General

Chief Officer Nick Ward

Chief Officer Nick Ward

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Chief Officer Nick Ward

Nick Ward is a seasoned seafarer having started his journey on the water at the tender age of 9. Having found his was into yachting at 2012, more than a decade later, he is here to share his wisdom, experiences and future goals with us.


Nick, you’ve had a long yachting career thus far, could you tell us what enticed you into a life at sea?

At age 9, I joined a local sailing club and learned to sail on Friday nights and Saturday mornings. I was completely hooked at the first lesson. I remember not being able to sleep through excitement for the following day and being amazed at the concept of how boats float and how the wind and sails work in unison. I admired the sailing instructors immensely and after 3 years I became a sailing instructor myself. I taught kids on Friday nights and Saturday mornings as well as adults on Saturday afternoons.
At primary school, I recall going onto the Sunseeker website and requesting a brochure. I spent days and days looking through the pages with my friend in absolute awe – ‘one day’.
I was headhunted at age 12 to start racing dinghies. I raced Mirrors and represented Team GBR around Europe. I was paired with my sailing partner, Tom, and we had a very successful racing career. Eventually, outgrowing Mirrors and moved to 405’s and 29ers.
Tom and I were European Champions in the 405 class and trained with the current 49er Olympic gold medallists. Racing began to absorb my life and I was lucky enough to be at a college where they supported me through this time, leaving school early on a Friday to get to Weymouth Sailing Academy and coming in on a Monday absolutely exhausted.


How early in your career did you start planning to climb the ranks?

I climbed the ranks quite quickly – I progressed from Relief Bosun on an 89m to Second Officer on a 76m. I created a ‘3-year plan’ in my iPhone notes of the courses I wanted to complete in years 1,2,3 including my OOW exam and I stuck to them – it is such a great feeling to be able to tick them off one by one. I am lucky to have worked with incredible Captains and Officers during my time as Deckhand. They supported me through all of my courses and I was able to take this time off to complete them.

Can you remember your very first year in Leadership? And from that time, how do you feel your Leadership skills have changed?

When I had my first Officers job I was 25 and on a 75m private yacht – it was quite overwhelming. The HELM course helped me a lot – it is an incredibly important course and a favourite to date. It is crucial to be approachable and listen to your team. I very much stick with the ethos of firm but fair. I support and respect all of my team through their learning and progression.

My leadership skills haven’t changed a lot over the years. Through working as Second Officer on a 75m I am now Chief Officer on a 92m so the main difference is an increase of crew.

What’s been the most rewarding part of yachting for you?

The most rewarding part of my job is to stand back and watch the deck team work their magic boss on. I work very hard with the current Second Officers on training the team to work efficiently and effectively – through launching tenders, driving tenders, anchoring and general seamanship.

Have you noticed any significant changes in the yachting industry over the years?

I have. It is very apparent that rotation is a new thing for Junior crew which I completely agree with. It is important to have a work/life balance. Yes, initially it is more expensive for the Owner to agree to this, however, you will keep crew longer, reducing recruitment fees and they will be much happier and work harder – the Owner and guests see everything, be attitude or general vibe. In the long run, it is cheaper for the Owner and they will have a better experience on board.

What’s important to you when it comes to working in a yachting environment?

Arguably, the hardest part of working on yachts is to work and live with your colleagues. It is very important to respect fellow colleagues’ space and don’t forget to be patient outside of work.

What advice would you give a green Deckie who’s looking to follow in your footsteps?

Work hard, always be 10 minutes early and look presentable – everything is noticed. Ask questions if you are not sure. Do not forget those skills that will help you. I look for a crew who has those extra skills – drone flying, video editing, PT, medical, and tender driving. Unfortunately, ‘just having the qualifications’ isn’t enough.

And finally, what’s on the horizon for you?

My goal is to be a fleet captain working closely with the owner and management company. My priority is to manage the owners’ expectations whilst delivering unmatchable service.

 

Chief Officer Nick Ward
Disorganisation

Disorganisation and It’s Effects

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Disorganisation & It's Effects

In this article, we will discuss the effects of disorganization on our mental health and work capabilities, and what we can do to combat these negative effects. Organizing our workspace and work processes can have a significant impact on our mental health and work capabilities. This will lead to increased productivity, decreased stress, and increased motivation.

Increased Stress

The first and most obvious effect of disorganization is increased stress. When we are disorganized, it can be difficult to find the things we need, and we often feel overwhelmed by the amount of work that needs to be done. This leads to increased levels of stress, which can negatively impact our mental health. It can cause feelings of anxiety and depression, and making it difficult to focus and be productive. Additionally, disorganization can cause us to feel overwhelmed and powerless, leading to decreased motivation and a lack of energy.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that stress is a leading cause of workplace accidents. This can lead to decreased mental and physical health, decreased job satisfaction, and increased risk of burnout.

Decrease productivity

Another significant effect of disorganization is decreased productivity. When we are disorganized, it is difficult to find the information we need, leading to wasted time and decreased efficiency. This can make it difficult to meet deadlines, prioritize tasks, leading to a lack of focus and decreased motivation.

When we are disorganized, it can be difficult to find the things we need, leading to a feeling of disempowerment and a lack of control. Additionally, disorganization can lead to feelings of guilt and shame, making it difficult to feel good about our work and our abilities, negatively affecting our mental health.

Sleep Deprivation

Disorganization can also lead to sleep deprivation and stress-related accidents in the workplace, which, according to the National Sleep Foundation, can lead to decreased alertness and increased fatigue, leading to decreased productivity and increased risk of accidents and errors in the workplace.

Studies have shown that sleep-deprived individuals are twice as likely to be involved in workplace accidents and that sleep deprivation can lead to decreased productivity, decreased job satisfaction, and increased absenteeism. Additionally, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that workers who get fewer than seven hours of sleep per night are more likely to be involved in occupational injuries.

How To Combat It

So, what can we do to combat the negative effects of disorganization on our mental health and work capabilities? The first step is to take an honest look at our work environment and determine what is causing the disorganization. This may involve decluttering our workspace, creating a system for organizing our work materials, or streamlining our work processes.

Once we have identified the source of the disorganization, we can start to make changes. This may involve implementing a new system for organizing our work materials or setting up a schedule for decluttering and organizing our workspace. Additionally, it may be helpful to seek the assistance of a professional organizer, who can help us to create a system that works best for our unique needs and challenges.

Another key step in combating the negative effects of disorganization is to focus on self-care. This includes taking breaks throughout the day, practising mindfulness and meditation, and engaging in physical activity. Additionally, it is important to make time for the things we enjoy, such as hobbies, social activities, and time with loved ones.

We make it our priority to be as organised as possible to ensure maximum output and effectiveness while still maintaining boundaries and self-care. We make it our business to stay up to date with the latest efficiency tools and systems to keep the work flowing as smoothly as possible because well as we saw above, we simply cant afford not to! Can you?

Disorganised

Check out our other article on Mental Fitness here!

A Different Type Of Fitness – Mental Fitness

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A Different Kind Of Fitness

We are all bombarded by influencers, personal trainers and gyms for ways to keep ourselves physically fit, but what about mental fitness? Just like the body needs exercise, so does your mind to keep in tip-top shape. Forbes defines it as “Your measurable ability to engage constructively in life and work every day, no matter what stressors you encounter. You can consistently respond to challenges with optimal performance at the moment and minimal recovery time afterwards.”

There are many benefits of keeping mentally fit. The obvious one is greater focus, improved memory and concentration and better communication. It also leads to increased mindfulness and the ability to be present which leads to developing deeper and more meaningful relationships.

Your positive emotions also increase, which allows you to be more compassionate, and reframe thoughts and it improves your general outlook and attitude to any adversity you face. Your self-esteem and efficacy (confidence) also escalate. There are also physical effects such as improved quality of sleep.

There are a few ways to increase your mental fitness but the ultimate exercise is meditation. Meditation is essentially the ability to observe and detach from your thoughts. Even ten or fifteen minutes a day can make a significant difference. Just a reminder that meditation doesn’t mean you need to blank out all thoughts completely but rather to observe and dismiss them as they pop up – it can be daunting but start slow and short and build from there. Let go of your expectations and run with the experience.

You can also try these five things to make a difference:

  1. Get physical – the mind & body are interlinked and physical exercise can relieve stress and tension. This doesn’t mean you need to run 10 kilometres every day but instead move your body in a way that feels good to you. Find something you enjoy doing and stick with that!
  2. Eat and drink to support your gut health – your brain needs water to stay hydrated and function properly and your gut plays a huge role in your mental health. The bacteria in your gut communicate with other systems in your body, notably the nervous system. Hence when you’re nervous you may feel nauseous or have butterflies in your tummy!
  3. Continue to be grateful – keeping a gratitude diary helps shift your consciousness into a more positive space which correlates to a healthier and more optimistic way of living. Writing down what you are grateful for comes from a place of abundance. If you’re focusing on the negative constantly, you will be coming from a place of lack which will automatically set you in a defeatist and pessimistic mindset, holding you back from any improvements and motivation.
  4. Be in a growth mindset – keep a growth mindset and step out of your comfort zone constantly. Think about when children start learning to walk. They have to try and try again as they get used to the sensation and practise the movements over and over. Failure teaches you resilience as you as in a state of learning, stretching and growing yourself to become stronger
    and more capable.
  5. Do your inner work – just as you would do physical exercise, do mental exercise by checking in with your emotions, goals and values. Take stock and make improvements in the way you interact with others.

You may wonder why you would put so much effort into your mental fitness, there are many results that enable you to live a happier more joyful life. Imagine feeling like you’re gliding through your day instead of struggling through it. Increase your mental fitness and you will be more mindful and present in your interactions with others, enhancing your personal relationships.

You will have more control over your automatic reactions – you behave more rationally and less emotionally in most situations. Your focus, processing, memory, time management and a number of other mental functions improve with mental clarity as a result of increased mental fitness. Build yourself a mental fitness program so that you can maintain consistency and practise throughout your week, month, and year and eventually it becomes a habit that you can maintain for the rest of your life.

Be in a learning mindset, it keeps you young!

Excellence

Excellence Over Perfection

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Excellence Over Perfection

If you’re a perfectionist like me, you will know how exhausting it can be, not to mention time-consuming and sometimes just a complete hindrance! In an industry that demands perfection over all else, I’m sure you can relate. However, perfection is often unattainable so you end up losing yourself and becoming a slave to the image society expects while feeling like a failure and not even taking into account all of your achievements. Strive for perfection no more and welcome (drum roll please)…..EXCELLENCE! Your new best friend. Excellence gives you back control of your universe, grounding you and highlighting your uniqueness while getting validation for your efforts.

As with any change, it requires some effort at the beginning that will pay off ten-fold in the long term.

Cement your values

Our values often dictate our behaviour so it’s important to truly identify what is important to you. Once you have done this, make sure you keep them easily accessible so that you can revisit them often and keep them at the forefront of your mind. This will enable you to focus on what is truly important to you and where to put your energy.

Don’t be a rebel without a cause

We are all passionate about something whether it’s protecting children’s rights or improving equality in your industry, choose something to weigh in on and fight for. Chances are, you will make a difference no matter how small and your own excellence rating will skyrocket.

Listen to learn and understand

We often listen to respond, not to actually truly hear what someone is saying. Ask questions, gain insight, and be interested not interesting, people often feel a lot more validated if you take an interest in them, rather than talking about yourself or putting your two cents in. Are they telling you something because they want advice, or do they simply want to be heard?  Become a better listener and watch all of your relationships improve.

Follow the cycle

Just as nature has seasons, so do we. Continually striving to reach for the sun and you will get burned. Follow your highly energetic self and observe your slower-moving self. Just as the moon waxes and wanes and the seasons change, embrace these energies within yourself.

Write it down, feel it, meditate

Journaling and mediation are notorious for your well-being, Do them as often as you can. Also, give yourself permission to feel, whether it is a positive or negative emotion, make room for both and don’t shove anything away.

Focus on being, not having.

In our modern world, we have been taught to define ourselves by what we have and not who we are. By focusing less on consumerism and more on our inherent person we start finding validation from ourselves, thereby increasing our own self-value and excellence!

Reflect

Ask yourself, “Did I give the world my best today?”. If the answer is yes, dig deep and see what motivated you to give your all. If the answer is no, don’t be hard on yourself, try and figure out what set you off balance and how you can find it again tomorrow.

Excellence

Perfectionists have a tendency to always look forward & be extremely hard on themselves and others and generally end up being dissatisfied with a lot of aspects of their life. It’s important to strive to do the best that you can at that specific moment in time with what you have. Excellence is attainable, aim for excellence.

The Flag State

The Flag State and the Seafarer

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The Flag State and the Seafarer

For those of you that have been in yachting for a while, you’ll know all about the flag states. But for those that need an introduction, this is essentially the ‘nationality’ of the yacht. For example, if it is registered in the Isle of Man, the yacht will be governed by the laws of the Isle of Man, so as you can imagine, it’s a relatively important decision for the owner to make, not to mention the fiscal implications of the country that they choose.

The flag state holds a lot of power because it can govern the legislature and regulations that are likely to influence the yacht and international maritime issues. As early as the Roman Greek empire, flag states have played a role, often being selected for protection and benefits for that specific port when it came to trading. Obviously, these days, the more important issues such as regulations, tax and general standards dictate how flag states are chosen.

What was once known as “open registers”, which back in the day were chosen for their trading advantages, are now known as “flags of convenience” which are generally laxer with their regulations, standards, and often have sanctions to trade in contrabands and dangerous goods. Additional points that attract ship owners to these registries are the ability to hire crew of any nationality, freedom from tax & fiscal control and the mere simplicity of the registration procedure.

However, what’s in the interest of the owner, is not necessarily in the interest of the seafarer. Fortunately, the majority of yachts tend to register with the red ensign group, which is a group of British Shipping Registries which are well known for their high standards and strict adherence to rules and regulations that provide safe work environments for seafarers as well as the protection of the marine environment. SOLAS, the IMO, MARPOL, the STCW and other conventions also contribute to these objectives. The red ensign group, along with any registries of the Paris White List, are registries under which you would be wanting to work. The Paris MoU Annual Report gives an extensive list of registries ranked in order from quality to poor performance flags.

With your HOD, Captain and DPA all being points of contact for any contentious issues onboard, the flag state is also responsible for seafarers that are working under its jurisdiction and are not to be ruled out when issues onboard arise. As with their responsibility to protect seafarers, it is then the responsibility of the seafarer to report any incidents to the flag state. Failing to do so not only skews any reporting but also has a knock-on effect on potential flaws in the registration and protection of seafarers in the long term, so it is important to take this responsibility seriously.

Flag states are considered to be somewhat of a weak point when it comes to the protection of seafarers. As they are one of the highest authority figures to go to, there is work being conducted to illuminate ways for improvement, however, there is very little action that can be taken to ensure flag states are taking every measure possible to oversee the good of the maritime industry. They like to remain diplomatic with other flag states, and IMO sanctions have many legal and fiscal effects that make them an unattractive solution. Not to mention the numerous different regulations within the commercial sector that they need to oversee which is time-consuming and requires specific expertise, which can be a strain on resources. This brings us back to the point of taking every action as a maritime professional to work together with the authorities towards creating improvements, which includes the reporting of incidents.

The Flag State

There are many organisations that can also assist seafarers in need and can facilitate communication in difficult circumstances, namely Nautilus International, the PYA, The Seafarers Rights International (SRI) and it’s important to make use of these organisations and the flag states to strive for better conditions in the maritime industry throughout.

Resources:

International Maritime Organization

Paris MOU

Oceanskies

Scholarly Commons

Brainstorming

The Power of Brainstorming

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The Power of Brainstorming

What exactly is brainstorming?

Brainstorming is a technique that groups use to find solutions for specific problems. The process begins by gathering new ideas from team members in an open-ended manner; this allows everyone on the table to contribute without fear of whether their idea will be rejected before it’s heard properly. Brainstorming usually includes some core members who take part as leaders, while others may serve more functions like consultants or listeners – but they all work together towards achieving success! They usually only include five core participants at most – just enough so each person doesn’t feel too alone during their time collaborating with others.

Brainstorming was first invented by an advertising executive, Alex F. Osborne coined the term. He wanted to solve his employees’ inability to generate new ideas. He developed team-based methods for problem-solving focused on brainstormers, which led him into hosting these types of sessions where he found out that this approach led to significantly greater quality results than others before it.

Brainstorming tools have become more popular in recent years as businesses seek ways to streamline their processes. Digital platforms allow for rapid note-taking and sharing, which speeds up review sessions tremendously while also reducing errors caused by inaccurate memory recall or lack thereof when it comes down to just one person’s idea at a time before us. A quick search online will show you that there are plenty out on offer today – some even provide templates so all you have left to do is copy-paste.

The idea is to generate as many new suggestions as possible. Once all of these ideas have been collected, a team evaluates them and focuses on the ones that are most likely going to solve your problem for you – this process usually entails some form of critical thinking where each option’s strengths/weaknesses come into play before deciding which one will best suit what needs there.

The Four Principles of Brainstorming

Osborne’s guidelines for running your own sessions can help you produce better ideas and make the most out of every minute:

1. Quantity over Quality

The idea is that, over time and with enough ideas collected in the first stage (collection), quality will eventually result from them being refined together.

2. Withhold Criticism 

Team members should feel comfortable and encouraged in bringing any crazy notion they might’ve had up at work without fear of being blocked by others or feeling like their suggestions won’t make it past the confirmation stage because there’s no judgment on post-collection feedback – everyone has something unique going inside them!

3. Welcome the Crazy Idea

To encourage your team members, you need to open their minds and think outside of the box. Introduce “pie in the sky” ideas that help them see new techniques as well-could be a ticket for success!

4. Combine, Refine, and Improve Ideas 

The final principle asks you to build on ideas, and draw connections between different suggestions to improve and further the problem-solving process.

These brainstorming techniques and processes all aim in helping your team come up with innovative ideas. However, there’s no single way to hold a successful session

The key is finding what works for you. Reverse brainstorming sessions are a great way to generate new ideas and can be helpful, but you must find what works best for your team.

Why is Brainstorming Important?

Brainstorming sessions are a great way for your team to come up with new ideas and find solutions. This is because they allow people from different areas of expertise, as well as those who may not normally work together on projects or tasks before this one – such as customer service representatives helping out produce managers during emergencies – to effectively collaborate towards the same goal: helping you solve whatever problem(s) arises.

Some advantages that come from brainstorming sessions for businesses and individual productivity include:

  • It allows people to think more freely, without fear of judgment.
  • These brainstorming sessions encourage open and ongoing dialogue and collaboration to answer problems and bring about new methods and ideas.
  • Brainstorming helps promote a large number of ideas quickly, which can be refined and merged to create the ideal solution.
  • Brainstorming allows teams to reach conclusions by consensus, leading to a more well-rounded and better-connected path forward.
  • Brainstorming assists team members to feel comfortable bouncing ideas off one another, even outside of a structured session.
  • Brainstorming introduces different perspectives and opens the door to out-of-the-box innovations.
  • Brainstorming helps team members get ideas out of their heads and into the world, where they can be expanded upon, refined, and put into action.
  • Brainstorming is great for team building. No one person has ownership over the results, enabling an absolute team effort.

Brainstorming

Now that we’ve established what brainstorming is and why it’s important, let’s take a look at some examples of scenarios where it would be useful.

The brainstorming technique is a great way for you to generate new ideas when working on your personal or professional life. It can be used in both aspects of our lives, especially if we are trying to solve problems with the help of this method alone! The versatility has made it one popular approach among companies who need more than just their team members’ input – they also take into account other factors such as culture change at the workplace, etc. We hope your next brainstorming session leads to great things!

 

Fear of Success

Fear of Success – Is it holding you back?

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Fear of Success – Is it holding you back?

Fear exists to protect ourselves from threats we face, on a spectrum from mild to life-changing. If we didn’t feel this emotion, it could lead to fatal consequences. Fear is a response to physical and emotional danger stemming from millennia ago. It has played a vital role in driving evolution, allowing the human species to survive. Fear of success is another story.

Fear is a natural and universal human emotion. Some people fear spiders, some people fear heights; but we all know what it feels like to be afraid of success. With the rise in entrepreneurship, the opportunities for success are greater than ever before–but so is the potential for failure. This article explores why we all have these feelings when it comes to our own achievements, and how you can use them as motivation to succeed!

We no longer face threats such as fighting off animals or battling the elements, which were immediate and dire consequences for early mankind. We now face lower risk stresses such as elevators (claustrophobia and heights), public speaking etc. but some individuals still develop extreme flight-or-fight responses when presented with these situations.

Fear doesn’t just come from negative stresses but also positive ones. As humans, a lot of us are more afraid of success than we are of failure. Although success is viewed as a very desirable outcome, often we will self-sabotage to avoid achievement. This sounds counter-intuitive but imposter syndrome or perceived fraudulence is a well-known experience and involves feelings of self-doubt and personal incompetence that persist despite your education, experience, and accomplishments.

Although success is viewed as a positive outcome, there are a few reasons that people fear doing well. A key point to note is that people fear the consequences of success, not success itself. With achievement comes expectations and these can be intimidating for the majority. The path to success is generally paved with making sacrifices, persisting through difficulty and recovering from failures. As humans, we constantly aim for a state of comfort or homeostasis so it’s no wonder that many choose to avoid these risks.

We already briefly discussed imposter syndrome and this is just one of the ways fear may be holding you back from conquering the game of life.

  • Feeling misinterpretation: Excitement and anxiety manifest themselves the same way in the physical body. This can be misinterpreted and cause people to avoid situations that could possibly trigger these emotions.
  • Backlash avoidance: We live in a society that is still governed by social norms and a fear of success sometimes means challenging these norms. For example, although there change afoot, research shows that women generally tend to avoid self-promotion because it still challenges traditional gender roles. They tend to associate negative consequences with success, fearing the economic or social backlash.
  • Negative experiences: Success often breeds jealousy and can invoke negative reactions from others such as being called a “show-off”, lucky or potentially others wanting to free-load. This is considered a form of hardship and may lead to avoidance in the future.
  • Poor self-efficacy: This refers to an individual’s beliefs in their ability to be able to achieve their goals. Research shows that people who fear success lack self-efficacy.
  • Social anxiety: Success will undoubtedly put one in the limelight and if you are shy and socially anxious, this is a nightmare scenario.

It’s important to find the courage to face your fears, especially if you want to obtain success and live the life you deserve. The things we don’t want to do, are theoretically the things we do want to and need to do in order to achieve our ideal outcomes. We have some tips on how to find courage:

  • Identify and label your fear: If you are able to label your fearful thought as just that, a fearful thought, it allows you to distance yourself and gain a healthy perspective. Changing your “fear” to a mere thought rather than reality releases you from its power.
  • Analyse the fear: We can only change things that are within our control. Are you able to avoid a specific outcome, or perhaps better prepare for it? Are there elements that are outside your control and are no good worrying about? Make a list and gain clarity to enable you to face your fear.
  • Keep your eye on the prize: If you are thinking about facing a fear and preparing a plan of action for it, there must be a potentially good outcome. What could you gain? Look ahead to the positives and maintain focus on your goals.
  • Strategize: Taking your time, formulating a plan about how to tackle your fear is perfectly acceptable.

The classic saying “Failing to plan is planning to fail” still rings true. Barging head first to conquer a fear may suit you but if you need time and to form a plan on exactly how you are going to do so is also just fine. People who have different plans on how they are going to react to different scenarios tend to meet their goals more successfully.

Fear of Success

Fear of success can be obvious or it can lie beneath the surface, and you may not even be aware it’s there! It’s a genuine fear that can cost one greatly in a personal capacity. Hopefully, we’ve been able to help you identify it and given you some tools to be able to conquer it!

Limiting beliefs

Limiting Beliefs and How They’re Holding You Back

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Limiting Beliefs and How They’re Holding You Back

Why is it that some people are so successful and others are not? Sure there are sometimes extenuating circumstances that put others ahead but there are also those who seem to beat the odds. The majority of the time, it comes down to mindset. We can only achieve what we believe. Limiting beliefs are thoughts, opinions that one believes to be the absolute truth. They tend to have a negative impact on one’s life by stopping them from moving forward and growing on a personal and professional level.

Examples are: “I’m bad with money”, “Every time I try and change, I fail”, “Work isn’t meant to be a joy”. These are just thoughts, and through continued affirmations they became beliefs. Our tendency to interpret new information as confirmation of our pre-existing beliefs is called confirmation bias, which means that we often believe what we want to believe.

Everyone has the potential to achieve great things, no matter their circumstances. But fear often holds up back, we tell ourselves stories, play it safe and only end up living half a life. We create stress and internal conflict by holding ourselves back from our true calling. When we change our stories to create a new truth about who we really are, then we start to feel happy and fulfilled. But why and how does this occur?

How Self-belief originates

Up until the age of seven, we operate in brain wavelengths that closely resemble a hypnotic state, according to Dr Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief. This is where most of our limiting beliefs are formed. I’m sure you’ve heard of the saying kids are like sponges? They soak up and record everything around them including “bad” and “good” behaviours and emotions.

When a child is treated with love and made to feel wanted, this turns into the belief that they are valued. Contrary to that, if a child is neglected or abused they will grow up with the belief that they are unwanted and undeserving. These will become their limiting beliefs. If you’ve ever heard that little voice in your head telling you can’t be or do something, that’s a limiting belief. Those thoughts are exactly that, just thoughts. They are not realities.

As humans, we are constantly aiming to make ourselves as comfortable as possible. This includes avoiding negative emotions like frustration, anxiety, anger etc. Limiting beliefs act as a defence mechanism to avoid these emotions. Often they are triggered by situations where you have experienced suffering in the past. You change your behaviour because your subconscious is trying to prevent this. It often ends, ironically in other negative outcomes such as procrastination, imposter syndrome, overthinking etc.

How to Take Back Control of Your Limiting Beliefs
  1. If you find yourself feeling fearful or resisting an activity, stop and be aware. You’re currently in a state of ‘low mood’ thinking.
  2. Write it down! What is it that you think you cannot do? Try and identify exactly why you are feeling that way. Understand that what you are thinking is not necessarily true.
  3. Look for evidence. Why aren’t you able to achieve XYZ? Are these legitimate reasons or just excuses? Are you able to overcome these? Is it just difficult and you are not willing to? That is also ok but it doesn’t mean you can’t.
  4. Be accountable. Thoughts and feelings come and go, they are not that truth about who you are. There are plenty of tools to help you combat negative emotions like stress and anxiety, use them! A brain is a powerful tool, you are in control of a lot more than you think (limiting belief). Breathe and recentre.
  5. Talk it out! As the saying goes, friends are better than therapy. If you find yourself having limiting beliefs, I’m sure your friends or family would be shocked to hear what you think about yourself. Find someone you trust to share your thoughts.

Of course, changing a belief doesn’t automatically result in changed behaviour, you still have to do the work. For example, change “I’m not good with money.” to “In the past, I haven’t been good with money but I am working towards changing my spending habits.” or “I am learning how to be financially responsible.” Take one step at a time.

“The quality of your thoughts creates the quality of your life.”

If you want to change your life, something needs to change! Create new empowering beliefs to enable you to achieve much more than you originally thought possible. If you tell yourself “I can’t” or “that’s not possible”, ask yourself WHY 5 times to get to the route of that belief. It may not be possible to the extent or exactly how you picture it but I assure you, nothing is impossible.

Create a new mindset and a new narrative, become confident and courageous, what have you got to lose?

Limiting beliefs

Outsourcing

The In’s and Out’s of Outsourcing

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The Ins and Outs of Outsourcing

Outsourcing essentially refers to the function of getting tasks or jobs completed outside of your organisation. It has been seeing an upward growth trend since 2014 with the market size for global outsourcing reached $92.5 billion before the pandemic. There are many different types of outsourcing and a great deal more benefits.

More than 93% of organisations are considering or have already adopted cloud services to improve outsourcing. Cloud technology allows companies to become more flexible and responsive to their markets, enabling faster global communication and growth. Contrary to popular belief, the main motivation for businesses making this move is not to lower costs by cutting jobs but to be more competitive and increase innovation.

There are many different types of outsourcing including multi-sourcing, knowledge process outsourcing, IT Outsourcing, but one of the most common being Business Process Outsourcing (BPO). This refers to outsourcing the more mundane business activities such as administration, correspondence, scheduling etc. Customer service and lead generation are also useful tasks included in BPO.

There are so many great things about outsourcing for both companies and contractors alike. It offers flexibility in terms of services provided, they can be tailored to exactly what the company requires and they are paying for those exact requirements. Flexibility is also great for contractors because although they are working within deadlines, they are often able to create their own working hours.

It is also easier to access expertise through an outsourcing company as they have vetted and screened all their employees already to ensure that they possess the correct qualifications, skills and competency to match the clients’ requirements. Although generally cheaper, this has nothing to do with the quality produced. Reduction in cost related to full-time employee expenses such as benefits. Outsourcing companies rely on their reputation and positive client reviews to remain successful in attracting future clientele so they are fully invested in creating top-quality output.

It is believed that outsourcing is only an option for large corporations, when in fact, the opposite is actually true. Outsourcing allows employees to focus on their core business operations while contractors take care of area’s they may not be experts in. Sites like Fiverr have allowed small business owners to access expertise at a fraction of the cost. With the focus being directed at core functions, there is an increase in productivity and an opportunity for company growth.

Another misconception is that businesses are more prone to data breaches if they outsource. The truth is that every major corporation is at risk. Outsourcing partners take extreme care to protect their clients’ information, often adding layers of security and constantly updating their protocol. With NDA’s, anti-virus software, cloud storage and modern tools such as YubiKeys, small outsourcing businesses as just as secure when handling sensitive information.

Outsourcing

Outsourcing is not only economical and adaptable, but additionally, it promotes the opportunity for rapid growth. With cloud-based technology, it is more accessible, affordable and safer than ever. It really is a no-brainer solution for small and large companies alike.

Time Wasters

Time Wasters And How To Avoid Them

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Time Wasters and How To Avoid Them

We are all about organisation! In order to get organised, you have to know where to start. There are endless tasks we have to accomplish during the day and knowing what to prioritise when can overload our decision-making thought process. Not to mention all of the distractions we experience throughout the day that derail our perfect plans. We’ve put together some time wasters and how to get around them for a more efficient and effective day.

Time waster no.1 – No time boundaries

Parkinson’s Law states that “work expands so as to fill the time allotted for its completion.”

Remember when you had a deadline to meet and you put it off constantly. “I’ll do it tomorrow”, and tomorrow comes but you’ve got another week, right? So you leave it for another day and suddenly it’s due the day before next. You’re in a panic but you work hard and somehow manage to finish on time (and nail it!). This is because we usually don’t give ourselves enough credit and can often complete tasks faster than the time you allocated for it.

There’s a handy technique called the Pomodoro technique wherein you break up your tasks into 25-minute blocks and take 5 minutes of rest after. If your task ends up taking more than 25 minutes, evaluate your process and start again, adjusting for the next 25 minutes. You can also always set your time and challenge yourself, it makes the work exciting!

Time waster no.2 – Touching things twice

Ever heard of something called a holding pattern? You have now, and let me tell you, it’s a waste of time. Have you read a text and not replied? Opened an email or an invitation and left it for later? The time it takes to close your “task loop” is the holding pattern, and here’s what you can do about it:

Apply the 2-minute rule. If it’s going to take you 2 minutes or less, get it done there and then instead of putting it off until later. Otherwise, automate, eliminate, delegate and carry on going!

Time waster no.3 – Holding on to the past

We’ve all had that thought, “Uggg I should have done it yesterday!” or if only I had done that a week ago. It goes without saying, living in the past or the future, means you’re not here for the present.

This one goes without saying: being stuck in the past prevents you from living in the present. Immersing yourself in unnecessary drama and complaining too much won’t get you where you want to go. Dwelling on the past is literally wasting time so as much as possible, acknowledge it, learn from it, and move on.

Time waster no.4 – Indecisiveness

Taking the time to make decisions is a grey area and of course, it really depends on what kind of decision you are making! However, have you ever been out with a friend to a restaurant, you are starving and they are taking forever to decide? The longer they take, the later your meal will arrive! Same concept when making decisions in life. The more time you take to decide, the longer it will take to see results!

Sometimes it’s even better to deal with fixing a decision that was the wrong one, than never making a decision at all. What you can do is take all the important information you have RIGHT NOW and make a decision that way.

Time waster no.5 – Multi-tasking

Multi-tasking was once thought of as a skill to be revered, it was the ultimate way to get things done. Recent studies show that this isn’t the case. Switching from one high-level task to another takes your brain up to 20 minutes to refocus and identify thought processes necessary for the new task. It is both an inefficient, ineffective way to get things done.

A better method for handling your tasks is called batching or scheduling. This is when similar tasks are grouped together that can be done in sequence or at the same time when possible.

Now that you’re more aware of what can actually waste your time, you can implement these tips to help you and you’ll become an organised ninja in no time! Remember, time is the one commodity you can’t get more of in life so use it wisely!