Timesheet, And What it Means for Company and Employees Success

It’s a common enough occurrence at any company — a task is assigned, a reasonable deadline is set, but in the end, so much work still needs to be done. The problem is simple: Time management, or to be more accurate, a lack of it.

Granted, there are also a lot of factors that need to be considered with every task, and it would be unreasonable to expect everything to go according to plan. Anyone who’s been working for a while knows that many times, management and the people who actually do the work aren’t always on the same page. 

Sometimes clients can’t seem to make up their minds, and thus keep changing demands, even on the deadline itself, but still expect work to be done on time. Sometimes one or both of the parties involved don’t fully realize the scope of what’s needed in order for the task to see completion. Every job is different, every job is subjected to its own circumstances that either see it done early or on time, or see it delayed significantly.

That being said, one cannot ignore the importance of having proper time management in the workplace. And not just for rank-and-file, EVERYONE in the organization needs to learn to manage their time properly. And not just for big tasks — even something as mundane and boring as going through emails — the time you allot to do anything at work should be subject to a disciplined and efficient system. “Time is gold,” as the saying goes — trite and overused that adage might be, the truth behind it is no less accurate. Especially for a business, time is a resource that needs to be utilized in the best way possible.


Why time management matters

Many employees will likely agree that in most organizations, things can happen in a frenzy. The pace is often fast, and it can be hard to keep up. That means not a lot of thought is likely given to time management; which is ironic, since proper time management can go a long way into making things easier, more efficient, and more effective. And for organizations, better time management all around means better productivity all around — without damaging or compromising quality. In fact, better time management will likely result not only in better productivity, but superior output as well.

At PastiNyala however, we tend to be carried away with the relaxing work culture. Ample time was given, yet a task can drag on. This needs to be improved. Perhaps secondment of staff to other offices for them to experience the work frenzy and be inside the pressure cooker. 

An article from Recruiter says that companies should invest in time management training for employees. “Employees who lack time management skills often fall behind on their work. Deadlines whoosh past. They become demotivated, unproductive, and even unhealthy,” the article reads. The employee timesheet is not treated with respect and is underutilized — people tend to lean towards absenteeism, and management is a poor grasp of not only it’s employees, but how a project or task is progressing (and how it SHOULD BE progressing). HINT: this is where the TPU, leads and seniors are supposed to help and play their role to monitor and guide.

Recommend reading: Secrets for mastering Time Management | What type of Procrastinator are you?

In addition, a lack of time management among employees can lead to that kind of mindset and attitude becoming a part of the company’s culture. Employees are more likely to be burnt out, unmotivated, and lacking in creativity. In turn, supervisors, managers and executives are more stressed out. Again, this spells disaster for any company aiming to become successful.

Improving time management also means things are done more efficiently — for an organization in particular, this could likely mean less expense on resources and whatnot, since more is done with less effort. This also leads to better decision-making by the powers-that-be since everyone has a better grasp of things. Delayed tasks can also result in delayed decisions, which have the potential of significantly affecting the organization in a negative way. Lost time can never be recovered, but creating more time means being able to tap into other opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable to you due to time constraints.

Did I not mentioned this before? Creating more time means, do things faster so you'll finish earlier with surplus time. Don't waste time so that you can move on. If you are not busy means you can be more involved, learn and grow.  

Better time management leads not only to a better workplace and a better and more successful company, it also by extension improves the quality of life of all involved. Remember those horror stories from people who bring their work home with them? Better time management means people are more likely to enjoy their lives outside of work because everything is planned better. They know how and when tasks will likely be completed, they are more aware of the boundaries between work and their personal lives. This kind of positive effect returns back to the organization tenfold, as a culture of better time management creates an upbeat and uplifting environment at work, since everyone is happy and much more motivated to work, contribute, and stay in a particular company.

3 key pointers on to manage time better

Fortunately, improving time management isn’t rocket science. It’s more about discipline and changing mindsets. It’s about creating a culture that values time, one where an employee timesheet is something more than just in and out timestamps. Better time management can be learned, taught, and institutionalized. As long as you really want it to happen, and you’re committed to seeing things through, better time management is more than just possible, it’s inevitable.

1. Keeping focus
A lot of times, the problems of time management are problems of focus. A lot of times, people get distracted from what they need to do. Employees, staff, and even executives can be put off track by other things in the workplace. Excessive internet surfing to Facebook or social media, Manga, YouTube, personal Whatsapps, online chatting, Mobile Games or even Shopee, just makes it worst.  

So it’s important for senior executives to take it upon themselves to create and promote a culture of focus. Just imagine a graphic design team, for example. They have certain deliverables that have to be submitted at a certain time, assigned by Department A and Department B, and Senior Manager A. The head of Department C, however, along with Senior Manager B, have their own tasks they want to assign, and they expect it to be completed in the same time frame as that of the other departments’. The problem here is that no one is on the same page. Everyone wants their tasks done and completed immediately. The team suffers because they don’t know what to do first, and they suddenly have an unreasonable turnover time for their tasks. Focus is letting people work at a reasonable pace and with tasks that don’t conflict with each other.

2. Avoid overwhelming people with initiatives
Related to the previous point, it’s important that organizations know how to pick their battles. Initiatives are all good and well, but if it means overloading employees, it’s just not worth it. Nothing really significant will ever come out of it, anyway. Good time management is also about setting priorities, and creating a pace of work where people can not only have sufficient time to think, create and fulfil their tasks, but also time to take a breather and catch their breath before their next obligations. Remember that overwhelmed employees work more poorly, and will be unable to properly focus because they have too much things on their minds.

This kind of overload of initiatives also means that people will be more likely to cut corners just to see deadlines met. Poor and low-quality output essentially defeats the purpose of the initiative, since even if it is successfully implemented, the benefits it is supposed to bring will not be maximized. And poor planning and poor time management being the foundations of these initiatives mean that you’ll find yourself putting out more fires and more troubleshooting down the road. It’s just not worth it.

3. Create a backup plan
Part of time management entails giving people room to breathe. And room to live their lives. This means creating backup systems and policies in case of emergencies. This also means people will be less distracted when the unexpected happens. In addition, having a backup plan means that in case of emergencies, there’s less stress on the organization as a whole (as opposed to having people running around like headless chickens) because there are already protocols in place to help deal with the situation. Issues are solved faster and more efficiently, so everyone returns to regular programming sooner rather than later.

The employee timesheet is more important than you think

Many managers and supervisors underestimate the power and potential of the employee timesheet. More than just a ledger of attendance, timesheets can be an essential tool in creating and monitoring how time is used in the organization. 

Moving forward, if I could have more support (or indication that timesheet can improve your work productivity or an agreement that timesheet is a useful tool), I could invest more time to improve TASKPAD TimeSheet to allows users to have a better and more solid grasp of how time is being spent in the workplace. You can view how much time is being spent on Project A, B, C, and so on. The new function can be effective since it makes the simultaneous oversight of multiple teams and projects much easier (thus time is also saved), and team/project leads are always on top of things. 

Reasons employee neglect your learning system

Encouraging employees to learn new skillset or improving their current skillsets can be an uphill battle sometimes. You may have spent a great deal of effort to come out with a Learning and Development module (either computerize or manual), but employees have a lackluster attitude in using it.

And there are a number of reasons, such as:

1. Are they excited about it

Ideally, it shouldn't be just about employee requesting for training with subsequent approvals. It's often that someone in the middle of their career sees learning as something they "have" to do. Their superior must also block out the training time to avoid scheduling conflicts, makes a note on the employee's record of new skill levels or certification.

Learning is like going for a hike. To keep yourself motivated and energized, you should think of the next hill -- not the entire length of the trail. After that hill, you can take a break, look back at your accomplishment, have a sip of water, and then look ahead at the next hill. Approaching learning, in the same way, can make it feel less intimidating,


2. Poor contents

In large organizations or fast-paced industry such as IT (where technology change very fast), it's easy for the content of your Learning module to lag behind requirements. You may invest in a library of training material for all occasions with the risk of too generalized, hard to find content or too generic to really have the desired impact.

One solution is to structure the content differently. The bite-sized approach order topics, principles, techniques, information into individual chunks, effectively mini-training sessions that last minutes rather than hours. It's more focused, it also makes bespoke training courses easier to construct, assembling them from only the necessary content, avoiding all extraneous information.

3. Learning culture

A learning organization encourages continuous and collaborative learning at all levels, taking a long-term perspective, with the aim of becoming or remaining highly competitive in its market.

Financial crises, job uncertainty, even political turmoil, all have an impact on the workforce and workplace behaviors. For some time, it's possible we've been adopting more of a bunker mentality - just get the next job done. Understandable, but it doesn't encourage long-term thinking and planning and development is all about the future - preparing for the job that must be done tomorrow.

Praise makes you feel good, Critique makes you better

Taking criticism can be a difficult thing. At some point in your personal life or working life, you will encounter a customer, a user, superior, colleague or audience member – maybe even an online reviewer or a social network friend – who wants to tell you how to do things better.

It can be hard to deal with; after all, nobody likes to be told they're wrong. Some resist to change for the betterment.  But it's not all bad news because sometimes you can use criticism to give you a competitive edge.

Criticism is a form of communication
If someone has a criticism it means they want to give you feedback on what you're doing for them – that means an opportunity to learn more about the person who you're working for and how to convert them into a satisfied customer or audience member. Take a moment to think before you respond to what they're saying – in business, working with someone who is patient and able to receive and act on criticism means both parties can work towards a better outcome. It's the result that matters. For a business, it might mean getting to know what your paying customer actually wants.

Feedback helps make your product stronger
If you always think you're right but don't get feedback from anyone else, how do you know for sure that what you're doing is any good? Whether you're selling or performing, whether it's a product or service, listening and acting on those honest views will tell you precisely what's good and what can be done better. Use that information to change your performance, service, exhibition or event – sometimes it will make for uncomfortable listening but it can make your product or work stronger as a result.

It forces you to think about how you work
Constructive criticism can guide you away from bad practices and towards good ones. Try to be objective and look at what you're providing as though it's not yours. This can be particularly difficult when you're deeply involved in a particular work but, if you can take a step back, you might see how to improve your way of working and avoid any negative outcomes down the road. Did you need a more specific brief? Was there something you missed in the early stages of the project? Is the performance deadline too unrealistic? Ask if you are not sure.

The right kind of criticism can give you an advantage
Think about it: if you can get a customer to tell you – and just you – how to give them the perfect product or service, that's information you've got that no one else has. That puts you at an advantage over anyone else in your sector and can be used again in the future to get things right, even faster. Find ways to squeeze that information from your client or audience and get them to tell you what they really want.

Don't take it personally
Don't take it personally if someone doesn't immediately like your work. Even if you feel you're being criticised unfairly, don't retaliate with an extreme knee-jerk reaction or else you can irreparably damage your prospect of working with that client or audience and can even harm your reputation as well.

There will be occasions when you feel the criticism is personal and, now and then, you'll be right. People are fallible and it's important to remember to not be offended by someone's remarks. However, a good professional is able to take criticism on board and not respond as though it's a personal attack. They are also able to make it work to their advantage or, if all else fails, politely conclude the partnership and leave with their reputation intact.

Down but not out

Are you feeling down after being reprimanded (brushing) by your superior or got a nasty complaint from a Customer or your codes failed the QA test?

In every part of life—romance, work, family —stuff happens. And these disappointments can indeed set you back, make you feel anxious and fearful. In moving through the recovery process, you may likely feel a range of emotions including anger, anxiety, confusion, low self-esteem and self-doubt. These represent stages of response and cannot be rushed. But over time you will begin to feel acceptance and hopefulness. When you let go of the past, you will experience increased self-esteem and renewed optimism.

Some people flounder in frustration and blame after a disappointment. Worse, some people fall into deep depression. But then again others bounce back quickly and with energy. While you can argue that these people may well be born more resilient, resilience can certainly be learned. Practice and experience help. Most successful people have had their hard knocks, but they recover and move on. They, in fact, see disappointment as a prospect for something new. "Big losses provide the biggest opportunities for change," says Needels. "They make a person more open to trying new things."

Here are a few tips to learn how you can become more resilient and overcome life's big disappointments:

Accept the setback. Know that setbacks happen to everyone. And realize that you may never understand what happened.

Face your fears. It's normal to feel insecure, but don't cower and avoid uncertainty.

Be patient. Reflect and think about what you plan to do; but don't rush, it will only aggravate the process.

Go beyond your comfort zone. Take risks. Go after that task you think you can't do, doing so will build self-esteem and resilience.

Find your hero. Think about people who have survived adversity—Christopher Reeve, Oprah. Use them as your role models.

Know what you want. If you have goals, it's easier to make plans and move forward.

Be a problem-solver. Don't be the victim, instead learn to behave and act proactively.

One step at a time. To move forward, the enormity of the task (such as finding a new job after a lay-off) may seem insurmountable. Focus on each step you must take, not the entire undertaking.

Seek support. Talk to friends, family or a therapist. In Pasti Nyala, talk to your Team Lead or the TPU.

Be kind to yourself. Disappointments are a source of stress, so exercise, eat right and get rest.

To conclude, remember this saying "I might fall down. But I will not stay down."

To grow, you need to move out from your comfort zone

While you might think you’re challenging yourself and moving toward your goals, you could be confusing daily frustrations and roadblocks for actual growth.

Our worlds shrink or expand based on our willingness to do things outside of our comfort zone. While this growth can feel uncomfortable, it often is what’s needed to propel you forward.

Identify one project that is high value to your organization and find a way to proactively put it into your day-to-day task list. Make sure you prioritize it over less-significant work.

Pick a goal that you don’t totally know how to accomplish, commit to it, and watch your abilities and confidence grow as you work towards it.

Comfort zones are sneaky because they feel, well, comfortable. Obviously, I’m not suggesting you push yourself to do scary, uncomfortable things every moment of every day. But I will encourage you to add some productive discomfort to your routine. When you push outside of your comfort zone, you’ll know that you’re doing more than just busy work. You’ll be actively growing your skills, your confidence, and your career.

Eyes on the Rise

Rise Up! doesn't means taking part in a rebellion, oppose or protest a rule or an ideology. Rise Up can also mean adopting a fundamental change for self-improvement by rising up above any situation and achieve your goals.

For Pasti Nyalian, how do you RISE UP to your true potential? First, the willingness to change to take responsibility and commit. Lastly, make it happen.

Below is an excerpt from Corey Alvarez, which also partly reflect my true self.
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My COMMITMENT and obsession is always to be better today than I was yesterday
If I have to make sacrifices to do that: so be it.
If I have to tell that person I can’t go out drinking with him anymore: so be it.
Because that’s not what I value.
Anything or anyone that is taking me further away from my dreams has to go.
I’m committed to self-development not self-destruction, and you know, any person that is meant to be with me on the journey will choose that higher road with me.
Yes, a tougher road, but it is also a much more rewarding one.

I want my life to mean something. To be able to look back at my life and say, yeah, I made some tough decisions, but they were the RIGHT decisions.

So many people don’t get it. They piss their life away every weekend for what? 
So they can complain about their current circumstances for the rest of the week?
SCREW THAT! 

NO CHANCE! I’m in charge of my own life!
It’s all on me!
I take responsibility. I take action. And I GET S**T DONE!

You will never hear me complain about another person or circumstance as the reason I’m not where I want to be.
If I don’t like where I am… 
Time to knuckle down and work harder!

I am a perfect reflection of the hard work or lack of work I put in. And luck, that only comes to those who have paid their dues.

If I am weak in a certain area, it won’t be for long.
Because I’m committed to be better. I will learn, I will read. I will make it happen. I will FIND A WAY.
I will WORK until that weakness is turned into a strength.

No one can beat me, because I don’t give up!
I’m RELENTLESS
You might knock me down, but I NEVER stay down!

It’s time to RISE.
RISE UP to your potential!
RISE UP past your limitations!
RISE UP past your family or friends limitations!

Set the standard for those around you!
Don’t conform to the standard, like a sheep. Get out and LEAD THE WAY!

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You will arise, so start by attempting to rise and you'll be a Rising Star in no time.

Suggested reading:
Courage to Act

Courage to act

Peter F. Drucker argues that “In every success story, you will find someone who has made a courageous decision.”

That decision is a processing thought of selecting a course of action. To do (despite your fear or pressure) or not to do. Courage is an attribute of good character that makes us worthy of respect.

Regardless if you are in management, lead or contributing members, you are are not exempted for making a decision.

In Pasti Nyala operation, there are plenty of decisions and actions to be taken, such as:

• to complete a task timely with good quality
• willing to spend the time to participate, observe, learn and share
• willing to commit to self-improvement
• taking challenges to be accountable for or take lead to be in charge of something
• to have the desire to be more competent
• learn to lead and show positive examples
• contribute to the cause

Let me give an example. Suppose Ms Heidi Hamilton is the Team Lead for a module called "Datapuri Human Resource Information System". Being a senior coder, Ms Heidi is expected to make sure that the module is free of defect. But having the courage to act, on her own accord, she could do even more, like, learning the HR industry (knowing the HR processes inside out), plan for upgrades, preparing marketing kits, helping in sales, support, you name it.


If you are somewhat in a senior position (either based on your position or length of service) and if you don't dare to decide (act), probably because of:

• not willing to spend extra time for the team
• well, my juniors will do the work
• I'm contented with my existing workload

then, expect the following:

• you will still be the same in time to come
• some young blood will be called in to deliver better outcomes, and 
• the team will be losing trust in you

If the above sound hash, then view it from this perspective. Being willing to act more, you will accomplish more:

• gain more knowledge for yourself and your team
• gain more trust and respect from your peers
• you become more reliable and competent in your workplace
• gain potential for rewards and incentives
• gain possibility of being selected in something greater
• you become a true leader that influence

If you are not bold enough to take the leap at the right moment than you might never reach the destination you aimed for. The road toward success may not be easy for everyone. Yours may be full of challenges. That is when you have to take the risk and make a bold decision. You may lose, or you may win, but you will never know if you don’t try.

The more you have followed your fears and acted despite of the discomfort you have felt, the more your life will have expanded.

So don’t wait for the courage to act. Instead: act, and courage will follow.

Put on your positive pants

Do you immediately get upset or discouraged by your non-stop work, your bossy manager or near-impossible clients? How do you react when you encountered unexpected setbacks and difficulties?

I have faced many setbacks and difficulties. It's part of my work hazard. Anyway, the way we tackled those issues at work or a home, help us form a view. That view could be a positive view or a negative view. That view or intent is yours and you can actually change it for the better if you desired so.

More often than not, I don't have a plan, I don't have an immediate solution to those problems, but I tried not to let is upset or affect it in any way but taking it for what it is and hopefully, I can learn something from it.

If you allow negativity to affect your personal outlook and ability to change things, it could hurt you in the long run.

Research indicates that Optimists and Pessimists approach a problem differently, and their ability to cope successfully with adversity differs as a result.

"The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The Leader adjusts the sails". - John Maxwell.

If at any moment you have a negative thought, try to battle it will positive thought. As you focus to carry that positive thought with you, it somehow grows within. Wear your positive pant and show just how good positivity can look by doing the simpler things like giving positive or motivational words to your fellow colleagues and friends.

Model that contentment and others will want to know just where you got that look. You can share your key to showing satisfaction with your life. Positive energy never goes out of style.

Put on your positive pants and get nice stuff done.


Related posts:
When you have passion, anything is possible
Respond less to negative people
Avoid Unhappy People

#positive #positivepants #yougotthis

What type of Procrastinator are you?

Does this sound all too familiar: deadlines are looming, nothing's been done, and you're binging on YouTube and Facebook. But putting off work doesn't mean that you're lazy. Procrastination reveals our hidden anxieties and self-destructive habits.

Daredevil: You like to live dangerously, only starting work when the deadline is looming. You think you show grace under pressure, but the end result is rushed work that's full of errors.
Tips: Get organized. Set yourself tighter deadlines and use the adrenaline rush productively while managing your team (or self) - self-regulate with penalties for not meeting these targets, e.g skip lunch, leave office late.

Self-Saboteur: You're your own worst enemy, putting obstacles in your path to stop yourself working. That way, you can say it's not your fault - rewarding yourself for a job left undone.
Tips: Plan for obstacles. List potential obstacles to getting things done ahead of time, and plan countermeasures, e.g: "Whenever I check Facebook, I take a short break."

Ostrich: You like to stick your head in the sand and ignore the tasks at hand - avoiding having to make decisions. If you don't make a decision, then you don't risk falling or being judged.
Tips: Self-talk confidently. Notice how you are talking to yourself when procrastinating. Think positively - instead of "I can't", say "I will".

Chicken: With so many choices, how are you supposed to decide? By the time you've made up your mind, it's too late. You feel like you may as well put it off and let someone else choose.
Tips: Swiss-cheese the big tasks. Handle the biggest tasks first by breaking them down into smaller manageable ones. Devote small amounts of time and achieve as much as you can in each to boost your momentum.

Perfectionist: You'll settle for nothing less than perfection - which is essentially impossible. You're ruled by what others think of you, delaying work until you can be sure other people won't criticize it.
Tips: Keep it real. Set yourself reasonable targets that you know you can manage and do your best to meet them. Perfection is impossible, but you can learn from mistakes.

source: additudemag

Forget pressure, think positive

Create meaningful, purposeful fulfilling lives for yourselves and learn how to use that to make an impact and a positive difference in the lives of others.



Related articles:

10 Things that require ZERO talent

Ask the right questions

TO thrive in a digital economy, we need to be innovative and creative, and that requires the habit of asking questions, the right one.

Making it a habit isn’t very hard, but sometimes we find ourselves unwilling to ask questions – perhaps because we don’t think it’s necessary (apathy) or we feel we know ‘enough’ (overconfidence), or we don’t want to appear rude, weak, ignorant and unsure (fear) by asking ‘stupid’ questions.

Yet, asking questions is essential in innovation and entrepreneurship because it’s an effective way to find and identify issues that would come to define the nature of our product, service, or overall business.

Moreover, as we become more dependent on technology in our daily lives, it’s always helpful to know how the apps or devices we use function aside from knowing the basics.

For instance, if we’re not sure how to maintain our smartphones, we can find out with questions such as “How do we ensure our phone is always in good condition?” or “Why do some apps consume more power and space?” or “How can we protect our phone from being hacked?” or "How to spot a phishing email?"

Beyond just answers, asking the right questions can bring about other benefits:

A better understanding

Asking a combination of open-ended and detailed questions can lead to answers that clarify your doubts about a process, situation or issue.

The more in depth these answers are, the clearer your understanding becomes, and that can improve your critical thinking, decision-making and problem-solving skills.

A more open mind

Making ‘questioning’ a habit, particularly when talking to people of different cultures and values, can broaden your knowledge, especially as you listen to their points of view without prejudgment.

This is also applicable to your tackling of new topics because it encourages new exploration and insight.

By keeping an open mind, your brain becomes more flexible, thereby enabling you to absorb and access information more easily.

A greater sense of empathy

Gaining new perspectives can also strengthen your empathy, particularly in being aware of the nature of professionals from different fields.

For example, non-IT individuals will be able to identify with IT professionals by considering their work function and process.

This is because, despite their highly technical proficiency, IT professionals need time to produce the likes of apps and software, given that these products don’t develop overnight.

A better lifelong learner

Above all, asking questions and finding answers constantly helps to boost your learning ability, and even enables you to be more aware of yourself.

This is due to your willingness to take the time to learn about a subject in depth, making you an active learner instead of a passive observer.

So, make it a habit to ask the right questions so that you can become a more capable individual.

10 Things that require ZERO talent

In most companies, staffs required some form of talent, usually technical talent to accomplish a task. Soft skill talents are also required to resolve certain issue for example, dealing with demanding customers, resolving complaints and so on.

However, no talent is required for staffs to comply or perform their duty as expected by the company or work policies. Below is a list of 10 things that required ZERO talent.

1. Being on time - being on time arriving at the office. being on time completing the assignment. don't give excuses of traffic jam. Wake up earlier or go to work earlier. Sleep early. Avoid mid-night lepaking. For timely assignment, don't delay.

2. Work Ethic - focus on your task and commit to complete it.

3. Effort - deliver a task with quality in mind. Sub-standard work equals partial effort.

4. Body Language - if you're genuine and honest, your body language won't lie.

5. Energy - stop wasting your energy on non-productive tasks, like mobile games, social networking, gossiping, surfing, etc.

6. Attitude - don't just promise that you are going to complete the assignment. Get it done.

7. Passion - been keen to learn and understand the business or operation. 

8. Being Coachable - be open to new ideas and better way of doing things. Keep note of important tips and how-to guides.

9. Doing Extra - whenever possible, volunteer to do extra.

10. Being Prepared - plan your work. Create and update your to-do list.

Effective Habits that will help you to be become more successful

Success can mean different things to different people but one common thing is that Success starts with you. Everything you do today is a result of your personality, your motivations, and your habits.

So it follows that, if you adopt a certain set of habits in life, you can make yourself be successful. Getting into the right mind-frame and having the right attitude will help you get there.

1. PLAN while others are playing.

2. SMILE while others are frowning.

3. BEGIN while others are procrastinating.

4. COMMEND while others are criticizing.

5. SAVE while others are wasting.

6. STUDY while others are sleeping.

7. DECIDE while others are delaying.

8. LISTEN while others are talking.

9. PREPARE while others are daydreaming.

10. WORK while others are wishing.

Growth mindset for building grit

In education, the one thing we know how to measure best is IQ. But what if doing well in school and in life (or work) depends on much more than your ability to learn quickly and easily?

A research team going around asking private companies, Who is successful here and why? Which of these salespeople is going to keep their jobs? And who's going to earn the most money? In all those very different contexts, one characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success. It wasn't good looks, physical health, and it wasn't IQ. It was grit.

Grit is passion and perseverance for a very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality.

Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint.

The most shock thing about grit is how little we know, how little science knows, about building it. "How do I build grit in my team members? What do I do to teach team members a solid work ethic? How do I keep them motivated for the long run?" The honest answer is, I don't know. What expert do know is that talent doesn't make you gritty. Their data show very clearly that there are many talented individuals who simply do not follow through on their commitments. Their data also revealed that grit is usually unrelated or even inversely related to measured of talent.

So for, the best idea about building grits in team members is something called "growth mindset". This is an idea developed at Standford University by Carol Dweck, and it is the belief that the ability to learn is not fixed, that is can change with your effort. Dr Dweck has shown that when people read and learn about the brain and how it changes and grows in response to challenge, they're much more likely to persevere when they failed, because they don't believe that failure is a permanent condition.

So growth mindset is a great idea for building grit. But we need more. And that's where I'm going to end my remarks because that's where we are. That's the work that stands before us. We need to take our best ideas, our strongest intuitions, and we need to test them. We need to measure whether we've been successful, and we have to be willing to fail, to be wrong, to start over again with lessons learned.

In other words, we need to be gritty about getting ourselves, our team members grittier.

Source: Angela L Duckworth


Here are 7 tips to foster grit for adults who aspire to grittiness, how to grow your own grit.

Tip #1: Encourage Practice

Even better, encourage challenging practice. Practice shouldn’t rehash a skill in which you’re already competent; aim for something one step above your current abilities. Practice makes perfect.

Tip #2: Praise Effort, Not Outcome

When we praise someone with, “Perfect!,” or “Great job,” their exertion dries up—there’s nowhere left to go. Instead, praise effort: “That must have taken a lot of work to be so great.” Or, “You worked really hard on that!”

Tip #3: Teach That Frustration and Confusion are Signs of Progress

The thoughts, “Frustration means it’s time to quit,” or “Since I’m confused, I probably can’t do it,” should be replaced with. “Getting frustrated is a normal part of learning something hard,” or “If I’m confused, that means I’m figuring it out.” Offer these re-frames when you hear those first exasperated sighs and grumbles of frustration.

Along the same lines, offer support, but don’t swoop in to rescue someone at the first sign of struggle. As long as eventual success is within reach, allow that person to labor over those stubborn logics or troublesome formula, and reinforce the struggle as a part of learning.

Tip #4: Teach Courage

Courage is closely aligned with grit. Courage isn’t merely doing challenging things--it’s being afraid, and then digging in your heels and trying anyway. In other words, fear is a prerequisite to courage. Right Cik Dayah?

To apply this, when your team member say they’re scared, tell them, “You can do scary things.” Then, the next time you need to submit that manuscript or get that mammogram, tell yourself the same.

Tip #5: Encourage Long-Term Commitment

The specific activity—accounting, bookkeeping, animation, JAVA coding —doesn’t matter as much as the effort. Let team member try out different activities until they find one they love and want to stick with. And by ‘try out,’ I don’t mean one lesson: ask them to hang in there for the season or the semester. If, after that, the activity really isn’t a match for them, don’t re-register--but do ask them to try something else. Right Mr Sim?

Tip #6: The Growth Mindset

This concept has been all over popular psychological science recently, but it bears repeating.

In short, in a fixed mindset, people believe that their intelligence or abilities are set traits that render them successes or failures, regardless of effort. However, in a growth mindset, adult learn that their intelligence or abilities can be developed through—you guessed it—gritty hard work and perseverance.

So, teach your team member that the brain is like a muscle: the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Initial failures and struggles are just the brains pumping iron on the way to success.

Tip #7:  Grit Won’t Apply to Every Situation

Adults won’t be particularly gritty at something they hate. So don’t overstate grit as the cure for hating English lesson or hating accounting —grit is about hanging in there for the passion, not about, “you’re going to do it no matter what, and you’re going to like it.” Passion increases grit, but grit allows adults to pursue their passion. What is your passion Pasti Nyalain?

Keep Calm and Be Ohsome

Every now and then, I get a message that my staff has an outburst with the client, supervisor and fellow colleagues. Yeah, sometimes I feel that I'm the Head Of Complaint Department in Pasti Nyala.

If you were at the receiving end, did you insist or demand? Are you being pushy in the first place? Being aggressive can create friction and trigger the other party outburst. Or you were reminded of certain tasks and you gave excuses of not delivering it on time or with the expected result. Did you know that every time you slack out, your supervisor get increasingly frustrated with your performance?

If you were the one that blows up, my advice is to recall what happened and how it could have been avoided, only if you were patience then. There's no point being stress out and blurted out bad words, cause human tend to remember negative things. It gives a bad impression. And from my past experience, NO PRESSURE NO DIAMOND.  Google that by the way. It wouldn't be work if there is no pressure. Pressure keep you on your toes and that's the best way to learn quickly.

I have been in so many stressful fire fighting (resolving crisis after crisis) situations. Have rescued a few bad projects. All due to people issue (like management issues, planning issue, incompetent team mates, etc). Don't let the pressure consume you, just deal the issues one at a time.

Below is an article that suggests some excellent ways to keep your composure at work.

Leaders need to show more composure than ever before in the workplace.   With the change management requirements, increased marketplace demands and intensifying competitive factors that surround us, leaders must have greater poise, agility and patience to minimize the impact of uncertainty.   How leaders respond to these and other growing pressures is an indicator of their leadership preparedness, maturity and acumen.

The composure of a leader is reflected in their attitude, body language and overall presence. In today’s evolving business environment, it is clear that leadership is not only about elevating the performance, aptitude and development of people – but more so about the ability to make people feel safe and secure. Employees have grown tired of working in survival mode and thus want to be part of a workplace culture where they can get back to doing their best work without the fear of losing their jobs.

I worked with a colleague that lacked composure and was always in a panic. Though he had tremendous credentials, he lacked the ability to remain calm and thus often made his employees feel uneasy. His leadership role was just too big for what he was capable of handling. He was often too dramatic and the smallest of problems launched him into crisis management mode.

Needless to say, his wasn’t an effective leadership that could deal with real crisis and change. Because he was unable to reinvent himself and adapt to the unexpected, his tenure was short-lived.

The 21st century leader sees adversity through the lens of opportunity.

Rather than panic, a leader with composure takes a step back and begins to connect the dots of opportunity within adverse circumstances. These types of leaders quickly detect the causes of adversity and solve for them immediately.

They then enable the opportunities previously unseen that could have avoided the adversity, to begin with. Many times crisis results when composure is missing.

The next time a problem arises, ask yourself if you or your leader could have shown a greater sense of composure and avoided the problem from surfacing.

When leading – especially during times of uncertainty and adversity, crisis and change – you must avoid showing any signs of leadership immaturity or lack of preparedness that will make your employees feel unsafe and insecure. Here are seven ways to maintain leadership composure during the most pressure-packed moments:

1.  Don’t Allow Your Emotions to Get in the Way

Seasoned leaders know not to wear their emotions on their sleeves. They don’t yell or get overly animated when times get tough.  These types of leaders have such emotional self-control that even their body language does not give them away.

When you allow your emotions to get in the way, employees interpret this as a sign you are not being objective enough and too passionate about the situation at hand.  Strong-willed leaders can maintain their composure and still express concern and care, but not to the point that their emotions become a distraction – or that they can’t responsibly handle the issues at hand.

2.  Don’t Take Things Personally

Leaders shouldn’t take things personally when things don’t go their way.   Business decisions and circumstances don’t always play out logically because office politics and other dynamics factor into the process.    As a leader, remain calm and don’t get defensive or think that you always must justify your thinking and actions.

When you begin to take things personally, it’s difficult to maintain your composure and make those around you believe that you have things under control.  In fact, when leaders take issues too close to heart, they allow the noise and politics around them to suffocate their thinking and decision-making capabilities.

3.  Keep a Positive Mental Attitude

Employees are always watching their leader’s actions, behavior, relationships and overall demeanor.   During the most difficult of times, leaders must maintain a positive mental attitude and manage a narrative that keeps their employees inspired and hopeful.  This is where your leadership experience and resolve  can really shine – by staying strong, smiling often and authentically exhibiting a sense of compassion.

Leaders set the tone for the organization they serve.   A positive attitude can neutralize chaos and allow a leader to course correct through any negativity.

Employees feed off the attitude of these leaders during times of uncertainty.   Keep a positive mental attitude and never stop moving forward.  Stay focused on building positive momentum for the betterment of the healthier whole.

4.  Remain Fearless

When leaders project confidence, they instill it in others.  During uncertain times, leaders must remain fearless and project a cool persona that communicates composure to those they lead.

I’ve been through ups and downs in my career and have learned that when you begin to fear adverse circumstances, you not only put yourself in a position of vulnerability, but it becomes extremely difficult to act rationally and objectively. When you panic, you mentally freeze and your mind loses focus.

When you begin to get fearful, ask yourself:  What is the worst possible thing that can happen?  If you are objective about it and have the will and confidence to face it, you will eventually realize that the situation is manageable and can be resolved.  Faced with adversity several times over, your fears will eventually vanish and uncertainty will become your best friend.

5.  Respond Decisively

Leaders who maintain their composure will never show any signs of doubt.  They speak with conviction, confidence and authority – whether they know the answer or not!  With their delivery alone,  they give their employees a sense that everything is under control.

Recently, Mack Brown, the former coach of the University of Texas (UT) football team, was put under a lot of pressure to resign as a result of his team underperforming in 2013.  Though the University handled his forced resignation poorly  – considering Mr. Brown had coached the team successfully for the past 16 years – his decisiveness the day he announced his resignation made you feel that his transition out of the job was a positive thing for the university.  Human nature will tell you that he must have been hurting inside, but his decisiveness and presence of mind made those that were watching him speak believe that the future looked bright for UT football.

6.  Take Accountability

Leaders are most composed during times of crisis and change when they are fully committed to resolving the issue at hand.   When you are accountable, this means that you have made the decision to assume responsibility and take the required steps to problem solve before the situation gets out of hand.

When leaders assume accountability, they begin to neutralize the problem and place the environment from which it sprung on pause – much like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie did when he announced that he did not have any prior knowledge of the decision his aides made to close down access lanes to the George Washington Bridge.  Though there may be legal woes to come, the manner in which he handled the initial news conference (temporarily) neutralized the crisis – as he answered all of the reporters’ questions and took full responsibility and accountability to punish the perpetrators and keep something like this from happening again.

7.  Act Like You Have Been There Before

Great leaders know that one of the most effective ways to maintain composure during difficult times is to act like you have been there before.   Leaders that act to show they have been through the problem solving process numerous times before are those with strong executive presence who approach the matter at hand with a sense of elegance and grace. They are patient, they are active listeners, and they will genuinely take a compassionate approach to ease the hardships that anyone else is experiencing.

Just ask any technical support representative.  When you are on the phone with them, their job is to make you feel that even your most difficult challenges can be easily resolved. They are there to calm you down and give you hope that your problem will soon be solved. Pay attention to their demeanor and how they are masters at soothing your frustrations.  They always act to show that they have been there before; their composure puts your mind at ease.

It’s easy to lose composure during times of crisis and change if you let concern turn into worry and worry turn into fear.  By maintaining composure, the best leaders remain calm, cool and in control – enabling them to step back, critically evaluate the cards that they have been dealt and face problems head-on.  A show of composure also puts those you lead at ease and creates a safe and secure workplace culture where no one need panic in the face of adversity.

As the saying goes, “Keep Calm and Be Ohsome!"

Source: Forbes

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