Successful People Know What Their Values Are AND How to Live Them

The winners in these changed global economic circumstances will be those of us who respond with greater focus in terms of how we spend not only our money, but also how we spend our time and energy.

Successful people in all contexts know the secret of focus is identifying what they value. Successful people not only know what their values are, they also have the skills and strategies to live them.

Your values are your internal motivators

Click here to qualify for a free values identification session.

Here’s why your values are such a powerful force in your professional and personal life - your values are your lifestyle preferences and priorities and are your inner motivators. They are the bridge from your inner desires to your outer reality. BUT … most of us are NOT consciously aware of what our inner motivators (our values) are because they are just beyond our unconscious awareness.

Successful people have discovered how to bring their unconscious motivators to their conscious awareness and then develop strategies and skills to make conscious choices that are aligned to their core values (the values that are most important to them - their unique Motivation Code™).

Successful people also have the strategies and skills to build a bridge from their inner desires (their values) to their outer reality (their desired results) by using their natural talents (their Talent Code™).

How to maximize your professional performance

Click here to qualify for a scholarship for Session 1 of Win at Work 101

That’s why every professional, every corporate employee and every small business owner who desires to be successful MUST crack their Talent Code and their Motivation Code. When you combine those two codes, which are unique to you, with your Commitment Nexus™ (the values you share with your colleaugues and customers), you will position yourself firmly in the centre of your Peak Performance Zone™, where you must be to maximize your professional performance.

Crack Your Unique Peak Performance Code AND Stay True To Your Values

Click here to qualify for a scholarship for Session 1 and to reserve your seat.

“Win at Work 101 - Crack Your Unique Peak Performance Code AND Stay True To Your Values” will educate and equip you with the knowledge, skills, strategies and systems you must have to succeed in these changed circumstances.

You have one last chance in 2008 to join a live Win At Work 101 Webinar series to prepare yourself for focused action in the times ahead.

ONLY 4 PLACES AVAILABLE so take action now to secure your seat! 

Click here to to reserve your seat.

I’m looking forward to meeting you in the first webinar on October 29 2008 …

Choosing a training and development provider is not easy …                           and that’s why I have decided to go public with my Consumer Awareness Guide.

Recently a friend was telling me about the many tens of thousands of dollars his employer had recently wasted on a “motivation expert” who claimed to be able to “motivate” the senior management and sales team to better performance.

Several months down the track nothing has changed - the staff are not more motivated, the sales team is not performing any better, and business results are at the same level.

How do you ever expect to find a qualified, competent, professional training and development company?

You start by reading this Consumer’s Awareness Guide. ..

In this fact-filled booklet, you will discover:

• How to avoid “cookie cutter” training and development rip-offs,
• Three deadly sins of omission in training and professional development
• Five mistakes to avoid when choosing a professional development provider
• Three methods to find the training professional who offers what you want
• The importance of value versus price
• Why 99% of the professional development programs used by most companies are a waste of time and money
• Why you want a professional development provider who will work with you each step of the way, plus much more …

The goal of small business training and development

We wrote this guide to help you better understand training and development, the goal of which is to make changes that maximize your professional performance and accelerate the results of the people you manage. Change is an inside-out process and can only be triggered by inner motivation, motivation that is fueled by your values, not by another person’s “rah rah” tactics.

You can make your own informed, intelligent decision.

Grab your copy of “The Consumers Awareness Guide To Engaging a Training and Professional Development Provider” now and when you’ve read and digested the valuable and sometimes controversial  information enclosed in the report’s 21 pages, post your response on this blog.

How To Maximize Employee Engagement, Employee Commitment and Customer Service Focus With The Three “I”s Of Best Practice Training and Development.

My previous three posts in the Small Business Training and Development series identified The Three Deadly Sins Of Omission in the training and development of the employees in your small business.

I also described the antidote - The Holy Trinity of Employee Contribution to Business Results:

1. Maximize employee engagement
2. Compound employee commitment
3. Cultivate a customer service focus

Now that you know where to focus your small business training and development time, energy and money, you need to know what the three “I”s are and how to use them to turn knowledge into results:

Apply The Three “I”s Of Best Practice Training and Development To Maximize The Impact Of Your Employee Engagement, Employee Commitment and Customer Service Focus

1. “I“ #1:  Identify
2. “I“ #2:  Intensify
3. “I“ #3:  Integrate

Employee Engagement

1. Identify the professional roles in which your employees can perform most
   powerfully with the least effort as indicated by their Talent Code™
2. Intensify the time and energy they spend developing their natural talents into strengths - the path to true employee engagement
3. Integrate their Talent Code™ and unique Motivation Code™ into their daily work practices to access their Peak Performance Zone™

Employee Commitment

1. Identify the unique Motivation Code™ (identify and prioritize the core values) of each employee - their values are what REALLY motivate them
2. Intensify their motivation by aligning their unique Motivation Code™ to your
   company’s Motivation Nexus™ (the meeting point of your values and their values) for sustainable motivation
3. Integrate their Talent Code™ and unique Motivation Code™ into their daily work practices to access their Peak Performance Zone™

Customer Service Focus

1. Identify exactly whom each employee serves - internal or external customers. Establish metrics to gauge their level of success with customers
2. Intensify the application of what they do well in customer service and manage around their weaknesses as identified by their Talent Code™ and Motivation Code™
3. Integrate their Talent Code™ and unique Motivation Code™ into their daily work practices to access their Peak Performance Zone™in all aspects of their work, including customer service

Maximized Manager

If you want to accelerate your business results you must maximize your return on your small business training and development. Your number one goal must be to develop in your people the knowledge, skills, attitudes and systems to accumulate confidence, strengths and skills to manage themselves, their talents, their motivation, and their relationships with your customers and clients for maximum career acceleration for themselves and maximum business results for you.

Maximize Your Professional Performance with a Live Training and Development Workshop - Win at Work 101

I’m always really excited about leading live professional development workshops … I love the richness and diversity created by live groups as participants interact with me and with each other during the learning and development activities.

With only 10 places available this workshop promises to be a powerful opportunity for the chosen few who join this exclusive group at Castle Hill on Saturday 4th October, 2008. Registration at the early bird investment finishes at midnight, Friday 26th September 2008.

Please note that the Saturday of the workshop falls on a long weekend in NSW, so you can participate in the workshop AND still have two days for your weekend! Good news, hey?

Success stories

Success stories from live WIn At Work 101 workshops become excellent case studies for my Win At Work book, which will be published by a New York publisher. Will you be a success story and be included in my new book?

Check out Sharon’s success story …

Click here for more details on how you can maximize your professional performance and win at work with training and development from LeaderCoach THE VALUES SPECIALISTS

In a hurry?

Start building your Peak Performance Platform now… call our office on +61 2 8850 6834 for your Registration Pack or email [ karyn@leadercoach.com.au ]

For many years the urge to share what I have learned about how to maximize your professional performance AND stay true to what you really value has burned in my spirit.

My passion is to see men and women liberated from the constraints of conventional wisdom about what it takes to win at work, and empowered by the truth, backed up by the principles and practices that deliver real results.

And now I know for certain that the Win at Work Book WILL be written and published!

How do I know? Glenn Dietzel at Awaken the Author Within has just announced that I am a joint winner for live mentoring in his Books Mean Credibility program. This was a global competition and I am truly humbled to have been chosen as a joint winner, along with Laurie Kirk of USA. 

Here’s the video announcement of the competition winners.

Why am I asking for your help?

It’s very important to me that the finished Win at Work Book is as real and useful as possible for my readers, so I am still conducting surveys and collecting case studies from employers, employees and small business owners.

How can you help?

If you are willing to be involved in surveys, short courses and case studies you can register your interest here

Your registration will also give you access to some useful freebies and sneak previews of the Win at Work book.

Win at work with inspiring quotes and sparks of wisdom to fuel your fire

When I made the decision to write and publish my book, I realized that there would be days when I needed a boost of external motivation to keep me moving forward on the project. So, I have been finding and sending to myself Mini Motivators on topics that keep me focused and on track.

I’m happy to share them with you too. Follow this link to get the sparks you need to fan your fire into the triple flames of inspiration, reflection and action.

By the way, the book’s working title is Win at Work - how to maximize your professional performance AND stay true to your values. What do you think of the title? I might hold a Create The Best Title competition when the book is closer to the publishing date.

In the meantime, enjoy and activate your Mini Motivators.

Sherlock Holmes was an expert at culling clues and cracking codes to find answers to the mysteries he investigated.

Your future professional performance and in fact the whole of your life are to some extent mysteries waiting to be investigated and solved.

Here’s a great collection of practical strategies we can learn from the fictional Sherlock Holmes and his colleague Dr Watson to help us win at work AND be true to our values … enjoy!

Do you know your talent code? Oprah sure knows hers!

Two people who are incredibly successful in their own careers have forged a partnership designed to turn YOU into a winner at work, without sacrificing your values. And it’s FREE!

Oprah Winfrey

Credited by many as the world’s most influential woman, Oprah is also a self made multi billionaire multiple-Emmy winning host of The Oprah Winfrey Show, the highest-rated talk show in the history of television. She is also an influential book critic, an Academy Award-nominated actress, and a magazine publisher.

Oprah has been ranked the richest African American of the 20th century, the most philanthropic African American of all time, and the world’s only black billionaire for three straight years. She is also, according to some assessments, the most influential woman in the world.

Oprah is very clear about her life purpose, her talent code, and how to use her unique talent code to contribute to the world. She declares in the introduction to this FREE 3 HOUR online seminar that she is paid to be an inspiration to others to go to the next level in their work and in their life.

Marcus Buckingham

One of my favorite authors and mentors, Marcus has a similar life goal to mine … to change the way people work. He worked with the Gallup Organization for many years, involved in deep research into what makes people successful in their work. His writing style is very clear and to the point, as is his teaching style.

Marcus Buckingham is a member of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Leadership and Management. He started as a senior researcher with The Gallup Organization, and helped to develop the Strengths-based approach to management that is now gaining widespread recognition as the key to engagement of employees.

These two high achievers with generous spirits have teamed uo to present this word class, FREE 3 hour online seminar (you can watch, listen and learn in 20 minute chunks, at your convenience).

If you are struggling with any aspect of your work or work-life balance, and want to learn the scientifically validated secrets of personal success, this seminar will help you to take control of your career and your life.

When you’ve completed your study I would love to hear your results, so remember to return to this page, click on the comments link and tell me what you learnt and how it changed your work life.

Imagine getting paid to do something you love. Create the job, career and life you were meant to live! Join career coach Marcus Buckingham’s online workshop and put your strengths to work today.   CLICK HERE to Win at work with your talent code at your FREE online workshop with Marcus Buckingham

Value your life, live your values The focus of this entire site is how to win at work, AND stay true to your values. Why the focus on values? Because your values are what focus you!

So, here we go with the top twelve things you need to know about your values:

1. Your values are what motivate you. They are the bridge between your inner desires and outer reality.
   
2. Your values are your lifestyle priorities and preferences, your unique motivation code. You need to know what your values are. They silently guide your words, your decisions and your actions. Get to know them … unless you want to be led through life by a stranger.
3. Knowing your values gives you clarity - you can make decisions based on choices, rather than habits.
4. Some of your values are more important to you than others. They are your core values and usually remain consistent over a long period of time.
5. Your values are with you 24/7. There is no distinction between personal and professional values. There is however, a distinction between what is an appropriate context for living out some values.
6. Your values are not necessarily predictors of your behaviour. For example, you and I may both value leisure and play. I might (would) choose to live that value by going to the opera, and you might choose to go rock climbing … same value, different expression.
7. All people, regardless of race, colour or creed, share 5 human needs: survival, freedom, fun, belonging and power. How you attempt to meet those needs depends on your values … your lifestyle preferences and priorities.
8. Your values come from your world-view. Your world-view is a set of (mostly unconscious) beliefs you hold about how the world works, or how you believe the world should work. The formation of your world-view was influenced by many factors as you were growing up: family, culture, geographic location, socio-economic conditions, media - old and new, peers, education, religious affiliations, groups such as Scouts and sporting clubs, and significant life events.
9. Your values and your ethics are not the same. Your values will motivate you, usually unconsciously. Your ethics will constrain you, usually based on conscious choice.
10. Clarity around what you value will help you choose more compatible friendships and business partners.
11. Knowing your values helps you to be clear about what you DON"T want in your life … your values are a guide to the boundaries you have in place in your life.
12. Consciously choosing to live your values leads you towards being more of who you were created to be.

Let’s make it a baker’s dozen and give the last word to the Bible:

13. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21) Your treasure is what you value, so get to know what your values are, and learn how to live them.

What experiences have you had as a result of living or NOT living your values? Take a minute to share your response in the comments box below.

Customer service focus: essential to excellence in professional performance

In previous posts I’ve identified two of the three dimensions that are essential for you to win at work without sacrificing your values:

• Engagement of your talent code
• Meaning, which stems from values alignment, your unique motivation code

In this post I’ll give a quick overview of the third:

• Customer service focus.

 Your customers or clients might be internal or external, individuals or corporations, paying or non-paying (as in community service clients)

Your customer service knowledge and skills may be expanded by training, strengthened by practising, or adjusted to meet changed needs or circumstances.

Your customer service attitude however cannot be improved by the above methods because it stems directly from your values. Your attitude can change if you CHOOSE a suitable path of integrated personal and professional development, which is based on your unique motivation code AND the aligned values of your employer.

Your customer service knowledge, skills and attitude can be maximized if:

• your personal values are service oriented (it’s not about you) AND
• your employer’s values behind their customer service practices are service oriented

The points I’ve just made have one thing in common - values alignment. We can conclude that identifying and prioritizing your core values (your unique motivation code) is essential if you want to excel in each of the three dimensions of winning at work: Engagement Meaning Customer Service Focus

Do you know how to identify and prioritize your values, how to crack your unique motivation code? Post your comments, questions or suggestions in the comments box below.

Next post: Value Your Life, Live Your Values - Why you need to live your values in order to win at work and avoid burnout