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Friday, December 18, 2009
Characteristics of Success - Effective Time/Life Management Part 4In our continuing look at the Characteristics of Success and especially the
topic of 'Effective Time/Life Management' I want to share a quick thought/tip for you to think about on this Friday and over
the weekend.
We have talked a lot about the technology aspect of our lives and how all the new technology does
help us accomplish so much in our daily work and personal lives. Between the Internet, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Web-sites,
Cell phones, Blackberries, E-mail, Instant Messaging, etc...etc...etc We are surrounded by communication tools that provide
almost immediate access to information.
Think about how far we've come in the last 20 years. I can remember the
first fax machine we had at Marriott in my office. Oh the novelty of being able to receive a document in a few minutes. I
can also remember when UPS, Fed-Ex and the USPS began delivering 'next-day' packages. I remember my first intuitive response
was: "Why would I ever need anything the 'next day'". Now look at us; not only can we receive things the next
day but we can have them the 'next day', delivered by 8:00 AM. Now with email, our ability to communicate and send documents
back and forth is an 'almost' instantaneous' process.
Now I will be the first to say I use and enjoy all the 'technological'
advances and they help me conduct my day-to-day business and personal life. My children LOVE video Skyping their soon
to be 89 year-old Grandma and my sister (their Aunt) in Dallas. It is such a joy to catch up with family from a conversation
point but equally fun and enjoyable is being able to 'see' my sister and my white haired mom on the computer screen. After
we get off the 'phone' on one of those calls my girls talk about their 'Aunt and Grandma' for the next several days and it
brings so much joy to all.
I know the technology is here to stay and will continue to evolve and be a part of our
personal and professional lives. With that said I want to explore one thought: How do we manage our time/life with the constant
access to so much information and the 'instantaneous connectedness' that we are all 'addicted' too. Now before some of you
react.....we are addicted....we are! Think about this: When your computer is 'running' slow or the 'Internet' connection is
slow or your cell phone goes out of service.......how do you feel? I'll bet you feel anxious and frustrated don't you....
don't you? I know you do because I feel those same frustrations. We are addicted!
We have been talking in the last few 'posts' about the 'Vital Few', those 'must' be done items/things in
our personal and professional lives. We have been wading through the challenge of how do we all 'keep' focused on those projects,
people, relationships, our personal health and well-being and all of the other items in our lives that are truly important.
How do we fight, not losing our 'focus', but how do we establish and maintain our 'focus' on those items
that are truly are 'Life Sustaining'.
I will say this, which is going to 'depress' many of you......there
is no 'easy' way.....there isn't my friends. It is a day-by-day, moment-by-moment BATTLE that we continually have to face
and be diligent around. There is no other way, no one else is going to do it for you, you have to know what the 'Vital Few'
things in your life are and fight like 'hell' to maintain a grip on them.......you do! Sorry, but there is no other way and
anyone who tells you different is clueless and hawking 'snake oil'.
Let me give you this example that came out
of a full-day time/life management class I was teaching several years ago. We were talking about and discussing the subject
of the 'Vital Few' and were pondering this question: How do we keep focused on the things that are truly important when
we are receiving a constant, never-ending barrage of so much information. In the middle of our discussion one woman raised
her hand and her story brought us to the simple reality of what I stated above......it is hard, diligent work.
The
woman who shared was a 'Senior Vice President' for this Fortune 100 Company and she shared the following: 'I just
came back from a two-week vacation where I didn't have email, cell phone or Internet access. It was a wonderfully relaxing
two weeks and I came back re-charged and ready to go. Before I left on vacation I sent out an email to my 'direct reports'
and any other office personnel and I explained I would be 'out of touch' with no access to the Internet at all! Now
mind you, I also put an automated 'I'm out of the office reply and won't be checking email until this date' on my email reply
so everyone knew I was gone and 'out-of-touch. What I didn't expect was what was in my email 'In-box' once I got back to the
office. Upon my return I wasn't prepared for what I received when I sat down at my desk and opened my email...........I
had over 1900 emails waiting for me.......THAT WAS NINETEEN HUNDRED!!!!!'
(Now folks, we can get
into a whole discussion about email etiquette and don't just copy others with worthless emails and we could also discuss why
send it when you know it won't be checked for two weeks, etc...etc....but that still doesn't change the situation that she
is now facing......She is staring at 1900 emails and wondering where to start and what to do with them! I asked her what she
did and here is her response.)
She stated: 'I started deleting the emails by name (by who they were
from) without even reading one sentence.' I asked her how many did you end up with? She said: '170
(One Hundred Seventy!)' (Now realize the math here.....she just eliminated over 90% of her emails based on who
they were from......) I then asked her what she did from there. She said: 'I then read the first line or two and
then deleted them.' I asked her again: How many were left now? She said: 'Seventy and I read those
seventy and responded to their needs/concerns.'
This was such a wonderful 'teaching moment' for me
because after she shared this story I ask the 'tough' question to the whole group. I said: 'What if you eliminated an email
that was important?'.........The whole class responded in unison: 'The person would either call me directly or re-send the
original email!'
Now, the point of the above story is several fold: First we really need to start to come
to grips with how much of what we deal with on a day-to-day basis is really 'Vital, Life Sustaining'. If we are truly honest......probably
very little, just like the email example above. Secondly, we all need to realize that managing our time/life is 'work'......period.
There is no easy way around it. We have to diligently fight to keep ourselves on track. No one else will do it for us, we
have to assess what are those 'Vital Few' professional and personal things in our lives and then have to be relentless......relentless
fighting for them and defending them........then and only then will we be 'truly successful'.
As you go
through your day today, I hope you will be diligent in thinking about the 'Vital Few', those 'Life Sustaining' professional
and personal items in your life. I also hope, as you think about those items, you will fight hard at defending
them and (more importantly) taking action toward them. No one else can do it for you.....no one else will fight for YOUR
items......it is an individual battle......one only YOU can fight......and only YOU can WIN!!!!!
But I will tell
you this my friends......If you do 'focus' on those important areas of you life and fight for them......it is a battle you
will NEVER, EVER REGRET!......You won't......because it is YOUR LIFE!
Have a great Friday and a great
weekend. As always, Thanks for reading/listening and remember to......"Dream Big and Dare to Fail!"
9:13 am est
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Characteristics of Success - Effective Time/Life Management Part 3As we continue our exploration of the topic, 'Effective Time/Life Management',
I want to begin by asking you a simple question: Did you do what I asked you to do in my Monday post?.....Did You? If you
did, congratulations for taking this vital step. I'll also bet that if you did try, you faced some challenges in
doing what I asked of you. The reason I know you probably struggled is based on the experience of teaching over
1000 of these classes with an average of 30 participants per class, you start to see some trends.
Lets first
explore where some of you struggled. I ask you to schedule time to plan and make a 'Master Task List' based on those things
in your life that are 'Vital, Life Sustaining'. That task in and of itself is very difficult but
it is after this, where the 'rubber meets the road'. Once you have the 'Master Task List' completed I ask you to spend 10-15
minutes in 'Daily Planning'. In that 'Daily Planning' time I ask you to create a 'REALISTIC' daily
task list based on your meetings, appointments, and the 'Vital Few' personal and professional items
you need to complete or at least start.
This is the first 'sticking' point I bet you faced.......making a
realistic list. You made your list way too big didn't you?......Be honest, didn't you? (Some of you are thinking, how
did he know that!) The answer is; experience and it is 'Human Nature'. I used to ask all the groups to answer this question:
On average, do we have a tendency to over or under-estimate the amount of time it takes to do something? The answer I always
received in unison was: 'UNDER-ESTIMATE IT!' I think that is so true; lets be honest, we do have that tendency. How many
times have we said something would take us an hour to do......only to realize later, it took us 2 or 3 hours.
This will be the first big 'Time/Life' Management challenge you'll face; being 'REALISTIC' with your list. I can hear
you......but I need to write things down or I'll forget them.......I know, but don't write them ALL down on today's list.
When our list gets too big it overwhelms us all and we venture into what I call 'survival' mode and we have a tendency
to 'shut down'. After the 'shut down' occurs, because we're overwhelmed, the next step we take to regain some
kind of control is this: We select the easiest, quickest tasks we can accomplish and we do them. We're trying at this point
to just get our list moving in a downward direction. We try and 'trick' ourselves into thinking: 'I'm accomplishing
a lot of things by checking these things off that we know aren't important in the scope of our day/life'
The challenge
here, is you've spent an hour or so doing and checking off 'mindless' items to make you 'feel' better. After you've done this,
those 'BIG A' type projects are still staring at you and very lowly chanting......do me.....do me.....do
me......do me.....do me! (You can hear them even now can't you......don't you hate that.....but you know it is true.)
Before you get too frustrated, realize this: There is NO
exact science to 'time'life' management especially when it comes to trying to be 'realistic' with our task list. All you/we
can do each day is try and improve.....that's it. Remember, store most of your tasks on your weekly 'master task list'
....that way you won't forget them.....but make your daily list very realistic. You can always pull more tasks onto your daily
list from your weekly master task list should you make excellent progress and get the items completed.
Now the
second challenge you probably faced is this: When you prioritized your 'daily list', A's(Vital-Must be done!)
B's (Important-Should be done) and C's (Optional-Could be done) you had the tendency to make everything on your
list an 'A' didn't you? This is a concept that people seem to have a hard time mentally grasping. You should
have very few 'A's' on your list.......some days you might not have any A's. Here is what I mean......look at the above definitions......A's
- Vital.... Not everything on your list is 'VITAL/LIFE SUSTAINING'.......they aren't.....in fact.....if you're honest....truly
honest.....very few are 'Life Sustaining' .
We all need to realize that we may have many 'B's'
on our daily list; things that are important professionally and personally but we should only have a 'few' true A's. The mental
challenge for many of us is we need to build 'urgency' around tasks in order to accomplish them. In order to build this
'urgency', we make them 'A's'.....we're trying to fool ourselves by coding them this way. We continue our internal dialoque
by saying: 'Unless I think it is Vital I won't work on it, so I better make it an 'A'. We honestly know they aren't 'A's
but we have this mental block that says: I'll code them like that even though I know, in the big scope of my life,
they are not 'Vital'. We want to feel like we accomplished some things so we clump most of our tasks into the 'A'
category.
I was teaching this section to one class and I had a gentleman approach me at the break smiling and laughing.
He said: 'I could so relate to what you just explained about 'coding' things an 'A' even though
I knew they weren't. I do this all the time, just to try and make myself believe that the item I'm working on is 'Vital'.....even
when I know it's not. I want to show you my 'task' list for today.'(Now bear in mind this was a whole day seminar
so 8 hours of his day was consumed all ready.) He showed me his list and he must have had 20 to 30 tasks to be done that day.
I will give him credit though.....he did prioritize them.....he did. This is the truth, he had some 'A's on his list......he
had some 'AA's' on his list.......he had some 'AAA's' on his list.......and I'm not lying.....he had some 'AAAA's' on his
list. (Folks....he also had B's and C's on his list too!) I ask him: 'What is a 'AAAA'? That has to be By-Pass surgery doesn't
it? He laughed.
What I hope you take from that story is this: An 'A' is an 'A' is an 'A'.......Do you get what
I mean.....don't try and 're-prioritize', 'A's'........there A's....they're Vital..... they're 'Life Sustaining'.....leave
it at that.....make it simple......A's, B's and C's. 
As he's showing me his list we are both smiling and laughing to the point of tears. He said: 'Not
only do I have way too many tasks listed knowing I'll be in class all day but I have totally missed the mark around the prioritizing
piece. I definitely need this class!'
Now I realize that is an extreme example but I'll bet many of
us can relate to it in some form or another, I know I can, that's for sure. I will also tell you that these two concepts:
* Making a realistic daily list (and) *Prioritizing the list with A's, B's and C's
were and continue for me to be one of the 'hardest' time/life management tips to understand and put into weekly/daily practice. I'm
getting a lot better at it but it has taken constant practice, re-evaluation and many, many mid-course adjustments and corrections.
I want to conclude today without any more 'new' tips; but would like to ask you, to let these two thoughts really
sink-in and register when you sit down to plan your day. We all need to get into the habit of 'critical' thinking when
it comes to planning our professional and personal lives. Critical thinking is where we come to grips that on a daily
basis; we will have very few 'VITAL-Must Be Done', 'A' type items/tasks on our list, However,
on an average day we may have a quite a few 'Important-Should be Done', 'B' type items/tasks
that we need to do. We may also find that we have a couple 'Optional-could be done', 'C',
items/tasks to do but the majority of our items will be 'B's'.
We have to 'adjust' our mind set
and realize that doing a bunch of 'B' type items/tasks is a good thing. If we accomplish one or two A's and a bunch of B's....that
was a great day my friend......a great day. We have to 'force' ourselves to ask/think.....is this item/task, really 'Life
Sustaining'......is it really an 'A'? If it really isn't, then make it a 'B' and move on to the next item. I
will guarantee you two things: Number one, getting into a 'critical' thinking pattern will be one of the biggest time/life
management challenges you face. Number two, if you persist, constantly assess and reassess yourself and the prioritizing
piece......when you know you've failed, get diligently back on the horse and correct your error........force yourself to make
the needed changes......if you do this and than act on these tasks based on the 'VALUE' you have placed on them.......it will
revolutionize your life.....it will!
So, until next time......Keep making a realistic list and then keep working
at prioritizing these items based on what is truly a 'Life Sustaining' Value for you.....if you continue
to work on this....you will have taken a step that few people ever consistently do......go ahead.....be different.....do it!
You'll be glad you did!
As always, thanks for listening/reading and remember to......"Dream Big and Dare to
Fail!'
3:05 pm est
Monday, December 14, 2009
As we continue our look into 'Characteristics of Success; Friday we began
examing the topic of Effective Time/Life Management and introduced the first key, the concept of the 'Vital
Few'. We defined the word 'Vital' and found the defintion to be: 'Life Sustaining'.
I also gave you some 'homework' to think about over the weekend........Did you do it?........Did you?
What is funny
about my request is this......some of you did it......for you, 'Congratulations!'.....others tried.....but gave up......others....didn't
even try.....the latter two make me sad.....I'm not surprised.....just saddened. Folks, as I said on Friday I have taught
the 'Effective Time/Life Management' class well over 1000 times. I always give the class 'homework' and the assignment
is to continue working on the things we talked about in class. I ask them to work on those items for the next three weeks,
21 days and then to write me a short email to let me know how things were progressing. Over the years, the amount of
people that actually responded with an email was quite small and the amount who responded that they were actually working-on
the things in their life that were 'Highest Value, the Vital Few' was always smaller yet.
Why is that you
might ask......One main reason....doing the above items is tough,,,,,there is no other way to say it! There are so many
things/activities/distractions competing for our time and attention. Time/Life management is hard work.....REWARDING....but
hard. It is something that you can do 'well' for a month or two and then it all hits the fan and you fall off the wagon. Then,
once you're off the wagon, it is tough to get back on track and try again. This type of behavior needs to practiced over,
and over and over again and will never be perfected.....there is no such thing as 'perfect' time management......all we can
do is strive for improvement. If we: 'Plan our Work and Consistently Work/Implement our Plan'
we will establish a system that allows us to achieve the things that are most 'Vital/Important' to us!
However,
with the above somewhat 'depressing' news there is a bright side: For those that do it, that determine the 'Vital Few' and
then work to achieve those things, the results can be amazing and life changing. I want over the next several 'Posts' to share
some tips/techniques that I know will help all who are 'serious' about what they want in and from their life.
Before
I share today's tip I want to relate one story that brings the above-mentioned point home.
Several years ago I
taught this class to a group of 'Salepeople' for a very large company. I was contracted to do several sessions all over the
country with there different sales teams and then was also contracted the next year to return and conduct a 'refresher'
class. At one of the 'Refresher' classes I had a young man catch be before we started and he related this story:
'Last year when you came and did the seminar I had been in the Sales position for about nine months and
was floundering badly. I was struggling in both my professional and personal life. I was seriously wondering if I made a mistake
taking the position, my lack of success at work was effecting my home life and I was so discouraged I was contemplating
quiting. Your class was somewhat my last 'hope'. I sat up front and took very detailed notes.....I was looking for every
hint, tip, technique I could get my hands on. When you left I was determined to take your challenge, do the homework and put
into place the weekly and daily tips provided for my personal and professional life.
I worked very hard at the
homework, I took the time to understand what were the 'Vital Few' for me.....I came up with a plan including both personal
and professional goals and have been working on them relentessly. I wrote you the '21 day' letter explaining that I was working
hard and felt I was making steady progress.
In each region they do a 'Sales Person' of the month based on
a bunch of our 'Sales' criteria. In my previous nine months I was no where near achieving the mark....not even close. As I
started diligently working on what you said, things started to change. The first month after the program I didn't
receive the 'award', but I moved up in our ranking system. The same thing happened the second and third months; I kept moving
upward! By the fourth month I had hit my stride and that was also the first time I received the 'Sales Person' of the
month award. Since the fourth month, I have received this award every month.
What is ironic, is now other Sales
people are coming to me for tips and techniques and wondering how I went from last in the pack to one of the leaders. I was
so excited to hear you were coming back and can't wait for the 'refresher' class today. I couldn't wait to see you, talk with
you and say 'Thanks' for helping turn my professional and personal life around.'
I share this story
to let you know it is a difficult journey but one that can be very rewarding in every aspect of our lives. This young
man deserves all the credit. He did the work, not me. All I did was give him some tips and techniques I know work and he took
it from there.......He deserves the 'kudos'! Now for Today's tip......(But today's tip won't really work if you don't
know what the 'Life Sustaining, Vital Few' are for YOU Professionally and Personally......If you didn't do the homework from
December 11th.....go do it! It can't hurt....)
Once we know what the 'Life Sustaining, Vital Few' are for us then we need to make sure we take action on them
and keep our progress moving forward. The thoughts that follow will seem somewhat 'simple' and they are.....but they are difficult
to do on an on-going basis with all the interruptions and daily distractions we face. As you begin your week, you have to
commit time to planning. You have to create a plan and that plan must have as it's central focus, items/tasks that are
'Life Sustaining, the Vital Few'. The list has to include both Professional and Personal items in order to be effective
and here are my suggestions to get us started:
* Set aside 30 minutes (Select a distraction
free area/time where you can sit quietly, plan, think and write). I would suggest on Sunday or before your 'work' week
begins. Use this time to review your 'Vital Few' Professional and Personal Tasks lists and identify items/tasks you want to
accomplish.
* During the 'above time' create a 'Weekly Master List' of any specific items you would like to
do or start this week. (This will be a 'big' list)
* On a daily basis: Schedule 10 to 15 minutes to plan
your day. Review your weekly 'Master List' and now create a specific daily plan. Base the list/plan taking into consideration your
meetings, work/personal schedule and tasks that must be completed and/or started.
* Make sure during your 'Daily"
planning that you create a 'realistic' list of personal and professional
items to do. (Make sure the list is realistic! We have a tendency to
make our daily list way too big and it becomes overwhelming.....make your list smaller than you think you can accomplish.....if
you get everything accomplished and run out of things to do......(Yea.....fat chance of that!)......you can always add or
pull other tasks from your weekly 'Master' list. Trust me, you will feel a ton better if you accomplish your list for
today and can pull one or two other items onto your list and do them too then if your list is too overwhelming from the
beginning.)
* From your 'realistic' daily list prioirtize all the items, both the Professional and Personal
Tasks. I suggest prioritizing them the following way: A's, B's,
and C's.
*
A's are VITAL - MUST BE DONE!.......(or at least started!)
* B's are Important - Should be done!.....(or at least started!)
* C's are optional - could be done.
* Now attack/do the list based on the PRIORITY you've given them! (A's First!!!!!)
The above hints are all I will share today. Seems pretty simple but I will tell you that many of you who read
this and decide to implement it, will struggle greatly! In the next 'Post' I will discuss where/why you struggled,
how to 'fix-it' and also I'll share our next tip/technigue.
Now......
Plan,
based on the 'Vital Few'......Create your list.....And Work your Plan! We'll see how you did later in the week: Good Luck
and get after it......after all.......it's your life......why not make the best of it!!!!!!!!!
Until next time......As always, thanks for 'listening/reading' and remember to.....'Dream Big and Dare to Fail'
3:22 pm est
Friday, December 11, 2009
Characteristics of Succes - 'Effective Time/Life Management'As we continue our study of 'characteristics of success' I wanted to explore
a concept that we all wrestle with daily: 'Effective Time/Life Management". In today's hectic world, you
and I are facing a challenge that no other generation has faced, the challenge is what I call 'Time Compression'. 'Time
Compression' can be defined this way: 'We are experiencing more events per measurable period of time than any other time in
history.'
With today's technology, we are bombarded with information 24/7. We have 24 hour news, email, Instant
Messaging, the Internet, cell phones, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace and the list goes on and on and on. Think about it, all of
these sites can upload instantly to your phone or laptop providing you an endless stream of information. Now. I'm not saying
this information is bad or not needed but you have to admit that sifting through all of the 'news/information' takes time.
I know you're probably wondering why I would choose this topic especially when the book shelves in any bookstore are
filled with volume after volume of books and articles about 'effective time/life management'. Before I started my company
'Holland Meads Consulting' I spent four years as the National Training Manager for Marriott Corporation and seven years teaching
for 'Franklin Covey'. Throughout my Marriott career I was faced day-in and day-out with the challenges of information management
and being effective with my time use, both as a manager and as an instructor. When I was with Franklin Covey; one of the classes I
taught was 'Time Management'. (I taught the full or 1/2 day Time Management Class over 1000 times in seven
years as a Senior Consultant with FC. I taught the class in almost every company you could imagine from small 'mom and
pop' organizations to the Fortune 100!)
As we explore this topic I will be the first to say that there are many
good ideas/thoughts/methods out there that will help us be more effective with our time/life. I would like to focus over the
next several posts with some 'simple' suggestions but ones that if implemented on a daily basis with help us all be more effective.
(I'm fairly simple, thus the focus on 'simple' ideas/suggestions.....Are you smiling TAKAL....so don't laugh at me......they
work.....they really do!)
The first suggestion/tip is easy but yet hard.......easy to understand but hard to implement
on a day-to-day, moment-by-moment basis. In order for us to effectively manage our professional and/or personal lives, we
have to understand this concept: The concept of importance, priority and high value. When I am teaching this
class to a corporate or public audience one of the activities I have the audience do is this: On a blank sheet of paper
I give them 45 seconds to list the things that are 'highest' priority in their lives.
After the alloted time I
ask the group: 'Why did I only give you 45 seconds? What comes to mind in 45 seconds?' The audience always answers in unison:
'The things that are of highest priority!' ......Bingo!!!!!!!....... Now the challenge that arises is this; many
of us can name those things that are of 'highest' priority......(professionally and personally) .......naming them is the
easy part........ making sure they get our attention or the needed amount of attention/action is another challenge in and
of itself.
Now if we can list the items that are important for us in our work and home life; how can we make sure
these items get the needed attention. I think the first key to effective time/life management lies in understanding and implementing
one 'KEY' concept. The key concept is: 'THE VITAL FEW!'
Now lets try and get our heads
around what I call the 'VITAL' few. If you look up the word 'Vital' in the dictionary, one of the definitions is:
'Life Sustaining'. The challenge for most of us is this: We group 'everything' in the 'life sustaining' category.....We Do!
Now my friends, not everything we do or every action we take falls into the 'life sustaining' category....come on, you
know they don't....you know they're not 'life sustaining'.......if we are honest.....very few things
we do are 'life sustaining'. Now stop it right there, I can hear your excuses.....I can....we make the above excuses and
you know it.....I have been in front of so many audiences and heard one person after another say the above statements......I
have heard them over and over again and I'm sorry but they are 'BS'.....everything I do is 'Vital'....give
me a break. I am sorry but when we use this excuse we are so full of crap......we are.....that is an excuse and you/we know
it! (Now that I have gotten off that soap box......whew!)
Let me give you a 'Professional' example. I was teaching
a class one day and had the CEO of the company taking the class along with his administrative assistant. We were talking about
this topic of 'the VITAL few' and were having an open discussion, when it happened!!!! The administrative
assistant spoke up.......(She was about 120 years old or so and was a hoot!) She said: 'I understand the 'Vital'
few but my boss, when he first got here, he didn't!' (She was referring to the CEO........ At this point
as an instructor, I am starting to panic internally wondering where this is going and how the CEO will take her statement.)
I glance at the CEO and he's smiling from ear-to-ear, so at least now I'm feeling like we aren't going to 'crash and
burn'. The woman continued and said: 'When he first got here, he would bring piles of stuff and drop them
on my desk and say: 'I need this now' .....A few minutes later he would be back with another pile and he would say: 'I
need this now.'.....and then a few minutes later.....(you get the picture) ......By the end of the day you could hardly find
me behind my desk because I was buried in 'I need this NOW' stuff.'
She continued: 'After
a few days of this I walked into his desk with a pile of the stuff and said: I can't do it all! Here is what I want YOU to
do: If you need something immediately, you put a post-it note on top with an 'A' on the note. That means drop what I'm doing
and focus on this. If you need it by the end of the day put a post-it note on it with a 'B' and if you need it in a few days
put a 'C' on the note. Then she continued: 'The next thing I knew.......every post-it
note had an 'A' on top.'
She went on to say: After another day or two I marched back into his office
and said: 'You don't get it.......they all can't be A's......they can't be......look, I went/lived through the
depression.....WWII....etc.....etc..... and have lived a very long time.....not everything is 'VITAL....they aren't, I'm sorry
but they aren't. You have to focus and help me with the 'Vital' few.'
She was a 'direct' old thing
that's for sure and I loved her spunk. As she was sharing her story I kept glancing over at the CEO to see his response ...........
(Internally I was wondering if she 'crossed' the line)........during the whole time he was smiling broadly and shaking
his head in agreement. After she concluded he spoke: 'She's right! I was so anxious to just get things off my
plate I made everything an 'A' priority.' He continued: 'She had to come in several times and remind
me. Her reminders have helped me be more effective by truly focusing on only 'the VITAL' few.'
What
a great story and I smile every-time I re-live that moment. To this day I appreciate her candor and willingness to help that
group understand this concept (Not only did she help this group but hundreds of other groups who have re-lived her story through
me sharing about that class). She was a great lady who truly understood the 'Vital' few.
I
want to conclude by giving you some things to think about over the weekend. If you want to be more effective personally and
professionally you will need to focus on the 'VITAL' few. Here are some questions to ponder:
What
are your HIGHEST priorities personally? (List them on a sheet of paper.....seeing them in black and white is powerful!)
What action are you taking on a daily/weekly basis that demonstrate to all involved, that this is a priority.
When are you going to take the needed time/action? (Be honest.)
Where/what
do you need to start doing, NOW?
Who can help you achieve this priority?
What do you need to STOP
doing? What doesn't further this priority but takes time away from it.......be honest?
Once you have
asked yourself the above questions about your 'personal' life, ask the same questions about your work life. I know this
is difficult for some of you. I can all ready hear the excuses of 'why' you can't take action.....I hear them.....Holland
you don't understand.... you don't know what I'm facing......you don't know how hard this is......folks.....in over a thousand
seminars I've heard them all.
I'll leave you with this thought: 'Those who say it CAN'T be done.....are
usually being interrupted by those DOING it!' Have some fun.... play with the thoughts above......the good news
is this......if you'll think about the above questions......then take a small step here or there.....you'll be headed
in the right direction...... toward the 'VITAL' few.
As always, thanks for listening/reading and
remember to......'Dream Big and Dare to Fail!'
2:46 pm est
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Characteristics of Success - Perseverance ConcludedWe have been examining the characteristic of 'Perseverance' over the last
several posts. We defined 'Perseverance' as: Steady persistence
in a course of action especially in light of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement. Synonyms; doggedness, steadfastness,
tenacity. We concentrated our discussion over the last three posts on the above-mentioned synonyms
for the word: Doggedness, Steadfastness and Tenacity.
I would like to conclude this discussion
with an example of 'Perseverance' that comes from one of my 'Heroes' that I discussed in a previous post; Norman Vaughan.
(For those of you that haven't read the post on 'Heroes' I suggest you go into the blog archives and read this section to
acquaint yourself with who Norman Vaughan is.)
As many of you know, (who have read the previous posts) Norman dropped
out of Harvard to drive the sled dogs on Admiral Byrd's historic expedition to Antarctica. Admiral Byrd was so impressed with
Norman that he named a 10,300 foot mountain in Antarctica in Norman's honor: Mount Vaughan. At the age of 87, Norman set out
to climb his mountain and re-trace some of Byrd's route. He planned for two years, raised money, secured sponsors, assembled a
mountaineering crew and convinced National Geographic Explorer to film the preparation time and ascent for
a documentary.
After all their planning, Norman, his wife Carolyn, and the Alaska mountaineering crew took off
from Anchorage and flew to Punta Arenis Chile. The plan was to meet the rest of the expidition team in Punta
Arenis, take care of any last minute details and then all fly from Punta Arenas to Antarctica and begin their ascent.
When they arrived in Punta Arenis the 'plan' seemed to disintegrate and disintegrate rapidly. Some of the 'sponsors'
promised funds didn't come through and what was supposed to be a several day team planning stop turned into a two month delay. The
expedition team going with Norman were all volunteers, who took time off of work, or took a 'leave of absence' from their
respective careers to join/assist Norman on his quest. As the time went on and on and on with no good news the 'morale' of
the team suffered.
Here are some of the comments team members said:
"We should have
never come down here without all the funding completely in place."
"I thought this had two years of planning
into it and it would be click, click, click"
"Nice expedition, an expedition to Punta Arenis"
"If we have to come back next year, I don't know if he'll live to see it"
"Maybe it
is 'Just a Dream' and maybe some things should stay.....'Just a Dream!'"
Even Carolyn, (Mrs.
Vaughan) was discouraged. She stated:
"It couldn't get any worse, and the next day it would get
worse. Then I would say again: It couldn't get any worse, and it would get worse." I was getting 'tired and fatigued'
and Norman was continuing to go, go, go. Norman feels like it is going to happen. ....like it will just materialize out of
thin air."
What is intriguing is, 'materialize' it did......after two months in Punta Arenis
and Norman calling, faxing and re-calling sponsors the needed money was in place and the expedition could proceed. The following
day they loaded up the supply plane with the sled dogs, a couple crew members and base camp supplies for the 8 hour plane
ride to Antarctica. The joy on the face of Norman, Carolyn and the rest of the expedition crew when they saw the supply plane
take off was amazing. The whole group was overjoyed to know that after two long months of waiting, the mission was
moving forward!
Eight hours later, Norman, nor the rest of the team were prepared for the news they were
about to receive. Later that same day they received a radio transmission that the supply plane crashed nine miles
short of where it was supposed to land. Now, instead of preparing to join the rest of the team and ascend Mount Vaughan; they
were boarding a plane to go rescue the crew at the crash site. Miraculously, no one was killed, they lost four of the
sled dogs and one team member, the veterinarian, was very, very badly hurt and had to be air-lifted back to a hospital in
Punta Arenis.
Now the whole team is back in Punta Arenis, having just watched $640,000 dollars for their expedition,
go down the drain. Most of the team were out of money and time so they packed it in and went back to their respective
homes. Norman however was determined to 'Persevere' and to not give up. He was able to acquire enough sponsorship money
for he, Carolyn and two team members to join a 'site-seeing' excursion on Adventure Network International and fly to
'Patriot Hills' Antarctica. Once they were in Patriot Hills, Norman was finally that much closer to his dream of climbing
'Mount Vaughan'.
Now, all Norman faced was one more challenge; a challenge that even he couldn't influence, control
or work around.......the summer weather in Antarctica. In the 68 years that had passed since Norman was first in Antarctica
with Byrd; Norman picked the worst summer on record, weather wise. Temperatures hovered at 20 below zero with wind gusts taking
the temperature to minus 84. The weather wouldn't break long enough for them to fly to Norman's mountain where he could
begin his ascent.
What was supposed to be the end of a hard fought battle.....Norman at the top of his mountain......was
changed by the weather..... the weather decided it wasn't in the cards this year. After much anguish and many tears,
Norman, Carolyn and his two teammates boarded a plane for home...... hoping..... hoping that God would grant Norman one more
year of life......and.......one more chance at his dream.
One year later, Norman, Carolyn and his team once again
headed to Antarctica in their quest to climb Mount Vaughan. This time, they made it......Norman stepped on top of his mountain
three days shy of his 89th birthday. It was wonderful to watch the National Geographic special as they recorded Norman taking the
lead on the the last two hundred feet of the ascent and then watching the joy of the whole team as Norman was able to ........ 'conquer'
a mountain that bares his name.
That my friends is my definition of 'Perseverance'.
Once again, I'll
ask you: What area of your life personally or professionally do YOU need to persevere? Where do you need to try again, get
back up, take the action, make the call, make the visit, write the letter.......or whatever you need to do. Do yourself a
favor, get back up and take the action.......you'll be glad you did.....and who knows.....maybe this will be the step that
allows you to reach 'your summit'. You'll never know unless you give it another try!
As always, thanks for
listening/reading and until next time.......'Dream Big and Dare to Fail!'
1:43 pm est
Monday, December 7, 2009
Characteristics of Success - Perseverance Part 3We have been exploring the characteristic of "Perseverance" and concentrating
on the synonyms for the word. So far we have explored 'doggedness and steadfastness'. Today I want to
explore the third synonym; tenacity. Once again lets turn to Webster for a definition and to create
a launching point for our discussion.
Webster defines 'tenacity' as: Holding
fast, keeping a firm hold, persistent, stubborn or obstinate, clinging to something.
Now as we begin,
I want to establish this thought: As we look at the word definitions above; we may associate or have some 'negative' connotations
attached to some of the words, especially the words, stubborn and obstinate.
Let me try and clarify
my thoughts: I believe there are two ways to be 'stubborn and obstinate'. The first way I'll define or refer to as 'pure
ego'. We have all acted, at times out of pure 'ego'. When we are acting out of pure ego we 'doggedly' hold onto a belief,
way of thinking or a way of behaving/acting even though we knew in our hearts it isn't the right belief or
action for us.
What happens is this; we get so involved in making or defending our point that we can't see
the 'forest for the tress'. We've all done it.....we have. We have all made and stuck to a decision we knew wasn't 'right'
for us and then we defend our actions/decisions to the hilt. We know we've missed the boat' and can hear that 'still
small voice' screaming inside of us, saying......NOOOOOOOOO!.....We all have heard that voice that comes from our
'heart/soul' and in that moment we know we are making the wrong choice/decision/action.....but......we tune out our heart
and make or stick with the choice/decision anyway!
The challenge for all of us is we always want
to feel we are making the 'right', life decisions. When we make a choice, especially one that is not popular with others,
friends/family, is is so tough to change course. In those moments, we find ourselves justifying/defending our choice
from an 'ego' perspective, even when we know/feel it isn't the right decision. We get so far down the path that
the thought of turning around becomes overwhelming so we justify our decision, which in turn drives us further down
the wrong path.
The reason we seem to get so stuck is that changing course is tough......What if we make
'another' wrong choice? Changing decisions/choices takes a lot of effort ....not to mention hearing the.....'I told you sos!'.....
all of these reasons/excuses become overwhelming and cause us many times, to stay where we are currently. So, instead of changing
course, saying I'm sorry to any people involved and choosing what we know is the 'right course for us'! We dig in all the more
and the cycle continues over and over again.
I realize these 'reckoning' type moments are very overwhelming.
It is tough for any of us to admit we either made the wrong choice/decision or we have grown as a person and because
of that growth a decision that once may have fit, no longer does. When we reach a moment like this; it is very scarey
and the effort it may take to extricate ourselves from where we are and make a different choice seems overwhelming.
Now again folks we have all done the above.....we have.....we've done it with career choices, choices to move to a
certain geographic area, lifestyle, keep up with the 'Jones' choices, relationship choices.....and the list goes on and
on and on! We either knew these were the wrong choices up front or we grew as a person away from where we were
or who we were and the choices we made previously didn't fit anymore. So we did what we've all done a lot, instead of
making the 'tough' choices......we dug in, driven by our 'ego', became 'stubborn and obstinate' and stayed where we were.....stuck.
So, how do we do it? How do we make better choices and since we are talking about 'Perseverance': Is there a 'good'
kind of 'stubborn and obstinate' characteristic. Let's take the rest of our time today and explore 'how' to do this and to
answer the second part of the above question; in my opinion, yes there is a good way to be 'stubborn and obstinate'.
First of all, there is NO three step, ten step or grid chart you can follow to make sure you aren't being 'ego' driven .....
there isn't....sorry! For me it comes back to how we opened this whole section on 'Characteristics of Success'. The first
two characteristics we explored were 'purpose and passion'. My friends, it comes back to that: We have got to take the time
to truly know ourselves and know what our 'passions' and true 'purpose' are for our lives. Unless we know this, it will
be very hard, if not almost impossible to make the correct 'life' decisions. Taking the time to do this and knowing what
that is or looks like for you is the first and probably most important step.
If you haven't done this ever or need
to re-visit these thoughts because of where you are in your current 'station-in-life', my suggestion would be to go back into
this 'blog' archive and read the 'Passion and Purpose' sections and ask yourself some of the 'life' questions in these areas.
I started today's post continuing our discussion of the characteristic of "Perseverance"
and concentrating on the synonyms for the word. We began exploring the third synonym; 'tenacity' and
defined it as: Holding fast, keeping a firm hold, persistent, stubborn or obstinate, clinging to something.
Once we know our purpose and passions we need to make sure we maintain our 'focus'. (There's another one of the
characteristics we've all ready discussed....see how they are so intimately connected!) One of the ways we continue to keep
our focus on the things that are truly important to us is by 'tenaciously' fighting for them.
Let's apply the above
definitions to what we've shared. If your passion is a certain career, a certain mission, a certain charity, a certain
person or love relationship.....etc....etc... you have to make sure you 'Hold fast' 'Be persistent' 'Be relentless' or be
'Stubborn/Obstinate' in your pursuit of this work/endeavor/relationship. You can't quit, no matter how hard it gets! No matter
how discouraged you are! No matter how much opposition you face!
This isn't 'ego' driven folks......this is heart/soul
driven and there is a huge difference. When you know what your passions and purpose are, you're not operating from 'ego',
you are operating from a much deeper place. When you're operating from THIS PLACE you can't quit and or throw in the towell.
I have been re-reading 'Walt Disney: An American Original' and several things stand out to me that tie right into
our current theme of 'perseverance' and our synonym, 'tenacity'.
In his early days, Walt was a 'Cartoon'
maker from Kansas City. In 1922 his aspirations ended in bankruptcy and Walt had to start over. His desire was not to work
for someone else or to go to New York City where all the big 'Cartoon' companies were but he wanted to go to Los Angeles and
become a director. Walt's only problem was raising the train fare to get to LA. He took pictures of babies and sold the photographs
to raise most of the money needed. When he was getting close to his 'train fare' monetary goal he sold his camera
to raise the rest of the money.......and Oh by the way......Walt bought a 'One-Way' ticket to LA. The book shares this
thought:
"He left Kansas City in July, wearing a checkered coat and un-matching pants.
He had $40.00 in cash and his imitation-leather suitcase contained only a shirt, two undershorts, two pairs of socks and some
drawing materials. But when he paid his fare for his trip to California, he bought a First Class ticket!"
I
want to give an example of an 'ego' driven decision Walt made, but later changed, once he was in California. Walt had
made a pact with himself that he wasn't going to 'marry' until after he was 25 years old and had $10,00.00 in the bank. (This
is an Ego decision.....now I'm not saying that it is wrong to have goals or things you would like to have in place before
certain things happen relationship wise but I believe 'Love' is fluid......and so did Walt!) The book goes on to share:
"Walt fell short on both of the above 'goals' once he met Lillian. Walt and Lilly were married
on July 13th, 1925, they took a honeymoon to Seattle and then returned to a $40.00 per month kitchenette apartment in
LA."
Walt died before Walt Disney World opened but Roy, his brother was there along with
Lilly. Roy addressed the crowd at the opening ceremony and introduced the 'woman who was with Walt through
it all'. Lilly walked down the ramp escorted by Mickey Mouse and Roy said:"Lilly, you knew
all of Walt's ideas and hopes as well as anybody, what would Walt think of it?"
"I
think" Lilly replied, "Walt would have approved!"
I want to share one last
illustration from the book. When Walt was in LA he contacted one of his former Kansas City 'animators' and ask him to join
him in LA. This particular animator was with Walt when he went backrupt the first time and Walt's bankruptcy cost him a lot
of money. He was nervous and anxious about joining Disney again but relented and moved to LA. The Disney enterprise was doing
better financially but they were still experiencing tremendous financial challenges. In 1930 this animator was made
an offer by a competitor with a salary of $300.00 a week.
Knowing the financial challenges the Disney's were having
he accepted the offer. When he quit, he was a 20% owner in Disney and Walt bought him out for $2920.00. In 1976 when the book
was first published, hypothetically that 20% of Disney was worth $4,000,000,000.00
I hope the above illustrations
from Walt Disney's life help to support what we have talked about today. There are times we need to 'Persevere' based
on our Passions and Purpose. There are also times, as in the case of 'Lilly' where setting a 'goal' and being obstinate or
stubborn about that goal might be 'ego' driven and might not be the right move.......I'm glad Walt followed his heart when
it came to Lilly......and let his 'ego' go by the wayside......I'm sure Lilly was glad too.
I also bet the animator
who sold his 20% share in Disney may have looked back with some regret......thinking, why didn't I just stick it out!
Again, as always, Thanks for listening/reading and I hope You'll be 'Tenacious' when it comes to
the things and people that are most important in your life!
Until next time.......'Dream Big and
Dare to Fail!"
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Characteristics of Success - Perseverance Part TwoIn our our on-going series of 'Characteristics of Sucess' I would like to continue our look at
'Perseverance'. Last time we defined Perseverance as: Steady persistence in a course of action especially in light of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement.
Synonyms; doggedness, steadfastness, tenacity.
We began our look at this characteristic by concentrating
on the first synonym referenced above: 'Doggedness'. We looked at how this characteristic is demonstrated
by my two furry Labs, Moses and Hunter. Before I take a look at the second synonym; Steadfastness, I need to share one
more Moses and Hunter story from this morning.
My Labs are 'funny' because of the 'trouble' they get into
sometimes. I am very cautious with any leftover food or garbage at my house or any other 'edible' item. Over the years I have
come home to whole bags of pretzels eaten, whole bags of dog food devoured, garbage cans being overturned and spread every
where......you dog owners know what I mean!  As I was making my 'Glass of Goodness' this morning. (A fruit smoothie) I noticed something on the kitchen counter that
was amiss..
On the breakfast counter, well away from the edge of the counter is my 'butter' dish. (A fully enclosed
'butter' dish with a top that is ALWAYS covering the butter.) As I glanced at it this morning I noticed the top of the
dish was off.......upon further inspection I noticed there was no 'butter' anywhere to be found..... anywhere. During
the night, they stood up, put their front feet on the counter and had eaten the whole stick of 'butter' and cleaned up
any residual mess....the whole stick was gone.....my counter was clean as a whistle.
Moses and Hunter are funny
in the morning. They basically follow me everywhere I go till I feed them. Well they were laying in the dining room when I
came around the counter with the 'empty' butter dish. All I had to say was: 'Who ATE my butter!',in my low morning voice.
Instantly, both of them put their heads down and started to try and sneak away very sheepishly. Just the expressions on their
faces were priceless. They looked at each other with that look of: 'Told you he would notice......I knew we shouldn't have
done that....we're in trouble now!' It was priceless!
I often wonder for Moses and Hunter: Does a whole stick
of butter taste good?.......Oh well I will never know that answer and I have come to realize there are many things in
life I don't understand especially when it comes to my Labs.
Now let's look at the second synonym: Steadfastness.
To give us a common launching point, we'll again turn to 'Webster'! Steadfastness is: 'Fixed in direction/purpose,
firm resolution, unwavering.'
If we want to demonstrate perseverance in our lives we have to be able
to actively do the characteristics/actions listed above! We have to 'fix our direction' or in other words we have to KNOW
what we want, professionally and personally. We have to understand our 'passions and purpose'......(remember those characteristics
from several weeks ago.....if not; go back into the 'blog' archives and read or re-read those posts.) Once we understand our
'purpose and passions' professionally and personally; we have to work tirelessly at 'fixing our direction' upon them.
Lets be honest, in today's world we are busy and bombarded daily with tons of information, 'news' or 'gossip'.
While it is important to be 'informed' on issues of the day it is also very easy to have the issues or information distract
us from what is truly important. When I was growing up we had three channels on TV and if the 'President' was on.....your
night was shot! (Smile!) Now, I have 200+ channels and I caught myself the other night scanning them all and then finally
saying: There is nothing worthwhile on the TV tonight. Now again, I'm not saying TV is bad or anything of the contrary.
I am just making a point that we have a lot of 'potential' distractions with TV, Internet, music, movies, etc.....etc....
and it is very easy to get 'caught-up' in one or several of these activities and all of a sudden the day or night is gone
and we haven't really 'fixed your direction' on the 'important few items'. I believe you can have 'anything' you want in life......the
challenge is.....you can't have 'everything' you want.....we all have to make choices about what is important to us and what
isn't and we need to realize that when we make a 'choice' to do something......by making that choice we're choosing to 'NOT'
do something else......it is the nature of 'life and our choices'.
The defintion above goes on to say 'firm resolution,
unwavering'. How do you develop 'firm resolution and be unwavering'? Like we talked about on the last post: It is easy
to have 'firm resolution and be unwavering' when things are going well and there aren't many obstacles. It is when we are
'falling apart at the seams.....when our whole world is giving way or changing......when we are holding on to the earth because
we feel like at any moment we may 'fall off''.... these are the times when having firm resolution and being unwavering becomes
very difficult.
So; how do we do it? There isn't an easy answer....the answer is hard and most of us don't like
it but here it is:
We have to keep trying.....to get back up after you get knocked down......sometimes
we need to make and live by decisions/actions that other people, family members, friends don't agree with or like.... we need
to stop being afraid.....of failing.....of success...of what will people say......we need to get back up.....keep trying......try
again and again and again! This is my motto: 'If you get knocked down, try and land on your back.....I believe if you can
'SEE' up...... you can get back up!
As many of you know I'm training for the Lake Placid Ironman on July
25, 2010. Two years ago I did a 1/2 Ironman which consists of a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike ride and a 13.1 mile run. Now
I have never done anything like that before but I wanted to give it a try. I won't bore you with all the details of my day
but I will tell you this. I screwed up my nutrition and got sick to my stomach 2 miles into the bike ride.......I ended up
crashing on my bike at one point landing in a sand pile and completed the bike ride feeling like I was going to die with sand
covering every part of my body.
Three of my daughters were at the race and were concerned because of 'how
long' the bike ride was taking. When I finally completed the ride my college-age daughter Autumn, could tell I was 'hurting'
and was trying her best to keep her little sisters from worrying too much. Well, I got off my bike and prepared
for the run.
Now, you have to realize at this time of the day/race, many people were finished the race and heading
home. Now I'm sick, watching most people finish to the applause of all the fans in the stands and I'm just heading out
for 13.1 miles. (YUK!) To cut this story short I felt too sick to 'run' so I resigned myself to 'walking'. I walked the
whole 13.1 mile 'run' portion and when I was coming to the finish; there were my girls and a couple of friends. There
was NO one else there except the race officials and my kids/friends.....no one.....the finish stands were completely empty!
I mustered the energy to run the last two hundred yards with Sierra and Mariah as Autumn Courtney snapped photos.
I think there were only three or four people who finished after I finished. There were about 900 people who started the day
and over 100 dropped out during the day.
After the event I was talking with Autumn and she said: 'I was worried
about you.....I said: 'I know you were.' Then she went on to say this:......'Dad I was worried...... but I knew one thing......I
knew you wouldn't QUIT! I knew that!' Those words meant the world to me..... every time I glance at my little 'medal'
which the girls hung on my wall in my bedroom after the race I'm reminded of Autumn's words.....'I knew you wouldn't
QUIT!' (Thanks AC!)
So if we want to demonstrate perseverance in our lifes we are going to do several things:
* 'Know' what is truly important in our lives personally and professionally.
* 'Fix our direction/actions'
on what is important and of true value. We need to realize that our daily and moment by moment choices are what make
us who we are and got us to where we are currently. Why not make a pact with yourself that for the next week: You'll make
conscious choices/decisions that reflect what's truly important to you! Let's stop talking about 'what's important' and
take 'ACTION' accordingly! (Small steps add up.....I completed the race by making one small choice/step after another.....and
I'm glad I did!)
And last but not least.......
* Don't 'QUIT'.......climb, crawl, do whatever
you need to......to get back up and try again!
Until next time.....thanks for listening/reading and remember to
.....'Dream Big and Dare to Fail!'
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