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Focus on Execution!
By Gary Ryan Blair
The Goals Guy
Bringing Your Dreams to Life
When your most cherished goal seems to be slipping away, strengthen your
execution. Having worked with thousands of direct sellers throughout my career,
I’ve observed that success is 10 percent vision and 90 percent execution.
I realize this statement runs counter to the premise that a goal is the most
important ingredient of success, and that you succeed or fail based on the
merits or worthiness of your goal. Let’s examine the relationship between
goals and execution.
Your goals will never fail you.
Rather, you fail them, largely due to lack of implementation!
Unless you properly plan, execute, and remain focused until completion, the
goal—and that means any goal—is irrelevant.
By analogy, when they were both very young, both Tiger Woods and Serena
Williams had grand visions of being champions in their sports. Was it the vision
of the goal that made them great performers, or was it their willingness to
execute? How many other aspiring athletes had great visions, but did not succeed
because they either did not have a plan or failed to execute a plan?
To succeed at the highest level in direct selling, you must value and enforce
(with yourself!) the principles of execution, and follow that course until
successful. The good news is that you don’t have to be blessed with lots of
native talent like Tiger or Serena. The skills required to succeed in direct
selling are within the reach of everyone who is willing to remain focused on
execution.
Developing Your Execution Skills
Consider these questions as they relate to you:
Have you ever missed a golden opportunity because you failed to develop an
idea?
Have you ever been frustrated by your inability to follow through and execute
plans, even after committing to do so?
Would it be worth a focused effort to permanently fix the underlying causes of
inaction?
If you answered “Yes” to any of these, you’ll want to know why execution
is the key to greatness, what good execution is, and how anyone can master the
art of execution.
Why is execution the key?
Because the execution of your plan is what transforms your dream into your
reality.
What is good execution?
It is making good decisions and making things happen. It is reacting well to
unpleasant and unexpected events. It is developing characteristics that are
critical to your success, such as efficiency and effectiveness.
How does one master the art of execution?
Focus time and resources on the “core activities” necessary for achievement.
There are always more things to do than time and resources to do them. Go for
the “high payoff” activities.
Hold yourself accountable to deadlines and adjust tasks accordingly. Missed
deadlines are a symptom of poor execution and lack of discipline. Establish
realistic timelines, then monitor your progress and make course corrections to
ensure you stay on track.
Surround yourself with people, experience, and expertise. Well-trained,
experienced people know how to get a job done effectively. Inexperienced or
untrained people will simply not be as effective. People who experiment and
learn become experienced executors.
Realize that everything you say, think, and do counts. Consciously pay attention
to the small details of core activities, and notice whether each one moves you
closer to or further from achieving your goal.
The small details are what make the difference between mediocre results and
outstanding results.
The success you enjoy depends upon many things, but mostly it depends on you
and your willingness to execute until the goal is achieved.
Improving Your Execution Today and Tomorrow
Take these steps in the next 48 hours to embrace the discipline and do what
needs to be done for success.
Identify your “high impact” activities, give them top priority, and get
them done.
Monitor your progress. Are you on track to meet your deadlines? Make any needed
adjustments.
Pay attention to every word you speak and action you take. Everything counts!
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