Clarity on Steroids

Getting from where you are today to where you want to be in the future demands clarity of thought.

"I started to work on my SWOT analysis for our business. About 5 questions into it I began to realize that I was operating my business on hunches and feelings. It's no wonder I don't have a clear picture of what is really going on or what I need to do to move forward."

Clarity of thought is not a psychic or metaphysical experience.

"How do I know? I don't know how I know. Maybe I don't know what I think I know."

Imagine an engineer trying to build a bridge across the river. It's simple, right? All he has to do is rivet together some steel and connect one bank to the other.

"I figure about 80% of my business comes from people making purchases of $50 or less. I spend about 60 hours a week pursuing more of this kind of customer. Why do you ask?"

A powerful key to earning more and working less is learning how to optimize what you do. Clarity brings to the forefront your strongest skills and talents and leverages them for optimum earning potential.

"We have been doing business this way for 8 years. I couldn't tell you what my P&L says. All I know is I pay my bills. And there never seems to be enough!"

Remember asking your math teacher if you would ever need to know "this stuff"? The answer is Yes.

Clarity is indispensable for moving your life, your profession or your business from where it is today to an increasingly better tomorrow.

To put your clarity on steroids you need one key ingredient.

Data. Cold hard facts.

What are you doing to benchmark your business?

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How's your clarity? Take this simple assessment and give yourself a grade.

These three components are vital if you want to gain clarity.

3 Essential Components for Gaining Clarity

If you have driven your car in a thick fog then you know the fear or uneasiness that comes with not being sure of what is hidden from your sight. Your senses are on edge trying to discern what is coming your way. A deer in the road? An unexpected turn? A stopped vehicle? An icy patch?

Unlike a foggy day, mental fog results from being overworked, un-prioritized activity or subjection to the tyranny of the urgent. We are able to have control over mental fog. These three components are indispensable for gaining clarity and they are in your immediate control:

• Intentionality. Clarity does not just happen. You have to make up your mind that you are going to get clarity and do what needs to be done to make it happen.
• Distraction-free Thinking Space. When phones ring, people interrupt, text messages ping, to-do lists grow, urgencies clamor for your attention or other demands jump on the front burner you cannot gain the overall clarity you need. (You may find momentary clarity for each little thing that arises, but don't mistake crisis control for life control.) To gain clarity you must break away for a mental retreat.
• A Proven Process to Guide Your Thinking. "You don't know what you don't know." A process is nothing more than a step-by-step method of getting you to your desired outcome. Your desired outcome is clarity; do you know step by step what you need to do to get there?

These three components are absolutely essential for gaining clarity for your life, your profession or your business. Eliminate just one of these three components and try to imagine the outcome. Today has enough challenges of its own without creating an underperforming method to gaining clarity.

This one added element is like putting your clarity on steroids.

Clarity? How do you know if you have clarity or not?

Clarity Assessment

"At the beginning of this week I was uncertain about what I was doing in my profession. Today at the end of the week it is very clear to me what I was doing wrong, what I need to do to change course, and exactly how to go about it."

Clarity in any profession results in less complexity and greater effectiveness. How do you know when you have clarity? 

• When strategies are understood . . . 
• When definitive action plans can be implemented . . . 
• When results do not require an advanced degree to validate . . . 
• When you know who you are, where you are going and how you are going to get there . . . 

Many people / professionals / business owners have found this simple assessment tool invaluable for getting a snapshot of their own clarity. A few minutes of your time and a dose of gut-level honesty will help you begin to see your life, your job, or your business more clearly. Use the scores below to answer each question.

5 - Strongly Agree       4 - Agree       3 - Neither Agree nor Disagree       2 - Disagree       1 - Strongly Disagree

1. I have a comprehensive understanding of my talents and skills.
2. I maximize my talents and skills for optimum earnings.
3. I have an articulated list of values that drive how I live and work.
4. I have a written vision for the future of my life / profession / business.
5. I have an easy-to-understand mission with achievable goals.
6. My values, vision and mission are in harmony with each other.
7. I have realistic strategies written out with target dates assigned to them.
8. I rely on actual data to assess my progress.
9. I regularly reassess my current status for strategic planning.
10. I know who I am, where I am going, and how I am going to get there.

Total your score. 

40 to 50: Perhaps you should consider how to mentor someone to achieve their optimum life!

30 to 40: There is room for improvement. Find time for an objective reality check.

20 to 30: Dense fog. Watch out for the unforeseen event waiting for you.

10 to 20: Lost, dazed or confused. Is this what life is supposed to be like?

0 to 10: Crisis. If lack of clarity were a disease, you'd be in the E.R. in critical condition.

Do you use these three essential components for blowing away the fog and gaining clarity for your life, profession or business?


This one thing will take your clarity to a whole new level of strategic planning.

How to Stifle Creativity and What to Do About It

Teresa Amabile writes in the Harvard Business Review that "creativity is a function of three components: expertise, creative thinking skills, and motivation." I think she's right. Expertise is all about knowledge however it is acquired. Creative thinking skills has so much to do with ability to wonder, ask questions and consider the "other" possibility. Motivation drills down to desire.

I am a creative person. In fact, owning a creative agency was my first business venture. I thoroughly enjoyed starting my day with a blank sheet of paper. Dreaming of possibilities and asking "Why not?" brought me more business than I knew what to do with for a young guy with no official art training.

It is true that creativity can be shut down by managers or people who do not understand the creative process. All you have to do is develop a "No" mindset and you can kill creativity faster than the first 3 minutes of an NCIS show can kill it's next victim. Consider these creativity murderers:

• No challenge
• No freedom
• No resources
• No work-group features
• No supervisory encouragement
• No organizational support

Creativity: D.O.A.

To foster creativity in your company you only need to turn the Nos into Yeses. 

But in the small business environment it is often the business owner who has to be creative. Resources are frequently not available to employ someone who can dedicate themselves to being creative . . . and if they are available, creativity is strictly defined to technical tasks: design an ad, get the website up, come up with a slogan, write a brochure.

The creativity that a business owner requires is the creativity of vision and leadership. This is the kind of possibility thinking that walks out in front of the organization and takes it to new frontiers. 

This is the creativity that all too often suffers in the small business because of one key factor. 

Time.

If the business owner can learn time management, priority management and get out of the technical trenches of the day-to-day duties, then the owner can leverage the power of creativity to lead the business to new heights of success.

These Five Power Words Are Like Gourmet Aroma to the Discerning Customer

My friend, Jeff, has a nose for gourmet foods. He will walk past all the olfactory noise of a hundred competitors and isolate a single aroma that turns his head and makes him want to find out more. To watch him take a bite of gourmet chocolate is like watching the most beautiful story ever told. You want in on the experience and soon you are captivated by stories of jungles and cocoa and organic farmers.

Curiosity has been described by Edmund Burke as "the first and simplest emotion which we discover in the human mind." Those individuals and businesses that have harnessed the power of creating curiosity are the ones who lead us and make us thirsty for more.

What is their secret? What words do they leverage in crafting their message to awaken need and want inside of us? Are you effectively utilizing these power words in your marketing messages?

Power Word #1: How

How is that word that appeals to our need to learn, to do and to excel. It creates the desire to get me from where I am at to where I want to be in a practical manner. The promise and the allure of How boldly promises the message of exclusive knowledge, experience and membership. Consider how these messages create the desire to know How . . .

• How a bald barber saved my hair . . .
• How the XYZ Company grew by 150% in just six months . . .
• How can one word in your headline can drive traffic to your website?

Power Word #2: Why

The power of Why is the power of understanding. Human nature recognizes that the person who understands is the person in control. The promise of understanding framed by the power word Why is the promise of controlling one's life and situation. Create want and need using the power of Why as seen in these examples . . .

• Why social media will shape your business in the next two years . . .
• Why long term care insurance will let you spend more weekends at the cabin . . .
• Do you want to know why eating more meat is better for your golf game?

Power Word #3: These

Specificity is the intrinsic power of These. By isolating what needs to be in place and what needs to go you shake off the dead weight and tune up what is being neglected. Crafting a message using the power word These attracts a progressive and decision-making audience. Take a look at these messages . . .

• These 3 keys will make your business king at every networking event . . .
• These businesses thrived in the recession because of this one maxim . . .
• These people are better rested and more alert because of one common secret . . .

Power Word #4: Which

Choice is the power of Which! A menu of options, a buffet of choices, a variety to choose from! People feel better about themselves when they have the power to choose. Leveraging the power of Which in your headlines empowers the reader to choose. Which of these statements is strongest in your opinion?

• Which of these $10 best sellers do you want for only $1?
• Which businesses will still be in business next year . . . and which ones won't . . .
• Which healthcare plan will provide your family with the greatest peace of mind?

Power Word #5: What

Don't you want to know what's behind curtain number 2? Aren't you curious about what is the best bait for catching the largest walleye? Wouldn't you click on the link that promises to tell you what never to eat when flying? What business owner's wife wouldn't know what 3 things she had to do to be able to enjoy vacations with her husband?

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Creativity is one of the most desired qualities in leaders and top performers. Yet this one thing does more the stifle creativity than any other factor . . .

How Leading Businesses Create Their Market

Who hasn't felt the effects of the past few years? The results have been leading-edge businesses becoming more focused, strategic and creative.

Relying on your uniqueness or the greatness of your product or service is no longer enough to edge out your competition. The small business  has to creatively consider how to raise their market's awareness of needs and wants BEFORE providing the solution of the advantage of their product or service.

One powerful way to influence your prospects' needs and wants is by creating curiosity. By creating curiosity you grab the reins of the prospect's attention, amass an audience and warm them up to hear your message.

What is your company doing to create curiosity in the marketplace? Consider these three curiously powerful ways to cause people to want more . . .

Future Talk!

The future is everyone's concern. Provide data or anecdotes that say "Warning! Change ahead!" When we think about the yet-to-come future our concern becomes "how will this affect me?" 

One key to future talk is not to give an immediate solution but to let the market's imagination develop. As their perception of needs and wants surface, you position your company to be one of the solutions for the unforeseen tomorrow.

What information is your company privy to that would cause your market to be concerned about their future?

Party Time!

Good news is coming! Who doesn't like a party? Big, splashy, fun, . . . Invite your friends and get in on the action. When your company plans the party you create curiosity by leaking just enough information to let them know that good news is coming.

The party planning approach appeals to our desire to be part of a clan or tribe. Those who show up are the first ones to experience. They are the ones on the cutting edge of awareness, the first to enjoy the benefits, they become the people "in the know" and they become the go-to people for those who didn't get there first.

How could your company leverage the party appeal to it's marketing strategy?

Pssssst! 

Water coolers may have been replaced by more technologically advanced ways to communicate, but the basic appeal of being privy to "secret" information is alive and well. Do you want to create curiosity and gather a crowd? Just lower your voice, speak in hushed tones, and give just enough information to tickle the ears. Before you know it your company will be being discussed . . . and you have the power to introduce the subject!

What would turn your market's ears in your direction and make them curious to learn more?

These three proven methods for creating curiosity position you to speak to the wants and needs of your market. When you have created your audience, make sure your solution is credible!


And make sure you utilize these five power words that create curiosity . . .

Strategic Educational Leader

Whether you feel overwhelmed from time to time in your current position, want to better handle the challenges you face, or simply would like more fulfillment in your life and career . . . this program is for you!

This four-workshop course designed by and for professional educators will help you improve the quality of your life.

Strategic Educational Leader is a comprehensive coaching and accountability course in learning how to:

Face Reality - and achieve a better work life / home life balance. Uncover what is and what is not working and discover how to improve. 

Leverage Your Strengths - and spend less time on what you do not enjoy or do well. Leverage your strengths for greater productivity and fulfillment. 

Improve Relationships - because leaders are only as effective as the people and relationships around them. To get where you want to be - professionally and personally - these relationships have to be managed and nurtured. 

Focus & Prioritize - and stop feeling like a puppet for students, colleagues or administrators. While there may be a million items on your "to do" list, you need to focus on your next step. You cannot be all things to all people. 

Refine Your Vision & Goals - about your career and life. How does your time fit into the bigger picture of what you want your school/district and life to look like . . . and . . . how is that vision recieved by people in the significant relationships around you?

Workshop Information 

Quarter 1	Intro to Coaching & Strategic Educational Leadership
Quarter 2	Strategic Thinking, Influence & Persuasion
Quarter 3	Leadership Leverage & Relational Management
Quarter 4	Strategic Planning, Focus & Action

Audience: Anyone working in a career in educational organizations and institutions.

"Strategic Educational Leader" is a series of four full-day workshops, one per quarter. At each workshop you will prepare a 90-day planner - a road map to help you focus on what you need to do in your school / district / life. Successful completion of the course can earn you up to 6 graduate credits from Viterbo University's Servant Leadership Program. 

For more information or to register, contact The Growth Coach.