How To Be Successful 51

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[Note: I've republished this article at the beginning of the year the last couple of years. With
many people looking to have their best year ever, I feel like doing my best part to provide a
semblance of a road map.]

The Most Important Key to Success

 Do What You Love - You aren't going to be successful at something you spend all
day dreading. When I was excited about software engineering, I was good -
perhaps even above average ;-). When I got stuck on a project that didn't interest
me, I was honestly a poor software engineer.

Preparation and Planning

 Make a List of Short, Medium, and Long Term Goals - Each night before I go to
sleep, I try to write down 5-10 things that I want to accomplish the next day. I make
sure that at least 3-4 are things that I can complete that day and purge from my to-
do list. I also make sure to add a couple of small parts of medium or long-term
projects. Here's an example. I'm looking to write an eBook. One day my goal was to
create an outline of the book - 9-12 chapters and 3-5 things that I wanted to cover
in each chapter. The next day one of my goals was to write at least one of those 3-
5 things in one chapter. In 1-2 months, I'll have my eBook written.
 Catalog Your Progress - I started this blog to keep me accountable. I can't go out
and buy a Ferrari on credit and then write about it here. Instead, I catalog
myalternative income progress here. Each day, I think about how I'm going to
grow that so that next month I don't have to live up to my moniker.

Learn These Skills

 Sales / Marketing - Even if you don't think you have a product to sell, you do...
yourself. I've learned that sales and marketing are not easy skills to learn. You can't
shout "look at me!" or people will think you are obnoxious. You have to find people
who might be genuinely interested in what you have to offer. I always find it best to
be open and honest with what I have to sell. If the product is of value, you price it
accordingly, and have the right buyer, it should sell itself. I've found that if you have
to "sell" to hard, it's probably going to be a sale you regret making.
 Public Speaking - I might be one of the most shy people on Earth. Talking to
someone one-on-one often ties my stomach in knots. Imagine how I must feel
about public speaking. I remember it was a required class in high school. I started
off horrible, but by the end, I had earned an A. It's really a case were practice
means everything. I suggest an organization such as Toastmasters.
 Writing - Even if you are crafting a short e-mail, try to use proper grammar. You'd
be surprised how many e-mails I receive where people make 6 mistakes in 6
sentences. Perhaps it shouldn't, but poor writing skills on the first impression
impacts my view of the person's intelligence and/or professionalism - and not in a
good way. A person who can write great commands my respect and my trust.
  Networking - Get out there and meet new people in your areas of interest. When
you know a lot of people, opportunities multiply. To go back to my eBook example
above, I found someone who already has a successful eBook. He's in the process
of getting it translated into an audio book now. He could definitely be a great
resource for me to learn from. He's newer to blogging and doesn't have the number
of readers that I have. I can probably give him a few tips and help him out. Now if I
knew 100 people like this guy, I'd have a solution to almost every question I'd ever
have at my fingertips.
 Read More and Faster - I have always been a very slow reader. I simply don't
scan text very well. Perhaps I'm afraid I'll miss a critical word or something silly like
that. This is one area that I'm going to work on in the new year. Much of my time is
spent reading, you'd think I'd at least be good at it.

Take Action

 Help Someone with Something Everyday - This may sound like some kind of
"Pay It Forward" hype. In some ways it is. I estimate that I've given guidance to
around 50 or 100 bloggers who are just getting going that were looking for advice.
Some of them became successful bloggers and some stopped blogging. The
successful ones have returned the favor 100 times over or more. They link to my
articles, they comment on my site, and fill me in with opportunities that I would have
otherwise missed. This isn't limited to blogging. If you mentor someone, you'll be
seen as a natural leader. I've always seen a strong correlation between leadership
and success.
 Make Mistakes - When I just got out of college, I took a job with a top ten Internet
company. It was a very high profile job as I managed the search engine myself. It
was about 20% of this 2 billion dollar company's traffic. The thought that I'd make a
mistake scared me to death. I spent each day walking on eggshells until the day
that I made a mistake. A strange thing happened. No one got upset with me, and
we were able to recover pretty quickly. From that experience, I learned to always
have a back-up plan. This allowed me to take some risks, experiment more, and
eventually produce ideas that made the company millions. Just as importantly, I
realized that I should tolerate other people's mistakes.
 Surround Yourself with Like-Minded Individuals - There are studies that show
an individual's income will be somewhere around the average of your closest five
friends. That formula works for me and my closest friends - or it did until I decided
to build my career from websites. There are also studies that show your weight will
reflect those who you hang around with. It makes sense if you think about it. If your
circle of friends likes to bounce business ideas off each other while playing a game
of pickup basketball, you'll probably put yourself closer to the path of prosperity
than if you tell fart jokes while eating Bon-Bons.
 Exercise - Whenever I work out, I am all pumped up with endorphins for hours. It
feels like nothing can stop me - as if I could tackle a bear. Instead of tackling a
bear, I focus that energy on my list of goals and churn through it like never before.
 Start a Website or Blog - It's easy to talk the talk, but what matters is if you can
walk the walk. A website or blog not only makes you accountable for the goals that
you set, but can also help you network and gather useful information. For more
inspiration read how personal finance blogging helped me.
Be More Productive

 Don't Get Wrapped Up in Television - I love television. However, I try to watch

shows that you don't have to follow too closely. This way I can work while it's on.
You won't see me watching a lot of Law and Order because it requires too much of
my focus. However, having the Red Sox on the background doesn't distract me
from accomplishing what I'm trying to.
 Commute with Books on Tape (or Podcasts) - Most of the people I know have a
30-60 minute commute to work each day. You can listen to some morning talk
show or a shock-jock DJ or you can learn some of the skills that I mention above.
I'm not saying that you should throw away all entertainment, but if you are looking
to increase your productivity, utilizing this downtime is a great start.
 Declutter and Organize Your Home and Work Area - I used to waste a lot of time
looking for stuff. The problem? I had stuff everywhere. I couldn't find the stuff that I
needed from the old stuff that was piled around it. It's amazed me the number of
things that I had around the home that I didn't use. Finally I simply said "Stuff It!"
and got rid of most of the stuff that I didn't use and put other special stuff in a closet
that I'll probably ignore for another years. Just like in What About Bob, "baby
steps..." I tell myself.

Think Your Way To Success

 Think Positively - I'm not going to get Stuart Smalley, Motivational Speaker on
you, but making the conscious decision to focus on being financially successful is
extremely helpful. Bringing finances to front of my mind, instead of the back has
made a huge difference in my finances.
 Don't Hate Money - Lose the thinking that money is the root of all evil. Start
thinking about it as a key to freedom to do whatever interests you. Think of it as a
way to help friends, family, and charities important to you. Think about how you
could use money to make the world a better place.
 Appreciate What You Have - Schedule a day to just appreciate yourself.
Appreciate the things that you do have. The fact that you are reading this likely
means that you are much better off than others in the world.
 Be In A Good Mood - One of my favorite lines from Say Anything is when Lloyd
Dobler (played by John Cusack) says to his sister, "Why can't you be in a good
mood? How hard is it to decide to be in a good mood and be in a good mood once
in a while?"
This post deals with:
business skills, Goals, Psychology, success

... and focuses on:

Productivity

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 10 Tips for Successful Business Networking

by Stephanie Speisman

Effective business networking is the linking together of individuals who, through trust and
relationship building, become walking, talking advertisements for one another.

1. Keep in mind that networking is about being genuine and authentic, building trust
and relationships, and seeing how you can help others.

2. Ask yourself what your goals are in participating in networking meetings so that
you will pick groups that will help you get what you are looking for. Some meetings are
based more on learning, making contacts, and/or volunteering rather than on strictly
making business connections.

3. Visit as many groups as possible that spark your interest. Notice the tone and
attitude of the group. Do the people sound supportive of one another? Does the
leadership appear competent? Many groups will allow you to visit two times before
joining.

4. Hold volunteer positions in organizations. This is a great way to stay visible and give
back to groups that have helped you.

5. Ask open-ended questions in networking conversations. This means questions that

ask who, what, where, when, and how as opposed to those that can be answered with a
simple yes or no. This form of questioning opens up the discussion and shows listeners
that you are interested in them.

6. Become known as a powerful resource for others. When you are known as a strong
resource, people remember to turn to you for suggestions, ideas, names of other
people, etc. This keeps you visible to them.

7. Have a clear understanding of what you do and why, for whom, and what makes
your doing it special or different from others doing the same thing. In order to get
referrals, you must first have a clear understanding of what you do that you can easily
articulate to others.

8. Be able to articulate what you are looking for and how others may help you. Too
often people in conversations ask, "How may I help you?" and no immediate answer
comes to mind.

9. Follow through quickly and efficiently on referrals you are given. When people
give you referrals, your actions are a reflection on them. Respect and honor that and
your referrals will grow.

10. Call those you meet who may benefit from what you do and vice versa. Express
that you enjoyed meeting them, and ask if you could get together and share ideas.

Stephanie Speisman is a Success Coach who coaches groups and individuals in business networking skills based on
her booklet "99 Tips for Successful Business Networking." Contact info: (301)469-8015, successcoach@erols.com,
www.strategiesforchange.com.

español
Tenga en cuenta que la red se trata de ser genuino y auténtico, la creación de
confianza y las relaciones, y ver cómo puede ayudar a los demás. 

Pregúntate a ti mismo cuáles son sus metas en participar en las reuniones de

redes, para que recogerá los grupos que le ayudarán a obtener lo que
busca.Algunas reuniones se basan más en el aprendizaje, hacer contactos, y /
o voluntariado en vez de estrictamente de hacer las conexiones de negocios. 

Visita tantos grupos como sea posible esa chispa de su interés. Observe el

tono y la actitud del grupo. ¿La gente de sonido de apoyo el uno del otro? ¿El
liderazgo parece competente? Muchos grupos le permitirá visitar dos veces
antes de unirse. 

Mantenga las posiciones en las organizaciones de voluntarios. Esta es una

buena manera de mantenerse visible y devolver a los grupos que le han
ayudado. 

Pregunte a preguntas abiertas en las conversaciones de red. Esto significa que

las preguntas que preguntar quién, qué, dónde, cuándo, y cómo a diferencia de
aquellos que pueden ser contestadas con un simple sí o no. Esta forma de
interrogatorio se abre el debate y muestra los oyentes que usted está
interesado en ellos. 

Se conoce como un poderoso recurso para los demás. Cuando se le conoce

como un recurso fuerte, la gente recuerda a su vez a las sugerencias, ideas,
nombres de otras personas, etc Esto lo mantiene visible para ellos. 

Tener una comprensión clara de lo que hacen y por qué, para quién, y lo que
hace que estás haciendo algo especial o diferente de los demás haciendo lo
mismo. Con el fin de obtener referencias, primero debe tener una comprensión
clara de lo que hace que fácilmente se pueden articular a los demás. 

Ser capaz de articular lo que está buscando y cómo otros pueden

ayudarle. Con demasiada frecuencia las personas en las conversaciones de
preguntar: "¿En qué puedo ayudarle?" y no hay respuesta inmediata viene a la
mente. 

Siga a través de forma rápida y eficaz sobre las referencias que le den. Cuando
las personas le dan referencias, sus acciones son un reflejo de ellos. El respeto
y el honor que sus referencias y crecerá. 

Llame a los que cumplen que pueden beneficiarse de lo que hace y

viceversa.Expresa de que haya disfrutado de hacerles frente, y le preguntará si
podrían reunirse y compartir ideas.