Friday, January 26, 2007
HIGH TRUST Sales
Trust. As the foundation of the sales relationship, this elusive quality can make or break your career. In only a few contacts with a prospective client, how can you successfully lay the groundwork for a trusting and mutually productive relationship?
At High Trust Selling, you'll receive invaluable insights to help you earn the trust of your clients and cultivate profitable, long-term relationships with them. The principles you receive will propel you into a lucrative sales career that is both personally and professionally rewarding.
Based on the 14 principles developed by sales expert Todd Duncan in his bestselling book, High Trust Selling, our world-class facilitators will shed light upon surefire secrets for sales success. Learn to earn more while working less, triple your income by cutting your client list in half, and establish customer loyalty that leads to repeat business.
OVERVIEW
What if you could craft a training program to increase your sales revenue while simultaneously working fewer hours and shortening your client lists? Maximum Impact has the answer in a new training workshop: High Trust Selling
Todd Duncan says, "The success you achieve is directly related to the steps you conceive." At High Trust Selling, our accomplished sales trainers will help you create a personalized roadmap for a less stressful, yet highly productive schedule. Having a crystal-clear success plan will clarify the steps you must take each day to reach your goals. We have found that daily behavior is where the great salespeople and their companies realize their most rewarding gains.
Miles beyond self-directed study, marginal video enrichment, or the large impersonal group settings you may be used to, you'll find High Trust Selling to be a powerful perspective on the most urgent needs of today's salesperson.
It provides an opportunity for you to interact with other sales professionals who are as intentional about personal and professional growth as you are. Together you'll work on understanding the core competencies of high trust selling at all levels while developing a Personal Action Plan to translate these new discoveries into behaviors which have a measurable impact on your relational and financial success.
PLEASE LEARN about :
1. Where most sales training focuses exclusively on sales technique, High Trust Selling spotlights the allimportant element of trust in the sales relationship.
2. Deliver a higher level of service to your clients, and stress less while doing it.
3. Maximize profits by targeting high profit, low maintenance customers.
4. Enjoy more vacation and fewer hours in the office as you incorporate timesaving methods to work more efficiently.
5. Capture "make or break" concepts through purposeful facilitator-led exercises.
6. Offer trustworthy solutions to your prospects as you learn to meet their areas of greatest need in a way that appeals to their core values.
7. Interact with peers through discussions designed to connect general sales principles to your specific work environment.
8. Benefit from the personal attention you receive as the average attendee-to-facilitator ratio will be 25:1
9. Captivate customers by finetuning your approach with strategies drawn from Todd Duncan's proven high trust interview.
10. Create a PERSONAL ACTION PLAN to ensure behavioral change-nearly 80% of what is learned in training environments is lost because it is not implemented and applied with consistency or accountability.
2. Deliver a higher level of service to your clients, and stress less while doing it.
3. Maximize profits by targeting high profit, low maintenance customers.
4. Enjoy more vacation and fewer hours in the office as you incorporate timesaving methods to work more efficiently.
5. Capture "make or break" concepts through purposeful facilitator-led exercises.
6. Offer trustworthy solutions to your prospects as you learn to meet their areas of greatest need in a way that appeals to their core values.
7. Interact with peers through discussions designed to connect general sales principles to your specific work environment.
8. Benefit from the personal attention you receive as the average attendee-to-facilitator ratio will be 25:1
9. Captivate customers by finetuning your approach with strategies drawn from Todd Duncan's proven high trust interview.
10. Create a PERSONAL ACTION PLAN to ensure behavioral change-nearly 80% of what is learned in training environments is lost because it is not implemented and applied with consistency or accountability.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
The LAWS of Teamwork
Teamwork. Why do some teams struggle to survive while others easily excel?
Today's work environment takes a heavy toll on individuals and on the teams on which they work. Efforts to increase productivity routinely push team members outside of defined job descriptions and beyond personal comfort levels. The drive for efficiency requires today's managers and supervisors to do more with less. While workloads and standards of quality rise, fewer resources and fewer staff are available to meet the challenge. Declining job stability and higher employee turnover place additional strain on teams as managers and team members must adjust to growing demands.
How can today's teams overcome the challenges of the modern workplace to perform with excellence?
Based on the proven work of best-selling author, speaker, and entrepreneur Dr. John C. Maxwell, The Laws of Teamwork teaches a framework on which you can build a dynamic team culture. Each participant will learn what it takes to be a valuable team player and an exceptional team leader. Drawing from research and the team-building experiences of John C. Maxwell, The Laws of Teamwork are proven principles to guide your team toward it's goals. Teamwork is a prerequisite for success, and investing in your teams will yield enormous benefits for your entire organization.
OVERVIEW
What if you could craft a training program to truly meet the ongoing complexities of management while simultaneously equipping employees with essential teamwork skills? Maximum Impact has the answer in a new training workshop: Laws of Teamwork.
As John Maxwell explains in The Law of Dividends, "Investing in the team compounds over time." Devote resources and attention to your team today, and reap benefits of higher morale and greater cooperation that will exponentially increase productivity over time.
A company cannot be greater than the sum of its parts, and healthy businesses are founded upon healthy teams. An organization truly excels when executive leadership learns the importance of shaping successful teams and empowering the managers who lead them. Whereas most corporate training focuses on job knowledge and management skills, Maximum Impact Training targets the practices and predictable behaviors of great teams.
Miles beyond self-directed study, marginal video enrichment, or the large impersonal group settings you may be used to, you'll find the Laws of Teamwork Training Workshop to be a breath of fresh air in truly helping you build a team that works together with great synergy.
It provides an opportunity for you and your people to interact with other team leaders and team members who are just as passionate about personal and professional growth as you are. Together you'll work on understanding the core competencies of successful teamwork at all levels while developing a strategy to translate these new discoveries into behaviors which have a measurable impact on your entire organization.
PLEASE LEARN about :
We will take you through a step-by-step process to help you understand where you are in your teambuilding journey and help you build a plan to get you where you want to go.
The highly interactive workshop will help you understand your teambuilding behaviors and help you build a devoted and committed team.
The Laws of TeamworkTM Two-Day Workshop is the perfect solution to help develop better teams. This concentrated classroom style setting is suitable for team leaders and team players to understand the framework that makes the best teams who they are.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
Leadership Development
"WINNING TEAMS ARE SELDOM MORE TALENTED THAN LOSING TEAMS, BUT THEY ARE ALWAYS MORE COMMITED"
John C. Maxwell
John C. Maxwell
Your organization's ability to grow is directly tied to your ability and desire to grow personally as a leader. That is the Law of the Lid. If you want to reach new level of effectiveness in your job, raise your lid. If you want to grow your company, grow your lid. If you want to increase shareholder value, increase your lid.
Maximum Impact offers a leadership workshop based on the teachings of best-selling author Dr. John C. Maxwell that is designed to do just that - raise your Leadership Lid. With over 7 million books sold, Maxwell translates the complex topic of leadership into simple, everyday language that can be applied and practiced in any organization.
In our workshop, we focus on not just learning leadership but understanding how it applies to your unique situation in your business. This allows the adult learner to instantly transfer leadership principles back into the real world where you can make an immediate impact.
Based on the best-selling book by John C. Maxwell, the Developing the Leader Within You workshop teaches you and your associates how to implement the behaviors of successful leadership.
Maximum Impact offers a leadership workshop based on the teachings of best-selling author Dr. John C. Maxwell that is designed to do just that - raise your Leadership Lid. With over 7 million books sold, Maxwell translates the complex topic of leadership into simple, everyday language that can be applied and practiced in any organization.
In our workshop, we focus on not just learning leadership but understanding how it applies to your unique situation in your business. This allows the adult learner to instantly transfer leadership principles back into the real world where you can make an immediate impact.
Based on the best-selling book by John C. Maxwell, the Developing the Leader Within You workshop teaches you and your associates how to implement the behaviors of successful leadership.
OVERVIEW
While most training focuses on Job Knowledge and Management Skills, Maximum Impact's workshops target the practices and predictable behaviors of great leadership.
The workshop overlays proven leadership behaviors with a clear path of how to development those leadership behaviors.
There is a very specific model to lead people that results in the highest levels of commitment. We call this model the Five Levels of Leadership. The Five Levels of Leadership provides a path that demonstrates which leadership behaviors need to be focused on and when. Most leaders spend exorbitant amounts of time leading efforts and initiatives, but do not have the full commitment from those they are leading. The reason behind this dilemma, and what you can do about it, is captured in the Five Levels of Leadership.
Our Developing the Leader Within workshop teaches leaders how to apply the Five Levels of Leadership into their specific daily actions allowing the commitment of those they are leading to reach new levels.
PLEASE LEARN about :
1. How to gain commitment from everyone you work with regardless of your title.
2. How to evaluate workplace relationships for maximum productivity.
3. How to lead with integrity and earn the respect of your co-workers while getting the job done. 4. How to track leadership results through the values chain.
5. How to influence the most persuasive person in your organization.
6. How using your title or position is much as an advantage as it is a disadvantage.
7. The one principle you must follow before developing someone else.
8. How to align a team towards a common direction.
9. How your attitude as a leader sets the tone for everything you touch.
10. How to motivate the unmotivated.
11. The 5 steps that successful leaders use to develop other people.
12. How to get your team on the same page in spite of workplace differences.
13. How to ignite passion and energy into your work and into those you lead.
14. How to resolve a business issue when you do not have the answer, but are being held accountable for an answer.
15. How to achieve results through relationships.
17. How to create and communicate a vision regardless of your level within an organization
ACTION PLANNING
Nothing is more important than transferring what you learn in the classroom back to your work environment. That is why we purposely schedule time during the workshop for you to create your own Leadership Action Plan. Our facilitator will walk you through a process so that you capture the most critical steps you need to take to become a better leader.
Result : A plan that is easily transferred into specific actions that you can implement your first day back on the job.
Please read and focus on Observable and Measurable Behaviors . This means we start with the end goal in mind. If you want to work on gaining a greater level of commitment from those you lead, we will help you write your Leadership Action Plan accordingly. If you need to improve how and when you empower others, then your action plan will specifically spell out how to observe and measure that behavior.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
360' Leadership
360' LEADER OVERVIEW:
In dispelling the Myths of Leading from the Middle of an Organization, John C. Maxwell states that in a typical company, “99 percent of all leadership occurs not from the top, but from the middle.” Ironically, leadership training has almost exclusively targeted leaders at the executive level. The importance of middle management has been overlooked and undervalued.
The 360° Leader™ workshop spotlights the necessity of solid leadership in the all-important positions responsible for interpreting and implementing an organization’s vision and mission. This powerful training experience empowers leaders to exercise their influence upward upon superiors, across to their fellow management, and down to the team members they supervise.
The common denominator of thriving companies is the presence of competent leaders at every level of their organizational structures. Invest in the leadership potential of your personnel and reap the benefits of skilled management that is responsive to change, continuously improving, and consistently delivering results.
PLEASE LEARN about:
1. Unearth time-proven principles to enable you to gain influence with superiors, earn respect from colleagues, and inspire excellence from followers.
2. Become a valued problem-solver by learning how to communicate to leadership what they need to hear, not what they want to hear.
3. Discover how to anticipate the needs of upper level leadership and craft solutions to meet them.
4. Gain the reputation of a go-to player by assuming responsibility for tough assignments.
5. Sharpen your analysis of current business models to reduce workloads through greater efficiency and simpler processes.
6. Win the admiration of co-workers by identifying ways to add value to them and contribute to their projects.
7. Master productive thinking: ideas are the lifeblood of the organization.
8. Learn to invest heavily in those you lead—leadership is primarily a people business.
9. Benefit from the personal attention you receive as the average attendee-to-facilitator ratio will be 25:1.
ACTION PLAN
Nothing is more important than transferring what you learn in the classroom back to your work environment. That is why we purposely schedule time during the workshop for you to create your own Leadership Action Plan. Our facilitator will walk you through a process so that you capture the most critical steps you need to take to become a better leader. Result : A plan that is easily transferred into specific actions that you can implement your first day back on the job.You have already read that we focus on Observable and Measurable Behaviors. This means we start with the end goal in mind. If you want to work on gaining a greater level of commitment from those you lead, we will help you write your Leadership Action Plan accordingly. If you need to improve how and when you empower others, then your action plan will specifically spell out how to observe and measure that behavior.
The name workshop says it all. While our two-day workshops are led by an engaging Maximum Impact Facilitator, you'll soon realize this is not just a sit-and-soak event. You'll roll up your sleeves and participate unlike any other training program before.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
Leadership WINDOWS
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
I'm 40 Years Old and Counting
When you celebrate your 40th birthday, you’ve supposedly gone “over the hill.” You’re past your prime and beginning to show signs of age. When we crossed “over the hill,” we gave a lesson entitled, “I’m 40 and Counting.” In it, 10 things recommended you should have in place before turning 40 as follow:
1. Know Yourself
2. Settle Your Family Life
3. Determine Your Priorities
4. Develop Your Philosophy
5. Get Physically Fit
6. Learn Your Trade
7. Pay the Price
8. Develop Strong Relationships
9. Prepare for the Future
10. Find God’s Will
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
1. Know Yourself
2. Settle Your Family Life
3. Determine Your Priorities
4. Develop Your Philosophy
5. Get Physically Fit
6. Learn Your Trade
7. Pay the Price
8. Develop Strong Relationships
9. Prepare for the Future
10. Find God’s Will
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
I'm 50 Years Old and Reflecting
A decade ago, in 1996, I crossed into the 50’s, and wrote the lesson, “I’m 50 and Reflecting.” In it, I looked back at the 10 most valuable lessons I had learned over the course of my life;
1. The Naivety of Youth and Its Potential
2. The Hot Poker Principle: Stay close to the people and things that keep you passionate.
3. Stay With Your Strengths
4. Appreciate the Differences of People
5. The Importance of Leadership
6. The Value of Daily Discipline
7. A True Definition of Success: Knowing my purpose in life, growing to my maximum potential,
and sowing seeds that benefit others.
8. To Take Time for Myself
9. The Benefits of Adversity
10. God’s Goodness and Grace Over Me
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
1. The Naivety of Youth and Its Potential
2. The Hot Poker Principle: Stay close to the people and things that keep you passionate.
3. Stay With Your Strengths
4. Appreciate the Differences of People
5. The Importance of Leadership
6. The Value of Daily Discipline
7. A True Definition of Success: Knowing my purpose in life, growing to my maximum potential,
and sowing seeds that benefit others.
8. To Take Time for Myself
9. The Benefits of Adversity
10. God’s Goodness and Grace Over Me
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
I am 60 Yeras Old and Compounding
I'm 60 and Compounding
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
I recently celebrated my 60th birthday and found myself thinking about aging. It seems the older you get, the more life comes into focus. As leaders, aging allows us to separate the important from the unimportant, to appreciate more and reach for less, and to allow those who are younger to step up to the plate and learn their lessons.
In this edition of Leadership Wired, you’ll find a summary of my thoughts after turning 40 and 50, but I’d like to focus upon my reflections after reaching 60 years of age.
I’m 60 & Compounding
Turning sixty, I look at my life and realize that I’m slowing down. I don’t have the energy I once had, and I simply can’t do as much as I once could. However, I also find that I’m entering a “compounding stage” in my life. I’m profiting from the investments I made when I was younger, and I’m watching them earn interest and steadily grow in value. I’m reaping the benefits of decisions which I made early in life and continue to manage to this day.
What Is Compounding In My Life?
1. Relationships
Through the years, I’ve tried to see the best side of people. Looking closely, we can flaws and defects in every person, but our relationships have a richer quality when we search for strength and beauty in the lives around us. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Every man is entitled to be valued by his best moments.”
I’ve sought to relate on a heart to heart level with those around me. The dreams and passions stored within hearts are powerful keys which can unlock a wealth of potential. To understand the mind of a person look at what he has already achieved, but to understand the heart of a person look at what he aspires yet to do.
Over the course of my life I’ve built bridges with those around me. I’ve stayed connected with others, linked my friends with helpful contacts from my network, and refused to allow conflicts to sabotage my friendships. According to Joseph F. Newton, “People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.” Opening ourselves to others yields a satisfaction that’s missed when we surround ourselves with defenses.
I’ve consistently strived to give more than I receive. Keeping score is for games, not friendships. Avoid feeling entitled when you give, and don’t be too proud to accept when another person acts generously toward you.
I’ve tried to live for others. One is a little number, and when we live only for ourselves we lead small and shallow lives. Selfishness is a destructive disease with unpleasant symptoms. I agree with Helen Keller: “Life is an exciting business and most exciting when lived for others.”
2. Influence
Leadership is influence—nothing more, nothing less.
According to Jim Collins, the total number of philosophers who are significant in world history is approximately 135 to 500 persons; the smaller number if we take only the major figures in each world civilization; the larger one if we add secondary figures. Even if we add the minor figures in all of the networks, in all of the civilizations, the total is 2,700. In sum, between 150 and 3,000 people (a tiny fraction of the roughly 23 billion people living between 600 BC and 1900 AD) framed the major contours of world civilization. Clearly, the transformations here were top-down.
My focus has been to influence the influencers in the main areas of influence: religion, economics, government, family, media, education, sports. In my early years as a pastor, I had significant influence within church circles, but little elsewhere. As I’ve grown as a leader, I’ve learned to branch out and add value in additional areas.
3. Time
At 60, life begins to resemble a roll of toilet paper—the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes. At 51, a heart attack helped me to understand the precious value of the time. Lying in the hospital, I remember thinking I had so much more to do, so much I wanted to give, but I didn’t know how much time I had remaining. Today matters more than we’ll ever know. Each second is a gift, and every day a treasured opportunity.
4. Perspective
As you get older, time speeds up but life slows down. The best way I know to explain this concept is through a sports analogy. In football, the decisions of the quarterback determine the effectiveness of the offense. When a college quarterbacks transition to the pros, they often go through a rough stretch, as they adjust to the faster pace of play. However, after a few years of experience, the game “slows down” for the quarterback as he is able to speed up his decision-making. Aging is similar. Even though everything around you appears to pick up speed, you can process experiences and prioritize what’s important more easily than ever before.
Perspective thoughts at 60:
(1) Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.
(2) Look at everything as though you might be seeing it for the first time and the last time.
The “First Time” look provides curiosity, excitement, anticipation, and learning. The “Last Time” look provides gratitude, memories, appreciation, and reflection.
(3) Separate the important from the unimportant. (4) Laugh at yourself … everyone else is!
5. Giving
George Burns said it well: “When you stop giving and offering something to the rest of the world, it’s time to turn out the lights.” The worth of our lives comes by what we give. What we keep, we squander. Look for ways to impart value, be generous with encouragement, and hand out hope to those you lead.
6. LegacyAs a leader, when you hit 60, you start to see your legacy being formed.
To leave an indelible legacy in the lives around you, I would suggest three activities:
(1) Choose today the legacy you want to leave others.
People will summarize your life in one sentence–pick it now! Don’t make your friends and family guess at your life’s purpose at your funeral.The forming of my one sentence began late in the 1960’s and evolved into my life-sentence today. Here is the sequence:
“I want to be a great pastor.”“I want to be a great communicator.”“I want to be a great writer.”“I want to be a great leader.”
As my world expanded my one sentence changed. I looked at my previous statements and realized that my true desire was to not to be great, but to add value to others. For a few years my one sentence was “I want to add value to people.” That statement evolved until I picked one sentence that I hope others will believe about me now and at my death.
“I want to add value to leaders who will multiply value to others.”
(2) Live today the legacy you want to leave.
Dr. Anthony Campolo tells about a sociological study in which fifty people over the age of ninety-five were asked one question: “If you could live your life over again, what would you do differently?” The open-ended question was met with a multiplicity of answers from the respondents, however, three answers emerged to dominate the results of the study:
1. If I had it to do over again, I would reflect more.
2. If I had it to do over again, I would risk more.
3. If I had it to do over again, I would do more things that would live on after I am dead.
(3) Appreciate today the value of a good legacy.
A life is short; history is long. Spend your life on pursuits that will outlive you. Elton Trueblood wrote, “We have made at least a start in discovering the meaning in human life when we plant shade trees under which we know full well we will never sit.”
Why Is My Life Compounding?
1. Attitude
The secret of positive compounding is contributing more than consuming. I approach each day with the attitude that my success is determined by the seeds I sow, not the harvest I reap.
2. Personal Growth
The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.
3. Strength Zone.
The only way to rise above average is to hone in on areas where you excel.
4. Teamwork
Teamwork makes the dream work. Your success depends upon those closest to you. Inspire a shared vision that binds you together for big dreams and audacious goals.
5. Partnerships
Mother Teresa, one of the greatest leaders of the 20th Century, embraced partnership with these words: “I can do what you cannot do and you can do what I cannot do. Together we can
do great things.”
6. Credibility
When you consistently combine character with competence, you establish credibility.
Closing Thoughts:
Life compounds positively or negatively. The choice is up to you. The age at which you make
your choices will determine the magnitude of the compounding;
1. Choices made during youth yield enormous compound interest.
2. Choices made in the middle of life earn a small degree of compound interest.
3. Choices put off until late in life don’t have time to compound.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
I recently celebrated my 60th birthday and found myself thinking about aging. It seems the older you get, the more life comes into focus. As leaders, aging allows us to separate the important from the unimportant, to appreciate more and reach for less, and to allow those who are younger to step up to the plate and learn their lessons.
In this edition of Leadership Wired, you’ll find a summary of my thoughts after turning 40 and 50, but I’d like to focus upon my reflections after reaching 60 years of age.
I’m 60 & Compounding
Turning sixty, I look at my life and realize that I’m slowing down. I don’t have the energy I once had, and I simply can’t do as much as I once could. However, I also find that I’m entering a “compounding stage” in my life. I’m profiting from the investments I made when I was younger, and I’m watching them earn interest and steadily grow in value. I’m reaping the benefits of decisions which I made early in life and continue to manage to this day.
What Is Compounding In My Life?
1. Relationships
Through the years, I’ve tried to see the best side of people. Looking closely, we can flaws and defects in every person, but our relationships have a richer quality when we search for strength and beauty in the lives around us. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Every man is entitled to be valued by his best moments.”
I’ve sought to relate on a heart to heart level with those around me. The dreams and passions stored within hearts are powerful keys which can unlock a wealth of potential. To understand the mind of a person look at what he has already achieved, but to understand the heart of a person look at what he aspires yet to do.
Over the course of my life I’ve built bridges with those around me. I’ve stayed connected with others, linked my friends with helpful contacts from my network, and refused to allow conflicts to sabotage my friendships. According to Joseph F. Newton, “People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.” Opening ourselves to others yields a satisfaction that’s missed when we surround ourselves with defenses.
I’ve consistently strived to give more than I receive. Keeping score is for games, not friendships. Avoid feeling entitled when you give, and don’t be too proud to accept when another person acts generously toward you.
I’ve tried to live for others. One is a little number, and when we live only for ourselves we lead small and shallow lives. Selfishness is a destructive disease with unpleasant symptoms. I agree with Helen Keller: “Life is an exciting business and most exciting when lived for others.”
2. Influence
Leadership is influence—nothing more, nothing less.
According to Jim Collins, the total number of philosophers who are significant in world history is approximately 135 to 500 persons; the smaller number if we take only the major figures in each world civilization; the larger one if we add secondary figures. Even if we add the minor figures in all of the networks, in all of the civilizations, the total is 2,700. In sum, between 150 and 3,000 people (a tiny fraction of the roughly 23 billion people living between 600 BC and 1900 AD) framed the major contours of world civilization. Clearly, the transformations here were top-down.
My focus has been to influence the influencers in the main areas of influence: religion, economics, government, family, media, education, sports. In my early years as a pastor, I had significant influence within church circles, but little elsewhere. As I’ve grown as a leader, I’ve learned to branch out and add value in additional areas.
3. Time
At 60, life begins to resemble a roll of toilet paper—the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes. At 51, a heart attack helped me to understand the precious value of the time. Lying in the hospital, I remember thinking I had so much more to do, so much I wanted to give, but I didn’t know how much time I had remaining. Today matters more than we’ll ever know. Each second is a gift, and every day a treasured opportunity.
4. Perspective
As you get older, time speeds up but life slows down. The best way I know to explain this concept is through a sports analogy. In football, the decisions of the quarterback determine the effectiveness of the offense. When a college quarterbacks transition to the pros, they often go through a rough stretch, as they adjust to the faster pace of play. However, after a few years of experience, the game “slows down” for the quarterback as he is able to speed up his decision-making. Aging is similar. Even though everything around you appears to pick up speed, you can process experiences and prioritize what’s important more easily than ever before.
Perspective thoughts at 60:
(1) Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.
(2) Look at everything as though you might be seeing it for the first time and the last time.
The “First Time” look provides curiosity, excitement, anticipation, and learning. The “Last Time” look provides gratitude, memories, appreciation, and reflection.
(3) Separate the important from the unimportant. (4) Laugh at yourself … everyone else is!
5. Giving
George Burns said it well: “When you stop giving and offering something to the rest of the world, it’s time to turn out the lights.” The worth of our lives comes by what we give. What we keep, we squander. Look for ways to impart value, be generous with encouragement, and hand out hope to those you lead.
6. LegacyAs a leader, when you hit 60, you start to see your legacy being formed.
To leave an indelible legacy in the lives around you, I would suggest three activities:
(1) Choose today the legacy you want to leave others.
People will summarize your life in one sentence–pick it now! Don’t make your friends and family guess at your life’s purpose at your funeral.The forming of my one sentence began late in the 1960’s and evolved into my life-sentence today. Here is the sequence:
“I want to be a great pastor.”“I want to be a great communicator.”“I want to be a great writer.”“I want to be a great leader.”
As my world expanded my one sentence changed. I looked at my previous statements and realized that my true desire was to not to be great, but to add value to others. For a few years my one sentence was “I want to add value to people.” That statement evolved until I picked one sentence that I hope others will believe about me now and at my death.
“I want to add value to leaders who will multiply value to others.”
(2) Live today the legacy you want to leave.
Dr. Anthony Campolo tells about a sociological study in which fifty people over the age of ninety-five were asked one question: “If you could live your life over again, what would you do differently?” The open-ended question was met with a multiplicity of answers from the respondents, however, three answers emerged to dominate the results of the study:
1. If I had it to do over again, I would reflect more.
2. If I had it to do over again, I would risk more.
3. If I had it to do over again, I would do more things that would live on after I am dead.
(3) Appreciate today the value of a good legacy.
A life is short; history is long. Spend your life on pursuits that will outlive you. Elton Trueblood wrote, “We have made at least a start in discovering the meaning in human life when we plant shade trees under which we know full well we will never sit.”
Why Is My Life Compounding?
1. Attitude
The secret of positive compounding is contributing more than consuming. I approach each day with the attitude that my success is determined by the seeds I sow, not the harvest I reap.
2. Personal Growth
The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.
3. Strength Zone.
The only way to rise above average is to hone in on areas where you excel.
4. Teamwork
Teamwork makes the dream work. Your success depends upon those closest to you. Inspire a shared vision that binds you together for big dreams and audacious goals.
5. Partnerships
Mother Teresa, one of the greatest leaders of the 20th Century, embraced partnership with these words: “I can do what you cannot do and you can do what I cannot do. Together we can
do great things.”
6. Credibility
When you consistently combine character with competence, you establish credibility.
Closing Thoughts:
Life compounds positively or negatively. The choice is up to you. The age at which you make
your choices will determine the magnitude of the compounding;
1. Choices made during youth yield enormous compound interest.
2. Choices made in the middle of life earn a small degree of compound interest.
3. Choices put off until late in life don’t have time to compound.
Any Comments or Inputs are welcome
