Author: Mark S. Brown

John Maxwell has said, “It’s easier to teach what’s right than to do what’s right.” So if we want to be a good example for those around us, we need to be as good as we think we are. Intentions alone do not set the example.

Setting an example also requires being visible, and interacting with people. If you are the best you can be, but working alone, then who are you an example for?

Those two thoughts deserve some reflection time. We would all like to be good, and set a good example. Review your activity in the last week. Have you had opportunities to be visible, and be engaged, and yet you choose actions that isolated you? Have you chosen actions that were easier, and maybe not shown how good you can be?

Colin Powell said, “You can issue all the memos and give all the motivational speeches you want, but if the rest of the people in your organization don’t see you putting forth your very best effort every single day, they won’t either.”  People around you will only give their best if they see you giving your best.

What are you going to do the next week that reflects your best? What are you going to do to make those actions more visible to those around you?

I recently had the opportunity to watch Stone of Destiny, a 2008 film about the story of Ian Hamilton. He was a dedicated Scottish nationalist who reignited national pride in the 1950s with his daring raid on the heart of England. His goal was to return the Stone of Destiny to Scotland. Near the beginning of the movie Ian’s father tells him, “This country needs doers, not dreamers.” It made me think about the difference.

If you were to construct a sliding scale with one end being doing, and the other end being dreaming, I imagine all of us would fall somewhere in the middle.

At the extreme of 100% doer, a person would be focused on routine. Happy doing the same things every day. Never stretching or growing beyond their current level of awareness.

At the other extreme, a person that is 100% dreamer, would spend their days filled with ideas and whimsey. They would never get anything done because they would only be thinking about what could be done.

So I think, we would all be in the middle between those two extremes. The question is where. How much time do you spend doing, and how much do you spend dreaming? And are your actions linked to your dreams?

Successful people dream big. They reach for big goals. They act on those dreams. Successful people are both dreamers and doers. You must do both to pursue your purpose, with passion, and with a plan.

Stone of Destiny is a fun little film. If you have not seen it, you might enjoy seeing a dream become a reality. For each of us, success usually begins with a dream.

 

Do you need luck to be successful? Many people believe it. But most successful people make their own luck. It is lucky if you are in the right place at the right time, but then many people are probably there also. So why is one person luckier than others? It takes being in the right place at the right time and to be aware of the opportunity around you.

It is not about luck. It is luck combined with awareness, competence, discernment, initiative, and so forth. No one is just lucky. People make their luck. So how can you make yourself more lucky?

1. Prepare. Prepare yourself for the future you want. Become a student of whatever subject you want success. Hang out with like minded people, and study those that are successful. Know what it takes. Know what the opportunity will look like.

2. Be aware. Keep yourself ready to take advantage of opportunities when they appear. Most people will miss the opportunity because they are not looking. They are still waiting to be lucky. Put yourself in situations and environments where opportunities happen. It is not likely to be in front of a television screen.

3. Take the initiative. When you see the door of opportunity you must walk through it. Successful people take risk. They do things that they are scared of doing. They step out into the unknown. Many successful journeys start when you do not know how you are going to do something, and yet you are focused on the successful completion.

Opportunities to be lucky are all around us. Prepare for success, find your opportunity, and make yourself some luck!

 

Nearly half of everyone that made New Year resolutions have already abandoned their goals. It is still January! Why is it that so many of us make great plans, but fail to follow through?

Change is hard. We want to achieve, but many of us don’t spend the effort to make success a reality.

We all stumble. We all fail sometimes, but failure due to lack of effort is different. You were not committed to be successful from the start.

Here are three things you can do to increase your success at keeping your 2012 resolutions.

1. Hold That Vision. My friend Paul Martinelli uses this phrase all the time. He taught me that in order to achieve a goal, you must know what it looks like. Then you must hold that vision. You must picture yourself achieving success. So make sure you know what the conclusion of your successful resolution looks like.

2. Keep Your Goal In Front of You Daily. Every day do something to move yourself towards your goal. Keep that action on your to-do list, or on a sticky note on your mirror, or on a card taped inside your car. Being successful will become a habit if you work at it every day.

3. Reflect Weekly on Progress. Are your actions showing progress? Do you need to adjust? How can you accelerate your progress? What has slowed you down? What obstacles do you need help with? Those are all questions you can be asking yourself every week. Make sure your actions are contributing towards your goal.

There is nothing new in those simple three tips. But before you abandon your 2012 resolutions, make sure your are putting in the effort.