Marion's Communication Tips

When was the last time you took a risk, stepped out of your comfort zone and experienced great uncertainty? Perhaps you're in a new job, engaged to be married, or trying an avant-garde medical procedure. In whatever direction your life is headed, it's your decisions, risks, and gambles that are leading you there.

You can't control what life rolls in your direction, you can, however, control the way you respond, so why not stack the deck in your favor? Here's a few strategies that will help you do exactly that.

• Ask questions.

Knowing how to ask the right questions of the right people can help you make informed decisions and increase your odds of success. It can also shorten a steep and expensive learning curve. Think about who has information you could use, and then go ask them for it.

• Build on your experience.

With every gamble you take, you learn. You discover what works, and perhaps more importantly, what doesn't. As your knowledge, experience, and contact lists grow, so too does your confidence. You are in a better position to take a gamble because you know that you have the skills to make informed choices.

• Know your comfort zone.

When I worked in Reno, Nevada, a colleague told me a tip I will never forget. It's helped guide me in making decisions and in taking risks (or not). He said, "Never gamble more than you're prepared to lose". That doesn't mean never gamble - it means, take your chances with eyes wide open and be willing to live with the worst case scenario. If you can't, then that risk is not for you.

Winners understand that the roll of the dice is random. Sometimes you win, and sometimes - unfairly and even though all logic would suggest otherwise - you lose. Bad things just happen. Winners get that fact. They realize that life will deal them hands that aren't fair. It's not personal and it does not devalue them. It's not justice, it just is.

PS: lf you are planning a conference or retreat and need an uplifting message for your team, this "Life's a Gamble" keynote fits the bill. Let's talk.