27Sep 2013 by CJ

Change your life now and make a brand new ending

Life & Living
Few of us have the luxury of looking into the past with no regrets. Making decisions is never easy - unless you’re deciding what to have for dinner and even that can be challenging at times. We always hope the choices we make will lead us to a lifetime of bliss, but few things ever go as planned. Periodically I find myself wallowing in these regrets – wishing I had gone the other way when met with a fork in the road. It can be a thoroughly depressing time – wondering what might have been and how your life may have been different. But then I’m reminded of a quote which is attributed to Carl Bard. “Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can…
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24Sep 2013 by CJ
Communication is not about location but about being respectful

Communication is not about location but about being respectful

Life & Living
Emails, voicemails and text messages are all acceptable means of communication in our technologically advanced society. I believe that no matter which method you choose to deliver your message, a response would be an appropriate expectation, right? Sometimes I really wonder if I’m completely invisible or dead and don’t know it (as my beloved grandmother used to always say). Sometimes no matter how I choose to communicate (personally or professionally) people don’t always feel that compelled to get back to me with a proper and timely response. But maybe it really isn’t me. George Bernard Shaw once wrote that, “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” Maybe society has simply lost the ability to remember what they have and have not done. I mean…
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23Sep 2013 by CJ

Learn to laugh at yourself – life’s easier that way!

Life & Living
I’m not a sports fan – never have been. But when it was time to attend our company picnic I began to panic. You see part of this fun-filled afternoon was breaking up into teams to play, you guessed it, SPORTS! It was always stressful in high school facing the awkward pressure to perform during physical activities in gym class. And while I’m much older and wiser now, I still felt some of that same awkwardness when it was time to divide into teams on the picnic grounds. But I was a trooper – not complaining (too much). First up was volleyball. I managed to get through it and even had a little fun in the process. But when it came time for softball I was seriously considering spending the…
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19Sep 2013 by CJ

Working hard or hardly working – does brown nosing equal success?

Information & Education, Life & Living
My grandfather used to always say if you work really hard, it will pay off and people will notice. He was a firm believer that success came in direct correlation to your efforts, and it’s a lesson I’ve taken with me throughout my own life. But I’ve noticed something alarming of late – something that may not have existed during my grandfather’s long career. Today, working hard doesn’t seem to propel you up the corporate ladder as much as you might expect. It seems the business environments of today are more about popularity than anything else. Time and time again I see people who go to great lengths to prove their worthiness to management through their dedication and efforts, only to be overshadowed by those who spend more of their…
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17Sep 2013 by CJ

When you control others because you can’t control yourself – you lose

Life & Living
I came across an interesting article the other day by psychologist Dr. David Schnarch. The title truly struck a chord in me. It read simply… “People who can't control themselves control the people around them.” Facing our own shortcomings and insecurities is never an easy path of self-discovery. Far too many times people need to emphasize their dominance over others, whether in words or actions, simply to placate themselves. I’ve witnessed this time and time again in not only relationships, but in the places we work as well. I’ve personally battled insecurities for a majority of my life – and eventually they found their way into my marriage early on. Looking back on it now, I was trying to control my wife because I felt as though I had no…
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