Xceptionalize Yourself!

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

‘Xceptionalise’ is a unique book written by former Longford resident Kevin Kelly. It aims to teach teenagers and those in their early twenties, important life skills through a new and enticing format. This book, which was developed in conjunction with cartoonist Rebecca Burgess, depicts the life of Nathan and the road he must travel in order to learn seven key skills. This story is told through the use of Manga illustrations.
“There is a generally accepted need for emotional intelligence but getting young people to read a personal development book is next to impossible – unless they are very driven,” said Kevin who used to work in Harrison’s of Longford. “This book delivers tuition on key life skills in a different format.”
According to Kevin, it is “incredibly difficult” to engage people at the moment.
“We live in an attention deficit society,” said the best-selling author and international motivational speaker.
Following his graduation from university, Kevin got his first job with Harrison’s in Longford in 1986 before moving to the United Kingdom for three years. Upon his return he decided to set up his own company in Galway called Advance Marketing.
“People were talking to me about my energy and enthusiasm. Eventually I decided that my passion was obviously the motivational field,” said Kevin who went on to publish a number of best-selling books in this field.
Although Xceptionalise is aimed at students from the age of 12 to early twenties, it is a simple book that offers life lessons to all readers. These lessons include; perseverance, persuasion, benchmarking winners, living in the now, life’s purpose and how to unleash your potential.
The graphic novel is fun, pacy and inspirational. In the novel Nathan travels through three mythical lands” Tir na n-Og, Tir na mBeo and Tir na Tairngire– in each land he is presented with different challenges; each with an appropriate learning point attached.
The book has been previewed by many people that work with the target audience and the feedback has been superb. Among those who have praised its format and content are Michael O Leary Head of Transition Year Support and Dr Dermot Stokes Head of Youthreach. In addition Longford County Enterprise Board have bought a consignment for their enterprise students. The RRP is €14.99.
“I believe it is the ideal gift for 12-20’s this Christmas – it allows what has often been described as a vulnerable demographic to learn key life skills in a format they enjoy (manga cartoons),” said Kevin. For further information contact 091 867969.

Review by Majella Reid – The Leader

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Kevin knows the secret of success for students

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

A NEW personal development book in an exciting and original format has just been published by a Roscommon author.
Kevin Kelly is an internationally acclaimed motivational speaker and author and his latest offering is sure to follow in the successes of previous published successes.
One of the key messages that Kevin promotes is the vast array of talents within each person. His latest offering is aimed at teenagers and young adults, but those who read it, regardless of age will be able to take plenty from what is an innovative means of delivering a tried and tested personal development tips.
Kevin’s new book, ‘Xceptionalize – Success Secrets for Students’ is a new departure in delivery and is set in a reader friendly cartoon format with pithy and snappy dialogue, which has already proven very popular with the teen readership.
The book demonstrates the key interpersonal skills necessary to develop in the modern world and explores the reluctance that people sometimes have in overcoming the fears that they are laden down with.
The main character Nathan is a teenage university student lacking in ambition and believes that getting to university an achievement in itself. Kevin believes that Nathan is typical of the ‘Celtic Tiger cub’ generation with a sense of entitlement, lacking focus and expecting everything to be given to them with little effort or work. Nathan’s lack of motivation is central to the theme of the book and undergoes his journey of enlightenment leading to a development of key interpersonal skills.
Kevin Kelly is well aware of the issues facing young people, having addressed students in more than 150 schools across Ireland.
“This is a market that I am very familiar with, and the new book to people involved with teenagers and also to young adults themselves and I am thrilled with the feedback. These Celtic Tiger Cubs were brought up on a diet of instant gratification and it is this sense of entitlement that I explore through the message of positivity and personal development. We must accept that failure is all part of the process,” he explained.
The author knows his ideas and strategies work, because they have worked for him in the past and the new method of delivery should enhance the lives of the young people it is aimed at.
Through the character of Nathan, Kevin demonstrates the importance of accepting personal responsibility and also provides key tips on successful interviews, which is of course a very topical subject.
Accepting that one of the biggest challenges facing people in Ireland at the minute is the high rate of unemployment. However, he sees the people have the ability to turn their own life around.
“The internet is an amazing tool and people, who now have time on their hands, through now fault of their own can use it to showcase their talents to the world. With so much information at the click of a button, people can nurture and develop their talents by becoming experts in their field. I would encourage people who find themselves in difficult situations, where the job they want me not be on the horizon, to upskill, use the net to set up a website and relatively little money, the world can be on their doorstep. Talented people can set out their stalls at a minimal cost,” he said.
The book itself offers a new perspective for a generation, with messages of the importance of personal responsibility that will resonate with both young and old. The author’s ability to capture the indifference of the teenage boy and offer the skills necessary to succeed in the modern world is both inspiring and thought-provoking and an understanding of the subjects discussed is evident.
“These ideas are universal and my hope is that readers will see bits of themselves, that perhaps they didn’t think were there. This isn’t a change in theme, but a change in style. We have carried out market research in various forms and seen that this has been very effective. What I have achieved here is producing a book to communicate with the target audience in something they will read and hopefully enjoy,” concluded Kevin.
‘Xceptionalize – Success Secrets for Students’ is priced at €14.99 and is available in Eason’s bookstore and online at www.kevinkellyunlimited.com with free delivery.
Written by Ciara McCaughley – The Herald

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Xceptionalize-success secrets for students – Book review

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

Kevin Kelly has carved out a successful career as a renowned Motivational Speaker. Kevin, son of Kevin & Mary Kelly of Ballintubber, Co. Roscommon, is internationally acclaimed for his motivational speaking and throughout his career he has also written a number of books which invariably carry his message of positivity and personal development.
Kevin’s latest book – ‘Xceptionalize – Success Secrets For Students’ – is a very original addition to his published work, presented, as it is, in cartoon form. (Kevin created the ‘Xceptionalize’ concept which, he explains, challenges individuals and organisations to focus on exceptional execution of their duties on an ongoing basis).
The new book (or ‘graphic’ novel) tells the story of ‘Nathan’, a teenage boy who is set in his ways – parents might say lazy! Nathan is going to University but he lacks ambition and seems to think that the very fact that he is attending ‘Uni’ is the achievement of a goal in itself. Certainly he has no clear focus, no particular desire to get a job, and he exudes a sense of entitlement. He’s a teenage boy who spends far too long on his mobile phone and on the internet. He lacks motivation; worse still perhaps, he doesn’t realise this and would wonder what all the fuss is about if that point is made to him.
Nathan’s and the entire book is presented in cartoon/graphic form with a short, snappy dialogue (the dialogue by Kevin Kelly, the artwork by Rebecca Burgess, a UK-based artist). This obviously makes the book particularly ‘reader-friendly’ for young people, and clearly the author’s belief is that the use of the visual approach will result in far more of his target audience reading – and being influenced by – the book than would otherwise have been the case. Undoubtedly he is right in so thinking.
So, what happens to Nathan and what is the book about? The book is essentially conveying to teenagers (and to adult readers) some very worthy tips on personal development. On a wider level the book is arguably a condemnation of the social media culture that seems to be so prevalent with young people today – at the very least it casts a disapproving glance at the extent to which engagement with or indeed virtual reliance on social media influences young people. Of course the book is not dismissive of social media itself but instead somewhat disapproving of teenagers’ sense of entitlement, something which is crystallised at times in their engagement with social media/mobile phones, etc.
The image of the teenager who spends too long on facebook or their phone is just that, an image; Kelly’s wider point is that (many of) the teenage generation has a sense of entitlement, perhaps quite unique to his particular generation – and directly linked to the economic prosperity that prevailed in Ireland for most of the past fifteen years or so.
So, back to Nathan: Nathan is dragged (reluctantly) from his lazy existence after he meets a talking cat who leads him into the whimsical world of the Aos Si, where he embarks on a magical journey, meeting spirits, witches and others who teach him some home truths and provide tips on how to leave his lethargy behind and instead acquire the skills required to succeed in the real world.
Nathan learns about personal responsibility – “I am the problem, I am the solution” – and about perseverance. “That’s the problem with your generation, you are so used to getting what you want right away” he is bluntly told, before a series of episodes in the magical world show him the value of peseverance. “There is no such thing as failure, only the failure to learn from failure” the author advises.
Chapter three (‘Persuade’) includes some invaluable tips for anyone sitting job interviews – not to mention for anyone who wants to succeed in their general interpersonal relations with others – and as Nathan’s journey continues, he learns further how to make the right decisions in life, and indeed about how to enjoy life now – to live ‘in the now.’ ‘Purpose’ and ‘Potential’ are the crucial closing chapters and suffice to say that by the end of his journey Nathan is transformed. Most importantly, he has made the transformation, having realised the value of his own life and the creative possibilities that exist and which are within himself.
I will let readers draw their own conclusions, but certainly I think ‘Xceptionalize – Success Secrets For Students’ is an impressive, delightfully simple (intentionally so, and all the better for it) guide to personal development possibilities for its target audience (teenagers/students).
This accomplished Roscommon man has certainly achieved a new career high himself and the likelihood is that this original, thought-provoking and educational book will have a deserved following.
Review by Paul Healy, Roscommon People

If you would like to buy the book you can purchase it here – delivery free worldwide.

http://www.kevinkellyunlimited.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18&Itemid=69

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Xceptionalize

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

Complaints are a good opportunity to develop a relationship with your customers, writes Kevin Kelly

When the door opens, your eyes are drawn to a huge cappuccino machine on the reception counter. Simultaneously the smell of freshly baked buns drowns your senses. One of the friendly team leads you to the waiting room, more specifically to your own personalised waiting room. As you relax in the comfy sofas you are invited to enjoy a cuppa. If you would like to read, you can choose from the selection of recent magazines on the coffee table.

After a while the sense of calm is broken by a knock on the door. Who is it? Where are you? What if I told you that this is one of the most highly paid professionals in his niche? Yes you would be attending Paddi Lund, one of the most successful dentists in Australia. Lund’s reception area is a fantastic example of exceptional execution of an ordinary idea.

In 2006, a team at Columbia University did research on breakthrough companies in the US over the previous decade. They found that 88% of the companies in the US were the result of exceptional execution of an ordinary idea. In essence, waiting for the satori (the awakening) or the Eureka moment isn’t to be advised. Instead all companies should be focused on how they can ‘Xceptionalise’ their ordinary ideas.

When you Xceptionalise, you exceed people’s expectations, bringing them further along the spectrum from customer to friend. The starting point is a forensic review of your processes in the context of interactions between the customer, the internal customer and the organisation. Standards should be set and documented for each interaction with Xceptional standards being the goal.

For example, your aim is to answer the phone in three rings. The challenge must be to exceed these standards on an ongoing basis. Where the standards aren’t met, the organisation should acknowledge and vow to do better. Thus in the context of the phone answering example, an Xceptional receptionist would apologise for the delay in answering, then deal with the call.

Complaints are a fantastic opportunity to develop a relationship with your client. Standards should be put in place to empower front line staff to own and solve any complaint at source. Indeed companies should not just focus on solving complaints; equal focus should be spent on soliciting them. Most people expect trouble when they complain so when someone solves the problem their expectations are exceeded. The majority of dissatisfied clients leave without complaining, so get them complaining or watch them leave!

Standard setting should have input from each employee, from the receptionist to the managing director. In the context of creating the desired culture, recruitment strategy is critical. An Xceptional example of how to execute this strategy is provided by Zappos, the online shoe retailer recently taken over by Amazon. After a set induction period, the new employee is ‘invited to leave’ with a $2,000 cheque plus payment for time spent in training, if they believe the company culture isn’t a fit for them.

The standards are transmitted top down only after a bottom up consultation. The Xceptional business is everybody’s business and everybody is required to sell, excel and innovate in the current challenging times.
(Published in the Business Plus Magazine.)

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Xceptionalize Factor

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

Passion, enthusiasm, self-awareness and first-class customer service are among the key ingredients
to selling and ‘exceptionalising’ your business, motivational speaker Kevin Kelly tells Karina Corbett

Born into a small family retail business and with experience of selling and negotiating from a young age, one of motivational speaker Kevin Kelly’s main messages to owner-managers in the current climate is to focus on what they can control.
“My focus is on being proactive during this recession and not listening to the doom and gloom merchants,” he stresses. “There’s a huge emphasis on the latter in this country and that’s not doing any service to SMEs. They should be only looking at what they can do.
“Company personnel need to focus on what they can control and not spend their time and energy on something they cannot change. The thing is to remain focused and committed. Perseverance will pay off in the long-term – I recently got a contract that took 10 years to land.”
It is the notion of being exceptional that Kelly touches on a lot when he is speaking to his clients.
“In 2006 Columbia University did some groundbreaking research on all the breakthrough companies in the US over the previous decade. What they found was the 88pc were the result of exceptional execution of an ordinary idea and 12pc were the result of new inventions,” he explains.
“From this research I came up with the idea that companies should be ‘exceptionalising’ their business. To exceptionalise requires work on three fronts. It’s about developing the promoter – ie the owner-manager, developing the people and developing the processes.”
To develop the people and processes, Kelly suggests detailing all interactions with the client, setting standards for them and aiming to exceed.
Developing the promoter is even more critical, he says, particularly in an SME because the promoter is the culture creator, the leader, the person who sets the vibe.
“There is an intimate link between our physiology and psychology – in essence a positive attitude transmits into a positive presence and vice versa. So in a small business where the leader has even more impact – if he or she is negative it’s going to affect everyone. This person will not be a motivational force in their own company.”
Here is the where the concept of self-awareness comes in, something that Kelly notes is vital for anyone running a business – while you need to understand your customer, you also need to understand yourself in order to disempower limiting beliefs and unlock innate potential.
“Self-awareness is critical for any owner-manager. In 2007 a Stanford Business Advisory Committee stated that self-awareness was the most important attribute a leader should develop.
“Let’s say the promoter is a purveyor of doom and gloom – do you think they have the material to inspire their team to fight harder and smarter? I don’t think so. If they don’t believe it, I can’t see how they think anyone else will,” he says.

Principles of good selling
Moving away from the leader of the organsiation, Kelly strongly believes that everybody should see themselves as selling its products and services.
“It is not just the domain of the salespeople, regardless of whether the market is boom or bust. If you have a fantastic project, tell the world.”
And this can be done via the internet for a surprisingly low amount of money, he continues.
“For less than €750 now, you can have a world-class website. But people shouldn’t be talking about getting businesses online anymore – it’s about getting your site on the first page of Google. You can be online and do this within six months – again at minimal cost. I know as I have been there.”
To excel in sales and marketing you need to keep learning as well, he adds.
“Again, because of the internet it is possible to have your own free virtual research team that will keep you ahead of the game. So turn off the radio and TV and focus on working hard, learning and devising a smart strategy. This will build your business in the long and short-term.”
When it comes to selling, Kelly is of the opinion that having a background or talent in the area can help, but there are other important elements to consider.
“Selling is something that can be learned without any doubt, however to be a great salesperson you need to be passionate about your project.
“If you are doing what you love, this passion comes automatically and transfers across industries. I have been involved in selling in many industries but the rules remain the same, the whole strategy stays unchanged. It’s all about energy, passion and enthusiasm.

Give people attention
“You are dealing with people, and people buy from people in the main. The building block of most people is their DNA and in the selling world this equates to ‘Do Need Attention’. Humans by their nature are very predictable and they crave attention – that is indisputable. Giving this attention is the rapport skill in an attention deficit society.
“On this point, however, I find it ironic that so many businesses spend fortunes on getting customers through their doors and then totally underwhelm them with their customer service. Customer service is so important and actually I would say it is so poor in this country that it could soon become a company’s unique selling point.
“What people need to concentrate on is creating a memorable experience for their customers. They must focus on each interaction between their customer and organisation and exceed that. It’s about exceptional execution of their business.”

Been there and done that
As a motivational speaker across a wide range of areas such as sales, marketing, customer service, business strategy and entrepreneurship, Kelly believes he is qualified for his job because he has been there and done that.
Graduating with a commerce degree in 1987, his work experience spans a variety of industries including construction, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, healthcare and financial services.
“There’s a Chinese proverb that says that teachers open the door but you must enter by yourself,” he says. “This is true for motivational speaking. All you can do is create an environment in which people choose to take action. You’re just the facilitator in which they choose to change.
“But the better teachers are the authentic ones, people who have truly walked the path of their own philosophies. So in my instance the fact that I set and reached the goal of writing a best selling book though challenged by a D in English in both my Junior and Leaving Cert; the fact that I remortgaged my house to follow my dream; the fact that I set the goal of developing an international market on a shoestring – all these stories work with an audience.”
Written by Karina Corbett, Owner/Manager magazine

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Sunday Business Post Feature – Xceptionalize your Business

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

If businesses want to be successful in the future they need to stop thinking about customer relations and start building “friendships” with consumers, according to motivational speaker Kevin Kelly.
“The most important move that businesses can make is converting customers into friends
because all statistics show that customers leave, but friends don’t. I have built my business on that,” said Kelly. ‘‘How do you do that? How do you actually turn your customers into friends? The only way that you do that is to exceed customer expectations, or ‘exceptionalise’ your business”.
Last year’s IBM Global CEO Study of 1,500 business leaders found that 88 per cent of respondents described ‘‘getting close to the customer’’ as their key business strategy for the future.
‘‘In the current market, that is the type of relationship I think you need to develop. The concept of a customer is redundant in its current format – we are no
longer talking about customer relationships, but friendships,” Kelly said.
SFA conference Kelly’s interactive talk at the Small Firms Association’s annual conference, which is taking place in Dublin Castle at the end of the month, will focus on ways of “exceptionalising” your business to maximise returns.
Having set himself the goal of developing an international presence when he started out 20 years ago, Kelly is one of the country’s foremost motivational speakers, keynoting at events across the world from the US to Korea. He has worked for Fortune 500 companies including Pfizer and Coca-Cola, and prestigious professional trade associations like the Million Dollar Round Table. He has written several books including Basics Before Buzz, Life: A Trip Towards Trust (available free as an e-book on his website, Kevinkellyunlimited.com) and the bestselling How? When you don’t know How. He has also produced several motivational CDs.

Exceptional business

Kelly developed the concept of exceptionalising businesses after the release of a 2006 study by Columbia University of successful US companies in the previous decade. It found that the vast majority of success stories came about as a result of the exceptional execution of an ordinary idea.
Only 12 per cent of those companies made their name with a new or innovative product. The rest took something already in existence and delivered
it to the market in a more efficient and attractive package.
“The skill of exceptionalising a business is to start by looking at all the different customer interfaces where the client meets the provider, then setting standards for each of those and aiming to exceed them on an ongoing basis,” said Kelly.
His approach is three pronged, focusing on companies’ people, processes and promoters. Promoters are crucial in the SME sector because they are generally the business owners themselves.
“He or she is the culture creator, and that culture is something which either stimulates involve mentor passion and excitement for the brand or not. You start with yourself. I love what I do, for example,” said Kelly.
“When I am trying to sell my message to whomever it is that I am working with on various different projects, it is fairly infectious because I am in that space where I love what I do.”

Communication

Improving how you communicate and interact with your customer is crucial. This, Kelly admitted, was particularly difficult at a time when many consumers were being bombarded with information from dawn to dusk.
“We are operating in an attention-deficit society. Most people are hit with 5,000 marketing messages a week,” said Kelly.
“A study done by the University of California found that people were interrupted every three minutes and 11 seconds, and they were hit with 100,000 words a day, so it is very difficult to get your message across.”
One area where small businesses can have a massive impact without spending a fortune is on the web. By optimising your website, so that it is one of the first things people find in a Google search, for instance, you can get your message out to the world more effectively.
“For SMEs with a minimal budget, you can have maximum impact if you are clever enough. Virrtual research teams [operate] through Google alert, blogs improving your optimisation and a world-class website all for minimal cost and you can tell the world what you are doing,” said Kelly.
“The conversation is no longer about getting business online – you should already be there. It is now about getting businesses optimised. We tend to forget that we have four million people in this country.
“We are not that big, but the fact is that, if you have talent, you can showcase your talent to the world now at minimal cost. It is down to passion, interest, being in the space you want, and then telling the world your message when have something to say.”
According to Kelly, another area in need of serious attention is customer service. It is the unique selling point of any business, but standards had dropped in Ireland in recent years, he said.
“We spend so much money trying to get the customer to our premises, and then we do a fantastic job of alienating them once they are there. There is a huge contradiction there, and people tend to forget it,” he said.

Economics of possibility

Kelly said we had dwelt too much on the negative in Ireland in the past three years – particularly in the media – and that we ought to reorientate ourselves instead to focus on the “economics of possibility”.
“That is the way forward. The biggest problem in Ireland today is lack of consumer confidence. Our conversations form our consciousness, so if all we are talking about is doom and gloom, what are expecting to happen here?” he said.
“It is miracle-work to expect consumer confidence to improve when all we are getting is negative information and another economist telling us that we are going down the tubes. What a revelation. I would prefer to see and focus on a good example of a company that is excelling in the present time and ask myself the question, ‘what have they done right, what can I learn from them?’” he said.

Selling Ireland

The Irish needed to rethink how we were selling ourselves to the world, Kelly said. The smart economy was a good idea, he said, but people in India and China could be smarter for less money and we needed to work on what really distinguished us abroad: our people.
“We are doing well at the moment, we are fighting back and that is good. However, if you ask anybody in any country around the world, ‘What is Ireland all about, what makes it different?’, they will consistently talk about Ireland’s people and how friendly we are, no matter where you are,’’ he said.
“We tend to be focused on the smart economy, but I actually think that the only unique selling point that we really have is our very, very friendly people. Then the question is; if that is our unique selling point, how do we sell it better?’”
Kelly said we should be putting Ireland’s friendly people to the fore and building the strategy around them by developing initiatives in areas like tourism, education and services, while also focusing on making it easier for visitors from the emerging markets to come here.
“As a location for teaching English as a foreign language, you couldn’t get a better place in the world. Thinking laterally, people come over here to kiss the Blarney Stone – why haven’t we developed a university for communication, for instance? We need to be much cleverer in our communications strategy,” he said.
“We should say ‘This is who we are’ and build everything around that model. We need to rethink Ireland Inc, and then to do what every other business does, build our model around our unique selling point.’’

(Journalist:Gareth Naughton)

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Leave a comment

News update!

Posted on June 10, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

A few exciting developments:

You can expect a new look and feel multilingual website within the next month with some new exciting features – enjoy it!

I have just launched our new Facebook Business Page – full of videos, pics, book excerpts, comment and more – please visit, like and share
www.facebook.com/kevinkellyspeaker

All our videos including MDRT Closing Keynote in Korea – Alcatel Lucent Sales Kickoff in EuroDisney – UTV Live and more are now on www.youtube.com/kevinkellyspeaker

Finally my new graphic novel CODE Y is with agents – desperately seeking worldwide deals – I believe the book will help to redefine how we communicate with the 13 – 20 market.

Thats all for now – I trust you are enjoying the summer.

Kevin

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Jobless Paddy – a winning formula….for him!

Posted on June 8, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

The minute I was made aware of Feilim’s aka Jobless Paddy’s plan – “brilliant – it will go viral” was the first words out of my mouth.

Why the confidence?
1. The campaign was different, imaginative, emotional, succinct and authentic.
- Nobody has done this before or so I thought.
- It showed that this Paddy has indeed imagination and possessed an important gift for any workspace – creativity.
- Emotional: Of course it pulled on the heart strings – nobody likes seeing anyone having to emigrate.
- Succinct: Within seconds as you passed the billboard you had got the message.
- Authentic – last but by no means least, it was authentic. Feilim is very creative and is looking for a space in the sales/marketing field so this “advertisement” was a fantastic showcase of his talent. No CV could have told his story better. This wouldnt have worked as well if someone was going for a job in a different field.

I of course knew Feilim from his participation at one of my courses and was delighted to be cited as the source of inspiration that propelled him outside his comfort zone. Therein lies two other attributes that the jobseeker needs:
- Willingness to learn. Sometimes an outside voice may just inspire you on the right road. Regardless willingness to learn is a very marketable asset in a job interview situation.
- Perseverance: Never throw in the towel – sooner or later talent will find a way.
If you have talent – TELL THE WORLD!
Don’t wait to find a job – create one!
Congrats Feilim and enjoy the next chapter as it unfolds.

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Job Seekers Eleven tips for getting that job!

Posted on June 1, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

1. Take responsibility  if you invest in the blame game, you start to dilute the focus and energy required for getting that job – yes we have a complete absence of political leadership – yes we have a media that feeds off doom and gloom and nothing else, but they cannot change your life – only you can choose that reality.

2. Realise that all is not lost – the majority of people cannot answer the following question at an interview “why do you want the job?”
Mastery of this question will put you in the top ten per cent.

3. Go for a job in your industry of choice  don`t just go for any job. Energetically interviewers will know that you don`t really want it, and will wait for someone who truly does. Be prepared to work at a junior level to follow your dream – it is easier getting up the ladder, than in the door.

4. Build a compelling book of evidence that will prove you truly want the job this should include highlighting past experience and Web presence on the topic.

5. Become an expert in your area – follow the 10,000 hour rule. Invest three hours a day on researching your passion – open your mind to creating, not just finding a job.

6. Leverage power of the net to develop expert status -set up google alerts on your topics of interest- develop your own virtual research team for free. So you want to become a motivational speaker why not set up a google alert for œmotivational speaker.

7. Imagine attending an interview with expert status in your field? This opens up subcontract possibilities – at minimum you have differentiated yourself from the competition.

8. Develop interpersonal skills – simply open your eyes and be led by interviewer’s body language not your notes. Remember awareness is key – if they are asleep they are asleep! So change strategy or choose to travel the insanity loop where you keep doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result.

9. Too often interviewers recruit those that mirror their own inadequacies or brilliance -so talent doesn’t always win the day. Be aware and mirror where they are at.
10. Differentiation is key – here are the facts:
Most people are hit with 34g of information daily, approx 100,000 words and generally are interrupted from their task every 3m 11 seconds. Bottom line – you need to think and do differently to get their attention. The Jobless Paddy was a fantastic example of someone thinking outside the box. Well done Feilim – delighted to have been a source of inspiration.
11. Have faith -true talent will always find a way.

Just launched a new business page on Facebook – if you have enjoyed this article please visit www.facebook.com/KevinKellySpeaker and “like” – thanks a million we are aiming at getting 1000 likes in three weeks.

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Attention!

Posted on May 17, 2011 by Kevin Kelly

The facts:
We are being overwhelmed by 100,000 words and 34g of information daily! (Source: University of California.)
The average time spent on a task before being distracted or switching to another – 3 minutes 11 seconds.
People would prefer a compliment than sex in a recent study conducted by the University of Michigan.
We are spending fortunes on getting people into our premises yet forgetting they are there when they arrive!
Recent Harvard and New York University research highlight the fact that most people make strong first impressions within at maximum ten seconds – more likely within the first one!

What are the implications for our strategy – well the communication must be unique, passionate, emotional, authentic, focused, interactive, meaningful……

….you must truly provide a unique experience that will engage your client.

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Leave a comment