Take Back Time! Begin with the End in Mind
on Monday, May 3, 2010I recently had the privilege to observe one of my clients while they worked with a nationally renowned marketing consultant from their industry. As the consultant asked question after question he drew out and confirmed the brilliance this woman and her team bring to their clients yet my client’s anxiety level grew. She said, “If we are so fabulous, how come we don’t have clients 
flocking to us?”
He responded with a quick analogy, “In the jungle, it’s not the lions and tigers that will take you down. It’s the mosquitoes.” The simplicity amazed me. He’s absolutely right! The everyday tasks in the workplace so easily distract us from the things we do best.
- We don’t have the clients we want because we take on clients who don’t fit our ideal profile justifying doing so for all kinds of reasons. Bottom line is they take time without the adequate return on investment and create a tremendous amount of busy work.
- We don’t have the time we need to perform our most critical taskes because we are distracted by interruptions, non-urgent, non important tasks that leave us a false sense of accomplishment when completed. We are addicted to the busy-factor.
- We don’t have a business that brings us joy and fulfillment because we don’t take the time to imagine what that would look like to the degree necessary to compel us to say NO to things that detract from that goal (the mosquitoes) and YES to things that move us forward. We struggle with belief. Can it truly be easy and fun in business most of the time? My answer is, YES!
- We don’t have the quality of relationships we want because we are out of balance with our work. Many times we work even harder to gain the affirmation we aren’t getting at home.
- Need I go on?
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I want to be absolutely transparent with you. I offered the Calendar Control Challenge in the month of May because I needed some external motivation to do this task myself. I know from experience short focused periods of high payoff activity yield tremendous results but like you I’ve been too busy to complete the focus form to help me get crystal clear on my goals and initiatives. Here we are the 3rd of May and I am now getting it done for two reasons.
If you’d like to join the challenge you can do so here. |
Begin with the End in Mind
Covey coined this phrase in the 80′s. We’ve heard it. We know it. We understand it. Yet when it comes to getting results we can get lost in the minutiae of the tasks and busy work to get things done. So I ask you know to take a moment or two, more if you can, to picture the end you are trying to create.
- If you are trying to create more sales, what does that look like? How many clients will you be seeing a week or month? What kind of activity or product would you be selling? What price point do you want to be selling most? What will your bank account look like?
- If you are trying to create more balance, what does that look like? What will you say no to? What will you say yes to? How will you know the difference? What will your life in general look like if it were balanced? (You do know that only YOU can define what balance is for you, right?)
- If you are trying to increase your impact, what does that look like? What circles would you be in that you are not in now that would indicate your increase? Where would you be networking and at what level? Who would be recommending you?
This is a pretty short list. I encourage you to dream and dream big. Once you’ve imagined a future that excites you but is a little scary begin to work backwards until you get to this year. Then picture the next 90 days…and the 90 days after that. You have brilliance to bring to your world. You don’t serve anyone by getting tripped up by the mosquitoes.
I speak from experience. Both personally and professionally. I doubled my sales in one year already being a top performer. I was scared yet excited to be the first to receive the President’s award. I launched a consulting and training company 8 years ago. Did I know how to do this? Not exactly! Did I want something bigger than me? Did I struggle with self confidence? Yes. But I focused on the big picture. I began with the end in mind. Every time I hit a ceiling or want significant growth I go back to basics. This is a basic that I know works.
Make 2010 your year to connect and thrive. The economy is making it’s way back to a new type of normal and there are customers out there that need you! Decide now if you will be the one to serve them or if it will be your competitor who is taking the time to do what it takes!
I’ve decided for me…this is my time for a Quantum Leap*. My first leap was in 1985 which produced the book “The Busy People’s Guide to Getting Unstuck”. My next leap was in 2000 which led me to launch Connectworks. It’s time! Is it your time too?
I believe in you.
*What is a Quantum Leap?
In physics, a quantum leap or jump is the change of an electron from one energy state to another within an atom. It is discontinuous; electrons jump from one energy level to another instantaneously, with no intervening or intermediary condition. The phenomenon contradicts classical theories, which expect energy levels to be continuous. Quantum leaps are the sole cause of the emission of electromagnetic radiation, including light, which occurs in the form of quantized units called photons.
Ironically, when laymen use the term colloquially, they use it to describe large jumps in progress, when in reality a quantum leap is a very small change of state. Note from Kathie: It is the small change that can take you from one energy level to another instantaneously that can affect significant change.
------------------To your success!
Kathie Nelson
http://www.KathieNelson.com