I heard this theory from a Chinese social media expert, who noted that Chinese internet users are more creative than Americans because the state-owned media options are so bad.

In their attempts to control all information, the leaders of the PRC are actually encouraging their citizens to invent their own workarounds to game the system.

About the author: Chris Yeh is a managing partner with Wasabi Ventures.  Follow him on Twitter or read his blog.

The principle was further strengthened when I started focusing on the problems clients were having with paper.  What papers do I keep?  For how long? Where? How can I find them again?   When I moved on to helping clients make their offices Almost Paperless™, the principle once again proved foundational.

All the decisions you make determine the life you lead. If you decide to forego exercise with fat-laden foods and a sedentary life, you’ll undoubtedly face disappointing consequences.  If you decide to forgo a good night’s sleep for a mediocre movie on TV, you’ll undoubtedly hamper the quality of your life the next day.

Look around at the people you most admire.  I did, and I saw unlikely people running in marathons, community leaders making a difference in the world instead of complaining about it, volunteers giving of their time, and philanthropists giving of their resources. What decisions are you making?

During tough times, decide to control the things you can control, rather than complain about the things you can’t.  That decision will mean the difference between thriving and surviving. It’s often been said that you teach what you need to learn.  I’m the poster child for that truth!  So I thought I’d share with you some techniques I continually try to implement during these challenging times, along with a few examples I’ve experienced recently:

1.     Decide to ignore the media and negative people.  The reality is that only God really knows what is going to happen, so ignore human prognostications, and decide to create your own reality.  Today at the San Francisco airport I resisted the impulse to pick up the newspaper and instead bought an inspirational book “The Christmas Sweater.”

2.     Decide to take care of yourself physically and emotionally.  It’s far easier to stay positive mentally when you feel good physically.  Instead of sleeping in this morning, I got up and did my Fit 10 Exercise, and rather than ordering a drink and a fat-laden meal at an airport restaurant, I brought healthy food I could easily carry with me from home.

3.     Decide to strengthen relationships with family and friends.  If you need motivation to follow this advice, just talk to someone who has survived a life threatening disease. I called my daughter while I was waiting for my flight, and made arrangements to have lunch next week with an old friend I haven’t seen in months.

4.     Decide to eliminate physical clutter from your environment.  Unfortunately, many people have become numb to the environment in which they live and work.  It continually amazes me how I can improve my state of mind while passing on to others items that don’t help me “accomplish my work and enjoy my life!”

5.     Decide to improve the surroundings where you are.  Traveling on airlines these days is a challenge to positive thinking for sure, but one thing I’ve noticed is how differently people approach the challenge.  One passenger yelled at the flight attendant about the price he had to pay for his ticket, while another passenger exchanged her aisle seat for a center seat to let a family sit together.

6.     Decide to be thankful for what you do have.   Regardless of how badly I feel, I don’t have to look far to find something for which I can be exceedingly grateful. Driving down the road, I noticed the sun setting in the rearview mirror making the sky a vivid purple, while the front window revealed a rainbow the width of which I had never seen in my entire life.  It felt like God’s reassuring message, “This is my world.”

7.     Decide to give to others who are less fortunate than you are.  I took my 9-year-old granddaughter shopping for gifts to put in shoeboxes for the Samaritan’s Purse project.  When I explained what we were doing, she asked, “Why can’t we buy a present for every child?”  Unrealistic perhaps, but a Christmas dream worth working toward.  The adults in our family opted to donate the money normally spent on gifts for each other to a worthy cause.  The idea took on new meaning to me when I decided to explain to the recipient who I selected and why.

I’m deciding to have a Merry Christmas, and I hope you do too!

P.S.  Last month I talked about using one of my favorite productivity tools Send Out Cards to send greetings — if you didn’t, you have another opportunity with the New Year. Check out www.SendOutCards.com/17790.

About the author: Barbara Hemphill is the founder of Productive Environment Institute whose mission is to help businesses reduce costs and increase productivity by implementing systems to manage information, space, and time.  For information about speaking or consulting services, www.BarbaraHemphill.com or call 888-380-6799.

Your strengths are not the things you are good at — they are the things that, after you do them, leave you feeling strong.

I was introduced to this idea on a college retreat several years ago and the idea has stuck with me ever since.  I remember how good it felt to naturally excel at something when I was younger; to try something new and to find out that I was already better than my peers.  It would be tempting to call these aptitudes “strengths,” but aren’t they really just head-starts?  As I have grown, I find that it takes much more than talent to succeed.

Let’s look at the idea of a head-start.  When someone is given a head-start on something they will coast into an early lead, true.  But if they continue to coast what happens?  They fall behind, of course.  If the early lead afforded them by the head-start was what caused them to rest on their laurels and lose the lead then it actually was more of a hindrance than a help.

An example: There is evidence to suggest that putting children in preschool does very little for them academically.  While preschool may give a child an advantage over his peers in kindergarten, studies show that this advantage generally diminishes with each passing year until there is no discernable difference, academically speaking, between those children who were in preschool and those who were not.  This gives new meaning to the “Head-Start Program” started in 1965 by the federal government.

Clearly then, the key to success is not innate talent but hard work.  By extension, this means that our strengths are not the little things that we were good at as a child but the things that we don’t mind working at tirelessly even when we aren’t any good at them.  I believe Malcolm Gladwell discusses this in his book, Outliers: the Story of Success, although I must confess that I have not read it; only heard about it.

I have written before about how important it is to be passionate about your work (honestly, it’s the most important lesson I’ve learned since starting with Wasabi Ventures), especially in the world of the entrepreneur.  The business world is simply too competitive for you to succeed without putting in your best, and the only way that you will do that is if you are playing to your strengths; working at something that makes you feel strong no matter how much of yourself you pour into it.

When I was first hired by Wasabi Ventures, my boss told me he was looking for “hungry people.”  At the time, I took this to mean people who were self-motivated.  I am now beginning to understand that being “hungry” means something a little deeper and more complex for an entrepreneur.  On the one hand, it means a willingness to put up with “the lean years” that any startup faces.  On the other, it means a burning desire to achieve despite the odds.  It means knowing yourself well enough to identify your real strengths, and then to work on them each and every day.

Last week, I met up with my boss for the third time since I began working for him last year.  We ended up talking until almost 11 at night, and during our conversation he told me that he didn’t want me to get too comfortable; that I shouldn’t accept where I am and what I am doing — not at my age.

On the surface, these remarks can seem callous and unnerving, especially when coming from someone who has the power to fire you.  But in the context of our conversation they were encouraging.  One of the hallmarks of a good job is the potential it offers you for personal growth, and that was our talk’s focus that evening.

If there is one thing I learned during this past year of working for Wasabi Ventures (actually, there are several), it’s that you need to have passion for your work or you’ll never be good enough at it to beat the competition.

Wasabi Ventures is a venture capital firm, which means we live and breathe start-ups.  It is not an easy business, but it is an engaging one, and one that changes so much you never have time to get comfortable.  To be perfectly honest, there are a lot of things that flat-out suck about start-up life, but there are also a lot of opportunities to pour your heart and soul into something about which you are truly passionate.

They say nobody leaves this world wishing they had spent more time at the office.  So how does one balance the voracious appetite that start-ups have for time and money with one’s need for a life outside of work?  If you are like me, your need for free time is matched only by your desire to achieve, which almost requires me to sort each and every moment of my life into two categories: “life” and “work,” with no common ground between the two.

My dad advises: “Find something you love doing and then trick someone into paying you to do it.”  This suggests that there actually is — or can be — more common ground between “life” and “work” than we might think, and that there is a vast difference between looking back on “a life spent working” and our “life’s work.”  The former becomes a waste; the latter a legacy.

I’m not sure who said it, but I once heard a quote that said, “There should never be a point when you say to yourself, ‘okay, I’m a success.  I can take a nap.’”  Why is that?  Because comfort is a nice thing, but comfort’s ugly cousin is complacency, and a lifetime of complacency is the one thing people regret more than a life spent at the office.

• Are you beginning to plan — or even dread — the realization that another Holiday Season is just around the corner?
• Do you read the newspaper or listen to the news — or even talk to someone you know –  and feel guilty that you are so blessed in the midst of all the need and chaos created by war and weather all over the world?
• Have you just lost your home, a job, or someone you care about deeply, or know someone who has?

If you answered “Yes” to any of these questions, I would like to make a suggestion about holiday giving.  Instead of agonizing over what to buy, dreading the idea of shopping, wrapping, and shipping, and then worrying about paying the bills, why not consider the gift of yourself?

The fact is, most of us reading this blog have everything we really need — and many of us have much more than we even need, can ever use, or even manage.  We struggle to find space for what we do have, waste time and energy looking for what we can’t find, and in the process, discover things we didn’t even know we had!  Every day the mail brings letters describing the needs of organizations trying to help people in need. This sounds to me like an opportunity for a different kind of giving.  Here are seven possibilities — and I am sure you can think of others:

1. Make a financial contribution in the name of the person to whom you want to give a gift.  Choose an organization that provides physical, financial or moral support to people and is special to that person.  For example, if your nephew loves sports, make a donation to a school for sports equipment.
2. If your friend loves music, buy him or her tickets to a concert, or provide some support for a “starving musician.”   You will be giving to your friend, the musician, and to the future of music all at the same time.
3. Share your talent as a gift.  My cousin, who is a wonderful cook, gave me a certificate for home-made lasagna and a coconut cake to be used anytime with one week’s notice.  I could entertain my friends and not have to worry about food!
4. Give the gift of your time with the person you love — whether it’s doing an activity together, helping them with a project they’ve wanted to do, or just sitting and chatting.
5. Look around your house at all the things you have, but never use.  Organizations who help others in need are desperate for clothes, furniture, household items, and toys (in good condition, please!).
6. Fill shoeboxes with toys for children who won’t be getting any otherwise. Many elderly people want to give gifts, but don’t have the money or energy. Do it for them!
7. Go to a nursing home, an orphanage, a domestic violence shelter, or a food distribution center and donate your time in the name of the person you want to honor.

Many years ago, I was facing a Christmas after my first marriage was over.  Money was short, and I wasn’t able to carry on all the traditions our family had done in the past.  I asked each of my children, “What is the ONE thing that is most important to you this Christmas?”  I expected answers like “a new bicycle,” but my 11-year-old son gave me new insight with his response.  “I want to work at a homeless shelter on Christmas morning.”  If you’re not sure what to give, have a conversation with the person to whom you want to give a gift.  Ask them what they are most concerned about.  You may be surprised at how easy it is to give!

For a cost-effective simple way to send holiday greeting cards this year, check out:

www.SendOutCards.com/papertigerlady.

Happiness is not getting what you want — it’s wanting what you have.

I’ve been thinking a lot about passion recently, and how if you’re not passionate about what you’re doing you’re bound to fail.  Starting a business is hard, plain and simple.  Anyone can think of ideas, but to bring something from idea to reality takes a lot of hard work.  If you’re an entrepreneur trying something new, that hard work is generally unpaid, which means you’ll either be doing other work on the side to make ends meet or you’re drawing down your savings towards an inevitable deadline.

As we all know, money is the great motivator.  They say everyone has their price, and “they” seem to be right.  They usually are, at least.  People will put up with an awful lot at work if the pay is alright, and even more if the pay is good.  Money is what motivates them to get up earlier than they’d like, wear close that aren’t too comfortable, drive through rush hour, and then put up with doing the same thing day in and day out 50 weeks a year.  That’s what people do.

It may not be glamorous and it may not be optimal, but them’s the breaks. Plus the fact that you get paid regularly helps take the sting out of the monotony.  But what about those of us who don’t always work for a steady paycheck; who stake their future earnings on a lot of hard work up front?  Where do we find the motivation to keep plugging away?

In a word: passion.  Passion is what drives an entrepreneur to create something from scratch.  T o be a successful entrepreneur you have to love what you do.  If you don’t, why wouldn’t you just go get a regular job?  Sure, the money might be better when you own the business, but there’s no guarantee with entrepreneurship.  In fact, the only way to get a decent return is by really buckling down early on (when things are least solid), and doing that takes dedication that you can’t just fake.

Unfortunately, not every business is as exciting as the one we dreamed of opening when we were kids.  Often, you have to work your way up and pay your dues as an entrepreneur just like you would as an office worker.  You start small, you learn, you grow, and you work towards your dream business.  But all of this is only possible if you stick it out through the early days, which means finding passion for the small stuff.

Being passionate about working your way slowly up the ladder might seem difficult, but maintaining your focus on the ultimate goal (the business that about which you truly are passionate) can help.  It will help you remember that every step that you are taking in your current endeavors is a necessary and vital step towards making your masterpiece possible.  And it might help you come to have some passion for the stepping stones because without them you would probably never arrive at your final destination.

My favorite definition of “organizing” is “the ability to recover.”  At no time in history have we been faced with a greater opportunity to practice our ability to recover.  Financial crisis, war, and weather are presenting unprecedented challenges for our nation, our businesses and our families. A billboard I saw in Chicago years ago says it all: “You think you understand the situation, but what you don’t understand is that the situation has changed.”

Consider how you can use these four strategies to make the best of any situation:

1.  See disaster as your opportunity.

History abounds with examples of people and businesses that turned disaster into opportunities.  Post-It Notes® were the result of a failed experiment to create strong glue!  Financial experts today agree that while many people are losing money in this economy, those who see the opportunities will make millions.

If your business is slow, it is an opportunity to do two things: 1) Provide the best customer service possible to your existing clients, and look for new income-generating ways to serve them, and 2) Eliminate unnecessary overhead expense.

Recently I had business engagements in three southern cities.  When I went to book the airline tickets, the prices were astronomical.  My husband suggested I drive – something I would never have considered.  The resulting trip was one of the most stress-reducing, problem-solving experiences I have had in months!

2.  Avoid worry.

Sound impossible?  Actually, it’s just a decision you make. Remember that it is impossible to hold two thoughts at one time!  A friend of mine in a rural setting in Alabama turned her farm home into a center for people who had no support and needed it, both physically and emotionally.  When ever they had a problem at the Center, they wrote it on a little piece of paper, dated it, and put it in a bag.  On Thanksgiving morning, they took out the “Problem Bag” and went through it to see how many problems had been solved.  For the ones that had been, they put on the date, and transferred it to the “Thankful Bag.”  How often have a I thought something was a problem that turned into a blessing.  It just needed time.

Ned Hallowell, author of Crazy Busy recommends this 4-step “Worry-Free Formula:”

1) Never worry alone

2) Get the facts

3) Create an action plan

4) Let it go

…and I would add, “Repeat when necessary” – which, during times like this, is frequently!

3.  Look for ways to help other people.

My grandmother used to say “If everyone threw all their troubles in the middle of the room, you’d probably be happy to take your own back!”  If you are able to read this article, you only need to glance at a newspaper or the TV to be quickly reminded of how much we have for which to be thankful. Finding someone else to help takes your mind off your own troubles. Simply looking for ways to reduce other people’s stress makes you feel better.  Often it’s as simple as showing appreciation for good customer service, or offering to babysit for a parent whose spouse is serving overseas in our military..  During a blackout in New York City, I was stranded at LaGuardia airport.  A few protein bars, some “real” money, and an extra sweater gave me the opportunity to help others – and meet new people, one of whom is a good friend today.

4.  Recognize the only thing you can control is your attitude.

I am continually amazed at airline passengers who lose their tempers at counter clerks who can do nothing about airplane maintenance or weather.  One of the most moving stories I ever read was of a Japanese prisoner of war who was assigned to work all day every day in a sewer.  In the beginning he feared he could not survive, until he came up with a plan.  He decided to pretend that he was in the garden with Jesus.  Everyday he thanked God that he didn’t have to suffer the indignity in front of others, and that he was able to be alone with his Master.

A Brazilian proverb states, “It will all turn out in the end.  If it doesn’t, it isn’t the end yet!”  Think of how many times it has been true in your own life.  My own faith in God’s plan assures me that it will indeed turn out all right in the end.  Use the opportunity of crisis and change to identify the areas of life that you need to organize more effectively, so that you can continually increase your ability to recover from whatever life throws your way – and help others along the way.

On a grassy, tranquil hill sits the Buddha, his back against the single tree that graces its peak.  Gathered in the shade are his followers, eager to learn from this great man how to achieve such a peaceful state of being.  Instead of opening his mouth, however, he holds up a single lotus blossom in silence.  Puzzled, the others wait for his teaching to begin.  They wonder at his meaning but fear interrupting such a solemn moment.  Finally, understanding that the lotus blossom is, in fact, his lesson for the day, one monk smiles.

Lao Tzu teaches that the world is already perfect; that we already have everything we need to be happy.  “Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”

*     *     *     *     *

I spent about three hours yesterday waiting in line at the DMV.  It’s an experience we’ve all had, and one that we all dread repeating.  As my Dad says, a trip to the government-run Department of Motor Vehicles is like a trip to the old Soviet Union: long lines, surly employees, and an overall feeling of dreary hopelessness is the norm.  Any business owner could come up with a list a mile long of all the things they could do to improve things there for everyone involved, from employee to client.

It’s hard enough to feel that your life is already perfect.  This teaching gets especially hard to swallow when you’re sitting for what feels like an eternity, waiting for your number to be called.  Sure, you could bring some work with you and try to hammer it out while cooling your heels, but a waiting room environment is not exactly prime time for productivity.

Take the DMV for what it is: a means to an end and a fabulous case study on how not to run your business.  Then, consider why you got into business for yourself to begin with.  They say that some people work to live while others live to work.  Chances are, if you’re an entrepreneur you fall into the latter category.  There’s nothing inherently wrong with deriving satisfaction from your work, but we must remember that the one who dies with the most toys doesn’t necessarily win.

Sooner or later (hopefully later), we’ll all have to look back on our own lives and ask ourselves if it was all worth it.  When held to this standard, a life lived just to make money won’t exactly cut it.  Even the best business of all time — one that I can only imagine resembles the polar opposite of the DMV — will get left behind eventually.  Only our memories and the satisfaction we got from our life’s work will allow us to die with a smile on our face.  When you think about it, our businesses are not just ways to make money or live by our own set of rules — they are the ways in which we can make others’ lives better.

Better might include allowing people to get what they want without putting up with a DMV-like atmosphere.  In fact, it better do that, as today’s business world is far too competitive for a company like the DMV to survive unless they’re a government-sponsored monopoly that legally requires the patronage of all American citizens.

We also must consider that our primary reason for getting into business was ourselves.  We choose to improve our businesses because we know that they help people by providing jobs and valuable services.  In helping others we also help ourselves.  It’s not just about the money, because money is just a means of exchange that facilitates our participation in modern society.  It’s about achieving something that lets us live a peaceful life; that lets us properly appreciate the perfection all around us.

Our businesses are our reflections of ourselves.  They are our ways of improving ourselves by serving others (and making a few bucks while we’re at it).  It’s easy to lose ourselves in our work, but we must remember that even if we live to work we only get one chance at finding the type of peace that allows us to smile at the simplicity of a lotus blossom.

About the Author:

A couple of friends confided to me that they reached an age where their number mentally represents an old person sitting in a rocking chair.  They are almost frightened by it.

On the other hand, they laughed while they admitted they love to be silly and have fun as if they were still teenagers.  This commonality is what helped us become friends.  I replied, “It’s only a number.  How you think and behave determines who you are.”

How this applies to business is in the power of attraction. Just as you have an ideal for personal connections, in your business life you want to be with people who share common interests, goals and who motivate you to go beyond where you currently are.

This is the gist of knowing whom you want as clients. Once you have clearly defined the profile, you will then easily be able to develop your marketing-communication messaging to begin attracting your specified type.  As the attraction process begins and you continue to build the relationship, each prospect will more readily convert into a client.  In turn you have a better flow of revenue into your business.

Now imagine you are a job seeker going on interviews.  Wouldn’t you rather find a job that suits your personality rather than having to fight management every day?  Know ahead of time what you are seeking. When you get to the interview mentally make a checklist. It’s wise to ask if you can meet or speak with team members on the side. This extra step allows you to get the real scoop and quite possibly into a better work environment.

In years past, I sent a note to one prospect saying, “I withdraw my offer of help”. I quickly realized that the prospect would be nothing but trouble and no amount of money would be worthwhile.  So herein lies the decision for your future thinking about business development.  Who in your business do you want to develop relationships with and where will you find more people like that? The commonality and bonding are what make the difference and bring joy into your work.

As we get older and wiser, the importance of mindset, relationship and bonding becomes very clear – and places us on the sea of a very Smooth Sale! But only if we pay enough attention.

About the Author:

Upon telling a good friend I was almost startled that the moment one door for partnering closed another opened immediately after, Tina emailed, “You just need to know which way to face when the next door opens!”

Reflecting upon Tina’s comment, I recognized it was true. So many times people wallow in sorrow that a venue did not work out rather than recognize space was made for the next best idea. Once I changed my mindset to seek the next opportunity, momentum was never again lost. Instead, I am able to keep communication open about new ideas

One time I was approached to give classes on cruise ships with another trainer.  We would both purchase staterooms and market to our audiences. But the alliance fell through. This time, I let the disappointment go and focused on developing business in other directions. It turned out to be fortuitous because only a few months later (and right before the slated cruise date), the economy tumbled. We would have lost a lot of money.

My recent experience centered on my intended venture partner who is currently experiencing much stress in her life. I pointed out that maybe it was not the right time for her to take on a new project and she agreed. Within an hour of concluding that conversation, a new partnership came to light.

The point is: when disappointment hits, acknowledge it and quickly move on. Be ready for the next opportunity and know when to say “Yes!” This is true whether you are a job seeker, about to interview or accept a new job, or an entrepreneur expanding your business. Intuitively knowing what’s right for you will place you in a leadership position and will attract more prospects, clients, and sales.

Whether or not the latest opportunity works out, keep building relationships. You will be headed for a very Smooth Sale!