Sincerely yours, Adam…

The word Sincere is derived from the combination of two Latin words; Sine, meaning “without” and Sera meaning “wax”. It was used to describe the quality and reliability of marble statues in Roman times – if a statue was “sine cera” it was without wax which could have otherwise been used to cover imperfections, scratches or cavities. As the Scots would say, it was the “real Mackay” later to become the “real McCoy…”
 

Are you Sincere, or can’t I tell you from Adam…

In previous life, I was involved with the design, development and manufacture or weapons for the British Military. These included rifles, assault weapons, machine guns and cannon from 5.56 to 30mm calibre…

These weapons were designed to be reliable, accurate and efficient; the whole idea of a gun is that it should be more dangerous to the person stood in front of it than the one behind it. These weapons were made out of the highest grade alloys and composite materials, the dimensional tolerances were so tight that they had to be finished by hand; they were capable of firing at a rate of between 650 and 1,700 rounds per minute – that’s between 10 and 28 per second…

Now if you imagine 28 rounds travelling at 1000 m/s with a combined weight of 7kg hitting a target every second – you begin to see how tricky it can be to build a machine that can achieve this, without hurting the soldier operating it…

This performance comes at a price, and if you are ever in the market for a gun or any sort, I recommend you don’t buy Cheap.

Don’t know you from Adam…

One of the projects I was involved with involved the collection and destruction of captured or counterfeit weapons. The trick sometimes was to actually be able to tell the difference between the real guns and those that were “copies”…

In the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan there is a town called Darra Adam Khel. This town is inhabited by Pashtuns, and is completely devoted to the manufacture of weapons and ordnance.

Although the machinery is old and out of date, and high grade alloys is not readily available, these workshops and “engineers” produce thousands of weapons ranging from pistols to anti-aircraft guns. All the weapons are copies of those in service with regular forces including the ubiquitous AK47, the M16 from the USA, and the SA80 from the UK.

When NATO forces capture weapons, including counterfeit ones, they have to be treated very carefully, not only can they be “booby trapped” but due to their poor quality they have to be destroyed.

Upon visual inspection the weapons made in Darra Adam Khel look exactly like the real ones, it is hard to tell the difference. One give away would usually be that the original manufacturers mark had been copied exactly onto a stamp, which when applied to the weapon meant that the text was in reverse. 

Detailed metallurgical and metrological examination would reveal that the materials were inferior and that the dimensions were out of specification too, but to the untrained eye they appeared identical.

Sincerely Yours…

In business we have the same challenge. If you are reading this then it is likely you are “sine cera” and the real McCoy, if you weren’t you wouldn’t have got this far…

But how do you educate your prospects that you are actually different from the others out there that simply imitate excellence, sell cheap and get away with it because at first look the differences cannot be seen..?

Shout about your excellence; tell people the things about you that you may take for granted, that you think they wouldn’t be interested in. List down the positive attributes that define and differentiate you and your business from the rest; why do you do what you do, how great you and your team are, the passion and dedication you apply to everything you do.

Then, send out the message to the world through blogs, videos, books and seminars. Get on stage and be world famous, become the face of your business and prove that; Sincerely, you are not from Adam…

Thanks for reading - if you liked this, please comment and circulate...

Check out our next event here LINK

Drop me a personal email to - davidholland@resultsrulesok.com

Everyone needs a B@$#ard File…

As an Apprentice Engineer, there was plenty of hilarity to be had by getting us to go to the Stores and ask for a variety of “engineering components” including;

• A Long Weight – always seemed to take ages...

• Box of Bright Sparks – self-explanatory I hope…

• Ball Pain – from Ball Pein hammer – and only worked once…

• Large Bastard File – as opposed to a small friendly one…

• 75H Pencil Lead –  metal wire not Lead at all...

• A parcel for Mr Don Kiddick – special delivery (say it fast…)

The one that I thought couldn’t be true was the “Bastard File” – however, it turns out that this was the only one that was actually accurate – it is the correct term used to describe a grade of file that lies between Coarse and Second Cut grades.

Whilst these journeys to the stores were a rite of passage for all Apprentices and were always intended to be just a bit of fun – as we go through life we recognise that some people don’t play nice and actually take pleasure in undermining and damaging the prospects and achievements of others, and then it is not so much fun.

How can we deal with these people – wouldn’t it be great to give them a Long Weight or even a Ball Pein for that matter…?

But we don’t, we let them into our heads affecting our daily routines, our emotions, relationships and results. We focus on them more than we focus on the people and opportunities that actually support us and enable us to move forward; they don’t deserve this amount of attention…

So, my 6 Rules for Success, Happiness and Everything…

Rule 1 - Non Illegitamus Carborundum …

 “Do not allow people of questionable parentage to have a negative effect upon you…”

Rule 2 – Trust your instinct …

It will usually be right and saves lots of time and heartache…

Rule 3 – Stay Close…

To those who love, like and respect you; they are the only ones who matter…

Rule 4 – Be the Authentic You…

It’s who you were designed to be; and it’s allowed… 

Rule 5 – Go for it…

You don’t need permission or approval; it is all about you after all…

Rule 6 – Get a Bastard File…

And archive all those that deserve it, together under the same heading and keep them out of sight and mind; you can also delete the file completely to make yourself feel even better.

It's like emptying your Recycle Bin - only so much more satisfying....

If you would like to come along to our next Event - we will be in the UK on Friday 12th July for our famous "Triple Your Profits by Christmas..." Workshop - click on the LINK to find out what great value this is and how to register your place..

The Business Success Formula…

We can measure plenty of numbers in Business…

 

From Sales, Gross Profit and Contribution, to Net Profit, Break Even and Cash Flow; but which one is the most important…?

Cash is arguably King – no business ever went under due to a lack of Sales or Profit, it is the ability to continue to service debt that essentially defines the longevity of a business. Provided that there is enough cash the business can keep going...

But what about some meaningful Operational Numbers…?

The hourly rates of our employees, productivity, efficiency and added value achieved per hour are all critical, but there is one that tends to be missing that is perhaps the most important of all.

What’s your Hourly Rate…?

Not the money you earn or charge to clients – but what is the Hourly Rate of added value that your Clients experience as a direct result of them working with you or buying from your company…?

For example…

We looked at the numbers of just one of our Kick Start Clients. In the first 6 months of 2013, the have generated £82,000 more income than they did in the same period of 2012.

During that time I have spent 1 hour a week with them on average – so that is around 25 Hours. So every Hour they invest with me this Client makes £3280.00 more money…

Another Client has improved Net Profits by €420,000 in the last 12 months, so that is around 50 Hours working with me; this client has made around €8000 more money for every Hour he invested with me…

If this is the case, how many hours do my clients want to invest with me..?

Lots – every time they invest an hour they benefit by 000’s…

How simple is it to sell a benefit of £3280 or €8000 per hour to someone rather than the “cost” of a Program..?

Very - if you were to make 000's every hour you invested with me, all the potential objections and excuses evaporate...

So I have two hourly rates – one is the rate that my Clients experience as a result of working with me, and the other is the effective cost per hour for my services.

My Business Success Formula looks like this – providing my Clients, for example, make at least £1000  every hour they work with me then they experience great Value – plus providing I charge less than the £1000 every hour - or whatever their individual results calculate, they are always ahead of the game and better of as a result.

My Business Success Formula looks like this;

Client Benefit / Hours Invested > £1000/hr.

or

Cb / Hi > £1000/hr.

Providing the Business Success Formula is achieved on a consistent basis, you will have happy and successful clients, you will have to start to Ration your services rather than Sell them, and your charges will be defined simply by how much value you deliver to your Clients – as it should be…

The Business Success Formula can be used in a variety for Business Sectors from Manufacturing to Recruitment, Consulting to Accounting and Legal Services - and the same benefits can be derived...

So the number one Operational Number, assuming Cash Flow is taken care of, may just be the Added Value per Hour achieved by your clients according to the Business Success Formula – but how many of us actually measure this, or have it as an operational objective for our teams..? 

The answer is; too few, and yet this one simple Operational Number could transform your business, sales, profits and ultimately your No 1 priority; Cash Flow.

How many have an agreement or objective with their Clients regarding what the Business Success Formula results will be, and then monitor them on a monthly or quarterly basis..?

How many of you are still competing on Price because you don't know the actual value you bring to your clients and get push back because the risk of working with you is perceived as too high...?

How many of you are thought of as a "cost" by your Clients, when you should be defined as an investment with a tangible return calculated accordingly...?

The answer here is; too many. 

The Business Success Formula is the simplest way to define your value proposition, differentiate you from your competition, and focus you and your team on continually improving the results your clients experience when they work with you.

Perhaps the Business Success Formula is King after all…

Have a great week... 

Our Next Live Events - come along and meet the Gang;

EU - Luxembourg - 21st June 2013 Click HERE to find out more...

UK - Birmingham - 12th July 2013 Click HERE to find out more...

You can always Email me at davidholland@resultsrulesok.com 

What a Tin of Gloss Paint can teach us about Success…

Before we get started, please do the following exercise…
 

In your mind think of the last THREE digits of your telephone number and write them down…

Now, answer this question and choose your answer from the options given;

In which year was Genghis Khan born…?

1. 1312
2. 878
3. 1285
4. 1162

Which answer did you choose...?

Did you go for the second answer – 878…?

If you did then it is likely that there was a reason for it. When I asked you to think of the last three digits of your telephone number, you were being “primed” to think in patterns of 3, so when there was uncertainty regarding the next task, you were attracted to the three digit date not a four digit date.

The correct answer is 1162, but unless you actually knew that, you may have been drawn to 878; and until now, you had no idea why…

We are all primed for something, the challenge is always that while we believe we are acting, choosing and deciding with free will, in reality our choices and decisions are being made for us by our subconscious mind way before we have any apparently conscious choice in the matter.

Priming happens from the moment we are born and continues through school, college and on into life; we are always making decisions based on our experiences. Our past does in fact dictate our future, and the future decisions we make can be predicted based upon the previous suggestions and experiences we have allowed our subconscious to register.

Of course, we don’t call it our subconscious – we call it intuition or instinct. 

We believe that we have an innate gift to choose what is best for us based on “gut instinct” or “feelings”. We are all guided by our subconscious mind, and yet we choose we continue to live behind the false and transparent shroud of free will in the belief that we are in control of our decisions and destiny.

So how can we fix this…?

In my role as a Coach, I challenge people’s choices, beliefs and assumptions in order that they can make better quality decisions. Essentially, I see things that they don’t; I have been “primed” in a different way to them.

This doesn’t mean I know any better than they do, just that I know different than they do and can offer an alternative view or choice that could deliver them a better result. 

I would also encourage people to check what they are being “primed” with…

Are you being “primed” with negative news stories, the limited aspirations of those around you, the voice inside your head that tells you that you are not good enough or not worthy…?

I saw an advert for a brand of gloss paint, and it said that it was “Self Priming” and that no base coat or undercoat was required; this is what we need to become – Self Priming…

We can choose what messages we allow into our minds, we can choose to make them positive, nurturing and encouraging so that we "prime" our subconscious to make a better quality of choice on our behalf.  We can “Self Prime” for success by reading, learning and associating with people who inspire us rather than conspire against us.

Your subconscious mind is will do exactly what it is told to do, believing that it is acting in your best interests; the opportunity we have is that we can take back our Free Will by simply choosing what we allow our subconscious mind to absorb and hence become Self Priming, if it works for a tin of paint, it may just work for us too...

You can also find out what the benefits of working with me as your Coach would be by simply dropping me an email to arrange a time to talk. davidholland@resultsrulesok.com

 

Or come along to one of our events to start your Self Priming journey – you could simply allow your subconscious to talk you out of it of course – but now you know different…

Click on the LINK to check out our Events Page – see you there…