Goal Advisors' Circle

A Day's Potential

"Making the simple complicated is commonplace;
making the complicated simple, awesomely simple -
that's creativity."

Charles Mingus

Today's Action

Sometimes the thing that holds us back the most is our tendency to make a goal overly complicated.

Simpler is almost always an option.

As a business coach, one of the skills that I've fine-tuned over the years is my ability to listen to a client bounce all over the place in their thinking... and then find the straight line that leads right through to where they want to end up.

The key to finding the simplicity in your own thinking is to do what I call a "brain dump". Get all the relevant ideas out of your head and onto paper.

Once you've emptied your head of everything that feels relevant, look for clusters of ideas that go together... I like to use highlighter markers to color-code the clusters as I identify them.

After you have the clusters grouped, look at sequencing... what comes first, then second, then third, etc.

In this way, you can take a process that has many, many steps or components... and you can break it down into stages, phases or pieces that are much simpler to work with.

A Day's Potential

"You are the only person on earth who can use your ability."

Zig Zigler

Today's Action

When you think about your life...

... how you conduct your work
... how you interact with your family
... how you respond to friends

Have you been giving the best of yourself?

Too often, we spread ourselves so thin across so many things that we're unable to use our abilities to their maximum potential. Instead, everybody and everything gets less than our best.

Is there something in your life that you need to let go of, in order to more effectively use your abilities.

While it is painful sometimes to let go of commitments that we've made or to tell people no when we're asked to do something, the wise person learns how to bow out gracefully.

It is better to do a few things at 100% than many things at 10%.

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A Day's Potential

"Love thy neighbor--and if he happens to be tall, debonair
and devastating, it will be that much easier."

Mae West

Today's Action

I chose today's quote mostly because it made me laugh, but also because I wanted to spend some time talking about connectedness.

We live in a world that comes at us way too fast. often sharing our street with neighbors that we barely know. and seeing our friends far too little.

Successful people tend to be the ones who surround themselves with supportive communities. And they often build these communities by first being in service to others or by making a gracious gesture of friendship, signaling a desire to connect in a more meaningful way.

My personal networking became more powerful when I began sending birthday cards to members of a particular group. It was easy enough to do. our membership directory had birthdays listed in it, so I simply pre-scheduled a card to go out right before each person's birthday. (shhhh.. don't give away my secret)

Sometimes I even included a small denomination Starbucks gift card. I cannot tell you how many invitations I received from people to share a cup of coffee after they received their birthday card. Many of my closest business friendships began over those coffee cups.

How can you connect with someone today in an unexpected way?

A Day's Potential

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark
from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude
of those who have lighted the flame within us."

Albert Schweitzer

Today's Action

When was the last time you sent an unexpected thank you note?

I'm NOT talking about the post-client-meeting kind of note where you thank someone for their time. or the post-special-occasion kind of note where you thank someone for a gift. although those cards are definitely nice. and are becoming somewhat of a lost bit of etiquette.

Instead, I'm talking about the "out-of-the-blue-thinking-of-you-with-awe-and-appreciation" kind of note.

Today, send at least one note to someone who is not expecting to hear from you. Tell them how much they mean to you and why they're special. You'll feel the glow of sharing such a special moment with someone. and you'll absolutely make their day.

A Day's Potential

"Who we are never changes. Who we think we are does."

Mary S. Almanac

Today's Action

In the art world, the right frame can dramatically change the value of an art piece.

While a painting can stay exactly the same, our experience of it changes based on the style, coloring, and design of the frame.

There's a lot about ourselves that we cannot go back and change. We cannot change who our parents are, or where we were born, or where we went to school, or the choices that we made as we travelled down life's path.

It's as if our life is a painting and that portion of the painting is already complete. What we do have control over is the framing. We can choose a frame that brings out the best in our art.

I'm curious how you've been framing your life. When you encounter set-backs, how do you see yourself? Does that frame feel helpful or hindering to you? Pay attention to this as you move forward into your day and into the week ahead.

A Day's Potential

"I've missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot... and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

Michael Jordan

Today's Action

Fear is a powerful force. It ranges from the intensely-powerful--make-you-curl-up-and-cry type to the quiet-insidious-doubts-sneaking-up-on-you type.

. but regardless of its form, it can be paralyzing just the same.

What would have happened to Michael Jordan if he had let fear of missing prevent him from taking more shots? What if he stopped and thought about all of those people watching every single time he was placed in a game-altering situation?

I imagine the course of his life would have been very different.

What is one thing that you've WANTED to do, but haven't moved forward with because you've been afraid of failing?

Is there a small step that you could take today to move that forward?

A Day's Potential

"If you're in a bad situation, don't worry it'll change. If you're in a good situation, don't worry it'll change."

John A. Simone, Sr.

Today's Action

Kurt Lewin, a German-born psychologist, equated the process of change to altering ice.

Imagine for a moment that you have a cube of ice, but you want a cone of ice.

a) You can try to force the ice to reshape, but when you do this, you'll likely end up with crushed ice.
OR you can wait for the change to happen on its own, but when you do this, you end up with melted ice all over the floor .

Lewis purported that to make ice change, you have to:

* heat the ice, making it amenable to change.

* mold the water into the shape that you actually want.

* and finally, you refreeze the water to create ice in the preferred shape.

When a change isn't happening for you, chances are that there's a misstep in your approach.

Today, I'd like you to think about something that you've been wanting in your business or in life. Are you so intent on making it happen that you are crushing it? Or perhaps, in your uncertainty of next steps, your potential for the goal to happen is melting away?

Change your approach to change and you'll often end up with a very different result.

A Day's Potential

"Movement isn't progress."

- Thomas Leonard

Today's Action

How much of your day today will be consumed by activity instead of action?

Most of us spend our days running from one thing to another thing to another thing without any sense of connected purpose to the activities.

It is directionality that gives movement its meaning. without directionality, you're just engaged in activity. With directionality, you're taking consistent action toward what you want.

Be conscious today of the difference.

A Day's Potential

"There are two kinds of talent, man-made talent and God-given talent. With man-made talent, you have to work very hard. With God-given talent, you just
have to touch it up once in a while."

Pearl Bailey

Today's Action

Everyone has special talents and gifts, but we don't always identify the ones that are MOST meaningful to others. Knowing how others see you is a powerful lens through which to examine your life purpose, the mission of your business, the way you spend your time, etc.

Today, ask three people what they think your greatest strength is... or what they believe your special talent or gift is.

Then reflect on how you can best use those strengths/talents/gifts on a daily basis.

A Day's Potential - Wit & Wisdom for Today

"You are the only person on earth who can use your ability."

Zig Zigler

Today's Action

When you think about your life.

. how you conduct your work

. how you interact with your family

. how you respond to friends

Have you been giving the best of yourself?

Too often, we spread ourselves so thin across so many things that we're unable to use our abilities to their maximum potential. Instead, everybody and everything gets less than our best.

Is there something in your life that you need to let go of, in order to more effectively use your abilities.

While it is painful sometimes to let go of commitments that we've made or to tell people no when we're asked to do something, the wise person learns how to bow out gracefully.

It is better to do a few things at 100% than many things at 10%.