Do you sound look, and feel like everyone else in your industry?  How do you differentiate yourself from everyone else?  How do prospects view you – like everyone else in your industry?  Have people really experienced what you do to differentiate you from everyone else?  Do they understand how you are a benefit to them and the people they know who might want or need your services or products. It is the experience you give people that differentiates you from everyone else.

Do people who do business with you thank you?  Do you receive thank you letters from people who experience what you do after they have invested in your services or products? If not, why don’t they send you thank you notes and appreciate what you do for them?  What would have to happen for you to receive words of praise for what you do? What small change might you have to make?

I appreciate you saying whatever they said about you (nice). One way you can help others to have experiences like you are having now who have had experiences you have had in the past, is letting me know all the people that you know that you think might enjoy or be open to learning about what we do so they can choose to work with us or not.  Stop depriving people of what you do. Leverage the compassion, emotion, and those feelings of enjoying the experience you just provided someone and they are thanking you for all you did for them.  Help them make it easy for them to refer others to you. What else might you have to implement in your business to make it easier to refer others to you? Execute and implement those things today and reap the rewards.

Posted: March 8th, 2010 under Effective and Efficient Behavior, Leverage Resources.
Comments: none

How do you suppose elite professional athletes prepare for their sport?  Among other things, they watch film and get professional coaching.  Even the superstars?  Especially the superstars.  Nobody is more motivated to look at themselves for ways to improve than the best.

Video and audio tape reveals the truth.  It can’t lie, think or assume.  It can only tell the truth.

We all can learn from the pros and achieve our next level of success by audio taping real client interviews/conversations/seminars, etc.  If you play a sport or an instrument, audio/video taping can be a powerful learning experience.  Here are a few steps to implement this powerful idea.

1.  Make a real commitment to audio tape your client interviews/appointments/meetings.  It is as much for their benefit as it is yours.

2.  Buy a small, battery powered digital recorder.  Preferably one where you can easily listen to the recordings in your car.

3.  Prepare a simple monologue for explaining to your prospects and clients how audio taping the interview, appointment, and meeting benefits them.  Here is an example.

“Mr./Ms. Prospect/Client the work we are beginning/doing today is very important.  You see that in addition to my notepad, I use a digital recorder.  The purpose of recording our meeting is to capture everything you share with me with complete accuracy.  Although I take good notes, I will listen to this tape several times between now and the next time we meet.  I find this helps me to be absolutely sure that the work I do for you is totally consistent with what you want to accomplish.  I believe it helps me do a better job for you.”

Asking good questions in the beginning of the meeting will cause your prospect/client to very quickly forget about the recorder and focus on the process of helping them be even more successful.  The recorder should be placed off to the side so it isn’t a consistent reminder.

4.  Listen to the recordings!  This, of course, is the most difficult part and the most helpful/powerful.  You will soon become comfortable listening to your own voice and you will quickly discover ways to dramatically improve the results of the interview.

5.  Sample self-evaluation questions:

• What are three things I did right in this meeting?
• What is the one biggest thing I could improve?
• What issues did my prospect/client seem to be most emotional about?
• Did I listen and go at my prospect’s/client’s pace?
• How many minutes did I talk?
• How many minutes did my prospect/client talk?
• Do I have all the information I need to create what I need to create for my prospect/client?
• What did my prospect/client make a commitment to do?
• Did I do a good job of getting a clear commitment from my prospect/client to achieve the desired outcome?
• Did the meeting flow according to my plan?
• How could I better stay on track or take fewer detours in my meetings?

6.  Give a recording to a colleague or manager for review.  Provide them with an evaluation form.  Read their feedback carefully.  Make adjustments accordingly.

It takes courage to do this and face the truth.  There is always a gap between what we think occurs in the meeting and reality.  If you can muster the courage to listen to the recording (or watch if a video) with a commitment to improvement versus the tendency to justify your actions, you will enjoy significant and immediate increase in your results.

Consider the benefits:

• The monologue explaining your purpose for recording the interview instantly builds credibility from the very beginning of the meeting.  You don’t have to get their permission.  If they have a problem with the recording, they will let you know.
• You will do a better job for your client as a result of listening to the recordings.  Just like watching a movie previously seen often reveals what we missed the first time, you will discover things that you might have missed in your notes.  Just the fact that you care enough to listen to the recording will cause you to be more effective at creating the best course of action for your new client.
• Hearing what you do well on the recordings (or seeing it on the video) will increase your confidence.
• Your relationship building skills will dramatically increase as a result of accurately identifying specific areas for improvement.
• The recordings will reveal wasted time.  Eliminating superfluous events will shorten the time it takes to successfully complete the meeting.   Often the interview can be more effective in less time.

You may not like everything you hear and see at first, but it won’t be long before you do!  Get recording today and see those enhanced results.

Posted: March 4th, 2010 under Accountability, Learning Resource, Leverage Resources.
Comments: none

Whenever I get a car, I always look for the best mechanic (typically not at the car dealership – sorry) to work on my car so I can have an expert who specializes in the type the car and also to save money from going to a dealership.  If you are like me, you want the best mechanic who you trust to tell you the truth and who saves you money.

If you live in San Diego area and have a Mercedes, you want to take your car to Exclusive Motors. They are at 8448 Miracrest Place, Suite C, San Diego, CA  92121

Their phone number is 858-552-1112

I was referred to this mechanic many years ago and have gone there ever since. I needed 4 new tires the other day in addition to some regular maintenance. They took my car to get the tires for me so I didn’t have to go there and get them myself. They double checked the air pressure and took the time to explain everything they did to my car.  I almost always feel like I should pay more for the work they do for me. I bet you haven’t felt this way about a car mechanic too many times before, if ever.

They only work on Mercedes. They also have cars for sale if you are in the market for a Mercedes.

Posted: March 3rd, 2010 under Leverage Resources.
Comments: none

How much of the winter Olympics have you been watching?  Well, my husband and I have been trying to enjoy as much as we could. There certainly was a lot being recorded so we could choose from a variety of winter sports.  I certainly learned more about winter sports than I ever knew.  Apolo Ohno was certainly a hit with winning so many medals.  During various interviews, he said a few things that I thought you might want to ponder and consider how you can apply what he said into your life for even greater success.

“Before you go to sleep at night ask yourself one question: Did you do every single thing you could today to make sure that you did your best? It’s hard to answer ‘yes’ every single day.” Apolo Ohno; Short-track speed skater

“I don’t like to look at it as competition. It’s about me conquering myself… me being able to face my own fears, distractions, and weaknesses and say that I overcame them.” Apolo Ohno; Short-track speed skater

Posted: March 1st, 2010 under Belief, Choices, Tell the Truth.
Comments: none

Have you ever found yourself going down the ‘wrong’ path and wondered how you got so far off track from achieving your goals?  Ever wondered why you don’t achieve the goals you set at the beginning of the year? Ever stated a new year’s resolution and then found yourself off track in February or March (so soon after the start of the year)?  Here are some of the pitfalls we need to resist if we are going to achieve our personal and professional goals and create the kind of life we really want – this year and every year going forward.

Personal Development & Multifarious Pitfalls to Resist
- Tempted to not invest enough time in those things that matter more than money to you.
- Tempted to quit too soon.
- Tempted to not choose your highest and best activities during the day.
- Tempted to not seek out mentors.
- Tempted to not get (or take) expert advice.
- Tempted to not optimize your own attention, deploying the power of focus on your priorities.
- Tempted to avoid reality-based thinking.
- Tempted to not insist that there are things which will no longer be acceptable to you.
- Tempted to make no decision (to avoid making a bad decision).

- Tempted to be everything to everybody.
- Tempted to treat exceptions as rules.
- Tempted to allow your team to be undermanaged.
- Tempted to avoid measuring success in all areas which will result in your overall success.
- Tempted to hold-on to people, clients, friendships, etc. longer than you should.
- Tempted to not require reviewing each team member’s written goals for the week.
- Tempted to not invest in the training & development of your people.
- Tempted to not be skilled at clearly articulating the value you bring to your client’s lives.
- Tempted to not seek accountability for yourself.
- Tempted to not measure your progress in a thorough (and candid) way at least 4 times a year.
- Tempted to not build a business to be of tremendous value.
- Tempted to not work hard enough (sometimes you should “work like you’re a rookie”).
- Tempted to not take enough time off.
- Tempted to pull punches rather than (skillfully & gracefully) telling the truth.
- Tempted to not challenge false assumptions (including our own).

Stop being tempted and do what you know you need to do so you can achieve your goals and have the kind of life you really want to live. Get focused, execute your game plan, and enjoy the rewards.

If you need help, let me know how I can help you on your goal achievement journey.

Posted: February 25th, 2010 under Accountability, Choices, Effective and Efficient Behavior, Excuses, Goal Setting, No Longer Acceptable.
Comments: none

Human beings tend to resist anything they view as stressful, and let’s face it, organizational changes are about as stressful as it can get!

For most of us, familiarity with our surroundings, our relationships and our working environment allows us to reside safely inside our comfort zone. And comfort equals security.

But when our comfort zone is detonated by changes in management or organizational systems, we implode, seeking the shelter of our innate desire to resist, at all costs.

Changes that occur outside of our control force us to adapt to new rules, new systems and new policies which can, at the outset, make us feel uncomfortable and insecure.

However, a responsible and responsive management team can intercede before staff resistance spreads like the plague and threatens the smooth transition of organizational changes.

Effective team leaders acknowledge and understand that it is a basic human instinct to react to change with resistance, even though staff may fully comprehend the reasons why changes in the organization are vital to its existence and growth.

6 Management Strategies to Avert Resistance

1. A clear outline – Discomfort and insecurity arises when staff are not made aware of the policies, principles, guidelines and structure of intended changes. Every employee needs to know how his/her position will be affected and what his/her role requires.
2. Commitment –Implementation of organizational changes will not occur smoothly if everyone – from the CEO to the office clerk – is not committed to the project and its successful outcome.
3.  Advocacy – Each member of an organization who may be affected by the impending changes must be given the opportunity to express his/her opinion.
4. Responsibility – It is the role of the team leader to ensure that each employee who is responsible for a component of the change strategy is held accountable for his/her actions in implementing the changes required.
5. Acknowledgement – Evaluation and acknowledgement of the success of the change strategy at regular intervals ensures its smooth implementation.
6. Flexibility – Management needs to adopt a flexible approach to each stage of development of a change strategy so that unforeseen contingencies can be implemented, if and where necessary.

It only takes one irresolute employee to destabilize an entire workforce, so periods of internal change within an organization require management to stay vigilant for any signs of rumblings or disapproval.

Long-standing employees can feel betrayed and rejected when changes are announced by management. They often experience a sense of loss, confusion, frustration and job insecurity. The plan for job advancement they have often calculated appears to be shot to pieces.

So they react with denial and resistance to the imminent changes.

Management’s ability to recognize these patterns of behavior and work to overcome any resistance establishes how well they will accomplish organizational changes. Their willingness to invest in the support and training necessary is an integral factor in achieving a positive outcome.

Employees aren’t the only ones who have to adapt to changes within the organization.

Top level managers generally bear the brunt of discontented staff from the ground up. Senior managers who have been instrumental in bringing about the changes within the organization often underestimate the impact those changes will have on their employees.

Unrealistic expectations of how their staff will react (or over-react!) often causes top level managers to retreat and isolate themselves from the problem when the impact of their proposed changes filter back to them.

However, they tend to lay the blame at the feet of middle management if employees resist or complain about the changes.

Middle management tend to carry the most stress during times of organizational change. They feel “trapped”, unless they have exceptional leadership skills; besieged by resistant employees who look to them for guidance yet often denied direction and focus by top level management.

Those in middle management often find themselves acting as the arbiter during times of organizational upheaval.

However, organizational changes within a business often prove to be a suitable testing ground for leadership qualities; from the employees all the way through to top level management. 

Those who possess the qualities that define a good leader often emerge during the stressful environment that usually accompanies change. This creates an ideal opportunity for potential leaders to display those qualities and be recognized accordingly.

Posted: February 24th, 2010 under Effective and Efficient Behavior.
Comments: none

Six tips for conveying your competence

Being competent is an important factor in building trust. People seldom believe you’re competent based on what you say about your credentials, experience, investment philosophy, or background. They believe you’re competent based on your behavior. As essayist, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “What you do shouts so loudly in my ears I can’t hear a word you’re saying.”

1. Competent professionals ask good questions.
John Sculley, former CEO of Apple says, “The solutions are often obvious once you get the questions right.” Successful people measure your competence by the quality of your questions.

My favorite questions to ask in the client interview (with prospects and clients) begins with,

“What’s important about success to you?” Of course, there is a stage setting before you blurt out this question.

Your prospects can tell you are competent because they do all the talking about what’s important to them (their values), goals, where they are now, and where they want to be.

2. Competent professionals discover all the necessary information in the first interview. 
Prescription before diagnosis is malpractice. Incompetent professionals give advice on what the prospect/client should buy without knowing all the details first.

Your prospects and clients can tell you are competent by the questions you ask and because you expect them to tell you the truth.

3. Competent professionals have a system for helping their clients. 
Competent professionals have a system that repeats itself with every prospect and client.  Lee Trevino once remarked, “The best swing is one that repeats. I used to hit a one iron 260 yards through a doorway. Now I can hit it through a keyhole.”

4. Competent professionals make it simple. 
The more successful or “sophisticated” your client, the more they appreciate simplicity.

5. Competent professionals are thorough.
Competent professionals are obsessively thorough.

6. Competent professionals are totally present.
A speaker coach, Max Dixon, asks, “Can you show up ready to be no place else?” This means asking a question and being completely present for the answer, not thinking about the next question or the next comment.

Can you show up ready to be no place else?  The competent professional does.

In summary, you have to be competent. Then your clients must be able to see, hear, and experience your competence from the very first moment they interact with you. Before they discover your true competence by working with you they must believe you are competent in order to give you their business in the first place.

Posted: February 23rd, 2010 under Effective and Efficient Behavior, High Pay-off Activities.
Comments: none

“Tea, Earl Grey, hot,” commands Jean-Luc Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation. And he gets a perfect cup of piping hot English brew exactly the way he likes it. Three factors are at work: 1) Picard knows what he wants, 2) he articulates it clearly, and 3) he has a system, the starship’s “replicator,” for producing his desired outcome every time.

Too bad you can’t just step up and order perfect clients like Picard and his hot tea. But in the real world, you can use a process called “Slots and Replication” to achieve a similar goal: When you clearly articulate the attributes and character of your ideal clients, you can put in place a system for replicating them. This system—asking for and getting quality referrals—is the lifeblood of many successful businesses.

The Ideal Client Profile

Before you talk to your existing clients and strategic alliances about referrals, you need to create an Ideal Client Profile. This description should be detailed and specific.

Think about who your best clients are right now, and consider what makes them so great. Ask yourself, In what ways are they alike financially, professionally, or personally? What attitudes and aptitudes set them apart from the masses and make them such exceptional, enjoyable clients?

Slots and Replication

Your objective should be to take on only those clients who match your Ideal Client Profile. Once you have written your Ideal Client Profile, you can figure out how many people who match this criteria you’ll need to meet your business development goals. It’s a pretty simple calculation to establish the income you desire to earn and extrapolate the number of clients required to achieve it. Begin with the end in mind, as Covey says.

With this valuable information in hand, you can create a business management tool I call “Slots and Replication” to track your acquisition of great clients and keep you aware of how many more are needed for you to reach your goals. Here’s how you can make your own:

• On one piece of paper, print your Ideal Client Profile.
• On another piece of paper, number backward, starting with the total number of ideal clients you need, and print a list of your ideal clients. Don’t list all of your existing clients; include only those who already match your Ideal Client Profile (they match every item on your Ideal Client Profile).
• Continue numbering backward until you have “slots” to represent all of the ideal clients you need to reach your income goals. Use additional sheets of paper if necessary. For example, if you need 100 ideal clients, then you might have four sheets with 25 slots each. Maybe you’d already have 27 clients’ names you could include, and you’d see at a glance that you have the additional 73 slots to fill.

Now you’re ready to attract those additional 73 people. The objective is to replicate the 27 who are already ideal. You’re absolutely crystal clear about how many and the kind of clients you want. It’s time to talk to those 27 and see who else they know—who are just like them. Your existing ideal clients are your replicators. You must simply give them a precise description (your Ideal Client Profile of your business), and ask them for the names of people who meet it. Show your strategic alliances and centers of influence your Ideal Client Profile to obtain referrals from them also. Make a list of your strategic alliances/centers of influence and potential strategic alliances/centers of influence (think outside the box) who you think have clients who fit your profile or they would know people who would fit your profile.

So it is with clients. Once you define the type of person you most want to work with and let your clients and colleagues know about it, you’ll start to see this type of person everywhere. It won’t be a matter of chasing down prospects to fill those slots; instead, you’ll easily attract and notice ideal potential clients.

Figure out exactly what you want, state it clearly, and allow the “replicators” to work for you.  Reap the rewards!

Use the online exercise to help you get started by going to: http://www.accountabilitycoach.com/bw/icp/icp1.php

For help with this concept, choose from the many high-value and high-content tele-seminars for only $27 USD that can be found by going to: http://www.accountabilitycoach.com/bw/resources_teleseminars.php  

Posted: February 22nd, 2010 under Choices, Effective and Efficient Behavior, Ideal Clients, Time Management.
Comments: none

According to the laws of physics and aerodynamics, a bumble bee can’t fly. So…try telling a bumble bee that!

Isn’t it wonderful that bumble bees don’t possess human traits?  Because if they did, in all likelihood, we would live in a world devoid of flowers and honeycombe and the simple delights of bumble bees productively going about their business in our garden.

Why? Because we human beings have a knack for getting caught up in limiting self beliefs, so it follows that the bulk of us would simply accept the word of the scientific community and not fly because we’ve been told we can’t!

And like the imaginary void that would be created without the ingenuity of bumble bees, we create huge voids in our life by accepting self limiting beliefs.

Our beliefs about ourselves, those around us and the world at large affect who we are and how we behave. Beliefs are merely thoughts that with a little encouragement and repetition from our over-active minds transform into facts. Or so we are led to believe.

Once we have formed a self-limiting belief, we continue to pursue evidence to prove that our belief is real. These beliefs are backed up by our self-talk, providing further evidence to back up our negative thoughts.

How many times have you caught yourself saying:

• I knew I’d be no good at this
• This always happens to me – I’m hopeless
• I’m always the unlucky one
• I’ll never be any good at anything
• I can’t ask for referrals.
• I’m not built for following a calendar.
• I can’t seem to stop letting things distract me.

Limiting beliefs are self-perpetuating; the more we believe something to be so, the more our actions reflect that belief, and the more the resultant failure to achieve what we originally set out to do reinforces the initial limiting belief.

The first step in breaking the cycle of self-limiting beliefs is recognizing that the belief exists.

Most importantly, you need to visualize yourself without the self-limiting belief that has held you back in the “no-fly zone” for most of your life.

Daily affirmations will help hasten the process. Write down on a piece of paper an affirmation that describes the new belief you are focused on, and pin it up someplace where you’ll see it every morning. The mirror where you dress each day is perfect.

Breaking a self-limiting belief is like seeing the world for the first time without the lens cap on. A brave new world of opportunity that you never knew existed is out there, waiting just for you.

For help with this concept, choose from the many high-value and high-content tele-seminars for only $27 USD that can be found by going to: http://www.accountabilitycoach.com/bw/resources_teleseminars.php  

Posted: February 17th, 2010 under Belief.
Comments: none

Sarah gets to work at the same time every day. She sits down at her desk and starts doodling on her desk pad, playing computer games, surfing the internet, or texting friends. Unless she is interrupted by a phone call or correspondence that requires her urgent attention, you know she will spend the bulk of her day doodling on her note pad, playing computer games, surfing the internet, or texting friends.

So why is it that the only thing that appears to motivate Sarah is the clock ticking over during the last 15 minutes of her office day?

Sarah is not unlike hundreds of thousands of other employees in corporate America. She is, or has become, one of the “unmotivated masses”.

Luckily, the success of your organization isn’t dependent on the singular input of employees like Sarah, but what needs to happen to generate a positive and motivational environment for all your employees, Sarah included?

As a business leader, the most important lesson you can learn about motivating staff is that what motivates you may not necessarily motivate Sarah or any of the other employees you are responsible for.

Motivation means different things to different people. As a business manager, it is an integral part of your role to observe and learn what inspires and motivates each and every member of your staff.

However, having said that, recent psychoanalytical studies on what influences employees to become engaged and proactive yielded a defined methodology that proved to be universally effective.

How to Engage and Motivate Your Staff

1. Reward Immediately and Frequently

In the study, one of the primary influences that affected the motivation of employees was recognition and reward. It was shown that small rewards offered frequently and as soon as possible after the performance had the most impact.  So the gift of two tickets to the cinema was more rewarding than the promise of a promotion at some indeterminate time in the future.

Conversely, inappropriate or incorrect behavior must be noted as soon as it becomes evident.

While it was noted rewards are seen as more motivational when given in the presence of other team members, bringing a staff member to account for an oversight or error is best performed in private.

Further, as a leader it is important to check for improvement in a timely manner and compliment employees if a positive change is evident. Otherwise, staff may be left wondering why they should bother if changes are not acknowledged.

2. Share the Vision

Employees are seen to be more motivated when they believe their contribution is making an impact on the overall success of the organization.

So it is important to share the company’s mission statement and vision with the entire staff. By allowing them to share in any improvements and successes the company experiences, you ensure they feel like an integral part of the team.

3. Chart a Career Path

The majority of employees have a perceived career path they would like to follow.

Not only is it vital as a manager to be aware of the staff member’s vision for the future, it is also important to clearly define how management views their career path. The qualities and expectations required by the employee to achieve their career goals must also be clearly defined.

4. Lead by Example

A good leader must illustrate to his or her employees the correct procedures and processes required. If you want your staff to arrive at work on time, then you will need to follow suit.

Lead constructively by being a great role model so staff knows what is expected of them.

5. Communicate Openly and Honestly

Staff who are kept “in the loop” are more likely to remain motivated than those who have no idea what is going on.

A great leader always maintains open channels of communication so his or her staff feels comfortable about discussing any relevant issues.

Inappropriate behavioral practices as well as the need for conflict resolution can be kept to a minimum if managers maintain an open door policy.

6. Invest in Staff Training

Staff feel valued when you spend the money and time investing in their knowledge and skills.

Regular staff training sessions, seminars and group training experiences not only improves your employees’ skills, they also enhance your employees’ motivational levels by improving their self esteem.

7. Create a Stimulating Environment

It’s okay to have a little fun once in a while.

You will find that 30 minutes once a week engaged in some sort of competitive game, competition or quiz will repay itself 10-fold in productivity by increasing employees’ self worth and therefore their motivation.

Schedule games for the end of the day so your staff can leave the office with a renewed sense of well-being.

Another alternative could be “casual dress Fridays” or the opportunity to leave work 15 minutes early thrown in from time to time.

Add any of these ideas into your business to help increase the motivation of your staff so you can experience even better results from them. They will appreciate you thinking enough of them and their abilities to implement these in your organization.

Posted: February 11th, 2010 under Delegation, High Pay-off Activities.
Comments: 1