Category Archives: Open Mind

What’s your Sunrise?

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Quite a few times this Summer, good Samaritans came to the rescue of people needing help, either in the lakes or rivers flowing through Chicagoland.  A random act of kindness truly is special.

A local weatherman reminded us that when hot air blows against our skin, our body temperature actually rises.  So how do we act when we become overheated?  What can we do for ourselves and someone else during the heat wave?

Again, it’s an issue of Awareness.  Awareness allows us to understand how we act and what we notice about ourselves in relation to others.  Why do we need “more space” because we feel overheated?  How many of us carry a spare water bottle as we walk to the bus stop or commuter train to get to work.  How do we handle the extra perspiration on our forehead, or elsewhere, as we walk in this heat?

Whether it’s dealing with the heat wave, or any business issue we have no control over – it’s always about YOU in the situation.  We all have a new Sunrise every day so Choose How You Want to be Known As.  Enjoy your week!

“Jo Ann” M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent

Author: Ethics To You Too!™  http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/171791

A Phone Call…

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How many times have you made a phone call and discovered how you act in a given situation.  Pleasant and good news calls breeze by.  It’s the phone call that leaves you unsettled, releasing any number of emotions you hadn’t planned on.

Managing yourself is a learning process, whether during your childhood, while in school or in formal training at your place of employment.  The theory behind managing yourself can be described as mindfulness.

—– I am mindful when I listen to what is being said and reply about the issue and not the speaker personally.

—- I am mindful when I treat the other person with respect.

—- I am mindful when I pay attention to the emotions the other person is displaying and acknowledge to that person, what you heard.

……….Listen……….Mindful……….In Control

……….Listen……….Mindful……….How can I help YOU?

……….Listen……….Mindful……….Be Who You Want to be Known As!

Have a good and mindful 2nd week of July.

“Jo Ann” M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent

Author:  Ethics to You Too!™ http://www.smashwords/books/view/171791      07/09/12

Do What You Can…

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We were supposed to be at a better place by now and some of us thought we were.  Turn the page, and Summer’s Heat caused violent storms across the U.S.  Very dark, flat and low cloud formations covered the sky resembling ribs of bevelled glass.

Hundreds of thousands of people now without electricity and water.  Homes again destroyed. Yet the spirit of man found solace, and sometimes humor, in doing what you can to get through the day.  Neighbors with chain saws personally cut through large fallen tree limbs to permit traffic to move though the street.

So many tree limbs fell through roofs of homes, or onto cars, whether parked or in motion.  People were unable to move out of harm’s way.  Then the Sun came out.

So we do what we can do.  We help one another.  We clean up.  We prioritize.  We don’t blame.  We take each step to see solutions.  We move forward.  We learn to do without.  We keep our emotions in check because it is easier to do so when the “worst” is over.  We choose to act the way we Want to be Known As.

Kind thoughts to all who are finding courage within themselves this week.  Your far away neighbors are thinking of you.

“Jo Ann” M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent. July 2, 2012

What Does It Take?

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What does it take?…If we substitute the word “will” for “does” in this Blog’s heading, how is the question changed?  Although I don’t study the origin of words, I believe the question, “What does it take?” is a general question, seeking a general answer.  What will it take? is asking for direct specificity of what it takes, with a sense of determination.

What will it take for YOU this week to complete, to create, to find, to begin…whatever you may want and haven’t gotten to yet.  We are some 10 days to the Summer Solstice, with all its wonderful distractions calling us elsewhere.

So what will it take for you this week to be Who You Want to be Known As.  Enjoy!

Many thanks to all the wonderful people who found value in this Blog over the past five months!       “Jo Ann” M. Radja, Career Management Coaching & Change Agent.  06/11/12

WHAT ARE WE SEEING?

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As I was approaching a friend’s driveway, I noticed a young dog standing on three legs, by the side of the road next to my friend’s fence.   Perhaps the dog was standing in a yoga pose, with one leg bent upwards.  It was a first time for me to see a dog that way.

After I parked my car in the driveway, I looked at the dog, some 20 yards away.  The dog saw me and started to walk over, on four legs!  The dog started to walk around my car and smiled.   Another car approached.  The driver rolled down her window, as did I, and we spoke.  She said she also saw the dog standing on three legs;  she thought it was a lame lost dog, so she doubled back to check it out.  (What I didn’t know at the time was that the dog was a pit bull.)

The other driver had a spare leash in her car, which she fastened to the dog’s neck.  The dog seemed eager to come up to me and the woman driver couldn’t believe the dog did not belong to me.  The other driver was becoming insistent that I knew the dog and that the dog lived at the home I was about to visit.   Finally, the other driver offered and agreed to drop the dog off at a neighborhood shelter and we said our goodbyes.  

I later wondered how often we see something and are not sure what to make of it.  What do we do? How do we handle the situation?  What do our senses tell us?   Is our intuition working for us that day?

As we begin our week, how can we address a situation that may seem odd or uncomfortable – with a different approach.   Is our judgment taking over a situation instead of our being more aware, and keeping an open mind?   Whatever your choose, it will be Who You Want To Be Known As.   Have a great week!

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent April 9, 2012

Going Home?

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“Most of the time, you can’t go home.  In my case, you can go home.”   Lionel Richie

I heard this phrase spoken by Lionel Richie recently as he was interviewed about his new business venture with country music stars.  It was quite sometime since I listened to someone utter those words, and I thought – what do we bring from our “homes” to the workplace?

When we think about “home”, do we mean our upbringing home, or where we live now, or a place in our life that “felt like home”? Were you the first-born or the last-born child? Were you the compromiser, middle child? Did you have a small family, a large family or no family?

Whatever your sense of “home” may be, what positive values do you bring to the work place from your feelings of “home”?  What impact, if any, does your sense of home have for you today, in what you presently do?  Since your life experiences have led you to where you are today, I wish you a good week in all your actions of Who You Want To Be Known As.

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent 03/25/12

Impressions Of You. . .

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How often during your career did you learn your impression of someone is not correct?  What did you do about it, if anything?

We all go through this process of deciding whether someone is a “good match”.  People within a large organization have the advantage of tapping into the company’s best practices for solutions.

Over a year ago, I spoke to someone who was working through the decision thought process of what type of employee he wanted in his company.  So he started with himself.  What type of behaviors did he work well with?  What values did he hold in his life?  Were these the same values he wanted to see in his employees? And why?  Taking the time for self-reflection is a very big first step.  It surely is a necessary one in deciding Who You Want To Be Known As.   Have a great week.

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent

March 12, 2012

Better Days Ahead for You. . .

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A while ago, I caught myself becoming annoyed by a perception of rude behavior.  Have you been in that situation recently?   The second time it happened with this company, I asked the person I was speaking to, if I said something he thought was inappropriate.  The answer was, No.  I did explain to him why I asked the question, in an effort to see if I said something that may have led to the other’s behavior.  He then put me on hold.   What I subsequently learned was that he listened to my prior call, and verified what had happened.  He said I was okay, but was I really?

Reframing is a Coaching concept.  It means to restate the issue in a more favorable light, resulting in positive thoughts.    As you become more aware of how YOU are facing the situation, you are able to move the focus from frustration to – how can I find the answer to move the process along for me because I am responsible for my actions?

Reframing is not necessarily keeping your emotions in check, rather, it is about becoming aware of what’s driving the frustration, at that moment, and how you move out of it.   All of this may take seconds or minutes.  Learning what it takes to move through our emotions during the day is a process.  Yes, a process which takes practice.

Who do you want to be known as…a frustrated person, feeling stuck?

Who do you want to be known as…a proactive person, learning to Reframe an awkward or uncomfortable situation for yourself?  Understanding how choosing a different way to approach a situation, leads to understanding yourself better.  You may surprise yourself so that you will have a better day in whatever you may be doing.   Have a great week!

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coaching & Change Agent

March 19, 2012

Are you Stretching?

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Are you stretching yourself today in whatever you are involved in?  A few days ago, I was working on a project and noticed color spectrums on my apartment wall coming from a small crystal at my window.  A few of the “rainbows” bounced off another wall or over a wall.  I know this last sentence sounds a bit off, but it did happen.  So how did that happen?  I surely don’t know, although I did try to measure how the light travelled, or bounced off another object.

The picture above this Blog is a color spectrum that shot over 20 feet from the small crystal, when there was no direct line to the bedroom door.

Growing up we learn about “the stretch”.  We were taught to stretch:  when we are learning a new task — when we are stretching to increase a budding talent. How far of “a stretch” is it for you to do something?

Stretching today is all about getting out of your comfort zone.  What can I do today that I didn’t do before or how can I act differently in a situation I’ve been in before.  When you “stretch” you learn about you and Who You Want To Be Known As.    Enjoy your day.

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent 02/24/12

February 5-11, 2012 International Coaching Week

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On a rainy Saturday morning last Fall, I drove off to check out a number of apartments for lease. Within 20 minutes of driving, the sun came out and it felt a bit warmer outside. 10 minutes later, it was pouring rain everywhere. This weather pattern continued for a few hours until I began to head back to my friend’s home.

As I was driving, I noticed two young boys holding signs that were almost as tall as they were.  Since the boys stood on the opposite side of the street, I drove around the block and approached their signs. They read the school was having a fundraising car wash. The boys motioned where I had to find the car wash and I was surprised to see some 40 young boys and girls, most of whom were shorter than my car. They were organized into four washing groups. Parents were standing on the sidelines watching “the wash”.

When I was told to stop my car, it started to drizzle rain again. About 10 young kids surrounded my car; they were oblivious to the drizzling, armed with rags and buckets of soapy water, ready to give my car a good wash. After the tallest kid washed the roof of my car, four hoses washed down all the soap. Smiles surrounded my car from every direction. What fun these kids were having. It was the best car wash I ever had.

I gave a donation and eased my way out of the parking lot. I thought, “Who would have imagined a car wash taking place during today’s weather?” Yet, what an event it was…team work, responsibility, determination, organization, leadership, collaboration. It felt good to witness these values in action on a day that many people did not want to venture outside

Being aware of your surroundings and being aware of how you use social media is pretty commonplace today. Yet, it is not commonplace to understand how Awareness affects ourselves by allowing us see opportunities we didn’t see before. The capacity for Awareness is a Coaching principle. Perhaps this weekend you will have an experience to understand yourself differently by being more Aware of Who You Want To Be Known As.   Enjoy.

Jo Ann M. Radja, Career Management Coach & Change Agent 02/10/12