|
Gifts for Someone Who Has Everything Like many of you, I spent some time this past weekend braving the holiday season
crowds at the shopping malls in search of the one perfect gift for each person on my list. It’s amazing how much unnecessary stuff there is out there to browse through and maybe even to buy. Practically everyone among my friends and family that I ask what they would like replies, “I don’t know, I really have everything I need already.” We’re indeed fortunate to live in the richest country in the world at a time of unparalleled
abundance. Self-storage places are cropping up everywhere you look to cope with the wretched excess of things in our lives. All of which got me to thinking about how infrequently we, busy people that we are, remember to give ourselves the gifts that only we can give. Here’s a list of simple things you can do for yourself this holiday season: - Stop multitasking
– you’re only kidding yourself if you think you’re doing a good job at anything if you aren’t giving it your full attention.
- Get a good night’s sleep – this is probably the fastest way to revive and rejuvenate yourself in the midst of a crazy-busy project or job.
- Center yourself several times a day
– as you flit from meeting to meeting in the course of a day, stop every so often to re-focus on the present moment as a way of training your attention for the next event.
- Remember to breathe – chances are you’re only using the top third of your lungs, which means you aren’t getting a full tank of oxygen, which means your brain isn’t running on all cylinders.
- Thank one person a day – if you give yourself time to think about it, you’ll notice that people are doing nice things for you all the time, you just never stop long enough to see it.
- Turn off the late-night news – you don’t really need to know what fresh outrages occurred today, it’ll be on TV tomorrow while you eat your cornflakes,
and in the meantime you can more easily get a good night’s sleep (see above.)
- Power off your cell phone before you go to bed – I just read somewhere that one out of five people will stop in the middle of having sex to answer their cell phone (yep, you’re that addicted to it.)
- Smile deliberately at least three times a day
– ever notice how it’s impossible to be really unhappy when you’re smiling?
- Get down on the floor with a child or a pet for five minutes – take a look at the world from the vantage point of someone who is always discovering something new and wonderful about it.
- Do a small good deed
– whether you help an elderly person cross a busy street or hold the elevator door for a frazzled coworker, you will remember what it feels like to be the kind and considerate person you used to be before you got to be in such a hurry.
None of these things will cost you a lot of money, exceed your credit card limit, require assembly or fresh batteries, take a lot of time you don’t have right now, need more
space to store it, or risk the disappointment of others. The perfect holiday gift for that very important person who probably hasn’t made it onto your gift list in years – yourself. Who knows – maybe you’ll decide to indulge in these little treats all year long in 2007. Coaching is a great gift to give yourself if you want to begin seeing yourself and your
world in a new and different way. Let’s talk about how coaching can work for you. Call (410)626-6008, or email info@bloomfieldassociates.com. 
In this busy season, practice your networking skills by engaging in a
different way with the people you meet at various holiday events, whether professional or social. If you dread these occasions, turn them into a game with yourself by setting a goal of, say, learning something new from at least one person at the party, or collecting at least three new business cards. Approach each person with curiosity and genuine interest; ask questions
and really listen to the answers. Later on, reflect on the connections you made and make a note for each one of how you intend to follow up with them in the New Year. |
|
According to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, one in four employers uses
social networking web sites such as Facebook.com or MySpace.com to screen out applicants based on the information they post there. A CareerBuilder.com survey found that about 63% of employers decided against hiring someone after seeing content the person had posted online. A survey by London-based consulting firm Robert Walters found that the average executive attends two to three meetings each day. Their biggest complaint: Most of
those meetings accomplish little because they are "unstructured and result in no defined actions." A recent Challenger, Gray & Christmas survey finds that only 8% of companies plan to close Christmas week. Most firms—38%—will maintain normal business hours during the four days following Christmas Day, Monday, December 25. 
Wi-Max The next generation of wireless communications, beyond the now nearly ubiquitous Wi-Fi. New technologies will expand coverage from a matter of feet to many miles, and should be available commercially by the end of next year, according to those familiar
with the wireless world. 
 Wherever You Go There You Are, by Jon Kabat-Zinn. What I like about it: I pulled this old favorite off the shelf when a coaching student of mine referred to it recently. I was soon re-enchanted with the author’s simple and direct approach to something that can seem quite daunting to those of us who are perpetual beginners – “mindfulness meditation in everyday life,” as
the subtitle puts it. A great resource for both newcomers to meditation and its experienced practitioners.
Beth Bloomfield
Executive Coach, Strategy Consultant
Principal, Bloomfield Associates Share what you’re into —
books, articles, movies, music, websites — with others on the list! Send us the title and author or other pertinent information, along with a sentence or two on what you like about it, and if we use it in A Different Optic we’ll not only quote you, we’ll provide a link to you or your website. |
|
"The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention."
-- Richard Moss | | Do you know someone else who might be interested in reading this? Send it to them now by clicking here.
If you wish to subscribe to
A Different Optic, please click here to send an email request or visit the newsletter section of our website. | | |
|
| |
