by Ginny Speaks
I’m not a finished product. Are you?
Hopefully, this question made you pause for a moment. This is chapter 36 in the book, QBQ: The Question Behind the Question, by John G. Miller. This small jewel is one of those easy quick reads that will impact not only your business, but your personal life as well. I stumbled upon it under one of my piles of paper on my desk while cleaning up my office this week.
It’s about asking the question behind the question: what to really ask yourself to eliminate blame, complaining and procrastination. It’s about practicing the art of personal accountability at work and in life. Now that is a topic that bears discussion.
So, I ask you to stop what you are doing right now. Take a moment, shut your eyes and think about a typical day. Visually see your day unfold. It might begin with the morning alarm, then the drive to work in traffic, the sales meeting, the numerous cold calls, the sales appointments, the paperwork — you get my point. During this process, evaluate your actions, thoughts and words.
Now, ask yourself these questions.
- How did I handle the challenges that were thrown my way?
- Did I become a victim of the day or did I contribute and rise above?
We all have the power within us each day to choose. Yes, we do have a choice. How we react to any given situation resides in our hands, we get to decide. As we begin to understand the power of our words and thoughts and how they impact our book of business, our attitude, our energy and workplace, we can begin to shift our thinking. When we shift our thinking to more positive outlooks and rise above the fray, we begin to develop stronger relationships not only with ourselves, but with others.
The once seemingly daunting task of picking up the phone one more time to make numerous cold calls becomes an investigative challenge and hunt to find a key decision maker and connect. The closed-minded prospect becomes the one that loses, not us. They miss the opportunity to work with a marketing specialist and organization that helps thousands of businesses grow each day. The examples are endless.
I encourage you all to pick up this book and add it to your reading list. I promise you, if you begin practicing the art of personal accountability, your business will grow. How powerful is that?
