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Nothing Fails Like Success
That's right...nothing fails like success. So what exactly does that mean?
Success in your business or career could be measured in a number of ways. The income you make, the number of years you have been engaged in your occupation, whether you are the boss or owner of your department or company. You may be surrounded by employees that affirm and support every decision you make and perhaps every word you utter. If it's not broke, don't fix it ...right?
Let's pretend you are sailing a boat, or better yet flying a plane and you have to navigate from one point to another. You determine a direction, set a course and head in the direction of your destination. If you are a good navigator, you take measurements along the way and make course corrections when your measurements indicate you are off course. But what happens if you never mapped out your voyage?
There are two kinds of change....the change that might happen...and the change that will happen. Those that accept the status quo because of current success without a plan about how to get to the future have few places to turn if something changes. You know...little things like economic change. If you sail along,... never examining what is making you successful and what you will have to actively engage in to keep you that way,... then nothing could fail like success!
The top 20% of the most successful businesses perform that way thanks to inspired leadership. Like a championship team they plan and develop so as to be able to respond to change and take advantage of opportunities by anticipating rather that reacting. The inspired will weather storms and thrive during adversity because of their planning and ability to respond.
The bottom 20% face crisis when change arises. Often poorly equipped and ill prepared to deal with change when the unanticipated transpires.
The middle 60% are satisfied with the status quo. It's good enough. Why change anything that works if it's always been done that way. The opportunity for payback on improvement is the greatest for this percentage of organizations.
I don't know about you, but too much of what I have ever learned in life was by making mistakes and growing from the lessons I learned. What lessons can you afford to learn by surprise? Especially in your career or business today?
Wes Wingfield is a Certified Business Coach and the President of Highest Ambition LLC, a Kansas City based organizational development company that specializes in leadership development, strategic planning and executive coaching; delivering what his clients want with a return on their investment. www.highestambition.com phone 816-589-6138 or write him at wes.wingfield@highestambition.com
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