Good Friday and this Monday were holidays in the U.K., so this week is a short week.
But like a few other people, I feel like this has been “a long short week” (it happened before as well).
I can think of a few reasons below:
1) Expectation: We expected a short week and that put us in a different mind-set.
2) Contrast: Our body and mind probably adopted to the holiday mode during the long weekend and it might be a shock to the system returning back to work (despite the short week).
3) Residual impact: Some might be doing too much (traveling, partying and the like) during the holiday and thus started the week a bit tired.

Congratulations to my executive assistant/friend Gary who found a new permanent in no time!

It was very kind as well as “wise” of him to purchase an extra copy of my book as a farewell gift to a colleague at his current workplace (as gently suggested by me “in passing”).  I then suggested to him that my book can also be an excellent gift to his NEW colleagues when he lands on the new place of employment. He replied “Don’t push your luck, my friend!”.

Though I did not believe luck has anything to do with my book, I took the not-so-subtle hint and retreated to quietly scheming for another occasion of book sales.

Today I was notified that I had sold one copy of e-book in Canada last month. I was so happy that I told my colleague sitting next to me about it. He was surprised by my excitement because the profit was less than the price of an espresso. I explained to him that since I am the only person promoting the book, it is really hard to sell and thus every copy counts. In addition, it goes far beyond the financial benefit (to be honest, not really my main goal). I am happy that someone is interested in reading my book and sharing my experience to help others is indeed my main goal.

Yes, the “cat is out of the bag”. I am roughly half way through my training to be a qualified life coach.

My main goals are to deepen my knowledge in adult learning as well as to be better equipped to develop my interest in coaching and mentoring. I am currently supervised and coached by an experienced coach. At the same time, I am coaching 3 individual coachees as volunteers.

Last night I watched the special edition of 25th anniversary of Les Miserables in concert live at the O2 Arena, London (dvd made in 2010). Even though I have seen the musical 8 times in both New York and London, it never failed to touch me each time I watched it.

The main character Jean Valijean went through a transformation from being bitter about life into being sacrificial for others. One huge sacrifice he made towards the end of his age (in his 60’s) was risking his own life to rescue the boyfriend of his surrogate daughter Cosette during the French revolution. That reminded me that we can make a difference in other people’s life regardless of our own age and physical condition.

Daniel Goleman quoted American Psychologist David McClelland “McClelland argued that once you were in a given job, specific competencies like self-discipline, empathy, and persuasion were far stronger forces in success than a person’s ranking in academics. He proposed the methodology that has become competence modeling — now common in world-class organizations — for identifying the key abilities that made someone a star performer in a specific organization.” (p.234, Focus – The Hidden Driver of Excellence)

Happy Easter to ALL.

May the spirit of Easter bring you hope, revivial and triumph :>

Yesterday I ran into a colleague who heard about my book. When I “naturally” prompted him to purchase a copy, he replied “I am quite motivated myself already, so I don’t think I needyour book.”. I explained to him (and to all blog readers) that my book is not just about motivation. The book focuses on the psychological aspect of an adult learner as well as suggestions/examples/exercises on the practical side of learning.

Today I asked a colleague if he had read my book. When “push came to shove”, he said he has it next to his bed and will read it when he has problem falling asleep. I explained to him that he might be disappointed (not the content of my book). It is because another colleague “confessed” that he did exactly that and read four chapters before concluding that it was not a function of my book.

Well, my book can be used in many different ways but I am afraid putting people to sleep is not one of them (as far as I know).

Daniel Goleman has given the following advice on how to be good leaders? (p.238, Focus – The Hidden Driver of Excellence)
“* Listening within, to articulate an authentic vision of overall direction that energizes others even as it sets clear expectations.
* Coaching, based on listening to what people want from their life, career and current job. Paying attention to people’s feelings and needs, and showing concern.
* Listening to advice and expertise; being collaborative and making decisions by consensus when appropriate.”
Well said and I can’t agree more.