others.

What?

Yep, it’s true. In fact, MY positive attitude nearly ruined my marriage (although I couldn’t see it at the time).

It’s that serious.

Read on to learn what many (most?) people are unwittingly doing to damage their personal relationships at home, work and school.

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Secure Confidence: 10 Attractive Qualities to Die For

Possessing these can dramatically improve your life

Have you noticed how bad it has gotten ‘out there’
in the real world?

  • People quickly and frequently criticize and           
    even mock
    other people’s ideas without
    giving them a fair hearing.
  • Personal attacks on one’s intelligence (‘What
    an idiot!…’), a person’s looks, body type, and
    more.
  • People playing it safe rather than doing
    anything that exposes them to the verbal and
    non-verbal critiquing of others, or God-forbid…
    actually failing in front of others.
  • People making CYA and managing one’s image the go-to strategy for life.

Let’s face it… it is hard to operate in this type of toxic environment without getting banged up and living in self-protect mode.

Yet, there is a select breed of people out there (you’ve seen ‘em) who navigate the noxious climate at work, school, business and family with grace, humility and freedom. They seem unruffled and non-CYA in the arrows flying, stone throwing world in which we live.

How are they so impervious to the toxic barbs flying around?

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Quiet Confidence: 7 Compelling Benefits You’ll Want

This growable quality leads to a richer life

Some of the most admired, magnetic and attractive people in this world share this powerful trait: a healthy form of self-confidence.

No, I’m not talking about an ego-fueled “I’m always right, I’m so awesome, you’re an idiot if you don’t listen to me” type of confidence in self. That is actually a sign you are insecure.

Instead, I am talking about men and women who have
a quiet poise and self-assurance about who they are
and what they have to do… while being free from
self-promotion and ego.

I want to be more like that… don’t you?

Fortunately, this type of quiet self-confidence can be strengthened in you. Keep reading to learn how you can grow this quality in your life.

But first, just in case you doubt whether it is worth the effort to cultivate this quality, here are 7 desirable advantages that come from possessing this healthy form of self-confidence.

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Empathy: an “Attractive” Quality That Boosts Your Influence

Here are 5 Ways Improve This Relationship Enhancing Skill

Empathy attracts peopleA secret desire for virtually every human being on this planet is to be seen as attractive by others. I’m not just talking about physical appearance, either.

Attractive [uh-trak-tiv]: A pleasing quality that draws people toward it.

We’d all love for others to be drawn to us like a magnet, to seek us out, to want to be with us, to hang on our words, laugh at our jokes… at least by the people we want to be with.

Can you relate?

We go to great lengths in a number of ways to accomplish this:

  • Outer bodies: Botox, implants, makeup, personal grooming, working out, dieting, getting our hair/clothes just right, etc.
  • Achievement: Leading to status, fame, or wealth (which attracts people)
  • Personalities: People pleasing, being what we think others want us to be (chameleon syndrome) so they like us more.

What is usually overlooked are attractive qualities that radiate from the inside out. These character qualities can draw people toward us… or repel them from us.

Empathy is a powerful inner quality that can help you be a magnet that draws people toward you… and increases their desire to be in your orbit.

“If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from his angle as well as your own. ” – Henry Ford

Thankfully, this undervalued people skill can be increased in your life… opening many new doors to a meaningful life with tremendous impact.

Read on to learn 5 ways to improve your empathy skills… and 5 things NOT to do that you might think are helpful (trust me, they aren’t).

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Intellectual Humility: a Rare Yet Powerful Trait to Have

Research reveals how cultivating this trait can unlock greater success

Do you desire/aspire to become a person that others are attracted to?

Do you want people to admire and respect you more (especially by the people that really matter)?

Then, you need an influential character trait that is in short supply these days. In fact, its disappearance in many societies is creating all sorts of problems… and is getting worse.

  • Hindering personal growth
  • Ruining interpersonal relationships
  • Reducing innovation/progress
  • Limiting our ability to solve major problems

What’s ironic is that the lack of this trait allows a poison cloud to develop that no one likes experiencing… but everyone still uses when it serves them.

The trait is called intellectual humility… and very few have it these days.

BTW- if you already think you know what it is (and are tempted to skip reading further), that is evidence you don’t possess it.

Here’s what I can promise you… If you can grow in this trait, you can accelerate your personal growth/success. Plus, you will dramatically improve both your relationships and your influence in this world.

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