Response Magic 
Sometimes we can be our
own worst enemy. We do things intentionally or subconsciously that impede
rather than advance our success. The first step in eliminating these
destructive behaviors is acknowledging them. Here are eight of the most
egregious:
1. Confusing busy with
productive
“Don’t mistake activity for achievement.”—John Wooden
Let’s face it, you can find enough work activities to
keep you busy day, night and weekend. The question is: Are they the right
things?
It’s not the hours you put
in or the number of items you’re working on simultaneously that make you successful.
Focus on the items that have impact.
We measure our success on
the busyness scale when in fact we should be evaluating our progress on the
activities that will make the biggest impact on our goals. Corporate culture
might reward “looking busy,” but true corporate success is the result of focused
effort in pursuit of long-term goals.
2. Seeking
perfection
“If you look for
perfection, you’ll never be content.”—Leo Tolstoy
In an ideal world, the pursuit of perfection would not
only be noble, it would be rewarded. In the world we live in, it’s a recipe for
frustration and a giant waste of time. According to psychotherapistMel Schwartz, “The
closest thing to perfection is is the ability to be fully present. Without any
distracting thoughts measuring or grading ourselves, we’re free to really be in
the moment. It’s in that moment that we’re truly alive. Yet, the perfectionist
isn’t typically present as they’re either busy critiquing the past and
replaying their every decision or worrying about their future decisions.” Know
when it is time to move on and make realistic goals for outcomes. Seeking
perfection will either stop you in your tracks or waste energy that could be
more productively applied elsewhere.
3. Avoiding risk
“You cannot swim for new
horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.”—William Faulkner
Unless you’re a financial CRM (Certified Risk
Manager), complete risk aversion is not a career success strategy. Of course,
taking risks like you are a Hollywood stunt person isn’t going to be the most
effective approach either. You must take calculated risks that will help you
learn and grow. Without risk, you stagnate while those around you flourish and
advance. Evaluate risks based on their ability to help you reach your goals,
then pursue the ones that give you the best opportunity to move forward.
4. Letting fear impede progress
“A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships
are for.”—William G.T. Shedd
Fear can stop you in your tracks. It creates paralysis
that causes stagnation. It often ferments in the imagination, where negative
images can become larger than reality. If fear is impacting your progress,
start with a mindset shift. Rather than letting it keep you from the starting
line, let fear become the fuel that helps you take a first important step.
5. Reacting vs. planning
“Failing to plan is planning to fail.”—Alan Lakein
Successful people have a plan. They set their goals. They chart a course. They
measure success and recalibrate regularly. If you find that most of your
activities each day involve responding to other people’s crises or whatever
comes to your inbox, you’re squandering energy and time. Unless you work for
the fire department, reacting to emergencies should not be your strategy for
success. When you’re bombarded with requests that are only going to divert
you from your plan, you have three tools to get back on track: delegate, or
politely be brief, or hit “delete.” Know your goals. At the end of each day,
ask yourself what progress you have made on your goals.
6. Fixing weaknesses
“Over the years, I’ve learned that a confident person
doesn’t concentrate or focus on their weaknesses – they maximize their
strengths.”—Joyce Meyer
If you are a really boring
and nervous public speaker, and your goal is to be the head of sales, you need
to work on public speaking because it’s essential to your success. However,
most weaknesses do not require attention and remediation. When you spend time
“improving” weaknesses that aren’t related to your goals, you take time way
from things that will drive results. Focusing
too much time on weaknesses is the formula for mediocrity. If
you instead spent that time taking a relevant strength and maximizing it so you
can be the best in that skill, it becomes easy for you to stand out and attract
the attention of those who are making decisions about you (learn more about
maximizing strengths here).
That’s the most efficient way to put yourself on the path to success. Ditch
mediocrity and focus on your superlatives.
7. Going it alone
“The power of one, if fearless and focused, is
formidable, but the power of many working together is better.” —Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo
This is one of the biggest challenges for some of us:
The belief that we are omnipotent and self-sufficient. The most accomplished
people in the world know differently. They surround themselves with a tribe and
foster lifelong partnerships, participating in a community of the best
specialists on the planet. If you go it alone, your only companions will be the
exhausting things you don’t do well or don’t enjoy doing.
8. Surrounding yourself with
clones
“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities.”—Stephen R. Covey
The comfort that comes from being around people just
like you has a negative side effect. It causes a blindness that forces you see
the world through an impossibly narrow focus. We have all seen managers who
hire people just like them, and we all have colleagues who are “yes” men or
women. They let ignorance drive action. The most
successful leaders surround themselves with a diverse group of people who
challenge their thinking and actions, expand their perspective and enlighten
them about even grander outcomes
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