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Hard Truths That Will Make You A Better Entrepreneur

There are reasons that everyone isn’t an  entrepreneur. It’s a special individual who is cut out for the challenges ahead. Some days entrepreneurs love their jobs. Some days they think they’re not cut out for them at all. More often than many would like to admit, business owners flip between these two extremes multiple times over during one day.

The more you learn and grow as an entrepreneur, the better you become at what you do. It doesn’t take long to discover the power of mindset for success in business.

To become a better entrepreneur, you need to accept certain truths along the way. When you recognize these truths and understand how to deal with them, you can avoid wasting time fighting them or being confused by these hurdles. You’ll recognize them for what they are and move past them much faster.

Failure Really Is Part Of It

You will fail. This will happen many times. And it’s completely okay. In fact, it’s a good thing. Failure means you’re trying for something. You will learn from these failures and use that information to better how you handle things going forward. Don’t let it get you down and slow your progress, use the information you’ve gained to propel you forward.

There Will Never Be Time to Do Everything

All of the plans you have for your business? You won’t ever be able to do them all. You will learn to delegate tasks, and that will help, but entrepreneurs are chronically busy people. As you come up with more ideas, you will have to keep narrowing things down and saying no to more things. Your time will only become more precious.

Habits Are Everything

If you’ve read enough books about successful entrepreneurs, you’ll know that the world’s leaders always talk about their habits. They get up at the same time every day, tackle the same tasks in the same order. They eat the same meals and wear the same clothes, so they don’t have to waste time making decisions about those things. Your habits will make you productive and successful. Feeling inspired or coming up with an amazing new idea? These are nice moments, but they aren’t what makes ideas reality. A strong routine does.Accepting these hard truths is one of the first steps to becoming a better entrepreneur. Understanding and processing these truths will help you become a better business man in the long run.

To learn more about Aaron Symank, visit AaronSymank.com

How to Effectively Handle Conflict Without Becoming the Bad Guy

Conflict is understandably something employees avoid. Disagreement can escalate to an extent that seems irreversible, so the most logical individuals who work together won’t rock the boat, but there are moments when that’s not possible. The good news is that letting employees hash out ideas with passion and candor can have a silver lining.

Silencing discourse that’s not positive doesn’t allow employees to have real dialogues

When colleagues can hash out differences in opinion without taking it personally, the company benefits. Brainstorming and solving problems requires exploring both good and bad outcomes. The best decisions are made after thorough discussion. It can actually be more destructive towards the overall growth process of a company when its staff feels it’s best to keep critical ideas to themselves.

Team building includes learning how to disagree

A success driven team understands that disagreement is only a phase in the journey towards success. Creating a culture where exploring all the sides of a plan brings energy to a team. It can be inspiring as long as everyone engaged in the back and forth understands that difference in opinions shouldn’t be taken personally. They have to be trained to understand that the ultimate goal isn’t being wrong or right. It’s identifying the best direction for the company. Managers would be wise to offer best practices in effective communication between those who work in teams, many, however, don’t.

Collaborating isn’t just smiling and giving colleagues the thumbs up

When team members sitting at a table together feel free to explore the ins-and-outs of the challenges they’re confronting, they’re more deeply involved in the success and failure of their company. Employees who are dead weight will only participate in conversations as much as is required and won’t go out on a limb to make sure that targets are reached or exceeded, so it’s important for higher ups to encourage adventurous brainstorming and not censor real dialogue between their people.

Effectively handling conflict

It’s not always a topic that’s addressed during the onboarding rites that new hires undergo, but it should be. Managing discord between employees after it begins to build, is not half as effective as offering conflict resolution coaching during the orientation process. Employees who begin a job prepared for the challenges that come with it will have a structured approach towards the work they do. They’ll be less likely to simmer at their desks instead of deploying the skills they’ve been given to constructively find solutions to problems that arise

To learn more about Aaron Symank, visit AaronSymank.org

Local Lingo of Hawaii

In previous centuries, immigrants from all over the world flowed into Hawaii to work on the sugar plantations. Over time, the multitude of languages blended together into “Hawaiian pidgin”. To prepare yourself for your Hawaiian vacation, here’s a list of Hawaiian Pidgin words that you may hear while visiting Hawaii!

Aloha
This well-known word can mean hello, goodbye, affection, graciousness or kindness.

Ainokea
Both the meaning and the pronunciation is “I no care”. This popular pidgin phrase is a popular brand name for tee-shirts around Hawaii.

Brok da mout
This derives from “Broke the Mouth”. This is said when you’ve had food so good you couldn’t stand it.

Choke
This means a lot of something. For example, if you go on a boat and you see 100 whales, then the ocean got “choke whales”.

Da kine
This is a catch-all that can mean nearly anything. If you can’t recall a name or place, simply say “da kine”.

Grind
This means to eat, and can also mean great food, when said with a “z” “grindz”.

Hana hou
This means “Once more, again,” as in, let’s do it again!

Hapa
This is someone of mixed ethnic or racial heritage, especially of Pacific Islander and Asian heritage.

Kapu
This means, forbidden or keep out. You will see this on signs, so keep a lookout, and don’t trespass. It’s also the social law that of ancient Hawaii, where many things were taboo, or forbidden.

Lua
This means the bathroom or restroom.

Lu’au
This is also a word we all know, meaning a feast or party. It’s a great aspect of Hawaiian culture!

Mahalo
This means “thank you” and you will hear it often in Hawaii.

Mauka / makai
You will hear this when receiving directions, telling you to either go towards the mountains or towards the ocean. “Mauka” (mountain side) or “makai” (ocean side).

Ohana
This means your immediate family members, as well as extended relatives and friends.

Ono
This means delicious food.

Pau hana
This means after work, or happy hour drinks. It also can mean when something has finished.

Rahja /rahja dat
This is derived from the military phrase “roger that”, and can also mean “OK”.

Shaka
This is a hand gesture that can be used as a greeting, a goodbye or to say thank you.

Shoots
This means “okay”.

I would recommend writing down a couple of these phrases on some notecards, in order to help you study. In no time you will be speaking like the locals of Hawaii.

To learn more about Aaron Symank, visit AaronSymank.org

The Best Ways to Pass Time on a Flight

Going on a flight can be both exciting and boring at the same time. At first, the thought of being several thousand feet in the sky is exhilarating. Then, once the initial take off is over, the next thing people wonder is when the flight is going to end. Without having anything to do, flights are one of the most boring things in the world. But that doesn’t mean it has to be. There are tons of way to make flying entertaining. To make your next flight a little less boring, try out a few of the following ways to pass times on flights.

LISTEN TO SOMETHING

Music is a great way to kill time. Listening to tunes can make the flight go by a lot quicker. One way to pass time on the flight is to plug in the music, sit back and let the thoughts wander. For those suffering from flight anxiety listening to music also helps alleviate the stress of flying. If you get bored of music try listening to a podcast. Podcasters cover so many different subjects from current events to true crime to hobbies and interests. No matter what you are interested in, there will most likely be a podcast on it.

PLAY GAMES AND SOLVE PUZZLES

Nothing passes the time faster than a challenging puzzle. Sudoku is a great way to alleviate boredom while flying. However, crosswords work also in a pinch. You can also break out the Candy Crush or Words with Friends, if the flight offers WiFi.

WATCH TV OR A MOVIE

Watching television or movies is another way to make a flight a little more enjoyable. While most flights offer movie to watch, play it safe and bring along a fully-charged laptop to watch DVDs.

SLEEP

Sleeping is one of the best ways to make flying a little less painful, especially on international flights. If the flight is longer than a few hours, getting up extra early or not sleeping at all makes it easier to fall asleep.

CATCH UP READING

Flying is the perfect time to finish a book that’s been left unread. Use the opportunity to explore a new genre or possibly a self-help book. Bringing a stack of the latest gossip magazines is also a viable option.

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

There are a lot of things people can to do pass their time when traveling. The key is preparing for any possible scenario that may come up unexpectedly; i.e. layovers, delays and even flight cancellations.

To learn more about Aaron Symank, visit AaronSymank.org