Following are the four foundational elements of The Concept Coach TAG Team programs. In my experience, executives and entrepreneurs who really want to make progress, apply these four principles consistently and deliberately.
Principle # 1: Continuing Education
You cannot grow without continuing education. It is my contention that all business development has its roots in life-long learning. And the best way to do this is to have someone bring learning to you.
You don't have time to dredge around, blindly running into chunks of unconnected material. Decide to attend a series of seminars that target your particular interests. Seek out an ongoing program with an appropriate curriculum and attend it regularly.
It will cost you time and money, but when you make a commitment to continuing learning, you
don't need to worry about this investment. You'll get it back in spades.
Principle #2: Planning
Make planning both a priority and a regular and ongoing event. When weeks begin to look the same, it's time to get away and do some thinking.
Get out of the office. Shut off your cell phone. Ask yourself the really big questions: "Why am I really doing this?" "Is this helping me to become the person I want to become?" "What's working and what's not?" "What else do I need?"
Get away and do planning at least once every quarter. Forget about what you have and think about what you need. List the challenges you face and brainstorm some solutions. You'll only make progress in this regard if you "disappear" for a day and look at your challenges from the outside.
Do planning. Your mind craves this kind of stimulation and it won't disappoint you with ideas.
Principle #3: Peer Experience and Counsel
Isolation is a killer. You need some buddies and you need them now. We've found the best solution to be peer-to-peer groups. They are small groups of like- minded people who want to grow and help others to grow as well. These groups have a well-spring of knowledge that's nearly impossible to find in any other setting.
Imagine having your own personal board of directors and band of consultants who've dealt with your circumstances and have already found solutions. Think of how you'd benefit from the advice of years of others' experiences.
Meet monthly or quarterly - whatever suits your needs. What's most important is that you make a commitment to meeting with others. It's like food for the entrepreneurial soul.
Principle #4: Accountability
Activity is not progress. You have to keep yourself on track with activities that are directed toward a few, thoughtfully selected goals. For most of the people, most of the time, this is a very difficult challenge.
To answer the challenge, you must find people to whom you can be accountable. Talk about your goals. Expose yourself a little bit and tell about your objectives. Explain the routes you plan to take to reach your goals.
Find a trusted friend and hold yourself accountable. Identify a few tasks that you plan to accomplish and give a finite deadline. Most people don't want accountability because of a fear of failure. You can use that fear as a catalyst to drive you to your goals faster than you've ever imagined.
Making the choice to become accountable may just turn out to be the single most powerful decision you make about your future.
Best Regards,
Jeffrey Tobin
The Concept Coach
www.theconceptcoach.com
Saturday, March 31, 2007
The Concept Coach: Get Your Ginomai
I’ll just bet you’ve never tried to “get your Ginomai.” In fact, unless you’re one of our Concept Coach clients, you’ve probably never even heard of the term. Read on and you’ll discover not only what it is, but why it may be the most powerful concept to cross your desk in a long time. This month, I’m inviting you to “get your Ginomai.” You can start by reading about The Ginomai Principle (TM).
The Ginomai Principle (TM)
“Ginomai” is an ancient Greek word meaning “to begin to be.” It relates to origins, birth or rebirth, and growth. I developed The Ginomai Principle to help people define their biggest future. The person you are today is the ‘you are here’ point on the map of your life. Your destination is the person you will become. You need both points to plot a route.
Here’s The Ginomai Principle:
“I am not now the person I will become. I must identify my destiny before I can set a course to meet it.” [Jeffrey Tobin]
Now that may sound pretty simple. It’s not. Identifying the person you want to become takes some real thought, insight and guidance. I teach an entire Concept Coach session that deals with this one critical thinking process, but let me give you the basics so you can begin to think differently about where you’re going - and why.
You Are Not What You Do
The first thing to recognize is that you are not what you do. If you were to eliminate your business or organization-related activities from your life, who would you be? How would you define yourself? What would you do with your time? I’m not talking about retirement here. I’m talking about your potential. Who can you become?
What you do for a living should be nothing more than a vehicle that helps you to “become your potential.” The Ginomai Principle process forces us to separate what we do from who we are. There are a few steps in this process, and you can begin thinking about them right now.
Recognize Who You Are
The Ginomai Principle can help you to recognize the attributes and resources that you have currently at your disposal. This is the ‘you are here’ element.
Create a list of the elements that make up the person you are today: positive attributes, accomplishments, education, assets, health, gifts and talents, etc. These are all resources you have at your disposal today.
Make this list and review it carefully. Let it sink in. You can’t go anywhere until you know where you are.
But this is not enough; it doesn't take you anywhere. You don’t want to wake up one day late in life and discover you’ve missed your greatest opportunity: you! Let's define that person right now.
Identify Who You Want to Become
Now it’s time to set your destination. Where are you going? What accomplishments and assets do you want to leave with others as your legacy? How do you want to be remembered? For most people, it’s not a legacy of what kind of businessperson they were, but what kind of person they had become. Who is that person you want to become?
Now, make a list like the one above, but this time list all of the attributes, talents, and positive assets you want to acquire. You are making a future list of what you choose to add to the person you already are.
Design Your Own Ginomai Statement
Now you will want to refine your list and express it as a statement of who you want to become. Add the essential positive elements from your Who You Are list to the Who You Will Become list, then develop a concise affirmation of the new person you’ve identified. This is the future you.
Keep your Ginomai Statement in front of you where you can review it daily until it becomes an integral part of your thinking and your being.
Now that you have plotted the route between who you are and who you want to become, you can move ahead in confidence to your new and much bigger future.
Best Regards,
Jeffrey Tobin
The Concept Coach
www.theconceptcoach.com
The Ginomai Principle (TM)
“Ginomai” is an ancient Greek word meaning “to begin to be.” It relates to origins, birth or rebirth, and growth. I developed The Ginomai Principle to help people define their biggest future. The person you are today is the ‘you are here’ point on the map of your life. Your destination is the person you will become. You need both points to plot a route.
Here’s The Ginomai Principle:
“I am not now the person I will become. I must identify my destiny before I can set a course to meet it.” [Jeffrey Tobin]
Now that may sound pretty simple. It’s not. Identifying the person you want to become takes some real thought, insight and guidance. I teach an entire Concept Coach session that deals with this one critical thinking process, but let me give you the basics so you can begin to think differently about where you’re going - and why.
You Are Not What You Do
The first thing to recognize is that you are not what you do. If you were to eliminate your business or organization-related activities from your life, who would you be? How would you define yourself? What would you do with your time? I’m not talking about retirement here. I’m talking about your potential. Who can you become?
What you do for a living should be nothing more than a vehicle that helps you to “become your potential.” The Ginomai Principle process forces us to separate what we do from who we are. There are a few steps in this process, and you can begin thinking about them right now.
Recognize Who You Are
The Ginomai Principle can help you to recognize the attributes and resources that you have currently at your disposal. This is the ‘you are here’ element.
Create a list of the elements that make up the person you are today: positive attributes, accomplishments, education, assets, health, gifts and talents, etc. These are all resources you have at your disposal today.
Make this list and review it carefully. Let it sink in. You can’t go anywhere until you know where you are.
But this is not enough; it doesn't take you anywhere. You don’t want to wake up one day late in life and discover you’ve missed your greatest opportunity: you! Let's define that person right now.
Identify Who You Want to Become
Now it’s time to set your destination. Where are you going? What accomplishments and assets do you want to leave with others as your legacy? How do you want to be remembered? For most people, it’s not a legacy of what kind of businessperson they were, but what kind of person they had become. Who is that person you want to become?
Now, make a list like the one above, but this time list all of the attributes, talents, and positive assets you want to acquire. You are making a future list of what you choose to add to the person you already are.
Design Your Own Ginomai Statement
Now you will want to refine your list and express it as a statement of who you want to become. Add the essential positive elements from your Who You Are list to the Who You Will Become list, then develop a concise affirmation of the new person you’ve identified. This is the future you.
Keep your Ginomai Statement in front of you where you can review it daily until it becomes an integral part of your thinking and your being.
Now that you have plotted the route between who you are and who you want to become, you can move ahead in confidence to your new and much bigger future.
Best Regards,
Jeffrey Tobin
The Concept Coach
www.theconceptcoach.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
