Ryan Hall’s One Running Tip

May 17, 2012 Scott

Ryan Hall is currently one of the top distance runners in America. He was the runner-up in the Olympic Trials marathon, and has set American records in the marathon and half-marathon. The Olympian recently gave some simple advice to anyone running a marathon this fall. This simple tip is applicable to any runner, exerciser, or really anyone who is reaching for a goal.

“Just enjoy every step of the journey, whether it’s in training or in a race…enjoy and think about each step you’re taking, and don’t worry too much about the miles down the road. Sometimes it feels daunting and it feels too hard…just focus on the step you’re taking and the moment you’re in right now.”

Of course it is necessary to create a powerful and effective plan, but once the plan is in place, focus on and enjoy the present as you execute your plan (see 10 Tips for Effective Exercise). Otherwise you’ll be distracted and/or overwhelmed.

 

Want to get started with change? We’re here to help. Check out Change Anything to learn how you can take control of your life and make permanent changes for the better with a free change plan.

What Will You Regret in 50 Years?

May 16, 2012 Mackenzie, The Science

Partying on the eve of finals. Wearing that frilly, pink dress to senior prom. Buying a puppy that was “mostly” housetrained right after buying new carpets. Although such regrets may be likely, according to research mentioned by blogger Eric Barker in his recent post, people are more likely to regret what they didn’t do, rather than what they did do.

That means that although puppy, dress, and party may all have been unfortunate mishaps, the true tragedies of life will be in the relationships left unmade, the chances still untaken, and the goals never fought for. But what can you do to avoid such tragedies in your own life?

According to Barker, one of the main things is to stop worrying. Stop thinking about the reasons not to try things and instead just get out there and start doing them. Even if you do end doing something unfortunate every now and then, at the end of the day you will regret these mistakes (statistically speaking) one third as much as those you never got the chance to make in the first place.

What have you got to lose? Stop worrying, start living – and let Change Anything help you with all the steps in between. I can guarantee that’s one thing you won’t regret. . .

Make It Fun

May 15, 2012 Scott

Feel like you’re fighting gravity? It can be much more difficult to reach your goals when you haven’t learned how to enjoy the process that will get you there. You can make it infinitely easier by making simple changes to make your goals fun!

For example, daily exercise is a common goal that often quickly falls by the wayside, simply because many people find it difficult to enjoy. An insightful article on Stepcase Lifehack offers some simple advice for making exercise more enjoyable. Some of its recommendations include listening to music while working out, exercising with a friend, and making your workouts into a game with daily challenges. See 10 Tips for Effective Exercise.

Another example of how you can reverse inertia is to turn your work or education tasks into a game. Compete against yourself and try to reach a “high score”. Try keeping track of your top record. Find creative ways to reward yourself for reaching new heights. Thomas Edison once said, “I never did a day’s work in my life. It was all fun.”

 

Want to get started with change? We’re here to help. Check out Change Anything to learn how you can take control of your life and make permanent changes for the better with a free change plan.

11 Leadership Lessons from the Military

May 11, 2012 Scott

Every NCO or officer in the US military is expected to memorize and live the following principles of leadership. These principles are applicable not only to the military world, but to being a leader in any capacity. The following principles and descriptions are adapted from http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/usmc/leadership.htm. Implement these lessons and strategies to your life to become more effective, disciplined, and empowered.

1. Know yourself and seek self-improvement – Work to improve your weaknesses and utilize your strengths. With a knowledge of yourself and those you lead, you can determine the best way to deal with any given situation.

2. Be tactically and technically proficient – You must know your job inside and out. Tactical and technical competence can be learned from books and from on the job training. Seek to always be improving your knowledge.

3. Know those you lead and look out for their welfare – You should know your people and how they react to different situations. Knowledge of their personalities will enable you, as the leader, to decide how to best handle each person and determine when close supervision is needed.

4. Keep your team informed – Nobody likes to be out of the loop when it comes to things important to them. To promote efficiency and morale, a leader should keep people informed. Keeping everyone updated makes them feel that they are a part of the team and not just a cog in a wheel. Informed workers perform better and can carry on without your personal supervision if necessary.

5. Set the example – As a leader your duty is to set the standards by personal example. Your appearance, attitude, and personal example are all watched by those you lead. If your personal standards are high, then you can rightfully demand the same.

6. Ensure the task is understood, supervised and accomplished – Let people know what is expected of them in a clear, concise manner. Before people start a task, allow them a chance to ask questions or seek advice. Supervision is essential. Without supervision you cannot know if the assigned task is being properly accomplished. However, over-supervision can be viewed by subordinates as harassment and effectively stops their initiative.

7. Train as a team – Train with a purpose and emphasize the essential element of teamwork. Be sure that each individual knows his/her position and responsibilities within the team framework. When team spirit is in evidence, the most difficult tasks become much easier to accomplish.

8. Make sound and timely decisions – The leader must be able to rapidly estimate a situation and make a sound decision based on that estimation. If you make a decision and discover it is the wrong one, don’t hesitate to revise your decision. People respect the leader who corrects mistakes immediately instead of trying to bluff through a poor decision.

9. Develop a sense of responsibility those you lead – Give individuals the opportunity for professional development. Assigning tasks and delegating the authority to accomplish tasks promotes mutual confidence and respect between the leader and subordinates.  When you properly delegate authority, you demonstrate faith in your workers and increase their desire for greater responsibilities.

10. Employ your unit in accordance with its capabilities – Successful completion of a task depends upon how well you know your unit’s capabilities. Seek out challenging tasks and goals for your team, but be sure they are prepared for and have the ability to successfully complete the task.

11. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions – As a leader, you are responsible for all your unit does or fails to do on the basis of your decisions and their application. Stick by your convictions and do what you think is right, but accept constructive criticism.

 

Want to get started with change? We’re here to help. Check out Change Anything to learn how you can take control of your life and make permanent changes for the better.

A New and Improved ChangeAnything.com

May 10, 2012 Vince Han

This week, we released a new design of ChangeAnything.com. If you were already a ChangeAnything.com user, you’ll have to create a new account by clicking on “Get Started Now” when you check out the site. And if you were already a ChangeAnything.com user, you also will know that the previous site was a bit tough to navigate and figure out. We heard from many users that felt the power of our methodology and online tools but struggled to make the site a meaningful part of their goals to change.

As we have worked with thousands of users on our product, we have wrestled with  the principle that the hardest thing to do is make something simple. (Conversely, its way too easy to make something too hard!). Adherence to this principle is a constant challenge for us because helping people change bad habits into good ones is not something solved by a simple silver bullet/quick-fix solution. Changing behavior is hard work and so many of us get stuck and feel blind and outnumbered.

Furthermore, every person has a different set of circumstances that impacts his or her environment and so one cookie-cutter solution does not work, which requires us to try to accommodate lots of different types of change plans. For example, someone trying to improve a relationship is not going to need our calorie counter widget.

Having said all that, we feel like this redesign does a markedly better job of helping more and more people successfully tackle their change plans. It is a new starting point for us to continue to tackle our mission, help as many people reach their important personal goals.  If you can change your behavior, you will change the outcomes in your lives.  If you stay in the status quo, you will continue to be frustrated.

It has been tremendously rewarding to work with so many that have benefited from Change Anything. So far, our users have committed to losing over 120,000 lbs, eliminate $37,000,000 in debt, and have tackled and succeeded in a wide variety of change plans.

We hope that we can continue to provide a platform for effective personal change. Please continue to let us know how we are doing and how we can better help you.

Regards

Vince Han, CEO

Twitter: @vincehan

P.S.  The new Change Anything is now free for everybody!

You Say Goodbye, I Say Hello

May 10, 2012 The Science
YouTube Preview Image

 

 

There is nothing worse than a farewell. Leaving behind something or someone you love and resigning yourself to the knowledge that the painful parting is just the start of a long separation can be horribly depressing. All of you who have moved away, had a difficult breakup, witnessed a family pet die, or lost a loved one will know exactly how this feels. Heartbreaking. Discouraging. Downright un-fun.

However, parting has some positives as well. As the old adage goes, when one door closes, another one opens. . . In terms of changing, this interprets to: when you get rid of a bad habit, your life now has room for a better one.

It can be hard to get rid of a unhealthy habit. Even though you might know that a certain lifestyle pattern is potentially harmful or even dangerous, it can still be hard to let it go. As we all know, goodbyes, well, stink .

No need to despair though. The key to having the strength to kick bad habits to the curb lies in remembering future benefits and focusing on those instead. Say goodbye to smoking, think of saying hello to healthy eating and exercise. Say goodbye to impatience, embrace quality family time and meaningful friendships. Say goodbye to procrastination, gain a work promotions, more sleep, and that raise you’ve been wanting. The potential for future joy far outweighs the pain of present parting. Just keep that in mind.

If you’re in need of some assistance doing so, feel free to turn to Change Anything to help keep your motivation refreshed. Overall, remember the “hellos,” embrace the “goodbyes,” and show those unhealthy habits to the door.

Simple and Powerful Resumes

May 9, 2012 Scott

The resume is an important first step to getting the job you want. Effectively communicating your qualifications is essential to getting an interview. Many people wonder how they can make their resume stand out. Simplicity and powerful statements are the key. To keep your resume simple and powerful,

  • Use 11 or 12 point Times New Roman font (or another simple font). It’s clean, easy to read, and classy.
  • Don’t cram your 1-2 pages with text; when it comes to resume content, focus on quality over quantity
  • Don’t include an “objective”, photos, personal information such as marital status or age, or hobbies (unless they are specifically asked for)
  • Use reverse chronological order to list your jobs. List your present, or most recent job, first, and then work backwards.
  • You don’t need to list every job you’ve ever had; stick to the most recent and relevant ones
  • Show how your experiences are relevant to the job you’re applying for; tailor each resume to the employer you submit it to
  • Use statements that start with verbs to show how you have taken action in the past

A great source to look to for more job search “how to” is the ResumeEdge blog. It has great tips on how to improve your resume and get the job you want. One helpful tip it gives on resumes is that “…you have to prove most that you’re the ideal candidate for the position. That means focusing on one industry, one job (preferably from a posting you’re interested in) and dovetailing everything you’ve done toward that opening.”

As good as your resume may be, it is only one part of getting an interview. A central factor in getting an interview is networking. Your best bet may be contacting everyone you know and asking for opportunities that they know of, than following up with these contacts and submitting your resume. Tossing your resume onto the internet is less effective than targeted submission. Optimize your resume, and do everything you can to get it into the hands of the right people. Then go ace your interview.

 

Want to get started with change? We’re here to help. Check out Change Anything to learn how you can take control of your life and make permanent changes for the better.

« Older Entries