Make Today Matter Mini Makeover Catalog

Mini #100
Guest Mini Leader: Sara Pattow
(See Also Mini #84 Resume Writing)

Over 6,000,000 Americans have found themselves looking for work unexpectedly over the past year. Keeping motivated during times of unemployment is difficult. When we are faced with looking for a new job because of a forced separation – layoff, termination, company closing or elimination of your position, it can lead to depression, anxiety,  and a lack of self-worth or esteem. The stress of finances, security and family expectations force individuals to deal with a great deal of emotions while also trying to focus on the future and next steps.

During a job loss, we often lose a sense of self purpose during this time and it is critical to make sure that you find a new purpose to move you forward. The good news is that you have decided to take proactive steps by taking this mini. In this mini, we will explore 10 tips to jumpstart your job search and make it more effective.

Mini #94
This is an audio mini you can download onto your computer or mp3 player or listen to online.

It has been said that, “Life is what happens while you are busy making plans.” Often when we create a plan or chart a course, shortly after our first few steps “life interrupts.” Sometimes these interuptions or unexpected changes are easy to adapt to. Sometimes they are overwhelming, life-changing, and seem like an insurmountable hurdle.  Losing a job, an unexpected change in finances, the end of a relationship, the loss of a loved one, the loss of a pet, an unforseen health challenge, a legal issue, a move– there are just a few examples of big life changes that can shake our foundation. Then there are many smaller-scale challenges that happen more often: a two-week illness that leaves you tired, a disagreement, new demands on your time that interfere with your plan, something breaks that you did not budget to replace–I am sure you can add a few of your own.

The truth is these challenges are part of life. As long as we are living we will have unforseen and unwelcome changes come our way. In order to thrive and get the most out of life, we need to build our resilience and skillset for handling unexpected twists and turns.  In this audio Mini I share a handful of examples on interuptions from my own life, strategies for maintaing healthy thinking during times of change, tips for keeping events in perspective, and exercises you can use to put things back together when they seem to be falling apart.

Mini #88 - September Featured Mini
Available 9/3/09
Includes Audio
and Month of Magic Worksheets

Special online event with Brook Noel: Join Brook Noel from 7:00PM-8:30PM on September 23rd for a special chat event.

Often when we think of making change we think BIG. Sometimes SO BIG that we paralyze ourselves from taking action. This Mini is designed to show you how simple taking positive steps can be–and how a well thought-out plan can help you promote and maintain balance, contentment, joy and organization.

In this Mini you will create a special set of “10 Minute Cues” using a template that encourages you to give a little focus to several important life areas. These cues will then become a grab bag for creating a month of magic. Each day you will choose a 10-Minute Magic Prompt at random and paste to a calendar. You will be amazed at how much magic you can create in a single month with a little concerted effort!

Mini #84

** AUGUST FEATURED MINI **
Includes an online chat on August 19 (Wednesday) 8:00-9:30PM CST
Sara will also be available to answer your questions in the Mini Forums.

Each day Sara Pattow, CSR reviews resumes that candidates send in for jobs. In 30 seconds or less she can decide whether the candidate is one she will interview. Yes–30 seconds–that is why a well-written resume is essential in today’s competitive job market.

As an MTM Guest Expert, Sara is sharing a step-by-step process to help you write and refine your resume. With her guidance you will learn how to create a resume that will get you noticed and increase your chances of getting a job by over 70%!

You could spend $100, $200 or even $500 on a resume writing service. But here is the issue with doing that – it is not in your own “voice” and then what happens the next time you are looking for a job?  Do you hire a resume writer again? Or do you learn to tweak and build the skills necessary to market yourself? In this Mini you’ll learn how to hone your skills to market yourself well.

Mini Makeover #70

8 pages

I have used Mind-Maps for the past 18 years for various purposes.  Mind Maps can help us

break through creative blocks
discover solutions and new approaches to challenges
facilitate thinking outside the box
brainstorm
take notes (great for right-brained learners)
help us break down a project into manageable parts

What is a Mind-Map?
Wikipedia defines a Mind-Map as: “a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks or other items linked to and arranged around a central key word or idea.”

Mind-Maps are most often used to generate, visualize, structure and classify ideas, and as an aid in study, organization, problem solving, and decision making. Buzan, a pioneer of the Mind-Map, claimed that the mind map utilizes more of the right and left brain hemispheres. The process of using words and diagrams utilizes attributes of the brain that are often not found in standard writing. This technique has been successfully applied to note-taking for students and brainstorming for companies.

In this Mini we will work through a general mind map and then look at ways to apply the technique to the aforementioned areas.

Mini #68
6 pages
“Historically more than 80% of resolutions are abandoned by late February, Many women believe they are doomed before they begin. A resolution becomes another pressure in an already pressure-filled life.

As I waited for the clock to strike midnight this year, I was deep in thought about this challenge we face when reaching our goals. With statistics like these, it seemed creating a resolution is a way for many people to procrastinate on the very thing they resolve to do for another year.

If you have been discouraged by goals and set them half-heartedly or not at all, then the technique I present in this Mini offers a new approach for creating fun, Mini goals. You can use this technique to set goals for a week, a month, a quarter or an entire year. It is a great technique for regaining focus that flows with life.

Mini #67
13 pages
Includes positive and negative reinforcement worksheet, habit analysis, and obstacle exercise

Almost everyone has some habit in their life that robs their day-to-day life of a little (or a lot) of joy. Sometimes the habits are obvious—overeating, procrastinating, over-spending, drinking too much caffeine, smoking—other times they are less obvious like avoidance of health-enhancing behaviors (exercise), making excuses, spending too much time on a computer, blaming others, getting angry quickly, not taking care of ourselves… just to name a few.
Over time the word “habit” often becomes synonymous with “excuse.” We begin to feel that we cannot change an area because it is a “habit,” and stereotypically habits are hard to break. However, if we have the power to create a habit, then we also have the power to un-create it. How do we know if a habit needs to be broken? When it begins to negatively impact our relationships, self-esteem, finances, career, or any other area important to us, then a habit has become a hurt.
Habits are not formed overnight, but through repetition. Each time we repeat a behavior, whether positive or negative, we strengthen neuro-connectors in the brain. Fortunately, science has shown that we can “rewire” our connectors and thus rewire our habits. Breaking a habit takes focus, awareness and intention, since we need to turn off the “autopilot” we have created and make deliberate new choices.
In this Mini I’ll walk you through the science of breaking a bad habit. Of course reading the Mini is only the first step. Taking deliberate action on each step over a realistic period of time will be the key to unlock your life of negative habits.

Mini #64

Many people think “day dreaming” is a useless exercise – they may be right – but I can guarantee that visualization is not a useless exercise. Visualization is the practice of vividly and clearly envisioning something you wish to manifest in your life. The clearer this image in your mind, the more likely you are to see it in reality.

Visualization in terms of our goals is very important. We must have a crystal clear vision of how it will feel to live this goal to get us through the obstacles that will undoubtedly surface. In this Mini we work through the process of creating a Vision Statement for your goal and then illustrating your goal with a goal poster.

Mini #63

Most of us are great at setting goals; in fact, we are goal-setting experts. We have set goals a thousand times or more. What we are not so great at is reaching them. In order to help ourselves reach our goals, we need to concisely state our goal and make sure it is a  S.M.A.R.T.Goal.

This Mini takes you through the five components of creating a S.M.A.R.T. goal– Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely; and helps you create a goal that gets the year off to a smart start.

Mini #52

Study after study has shown how recordig our goals, dreams, aspirations and affirmations improves our ability to manifest our goals in our lives.  In this Mini we explore how to build a “Treasure Book” filled with pages and words that inspire and affirm our personal and professional goals.

You’ll learn book-building basics
How this technique helps you
How to use your Treasure Book to maximize life results
Complete four exercises to beginning building a book of your own

Mini #51
In the Make Today Matter Toolbox we learned about projects and tasks. Projects require multiple action steps to complete and often stretch out over a period of time or require the involvement of others. Learning how to break down a project into realistic action steps is the first key to accomplishing that project.; learning how to give your plan a “reality check” is the second key and the third key is implementation and revision.

In this Mini you will be ecnouraged to choose a project you are currently working on and then work through a series of assignments to break that project down and learn the project management tools to get it done.

This Mini is perfect for….

1. Anyone who has a lot of project management as part of their personal or professional life.
2. Anyone struggling with all the paper involved in a project
3. Anyone who finds they tend to “stall” on projects and need proven techniques to keep them moving forward

Mini Makeover #035
12 pages

Many people believe that procrastination is a result of poor planning or poor time management. Other people believe it is a lack of organizational skills. Some believe that people who procrastinate lack focus, ability or willpower. All of these beliefs are false.

Each of the above beliefs deals with the “external” – how procrastination “appears” on the surface, but none of these beliefs deal with the source or root cause of procrastination. The good news is that we are not born a procrastinator—we become one. And anything we learn, we can unlearn. Uncovering your Procrastination Personality is the first step in that process.

In this Mini Makeover you’ll complete a 50 question quiz to determine what procrastination personalities are present in your life. Then you will learn strategies to work with these personalities instead of against them and write a prescription for procrastination.

Mini Number #18
11 pages
Includes 6 activities
Includes card template for displaying final statement
Recommendations: It is recommended that you work through Mini #005- Discovering Your Core Values - before working through this Mini.

“One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree.

‘Which road do I take?’ she asked.

‘Where do you want to go?’ was his response.

‘I don’t know,’ Alice answered.

‘Then,’ said the cat, ‘it doesn’t matter.’”-Lewis Carroll

Everything worthwhile begins with a vision. Think of a vision as the “big picture” of why you make specific choices and take certain actions. A vision statement is a guiding light allowing us to live each day with purpose and clarity. A clear vision statement will help us choose goals that are right for us. There may be a million things we want to do-but only a few that we actually need to do.

A Vision Statement encompasses the values we hold dear, the overall “theme” we want to live in our life. Without a vision, you are likely to wander aimlessly because there is no uniting purpose between daily actions and a larger vision. A clear vision statement will help us choose daily actions and make decisions that are right for us. There may be a million things we want to do-but only a few that will truly create the life we desire because they align with our vision.

_______________________________________________

Mini Number: #005

Have you ever felt there must be “something more” but been unable to identify what it is? Have you ever felt your life is a series of to-dos but that you aren’t really living? These feelings are often caused by a disconnection between actions and values. This Mini-Makeover will help you rediscover your personal values–not the values others would like you to have. You’ll work through a values worksheet to deduce your core values.

These core values act as a filter. In times of indecision, we can compare options to our guiding values to make a decision. Values are the seams which shape the fabric of our lives. Without defined values, we have torn seams where the unwanted can sneak in, and our energy can sneak out. Values allow us to advance confidently in a meaningful direction. Without them we will be blown around by the emotions, people, and external events of the day. Recommended for ALL LIFE AREAS.

Related Minis: Creating Value Cards for Your Personal Power Deck #11, Creating a Personal Vision Statement #018 (It is recommend to complete this Mini before working on Mini #018.)

_______________________________________________

Mini-Number: 002
Fear is an interesting emotion. As the name implies, fear scares people. Fear causes people to get very creative in how they deal with it. Instead of confronting fear, many people come up with excuse after excuse to avoid the discomfort that fear brings. These people view fear as a negative emotion instead of a positive one. Many people make decisions in attempt to avoid fear. They don’t walk the tightrope, they don’t cross the line, they don’t take a chance, or a risk, because something scares them. Sometimes it is external. Often it is the monsters they make themselves.

_______________________________________________