Success Advice

Develop Your Adaptability to Supercharge Your Success

Published

2 years ago

Mar 24, 2020

Image Credit: Unsplash

Some of my friends are professional athletes who have made millions of dollars in their sport. But let’s face it, most people are not going to make it to the pros. The competition is too fierce and talented, and the odds for most athletes are too long, no matter how hard you work at it.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. If you have a dream, chase it. If you have an ambition, pursue it. If you have a goal, grasp it. But also understand that sometimes life requires a Plan B. That’s when you need to be flexible and adapt your plans based on the circumstances life throws at you.

Your Plan A might be to make it to the pros. That’s a lofty target and shows how optimistic and confident you are. Good! But having a Plan B doesn’t mean you’re pessimistic. It doesn’t mean you’re not committed to Plan A. You’re not allowing failure to be an option. Plan B should make you feel great too. It can also be lofty and ambitious. It’s smart to have a Plan B; it’s not a sign of weakness.

How adaptable are you? If your Plan A hits the rumble strips, do you turn happily to Plan B, knowing that sometimes life is a bumpy ride, or do you crumble, thinking that since your Plan A failed, you must be a failure? Flexibility will allow you to find new ways to succeed, even when your initial plans go awry.

“Every success story is a tale of constant adaptation, revision and change.” – Richard Branson

Lessons in Adaptability from Phil Harvey

My friend Phil Harvey is an excellent example of a flexible approach to life. Although he hasn’t had things all his own way, he has consistently found ways to succeed. He loves his Plan B as much as his Plan A and he’s never shy of adapting a plan when circumstances change.

When Phil was twenty, he and his brother James took jobs with one of the largest moving companies in the Denver area. They worked there for about eighteen months, and during that time, they noticed that their employer made a lot of mistakes. Phil didn’t plan to start his own business, but the company’s issues were affecting his income. It was time for Plan B.

Phil and James decided to set out on their own. They learned as much as they could about the moving business, then parted ways from the company and set up their own organization. They started out using a Chevy Tahoe for every move. Not easy. Then the Tahoe broke down. Even tougher. What did they do? They borrowed a Ford Ranger from their mother and kept on working.

Although they were initially under-resourced, Phil and James loved helping people move home. They’re both athletic, lean, and strong, and they make moving look easy. Their customers loved them and recommended them to all their friends. It wasn’t long before they were making more working for themselves than they did working for a large moving company. Soon, they brought on a cousin to work with them, and he too became a partner in the business.

Over the next ten years, their flexible approach paid off big time. As their reputation grew, other avenues of income opened up for them:

They started renting budget trucks for their moves and then opened a budget franchise so that they could rent out vehicles themselves.
When they noticed that many clients requested carpet-cleaning recommendations, Phil’s girlfriend started a side business for cleaning services.
From carpet cleaning, they expanded again to offer general cleaning for clients who were moving out of a rental or preparing their home for sale.
When clients had them haul away unwanted furniture, the Harvey’s started a side business reselling the items on eBay.

Is there any angle that the Harvey’s missed? They can load and move someone’s furniture and possessions. They can rent you a truck if you need one. They can haul off stuff you don’t want. They can come in after the move and clean the carpet and the rest of the house. About the only thing they didn’t do was sell the house when it was clean and empty.

Oh, wait. That’s not true anymore. James recently got his real estate license. Now they can sell the house too.

If you had asked the Harvey’s a decade ago, would they have predicted that they’d now have a thriving moving business, with numerous other side businesses? I doubt it. But they have continued to evolve, seeing opportunities where they have arisen, and consistently developing a Plan B when necessary.

“Adapt what is useful, reject was is useless, and add what is specifically your own.” – Bruce Lee

Stay Foolish, Stay Hungry

In our society, making a million dollars is a metaphor for success. But how much money you make is a trivial way of keeping score. What’s more important is your happiness. Are you doing what you love? Do you love going to work every day? Is what you’re offering helping someone else?

If you hate your job and you’re miserable, no amount of money will compensate for that unhappiness. To find your niche in life and keep evolving, you need to be adaptable.

You should have big goals, but don’t be limited by them. If your goal is to earn a million dollars, fine. But what’s your goal after that? Setting a finite line can be limiting, so you have to be nimble. Some defensive backs wanted to be wide receivers. They have similar body types and run as fast as receivers; they just don’t catch the ball as well. But in the event the ball is thrown over the receiver’s head, the DB, for the moment, can become a receiver with the interception.

The DB achieved more than he had originally planned because he never limited himself to being just a tackler.

When I leave the NFL, my Plan B will be an offshoot of my Plan A. I have a network of friends, teammates, and advisors who will all be part of my Plan B.

Plan B isn’t always dramatically different from Plan A. If your Plan A is doing something you love, make Plan B something you love too. Chances are it will involve the same friends and acquaintances you made while working on Plan A.

Success depends on finding the things you are passionate about. Once you identify that, think about how you can be involved in that passion every day and how you can use your enthusiasm for that work to change the world. That’s your sweet spot. You should do what you love and what you’re great at. And when the game changes, be ready to change with it.

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Bennie Fowler

Bennie Fowler is a six-year veteran of the NFL. He began his career as an undrafted free agent signed by the Broncos in 2014. He spent four years with the Broncos and was a member of the Super Bowl 50 championship team in 2016. Bennie played college football at Michigan State University, where he was a member of the 2014 Rose Bowl championship team. Bennie holds the annual Bennie Fowler youth football camp in Detroit, Michigan, is an in-demand speaker trained through the NFL Speakers Bureau, and lives in Denver during the offseason. You can checkout his best-selling book: Silver Spoon: The Imperfect Guide to Success on Amazon.

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Success Advice

How Your Friends Determine Whether You Succeed or Not

Published

4 days ago

Oct 18, 2021

TheThrives

Image Credit: Unsplash

Can anyone do without having friends? We all have our friends, we share ideas with them, talk together, have fun, and fight. Yes, that’s the baseline of friendship. But, do you know that aside from you, your friends can determine whether you achieve success or not?

There are two things in friendship which are the ability to ”love” and the ability to “influence”. This means you are loved and you are influenced. How do your friends affect your success in life? How are they one of the biggest deciding factors of your success? Let’s find out.

What type of friends do you keep?

First, what type of friends do you keep? Who do you call your best friend? There are two different kinds of friends, good friends, and bad ones. A lot of people have lost their pathway to success and some have also found their road to success all because of the friends they keep, the people they mingle with.

Who is your best friend? Answer carefully. Having a best friend means you find each other compatible and understanding. Analyze who your best friend is. If your best friend has not motivated you to do something positive, if who you call your bestie has never given you positive advice, lastly if your best friend has never informed and advised you on your shortcomings, then you don’t have a best friend.

This quote tells us “birds of the same feather flock together”. Countless people have changed from their good nature into a bad one all because of friends. One thing to note is, “negative people move with negative aura”. If your best friend is filled with negativity inside-out then you will surely be affected by his/her negative aura.

They influence your success with positivity or negativity

The friends you keep can either influence you with positivity or negativity because your friends have the power to change your kind of person completely.

This is how your friends influence you:

They influence you indirectly with what they do
They influence you directly by teaching and giving you advice

Yes, that is how they influence you. For instance, you watch a movie and you like the way the actor walks. The question is if you truly like the way the actor walks, won’t you try to imitate the actor? Of course, you will.

Just the way you imitate the actor is the same way your friends can influence you with their character. However, the funny part is, they don’t have to teach you to do things like them. You just find yourself imitating and copying them gradually.

An important question to ask is, are you imitating a good friend or a bad one? If you imitate a good friend then you will be good, but if you imitate a bad person, you will surely become a bad person.

Everyone wants to succeed, a good friend will always teach, enlighten, and motivate you for success. A bad friend will only motivate you to do evil things (smoking, drinking, fight, envy,).

And you should know that things like that are a great enemy of success and even of God. So, if you have these bad elements in your life, how will you achieve success? There is no way!

And also, they can teach and advise you directly. But, what do your friends teach you? When you ask them for advice do they inspire you positively or teach you the bad stuff.? A lot of people have regretted lifelong decisions just by listening to the advice of friends.

The company you keep has the power to influence and change you. Never forget that a positive influence will teach, motivate, and brush you up for success. While a negative influence will inspire you to become a bad person, change your good nature, and leave you with regrets in the end.

Success Advice

The 3 Step Process to Building a Profitable Pitch

Published

5 days ago

Oct 17, 2021

Monique Maley

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As a communication coach, one of the top questions entrepreneurs ask me is how to deliver a winning pitch to potential investors. They want to know if there’s a magic formula to get an investor to say yes and buy into their dream and their business. (more…)

Success Advice

The 4 Pillars of Wealth and Abundance

Published

6 days ago

Oct 16, 2021

Dalia Escobar

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Have you ever wondered what the formula for a wealthy and abundant life is? Many people have. Lots has been written about the subject of wealth creation and living an abundant life. It was a breaking point in my journey and pursuit of success when I found out that there is a clear path to achieve success in life. Thanks to those who have shared their journey, we can clearly see and follow the principles of prosperity. (more…)

Success Advice

Here Are 4 Reasons Why You Should Have a Podcast, Youtube Channel or Online Show

Published

1 week ago

Oct 14, 2021

Timothy Craggette

Image Credit: Unsplash

Confidence comes from a place of strong understanding of self. After close to three years on radio, I’ve grown from a shy introvert to a shy introvert with an extrovert persona. When the mic is turned on, I can channel a version of myself that some say is attractive, strong, and of course, confident but it wasn’t always this way.

What I want to share with you is what I discovered on this journey into broadcast that you can apply to your life, your ventures, and your personal development. This doesn’t require any fancy gear. It does require a leap of faith on your part because once you go down the road of media; it can change your life.

1. Perceived Expertise

When you go to a doctor, you expect their knowledge will guide them to a solution to your problems. When you have a show, you become your listeners’ doctor. For all the multiple thousands, maybe millions, of YouTube channels, podcasts, and user-created content in the world, each person that gets behind a mic takes a position on their passion, their opinions, and their themes.

They challenge the status quo for the benefit of their listeners in hopes to entertain and educate. With consistency on your side, those fans place you on a platform and give you permission to influence them.

2. Global Acknowledgement

One of the benefits to increasing confidence is when you receive thank you notes from people you may never meet. The feeling of enriching someone’s life from halfway around the globe, provides validation you’re enhancing someone else’s life with your wisdom and your wit.

The very first time I was told I was making a difference in someone’s life in a country other than my own, I felt like I caused massive impact that transcends my circle of influence. When you experience just how much you can cause impact and it comes back to you, it’ll change your worldview.

“Be grateful for what you have and stop complaining – it bores everybody else, does you no good, and doesn’t solve any problems.” – Zig Ziglar

3. Backed By Numbers

One of the most exciting ways to measure success is to quantify your growth. It’s not enough to just broadcast. Having subscribers and downloads helps to know, numerically, how well you’re doing. Word of caution. This can be a way to set yourself up for distress because of number envy but if you understand what the numbers mean; you can control the narrative of the numbers.

The major number that makes most people smile is 10,000. I’d advise it to be 1. Here’s why. As you grow in your industry, so does your reach. If you learned that the one person that subscribed totally changed for the better because of you, wouldn’t that be worth the effort?

4. Effective Communication

While it’s not talked about much, having a show is documentation. You create a dynamic account of your life, your industry, and the pulse on what’s important simply by having a show. When you find a channel to improve your communication skills, you demand attention and people will listen to you. You become more trusted as a leader and people will follow you once they believe you can lead them to their wants and needs.

“To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” – Tony Robbins

These insights have helped many people become leaders and, ultimately, move others to their best selves. It’s worked for me and I hope it works for you. At the end of the day, it’s all about showing up and showing out.