Books

Self-Efficacy is the Key to Your Personal Power

My favorite definition of power is, "the ability to act." So personal power is the ability for you to take action. Self-belief is the energy that drives you to take action. Self-efficacy is your belief about how much you can control your own actions and the events that affect your life. One of the worst enemies of personal power is, learned helplessness -- why bother if you can't get results? That's why self-efficacy is so important. If you have confidence in your ability to get results, you'll take action and build momentum.

How To Lead Yourself and Others with Inspiring Stories

What's your story? No, not once upon a time ... what's your story of who you are, where you've been, and where you're going? Your stories package and share your experience. They help you stand out if you share the right things. What are the right things? Share your unique experiences, your values, and your strengths ... and even relevant flaws. Your human after all and everybody has flaws. It's not what happens to you, but how you respond and you're the author of your life. Choose your adventures. Write your stories with might. Lead yourself first and use your stories to guide yourself and others.

The 3 Stories as a Leader You Need to Tell

As a leader, you need to tell 3 stories: 1) your personal story, 2) a group story, and 3) the dream story. Your personal story communicates your beliefs and values. The group story helps create a shared sense of destiny. The dream story inspires people to a better future. Whether you're a leader of a small team or large group, have these stories under your belt. If you lead a family, you can use the 3 stories too. If you just need to lead yourself, then have a personal story and dream story to remind yourself who you are and to inspire yourself to where you want to be.

Outsource Your 80 Percent

You can use the 80/20 Rule to improve your life. The 80/20 rule simply means that you focus on the 20 percent of the activities that produce 80 percent of the value. This means letting go of the activities that bog you down, in favor of the activities that lift you up. To do this well means first knowing what you do well and then being able to let the rest go. Once you're willing to let things go, you open up a lot of options.

How To Choose Jobs Better Based on Your Strengths

Are you in the right career based on your strengths? You can use your strengths as a guide to help you figure out which jobs to test and which jobs to avoid. For example, it's tough to be in marketing if you're not a people person. If you like knowledge work, you might find you enjoy software. You can use your strengths as another lens to help you chart your course. If you've ever felt like the elf that wanted to be a dentist, take heart that following your strengths improves your chances for success.