Do you know your worth as an employee? The quickest way to determine your worth as an employee is by your salary – how much you are getting paid each year. To the company, your salary is how much value you are bringing to them by working there. We’re not here to discuss or debate the “fairness” of what companies pay their employees – there are many factors that go into how salaries are calculated. Instead, our goal here is to understand how much value you bring to your company, and how to make sure you are being compensated for that value. Money is always a sensitive subject – you may not want to bring it up because you don’t want to be seen as “greedy”, or you may not know how to start the conversation. But if you know your worth and are ready for the next step in your career, here are tips on how you can ask for a promotion professionally.   Understand What You Are Trying to Achieve             So, you’ve decided you want a promotion – but why? What is it about your current situation that makes you want a change? If you’re tired of your job, then promotion isn’t the only option – you could explore any potential transfer opportunities within your company. If you’re tired of your company’s politics, then getting a promotion won’t fix that (it actually may make it worse) Understanding what you want to achieve helps clarify the steps you need to take to get there. It may be a promotion, or it may be a different job in a different company. Before you start the process, you need to understand the goal.   Build Your Case             Now that you’ve decided you want to ask for a promotion, the next step is creating your case of why they should give you a promotion. You need to prepare the information like a court case and prove to the jury (in this case, your manager) that, based on the “evidence” of all you have accomplished so far, that you deserve a promotion. Data like… Projects you’ve led Targets you’ve met/exceeded The money you’ve made or saved for the company Past Performance Reviews Research from websites like salary.com Look at your performance objectively (If I were the manager, does this convince me that they deserve a promotion?) This can be a reality check because, if you can’t find convincing data, then you won’t be successful when asking for a promotion. But hey, that’s ok. Now you have a head start and know what to focus on so you can start building your case when you are ready to ask for the promotion.   Bring It Up During Performance Reviews             Timing is everything, and Performance Reviews are an ideal time to discuss your next steps with your manager. Performance Reviews are when [...]

The word “passion” is defined as a “strong and barely controllable emotion.” Can you say that about the job you are currently in? The idea that you can barely contain your excitement and enjoyment from what you are doing every day? If you don’t have a passion for what you are doing, you will not feel fulfilled in your life. It doesn’t matter if you have a lot of money – passion does not always equal “rich.” Finding a way to pursue your passion full-time, as a career, can mean the difference between living your life to the fullest vs. just living. But how do we connect the passion we have into a career? It starts inward and works its way outward. Here are 4 ways to connect your passion with your career.   Interview Yourself             Before you create any plans on joining your passion and your career, the first thing you must ask yourself is “What am I passionate about?” This means the answer should not be… What other people think is cool What other people think you should do What other people are doing It starts with who you are. What are your values? What gets you excited? What makes you feel fulfilled like you achieved something worthwhile? These are the questions that dig into the core of who you are and how you approach the world. If you value helping others and get excited watching others achieve their goals – then teaching or coaching may be the field for you. Knowing who you are by questioning who you are provides important information and acts as a compass directing you towards a career you are passionate about.   Interview Others             Now that you’ve got a foundation of information, the next thing is to compare your perspective with other people’s perspectives of you. The people you ask should be loved ones or close friends that you trust to give you honest answers. Ask them questions like… What do you feel I’m good at? What things do I get excited about? What do I like to talk about? The goal here is not to understand where you could improve. The goal is to understand how other people perceive you, which could spark an insight into your personality that you didn’t previously know about. These insights may cause you to think of a career or industry that you’ve never considered but maybe something you would thrive in.   Figure Out What You’re Trying to Do             The information you get from the above two steps gives you a great foundation on what you could do. The next step is to understand what you *should* do based on what you now know. Do you want to help a certain group of people (kids, adults, athletes, etc.)? Do you want to try and solve a problem (“Why hasn’t anybody ever tried [...]

What would you do if someone came up to you and said, “Here’s a check for $1 million, no questions asked?” You would most likely take it because hey, free money. What if someone said, “You can get $1 million, but you’ll have to work for it?” Odds are you wouldn’t be as excited because you’ll have to put in some effort. But it would be nice to know the possibility is there. Here’s the thing – that question is asked of you every day. You may not hear it, but the possibility of having $1 million is real – but you must behave like it. That doesn’t mean you start interviewing randomly for high-paying jobs. That means developing habits that are going to put you in the best position possible for you to eventually have lots of money. Here are 4 millionaire success habits to implement now.   They Look at Time Differently             Every successful person you have ever heard of looks at time differently than the rest of us. In their mind, time is a valuable resource that you can never get back. Once that hour is gone, you can’t buy or steal or get an extra hour out of nowhere. Millionaires, whether they are athletes or CEOs, spend every second working on improving themselves and their skills. Have you ever noticed you never have seen T.V. commercials for Ferraris or Lamborghinis? That’s because the audience for those types of cars is not watching T.V. – they are busy grinding away and trying to be and stay successful. This means not binging T.V. for 4 hours a day or scrolling endlessly on your phone. Every minute you spend watching T.V. is a minute you are not spending developing your skills to help you be more successful. You must look at every minute as an opportunity to work towards success.   They Associate with Successful People             There’s a saying that goes “If you want to be a lion, you have to train with lions.” Millionaires, and those who want to work towards being a millionaire, spend time with people who have the same type of mindset. If you spend time with people who don’t have a passion for anything, it can be difficult to feel passion for something yourself. This doesn’t mean eliminate everyone from your life. It just means you should evaluate who you always spend time with and ask yourself “Is this person helping me drive towards success or improvement?” If not, it may be time to start hanging out with people who have a passion for something and who are constantly trying to improve themselves. You may have never felt like this, but if you want to start behaving differently, these people can guide you towards actions to set yourself up for success.   They Set Goals for Everything             Wouldn’t it be weird [...]

“Never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.” ~Unknown   I was sitting on the beach with my wonderful girlfriend, trying to relax on our vacation in Florida, yet I was racked with anxiety. We were lying under a large umbrella, taking in the beautiful waves and swaying palm trees, attempting to recover from the past months (and years) of overwork and overstress. But all I could think about was a marketing initiative I was working on for a client. The more I tried to chill, the more nervous I became. My girlfriend lay peacefully, dozing off occasionally, while I was busy fending off a full-blown panic attack. Did I hurry back from our beach session to get back to work? That would be crazy, right? Well, it was worse. I pulled out my laptop and went to work right there on the beach. I was so addicted to my computer and so stretched thin with commitments that I couldn’t even enjoy this highly anticipated vacation with the love of my life. In fact, the only thing I can remember when I look back on this trip is my stress. I don’t remember enjoying the beach or ever feeling present. When I got back from Florida, I didn’t feel refreshed at all. I more desperately needed a vacation after it than I did before it. Not only had my over-commitment to work prevented me from enjoying my time away, it led me to operating at below my best for many months following. Why did I do this to myself? It was a combination of things. I was insecure and using money to mask it. I was correlating my self-worth with the amount of money I had in the bank. I worked more to distract myself from my own anxieties. But most of all, I was working myself to death because of how the human brain works.   The Psychology of Over-Working The benefits of working less are counterintuitive, but well documented. There are the obvious benefits—such as having more time for hobbies, friends, family, health, or even working on bigger and better projects—and then there are the less obvious benefits, such as improving creativity and productivity. Tim Ferriss’ proposition of a “four-hour work week” is attractive to our rational thinking brains, but in practice, it’s surprisingly difficult to work less. The reason we work more than we need to—sometimes to the extent of actually hurting our productivity, health, or personal relationships—may lie in how humans have evolved. In their book Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters: From Dating, Shopping, and Praying to Going to War and Becoming a Billionaire – Two Evolutionary Psychologists Explain Why We Do What We Do, Alan S. Miller and Satoshi Kanazawa postulate that our brains are shaped by evolutionary pressures to survive and reproduce. We’ve adapted to recurring problems faced by our hunter-gatherer ancestors. “Our human nature is the cumulative product of the experience [...]

Sometimes, we wish we had more hours in the day. However, time is not something we can control. Therefore, we need to spend each hour wisely. Luckily, one thing we do have control over is our productivity. Waking up early, creating regular to-do lists, meditating—there are several ways to make the most out of every minute. Being careful with how we spend the hours at work is key to getting more things done. Successful people get most of their work done before lunch via streamlining their tasks and boosting efficiency. Today, we’re going to help you learn how to get 90% of your work done before lunchtime. How to Get Most of Your Work Done Before Lunch O’Clock Imagine this. You’re sitting at your desk. Lunchtime is near. You relax and push back with a sigh of relief. Since you’re done with most of the work, you leave the desk for a stress-free lunch and start daydreaming about all the cool things you are going to do for the rest of the day. Guess what? You can actually make this happen. 90% of your work can be done before lunch. When everyone else is groping for another cup of coffee, you sit back, relax, shut down your computer, and chill out. Wondering how you can achieve this? Well, we’re going to provide 16 incredible tips, but before that, let’s make two things clear: We are defining work as things that only YOU do—the most important tasks, not involving frequent meetings. This particular approach follows the Pareto Principle, aka the 80/20 rule, which states that for many events, 80 percent of the effects come from 20 percent of the causes. With all that said, here are 16 essential tips to get 90% of your work done in the morning. #1: Make a To-Do List for the Next Day Every night before going to sleep, try listing out all the important tasks you’ll do the next day. Remember, you won’t be productive if you don’t plan out each and everything you are going to do first thing in the morning. Try not to overschedule. Know how to detox your schedule and keep it light to accomplish surefire results. #2: Wake Up Earlier If you really want to get things done, you must get up earlier in the morning to make stuff happen. We recommend waking up anytime from 5 to 6 am. Your morning schedule might take a bit longer. In that case, bump your wakey-wakey time back further. And obviously, you will have to adjust the bedtime accordingly. #3: Clean Your Workplace Every Day Clutter in the office can create distractions. Even a tiny note on the desk that has “Call this number asap!” written on it could throw your entire day off. Remember, showing up at the office with a clear head, in a tidy environment will help you think sharper and work even harder. #4: Always Stay On Schedule You cannot let yourself get [...]

What’s the first word that comes to your mind when you think of the word “leader?” Sometimes, the word “leader” makes you think of titles that are associated with it – CEO, Manager, Coach, Parent, etc. It’s easy to think of titles that carry a status with them which makes anyone with that title a “leader”. At other times, the word “leader” makes you think of someone you know personally – a spouse, your manager, or a close friend. Out of curiosity – when you heard the word “leader”, did you think of yourself? Most people don’t think of themselves as a leader because it would seem overconfident or full of themselves. News Flash: It doesn’t. There is nothing wrong with considering yourself as a leader or wanting to become a leader. You may think of people who seem like natural leaders, but it took them a lot of practice and energy to make it look natural. One of my favorite quotes is from author Marianne Williamson – “Your playing small does not serve the world.” The world needs a diverse set of leaders, and you shouldn’t resist the desire to become more of a leader. But what if you don’t know how to be a leader? We want to share six techniques you can start practicing today to develop yourself into more of a leader.   Walk the Walk             Before you can be seen as a leader, you need to be seen as someone who people would want to follow. I can’t ask you to do something that I’m not willing to do myself. People gravitate towards others who are willing to go through tough times and good times and embrace the challenge. You can’t lead until you set the example.   Be Vulnerable             The quickest way to be seen as someone who is not part of the team is by avoiding responsibility or acting like a “know-it-all”. Being a leader means admitting you have opportunities to grow and admitting when you made a mistake. Nobody’s perfect. Everyone is going to make a mistake at some point. A leader says “Ok, I made this mistake. How can I prevent it from happening again?" By focusing on the solution instead of the problem, you show people you are somebody who wants to help others succeed.   Help Others           Every person you consider “great” became great because someone took the time to help them become great. A true leader serves other people. The best leaders I know are not higher in job status – they are teammates and colleagues. Having a certain job title doesn’t make you a great leader and being a great leader doesn’t mean you need to have a certain job title. Whether it’s another team member at work or a neighbor, helping others shows your commitment to their success. That’s the type of person people [...]

When’s the last time you said, out loud, “There’s not enough time in a day”? For me, it was about 30 seconds ago. As a mom who now works from home, I feel like my threshold for exhaustion is maxed out every day. It’s like I am on the show Survivor, but instead of whittling together bridges from coconuts and eating raw fish, I am scavenging the couch cushions looking for my Airpods while juggling Zoom calls and handling issues for my sons. It is quite a sight. One of my sons is now at home attending college classes online, which is out of my ordinary routine/setup. Fortunately, the techniques I’m about to share with you have helped me stay productive and calm working from home, even with unanticipated interruptions from other people in the house. Hopefully, you can apply these tools for whatever your “work from home” situation is. Some of these may work better than others for you, but even if you just take one idea away, you’ll see your productivity increase, even with all the chaos going on around you.   Set Up before you Get Up             When you work from home, the most difficult part is getting started. Since you don’t have the urgency of needing to beat traffic, you don’t have the motivation to move fast. In the past, after handling family issues and getting the computer turned on, I’d often realize that my home workstation wasn’t organized and ready – computer cord was missing,  papers were all over the place, and I didn’t know what time my first call was. I finally started implementing a nightly routine where I organized and prepped my workstation the night before. The next morning I would arrive at my work area to find my computer open and on “sleep”, my papers organized for that day’s projects, and my entire schedule detailed in my phone’s calendar so that I could approach the day with calm and control So, at the end of every night, before you go to bed – set up your workstation for the next day. It takes 10 minutes, but you’d be amazed at how much better you feel when you start the day organized.   The Schedule Is Sacred             When you work from home, your mind can easily wander while typing up e-mail“ “My windows need to be cleaned.” “The yard is looking rough.” And other random thoughts that prevent you from focusing on the work. Since you don’t have a mental separation between work and home, you have to create a mental separation by creating a schedule and sticking to it. If your “workday” starts at 8 am, then that’s when your “work-mind” starts too. Creating a set schedule (breaks and lunch at certain times, a specific time you “log off” for the day, etc.) keeps you sane by giving you a routine to maintain. Of course, [...]

“You don’t need anyone’s affection or approval in order to be good enough. When someone rejects or abandons or judges you, it isn’t actually about you. It’s about them and their own insecurities, limitations, and needs, and you don’t have to internalize that. Your worth isn’t contingent upon other people’s acceptance of you—it’s something inherent.” ~Danielle Koepke   Imagine you’re in your early thirties, in a job you enjoy at a company you love, and you just got promoted (without lobbying for it), so you’re living a great life. All of a sudden, you’re bombarded with negative feedback from your manager. Despite previously being commended on how you demonstrate accountability, maximize relationships, and a whole host of other “leadership dimensions” there is now not one area you’re strong in, and everything you do is regarded as not good enough. You’re devastated, stunned, confused, hurt, embarrassed, lost, scared, and basically frozen with fear. This was me back in 2007. At the time I had been with this large corporation for nine years in a variety of roles, steadily progressing up the corporate ladder. I started with them immediately out of college; I had essentially grown up there. I remember feeling so happy and proud when the job offer came; my excitement and enthusiasm for going to work each day was a little freakish. Each day I’d get up early and be bubbling with energy because I couldn’t wait to get there. My family was impressed with my landing a job at that corporation; it was the first thing they’d tell people who asked about me. I always identified myself first and foremost as being a team member at that company. It was who I was at my core. I initially started in a role more focused on data, analysis, and inventory planning, and maintained this focus for seven years. This aligned well with my analytical and logical mind. It wasn’t until I tried my hand at project management, teaching others to lead projects as well, that I started to grow more comfortable focusing on the people aspect. I remember being so scared when I first decided to diversify my skillset and make this shift, but proud that I’d had the courage to take the chance. Even though initially the nerves were almost overwhelming in the coaching role, I was really enjoying working with a broad set of people from analysts up to directors. I was someone they turned to for help, guidance, and advice. I started to feel more and more comfortable and was eventually told there was a promotion coming my way. Shortly after the promotion things started to suddenly go downhill. I was constantly being questioned about what I was doing to change and how I was addressing my opportunities. Nothing I did was right or good. It was such a sudden shift that I ended up very confused, scared, and doubtful. To hear that I was no longer good enough for this company I’d grown [...]

“Tortoise was over the line. After that, Hare always reminded himself, ‘Don’t brag about your lightning pace, for Slow and Steady won the race!‘“ ~The Tortoise and the Hare (Aesop’s Fables)   I was sitting in an introduction to calligraphy workshop when a fellow student asked the instructor, “What do I need to become a professional Calligrapher, what would it take?” We were all on the edge of our seats with that one. It was as if we were about to learn the secret ingredient to Grandma’s cookies. The answer, to our surprise, was pen and paper. “The materials are no different than that of a novice calligrapher,” the instructor explained. The distinction between a novice and professional calligrapher is not in the tools they use, but rather in the professional’s commitment to practice, their pace, and the time they took to learn and do something. The same goes for any professional at their craft. I recalled a time when I was on a cruise ship and saw all these tourists with huge camera lenses and gadgets for their cameras. I was incredibly impressed and at times intimidated with their gear as I would hold up my own iPhone to snap a quick picture. After a while of being on board, you get to know one another well. I realized that despite their top tier lens, basically all of their cameras were set in auto mode. What good is such an advanced lens when you don’t know how to use it? They had gone from zero to one hundred with no practice, no skills acquired, just fancier devices. This lesson on the professional calligrapher has always intrigued me. When we look up to the expert, we assume that increasing the quality of materials or having access to nicer resources is what makes them great. This assumption overlooks the time it would have taken them to learn something new and to achieve their goal. Instead, we want to cut corners and are looking for the shortcut. We want to make progress as soon as possible, perhaps because we feel behind in life and think we need to hurry to get ahead, or because we think we’ll be happier when we reach our goal. Cutting corners is not a strategy that necessarily benefits us. It’s a way for us to be more useful and readily available to others, get more things done, and exhibit productivity. Our concern for positive feedback and acceptance by others keeps us from taking the time to experience something thoroughly for ourselves, just because we enjoy it or are curious about it. Just because. This past year I have been working with my sister to brainstorm new career opportunities. My current goal is to become an independent filmmaker. Similar to the observations shared above, I found myself quickly approaching the mindset of the calligraphy student: What would it take, what would I need to make the best movies, to be a great filmmaker? [...]

“Life engenders life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich.” ~Sarah Bernhardt                        Ten years ago, when I first moved to China, I came as an English teacher at a university. I hadn’t the faintest clue as to how I would teach and I only had one year of experience as a teaching assistant in graduate school. At the beginning, I was completely out of my element. In fact, I woke up the following morning after arrival in my new apartment only to realize that I had no food, couldn’t say anything in Chinese, and had no idea where to get something to eat. For me, everything was uncharted territory, especially my new career. After settling in, I tried to do a good job of teaching, and I truly did care for my students. However, having hundreds of different students and seeing each group for less than an hour per week, I did not see how I could make much difference. Because of this, I lost my motivation and never really gave it my all. I could find no reason to excel at what I was doing because I couldn’t see how I could have any impact. I became apathetic about what could have been a wonderful occupation. I dreaded waking up in the morning and dragging myself to class. When making a lesson plan, I would just throw something together that I thought might be sufficient. In class, I just wanted to get it over with and move on with my day. I rarely stuck around to converse with my students and I often complained about my work. I did what was necessary just to get by. I gave very little of myself and got very little in return. My profession became a job to trudge through. You Get What You Give Years later I began to work on improving myself. Naturally, this included my own job and I began to search for a way to transform my work into something better, something more meaningful. And I found the answer. Fast-forward a few years, and everything changed. When preparing classes, I would construct course plans with meticulous care and would repeatedly practice how best to deliver them. I would wake up each morning at 5:00am to make sure that I was physically and mentally wide awake and ready to give it my all, every single day. Before each class, I would talk to myself and whip myself up into a state of excitement, determined to make every class a masterpiece. I started to feel genuinely excited on my way to class and felt great joy upon entering the classroom. I would stay afterward and speak with students, who were always full of questions for me. Increasingly, I was able to see through the eyes of the learner. And, by being able to put myself in their shoes, I knew what needed to be done and how to execute it. [...]

“Most of us try to do too much because we are secretly afraid we will not be able to do anything at all.” ~Rick Aster   I’m standing in my art studio. My palette is loaded with paint. My canvas has been prepped and ready. There is a paintbrush in my hand, but I can’t move. I don’t know what color to pick or what shape to make. I start questioning my color selection, the size of my canvas… and everything else under the sun. A few months ago, I wrote myself a reminder to allow my art to flow through me. Making art is a refuge for my mind—a mind that struggles with anxiety, depression, and “Hamster Wheel Syndrome.” You’re not familiar with that malady? Let me explain it to you with an example of what my brain sounds like when hamster wheel syndrome kicks in: “Do people really like pinks and greens together? Is it too feminine? Should I make my shapes big and bold to contrast against the girlie palette? Maybe I should do a test on a smaller canvas first? Maybe I should just pick a different pallet. It’s cold in here. I’ll get a hoodie. I think I need more coffee… Man, this art table is messy. I’ll organize it first… I only have three hours until my dentist appointment… The grocery is near by the dentist. I’ll plan on going there too…” And on and on it goes. According to UrbanDictionary.com, hamster wheel syndrome is “when someone just keeps running in circles (and making the same mistakes) in their life instead of progressing.” I believe that this only really scratches the surface about what it truly means to feel my wheels spinning, with no break in sight, for days at a time. When I’m in my studio, brush in hand and ready to go but I can’t move forward due to my brain throwing ten different options at me every three seconds, I feel paralyzed. I am a highly efficient person with a creative mind. I’m an abstract painter, essay writer, and fastidious business owner. I can get more done in two hours than many get done in a day. And I’m not saying this to brag. It is a blessing and a curse. If you’re like me, you know how exhausting this type of hamster wheel efficiency can be. IT NEVER STOPS. If I’m not checking things off my to do list, I’m compiling them into spreadsheets, using new methods of organization that I thought of while I was trying to sleep at 3am. I am addicted to efficiency. It makes me feel productive and useful. But as there can be too many cooks in the kitchen, there can also be too many ideas and tasks to process at once. When the multitude of ideas leads to overwhelm, paralysis is the result, and for a person like me, when I’m stagnant, I get even more anxious. If I [...]

Millennials are do-it-alls and have-it-alls — in a good way. Research shows they far outpace other generations in focusing on these life priorities:1 Traveling Having a rewarding career Being recognized for accomplishments Enriching their intellectual horizons Looking great In other words, millennials expect to have fulfilling jobs that earn them kudos, but to never rest on their laurels and to always keep learning. Plus, they intend to travel the world while looking fabulous. (Sleep, apparently, is not a priority.) Kidding aside, millennials are rewriting the “life stage” playbook. Rather than compartmentalizing their journey into pre-, mid- and post-career periods, they are blending learning, earning and enjoying life in a continuum. What can the rest of us learn from millennials’ desire to embrace all of life in the moment? FEED YOUR BRAIN We know that learning ties to financial empowerment. College graduates earn approximately $1 million more over their lifetimes than high school graduates — and the gap increases with more education.2 But did you know that being a lifelong learner, as millennials so far tend to be, can also help reduce stress, delay cognitive decline and increase lifespan?3 Take educational tours, listen to TED talks, master a hobby, monitor online courses, read more. Enriching your brain will expand your horizons at any age. WORK TO LIVE Many millennials are opting for “portfolio careers,” amassing skills and experiences to build their value in the employment market or to start their own businesses. It’s a good model to follow. (And here are some ways to build your own career stock, while we’re at it.) The other takeaway is that many millennials say they don’t plan to retire. That philosophy squares with the research:  being engaged with meaningful work as we age is linked to better emotional and physical health.4 When tailoring your own retirement plan, consider ways you can continue to contribute your skills to others. CHILL AND FULFILL The most financially and emotionally confident Americans balance work-life responsibilities.5 Millennials take it even further. They’re not waiting for retirement to live their best lives. Harnessing digital technology, they’re blending the professional and personal in a holistic way to gain greater flexibility over how, where and when they work and play. This sense of control helps them avoid burnout even in demanding roles and drives high fulfillment, with 74 percent of millennials reporting they are satisfied with their lives. No matter where we are on life’s journey, the moment that matters most is right now, and maybe there is an opportunity to learn from the millennial mindset to add greater satisfaction, control and fulfillment to your life.   Jerry Maldonado Jerry specializes in retirement, insurance and tax off-set strategies for professionals and small business owners. His focus is to help clients identify their definitions of legacy and financial security while simultaneously implementing innovative strategies to help make those financial goals a reality. For more information on his services, he can be reached at [email protected] JGM Consulting LLC [email protected] (951)858-0798 Lic#0H33733