Power Up Your Performance! 6 Sure-fire Strategies

"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit." Conrad Hilton

1. Get rid of clutter. Too much "stuff" in your office and inside your home clutters your mind, creates confusion and exacerbates stress. Start by cleaning only one area at a time. What items do you have that either need to be donated, sold, or put back where they belong? As you're cleaning and putting things away, say to yourself, "Everything has a place." This is a phrase I often heard by my dad while we cleaned house and it still rings in my ears every time I clean.

What clothes do you have that you haven't worn in a year? Where by some miracle you're hoping to fit into them again? Donate these items to a local charity. What piles of paperwork are lying around that need to be filed? Studies show that 85% of everything that gets filed away never gets looked at again. If this is the case, consider starting an archives file. You'll feel more energized, less stressed and more self-confident when you eliminate clutter.

2. What's going on outside you is a result of what's going on inside you. What self-limiting beliefs do you have about your skills, aptitudes and abilities? Be honest with yourself and write them down. You don't have to share them with anybody. The average person has 50,000 to 60,000 thoughts a day. When we talk to ourselves about ourselves, much of that self-talk is negative. As the saying goes, "How many times in a day do we should' all over ourselves with everything that we should be doing?!" Get rid of the "shoulds." Become more aware of your thoughts, change them into positives, and you'll start achieving more success.

3. Enroll in a sunrise semester. Spend 30 to 60 minutes a day first thing in the morning reading motivational, inspirational or other pertinent information related to your chosen field. Your subconscious mind is most amenable to suggestion FIRST hour upon arising, and that LAST hour before bedtime. As John Wooden once said, "If I am through learning I am through." Stay current and constantly upgrade your skills.

Learn more to earn more and to improve performance. Much of this is stuff we already know. Yet, often we need to hear it again because we don't "do" with what we know. Invest at least 3% of your income in personal and professional books, CD's, e-books and teleseminars. If you're pressed for time listen to CD's in your car on your way to work, picking up the kids, or driving to and from the supermarket. Attend seminars and conferences no matter what the distance. It is worth the investment in keeping you motivated.

4. Become more self-disciplined. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is that successful people make themselves do things unsuccessful people don't want to do. It's that simple. Once you start an important task, discipline yourself to keep going. Focus on it single-mindedly until it's complete.

Be more aware of your every day habits and what distracts you. Make a list of the activities you engage in that are a waste of time. Resolve to eliminate them altogether or delegate them to someone else. Start by determining which activities only you can do. These are the ones you must do. Outsource everything else. The ability to determine where you should spend the majority of your time and then complete those tasks can have more impact on achieving your goals than anything else.

5. To improve performance and productivity work faster. Compete with yourself. Make it a game. Resolve to work more effectively and efficiently throughout your work day. Try arriving to work earlier and leaving a little later. Many business people in my speaking engagements tell me they get so much work accomplished when they arrive to work at the crack of dawn. No one else is in the office and there aren't distractions. Try this at lunch as well. Everyone leaves from noon to one in the afternoon. Cut back on frivolous time wasters such as talking with co-workers around the water cooler and other idle chit chat. This will free up your time for the things you really enjoy, like spending time with your true friends, family and loved ones.

6. Review your values and priorities and make sure your goals are consistent with what's important to you. Otherwise, no matter how much you think you want something, you won't work hard to achieve it if it's not in line with your core values. Write down each individual goal you think you want. Is it consistent with giving you greater peace of mind and happiness?

For example, values that are important to me in terms of work are helping others, freedom, creativity and flexible hours. A corporate job where I'd sit in an office all day would make me unhappy no matter how much it paid. So start by clarifying your values.

Success means many things to different people. In powering up your performance for greater success, first determine what you really wantand why. For example, do you really want a new car out of necessity, or is it to compete with the neighbors next door? No matter how much effort you put into achieving your goals, if they don't fit in with what's really important to you, you'll find ways to procrastinate or sabotage. It's easier to be self-disciplined when you're passionate about something and it fits in with your core values.

"The biggest mistake people make in life is not trying to make a living at doing what they most enjoy." Malcolm S. Forbes

Colleen Kettenhofen is a motivational speaker, workplace expert, & co-author of "The Masters of Success," as featured on the Today Show, along with Ken Blanchard and Jack Canfield. For free articles, e-newsletter, or to order the book visit www.ColleenSpeaks.com Topics: leadership, management, difficult people, public speaking. Colleen is available for keynotes, breakout sessions, seminars. (971)212-2412. www.ColleenSpeaks.com

African American Hair Braiding Styles Are Quite Attractive To The Young Generation-Why

With the pace of the modern world and the ease of instant gratification, African American Hair Braiding styles seem to be an excellent option for a stylish and low maintenance hair-do. Perhaps the reason that so many youths flock to hair braiding as their favorite style option is due to the fact that its easy to manage and it comes in great styles.

On almost every corner you can find Hair Salons, and whether they look like they cater for a white clientele or not you can bet they do braiding there. The popularity of African American Hair Braiding styles has surpassed race. In other words people other than those of African American descent also try these Hair Braiding styles. There are several types of Hair Braiding styles to choose from. Some include: Goddess Braids, Micro Braids, Pixie Braids, French Inverted Braids, Pixi Pin Curls, Candy Curls, Bantu Knots, Fishtail Braids, Flat Twist, Locks and Undetectable braid and Cornrow Extensions, Invisible Braids, Tree braids, Senegalese Twist, Silky Locks, Interlock Weaving, Latch Hook Weaving, Silky Corkscrew, African Twist, Kinky Twist, Two-Strand Twist, Nubian Corkscrew, and Cobra Stitch. Perhaps the most difficult part of braiding is learning to keep the tension on the strands as evenly balanced as possible. However, this only comes with practice and in due time.

During the Black Pride Movement, hundreds of African American beauty shops and salons sprang up across the United States. These shops delivered services exclusively, or as part of a range of options, to African Americans who prefer natural hairstyles. Many salons specialize in hair wrapping and braiding techniques, executing styles which can be exceedingly time-consuming and expensive. In fact a single, braided style can take seven hours or more to complete, often requiring two or more salon visits. The trade-off in the cost in time and money expended is that a well-executed, braided style can last a month or more without restyling, once its properly groomed and cared for.

Cornrows is perhaps one of the most popular types of African American Hair Braiding Styles. It is a traditional style of hair grooming which requires that the hair is tightly braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to produce a continuous, raised row. Cornrows can be formed, as the name implies, in simple, straight lines; or, in complicated geometric or curvilinear designs. The attraction to this style of braiding is the easy maintenance it offers. Cornrows can be left in for weeks at a time simply by carefully washing the hair using a stocking cap or hair net and then regularly oiling the scalp and hair.

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