Category Archives: Productivity

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Ideas To Action Challenge – 10 Keys To Help You Become An Ideas To Action Person.

In 1963, Mary Kay Ash, resigned from her job out of frustration from being passed over for promotion. She came up with the idea of writing a book to help women in business. What emerged from the book idea was a business plan that was later implemented and turned into a multimillion dollar business. In 2001 at the time of Mary Kay Ash’s death, Mary Kay cosmetics had over 800,000 representatives in 37 countries with total annual sales of over $200 million.

Idea Concept

According to Mary Kay Ash,

Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless.

Everything starts with an idea and you have the capacity to generate lots of ideas. You can also find plenty of ideas online on just about anything you can think of. Yet many people fail to act on their ideas and the world ends up missing out on the potential that was never realised.

Why do people not act on their ideas?

Here are some of the reasons people have come up with on why they do not take action on their ideas.

  1. Lack of confidence
  2. Life gets in the way
  3. Too busy with work
  4. No motivation or drive to act
  5. Lack of support
  6. Discouragement from friends and family members
  7. Fear of failure
  8. Lack of know how
  9. No money
  10. No plan for action
  11. Don’t know how to do it
  12. Too young
  13. Too old

I am sure you can add one or two more reasons to this list.

It doesn’t matter why you have not been taking action on your ideas. What matters is your answer to this question. Do you think you would be a better person and the world you live in would be a better place if you make a decision today to act on some of your ideas? If your answer is yes, then you need to stop making excuses and start implementing some of your ideas. Here are some things to help you get started.

10 Keys To Help You Become An Ideas To Action Person.

Keys to Action

  1. Put first things first – There is always something you can do now with the limited time, skills and finances available to you. Find out what that is and then get started doing it.
  2. Believe in Yourself – Your belief in your self will be aided by your having a strong sense of purpose. What do you want in life and from life? With a sense of purpose, you will find it easier to commit to ideas that align with your purpose. You purpose serves as a screen that filters ideas.
  3. Get connected with the right people – People are your greatest ally and your greatest adversary. You will need to keep searching until you find people who will encourage, inspire and motivate you to get going with your ideas.
  4. Equip and train yourself – If you haven’t got the right skills and experience, then go and get it. Read books, attend courses or take up employment in companies that will provide you opportunity to get the skills your need.
  5. Set goals and realistic targets – Everything in life takes twice as long and costs twice as much. Set SMART goals and then proceed to create realistic plans that will lead you to achieve your goals.
  6. Set realistic time frames – Every new project is an adventure into the unknown. This will almost always result in costs and time delays you could not have envisaged at the start. Build some margin into your time estimates.
  7. Research to refine your ideas – Your idea in its current form will undoubtably undergo numerous refinements before you start. However, do not try and overdo the research. You know enough to get started and you will discover the rest along the way.
  8. Be committed to your success – Have you got a success mindset. Do you believe that you are going to make a success out of your life. If you do, then commit to your belief by taking actions that will bring you closer to your stated objectives.
  9. Find a coach or mentor – A coach is a trained professional who by asking the right questions is able to draw out the potential within you. A mentor is someone with experience in what you want to do. Mentors will share their experiences and give you tips that can help you avoid mistakes along the way.
  10. Be willing to adapt and change – Be flexible. Be a person who is open to new ideas and is willing to try new things. As you review and measure your progress against set markers, be willing to change course if necessary. You will need the wisdom to know when to persevere and when to pivot.

Decide on your next step and then act. Or leave a comment and tell me what else is holding you back.

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Ideas To Action Challenge

Often the difference between a successful person and a failure is not one of better ideas or abilities, but the courage that one has to bet on one’s idea, to take a calculated risk –  and to act. Andre Malraux

Inventory of Ideas

Have you got the courage to join me on a journey that could change your life forever? Yes change your life forever.

Ideas to action is all about you taking action on your dreams.

Think for a minute what would happen if you took action on your ideas? While you may not emerged as the next Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, you certainly will end up better off than you are today. You will have a wealth of experience that will make your chances of success in your next endevour greater than it is at the moment. You will learn valuable lessons along the way. You will know what works and what does not. And there is the odd chance that you could turn out to be the next Mark Zuckerberg.

The Story of Alan

Alan is employed but hates his job. He knows for certain that he is capable of a lot more than he is doing at the moment. For many years, Alan wished he could start his own business, but he did not have the courage to quit his current job and start. So he remains at his job.

Alan has read many books on how to start a business. Alan has attended several courses on starting your own business. Alan has written several business plans. Non of them detailed. But nonetheless they would pass the good business plan test. Alan has never taken action on any of his business ideas so he cannot be sure which business would work.

Alan continues to remain a grumpy employee who believes he and not his boss should be leading the department.

The Story of Joe

Building Your Thinking Power

Joe is self employed and works crazy hours. He has to. Joe is very good at what he does. All of Joe’s work comes from customer recommendation. Joe knows that to grow his business, he needs to take on additional help. But Joe is hunted by the thought of training someone up only for that person to run off with some of his customers. So he takes no action.

Three years on, Joe is still self employed. He has increased his hourly rate so his income and his taxes have increased. Joe hasn’t had a holiday in the last three years.

The Story of Helen

Helen is an ambitious individual who has toyed with the idea of doing something new and different for the last two years. She enjoys her work, but knows that there is much more to her life than what her job offers.

Helen carries a note book with her at all times. That”s where she writes all her thoughts and ideas.

Helen is aware of the need to reduce the numbers of hours she works in her present job to create time to work on her ideas. Yet the thought of a reduced pay cheque against the backdrop of increasing expenses holds her back from taking action on her ideas.

Helen is still gainfully employed in a job she loves. Once in a while she wishes she was doing something else.

Your Story

What’s your story? Have you got any ideas, dreams or projects which if you succeed in implementing in the next 12 months will make a big difference in your life? If yes, then consider taking the ideas to action challenge.

Watch this space.

Let’s hear from you by leaving a comment or dropping me an email at info@leadinglikeachampion.com.

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The Entrepreneurial Way – 7 Keys To Unlock Your Potential

  1. Believe In Yourself

To believe in yourself is to have confidence in your skills and ability. There is no room for self doubt. Do not compare yourself to all the other experts you know in your field. With time, diligence and hard work, your own expertise will grow.

7 Keys to Unlock Your potential

For many years I would always pass up the opportunity to speak in-front of a large audience. I did not think I was good enough. But as I began to sum up the courage to speak, I realised that I was improving with time. Know I tell myself that I am an expert in the making.

So when next you are called upon to do what you have never done before, why not say yes to this. See it as an opportunity to learn and grow. Remember that if you have never done something before, you are not going to get it right the first time unless of course you are lucky. Cut yourself some slack and allow yourself to do it badly at first. Believe that you can get better at whatever you decide to commit to.

  1. Have A Positive Attitude

Your attitude is a result of a settled way of thinking and it is almost always reflected in your behaviour. It takes time to form and can become a habit.

There is a little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative ~ W Clement Stone

One way of maintaining a positive attitude is to steer clear of negativity. Resist negative influences. Be a can do person and hang around other people who have a positive and a winning attitude. A positive mental attitude will take you to unimaginable places.

  1. Be A Life Long Learner

To be a life long learner is to be committed to continuous self improvement. You learn from your mistakes and you learn from the mistakes of others.

More important, you also learn from your successes. Ask yourself the question, what is working well from me right now and how can I do it better. You commitment to learning will result in a commitment to change.

In times of change learners inherit the earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.~ Eric Hoffer

  1. Think Solutions

There is no point in talking about the problem but rather think up possible solutions. Suddenly there will be a light at the end of the tunnel as you begin to see your way out of whatever situation you are in.

Be creative in your thinking. If you have to employ a thinking tool such as mind map do so. Think outside the box and come up with innovative ways of solving old problems.

Edward de Bono in his book Six Thinking Hats describes what he calls a practical and uniquely positive approach to making decisions and exploring new ideas.

  1. Know Your Craft

To know your craft is not to know everything about your industry. Your effort must be directed towards the acquisition and application of the information and knowledge that can give you an edge over others.

There is generalised knowledge, there is specialised knowledge and there is the know how to organise and use knowledge after you have acquired it. You will have to decide which is important to you.

Henry Ford knew how to organise and use the knowledge he acquired. He perfected the Assembly Line, a descendant of the division of labour initially discussed by Adam Smith in his book the Wealth of Nations.

  1. Find A Coach Or Mentor

Many of you will have heard of Usain Bolt, the Jamaican sprinter widely regarded as the fastest person ever. With an impressive record of 6 olympic gold medals and 6 world championship gold medals.

How about Michael Phelps, the retired American swimmer and the most decorated olympian of all time. Twenty two medals in total including eighteen gold.

These two men would not have achieved these great feats without the very important contribution of their coaches. Glen Mills coached Usain Bolt and Bob Bowman’s influence produced Michael Phelps.

From the field of business to politics, top salesmen and statesmen like top athletes employ the services of highly trained professional coaches to reach the top of their game. Entrepreneurs, entertainers and sportsmen achieve incredible feats with coaches alongside them. Your coach will come alongside you to inspire, encourage and motivate you to achieve success beyond your wildest dreams

  1. Be A Leader

Anyone can steer a ship, but it takes a leader to chart the course ~John Maxwell

As a leader, you must be farsighted enough to see what others cannot see. Because the journey into the future is a journey into the unknown, you must be flexible enough to know when to make adjustments to your course, but retain the drive and tenacity to push through obstacles.

Be humble enough to know that you cannot do I on your own. You need the input of others. You must develop other leaders and not be a one man show.

As a leader, you must develop your ability to consistently communicate vision in a manner that transmits your passion, energy and enthusiasm to others.

  1. Why not add another key below by leaving a comment.
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Your Road to Success

Road to success

No one ever attains very eminent success by simply doing what is required of him; it is the amount and excellence of what is over and above the required that determines the greatness of ultimate distinction. ~ Charles Kendall Adams
 
What is Success?
Success is what you get when you go over and above what is required in your chosen field. To attain success as an entrepreneur, you need to make the effort to exceed the expectations of all stakeholders. Exceed the expectations of your customers, your employees, your shareholders and your bank.
 
As part of bringing you the best to help you on your road to success, I interview leaders in business and the community who have exceeded the limitations and achieved success. During this interviews I tease out the leadership lesson, insights and stories that they have learnt on their journey and share these with you leaders and aspiring leaders.
So let me introduce you to Marc
Marc started his journey as a school teacher. Today Marc is an assistant head teacher in one of the top grammar schools in the United Kingdom.

Hear what Marc has to say about his road to success.
 

Three keys on the road to success.

1. The first key is to learn and to keep learning; You will need to make yourself a life long learner. I have said it many times and will repeat it again, your learning does not stop after you leave school.
Knowledge accumulated over several years by successful people are captured in books, webinars, podcast and in many more places.
More than ever is much knowledge available to the avid reader and learner. If you are a reader, then keep at it. The more you read, the more things you know. The more you know the more people you will influence. The more people you influence the more places you will go.
 
2. The second key: discover what excellence means in your job and then to exceed it. The pursuit of excellence is a decision you make. It has nothing to do with resources. It has everything to do with your desire to succeed and your urge to reach your full potential (Confucius). To excel is to go beyond your best and challenge yourself to do better the next time than you did the last time. Do not allow yourself any excuses. Admit your shortcomings. Make the required effort the next time to do better than the last time.
 
3. Lastly, follow your passion and discover your niche. Take a moment and think about the compounding effect of sticking to your niche. Add life long learning plus an attitude of excellence. With time, you can become the best at what you do best. You enjoy the rewards of success in your business, your career and your life.
 
 
Remember, its your road to success and you are the leading influence in your life. Stay on the road to success and keep on leadinglikeachampion.
 
Why not tell me one key on your road to success?
 
 
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Put it in Writing

Writing in is a method of recording information and ideas. Have you ever wondered how some people are able to come up with lots of ideas and get more done while you do not? Well how about you try putting down your thoughts in writing and then create the habit of writing.

Reduce your plan to writing. The moment you complete this, you would have definitely given concrete form to the intangible desire. – Napoleon hill

Here are five things that will happen when you put it in writing.

  1. Writing will help you organise your thoughts and bring clarity to your ideas.
  2. By putting it in writing, you record and increase your chances of remembering your ideas.
  3. Writing will help you commit to taking action on your goals, vision and dreams.
  4. You can breakdown and simplify your complicated ideas during the process of writing.
  5. Writing will help you develop an idea bank or vault.

By writing down your thoughts and ideas, you free up your mind to do other things such as thinking up new thoughts and ideas or coming up with plans to implement the ones you have written down.

So how can you get the most from putting things down in writing?

  • Keep a paper or electronic ideas notebook with you all the time. It makes no difference how good your memory is. You will forget it if you do not write it down.
  • Develop a consistent filing system. This will greatly reduce the time which you spend looking for things. I have a lot of paper notebooks and I have no idea of what I have written in most of then. My life has now been made easier with my use of Evernote,  an electronic notebook available on all platforms.
  • Review your ideas regularly. It makes no sense to write something down if you are not going to read it. You will need to get into the habit of setting time aside in your busy schedule to review your ideas, modify them and possibly begin to act on some.
  • Now share your thoughts and ideas first with yourself through regular review of your writings and then with trusted alias. 

If you have an ambition to write and publish a book in the not to distant future, then putting it down in writing is a must for you. This becomes an avenue for you to express your creative flair. If you persist at it and become good at it, you could earn some money with your newly discovered writing skill by writing a best seller. And just think of the many more possibilities which could include turning your book into a movie or a television series.

Do you put your thoughts and ideas in writing?

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The Winner’s Sound Mind ~ Part 2

Winners do what losers don’t want to do. ~ Gary Busey

Winners
What does it really take,
To be a winner,
It takes a great deal of effort,
To become a real winner,
But it’s got to come naturally,
And don’t kid yourself,
You can’t force it,
A sound mind and a disciplined soul,
A winner who bluntly refuses,
To take advantage of others,
No matter how unique,
Who respects others for their contribution to humanity.

 

As the puzzle persists,
The channel grows,
The vision is widened in horizon,

 

The pace of activity increases,
At every turn,
The source of inspiration,
Remains mainly divine,
The spirit must be upheld,
All set to grab
The opportunity,
To seize an opportunity.

 

Abstract knowledge by itself,
Requires a capable mind for relevant interpretation,
Winners often face that challenge.

 

Whenever a stage is attained,
When there’s a suppression of the urge,
To ask too many questions,
And offer more suggestions,
When self formulated policies,
Become guiding principles.

 

When the aspirant believes more,
In whatever is got out of life,
And less on the goodwill of others,
The period is at-hand.

 

The crown word is independence,
In the actual sense of the word,

 

Frankly speaking age is immaterial,
And the fact is often overlooked,
Around the world today,
That several young ones,
Have already attained,
That enviable status of symbolic independence,
Long before their time.

 

Let the truth be said,
That a society,
With many winners,
Is deemed to make progress,
And is several steps ahead,
Of a similar gathering of youth,
Who eventually became elders.

 

Within the course of living,
If an idea occurs to you,
Which no other man taught you,
Hold on to it,
And develop it,
It’s your brain child,
Don’t bother how long,
It takes to materialise,
Making real sense to others.

 

You live in the future,
The future of the World.
Remembering always that the history of the world, is the biography of the best minds that lived.
 
Read the Winner’s Sound Mind ~ Part 1
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The Winner’s Sound Mind ~ Part 1

Winners
There are winners, there are losers and there are people who have not yet learned to win. ~ Les Brown
Success knows no excess
Success breeds further success
Once you identify the access
Success persists without a recess.
In addition to freedom,
Give a man money,
And he’ll keep coming back for more,
Leave him an inheritance,
And hell blame you,
For not waiting long enough,
To advice on how best,
To disburse the sudden wealth.

 

Even education,
Has produced undesirable effects,
And periods of confusion the world over,
But a sound mind,
Is incorruptible,
And capable of a fair analysis.

 

Beyond rational reasoning,
Lies a depth of divine knowledge,
Often stumbled upon,
After intensive soul searching.

 

And it serves to reinforce,
Mans faith in the capabilities of his mind.

 

And since the winner,
Must out-perform all else,
In the competition,
His need to look beyond the environment,
For standards is important,
And only those individuals,
Who were fully accomplished,
During their lifetimes,
Can be worthy of emulation.

 

The aspiring winner’s situation,
Is by no means unique,
Every successful one,
At the turning point,
Strives towards the positive extreme.

 

A bit of perseverance here,
Some self sacrifice there,
Would see you through,
Into the better times.

 

But keep your experience,
As a souvenir,
You’ll be proud to recall it,
In the course of the future,
It’s the only occurrence,
That will remain permanent.

 

To be continued on Wednesday 15th March 2013
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Feedback. A Tool for Improving Performance.

You and I know that giving meaningful and constructive feedback is not easy particularly if you believe you have something to say.  Much more difficult is the receiving of feedback. I have to confess that I just do not handle the recieving of feedback as well as I should especially when there is a challenge to change.

Feedback

I am yet to find the man, however exalted his station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than under a spirit of criticism. ~ Charles Schwab

One valuable tool to aid your leadership journey is your willingness to give and receive feedback. Feedback will help you steer your course, maintain focus and give you the good feeling that comes from knowing you are making progress in the direction of your goals. Feedback is your friend. Seek it earnestly and profit from the valuable information derived from it.

How do you feel when you receive feedback? I conducted a survey amongst my work colleagues and these are the top three answers?

  1. It encourages me to do things better.
  2. It helps me build and acquire the knowledge that I would not otherwise have.
  3. It increases my confidence and I am more productive at my job.

To grow from feedback we need to be challenged to improve on our current standard. Some will call this negative feedback, but I say that a challenge to improve and do better need not be a negative feedback. If receiving feedback brings the best out of you, why don’t you harness the giving of effective feedback to bring the best out of your team.

The WWW – What Went Well and EBI – Even Better If is one method of giving feedback that is used successfully in organisations. What went well simply means that you have to pay attention and comment on some of the things that worked. To make the work even better, you will need to point out some areas of improvement in a positive manner. For more on this visit http://stevesutherland45.wordpress.com/

If you live in the Toastmasters International world of public speaking where evaluation is an important part of members development, a used method of feedback is to Commend Recommend and then Commend. You commend the effort by telling your audience what worked well for you. You recommend an area of improvement and then you commend again to leave the speaker on a high note and in other not to diminish the sense of achievement that is felt after having completed a task.

Feedback is the Breakfast of champions ~ Ken Blanchard  

Here are five tips to giving effective feedback.

  1. Focus on the activity or performance and not on the person.
  2. Recognise achievement.
  3. Be candid.
  4. Remember that its only your opinion and others may have a different opinion
  5. The purpose of feedback is to encourage improvement so provide useful recommendations.

Here are five tips to receiving feedback

  1. It’s not about you so do not take it personal.
  2. Its only the givers opinion and your product or presentation may just not be for him or her.
  3. Even if you do not agree with the opinion, please be respectful and thank the person for taking the time and effort to give you feedback.
  4. Do not defend your performance but seek to improve your performance at the next opportunity.
  5. Do not get carried away by the praise. Listen attentively and seek out areas for growth and improvement.

How receptive are you to receiving feedback?

 

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Leaders are Readers

“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self -chosen ignorance.” – Confucius

The words of Confucius the Chinese teacher, editor and philosopher are true today as they were over over 2000 years ago. You cannot afford to remain ignorant in the rapidly changing world of today and that is why you must devote time in your busy schedule to reading.

James Allen in his book ” As a Man Thinketh” likened the mind of a man or woman to a garden that must be intelligently and intentionally cultivated or risk being overgrown with weed. Reading is one way to cultivate the mind and your ability to choose what you read helps you to stay in control of what goes into your mind.

I did not do much reading immediately after university. I am not sure I did much reading while in university other than what was required to pass my exams. Many years passed and all I did was go to work during the day and watch television at night. Television engages the eyes but does little to stimulate the mind. Yet many spend hours glued to their TV screens and computer monitors. Media statistics on television viewing show that the average person in the UK watches four hours of television a day, this includes time spent watching movies and other video clips on the computer. If you think you cannot find the time to read, how about reducing your television time by one hour a day.

The knowledge accumulated over several years by many successful people and captured in books was within my reach but I was not a reader and so for many years I continued to work hard at my job, making little progress and only able to learn from my own mistakes and those of the people around me. Then I came across this quote ”You are the same today as you’ll be in five years except for the people you meet and the books you read”. Where do you want to be in five years time? I hope you are reading and acquiring the knowledge and skills that will enable you take advantage of opportunities tomorrow as they arise.

Today you have available to you an enormous amount of information, knowledge and wisdom all contained in books. That which took several men and women the whole of their lives labouring and sweating to investigate, learn and understand is now available to you in books. so make the time to learn and grow, become a reader and a leader.

And if you are a reader, then keep at it. The more you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more people you will influence and the more places you will go.