Should I be Committed?

For many years, people have said that I am crazy.  As I found watching Alice in Wonderland recently, all the best people are!  They say that I should be committed, but what they don't understand is that I already am.  Let me explain.


I love the saying, "In for a penny, in for a pound".  Quite simple, if you are going to do something, give it all you have.  So when a recent client said that their gala ball was Australian and Nez Zealand Icons, I couldn't just dress as the icon, I had to BE the icon.  I chose Dame Edna Everage.  This is how I looked.


 

The reality is it wasn't pretty.  A 190cm hairy bloke squeezed into a pink sequin and feather dress just isn't right!  I had trouble with the shoes so I made my own with aluminium foil, not pretty but effective!  They thought I was insane, but I wasn't, I was just committed to what the client wanted.  The client absolutely loved it!  None of their team will forget the event in a hurry, for a whole lot of reasons, one of which was the MC!


What about you?  Are you committed to what you want to achieve?  Do you focus on your goals and targets on a daily basis? Are you working towards getting you goals and not just setting them?  Do you throw yourself at life with abandon or just stick a toe in the water?


Life is to be lived.  I believe you need to squeeze the very last drop out of every day because it is not coming back again.  Maybe I am crazy.  I am definitely committed and I wouldn't have it any other way.  


How committed are you?

What Could You Do?

What a huge weekend!  Wifey and I spent four days bringing her new toy back from Queensland.  Her name is Candy, a 1965 Mustang Coupe and this is what she looks like.



Not bad for a 45 year old! (Candy, not wifey!)

Unfortunately, due to a miscalculation and an "interesting" fuel gauge, we ran out of fuel on the Hume!!  I got the job of walking back to the servo while Wifey stayed with Candy.  After 15 minutes of walking a car pulled over and the guy said, "My wife is with your wife and the 20 litre petrol I had in the boot".  It was a fabulous thing to hear!

About 100 vehicles had driven past.  Our car was obviously not going anywhere, wifey was resting on the boot waiting, so why did he stop when no one else did?  He was the only one to ask himself the question "What can I do?"  Everyone else could see we needed help but they took no action. 

What about you?  What signs or signals have you seen that you KNOW you need to act on but haven't?  Team members that need help, family members that need assistance, sales figures not being met, strangers that want the paper you have just finished with, projects that need attention - you KNOW what they need.

Take the action and reap the reward!

Lovin' your work!

Warwick

I Love You and Hate You!

Technology!  How it makes life so much better and brings additional pain we have never even thought of.


This Get More Goer is coming to you later than planned as my email system decided to be weird and not allow any password anymore.  Arrgh!!  So I have had my IT guy, Kaalgat (in South Africa) fixing it.  I really HATE it when technology lets me down.  


Having said that, I got a new HTC Desire mobile device which is fabulous!  I feel more in control than the iPhone but I have churned through a big chunk of my download allocation!!  I am probably not ready to say I LOVE it, but there is a solid admiration!!


It reminds me of the adage, "It is not what happens to you, but how you deal with it that counts."


Whether you Love or Hate the technology, colleague, family member, partner, friend, stranger, company, government or institution, it is how you deal with the situation that counts.


How well do you deal with it?

He Touched Me!

As some of your know I sing with Mood Swing - you can check out what we sound like on our facebook page (maybe become a fan?)  We were delighted to be part of the Get Vocal festival over the weekend.  As well as concerts, there were workshops for artists during the day.  A highlight for me was attending the workshop run by Tripod.  If you are not familiar with them check out one of my favourites of theirs on YouTube or their home page www.3pod.com.au


I had heard so many stories about meeting your hero's and being disappointed.  While I may not rank them as "Hero's" they are definitely people I admire and look up to.  As a speaker, trainer, coach, tradeshow guru, I am constantly trying to balance the entertainment, education, laughs and valuable resources mix.  I had a one on one chat with Scott (the one with glasses) who was very humble and gave me some great pointers.  He even touched me!!  Well...we shook hands.


It got me thinking, how do we really know how we positively affect people?  When we give to them, inspire them, lead them, love them, parent them, coach them, advise them, befriend them or even just talk with them?  You never know what impact you will have on those around you simply by sharing what you know and what you have.  There are people out there who are better off having been in contact with you.  They may even be thinking "(s)he touched me!"


Thanks for being such a cool you.  Keep it up.


Lovin' your work.

Image from http://www.facebook.com/3pod.com.au

Stop Whinging!

I was working at a trade show for three days last week and I was amazed at the high whinging level.  So many exhibitors would drone on:

"Why aren't there people here yet?"
"Why are there so many people here?" 
"How come I haven't made more sales?"
"The food here is pretty bad"
"We need more signage"

While some of them were valid questions, it was also an absolute waste of time.  For every subject they had a whinge about, there was something they could do about it but didn't.  For some reason it was not their responsibility but someone else's.  


I have what I call my two "Killer Questions" for every situation and they are:
1) What is my part in this?
and
2) What can I do differently?


Regardless of who is to blame, when I take responsibility for a situation, I am then empowered to take action. Taking action lifts my spirits, makes me more attractive to clients and moves me forward to where I want to be.


So how much do you whinge?


Enjoy! 

I'm Not Listening!

Yesterday Wifey and I went to a family wedding. It was a great time. But families will be families and this family event could not pass without the grapevine passing back some negative message about how I was looking a bit fat!


After years of dieting, exercise (and too much eating) this is THE sensitive area of my life. For some reason, family always knows how to go straight for it. But it's ok, because I'm not listening. When it comes to my health, I will consult my health practitioner rather than take advice from overweight retirees on what I "Should" do!!


It's the same with the unwanted feedback that I would get from people who worked for the same company I did or were on my team for a short time or came to a meeting once "to give some input". I am more than happy to take advice, recommendation and constructive feedback and I choose who I receive it from. Frequently I will ask for it. For me, random feedback from others is like someone else's road rage. I don't know what is going on for them, they don't know what is happening for me and I don't know them well enough to put any value on their feedback.


So I am not listening!


Who are you listening to?




Warwick

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday was my birthday.  Yay!

I have long been a believer in not working on my birthday so I spent the day having brunch with some work friends, lunch with an old singing friend and then dinner with Wifey.  It was a hard day, but someone had to do it and I was up to the challenge!!

I would encourage you to also plan to have your birthday off and do something fun.  Even if your birthday is months away, put your leave form in now!

But what is a birthday without presents!!  So here they are.

First, it's a freebie - the Birthday Bash checklist.  Use this on your birthday to look back at the year gone and celebrate your achievements.  Then look forward to the year ahead and build in some fabulosity!  Click here to download the Birthday Bash Checklist.

The second birthday present is a discount off the Get More Energy CD.  This CD has tips, tools and techniques on how you can have more sustainable energy in your life.  Usually $35 plus postage and handling, simply use the discount code "bday42" and get a $20 discount. That makes it only $15 plus postage and handling.  Click here to order the Get More Energy CD.

The third present is a discount off my speaking or MC services.  If you book me to speak/MC at your conference or workshop before the end of May 2010, I will give you 33% off my standard speaking fee.  Just email me to make the booking.


I wish you the best on my birthday and I trust the coming years brings great things!




Warwick