When We’re Ready (WT754)

When We’re Ready (WT754)

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by Shirley Dalton | 6 Dec, 2024 | Blog, Business

WT 754 When we are ready

This week I was discussing strategy with Mark See, a client turned colleague/friend (as most of my clients do).

In the 10-15 years that Mark and I have known each other, Mark has been very fortunate to have experienced working for a visionary entrepreneur who sold his business to a big corporation which became even bigger.

Mark gets what it means to be strategic.

He’s also forthright with his opinion, so you can imagine the response he got when he told his new corporate leaders that he would take action on a project “When we’re ready”.

He wasn’t resisting.

He wasn’t being petulant or rebellious.

He was actually being strategic.

As Mark says, “When you’re about to execute on a strategy, you can’t go too early and you can’t go too late.”

It’s a bit like Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  You have to wait until the time is “just right”, which in Mark’s words are “When we’re ready”.

Being ready means having done the research. It means having all the required resources. It means having the team trained and knowing what they have to do when.

There are so many moving parts to implement new business strategies that it absolutely makes sense to make sure you make your move when you’re ready.

I’m curious. What’s your take on this week’s discussion.

What’s your understanding of strategy and timing?

Are you confident enough to stand your ground and say, “We’ll take action, when we’re ready”.

Thanks Mark for such a lively discussion and for the inspiration for this week’s thought.

It came at the exact right time and I was ready. Grin.

P.P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thought delivered directly to their inbox.

Go to https://shirleydalton.com/Weekly-Thoughts.

Make It Into A Game (WT753)

Make It Into A Game (WT753)

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by Shirley Dalton | 29 Nov, 2024 | Blog, Business

WT 753 Make it into a game

When I first started my business, I used to have a game with myself, where I challenged myself to give out two business cards to people who didn’t know me or didn’t know what I did, each and every day.

That was in the days of physical business cards.

I realised I haven’t played a game for a long time, so I decided to make up a new game.

This game is called “Call To Action” or “CTA”.

The rules are, that I must complete at least two calls to action each day.

My game was inspired by Cham Tang, who encouraged us to get into some sort of action to propel our marketing and grow our businesses.

“Action. Action. Chop, Chop”, he would say.

A Call to Action doesn’t mean that you’re asking somebody to buy from you, although that could be a call to action.

Other calls to action could include:

  1. Inviting someone to join my Weekly Thoughts list
  2. Requesting a testimonial
  3. Inviting people to like my social posts.

It doesn’t matter what the CTA is, what matters is that every day I must ask.

To keep myself accountable I record the requests because the more calls to action you do, the more successful you’re going to be in whatever it is that you want.

Nothing happens without action.

So, my call to action today is to invite you to reply and tell me about the game you can play for yourself. If it will help, join in the CTA game.

Remember, it’s much more fun and easier to take action when you make it into a game.

P.S.  Mark your calendar.  Our next Leading Yourself and Leading Others Experience will be held in February 2025.  Tuesdays 4, 11, 18, 25.  Early Bird Discount ends 31st December.

P.P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thought delivered directly to their inbox.

Go to https://shirleydalton.com/Weekly-Thoughts.

Beware The Resting B-Face (WT752)

Beware The Resting B-Face (WT752)

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by Shirley Dalton | 22 Nov, 2024 | Blog, Communication Skills

WT 752 Beware the resting bitch face

Last week I attended a 6 day training course, “Present Like a Pro” with Authentic Education.

It was an amazing course, truly transforming and I can’t wait to put what I learned into action.

One of the interesting topics that came up was to beware the resting B-face.

I’m assuming you know what “B” stands for. Rhymes with “itch”.

The presenter, Benjamin J. Harvey, explained that over the years our facial muscles learn to rest in the same places over time and that there are only 7 universal facial expressions and only one of these is what we might deem “positive” in emotion.

This one is the “happy” one.

The others include:

  1. Angry
  2. Surprise
  3. Sad
  4. Fear
  5. Disgust
  6. Contempt

This was relevant to our training because we were practising presentations and it was a request for audience members to be aware of the resting face they may be giving.

As an example, over the years my facial muscles have learned to frown when I’m listening and processing important information from others.  My face screws up and can look quite menacing.

As a result, I always make a point of explaining this to new clients so they don’t take offence or react to my frown.

As a presenter, I’m always looking for clues of engagement or otherwise from the facial expressions of audience members.

Sometimes there can be what looks like a resting B-face or a face that appears to be sitting in judgement. 

I’ve had to learn not to project my insecurities onto someone’s facial expression.  Remember “automatic listening” by Loretta Malandro.

I’m sharing this with you because I thought it was relevant for you to know when you are either presenting to an audience or sitting in the audience.

If you’re in the audience, please spare a thought for the presenter and put a smile on your face. This will encourage your presenter to relax and give you their best presentation.

If you’re the presenter, do your best not to make up a story based on how someone is looking.

Over to you, are you aware of where your facial muscles tend to land?

If not, ask a colleague or family member. They’ll tell you.

Next time, you’re in the audience, remember to consciously choose your facial expression.

A smile goes a long way.

P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thought delivered directly to their inbox.

Go to https://shirleydalton.com/Weekly-Thoughts.

It’s Okay to Say “But” (WT751)

It’s Okay to Say “But” (WT751)

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by Shirley Dalton | 15 Nov, 2024 | Blog, Communication Skills

WT 751 It's okay to say but

If you’ve done any training with me, you’ll know that we teach you not to use the word “but” because it negates everything that goes before it.

For example, you wouldn’t say to your staff member, “I really like the work you’re doing, but I’d like you to improve here”. All they will hear is “I’d like you to improve”.

Instead of “but” use “and”.

“I really like the work you’re doing and I’d like you to improve here.”

Now, there is an exception.

The one time that it is okay and encouraged to say “but” is when you’ve just complained about something or you’ve been ungrateful about something.

In this instance, you can correct the complaint, with what Rhonda Byrne, author of “The Secret” and “The Magic” calls the Magic Lifeline.

As soon as you become aware you have been ungrateful or have complained, simply say, “But, I have to say, I’m truly grateful for <fill in the blank>”.

In this instance you are negating the thing that you’ve being complaining about, or that you’re being negative about.

Byrne explains in “The Magic” that gratitude is the magic and provides 28 days of activities to help us enjoy more magic in our lives. I highly recommend you get the book and go through the activities. It’s especially powerful if you do it with a group to keep you accountable.

So, to recap, the one and only time it’s okay to say “but” is when you use it to cancel out a negative comment or complaint.

Give it a go this week.  It’s a good opportunity to notice how much you might be complaining or not showing gratitude.

And with that, thank you for being part of my community and reading the thought each week. It inspires me to keep going.

P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thought delivered directly to their inbox.

Go to https://shirleydalton.com/Weekly-Thoughts.

Are You Delusional? (WT750)

Are You Delusional? (WT750)

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by Shirley Dalton | 8 Nov, 2024 | Blog, Mindset

WT 750 Are you delusional?

Before you answer that question, here’s the definition of “delusional” from Vocabulary.com.

“A delusional person believes things that couldn’t possibly be true. If you’re convinced that the microwave is attempting to control your thoughts, you are, sadly, delusional. Delusional comes from a Latin word meaning “deceiving”. So delusional thinking is kind of like deceiving yourself by believing outrageous things.”

And this week, this is exactly what we want.

I really love this concept from Nina Oberoi.

Nina explains that to create your reality, you need to become delusional in your thinking.

This has helped me enormously to have fun with expanding the vision of my future self. Because it’s delusional, I’m not attached to whether it will happen or not. I just have fun with creating outrageous goals and outcomes.

If you’re up for it, here’s what to do:

  1. Identify the delusions of your new reality (all the things you want to have happen, things you want to receive, achieve and the person you want to become)
  2. Write down everything as if it has already happened
  3. Record yourself reading everything, with plenty of positive emotion and energy
  4. Listen to your recording at least 3 times a day

Give yourself permission to be completely delusional because when you allow yourself to be delusional, and you know you are being delusional, then you can play a game with yourself.

You can have fun going into the delusion, getting that feeling of excitement, that energy, that is exactly what you need in order to create and manifest what you want.

Here’s a couple of mine to give you an example:

“People love to hear what I have to say. People look forward to my posts. I get hundreds of comments and hundreds of people sharing the work that I’m doing.”

What’s the delusion of your new reality that you want to create?

What’s the decision, the delusional decision that you’re making?

Will you allow yourself to be completely delusional in this sense? Give it a go and see what happens.

P.S. Invite your friends to get the Weekly Thought delivered directly to their inbox.

Go to https://shirleydalton.com/Weekly-Thoughts.

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