A dream may never become a reality if you fail to learn from what made it impossible in your past. Each trial I have faced strengthened me, increased my confidence, and instilled in me the discipline to seek accountability for my life.  That’s why I don’t try to forget the hardships of my past. Instead, I prefer to cling to every moment as a powerful reminder of who I once was and who I am becoming. Hard times contain invaluable lessons if you reframe your approach. Here’s how: Acknowledge that hardship takes many forms  Hardship often implies severe suffering, though it comes in dif ..read more

Setting goals is a crucial first step, whether you’re striving to reach personal or professional milestones. However, achieving those goals requires planning, determination, and focus. In this post, we’ll discuss five actionable strategies that can help you achieve your goals in 2023, and we’ll provide real-life examples to inspire and motivate you. By implementing these tips, you can train your brain to achieve your goals and make meaningful progress toward your aspirations. 1. Write Down Your Goals The first thing needed to achieve a goal is to have one. A goal becomes very clear and precise ..read more

It’s always tempting to answer one more email before bed or to reply to one more text from a friend during work. Nonetheless, numerous studies have shown that multitasking, which is actually just constant task-switching, is exhausting. As the American Psychological Association states in an article about multitasking: “Psychologists who study what happens to cognition (mental processes) when people try to perform more than one task at a time have found that the mind and brain were not designed for heavy-duty multitasking.” Some versions of “never fully on, never fully off” have been around long ..read more

Handling difficult people is a challenging task in the workplace. It is easier said than done indeed! However, it is possible to handle them when you understand basic human psychology and endeavor to improve their behavior through soft skills.  In this regard, we will discuss assertiveness, handling difficult people, and exploring tools to handle them with the help of soft skills.  Assertiveness is a widely discussed topic in the workplace. People often confuse aggressiveness with assertiveness. Assertiveness is the art of saying ‘No’ without compromising one’s rights and without hur ..read more

Success means a burgeoning business, a nice house, and at least one luxury car. Or does it? For many entrepreneurs, defining success can be a tricky exercise. Business leaders, entrepreneurs, and anyone with a career all want to be successful but rarely engage with what exactly that means. Even more challenging is the idea of setting up applicable metrics to gauge their progress toward that success. Looking back at my own career, there were a few goalposts I aimed for when defining my own sense of success. In the early years, success meant having more control over my life and never worrying ab ..read more

It’s easy to feel heavy these days, especially when logging on to LinkedIn. Like dominos, tech companies are announcing layoffs after layoffs. It’s a never-ending stream of depressing social posts, from “every story has an ending” to “my role has been impacted,” followed by well-meaning bystanders offering support and networking introductions. When companies slash workers, they often place the blame on employees’ lower-than-expected productivity. But what exactly is productivity? How is it measured? Defining Productivity Wall Street and company CFOs have their own definition: Productivity is m ..read more

Being a good leader of others matters now more than ever.  Great leaders have regular one-on-ones with their staff, they give and seek feedback, they set goals, and communicate progress regularly.  Yet, nearly all of us have worked for a bad leader: someone who doesn’t have time for us, always has a “better” way of doing an assigned task, creates last minute emergency work for the team, and have limited availability to speak with us about project work, or more importantly our career. Adam Grant, a renown organizational psychologist at Wharton Business school reminds us, “bad bosses k ..read more

If you’re seeking inspiration and motivation to discover your purpose in life, look no further than these purpose quotes. Finding your purpose can be a challenging and daunting task, but it’s a crucial step towards living a fulfilling life. These quotes provide wisdom and insight into the importance of purpose and how to pursue it. Whether you’re feeling lost or searching for direction, these purpose quotes can provide clarity and guidance. From famous philosophers and authors to modern-day thought leaders, these quotes offer a diverse range of perspectives on purpose. Take some time to reflec ..read more

It was about a quarter past two in the afternoon when my phone rang and displayed an unfamiliar number from Chesapeake, Virginia. “Hey, Devil Dog, it’s Don Shipley.” A voice I had grown familiar with over several years watching retired Navy SEAL Senior Chief Petty Officer Don Shipley on one of the most popular streaming platforms in the country confront men all over the continent who fraudulently claimed to have served as U.S. Navy SEALs. Today, this phone call wouldn’t be confrontational. He wasn’t calling to bust a phony servicemember or confront a pathological liar for stolen valor. I had a ..read more

One of the biggest problems in society is that we are taught to follow trends and move through life without questioning authority. School, as well as post-secondary education, teaches us to follow rules, please our teachers, and follow trends so we fit in. While seemingly harmless, you’re learning to prioritize other people over your own personal and professional success.  One of the biggest lessons in life for a successful person is learning to say no. I can’t stress enough the power of the word no.  1. You Establish Boundaries  You indeed teach people how to treat you. The way ..read more