Change 1 DAY And You Can Change It All!

Are you thinking about your long-term goals for your business? Or are you spending most of your time fighting fires and tracking your daily tasks.

As a business owner and leader, it’s critical that you spend at least 20 percent of your time on the ‘long view.’

One of the core reasons to have a team and as staff is to delegate the vast majority of the ‘doing’ in your business to them so that you can lead the company forward.

Ask yourself:

“What percent of my time this week is on the long view for my business?”

If you’re spending less than 8 hours a week exploring the path to your 5-year goals, you’re not used to taking that long-view. Take out your calendar and put 4 or more hours on each of the next weeks for research, thinking, conversations with others that are not about fixing the daily challenges your business is facing.

August 19, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 PRACTICE And You Can Change It All!

Are you a constant note taker? For some of us (I confess, that’s me too) our backgrounds required note taking so that we could create reports for others.

A funny thing happens along the way. We loose track whether the note-taking is still serving us, or is a habit that’s diverting our attention.

Unless you have a team you must report details to, it may be time to change your focus on the page to a focus on actual to do’s.

Ask yourself:

“What percent of my notes do I ever refer to again?”

If you’re anything like me, you may find it’s become barely 10%. For myself, I’m going to try on only writing down the actions that need taking, and see if I can’t free up my attention to use it on implementation rather than worry over what I might have in a note that I thought I was supposed to store somewhere.

August 11, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip, Productivity Tools | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 TANGLE And You Can Change It All!

One of my favorite exercises is the “Pretzel Test.”

We often spend our days taking care of business on automatic and not paying very much attention to the mutterings of our subconscious. Those mumblings come out as complaints or criticisms and stories we tell about others, rather than as clear issues that need solving.

If you watch someone else who is frustrated you can see it in their body, and if you ask them, they can describe the tension they feel in their muscles. I asked a client once if she was turning herself into a pretzel rather than dealing with the issue simply and directly and the light went off for her.

Once she had the label for the sensation in her body, she had a great signal for when something needed to be solved.

Ask yourself:

“What business issue has been tying me up in knots, like a pretzel?”

You’ll find that once you’ve named it you’re ready to toss it on the table and untangle it. Even better, once it’s untangled you’ll know if you want to straighten it out, stream line it, hand it off, or toss it out of your business altogether.

August 5, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 VISION And You Can Change It All!

Releasing objects and ideas we’re holding onto is a very powerful process. When I coach clients and they step up to a big purge or shift their thinking, then I know our work is having impact at a deep level. Getting rid of old ‘stuff’ is a natural by-product of good visioning and planning work.

And that goes for old business models and actions tied to old visions.

By developing your Vision for your Future Self and your Future Business Model… you automatically and naturally start getting rid of things that are not a match. In effect, you make room for the new you that IS emerging.

While we can each be grateful for the role our business model has played in our success, sometimes we need to gracefully let go so we can attract other things that match our vision as it now is and is in the process of becoming.

Ask yourself:

“Is this really me, and the business model I want to use, now?”

Have fun and enjoy the exploration. Re-evaluating your model and sorting through your message can be a really fun process, when you keep the bigger picture in mind.

Remember that this seemingly mundane question is actually a very significant step laying the groundwork and foundation for your next success.

July 30, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 COMMITMENT And You Can Change It All!

Have you ever tried working out alone. How did it compare to having a workout partner? With a partner you’ll find yourself exercising even when you might have slipped because you can’t let your buddy down. Having someone who is relying on you in business can produce the same results.

For example, if you want to really make sure your project is done on time, make a commitment to others. Let those folks know the deadlines you’re using and exactly what you’ll be delivering.

In other words, assign your own public accountability.

Read through your appointments, and the projects that have been sitting incomplere. Ask yourself:

“Who shall I make myself accountable to, for which items?”

Make yourself accountable to someone for what you want to accomplish. This could be a coach you work with or it could simply be a business friend.

Even more powerful, find a buddy who wants to create the same High Payoff result. They tell you their weekly goals and you tell them yours.

Now you know you’re going to asked about how you did.

July 22, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip, Goal Setting | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT… And You Can Change It All!

When was the last time you acknowledged yourself for what you DO get done?

I mean, taking the time to hit the “pause” button on your life and taking a good long look at what you HAVE achieved, created, succeeded in doing in your business and your life?

Take 10 minutes to flip back through your calendar starting last week and working back towards the beginning of the year.

As you read your appointments, ask yourself:

“What was the result I created from that effort?”

When you’ve filled a page, sit back and reread it from the top.

Now take a deep breath, and join me out loud as you say “Great Job!”

July 16, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 WISH… And You Can Change It All!

Have you been wishing the world would just snap to it and provide you with the business solution you’ve been needing?

Very often the results are buzzing around you but you haven’t spotted them. That may be because you have yet to voice the solution you actually want… you’ve just been wishing things were ‘better.’

Now’s your chance to get yourself focused and get the targeted solution you really actually want.

Ask yourself:

“What is the specific challenge in my business I want solved today?”

Now eliminate all the other issues you’ve been focusing on and spend 15-minutes creating a list of 10 things you can do to solve that challenge. These may range from ‘set uninterrupted time to work on it’ to ‘hire an expert at solving this’ and so on.

Once you have your list, you’ll know the first step to take, and the next, and the next, and so on.

Let’s get you moved from wishing to taking High Payoff Action on it today!

July 13, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 LAYER And You Can Change It All!

Have you kept your passion in front of you as you build your business? At times, our passion gets buried out of sight.

Miraculous things happen when we strip off the layers of complication that build up between our passion and the result we’re trying to create.

I invite you took take a quick look at something that has you stuck at this very moment. Something that you’ve been stalling taking care of.

Ask yourself:

“What is the absolute simplest way this could be handled?”

When you have that solution in mind, write down the exact steps you’ll us.

Then eliminate all the other steps you believed you just ‘had to’ use and let’s see what your passion unleashes.

July 10, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

Change 1 FONT …

… And You Can Change It All!

Are you squinting to see the fine print? Guess, what – your clients and colleagues may be as well.

If you’re using PowerPoint to get information across and the page is crammed with tiny text, your audience is ‘trying to see’ and distracted from the information itself.

And if they’re distracted, trying to see the words you’ve put in front of them at the same time as you’re speaking… Well perhaps 10% of the information you want them to get is actually making it through.

So take a look at the presentation you’ve been using and ask yourself:

“Is the font size I’m using at least ½ the age of the oldest person I’m showing it to?”

That means if you’re presenting to a 40-year old, the font should be 20-point and so on.

It also means you need to take the words off the page, show only the key points and say the rest.

Rather than giving your colleagues and clients vision checks, be IN conversation with them!

June 3, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

More … from Memorial Day

While I have not lost my own family members to the wars this country has fought, this weekend stirs up my own thoughts about legacy.
Over this past month I held several conversations with coaching clients about the vision they hold for themselves in coming years. They voiced their dreams for their professional and personal lives, and the impact they want to have on others.
I also attended the funeral of an amazing woman, a neighbor who had a vision for the life she wished she could live. Darlene greeted everyone with a smile and an act of sweetness and generosity each day of her life, including during the 5-years she battled with colorectal cancer.
So I invite you to pause from the habits and business of the life you are living to think of those who have left a legacy, as your family, colleagues, mentors and yes, warriors - the foundation you build this life upon.
And to think of the one you’d like to shape deliberately in coming years.

May 27, 2008 | Filed Under Catalyst Action Tip | Leave a Comment 

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