Cramer Offers Tips for Living a Life that Follows Your Passions,
and she calls for entries for the Keep Going Hall of Fame
(A Hall of Fame for Everyday People with Extraordinary Lives)
How do we make the most out of every day? Kathryn D. Cramer, Ph. D., says the way to rise above lifes day to day challenges, to gain energy and pursue your passions, is to become an asset-based thinker. Kramer is the co-author of Change the Way You See Everything Through Asset-Based Thinking and the founder and managing partner of the Cramer Institute. The basic lesson of the book is to live for your passion and through positive thoughts and actions achieve goals related to that passion.
Asset-based thinking is about changing the way you see every thing, says Cramer, about focusing your strengths, your skills and your capabilities.
Whether you are trying to move a mountain or maybe just get that project youve been dreaming about off the ground, Dr. Cramer has tips to help get you and your dreams energized.
1. Focus on the Positive – Cramer has a 5 to 1 rule; she suggests spending five times more energy focusing on what is working and what is right with you, with your situation and with other people than on what is wrong.
2. Make your passion your priority -When your life is fueled by your passions, it makes the future brighter and within your reach. Warning side effects of focusing on your passions can include: enthusiasm, confidence, unbridled conviction, an energetic presence and it might just rub off on other people.
3. Forget Perfection -Cramer says asset-based thinking liberates you from the need to strive for perfection. The pursuit of perfection is not an asset; its a liability. See yourself as a work in progress, just like everyone else. When you commit to making the most of yourself, you will find your flaws will fade away.
Through the Energizer Keep Going Hall of Fame, Dr. Cramer is asking people to share stories of how following their passions have made a positive impact on their lives and the lives of others. The Keep Going Hall of Fame is a program that honors everyday people with the same never-quit spirit as the Energizer Bunny.
Do you know someone who continually goes above and beyond? Someone who perseveres through lifes everyday challenges? Someone who has shown unparalleled determination and tireless spirit? If you know someone who is like that Energizer Bunny, now is your opportunity to honor them. Nominations can be made at www.energizer.com/halloffame now through March 21, 2008, by submitting an essay of 300 words or less stating why your candidate keeps going and deserves to be an inductee into the Keep Going Hall of Fame. The winner of the search for the next Keep Going Hall of Fame member will receive a $10,000 cash prize and a $5,000 donation to the charity of his/her choice.
About Dr. Cramer:
Kathryn D. Cramer, Ph.D., is the Founder and Managing Partner of The Cramer Institute in St. Louis, specializing in organization change, consulting, leadership and team development and executive coaching. She and her colleagues at The Cramer Institute have pioneered the development of Asset-Based Thinking approaches to coaching, consulting and training processes for more than twenty years. Under Kathys leadership, organizations such as Monsanto, DuPont, Microsoft, Starbucks, Peabody Energy, Deloitte & Touche, MasterCard and the US Air Force have adopted ABT approaches to developing their leaders and managing change.
Kathy is an accomplished author and keynote speaker, as well as an experienced consultant and executive coach. She is the author of four previous books, as well as Change the Way You See Yourself Through Asset-Based Thinking (Running Press).
In addition to these books, Dr. Cramer is published extensively in her field, as well as by national magazines. She has produced two films on stress, one of which received an Emmy Award. She is frequently invited to appear on national television broadcasts.
In 1978, Dr. Cramer co-founded St. Louis University Medical Centers HealthLine and was named director of its Stress Center. Under her leadership, programs in corporate wellness, stress prevention, and lifestyle improvement were adopted nationwide by more than 300 corporations, 60 hospitals and the United States Air Force.
Dr. Cramer earned her Masters Degree in psychology from De Pauw University, and her Doctorate in psychology from St. Louis University. She is a licensed psychologist and a member of the American Psychological Association. She currently serves on the Executive Board for the St. Louis Psychoanalytic Institute and the Executive Advisory Board for the John Cook School of Business at St. Louis University.
