 Self-reliance is a quintessential American value, but it can be taken too far. At one time or another, everyone could use some help at work, though many are reluctant to ask. (Tweet it!)
Speaking to The New York Times , social psychologist Heidi Grant, author of the book Reinforcements: How to Get People to Help You, called the ability to ask for help “a learnable skill.” Although it is a skill we seldom think about, it can have a profound impact on our goals and lives. The good news: People want to help. A 2008 study from Cornell found that subjects “underestimated by as much as 50 percent the likelihood that others would agree to a direct request for help.” The key is:
If you would like to read more about creating a habit around masterful communication, check out our book: Be Quiet, Be Heard: The Paradox of Persuasion
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 Leadership coach and former Navy SEAL Jeff Boss says that many of his clients ask for a 60-day or 90-day plan to improve their leadership effectiveness. It’s not that plans aren’t valuable”, he writes in Forbes, “[but] I can’t think of any mission in the SEALs that actually went according to plan.”
Better than planning is preparedness (Tweet it!) —and to that end, Boss notes the top three things that effective leaders show up with every day.
If you would like to read more about creating a habit around masterful communication, check out our book: Be Quiet, Be Heard: The Paradox of Persuasion  By now you may have heard about research results confirming that surrounding yourself with positive people can make you healthier and happier (Tweet it!) (https://bit.ly/1qciYSS). But how can you enhance your exposure to these “glass half full” types?
Dan Buettner, a National Geographic fellow and author, has studied the health habits of people who live in so-called blue zones — regions of the world where people live far longer than the average. He noted that positive friendships are a common theme in the blue zones. But such relationships are not necessarily left to chance. In Okinawa, Japan, a place where the average life expectancy for women is around 90, the oldest in the world, people form a social network called a moai — a group of five friends who offer social, logistic, emotional and even financial support for a lifetime. “It’s a very powerful idea,” Mr. Buettner told The New York Times (https://nyti.ms/2A42NDv). “Traditionally, their parents put them into moais when they are born, and they take a lifelong journey together.” Mr. Buettner is working with federal and state health officials, including the former United States Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, to create moais in two dozen cities around the country. Want to create your own? The key to building a successful moai is to start with people who have similar interests, passions and values. If you’re not sure about the impact the people around you are having, the Blue Zone team has created a quiz to help you assess the positive impact of your own social network. Do you believe you have positive people around you, and how would you describe their effect on you? Do you believe you make a positive impact on others? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. If you would like to read more about creating a habit around masterful communication, check out our book: Be Quiet, Be Heard: The Paradox of Persuasion  The art of translation is something we don't think about much—until something goes wrong. (Tweet it!) But history abounds with consequential mistranslations—“erroneous, intentional or simply misunderstood”—says Mark Polizzotti, author of Sympathy for the Traitor: A Translation Manifesto. (https://nyti.ms/2Ltlztr).
Nikita Khrushchev’s infamous 1956 statement—“We will bury you”—ushered in one of the Cold War’s most perilous periods. But it turns out the Soviet’s actual declaration was “We will outlast you.” And the response of Kantaro Suzuki, prime minister of Japan, to an Allied ultimatum in July 1945—days before Hiroshima—was conveyed to Harry Truman as “silent contempt” (“mokusatsu”), when it was actually intended as “No comment. We need more time.” Japan was not given more time. Myriad examples go back through antiquity. But lately, the perils of potential mistranslation have taken on renewed urgency. Free-form tweets in one’s native idiom instantly reach a global audience. But the nature of tweets, with their fractured syntax and frequent idioms, can lend themselves to misinterpretation. Careful and thorough reading of translated material can literally make the difference between war and peace. If we are aiming for a global audience, we must consider the difficulties that hastily crafted communications may pose to foreigners. Likewise, we must try to ensure that the translations we read and hear are accurate. Have you ever been misled by a poor or incomplete translation? What were the consequences? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. If you would like to read more about creating a habit around masterful communication, check out our book: Be Quiet, Be Heard: The Paradox of Persuasion |
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