Strategy Vs Belief (WT487)

Strategy Vs Belief (WT487)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 25 Oct, 2019 | Blog, Mindset

WT487 Strategy vs Beliefs

Jordan was recounting a story where he had met with his mentor. 

His mentor had given him some advice about how to resolve a situation. 

As I listened to Jordan I couldn’t help but wonder about the success of the suggested strategy. 

You see, I knew Jordan quite well. 

I knew that he knew that the mentor’s advice was correct and that he should take the action as suggested. 

I also knew that Jordan had a few limiting beliefs that were in direct opposition to the advice. 

Here’s an example: Let’s say you want to increase your income by $10,000, $100,000 or $1,000,000. The amount is irrelevant. You learn some sales strategies. You learn how to advertise and market your business or yourself (if you’re employed) and after a while you start to get disappointed because nothing is working. You haven’t increased your income at all. You’ve taken the action as prescribed. You were given the strategy from someone who had successfully implemented it. Why then, didn’t it work for you? 

The reason is because you have a limiting belief (maybe an unconscious belief) that “Money is hard to make” or similar. 

Your beliefs trump any action you take. Your beliefs trump any strategy. 

In this example, if you believe money is hard to make, then money will be hard to make. In other words, you will likely sabotage yourself. You’re setting yourself up for failure before you even begin because you are not aware of the beliefs that are holding you back. 

This is why it so very important for you to discover your limiting beliefs so you can change them and use a technique known as neuro sculpting to rewire your brain so that your beliefs are in alignment with what you want to achieve. 

As for Jordan, the mentor’s advice and strategy were spot on, however they didn’t yield the results Jordan wanted because the real work Jordan needed to do was to discover and change the limiting beliefs. That’s another conversation and not one that everyone is open to. 

Speaking of which, if you would like to know more about discovering your limiting beliefs and why things may not be working out for you, reply to this email and we’ll set up a 15 minute complimentary call.

Time is Irrelevant (WT486)

Time is Irrelevant (WT486)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 18 Oct, 2019 | Blog, Business

WT486 Time is Irrelevant

We hear people talk of time management and self management. 

There are any number of consultants and trainers that teach strategies for getting the most out of your day; remember we all have 86,400 seconds in a day and they can’t be banked. 

One of my mentors, David Bayer explains that, “Time is irrelevant but timing is everything”. 

What he means by this, is that there is no advantage in becoming overwhelmed with our To Do Lists. 

From a spiritual point of view, life corresponds with us. If there is something you earnestly desire and have a vision and belief that it will manifest, then all you need to do is to what you can do in a day, moving toward your vision and then surrender the rest. 

What you will mostly find is that many of the things you think you need to get done in a day, don’t have to get done, otherwise you would have done them. 

For the things that you didn’t get done, the universe will meet you half way and often help out with either new information that gives you an easier way to do it or you find it didn’t need to get done at all or someone shows up to help. 

As an example, I was freaking out about all the things on my To Do List and worrying about how and when I was going to get my accounts in order for the end of the quarter to be able to submit my BAS (an Australian requirement to submit tax collected on behalf of the government). 

Out of the blue my bookkeeper emailed me and asked how I was going with the accounts. Did I need any help?  Yes please.  She was able to get me an extension of time as well as help to complete a few of the tasks. 

Next time you’re freaking out and feeling overwhelmed, remember, simply get done what you can get done in the day and surrender the rest. Time is irrelevant but timing is everything.

What Can a Dog Teach You about Leadership (WT485)

What Can a Dog Teach You about Leadership (WT485)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 11 Oct, 2019 | Blog, Leadership

WT485 What Can a Dog Teach You About Leadership

The past few weeks, we have had the opportunity to “dog sit”. It has been a fantastic experience, especially when it comes to implementing the leadership training I provide for others.

The first night was a bit rough. I am assuming the dog was missing its owners. He didn’t understand where they were and who these two new people were, so he did his best to assert himself as the leader of the pack. 

The next morning, Ross and I decided that one of us had to assume the leadership role.

Here’s some leadership principles that the dog taught us:

  1. There can only be one leader.
  1. Consistency is key, especially if you make new rules.
  1. Praise and reward go a long way.
  1. You must be present and give people (and dogs) attention, lest they start looking for it in ways you would prefer they didn’t.
  1. Adaptability and flexibility are also key skills for success (survival).
  1. Gestures work better than yelling.
  1. Teaching new skills requires patience and good communication skills. Not everyone speaks your language.
  1. If somebody does something wrong, it’s best to discipline them straight away, in a firm and caring way.
  1. You must plan for and allow time for fun.
  1. Systems and routines help to maintain order and increase efficiency.
  1. Clean up your mess as you go.
  1. It’s ok for the leader to learn new skills as well.
  1. Sometimes you have to change the environment to change behaviour.
  1. How you structure your teams and choose your personnel can have a huge impact on the results. (The dog next door influenced our dog to dig holes so they could socialise together, and get up to all sorts of mischief, not to mention the possibility of truanting.)
  1. Your team know when you’re out of sorts. (I was sick with a cold over the weekend and he sat by my side the entire time, giving me great comfort and support.)

Who says an old dog can’t learn new tricks? I certainly did.

The dog we looked after was an 11 month old puppy, full of beans and energy and lots and lots of love.  The more attention he got, the more pats (Touch love language) and belly scratches, the better he behaved and the more fun we had.

Makes you think, who really was the leader and who learnt the tricks?

I’m Not a Bad Person (WT484)

I’m Not a Bad Person (WT484)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 4 Oct, 2019 | Blog, Mindset

WT484 I'm Not a Bad Person

Sally was sitting in the waiting room of the Doctor’s surgery.

Across from her was an older woman who looked like she had experienced some hard times.

Her hair was dishevelled, long and grey. Her clothes were ill fitting and her shoes needed mending.

She was on the phone talking very loudly, with the phone on speaker.

Sally couldn’t help but hear the conversation:

“I’m not a bad person,” the lady said.

“Why me? I’m starting to lose my faith. All these things have happened to me and it’s been a tough year.”

Sally cringed as she listened to the woman’s conversation.

“You may not be a bad person,” she thought, “But you do have bad thoughts.”

If only the lady knew what Sally knew about how the brain works and how we are responsible for what happens in our lives.

If only she knew that it was her limiting beliefs that were causing the thoughts, the feelings and her action or inaction, which produces her results. If she knew that, she would look deep into her limiting beliefs and change her thoughts so she could create a better future.

It’s our neuroscience and our vibrational reality that dictates what happens to us in our lives.

Bad stuff happens to us when our beliefs are out of alignment with what we want to create. Dr. Raymond Charles Barker calls this “unintelligent thinking”; not because we are stupid, rather because we are not tapping into the amazing intelligence that is all around and part of every one of us. You can call the intelligence God, the Universe, Consciousness, whatever you like.

The facts are that we are not bad people, however on occasion we do have bad thoughts and it’s these bad thoughts that create our misery.

Likewise, when we have good thoughts and operate in alignment with our empowering beliefs, we create amazing things for ourselves.

Your mission this week is to check in with your thoughts and feelings. If you’re not in a good place, see if you can identify the thoughts that may be causing you to feel this way. I’ll wager that there is a limiting belief behind them and it’s the limiting beliefs that we want to work on.

If you’re interested in knowing more or want to get rid of these beliefs that are holding you back, reach out and we can chat some more.

Dogs Don’t Discriminate (WT483)

Dogs Don’t Discriminate (WT483)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 27 Sep, 2019 | Blog, Mindset

WT483 Dogs Don't Discriminate

It was early morning and Ross was driving me to work with a client for the day.

I noticed a dog jumping all over a man who was sitting on the cold cement on a blanket.

The dog was on a leash and its owner was doing her best to pull the dog away, but it was having none of that. 

The dog clearly liked the man and continued to strain on its lead; tail wagging furiously and a big tongue doing its best to reach and lick the man’s face.

I was intrigued as I watched this and realised that the man appeared to be homeless, or at least he was begging.

Next to where he sat, he had two old crumpled cardboard boxes. I assumed they were to collect money or other donations.

He seemed to be enjoying the affections of the dog.

As we travelled past them, I couldn’t help but notice that dogs don’t discriminate.

They don’t know who is rich or poor. Who knows if they see fat or thin, big or small, different coloured skin and hair. They don’t know who is smart and who isn’t. They don’t know who works and who doesn’t. They mostly love and accept everyone.

Pity that the lady couldn’t allow the dog and the man to enjoy some affection.

What makes us discriminate?

How come we can’t behave more like dogs and be more accepting towards others?

Your action this week is to be mindful of your thoughts, feelings and actions and notice whether you find yourself discriminating or accepting others.

It’s Reception (WT482)

It’s Reception (WT482)

Blog

by Shirley Dalton | 20 Sep, 2019 | Blog, Customer Service

WT482 It's Reception

The phone rang.

“Hi Shirley, it’s Reception. Are you guys extending over the long weekend?”

I had no idea who Reception was, nor to what she was referring. 

I had to ask her, “Reception. Reception from where?” 

She didn’t give me the answer I was looking for. 

“Are you guys extending over the long weekend?” she repeated.

My mind was racing.

What reception? What about the long weekend?

Then it suddenly dawned on me. She was the receptionist at the caravan park we were staying at.

I was working onsite at a client’s premises and normally wouldn’t have even answered the phone, however I had forgotten to turn it to silent.

I realised she must have thought that I was sitting around in the caravan park and of course I would know who and what Reception was.

Wow! Talk about lack of communication and automatic listening. I was making up all sorts of things in my mind to explain this situation.

I couldn’t help but think that a little (or a lot) of phone technique or scripting was needed.

How about something like, “Good morning, I’m Julia calling from Your Favourite Caravan Park. I’m ringing to confirm whether you are planning on extending your stay to include the long weekend.”

If she had introduced herself, the company and reason for the call, it would have prevented my negative reaction, anxiety, confusion and anger.

Your customer doesn’t always know who you are or why you are calling. Your customer doesn’t always understand what you’re talking about or trying to communicate.

Here’s your action for this week: 

  1. Discuss how you would have reacted if you received the introduction I did from Reception?
  1. Discuss how your Receptionist would have handled the call?
  1. Review your policies and procedures and make sure you have your standard scripts documented. 
  1. Train and support your people.

Your business’ reputation is far more valuable than simply being referred to as  “Reception”. 

Pin It on Pinterest