Tips & Insights for Top Performance

• 04May

  Eight Core Beliefs of Successful CEOs (part 2)

  Career Exploration, Communication Skills, Effective Habits, Executives & Leaders, Human Performance, Leadership Development, Management Skills, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Time Management No Comments

  5. Motivation comes from vision, not from fear.
  Average bosses see fear–of getting fired, of ridicule, of loss of privilege–as a crucial way to motivate people. As a result, employees and managers alike become paralyzed and unable to make risky decisions.
  Extraordinary bosses inspire people to see a better future and how they’ll be a part of it. As a result, employees work harder because they believe in the organization’s goals, truly enjoy what they’re doing and (of course) know they’ll share in the rewards.

  6. Change equals growth, not pain.
  Average bosses see change as both complicated and threatening, something to be endured only when a firm is in desperate shape. They subconsciously torpedo change … until it’s too late.
  Extraordinary bosses see change as an inevitable part of life. While they don’t value change for its own sake, they know that success is only possible if employees and organization embrace new ideas and new ways of doing business.

  7. Technology offers empowerment, not automation.
  Average bosses adhere to the old IT-centric view that technology is primarily a way to strengthen management control and increase predictability. They install centralized computer systems that dehumanize and antagonize employees.
  Extraordinary bosses see technology as a way to free human beings to be creative and to build better relationships. They adapt their back-office systems to the tools, like smartphones and tablets, that people actually want to use.

  8. Work should be fun, not mere toil.
  Average bosses buy into the notion that work is, at best, a necessary evil. They fully expect employees to resent having to work, and therefore tend to subconsciously define themselves as oppressors and their employees as victims. Everyone then behaves accordingly.
  Extraordinary bosses see work as something that should be inherently enjoyable–and believe therefore that the most important job of manager is, as far as possible, to put people in jobs that can and will make them truly happy.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: CEOs, Core Beliefs, sucessful

• 27Apr

  Eight Core Beliefs of Successful CEOs (part 1)

  Career Exploration, Career Fulfillment, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Executives & Leaders, Goal Setting, Human Performance, Leadership Development, Management Skills, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Time Management No Comments

  Some of the most successful CEOs in the world were interviewed in order to discover their management secrets.
  The “best of the best” shared the following eight core beliefs.

  1. Business is an ecosystem, not a battlefield.
  Average bosses see business as a conflict between companies, departments and groups. They build huge armies of “troops” to order about, demonize competitors as “enemies,” and treat customers as “territory” to be conquered.
  Extraordinary bosses see business as a symbiosis where the most diverse firm is most likely to survive and thrive. They naturally create teams that adapt easily to new markets and can quickly form partnerships with other companies, customers … and even competitors.

  2. A company is a community, not a machine.
  Average bosses consider their company to be a machine with employees as cogs. They create rigid structures with rigid rules and then try to maintain control by “pulling levers” and “steering the ship.”
  Extraordinary bosses see their company as a collection of individual hopes and dreams, all connected to a higher purpose. They inspire employees to dedicate themselves to the success of their peers and therefore to the community–and company–at large.

  3. Management is service, not control.
  Average bosses want employees to do exactly what they’re told. They’re hyper-aware of anything that smacks of insubordination and create environments where individual initiative is squelched by the “wait and see what the boss says” mentality.
  Extraordinary bosses set a general direction and then commit themselves to obtaining the resources that their employees need to get the job done. They push decision making downward, allowing teams form their own rules and intervening only in emergencies.

  4. My employees are my peers, not my children.
  Average bosses see employees as inferior, immature beings who simply can’t be trusted if not overseen by a patriarchal management. Employees take their cues from this attitude, expend energy on looking busy and covering their behinds.
  Extraordinary bosses treat every employee as if he or she were the most important person in the firm. Excellence is expected everywhere, from the loading dock to the boardroom. As a result, employees at all levels take charge of their own destinies.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: CEOs, Core Beliefs, successful

• 20Apr

  Time Management Quiz

  Business Coaching, Career Exploration, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Human Performance, Management Skills, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management No Comments

  This is an interesting quiz by Mind Tools to help you discover how good you really are at time management.

  http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_88.htm

  Once you complete the quiz, be sure to determine whch area you need to improve on the most and make it a goal.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: goal, Mind Tools, Time Management

• 09Dec

  Run with it

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Human Performance, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management No Comments

  “Let your life come fully and positively to life. You are here on this glorious day, so make the very most of it.

  You have passions and interests, so pursue them. You have dreams and desires, so get busy and fulfill them.

  You have unique perspectives and opinions, so express them.  A magnificent, fascinating universe surrounds you, so experience it.

  There are people about whom you care deeply. So give them your time, your attention, your love and fellowship.

  You’ve already experienced yesterday, so don’t live it again today. This is a day to bring new and interesting and meaningful substance into your life.

  On this very day you have the priceless opportunity to live.  Take that opportunity, right now, and run with it as far and as high as you possibly can.”

  Ralph Marston

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: dreams & desires, life, opportunity, passions and interests

• 02Sep

  What Can a Coach Do For You?

  Business Coaching, Career Exploration, Career Fulfillment, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Executives & Leaders, Goal Setting, Human Performance, Leadership Development, Management Skills, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management, Work/Life Synergy & Balance No Comments

  I recently had to do a comparison of coaching and type of candy.
  I picked Jolly Ranchers and my husband Mike wrote this poem about Jolly Ranchers and Coaching…

  There once was a rancher named Molly
  Whose Ranch was OK, but she not so jolly
  The ranch hands were mad, cattle running amuck
  Profit was dwindling, poor Molly was stuck

  Inventory, weather, food for the cows
  Get it all done, she didn’t know hows
  She felt very busy, but spinner her wheels
  It seemed like she was always back on her heels.

  If I could be more productive, get teams to work
  Perhaps the important I’d never more shirk
  I’d love to know just how to win
  To operate my ranch to bring more dollars in.

  She needed a strategy to help her sort out
  All things of import, the rest she’d toss out
  She looked for some help, these topics to broach
  And saw the best was to hire a coach.

  The ranch became a team, all personalities tested
  All working their strengths, while the others, they rested
  When one goal was done another was made
  The progress she saw, she never would trade.

  It just goes to show when life gets a mess
  It hampers your business, and just causes stress
  So take home a lesson from Rancher Miss Molly
  Hire a coach and make your ranch much more jolly!

  Every business owner and executive is just like a rancher… with much to plan and manage.
  If coaching can support you or a rancher you know, e-mail for a FREE sample session!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: Business-Coaching-Services-Leadership-Corporate-Training-Development, Coaching

• 26Aug

  Fulfillment Is Yours

  Business Coaching, Career Fulfillment, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Human Performance, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management No Comments

  “Fulfillment is yours

  You’ve waited long enough. This is the day to take action.

  The excuses are quite reasonable and understandable, and yet they have brought no value to your life.

  Let go of those comfortable excuses, and step forward into the bright, direct light of achievement.

  The hours in this day will quickly pass no matter what you choose to do with them.

  So you might as well make full use of them to create meaningful value.

  If you’re not sure what to do, take a moment and reach deep inside.

  Remind yourself of the things that mean the most, and do what truly strengthens and supports those things.

  If the disruptions and distractions erode your focus, reach inside again.

  Commit yourself with your actions, over and over, to live true to your highest vision.

  This is your life and today is your opportunity to make a difference.

  Get busy, because fulfillment is now yours to create.”

   

  Ralph Marston

   

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: achievemant, excuses, Fullfillment, step forward, this is the day, today is the day

• 19Aug

  Tips and Tricks to Enhance Your Business & Life

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management No Comments

  I don’t know about you, but this summer has been flying by! As I am working with many of my clients, we are designing what they want for the fall . August is here, a few people may still be trying to squeeze summer activities in before “back to school/work” time! This is a great time to get some work done that is harder to do when people are around and demands of your time are greater. A few months ago we talked about SPRING CLEANING. Now that you have all your cleaning done, it is a great time to assess your environment for maximum productivity in the fall. While this concept may overlap spring cleaning, the focus is on preparing for the fall. An exercise that is great to do this is visiting TOLERATIONS.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer from Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: back to school, maximum productivity, spring cleaning, summer, toleractions

• 24Jun

  Healthy Summer Balance

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Human Performance, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Time Management, Work Environment, Work/Life Synergy & Balance No Comments

  As summer gets going – it can be a challenge to balance the on-going demands of work and the pulls of kids, family and warm weather calling you to summer activities.
  Here are 4 or 5 tips on how to have a healthy work/life balance this summer:
  • Have a FROG time in the AM – which is a one hour, power hour that you do the important things that otherwise get forgotten as you attend to urgent matters. The FROG time helps you feel more prepared, more focused and more on top of your game so you can have a productive work day and then get on with some summer fun!
  • Make sure to take at least ONE full day off – no work. It allows your brain to shut off and really recharge. This is very important. Resist the urge to crawl back to your computer/office!
  • Enlist some help. There are often a few tasks you can delegate or outsource. If you don’t have money to pay someone, consider other methods – i.e. can you barter or find a summer intern? Get some support to get on top of your work (summer projects).
  • Set work hours. If summer means shorter work hours or an extra day off, plan for it and set summer hours. It will help you plan and work efficiently in the time you have rather than working hard and then leaving something important left undone.
  • Have a summer game plan. What do you NEED and WANT to get done this summer? Do a brain dump of everything that is a priority this summer and draft out which projects you could do each week.
  Summer is a great time to recharge and have fun. You can do both if you have focus and a plan!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: Summer balance, Work/Life Synergy & Balance

• 27May

  Focus and Purpose

  Business Coaching, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Human Performance, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Productivity, Removing Obstacles, Time Management No Comments

  “Effort alone does not create achievement. Somebody can put forth a lifetime of effort and not have much to show for it.

  What counts is focused effort in the service of a meaningful purpose. Get that, and you’re really getting somewhere.

  Just being busy is not going to make you successful. Instead of merely using up time, find a way to create real, desirable value with the time you have available.

  Don’t comfort yourself with being aimlessly busy. Challenge yourself to get meaningful results from your time and effort.

  Outstanding achievement and disappointing mediocrity are both built from the same twenty-four hours in each day. The difference is not one of time or even effort, but of focus and authentic purpose.

  As long as you’re making the effort, as long as you’re using up resources, as long as you’re spending the time, make it all count. Make a habit of doing what really matters, and you’ll enjoy a life that’s really great.”

  Ralph Marston

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: achievement, effort, focus, living our purpose, purpose

• 25Mar

  The Benefits of Coaching

  Business Coaching, Career Exploration, Career Fulfillment, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Executives & Leaders, Goal Setting, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Time Management, Work/Life Synergy & Balance No Comments

  VISION – MOTIVATION – FOCUS – CLARITY – ENERGY – SPEED – PRODUCTIVITY – RESULTS – SUCCESS - and more.. What could you do with this?

  VISION. You will have a clear idea of where you want to go and how to get there. Often we know the end result, but do not see what it takes to get there. This is critical for your success. You cannot do what you cannot see first. Coaching will ask you questions to make sure your vision is strong.

  MOTIVATION. You will know what you really want and understand your unique values and motives to keep you moving forward. Stop procrastinating, delaying and putting off because of fears, perfectionism and doubts.

  FOCUS. You will be able to operate with clear priorities, doing what is most important things which will allow you to excel In the midst of ‘urgent’ demands and busy chaotic schedules and lives.

  CLARITY. Each coaching session deepens your learning about how you work and think. Coaching also prepares you for action and supports you in getting crystal clear on the steps to take. By work with a coach, you will get a helicopter perspective so that you can return to your business and navigate quickly because you have taken time to assess where you are going. You will be able to see what is right in front of you and developed a plan to forge ahead.

  ENERGY. You will find yourself working at your optimum potential. Why? When you are operating in line with your values, life just simply comes together in an easy way. Coaching will give you with the encouragement, momentum, and natural dynamics to operate more efficiently and effectively. You cannot get more hours in the day, but if you have more energy, you will get more done and feel great!

  SPEED. You will be more effective. Through planning and strategizing, you will be able to eliminate ineffective methods and enhance those methods that are most natural to supporting you in reaching your goals quicker.

  PRODUCTIVITY. You will simply get more done. Coaching will keep your goals clear and in line with your vision. Next, it ensures that what you are doing is important to furthering the bottom line, not just want is urgent, easy or obvious. Then, the regular accountability provides a structure that will keep you moving forward, so you can really get it all done.

  RESULTS. Through regular coaching and consistent follow-up, you will increase your bottom-line results. Profits. Clients. Personal Passions. Weight Lose. Whatever your objective is, coaching is a strategic partnership to support you in getting what you want as quickly as possible. If you are ready and motivated, you can actually double what you accomplish in a period of time.

  SUCCESS. You will be more successful. Through keeping focused on what you want, the goals and the plan, coaching helps you keep the big picture in mind while you implement the small steps. While focusing on the goals, coaching monitors the balance in your whole life, so you are not distracted with life pulls but have all the elements of your life complimenting your actions. Before you know it, your goal is complete!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: Business Coaching, CLARITY, Coaching, ENERGY, focus, motivation, Productivity, RESULTS, SPEED, SUCCESS, VISION

« Previous Entries