One of the keys to success is to have successful relationships. We are not islands and we don’t get to the top by ourselves. And one of the key ways to grow successful in our relationships is to be “life-giving” people to others. Every person we meet, we either give life to or take life from. You know what I mean. There are people who encourage you and when you are done being with them you feel built up. Then there are others who you feel torn down by. Successful people are people who have mastered the art of building others up.
One of the ways we build people up is to praise them. There is power in praising people! Something begins to happen in them, in you, and in your relationship when you praise someone. Remember a time when someone told you something about yourself in a praising manner? It was great, wasn’t it? You probably liked that person more after they praised you, didn’t you?
Now I am not talking about praising people for the sake of praising people. I am talking about honestly looking for and praising positive character traits and actions of others around you. Don’t lie to people. If they have done something wrong, correct it, but when they do something right, praise it!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Are you making excuses?
No Room for Excuses by R. White
“The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.” You have heard it a million times. However, my guess is that you have never heard it from the mouth of the “rich.” Instead, this echo has most likely bounced to your ear with its origins being an excuse. That’s right... an excuse. Excuses are what many use to pacify their guilt of not accomplishing what they are capable of.
I am not suggesting that wealth is success. My inference is that success is the progressive realization of predetermined worthwhile goals. It may be something as simple as raising a family.
What do these names have in common?
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
They were all President of the United States, right? They were all the most powerful man in the world at one point. However, I am looking for something else.
Richard Nixon was born in the home his father built. He won an award from Harvard his senior year of high school. However, his family was unable to afford his leaving home for college. He instead attended Whittier College.
Gerald Ford was born as Leslie Lynch King, Jr. In 1913 his mother left her abusive husband and took her son to live with her parents. She met Gerald R. Ford, whom she married and gave her child his name Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. He was the only President to be adopted. Ford worked in his stepfather's paint and varnish store growing up. He coached boxing during college to afford his tuition.
Jimmy Carter was the first member of his family ever to go to college and his father was a peanut farmer.
Ronald Reagan was the son of an alcoholic traveling shoe salesman. He worked his way into show business by broadcasting baseball games. At the age of 40, he was divorced and his career was at a dead end.
Bill Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe IV. His father (a traveling salesmen) died in an automobile accident three months before he was born. His mother married Roger Clinton and Bill took that name. Clinton grew up in a turbulent family. His stepfather was a gambler and alcoholic who regularly abused his wife, and sometimes Clinton's half brother Roger.
None of these men were born into wealth and prosperity, yet they each achieved the rank of most powerful person in the world by working hard and not making excuses. These five presidents were born into normal families who struggled. Yet, they refused to use that as an excuse.
Life is too short to make excuses. Set your goals and pursue them. If you have been dealt a “worse” hand than another, it may indeed be a gift that teaches you the value of hard work. Your story will be richer and your success sweeter when you achieve your dreams.
"To solve any problem, there are three questions to ask yourself: First, what could I do? Second, what could I read? And third, whom could I ask?" —Jim Rohn
“The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.” You have heard it a million times. However, my guess is that you have never heard it from the mouth of the “rich.” Instead, this echo has most likely bounced to your ear with its origins being an excuse. That’s right... an excuse. Excuses are what many use to pacify their guilt of not accomplishing what they are capable of.
I am not suggesting that wealth is success. My inference is that success is the progressive realization of predetermined worthwhile goals. It may be something as simple as raising a family.
What do these names have in common?
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
They were all President of the United States, right? They were all the most powerful man in the world at one point. However, I am looking for something else.
Richard Nixon was born in the home his father built. He won an award from Harvard his senior year of high school. However, his family was unable to afford his leaving home for college. He instead attended Whittier College.
Gerald Ford was born as Leslie Lynch King, Jr. In 1913 his mother left her abusive husband and took her son to live with her parents. She met Gerald R. Ford, whom she married and gave her child his name Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. He was the only President to be adopted. Ford worked in his stepfather's paint and varnish store growing up. He coached boxing during college to afford his tuition.
Jimmy Carter was the first member of his family ever to go to college and his father was a peanut farmer.
Ronald Reagan was the son of an alcoholic traveling shoe salesman. He worked his way into show business by broadcasting baseball games. At the age of 40, he was divorced and his career was at a dead end.
Bill Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe IV. His father (a traveling salesmen) died in an automobile accident three months before he was born. His mother married Roger Clinton and Bill took that name. Clinton grew up in a turbulent family. His stepfather was a gambler and alcoholic who regularly abused his wife, and sometimes Clinton's half brother Roger.
None of these men were born into wealth and prosperity, yet they each achieved the rank of most powerful person in the world by working hard and not making excuses. These five presidents were born into normal families who struggled. Yet, they refused to use that as an excuse.
Life is too short to make excuses. Set your goals and pursue them. If you have been dealt a “worse” hand than another, it may indeed be a gift that teaches you the value of hard work. Your story will be richer and your success sweeter when you achieve your dreams.
"To solve any problem, there are three questions to ask yourself: First, what could I do? Second, what could I read? And third, whom could I ask?" —Jim Rohn
Thursday, February 11, 2010
How to recover from a past "injury"!
Watch out for this! by B. Zheng
Let me start with a well-known phenomenon in sport such as motorcycle racing, it can help us to stay on the winning track regardless of what we choose to do in life.
Motorcycle Riders
If you follow motorcycle racing, you see an interesting phenomenon. A motorcycle rider in perfect riding condition would suddenly take himself off the track with no injury or incident in the middle of the race when other motor bikes are simply getting near him.
Further study shows that this is due to some previous injury or incident that had happened to this rider in a race.
Here is what happened. The motorcycle rider could be injured in a previous race, prior to that injury his main focus was mainly on how to ride his own race and control his own bike. After that injury, while he keeps this painful experience in his mind, he is now unconsciously trying to control other riders’ bikes to make sure that he doesn’t get into such a painful situation again. In other words, his focus is now mainly on other riders’ bikes, rather than controlling his own bike and riding his own race.
Anyone observing this rider from a distance can tell him not to waste his time trying to control other riders’ bikes, how can he? But the poor guy just couldn’t help it as his attention is too stuck on his injury in the past.
The problem gets worse from there. Due to his inability to control other bikes in the race, he is now less certain about his ability to control any bikes for that matter, including his own. It is no wonder why his race performance starts to deteriorate. He can get so afflicted that he will take himself out of the race when he sees other bikes are getting too close to him.
Share Traders
Similar phenomenon happens to just about all the share traders. Many of them start with making some good money in the stock market at the beginning, people call this ‘the beginner’s luck’. Until one day they made some unexpected losses that really hurt. From that day on, he started to try to control the stock market and its movement. How can he?
Over time, the share trader’s whole attention is on the market (i.e. like the other bikes in the same race), rather than their own strategy or systems. A few more losses (i.e. injuries) later, they start to react irrationally and doubt their own ability. That is why you see share traders’ common sins as taking themselves out of a winning position too early or not being able to cut losses as they want the market to give back their losses. How can they control the market?
Property Investors & developers
The same phenomenon happens to active property investors and developers, not so much to long term property investors who treat their investment properties as set-and-forget long term assets. When a property investor or developer starts to feel the pressure of their mortgage repayment or lose some serious money from a property transaction, they are ‘injured’ financially.
They start to try to control the external environment such as property prices and interest rates, no different to the motorcyclist trying to control other riders’ bikes. The more they try to do so, the less they feel they are in control. Many once very successful property investors and developers have gradually lost interest in properties after some financial setbacks; they never learn how to put themselves back on the winning track again.
Summary
I can go on and on about this phenomenon in just about everything you can see, just to list a few more here:
• A business operator had a good staffer leave and break his heart. The incident affects how he treats his staff in the future.
• An employee suddenly gets fired by the boss he respects. The incident affects his relationship with all his future employers.
• A wife suddenly gets an unexpected harsh treatment from her husband, which affected her relationship with her husband (or any future relationships) from then on.
• A keen investor goes to an investment seminar with the hope that everything will improve quickly, only to find himself disappointed or ripped off. This affects his attitude towards all seminars.
• The list is endless.
Conclusion
Realizing this phenomenon can solve 50% of the problems one may have in different areas of his life. The reality is that if you are going to race, you can’t avoid the fact that other people run into you every now and then. The question is how you can stay in control of your own race, so that you can win more often than you lose.
In other words, losses are guaranteed, you just need to have more winners than losers.
I haven’t met a single person who has never had any challenges in their race to their financial destination. Unfortunately most people have not been given the tools on how to recover and overcome their past ‘injury’, they take themselves out of the race when they should stay in.
Let me start with a well-known phenomenon in sport such as motorcycle racing, it can help us to stay on the winning track regardless of what we choose to do in life.
Motorcycle Riders
If you follow motorcycle racing, you see an interesting phenomenon. A motorcycle rider in perfect riding condition would suddenly take himself off the track with no injury or incident in the middle of the race when other motor bikes are simply getting near him.
Further study shows that this is due to some previous injury or incident that had happened to this rider in a race.
Here is what happened. The motorcycle rider could be injured in a previous race, prior to that injury his main focus was mainly on how to ride his own race and control his own bike. After that injury, while he keeps this painful experience in his mind, he is now unconsciously trying to control other riders’ bikes to make sure that he doesn’t get into such a painful situation again. In other words, his focus is now mainly on other riders’ bikes, rather than controlling his own bike and riding his own race.
Anyone observing this rider from a distance can tell him not to waste his time trying to control other riders’ bikes, how can he? But the poor guy just couldn’t help it as his attention is too stuck on his injury in the past.
The problem gets worse from there. Due to his inability to control other bikes in the race, he is now less certain about his ability to control any bikes for that matter, including his own. It is no wonder why his race performance starts to deteriorate. He can get so afflicted that he will take himself out of the race when he sees other bikes are getting too close to him.
Share Traders
Similar phenomenon happens to just about all the share traders. Many of them start with making some good money in the stock market at the beginning, people call this ‘the beginner’s luck’. Until one day they made some unexpected losses that really hurt. From that day on, he started to try to control the stock market and its movement. How can he?
Over time, the share trader’s whole attention is on the market (i.e. like the other bikes in the same race), rather than their own strategy or systems. A few more losses (i.e. injuries) later, they start to react irrationally and doubt their own ability. That is why you see share traders’ common sins as taking themselves out of a winning position too early or not being able to cut losses as they want the market to give back their losses. How can they control the market?
Property Investors & developers
The same phenomenon happens to active property investors and developers, not so much to long term property investors who treat their investment properties as set-and-forget long term assets. When a property investor or developer starts to feel the pressure of their mortgage repayment or lose some serious money from a property transaction, they are ‘injured’ financially.
They start to try to control the external environment such as property prices and interest rates, no different to the motorcyclist trying to control other riders’ bikes. The more they try to do so, the less they feel they are in control. Many once very successful property investors and developers have gradually lost interest in properties after some financial setbacks; they never learn how to put themselves back on the winning track again.
Summary
I can go on and on about this phenomenon in just about everything you can see, just to list a few more here:
• A business operator had a good staffer leave and break his heart. The incident affects how he treats his staff in the future.
• An employee suddenly gets fired by the boss he respects. The incident affects his relationship with all his future employers.
• A wife suddenly gets an unexpected harsh treatment from her husband, which affected her relationship with her husband (or any future relationships) from then on.
• A keen investor goes to an investment seminar with the hope that everything will improve quickly, only to find himself disappointed or ripped off. This affects his attitude towards all seminars.
• The list is endless.
Conclusion
Realizing this phenomenon can solve 50% of the problems one may have in different areas of his life. The reality is that if you are going to race, you can’t avoid the fact that other people run into you every now and then. The question is how you can stay in control of your own race, so that you can win more often than you lose.
In other words, losses are guaranteed, you just need to have more winners than losers.
I haven’t met a single person who has never had any challenges in their race to their financial destination. Unfortunately most people have not been given the tools on how to recover and overcome their past ‘injury’, they take themselves out of the race when they should stay in.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
10 Key Traits for successful salespeople
Try rating yourself out of 10 on each trait and add the scores for a total out of 100.
1.
Knowing their numbers
Current sales vs budget, number of open opportunities, presentation to sale conversion rate, number of meetings booked for next week.
2.
Highly organised
Plan each and every day before you start with a to do list and default activity slots in your diary.
3. Confident and Passionate
Belief in your product and that you have a fantastic solution to help your clients.
4. Prospecting
Regularly through networking, referrals and research.
5. Planned
Account plans for each of your top 10 customers with action items and strategy to reach 12 month sales targets.
6. Great Listeners
You're given two ears and one mouth for a reason. Listen well and ask intelligent questions.
7. Professional in all areas
In the way they dress, communicate, prepare for meetings and present their solution and followup.
8. Educated
about the industry and the competition.
9. Thirsty for knowledge
Regularly taking time to grow their knowledge or "sharpen the ax". Have a great sales library.
10. Follow up
Regularly stay in contact with past opportunities and past customers to maintain relationships.
What is your score? How could you make it better? remember the enemy of BEST is GOOD . Good is rarely good enough.
Happy selling
1.
Knowing their numbers
Current sales vs budget, number of open opportunities, presentation to sale conversion rate, number of meetings booked for next week.
2.
Highly organised
Plan each and every day before you start with a to do list and default activity slots in your diary.
3. Confident and Passionate
Belief in your product and that you have a fantastic solution to help your clients.
4. Prospecting
Regularly through networking, referrals and research.
5. Planned
Account plans for each of your top 10 customers with action items and strategy to reach 12 month sales targets.
6. Great Listeners
You're given two ears and one mouth for a reason. Listen well and ask intelligent questions.
7. Professional in all areas
In the way they dress, communicate, prepare for meetings and present their solution and followup.
8. Educated
about the industry and the competition.
9. Thirsty for knowledge
Regularly taking time to grow their knowledge or "sharpen the ax". Have a great sales library.
10. Follow up
Regularly stay in contact with past opportunities and past customers to maintain relationships.
What is your score? How could you make it better? remember the enemy of BEST is GOOD . Good is rarely good enough.
Happy selling
Monday, February 8, 2010
The Rose
Style is not about Money! By Jim Rohn
Lifestyle is style over amount. And style is an art—the art of living. You can't buy style with money. You can't buy good taste with money. You can only buy more with money. Lifestyle is culture—the appreciation of good music, dance, art, sculpture, literature, plays and the art of living well. It's a taste for the fine, the unique, the beautiful.
Lifestyle also means rewarding excellence wherever you find it by not taking the small things of life for granted. With Valentine's Day approaching I wanted to illustrate this with a personal anecdote:
Many years ago my lady friend and I were on a trip to Carmel, California, for some shopping and exploring. On the way we stopped at a service station. As soon as we parked our car in front of the pumps, a young man, about eighteen or nineteen, came bouncing out to the car and with a big smile said, "Can I help you?"
"Yes," I answered. "A full tank of gas, please." I wasn't prepared for what followed. In this day and age of self-service and deteriorating customer treatment, this young man checked every tire, washed every window—even the sunroof—singing and whistling the whole time. We couldn't believe both the quality of service and his upbeat attitude about his work.
When he brought the bill, I said to the young man, "Hey, you really have taken good care of us. I appreciate it."
He replied, "I really enjoy working. It's fun for me and I get to meet nice people like you."
This kid was really something!
I said, "We're on our way to Carmel and we want to get some milkshakes. Can you tell us where we can find the nearest Baskin-Robbins?"
"Baskin-Robbins is just a few blocks away," he said as he gave us exact directions. Then he added, "Don't park out front—park around to the side so your car won't get sideswiped."
What a kid!
As we got to the ice cream store we ordered milkshakes, except that instead of two, we ordered three. Then we drove back to the station. Our young friend dashed out to greet us. "Hey, I see you got your milkshakes."
"Yes, and this one is for you!"
His mouth fell open. "For me?"
"Sure. With all the fantastic service you gave us, I couldn't leave you out of the milkshake deal."
"Wow!" was his astonished reply.
As we drove off I could see him in my rear-view mirror just standing there, grinning from ear to ear.
Now, what did this little act of generosity cost me? Only about two dollars - you see, it's not the money, it's the style.
Well, I must have been feeling especially creative that day, so upon our arrival in Carmel I drove directly to a flower shop. As we walked inside I said to the florist, "I need a long-stemmed rose for my lady to carry while we go shopping in Carmel."
The florist, a rather unromantic type, replied, "We sell them by the dozen."
"I don't need a dozen," I said, "just one."
"Well," he replied haughtily, "it will cost you two dollars."
"Wonderful," I exclaimed. "There's nothing worse than a cheap rose."
Selecting the rose with some deliberation, I handed it to my friend. She was so impressed! And the cost? Two dollars. Just two dollars. A bit later she looked up and said, "Jim, I must be the only woman in Carmel today carrying a rose." And I believe she probably was.
Can you imagine the opportunity to create magic with those around you, and all for the cost of a few dollars, some imagination and care. Remember, it is not the amount that matters but the thought and care that often has the greatest impact upon those you love.
Lifestyle is style over amount. And style is an art—the art of living. You can't buy style with money. You can't buy good taste with money. You can only buy more with money. Lifestyle is culture—the appreciation of good music, dance, art, sculpture, literature, plays and the art of living well. It's a taste for the fine, the unique, the beautiful.
Lifestyle also means rewarding excellence wherever you find it by not taking the small things of life for granted. With Valentine's Day approaching I wanted to illustrate this with a personal anecdote:
Many years ago my lady friend and I were on a trip to Carmel, California, for some shopping and exploring. On the way we stopped at a service station. As soon as we parked our car in front of the pumps, a young man, about eighteen or nineteen, came bouncing out to the car and with a big smile said, "Can I help you?"
"Yes," I answered. "A full tank of gas, please." I wasn't prepared for what followed. In this day and age of self-service and deteriorating customer treatment, this young man checked every tire, washed every window—even the sunroof—singing and whistling the whole time. We couldn't believe both the quality of service and his upbeat attitude about his work.
When he brought the bill, I said to the young man, "Hey, you really have taken good care of us. I appreciate it."
He replied, "I really enjoy working. It's fun for me and I get to meet nice people like you."
This kid was really something!
I said, "We're on our way to Carmel and we want to get some milkshakes. Can you tell us where we can find the nearest Baskin-Robbins?"
"Baskin-Robbins is just a few blocks away," he said as he gave us exact directions. Then he added, "Don't park out front—park around to the side so your car won't get sideswiped."
What a kid!
As we got to the ice cream store we ordered milkshakes, except that instead of two, we ordered three. Then we drove back to the station. Our young friend dashed out to greet us. "Hey, I see you got your milkshakes."
"Yes, and this one is for you!"
His mouth fell open. "For me?"
"Sure. With all the fantastic service you gave us, I couldn't leave you out of the milkshake deal."
"Wow!" was his astonished reply.
As we drove off I could see him in my rear-view mirror just standing there, grinning from ear to ear.
Now, what did this little act of generosity cost me? Only about two dollars - you see, it's not the money, it's the style.
Well, I must have been feeling especially creative that day, so upon our arrival in Carmel I drove directly to a flower shop. As we walked inside I said to the florist, "I need a long-stemmed rose for my lady to carry while we go shopping in Carmel."
The florist, a rather unromantic type, replied, "We sell them by the dozen."
"I don't need a dozen," I said, "just one."
"Well," he replied haughtily, "it will cost you two dollars."
"Wonderful," I exclaimed. "There's nothing worse than a cheap rose."
Selecting the rose with some deliberation, I handed it to my friend. She was so impressed! And the cost? Two dollars. Just two dollars. A bit later she looked up and said, "Jim, I must be the only woman in Carmel today carrying a rose." And I believe she probably was.
Can you imagine the opportunity to create magic with those around you, and all for the cost of a few dollars, some imagination and care. Remember, it is not the amount that matters but the thought and care that often has the greatest impact upon those you love.
Service leads to sales, if you know how to act and how to ask.
Service Leads to Sales. By J. Gitomer
Every time a customer calls it’s an opportunity. The only question is: how are you taking advantage of it?
Answer HELLO! Not a thank you for the call, telling me how important it is while you put me on hold for the next available agent, or to “serve me better” ask me to select from among the following eight options.
Selecting from among the following eight options is not one of MY options – and I have the money – and you want the money – and you need the money – so wise up.
The last things to cut are sales, service, and training. The FIRST thing to cut is executive pay, then management pay, then eliminate middle management as needed. OR MAKE THEM SALESPEOPLE, and have them contribute to the effort.
Meanwhile customers need help, service, and answers. Your ability to help them in a timely manner and serve them memorably determines your reputation and your fate.
HERE’S HOW TO SERVE:
• Start friendly NO MATTER how they act or talk.
• Get off your high (pc) horse.
• Don’t worry about how you feel – worry about how they feel.
• Ask them how you can help them the most.
• Help them with whatever they need.
• Don't tell them what you can't do, tell them what you can do.
• Get them to agree that the solution you offer, or answer they need, is the one they are expecting, and the one they are pleased with (not “satisfied” with).
• Engage them personally during the conversation.
• Make CERTAIN customers are happy as a result of the call.
• Follow through on your promises with action and communication.
Here’s the secret to service success:
• Keep it short - but get the info you need to help them.
• If the customer is angry, keep it real short, but arrange a second call after the resolve. Tell them what will happen in their favor, and tell them fast.
Follow up with the unexpected to set up a sale. I refer to it as: PLUS ONE
• Email thanks. Tell them how much you enjoyed talking to them and how much you appreciate their business.
• Email them back their idea or suggestions.
• Email them back their solution, or your promise to repair.
• Have a salesperson call after the situation was resolved.
CUSTOMER REALITY:
• I don’t want to wait on the phone.
• I especially don’t want to listen to your self-serving messages as I wait.
• I don’t want to wait on line.
• I don’t want to be told no.
• I don’t want excuses about why you can’t.
• I don’t want to hear about your policy.
• I don’t want to donate to your charities.
• I want help, I want YES, and I want it fast.
CUSTOMER REALITY: At the end of any transaction, that’s when the customer STARTS talking about you. They will say one of five things about what transpired: something great, something good, nothing, something bad, or something real bad. And whatever they say leads to the next sale – either at your place, or your competition’s place.
Every time a customer calls it’s an opportunity. The only question is: how are you taking advantage of it?
Answer HELLO! Not a thank you for the call, telling me how important it is while you put me on hold for the next available agent, or to “serve me better” ask me to select from among the following eight options.
Selecting from among the following eight options is not one of MY options – and I have the money – and you want the money – and you need the money – so wise up.
The last things to cut are sales, service, and training. The FIRST thing to cut is executive pay, then management pay, then eliminate middle management as needed. OR MAKE THEM SALESPEOPLE, and have them contribute to the effort.
Meanwhile customers need help, service, and answers. Your ability to help them in a timely manner and serve them memorably determines your reputation and your fate.
HERE’S HOW TO SERVE:
• Start friendly NO MATTER how they act or talk.
• Get off your high (pc) horse.
• Don’t worry about how you feel – worry about how they feel.
• Ask them how you can help them the most.
• Help them with whatever they need.
• Don't tell them what you can't do, tell them what you can do.
• Get them to agree that the solution you offer, or answer they need, is the one they are expecting, and the one they are pleased with (not “satisfied” with).
• Engage them personally during the conversation.
• Make CERTAIN customers are happy as a result of the call.
• Follow through on your promises with action and communication.
Here’s the secret to service success:
• Keep it short - but get the info you need to help them.
• If the customer is angry, keep it real short, but arrange a second call after the resolve. Tell them what will happen in their favor, and tell them fast.
Follow up with the unexpected to set up a sale. I refer to it as: PLUS ONE
• Email thanks. Tell them how much you enjoyed talking to them and how much you appreciate their business.
• Email them back their idea or suggestions.
• Email them back their solution, or your promise to repair.
• Have a salesperson call after the situation was resolved.
CUSTOMER REALITY:
• I don’t want to wait on the phone.
• I especially don’t want to listen to your self-serving messages as I wait.
• I don’t want to wait on line.
• I don’t want to be told no.
• I don’t want excuses about why you can’t.
• I don’t want to hear about your policy.
• I don’t want to donate to your charities.
• I want help, I want YES, and I want it fast.
CUSTOMER REALITY: At the end of any transaction, that’s when the customer STARTS talking about you. They will say one of five things about what transpired: something great, something good, nothing, something bad, or something real bad. And whatever they say leads to the next sale – either at your place, or your competition’s place.
Friday, February 5, 2010
When Performance is Measured, Performance Improves
When performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported back, the rate of improvement accelerates. T. S. Monson
Measuring performance is always a difference maker for individuals or organizations. Often, however, failure comes because the measuring isn’t connected to a one-on-one reporting back of the performance. This leads to meetings where everyone’s eyes gaze at the floor, shoulders shrug and heads shake back and forth – all dismayed that the goal wasn’t met, but no one taking personal ownership or committing to personal improvement.
There is something powerful about individualized reporting back on performance. Olympic athletes and concert musicians understand what happens in the dynamics of a “coaching” relationship. This doesn’t mean you have to spend a lot of money to hire a coach. (There are huge benefits in coaching – the key is to get a coach and path that is right for you.)
Almost anyone can serve as your accountability or report back person. Most people will be thrilled you thought of them enough to ask. And that is all it takes. Simply share with them a particular goal or area of performance, give them the time frame and ask if they would mind if you called them back (or if they would call you) for a simple accounting or reporting back.
Also be certain when you are working with employees or with members of your organization that you also create opportunities for specific reporting back on performance. Without it employees flounder and groups or teams get lost in activities instead being focused on improvement and results.
With simple reporting and accountability the difference in performance can be profound. If you truly want to accelerate the rate of your improvement in any area of life or business - measure and report your performance.
Measuring performance is always a difference maker for individuals or organizations. Often, however, failure comes because the measuring isn’t connected to a one-on-one reporting back of the performance. This leads to meetings where everyone’s eyes gaze at the floor, shoulders shrug and heads shake back and forth – all dismayed that the goal wasn’t met, but no one taking personal ownership or committing to personal improvement.
There is something powerful about individualized reporting back on performance. Olympic athletes and concert musicians understand what happens in the dynamics of a “coaching” relationship. This doesn’t mean you have to spend a lot of money to hire a coach. (There are huge benefits in coaching – the key is to get a coach and path that is right for you.)
Almost anyone can serve as your accountability or report back person. Most people will be thrilled you thought of them enough to ask. And that is all it takes. Simply share with them a particular goal or area of performance, give them the time frame and ask if they would mind if you called them back (or if they would call you) for a simple accounting or reporting back.
Also be certain when you are working with employees or with members of your organization that you also create opportunities for specific reporting back on performance. Without it employees flounder and groups or teams get lost in activities instead being focused on improvement and results.
With simple reporting and accountability the difference in performance can be profound. If you truly want to accelerate the rate of your improvement in any area of life or business - measure and report your performance.
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