What Got You Here Won’t Get You There …
Your current knowledge, goals, skills, experience and actions have created the business you have today. If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of your business, you need to change something to get a different result.
Albert Einstein is famously quoted as saying: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”
Author Marshall Goldsmith wrote an invaluable book, the title of which says it perfectly: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.
Trial and error is one way to improve – and making mistakes certainly can be our best teacher (provided we actually learn from our mistakes, and don’t make the same ones time and time again!). But a far more effective and faster approach is to learn from the mistakes and success of others.
One option is to find a business leader who has achieved success in the area of business in which you want to excel, assess what it is that makes them so successful, and implement that yourself. We call this modelling – observing the way another person behaves to get a certain result, and reproducing those actions to achieve similar outcomes.
Another option is to find a professional business mentor, advisor or coach whose sole purpose is to help business leaders succeed. They have learned from the success and failure of others, and can pass on that knowledge so you can fast-track your business success. Here are five reasons engaging a professional in this field will be valuable to you:
1. Knowledge and Education
Business coaches, advisors and educators package up the knowledge of countless authors, speakers, academics and business leaders to help their clients achieve greater success. Through their research, training and experience they teach proven methodologies that have worked successfully for other business leaders. They also know the pitfalls and can steer you clear of obstacles.
2. Direction
Every business leader needs clear direction. A good business mentor will help you establish, reconnect with, or expand yours, and keep you on track. You could think of them as your GPS! When you wander off track, they will steer you back to where you need to be.
3. An Outsider’s Perspective
When you’re busy working day to day inside your business, it’s hard to take a broader, objective view. Your advisor can help you see the bigger picture and give you an outsider’s perspective. They can provide this viewpoint with honesty – not telling you what you want to hear, but what you need to hear to get better results.
4. Accountability
Knowledge without application is worthless, and part of your mentor’s role can be to push you to get things done, in the right way and at the right time, and for the right objectives. They’ll also remind you why you set your goals in the first place, and the benefits of getting the work done.
5. Encouragement
There’s no doubt that business can be tough, which is also why it’s so rewarding. When things are challenging, your coach can reconnect you with your ‘why’ and remind you of your greater vision and purpose (while giving you the tools to continue on when things get tough).
While there’s no short cut to success, partnering with a business mentor, coach or consultant can help you achieve better business results more quickly and effectively.
We grow established businesses by coaching business leaders and their teams to success in areas including marketing, sales, customer service, team, systems, profit, and cashflow.
Want help to grow your business? Call Andrew Masi or Julianne Schwenke on (02) 4933 6622 today. We’ll arrange a time to meet to see how we can help.