01-06-2013, 12:25 PM
A STEP BY STEP TOOL FOR TOP ACHIEVERS
STEP BY STEP.pdf (Size: 614.77 KB / Downloads: 604)
Building a positive attitude There was a man who made a living selling balloons at a fair. He had all colors of balloons, including red, yellow, blue, and green. Whenever business was slow, he would release a helium-filled balloon into the air and when the children saw it go up, they all wanted to buy one. They would come up to him, buy a balloon, and his sales would go up again. He continued this process all day. One day, he felt someone tugging at his jacket. He turned around and saw a little boy who asked, "If you release a black balloon, would that also fly?" Moved by the boy's concern, the man replied with empathy, "Son, it is not the color of the balloon, it is what is inside that makes it go up." The same thing applies to our lives. It is what is inside that counts. The thing inside of us that makes us go up is our attitude. Have you ever wondered why some individuals, organizations, or countries are more successful than others? It is not a secret. These people simply think and act more effectively. They have learned how to do so by investing in the most valuable asset--people. I believe that the success of an individual, organization or country, depends on the quality of their people. I have spoken to executives in major corporations all over the world and asked one question: "If you had a magic wand and there was one thing you would want changed, that would give you a cutting edge in the marketplace resulting in increased productivity and profits, what would that be?" The answer was unanimous. They all said that if people had better attitudes, they'd be better team players, and it'd cut down waste, improve loyalty and, in general, make their company a great place to work.
TQP--TOTAL QUALITY PEOPLE
Having been exposed to a number of training programs, such as customer service, selling skills, and strategic planning, I have come to the conclusion that all these are great programs with one major challenge: None of them works unless they have the right foundation, and the right foundation is TQP. What is TQP? TQP is Total Quality People-- people with character, integrity, good values, and a positive attitude. Don't get me wrong. You do need all the other programs, but they will only work when you have the right foundation, and the foundation is TQP. For example, some customer service programs teach participants to say "please," and "thank-you," give smiles and handshakes. But how long can a person keep on a fake smile if he does not have the desire to serve? Besides, people can see through him. And if the smile is not sincere, it is irritating. My point is, there has to be substance over form, not form over substance.
YOUR ATTITUDE CONTRIBUTES TO SUCCESS
A study attributed to Harvard University found that when a person gets a job, 85% of the time it is because of their attitude, and only 15% of the time because of how smart they are and how many facts and figures they know. Surprisingly, almost 100% of education dollars go to teach facts and figures which account for only 15% of success in work! This book is all about that 85% of success. Attitude is the most important word in the English language. It applies to every sphere of life, including one's personal and professional life. Can an executive be a good executive without a good attitude? Can a student be a good student without a good attitude? Can a parent, teacher, salesman, employer, employee be good in their roles without a good attitude? The foundation of success regardless of your chosen field, is attitude. If attitude is such a critical factor in success, shouldn't you examine your attitude toward life and ask how your attitude will affect your goals?
A HOLISTIC APPROACH
I believe in the holistic approach. We are not an arm and a leg, but a complete human being. The whole person goes to work and the whole person comes home. We take family problems to work and work problems to the family. What happens when we take family problems to work? Our stress level goes up and productivity comes down. Similarly, work and social problems have an impact on every aspect of our lives. Take any one of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or your government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm.
THE BENEFITS OF A POSITIVE ATTITUDE
These are many and easy to see. But what is easy to see is also easy to miss. To mention a few, a positive attitude
• increases productivity
• fosters teamwork
• solves problems
• improves quality
• makes for congenial atmosphere
• breeds loyalty
• increases profits
• fosters better relationships with employers, employees, and customers
• reduces stress
• helps a person become a contributing member of society and an asset to their country
• makes for a pleasing personality
LOOKING FOR THE GOLD
As a young Scots boy, Andrew Carnegie came to America and started doing odd jobs. He ended up as one of the largest steel manufacturers in the United States. At one time he had 43 millionaires working for him. Several decades ago, a million dollars used to be a lot of money; even today it is a lot of money. Someone asked Mr. Carnegie how he dealt with people? Andrew Carnegie replied, "Dealing with people is like digging gold: When you go digging for an ounce of gold, you have to move tons of dirt to get an ounce of gold. But when you go digging, you don't go looking for the dirt, you go looking for the gold."