Wheel of Life Podcast: Business|Productivity|Accountability

This is Anne Bachrach here. I really appreciate all your support over the past 12 years by listening to my Wheel of Life Podcast. I wanted to let you know that I will not be continuing this Wheel of Life Podcast going forward and I will be consolidating it into The Accountability Podcast. The good news for you is that The Accountability Coach Podcast has the same great content you have been enjoying and provides you with the same value you have been receiving over the past 12 years. In other words, when you subscribe to The Accountability Coach Podcast, you will continue to get the same great content you have been enjoying. So, take a minute now and Subscribe to The Accountability Coach Podcast, which can be found on most Podcast Platforms and in most English-speaking countries. Once you have subscribed to The Accountability Coach Podcast, and you feel you have been continuing to get value from my podcast, please take a moment and leave me a rating and review on The Accountability Coach Podcast. Of course, I would really, really appreciate it. I look forward to having you join me on The Accountability Coach Podcast going forward and I very much appreciate your continued support. If there is anything I can do to be of service to you, please don’t hesitate to let me know by going to www.accountabilitycoach.com and leaving me a voice message or sending me an email. I wish you the very best life has to offer, and hope for your continued success in business and in life. Thank you again for all your support over the past 12 years. Take care and stay healthy. Always remember to Aim for what you want each and every day. Want more of the same great content and value, subscribe to The Accountability Coach™, Podcast and continue to get the same great business success tips, by going to https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/accountabilitycoach.com/id290547573. You can also find me on most Podcast platforms and in most English-speaking countries. Take advantage of all the complimentary business tips and tools by joining the Free Silver Membership on https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/coaching-store/inner-circle-store/. Check out all the great free high-content business success training web classes, by going to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/free-articles/free-webinars/. Check out my high-value Blog (https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/blog/) Subscribe to my YouTube channel with business success principles (https://www.youtube.com/annebachrach) Connect with me on Linked-In (https://www.linkedin.com/in/annebachrach) Connect with me on Pinterest (https://pinterest.com/resultsrule/) Connect with me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/annebachrach/) Connect with me on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TheAccountabilityCoach) Go to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com to check out for yourself how I, as your Accountability Coach™, can help you get and stay focused on you highest payoff activities that put you in the highest probability position to achieve your professional and personal goals, so you can enjoy the kind of business and life you truly want and deserve. As an experienced accountability coach and author of 5 books, I help business professionals make more money, work less, and enjoy even better work life balance. Check out my proven business accelerator resources by going to https://www.accountabilitycoach.com/coaching-store/. Aim for what you want each and every day! Anne Bachrach The Accountability Coach™ Business professionals and Advisors who utilize Anne Bachrach’s proven business-success systems make more money, work less, and enjoy better work life balance. Author of Excuses Don’t Count; Results Rule, Live Life with No Regrets, No Excuses, the Work Life Balance Emergency Kit and more. Get your audio copies today.

Ask any successful business owner and they will tell you one of the number one rules to optimizing the success of a business starts with producing effective results with the greatest efficiency. This may not seem like a concern if you don’t own your own business, but even as an employee, or business professional, your success is riding on your ability to perform with the greatest effectiveness and efficiency. Whether you are an employee or business owner, it is your goal to be as effective as you can with the greatest efficiency. If you are an employee, the more effective and efficient you are, the greater asset you present to your employer. As a business owner, the more you can optimize these two factors, the greater return on investment you will realize in your business. So, how do you improve your career or business by improving effectiveness and efficiency? Let's begin by reviewing the difference between the two terms: Effective - Producing a decided, decisive or desired effect. Effective emphasizes the actual production of or the power to produce an effect or result. Efficient - Acting or a potential for action or use in such a way as to avoid loss or waste of energy in effecting, producing or functioning. Effectiveness is the building block, while efficiency is the process of refinement. The better you become at effecting positive results with the greatest efficiency of effort, the bigger asset you become - and so does your business. Optimizing effectiveness and efficiency doesn’t have any relation to IQ or intelligence levels, it‘s really an awareness of your habits. It’s a delicate balance between effecting positive results with the least amount of energy expenditure. This essentially means that you expend the least amount of energy with the largest return - while effectively creating the desired result. Take Henry Ford for example, here is a man that was not well educated, but knew that in order to build a successful business he needed to be effective and efficient. Granted, Ford had other skills that contributed to his success, but he was obsessed with optimizing the effectiveness and efficiency of his assembly line in the interest of the success of his company. This obsession led to constant production procedure refinements that were unheard of at the time. Ford understood that quality effectiveness and high efficiency were vital to building the best car with the least amount of wasted energy. Over a century later, Ford built one of the largest and most successful car manufacturers in the world. While many of his peers at the time thought his ideas were impossible, his innovations still remain a standard in modern day car manufacturing today. Optimizing your effectiveness and efficiency is vital to your success even if you are not a Bill Gates, Donald Trump, or Henry Ford. Your personal life depends on it and so does your professional life. Let’s start by discussing improving effectiveness. What does this actually mean? In the most basic terms, you must first learn how to create positive effects, change or results; though by definition you could be effective at producing negative effects. However, our focus is on becoming proficient at producing positive effects. The better you become at effectively creating desired results, the better your personal and professional life becomes. So how do you know if you are being effective? The first step is to ask yourself what kind of actions you are taking. If the goal is to produce a desired result, every step between the initial action and completed action needs to be in support of the desired result. Recall a situation or project that produced a less than optimal result. If you go back through the series of actions that led to the result, can you pinpoint what might have triggered the shift from the direction of positive results to non-effective results? When the “trigger” can be identified, you can learn from

Sure, many entrepreneurs say they are committed to their success, but are they really? When it comes to commitment to your success, there has to be a “no excuses - no exception” rule to back it up. This rule is especially true for entrepreneurs, simply because there is no one to point the finger at should things not work out as planned. As an entrepreneur, you are the one holding the key to your success and no one, but you, can be held accountable. Once you make a commitment to something, there absolutely has to be a “no excuses - no exception” rule, because that is the only rule that separates the failures from the successes. Imagine what would happen if you were to commit to your success only 99% of the time: - 1% percent of your clients would be unhappy with your product or service and proceed to tell 10 of their friends. Those people would proceed to tell their friends they had a friend that had a bad experience. This could translate into dozens of lost clients and thousands in lost revenue. - 1% of your printed marketing materials (or online marketing material) were published with spelling and grammar errors. This has a devastating effect on any business with a poor perception from the public and potential clients. - 1% of the time you don’t answer your email from a prospective client within 24 hours. You respond a few days later, but learn they have taken their business to someone who responded promptly. See how much of a difference there is between 99% and 100% commitment? Although 1% doesn’t sound like much, reaching 100% commitment at every opportunity is not always easy. The only way to truly hold a reputation for commitment is by consistently demonstrating 100% to each and every task. Once genuine commitment is displayed, your success is inevitable. There are two rules when it comes to your success, and a sure-fire way to catapult your success, but they only work when you are 100% committed! Rule #1: 100% Commitment to Achieving your Goals There may be many opportunities for excuses and exceptions, but under no circumstance do you waver from what you truly desire. Ever. What do you do if your life doesn’t support your goal achievement? In all honesty, there’s no easy way around it - some changes will have to be made. Sometimes those changes are easy, and other times they’re not, especially when there are others to consider. This is no more true when you have a spouse/significant other and/or children. After all, every action you take has the potential to affect them. You may have to do some soul searching and find out if you can make changes that will allow you to commit to your goals, while doing the least amount of discomfort to those that will be directly affected. If you choose to commit to achieving your goals, do not settle for anything less. Rule #2: 100% Commitment to Never Ending Improvement The second key to your success, is committing to never ending improvement. You may be better than you were yesterday, but in no way are you better today than you will be tomorrow. Taking a humble approach to learning is one of the best ways to set yourself up for success. Use every action and reaction as an opportunity to learn how to do things better next time. In addition, surround yourself with as many positive role models as you can. Watch, listen and learn from successful entrepreneurs that have gone before you; what you learn can result in huge shifts in your perception and life. When you are facing obstacles or challenges, do not allow self-doubt, fear or frustration to sway your commitment. In fact, during these times, it is more important than ever to remind yourself why your goals are important to you. Reconnect with the emotions that are the driving force behind your goals and you’ll remember why you are taking the steps in the first place to make changes. Remember, your commitment to your success not only benefits you, but those around you, and the world as well.

If there is one thing that holds the most power over your success, you can bet that it comes down to your beliefs. Before you even have the opportunity to consciously process the reason behind your actions, and the results those actions put in play, your beliefs are at work determining whether you are headed toward success or disaster. There are literally tens of thousands of actions you take daily (some consciously, most unconsciously), but do you know how those actions are affecting your success? You can probably think of at least one action that you have taken in the past that didn’t necessarily deliver the results you desired. With conscious awareness, you have the ability to examine and identify what went wrong, and what you could change to bring about a different result next time. This is an example of conscious awareness. But what about all those times you make unconscious decisions that bring about undesired results. How do you stop them from occurring? Let’s explore 6 tips for helping you master your beliefs and head for success. Tip #1 You are only as successful as your beliefs Are your beliefs supporting your success? The most definitive way to know whether your beliefs are leading to success or disaster is to examine what you say to yourself. Do you typically think to yourself that you will be successful or that there’s no use in trying, because it will never work. The nature of your belief system – positive or negative – will be the single greatest determining factor in your success, so you had better start thinking success. When the negative talk starts swirling in your head, just cancel it out – sweep it out – delete it. Focus on the positive (and what you really want) and remember that your success is completely dependent upon you and you alone. Although you can allow talk from those around you to negatively affect your progress, no one can prevent you from achieving your goals. The determining factor is always and only your ability to hold true to your belief in yourself. There is always a way, so take a “no-excuses” approach to achieving your goals and you will achieve them. The way isn’t necessarily apparent, and if you feel like you’ve hit a roadblock - get creative. You’d be surprised how you can come up with some creative and effective solutions when you think outside the box. The idea is to maintain an element of creativity when coming up with solutions, so you are constantly expanding your belief system. Tip #2 Take ownership of your life Are you the driver or passenger in your life? Don’t think for a second that sitting in the passenger seat is going to get you where you want to be. If you want to be successful, you have to make plans, take action and commit to achieving your goals. Surrendering the wheel to the “luck of life” will not give you peace of mind, but it will mean you’re in for a rough ride. When you give up control, you are at the mercy of whatever life throws at you, and you will most likely get everything you do not want. Success only comes from those who drive their own life. Don’t just take things for granted. Create a game plan and focus on what you can control. YOU and your actions! Tip #3 Are you a victim or a master? There is one solid rule you can count on: successful entrepreneurs never think of themselves as victims. This is the major factor that separates the wealthy from the poor. The wealthy understand they are 100% responsible for their reality, making them masters of accountability. When there is no one to blame, there is no finger to point, and therefore, no crime. With no crime, there cannot be a victim. Period. There is something magical that happens when you take 100% responsibility for your own success – and that is a feeling of freedom. You are your own entity and you control your own destiny; it all starts with your beliefs. Tip #4 Consider the results if you do or don’t take action Becoming a conscious action taker takes

Becoming an entrepreneur can be one of the most unnerving ventures in your entire life. Just when you thought you knew it all, you find out you’re just a student trying to make the grade. So, what do you do when your confidence takes a hit? Follow these 6 tips we will be exploring for gaining even more confidence. 1. Start with what you know If you’re a new business owner, start with what you know. If you know your stuff, in and out, you’re bound to make a lasting impression with your clients and prospects. Create a specific outline to the benefits of your services or products, and then be sure to deliver what you’ve promised. Don’t worry about being the expert, just start with what you know because that’s where your greatest confidence lies. 2. Have an insatiable thirst for knowledge Your business will not survive unless you continually learn, nor will your confidence grow. When you don’t learn new things, you cannot offer expanded products or service, and that is a death sentence to your business. The market and demand are constantly changing and if you don’t change with it, you’ll be left behind. The more you know the more benefits you can deliver to your clients. Keep learning and you’ll keep gaining confidence. 3. Know your target audience Most entrepreneurs think they know what their clients need and want, but rarely do they truly understand how to market and deliver the right products and services to the right people. Invest in research so you have a full snapshot of your market. Without it, you can only hope for successful sales and business growth. Survey your clients and prospects to learn more about them. The more you know about them, the easier it will be to create products and services that deliver exactly what they’re looking for. Some resources for web surveys are surveymonkey.com, zoomerang.com, zohosurvey.com, surveygizmo.com, etc. Check out all the options and use the best one for your survey. 4. Try something new every day We all get used to routines, because we like to stay within our comfort zone. However, it’s staying within that comfort zone that keeps us from gaining confidence. Knowing what you know now will only get you so far – and I regret to point out, that is not very far. As an entrepreneur, you must constantly push yourself outside your comfort zone to learn and do more. This not only benefits you, but it also benefits your clients, which will only grow your business. “If comfort is your goal, success is NOT in your future.” --Bill Bachrach, CSP, CPAE 5. Have unwavering optimism There are only two outlooks you can have on life and in business. Either the world is your oyster or it’s out to get you. It is only the latter that will not support your success and confidence. If you are an entrepreneur and you think the world is out to get you, chances are it will deliver. Your perception is everything! Having an unwavering optimism will constantly be fed creative ideas to increase your success. Obstacles will melt, challenges will be seen as opportunity, and you will have peace of mind that you can conquer anything. 6. Success breeds confidence When you are facing a situation that takes you outside your comfort zone, keep taking steps forward. Even if you have to take baby steps, at least they are steps in the right direction. Trying something new isn’t always easy, but take action before the nerves have time to settle in. The longer you wait, the more your confidence wavers, and the likelihood you will talk yourself out of taking action increases. Remember, success breeds confidence, so if you have to take baby steps to make it to the finish line – that’s okay – just keep moving forward. Being an entrepreneur is not about being the expert, although you may one day reach that status. For the time being, focus on what you know and become the best at it that you can. Commit to learning more, so you can deliver more to your clients; and your business is bound t