Fix a Time and Date to Peak - don't be a loser.

 When it comes to goal setting there is a lot of generality around time lines - For example; we will be debt free in 2011, I'll be a millionaire by 2016, I will have three staff by March 2012.

In sport you have your shot for glory at a specific time on a specific day and in a specific place. If your late you miss out. Your whole life is dedicated to that time and place and making sure you peak for your best performance.

When you have a baby the guestimate is usually within a few days so you know when to be prepared baring emergencies.

When you take a flight you know the time and place and most of the time your plane leaves and arrives on time.

But what about our own goals -there are a lot of variables that need to come together to create the end result. There are plenty of things to sidetrack us and lead us off in various directions. The key to our success with goals is SWITCHING ON everyday to what they are. They need to be prominent so you can see them and remind yourself what they are. They need to have a date of completion attached to them so you remind yourself of that date. This date should be specific - 'I will be a millionaire on the 16th June 2016'!  Do your time line and be specific. Athletes win gold medals using this method because they have to be ready at a specific time. You can to.

Look at your goals and put specific dates and times on them and remind yourself each day - you might be surprised just how close you get. You might say that setting a specific date could create pressure - yes it does you are right - but the pressure is actually a positive pressure. If you are out by a few days it doesn't matter - unlike sport, where if you miss the Olympic final there is no second chance.


As someone who has done this my whole adult life, first in sport as a coach and now in business I know it works.

Make people take notice

Richard Branson is the king when it comes to stunts on how to promote yourself and your business. He does it so well that he is a billionaire.  I watched on TV recently about small fashion business that created a massive sword fight using candy canes in a very public place - every body stopped to watch them. When they had enough people they then handed out flyers promoting the shop and its opening. Sales went through the roof. It is all about getting noticed. Check out this video for some ideas from  Charlie Todd at TED

Free for Fee

  Dropbox have 50million subscribers of which 48million use the free service - Only 2million use the pay service - (I am one) - at the lowest fee of $9.95 per month they turnover Approx $20millio/month. That's a lot of free to get a huge amount of Fee.

The fee payers are keeping the non fee payers in a service and the company still makes great business - Having the free members will eventually increase the paying members because they will fill up their free 2GB of space.

It's like having a business pipeline from free to fee. Don't we all want a pipeline of business

What do you have that will be a pipeline from free to fee?

The four ages of ambition - where do you fit

In a recent group meeting with one of my biggest clients we had a surprise visit from one of the directors John Erkkila. He outlined the four ages of ambition as I am calling it, which can help you frame your service offerings to clients.

Stage 1.  20-29 - Discovery. You are learning, discovering and figuring out the ways of the world. You are starting to get some big ideas and working out how you can get ahead.

Stage 2. 30-39 How far and how fast.  How far do I want to go and how fast can I get there. This is the formula one race for the 30's. Highly ambitious and in a real hurry to be a success. Want to make big cash, get an executive position, own my own successful business, find the right partner for life, still party and have a good time. Be the youngest billionaire in the world. Bullet proof.


Stage 3. 40-49 Decision making time - it is in these years where people start to make the big decisions about the future. About their kids education and learning opportunities. About their own futures and being set up financially by having their mortgage gone or nearly gone and about what career moves they need to make before they reach that no mans land at 50+.

Stage 4. 50+ Celebrate or Panic - If things have gone well and you are set up right with a good income and a secure future you celebrate. If not you panic about what to do next and how to catch up.

As a business owner, coach, consultant, advisor or mentor these stages are worth understanding.  I have presented to these several clients who immediately identified with them.  It opens up opportunities to assist people in their journey by finding out where they are at with each stage. What do you have to offer each or maybe just one stage - does this description of the four ages of ambition open your eyes to niching yourself or targeting an age group to attend to?