What is Intentional gets done

What is Intentional gets done

Through my travels I coach people on actions and best practices to help move them and their organization to the next level. In many instances, on my next visit, none of the action items have been completed and therefore there has been no visible performance improvements. When I ask why the action items have not been done, I normally get something along the line of "we got busy". Life happens and at a rapid pace everyday; if we are not careful those things we intended to do get lost in the hustle and bustle. This rule doesn't just apply to the business world, but to everything in our lives; our marriage, raising kids, losing weight/getting healthy, our education, etc.

As the definition states, being intentional is an action that is done deliberately, consciously and on purpose. If we do not make something a priority and make a conscientious effort, then life will happen and it won't get done. I need to lose a few pounds (okay, maybe more than a few), I can wake up everyday and say I need to lose weight, but just stating the obvious will not make it happen. I can intentionally step on the scale everyday to see if my thoughts have helped me shed those pounds. Until I become intentional about what I eat and exercising regularly, nothing will change except the calendar. Being intentional requires a deliberate action to take place in order to achieve the goal.

I believe that having a regular date night with your spouse is important to a healthy marriage. My wife and I have been in those seasons in our life where date nights just did not happen. It was not until we put them on the calendar and made plans to off-load the kids at grandma's house, did those date nights start to happen (we still don't have enough of them). Being intentional requires some planning and conscientious actions to make it happen.

Nissan's Super Bowl commercial featured the story of a busy dad with the song "Cat's In the Cradle" by Harry Chapin. In the song, and the commercial, the dad was too busy with work to spend quality time with his son. If we are not intentional about the time we spend with or kids, just like in the song ('he learned to walk when I was away') and the commercial, we will look up and our kids will be grown and have their own busy lives that prevent quality time. One of my favorite things to do is build LEGO with my 7 year old (talk about therapeutic; I can build stuff, break stuff and build it back again). I try to be intentional about getting in the floor with him and digging through the bricks. I know that it is something that he will look back on and hopefully be intentional with his son, to stop and play. Being intentional with our kids requires us to "clock-out" at work and "clock-in" at home.

At work we are faced with a multitude of things to do everyday; there are the daily fires that we must put out, the sales that must get done, the employee issues and the unexpected. If we are not intentional about our efforts to improve or "fix" something, everyday stuff will get in the way. So many times we let "we were busy" get in the way of completing things that we know would make life, business or our health better. In today's world being busy is associated with getting things done, when many times it is just the world spinning around us. Be intentional and listen next time you ask someone what they have been doing; you will hear "I have been busy" more times than you can count. Being intentional means that we don't let life get in the way of the important things.

It is time to jump off the busy train and start being intentional about those things that are important to your business, your health and your relationships. What do you need to be intentional about today? Are you letting life get in the way or are you being intentional?

Success is a Journey

Having been in sales management and a youth baseball coach for many years, I have noticed several similarities between the two. Specifically, there is a certain path that business and players follow that leads to success or failure. As a reference point, imagine the youth player as the new business and the parents as the owner of that business. Don't get upset, I am not saying youth sports is a business; just follow along for a few minutes.

When the player/business first starts out, the parents/owners have dreams but they do not know the full potential of those dreams yet. In the beginning there are signs that things are good; sales are moving along, the player is enjoying baseball, employees are happy and the player is good. As good parents and business owners, we are active daily trying to develop and grow our dreams. The parent practices with the player and encourages him to listen to the coach and keep working. The business owner is active with customers and takes an active role training employees and instilling his vision. With each passing week the player and the business grow stronger and new milestones are reached. The player makes his first All-Star team and the business has a record year and edges out a competitor in overall sales.

Encouraged by the progress, some parents and business owners start to invest in their player/business. Additional training, better equipment and more encouragement and engagement in the progress. Yet there are others who are either content with the progress or just think that they have reached their peak. So they stop getting outside help, they stop training, a few less days in the store and a few more on the golf course. Things are seemingly still good, but the competition is getting stronger; training harder and looking for ways to improve.

The competitor down the street has a good month and we pass it off as a fluke; another player on the team has a better average and they just got lucky. The blinders are on and we can't look in the mirror and reflect on what is wrong; or worse we refuse to look in the mirror and instead blame it on outside factors; EXCUSES! Before we know it the other player is now the starting 3rd baseman and the competitor is beating us on a regular basis.

Tim Tebow, the NFL quarterback, says it best in his quote "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard". Stop and think about that statement and ask your self the question, have I stopped working hard? Have you relished in your accomplishments so long that the competition has caught up? We have heard it a thousand times, Success is a journey not a destination. We are either moving forward or moving backward; in life and in sports there is no such thing as sitting still. You may not be moving but your competition is!