The key to expanding your business or getting your next promotion, no matter what business you are in
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Some years ago, three brothers left the farm to work in the city. They were all hired by the same company at the same pay. Three years later, Jim was being paid $500 a month, Frank was receiving $1000, but George was now making $1500.
Their Father decided to visit the employer and find out the basis for the unequal pay. The employer listened to the confused Father and said, “I’ll let the boys explain themselves.”
Jim was summoned to the supervisor’s office and told, “Jim, I understand that Far East Importers has just brought in a large transport plane loaded with Japanese import goods. Will you please go over to the airport and get a cargo inventory?” Three minutes later, Jim returned to the office. “The cargo was one thousand bolts of Japanese silk,” Jim reported. “I got the information over the telephone from a member of the crew.”
When Jim left, Frank, the $1000-a-month brother, was called. “Frank,” said the supervisor, “I wish you’d go out to the airport and get an inventory of the cargo plane which was just brought in by Far East Importers.” An hour later, Frank was back in the office with a list showing that the plane carried 1000 bolts of Japanese silk, 500 transistor radios and 1000 hand-painted bamboo trays.
George, the $1500-a-month brother, was given identical instructions. Working hours were over when he finally returned. “The transport plane carried one thousand bolts of Japanese silk,” he began, “It was on sale at sixty dollars a bolt, so I took a two-day option on the whole lot. I have wired a designer in New York offering the silk at seventy-five dollars a bolt. I expect to have the order tomorrow. I also found five hundred transistor radios, which I sold over the telephone at a profit of $2.30 each. There were a thousand bamboo trays, but they were of poor quality, so I didn’t try to do anything with them.”
When George left the office, the employer smiled. “You probably noticed,” he said, “Jim doesn’t do what he’s told, Frank only does what he’s told, but George does without being told.
In this article I will teach you three ways you can make an impact like George, on your job, business, or personal life. Making an impact means seeing what needs to get done and taking the initiative to make sure it happens. When we take initiative, we take ownership of our decision-making processes and can proactively get things done. As we will share in depth later, initiative means on the surface, going the extra mile and completing tasks before anyone tells you to. Taking initiative requires foresight and the ability to teach yourself new skills, and, in the long run, it is a way to improve your professional life and reach your personal goals.
After reading this article you will have in your toolbelt, several tools you can use to take responsibility for your own success.
Take the lead
A lot of people shy away from taking the lead of out of fear. I was one of these people. I always felt in the past that if I took the lead and if all went poorly, that people would laugh, mock, and criticize me. I l have learned that people will laugh, mock, and criticize others regardless of their actions or inaction. The fear of what others might have said haunted me. My mentor encouraged me to begin putting myself out there a bit more. He reassured me that we all have strengths and weaknesses. He said that the best strategies for success involve leveraging our strengths while developing the gaps in our attitude and aptitude.
Leadership ability is like a muscle. The more we practice leading ourselves and others, the more natural it becomes. Here are four ways you can practice taking the lead:
1. Keep your word. When you say you will do something, do it.
2. Act with consistency, no matter who your audience is.
3. Be transparent.
4. Take responsibility for your actions, even if you are not proud of them.
Leadership styles vary and play a significant role in how we feel about ourselves (self-image) and how we interact with others (influence). The best leaders can adapt to situations and people. Becoming an effective leader takes time. Some individuals are naturally inclined to take the lead, while others are not and this is okay because like any other skill, leadership can be learned. Taking the lead is something anyone can do and improve upon.
Go the extra mile
If you want to excel, stop focusing on what is in it for you. Do not worry about whether it is fair to give more when you are not being compensated or recognised for it. Do not adopt the ‘it’s not my job mentality.’ This type of attitude shows that you are focused on yourself. You will see bigger results more quickly if you make other people the focus of your attention.
Going the extra mile shows that you pay attention to detail, that you consider all the small things that make individuals and businesses successful. To attract new opportunities, try asking these questions:
What do people expect?
To know how to exceed expectations, you first need to know what the baseline expectations are. Look at every important relationship and discover what the minimum expectations are.
Take a look at your performance. Do you exceed expectations?
Do you surprise people with more than they were expecting from you? Do you look for ways that you could be of more service, or for projects that you could help on? Are you or is your performance mediocre, meeting expectations or average?
How are you willing to go the extra mile?
What kind of extra service are you willing to provide to stand out from the rest? If you are not 100% willing to deliver service above and beyond expectations, why not?
What can you do to exceed expectations?
How can you better serve your employer? How can you provide more value? Hard workers become success stories. What could you accomplish if you make it a habit to exceed everyone’s expectations? Imagine what doors could be opened if you decided after reading this article to be of better service and value.
Speak up
Speaking up can be hard to do and is typically associated with raising concerns, however, innovation and growth similarly require us to share our ideas. Like taking the lead, fear is one of the biggest reasons we use to hold back our voice. Fear of ridicule, rejection, conflict, or confrontation. Many times, it is even fear of succeeding — standing out and being recognised positively can be just as uncomfortable for some. If you would like to go beyond the fears and stories that stop you, shift your mindset. Instead of thinking about what you might lose from speaking up, consider what you might gain.
If at any point you feel that you do not have all the information required to speak up, do not stop yourself there. Ask yourself, “Who can I talk to, where can I go and what questions can I ask to gain more clarity or information about this? Becoming aware of and using your voice in the world to promote positive change is one of the most empowering choices and commitments you can make.
When you are willing to take the lead, go the extra mile and speak up, you are willing to speak up without judgement of yourself or anyone else. You also become the inspiration for others to do the same. Your leadership and voice could be exactly what the world needs right now. Is now the time to show up and find out for yourself?
Eliot Kelly is recognised as a serial Entrepreneur, and has been featured on CNN, BBC, BBC Three’s Be Your Own Boss and an extensive list of magazines and articles.
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