What has leadership got to do with becoming wealthy: Part 2
In Part 1 of this series, I finished with the statement that a good leader demonstrates emotional intelligence in his/her daily dealings with their staff.
A good leader realizes and publicly acknowledges that they cannot achieve their goals on their own, and a good leader learns to place their well-founded trust in their staff.
This folks, is another form of leveraging of your time (as in time equals money) to succeed in whatever business you are in.
So, how do you recruit good staff who share the same values, ie work ethic and general outlook in life. In other words, how do you find the best people who will fit nicely into your business organization.
Well, I am a firm believer in asking questions beyond the standard run of the mill enquiries so beloved of human resource types, during a formal interview process.
Without straying into the “no go” zone about their personal life, and orientation which is none of my business, I want to know what makes them tick, what inspires them to get out of bed in the morning to come and work for me.
This is because I can then get a better sense of the person. To me they are not a number or a drone but real people who have real feelings, fears and aspirations and hopefully a burning ambition and a bit of fire in their belly.
It’s a bit like being on a first date, a lot of this time is spent talking, shooting the breeze and when a person is at ease, they reveal themselves.
All I have to do is shut up and listen and observe. So, a good leader knows when to speak and when to be quiet. I’d hazard the ratio is a 20:80 split. Do you get my drift?
Do yourself a favor and read up on body language; believe me that speaks volumes when it comes to getting an honest response from your interview candidate.
As I previously said, people are not motivated by money as much as feeling that their contribution is worthwhile and publicly acknowledged.
This is the human connection that you are looking for. If you get this right, your people will go the extra mile for you, simply because you have gotten them wholly involved in your vision.
And it all comes down to the “C” word, communication.
For the old school types, communication consists of me (the boss) talking and you (the minion) listening and carrying out my wishes. It does remind me of one of those typical army movies where the drill sergeant yells at the recruit, “Hey, meathead, if I want your opinion, I will give it to you”.
For the rest of us who do not subscribe to this method of communication, stay tuned and I will share with you some worthwhile ideas.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
What has leadership got to do with becoming wealthy: Part 1
Answer: Everything!
Leadership, or more importantly good leadership underpins your ability to succeed.
As a great leader, you are the inspiration, visionary and literally the soul of your business.
Click here to listen to the full recording Leadership and Wealth Part 1
It applies equally across the spectrum should you be the CEO of a multi national corporation or a solopreneur with a red hot idea.
The most reliable way to creating wealth is to build up a business that turns over significant dollars and selling it as a viable concern, or have a business model that can be replicated many times over, then licensing these as franchises.
The caveat here is that your business must provide exemplary value for a service and/or product that is second to none, and that the consumer is willing to pay top dollar for what you offer.
I use the example of your toothache and your smiling dentist, Dr Fang.
If you had a toothache you’d probably ignore it for as long as it is possible. Show me a person who enjoys sitting in the dentist’s chair with a high speed drill on their teeth and I will show you someone who is flat lining.
However, there will come a time when all the pain killer tablets in your bathroom cabinet will not stop the sharp shooting pain that makes you want to grab a hammer and hit your toes with it because that is the only thing that will take your attention away from your toothache. This usually occurs round about 9 PM on a Sunday evening.
At this stage you will not care if you have to take a second mortgage on your house to have your toothache dealt with.
Dr Fang is more than happy to oblige, fixes your toothache and makes the pain go away (for a fee).
Dr Fang knows that toothaches do not occur between the hours of 9-5 on weekdays only. In fact, he/she has noticed that if their dental surgery was open 24 hours a day 7 days a week, there would not be a shortage of patients in their waiting room.
Because Dr Fang cannot be at more than one place at a time, they hire other dentists and support staff to replicate their service across town or even the country.
Their secret weapon is that they are able to leverage their time. Another equally important component is that they aim for staff members to have the same passion and work ethic.
If you are a heart centered businessperson, not only will you be looking at a bottom line of increased profits or revenue, but as importantly, that increased productivity has not come at the expense of your employees’ well being.
Put yourself in Dr Fang’s shoes and ask yourself, how do I get my staff to share my big picture goals and visions for my business?
Here’s where effective, strong and good leadership becomes vital to a business not only surviving but thriving, GFC or no GFC.
Just reiterating, as a great leader, you are the inspiration, visionary and literally the soul of your business.
Essentially, leadership is firstly knowing yourself (and being wholly comfortable and accepting of who you are).
Secondly having a clear vision of what your (business) goals are.
Thirdly, it is being able to clearly communicate this vision to your staff and getting total buy in from them. They have to do this voluntarily or else it will not work (think Captain Bligh and the mutiny on the HMS Bounty).
This includes building trust, getting your workers to function as a cohesive unit and motivating them to perform at their highest level, and to do so on a consistent basis.
Impossible, you say?
Not if you are an emotionally intelligent leader.
People are not motivated by money as much as feeling that their contribution is worthwhile and publicly acknowledged.
More on this in my next post; until then
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
Women Executives: Leadership Role Models (Part 4)
So, you have arrived at a position within your organisation that has some degree of autonomy and responsibility. In fact, you now lead a team of individuals, with unique talents.
Your boss has handed you a brief that requires your team to deliver on an important project on time and on budget. You know that it is the make or break opportunity and you really want to prove that you have what it takes.
This is your springboard to making it at the executive management level, your holy grail.
However, you also notice that you are going boldly to where no other woman has been, in fact your company is devoid of women executives. So, nada and zip in terms of finding a role model or a mentor in a skirt and killer heels. Bummer!
You are a modern woman (read resourceful, and confident), and you take it upon yourself to hire a career or executive coach to fast track your ambitions.
Any coach worth their salt will start with working out what makes you tick.
I am fond of quoting this line from Sun Tzu, “If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle”–Art of War
In other words, if you want to achieve (and earn) more, you have to become more.
You cannot expect to operate on a higher level without first making the necessary changes in the way you think, behave and conduct yourself. If you are expecting circumstances to adapt to suit you (as you are now), you are going to be waiting a very long time to become successful.
Have you given some serious though about what it means to be a well respected and effective leader?
In your present role where you work for your immediate boss, ask yourself what is it that you admire about him/her. Conversely what do not like very much about the way they run their unit or department especially in their daily interaction with their team.
List what you consider as the traits of your ideal leader, a person that you’d happily become. What are the interpersonal skills that you would like that person to possess?
Remember, to be an effective leader means getting your team to carry out a piece of work to a standard and level above what they would normally deliver. More importantly, it is getting them to do this willingly without cajoling or the threat of unemployment!
Bottom line: It means being influential and having your people opt in to your vision and goals.
I shall leave you to ponder this for the time being.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
Andrew and Daryl Grant Interview: How a simple mindset shift made this Australian couple millionaires
I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew and Daryl Grant and hearing how by changing the way they thought, changed their future.
Andrew and Daryl Grant Interview You can download the mp3 recording and pdf transcript of this interview by going to http://yourmoneyandyourmindset.com/online-store/
Like so many of us, Andrew and Daryl had been trading their time for money.
As successful as they were in their financial planning business, they realized that their income was dependent on their active involvement in their jobs.
Time spent in their business meant time away from family, a situation they found unacceptable.
This “can do” duo then went about investigating various means of generating passive income and finally came upon the power of the internet.
Andrew and Daryl achieved their goal of becoming financially independent six months shy of their 5 year target.
All this from two people who cheerfully admit to knowing very little about building websites, writing code etc.
In this interview they speak honestly and candidly of how they overcame some of their limiting sub conscious beliefs that had stymied their efforts in the four years leading up to their goal deadline.
Andrew and Daryl have generously made available a free audio recording on overcoming subconscious blockages.
Click on the link below to get your free copy:
Owning Up and Learning from My Mistakes
Our education system does not encourage us to admit our errors and effectively punishes us when we get it wrong.
This is reinforced by the assessment strategy of grading us down in tests and formal examinations when we do not produce the “right’ answers.
The system is designed to turn out cookie cutter lookalikes with not a whit of individuality.
It stymies creativity, inventiveness and discourages exploration; in effect we get a slap on the wrist every time we colour outside the lines.
So does the title of this article stir up a bit of discomfort?
I certainly hope so, only because I want you to challenge conventional thinking and behaviour.
What if, for a change, we celebrated instead of shaming kids in grade school for giving the incorrect answer?
Rather than making them feel like a failure we gave them elephant stamps and gold stars for having a go, for attempting an answer.
Brian Tracy, one of my favourite motivational speakers and amazing business coach said it best:
Learning from your mistakes is an essential skill that enables you to develop the resilience to be a master of change rather than a victim of change.
The person who recognizes that he has made a mistake and changes direction the fastest is the one who will win in an age of increasing information, technology and competition.
By remaining fast on your feet, you will be able to out-play and out-position your competition.
You will become a creator of circumstances rather than a creature of circumstances.
In other words: Adaptability is the name of the game.
In every episode of Star Trek Dr Spock may have said, “Live long and prosper”, but Dr Tan says “Live smart and prosper”.
So, the faster you fail, the quicker you get to your goals.
You might as well get through it sooner than later because that lets you gain momentum as you hurtle towards success.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
10 Tips to Staying Motivated: Especially When You Don’t Feel Like It
Motivation is like a shower, you need one everyday-Zig Zaglar
Firstly it would be unrealistic to feel pumped all the time, so don’t be hard on yourself if you have the odd day when you feel really flat. Here are 10 suggestions to get you to re focus. Go get ‘em!
An update to this post: I have included an mp3 recording
Click here to listen:Audio recording of 10 Tips to Staying Motivated
1. Remind yourself again what it is that you are striving to achieve.
• Is it a physical fitness goal of wanting to run a personal best in the Boston marathon or being financially independent in 5 years
• Either way, are your goals written down for you to review and read as often as it is necessary
2. Portion control
• You can eat an entire elephant by yourself if it is only one bite at a time. So chunk it down to manageable portions that are achievable in days and weeks rather than months and years!
3. Do a stock take of where you were 3, 6 and 12 months ago relative to where you are now
• Celebrate your wins, no matter how small. It’s a win, don’t get too precious about it
• Keep a journal and record your progress. You will be surprised at how far you have come
4. Practise mental rehearsal of having reached your goal
• Make it as real as possible by imagining what you are wearing, who is with you, whereabouts is this taking place, does it have a particular smell. Above all, tap into the feeling of having aced the goal and remind yourself of that winning feeling by clicking your finger 3 times in succession.
• Do this daily even when you don’t feel like it, especially when you don’t feel like it
5. What are you eating, when do you exercise
• Remember the old computer programming term GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out). If you are fuelling your body with junk food, you will not have the energy and stamina to get to your goals. This is a non negotiable fact of getting where you want to go and what you want from life
• Yes, your body is a temple. Worship it with fresh food, vegetables, and lots of water. Ditch the refined carbs and trans fats, they clog your arteries and reduces blood and oxygen flow to your brain. Lord knows you need all your neurons to fire if you want to be able to think clearly.
• Physical fitness is not an option. Again it is one of those things you just do to stay alert and healthy to be able to enjoy your successes when they come. Being in an iron lung and a millionaire is kind of bittersweet
6. Oh brother where art thou; who do you hanging out with
• Are these people supportive or do they make it a sport of taking potshots at your dreams and goals; if they are in the latter category, say bye-bye and leave them to wallow in their own pity party
• Create a mastermind support group. These are people on the same wavelength who will not ridicule your goals, dreams and aspirations but instead cheer you on. You can learn from them and vice versa
• If this type of support is thin on the ground, consider hiring a business/life/fitness coach to keep you accountable. Yes, it costs money so think of it as an investment in yourself. “You’re worth it” as the Revlon ad goes.
7. What are you reading, watching on television
• I am a big fan of reading motivational books by Jim Rohn, T Harv Eker, Bob Proctor and the cool thing is that there are lots of free mp3 downloads you can listen to in your car or as I like to call it “your university on wheels”.
• Stop watching the news. If it is really important, somebody will tell you. Notice how television only reports bad news; that is because bad news sells.
8. When do you stay still-meditate daily
• This is about staying healthy on the inside
• Often the solutions to business problems or obstacles at work are found when we shut up and stay still long enough for our sub conscious to present us with an answer.
• Don’t be skeptical if you haven’t tried it for at least a month
9. When did you last do a budget and track your expenditure and earnings
• It is vital not to shy away from tracking your finances. How then will you know that you have made progress in putting aside money for investments and passive income building? Answer me that?
10. Get in sync with your internal clock
• If you are a night owl and your best ideas come to mind after 10pm, ask yourself why are you flogging your body to be up at 5am to be inspired and creative on your projects. It does not make sense, so stop it!
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
What Does It Mean To Be Wealthy
With respect to the above, I am reminded of a television advert some years ago aimed at selling a well loved Australian brand of chocolate biscuits. These were not just any choc biscuits, they were Tim Tams! They were made with a choc filling and each biscuits was then dipped and coated in more chocolate. You get the picture.
Anyway, the scene is set where a young man strolling on a beach on a hot summers day finds a bottle on the beach. When he unscrews the cap, a genie pops out and offers him his one wish. He says to the genie, “I want to be cool and I want to be rich”. So, the genie obliges by turning him into a packet of Tim Tams and sticks that in the fridge.
The advert finishes with a couple of attractive girls opening the fridge and are pleased to find the nice cool and rich Tim Tams as their afternoon snack. Win, win I think.
The point of this story is to draw your attention to the fact that if you cannot succinctly define what it means to be wealthy you may find it a bit of a struggle to become wealthy.
I have expanded on what I mean here: What does it mean to be wealthy Lorwai TAN recording
In essence there are two aspects to consider; firstly the tangible or material wealth. Secondly, and equally important is the intangible, and it encompasses qualities such as good health, happy and fulfilling relationships with most importantly being at peace with yourself.
The dictionary defines (material) wealth as “an abundance of valuable material possessions or resources”. These resources allow you to be financially free which means you are able to live a lifestyle of your desire without having to work or rely on someone else.
To determine if you have an abundance of valuable material possessions, follow this simple exercise. Take a piece of blank paper and draw a line down the middle. Heading one column, write “assets” and the other “liabilities”. This is the quickest way to determine your nett worth. It is basically what you own (free hold) minus what you owe ie how much of that is tied to loan repayments (debt). Hopefully you come out with a positive (in the black) rather than a negative (in the red) number.
So the name of the game is to increase your nett worth. And surprisingly one of the habits you want to cultivate is that of being able to receive with thanks and gratitude the good that comes your way. This may include the odd compliment! Learn to be an excellent receiver and do not deflect or downplay its value.
Remember the Universe is there to do your bidding so if you want material gain, don’t keep turning down the good things that come your way. The Universe will do as instructed!
Endometriosis and the Career Driven Women
Below is an article by Melissa Meyer of www.cureendometriosis.com
Melissa has written a personal blog about endometriosis and her own research and discovery on healing.
I am sure most women can relate, so if you are interested in finding out more, drop by Melissa’s site for a read.
Endometriosis affects 1 in 7 women around the world and this number is sadly on a steady increase. The condition affects women of all ages and many women only discover they have the condition once they slow down and wish to conceive a child. It affects a woman’s fertility and this can be the very first obvious symptom.
Endometriosis is formed when retrograde cells are found within the uterus that grow and form adhesions. It is these cells that can cause damage to fallopian tubes and ovaries and thereby inhibit pregnancy.
As the condition is more prevalent in women in their late 20’s it is often associated as a “career women’s disease”.
Women who have endometriosis seem to possess personality traits which fall into strong, driven and perfectionism traits, which has created the link between the “career women’s disease” and endometriosis.
Though these traits appear on the surface to reflect a determined and confident personality, the driving force behind these traits needs to be carefully reassessed. Many women with endometriosis actually suffer from a constant need to be better than who they currently are.
They are driven to constantly improve who they are and be more than what they can be. Although this trait can be positive in certain individuals, too much of this drive can create unnecessary physical and emotional stress.
The motives for being more and driving oneself further often relate to a poor self-image or a need to be perfect. Endometriosis has been closely linked to a thought pattern referred to as “Timeous Perfectionism”.
Essentially the drive is to do a job perfectly and quickly at the same time. It is this constant pressure to perform and do more, in a shorter space of time at the highest standard that ultimately creates an incredible stress inside of the body. Endometriosis sufferers have been recognized to possess this thinking pattern and the connection between time and perfectionism is even more prevalent in certain job roles.
It is also this perfectionism that is unfulfilling and never ending. Achievements are not valued within themselves and they are constantly seeking more. They are often self critical and unrewarding towards their own achievements and seek approval from others.
It is important to acknowledge and accept these traits within oneself early so we can recognize them when we think and act on them and learn to slow down and recognize the emotion attached to the stress event. The more we can recognize our repeated traits, the easier our healing process will be.
Happiness begins when one can accept oneself and love oneself regardless of achievements. Acknowledgement for what one has achieved is also a very important step and would also provide additional self-esteem. We seldom give ourselves true reward for the things we have achieved in life.
It is only through acknowledgement and self love that true healing and happiness and really occur.
Success: Plain Hard Work or Just Lucky
Do you marvel at how some people seem to have all the luck, a Midas touch where everything that they attempt is a success on the first pass?
We are dazzled and mesmerized by the apparent ease with which they achieve what they set their minds to do, and right before our very eyes it all seems to happen.
As for the topic of this article, I ask if perhaps there may be a combination of both involved?
Just to illustrate, in Max Gunther’s book How to Get Lucky, he listed some of the characteristics and behaviors that “lucky” people have. Here are 5 of them that anyone can use to get lucky!
1. They prepare and plan
It is just that we do not see the thinking, planning, that operates quietly in the background.
2. They take calculated risks
This means researching and weighing up of their options, and seeking advice from someone who has done and succeeded at what they want to achieve and then taking action.
3. They put themselves in situations where they meet people
Where there are lots of people, there are the seeds and kernels of opportunity. But remember to engage these people and let them know who you are and what you can do for them. If this sounds like networking, it is.
4. They know when to cut their losses
There is nothing sadder than wishing that a bad investment decision will do a Lazarus and rise from the dead. If it is bleeding your cash reserves dry, off load it. Learn from the experience and move on.
5. They have a belief in a Higher Power
I interpret this one as having a sense of destiny and a belief that by being financially successful, they can make a positive contribution in the lives of others.
Now, substitute the word “they” for “I” and step up to the plate.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
If goal setting is so easy, why doesn’t everyone do it?
I will preface this by saying that we like to consider ourselves as rational and logical human beings. As long as we do not acknowledge, accept and embrace our subconscious we will continually be perplexed and frustrated by our efforts at setting and then failing to achieve our goals.
A good analogy is likening our conscious (logical mind) to the visible part of an iceberg. This is the 1/10th of the entire structure that we see floating in the ocean. The other 9/10th that is submerged is basically the all powerful subconscious mind with its many programs that run us.
One such powerful program that stops us from setting goals is the fear of failure. Fundamentally the fear of failure can be summed up as the fear that other people will discover that we are inadequate and therefore undeserving of acceptance, respect and ultimately love and affection. Ouch!
That of course, is untrue but the faulty programming for this erroneous core belief was installed when we were young, innocent and impressionable.
The good news is that we do not have to labor under the weight of these non serving core beliefs if we choose not to.
How?
Click on the link below to listen to this podcast and start making a change for the better today.
Goal setting and the fear of failure