Every Challenge is A New Opportunity for Change!!

Find this hard to believe?  Stay with me for a few minutes and just open your mind to the possibilities that there is a new opportunity regardless of the challenge you are facing today!

Now my head is not in the sand…I read the newspaper, listen to my friends, family, coaching clients and colleagues all facing insurmountable challenges in their life with major loss such as job, income, decline in their 401k, lost homes to foreclosure, serious illness, loss of a loved one, divorce…you name it…it is not good news!  Hopelessness, sadness, depression, fear, doubt and obstacles keeping us stuck!

Then you have some “optimist” that says…there is an opportunity here really!!!   Think about it-what goes up must come down, without success there is no failure, no pain- no gain, without bad you don’t experience good…you get it!  These things are the same just opposite sides of the spectrum and it is all how we perceive them…without one, we wouldn’t have the other!

This is not the view of an optimist (although we live by it) it is the “Law of Polarity”….a matter of fact no two ways about it.  It’s a universal law and like all universal laws…you cannot change that fact that they exists.  You cannot manipulate, fool or escape it so work with it!    So how do we create opportunity?

First step is awareness…really what is happening here?  Take a few minutes to assess your situation and ask yourself what do I want instead?  If I have what I want instead, what does that look like for me?  How will I feel if I experience the opposite of what I am experiencing today?  Now decide on what you want and make the choice….yes, it is that simple to make the choice to change your current outcome.  It all starts with this step!

The fastest and least painful path is the power of acceptance.  Did you know that acceptance of what you currently are experience acts as the polar opposite of resistance and will help you attract more of what you consciously desire!   One of my favorite sayings is ‘what we think about comes about’.   It starts with our thoughts, beliefs, feelings and actions.  And, I also believe our state of mind and thoughts change our outcome the second you change your thoughts.  There are times when I act “asif” it has already happened by working from the end result.I naturally assume it is happening and more times than not….the results show up!  It’s one of the major gifts of life that works like magic..really!

You have the power of choice to how you experience life.  Consider the possibilities, opportunities and change in your life you want and put your Intention, Attention and Action to changing just ONE thing that is challenging you today.  Write down all your beliefs about the situation and include all the frustration, anger and disappointment and release the negative thoughts.  Get a new piece of paper and create your desired outcome as if the choice is all yours (because it is!) and start creating what you want.

a repost from Caole M. Sacino's blog

The HR Turnaround Specialist or Maintenance Specialist?

Many HR professionals look at themselves as maintenance people but there are a choice few that see themselves as turnaround specialists. Keeping everything status quo is what most HR professionals would do when going into a new company. Those choice few see this as a great opportunity to really excel when they are faced with broken down systems, dysfunctional teams, poor management, benefits that have not been looked at for years, unfunded pensions, decreasing revenues, and poor to market products. Think of yourself as a turnaround artist when you go into a new company. Look at this new job as an opportunity to start with a clean slate and begin making your mark.  Here is what you should do think about, do, change, or move when you get settled into your new role:

• review the benefit contracts and dissect the costs against claims and historical experience. Call in a trusted actuary to review the details of the contract, funding, and measure against local or regional increases;
• assess the talent flow-in and recruiting process and streamline as needed or replace particular broken areas and make sure you have a solid applicant tracking system. Also make sure social media recruiting is in the mix;
• assess the talent within the organization with particular emphasis on senior and middle management groups. Make sure the right people are in the right spots. Don't be afraid to bring in new people and in some cases people you know and trust;
• make sure that the senior team are all on the same page with the CEO;
• Make a quick determination on the HR staff's talent and what value they bring to the business;
• Streamline with the VP of Product Management the go to market process and the internal development process of new products both hardware and software. You ask why should you do this, well because you are a business partner and should be involved in as aspects of the business;
• determine if IT is a help to the organization or hindrance, and if the latter, make the appropriate changes;
• meet with the CFO and get a handle on the budgets and talk through the issues you need to address from a financial prospective;
• Make sure you have all the appropriate systems in place to add value to the organization; and
• finally but not last of course, survey the organization to see where HR has missed opportunity and what their prospective is and adjust as necessary;
• conduct brainsteering sessions with senior management. 

I hope this helps those who move into new company roles. Send me an email to expand on these issues at wgstevens2@gmail.com.