Complimentary Resource – How to Cut the Hidden Costs Out of Travel and Expense Management

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How to Cut the Hidden Costs Out of Travel and Expense Management
by Concur Technologies, Inc

Learn how to reduce your company’s overall operating costs by taking a strategic approach to your travel and expense management process.

Discover how organizations are significantly cutting costs and saving time with an automated travel and expense management process in this special webinar from Concur and Business Finance Magazine.

StrategyDriven has partnered with TradePub.com to offer you complimentary one-year subscriptions and/or free trials to dozens of leading business publications. No coupons, credit cards, special codes, or purchases are necessary. Publications are entirely FREE to those who qualify. Click here for more information on How to Cut the Hidden Costs Out of Travel and Expense Management.

Recommended Resource – Positive Intelligence

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Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours

by Shirzad Chamine

About the Reference

Positive Intelligence by Shirzad Chamine reveals the ten personality Saboteurs limiting individual performance and the three Sage strategies to combat these limiters. Through his book, Shirzad provides a step-by-step method for unleashing potential by:

  • Identifying and conquering your top Saboteurs
  • Determining your initial Positive Intelligence (PQ) score
  • Developing new brain ‘muscles’ and significantly increasing your PQ score
  • Applying PQ tools and techniques to increase your personal performance and fulfillment

Benefits of Using This Reference

StrategyDriven Contributors like Positive Intelligence for its well-structured approach to identifying and overcoming one’s performance limiters. We found the book, its assessments, and recommended actions to be easy to follow and implement. Shirzad’s assessments accurately identified our Saboteur traits and the inner struggle – the thoughts, feelings, justification lies, and impact on self and others – these cause. It further revealed our personal motivation and style; leading to an understanding of the performance barriers improvement efforts should target. Positive Intelligence concluded with three Sage strategies, supported by insightful and thought provoking ‘inquiries,’ that were helpful in addressing our unique Saboteurs.

Understanding the intellectual and emotional barriers limiting one’s actions is a first critical step to improving performance. While a dry read at times, Positive Intelligence helps readers precisely identify their personality limiters and provides sound, actionable advise on how to overcome them. Shirzad’s book goes beyond the academic; providing real world examples and solutions. It’s this sound, implementable insight that makes Positive Intelligence a StrategyDriven recommended read.

Are you burned out or just hating it?

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I just read an article about someone’s totally bogus opinion of ‘job burnout.’ It made me realize some people actually are (or think they are) ‘burned out.’

A quick search on Amazon revealed 580 books that contain the title, or address the subject of, ‘job burn out.’ Yikes!

The article I read proposed a remedy of “do less and you’ll avoid burnout.” It also recommended to avoid excessive workload, don’t be overly accommodating, avoid people who drain your energy, do not overwork yourself, and they threw in job disillusionment. In other words: You’ll still hate it, but you’ll hate it less.

Why do people claim they’re burned out? It’s a self-inflicted thought wound based on taking inappropriate action, the false feeling of being overwhelmed and stressed-out, having a negative work atmosphere in general, not really loving your job, not believing in what you do, and having a boss who is somewhere between a jackass and an idiot.

While burnout and stress are real, often they’re self-imposed feelings that you can overcome. Burnout manifests itself in your daily talk until it’s embedded into your psyche. Not good.

START HERE: Begin your self-actualization by asking reality-based questions of yourself. Write down the answers.

QUESTION ONE: Ask yourself how much you love your job?
QUESTION TWO: Ask yourself what’s the BEST part of your job?
QUESTION THREE: Ask yourself what would you rather be doing?
QUESTION FOUR: Ask yourself where would you rather be working that could afford you the same or better opportunity (not just money)?
QUESTION FIVE: Ask yourself if the grass is really greener on the other side of employment?

Being or feeling ‘burned-out’ or ‘stressed-out’ is not a problem; it’s a symptom. ‘Why’ you feel you’re burned out is the heart of the situation.

Once you ask yourself these questions, it’s time to DO SOMETHING POSITIVE ABOUT IT. Relief begins when you identify “cause,” and then continues when you create your own answers and your own truths. And change your thought pattern from burnt-out to ON FIRE!
Action one: Write down what you believe is causing the stressful feelings.
Action two: Write down what you believe the remedy could be.
Action three: Beside each remedy, write down what you or others could be doing.
Action four: Write down the likelihood of these remedies occurring.
Action five: Write down your ideal job or career, and then write down what you have to do or learn to get there.

DECIDE if you are in or out. If in, rededicate yourself to personal excellence. If out, get out quick.

REALITY: Based on your present situation (family, debt, obligations) you may just have to endure it for a while, but if you have identified causes and remedies, calm begins to occur. You have it under control. You’re making decisions.

Your present circumstance has to be measured against your present situation and future hopes and dreams.

Here are a few suggestions for what will take you from “burn out” mode into a more positive and hopeful frame of mind:
1. Start your day with the three most important things you want to accomplish.
2. Cancel all stupid and time-wasting meetings.
3. Stop talking about things that don’t matter, especially other people.
4. Focus on outcome, not just task.
5. Dedicate at least fifteen minutes a day to thinking by yourself.
6. Get rid of three major time wasters (attention diverters):

  • Facebook notifications at work (unless it’s business Facebook)
  • Personal emails and personal calls
  • Negative water fountain chit-chat

7. Go home from work and read instead of watch. Start with my Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude.
7.5 Review your accomplishments at the end of each day – to both praise yourself and challenge yourself. Write them down.

Re-start your personal fire. Give yourself a chance to become ‘BEST’ at your job and your career. Never give in to self-defeat. Decide every day that you can only be your best by doingyour best.

Become BEST not burnt.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Executive Wisdom: Reflections For Today’s Leaders

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Executive Wisdom: Reflections For Today’s Leaders

by Reynier Lezcano

About the Reference

Executive Wisdom by Reynier Lezcano is an A to Z collection of leadership wisdom covering personal behaviors and situational approaches. These insights are presented as brief passages that are well indexed for quick situational reference.

Benefits of Using this Reference

StrategyDriven Contributors like Executive Wisdom for the simple, direct way in which sound leadership practices are communicated. This book could easily be used in daily reflection by new and seasoned business leaders and/or as a tool to mentor others.

One aspect of the book we did not appreciate was the few occasions where progressive philosophies were asserted. Not only do we fundamentally disagree with this philosophy but we found it detracted from the otherwise timeless principles presented.

As leaders, we need to constantly remind ourselves of the proper behaviors to embody; being ever vigilant against slipping into destructive behavior that more often than not represents the easier road. Executive Wisdom provides those reminders in a way that is easy to use and to refer back to as the need arises.

Think the ‘write’ way. Do the ‘write’ thing. And all will be well.

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RELAX!

You’ve heard that word since the first time you got angry or upset. Or maybe it’s a word in your head that beacons reality. Pent up frustration, worry, or concern about the present or the future – or both – and nervousness about what’s about to happen in the world, at work, at home, or in your personal life.

RELAX! is easy to say, hard to do.

Here are my secrets for maintaining inner peace and fulfillment in a world filled with distractions, diversions, and distortions:

1. Write down all the crap clogging your brain. Get rid of your mental clutter. As soon as you write the details, you no longer have to dwell on them, or remember them – and your mind is free to think. Try it. It’s amazing and mentally relaxing (almost a relief). The bonus of an uncluttered mind is that ideas and resolutions to your issues and challenges will begin to manifest themselves daily.

2. Write down your present situation. What’s going on in your life right now? What’s the status of all things work, family, friends, life, and self? More amazing than unclogging, writing your present situation actually creates answers to situations that have been bugging you. Oh, and it also helps relax you.

3. Write down your dreams and thoughts. Every one has thoughts of “one day I’ll…,” or “someday I’ll…,” but those words are usually just spoken. REALITY: Those thoughts are just pipedreams until they’re written down, formalized, and crystalized. Writing your dreams will help you see a more clear and focused picture of them.

4. Find a quiet park or a garden where you can sit and think, read, or write for an hour. Invest quality time with yourself DAILY. This is the most relaxing of all outlets IF you have done the first three things I’ve recommended.

5. Read something positive, and write down the most inspiring quotes. Create a mailing list of important people to share them with. Make sure you acknowledge the author.

6. Mentally go to all the positive places where you’ve been before. Those thoughts will lead you to stories and lessons – write them down right away. Then blog them.

6.5 Blog your thoughts, ideas, and experiences. Blogging not only creates a public avenue for you to publish and express yourself, it also positions you and your views to the world. Your ideas may matter to some people in the world, and the feeling of accomplishment will give you a feeling of personal pride and fulfillment. I have decided that 2013 will be my ‘year of the blog,’ consisting of an intensive, daily effort for me to talk about and video about sales, business, and life. You can see my blog history at www.salesblog.com. Got blog? Air your thoughts to the world!

There are other things you can DO beyond writing to relax…

  • Play with a kid. It’s an amazing elixir for relaxing and having fun.
  • Go shopping for yourself. It makes you feel good to do things for YOU.
  • Make a list of ten people from high school or college you want to reconnect with. Call them, don’t just Facebook them. These are people you knew in your responsibility-free days.
  • Take a walk someplace you’ve never been before. Look around as you walk. Marvel at things. Take a few pictures. Write a few notes. Sit down and soak it in.
  • Book a weekend trip. Make a list of the places you’ll go and the things you’ll do. Often just the action of writing and planning the getaway will change your mood and your thinking, and that can calm you.

GOTTA GET AWAY? Need a vacation? That’s because you’re not relaxing every day. When the ‘need to get away’ is a dominant thought, it’s a symptom, not a problem or a goal. The reality is you’re not relaxing on a daily basis.

RELAXATION REALITY It’s likely you’ll need to make some personal changes if true relaxation is to permeate your life. Avoid negative events, negative things, negative news, and especially negative people.

“Jeffrey I can’t eliminate these things!” you exclaim.

Relax dude, just relax.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].