When you feel completely overwhelmed by your life, like you are just barely keeping up, it is time to reexamine your priorities.  We all lead busy lives.  However, when your life starts to feel as if it is more than you can handle, its time to step back and take a hard look at all of your commitments.  Ask yourself the following questions:

• What are your top three priorities?
• What activities are you currently engaged in that further those priorities?
• Which activities do not?
• Do you currently have any white space planned into each week?
• What two activities can you eliminate or delegate in order to create some (or some more) white space?

Leaders lead lives of significance because they align their activities with their top priorities.  Narrow your priorities and pick your top three.  Then make sure that you are spending your precious time only on those activities that matter most.  Finally, plan white space into each week for some much needed rest, relaxation, rejuvenation and to address those pesky “emergencies” that tend to derail your over-scheduled life.

My husband recently threw me a copy of the Marine Corps Gazette, saying, “I tabbed an article that you would find interesting.”  It was an article written by a Marine who served for General Victor Krulak titled “Rubrics for Officer Dissent.”  The author, Lieutenant Colonel Bryan (ret), wrote about working for Gen Krulak and how he used to take notes about his boss’s perspectives and insights.  The insights the author went on to publish were geared toward how to disagree with your leadership team – I thought that I would share a few of those bullets, as they are so relevant to many of us who may disagree with workplace policies/procedures and decisions (but aren’t certain how to go about addressing them):

• Before offering a revolutionary idea, or disagreeing on any matter, know exactly what you want.  Then be certain that what you say is factual and devoid of emotion and rhetoric.
• Express your innovative ideas – and ensure that your dissent must be accompanied by an alternative.  Present your alternative in full and persuasive detail. 
• If you are able to swallow whole your disappointment to carry out a decision with which you do not agree, well and good.  Do it. 
• If you’re unable to countenance the decision as made, do not denigrate it.  Do not withhold your best effort to make it work.  Quit – just quit.  Take your frustrations elsewhere.
• As a leader, make sure that you clear a path for ideas – and that the road to the top is wide open for ideas.

Love to hear your thoughts and perspectives on how to successfully disagree at work …

Be honest, when you woke up this morning – before you even opened up your eyes – what thoughts went through your head?   Were you thinking about all of the exciting things that you have planned this week as you sprung out of bed to tackle the day?  Or were you thinking about all of the things that you didn’t want to do today as you rolled over to hit the snooze button.

Monday mornings can be difficult.  The return to work after a busy, fun-filled weekend can sometimes seem like a let down.  Here is a great tip that can immediately brighten your attitude on Monday mornings:

Plan a feel-good event into every day. What makes you feel your best?  Do you get a high from a good morning run?   Are you happiest when you are surrounded by the company of good friends?  Do you recharge your energy by being creative or reading a good book?

Everyone has activities, interests and relationships that make them feel good about themselves.  These must be cultivated on a regular basis.  To be your best, you must feel your best.  Whether it is a competitive tennis match, coffee with a colleague or a creative writing class, make sure that you have a feel good event planned into each and every day.  Then brighten your attitude and feel great on Monday morning by thinking about all of the things you have to look forward to this week.

You have a lot on your plate.  You are constantly busy.  But are you making headway on your to-do list – are you really accomplishing your goals?  One of the biggest mistakes that we can make is to equate busy-ness with progress.  The best way to avoid this potentially costly mistake is to identify achievable milestones for daily progress.  Ask yourself, “What things do I need to accomplish today in order to achieve my ultimate goal in a timely fashion?”  Once you have identified those things, make them the day’s priorities.  Discipline yourself to pay full attention to those milestones before you get sidetracked with other daily responsibilities.  By identifying accomplishable tasks and prioritizing appropriately, you will have a method of ensuring progress and ultimate success.

We have all experienced a workplace that is uninspired – where employees are merely working to get the job done so that they can go home and get on with their lives. While no one really wants to work in that type of un-enriching environment, it is sometimes hard to see what a difference one individual can make.

As leaders we can transform our work environment by acting in the following ways to motivate our colleagues:

• Show appreciation. It is human nature to want to contribute and to be appreciated and recognized for the work that you do. Even a simple thank you to a colleague can go a long way.

• Empower others. Trust is a two way street – you must be able to place trust in others before you can ask for theirs in return. Delegating some decision-making authority on an appropriate project can make a colleague feel like a valued member of a team.

• Maintain a positive demeanor at all times. You do not have to be Little Miss Sunshine on a daily basis. However, you cannot engage in the daily water-cooler gripe fest and assume that all of your colleagues will not follow suit. Negative energy breeds negative energy.

• Always exceed professional standards. Maintaining a high performance on a consistent basis provides an excellent role-model for others to emulate.

• Inspire a call to action. Talk about your workplace with your colleagues and ask for their input on how to improve it. You will be pleasantly surprised with the innovative ideas that a united team can generate. Once individuals feel as if they had a hand in creating the idea, they will work diligently to see it through.

Don’t spend another day waiting for someone else to motivate your colleagues. By taking these small steps you can drastically improve your work environment.