Keys to Business Success: 3 Lessons From the Masters

It's no secret, entrepreneurs aspire to achieve success by creating their own distinctive path and system.

Several of today's entrepreneurs can be viewed as pioneers who've separated themselves from the norm. If it seems you are pursuing something unconventional, remember, there's nothing wrong in going this route. 

We've all heard of the great achievements that historical icons have accomplished. These masters have gone through rigorous apprenticeships, created their own systems and elevated themselves above the playing field.

I'm willing to bet though that you, as a creator, have much in common with the legends of the past. It all begins with the formation of mindset and growth within the inner core. 

Mentioned below are quotes from three historical masters, as well as tips for how you can apply these quotes to your personal mindset and venture.

Lesson No. 1: Be curious and always question.

The company we surround ourselves with will always have their own self-interests. They project their own thoughts of success onto us. At times, unconsciously persuading us into a direction we are not pursuing. 

It's crucial that we listen to the most important voice of all, our inner voice. No matter how old and mature we think we are, its still of great significance to listen to that childlike curiosity inside of us.

If we do not question our inner curiosity, how can we bring creativity, innovation, and ideas to life?

Lesson No. 2: Master yourself.

In today's world there exists a plethora of distractions to divert our attention from taking action and achieving greatness. 

We all share them: social media, entertainment, friends, family, etc. Not all are bad and we have to maintain control of ourselves during our most productive times. Time is the most precious resource we have, and it should not be wasted on distractions.

Often, when boredom creeps into our lives we have to look at it as our ally, not enemy. By mastering boredom we create an opportunity to internally strengthen ourselves. 

If we master the art of self-discipline, over time we'll witness our projects, days and lives filled with purpose and value. 

Lesson No. 3: The is real value in apprenticeship.

I've been aware of the apprenticeship, and I never understood the real value of it until now. For the entrepreneurs of the present and future, there is a process that everyone must go through in order to assemble their life's craft. 

I've mentioned plenty that it's wise to seek a mentor who's undergone the journey you're pursuing. One who you can learn from hands on and witness how they themselves have achieved success you are striving towards.   

It is foolish to think this process can be skipped, manipulated, or cheated. This is where the most invaluable knowledge is obtained. 

You as an entrepreneur must never stop learning, internally growing, and continuing to be authentic, no matter how successful you become.

From Entrepreneur

Talk Is Cheap: Why Great Leaders Inspire By Example

When you think of the most inspiring leaders, what are the common characteristics they share? Most likely they are known for being honest, kind and delivering their promised result. If you try to connect the dots between the shared attributes of these leaders, one clear theme reveals itself: They inspire their followers by doing, not talking.  

Let’s look at some examples. There are the commonly referenced leaders like Steve Jobs, Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King Jr. We also find the same trait in the figures Henry David Thoreau, Richard Branson and Mother Theresa. Each of these leaders caused -- is causing in Branson’s case -- massive impact by working hard to create the change they wanted to see in the world. And by working hard I don’t mean talking a lot.

Being a powerful speaker and creating a vision are important qualities of great leadership but they have to be backed by the authenticity of actually having done what you’re preaching. If Martin Luther King Jr. hadn’t been walking in the streets, peacefully protesting injustice before he gave his best speeches, his following wouldn’t have resonated so deeply. Mother Theresa is about as perfect of an example as there is.

How does this apply to your business and leadership? If you’re requiring yourself to be as brilliant and successful as Richard Branson before you inspire people, think again. While your sphere of influence may not be as broad as his, your interactions with everyone you come in contact with do have the power to inspire.

Networking is a perfect opportunity to show that you mean what you say. One of the seven key habits of the best networkers is to add value to everyone you meet by connecting them with someone you know who can help them. That is leading by example, not just talking.  

Giving away valuable free content is also something any aspiring leader can do to build a reputation of greatness. Think of the best leaders in online business. They all give away a lot of useful tips, insights and feedback to their followers, which come from their own hard-earned experiences.  That not only builds credibility but creates a loyal following of devoted supporters who respect and promote them.

This is especially important when creating and building your brand. Being relatable and authentic are two vital parts of creating an inspiring brand and identity as a leader in your field. There’s no way to fake authenticity. You have to have experienced what you’re representing, and that means you have to show some vulnerability. This kind of openness is key to inspiring a following. People will follow who they can trust and relate to.

Make it your goal to take action first, then talk about it. You’ll find that the following you attract will be the best kind. No matter how small or big your platform is, your actions will always speak louder than your words. Remember: Talk is cheap, so back it up with real life examples, and use what you do -- not say -- as a starting point to inspire others.

From Entrepreneur

Small Talk Could Have Big Benefits for Your Career

For some of us, making small talk is not only easy, but enjoyable. For others, it’s a torturous experience preferably avoided at all costs. Unfortunately for those in the latter camp, it is extremely important that you master the art of making small talk.

The good news is making small talk is a skill that can be mastered. You may be thinking, "Do I really need to be able to make small talk? Isn’t giving a killer presentation enough?" In reality, I’ve spent infinitely more time making small talk than making formal pitches.

There are opportunities to introduce yourself at every turn, whether you’re in the hallway or an elevator or waiting for a meeting to begin. Making the most of these opportunities will help grow your business. Making good small talk will also strengthen the professional relationships you already have.

Try this: When you walk into a room full of people you don’t know, find someone who is alone. Walk up to him or her with a pleasant smile on your face, say hello and introduce yourself. Stand close enough to clearly hear what he or she says.

It’s very important that you smile! Smiling puts everyone at ease. When someone smiles, others smile back almost automatically.

The art of small talk is all about finding common ground. Obviously, this is easier to do with some people than others, but I firmly believe it’s possible to do with everyone. We’re all human, after all.

It helps to be prepared beforehand though, so make the effort to read the news. What’s happening in the world? Stay away from controversial topics -- that means no politics or religion. Regardless, it’s more important to focus on making eye contact and listening closely. If you need to step closer to hear someone, do so.

People love to talk about themselves. Where are they from? That’s a great, first neutral question. (Some questions are more easily answered than others, after all.) Don’t get too personal. If you give people the chance to talk about themselves, they will love you.

Commenting on something you can both see from wherever you’re standing is a good start. Of course, if all else fails, flattery is a sure-fire conversation starter, but be sure to be genuine.

People can be very insecure, so it’s your job to put them at ease. The best way to do that is with your body language. Angle your body towards the person you’re speaking to, but don’t invade their personal space. Do not let your gaze wander, be it to someone else in the room or your phone.

Good conversationalists make the person they are speaking to feel like the only person in the room. It’s also important that you feel confident, so dress your best.

When you become comfortable enough engaging strangers one on one, you should try approaching a group of three or four people. When I do this, I make sure to introduce myself with a firm handshake and eye contact, but then I hang back. I don’t jump in until I know what’s being discussed, and only if I have something to contribute. Nodding in agreement can be enough.

Only when it feels right should you jump into a conversation. If you cannot add value to the discussion, don’t. Asking someone to explain something further can be a good way to establish your presence and interest in the conversation.

If you force yourself to start making small talk wherever you go -- be it the grocery store or on public transit -- you will be amazed at how quickly you will become better at it. I find making small talk to be very empowering.

I am constantly reminded of how much I have in common with others. I’ve built strong, long-lasting businesses relationships because I was brave enough to engage the people around me. I was curious about them. Why wouldn’t I be? I ask the vendors and manufacturers I work with about their families and what’s going on in their lives, and they remember that.

That’s really the crux of why you should want to become more comfortable making small talk. I’ve not only met interesting people and future business partners by making small talk -- I’ve strengthened the businesses relationships I already had. I’ve turned acquaintances into friends this way. As entrepreneurs, we can use all the allies we can get. 

People want to do business with people they like. Give people the opportunity to get to know you. It’s as simple as that.

Small talk is absolutely worth making time for.

From Entrepreneur

5 Factors That Make a Great Boss

The best bosses are the ones who can turn a good organization into a great company. They are the individuals who consistently push their employees to become better, more engaged and enable them to adapt to oncoming changes in the corporate landscape.

Instead of suppressing employees, top-tier bosses encourage smart ideas, open conversation and creativity. They reward the employees who deserve recognition instead of promoting those who simply agree with them.

Regardless of industry or size of company, studies have showed that the best bosses share common traits that lead to consistent success. Below, you’ll find 5 of them.

The Common Traits and Qualities:

1. An understanding of how to build confidence among employees.First-rate bosses don’t allow their subordinates to blame circumstances or environment for their failures. They maintain an energy that is optimistic and focus on possibilities rather than problems. This “can-do” outlook becomes contagious. As a result, employee motivation and confidence continually increase and so does everyone’s success rate.

2. Fanatic discipline. The best bosses set high, but attainable performance benchmarks for the employees at the company as well as themselves. Relentlessly, they pursue these achievements regardless of whether they must work around the clock to meet those goals.

Outstanding bosses don’t let intimidation or harsh business environments dictate their actions. They are unwavering in their quest to preserve profitability and prevent bad habits from forming within the group.

3. Consistency. The most effective bosses are the ones who don’t get sidetracked by chasing the “next big thing.” Instead, they make firm decisions as to the course of the organization and, thus are able to define clear roles and tasks that the employees must engage in.

They never leave the overarching goals ambiguous and stick to a pattern of operation that works. Under a first-rate boss, everyone knows where they stand.

4. Strength. The best bosses project strength and have the ability to get things done. Their employees look to them for advice because they possess the expertise and character that it takes to succeed. They are less concerned about being the most popular and more concerned with their commitment to progress.

5. Strong loyalty to the company and those within the organization.The best bosses are the ones who are concerned less for their own personal greatness and put the company’s needs first. Their ambition comes from wanting to make the organization money as opposed to being strictly focused on personal wealth. Instead of requiring outside recognition for their achievements, they quietly produce extraordinary results and set a positive example within the company.

In the End: When you work for a manager who is a top-tier boss, you are rewarded for performance rather than favoritism. You grow both personally and professionally while working under them. They give your position a sense of meaning and your job becomes less of a job and more of a passion.

From Entrepreneur

5 Signs You're Not Leadership Material

Success is a matter of signaling. 

To Sylvia Ann Hewlett, that signaling is a matter of "Executive Presence," which is the title of her new book. Hewlett says executive presence is a matter of "communicating that you have what it takes."

It's that it quality that draws people — and job offers, promotions, and opportunities — toward you. But getting it wrong can repel people. 

In an earlier post we looked at those positive signals, which were identified by Hewlett and her team at the Center for Talent Innovation in their survey of 4,000 professionals in the U.S. 

Here are a few of the behaviors to avoid. 

1. Not having emotional intelligence. 

If you want to lose an election, be tone-deaf toward people's emotional lives. 

Cut to: Mitt Romney.

"That he could say things like 'binders full of women,' that 43% of the population are losers — it gave a real sense of a man in a bubble who was clueless to how real people live," Hewlett says. "Obviously that did him no good in the election." 

Such an ire-drawing insensitivity can find its way into the workplace, like with racist or sexist language. Hewlett's research finds that those are reliable ways to look like you're not to be trusted with responsibility.

2. Checking your phone incessantly.

Projecting capability requires you to look like you're actually in the room — not sucked into your phone. 

"We found that constant device checking was a huge piece of resentment amongst bosses and a big black mark for up and comers who did not have the courtesy to focus," Hewlett says. 

It's not enough to know your facts, she says; you have to have the body language of being present. Since body language is one of the strongest forms of communication, being alert and attentive to your colleagues is one of the easiest ways to evidence your ability to get things done. 

3. Looking physically sluggish. 

"There's a real premium on fitness and looking as though you exercised recently," Hewlett says, "and that is much more important than the size of your waist." 

Again, she says, it's a matter of signaling: showing that you can take care of your body demonstrates that you can take care of whatever responsibility might be headed your way. It goes for men and women equally, whether they're 28 or 40. Hewlett says we're all under scrutiny to look physically able. 

4. Getting into sex scandals. 

If people are going to trust you with power, you need to appear trustworthy. For this reason, Hewlett says that "sexual impropriety takes some kind of prize as a career killer." 

For a few examples, notice the word "former" for all these one-time headliners:

• former congressman Anthony Weiner,
• former New York governor Eliot Spitzer,
• former CIA director David Petraeus,
• former International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn,
• former Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn. 

Extramarital, intra-organizational dalliances are such career killers since they call into questions people's judgment, Hewlett says, and their very ability to lead. 

5. Not having spontaneity. 

To signal that you're able, you need to show that you have a deep knowledge of your subject area. For example, notice how Elon Musk and Marissa Mayer drill into any pitches that come their way. To Hewlett, spontaneity is a natural outgrowth of that understanding. 

"When my first big book came out I was overwhelmingly boring," Hewlett says. She had been a college professor for years, she said, which trained her in not telling stories, hiding behind podiums, and generally going over "like a lead balloon" in public settings.

The solution is to be overwhelmingly prepared — so you can improvise when you're overwhelmed, like the best TED speakers do. 

"You have to know the arc of what you want to say so that it comes out even when you're super nervous," Hewlett says.

The takeaway: signaling that your capable — showing that you have executive presence — is a lot like a duck gliding across the water. Above the surface it looks relaxed, but take a look underneath, and those feet are pedaling hard.

From Entrepreneur

5 Things To Do Before Bed That Will Jump Start Tomorrow

Being effective as an entrepreneur is often about hard work, but even more importantly it’s about smart work.

Great entrepreneurs know that time is limited and valuable, so they need to make the most of each waking hour.

There are many factors that contribute to working smart — but planning and proper sleep are among the top performance increasers.

To maximize your time and efficiency, here are five essential and easy things you should do before bed that will make help transform your waking hours into super productivity.

1. Take a look at your calendar.

As the saying goes, failing to plan is planning to fail. By reviewing your calendar the night before, you’ll know what’s ahead for the day so you can be prepared and plan for the best method to tackle your objectives. You’ll sleep better knowing that you’ve already planned for the day ahead and you’ll rise in the morning knowing that you’ve already taken care of the leg work to get a jump start on the day.

There’s another old saying, “If you don’t use your head, you’ll end up using your feet,” and that proverb goes a long way for productivity! Come up with a strategy the night before on how to tackle tomorrow.

2. Get the gym bag ready.

Whether you go to the gym, run in the neighborhood or walk your dog, have your exercise gear out and ready to throw on for when you wake up. Getting your clean clothes together and ready is a life hack lots of entrepreneurs use to minimize the risk of skipping their workout.

It only takes a minute to lay out your gear, but it’s a great shortcut for making sure you get your fitness in every morning. Taking care of your health is an important part of the entrepreneurial lifestyle.

3. Turn off your phone.

Sleep is a crucial part of the successful entrepreneur’s healthy lifestyle. Once you’ve checked your calendar and you know what’s ahead for tomorrow, put the phone on silent or turn it off to ensure it doesn’t beep, chime or ring and disturb your REM cycle. Disruptions to your sleep will leave you tired and slow your performance.

To keep your productivity at its highest level, make sure you eliminate any hindrances to your sleep cycle. That email or text message can wait until tomorrow. Turn off your phone or put it on silent to ensure a good night’s sleep.

4. Write in your journal.

No, not the “dear diary” kind of entries. Keeping a journal is a practice that can help you process the day and make sense of your thoughts. Keep your journal in the nightstand and every night take a few minutes to review the day’s triumphs and write down what you’re grateful for that day.

Don’t make this a boring, unthoughtful experience. Think of it as a nightly meditation — just two minutes of reflection thinking about the day’s highlights and writing them down will transform your waking and sleeping thought. It’s part of a wealthy lifestyle to appreciate all the great things of the day: doors held open, great conversations had.

Whatever the highlight, list it and prepare your mind for great sleep.

5. Read a real book.

One last thing to contribute to your good sleep is to read a quality book. You can decide what a quality book is to you, but reading before bed is a great way to make that final transition into sleep.

It will also keep you away from bright lights and electronics (hint: don’t read on your phone or tablet, the light might disrupt your eyes and affect your sleep cycle) and soothe your body into the sleeping process.

From Business Insider

Why Entrepreneurs Need to Put Away Their Smartphone

Entrepreneurs today face an expanded risk of multitasking their lives away. The tools that were supposed to enable everyone to work a four-hour workweek have doomed us to never leave the office.

Today’s entrepreneur is always within reach of customers, employees, suppliers, etc. The technology in the palm of our hands provides the ability and risk of always having one more thing to do (which inevitably leads to more things to do).

When used correctly, this can be such a great benefit.

However, you must set boundaries and allow yourself time dedicated to the people and activities that are important to your life outside of the business.

The old adage nobody on their deathbed has ever said “I wish I had spent more time at the office” should be replaced with the phrase that nobody on their deathbed has ever said “I wish I spent more time on my smartphone.”

I find that my within my family, we often discuss how frequently we look at our phones and how they are a distraction to our family life.

We try to set limits on when we use our devices and allow ourselves more time to interact face to face or simply put the phone down and go to bed.

Eric Thome is the president and CEO of Folbot, a manufacturer and retailer of folding kayaks. He is also the founder of GameDayBlazers.com.

From Wall Street Journal