JennyCao.ca

Hi everyone! I’m sorry to make 2 posts in such a short time frame, but this particular post needs to be posted now. =P

Today I quickly scanned the headlines from the news feed on the side bar from this site, and wow! Bank of Canada says the recession is over! [Link] My first reaction? PLEASE don’t let this be just another random and inaccurate report…

Yes, with all the constant fluctuations in the news headlines, I didn’t really know if I can believe something like this. Then as I was driving to Waterloo for my Student Life 101 volunteer training, I heard it on the radio again! And when I came back from Waterloo, I saw more news about it! They don’t seem to be kidding around this time. Now I have my own doubts and skepticism, but the optimist in me couldn’t help but wonder, if it’s true, what does that mean?

I’m just going to share with you some interesting thoughts that came with this news, maybe you thought of the same things, or maybe it’s something you might want to consider as well! As always, I want to keep it less focused on wrong or right, but more personal, and growth related.

1. Being the first real recession since the early 90’s, it was actually very short! It lasted only 3 quarters! I myself thought it was just simply too soon for it end, and I’m sure many people felt the same. Does that mean that we’re still unstable and will crash in the future? Or rather, thinking more positively, it might be a sign that we’re heading in the right direction! And that the government is actually learning from past mistakes for once and has improved procedures to handle recessions? I know that most people’s natural instinct is to criticize the government as much as they can, but you have to take yourself away from popular thinking, and wonder if we’re actually improving as a society and gaining experience points. (Which I hope we are!)
2. As a student about to face co-op for the first time, I was concerned about the recession and its affects on the hiring rate. However, I saw another article “The recession is over, but not the pain“, and it seems like unemployment is still rising, and it’s going to take a while for the economy to fully heal. However, the news of a recovery is always better than news of us getting into a deeper recession.
3. For those of you going into 2A, I’m sure you all thought this before “aw man, why is the recession NOW? Right before my first co-op term?!”. Well I’m no exception! But perception is key, and when I finally got wind that the recession is finally officially over (sort of), I looked back, and realized that this recession might not be my bad luck after all.

   I don’t know about the rest of you, but I found finding a summer job rather hard this summer. Many times, I got really frustrated with everything, including the economy. But life is more fair than you think, every hardship is rewarded somehow. Because I realized that I needed to become better, to adapt to my new situation, I grew and developed more this summer than I would normally in a year!

   For example, I have been wanting to make a site for years, but never thought I’ll make it a blog. But not only did I actually acted on my plans for the site, but I made it better than I ever dreamed possible! Also, I have decided that I will go through with taking up martial arts lessons, which I have always wanted to take, but never actually got to it. I changed my perspective positively on many different things, including who I am and what I really wanted out of my life. I’m very happy about the personal growth, development, and initiatives I took this summer. This would’ve likely never happened if I wasn’t faced with hardships and challenges!

We all need to have to do some “high-level thinking” from time to time, and this is the perfect time! Look back on the recession now, look at the big picture, and try to answer these questions:

The recession must’ve affected you, made changes to your life, physically or emotionally. How did you adapt? What can you learn from all of this? Now, assuming it’s really over, what does it mean for you? How did you growing during the last 3 quarters, and what direction do you want to go from here?

I think this recession has given us a better picture of Canada and the world, I’m sort of glad to be able to see this before my career starts. Also, keep in mind that there is value is every little thing, and even things that seems extremely bad.

I hope you got some insight from this post, I know it’s a bit unusual and may feel a bit scattered, but I’m really just trying to share with you some thoughts on the recession, not write a report on any particular topic =)

Please comment!

Hi everyone! Recently I joined AMA (Academy of Martial Arts) and took some lessons! It was very fun, I encourage everyone to give it a try if it’s something you’re interested it! Talking about martial arts, I remember something I read in the book Getting Thing Done by David Allen.

He mentioned that in karate, there is a position of perfect readiness, called “Mind Like Water”. What does that mean? Think about water in a pond, what happens when you throw a pebble in it? It reacts exactly how it should, based on the speed and mass of the pebble. It doesn’t over react or under react, it reacts just the way it’s supposed to.

This is how perfect productivity should be like, you need to make sure that you take care of everything that’s thrown at you with the correct amount of energy and effort. Too often we spend way too much or way too little energy and effort on everything that’s thrown at us. Anytime that you do not react like water, you’re being inefficient. Now, I know you’re thinking that this is all talk and theory, and there’s nothing practical you can do about it, and  70% efficiency is still pretty good. But those 30%s can add up pretty quickly, and you’ll find yourself overwhelmed with work before you know it! Think about how much more you can do if you can harness that 30%! So how can you achieve this “mind like water” state?

The key is to have a clear mind and be flexible! Not too many people can have a clear mind these days, there are so many things going on in our lives that our minds are constantly crowded with thoughts, stress, and unfinished commitments. In that state, how can anyone blame you for over reacting or under reacting? You’re already pushed to the limit, you really don’t have the time or the energy to think about how to appropriately deal with things. Most of the time, you just want results, no matter how you get there.

To achieve a “mind like water”, or close to it, you’ll need to practice. Yes, these things need practice too! Focus on having a clear mind and being flexible, and be consistent and active about it!

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Your mind can never really be clear, but you have to at least feel comfortable. Now this is hard, we have many things screaming for our attention any second of the day. I find it useful to instead only focus at one thing at a time. There are many studies and literature out there that suggests that our brain can only really focus on one thing at a time, I’m currently looking into that theory at the moment (I’ll tell you if I get anywhere with that!). The key to this is to have a good collection system, this means that you have to collect every bit of unfinished tasks or thought you have in a place where YOU ARE CERTAIN that you will go back to. You have to really go back to it, you can’t fool your brain into this. Getting Things Done offers a great collection system I’m currently using, and it does the job very well!

As a simple exercise, try to write down everything you have to do, including the next actions (not ALL actions) for all of them, and put it in a place where you know you’ll come back to it a few hours later. Try to clear your mind of everything that worries you or screaming for your attention. If you don’t think you can absolutely clear your mind, focus on one thing only, and if it really bugs you finish the next action for that particular task. As you practice more, you’ll get better at this.

When you have a clear mind, you can be very productive and creative, a constant state of clear mind is very powerful. However, don’t expect that just because you have a clear mind, you won’t procrastinate, that’s a part of human nature that will always be there. =P

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If you’re reading this for self-improvement, you’re probably a very ambitious person. You probably have so many things you want to do, and made so many commitments to both yourself and others. These commitments take up a lot of our energy even subconsciously, and they’re usually the things that’s constantly bugging you and giving you a sense of incompleteness.

In the book Getting Things Done, David told us that we have to deal with these commitments, and not just bury it away somewhere. When you make an agreement with yourself to do something, your brain will constantly remind you about it, this takes a lot of energy, and your mind isn’t clear. In order to deal with these agreements in a positive way, you need to be flexible and proactive. Here are the 3 ways David suggests you deal with your agreements:

• Don’t make the agreement – We all like to do as much as we can, but when we’re overwhelmed by many things, we might not do any of them well enough. Sometimes it’s important to say “no”. Commit to whatever you say yes to, and know when you can’t commit anymore. This will demonstrate to others that you will always stick to your words, and have a good level of self discipline.
• Complete the agreement – This is obvious, you know it feels good to actually finish something you promised yourself or others that you’ll do. Completing an agreement with yourself will both make you feel great, and give you a positive energy, or motivation to do more!
• Renegotiate the agreement – When you made the commitment, but can’t complete it, this is when you have a problem. At this point, the best thing to do is to renegotiate the agreement with yourself. Maybe change the due date with yourself, or change the amount of detail you want to put in. Make sure others in the team knows this as well. This is very important for you to have a clear mind, and this is where the flexibility is. You have to be flexible to your own schedule, sometimes it’s OK to renegotiate. We have to change our plans all the time, but most of the time, we’re forced to make a change at the last second. In this case, we feel like we have no control and become very stressed. Re-make the contract with yourself proactively (rather than being forced to), tell yourself it’s not OK to have the task done differently, and your brain will stop bothering you.

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As David Allen mentioned in his book, the power in Karate comes from speed not strength, and a tense muscle is a slow one. And indeed, I was told on the first day that I needed to be relaxed in my Karate classes! Your brain functions the best when it’s clear and relaxed, and that’s when you can deal with everything thrown at you “like water”.

Have you ever watched Pokemon as a kid? What does Ash tell his pokemon to do everytime the opponent uses double team? Close your eyes, clear your thoughts, and sense where the opponent is! Same deal! See you already know this when you were 7 years old! You just need to apply it to your work and studies as well!

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I hope that this post has helped you, and the next time you’re stressed out, just think about “mind like water”! Better yet, apply “mind like water” to your every day life! Remember to practice clearing your mind often, and be flexible.

Thank you for reading, and please comment! I hope you all have great productivity for the rest of your life! =)

Hi everyone, this is part 2 of John C. Rich’s 10 principles to leadership! Which is 10 principles that an effective leader should follow! I attended a lesson about leadership by John during one of the officer trainings at Toastmasters, and John was kind enough to give me permission to share this information with all of you! For more information on John C. Rich, and the first 5 principles of leadership, refer Part 1 of this series!

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Maximize the skills, experience, and knowledge of each team member. Make sure that each member is appreciated and recognized for what they bring to the team, and acknowledge their importance and expertise by assigning them tasks that they love to do and is good at.

Train and cross-train members so that there will always be someone that is able to do the job if one person in the team couldn’t make it.

Supply resources and offer support for your team members after the delegation, follow up and confirm that they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing. However, don’t drop in unexpectedly like an inspection, make sure you tell them when you’re going to follow up so they know when to expect you. You don’t want to make them feel uncomfortable.

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Yes you heard it before. Firm, fair, and friendly. In that order! Before anything else, you have to make sure the job gets done first. At the same time, you should treat everyone fairly and equally, in order to develop trust and avoid conflicts. Lastly, it’s important to make everyone feel good about what they’re doing. Make sure you know their needs! This could be done by simply just asking, they will probably just appreciate that you asked! After you know their needs, provide as much support as it’s reasonable. Remember, the risk and responsibility is shared. Communicate with them constantly while the work is being done so they never feel alone.

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Know what is going on around you, be aware of everything that goes on. This is very important for leaders, because it’s almost a part of their job description! A good leader should also be able to identify opportunities and challenges and come up with appropirate plans for them. In other words, you need to be constantly scanning the playing field and spot things before they become an issue or before it’s too late to take advantage of that opportunity. If it helps, try sitting down once per week to do some research or just simply writing ideas down!

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Identify and maximize both human and physical resources, this may require you to be creative at times! Talk to your team about this, they might have great ideas too!

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Situations will change and challenges will always appear. Make sure you are able to adapt to different situations, this sometimes means you have to be creative. John mentioned that there are 3 types of creativity:

• Spontaneous creativity – idea comes spontaneously
• Planned creativity – you sit down and think about it
• Forced creativity – you come up with a solution now, or else…

As a leader, many times you will be forced to be creative, and being good at that will be of an advantage to you.

While being flexible, it’s always very important to maintain sight of the ultimate goal no matter what.

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So there you have it! 10 principles of leadership! I found them very useful to review from time to time, and I hope that it will help you too!

Here are some other tips and advice John left with us:

• When making constructive critisim, try not to use the word “but”, in the structure “(positive statement), but…” because it doesn’t really matter what you say after, it’s already interpreted as negative the moment you say but. Try to use “and” instead “(positive statement), and it would be great if you could also improve on…”. Also avoid the words “should”, or “could”.
• When you’re giving constructive criticism, try to follow the following format: “When you.. I feel…. because…., it would help me to understand if…..” then listen and respond. Always try to move towards a win-win situation.
• When you first delegate duties, try to delegate the unimportant stuff first. This includes the non-important and urgent, as well as the non-important and not urgent. Delegate small things first and then work your way up, this kind of stuff needs practice too!
• Read the book: The 7 habits of highly effective people (I just recently bought this book, once I finish it, I will definitely make an review on it!)

I would like to thank John C. Rich once again for this information. If you want to know more about John, and N’Riched Programs, visit www.nrichedprograms.com. I hope that everyone got a lot of these 10 principles and will apply them to become an effective leader in the future!

Please comment!