I’m listening to the audio version of Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand. So far, it’s a fascinating book and I have an intuition it only gets better. One thing I like about the characters in Ayn Rand’s novels is how they are constructed in epic proportions. Some of them are pure models of confidence, dedication […]
Continue reading... June 15, 2010
Why Being Yourself Is Hard and How to Actually Achieve It
‘Be yourself’ has got to be one of the most popular and attractive pieces of advice for people skills development these days. I think I read it or hear it almost every day. It’s one of those things people say instantly when they want to help you embrace your flaws, be more comfortable and more […]
Continue reading... June 9, 2010
How to Give the Really Negative Feedback to the People Who Really Can’t Take It
One thing I find interesting about the people who have the biggest flaws is that very often they’re also the ones who have the hardest time seeing them and accepting them. If a person is a real pain in the ass, she probably sees herself as a really cool person, with awesome people skills, who […]
Continue reading... June 4, 2010
Are You a Pain-In-The-Ass Person?
She calls me again. A business acquaintance of mine, who wants to partner up with me for this training, learning, changing the world project she has in mind. And again I say: “Thanks, but no thanks”. The project is not the problem. It seems like a good idea. The person is the problem. I know […]
Continue reading... May 31, 2010
Good People Skills = Building Trust
This is a guest post by my friend Maria Dinu (Galca), who is an Effectiveness Coach. She works full time in HR for a Fortune 100 Company, and coaches in her free time. She blogs about how to better manage your life on LifeToolkit.net. I pride myself with having worked with various types of people […]
Continue reading... May 25, 2010
The Elusive Reason Why Success Is Elusive
You may hear people talk about various reasons why success in various areas is so elusive: lack of a clear goal, lack of the right attitude, lack of consistent action – all solid reasons in my view. Yet, at one point in time, whenever I would hear them, I would get a feeling of that’s-not-all-there-is. […]
Continue reading... May 20, 2010
Night Owl Lifestyle
Are you a ‘night owl’? Do you find it hard to go to sleep early at night and when you get up early in the morning it’s like you’ve been hit by a train? Join the team! Night owls are a minority of the population, but a significant one. It is commonly believed that the […]
Continue reading... May 16, 2010
Empathy vs. Sympathy: The Big Distinction
Here is one distinction I make which I notice helps a lot of people. It makes it easier for them to take the best decisions in communication and in social interactions with others, and it assists them to improve their people skills. This distinction is between two similar sounding concepts. Empathy: the ability to understand, […]
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