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Goals can be frustrating. If you’ve written them down you’re a lot further along than most. Some people rarely achieve their goals while some achieve them year after year. They achieve them because of their standards.
Their standards support the goals they set.
If you’re falling short on your goals perhaps your standards need upgrading. We don't always set our goals but we do always set our standards.
Pro Tip: Upgrading your standards is easier when you choose the right friends.
Lookin’ Lucky
Some people look lucky. They have it going on and you're close enough to them to know it’s real. You’ve watched them ascend. You’ve seen them receive the awards. Earn the money and perhaps get the girl. It looks like a fairy tale… they make it look easy.
It’s easy to resent the luck but it’s not as easy to respect the work. The work of daily ritual, the work of resilience. The work of discipline.
Parting Thought: People are celebrated in public for what they do in private.
No Surprise
If you have to make a change, consider the impact of those that report to you. As leaders, we usually don’t suddenly change. The change has been brewing in our unconscious minds for a season. We’ve been stewing and scheming.
Over time the change doesn’t seem like a big deal because of all the conversations we’ve had with ourselves. It’s almost old news.
When we spring the change on the people who report to us, it erodes trust. Not because they don’t like change… but because they don’t like surprises.
Solo
When we have a big decision to make there is one way to have a super risky outcome…
Isolation - AKA making a decision without seeking wisdom.
Wisdom is not surface opinion. Wisdom has credibility. Wisdom has experience. Wisdom comes from making mistakes and course correcting.
When things get rough, take cover by seeking counsel from someone you consider wise. Isolating yourself is way easier in the short term.
Parting Thought: The short term ease typically manifests longer-term pain…
Gurus
There is a lot of value in a seminar. The good ones disrupt our thinking. They usually require a little travel and cause you to unplug from routine. They can usually provide just enough cognitive shift to pop you out of a rut. (If you take action on your intentions.)
Don’t be surprised when you’re asked to unhand some cash to get the support you need to execute. It’s part of the deal. After a little practice, you’ll be able to tell which guru deserves your money.
Making piles of money is never easy… Some gurus can flatten the learning curve but you still have to do the work. Buying the program is the easy part. If they paint the picture that all you have to do is run into a phone booth to become superman… look for another guru.
Fruit
Once a tree produces bad fruit you'll have to wait a season if you want good fruit. Good fruit is what we're after. It's prettier and more delicious.
The bad fruit took a season to produce and will take a season to change. The soil of our lives can be rich or toxic and depends on who we surround ourselves with.
Producing good fruit in our lives is a process that requires multiple inputs. Choose them wisely and over time you'll have the fruit you’re looking for.
Pro-Tip: Look for people who have the fruit you’re after and study where they are getting their nutrients.
Pro-Tip 2: There’s lots of plastic fruit out there...
Inefficiency $
Efficiency is tied to profit. Profit is required - unless you have donors who made a profit and give it to you. Achieving max output with minimum effort preserves resources and is the linchpin for a healthy bottom line.
The opposite of efficient is inefficient.
Another word for inefficient is presence. Presence takes time and at first glance, a waste. A waste because it slows momentum. Being inefficient is a waste in the context of a system or process.
If the system or process is run by a robot or software you’re on your way to profit. Problem is, most businesses have people. People require the leaders to be present. Being present with people is vulnerable because it’s inefficient.
if you’re efficient with systems and processes, you’ll make more money
if you are efficient with people, they will leave you…
It’s worth learning intentional inefficiency.
Your Script
Whether we like it or not, we are all the lead role in our own movie. We have heroes, but in our movie we are the protagonist. The question worth asking is… Who is in charge of the script? Who is in charge of the narrative?
The power of the stories that roll between our ears oftentimes casts a shadow on reality. Some of these “lines” are the primary reason we get stuck. Change occurs when our script starts causing us pain…
This type of change takes forever and sometimes doesn’t happen at all.
Want to change faster?
Find or hire someone to be your editor. Someone who can gently show you your narrative isn’t matching reality. Someone who can help you flip your script.
Once you are doing your own work you can start effectively leading others.
Plateau
If you feel like your business has plateaued it suggests you want more.
You’ve had a season of growth but now things have leveled out.
Here are 3 ways to grow a business:
Get more customers
Get customers to pay more
Get customers to buy more often
Pro Tip: Convincing won’t “get” your customers to do anything long-term. If you want to grow your business, 2 & 3 requires you “get” good at persuasion.
Go make your mark!
It’s Your Fault…
Blame never ends well. It feels like a shortcut to relief when things are falling apart. Surely it isn’t our fault when things go bad.
When you put a ball firmly in someone else’s court you’ve removed your power. When you blame someone you’ve given up your control.
You have to wait. You have to wait because you put the ball in their court by blaming. Years can go by if they walk off the court.
If we blame, we remove our valuable opportunity for growth and change.
Not wanting growth and change? Enjoy the waiting game…
Pro Tip: It’s worth noting that personal responsibility doesn’t equate fault.
Equity
It’s the goal of a healthy balance sheet. Equity is powerful when it’s positive. Having negative equity is scary because if the business fails, the debt still stands - and you’re toast.
Relational equity is hard to come by. It takes many deposits of listening, trust, and respect. We all walk around with relational balance sheets. Some friends have lots of equity and others… not so much.
Equity is tied to trust and safety. Having equity on someone else’s balance sheet can help that person grow. With love and grace you can cash in a little equity to confront or challenge. Which, if done correctly, will grow your equity even more.
Confronting or challenging without equity is like borrowing more money to get out of debt.
Good Guilt
Guilt is a mechanism of our conscience. In a sick way it gets us
pretty far down the road.
There is good and bad guilt. Bad guilt is Triggered by owning someone else’s accusation
or anger. "I can't believe you…”, “what were you thinking…”, “I’m very disappointed in you…”
Bad guilt is owning someone else's standard.
Good gut is accurate. It’s accurate only when your conscience is based on a dependable standard. Timeless absolute truth is a good standard to build your conscience upon. (Bible)
Warning: Guilt and shame are not the same.
Guilt: I did bad.
Shame: I am bad.
Good guilt is a useful warning light to course correct.
Go make your mark!
Hangin’ with Turkeys?
Moving from where you are to where you want to go is filled with tactics. It’s filled with “what’s” and “how’s”.
“I want to earn a few million bucks.”
“How” am I going to do it and “what” is it going to take are good questions.
But... the most important question is “who” already has a few million bucks? Once you find them….ask how and what.
How did they get there and what were their behaviors? If their values line up with yours, become a student of them.
Once you find the “who,” find ways to add value to them. They will notice over time and teach you the what and how.
Caution:
If you hang out with “turkeys” you will no doubt learn their ways. You’ll begin to strut like them and mimic their gobbles and clucks.
It’s worth remembering....turkeys usually get roasted.
Flake
Struggling to keep your commitments? Commitments accrue through “yes”. Yes is such a positive word. It’s a word of relief, hope, vision, momentum, and progress.
Not much happens without a string of yes’s.
Our intention behind our “yes” is to move forward, to please, to be seen as a flake. A flake commits with good intention… and falls short when the time comes. Flakes almost never flake with malice in their heart. They flake because they aren't in touch with reality.
They aren't flaking “at you”. They are just having trouble being honest with themselves.
They're good people…and their follow-through is gonna be spotty.
Pro Tip: Love them where they are. Your expectation of them is on you.
Extremes
Extremes are fun but are unsustainable. They are unsustainable because they are extreme.
~ You want to drive a muscle car? Be prepared for a stiff ride and poor gas mileage.
~ You want a rock crawler jeep? Get ready for some serious road noise.
~ You want a truck that will pull a 5th wheel? Have fun parking it at the grocery store.
If you pride yourself on being super practical… experiment with extremes for a season. See how it feels. See what you learn. Perhaps it's time to loosen up and go to the edges. Disrupting logic and practicality might be eye opening.
Parting Thought: Bragging about a $6 shirt is the same as flashing a Rolex. Ego is ego.
Benchmark
When it’s obvious some improvements need to be made, where do you start? Is starting over the next step or does it only need a few tweaks?
The answer lies in the math. The math can determine the benchmark. The benchmark is based on what needs to be sold to be profitable.
Stepping back and looking at the macro picture is vital before making a bunch of changes. A bunch of changes can add up to a setback.
Three thoughts to consider:
If it looks bad from 30k feet, a reboot may be the best choice.
If things are hovering around the benchmark, make small adjustments only.
If performance is well above the benchmark, consider a price hike.
Pro Tip: Once the baby is clean, pull it out of the bathwater.
Wisdom vs Advice
Wisdom is all around us.
Advice is also all around us.
Advice comes quickly but wisdom requires looking. Advice usually comes without solicitation and usually doesn’t help. It’s mostly from those in the bleachers.
Wisdom is valuable because you have to ask for it. You have to want it… You have to find the right people. The people that have gone before us. The people that are in the arena… not spectators.
Spectators mostly judge, jeer, and offer opinions to those in the arena. Seek wisdom from the ones that are in the arena. Not the ones who order beer and watch.
Hoarder?
Staying in total control of the whole process will stifle growth. It seems faster to just do it yourself.
It’s faster when you hoard tasks because you don't have to depend on anyone to knock it out. You can slam dunk it in no time. Hoarding and delegating are at odds.
Delegating requires thought, clarity and patience. Hoarding is one dimensional and lazy. Nothing of any real substance happens without delegation. It’s inconvenient for a season but has exponential payoff.
If you want it to grow fast, do it yourself… If you want it to grow with meaning, invite others.
Go make your mark.
Same Amount of Time
Sometimes it's worth phasing things out of our lives. Time is valuable.
Think about all the ways we interact with time...
We:
Waste time
Save time
Carve time
Pass time
Collapse time
Spend time
Make time
Lose time
Find time
Have time
Sell time
Buy time
Borrow time
Free time
Use time
Everyone has the same amount of time.
It deserves our respect until we’re out.
Comedian’s Work!
The Process:
Come up w/ 10 jokes
Go to small venue
Test all 10 jokes
Pick the 2 that did the best
Eliminate the other 8
Come up with 8 new jokes
Go to small venue
Pick the best 2 out of 8
Eliminate the other 6
Come up with 6 new jokes
Go to small venue
Repeat…
Repeat until all 10 jokes are good.
Most people give up at the start when 80% of the jokes don't resonate. Test, eliminate, keep, repeat. Go make your mark!