08 Insanely Simple Productivity Hacks

You earnestly set goals and try to meet them each day. But something always seems to get in the way and upset your progress. I know because it happens to me too.

It could be your colleague's weekend recap that throws off your Monday morning, or the distraction of calls and texts throughout the day. When your best-laid plans face off with the reality of your workday, reality often wins.  

That disconnect between your goals and your productivity is likely cause for major frustration. You're not alone -- studies show many people are overworked and underperforming.

A 2015 survey of 2,000 workers conducted by Staples Business Advantage revealed that 37 percent of employees believe more workplace flexibility would help them be productive. And about 50 percent point to email as the main culprit for reduced productivity. 

While there are no shortcuts to hard work, there are practical ways to get more done in the time you have. But first, you must take back control of your workday and start setting yourself up for success.

These eight hacks can help you accomplish more meaningful work in half the time:

1. Rise and shine.

You are most productive in the first two hours after you get up, so plan your most challenging and meaningful work for that time of day. Arrive before the rest of the team and dive into your work -- you will be ready to take a quick coffee break and catch up with everyone once they arrive.

2. Make mini-goals.

Far-reaching goals are admirable, but they can seem so distant they appear unreachable. Help yourself realize goals by breaking them down into smaller, manageable mini-goals. These smaller "wins" will help you make progress and boost your confidence.

3. Stop multitasking.

Multitasking is not only ineffective, but it reduces the quality of your work, causes more stress, and can even reduce your IQ. Stop trying to do everything at once. Prioritize essential work, and schedule time each day to deal with non-urgent matters like answering routine emails.

4. Tell others.

Clearly communicate to your co-workers when you are heads-down on a task and need to work undisturbed. Block time in your calendar, put up a do-not-disturb sign, or otherwise set your status to "busy" to avoid social interruptions.

5. Seek quiet.

An open floor plan is a noisy work environment, making it challenging for anyone to perform even simple tasks. Purchase noise-canceling headphones, find a quiet corner or an empty boardroom, or work remotely. Remember: The ding of an incoming text message is enough to disrupt your focus. Silence your phone during critical work, and put it out of sight.

6. Schedule breaks.

If you work nonstop, your work will suffer and so will you. The ideal work-to-break ratio? One study says 52-minute work sprints followed by 17-minute breaks. Make your break-time meaningful -- stretch or go for a walk outside if you can. The important thing is to take time away from your screen and think about something else.

7. Measure progress.

At the end of the workday, step back and take stock. What did you accomplish, and how do these accomplishments line up with your goals? What were your low points? What got in your way, and what can you do better tomorrow? By measuring your progress, you can spot patterns and opportunities to revamp how you work.

8. Prep for tomorrow.

Devote the last 15 minutes of your day (no matter when that is) to creating a to-do list for the next day. That way, you can jump right into the work the next morning. This is especially important before you are going to take a bit of time off, like over the weekend -- and you will be happy to discover your list on Monday morning.

It takes discipline and hard work to unlearn bad habits, reestablish boundaries, and regain control over your productivity. But the effort will be worth it. You will be proud of how much more you can accomplish daily, as well as the meaningful progress you will make toward those long-range goals.

So when the next day rolls around and you're faced with a chatty co-worker or a buzzing phone, you now have a plan to silence them both  -- and get more done.

05 Words Customers Hate (and What to Say Instead)

Words are not just their definitions; words carry emotional baggage.  As I've helped clients and the readers of my free weekly newsletter hone their sales messages and marketing emails, I've discovered five words that really turn customers off:

1. "Teach"

Example: "Over the next hour, I will teach you..."

Why customers hate It: "Teach" conjures an image of a grade school teacher droning on about something that's not very interesting.

What to say instead: "In this webinar, I will share..."

Why this works better: "Share" implies that what you've got to say is valuable enough to consider keeping to yourself.

2. "Learn"

Example: "During this session, you will learn..."

Why customers hate it: "Learning" something takes time and energy, both of which are in short supply in the business world.

What to say instead: "During this session, you'll discover..."

Why this works better: "Discovering" something is usually a happy accident that doesn't require much effort.

3. "Details"

Example: "If you're interested, I can provide additional details."

Why customers hate it: "Details," by definition, are unimportant and trivial. Why would anybody be interested in them?

What to say instead: "If you're interested, I can share additional insights..."

Why this works better: "Insights" are unique and valuable. How could anyone not want more of them?

4. "Case Study" (OK, this one is two words)

Example: "Our website has case studies showing how..."

Why customers hate it: "Case studies" is academia-talk and reeks of tedium. The word "study" implies time and effort. Ugh. The word "case" implies legal action. Double ugh.

What to say instead: "Our website has success stories of how..."

Why this works better: Storytelling is what makes us human. Everyone likes hearing a story with a beginning, middle, and happy ending ("success!").

5. "Guarantee"

Example: "We offer a money-back guarantee..."

Why customers hate it: The term "guarantee" has been "fine print" abused for so many years that it smacks of hucksterism.

What to say instead: "We will refund your money if..."

Why this works better: "Refund" is an actual promise of what customers can expect if they're not satisfied.

6 Daily Habits That Will Make You Look Smarter and More Powerful

The meek might be on track to inherit the earth but they're a ways off from inheriting a position at the head of the conference room table. Meek is simply not an adjective that is generally thought of when you think of someone commanding leadership, as I discussed in a post on the 9 tactics leaders use to command a room.

Power, poise, and purpose, yes. Presence? Yes!

Growing up in a large firm with a strong sense of history and culture, I heard a lot about executive presence--what it was, who had it, and what any aspiring leader would need to do to get it. Here's what I found.

What is executive presence?

Executive presence is the combination of communication skills, technical competencies, perspective, and temperament that instill a sense of confidence in a leader's viewpoints and decisions. For those seeking leadership positions--especially in the C-suite--executive presence is an essential set of qualities needed to progress, influence others, and get results. Often, it's getting a strong sense of who's in charge the moment you walk into a room--even before people introduce themselves and share their titles.

How do you enhance your executive presence?

The tricky thing about coaching people on building their presence is that, while there are similar characteristics that make up an executive, each person adds their own unique personality and perspective to the equation.

The beauty of this approach is that building these skills isn't just reserved for those in titled leadership positions. You can start working on each of them now. In fact, building a strong executive presence might just be the differentiator you need to get noticed and get picked for future opportunities.

Here are six essential things to pay attention to when building your own executive presence:

1. Look the part. Executives in your organization likely dress on a similar level of formality. Whether that's business attire or sweats, they set the norm for their circle of peers. Noticing those trends and mirroring them in your own wardrobe is a starting place. Of course, bringing your own sense of style along is key.
2. Have an opinion. Leaders speak up on issues that matter to them when they have the opportunity. So should you. If you're concerned about thinking up something relevant or if you like to have time to mull over points before forming an opinion, that's great, but do a little research ahead so you have some constructive and ready-made feedback to contribute.
3. When entering a room, take a moment before flying through the door to grab a seat to notice who's in the room. Pick the seat you want and take it, intentionally.
4. Ask great questions. Being known for asking great questions about how an issue will impact customers, staff, suppliers, partners, etc., will not only help you form opinions about key topics, you'll be noticed for having the interests of important stakeholders in mind.
5. Sit up straight with your feet firmly on the ground. Focus on projecting your voice to the furthest person in the room without shouting. Speaking too quietly for everyone to hear and being asked to speak up can be embarrassing. It also erodes others' sense of how confident you feel in your point. Our body language not only impacts what others think, it impacts how confident we feel. Check out Amy Cuddy's TED Talk on power posing to learn more.
6. Avoid qualifying statements such as "I think..." "I'm sure you already thought of this but..." and "I don't know if this is where we're going with this, but... ."

If you have aspirations of earning a promotion within your organization, starting to build your executive presence now will be a tremendous advantage in the future.

04 Transformational Questions Your Business Should Ask

Just about every business employs automation tools to some degree. Whether it’s an automatic payroll system that ensures employees receive salaries regularly and on time, or a predictive analysis tool that grabs customer data and establishes metrics for how to grow your top line. But choosing to implement multiple automation tools all at once can cause more havoc than it helps, which can result in a reduction in both operational efficiencies and data quality -- both of which are things you want to address by seeking automation.

So how do you automate to decrease redundancies in your business, cut the amount of time your employees have to spend on administrative tasks, and grow your bottom line without necessarily needing to hire a slew of new staff? 

The answer is, as in so many things, to develop a detailed plan utilizing Operational Transformation Methodologies -- which can be used to streamline and integrate your technology stack incrementally and in a controlled fashion. This will ease the process of implementing systems to cut the fat in your workforce, automate workflow, increase ease of scalability and provide your business real-time data analytics you can use to trim expenses, build leads, convert customers and grow your business.

Before you launch on this journey of implementing Operational Transformation Technologies, however, make sure you know where you’re going.

Here are four critical operational transformation questions you should ask to better target your business and workflow automation goals, and make sure you (and the firm you hire to assist you) create a digital platform that suits your unique needs and aspirations:

1. What do you want your digital platform to accomplish?

Have a clear sense of the processes you most need to automate, so you can choose the system(s) that best meet your business needs and wants. Those might include: form modeling, document integration, report generation, role-based accessibility and easy user assignment and reassignment, easily adjustable workflow automation, notifications via email and automatic task prioritization. Ideally you have some quantified assessment of the labor and duration associated with the processes that you seek to automate. Start with those that will generate the greatest return on investment.

Once you have a sense of what you most need to automate, then you can evaluate software that best meets those needs.

 

2. How much customization will you need?

The biggest problem most businesses face when they go to automate processes, particularly if it involves multiple pieces of software, is the integration challenges that commercial-off-the-shelf systems present. No off-the-shelf workflow automation -- payroll, data analytics, CRM, or other software package -- is going to suit your needs absolutely.

Thus, you’re likely going to have to employ your internal technology staff or hire an outside consulting firm to customize the software you select to some degree. Make sure you know from the get-go what kind of customizations you will need, what will be involved in making the software you employ workable for your business. Also how long it will take to implement and integrate with existing and/or other new automation systems, and the degree of the learning curve involved in getting your employees up to speed on its use.

And, because an operational transformation platform is software, make sure you have a strong integration test plan as well as a back-out plan that can be used before and during your implementation phase. The last thing you want is for your business to grind to a halt as some unexpected gremlin creeps in at 2 A.M..

 

3. What kind of data do you have?

Business is driven by data. What kind of data do you have, and do you have a handle on it?

If you’re not taking advantage of the new age of machine learning, where software programs can basically take the data you provide them, plug it into algorithms, and actively analyze trends in your customers’ needs and wants, as well as track changing markets, you’re behind the curve. According to a recent article in the Harvard Business Review automated predictive analytics, anomaly detection, and natural language detection can help you better manage your company’s financial resources, determine enterprise risk and regulatory compliance, improve customer service and even sell products and services.

HBR points to an array of inspiring examples, one of which is a Canadian financial services group that uses active biometrics software VocalPassword to identify customers who call in by their voices. This eliminates as many as four steps in the customer authentication process (if you’ve ever called in to check your credit card balance and have to provide your account number, social security number, date of birth, and a special password, you know what I’m talking about). The result? The company reported a 50 percent rate of improvement in call routing.

While most business automation isn’t quite this exotic, it pays to consider the return of implementing this type of system into your current digital ecosystem. VocalPassword allows businesses to process customer call-ins more quickly, while other systems -- such as CRMs -- can automate the sales process. The idea is to make data more accessible and more usable in real-time.

 

4. What do you spend for administrative workflow functions?

So just how many employees (or contractors) do you have spending significant amounts of their workday performing administrative and operational tasks that could be automated? Two? 10? 20? It’s time to take a look. Not only might you be able to streamline operations and reduce cost with automation tools, you might also be able to keep a better handle on business operations as your company grows. Scaling is frequently one of the most painful processes companies face. That’s because they often don’t have the technology in place to do it efficiently -- and/or the more employees they bring on, the harder it becomes to keep everyone in the loop.

What is the lack of automation costing you? And what could it save?

Nucleus Research finds that for every dollar spent on Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system implementation, returns can peak at a stellar $8.71 (2014).  Run your own numbers through an online ROI predictor like Forrester’s Total Economic Impact (TEI), and see the potential benefits of implementing a stack of technologies that communicate and work together via a framework of operational transformation methodologies.

What could you be doing more quickly, more efficiently and more cost effectively? A lot. Start asking your business some tough questions, and then start investigating how operational transformation could start providing the answers.

15 Steps to Successfully Reinvent Yourself After Losing Everything

Just because everything in your life is running smoothly right now doesn’t mean that that’s going to last. You may dream of starting a new business. You could move across the country. You fall in and out of love. You lose a loved one.  

In other words, life happens and it completely turns your life upside down.

Around four years ago, it seemed like I was living the dream. I successfully sold my startup, had a guaranteed job for a year with a very large salary and was newly married. Little did I know that six months later I would  purchase a startup that lost every cent I owned. Overnight, I went from multi-millionaire to broke.

That experience taught me a lot about reinventing myself by adapting to change and rolling with the punches.

If you’re in a situation where you have to reinvent yourself, here are 15 ways that can guide you through this transformative journey.

1. Do you really want to change?

There are times in our lives when we’re forced to reinvent ourselves. For example, when my business failed, I had no place to go but forward. Many business owners are in similar situations. I've found that if you don't want to change, you never will. In my circumstance, I didn't want my family on the street so I forced myself to adapt to the abrupt change.

2. Wake up early.

I was never a super early morning person. And, to be honest, I’m not the type of person who ready to tackle the day at 4 a.m. I have, however, made it a point to wake-up no later than 6:30 a.m. every day.

Once I started waking up earlier I discovered that I had more time to do activities that would make me a better person -- both professionally and personally. I find that nobody is up this early and I can get a lot more done. Especially at work.

3. Prioritize your tasks.

Reinventing yourself doesn’t happen overnight. Remember that hard work I mentioned earlier? That takes dedication and patience. To make the transformation run more smoothly, you should dedicate at least one hour per day towards achieving your goals. That means that you need to prioritize your goals and tasks by creating to-do-lists and time management tools so that you get the most out of your team so that you can focus on reinventing yourself.

4. Attach yourself to the right people.

In today’s interconnected world it’s easier than ever to network with people from all over the world. While people have associated social networking with meeting new friends and finding job opportunities, you can also connect with people who can change you for the better. Seth Godin uses the example of Shepard Fairey. The name may not be familiar, but you know his iconic poster of Barack Obama.

“The Internet helped it spread. The poster connected one supporter to another, became an icon, a freely shared ID badge and ultimately a parody. And in the center of the spread was the artist. While Fairey didn’t make a penny selling the image, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that he connected, and that connection gave his art leverage. He’ll never need to look for work or revenue again. It will find him.”

5. Learn.

Whether if it’s reading or attending a workshop or webinar, find ways to enhance your knowledge. It will make you a more well-rounded individual and help you grow both personally and professionally. Lifelong learning also makes you more motivated, develop mental skills, and introduces you to new people and thoughts. I like to do this by reading books.

6. Find a mentor.

“Someone has to show you how to move and breathe,” writes James Altucher. There are types of mentors out there;

• Direct. The mentor is in front of you and will guide you.
• Indirect. These are mentors who aren’t physically with you, like authors.
• Everything is a mentor. Altucher states, “If you are a zero, and have passion for reinvention, then everything you look at will be a metaphor for what you want to do.”

If you have mentor that insists that you do things their way, that’s find. Learn it their way and then do it your way.

7. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

Try new things, experiment with fun projects. After I lost my business I started several different companies. I tried everything from being a blogger, running an agency to starting a payments company. Some were successful, others failures. What's truly important is that you aren't afraid to try. Do what you enjoy and this will help you figure it out while hopefully making some money in the process.

8. Be honest with yourself -- and others.

You have to be honest with yourself and others along the path. I'm nota humble person. So when my business failed I didn't want to talk with anyone about it. Time to get over yourself. The more people know, the more they can help you. This is very true of yourself as well. Learn to be honest with yourself and face some of those fears.

9. Don’t justify your decision.

Speaking of honesty, if anyone questions your decision, be transparent with them. There’s a reason why you made the decision reinvent yourself and if you have facts and passion to back that up, their opinion shouldn’t prevent you from going forward. And, ultimately, they’re going to have to respect that.

10. Get out of your comfort zone.

We’re creatures of habit. But, breaking out your comfort zone forces you to have new experiences, meet new people, and learn something new.

Dr. Elizabeth Lombardo, therapist and author of "Better Than Perfect" tells Entrepreneur, “Breaking your own mold can only make you stronger and more confident to reach higher levels in your professional and personal life.” Dr. Lombardo adds, “In order to be more creative, you have to try new things, see things in a new way, put pieces together in a new manner.”

11. Manage your finances.

Reinventing yourself won’t always be free. For example, if you want to change careers, you may have to take workshops or college courses. Because of that, it’s important that you create a budget and stick to it so that you have the funds to complete your transformation.

Here is my tip: take 20 percent of whatever you make and put it into the bank for a rainy day. I like to have at least 12 months personal runway sitting in the bank "cash" at all times. As entrepreneurs we make a lot of money some months and have other months where we don't make anything. Learn to manage your finances better on a variable income.

12. Follow the 24-hour rule.

If you meet someone at a networking event, for example, you should follow-up with them within 24 hours to stay fresh in their minds and begin building a strong relationship. It’s also polite and frees up time since you aren’t letting your follow-up responses build-up into an unmanageable list.

13. Make new lists every day.

When you make lists everyday on the areas that you focus on you’ll notice that certain items will stick and others won’t. Instead of devoting your energy on areas that you’re not passionate about, you can dedicate that energy to achieving a goal that is attainable and desirable.

14. Take one step at a time.

Reinvention is a process that could take years. Don’t overwhelm yourself by getting consumed on the big picture. Take steps to accomplish your end goals. For example, if you want to get in better shape, than the first step would be going for a walk, the next step would be setting a schedule, then getting a gym membership and finally eating healthier. Take it one step at a time.

15. Accept failure.

You’re not going to pick-up a guitar and instantly be transformed into Jimi Hendrix. You’re going to fail a lot when attempting to play “Voodoo Child.” Reinvention takes hard work and patience.

Along the way you have to accept that you’re going to fail. Embrace it. Learn from it. And keep moving forward. Because you can do this.

06 Ways to Get a Fanatical Customer Base

Entrepreneurs long to see the telltale signs of a passionate customer base: lines around the block on product launch day, pushing and shoving as the doors open and celebrations at the checkout counter. But gaining a legion of loyal followers doesn’t happen by accident.

Companies such as Apple and Tesla Motors that owe their success to passionate fans gained these followers with a formula for product lust. They knew their target customers intimately, then gave them a product that exceeded their expectations in four dimensions: innovative technology, simplicity and design and features that ignite conversation. In return, customers flocked to product launches and became brand evangelists.

Passionate customers are the most critical component of building a brand, but you won’t gain followers by sitting on your hands. Building a passionate customer base requires hard work and a focus on exceeding customers’ needs in simple ways.

 

Here’s how to grow an enthusiastic fan base:

1. Seed your initial customer base.

Your first group of customers is the foundation of all future growth, so know who they’ll be, why they’ll rave and help them tell your story. They’ll first act as role models and then as advocates to help spread your mission, so make locating and engaging those core customers a priority. This is especially important if you’re introducing something completely new to a traditional industry.

I remember sitting next to Reid Hoffman when he was pitching early investors on LinkedIn in 2003. He had a dozen more presentations, even after raising all the money he needed. When I asked why, he said, “You all sign up to try LinkedIn before we pitch. I’m seeding my initial customer base with the entire venture capital community, one of the most secret, challenging and tight-knit communities with incredible hiring power.” I had fallen for his plan and become LinkedIn user No. 5,944. LinkedIn now boasts 300 million members.

2. Share your goals early.

Get your first group of customers excited about your mission by reaching out during the design process. Tell them your overarching goal, and ask them to help you figure out when you’ve reached that benchmark. Make them feel like they’re a part of the team to ignite their passion for the mission.

3. Make engagement a part of your routine.

If you only seek customers’ advice in focus groups, you’ll lose touch with their interests and priorities. Instead, engage directly with customers every day. Reddit, Facebook groups and other message boards are great, but I also engage customers when I’m out and about. For example, if I see someone using our product, I might strike up a conversation and ask questions to the customer and those around him. This allows me to gather feedback that I wouldn’t get in a formal focus group.

 

4. 'Wow' them in seven seconds or less.

To become brand evangelists, consumers need to experience a feeling of amazement within seven seconds of handling your product. So find someone who’s never seen your product and explain it to her in 20 seconds or less. Then put the product in her hands. Do you see that delight on her face? Does she turn to the person next to her to talk about certain features?  If not, head back to the drawing board.

5. Never accept mediocrity.

My company doesn’t launch a product until we know our customers will see it as the best in its class. That means we have a lot of prototypes that never make it out of the labs. We have amazing innovations that don’t achieve elegance, so they get rejected. We have elegant designs that perform only 15 percent better, so they get rejected. We pride ourselves on that pile of rejects. Building a product that’s above the rest takes work, and it’s worth the effort.

6. Practice random recognition.

Passionate users love to hear that they’re contributing to your brand’s success. I regularly give public shout outs and write personal notes to those who say good things about us. Sometimes, I’ll even pick up the bar tab for someone I see using or talking about our product in public. Make a habit of acknowledging users who offer feedback, and let them know how much their support matters.

A dedicated customer base doesn’t stem from flashy technology and expensive advertising. To generate that level of fervor, companies have to set the bar high, exceed expectations and engage customers. 

05 Must-Answer Questions to Succeed Targeting Your Customer Base

Marketing 101 is all about a little thing called "segmentation." It’s not enough to say you sell your product to humans. You need to know as much about those humans as you possibly can. Specifically, what parts of their humanity correlate well with the purchase of your product or service.

For example, if you sell luxury cars, you know that only a certain segment of the population actually makes enough to be able to afford one of your luxurious automobiles. Where do these affluent humans live? When do they like to shop? Why do they like to shop? What kind of media do they consume (so you can advertise to them effectively)? You might need to do a business market analysis to find the most appropriate customer segment.

1. Who are your customers or potential customers?

To segment humans into potential customers, create a profile of who your target customer base is. Be as detailed as you can be. This helps you recognize present customers and new customers.

It can be difficult to answer all of the deep questions about your customer if you don’t have access to a lot of marketing data, and many small business owners don't. Not to worry. Instead of detailed marketing metrics, you can simply profile yourself (assuming you’re creating a product or service you would purchase). Or, you can do a profile on some of your early customers by asking them to take a few sample surveys or quizzes. You can also profile the customers of similar businesses, or customers of other businesses that complement your own. Once you have this information, extrapolate what you’ve learned.

2. What motivates your target customer base?

What triggers the members of your customer base to purchase what you’re selling? Some of you may be inclined to respond, “Well, Mike, if I knew that, I wouldn’t need to read this silly list.” True, but, there is a difference between knowing what gets a customer to buy and knowing when that customer will be in that "what" situation.

If you sell a staple good, like milk or bread or diapers, you "know" your potential customer will be motivated to pull their purchase trigger often, maybe once a week, and usually in a convenient location that fits into their daily routine. That tells you a lot, doesn't it? Some of your findings may even point to opening a new business location.

If you sell an experiential good, like luxury cruise vacation packages, a very different type of event has to occur in order to make your potential customer squeeze their purchase trigger. Perhaps they’re stressed and need a break, or they're planning a honeymoon. At what point in a customer's routine does your luxury package fit?

And, while a customer purchasing a staple good may want to eat or use the item immediately after they purchase it, other goods, like cruises, could get bought years before they’re “consumed.”

What is motivating your target customer base? Which of their needs does your product or service meet, and at what point will it meet that need during a customer’s life? What external circumstances have to happen? How can you be there when they need your product or service?

3. Are they repeat, steady or one-time customers?

Are you providing continuous services for your customer? Are you setting up a recurring revenue model where you bill your customer once a month, like a cell phone plan, or a software as a service product? Do you expect to sell the latest version of your good or service each year, like version 1.0, then 2.0, etc. to your target customer? Are you offering a once-every-30-years product, like a new roof, or basement seal?

Knowing how often you expect a customer to buy will help you calculate how many customers you need to stay solvent, what kind of inventory you need to keep on hand, and what kind of marketing expenses you should anticipate.

4. Where will your growth come from?

If you think selling to your friends and family is enough to keep the net revenue floating in for the long haul, think again. Depending on what kind of business you plan to run, you need a steady stream of new customers coming in, which means you need to know where you’re going to find them. With a little bit of thought and research, you can reap the benefits of a business plan structured around the following questions: Do you plan to run a referral-based business, or will you engage a full marketing campaign? What’s the population size of your business's locality? Can it support your growth? If not, where will you go to chase your growth goals? Will your business idea will work well now, but burn out in three years’ time?

5. How will you differentiate yourself?

Do you plan to compete on cost, value, or a combination of the two?

Even if you were the only person to be offering your product, you wouldn’t be for very long. In an open economy like ours, a good idea is quickly imitated, meaning there will be competition in the market or arriving soon. When competition happens, you need to know what makes you different, and why that difference is relevant to the customer. Have you figured out how to price a product more competitively than the next guy? Do you offer them a superior value? Or a combination of both for a better experience? Depending on the specific good, there is a market for all of the above. It’s your job to know that market, and how you fit into it.

7 Ways to Re-Motivate Yourself at Work

When you work for yourself, it can be difficult to remain motivated every hour of every working day. Especially when you don’t have someone hovering over you. After all, you are the boss.

Lack of motivation can result from a number of causes including burnout, an overloaded desk, not enough sleep, boredom, repetitive actions, no clear goal, and even rainy days. It is perfectly normal to have a less-than-productive day from time to time, so don’t worry. You probably just need a break. Try these tips to re-energize your day.

1. Leave your desk.

When you sit in the same spot day after day, you can suffer from boredom. Reposition your desk or take a task you can transport to an outside location – like your local coffee shop or library – and work remotely for a few hours. Take note of your surroundings and breathe deeply. Use all your senses: taste, touch, smell, sight and hearing.

 2. Clean up your workspace.

Nothing will bring you down like returning day after day to a messy, disorganized or dirty workspace. Put some time and effort into cleaning up, organizing and decorating your office space. You will spend a majority of your waking hours there, so make it a pleasant place to be. Hire an organizing expert to assist you in designing a workable filing system, hang pictures that remind you of your favorite after-work activities, or infuse the office with fresh flowers or candles.

3. Review or reset your goals.

If you have been doing the same thing over and over again for a long time, it may be time to reset your goals. Take some time to work “on” the business, setting monthly or yearly goals. Brainstorm ideas without filtering them and write down everything you envision for the business and your personal life. Make a vision board containing pictures of what motivates you. It is easy to lose sight of your ultimate goals when you are bogged down in the everyday minutia.

 4. Make a prioritized to-do list.

Create a daily or weekly to-do list and keep it within sight at all times. Enjoy the reward of checking off each task as you complete it. Note which items you want or need to accomplish each day and challenge yourself to get them done early. Set a daily goal for the number of tasks completed, hours logged or dollars earned.

5. Just get started.

The hardest part of any job is getting started, so pick one task and just start doing it. Once you begin, you will likely find yourself becoming engaged in it. Don't overwhelm yourself with a seemingly-overwhelming number of "to-dos." Once you complete a task, clear your desk to create space for the next assignment. Try to keep piles from cluttering up your workspace and your mind.

6. Create outside deadlines.

More things get done when you promise a delivery date. See if you can set delivery deadlines for each task, whether it is the internal billing schedule or customer deliveries. Celebrate when you complete them ahead of schedule.

7. Take a break.

Running a business can consume your every thought, so be kind to yourself and allow your mind to take a break once in a while. Do something completely different than work and rediscover some of the joys life has to offer—outside of work. And don't forget to give your body a break, especially if you hunch over a computer most of the day. Try to stretch at least 10-20 minutes each day.

Self-motivation is a process that must be practiced. If you have days when you'd rather not get out of bed, you're not alone. Give yourself permission to take a mental health day every now and then. It's paramount to take care of your greatest investment: You!

06 Steps to Build a Strong Team

Using words like “power” or “success” to describe a company can sometimes make it easy to imagine a cutthroat environment. However,  a competitive workplace shouldn’t run on employees’ fear or feel like a real-life Hunger Games. A powerful and successful company operates best and with the most longevity when employees work with a team mentality, each filling a needed role and fulfilling long-term goals. Here’s what you can do to make sure your team is as strong as it can possibly be for your company.

1. Focus on roles.

A thorough selection process for picking your team members has greater long-term benefits, even if this means you spend more time recruiting than you’d like to. Hiring someone just to have bodies in the room can harm your team. Companies that do this wind up becoming a revolving door, whether it’s because prospective employees see the role as a temporary landing pad and are less interested in learning, or because you decide later on that they aren’t the right fit. This winds up costing you more money in the long run. Investing your time and money in people who truly specialize in the role your company needs will have immense payoffs later.

 

2. Value each role.

With each team member bringing something special to the table, treating each role as an essential part of your operation is also crucial. Each team member should feel like their job matters, without ever asking themselves, “Why am I even here?” It’s no secret that a sense of purpose helps each employee’s performance. When employees feel that their role is undervalued or perhaps unnecessary, it can become easy to check out mentally as work becomes mechanical and something they completely detach from as soon as the day is over.

3. Communicate.

The best way to demonstrate value between team members is through communication. It’s difficult to feel like you are part of a team when everybody has information that hasn’t been shared with you yet or when team members don’t fill each other in on what they’re working on. Keep a level of transparency whenever possible with all team members, even if the information doesn’t directly pertain to every person on your team.

Apps like Slack are making it easier to do this without having to think about it. An open line of communication helps your team members to share and create a more productive workflow. Having a weekly check-in or talking beyond discussions of to-do lists can bring great new ideas to the surface or will give someone a chance to help in an area they may not have known about otherwise. “Developing processes and workflows that can be quickly implemented, executed and tracked is crucial to managing your team, especially when faced with rapid growth," according to Hiawatha Walker, Founder of DENEKADesignCo. "This is typically the first thing I look to address so more time and energy can be spent on the things there is little to no control over.”

In the area of communication, your team should also give each member a voice. Letting the whole team weigh in on feedback and asking for their opinion also helps them to stay engaged and brings them closer to projects. When every team member takes the time to evaluate a decision and form an opinion, they’re attached to the outcome and want to know that their thoughts are considered in the process. Allowing this gives people a feeling of ownership over their work, leading to better performance.

 

4. Set goals.

Setting short and long-term goals with your team also becomes the foundation for every task they set out to complete each day. Being enthusiastic about the outcome and motivating each other with positive reinforcement will help your team members to make sure that they work with a sense of the big picture, knowing why every task they do is necessary for achieving a longer-term goal. It’s important to note that these goals should be realistic so that you and your team don’t feel like you are working for a lost cause. Having milestones and deadlines can give team members opportunities to help each other out and band together for success.

5. Celebrate successes and failures.

Celebrating your successes and milestones also brings your team together and allows everyone to see that when they work together, great things can happen. If someone does a great job at something, give them a shout out in front of the rest of the team so that every effort is seen and appreciated. This also helps each person to feel visible and that what they’re doing has an impact. In contrast, if your team fails at something, come together to redirect your efforts or turn it into something positive. Don’t throw anyone under the bus or turn a damage-control discussion into a blame game. This never helps anybody. Instead, give your team equal responsibility to put your heads together and figure out the next steps or pivots.

 

6. Know each other.

You are, of course, never obligated to become best friends on a personal level with your team members. But having a monthly outing or engaging in some offsite socializing can give team members a chance to appreciate one another for more than just the job they do. Getting to know the people you work with helps you understand their style of work and how to have constructive discussions with them on tough days.

06 Ways to Increase Efficiency and Focus

Business moves at supersonic speed. While technology has facilitated easier communication and information gathering, it has also ushered in a new economy in which the common worker can be more readily replaced by technological advancements than ever before.

The option to utilize advanced algorithms, data visualization and robotics as opposed to human assistance has become increasingly more alluring to organizations. In turn, the burden to prove themselves necessary has fallen upon the common worker.

Competency no longer does the trick. More so than ever, it is crucial for professionals to not only be able to complete tasks, but to be able to complete them with the utmost efficiency, accuracy and creativity.

 

Performing at a consistently high level requires sustained focus. Luckily, there are ways to train yourself in order to become the type of individual who not only produces results, but produces the type of results that make you an all-star in your respective area.

1. Define your goals and prioritize tasks accordingly.

The first step in concentration is to form a mental picture of what you wish to accomplish. Understanding why you are engaging in an activity and clearly stating what you hope to achieve from completing the task adds clarity to your thought process. It’s important to write down your objectives and pinpoint how that job assists you in meeting those overarching goals.

2. Slow down.

When you work with a deliberate slowness, it allows you to more effectively pay attention to the task at hand. When it comes to engaging in mindful work activities, it is important to gain the discipline to keep things simple and moving at a pace conducive to improved focus.

 

3. Conquer negativity.

Negative thoughts greatly drain mental capacity, as an unhealthy thought process overly stimulates the brain, increasing mental pressure and tension. When your mind is overloaded with threats, demands and counterproductive thoughts, cognitive impairment (a big hindrance to productivity) is the result.

Such tricks as remembering your core values, defining aspects of yourself that you are grateful for, breathing to relieve bodily tension and getting up and moving will lessen thoughts of doom and gloom and heighten your ability to think efficiently and produce at optimal levels.

4. Practice intense focus.

Whenever you fix your mind on a certain thought and hold your mind on it at successive intervals, you develop concentration. Understand that the human brain has limited capacity for attention. When you allocate anything less than 100 percent focus to a task, you weaken your ability to produce at a level consistent with your capabilities. If you wish to enhance the quality of your work, it is imperative to set aside any other activities that require effort for the time being.

When distractions such as emails, co-worker interactions and consistent client inquiries compete for your attention level, they dispose of a limited budget of mental capacity. Therefore, they must be put off until completion of that task or you risk a lesser output.

5. Confront procrastination.

Researchers estimate that nearly 15 percent of adults are chronic procrastinators. Putting off tasks is problematic on several fronts. First, when a job remains incomplete, it creates undue mental pressure straining your ability to focus on any other project. Additionally, failure to jump right in and see a project through to its end eventually becomes a habit and in time leads to low self-esteem.

Practices such as creating self-imposed deadlines, engaging in advanced planning and breaking a project into smaller steps will help combat procrastination.

 

6. Focus on the final product.

Knowing where a project is going is paramount to you being able to focus intently on that task. Understand what you expect out of the work will help you get down to work and provide you with the resiliency to finish the task.

As the working world evolves and many professionals find themselves ever closer to competing with efficient technologies in some aspect of their work, it is those who maintain the focus and good practices that lead to heightened effectiveness who will rise to the top, regardless of industry of position.

08 Critical Considerations for Choosing the Right Business Partner

As a serial entrepreneur, I’ve had my share of good and bad business partners. One experience in particular started out pretty good because this person had lots of industry knowledge and connections. We literally could walk into just about any account and the prospect would buy our services. It was great, at least for a while. Then personality conflicts started and it was no longer fun or productive and it quickly went downhill from there.

So what went wrong? The biggest problem was not knowing him very well. Rather than taking the time to do the due diligence on him, the focus was on the chance to grow a company quickly and profitably based on his knowledge of the industry and my knowledge of the product. We had never worked together before so leadership style or values were an unknown. However, once we started working together, it quickly became clear that his way of doing business was totally different in terms of employees, customers and money. I see this a lot when working with clients now. It looks great on paper but issues arise when put into practice and personalities react to various situations.

Just like a marriage that starts off all hearts, roses and dreams, a partnership can quickly turn into heartbreak, anger, lawsuits and bankruptcy.

Before you even think of pulling the trigger with a business partner, contemplate whether you even need one at all. If you decide it is a good idea, make sure you get the best match to your own values, goals, leadership style and skills. Because once you become partners, it is vastly more difficult to undo the partnership than it is to create it.

Following are eight points to consider to avoid a bad partnership.

1. Trust.

This is first on the list for a reason. Bottom line, do you trust this individual with your personal bank account. If the answer is “no,” think twice. As partners, every dollar you spend proportionately affects your personal check book.

2. Friendship.

If the person is a good friend, make sure that their goals, values and responsibilities are aligned to yours. Don’t assume just because you get along as friends that they are. Take a look at their personal life and how stable it is. Personal problems are difficult and can easily complicate their professional life. If there is any doubt, don’t do it.

3. Trial run.

Select a person you have experience with at work, at a nonprofit or on a project. You should know if they are a team player and how they react in difficult situations. If you have no experience with a potential partner at all, do a trial run for a specified period of time before finalizing the partnership.

4. Partner, employee or consultant.

Don’t partner with someone just because you can’t afford to hire them. It is better to hire them as a consultant than to give away a part of your company or to find out later that he/she is not a good partner for you.

5. Varied strengths.

Make sure you and your partner’s strengths are in different areas. If you have two people who are good at sales and no one who is good at executing on an operational level, it will be more challenging than you think. It is much better to bring someone in who will compliment your strengths. In order to grow profitably, keep some balance.  

6. Balanced responsibilities.

Both parties need to agree up front what their responsibilities are in the company and stick to them. If one person keeps trying to take over and do everything or ends up doing very little, then the partnership will start to unravel and feelings of resentment will fester.

7. Money.

Just like in marriage, money is always one of the major problems in a business partnership. Therefore, agree in the beginning how you will use the funding you raise and how the profits will be distributed.

8. Valuation/contracts.

Decide on a formula to determine the value of the company should one partner decide to leave to avoid disagreements. Buy/Sell agreements are incredibly useful for discussing all possibilities and how they will be handled before they become a reality.

Why is all of this so important? Because a great business can be severely damaged by a bad partnership and never reach its full potential. Starting a business and/or a partnership is an emotional experience. When doing your due diligence, set your emotions aside and make sure everything lines up and has the potential at staying aligned.

05 Tips on Creating a Killer Presentation

How many terrible PowerPoint presentations have you endured during your lifetime? While they may be the standard method of selling, informing, training or otherwise communicating key messages to important audiences, they're easy to screw up. Take some advice from James Ontra, CEO of presentation management platform Shufflrr, who has studied thousands of presentations and knows what goes into creating a stellar one.

1. Create and maintain a slide library.

In other words, why spend time designing content someone in your organization likely already has created? Keep all your presentations in one central place using presentation management software, search for the content you need, update it if you need to and save whatever you've done in the slide library. The trick is to save slides individually with tags under categories, such as "company background," "financials," "services," or "case studies." When saving slides, make sure to include the date they were last updated so that everyone uses the most up-to-date slide.

2. Include video and multi-media content.

There's a reason people love YouTube--video engages people. And if you can get your audience engaged you're halfway to selling your message. What won't hook them? A presentation composed of only bullet points. Just don't overuse video or multimedia content--it can't read a crowd and adjust focus depending on an audience's reaction.

3. Ask your audience questions.

It's another way to get them engaged. Plus, it lets you gauge the audience's interests and comprehension so you can react and tailor your pitch to better reel them in.

4. Pause during remote presentations.

When you're presenting to someone in another location you often can't read their non-verbal cues. Build enough time into your presentation to stop every few minutes to gauge understanding and ask your audience if they have questions.

5. Avoid putting too much content on a slide.

People can read or they can listen, but not both simultaneously. And, they can likely read faster than you can present. If so, not only are they not listening to you, but they are ahead of you. Too much content also can handicap a presenter if he or she ends up reading from a slide. "No one wants to hear you read--they can read it themselves," Ontra says. "Presenters can use speaker notes, but your voice should be used to give context to the content."

05 Things People Who Make Their Own Luck Always Do

Ask incredibly successful entrepreneurs--or people incredibly successful in any pursuit--and all of them will say luck played an important role in their success.

Talent, expertise, determination, perseverance: All those qualities and many more are certainly important. But so is luck: meeting the right person, being at the right place, making a snap decision that turns out so much better than you ever expected it would.

But can you make your own luck?

The following is a guest post from Dharmesh Shah, the co-founder of HubSpot, the inbound marketing company named to the 2016 Inc. Founders 40 list, and the author of the HubSpot Culture Code slide deck that has been viewed by 2.5 million people on SlideShare alone.

Here's Dharmesh:

It's easy to assume successful people are just luckier than the rest of us.

Take Bill Gates: lucky enough to go to one of the few schools with a Teletype connection so he could learn to program. Or Paul Allen: lucky enough to stumble across an article that led to the idea to convert Basic into a product that could be used on an Altair computer ... and lucky enough to be friends with Bill Gates ... who was lucky enough to then be at Harvard and with access to a PDP-10 computer to use to develop and test the new operating system.

But were Bill and Paul simply lucky? Of course not.

Luck isn't just a random gift from the universe. (Winning the lottery is, but that's a different kind of luck.) Luck actually has less to do with what happens to you and more to do with how you think and act.

Luck does involve an element of chance, but "lucky" people respond to circumstances by spotting the opportunity and then acting on that opportunity. In fact, lucky people create their own luck by actively seeking to put themselves in the right place at the right time--and being in the right frame of mind to seize "lucky" opportunities.

So how can you become incredibly lucky? How do you manufacture luck? Do what other "lucky" people do:

1. Meet more people.

Think of someone you know who got lucky and met the right person at just the right time: the hiring manager your friend met at a party, just days after she had lost her job; the angel investor your friend met at a fundraiser just days before his startup would have run out of operating capital; the CEO your friend met at a school play whose company became his company's biggest account.

Luck? Yes and no.

You can't luck into meeting the right person unless you meet a number of people: The more people you meet, the more your odds of getting lucky increase. If what you need involves people--to buy, to connect, to mentor, to advise, to anything--then you can only "luck" into the right sale or relationship or partnership if you actively try to meet the right kind of people.

Get out. Meet people. Talk to the guy beside you on the plane. Talk to the woman behind you in line. Send a complimentary note to someone you don't know who did something awesome. You never know whom you might meet, especially if you assume good things will happen.

Fortune favors the brave, but fortune also favors the prepared. When you assume good things will happen, you will be primed to seize the opportunity when you meet--and in time, you will--the right people.

By the way, a quick confession--I'm really bad at meeting new people. As an introvert, it consumes energy for me to meet new people. One way I work through that is using social media (I'm very active on Twitter). I find it an easier way to make connections without the associated anxiety.

2. Try more.

You would love to sell to bigger customers. You never will unless you try. A lot.

You would love to connect with influential people in your industry. You never will unless you try. A lot.

You would love to land a better job. You never will unless you try. A lot.

Most incredibly lucky people are incredibly persistent. They try and try and try some more. Many of those efforts don't pan out.

A few do. Is that luck or is that persistence, and a willingness to learn from what didn't work so that next time you are even more prepared, more skilled, more talented, and therefore more "lucky"?

Take chances. Reach. Try. When you succeed, others will think you were lucky. (You'll know you weren't; you'll know you made your own luck.)

3. Expand your boundaries.

Doing the same things day after day typically yields the same results. Take on a side project. Learn a new skill. Open up to different experiences. Do something you assume (but don't actually know) you won't like.

The more you do, the more likely that good things will happen.

Quick tip: Next time you're at the newsstand (real or virtual), pick a publication that you normally wouldn't read. Something out of your immediate industry. Read the articles and the ads.

4. Give.

Birds of a feather do actually tend to flock together. Mediocrity tends to flock with mediocrity; exceptional tends to flock with exceptional; only fools tend to suffer fools gladly.

And giving people tend to associate with other giving people--and by giving, they make each other "lucky."

Giving creates relationships. When you're sincerely generous, other people respond in kind: with advice, with connections, with assistance, with everything.

When you give out of sincerity and without the expectation of reciprocity, you won't have to hope you'll be lucky in your friends.

You will have earned your friends--and the luck that comes with them.

5. Ask.

Luck often comes down to the right person saying yes: to your idea, to your startup, to your pitch, to your proposal, to your request.

No one can say yes until you ask, though.Unlucky people wait to be discovered and given what they want. Lucky people discover themselves and ask for what they want.

Want the job? Ask for it. Want the sale? Ask for it. Want the investment? Ask for it.

Many people will say no. A few will say yes.

Other people will assume you got lucky. You will know you made your own luck.

Another confession: I'm terrible at asking for things. Really, really bad. If you're like me, try to give more instead of asking.

Here's the bottom line: Luck, true luck, is something you can't control. Luck, bad or good, happens to us.

What we can control is how we respond to circumstance or chance and, more important, how often we put ourselves into positions where we can be "lucky."

You know the old phrase "It's better to be lucky than good"?

I disagree: It's better to be good--because then you will also be lucky.

5 Ways Generation Z Thinks & Buys Differently

Admit it. The world is changing all the time. And the businesses that want to keep up with the stride of time must be versatile. And for a business to be versatile, it’s crucial to see what the customer base used to be like, and what the customer base is like.

Today, a significant part of the customer base is Generation Z. Born between 1990s and early 2000s; they’re next to Generation Y in order. What’s different about Generation Z in comparison with other Generations (X and Y) is the way they interact with technology and modern markets. Here are 5 ways in which Generation Z is different from its predecessors:

1. They use technology to buy.

Between 1990 and 2010, a lot happened. Apple went from selling the Apple II to iPhone. Microsoft went from selling DOS to selling Windows 8. And during these times, the generation we call ‘Generation Z’ was being born or raised. These young people saw technology changing in theirchildhood. They didn’t see the times when communicating a message could take weeks. For them, it’s weird not to be able to find information about a product or brand on the internet. In short, the advanced state of technology and the rapidly changing world don’t freak them out. They’re so used to change that products which are overly consistent seem like bad choices to them. And this reflects in their buying behavior.

Image credit: Tim Robberts | Getty Images

The Generation Z prefers to use technology as its medium. Very few like to go out and loiter in the malls. If you want to sell to these people, you’d better come up with a cool app idea, build a super-cool app with a platform like Bizness Apps, and then put your merchandise on it, or this generation wouldn’t even know of your existence. But there’s one thing that distinguishes them from the older online consumers. For the former, buying online and through apps is a very normal way of shopping. Unlike the older generations, they don’t have a million questions nagging them when they are swiping through the merchandise. For them, it’s just a normal way to shop. In other words, they approach the market through a different medium and a different mindset when using that medium.

2. They love convenience.

The generation Z shows a marked inclination towards convenience, and it could be attributable to their parents’ upbringing. Most of the generation Z was born to parents falling in the generation X. It was a generation that did not appeal much to the marketers. They weren’t as many as the baby boomers or the part of the ‘boom let’. These were a small segment of the whole population, which made them an unattractive small pie in the huge American cake. Add to this, this generation was born at a time when the divorce rate was increasing. They are the ones who saw single-parent families getting common. In other words, not only were they left unattended by the marketers, but also by their own parents, which resulted in alterations of the traditional nuclear family structure, and this had its result: their kids, Generation X, didn’t always have an over-protective mother mollycoddling them all the time. Many of them grew up alone. And this, too, reflects in their buying pattern.

Generation Z is a stickler for convenience items. Unlike Generation X or Y, they don’t see convenience as luxury. For them, convenience is a necessity. This generation doesn’t believe that sweating makes you better. Quite the contrary. For them, “if you can do it without all the hard work, just do it”. There’s no point in doing things yourself when you can get others do it for less than you’d make by doing your own job for that amount of time. Put simply, this generation sees convenience as the flip-side of efficiency. And that’s why Generation Z has the largest proportions of consumers buying items for convenience.

3. They are more selective.

Don’t even think that this convenience-loving generation is going to buy whatever appears good. It’s a generation that saw recession in the very early phase of its life, and researches show that generations coming of age through financial straits are careful with money. They have a deep-rooted sense of financial insecurity, which they express in their buying patterns. Add to this, they were born to parents who were also products of similar straits. In other words, generation Z has frugality both in its genes and in its conditioning, and it is obvious in how they shop: they are the most discriminating consumers in the market. They show least tolerance for something unnecessary. For instance, they won’t pay more just because something has an extra feature. They will consider if the feature adds some real value to the product, if the value is worth the cost, if they can get it in some other way, and a dozen other questions. Even when buying gadgets or “luxury” items, they tend not to be impulsive consumers. They value convenience and gadgets, but they also value money. And when making a purchase, they make sure that every penny they spend buys them something of real value.

4. They love escapism.

Generation X is notorious for its escapist tendencies, and generation Z seems to have inherited it from them. This generation values things that have the ability to take them out of the mundane surroundings of real life. From more unrealistic movie plots to more close-to-reality video games, this pattern is obvious. This generation shows willingness to transcend the natural limitations of time and space and experiment with the surreal, and all this is visible in their spending behavior. They may never buy a second-best sci-fi novel or movie, but they will happily pay top dollar to get the best one.

5. They are more informed.

This comes with their discriminating nature but takes a slightly different dimension. Generation Z likes to trust the words of one another within it, and that’s why it’s the most reviews-obsessed generation in the US. Go to any website or social networking site and you’ll notice this: most reviewers are from this generation, and they are also the ones most concerned about them. This is a generation that just loves researching before buying. These kids would Google the item and all its alternatives, read tons of reviews, chew it over for a day or two and would only then buy the item. They just won’t fall for the slick promotions that Generation Y or Z consumers seem to be an easy prey for.

07 Secrets to Becoming Wealthy in Your 20s and 30s

1. Stop procrastinating.

The folly of youth is believing that there's always enough time for everything. Youngsters often believe that retirement, or wealth building, is something that comes later in life, and are more preoccupied with the concerns of the now. Unfortunately, this often leads to a cycle of "Oh, I should do that next month," month after month, until before you know it, you're 10 years older and you've missed out on a decade's worth of compounding interest. The first step is to stop procrastinating; saving and investing is scary, but the longer you wait to do it, the fewer advantages you have.

2. Know that there is no magic.

My use of the word "secrets" in the title of this article might have brought you here hoping for a guaranteed, almost magical solution to make you wealthy. There isn't one. The fundamental objectives are simple: Make more than you spend, and use the excess to invest wisely. How you invest is up to you (with a few caveats below), but the obvious goal is to make investments that have a high likelihood of making you more money in the future. That's it. The ways to achieve this are by making more money, spending less, and investing more wisely.

3. Invest in yourself.

Your next goal should be to invest in yourself; you are the best resource you have to accumulate wealth. Investing in yourself means spending more time on your education, refining your own skill sets, and branching out to meet new people who might help you achieve your goals. The more educated, skilled, experienced, and connected you are, the more valuable opportunities you're going to get, which means higher salaries and more options for you down the road, both of which will help you build a stronger financial foundation.

4. Create a budget.

Remember the steps from point 2: Make more money, spend less, and invest wisely. Point 3 covered making more money, and this one covers spending less. Make a detailed budget for yourself based on your projected income and your current expenses. Set firm limits for your expenses, and keep a close eye on where most of your money goes--you might be surprised at some of the areas where you waste the most money. Once identified, you can start refining your budget to spend as little as possible, and funnel the rest into a savings or investment program.

5. Pay down your debt.

Before you start regularly saving and investing money, it's usually a good idea to pay down any debts you may have accumulated. Credit card debt, student debt, and even car loans can carry heavy interest rates that drag you down, demanding monthly installments that chip away at your revenue while racking up additional interest and penalties that take away even more money from your future self. Don't let this eat away at your potential; make it a first-line priority to get rid of your debt as soon as possible.

6. Take risks.

You're young. You have a lot of years ahead of you. Now is the time to take risks. Invest in higher-risk, higher-payoff stock opportunities. Consider quitting your job to start your own business. Jump on new ventures and new opportunities. If things go south, you'll have plenty of time to make up for it. Most wealthy individuals will tell you one of their greatest keys to success has been taking calculated risks. The majority of the population sticks with the safe route, so if you want to break away from the pack, you have to try something new, possibly something uncomfortable.

7. Diversify.

Even though risk-taking is a generally rewarding strategy in your 20s and 30s, it's also a good idea to diversify your efforts. Don't build up just one skill set, or one set of professional connections. Don't rely on one type of investment, and don't gamble all your savings on one venture. Instead, try to set up multiple income streams, generate several backup plans for your goals and businesses, and hedge your bets by looking for new opportunities everywhere. This will protect you from catastrophic losses, and increase your chances of striking it big in one of your ventures.

By applying these seven secrets in full swing, you'll be able to start accumulating wealth no matter where you are in life. Yes, the first steps are hard--paying down your debt, establishing your credentials, building an investment portfolio, etc.--but if you do it early and do it right, you'll set yourself up for massive financial success later on.

08 Things Exceptional Employees Hate (and Toxic Employees Love to Do)

1. They love to have the meeting after the meeting.

You have a meeting. Issues are raised. Concerns are shared. Decisions are made. Everyone in attendance fully support those decisions. Things are going to happen.

Then someone holds the "meeting after the meeting." Now she talks about issues she didn't share in the actual meeting. Now he disagrees with the decisions made in the actual meeting.

And sometimes those people even say to their teams, "Look, I think this is a terrible idea, but we've been told to do it, so I guess we need to give it a shot." That means what was going to happen never will.

Waiting until after a meeting to say "I'm not going to support that" is like saying "I'll agree to anything ... but that doesn't mean I'll actually do it. I'll even work against it."

Those people need to work somewhere else.

2. They love to say, "That's not my job."

The smaller the company, the more important it is that employees think on their feet, adapt quickly to shifting priorities, and do whatever it takes, regardless of role or position, to get things done.

Even if that means a manager has to help load a truck or a machinist needs to clean up a solvent spill; or the accounting staff needs to hit the shop floor to help complete a rush order; or a CEO needs to man a customer service line during a product crisis. (You get the idea.)

Any task an employee is asked to do -- as long as it isn't unethical, immoral, or illegal, and it's "below" his or her current position -- is a task an employee should be willing to do. (Great employees notice problems and jump in without being asked.)

Saying "It's not my job" says "I care only about me." That attitude quickly destroys overall performance because it quickly turns what might have been a cohesive team into a dysfunctional group of individuals.

3. They love to act like they've already paid their dues.

An employee did great things last year, last month, or even yesterday. You're appreciative. You're grateful.

Still, today is a new day. Dues are never paid in full. Dues get paid. The only real measure of any employee's value is the tangible contribution he or she makes on a daily basis.

Saying "I've paid my dues" is like saying "I no longer need to work as hard." And suddenly, before you know it, other employees start to feel they've earned the right to coast too.

4. They love to think their experience is all that matters. 

Experience is definitely important, but experience that doesn't translate into better skills, better performance, and greater achievement is worthless. Experience that just "is" is a waste.

Example: A colleague once said to younger supervisors, "My role is to be a resource." Great, but then he sat in his office all day waiting for us to come by so he could dispense his pearls of wisdom. Of course, none of us did stop by--we were all busy thinking, "I respect your experience, but I wish your role was to do your job."

How many years you've put in pales in comparison with how many things you've done.

Saying "I have more experience" is like saying "I don't need to justify my decisions or actions." Experience (or position) should never win an argument. Wisdom, logic, and judgment should always win -- regardless of in whom those qualities are found.

5. They love to gossip.

Before a meeting, some of us were talking about supervisors in another department when our new boss looked up and said, "Stop. From now on we will never say anything bad about anyone unless they are actually in the room. Period."

Until then, I never thought of gossip as a part of a company's culture -- gossip just was. We all did it. And it sucked -- especially because being the focus of gossip sucked. (And in time, I realized people who gossip suck too.)

If an employee has talked to more than one person about something Mark is doing, wouldn't everyone be better off if he stepped up and actually talked to Mark about it? And if it's "not his place" to talk to Mark, it's definitely not his place to talk about Mark.

Saying "Did you hear what he did?" is like saying "I have nothing better to do than talk about other people."

Not only do employees who create a culture of gossip waste time better spent on productive conversations, but they cause other people to respect their co-workers a little less--and anything that diminishes the dignity or respect of any employee should never be tolerated.

6. They love to use peer pressure to hold other employees back.

A new employee works hard. She works long hours. She's hitting targets and exceeding expectations. She rocks. And she eventually hears, from a more "experienced" employee, "You're working too hard and making the rest of us look bad."

Where comparisons are concerned, a great employee doesn't compare herself with others -- she compares herself with herself. She wants to "win" that comparison by improving and doing better today than she did yesterday.

Poor employees don't want to do more; they want others to do less. They don't want to win. They just want others to make sure they don't lose.

Saying, "You're working too hard," is like saying, "No one should work hard because I don't want to work hard." And pretty soon very few people do -- and the ones who keep trying get shunned for a quality you need every employee to possess.

7. They love to grab the glory.

OK, maybe he did do nearly all the work. Maybe he did overcome almost every obstacle. Maybe, without him, that high-performing team would have been anything but.

Probably not. Nothing important is ever accomplished alone, even if some people love to act like it is.

A good employee and good team player shares the glory. He credits others. He praises. He appreciates. He lets others shine. That's especially true for an employee in a leadership position--he celebrates the accomplishments of others secure in the knowledge that their success reflects well on him, too.

Saying "I did all the work" or "It was all my idea" is like saying "The world revolves around me, and I need everyone to know it." And even if other people don't adopt the same philosophy, they resent having to fight for recognition that is rightfully theirs.

8. And they love to throw others under the bus.

A vendor complains. A customer feels shortchanged. A co-worker gets mad. No matter what has happened, it's someone else's fault.

Sometimes, whatever the issue and regardless of who is actually at fault, some people step in and take the hit. They willingly accept the criticism or abuse, because they know they can handle it (and they know that maybe the person actually at fault cannot).

Few acts are more selfless than taking the undeserved hit. And few acts better cement a relationship. Few acts are more selfish than saying "It wasn't me," especially when, at least in part, it was.

Saying "You'll have to talk to Martha" is like saying "We're not all in this together." At the best companies, everyone is in it together.

Anyone who isn't needs to go.

9 Powerful Affirmations Successful People Repeat Every Single Day

1. "In one way, I will always be last."

Everyone likes to be first. But often it's better to be last: the last to give up, the last to leave, the last to keep trying, the last to hold on to principles and values.

The world is full of people who quit. The world is full of people who pivot (pivot is sometimes just a fancy word for "give up").

There will always be people who are smarter, more talented, better connected, and better funded than you. But they don't always win.

Always be the last to give up on yourself.

2. "I will never equate acquisition with satisfaction."

Psychologists call it "hedonistic adaptation," a phenomenon in which people quickly push the buzz from a new purchase toward their emotional norm.

That "aah..." feeling you get when you look at your new house? It quickly goes away. The same is true for your new car, new furniture, and new clothes. So to recapture the "aah..." feeling, you have to buy something else. The cycle is addictive. And so you're never satisfied. You can't be. That's not how we're made.

Real, lasting satisfaction comes from doing, not from having. Want to feel good about yourself? Help someone. Knowing you've made a difference in another person's life is an "aah..." that lasts forever.

Doing also is a cycle that's addictive--but this time, in a really good way.

3. "I will never mistake political gain for achievement."

Infighting, positioning, trying to look better by making other people look worse: Playing politics can help get you ahead.

But if you win through politics, you still ultimately lose, since political success is based on the impulses, whims, and caprices of other people (often other people you don't even respect or like). That means today's success can be tomorrow's failure, and success or failure is largely outside your control.

Real achievements are based on merit. They can't be taken away by anyone.

4. "I won't let the fear of criticism hold me back."

Try something different. Try something others won't try. Almost immediately, people will talk about you--and not in a kind way.

The only way to keep people from being snide, disparaging, or judgmental is to say and do what everyone else does. Then, of course, you live their lives and not yours. And you won't be happy.

See people talking about you as a sign you're on the right track--your track.

Your track is the happy track. Not theirs.

5. "I will go ahead and ship--and then ship again."

As Seth Godin says, we're naturally afraid to be "done," because then our idea, our product, or our service has to sink or swim, and we're desperately afraid it will sink.

And maybe it will--but if you don't put it out there, it can also never swim. No product can be successful until it's shipped. No application can be successful until it's released. No service can be successful until it's in the field.

When in doubt, ship it out. Then make whatever you produce next is a little better. And ship that. And keep going.

You can't feel proud until you ship. So ship--a lot.

6. "I will see my résumé as the journey, not the end result."

Many people collect jobs and experiences in pursuit of crafting a "winning" résumé.

That's backwards. Your résumé is like a report card: It's just a by-product of what you've accomplished, learned, and experienced.

Don't base your life on trying to fill in the blanks on some "ideal" CV. Base your life on accomplishing your goals and dreams. Figure out what you need to do to get to where you want to be, and do those things.

Then let your résumé reflect that journey.

7. "I will refuse to wait."

For the right time. The right people. The right market. The right something.

And life passes you by.

The only right is right now.

Go.

8. "I won't collect stuff; I'll 'collect' people."Now have your extended family over for dinner. Or get together with friends. Look at your people.

Which is more fulfilling?

Thought so. You can love your stuff, but your stuff will never love you back.

9. "I will always maintain perspective."

Close your eyes and imagine I have the power to take everything you hold dear away from you: family, job or business, home, everything.

And I exercise that power. All of it, everything, is gone.

Would you beg and plead and offer me anything to get that life back? Would getting that life back mean everything to you? Would you realize that what you had was so much more important than what you didn't have?

Would you realize that what I just took away was pretty freaking awesome?

Of course you would.

Now open your eyes, literally and figuratively, and never forget how much you've accomplished--and how proud you should be.

05 Simple Ways You Can Become a Great Leader Right Now

Everyone I coach wants to know how they can become a great leader and they always want it to happen right away, the truth is most people want quick fixes for their challenges and they want sure fire solutions for things that ail them and most of them want them immediately.

The thing about leadership you can become a great leader immediately but it takes discipline and persistence. If you could to do these five simple things you can become a great leader right now.

1.     Character rules: 
It doesn't matter how smart you are, it doesn't matter where you went to school, the leaders who are the most admired are the ones that have character, they lead with honesty, integrity, and they allow their character to rule. If you want your leadership to improve immediately look at your character and see if is congruent on how you want to be perceived.

2.     Trust is a two way street:
If you want to improve your leadership learn how to cultivate trust between you and your people. When people feel that you trust them they trust you back. As a leader you need to be able to take responsibility for your actions and be accountable for your choices, today people want leaders they can trust, they want to know that trust is a two way street. The best proof of leadership is trust.  People want to follow leaders who are trustworthy--those whose behavior is genuine and who never leave others guessing.

3.     People skills are important:
Who you are as a person is one thing, who you are with others is important when it comes to leadership, to work with people you must constantly put into practice your interpersonal and social skills, your job as leader, especially if you wan to be the best leader you can be, it to motivate and support your people its about having good people skills and

4.     Remove obstacles:
As we all know business is complicated, our days  are filled with all kinds of challenges, the kind of leader that people that people are drawn to are the ones that can take what is complicated, can take what is challenging and make it problem free, the leader who can remove obstacles and find solutions are one of the best leaders.

5.     Celebrate teamwork.
Great leaders teach their people how to build successful partnership with each other. they know that as a team together everyone achieves more, alone you can do so little but together you can do so much more. great leaders demonstrate and create great teams, because they know unity is strength, when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.

If you are looking to become a great leader you can start right now, the choice is yours.

07 Surprising Things That Make Us Great Leaders

If you want to be a great leader who attracts other great people, you first must find great qualities within yourself.

But leadership qualities often come as a paradox, packaged along with their contradictions.

Here are seven surprising but important traits of great leaders--see which you should be leaning into.

1.     Be strong and vulnerable. Great leaders need to be strong in their convictions, relentless in their values and passionate in their beliefs. They also need to be vulnerable enough to show their weaknesses and flaws. We cultivate strength when we allow our most vulnerable selves to be seen and known.

2.     Be tender-hearted and tough-minded. Leadership is a combination of toughness and tenderness; it's a combination of both. A great leader partners a tough mind with a tender heart. Do not mistake a tender heart for a weakened mind, and do not confuse a tough mind with a heartless soul. if you want to excel in business and transcend in leadership, allow your tough mind and tender heart to integrate. In Japanese the kanji kokoro can also be pronounced as shin--a word that can mean either heart and mind. We need that integration to make us whole and successful.

3.     Be willing to help and willing to step back. Great leaders are compassionate; they aspire to relieve the suffering of others. They use language like I understand you and I want to help you. Just as important, a leader must be able to use the language of having faith in others--words like I believe in you, You can do it. You need both, because you don't want to become an enabler or a fixer who takes away the power people have within themselves to make things happen.

4.     Be open-minded and decisive. Great leaders are always great listeners and communicators, open to opinions and available to listen to new ideas. But there comes a moment when they must step up, be decisive and make the call, even if it's unpopular.

5.     Be respectful and candid. Great leadership grows out of earning and showing respect--treating others as you would want to be treated, talking to people the way you would want to be talked to. At the same time, there are moments when a leader has to say things that people might not want to hear. Being candid takes courage, but ultimately it implies equality--especially when it's combined with respect.

6.     Be flexible and stubborn. Leadership requires flexibility and agility; leaders know that change is inevitable and need to know how to move with the ever-changing times. But great leaders are stubborn when it comes to things that are important--doing the right thing, being ethical, leading with integrity and character.

7.     Be proud and humble. Like many other things, pride can be either a positive or a negative. You want to be proud of your people and their hard work and accomplishments, but you must temper your pride with humility. To be a humble leader takes great courage, and it's critical in creating an environment where employees feel included, acknowledged and appreciated.