Why restrict yourself to the narrow “I” when the whole world is yours. Hindu Wisdom
As a leader, entrepreneur or businessperson have you pinpointed potential mentors and teachers who have walked the path before you? Why reinvent the wheel when you can gain access to people who can shorten the journey and help you avoid the inevitable potholes.
Creating a successful alliance is very much dependent on your current mindset. For example, are you open to learning from everybody you meet, regardless of age, education, wealth, race or gender? Do you believe that the teacher can become the student and vice versa?
You will find that the best people are always the most accessible. There are zero degrees of separation when you have the right intent. Approaching potential teachers with a win-win mentality will help bring your career to the next level.
So who do you select?
If you’re going to climb a mountain and you need a guide, you should look for somebody with personal experience and local knowledge rather than a person who dreams, talks, writes, paints or sings about climbing the mountain!
The same analogy can be applied to any challenge you face. In life and in business, a mentor with personal experience and local knowledge is much more valuable than one who is all talk.
Seek out the sherpa as opposed to the superstar!
Based on my own personal experience reaching out for help from those that have walked the path before, the best people are always the most accessible. Some time back I contacted one of the most successful people in this industry – their advice and inspiration give me the roadmap to excelling in this field.
Kevin Kelly International Motivational Speaker and Best Selling Author. For the past two decades Kevin has keynoted as a motivational speaker at conferences in Europe, Middle and Far East and the US. For more http://www.kevinkellyunlimited.com
Create A Mastermind Alliance
January 7th, 2010
Being Authentic, the New Strategy for Success
January 7th, 2010Research completed by Harvard psychology professors Nalini Ambady, Ph.D., and Robert Rosenthal, Ph.D. confirms our deepest suspicions – the time you’ve got to make an impact on either internal or external customer is reducing!
Observers viewed three thin slices of each professor’s behaviour – in 10-second clips from the beginning, middle and end of a class – and then rated the professors’ confidence, energy and warmth. They found that these ratings predicted with amazing accuracy the average student rating taken at semester’s end. Thinner slices – three two-second clips – also yielded ratings similarly congruent with student evaluations.
John A. Bargh, a researcher from NYU claims the assessment happens within a quarter of a second.
Think about it – in this timeframe there is only one sure-fire way that you will make an instant impact – you have to be real.
Remember there is a direct link between your physiology and psychology so instantaneously people know your natural disposition.
Other research has shown that, for most employees, the most important person in an organisation is their direct line manager and not the CEO. The relationship built between managers and their line will have a major impact on your bottom line.
People do as you do, not as you say. Whoever you are, whatever you do will be mirrored in your staff’s activities. If you want authentic, positive, proactive employees, you need to be in this space yourself first to facilitate the process.
Now more than ever, communication is key – dialogue rather than monologue. An authentic leader keeps employees informed of the ups and downs of the business and invests in their development. An authentic leader also recruits right – they are unfazed by and celebrate talent.
To build a business as a motivational speaker, you need to show that you truly walk the path of your philosophies. There is no point in directing people to live the dream if you have never set a challenging goal in your life.
So how do we become authentic, real?
Start by taking the important trip towards self-awareness. Stanford Business School Advisory Board, reports that self-awareness has been recognised as the most important capability for leaders to develop.
Kevin Kelly is an Internationally acclaimed motivational speaker and authority on entrepreneurship, sales, leadership, creativity and personal excellence.
www.kevinkellyunlimited.com
“Hope” – the intangible asset.
January 4th, 2010One major challenge highlighted from convenience research conducted with clients and colleagues around the world in 2009 was the inundation of negative stimuli that they were faced with on a daily basis. The bottom line was that “hope” that intangible asset that breeds optimism, perseverance and action in the face of adversity was in short supply.
The lack of leadership in political circles coupled with the media’s admitted penchant for sensationalism and bad news meant that business leaders, entrepreneurs, employees were given no time out from the challenges in the business environment.
In the absence of positive authentic leadership from both sources, it is important we take personal responsibility and focus on what we can do to inject more positivity into the current toxic environment.
2010 is a year for celebrating businesses, entrepreneurs, individuals who excel in the face of adversity, who persevere in the context of their dreams, who share and collaborate when the chips are down. Whether they are in your local community or in far distant lands, honour their efforts.
Be a “hope carrier” in 2010 – have a great year full of magic and adventure!
2010 Ten Strategies to Succeed
Persevere
Focus
Be transparent
Take Action
Lead – the authentic way
Communicate – the good, bad and ugly
Colloborate
Think differently
Exceed – how can you exceptionalise your business and exceed expectations.
Enjoy
Customer Service review 2009
December 23rd, 2009“Never Assume because it makes an ass of u and me,” some advice given to me as I started my working life over two decades ago.
Well in the context of customer service standards in 2009, as experienced in my own life, the advice was never more relevant.
I assumed that companies would be aiming at exceeding customer expectations at each contact point with the customer – that their focus would be on truly wowing the customers in a bid to retain and attract their scarce resources. I thought that organisations would truly welcome complaints as a unique opportunity to strengthen the relationship with the client.
In the main, I assumed wrong!
The car business may be in crisis but it hasn’t stopped them from forgetting to ring back customers who are looking for information, or indeed quoting prices that appeared to get an audience in more opulent times!
The hotel industry is also suffering – one particular five star guaranteed that my next experience would be much better if I contacted him ( the manager) after I checked in! He was obviously making a few too many assumptions.
I passionately believe that companies should look at customer service as a potential competitive advantage, a unique selling point in a very “me too” market. Remember the ground breaking research compiled by Amar Bhide and his team at Columbia University which showed that 88% of the breakthrough companies in the US were the result of exceptional execution of an ordinary idea. Why not exceptionalize your service and see what happens to your bottom line?
In the context of exceptional service, I must highlight a recent experience with Traveller Insurance and more specifically their Claims Representative Angela Hanrahan.
Unfortunately, a feew days earlier,I managed to enter and remain in a flood with my car! The bottom line was the engine and car was a write off. Not the ideal Christmas present, but at the end of the day it is only a car.
As a person that has never made an insurance claim in my life; I have to admit I was a little concerned about what may happen.
From my very first phonecall to throughout the negotiations with the assessor, to receiving the claims cheque; I can say I experienced exceptional customer service. What were the elements- 1. a compassionate ear 2. ongoing communication and never MIA – whenever Angela promised to ring me back, she did so on time every time. Whenever she promised a resolution to whatever issue, again the resolution happened on time every time.
Overall as I articulated to the lady in question, she was a fantastic ambassador for the company. She delivered what I expect from every interface with any organisation – the challenge is can the other companies now raise their bar? Can we call 2010 the year of exceptional customer service?
Communication – the critical skill
December 2nd, 2009“Effective employee communication is a leading indicator of financial performance and a driver of employee engagement. Companies that are highly effective communicators had 47% higher total returns to shareholders over the last five years compared with firms that are the least effective communicators.”
Ref: 2009/2010 Communication ROI study.
http://www.watsonwyatt.com/commroi/
No major shocks in these survey results – communication is one of the key skills in life and business. A skill that should be getting more focus within the education system which continues to fail both industry and society by focusing on grades.
Interpersonal and Intrapersonal intelligences are the two most highly paid intelligences in the world. Those high on these intelligences have the necessary life toolbox to excel in life and be able to transcend the inevitable personal challenges that will arrive on their doorstep.
Time for some real vision on this subject.