Communication Skills -

Inventions and Gadgets: Save Time or Take Time?

Communication Skills, Life Balance, Life Skills, Productivity, Time Management / By Mary Kutheis

So many people are struggling with trying to get “everything” done. Many years ago when inventions came along they helped save time. The automobile made travel faster. Refrigerators and freezers meant fewer trips to the grocery store. Inventions like the washing machine not only made keeping clothes clean much simpler but because the task no longer required our constant involvement, it allowed for time to be spent doing something else. You could be washing clothes and relaxing with a book at the same time.

But the best inventions today usually require more of our time, not less.

How to Deal with a Scorekeeper

Communication Skills, Emotional Intelligence EQ, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

There are people you’ll run into in your life who are scorekeepers. They keep score to keep track of who gets what. And while it might seem that they do so in order to keep things even, they’re actually more concerned with making certain they get their fair share.

Being a scorekeeper is constantly focusing on what others are getting that the scorekeeper is not. It might be attention, favors, money, gifts, referrals, opportunities or plum projects. Anything that can be bestowed on either the scorekeeper or another person is eligible for scorekeeping. “I did this for you now I expect

Don’t Be a Punk

4 Comments / Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

This week I had a great breakfast meeting and left excited about the rest of the day. I got in my car and checked email and texts before I got on the road because only selfish idiots do those tasks while on the road but I did want to see if anything in the day had changed before I got rolling.

I sat there for a minute or two but evidently a lady in a giant gas guzzler (yes, I’m being judgmental) wanted my parking spot so

"Love Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry."

4 Comments / Communication Skills / By Mary Kutheis

From Love Story. How poignant and generous of heart.

And absurd.

Mark that down as the stupidest line in the history of famous movie lines.

It worked when Ali McGraw’s character said it to Ryan O’Neal’s character because she was dying. Sure, if you’re dying and in a movie you can say nonsensical things like that. Nobody’s going to make you live up to it!

Being willing to say I’m sorry — as well as knowing how and when to do so — is a must.

Say This to Stand Out from the Crowd

Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

If you ask someone for help, whether or not they are able to help you, ask them this…

“And what can I do to help you?”

Via a LinkedIn poll 90% of respondents said they never get asked this question – even after they have helped someone. When we help someone it shouldn’t be with the goal of getting something in return, but asking this simple question is just old-fashioned kindness.

Sorry. I Wasn’t Listening.

Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

Here are a few things people do when they should be listening:

Anything with a smartphone (Unless actually using it to talk so someone. Do people still do that?)
Thinking about what we’re going to say next
Deciding the other person is wrong
Finishing the other person’s sentence
Looking at our computer screen

When Having an Agenda is Unproductive

Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

I once asked a colleague/friend to meet with me to give me feedback on a new direction for my business. As we delved into the subject she shared some thoughts that almost instantly put me in defense mode. I tried to hide it but I’m fairly certain my body language and word choice betrayed me.

Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones…

Communication Skills, Procrastination / By Mary Kutheis

But words can never harm me.

To that I say, what a load. Words have a powerful ability to cause harm. Duh.

And sadly, we can be pretty cruel sometimes. I’m not talking about cruel to other people. I’m talking about being cruel to ourselves.

How a Boiling Cuppa Joe Solved a Problem

4 Comments / Communication Skills, Productivity, Time Management / By Mary Kutheis

Meeting with busy people is tough. You just need a couple of minutes. Either to run an idea by a colleague to get feedback or perhaps to get quick supervisor approval on an aspect of a project before you can move on. Trouble is, the person you need to meet with is either wildly busy, frequently out of the office or due to the nature of their job, moves about the office so much that catching him is a challenge.

Not getting that time can be disappointing or frustrating – and can also affect your ability to get things done. There must be a way to deal with this problem.

Communication Skills Learned from an Etch-A-Sketch

Communication Skills, Productivity / By Mary Kutheis

We can agree that when verbal communication is poor, morale and ultimately productivity, take a hit. Consequently, it seems that when we’re faced with a challenging situation (Read: We believe someone we work with is – or is behaving like -an idiot.) we’d agree that talking with the involved party should be our first option. But

How to Have Meetings that Don’t Suck the Life Out of You

Communication Skills, Productivity, Time Management / By Mary Kutheis

Meetings are a fact of business, but they can also make you want to go running and
screaming for the nearest window when they’re excessive, poorly run or pointless. And I’ve heard a story or twelve about some that fit those descriptions. If you want to make certain your meeting is worthwhile try the following suggestions…

Simple Way to Avoid Meet-up Miscommunication

2 Comments / Communication Skills / By Mary Kutheis

You have an early meeting and wake up ahead of normal schedule in order to arrive on time and be prepared. Since it’s a breakfast meeting you don’t eat at home. You get to the meeting spot and no one is there. You wait for a bit thinking that you’re the first to arrive – maybe traffic was bad for them. But 10 minutes go by and

When Does an Apology Stop Being an Apology?

4 Comments / Communication Skills / By Mary Kutheis

It wasn’t a work appointment; it was my son’s violin lesson. But it was an appointment. And it was completely off of my radar screen until she called me at what would have been 15 minutes into the lesson.

Now missing an appointment is embarrassing for any person, but missing an appointment when your business is

What Free Advice is Actually Worth

5 Comments / Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

Advice is a tricky thing. Often you need it but aren’t comfortable asking for it because to do so means a level of vulnerability. Other times you don’t actually want advice when you talk about challenges, you just need for the other person to listen in order to be able to draw your own conclusions.

Angry? You Have Three Options.

2 Comments / Communication Skills / By Mary Kutheis

You can lose a lot of time and energy being mad. Anger can inspire, but more often it erodes productivity. So if you’re angry. Really angry. What to do?

You can stay mad. Just let the bile build up inside you until it chews you up from the inside out. Some people who choose this option think they’re good

There’s No Point in Making Your Point at This Point

Communication Skills, Life Skills / By Mary Kutheis

Know when to shut up. Of all the communication skills you can develop, knowing when to “zip it” can come in pretty handy.

Sometimes, despite all the evidence to back up your viewpoint, and in spite of the obvious flaws in the other person’s way of thinking,

Why You Have Too Much Email

8 Comments / Communication Skills, Email / By Mary Kutheis

There’s a disturbing networking trend going on. If you hand out your business card, the recipient sometimes thinks that’s permission to automatically sign you up for their bulk sales and marketing email messages.

I understand many people have something to sell, whether a product or service, and they’re therefore looking to increase

Do You Recognize Your Own Thinking Style?

Communication Skills / By Mary Kutheis

Have you ever felt like you would lose your mind when trying to communicate with a co-worker or family member?

See if either of these scenarios sound familiar…

The Blue Angels Guide to Being the Best in Your Field

Communication Skills, Focus and Mindset / By Mary Kutheis

Recently I was engrossed in a Blue Angels documentary and picked up an aviation-inspired lesson. The Blue Angels are the naval aviators who make up the U.S Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron. They pilot F/A-18 Hornets through graceful, gravity-defying aerobatics and stunning wingtip-to-wingtip formations.