Last ten days to go for 2015. Some people will miss the finish line and end up short of their goals. No amount of review meets can suppress the regret that pops up ‘I should have done this’ and ‘I could have done that’. Success like failure is a personal thing. List out all your ‘I could have’s’ and ‘I should have’s’ and put them into action right away.
Pull up all the stops, put away all the inhibitions, silence the fears and take that leap of faith into giving your all and aiming for the best performance of your life.
And no matter what happens, no matter how many ‘no’s’ or disappointments you may face on an hourly or daily basis, DO NOT take your eyes off the goal. Your world rests on your vision. If you take your eyes off the road and look to the left for 3 seconds, your car will move left by 3 degrees. Imagine if you took your eyes off the road for 10 seconds. You would be dead. Stay focused. Don’t let the obstacles deter you. Let the vision of your goal inspire you.
Use your urgency to your advantage. Don’t let the urgency of achievement make you desperate. No one likes desperate people, whether in business or in love. Use your urgency to involve people in your purpose. I was at the traffic signal one time and a street hawker knocked my window. He told me that he had the last box of strawberries to sell and if could take it he would make it in time to catch the last train home, which was 2 hours out of the city. I bought it. I had no plan to buy the strawberries but didn’t mind the purchase as it had a higher satisfaction attached to it. My box of strawberries got someone’s daddy home.
When the water level is rising more rapidly than your performance, it’s time for SOS action. Collaborate with your seniors. Don’t be afraid to meet up with the senior leadership and borrow their experience and viewpoint for ideas. They have walked in your shoes after all and they have very high stakes in your performance. I have seen teams that work tightly with the leadership have very high chances of success.
If the inflow of numbers is still eluding you, it’s time to push the pedal on the outflow. Inflow equals outflow. This is the law of the universe. What you give, you get in abundance. What goes around comes around. Your only focus should be outflow, the inflow will come, by law, it’s guaranteed. Decide the proportion of inflow you want and adjust the proportion of the outflow.
Have faith in your purpose. Treat everyone as a beneficiary of that purpose. You can never underestimate the power of goodness. Just because you don’t know him doesn’t mean that the person you met randomly at the airport cannot be a potential customer. Treat people the way you would treat your highest paying customer and you will make one as you do. Just because I am not yet your customer, should not stop you from making me a beneficiary of what you do by involving me and aligning me to your purpose.
Regret is a killer. Kill it now with determination to do what you know is right, what you know you should do, and following it through till the end. Success is waiting for those who reach the finish line. Get there to put a deserving closure to the sacrifices, you and your family made the whole year long.
Rooting for your success.
Sunday, December 20, 2015
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Dare to Win—Beat the Fear of Failure
Fear of failure ranks right next to the fear of death. In fact the fear of failure seeps so deep in the minds of people and infects their enthusiasm and self-belief so severely that they had rather kill their dreams in retreat than risk success by trying. If you don’t take massive action now, your fear of failure will soon become a reality.
Purpose and practice are the best antidotes for fear. When fear raises its sinister head and attempts to pull you back, listen to your purpose, keep your eyes on the goal. When the sprint runner is at the final race in the Olympics, he knows that there is no room for fear. When the time for performance is due, all you need is your purpose to guide you and not your fears to grind you. Don’t let your fears set you back by years for recovering from its impact sometimes takes away a lifetime. When the flag has been waved all you need to focus on is to run to the finish line.
If you are here, then you can win. Your presence at your job is evidence of your ability to succeed and deliver results. I don’t know anyone who hires people to fail. If you find yourself succumbing to fear of failure, hold on to the confidence of your seniors. They have more stakes in your victory than you. Borrow confidence if you must, but don’t bow to your fears.
When fear seeps into your heart, kill it with massive action. Don’t think. Act. I feel that people give their fears more time than they deserve. Contemplation causes fear to grow. The more time you give it, the stronger it becomes. When you feel low, make another client call, go out for another meeting, send out another email. For every signal of fear combat it with action.
When the fear grows stronger and the pressure mounts—work harder. Can you run 100 meters in 11 seconds? If the building you were standing under is about to fall and safety is 100 meters away, I can bet that chances are high that you would make it there in 11 seconds. Fear is a powerful emotion. It can be a high combustion fuel to rocket you faster to success. Pressure is a call for super human action. It is an invitation to join the league of extra ordinary men and women who have created history. Do you have it in you to deliver outstanding results? If you can harness fear to fuel your practice and passion, it will push you far beyond what you think is possible.
Dare to win don’t fear to lose. Failure will come even to those who don’t try. But success only comes to those who do.
Purpose and practice are the best antidotes for fear. When fear raises its sinister head and attempts to pull you back, listen to your purpose, keep your eyes on the goal. When the sprint runner is at the final race in the Olympics, he knows that there is no room for fear. When the time for performance is due, all you need is your purpose to guide you and not your fears to grind you. Don’t let your fears set you back by years for recovering from its impact sometimes takes away a lifetime. When the flag has been waved all you need to focus on is to run to the finish line.
If you are here, then you can win. Your presence at your job is evidence of your ability to succeed and deliver results. I don’t know anyone who hires people to fail. If you find yourself succumbing to fear of failure, hold on to the confidence of your seniors. They have more stakes in your victory than you. Borrow confidence if you must, but don’t bow to your fears.
When fear seeps into your heart, kill it with massive action. Don’t think. Act. I feel that people give their fears more time than they deserve. Contemplation causes fear to grow. The more time you give it, the stronger it becomes. When you feel low, make another client call, go out for another meeting, send out another email. For every signal of fear combat it with action.
When the fear grows stronger and the pressure mounts—work harder. Can you run 100 meters in 11 seconds? If the building you were standing under is about to fall and safety is 100 meters away, I can bet that chances are high that you would make it there in 11 seconds. Fear is a powerful emotion. It can be a high combustion fuel to rocket you faster to success. Pressure is a call for super human action. It is an invitation to join the league of extra ordinary men and women who have created history. Do you have it in you to deliver outstanding results? If you can harness fear to fuel your practice and passion, it will push you far beyond what you think is possible.
Dare to win don’t fear to lose. Failure will come even to those who don’t try. But success only comes to those who do.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
When people say “No”
The 10% rule in sales says that if you reach out to 10 people for your services or product, at least one will say yes. Well, some people may be happy with the 10% but my focus is on the majority 90%. My curiosity is how I can take this bulk and nudge them from a ‘no’ to a ‘yes’? The answer I found lies in the basics.
People say ‘no’ when they have no need for your product or services. That for you is critical feedback because you obviously got in touch with them because you thought that they were potential clients but they think they don’t need what you have to offer. Work at bridging that gap. If you can close that divide, you have a conversion. Investigate, question, learn and understand your potential clients better. Maybe you need to change your pitch. Maybe you missed to highlight some features about what you do. Maybe you need to win their trust. Find out and fill that blank and you will move closer to a ‘yes’.
People say ‘no’ when there is no urgency to buy. This is even more dangerous for your performance because you have probably created the need and delivered the information but since you failed to create the urgency, they will probably buy at a later day, and that probably will not be from you. Create the urgency for the sale. Give a discount if that is allowed. Make a special allowance. Give them an extra perk if it is permissible to urge them to buy. Use your creativity to create urgency.
People say ‘no’ when they do not have the authority to say ‘yes’. They may not even bother to tell you that they are not the right person to make that decision. Find out who is and contact that person. It is important to speak to the decision makers if you want to make a sale. And what would be smart is to get some tips about the decision maker so you have a selling advantage. “Can you tell me a little more about your boss?” will open doors for you for more opportunities than the one you have at hand. If that fails too, what stops you from asking for references? Please understand that people don’t like to say no. There is a certain inexplicable embarrassment that goes in telling someone off. So if you ask for references you are giving an opportunity of relief for the other person to help you.
And when ‘no’ means ‘no’, don’t give up. For whatever reasons unexplained or unavoidable, a ‘no sale’ today does not mean a ‘no sale’ forever. Keep the person in view and keep in touch. Find ways to add value to the person. Find ways to be a part of their purpose. The returns that you will eventually get, even if that means having made a good friend, will outweigh the temporary loss you felt under the disappointment of the ‘no’.
With three weeks to go for the year-end, gear up with all your strengths and energy and make the magic happen—because you can—because the persistent always win.
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
The Final Countdown
2015 is nearing the end, the last 30 days to go. The pressure is mounting professionally and personally to close the year with a bang. Let the end of the year mark a celebration of achievement and victory. And bring in the New Year with the certainty to take that accomplishment to newer heights.
Hope rests on the able shoulders of performance. If you can perform and perform to win, then there is hope for the future. Hope is not an idle phenomenon that delivers results to those who wait. Take charge. Take action. 10X your energy and output and put your performance on a power drive.
The game gets exciting when the goal seems tougher than the time left to achieve it. The adrenaline gets going when the pressure is high. Creativity comes to its best when the stakes are rising. And you discover a new side; a winner’s side in you when you are pushed to deliver beyond what you think is possible.
The good news about your goals is that the time is not up yet. If you stretch beyond yourself and march out with an unwavering determination to accomplish that which you had set for yourself, it can still be yours.
Cut the distraction. Put a DND on things that you want to do but are not in alignment with your goals at the moment. Put the parties, the long weekends and other indulgences off by a month. You will wish you had if you don’t meet your own expectations.
Build a laser sharp focus. The only thing that should exist for you should be your goal. That’s all you hear, see, breathe, eat, sleep. Energy flows where attention goes. What you put your attention on grows, and vice versa.
Collaborate, synergize and team up. If you have wavering confidence in your own ability to deliver in this last lap, don’t hold yourself back from collaborating with others. Reach out to your colleagues, seniors or even friends who will help you or maybe just push you and encourage you to stay on track and reach the finish line.
Success builds on success. And therefore ending the year on a note of victory is imperative. You would then step into the New Year with renewed self- confidence, eager to create a new game to win.
Remember, its not over till its over. There is redemptive power in making a decision. And it’s never too late. Decide to win, and you are already half way there.
Rooting for your success,always.
2015 is nearing the end, the last 30 days to go. The pressure is mounting professionally and personally to close the year with a bang. Let the end of the year mark a celebration of achievement and victory. And bring in the New Year with the certainty to take that accomplishment to newer heights.
Hope rests on the able shoulders of performance. If you can perform and perform to win, then there is hope for the future. Hope is not an idle phenomenon that delivers results to those who wait. Take charge. Take action. 10X your energy and output and put your performance on a power drive.
The game gets exciting when the goal seems tougher than the time left to achieve it. The adrenaline gets going when the pressure is high. Creativity comes to its best when the stakes are rising. And you discover a new side; a winner’s side in you when you are pushed to deliver beyond what you think is possible.
The good news about your goals is that the time is not up yet. If you stretch beyond yourself and march out with an unwavering determination to accomplish that which you had set for yourself, it can still be yours.
Cut the distraction. Put a DND on things that you want to do but are not in alignment with your goals at the moment. Put the parties, the long weekends and other indulgences off by a month. You will wish you had if you don’t meet your own expectations.
Build a laser sharp focus. The only thing that should exist for you should be your goal. That’s all you hear, see, breathe, eat, sleep. Energy flows where attention goes. What you put your attention on grows, and vice versa.
Collaborate, synergize and team up. If you have wavering confidence in your own ability to deliver in this last lap, don’t hold yourself back from collaborating with others. Reach out to your colleagues, seniors or even friends who will help you or maybe just push you and encourage you to stay on track and reach the finish line.
Success builds on success. And therefore ending the year on a note of victory is imperative. You would then step into the New Year with renewed self- confidence, eager to create a new game to win.
Remember, its not over till its over. There is redemptive power in making a decision. And it’s never too late. Decide to win, and you are already half way there.
Rooting for your success,always.
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