Mindset of the Virtuoso

If you were asked to list people who you saw as super achievers or virtuoso's potentially these names would appear:

·         Usain Bolt

·         Richard Branson

·         James Tostevin

·         Steve Jobs

·         Bill Gates

·         Oprah Winfrey

All of these people have had the mind set to be the best in the world. However have you ever wondered what their back story is?

What was it they did to get to where they have?

Because they didn’t just wake up one morning and become the best at what they do!

If you did have an opportunity to sit down and have a chat to any of the them London to a brick they will tell you that they had the following:

1.       Commitment to be the best at what they do.
           So how serious are you really, do you have a business plan in place, follow it, prospect,  
           hit your targets, have accountability?
           Remember you are the key person who has the most impact on your performance

2.       Practiced religiously. Are you committed to scripts and dialogue training or are you doing  
           what most do in real estate - practise on your clients. 
 

3.     Trained to be the best. 
         No athlete goes out on the day of competition and becomes the best, it takes years of training,
         focus and commitment. How would you rate yourself in these areas?

4.     Had in place a written plan. 
         Written goals means you have a written commitment to achieving them.

5.     Developed a respect for time. 
         We all have the same amount of hours in the day how are you using yours?

         Being great at what you do is a result of disciplined intense practise on a regular basis.
         The opposite is wasting time, looking for excuses and blaming others for your lack of success.

So how much time are you committing to scripts, listing, negotiation and prospecting practise?

We are getting close to the end of the year and for many of you the 30^th of June group certificate will be the reality check of your performance over the last 12 months.

Will the amount you have earned surprise or shock you in a positive way? Telling yourself you should have done the basics is pointless, committing to doing it and holding yourself accountable is worthwhile.

So get serious, commit to a plan, practise, train and surround yourself with people who will coach and mentor you and hold you accountable to be the best, the Picasso of real estate.

Remember to get the results that the top 10% of agents have you must be willing to do what only 10% of agents do.

As you start to achieve success what occurs is you become more confident, energetic, productive and focused which leads to becoming word class or the virtuoso.

Would you ask a male PM the same question?

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, Howard Sattler, a shock jock from WA, comes out and asks the Prime Minister during an on air interview if her partner was gay.
What is worse he based this question on the fact that Tim was a hairdresser; therefore all male hairdressers must be gay. What a ridiculous generalisation!

And he didn’t ask it once but several times during the interview. Gillard handled the interview with class and dignity versus Sattler who was vile and disgusting.  

Sattler has since apologised not because he believes he was disrespectful but because the management of his radio station have asked him to. He defends himself by stating that the PM’s office had agreed to a candid interview. Really Howard I fail to see how this line of questioning has any relevance whatsoever to the current political debate.

What Julia should have done is walked out, I would have.

My question however is when was the last time we asked a male Prime Minister, or in fact Tony Abbott, if their wife was a lesbian or questions relating to their sex lives!  The answer is never.

I fail to understand why it is that men think it is ok to ask women inappropriate questions and the fact that this happens to our Prime Minister what hope do the rest of us have in any industry or position?

I don’t care who you are, you may not agree with the policies or support the Labour Party but you damn well need to respect the chair. She is our Prime Minister and needs to be treated with respect.

There have been a myriad of other attacks on her as well. A restaurant in Brisbane at a Liberal party function had her on the menu as - Julia Gillard Kentucky fried quail, small breasts, huge thighs and a big red box. How utterly disgusting and appalling.

No other politician was on the menu and Mr Abbott believes we need to let this go. It was a joke and never made it out of the kitchen was his response.
Really Mr Abbott, firstly it is disrespectful and highly offensive, secondly how would you feel if we had on the menu a guessing game on the size of your crown jewels, how many men your wife has slept with and oh yes lets ask if your wife has ever had a female lover making her a lesbian.





Add to the above the comments on Gillards clothes, hair style and colour and the shape of her glasses.

I simply fail to see how any of the above has anything to do or have any relevance to running the country.

I am sick and tired of the personal nature of attacks on Gillard, however unfortunately she is not alone. I talk to women groups on a regular basis and many are shocked at my experiences with men in leadership positions, I am not unique in this and now it seems neither is the Prime Minister.

What concerns me is the level of disrespect is not just from the media but also from the National/Liberal party. Where do we go to next?

Without question there needs to equality and respect for women in business at all levels. So now Sattler has been suspended – so what, he will be back on the airways after a period of time, he should be fired.

Women across the nation are offended and frankly should be livid.

Sexism is back on the table.

I know that not all men behave and think in the same way and many of my male colleagues and friends would be as equally appallaed. I have also worked for a number of male business owners who don't see gender as an issue. Sattlers views and questions is not a reflection of all men in Australia.

However, women, regardless of their position, even as the Prime Minister of the country, are clearly not respected or treated equally by many.

Where simple 1% could have made a difference

So maybe I had high expectations however as a new customer to a local restaurant I hadn’t been to before I don’t believe that’s unusual.

The Meat and Wine Co in Hawthorn East was where I went to dinner last night. It looks fantastic from the outside and the online menu simply delicious and I always get excited to potentially discover a great local restaurant.  

We walked in behind a group of 6 whose table wasn’t ready, however somehow the maître de missed us walking in, I went up to her and asked her for our table, she then called the waitress and asked her several times if table 28 was ready. And every time she asked the question she raised her voice; clearly there were some levels of stress however as the paying customer not something I am interested in experiencing the minute I walk in.

We were taken to our table, menu’s provided and the waitress looking after our section introduced herself to us. However the irony is she never returned to our table again. Clearly she either was moved to another section or didn’t really want to look after us!

We ordered South African wine, a red, waited for at least 10 mins to be told that it was no longer available. Firstly shouldn’t the manager have briefed the team on what was available and what wasn’t prior to customers arriving? Secondly perhaps we should have been offered an alternative wine.  I then ordered the white wine which when it arrived at the table was apparently the last bottle and just enough for two glasses. I would suggest they stock wines that can be made available to their clients.

We ordered two different entrée’s and when they arrived the waiter literally put them on the table without asking who was eating which one or any explanation of what they were.

After waiting nearly an hour for our main meal the waitress finally came to our table to let us know that our meals were delayed due to a private function upstairs. Clearly the management had not prepared for this to occur and there were significant delays.

When they finally did arrive I had ordered beef medium that had been overdone and the meat was quiet dry plus slightly cold.

At the end of our meal no one offered us dessert or coffee.

We asked for our bill and yes they had charged us for the red wine that we never got.

The Meat and Wine Co market themselves as a cut above the rest – well this certainly wasn’t the case last night.

Now all the issues I have raised above are very easily addressed if the management simply looked at their process and service standards from the eyes of the customers. These are simple training issues but when you are competing for business with other restaurants these simple things will lose you clients.

Are your processes and service standards designed with the client in mind and does your team actually understand what level of service you want to deliver to ensure repeat and referral business occurs.

What are your customers’ expectations of service from your brand and are they in fact getting it? How are you ensuring that they do?

Audi are fantastic at pre and post service delivery. A few weeks ago I had to have my car assessed for repairs to be done at a panel beaters and I got a call from Audi during the week to ensure that someone had called me and my car was booked in. He then ended the call by saying I will call you after the car has been repaired to ensure you are happy. That’s exceeding my expectations.

Do you call your tenants a month after they moved in to ensure they are settled in?

Do you call your purchasers a month later to ensure that they are settling in? Do you do the same with your sellers?

These simple 1% make all the difference and sets you aside from your competition.

Remember we are in a congested market place and the smallest things now make the biggest impact.

As for the Meat and Wine Co, clearly I won’t be going back there anytime soon.

10 things to make you world class

 

1.     Have total clarity on what you want to achieve. Share this with a trusted coach who will hold you accountable. If you are vague your results will be vague

2.     Have the single minded focus on your journey and the sense to bend, yield and be flexible when required

3.     Never let go of your family and friends, they are the ones who will be there in your time of need and we all have those

4.       Let people see the passion for what you do, it will engage them and bind them to you

5.       Be the Picasso of your office or your trade

6.       Keep your mind, body and soul fit

7.       Keep the hunger for knowledge alive, it never stops

8.       Be unique, be original, they broke the mould once you arrived

9.       To get the results no one else has have the strength to do what no one else will

10.     Laugh, enjoy life and make a difference to as many people as you can

Indigenous round starts with drama

The indigenous round started on Friday night with the first game being played between Sydney Swans and Collingwood at the MCG. What should have been a celebration of a resounding win by Sydney unfortunately ended in an incident that has created national headlines. It is ironic that the champions of last year and perhaps the most liked team and probably the most disliked team in the league were involved.

A female Collingwood fan was exited from the game on Friday night after a racial comment against Sydney Swans champion Adam Goodes. Shockingly the young girl is apparently only 13 years old. She allegedly called Goodes an ape as he lined up for a goal.

Footage shows Goodes walking up to the fence line, pointing out the young girl who was subsequently escorted out by security. Goodes then went on to have a cracker of a game and Swans thrashed the pies.

At his press conference on Saturday morning Goodes spoke with a lot of empathy towards the young girl which simply shows his depth of character. This is not the first time Adam has been called names and he claims that other players in the last 10 years have called him names such as monkey etc.

There have been a number of reported cases over the years of players sledging each other on the field but if racial comments are still part of this game then what sort message are we sending to the football supporters?

It is ironic that the young girl was a Collingwood supporter and there are likely elements today commenting are we really surprised at this level of behaviour from a pies fan.

This is however an issue for our society. Clearly this young girls statement is a reflection of her environment where it may be acceptable to call people names, she may be a victim of bullying herself, whatever the reason I hope that right now she is being supported by people who will counsel her correctly,  help and support her now and long term.

There cannot be a witch hunt nor can she become the face of what we call intolerant behaviour. She is a young kid who made a terrible mistake. She needs support, education and help.  I am disappointed for Adam Goodes and how the name calling made him feel, I admire his strength to stand up to it however I equally have concern for the young girl.

She was clearly visibly upset when she left the field unaware of the furore she was going to start, and has woken up this morning to events that will change her life.

This is an incident that will be life changing and as a minor is very young to fully understand or deal with the short and long term ramifications.

Many may suggest that it wasn’t the worst racial comment one can have thrown at them however what people need to understand that words or name calling can hurt individuals differently.

And clearly this is the case given her open apology to Goodes and conversation she had with him.

It also concerns me that the MCG security asked the family to remain seated as they ejected her then held her for two hours for questioning.  Yes we need zero tolerance on racism but this girl is also only 13 so let’s keep it in prospective.

 As someone who has been at the receiving end of racial taunts I know how Adam Goodes feels and today and I applaud him for making a stand not just for himself but the community he represents.

One must say well done to Collingwood who have reacted positively to the incident with Eddie McGuire going into the Swans change rooms to apologise to Goodes for the incident.

The indigenous round is a celebration of Goodes’s people and culture, the contribution they bring to our game and the talent we have across many teams. It brings back memories of Nicky Winnmar 20 years ago when he made a similar stand and it is sad that these incidents are still occurring.

Adam Goodes is clearly shattered however is quite rightly is supporting the young girl offering to talk to her and educate her.

Sadly racism exists in Australia and unfortunately on Friday it had the face of a 13 year old girl. It has no place in our culture and society however it will always exist.

It is important to understand that young kids do not grow up racists; they develop these tendencies influenced by the adults in their life. 

For those of us who are more tolerant we must ensure that we continue to educate those who are not and at the same time support the younger generation who will make these sorts of mistakes.

Let’s not forget also that Australia is a melting pot of so many ethnic groups. We are far more tolerant here than in many other places. Those who are racists or not tolerant of the ethnic diversity that exists here are in the minority.

This incident has provided us an opportunity to make a clear statement that racism of any kind is simply not acceptable in our society, that this girl is a minor and we need to ensure that we educate our children to be more tolerant.

We also need to accept that we will never remove racism completely from our communities however when it occurs it is ok to make a stand against it so that we can educate people and make changes.

Remember - Education is the key to tolerance. We fear what we don’t know or understand. We are influenced by those who are older than us.

Let’s hope that the media, the AFL and the indigenous community create this into a positive by helping the young girl and sending the right message into our communities on this issue.

Mahatma Ghandi once said – you must be the change you want to see in the world. It is up to those of us who are more tolerant to create the change we want to see occur.

 

Just want to do the good stuff

 

“ I want roles in movies but I don’t want to attend any auditions”

“ I want to be an AFL footballer but I don’t really want to train everyday”

“ I want to be a successful agent but I really don’t have the discipline to prospect everyday”

Unfortunately in any job that we have you don’t just get to do the fun stuff all the time. To be earn the big bucks, you need to list and sell more than anyone else in your market, you also have be great at building relationships and  have single minded  focus and discipline.

The fun stuff is the results you get, the awards you may win or simply the personal feeling of achievement.

It’s when things are tough, when you have to work harder and learn how to deal with rejection and failure that’s when the opportunities to shine appear enabling you to do your best work. Don’t miss out on these times.

Sticks and stones may break bones but words……..

As we head towards our walk on the 10^th of May, highlighting violence towards women in particular, acts of violence seems to be an issue on the rise. The Chief Commissioner made a statement a few weeks ago that there would be 60,000 reported cases of violence towards women this year, and I dread to think what the unreported number is.

This cause has highlighted for me how violence in our society seems to be on the increase. And we are just not talking about physical, but emotional and verbal also.

I reflected on three recent incidents in Melbourne where individuals on public transport, who were clearly driven by hate, went on tirades. If you hear the video/audio footage of one of them it is quite appalling. The only good thing was that none of these ended in physical attacks and I would assume these individuals may end up in court.

I wonder what makes people snap in this way? How much hate must they feel towards others to make them actually verbalise it publically?

Sadly this happens in all societies, often against those who are seen as different or belonging to a minority group and often for no real reason at all.

Only last year we saw the increased number of attacks on cab drivers, particularly Indian drivers, and the impact was felt at government level.

My Indian parents lived here in the early 60’s and it was a time when the White Australia policy was well and truly alive. Often when they got on a bus or train as my mum says the “white” person they sat next to often moved. This was a culture that existed in the Australian society which at the time was sanctioned by the government. Even to this day my mum feels intimidated to some extent by her past experiences.

When I first moved here in 1982 I faced issues that caused me grief at the time. I was an easy target for fellow students in my boarding school. It did toughen me up, however I know of others who were in similar situations and unfortunately had breakdowns because of it.

I remember in the late 80’s going to Victoria Street for dinner and we played spot the “skip”. We thought we were really cool being one of the few mixed couples that went there. Now we see Australians there who are clearly in a mixed relationship.

My kids are of mixed race and we often joke “halfies” are the best, (they certainly are good looking!).

This country at some point in its journey will be lucky enough to have a large number of “halfies”.

Even though we have diversified as a nation, it still seems that being different- whether it is your colour, looks, disability or being alternative- has a price. The stigma is born out of ignorance, lack of understanding, fear and hatred.

The danger I believe is when the lack of understanding, fear and hatred becomes so intense it turns into nasty attacks that have tragic consequences for all parties.

This ugly element will always exist in society and it’s up to us to constantly stand up and say violence in any form or of any type is not ok.

I want my “halfie” kids and those who are seen as different or alternative to be able to feel safe where they live, work and play.