While personal development is an ongoing and necessary process for anyone that wants to achieve more, be more, or simply have more opportunities in life, it is not often enough that I have the fortune of being in the room with one of the great trainers in the world of personal development.
While there are too many to list, just a few of those that I enjoy reading their books, listening to their CDs and in general trying to learn all that I can, Brian Tracy, Zig Ziglar and John Maxwell are a few of my favorites. Last night had the rare fortune of being in the room where Brian Tracy gave a short presentation to a few hundred people. Wow!
Brian started off with some simply but important truths that I felt compelled to share with you today. However, before I get into Brian’s presentation let me point out a few things that all too often ambitious, but ill equiped new entreprenuers fail to realize. It does not matter if you are starting a brick and mortar business in a mall, you have just joined the BEST MLM opportunity of the century or you have been in the Network Marketing and Direct Sales industry for years.
Regardless of how you want to classify what you are doing there are some simple truths that are all to often ignored to the detriment of the business owner. You are now in a Leadership role, You are now in Sales (yes, you are in sales), Personal Development and Goal setting or the lack of will determine your success.
Many people that I work with seem to want to ignore the fact that they are now in a sales role. Being in sales is not a sin and it is not a bad thing…get over it (more on that later). Now that you have taken your future into your own hands you MUST make it a priority to learn on an ongoing consistent basis. Your personal development will directly impact your level of success. Accept the fact that learning is now a part of your life and begin to learn all that you can about: Leadership, Sales, Goal Setting, Time Management, Marketing, Network Marketing, Speaking, Social Media, just to name a few.
If you have never had written goals now is the time to start. Having a goal in you head or written down on a piece of paper that you put away somewhere and never look at again is not the idea either. Written goals with steps to achieve those goals and a time in which those goals will be completed are a must. As a friend of mine once told me your goals must be SMART goals.
- Specific
-Measurable
-Action Oriented
-Realistic
-Time Bound
While I have heard these things many times over I will confess that it was a great refresher to hear Brian Tracy talk about these very habits last night. As he pointed out near the start of his presentation 20% of the people in this world control 80% of the wealth. For the other 80% of the people they are always struggling to just get by. And, more importantly for the people in the 80% one of the biggest mistakes they have made is not making the decision to be in the 20%. Yes, you read it correctly simply making the decision to be in the TOP 20% of people with all of the wealth is an important first step.
Once you have made that decision to be in the top 20% you can sit at home watching television and hope that wealth simply comes knocking at your door. Now you have a goal…kind of. At this point you have to put some action with the decision to improve your current financial position. With the Internet and all that is available much of your learning can take place right online. As another option read books by all the greats (Brian Tracy, Zig Ziglar, John Maxwell, Robert Kiyosaki, etc, etc), listen to their CDs, and if at all possible attend presentations/seminars that they put on.
Next start putting your goals down in writing, with dates, and action steps required to achieve those goals. Will you miss your mark from time to time, Yes. Will you change the goals from time to time, Yes. Will you drop a goal completely from your list because it is no longer important, Yes. All of these things are an acceptable part of the process, because they are all a part of life. The important thing that you must realize is that the simple act of putting your goals in writing and reviewing them on a regular basis will put you in the top 5% of people. As Brian pointed out keep this cycle of improvement, goal writing and reviewing going and you will be amazed at how much of an impact it will have on your life. To include your financial status.
Chase Your Passion: Personally, I enjoy working w/ Small Biz Owners & Independent Business Professionals to attract new clients. 
