If your goal in life is to be successful, have you created a plan that will help you move towards success? Trust me, there are thousands of strategies, techniques and tactics to help you on your journey but a recent infographic caught my attention and offered three ideas I wanted to share.
The infographic is designed by Patricia Sisson and it titled 20 Habits of Eventual Millionaires. The text is written by James Altucher. James is a blogger and the author of two books, Choose Yourself and The Choose Yourself Guide To Wealth. His “20 habits” are really only 18. He cleverly states that we need to be able to allow ourselves to make mistakes or change our minds. Of the list of habits there are three that I wanted to focus on:
- Stand next to the smartest person in the room.
- Write down 10 ideas every day.
- Follow up.
First idea – stand next to the smartest person in the room – challenges us to seek out the person who we might be intimidated by and yet could be the person who helps guide us to our next level of success. When networking, women tend to gravitate towards those in the room they already know. There is comfort in seeking out a familiar face and yet when we stretch ourselves outside that comfort zone to purposefully meet and talk with the “smartest person” (or most influential or richest or most educated or most recognized…) we open ourselves up to new and different experiences. Here are a few suggestions to making it happen:
- Research the leaders in your industry
- Seek out opportunities to hear them speak
- Send them a personalized LI invitation to connect and then respond – start a conversation
- Prepare a few open ended questions should you have the opportunity to meet an industry leader – if you did stand next to them – what would you talk about?
Standing next to the smartest person in the room doesn’t always have to be literal -seek out leaders that you admire (in your industry or not) and begin to develop a relationship.
Write down 10 ideas. I love notebooks. I use note apps as well but before there was Smart phone technology, we would write down ideas on paper. Radical, I know. Every once in awhile I will thumb through one of those notebooks for random thoughts and ideas that I had; especially since I opened my own business. My business has evolved dramatically since I wrote my first book The Working Woman’s GPS. I have a variety of ideas and directions that I imagined for my business, some of which I have pursued and others that I haven’t…yet. Writing down ten ideas – or how ever many come to mind, may unlock an idea that you didn’t realize you had. You don’t have to do anything with it at the moment, but it is important to capture ideas as they occur to you – you just never know when it may become the next great solution!
Follow up – this may be the best idea to help you move towards success. On James’ infographic he suggests sending a follow up email with one idea that will move the project forward.
First let me say that following up may be the best way to set yourself apart than any other suggestion. It doesn’t have to be a formal academic paper – it can be a personal hand written note (talk about standing out!) or as simple as a text message. But following up says a few things to the person you are communicating with:
- The time you shared was important
- You value their time, their expertise and look forward to the next opportunity to connect
- You take your meeting and the outcome seriously
- You have ideas that will help move towards success
- You want to develop a stronger business connection with them
- You offer value!
When we create a plan to move towards success it requires the involvement of others. Whether it is learning from the smartest person, untapping hidden ideas from our own brain or developing relationships with others through follow up communication, it all combines to enforce and enhance our personal brand.
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JJ DiGeronimo, keynote speaker for women, based in Cleveland, presents keynote addresses on women in leadership, diversity in business and advancement for women.
Check out JJ’s new book Accelerate Your Impact by downloading three free chapters.
