January 2012

A Recipe for Success (2/1/2012)

At dinner last week my friend Scott shared comments from a seminar he delivered to MBA students about entrepreneurship. His observation from spending time with these millennials was their questions focused on how to be successful; not in generalities but seeking a specific checklist void of risk. Mutually we agreed there is no checklist to succeed, but commonalities exist which create a method to achieve success. Personally I have formulated a recipe, based on experience and believe three essential elements are required: S-E-P, Evolution, and no Plan B.

S-E-P

is Skills, Education, and Passion. First,Skills are the know-how we develop over time that contribute to our expertise. For example, we all can pound a nail, but a carpenter knows how to build a house. In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell describes a 10,000 hour requirement for our skills to develop to an expert level. Second, Education is required to differentiate ourselves, but may come from military, college, or teachings of others. Most important, communication, whether written or verbal, is the critical learning requirement. Third, Passion is the ultimate differentiator between success and failure, but is the hardest to explain. Passion will drive one to succeed no matter what obstacles are confronted and passion is what engages us to continue when our energies are exhausted.

The second essential element is Evolution. Our lives are about learning from mistakes and this is the evolution I refer to, understanding how to move forward after a perceived failure and use failure as way to unlock opportunities. I argue each failure makes us stronger because they are events, not who we are. For example, when I owned my company many people assumed my most successful software program was the first I developed. To the contrary, I counted there were nearly 14 different programs I had tried to develop and sell. Most business owners evolve to create opportunities and rarely is success found the first time.

Lastly, to succeed there must be no “Plan B” because failure cannot be an option. I assert if an easier option exists affording failure then our effort will stop when the most difficult challenges loom. When failure is not an option, our creativity is ignited to try new methods and search for alternatives supporting our passion, in other words evolution occurs. For example, today’s college graduates can choose to move home because finding a job or supporting themselves is deemed impossible. If moving home was not an option these struggling graduates would share cheaper homes, work three jobs, and live on their own. Success cannot be had when one can turn his back on hard work and fear of bankruptcy.

There is no checklist for success, but I can assure you without elements of the above achieving success is impossible. Our current economy is tough and it saddens me when I hear about friends and neighbors losing jobs and homes, but at the same time I can identify friends finding success because they will not be victimized by systemic factors and have demonstrated the above elements. No guarantee for success exists, but I assure you practicing and understanding the above will bring reward.

Pragmatic (01/04/2012)

Taking my son to school recently I was listening to an interview on NPR with a spokesperson from Merriam-Webster dictionary. I have always loved the dictionary and can remember scouring the unabridged version when I was in school, searching for words I needed to learn and finding words of which I had never heard. Today, I never pick up a printed dictionary and instead relay on a digital search. Companies like Merriam-Webster benefit because in the digital world the company captures data about users, like the most common search. For 2011 Merriam-Webster reported the most searched word is “pragmatic.” Coincidentally, in conversation the day before the NPR piece I was commenting “I’m a doom and gloomer” when it comes to the economy, currencies, resources, or general outlook. My friend Katie quickly corrected me and said, “I don’t think you’re a doom and gloomer; your pragmatic.”

Like many of us looking for the meaning of the word pragmatic I cannot say I gave much thought to it before our economic downturn several years ago. In September 2007, I lost my job and found myself selling unneeded items, downsizing through multiple garage sales, and finally having to leave my friends and children in New Smynra Beach, Florida. I started reading, learning, and understanding government, money, commodities, food chains, and even media interpretation of events. Ultimately, this led to my opportunity to write weekly newspaper columns in several papers and publishing my book, Clearly Ambiguous.

Encouraged by personal change I started identifying trends and taking an umpire-like view of the world, “calling it like it is.” Specifically I remember a meeting with a group of realtors in spring 2008, part of a leads group I had formed, and the realtors commenting the housing market would return by the end of the year. I challenged their thoughts, stating it would be five to ten years before real estate made any return to the prior levels. Challenged, I stood my ground sharing statistics, facts, and observations. Recent data by the National Association of Realtors has reiterated the markets have been worse than reported and instead consistent with my assertions.

Each week I work hard to share events whether identifying infringements on our liberties, disputing economic optimism, or calling out the idiocy of our leaders’ decision making. My friend has accused me of being negative, another of living on the mountain too long and become radical. I think Katie got it right, I am “pragmatic.” prag•mat•ic (adj \prag-ˈma-tik\) 1: archaic a (1): BUSY (2): OFFICIOUS b: OPINIONATED. 2: relating to matters of fact or practical affairs often to the exclusion of intellectual or artistic matters : practical as opposed to idealistic.

Pragmatic

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