Creating hope and confidence

 Creating hope and confidence

‘Always make sure the table’s laid even if the dinner isn’t prepared – it gives hope!’ 

I love this quote. It came from a business lady I met this year whose mother always advocated this when preparing her daughters for the adult world.  While it may seem to belong to a different era I think there are parallels today.

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t think that life is always busy these days – often too busy.  And sometimes we need to find ways of looking under control, even if we don’t feel it.  There is a similar golden rule in NLP, ‘Act as if,’ which means behaving as though we are in control, confident, prepared and so on. Why I think both of these sayings are valuable is because our behaviour influences the results we get and the results we get influence ours and others perception of ourselves and this influences our behaviour the next time we are in a similar situation – it’s circular.

So how could you give hope in your business world when underneath the substance is slightly lacking? (I’m talking about preparation here rather than complete lack of capability!)

Make sure you’ve completed 1 of the actions from the last meeting, preferably the most important one

Go everywhere with your diary and always have something to write with and on.

Scan meeting agendas to see which parts you can make a real contribution to and focus on that one.  Ask pertinent questions during the other items.

Breathe deeply and smile – although not too widely as this can be a giveaway.

That just gives me five minutes to clear all the post, toys and books and set the table. Now, where is the table?