Morning Motivator – A Listening Lesson

"A good listener tries to understand thoroughly what the other person is saying. In the end he may disagree sharply, but before he disagrees, he wants to know exactly what it is he is disagreeing with."
-Kenneth A. Wells, Guide to Good Leadership

This morning I "re-REALIZED" one of my areas for improvement in my personal development. I am not a PATIENT listener. It is not that I DON'T listen, or am not a GOOD listener… it is that I often do not allow enough SPACE for the other person to insert their comments for me to listen too!

My FAULT is my passion for sharing information. While potentially an ADMIRABLE quality, it must be CONTROLLED so as not to always be the driver of discussion. I tend to be very DOMINATE in most of my chats. Why? Often it's driven out of FEAR and INSECURITY… Sounds crazy huh? Think about it.

How many people tend to RAMBLE when they speak to groups? How often have you noticed that someone is NOT comfortable with silence in a discussion? It happens more COMMONLY than you might believe. For me, it's a CONSTANT battle to make feel as though I am delivering an entertaining, informative and valuable discussion. I am CONFIDENT that the other person is able to do the same… however; I can CONTROL my actions and ensure the continuation of the discussion.

2 DEGREE SUCCESS STEP:

The CONCERN in a behavior encompassing a "dominate discussion pattern" is that IF (and when) the discussion is NOT riveting… you are sunk!

The ASSUMPTION of the dominate speaker is that what they have to say is very IMPORTANT and INTERESTING. The REALITY is, you will NEVER know unless you shut up and let the other person INTERJECT their thoughts, proving you valuable FEEDBACK.

I know this is a strength that must be DEVELOPED further… in the meantime, my best advice, "shut you DANG mouth and let the other person give you a chance to catch your breath!" :)

Have a WONDERFULLY RELAXING weekend!

Cheers,
Zach

*To enjoy past editions of the Morning Motivator go to – http://grow-learn-lead.blogspot.com

The Morning Motivator is a copyrighted publication. The use of this article is open for print or publication with proper citations.

Morning Motivator - Your ONE Goal

"If you could achieve any one goal in your life within twenty-four hours, which goal would have the greatest impact on your life?"
- Brian Tracy

If you had 24 hours to live and make your FINAL mark on this world - what would you do? Have you ever CONSIDERED what your ONE greatest impact COULD be? What grounds do you seek for your LEGACY to be built upon?

This is one of those scary "PURPOSE" Morning Motivators - the kind that forces you to consider that you DO have finite time and MUST have purpose in your daily actions. I have become ENLIGHTENED in the past years as to my PURPOSE - EDUCATION.

For me, I would like to spend my last hours ENSURING that those remaining after me have the greatest amount of INSIGHT, KNOWLEDGE and ACTIONABLE TASKS to be able to effectively execute the items necessary to accomplish a given goal. My FOCUS does need additional consideration, as it must be pinpointed to "WHAT TYPE" of educational message?? Politics (always a passion for me)? Business and Succession planning? Process Management and Task Execution? THIS is my challenge...

2 DEGREE SUCCESS STEP:
Whatever your FOCUS, you must ask the question... am I doing this TODAY? If so, how can I do it BETTER? If not, why NOT?

You must accept that your time IS limited and your IMPACT could be LIMITLESS. You have the ABILITY and OPPORTUNITY to create a better world for those after you and for many generations to come. Do you have the internal LEADERSHIP drive and INSIGHT to make that effort and/or sacrifice?

When you WONDER what makes people great... it is their ability to make a LASTING IMPACT! Get to it!!

Cheers,
Zach

*To enjoy past editions of the Morning Motivator go to – http://grow-learn-lead.blogspot.com


The Morning Motivator is a copyrighted publication. The use of this article is open for print or publication with proper citations.

Morning Motivator – Your One Skill

"Here is one of the greatest questions you will ever ask and answer: "What one skill, if I developed and did it in an excellent fashion, would have the greatest positive impact on my career?"
- Brian Tracy

Thank you to my good friend Josh Anderson of Keller Williams Realty for his submission of this quote. I have been thinking about it for 2 days.

Consider the question… what is the ONE skill you could develop to perfection and make the single GREATEST impact on your business? What is the "GAME CHANGER" for you in your professional development? It's likely you know the answer and are already a little UNCOMFORTABLE by the fact that you know it's the thing holding you back… right?!

Ok, I will go first. Mine is COLD CALLING. Like many other sales professionals, I am REQUIRED to make cold calls. Cold calling is the oft referred to MISERABLE experience of calling someone you don't know to ask them for their time, HOPING they listen long enough to actually help better their business. Scary thing for me… I have a POSITIVE attitude about cold calling. I do KNOW that if I had a PASSION and DESIRE to cold call at the same level as I do to educate and facilitate for clients – I would be a MILLIONAIRE!

So, let's be HONEST… What is WORSE? Not knowing what you would change or knowing and never doing anything about it?

2 DEGREE SUCCESS STEP:

To TRULY move into the next level of success, you must learn to OVERCOME your inherent fears and misconceptions about your ability, others perception of that ability and your apprehension to DO something about it.

Once you have identified your SPECIAL skill that needs developed – what do you do next? Obviously, you would say DEVELOP it. Yet how? With whom?

That is YOUR job! It is your DUTY to take the initiative to overcome and perfect that underdeveloped skill. Seek SELF-education through books, formal education through classes and/or MENTORSHIP through others.

I, myself, would prefer a SOLD mentor… and am taking applications! =)

Cheers,
Zach

*To enjoy past editions of the Morning Motivator go to – http://grow-learn-lead.blogspot.com

The Morning Motivator is a copyrighted publication. The use of this article is open for print or publication with proper citations.

Morning Motivator - Why Change a Good System?

"We have the greatest healthcare system in the world. You don't see Americans flying to other countries for health services."
- former Vice President, Dan Quayle

In the past month, we have seen and heard a great deal from our GOVERNMENT. We have been told of the PERILS of not changing our systems. We have been WARNED of the demise to follow. Why are things so BAD they need to change?

I must admit, I am not one to ENCOURAGE sitting on an idea because it isn't broke. I must also admit, that I am one for ENHANCING a successful system, as opposed to OVERHAULING it.

When you consider your BEST systems at work, what are they comprised of? EFFICIENCY, EFFECTIVENESS and REPLICATION. They are often the ones that work BEST (not ideal). They get MORE done (not the most possible). The are EASY to manage (not perfectly efficient).

2 DEGREE SUCCESS STEP:
When you CONSIDER your systems, think of ECON101.

ABSOLUTE advantage is a pure advantage over others, via the use of an ideal system.

COMPARATIVE advantage is the better solution based on the performance of others. Its not the best, but it beats everyone else. (Similar to US healthcare vs Canadian - you don't see Americans flying to Canada for health needs).

Before you CHANGE a system for "change sake," consider its ADVANTAGE and whether its in TRUE need of an overhaul...

Cheers,
Zach

*To enjoy past editions of the Morning Motivator go to – http://grow-learn-lead.blogspot.com


The Morning Motivator is a copyrighted publication. The use of this article is open for print or publication with proper citations.