Be a Better You

"Be at war with your vices; at peace with your neighbors, and let every New Year find you a better man." - Benjamin Franklin

Everyone would like to improve. Why else do we make New Years resolutions? We want to make more money, get promoted, lose weight or find the love of our life.

Instead of making very general resolutions that will fail in the first weeks, choose what you will succeed at. That is right, you are going to succeed.

How do I know this works? Have done it. Who else do you know planned to lose 10 pounds, and lost 16? Successfully lost weight and kept it off for years.

Lets Get Started

Start writing a list of desires.  Where do you want your life to be better? Get paper now.

Why do you want to improve this part of your life? Write down all the reasons.

What values & beliefs of yours support these ideas/resolutions? Write them down.

What values & beliefs hold you back? If you think wealth makes you an evil and mean, you will sabotage your efforts. Write down the values/beliefs why you can’t do it. Are they true? I really doubt it. There will be difficulties, but nothing you can’t work around or overcome. Your talent and hard work will be rewarded.

Now comes the hard part. Which resolution is no. 1?  You need to put them in order.  Which resolution is most important to your values and actions?

Then you pick. Preferably choose only 1 resolution, but no more than 3. May be one major and a minor one? You choose which goals to succeed at.

Now start planning how you will succeed at your first resolution. What steps are necessary for you to consider your experience a success? What can you start today? Focus on what you control.

Repeat if you are working on a second resolution.

Why It Works

Focusing on a few goals, and creating actions you follow get faster results. The more you value a goal, the harder you will work to succeed at your resolution.

Writing it down is another reason for success. Write the goal as if it has already happened. Write the actions as if the past and you did them already. You mind will follow you.

The results may take longer or be less than expected. Sticking with it gets results.

Results

Weight loss, was it easy? No. Did I fail at times? Yes, of course. But I stuck with it.

Was technically not fat, just at the higher end of my healthy weight range. However was not playing volleyball 4 times a week nor weightlifting. Sitting around let me gain weight. Just did not feel good physically. Motivation included Dad getting Adult Onset Diabetes. Taking care of myself could prevent that.

 My plan was rather simple. I gained weight one pound at a time. Losing it was going to be the same. Skipped the diet and went immediately to a maintenance plan. Less carbs, smaller portions, more exercise, and add some healthy foods. Did not give up any foods I loved, just limited how much I ate them.

Another secret, allowed myself one cheat day per week. Still could go for cake at a birthday, donut on Sunday, or restaurant meal. Spread them out by dieting 6 days a week.

Results: 16 pounds lost in 18 months. You have heard the last 10 pounds is the hardest to lose? That was my whole goal. Weight did not fall off easy. But have maintained the gain 5 years by making a permanent change.

Second did go through unemployment and find a new job while losing weight. Succeeding at one goal supported working towards another goal.

Follow Thru

Lots of people think they have to be perfect to accomplish anything. Not true. Every plan will have setbacks and make adjustments. Your plan must allow for changes, celebrations and vacations.

People think focusing on one or few changes, the other goals will not happen. Truth is by focusing you complete goals faster. Success motivates you to start the other goals expecting to succeed.

Pick your most valuable goal, and write down your plan. Then adapt and adjust your plan until you succeed.

Following this plan myself. Will let you know how I make out. Let me know how your plan worked for you.

A very happy New Year to you, your friends and family.

Spotting Dying Businesses

Do you want to know if your company is dying? Yes for two reasons:

One, you can intervene in the issue and improve your teams results. This puts you in a leader’s role with the resulting salary.

Two, you can be the first to find a new company to work with.  There are advantages knowing what you have to do and having enough time to start the process before you lose your salary, or experience the heartbreak of closing a company.

What are symptoms of a dying company?

1. Not Knowing Who the Customer Is

Big companies love processes. They are good because processes build quality controls and guarantee stable returns on effort. However your customer is not your co-worker who gets handed the work after you are done. He is a partner in satisfying the real customer who chooses and pays for your product & services.

Successful companies fall in love with their customers and dive deeply into their customer’s businesses. That way the company is focus outward, not inward.

2. Not Staying Up with the Times

Stable companies often have the belief their customers won’t change. They have always bought from us and will not leave. That is not true.

Customers retire, go out of business, or die. Businesses are run by people, and people always change.

Second technology changes. Eastman Kodak did not want to kill the film business, which brought in fortunes. The marketing failure was not realizing they could make more profits licensing their technology. Do you realize they could have had a Kodak Camera in every cell phone?

3. Not Creating New Products & Services

Unless 10% to 25% of your sales are new products and services less than 5 years old, your future is looking bleak. Mature products have to fund new investments to stay successful. What percentage of your sales are new products?

4. Illegal Business Practices
Bernie Madoff Ponzi schemes.  Double sets of accounting books. Inside trading. Bribes. Stealing secrets. Drug habits.

Any one of these practices can result in jail time, customers abandoning you, and being unemployable. Time to find new work now, even with a pay cut.

Check on a regular cycle how you and your company are doing. The only constant in life is change. Make sure you are doing everything you can to adapt and thrive.

Make Your Comeback

Start Today. Really. Today.

You have had a hard time. Forget that, it has been miserable. Really awful time. Seems like no cared, there was no end to the pain, and criticism went on forever plus a day. Countless times you felt like there would never be an end to the misery. Really sure your life would be like this forever.

I know. Have been there. Not just once. Several times. Taken years to recover from some. Less time for others. Still not recovered from a few. Lost jobs. Someone sort-a stomped on my aorta (more than once). Been a jerk. Been fired. Have days am not proud of, for sure.

While you are suffering in the pits, you feel alone, sad, depressed, frustrated, really frustrated, overwhelmed, and can’t go to sleep. It gets worse, a little better, bad again, too much, catch a little break, and it starts over. Do you know what I mean?

You know what? Am there again. Now. Not sure where to start. Where to go. What to do. What to say. How to even think about it. I’m lost like everyone else going through tough times.

Let’s start. Not kidding. The comeback starts today. Join me.

Be proud of our accomplishments, our good deeds, helping someone and not expecting recognition. We have been a good here and there. There are times you have been great.

We all have something to be grateful for. Health, friends, family, teachers, mentors and just plain nice people are worth being grateful. There is beauty in the world. God is here with us. What can you be grateful for?

The bill you can’t pay right now. The boss you can’t please. Friends who won’t talk to you. Your significant other mad at you. That problem with no answer. Still there. But we don’t have to wallow in our misery. We could, but we don’t have to.

Stand up. Act like you are important. Think well of yourself. You have more talent than you know. How does a healthy & happy person act? Well act like it.

I am applauding your comeback. It took a lot of work, a lot of time, but you got through it. What did you learn? What would you go back and tell yourself?

Start now. You deserve it. Time to get after it. Life demands it.

And bring someone along with us. Success needs to be shared.

Business is Imagination

This thought is generated from columnist Leonid Bershidsky on the reasons wars will happen.  His point boils down to the reaction of governments is determined by leader’s imagination and viewpoint. Geopolitics are a major factor as well.

If you are from an honor society, you will react differently than someone born in Western Europe. The mistake most people make is thinking that rational people will all think and react alike. “Like I think” is the common answer.

We know this is not true. Asian societies look at persona interactions much differently than the individualistic United States. Look at recent reactions to news events. Inside the USA there will be dozens of different viewpoints displayed on any topic.

So how does this apply to your business? If you only sell locally to people of your background, there is probably not much effect. As soon as we start selling to other cities, states, or countries there will be differences in culture to account for. Successful international companies need to be able to adapt to diverse cultures to sell products and services.

Most companies start from a small business run by one or a few people. To grow they have to visualize and dream of ways to reach & help more people. They have to hire more people and bring them into the vision of success. Sometimes it is an outsider like Ray Croc who helped develop the McDonald brothers business.

Take a look at your thinking. Where does it need to grow?

If World Slips Toward War, Blame Leaders' Imaginations

http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-12-02/if-world-slips-toward-war-blame-leaders-imaginations

PS - Long time reader of George Friedman and Stratfor quoted in the article. Great place for intelligence, investing, and learning about geopolitics.