How to Managing Your Time

Most people feel overwhelmed with responsibilities and activities, and the harder they work, the further behind they feel. This sense of being on a never-ending treadmill can cause you to fall into the reactive/responsive mode of living. Instead of clearly deciding what you want to do, you continually react to what is happening around you. Pretty soon you lose all sense of control. You feel that your life is running you, rather than you running your life. On a regular basis, you have to stand back and take stock of yourself and what you’re doing. You have to stop the clock and do some serious thinking about who you are and where you are going. You have to evaluate your activities in the light of what is really important to you. You must master your time rather than becoming a slave to the constant flow of events and demands on your time. And you must organize your life to achieve balance, harmony, and inner peace. Taking action without thinking is the cause of every failure. Your ability to think is the most valuable trait that you possess. If you improve the quality of your thinking, you improve the quality of your life, sometimes immediately. Time is your most precious resource. It is the most valuable thing you have. It is perishable, it is irreplaceable, and it cannot be saved. It can only be reallocated from activities of lower value to activities of higher value. All work requires time. And time is absolutely essential for the important relationships in your life. The very act of taking a moment to think about your time before you spend it will begin to improve your personal time management immediately. I used to think that time management was only a business tool, like a calculator or a cellular telephone. It was something that you used so that you could get more done in a shorter period of time and eventually be paid more money. Then I learned that time management is not a peripheral activity or skill. It is the core skill upon which everything else in life depends. In your work or business life, there are so many demands on your time from other people that very little of your time is yours to use as you choose. However, at home and in your personal life you can exert a tremendous amount of control over how you use your time. And it is in this area that I want to focus. Personal time management begins with you. It begins with your thinking through what is really important to you in life. And it only makes sense if you organize it around specific things that you want to accomplish. You need to set goals in three major areas of your life. First, you need family and personal goals. These are the reasons why you get up in the morning, why you work hard and upgrade your skills, why you worry about money and sometimes feel frustrated by the demands on your time. What are your personal and family goals, both tangible and intangible? A tangible family goal could be a bigger house, a better car, a larger television set, a vacation, or anything else that costs money. An intangible goal would be to build a higher quality relationship with your spouse and children, to spend more time with your family going for walks or reading books. Achieving these family and personal goals are the real essence of time management, and its major purpose. The second area of goals are your business and career goals. These are the “how” goals, the means by which you achieve your personal, “why” goals. How can you achieve the level of income that will enable you to fulfill your family goals? How can you develop the skills and abilities to stay ahead of the curve in your career? Business and career goals are absolutely essential, especially when balanced with family and personal goals. The third type of goals are your personal development goals. Remember, you can’t achieve much more on the outside than what you have achieved on the inside. Your outer life will be a reflection of your inner life. If you wish to achieve worthwhile things in your personal and your career life, you must become a worthwhile person in your own self-development. You must build yourself if you want to build your life. Perhaps the greatest secret of success is that you can become anything you really want to become to achieve any goal that you really want to achieve. But in order to do it, you must go to work on yourself and never stop. Once you have a list of your personal and family goals, your business and career goals, and your self-development goals, you can then organize the list by priority. This brings us to the difference between priorities and posteriorities. In order to get your personal time under control, you must decide very clearly upon your priorities. You must decide on the most important things that you could possible be doing to give yourself the same amount of happiness, satisfaction, and joy in life. But at the same time, you must establish posteriorities as well. Just as priorities are things that you do more of and sooner, posteriorities are things that you do less of and later. The fact is, your calendar is full. You have no spare time. Your time is extremely valuable. Therefore, for you to do anything new, you will have to stop doing something old. In order to get into something, you will have to get out of something else. In order to pick something up, you will have to put something down. Before you make any new commitment of your time, you must firmly decide what activities you are going to discontinue in your personal life. If you want to spend more time with your family, for example, you must decide what activities you currently engage in that are preventing you from doing so. A principle of time management says that hard time pushes out soft time. This means that hard time, such as working, will push out soft time, such as the time you spend with your family. If you don’t get your work done at the office because you don’t use your time well, you almost invariably have to rob that time from your family. As a result, because your family is important to you, you find yourself in a values conflict. You feel stressed and irritable. You feel a tremendous amount of pressure. You know in your heart that you should be spending more time with the important people in your life, but because you didn’t get your work done, you have to fulfill those responsibilities before you can spend time with your spouse and children. Think of it this way. Every minute you waste during the waking day is time that your family will ultimately be deprived of. So concentrate on working when you are at work so that you can concentrate on your family when you are at home. There are three key questions that you can ask yourself continually to keep your personal life in balance. The first question is, “What is really important to me?” Whenever you find yourself with too much to do and too little time, stop and ask yourself, “What is it that is really important for me to do in this situation?” Then, make sure that what you are doing is the answer to that question. The second question is, “What are my highest value activities?” In your personal life, this means, “What are the things that I do that give me the greatest pleasure and satisfaction? Of all the things that I could be doing at any one time, what are the things that I could do to add the greatest value to my life?” And the final question for you to ask over and over again is, “What is the most valuable use of my time right now?” Since you can only do one thing at a time, you must constantly organize you life so that you are doing one thing, the most important thing, at every moment. Personal time management enables you to choose what to do first, what to do second, and what not to do at all. It enables you to organize every aspect of your life so that you can get the greatest joy, happiness, and satisfaction out of everything you do.

Information for Road to safety

Road To Safety talks about road trip safety. Driving safety tips and common sense car care tips for all of us. (NAPSI)-When planning your next getaway, remember that safety begins before you pull out of the driveway. Here are some hints that can help: • Be sure your vehicle is ready for the trip by having all recommended services performed, with particular attention paid to tires, engine coolant and fluids, windshield wipers and the air-conditioning system. Check your automaker's website-many manufacturers, such as Subaru of America (www.subaru.com), post seasonal maintenance tips online. • Stay safe while driving-take regular breaks, switch drivers periodically if possible, and pull over in a safe place to rest if you feel drowsy. Avoid distractions by using a hands-free device if you must make a call, and never text while driving. • When traveling with kids, keep them busy with an assortment of games and entertainment. Happy kids means fewer arguments, which will help the driver focus on safe driving. Take along personal electronics, such as MP3 players and portable DVD players, but don't forget about some of the classic "unplugged" road games, such as "license plate alphabet." • Exploring the outdoors is often a big part of any road trip, no matter what time of year you travel. For sun safety, bring sunscreen and apply it before getting in the car. Even an arm propped on the windowsill gets sun, as do faces and foreheads from an open sunroof. • Keep pets safe-be sure they are secure in a well-ventilated crate or carrier or see your automotive dealer for a divider that safely separates pets and cargo from the passenger area. Never leave your animal alone in a parked vehicle; even on a cool day, it can become dangerously hot inside. Visit the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) website at www.aspca.org for more tips on safe pet travel. • If your vehicle doesn't have all-wheel drive, as all Subaru models do, consider making it a "must-have" feature in your next car or crossover. While well known for great traction in snow and ice, all-wheel drive can also provide excellent traction in the rain and on dirt and gravel roads, as well as sports car−like handling on dry roads.

Time management skills For Students

Time management skills are your abilities to recognize and solve personal time management problems. The goal of these time management lessons is to show you what you can do to improve those skills. With good time management skills you are in control of your time and your life, of your stress and energy levels. You make progress at work. You are able to maintain balance between your work, personal, and family lives. You have enough flexibility to respond to surprises or new opportunities. All time management skills are learnable. More than likely you will see much improvement from simply becoming aware of the essence and causes of common personal time management problems. With these time management lessons, you can see better which time management techniques are most relevant for your situation. Just get started with them. Many of your problems gradually disappear. If you already know how you should be managing your time, but you still don't do it, don't give up. What you may be overlooking is the psychological side of your time management skills, psychological obstacles hidden behind your personality. Depending on your personal situation, such obstacles may be the primary reason why you procrastinate, have difficulties saying no, delegating, or making time management decisions. The psychological component of your time management skills can also be dealt with. The time management skills information below will point at a relevant solution for your situation.

Steps for How to building a website

What do you do if you want a good looking website, but don’t want to have to install and learn complicated new software? Previously the answer was either to pay someone else to create the site for you, which was very expensive, or to choose a wizard driven online site builder. These create generic, drab looking sites that are very restricted in terms of functionality and in terms of how much you can change them. WebEden is a new service that provides the next generation of website building. Step 1 You can try out WebEden by clicking on the 14 day trial icon on the home page and starting the wizard. The wizard takes only a few steps and you don’t need to enter any credit card or financial data to try out the site, only a valid email address which is used to validate your WebEden account. The first step of the wizard gives you a set of options for the purpose of your website. By selecting the purpose, you decide the number and titles of the pages on your site, so for example you can have a home page with a music page, links, message board and hit counter, or a site for a club you may run with club news, events and photo gallery. You can see the different pages for each purpose by clicking on the relevant button – the list of pages will appear above. If none suit your purpose, you can choose a Blank purpose and add your own pages later. The next step will allow you to combine the pages titles you’ve chosen with a design template. Step 2 WebEden has many advanced features which we’ll look at in later tutorials, but for now let’s look at one of the key ones, which is the menu editing feature, which is the key to great website building. The menu changes you make in the site organiser are automatically site wide, so you don’t need to worry about making sure changes are replicated across pages. You may also decide that you want a part of your menu to be a category for new pages, rather than a link to an individual page. Create the new pages and then drag them up so they sit under the category link. Click on the arrow next to the page number in the Organiser and it will make the page a sub-page of the one above it. Now the website builder knows what type of site - and therefore what pages - are needed, it will combine these with the design template. Again there are buttons which when you click on one the preview will be shown above. The difference here is that as well as choosing the basic template for your page’s design, you will see there are three colour buttons under the preview. Once you’ve selected a template, click on the colour button you prefer and you will see the colour scheme applied to the template. Note that there are two pages of templates to choose from. Step 3 Once chosen, you can move on to final step which requires you name the site and enter an email address. You can then create your own website and you will be taken to a view of your new site. That’s it! What’s next? Now you have the site, simply click on any area that you wish to change and you will be able to edit it. Start with the basics, which is entering the text you want on your website. By single clicking on an item you will see the bounding box that surrounds any item. This is like the boxes you will find in any design package on your PC, so you will find control boxes at the corners and mid-points of the bounding box. You can use these to stretch or shrink the object. You will also see that the floating Editor dialog changes as you select different objects on a page. This dialog allows you to change the dimensions of an object or the location of it by entering the pixel data. If the object is a text object you can double click on the object and you will now be able to change the text itself. If you already have the text that you want to appear on a web page written in a Word document, then you can copy it into your pages by opening the document and selecting the text and copying it to the clipboard by pressing Ctrl-C. Then go into WebEden and double click on the text box you wish to edit, then select the text by wanding it in, and press Ctrl-V to paste over it. When you have finished entering the text for a page, you can click on the Save icon to save it, or if you click on a different page in the menu, you will move to edit that page, and WebEden will prompt you to save the page automatically. As long as you don’t simply quit the browser, there should little chance of you inadvertently losing any changes you make to pages. Clicking on the pages in your site menu may take you to the individual pages so you can edit those, but how do you edit the menu itself to rename pages or add pages to your site. Website Builder makes this easier than any other method we’ve seen. Simply go to Pages / Organise pages and the dialog there lists the pages currently in your site. To change the order of pages in the menu, click on a page in the Drag column and move it up or down the list. Type over the page’s name in this dialog to change it on all pages, and click on the “Add a new page” to add one to the menu. See below for sub-menus. Editing objects in WebEden The beauty of building a website with WebEden is the speed with which you can edit pages or make site wide changes. Here’s 6 Menus to Basic Editing of your webeden.co.uk website 1. Edit menu This allows you to operate on the currently selected object. Everything you see on a page is an object and to use it, you simply click on it and drag it around the page, or click here to edit it. You can delete objects from the Edit menu, send them to the back (as you can put objects on top of each other, like using layers in DTP programs), or change some more generic settings. For example, you can change the settings for the current page here, so you can set it as a private page that only registered users can see. The Edit menu also allows you to manage who is registered on your site and send them emails if you have chosen a package that includes this feature. Many of these features are not normally available in low end hosting packages or in normal HTML, but are possible because of the unique delivery system WebEden uses. 2. Pages menu This menu lists the pages on your site, so you can jump to one to edit it. It also allows you to organise the pages and set which is the home page, etc. a great way to create your own website. 3. Insert menu This is a very powerful menu as it allows you to add all manner of elements to your pages. As well as text and images, you can choose File, which brings up the File Manager. We’ll look at this in detail in the next part of this series, but you will come to love it because it gives you access to the WebEden library, which includes polls, animations, frames, games and much more. 4. Design menu You can change the fonts, background, and the “Page Master” which is the template that contains elements that are on every page, like the menus. This menu also allows you to change the overall dimensions of your pages. 5. Active object The currently selected object on a page will show a bounding box, a real help when you make your own website. 6. Editor dialog As you select different objects or add ones, this editor changes to offer options. When you create your own website with WebEden you can have interactive elements like polls added easily, as well as your own images, all added to the existing template.

Important Pointers on Self Development for Internet Marketing

• Know your personality – Knowing our own personality comes top of the list for Self Development. According to the expert in Internet marketing, knowing your personality is very essential in starting up. You must define the things that you are interested with and the things where you’re good at. For instance you’re fervor is in fashion or your good at people handling or selling items or your good in giving advices and comforting people, focus and enhance this eminence. In this way, you will be able to know your market easily. This includes your aspirations, strengths or competencies, education and training. • Take responsibilities seriously – Answer your own action, taking charge to everything you do is a good value in Self Development. With this quality, you will be able to develop trust in your market, It is important to let your market know that they can count on you. Focus on your commitment to your market so your market will take you seriously. Credibility and reliability will follow which is very significant too. Market would rather offer their business and rewards to the person they can count on. Being a responsible person means you have good character. • Be open to new Ideas and changes - a true entrepreneur are well thought-out to be inventive and audacious. Be brave to face changes as it’s foreseeable in this world. Always remember that changes are the only constant in this world so learn how to focus on big picture and possibilities. Be open in learning new skills. Take advantage of the changes to improve your service to your market. Innovations are not bad at all. Take classes to stay in progress in your field of expertise, read books, listen to professional growth topics, and learn from "other people's experience". Focus on enhancing your skills and expertise and make sure that it pools to resources of modernization. • Time management – being on time or better yet be ahead of time in delivering your task and commitment is a huge factor to triumph. Time is very a valuable in every individual. And bear in one day is only consisting of 24 hours. Time doesn't revolutionize. Time wasted is considered loss revenue. The four above mentioned Self Development help are the four fundamental lead that you may want to know before embarking on the Internet Marketing commerce. This is base on the views and proposition of the top Internet marketers. You can take this as a guide to your success.

Tips For How to Motivate Students

Rod Ellis defines motivation as referring to “the efforts which learners put into learning an L2 as a result of their need or desire to learn” (1995). The two main types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic, can affect the learning process. Intrinsic motivation is task motivation that derives from an inherent interest in the learning tasks while extrinsic motivation refers to the external influences that affect the strength of learner’s motivation such as that which comes from teachers and parents. While some students have their own intrinsic motivation or external motivation , other students need to be motivated to learn. There are many things that you can do as a teacher in order to motivate students to learn. These strategies are based on various articles I have read below. Students are more likely to want to learn when they appreciate the value of the classroom activities, and when they believe that they will succeed if they apply reasonable effort. Hence, "student motivation to learn is an acquired competence developed through general experiences but stimulated most directly through modeling, communication of expectations, and direct instruction or socialization by significant others – especially teachers and parents” (Brophy, p.40) When it comes to weak learners, teachers realize that such learners are accustomed to experiencing failure, hence, the teacher’s task is to help them experience success. Here are some strategies and tactics that may motivate students and stimulate them to learn. • Provide a supportive environment and establish a trusting bond."Motivation is the feeling nurtured primarily by the teacher in the learning situation” (Ellis, 1994). Greet your students, interact with them, indicate a personal concern about them as individuals. • Cater levels of activity to students’ level – try and make sure that the learning tasks pose a reasonable challenge to the students – neither too difficult nor too easy. • Help students recognize links between effort outcome – learning is a long term plan of effort and investment. • Break down learning steps into digestable pieces. • Minimize student’s performance anxiety during learning activities. Over to You – Reflect on Your Attitude as a Teacher Attitude is a key word when it comes to dealing with your students. It refers to everything you do or say in class. It can also have some influence over motivating your students. It refers to your approach, your feelings, your sensibility, your awareness, your alertness, and your understanding. What is your teacher attitude? Have an action plan in terms of how you relate to your students. While it would be helpful to write it down, it is important to at least know it for yourself. And follow through with it: reflecting, thinking it through all along the way.

5 Characteristics of a Professional people

1. Take advantage of every opportunity. I started my career as a hairstylist. At conferences I am often asked how I become aprofessional keynote speaker, author, and executive speech coach? By noticing and using every chance that turned up. Opportunity doesn't knock just once. It knocks all the time, though you may not recognize the sound. One technique is to learn from successful people by finding out how they achieved their success. 2. Start by asking questions. Successful people will share their knowledge and experiences with you if you ask good questions that stimulate their thinking and responses. The quality of the information you receive depends on the quality of your questions. The key to connecting with others is conversation, and the secret of conversation is to ask the right questions. A conversation can lead to a relationship, and a nurtured relationship can produce amazing results. 3. Dedicate yourself. Two questions you should ask yourself on a fairly regular basis are, "What can I do to contribute to my profession--to my employer and my professional association?" and "How can I be professionally accountable?" When you can do this, you'll get so much more than you give. 4. Use stories. Be inventive in selling yourself and your profession. Learn to network, one on one, by using memorable stories. Sometimes, it's appropriate to fade into the background. Most of us are shy in some situations. But, to be professionally accountable, you must be able to stand out and speak up. When you are in any situation where you're meeting the public, how do you introduce yourself? When people ask what you do, can you tell them in a way that will stick in their minds? I challenge you to come up with a one-sentence way of presenting yourself and your profession so that people will never forget. Create a vivid,visual picture of your job, its challenges and triumphs. People will remember the picture you create in their minds, rather than your words. 5. Develop your persuasive powers. Being professionally accountable means knowing how to influence people. President Dwight Eisenhower, said, "Leadership is the ability to decide what has to be done and then getting people to want to do it." How do you influence people? One of my clients is Horst Schulze, president of the Ritz Carlton hotels. He advises prospective employees,"We are all ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen. Our guests pay our prices to have an experience, and it is your job to be part of that experience. You will never say, 'That is not in my job description,' and you will never bring your own problems to work." Obviously, this works at the Ritz Carlton. Do you have a similar motivator for yourself, your colleagues,and your fellow professionals? Are you persuasive in representing my company, department or association in public?

varieties of Summer Camp

The kids find this as one of the best options of being outdoors away from home with some of their best friends and a great opportunity to mingle, have fun with the kids of their age and make new friends. But as far as the kids are considered the ultimate right of selecting the best of the summer camps rests with the parents. The parents have to keep in mind the dual goal of making their kids have a jovial time as well as provide an opportunity to the kids to learn some new and innovative things. However this is not a stone crackling decision to be made, there are vast numbers of options available in the market. Some of them are as follows: Day camps or day and night camps First it is essential for the parents to understand whether they are intending to move on to a day or an overnight caps. Day camps offer the activities to the kids which are spread throughout the day and in the night the children can get back home. Such camps are referred to as day camps. On the other hand the overnight camps are camps wherein the kids would stay at the camps throughout the day as well as in the night. Such camps are also termed as extended camps which exist for few weeks or a month. It would be preferable to send the kids for the first time on the day camps so that they could be aware of the camp environment and then the second or the third time when the kids go for visiting the summer camps they can go in for overnight summer camps. Hence it is essential that the kids are sent to the overnight camps only once they are aware about the basics of the camp life. Academic or the scholarly camps These camps are conducted with the educational focus in mind, they are conducted to teach the children based on different and interesting strategies, it teaches the kids from a different perspective than the usual medium of class room teaching. These camps have proven to be really beneficial to the kids from the curriculum point of view and kids enjoy these camps though they have an educational motive hidden in them. Adventurous Camps You would have seen many of the summer camps have adventure camps as their tag line in their advertisements. The adventurous camps offer the kids with an opportunity of mountain trekking, rock climbing but in addition to this they offer the kids to learn certain specific things. These adventure camps are expensive than the other options of summer camps. Art Camps These camps are one of the best options to steer the creativity within your children. However they not only offer creative programs but they do have other enjoyment programs for the kids.

How Do Something Different

Give your creative family lifestyle dreams a try out. If you followed the advice in the past, you have been doing a lot of thinking lately about what sort of creative family lifestyle you could be following. Now it’s time to get your feet wet. Up to this point, everything that you have done has been in your head. You have imagined your creative family lifestyle involving your family in all sorts of adventures together. You have visualized a more proud; more alive you living a new life of real meaning. When you imagined your new creative family lifestyle, what exactly did you imagine that you were doing? Were you traveling, like us? Were you working with others; doing charity work; taking a familycourse in martial arts; living on a farm in the mountains? Whatever you imagined, now it’s time for a little taste of your new life. Look around for opportunities to test out your fantasies. Maybe it is a trip with your familyor a family Saturday at a soup kitchen or renting some rooms at a working guest farm somewhere? Whatever it is, you need to test your expectations against reality. Just because you imagine these activities to be exciting or fulfilling doesn’t mean they actually will be. I will tell you from personal experience that your imagination is probably right on but you have to prove this to your reasoning side. This is also a chance to introduce the rest of your family to your dream. Whatever you do don’t just announce, “Hey guys, I hope you like this because it’s what you are going to be doing full time from now on.” You will need to be much more subtle in how you introduce a new direction for your family and that introduction happens much later. For now, just tell them that this is really important to you and it will be really cool to do together as a family. You will now discover where the major resistance in your family will come from. If you have one or more teens, they may see this as mandatory family time and resent the time away from their burgeoning social life. Unfortunately, there is no certain way to handle teens. They are on the brink of forming their own dreams and lifestyle so they naturally resist be imposed upon by yours. You might just tell them that you’d like to live a dream, if just for a few days or weeks, and, if nothing else, it just might inspire them to discover their own dreams or learn something about themselves that they never realized. If you can afford it, you might let them bring along a pal. In this experience you will also discover just how far apart your family has drifted and what the current level of comfort is for spending time together. Some people are going to be afraid to discover this fact. It is easier to pretend that all is well and everyone is close and loving than to possibly discover that your family members really don’t care for each other’s company much right now. Well, this is reality. If you want your dreams to stay in the realm of your fantasies; you are already done. If you want to make them real, then finding out where your family stands together (and apart) must be experienced. Understand also that your first journey together may be a bit awkward, and even stressful. I promise you that it get’s better. You are all figuring out your comfort zones. You are getting used to being close again. So don’t give up on this process too soon. Anyway, if any of you are or were at this stage in your creative family lifestyle journey, I’d love to hear from you – good and bad. Please post a reply to this post about your experiences. Hang in there. Turning your life around is like turning a big ship. It is slow. It takes time. But it will turn.

How to improve your concentration

1. To enhance your concentration and powers of focus, count your steps when you walk. This is a particularly strong technique. Take six steps while taking a long inhale, hold your breath for another six steps, and then exhale for six steps. If six steps is too long for the breaths, do whatever you feel comfortable with. You will feel very alert, refreshed, internally quiet and centered after this exercise. So many people allow their minds to be filled with mental chatter. All peak performers appreciate the power of a quiet, clear mind which will concentrate steadily on all important tasks. 2. Enhance your will-power; it is likely one of the best training programs you can invest in. Here are some ideas to strengthen your will and become a stronger person: a) Do not let your mind float like a piece of paper in the wind. Work hard to keep it focused at all times. When doing a task, think of nothing else. When walking to work, count the steps that it takes to get all the way to the office. This is not easy but your mind will soon understand that you hold its reins and not vice versa. Your mind must eventually become as still as a candle flame in a corner where there is no draft. b) Your will is like a muscle. You must first exercise it and then push before it gets stronger. This necessarily involves short term pain but be assured that the improvements will come and will touch your character in a most positive way. When you are hungry, wait another hour before your meal. When you are laboring over a difficult task and your mind is prompting you to pick up the latest magazine for a break or to get up and go talk to a friend, curb the impulse. Soon you will be able to sit for hours in a precisely concentrated state. Sir Issac Newton, one of the greatest classical physicists the world has produced, once said: "if I have done the public any service, it is due to patient thought." Newton had a remarkable ability to sit quietly and think without interruption for very long periods of time. If he can develop this so can you. c) You can also build your will-power by restraint in your conduct with others. Speak less (use the 60/40 Rule = listen 60% of the time and speak a mere 40%, if that). This will not only make you more popular but you will learn much wisdom as everyone we meet, every day has something to teach us. Also restrain the urge to gossip or to condemn someone who you feel has made a mistake. Stop complaining and develop a cheerful, vital and strong personality. You will greatly influence others. 3. Become a highly disciplined time manager. There are roughly 168 hours in a week. This surely allows plenty of time for achievement of the many goals we desire to accomplish. Be ruthless with your time. Set aside a few minutes each morning to plan your day. Plan around your priorities and focus on not only those tasks which are immediate but not important (i.e., many telephone calls) but especially on those which are important but not urgent, for these allow for the greatest personal and professional development. Important but not immediate activities are those which produce long-term, sustainable benefits and include exercise, strategic planning, the development of relationships and professional education. Never let the things which matter most be placed in the backseat as compared to those that matter least. 4.The Two Minute Mind is an excellent exercise for developing concentration. Simply stare at the second hand on your wristwatch for two minutes and think about nothing else for that time. At first your mind will wander but after 21 days of practice, your attention will not waver during the routine. One of the greatest qualities a person can develop to ensure his success is the ability to focus for extended periods of time. Learn to build up your concentration muscles and no task will be too difficult for you. 5. To enhance your concentration, read a passage in a book you have never explored. Then try to recite it verbatim. Practice this for only 5 minutes a day and enjoy the results which follow after a few months of effort. 6. 83% of our sensory input comes from our eyes. To truly concentrate on something, shut your eyes and you will remove much distraction.

What is Management Skills Pyramid?

To be successful, there are many skills a manager needs to master. I adapted Kammy Hatnes' pyramid structure to show the increasingly difficult management skills you must master at each level and to also display how these management skills build on each other to help you achieve success in your management career. The result is the Management Skills Pyramid shown here. Each level of the Management Skills Pyramid is listed below and is discussed in more detail on the linked pages. The Management Skills Pyramid, Level 1 Level 1 of the Management Skills Pyramid shows the basic skills a manager must master just to get the job done. These are the fundamentals of the management job: • Plan • Organize • Direct • Control The Management Skills Pyramid, Level 2 After you have mastered the basic skills in level 1, you need to move on and develop your skills onLevel 2 of the Management Skills Pyramid. These are the management skills that you use to develop your staff. There are many specific skills required, and these are discussed in Level 2 of the Management Skills Pyramid, but they are grouped into these categories: • Motivation • Training and Coaching • Employee Involvement The Management Skills Pyramid, Level 3 When you have become skilled in developing your staff, it's time to focus on Level 3 of the Management Skills Pyramid, improving your own development. These management skills are grouped as: • Self Management and • Time Management Time management gets its own category because it is so important to your success in all the other skills. The Management Skills Pyramid, Top Level The peak of the Management Skills Pyramid, the single skill that will help you the most in developing success in your management career, is leadership. As you develop your skill as a leader, as you make the transition from manager to leader, you will achieve the success you truly want in your management career.

expression and perception of Indian cricket

Victory is always sweet. It has an encouraging and electrifying effect on the winning team. It may seem ridiculous to imagine that victory may not have positive consequences. The first major casualty of success is reflection and retrospection, a very vital ingredient. One does not find many a thoughtful faces on a victory lap or deep furrows on the forehead while lifting a trophy. India has had the fortune (or misfortune) of being a victorious side many a times. It has recorded spectacular results in both the versions of the game, albeit inconsistently so. It was natural that nobody ever sat down to analyze these victories and take steps to make them a permanent feature. It was only after a thrashing that the post mortem was conducted and only after a serious malady was diagnosed that a remedy was suggested. We have won yet another series and added yet another feather to our cap if not another jewel in the crown. This victory is bound to give us a feeling that everything is fine and we can jolly well continue the way we are. All the past and recent defeats and humiliations will be forgiven and forgotten. A victory at home. It does have a special meaning for every country. But not when it is India. The way India has defeated, destroyed and demolished every single side at home with a monotonous regularity that the entire exercise appears mundane if not a farce. We could not have avoided winning even after fixing a couple of them. A decade of unbeaten record at home. But abroad? Till date India has won only 14 Test matches abroad and three in the past fifteen years. We needed a debutant like Bangladesh to record our first 'overseas' victory in seven years. There were a couple of very near misses but like all would-have-beens, they should be allowed to rest. The stunning regularity and predictability with which India has catapulted overseas is shameful. But we made up for that by breaking all records at home with series after series of brown wash. I would not be solving a mystery, if I say that the ineptness of our batsmen against fast bowling is the root cause. Every frontline Indian batsman has performed brilliantly, even abroad, but that was never enough to provide us with more than 3 victories in the past 15 years. The spineless displays of these very batsmen comprehensively outnumber the occasions when they had stood their ground to ensure a draw let alone a victory. Not knowing the cause is one thing and not taking any steps to rectify the disorder is another. Our cricket system falls in the second category. For an entire decade it ordered doctored pitches as a tonic for a defeated team. And the team never disappointed. A tacit quid pro quo. You give me a doctored pitch and I will give you a victory, to distort one of our famous national slogans. All kinds of suggestions and theories have been floated in order to get rid of this chronic problem. Ideas ranging from harshly realistic to absurdly idealistic have been provided but little has been done apart from setting up of a couple of academies and pace foundations. A common suggestion is to prepare sporting pitches for a domestic series. That will rob us off an opportunity of making up for abroad losses through home victory and disappoint the fans. We know what has happened to us at Mohali. The Kiwis scuttled us for less than hundred and earlier we squandered the golden opportunity to end the unbeaten record of West Indies. Even the morning dew is enough to account for our collapses as Donald and Kasprovicz have proved on two occasions. The second idea is to prepare sporting tracks for our domestic cricket. Nothing could be more welcome than that except for the risk of running out of batsmen who can play spin and bowlers who can tweak the ball. Nonetheless one finds that something quick and far reaching must be done. The least we can do is to give our batsmen more exposure to fast tracks and hostile bowling with regularity. A test in Mohali once in three years will not do. I understand the need to prepare a turner, when the Kangaroos and the Proteas visit us. But when less lethal sides like Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and New Zealand come calling, then we must have green tops, at least in some matches of the series. A victory at any such venue would do our batsmen a world of good. Similarly we can have a quota of fast track matches for every Ranji side. Say one of the four Round Robin ones. Or the Knock out round to be placed on fast pitches and so on. Unless we give our batsmen a feel of genuine fast bowling, nothing is going to help. What about having Dravid or Ganguly play for Tasmania or Transval for some of their matches? Which side would not want to have crowd pullers like them? Conversely we can have a Donald or Lee bowling in our domestic championship. I am sure that the state associations are rich enough to afford that. To say in short, why do not we have a foreign player quota like the English have? Apart from breathing in a new freshness to our boring championships, it would give our youngsters a nice idea of the world outside. I seriously place this propositions before the board for consideration. Six months of Ranji Trophy may be too much. But we can certainly have the services of foreign players in the knock out stages or at least in the Duleep Trophy. The step would help our players in their transition phase. We will not end up with a long list of players like Raman, Rathor, Martin, Kanitkar etc, who could not convert their triple centuries into 50's at the Test level. And of course avoiding the home series from becoming a fixed affair.

How to Play a Video Game

1.Get a blank piece of paper. 2.Draw some sort of monster on it, but don't fill up the page. Use a pencil so you can erase when he gets hurt. 3 Give it a name and a health bar. 4. Draw two smaller characters. You can make them up yourself. 5.Give your characters names and health bars. Write a 100 above each health bar. 6.Draw a magic bar or a power bar or whatever you feel like. 7.Think up some attacks for your characters, and a few for the boss too. They should do varying amounts of damage the strong ones use magic. 8.Have one of your characters attack. Subtract the attack value from the enemy. 9.Have the characters take turns attacking. You can play with your characters on the same team, or you can have all three go at it. 10. Once the boss is down to zero health, you have advanced to Level 2. Reward yourself by unlocking something like power Armor or Fire Arrow or a new character. One idea is that every level you unlock a Fusion ability, which lets you merge two characters into one. 11.Once you're on level 2, keep going. There's really no limit in levels--just your imagination.

What is Doubles Tennis Rules

Similar to other sports, tennis also has its own set of tennis rules and regulationsthat every player needs to follow. If you have played singles tennis before, then learning the doubles tennis rules will be a piece of cake for you. However, if you never did get the opportunity on how to play tennis in the first place, there's nothing to worry about. You can go through the article to understand and learn both singles and doubles tennis. Now let's go over the most basic tennis rules for doubles so you can be better at your game. Rules of Doubles Tennis As the name insinuates, doubles tennis is played by total four players; two on each side (team A and team B). It's a competition between two pairs of players that requires teamwork, trust, and cooperation where both teams will play either 1, 3 or 5 sets, depending on the type of the tournament entered in. Below we will go over some basic rules for playing tennis; doubles that is. Rule #1: Toss Similar to football or baseball, before the game of tennis doubles is conducted, the players toss/flip a coin. Each team will pick between 'heads' or 'tails' to decide if they wish to serve, receive, or choose a particular side of the court to play on. Let's say team A won the toss and wants to serve/receive first, then team B gets to choose which side of the court they wish to play on. Rule #2: Serve Unlike singles tennis, the rules of the game for doubles serving change here. Doubles tennis rules specifically suggest that while team A player 1 is serving, he/she has to stand on the right side of the court, behind the baseline. Once the serve is played, the ball has to land diagonally on the other side of the net (without touching it), in the service box. In the beginning of the game, it is already decided which player gets to be the server. Let's say, for example, in the first game, team A player 1 is the server and player 2 is the serving partner. Then, in the second game, team B player 1 will be the server and player 1 will be the serving partner. In the third game, team A player 2 will be the server and player 1 will be the serving partner. And in the fourth game, team B player 2 will get the chance to serve and player 1 will be the serving partner. So both teams' players get a chance to serve their opponents after every fourth game. If you want some tennis tips for serving, then read this article. Each server of team A and B will get 2 service attempts and try to get the ball across the net, to the other side safely. At times, players can serve a fault when their foot reaches the baseline before he/she hits the ball, misses to hit the ball, or doesn't stand in the correct position before serving the ball. The doubles tennis scoring rules while serving depends on how well the serve was and if it is received or gets missed. Rule #3: Receive In doubles tennis rules for receiving a serve, here are some things you should keep in mind. Similar to the serve, while the opponent team receives the ball, they have to stand in specific positions as well. The receiver will stand diagonal to the server, within the baseline; while the receiving partner will stand on the left side of the center line. This positioning works well if the receiving team wants to use any particular tennis doubles strategy. How? Let me explain. The most important goal for the receiving team is to return the ball on the other side. Well, if team B positions themselves properly, keeps up with one another and their opponents, and works together, then they can easily return the ball and keep their opponents on their toes. Now again, similar to the serving side, even the receiving side decides the order of getting the serve before the game begins. The order will be: team B player 1 - first game, team A player 1 - second game, team B player 2 - third game, and team A player 2 - fourth game. Each players get a chance to receive the ball after every 4 games. While playing the game, knowing these doubles tennis basics will give you a better approach to the game and make you a better player. Rule #4: Score If you haven't had the opportunity of playing tennis before, do pay attention on the scores or get a complete knowledge of doubles tennis scoring explained. Why? Because it's the biggest difference between winning and losing the game. Whenever a team serves, team A or B, they are the ones who need to announce the scores before serving the next ball. And the biggest doubles tennis rules for scoring is to call out the serving team's scores first. Each game will consist of 4 points: Love, 15, 30, 40, and Game. No score - love, 1st point - 15, 2nd point - 30, 3rd point - 40, and 5th point - game. This sounds pretty simple; as the teams score points, they get closer to winning the game in a set. But what if the score is a tie? Sometimes, when both the teams' scores are 40-40 (as in, they both scored 3 points), how do we decide who won the game? Whenever both teams reach the score of 40 each (called out as deuce, not 40 All), one team has to win the next 2 consecutive points. This will eventually lead them into winning that particular game. This doubles tennis rules for scoring is called 'advantage in' or 'ad in'. The reason it's called an advantage is because when one of the teams scores the next point after (40-40) deuce, will get the 'advantage'. Now if the team with the advantage can't make the next score, if they lose the next point, then the scores go back to deuce (40-40). In this scenario, the opponent team also has the opportunity to win the game. When the score is deuce and the opponent's team wins the 1st point, then it's called out as an 'advantage out' or 'ad out'. And if the opponent's team wins the 2nd point as well, then they will win the game. However, if the opponent's team loses the 2nd point, then the score will go back to (40-40) deuce. For a team to win one set, teams A or B have to win a total of 6 games; however, 1 team needs to be at least 2 or more (won) games ahead of the other in order to win the set. Now let's say there's a tie and the scores are 6-6 in any particular set. Here, both teams have to play another game, called as a 'seven point tiebreak' game. The same scoring system is used for points. The team that scores 7 points first, with a difference of two points, wins the tiebreak and the set as well. These doubles tennis rules on scoring were about how to gain points. Now let's take a look at tennis scoring system for losing points. A team loses points when: • the ball, on receiving or serving side, hits the ground more than once. • the players don't return the ball to the other side. • the game is on and the player's body, clothes, or racket touches the net. • a player hits the ball more than once when it's on their side. • a players goes over the net and hits the ball. These were the most basic, yet essential doubles tennis rules. These are professional tennis rules which are followed by Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, and Australian Open tournaments. The game of tennis is not only for competition purposes, but it also brings the elements like communication, teamwork, and strategic playing. Remember to follow and respect these doubles tennis rules while playing the game.

Ideas for How to live a happy Life

In each day that passes by, we stand by and witness how our lives are being lived without the full happiness and satisfaction we crave and need. Most people spend their time stressed out, worried and on a constant panic about what needs to be done for their futures, raising their children, wired up over work, school, along with everything else. Does this sound familiar? Well if it does, it is because so many people live with this style and pattern. When you can start living that fully happy and satisfied life? The only way you can live a happy and satisfied life, is when you start doing things that make you happy and satisfied. Sure, it sounds easy, and can be easy if you just remember to make yourself one of your top priorities. Too many people neglect themselves, feeling that it would be selfish if they took any time out to focus on their own being. While it is good to take care of others and other important things going on in your life, it is mandatory that you never forget about yourself. Discover who you really are and what matters most to you. Living a great life does not just happen. It requires, planning and following those plans to a life that reflects who you truly are. Most people avoid planning goals and dreams in their lives because they may have a fear of committing to it or failing. They feel that by officially writing it down, they would actually have to go through with pursuing it. This is where you need to rate the importance of your life missions. What is most important to you? Is it losing a certain amount of weight? Getting your degree? Spending more time with your spouse or children? Whatever the reason or reasons may be, just write all of them down. You may feel that making a mental note of your goals and dreams is enough, but you could very well be setting yourself up for disappointment and failure. By writing it down, you will become a visual witness of those goals. Try writing them in an organizer, with a little reminder written in each day. Setting deadlines for these goals would be a great way to assure they will be accomplished. Avoid disappointment by setting realistic deadlines. For example, if you wanted to lose 10 pounds, do not give yourself a week to do so. You will only torture yourself and become depressed when the week is over and see that you did not come even close to losing the 10 pounds. In fact, you may give up losing weight altogether because of the failure you experienced, simply because your deadline was unrealistic. Take some time everyday to look over your goals and remind yourself of how important they really are to you. Ask yourself why they are important to you too. Knowing that something is important is not enough. You must know the reasons behind the importance of the dreams and goals you have, so that your mind can see it more clearly and understand exactly why it is so necessary to go through with your missions. Excuses are demons you must learn to fight off if you wish to start living a happy and satisfied life. Most people claim to have many dreams, but say they just do not have the time to approach them. Stop making excuses! You are the only one who holds the power to make a real difference in your life. Sure, we all have busy lives with our careers and families, but nothing takes up 24 hours of your day. So if something is truly important to you, you will be sure to make the time to work on it. You can do this by replacing it with something less important. For example, if you claim you do not have the time to work on the other important goals in your life, perhaps it is time for you to start making close observations on the way you spend your time. If you spend several hours of the day working, studying, and then several hours taking care of house chores and family, what else are you doing with the rest of your day? If you spend a good portion watching television, then you need to cut back on that and use that time to begin and follow an exercise plan you have been thinking to focus on for a long time (or whatever goal it is you have). Making yourself one of your first priorities is not selfish. It actually is obligatory to do so in order to succeed in the other subjects of your life. Without a happy and satisfied you, there will be no happy and satisfied life, because you will be stressed out and unhappy. You might be consciously ignoring your needs and desires, but your subconscious mind has not forgotten about you and will constantly remind you through stress, anger, sadness, insecurity and feelings of failure. Start listening to yourself and becoming the best friend and supporter you need. No one is going to work on your happiness for you, so find the power and motivation stored up inside you, and use it to direct yourself into the path of true happiness and satisfaction. You can do anything you set your mind to, and once you have stopped and gotten in touch with yourself, you will learn and realize just how wonderful and capable you really are, and how you always have been. You will not only realize these things, but also begin loving who are more and more, which will not only lead you to achieving the things that make you most happy, but will guide you into a world of many new dreams come true.

Information about Mobile application marketing

Here in this article you can find the simple rules that are laid down to increase the fame and glory in the mobile application battle. These tips may seem to be very basic but often they are neglected at the moment by the developers. The best way to stand unique in the competitive world is to create a mobile application that is unique. There are still thousands and thousands of mobile application that are uninspired. If you want to stick to this point then you have to make sure that you might be first developer in the category you are going to develop or reinvent the existing category with something unique. In the history of mobile application only very few application are created in new categories. So unless you are building a new idea you will not be able to succeed in the competitive world. Look at your competitors and think something new to overcome them. Think what are the cool features that your competitor’s application is missing? Take advantage of it and build your application. A unique feature in your mobile application will make it to stand a head taller in the never ending crowd. Think, plan and create an intention of creating your application unique. Analyze that you are merely trying to improve someone else’s idea. You can also try to mix some categories. The success in mobile application lies in making people to talk about your application. The more people you talk about your mobile application the more exposure you will get. So if you create a unique application then you are half the way to success. This is because people will talk about your application just because it is unique. But how can you make people talk about product or start a conversation on it? Try to make the conversation about the application very easy and engaging. Make it such a way that people like to tweet it. Tweeting is like trade marking your application. It tells how well your application is moving the in mobile world. The successful mobile applications are easily shared among the social media sites. Even though your application is not gratifying or playfully entertaining you have a chance to compose a tweet that is highly tweetable. Just think what will you retweet yourself. Try to think that how can you sell your application in just 140 characters. Try to good a copy and have a useful and attractive landing page. Try to find the beneficial reasons people can get from your mobile application. Try to create a memorable tagline. The social media and the blog sphere are not separated from each other. Like the pond ripples the more people tweet your application the more likely your application will be.

Choosing Your Wedding Photographer

Getting married is hopefully a once in a life time experience. Your wedding day we usually be filled with joy, tears and happiness in celebrating your special day. Because your wedding day is so special arrange everything in the lead up to it can be very stressful. There is the church, reception venue, cake, balloons, DJ, invitations, catering, wedding dress (and suit for the groom), brides maids dresses, the honeymoon and not forgetting the wedding photographer. Obviously we cannot give tips for all of these but we will focus on the wedding photographer because with so many photographers to choose from where do you start? What do you need to know when looking for a wedding photographer? How much will they costs? Firstly you need to find a wedding photographer! Personal recommendation is always a good start. Have you had friends or family who have been married recently, if so find out who they used, whether they where any good and get a rough idea of how much it cost them. Maybe even ask to see there photographs to judge the quality for yourself. The other way is to go onto Google and type “wedding photographer” followed by the area you live in so if you lived in Cambridge then you would type “wedding photographer Cambridge”. Once you get the results up on your screen visit a few of the websites that come up on page 1 and 2 and compare them to see who is best or who you feel provide the most value for money. When it comes to booking you wedding photographer make sure you do it as early as possible as they could be busy with another job on that day. Leaving it to the last minute to book your wedding photographer is not a good idea and will potentially mean you will not get the one you hoped for.  One other thing to always keep in mind is that the cheapest photographer isn’t always the best option. Cutting costs on your wedding photography can result in poor wedding photographs resulting in huge disappointment and photographs of the day that you simply do not want to look at. One you have made a choice on a photographer then go meet them to get a better feel about how professional they are and how they like to work. Use this opportunity to ask some questions and view some examples of there work that isn’t on the website. Remember they are always going to put there best photographs on there website so try to see a range of shots they have taken that haven’t been cherry picked by them. During this meeting there are some really important questions to ask, here are just a few to consider: • How many weddings have you photographed in the past? • Are you insured? • What are your prices, and what do I get in my package? • Do you do this full time? • Do you provide a written contract? • What backup equipment do you bring to the wedding? • What "style" do you photograph in? If you are happy with the answers you receive then you should aim to pay a retainer to secure the date you require. When you do make sure you get a written contract which details the amount you are paying and what you are getting for that. Hope this article has helped you when it comes to deciding on a wedding photographer and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Learn How to Make Money with Virtual Stock Trading

For those who are new to investing, virtual stock trading might be the answer. According to the article “An Introduction to Virtual Stock Trading,” experienced investors use virtual stock trading to test different strategies. If they return a profit, they can apply these strategies to the real life marketplace. Beginning investors should take the same approach. In addition to being incredibly entertaining, virtual stock trading helps people develop an important skill. This is particularly the case if they choose the right type of game. To find out which game is best for your interests, please check out the sections below. Paper Trading Before the invention of the online virtual stock game, investors used paper trading to practice their skills. Fake money was used in these games, which is how the practice developed its name. Today, paper trading is expressed through a variety of Internet-based games. To access these games, you must use an online stock trading company or visit a site that specializes in fantasy stock trading. 1) Online Stock Trading Companies Many online stock trading companies offer virtual trading as a way of testing their services. Some of the most well-known include: • eToro • Options House • Noble Trading • Forex.com • Zumo Of course, regardless of the company one uses, the process of virtual stock trading is expressed the same way. Investors are given a practice account with thousands of dollars in fake money. With this account, they have access to all of the site’s features. For most networks, this includes stock trackers, news reports and analytic programs. The data given through these tools is provided on a real-time basis. When investors are ready trade for real, they can upgrade their account. The virtual money gets erased, but everything else stays the same. This makes trading more convenient for those who want to stick with the same provider. 2) Fantasy Stock Trading Sites like Umoo and The Virtual Stock Exchange operate on a different premise. They provide fantasy stock trading, a type of game that keeps things in the virtual world. True, investors will still get access to the most common stock market tools, but the data they are given may not necessarily be real-time. This is not as much a concern with Umoo, as their site clearly states they use up-to-date information. However, with The Virtual Stock Exchange, there are a variety of games from different providers. Consequently, investors may not know what to expect. On the upside, fantasy stock trading often attracts competitions. If investors meet certain objectives, they could win real cash prizes. This is not a bad deal considering no upfront money is needed to play these games. However, keep in mind that the majority of sites offering fantasy stock sites cannot accommodate one’s needs outside of the virtual environment. If they want to trade for real, they must use another network. Online Virtual Stock Games – The Flash Scene With most networks, to participate in virtual stock trading, one must sign up for an account. Flash games eliminate this step. As long as a person has JAVA installed, they can play an online virtual stock game immediately. However, be aware that currently there aren’t many Flash games offering virtual stock trading. In fact, the only one that is really worth playing is Stock Market 60. It is not as detailed as the resources mentioned above, but it can give a person a good feel for how virtual trading works. Wall Street Kid - Virtual Stock Trading with a Twist For investors, virtual stock trading is a dream. But for gamers, it might be a bit boring. Wall Street Kid offers a happy medium for both parties. Through it, gamers and investors practice their skills while learning how to manage other aspects of a person’s life. In Wall Street Kid, the protagonist must earn $1 billion to buy his deceased uncle’s estate. In the meantime, he must achieve certain milestones to maintain a decent social standing. In addition to buying expensive houses, cars and boats, the protagonist must keep his girlfriend happy and stay on top of his health. If he fails in either of these areas, he will still lose even if his investing is in order. As far as the investing itself, it is more simplified than what one would find online. There are no trackers, or analytic tools. The protagonist must use the paper, a financial advisor and a daily stock market report to determine which stocks he should buy. This process is easy in the first stage, but as the game advances players must use their wits to find winning stocks. They must also learn when they should drop stocks on the verge of decline. Anyway, to play this game, one must get the original NES version or visit Nintendo8.com. The latter resource offers the game in its entirety online. Overall, Virtual Stock Trading is Fun and Educational Virtual stock trading should be used by every investor. It carries no risk and it helps people understand the stock market better. Most importantly, it helps people develop skills that can be transferred into the real life stock market arena. Whether the market is good or bad, virtual stock trading helps investors form the best personal strategies for success.

Employee Coaching

A lot has been written about why managers should coach employees. A lot also has been written on how to coach employees. You can find many articles on the Pygmalion Effect and the Galatea Effect, which explain how employee coaching works. Very few articles help you know when to coach employees. That's what this article does. Before Coaching Employees Most of the time, a manager should not coach their employees. To understand that statement, it helps to know what employee coaching is and what employee coaching is not. Giving employees the knowledge and skills they need to perform their job tasks is not employee coaching; that is employee training. On the other hand, employee coaching is an on-going process of helping employee identify and overcome the hurdles that prevent them from excelling at their jobs. Note that employee coaching involves helping employees identify solutions to their performance http://www.articlesnatch.com/myarticle.phpBefore you can effectively coach employees you must know that they are properly trained and that they know what is expected of them. These are the times to NOT coach employees: • Their training is not complete When an employee has not been completely trained it is a waste of your time and theirs to try to coach them in those aspects of their job. If they have been properly trained in part of their job, you can coach them in that part, but not in the areas where they have not yet been trained. Do the training first. Then do the employee coaching. • They do not know what is expected of them It is pointless to coach employees who don't know what is expected of them and know how that is measured. Remember that employee coaching is designed to help them overcome performance barriers. If they don't know what performance is expected of them they won't know how to get there. Set clear objectives for your employees. Then do the employee coaching. • When you are in a hurry Employee coaching takes time. When you are in a hurry, you will not do a good job. You will not take the time to help them identify solutions, but will be more likely to just tell them what to do. Make time to do it right. Then do the employee coaching. • When you are angry or upset When you are upset, you won't exhibit the enthusiasm and friendliness you need to be effective as an employee coach. You may not be fair or equitable. You may give even subtle signals to the employee that could undermine the coaching you have been doing up to this point. Get your emotions in check. Then do the employee coaching. A lot has been written about why managers should coach employees. A lot also has been written on how to coach employees. You can find many articles on the Pygmalion Effect and the Galatea Effect, which explain how employee coaching works. Very few articles help you know when to coach employees. That's what this article does.

Details about How to obtain an Indian driving license

Young and elderly alike are opting for own transportation as public transport is not able to meet the demand and a lot of time is wasted in waiting.. It is a long process to owning a vehicle, its registration and obtaining a driving license It is necessary to know as to whom you should contact, the necessary documents to be submitted and the fees for various categories. Learning Licence (LLR)– form 1,1a,2 are to be filled up,Xerox copy of one of the below -passport, telephone bill, house tax receipt, LIC policy, pay slip, voter’s card, ration card or pan card.- is to be included. • For age proof – birth certificate, school certificate, certificate issued by medical officer/civil surgeon. • AGE:16 years for vehicles without gear,18 years for light motor vehicle and vehicle with gears. • Fees: Rs. 60/-30/- fee + Rs.30/- service charge) • Driving Test-the fee for driving test will be Rs.90/- you have to drive the vehicle of track which takes about 10 minutes. You have to obtain at least 12 marks out of 20. 2 PERMANENT DRIVING LICENCE – Form 4 is to be filled up. • LLR original is to be submitted. • Appear with vehicle for licence. • Fees- Rs.390-Rs.440 depending on the category of the vehicle. 3 INTERNATIONAL DRIVING PERMIT(IDP)- Form 1a,4a are to be filled. • Submit original Indian Driving Licence, Xerox copy of passport and visa. • There will not any driving test but the person must appear before the concerned office. • Fees- Rs. 650/- 4 DUPLICATE DRIVING LICENCE –Form LLD is to be filled. • Police certificate is to be attached • Fees-315/- RENEWAL OF DRIVING LICENCE- Forms 9,1,1a are to be filled. • Original driving licence, medical certificate of people aged above 50. • Fees-Rs.350/- 5 REGISTRATION OF VEHICLE- form 20,21, 22, to be filled • Sale certificate, invoice bill, proof of residency, life tax receipt (paid at e-seva), insurance certificate. • The vehicle is to be compulsorily produced for inspection. • Motor cycles –Rs.160/- and form 26 is to be submitted along police enquiry certificate and no objection certificate from the financier. • Light motor vehicle like autos and jeeps – Rs.500/-Form 26 to be submitted along with police enquiry certificate and no objection certificate from the financier. • Transport vehicle –Rs.600/- • Heavy vehicles – Rs.800/-

What is Fun Team Games

The party season is here, what with Halloween and Christmas and New Year coming one after the other, it's the time to party. In a party, it's not always that everyone will know all of whom you invite. If people know each other then the party becomes more fun and enjoyable. But, if half the group does not know anyone, and each move separately in a pack, talking only to those whom they know, then there is no fun. What do you think can be the best ice breaker this time? What else but some good fun team games! Just divide your guests into teams, making sure that the teams are made of people who do not know each other and then after playing a game or two or some team bonding activities, your party will just rock! Want to know what kind of team game s you can play? Here are some ideas. Fun Team Games for Adults The games meant for kids and adults are separate. What the kids will enjoy, the adults of course won't. So here are some ideas for fun team building games for adults. Truth and Lie Divide the group of adults into two or more groups depending on the number of people who are present. Then make them sit in a circle and give them a card on which they have to write at least two truths about themselves and one lie. Collect the cards and shuffle them. Then pick up each card and read out the truths and the lies and let the others guess who has written it and also let them guess which is the lie. This is a fun team building activity for adults and it will also help the guests to get to know each other well. The Creator Have at least two or more teams and give them some imaginary product, say a magical lamp, and ask them to find out funny and exciting ways to advertise the product. This will need team effort, hence this is a fun team building game for adults. Provide the teams with a time limit and have a small reward for the team with the best imagination. Word Game This is one of the many fun team building activities. In this game, after dividing the people into one or two teams, have the leader or the host call out a letter from the English alphabet. Let each team try and form words as quickly as possible. The team which forms the words quickest, scores more. Fun Team Games for Kids and Teenagers Kids and teenagers, when in a party full of grown ups and others kids whom they do not know, get nothing but bored. They cannot take part in the games meant for adults. So what now? Well, there are fun team games for teenagers and kids as well, which they will enjoy playing. It will also help them to get to know each other well. Given below are some great outdoor as well as indoor team building activities for kids as well as teenagers. Snake in the Gutter This is a fun team building activity for kids. Form a group of two with the kids; one the snakes and one group as the kid who will cross the gutter. Make the snakes stand in a straight line, facing the other group. There should be wide spaces between each 'snake'. When everyone is ready, shout 'snake in the gutter' and let the other kids who are not the snakes try and run through the 'snakes in the gutter'. If they cross over without being touched by the snake, well and good, but if they are tagged by the snakes, they have to join them and try and tag the other kids. This is one of the many fun outdoor team games for kids. Freeze Tag This is another fun team building game, which kids will enjoy playing. This is another outdoor game. Have one kid who will run and try to tag the others. If this kid succeeds in tagging one person, the second person will just freeze and remain like that till some other kid from his team comes and goes through his leg. There will be lot of running around, so make sure that there is enough space to play. These are great team building games for kids which you can try out at the next party. Fun Team Games at Work Sometimes, at work, people get so busy with all their deadlines and business matters, that they hardly have time to socialize with each other and get to know their team members well. Sometimes, they get so involved with office politics that they are always at each others throat. The only way to get rid of this problem is by organizing some fun team building games for the workplace, so that one gets to know each other well and also learns all about team spirit and team building. Here are some fun team games at work that you can try out. Charades In this game, collect some slips of paper which mentions the names of maybe movies or songs or name of a book. Ask a member from each group to come up and pick a slip and whatever that person picks up, he or she has to act it out for his team and they in turn have to guess the correct answer. The person who is acting, of course cannot talk. The team that guesses first, gets more points and the team with maximum points, wins. Capture the Flag Mark two territories with some sort of a boundary like some cones or boxes and then, form two teams. Mark their boundary and give them a flag or a piece of cloth to hide in their own territory. Now let the members of the other team find out the other team's flag in the opponents territory, but they should not get caught by their opponents. If they are caught, then the person is to be put in the jail of the opponent team and has to stay out of the game unless he or she is released by his teammates. The game gets over when the opponent team's flag is found. There are more office games to play if you want. These fun team games are great to break the ice at parties or social occasions. It is also a great way to build up a team and teach people how to work in a team, together. No more will those parties seem boring now, for kids or for adults.

how to use Your Mobile Phone

VARIOUS OPTIONS Cellular Phone Carrier: The normal subscription system, where you get a monthly bill for all calls made. Prepaid Cellular Phone: You pay for the service in advance, where the amount in your account is debited with per call made. When the account has been used, you have to get a new card. A pre-paid phone service does not require the initial investment as the monthly service. However, the per call cost is more in a pre-paid. Also, benefits like free night-talk, and others are not available. Cellular Phone Accessories: Extra batteries, vehicle antennas, battery chargers / conditioners, battery eliminators, hands free kits, and leather cases, are all the accessories available. Hands Free: An important safety feature that's included with most of today's mobile phones. It permits drivers to use their cellular phone without lifting or holding the handset to their ear. You can speak into your handset by placing it near you during a conversation. Voice Activated Dialing: A feature available only on selected phones and hands-free car kits that permits you to dial numbers by calling them out to your cellular phone, instead of dialing them manually. This function is especially convenient for making calls from your vehicle while driving. THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH YOUR CELL PHONES How to use your phone as a modem: You can go online to send faxes and e-mail using your cellular phone as a wireless "modem" for your laptop. To do this, you'll need a phone that can function as a modem, a cable to connect your phone to your laptop, and a carrier that offers Internet or data options. For cellular phones without a built-in modem, you'll need to purchase a cellular-compatible PC card modem that works with your laptop. You'll also need a compatible cable to connect the card modem in the laptop to your cell phone. Sometimes the PC card and cable are packaged together as a kit i.e. You can click on the Service Plans tab to see which carriers in your market sell that phone. Newer phones have built-in modem capability, so your laptop doesn't need a PC card, but you'll still have to purchase a compatible cable to connect the phone to your laptop's serial port. Getting Web Updates on your phone: Some carriers offer news, stock and sports updates with activation of a Web-messaging option or service plan. Other carriers provide free news updates as long as you subscribe to text-messaging services. When you sign up for these services, carriers require you to establish an account either on their Web site or on a Web site designed to provide your updates. Once you establish an account, you will be able to select and modify your updates, including when you receive them, simply by accessing your account via the Web site. The updates arrive as text messages (also called short messaging service), so your phone needs to support this feature. Depending on the carrier, updates are subject to character limitations ranging from 100 to 150 characters. Alarm Clocks on phones: With most phones, you simply select the alarm option and enter a time. Some alarms will work even when the phone is turned off. Usually, the phone's alarm will sound just like your ringer alert. E-mail and Faxes on your phone: You can also send and receive data/fax documents, access the internet, email accounts and corporate databases whenever you are on the move. All you need is a compatible phone and computer and the connecting accessories (unless you use infrared). Your mobile acts as a phone line. Calls are normally charged at the same rate as voice calls. You can ask for this facility from your phone service, for just a little extra charge. And then, you become truly global! In touch with the world at your fingertips! Screening your calls: A caller ID displays the caller's number on your phone's screen. It is standard with many digital cellular and PCS (Personal Communications Service) carriers. Some callers can't be identified, depending on how their call is routed to you. Locking your Phone: Locking your cell phone is a great way to ensure you're the only one using your handset. Once you activate the lock mode, you must enter a four-digit code on the keypad each time you turn on the phone. This prevents anyone else from making calls or accessing the phone's memory or menu functions. Tracking Battery Strength: Your phone can indicate on its screen when your battery is almost out of power. The indicator can be a battery icon, a "battery low" message or a red light. CELLULAR PHONES AND HEALTH HAZARDS Although no conclusive evidence has been found linking mobile phone exposure to brain cancer, several new studies suggest that the potential threat to health is greater than previously thought. Another cause for concern is the effect on health due to Radio Frequency (RF) exposure. RF can penetrate exposed tissue, is absorbed by the body and produces heat although the body's normal thermo regulating process carries this heat away. According to new WHO (World Health Organisation) guide rules: • Mobile phone users should limit their exposure to harmful radio frequencies by cutting the length of calls. • Hands-free devices cut exposure by keeping the instrument away from the head and body. • Driving cum mobile phone talking should be banned. • Mobile phones should not be used in Intensive Care Units of hospitals as they can pose a danger to patients by interfering with the working of pacemakers and defibrillators. • People with hearing aids should not use mobile phones. • Base stations, which have low powered antennae on their terrace to communicate with cell phones, should not be located near children's schools and playgrounds. A TIP Let your personal phone be personal: Be discreet about giving out your number Only give your number to people you actually know, it's your money you'll be spending when they ring you up. TALK SMART A cell phone should be used as a device for communicating. Your chats can be left for a landline. Use your phone smartly to save on your bills. Buy smart, talk smart, and save money on your cell-phones. Cell phone technology has gone on to make the world smaller, and at your fingertips. Also people can keep in touch and trace each other with much more ease. So go ahead, and keep your date, even if you missed her at the taxi stand. Just talk!! Curtsy www compareindia com

Deane online secrets: Play Poker in one of the best poker sites

Deane online secrets: Play Poker in one of the best poker sites

Ideas For Build Quality into your Team

Quality has become the philosophers' stone of management practice with consultants and gurus vying to charm lead-laden corporations into gold-winning champions. Stories abound of base companies with morose workers and mounting debts being transformed into happy teams and healthy profits; never a day goes by without a significant improvement, a pounds-saving suggestion or a quantum leap in efficiency. With this professed success of "Quality" programmes, there has evolved a proscriptive mythology of correct practise which has several draw backs: • the edicts call for nothing less than a company wide, senior-management led programme • the adherence to a single formula has a limited effect, precludes innovation outside these boundaries, and reduces the differentiation which such programmes profess to engender • the emphasis on single-task, specially formed groups shifts the focus away from the ordinary, daily bread-and-butter Of course, these criticisms do not invalidate the ideas of Quality but are simply to suggest that the principles might well be viewed from a new angle - and applied at a different level. This article attempts to provide a new perspective by re-examining some of the tenets of Quality in the context of a small, established team: simply, what could a Team Leader do with his/her staff. What is "Quality"? In current management writings "Quality" has come to refer to a whole gambit of practices which themselves have resulted in beneficial side-effects; as a Team Leader, you will want to take advantage of these benefits also. The Customer In simple terms, attaining Quality has something to do with satisfying the expectations of the customer. Concern for the wishes and needs of customers becomes the focus for every decision. What the customer wants, the company provides. This is not philanthropy, this is basic survival. Through careful education by competitors, the customer has begun to exercise spending power in favour of quality goods and services; and while quality is not the sole criterion in selecting a particular supplier, it has become an important differentiator. If one ten-pence ball-point runs dry in one month and another ten-pence ball-point lasts for three then the second ball-point is the make which the customer will buy again and which he/she recommends to others - even if it costs a little more. The makers of the first ball-point may have higher profit margins, but eventually no sales; without quality in the product, a company sacrifices customers, revenue and ultimately its own existence. In practical terms, Quality is that something extra which will be perceived by the customer as a valid reason for either paying more or for buying again. In the case where the product is a service, Quality is equated with how well the job is done and especially with whether the customer is made to feel good about the whole operation. In this respect Quality often does cost more, but the loss is recouped in the price customers are prepared to pay and in the increase of business. Reliability The clearest manifestation of Quality is in a product's reliability: that the product simply works. To prevent problems from arising after the product is shipped, the quality must be checked before-hand - and the best time to check quality is throughout the whole design and manufacturing cycle. The old method of quality control was to test the completed product and then to rework to remove the problems. Thus while the original production time was short, the rework time was long. The new approach to quality simply asserts that if testing becomes an integral part of each stage of production, the production time may increase but the rework time will disappear. Further, you will catch and solve many problems which the final "big-bang" quality-check would miss but which the customer will find on the first day. To achieve this requires an environment where the identification of errors is considered to be "a good thing", where the only bad bugs are the ones which got away. One of the most hallowed doctrines of Quality is that of zero defects. "Zero defects" is a focus, it a glorious objective, it is the assertion that nothing less will suffice and that no matter how high the quality of a product, it can still be improved. It is a paradox in that it is an aim which is contrary to reason, and like the paradoxes of many other religions it holds an inner truth. This is why the advocates of Quality often seem a little crazy: they are zealots. People as Resource While Quality has its own reward in terms of increased long-term sales, the methods used to achieve this Quality also have other benefits. In seeking to improve the quality of the product, manufacturers have found that the people best placed to make substantial contributions are the workforce: people are the most valuable resource. It is this shift in perspective from the management to the workforce which is the most significant consequence of the search for quality. From it has arisen a new managerial philosophy aimed at the empowerment of the workforce, decision-making by the front line, active worker involvement in the company's advancement; and from this new perspective, new organizational structures have evolved, exemplified in "Quality Circles". Without digressing too much, it is important to examine the benefits of this approach. For such delegation to be safely and effectively undertaken, the management has to train the workforce; not necessarily directly, and not all at once, but often within the Quality Circles themselves using a single "facilitator" or simply peer-coaching. The workforce had to learn how to hold meetings, how to analyse problems, how to take decisions, how to present solutions, how to implement and evaluate change. These traditionally high-level managerial prerogatives are devolved to the whole staff. Not only does this develop talent, it also stimulates interest. Staff begin to look not only for problems but also for solutions. Simple ideas become simply implemented: the secretary finally gets the filing cabinet moved closer to the desk, the sales meetings follow an agenda, the software division creates a new bulletin board for the sports club. The environment is created where people see problems and fix 'em. Larger problems have more complex solutions. One outcome of the search for Quality in Japan is the system of Just-In-Time flow control. In this system, goods arrive at each stage of the manufacturing process just before they are needed and are not made until they are needed by the next stage. This reduces storage requirements and inventory costs of surplus stock. Another outcome has been the increased flexibility of the production line. Time to change from one product run to the next was identified as a major obstacle in providing the customer with the desired range of products and quantities, and so the whole workforce became engaged in changing existant practices and even in redesigning the machinery. The Long Term However, I believe that the most significant shift in perspective which accompanies the introduction of Quality is that long term success is given precedence over short term gains. The repeat-sale and recommendation are more important than this month's sales figures; staff training and development remain in place despite immediate schedule problems; the product's reliability is paramount even over time-to-market. Time is devoted today to saving time in the future and in making products which work first and every time. Team Quality While the salvation of an entire corporation may rest primarily with Senior Management, the fate of a team rests with the Team Leader. The Team Leader has the authority, the power to define the micro-culture of the work team. It is by the deliberate application of the principles of Quality that the Team Leader can gain for the team the same benefits which Quality can provide for a corporation. The best ideas for any particular team are likely to come from them - the aim of the Team Leader must be to act as a catalyst through prompts and by example; the following are possible suggestions. Getting Started There will be no overnight success. To be lasting, Quality must become a habit and a habit is accustomed practise. This takes time and training - although not necessarily formal training but possibly the sort of reinforcement you might give to any aspect of good practise. To habituate your staff to Quality, you must first make it an issue. Here are two suggestions. The first idea is to become enthusiastic about one aspect at a time, and initially look for a quick kill. Find a problem and start to talk about it with the whole team; do not delegate it to an individual but make it an issue for everybody. Choose some work-related problem like "how to get the right information in time" and solicit everybody's views and suggestions - and get the problem solved. Demand urgency against a clear target. There is no need to allocate large amounts of resource or time to this, simply raise the problem and make a fuss. When a solution comes, praise it by rewarding the whole team, and ensure that the aspects of increased efficiency/productivity/calm are highlighted since this will establish the criteria for "success". Next, find another problem and repeat. The second idea is the regular weekly meeting to discuss Quality. Of course meetings can be complete time wasters, so this strategy requires care. The benefits are that regularity will lead to habit, the formality will provide a simple opportunity for the expression of ideas, and the inclusion of the whole group at the meeting will emphasize the collective responsibility. By using the regular meeting, you can establish the "ground rules" of accepted behaviour and at the same time train the team in effective techniques. One problem is that the focus on any one particular issue may quickly loose its efficacy. A solution is to have frequent shifts in focus so that you maintain the freshness and enthusiasm (and the scope for innovative solutions). Further benefits are that continual shifts in emphasis will train your team to be flexible, and provide the opportunity for them to raise new issues. The sooner the team takes over the definition of the "next problem", the better. Initial Phases The initial phases are delicate. The team will be feeling greater responsibility without extra confidence. Thus you must concentrate on supporting their development. Essentially you will be their trainer in management skills. You could get outside help with this but by undertaking the job yourself, you retain control: you mould the team so that they will reflect your own approach and use your own criteria. Later they will develop themselves, but even then they will understand your thinking and so your decisions. One trap to avoid is that the team may focus upon the wrong type of problem. You must make it clear any problem which they tackle should be: • related to their own work or environment • something which they can change This precludes gripe sessions about wages and holidays. As with all group work, the main problem is clarity. You should provide the team with a notice board and flip-charts specifically for Quality problems. These can then be left on display as a permanent record of what was agreed. If you can, steer the group first to some problem which has a simple solution and with obvious (measurable) benefits. A quick, sharp success will motivate. Team Building To succeed, a Quality push must engage the enthusiasm of the entire team; as Team Leader, you must create the right atmosphere for this to happen. Many aspects of team building can be addressed while Quality remains the focus. You must create the environment where each team member feels totally free to express an idea or concern and this can only be done if there is no stigma attached to being incorrect. No idea is wrong - merely non-optimal. In each suggestion there is at least a thread of gold and someone should point it out and, if possible, build upon it. Any behaviour which seeks laughter at the expense of others must be swiftly reprimanded. One crude but effective method is to write down agreed ground rules and to display them as a constant reminder for everyone, something like: • all criticism must be kind and constructive • all our-problems are all-our problems • BUGS WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE (but not for long) • if it saves time later, do it now Another method is to constantly talk about the group as the plural pronoun: "we decided", "we can do this", "we'll get back to you". This is especially effective if it is used in conversation with outsiders (especially management) within ear-shot of the team. Praise and reward the whole team; get the team wider fame by a success story in an internal newspaper. Most importantly, you must enable failure. If the team is unable to try out ideas without rebuke for errors, then the scope of their solutions will be severely limited. Instead, a failure should be an opportunity to gain knowledge and to praise any safe-guards which were included in the plan. Mutual Coaching An important aspect of team interaction is the idea of mutual support. If you can instill the idea that all problems are owned by the entire team then each member will be able to seek help and advice when needed from every other team member. One promoter of this is to encourage mutual coaching. If one team member knows techniques or information which would be useful to the rest, then encourage him/her to share it. Specifically this will raise the profile, confidence and self-esteem of the instructor at the same time as benefiting the entire group. And if there is one member who might never have anything useful to impart - send him/her to a conference or training session to find something. Statistics One of the central tenets of Quality programmes is the idea of monitoring the problem being addressed: Statistical Quality Control. Quite simply, if you can't measure an improvement, it probably isn't there. Gathering statistics has several benefits in applying Quality: • it identifies (the extent of) the problem • it allows progress to be monitored • it provides an objective criterion for the abandonment of an idea • it can justify perceived expense in terms of observed savings/improvements • it motivates staff by providing a display of achievement and, of course, some problems simply disappear when you try to watch them. The statistics must be gathered in an objective and empirical manner, the outcome should be a simple table or graph regularly updated to indicate progress, and these results must be displayed where all the team can watch. For example, if your team provides product support, then you might monitor and graph the number of repeat enquiries or the average response time. Or if you are in product development, you might want to monitor the number of bugs discovered (i.e. improvement opportunities). In the long term, it may be suitable to implement the automatic gathering of statistics on a wide range of issues such as complaints, bug reports, machine down-time, etc. Eventually these may either provide early warning of unexpected problems, or comparative data for new quality improvement projects. It is vital, however, that they focus upon an agreed problem and not upon an individual's performance or else all the positive motivation of staff involvement will be lost. Projects Clarity of purpose - this is the key to success. You need a simple, stated objective which everybody understands and which everybody can see achieved. Any plan to improve the quality or effectiveness of the group must contain: • the objective • the method • the statistical display for monitoring the outcome • the agreed criteria for completion or curtailment By insisting on this format, you provide the plan-owners with a simple mechanism for peer recognition (through the displayed notice board) and yet enable them to manage their own failure with grace. For a small established team, the "customer" includes any other part of the company with which the team interacts. Thus any themes regarding customer satisfaction can be developed with respect to these so called internal customers. In the end, the effectiveness of your team will be judged by the reports of how well they provide products for others. A simple innovation might be for a member of your team to actually talk to someone from each of these internal customer groups and to ask about problems. The interfaces are usually the best place to look for simply solved problems. The immediate benefit may be to the customer, but in the long run better communications will lead to fewer misunderstandings and so less rework. Building Quality Quality costs less than its lack; look after the pennies and the profits will take care of themselves. To build a quality product, you must do two things: • worry the design and the procedures • include features to aid quality checking It is a question of attitude. If one of the team spots a modification in the design or the procedures which will have a long term benefit, then that must be given priority over the immediate schedule. The design is never quite right; you should allocate time specifically to discussing improvement. In this you should not aim at actual enhancements in the sense of added features or faster performance, but towards simplicity or predicting problem areas. This is an adjunct to the normal design or production operations - the extra mile which lesser teams would not go. Many products and services do not lend themselves to quality monitoring. These should be enhanced so that the quality becomes easily tracked. This may be a simple invitation for the "customer" to comment, or it could be a full design modification to provide self-checking or an easy testing routine. Any product whose quality can not be tracked should naturally become a source of deep anxiety to the whole team - until a mechanism is devised. One of the least-used sources of quality in design and production in the engineering world is documentation. This is frequently seen as the final inconvenience at product release, sometimes even delegated to another (non-technical) group - yet the writing of such documentation can be used as an important vehicle for the clarification of ideas. It also protects the group from the loss of any single individual; the No.7 bus, or the head-hunter, could strike at any time. In devising a mechanism for monitoring quality, many teams will produce a set of test procedures. As bugs emerge, new procedures should be added which specifically identify this problem and so check the solution. Even when the problem is solved the new procedures should remain in the test set; the problem may return (perhaps as a side effect of a subsequent modification) or the procedure may catch another. Essentially the test set should grow to cover all known possibilities of error and its application should, where possible, be automated. Role Change As your team develops, your role as leader changes subtly. You become a cross between a priest and a rugby captain, providing the vision and the values while shouting like crazy from the centre of the field. Although you retain the final say (that is your responsibility), the team begins to make decisions. The hardest part, as with all delegation, is in accepting the group decision even though you disagree. You must never countermand a marginal decision. If you have to over-rule the team, it is imperative that you explain your reasons very clearly so that they understand the criteria; this will both justify your intervention and couch the team in (hopefully) good decision-making practices. Another role which you assume is that of both buffer and interface between the team and the rest of the company: a buffer in that you protect the team from the vagaries of less enlightened managers; an interface in that you keep the team informed about factors relevant to their decisions. Ultimately, the team will be delegating to you (!) tasks which only you, acting as manager, can perform on its behalf. Quality for Profit By applying the principles of Quality to an established team, the Team Leader can enjoy the benefits so actively sought by large corporations. The key is the attitude - and the insistence on the primacy of Quality. As a Team Leader, you have the power to define the ethos of your staff; by using Quality as the focus, you also can accrue its riches.