Sharon L. Mikrut - Empowerment Coach

Time Management – Making The Most Out Of Your Busy Day

My mother once said that the older we get, the faster time flies.  How true that is!  In today’s fast paced world, we work, raise families, manage household chores, run errands, volunteer, help our neighbors and the community, etc.  There never seems to be enough time in a day.  Despite this, there are a few things you can do to better manage your day and still take care of yourself.

1. Realize that you do have control over managing your time and make a conscious choice to do so.  Many people complain about not having enough time in their day but never develop an action plan to address this issue.

Think Big, Start Small! – Take Your First Step Towards Achieving Your Goals Today

2009 is half over.  What changes did you want to make this year?  What were your priorities?  Did you want to eat healthier, lose weight, manage your time more efficiently, decrease your stress level, increase your productivity, secure a new job/change careers, become a better person/friend/parent, develop healthier relationships or create a healthy balance between your personal and professional life? 

Did you make the change(s) you said you would?  If not, perhaps the whole process was too overwhelming.  This is where people get stuck.  Often, people desire a change but the thought of it is exhausting.  They don't know where to start.

Top 12 Attributes Of Effective Leaders

Have you ever wondered why some individuals make great leaders yet, no matter what they do or how hard they try, others fail at leadership?  Most likely, it’s because great leaders share a common set of attributes that inspire others to follow them.  If you want to be a leader in your field but are not sure how to go about it, let’s explore what you can do to become an effective leader.  Having been a leader and observing leaders over the years, the following is a list of those attributes I feel best exemplify true leaders.

1. Leaders possess charisma.  They are positive, friendly, engaged, and fun.  There’s that “something special” that makes one want to be around them.

10 Ways To Operate From Your Highest Level Of Integrity

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, integrity means to have a “firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values.”  My Oxford American Dictionary defines it as “honesty, incorruptibility.”  From these two simple definitions, it is obvious that one of the highest compliments you can pay an individual is to say that s/he has a high degree of integrity.  The reason for this becomes apparent when you consider the following top 10 attributes; critical attributes that I believe individuals need to possess to warrant a high degree of integrity:

1. Displaying honesty in all personal and professional relationships.  Call it karma or what you may, but if you tell a lie, it will generally come back to haunt you.  When you demonstrate honesty, people may not like your answer or stand on an issue, but they’ll have a lot more respect for you.

Exercises To Create Happiness

The following are two exercises designed to help you think about and create happiness in your life:

1. List five things that make you happy.  What comes to your mind first?  Can you incorporate any of these items into your daily life?  If so, what action steps are you prepared to take to do so?  How committed are you to taking these steps?

Actions You Can Take To Achieve Happiness

As mentioned in my If Happiness Is A Choice, How Can You Create It? blog post, you will need to take action to create happiness in your life.  Make a list of those things which make you most happy and post them to your bathroom mirror so that you see them each morning when you wake up.  Do whatever is necessary to create your definition of happiness.  Know that you can create happiness wherever you go.  Below are some examples of actions you can take to create happiness:

If Happiness Is A Choice, How Can You Create It?

Abraham Lincoln once said that "People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be.”  This statement is extremely powerful, as it makes each of us responsible for creating our own happiness.  We can not obtain happiness from other people or from material objects; it has to start within us.  The following provides some steps as to how you can create happiness in your life.

1. First, acknowledge that happiness is a choice, that you do have options as to how you live your life, and that you can be happy if you choose to.

Empowerment – Taking Control Of Your Life

Virginia Woolf once said that “To enjoy freedom we have to control ourselves.”  Empowerment is the process of developing our personal power so that we control our own life, leading to personal freedom.  To become empowered, I found the following six steps to be helpful:

1. Understand that you have control over your life and that no one can control you.  This first step is absolutely critical.  Although others may have controlled your life in the past or may still attempt to do so, you are the one who ultimately controls your life.