As the old adage goes, the only constant in life is change.  I know from experience how important managing change is when it comes to driving momentum.  Therefore, I wanted to share with you some strategies that might help you embrace and manage change in your life and in your business.  It is my opinion that as a society, we are in a time of great change.  Even things we take for granted will change in the future.  It is a critical time to pay attention to what is going on and to use “Awareness” as a means to making good decisions, planning, and problem solving.  If you are one of those people who tend to stick your head in the sand and take life as it comes, I can tell you that this strategy will likely produce a lot more consequences than benefits in the future.  With that being said, below are a couple simple strategies that can help you embrace and manage change in your business and in your life.

Strategy #1 – Be proactive in the management of change – To some extent, we all live our lives in either a proactive or reactive mode.  Proactive people tend to be thinkers.  They have awareness because they commit the time and energy necessary to analyze all aspects of their lives.  They create plans and implement strategies to fulfill those plans.  I have always believed that being “proactive” is a tenant of consistent momentum.  If you are one of those “reactive people”, it would be a good time to change that behavior.  While being impulsive and living in the moment can have value, those qualities cannot define your thinking.  The easiest way to make the change from reactive thinking to proactive thinking is to make “self communication time” part of your everyday life.  Self communication is the art of taking quiet time each day to think.  It is a critical part of a good DMO if you want to manage life vs. life managing you.  What do you do in this quiet time?  Think and ask questions.  Evaluate where your life is lacking momentum.  Examine where you are unhappy and failing to grow.  Drive the awareness process to a level where you can implement “activities and strategies” to change.  Remember, “Awareness” is the thinking component of momentum.  “Activity” is the component of momentum that turns thinking into positive results. 

Strategy #2 – Examine how your beliefs are impacting your decisions – I find that most people do not understand the power of beliefs.  In essence they are the foundation of all actions.  Below is a graph that explains the belief process.  I think it will help you understand what beliefs are, how they are created, and how they impact life.

Let me explain the graph above.  We all live life.  In the context of living life, we make conclusions.  These conclusions become our beliefs.  We implement these beliefs by building rules and systems.  Our beliefs control our thoughts and actions.  Ultimately it is our belief that creates the good and bad results in our lives.

So let me explain how beliefs can impact change.  Suppose your belief is that your employer will always look out for you.  Because of that belief, you fail to understand the challenges facing your employer.  You believe the past will always be the same as the future so you will always have a great job.  You do nothing to increase your value to your employer or look to take control of your financial future by gaining skills or even starting a side business.  Because you lack the awareness of how a changing economic world will impact your employer (and ultimately your job), you fail to proactively make choices to secure control of your financial future.  What does this belief cause?  A reality that you won’t recognize the consequences of your belief until you suffer them.  While this is just one example, you have to understand that every belief creates benefits and consequences.  That is why it is so critical to examine them when analyzing change because they ultimately control your thinking.

Strategy #3 – Focus on what you can control – If you focus on what you can control, then you can create change.  Equally, if you focus on what is outside of your control, you will likely fuel fear.  Fear can even reach a point where it creates paralysis or your ability to do anything.  So what can you control?  You can control your choices.  You can control your attitude.  You can control your time.  You can control your financial decisions.  You can control the relationships in your life.  The simple truth is that if you want to use change to drive momentum, focus on the things that you control.  This is where you have to focus your energy.  As one of my mentors used to say, where energy flows, focus goes.  In the end, the “Awareness Component” of momentum has value when you focus on what you can control and what you can influence.

Strategy #4 – Remove yourself  from people and environments that are hurting your ability to create and advance momentum – I find a major reason why people cannot use change to create momentum is because they are held back due to being in the wrong environment, or they have the wrong relationships in their lives.  Your environment has a profound impact on your life.  You need to be part of an environment that fulfills your needs.  You need to be able to grow.  You need to be part of an environment that forces you to be more instead of allowing you to be less.  You need to be part of an environment that is focused on contributing to others.  You need an environment that is fun and rewarding to you.  Often to use change to drive momentum, all you have to do is change your environment.

As for relationships, I have found that they are a major component of all momentum.  Those who have momentum seem to have relationships that support their growth.  Equally, those who struggle to get momentum in life often have relationships that take from them vs. serve them.  Often just changing one relationship (or the nature of how that relationship operates) is a great way to create a positive change in your life.  I think one of the key questions you have to ask yourself if you really want to analyze any relationship is “does this person empower me to grow or hold me back in life?”  Remember, change is a part of relationships just like it is a part of other areas of your life.  You might find that changing a relationship is the easiest way to positively change your life.

There is much more I could share with you about embracing and managing change.  I challenge each of you to become a “proactive thinker”.  Learn how to make change your friend and use that process to make a better life for you and your family.  I have never seen a more important time in my life to pay attention to the world around us.  We are not only experiencing change at all levels of society, but major changes.  There are “paradigm shifts” going on that will impact your life.  For those that are aware of them and make the necessary changes, they will put the probabilities in their favor to survive and thrive in the future.  Don’t make the mistake of failing to use “change” to impact positive momentum in your business and in other areas of your life.

As I read more and more about the challenges facing the world, I am brought back to some information that was sent to me about a year ago. It was called the “Enormous Amounts of Money to be Made Corrupted our Financial System”. It was broken down into two “Immutable Laws of the Universe” as they pertain to human behavior and money. They were as follows:

The #1 Immutable Law of the Universe

If you offer people a lot of money to do something, no matter how foolish, unethical or illegal, a large number of them will do it.

Corollary #1: The more money to be made, the more bad behavior will occur.
Corollary #2: The people engaged in such behavior will rationalize it such that they genuinely believe that what they’re doing isn’t foolish, unethical, or illegal.

The #2 Immutable Law of the Universe

Bad behavior leads to bad consequences.

What is the lesson to be learned?

Reading the information above is a reminder to me that the quality that matters most in business is CHARACTER. It can overcome weaknesses and inexperience. I define “character” as nothing more than a measurement of selfishness. Remember, selfishness is measured by different people in various ways (just think about how differently people measure integrity which is clearly a measuring component of character). I think impeccable character is the MOST IMPORTANT characteristic of any great leader. If you think I am wrong, then just look at our economic challenges as an example of what happens when leadership continues to focus on their needs even if the cost is damaging those who they are supposed to be leading. In my study of major economic cycles, all bad economic winters are preceded by a period of time when the lack of leadership at all levels of society take priority over leadership focused on serving society. That type of leadership creates so much damage that society often has to suffer in order for the correct type of leadership to take over. The sad part of these economic cycles is that the damage is often so great to society that it takes a long time to change course.

Often what drives bad character is too big of a focus on one’s needs in the short-term. Money is often at the root of this problem. Instead of realizing the value of a long-term relationship, people often view a relationship in the context of what they can get from someone in the present. For many, this is the core of sales. I have always said that sales (the promise) fails when the sale becomes an event vs. part of the process of earning a relationship (the fulfillment of the promise). Great sales people will ALWAYS put more effort into earning a relationship than the practice of selling something regardless of whether the needs or expectations of another are fulfilled in the future.

Let me take a moment and explain to you the path of earning long-term relationships in business. I have always believed that the path to long-term success is long-term relationships. However, to earn long-term relationships you have to have four things.

1. Good Character – You have to be a person who understands that the path to achieve one’s needs starts and finishes with serving others. The minute the fulfillment of your needs requires the destruction or abandonment of another’s needs, then your character should be at question. Remember, what you feed you become. If you feed good character, then you will have good character. Equally, when you feed bad character then that will be what defines you.
2. Value – Value is your ability to meet the needs of another. People keep relationships that serve their needs. You have to understand that to earn a relationship, you have to be willing and able to do the job of fulfilling the “relationship expectations” of the other party. Equally, if you cannot do the job, then this should drive your personal development path.
3. Communication – I have lost count of how many relationships I have seen fall apart due to poor communication. At the core of poor communication are a couple basic things. First, judgment and criticism take the place of understanding. If you are one to judge, I would suggest starting that process by looking in the mirror vs. pointing the finger at another. Criticizing others tears them down. Great relationship developers thrive off empowering others, not tearing them down. Second, earning your way in the relationship is often replaced with entitlement. This is when communication becomes about what others owe you. I find that entitlement is the path to taking from others, not serving them. Third, when complaining or negative communication replaces appreciation and gratitude, the relationship is often headed toward a major gap. Often just changing the nature of your focus and conclusions about others will be a catalyst for changing the way you communicate in relationships.
4. Relationship Selection – All the qualities above need to be present in both parties in a relationship. I am sure anyone who reads this blog can come up with an example of a “bad relationship”. I think if you sat down and analyzed how the relationship went bad, you would find at least one of the three items above missing in the relationship. Even if you have all three, if the other party in the relationship lacks one (or more) of the three things above, the relationship will likely be problematic at some point in the relationship.

Finally, character is easy to portray during the best of times. It is easy to look good when everything is going your way. However, you often never really know someone until a challenge in the relationship arises. It is then that you find out how destructive someone will be in an effort to fulfill their own needs.

So maybe it is time to look in the mirror and all ask ourselves a few critical character questions:

1. Am I doing what is necessary to serve others as a means to achieve my needs? Remember, it is OK if your needs are met by fulfilling other’s needs first. It is when they come at the costs of others that character comes into question, especially if it is intentional and done with deception or misrepresentation.
2. Am I the type of person that can earn long-term relationships with the right person? Do I have impeccable character? Can I meet the needs and expectations of the relationships in my life? Is my communication helping the relationship grow or causing it to suffer?
3. Is there a way to improve my relationship selection process so that I begin with a relationship that has the potential to evolve into a magical long-term relationship for all parties?
4. Is there some relationship in my life that lacks character and what am I going to do about it?
5. Is there a way to make my character more visible to others? Remember, you need to package yourself and your story so that others see your good character. In the future, you will find that in a society that suffers from poor character, people will naturally gravitate toward individuals and business cultures that demonstrate impeccable character.

Remember, character matters! It is at the core of the growth of a society, business and an individual. Compromising character, especially due to money, will ultimately create more consequences than benefits. I hope this blog is a reminder of the importance of character and to also make a proactive effort to (1) improve your character, and (2) demand that others with whom you have relationships have the character necessary to earn a long-term relationship with you.

Often fear is the greatest killer of momentum. As one of my mentors used to say, fear either paralyzes us or motivates us. I was reminded by this reality based on communication I received from various subscribers about my latest blog regarding the need to have an “Income Focus”. Given the level of fear that exists in so many people in society, I thought it would be useful to share some thoughts about fear and a few strategies to overcome it.

What is Fear?

I took a definition from the web that I think best defines fear – “to be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probably situation or event”. If you look at that definition, you will notice some key components. First, fear exists in the mind and shows up as being “afraid, feeling anxious or apprehensive”. Second, fear requires a focus on how the future will have a negative impact on your needs. Often that fear grows and becomes paralyzing when (1) your fear occurs because you are focused on matters out of your control, or (2) your perception is that the consequences of the future will have a major negative impact on the fulfillment of your needs. Now that we have looked at the “pathology of fear”, let me give you a couple strategies that might help fear become your friend vs. an enemy to your momentum and happiness.

Strategies to Combat Fear

Strategy #1 – Change Your Focus to What You Can Control. If you focus on what you can control, it allows YOU to take control of your mind, thoughts and actions. Remember, focusing on what you can control is a key component to resourcefulness. I have copied a blog post from my economic article and my reply below to give you an example of how I deal with economic concerns and how I use them to fuel growth.

“Gordon,
Great job on the blog… 1 question re: making more money — what will it matter when the currency is devalued. I am assuming you may feel we are going to see the dollar continue to stumble. I understand the idea of making more to help sustain but in truth w/ the east rising and emerging with a new burgeoning middle class and the west suffering i only see major problems for the slumbering US population .. ex: commercial real estate crash will continue, we shall see more in residential situation as well plus commercial derivatives r coming due this year– please help me try and focus on staying positive because i am entertaining a healthy dose of fear.. Thanks”

As you can see, this person is very intelligent and brings up very real concerns regarding the economy and how it could impact the future. Below is my response.

“I completely understand the fear associated with economics these days given the severity of the consequences we face in the future. While the consequences are reality, I find focusing too much energy and attention on matters that are out of my control does nothing but fuel the fear. The major question we all need to ask is “What can we control”? We can control our thoughts and actions. While focusing on more money might not solve the problems of the future, it is the best strategy to put the probabilities in our favor.

I think they call Economics the “Dismal Science” for a reason . Don’t let it fuel fear or get your mind in the wrong place. It is great to have “economic awareness”. However, if it simply fuels fear or prevents action, then that awareness probably hurts momentum more than fueling it.”

This exchange demonstrates a few key points. First, often what fuels fear is very real. I find that accepting reality is the best path to awareness. Second, the focus on this individual’s potential loss of needs is so great that they wonder if even focusing on what they can control has any value. Often coming to the conclusion “what is the point?” is what accelerates the fear and shuts off resourcefulness. Remember, you CANNOT be resourceful if you are not in a resourceful mindset.

Strategy #2 – Recognize That Needs Can Be Fulfilled Through Various Means/Vehicles. Often fear from the perceived loss of needs is driven because the focus is on losing the “vehicle” that drives the needs. For example, one might focus on the potential loss of a job or even a relationship that fulfills their needs. As fear and uncertainty build around the vehicle, the perception is that one’s needs will be compromised or lost. However, when you begin to teach your mind that needs are met through various vehicles, then your mind moves from “fear” toward “resourcefulness”. If you proactively look to expand the vehicles that meet your needs, then you will find this is a great strategy to overcome fear.

Strategy #3 – Accept the “Truth” When it Comes to Needs. The simple truth is that you can have your needs met REGARDLESS of the obstacles you face in life. You can grow from any situation, even a major tragedy. You can contribute to others regardless of the curve balls life throws at all of us. You can find gratitude and appreciation from any event or moment in time. When you teach yourself to find gratitude in everything, you will find that fear will seldom find a home in your mind. The simple truth is that fear and excitement cannot occupy the mind at the same time. If you just move your mind from a negative place to a positive place, that process alone will help turn fears into confidence and paralysis into action. Remember, change can be your friend and if one vehicle that meets your needs is eliminated or compromised (a relationship, a career, etc.), you can always replace it with another vehicle. Not only can the need be fulfilled, but it can often be fulfilled at a higher level because of the journey that is often required with change.

Strategy #4 – Examine Your Beliefs to See if They are Fueling the Process. If So, it is Time to Change Your Beliefs. If you recall, it is my view that beliefs are nothing more than the conclusions we make in life. That being said, our beliefs are often the core of our fear. For example, imagine if you are selling a product and your belief is that if someone says no, they are making a personal judgment about you. This belief alone leads to a sense of failure, loss of love and even pain. As long as the belief is there, it will be a catalyst for fear.

Final Words

It is important to remember that fear can be your friend. But we must train our minds in order to achieve that result. Step one is awareness. So when you experience fear, ask yourself these two simple questions:

Am I focused on something I can’t control?
How do I get my mind back to a positive place?

I encourage all of you to recognize when fear is present and learn to change your thinking so that fear helps you advance momentum.

First, let me start this blog with a disclaimer. The goal of this blog is to educate you, not to scare you. I believe that understanding is an important step toward making good decisions. For some, understanding creates fear. And as we all know, fear can either paralyze or motivate people. I am hopeful that the information I share in this blog helps you understand the possibilities we face in the future and the importance of taking control of your financial future, especially focusing on income production.

Since the economic climate changed so drastically in the fall of November 2008, my message has been very consistent – the ONLY WAY to survive and thrive in the future is to focus on making more money. The simple truth is that you cannot budget your way to growth in an economic climate that will be defined by higher taxes, fees and inflation. There is an interesting article on CNNMoney.com entitled “What’ll They Tax Next?” It gives us a glimpse into a few of these taxes and fees that are currently being seen across the country as a way to earn revenue in response to budget shortfalls:

* Lawmakers in Maine are going after children’s entertainment to make a little extra money for the state. A bill proposing a 5% state tax on a slew of things, including comedians, clowns, jugglers, ventriloquists, petting zoos, paintball and even haunted hay rides.

* Kentucky is looking to raise $350 to $400 million a year by taxing high-end services such as limousine and hot air balloon rides, golf green fees, private landscaping, armored car services and professional laundry services.

* In Michigan, a tax on pet grooming, horse training, plumbing, fur storage, beauty parlors, funeral services, diaper services, massages, bowling, coin-operated video games, meat slaughtering, movie tickets, zoos and pest control have been proposed to bridge the state’s budget deficit.

* Yoga is currently classified as a recreational service in Missouri and is taxed along with athletic events like Cardinal games and fitness club memberships.

* West Virginia may impose a 5-cent tax on plastic shopping bags. The tax would make it more expensive for stores to let customers bag their groceries in plastic rather than paper and is estimated to raise about $23 million per year.

The core problem is simple. Our country, and countries around the world have too much debt and the de-leveraging process is going to create the “new economy”. Awareness is the first stage of the momentum process. As I was doing some research this weekend on the current debt situation in Greece, I felt it was worth sharing what I found because I think it gives us a picture of what this “new economy” could look like for everyone.

So let’s start with a simple economic fact. Debt can be both good and bad. If debt is used to accelerate growth, then the results can be very positive. However, when debt exists and is not fueling growth, then it has a negative impact. We are reaching a new paradigm in society with regard to government debt vs. GDP (GDP=Total Goods & Services of an economy). It is important to understand how this will impact all of us.

There was a statement I read this weekend that really jumped out at me. It read as follows:

“If the Greek economy survives, it will be the first economy in all of history to recover with a debt load of more than 90% of GDP which is considered “the fatal tipping point” by economic researchers.”

Given that piece of information, I began looking for the answers to 2 questions. First what is the debt to GDP ratios of other countries? Second, what happens when countries get in this position? I took the current situation in Greece as an example.

The Global Debt to GDP Picture

Below is a chart from the IMF (International Monetary Fund). As you can see from the chart, much of the world, especially the bigger countries, share a similar problem with Greece.

The IMF went on to highlight some other key points. First, the debt to GDP of advanced countries is rising at a rate higher than we have seen in decades. This debt is having “major implications for the public finances in most countries”. About 25% of the debt increase comes from “financial sector support packages”. It also pointed out that the largest countries (the Advanced G-20 countries) have the largest debt to GDP ratios. Keep in mind that these countries represent 90% of global gross national product, 80% of the world trade, and 2/3 of the world’s population. The simple fact is that we are dealing with a systemic problem. Like consumers, governments have to be able to pay their bills. The goal is to do it through a positive cash flow (revenues > expenses). When that doesn’t work they turn to borrowing or printing money. Both of those options come with consequences.

The Picture in Greece

As I noted above, when governments need money, they tend to (1) contract by cutting expenses and services, (2) reduce their obligations (debt, entitlement programs, (3) increase revenue (fees, taxes, etc.), and (4) print money. The question is what does this scenario look like for these countries and those living in them? Here are just a few of the things going on in Greece at this time.

• Greece has placed control of its financial choices in the hands of those lending them money. Others control their destiny.
• There is a 3 year wage freeze on public sector workers and also a recruitment freeze.
• The average retirement age would be raised from 53 to 67.
• There are various demands to trim public services necessary to cut the budget deficits by 10-11 points off the GDP in the next 3 years. This includes shutting down 800 state owned entities.
• The Greek government is required to sell state corporations and state-owned land and properties. In other words, they have to liquidate assets in order to pay down debt.
• There is an increase in the Value Added Tax (like a national sales tax) by 2-3% which currently averages around 19%.
• Unemployment is now over 10% and expected to get worse, maybe even reaching the level of Spain which is currently near 20%.
• There are riots in the streets from those who are required to sacrifice due to this bailout, questioning whether Greece will become “ungovernable”.

The Bottom Line

So what does all this mean? It means that when “bad debt” is part of a country, then those citizens will eventually suffer the consequences. Therefore, it is going to be even more important now than ever for us to focus on what we can control. We cannot control the world economy or the high probability that we will all face higher taxes, fees, and inflation. We cannot control that our economic world is changing and things we take for granted will change. What we can control are our choices. That is why it is so critical to “stay ahead of the curve” and focus your energy, resources and time on making more money. That is the path to survive and thrive in the future. For those that embrace change, the future can be bright. For those who fail to recognize the change that is coming or fail to do anything about it, then I suspect their lives will be defined by more consequences and less control of their financial future. I encourage everyone to pay attention and get focused on making more money now. If not, you might find the consequences of “sticking your head in the sand” are much bigger than you ever imagined.

Influencing people is a major component of business.  Whether inside or outside the walls of a business, your ability to influence the thinking and decisions of others plays a critical role in both the success and growth of any business.  One of the key components of succeeding at influencing people is “credibility”.

Let me share with you some classic definitions for credibility.  Wordnet web from Princeton defines it as “the quality of being believable or trustworthy”.  Wikipedia defines it as “the objective and subjective components of the believability of a source or message”.  While I see merit in these definitions, I have a little different interpretation.  To me, credibility is nothing more than the rules people have on who they are going to listen to regarding any particular topic.  It is this definition that might help you better influence people.

There are two questions you need to ask yourself if you are looking to influence someone.  First, what are their rules on credibility?  In other words, you have to understand the checklist of items that an individual, business or business culture has with regard to making decisions.  If you can determine the rules and checklist that make a messenger credible, then you can move to the second question – who is the right messenger?  So many times I have seen people fail to influence others because they try to be the messenger vs. bringing the right messenger into the process.  If you don’t have the right messenger often you will lose the ability to influence.

Let me give you a couple examples.  Let’s suppose you market a nutritional product.  What criteria/rules do most consumers have regarding who they will listen when it comes to nutritional products?  The research clearly shows that it is a health professional.  Do health professionals always know the most about nutrition?  Absolutely not.  However, if the masses decide that health professionals are who will influence their decision, then it would be beneficial to use a health professional as a messenger if you want to influence those who have this rule.  Let me give you another example.  Let’s suppose you are marketing a business opportunity.  Most people are more likely to listen to business voices that are successful.  And likewise, most successful business people know the value of experience in order to earn a voice.  Therefore, in order to influence the business decisions of most, it is critical that the messenger is a success in business.  If you do not understand this reality and bring the wrong messenger into the process, you might find that your ability to influence a decision is limited because you didn’t properly identify the “credibility rules”.

In the end, influencing people is a key component of momentum for any business.  If you take the time to understand the credibility rules of those you are trying to influence and be sure to bring the right messenger into the process, you will probably find your success rate will increase dramatically.  It is also important to remember that data is better than assumptions.  Ask the questions about people’s credibility rules.  Don’t assume you know them or that they are similar to your rules. 

I would add one final comment.  Part of increasing your value to the marketplace is increasing your credibility.  That is often done by strengthening character and enhancing your ability to do the job.  Ability is most often judged by experience, results in the real world, or accomplishments (academic degrees, licenses, etc).  People gravitate toward relationships that (1) look to serve vs. take (Character Component), and (2) meet the needs of each party in the relationship (Value Component).  A good question to ask yourself is “would you listen to you”?  If not, then changing the answer to that question is a good personal and business development goal.