Simply Business Coaching

What Would a Winner Do?

The key difference between winners and everyone else is in that little 2 letter word - ‘do’.  Winners ‘do’ while everyone else is still thinking about what to do or just talking about doing it.  This is one of the reasons winners move forward at such a fast pace - they keep on taking action.

If winners come across obstacles in their way, they react differently to most other people too.

How can I make this work?
There’s no ‘I can’t do any more because X has happened’  Winners look for other ways to achieve the end result, or they work around the obstacle somehow.  They find a way to keep moving.

Who do I know?
They don’t waste time having a mutual moan with their colleagues, they pick up the phone and call a fellow winner to ask if they know who can help them.  Winners aren’t interested in what went wrong (other than to learn from it), they want to know what’s next.

Work to My Strengths
Whereas most people are focused on find out how to do each individual task themselves, winners are busy searching through their address book to find someone who knows how to do the task better and faster than they can, and free them up to keep moving forward.

I’m going to check my to-do lists, starting right now, to make sure I keep taking action like a winner, how about you? 

What other winner strategies do you use and would you recommend?

Are you thinking small enough?

I was writing down my weekly targets and plans at the weekend - I like to do this while sipping a glass of wine as I find it puts me into a relaxed, receptive and creative frame of mind (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking with it!)  On this particular occasion, after a while of thinking and writing (and sipping), I noticed that I’d written items like ‘Revise Website’ and ‘Newsletter’ as well as ‘New Product’ on my list for the coming week.  I obviously hadn’t been paying full attention because, as (I believe) Anthony Robbins says :

‘Most people overestimate what they can achieve in a week, but underestimate what they can achieve in a year.’

When planning for the coming 12 months, thinking big and including whole projects is essential to move our businesses forward.

But setting ourselves to-do items that are really projects on a weekly list, result in feeling overwhelmed and most likely to disappointment when we fail to reach those unrealistic targets.

So when you plan from week to week, this means reducing (chunking) down projects into manageable steps and taking them one at a time. 

For example my ‘Revise Website’ has become ‘Write New Contact Page’ and ‘New Product’ is now slightly less ambitious at ‘Write Sales Letter’ - far less overwhelming!

I’m not trying to hold you back by suggesting this - just setting you up for consistent success :)

Do You Want Success Badly Enough?

As I watched the joyful rescue of the Chilean miners on TV last week (along with millions of other people), it struck me how well the whole operation went - not many hitches at all for such a mammoth undertaking - it was completed well ahead of schedule (originally thought to be around Christmas) and in double-quick time as everyone grew in confidence that the method was working.

When you compare this to the recent debacle of the unfinished Commonwealth Games facilities in Delhi (who had years to be ready) and numerous other public projects that overran in time and spend, it makes you wonder how badly the organisers wanted them to be a success.  Obviously with so many miners' lives at risk in Chile, there was added pressure and urgency to just get the job done as quickly as possible, but even so there are some great lessons to be learned that can be applied to any goal - personal and business - to achieve a great outcome, here are my thoughts:

Clearly Defined Outcome - Knowing exactly what you want to achieve makes it easier to find the steps needed to get there.  I don't mean just setting a monetary goal, although that's a good starting point.  Being able to define the whole outcome experience not only clarifies the end result, it will also give you more reasons to really want it.

Planning & Preparation - It's no good jumping in to take action towards a goal unless you've planned out each step along the way.  Thorough preparation may seem boring & unnecessary when you're really excited about a new project but that's better than overlooking something vital that may ruin all your efforts.

Determination to Succeed - 'Failure is not an option' may sound corny, but having a positive mindset and finding your inner core of steely determination is better than going through the anguish of seeing projects and dreams crumble because you didn't give them your absolute best shot when you had the chance.

Consistent Action - Small steps taken every day will soon mount up to significant results.  The problem with big dreams and goals is that they can seem overwhelming because of their sheer size.  Break down the plans you made into manageable steps and take the first one today, the next one tomorrow, and so on.

Support Team - While it is possible to succeed at many small projects unaided, you could end up significantly adding to the completion costs and overrunning deadlines when it comes to the ambitious goals.  Find and hire the people who already know how to do what you want to do.  Also surround yourself with people who 'get' what you want to achieve and who will cheer you on through the obstacles and provide a listening ear.

Risk Taking - Success isn't guaranteed.  If you want something badly enough, you'll usually have to take some risks and do whatever it takes.  The scariness can be offset by anticipating and preparing as far as possible ways to minimise the effects.  But sometimes, you have to take the first step and risk falling flat on your face.  Take it anyway.

So, what do you want and - do you want it badly enough?

Have You Got a Success Mindset?

You only have to take a look at some of the very diverse successful business owners and entrepreneurs who made it big - to easily see the one thing they all had in common was an unshakeable belief that they would succeed.  They didn't give up when things didn't go right and kept on trying until they found a way that worked.

If you don't believe you can reach your goals, then all the planning in the world won't help you get there.  And if you don't believe you can succeed in your business, having the best products or services possible will count for nothing - and your full earning potential will never be realised.

Here are a few words from an article I wrote back in 2004 for a coaching newsletter (note the more formal tone I used then!):

"Dealing with limiting beliefs has got to be one of the most important processes in finding out who we really are; by stripping away that which has been 'imposed' on us by others.  Unfortunately, it also means leaving behind that comfortable rut of safety!  Perhaps that's why we so often cling to limiting beliefs even though they hold us back."

Beliefs can be positive or limiting - limiting success and earning potential.  They're often so long-standing that you forget their origins.  Perhaps a school teacher long ago said you'd never amount to anything - so you don't believe you will.  Or a relative said 'people like us have to work hard for every penny'.  Other beliefs are formed and reinforced through your life experiences - for example if we fail our driving test a couple of times we may believe we're no good at driving a car.

In Nicholas Bate's book Being the Best: The A-Z of Personal Success; he says " Your beliefs create your behaviour which create your results." and here are the (much abbreviated) steps he gives for breaking a limiting belief:

1.  Be aware.  Develop self-awareness
2.  Deliberately break that limiting belief in an easy way (he suggests practicing mind mapping)
3.  Notice your self-confidence developing
4.  Notice your success
5.  Simply be the best version you can of yourself.

When you consider what a huge effect our beliefs (or mindset) can have on whether we succeed in business; on if we decide to go back for another try after a knock-back, you can begin to see just how vital it is to make sure you believe you can.

What do you believe?  Have your beliefs affected your business success?  I'd love to know :)

Is Success Avoiding You?

I wrote a post asking if you were avoiding success by not venturing outside your comfort zone.  One of the lovely people who retweeted it said she thought success might be avoiding HER!  That conjured up an amusing mental image of playing hide & seek with prospects and opportunities.   Then I started thinking of how we could unknowingly be giving out signals that we’re not ready for success to come knocking at our door.  Here are some I’d like to share with you:

What message are you giving?
Is it clear to people you speak with exactly what you do and for whom?  When I’m out networking, some of the business owners I meet are building more than one business.   Nothing wrong with that at all – except when they try to promote all of them within one short sixty second pitch.  Then I get confused and switch off.  It’s important to keep the message simple and clear if you want to be remembered.

Your personal presentation
If your business requires you to get ‘down & dirty’ – perhaps as a gardener or plumber – then no-one expects you to wear a suit & tie to networking meetings.  But if you want introductions to businesses as, say a book-keeper or sales trainer, looking the part will help.

Your marketing materials
With the internet there are many low-cost opportunities to promote your business and even printing costs have become more affordable.  But inexpensive doesn’t mean marketing materials need to look ‘cheap’ or amateur.  Again, it depends on what business you’re in, but think what impression that dog-eared business card with crossings-out might give to the person you hand it to. 

Order and Organisation
Some people just seem to be tidy by nature.  Everything about them is crisp and neat, from a freshly laundered shirt to that well-organised folio.  Other people appear rumpled and leave a trail of chaos behind them, unable to find anything in a bulging briefcase.  Which appearance gives you more confidence in their ability to do a good job? 

How you present yourself and your business to the outside world is often a very good indication of how ready you are for success. 

Has success been avoiding you?  If so, I’d love you to leave a comment below, and please share this post if you found it helpful.

Do You Work to Your Strengths?

Some years ago, when I was a newly qualified coach, I read 'Now, Discover your Strengths' by Marcus Buckingham & Donald Clifton.  Not only did this book turn my previous thinking upside-down, its message has stayed with me to this day.

If, like me, you spent a few years working in a corporate J.O.B., you'll have experienced the annual appraisal, performance review (or whatever it's called now).  This was a long anticipated interview, usually with your immediate boss, where you found out how well they thought you'd 'performed' over the previous 12 months and what increase in salary (and bonus if you were lucky) you could expect to receive.

It didn't matter how long the list of achievements and congratulations for a job well done, these were wiped out in seconds by the suggestions for improvement - the 'could do better' part.  They were what I focused on, took as criticism and then determined to work on and improve.

After several years of following this cycle, I did indeed improve my performance in previously weak areas, but it was hard work at times.

When I set up in business for myself, I made a list of skills I believed I needed to learn to become a better business owner and booked myself onto lots of training courses - continuing the cycle of working on 'weak' areas.  Until I read the book and the penny finally dropped.

Here's what I learned.

No matter how hard we work at improving an area of 'weakness' it's unlikely we'll ever become more than 'adequate' at them.  But the danger of spending precious time learning how to become adequate at one skill, is that it takes away time which could be more usefully spent honing our areas of expertise - getting better at what we already do well.  Working to our strengths.

When you find out what you're already really good at (happily, it's also usually what you enjoy doing most), work out a plan of action to get even better at it.  Ditch the adequate stuff - you can offload it to someone who's already really good at it!

Working to your strengths brings several benefits

1.  You'll stand out from the crowd of other 'average' performers.
2.  You'll become known as a sought after expert in your field
3.  You'll be doing what you really enjoy
4.  You'll be able to command higher fees

Isn't it time you started working to your strengths?

What do you think?  Please let me know in the comments below - and feel free to share if you enjoyed reading this post!

Taking a few detours

On Wednesday I drove to a meeting and got a bit lost!  While I love and use lots of new technology and tools to make life easier, I'm still resisting getting a SatNav system - mainly because I don't believe I make enough journeys to get good use from one.

So before setting off, I looked up the route on the internet and in a trusty old-fashioned map book to get a clear 'picture' in my mind of how to reach my destination.

Everything went swimmingly until about the last 5 miles (as often happens!) when I departed from the chosen route somehow.  After pulling over and consulting the map again, I could see the road I was now on would rejoin my route a bit further on, so thankfully there was no need to turn around.

Admittedly my heart did sink a little as I drove along busy streets looking out for road names and landmarks, but I didn't panic because I knew I'd reach my destination in the end.

I lost count of the total number of involuntary detours, but eventually I arrived safely - and even 10 minutes early for the meeting.

In business we need to have a clear vision and defined goals to aim for too.  Mapping out how we're going to achieve those goals provides the direction and action steps to take.  But when life leads us to take a few detours along the way, as it surely will, that doesn't mean giving up on the end goals. 

Being on the right road all the time isn't as important as reaching the destination safely, especially if there is great scenery to admire and lessons to learn from the detours.

And yes .... I got lost again on the way home too!

A Challenging Question

Whenever I'm asked to describe my style of coaching, I say that I challenge my clients.  A long time ago, I used to think being challenging was simply a matter of asking questions like "What's stopping you?" or "What is it costing you to ...?" 

However, now I know there is more to it.

Challenging means I encourage clients to take actions that will move them out of their comfort zone, increase self-awareness and move them forward towards their goals.  You see, I know something they don't.

I know we are all capable of so much more, and while a pinch of realism is necessary so as not to set ourselves up for failure, the goals we usually set ourselves simply aren't big enough.  They're puny goals that don't excite or get the adrenalin flowing. They're safe goals we don't feel motivated enough to strive for.

Successful people don't succeed by staying in their comfort zones, they succeed by challenging themselves every single day.  You may have noticed they often publicly announce their goal months before it becomes a reality - if that isn't challenging themselves to make it happen, I don't know what is!

If I were to challenge you to do one thing this week that will move you nearer your biggest goal, what would that be? 

Go on, I challenge you to do it!

New Ideas need New Thinking

As Einstein famously said, you can't solve a problem with the same thinking that caused it in the first place!

So why do we think we can come up with new ideas for our business when we keep doing the same things or mixing with the same people.

Even those of us with notebooks full of ideas need to revisit them to see if they really are 'new'.

Now that it's so much easier to find out what the latest trends are, what the thought-leaders are thinking it can be easy to be swept along the same path as everyone else.  To become a 'me-too'.

Original thoughts and ideas are much harder to come by, and all the more precious for that very reason.  And if it's true that there is nothing really new in this world, then coming up with a new twist to apply to an existing idea is maybe a better place to start.

Let's take a common problem facing small businesses - that of charging what their product or service is worth - and not discounting!

Rather than only listening to what fellow business owners within your networking circle might say, how about getting a different opinion from, perhaps a

Dentist
Musician
Farmer
Barrister

These people may not know anything about your business, but they will be able to tell you about charging for your product or service - from their viewpoint.

How do you come up with new ideas for your business? 

What Should You Charge?

I was looking through my newsletter archives at the weekend and came across this article from 2005! The topic is just as valid today - and I think the tips are too... let me know what you think

 What Should You Charge?
The answer to that question is simple – you should charge what you’re worth! The explanation will take a little longer....

Many businesses bump along the break-even line because they don’t charge enough and unfortunately many go out of business for the same reason.

Whether you’re selling products or services, you have to believe in what you have to offer – or you’ll have an uphill struggle expecting people to buy. If your prices are too low, the perception of your products/services is that they are inferior in quality and durability to those with a higher price tag. In other words, cheap.

If you’re tired of customers trying to beat you down in price or saying you’re too expensive, try something radical – raise your prices! Let me explain a bit more ….

What sort of customers do you want? Those who are just looking for the best price deal or those who appreciate the quality you can offer?

Something most of us forget when setting prices is how much studying, research & development, expertise and experience has gone into our products and services. They need to be factored in, they cost you time and money to acquire. Be proud of what you have to offer, you’ve worked hard for it.

Be First Class
If you’re going to raise your prices, you’re going to have to deliver the goods. Make sure that you give a first class service to each and every one of your customers, for each and every purchase they make. Go further and delight them with great follow up and add value wherever you can – you can afford to as this is now included in your higher price.

I recently bought a new car. The young salesman was very eager to please and personally made sure all my requests (including enough petrol to get home!) were carried out. As I drove away, I thought that was the last I’d hear from him....

However the next day, he called to make sure everything was OK and said to be sure to call him if I had any problems. He called again after a week and yet again after 4 weeks – just to check that I was still completely happy with the car. Now I know I paid for this service in the price of the car but how often do you actually get it? I was and still am a delighted customer.

Two Quick Coaching Questions
What can you do to delight your customers?  And when are you going to raise your prices to reflect what you’re worth?