Archive For: Success

How Much?

I have just taken on another mentoring client.

They are a leader in their industry, have a significant presence in the market and are excellent at what they do but they charge only about 30% of the average industry price for some of their services.

Naturally one of the first things we will be doing is raising their prices.

To do this we will have to have some serious conversations, but not with their customers. It is all about what THEY think they are worth.

Your price does not reflect what your market thinks you are worth but what YOU think you are worth. You then need to go to market and position the value.

So for what you do, how much are you worth?

Leadership Position Vacant

For the first time ever, I was actively interested in the outcome of the Australian election.
At the time of writing, it seems that the answer to the Australian Electoral Commission’s question above is that NO-ONE is leading. (Click on the image for the latest results from the Australia Electoral Commission).

What has been lacking in our politics (and the politics of some other nations as well) is strong, decisive, obvious leadership.
It seems that the Australian voting public trust each of the two dominant parties as much as each other.

Watching many of the interviews and discussions during the vote counting, many politicians forgot. They forgot how to be real people. Peddling their empty rhetoric until the very end of the broadcast there were repeated attempts to get them to be human, some would say “relatable” in their approach but it was to no avail.

The day after the election, with no clear winner and already there are rumours of leadership battles and party infighting.
It will be days, if not weeks until we find out who is running the country. There is even talk of another election.

What we have voted for is no-one. The Australian public are so dissatisfied with our current representation that there is no obvious choice. We are collectively satisfied to stumble along until something better happens.

What about you? Do you lead?

Regardless of what you do, where you do it, do you lead?

Do make decisions and then act on them?
Are you open to ideas and if one of them is better than yours, admit it and take it on?
Do you engage and enthuse those around you? It could be colleagues, friends or even family members.
Do you take responsibility for your action and when you are wrong, admit it and make appropriate amends?
Do you speak respectfully of those around you, regardless of whether you agree with them or not?
When disagreeing, do you attack the idea and not the individual?

There is a drastic need for more leaders in this world. Leadership positions abound.

Will you lead?

I hope you say “Yes”

When It Rains

There is so much about elections in the news at the moment. From Trump vs Clinton to Brexit to our very own federal election here in Australia. The impact of these elections is unknown, widely speculated upon and loaded with fear and uncertainty.

It is so easy to get caught up in the speculation and start to worry unnecessarily about what may or may not happen. There are a lot of commentators, educated people and highly passionate arguments out there. Some are not very nice.

When it rains negativity and intolerance, I need to change my perspective by surrounding myself with something positive. So let’s focus on something good.

As Shakespeare said, “If music be the food of life, play on.” So here is a great burst of music to give you a decent feed. A speaking friend of mine, Rich Allen, has been working with his daughter Pip for the last two years to create her album When It Rains.

Pip wants to share this burst of positivity and delight with the world and so would love for you to have a copy. I have listened to it and really enjoy her delicate vocals and some of the topic matter. There are also different styles of music as well. If you would like a copy, head over to her website and download it.

At the very least have a listen and see what you think.

What about you? When it rains negativity, indifference or unpleasantness on you, how do you deal with it?
How do you protect yourself from this rain and remain focussed on what is important and what brings you joy?

I’m Getting Grumpy

Oh dear. I am turning into one of those grumpy old men who talk about how it was in the “old days”. But I am not the only one who is grumpy.

I have posted a few things on social media recently about guns, particularly in the USA. While I know it is a sensitive issue, I figured that avoiding the issue was doing nothing so how about a civil conversation or debate.

Now I have some lovely friends in the USA who are passionate about their guns and while I have a different perspective, I also respect their right to have a different belief.

Then the trolls came.

Somewhere along the way, we have lost the ability to have a civil discussion that attacks an issue and not the person delivering it. It is great to get passionate but it is not nice, pleasant or appropriate to convert a discussion about an issue into a personal attack. So often I see a comment “You’re/They’re an idiot” or “only fools would believe …” This does nothing to progress the discussion and only drags it down.

Now this holds true whether you are discussing guns, office policies, strategic directions or the best way to pack a car. It holds true in private discussions, work discussions and even the political discussions we are seeing of late.

We seem to have lost the ability to tolerate an opinion that doesn’t match our own, listen with an open mind and then construct a logical argument to support our own beliefs all while being willing to change our opinion if we are proven wrong.

My commitment is to stop being grumpy and focus solely on the issue as well as ensuring my arguments focus on logic and facts rather than attacking an individual and getting carried away with emotion.

What about you? Will you join me in the Anti-Grump?

Every Day Super Power

Each of us has at least one (but usually way more) Every Day Super power. It’s just a simple thing that you do incredibly well.

One of mine is making great coffees. Not barista, high pressure, super duper coffee just your run of the mill instant coffees.

The first to notice this super power was my dad. He would often compliment me on how good my coffees were.

All of my wives have loved the way I make coffee. My latest, favourite and definitely last wife now has it down pat on how to request I make them with minimal effort on her behalf (extra good for those mornings when you want a coffee but aren’t awake yet.)

A couple of days ago I made coffee for some young people (to me that is someone from 20-30) who don’t drink a lot of coffee and they both, independently mentioned how good the coffee was.

Now making a cup of coffee won’t save the world even if it does make the world a better place. But it is the small things you do with your Every Day Super Power that add up to big things. It’s part of recognising that there are no BIG things just a lot of little things all acting together. As we handle the little things better, the BIG things become simple.

So what is your Every Day Super Power? Is it always finding a car park, being remembered by shop assistants, making people laugh, balancing your bank accounts, creating spreadsheets, understanding complicated writing, using a rich vocab? There are so many.

Let me know what your Every Day Super Power is, I’m sure it’s a cracker.

Are You Ready For The End?

The End is coming!!!

OK – so it is just the end of the financial year. Nothing too dramatic but it can still be messy if you are not prepared.

Now many people roll their eyes and then glaze over when people start talking about finances and year end. So let me reach out and give you a virtual slap on the side of the head.

THIS STUFF IS IMPORTANT!

Too many people delegate their finances and then end up in deep water because they did not pay them enough attention.

You don’t have to do it but you have to understand it. If you don’t understand then keep asking questions until you do.

This is particularly important for small to medium enterprises.

So here are a few things you need to do (and what I spent Sunday doing).

Get your accounts up to date
Look at how you will distribute your profits
Consider what depreciation you will be doing
Consider if there are any significant purchases you may need to make prior to year end
Consider if you are paying yourself a wage or a dividend
Ensure you have enough cash on hand to pay your June BAS (you do set some money aside from each sale don’t you?)
Talk with your accountant NOW about what you may need to do to prepare for year end
Read your Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet statements and make sure you understand them

If you are an employee, you won’t need to do all of these but it is still important to consider if you want personal tax deductions as to what they may be.

You may also choose to take the time to consider your financial position and net worth to look at if it has growth since last year and what you need to do about that in the coming year.

The business maxim of “What gets measured gets improved” has never been more relevant than to your own financial situation.

So are you Ready For The End?

NOTE: This is not considered advice. Every persons situation is different. Please be sure to contact your own financial and business advisers to assess your situation before taking action that may affect your financial situation. We assume no responsibility for any action or lack of action on your behalf based on this legendary and rather nice article. Come on. Let’s get serious. You have to take responsibility for yourself and your own situation. I still can’t believe you have read all the way to here. Ok, go and do something fun now.

Wear Their Shoes

The Wheeler Centre is Melbourne’s home for smart, passionate and entertaining public talks on every topic.

Coming out of some of their talks, they have placed “Discussion Markers” around the city of Melbourne.

Here is one I saw on Chapel St last week.

It got me thinking about our current political situation as well as considering good leadership in general.

As a leader (and you are a leader whether if be formal or informal) the concept of “walking a mile in their shoes” is one that continues to be powerful.

What is truly going on for those around you and how do they feel about you
Do you ask people on your team to do things you would not be willing to do yourself?
Are you giving advantages to those you know or those you can benefit from?
Are you fair to all you deal with?
Do you have a solid understanding of the impact of your decisions and actions?
Do you deliver on your promises?
Do you actions match your words?
Are you really a dickhead but no one has told you yet?

While these are fabulous questions for our politicians they are equally as valid for you as a leader.

So, do you wear their shoes?

Be Like George

Meet George (and his two adoring fans).

George is the colossal coffee machine at the Eastern Innovation Business Centre.
George dispenses love in the form of coffee.
George has lots of fans and people come from everywhere to spend time with him.
George gives a predictable output every time.
George can vary what he does based on your inputs and requests.
George needs basic inputs as well as regular maintenance to be in good working order.
George gets input from others if there are changes ahead and does what he can to accommodate change.
George is constant and dependable.
George is clean and smells good.
George always looks tidy.

In business, be like George.

Can You See Stars?

Img: WikiArt

I love starry nights. Even Van Gough’s classic above is fantastic. The problem with living in the city is that they are hard to see.

Last night I drove a friend to a country location where she will be running a workshop today. As I got out of the car, I looked up.

It was stunning.

Without the light pollution you could see the ceiling of the world covered in twinkling points of light. Some of these stars already don’t exist and we are just seeing their echoes, others will keep burning for eons to come. Not only was the night sky clear, I also had a moment of clarity on my place in the world and what is truly important.

What about you?

Are you surrounded by “life pollution” that doesn’t enable you to have clarity on what is really happening and your true position in the world?

Can you back away from the smoke and mirrors and truly see what counts for you and however you measure your success?

Too often we get caught up in our own thoughts and lose focus on what really counts.

Maybe it’s time to step away from the life pollution and ask yourself, “Can I see stars?”
PS Huge thanks to all those who have taken advantage of the 2 for 1 May Sale on Get More Inspiration. If you want to find out more or get your two copies of the book while I pay postage and give you additional bonuses, head to this website.

Let’s Celebrate!

There are so many reasons to celebrate.

Yesterday was Mothers day, my brother also turned 50, my sister has a recently purchased a new house, I just turned 48, my dog is awesome and I have the best wife in the world.

Sometimes you can celebrate for professional reasons as well. Your project finished, you got a new position, you got a bonus, your boss left or even simply that you turned up to work!

As long time readers will know, I am a huge believer that if you make Celebrating Success a Habit, you will make success a habit.

So I wanted to celebrate my recent 48th birthday by giving you a present.

WARNING – THIS CELEBRATION INCLUDES OFFERING A DEAL TO YOU TO BUY SOMETHING (But it is an AWESOME deal!)

Of late I have been receiving some fantastic feedback on my Get More Inspiration book. One person said, “I thought this might be a fluffy motivational book and I was surprised that I really like the additional structure, reflections sections and tips. Great work”

Another said, “My husband never reads books but he really liked yours”

Ok, so I don’t want to turn this into a huge sales letter but I really want to celebrate, so here is the deal. If you want a burst of inspiration in a book that is specifically designed NOT to be read (you just flick and read a two page story at a time) then I want you to have a copy of the book. The great news is that it is a workbook as well. It has places to write your ideas and actions, but that means you won’t want to lend it to friends. No problem as I have the solution!

For the month of May 2016 if you order the physical Get More Inspiration Book, I will give you a second copy absolutely free so you can give it to a friend. I will also pay the postage to send both copies to you and I will enroll you in my Get More Done in 90 Days ecourse worth almost $300.

So that’s $385 worth for only $34.95

How does that sound?

If you are interested click the order button to make it happen.

If you are a eBook kind of person, sorry but I can’t do a magic deal for you. What I can do is direct you to the Amazon store where you can get it for only $11.99!

For my US Based buddies, you can hit your Amazon store here.

Maybe you will choose to celebrate some other way and that’s ok. What is important is that you always look to celebrate success.

So how will you celebrate success?

It’s a Wrap

Whew! After 4 and a bit weeks of touring around the USA and Canada and meeting interesting people, places and things, we are home.

While it was a great time, there were a few challenges (part of the reason there was no newsletter last week). So what I wanted to do is give you a few quick thoughts and some other bits from the trip.

1) Travel. Nothing makes you appreciate your life more than going to visit other countries (or other parts of your own country) and see how they live. It also expands your mind in a way that you can no longer go back to old thinking.

2) Stretch yourself. We drove over 6,500 km which meant 6 or 7 hours driving some days. This lead to a lot of conversation time in the car which enabled my gorgeous wife and I to connect strongly, share ideas and thoughts and make plans for the future.

3) Have fun. Many of those hours driving we spent singing, telling stupid stories and being creative in some way. We rarely played the radio or music and we had a stack of fun.

4) Talk to people. We had some great conversations with complete strangers, some were challenging due to a difference in values and beliefs and others were intriguing to discover their perspective. The picture above shows us sharing my birthday dinner with over 2,000 people at the Colorado Springs Air Force Academy. They had a very different perspective on things.

5) Plan for things to go wrong. We had a few interesting experiences. When we landed home in Melbourne, our car had a completely flat battery. At the conference we had unexpected snow (See the 90 second video here). Having a few “What if …” ideas up the sleeve helped.

6) Enjoy the really good things. We were staying in some very cheap accommodation and also some very nice accommodation (that latter had indoor fountains!) Who were we not to enjoy it? You can see a video of it as well as a quick comparison of the Aussie and USA meetings industry here

7) Share it. I have put many photos and stories on Facebook as we have travelled. So many people have commented on how much they enjoyed them and felt like they were having a holiday too (except we paid for it!) We also have catch ups with friends planned who want to hear all the detail about the trip.

8) Repeat it. The value from this travel is so significant that we have more trips planned, the next one is likely to be Vietnam. Why would you stop your own personal growth?

So have you got anything planned?

PS While I was away, two more episodes of the almost award winning show, Get More Success have been released. You can see/hear them here.

PPS May is a special month for a couple of reasons but you have to wait to next week to find out why (and what the special deal is!)

Huge Thanks!

Oh My Lawks A Lordy!!

Thank you so much for your support with the Get More Success show launch.

It went off with a huge bang. At one stage it was number 2 on the business podcast list (ahead of Seth Godin!!)

As my way of saying thanks I have put out a bonus episode on Small Business Social Media Solutions that I would love for you to listen to.

OK – now on to non-Get More Success related business.

Is the Customer Right?

I am a huge believer that the customer is NOT always right, but they are always the customer. Sometimes they get confused, things go wrong or it is just a combination of smaller issues that combine to make a bigger one. There is NO excuse for not treating the customer well.

My gorgeous wife and I went away with our B&B crew of 8 people last weekend. We got a message on the Thursday saying the previous tenant had broken the thermostat so there would be no heating. The owner said that they never needed heating so we should be ok. An email dialogue ensued.

The outcome was, we had no heating in a house with massively high ceilings on a very cold weekend in a cold part of the state. The house owner didn’t seem to care.

Naturally I am following up because I believe we deserve some kind of compensation. I am confident that the home owner doesn’t care as his approach to customer service was appalling. Even the responses to feedback on AirBnB were poor. Someone left a positive comment and he let fly at them for not cleaning the BBQ and leaving cigarette buts in the garden.

How are your customers? Do they sometimes get a little confused, ask the super obvious question or ignore the instructions you have previously given them? They may be wrong or even appear a little foolish but they are always the customer and deserve to be treated positively. How do you treat them and does that need to improve?

Grand Opening

WOO HOO!!

I am so excited that after some serious procrastinating, some hard work, bursts of inspiration, serious doubts, more procrastinating, more work, home made design, a lot of interviewing, a stack of support, the kindness of friends and some techo gurus the Get More Success show is now live!

Over the coming years I will be interviewing people from all walks of life and find out how they define success and what are their success tips that you may be able to apply to get success in your life.

As an added bonus, the show will also include excerpts from the Get More Speaker Success monthly blab. This is a group conversation with a more lighthearted approach that covers issues in the speaking, meetings and events industries. It has some great ideas if you are looking to run events.

Because of the increased demand in the visual media, a lot of my interviews are also on video as well as audio. So if you like to look at what is happening, feel free to watch as well as listen.

You can see/hear the show at The Get More Success website.

BUT I NEED YOUR HELP

The first couple of weeks of a podcast’s launch are important to help get traction. So this is where I need your help.

If you like the idea of the show as well as the first couple of editions that are out there, I need you to subscribe to the show in iTunes if you are an iTunes user.

This will trigger some of iTunes magic goodness and increase its profile and shoot it up the charts which then makes others want to look at it.

So I would love it if you could give me a boost.

It’s really easy. Just click this link to see the show listing.

Click on the “See in iTunes” button on the left of the screen

When iTunes opens, click on the subscribe button.

At the very least, head over and listen to Wayne Thompson from the Australian Type Foundry talk about how he creates fonts and some of the icon advertising pieces you have seen in advertising all over Australia (including the Optus “Yes” speech bubble).

So what is new in your life? What have you achieved after grinding away for what seems like years? How can I help you achieve success?

Stop Lying to Your Customer

Recently my mum got a new car. The Nissan Qashqai (pronounced Cash Ky or Cash Cow as we refer to it). She loves it. It has all the bells and whistles, lots of get up and go and is really comfy. The sales process was relatively simple and mum feels she got a good deal.

So far so good.

This week it was ready for it’s 10,000km service and that’s where the lying started.

Mum lives up country and is about 45 minutes away from the dealership. So it is no small thing to get the car serviced. It involves a day trip into town and getting everything done. As part of getting ready for the day she asked and confirmed when would the car be ready and was advised 1pm. “Are you sure?” She asked and was advised, “yes certainly.”

Back to pick up the car at 1pm and she was advised that it won’t be ready until 3pm “sorry for any inconvenience”. I just happened to call mum about that time and I can tell you, she was not happy. “They are not even working on the car because I can see it sitting just over there.”

You know what it’s like. It may not be a car service, maybe it is picking up an order or waiting on a meal or something else, maybe even a pre-recorded announcement at an airport that EVERYONE knows is a lie. My personal bugbear is “We apologise for the inconvenience.” It is a token statement, they don’t mean it or they would do something about it.

Back to mum. Here is the outcome. You know how a car service at a dealer usually costs about $400-$600? Yes it’s a bit more but you pay it thinking that it will help with resale value and you hope the dealer knows something about the car. Well that Nissan dealer will not be getting any of that money. Mainly because mum can’t trust them to do what they said they would but also because they show no empathy for how their lie impacted on her. Next time it is off to the local mechanic.

By the way, a local qualified mechanic is able to perform your services and it will not impact your normal warranty. Dealers try an scare you into thinking it will but that is because they can often make more money off servicing a car than selling it.

So are you lying to your customers?

Little white lies to keep them placated, shift an uncomfortable situation or because you actually don’t know what is happening so you make something up?

If so, stop it!

Customer relationships are built on trust. Lies degrade that trust and ultimately will kill your relationship all together. Tell your customers the truth – even if it is embarrassing, ugly or may seem to be a negative thing. Your customers are human. They accept that sometimes things happen but what are you doing to fix it.

Recently in Melbourne, a bus ran into a bridge and injured some of the passengers. It was from Gold Bus Lines. What makes it so memorable is that someone at head office sent a person down to put gaffer tape over the company branding on the bus. All that did is make us remember the name and not forget it. Your driver made a mistake, it happens so deal with it. Don’t try and deny the mistake – you can’t!

Research from TMI shows that your clients will become more loyal if they have a complaint and you deal with it than if you never had an issue at all. So it is not about getting rid of issues, it is about dealing with them well. (Get a 32 page extract from TMI’s A Complaint is a Gift book here)

So problems happen, how can I address them without lying or avoid them in the first place?

Under promise and over deliver

Better to say the car will be ready at 3pm and aim for 1pm than they other way around. Telling a client you will have a response by Friday and getting it to them two days earlier get’s an excellent response and if something comes up, you have two days up your sleeve

Be Honest

This day an age, the customer probably knows what is going on before you do. Companies CAN NOT keep secrets. Don’t even try. While you don’t have to give the specifics of a situation, you can at least let them know what is going on and when you will have an update. Most people just want crystal clear communication on what is happening.

Stick to Your Commitments

If you make a commitment to a customer, keep it. If you are going to miss it, let them know as soon as possible and manage their expectations. People don’t mind if changes happen as long as you do what you can to keep them informed and help minimise the impact on them. Yes it takes a little extra effort and time but it creates loyal customers who will happily refer you.

Have Respect

Just because you as an individual think that the situation is only minor doesn’t mean it is for the customer. Maybe they are over reacting, but maybe they are not. Maybe there are bigger issues here. A little respect for the customer and some smart questioning will help you better service them and their needs. Never forget that while the customer is not always right, they are always the customer and should be treated accordingly.

So next time you decide that lying to the customer might be a good idea, think of my mum.

Think of the thousands of dollars in lost future business, think of the huge network of people she will tell it to, think of her relatives who may post about it on social media but most importantly, think of how easy it would be to tell the truth (even if it is a little uncomfortable) and how that will be far better for your business.

Take Me Home

One of the key things you need to know as a speaker (or as a budding rock star) is that the audience want to take you home.

They may have only heard you for an hour or two but there is a connection and they want to get more info from you or hear more of your stories or find out more about your message.

This is true regardless of your “status” in the market place. There will be audience members that just connect with you, even if you are not the headliner legend in your field. For example, my lovely wife and I went to “Burn the Floor” at Crown Casino on Friday. It was a very good show with lots of dancing and some great music. A very solid casino kind of show. Everything done really well and done within budget.

But they still had a merchandise stand with posters, CDs, trinkets and clothing. At the end of the show there was a significant crowd there all wanting to buy their merchandise.

So as a speaker, educater, professional what do you have that lets your audience take you home?

Following in the footsteps of others from Professional Speakers Australia (The association for experts who speak) I have created over thirty differents discs (some CD, some DVD and some template discs), two books, two e-courses and many other products. After presenting at the Professional Speakers Australia event on the weekend on how to create product like this, some of the audience wanted to take me home. Having this product meant that they could.

If someone wants to take you or your company home, how do you make that happen?

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