I blame the All Blacks

Things haven't been the same for me since the All Blacks lost to France and were sent home early from the rugby world cup.

Rather than accepting personal responsibility for what happened, maybe I should blame the All Blacks loss?

The reality is though, I went off the rails and got unbalanced and less organised. I'm not saying I was a complete disaster, but gradually various parts of my life began suffering.

Sometimes it seemed too hard to get back on track, because so many parts of my life felt out of balance, however by changing one small part of my life, the rest is starting to fall back in line again too.

I need to maintain balance and focus, not by blaming external factors (like the All Blacks), but by being personally accountable for my life.

7 Years Key Reflections

The University of Auckland Business School established ICEHOUSE in 2001 to provide education for owner mangers. Recently they brought their 7 key reflections from the last 7 years alive in a workshop.

1. Back to basics.
   Using Jim Collins' Good to Great, they challenged participants to identify:
   a. What they are deeply passionate about.
   b. What they can be the best in the world at.
   c. What drives their economic engine
   
   They also asked us where we had spent most of our time in the last month - using the urgent/ important matrix.
   
2. Getting to the heart of the matter.
   We were asked to do a business exercise based around:
   a. Winning
   b. People
   c. Passion
   d. Purpose
   
   We were also told about the need to confront brutal facts.
   
3. It's lonely out there.
   We discussed the importance of conversations to:
   a. Share stories with like-minded people.
   b. Discuss problems.
   c. Explore dreams.
   d. Build confidence.
   
4. Serious play.
   We shared ideas of making work fun and ensuring the owner manager knew how important their attitude was in determining the culture of the workplace.
   
5. Outside in thinking.
   We were taught about perspective & reframing, also learning from the edge & blue sky thinking (rather than focusing on the competition).
   
6. Making it happen.
   Setting and achieving goals will move the business forward.
   
7. Tension of growth.
   Balancing profits day versus future growth.
   Balancing the person and the business.
   

Overall, I found the workshop useful and thought-provoking. I thoroughly recommend taking time out of the business to spend working on the business.

Dick's lessons

I had the pleasure of hearing (and learning from) a very entertaining Dick Tayler, winner of the 1974 10 kilometre gold medal at the Christchurch Commonwealth Games.

His success story can be applied to life, business and sales.

It was a very simple story with a very strong message. Meticulous planning combined with thorough preparation will position you on the winners podium.

Dick's coach, Arthur Lydiard, had given Dick a complete training plan, long distances and conditioning meant Dick was in peak physical condition. A race plan meant he had a mental plan for success. The gold medal speaks for itself.

By planning and preparing, success can be yours!