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I read an interesting article on Ramit Sethi’s blog today, thought I would share. Here is a quote from the article:

The most successful people I’ve met started off removing barriers for themselves–and then for people they wanted to impress. In other words, to become useful, think of how you can be useful to someone else. Some things I’ve learned:

When you go into a meeting, have duplicate copies in case your coworker forgets his.

Spend 5 minutes organizing your papers and to-dos before you go to sleep, so when you wake up, you’re ready to go.

If you don’t get a response to an email, don’t write another email saying, “Did you get my email?” Instead, write this: “I’m not sure if you got a chance to look at this. What do you think? I’ve pasted it below to make it easier for you.”

When you email someone to schedule a meeting, use their time zone, not yours.

Carry a pen.

Also when scheduling meetings, include your phone number on the last correspondence in case they get lost.

Anticipate what people will need and make it happen before they ask. If you run a web site or web app, figure out what your users are going to complain about and address it before they do—or even just acknowledge it. They’ll love you for it. If you go out to a business dinner, have the check taken care of in advance. And if your roommate is going to run out of milk, pick up another carton before he does.

I learned a lesson in being useful when I noticed Manu Kaka always calling home before coming home from work whether the moms needed anything from the supermarket for the kitchen. Or when a friend of mine brought me dinner to my apartment when I was sick without asking me.

Useful people are generally more valued in business and in life. How can you take some steps to be more useful to your world today?

Steve Palina has written a very good series on his blog about self-discipline. (He is also a vegan). This is a six part series. You will find links to all six sections at the bottom of the following post, which is the part one.
http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/06/self-discipline/

Infact I find many many insightful articles on Steve’s blog. You all may find other articles interesting as well and you could consider reading it regularly. He describes himself as:

Steve Pavlina is a blue-eyed, colorblind, left-handed, well educated, vegan, lucid dreaming, purpose driven, happily jobless, reality manipulating, meditation practicing, risk taking, goal seeking, problem solving, early rising, passive income generating, highly motivated, energetic, disciplined, persistent, optimistic, fearless, and proactive… writer, speaker, blogger, podcaster, computer programmer, game developer, entrepreneur, husband, father, and archetypal Aries.

Enjoy and share your thoughts.

I request you to read this when you can spare 5 minutes with nothing else to distract your attention.
It seems that we understand this philosophy and yet we have difficulties to practice this. I really liked it and I want to practice this. I hope it is useful to you.

The following is an abstract from Joe Rossini’s article. It can be helpful if one thinks thoroughly about the raised questions and points that lead to introspection.
It would be a rare day in our lives if we could live 24 hours without having to deal with some type of disappointment. The chances that our expectations will not be met each day by individuals, govts., businesses, clients, vendors, organisations, family members and the like are very likely.
In fact, as we mature through the life cycle, it seems we are likely to be let down in some way by at least a simple majority of the people we come in contact with.
Did you ever stop to think why you are disappointed so often? Is it just happening to you or everyone around you? Are you wondering if your expectations are too high? Are you doing something wrong? Maybe! Have you taken the time to understand that you will be disappointed often and that you must be prepared to deal with disappointment?
Because we are given the natural ability to freely choose our actions, it means that we are also free to make mistakes and learn from them. So, disappointments and mistakes will forever be a part of the human experience. To wish that others should be perfect, when dealing with us, is a wish that cannot come true. For even you have made mistakes and will continue to make more in the future.
However, being prepared for disappointments and being persistent in overcoming the obstacles they present will make us a stronger and more determined individual. We need a strong character to make it in the fast paced world that we live in. We must know what we want from life and plan carefully to acquire it. We cannot let others not meeting up to their responsibilities stop us from meeting yours.
It took me a long time to realize that we cannot change the people around us if they don’t want to change. You cannot change the clerk in the store who is doing a lousy job. You cannot change the contractor who always breaks his promises to perform. You cannot change your boss who is always losing his temper. You cannot change a family member to do things the way you think is right.
But the one person who we can change is ourself ! We can change how we react to disappointment. It is within our power to laugh at the chain of events that occur during a day rather than be angry and disgusted.
It is within our power to have the determination of an ant, who finds a way to accomplish its mission, regardless of the obstacles it faces. Our reaction to disappointment is where our power lies.
And whether we want to admit to it or not, it is us who chooses how we are going to react. No one can make us react a certain way. Everything depends on what we want. Many times reactions are learned. If your father slammed the phone down when he was angry, you may have learned to do the same thing.
The peaceful alternative always exists; it just has to be consciously chosen. But why choose to react peacefully? What are the benefits?
Well, to begin with, if we want to live a happier life, it is best to choose a peaceful reaction to life’s disappointments.
If you want to be happy — prove it! If we are constantly yelling and upset about how someone else messed up, then our proclamations of wanting to be a happy person are just hot air.
When we choose peaceful reactions, not only will we have a happy mental life, but we will also have a healthier physical life.
Our bodies are like chemical factories that are more powerful than any pharmacy on earth. Every emotion is translated by the body into chemicals that have measurable, observable effects. Joy, love, and contentment bolster our physical being, while negative emotions like anger and stress cause all types of harm and imbalance in our bodies.
So imagine this: We live in a world where mistakes are made and will always be made. Would it be logical if every time someone makes a mistake, or causes some disappointment, for us to choose (through our emotions) to mentally and physically harm ourself ? What will we achieve by that? We should not harm anyone, let alone ourself.
Living happily does not mean that everything around us must be perfect. It means choosing to be happy in spite of the fact that it will never be perfect.
Disappointments will always come our way. We must try to be more prepared for the disappointments. We must choose to be happy! We must have the mindset to laugh it off and persist to overcome any disappointment.

Short and Simple Dialog:
An old man told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside all people.
He said, “My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.
One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old man simply replied, “The one we feed”