October 2022

How to Choose the Best Advisor? 10 Qualities of the Best Advisor!

How to Choose the Best Advisor? 10 Qualities of the Best Advisor!

Business Consultant, Life Coach /

How to Choose the Best Advisor? Learn with Gordon Grigg!

How to Choose the Best Advisor? 10 Qualities of the Best Advisor!

It’s natural to want to be in control of everything, but doing so can lead you down the wrong path and cost you time, money, and energy. We’ve all been there: you’re so excited about your idea that you dive right in before talking to anyone else about it. However, when things start going sideways, you’re stuck trying to figure out how to fix them on your own.

The best way to avoid this scenario is by getting advice from an expert. When you talk with someone who knows their stuff (and has experience with your industry) about what’s possible for your business, what challenges might come up along the way, and how best to tackle them, then you’ll have all the information required to make smart decisions from the beginning.

Not all advisors are created equal. That is why you need to be sure that the advisor you are hiring for your investment or business needs is the best fit for your situation and can give you the best service and advice.

Introduction to Advisory
You know that feeling you get when you’re looking for something but can’t find it? That’s what advisory is for.

Advisory helps you find the things you need to do in your business. It helps in organization, focus, and growth.

When you hire an advisor, you’re looking for someone to help guide your business through the complex and uncertain growth waters. You want someone who can provide trusted advice and ensure that your company is on the right track, but finding the right person isn’t always easy.

Before choosing the best advisor for your business, let’s first look at what an advisor does.

The answer lies in their role: advisors provide a wide range of skills, knowledge, and expertise to support businesses in various areas of their operations. They are responsible for everything from providing strategic advice and direction on what to do next to help your company grow by finding new opportunities or identifying areas for improvement through “benchmarking.”

They can also help you manage your finances by providing insight into the best ways to invest money and how much you should spend on marketing or branding campaigns. They may even help with hiring decisions by guiding you through the interview process or providing feedback about potential hires once on boarded at your company!

Importance of Advisory
Advisory is a key part of any business, but it’s especially important for startups.

Advisors can help you answer questions about your business and advise on how to run it. They can also help you identify potential issues before they become problems.

They are often the first to see your product or service before anyone else. Hence, they can offer feedback on the process and improvement. They’ll also know what other companies are doing in your industry, which can help you stay competitive.

The most important thing that advisors can offer is their experience in business and other areas like marketing or finance. They’ve seen what works and what doesn’t, so they’ll be able to offer you advice based on their own experiences that may not have occurred to you before.

How to Choose the Best Advisor? 10 Qualities of the Best Advisor!

Additionally, advisors can share details about your business with their network. And if they have a strong enough relationship with their network, they can introduce you to new connections or investors who could help grow your business.

Difference between a Good and the Best Advisor
Are you looking for a good advisor or the best advisor? You might be asking yourself this question, but we’re here to help.

The difference between a good advisor and the best advisor is that the best advisor will help you make better decisions. A good advisor will give you some advice, but they will only be able to help you in some situations. It’s okay to seek professional advice from time to time, but if your life is going downhill and you realize that your investments are totally out of control, it’s time for an expert!

The best advisors are trained professionals who have been through the same process as their clients. They understand what it feels like when things aren’t going well for a client and can advise them on how to move forward. They can also identify red flags early on to help prevent problems from becoming more serious later on down the line.

The distinction between a good and the best advisor boils down to three factors:
● Understanding more than your clients do.
● Better using that knowledge to your client’s advantage.
● Being clear and adamantly convinced of what is best for your customers in every aspect of their financial lives.

Who is the Best Advisor for You?
Finding the right advisor can be a bit of a wild goose chase—you’re not going to find them by asking around or googling “best advisors.” You have to know what you want from an advisor, your goals, and what kind of personality will fit your needs.

So how do we do that? I have put together some criteria for choosing the best advisor that will help you figure it out:

1. What is their specialty?

2. What is their experience level?

3. Do they have any certifications or awards?

4. What is their approach to working with clients

5. Are they empathetic or more analytical?

6. Are they direct and upfront or more reserved?

7. What kind of relationship do they want with their clients?

8. How often do they see them, and how long are those appointments usually?

10 Qualities of the Best Advisor
Here are the 10 qualities of the best advisor. This way, you can choose the best advisor for yourself.

1. Desire to Share Expertise and Guidance
This quality includes sharing knowledge on how to approach different problems or opportunities in business as well as personal financial advice.

2. Genuinely Care about Other People’s Success:
They should care about helping people reach their goals, whether financial independence or having enough money left over at the end of each month for fun activities.

3. Coaching Aptitude:
Coaching is one of the essential qualities you should look for in the best advisor. An advisor who can help you fulfill your goals and give you direction is someone who has coaching aptitude.

4. Powerful Communication Skills:
The best advisor can communicate effectively with their clients. Hence, everything is clear about the process and requirements. It helps ensure that your business continues moving forward without any delays due to miscommunication between yourself and your team.

5. Positivity:
They should be able to help you navigate the complexities and keep your mind focused on what matters most. They should also be able to see the bigger picture and keep things in perspective when things get stressful or difficult.

6. Flexibility:
You need someone flexible enough to adapt to any situation at hand. They will advise on handling all kinds of problems—whether managing your portfolio in times of high volatility or helping you through a divorce.

7. Strong Business Expertise:
You need an advisor with extensive industry knowledge who can assist with strategic planning and guide you to avoid pitfalls. Their expertise frequently also grants them access to a broader professional network. An advisor could better serve the requirements of the businesses with appropriate industry experience and can discuss fresh and unexplored prospects or best practices.

8. Trustable:
You need an advisor who inspires trust. This act may seem like a no-brainer, but it’s not always easy to tell when someone is trustworthy or not—especially when you’re just starting! It’s important that your advisor is honest and upfront about what they can do for your business and what they can’t do.

9. Compassion:
Sometimes the subjects on, which advisors offer guidance are emotionally charged. It is advantageous if an advisor is empathetic while discussing subjects connected to human emotions. If he doesn’t have compassion, he can struggle to convey the emotionally charged advice in a way that the advisee can understand.

10. Culture Match:
Your advisor’s advice is likely only effective if they get your business’s character, passion, and goal.

Conclusion
The above advantages and benefits are good reasons to use advisory in your business. It’s not just about keeping books up to date or from an external point of view; it simply gives you clarity of thought to focus on running your business to deliver what your clients want and the result they expect.

The choice comes down to what works best for you and your business. We’ve shown you a few options so you can make an informed decision, but it’s up to you to choose the best advisor.

GORDON GRIGG – LIFE COACH AND BUSINESS CONSULTANT:
I am Gordon Grigg. I help people improve their personal lives and businesses. I always believe in true advisory and consultation. Therefore, I focus on both professionalism and care. I am of the view that the best advisor shares premium knowledge with care. Therefore, I offer quality advisory with personalization. This way, I can better understand and help my clients.

Contact Me for a Free Advisory Call

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How to deal with toxic employees and maintain effective work culture

How to deal with toxic employees and maintain effective work culture

Business Consultant, Life Coach /

Every employer wishes that the work environment in their organization is productive, positive and efficient. Every employer wishes that employees of his organization are motivated, reflect the organization values and have a high employee morale. But, not always do the things we wish for come true, do they? Maintaining a positive and proper work culture in an organization can be tricky as it is a very delicate topic. A workplace has employees from different backgrounds, beliefs, thinking and opinions, so making sure that all reflect the organization values and gel easily into your work culture can be difficult. As a business Consultant and Life Coach in Nashville, TN, I, Gordon Grigg, believes that even one employee who does not share company values or just doesn’t fit in the workplace culture can lower the morale and affect productivity of other employees. In HR discussions, these employees are usually referred to as the ‘toxic employees’.

A study by Harvard Business Review reveals that avoiding hiring a toxic employee can save an organization twice more than what they would have earned from hiring a well performing employee. Studies also show that 54 percent of good employees are more likely to quit their job when there is a toxic employee at the workplace. Yet hiring a toxic employee is inevitable. No matter how well defined and filtered your hiring process is, toxic employees somehow slip through and become a part of an organization. It is very important for companies to take steps to identify toxic employees and deal with them in the best possible way.

Warnings signs that toxic employee is present in your organization
Did you know dealing with a toxic employee is not difficult? The most difficult part is correctly and timely identification of toxic employees. From a bully to gossiper, slacker to ignorant, burned out to social butterfly, toxic employee can be of various types. Any of these types of toxic employee can create an imbalance in the work culture and cohesion of your organization.

Want to check if there are any toxic employees in your organization? Check out for these warning signs:

1. Negative or low response to company initiatives – You may often come across people who do not support most company initiatives. Not only they seem uninterested, they involve other people into their negative thoughts too but never openly. You may have often heard people talking hush hush about some new team building activity or gathering the company is planning. If you feel an employee or group of employees are harboring negative thoughts and spreading them to others, they can be classified as toxic.

2. Instances of workplace bullying or harassment – Have you often come across complaints of a person bullying his team members? It may be an official complaint or come to you through the grapevine. Have you seen a team member bulldozing other people’s ideas or opinions? Well, bullying or bulldozer traits are a clear sign of toxicity and you should watch out for.

3. Displaying privilege or pride – It has often been seen that employee with special skills or with a long history with the company or a good position in the company display pride in their interactions. No employee likes having a “know-it-all” as a peer or senior. When an employee displays privilege, they often disregard the ideas, thoughts and views of other employees, especially juniors and new employees.

4. Constantly complaining or whining – Do you have an employee who is constantly complaining about something or the other? His whining may not always be about something at work, it can be related to anyone or anything. People who complain constantly find something wrong in everything and build up negativity. This building negativity often spreads to other employees in your organization.

How to deal with toxic employees and maintain proper work culture
Toxic employees have a negative impact on the overall work culture, employee productivity and happiness. So, never take toxic traits of employees lightly. Even though it may seem small at the time, it will grow and act as a poison for your work culture. The sooner you deal with toxic traits of an employee, lesser is the damage done to your organization. Every employee and situation are different, so careful consideration and communication is required.

Here are few ways that you can use to deal with toxic employees and stop them before they poison the entire business process:

1. Identify early on – Keep an eye open for situations that showcase someone’s toxic trait, no matter how minor or severe. Early identification will help nip the problem in the bud and reduce the effects on other employees. Chances are the employee does not even realize his behavior is toxic. For example, they may feel that gossiping with fellow employees is just for entertainment and do not realize the negativity being spread through it. Sometimes, a single discussion with them may change things just ensure that you take action proactively.

2. Never avoid confrontations – It has been often seen that managers or HRs avoid confrontations related to toxic traits. The belief that everyone is grown up at the workplace and has a good understanding may not always stand true. Whenever, you come across any situation that indicates toxic trait of an employee, no matter how minor it is, don’t turn a blind eye. Have a one-on-one conversation with the employee and share your concerns.

3. Create a clear set of guidelines – To ensure that everyone receives the same treatment, it is important to have clear set of rules and processes, and what are consequences and actions that can be taken. Document clearly what is considered as professional behavior and what is not. This document should be shared not only with new employees but also with existing employees. Ensure that you make this document as a part of your onboarding process.

4. Do not use threats as a measure of action – Remember, no one wants to be toxic on purpose, but their background, current situation in life, past difficulties and other factors may be influencing their behavior. Try to understand what they are going through in life, and understand if it is resulting in a negative behavior in their personal and professional lives. Remember, empathy is always better than threats. When you show empathy towards a person, they will be willing to share their problems and understand the solutions you are proposing. If you use threat as an action directly, they will feel cornered and attacked and may become more toxic.

5. Practice what you preach – As a leader and stakeholder in the organization, make sure you practice what you want the employees to learn. For example, if you find that in a team the hardworking people are always covering the mistakes or pending work of a fellow employee, do not turn blind eye just because the work is getting done on time. If you do so, you will become an enabler allowing them to continue, thus being unfair to your hardworking employees. If you show preference towards an employee or give special benefits to someone, then you may become the root cause of toxic environment. You need to ensure you follow consistent standards for everyone, irrespective of their seniority.

6. Create a plan of action and follow-up – Firing an employee is not the only solution for dealing with toxic situations, you can guide them to improve their behavior too. The choice between letting an employee go or allowing them to change their behavior will depend on what are their toxic traits, how it is affecting the work culture and their willingness to bring a change in their attitude. Be a mentor and guide the employee at every turn they need.
When an employee understands his toxic behavior and is willing to change, then create a detailed action plan for the time moving forward. Set clear expectations in terms of behavior. Regularly monitor and follow up on the plan. If there are no improvements, you may need to consider termination. Remember, bringing a change in a person’s habits and personality cannot happen overnight; there is a long road ahead.

7. Be communicative and transparent – When an employee leaves the organization or is terminated, make sure you clearly tell other employees on what happened and the steps you took for improvement. Being clear about how you tackled toxic behavior of the employee or how their toxicity affected the work culture. Make sure you do not talk negatively about the person who left, talk about them with respect and dignity. This will build transparency and trust among your people. If you keep the entire thing hush hush, it leads to speculation among employees and adds fuel to the negative environment.

Dealing with a toxic employee is never easy! Though it may hurt, sometimes, letting go is the best option to preserve the brand, culture, and growth. It is always better to seek the help of a life and business coach to bring the transformation you wish to see in your organization. Myself, Gordon Grigg, has been helping businesses in Nashville, TN bring a change in their work culture, help employees build a positive mindset and reduce negativity. Share your thoughts and concerns with me, and we will together find a way moving forward.

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6 Tips to Delegate as an Entrepreneur Effectively

6 Tips to Delegate as an Entrepreneur Effectively

Entrepreneurship, Life Coach /

How to Delegate as an Entrepreneur:

6 Amazing Tips to Know

In business, most entrepreneurs are their bosses. They are the ones who do everything. This responsibility can make delegating an important skill.

Delegating is the act of assigning tasks to other people or departments. These tasks can be related to leading a group or completing a project. Delegation is about maximizing productivity and efficiency by assigning workload to more people than just yourself.

There are many benefits to delegating as an entrepreneur. These are increased productivity, effective time management, and less stress.

Here are 6 great tips for you on how to delegate as an entrepreneur.

But first, let’s talk about the principles of delegation and why it’s so crucial in today’s world.

How to Delegate as an Entrepreneur?
As an entrepreneur, you have so much on your plate—how can you get anything done when you’re taking care of everything?
The answer is: you can’t. And that’s okay! You need to delegate some stuff to grow your business and free up time for more important things in your life.
But how do you delegate successfully? Here are some great tips from Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant:

1. Clear Strategy:
Get clear on what you’re delegating. This is the first step in delegating effectively. Because it lets you determine what needs to be delegated and why.

2. Effective Resources:
Ensure you have the right resources available. If your team members don’t have access to the tools they need to complete their tasks, you won’t see any benefit from delegating those tasks. In fact, it might cause more work for you!

3. Clear Purpose and Motivation:
Ensure your team members understand why they need to complete these tasks (and how they benefit). It will help them feel more motivated and engaged with their work, leading to better results!

“No person will make a great business who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit.” – Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-American industrialist.

Importance of Delegation for an Entrepreneur:

Delegation is a key skill for any entrepreneur. When you have a team that understands their roles and knows how to do their jobs well, it frees up your time. Hence, you can focus on bigger-picture issues like strategy and long-term planning.

Furthermore, it improves employee engagement. Employees feel valued and motivated when they are given an opportunity for growth and development within the company. Hence, they tend to stay with the organization.
When you delegate well, you create opportunities for your employees to grow and shine in their jobs. Thus, it makes them more invested in the business’s success.

When to Delegate as an Entrepreneur?

So how do you know when it’s time to delegate?
Here are some signs:
● You’re overwhelmed with work that needs attention.
● You’re not sure about your employees’ skills.
OR
● Your employees are capable of handling new responsibilities
● Your employees aren’t happy at work anymore. Because they feel stuck doing the same thing every day. They don’t feel challenged. Also, they don’t perform new tasks and learn new skills.

6 Tips on How To Delegate as an Entrepreneur:

Read the following 6 tips on how to delegate as an entrepreneur.

1. Understand You Can’t Accomplish Everything Yourself:
As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to get caught up in work and forget the bigger picture. When this happens, it’s important to step back. Hence, realize other people can perform tasks properly. You don’t need to do all the work yourself!

2. Analyze the Strengths and Limitations of Your Team:
This tip is closely related to the first one—once you understand what needs doing around the office, it helps to know which tasks are best suited for which members of your team (or even outside contractors). It will help when it’s time to delegate!

3. Explain the Result You Want:
When you’re delegating something, envision a clear picture of the outcome. For example, if you’re assigning work to your assistant, ensure they understand to complete the final report. Also, you have approved it before they submit it.

4. Following Up:
Assigning someone a task can be scary. It’s hard not knowing about their competency. To avoid this problem, check in with them regularly while working on the project. Ensure they meet your expectations. You can ask questions about what’s going on with their project. Also, you can ask for updates on their progress.

5. Consultants Should Be Delegated Less Critical Tasks:
Even with limited resources, hiring a consultant to assist you with stressful things is well worth it. He keeps you away from your most critical activities, such as strategy or business creation. Find experts using platforms like LinkedIn and Upwork to save you time and effort. Also, you can get administrative or design tasks quickly.

6. Consider Your Advantages and Disadvantages
Before delegating any tasks, consider the most important business areas. Also, think about the beneficial skill sets. Then look at yourself:
● What skills do I have that no one else has?
● What skills do my employees have that I don’t?
● Is there anyone else in the company better suited for this task than anyone else?
If so, consider delegating it!

Conclusion
Ultimately, it all comes down to what stimulates the expansion of your company. Consider the adverse effects on your business every time you hesitate to delegate. Delegation should come naturally since you constantly consider what’s best for the company.

Entrepreneurs must put in some effort to learn how to delegate well, but the payoff is worthwhile. Try the six suggestions above to make delegation easier, more seamless, and more productive.

Special Offer from Gordon Grigg – Life Coach and Business Consultant:
Join me on a consultation call regarding delegation for entrepreneurs. You will get in-depth insights and strategies to delegate as an entrepreneur.

Book a Free Consultation – Call Now

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10 Signs You Are in a Toxic Relationship

10 Signs You Are in a Toxic Relationship| Life Coach Gordon Grigg

Life Coach, Life Management /

Identify 10 Negative Signs of a Toxic Relationship That Can Ruin Your Life

Toxic relationships are a prevalent threat to a sustainable lifestyle for humans. Almost 80% of Americans have faced emotional toxicity in their life. This is a huge number. Also, 1 in 3 adults is in a toxic relationship. Therefore, rooting out the signs of a toxic relationship is essential. This way, you can change toxic relationships into satisfying, sustainable, and healthy ones.

What Is a Toxic Relationship?

A toxic relationship is the opposite of a healthy relationship. A healthy relationship involves confidence, collaboration, and trust. It results in a happy and comforting lifestyle.
On the contrary, a toxic relationship results in disparity, frustration, and displeasure. It involves emotional, psychological, and verbal abuse.

A toxic relationship can be two-sided or one-sided negative behavior. It means you may also be a toxic partner, intentionally or unintentionally. Therefore, it is important to discover the signs of a toxic relationship.
Importantly, there is no ideal relationship. Every relationship involves:
• Agreement and Disagreement
• Love and Hatred
• Support and Unrest
• Communication and Loneliness

However, the disparity and tension in a healthy relationship aren’t at an extreme level. Happiness, comfort, and love always dominate in the end. Further more, a healthy relationship ends with sacrifice and commitment.

Difference between an Abusive and Toxic Relationship:
Here is an interesting question. Why do you want to resolve a toxic relationship? Simply, you need to live a relaxing lifestyle. You want to get rid of constant stress and poor performance.
However, you may feel like leaving an unbearable relationship. This stage is the boundary between a toxic and abusive relationship.
An abusive relationship refers to an extreme level of toxicity. It involves extreme emotional, sexual and physical violence.
At one point, you want to reset your toxic relationship. On the other side, you need to leave a relationship. That’s an abusive relationship. Therefore, don’t tolerate an abusive relationship. It is better to leave that relationship.

10 Signs You are in a Toxic Relationship

In this article, you will understand 10 signs of a toxic relationship. Read these signs of a toxic relationship to analyze your relationship status.

1. Lack of Love and Respect:
The earliest sign of a toxic relationship is a lack of love and respect. In a toxic relationship, parents, couples, friends, and spouses don’t like to spend time with each other. There is no mutual bond. As a result, a partner doesn’t value his partner’s time.

2. Lack of Support and Communication:
Another sign of a toxic relationship is a lack of mutual support, love, and support. These qualities are only seen in a healthy relationship. Hence, you won’t witness any encouragement and support. Additionally, you feel yourself in the sense of competition and weak communication.

Due to ineffective communication, there is an exchange of hard words. You may not express your opinions and thoughts openly. Hence, ineffective communication in a toxic relationship results in biased and unjustified judgments.

3. Financial Disputes:
A family or a relationship always involves financial terms. A healthy relationship has a balanced financial system. Therefore, you don’t experience any financial disputes in a healthy relationship.

In contrast, a toxic relationship reflects disputes over financial partnerships and saving options. As a result, you don’t see any agreement or settlement. There are financial disputes frequently.

4. Stress and Anxiety:
Stress and anxiety are part of life. However, constant stress and anxiety may be signs of a toxic relationship. If you are experiencing stress and anxiety frequently, you may be in a toxic relationship. Hence, your healthy living will be affected.

5. Carelessness in Fulfilling Partner’s Needs:
A healthy relationship runs on mutual support and cooperation. A partner takes care of his counterpart’s needs. Therefore, this caring behavior results in a satisfying relationship.

In comparison, in a toxic relationship, you will observe carelessness. Your parent will pay less attention to your needs. They will have no time for you. Most importantly, selfishness and self-care are at their peak. Hence, you can also identify a toxic relationship via this sign.

6. Controlled Behaviors:
Controlled behaviors mean a lack of self-care, an independent lifestyle, and interesting habits. In a toxic relationship, you lose interest to perform your habits and activities in your free time. Furthermore, you don’t have time for self-care.

Everything seems to be controlled by your toxic partner. This feeling may be emotional, psychological, or physical. Hence, it results in an uncomfortable life.

7. Jealousy and Mistrust:
Jealousy is a natural feeling. However, constant jealousy and mistrust indicate a toxic relationship. In a toxic relationship, your partner doesn’t trust you. They become suspicious about your daily activities. Along with mistrust, your partner develops jealousy due to your success and good performance.

8. Frustration and Resentment:
Frustration and resentment destroy a healthy relationship. Continuous tension and frustration in a toxic relationship ruin your charms. Therefore, you can easily notice a toxic relationship via your constant state of frustration.

9. Sense of discomfort and Super Consciousness:
A toxic relationship puts you in an uncomfortable zone. You become super conscious of the partner’s activities. It means you lose your own self. You are worried about the problems created by the partner.

10. Sense of inferiority:
A toxic partner considers you inferior to themselves and stupid. You face emotional and psychological backlash from the toxic partner. As a result, it may lead to a sense of inferiority. This sense of inferiority is a clear sign you are in a toxic relationship.

How to Fix a Toxic Relationship?

These 10 signs depict you are in a toxic relationship. You face several negative impacts, such as stress, anxiety, poor performance, and depression. Therefore, you need to follow these tips in fixing a toxic relationship.
• Have a clear intent to resolve the toxic relationship
• Understand your responsibilities regarding the toxic relationship
• Commit to changing bad behaviors from your side
• Promote mutual love and respect for a healthy relationship
• Move out of the past negative thoughts and events. Focus on the present
• Develop deep understanding and communication between you and your partner
• Start an effective therapy to improve mental health
• Consult a life coach to get valuable health tips

GORDON GRIGG – PROFESSIONAL LIFE COACH AND CONSULTANT
I am Gordon Grigg – a professional life coach and consultant. I help people come out of their toxic relationships. I understand the importance of a healthy relationship for a sustainable lifestyle. Therefore, I aim to add spark into people’s lives via counseling and coaching to resolve their toxic relationships.

Are you going through a toxic relationship?

Don’t tolerate further stress and frustration.

Let’s have a free consultation to improve your relationship.

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Importance of Family for Entrepreneurial Success

Importance of Family for Entrepreneurial Success

Business Consultant, Entrepreneurship, Life Coach, Mentoring /

A majority number of people around the globe believe that success is something that is achieved by one’s effort, without any help. Even the society where we live in always talk about the achievements and accomplishments achieved by an individual. And neglects the environment and family due to which the individual has achieved that success.

Moreover, many people believe that successful people are only known for their reputation in the business world or the money & property they own, but in reality, being successful means having happiness in life. Suppose Mr. X is a big businessman, he is rich with lots of money, cars, property, gold, etc, but has nobody to get love from, he has nobody to call a family, no relationships & affection and thus he will be considered as a poor person according to me.
Sometime back, I read an article somewhere stating certain reasons, why an individual should not choose entrepreneurship as a career. One of the major factors I read was sacrificing the golden family time with your loved ones. It is a fact that many aspiring entrepreneurs do not get family support initially or they get too engrossed in setting up their businesses that they neglect their families.

But, I Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville, Tennessee will be telling you the impact and the importance that the family can play in making entrepreneurs successful, through this blog post. Before moving any further, I would like you to know a little about my life story to have a better understanding and a well-built connection with what I say.

What role does a family play in providing a key lifeline for entrepreneurs?

You will find many entrepreneurs in the business world who have sacrificed their family life to make their businesses big in the industry. And this is quite evident that setting up a business takes a substantial amount of time. According to me, devoting 5-6 years to setting up a business and neglecting family life is wrong. Entrepreneurs should learn the art of balancing both, i.e., setting up the business along with family support to achieve actual success and happiness in life.

According to Medium.com, not only societal elements such as education and surroundings influence an entrepreneur’s achievement, but also their family plays an important role in their success. A family is the smallest social group with which an entrepreneur can interact and get economic & emotional support. They are the first people to teach them the essentials of life. Hence, the family acts as the first learning place for everyone in this world whose teachings and constant support will help you become successful. Thus, the family of the entrepreneurs plays a vital role in helping them succeed in the industry by providing them with some key lifeline fundamentals of living life.

Ways by which your family can make you a successful entrepreneur

According to EO Melbourne.org, to carry out various responsibilities, from time to time, an entrepreneur wears several hats. Naming a few of their roles or responsibilities, they act as; business leader, business owners, mentors, parents, etc. And with so many roles to play in their life, they ought to get tired both physically, mentally, and emotionally. Here is when family acts as the biggest support system that completely understands their struggles, supports their journey and assists them to increase their longevity in the business world.

Thus, to earn their cooperation and assistance in the business endeavor, entrepreneurs should bring them along in the journey. They should allow their family to grow with them, and make them equal holders of losses and successes of the business. When the entrepreneurs do this, the family members understand what they are going through, and become their pillars of strength in times of need.

Mentioned below are some of the ways by which family members can help an entrepreneur become successful in the industry:
● Provides emotional assistance – Emotional assistance is the biggest support that the family can give to the entrepreneurs. Understanding them, lending them an ear, encouraging them, having patience & trust in them, understanding, and caring for them, is all that an entrepreneur can ask for. Emotional assistance from family can ease the workload they have and also the comforting words of loved ones can do wonders for the exhausted spirit of the entrepreneur.
● Gives financial help – Most entrepreneurs start their businesses from the savings they have. Sometimes due to scarce resources and not-so-strong business models, banks also refuse to provide loans. That’s when the families of the entrepreneurs step in as saviors. The family provides financial aid to them in the form of personal loans, donations, equity funding, etc. This type of financial assistance taken from the family will not burden them as compared to that taken from financial institutions.

● Delivers professional advice – If any of the entrepreneur’s family members belong to a business background, then they can help them know the nitty-gritty and inside details of running the business successfully. They can act or guide the entrepreneur as a mentor and can offer them certain specific tricks and tips for managing and achieving set business goals. I agree that the businessperson might face certain shortcomings in working with the family members, but getting professional help from them can be of huge help. As it also saves the business cost to hire a consultant.
● Teaches time management – Family is the best source to learn time management skills. While revolving in a family circle, playing different roles, and wearing many hats teaches them the skill of managing time and relations. When the entrepreneur not only is a business owner & manager, but also a spouse and a parent, he learns to manage the roles and determine the ways to use his precious time in the best possible way. They learn to take a firm decision of taking up and performing such activities that are worth their time both at home and work.
● They can volunteer time – In the initial days of setting up the business, a lot of hard work needs to be done. At this time, the business budget is also very limited, paying someone to get office work done, can act as a burden on your business operations, budget, and pocket. That’s when entrepreneurs can rely on their family members or their friends who have the capabilities to perform certain business work. They might do menial jobs, but that can reduce the burden of the business persons up to some extent.
● Forces you to take some family time – As you already know family is the one who teaches entrepreneurs about time management. Not only this, but they will also force the entrepreneurs to take a break or go on a vacation with them. The family also explains to them the importance of spending time with their spouse and children and taking a momentary break from the business. This activity is important as the family understands that by this, the businessperson’s mind will be completely de-stress and they will get a new focus towards business activities and analyze various business operations with a fresh perspective.

● Helps you in being a positive role model – Parents and family are the biggest role model and trendsetters in an individual’s life. Parents are the ones who teach their kids to take risks in life, the importance of hard work, and building something from scratch. Thus, these three teachings will be the most important ones in the life of entrepreneurs as well. In the aspect of business, the family is the one who helps entrepreneurs see dreams, and fulfill them so that their families can be proud of them. This, support of their will turn fruitful to the businesspersons, as if they trust in hard work and follow the teachings of their parents, they will become someone with whom everyone in the industry wants to work.
● They can help you with business referrals – If the entrepreneur is new in the industry, then they might need some external support or referral contacts that can help or guide them to expand the business network. Thus, for this, entrepreneurs should peek into their families first and look at who can give them the best business insights or can become their first business customers or clients. Getting business referrals from someone inside your family can help you greatly to succeed and can also give you a huge advantage to penetrate the target market.
● Provide you with business gifts – Families love to give gifts. If that proves to be something useful for your business, it will lessen your business expenses. Families can gift various little things that entrepreneurs can use in their office, business operations, or business processes in general that could help them save some money from their budget.

So dear readers, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville, Tennessee hopes that you all must have understood how important family support is for entrepreneurs to become successful in the industry. Apart from this, if you are an aspiring entrepreneur, then you should be also aware of how entrepreneurs can have self-discipline and how they can manage their time effectively.

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How can entrepreneurs have self-discipline and follow Time Management?

How can Entrepreneurs have Self-discipline and Follow Time Management?

Business Consultant, Entrepreneurship, Life Coach, Self Improvement /

In the recent years, especially after Covid 19, the world has witnessed a sudden boost in the number of work-from-home entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is really cool and if you are doing it from your home, it actually becomes cooler. Right? After all, you can work from your home. You don’t have to wake up every morning, dress yourself up, and walk to your office to get to work. Sounds cool, no? Well, but it is not. I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach in Nashville, Tennessee telling you that, work-from-home entrepreneurs have self-discipline issues.

No matter how determined and resolute you are, you will face discipline issues when you have to follow something for 30 days throughout the year. Wait, don’t panic. There are some ways that can help you overcome this problem easily. Here, I am going to talk about them.

● Make a schedule

Yes, I know you are a very hard-working person and work day in and out to achieve your goal, but believe me, working without any systematic way is only going to make you messy. Literally, it will not take you anywhere. So, the first step for an entrepreneur to self-discipline while working from home is to create a schedule for him/herself and strictly follow it without any excuses. A systematic schedule will help you know how much you have to work in a day.

● Work consistently but not continuously

I appreciate your enthusiasm and understand that as a work-from-home entrepreneur you want to work tirelessly and live your dream as soon as you can, but it is very important to take regular breaks throughout the day. Don’t stay seated in your working chair for long hours. Make sure to take regular breaks, which will not only refresh your mind but also keep your physical health good. Here, understand the difference between being consistent and being continuous.

How can entrepreneurs have self-discipline and follow Time Management?

● Dressing nicely does matter

When working from home, you have the flexibility to work in your pajamas, right? Well, you have flexibility, but it does not mean that you should wear pajamas at work. If you really want to be self-disciplined, just put all your PJs and loungewear aside and dress like you are working in an office. It will impart a sense of energy and zeal.

● Keep the working environment neat and clean

The biggest drawback of working from home is that people end up creating a messy and cluttered environment around their working space. Unknowingly, but this happens. Like, you eat something and put the plate on the working table, you drink your coffee and put the mug on the table, you charge your mobile and put the charger on the table, and many other such little things. You yourself create a very untidy workspace for you that affects your work productivity and body energy to a great extent. This is why make sure to maintain a clean and clutter-free workspace.

● Have a dedicated workspace

As a work-from-home entrepreneur, you have the flexibility to work anywhere at any time from your home. Right? But, don’t make this flexibility your habit. Though you can work from anywhere even from your bed, make sure to have a dedicated working room for you. Sitting leisurely on your couch or on your bed will bring you many unnecessary naps and laziness and this will obviously hamper your work productivity.

How can entrepreneurs have self-discipline and follow Time Management?

● Set fixed working hours

As a life coach mentor, I am telling you this from my personal experience that setting fixed working hours is very very important when you are working from home. The reason being, in this case, you don’t have anybody to report to. You become lazy and work whenever you feel like. Obviously, our mind does not want to work with the same enthusiasm every day. Someday, you like doing everything all together and the other day you feel like not even leaving your bed. So, time management is very important for work-from-home entrepreneurs.

● Let people around you know your working time

The biggest problem with work-from-home entrepreneurs is that the people around him/her think he/she is available all the time. Don’t let people do that and affect the productivity of your work by disturbing you at any random hours. Let them know your working hours and ask them not to disturb you at that time. Sometimes, even your family members disturb your work by asking you to do little house chores. Though sometimes it can be a good idea to get up from your working table and go to the market to get vegetables. This way you will be able to take a short break from work too. So, manage this thing according to your convenience and make sure not to hamper your work productivity at any rate.

● Keep home distractions aside

When you are working from home as an entrepreneur, it is pretty common to get distracted throughout the day, unlike in offices where there is a complete work environment. Like sometimes, you would feel like having a light snack, and then you would leave your table and walk up to the fridge. Avoid such distractions and stay focused on your work. Here, you yourself have to be disciplined and make sure not to get indulged in any kind of household distractions. Let your family members enjoy their time. Just don’t be tempted by them to get involved in that. Focus on your work. Rest things can be done later.

● Use technology to track things

It becomes pretty difficult if you yourself have to manage everything and work-from-home entrepreneurs are required to do that. No matter how good a memory you have or how good you’re at making notes, there will be something that will slip away from your mind. Here, the only thing that can save you is technology. Yes, embrace it. Download the time-tracking apps, work management apps, productivity tools, project management software, activity planners, and other such software to keep everything on track for you. This way, you will be able to monitor everything without putting much time and brain.

● Limit the number of times you check social media

Even you will agree with the fact that social media is the biggest cause of distraction not just for work-from-home entrepreneurs but for everyone from students to job aspirants. Unlike in offices where you are strictly forbidden to access anything on the internet other than your work, you are free to do just anything when working from home. Here, nobody is to monitor your activities. So, promise yourself not to login into your social media during your working hours, obviously if your work is not related to social media only.

How can entrepreneurs have self-discipline and follow Time Management?

● Manage time wisely

As a work-from-home entrepreneur, you yourself have to manage your time, schedule, as well as family. You don’t have a fixed time for work. So, manage time wisely and make sure to find a balance between your personal and professional life. Don’t give too much time to your work and don’t get too much involved in your family activities either. Time is the key in professional life, so utilize it in the best way.

● Put your mobile on silent

Yes, you are working alone and you won’t give off any unprofessional vibes like you might do when your phone rings at office meet-ups, but still, it is very important to put your mobile on silent. I will even say to keep it completely silent, not even on vibration. The reason being, you can’t resist holding your phone and checking it as many times as it will beep for notification and I am sure it will definitely beep at least 2-3 times in an hour considering the way we use our mobile. So, you have to be self-disciplined and resist your urge to check your mobile frequently. For this, the best option is to put it on complete silent mode and check it back when you are out of working hours.

● Maintain your health

Maintaining your health is also a part of self-discipline when working from home as an entrepreneur. You must be wondering how it is. Right? Okay, let me tell you. When you work from home, you don’t have a fixed time for eating, drinking, sleeping, and exercising like you have when you work in an office. You just do what you feel like without bothering about your health. You have an unbalanced lifestyle and this is very very harmful to your health in the long run. Getting your health affected means getting your professional career ruined. So, follow a healthy lifestyle and make sure to maintain your health.

Conclusion

Having self-discipline while working from home as an entrepreneur might seem difficult, especially at the initial stage, but once you start following everything strictly, you get used to it and it becomes a habit. Yes, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach in Nashville Tennessee, am telling you this from my personal experience because I deal with hundreds of such cases daily.

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Why is reading important for self-improvement?

Self Improvement /

I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville, Tennessee am a voracious reader, who believes that reading and self-improvement go hand-in-hand. I have a keen interest in books and have read many books over time, and I am always waiting to get more knowledge and positivity through books. My greatest strength is to completely absorb the book and its contents and implement its positivity and good teaching in real life and businesses.

As an insatiable bibliophile, it is a painful experience when I hear people ask, “Why it is important to read?’ or “How can we benefit from reading?”, and many such variations of questions. According to various research and psychological studies, making reading a part of your daily curriculum can improve your way of living and make you a happy & healthy person.

I have prepared a list of reasons below that will convince you to become a regular reader and read more and more books than you already do.

Why is reading important for self-improvement?

Ways of self-development through reading

Books are a part of this planet since humans have evolved to express their thoughts. In the early civilizations, when the printed paper did not exist, humans used stones, leaves, walls, and other objects to scribble and express their thoughts. Over the centuries, when the development of paper & ink came into existence, reading too became a habit.

According to TyHoward.com reading books is considered the most intellectually beneficial and marvelous activity. People who are fond of reading books are considered the most literate and learned in society. Different people like to read books on different topics according to their personalities, aspirations, preferences, and interests.

It is healing and inspiring to read at least one chapter or about 20 pages of the book daily. If you make this a habit, you will see the difference, not only in yourself but also in your perspective of seeing the world.

I have highlighted some of the reasons below that explain why reading is a fun yet important activity for self-development:

● Helps in increasing knowledge & humility – There are various means to gain knowledge. But books are considered the richest source of gaining knowledge, as the pieces of information present there are the most authentic. Reading books not only increases knowledge but also makes the person humble and open-minded.
● Reduces stress – Day to day stress of human life is increasing, and it has reached a place, where it has become a matter of concern. Although there are several ways of de-stressing, reading has been considered the best of all. Picking up a book before sleeping helps you get rid of the atrocities of the day. Reading a book also calms you down, by melting down all the stress and helping you sleep better.

● Improving cognitive skills – Reading constantly makes you smarter. It helps you boost your imaginative power, and stimulate the better functioning of the brain, to get better clarity about self and the surrounding world. Reading books also helps you to get enlightened about your goals and achieve self-attainment.
● Interpreting yourself and the world around you positively – After reading an inspiring book, your brain will be flooded with positive thoughts and various uplifting concepts. It also raises your internal vibrations and keeps you in optimal condition.
● Get inspiration to make better choices in life – If you read some personal development books you will learn the right way of living life. You will not only become mindful of your thoughts but also will be able to take good decisions in life. Some books are life-changing as they give you a whole new perspective on living life, by eliminating the negatives and filling up the mind, only with positive thoughts.
● You not only improve but expand in life – By reading an inspiring book, you not only improve your life but also expand it upto new levels. Reading a book also fills your mind with positive thoughts, helps you in making better choices, and makes you hungry for excellence & growth.
● Boots imagination & creativity – The more you read, the more you increase your creativity and imagination. With every new piece of information your mind intakes, the data circles around in your brain as an imaginative tail. Thus, reading is a way of exercising the creativity and imagination of the brain.
● Increases Vocabulary – An increase in vocabulary is the most straightforward and common benefit of reading a book. The more you read the more new words you learn and add to your dictionary. Thus, to have a better grasp of the language, you should read an ample number of books.
● Focused functioning of the brain – Whether you are reading a book of facts or a story, you completely concentrate on the text itself. This also helps you in increasing the concentration power of the brain. Also, while reading, your brain is completely in silent mode, which thus helps you in focusing deeply and easily. Thus, the focused functioning of the brain comes into action that helps in various aspects of life.
● A great form of learning from others – When you are reading a book, you are actually learning from the experiences of the writer. The writing style of the writer depicts their real-life lessons. And when you read about the life lessons and mistakes of others, you yourself get cautious and do not repeat the same.
● The best form of entertainment – The best thing to do in your free time is to immerse yourself in an engaging novel. As it not only kills your time but also entertains you by providing knowledge.
● It can make you a better communicator – By reading something thoroughly, your vocabulary increases. Thus, you become a good communicator. As, if you read well you speak and also write well.
● Helps in writing in a better way – As you know that reading increases your creativity, communication skills, and vocabulary. And all these three aspects are the most important for effective writing. Thus, if you want to improve your writing skills, you should try to read more and more daily.

● Reading assists you in taking a sound sleep – Ten minutes of reading a book before going to sleep, can do actual wonders. Following this routine helps you to sleep more. Just make sure that you read from an actual book and not from any electronic devices such as; phones, laptops, or a tablet.
● Reading helps you in making an educated opinion about others or their thoughts – Reading books can help you in collating the thoughts and ideas of others. The point of reading is not to fully understand the book but to gather in-depth knowledge about a particular topic. Reading multiple books on the same topic will help you fill your knowledge gaps and give an unbiased & educated personal opinion on any issue related to that topic.
● Improves memory – Reading is an all-in-one task for the brain. It is a kind of neural workout that stimulates vision, associative learning, and language. All this mental workout makes the memory muscles agile. According to researchers the habit of reading can also prove effective in staving off the signs of Alzheimer’s in old age.

How to pick up the right book?

No matter whatever kind of book you choose to read or how much time you devote to reading them. But, as a life coach, I would suggest you start with some light genre, such as; thriller fiction.

Gradually when you get habitual, you switch to the niches of your choice and personal interest. You can explore as many areas as you want until you get the book of your taste. Make sure you try on diverse books to keep yourself open-minded.

After finding the right book, you may struggle to set up a reading schedule. But I would encourage you to make a schedule of reading a book for at least 10 minutes before going to sleep. This would help you gain a lot from frequent reading. Reading is a clear winner in terms of entertainment as it provides both self-development and entertainment.

Final Words
The importance of reading books is way beyond the above-mentioned points. Well, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville, Tennessee hope that you must have felt motivated and encouraged about reading books after reading the above article. Remember to choose a book that is healthy for you, that polishes your personality, and that helps you grow and flourish in life.

Some of the books that I have read and would like to suggest to you are; Raising Kingdom Kids by Tony Evans, Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss, Good to Great by Jim Collins, Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim & Renee Mauborgne, Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins, and many more. Interested to know more about the names of the books, that can be life-changing for you? Well, visit my website Gordon Grigg.com to learn about more books that can be motivating and life-changing for you.

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Why do you need a business consultant with real-life business experience?

Why do you need a business consultant with real-life business experience?

Business Consultant /

The business environment is changing rapidly and constantly. What you learned back in business schools about setting up a successful business, might not be completely applicable in the current scenario. Thus, connecting with the right people and business consultants will be the best you could do for yourself and your business, as it will help you soar to new heights.

Another truth is that, until and unless the products and services are sold, nothing happens in the business. Everything in the business leads to the magic moment when there is an exchange of goods & services. And a business consultant will also help you effectively sell your products and services.

Well, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville Tennessee, will be telling you the reasons for conferring with a business consultant with real-life business experience. As they can help you improve your business performance and make necessary changes for achieving success.

Why do you need a business consultant with real-life business experience?

What is a business consultant?

According to Business News Daily, running a small & midsized business is a challenging task as it involves activities such as accounting, technical support, human resources, and others. But, thanks to the concept of hiring business consultants prevailing in the current business scenario. As they tell you the right way to thrive your business in the crowd.

Businesses, usually startups need an outside source who has both expertise & experience and could guide them about business work. They also help business owners and employees in efficiently carry out and execute business plans that can save time, money, and aggravation, by providing them with proper training and accurate resources. Apart from this, business consultants also provide management consulting services to organizations, help in analyzing businesses, and create solutions that can help companies meet their goals.

You should connect to consultants who have extreme knowledge, previous experience, and a wide array of skills, like me. I have spent the past 30 years building businesses and have deep core knowledge about the same. So, feel free to connect with me through Gordon Grigg.com, so that I can share my knowledge and expertise with you that can prove to be of great help.

Why you should hire a business consultant?

Business owners should consider hiring a business consultant when they need an expert perspective on their chosen path or a catalyst for bringing change to their companies. Apart from these, there are several other reasons why business owners consider hiring business consultants. The wide range of services offered by them in building a successful business empire is the major reason. Some of these services include:
● Providing expert advice in any specific business niche
● Identifying problems in the business that act as hindrances and providing viable solutions for the same
● Supplementing the existing staff in the company
● Initiating necessary changes
● Providing objectivity over business issues
● Train and teach employees
● Revive the organization
● Lay off certain inefficient staff members if necessary
● Creating new businesses
● Influencing other people

Why do you need a business consultant with real-life business experience?

What do business consultants do?

The work of a business consultant in the company or the organization is divided into three stages, i.e., discovery, evaluation, and implementation. All the steps are mentioned below in detail:

STEP 1- Discovery
The first stage for every business consultant is to learn about the business. It is referred to as the discovery phase, where the main goal is to learn more about the business. An expert business consultant takes enough time to understand the business by digging into all the possibilities from the aspect of both the owner and the employees. During this period the consultant will uncover the details of the company’s mission and its current operations. Apart from that the consultant can tour your facilities, have a word with the company’s board of directors, analyze the finances of the company, and study all the details.

STEP 2- Evaluation
After having an in-depth understanding of your company, the business consultant will then start the evaluation process. Here, in this phase, the major goal of the consultant will be to identify the places where the change is needed. Thus, in this stage, the company’s strengths and weaknesses are identified along with many current and unforeseeable issues. They will then, strategize the solutions to the identified issues and outline certain ways by which business owners can improve daily operations, increase profits, capitalize on opportunities, boost efficiency, and grow businesses. Communication and feedback are the two most important elements that need to follow in this process.

STEP 3- Implementation
After the company is satisfied with all the changes that the consultant wants to do, they then enter the restructuring stage or the implementation stage. In this phase, the consultant then builds up the asset of the company and eliminate its liabilities. They also keep a keen watch on the process and make necessary changes when and where necessary.

Why do you need a business consultant with real-life business experience?

Benefits of hiring a business consultant

The services of business consultancy have become an important part of the business culture these days. They act as a business advisor who has a special aptitude to share their external viewpoint with the organization, when and where required. A business consultant has an objective eye, with which they provide expertise, specialized consultation, business strategy, assistance in operations, funding opportunities, and many others.

Thus mentioned below are certain benefits that the organizations may receive on hiring a business consultant:

● Cost effective – Hiring a business consultant is cost effective as they can provide the company with great business information that helps them increase their efficiency. Hiring a full-time business consultant can be too expensive, rather you should hire professionals to handle a specific business issue for a particular time.
● Expert help – Hiring a professional business consultant for handling certain specific tasks of the company might prove to be of great help to you. With the assistance of an expert, you might rectify your mistakes in a better way and improve the probability of success. Thus being guided by an industry master can act as a game changer for your business firm.
● Focus on the core capabilities of the business – Regardless of whichever industry niche, you run your business in. But, hiring business consultants or professionals can help you understand the core capabilities of the business and how to profitably deal with it. The legal advisors, the administrators, the directors, and almost every staff member will also gain accurate knowledge about their potential by understanding the core of the business firm they are working with.
● Improves effectiveness and profitability – Business consultancy services have taken new advancements as they assist the organization in finding a better business approach to gain profit and increase the efficiency of the business.
● Expansion of business – In the present time, expansion of business has become quite pervasive and convenient. A business consultant is a specialist who has a practical approach to running a successful business. They have the tactics to evaluate the organization and recognize its potential strengths and weaknesses. They also provide certain conventional business information to the company that can help expand their business to new levels.
● Ability and experience – One of the major benefits of taking business advice from consultants is that they accommodate your business at their best. They will guide you as how to execute the business arrangements and follow suggested business strategies & ideal business approaches. Thus, as a business, you should take full advantage of the ability and experience of the consultants.
● Admittance to the extensive broadness of information – Many private companies, especially the newcomers in the industry do not have the deep details, contacts, or information that can assist them in moving forward and earning profits in the competing business world. Thus, hiring a business consultant will help you, as the expertise, aptitude, and knowledge provided by them assist the businesses to scale their economies to a new level.
● Draw in and remove staff – A business consultant understands the deep details of the business. They also gather knowledge about the staff working there and the jobs they ought to perform. They then according to their analysis, can remove inefficient people and can also recruit new people. Consultants can also rearrange and assign new tasks to the existing staff according to their potential.
● Customize business – Consultancy services are not the same for all. What goes well with your company, does not mean, it will suit others too. Thus, the guidance, business methodology, and all other forms of assistance are customized by the consultant according to the need and objectives of each business firm.

As an entrepreneur or a business person if you too want improvement in business functions, want some specialized advice, and want to increase the achievement and life span of the business, then you should surely hire a business consultant for your firm. Well, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach and business consultant in Nashville Tennessee can help you with the same, by providing you with deep business insights and sharing the nitty-gritty for building your business as the most powerful in the industry.

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What is PTSD? How do you know if you have it?

What is PTSD? How do you know if you have it?

Life Coach, Life Management /

According to research, in the current scenario, every 1 out of 13 people suffer from PTSD globally. Now the question arises, what exactly is PTSD? How it is harmful to us? Who suffers from it? And what are the ways to deal with it and come out as a new person and start fresh?

What is PTSD? How do you know if you have it?


Well, I, Gordon Grigg, am a life coach in Nashville, Tennessee and will be telling you what exactly is PTSD. And also will be telling you about its symptoms, diagnosis, treatments, and other necessary details that may guide you to deal with the post-traumatic disorder that may cause stress in your life.

What is PTSD?

PTSD or Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a psychiatric disorder or a mental health condition that may occur in people who have witnessed or experienced a traumatic event. These distressing events may include anything such as; a natural disaster, a terrorist act, a war, a serious accident, witnessing a murder, being a rape victim, or having been threatened with death calls or sexual violence.
In the past, this condition was recognized by war veterans and was diagnosed as ‘shell shock in the past. But currently, the world is no longer a safe place to live in. Incidents and accidents are quite common these days and can happen in anybody’s life. They can thus turn to trauma, which may leave a deep hard impact on your life that can shake you to the core.

How do you know if you have PTSD?

Majorly all of us have been through a frightening event or a traumatic experience once in our lifetime that might have left a deep emotional effect on us. It is not necessary that directly witnessing or experiencing the incident can cause PTSD, sometimes even only hearing about the same is enough to horrify you or shake you to the core.
As time passes, the shock and fear might vanish, but the anxiety, insomnia, and flashbacks of the same may act as the stem of the past trauma. This is thus an indication that the person has a type of mental health disorder that is being diagnosed as PTSD by the doctors.
To figure out whether you are suffering from PTSD or not, you should visit the doctor and let them talk to you about the traumatic incident and record your reactions. If your reactions fit the criteria of PTSD made by the American Psychiatric Association, then you should further consult the doctor for proper treatment or visit experienced life coaches like me.

What it is like to have PTSD?

If you are suffering from PTSD, then you might have extremely intense and disturbing feelings and thoughts about the experience or the traumatic event you went through. You might also relive the event through flashbacks and nightmares, and these might result in anger, sadness, fear, or the feeling of detachment and estrangement from the outside world might also come in your mind. As a life coach, I would thus, advise you to stay away from people and avoid such situations that can remind you of that traumatic event.
Many people who suffer from PTSD might have temporary difficulty in coping and adjusting to their surroundings. But with time, good self-care, and the right diagnosis from doctors and life coaches, many people around the globe are happily recovering from the same. Thus, I would also advise you to learn about the exact symptoms, treatment, and many other similar aspects that can prove to be of great help.

Symptoms of PTSD

The symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder may start within one month of witnessing the traumatic incident or there may be no symptoms at all until years after the happening of the event. These symptoms may cause hindrances in attending social groups, work situations, and managing relationships. They can also prevent you from performing tasks related to your daily routine.
The symptoms of PTSD are generally grouped into four categories which further contain various behaviors and actions. But remember that the intensity of the symptoms may vary over time and from person to person. They are as follows:
● Intrusive memories – These may include; recurrent & unwanted distressing memories, flashbacks, upsetting dreams, and any physical reaction that can remind you of the traumatic event
● Avoidance – When you try to avoid talking and thinking about the traumatic incident and even meeting people or visiting places related to it
● Negative changes in thinking and mood – Many negative thoughts might come into your mind such as; hopelessness about the future, difficulty in maintaining relationships, feeling detached from family, memory problems, etc.
● Changes in physical and emotional reactions – These symptoms include you being easily frightened or startled, always being guarded about danger, self-destructive behavior, trouble sleeping, etc.

If these symptoms occur with you regularly and continue for over a month, and you feel that they are not letting you live and perform in your normal life, then you need to see a doctor or mental health professional. Also, if suicidal thoughts occur in your mind due to past traumatic experiences then immediately talk to your doctor or any immediate person from your family and friend circle that you trust, or share your problems with a life coach like me.

Causes of PTSD

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder can occur by seeing or learning about any unexpected event that can involve injury, accident, actual or threatened death, sexual violence, etc.
But according to an experienced research team of doctors, PTSD can be caused due to the complex mix of:
● Stressful experiences
● Inherited medical health issues, such as; anxiety and depression
● Inherited personality and temperament
● The way the brain reacts and releases hormones & chemicals in response to stress
● Experienced trauma in earlier life like child abuse
● Having a job where you are exposed to repeated traumatic events
● Lacking a good support system from your near and dear ones

Treatment of PTSD

You should be well aware of the fact that every person who faces any sort of trauma in their life; does not experience PTSD. And not every patient with PTSD requires psychiatric treatment. Symptoms of PTSD may vanish in some people with time and with the support of their loved ones or life coaches. But some require professional medical treatment to recover from the psychological distress. Remember, PTSD is curable, the earlier the person gets the right treatment, the better the chances of recovery.
PTSD can be cured through medication and psychotherapies such as; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR), Prolonged Exposure Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Family Therapy, Group Therapy, and various other alternative and complementary therapies.
The medications for PTSD include:
● Antidepressant pills
● Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) such as; Citalopram (Celexa), Paroxetine (Paxil), Fluvoxamine (Luvox), and Fluoxetine (Prozac)
● Tricyclic Antidepressants such as; Isocarboxaid (Doxepin) and Amitriptyline (Elavil)
● Mood stabilizers such as; Lamotrigine (Lamictal) and Divalproex (Depakote)
● Atypical Antipsychotics such as; quetiapine (Seroquel) and aripiprazole (Abilify)
● Some other medications include; Prazosin for nightmares, Clonidine (Catapres) for sleep, and Propranolol (Inderal) for minimizing the formation of traumatic memories

What happens if PTSD remains untreated?

It is seen that if the psychological symptoms of PTSD are not treated on time, then they are likely to get worsen. People might suffer from severe anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, substance abuse, and problem managing anger & aggression.
If you suffer from PTSD, then you are likely to suffer from diabetes, obesity, and metabolic syndrome. Epidemiological Studies have researched that patients with PTSD have an increased risk of autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases. It has been also found that excessive stress taken by PTSD patients can lead to systematic inflation.
Several pieces of research have also shown that people having PTSD, have increased levels of blood inflation. This can thus affect cognitive function, working memory, attention, executive functions, verbal memory, and learning.
According to the latest technology of Neuroimaging, it has been found that people having PTSD have various functional and structural abnormalities in the different regions of the brain that are responsible for controlling cognitive functions.
Apart from the psychological and physiological effects of PTSD, it also affects the social life of one who is affected. Untreated PTSD can lead to; social isolation, inability to keep up the job well, difficulty in carrying out daily tasks, aggressive behaviors, financial instabilities, and staining relationships with loved ones.

Conclusion
If you are also suffering from PTSD, and want to share something about your traumatic experience then, dear friend, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach in Nashville Tennessee, can help you in healing from that incident.
You can connect with me as I can guide you and help you in a way that your PTSD does not hamper your day-to-day activities. You can trust me as slowly and gradually I can help you relieve from post-traumatic stress disorder, and also tell you ways to leave the baggage of old memories behind and move forward towards living a happy life with your family and loved ones.

What is PTSD? How do you know if you have it? Read More »

Benefits of having a mentor and why everyone needs one

Benefits of Having a Mentor and Why Everyone Needs One

Life Coach, Life Management /

Whether you’re successful in your professional career or struggling hard to achieve success, you need a mentor in your life. Now you must be wondering why I need a mentor when I am successful and getting enough appraisal for my job. Right? Well, I, Gordon Grigg, a life coach in Nashville Tennessee, will tell you what are the benefits of having a mentor and why everyone should have one despite being successful in their career.

Benefits of having a mentor and why everyone needs one

Why should you have a mentor?

No matter how strong and resilient you are, you will tumble down at some point in your life. This is where you need a life mentor, who will save you with his personal advice and experiences. However, if this is not the case with you and you are lucky enough to enjoy a flourishing career without any major or minor hindrances, your continuous success might mislead you and you may end up becoming lazy to achieve more. This is where a mentor will save you and help you to walk persistently and unfalteringly on your way to success.

What are the benefits of having a mentor?

Not one or two, but there are ample benefits that you can reap if you have a mentor in your life, be it personal or professional life. In fact, there are benefits only. I don’t see any drawbacks to having a mentor. So, let me tell you some of the biggest benefits you can get if you have a mentor.

● Continuous support in every situation

In most cases, the people around you will neither wholeheartedly accept your success nor your failure. They will get jealous of your success and will drag you even more down in your failures. However, if you have a mentor, they will stand with you in every situation whether it is bad or good. A Mentor will be there for you in every step of your life and is a true companion to rejoice in your success and speak out your failures with.

Benefits of Having a Mentor and Why Everyone Needs One

● They believe in you more than you yourself do

Yes, I know you are strong, determined, and quick to bounce back, but there comes a moment in life when you lose all your self-confidence, though for a temporary time only. You stop believing in yourself and start looking at the negative side of life. This is where you need someone who can tell you that you are still capable enough to do whatever you have dreamt of. Who can do this thing? Obviously, your mentor. Your mentor knows your true potential and refuels you when your self-confidence shakes even a bit.

● They give you honest feedback

Getting honest feedback for your work, your personality, or anything is rare. Yes, believe me, it is not easy to get. Most people around you will put a heap of flatters when you are successful and be sympathetic when you fail. You don’t get honest feedback from anyone and you yourself obviously can’t be precisely honest with yourself because you might not even be aware of it. If you have a mentor, they will act like a real mirror in this case and will give you honest feedback. Instead of shouting to the world, they will tell your weaknesses to you only and help you work on them.

● They will lift you in your failures

When you fail in your life, the behavior of people around you changes automatically. Yes, believe me. This is a fact. Having someone by your side during such bleak situations is truly a blessing. I am telling you this from my personal experience. My mentees get another level of energy and strength right after their setback when they found me beside themselves.

Feeling low and rejected after a failure is very common. Everybody goes to the phase. In this situation, bouncing back on your own is really difficult because your mental, as well as physical energy, is exhausted. Here, you get the biggest benefit of having a mentor. They will not only hold you tight in such difficult situations but also reminds you how potential you are and how bright a future you can have if you bounce back with all your energy.

● They will clarify your doubts

No matter how experienced and expertise you are, you will feel lost and confused somewhere in life. Sometimes, you are in such a situation or confusion that you can’t even explain it to people. Here, you need a mentor to read your mind and clarify your doubt. I, myself as a mentor, can tell you that it might be a difficult situation for you but it is not for mentors because they go through this regularly and deal with it effectively too. So, your mentor will definitely help you clear your doubts and get out of your mazy brain.

● They will push you forward when you are afraid to

Planning something and making it happen are two different things. Sometimes, what happens is you plan things perfectly but when it comes to executing them, you are afraid for no reason. You feel nervous. In such an edgy situation, your mentor will motivate you and push you further to take action. They/she won’t let your fear dominate your actions. From his own personal experience or some other ways, your mentor will definitely help you win over this fear.

● They will take you on the right path when you are out of track

On the way to achieving goals, it is pretty common for people to get off track. The reason can be any. Their temporary success can mislead them or there could be anything that hinders their continuity in their way to achieving goals. This is where a mentor acts as a savior for you. They show you the right path and don’t let you go down it. They remind you of your goals and dreams continuously and motivate you to achieve them anyhow.

● They give you resources to achieve your goal

The biggest benefit of having a mentor is that they provide you with all the resources that you require to achieve your goal. They offer you tools and resources that you are not even aware of. Since your mentor has already gained too much experience in that particular field, they will offer you a bunch of resources that will make your journey much easier. This way you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You get stored energy from your mentor to fuel yourself.

● They will ask you questions and will answer to your questions

If new questions are not arising in your mind regarding any particular thing, you are definitely not being attentive enough towards it. As a life coach, I can tell you that asking someone new questions and being asked by someone is a very significant factor in achieving success. In fact, this is the thing that puts you apart from the crowd. Your mentor will answer your every question and help you get out of confusion and doubts. Not just that, They will also throw a bunch of questions regularly at you just to make you understand how deep you are really in the water.

● They will rejoice in your success

I’m telling you a fact that you will hardly find a single person around you who is really happy with your success. People will definitely clap and pat you on your back for your success, but somewhere deep in their heart, they will be jealous of your success. Of course, apart from your family, it’s only your mentor, life coach, who will be rejoicing in your success with an open heart.

Where can I find a good mentor?

Well, this is a tricky question actually. Like you, I also wondered the same in my early days. So, I am telling you from my personal experience that there is no particular place or institute where you can get a mentor. You might find a mentor in your home, in your workplace, in your school, in your college, anywhere and they can be anyone like your relatives, your parents, your grandparents, your teacher, your seniors, or just anyone.

It’s all about the vibes and the bonding you share with that person. You two should have the same vibes and must be open to each other. The person you look up to as a mentor must have mentoring skills. However, if you are looking for a professional mentor, there are some universities as well as workplaces that offer a mentorship program. You can look for those institutes and enroll yourself in the program.

Conclusion

Every mentor like me, Gordon Grigg, a life coach in Nashville Tennessee, will tell you hundreds of benefits of having a mentor. Mentors are definitely not saints or angels but they have the power to change your life. This is why get a mentor in your life if you want to succeed no matter at what point in life you are right now.

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