Daily Thought Archives: February 2009

February 1
FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO ADAPT
Life today is so unpredictable, and the pace of change is always increasing. Success comes when you are very focused on what you want to accomplish. However, you never achieve success unless you are flexible enough to adapt your approach when necessary. Stay focused on what you want, and adapt your approach until you achieve it.

February 2
EFFECTIVENESS = FOCUS - INTERRUPTIONS
Your personal effectiveness is really based on your focus. People with a strong focus are really careful on what interruptions they will accept. People without a strong focus seem to have a life full of interruptions. Remember, your effectiveness is really based on your focus and how you maintain it.

February 3
MESSAGES ARE DRIVEN BY ACTION
Leaders often fail to get their key messages across as their people do not see actions linked to those key messages. Getting clarity on those key messages is all about the actions taken. People always need to see actions linked to key messages, or they will think of them as empty words. Remember, words are always empty without action.

February 4
HOLD UP THE LIGHT TO OTHERS
If you are a leader, one of the most important goals is to be a great role model for your people. You are setting the standard and the direction of the behaviours you will see in your organisation. You could say that you are holding up the light to others.

February 5
A FEELING YOU ARE UNWILLING TO FEEL
When you think about it, anything you try to do for the first time you will not do well. Very often people avoid trying new things because they don't want the feeling of making mistakes (not doing something well). Basically, it is the feeling that they are unwilling to feel. Your growth comes when you are willing to feel the feeling.

February 6
MASTERS OF PEOPLE SKILLS
The very best leaders are masters of people skills. Leadership is about challenging and motivating people to use their potential. Those leaders who focused on improving their people skills early in their career are now achieving greater success than those who didn't. As your people skills grow, so does your opportunities.

February 7
DON'T LIKE TO FIX YOUR PROBLEMS
To get ahead in life, one of the biggest factors is always taking ownership of your own problems. Those who understand this are always more successful than those who don't. Remember, people above you don't like to fix your problems. Take ownership of your problems first.

February 8
DID TODAY REALLY MATTER?
There's a great question to ask yourself at the end of each and every day. Did today really matter? Have you grown today or have you made a difference in another person's life today? Therefore, why not set a goal to ask yourself this question at the end of each day and to always like your answer.

February 9
HOW FAST DOES BAD NEWS TRAVEL?
One of the key success factors in high performing organisations is how fast bad news travels. Poor performing organisations have people always hiding bad news from their leaders and others. Remember, bad news that is hidden cannot be acted upon, as visibility drives action. How fast does bad news travel in your organisation?

February 10
THE OBVIOUS, BUT NOT EASY
The skills for success are obvious (focus, discipline, determination, etc.). However, they are not easy. Many people avoid the obvious in order to do the easy. It's like putting another coat of paint on a house that is falling apart. The minute your begin focusing on the obvious, is the minute that success will begin to happen for you.

February 11
WE BECOME WHAT WE THINK ABOUT
Everything in our life first begins with our thoughts. You could say that we become what we think about. With this being true, our best approach to improve our life is to invest some quality time in "thinking". With such a face pace to life these days, most people don't invest the time to think. Be the one who does.

February 12
IT MUST BE FACED TO BE CHANGED
Before you can change anything in your behaviours, you first must face them versus avoid them. Before any change can occur, you must always acknowledge what needs to change first. It must be faced to be changed, and this is the very beginning of any change.

February 13
HAVE A STRONG SENSE OF DIRECTION
More than any other productivity technique you could use, having a strong sense of direction will help you achieve more in life. Most people fail to accomplish what they really want for one key reason: They don't know what they really want - no direction. Remember, direction drives achievement and of what you really want.

February 14
BREAK THE PATTERN
When you don't feel inspired to act, why not break the pattern in your mind and do something different. It is often when we do something different that we break the pattern of our old thinking and begin to look at everything with a different perspective. That different perspective brings back the inspiration to take action.

February 15
FINDING THAT SINGLE MUTUAL INTEREST
People who have great people skills are also very good listeners. To gain rapport with others, they focus on listening to what could be one of their mutual interests. Then, they ask questions about how the others became interest in that same thing and suddenly an instant rapport has been created. Find that single mutual interest.

February 16
WHAT DO YOU BASE YOUR CHOICES ON?
We all have choices to make each and every day. These are from how we chose to use our time during the day, to those major choices that determine our life's direction. The question is: On what basis do you make these choices; based on what criteria?

February 17
NOT BEING MESMERIZED BY THE FANCY STUFF
We always want the latest and greatest gadget that is out on the market. The same happens with managers often wanting the latest management technique or approach. Very often it's the managers with poor skills that want the fancy stuff, because they are avoiding building the core leadership skills that are needed for their success. It's the obvious versus the fancy stuff that powers our leadership success.

February 18
MAKE YOUR MOVE BEFORE YOU ARE READY
Many people wait too long to take action. They think that everything has to be totally thought through in order to make their move, and often they may be too late for the opportunity. When you see an opportunity, make the move before you are ready, and adjust your path along the way.

February 19
YOU CAN'T NUMBER CRUNCH CULTURE
There's a big difference between leaders and managers. Managers have a tendency to think that they can number crunch the culture they need. The take only an intellectual view on culture change. A "Leader" understands people and takes an emotional view as well. Remember, you cannot number crunch a culture.

February 20
KEEP SOME CAPACITY, DON'T OVER-COMMIT
For any organisation or individual, some extra capacity also means flexibility. When we over-commit ourselves, we lose that flexibility. With the world changing at a faster and faster pace, a lack of flexibility could be a huge disadvantage and could also limit our success. Keep some capacity and don't over-commit.

February 21
HANG OUT WITH PEOPLE YOU WANT TO BE LIKE
To grow and become the person you want to be, why not hang our with those types of people. We learn by observing others, so seek out people who have with them those qualities that you aspire to have. Being around these people will speed your growth and soon you will be like them as well.

February 22
WHEN THE WORLD IS WINNING
There's a key difference between when you or the world is winning, and the difference is your focus. When you are not focused, you begin to let the world drive how you use your time, versus you choosing yourself. Create and keep your focus, and you and not the world will win. When you win, you get to create the life you want.

February 23
CURRENT RESULTS ARE FROM PAST ACTIONS
Everyone has thought of what their future will bring based on what they have now. However, that's really wrong thinking. Current results are from past actions and our current actions are what create our future. Therefore, the power in your future is what you do from right now!

February 24
WHAT COULD YOU BE WRONG ABOUT?
Some of the most frustrated people are those who never challenge their assumptions. As we grow, we learn more about our world. So, it is only logical that our ideas and assumptions might need to change as we learn more. Many of the problems we face are often the result of wrong or out of date assumptions. What could you be wrong about?

February 25
CHALLENGES TO TEST YOUR LIMITS
Just think of a life with no challenges. How would you know how good you are (or that potential that is inside you), if there wasn't any challenges to test that potential? Inside the challenges you face is the power to release your potential.

February 26
WHY WAIT?
Everyone has something they wanted to do and have rationalised in their mind that now is not the right time. The best question to ask ourselves is WHY WAIT? If we look back on our lives, we will find very few instances where waiting was a benefit. Why not take action today!

February 27
AS EGO GROWS, POTENTIAL GETS THROWN AWAY
You have seen this in so many people who achieved success quickly and then thrown it away. What happened is that their ego grew so quickly as well, and they stopped working as hard on their own development. Basically, they threw their potential away. Remember to keep your ego in check.

February 28
THE ELEGANCE IS IN THE SIMPLICITY
You often see people sharing a topic with you and you wonder, "This shouldn't be so complex". These people believe that something needs to be complex to be good. However, everything in life that creates success is elegant in its simplicity. Our own thinking makes things too complex, and we need to discipline ourselves to just DO IT.