B2B Reads: Action-Oriented, Self-Regulation & Work-Life Balance

In addition to our Sunday App of the Week feature, we also summarize some of our favorite B2B sales & marketing posts from around the web each week. We’ll miss a ton of great stuff, so if you found something you think is worth sharing please add it to the comments below.

The Incredible Benefits of Being Action-Oriented 
Opportunities will disappear if action isn’t taken. While plans are great for ideation and strategy, action orientation is the key that truly drives development and creation. Some benefits of action orientation include confidence building, developing courage, changing one’s self identity, and expanding the sense of possibility. Thank you, Gregg Vanourek, for reminding us to take action. 

B2B Branding: How to Get it Right in the Modern World
B2B companies are thought to lead innovation, however they also have the most room for improvement regarding how they present themselves to the world. There’s a huge misconception that B2B companies don’t need to focus on branding but strong imagery will truly develop their business as long as it’s taken from the ‘why’ instead of the ‘what’ perspective. Thank you, Bill Kenney, for this information. 

Try these Practices to Increase your Self-Regulation
Many believe the loss of control with self-regulation stems from strong emotions but this is a misconception as emotions are not the problem, the management of them is. Self-regulation isn’t about avoiding or suppressing rather the inner work in shifting from an automatic reaction to intentional response. Emotional integrity and cognitive restructuring are two practices to help achieve self-regulation. Thank you, Marlene Chism, for providing these insights. 

5 Ways to Find Out if You are Maximizing Your Time
Time management is significant in attaining one’s goals and living life with purpose. The way one handles their time determines their level of success. A few indications to ensure strong time maximization include planning ahead, prioritization, avoiding multitasking, and learning how and when to say now. Thank you, Mary Kelly, for sharing your ideas. 

How to Speak and Write Clearly
With the busyness of today’s world, it’s crucial to ensure activity is described through clear and concise communication. People can get easily overwhelmed so ensuring direct communication, few words, short and simple sentences, conversation, and practice will help retain engagement. Thank you, John Millen, for reminding us of these important tips.

Why Work-Life Balance is a Myth
Work-life balance is a struggle for all in how much time should be dedicated to our personal versus professional lives. This lack of balance creates an unwinnable zero-sum solution, however framing it using the seven slice approach may help. Life areas can be split into multiple slices and labeled with a percentage of how much time should be spent in each section to visualize and analyze the entirety of how one spends their time. Thank you, Dr. Laurence J. Stybel and Maryanne Peabody, for this interesting approach. 

How to Create Community: Lessons from Homeboy Industries
The top elements employees value most in their companies are that they feel valued by the organization and manager along with feeling a sense of belonging. Connection and community are imperative to employee retention and strong company culture. This article dives into how employees should feel as if their jobs are more than just a place to work and shares Homeboy’s lessons in implementing this. Thank you, John Baldoni, for highlighting this important point. 

Are you Fostering a Toxic Workplace without even knowing it?
Toxic work environments are one of the leading causes of employee dissatisfaction and turnover. When evaluating your company, be sure to understand what a toxic workplace looks like and ensure that yours doesn’t fall under this category. This looks like micromanaging, tolerating unprofessional behavior, and highlighting only criticism and not achievements. Thank you, Tom Miller, for shedding light on this under discussed topic. 

There Are 2 Types of Confidence. One Leads to Success, the Other Leads to Failure
Which type of confidence are you? Social confidence leads to success as this highlights the comfortability of communicating with others. Epistemic confidence presents how one is correct in their opinions or conclusions which is surrounded by negative research as this characteristic proves that one is lacking an open mindset or the ability to change their opinions. Thank you, Minda Zetlin, for this great read. 

Intimidated to Engage on LinkedIn? Here’s Some Advice
Linked In can be intimidating as it’s a professional workspace and can be overwhelming at the early stages in one’s career journey, however it reaps incredible benefits when used accordingly. Make sure you are following and connecting with people you are interested in or admire so they can see your support and remember you for various opportunities. Thank you, Dana Brownlee, for discussing this topic.