Tia & Zig (Letter to my team)

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Team,

We have talked a lot about productivity and time management over the past year.  We have included it in our education meetings, I’ve sent our Dave Ramsey podcast and we’ve included it in our Monday morning meetings.

Last night I witnessed something that got me thinking about this again.  Tia had just finished practicing piano and was sitting at the table looking very stressed.  Tammy asked her what was stressing her out. From there the floodgates opened up and out came all the things she had to get done in the next few days with some tight deadlines: French test, write a paper about her experience in Africa, create a video to use at the piano recital, pepare to present in front of the Rotary Club,  basketball practice and… That was when Tammy stepped in.  She said she needed Tia to list out all of the things she needed to get done and the deadlines for each.  She also needed to figure out which ones she could have help on and who could help her.  Wow, this was starting to sound like real life Ramsey!
This got me thinking about our buddy Zig Ziglar and his “Day before vacation” teachings.
Zig asks the following questions:
  1. As a general rule, on the day before you go on vacation, do you get two or three times as much work done as you normally get done in a day?
  2. If you can learn why you are that much more productive on the day before vacation, and then repeat that process on a daily basis without working any longer or harder, does it make sense that you will be more valuable to yourself, your family, your company, and society in general?
  3. On the night before the day before vacation, do you take a sheet of paper and say to yourself, “Now tomorrow I’ve got to do…,” and then make a list of things you must do?… In its simplest form, that’s goal setting and it’s critical.  Next, did you organize your must-do list in the order of importance and accept responsibility for competing those tasks?
The day before we leave on vacation Tammy and I both have our to-do lists.  On that day both work related and non-work related things get completed efficiently.  This all happens because you have a deadline and you need to focus to get things done.  This is what Tia is going to experience over the next few days.  Her French test, the Rotary presentation, piano recital and all the other things coming up are going to happen if she’s ready or not.  So she needs to focus and prioritize to make sure she does well at all of them.
Going back to Zig and his day before vacation example, he says: “On the way to work the next day your self-talk was upbeat and centered on what you were going to get done.  You arrived at work on time so you were punctual. You immediately started to work, making you a self-starter.  You were highly motivated and optimistic that you were going to finish every tak you had set for yourself.  You were enthusiastic about your work and decisively moved from one task to the next, making good choices as you did so, even if the next job on the list was disagreeable.”
I love his example related to unpleasant tasks. “An ol’ boy down home said it best, “Friend, if you’ve got to swallow a frog, you just don’t want to look at the sucker too long.  He ain’t gonna get no purtier!  As a matter of act, the longer you look, the uglier he gets.” That’s the way unpleasant tasks are.”
“As you move from task to task, if someone tried to interrupt and talk about last night’s television program or last night’s game, you disciplined yourself to stay on task and not be distracted from your job… Since there was no “tomorrow” for you on each job, you persisted until you completed each one…. and momentum built with the completion of each task…. Perhaps the most exciting part of this vacation scenario is the fact that your co-workers instinctively picked up the pace [as well].”
If this approach works so well on the day before vacation, or the days before a test, a presentation or paper is due, won’t it work just as well every day?
A big part of this is in the planning.  When you plan things, the odds of their happening go up substantially.  If we plan our months, weeks and days we will be more productive and balanced.
Tia spent the evening writing about her experiences in Africa.  She’s made her list and has prioritized it.  She’s an achiever, not only will she get everything done, she will do it all very well.  But if Tammy hadn’t told her to pause, make a list and prioritize that list her stress would have stayed high and her productivity would have been low.  Plan your days and act so you don’t spend them reacting.
For more great stuff from Zig Ziglar visit www.ziglar.com or find one of his books on amazon.com.  Or to really get organized maybe give Tammy a call.

Win the Market Share

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While I was driving the other day, I was listening to this months Success Magazine CD. I was enjoying the interview with Barbara Corcoran (Shark Tank star) when something she said just hit me. She was talking about when she started to get recognized as an expert in her industry (New York real estate) because she was writing reports. Even though she had competitors that were much bigger than her, she was being recognized as the go-to expert. The comment she made that I loved so much was, “if you steal the limelight you steal the market share!” After she said it, Darren Hardy paused for a moment, repeated the quote and said, “I like that!”

Too many entrepreneurs that are just starting out are timid or intimidated by their bigger competitors. In her article in the magazine she says, “Use what you got all the way!” You might not be the big fish in the pond, you might not think you are the expert in your industry. But you are the expert of what you’ve got. “Use what you got all the way!” Be the expert with what you’ve got and get noticed. The more you can get yourself in the limelight, the more market share you can win. Barbara published reports on the New York real estate market based on information she had from sales she had made. Her information got recognized and used, quoting her as the industry expert. Things took off from there.

But where do you start, you’re not Barbara Corcoran? Start anywhere, start now. When she started she wasn’t the Barbara Corcoran she is today either. Start with your local paper, start with a blog, start with Linkedin. It doesn’t matter, just start. Who are you? That is what everyone in your industry needs to know.

“But I don’t want to be in the limelight. I want people to recognize my company, not me.” If that is how you feel, that is fine. Many companies grow and do extremely well without anyone knowing the entrepreneur or the leader in the company. But alternatively, think of some of the charismatic figures that are so well known and have names synonymous with their companies: Richard Branson and Virgin, Tony Hsieh and Zappos, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization.

I was recently asked to be featured in a commercial for the college I attended. The commercial was filmed at one of my stores and my brand coverage in the commercial was excellent. Since it started airing I’ve been amazed first by how many people mention to me that they have seen it. Secondly, by how many people think that it is a commercial for my company, Kodiak Mountain Stone (Yes, if you are reading this, I want you to tie me to Kodiak Mountain Stone). It’s these opportunities you need to take advantage of. You want people to know you, to know your brand. “When you steal the limelight, you win the market share!”

Starting “The Power of Starting Something Stupid”

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I’ve been anxious to read Richie Norton’s new book, “The Power of Starting Something Stupid.”  I’m lucky enough to have an “advanced reader’s edition” to preview and I started reading today.  It is a unique opportunity to read a book written by a personal friend that includes stories of people I personally know.

Power-Starting-Something_cover_blog1

I have a lot going on today and didn’t expect to be able to read much of the book.  But WOW! Richie has done an amazing job in this book.  I Can’t Put It Down!

Richie has received some incredible endorsements for his book from the likes of Steve Forbes, Seth Godin, Stephen M.R. Covey, Jack Canfield… and the list goes on and on.  There’s a reason he has received these endorsements, the book is great!

The release date of the book is still a few weeks away, but you can pre-order your copy today on Amazon.com:

The Power of Starting Something Stupid

Right now you can also get a digital copy of his book Resumes Are Dead and What to Do About It on Amazon as well!

I’m using this to do more than promote the work of a friend.  Richie’s work is great and you need to read it.  Make sure to get his books!

The Power of Starting Something Stupid

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As I read new material I’m always looking for books that will work well in our company’s Education Plan
Richie Norton has a new book coming out in March. Richie is a brilliant, big thinker and I know that his new book, “The Power of Starting Something Stupid” will be one of those books I will use in our meetings.
I’m anxiously awaiting my copy. Pre-order your copy on Amazon!

The Power of Starting Something Stupid

Start Off 2013 with a Great Adventure

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Sometimes you wait so long in anticipation of something, it doesn’t seem real when the time arrives.  I sit here at my desk with my Democratic Republic of Congo visa sitting in front of me.  For the past twenty months we have been in the process of adopting a little boy from the Congo and the time is finally here.

We went through the long process of applying and waiting for a referral.  After that it was the long process of waiting for our case to be seen in court for the official approval.  Next it was onto the steps of getting his passport and visa.  Then the process of immigration and citizenship.

Finally the time is here.  Soon we will be headed to the airport to start the incredible journey to go pick him up.  We are so excited and anxious.

It’s so difficult to explain how you can love someone so much that you have never even met before.  But I can honestly say that I love this boy with all of my heart.  From the very first picture I saw of him, I’ve felt a connection.  So many people have told us that we are doing such a wonderful thing for this little boy.  But the truth is, we are the ones that are blessed.  This little boy is meant to be in our family and we are blessed to have him join us.  He has big things ahead in his life, and we are going to be fortunate enough to be  a part of it.