The Future is Now retreat has ended. I miss the VIPs already. I miss the energy. VIPs don't go to an event. VIPs work an event. Half of the attendees this year had their best year ever. Record breakers! What a wonderful feeling: the feeling of success.
During the past eight years I witnessed practice production trends. I mean, I REALLY watched production trends. I watched practices where production grew and practices where production declined. Here's what I know about production growth:
1) Production growth rarely happens by accident. If it does, it won't last long.
2) Record Breaking growth is very, very intentional. You must want to be a record breaker.
3) If you continuously strive to get better, you will be successful.
4) Successful people pay attention. They watch their goal like hawks. They know when they are on it and they know when they are away from it. They hunger for it.
4) Hungry people find a way and make a way. It's good to be hungry for success.
Maybe this isn't new news for for you, but it never hurts to be reminded.
January is almost over. How hungry are you?
Monday, January 28, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
the amazing race
If you missed it, the Amazing Race ended in Anchorage on Sunday night. All signs point to Alaska becoming the cool destination for hippies and adventurers. Wait...it's always been that way, hasn't it?
Imagine my delight watching the contestants climb glaciers, run through downtown and finish at MY ski area. (It's pretty easy to take ownership of a ski area so few people get to ski.) No matter where I lived, it's fun to have my home town admired: New York, New York (Sinatra, of course), Telluride (Tom Cruise!), Durango (summer flocks to my restaurant), Colorado Springs (who hasn't heard of Pikes Peak?), Ft. Lauderdale (Frankie Avalon and Annette, of course), San Francisco (Tony Bennett ) and now Anchorage (no song, great views!)
The city is easy to maneuver with all the conveniences of other cities. Just fewer of them and we haven't gotten a Target yet. Anchorage is best enjoyed as a launching point south toward Seward and Homer or north toward Denali. Lots to see on the ground but the awesome views are from the sky. My two small plane trips this year are unforgettable.
Tomorrow, I am off to St. Augustine to meet with the VIP Leaders. I've learned to appreciate the winter sky and the short days up here, but I sure am going to enjoy some sunshine. I feel like I have in all the big cities or the small mountain towns in the middle of winter. I need to change the scenery every now and then.
It always feels good to leave and yet it's great to get back home. Absence does make the heart grow fonder. How lucky I am to have choices! Change is fuel for my spirit. Hope you get to mix it up and get charged up about something today, too.
Imagine my delight watching the contestants climb glaciers, run through downtown and finish at MY ski area. (It's pretty easy to take ownership of a ski area so few people get to ski.) No matter where I lived, it's fun to have my home town admired: New York, New York (Sinatra, of course), Telluride (Tom Cruise!), Durango (summer flocks to my restaurant), Colorado Springs (who hasn't heard of Pikes Peak?), Ft. Lauderdale (Frankie Avalon and Annette, of course), San Francisco (Tony Bennett ) and now Anchorage (no song, great views!)
The city is easy to maneuver with all the conveniences of other cities. Just fewer of them and we haven't gotten a Target yet. Anchorage is best enjoyed as a launching point south toward Seward and Homer or north toward Denali. Lots to see on the ground but the awesome views are from the sky. My two small plane trips this year are unforgettable.
Tomorrow, I am off to St. Augustine to meet with the VIP Leaders. I've learned to appreciate the winter sky and the short days up here, but I sure am going to enjoy some sunshine. I feel like I have in all the big cities or the small mountain towns in the middle of winter. I need to change the scenery every now and then.
It always feels good to leave and yet it's great to get back home. Absence does make the heart grow fonder. How lucky I am to have choices! Change is fuel for my spirit. Hope you get to mix it up and get charged up about something today, too.
Friday, January 18, 2008
the numbers
My husband, Frank, and I have just completed a data tracking program for our clients. We designed a way to enter daily data and produce a report that shows progress in your business. It is a beautiful thing. It's easy to input data; the report is easy to read and understand. As wonderful as it is, however, I am struck by how the numbers are really of little value.
The numbers are only symptoms. In order to begin an action plan, you need a diagnosis. "Good numbers" are symptoms of success and "bad numbers" are diagnosed as failure - a disease of the misdirected. Failure is not a fatal disease. Failure and disappointment are what we need to begin to plan. We can be successful with planned action. We can find a cure for failure.
"Bad numbers" can be corrected. Failure can be"cured." New marketing, new high value services, and new leadership strategies, in combination or alone, can be just what the doctor ordered. Too often I see clients so focused on the poor numbers that they ignore the cure. That's like staying up all night worrying about the cold you caught instead of resting, drinking fluids and taking some Emergen-C.
Data is important; don't get me wrong. We just spent months designing a great data tracking system. But reports can only indicate that something is right or wrong in your business - not what you should do about it. That takes people. That takes leadership.
The numbers are only symptoms. In order to begin an action plan, you need a diagnosis. "Good numbers" are symptoms of success and "bad numbers" are diagnosed as failure - a disease of the misdirected. Failure is not a fatal disease. Failure and disappointment are what we need to begin to plan. We can be successful with planned action. We can find a cure for failure.
"Bad numbers" can be corrected. Failure can be"cured." New marketing, new high value services, and new leadership strategies, in combination or alone, can be just what the doctor ordered. Too often I see clients so focused on the poor numbers that they ignore the cure. That's like staying up all night worrying about the cold you caught instead of resting, drinking fluids and taking some Emergen-C.
Data is important; don't get me wrong. We just spent months designing a great data tracking system. But reports can only indicate that something is right or wrong in your business - not what you should do about it. That takes people. That takes leadership.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
productive discomfort
Here it is again: That stomach-flipping condition called change is flying in and out of my office this morning. I am getting ready to facilitate a VIP Leadership retreat in St. Augustine next week. What will I do that makes me better for my attendees?
Getting better means different things at different times. When I am sick, I want to get better so I can go outside. When I ski, I want to get better so I can ski a harder run the next time. When I work, I want to get better so the people I work with can feel better about how they live.
That's a workout. It's a challenge to get better at the game of living well. Living well means health, prosperity, and relationships. I am not a doctor but I can tell when I need to see one. I am not a financial planner but I know how to save (and spend...). I am, however, a coach and I know what it takes to feel good in a relationship.
When we think about relationships, we usually think about our spouse or lover first. Second, we think of our family. Third we think of friends. In my work, I want to know about all those things but the ones that make the most curious are the relationships we have with the people we work with each day. We can spend more waking hours with them than either our mate, family or our closest friends. We should spend more time thinking about how to make our work relationships more meaningful.
Work relationships feel like risky business.
They are. All our relationships are. If we don't challenge ourselves to understand, and if we don't ask to be heard, relationships become flat and uninspiring. I don't want to be flat or uninspiring next week. I guess I will have to change something - again.
Getting better means different things at different times. When I am sick, I want to get better so I can go outside. When I ski, I want to get better so I can ski a harder run the next time. When I work, I want to get better so the people I work with can feel better about how they live.
That's a workout. It's a challenge to get better at the game of living well. Living well means health, prosperity, and relationships. I am not a doctor but I can tell when I need to see one. I am not a financial planner but I know how to save (and spend...). I am, however, a coach and I know what it takes to feel good in a relationship.
When we think about relationships, we usually think about our spouse or lover first. Second, we think of our family. Third we think of friends. In my work, I want to know about all those things but the ones that make the most curious are the relationships we have with the people we work with each day. We can spend more waking hours with them than either our mate, family or our closest friends. We should spend more time thinking about how to make our work relationships more meaningful.
Work relationships feel like risky business.
They are. All our relationships are. If we don't challenge ourselves to understand, and if we don't ask to be heard, relationships become flat and uninspiring. I don't want to be flat or uninspiring next week. I guess I will have to change something - again.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
let the sun shine
I live in Alaska.
Today the sun came up about 10:00.
I 've learned some things about survival in the dark.
1) Make sure you have a bright spot every morning.
Each day, I make a cup of tea, turn on all the lights in my house and read a book. My morning ritual sets me up before I start working. It's deliberate and it's predictable. It may be the only part of the day that is that way.
2) Make sure your office is bright and inviting.
Mine is a sunshine yellow. I love coming to the office. It's in my home and away from the rest of the house. When I step inside and close the door, I am ready to work. I could be anywhere. If it's bright, I am going to produce good work.
3) Make sure to slow down at the end of the day.
If I don't fight the slow down that occurs as the day darkens, and I relax into the evening, it is so much better. We spend a lot of time as a culture ignoring what we need. Bears and cavemen were smart. When it's dark, slow down. You don't need to shut down - just slow down. You'll sleep better, too, which leads to the last rule:
4) Go to sleep eager for the new day.
I adopted a habit that closes the workday and sets up the next. At the end of the day, before I turn out the light and close my office door, I make a list for the next day. On a fresh page in a spiral notebook. No more than 8 items long. Simple.
I learned that long lists don' t work. We never feel that we are "done" and we are never satisfied. The thing is...we are never "done." What we can be is accomplished. We can move forward.
Makes me happy to move forward. I know the sun will rise again - sooner or later - and, no matter what happenned, I will get to start over. If there is a new list, there will be a new day.
Today the sun came up about 10:00.
I 've learned some things about survival in the dark.
1) Make sure you have a bright spot every morning.
Each day, I make a cup of tea, turn on all the lights in my house and read a book. My morning ritual sets me up before I start working. It's deliberate and it's predictable. It may be the only part of the day that is that way.
2) Make sure your office is bright and inviting.
Mine is a sunshine yellow. I love coming to the office. It's in my home and away from the rest of the house. When I step inside and close the door, I am ready to work. I could be anywhere. If it's bright, I am going to produce good work.
3) Make sure to slow down at the end of the day.
If I don't fight the slow down that occurs as the day darkens, and I relax into the evening, it is so much better. We spend a lot of time as a culture ignoring what we need. Bears and cavemen were smart. When it's dark, slow down. You don't need to shut down - just slow down. You'll sleep better, too, which leads to the last rule:
4) Go to sleep eager for the new day.
I adopted a habit that closes the workday and sets up the next. At the end of the day, before I turn out the light and close my office door, I make a list for the next day. On a fresh page in a spiral notebook. No more than 8 items long. Simple.
I learned that long lists don' t work. We never feel that we are "done" and we are never satisfied. The thing is...we are never "done." What we can be is accomplished. We can move forward.
Makes me happy to move forward. I know the sun will rise again - sooner or later - and, no matter what happenned, I will get to start over. If there is a new list, there will be a new day.
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