It’s More Than A Day

Christmas time has some form of meaning to everyone. To some it is a religious celebration. The date and form of celebration varies from one person and religion to another.

“Political correctness” has caused many to change the name of this celebratory time to “Holiday Season”. I really don’t think the outward terminology matters as much as the personal feelings and beliefs that people have within them. Think for a moment how crazy it would be if all beliefs were as “correct” as the believers think them to be. 

To some, Christmas is a time for praying, to others it’s for family reunions, to some it is opening presents on Christmas morning, to others it’s just a great excuse to go shopping and selling, for others to take more time away from work, and from what I hear, to many it’s a big pain in the backside.

Whatever it means to you, I hope that you have a great one, and get from it whatever your personal ideals are. And, for those that would enjoy a really cool Internet Christmas card, turn your speakers up, click right here, and follow ALL of the directions.

 Words To Live By
“The wisdom of the wise, and the experience of ages, may be preserved by quotations.”
-Isaac D’Israeli

Timeless Wisdom
The right words at the right time can build your confidence while motivating you to strive for excellence. Others will help you overcome procrastination, become more responsible and demonstrate the kind of character that will lead to your ultimate success. 

“Seek and Yee Shell Find”
With just a little searching you can find the right quote at the right time for just about any situation imaginable. Embrace words and messages that have passed the test of time, and in time your own quotes may inspire those that follow you through this journey we know as life. 

 It’s You on You

At Success Dynamics we are dedicated to motivating people to try a little harder. Most people know what they are supposed to do, it’s just that sometimes they don’t, and for different reasons. The biggest thing that keeps people from reaching out is negative thinking.

Fear Paralyzes People
Fear of rejection keeps salespeople from talking to prospective customers. It’s human to dislike rejection, but in the game of sales it is a part of the territory. Sales is a numbers game. Stores and other businesses that do not require selling (or so they think) hire clerks and order takers. There is very little rejection at McDonalds or 
Starbucks. Very few customers get all the way up to the register and then say, “I’ll be back” or “I need to think about it.” True salespeople hear it all day long.

It’s Mental

Your thoughts can control your actions. In order to act in a positive manner, think positively. “Easier said than done” you say. Yes, sometimes, but there are things you can do to control your thoughts. Ask yourself to picture the best customer that you have had today or this week. Rewind the tape and re-live the sale. Remind yourself what was said, and what was purchased. It’s difficult to think of more than one thing at a time, so this positive picture keeps the potential negatives out. You bring about what you think about. Think about your successes, talk about your success, and expect more success and you will attract it to you. It’s Easy!

 Who Needs Them?

In professional football the best of the best play. In spite of this talent there are more coaches on the sidelines than there are players on the field. One might assume that highly “trained” and “gifted” athletes playing at this level already know what to do. Well, they have been taught what to do, but sometimes in the heat of the moment, past lessons learned are forgotten and they might make on the field judgments and decisions that could cost them the game.

The head coach never misses a down

As the ball moves down the field, so does the head coach. Imagine this; the head coach calls the team together before the game and says, “Okay guys, this is a big game. There is a lot of money at stake and we need to win. You have been practicing the plays all week and you know what to do, so get out there and win. I’ll see you after the game; I need to go to the bank” 

Travel - Meetings - Errands 

This sounds ridiculous, but it happens in retail sales. The manager (head coach) is oftentimes nowhere near the field (sales floor) during the game (selling time). Sales managers and owners have “other things” to do. They go on buying trips, sit in meetings and go to the bank. Too many times these “other things” are done when it’s “Game Time”. Some of these absences cannot be avoided.

Priorities Rule 

Retail salespeople do not have the advantage of a team of coaches watching their every move, listening to everything they say. Retail salespeople, are many times (too many times) left alone to do what feels right (or good) at the moment. When feelings govern behavior, something as natural as eating could take the place of customer awareness.

Accountability Works 

The answer to this apparent dilemma is results accountability. Owners and managers have the right (and responsibility) to expect, even demand results. When salespeople are held accountable to sales goals they make more money and the store is more profitable. Something as simple as expecting success can eliminate failure. The Success Dynamics Morning Report is the coach that never misses a down for hundreds of retail businesses in all industries all over the country. It’s all about making success easy.

 Set Goals - Start Early - Track Results

Life teaches many lessons to the willing participant. Some seem so basic that it is amazing we are not born with them as a part of us. The fact is that one must pay attention and learn from mistakes made along the way. Those that do that find their lives to be an enjoyable and successful event. Others live with needless, anxiety, stress and repeated failures.

Set Goals
A simple trip to Google searching for quotations on goal setting turns up 495,000 web sites full of smart things said by wise people about goal setting.

I have found that there are two types of people;
1.) Those that get what they want.
2.) Those that take what they get.
The first group enjoys far more success than the second, and it’s a fact that knowing what you want is a great place to start.
I use a lot of sports analogies when talking about success. How long would a group of adults bang their heads together on a football field if there were no goals to achieve? Too many people go through life senselessly banging their heads against obstacles without a purpose.

Start Early
I say in SUCCESS MADE EASY that one of the worst inventions ever created is the snooze button on alarm clocks. Procrastination is the enemy of success. Set your alarm for the time you need to get up, and when it sounds, get up an go. Develop the habit of arriving early for work or wherever else you need to be. The most important 10 minutes of your work day are the last five minutes before you start and the first five minutes after you start. Arriving early makes the trip stress free and you are prepared to do what you need to when the time to start arrives.

Track Results
I copyrighted The Boss© in 1966 and it appears in all five of my books. The Boss© is a simple graph that will keep you on track towards whatever you want to achieve. Seeing your progression towards a desired goal fills you with inspiration and motivation to succeed. Those are things you need when the going gets a little tough, and it will.

The Boss© is a scorecard. How long would 50,000 people sit out in the noon day sun watching a football game if there wasn’t a scoreboard to look at? I put The Boss© on steroids in 2002 when creating the Morning Report. Today it is responsible for the success of people in close to 500 locations, 28 states and two countries.  They know where they stand in their quest for success.

Set Goals - Start Early - Track Results

Be sure that all three of these elements are a part of your life. You will be glad that they are.

 buti groove

The excitement in Hawaii over the UH Warriors upcoming Sugar Bowl appearance on New Year’s Day against the Georgia Bulldogs is at a fever pitch. The buti groove store on Piikoi has even been painted in UH colors.

The store windows feature provocative merchandise reflecting the mood of the Hawaiian people. It seems like only yesterday that Coach June Jones arrived on the scene to take over the 0-12 UH “Rainbows”. When he changed their name to Warriors and their uniforms to black, rather than rainbows on white, many long time fans complained.

Many others however felt that the “Rainbow” name was a bit too, uh…  “colorful”, the “Warrior” look was seen as more manly and appropriate for a football team, and thus embraced. Chances are that Coach Jones could have led a pack of “Rainbows” to a championship year as he did the Warriors”.

Call them what you want, either way they are the champs with the only undefeated record in all of college football this year.

Everywhere you go in Hawaii, the two words, “GO WARRIORS” are seen and heard.

 The Morning Report

When Cheryl and Howard Konrad, owners of Lahaina Scrimshaw came to Honolulu to see Broadway Musical The Lion King, the last thing they expected was a commercial for our Morning Report.

Cheryl felt certain that I had something to do with it when she heard Zazu singing The Morning Report.

To see what I mean, turn your speakers up and then just click right here to enjoy it on YouTube.

It Is Quite A Pile Of Money

We hear politicians throwing around the word “billion” in a casual manner, as if money grew on trees.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend. To put that figure into some perspective, consider these facts.

A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.
D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.
E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.
 
While this thought is still fresh in your brain, take a look at the catastrophe in New Orleans, and what could be done about it.

Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu, is presently asking the Congress for $250 BILLION to rebuild New Orleans. One must wonder how it would be spent. Here’s some options that I doubt were considered.

A. If each one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, child), got a share of the cash, each would get $516,528.

B. If each one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans were allotted a share, each home would get $1,329,787.

C. Or, if every family of four split it up, each family would get $2,066,012.

And then there’s the war in Iraq. The Cost of Iraq War calculator was set to reach $456 billion September 30, 2007.

One might wonder, “Where is all of that money coming from?” We all know the answer, and it isn’t being picked from a tree growing in Washington.

“We screwed up.”

That was race director Jim Barahal’s response in today’s Honolulu Advertiser to claims of faulty times on runner’s finisher certificates. Barahal also acknowledged that the marathon association could be faced with lawsuits from angry runners. I find that thought ridiculous!

Jim Barahal is a stand up guy, and I think that he is accepting more responsibility here than need be. Hey, stuff happens; and the rain screwed up the clocks. Unless you were one of the front runners or out to set a record in your time group, I say, “So what?”

Stop my running watch was the first thing I did as I crossed that line in 1984, and I remember that time well; 4 hours, 36 minutes. I don’t even know where the certificate is, and I threw away the t-shirt long ago. It’s the memory that counts, not the stats.

All of the runners that hit that finish line have done something special, whether it was in 3 hours, 4 hours or more. Congratulations!

 How Do Customers Rate You?

This story appearing in TRANSWORLD Business Magazine raises concern about manufacturers and vendors selling on line and in their own stores.

Mikke Pierson, owner of ZJ Boarding House in Santa Monica, California said it all when he said, “For ZJ Boarding House that means a dedicating ourselves to hard goods, product knowledge and great customer service.”

You Can Compete With the Web 

The Internet is here to stay, but so are the brick and mortar stores that offer what you cannot get on the web. People still like to touch, feel and ask questions of a human being. The Internet cannot compete with human beings provided they do what the Internet cannot. Retailers that stand back and let customers walk around the store without assistance will fall prey to the Internet where they can do that from home.

Pro-Active Service Is Crucial

Success Dynamics works with many retailers with a large number of surf shops being among them. Those that remain focused on their customers will not lose business to the Internet. In fact, shoppers will browse the vendors site to narrow the choice and then come into their favorite neighborhood shop to buy and “talk story” with their “friends”.

People Make the Difference

People buy people first, and what they sell second. Money isn’t everything.
One of the best examples I see is Surf-n-Sea in Haleiwa, Hawaii where there are about 20 surf shops all competing with the same merchandise at similar prices. Surf-n-Sea continues to see rising sales month after month.

Strive For Excellence
A previous article that appeared in TRANSWORLD Business Magazine illustrates what Surf-n-Sea is doing to remain competitive with anyone and everyone. You can do the same.