“Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless” ~Jamie Paolinetti
Have you ever seen a scary movie or had a nightmare? They use your imagination to create obstacles to your actions. And we don’t need the movies to do that, we’re plenty good on our own. Most people are pretty good at looking at a set of circumstances and letting the potential NEGATIVE outcomes prevent them from acting.
Well, let’s turn that on its head today. What if you use your imagination to see the potentially POSITIVE outcomes in a set of circumstances and use that vision of what could be to pull you into action?! What could you accomplish TODAY if you CHOSE to see the positive potential in every circumstance?
And if you get stuck, you’re in a circumstance that you just can’t see a positive in, remember the words of Chief Tecumseh, “When you rise in the morning, give thanks…for the joy of living. If you can find no reason to give thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.”
Are you ‘almost’ ready to start your business or next project…just as soon as you ___? That attitude will GUARANTEE your failure! There is one easy way to overcome that obstacle and it is required of EVERY successful project! Do you know what it is? Then stay tuned!
Every business owner and aspiring entrepreneur has a laundry list of things they ‘want’ to do. The difference between those that succeed and those that fail however is that the successful businesses START! “But Thom, you don’t understand, I just need to know ___!” Whatever words you choose to fill in that blank, I’ve heard them…and they’re all excuses! Stop making excuses and start taking action!
Now, of course, there are materials to gather, plans to make, intel to collect on the enemy, um, competition…so how do you deal with that AND start? Simple…you simplify on a timeline! (not guaranteed to be easy!)
First, you simplify with the MVP method. MVP stands for Minimum Viable Product…what is the least amount of product (or service) that my client will pay me for? That’s your MVP.
Second, you develop your MVP on a timeline. You don’t have an unlimited amount of time to figure out what your MVP is, you time-box your decision making then at the end of that time-box…you start…no matter what!
Will your decision be perfect? Unlikely. Will you have to modify or adapt your trajectory? Very likely! Will you be ahead of the competitors that are still reading books and watching videos? Definitely!
And as we talked about yesterday, being out front is PARAMOUNT! (Here’s the link in case you missed it: https://www.thomrigsby.com/thelatest/2020/01/leadership-as-a-business-strategy-confidence-to-go-first/
Look, I know this is scary, but the best way to gain confidence is to start! And with momentum, you can actually gain speed and make the work easier the faster you go.
And it all begins with starting!
If you’re stuck and not sure how to get started, I can help. Take 90 seconds right now and visit www.ThomRigsby.com/coaching to schedule a time for us to talk! Start the ball rolling RIGHT NOW!
Is your business a leader in your industry? Are you considered a thought leader regarding your industry? Do you even consider these questions important to the strength and stability of your business? … You should…and here’s why!
In any race or contest, it is a simple truth…if you’re not in the lead, then you are playing catch-up! In business, if you’re not leading your industry segment, then YOU are behind and playing catch-up!
Personally, I’d much rather feel the nip of the competition on my heels than be running desperately, fighting off the other competition to close the gap with the leader.
Sure, some business owners will comfort themselves by pointing out that they’re not last in their category, maybe there are even competitors ‘following’ their lead…but that’s just a compromise. It’s an acknowledgment that they’re not first and they never will be! They’ve already lost the game, they just haven’t given up yet!
When you are the leader in your segment, your words have power. Your actions have consequences, and your choices move markets! When you are not the leader, you are being overpowered, moved, and whip-sawed…subject to the whims of your leader.
As a business coach, I see it all the time, the newly minted entrepreneur working diligently to focus on the goals they’ve set but working in a vacuum, completely oblivious to the market in which they play. No business operates on an island, immune to the influences of the others around them competing for the customers’ attention and money! If you accept that premise, then you must also accept that the businesses that will find success are those that direct and influence that market.
So what can YOU do to be a leader in your market? Here are a couple of ideas: – Be Vocal! – Speak out about what’s going on in your industry, share your opinion. Yes, you will alienate some, but you will also galvanize others behind you! – Challenge the Norm! – If you’re just like everybody else, then you’re only competing on price, and that is a losing game. What are you doing to be different and challenge the mediocre masses? – Take On the Leader! – Even if you don’t win right away, take on the leader, challenge them, call them out, make them work for it! Yes, you MIGHT make some headway by supporting them…but how many others are doing the same thing. Once again, you slip into the quiet masses!
As our Quote of the Day from Rick Krug says, if you don’t have followers you’re not a leader, you’re just going for a walk. What will YOU do today to create followers and take your position out front?
If you’re not sure what to do next or how to implement leadership as a business strategy, I’d love to talk and help you create a plan to make it happen. Just click on https://www.ThomRigsby.com/coaching and schedule a no-obligation Discovery Session right now!
Question of the day: What do you want to do but believe you are unqualified or unable to do?
Have you ever known someone who constantly believed they were falling prey to the latest malady in the news? Cancer from styrofoam cups? Yep! Flesh-eating bacteria? You know…my arm has been itching a lot…!
There is a medical condition known as hypochondria where your mind convinces you that you have a condition…so your body begins to act like you have that condition! It becomes a self-reinforcing condition!
So here’s my thought…if you mind is powerful enough to make you sick…why can’t you mind be powerful enough to make you well? Or in the context of your work or business…if your mind can prevent you from being successful, why can’t your mind assist you in being successful!?!?
You’ve probably heard the old axiom “fake it till you make it,” right? Well, there’s definitely a bit of truth in that. In EVERY successful endeavor, the first person you have to convince that it’s going to work…is YOU!
How many times have you seen a great opportunity but passes on it because of {insert your weak excuse here}!
STOP Doing That!
Instead, find the reasons why you should jump head-long into that opportunity and make it a winner. Remember, there are a million reasons why not, only one great reason why!
Drop a comment below and let us know what opportunity you are going to move on today! Make a commitment then take action to make it real! It’s the only way to change your future!
Are you living at your full potential? Is your business, your work, and your life as good as it could be? Even if the answer is “almost” then you still have work to do! Read on…
When energy is stored (like in a spring or a battery) and not used it is called POTENTIAL energy…potential because it is not being realized. You have the potential within you and it is stored in the form of a big, hairy, audacious goal…a BHAG…a dream that is so big and crazy that, until today, you have resisted even telling anyone else about it!
Well, today is the day you are going to share your big dream with the world. Here’s why…
Potential does nothing for anyone until it is released…but it can degrade. Over time an unused battery will lose its charge. A spring will be sprung (yep, that’s really what it’s called!) If you don’t begin releasing your potential TODAY you will begin losing it TODAY!
If you’ve been tracking with us all week, you know that Monday I challenged you to refine your BGAG into a clear concise sentence…Well, today is the day to share it with the world and what better place to start than right here!
Within the Thom Rigsby community you have people just like you, similarly situated to you, ready and willing to support YOU! Everybody here has a crazy, non-conformist dream, I just want you to be an UNASHAMED non-conformist!
So go ahead, drop that powerful sentence in the comments and let the rest of the community know what you will pursue and make a reality!
What dream do you have that is so big, so crazy, so ridiculous that you hesitate to share it with anyone else…but you just can’t let it go?
Last week we talked about fear and the role it plays in reaching your dreams, this week we’re talking about boldly pursuing your dreams. This week, we’re gonna jump start your journey to reaching that dream by creating some clarity around what you want and building some confidence behind your ability to do it!
Lately, the word desire seems to have taken on a negative connotation. The reality is that the desire of your heart is there for a reason. You are uniquely gifted, talented and placed to have an abundant life and play your part in the bigger picture. Desire is that calling…that aching that continuously draws you into the role you are uniquely qualified and able to fulfill.
As we make our way through this week, I want you to focus on the big dream, that BHAG (big, hairy, audacious goal)…today, work to define it, refine it, and put it into one powerful sentence. Something you can say to yourself every time the going gets tough and you want to quit. Something you can share to rally others to follow you. Something that will light a fire in your belly and keep it blazing until you make it a reality!
You’ve probably heard the old saying that Cash Is King…right? What if it’s not?
As business owners and leaders, the odds can feel like they’re stacked against us. With more than 90% of new businesses not making it through the first five years, and their demise often attributed to inadequate funding (wrong, but that’s for another day) it’s easy to understand why so many businesses chase the money. But there’s another currency you should be chasing instead.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AKmcH4fADo
Harold Geneen once said, “In business, everyone is paid in two coins: cash and experience. Take the experience first; the cash will come later.”
Chasing the cash turns every customer interaction into a transaction. The truth is, this is very transparent to the customer, and many times they are fine with that. But there it also prevents the development of a relationship and any semblance of customer loyalty.
Now, I’m not saying you should do the work for free, but do consider what you are gaining from every interaction. There is something you can learn…and that might be worth much more than cash!
I find myself asking this question a lot at networking or other meetings where I’m running into people I know. It’s a pretty common greeting. Do you know what answer I get frequently? “Well, I’ve been pretty busy!” (or some variant of that)
While we’re taking a little break from the daily grind this week at the beach, I wanted to remind you that busy does not equal effective. In fact, it is a terrible measure of how things are going. The hamster is busy, and not moving an inch.
In my live workshop Making Time for Success, one of the key concepts addresses the mistaken idea that time management is about efficiency. The efficient use of time is to get more done is the same amount of time. This is wrong.
What you really want is the more effective use of your time…getting the right things done in the allotted time. This requires some hard decisions!
Right now, how many items are on your to-do list? I want you to take an honest inventory and identify everything on that list that, if you NEVER did them, nothing adverse would happen. You are probably like a lot of people that use a lengthy to-do list as a crutch to help you feel better about not getting anything done…but you’re busy!
I want you to go through your list and pick the five most important things on your list. The items you pick should all take less than a day to complete (if they are bigger than one day, break them down into day-sized chunks).
Now, armed with your next five moves…pick the one item that will have the greatest impact on your life if you do it today. That item is now your priority. Get that done first, then knock out the other four. Then tomorrow…rinse and repeat.
This is the P+4F method at work. You can find a video explaining it in more detail on my website (link in bio). Use it and it will change your life. Keep doing what you’ve been doing…and you’ll keep getting what you already have!
Building a business or expanding your career is hard work…and serious business. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have fun while you’re doing it! In fact, you SHOULD have fun…it will make it a lot more enjoyable while you’re doing the hard stuff!
Now I’m not saying that if you don’t have a ping-pong table or foosball table you’re doing it wrong. You can have fun without all the toys or games…in fact, it may even be better that way. When you lean on the games to bring the fun, then you’re not really putting in the effort to find the fun in the business.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr5goKcfG2Q
I really love this quote from Einstein, “Creativity is intelligence having fun.” It really emphasizes that it’s the process we should focus on and not rely on making it to the “finish line” before we get to enjoy ourself.
If you’re not having fun with the work you’re doing, take a quick time out and think about ways you can make it more fun and enjoyable. Can you make a game out of the work, maybe even pull your whole team into the brainstorming process!
How are you making your work fun? Leave a comment below and let us know!
Yesterday we talked about boundaries… and I’m also a fan of pushing your limits. So how do you reconcile those? It’s really not as hard as it sounds When you start with personal responsibility!
As an individual, you are only responsible for your decisions and outcomes, then there are modifiers. Parents take on responsibility for their kids, entrepreneurs take on some of the burdens for their employees and customers…but there’s a limit.
About 18 months ago, my adult son died from the effects of alcoholism. In spite of our best efforts, he still made the choices that led to his demise.
You only have responsibility for others to the point of their freewill choice. You can’t make the decision for them, that is where you have to let them beat the weight of their own burden.
Focus on what you can control, make the decisions that are within your purvue, and do everything you can to let the rest go.
