Motivation ABC

“Take chances, make mistakes.  That’s how you grow.  Pain nourishes your courage.  You have to fail in order to practice being brave.”
Mary Tyler Moore.

Whatever type of business you are in, your outlook on life will greatly influence how successful you can become.  It’s natural to want to do well and not make mistakes, but the people at the pinnacle of success in every business you can think of didn’t get there without making some errors along the way.

There are two ways to look at any mistake you make in business.  The first way is to view the error as a total disaster and vow never to try achieving that particular goal again.  The second way is to pick yourself up, accept your failure and then look at it closely to see how you could improve next time.

Many average or less than successful business people take the first way.  They take the view that they failed because they are no good at that kind of task.  But ask yourself this question – how many times did you fall off your bike when you were learning how to ride without training wheels as a kid?  Are you still riding around with training wheels on as an adult?

Of course not - because you persevered.  You experienced the pain of failure and then gathered up your courage and determined not to let it beat you.

The same is true in business.  A positive mental attitude to making mistakes in business will lead you to achieve everything you could ever want.  Of course, you shouldn’t aim to make mistakes or put in a performance that is less than you are capable of, but when you do occasionally fail there will be a lesson in that failure for you to learn from.

The biggest mistake you ever make in business – whether you are selling cars, dealing with customers on the phone, or setting up your own company in information publishing – could just be the one that gives you the knowledge to make the biggest sale of your life.  It could also lead you to realize a better way to serve your customers and grab more business in the future.  It might even be the error that leads you to publish the biggest selling book on the bookshelves a year or two from now.

It all hinges on your point of view.  Accepting that failure is a necessary part of growth as a human – and as a business person – will lead you towards all kinds of new discoveries and ways of working.  You’ll find a new confidence in your work, as the fear of making mistakes will no longer paralyze you and stop you from achieving your full potential.

The actress and comedian Mary Tyler Moore knew all about success and failure.  She used her failures to spur her on to greater success in the future.

You can do the same, and you and your business will reap the benefits.

“I believe the choice to be excellent begins with aligning your thoughts and words with the intention to require more from yourself.”
Oprah Winfrey

Ambitions rule our heart- always! But there are times we feel we are bowed down with pressure and expectations, not only our own but also of loved ones. To excel under pressure is the quality of a true striker! Excellence is rather a journey than a destination as we all know or at least should know. All processes of excellence begin with what you do, what you say and how you think! If you start thinking negative, you have gone back two steps from each step that could have been a step forward to your success! Desire more from your self and give it your best shot. Do away with the weeds of the mind!

Today’s industry is indeed very competitive and you need to follow the example of the spider that fails a number of times to climb the wall but never gives up! The industry is definitely unforgiving with loads of expectations and commitments boggling you down each day. These are miniature trials and tests to what you are worth- so keep your cool, smile and keep working with a whistle. A smile wins everything without costing you anything! Try smiling forcibly even in the most tense situations and get back to me if you do not feel better.

Here we can talk of the woodcutter. He cut wood and that too, very fast. In the first week, he cut 15 trees and his boss was in awe and started praising him. He was inspired and started working with more zeal the next week but could cut only ten trees. The count was still above average and the boss praised him again. This time he was determined to cut more trees but made only five trees. Frustrated, he complained that he must have grown weaker. The boss simply asked, “When was the last time you sharpened your axe?”

We all are woodcutters with different sets of trees and different axes. The axes in business are our strategies, our core values and organization. Same strategies do not work for months and years. Like an axe has to be sharpened, strategies have to be modified and sharpened to fit in well. The same applies to the organizational powers of our brains as well. If you do not keep working at it, you are sure to lose your positive edge over the others.

To excel, you have to be enterprising- you have to keep your eyes and mind open and active all day long! You have to be confident, disciplined and creative enough to not give up! Remember, “Winners don’t do different things, they do things differently.” Buck up and let your creative juices flow… success is imminent.