FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT 

 

Do you and your business create the right impression? Do they speak positively for you? Do they convey the true message that you want conveyed?

These may sound like stupid questions, but ask yourself for example, would you take health advice from an overweight, wheezing, chain smoking doctor?  Or would you take investment advice from a financial advisor who doesn’t appear to be even moderately prosperous? Can you imagine the pilot of your international Jumbo jet flight appearing in surf shorts, a T shirt and flip flops? Would it not shake your confidence a little?

Let me ask as well about your business communications. Are they written in email or text language or are they written as a good business communication should be, well structured, correctly spelt, with the full meaning clearly communicated?

We live in a world which in many ways has become more and more relaxed, which is fine in a social setting but may be detrimental in a business environment, largely because these skills are not understood or being taught.

This is where we can help, whether it be projecting the right image, interacting with customers and colleagues, business writing skills, preparing and presenting various business presentations, selling skills and much more, we can offer customised training to suit your business, your staff and your budget.

So why not contact us today to find out more – it will cost you nothing more than a little of your time.  

Email: coddterri@gmail.com: Cell 076 751 3556: terricodd.blogspot.com

THE 1% RULE - ACCUMULATING SUCCESS

Success is an accumulation event, it’s not about intensity it’s about consistency.

Consistency is the secret behind motivation and ultimately success.

Let’s take an example: you want to get in shape so you start at the gym. You set yourself great long-term goals. After your first workout you take a look in the mirror, or weigh yourself. Do you see a difference? I doubt it. But what if you set your goal to improve 1% a month, or even 1% a week. Much easier to maintain as a goal and therefore much easier to stay motivated from day to day. Over time you not only will see, and experience, a difference, but you will continue to improve. 

Consistency is doing something, even a little, on a daily basis. Consistency wins, even if you do cheat now and then, and even at only 1% at a time.

This law of 1%, incremental gains, applies, no matter what we want to achieve. When we consistently apply ourselves to doing what needs to be done, we will continue to improve, and our best will surely get better. This is what excellence really is, that consistent journey of betterment.

No matter what you desire to succeed at, be it business, sales, leadership, being a better husband or wife, health, fitness, sporting achievements, the list goes on and on, this 1% rule of consistency and incremental gains applies.

So, no matter how little , start today and, even though you may not see it straight away, keep at it and your success is guaranteed.

For more information contact us and discover how we can help you or your business:  Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com 

IF YOU WANT TO SUCCEED – DON’T HAVE A PLAN B

When Alexander the Great landed his army on the shores of Persia his first order to his troops was “Burn the boats!” There was no option but to go forward and face the enemy and, if you wanted to see home and family again, win. His attitude was we succeed, or we die.

But in today’s world we so often hear of people, businesses or teams setting goals and objectives and formulating plans to achieve them, their plan A, but with a plan B, a backdoor, an escape in the event that plan A fails.

This sounds good, even wise, in theory, but the problem is that plan A needs to be implemented with total focus and commitment in order to succeed. Knowing that there is a plan B in place often, even if unconsciously, dilutes that focus and commitment and so, plan A fails. The irony is that plan B also fails because, again even if only unconsciously, it is perceived as a ‘second rate’ solution.

The trick is to set up plan A -  and make it work. This may involve discussing all the possibilities of what can go wrong, building appropriate counter action into the plan, but, from then on focussing only on the positive action of making the plan succeed. This is a technique used by many military special forces units when setting up an operation to ensure that all the positive energy and action is directed at a successful outcome.

Perhaps you have not achieved the success you would like, or have deserved, purely because Plan B had an unconscious effect on you, or your team’s focus.

So, try burning your boats and watch your motivation soar.  You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  After all, history has shown that Alexander was one of the greatest leaders and strategists the world has seen.                                                                                   

Are you prepared for the opportunities you seek?

The thing with opportunities is that they don’t give you advance warning of their arrival. In fact, you may run into them at the least expected times. 

The question is, are you ready for them? 

Are you daily preparing yourself, training for the opportunities that you are looking for, opportunities that can propel you into your dreams.

The secret lies in adopting and practicing small habits on a daily basis because the difference a small improvement can make over time is astounding.

Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement. They seem to make little difference each day and yet they accumulate very quickly over the months and years.

For example, imagine improving by just one percent each day. If you get one percent better each day for one year, you'll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done.

What starts as a small win accumulates into something much more in the long-run. Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy. The path to a stronger, healthier, and happier life is through a steady series of small decisions and daily habits. And yet how easily we forget this when we want to make a change.

The person you are today is the sum of all the moments when you chose to do things one percent better or one percent worse. The actions we repeat each day shape the lives we live and the results we experience. Habits are not just a feature within our lives, they are the sculptor of our lives.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terricodd.blogspot.com