Are You An Egomaniac?

A few weeks ago, I posted one of my most read articles, 'Are You Late All The Time?'. I received a huge response from readers (thank you!), all letting me know they are either mending their ways or will take charge with late people in their life. Here's a little secret about Rich Gee — I am an avid Vince Flynn Fan — I read all of his books. I am currently in the middle of one of his older novels, Act of Treason. Not to get into the story, but there's a great description of people who are habitually late for meetings. I'll quote it in it's entirety (it's so good):

"When someone is constantly late, they fall into three categories."

"The first, he called idiot savant. The type of person who is so smart in his or her field of expertise that their mid is literally elsewhere. In layman's terms he explained that these people were smart in school and dumb on the bus."

"The second category was made up of perfectionists, people who were incapable of letting go of one task and moving on to another. These people were always playing catch-up, rarely rose to any real position of power, and needed to be managed properly."

"The third category, and the one to be most wary of were the egomaniacs. These were the people who not only felt that their time was more important than anyone else's, but who needed to prove it by constantly making others wait for them."

WOW. The only thing I would add to this description — one can share elements of each category. So you can be a perfectionist with a little idiot savant. Or a bit of an egomaniac (be honest, we all are at one time or another) with a dash of  perfectionism.

Or all three. Coming from someone who is maniacally early all the time — it's hard for me to understand habitually late people. Now I do.

Is there a diagnosis for people like me who are always early? Where do you place yourself? I'd love to know — comment below.

Be Proud Of Yourself.

As a coach, one of my responsibilities is to help my clients acknowledge their accomplishments. Why? Because we don't. We get so caught up in the rat-race, getting things done, moving as fast as possible — and we don't take the time to stop and review where we are and where we've come from.

A big part of my job is acknowledgement — I help my clients fully appreciate where they are in life — all the hard work, all the sweat and tears, all the long nights and early mornings — everything.

Why? It gives us perspective. It allows us to understand what it takes for us to really succeed. It also allows us to understand how hard we are on ourselves and how we forget all the hard work.

So . . . I want you to take a few minutes this morning and fully acknowledge where you are in life today:

• Do you have a roof over your head? A lot of people don't.
• Do you have a full stomach? A lot of people are hungry in this world.
• Do you have a partner in life? Family? Good for you!
• Are you employed? Nice work!
• Do you have a car? Excellent!
• Do you have a savings account? Good planning!

If you say yes to most of these questions — congratulations! If you have most - great job.

Be proud of yourself — who you are, what you do, who you impact, and what you leave behind. If you put yourself in the position of acknowledging your current position and what you've done — you have only one way to go — UP.

HOW DO YOU ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS? HOW ARE YOU PROUD OF YOURSELF?

LET ME KNOW BELOW . . .

The Secret To Getting Things Done.

Candidly, it hard to get things done. Of course, some things are easy, but many of them are quite difficult. We are always looking for ways to do things better, faster, and with less worry and work. Years ago, I came upon one of the most simple and powerful quotes I've ever read. It's from Mohandas Gandhi, who in his 78 years of life, gave us so many great quotes (and his actions too!).

"Action Expresses Priorities."

That's it. That's MY secret to getting things done.

Think about it — All of your actions, all the things you do, all the things you deliver — set your priorities. Once you take action, you instantly decide what you want to do first. Why? People tend to act upon those things that have meaning to them.

But I think it's deeper than that. I think when you don't know what to do, you need to just take action anywhere and suddenly certain things will start to fall into place.

But that's the problem today — we don't take action. We're afraid to — we procrastinate, over-analyze, and postpone because we are sometimes afraid of action.

Because action will ensure we have to make a decision — we have to do something that is sometimes hard, or we will have to deal with the results of that action.

But what we don't realize is that action moves us forward. It propels us . . . it forces us to rocket faster and faster. And sometimes we are afraid of that.

So ask yourself:

• How can I take action today?
• What should I do first? Second? Third?
• What should I stop doing?

So the next time you are putting off something — a decision, a task, a phone-call — just think "Action Expresses Priorities".

Who Else Wants To Add Power & Purpose To Their Life?

Ever see the last scene from The Bourne Supremacy? Here it is (start the clip at 1:25 in). In addition to the great soundtrack cut from Moby, you see Bourne walking off into the crowds of Manhattan.

Do you notice HOW he walks? With PURPOSE.

He has a fast stride, is focused, and is determined to move forward, quickly.

I want you to do the same thing. I want you to walk 20% faster than you do now. Why?

1. You get where you're going faster.
2. You use different muscles when you walk faster.
3. You catch people's attention when you move faster.
4. You breathe differently and your heart pumps a bit faster.
5. It adds focus, energy, and action to every step you take.

Let me say that again — IT ADDS FOCUS, ENERGY, AND ACTION TO EVERY STEP YOU TAKE.

Focus - Since you're moving faster, you have to anticipate and react faster. So you have to hone in on what you're doing and focus.

Energy - Since you are moving your body differently and with purpose, you get the lungs, blood, and muscles all flowing.

Action - Combine both of these together and you are adding activity to a mundane process.

How many times do you catch yourself strolling or walking slowly? Ever think about how that makes you feel? That's right — it relaxes you, it slows down the energy, and allows you to focus (i.e., worry) about a lot of things.

Walking 20% faster will get you out of the doldrums, get your juices flowing, and honestly . . . ideas will pop out of your head. You WILL add power and purpose with every step.

Try it.

Why The iPad Is Firing You From Your Job.

Eliminate the middleman. If you've ever reviewed a process, one of the first rules of management is to eliminate the superfluous and streamline. I've never seen a successful organization ADD layers of management or processes and succeed. The more people, approvals, and regulations all add time and money to any endeavor.

So the rationale for success in the 21st century is to be more agile, efficient, effective, nimble and inexpensive. Follow this simple progression — Memos to Email to Messaging or Film Camera to Digital Camera to iPhone. Faster, cheaper, more effective.

Take a look around — it's happening all over:

• Best Buy is Amazon's showroom. I can't remember the last time I bought something there.
• Have you walked into a Macy's, JC Penney, or even a Walmart lately? The employees HATE their job and each place is a mess.
• See a cash register at an Apple Store? They check you out with their iPhone. In fact, they have an app for your iPhone to allow you to check yourself out (I tried it this weekend - it works!).
• Bookstores are dying all around us. So are record stores.
• Expensive gyms are being consolidated into inexpensive monthly membership groups.
• Supermarkets have lost their way. There are some stand-outs (Shop-Rite, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Aldi), but for the most part, they're getting TOO big.

What's happening? They are eliminating the middleman. Why buy shoes at a shoe store when I can use Zappos? Same price, huge selection, and they have my size. If they don't fit, I can send them back free. Aldi's supermarkets can run with 3-4 employees (I'm not kidding) - super efficient layout and structure.

What would happen if Stephen King decided to leave his publisher? He could write his book, hire his editor to edit the book, and distribute it via Amazon. He could also have it printed via a print-on-demand structure. And he can eliminate the middleman. And keep ALL the profits.

Look at what Radiohead did when they offered their new album digitally and allowed their fans to pay anything they wanted for the music. They averaged about $5 per album download and kept ALL the profits.

What would happen if a famous professor taught a course via webinar and charged $1000 a credit ($4K total) per student? And they offered it to anyone? How much would they make if 500 students attended? That's right . . . $2 million dollars. The logistics are easy - billing, registration and testing online - books can be purchased digitally. The professor can take questions and have a virtual whiteboard. All they have to do is teach ONE CLASS. Eliminate the middleman.

Kickstarter is a game changer. Check out Amanda Palmer. She bypassed the recording industry, requested $100K via Kickstarter and raised $624K to launch her new album (great video).

The iPad is a game changer. It is slowly killing huge areas of business, entertainment, and education. Textbooks, printing, television, DVD's, gaming, etc. Walk into an Apple Store and look around — I only saw 3 computers. The rest of the huge store was littered with iPads, iPhones, and MacBooks. Another one bites the dust.

My charge for you today: Is your position, vocation, or organization being slowly eliminated? Are you the middleman? It might not be happening now — but it might in the future.

You don't want to be the company who made slide rules when calculators were invented.

3 Tips To Take Better Notes [Infographic]

Do you want to take better notes and be able to remember the important tasks you usually forget?

This graphic can help point you in the right direction. Just try one tip and you'll see better notes, better recognition, and better performance. You will remember the things you usually forget.

NOTE: Here's the template I use (listed under Format).

**to save, right click on the image and choose “save image as”**

Do you like this?

“Like” It. “Tweet” It. “+1″ It. "Pin" it.

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? WANT TO SEE MORE GRAPHICS LIKE THESE?

How LinkedIn And Twitter Changed My Day.

The other day, a close friend and colleague of mine said she attended a killer workshop on social media.

She said the presenter gave her a boatload of new ideas and energy for her to expand her current business campaign using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. From her energy, I got the feeling the presenter not only hit a home run, but he also brought in the other three players (he really knows his stuff)!

So what did I do after we spoke? I immediately went to LinkedIn and tried to link with the presenter. Guess what happens?

I get this response: "Rich, Great to connect. So you know, based on a session you once did at the local library, you inspired me to start a company, build a website, promote myself on social media which resulted, among new business, in being asked to join an MBA program. I would enjoy the chance to let you know what you did if you would like to know. But thank you very much for all you did."

We then had a roundtable tweet-fest on Twitter to let everyone know what happened!

What did this teach me?

1. You never know who's listening when you present.
2. You never know how your words can impact another person.
3. The world is getting smaller every day.
4. I need to get out even more and present.
5. Always reach out to people whenever you hear their name.

Who will YOU meet this week?

Are You A Habitual Pushover? Guess What -You Probably Are.

Own a business? Do you have money collection issues? Manage a team in corporate? Are you missing deadlines?

You probably are a PUSHOVER. Let me explain.

Our natural instinct is to try to please, to perform or to get along with others. Sometimes, when we encounter someone with a stronger personality, we tend to bend our own rules to accomodate their needs.

I frequently mention with my clients the practice of looking at behaviors on a spectrum. For example, if you have a spouse/partner, one of you is probably a hoarder and one of you is probably a tosser. One throws away everything and the other saves everything. Hopefully, neither of you are at the extreme ends of the spectrum, but you are definitely not at the same point.

It's the same with being a pushover. At one end of the spectrum is a tree that bends with the slightest wind and at the other, a hard-ass SCROOGE who demands the last penny owed to them. Some of you might be at one end (the Scrooge) who demands all payment up front or pushes their team mercilessly to beat every deadline.

And you're probably not at the other end of the spectrum never billing a client or missing all of your deadlines.

But you're somewhere in the middle. And I guess, you're closer to the pushover than the Scrooge. Here's how to think about it.

The middle of the spectrum is THE PROFESSIONAL. That's where you want to be. Someone who moderates their decisions and actions based on the situation. Most of the time, you're the professional, handling projects and billing your clients.

Sometimes though, you will have to move slowly to one end or the other of the spectrum. With certain situations, you might give your team an extra day to complete their project successfully or allow a good client to pay you one week later. Other times, you might have to come down hard on your team to hit that deadline or bill your client in full prior to any more work can be accomplished.

You're not the hard-assed Scrooge or the Pushover — you're just being a Professional.

So next time the situation changes for you or your team, realize you can move up and down the spectrum to get what you really want.

How To Sell Anything.

During my 20 year tenure working in corporate management, many times I found myself as a product manager. As Wikipedia states, a product manager investigates, selects, and develops products for an organization. That's what I did. As a product manager, you have a number of constituencies to sell to — it's not only the end user 0r customer, but also the account executive or salesperson. They add the 'voice' to your product and either make it grow or die.

After many months on the job, I saw a subtle, yet clear reality began to emerge. There were three distinct groups of people who were my 'audience' - people who instantly got it, people who were on their way to getting it, and people who were obstacles. Let me explain:

The 'Get-It' Crowd

These are the 'platinum' members to your club. When you present your product to them, they instantly 'get it' and want to sell it to other people. They see the inherent qualities of your product, they understand how it works, and they quickly incorporate it into their product line.

What to do: Keep these people close, shower them with affection and acknowledgement, and ensure you listen to them. They will give you critical information about the reality of your product. You can then modify it as needed to make it sell even faster.

The 'Almost-On-Board' Crowd

These are the people who are on the fence. Why? Usually because of a few reasons:

• They are always unsure of new products.
• They need to be sold.
• They need more information.
• They are not focused yet - they just need to focus on your product.

What to do: Reach out to them, educate them, answer their questions, go out on sales calls with them. They just need that one time to see one of their current clients embrace the product and then they're sold. Once that happens, they are on-board.

The 'Negative' Crowd

These are the people who will NEVER get it. Either they are obstinate and will never embrace your product or they feel they have the right mix of products for their client base. In either case, you not only have an uphill battle to wage, you're fighting on Mt. Everest.

What to do: Honestly — don't waste your time with these people. You have enough blood, sweat and tears to expend on the other two groups. I know it's harsh and there is the group of salespeople who say "You never know . . . " — but in the end, even if you convert one person from this group, you could've converted 5-10 in the 'Almost-On-Board' crowd. Cut your losses and don't bother.

If you use these three strategies effectively, you'll find it so much easier (and faster) to get your products to market and in front of the people that matter — your customers.

3 Books You Should Be Reading Right NOW.

I'm frequently asked by organizations in my business consulting area what are the best books their employees should read and refer to. Honestly, there are a lot of good books out there. And unfortunately, there are millions of stinkers out there too.

Today, everyone thinks they can write a book. But most of them suck (hey, it's my opinion).

Here are the three which have withstood the test of time and to this day influence millions of executives and employees throughout the world:

How to Win Friends & Influence People

By Dale Carnegie.

This is the bible — buy it and live it. This grandfather of all people-skills books was first published in 1937. It was an overnight hit, eventually selling 15 million copies. How to Win Friends and Influence People is just as useful today as it was when it was first published, because Dale Carnegie had an understanding of human nature that will never be outdated.

The Magic of Thinking Big

By David Schwartz.

Long regarded as one of the foremost experts on motivation, Schwartz will help you manage better, earn more money, and — most important of all — find greater happiness and peace of mind. He proves that you don’t need to have an innate talent to attain great success — but you do need to learn and understand the habit of thinking and behaving in ways that will get you there.

Linchpin — Are You Indispensable?

By Seth Godin

Linchpin is a most unusual, well-organized, concise book about what it takes to become indispensable in the workplace – whether you work for someone else (at any level) or are self-employed. It’s about how business has rapidly changed and how treating employees like factory workers (or doing your job like one) doesn’t work any longer. We must make choices and take action to “chart our own paths” and add value that others do not.

We cannot wait for a boss or a job description to tell us what to do, rather we must just take the initiative ourselves. Only then can we become indispensable “linchpins,” rather than replaceable “cogs.” ”You don’t become indispensable merely because you are different. But the only way to become indispensable is to be different. That’s because if you’re the same, so are plenty of other people.

I recommend these three books DAILY to my clients.

Go out and buy them for your iPad or even better, pick up the audiobook and devour it.

Top Posts for April 2012.

Okay, I posted one day early this month, so sue me. In case you missed them, here are my top ten posts for April 2012:

1. How To Stop Working So Late – Part One. 789 views
2. The Ten Commandments Of Leadership. 549 views
3. Two Questions That Will Change Your Life In A Powerful Way. 478 views
4. How To Stop Working So Late – Part Two. 441 views
5. Three Secrets Presentation Pros Keep To Themselves. 428 views
6. 4 Tips To Say “NO” and Make It Stick. 330 views
7. 3 Simple Rules In Life. 243 views
8. Top Five Regrets of the Dying. 235 views
9. Two People To Keep Your Eye On At Work. 231 views
10. When Your Company Throws You A Left Hook To The Chin. 210 views

I want to thank all of my readers who made April the biggest (most visited) month ever for my site. I really appreciate all of the visits and most of all telling other people about my site. It means a lot to me.

If you get a chance, please forward your favorite to someone else you know. Thank you!

Which post really resonated with you?

Stay in touch — I love your feedback! Keep it coming. Regards - Rich

#001: Bulletproof Your Career [Podcast]

Welcome to my new podcast, Psycho Career & Career Psycho. Like my blog, it focuses on the trials and tribulations we all face in the business world. My goal is to help you live with more passion, work with greater focus, and lead with extraordinary influence.

My co-host is Margo Meeker, one of the best psychotherapists and life coaches out there. I've known Margo for years and have collaborated on many successful workshops with her throughout the U.S..

Why Psycho Career & Career Psycho? First, we wanted to catch people's attention and imagination with the title. We didn't want to do "Biz Talk" or "On The Road" or "Marketplace with Mabel" — we wanted a title that caught your imagination and honestly conveyed what's happening out there in the world right now. It's crazy! There are psychos out there! :)

Also, we wanted to cover what Margo is — a psychotherapist/life coach — and me — a business and executive career coach. So it fits!

We hope to make this a fairly regular podcast (hopefully weekly!). But for now, we are testing the waters and seeing where the rapids take us.

Our first podcast topic is 'Bulletproof Your Career' - how to keep your job and succeed in these tumultuous times. Margo and I cover the four areas critical for every person out there to keep their wits about them while making their way up the ladder of success.

We would LOVE your feedback - tell us what you think!

So without further ado . . . here's our podcast (see top of post)!

How To Be Bold In Life.

At the top of my site is a simple phrase — "Be Bold In Life". I've used it to describe my coaching for the past eleven years. It's one thing to understand the term "be bold in life" and another to actually do it.

I found out the secret many years ago when I worked in corporate. It's simple, concise and you've probably heard it before:

"Ask for forgiveness, not permission."

I'm not asking you to be inconsiderate. Or obnoxious. Or uncaring. But if you have a choice to take action or ask someone's opinion on taking action . . . TAKE ACTION. Think it through and then ACT.

In business, people who are asked for their opinion tend to give it. And if you ask them if the sky is blue, they tend to disagree with you and say it's pink with white streaks. It's human nature. And unfortunately, it slows you down.

Too many times, we look to others for their permission — and in so doing, we are relinquishing our power and importance to another person. Keep the power, the idea, and the responsibility with you and ACT.

You might be afraid of making a mistake or causing a huge issue. I'm not going to say it doesn't happen. Most of the time though, people understand if your heart was in the right place and you were doing something good for the company. They get it. You might get a slap on the hand (and I've received many of those).

I've even received reprimands for my actions. But in the end, my boss understood why I took action and ultimately, it helped me move my career forward.

And that's the real reason why we do it. Be Bold In Life. Take Chances. Ask for forgiveness, not permission.

How You Easily Deceive Yourself.

Scenario 1: "Let's meet at 2 PM Friday — I have a lunch meeting at Noon and I can run from there to your office to meet. I know it will be tight, but I will only allow myself one hour to eat." Scenario 2: "My day is full of back to back meetings, in different buildings, but I can make it without being late."

Scenario 3: "We can get your final approval in, print up your order, and have it out by the end of the day."

Which one is your scenario? Okay — let's get serious. We know these scenarios work some of the time, but most of the time, you're either late or you miss your deadline.

With the myriad of things we do in our career, time management, or the appearance of time management is our kryptonite. The more we try to do, the more we juggle, the less time we have for mistakes, traffic, and plain-old scheduling.

When it comes to time, where do you deceive yourself?

• Do you get up late and have to rush around getting dressed and ready for the day?
• Do you leave at the wrong time every day so you hit a higher level of traffic commuting?
• Is daily planning in the morning a chore (so you don't do it)?
• Do you over-promise and under-deliver?

Here are a few great time management posts to help you:

How To Survive In A High Performance Workplace

5 Ways To Kill Email

The Best Time Management Tool I Recommend To My Clients

Time Management Stinks. Here Are 10 Tips That Work for Me.

Make It Count.

One of the most energizing videos I've seen lately - great music, editing, quotes — Casey Neistat is a force to be reckoned with.

Quotes from the video:

"Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all." - Helen Keller

"Buy the ticket, take the ride." - Hunter S. Thompson

"You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough." - Mae West

"Above all, try something." Franklin D. Roosevelt

"I never worry about the future, it comes soon enough." - Albert Einstein

"One who makes no mistakes, makes nothing at all." - Giacomo Casanova

"In the end, it's not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years," - Abraham Lincoln

"Do More" - Casey Neistat (tattoo)

"If I'd followed all the rules, I'd never have gotten anywhere." - Marilyn Monroe

And my favorite: "Action expresses priorities." - Gandhi

The Ten Commandments Of Leadership.

Leadership is not easy. It's tough. It's unpredictable. It takes focus, determination, and most of all opportunity. Leadership cannot be planned - it happens in the moment. So I've put together the top ten commandments of leadership to help you anticipate a leadership moment:

1. Think before you speak.

As leaders, we are always trying to help and solve the problem. Or when it's time to take a team member out to the woodshed. We tend to speak and act first, and take prisoners later. Stop for a second and THINK. What's the BEST way to go about this?

Instead of solving the problem, how about letting the person suggest some of their own solutions? Instead of getting angry at a team member, ask them what they think they did wrong. Sometimes people are harder on themselves — and in the end, these actions become learning experiences that stick forever.

2. Push your people. Get them to do scary things.

I've always had my people push themselves — take on at least one scary project which takes them WAYYY out of their comfort zone. This allows them to grow in their position, deliver the best they can do, and most of all NOT GET BORED.

If you keep them performing at an optimal level on one of their projects, these behaviors will spread to the other activities they execute. If they fail or fall short, you're there to catch them and then help them at that point on.

3. What's the right thing to do? Evangelize ethics in everything you do.

People look up to you and see what you do. In everything you do. If you gossip, they will gossip. If you cheat a client, they will too. As a leader, you become the moral mirror image for all of your people.

In addition, try to encourage the right behavior in your people — if they come to a philosophical crossroads, ask them what would be the RIGHT thing to do.

4. Show them the way. Be visionary.

We get too caught up in the politics and tactics of our job. Good leaders consistently keep their eye on the long term benefits and goals. Teach your people to goal-set, plan, monitor, and assess for every project and activity they do.

Give them the long picture — where you want to see the company go, the division, the department and ultimately, them. Give it life, make it visionary, get them involved.

5. Don't take on any monkeys. You will never lead your team.

First, read this great HBR report (it's from 1974 and it's one of their most read reports). It's the standard to help you lead and manage your team — don't let them drop monkeys on your desk — help them solve their own problems.

In fact, this commandment should be emblazoned on the wall behind your desk: "Don't come to me with a problem unless you have one or more solutions.".

6. Fight the good fight. Take a stand.

Never be wishy-washy on anything important. Your people will see that immediately. Analyze the pros and cons, take the end result into account, and make a decision. If you're wrong, admit it immediately and change course. But we get so caught up in the decision process — being afraid of making the wrong decision, we make the situation worse.

If someone or something is going after your department or one of your people and they are clearly wrong, defend them to the death. There might be some people who might say you're committing political suicide, but I feel if you and your team are in the right, it will ultimately surface in your favor.

7. Be strategic, monitor tactical.

Too many leaders try to micromanage. Don't make this mistake. Focus on the big picture and how all of the pieces fit together. Don't worry about the day to day, monitor it with your people's input, but keep them focused on the goalposts.

8. Communicate clearly.

Many leaders mistake intelligence with obfuscation. They use big words, grand designs, and ornate constructs to communicate their goals. BAD IDEA. If your people have to decipher what you are looking for, you exponentially increase the opportunity for them to misunderstand your message and do the wrong thing.

Be clear, concise, and straightforward in ALL of your communications — you'll find things move that much faster and people get your drift immediately.

9. Be confident, not cocky.

The difference between cockiness and confidence:

• Cockiness - "I know that. We've been doing that for years."
• Confidence - "Wow, I didn't know that. Tell me more."

Which person do you like to work with? Most everyone likes to work with a confident person — someone who is comfortable in their own shoes, someone who is not afraid to not know something and is inquisitive to find out more. One of the goals of leadership is to get your people to absorb and display your leadership attributes in their day-to-day work. Who do you want to work with — a confident ally or a cocky jerk?

10. Understand the 'meta' in every conversation.

This is a big one — what's the BIG picture? When you are speaking with someone, giving a presentation, holding a status meeting — give people the 5,000 foot picture and then zoom up to the 50,000 level.

Tell them what really is happening, what is the REAL reason the company is doing something. Most of the time, your people don't have a clue about what is going on and it's your job to give them the big picture.

Open Your Kimono.

A number of years ago, I joined a powerful mastermind group comprised of seasoned professional women. As the only guy, I was a bit intimidated, but thankfully, everyone in the group were welcoming and excited to have me on-board. During our first session, I used the term, "Open Kimono" which in corporate-speak means, "To share information with an outside party." Unfortunately, or fortunately, my group couldn't stop laughing from the vision I was presenting — opening MY kimono or flashing them. It not only broke the ice in our mutual relationship, it deepened our respect for one another.

Today, I want to share a powerful quote I relate to almost all of my clients:

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us." - Emerson

Too often, we ensconce ourselves with the guilt from our past and worry for the future. We forget the gifts we have within us to solve our current problems. We feel inadequate because of past mistakes and make up scary stories about the future.

Time to OPEN YOUR KIMONO and let everyone see what you really have to offer:

• Energy - how can you add just a little bit more pizazz to what you're doing?
• Ideas - you have a different way of doing something - let others know.
• Enthusiasm - kick it up a notch - you will infect everyone!
• Focus - most people today have no focus, show them what you can do.
• Hard Work - stay a little bit later or come in early.
• Experience - you have the knowledge - let it out!

EVERYONE has each of these things within them. You have to let them out and show the world you can change the world.

How I Motivate and De-Motivate Myself.

Our motivation is like a battery. Everyday, your battery is fully (or partially) recharged and ready to go for the new day. During the next 12-24 hours, worries, obstacles, people, and things all slowly deplete your motivational battery. By the end of the day, you probably feel low — maybe frustrated — loss of hope — and you don't know where to turn.

My battery has been feeling kind of low lately and I didn't know why. But then it dawned on me — I've been watching the TV show "Weeds" on Netflix at night to wind down from the day. Have you ever watched it? I'm not going to get into the entire story, but the protagonist is constantly making bad decisions which turn out to be REALLY BAD decisions, endangering her life and family. There is a subtle wrapper of humor inserted throughout, but the overall theme is bad decision—bad things happen—bad decision—bad things happen.

The way I'm wired is directly impacted by the stories I watch. Since I'm a coach, I try to understand the character's motivations and constantly try to solve their problems. It's a vicious circle.

I then realized the same thing happened to me a few months ago while watching 'The Walking Dead' and a few years ago with '24'. All of these shows have protagonists who get into trouble, miraculously get out of trouble, get into trouble, etc. I would have vivid dreams, feel disconcerted during the day, and really never know why.

Until I stopped watching these de-motivating shows. The minute I stopped giving them any priority in my life, my motivational battery stayed charged. I then focused on topping off my battery every chance I could get.

• When in the car, I listened to motivational CD's with Zig Ziglar, Joel Osteen, and Gary Vaynerchuk.
• I read motivational books and stopped most TV in the evening (except for 'Fringe', I love 'Fringe').
• I surfed motivational sites and stayed away from the 24-hour news barrage.
• I've started to workout EVERY DAY. It helps me think clearer and clean out the physical and mental cobwebs.
• I'm only hanging around motivating people. No complainers. No glass-half-empty personalities. No whiners.

Guess what? I have more ideas, more energy, and more motivation. So I have two questions for you:

1. What are you doing right now to de-motivate yourself? What is draining your motivational battery?
2. What can you do to top off your battery everyday? How can you fit it into your daily routine?

I’d love your input, thoughts and reviews of my posts. Feel free to comment below!

When It Comes To Business, You're Unethical.

Or are you? Most people tend to think they are as clean as downy-fresh sheets drying in the summer sunshine. As with many areas in business and our lives, we tend to modulate along a spectrum. We strive and hope to be squeaky-clean, but sometimes we wander to the dark side depending on the situation, circumstance or outside pressure. In addition, being un-focused and lazy also causes one to forget to center themselves when it comes to ethics.

What makes you move? What do you do to center yourself? Where do you go? What do you read? Who do you talk to?

Here are some of the things I do:

1. If I have a tough decision to make, I weigh the pros and cons, but I also ask myself, what is the 'RIGHT' thing to do here. I sometimes get a different answer.
2. I read and frequently consult many authors to help me stay grounded.
3. I attend gatherings of peers to discuss business ethics — one meeting I treasure is The Greenwich Leadership Forum. If you live nearby (I travel an hour to attend), you should check it out. They meet monthly and I find it a powerful experience every time.

Finally, I write about my thoughts on business ethics — it allows me to broadcast my ethical philosophy to the world and get input from my peers.

Here are some of my favorite (and most popular posts):

Ethics – The Only Way To Be A True Leader Can executives still achieve greatness if they do the right thing?

Ethical Leadership – Start With Gut Instinct “I rely far more on gut instinct than researching huge amounts of statistics.” – Richard Branson

Ethical Leadership — You Need A Mentor “Mentor: Someone whose hindsight can become your foresight.”

Ethical Leadership — You Need A Mastermind Group You should regularly assemble a group to help you learn, understand and grow.

Losing Your Compass? Try Simple Philosophy “The higher the buildings, the lower the morals.” – Noel Coward

Lots of Enemies? Make Friends With The Press Hear me out — there is a logic to my madness.

I'd love your input, thoughts and reviews of my posts. Feel free to comment below!

Get Current Clients To GROW Your Business.

Are you frustrated when clients defect? Finding it hard to hit your numbers? Is your client base growing or shrinking?  You need to read this ASAP.

When interacting with each client, your only conversation should take one of three directions:

1. Retention — Keep Them Happy and On-Board.
2. Extension — Sell Them More Stuff.
3. Expansion — Spread The Wealth To Other Like Clients.

Let me go more in-depth on each one:

1. Retention

At the end of every client transaction or communication, you should know where you are with that client. Are you at the start of the relationship and building trust with them? Have you built trust and are now extending your product line deeper into their company (see Extension)? Are they at the 'tipping-point' where they might flee because of apathy, change in relationship, competitor inroads, etc.?

Solution: Every time you communicate or interact with your client, clearly understand where you are and track their responses. Did they lower the quantity in an order? Did they cancel a number of meetings? Did the client sound non-committal on the phone? Many companies will continue on their merry way sending product without stopping, analyzing, and acting on these client cues.

You don't have to do it with everyone — but I at least hope you are monitoring this behavior with your top 10 clients.

2. Extension

When you connect with them — actually, EVERY time you connect with them, you should try to casually or sometimes forcefully, sell them more stuff. Why?

• They've already bought from you, so you have a good track record.
• They trust you.
• It's easier and much cheaper to sell more stuff to existing clients.

Solution: Understand your Tier 2 products — the ones where you can easily pitch them by asking simple questions. If you are a printer and you just sold a major print run of brochures, do you ask for business cards, stationary, giveaways, etc.? If you are a coach, do you pitch strategy sessions, assessments, etc.? If you are an accountant, do you pitch cash-flow analyses, CFO tools, or team discussions with their tax preparer?

3. Expansion

You should always ask for more business or WHO they might know. If they've already bought your product and are using it happily, you need to ask them for referrals — anyone they might know who might have use of your products or services. Whenever I ask, people instantly recommend someone OR they offer to ask around for me. That's the sign of a healthy client/provider relationship.

Solution: Casually ask if there is anyone they might know who might be interested in your product or service. Seed the thought in their mind — I promise it will bear fruit some day. And if a client leaves, I ALWAYS ask for two things: a testimonial and a referral. It's the best time to ask for a favor — they are usually feeling guilty about breaking off the relationship — so use it to your advantage. And guess what? I always get them.

If you take this strategy and use it on all of your existing clients, I promise you will keep them longer, sell them more stuff, and get more clients. It works every time.

POST YOUR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS BELOW

P.S. How is your sales team handling your current clients? Not so good?  Let’s talk. I've helped hundreds of companies get their sales teams rocking in no time — call or email me to schedule a complimentary session.