Work is a Verb – Not a Hack, Trick, or Gimmick

“Average is your enemy.” – Pierce “Rocky” Lane

Today’s society has a weakness for shortcuts, schemes, tips, and tricks. Just open up any social media platform and you will see a gazillion of these videos and articles, infographics, and lists.

Top Ten ‘this’

Tricks for ‘that’

Hacks to Succeed

But the ‘secret’ to success is not new…and it certainly does not come from a magic trick or shortcut. Each day we have to put effort into what we want to achieve. You never get a second chance to relive a day so make the most of it – one day at a time.

What does it take – WORK.

You would think that is a curse word by the way some people say it. It isn’t. WORK is simply a verb…it takes action and effort. It is not a noun, it is not an adjective…it is a verb.

By its very nature it should be hard, challenging, and even daunting sometimes. Let’s face it – if working for success was easy everyone would do it. But we do have to work smart…not waste the days with cutting corners or finding the easier path.

Your success will directly correspond to your efforts. Ask yourself, does your effort match your goals? Are you consistent? Do you give yourself excuses?

Excuses are the number one thing I see holding people back. It spreads like wildfire once you start – making it easier to give yourself a second or third excuse the next time. So don’t start! No matter what it is that you need (money, time, effort, knowledge, etc.), make it a priority to get it.

See articles: Excuses, Excuses

Video: Manage Your Time: Stop Using these Excuses

An excuse is simply, at its root, the reality that you have not made it a priority.

Let’s take a look at THREE things to help you work towards your success:

Go on an EGO-DIET

People inherently want to be admired, appreciated, and seen in a favorable light. Oftentimes this results in displaying more than is warranted at the time. Acting bigger than they are, or more successful than they are. (Think about the struggling entrepreneur or real estate agent that drives a leased Lexus).

Don’t be so consumed with the outward appearance of your life and business. WORK for it to be true. Set aside the façade and shortcuts, hacks and tricks and simply put boots on the ground and do the work. Be the one that makes things happen, makes things better…for real – not just for show.

Don’t be concerned about being perfect or over prepare to the point of paralysis. Don’t confuse research with work that moves you forward.

Learn. Learn. Learn. Every day. Be a part of a book club (we have one!), attend informational seminars, be a part of a mastermind or community to give and receive feedback (like our Huddles). Read and/or listen to at least 5 publications or podcasts about your industry every week. This is key – use that ‘windshield university time’ (drive time) to further your knowledge base.

Build Communities

This goes along with going on an EGO-DIET…newsflash – you don’t know it all.

We all need a community around us for collaboration, advice, help, and even idea generation. There is no shame in that. What is shameful is when you DON’T have that community of support around you.

Community comes in all shapes and sizes and you need several to succeed:

Business collaboration partners

We call these Strategic Business Alliances. These are other people that help you deliver on your goods and services to your clients and customers. It could be vendors you use, or a service provider that focuses on another area of need for your clients that you don’t. Creating these partnerships allows you to service your clients more fully. You can even create a commission based agreement between you and other businesses.

A community of like-minded individuals

You may have an excellent social community of friends and family around you – but if you own a business and they work for a business they just don’t get it. You need to have other business owners by your side to discuss the complexities and freedoms that come with small business ownership. IT is just different.

Your client community

Don’t forget them! This is vital to business growth and longevity. Creating a culture of client appreciation builds loyalty (increased lifetime value of each client) as well as referrals from trusted sources.

Leverage your Resources

You have created or are part of a community (like a Chamber, trade association, or NBG)…now leverage it. Make sure you are accessible, have your profile complete, attend events and show up often, get involved. You can’t “hack” your way around true connections.

Invite others to join you and introduce them into your communities – what a value to them! They will remember you in a favorable light. No tricks, no gimmicks, just straight forward invitations.

Pool your resources with other members. Need some new photos but can’t afford the price – get with another member and share the photo shoot. Need a VA but don’t have enough for them to do to meet the minimum required hours – partner with someone to fill those other hours.

Package services together. Collaborate. Cross promote…agree to (and execute) sharing others social media in exchange for them sharing yours. Send your value-based messaging to someone else’s list in exchange for you sending their information to your list. Make it a win-win for you, the other business owner, and the people who receive the value-based information. This works great with businesses that have parallel products and services to your own – something your client base needs that you don’t provide.

See Concentrated Networking for Enhanced Collaborations, Increased Market Share, and Competitive Advantage

Control your Day

There is no trick, hack, or gimmick to help with this either – it takes work and focus.

It starts with controlling your environment. Be sure you are working in an area that is set up for few distractions and optimal efficiency. Have things you need at arm’s length, keep your space organized and free of clutter, have a door or ‘quiet space’ you can retreat to for focused work.

Leverage your strengths and delegate the rest to someone else. Then let them do it. Give them the parameters and expectations and let them own it. Don’t micro-manage – that doesn’t save you any time. Pay for it….it is worth it.

Know when your ‘zone of genius’ time is and schedule your work accordingly. If you have to write articles, make sure you schedule that during your high energy level ‘creative’ time. Save file organization for when you are less energetic and creative.

Filter your intake bombardment. We live in a state of information overload…control it. ONLY look at notifications and messages on social media – stop scrolling. Respond to those that responded or engaged with you. Separate your email into folders and DELETE ones you don’t need. Keep it clean (I clean mine out at the end of each day so the next morning is a fresh clean slate).

You can’t control time…but you can control YOU. Set your schedule for maximum efficiency for YOU, not everyone else. Place those things on your calendar that require YOU first, then fill in the rest around it. Be smart about it – if you do 15-min networking calls bunch them together in one afternoon rather than sprinkling them in all week. This keeps you focused and not constantly switch-tasking.

Avoid procrastination. This is a Biggy! Perpetual procrastination prevents you from having the time and flexibility to accept opportunities. It can be a business killer. Stay organized, on task, on time, and systemize as much as you can. System and processes create freedom! Nothing ever good comes from cramming right before a deadline.

See Time Marches On

All these take work…hard work. It wasn’t meant to be smooth sailing – average is easy, exceptional takes action. Live each day as if you can’t fail…think what you would achieve!

Final thought: Think about this…if you couldn’t fail – what would you do? Now go do it.