7 Ways To Set Goals You Will Actually Keep: Part 2

In part one, we discovered the origin of New Year's resolutions, their abysmal success rate, and the first 4 strategies that will help you set goals that you will keep. In part two, we continue with the next 4 strategies that will help you beat the odds.

4 Phrases That Will RUIN Your Holiday

I am starting a series called #HolidayHelp. I want you to have a great holiday season but there are communication issues that might prevent you from doing that. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Winter Solstice, Hanukkah, Kwanza, or Muharram, it is coming. Awkward communication situations.

I won't pretend I know the ins and outs of all of the celebrations that go on during this time of year but I am fairly certain they all have one thing in common....PEOPLE. Human beings observe them and share their observance with other humans. This means communication issues are bound to arise. 

During this series, I will speak to the traditions I know. 

Today, I want to focus on the communication phrases that will ruin your holiday season. 

Communication Tips From Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte was the first book on my summer reading list. Somehow I had never read it before and I was curious. I found myself equally frustrated and fascinated, a desirable combination I must say, with Miss Eyre and her cast of characters. 

Along with the angst and longing, the story is filled with lessons. Two of my favorites quotes provide great tips about communication. 

Practice Your Message Before You Send It

Photo Credit: MikeBehnken via Compfight cc

Good communication is well thought out, planned, and practiced. Just ask Tony Kornhieser and Micheal Wilbon, hosts of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption (my favorite show on ESPN). 

Since 2001, they have won awards and increased their viewership with every segment, argument, and yes, costume. But it isn’t all fun and games. Their seemingly spontaneous banter is anything but spontaneous. It is well thought and planned.

In an interview in 2011 with Sports Business Daily celebrating the show's ten year anniversary, when asked about his involvement in creating the show segments like: "Happy Time”     "Toss Up”   “What’s the Word”   “Over or Under”  “Mail Time”   “Something or Nothing”  “Report Card”  “Five Good Minutes”  “Good Cop/Bad Cop”  “Big Finish” Wilbon said, “I don’t have any interest in being involved in that because the device is the same. Whatever it’s called that day, whether we play “Oddsmakers” or “Toss Up,” it’s essentially just a way to get us into a discussion. I’m intimately involved in the discussion in terms of what we're going to discuss.”

Read the rest of my article on Adam Smith's blog

Respect: The Foundation To Good Communication

"Respect is a communication skill that bring the world together" 

~Leslie Dickson, CEO of ProVoice Inc, a leadership skills development company

Aretha Franklin asked for a little respect in her iconic 1967 hit song. It earned her 2 Grammys and eventually an induction into the Grammy hall of fame. Fast forward to present day and people are still asking for respect. 


The hallmark of a BRAVE Communicator is that respect is the foundation of all her or his communication activity.


First, you have to respect yourself, your reputation, and your growth enough to be as honest and guilt free as possible when you exchange ideas with others.

Second, you have to respect other people enough to learn how to listen, and  accommodate their communication needs.

Want BIG success? Think Small!

I read an article called Why Thinking Small is the Secret to Big Success by Lewis Howes. The premise was that in order to have success you should consider starting small.

Howes doesn't suggest breaking down big goals into the smaller pieces. This writer suggested beginning with a small unrelated goal. Why? To build confidence and momentum.

This article intrigued me because in order to live BRAVE sometimes we need to debunk the common cliches and common ways of thinking. 

Fail To Plan, Plan To Fail: #Blog4biz Day 26

Today's challenge asks business owners to pull out, dust off, and crack open their business plan to check for neglected parts.

The business plan is the scaffolding on which a business is built...at least in theory anyway. Many people question whether or not you need a business plan. For example, if you aren't planning on asking banks or investors for money, do you need a business plan? If you plan on your business every growing past a solo operator, do you need a business plan? If you are independently wealthy and doing this new venture for fun. do you need a business plan?

The answer is yes!

When I first started BRAVE I went to the library to find what I could about writing a business plan. After combing through tons of books, I came across a resource that spoke to my sanity. It promised you could write your business plan in one day. Of course, I was a skeptic and knew a plan couldn't be written start to finish in one day. But the book gave me hope that it could be done quickly. I chose that book because it was the only resource that didn't have me spending years writing my plan. I wanted to think about my plan, write my plan, and get to work.