Success is an Open Mind

What does this mean? What is a Closed Mind?

Have you ever noticed – when you get a new car that you thought was “uncommon and distinctive” – that once you are driving around in it – just how many of then there are on the road!

Or – How you can manage to pick up on a conversation that piques your interest across a crowded room… Or even – just how stunningly attractive that person across the room is – and yes – they seem to have noticed you – how the rest of the people in the room fade into fuzzy insignificance.

We can somehow “Tune Out” the background noise and concentrate on just exactly the sounds we are focussed on?

Have you ever wondered how this happens?

Have you ever been frustrated that you can’t seem to find people wanting to listen to you about your product or opportunity?

The first examples are of an “Open Trained Mind” – The frustration comes from having a “Closed Mind” – or working with people that have a “Closed Mind” .

With a “Closed Mind” they never see the answer to their problem even though it may be staring them in the face; they never see the opportunity they are desperately seeking to change their financial situation. They never find new customers or new team members to recruit.

Try this simple test – Think of an uncommon luxury car…. Don’t make it too hard on yourself – Choosing a Zonda or a Mclaren F1 are probably not good choices – I tried this the other day thinking of a Mercedes CLK hardtop convertible – Silver of course…

When I got off the train in the city, I had to walk about 6 blocks to reach my appointment – and I was “convinced” that I would see this Silver CLK – and guess what? – After just 2 blocks – there it was! – stopped at the traffic lights while I waited to cross. I checked the tag on the back just to make sure it really was a CLK – and not an imposter.

Was I cheating? – was the Mercedes dealership right across the street fro the train station? – NO – and let me tell you – there aren’t too many CLKs in my city!

Why did I see it? There may have been a little “manifesting” – have you read or watched “The Secret” – Was the Law of Attraction working for me? – Possibly, but the real reason was simple that I was expecting to see one – and so my subconscious mind was tuned to see it..

At the base of our brain is the “Reticulum” – the section of our brain that filters everything that comes into our brain and directs the impulses to wither our subconscious brain or our conscious brain – By being “convinced that I would see a CLK”, I set the filter to search for a CLK – and when I saw one, I became aware of it.. If I hadn’t set the filter – I probably wouldn’t have even noticed it.

But what point is there in all this? – The driver didn’t get out and hand me the keys – they just drove off when the light turned Green…

Simple – By convincing ourselves of a Positive Outcome, we can achieve that positive outcome. If we “tell ourselves” that something will be difficult – like finding a new customer, or recruiting a new team member; nobody wants to know about my products, nobody wants to join my business team… Then that is exactly what we will get – No sales, No recruits. No Business. Failure…

On the other hand – If we go in with a Positive attitude – (Where have I heard that before???)

We will be more aware of the signals that people give us every day that they are looking for a solution to a problem that we can help them with – Either by purchasing our product or by joining our team. OK- so they won’t be queued up at your door as soon as you open it – but you will find that by “opening your mind to successful positive outcomes” – you will notice more and more of the “right kind of people” more opportunities to discuss what you have to offer.

Open your Mind to Success. Don’t open it to failure by keeping it closed.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Success is an Open Mind.

How To Win Over People

You have a great idea that will increase revenue and improve profits, but you have a challenge on how to win over people. There will be the typical naysayers who will be able say exactly why it will not work. There may be supporters but can they overcome the negativity of the naysayers?

There are ways on how to win over people to help implement your great idea despite the negativity of naysayers.

Often people get carried away by a small group of people who are typically very supportive of initiatives that are rolled out. These people do not need winning over.

On the other hand, there are the naysayers who typically know all the reasons why an initiative will fail and are resistant to management initiatives. These people can really drain your enthusiasm and energy if you let their negativity get to you.

The good news is that you do not have to focus on the naysayers! The more you focus on them, the greater the power you are allowing this group.

Other than the supporters and the naysayers, there are a whole bunch of people, who form the greater number of your employees. The technique is to focus on these people.

They are neutral and with the right presentation of the initiative and the benefits it will bring to the organization, this group of people can be won over to help you implement the initiative. Remember to make sure you include benefits to the individuals to motivate them in making it a success.

Of course, the supporters will be a great help in moving this forward. Once the resistors see the rest of the organization supporting the initiative, there is little else they can do but to join in. If they really feel opposed to the idea, they may leave. That, however, may be better for the organization.

While the group of people to focus on is a key part of the technique, it is crucial that the leader is mentally tough. This is a key ingredient in winning over people.

Mental toughness is the ability to remain internally focused, relaxed, determined and confident in the face of the external stress that you will face. You need to be able to perform at your peak even under pressure.

Be mentally tough. Be determined and persevere against whatever objections and the related stress that comes with it.

This is possible if you are convinced that the initiative you are planning has been thought through and thorough. Your sheer belief that it can succeed will give you the motivation and the mental strength to see it through.

In driving the initiative, it is best to work on things that you have full or at least limited control. It is also important to let go of things that you cannot change.

Another point to note will be not to create any more resistance than is necessary by controlling every aspect. While you provide guidance for delegated tasks, make sure that you give enough freedom.

If there is any resistance, do not take it personally. The resistance is targeted at the initiative or the extra work that needs to be done.

If it is against the initiative, take this as a good sign as people are actually giving thought to it. Take some time to study this and you might get some valuable feedback that will help you improve on the initiative.

Resistance to the extra work and needing to learn new things is normal in any organization when change happens. Just go about your normal steps in managing change.

Consider these factors when you next think about how to win over people for the next initiative or project that you want to launch.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – How To Win Over People.

Luck Has Nothing To Do With Success

Sometimes people give too much credit to luck for the success of others. If you studied carefully the traits of these people, you will find that luck has nothing to do with success. What are these traits?

1. Talk with people they do not know

If you think about some of the things you have achieved, you will realize that some of them came out of talking with people you have not met before. People who are in sales will know this better than most others, as this is something that they need to do.

2. Make small talk

Make conversations about anything under the sun. It does not have to be very intellectual topics. It could be about kids, food, health, books, the traffic or even the weather. This talk can sometimes lead to other discussions like a business deal or working on some project.

3. Do something different

Sometimes we move on autopilot doing the same thing and seldom something different. But think about others and even yourself, when you chose to do something different. This could result in a complete new path and even new careers for some people.

4. Exit when you are ahead

How often have you seen very successful people hold on to their positions long after their popularity has waned? This applies to heads of organisations, entertainers, politicians amongst others.

It is best to move on at the peak of popularity and people will remember you at your best.

5. Saying “Yes” when others say “No”

With the heavy workloads that some people carry, time management principles suggest that you say “no” to additional tasks. Sometimes, you may be throwing away opportunities if you rejected all such requests.

Consider carefully first, and take on some tasks that may result in you getting “lucky”.

6. Listen with empathy

Listening with empathy helps to provide the most appropriate response that begets appreciation from others. Not just listening to what you want to hear and dishing out the standard responses.

7. Giving and getting help

Not only is it good to help people when needed but also to ask for help if necessary. There is no great value in trying to do everything through your own knowledge and effort. It just takes too long to achieve things that way.

Luck has nothing to do with success. Any luck is made through how you choose to respond to the daily happenings in life. Step out of your norm and make your luck.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Luck Has Nothing To Do With Success.

How to Develop Leadership Skills

Leadership abilities come naturally to some, but for many, leadership skills have to be honed and developed. Observe the following requirements to improve and build upon your leadership skills.

Be Committed & Responsible

People are more likely to follow you if they perceive you as committed. Show commitment by following through on your promises. Accept responsibility for your successes and failures – playing the victim is not an option. Follow up on issues and review projects regularly to make sure you have done all you can. Keep an eye on projects so that you can head off problems.

Don’t accept failure. Look for ways to turn failures into successes. Think outside the box and make an effort to improve your weaknesses.

Education and Training

If your level of education is holding you back, bite the bullet and sign up for the appropriate course. A curious mind is an asset, as leaders are expected to have a good standard of education and general knowledge. Choose a topic and spend half an hour a day researching it – this should build your knowledge base.

Positive Mental Attitude

Be the best you can be by spending time on self development. Condition your mind to reject negative attitudes – try NLP (Neuro-Linguistic programming) to channel your mental energy. Read self-help and motivational books, and the biographies of prominent leaders. Immerse yourself in the arts: do an art appreciation course. A commitment to positivity will bring about that relaxed countenance that many successful leaders exhibit.

Inner Circle

Besides your family, cultivate an inner circle of people who build you up. In your work environment, surround yourself with colleagues you can trust; people who have the right skills for the job. Spend time with friends who make you feel good about yourself.

Be Disciplined

Always arrive early for appointments. This shows that you are disciplined and respect other people’s time. Seek the support of your family in everything you do.

Be Courageous

Strength and courage in the face of adversity is a must. Trouble comes with the territory but be determined to face it off. People will respect you more if you show courage.

Optimise Communication Skills

People make assumptions about your level of education based on the way you speak and write. When speaking, pay attention to the way you form sentences and pronounce words. If need be, do a business English course.

In written communication, avoid long, drawn out sentences. This is frowned upon, as it represents the old style of business communication. Plain English is now the acceptable standard for business English. Sentences should be short and contain simple phrases. Know your audience and tailor your communication appropriately.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – How to Develop Leadership Skills.

Decision Making For Good Leadership

Decision making is of prime importance for good leadership. Generally it is thought that a good leader takes all decisions and they have to be the best.

In this modern age it is impossible for one person to take all the decisions and for all the decisions to be the best. There are too many unseen variables and too many people involved in implementation for a leader to take all the decisions and for them to be the best ones.

However, understanding the types of decisions and the people involved in making them can help the leader to manage the complexity of decision making. The factor that makes decision-making easier and the types of decisions are given below.

Decisions are Data Based

A good leader makes decisions based on data, which is analysed for patterns of information. The information is then used to make thought-through decisions.

While it is true that you cannot know everything, doing an analysis of available data about a predicament will, nevertheless, lessen risks of failure.

While all decisions need to be data-based, there are at least four different kinds of decisions.

1. Paradigm Decisions

Paradigm decisions are those which provide guidelines for decision making for all people in an organisation or team.

Decisions such as: Having a smoke-free organisation, having a non-discriminatory people policy, etc. are paradigm decisions.     They help team members and leaders to take the right decisions when they are faced with a dilemma.

Such decisions need to be made with the involvement of everybody. The consensus process is a very useful methodology to make such decisions.

2. Policy Decisions

Policy decisions are necessary to provide for resources and official permission for the operations of an organisation.

For instance, if the Performance Appraisal Process needs to be reviewed, then a couple of policy decisions need to be taken. A decision needs to be taken to set up a committee which will analyse the existing process. The different teams in an organisation need to volunteer a representative to become members of the committee.

The management team needs to allocate money and time for this team to function and come up with an insightful report.

All decisions that are taken to ease the functioning of the teams are policy decisions.

Policy decisions are taken in a participatory mode with the involvement of everybody who will be involved in the execution of the task.

3. Procedural of Functional Decisions

Procedural decisions are taken by a few people who will be carrying out the plans/policies/goals of the organisation or who will be impacted by the decision. These are decisions that will help implement a process.

For instance, outlining the procedure of recruitment and selection in an organisation, is a process of detailing the actions that a team will take when they follow this procedure. It will also detail the actions to be taken if there are exceptions.

4. Structured Decisions

Structured decisions are taken by individuals who are directly executing the plans of the organisation. These decisions are informed by the data available to the employee, the procedures/structures that have been put in place, and the knowledge of the policies and paradigms of the organisation. The decision maker could be the CEO or the security guard at the gate.

Understanding the kinds of decisions, the number of people who need to be involved in taking them, provides the leader with a confidence to take decisions – sometimes alone and sometimes with others.

This will also give the leader the confidence in the decisions of his team members – as they are taken with an understanding of the values and procedures of the organisation.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Strategy – Decision Making For Good Leadership.

21st Century Leadership – A People Focused Approach

One of the greatest challenges of leadership is the definition. There are literally thousands of books, documents, and lecturers that have each defined what their idea of leadership is.

There are definitions for corporate leadership, civic leadership, home leadership, and more. We attempt to break down leadership and make it more complicated than it is. At its core, leadership is an individual achieving results through people.

In many cases you are considered a leader if you hold a particular title, have a certain set of personality traits, a particular skill, or lucky enough to be a born leader. None of these by itself define leadership, mainly because leadership is an individual decision.

Just because someone is in a leadership position doesn’t mean they necessarily exercise leadership. In some cases the informal leader exhibits leadership even though they aren’t in a leadership role.

The people focused leader is adaptive and receptive to change. They  understand the need to change in order to stay a step ahead in order to meet the demands and challenges of a rapidly changing marketplace. They have a vision for their organisation that is clearly communicated throughout and the ability to influence at all levels in order to meet organisational goals and objectives.

The people focused leader realizes that it’s not just management that drives performance in the organisation, but also its people. Happy employees are productive employees. The people focused leader understands the importance of creating an environment that encourages diverse views and stimulates employees to take initiative, work as a team, and continuously learn.

The people focused leader has the interpersonal skills to develop relationships throughout the organisation especially in the new millennium where many workers have more knowledge than those that are leading them.

The people focused leader is quickly replacing the autocratic leaders of yesterday. They recognize the importance of the people element to be critical to the success of the organisation.

With the marketplace becoming more global, competitive, and turbulent, characterised by a highly mobile, skilled, and educated workforce. The people focused leader will need to demonstrate their “people skills” to drive organisational performance and business success.

As we move forward in the new  millennium leadership will be the

differentiating factor between successful and unsuccessful organisations.

Rapid innovation and quality improvements will require even greater effort from the workforce in the future, and those that are able to change, influence, and transform his/her organization will be ready to lead their organisations well into the 21st century.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Strategy – 21st Century Leadership – A People Focused Approach.

Are You A Born Leader?

People are not born with any particular skill. We are all born afraid of falling and of loud noises, but after that everything else is learned. So it is to become a leader.

Leaders are made not born. Leadership skills are acquired over a period of time based on several factors. Here are 5 of them.

1. Leaders come in all different shapes and sizes.

It is interesting to study effective leaders. At face value they are all different. They all have developed their own style based on their own personality and what works for them.

2. A true leader accepts responsibility.

Everything from how they speak to how they act is part of being responsible. It is easy to follow them because you know where they are going and know they will lead you as well.

3. Leaders work at being leaders.

They are always improving their skills and learning from the situations they are in. They study people and have learned how to effectively interact with them to get what they want.

4. Leadership starts at the top, but is best achieved when developing a team atmosphere.

Leaders know they can do better when people are working together for one common goal. Sharing in leadership is part of this process. Making everyone accountable for what they do, but judging success on the overall efforts of everyone.

5. Situations call for different types of leadership. A well-rounded leader is able to adapt to their surroundings and lead accordingly. Coaching a football team is an example of this. Sometimes the players need a kick in the rear and other times they need a pat on the back.

6. Leaders are respected for what they have accomplished in the past. A real leader can speak from a position of practical experience and know they will be listened to because they speak from that vantage point. A respected leader is able to command more from his people than a leader who is not.

7. Leaders seek opinions and compile ideas before forming a game plan. Good leaders know that they cannot come up with every idea that will work. By allowing input they are able to make a more responsible decision.

As you can see leaders have skills and they use them to accomplish something every single day. You can become a good leader if you are willing to work and to learn how to become one.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Strategy – Are You A Born Leader?.

Are You a Boss or Leader?

There’s a difference between being a boss and a leader. Which one are you?

Webster’s definitions of a boss include: A person who exercises control over others and makes decisions, usually the person of highest rank or authority, a supervisor, a person who commands in a domineering manner.

In contrast the definitions for a leader include: A person who rules, guides, inspires, escorts, directs, influences, persuades, and is out and ahead of or at the head of others. They have influence, power, and commanding authority over those they lead. They tend toward a certain goal or result, are in the foremost position, and usually “pull” people toward what becomes a common vision.

People usually follow a leader because they want to rather than have to.

Influential leaders, who lead with great ethics, whether they are Presidents, Kings, corporate CEOs, Girl Guide or Scout leaders, bear some traits in common. They are passionate about what they do and what they believe in; they are visionaries, can see the “big picture,” and are driven inside to draw people into what they believe – to jump on the train with them.

A boss in a grocery store sees shelves that need to be stocked, employees that need to be scheduled, doors that need fixed, floors that need to be cleaned, and the year-end staff social that needs to be planned. They work toward these ends, seeing them to fulfilment, sometimes in very creative ways.

A leader in a grocery store sees those things too, but he or she also feels excitement about being in business, or about making profit from people’s need for food and daily household products and how that profit can be poured back into the store to make it superior over other grocery stores.

They care about and inspire, their staff, realizing that they are the front line ambassadors of the store. They not only see where the store is at now, but they also envision what it will look like or how it will impact their community ten years from now. Whether they actually own the store or not, they make the store their own.

With a good leader, people usually feel drawn, or “pulled”, into the same vision. Have you ever gone into a store or restaurant and been treated so well by the staff there that you just knew that you would return again? Not only did you just receive knock-your-socks-off customer service, but you also met employees empowered by the vision of a true leader.

A leader usually develops and motivates leaders under them. People who get “fired-up” and captivated by the vision and rise to the occasion.

For leaders, leadership is a way of life. If there’s leadership spontaneously required at a gathering, leaders will step up to bat, even if it’s just to open a door as people arrive.

Can a boss be a leader? Definitely.

The question is: Which one are you? Or rather, maybe the question should be: Which one would you like to be?

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Strategy – Are You a Boss or Leader?.

7 Techniques to Motivate Your Team Members

You can motivate your team members externally or internally. External motivation relates to the working environment. However, internal motivation relates the interests, aptitudes and dreams of your team members.

Here you shall find seven critical motivational techniques to get the best out of your subordinates.

1. Reward and Consequences: It is the most popular technique being used by the managers. It mobilises motivational energies in the team players. The reward can be in the form of special promotions, raises or words.  However, excessive use of this tool may create jealousy amongst your subordinates to disturb the working environment. Fear of consequences also plays an important role. You need to be careful here too. A wrong consequence at a wrong time may backfire. Just create a balance.

2. Setting of Goals: Setting of well-defined goals helps your team members to do their best. Set meaningful and justified deadlines to get the project finished within time. You need to work at two levels. First, set your objective. Second, divide that objective into goals and sub-goals.

3. Advisory Techniques: No one is perfect. Being a team leader you must always be ready to offer advice when your team members face some stumbling block in their performance. Encourage them to remove their weaknesses and continue what works for them.

4. Praise and Criticism: This motivational technique is similar to ‘reward and consequences’ technique. A word of praise or criticism shall have definite results upon your subordinates. However, like rewards and consequences, this technique should also be used carefully. Sometimes your team members will do better with criticism and other times they will stop working.

5. Success and Failure: To motivate your team members, you should analyze their successes in open and failures in your office. Most of the people like to continue doing what is working for them. Don’t try to change their style unless you find them failing to achieve what you desire of them.

6. Competition: It is the strongest motivational technique to get the best out of your subordinates. You can use this technique very effectively when combine with setting of efficient goals. Competitive

circumstances will help your team members to perform the best.

7. Interests of Team Members: Do you know what interests your subordinates? Just find out those interests and entrust them with tasks that they love to do. It will increase their efficiency on one hand and speed of the project on the other. Random allocation of tasks may not be too helpful to all of them.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Operations & Resources – 7 Techniques to Motivate Your Team Members.

7 Tips To Achieve Peak Performance

Do you find yourself struggling to complete your work at home or at the office, despite all the organisational training that you have attended? Try out these tips to achieve peak performance.

1. Know What Motivates You: If you can figure out what it is that motivates you to provide the best performance, then you can create these circumstances to help you. So often, there are competing activities with which we are torn apart. Sometimes we just do not feel motivated enough to start on a task. Start by identifying what motivates you. Then you can make the right preparations to get you moving on with the most important tasks at hand.

2. Decide Your Priority Items For The Day: A simple activity of listing all the actions required and prioritising them can a make a significant difference. Make sure you prioritise the activities, to ensure that at least the significant ones get completed.

In planning for the day, do not overwhelm yourself by planning more than you can finish. Set appointments with yourself over a few days. When each of the days arrive, the activities for that day gets into your list for the day. Listing and prioritising your activities is half the battle won.

3. Take Action As Planned: Use your list of prioritised activities to take action. Your thinking and planning has been done. Now is the time for you to focus on getting the activities completed.  It is so easy to get distracted with phone calls, emails or chat with a colleague who drops by.

Set aside a given time frame to handle emails. For people who drop by, take a note of what they want to discuss. Tell them you are busy with something and you will get back with them. For phone calls, unless it is urgent, take a message and tell the person that you will call back. There is a tendency to get dragged into a discussion. Sometimes it is not even about the reason for the call.    Often matters that are thought to be urgent may not be. So, check it out first and then re-prioritise if needed. Soon, people will know how you operate. You will be surprised but you will find some of them asking if you can spare the time before they get into a discussion with you.

4. Celebrate Both Small And Big Successes: Do you just celebrate big successes? It is important to celebrate both big as well as small successes to keep yourself motivated. Do not wait just for the big successes. These may not happen often enough to keep your spirits up. Take every opportunity to celebrate. Completing a task towards a project is reason enough to celebrate. You need to find successes to reinforce your efforts and to be continually energised to stay on track with your plan.

5. Mentally Prepare Yourself: Mental preparation is key to success. It is important to see yourself succeeding in your mind before you succeed in the real world.  This is very much like what is said in programming computers. You put garbage in and you will get garbage out. The mind works likewise.

So, if you want great results, visualise them. Do not let your mind focus on all the fears and what can go wrong. If your mind comes up with anything that can go wrong, plan an action to counter that and include it in your list.     If you let your mind have a free hand, it will have a tendency to fill it up with concerns and issues. So, feed your mind with success images and you will attract the right things to succeed.

6. Keep A Journal: A journal is a great companion to have. Write down your dreams, record your successes, note down corrections needed, set your goals and objectives. Your journal is your friend and confidant. It does not give you advice or argue with you. It is probably your most patient friend who will listen attentively to anything you say, any way you say and any time you say.

7. Stop Procrastinating: Find ways to stop procrastinating. Procrastination will bring to waste all the efforts that you put in as sometimes it is as good as not completing the activity.  What are things that you like to do? Reward yourself with one of these only when you have finished a task.

Do you remember the times when you were in school and you were given a star or points each time you did well. This motivated kids to aim to complete work and to perform well. Use this same technique.

All these tips may sound useful but are only as good as the actions that you will take. First, decide on the system that you will use to stay on track. Will it be a coach, a friend or writing into a journal?

Second, think of successes every day that you can celebrate to create the energy and momentum to keep you going. There is no rule on celebrations except the ones that you make. Waiting only for the big successes will only depress you and sap you of the energy that you need.

Learn from everything that you do. When are the times that you actually enjoy what you do? What are the circumstances? When you find such instances, apply them to subsequent activities. Be continually learning on how to keep yourself at a high energy level. Take action today and see the difference it can make in the results that you produce.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Articles: Operations & Resources – 7 Tips To Achieve Peak Performance.