The Sykes Group's OnPoint

“Goals can give you power in your life.  A person or an organization without a goal is powerless.” – Lewis Timberlake

What is a goal you most want to accomplish in 2012? What resolutions are you going to keep this year? Are you in the process of goal setting to stay on track this year?

It’s 2012 and another year is upon us. Just like every other year, you may have set lofty goals, resolutions, and gone through an extensive goal setting exercise. Did you achieve your goals or were you sidetracked?

The following goal setting techniques will help you create powerful goals, realistic resolutions, and help you take action to achieving your goals:

1. Be SMARTER with your Goals

Make your goals:

• Specific
• Motivational
• Action-oriented
• Relevant to your situation
• Time-bound
• Encouraging
• Rewarding

For example, “I will increase my sales by 15% compared to last year.” Be as specific about your goal as possible. “I will start my own catering business” is a lot stronger than “I want to go into business for myself.” Challenging goals are motivating. Set goals that will push beyond what you usually think you can accomplish. Remember to set a deadline. A goal without a deadline is simply a dream. Attach a realistic yet challenging deadline for accomplishment and post this where you can review it regularly.

2. Visualize your goals. Take 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes just before you go to bed; find a quiet place; close your eyes and relax, and visualize yourself actually achieving your goals. Remember the more senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, etc.) you can involve, the more real your visualization becomes. I ask during my seminars, “Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real that you woke up in the middle of it?” Well the reason for that is the subconscious mind is at work involving all of those senses to trick you into believing the dream is real. Well, you don’t have to wait; work at visualizing your goals today.

3. Phrase your goals in the present tense and assume success. Don’t say, “I want to.” Say, “I will.” This subtle technique tells your subconscious that you have already achieved your goal, which means it will work at helping the goal become a reality. It will attract the people, places, and situations you need to achieve that goal.

4. Put your goals in writing. This simple act helps you clarify your goals and will allow you to visualize them more effectively. I recommend that you record each goal on a separate index card and review them twice a day – once in the morning (when you first wake up) and again before you go to bed. Post index cards where you spend the most time; on the bathroom mirror, on the frig., on your nightstand, etc. This process reinforces your goals, acts as a reminder, and drives your goals deep into your subconscious. In fact, this is one of the most powerful strategies you can use to achieve your targets.

5. List the benefits you intend to receive by achieving each goal. This will keep you focused and strong, particularly when you face the inevitable roadblocks and barriers. In June, when I chose to lose 20 pounds, I listed 12 benefits, and when I had the urge to put butter on my veggies or help myself to a second serving of food, I would review this list to help me get past that craving. I lost the 22 pounds and two inches around my waistline to date. I think I will go for another 10 pounds. This was not a diet, just a lifestyle change. The more benefits you can list for your goals, the more motivating those goals will become.

So my challenge to you to is to take the time to plan your goals. Start with one goal and visualize it, write it down, and act on it. As I always say, “If you don’t invest the time to set goals then someone else will do it for you. And I guarantee you won’t like their goals.” Invest the time, start today!

“The person who succeeds is not the one who holds back, fearing failure, not the one who nevers fails…but rather the one who moves on in spite of failure.” Charles Swindoll. Keep moving forward!

The following are ten motivation action steps you can take to motivate yourself in work, business, and life:

1. Positive Affirmations for Success – Our subconscious mind is a wonderful tool for success or failure. It will do what we tell it to do. It all depends on what thoughts we feed it. So why not feed your inner mind with only positive thoughts. The following are some examples of positive affirmations you can feed your inner mind for success:

• “Today, I will win because I have faith, courage and enthusiasm.”
• “I see failure only as a signpost on my road to success.”
• “When I feel stress, I will relax and release my stress before I take on my next task.”
• “I always write down my priorities, thinking of my responsibilities. I may not get everything done, but I will do the most productive thing possible at every given moment.”
• “I am a winner, I work for a winning organization, and because of my contribution and cooperation we will keep on winning.”
• “Today, I will see opportunity in every challenge offered to me.”

2. Positive Language for Success – Recent research has come out that 75% of daily conversation is negative. Whether it is the words we use or the body language, we need to communicate in a positive manner all the time.

The following are some examples of how you can turn negative words into positive communication:

• Instead of saying “problem,” call it “opportunity.”
• Instead of an action being a “failure,” describe it as a “learning experience.”
• Instead of “I have to,” say “I choose to.” This gives control for your actions back to you.
• Instead of saying, “There’s nothing I can do,” say, “Let’s look at our alternatives.”
• Instead of saying, “That’s just the way I am,” say, “I choose a different approach.”
• Instead of saying, “He makes me so mad,” say, “I control my own feelings.”
• If you notice, by using the positive response, you have control over your actions and life.

3. Exercise for Success – A Gallup survey found the following among men and women who have taken up exercise recently:

• 66 percent report a more relaxed life
• 62 percent a new surge of energy
• 55 percent less stress
• 51 percent better looks
• 46 percent more confidence
• 45 percent better love life
• 44 percent greater job satisfaction
• 37 percent more creative on their jobs

You can read the rest of the article at Success Steps.
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“A successful person is one who can build a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him.” - David Brinkley

Are you creating your foundation of success? Are you motivated to take on challenges that others are not willing to do? The following is a story of someone who did and achieved great success in his life and how you can, too!

There once was a young man who grew up in Crawford, Mississippi. His father worked as a brick mason building home foundations. Everyday after school and during the summers, this young man would help his father build foundations. It’s not the most glamorous job by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s an honest, backbreaking, and low paying job that put food on the table and paid the bills. The father would start by throwing bricks towards the son in the area where they would build a housing foundation. Under the hot, sweltering Mississippi sun, his son would catch brick after brick with his hands, day after day. While most other kids were enjoying their summers or working in less strenuous jobs, this young man was motivated to work long and hard with his father, while catching those bricks and building a foundation for success in more ways than one.

You see, each time that young man caught bricks, he was not only making his hands stronger, he was building character and the foundation for success in his later years. With each brick he caught, he was even more determined to be successful in life. When he wasn’t helping his father and going to school, he was pushing himself through football workouts to be better than any other football player. You see the young man’s name is Jerry Rice, and he went on to become the most successful NFL All-Pro wide receiver of all time with the San Francisco 49ers. Some of you non-football fans may know him as a contestant from the television program, “Dancing with the Stars.”

The following are the six success secrets that Jerry Rice used that can easily motivate you to achieve success in any aspect of your business, career, and life:

1. Motivate Yourself to See Opportunities in Every Challenge – Jerry could have looked at the job of catching bricks as a chore that was a waste of his time. But he saw the big picture and made the chore more enjoyable by developing games out of the activities. Many times in life, we are thrown bricks and complain and miss the opportunity it presents to us. The person who can find solutions in the challenges they are faced with can write their own ticket for success. When you take on a challenge, it’s preparing you for an opportunity in the future. You may not know when the opportunity is coming, how it is coming, or what the opportunity will look like, but it is coming; and will you be prepared? Embrace your challenges so you will be prepared.
2. Motivate Yourself to See That It’s Normal to Experience a Little Pain – As Jerry was experiencing the pain of catching bricks each day, this pain was actually building him to becoming a stronger person. Each brick was fueling Jerry’s internal desire to be successful. Think of some situation at work, in business, or in life that was painful. Your pain may be an embarrassing moment, it may be a learning experience, and it may be a setback. How can you use this setback to motivate you to become more successful? We achieve success in our businesses, careers, and life when we develop the success tools of using our “pains” as a learning experience and a springboard to success.
3. Motivate Yourself to Take on Unpopular Tasks - Catching bricks all day is not the most glamorous job in the world. Many times we are thrown bricks in life and avoid them like the plague. Volunteer to catch these bricks while others decline. This will allow people of influence to see your special skills and offer you opportunities for success. It is what I always say, “It’s not what you know, it’s not who you know, it’s who knows what you know.” When you volunteer to catch those bricks, you allow others to now know and see the special skills and talent you exhibit. (Read the rest of the article at Bricks of Success)

“Plan for the future, because that is where you are going to spend the rest of your life.” - Mark Twain

Another year is upon us and you have your list of resolutions or goals you want to accomplish in the upcoming year.  It’s time to plan your goals so that it’s not just another conversation this year, but a focused plan for success.  I will share with you five goal setting techniques guaranteed to help you achieve more out of life.  Use the goal setting techniques listed below to help you achieve your targets:

1.      Be SMARTER with your Goals.

Make your goals:

Specific

Motivational

Action-oriented

Relevant to your situation

Time-bound

Encouraging

Rewarding

For example, “I will increase my sales by 15% compared to last year.” Be as specific about your goal as possible. “I will start my own catering business” is a lot stronger than “I want to go into business for myself.” Challenging goals are motivating. Set goals that will push beyond what you usually think you can accomplish. Remember to set a deadline. A goal without a deadline is simply a dream. Attach a realistic yet challenging deadline for accomplishment and post this where you can review it regularly.

2.      Visualize your goals. Take 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes just before you go to bed; find a quiet place; close your eyes and relax, and visualize yourself actually achieving your goals.  Remember the more senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, etc.) you can involve, the more real your visualization becomes.  I ask during my seminars, “Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real that you woke up in the middle of it?”  Well the reason for that is the subconscious mind is at work involving all of those senses to trick you into believing the dream is real.  Well, you don’t have to wait; work at visualizing your goals today.

3.      Phrase your goal in the present tense and assume success. Don’t say, “I want to.” Say, “I will.” This subtle technique tells your subconscious that you have already achieved your goal, which means it will work at helping the goal become a reality. It will attract the people, places, and situations you need to achieve that goal.

4.      Put your goals in writing. This simple act helps you clarify your goals and will allow you to visualize them more effectively. I recommend that you record each goal on a separate index card and review them twice a day – once in the morning (when you first wake up) and again before you go to bed. Post index cards where you spend the most time; on the bathroom mirror, on the frig., on your nightstand, etc.   This process reinforces your goals, acts as a reminder, and drives your goals deep into your subconscious. In fact, this is one of the most powerful strategies you can use to achieve your targets.

5.      List the benefits you intend to receive by achieving each goal. This will keep you focused and strong, particularly when you face the inevitable roadblocks and barriers. In June, when I chose to lose 20 pounds, I listed 12 benefits, and when I had the urge to put butter on my veggies or help myself to a second serving of food, I would review this list to help me get past that craving. I lost the 22 pounds and two inches around my waistline to date.  I think I will go for another 10 pounds.  This was not a diet, just a lifestyle change.  The more benefits you can list for your goals, the more motivating those goals will become.

So my challenge to you to is to take the time to plan your goals.  Start with one goal and visualize it, write it down, and act on it.  As I always say, “If you don’t invest the time to set goals then someone else will do it for you.  And I guarantee you won’t like their goals.”  Invest the time, start today! (For additional goal-setting success tools, go to Focus)

“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.”  How many doors will you build today?

First, make sure there isn’t a door of opportunity. Many times the door may not be apparent to you. Many times the door may not be attractive However, it is there for you to walk through. You must take the first step.

If the door of opportunity is not there, take the necessary steps to create opportunities for success. How? Ask yourself the following questions:

• What is an opportunity that is available that others are not taking advantage of yet?
• What actions can I take that I haven’t taken before that will create opportunities for me?
• How can I serve others?

If you can answer these basis questions, you are well on the way to walking through the door of opportunity!