Daily Thought Archives: June 2009

June 1
BUSYNESS IS THE ENEMY OF GOOD THINKING
Everyone is very busy these days and no one feels that they have enough time to accomplish everything they want to. However, being busy all the time is not going to get you faster to what you want. Those who take time to think always produce more focused action. They know that busyness is the enemy of good thinking.

June 2
LOOK INSIDE YOURSELF FOR THE SOLUTION
We often look for answers from others when we really have the answers ourselves. What sometimes happens is that we want others to give us a quick answer, as we don't want to invest the time to think it through ourselves. Always look inside yourself first for the solution, and you will be surprised what you will find.

June 3
RECOGNISING OTHER PEOPLE'S INTERESTS
You often see this ability in great leaders. They all can tell you what their people's key interests are (both in and outside work). When you recognise people's interests, they will be in turn be interested in you and helping you.

June 4
A GOOD WHAT & WHY UNCOVERS THE HOW
One of the reasons why people don't accomplish what they could is that their what & why are not clear enough. Most people rush to the how before getting clarity on what it is they really want and why they want it. Your what & why will give you the power to uncover the right how.

June 5
YOU CAN'T CHANGE ANYONE
Everyone goes through life trying to change everyone around them. However, you can't change anyone. They have to change themselves. All you can do is to create the right environment that encourages them to see the change that is already inside them (but hasn't found a way to come out yet). Your own behaviour creates that environment.

June 6
DECIDING WHAT TO LEAVE BEHIND
Every successful person can think back and tell you the very decision that started them on the way to their success. They will also tell you that the decision was not necessarily on what to focus on, but what to leave behind. Very often it requires you to stop something in order to create the room for taking action on what you really want.

June 7
WHEN TRUST BREAKS DOWN, IT'S OVER
Look at any team that's not performing well, and you will see one common trait (and the most important one). It's that trust has broken down between the people. Very often leaders try all types of changes, but fail to address the trust issue directly. When you get the trust right, everything else becomes easier. If not, it's over.

June 8
EXCELLENCE ATTRACTS OTHER PEOPLE
People who are excellent that what they do always attract more help and support from others. Other people see that investing time help these people who drive excellence in whatever they do as always giving themselves a good return as well.

June 9
SOLVE BEFORE YOU SELL
Sales really happen when you solve before your sell, and the very best salespeople are the customer's best problem solvers. They first solve the customer's problem and then the sale is almost made by itself. The more you solve, the more you sell.

June 10
MAKE A LIST OF YOUR STRENGTHS
Most people often downplay their strengths, and are always focusing on their weaknesses. However, it is your strengths that drive your success. Why not make a list of your strengths and focus on what you can do to grow them even stronger. When your strengths grow, your success grows.

June 11
NEVER NEGOTIATE WITHOUT OPTIONS
The most difficult negotiation is when you go into it without any options. The very best negotiators preparation thoroughly the options they have and what can they expect from the other side. Your level of preparation often is a good indicator of the level of your success in any negotiation.

June 12
TAKE THEM ON A TEST DRIVE
You don't really buy a car without taking a test drive. The same thing is true in getting your people to help you drive change. Very often what is required is to take them on that test drive. Describe the life after the changes in such a powerful way where everyone can see themselves, and they will then help you make it happen.

June 13
BORED AND YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN YOUR DREAMS
Look around, and you will probably see a great number of bored people. They have all lost interest in what they are doing, and don't have the energy to change. What's happened is that they have forgotten their dreams. Have you? If so, recall them NOW.

June 14
RUNNING AWAY OR RUNNING TO
The majority of people go through life without goals. These are the people who can give you a long list of what they don't want, versus what they do want. They are running away from what they don't want and in all different directions. The better approach is to run towards what you do want and set the goals to focus that direction.

June 15
HAVE YOUR PEOPLE BOUGHT INTO YOU?
People often need to buy into their leaders as a person before they feel comfortable following the direction the leader is taking. Many leaders have failed to get the support from their people, not because of their direction or strategy, but because of who they are.

June 16
A BUCKET OF WATER OR PETROL
You have two types of people in your organisation: One type has the ability to turn a difficult situation into something easier to handle (dousing the fire with water). Others, make the situation even more difficult (adding the petrol). Focus on getting people on your team that handle difficult situations in the right way.

June 17
DON'T LET YOUR BOSS BE SURPRISED
There's one person who hates surprises more than anyone else you know. That's your boss. Bosses very often don't like any surprises, both good and bad. You see, when the surprises happen, your boss then needs to explain them to their boss, and that might not be a comfortable conversation.

June 18
FINISH YOUR THINKING
Everyone is constantly thinking all day long, with their mind bouncing from one idea to the next. However, our thinking is never really finished until we define the action that will progress it. Your thinking is a preview to your future, but only action can make it a reality.

June 19
TURNING PEOPLE LOOSE WITHIN A FRAMEWORK
You always get the most creativity and ownership when you turn your people loose, but within a framework. Define the outcomes to be achieved, and under what conditions (values, processes, etc), and let them make it happen. If you don't have the framework in place, you always will need to be more controlling.

June 20
APPRECIATION AND CONTRIBUTION
There are two human needs that are key to leaders who want to be successful. They are appreciation and contribution. People want to be appreciated for what they do and what they accomplish. However, it can't be false appreciation, as they need to feel that they have really made a contribution towards the team's success.

June 21
GRATITUDE - A HABIT OF THE HEART
There's one habit, if practiced, will never leave you in a depressed state for very long. That habit is the feeling of gratitude, the habit of the heart. When you are grateful for what you have in life, you will put yourself in a frame of mind to always see the opportunities in very circumstance.

June 22
INVESTING IN YOUR ABILITY TO INFLUENCE
Everyone is concerned about investing their time wisely. One investment has an impact on everything we do, and that is to invest in the ability to influence. Everything we accomplish in our lives is never done by ourselves, and our ability to influence is the key factor for us getting the help of others.

June 23
EVERYONE WEIGHING IN
When leading a team, always look for the way to get each person's views shared and understood. People will always need to be able to share their own ideas and opinions before they will buy into others. You could say that they need to "weigh in" before they "buy in".

June 24
IT'S WON BEFORE THE GAME IS PLAYED
For many of the successful sports stars, the game is won even before the game is even played. The player's mindset or expectation before the game creates the intensity at which the star then plays the game. Building the winning belief then builds the drive to deliver it.

June 25
CAN'T ASSUME THAT COMMUNICATIONS HAPPENS
One of the biggest problems for leaders is to assume that the communications are happening throughout all levels of the organisation. The very best leaders are always finding ways to keep in contact with all the levels to ensure that the right messages are getting through.

June 26
EDUCATE THE INTERPRETERS OF THE BUSINESS
The middle managers of an organisation are key, as they are always translating the CEO's key messages to their people. It is important to invest the time to educate the middle managers about the direction and key messages. This ensures that the right "translations" are being done and everyone's understanding is the same.

June 27
AN HONEST ASSESSMENT OF WHERE YOU ARE
All our progress starts with where we are today, and taking an honest assessment of that (our strengths, weaknesses and our desires). By being honest about where we are today, we can focus on the key actions that will get us moving forward faster.

June 28
TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR CONFIDENCE
You often hear the comment in companies, "my boss doesn't give me any credit!" It is important to get the support from your boss, but you should not let how your boss treats impact how you feel or your confidence. Successful people always make it their own responsibility to keep their confidence high, and under any circumstances.

June 29
BEING CONVINCING ON THE "WHY"
The leader's job is to set the direction of the organisation and to explain to his or her people the "WHY" behind that direction. In many situations, the success of the organisation is driven by how convincing the leader is in communicating the why.

June 30
THE WORST RISK IS TO TAKE NO RISKS
People are avoiding risks all the time. They spend their lives determining all the negatives, and then living their life in such a way to avoid them. A life lived to it's fullest is always full of risks. People who avoid risks take the biggest risk of all - not having the life they truly want.