Five Ways To Get the Most out of Mentoring

A few months into his first sales job at an FMCG firm, Shashank Prasad requested his senior to be his mentor. The mentor taught him to deal with difficult dealers. “It would have taken me long to learn these things on my own,” says Prasad. Your organisation may or may not have a mentoring programme, but having a senior help you out is a big advantage. Sreeradha D Basu tells you how to get the most out of it. 

1 Be Proactive Unless your company has a formal process, hardly anyone is going to volunteer to mentor you. The mentee needs to take the first step. 

2 State your Objectives “Senior executives are busy. Get to the point fast and state the mentoring and current session objective clearly,” says Nandan Savnal, MD of consulting and training firm PeopleSys. 

3 Set Shared Rules The rules could be on privacy, timings, issues brought up during mentoring, documenting things, etc. “Mentors hate mentees who take their time and do not go through the agreed agenda,” says Savnal. 

4 Be Curious Mentees should ask mentors to show them how they are able to display competencies consistently, says Prashant Deo Singh, head – HR & general affairs, Panasonic India. 

5 Respect Boundaries Always respect the mentor’s seniority and time. “This is not a place to complain about your boss, a colleague, etc,” says Savnal.

(The Economic Times, Mumbai, 15-02-2013)

Five Ways To Deal With Ex-Peers as a New Boss

When a colleague and peer becomes a boss, it could lead to people issues at the workplace. Rica Bhattacharyya finds out how such a new boss can manage team members, who until recently were his friends.

1 Take Charge The new boss must gradually establish authority. “The recognition that you are now the boss will naturally come to your ex- peers... It is for you to take immediate cognisance of this and take charge,” says Pavan Mahajan, EVP & CRO, Aspire Human Capital Management. Have a plan in place for the team to function more effectively, says Asif Upadhye, CFO at employee engagement firm Never Grow Up.

2 Be Approachable The new boss must maintain communication with the team and empathise. “Your team knows your work style and has a perception about you as a peer. Absorb those inputs. Ask them how they feel about the recent change and if there are any issues bothering the team,” says Upadhye. 

3 Maintain Discipline Discipline has to overrule personal feelings, says Mahajan. At the same time, stand up for your team. “No matter how you felt about your peers in the past, focus on the collective strengths of your team rather than individual areas of improvement while having the courage to draw the line to your team on work deliveries and deadlines,” adds Upadhye. 

4 Earn Respect A new boss should be focused on the departmental and organisational goals and on welfare of staff. Also, the new boss must earn respect of former peers. “Constant and clear communication, fair practices and how well you handle the task will get you the respect you deserve,” says Mahajan. 

5 Stay Friends It is possible to still be friends with your once-peers. “All you need to do is clearly outline expectations early on and maintain a certain balance between personal and work conversations. Your role may have changed. You need not,” says Upadhye .

(The Economic Times, Mumbai, 12-02-2012)

Five Brilliant Ways to Be Strong in Hard Times

Everything is going to be alright, may be it won’t happen today but eventually everything is going to be fine. Sometimes in our life, it looks like everything is falling apart and whatever you do fails. But you need to be strong in such hard times. It’s the hardest times that teach us the most valuable lessons of our life. Every struggle in your life has shaped you into the person you are today. You must be thankful for the hard times as they can only make you stronger.

Strength doesn’t come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength. So learn to be strong even in the hardest times of your life. Don’t worry about the hard times. Because some of the most beautiful things we have in life come from only changes and mistakes. So you need to understand the value of hard times and how it helps and ultimately be strong. Here are 7 brilliant ways you must remember to be strong in hard times.

1, Remember, Hard Times Don’t Last Forever.

As previously mentioned, everything is going to be alright.  May be not today, but eventually it’s going to happen. Your strength is not in the way you surrender, but in the way you fight with the difficulties. Hard times is not going be there in your life always. It’s only you who can make it stay in your life for a long time. You need to learn how to be strong in the hardest times of your life. Because this is something only you can do. 

You can only make yourself stronger. Not anybody else. You can’t give up. Because anyone can give up. This is perhaps the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that is real strength.

2, Remember, Every Struggle in Life Only Makes You Stronger.

Struggles increase your inner strength. You can’t always realize what you can do until or unless you get a chance to actually do that. The hard times in your life gives you the opportunity to prove yourself. Every struggle in your life makes you stronger and helps you become more confident and productive. Hard times helps you realize your inner strength. Remember, Hard times don’t create heroes. It is during the hard times when the heroes within us is revealed. 

Be strong because things will get better one day. It might be stormy now. But it can’t rain forever. It’s really hard to believe that the most important lessons in your life you learn only through hard times and struggles. So discover your inner strength and find out what you can for yourself in best way possible. The most difficult phase of life is not when nobody understands you. It is when you don’t understand yourself.

3, Stay Positive with all Your Positive Thoughts.

Don’t wish away your days waiting for better times ahead. Right now is the only moment guaranteed to you. This is in your hand to live it in the best way possible. Don’t keep negative thoughts and wait forpositive times. Learn to make your negative thoughts positive. Just because something is not happening for you right now, doesn’t mean that it will never happen in your life. You will never get positive results withnegative thinking. Be strong enough to believe in your inner qualities.

Be strong to think highly of yourself. Because the world takes you at your own estimate. The struggles you face in life are not supposed paralyze you. They are supposed to help you discover who you are.Positive thinking is not about expecting the best to happen every time. Be strong enough to believe that whatever happens in your life is the best for this moment. Whatever life gives you, even if it hurts you, just be strong and act like the way you always do.

4, Find the Right Person to Be with You.

You can’t love everyone. But can’t leave someone who never leaves you in hard times. You can’t leave someone who always gives you the right lesson. True friends help you understand your inner qualities. They help you become more productive. Right guidance can solve even the most difficult problems of your life easily. So it’s very important to find the right person to be with. True guidance helps you become stronger and more productive. 

It’s not about finding someone who won’t fight with you or make you sad. It’s about finding someone who will still be standing there wiping the tears away, holding you in their arms after a fight. The person who will never leave you. It doesn’t matter how hard things get. Be strong and live everyday of your life as the last day of your life. Don’t be afraid of hard times that comes in your life only to make you stronger. Live withno regrets. Because everything happens for a reason. 

5, Learn to Smile Through the Hard Times.

A smile is the first thing to fixing things. The trick is to enjoy life by noticing what’s right. Sometimes you just have to smile to make things easier. A smile is a gift to yourself in hard times. A smile acts like nothing is wrong or everything is going to be fine. Peace begins with a smile. A smile is perhaps the most beautiful expression in the world. 

Be strong and learn to smile through the hard  times. Let your smile change your world and don’t let the world change the way you smile. Smile at things that make you sad. Sometimes hard times don’t seem to get any better. But a smile is the first thing that can make the things easier to solve. Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile. But sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

When times get hard, don’t give up. Smile and start fighting until you win. You might make a lot of mistakes. But this is first step to unlock your inner strength  If someone feels that they had never made a mistake in their life, it means that they have never tried a new thing in their life.

Original Link: http://uniquelifeguide.com/2012/12/ways-to-be-strong-in-hard-times.html/#more-4172

Five Ways To... Crack a Phone Interview

In a super-competitive market, the phone interview is increasingly being used by hiring managers for the first screening, and in the process, the first stage elimination as well. Sreeradha D Basu gives you the low down on how to ace a phone interview and swing the selection process in your favour. 

1 Get Serious Treat telephonic interviews the same way as you would a face-to-face interview. “This includes things like keeping your resume handy, making sure you get the name and designation of the interviewer right and avoiding multitasking,” says Makarand Khatavkar, MD and head – HR, Deutsche Bank. He adds: “I actually advise people to dress formally for telephonic interviews – this will make a huge difference in the way you come across to interviewers.” 

2 Tune out Distractions 

While taking the call, ensure you are in an area where you can speak without interruption. Use a landline if possible. If you’re at home, turn off the TV or music system, and the call-waiting facility on your mobile. The regional operations head of a leading bank recalls he was once taking an interview where there was a constant background noise. At one point, he even heard the interviewee muffling the receiver and ordering for a coffee. “It shows a complete lack of respect,” he says. 

3 Be Positive 

A hello and even a broad smile when on a call often compensates for a physical handshake. “Research has shown that smiling on the phone creates a positive image. Smiling will make you sound professional and confident. Talking on the phone isn’t as easy as it seems; speak slowly and enunciate clearly,” says Khatavkar. 

4 Listen Keenly 

Ajob interview is a way to sell yourself. Listening is therefore very important. “Focus on what is being asked and respond clearly. Avoid the temptation to fill pauses, and take time to articulate your response. Remember, first impressions count on phone lines as well,” says Khatavkar. 

5 Take Follow-Up Action 

At the end of the call, thank the interviewer for his or her time, reiterate your interest in the job and request a face-to-face interview. Get a contact number as well. Being hands-on in following up can help your chances of landing the job.

(The Economic Times, Mumbai, 25-01-2013)