American writer Clarence Day said, “The world of books is the most remarkable creation of man. Nothing else that he builds ever lasts. Monuments fall; nations perish; civilizations grow old and die out; and, after an era of darkness, new races build others. But in the world of books are volumes that have seen this happen again and again, and yet live on, still young, still as fresh as the day they were written, still telling men’s hearts of the hearts of men centuries dead.”
I borrowed this from Harvey Mackay’s recent post. I was blown away when I read it.
The question I have for you is, when did you last read a book? If books transcend time and you’re not reading regularly, aren’t you missing out on the limited time you have to experience timeless treasures?
Read to learn. Read to grow.
Just read.
I’m just as guilty as you are. We fill up our lives with so many things: materials, activities, you name it, we’re drowning in it. We have jobs, and hobbies, and volunteer work, and family. We strive to be awesome at all of it. And, to be honest, I think we can be awesome at a number of things. I make a point of ignoring illusions that tell me that my potential is limited.
I want to be (and absolutely can be) a great marketer, writer, speaker, trainer, strategist, business woman… sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail. But the path is always in a positive direction.
So, if I’m comfortable with big and varied goals, what is this noise I mentioned at the start?
Noise is when we’re so busy we don’t have a moment of calm. It’s when we’re so caught up in getting things done that we neglect to reflect.
Virginia Woolf, one of my absolute favourite thinkers, told the world women (and men) need time and a room of their own in order to be creative. Leonardo da Vinci was a master of many crafts and he also believed that we need time for quiet reflection in order to be creative and get inspired.
If minds like da Vinci and Woolf suggest too much noise, activity, demands (call it what you like) are problematic, that’s enough for me to believe it.
So why guilty? Because we bring it upon ourselves. The same way we choose our goals we also choose a stressful and stifling life IF we don’t make room for quiet, peace, and reflection.
Furthermore, we limit our creativity and capacity to perform by being so busy we can’t figure out how to be good at any of the number of things we’re busy doing. In effect, we’re too busy to be good.
Intelligence is a mental image of someone who is excellent in analytical reasoning, planning, and problem solving. He can comprehend basic and complex ideas.
Emotional Intelligence is another type of Intelligence that was found as an important factor in attaining success in life. It allows an individual to successfully set priorities.
It is more focused on how a person understands, recognizes, and chooses his values. It shows how good a person is in understanding others, and how good he is in making decisions. It is how good a person can apply what he learned to be happy, how a person can love and interact with others.
Studies show that it is not the IQ or Intelligence Quotient of a person which is responsible in attaining success in life. EQ or Emotional Quotient is the main factor responsible for a person’s success in all aspects of life.
Unlike Intelligence Quotient, Emotional Quotient is present to everyone. It only needs to be developed. Developing Emotional Quotient can help in decision-making, and in building good relationships with other people.
It focuses more in attaining intangible success in life. Success is attaining by knowing how to deal with emotions, feelings, and interactions with others.
It was proved that attaining material success does not promise personal contentment. Success is defined as being contented, happy and satisfied in life. Focus on nurturing Emotional Quotient because Intelligence Quotient alone cannot attain these things.
In 1990, Emotional Quotient was introduced in the world market, affirming that a person’s ability to handle relationships and his ability to use the appropriate emotions in every interaction are much more important than a person’s intelligence quotient. It was agreed that Emotional Quotient is essential in creating a good leader.
A leader who has a high emotional quotient score is expected to be more positive in life. Emotional Quotient gives a person courage to stand again after a fall. Emotional Quotient gives person strength to face fear.
Being worried, always in doubt, accepting mistakes, and admitting mistakes are just some of the challenges a leader in a business will face. It is believed by many company owners that a team leader worthy of selection should possess high Emotional Quotient to be able to face these challenges.
A successful person lives his life through his values. He knows his purpose. Being accountable in all the things that are happening in life is an example of having high emotional quotient.
Here are some tips on how to nurture Emotional Quotient:
1. Always live with courage. Experimenting and trying different things entail different experiences and open the mind with other possibilities in life.
2. Commit to responsibilities. This drives a person not to give up. It is also a way of earning other people’s trust.
3. Exercise doing personal accountability. Being accountable is being dependable.
4. Identify comfort zones. Trying to escape these comfort zones can make a person explore other things.
5. Identify fears and try facing them. Doing this can develop self-confidence. It can attain assurances that anything can be overcome.
6. Practice to be humble. Accepting mistakes in life attains high self-esteem.
Being true to oneself is one way of living life to the fullest. EQ is much more important because it drives a person to be successful and have a more contented life.
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About the Author
Abbas Abedi–Check out my blog at http://stressmanagementtraining.blogspot.com
Habits, for good or for bad, absolutely shape our daily lives. I think it was Stephen Covey who said that “our character is basically a composite of our habits.” They dictate our patterns, every moment of every day and eventually become our character. Habits leave an indelible impression on our personal and professional relationships, so we have just cause to assess our habits and see how they are affecting us.
I’m a firm believer that we are not what we do. That is to say, good people sometimes do bad things and bad people are often found doing good things. But the real power of habit is that it heavily influences how our lives will play out. The levity of our good habits serves to elevate us from one position to another while the weight of our bad habits is designed to slow our progress to a grinding halt.
It’s hard work sometimes breaking those bad habits and it takes a while to replace them with more productive habits. Ridding ourselves of bad habits requires the effort of swapping them out with good habits. I’ve heard it said that it’s a cinch by the inch and hard by the yard. The key is to just take it one step at a time. And for the sake of accountability, get any support you may need. It’s much easier to accomplish things when you know someone will hold you accountable for having done them (think 10th grade math).
It’s absolutely worth it to retrain ourselves.
Check the science section of your favourite online magazine or print periodical and a few times a year, you’ll likely run across stories of newly discovered technologies and previously undiscovered sea creatures and various creeping things. The thought that the earth has been in existence for billions of years in a perpetual state of evolution indicates that as inhabitants, we too are continually evolving.
Our personal and professional lives are no different. Few professionals will claim to know all there is to know about their industry so there’s always room for growth. Many coaches will tell you to set goals and do what is necessary to reach them. Good for you when you reach your goals. But that shouldn’t be the end. Reached goals call for setting new goals so that as you walk through life, you’re constantly moving toward and striving to reach a destination.
In so doing, you may find opportunities to grow and learn; you may discover new talents that you only could have found by changing your scenery and deviating from your everyday routine.
Easier said than done sometimes. And it’s true that every now and then, it helps to have someone insert a bit of objectivity into your situation to get you unstuck. Seek the assistance of your family and friends. Perhaps you would benefit from a business or personal coach. If that’s the case, you’ve certainly come to the right place and you can feel free to contact Juliana directly. The goal is to keep moving, never settle and always be on the lookout for your next opportunity to grow.
Unlimit your potential.
Sorilbran Buckner is an Atlanta-based business writer and serial entrepreneur.
