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1. Study nature
We do not have to go far to see great examples of how to
succeed. Get outdoors and observe Mother Nature at work. Plant
a garden, go to a farm, take a walk in the woods or sit by the
ocean. There is a natural system at work everyday that will
guide us if we pay attention. By studying nature, we have a
system to follow that does not require that we get an MBA or a
PhD. Nature provides us with a common sense approach to
success that always works. An MBA or PhD are certainly good
training and yet, are not guarantees for success. There is
abundance all around us and if we spend some time studying how
nature produces this abundance, we too can "seed" for our own
abundant and prosperous future. 2. Plan
your harvest Like Steve Covey suggests "Start
with the end in Mind." Start by thinking about what you want
to harvest. Would a farmer just randomly plow and prepare the
ground without planning what the crop would be? If fruit was
the desired harvest, would plowing a whole field be required
to plant fruit trees? No, of course not. You would dig a hole
for each tree and not waste time plowing the field. Plan your
harvest and then build the plan. It will save you time.
Working backwards, it will be easier to prepare the ground for
what you want.
3. Research your crop Would a farmer
plant orange trees in Alaska? Research your idea. There is no
shortage of ideas in our world. They are not all good ideas.
4. Plant your seeds After doing the
research and deciding to take the risk, plant the seeds. Your
seeds are your thoughts, words and actions. Picture your
results often. Use visualization daily to see your abundant
harvest. Think positive thoughts; push all doubt out of your
mind. Act as if you already have your harvest. Spend some
quiet time feeling, what it would feel like, to have that
abundant harvest.
5. Have faith After your
seeds are planted, relax and have faith that things are
happening. Henry David Thoreau once said "I have great faith
in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there and I am
prepared to expect wonders." Sprouts will appear. Does a
farmer fret and worry after planting a field? Does nature
worry? Nature provides automatic seeding. Seeds are produced
by the billions and billions each day. They are carried by the
wind, birds, animals, etc. After you plant your seeds, persist
through the doubt. Would a daffodil quit because the ground in
early spring was too hard? Or because it was too cold, would
it decide to stay in the bulb or seed stage? If so there would
not be so many spring flowers. After you have planted your
seeds, your idea, have faith. Push through the hard ground.
6. Stay in the field after the sprouts appear
Farmers do not relax after the sprouts appear. They weed,
feed, cultivate and prune to ensure a fruitful yield. After
your idea begins to take hold, stay at it. Do not take your
attention away from it. Do not be distracted. Nature does grow
wild and when a fruit tree grows wild, what happens after a
while? It will gradually produce less and less fruit. Branches
called "suckers" grow that do not produce fruit. They choke
out the productive, fruit bearing branches by reducing the
available light and food. What you focus on expands. Pay
attention after the sprouts appear. Weed out the naysayer and
negative nabobs. Remove employees who refuse to "go with the
flow." Feed those who do support you by praising and
acknowledging them often.
7. Allow yourself to be pollinated
Nature has a whole system of "support staff" to ensure
success. Bees pollinate plants, birds spread the seeds, manure
fertilizes the ground, dead animals and plants enrich the
soils. There is no General Manager of the Universe. Each
player in nature knows its role and they each do what is
theirs to do. Surround yourself with coaches, advisors and
others who are dedicated to your success. Nothing happens in a
vacuum. Stay in relationship with committed others to your
idea and cause. Get good people on your bus and get them in
the right seat.* Once they are in the right seat, give them
the room to "do what is theirs to do."
(*Excerpted from "Good to Great"
by Jim Collins)
8. Track and measure the harvest Would
a farmer continue to plant a field or a seed that produced
less than the desired harvest? You cannot not manage what you
do not measure.
9.
Eliminate what did not work Nature is constantly
eliminating what does not work. Maybe that is why dinosaurs
disappeared. Nature quickly leaves behind what does not work.
Use the tracking and measuring in step 8 to eliminate and plan
for preparing the ground for what is next.
10.
Take a rest Like Nature uses winter, take a rest
to reflect and study. Rest refreshes the ground and
reenergizes the earth to continue producing abundantly. Take a
hint from Nature, rest and restore. |
