Last night I was watching DIY SOS hosted by Nick Knowles. Ā The house in question was a two bedroom bungalow that the owner was trying to expand into a four bedroom home to accommodate his family. Ā The three children were living in one bedroom and the roof leaked and part of the extension meant that the house was exposed to the elements. Ā No wonder the family was challenged and the health of the family was suffering. Ā My heart went out to the family and in particular the husband who with limited building skills was seeking to provide for his family the best he could in between his job as a teacher.
As I watched the programme Nick KnowlesĀ said something that so resonated with me. Ā “Success in completing this home would never be possible by just one man, it takes a team of experts to make things work”. Ā This made me think about my own business and that of other solopreneurs and small business owners. Ā How often do we think that we need to do everything? Ā How rarely do we ask for help? Ā Yet what was apparent from last nights programme was that the team of helpers, all experts in different fields, in nine days were able to transform the entire house with over 3,000 hours work. Ā It was estimated that the owner would have taken seven years to achieve the same thing.
This real example demonstrates so clearly the importance of team work to success, and yet how many business owners try to do everything themselves, never bringing in the support that they need. Ā And yet if they did I wonder how much their business could sky rocket to the next level. Ā The business owner could leverage their time doing the things they love and are best at, whilst others complete the other very necessary business activities that need to occur. So how do you know who to hire and what activities you should do and those you should delegate? Ā One tool I have used that has been invaluable for me isĀ Talent Dynamics.
This profiling tool helps you get to understand where your strengths lie and what activities you should be undertaking. Ā Then armed with this information you can then hire people who are best suited to the other roles. Ā So what I discovered from taking my Talent Dynamics test was that I was aĀ Creator. Ā I simply love writing blogs and articles, developing new products/services/businesses. Ā Sure I can do my accounts but that is not the best use of my time as it takes me considerable effort to motivate myself to do my accounts, as well as hours to get the work done. Ā I always find things to divert my attention and so the job takes much longer than it should. Ā Think of all that wasted energy that I could use on growing my business if only I had a book-keeper in place to take care of the financial aspects of the business on a day-to-day basis for me.
For small businesses there is definitely a tipping point – the point at which you think you can’t afford any support but if you don’t invest in this support then your business will not grow. Ā I realise that for many people taking on team members can be a daunting task but there are a plethora of ways that you can do this now, hiring people by the hour, project or on short-term contracts. Ā The flexibility is amazing. Ā And once you know your Talent Dynamics profile you will know which tasks that would be best for you to outsource. Ā If you are interviewing for a full-time person you might even want to consider making the interviewees take a Talent Dynamics test. Ā Then you would know if they were best suited for the role that you were recruiting for. You can take your Talent Dynamics TestĀ here.
Please leave any comments on what activities you have decided to outsource in order to grow your business because as we always say “Success is a Team Sport”. Ā Who is playing on your team?.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Did you know that everyone has theirĀ own success frequency, there own path to success? Ā Yet time and time again I see people modelling other people, only to fail, because they are tuned into a different success frequency. Ā Just think about it. Ā If you loved rock music but modelled yourself and your business on how the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performed do you think you would be happy? Ā Would you be in flow? Would you be successful?
FlowĀ is defined in the dictionary as being fluid and our lives our described as being in flow when there is a natural effortlessness in our lives that moves us towards wholeness and harmony. Ā When we are in flow, occurrences line up, events fall into place and obstacles melt away. Ā It’s a mental state in which a person is fully immersed in a feeling of energised focus and full involvement. Ā And you know what. Ā When this happens time just flies by and you feel motivated and energised. Ā Gone are the feelings of stress and overwhelm. Ā In the workplace flow is seen when an individuals challenges and skills are equally matched, thereby creating a harmonious environment.
Just think about it for a moment. Ā If all you listened to on your radio was classical music from theĀ Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, no matter how hard you try you will never hear the rock music that you love. Ā Your motivation to become a “rock chick” and “head banger” would subside as the music wasn’t right. Ā Try as hard as you like classic music doesn’t make your heart sing. Ā You can invest in attending seminars and reading books to learn all about how classical music is the best thing, but somehow it never works.
You become frustrated, demotivated and feel like a failure. Ā How come everyone else can be successful tuning into Classic FM and not you. Ā Well it’s because Classic FM is not your Success Channel. Ā Your success channel is Rock FM.
The fastest and easiest way I know of to find out your success channel is to take aĀ Talent Dynamics Profile test. Ā I know it made all the difference to my business and career when I discovered what my success channel was and then tuned into Success FM. Ā Don’t delay, take the test and then tune into your Success FM station today. Ā There is no time to waste.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
What is it that all successful people have in common? Ā They have focus. Ā An unrelenting determination to make it to the finish line no matter what. Ā Certainly having a great reason why you are doing what you are doing is important but what I observe that often drives some to succeed where others fail is deadlines. Ā There is something magical about committing to deliver a product/service by a certain date and then meeting that target. Ā It motivates us and keeps us going. Ā From my own experience I certainly know that I am so much more focused and productive if I have a deadline. Ā As business owners I know you appreciate the importance of meeting your clients deadlines – we wouldn’t dare miss these, would we – and yet many of us fail to set deadlines or have focus in our own businesses. Ā Kind of bizarre isn’t it that we don’t practice for ourselves what we do for others.
In his book Botty’s Rules,Ā Ā entrepreneurĀ Nigel Botterill describes an interestingĀ analogyĀ about focus and deadlines. Ā He likens being in business to a race like the Grand National. Ā As a jockey you would not swap horses in the middle of the race. Ā Great jockeys are focused on the finish line (the deadline) and with a rugged determination push their horse onwards to win the race. Ā They are in the moment and nothing can stop them. They never consider changing horse mid-race and yet business owners (particularlyĀ entrepreneurs) often do this. Ā They look for the next new shiny object or project that they can get involved in, without ever finishing the project they are currently working on.
Jockeys only ride one horse at as time, and as business owners in my experience it is best just to focus on one project at a time. Ā Keep the deadline short so that you can see the finish line and be motivated to achieve this. Ā For small business owners there is nothing more demoralising that looking at that To Do list that simply keeps getting longer and longer because you start new projects without finishing something else first. Ā If anything will quash your desire to succeed it will be this as you can easily become overwhelmed.
If you recognise the traits of lack of focus and being attracted to new projects without finishing the one project you are working on right now then you may well be a Creator, as a creator is someone who loves new things but is notorious for starting something and not finishing. Ā I should know as I am one!. Ā To be successful in business all Creators need to work alongside people who are good finishers and can get into the process of meeting the deadlines. Ā The visionary approach of the Creator needs to be balanced by the detailed and grounded approach of a Trader.
To find out which business profile you are and who else you need on your team to be successful take the Talent Dynamics Test here. Ā It takes just 15 mins to complete the test and it may change your life and the way you do business forever.
Don’t forget to leave your comments and share your profile.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
In the Talent Dynamics square we look at the four different energies and how they affect different profile types, but did you also know that business also goes through these four same energy cycles and knowing where you are in the cycle allows you and your business to always benefit from the rising waves.
SEASON ONE: SPRING
The first season in every cycle is the āSpringā phase. On the Talent Dynamics Square, it is always the Creators and Stars who profit during this phase. When the PC industry began in the 1980s, it was the early creators like Apple and Microsoft that took the lead. At the beginning of the Internet, in the 1990s, it was creators like Mark Andreeson who launched Mosaic, one of the first web browsers, that hit the news. At the beginning of Web 2.0, after 2000, it was the platforms with a purpose, like eBay for auctions or MySpace for music that were the first to take off.
SEASON TWO: SUMMER
The second season in every cycle is the āSummerā phase. This is always where the mass market follow the early adopters and communities built around a common platform. In the 1980s, PC manufacturers like Compaq and Dell grew rapidly and Apple fell by the way side as scale beat innovation. This is the season to āmagnifyā, on the right side of the Talent Dynamics Square.
In the 1990s, the early start-ups on the Internet got swallowed up by the big networks like Compuserve and AOL. These were āwalled gardensā that didnāt share their ļæ¼data with the rest of the Internet. In Web 2.0, Facebook and Linkedin are the equivalent of Compuserve and AOL.
SEASON THREE: AUTUMN
The third season in every cycle is the āAutumnā phase. This is always where there is a critical mass in the market who no longer want to be restricted by the walls, and begin to self-organise their own communities out of the chaos of conversation. In this third stage of the PC industry, it was the regional computer superstores and computer magazines that saw the biggest growth. In the early Internet it was when companies like Webvan, boo.com and pets.com, gave the market the way to find the products they wanted organised by their interests.
What about the āautumnā season of Web 2.0? This āreorganise and recommendā phase has hit the headlines last month. Pinterest has been billed as the fastest site to reach 10 million users. It gives users the chance to pin their favourite images and products onto pinboards. It is part of the shift from āconversationā to ācurationā.
At this early stage, Pinterest already drives more referral traffic to company websites than Google+, LinkedIn and Youtube combined. Pinterest copy-cat sites have already launched that allow users to not just look at products based on what their friends recommend, but to buy them then and there.
SEASON FOUR: WINTER?
The fourth phase, the āWinterā season, is when we move to consolidation. This is the storm, form, norm, perform cycle – create, connect, curate, collate. The PC industry shifted from product to service, when service providers like Salesforce and Google begin taking over from the software and hardware providers, disrupting both. In the early Internet, it was when Paypal, Amazon and Apple made it easy for transactions and micro-payments, changing the pricing of everything.
The fourth phase in Web 2.0 will be when each of us can be our own bank, accepting micro-payments and transacting in multiple currencies (including the ones we create ourselves) anytime, anywhere. We will find ourselves with multiple earning (and spending) opportunities every day.
In the meantime, Internet TV is about to begin in Spring. The Mobile Internet is already in Spring, moving to Summer. All these waves simultaneously add up to a perfect storm.
So what season is your industry and business in and how best can you cash in on the action and surf the wave before it is too late.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Put Simply, Flow is the path of least resistance. When we are in flow, productivity rises, results increase, occurrences line up, we have more fun and feel more connected to the organisation.
Itās a state, in which a person in an activity, is fully immersed, in a feeling of energised focus and full involvement. It is focused motivation, where the emotions are not just contained and channeled but positively energised and aligned with the task at hand.
If you are feeling stressed, overwhelmed or anxious, then its a fairly good indicator you are out of Flow. The opposite is true when you are in Flow, you feel joy and even rapture whilst performing the task.
It takes focus to learn the basics and practice makes it second nature. Once you know how to stay in flow you can enjoy life with ease and grace.
When experiencing flow there can be a distortion of time. Your internal clock does not seem to match the external clock. Somehow your internal clock speeds up or slows down. During this phenomenon, people immersed in their task (in Flow) often look up at the clock thinking only a short time had passed only to find it is many hours later than they thought it was.
In the work place, Flow can be seen where an individuals challenges and skills are equally matched. Thus creating a harmonious environment.
Fortune follows Flow. Living in your Flow is living a life of good fortune. Flow is a life long process that is rich with rewards all along the way.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Merriam-Websterās dictionary lists several definitions for the wordĀ relationship. The term is generally used to denote family ties, but itās also used as a state of connecting or binding participants. Actions that bring people together and bind them in a common cause are key to building effective relationships.
I was first introduced to the statement āleadership is a relationshipā in the bookĀ The Leadership ChallengeĀ by James Kouzes and Barry Posner. The authors go into great detail about the importance of building camaraderie among the people you are leading. When you have a meaningful relationship with another person you work more effectively together. You have a common goal and a consistent purpose. Your efforts are channeled toward the same common outcome.
Effective leaders recognize the importance of building solid relationships. They spend time focusing their efforts in key areas that will build connections with the people they lead. Here are three simple tools that great leaders use to improve their working relationships:
Listen:Ā Leaders let other people talk and they pay attention to what theyāre saying. They remove anything that would distract from their conversations and focus on what people are trying to convey.
Understand:Ā They appreciate what other people do and value their contributions. Leaders are not only open to new ideas but are also eager to learn new things. They know that taking the time to understand where people are coming from will pay dividends in the long run.
Acknowledge:Ā Leaders acknowledge the contributions of others. They are quick to give credit to others for their successes. They celebrate achievements and delight in the accomplishments of their team. They know that people will be more motivated to work hard and try new things if their leader acknowledges their efforts.
What are you doing to build effective relationships?
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
