As I stood waiting to check in for a doctor’s appointment, the front desk staff was enduring a combative patient. He’d come into the office that morning to dispute his bill and was threatening to disparage the clinic on social media for misleading and unfair business practices. It seemed the two women at the front
Several years ago, a friend invited me to join his exercise group. “It will change your life,” he said. The workouts were early in the morning, very painful and I honestly wasn’t sure I had the guts to keep doing them. Around the time I started participating, the group read Jesse Itzler’s book Living With
My life has been full of terrible misfortunes, most of which never happened. I love that quote by Michel de Montaigne because I used to constantly worry about terrible misfortunes. I had a bad case of the What Ifs. Do you ever suffer from the What Ifs? Do you ruminate on questions like: What if
Anxiety is perhaps the most natural response to tension and change. I witness it when I encourage my kids to practice their instrument, or try to get someone to spend time on my project, or ask people to give money to a cause. They almost always react with some level of resistance and anxiety. Leadership
Sometimes we experience alarm signals that aren’t cause for alarm. Every month our city tests its emergency response sirens. It’s just a test. The dryer in our house buzzes several minutes before the clothes are actually dry. Stores fail to remove security tags, triggering alarms when shoppers leave with paid items. The human brain also
As I scanned my fall calendar earlier this week, all I could think was, “Woah, there’s a ton on there.” An all-company meeting, several client engagements, coaching youth football and softball. And on top of all of that, we’re doing a house project. I felt a sting of anxiety…and then said to myself, I’ll find
Several people have told me in the past week that they feel afraid of failing in 2021. Afraid they’ll fail at work, that their marriage is failing, that they’ll fail as a parent/teacher/healthcare provider, that they’ll fail in selling, leading, or delivering. Afraid that they’ll fail in their goals for the year, fail to speak
“How’s your week going?” Can I be real with you for a moment? Because if I’m being honest, I’ll tell you it was a sad week for me. Coronavirus economic realities took their toll. I’ve wondered what more I can do. It’s all weighed heavily, and I’ve had a hard time sleeping. Thank you for
“Remember this day, boys,” I said to my twin sons last week at breakfast. “Remember what it feels like to arrive at a milestone in your journey through challenges and uncertainties. It’s the last day of a difficult school year and you’ve done well. Remember that you chose to persist and grow throughout the year
Several weeks ago, I sat at my desk literally propping my head up, willing my eyes to stay open and completely drained of energy. All I wanted to do was fall asleep, which surprised me because I wasn’t getting less sleep than normal. So what was different? I realized my mind had been heavily processing more
Matt Norman is president of Norman & Associates, which offers Dale Carnegie Training in the North Central US. Dale Carnegie Training is a global organization ...READ MORE