The One Thing Your Team Wants You to Stop Doing

The One Thing Your Team Wants You to Stop Doing
by VINEET NAYAR
December 21, 2012

The other day, on the sidelines of a conference, a bright young manager sought my advice. "I've tried using different leadership styles, but I can't seem to dispel my team's sense of disengagement," he confessed. "I don't understand what I'm doing wrong."

"Why don't you ask your team?" I asked him.

The reply surprised him, but there's no point in complicating leadership. As I described in a previous post, time-tested leadership traits are quite simple to adopt. Yet, as recent reports confirm, there's a growing disconnect between teams and managers. Why?

On a hunch, I decided to conduct a flash survey of my social media universe. "What's the one thing you'd like your boss to stop doing?" I asked on Facebook, Twitter, and HCL's internal social media platform, Meme.

The number of responses that poured in shocked me. Everybody had something to say about that, and seemed to be waiting to be asked. The top pieces of advice:

Don't obfuscate; tell it like it is. That's typical of Gen Y, which wants its leaders to call a spade a spade. "Tell it like it is, stop worrying about hurting people's feelings," said one response. The next was even more direct: "Stop being outwardly nice and be vocal about dissatisfaction with my efforts." A third went a step further: "Let people know where they really stand. They know how to win if we tell them the score."

No rose-tinted spectacles for today's employee; they have the pluck to look at their failures and successes and have little patience for circuitous comments.

Stop telling me what I know. Coach me, enable me, support me... was the message, over and over again. Give us "freedom, exposure, and guidance," wrote a young lady on Facebook, which was echoed on Twitter by "Learn to let go... Create the platform for your team to perform and back them by providing guidance and support."

I could hear my kids' voices in some of these comments. Trying to teach today's Google-bred generation often blurs the lines between student and teacher; the former will tell you a thing or two that you didn't know. It's time leaders moved from being knowledge-providers to enablers.

Don't stray; walk the talk. Megaphone managers have thrived for too long; people now want their leaders to be the change they advocate. They're looking for role models, which was evident in comments such as: "Walk the talk and set me an example. I need to know that we are in it together," and "Do away with the lack of congruence between your actions and your words because I need to trust you."

Mahatma Gandhi's success as a leader is usually attributed to character traits such as vision, courage, conviction, and perseverance, but what's less known is the fact that he always practiced what he preached.

Stop playing favorites. Even if organizations have adopted key performance indicators with measurable goals and outcomes, it is worth reflecting whether they apply to us . A couple of comments: "A horse and a monkey cannot both be judged on the basis of which can climb trees." Or "Reward performance, not sycophancy."

We can all put a name to the employee who steadily rose up the corporate ladder despite weak performance because he was affable and didn't bruise anyone's ego. That was rampant until measurable goals came along, but the bad news is that it still happens. Indeed, the need to measure and be objective cannot be stressed enough.

Don't be a boss, be a leader. There was an unmistakable call for appreciative, empathetic, respect-worthy leaders. "Lead by example, not by rules," wrote one young man on Facebook. "Stop trying to control people...," added another. A third quoted Gordon Selfridge: "A boss inspires fear, a leader inspires enthusiasm."

These aren't isolated cases. As confirmed by the Kelly Global Workforce Index in September 2012, which studied the Leadership Disconnect in 30 countries, less than 4 out of 10 employees (38%) are satisfied with their current management's leadership styles. So if you see a decline in your team's enthusiasm, it may not necessarily be the economy! You may want to check if there's a disconnect between your leadership style and your team's expectations.

Remembering Mr. Ziglar !

As 2012 comes to an end I pay homage to a wonderful human being, a mentor, a leader of excellence and an amazing person of discipline !

I will always remember your teachings Mr. Ziglar...would have loved to have met you !

The Key to Success

The Key to Success: 5 Ways to Building Mega Credibility

Written By Brian Tracy | Sales Success | December 12th, 2012 |

The key to success as a sales professional is to sell the very most and earn the very most that you possibly can.  As it turns out it takes just as long to become a sales superstar as to remain an average performer.  The choice is up to you.

As our society becomes more and more high-tech it will require more and more high touch in the field of selling to balance it out and add value.  The better you get at selling, the more opportunities you will have.  According to recent research, fully 5% of self-made millionaires in America are salespeople who have sold for another company or companies all their lives.  The reason they are successful is because they became very, very good at selling and earned a very high income.  They then saved and invested a substantial part of their income as they went along.  And so can you.

Your Key to Success

Today it takes credibility for you to get an appointment with the customer.  But it takes mega credibility for you to get the sale.  Mega credibility is defined as credibility that is far above and beyond an appeal to just quality and service.  It is credibility that is far beyond anything your competitors might be offering at the same time, this is your key to success.

Add Value and Build Mega Credibility

There are five keys to building mega credibility and unleashing your key to success.  The first is the salesperson – yourself.  Your credibility is so important that you can make or break the sale simply by your appearance and by your personality.

FREE REPORT: Everyone is a Salesperson

There are three parts to personal mega credibility.  They are: dress, grooming, and accessories.  Top salespeople dress for success and know that everything counts.  You should read a book on the subject of dressing for success in business for men or women and then make sure that you look like the kind of person that a customer would be comfortable taking advice from, or give money to.

Look at the top salespeople in your field and then both dress and groom yourself the way they do.  Fully 95% of the first impression you make on a customer will be made by your clothes.  This is because your clothes cover 95% of your body.  Don’t leave anything to chance.

The second part of mega credibility is the reputation of your company, how long it has been in business, and how large it is.  Fully 85% of sales today are based on word of mouth.  This goes back to positioning and how your company is thought of and talked about by customers and non-customers in the marketplace.  The bigger and more positive your reputation, the easier it is for customers to accept your recommendations and to go ahead with the purchase.

The third part of mega credibility is testimonials.  A letter from a satisfied customer, a list of happy customers, or even photographs of happy customers can add value and builds mega credibility in the sales conversation.

Often, people will not buy a product or service until they know who else has bought the product or service and been happy with it.  Be sure to volunteer this information clearly in your sales conversation.

The fourth part of mega credibility is the presentation.  A well thought out, completely professional customer focused presentation can add value to the product or service and actually increases the price you can charge for it.  A good presentation builds credibility to a high degree, and the credibility overcomes the fear and misgivings that hold most customers back.

The fifth ingredient of mega credibility is the product or service itself.  Your presentation should demonstrate clearly that the customer will be much better off with what you are selling than he or she would be with a competitive product or with the money that it costs.  The sale is made in the presentation.

Everything Counts

And here is the great rule for sales success.  It is this: everything counts.  Everything counts.  Everything you do in a sales situation either helps or hurts.  It either moves you toward the sale, or moves you away.  It is either increasing your credibility or decreasing your credibility.  But nothing is neutral.  Everything counts.  All top sales professionals know that everything counts.  They leave nothing to chance.  And neither should you.

Thank you for reading this post on the keys to building mega credibility and how to add value to your prospective customers. Please share this article with others and comment below!

Professional Development: A Must for Today’s Worker

Professional Development: A Must for Today’s Worker
SHALA MARKS | November 15, 2012 |

It’s no secret that our world is ever changing. Back in 1998 when it was just coming on the scene, most people were asking “What’s a Google?” Today, 14 years later, Google is the number one search engine on the web. Dinosaur-like cellular phones and pagers have transformed into sleek, lightweight iPhones and PDAs. Hand-written letters have been swapped for emails and landlines are being traded in for Skype. Things like social media and augmented reality have changed the way we connect with others, even inside the workplace.

Our society will always be evolving and, in order to be successful, we have to adapt and keep up with the evolution. Just like we cannot keep our old habits with new technology, we cannot stay the same in our professional careers. Industries change and it’s the worker’s job to follow that change. And what better way to keep up with the trends than to invest in professional development?

Professional development programs are an extremely important component to any company. Most employers that offer such programs are more attractive and appealing to job seekers because it shows them the companies support the advancement of their employees. Similarly, participating in professional develop for an employee shows companies the individual is dedicated to his or her career growth. Specialized workshops, seminars, classes, and conferences for your profession are all great ways to take your career to the next level. How so?

Opportunities for developing new skills. Professional development courses and trainings are all about education. You will get the chance to learn new information, tactics and methods specific to your position or field, thus developing a new skill set. These courses can also help sharpen the skills you already possess.

Staying up-to-date with your industry. You should desire to be the best at what you do and a part of that comes from being in the know within your industry. Understanding the ins and outs of your field and keeping current on what’s new, what’s old and what is to come can give you the upper hand when it comes to succeeding in your field. How can your company properly supply the needs of customers if it doesn’t know the current demand? Regular professional development can ensure you stay up-to-date with what’s happening in your industry.

Building your network. We all know the power of networking; professional development simply opens another door for it. As you travel to conferences and attend trainings you will meet various people within your industry who may be essential to your future success.

Strengthen your personal brand. Have you ever heard the saying you are your own brand? Today more than ever this holds true. Your actions, your credential and your expertise are what speak for you as a professional. Why not allow professional development programs to help with that? By participating in professional development, you’re only strengthening your personal brand as employers see the effort you put in to advance yourself and skills in the field. This especially holds true for professional development done outside of work.

Remain competitive in the industry. Business is a competition. You want to be the best: offer the best service, provide the best products and find the best solutions. The same is true as an employee. Hundreds of people apply for one position. And even after you land the job, many more wait, ready and willing to take your place if you fail. To move up the ladder, you will have to remain competitive and professional development can help you do just that. That extra training session or course you took provided you with an extra skill or some knowledge another worker may not have.

Benefit yourself and the company. Professional development is a two-way street. You’re growing as an employee and, in turn, helping the company to grow by the new skills and expertise you bring to the table. Now who doesn’t love a win-win situation?

Retail associates should be doing, but probably aren't...

Retail Experience.com has some great sharing ...
As Dale Carnegie's sixth principle teaches us, the sound of a person's name is the sweetest and most important sound to that person. It is an immutable truth, because our name is not just a few letters on paper — it's a part of who we are. If you look at your social security number (also something that identifies you), you probably don't feel any emotion. But your name? That's you.

For the past few months, I've made a conscious effort to address people by their names, specifically people who you normally would not. The person who makes your sandwich at the deli. The young girl who rings up your groceries. The teller at the bank. These are people who have always worn name tags as a matter of course, but those name tags seldom serve any purpose — we normally just mumble a "thanks" and then move on.

It has been astonishing to me to notice how it impacts people like this, to hear their name spoken right after that "thanks." Eye contact where there wasn't any before. A smile. A mood that has visibly been lifted. This is no longer just the guy who makes my sandwich or the girl who sells me groceries. This is Peter, and that is Susan. It is validating to them as human beings.

Now, this is me as a shopper, addressing the service employee. Why isn't this happening the other way around?

Because the fact is, unless you're dealing with a cash transaction, your retail associates have the name of the customer embossed on the little rectangular piece of plastic that is handed to them at the moment of sale. How many of them think to take a half-second to look down at that name, then thank the customer by that name?

Again, for cash transactions this is a moot point. But I would submit that for all credit and debit transactions, there is no excuse for your associates to not thank their customers by name. It's simple, it costs nothing, and it can be transformative for your relationship with your customers.

Non-Verbal Mistakes...!

by ClassesandCareers.Learn about infographic design.

Working on Motivation

3 Lessons on Motivating Employees by Not Working on Motivation

Recognize This! – You can’t “leverage” motivation, but you can encourage it.

An excellent article by Scott and Ken Blanchard in Fast Company. There are several important points in the article, a few of which are highlighted here.

The greatest motivator is freedom to do the job.
You hired smart, capable people. Why not let them do the job you hired them to do? Yes, they need (and want) guidance and direction, but they don’t need (or want) micromanagement. Give them control.

“You can’t control motivation. While traditional carrot-and-stick levers can influence behavior in the short term, they do not create the intentions to apply discretionary effort and work collaboratively that are required in today’s more sophisticated work environments. …

“We are finding that giving people a chance to succeed in their job and setting them free to a certain degree is the key to motivation, as opposed to trying to direct and control people’s energy. It’s really about letting go and connecting people to their work–and each other–rather than channeling, organizing, orchestrating, and focusing behavior.”

Leadership must be on board for culture change.
Unless your CEO very visibly sets the examples – and lives that example out every day in his or her own actions – then culture change at any level will not happen.

“Without a shift in thinking at the top of an organization, it is almost impossible to change an organization’s culture. A study conducted years ago shed some light on the role of senior leaders in changing organizational culture and behavior. The study concluded that the CEO’s disposition and personality had everything to do with the company’s service orientation and collaborative mindset.”

Employees need to know where they fit in the big picture.

Help people connect to each other and their work by encouraging everyone in the organization to notice appreciate and formally recognize the good work others are doing when it is in line with strategic objectives and conducted in line with desired behaviors (the what as well as the how).

“Today we realize that control doesn't work. Find a way to connect your people with the big picture. Create an environment free of fear and anxiety. Leaders don’t need a new lever–they need a new approach to bringing out the best in people. Give a little bit. You’ll be surprised at what can be accomplished when people are free of fear and find their motivation within, instead of being controlled by external carrots and sticks.”

Give them the insight they need into where they fit by letting everyone paint the picture.

Inspired & Engaged

4 Ways Twitter Keeps Its Workforce Inspired and Engaged

In just two years Twitter has gone from having no obvious revenue and an unclear business model to a successful company that is getting the attention of Wall Street and Madison Avenue alike. eMarketer projects Twitter will beat Facebook in the critical fight for mobile advertising revenue in 2012, and other sources project Twitter to generate $1 billion in revenue in 2014.

With rapid growth, 1,300 employees and approximately 30 new hires a week, how does Twitter make sure they are building a strong company, values-based culture, and keeping employees inspired and engaged?
I recently spoke with Twitter Head of Organizational Effectiveness and Learning, Melissa Daimler, who shared key factors that continue to drive their high levels of engagement.

1. CEO-led Management Sessions. Dick Costolo, who assumed the Twitter CEO role in October of 2010, believes that a big part of building a strong business starts with building strong managers. Just as Jack Welch personally taught courses at the famed GE University, Costolo leads a “Managingat Twitter” session at least once a quarter.Rejecting the use of slides, Costolo uses stories, leverages his own best practices and incorporates role-playing exercises to engage the managers in the class. The opportunity to spend this much time with the CEO to understand his management point-of-view sets the example of great management throughout the company. He is currently working on the next iteration of this class called “Leading at Twitter”.

2. Measure it. Most companies conduct an employee satisfaction survey occasionally or at most once a year. Twitter executes their “pulse” survey every six months. Short and focused, the survey of approximately 15 questions measures current engagement levels and includes open ended questions to capture employees’ ideas for improvement. A monthly people dashboard also stays on top of attrition levels, learning impact, and organizational span of control.

3. Focus on the Core. Traditional employee engagement efforts often fail because they are complicated and programmatic. Twitter values simplicity, which is why it developed just five core skills that every employee (from individual contributors to managers & leaders) is working toward. They aren’t just competencies, but, rather, skills that will be woven into how people are being evaluated and recognized. They are: Communication, Development, Direction, Change and Collaboration. Twitter wants people to learn every day. Establishing core skills to focus on helps employees with a context for doing so.

4. Give authentic & fearless feedback. I previously wrote an article on Feed forward Coaching that explained that Growth is a top driver of engagement, thus enabling managers to provide future-oriented, ongoing performance-improving feedback is a critical skill—for everyone. Although there is currently a twice-a-year official performance review process at Twitter, the emphasis is increasingly on giving continuous feedback—up, down, and across. Quarterly learning labs are being launched to support employees in both giving & receiving feedback. It even starts in Costolo’s management session where he stresses the importance of defining what success looks like in each role, setting the direction, and just as critically, giving feedback in an open, authentic and fearless way.

Whether your own organization is a fast-growing startup or an established Fortune 500 company, Twitter’s focus on consistent approaches to feedback and learning is an approach that can be emulated to drive high levels of emotional commitment and engagement.

Build on Trust...

You Can't Be a Great Leader Without Trust

Here's How You Build It 

This article is by David Horsager, author of  The Trust Edge: How Top Leaders Gain Faster Results, Deeper Relationships, and a Stronger Bottom Line.

Among all the attributes of the greatest leaders of our time, one stands above the rest: They are all highly trusted. You can have a compelling vision, rock-solid strategy, excellent communication skills, innovative insight, and a skilled team, but if people don’t trust you, you will never get the results you want. Leaders who inspire trust garner better output, morale, retention, innovation, loyalty, and revenue, while mistrust fosters skepticism, frustration, low productivity, lost sales, and turnover. Trust affects a leader’s impact and the company’s bottom line more than any other single thing.

Move up http://i.forbesimg.com tMove down

One of the biggest mistakes a leader can make is to assume that others trust him simply by virtue of his title. Trust is not a benefit that comes packaged with the nameplate on your door. It must be earned, and it takes time. As a leader, you are trusted only to the degree that people believe in your ability, consistency, integrity, and commitment to deliver. The good news is that you can earn trust over time, by building and maintaining eight key strengths:

• Clarity: People trust the clear and mistrust or distrust the ambiguous. Be clear about your mission, purpose, expectations, and daily activities. When a leader is clear about expectations, she will likely get what she wants. When we are clear about priorities on a daily basis, we become productive and effective.

• Compassion: People put faith in those who care beyond themselves. Think beyond yourself, and never underestimate the power of sincerely caring about another person. People are often skeptical about whether someone really has their best interests in mind. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is not just an old saying. It is a bottom-line truth. Follow it, and you will build trust.

• Character: People notice those who do what is right ahead of what is easy. Leaders who have built this pillar consistently do what needs to be done when it needs to be done, whether they feet like doing it or not. It is the work of life to do what is right rather than what is easy.

• Contribution: Few things build trust quicker than actual results. At the end of the day, people need to see outcomes. You can have compassion and character, but without the results you promised, people won’t trust you. Be a contributor who delivers real results.

• Competency: People have confidence in those who stay fresh, relevant, and capable. The humble and teachable person keeps learning new ways of doing things and stays current on ideas and trends. According to one study, the key competency of a successful new MBA is not a specific skill but rather the ability to learn amid chaos. Arrogance and a “been there done that” attitude prevent you from growing, and they compromise others’ confidence in you. There is always more to learn, so make a habit of reading, learning, and listening to fresh information.

• Connection: People want to follow, buy from, and be around friends—and having friends is all about building connections. Trust is all about relationships, and relationships are best built by establishing genuine connection. Ask questions, listen, and above all, show gratitude—it’s the primary trait of truly talented connectors. Grateful people are not entitled, they do not complain, and they do not gossip. Develop the trait of gratitude, and you will be a magnet.

• Commitment: People believe in those who stand through adversity. People trusted General Patton, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mohandas Gandhi, Jesus, and George Washington because they saw commitment and sacrifice for the greater good. Commitment builds trust.

• Consistency: In every area of life, it’s the little things—done consistently—that make the big difference. If I am overweight, it is because I have eaten too many calories over time, not because I ate too much yesterday. It is the same in business. The little things done consistently make for a higher level of trust and better results. The great leaders consistently do the small but most important things first. They make that call and write that thank you note. Do the little things, consistently.

Trust can’t be built overnight. It requires time, effort, diligence, and character. Inspiring trust is not slick or easy to fake. Trust is like a forest. It takes a long time to grow and can burn down with a just touch of carelessness. But if you focus on these eight components with every action, you will foster trusted relationships—whether with employees, customers, suppliers, or fellow leaders—that will drive results and the bottom line.

Today is the R I G H T time...

Time...how do you manage it!

Five Keys to Creating an Uplifting Service Culture

Five Keys to Creating an Uplifting Service Culture

You can unleash superhuman strength in your company's culture by following simple instructions on a safety poster, says consultant Ron Kaufman

Recently I was walking through a distribution warehouse to meet a client. Hanging on the wall were safety posters instructing employees how to lift heavy boxes. Most of us have seen these posters many times. This was the first time I stopped to read one.

"Ron, are you ready to get started with the meeting?" asked the vice-president showing me around the building.

 "I want to read this," I replied. "Can I take a second?"

As you can imagine, the VP's facial expression registered confusion over my interest in a standardized safety poster.

Soon I was seated in the boardroom with a table full of executives. The conversation focused on an obvious lack of performance that was affecting the company's bottom line. "Mr. Kaufman," said the chief executive. "You're a service guru. We already have a fantastic service department. And we don't get many customer complaints. But this is a cultural issue. Is this really something you can help with?"

Don't Leave It to a Department

I've heard these types of comments for more than 20 years, in all corners of the globe and inside some of the world's most recognized heavyweight organizations. The perception of many companies is that service is something handled by a department or a specific job title. It's something only necessary to customer satisfaction.

"Would you mind if we talked about your safety posters?" I asked the CEO.

My seemingly odd question captured the CEO's attention. Safety posters offer a simple, best practice to lift anything heavy, like a package, a tool—or even an entire culture. The posters instruct employees to stretch properly, position their body carefully, and use their strongest muscles. Plus, they tell employees to study and practice proper habits continuously.

When it comes to uplifting a culture—engaging people, motivating people, building loyalty, increasing performance, and creating a sustainable advantage—many companies pass by service as a solution, because somehow the concept has been improperly labeled.

I define service like this: 'taking action to create value for someone else'. Those are powerfully simple words. So consider the impact of an uplifting service culture, a shared purpose within every aspect of your business, interaction, and transaction, from the boardroom down through the front line, where everyone focuses on creating value for someone else both internally and externally. Imagine the effect on performance, engagement, customer loyalty, employee retention, value, and competitive advantage.

 "Let's talk about the basic instructions for lifting anything," I said to the group. "Let's use the instructions of a safety poster to talk about building an uplifting service culture."

1. Stretch. Yes, there are calisthenics for your culture. Stretch your mind and your old habits. Get the creativity flowing. Ask the big questions of why: Why do we need to change? Why service? Why now?

2. Position yourself. Lifting a culture requires proper positioning and support from all levels. Leadership must lead service. And everyone else must make himself or herself a service leader.

3. Use your strong muscles. The architecture of your company is akin to physiology. Muscles need flexing. Blocks need building. The building blocks of your culture, such as communication, recognition, vision, and metrics, need shaping. Analyze each block to understand which needs improvement.

4. Study. Educate your team with continuous exercise and understanding. Just because I read the safety poster once doesn't mean I will perform properly. True education means I can perform based on the knowledge I have acquired and the practices I have learned.

5. Practice. Results really pay off here. Practice is the action of continually seeking improvement. It's the correcting, steering, and adjusting to find continued success.

Build your Attitude...

Tips to Keep you in Business

Here are some tips to keep you in business as shared by Barbara Wold

1. Stay positive. Attitude is a big difference between the winning and losing businesses this year. Every employee needs to do his or her part in keeping a positive outlook. Take a leadership role and turn negative colleagues positive. The press will be looking to cover how bad things still are, but your customers will be looking for businesses that make them feel good. Make a customer feel great and a sale will follow. 

2. Take action on the things that move you toward your goals. Delegate It, Ditch It or Do It! Keep focused on the final outcome and plan each day around doing the action steps that move you ahead.

3. Stand out by showcasing your uniqueness. Give your customers a unique experience that they can't get anywhere else.

4. Get more creative. When times get tough, business is down or our marketing budget is cut is when most of us start to get creative and think outside the box. But just think how much more you can achieve if you get in the habit of being more creative all the time.

5. Succeed one day at a time. If you have a bad day -- shake it off. If you have a good day -- do it again. You make your month by making your week. You make your week by making your day. You make your day by making your hour.

6. Maximize every customer opportunity. Make your day by focusing on the needs of every single customer.Don't let your guard down and miss even one sale, because that one sale could be the difference in success or falling short.

7. Don't pre-judge what a customer is going to spend. Customers aren't a survey in the newspaper. Customers aren't a sales projection in some pundit's article. Customers are unique individuals who offer us a unique opportunity. Give them a unique experience and you're sure to be rewarded.

8. Be a better salesperson every single day. Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Keep showing products until the customer says they're done. Focus on increasing your average sales and unit-per-transaction.

Gary Vaynerchuk’s Business Success Advice

 Gary Vaynerchuk’s Business Success Advice

Inspirational Running Video

Les Browns 6 Keys To Self Motivation

The Legendary Les Brown’s 6 Keys to Self Motivation

By Joel

Over the years Les Brown’s audio tapes, books, radio shows and speeches have inspired millions around the world to improve the quality of all areas in their life.

We came across the Keys To Self Motivation by Les Brown and have found these keys very helpful in improving and planning our self motivation. Read on, take note and enjoy!

 Self Mastery

One of the things we MUST always be working on is achieving Self Mastery.

You must work on yourself continuously, never be satisfied with yourself. Always know that as you invest the time and effort on you that’s the greatest ability that human beings have above animals. A dog can’t be anything but a dog, a tree can’t be anything but a tree.

Human being you've got unlimited potential, you can put effort on you, and by concentrating on you and developing you, you can transform your life no matter where you are right now.

 

Stop Settling

Most people settle, What have you settled for lately? You know when you make an out of court settlement that means that you have decided to take something less than you originally wanted to get had you gone in to court and the reason that you've settled out side of court is because you didn't believe that you could get it. Many of us are making an ‘In life Settlement’. We are settling for less than what we actually deserve. We don’t feel good about it but we make it work in our minds.

 Develop A Health Plan

You can’t perform if you don’t have good health, your health is VALUABLE. Develop a health plan, a plan that you will follow because this is the only vehicle that you have to carry you through this experience we call LIFE.

 Live Life with Energy & Passion

You want to make a conscious effort to be lively. In life you either ‘sing hello or sing goodbye’. You are either ‘on your way or in the way’. You want to smile, you want to be happy, you've got a lot to be thankful for.

 Monitor Your Inner Conversations

The things that you say to yourself, you want to watch them and in watching them you want to take charge.

Short circuit and override that conversation that’s always going on, 85% of what that conversation will tell you is NEGATIVE. It will tell you that you’re tired when you’re really not tired, it will tell you you can’t do it, it will fill you with FEAR. So you've got to watch that conversation, and when you find it going on you've got to stand up to it and say “I’m gonna do this anyhow, I’m afraid but I’m afraid not to do it, and I’m not gonna let you stop me”. The biggest challenge in life that you will have is with you.

There is an old African Proverb that says, “When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.”

Know Why You Are Doing It

It is important to know why you are doing it, because your mind will say “Why bother?” “Why go through all of this?”, “This is too hard”.

Here’s how you can override that… Write down 5 reasons why you deserve it, why you? why do you deserve it? “What meaning and value will it bring to your life”, “what’s so different about you, that you deserve your goal?”

When you write down those 5 reasons, when you have those down moments and you will have them, When that conversation starts talking to you, and it will start talking to you, what you can do is, you can pull that out and read it and it will build you up. It will be your rod and your staff to comfort you through some challenging moments, because you’re gonna have some. Life will knock you between the eyes, it will catch you on the blind side and come out of nowhere, stuff you can’t anticipate. That’s why it is important for you to work on your self, listening to tapes, building yourself up, talking to yourself with power, feeling and conviction, building yourself up day in and day out.

Great Leaders Serve - Servant Leadership Works

Great Leaders Serve - Servant Leadership Works

Perspective ??????

Listening Skills Win Sales

Must share with you all something interesting I came across...

Listening Skills Win Sales

Written By Brian Tracy | Daily Thoughts | December 7th, 2010 | 6 Comments »

Communication skills are the foundation of almost everything you do.

Your ability to master effective communication will largely contribute to your success in life.

Non verbal communication is just as important as verbal communication.

There are books, articles and multi-day courses on communication skills. There are audio/video-learning programs that include hours of instruction and a variety of exercises on effective communication.

They are all valuable and helpful, but what they teach can be distilled down into a key skill. Your mastery of thisnon verbal communication skill, through discipline and practice, is all you need to become an excellent listener, with all that it entails.

Listen Attentively When Others Speak

The best listening skill is your ability to  listen attentively. Lean forward; face the prospect directly rather than at an angle. Focus your attention on the prospects face, on his or her mouth and eyes.

Hang On Every Word

Listen without interruption. Listen as though you were hanging on every word the prospect was saying. Listen as if the prospects were about to give you the winning lottery number and you would only hear it once. Listen as if this were a million dollar prospect that was just on the verge of giving you a major order. Listen as if there were no one else in the world to which you would rather listen at this moment than this prospect, and to what this prospect is saying.

The Most Important Skill of All

The ability to pay close, uninterrupted attention to a person when he is speaking is the primary listening skill. It is the hardest facility to develop and is simultaneously the most important of all. It requires continuous practice and discipline. And it’s not easy. It is hard to keep your thoughts from wandering, but the payoff is tremendous.

Action Exercises

Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action, sharpen your listening skills, andmaster effective communication.

First, imagine that your customer is the most fascinating person in the world. Hang on every word as if he was about to place a million dollar order.

What do you think are the barriers of listening.......?

The Steps of Successful Delegation

1. Define the task

Confirm in your own mind that the task is suitable to be delegated. Does it meet the criteria for delegating?

2. Select the individual or team

What are your reasons for delegating to this person or team? What are they
going to get out of it? What are you going to get out of it?

3. Assess ability and training needs

Is the other person or people capable of doing the task? Do they understand what needs to be done. If not, you can't delegate.

4. Explain the reasons

You must explain why the job or responsibility is being delegated. And why to that person or people? What is its importance and relevance? Where does it fit in the overall scheme of things?

5. State required results

What must be achieved? Clarify understanding by getting feedback from the other person. How will the task be measured? Make sure they know how you intend to decide that the job is being successfully done.

6. Consider resources required

Discuss and agree what is required to get the job done. Consider people, location, premises, equipment, money, materials, other related activities and services.

7. Agree deadlines

When must the job be finished? Or if an ongoing duty, when are the review dates? When are the reports due? And if the task is complex and has parts or stages, what are the priorities?
At this point you may need to confirm understanding with the other person of the previous points, getting ideas and interpretation. As well as showing you that the job can be done, this helps to reinforce commitment.
Methods of checking and controlling must be agreed with the other person. Failing to agree this in advance will cause this monitoring to seem like interference or lack of trust.

8. Support and communicate

Think about who else needs to know what's going on, and inform them. Involve the other person in considering this so they can see beyond the issue at hand. Do not leave the person to inform your own peers of their new responsibility. Warn the person about any awkward matters of politics or protocol. Inform your own boss if the task is important, and of sufficient profile.

9. Feedback on results

It is essential to let the person know how they are doing, and whether they have achieved their aims. If not, you must review with them why things did not go to plan, and deal with the problems. You must absorb the consequences of failure, and pass on the credit for success.

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Three Ways to Work Smarter

The Endless To-Do List

Three Ways to Work Smarter

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Your inbox is overflowing. You have three different to-do lists, including one on your mobile device. Not to mention the one in your head. Dread is creeping in and wrecking what used to be a job you were passionate about. It’s time to make some changes.
“Most of your dread doesn’t come from the work itself. It comes from how you think about the work,” says Jason Womack, a workplace performance expert, executive coach and author of Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More . “The psychological weight of unfinished tasks and unmade decisions is huge. There is a constant feeling of pressure to do more with less. You can’t change that reality… but you can make peace with it.”
First, Womack says, you’ve got to accept that you are never going to get it all done. The to-do list is updated daily. Instead, try giving yourself the satisfaction of a job well-done with these work-smart tips:

• Time blocking and prioritization. Look at your to-do list, figure out where you have blocks of time to act on those items and then prioritize. “I keep my defined ‘work’ actions to 15 to 30 minutes each,” Womack says. “These are the chunks of time I can use to stay focused, minimize interruptions and work effectively.”
• Take technology shortcuts by setting up a Microsoft Office rule that sorts incoming emails to specific folders. Or keep your current projects in a cloud folder so they’re accessible on the go. If you don’t know how, ask someone who’s tech-savvy to help.
• Figure out what distracts you. Identify what is blocking your ability to give all of your attention to what needs your attention. Is it the constant ding of emails? Mute the alert sound. Is it employees or colleagues who need “just a minute” of your time? Block off visitation hours. Once you know the triggers, you can begin to make subtle changes so that you wind up getting more done.