In the case of Steve Davis and Nick Clegg they had nothing to lose – granted they gain the prestige of wining and being successful but they have come from a very low starting point. Steve Davis was a 500-1 outsider to win the snooker championship. For Nick Clegg, no one expected anything from him until the first debate.This means that they could just go for it and give it all they had.

And in the Premier League yesterday, why didn’t Chelsea let up after the 3^rd goal against Stoke? Because they knew that Man Utd were not going to give up just yet so the title could be decided on goal difference. And what a victory, a 7-0 thrashing.

So what’s the common element between all three examples -they all have everything to gain!

So it got me thinking about their focus and how determined they are to be a success. It is that FOCUS, on the one thing that’s going to make a difference, that stakes out your success. Focusing on what you have to gain, rather than what you have to lose can make the difference between success or failure. Fear of failure itself is often sited as the most significant reason for holding back.

Here’s my question to YOU – Whats YOUR FOCUS today, tomorrow, next week next month that’s going to get you the outcome YOU are looking for?

To develop a clear focus a quick visit with Anthony Robbins will guide you.

To help your people to develop this focus have a look at this – ‘What do I want?’ is a great place to start.

Have the best week.

Last week I delivered one of our Quick Wins Workshops ‘The Feel Good Fete’ where people create ideas to help them feel great at the end of each working day rather than wanting to slump on the sofa as soon as they walk through the door.

It was a great session full of very creative people so I thought I’d share some of their ideas with you:

1. Vary my routines – breaking your normal routine pattern can stimulate new thoughts and energise you! Why not break a daily routine you have and notice the impact it has!

2. Celebrate my successes more – reward yourself for your great achievements… those of you who know me, will know that my rewards are normally in shoe or chocolate form!!!

3. Yoga Once a Week – Yoga or any exercise will help you raise your energy levels… be sure to choose the right exercise for you though (doing something you enjoy will boost your vitality, pressuring yourself to do something you don’t enjoy will increase your anxiety and stress levels… so think about what you enjoy doing and do it at least once a week.

4. Leave the office at Lunch for 10 minutes – so many of us get chained to our desks for the day and we eat our lunch whilst checking emails or doing some form of work… STOP! This is not good for you… not only do you not enjoy your food, you are also removing an opportunity to refresh those brain cells, so be sure to go out, get some fresh air and have a proper break!

5. Focus on the Positive – try to limit the time you spend thinking about the things you can’t change, and instead focus on the things you can influence. This change in mindset will without doubt make you feel better about things!

6. Desk Exercises – try out some desk exercises to get moving and grooving at your desk http://www.tellmehowto.net/healthandfitness/desk_exercises_194

Have fun giving these a try, and please let us know how they work for you!

Enjoy!

Carly

]]> http://www.leaps-bounds.co.uk/learning/boosting-your-vitality-at-work/feed/ 1 http://www.leaps-bounds.co.uk/learning/choices-choices-choices/ http://www.leaps-bounds.co.uk/learning/choices-choices-choices/#comments Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:45:00 +0000 Leaps-and-Bounds http://84.45.62.60/~leaps/?p=46 Recently I hear more and more people say that they feel they don’t have as many choices as they used to and that the economic climate is making them feel cornered. The truth is you do still have these choices but maybe you feel more fear in exercising that right.

Yesterday we did some filming to share information about our Quick Win 90 minute sessions. The topic was influencing skills and how to get to a win win. It occurred to me that in today’s competitive world we find it difficult to take the time to really understand other people’s perspective or indeed, for some people, it is hard to care about it. But actually, the more we are prepared to make the time and do the work, the solution we get to will always be better if we are prepared to search for the solution.

Many procurement departments will beat down the price of work from a supplier but what impact on quality does this have in the long run? Suppliers in efforts to get the contract will price below their break even rate, what impact does that have on internal resources and ultimately on the success of the business?

Within and organisation, the marketing department comes up with a great idea to generate sales, they have researched and trialled it but it is out of budget. In your business would the funds be released or not? Or if the Learning & Development department has identified a critical learning need for staff that they know will dramatically and positively impact on performance will the funds be released? The business case all makes sense but what will it take to build confidence?

In turbulent times, responsibility is clawed back up to senior people and often more junior and middle managers feel disempowered and frustrated but remember “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” Eleanor Roosevelt www.quotationspage.com. It is up to you. You do still have choices and can influence outcomes – it is whether you have the will to make it happen. You do still have choices – you have the choice to bury your head in the sand until it’s all over or you can stand up and be counted. If you need the budget, find a way to argue for it:

* What’s the pain if you don’t do anything?
* Trial it and show the results
* Hook into key drivers for the business and demonstrate how you can make a difference
* Most of all, own how you feel and think, take action that needs to be taken and don’t do anything you feel uncomfortable with.

Remember you have the right to ask questions and gain understanding to help you make your own decisions.

In the filming we did yesterday, Gill shared a checklist of 3 questions to ask yourself how important an action is to take. This could be a negotiation, an action, a proposal anything that is about progress. These questions were:ofhgkgggkgk

jfjggjgj

1. How important is the outcome? If it doesn’t matter that much or it won’t make a difference then let it go
2. Is this really about the outcome or about you? What personal issues are at play? Resolve these first to move forward. Progress is always about the outcome
3. How can we think and rather than or? Remember people think first about what they have to give up when things change, it doesn’t have to be like that if you can think creatively.

In today’s climate you need to be bold. Being prepared to challenge more, fight more, develop more are all traits of successful people. But the fight has to be about the outcome and not self projection. Remember all the best superhero’s are shy in real life so don your cape and mask and seek out the next task that will show you in your true colours and help you make your difference.