by Julia Felton | Nov 23, 2016
Don’t you just love it when you think something and then it happens. Well that very nearly happened to me this morning. I woke up at 5:30am, nearly 3 hours before my train to London and firstly decide that as its cold outside I won’t go on my morning run. Then I wonder what would happen if I fall asleep and miss my train. The good news is that I didn’t fall asleep but the bad news was that I nearly missed my train. I got on the train with just 20 seconds to spare. Now I wish I had had better thoughts this morning than missing my train!!!.
Reflecting on the situation I am reminded of this great quote from Roger James Hamilton. “if we waste money, we can always make more, but if we waste time, it’s gone forever”. This is exactly what happened to me this morning. I wasted time checking my email, catching up on facebook and looking for my misplaced mobile phone, and as a result I nearly missed my train.
Time is actually the most valuable commodity we have in business. We all have the same 24 hours in each day but it is how we use this time that determines our success. Do you spend hours cleaning your house and running errands, or do your outsource these activities so that you can spend your time on high, income generating activities that grow your business?.
All the successful people I have ever met or studied have mastered the art of leading their time. They treasure every second they have and use it wisely. They invest their time rather than spend it. Now that’s an interesting thought. Investing in time rather than spending time. Typically when I work with business owners to help them grow their business, their wealth and time mindset are two areas that we start with, because until you value time you will always be chasing your tail.
When you master leading time your days become more effortless, as you are crystal clear on what you are doing when. You make better decisions and don’t get distracted by the bright shiny object syndrome. And when you value time, others around you start valuing their time too. They recognise the implications of being late for meetings and you start not tolerating behavior that in any way under-values your time.
I would like to invite you to track your time for an entire week. Create a spreadsheet or grab a sheet of paper. Draw seven columns – one for each day of the week – and then break each day down into 30 min segments and then track what you do during each 30 min segment (You can change this to 10 or 15 mins increments if you prefer but 30 mins works well for me). Make sure to note the times that you eat, sleep, bathe, work out. In fact everything that you do. At the end of a week you will some great insights into how you spend your time, and then you can assess how much of your week are you investing your time and how much you are spending your time.
When I did this exercise the results were illuminating. So don’t delay start today by really valuing your time and stop wasting it. If you need any assistance with mastering your time mindset then please book in for a complimentary chat and let’s explore what is possible
by Julia Felton | Nov 16, 2016
There is a great saying that goes “if you’ve never failed, you’ve never tried anything new” and I’ve been reflecting a lot on this over the past week. Before I launched my own business I was very proud of the fact that I had never failed at anything. I saw only being successful as a good trait. After all why would you want to fail. I had been brought up only to be successful and in fact failure was seen as a negative thing. It meant you were stupid. So I only ever put myself in situations where I could succeed. I’d study hard for my exams to be successful. I’d work hard to be in all the school sports teams and now I realized I would avoid activities where I had any fear that I might not succeed.
Fast forward seven years of running my own business and I realize that a flawed belief that earlier thinking was. Since running my own business I have had more failures than I care to imagine. Its been really humbling at times, as well as frustrating as very failure has initially seemed like a barrier to my success. And yet what I have learnt from these failures has been the magic dust that has helped me become more successful.
In fact the only failure is not to learn from the failure. This is because there is a lesson in everything that doesn’t work out as you expected. Recently I was speaking to my friend who rather sheepishly admitted to me that she had quit her part time role. She was embarrassed and ashamed by this as she simply could not complete the work required in the two days a week she worked. To try and push on would have been in conflict with her values of integrity and delivering excellent service. So she gave in her notice. When I chatted with her about this I asked her what was the lesson she learnt from this experience and she shared with me that intuitively she had had reservations about taking the role. So the lesson she learnt was to listen more to her intuition. What a great lesson to learn.
Increasingly I have come to realize that life is just one big lesson and that each and every day we are presented with opportunities to learn more about ourselves. Sometimes we might not like the lessons but each of us is given the lessons we most need to learn. And you know what. If we don’t learn the lesson, the universe delivers the lesson more profoundly and acutely, until such time we get it.
That was the case for me with boundaries. I kept avoiding dealing with this issue, which had been presenting itself I now see for decades, but more recently I was literally slapped around the face with this lesson. The universe had quietly been delivering her lesson but since I had been avoiding it the universe crescendoed up the volume until I couldn’t fail to take action.
There are many examples of successful people that have not been discouraged by their failures and these include:
· Albert Einstein – he wasn’t able to speak until he was almost 4-years old and his teachers said he would “never amount to much”
· Michael Jordan – after being cut from his high school basketball team , he went home, locked himself in a room, and cried.
· Walt Disney – fired from a newspaper for ”lacking imagination” and having “No original ideas”
· Steve Jobs – at 30-years old he was left devastated and depressed after being unceremoniously removed from the company he started
· Oprah Winfrey – was demoted from her job as anchor because she “wasn’t for for television”
· The Beetles – rejected be Decca Recording Studios who said “ we don’t like their sound – they have no future in show business”
In each case they took the lessons they learnt from their so-called “failed experience” and used this to fuel their success.
So where in your life and business are you being shared lessons that you are failing to take heed of? What do you need to acknowledge and learn, to move forward with more flow.
A simple exercise to do is to make a list of all the failures (or opportunities that did not work out as expected). Write these down the left hand side of a page and then on the right hand side list what the gift was for each of these experiences and now knowing this what can you do differently to move forward.
If you need any assistance with mastering your growth mindset then please book in for a complimentary chat and let’s explore what is possible
Wishing you an amazing aligned and flow filled Wednesday
by Julia Felton | Nov 9, 2016
I really hope you are having a great week. I’ve just returned from a four day immersion training with my mentor Clinton Swaine, which once again was incredibly powerful. That’s why I love experiential learning. It really helps you embody the feeling of the situation and you can’t help leaving feeling changed in some way. Reading the Facebook comments of my fellow students I know we all experienced profound shifts in perspective on this programme, and as always it seems the right message always comes at the right time. Spooky how that happens!.
Now, if you have been following me for a while, you will know that if we want to achieve success we have to take action. Nothing’s going to happen for you if you just sit around waiting for something to happen. But not all actions are created equal. Not all actions are the right actions. I’m sure you can relate to that. Just think about it. Two people are given exactly the same resources to lets say launch a business and one is successful and one is not. On paper they both seem to take the same actions and yet they get very different results. How can that be?
Well, it’s all to do with alignment. You have to take action that’s in alignment with your core values and beliefs because unless you do your actions don’t resonate with others, and they fail to connect with what you are saying and doing. And the result is frustration and exhaustion. You can feel like you are stuck on a hamster wheel, running and running but not making progress…Maybe you can relate to this?
I know I do. For some time I have had a deep, inner feeling that everything has not been aligned. My head, heart and gut have in some way been dis-connected, and yet I haven’t been able to figure out why. It has been a painful time, knowing something is misaligned and yet not knowing what. These times have led me to face uncomfortable truths about my life and start examining facets of it that quite frankly I had not been willing to look at. The truth remains unconscious, until the pain of denial becomes stronger than the pain of facing up to it.
The AHA moment that I had on my immersive training is that I have been conning myself that if I have the right knowledge (after all I am the course junkie!) that I would succeed, and yet I had forgotten that you have to take responsibility to get your mindset, programming and influences right first. When we trip up, it’s usually because we jumped to the knowledge and action part before we have sorted out our mindset, subconscious programming and external influences first.
Once I realised this I was mad at myself until I remembered that of all the successful and abundant people I’ve met, many of them did go through tough times due to misalignment, before having an “aha” moment and breaking through.
So, my question for you today is where are you misaligned? Where are you experiencing any incongruence in your business or your life? I now know what has been holding me back, so expect to see some changes in my business over the next few weeks, as I get more aligned and congruent and stop doing what everyone tells me I should do rather than what feels right to me.
The horses are masters at alignment and sensing when your head, heart and gut are not aligned, so if you’d like them to act as your barometers to get you back on track just book in for a complimentary strategy session and we can get a session booked in for you.
Wishing you an amazing aligned and flow filled Wednesday.
by Julia Felton | Nov 6, 2016
“Without solid foundations you’ll struggle to create anything of lasting value”
Many of us are familiar with the story, from the Bible, of the two men who built houses. One built his house upon a rock and another who built his house upon sand. The house built upon a rock weathered the storm, and the builder was called wise; but the house built on the sand collapsed during the storm, and the builder was called foolish.
The meaning of this parable is quite obvious: proper foundations are necessary. With a literal house, it is unwise to build on sand, because the foundation will be unsteady and the house will eventually suffer some kind of damage. This will waste resources, and all the time and work put into building the house in the first place will have gone for nothing. In contrast, it is wise to build one’s house on a sure foundation; anchoring to bedrock makes a building withstand the test.
And so it is the same in business. Oftentimes we get so excited about starting our business that we fail to put the proper foundations in place, and the result I come across time and time again is that whilst the business is prospering there is little or no negative impact, but when the tide turns and the storm comes in, orders dry up and cash flow is tight, then the unsteady foundations of the business start cracking and in many cases the business doesn’t weather the storm. It’s so sad to see this as some well thought out structured planning at the outset could have prevented this and ensured the business would survive and thrive.
Many of you will be familiar with how I like to relate everything in business to nature and the natural world and the foundations of your business are no different. There are five natural elements found in nature and they each represent a different season of the year and provide a different business focus which is critical to creating the foundations of your business. These elements and their seasonality provide us with a foundational blueprint of how to run our businesses by keeping our people, teams and processes in flow. Each element is inter-dependent on each other and this is why we must have all these five elements aligned if we are to create solid cornerstones for our business. This can be clearly seen in the diagram below of the Five Element Business Focus Model.
Water Energy (Mission):
Water energy has a duality in that it can be fast flowing and powerful or still and peaceful. The water element is associated with the season of winter and is always asking us the question Why? The key business foundation that the water element seeks us to get clarity on is why we are in business. What is the business mission and what is the real purpose of the business. For every business it is essential to have clarity of the mission and why you are in business, as this is the fuel that keeps you going when the going gets tough. Today more than ever customers are seeking to do business with purposeful organisations. Companies that know why they are in business and the real impact they want to make in the world. And interestingly for all these companies it is not profits, although interesting all the research shows that companies that focus on their purpose and impact actually generate 10 times more profit than companies that just focus on this metric.
Wood Energy (Merchandise):
Wood energy is associated with Spring which is a time of new beginnings. It is the season in which we ask What are we doing. In business this relates to what merchandise will be selling, what innovation and products and services will we be offering. It is essential that every business has clarity on what they are offering, because without this clarity the customer doesn’t know what they can buy and so can’t make a purchasing decision. In my experience at the outset keep things simple and just focus on a few key products and services. Get known for delivering these well and then you can expand your product offering. All too often I come across companies with a plethora of diverse merchandise and this just confuses the customer.
Fire Energy (Magnetise):
Fire energy is associated with summer when there is lots of movement and connection. In business the fire element relates to Magnetise and who are the clients you are seeking to attract. Knowing who you want to serve is a key cornerstone of any business and one that often gets overlooked. All too often new business owners want to serve everyone and in the process serve no-one. Getting clarity on your ideal client and niche is of paramount importance in creating a sustainable business. The other advantage of being niched and serving a specific target audience is that you can more easily position yourself as an expert and so command higher fees. Simply by niching you distinguish yourself from the crowds and so avoid your products and services becoming commoditised and therefore competing on pricing with others.
Earth Energy (Monetise):
Earth energy is associated with late summer, a time of slowing down and also of expert timing, of knowing how long to leave the crops until they need harvesting. The earth element is always asking the questions when and where and in business this translates to knowing how to monetise our products and services. Where and when should we be selling and at what price. These are key business decisions that can impact the business success and which we must be continually striving to master. Discount a product too early and we lose valuable income, whilst leaving a discount running too long also has the same effect. The challenge here is to learn how to master the art of distribution so that you maximise the return on your assets.
Metal Energy (Mechanise):
Associated with autumn metal energy is super efficient and effective. It is always asking the question How can we make things more effective. How can we change our procedures to get a better result?. How can we Mechanise operations so they are as streamlined as possible, and so they can be automated. How can we organise things and what systems and metrics do we need in place to monitor performance?. Implementing systems is oftentimes the area that many business owners overlook – after all it is not the most sexy of activities – and yet time and time again systems can save the business time and money when created in a structured and well thought out manner.
Each of these energies and its corresponding “M” activity are key cornerstones to ensure the success of any business. Just like in nature, these cornerstones need to be aligned to keep the business in harmony and when one or more of these cornerstones is missing this is when poor performance and trouble can occur. Just like the house built on the sand when these cornerstones of Mission, Merchandise, Magnetise, Monetise and Mechanise are out of balance then when stormy conditions arrive the business is more likely to implode.
If you’d like help creating solid foundations for your business then why not book in for a Joined Up Business Strategy Consultation with me and lets see what needs to happen to get your business back on track.
by Julia Felton | Nov 2, 2016
I just love this photo I came across this week, as it so clearly demonstrates how to stand out from the crowd. We live in exponential times and the pace of technology is accelerating. Consumers are drowning in technology overload from emails to social media posts. At the same time business competition has never been fiercer and the challenge for all business owners is how to distinguish themselves in a crowded marketplace.
Welcome to the world of disruptive marketing. A world where innovation, creativity and out of the box thinking reign. A world where imperfect action is better than no action at all. A world where speed is of the essence and where organisations need to be agile to be able to respond On-The-Hoof to changes in the marketplace.
As Richard Branson notes: “Disruption is all about risk-taking, trusting your intuition, and rejecting the way things are supposed to be.”
Uber and Airbnb are two companies that between then have changed the face of hospitality and travel industry over the last couple of years by being disruptive. What is amazing is that neither company has any assets, but rather they have both created a platform to connect users to a service that didn’t exist before. In the case of Uber you can easily locate and book a taxi with a few clicks on your phone, whilst with Airbnb you can find quality accommodation to stay in when visiting virtually any location. For many the idea of staying a home, either on a shared basis, or alone, provides a refreshing alternative to traditional hotel accommodation solutions.
Here are five things you can do to make your business stand out from the crowd:
1) Be Authentic
Whatever we say people buy from people who they know, like and trust, so make sure your brand truly reflects who you are and your personality. This is an era where quirky is good. Share your vulnerabilities and stories so that people can really connect with you. Showing that you are not perfect can make you more likeable. Share your vision and why you are really in business. What impact you want to make. All the research shows that the more purpose driven your company is, and the more your customers relate to this, the more successful you will be.
2) Focus on the Customer Experience
The reason people will stop doing business with your company is because they have a bad experience, so focus on wowing your customers with great service. Get to know your customers so you can deliver them promotions customised to their needs. Make then feel special, and really get to understand their motive for buying from you and the solution you are solving for them. This customer feedback is gold dust and enables you to be able to shape your offering quickly and so stay on the innovative edge.
3) Stay Visible To Your Customers
One of the most common problems I come across with my clients is that they fail to stay visible with their customers. They assume that because the customer already knows what service they provide or has already brought from them that they will automatically remember them in the future. Incorrect. Customers are overloaded with marketing messages so unless you remain front of mind with them they can easily end up buying from your competitors – not necessarily because they intended to but rather your competitor happened to send them a promotion on the day they needed that service, so they took the easy option and used the solution that was right inf front of their nose. Combat this problem by providing your customers regularly with value added materials that they can use so that you stay front of mind.
4) Have Absolutely Clarity On Your Niche
Now I know many of my clients resist niching but the reality is you can’t serve everyone and if you do you are a generalist not a specialist and so you can’t command such high rates. You end up in a commodity bidding war for work and that is just not a great place to be. Just think about it. If you need heart surgery do you go to your GP or do you go to a heart specialist.? Who do you think would charge the most? It’s the same in business. It is actually easier for customers to purchase from you if they know you are the expert in X, and because they know you are the expert they are also willing to pay more for your services. So what could you become a real expert in? Getting clarity on this and then ensuring all your marketing collateral supports this will automatically help you stand out from the crowd.
5) Add Value In Ways That Might Not Be Obvious
Find innovative ways to make your product or service different and more luxurious from the others in the marketplace. Simple things you could do include sending gifts to customers on their birthday; packaging additional services together so for example if you are a hair dresser you could offer all your clients a glass of champagne with their haircut. One thing I do is send all my clients a picture of them with one of my horses after their Unbridled Success VIP Day. It gives the client an immediate reminder of the experience they had and helps them embody the learning as every time they look at the picture, they recall what they experienced. It also proves to be a great marketing promotion for me as they tend to show the picture to their friends and the photo has my website address on it so my business stays front of mind with them. It is simple add on’s like this that help retain customers, flood you with referrals and allow you to charge higher prices.
So how are you going to start standing out from the crowd.? I’d love to hear about the disruptive strategies you are using. And of course if you need any help just book in for a complimentary strategy session so I can help you decide on the way forward.
by Julia Felton | Oct 26, 2016
As you know I have been on the road over the last few weeks. Firstly I had a week unplugged Musketeering in the south of France and then I had a whirlwind trip to San Francisco to attend the annual conference of the Association of Horse Assisted Educators. So time has become an even more valuable commodity to me than usual. Of course, we all have the same number of hours in the day, so I got to reflecting on how come some people seem to achieve more than others.
When I dug into this further I realised that those that get more done have an amazing team supporting them. One of my mentors used to live in a small town and what she realised was that: in a small town:
- You don’t have every talent and skill you need to do well, or even survive
- Few do
- Even those individuals who (seem to) know how to do everything don’t have enough time to do it
- If people work together, talents and time can complement each other, then the whole can be stronger than the sum of the parts
- By working in teams, you learn how to teach people how to treat you, and how to treat others with respect
When people collaborate together as a team, they collectively can achieve more and as a result everyone gets more time. Just think about the millions of tasks you do everyday as a business owner. I’m sure there are some you love and some you’d rather not do. I know that is the case for me. In fact, have you ever noticed how you procrastinate about the tasks you hate doing and then how they take even longer than you thought!!!
How would it be if that task that you hated doing someone else loved doing? You could outsource the task to them and hey presto you have created more time for yourself. Now when I suggest this to my clients the initial comment is often: “Julia, I can’t afford to do that”, and my response is, “You can’t afford not to”.
Just think about it like this. Say your time is valued at £100 per hour and it takes you three hours per month to do your book-keeping. That’s a monthly cost of £300. Do you think you could outsource it more cheaply? I bet you could, and the best thing is that the book-keeper would probably take less than three hours to do it. Now, what else could you do with that time? If you use it to do revenue generating activities, not only have you created time but you have also created the revenue to pay for outsourcing. It becomes a win-win.
So how are you going to start leveraging the power of team to help you create time.? If you’d like my help with this then please book in for a complimentary strategy session to explore the best activities for you to outsource and how you can find the best team members to help you grow your business.
by Julia Felton | Oct 19, 2016
Did you know that going the extra mile is what makes the difference between someone who achieves their goals consistently and those who spend their lives and careers merely following. So why don’t more people go the extra mile and what does the extra mile look like?.
Over the last two weeks I’ve been travelling across Europe and the US and I have literally gone the extra mile. This amount of travelling has been tiring and at times exhausting – especially my whistle stop trip to San Francisco for three days to attend the annual conference of the International Association of Horse Assisted Educators. Has it been inconvenient? Hell yes, but it has also been so rewarding. In San Francisco I was honoured to be able to spend time with the incredible Barbara Rector, who I regard as the pioneer of Horse Assisted Education, as well as other industry trail blazers. It was great to learn from them and have them share their wisdom with us. For me I know that the trip to San Francisco with all the new connections I met and the wisdom I learned will help make an incredible difference to how I achieve my goals over the next year.
During my recent Musketeer Academy I also got to experience the power of going the extra mile in the form of conscious training. We often think that in order to improve in a discipline – whether that is a sport or business – you need to practice, practice, practice. Well nothing can be further from the truth because if we just practice, practice, practice without getting any feedback on how we are performing, it is easy to start developing bad habits. This is why we need to engage in conscious training where we are receiving feedback on how we are doing and so we can re-calibrate our performance and make changes.
It was my Musketeer Sword Master, Jared Kirby, that shared this wisdom with me and on reflection I realize how correct he is. When I was learning the art of fencing it was relatively easy to keep practicing the moves, but unless I really slowed down and actually consciously thought about each movement step by step and engaged in perfect practice I was in fact just going through the motions and not actually training the skills required. Conscious training required us all going the extra mile.
Oftentimes however we don’t go the extra mile because going the extra mile can be inconvenient. It can be exhausting training at fencing for three hours a day just simply to improve a single move and yet I know when I made that commitment of training slow and getting every detail perfect, that in the end the results would be amazing. And they were. Over seven days by slow consistent training and going the extra mile I honed enough skill to be able to participate in a sword fight and storm French castles.
In business going the extra mile involves ensuring we deliver amazing value to our clients. It means exceeding customer expectations and wowing them with great service. Because when we go the extra mile and deliver great value our clients appreciate it and our more likely to want to work with us again and therefore help us achieve our goals and create success.
So are you prepared to go the extra mile to achieve your goals, or are you merely happy to follow others?. Are you prepared to engage in conscious training to improve and get regular feedback so that you can develop, or are you happy going through life just practicing, and missing those nuances that make all the difference? If you are ready to go the extra mile then you need a coach and mentor that can give you quality feedback on how you are performing, so lets connect and explore if I am the right coach for you.
by Julia Felton | Oct 12, 2016
My motto for last week as I was transported back into time and rode through France as a Musketeer was “All for One and One For All”. Before I decided to attend this Musketeer Academy I have to confess to not really knowing about the stories of the three musketeers and the important role they had in serving the French King and protecting him. And I certainly never really gave any consideration to their motto “All for One and One For All”, and yet the more time I spent as a Musketeer, the more I experienced how this philosophy was critical for their success and how it’s essence is fundamental to business success too.
To me the phrase “All for One and One For All” embodies the real need that we have in business right now for collaboration and co-operation. No longer can an individual be successful by themselves, but rather success comes from being part of a team. It comes from the collective actions of everyone rather then the results of one individual.
I often talk about Shared Leadership and how in today’s fast paced environment there is simply too much going on for just one leader to pay attention too. This is why the leadership role needs sharing, and it is what the horses do so well. They act seamlessly together to collectively ensure the safety of the herd – and if any herd member is not playing their part, they are quickly reprimanded and if necessary expelled from the herd. The herd act as one and understand that value of “All for One and One For All”, after all their very life depends on it.
I experienced the importance if “All for One and One For All” whilst learning fencing too. As our troop of Musketeers stormed the castles it was imperative that we all worked together if we were to overcome our adversaries. After all in battle your odds of success are considerably stacked in your favour if you’re fighting two on one, rather than one on one!!. But this is only possible if you have a clear focus and everyone knows the direction and the goal you are aiming for.
So this weeks Wednesday Wisdom thought is how can you collaborate and connect with others, how can you share your dreams and vision and in the words of Jim Collins “get the right people on the bus” so that you have a team working alongside you that are all focused on the end goal, rather than their own personal agenda and ego and who live the adage “All for One and One For All”
As always I’d love you to share in the Facebook group about what you are doing to create your own team of Musketeers who embody the values of “All for One and One For All”
by Julia Felton | Oct 5, 2016
Good morning. Hope you are having a great week. This week I am just sending you a quick shot of Wednesday Wisdom inspiration as I’m in the south of France with very limited internet access, except for today when I’ve travelled to Amsterdam to co-deliver a workshop for Centre of Creative Leadership. I am beyond excited to be helping facilitate this workshop which we are running concurrently both in the US and Europe for a global client. This is an industry first as we all come together and collaborate under the Teaching Horse philosophy designed by my good friend June Gunter.
As I landed at Amsterdam this morning I was wondering what I would share with you this week, and then this great quote landed in my inbox from June and I simply knew this is what I had to share, “Trust Your Vision”.
In business we so often have to trust ourselves and others, and yet just as importantly we have to have trust and self-belief in what we want to accomplish. June has trust in us to deliver an awesome workshop for her company today. It is not something I take lightly and yet it has been made possible by the trust and relationship I have built with June over the last few years. Without June extending her trust to me and my colleagues her vision of simultaneous delivery of Equine Guided Leadership programmes across the world would not have been possible.
On a personal note I’m in the south of France this week participating in a Musketeer Academy. We have been transported back to 1624 and are training to learn the art of fencing. We are also riding horses into the medieval French castles in full Musketeer costumes and then fencing here. This whole experiential adventure has been made possible because Clinton Swaine, my mentor, trusted his vision that we could actually get permission to do this. Again something that had never been done before. And my fellow Musketeers trusted that Clinton could deliver on his vision, and so far it has not disappointed. I’ll share lots more about my adventures next week, I know the pictures will be amazing.
So, I’m curious to hear about what activities in your life and business will you have had to have unwavering trust in your vision to achieve. As always I’d love you to share in the Facebook group.
Wishing you an amazing week
by Julia Felton | Oct 3, 2016
This week I have been thinking a lot about luck and why some people seem to have it and some don’t Luck is the phenomena that Swiss Psychiatrist, Carl Jung, termed synchronicity and it is ultimately related to flow. So as your flow grows, so your luck grows and vice versa. This is why it always seems that those that have a lot seem to get more. They are in flow and luck is attracted to flow. So how do you master how to create luck and flow. You focus on becoming a Wealth Creator by creating the conditions for success to occur.
The foundation of luck is built on four conditions namely Location, Understanding, Connections, Knowledge and great Wealth Creators know how to leverage these phenomena so that they are working for them rather than against them.
Location: luck comes with being in the right place at the right time. The problem is that so many of us are busy and not paying attention to what is happening around us that we fail to find the opportunities to be in the right place at the right time. It’s no coincidence that a football player like David Beckham always knew the right place to be in on the football pitch so he could get the ball and take the winning shot. In business sometimes it means being at the right networking event at the right time. I’ll never forget sitting next to someone at a conference who then turned out to become my best source of business bringing me two new corporate clients. That’s the power of synchronicity and being in the right place at the right time.
Understanding: luck comes from knowing the rules of the game so that when an opportunity presents itself you know how to respond. Too many people are spectators in the game of life and business. We observe what is happening around us but we don’t actively engage in the process. Take the football analogy again. The footballer might be in the right place at the right time but if they don’t realize that the aim of the game is to get the ball in the net they might not take the shot. In business this might translate to not making the offer to a potential client to work with you. When I met that potential client at the conference I knew that the rule of the game at that time was not asking for the business but rather building relationships. I did this over the following year and then in time the business referral resulted.
Connections: business is all about connections but many business owners that I work with have not invested in developing their wealth connections and so don’t have anyone sending them any referrals. Expanding the football analogy again, you are on the pitch, you know you need to put the ball in the net but no-one is passing the ball to you. And the reason is there is no-one else on the pitch!!.. Great wealth creators have loads of people on the pitch with them passing them balls, so their opportunity to score is increased exponentially. (Just a word of caution here. Connections are not the same as your network. Many of us have big networks, but networks are full of spectators, not players, this is why you can have a great network but still have no opportunities coming your way!).
Knowledge: just as there is no point in having the ball coming to you if you don’t know how to kick the ball, there is no point having opportunities come your way if you don’t know what to do with them. Knowing how to act on opportunities comes with experience, so the more you play the more skillful you become. This is why it is imperative to get over the perfectionist syndrome and get in the game, as the sooner you start playing, the sooner you will gain the knowledge and so the sooner your luck will begin to flow.
Now the great thing is that we build these four conditions of success not by investing our money but rather by investing our time. The challenge is that so many of us have been so busy going to work trying to build our businesses that we have not invested any time in building our luck, and so we are no luckier today than we were five years ago.
Remember wealth isn’t about how much money you have, it’s about what you have left when you lose all your money. Because so long as you have your talents and understand how to create luck then you can rebuild your wealth.
So what actions will you take today to start building your luck?. As always I’d love you to share in the Facebook group. And if you are free tomorrow join me at 10am for an in person masterclass on how to build your wealth connections. Simply email me for more details.
