Why We Need Mentors

As Gandhi once said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." Mentors can be a force of change and they can influence many people, including you.

"Mentoring", this Greek term has been used in countless ways but it all refers to the same idea, giving guidance and advice to another person. 

Let’s take a quick look at where and what it means to be a mentor. 

It comes from the story of Homer and when he left on his journey, he asked his friend “Mentor” to look after his son. 

It means that this is a committed relationship between a young person and an adult. The adult has the patience to teach the young person whatever he knows from life and about life. 

It is the adult's responsibility to provide support, assistance, and guidance as the younger one faces new challenges and problems everyday. 

Mentors usually take the role of the parents when the parent is busy or unavailable during the critical stages of a person's life. 

Mentors are needed because they can be a positive influence on the mentee who is learning from them. 

There are two types of mentoring; the first is natural mentoring and the second is planned mentoring. 

Natural mentoring can come from everyday situations where anyone can be your mentor. You can learn through friendship, through teaching, or through counseling. 

Planned mentoring comes from a structured program where the mentor and the mentee are matched through a formal procedure. 

Mentoring is becoming increasingly popular in the workforce as well as for personal development. 

This is partly due to various testimonials among people who have tried it and found it has many advantages they both got out of the mentoring program. 

Mentors give back to society and make career growth, personal development, or intellectual achievement possible for the person they are mentoring. 

Mentoring is very helpful in the workplace because mentors can provide the necessary insights and perspectives on what a person should do to achieve his goals. 

A mentor is also a very helpful option in your personal development because the mentor can help you during tough personal and social stress and offer guidance just when you need it the most.

Why become a Mentor?

Ralph Waldo Emerson stated that, "You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." 

Mentors are doing kindness when they take on the responsibility of helping other people learn from their experiences. 

A very nice quote from an unknown author read, "A lot of people have gone further than they thought they could because someone else thought they could." 

The mentor does just that, they believe that their mentees can do it. This, in itself, is usually encouragement enough for the mentee to do their best to succeed in life.

Change your Mindset and Change your Results,

Rich

5 Simple Steps To Boost Your Business With Positive Thinking

We all know how powerful our mind is. By being pessimistic, you attract negative things into your life. But by being optimistic, you are opening up your life to positive opportunities. 

I was leading a workshop with entrepreneurs and business owners and asked; “what are the 10 qualities of a great customers?” After they shared with the group, I asked them to circle the traits they themselves were doing. Guess how many they were doing? Not many, But 

"if you do what you value...then you will attract them."

Sounds like a great business strategy doesn’t it? But how does positive thinking work exactly? How can you boost your business with positive thinking?

There are a number of different ways you can utilize your positive mind for your business. However, don’t make the assumption that your mind will do all the work for you. You will also have to do something yourself to boost your business. Why don’t you try out some of these suggestions now and see where they take you? 

1) Be generous with praises.

Your business is not just a one-man team. It may consist of two to even a hundred members, depending on how large your company is. It is because of this that you have to learn how to give praises. 

Studies have shown that employees work better with positive reinforcement rather than harsh criticism. Not to say that you’re no longer allowed to give out constructive criticism. You’ll just have to be more careful with your words and even your timing. 

Some companies actually make a conscious effort to start and end their days with praise. You might be surprised at how a simple, “good job, Eric” can boost employee performance. 

2) Look at the brighter side.

Sometimes, things don’t go the way you expect them to. Perhaps this month’s sales have dropped 10% or maybe you’ve had a string of bad luck when it comes to your customers. But these are not reasons to give up and let depression take over. 

Look at the brighter side. You can put a positive spin on things if you simply look at the situation in a different light. Take the time to assess what has been happening in your company lately and make the necessary steps to fix the gaps. 

Perhaps this is life’s way of saying that you are now ready for bigger challenges or innovative solutions, and thus, ready for bigger percentage growth. As you overcome each situation, your business becomes stronger and more dependable. 

3) Put up positive posters.

Another way to boost your business with positive thinking is by putting up motivational posters in your office. You don’t have to cover every inch of your wall with them. Just a few copies in strategic locations would do. 

Maybe you can put one up by the lounge or one by the rest room. There are a lot of fun designs and fun words to choose from. Motivational posters are even considered art by some people. If you don’t have the budget to look for those framed posters, you can always just print a positive statement on a piece of bond paper and post it on the bulletin board. 

4) Sponsor positive thinking seminars.

Companies often send their employees out for business seminars. However, only a few actually expose their staff to positive thinking or motivational seminars. You can put up as many posters as you want or be so positive yourself, but it might be difficult for the others to grasp the concept. 

So why not give them the opportunity to soak it all up from the people who know the positive thinking strategy very well? After the seminar, you can ask those who attended to create reports. You can see for yourself just how much of their perspective will have changed. 

Lightbulb moment: You can ask those same people to lead positive thinking seminars in your own company in the future!

5) Encourage positive values in the office.

While it is not your duty to instill positive values in your employees, it will probably help your business grow if you do. It’s always better to work with people who are on the same page as you. 

So how do you encourage positive values in the office? Well, a lot of people like to have an employee of the month system. However, you can take the idea one step further and perhaps add a few more to the roster. 

How about giving rewards to the person who has the best customer relations or the person who is the most determined. You don’t have to give out huge prizes, but you can at least acknowledge that these values are highly recognized in your company.  

These are just the various ways you can boost your business with positive thinking. Ultimately, it starts with you. It is then adopted by the people you meet and work with. 

That’s the beauty of positive thinking. You can pass what you know to other people and they in turn will pass it to others. Your business, being a hub for positive thinking, will definitely draw in more customers. There’s something different about a business that is filled with positive aura. You can easily make your own business a positive haven just by following the suggestions mentioned above. 

When you Change Your Mindset…You Will Change Your Results,

Rich

Leadership Is Not Motivation by Intimidation

I have been around CEO’s who believe, leadership is all about power. In fact, in speaking to people in D.C. they have something they call “Potomac Fever”. What is it?…Power.

Taken to the extreme, I have seen leaders and CEO’s use their power as a club. Leadership is not about getting what you want using fear. Leadership is not “Motivation by Intimidation.”

It is about encouraging and coaching others towards the goal of the organization and themselves. It is about getting everyone on the same page and helping him or her see the big picture of the organization. You must be a leader not a boss.

People follow others when they see a clear sense of purpose. People will only follow you if they see that you know where you are going.

If you do not know where you're headed, why would people follow you? Imagine having a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle. Imagine the box does not have a picture of what the completed puzzle looks like. Leaders must have a vision of what the future looks like and communicate it.

Being a leader is not about what you make others do. It's about who you are, what you know, and what you do. You are a reflection of what you're subordinates must be.

Studies have shown that one trait of good leadership is the trust and confidence your subordinates have in you. Trust and confidence is built on good relationships, trustworthiness, and high ethics.

Once you have their trust and confidence, you may now continue to communicate the goals and objectives you are to undertake.

Communication is a very important key to good leadership. The knowledge and technical expertise you have must be clearly communicated to other people. You must be able to assess situations, weigh the pros and cons of any decision, and actively seek out an answer.

Leaders are not do-it-all heroes. You should not claim to know everything, and you should not rely upon your skills alone. You should recognize the skills and talents your subordinates have. Only when you come to this realization will you be able to work as one cohesive unit.

The bottom line is this…"Leadership is Not Motivation by Intimidation...It is Through Inspiration.”

Change your Mindset and Change your Results,

Rich

Create Your Own Path

FREE eBook with Quotes to Inspire you Take Action! Get this book and find the quote that falls in line with your goal. Write it down with 3 actions you can take to get this goal done. Focus and Action is the key.
Feel free to share this post.
Change Your Mindset and Change Your Results.
Richard
CLICK the link below to get it.
http://tinyurl.com/nu3l3dl

I Will Be Speaking At TEDx Birmingham, AL June 23rd.

Just got back from our 1st rehearsal for the upcoming June 23rd TEDx event. It is going to be AWESOME.  I will be speaking on the need to change from an "Elderly Culture to an Elder Culture."

The event starts at 6PM and there are only 40 tickets left! If you want to be there get your tickets today. Hope to see you there.Here is the link http://www.tedxbirmingham.org/#!tedxbirminghamsalon/c1knp
Rich

20 Steps To Get The Life You Want

I often get asked...How Do I Find Balance In My Business and Personal Life? I tell them a life that has meaning and is fulfilling can happen for you. What does it take? It takes time, self-knowledge, a plan and some hard work.

Here is the good news! The work will not be as difficult as you think. Why.... Because when you are doing what makes you happy... you feel this is what you were meant to do.

To get you started below is twenty-steps to help you to build your plan. These are the steps that will set you on your path to a life you want.

Taking the time to do this will help you reach the life you want a lot quicker than just allowing life to take you where it will.

Take a deep breath and get started.

Step 1: Find the purpose for your life.

Step 2: Develop a daily spiritual practice.

Step 3: Determine what is most important to you.

Step 4: Align your new goals around what is most important.

Step 5: Have a healthy perspective of yourself.

Step 6: Replace old beliefs that are no longer useful to you.

Step 7: Create new possibilities for your life.

Step 8: Figure out who you want to be when you grow up.

Step 9: Practice living the life you want now.

Step 10: Figure out what you are passionate about.

Step 11: Align your abilities and your interests.

Step 12: What would a perfect work day be for you?

Step 13: Write your autobiography five years from today.

Step 14: Downscale your lifestyle now to create the opportunities that you seek.

Step 15: Strengthen your relationships and support systems.

Step 16: Grow strong emotionally

Step 17: Give yourself permission to follow your heart.

Step 18: Laugh a lot and enjoy the ride

Step 19: Live with integrity as a path towards an authentic life.

Step 20: Eat well, exercise and get plenty of sleep.

O.K. I know this is a big list. Here is what you can do to take action. Circle the top 3 that call to you. Now focus only on one of the three. Next write down the answers to these question for the one step you circled.

If you were doing this...(insert the step you circled)

• What would be different?
• Who would be there with you?
• Where would you be?
• What would you be doing?

Next, write down 3 tasks that you can do today to get what you wrote down accomplished.

Once you accomplished these tasks write down three more until you are living your dream.

Here is the bottom line...you have a choice...to take action or not to take action...both are decisions but one of them has a better payoff. Which do you choose?

When You Change Your Mindset...You Change Your Results,

Rich

Find Your Spark!

My hobby is racing and not just watching it but as an amateur race car driver. One day I was sitting in my race car ready to go out on the track before a race. As I was sitting there going through my mental check list…was the car ready?… was I ready 

Then it came to me, the most important thing was the spark plug.

The spark creates an explosion in the chamber that moves the piston and eventually the drive train that moves the wheels forward. This was my AH HA moment. We all need to have an internal spark to create our explosion to move us towards our goals.

Here is what happens when we lose our spark. If you have ever been stuck in a rut of not moving before, you probably know the sense of helplessness that takes over your life.  

Here are three simple steps that show you how to get started:

1- First, be sure you understand that your life is the way it is right now because of your hesitation in taking action!  

This is important, because you will understand the importance of moving forward no matter how anxious it makes you feel at first.

Then, decide on one action to take to get the ball rolling.  Think about your life right now, and ask yourself which situations you want to change first.  You might choose your career, relationships, health, financial situation, or anything else that makes you feel powerless and stuck.  

Then think about one simple action you can take to inspire some positive change.  It does not have to be a huge action, just SOMETHING to start building momentum.

2- Once you've decided on your action step, you'll have to push yourself to take it no matter what!  

This may seem incredibly difficult or even scary, but remember that most often the things you fear are not going to happen. Give yourself a pep talk or push yourself in any way you have to in order to move forward at least a little bit.  

After you take that first step, be sure to let go of any expectations of the things that will happen because of it. Allow yourself to feel great…simply because you did something about it!

3- Repeat the same steps.  Once you have taken one step forward, you will need to keep pushing yourself to take others.  

Consider this:  Even if you take a hundred small steps in a month, you will be putting positive effort to make changes in your life, which cannot help but bring about better circumstances!

The good news is that taking action quickly begins to build momentum.  Just as chronic non-action can create a cycle of negativity and stagnation over time, being proactive can create a positive cycle that continues to grow!  It gets easier the more you do it, which eventually makes it seem almost effortless and you continue to empower and strengthen yourself with every step you take.

Find your spark!

Change Your Mindset and Change Your Results.

Richard

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What Is Your Choice?

What Is Innovation?

I define innovation as "The ability to see what is NOT there and then develop a service or product to fill the gap" The marketplace is always changing and you don't need to be focused on this next technological breakthrough instead focus on what is happening now. 

One of the markets is health and fitness. There are health clubs for women only. There are ones that attract younger people and I have even heard about naked yoga...I think I will pass on this one.
What about the biggest growing segment of the population...the Baby Boomers? 

Click the link below to read an article about a health club focused for the over 50 crowd. I think this story is really about innovation. They did not invent health clubs...they saw a gap and filled it.

You can do the same in your business or if you have an idea for a business...act on it.

When You Change Your Mindset...You Change Your Results,
Richard
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232134