Making change in 2012

What are your goals for 2012? What can you ACTION to improve YOU?


For me it's all about better life balance, so I am completely re-shaping my routines. The big challenge is, we (humans) are creatures of habit, so in order to break my existing habits and routines, I am even going to the extent of changing my alarm time by 15 min for no other purpose then to break my existing routine.


I have done this before about two years ago after finding myself in a bit of a rut within my job, and to prepare for the birth of my first child. As a result the past two years have been super productive for me, both personally and professionally.
However lots of things have changed in two years and as Marshall Goldsmith says "what got you here, won't get you there", so I need to adapt to those changes to ensure I remain productive and continue to achieve my goals.


In addition and Only My Opinion, make sure you focus on ACTIONS. Read almost anything on setting goals and you'll inevitably come across the SMART model, that states goals need to be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant (meaningful), and time specific. I agree 100% with this, but I find people don't put enough focus on the actions, and as result they never break old habits that allow them to action the new ones and will help them reach their goals.


As simplistic as this sounds nothing will actually change until you yourself take action and make the changes. something that helps me is remembering Albert Einsteins definition of insanity "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results". 

So what's your focus in 2012, what are your goals, what are you going to ACTION?

Leadership Catch Phrase

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What has been the catch phrase of your leadership career?

I have always been a fan of the phrase “Think long term, Act short term”, I think it was something my father told me. I believe it embraces two key aspects of good leadership which I’ll summarise like this: have a long term plan/strategy – it’s essential for creating a clear vision for your business and your team; but, act short term – it’s no good having a plan that no one executes, if you spend too much time thinking about the future, you’ll forget about the importance of NOW.

As a side note to that, and of course only my opinion, for the most part, achieving a plan or executing a strategy means lots of hard work and the people who lead the charge and show they're not afraid to get their hands dirty, will always achieve the greatest organisational momentum, both in the short and long term.

Thoughts, Comments, Abuse

No more Mondayitis

It's Sunday night again, and in less than 9 hrs, I'll be back at my desk at work, shortly there after, my staff will arrive. Most will be flat from a big weekend of socialising and looking for excuses to delay the working week. So what can you do (as a manager/leader) to help get your staff focused and pumped for the week ahead?

This is primarily a question of attitude, and I can't help but recite one of my all time favourite quotes which comes from Remember The Titans "attitude reflects leadership". It reminds me that if I want to see change in my team, I first need to assess the way I am behaving and how that might be affecting my team.

So the first thing you need to do is make sure you yourself are in the right mood. Make sure you've got a smile on your face, get in slightly earlier so you can have your morning coffee and a bite to eat before your staff get in. Think about what your going to say when people ask you about your weekend, ensure it's positive. Most importantly however, be really clear on what your goals for the week are, and what you want you and your team to achieve. So after the pleasantries, share the weeks goals with the team, and frame the importance and benefits of completing tasks.

Ensure you're not dishonest about your feelings, people see through that and you'll only lose credibility. No one (or at least very few) is all that happy about having to get through a pile of paper work or deal with customer complaints. Most however can buy into the benefits of getting it done and out the way, so focus on that. "I want to get those creative briefs done this morning so we can really focus on the xxxx proposal,and nail that account"

If you struggle to get your head in the right place with your current routine, make changes, find something that helps you clear your head or puts a smile on your dial. Being a radio man I should probably say "tune into your favourite radio station" but it might be a quick walk around the block, or jump onto You tube and watch another ridiculous cat video.

So if you want to get more out of your Mondays for you and your team remember "attitude reflects leadership"

Only my opinion.

Who Am I?

Welcome to my blog "Only My Opinion". Before I share some of my opinions with you, I feel it's important to share a little about me, who I am, and what has influenced me throughout my life. After all, as the saying goes, "Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one", so it is important to know how mine have been shaped (opinions that is).

So the relevant stuff.

On a personal note I come from a very diverse family, in which no one person is born in the same country.
My upbringing was simple, nothing in life comes free or easy, family is everything, everything else simply serves to strengthen the family (family extends to close friends too). Nothing is unachievable if you want it enough and are willing to work for it, and failing is ok - just don't make the same mistake twice.

I have spent the last 16 years (in one form or another)in sales, 1 year as a door to door salesman,6 years running my own business and the last 8 and a bit, in media as a senior account manager and Group Sales Manager selling advertising.

I love what I do, and have very much become a student of my art form, both on the sales side and also the managment and leadership side of it.

Like many in my game, I am highly ambitious and competitive, and like to think I am right most of the time (my wife would say all of the time)!!

However what I have realised is, the older I get the less I know. So I continue to study and learn as much as I can about my trade, and in my opinion there is no point learning if you are not going to practice and share what you've learnt, or this case, how you use that knowledge to shape your own opinions on things.

On that note, my intent is that this blog is a place for sharing, so I welcome all thoughts, comments and abuse.

Finally, I am proud of being a salesman; I detest the stereotype of the used car salesmen and believe that GOOD sales people are some of the most effective and effecient leaders, managers and operaters there are.

Thanks, and I hope you enjoy "Only My Opinion".