What does success look like?

What does success look like?

Jan 10, 2019 | Focus, Quote, You

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.”

Franklin D Roosevelt

You’ve arrived – or so you think!

Our eldest son was about three.  One day, as we were taking a reluctant walk on a miserable day in January, I announced with false enthusiasm, “Yeah!  We’re there.”  “Where’s there?” asked our 3 year old. And then, with far more insight than his father….. “Looks like nowhere to me.”

When will you have arrived?  What does success look like or mean for you?  Is arrival the goal or is it the journey?  

A financial planner friend told me recently that the biggest financial mistake she sees people make is that once they reach some financial goal that they have set for themselves, rather than being satisfied and enjoying that particular lifestyle, they then want more. It’s the classic mistake of get a better paying job, buy a bigger car, bigger house, take more expensive vacations.

Early in my career I had a very strong sense of meeting with a client high up in an office building overlooking a large expanse of water.  A couple of years later I found myself in a meeting with the Regional President of a client in his Buenos Aires office overlooking the Rio de la Plata.  It was uncanny.  Ever since, I have used visualisation to help me focus on what I am looking to achieve.

Imagining what your destination might look like is an excellent first step towards knowing when you’ve arrived.
How to build your tribe?

How to build your tribe?

Dec 13, 2018 | Quote, Tribe

“By failing to prepare, we are preparing to fail.” 

Benjamin Franklin

In life, as in work, we aim to plan for many things.

Somewhat grudgingly I know that what Benjamin Franklin tells us is right.  How about you?  Even if we don’t always enjoy planning or are not very good at it, we know that planning makes it more likely that whatever we are wanting to make happen is more likely to succeed.

So why not a people plan – a plan to build our tribe?

A friend of mine recently decided that he would introduce two different people from his network of contacts every week.  The two criteria for introducing people were that they did not already know each other and my friend thought there could be some positive benefit to each person arising from the introduction.  This could range from simply being that he thought they would like each other, to someone who was looking for legal advice and he introduced him to a lawyer.  Critically, he was not looking to gain anything from making the introductions.

Within six months he had made 25 different introductions.  He estimated that he had generated over $300,000 worth of business for different people.  And it all came from an idea and meeting over coffee.

Within that same period, he started to get introduced around himself.  He drank more coffee!  His own tribe grew.  He also got offers of work that would generate over $450,000 worth of work for his small business.

So how can you build your tribe?  What’s your people plan look like?
On commitment

On commitment

Nov 30, 2018 | Quote, You

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back.  Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”

Goethe

We love that quote.  A while back, a coaching client asked us,  “When does coaching not work?”  Antoinette and I both said, “If you don’t do what we agreed you were going to do.”  Of course that is not the only reason.  But it is often the case that the reason why people don’t get what they want or get to where they want, is that they never take positive effective action.  Part of what makes any action truly effective is your commitment to it.  Commitment is like rocket fuel.  Whether at work or in life, you can overcome both ice and fire.  

And magic often does happen – even for penguins!