Hearing vs. Understanding: The Art of Active Listening

One of my favorite active listening quotes comes from Stephen Covey, the author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, is: “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” The art of active listening isn’t easy, but it’s important. Last night my husband came home from work and walked through the door with that look on his face. The one that leaves no question about what kind of day he had and makes me wonder if I should even brave asking. I took a deep breath and dove in. He

4 Ways to Listen To Yourself

“Your life is always speaking to you. The fundamental question is: Will you listen?”  Oprah Last week, I declared 2018 the year of authenticity, outlining five things that need to be present for someone cultivate authenticity: listening, gratitude, acting out of joy instead of obligation, being vulnerable and avoiding comparison to others. Authentic means being real and true to your design. But how do we actually practice the things? I’m coming to believe you can’t practice any of them without first listening to yourself. And in order to listen to yourself or anyone else, you have to find quiet. The

The Essence of Authenticity

We’re talking about #authenticity here at The Point Blog. This poem captures the essence of advice for authentic living.   when it came to listening my mother taught me silence if you are drowning their voice with yours how will you hear them she asked   when it came to speaking she said do it with commitment every word you say  is your own responsibility   when it came to being she said be tender and touch at once your need to be vulnerable to live fully but rough enough to survive it all   when it came to choosing she asked me to

2017 Book of the Year

“Being original doesn’t mean being first. It just means being different and better.” Adam Grant, Originals   Most of us strive to be better.  Few of us strive to be different.  But what if being different is a requirement for being better? For being an original? Turns out that to take better beyond just ourselves, we have to be both.  We have to be non-conformists in order to move the world, according to Adam Grant, author of Originals. And because our goal at Horizon Point is to build a better workplace through innovative people practices, we’ve chosen Originals, our 2017 Book of the

Networking During the Holiday Season

For job seekers, the holidays can put a hold on the job search. So, what should you do while everyone is enjoying time off from work? Since more than 50% of jobs are filled through networking, use this down time to network, network, network! Networking can be intimidating. The best way to overcome the fear is to develop an elevator speech, practice, and network every chance you get. The University of Denver offers these guidelines for developing an elevator speech: Keep your commercial simple and brief, and always include who you are, what you want to do and why it