Shera R. Sever: Awakening Leaders™

We hear these mantras all the time from success leaders like Brian Tracy, Richard Branson, Oprah,

T. Harv Eker, and so many others:

Your network equal your net worth.

It’s not who you know, but who knows you.

Take a look at the five people in your circles and network,  you share the most time with-this is a direct reflection of your personal and professional success.

Ask any leader and successful business owner the key to their success, and they will tell you that one golden nugget lies in their ecosystem of relationships, networks, and teams.

How is your ecosystem?  Who comprises  your network? Whether you are looking for a new position, starting a new business or expanding your current business, your network needs to be diverse.

I recently came across a blog post* that identified various roles/functions of a network.  I believe the categories were designed specifically for a “job seeker”, however, I think they apply to any professional network.

Take a look and see who you can identify in filling these functions in your circles:

1. The Mentor: This is the person who has reached the level of success you aspire to have. Normally a mentor has known you through several peaks and valleys in your life and has watched you evolve. You can learn from their success as well as their mistakes gained. A good mentor will share with you their wisdom, experience and  lessons learned along their journey.

2. The Coach: I believe everyone needs a coach at different times in their life. A good coach will help you access your inner wisdom and clarity by asking questions , guiding you through transitions and critical decisions with your best and highest interest as their priority.

3. The Industry Insider: This is an expert in your industry/industries. Think of this person as your personal consultant , who will keep you informed of what’s happening now and what the next big thing is (think- ipad and mobile devices). Invite them to be a sounding board and advisor for your next innovative idea or entrepreneurial project.

4. The Trendsetter: This is someone possibly outside of your  direct industry who keeps up on trends and the latest buzz on topics/content you are interested in.  A wonderful guest at any dinner party and someone who is able to connect the dots in sometimes unconventional ways. Green business is a great example

5. The Connector: This is a person who has access to people, resources and information. As soon as they come across something related to you, they are sending you an email or picking up the phone. Connectors are great at uncovering unique ways to make connections, finding resources and opportunities that most people would over look.  Connectors are vital to your network and team.  Be sure to recognize and acknowledge them accordingly for their time and resources.

6. The Idealist: This is the person in your network you can dream with. No matter how “out there” your latest idea is, this is the person that will help you brainstorm and mindmap ways to make it happen. Creative and without judgment, they are focused on helping you flush out your dreams in high definition, even if you don’t have a solid plan yet on how to make it happen.  A good friend, indeed.

7. The Realist: On the flip side you still need the person who will help you keep it real. Think Devil’s Advocate. This is the person who will  give your vision and ideals a grounding cord and encourage you (often times with tactical and strategic tools) to  actively make your dream happen.

8. The Visionary: Visionary people INSPIRE. They are powerful and can positively change your life and direction with their leadership, integrity, and accomplishments. This person can help you envision and create an actual plan to reach your goals.   by their journey. They are similar to the Idealist, but the visionary can help you envision an actual plan to reach your goal.

9. The Partner: This can be an intimate partner or spouse, family member or close friend.   This can also be your business partner who compliments and supplements your skill set with resources, opportunities, and information. Partners do alot of sharing, and are on a similar path.

10. The Student: This is someone you can serve as mentor to: someone new to your industry or  in transition and exploring your industry.  Someone you can help shape and guide based on your experiences. When the teacher is ready, the student will appear!

If you approach your network with the attitude of “what can I do for you?”,

you will be amazed at how rich your life and lives of others becomes.

Giving back is what keeps our communities alive, healthy and growing.

note:  the above categories were originally introduced to me  by Tai Goodwin, Career Coach

Have you noticed all the  knowledge sharing  and strategies from thought leaders, managers, coaches, and consultants addressing the Upside of the Downturn.

It’s everywhere- on Guy Kawasaki’s  AllTop portal, in the New York Times new Happy Days Blog,  Psychology Today,  Inc. and many more on-line and print publications.

Human potential seminar leaders like Tony Robbins and T. Harv Eker have adjusted their content delivery in recent months to address the Upside of the Downturn.  It’s a strategic approach, and  it’s more than positive thinking.  (Hope alone is not a strategy).

The Value of Volunteering

One strategy that continues to emerge in various forms when examining the Upside of the Downturn is the increased focus given to the VALUE  of volunteering.

Like many of you, I started volunteering when I was 14.  I worked at one of the first recycling centers in the USA in a small community in northern Illinois 4 nights a week. The proceeds from our efforts helped fund our high school’s symphonic band’s performance at an International Youth Music Festival in Vienna, Austria. Since then I have volunteer with over 25 community organizations and businesses and have served on several boards of directors.

Last week I was invited again to deliver my High-Impact Volunteer Management™ seminar as part of the Performance- Focused Leadership Seminar series for Board Presidents, Directors and Committee Chairs for the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce  (42 chambers total).

Businesses and social-profits alike benefit from volunteer capital. One of the re-occurring challenges most organizations encounter is keeping good volunteers (including board members and committee chairs).

Keeping the Good Ones

As in the private industry, the best way to insure volunteer retention is to adopt a strategic approach with a Volunteer Recruitment and Development Plan in place in your organization or business. This includes targeted recruitment, a solid orientation program, low-cost, no-cost recognition, and a performance management/professional development plan in place that includes on-going feedback and performance reviews.

So what is the best way to develop on-going communication and feedback with volunteers?

It’s the  R.A.P. method:

REVIEW the PAST: Take a look at the performance objectives mutually created during the first 30 days of the volunteer’s on-boarding.

ANALYZE the PRESENT: Ask your volunteer what she feels are her major accomplishments in the past (X) months  (particularly as they relate to over-arching organizational goals).

PLAN the FUTURE: Ask your volunteer what changes/support she would like to see in the future.

If you are wanting to enhance volunteer performance and retention in your organization, be sure you can meet the following needs* of your volunteers:

• I need a sense of belonging.
• I need to be part of the organizational planning of our objectives.
• I need organizational goals and objectives that are clear and obtainable.
• I need to feel that what I am doing has real purpose and contributes to welfare of the organization and community at large.
• I need autonomy and collaboration in setting standards for performance.
• I need to know what is expected of me (not a laundry list of “duties”.)
• I need to have challenging responsibilities within my range of interests and abilities.
• I need feedback about my performance and our progress.
• I need to be kept informed.
• I need to have good rapport with and confidence in the leadership of the organization.
• I need recognition, as it is due.

(The Volunteer Creed, adapted from The Effective Management of Volunteer Programs, Marlene Wilson)

Performance Management is an on-going year-round communication process undertaken in collaboration with a volunteer and her organizational leader(s).  With mutual goal setting, on -going communication, individual recognition, and the R.A.P method, your volunteers can become your organization’s  greatest evangelists.

Need help developing a High-Impact Volunteer Management Plan for your business, organization, or upcoming event? Please contact me for a complimentary (20- minute) consultation.

How to develop a Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times

There’s the general economy, and then we each have our own personal economy. Yes, we all have are own economies, just like we all have our own belief systems, preferences, and opinions. There’s an inner economy and an outer economy

I have my own economy and my economy is great!- Say that a hundred times!

What we focus on expands- Intention is the most powerful element of manifestation.

So what are you focusing on? The fear and panic of old paradigms dying, financial crisis or on what YOU want to create?

Focus on what you want, not on what you don’t want. Utilize what is! Create opportunities and your own micro-economies.

I often say to my clients: If you’re not changing, you’re not growing. If you’re not learning, you’re not living.

After three years of putting several of Harv Eker’s principles into play, I am once attending the Millionaire Mind Intensive, this weekend, in San Francisco. I’m going for a MINDSET tune-up, along with the opportunity to observe absolute master facilitators guide hundreds of participants through the most leading edge accelerated learning techniques.

Harv Eker is offering a special edition: Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times. I first met Harv Eker in 2005 at his Millionaire Mind Intensive in Los Angeles. Since then, I have served as a Life Directions coach with his company, Peak Potentials Training

If you’re prepared for difficult economic times, and have the right tools, there is no reason to worry about your financial future. You can create your own micro-economy, and a thriving economy.

History has shown it is possible not only to survive but to prosper in these times.

During the great depression, huge fortunes were made by many. The Kennedy, Rothschild and Rockefeller families all dramatically increased their fortunes throughout the depression. But it wasn’t just the rich who got richer – many ordinary citizens found a way to not only survive but thrive during a poor economy

What was their secret?

It’s not skills, education or luck that sees the rich getting richer and leaves you in the same situation year after year. It’s mindset.

There’s an incredible opportunity available now to change your mindset in these turbulent times and create what you want.

Millionaire Mind Intensive Fall 2008
Special Edition- ONLY $97 if you click below (regular $1295)
Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times
The Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport
November 21 – 23, 2008

Click here to find other locations and dates for 2009

At the Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times you’ll learn how to:

• Create your own personal economy that thrives at all times
• Focus on making a fortune while others are focused on fear
• Learn what to do and which strategies to use right now
• See how the worse it gets, the better you can do, now and in the future.

Here’s just a few of the incredible things you’ll learn at the Millionaire Mind Intensive:

• Wealth creation and maintenance strategies of the rich
• How to quadruple your speed to financial freedom
• Five key financial habits of the wealthy
• The underlying cause of almost all financial problems
• 12 ways to earn passive income so you can make money while you sleep
• The key to prospering during an economic recession

So, turn off the news and your TV. Come join me and others as we tap into our inherent abundance!

The thing to do is keep your mind when the world around you is losing theirs. Warren Buffet

What’s Your Passion?
Discovering What Makes You Come Alive!

Let’s face it. There is no Secret.

The word is out. If you can think it, believe it, and FEEL it, you can achieve it. Intention is the conscious choice to create- passion is the fuel. Your results will always match your true intentions. When we feel a passion for some thing or activity, it is because we are remembering what it was that we came to do in this world. When we are aligned with our heart’s deepest desires, we are co-creating with source energy. And from this marvelous state of desire and creation, arises your vision, a landscape to create BIG dreams, plot and cultivate your goals, and celebrate the outcomes! It all sounds so simple, and it is . . .sort of.

Internationally acclaimed author Marianne Williamson says:

“You are a child of the universe. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world . . .As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”

So why do some of us play so small? Are we afraid to let our own light shine? How do we get in touch with what we are really passionate about and live our life on purpose?

I have spent a good part of my adult life asking myself these very same questions and have created the RAW formula.

RAW (Relax, Ask, Write) works every time I start to lose sight of my path (my purpose) and feel the fire extinguishing. I do this process personally once or twice a year (normally in January and June), and I apply variations and expansions of this in my workshops. The results have been magnificent.

DISCOVERING PASSION- The RAW™ Formula

RELAX
Create some time for you to be undisturbed (an hour if possible). Go into a meditative, inner, relaxed state. Use soothing music if that helps you get there. I prefer to focus on my breath and body sensations.

ASK yourself:
• What drives me? What do I really love to do?
• What’s really important to me? What do I stand for?
• What am I good at? Hint: Activities that are naturally easy for you; you know you are good at it, and others do as well!
• What puts a big smile on my face, or a skip in my step?
• What types of people do I love to be around?
• What are my unique skills and talents? (Talents and passions often go hand in hand)
Answers to these questions all provide clues to your purpose.

WRITE
What answers revealed themselves with your inquiry? If you want to live a passionate, purposeful life, start by writing your passions down.
Go with your first impulse. Keep writing. Don’t second-guess.
As you are writing these passions, notice:

• What you are feeling inside? 
• Are you expanding or contracting? 
• Is your breath deep, even, and relaxed or short, constricted, and shallow?
• Are you excited, afraid, or both?

It is very helpful to start each passion statement with a verb (teaching workshops, dancing tango, writing bestsellers; traveling to Mediterranean countries; riding my bicycle on a beautiful summer eve) for example. These action words help ignite passion in the subconscious. When you write your passions in a way that excites you, you feel excited.

If you are feeling stuck as you go through this process, one of the best ways to excavate the fire within is to do some “time travel” to your childhood.

Write down significant events in your life in three-year interval periods (ages 4-7, 8-11, 12-15,16-19.) What were you doing? How did you spend your time? What activities were you involved in that you loved the most? Do you notice any patterns?

Once you make your list, remove yourself from it for a few hours or until the next day. Go back over what you have written and circle the words/activities that appear more than once. The first time I did this exercise, I was amazed at how many times travel appeared as significant learning-turning points in my life. International travel is one of my top passions. The others are performing, teaching, speaking, and writing.

FOCUS ON WHAT YOU WANT
Okay, so let’s say you have uncovered or rediscovered your passions. Now what? One fun and powerful first step is to create a Vision Canvas- a vibrant expression of your passions as if you are living them NOW. When you are clear, what you want will show up in your life. Get as specific as possible with the images on your Vision Canvas. Add affirmations to the images (in the present tense) that support you living your passions. And then, focus, focus, focus on what you want!

STAY COMMITTED
Take time daily to review your passions and Vision Canvas. There may be times you find yourself not wanting to read your passions or focus on your goals and vision. Is there an underlying fear or belief that you can’t achieve what you have written? Examine this. Are your focusing on something you don‘t want? If that’s the case, flip the switch now. Remember the “Law of Attraction” is about energy and vibration. Where we put our attention, creates our experience. Focusing on what you don’t want will deaden your passions (and bring more of what you don’t want). A skilled coach can guide you more with this process.

Take action everyday. The only time to take action is NOW. What actions are you taking in support of your passions, everyday? Whenever you are faced with a decision, choose in favor of your passions.

PRACTICE APPRECIATION
Studies have shown that brain and hormonal activity shifts significantly simply by giving attention to what you are grateful for. Additionally, there are some very interesting studies from the University of Utah linking gratitude to better immune system functioning. I find making a quick list (or verbal scan) of all that I am grateful for, either first thing in the morning or before sleeping, keeps me living with optimism, intention, and momentum.

GIVE YOUR VISIONS a LIFT
According to T. Harv Eker, best-selling NY Times author, how you do anything is how you do everything (from making your bed to running your company). How are you expressing your passions in life? Half-heartedly or with the precision of an elite athlete. Passions are irresistible. When you are truly passionate about something, there is absolutely nothing that can keep you from it. Give your visions a lift. Take one more step today!