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 

NETWORK MARKETING – A 2000 YEAR SUCCESS STORY

2000 years ago, in a small, Middle Eastern, desert country, network marketing was given birth, when a young artisan, Yeshua ben Joseph, called 12 varied, but ordinary countrymen to ‘follow Me.’ 2000 years later, after billions of people worldwide have joined the system, it is still growing.

When we look at the secret of its success and compare it to successful companies of today, the same concepts apply.

1.       Yeshua had a product that worked, a product he believed in and a product that was easy to share

2.       He had a passion for the product and was willing to do whatever it took to see that it became a household name

3.       He took 12 people and mentored them to the point where they were able to share the product equally as well as himself

4.       He didn’t tell them it would be easy, but he did ensure that it was possible

5.       He didn’t tell them it would be without its trials and challenges, but He promised, and provided great rewards

I’m sure you know who I am talking about, and yes, no man made product can be compared, but the principles can.

Take a leaf out of this book, get involved with the right product, the right system and the right rewards programme, based on truth, integrity and honesty, learn and do what has proved to be successful, and watch yourself build your own success story.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com  

IT STARTS WITH WHY

The ‘real why’ leads to the best results.

Perhaps you started running, or a particular diet. Maybe your involved in a certain career or occupation. But whatever you do you can’t seem to stay motivated and are achieving far less than you should be.

It could be time to ask yourself why: why did you take this particular path, because without a real and deep reason why you probably won’t be able to persevere and will fall away long before you have achieved any great success. It’s one of the common problems we have, that we often look at the what and the how without asking ourselves that important question why am I doing this.

An example from my own life was when I began running. I got into it on a daily basis and had friends who would put all their effort into training and running the Comrades Ultra Marathon. I was asked many times why I was training but avoided the Comrades. When I asked myself the question, it all came down to the why. I was not excited by the thought of the Comrades, or in fact racing in general. I discovered that my real reason why I ran was to train and stay fit, I enjoyed the daily training, not the competitive event. That discovery changed my approach to, and my enjoyment of running.

As human beings we need a purpose for the things we do or we end up finding it difficult to persevere. That purpose does not have to be any great altruistic dream. It can be as simple as I need to do my job well in order to put food on the table. That acknowledgement alone can change our approach to what we do. Or perhaps I want to go to gym regularly and eat properly in order to be around to see my kids graduate college. It applies to all aspects of life, career, health, wealth, where we stay and so on.

Once we have identified the real reason why we want to do something it is much easier to put the what and the how into place and to look forward with enthusiasm to what we are doing. That enthusiasm leads to greater success and fulfilment.

So the next time you feel stuck in a rut ask yourself why am I doing this, or want to do this. It could turn the whole game around.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com 

THE AUTHENTIC YOU

Here’s a question for you – I believe that God created each of us to be unique, a ‘one of a kind’ person, so why is it that so many spend so much time trying to be somebody else?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that we cannot learn from each other, that is something different, but to copy, imitate, look like, sound like somebody else is way beyond learning.

The word authentic means true or genuine and that is what we expect from the things around us. Ask a Ferrari enthusiast if he wants a genuine one or a look-alike, or is a genuine rose from a lover better than a plastic one? So why do so many not apply the same principle to themselves?

It is so much better to be a first rate you than a second-rate copy of someone else, no matter how good that copy may be.

You have your own value, you have your own worth, so value it, value you. It will change how people see you and interact with you- for the better. You are not an actor playing a character in someone else’s drama, this is your life, be in it authentically.

I once heard someone say that the word beautiful means ‘be-you-to-the-full.’

So, embrace your ‘youness’ and see how you become full and fulfilled.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com 

BUILD A ‘SPECIAL FORCES BUSINESS TEAM’

In the military they give medals to those who are willing to sacrifice themselves, so others may gain. In business we give often bonuses to those who are willing to sacrifice others so that we may gain.

We have it backwards, but we complain about how we don’t love our jobs, budgets are being cut, too much is expected, we are not appreciated or valued etc. And the first thing we do is blame each other, become more selfish and worry about my pay, my promotion, my future and benefits.

When we are unfulfilled we look at the metrics and say they are not good enough. When we are fulfilled we don’t care about the metrics. When we love our jobs, are cared for and care for others, when we feel fulfilled, we can be offered more money to move, but will stay.

In order to achieve this, we need to change our way of thinking about building businesses and business teams and look to methods and processes used by elite military units. They understand how to take a group of strangers and in the shortest space of time mould them into a team, each member of which is willing to sacrifice his life for the others.

This is achieved by operating at two levels. The first, the obstacle course, is aimed at the individual and is designed to build individual excellence. The second, called the confidence course, is different in that it cannot be completed without the help of other team members. It forces team members to interact, ask for, and offer help. Anyone who does not participate, or is lazy, is ostracised by the other members until they learn to cooperate. Remember, it is a fallacy that troops go into battle for king and country, they do it for their brothers, their team mates. Why would you risk your life for them? Because they would do it for me.

It can, and should be, the same in business. The same process, to build individual skills and confidence and then to create interdependent teams. Employees cannot care for clients if they are not cared for themselves. It’s about building trust and the only machine capable of measuring trust is the human being, and generosity without wanting anything in return is what builds trust. Strangers who learn to trust each other, would give their lives for each other, as shown by the military.   Start with the small things, do for others, with no thought of reward, and others will start helping you.

This then is the role of managers and leaders, to create the environment where this transformation can take place and continue to grow on an ongoing basis.

Not everybody will be willing to participate, but they will eventually either join the team or move on. But those who sign in to the process will feel more fulfilled, employees and clients will receive better service and staff will be much less likely to leave for offers of more money.

The end result, a more solid and sustainable business.

Contact us today, let us show you how and get started in building your own ‘special forces business team’.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com 

THE LAW OF THE CHAIN

You may have heard the saying that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. What we don’t realise is that no matter how strong the other links are, the weakest link actually has the ultimate power in the strength of the chain and can cause it to break at any time.

Whether it be in a physical chain, an individual, in life, in sport, in business, this law will apply, often with disastrous effects.

In order to protect against the potential damage we should be in a constant cycle of identifying and eradicating the weakest link, as there will always, and can ever be, only one weakest link, although there may be other weak links in the chain. So, we get rid of one and move on to the next.

In business it may be a person or people, a lack of certain skills, an inadequate or incorrect process or strategy: likewise in a sports team.

A good example of an individual would be a salesperson. There are four basic processes in selling; finding new prospects; persuading prospects; closing the sale; retaining clients. It’s easy to see that if a salesperson is great at finding new prospects but poor at closing, that weak link then breaks the chain and sales are low. Similarly, if the salesperson is a poor persuader or finder.

Improvement across the board is not necessarily the answer, but rather identify and solving the problem area.

The law of the chain may well be the area of focus needed in your journey to success, so why not contact us and let us help you to grow, stronger and more successful.

Terri Codd MCF Corporate Training & Life Coach: 076 751 3556: coddterri@gmail.com: terri@m-c-f.co.za: terricodd.blogspot.com