10 Steps to Energizing Your Business and Your Life
A COMMON SENSE GUIDE TO STAY SUCCESSFULLY ENGAGED IN YOUR BUSINESS AND YOUR LIFEBy Daniel S. FowleriUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2009 Daniel S Fowler
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4401-6917-5Contents
Step One: Excel As You Grow Older............................................1Step Two: Embracing Technology as A Way of Life..............................11Step Three: Invest in Quality Staff..........................................15Step four: Learning to Delegate Effectively..................................21Step Five: Let Go Of Grudges.................................................27Step Six: Attitude is everything.............................................33Step Seven: Reestablish Your Relationship With Your Boss.....................39Step Eight: What Does Your Company Owe You?..................................43Step Nine: Are You Better Off Today?.........................................47Step 10: How To Be A Mentor And Statesperson.................................53AWARD WINNING AGENCY.........................................................61
Chapter One
Step One: Excel As You Grow Older
Why do some people excel as they grow older? Conversely, why do many not? The answer may be simpler than you think.
As a student of people watching all my life, it's interesting to watch people you know grow older and see how they make adjustments with the aging process that we all go through. Some people do it very well and some do not.
Everyone has to adjust as they grow older to meet both the mental and physical challenges we face every day.
This is true in both your professional life as well as your personal life, which are much intermingled.
The question you must pose for yourself is: How best can I age well and still be productive? Can age work to my advantage?
Everyone is going to age differently depending on their genetic makeup and how well we take care of ourselves. We age physically and mentally. How you handle the aging process is what it's all about.
Staying in constant contact with appropriate medical doctors is essential for your well being. Many of us, particularly men, don't like going to doctors and put off routine physicals and treatments that will help us live a long healthy, productive life. Yes, our physicians make recommendations that alter our eating habits and bad lifestyle choices.
It cannot be emphasized enough: Having a good relationship with a medical doctor may be the difference between life and death. Certainly, following their advice will help you age better and live the productive life we all want. It's called preventive healthcare. If you don't have a doctor in whom you have confidence, get one.
Taking into account our individual health issues, what can we do to excel as we grow older? We learn by observing people who seem to do better with age and who find age an advantage. Yes, age can be an advantage if you want it to be! We also learn a lot from people who find the aging process burdensome and have a tendency to turn inward as they get older. We all know older people who turn negative with age and we say to ourselves, "I hope I don't get like that."
Without any doubt, the number one reason successful people excel as they grow older is their ability to stay engaged in something they like to do. You have to like what you're doing and if you don't, find something you enjoy or life will find you miserable. Comedian George Burns, was asked in his 90's when he was going to retire. He answered, "Why would I retire from something I really enjoy doing?" Burns lived to age 100.
The same can be said for people who stay engaged after they retire. If you're going to retire, you better have something else to do, some purpose to life.
We all know people who are like this, a customer, businessperson or friend who do well with age and excel as they grow older. They all have common traits from which we can learn.
A great example of this is a good friend of mine for the last 33 years. At age 68 he is one of the most successful businessmen I know. He is an interesting study of a highly successful person who has excelled with age. I'm asked frequently what his key to success is. The answer is pretty simple. He is smart, shrewd, driven and is passionate about what he does, but most of all he is a hard worker.
A few years back, he and I took a trip to our national headquarters for a best practices summit. We went a day early to see a few friends and build new relationships as well as nurture existing ones. My friend is twelve years older than I am and our day started out early. He is an early bird, I am not. As we made our rounds, I thought keeping up with him would be easy; after all I walk three-plus miles everyday, work out with weights four days a week and get more sleep than he does. Boy was I in for the surprise of my life! After four hours of making the rounds and "following" him around, I had blisters on the heels of my feet and a bad headache to boot.
He is one of the most intense, driven human beings I know; always engaged and passionate about his work. His energy level is high because he loves what he does and is always striving to do better. You would think that he might retire after 42 years doing the same thing, but just the opposite is true.
His excellence has continued throughout his entire life and he just keeps getting better with age. Once I suggested to him that he might consider slowing down. Without hesitation he quickly replied, "That's why they call it the human race." It's true that my friend is an exceptional person, but his passion, drive and his desire to stay engaged is truly something to emulate. The two reasons for his success would be his passion and love for what he does.
So what about retired people?
We know of many people who are retired and have also excelled in their life because they have found another purpose in life. My grandmother lived to be ninety-eight; taught school until her early 80's and found travel, friends, reading, knitting, exercise and her garden as her new purpose in life. I asked her once what the key to living a long fruitful life was. She answered that as you grow older you must develop the discipline to push and make yourself go, even when you don't want to continue. She said everything inside her wanted to sit or lay down and it took determination and discipline not to do that.
She said that if she had given into that, it would be the beginning of the end.
She always sought out friends and family to visit and shared her life story. She and my grandfather traveled the world several times in an effort to stay engaged and learn as much about the world around them as they could. It was not unusual for them to drive to Alaska, back to St. Louis and then get back in the car and drive to California. Sitting down or giving up was never an option until she was ready to leave this world. She always found a way to exercise, including walking three miles inside her home on days she could not get outside. Exercise was a key ingredient to her longevity and vitality. In the spring, summer and fall, she worked her garden and ate the food she grew.
She found new purpose everyday she got up and became totally engaged in that day's activity. She planted a tree near her screened-in porch because, as she said, "It will provide some shade in 20 years." She was ninety years old when she planted that tree.
She was always looking forward to tomorrow. She said to me on many occasions, "Other people talk of the good old days. There was nothing good about them. The good old days are right now." She used her mind and body everyday to stay fit and stay engaged. As the adage goes, "if you don't use it, you lose it." So for crying out loud use it, so you don't lose it.
Without any doubt, exercise of some nature should be a part of everyone's daily regimen. Twelve years ago, I started an exercise program that changed my life forever from a mental and physical point of view. As I said, I work out with light weights four days a week and walk three miles everyday. It's a part of staying engaged in some kind of physical activity. I feel better physically and mentally as a result, and so will you if you do it. Find an exercise program that meets your needs and find the discipline and habit to stay with it. It should be something you look forward to and not find as a daily burden.
Without some kind of regular physical program, formal or not, you will slowly decline mentally and physically as you get older. With a physical program in place, you will greatly slow the aging process and in some cases you can actually reverse it. And, it's never too late to start. As in anything new, it takes discipline in the beginning that eventually becomes a habit.
I have always been fascinated with former President Richard Nixon. From an intellectual point of view, he was brilliant. As he left the presidency in disgrace, his primary concern was what to do with the rest of his life. He always felt that life must have purpose and so he began an effort to rehabilitate himself.
Nixon wrote many books after he left office about his views of the world. While I do not condone what Nixon did in regard to Watergate, his books are insightful and well written. He became an elder statesman for America, gave advice to sitting presidents regarding international issues and continued to make a constructive contribution to society that gave purpose to his life despite the Watergate tragedy.
He often said writing was hard work for him, but he was determined to succeed as he grew older. Nixon had every reason to give up, yet he found his compass through writing best-selling books and never did give up. It was his way of staying engaged and making a difference.
Jimmy Carter left the presidency in defeat and went on to restore much of his legacy by being involved in human rights initiatives and Habitat for Humanity.
The lesson here is: It's never too late. Today, many believe that Carter may leave a better legacy after leaving the White House. In his 80s, he lives in good health, very much engaged in world events. He is an example from which we can all learn.
One of the most valuable assets we have to offer society as we grow older is wisdom. As we age, we have an absolute obligation to share with others the knowledge we have gained in our lifetime of experiences. You will find that as successful people age, they have a real desire to share their knowledge and wisdom to a younger generation with the hope of making someone else's life better. My good friend I mentioned earlier does it, as did my grandmother and so did Nixon and Carter.
My first manager was a big advocate of sharing information and helping other people succeed in business. Some people don't share success stories, fearing their "secret" is out. We know there really is no "secret" to success other than hard work, desire, passion and setting goals. As an old saying goes, "What goes around comes around." If you are a sharing person, you will be repaid in so many good ways.
These examples are of people who excelled with age. They have made a constructive difference not only in their own lives, but the lives of ordinary people who will go on to live years beyond them. We all know people who are role models in the aging process; all we have to do is follow their lead.
While I do not want to focus on people who fail to stay engaged as they get older, it's worth noting some of their poor habits. Notice I use the words "get older" instead of "grow older." There is a fundamental difference in the two. I prefer to "grow older" instead of "get old."
People who "get older" have a tendency to look for what's wrong in life, focusing on things they have no control over and magnify unimportant things. When you are not engaged in a worthwhile purpose, life will not be kind to you. So much of this deals with attitude, which I will talk about in a later chapter.
People who struggle with age are generally vain, self-centered and are not generous stewards of their time, money and talent. They have a tendency to turn inward and become wrapped up in their own lives. They spend a great deal of time talking about what ails them. Do you know people who always talk about what's wrong with them?
Certainly, some people are dealt serious health issues that alter the way they live their life in a major way. But, I'm always amazed and in awe of people who have serious health issues and find ways to stay positively engaged in a project that gives their life purpose and meaning.
So why do some people excel as they get older? They stay engaged in activities that have purpose. And when that purpose is complete, they find a new one. Only God knows how long we have on this earth, but with the time we have, making a difference by staying engaged in purposeful and meaningful activities will assure you a lasting legacy with your family and your careers.
Chapter Two
Step Two: Embracing Technology as A Way of Life
In preparing for this part of the book, I had to do some research to feel confident about each subject. Much of the research I did was on the internet. I wonder how much additional time, effort and energy it would have taken had I not had the internet as a resource.
In fact, there is so much information out there on any subject, that to find and use exactly what you need becomes a skill in itself. School districts are teaching students "critical thinking skills," which means teaching them how to research the information they need to make good decisions.
It's not what you know; it's how you find what you need to know in order to make sound decisions in your personal as well as your professional lives. Learning critical-thinking skills is the wave of the future.
According to Wikipeda encyclopedia, "critical thinking is a form of judgment, specifically purposeful and reflective judgment. In using critical thinking one makes a decision or solves the problem of judging what to believe or what to do, but does so in a reflective way. Critical thinking gives due consideration to the evidence, the context of judgment, the relevant criteria for making that judgment well, the applicable methods or techniques for forming that judgment, and the applicable theoretical constructs for understanding the nature of the problem and the question at hand. These elements also happen to be the key defining characteristics of professional fields and academic disciplines. This is why critical thinking can occur within a given subject field (by reference to its specific set of permissible questions, evidence sources, criteria, etc.) and across subject fields in all those spaces where human beings need to interact and make decisions, solve problems, and figure out what to believe and what to do."
"Simply put, critical-thinking skills are about problem-solving. People who possess critical-thinking skills do more than simply collect and apply information. They take it a step further and use analysis, synthesis and evaluation to arrive at a proper solution." Source: Terry Noble, Superintentent of Mehlville School District.
People who apply critical-thinking skills to gather information, will have a great advantage over those who do not. That applies to your own life as well as large corporations. Well-run companies do not make decisions without a lot of research; neither should you.
Think about the times in your life where you have made major financial decisions without doing any research. I've done that a time or two and found out later that had I done just a little more research, I would have reached a different conclusion.
For example, how many times have we purchased a car without doing a little research? Often, we walk into the show room and within two hours walk out with a new car. Six months later, we ask ourself: Why did I do that?
Buying a car is the perfect example of why research is so important. Questions that should be answered before buying a car include fuel efficiency, safety issues, reliability and how consumers rank the car compared to similar models.
It's important to take advantage of every educational opportunity your company provides involving improving your technology skills.
Many local community colleges also provide such opportunities.
Chapter Three
Step Three: Invest in Quality Staff
The investment you make in quality people will pay you back more than any other part of your business operation.
Without any question, success in business is impossible without hiring, motivating and retaining quality staff.
As you grow older, your staff can help keep you in a productive mode. A successful businessman once told me that you only retire from your work for two reasons, bad health or bad help. There is one thing you definitely have control over, and that's your help.
There are a lot of people who would like the opportunity to work for you, and continue working for you, for the rest of their working life.
The challenge is finding the right person.
Successful staffing totally depends on three things:
Making sure that you hire the right person.
Paying them based on their skills and potential.
Giving them the tools and motivation they need to succeed.
As long as you provide them with these basic essentials, success is likely.
Who is the right person for the job?
(Continues...)
Excerpted from 10 Steps to Energizing Your Business and Your Lifeby Daniel S. Fowler Copyright © 2009 by Daniel S Fowler. Excerpted by permission.
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