What is Your B Game Costing You?

Good morning! It's a great morning, and as always, I'm fired up and ready for a great day. How about you?

I'm often asked the question, "Are you always happy? Do you ever have a bad day?" The answer is no, I'm not always happy (but you wouldn't know about it) and yes, I have the occasional bad day (and you wouldn't know about them either). The reason I'm mostly always happy and my bad days don't "take me out" is because I've cracked my own personal success and attitude code, and it keeps me on my A Game, even when I don't necessarily feel like it.

This was driven home recently when a woman approached me after a meeting I had in a local coffee shop. She said she just had to stop me and talk with me ... because of how I "showed up." My energy was contagious and she felt like I was someone she needed to know. You know what happened next? She hired me! After a great second meeting, she became a new friend and a new client. Funny thing is, I was open and receptive to her because of her good energy!

That left me pondering: what are all of the opportunities I've missed because I didn't feel like putting myself in a peak state that day? (Those are numbers I frankly don't want to know!) It also made me think about why I've consistently (meaning month-over-month and year-over-year) had businesses that continue to grow and how, perhaps, my A Game has contributed. What was the root cause? How did my A Game support my vision and goals? When has my B Game (F Game?) caused me to fail in situations where I could've succeeded with some simple shifts?

The answer is your B Game costs you opportunities, situations, relationships, joy, and money. Your B Game is when you don't show up on time, fail to capitalize on opportunities, return calls or emails in a timely manner, give good but not fantastic service, wear less-than-your-best (you know what I mean), are less than your best.

Your A Game is you at your best, give your best, and expect nothing but the best. It shows up in your attitude, your results, and most prominently, your bottom line. The question is: how do you consistently turn on your A Game, even when you don't feel like it? The answer will require you to do some personal research and dig deep. It will also require you to do these things even when you don't feel like doing them.

Here are some questions to help:

• What can you do on a daily basis, first thing in the morning, to get your mind right?

• I suggest reading a great book, listening to inspiration audios, or watching an inspiring movie. Right now I'm reading Who by Smart & Street, listening to Accelerated Learning by Brian Tracy, and watching Rocky IV. Have a stack of books, visit nightingale.com for audios on all motivational subjects, and Amazon.com for every inspirational movie ever.

• Move your body. You can take up marathon training or you can just go for a walk. Either way, you're going to get the oxygen circulating, blood pumping and the energy moving. You're more likely to do good when you feel good.

• Who do you have around you (and how do they make you feel)?

•  Regardless how your boss, employees or current friends make you feel (and I hope they make you feel unbelievably great), you can begin to collect amazing people with incredible energy who, just by being around them, make you feel like you can accomplish anything.
  
• Note: Have someone in your life that doesn't make you feel that way? It might be time for them to go ... just a thought.

•  What can you do the rest of the day to set yourself up to win?

• Notice what you're eating, listening to, watching, reading, and who you're hanging out with and how they make you feel. Do they make you feel good or not so good? When I watch a movie, for example, and it makes me very sad, I don't watch that movie again. I pay attention to how each and every thing, situation and person makes me feel. I want an abundance of all things, situations and people that make me feel great. Selection in every situation is key.

Your choices in each of these areas are instrumental in how easily and effortlessly you're able to execute your A Game.  Or not. Choose wisely.

The bottom line is that you have the opportunity each day and in every moment to choose how you show up, to activate your A Game or settle for your B Game. In my opinion, the cost is too great to leave it to chance. Here's to your success!

Consistent, Daily Actions Make All the Long-Term Difference

In this world of instant gratification, we all want to lose 30 lbs. in 30 minutes, have cheap yet still healthy, nutritious home-cooked meals delivered to our door, as well as a big fat income and lots of clients by running ads on TV for a week. That's all fine and good, and here's a newsflash: it's not reality for long-term success. We all want success to be "one and done" and unfortunately most of the time, that isn't what happens. (I know, I wish it was, too.)

The good news is that a part of your long-term success is easily within your grasp, and what it will take on your part is constant attention to the area or areas you want to ultimately excel and thrive in.

Just as you don't train for a marathon in a day or a week, your life-long success comes from your daily actions. If you want 100 new clients in the next year, that's one new client every three and a half days. Working backwards from your goal, how many suspects (possible clients that fit your ideal client profile) do you need to find? Out of those, how many prospects will result, and out of your viable prospects, how many will engage you? For some, it's 10 suspects to get 8 real prospects to get 1 new client. For others, it's 5, 3 and 1. If you're the latter, you'll need to find 500 suspects, which become 300 prospects to get your 100 clients. The numbers are exact, yet they give a true picture of the effort that's necessary. What they tell you is that you need to be talking to 15 people every three-four days. Is that what you're currently doing? (When is NOW the time to get to callin'?)

The side benefit of this intentional action is you'll fine-tune your sales skills and your numbers will get better over time. Think about it: if you do 500 presentations about your products or services in a year, won't you be markedly better than you are now? You'll improve your closing ratio, and reach and even exceed your goals way ahead of pace. I have a question: do you routinely surpass your goals? How would it feel if you did? It all comes down to consistent, daily actions. It's not sexy, it's not always fun, yet it will yield the results you want.

Note: I notice lots of action being taken but in short bursts, just long enough to get tiny results (or sometimes none). Then these same folks quit right before they get into true momentum, just sure what they're doing isn't working. Before you begin a new strategy or tactic, create a comprehensive plan and within it determine a liberal amount of time you're going to stick with it. Give everything the time to work. The worst thing that can happen is you hang it up at 11:58, when the results were just about to happen right at 12. Seriously, you have to talk to more than 7 people to get those 100 new clients!

Schedule an hour or two in the very near future to analyze your current business, determine some areas you want to see improved in the next 100 days, identify the best actions to take and then take them. I can't wait to hear about your amazing results!

D is for Determination

In my study of the most successful people in the world, the ones that consistently produce results far above others in their fields, all of them have a few things in common. One of their shared characteristics is determination. They are determined individuals who go after, and get, the results they want.

Good news: Determination is a characteristic you choose, it is not one you're born with. It's your constant and determined effort that breaks down all resistance and removes all obstacles.

Constant and determined effort comes from choice, your personal choice. You choose to be determined, and in the process you go over, under and/or around any obstacles in your way.

Here's what you need to know:
*you choose to be determined
*you can choose to be determined at any time
*your results are in direct proportion to your amount of determination

"Believe in yourself and the truth becomes clear: anything is possible!" ~Honoree