Part Two: SUCCESS ATTITUDES BEGIN WITHIN

Your attitudes toward yourself and others are major factors in your success. They will either stimulate or stifle your creativity, your progress, and your ability to relate to other people. Your attitude is your advance person. It walks into a room before you do, and is generally several feet in front of you. It shouts what you are louder than you know. Your attitude may well have stimulated the quote “What you are shouts so loud I can’t hear you tell me what you are.  A positive attitude, backed by action. will produce positive results; a negative attitude will yield no results at all.

There is a story told about a young man who, in frontier days, was looking for a place to settle down. As he approached the outskirts of a small western town, he came across an elderly rancher and asked, “What kind of people live here?” “What kind of people did you find in the last place you lived?” asked the old man. “Oh, they were a selfish and unfriendly bunch,” replied the youth. “You’ll find the same here,” said the old man.

A few days later, another young traveler passed near the ranch and, seeing the old man, he put the same question to him: “What kind of people live in this town?” Again, the old man replied with the question, “What kind of people were in the town from which you came?” Answered the young man, “They were a good group of folks: honest, sincere, friendly. I was sorry to leave them.” “You’ll find the same here,” said the old man.

A ranch hand,, who had heard both conversations, questioned the old man: “How could you give two different answers to the same question to two different people?”

“Son,” said the old man, "Everyone carries within himself the environment in which he lives. The one who found nothing good about his previous town will find the same here. The young man who found friends in his former town will find friends here. People and circumstances are to us what we find in them. Seek -- from within yourself-- and ye shall surely find.”

Most of us try to change other people. To reach our goals, we don’t have to change others, we need to change ourselves. Others change as we change our thoughts about them.

Changing attitudes is not a simple process. It involves the formation of new habits which can take days, weeks, months, and even years before they become an integral part of our lives. The task is not easy, but it can be done.

Remember that attitudes and habits are changed when they cease to provide us with the amount of satisfaction that we would like to have.

There is one more condition that affects your ability to change attitudes, and that is your attitude toward change itself.

All new experiences carry with them some degree of anxiety, doubt, or fear. Change is no different. You may find yourself resisting change at first, and that is quite natural. Some understanding of that resistance to change will help you overcome it. On the whole, there are basically three reasons why people resist change: fear, conflict, and lack of purpose.

Without a personal goals program and a specific direction for the future, there would appear to be no reason to change attitudes. Planning a goals program produces enthusiasm and excitement which, in turn, sparks the beginning of change in attitudes.

People who have no goals, have no direction. They may be constantly busy, always moving, but they go around in circles never arriving or achieving.

To lead without a plan is sheer folly. It’s impossible to give directions to get to a place you know not; to lead from somewhere you’ve never been!

Where there are goals, there is progress!


For more information visit www.HollandResource.com

BUILDING SUCCESS ATTITUDES AND HABITS: PART ONE

You’ve no doubt heard the expression “We are creatures of habit.” There is considerable truth to that statement, for almost all of what we do is the result of habits that have been formed during the course of a lifetime.

Think for just a moment what you do when you wake up in the morning. Visualize each activity in order, from the time you awaken to the time you leave for work. You’ll probably discover that you have a set pattern that is the same each day. When you get into your car and head for work, do you take the same route more often than not? With few exceptions, what we do in a twenty-four hour period demands little conscious thought because we’ve developed habits that help us accomplish a number of things. While some habits are useful in preventing us from having to consciously figure out the mechanics each time we confront a familiar situation, many habits keep us from stretching our capabilities and trying new, and inventive, and possibly better ideas or techniques.

Your ability to build success attitudes, and winning habits is of primary importance in the achievement of your personal goals. By eliminating harmful habits and replacing them with constructive ones, you will begin to assume the behavior required to meet your objectives. First, however, you must understand the general nature of habit formation and habit change.

Habits are formed through a process which primarily involves evaluating a given situation, deciding what action to take, and then reassessing the action to find whether or not it yielded a desirable result. This process takes place in harmony with our self-image and our evaluation of past experiences that were similar. If the action gives you satisfactory results, you repeat it in similar circumstances in the future; if it continues to produce desirable results, the “rightness” of the action is again reinforced. As you continue this behavior, it becomes habitual. You no longer must consciously evaluate, act, adjust, and re-evaluate each situation. The brain automatically produces the pattern of behavior that it has learned is successful.

Think about some of your habits. How and when did you develop them? Are they producing the kinds of results you really want in your life?

Generalization

There is one other characteristic of habit formation which warrants consideration. It is called generalization. Generalization enables you to transfer learning or behavior from one situation to other similar situations. Learning to swim in a lake generalizes to swimming pools and rivers. Learning to tie your dress shoes generalizes to work boots and tennis sneakers. Learning to hit a baseball generalizes to softball. As you can see, generalization even further diminishes the need to relearn and re-evaluate your behavior in every situation, and thus, supports the power of habit.

If habits are learned and designed to eliminate inefficiency, why do people develop bad habits? You can see from previous discussion that habits reduce unnecessary and repetitive behavior; they are learned through judgments and choices which were originally made in a conscious manner. Therefore, we would not knowingly create ineffective habits or behavior patterns. But it is safe to say that most of us do have some habits that are bad and even annoying to others. Every cocktail party has a resident expert who considers himself omniscient on matters ranging from lawn-mower repair to nuclear physics. A legend in his own mind, he will continue giving you his views on a particular topic even though you ceased caring about it two hours ago. Our expert may not recognize his habit. However, it is possible that he formed the habit because he believes that expressing a knowledge of everything gives him some sort of stature or prestige in the eyes and ringing ears of his listeners. He believes, then that his habit is a good one -- it offers him personal satisfaction.

Sometimes a person will consciously develop a bad habit. For instance, an individual decides on a certain course of action and it yields unsatisfactory results. He tries other options, and each one proves unsatisfactory. He then chooses to form his habit based on the action that produces the most satisfying of the generally unsatisfying results. Now he has a habit that eliminates the time-consuming “trying-adjusting-readjusting” process but does not offer a great deal of satisfaction. By comparison, he feels that his habit is a good one.

Even though habits are efficient ways to handle personal business situations, they can hinder your leadership progress. Too much dependence upon habits CAN cause you to reject new ideas, approaches, and methods. You may become too comfortable with your self-image, your results, and the luxury of the automation of habit. Such comforts can lead to complacency. a personality trait that has no place in achievement.

Your job as a leader is to recognize latent skills, talents, and abilities of all those who look to you for leadership.

This is #1 of a this series.  Coming up - Part Two: SUCCESS ATTITUDES BEGIN WITHIN

For more information visit www.HollandResource.com

Defining the PBC (Positive Behavior Change)

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Albert Einstein, (attributed)

We cannot expect to achieve improved results from our worn out routines. A positive behavior change yields improved results.

How does behavior change occur? This question probably has as many answers as there are diverse populations and cultures. I offer the following thoughts…

First, you must understand why you behave the way you do. You must identify the factors that influence your decision to perform a specific behavior and how your behavior may be channeled toward more desirable outcomes – the IR (improved results).

Behavioral change theorists now agree on eight factors known to influence behavior:

1. Intention – a commitment to perform the behavior.
2. Environmental Constraints – restrictions to performing the behavior.
3. Skills – abilities to perform the behavior.
4. Attitudes – beliefs about performing the behavior.
5. Social Norms – perceived social pressure to perform a behavior.
6. Self-standards – whether performing the behavior is consistent with self-image.
7. Emotion – emotional reaction to performing the behavior.
8. Self-efficacy – perception in one’s capability to perform the behavior.

My approach incorporates these eight factors into a simple success formula that includes four key components: Attitudes, Skills, Knowledge, and Goals. This series examines this approach with links to specific examples and worksheets.

For more information visit www.HollandResource.com

(ASK) + GOALS = PBC = IR: A Proven Formula for Success

In my last posting I introduced my success formula:


In the coming days I will expand on this formula to discuss key components that represent the basic building blocks for leadership development. My previous post presented the overview. Let’s get right to the details.

Step One: EVERYTHING begins with defining the IR – the Improved Result. This is critical! You must begin with a goal.

Sports analogies are so overused. Please humor me as I contribute my part. How confusing, pointless, and boring would sports be without goals?

Tennis without a net anyone?

Basketball without a goal?

Football without an end zone?

etc. etc. etc…

I’m a golfer with a high handicap. Often with certain friends we “play for fun”. No scorecard.

Invariably these friendly rounds of golf – while enjoyable time spent with my friends – result in terrible performance. There are too many reasons to list – beginning with a lack of focus, substandard effort, etc.

My life, as in golf, yields very poor results when I “play” without a scorecard. In a future post I’ll discuss goals in more detail, so enough for now. I’ll climb down off my soapbox and get back to the point of this posting.

Clearly define the improved result you wish to accomplish. Where do you want to be? While for some situations this may be a simple exercise, more complicated situations require research and analysis. If you are struggling to define your improved result, here is an exercise that may help.

1. Begin with a blank pad of paper and a pen – or if you’re so inclined – a blank document in your favorite word processing application. (most of my exercises begin in this manner)

2. Clearly describe the situation, the issue, the challenge, or the circumstance at issue. Is it your career? Finances? Health? etc. Don’t over-think this – just begin to write.

3. Develop a title for your work. This is key – review your notes from step 2 and work out a heading that captures your thoughts in a nice concise statement.

4. Now with your title firmly in mind, relax. Find a quite place (remember to bring your paper and pen as you’ll need these later) and relax. Close your eyes and kick off your shoes. Start at your toes and release all tension – imagine your toes totally detached from your feet. Continue this process up your legs, your torso, your arms, and your head. You’re looking for a totally relaxed state of mind free from everything – everything that is except that nice concise statement from step 3.

5. Now that you’re relaxed, consider a point of time in your future. And at this time in your future you are the special guest at an event honoring your achievement– your achievement with the situation you defined in steps 2 and 3 above. Your friends, family, business associates, respected mentors, and others have gathered to honor and recognize you. From your seat of honor you hear the host, a person revered in your circle of influence, announcing “And this special award goes to (your name here) for achieving _________” .

6. Savor the moment – replay this scene in your mind. Rewind and play it again in slow-motion. Enjoy each step you take to the dais to accept your well-earned honor. Listen carefully to the host colorfully describe with great admiration your achievement.

7. Open your eyes. Quickly now record on your paper your achievement as described by the host. This is your IR – your improved result.

Okay, maybe this was a bit over the top but you get the point. With your IR clearly defined you are now ready to proceed to the next step – defining the PBC. Stay tuned…

Part Five: Activate Your Potential!

In your own experience, you have doubtlessly known an individual who suddenly, and without visible cause, takes off in pursuit of a challenging goal. Maybe you felt their contagious enthusiasm, their boundless energy, their sense of purpose and direction. Their zest for living and working promotes them from moderate success to a leader in their profession. Suddenly you realize, "That could be me-that should be me-if only I had the key."

Well – let me share with you the secret – the key to this change. Success is just a matter of taking one more step from where you are. Success lies in crystallizing your "dreams" into goals and your goals into an action plan. The important question you must now answer is, "Am I ready to unlock the potential within me?"

Anyone willing to make the necessary commitment and investment of time and energy can develop the skills needed to achieve success. The process is simple…

Step One: Define your vision – your goal. We call this the IR – Improved Result.

Step Two: Realize that the IR only comes through a Positive Behavior Change – the PBC. Change your behavior to change your results.

Step Three: Combine the following four key ingredients to achieve a PBC.

1. Attitudes: you must develop a strong positive attitude to build and maintain the motivation to change.

2. Skills: you must develop the proper skills to effectively lead people.

3. Knowledge: you must acquire knowledge to master your chosen craft.

4. Goals: Setting and achieving goals is the central key to your success.

Our Leadership Development Program is based on years of research and evaluation and has yielded positive results for thousands of people throughout the nation and into other countries. Through our programs you can put into action a plan for personal and professional development of your leadership skills. Future postings in this blog will explore our success formula in more detail. We will discuss different topics, different skill sets, learning concepts, and other material selected from our programs.

To succeed in our program requires your involvement. Your success will require that you look at yourself, your attitudes, and your skills. This will require change. Learning, and developing will mean effort on your part, but your rewards will far outweigh your efforts. Remember this – Action always follows goal setting; success always follows goal-directed action.

This is the final post of a five part series. Coming up – The Basic Building Blocks for Leadership Development.