What are You Missing? (WT457)

What are You Missing? (WT457)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 29 Mar, 2019 | Blog, Business

WT 457 What are you missing

This week I’d like to share a concept that came up during this week’s Leading Yourself and Leading Others workshop and that is the question, “What are you missing?”

The question arose because of the absolute focus the team has on a particular issue.

They are all united in their thinking and very focussed on their perception of how things should be.

To generate discussion I shared the following videos, (it will take you less than 3 minutes in total to watch the two of them): 

The videos are a pragmatic way to introduce the concept of focussing so intently on one thing that you miss other things which could be just as or more important than what you are focussing on.

For example, have you ever missed a turn or driven past where you were supposed to be going because you were focussed on the conversation you were having with a passenger or someone on the “hands free” phone?

It’s easy to do. Sometimes we become so focussed on our solution that we are unable to see any other possibilities.

This week I encourage you to watch the videos and ask yourself, “What other options or solutions am I not seeing?”

Stick to Your Vision (WT456)

Stick to Your Vision (WT456)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 22 Mar, 2019 | Blog

WT 456 Stick to your vision

Yesterday we went to The National Arboretum in Canberra (a mosaic of 94 living forests of rare, endangered and symbolic trees from Australia and around the world) to see the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection.

We were lucky enough to have a guide explain the history of the Aboretum and a curator show us the difference between plants styled by the Chinese Penjing and Japanese Bonsai methods.

According to the Arboretum website, “Prior to the 2001 and 2003 Canberra bushfires, the Arboretum site was mostly covered in pine plantations (Pinus radiata).” Our guide further explained that the pine plantations replaced the Cork Oak trees, which were originally thought to be a revenue raiser for the capital, prior to cork being replaced by other synthetic materials. The capital then looked to pine trees to raise revenue.

The website continues, “Following the devastating 2003 Canberra bushfires, the Australian Capital Territory Government consulted extensively with the community and experts about the best use of the large areas of land occupied by burnt-out pine plantations, some of which were very close to Canberra.” Our guide explained that the Chief Minister for the ACT at the time had a vision for the arboretum and against public demands for hospitals, transportation and schools, he was determined to create the Arboretum.

Today the Arboretum is a huge success and as I reflected on the story, I thought about leadership and how important it is for leaders to have and share their vision and, like great role models such as Nelson Mandela and Ghandi, to stick to the vision, against the odds.

There will always be naysayers; people who think differently and who want different things.

As the leader, your job is to clearly articulate your vision and stick to it. Your job also includes engaging your people emotionally to make it happen.

When Ross and I decided we wanted to travel Australia in a motorhome, we became very clear about our vision and we shared this with anyone and everyone. We were determined to make it happen, although we didn’t know how it would manifest at the time we placed our order.

This week I urge you to invest some time on your vision. If you don’t have one, your priority is to create one. If you do have one, your priority is to engage your team and if your team are engaged, your priority is to continue to take action towards manifestation.

Remember, the most important point is to “Stick to Your Vision”.

So Much to Learn (WT455)

So Much to Learn (WT455)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 15 Mar, 2019 | Blog, Leadership

WT 455 So much to learn

Do you remember a time when you were first learning something new?

Do you recall how frustrated you felt when you didn’t know something? 

Do you remember feeling useless, incompetent and stupid when you made mistakes? 

Well that’s exactly how Ross and I have felt this past week, as we learned to how live in an RV. 

We left a hose fitting on a tap in a caravan park which meant we couldn’t hook up to water in the next one. 

The water tap blew off a few times sending water everywhere. 

We didn’t realise we had to turn our water pump off when we were hooked up to water and so used our 100 litres in a day and a half. 

So many lessons, so much to learn; like the difference between grey and black water and where it can and can’t be dumped. 

On so many occasions both Ross and I started to beat up on ourselves for not knowing stuff and then we remember The 4 Stages or Steps to Learning: 

  1. Unconsciously Incompetent – You don’t know what you don’t know 
  1. Consciously Incompetent – Now I know I don’t know 
  1. Consciously Competent – Practising and thinking about what I am doing 
  1. Unconsciously Competent – I don’t have to think about it; it’s now become a habit or I do it unconsciously. 

We moved very quickly from Stage 1 to Stage 2. We now know how much we don’t know. Fortunately there are many experienced people who are happy to teach and share what they know and we are keen students. 

It has been a great reminder to be patient when learning something new. 

We will master this. 

This part of the learning process and it’s an adventure and like any journey, it’s not reaching the destination, but the journey to get there that we remember and recount. 

How about you? 

Can you relate to this at work or personally, or perhaps you’re training your team and you are all feeling frustrated. 

It’s all part of the journey and the process. 

Persevere and you will surely get there. 

There is always so much to learn.

She’s Here (WT454)

She’s Here (WT454)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 8 Mar, 2019 | Blog, Mindset

WT 454 She's Here

My goodness, what a difference 7 days can make.

Our beloved motorhome, Contessa finally arrived 2 days ago.

She’s here.

We placed our order about 10 months ago and for Ross and I, not having children, taking delivery of Contessa was like celebrating the arrival of a baby.

And like giving birth, it didn’t all go to plan.

The dealership promised us we would be on the road by 10am.

We arrived at the dealership at 11:30am, expecting to have a quick run through and be on our way.

Three hours later, we were nearly crying. We had no idea the induction or handover would take this long and ours was supposed to be a turbo handover.

We then had to throw a bag in the back and get going.

We arrived in Canberra just after midnight and parked on ground that wasn’t exactly level.

I was freaking out. “Don’t move! Don’t roll over.” I was scared we might roll down the hill.

Of course we were fine. It was just my anxiety and overactive imagination.

The next day we ran day one of the leadership program and it all went exceptionally well.

Today we travelled back to Newcastle to pack Contessa and will head back to Canberra next week.

She’s finally arrived and I have to pinch myself.

Less than 3 months ago, I had no idea how we would make it happen and here we are sitting in Contessa, enjoying our nomadic lifestyle.

It feels surreal and yet it is real.

We imagined this. We visualised this. We took action believing this would happen and it has.

I feel so lucky and so relieved.

Now it’s your turn.

What is it you want to manifest?

What action do you need to take to make it happen?

As Rhonda Byrne says in her best selling book, The Secret, Ask, Believe and Receive.

What most people don’t get is that the action part is embedded in the believing. When you believe something is going to happen, you take action towards it.

What’s your thing?

Ask, Believe (take action) and Receive.

She’s here!

First World Problems (WT453)

First World Problems (WT453)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 1 Mar, 2019 | Blog, Mindset

WT 453 First world problems

This week I had to catch myself. 

I found myself whinging and complaining because I had to organise to pack and move out of where we were living and wait for a week before taking delivery of our motorhome.

“This is placing so much pressure on me,” I complained to Ross.

“I was expecting to carry food from the fridge in the home to the fridge in the motorhome. I was expecting to take my clothes out of the wardrobe and hang them up in the motorhome, not to have to organise and pack for the motorhome, storage and the leadership program we’re running in Canberra during March.”

I was feeling very sorry for myself and annoyed and disappointed with the dealership and the real estate agency.

I wasn’t walking my talk and as a friend reminded me last week, “Practice what you preach and breathe.”

So I did.

My understanding of how things work from all of the personal development work I have done over the years, is that I am a co-creator. There is no point blaming others because I too am responsible.

On some level, I have created this situation.

When things like this happen, I ask myself, “What am I thinking or doing that has created this?”

As soon as I take responsibility for what is happening in my life, things change.

We had no shortage of offers from friends offering us to stay at their places, whilst we are technically homeless this week.  Thank you friends.

Whilst living in chaos this week, I couldn’t find my makeup and I certainly didn’t have an iron, so I turned up for a meeting looking and feeling very dishevelled and a little embarrassed, until I realised what I had manifested.

This was the start of my new life and my new career. It’s no secret that I don’t like wearing makeup and I prefer to dress casually, and here was the universe delivering exactly what I wanted.

So I have pulled myself into gear, accepted that I am responsible and am getting on with things. These are first world problems. I do have a roof over my head, I do have people who care about me, I do have enough to eat, I am not living in a war zone and I have work and income.

How about you? Are you stressing out over first world problems and perhaps not taking responsibility for your part in the situation? If so, maybe it’s time to re-evaluate.

Let’s be grateful for what we do have.

I appreciate you reading these thoughts every week. Thank you.

And just one more tip. I often use Hoóponopono (ancient Hawaiian clearing technique) to clear myself and the planet by reciting the following phrases over and over (in any order).

I love you. I’m sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. 

Essentially what you are saying is “I love the universe and people. I’m sorry for my part in creating this situation, even though I may not know consciously what my part is. Please forgive me to the universe and thank you for the forgiveness.”  You can Google it and learn more. It’s fascinating and it works, whether you believe in it or not.

Thank you. I love you.

Give Them a Project (WT452)

Give Them a Project (WT452)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 22 Feb, 2019 | Blog, Leadership

WT 452 Give them a project

Many workplaces use the word “team” to describe their employees or various divisions within their companies and yet what they really have is a group of individuals.

A team works together to achieve a common goal. Individuals within a group work towards achieving their own results.

This week in our leadership experience, the participants experienced what it is like to become a team.

At the end of each session, participants are given homework to do; some complete the homework and some do not. Those who don’t complete the homework cause the group to “fail”.

In the initial stages, participants are concerned with their own success until they understand that their contribution or lack thereof affects everyone.

The way to move a group of individuals to become a team is to give them a project.

Years ago, a psychology experiment was conducted in America where school buddies were separated and placed into different groups at a summer camp. The groups were then manipulated and influenced to the point where the original school buddies no longer liked each other. The camp leaders and psychologists could not let the children return home with a dislike for their friends so they came up with a project which required ALL of the groups to participate to solve the problem.

As the groups worked with each other to solve the problem and complete the project, the relationships began to mend and the entire group became a team.

In our leadership experience, one person stepped up and took the lead, which the others were happy to follow. (As a sidebar, they learned that their people are looking for leadership and are happy to be led.)

There was a flurry of emails, phone calls and text messages as group members worked together to pass the assignment.

If you’re finding that your “team” is really operating as a group of individuals, reflect on the instructions you are giving, as well as the tasks.  Are the tasks set up for individual performance or is there a common goal the “team” are working towards?

If you want your people to work as a team, give them a common project or goal to achieve.

Pin It on Pinterest