Saying “I think” or “I feel” is redundant and draws down the power of the message that follows. Also slumping or folding arms across your chest can communicate something other than your intent and again weakens your message. Communicating effectively is worth the study into our own quirks and applying psychological “tricks”. Not to manipulate but to increase message clarity. An interesting article I discovered this week is 15 Clever Psychological Tricks That Everyone Should Know and Start Using Immediately<\/em><\/a>. <\/em>Rapid read.<\/p>\n [Sidebar: Don’t be put off by a few grammatical errors. The piece doesn’t appear to be written by a native English speaker.]<\/p>\n 2) Leadership Hacks – <\/strong>Two of my favorite leadership coaches are Marcel Schwantes<\/a> and Carey Nieuwhof<\/a>. Any of us who truly want to be effective leaders would do well to hear their counsel. Schwantes has written a piece entitled: To Be a Strong Leader, There Are 6 Things You Must Give Your People (Most Rarely Do)<\/em><\/a>. He delineates what strong leaders give their employees:<\/p>\n Click here<\/a> for Schwantes’ commentary on each. Leaders too often think they do well in these areas and thus do not discipline themselves to keep tooled. Unfortunately, if not checked,\u00a0 weaknesses in these areas will permeate a company.<\/p>\n Nieuwhof posted about a growing problem in leadership – Why Busy Leaders Make Bad Leaders<\/em><\/a>. We expect to be busy as leaders because we have loads of responsibility. So why is it that some leaders seem to have the time to be the kind of leader Schwantes notes in his article above? Leaders who delegate and don’t need to control processes or employees are those who most see the value of employees and their impact on the product and customer satisfaction. Read his article linked above. Here is how he closes:<\/p>\n Busy people love to act like they have no choice and they\u2019re oh-so-slammed. Until you catch them binge watching Netflix, or lingering over an iced coffee checking Instagram, or talking for 30 minutes at a workmate\u2019s desk about nothing in particular. <\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m not trying to be judgmental. I\u2019m all for iced coffees and Instagram. It\u2019s just there\u2019s a cognitive dissonance in many of us between what we believe and what\u2019s true.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n You have the time for what matters.<\/strong> After all, every leader gets 24 hours in a day. You have the time to get the most important things done. You just didn\u2019t make the time\u2014you spent it doing something else.<\/em> – Carey Nieuwhof<\/a><\/p>\n 3) Parenting <\/strong>– Parenting is a tough job and advice abounds. I am cautious in recommending parenting books and articles because the sense of guilt for parents is already sizable. Every child is different and every situation is as well. Having said all that, I do see hope in simplifying one’s family life and environment…just so both the parent AND the child can breathe. Kim John Payne<\/a> is a writer, researcher, and speaker in the field of simplicity parenting. Having spent over two decades in the school and family counseling field, he has seen the chaotic nature of family lives and its impact on children. His book\u00a0 Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids <\/em><\/a>is a best-seller. I have not yet read his book but have already been captivated by his teaching on his website<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If all we do is throw away toys as a way to simplify our children’s lives, we are not really dealing with the issue of chaos in their lives. Too often, we replace material possessions with the pursuit of experiences (what we may call social, athletic, or academically enriching). Experiences, especially where our children learn to serve and value others, can be life-transforming. However, we must be careful that experiences don’t continue to cause our littles to be over-stimulated making them addiction-prone in later years. Needing more, more, more to be satisfied.<\/p>\n Check out Payne’s website<\/a>, and listen to his lectures both on his website and YouTube<\/a>. I love when parents write comments (on Amazon reviews<\/a>, for instance). Some have experienced his prescriptions as heavy and guilting, creating their own form of chaos. The major take-away of all parenting advice must be what speaks to you and your child’s situation.<\/strong> The rest is its own clutter.<\/p>\n YouTube Video – LoveParenting: Simplicity Parenting – Which Toys to Get Rid Of (Minimalistic Approach to Play)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n YouTube Video – LoveParenting: Minimalism – the only 10 TOYS you “need”<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n According to Harvard Psychologists – Parents Who Raise “Good” Kids Do These Five Things<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n The Silent Tragedy Affecting Today’s Children<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n YouTube Video – Raising Children<\/em> – Jeff Foxworthy<\/a><\/p>\n 4) Egyptian Food <\/strong>– I’ve spent the last several days in the home of a very good Egyptian friend. She is an incredible cook. Egyptians are known for their hospitality and it was lavished on me in that visit. We had many of my favorite Egyptian foods, and my friend is an outstanding cook. In celebration of that, I wanted to extend to you the recipes of three of those dishes: Macarona Bechamel, Koshari (or Kushary), and Basboosa.<\/p>\n Macarona Bechamel<\/a> Koshari<\/a> Basbousa (Coconut Yogurt Semolina Cake) 5) Pressing On<\/strong> – A friend of ours, Marlo Salamy<\/a>, writes a blog about life, God, and her family following the death of their youngest, Anna, to cancer in 2007. I’m always touched by the honesty and faith reflected in her writing. In this week’s blog<\/a>, What Matters<\/em><\/strong>, she writes about how we might act in the potential lost moments of our lives. Her illustration is from the tornado that blasted through Joplin, Missouri, when over 100 people lost their lives on May 22, 2011. The video<\/a> posted in the blog makes you think. Wow!<\/p>\n YouTube Video – Aftermath of First Person Joplin Tornado<\/em> (shown above in Marlo Salamy’s blog) – https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=W-P4P68YyNM<\/p>\n Bonus: Spotlight Syria<\/strong><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=W_6aXNB77us <\/a>or https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ajplusenglish\/videos\/966031366871704\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Welcome to Friday, Folks! It’s a breezy, warming Spring day. Almost summer. Hope you have a safe and refreshing weekend. Here are five of my favorite finds this week. Please comment below what your favorites are this week. Blessings! 1) Psychological Tricks – Whether we are aware or not, we apply mental processes to our … Continue reading 5 Friday Faves – Psychological Tricks, Leadership Hacks, Parenting, Egyptian Food, and Pressing On<\/span> ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-psychological-tricks-The-Power-of-Ideas-Ideapod.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo Credit: The Power of Ideas, Ideapod<\/a><\/p>\n\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-Strong-Leaders-Flickr.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo Credit: Flickr<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-Simplicity-Parenting-Sleep.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo Credit: Simplicity Parenting<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-Macarona-Bechamel-wikimedia.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-Kushari-Wikimedia.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo Credit: Wikimedia<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Blog-Egyptian-Basboosa-Flickr.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo Credit: Flickr<\/a><\/p>\n