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Showing posts with label business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label business. Show all posts

3 Steps To Achieve Total Clarity


Show me the person who doesn't believe better clarity could dramatically affect their business, finances and personal life and I'll show you a fool. A "freedom from indistinctness or ambiguity" is a pretty sweet deal on all fronts. The clearer you get with what you currently have; such as motivations, current situations, desires, fears, and aspirations the better off you'll be to deal with how you approach life.

The people who achieve greatness in this world get very clear about what they're here to do. They've made several big decisions, sometimes very early on, about what they want in life. What they can bring to the world, what kind of experiences they want to participate in, who they want to become and why they want to become that person. Not only do they make these decisions but they possess the character to embody them, to own them, and stick with them through whatever hurdles are thrown their way. Straying from your purpose isn't an option if you make it a part of your identity.

Achieving clarity will not occur without commitments being made. Sheer, uncompromising commitments that require wholehearted backing, about your identity and the way you'll choose to see the world. I'd like to reach down inside of your mind, if you'll let me, and show you three guaranteed steps to achieve true clarity.


See: your mind.
3. Clean Up Your Mental Traffic

Most of our minds work like a huge multi-lane highway without solid traffic directions. We have neural connections being made going every which way, establishing beliefs that interrupt the flow of other previously acquired belief systems. The longer you live and the more things you experience, the more lines of traffic start popping up. Crossing over each other, weaving in between and straight up ramming into one another. It's downright violent. Occasionally, a new belief flow will come along and knock the hell out of a current one that was in its way. A huge disruption will happen but the dominant belief flow will return to normal unless the new one provides persistent backup to permanently interrupt it.

No ones mental traffic will ever be perfectly organized or harmonious, but we do have control over redirecting it and establishing some rules. Eliminate belief systems that do not serve you, establish ones that do, commit to prioritizing certain belief systems and do not allow other random "traffic flows" that pop up to interfere. So although you cannot stop the inevitable interruption of a major belief flow from an outside stimulus, you can choose to constantly feed the major one so it's never interrupted permanently. Most importantly, you must be the police force of your own mental traffic. The sooner you arrive to break up a disastrous collision and the quicker you clean up your current unpleasant mental traffic the better.


You're here to be here.

2. Methodically Explore Your Strengths & Weaknesses

 The only way you'll ever discover your purpose in life, and therefore be able to align it with action to achieve clarity, is if you systematically explore your strengths and weaknesses. We do this naturally during our formative years, but all too often we get sidetracked or distracted by perceived failures, so we latch onto the first or second strength that we come across. Worse yet, we get attached to the idea of something that is a weakness and spend years working to become good at it, never achieving the level of excellence that would have been there if redirected to an area of natural strength.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for working on weaknesses and building upon them. The problem is that we currently have an average lifespan of just under 30,000 days. Better yet, let's call it 700,800 hours of existence. If that sounds like more than enough time to become outstanding in areas of weakness and strength, think about how quickly an hour becomes wasted. Waiting in line to get your license renewed, boom. Sixty minutes gone.

700,800 hours of existence is more than enough time to give absolute focus to key areas of your life, however, if managed properly. For this reason it's vitally important to continue exploring your strengths and weaknesses methodically well into adulthood, even if you skipped college. Don't get sucked into what's convenient, or what you're halfway decent at. If you're in this slump now, go take a hard look in the mirror and ask yourself, "Do I want to live a decent life or would I rather live a driven and purposeful life?"

Just because you're currently doing something decently doesn't necessarily make it a strength. Does it drain energy from you or does it electrify you? Gauge it. No matter where you're at in skill progression, if it's a strength it will provide you with boundless energy - guaranteed. If it's zapping the life out of you, heed the warning and act upon it. Ignore the signs at your own risk.


Pick one, leave the rest.
1. The One Thousand Important Decisions

Before you can achieve true clarity you must make one thousand very important commitments. Absolute decisions that you'll have to re-commit to each and every day for the rest of your life. The first one is the easiest one, once you've done self-exploration and have determined your greatest area of strength, which is what you want out of life. If it's in relation to your career, it's who you'll become in order to build upon this strength and share what you can give to the world. If it's clarity in personal relationships, it's who you are as a mate and what you can bring to the table in that kind of partnership. Your finances, your family life, and your spirituality.

Clarity in every category can be achieved by becoming very specific in your commitments to these areas, but after making the first easy decision, you will have nine hundred and ninety-nine more decisions to make: what not to do.

Steve Jobs famously said, "Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do." Coming from the visionary who created and maintained one of the most thoroughly successful companies of the new millennium, the man was onto something. He cultivated an unparalleled environment of commitment and focus within Apple, establishing a company that went on to create revolutionary products that change the world. If Steve Jobs can do that by applying the principle to just his business, imagine what you will be able to accomplish when you put it to work for you in every aspect of your life. Total clarity.
Read More Wednesday, October 3, 2012 0 comments

3 Key Rituals Of A Closer

The definition of closer is a person or thing that closes

"Always Be Closing" is a notorious phrase, probably uttered from the lips of every decent sales manager the world over at some point or another. The concept is clear: at all times, you should be fully aware of the fact that you're selling and constantly looking for a way in. For a way to close the deal.

A fabulous example of a slick and rich executive preaching this philosophy as he absolutely rips into a sales force can be found in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross, and I've always found this single performance performed by Alec Baldwin amazing. I've heard people scoff at the character he portrays, balking about how he represents everything wrong with America. It baffles the hell out of me, frankly, because his no-nonsense get'r done mentality is what has driven progress in our beautiful capitalistic society. I've had push-over bosses before and I learned nothing from them. If at any point in my career, I fall into a put of under-performing (I won't) and pick up the nasty habit of excuse making and complacency, it would be a blessing to have someone like Alec's character storm into the office and shake things up. Set things straight.

Now, I don't necessarily advocate treating customers ruthlessly because in this day in age the win goes to the company who is most devoted to servicing their clientele base. What I love about the video is that it champions the idea of becoming a closer on every level. I look at that chalkboard, see "Always Be Closing" and to me that means every waking second. Not just when you finish revving up your morale engines with a third cup of coffee after being at work for an hour, but the second you set your feet on the floor each morning. There may not be outside customers around at five o'clock in the morning to deal with right away but you should be closing yourself; on the goals and day you have ahead, on what you're grateful for in life, on your financial plan, and so forth. If we need to be sold on and believe in a product in order to sell it well, we must be thoroughly sold on the biggest product of all: ourselves.

It can also be said that our rituals define us as human beings. Whether hygienic, personal or spiritual we all have them, so in the spirit of becoming a better all-around closer, here are three key rituals I've observed of a true closer...



3. Early To Rise, First To Conquer

Unless your body clock and work schedule are directly in alignment with the graveyard shift, this likely applies to you. Successful closers understand they are granted only a limited amount of time each day to get things done. Thriving on staying ahead of the curve it's only natural they want to be rockin' and rollin' before the rest of the world turns over in their beds the second time. A great closer also cherishes their body, so if they're going to be working late they've got to incorporate a solid work-out routine and the best time for that is before heading to start doing business with the rest of the world. You're body is a presentation itself so there's a lot to be said about maintaining a solid exercise routine and making it a ritual as well.

Interestingly, if your work schedule is causing you to have the sleeping pattern of a vampire, take into consideration that circadian rhythm is very much so light dependent. Being exposed to light before sleeping will drastically reduce levels of melatonin. Although production of melatonin decreases as we age, it's interesting to note that optimum levels are released between midnight and eight o'clock in the morning. This could also be a factor that affects overall well-being of a truly good closer. Most importantly, research shows that early risers lead happier and healthier lives. The more emotionally and physically stable the bodily environment, the better the closer. 

2. Use Success Incantations

Don't let the word "incantation" fool you, it's got nothing to do with anything occult. Whether we know it or not we utilize incantations as emotional triggers on a daily basis. Think about certain thought patterns you find yourself using in response to situations. When you approach a customer and ask them, "How can I help you?" that itself is an incantation. Anything you say that has emotional pull to it can be considered as much, and the phrase "How can I help you?" definitely has a lot of sway. An entire chapter in a book could be spent discussing why you shouldn't use such scripts because of the negative reaction they will cause, yet I want to talk about an even more critical subject. The scripts you're using on yourself.

If you find yourself saying literally anything that elicits a negative response each time, stop saying it. The same goes with any wordless thought you form. You've got to claim self-awareness, pay attention to what goes on repeatedly inside your head, and realize that negative looping tracks are negative incantations.  They're the reason we keep falling into bad relationships, jobs we hate, and doing things that sabotage our success.

Instead, first go about discovering what thought patterns and incantations you have that build you up. Chances are you have them even if you don't use them much. If it's a previous experience, harness that memory and associate an incantation to it. If you're a nurse, think of an emotionally rewarding time when you helped out a patient. Now, make a statement that declares a purpose you have or belief about yourself. It could be, "I help people each day get over physical, mental and emotional trauma, leading and assisting in the healing process". This incantation could reinforce a goal. If you're striving to become an entry-level nurse or a better nurse, it's safe to say you could utilize this incantation as an emotional trigger to build yourself up? A terrific closer emotionally owns the notion that we are the grand sum total of the inputs going inside of our mind, takes control of the inputs, and uses emotional triggers to create positive ones. This is more relevant to non-salespeople than most realize. If you're going to be a nurse, be sold on every aspect of being a nurse.




1. Setting & Evaluating Goals

Sounds simple, doesn't it? Deceitfully simple. The reality is that you won't become successful by accident, you'll be aware of your progress each step of the way; planning and evaluating goals as you go. No CEO got to where they are by just showing up to work each day. They had detailed goals. Big ones, small ones. Daily goals and monthly goals. The biggest ritual I've seen people have who make outstanding closers is the sheer persistence in goal-setting and evaluation. If a goal starts out too big, you break it down into bite-size chunk. You'll know if it's too big because you'll be evaluating your goals and progress as you go, won't you? I had it drilled into my head in every sales training class I took back when I first immersed myself in professional sales, "What you don't track you can't improve." 

Whatever way you go about recording your goal progress is up to you. I keep logs, myself, in a similar fashion to the logs we kept back in auto sales of every customer that walked on the lot. I write down every detail I perceive affecting the goal, analyze the current situations and what is currently affecting said goal, and tweak my game plan from there. Every day. I began doing this while working at a car dealership while everyone was in their huddle by the coffee table or outside smoking cigarettes together, focused on everything but creating productive rituals to increase their likelihood of success. 

Since that time I've had the opportunity to meet with a wide variety of successful people. Coincidentally,  I always find these kind of new acquaintances share a ritual with myself: we set goals ritualistically and aggressively evaluate them. What about you?











Read More Sunday, September 16, 2012 0 comments

Influence Or Be Influenced

There are people out there with intentions that don't have your best interest at heart, people who are going to try to influence you in negative ways that will be far from productive for your life. They'll pop up constantly and the longer you let them stick around the harder it will be to get rid of them and their influence. They're not always bad people but for you they're parasites. They'll try convincing you to stray from your path or just plain pushing you out of the way of opportunity, and because during every social encounter someone is either  selling or being sold you must be absolutely sold on yourself and your values. No matter what happens or what mistakes you make, you must always close yourself on you and never allow anyone to close you on anything that contradicts that.

Close yourself on you every day

When I first started in the automobile industry selling new and used vehicles I worked at a decently sized dealership with about six other sales guys. I remember one in particular who began hovering around me when I got done devouring the mandatory sales training and product information. Coincidentally enough he was a person I'd seen briefly when I first came to interview with the sales manager and something about him was just off to me - he was someone I disliked instantly. Could have been the nicest guy in the world deep down, but everything about him just oozed crook. Poor, overly defensive body language. Hunching. The usual. Not my concern however because as a salesperson I wasn't there to make friends, I was there to sell cars.  At least, it didn't matter to me until he started trying to snipe my deals and treat me like a naive green pea. He learned in hurry that I wasn't having it, and short of physical confrontation it took a few instances of me shutting him down for him to realize I wasn't about to be railroaded or taken advantage of. He interfered with one deal and that was the end of that. 

These leeches can be found in any company or industry, though, not just auto sales. It's the guy who's an average to below average worker and focuses most of his attention on finding ways to get out of having to buckle down and do some damn work. They do this by subtly influencing people and things around them and even blatantly influencing other workers, using deception and deceit to get credit where credit is not due. I've seen salespeople lose their job by allowing themselves to be negatively influenced in the workplace. Allowing rumors to affect their behavior, letting people gently push them out of the way of an impending sale, or letting guilt prevent them from truly squeezing out every last ounce of potential from themselves. It's tragic.

The sooner we realize the scope of influence we have as individuals, the quicker we see what constant power struggles go on throughout a given day. Underneath the surface of the average persons life are forces ebbing and flowing, applying pressure to push circumstances one way or another, while allowing outside factors to affect the undercurrent of a vastly complex social dynamic. We live and breathe each other - our networks are vast and very much so alive. As a species we've thrived, not by being the most physically dominant race, but by becoming the most omniscient species. We're very aware of ourselves and the influence we can have on the world around us.

You're level of influence on your own life and those around you is always rising or falling. When you choose to remain quiet about an issue of importance to you because you fear rejection, you're being influenced. When you compromise a core value to accommodate another person. When you refuse to look into a situation going on at work and just assume it's "normal", you're being influenced. Negatively.

Positive influences do exist in the world and you've got to seek those out but the harsh reality is that we're living in a world overflowing with negativity; in the media, at the water cooler, from your parents, etc. The more keenly aware you are of what's going inside of your mind the better, whether you're picking up a book at Barnes & Noble or choosing to follow someone on Twitter, ask yourself, "What kind of input would this be for me?" You have a choice over a whole lot of the inputs that go inside of your mind, so choose wisely. That 4 hours of television you watch every weekend probably isn't the best of inputs, nor the conversations you have with your co-worker on coffee break about how horrible the stock market is and how fast our economy is tanking. This is all useless drivel you don't need and you ultimately don't want affecting you on a deeper level, which it surely will. Make it a daily goal to cut out as many negative inputs as you possibly can and to seek out as many positives ones as you're able to and you'll be one step closer to regaining the majority vote for influence in your life.


Read More Thursday, September 6, 2012 0 comments

The People Business Is Your Business


If there's one thing to remember, whether you're maneuvering the landmines of your current boss' personality or functioning as a team member in an assembly line, it's a simple one - you're in the people business.


We're just an advanced form of bacteria, aren't we?

Sell cars? Nope. People make decisions based upon outer and inward circumstantial information to own vehicles. That Kia Optima you just sold this morning isn't so drastically superior from the Hyundai Sonata sitting across the street, or really any other similar classed vehicle for that matter. We're living in a world of over-saturated information - gone are the days where the salesperson is needed to point out and explicitly explain the features included in the LX versus the SX model. It's all available online and chances are your customers came armed to the teeth with that kind of frivolous knowledge, and besides, people don't buy power seats. They buy cars... or do they?

Now, obviously the objective answer here is yes. The real answer here is no, however, because people buy relationships and experiences. You're selling yourself, and you're doing it even when you think you're just chatting up a fellow co-worker at the water cooler. It's a simple notion and nothing ground-breaking, but it's easy to forget once you step outside of a direct sales or business profession and into a seemingly unrelated line of work. 


One day, we will be doctors and you will be HIV.

The reality is as adults we aren't too far away from where we were as youngsters. Kids understand the vital importance of social skills because hell, their entire experience in school revolves around their social status, living and breathing in "we" terminologies. Plus, mixing in all the new life experiences with flaring hormones and emotions makes things a little intense.

After graduating high school, maturing and developing focus and independence, we begin to lose sight just a little of how interdependent we are as a race. We're a clan-oriented species built on the hierarchy societal standards established, fighting for dominance to ensure individual survival while collectively guaranteeing autonomous growth. We all want to succeed, individually and collectively, and we've set up a pretty kosher ecosystem to do that in. At this point along the timeline of human existence we've got a whole slew of technologies swarming around us to perpetuate our continual growth and even more distractions to inhibit our attention spans. So, we get tunnel vision in the grand scheme of things. Bob's busy focusing on tasks A, B and C and they have entirely nothing to do with people and absolutely everything to do with assembling cup holders. Before he realizes it he's been with the company over 20 years and hasn't really progressed anywhere, albeit the three dollar per hour wage increase.

It's not because he was an utter failure at putting together the finest cup holders. It's because he forgot to assemble relationships, network within his company, build rapport and constantly close his higher-ups on himself. He forgot that in life no matter what industry or business category you fall into, you're ultimately in the people business.
Read More Friday, August 31, 2012 0 comments