Do you “want” to grow?
You may have worked your way up through the ranks to be in a leadership role or are the owner of a company, so in a way, you’ve “grown.” But are you really committed to growing? It’s kind of like an analogy I use in some of my talks. Think about breakfast for a minute. And about how a chicken and a pig contribute to it. You could say the chicken agrees to breakfast by laying eggs. But the pig, no kidding, “commits” to breakfast, by giving its life. Commitment is a no kidding intention and willingness to make something happen.
I am told time after time that a person or a company is interested in growth. Here’s the problem. Growth isn’t an “interest” or “want” or a passing fancy or a cool buzz word used only in motivational meetings and seminars.
You are either committed to it or you’re not. Period. And therefore, you either will grow or you won’t. Period. I’m sure a lot of you are reading this and now looking at whether you’re actually committed to growth or just saying it because it sounds good.
Growth requires more than just statements and ideas and wants. I run across a lot of individuals that have very powerful statements and great ideas of growth. They tell me that “If I only had $100,000…” or “I am going to do this someday…”
There are “If-I-onlys”’ and “I’m gonnas” everywhere you look. And they will sit there forever, waiting for the magic moment or maybe a fairy godmother to come along and wave her wand to make something happen. Not very powerful.
“One buzzard said to the other buzzard: Hell with this waitin’ for somethin’ to die, let’s go kill somethin’….”
Many of the people I work with and speak to tell me they want more. When I ask them what more is, about 80% of them trip and fall right there. They have no idea what success even looks like, they just want it. They claim to be “driving towards excellence,” yet most don’t even know what that “excellence” or growth even looks like.
Most of you are probably thinking “I’m not in that 80%! I know what more is!” So let’s say you are for the sake of the discussion. Of the remaining 20% or so, only about 5% of those people have any sort of plan to get there. And when I say plan, I mean a written, formal plan that is a living document encompassing all aspects of your business from prospecting to fulfillment to human capital. A plan that every member of your organization is aware of and understands their part of. A road map that takes into account where bottlenecks will occur and what happens when they do. The plan that becomes the basis for the company.
If you aren’t the lead dog, the view never changes.
Some of you may be thinking, “I am doing my best” after reading this. I would like to challenge you by saying that’s not true. There is more you can do. And that at some point, YOU can’t do any more on your own. It can take someone else to push you, see you as bigger than you already are, more capable than you see yourself, and help remove whatever may be in your way of growth.
Sometimes, all that is standing in the way of achieving your real potential is YOU. Taking action and allowing someone to help you, putting your ego aside and admitting you don’t know everything is usually an essential first step in really committing (think pig) to growth. The tremendous amount of potential that can be unleashed once you take this step is staggering. The results YOU want are out there, let me help YOU find them.