Want to Increase Your Bottom Line?

My article Increase Your Bottom Line Through Referrals is referenced on the blog, SuperPerformance, by C.S. Clarke, Ph.D.guest article I published today on Superperformance.com is Increase Your Bottom Line Through Referrals

Clark says:

The guest article I published today on Superperformance.com is Increase Your Bottom Line Through Referrals by Susan Dunn. Susan talks in detail about how to get referrals and other word-of-mouth promotion to build your business. She specifically refers to coaching and therapy practices, but what she says applies to every kind of small business.

Call me for coaching - 817-741-7223, or email me @ sdunn@susandunn.cc . You can't afford not to!

EQ- and the Job Interview

LET ME GUIDE YOU THROUGH THE FOG

Interviewing for jobs? Looking for a new job? Just moved to a new location?

Of course you know to prepare. Yes, be able to answer "What's a problem that happened on the job and what how did you handle it?" and "Tell me about yourself."

We all know those pretty well by now!

But considering that most people form their impression of you in the first 30 SECONDS, there's another little bit of homework you need to do.

Especially if you're new to an area ... and you can really consider any new job environment a "new area."

One of the most important areas you could research is to find out how the people dress.

FROM TODAY'S MAILBAG:

Susan, I just moved to the Dallas Fort Worth area. I didn't know
there was a rivalry between the two. I started out working at a firm in
Dallas, but the commute (4 hours a day) was too long. So I tried Fort
Worth. When I walked in for my interview, dressed like I did in Dallas, the woman said, "We don't dress like that here." It seems in Fort Worth you wear some color, and in Dallas, black is fine.

Later I had a temp job. The receptionist told me they liked most
temps, but they did get rid of one. "We just couldn't stand the way she
dressed."

The next interview in Fort Worth I thought I'd done better but it turned out long hair is also "out". The man interviewing me looked at me, then turned to the other woman in the room, who had that shaved hair cut, and said, "I like your hair." That was a slam.

What do I do???? I need a job and I'm stuck between these two cities.

Do your research in this area. It's best to "fit in" as well as you can. Look up the place on the Internet and check out the dress code. Talk to people you know who might know. Go for the middle of the road, neutral look.

You might even go so far as to keep some things in your purse - a set of plain pearl earrings and then gold loops. You will usually have some time between your entrance and the time you meet with the interviewer to get the lay of the land. Like when you sit in the receptionist area. Use this time wisely, to look around and see how things are. Adjust accordingly.

For coaching, call me at 817-741-7223. I'm here to help.

Also ask for me ebook, "Acing the NEW Job Interview." Email me to order.

Emotional Intelligence, a transformational tool

Emotional Intelligence ... it isn't about IQ v. EQ, it's about integrating, consciously, how you think, feel, and act. It can be a powerful transformational tool. It's important to realize that as you start this journey (take the EQ Course, or full program, including coaching with me), you will experience some discomfort. Part of this is the energy is takes to become "aware."

For instance, just consider what it would be like to be tuning in to your feelings all day long ... you probably are not used to that, and it would cause some jolts in your day. For instance, consider if you were dissatisfied with the performance of an employee and it made you angry. If you default mode has been to just yell at the person, and instead, you stop and think about different responses you could make, different alternatives, your procedure will be slower.

It could however, be far more productive in the end.

Most of the tenets of emotional intelligence, once you have learned about them and practised them will become nearly automatic, and things will move faster and more smoothly.

Any transformation takes time, and also there is a period of two steps forward and three steps back.

I invite you to give it a try!

Spitzer, Hubris and Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence, Spitzer ... and self-sabotage

According to article on bloomberg.com - go here for full article.

``It's another instance in which a very smart, very powerful man brings himself down through his own hubris,'' said William Cunningham, a political consultant who worked on the senior staffs of former Democratic New York Governors Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo. ``We have seen it with Richard Nixon, we've seen it with Bill Clinton, very successful people who think they have their own set of rules, and self-inflict their own wounds.''

Good time to learn more about emotional intelligence? Take THE EQ COURSE. Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc for more information. The current demand is overloading my email capacity, so please keep trying until your email gets through. I'm adding more amp as we speak.

HUBRIS - another word for self-sabotage, and lack of self-awareness.

If you don't know the meaning and roots of the word hubris ask me about my mythology course. There are some words that simply stand for all time.

Definition of Low Emotional Intelligence

BAD BOSS BEHAVIOR
Meet the Bosses Who Could Win the ‘Awful"
By Alan L. Rupe
When bad boss behavior occurs, it generally happens in an atmosphere in which the law is ignored, company policy is ignored and the line separating good business practices from boorish conduct—and often unlawful conduct—is crossed. A dose of stupidity, mixed with a larger dose of arrogance—that’s the formula for winning an Awful Award.

To read the article, go to www.workplace.com .

A good working definition of low emotional intelligence is "a dose of stupidity mixed with a larger dose of arrogance." It's the arrogance that keeps the person from realizing they're acting stupid, i.e., doing things that don't work, that alienate other people, and that eventually can sabotage one's career.

If you'd like to learn more, email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc for my various effective, efficient and outstanding Emotional Intelligence programs - there's one to fit your needs. Just ask me.

sdunn@susandunn.cc

How is your cultural EQ?

Low cultural IQ could hijack your career

A new quiz may determine whether you will shine on the global stage or cause an international incident

From Monday's Globe and Mail, February 25, 2008 at 9:31 AM EST - go here for full article.

From the article"

You get anxious in unfamiliar situations. You can't stand not knowing what is coming next. You hate it when people keep you waiting.

You may have a career-threatening cultural IQ.

In addition to other indicators of ability, such as social intelligence and emotional intelligence, employers are now paying more attention to the cultural intelligence of their staff, as workplaces become increasingly diverse and companies conduct more business abroad. Yet most people don't know how they measure up.

To learn more about EQ - cultural, spiritual, mental and emotional, take THE EQ COURSE. Email me for information at sdunn@susandunn.cc .

Be Friendly at Work - not Friends?

Great article on RevolutionHealth about Knowing Your Boundaries at Work.

Excerpts ...

Understanding co-workers' skills can be powerful — knowing their scuttlebutt can be problematic.

"Your ability to carry a conversation is crucial in building
relationships with fellow employees, but boundaries must exist," says Susan Morem, a Minneapolis-based business consultant...The border separating professional and personal relationships isn't easy to patrol, especially at smaller, informal offices ... [b]ut conversational boundaries help to determine the reputation of an employee and staff. Simply put, boundaries preserve integrity."

Beware of feeling informal ... "There's generally no clear rule
about where to draw the line, so a good rule of thumb is to avoid issues that might make someone uncomfortable."

"Refrain from gossip," Morem advises. "Remember: Those who talk to you about others will also talk about you to others."

Morem says most gossip and other inappropriate conversations occur in places that feel informal, such as elevators, hallways and bathrooms. But co-workers should never get the false sense of security that they're off duty in these locations.

"It's better to pretend your personal microphone is always on. Don't
say something if you don't want it heard or repeated."

While it's natural for employees to show interest in one another's
lives, someone has to be courageous enough to cut off a co-worker when warranted.

Just as informal places can get co-workers into trouble, so can seemingly informal methods of communication. {Like email)

Forge office friendships with care "Make sure you know and completely trust this kind of co-worker friend."

Expect boundary differences

Because those differences are widespread and co-workers' boundaries are subjective, office humor is risky.

If a co-worker says something that offends or upsets you, try to respond instead of react. "Reaction is immediate and emotional. When we react to something, we are more likely to say or do things we might later regret," Morem says. "A response is planned and controlled, and it leads to fewer communication issues."

THIS IS ALL ABOUT EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE. See yourself headed for troubles? Constantly having the same problems? Get a crash course from me on the landmines. One-time and long-term coaching consultation.

Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc .

Take The Difficult People Course - it helps! Email for information.

Go HERE to read the full article.

Ray Garrett, SEC, showed Emotional Intelligence

email me at susandunn@live.com

RAY GARRETT, JR. former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Emotional Intelligence is crucial to leadership.


Read this letter written by Harvey Pitt Ray Garrett, Jr., Chairman of the SEC, 1973-75.

"He gave so much, that one can only hope he received at least half of what he gave." Is there a boss you've had that you would say that about? Do your employees talk about you that way?

Ray Garrett, Jr.: A Remembrance
by Harvey L. Pitt


It is difficult to believe or accept that Ray Garrett, Jr. has died, in the prime of his life, and at the top of his career. For those who were privileged to know him, the very mention of his name evokes images of unparalleled vivacity and boundless energy - he possessed an incredible zest for life. These facts of Ray's personality make it impossible to depict in words Ray's spirit, warmth and humanity; but, despite his untimely death, it is important that his memory, and his ideals and values, should live on after him, and be cherished. This brief reflection of some of Ray's qualities is, I hope, a modest start in that direction.


While Ray was, most assuredly, a multifaceted individual, there is a natural tendency for most of us to think principally of his Commission activities. The Commission was fortunate to have had two separate tours of duty from Ray - once in the 1950's, when he served first as Associate Executive Director and later as Director of the Commission's Division of Corporate Regulation, and once more recently, from 1973 to 1975, when Ray honored the Commission by becoming its Chairman. It was as Chairman that I first came to know Ray. It took only a few weeks until I felt as if I had known him my entire life. I respected Ray as a teacher, and I loved him as a father. He was a very special person.


The period of Ray's Chairmanship was tumultuous and difficult. The political environment in Washington at the time was taking on crisis proportions, and some of the external developments unfortunately reached the SEC. In keeping with his personal style, Ray neither coveted nor sought the Chairmanship. His family, with whom he was extraordinarily close, lived largely in Chicago. His law firm, also located in Chicago was, together with his bar commitments, the center of his professional activities. While others actively sought the job, Ray turned the President's requests down twice, before he finally agreed to assume the Chairmanship on the President's third request. Typically, it was an appeal to Ray's sense of loyalty to the Commission, and his sense of patriotism to the Country, that finally prevailed...


Ray's external accomplishments as Chairman were impressive - among other things, he spearheaded the move to unfix commission rates, he shepherded the drafting and revision of the 1975 amendments to the Securities Exchange Act, he presided over the development of Stan Sporkin's now-heralded management fraud program, he commenced the Commission's recently-culminated examination of beneficial ownership and takeover regulations, he spurred the development of important new accounting and disclosure concepts (such as differential disclosure) and, perhaps more importantly, he served as Commander-in-Chief for the Commission's successful war on the attempt to exile us all to Buzzard's Point.


It is, however, Ray's internal accomplishments as Chairman that seem most important now. By word, by deed, and by his presence, he promoted intellectual independence and professional excellence. No voice was too far down the ladder to be heard; he had time for everyone. He sought out and welcomed diverse points of view, yet he attempted to shape a consensus. He encouraged staff participation in the formation of all Commission policies. Debates at the "Table" were exciting and erudite - it was a time for both scholarship and pragmatism; a time for airing all viewpoints without caustics or public dissent and dissension. He never sought to exercise the "prerogatives" of the Chair - he viewed himself as one among five equals, but everyone knew he had no equal.


He deferred to his fellow Commissioners, and they, in turn, deferred to him. They laughed at themselves and laughed with, but never at, each other. No man possessed a greater mastery of the art of "collegiality" than did Ray. Time and again, I observed him subordinating his own views to those of this fellow Commissioners, not because he thought their views right, necessarily, but because, as he was fond of saying, "it's important for the Chairman to lose too."
By example, Ray taught courtesy, patience, respect and restraint. I never heard him raise his voice, but I could quickly tell mostly by facial content and measured words, when his patience had been tried. He was not afraid to be wrong, but it seems as if he seldom was. He never forgot that he was once a member of the staff and, as a result, his commitment to the staff was great - every major appointment during his tenure came from within the agency, without favoritism or politics. He fought for the appointment of Irv Pollack, a career SEC servant, to the five-member Commission, and he appointed Stan Sporkin to replace him. Bob Davenport succeeded Don Stocking in Denver, and I became the agency's General Counsel. Kathie McGrath and Anne Jones, who unsuccessfully attempted to reform Ray of his chauvinistic tendencies, became Executive Assistant and Director of Investment Management, respectively. Only the merits counted with Ray. He had no tolerance for indolence or superficiality. But he recognized and accepted human limitations, including the few he could claim as his own.


Ray was kind, fair, smart, loving and, above all else, a good person, but stating these qualities hardly scratches the surface. His sense of perspective - the ability not to take himself too seriously - was refreshing and awesome. He loved life, and lived it to the fullest. He gave so much, that one can only hope he received at least half of what he gave. And, he loved the Commission and was loyal to it, from both inside and out. He never criticized or attacked the agency, and he defended its records and goals, including some that were set during his tenure, but over his objection. He was, above all else, a member as well as the captain of the team, and he did not sulk when others got their way.


Ray was embarrassed by praise and rank emotional adoration, but he surely could not criticize my reliance on his own words to sum up what Ray means to all of us who have worked, or currently do work, at the Commission. In 1974, on the occasion of our 40th Anniversary Celebration, Ray said:

"It would be far more satisfying if we could have with us some of the wonderful people that have built this agency and on whose legacy we thrive. For many of us, that is what we are really remembering and dreaming of. But we must do the best
we can. And the best is to honor their memory and keep alive the strong tradition of honor, professional excellence, anddevotion to the public interest that is our heritage."

It would be more than "satisfying" to have Ray back, but we cannot will it so. We thrive, however, on Ray's legacy. He was the best, and his life and accomplishments are inspirational. In honoring Ray and his memory, we honor ourselves and those who will come after us.



From Garrett Family personal papers

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How to Get What you Want

Ram Dass, spiritual teacher, author and professor said:

"The most exquisite paradox ... as soon as you give it all up, you can have it all. As long as you want power, you can't have it. The minute you don't want power, you'll have more than you ever dream possible."

Let me show you how, what, when why and where to "give it all up." It's what I do - coaching you, so you can get what you want. My specialty is STRATEGY.

Email for free mini-coaching session, sdunn@susandunn.cc\ and mention this offer.

Take THE EQ COURSE - anger management, emotional intelliegence, better relationships, more success at work. Why not give this course to a friend or loved one for Christmas? Email me and I will send a beautiful ift card.

I work all holidays.
Take THE DIFFICULT PEOPLE COURSE now and be prepared for the holidays, because .... guess who's coming to dinner? There are all sorts of testimonials on my website about these courses. They really work.


Find me on MySpace and be my friend!

10 Barriers to Clear Perception and Smart Choices (which EQ can remedy)

10 Barriers to Clear Perception and Smart Choices (which EQ can remedy)

"Everything is self-evident," said Rene Descartes, mathematician and philosopher.

Everything is self-evident if you have high emotional intelligence and are good at reality-testing. If you're clouded with emotions, stuck in the past, inflexible, inauthentic, or inept at verbal and nonverbal communication, alas, everything is not self-evident.

When you develop your emotional intelligence, and the ability to understand and manage your emotions and those of others, you see things clearly. You can avoid the following pitfalls to accurate perception and smart choices:

1. How you WISH things were.
2. How you think things SHOULD be.
3. Believing that how things have always been in the past is the way they are now, and ever will be.
4. Assumptions about situations in-the-moment which seem at the surface level to be similar to experiences and people in the past. Assumptions always need to be checked out.
5. Your persona or inauthentic, unintegrated self, which shifts according to mood, emotion, person and situation leaving you without compass or anchor.
6. Your ability to delude yourself because of lack of self-knowledge.
7. Self-sabotaging because of lack of self-knowledge, self-management and low EQ.
8. Fear, anger, jealousy and other strong emotions which distort thinking.
9. Hearing what you WANT to hear or NEED to hear instead of what's actually being said. Failing to take into account the other person's nonverbal behavior.
10. Distortion from relying on other people's perceptions of reality and/or "catching" their emotions.

IN SUM: We are our emotions. They influence our perception of reality. The more you understand yourself and your own emotions, the better you can understand their effect upon your perceptions of reality and manage them so you can make smart choices.

Emotional Intelligence, being able to process your emotions, means understanding which of your three brains is operating (reptilian, limbic or neocortex), and which brain[s] you need to be in. Emotions guide us and give us information, but sometimes we need to get to the neocortex to make the decision. For instance, you may be angry and feel like hitting someone, but your "thinking brain" will tell you this isn't a wise course of action. By the same token, you may love someone (limbic) while your neocortex keeps giving you reasons not to.

The most important decisions generally need to be made with both the heart and the mind. Here are some examples.

DELUDING YOURSELF
If you strongly desire to like the person you're dealing with, or if you have a need to like them, you may miss what's actually going on. This is what's happened when you hear someone repeat an anecdote, saying, "He did [something mean] BUT HE'S REALLY A NICE PERSON." It's clear to you the person mentioned is NOT "a nice person," because nice people don't do things like that, and you wonder how the person telling you the anecdote can be so mislead.

Another good example is one I read on a Russian bride website. It was giving advice to the male suitors re: such important factors as wanting or not wanting to have children. They cautioned that because the need of the Russian woman to come to the US might be so strong, she would delude the man, because she had truly deluded herself. She would say what the man wanted to hear even if she didn't mean it.

How do you guard yourself against such disillusionment? High EQ, time, reflection, feedback, intuition, and understanding people and their emotions.

HEARING WHAT YOU NEED OR WANT TO HEAR
This can happen when the outcome is very important to you. If it's with a loved one, you may fear rejection or loss and therefore your emotions interfere with what you're hearing. Someone who's been rejected a lot, for instance, will read things into what they're hearing, finding rejection in places where it doesn't exist.

Because of their emotional state, they may jump to conclusions that aren't warranted, or over-react. For instance, if their partner tells them "I don't like it when you talk that way to my mother (which is a behavior which can be changed)," they may hear, "I don't love you" (which is a condemnation of you as a person). This sort of distortion is why it's good to repeat back what you think you've heard in heated discussions where the outcome is important. If you say, "Let me make sure I understood what you said. You said you're angry because I..." this gives the other person the opportunity to clarify what they said or meant, and to correct your misperceptions. This is vital to good communication.

It's common with couples for each person to correct the other saying, "But that's not what you meant" or "That's not what you said." There's never a place for this. By checking it out with the person you give them a chance to self-correct, to correct you, and to establish clear communication about important things.

SELF-SABOTAGE
If you aren't clear about what brain is working, i.e., reptilian, limbic or neocortex, you can do yourself in. One reason coaching is helpful is because it can help you clarify what you're really after, and what fears and obstacles you're throwing in your own path. If you want something but never seem to be able to attain it, it could be that you fear success, or fear failure, or aren't clear about what you want. An example would be wanting to marry someone because you love them (limbic) but talking yourself out of it (neocortex) because your best friend doesn't like him. Your best friend may or may not be perceiving correctly, and is certainly entitled to their opinion, but they aren't the person who will be marrying this man, you are. Therefore you need to get centered in your own feelings and perceptions.

DISTORTION FROM "CATCHING" EMOTIONS
Emotions are contagious. We vary in our ability to protect ourselves from "catching" them, and in our ability to stay centered in our own emotions.

An example of this happened to me the other day. I told a friend I was planning to drive from San Antonio to Houston to pick up my sister at the Houston airport for us to continue on to a vacation in Alabama. Her flight would arrive at Houston International and we both had cell phones. I planned to pick her up out front. It seemed simple enough to me, but the person I related this to said it was "very difficult" and not to try it.

I checked it out with a third person who travels through the Houston airport all the time to find out what on earth the first friend was getting at. The third person said "Just be sure and bring at least $4 worth of quarters for the tollway, and aside from that, there should be no problem."
It turned out I had no trouble whatsoever. When I checked back in with the first person, he was incredulous. If I had listened to his perception of reality, I wouldn't have done something that was actual quite easy to do. I'm sure you can think of many examples in your own life.

This is another situation coaching is good for. People tend to bring their own fears into advice-giving, and think about what they would do and how they would feel instead of being able to see if from your point of view. Whatever your goal, whatever you have in mind, there is someone out there who would be afraid of it.

Whether you want to be an entrepreneur, or marry someone from another culture, move to a Caribbean Island, or write a novel, or bungee jump, there is someone to whom this is a frightening thing who will do their best to discourage you because of their own feelings about it.

Developing your Emotional Intelligence has many benefits. Give it a try! Most people get immediate results and realize immediate improvements in their lives.

Take The EQ Course to learn more, and sign up coaching. Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc .
Find out why emotional intelligence is so popular. (It's not just a passing fad.)

Employee Loyalty: It's all about Emotional Intelligence

You know your employees' points of pain and you know what makes them happy ... begins this article by a true visionary. "If you use this information to meet the special needs of your employees," Ty Freyvogel says, "and even surprise them with a few extra perks, you will be able to build strong relationships with them -- and they, in turn, will be willing to go the extra mile for you."

What's the #1 thing employees want? All studies say "acknowledgement and appreciation."

This article "Operation Employee Loyalty: 12 Ways Small Business Owners Can Ensure Their Best Employees Never Want to Leave" is so full of emotional intelligence.

Here are a few of Freyvogel's gems:

Every entrepreneur knows the hectic lifestyle that comes along with starting and running a company. (Heck, most of us live for the craziness!) But have you ever considered how this work schedule affects your employees?

If too many such days come and go without any acknowledgement from you, you can bet they’ll be handing out their resumes all over town. And since your employees make or break your business, you must keep your best ones around.

Small business owners may feel that they are at a disadvantage compared to CEOs of large corporations precisely because of the lack of deep pockets. Nothing is further from the truth. Because they work so closely with their employees, rather than being separated by layers of bureaucracy, it is easy for them to get to know their employees well.

Provide them with much-deserved time off.

Another option is to set up a compressed work week for your staff so that they get time off at the end of the week.

Give them bonuses at critical times. Presumably, you work closely with your employees and know a lot about their lives outside of the work. Act on this knowledge in ways that benefit them exactly when they need it most. If one of your employees has a new baby or a sick spouse or child, a bonus will help ease the financial burden during these times. She will appreciate your concern for her and her family’s well being.

Constantly recognize a job well done. Everyone likes to be told they've done a good job on something.

Read the full article here: Operation Employee Loyalty: Twelve Ways Small Business Owners Can Ensure Their Best Employees Never Want To Leave CustomerThink

Learn more about emotional intelligence with The EQ Course.

Emotional Intelligence and Success in Business

People who consider emotional intelligence to be a "soft" skill are taking a second look. It can lead to hard results, of the kind you look for in business.

Experts argue that E.I. directly impacts productivity and profits. For example: Richard Boyatzis, professor and chairman of the organizational behavior department at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, assessed the senior partners in a multinational consultancy and found that those who exhibited E.I. competencies more frequently delivered over $1 million more in annual profits from their accounts than did other senior partners.

From "Management Skills," http://www.cio.com/

The best way to 'learn' emotional intelligence, to increase yours, is coaching. You can't just read about it, and if you knew how to put it in to practice, you would already be doing that because the results are so beneficial.

Is Emotional Intelligence Just the Fad du Jour?

Is Emotional Intelligence Just the Fad du Jour?

OR IS IT THE KEY (Click on link to read full article)

QUOTES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

“Top leaders are getting in touch with their emotions and those of their staff as intuition and emotional intelligence become the hottest management buzzwords.” (Australia)

“Let me leave you with the million Ringgit question,” writes a Malaysian consultant. “Is it imperative to measure our emotional intelligence and take appropriate steps to bridge our EI gaps? Only you can decide. I rest the case with you.”

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN EQ IS LOW?

It’s expensive in terms of lost money, opportunity, time, relationships, promotions, careers, projects, goals, accomplishments, self-esteem, marriages, physical and emotional health, and even life.

– 75% of careers are derailed for reasons related to emotional competencies
– 70% of the reasons why customers and clients are lost are EQ-related
– 50% of time wasted in business is due to lack of trust
– Seniors get worse in hospitals when the physical therapists don’t engage with them
– Counseling clients fail to change because their counselors lack empathy or optimism
– 50% of marriages fail
– Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for youths aged 15-24 in the US
– Think this is because of industrialized society? Think again. Samoa has the highest suicide rate in the world.
– Impulsive boys are 3-6x as likely to be violent adolescents
– Low levels of empathy predict poor school performance
– Gifted children manifest a near “blindness” to social cues which leads to isolated and sad childhoods
– Doctors with poor EQ skills get sued more
– 75-90% of visits to primary care physicians in the US are due to stress-related problems
– Pessimists live shorter, unhealthier, unhappier, lives, and are less likely to achieve their potential than optimists
– College students in a study with the same IQ and GPA who did not write down their career goals with Intentionality were 50% less successful 15 years later
– Perfectionism is potent. Perfectionists produce better work, get better grades, get enormous positive feedback. Perfectionists also have a markedly higher suicide rate.

How to Write CVs and Cover Letters

THESE ARE TAKEN FROM REAL CVs AND COVER LETTERS
I have lurnt Word Perfect 6.0 computor and spreasheet pogroms.

Am a perfectionist and rarely if if ever forget details.

Received a plague for Salesperson of the Year.

Wholly responsible for two (2) failed financial institutions.

Reason for leaving last job: maturity leave.

Failed bar exam with relatively high grades.

It's best for employers that I not work with people.

Let's meet , so you can 'ooh' and 'aah' over my experience.

I was working for my mom until she decided to move.

Marital status: single. Unmarried. Unengaged. Uninvolved. No commitments.

I have an excellent track record, although I am not a horse.

I am loyal to my employer at all costs....Please feel free to respond to my resume on my office voice mail.

My goal is to be a meteorologist. But since I possess no training in meteorology, I suppose I should try stock brokerage.

I procrastinate, especially when the task is unpleasant.

Personal interests: donating blood. Fourteen gallons so far.

Instrumental in ruining entire operation for a Midwest chain store.

Note: Please don't misconstrue my 14 jobs as 'job-hopping'. I have never quit a job.

Marital status: often. Children: various.

The company made me a scapegoat, just like my three previous employers.

Finished eighth in my class of ten.

References: none. I've left a path of destruction behind me.

_______________________________

Too funny. But not really. I can't help but comment that this one It's best for employers that I not work with people. is perfectly written, logical, and intelligent (IQ), and just has that real touch of low EQ combined with high IQ one sometimes sees -- naive, "true," unaware of the import of what he/she is saying.

Ah well, forgive me, this is an Emotional Intelligence site and sometimes I have to put in a segue.

WHAT'S NEW AROUND HERE?
The Budget EQ Course - an EQ certification is so obviously a good thing to include on your resume or CV, we've created a budget version. Just as good, and fast, effective and affordable. Now there's no excuse not to take it. GO HERE.

Business Emotional Intelligence

BUSINESS EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Makes some good points.

Be the kind of person people want to be around.
Get along with IT and the other people who can help you do your job.
If you want to impress, come in early, don't stay late. The perception of the ones who come early is always good. The perception of those who stay late is not always good.

Interesting, take a look and let me know what you think.



For a broader look at what he's talking about, take THE EQ COURSE or get career EQ coaching. Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc . I work with people all over the world - distance is not a problem. User-friendly.

Paolo Pieri, FD of lastminute.com says Learn about Emotional Intelligence

Profile: Paolo Pieri, FD of lastminute.com - Accountancy Age

Paolo Piero FD of an online company says:

Be emotional: If you have the opportunity to learn about emotional intelligence, do so. It enables you to find the optimum way to interact with all types of people in order to get the best results.

‘Working with very senior people can make you feel intimidated or inspired, depending on how your emotional intelligence is developed. It’s a good skill to identify as it’s a real differentiator. Other more technical skills are great to have but are often taken as a given.’

You have a chance to learn about emotional intelligence here. Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc for more information on this exciting program that can amp your career and relationships in ways you can't imagine.

Examining the alpha male at work

Examining the alpha male at work - CNN.com

As an early-adopter of EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EQ) I was thrilled to see this article. I, too, have studied the alpha male - - from the vantage point of EQ v. IQ.

Each of the 4 types of alpha males (commander, visionary, strategist, and executor) has its downside, says this article on cnn.com's CareerBuilder, and, most interestingly, the climate is changing -- the alpha males may go the way of the dinosaurs as the influence of more women in the workforce has brought in emotional intelligence and affilitiave, collaborative behavior. Or is it the influence of more EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE in the workplace.

The great divide began when we had to leave Freud and Freudian psychology behind ... the drives - - sex and aggression - - well there's a lot more driving people today, like wanting to enjoy life, find meaning in their work, balance in their lives, and room for the emotional factor. Most important decisions must be made by other than strictly rational, logical means, after all. If you could choose the best stock rationally, all us investors would be millionaires - there are charts, after all. And if you could choose the best candidate for a job by their resume alone, it wouldn't be the miasma that it is, would it? No, it takes intuition, gut feeling, creativity, flexibility, and a host of other EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE competencies.

EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is now looked for as well as IQ in management, leadership and the workplace. In fact it's slowly being demanded in the workplace. If the average job in the US now is 18 months, one of the reasons people leave is because of abusive management. We cannot do our best work in an atmosphere of nit-picking, or where we're ignored, or devalued in comparison to data, for instance. And your EQ will tell you that most of us truly want to succeed, grow, learn, help others in the workplace to do the same, and to be appreciated. Not all the time, but just enough.

Take for instance the alpha male called The Executor. Probably my least favorite to work for because (to me) the Visionary is inspiring; strategists' minds are so fascinating and in my world they generally find a way to avoid much contact with people; and commanders are energizing. I worked for all of these types in my day (and that's why I'm not self-employed!)

Executors, however, are micro-managers who cramp your style, eschew anything creative or "outside the box," and never give priase, but rather pick, pick and pick, and most importantly, must assign blame. I've seen then stop the whole parade for as long as an hour or more, to get out their miocroscope and investigate a rather inconsequential incident. When I'm around one, I always want to shout, "Stop! Just fix it! Let your people free!"

So many things in the workplace today, particularly because it IS more collaborative, are a failing of systems or equipment, or simple one-time human error -- not something that can be fixed. And it takes a real micro-manager to stop the flow of a project, particularly under pressure of a deadline, to fly-speck and see "whose fault it was."

How much better to say to the human who failed at that one point, "That's not like you!" than to harp on the mistake. Someone who continually fails, sure, and particularly one who intentionally sabotages, but the average person having a bad moment or day ... well, it's NOT LIKE THEM, so move forward. Guilt, blame, tempers and anger accomplish th exact opposite of anyone's intent. And lets hope those few people, among them managers, who enjoy making other people miserable, are really on their last legs in the workplace.

Okay. Now I'm off my soap box. But I'm an emotional intelligence coach after all, and I KNOW that EQ matters more in managing people than IQ does. Perhaps the time has come to let the sheer intellect types work in isolation (which they generally prefer), and keep them away from management, which annoys both sides of the equation.

There should be ladders of promotion on two tracks - the people side, and the OTHER side.

The most heartening thing about the article is that emotional intellingence has become so well-known and valued.

We were an early-adopter and have helped so many people improve their lives, and the lives of those around them through emotional intelligence. It is truly the "common language," as I have trained and worked with people around the globe, who immediately catch on to the power of emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence is empowering. Get involved! See me for coaching, or to take the EQ course. Email me at sdunn@susandunn.cc

Competitive Intelligence

COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE ... that's what Emotional Intelligence is.

It's not good enough these days to be top in your field as far as skills, expertise and credentials. There are too many people just like you with the same resume. Also you don't get to sit in your office these days and do work. You have to make your way through a maze of people, jump across the generation gap, deal with people from many different cultures, get the gender bias unbiased, get information from many different people, and work as a team.

Teams involve emotions because they involve egos. Also because you have to engage, influence and motivate a host of people to get one simple thing done. Right?

Let's face it, it's much easier to produce work alone, it's just that it won't work any more. You are expected to know how to "get along."

What on earth does that mean? It means competitive intelligence, or emotional intelligence. This isn't touchy-feely stuff, it's about your paycheck, your promotions and your career future.

Career coaching is tax deductible. Check with your personal accountant or tax advisor.

Sign up for coaching. Pay before the 31st and start after the first of the year. Just in time for New Years' resolutions!

Let me guess what's on your list of resolutions. They may not be in this order, but here they are:

1. Lose weight
2. Get healthy
3. Make more money
4. Get along better with my spouse
5. Handle stress better
6. Get life balance

Well you can sum those all up with Emotional Intelligence, Professional Life coaching. I have the tools, you have the goals. Let's get together.

Call me at 817-741-7223, or mailto:sdunn@susandunn.cc .

Things Not to Do Your First Week at a New Job

11 THINGS NOT TO DO YOUR FIRST WEEK IN THE NEW JOB

Check out my article which is posted on this great job blogsite: http://jobs002.blogspot.com/2006/11/11-things-not-to-do-first-week-on-your.html .

The hardest thing to do is break into groups that are already formed. If you haven't been to a kindergarten classroom lately, go take a look at you'll see this principle in action. A group of kids is playing together and New Child tries to "break in" or get included. There's a real art to it. Some kids have it and some don't. This is Emotional Intelligence at work, and of course you can learn HOW to do it. If someone will just tell you! It's very overt in the kindergarten classroom and it happens often and rapidly, so it's easy to observe. Breaking into a high school clique is harder to observe and more subtle. It's also far more brutal. And then there's the new job and/or new neighborhood or town. It just doesn't get any easier. While learning Emotional Intelligence and the ploys that tend to work doesn't always guarantee success, there are thing you can do that will essentially guarantee you will fail. Read this article for tips on what not to do the first few weeks on a new job.
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For EQ coaching, call 817-741-7223.