Brian Groves's Blog, page 59

Why having the right tools makes the job easier

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It is really quite obvious that to get something done well we ought to use the appropriate instruments. As such, why having the right tools makes the job easier seems something we can all understand immediately.

Nevertheless, so often tasks are doled out without thought as to what is needed in terms of time, resources and indeed tools by those being given the work. Impossible deadlines are familiar to many service providers and yet for a variety of reasons are accepted as ‘the way business is done nowadays’.

It is feasible to imagine how much better many actions would have been had someone either a) thought about why having the right tools makes the job easier prior to diving into it, or b) asked what the person charged to do the activity required to complete it effectively.

‘Why having the right tools makes the job easier’ is perhaps a cliché because it stands up to inspection and being a basic truth is worth repeating time and time again with reference to most, if not all, assignments.

‘Making do’, ’Getting by’ and ‘Keeping our fingers crossed’ are also options commonly encountered within the world of work. The results obtained when these practices are followed are those we might see in many instances in terms of poor customer service, faulty workmanship, and overall indifference.

Such things themselves suggest anew why having the right tools makes the job easier and offers a greater probability of a successful outcome.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Respecting heritage today for tomorrow

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Appreciating the efforts of past generations, particularly by respecting heritage today for tomorrow, is something all of us may possibly find useful and rewarding.

Appreciating what we have today thanks to yesterday’s endeavours sets us up to ideally offer our best now for those who follow us in the future. Perhaps our input won’t last long beyond the moment of its creation. That said, we should not be put off from attempting to ensure our undertakings reflect our potential.

Anything less, rather than being a form of respecting heritage today for tomorrow, is actually a way of disrespecting heritage today for tomorrow.

What we believe to be the heritage deriving from the past might be universally defined or merely accepted on a local or individual basis. Regardless of how we choose to limit our definitions, this need not diminish the care and attention we afford to those objects, ideas or whatever.

Respecting heritage today for tomorrow should not be read, in any case, as a means of restricting our actions at all. We can enjoy the utility and mastery of past efforts and ideally learn from them. Buildings constructed hundreds of years ago are in many instances perfect settings for us to live, work, spend leisure time near today with a positive impact pushing us towards a fruitful tomorrow.

How we go about respecting heritage today for tomorrow as ever remains a personal question. To share your input on the issue of respecting heritage today for tomorrow, please leave a comment below.

Kindest regards.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Even More Heart Poems Captured From Dreams

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“Unless we are fully committed to our dreams, we will never bring them into being.”

This latest volume of ‘heart poems captured from dreams’ is another step along the poetry path, initiated by Heart Poems Captured From Dreams and consolidated with More Heart Poems Captured From Dreams plus Heart Poems On Waves.

Ideas have the ability to reach us by many means. Capturing poems from dreams, whether whole lines or mere fragments, is one such avenue available to them.

Rather than attempting to preen and pamper the heart poems here, this book sets them out as they arrived as an eclectic mix of ideas and themes, some but not all loosely related to living our potential.

Bringing dreams into being, be they connected to our daily routine or heartfelt goals, is a personal endeavour. Nevertheless, at times we all need to step back, or at least stand still, from moving forward.

Accordingly, Even More Heart Poems Captured From Dreams is aimed at offering a form of nourishment in those moments of pauses, before you begin anew creating the life of your dreams. With this book, you will get the opportunity to:

a) Read a set of original thoughts;

b) Explore meanings found in the heart;

c) Apply ideas as appropriate to you;

d) Draw meaning in the mind with the words offered.

I hope this book spurs further reflection and perhaps even renewed enthusiasm about embracing dreams. Though I am experienced in the field of professional and personal development, you are the expert on your life. Implementation of action leading to the realisation of your dreams will, of course, need to be undertaken by you, I cannot do it for you.

So, with nothing more needing to be said, it just leaves me to thank you for your presence and wish you Happy Reading!

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Appreciating the passing of time

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For some people, it is almost impossible to go about appreciating the passing of time. These folk perhaps feel they have so much to do with so few hours available to them, therefore time is be grasped onto tightly. Unfortunately acting in this way diminishes the pleasure of its passing and underlines, even more, the passing nature of time itself.

Appreciating the passing of time is an exercise we can undertake as part of a wider exploration into our relationship with impermanence. Given everything passes, we should possibly be open to the idea of not being able to either stop time or conserve it for later.

Using time wisely, on the other hand, is something we could and, dare we say, ought to learn to do. Our definition of wise will depend on our own situation, yet we need not reach the end of the day thinking ‘Where has the day gone?’ Looking back on the things accomplished would be a better way to end the day.

Appreciating the passing of time may be accompanied with a review of the manner we have developed over the course of the years. As youngsters, days were probably viewed as being endless as we faced life with optimism and hope. Today time is at a premium. As such, we attempt to focus on efforts to greater levels and undertake assignments attached to our objectives as opposed to those of others, or then again not.

To share your input on the issue of ‘Appreciating the passing of time’, please leave a comment below.

Kindest regards.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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How our surroundings impact on us

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To discover how our surroundings impact on us we might wish to first explore where we are exactly right now.

Rather than being in the location shown in the picture, I am drafting this sitting in one of the staff rooms at the university in Milan. The furnishings and fixtures all mirror the status of the institution. As colleagues go about their business around me, I am letting the pencil dance across the A4 notebook I use to capture ideas for these posts.

It is possible you are reading this whilst on the move. The people around you may be strangers to you or folk you know well. The location is ideally pleasant and perhaps also creatively stimulating, depending on the nature of what you are doing there.

How our surroundings impact on us then perhaps is much to do with how we feel where we are and linked closely to the objects and the people there with us.

We are, in any case, capable of blocking out the world and ignoring our senses to focus fully on a matter irrespective of our locality. In these instances ‘How our surroundings impact on us’ is no longer a valid exploration as we are immune, so to speak, from the surroundings and their influence on us.

Of course, the individual aspect of where we are renders any inquiry to how our surroundings impact on us personal to each of us. In any case, thanks for spending a few minutes of your time reading this ‘How our surroundings impact on us’.

Kindest regards.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Reaching our destination any which way

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At times the manner we undertake an activity has significance to the outcome. Then again there are occasions reaching any destination any which way is the fundamental aspect of the endeavour.

Looking at the issue here, we can ponder the notion of reaching our destination any which way for the sake of achieving our objectives.

With the focus set on our goal, the question of ‘How?’ fades to a secondary position as the emphasis is given to ‘When?’ and possibly also ‘What happens after?’ Reaching our destination any which way, yes in order to move forward to the next one after that.

Nevertheless, a certain structure might be helpful to ensure our efforts are aligned to our values and overall life purpose. Without this, any which way could include unacceptable modes and dubious pursuits harmful to society and ourselves.

Regardless of the fashion we go about reaching our destination, any which way to be sure, it will be important to us that we don’t lose sight of the enjoyment element of our initiative. Without taking pleasure from the moment the journey may seem harder than it probably actually is.

Seeing options and alternatives routes relating to our goal of reaching our destination any which way, we have the chance to interact with our surroundings and those who are contributing in some form or another to our adventure, hopefully in a positive form.

Thanks for being here and reading this ‘Reaching our destination any which way’ post.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Is it time to pack up for another season?

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With the sea as warm as it is going to get, yet the tourists no longer around now, it is perhaps apt to ask is it time to pack up for another season?

Ideally, the past months have been filled with enjoyment and relaxation, fun and serenity. However, as with everything, the seasons pass and so rather than clinging to the memories of yesterday we can indeed inquire is it time to pack up for another season?

Moving away from a perspective connected to the period of the year, considering ‘Is it time to pack up for another season?’ might be valid in relation to how long we ought to continue with an assignment or task before interrupting it if the results are not as positive as expected or required.

Instead of pushing on without a desired outcome on the horizon, on occasions it could be more beneficial to either pause – or stop altogether – to let things settle, before renewing efforts or shifting our focus in another direction. So, is it time to pack up for another season?

We invariably already know by way of a hunch or intuitive sensation the response and acting upon it may turn out to be the best way today to prepare for ‘another season’ tomorrow. The answer to the question ‘Is it time to pack up for another season?’ will surely guide us in making an appropriate decision.

Kindest regards.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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As the path is long we should start walking it soon

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As words of advice, the suggestion ‘As the path is long we should start walking it soon’ seems quite appropriate if we apply it to our overarching goal or key objective.

In an ideal world, we are already near to achieving whatever it is we have established as our main focus and purpose in life. However, if this is not the case, by waiting around for the ‘perfect’ moment to begin with our efforts we risk to never get started. As the path is long we should start walking it soon, indeed.

It is possible we do not need to undertake great strides to complete the journey. Maybe a small effort directed well right now is enough to get us to the proverbial finishing line.

Starting even this minor task, however, sooner rather than later gives us the opportunity to not only channel energy towards the effort, it also gives us the possibility to actually enjoy moving along the path knowing we do not have to hurry our actions to meet a tight deadline.

Alternatively, ‘As the path is long we should start walking it soon’ from another perspective can be taken as a warning to not lose time dilly-dallying. It is easy to believe we have all the time in the world to reach our goals. Procrastination is prevalent in society today. Yet nobody knows what tomorrow will bring.

To share your thoughts on the musings expressed here, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below. For now, thanks for reading this ‘As the path is long we should start walking it soon’ post.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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Watching the crowd viewing the moment

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Watching the crowd viewing the moment might seem a strange activity to indulge in. After all, wouldn’t it be better to be doing something else or at least join the crowd viewing the moment?

Naturally, each alternative to watching the crowd viewing the moment will have its own advantages and it is for us individually to decide the most beneficial option, including that of watching the crowd viewing the moment.

Nevertheless, returning to the initial idea of watching the crowd viewing the moment, we can ponder the mechanics of the group and observe how the masses create their own dynamics in terms of embracing the present as it is or, possibly, in accordance with a mindset imposed by an authority figure.

From a detached position, we get to see all sides of human nature as well as the manner in which influence plays a part in managing groups and manoeuvring actions. Ideally, the intentions of those ‘behind the scenes’ are positive yet unfortunately, this is not always the case.

Emotions quickly spread, especially when folk are sharing an experience. It is likely we could come across expressions such as “We just got caught up in the excitement” and “It was as if time flew by.” Yet sometimes, we too may relate to these words whilst watching the crowd viewing the moment.

For now, thanks for connecting and reading this ‘Watching the crowd viewing the moment’ post.

Kindest regards.

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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To what extent are we benefiting by swimming in the moment?

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Many sources suggest we should be ‘mindful of the present’, ‘living in the moment’ and ‘doing just what everything consciously aware of right now’. Whilst this advice is all very relevant, we can ask to what extent are we benefiting by swimming in the moment?

The question ‘To what extent are we benefiting by swimming in the moment?’ may appear to imply a criticism of being in harmony with this actual time. However, for the sake of understanding better our situation, it is worth considering.

With attention focused on the now, it is likely we are able to manage easily items previously having the power to distract us from our priorities. Furthermore, fears about tomorrow and concerns hanging around from yesterday have little impact on us as we go about embracing today.

In these instances, we are surely benefitting greatly by swimming in the moment and, if nothing else, we are able to ideally save ourselves from stress and upset by putting aside the past and the future. To what extent are we benefiting by swimming in the moment? “Significantly”, we may answer.

As with any exploration of our habits, we should keep in mind the opportunity cost of something as well as the corresponding cost of not doing it. Being clear about the gains and losses associated with our actions helps us in responding to the inquiry ‘To what extent are we benefiting by swimming in the moment?’

Brian.

About Brian

Brian Groves DipM MCIM Chartered Marketer, Coach, Trainer, Adjunct Professor and Author, supplies professional and personal development to a portfolio of corporate and individual clients.

As an Adjunct Professor at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy, Brian teaches a postgraduate course based on dramatic texts and elements of coaching to examine various work-related performance matters.

Brian’s goal is to support through coaching, training and writing all who wish to reach their full potential, in education, work or life in general.

You can contact Brian via e-mail (brian@bgdtcoaching.com), by clicking on the icons or leaving a comment below.

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