Have a Positive Mindset

It’s important to first consider where you are trying to make a good impression—whether it’s a formal job interview or a dinner date. 

Context matters. It gives you cues as to how you should dress, speak, look and behave, in a way that matches the setting you are entering to. That is a key aspects of making a good impression. 

Try not to look bored, rude or hostile.

A useful attitude is welcoming, curious and enthusiastic: smile, make eye contact long enough to notice the color of that person’s eyes, sit without crossing your arms or legs. This project a positive, open warm impression.

The emotionally intelligent person knows how to stay calm during stressful situations. 

They don't make impulsive decisions and understand that in times of conflict the goal is a resolution.

Emotionally intelligent people make sure they understand what is being said before responding. 

They also pay attention to the nonverbal details of a conversation. This prevents misunderstandings, allows the listener to respond properly and shows respect for the person they are speaking to.

In a fundamental sense, workplace happiness comes when:

• We enjoy doing the tasks assigned to us
• We feel right about the people we are working with
• We are happy with the financial benefits we get from the job
• We have the scope of improving our existing skills
• We feel respected and acknowledged at work

Happy employees are compulsory for a growing business.

A study on organizational success revealed that employees who feel happy in the workplace are 65% more energetic than employees who don’t. They are two times more productive and are more likely to sustain their jobs over a long period of time.

Consider whether your feelings have more to do with how you perceive yourself than how others perceive you. 

Ask yourself if you need to adjust your own self-esteem, or if you are truly experiencing a problem of not being the right fit for the team.

Find a coworker that you have some common ground or shared interests with. It could even be a work-related interest.

Fitting in at the workplace is about your ability to build strong, meaningful relationships. And this could be hard to achieve in a large group.

Mentally tough people truly believe they can succeed. That extends to encompass even mundane things in their life.

Whatever you challenge yourself with, believing in yourself is essential. Avoid negative self-talk and instead focus your energy on staying positive and self-encouraging.

Intrinsic motivations are those that come from within an individual and involve doing things for their own sake. They drive them to do better, push harder, be stronger, and persevere.

Mentally tough people don't focus on the possible rewards that may await them at the end of a challenge. Instead, they see participating and overcoming challenges as rewarding in and of themselves.

If the people you know had to describe you and your deal, what would they say? What do you want them to say?

Clarifying people’s impressions of you doesn’t mean being fake, it actually means being yourself —being the person you want to think of yourself as. 

Think about the best definition of your work, your status, and your goals. Practice it a bit, to have something to say when people ask you what you’re up to. Everyone would prefer hearing a little bit of a pitch than hearing “eh, kind of nothing, except a little of this, but it’s not important, and I don’t really know...” Give them something to hook onto, to remember, and when they next hear about a relevant idea or opportunity, to “think of you.”

If you are planning your first date with somebody, make sure to pay a special attention to the topics you want to engage in throughout the date. Keep the conversation smart and the exchange of experiences alive.

When going on a first date, make sure your mindset is a positive one, no matter what your previous dating experiences felt like. Embrace the fear of a possible failure while hoping for a pleasant outcome.

That’s the minimum required for a mini-mediation.

Just focus on your sense. You don’t need to close your eyes. You don’t even need to be sitting down.

You can use interruptions as hooks to make you more mindful.

Every time your phone rings, take a mindful breath. Every time you hear the ping of a text message, pause to be mindful of your surroundings rather than immediately reacting by checking the message. 

• Having a core values list helps you make better decisions. The decisions you make come more quickly and efficiently than they would without it.
• Being unconscious of your core values makes you likely to keep repeating the same mistakes.

The core values that are most valuable to each of us come from our own personal experience, not from being taught.

As you put them into practice you’ll get better at internalizing these values and they’ll express themselves subconsciously with smaller decisions, as well.