This could be the end of the road for my running.

April 7th, I injured my back making a simple movement that left me unable to move without assistance.

It’s a partial reoccurance of an injury to 4 discs in my back in 2016 which highlighted also arthris in my hip.

I was given a choice back then regarding possible surgery or exercises that would assist me to continue running. I went on to continue running Marathons and ultra marathons but this particular reoccurance is the second since then and the medical opinion at moment is to stop road running due to the impact on my back. It’s possible TM short runs will be allowable.

I’ve had 11 incredible years running and raising funds for charity and gaining all the benefits of positive chemicals in my brain and body as I turned my life around in 2010 having suffered mental exhaustion working 84 hrs a week.

Luna the black german shepard has been minding me and staying close to me as she can see something is not right with me at moment , dogs are amazing and have great intuition.

Tough decision to be made shortly regarding hanging up my brooks and asics.

I’m resilient and will bounce back from this setback because I am always grateful for my continued ability to walk if I can’t run.

bjkennomotivation.com

What do you believe this Easter weekend?

It’s Easter a very special time for me in my religious faith. But its not like that for everyone.

Easter Sunday 2021 one of the hottest days of the year so far during which I ran a slightly longer half marathon distance running 13.6 miles in 2:11

What ever you believe this weekend take some time out to “believe in yourself” be your best cheerleader and create a vision for the goal you have always wanted to achieve.

Believe this weekend you can start again.

bjkennomotivation.com

Banking moving forward?

Today I'm presently signed up for on line statements. I needed a 12 month statement but the banking app only showed the last 9 months.

I took a walk to local branch used in branch machine, took option for statement, and rather than ask period of time required it just advised statement requested.. I'd no idea of the period ordered.

Waited for staff member to ask what's situation with machine, oh yea she advised that's ordered last 3 months.... Aghh I can see that on line.. Oh you want longer go over to the phone in corner take option 4.

Sat at desk, full of pre used wipes, with a packet of wipes, I wiped phone down selected the option and spoke to a very nice helpful lady who ordered my statement which I will have between 5 - 10 days and it cost me €2.50

Is it a good use of resources for someone to have to order that for me

Who designs this experience, if you push customers online the yearly statements should to be online and not disappear. If I opt of an online statement it should be always there in the cloud.

Pushing customers to phone is a waste of time unless it is designed as a revenue collector regardless of negative customer experience.

If you have to make an appointment to open an account days in advance, If you make customers queue for lengthy periods of time and if you provide less and less services and if you continue to deliver negative experiences, of course the footfall to branches will fall.

Obviously branches will then be closed.

In the 80s and 90s a bank could provide that statement in 10 minutes. I know because I actually delivered that service.

Banking moving forward?

Are you all In?

What is your motivation?

Do you give your best effort every time?

Are you truly all in?

What are your expectations for the future?

What is your attitude?

It’s hard to believe we are into a second year of covid following 12 months of an unprecidented period of stress and turmoil, difficulties that included loss of employment, home schooling, and looking after elderly parents from a distance.

In the past 6 months many employees have said their work load had increased and 72% said they were better off working alone while 32% thought the quality of their work had suffered.

The fact that 72% of employees want to work alone highlights the issue identified by organisations that they need to work on the weakening company culture rather than the operational challenges faced in 2020.

In order to alleviate the pressure on employees, organisations need to empower employees to find a balance and offer support.

In order to cultivate and motivate a positive culture the organisation will need to understand the staff concerns at this time and stay connected to them.

Taking stock of employee wellbeing at home and in the workplace will be a win win situation for any organisation that pays attention.

Does your Organisation have a compelling Vision Statement?

When you develop a vision statement for your organisation it should reflect the commitment to your customers and your employees.

It must be more than platitudes it should clearly state the organisation Purpose.

It should be clear to its customers, it’s staff, and shareholders that it is a customer focused organisation and what it will deliver.

The vision statement should be inspirational to the staff something they can believe the organisation is actually committed to.

When managing change senior management should Inspire and Encourage employees with their enthusiasm and commitment for the delivery toward a new Vision with clear communication.

In many organisations they set up Organisation awareness training at all levels so everyone is clear of the vision, the nature of the business, its purpose and where it stands within the commercial market they operate.

Included will be the traditions, values, culture of the organisation and its future direction.

Think about your organisations Vision statement the road ahead should be clearly communicated.

Be ruthless with your time, before you run out.

The best gift you can give someone is of your time, simply because it is a scarce resource.

Stephen Covey wrote that “most people manage their lives by crisis, the only priority setting they do is between problems.

The majority of people do not stop to realise time is a scarce resource… ButBut when Monday becomes Friday and January suddenly turns to September and we wonder where all the time went and suddenly we realise we have not done many of the things we thought we would do when we were younger.

As Covey eludes it takes a crisis for us to realise time is limited in both our business and personal lives.

So if you have a life dream to achieve set time aside and allocate time for that dream and don’t let other priorities get in the way.

Daily chores can be completed by taking time out of your schedule to priorities and schedule time. Knowing what you really want to achieve is crucial.

When you have written down your chores and priorities allocate appropriate time for each one, make sure the time you are allocating is realistic and sustainable.

Then write down for a week what you have actually completed apply timings and you will be able to review how you used your time.

Linking your stress levels to this review will help you identify why you did not any actions or goals completed.

In business you will be able to identify all the last minute requests you receive and you can ask those people to schedule time according to your diary.

It can get all your goals done if you discipline yourself to do as you have planned.

You have lots of time to enjoy if you are organised.

bjkennomotivation.

When your boss avoids conflict at all costs it’s damaging to the team.

Conflict adverse bosses tend to avoid conflict at all costs, its caused by a deep routed fear of upsetting others.

Because of the lack of action and opportunity to have issues resolved sometimes an individual or members of the team take direct action which usually make matters worse.

When the boss refuses to deal with problems it weakens the contribution of the team to the results of the organisation

If the boss is reluctant to have a difficult conversation with a direct report the chances are they are less inclined to have similar conversations with their superiors.

A leader who is not fighting for the resources for their team or being an advocate for the skills within their team, will suffer absence and staff turnover and eventually will be identified as a weak leader.

Everyone avoids conflict at one time or another for different reasons. Facing conflict does not mean you have to be angry, or unappreciative of the work done by the team.

Usually if a conflict adverse leader is presented with enough objective evidence they will feel more confortable addressing the matter.

Unfortunately because these managers are unclear with their communication and if you feel they are unhappy with your performance because they may have made a comment to another manager and it got back to you, you have to turn into Sherlock Holmes to find out what’s really going on and get a strategy together to approach your leader because they are never going to bring it up.

Approaching your boss and advising you heard they were unhappy with your performance but providing some suggestions on how you can get back on track in accordance with the expectations.

These bosses are delighted when solutions are provided to them and they do not have to tackle the issue.

Having a conflict adverse boss is hard work and I wish you well with it.

bjkennomotivation. com

What if your Boss refuses to deal with Conflict.

Conflict adverse bosses tend to avoid conflict at all costs, its caused by a deep routed fear of upsetting others.

Because of the lack of action and opportunity to have issues resolved sometimes an individual or members of the team take direct action which usually make matters worse.

When the boss refuses to deal with problems it weakens the contribution of the team to the results of the organisation

If the boss is reluctant to have a difficult conversation with a direct report the chances are they are less inclined to have similar conversations with their superiors.

A leader who is not fighting for the resources for their team or being an advocate for the skills within their team, will suffer absence and staff turnover and eventually will be identified as a weak leader.

Everyone avoids conflict at one time or another for different reasons. Facing conflict does not mean you have to be angry, or unappreciative of the work done by the team.

Usually if a conflict adverse leader is presented with enough objective evidence they will feel more confortable addressing the matter.

Unfortunately because these managers are unclear with their communication and if you feel they are unhappy with your performance because they may have made a comment to another manager and it got back to you, you have to turn into Sherlock Holmes to find out what’s really going on and get a strategy together to approach your leader because they are never going to bring it up.

Approaching your boss and advising you heard they were unhappy with your performance but providing some suggestions on how you can get back on track in accordance with the expectations.

These bosses are delighted when solutions are provided to them and they do not have to tackle the issue.

Having a conflict adverse boss is hard work and I wish you well with them.

bjkennomotivation. com

You have everything you need to be a winner - it’s right inside you.

You have everything you need to be a winner - it’s right inside you….

The problem is we are living our lives at 100 miles and hour and we forget.

We forget those special gifts we had as a kid, the ones that that made us stand out, that made us successful, aced the test, that pushed us to step outside our comfort zones.

The times we were a bit anxious but smashed the opportunity in the school play, the football match, the school sports day, the local community games.

Taking time out in the present can help us focus and get back on track in our adult lives.

When you take a step back and slow down you begin to identify and understand

What motivates you.

Your values

You respect yourself

You don’t care what others think of you.

When you look in the mirror you see strength, learned lessons, and pride in yourself.

You see success.

Remember no-one is perfect, that’s why pencils have rubbers.

bjkennomotivation.com

We are on a journey in this life.. What if you experience failure ?

We are on a life journey part of the journey for me is an 8.5 mile run Friday evening in chilly Dublin with hail showers.

Through every part of this life we will have life changing experiences for which we should learn from, but most of the time we are too busy to learn.

Working on your mindset will help you draw on these valuable lessons which may have been a disappointing experience and a perceived failure on what you were trying to achieve. Failing to achieve perfection is not total failure

When you reflect on what could have been done better, confront the item that caused the failure and take steps to make sure that error does not reoccur.

Nobody feels 100% ready for every opportunity in life but successful people are willing to give it a go and step outside their comfort zone.

Believe in yourself, push your limits, experience life, conquer your goals and be happy.

You have been given this life because you are strong enough to live it.

bjkennomotivation.com