Even though I’m pretty happy with how 2009 turned out, there are still some things I wish I had done differently. Here are 5 things I aim to change for 2010
1. Didn’t take time out for me. I admit it, I have the typical entrepreneur bug. I spent way too much time working on my business and not nearly enough time on me. In 2010, I plan to take more breaks and schedule in some “me-time.”

If you have sat through a few bad meetings, you must have experienced the following traps. Here they are and how to fix them.
1) People think they are experts.
Many people tell me that they know how to hold a meeting. Actually, all they do is host a party. They invite guests, provide treats, and preside over a conversation. People talk. People eat. And nothing happens. Or, if they somehow manage to reach an agreement, no one implements it.
> What to do: Learn how to lead a real meeting. Schedule a …

Do you know that you get 80% of your results from just 20% of your time and effort and consequently 80% of your time is virtually wasted on non productive activities?. Once you realize this it is easy to take advantage and either reduce the hours you work or significantly improve your productivity.
The 80-20 rule was first discovered by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto a hundred years ago.  Using this knowledge is incredibly powerful in combating the “not enough hours in the day” mentality of today’s society.
The 80-20 rule means that …

If you’re an employer or a manager then work place absence is costing you money, inconvenience, and upsetting your customers. And as we all know, not all days taken off work are due to genuine sickness. Many employees “take a sickie” because their morale is low and they just don’t like or can’t do their work.
The challenge for employers and managers is to make people happier at work. And if people are happy at work then they are less likely to take a day off every time they wake up …

These myths have cost companies billions of dollars in wasted payroll money.
Myth #1) Structure spoils spontaneity.
I once attended a two-day long disaster that easily cost over $40,000. Thirty people spent the first hour seeking an issue to discuss, then spent the next 15 hours arguing over insolvable problems. When I asked the manager who called the meeting, “Where’s the agenda?” the reply was, “I didn’t want to spoil the spontaneity by imposing a structure.”
Reality: If spontaneity were a universally sound business practice we would build buildings without blueprints. Of course, …