The 10 Laws of Life

Being a real fan of simplicity I love these very simple insights to the ideal laws of life.....

Life Law #1:   You either get it, or you don't.

 Become one of those who gets it.

Life Law #2:   You create your own experience.

Acknowledge and accept accountability for your life.

Life Law #3:   People do what works.

Identify the payoffs that drive your behaviour and that of others.

Life Law #4:   You cannot change what you do not acknowledge.

Get real with yourself about your life and everybody in it.

Life Law #5:    Life rewards action.

Make careful decisions and then pull the trigger.

Life Law #6:    There is no reality; only perception.

Identify the filters through which you view the world.

Life Law #7:    Life is managed.  It is not cured.

Learn to take charge of your life.

Life Law #8:    We teach people how to treat us.

Own, rather than complain about how other people treat you.

Life Law #9:    There is power in forgiveness.

Open your eyes to what anger and resentment are doing to you.

Life Law #10:  You have to name it before you can claim it.

Get clear about what you want and take your turn.

Source: “Life Strategies” by Phillip C. McGraw,

    New York: Hyperion Books, 1999.  ISBN 0-7868-6548-2

Why Prospects Challenge Your Pricing Proposition

Your prospects & clients want several things from you, as their supplier.  They look for fair price, quality products & services, and timely service (though not necessarily in this order).  Surveys suggest most consumers want timely and responsive service as a first priority, quality products & services, second, and low prices, third.

Surveys of sales groups over a 20 year period, asking what they thought was most important to consumers, on the other hand have revealed a different, yet consistent perception…low price comes first, quality next and service last.

There’s clearly a difference in perceptions and expectations between the two groups, which is interesting.

Three elements need to be understood in selling situations if you’re going to effectively deal with the challenge of price.

• First is price, which is what we, as consumers, pay for what we buy.  
• Second is cost,  which is what it costs us over time, what it costs us if we do it wrong, do it late, or not at all.  
• Third is perceived value.  That’s the value we expect for the money we pay.

Most consumers tell salespeople they want low price…when what they really want is low cost.  It’s natural to want to take issue with this statement, but consider what you, as a consumer want.  Do you want the cheapest, or do you want the product or service that best solves your problem, answers your need, or fulfills your desire?

The truth is, most prospects or clients want their problems solved.  They recognise they get what they pay for.  They also know that the distaste of poor quality lasts far longer than the sweetness of the tantalisingly low price.

Buyers will object to price when they feel what they’re being asked to pay is higher than the value they perceive in the transaction.  When an ineffective salesperson encounters price resistance, they usually lower the price.

Unfortunately it’s not usually a price or cost issue at all, rather one of the perceived value being too low. What can you do to raise your prospects/clients notion of the relative value of what you’re selling?

A simple way is to find out what is troubling them most, and then show them how your product or service will satisfy, or overcome this need, want, or obstacle…or, even better, exceed their expectations of value.  This way, price will become secondary.  Not cost, but price.

Real sales pros focus on value…that is, what the product or service does for the customer…and not the price they’ll pay.  They understand that while price is an issue, it’s usually not the most important one.  Price will always seem high when perceived value is low.

The way to change the relationship between price and value in the purchaser’s mind is to focus on raising the value perception.  Lowering price only makes them view your original price, as well as the new, lower one with suspicion.

It’ll become evident that you don’t want to introduce price too early in the sales process…especially not before you've had the opportunity to build a value proposition in the mind of your prospect.  If you have a buyer who’s a price-only shopper (they are out there, aren't they), you’ll need to decide what their business will be worth to you in the long run, or if it will ever be worth anything.

History has shown that prospects who make a big deal out of price, expecting price adjustments…will ultimately require a lot of other concessions, extras, etc., as well.  Use their attitude about price and cost as a barometer of the overall quality of the relationship with you and your products in general.

This isn't to say you should never lower price…only that you should never make your first reaction to price resistance a lower price.

Remember!  Once you've set a pricing precedent with a client, you’ll live with it for the life of that relationship …and, of course, anyone they might refer you to.

Now that's worth thinking about

If you'd ;like to know how to increase the value, focus on the value add in your business attend the Business Growth Program, where we'll challenge you to think differently about how you do business.

Alternately feel free to give us a call on 01626 906348 or email stevegaskell@actioncoach.com 

Why Problem-Based Positioning is a Psychological Magnet

Are you struggling to create a memorable positioning statement for your marketing?  Do you want to stand out from your competition, but the uniqueness of your business seems to elude you?

Here’s a sneaky, vital secret that turns conventional marketing psychology on its head.  By changing your positioning statement, find out how to transform your weakest link into your strongest marketing tool ever.

Avis is Only Number 2…So, Why Go With Them…

Years ago, in the rental car market, Hertz was chugging along merrily, with Avis a distant second.  With one Problem-Based USP, Avis closed the gap.  Its catch phrase, "We’re No.2, We Try Harder," ignited the minds of the target audience like a rampaging bush fire.  They turned a liability into an asset.

Southwest Airlines took to the skies with a similar message.  We’re Smaller Than Everyone Else, it told us, while gently explaining why its service was dramatically better, as a direct consequence of their size.  They also turned a liability into an asset.

In 2001, Harley Davidson proudly boasted how their CEO was 38th on the waiting list for the company's then, new V-Rod motorcycle.  And they took pains to describe how each Harley was lovingly rolled off the plant.  The waiting period, which normally would be perceived to be a negative, was turned into a publicity coup that burned a stamp of quality and a uniqueness into the brains of every prospective Harley owner.

All of these companies took a cold, hard-nosed look at reality.  The superlatives in their business had been taken.  Instead they unearthed their USP, in what most people would consider a disadvantage of sorts.

Are You Doing What Sally Did…

Sally is one heck of a real estate agent.  Barely six months into real estate, and she’s already forging a red-hot path into the top ten salespeople in the country.  While her talents and persuasive powers are formidable, there’s a little something that puts her head and shoulders above the rest of the crowd.

That Little Something is a USP on Steroids…

If she chose to be unimaginative, Sally’s USP or tagline could have ended up as pretty run-of-the-mill.  It could have ranged from a tacky, "Residential Properties for Every Budget," to utterly boring, "Getting Top Prices for Your Home."  All of which would see her struggling to stand out, in a dog-eat-dog me-too marketplace.  A goody-gum-drop USP would get her nowhere in a hurry.  She needed a USP with rocket fuel in its tanks.  Something that would reach out and demand your attention without hesitation.

“If You Sold Your Home in a Week or Less, You Probably Got Too Little…”

How to Create a Knockout USP for Your Business…

The Primary Reason You Should Search for the Hiccups in Your Business…

That’s the USP that Sally created.  Can you see what I mean?  Doesn't that USP go for your jugular?  Sally’s target audience is sellers, not buyers.  If you just sold a house, wouldn't you feel a twinge of regret?  What if you were about to sell a house?  Wouldn't you be curious to find out just a little bit about what Sally does to lasso in a higher return?  And wouldn't you be just a little bit wary if the next real estate agent you met told you that she could sell your house in next to no time?

You've just witnessed the psychological power of the Problem-Based USP.

Let’s assume you’re in the wine selling business.  To own real estate in a customer’s brain, you’d have to do battle with about a zillion other wines.  Yet decades ago, Paul Masson cut through the clutter with a simple statement.  We sell no wines before their time.  With charming simplicity, they turned a negative waiting period into an exploitable advantage.

You too can turn your liabilities into assets.  Stop screaming about how magnificent you are, and look for the apparent glitches in your business.  Let’s just consider a few scenarios.  Are you perceived to be too expensive, extremely slow, or maybe just too busy?

Consider when PsychoTactics.com launched their website and were faced with a similar dilemma. As human beings, we often disdain simplicity and common sense.  The distillation process needed to simplify a concept into easy-to-munch bites is often just seen as common sense, and of no huge intrinsic value.  Taking that liability into consideration, PsychoTactics.com created a USP concept that stressed the fact that everything was not just old, but at least 5000 years old.  In fact, everything has already been tried and tested.  That put them into a mould that was totally different from all the new-fangled marketing angles we hear about every day.  The liability of common sense was turned into the asset of experience.

Best of all, it turned a problem into a winning USP concept.

Finding what makes you beneficially different is a notoriously difficult task.  However, just about any client or potential buyer will very quickly identify your weaknesses and liabilities.  If it’s a technical problem, you can fix it.  If it’s a conceptual problem such as speed or price, it’s much harder to fix.

This, however, is the key to your success.  The more you try to keep your weaknesses and liabilities under wraps, the more customers will uncover them.  On the other hand, take a liability and turn it into an asset.  Expose a problem to the harsh glare of the spotlight and transform your frog into a prince.  This brave act will gain the instant admiration and support of your clients, while giving you a USP that others simply won’t have the guts to match.

Can You Make the Leap?

Creating a negative USP is a tricky, dangerous tactic, and one not to be taken lightly.  "We're slow and proud of it!" is hardly a selling point, yet fulfills the requirements laid out in this article.  However, if you’ve been struggling with your USP, as many companies do, this is a tactic that may work well for you—as it has with some of the companies above.

It’s time you tickled your customer’s brain with some sharply focused psychological marketing jujitsu.  Find the weaknesses and liabilities in your business, carve them into a dynamic USP, and the attention your business has been craving for, will be yours forever more.

And that’s worth thinking about…

7 Top Tips for Testimonials.

I think we’ll all agree that getting testimonials is an invaluable addition to our marketing mix, be it utilising a case study on printed media, quotes from satisfied clients, having transcript on a testimonial page on your website, or have a video uploaded onto a dedicated YouTube Channel.

As a local business coach I find there is something very ‘British’ about business owners and their quiet reserve, feeling it’s a little presumptuous or rude to ask for a testimonial. The fact here is satisfied clients will, in most cases, be delighted to praise your business when they have had their needs met. In many cases they will be raving about your business to others without your knowledge. The tell tale sign here is often when a business seems to generate a portion of its business through referrals.

So I thought it might be useful to offer 7 ways to generate great referrals:

1.           As for testimonials.  You’ll already know your top clients, they will be delighted to offer you a testimonial. In all likelihood they are probably generating you business through referrals, so the question to ask is why? The answer will be the foundation of a great testimonial.
2.             What problem did you solve? In a testimonial ask for details on the problem you solved? It helps to get to the real reason they conducted business with you and why anyone reading the testimonial will resonate with immediately.
3.             List the benefits of doing business with you. We can often get tied up in wordsmithery, when a simple list of the benefits they will have experienced will form a great simple testimonial.  
4.             Feedback.  Use a feedback questionnaire. Keep the questionnaire concise and to the point, don’t bombard them with loads of questions. Maybe even give them the answers via multiple choice. Always remember to ask for permission to use their answers in your marketing. The best time to ask for feedback is directly on completing business.
5.            You write the testimonial. When you gather the feedback or have a verbal testimonial from your clients it's often a great idea to write it yourself or pass it onto a copywriter to draft it for you. Remember to always send the draft copy of the testimonial to the client to gain permission to use it and confirm they are happy to be named in it.  
6.             Images. Having great pictures with the client, their premises, sealing the deal with a handshake etc. will always help to raise the profile and interest of the testimonial. It will also help to have branding visible to build the visible recognition of your business and indeed theirs, a real win win.
7.              Video. By far the best way to publicise on the internet is with video content, it is search engine rich, simple to receive and with technology today doesn't need to be onerous. You can film and publish a testimonial in minutes. When making a video testimonial remember to make it interesting, prepare the question you want to ask and have a good setting. Not everyone will be prepared to give a video testimonial don’t just assume they will be happy to sit in front of a camera.

With this information it's time to get into action and build your portfolio of client testimonials. Having done business with others (especially B2B or B2C) why not offer them a testimonial, in all likelihood they will reciprocate.

Now that’s worth thinking about.

Here’s some of my example video testimonials. 

The Time Efficiency Lesson

The Time Expert

One day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those students will never forget.  As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers he said, “Okay, time for a quiz.”

Then he pulled out a one-gallon, wide mouth Mason jar and set it on the table in front of him.  Then he produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar.  When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, “Is this jar full?”

Everyone in the class said, “Yes.”

Then he said, “Really?” He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel.  Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the space between the big

rocks.

Then he asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?”

By this time the class was on to him. “Probably not,” one of them answered.

“Good!” he replied.  He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand.  He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all of the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel.  Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar full?”

“No!” the class shouted.

Once again he said, “Good.”  Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim.

Then he looked at the class and asked, “What is the point of this illustration?”

One eager beaver raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in it!”

“No,” the speaker replied, “that’s not the point.  The truth this illustration teaches us is: If you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.”

What are the “big rocks” in your life?  Time with your loved ones?  Your faith, your education, your dreams?  A worthy cause?  Teaching or mentoring others?

Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you’ll never get them in at all.

If yo'd like my FREE Time Target Top Tip, register your details below and you'll get access to some great time efficiency insight and tips. Start to take control of your time, start to focus on your Business rather than working in it. Register now.

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Timings are Critical not Flexible

"There just aren't enough hours in the day" “I don’t have enough time”, are cries I hear all too often as a business coach. It never ceases to amaze me just how unproductive, incompetent and inefficient we can be with the time we have. Let's face it each and every day we are given just 24 hours, yet we continually squander them. Let's put this into perspective, take a look at how old you are right now, assuming you live in the UK where the average life expectancy is 80.42 years old, how many summers have you got left? Well I have 34. Now thinking in those terms how many do you want to waste? I for one don't aim to waste any of them. With that focus I aim to ensure I don't waste any of my time, in fact getting more done effectively allows me to enjoy a great work life balance.

So how can I get more efficient with my time? 

As a soldier and an officer I lived by the adage that timings were critical not flexible, I had a real militant approach to timings. If I had to be somewhere at a time I always allowed a factor of time to ensure I would arrive early, the ‘fudge factor’. If we had a parade at 0800hrs, then I would expect to arrive at least 5 minutes early. You’ll have heard the adage ‘with military precision’, timings really were critical in terms of coordinating activities on a very large scale.  Placing such significance on time and timings results in everyone internalising the importance of time and holding themselves accountable. Can your organisation say the same? Could you place significance on timing to build a culture of maximising efficiency?

Here’s my top 7 tips from my military experience for your business:

1. Work Back - When working towards a deadline always establish the major milestones working back from the deadline time. This will allow you to establish all the critical timings leading up to delivery. 

2. Timetable – Have a timetable of daily, weekly, monthly and annual activities which are routine. Identify who is responsible for the activities and have been given clear direction. Have the timetable published at a central point within the organisation and clearly communicate it.

3. Clear lines of Communication – Have clear lines of communication through the tiers of the organisation, to ensure timely and detailed passage of information. Meetings can form the conduit and starting point, you must ensure there is a clear agenda and stick to it. Don’t allow the meeting to detract and remain firmly in control of the agenda. So much time is wasted through poor communication and unnecessary lengthy meetings.

4. Synchronise - Whilst this may sound odd, from time to time it will be useful to check everyone’s time is synchronised. Maybe take the time from the internet, central clock or make one team member responsible for setting time. In the military we always worked from GMT and when on operations the Artillery would be responsible for setting the organisation, ‘gunners time’.

5. Clear Direction - When setting out tasks for the team make sure there is clear direction given; simply put set out what is to be achieved, what the limitations and constraints are and when it is to be completed by. Throughout make sure the team leader monitors progress periodically, be mindful not to micro manage though.

6. Concurrent Activity – Whenever possible always be thinking what complementing tasks can be conducted concurrently. There is greater efficiency to have tasks run in unison.

7 – One third, two thirds rule. During planning always ensure you, the business owner, ensure your team have the greater proportion of the available time to complete their roles within the planning or task. Essentially take 1/3^rd of the time and give the team 2/3^rd’s.  

There is often a focus on getting efficient with our time, the focus here is regarding building a culture and relationship with time. Having a team who value time, seek to gain greater proficiency with their time and maximise productivity. Implementing these 7 steps within your business is a start to building the culture where timings are critical not flexible. 

Here Are 10 Things You Can Do to Foster a Culture of Innovation and Creativity…

1.       Live in the possibility.  Know that every problem has many possible solutions. Stand in the belief that you and your team can find a better way to do anything you put your minds to.  Practice CANI—Constant and Never-Ending Improvement.

2.       Always question what you do and why you do it.  All too often tasks and projects creep into our processes that aren't necessarily in keeping with our mission and purpose.  Make sure everything you do is in alignment and produces the results intended.

3.       Challenge long-held beliefs. Just because something's always been done a certain way doesn't mean that it's still the best way.  As Anthony D'Angelo said, 'Just because something is tradition doesn't make it right.'

4.       Don't accept the first solution right away.  There are many possible solutions to every problem.  Most people go with the first plausible one that comes up and they miss the value of thinking longer and finding more effective and elegant answers.

5.       Read. You can't learn less.  The more you know about something, the more you find that you DON'T know.  By adding to your knowledge base, you find more and more associations.  And making associations is where seemingly magical things happen.

6.       Have fun. Coming up with ideas on how to do things faster, easier, with fewer resources really is fun.  And things that are fun to do get done more often.  Schedule regular brainstorming sessions and practice green-light thinking.  Order pizza for lunch and focus on a problem or process and generate as many ideas as you can.

7.       Get around people in different industries.  By stepping out of your familiar territory, you open the door to new and different viewpoints you can use to your advantage.

8.       Challenge your team to look deeper.  When Henry Ford asked his engineers to design the V-8 engine, they said it couldn't be done.  He said it WILL be done—and eventually, they did it.

9.       Make sure you have adequate 'moodling' time—time to do nothing.  When we're constantly engaged in DOING things, we don't provide the fertile ground for ideas to take root.

10.   Charge your subconscious. Give your mind something to work on while you sleep.  Select a problem you want solved, a process you would like improved or a new product you would like to create before going to bed and then forget about it.  Tell yourself you want at least three elegant ideas by the next day and then expect to receive them. Trust that it works.

And that's worth thinking about…

UPGRADE COLD LEADS TO REFERRAL STATUS

The primary reason people do business with you is they feel a high level of trust.  They trust you as a person, they trust your company, your product/service, and your price/value package.  This is why referred leads will consistently convert to clients 80%-to-100% of the time, while yellow page, or non-referred leads convert, at best, 20% of the time.  There’s a significant transferal of trust because of the mutual association with the referring person.  The idea here is to cause cold-calls to become warmer.

Creating a culture of referrals in your company. 

The underlying purpose would clearly be to accelerate the trust level your prospective clients/customers feel toward you and your company.  Here’s an idea you might use to achieve that.  Unfortunately, few companies ask new prospects "how did you hear about us?"  In doing so, it would help to track the return on investment of their marketing/advertising budget.  Even though most companies haven’t embraced this concept, I’d suggest you adjust your approach a degree or two further, and focus on gathering a variety of information that will enable you to connect the prospect to an existing, satisfied client.  Consider creating a script/process to gather additional information, such as:

·       where do they work, and have you done any work with other people at that firm

·       what do they do, and what other lawyers/teachers/insurance people, etc. have you worked with

·       where do they live and who else in that neighborhood, city, region, geography, or country have you done business with

Always be thinking about creating networks of inclusion.  Find a way to connect yourself to your prospect through a mutual association.  You’ll find trust levels soaring and sales closing faster and at a greater rate.

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence Theory (EQ - Emotional Quotient)

Emotional Intelligence - EQ - is a relatively recent behavioural model, rising to prominence with Daniel Goleman's 1995 Book called 'Emotional Intelligence'. The early Emotional Intelligence theory was originally developed during the 1970s and 80s by the work and writings of psychologists Howard Gardner (Harvard), Peter Salovey (Yale) and John 'Jack' Mayer (New Hampshire). Emotional Intelligence is increasingly relevant to organizational development and developing people, because the EQ principles provide a new way to understand and assess people's behaviours, management styles, attitudes, interpersonal skills, and potential. Emotional Intelligence is an important consideration in human resources planning, job profiling, recruitment interviewing and selection, management development, customer relations and customer service, and more.

The EQ concept argues that IQ, or conventional intelligence, is too narrow; that there are wider areas of Emotional Intelligence that dictate and enable how successful we are. Success requires more than IQ (Intelligence Quotient), which has tended to be the traditional measure of intelligence, ignoring essential behavioural and character elements. We've all met people who are academically brilliant and yet are socially and inter-personally inept. And we know that despite possessing a high IQ rating, success does not automatically follow.

Different approaches and theoretical models have been developed for Emotional Intelligence. This summary article focuses chiefly on the Goleman interpretation. The work of Mayer, Salovey and David Caruso (Yale) is also very significant in the field of Emotional Intelligence, and will in due course be summarised here too.

Emotional Intelligence - Two Aspects

This is the essential premise of EQ: to be successful requires the effective awareness, control and management of one's own emotions, and those of other people. EQ embraces two aspects of intelligence:

• Understanding yourself, your goals, intentions, responses, behaviour and all.
• Understanding others, and their feelings.

Emotional Intelligence - The Five Domains

Goleman identified the five 'domains' of EQ as:
Knowing your emotions.

1. Managing your own emotions.
2. Motivating yourself.
3. Recognising and understanding other people's emotions.
4. Managing relationships, i.e., managing the emotions of others.

Emotional Intelligence embraces and draws from numerous other branches of behavioural, emotional and communications theories, such as NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), Transactional Analysis, and empathy. By developing our Emotional Intelligence in these areas and the five EQ domains we can become more productive and successful at what we do, and help others to be more productive and successful too. The process and outcomes of Emotional Intelligence development also contain many elements known to reduce stress for individuals and organizations, by decreasing conflict, improving relationships and understanding, and increasing stability, continuity and harmony.

http://www.businessballs.com/eq.htm

What do you want to achieve? Goal Setting.

Why Set Goals?

Goal setting is used by top-level athletes, successful business-people and achievers in all fields. Setting goals gives you long-term vision and short-term motivation. It focuses your acquisition of knowledge, and helps you to organize your time and your resources so that you can make the very most of your life.

By setting sharp, clearly defined goals, you can measure and take pride in the achievement of those goals, and you'll see forward progress in what might previously have seemed a long pointless grind. You will also raise your self confidence, as you recognize your own ability and competence in achieving the goals that you've set.

Many people feel as if they're adrift in the world. They work hard, but they don't seem to get anywhere worthwhile. A key reason that they feel this way is that they haven't spent enough time thinking about what they want from life, and haven't set themselves formal goals. After all, would you set out on a major journey with no real idea of your destination? Probably not!

Goal setting is a powerful process for thinking about your ideal future, and for motivating yourself to turn your vision of this future into reality. The process of setting goals helps you choose where you want to go in life. By knowing precisely what you want to achieve, you know where you have to concentrate your efforts. You'll also quickly spot the distractions that can, so easily, lead you astray.

Starting to Set Personal Goals

You set your goals on a number of levels:

• First you create your "big picture" of what you want to do with your life (or over, say, the next 10 years), and identify the large-scale goals that you want to achieve.
• Then, you break these down into the smaller and smaller targets that you must hit to reach your lifetime goals.
• Finally, once you have your plan, you start working on it to achieve these goals.

This is why we start the process of goal setting by looking at your lifetime goals. Then, we work down to the things that you can do in, say, the next five years, then next year, next month, next week, and today, to start moving towards them.

Setting Lifetime Goals

The first step in setting personal goals is to consider what you want to achieve in your lifetime (or at least, by a significant and distant age in the future). Setting lifetime goals gives you the overall perspective that shapes all other aspects of your decision making.

To give a broad, balanced coverage of all important areas in your life, try to set goals in some of the following categories (or in other categories of your own, where these are important to you):

• Career - What level do you want to reach in your career, or what do you want to achieve?
• Financial - How much do you want to earn, by what stage? How is this related to your career goals?
• Education - Is there any knowledge you want to acquire in particular? What information and skills will you need to have in order to achieve other goals?
• Family - Do you want to be a parent? If so, how are you going to be a good parent? How do you want to be seen by a partner or by members of your extended family?
• Artistic - Do you want to achieve any artistic goals?
• Attitude - Is any part of your mindset holding you back? Is there any part of the way that you behave that upsets you? (If so, set a goal to improve your behavior or find a solution to the problem.)
• Physical - Are there any athletic goals that you want to achieve, or do you want good health deep into old age? What steps are you going to take to achieve this?
• Pleasure - How do you want to enjoy yourself? (You should ensure that some of your life is for you!)
• Public Service - Do you want to make the world a better place? If so, how?

Spend some time brainstorming these things, and then select one or more goals in each category that best reflect what you want to do. Then consider trimming again so that you have a small number of really significant goals that you can focus on.

As you do this, make sure that the goals that you have set are ones that you genuinely want to achieve, not ones that your parents, family, or employers might want. (If you have a partner, you probably want to consider what he or she wants - however, make sure that you also remain true to yourself!)

Setting Smaller Goals

Once you have set your lifetime goals, set a five-year plan of smaller goals that you need to complete if you are to reach your lifetime plan.

Then create a one-year plan, six-month plan, and a one-month plan of progressively smaller goals that you should reach to achieve your lifetime goals. Each of these should be based on the previous plan.

Then create a daily To Do List of things that you should do today to work towards your lifetime goals. 

At an early stage, your smaller goals might be to read books and gather information on the achievement of your higher level goals. This will help you to improve the quality and realism of your goal setting.

Finally review your plans, and make sure that they fit the way in which you want to live your life.

Staying on Course

Once you've decided on your first set of goals, keep the process going by reviewing and updating your To-Do List on a daily basis.

Periodically review the longer term plans, and modify them to reflect your changing priorities and experience. (A good way of doing this is to schedule regular, repeating reviews using a computer-based diary.)

SMART Goals

A useful way of making goals more powerful is to use the SMART mnemonic. While there are plenty of variants (some of which we've included in parenthesis), SMART usually stands for:

• S - Specific (or Significant).
• M - Measurable (or Meaningful).
• A - Attainable (or Action-Oriented).
• R - Relevant (or Rewarding).
• T - Time-bound (or Trackable).

http://www.mindtools.com/page6.html

Values Based Leadership

Values Based Leadership requires leaders to be courageous. There can be difficult decisions to be made, well entrenched beliefs to be challenged and leadership behaviours to be changed when following a values-based approach. This does not always promise an easy route for leaders and taking these decisions requires courage. The military is an example of an organisation where values form an intrinsic element of leadership and leadership delivery.

Clausewitz is one of the foremost military influences on the art of war and today remains a highly acclaimed scholar within the military community.  He still features at the centre of many military debates on strategy and warfare and is a vehicle to develop commanders and leaders of tomorrow.  It is therefore extremely significant that he harbours such concerns on theory; Clausewitz cautions against adherence to fixed theories as every case needs to be considered afresh to the situation.  Reiterated from the introduction; he states that theory is the servant of practice; leaders need to be flexible enough not to rely on fixed theory (Howard 2002).

The quote, simple and noteworthy highlights one of the fallibility’s of change, the moral component, the need for empowerment, a shared vision and unity.  Without thorough understanding change will always experience friction, as Kotter (1996) highlights transformation will require to empower the employee. The concept of Values Based Leadership is intrinsically linked to the internalisation of the a set of values. Essentially internalising the values will empower the individual and create a greater comprehension of how to behave and accepted behaviour.  It can therefore be assumed that Values Based Leadership although underpinned by transactional and transformational leadership (Bass Bass & Riggio 2006, Bass 1998) relies ultimately on the leader and the follower having a greater understanding and application of the values.

There are a number of other factors need to be in place to bring Values Based Leadership to life. To test these factors we need to ask three important questions of leaders.

Firstly, are they willing to learn? Leading Values Based organisations is a dynamic process and one that requires people to constantly be learning and evolving their thinking.

Secondly, do they want to lead? Often people find themselves in a leadership position by default without really considering whether they want the responsibility. At the core of Values Based Leadership are leaders who relish the challenge and the responsibility of leadership.

Finally, are they able to deal with the change and ambiguity that exists in organisations in the 21st Century? And do they have the skills and knowledge to lead in an ever changing environment without being overwhelmed by the complexities of leadership?

Values Based Leadership gives leaders and organisations the flexibility to lead through ambiguity and change. When these factors are in place we believe that the three dimensions of Values Based Leadership come together in a powerful way to lead organsations.

 Leading Self - Leading Others - Leading the Organisation

The interconnection of these three dimensions is the critical factor. By understanding the inter-relationship between the dimensions and having all three covered, you can gain the dynamics and power of Values Based Leadership. So, having a strong set of personal values but not living the organisation's values will create a divide within yourself, and others will see this. Having a strong and successful team and leading that team well, but not understanding the purpose of your organisation will develop a rift between what you and your team are actively doing and what the organisation thinks it is doing. However, when all three dimensions collaborate this leads to…

Sustainability – a sustainable and dynamic organisational culture that has the agility to change and create long term repeatable success

The emotional connection and engagement of both employees and customers with the organisation

Organisational agility – the ability of the whole organisation to be responsive and adapt to the changing environment within which it operates

Authentic Leadership – Values Based Leadership wins the trust, respect and confidence of the people in the organisation

 http://www.valuesbasedleadership.co.uk/news/reviews/VBLModel/

10 Tips to Establish Rapport

Establishing rapport - having people like us and remember us fondly - is an invaluable skill. Whether you are in a business, a friendship, a relationship, selling, or just want to be more well-liked - rapport building skills can help you reach your goals. I use some of these skills to develop rapid rapport with my business, counseling and coaching clients. Remember that the key to all rapport building is sincerity and bringing a true love of others to your new relationships. With that in mind, lets get started:
1. Listen - Listening is the 'King' of all rapport building skills. EVERYONE loves to be listened to! Think about it. How do you feel when someone ignores you or talks over you? Do you feel connected to these people? NO! Who are the people you are closest too? I highly suspect that they are the people who listen to you intently and are concerned about your issues and wellbeing, right? Listening says, "I'm listening because you, and therefore, what you have to say, are important." People's greatest desire is to be truly listened to. Help them accomplish this most important goal, and they will like and admire you for it. Practice "conversational generosity" - don't speak more than 30% of the time (10-20% is optimal).


2. Link Interests - Opposites DON'T Attract!!! People like each because of their similarities. So, whenever possible, notice similar interests and be sure to talk about and expand on them. This may take some searching and questioning to discover their interests - that's okay - people will be glad that you are so interested in them that you ask several questions about them. Even if you don't have any similar activities, have them discuss an area you find interesting or want to explore. For example, my old boss Mark loves golf. I have never played, but have a sincere interest in learning the game, so I asked him to explain some things about the game to me. He was thrilled that I was interested and complimented that I wanted him to be my teacher and valued his advice. Think of ways you can use this tool.


3. Ask For Advice - An old quote by Thoreau states, "The greatest compliment ever paid me was when someone asked me what I thought, and attended to the answer." Asking for advice is perhaps the most sincere compliment you can pay to a person. You also have to humble yourself ever so slightly to ask for advice, and this vulnerability will create a sense of openness and trust between you. People are always happy to give advice and will associate that sense of happiness to you quickly. Aren't your friends the ones whom you go to for advice? How can this person give you advice and not be your friend? See how strong this link is? People also admire someone who can ask for and accept advice. So few people can do this well, that it has become an admirable trait. Try it and see.


4. Compliments & Praise - No, this is NOT "kissing up" or being phony - this never works! What we are looking to do is notice praise-worthy things people discuss and mention them to the person. Notice the difference in the next two responses. Your new friend tells you they just won an award for helping children and you say either "that's great!" or "Wow, that's quite an accomplishment! You must have made a tremendous contribution to the lives of those children, you should be very proud." Which response would you rather hear? Are they both true? Yes! Will one response have more impact and create a stronger connection? Definitely, yes! Noticing and commenting on the good people do and their special qualities is a great way to live, it is classy, and a great way to connect with others.


5. Demonstrate Liking & Appreciation - Most people instinctively like people who like them (and vice-versa). Many people like each other, but rarely tell each other. I make it a point to tell my friends that I like them and appreciate them - they already know this, but it's still great to hear. With people I've just met, if I like them, I say things like "It's been great getting to know you; I love to meet warm, open people."" I really liked the way you talked about (BLANK).""Thank you for making me feel so welcome in your home. I had a great time today - let's pick another time to get together soon." These are just a few examples. Can you come up with better ones? Sincere appreciation like this supports friendship and cements relationships.


6. Adopt Their Values/Beliefs - As you are listening to the other person speak, notice their values/beliefs, and discuss areas where your values/beliefs sincerely overlap with theirs. Remember when I said it is best to speak 30% or less of the time? Take at least half of this time and use it to agree with, support, or expand on whatever the other person was talking about. You will never make a friend by disagreeing with them. Let points you don't agree with slip by, and chime in when you hear something you agree with. By doing this you will make a friend, and at the same time, subtly promote the areas you believe in and starve the areas you don't.


7. Enthusiasm - Communication is the transfer of energy/emotion. Everyone seems to love someone with enthusiasm because we all admire it and wish we had more! Enthusiastic people seem to brighten up a room with their positive energy, and we want that to rub off on us, we want to be a part of it. When someone is enthusiastic about our thoughts and ideas we immediately feel understood, appreciated and just plain great! No one will ever be offended by you getting excited about their ideas!


8. Matching and Mirroring - Matching & mirroring simply means that we match the approximate characteristics of the other person to help create alignment with them. Therefore, if they cross their legs do the same shortly after. If they tend to talk more slowly, slow your rhythm down so it is closer to theirs. If they use certain lingo, you can use it later in the conversation. If they are reserved, you be more reserved. And so on. Remember, we like people who are like us. This is a natural process that most people do unconsciously anyways - now you can know to do it consciously. It is a very powerful tool because vocal tone/speed and body language account for 93% of communication. This tool will make people very comfortable around you and is a very subtle technique.


9. Smile & Warmth - The first contact with another person is your face! Make sure that you present as warm, friendly and happy. A smile and a sincere desire for friendship will resonate in your voice and be demonstrated in your every action. First impressions are powerful; present the way you want to be remembered - SMILE! Smiling shows that you are happy to see the other person and like them. Smiling and warmth make others feel good around you - this is a lost skill - use it and you will shine.


10. Attending Skills - This simply means that you attend to the needs of the people you are with. It follows the lines of simple good manners, i.e., holding the door for someone, offering them a drink or a chair, buying them lunch, shaking their hand right away when you see them, etc. Almost any small courtesy or act of kindness falls in this category. These simple acts say without words that the other person is like, respected and appreciated. (And an action is worth what? That's right! A thousand words!)

And just to rap it all up:



http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Cline

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFWJSGgGC