John sat at his desk and stared at the phone he’d just hung up. He sighed, picked up the receiver, and punched in his boss’s extension. “Hi Bob, just got off the phone with Acme. They want a new system set up by the end of this year! No, there’s no way that we can meet that schedule. My whole team is overworked as it is. We simply don’t have the manpower, Bob, and you know about the hiring freeze. Yes, I know we need to bring in more work to meet our minimum requirements, but this one’s too big. We’ll have to tell them we can’t do it. There’s just no other option!”

Has something like this happened to you before? A problem
that seems so monumental that there just doesn’t seem to be a solution? In our busy day-to-day life, it’s easy to get so caught up in the daily grind that we tend to become very regimented and short-sighted – which prevents self
improvement. If none of the obvious solutions will work, we give up in
frustration – or worse yet, miss out on lucrative opportunities or experience
loss of income.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Here are some self improvement methods that will help you sharpen your creative thinking skills.

Open Up Your Mind

Instead of saying “There’s no way…,” assume “There IS a way, I just have to
find it.” Nothing will stunt self improvement progress more than giving up  before you’ve given creative thinking a fair chance.

Ask for Help

As the old saying goes: two heads are better than one – and in the case of problem solving, three or more is even better. Since everyone has his or her own set of knowledge and experience, other people will bring different perspectives and ideas to the table. Look for people who have experience with a problem similar to yours, and sometimes a complete outsider’s fresh perspective might see a solution that you’re blind to. Self improvement comes through learning from others, so don’t try to solve your problem alone. Tap into your resources!

Define the Problem

The problem in front of you may seem like a huge mountain. Whe excavators
blast a tunnel through a mountain to create a road through it, they first analyze the type of rock the mountain is made of in order to choose the correct type and position of their explosives. They do this for safety reasons as well as to do the work most effectively.

Don’t skip this analyzing step in breaking through your mountain. Even if you think you know what the problem is, take a few minutes to write it down. I like to use a large, blank piece of paper or a white board. Write the problem in the center, and then look for root causes and write those as well. What are the outcomes of the problem? What will or will not happen because of the problem?

Brainstorm all the “properties” of this problem, and physically write them where you (and others helping you) can see them. Sometimes thinking through these basics can open up interesting fissures in the mountainside to investigate.

Identify Constraints and Assumptions

Make a list of all the reasons you can’t overcome the problem, and any
assumptions you may have. These are your “blockers”. Now try to look around those blockers – what if they weren’t there? What would you do if they weren’t? (This tip applies to all areas of self improvement: you can’t work through your blockers if you don’t know what they are.)

Break the Problem into Little Pieces

Now work on breaking your mountain into boulders, then chip those boulders down into smaller rocks that you can work with.
Find the smaller problems within the problem and look for ways to solve those. Sometimes when you’re able to solve small bits of the problem, the bigger problem changes form and becomes more manageable.

Listen to All Ideas

Listening effectively and creatively is a very effective self improvement
tool. Don’t automatically assume that someone’s idea to solve the problem can’t be done. Refocus your attention away from the problem and how big it is and onto analyzing solutions and finding ways to make them work. Many times, even if someone’s idea is far-fetched, you can “piggy-backs” onto it and morph it into something workable.

Persevere!

Thomas Edison created hundreds of prototypes before he was able to finally
make the light bulb glow. Stick with it, and don’t give up unless you’ve truly
exhausted all possibilities. Expect the creative thinking process to take time,
effort, and dedication.

A Great Skill for Self Improvement

Exercising your creative thinking muscle is not only helpful on the job, but
also in every area of your life. We’ve all done a little creative financing
with our checkbooks from time to time, and I’m sure you’ll find other aspects
that it will benefit.

With a little elbow grease and a lot of creative thinking, the next time you come face to face with a mountainous problem, you’ll be equipped to forge your tunnel – and on the road to greater self improvement in general.

• Get an instant list of all tasks, projects or work
• Improve office efficiency by guarding against missed deadlines
• Balance personal and team workloads
• Get an “instant snapshot” of individual and overall task progress
• Improve customer satisfaction with automatic suggested deadline dates
• Improve office productivity through automatic task time budgeting
• Estimate external job fees where appropriate
• Reduce staff or team management time
• Boost management effectiveness

One of the simplest but very effective task management software, Outlook, is included in most Microsoft® bundle packages installed in new computers. This task management software program lets you email and coordinate meetings and events. You can also set up reminders that will “pop up” on your screen. These reminders can easily be programmed to appear at the time the chooser decides. For example, if you have a meeting scheduled you may want to program a reminder to appear on your screen an hour before the event.
The fact that it’s very hard to ignore these “pop up” reminders, make them great organizational tools. 

There are various types of task management software programs available in the market.
A popular choices is Orbisoft®. There are also task management software programs installed in Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and “smart” mobile phones. So wherever you go, you can stay on top of your projects. This is definitely needed as the business world becomes more global and workers are required to travel.

How does task management software work?

The task management software is programmed to keep track of project and job time budgeting of a one time or recurring tasks, jobs and projects. Task management software programs are designed to be very user friendly so they make planning events fun. 
The more sophisticated, yet easy to install and use task management software programs may also include:

• Built-in task functions and business date calculations
• Automatic task scheduling and data backup
• Minimal data entry and time-saving data maintenance tools
• Built-in contextual help, online tutorial and user manual
• Optional user and group security
• Optional task synchronization with Microsoft Outlook®
• Free online support options
• Easy and quick installation and use

Business professionals are not the only ones who use task management software

Task management software programs are also widely used by busy moms trying to keep track of their personal time while juggling their kids’ school schedules and doctor appointments. It also a great tool to organize family trips and holiday get-togethers.

As in the business world, task management software is also available on the go for those who have Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) such as the Palm® Pilot that has now evolved into the Palm® cell phone. Other popular devices available are Nokia’s Symbian-based smartphones, BlackBerry from RIM, iPhone from Apple Inc. and other cell phones running on Windows Mobile platform. 

Obviously, the need for task management software is present in business and personal timekeeping and organization to help you work smarter and faster.

A virtual secretary is not a computer or robot programmed to perform secretarial duties! A virtual secretary or assistant is an independently contracted business owner. They are not employees of a company in the traditional sense. They work out of their own offices, manage the work from their clients and how it is carried out, set their own rates and pay their own self-employment taxes.

Many virtual secretary candidates have extensive experience in their field (legal, executive, etc.) and are looking for an opportunity for extra income. Other reasons professional secretaries are becoming virtual secretaries include the opportunity to work from home, work for various employers and to be able to spend more time with their families.

One of the best benefits a virtual secretary can provide is to reduce your work burden. 

They are able to take on special projects or unexpected projects that
you may not have the staff or equipment for. They are usually ready at
a moment’s notice and can help you grow your clientele and business
without having to go over budget for administrative support. They also
charge much less than a staffing agency.

The financial benefits of a virtual secretary

Virtual secretaries help relieve executives of extra work without
raising their overhead expenses of extra office equipment and office
space.

Virtual secretaries are cost effective because you only pay them when
they work. The typical virtual secretary will be paid per hour or a
flat fee for special projects. Since they are independent contractors
they pay their own taxes. Check with your accountant for tax laws and
rules that may apply in the jurisdiction of your business.

How to recruit a virtual secretary

When a busy executives post an ad for a virtual secretary, they may be overwhelmed
by the response they receive. If available, the human resources
department can be of great assistance. Otherwise, using the following
tips can help. It’s best to organize the search for a virtual secretary
by writing a clear job posting. Being specific about the requirements
and duties will help narrow down the pool of qualified candidates.
Additionally, strong candidates will most likely to apply for a virtual
position if the ad is well written and sounds legitimate. A quick
search for sites will produce many available places to post an ad for a
virtual secretary. A good job posting will detail:

• Job requirements
• Job duties
• Range of salary

Once you have narrowed down a good group of candidates you may conduct
a quick phone interview or email dialogue. Always check references.
This is especially important because you want to make sure the virtual
secretary candidate you chose has a solid work history of being able to
work unsupervised for long periods of time and that they have good
follow up communication skills.

Depending on your workload it may be a good idea to hire a virtual
secretary through a business organization. A virtual secretary
organization is more likely to be able to find a backup to continue the
service to you even if your primary contact is on leave or engaged in
something else. Some good sources are guru.com and elance.com. There
are a lot of other online directories for this service. A search on the
Internet using keywords “virtual secretary” is all you need to find a
virtual secretary.

Communication with your virtual secretary

Because an employer will rely on technology to stay in touch with a
virtual secretary, it is essential that a virtual secretary have a home
office with a computer with a high-speed Internet connection, phone and
printer. Other helpful equipment includes a fax, scanner and mobile
phone.

Another situation in which asking for a raise during a recession is justifiable is in the cases where when you were hired (before the recession really manifested) you took up a job with evidently lower pay, with a promise of a more realistic pay package once you proved yourself on the job after so many months.

Failing to ask for the raise can lead to feelings of apathy towards your job, which could result in poor performance, with the consequent tragic effects on your career. Being paid far less than you are worth could also lower your self esteem, impeding your general sense of happiness in life.

The Importance of Justifying Your Reasons for a Raise

Studies show that, during a recession, companies tend to lay off redundant or in-competent staff. But, surprisingly, employers will raise the salary of competent staff to keep up their morale. Before you ask for a raise, think about if you belong to the competent group!

Review your past work and what you have done to help advance the company. What have you contributed? Are you directly involved in the revenue-generating operations for the company? If not, can you make that connection?

It is important for you to justify your own reasons for a salary raise. The easiest way to sort that out is to relate your work to any possible contribution to your company’s revenue. Think about this creatively.

Even if you are not in the sales positions to generate direct business revenue, you can think about ways you have helped the company save money by enhancing internal efficiency or reducing man power.

This helps enhance your negotiation skills when bargaining and it helps your boss agree with your justifications more easily.

The Importance of Proper Timing

The key to successfully asking for a raise during a recession is proper timing. You don’t start hustling your boss for a raise just as he has received a report painted in red circles. Asking for a raise is bad news in itself for your boss.

The reality of the matter is that you are a resource (a human resource) to your boss, and a raise for you means increased cost for the business. This is bad news for a manager, whose brief is to minimize costs and maximize profits.

The worst thing, then, that you could ever do then is to bombard your boss with such ‘bad news’ when he has just received some other bad news from elsewhere — and bad news for businesses is not in short supply during a recession. 

Not even excellent negotiation skills are likely to help you if you bring up the issue during a time like this. Therefore, you should try to ensure that your raise request coincides with a positive time for your boss and the company. 

The good news we are talking about here need not be good in absolute terms. Absolutely good news for businesses is a rarity during a recession. The good news we are talking about includes relatively good news, like when the business, on landing a certain deal, realizes that the effects of the recession won’t be so hard on it, after all.

The Risks

Keep it in mind that asking for a raise (even in a flourishing economy) is always a risky but often necessary. Also remember that asking for raise is sure to induce your boss to reconsider his options, at least momentarily, so make sure that you are worth the money you are asking for and that you have the negotiation skills to back it up.

In the end, a properly timed salary increase request, even in a recession, is bound to be looked at favorably, if not immediately honored.

First, one good tactic is to ask to meet the following day. Then be prepared; your boss may want to meet right away instead. This can be a critical point in your favor as it shows your preparedness under stress. Next, when you have the meeting let your body language enforce your words. Hold yourself confidently, keep your hands steady, and make eye contact.

Requesting a raise or a leave of absence requires excellent negotiation skills. For a raise, bring to the meeting evidence of both your growth as an employee and ways that you benefit the company. Bring past reviews and stress your improvements. If you can’t show evidence of your professional growth, don’t expect a favorable response. Your strength is in your value to the company.
A leave of absence always leaves the company in a strained position. You should be able to show why you need the leave and know how long you will need. This helps the company plan for both your absence and return. Also, if possible, offer suggestions for and assistance in facilitating the transition of your work responsibilities during your absence.

Getting a promotion requires the same negotiation skills as a raise or time off. Here though, you want to stress the benefit to the company in giving you the higher position, and not just the benefit to you. Show how your current position has prepared you for the promotion. Don’t stress seniority or fairness. Stress how areas of your current position have prepared you for the advancement, and how that will save the company money in hiring and training a new employee.
The last negotiation skill you should bring into the meeting is to keep the meeting on track and within the timeframe requested. This shows your professionalism and respect for your boss’s time.