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About GOALS

by Rick Baker
On Feb 3, 2012

Do you regularly achieve the business goals you set?

If you do then Great! You are among the Highly Successful minority.

If you do not regularly achieve your business goals then this Thought Post provides some ideas that will help you if you take heed and then take Action.

Write down your goals.

Every business guru will tell you that. Business gurus have been telling business leaders that for at least 100 years. For at least 50 years, reputable scientific studies confirm it is sound advice....when you write down your goals you increase the likelihood you will achieve them.

Yet, most people do not write down their goals. And, based on what we have seen during our interviews of 400 businesses, very few people - I mean, very few people - write down goals in a manner that maximizes the likelihood of achieving the desired future results.

The method for setting MAXIMIZER GOALS is simple. And, it really isn't that time-consuming. Yet, for a number of reasons, people avoid it. It boils down to a matter of discipline.

We are living through a business era where discipline is being tested to its limits...and, more often than not, discipline is failing the test.

Inject some discipline into your business processes.

Inject some goal-setting discipline.

There are simple tools for goal setting. Spirited Leaders offers a number of free tools. Here are links to a couple of our 1-Page Tools: SMART Goals and SMARTACRE Goals.

 

Footnote:

Here's a link to Brian Tracy's 2010 book - GOALS! In this book he provides his thoughts about

"7 Keys to Goal Setting: 

  1. Goals must be clear, specific, detailed, and written down
  2. Goals must be measurable and objective
  3. Goals must be time bounded
  4. Goals must be challenging
  5. Goals must be congruent with your values and in harmony with each other
  6. Goals must be balanced
  7. You must have a definite purpose for your life"

Tags:

1-Page Tools | Entrepreneur Thinking | Goals - SMARTACRE Goals

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Thought Tweet #404

by Rick Baker
On Feb 2, 2012
Thought Tweet #404 If you could only build one thing, what would it be?

 

The Thinking Behind the Tweet

For leaders, this question can be a reality check. After all - deep down - doesn't every leader and every aspiring leader want to build something?

Tags:

Entrepreneur Thinking | Leaders' Thoughts | Thought Tweets

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INITIATIVE...TAKE IT!

by Rick Baker
On Feb 2, 2012

INITIATE.

Few people excel at it.

Why?

Probably because, at some point in their lives, they embraced once-burned-twice-shy thinking. Or maybe they succumbed to the criticism of some well-meaning authority figure. 

Really, it doesn't matter why many people struggle to INITIATE. 

What matters is, regardless of the past, people can learn how to overcome their reluctance to INITIATE.

Here are a couple of suggestions on how to help people INITIATE:

  1. Understand, at least, the basics about the human brain. Understand the executive functions of the brain1. Understand, INITIATE is one of the executive functions. For the most part, our brains operate along habit lines. INITIATE can be a habit. Or, it can not be a habit. That's a matter of choice. Like any other habit, it takes time to build the INITIATE habit.
  2. Give yourself an INITIATE pep talk...or, better still, let Seth Godin2 give you an INITIATE pep talk. Check out his recent audio-book 'Poke The Box'. In this book, Seth champions a new way to do business under 7 Imperatives3. Seth puts INITIATIVE at the top of the list of his 7 Imperatives.
And, of course, practice INITIATIVE...focus...think...make decisions...take Actions.
 
Sure, you will make more mistakes...that's the way to learn.
 
INITIATE: that INSPIRES people!

 

Footnotes:

  1. A link to an article about Executive BrainSmartsTM INITIATE.
  2. A link to Seth Godin's video-introduction to his 2011 book 'Poke The Box' 
  3. Seth Godin's 7 Imperatives: (1) Be aware of the Market, (2) Be Educated, (3) Be Connected so People Trust you, (4) Be Consistent, (5) Build an Asset, (6) Be Productive, & most-important (7) Take INITIATIVE.

 

Tags:

Attitude: Creating Positive Attitude | Entrepreneur Thinking | Habits: Good Habits, Bad Habits, & New Things | INSPIRE PEOPLE - GROW PROFITS!

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How to Build Self-Confidence - #1

by Rick Baker
On Feb 1, 2012

This is the first in a series of Thought Posts about building self-confidence.

To get started, here is our definition of self-confidence:

Confidence is what you feel when you believe you have what it takes to excel, do well, or at least handle the task and situation at hand

Now, here are some facts about Confidence:

  • each of us has Confidence, at least some of the time
  • our Confidence levels ebbs and flows
  • many factors influence our Confidence: situations, other people's actions, amount of sleep
And, of course, a healthy level of Confidence is a very good thing.
 
So, how might we build Confidence? 
 
First, let's check out some advice from experts.
 
Today, we will start that process with Jack Canfield's Six Confidence-Building Strategies 
  1. Every day remind yourself that you did some things well. Give yourself a mental pep talk at the beginning and the end of the day.
  2. Read inspiring biographies and autobiographies: build a file of the stories that inspire you most.
  3. Be thankful. Focus on the benefits you enjoy.
  4. Build excellent support around you. Excellent relationships will boost you.
  5. Push yourself to accomplish short-term goals. Get things done.
  6. Do something for yourself every week. Celebrate your accomplishments.
What about Jack Canfield's 2nd recommendation: read inspiring biographies and read stories that inspire you?
 
Do you do that?
 
There is no question, Spirited Leaders do that. I imagine Spirited Leaders have always done that...from sitting around campfires listening to the elders and chiefs tell their stories to reading about Mahatma Gandhi or Alexander the Great to watching inspiring movies.
 
Great Leaders study the lives, the successes, and the defeats, of other great Leaders. They do this for several reasons. They do this to inspire themselves. They also do this to learn. Knowledge is a key to Strength and Strength is a key to Self-Knowledge and Self-Confidence.
 
 
 
 

Tags:

Attitude: Creating Positive Attitude | Entrepreneur Thinking | Hero Worship | INSPIRE PEOPLE - GROW PROFITS! | Values: Personal Values | Wisdom: Surviving the Test of Time

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Some Questions about DELIVERS

by Rick Baker
On Jan 13, 2012

The most-successful leaders take regular time outs to ask themselves tough questions.

The main reason they ask themselves questions is to better understand how well they are performing as leaders.

And the  most-successful leaders write out the answers to these questions so they do not have to rely 100% on their memories when they perform periodic reviews of their leadership performance.

What sorts of questions do the most-successful leaders ask themselves?

Answer: here is a sampling of...

Some Questions about DELIVERS

Are my people making better choices than the choices my competitors are making? [Discipline]

Are my people expending their energies in constructive ways? [Energy]

Are my people learning from their mistakes? [Learning]

Do I really know what motivates my people? [Intention]

During a typical workday, what percentage of the time are my people focusing on business? [Vigilance]

Do I understand what my people are trying to communicate to me? [Empathy]

Do my people believe they will achieve their business goals? [Resolve]

How often do my people deliver near-perfect performance? [Strengths]

Tags:

Communication: Improving Communication | Entrepreneur Thinking | Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | STRENGTHS: People-Focused for Success

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Frisbee Business

by Rick Baker
On Dec 14, 2011

"I wondered why the Frisbee was getting bigger, and then it hit me."

Steven Wright delivered that line in his somewhat-nasal, soft, and slow voice.

And, I laughed.

Whenever I think of that joke it reminds me of something I observe when I look at businesses and listen to business people.

I call it Frisbee Business.

Here are some Frisbee Business examples I have seen, over and over again:

  • I wondered why our accounts receivable were getting bigger, and then it hit me.
  • I wondered why our bank debt was getting bigger, and then it hit me.
  • I wondered why our supplier demands were getting bigger, and then it hit me.
  • I wondered why our partner problems were getting bigger, and then it hit me.
I will not argue, experience is the best teacher. Yes, the School of Hard Knocks is a very good school. But, sometimes the School of Hard Knocks delivers such knock-out blows. And, sometimes the knock-out blows are death-blows. We have seen lots of those death-blows during the past few years.
 
Business Frisbees, including the ones I wrote above, can deliver death-blows.
 
Once you identify a Business Frisbee address it quickly and definitely. Get your hands on Business Frisbees and wrestle them into submission while they are small enough to handle. If you find the Business Frisbee is too big to handle then do not think you can duck it...chances are 9-out-of-10 you cannot duck it. Immediately - get help from someone who can handle it.
 
I offer this advice in an effort to help people avoid the hardest of knocks.
 
 
 
 
 

Tags:

Entrepreneur Thinking | Solutions & Opportunities

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Copyright © 2012. W.F.C (Rick) Baker. All Rights Reserved.