Saturday 24 November 2012

Always place people above profits

A wise person once said that you will not meet the ‘right’ person to marry one day until you yourself become the ‘right’ person.

True words indeed. Similarly, I believe that it also applies to business. You cannot have a successful (‘right’) business until you yourself acquire similar thinking and habits of successful (‘right’) entrepreneurs.

You have to have business role models like Richard Branson and in my case, I wanted to become a Raymond Ackerman (I also studied the life story of Harry Oppenheimer). Raymond has always fought for customer service and he believes that you should always place people above profits. Read the latest newspaper article about him
here- Former Pick n Pay CEO says people are a priority - Weekend Argus 24-11-2012

At the start of my business career, I was obsessed with making money and paid only lip-service to the importance of client service. When I saw my client, I saw money. I did not care much about the service they were getting from my teaching. I cared little if they understood the functions and tools of the particular computer programme which I taught. I was already calculating the profits I was going to make from my next student.

Three years later, (1996) I lost my business and I had to start all over again. I learned some hard yet valuable lessons. I then got myself a mentor and he suggested that I get a business role model and study that person’s life.

I had to learn from the life stories of successful leaders, the business principles they applied and I had to strive to do the same.(years later, I still regularly meet with my mentor to discuss business growth as well as my personal growth).
Once I had adopted the principle of ‘always place people above profits’
I had to change my inner-world (thoughts) until I truly believed it with my whole heart.

This was a slow process at first, but I knew I had to change. I was determined to become the ‘right’ business person.

Today, I can truly say that I have a passion for my students. I have the compulsion inside of me to see that each and every person that I teach will always walk away understanding 100% of what I have taught them. That is why today, I focus only on one-to-one training and FREE consecutive repeated classes until all course content is fully understood and the student can apply it. For some students this takes 3 weeks and for others it might then take 6 weeks and yet they pay the same course fee.

This is to illustrate the length I will go to for my student.
You see, I not only had to change my business model, but I had to change who I was as a person.

Gentle reader, if you want success in your business, you must be willing to CHANGE. This change has to come from within which is vital for success.

If we are not prepared to adopt similar thinking and habits of
successful entrepreneurs, we will probably experience a longer
and tougher road to success.

The good news is that you can change who you are by...
changing the way you think and then by
changing the habits you form.
Adopt the thinking and behavior (habits) of your own business role model.
You and I can change who we are if we really want to; we are not robots -we are not "programmed".We do not purely follow our instincts and habits like animals. We have free-will; we can make our own decisions.

Choose to become the ‘right’ business person….right now.

Friday 23 November 2012


While every dream starts small, every dream begins with the first step.Once the first step is taken, be obsessed to “Finish The Race”.

Many people start on the journey of their dreams with great gusto, only to stop when the short-term results are not as they expected.
If you begin, you can finish. Don’t be tempted to give up half way when challenges come your way. Keep finding different ways to go past, around or through obstacles that prevent you to move forward.
There are people who put their dreams in a little box and say, Yes, I've got dreams, of course I've got dreams. Then they put the box away and bring it out once in awhile to look in it, and yes, they're still there. These are great dreams, but they never even get out of the box.

I always had many excuses for not starting my own business. Yet I had a dream of owning my own business ever since I left school. Then one day I woke up and realized I had turned 30 years old and still did not start. It was then that I took the plunge and never turned back ever since.

Sure, there was many hard lessons along the way and even when I ended up working full time, I still continued to work on my business part-time in the evenings and over weekends.
This life is yours for the taking. You only get one chance to live the life of your dreams. This is not a dress rehearsal. You have to continue to press toward your dreams even when your family or friends don’t have the belief that you have. You have to motivate yourself daily.

Pick up that motivational book. Speak to achievers. Motivate and energize yourself.
 Don’t wait for someone to come along and inspire you. Go out and inspire others with your positive attitude and strong self-belief.
Go to work each day and refuse to do the same thing you did yesterday—just because it was what you did yesterday. Keep challenging yourself to think better, do better and be better. Shake things up. Confront your limitations. Refuse to be average.
Think your way to the top. You should spend some time every day just thinking… Not writing or talking to others about your dreams but just in the quiet peace of your own presence. Let your imagination illustrate your future on the screen of your mind.
It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting. Before a dream is realized, we are tested in everything that was learned along the way. This happens not because Life purposely want things to go wrong for us, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we have come to learn as we have moved toward that dream.

Only as high as I reach.............. can I grow, 
Only as far as I seek.................. can I go, 
Only as deep as I look............... can I see,
Only as much as I dream........... can I be. 
-Karen Ravn

Enjoy the journey of your life and don’t stop until you reach your dreams.
http://www.calvinbusiness.co.za/calvin_articles_every_dream_starts_small.html

Saturday 10 November 2012

What makes you tick?

Have you noticed that successful entrepreneurs seem to know what makes them tick....
they know what they want and they know how to get there.


 Only once you truly know yourself, will you be able to fully tap into your strengths & abilities each day, regardless of negative people and circumstances.

 As an example, let me quickly give you some of my goals for which I need lots of strength and energy. It’s a good idea to list your own.

Firstly, I make a point, every day, to be productive from an online marketing perspective. My focus is to become educated to the point where I am able to fully understand and fine-tune my online marketing strategies.

Because there are so many successful online marketing strategies, I needed to choose a specialist area / method that complimented my passions and personal strengths.

I decided to select something where I could jump in head first, have fun, work hard and begin to really make a difference.

By focusing daily on my chosen subject of focus (which is business principles and web marketing in particular), I am able to build a solid foundation for the dramatic growth I have come to expect.
Life is always full of ups & downs but it is your ability to remain up and focused when you are going through a down that helps you to sail through the hurdles of life.

 I need to know what I am passionate about and what makes me tick. Do you truly know yourself? You can’t appreciate yourself if you don’t know yourself.

Know your abilities, disabilities, talents, strengths & weaknesses. Do NOT compare yourself and your achievements with others who might have achieved much more. Stay true to yourself.
 Did you wake up this morning and still have the same drive to succeed as a few years back?
Do NOT dilute your DREAM by disappointments.

Have a clear vision and set realistic targets. It is pointless to attempt to achieve what you do not have the resources or natural ability to achieve. Dream BIG but set small achievable targets each day.
 I am confident and comfortable in my own skin. I know what makes me tick! I know what I want and how to get there.

Gentle reader, now is neither the time to give up nor get complacent. It is the time for you and me to stay motivated, focused and then step up a gear.

Read all my Blogs here:
http://www.calvinbusiness.co.za/calvin_articles.html