SuccessCo.com

  Several years ago, I had the great pleasure of inviting an Olympic athlete to speak at one of my advanced membership development and retention workshops. A parallel we discussed between professional new member sales and athletics is the fact that " practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect. " As an athlete, he shared that he spent more than 1,000 hours in pre-competition practice for every one minute of competition. I encourage everyone to think about their "perfect practice time." If the 1,000-to-1 ratio sounds like a bit much, at least consider the words of Abraham Lincoln: "Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe."

In the midst of life's tumultuous journey, there are moments when we find solace in the most unexpected places. Take, for instance, Sir Isaac Newton's third law of physics, a principle that transcends the realms of science and extends its wisdom into the fabric of our daily lives. Newton's third law succinctly states, "To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." Although initially formulated to describe the fundamental nature of forces in the physical world, this law's application is far-reaching, touching the very essence of our human experiences. Consider those days when everything seems to be going awry—when the challenges outnumber the victories, and the road ahead appears daunting. It is during these moments of adversity that Newton's third law can serve as a beacon of hope. Just as every action begets an equal and opposite reaction in the world of physics, so too does life offer the promise of a brighter day after the darkness. The wis...

  If you are ready to be more aggressive with your time management, you can increase your productivity and income by more efficiently using only forty minutes a day - twenty minutes in the morning and twenty minutes in the afternoon. By focusing on just these two small chunks of time, you can . . . Add 200 minutes per week ( 3.33   hours per week); Add 860 minutes per month (14.33 hours =   1.79 days per month ); and Add 10,320 minutes per year (172 hours =   21.5 days per year   - a full working month)!

Like two sides of a sharp blade, habit creep can work for you or against you; it can cut to make your position easier and nourish you - or make you bleed, with either happening so gradually that the effects are often overlooked and unrecognized, hence, habit creep.  One of the ways I demonstrate this natural phenomenon is by having folks watch a short video that beautifully exhibits the gradual effects of habit creep.

  It's not by accident that reflection, action, and change are often the result of first asking a great question. One such example: "What one word do we want to own in the minds of our members, employees, and strategic partners?" A deceptively simple query that is not so easy to answer due to the vast diversity of your programs. Go ahead, ask your colleagues! The challenging questions we ask ourselves as an organization are the ones that tend to be the most transformative, especially during these times of rapid change and massive disruption. Here are a few more example questions every organization should be asking: Q: Would we rather recruit knowledgeable and informed long-term members who join for the right reason or sell to uninformed, easy to get short-term members? Do our incentives match the goal? Before you assume you have a retention problem, consider whether you have an acquisition problem instead. As they say, easy come, easy go! If more than 10 percent of your n...

  Are You Having a Rough Day? Well, you're not alone. Here are some other folks that had the occasional rough day too . . . 27 publishers rejected Dr. Seuss's first book,   To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street . Van Gogh sold only one painting during his lifetime, and even this sale was to the sister of one of his friends for 400 francs (approximately $50). This didn't stop him from completing over 900 works of art. A Paris art dealer refused Picasso shelter when he asked if he could bring his paintings in from the rain. Charlie Chaplin was initially rejected by Hollywood studio chiefs because his pantomime was considered "nonsense." Stephen King's first novel   Carrie   was rejected 30 times. After Harrison Ford's first performance as a hotel bellhop in the film   Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round , the studio vice president called him in to his office. "Sit down, kid," the studio head said, "I want to tell you a story. The first time Tony...

  In the realm of success, the Greeks have gifted us a beautiful term - "Meraki" (may-rah-kee). It encapsulates the essence of infusing soul, creativity, and love into one's work, leaving an indelible mark. Meraki is that elusive quality, a secret ingredient that propels individuals to hyper-success in our fiercely competitive marketplace. Identifying Meraki is akin to finding a rare seed, and in my quest, I've curated a comprehensive list of thought-provoking questions. These questions serve as a compass, guiding me to discern the presence of Meraki in every professional I bring into our membership and retention team. This meticulous approach significantly enhances the likelihood of long-term success for all involved. Meraki is not a skill that can be taught or a facade that can be faked. It is a flowering that takes place through authenticity, wisdom, and the passage of time. It's the commitment to imbue every task with a piece of oneself, a dedication that goes...