Management by Objectives, strategic planning, quality, teams, re-engineering. Passing management fads? Consultants, more consultants. Training and more training. Businesses are littered by the corpses of all these attempts at finding the way to become better.
What happened? What went wrong? How can simple and productive ideas like these have failed in some companies while succeeding in others? In some companies one finds employees sneering at management, not believing on anything, just letting the days go by. In others one can see an uplifted employee force. They are committed to their work, they communicate with each other, they read company publications, they ask questions and hear the answers.
What is the cause? What is the difference? ATTITUDES. Attitude is one of those words that we have difficulty defining. It is a state of mind, a disposition, it reflects in our moods and personality, it molds our perspectives and preferences. It can result in laxity or negligence: an "It's Not My Job" mentality; or in an open-minded "Can Do" behavior.
Attitudes makes us who we are, how we think and act, how we respond to challenges, how we look at things. Attitudes are created and modified. We are not born with them. They are developed from early childhood.
There is a direct link between the way we think and the way we behave. When people come in contact with us they are responding to our personality, which is the outer expression of our inner attitudes. Our behavior (or personality) directly impacts our success. Since behavior is based on attitudes, attitude is one of the key ingredients for success.
Look at your favorite people in history. Why did they succeed? Was it their skills alone? There are millions with the skills and the knowledge who are not successful. In most cases winners have a driving attitude to succeed. Lincoln lost many elections before becoming president. John Paul II was shot and came close to death. Beethoven was deaf.
Even in medical terms, positive attitude is a remarkable force. Positive thinking has been determined to be a "miracle drug" that you manufacture within yourself. As June Bierman, author of "Diabetes in the News" says "this miracle drug has no side effects, doesn't require a doctor's prescription and doesn't cost you a penny." What a powerful force!
What are your attitudes? Do you live thinking that any situation is an opportunity for success? Or do you believe that sooner or later something bad is going to happen? Do you look at things as "too much trouble," "there is nothing I can do?" Or do you say "this is an opportunity for me," "this is my chance to shine"?
So how can we develop our attitudes? Obviously, we first must realize that we need to. Then we must want to. If not, we will never change them. The most practical way to change attitudes is through spaced repetition, which is how attitudes were developed originally. Human behaviorists estimate that if you are exposed to an idea six times during six days, you will retain 62% of the idea after 15 years.
Another powerful tool to change attitudes is affirmations. Remember Mohamad Ali. He used to brag all the time that he was the greatest - he was re affirming his belief in himself. We need to do the same! Continuos use of positive affirmations about us have a tremendous power on how we see ourselves; how we see ourselves impacts how we act, how we act impacts our success.
Is this all we need to be successful? No. We also need SKILLS. Most companies send employees to technical training; but many are not concerned with human behavioral skills. The higher we go in an organization, the less technical skills we need; however, the human behavioral skills become critical to the job. We must keep in mind the "soft" skills as well as the technical skills required for our job. We can find people to fill in our lack of technical skills but is very difficult to get someone to replace our lack of human behavioral skills.
What else do we need to be successful? Think about how many times have we had the best of intentions to do something and we have quit along the way? The answer is : GOALS. Goals "make sure" that we stay on track and aimed at our success. We should emphasize personal goals as well as professional goals. Actually, they are integrated. Excelling in one propels the other. We must set goals for improvement for ourselves, making sure they are realistic, specific, measurable, actionable and time bound.
Develop an action plan to accomplish your goal with positive affirmations to guide you. Slowly you will see your life changing. What about in business ?. How many of us find ourselves with no business goals, no direction? We fall in a daily routine of answering telephones, writing letters, having meetings, etc. Without goals for improvement we become slaves to the system, to the process. Goals drive companies to success.
A change in our attitudes, skills and goals will result in changed behavior. This new behavior will bring about improved results, both in our personal lives as well as in our business live. A very simple formula: Positive Attitudes, combined with Skills and Goals result in success.
Jose Sanchez
Managing Partner
Management Resources, Inc. (MRI)
http://www.managementresourcesinstitute.com
monthly home cleaning Buffalo Grove ..I am constantly approached by people when I am speaking... Read More
Why do diets end up in gained weight? Why do... Read More
Just how powerful is the Subconscious Mind and how can... Read More
(Excepted from the book The Five Major Pieces to the... Read More
So you want to be successful (whatever that means to... Read More
How does an online marketer define success ? There are... Read More
In earlier generations it was common to keep a diary... Read More
Many people ask me how they can be more successful.The... Read More
e-Learning is doubling yearly. Classes, e-courses, e-books on how-to and... Read More
Not so long ago, I impressed the daylights out of... Read More
Everyone wants to be successful. Everyone wants to have more,... Read More
If that sounds like you, you're not alone. Everyone needs... Read More
What does "Lessons from My Garden" have to do with... Read More
With the end of the year fast approaching, now is... Read More
Overnight success seems to be happening to a lot of... Read More
Recently, I coached a young woman whom I'll call Mary... Read More
"I have learned, that if one advances confidently in the... Read More
Too many times in the pursuit of our dreams, we... Read More
In this week's New Age Notebook, I am going to... Read More
Do you sometimes feel that you're living a boring life?... Read More
Have you been struggling for years to accomplish some goals... Read More
I thought this was unbelievable, but it's true.On average, security... Read More
They 'do it' by sharpening their FOCUS on the task... Read More
"If you can tell the world who you are and... Read More
You're enjoying a perfectly shallow conversation with a good friend... Read More
scheduled maid service Mundelein ..There is no substitute for direct personal application. Information or... Read More
Quote of the month: Am I working to live or... Read More
The HungryIn May of 2005 there were over 2 million... Read More
Many people talk or write about the science of success... Read More
It's simple and powerful.The philosophy of successful people is often... Read More
I love the idea of synchronicity.Perhaps it's just part of... Read More
When is the best time to prepare for your success... Read More
I prefer to call the challenges, obstacles, side-tracks, and barriers... Read More
Who wants to carry on being a failure?Failure. Not a... Read More
Q. My problem is that I have trouble keeping my... Read More
"Don't get caught up in the how of things. If... Read More
Sometimes short cuts are not worth taking. They may bring... Read More
Trust is a cornerstone of human existence. It is interesting... Read More
What is "success"? Why does it seem everyone wants "success"?... Read More
An odd but frequent barrier to prosperity is the belief... Read More
People like to emerge as winners by hook or crook... Read More
Imagine living in the world that Helen Keller found herself... Read More
In Part Three, I promised we would get into the... Read More
Frederick W. Smith attended Yale University and wrote a paper... Read More
If you are looking for a surefire strategy to ensure... Read More
The sun crept over the horizon and lodged itself above... Read More
With topics in personal development ranging from goal setting to... Read More
(Excerpted from the 1999 Weekend Seminar audio/CD series)Parents, leaders, employers,... Read More
Make a game out of reaching your goals Go to... Read More
In 1989, when the Berlin Wall came down and the... Read More
Success |