This post is inspired by a switched on corporate graduate named Fiona Looker.  Before I tell you how Fiona is making her GOALS REAL, it’s important you read this short context.

Do you set real and meaningful goals for yourself?

As a professional speaker and executive coach I always get to ask people if they set goals, and if I had a dollar for every answer like this, “oh yeah, of course I do”, I’d have enough cash to start my own airline.  But here’s the thing, if I had a dollar for every person I know that actually followed through and took action, I wouldn’t have enough to catch a bus to the airport.

Now I know you’ve been to a seminar, read a motivational book, seen something on television (maybe a reality where people are losing weight or launching businesses) or met someone who has motivated you to set yourself a goal AND you tell yourself, “this time I’m serious!”.  But then life happens and you re-schedule and decide to re-launch your quest to achieve your goals …the most common one I hear is, “I’m going to start again on MONDAY” – which is code for, I’ll just cut myself some slack AGAIN.  So what stops YOU from following through?

In my seminars I reveal a 7 STEP fool proof system I developed for guaranteeing you take action and achieve ANY goal you set for yourself.  My favourite step in the 7 STEP system is STEP 4, which is, DECLARE – tell as many people as you can.  The reason I love this step is because it’s the easiest one and other people do the work for you.  Think about it, don’t you feel good when you help someone and don’t you also feel a sense of achievement knowing you had a hand in helping another person achieve their goals?  The answer is YES – we all like helping each other out, especially our friends.   The other reason I love STEP 4 is because it keeps you accountable to other people.

Below are some excerpts from an email I received from Fiona on 19th February 2009, and it’s an awesome example of how Fiona put STEP 4 into practice and is right now, at this minute in Bangalore, India.

Hi Dave,

The second one is far more exciting. I’m an Operations grad and with all the movement that’s going on between Australia and India, I figured “surely graduates in Operations would benefit from rotation in Bangalore.” So, it was with this proposition that I approached the head of the operations team, where I am doing my second rotation, and with whom I have regular catch ups. I was expecting him to remind me of the economic crisis, the credit crunch, and that he was impressed with my motivation and drive, but these things don’t happen just like that.

I know you’re probably busy with the new 2009 grads, and wowing their socks off as you did with us last year, but just wanted to shoot you a quick email to say thank you for helping me achieve two amazing things over the last 12 months – one personal, one work related.
At Go Week last year, you were talking about the importance of having goals, and telling as many people as possible, as they’d help you achieve them. I had two: to go to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and to go to Bangalore for one of my graduate rotations.

I love winter, and to ski, and have always wanted to go to Canada. Speaking to someone about it during one of those “get to know your neighbour and tell them your goals” 60sec chats we did during one of your sessions, a simple throw-away line of “oh that sounds awesome, you should have a look on line about tickets” got the wheels in motion. Two of my brothers and I put in for the ticket ballot late last year, and we found out a few weeks ago that we got most of those we requested, so we’re going in Feb next year. Definitely an adventure that wouldn’t be on the cards had you not reinforced that the more people we tell, the more accountable for our goals we become.

 To my surprise, that’s not quite how the conversation ran. He thought it was an excellent idea and potential opportunity, and I left the room with him saying “can’t promise anything, but I’m going to float the idea with a few people and see what they think.” One thing led to another, and my marvellous sponsor, along with other amazing key people across operations, have made it a reality.

 
I’ll be leaving in about a month, details still to be finalised, and I cannot wait! It’ll be tremendous, scary, eye-opening, developing, exciting….all rolled into one. So thank-you for planting the seeds, really feels like things are in full bloom at the moment!

ACTION STEP - write down ONE bold and meaningful PROFESSIONAL goal and ONE courageous and meaningful PERSONAL goal…RIGHT NOW. 

 For your PROFESSIONAL goal you may think about the next role you want, the next company you want to work for, the next country you want to work in, a career change, achieving a target that would blow your bosses mind or even taking someone under your wing to help them run up the ladder of success TWO rungs at a time. 

 For your PERSONAL GOAL you may think about totally transforming your body into a lean, mean fighting machine (12% body fat), going to a world class personal achievement seminar (like Tony Robbins’ Date with Destiny on the Gold Coast QLD in April 2009), going away to a country you have never visited before, gifting your parents a weekend away, taking someone you love to a romantic destination as a surprise or even just getting back into a hobby you enjoy.

So write down your PROFESSIONAL and PERSONAL goal and tell at least 5 people within the next 24 hours.  If you have the guts and really want make yourself accountable you can post it on your BLOG, Facebook profile or twitter account. 

DO it, DO IT now AND Rock on to RESULTS!

P.S. I know Fiona Looker personally and I can tell you she is an AWESOME example of balancing RESULTS with RELATIONSHIPS – what I mean by that is, she’s well on her way to the top but will not burn anyone to get there.

Do you attract people to you like a magnet?  If not, how can you do it?  First I’m going to reveal the secret to you and then I’m going to give you some context to think about.

The secret – Be The MOST POSITIVE Person YOU KNOW 

THINK ABOUT THIS - Have you ever noticed how you are just drawn to some people?  When they walk in the room, you just can’t stop staring at them.  You want to be around them, you hope they will notice you and just give you some little sign, no matter how small, that they notice you…you may even seek their approval.  WHY?  What is it they possess that makes them so intriguing, inspiring, attractive or appealing?  The truth is, you have the EXACT same qualities as them.  If YOU spot it, YOU’VE got it!   You can only admire a quality in another person if you also have that quality – so that’s the good news. 

Now the not so good news, most people have no clue that they have qualities, talents and gifts that others find attractive.  Most of us like playing things down, you know, keeping a lid on it would rather shrink instead of SHINE.  After coaching people for many years, here’s one thing I’ve noticed; there are so many of us that would never ever even dream of admitting to ourselves, let alone others, that we are incredible, awesome, amazing, intelligent, inspirational and the list goes on.  In fact, I find it so crazy that so many people actually feel like publicly acknowledging their strengths is a negative quality.   For whatever reason, we can tell ourselves that letting people know what we’re great at is equivalent to bragging, showing off or being cocky.  I’ve met people where I couldn’t find their strengths with a search warrant.  They are so hell bent on PLAYING SMALL, that finding their strengths is an exhaustive hunt that feels like trying to find the Da Vinci Code! 

NEWSFLASH – There are things you can do that no one else in the world can do.  There is something that you are THE BEST in the world at!  So what are you the BEST AT?  Is it inspiring people, is it being cool under pressure, is it caring about other people, is it having an entrepreneurial mind, is it setting goals, is it being a kick arse planner, is it always raising people’s spirits…you get the drift. 

So what does this have to do with being attractive?  You can NEVER be attractive to other people unless you are first attractive to yourself.  Now I know you may be thinking, “what the hell does that mean?”  It simply means acknowledging to yourself that you possess amazing qualities.  I know you still may be thinking, “yeah so what does this have to do with being attractive?”. 

So here’s the answer.  Self acknowledgement leads to self confidence AND self confidence , is the key to maintaining a POSITIVE mindset.

REMEMBER – Be The MOST POSITIVE Person YOU KNOW.  Instead of explaining why, I’ll ask you some questions. 

Would you rather spend your time with the Grim Reaper or the person who’s your Cheerleader? 

Do you enjoy spending your time with people who take your energy or people who GIVE you energy?

Have you got friends that are needy, whingers, complainers or drama queens…if you have, do you want to run towards them or run AWAY from them?

Do you love the company of the sarcastic smart arse or the genuinely funny person who if they have to make a joke about someone, they make it about themselves?

Qualities that REPEL others – sarcasm,  gossiping, being a victim, neediness, low energy, cynicism, bragging, showing no emotion, inability to apologise, not recognising others contributions, being stingy with compliments, talking yourself up, talking others down, greediness, attention seeking, sucking up to people, cracking personal jokes without any rapport amongst, being too busy for people who are lower than you on the corporate ladder others.

Qualities that ATTRACT others – warmth, laughter, generousity, holding the door open for someone, saying good morning/good night/have a nice weekend, praising people publicly/privately, saying sorry, treating ALL people equally, forgiveness, humility, intelligence, openness, acceptance, congruence, straight forwardness, reliability, keeping commitments, thanking people for their time, creating value for others without asking for anything in return and more.

ACTION STEP – No one ever ruined their eyesight by looking on the bright side.  Do ONE thing daily to make someones day?  Acknowledge a co-worker, compliment someone, acknowledge how much you value a friend, leave a surprise hand written note of thanks, tell someones boss how good they are, be the first to say sorry, call instead of text/email and KEEP doing it.  Do this and you will more people throwing themselves at you than you can handle.  Do it, do it NOW.  Rock on & B-a-STAR

If you want to be a player, you’ve got to get on the ground, and without rapport you’re just a spectator sitting in the stands.  We often hear the term ‘rapport building’ but what does it mean and how do we build it?  I love this explanation on Wiki:

Rapport is one of the most important features or characteristics of unconscious human interaction. It is commonality of perspective: being “in sync” with, or being “on the same wavelength” as the person with whom you are talking.

My personal definition is, “any conscious or unconscious action that builds a connection with another person”.  You can have the best ideas, the greatest passion, be an elite leader or own the most mind blowing, value adding product or service on the planet BUT if you cannot build rapport with people, it counts for NOTHING!  People buy and invest in PEOPLE…not products.  By the way, you do not have to be face-to-face with another person to build rapport.

ASK YOURSELF – How do you feel walking into a party, a seminar or even a meeting when you do not know anyone there?  Do you feel self conscious, awkward, dread, nervous, annoyed that you have to be there, expect that it will be tough or have you already spent some time crafting an intricate and water tight reason (escape plan) about why you have to leave early?  If you have any of these feelings, I have to tell you that you are in the minority because most people feel confident, relaxed and excited about meeting new people…ONLY JOKING! 

Meeting new people is daunting and stressful for over 95% of the population.  Now ask yourself this question, What are you doing to change the way you feel?  What is your strategy for taking your rapport building skills to the next level.   The most common response I get to this question is “NOTHING”.  This IS NOT a strategy!  This is a recipe for misery.  Work on your conversational skills and magic will happen.

Being able to walk in to ANY situation and feel totally relaxed, comfortable, confident and genuinely looking forward to meeting people is one of the greatest assets you can possess.  It’s actually just a simple skill, and like any skill, it can be learned.  In my 105 Performance Mastery Principles™, RAPPORT is a TOP TENPrinciple.  When (not IF) you can master rapport building you WILL attract people, opportunities, money and one in a million experiences to you like a MAGNET. 

I know what you’re thinking, “but what do I talk about?”.  I’m going to give you something I call rapport steroids.  

1. Experiences – we’ve done the same stuff

2. Enthusiasms – we like the same stuff

3. Beliefs – we believe in the same stuff

ANYTIME you can find a connection with someone on one of these levels you are MASSIVELY strengthening your connection with them.  I Know, I know, you’re still thinking, “but how the hell do I find that out?”.  Here are some simple options for you:

 - Compliment people about something they are wearing, a recent achievement, their contribution to a result, a quality you admire about them, a choice they made that you liked/agreed with, a courageous act

 - Ask questions, ASK Questions, ASK QUESTIONS!  I’m not talking about how are you and what do you do?  I’m talking about asking questions you would not normally ask.

- What are you looking forward to tonight/this weekend?

- What was the best thing about your weekend?

- Where do you go when you want some relaxing time away?

- What are your hobbies/passion/interests outside of work?

- What was the last movie you saw/book you read?

- What are you listeneing to on your iPod these days?

- What do you love about working here?

- Where did you go for your last holiday/where would like to go for your next holiday?

 - Talk about yourself, a recent experience or something that people may be surprised to know about you

 - Offer to get people drinks, cup of tea or food (this is if you’re at a function obvioulsy)

 - SMILE genuinely

 - Email an article, restaurant/book/CD/movie review, event invitation, sales brochure or any information of interest to someone you KNOW will appreciate it

 - Actively manage your social networks.  Make an effort to remember someone’s name and connect with them on a common social network.

ACTION STEP – Ask someone you do not normally speak to for lunch/coffee/drinks, have a conversation with the next person you buy something from, have the guts to approach a stranger at your next party/work function or even send an email to an old colleague/family member/past school friend to see what they’re up to and tell them what you’re up to.

Practice is the DNA of success.  So practice, practice, practice!  Winners TAKE ACTION – so do something within the next 24 hours (right now is even better).  This is what I did to build a network of 3 million PLUS. 

So START now and B-a-STAR

Anyone who knows me knows, I AM a massive believer in choosing to have a CHAMPION MINDSET.  If you want to be the best, you have to think the best.  When you have a strong, positive and optimistic mindset you are IN CONTROL.  You become Teflon to any adverse conditions around you and it’s so easy to automatically see the good in things instead of defaulting to seeing the bad.  One of my old school friends, Paul Kolanowicz, just sent me this story about the recession and I just had share it with you.  Choose good over bad, choose awesome over awful and choose STEP UP over step back.

What is Recession?

This story is about a man who once upon a time was selling Hot dogs by the roadside. He was illiterate, so he never read newspapers. He was hard of hearing, so he never listened to the radio. His eyes were weak, so he never watched television. But enthusiastically, he sold lots of hot dogs. He was smart enough to offer some attractive schemes to increase his sales. His sales and profit went up. He ordered more a more raw material and buns and sold more. He recruited more supporting staff to serve more customers. He started offering home deliveries. Eventually he got himself a bigger and better stove. As his business was growing, the son, who had recently graduated from college, joined his father. Then something strange happened. The son asked, “Dad, aren’t you aware of the great recession that is coming our way?” The father replied, “No, but tell me about it.” The son said, “The international situation is terrible. The domestic situation is even worse. We should be prepared for the coming bad times.” The man thought that since his son had been to college, read the papers, listened to the radio and watched TV. He ought to know and his advice should not be taken lightly. So the next day onwards, the father cut down the his raw material order and buns, took down the colorful signboard, removed all the special schemes he was offering to the customers and was no longer as enthusiastic. He reduced his staff strength by giving layoffs. Very soon, fewer and fewer people bothered to stop at his Hot dog stand. And his sales started coming down rapidly and so did the profit. The father said to his son, “Son, you were right”. “We are in the middle of a recession and crisis. I am glad you warned me ahead of time.”

Moral of the Story: It’s all in your MIND! And we actually FUEL this recession much more than we think.

Source: Unknown (if you know the source please let me know so I can give credit to the rightful person).

Watch your THOUGHTS they become words

Watch your words they become actions

Watch your actions they become habits

Watch your habits they become your character

Watch your character it becomes your DESTINY

A simple way you can make sure that all your conversations matter and make a difference is by simply imagining you are a lift operator.  Every time you have a conversation with someone your language is like the buttons on a lift. 

You can take people up or take people down.  When people walk away from a conversation with you, do they feel you have taken them up to the penthouse or down to the basement?  In every conversation you have a simple choice; you either HELP people or HARM people.  What choice do you make?

More importantly, this also applies when you have conversations about people when they are not around.  If someone puts another person down do you join in the take down, or do you have the courage and integrity to hit the emergency stop button and start taking them up?

Welcome and thanks for checking out my site! 

Are you interested in making a positive and massive difference in the results you are currently getting and helping others to STEP UP; YES or no?

Do you believe you have the power to influence people in a positive way; YES or no?

Do you believe in walking your talk; YES or no?

If you answered YES to any of these questions then it’s time to step forward and be a role model.  Being a role model means you take responsibility for your own actions.  More importantly, your actions influence others; whether you know it or not!  When you are a positive role model you drop the pebble into the pond begin the ripple effect.

So doing something today that will inspire others and make sure you do it YOUR WAY; be yourself…because it’s pretty hard to play anyone else.  There is no better role model for yourself than you. After all, only you know what you have encountered. Only you know what you will face. And because only you were the one to get you to this point, only you will be the one to get you to the next.

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 After 20+ years in the corporate world working with a leading Australian financial institution there’s one thing I noticed, there are plenty of people who say it, tell it and see it like it is however, there are only a rare few who have the ability to say it, tell it and see it like it CAN BE!

I am your constant companion.   I can be your greatest asset or heaviest burden.

I will push you up to success or down to disappointment.   I am at your command.

Half the things you do might just as well be turned over to me, For I can do them quickly, correctly, and profitably.

I am easily managed; just be firm with me.  Those who are great, I have made great.

Those who are failures, I have made failures.   I am not a machine, though I work with the precision of a machine and the intelligence of a person.

You can run me for profit, or you can run me for ruin.

Show me how you want it done.   Educate me.   Train me.   Lead me.   Reward me.

And I will then…do it automatically. I am your servant.

 Who am I? – I am a HABIT.