Three tips for success in 2013

As 2012 comes to a close, many of us are likely looking at ways to improve ourselves personally and professionally going into the new year.  This includes reflection on what was accomplished during the past twelve months, along with looking for areas of improvement.  Here are three simple tips that I am going to utilize and I hope you find some value in them as well -->

1) Line up your first putt on the practice green as one you can make.  I learned this from my college golf coach and it is applicable on the course as much as it is in everyday life.  So many people head to the practice green, drop 3-4 balls from 20 feet away, and start firing away to see if they can make a long one first.  This is not a good way to ensure success in my opinion.  Golf is such a mental game that you really need to hear the sound of the ball hitting the bottom of the cup from your first putt.  Then back up and start looking at more difficult putts.  Same can be said of your goals for next year.  Although "thinking big" is a noble idea, start with something you know you can accomplish.  Maybe consider putting in different levels of the same goal, but make sure at the core of your goal that it is something you are certain you can do.

2) Try something you have never tried before.  In the past twelve months I have done at least two things I never thought I would do - start a blog and open a Twitter account.  I will admit that I am much better at the former than the latter, but at least I am off to a good start.  This was accomplished in concert with us launching our new website and surrounding ourselves with more resources than ever before.  The results have been astounding and hopefully will be even better in the future.  I had all of the excuses that people often have with social media, including at the top of the list my concern that it simply wouldn't work.  You won't know unless you try and I recommend to all of my candidates to improve their brand on social media outlets.  There are benefits for everyone if conducted in the proper manner.

3) Be memorable.  This is actually my top personal goal for 2013 and can have so many practical applications.  But it also comes with a fair amount of risk as you have to put yourself out there a bit.  It also requires some planning and forethought.  Unless you have an amazing ability to adjust on the fly, you will have to think about this one ahead of time.  How do you want to be remembered -- as the person who worked hard than anyone else?  That you were the most creative and aggressive in finding new ways to improve workflow and efficiency?  Perhaps that you chose to be nice to absolutely everyone, regardless of what they have done to you in the past?  This goal also has to be in direct relation to #1 from above.  You can stretch yourself if you want, but try to find ways to be memorable that you can repeat early and often.  Lastly, you have to be intentional.  Just like saying you will lose twenty pounds seems easy on January 1, it may not seem so fun by February 1.  Be sure you are staying committed to the theme as much as the actual execution on a daily basis.

I would love to hear from you if you think there are other ways to be successful in 2013.  Sharing of information in this day and age is an incredible thing and there are many platforms to do so.  My hope is that by taking some of these steps you will have an even better year in 2013 than you did in 2012.  I know that is exactly what I intend to do!

You get what you pay for - how to justify paying more for a qualified candidate

Over the weekend we took our son shoe shopping for new basketball shoes.  He prefers regular running/athletic shoes to the hi-tops that we purchased last year.  Upon arrival at the store we immediately found several name-brand pairs that cost more than we had intended to spend.  But he really liked the style and they way they felt on his feet.  We decided to just pull the trigger and were about to leave the store when he found one more aisle.  He exclaimed that he found "the pair" when he saw the shoes you see in the captioned photo.  They were an off brand, 1/3 the cost of the other pair we had agreed upon, and clearly a lower quality shoe.  He was convinced, however, that this was the pair for him.

Because they were brand new, we let him wear them around the house to break them in.  So far he has complained about the hardness of the heel, lack of support, difficulty in tying them, and overall is unhappy with the performance of the shoe.  He loves the way they look, but is beginning to realize the quality just isn't there.

How often do employers make this same mistake?  Hiring the employee that looks good from a 30,000-foot perspective, perhaps with a few shortcomings, but they are overlooked because the salary requirements were under budget.  While at the same time not wanting to hire the employee that is clearly a better choice, but just simply costs too much or might take a little longer for the return on investment.

One client really brought this to light for me last week, which is why I am blogging about this topic today.  As they outlined what they want to see in their next hire, they were adamant about the fact that money was NOT  going to be a determining factor.  Although tough to quantify in black and white numbers, they were convinced that hiring inferior quality candidates in the past cost them more productivity and profit than if they had just hired the right people from day one.  It can impact balance with the team, trust with producers who depend upon internal staff, unrest among customer service if paired with a bad producer, and the list could go on and on.

Don't hear what I'm not saying - salary requirements do not always determine the value of a candidate.  It is possible in today's market to find an incredible candidate at a lower price in some cases.  But if your final decision comes down to price, you will lose far more often than you will win.

p.s.  I will keep you posted in weeks to come whether or not these shoes make my son run faster and score more points, like he is convinced may still happen.......