Did you know that the keys to success in business and life are the same? It’s true! You will often hear us saying “being a good leader is mostly about being a good person”, and this is a great example. The business is always a reflection of the leadership. Therefor, working on yourSELF becomes more important than working on the mechanics such as HR, operations, financials and marketing (don’t get us wrong, those are important too!)
If you conduct yourself in your personal life the same way you do in your business life, you’ll be seen as consistent, generous, and supportive. More importantly, if you follow these keys to success, you will live a more authentic, happier, more fulfilled life AND your business will improve.
Here are five keys to success in business and life:
1. Control your focus!
Focus is the foundation for everything. If you aren’t able to focus on the right things, you simply won’t be able to accomplish much because you won’t be able to stay on task. You will never achieve your goals and dreams if you are losing your focus regularly and paying attention to things that do not matter.
Daniel Goleman wrote a book called “Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence.” In it, he explains that all high achievers are able to maintain a high level of focus. They can ignore external distractions, they know how to set goals and stick to them, and they know how to be present and aware in whatever situation they find themselves in.
You must learn to focus on long term success, rather than short term pleasure. To attain your goals you have to constantly pursue them! You must also learn to focus on what’s RIGHT rather than what’s wrong. Placing a strong emphasis on the positives, rather than the negatives will help reinforce for you that you are making progress. Finally, you must focus on your GOALS and who you want to BE, not gossip and other time wasters. Anything that takes you away from your target is wasting your time!
2. Look INSIDE
Take accountability and responsibility. There is power “in here” but no power “out there” (when you blame others). Apologize whenever possible, as quickly as possible. Taking responsibility for YOUR PART in any situation takes down walls with relationships, staff, clients, etc. “Start with sorry” in every coaching situation. There is always something you could have done better. Identify it and be accountable for it. Once you’ve done that, you can begin the process of developing or improving your business practices; until you’ve taken responsibility however, you can’t move things forward and have no power to make changes, because you cannot change others. The power lies with looking inside, you will always find the solution there.
3. Be Compassionate
Realize others are suffering and hurting and don’t hate them. Be compassionate! It is always possible to be kind, and it is the right thing to do. You will never feel badly for treating someone with compassion and kindness, but you will feel awful when you treat other unkindly.
Amy Morin, writing for Forbes, notes that compassion in the workplace can have many positive benefits for your business. Among the advantages she gives are better employee retention, reduced stress, and improved health. All these things reduce costs and increase productivity, making your company more profitable!
4. WORK ON YOURSELF!
There are so many ways to grow yourself personally and professionally. We live in a magical time where there is unlimited FREE information online, books, courses, coaching etc.
Commit to setting aside one hour per day to personal or professional development. Read a book,
take a course, read this blog! Successful business people and successful people in their personal lives constantly seek to improve themselves, to become a little better tomorrow than they are today.
Journalling to integrate all of the things you learn is an ultra-important part of your morning. You set yourself up for the day with journaling, and being intentional, instead of reacting to whatever comes up, like most people.
Every small gain builds on all the others—what a difference it will make to the success of your business and your life if you work on yourself!
5. Self-awareness
You must be observant of your feelings, thoughts and actions. You must find out how others see you. And you must be aware of patterns and work on yourself.
The way you act and react creates change in the world, sometimes good, sometimes, bad. If you lack self-awareness, you could go through life leaving a mess behind you and never know it! Goleman says in the Telegraph, “[Leaders] who have high self-awareness tend to have at least 10 or 12 competencies, while those who are low have one or two. The effectiveness and productivity of that person, and those who work for them, goes up and down accordingly.”
Know when you need help. One way to get a sense of this is to rate everything you can think of on a 1-10 scale: health, relationships, finances, etc., and be honest. If you can teach yourself to become aware of your weaknesses, you can do something about it!
TMH Business Coaching helps business owners with personal development, leadership, marketing, sales, profitability, staffing, employee retention, customer and staff satisfaction. If you feel you are ready to make some positive changes to your business model to get the most out of your company and your life, contact TMH Business Coaching today for a confidential, free, no obligation consultation to propel you forward. Also, please feel free to add yourself to our weekly coaching tips email!
