Archive

Archive for the ‘Knowledge’ Category

Reflect back and plan forward

January 15th, 2010
No comments

2 weeks into the New Year, are you rolling? Are you on your way to making 2010 truly better than ‘09?

The start of a new year is always a great time to reflect back and plan forward. Here are some great questions to springboard that thinking. (Remember; you’re more likely to achieve something if you plan for it and write it down, so … get your pens ready! Here goes:

As you reflect on this past year, what were your two or three most significant accomplishments, breakthroughs, and/or achievements?

1.
2.
3.

Looking back over the year, what (if anything) blocked or held you back as you moved toward your goals/objectives?

Knowing what you know now, what would you have done differently? (While we can’t change what was, we can use this input/learning as we move forward.)

As you look forward to next year, what are your three most significant goals that you wish to accomplish within the year? What will be different? How will YOU be different?

1.
2.
3.

What are the top two or three things about your business that you most want to be different next year?

1.
2.
3.

What two or three changes do you most want to see in your personal life?

1.
2.
3.

What do you want your practice/business to look like one year from now?

What actions are you prepared to take to reach your goals and objectives next year?

Having gotten clear on what you want to achieve next year, the next step is to develop the strategies and actions that will move you to reaching your desired outcomes. And if you don’t yet have a coach or an accountability partner to keep you on track … GET ONE! (… we happen to know a few good coaches!)

Let’s prepare to make 2010 our most exciting, rewarding, and personally fulfilling year!

Enjoy Life!
Jon Bohm
(Adapted from my friends at Resource Associates Corporation)

Goals, Knowledge, Leadership

Networking 101 - Add Value!!

January 11th, 2010
No comments

Every group contains 2 types of people, “givers” and “takers.”


Givers are always focused on what they can give to help others, to make the world a better place, to growhelpinghands3 their business, to have bigger impact, and to add value.

Takers are always focused on what they can take to help themselves, to make their little (I emphasize little) world a better place, to grow their business, and add value to themselves. The irony is that by doing so, they lose value, shrink their business, and lose influence in the world.

Networking can be hell or it can be heaven. It just depends on who you are networking with… “givers” or “takers.”

Take this little allegory as an example:

A man spoke with the Lord
about heaven and hell.

The Lord said to the man,
“Come, I will show you hell.”

They entered a room where a group of
people sat around a huge pot of stew.

Everyone was famished,
desperate and starving.

Each held a spoon that reached the pot,
but each spoon had a handle so much
longer than their own arm that it could not
be used to get the stew into their own mouths.

The suffering was terrible.

“Come, now I will show you heaven,”
the Lord said after a while.

They entered another room, identical to the first -
the pot of stew, the group of people, the same long-handled spoons.
But there everyone was happy and well-nourished.

“I don’t understand,” said the man.
“Why are they happy here when they were miserable
in the other room and everything was the same?”

The Lord smiled.
“Ah, it is simple,” he said. “Here they have learned to feed each other.”- Heaven and Hell, The Real Difference by Ann Landers

If you want to be a great networker, grow your business or life, make more money, reach your dreams, and have a bigger impact than you have to learn to be a giver and network with other givers. Which one are you?

An honest test: 1. Make a list of everything someone or something has done for you. 2. Now, make a list of what you have done for others.

How can you add more value to the world and your clients? Answer that everyday and watch your success explode.

Be a giver!

Jon Bohm

Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Sales

New Year + Focus = New YOU

January 3rd, 2010
No comments

“I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they do their lives. Perhaps that’s because escape is easier than change.” - Jim Rohn


2010 is here! I hope you are as excited as I am!
I don’t mean to be over excited, but as a cancer survivor I take every milestone as a chance to celebrate life and what it means to be here for 2010 is more than words can ever describe. So congratulations! You are here for 2010 as well.

If you are anything like me, you are expecting 2010 to be your best year yet. Not just because 2009 seemed to have so many challenges for so many people, but because you are continually BECOMING a better person who brings more value and good to those around you every year, and that is exciting!

For me I have a few things planned. I have a new plan to be an even better coach, father, and husband. I have financial, family, friends, fitness, and fun goals that I will be working towards. All of them requiring resources and mental shifts from where I am now to where I will be by the year end. What about for you? What do you have planned for 2010?

Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s a laundry list to some degree, similar to mine. Do you know the best way to insure hardly any of it happens? I do, DON’T focus on any ONE thing.

I have recently taken up bird hunting, great fun, and great food :) Sorry bird lovers. When I walk within 10 feet of the right bush I could see 20 doves fly out and go all over the place and I have about 2 seconds to take a shot. What I have found is that if 20 fly out, I hardly ever walk away with even ONE?! I see them, I hear them, I get crazy excited and then I don’t seem to have enough time to pick one out of the crowd and take a shot and nothing happens. But, if I walk into a bush area and only one flies out, I’m having dove for breakfast.

The New Year will be the same for me, and I bet for you, if you have 20 goals all flying out of your year at the same time, you will be lucky to walk away from 2010 with even one goal completed and in the bag. We have to FOCUS, focus, and I will say it again focus. We will have to pick one out of the crowd and take a shot, before we ever move on. So, here is a practical and easy guide I recommend for making 2010 be productive and successful in BECOMING a better YOU:

  1. Make a list of the top 5 things you would like to change about you, or your circumstances. (For me, I’m starting with getting back in shape)
  2. Answer this question; “If you could change one thing in your life that would have the greatest positive impact on your life in 2010, what would it be?” Do not move to step 3 until you have a confident answer for number 2. Many of my clients say something with the five “F’s” (Family, fitness, financial, fun, or friends) for number 2 in some way. What is yours? Got it?
  3. Ok, now number 3 is to separate that goal from the crowd, and make it specific and put a time frame on it. What will you do and when will you do it?
  4. Now, put everything else on the shelf, and set your sights on only that one change.
  5. Ask yourself; What do I have to know? What do I have to do? Who do I have to become? for that goal to be in the bag by the date I set?
  6. Go get it! Protect it, focus on it, resource it, and don’t rest or look at another goal until you achieve it.
Although, for me goal achievement is an art and this rabbit hole goes pretty deep, the take away that I want you to get, (which is 90 % of the process) is to FOCUS on that one thing. I am convinced that one of the biggest reason so many people live in mediocrity with so much available to us, is because so much IS AVAILABLE that we lose focus.

A new year is hear, and the pages are blank for 2010, it’s time to write the first page. Pick one thing, only one thing, and focus on it until completion. Then move onto the next thing until completion, and so on. And write the greatest story of your life ONE page at a time in 2010.

Live a great story!

Jon Bohm
YOUR personal, business, and strategy coach

Goals, Knowledge, Leadership, Motivation

When you are in a funk…H.A.L.T

December 28th, 2009
No comments

Anger is a secondary emotion. You have to kill the root.

On a regular basis I have a client or a friend, kids, or myself that have a day you could put in the funk category. A day when you are not firing on all cylinders so to speak.

Have you ever had a day like that? We all do?  The occasional emotional setback. No big deal, right?

Depends, I guess on the day. If you spend your day in a funk instead of landing that new client it could have long term effects. I tell every client I have, if you are going to be an entrepreneur you have to embrace the fact that you don’t get the luxury of a crappy attitude, self pitty, or even a funk for very long if at all.

So, how do we avoid the funk? How do we keep the funky day from becoming a funky week, month, year, or your life? I can’t cover it all in a little blog post but I will give you this. In almost every situation when you find yourself in a funk it’s because 1 of 4 things; you allowed yourself to become too:

H.ungry
A.ngry
L.onely or
T.ired

Next time you feel yourself slipping into the funk, stop (halt) and ask yourself; “Am I too hungry, angry, lonely, or tired?” The answer is yes 98 % of the time. So, stop and fix it, or take regular daily checks to keep the funk at bay.

It turns out my Mom new how to keep the funky days at bay with sleep, the right diet, good friends, and emotional health. And that alone can be a great New Year’s resolution.

Happy New Year and Cheers to the good life.

Live a great story in 2010!

Jon Bohm

Goals, Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Motivation

Key Questions when Hiring a Coach

September 15th, 2009
No comments

“If you would attain what you are not yet, you must always be displeased by what you are. For where you were pleased with yourself there you have remained. But once you have said, “It is enough,” you are lost. Keep adding, keep walking, keep advancing; do not stop, do not turn back, do not turn from the straight road.” — St. Augustine

It’s about time I gave some advice on what to look for when hiring someone to help you move your life and business forward.

Some great questions:

  • Are they a good fit for you? Do you like them and trust them?
  • Are they results focused? A lot of people will charge you good money to listen to you. But, will they help you actually achieve the results you need in your life and business? Knowledge is NOT power- APPLIED Knowledge is power.
  • Do they have legitimate names and numbers of people you could call to see if they are truly good at what they do?
  • Are they focused on long termdevelopment of you and your life, or is it short-term training that you will have to try and remember?
  • Do they help you get past the obstacles in your life and business or are they just focused on your goals?
  • Do they help you in life and business? Or do they just focus on one or the other?

A couple pitfalls that are easy to fall into are:

Often people want to make sure the coach they are looking at has extensive knowledge in their industry, but a good coach can help you develop your skills and attitude in a field they may not even know much about. If you need training look for a good consultant or mentor. Although, some coaches do very well in both roles.

Often people will look for a coach with the most degrees. But, degrees do little in determining whether someone is good atmotivating, inspiring, developing, and applying the attitudes and action of others.

Sometimes people think they have it all figured out and don’t need help. We all need help, every good coach will hire coaches themselves and they are always focused on life long learning.

Tiger Woods has three coaches and he is the best in the world. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you have arrived.

Cheers to always moving forward with some collaborative help!

-Jon Bohm

Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Leadership

Be the Luckiest person Around

July 12th, 2009
No comments

I am a lucky, lucky person. - Evel Knievelevel-knievel-edit1

 

Are you a lucky person?  Or are you unlucky?  

Have you ever noticed that how much luck someone has is directly proportionate to how much risk they are willing to take?  

Why do some people have the midas touch?  

While the touch of so many others seems to turn things into ashes?  Have you ever noticed that some people just seem to be luckier than others?

 Take scenario one:  you become a “dare devil” and jump out of a perfectly good airplane with no plan, without the knowledge, and without the hard work in preparing for your jump. If you survive, well than, you are lucky, maybe even miraculous to some degree. 

However, take scenario 2:  if you plan and bring a parachute, than you learn how to use your parachute, and you work hard to prepare for your jump on the ground or in a wind tunnel than your odds of being lucky  and surviving are dramatically better than the first scenario.

In both situations you jump from the same plane.  In both situations your risk is the same.  But in scenario number 2, your chances of getting lucky are very high.  Because, you planned your risk with meticulous work like a stuntman who strategically thinks his stunt through, not a daredevil who just jumps.

So, what about business and getting lucky?

The entrepreneur that takes a gamble and opens a widely successful business in the worst recession our country has seen since the great depression, lucky?

The investor who fires his financial planner and takes matters into his own hands, and turns a profit of 40 k a week instead of losing it when everyone around him told him to “Buy and hold.”  What do you think, lucky?

The stay at home mom who opens her own on-line store, only to get so many orders she can’t keep up.  Lucky?

My answer is….Yes, very lucky.  

However, my definition of luck has an equation.  Luck doesn’t happen to everyone.  Why do some people seem to be luckier than others?
 
Over the years of working with many people, in many industries, I have found what I believe to be the equation to how lucky an organization or person may become.  I trust it so much, that I consider it to be a fortune telling equation on how lucky someone will be.
 
Stop and think.  What is a new adventure or thing you may want to try?  Ok, got one in mind?
 
Using a scale of 1-10.  1 being poor and 10 being excellent.  Rate your future idea in each of the following categories:
 
  • 1-10 - How much risk is involved?
  • 1-10 - How strategic have I been?  And how many resources have I put into my plan for success?
  • 1-10 - How hard have I worked toward my success?
After honestly rating your new venture in each of the above categories, you have a possible 30 points available.  Simply add up your total score and divide it by 30 and that is the percentage I give you on getting “lucky” and succeeding.

It is a law of the universe.  The more you risk, the better you plan, and the harder you work… the “luckier” you will be.  Is it possible to get “lucky” with a 10% chance?  You bet.  But, you can increase your adds of getting lucky in every situation with some hard work, high tolerance for risk, and a great strategic mind.

So, how lucky are you?  I guess it depends on how bad you want to be lucky.  And how much effort you put into increasing your odds. 

It seems to me… that the harder I work, the better I plan, and the more risk involved, the luckier I am.

May you become one of the “luckiest” people around, and when all the unlucky people watch your life, they just won’t be able to understand why YOU are sooo lucky.

Enjoy Life! 

Jon Bohm 

Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Leadership, Motivation

Connecting Emotionally

June 15th, 2009
No comments

“Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, “Wait.” But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim…. when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodiness” then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.” - Martin Luther King Jr. 1963 - Letter from a Birmingham Jail

Have you ever been around someone who was really, I mean really, able to walk in your shoes? To not just say they understand but really feel what you feel? That is the secret of compassion.

I once heard a friend say that being heard is so close to be loved that most people can’t tell the difference. How well do you listen to those in your life? How well do you feel the pain of your prospects? How good are you at feeling what others feel?

Often when I am working with a team of sales people they want to know how to “Close” better or “sell” better. But, the greatest sales secret in the world is to be a great listener, practice compassion, ask great questions, and walk in your prospects shoes. When you can feel what they feel then you are coneecting emotionally with their issues.

In a sales situation it is tempting to talk a lot and show the prospect how much you know about your product. And think you are closing the sale, you couldn’t be more wrong. Your prospect doesn’t care how much you know about your product, they care how much you understand their problem, pain, or challenge.

You can’t learn about someone’s pain or walk in their shoes by talking. So close your mouth and start listening, or better yet start feeling what they feel.

A good system is to never tell anybody anything (especially about their situation) until you know these 3 things:

  • What are they thinking?
  • What are they feeling?
  • What are they experiencing?

…in this situation. After you have asked enough questions, clarified enough answers, and felt enough of their pain to understand their situation thoroughly should you venture out on the limb and daring to explain that what you offer is a good fit for them.

The decision to buy something is not logical it is an emotional decision that has to be justified logically. It wasn’t until our country truly felt the pain of segregation that people justified changing the culture. Thanks to great speeches that allowed a hate filled and hurt society to see and more importantly feel the pain it was creating.

May we all learn to get outside ourselves long enough to feel what those around us feel. Connecting with each other emotionally is the greatest tool to helping people change there is.

Practice the white magic of listening and see your relationships and profits grow!

Enjoy Life today!

Jon Bohm

Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Motivation, Sales

BE, KNOW, and DO Your way to future success

April 20th, 2009
No comments

“What we KNOW, and what we DO, can not be separated from WHO we are.”- Jon Bohm

So, do you have your dream list?

Are you clear about what you want in your future? If not, read the last few posts and build a list of the places, things, people, life you want to experience.

Once you have climbed the hill of building your dream list, then you have a clearer picture of where you want to go. But dreams, much like sand, have a tendency to slip through our fingers if we don’t hold onto them tightly.

A friend of mine spent years living what he thought was his dream to be a great Trial Lawyer, and indeed he was excellent. He had great knowledge, and he did everything need to be excellent in his lawyer role. But, it stressed him out everyday, he didn’t like who he was becoming each day. Instead of becoming more loving, understanding, and emotionally connected to those around him he became colder more distant and focused on the task at hand instead of the people at hand. It wasn’t WHO he wanted to be. I may even argue it wasn’t WHO He really was in the first place, but rather a dream, that somewhere along the line he allowed to separate himself from who he wanted to BECOME. Not just what he wanted to KNOW and DO.

I am convinced that KNOWING WHO we are is one of the biggest factors to achieving real success towards our dreams. What about you? Do you know WHO you are?

Here is a simple exercise to help you find out: take a dream, don’t pick a hazy dream, pick a crystal clear dream you can feel, touch, and almost taste it’s so clear.
Ok, got it?

Now ask yourself in order to achieve that Dream:

- Who do I have to BECOME?
- What do I have to KNOW?
- What do I have to DO?

Do you like what you see? Do you like who you have to BECOME? Achieving a dream can never just be about what we know or what we do, it has to be about becoming the person we really want to be.

What about you? Are you currently living out a path to a dream? Are you becoming the type of person you want to BE? If the answer is no, then I highly encourage you to take another look and begin chasing another dream. Don’t lose yourself in chasing dreams. Use dreams to find who you really are.

And if you need help, I can help you put all the pieces together and find your purpose, chase your dreams, and become who you REALLY want to be- maybe find WHO YOU REALLY are.

-Jon Bohm

Goals, Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Motivation

Responsibility = Power

March 20th, 2009
No comments

“With GREAT power comes GREAT responsibility.” - Uncle Ben in Spider-Man

What a great quote.  This is one of the great life changing “Laws of the Universe.”  
It is true just like gravity is real.

Although, I think a truer statement would be that with “GREAT responsibility comes GREAT power.”

It is true in any organization I have worked with, the person who takes on the most responsibility is also the person with the greatest influence in the company.  This does not necessarily mean that it is the person with the greatest position or authority.  It means the person with the most influence is always the person who takes the greatest responsibility.

It is a fact of life.  Test it for yourself.  Think of an organization you really know well.  Not one you read about in Fortune Magazine, but one you really know the players in.  
 
  • Who owned the least amount of responsibility?
  • Who owned the most responsibility?
  • Who had the most overall influence and power?
  • Who had the least influence and power?
I hope I made my case.  But, just in case, let’s test it again.  

Everyday in life, we have the option to either be a Victim or to take responsibility for our lives, for our actions, for our families, for our organization, for our country.

The more we move toward the Victim mentality the more power and influence we lose.  The more we move towards responsibility the more influence and power we gain.

Application:

Scenario:  You are at work and you are getting chewed out because your department dropped the ball somewhere.  You have a choice to take ownership of that error or “pass the buck” and throw your team “under the bus.”  It is a simple equation, if you take responsibility you will gain influence, if you pass the buck you will lose influence.  If you “pass the buck,” it becomes clear that you are no longer the person your boss needs to talk with to get better results in the future, because you demonstrate it is “out of your hands.”  Therefore, you lose the influence to make things better.  

When all the employees in an organization understand this, then everyone is fighting to take ownership and responsibility, the “buck” is no longer passed, and everyone works together to find solutions and take ownership of the success of the organization.  This is a powerful organization.

You can apply this same situation to your life, your family, or our political climate in America.  If we play the victim, we lose power and influence and transfer responsibility and therefore, influence to someone else.

So which one will you be?  You have a choice take ownership, or give up your influence and power.  It’s that simple.  So Uncle Ben is correct, but maybe he should have said  ”If you want POWER than take RESPONSIBILITY.” 

- Jon Bohm

 

Inspiration/Values, Knowledge, Leadership, Uncategorized

Control Your Goals

August 7th, 2008
No comments

Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them and try to follow them where they lead.
— Louisa May Alcott

We have aspirations. We all set goals. When we go to the grocery store and set goals on what to buy or how fast we can finish and get home. At work we can rush to be done at 5 pm, and set goals to be home by a certain time. We set goals to be out of Iraq as a country, or who we think should be in a political position. We set goals to live a great life and make big money.

Bottom line is that it is easy to set goals and much harder to achieve them. As a matter of fact, we can set a goal in 3 seconds to make a million dollars, or win the Olympics, or fly to the moon. But setting a goal is not helpful unless we can take action to achieve those goals. Often a goal simply turns into “wishful thinking.” Because, those goals are for the most part out of our hands. Don’t get me wrong, we can dream and work to achieve them, which is very valuable, but whether or not you achieve them is not always directly in your control. But other things are.

For example, a salesperson can set a goal to sell 1 million in product in 6 months. But, the salesperson doesn’t really have control over who buys or how much. Therefore, the goal is a great dream and an excellent target, but not a goal. It is too easy to brush it off later as too high, or out of your hands, or the economy took a dive.

A good goal is always in your control. A good goal is achievable and measurable. Which means the salesperson, although they can’t control who buys and for how much, they can control how many calls they make, how many presentations they make, how much time they spend sharpening their skills and product knowledge, how much networking they do, and how well they remain motivated and prepared. A good goal is something that is in your control, and you treat it as non-negotiable. You view them as something that you can do, and will do each day before quitting time. Never letting yourself out of it by way of excuse or laziness. Because, after all, it is in your control and you either do it and get closer to your success, or you don’t do it and move further away from your dreams.

No action is neutral when it comes to achievement. Every action is either bringing you closer or further away from where you want to be.

Goals are not wishful thinking, like they are so often used. They are much more valuable then that, they are your key to moving forward, out of the Status Quo and into seeing your dreams become reality.

That type of goal leaves you with no choice but to take action. When goals are in your control, they keep you out of the clouds and into moving toward your dreams one achievable and measurable step at a time. Dream big, and then take action to achieve your daily goals.

It is easy to know where you are, sometimes it is easy to know where you want to be. But the real challenge is found between now and then. This is where success happens, in daily achievable activity set to the measurement of a goal.

May you see your highest aspirations in the sun and start walking, or better yet running toward them each day when you wake up. Dreaming is easier done in bed. But reward and success is found up and moving toward the sun.

Goals, Knowledge, Motivation, Sales