Gary Screaton Page, Ph.D.

by Gary Screaton Page, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2009 by Gary Screaton Page. All rights reserved.

[This article may be duplicated and distributed free of charge provided it remains unchanged and all links, notices, and authorship attributions remain intact and unaltered.]

Why are so many parents afraid of upsetting their kids with consequences? Behavior always has consequences. Children need to learn that! If they don’t they will grow to be emotionally lame adults. More serious is the fact they will not be safe.

Children need to learn that behavior has limits. Limits keep them safe and allow them to learn about the world. Exceeding or going behond those limits can hurt them. A few years ago a neighbour, who rarely enforced the rules she made for her children, because they got upset, put her child at risk. In the habit of not doing what he was told, “Teddy (not his real name) failed to heed when she yelled for him to stop as he drove past the end of their garage toward the road. Fortunately, as I was driving down the road that summer day, my car windows wide open, I heard her yell at Teddy. I braked just in time. The lad drove right into the path of my car!

Had I not hear, he might have been seriously injured: even killed!

By not enforcing her rules, my neighbour encouraged Teddy to break them. Breaking them could have cost him his life. Enforce your rules. Let your children experienced the consequences you put into play. That way, Nature won’t enforce them. Keep your children safe by enforcing reasonable, doable, defineable rules.

by Gary Screaton Page, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2009 by Gary Screaton Page. All rights reserved.

[This article may be duplicated and distributed free of charge provided it remains unchanged and all links, notices, and authorship attributions remain intact and unaltered.]

One-time Whig Congressman and career business man, RUSSELL SAGE, was arguably the dean of American financiers. Sage began his working life as a farmhand at age 15, later to becoming an errand boy for a rural grocery store. With the death of his first wife from cancer, Sage made up his mind to become rich. He succeeded. Russell Sage’s accumulation of a fortune worth more than $100,000,000 was due in no small part to these five maxims:

  1. “Be temperate and you will be happy.”

Do everything in moderation and nothing to access. Control you and you will be well on your way to controlling the outcome of whatever you undertake. Achieving goals is a most pleasant experience!

  2. “Plain food, an easy mind, and sound sleep make a man young at eighty-six.”

Fast, rich foods are the bane of our culture. They lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks, diabetes, and a host of other illnesses: death at an early age. An easy mind comes when you focus on a clear set of priorities. By doing your “A-list” items, before doing your B’s and C’s, you will accomplish more in less time. What is more, you will have greater peace of mind at day’s end.

  3. “Opportunities are disgusted with men who don’t recognize them.”

“They need to do something about that!” How often have you heard someone say that? Perhaps it was you. In truth, “they” is “us.” If an issue is on your mind, perhaps you are the one meant to resolve it. How many times have you encountered a problem, even came up with a solution, but did nothing about it? Later, you found someone else did. They, not you, had turned the opportunity into a goldmine. When opportunity knocks—answer the door.

  4. “Despair is the forerunner of failure. Next to a fat purse is a ‘stiff upper lip.’”

Thomas Alva Edison, the inventor of the incandescent light bulb, phonograph, motion-picture camera, microphone, and over a thousand other devices, was no stranger to failure. In fact, Edison saw in every failure a new opportunity. Each “failure” taught him something of value. “Many of life’s failures,” said Edison, “are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

  5. When a man “loses his head,” he mustn’t complain about the other fellow taking an advantage.”

Keep your cool and freeze out the competition. Kipling had it right when he wrote, “If you can keep you head when all around you are losing theirs…then you are a man, my son.” I’m sure Kipling would have said the same for being a woman. The point is when you loose your cool you loose your perspective. Whenever you let others “press your buttons,” you give them permission to control your life. Why let them? To gain the upper hand in any situation, keep your wits about you. Be cool!

“Don’t sweat the small stuff,” write authors Kris and Richard Carlson, “and it’s all small stuff.” Another million dollar maxim well worth remembering!

by Gary Screaton Page, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2008 by Gary Screaton Page. All rights reserved.

[Notice: You may freely copy and distribute this report, provided you keep it formatted as is without making changes of any kind whatsoever. You may add nothing, nor delete, or alter the article in any way. All links, credits, trademark notifications, copyright notices, and other identifying information must remain intact, as must any attachments originally appended to this report. Full credit, must be given to the author and all his links remain within the report.]

Inspired by fellow author, Internet marketing expert James Maduk, this time I want to talk about dancing. No, not ballroom dancing but the kind of “dancing” we do as we establish connections with other people.

Relating to others requires the ability to change approaches to meet the style and needs of the person to whom you wish to relate. In business particularly, you need to be able to change your approach to suit the customer. As with dancing, you must learn to change your steps to suit the partner. Not everyone dances the way you do. People dance differently according to their taste and experience. Some have more experience, others less. Some have more confidence, some less. Whomever you dance with, you must dance so they can follow. Dance too fast and they will stumble. Dance too slowly, and they will soon tire of you. In either case, you will lose them as partners for future dances.

Always adjust your steps to suit your partner. How you like to dance is not as important as how they like to dance. However, with care, patience, and attention to their needs you can teach them to follow where you lead.

Dancing with business clients in particular requires the ability to adapt your approach to suit each customer. To achieve your ends, you must first meet their needs. Dancing is fun. Changing partners too often is not. How they dance is always more important than how you like to strut your stuff. If your partners are to enjoy the experience of dancing with you, they must be able to follow your lead and you must accommodate their style. Dancing is best when you and they both strut to the same beat. When you change partners, change your style, too.

Customers do not all have the same needs. Neither do they have the same styles. You must adjust your approach to accommodate them. You can only lead if they can and are willing to follow. They will follow if you care enough to get to know them and understand their needs. Some clients are two-steppers. They follow only when each step is clear and easy to take. Some partners like to waltz. They can move with style but are limited in their ability to adapt to another dance they do not know.

Still others are masters of the dance. They can swing, boogie, slow dance, or quick-step. Few steps elude them. They can follow wherever you lead. However, they expect you to be just as in step as they are. They want you to make the experience memorable or they will not dance with you again. Meet your customer\’92s needs and you will have a partner for a very long time.

Growing relationships whether in business or in private life, like dancing, is an art. Master it and you will never want for partners to dance with you. Give potential partners, an experience to suit their style and expectations. Meet their needs not yours. Soon they will be open to have you teach them to dance the way you want, and they will feel good about doing \fs22 \f0 it. \fs24 \f0 What is more, they will seek you out to dance with them again. Lead well and they will follow.

[Gary Screaton Page knows how to dance! People trust and respect him. When Gary speaks, they listen. Gary can show you how to take control of your life so others don’t. Learn more at www.pressingyourownbuttons.com]

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!