Dianne Booher in an accomplished author and public speaker who specializes in helping individuals and organizations improve productivity with better written, interpersonal, and cross-functional communication.

She gives some spot-on advice about how to improve your communication skills.

Be wary of listening for what you want to hear. Be an authentic listener and don’t interpret a conversation to favor your desired results.

Be wary of not listening for what you don’t want to hear. Avoiding difficult issues will only put off the inevitable. Acknowledge concerns head on so you can deal with them more effectively.

Consider your own receptivity. Your mood, frame of mind, and circumstance can impact how well you listen at any given time. For an objective listening experience, make up your mind to listen. Stop what you are doing when someone addresses you and focus.

Active listening requires paying attention to your speaker’s facial expression, body language, and voice inflection. Give your speaker the courtesy of being an authentic listener and validate their effort.  You deserve to the same treatment from others when you are driving a conversation or presentation so be mindful of your ability to listen well and be more productive. Can you hear me now?

The most common story I hear from burned out professionals is that they are exhausted from trying to maintain their families and their jobs. While I would never suggest that you neglect your family, I do want you to seriously think about your needs in the big picture.

A wise mentor told me that in order for her to be a mom, wife, and business professional at the top of her game, and to maintain her health and wellbeing – she had to think of her needs first. She learned this the hard way after collapsing from exhaustion and neglecting her very basic needs like sleep and re-charge time.

There is a reason the flight attendant on an airplane tells you to put your oxygen mask on first so you can then assist your small child. Think about it – if you put yourself last on the priority list then your family and colleagues won’t prioritize you either.

The first step is to set clarity of expectations with your family and your co-workers. If you ask for what you need, they will accommodate you most of the time. Realistically, we know that life happens and life will never be predictable or perfect. But if you ask for what you need it sends a signal to others that what you need is valuable.

You won’t ever get it if you don’t ask so start considering what you really need to make your life more balanced and enjoyable and ask your family to prioritize you. In the end you will be a better caregiver and you deserve it. It’s not selfish but a proactive and a positive strategy to maintain wellness and authenticity in your life.

Serendipity played a very positive role in my life when I learned that Arianna Huffington, the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Huffington Post was scheduled to speak at the O’Bannon Institute for Community in my home town.  I attended her talk last week and sat amongst hundreds in a packed house of enthusiastic fans.

Arianna left an amazing impression on me and shared several lessons that I believe are relevant to the career & professional development arena. She encouraged us to embrace education and never stop learning at any age. She spoke of the importance of our leaders in business, politics, and community to have good judgment. Arianna emphasized how we each have the power to turn off the negativity in our own lives. She spoke of this particular challenge for women who often feel they are not good enough, smart enough, or prepared enough for a particular quest. With humor, she talked about disregarding “The obnoxious roommate living in my head.” that often feeds her self-doubt and encouraged us all to embrace our humility, fearlessness, and above all – confidence.

A woman that has experienced many career changes, Arianna has reinvented herself personally, professionally, and politically more than once. She urged us to be good to our bodies and get the proper rest and relaxation we need to run at full capacity. Last year, she fainted from exhaustion and fell on her desk resulting in multiple stitches above her eye. This accident was a wake-up call and now she is on a mission to urge others to embrace the healing power of sleep.

Arianna believes in the power of citizen journalists and currently there are 250 official bloggers with distinctive content reporting on the Huffington Post. I am honored to be among them. With a reported 24+ million unique visitors each month to Huff Post, it’s clear to see that Arianna is thriving in her career reinvention.

Authenticity is the ability to be genuine and sincere with your intentions. All too often we make career decisions based on what others want us to do, or what we think they want us to do. Many of my clients and students have shared that they pursued practical professions because their families encouraged them to do so. While I believe families and support systems are important, ultimately the decision about career pursuits should be yours alone.

As the self assessment process reveals, getting in touch with your values, interests, personality, and skills can help you discover career opportunities that truly match your authentic self. The realities of this job economy often force us to take stop-gap jobs in order to make ends meet but never lose focus of your career dreams and continue to work towards those goals.

Think about how you want to show up in the world and how you want the world to see you. Most often, our personal and professional values alignment are close. Have the courage to be true to yourself and trust your gut.

The philosophical movement of existentialism has studied authenticity for centuries and helps us understand more about what authenticity is, along with its relationship to the concept of meaning. Existentialists assert that if an individual is not living authentically in their lives, then they lose meaning and can fall into chronic anxiety, boredom and despair. We spend a large portion of our waking hours on the job so you deserve to be happy in your career.

Muster the courage to make authentic career choices that are meaningful to you. If you can align your values, talents, and vision you can unleash a powerful Trifecta that will lead you towards career satisfaction.