Category: Mentor

Making Regret A Thing Of The Past

Post author By Dave Guerra
Post date July 7, 2016

MAKING REGRET A THING OF THE PAST

I want to take a moment to talk about something that I have been thinking about after I posted, on Facebook, the meme about forgetting to place a cake order and wrote on top “Next time, don’t get caught swimming in regret.”

REGRET

Seems that regret, while a completely normal human function, is something that most people do not want to be called on or admit to anyone, let alone admit to themselves. That is all right.

Whether we like to admit it or not, we all have regrets. I am here to tell you that I am full of regrets.

I regret not spending more time with my family. I regret not being a better husband. I regret not being a better father. I regret not being a better friend. I regret not doing something about an injustice or two that I witnessed in my life. I regret not holding on just a little longer with a friend. I regret holding on too long with others. I regret not defending myself when I should have. I regret listening to the wrong people. I regret not listening to the right people.

See the list just goes on and on. Yet, there is a beauty to regret, yes, there is beauty in regret. In the past couple of years, I have grown, moved forward and freely admitted those public regrets, as well as my private regrets (to myself, of course). While most people announce their regrets while on their deathbed, when it is too late. I chose not to.

While we will never truly know the day and time of our expiration, I choose to do something about those regrets, right now instead of when it is too late.

Sure, some can do something about those regrets now but most people will wait until they can no longer do something and complete their time on earth full of regret and anger. Anger because they chose to waste their time holding grudges, internalizing their pain, lashing out at people, putting the wrong people or things above their family and true friends. They would rather spite loved ones because they think they can and are entitled to. They would rather belittle those that are not present because they believe it makes them look cool.

Yet, deep down they know they are hurting because of the regret. Regret based on knowing right from wrong yet choosing wrong because it is a quick fix, a temporary Band-Aid. Instead of working hard to make life better for themselves by fixing those regrets. Admitting regret can be a bitter pill to swallow.

At this point of my post, you are asking yourself, “Who does Dave think he is?”

Please ask that if you have not done so already. You are asking because now you are thinking about the regrets you have. You can choose to be offended. I know at least one individual will be offended. It might be someone whom I do not know or it can be someone that I have known for a very long time. Being offended is good, because sometimes those things that strike a nerve do so to get us thinking.

When we start thinking, we can start acting and when we start acting on our thoughts, we start getting results. Results that lead to minimizing regrets. Once our regrets are at a minimum we have grown as individuals.

Now to answer the question: “Who does Dave think he is?”
I am the person that regrets not writing this much sooner.

Thank you for your attention.

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Things To Give Up To Be A Successful Leader: Stop Complaining

Post author By Dave Guerra
Post date July 6, 2016

Things to give up to become a successful leader:

STOP COMPLAINING (or at least complain less)

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We can stop complaining or do it a little less. It can be done. We can complain and complain until we are blue in the face, that’s fine complaining is who we are, it is what we do. However, as a leader you cannot go around complaining because those that follow you will question what you do when it comes to complaining. Your followers will start to wonder if you complain about them to others. If you need help to stop complaining here are five tools to help you stop the complaining or at least keep to a minimum.

GO COLD TURKEY
Just stop! Yes, I know it is easier said than done but it can be done. People do it all the time. You have heard of Smokers, Drinkers, and Heroin users going cold turkey. Sure, it is a little difficult at first but they eventually break the habit. You can stop complaining right here, right now. However, you have got to want to change. You have got to want to stop complaining. Now here is a little something I tell people all the time, we are all human and none of us are perfect. We weren’t made perfect. However, the issue is know that you cannot go through life 100% complaint free. I try but it just doesn’t happens. So don’t worry if you slip and fall back into complaining mode. Pick yourself back up and try again. Remember, most alcohol and heroin addicts have to hit rock bottom before they realize they have to stop.

BE RESPONSIBLE
Own your mistakes. The first step to being responsible is self-respect. Begin by thinking highly of yourself and your abilities. All your abilities. Keep people in your life who respect you. Eject the chronic complainers. Let them carry their complaints elsewhere. Gather people in your life that like you and respect you. Remember it is a two-way street you have them around because you respect them. It is a mutual respect.

BE ASSERTIVE
Giving up complaining does not mean allowing yourself to become someone else’s doormat. Assertiveness is the way to tell others what your needs are and how these can be met. However, there will always be individuals who will see assertiveness (no matter how small or how large) as a personal attack.

KEEP MOVING FORWARD
When you keep moving forward you have less time to look back and complain about who did you wrong, who is crazy, who owes you money, who done you wrong, who was wearing what and stuff like that. By constantly moving forward you have less time to worry about others especially those that are the chronic complainers, the ones that live off of other people’s misery, the ones that would rather go make fun of people because it enriches their lives.
Keep moving forward and looking forward and soon you will have those that move forward as a habit and complain little to none all around you. Remember, like-minded people LOVE to travel together. Why do you think the old saying misery loves company is more often true?

BE MINDFUL
Be mindful of others. Some will see that you are not complaining or complaining as much and back off. However here is where the mindfulness kicks in. There are those that will bait you either catching you off guard or slowly reeling you in until <> you are caught and you start complaining.

Complaining is a part of life. It allows us to blow off some steam. It also allows us and opportunity share with others what we really feel however usually away from the people that we are complaining about. As a leader, you have to learn to keep your complaints to yourself. Your followers do not want to know you complain especially in front of them. Then they will start to wonder if you complain about them to others. So stop the complaining or curtail it as much as possible.

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Give Up on your Self-Defeating Self-Talk

Post author By Dave Guerra
Post date June 21, 2016

So you want to be a successful leader. You want to be the one that people follow no questions asked. Hey, who doesn’t want to be that leader? To be that kind of leader there are a few things you have to give up to be a successful leader.

Give Up On Your Self-Defeating Self-Talk.

What is Self-Defeating Self-Talk?

Self-Defeating Self-Talk is that talk we have with ourselves when things are not going the way we want them to go or when others are not doing or behaving the way we want them do or behave. It is that conversation we have with ourselves either with our inside our head voice or that voice that we say at a volume that is just below what the human ear can comprehend. Self-Defeating Self-Talk that is full of words we would hardly dare say to others but have absolutely no problem saying to ourselves. Usually, the self-talk is laden with words like “dummy”, “idiot”, “nitwit”, “dumb donkey”, “poopyhead”, and words like “can’t”, “cannot” “never”, “why bother” and “who do you think you are” will find their way into that conversation.

It is time to stop talking about yourself in the negative.

While you might be doing all the right things, going through the positive motions, and leading people down the path of righteousness. All of that is for naught if you have no problem talking about yourself and to yourself in the negative. However, just like any bad habit you try to keep under cover, eventually you will be caught. Your negative self-talk will be discovered.

People are always listening

No matter what you say, do, or want to believe people are always listening to you. That is one fact you cannot hide from nor avoid. They are listening when you think they are not. They are listening to not just your words but to your action as well. So be very careful with what you say and what you do. When those that follow you see you and hear you being negative. I do not know if it is human nature or not but people cling to negativity harder and longer than they do to positivity. It is as if positivity is garbage that has been in the kitchen waste bin a day or two longer than it should have been. Sure, we have to touch it but just long enough to get rid of it.

On the other hand, negative talk is contagious

Whether we say it aloud or just under our breath, negative talk is still negative talk and it does not take a Rocket Scientist to tell you negative talk is contagious. Once someone else hears that negative talk it is out there. There is no taking it back. Seriously, there is nothing you can do to get it back. Once that Pandora’s Box it is open it is can never be closed with all the negativity that escaped back in the back. However, the work begins to undo the damage done. The same applies to you. You must work at reeling that negativity back in and get it under control. As a leader, you have no choice, you must!

They will believe your negativity but they will start to believe it about themselves

When you fail to reel it back in then others will start to believe the negativity that you have been spewing. Your followers will begin to believe that you might not be the real deal. You might just be someone who lacks the confidence and the ability to lead. Because they follow you, they will also start to doubt their confidence and ability to become the kind of leader they thought you were. That, my friends is NOT a good thing. Your job as a leader is set in stone. You are to help make more leaders! Your jobs is NOT to make others doubt themselves.

Cease the negative talk and thoughts

You have your marching orders. Stop with the negativity, the self-defeating self-talk, NOW! It serves you no purpose to continue and it certain serves those that follow you no purpose. When you stop with the negativity, it gives others the opportunity to begin to believe in you, again. It gives those naysayers and other nothing they can use against you. So many might try but when there is nothing for them to swing at, what then? Exactly!

In the end, those that follow will start to feel good about you and being with you and following you.