The Sykes Group's OnPoint

“Focus on the good today and make it great tomorrow. Focus on the challenges you had today and work to make them opportunities tomorrow!” - Ed Sykes

 Sometime the difference between long term success and failure is concentrating on what you did well today and making it great tomorrow and embracing your challenges and making them opportunities tomorrow.

“Wisdom is knowing what to do next, skill is knowing how to do it, and virtue is doing it.” - David Starr Jordan

We gain wisdom in our life when you are “tested by the fires” that challenge us throughout life.  We develop our success skills by knowing what to do next, knowing how to do it, and just doing it.  This comes with experience, experience you can only gain by facing up to challenges.  The key to success is embracing our challenges and becoming stronger and better by these experiences.

The following story is how one person faced challenge after challenge and had the wisdom to be successful:

From our first day on earth until our last, we face different levels of adversity. Adversity may be sickness, a property loss, or the loss of a family member. It may be a lost career promotion or a business setback. How we handle these adversities defines how we achieve greatness in our lives.

Let me share the story of James Blake, who overcame multiple adversities — more than most of us would ever experience in a lifetime — and yet achieved greatness. James Blake is a world class professional tennis player enjoying fame and making a six-figure income. However, in his childhood, he developed a rare disease that required him to wear a body brace for years. Other kids teased him, calling him “Iron Man” from the Marvel Comic Books, and he felt left out. During this time, he concentrated on his academics, read a wide variety of books, and developed himself as a well-rounded person. He also developed a heightened awareness for others who are going through difficult times.

Once he had the brace removed, he learned to play tennis with an intense passion not exhibited by many other tennis players, because he appreciated the opportunity to finally play tennis. He didn’t take this opportunity for granted. He attended Harvard and became the #1 player on their tennis team.

As a promising professional player, adversity struck again. In 2004, while practicing for a major tournament, he slipped and fell forward striking his neck against the metal pole that holds the tennis net. James’s doctor said that had James not slightly turned his head, James would have broken his vertebra and become paralyzed from the neck down. Instead, he was hospitalized with a fractured vertebra, blurred vision, and dizziness.

While in the hospital, James did much soul searching. Many family members and friends came by to offer encouragement, advice, and support. His coach was a constant bedside companion and finally asked James, “Do you want to play tennis again?” James said “yes,” and they developed a plan to start his comeback.

With the support of family, friends, and his coach, James started his comeback step by painful step. At first when he tried to play tennis, he still had to overcome his blurred vision and dizziness. He had doubts whether he would ever handle the 125 mph plus serves of his opponents.

Then he suffered another setback. During his rehabilitation, his father, with whom he had a very close relationship, developed cancer and passed away. During his father’s sickness, James was by his side. After his father passed away, James was devastated. However, he regrouped and carried on with the support of his mother, family, friends, and coach.

He returned to playing professional tennis, and there were many more losses than wins. But he stayed focused and determined and progressively improved. He began playing the top professional players competitively, and he began winning against the top players. Then he once again started winning tournaments. After this long journey, James became one of the top players in the world.

What can we learn from James Blake’s journey through adversity to greatness? The following are three keys to making adversity work for you:

1. If it Doesn’t Kill You, It Makes you Stronger - Many times we face adversities and say, “If only I can make it through this.” It may be a sickness, loss of a loved one, job loss, etc. By remaining focused, determined, and concentrating on the positive, many times you can become stronger. (Read the rest of the article at Success)

“Don’t ever let someone tell you that you can’t do something.  Not even me.  You got a dream, you gotta protect it.  When people can’t do something themselves, they are gonna tell you that you cannot do it.  You want something, go get it.  Period!” – Will Smith (From film The Pursuit of Happiness)

Success and achievement in life happens when you believe in something regardless of what others say.  The following article will show you the secrets to realizing your dreams and be more successful in your life:

The Secret to Living Your Dreams: Five Success Techniques to Achieving More Success in Your Life!

By Ed Sykes

How many times in our lives have we said the following?

If I had more time, I would have acted on my dream…

If I didn’t need this job, I would have pursued my dream of…

If only I had (you fill in the blank) ten years ago, I would have achieved my dream of…

I am sure you can add a dozen more “If I” dream statements. There are people going through life everyday working at jobs they hate, in situations they tolerate, and living a life that they disown because they settled for an “If I” mindset.

What is the secret between the person who is achieving his/her dream life and the person who is just wishing for a dream life? The following are five techniques for living your dream and achieving more in life:

1. Understand Your Options and Live Your Dreams - We have options in our life. Do we follow the road everyone else is taking or do we travel the road less traveled to achieve our dreams? We have the option to look at life’s challenges as a way to find creative solutions or to look at challenges as a negative barrier to achieving one’s dreams. Take the positive option to develop yourself and achieve your dreams.
2. Fight Your Fears and Live Your Dreams - Most fears we constantly think about and which sometimes paralyze us never happen. Yet we will spend 75-90% of our thoughts on our fears. F-E-A-R is nothing more than False Evidence Appearing Real. Get the facts and act accordingly. Let’s “flip our mental script” and concentrate on the upside of any situation so that we can concentrate on achieving our dreams. Fight though your fears and build your courage to live your dreams. (Create Success)

“Our problem in the immediate future will be not the lack of opportunities for the really motivated, but the lack of motivated people ready and able to take advantage of the opportunities.” - Buck Rogers

Five Secrets to Creating More Career Opportunities in the 21st Century!

In the 21^st century, career opportunities in the job and employment marketplace are changing fast, and morphing all the time.  In order to successfully take advantage of these career opportunities, you must develop a different mindset.  Let me share this story that illustrates my point:

In high school, my best friend and I went to his house to hang out.  While there, his father asked what was I going to do when I finished high school.  I said I was going to go to college.  When my friend said he was going to college also, his father said, “You don’t need college.  Get a good job at the post office, get their benefits, and get a good retirement.” As we see, that is not the case anymore.   The era of staying twenty years at one company, enjoying bountiful benefits, and getting the “gold watch” at retirement is a thing of the past. 

It has been said that a person will change their careers an average of seven times.  Another report in USA Today stated the corporations of 21^st century will be comprised of 60% contractors and only 40% employees.  Why?  Because corporations and other organizations need to be flexible with their resources and quickly acquire the skills needed to take advantage of opportunities to beat the competition.

So what does that mean for your career opportunities?  It means that, in the 21^st century job marketplace you will need to acquire the overall skills and attitude to be successful in your careers.  The following are five secrets to creating more successful career opportunities and being prosperous in your life:

1. Develop an entrepreneurial attitude for career opportunities – What is an “entrepreneurial attitude?”  It is a small business mindset that looks for opportunities and takes advantage of those opportunities.  Even though you may work for a business or organization, if you think and behave as if you are in business for yourself and are increasing your career opportunities by managing your “business” opportunities.  Constantly look for “areas of improvement” and be ready to present solutions.  This will increase your value in the organization, let other people know that you can create solutions, and prepare you for future opportunities within or outside of the organization.
2. Be Flexible for career opportunities – According to a recent survey, in the 21^st century, the average worker will experience seven different career opportunities.  What does this mean?  Although, in the past you worked on just one career, now you need to explore several career opportunities so that you are prepared for the career changes that are guaranteed to come your way.  Be proactive and explore the career opportunities and advantages and disadvantages of each career.  Remember, it is not a matter of if your career will change; it is a matter of when.  Be prepared. (Read the rest of the article at Career Opportunities)

“The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.” - Dorothy Nevill

Reward and/or acceptance speeches are some of the most difficult speeches to give.    It doesn’t need to be that way!  You are under pressure to appreciate the moment, be humble, and appreciate others.

The following are seven secrets I learned from watching Academy Awards acceptance speeches and how you can apply them in your life:

How to Give an Acceptance Speech: Seven Presentation Secrets Learned from the Academy Awards

By Ed Sykes

Academy Awards come and go, but one thing is a constant: bad acceptance speeches. You may never win an Academy Award, but you may be asked to give an acceptance speech for an accomplishment in your business, your career, your community, or your organization. Sometimes your acceptance speech will be for what you accomplished, or for what your team has accomplished.

Will you be ready when it is your time to give an acceptance speech?

The following are seven presentation secrets on how to give an outstanding acceptance speech in any situation:

1. Prepare For the Moment – You may have heard the Oscar winners say, “I really didn’t think I would win,” or “I really didn’t think I would be standing here tonight,” and then give an acceptance speech like they didn’t think they would win. Well, my question is, “Why did you think you were invited to this gala event?”  (Read the rest at Reward Speech)