Self Talk - Self Sabotage

Observations on self sabotage. I was just finishing a 5 mile walk at a 4 mph rate when I realized I was telling myself that wasn't much of an exercise. I was telling myself that I should have pushed harder - gone to the gym - hike in the hills - that a 5 mile walk at 4 mph on city streets wasn't really much of an exercise - because of serious back problems running is out of the question.

Then I realized I do that a lot. I minimize my accomplishments and think of them as less than what I should or could be doing.

Do you ever do that?

This input of self imposed negative messages - that we should do more, what we've done isn't that great, compared to others, we don't measure up, has the long term effect of creating in our minds a feeling of not good enough, not as good as, not really able, not really worthy. And we do it to ourselves!

Wow! A five mile walk at a good rate on a day when exercising in any form was a push because of other commitments. And then end it with a dose of self criticism for not doing more. Self sabotage at its best - or worst!

Take a look at your own self talk - see if it helps you or hinders you. If you're guilty of minimizing your own accomplishments, work on getting that kind of self talk out of your system.

It's not easy - it's a sneaky habit of thought that can get really imbedded. Start work on it by becoming conscious that you're doing it. Start today.

Written by Andy Cox, President

Cox Consulting Group LLC, 4049 E Vista Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85032 Ph: 602-795-4100; Fax: 602-795-4800; E Mail: acox@coxconsultgroup.com; Website: www.coxconsultgroup.com.

Copyright 2007 All Rights reserved

Success Tool - Looking Back to Look Forward

Huh? Success Tool? I thought you're supposed to stay in today, plan for tomorrow and forget about yesterday. "Happiness is good health and a short memory." So what's this about looking back?

A story - I was hiking in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve. It's very rugged with lots of trails. Two young women approached me and asked how to get back to where they had started. They were headed in exactly the wrong direction. I walked with them until I was sure they were on the right path. I suggested the next time they go hiking, they should turn around from time to time and look where they had come from - and pick out landmarks and trails. Doing that helps assure you won't get lost. In addition to a map, it's the best way I know to stay on course when you're in new territory.

Here's the Success Tool I call Looking Back. After the first week in any change you are going through, record your impressions, judgments and perceptions. It doesn't have to be neat - the only person who has to understand what was recorded is you. Put it away - and after a month, take it out and review it. And then record where you are after your first month, and put that away. Do this monthly for six months. When you go back and review your recordings, be prepared to be amazed at how far you've come and how much you've accomplished! See how much greater your understanding of people, processes and problems has become. See how much closer you have come to meeting and exceeding expectations - your own and others.

What does this Tool do? It's both a compass and a motivator. It helps you to celebrate the small successes that, added together, turn into big successes - and nothing motivates like success! It helps you know just how far you've come. It helps if course corrections are needed - if the successes aren't there - or if they don't meet your expectations.

In the rush to accomplish and solve and process and deal with the everydays, our individual accomplishments often go unnoticed and unrecognized. It's easy to forget what has led you to where you are now. Use this Tool to look back from time to time and gain the energy to go forward by seeing just how far you have already come.

Start today - write it down - make it one of your habits - never get lost again.

Written by Andy Cox, President

Cox Consulting Group LLC, 4049 E Vista Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85032 Ph: 602-795-4100; Fax: 602-795-4800; E Mail: acox@coxconsultgroup.com; Webiste; www.coxconsultgroup.com

Copyright 2007 All Rights Reserved

Celebrate Small Successes - Today's Successes

You know the sayings - you eat an elephant a bite at a time; a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Well, they're true - and we need to keep reminding ourselves of how true they are. Translating those sayings into our every day habits of thought can be difficult, particularly when faced with a BHAG - a Big Hairy Audacious Goal - but it's critical we do that.

Those daily successes are the basis for those BHAG's. Without the day to day successes, the BHAG's don't happen.

A client company I was working with were looking to save $2 million through cost reductions in a year - a lot of money for a $90 million a year enterprise - a BHAG. At the very first meeting of the team assigned to define how to save that money, one of the first proposals offered by the team had a value of $50,000 in real savings in the first year. The CFO responded by saying he was looking for real savings, not such small amounts! The CEO didn't respond to that comment. No further proposed cost savings were made by the team. The meeting ended.

In talking to the team they explained that all of the other cost savings they were going to propose were smaller than the $50, 000 proposal that had received such a negative response. Based on the CFO's input, they weren't willing to bring them up. I asked how many proposals they had defined and developed. They had nine solid proposals amounting to cost savings in the first year of $375,000 - almost 20% of the $2 million goal! Not exactly chicken feed!

We met with the CEO and the CFO and talked about expectations, team motivation, and how to get to $2 million in savings. The CEO and CFO were eager to get to $2 million fast, or they and/or the business would not survive. They had been disappointed when the team came up with a proposal for just $50,000. They had hoped for 10 times that amount. When they found out that the team had identified $375,000 in savings in a short time, their expectations changed. They were able to see the value in supporting a series of small - compared to original expectations, successes as the way to the BHAG. The team succeeded in meeting and exceeding the $2 million goal.

We need to see the big picture, but the big picture is composed of a lot of small pictures. Take the time to identify those small pictures and celebrate their achievement - it creates the energy and commitment and passion to press on until the big picture is achieved.

Do it today.

Written by Andy Cox, President

Cox Consulting Group LLC, 4049 E Vista Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85032, Ph: 602-795-4100; Fax: 602-795-4800; E Mail: andycox@coxconsultgroup.com; Website: www.coxconsultgroup.com

Ciopyright 2006. All Rights Reserved