Your talent will not be something you hate doing. Sure, I'm really very good at scrubbing bathroom. You can conduct a white glove inspection when I'm done, but that's not my special talent. That's not my special gift to world. And it sure as heck never built an ounce of self-confidence for me. No, you have to really truly deeply love what it is you're doing or talent won't show itself. You have to forget to think and lose all track of time while zoning out in flow of creating, building, stretching, and growing with hobby. Get to point that when you look up and notice what you've done, that you're impressed with yourself. Practice until you get to that point where you forget to judge yourself. You could very well end up making it into your career if there's a market for it. If there isn't, no harm done. You have got to build a can-do attitude around your ability to do something well.

Once you've learned something that well, you can begin stretching beyond your comfort zone and trying other things like public speaking. Okay so that might not happen right away, but once you've really mastered something, then you can always remind yourself that you are capable of success and you are capable of learning something new. Once you know that you can practice and learn new things, then fear of new things isn't nearly so immobilizing. You can step beyond your fears knowing that with enough practice you can master almost anything you set your mind to. At that point, you won't actually have a self-esteem problem anymore.

The point is that by playing around with something you love until you are very good at it, you will gain self-esteem and that is going to make it possible for you to hold your head high and to bravely step into other more frightening areas of life. Start out by practicing at something you love until you're good at it, then move on to other things that don't sound like much fun at all. You'll really know deep down that there's nothing to be afraid of. It all comes down to whether or not you believe that you are capable of learning something new. That's all. Self-confident people reassure themselves when walking into unknown territory by saying, "Well, I'll just have to wing it until I learn how to do it right. I'm sure I'll figure it out soon enough." That comes from experiencing positive effects of having practiced and learned something new. So go learn something new -- start with something fun.

Copyright 2004, Skye Thomas, Tomorrow's Edge

- Almost all mistakes made by a business are result of an employee deciding to do things THEIR WAY rather than follow company's procedures. To eliminate mistakes, a company must fully document and vigorously enforce all policies and procedures. Workers must follow company's procedures.

Because workers actually know what's going on in company, they are in a position to produce good ideas. Unfortunately, their ideas are often only ways to make THEIR job easier by shifting their work to another person or department.

If your supervisor/manager asks for your input on a co-worker's idea, don't respond by saying "that won't work" or by criticizing idea. When you criticize a co-worker's idea, you criticize co-worker. You will step on co-workers ego and probably create an enemy. Instead, respond by asking questions about idea in a way that implies that you might not fully understand idea. For example, ask "how does that work with (reason why idea won't work)".

- If co-worker's idea won't work, don't be surprised if manager approves it anyway. There are several reasons why a manager will approve a bad idea. Sometimes manager wants to let worker learn for themself why idea won't work. Sometimes a bad idea is approved in order to pacify employee. Sometimes it's because manager doesn't have a clue how things work in their own department.

- Most ideas start out stupid and eventually die (until some fool brings it up again a year later). But about one percent of ideas receive some study and get modified until they actually work.

Handling Rejection of Your Own Ideas

A good employee is always thinking of ways to improve their job and their company. Bosses like workers who take initiative to solve problems. Companies need all ideas they can get. But fact remains that statistically 99 percent of all ideas don't work, and that includes YOUR ideas.

When your boss and coworkers point out reasons why your idea won't work, don't feel they are criticizing you personally. They are criticizing IDEA, not YOU. No matter how unworkable idea turns out, you are still to be credited with producing idea.

- If your manager rejects your idea, don't be surprised if later they present same or a similar idea as their own. In any organization, no matter who takes credit, everyone always knows where an idea really came from. Eventually you will receive recognition you deserve.

Statistically, 99 percent of all ideas don't work. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't keep thinking of ways to improve your job, your company, and your company's product. It's not GETTING of ideas that's bad, It's implementing of ideas without doing required studies - that's bad. One in a hundred ideas DO work, and occasionally that one idea will generate millions of dollars of savings or revenue for company.

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