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Recently I was asked what the difference is between processes and systems, and how to create systems via my Facebook Fan Page. Thanks for the question Manuel!

When I use these terms in the context of building a business, I am referring to them in the following way:

The process is the act of doing whatever the action is, such as hiring a new associate, picking and packing a product in your warehouse, or making an outbound sales call.

The system is the documentation of how you do the process so that it can easily be taught to others and they can then replicate the process generating a consistent result. The format of this documentation can include:

Video
Audio
Written
Training others to train people

Once you have a process that delivers the results that are effective for your company, create a system that allows anyone in your organization to be able to replicate the process to get the same results. This way, you will deliver consistent products, services and experiences to your customers, vendors and staff as you grow the size of your company.

I am a big believer that an attitude of gratitude goes a long way in helping you realize your hopes and dreams, and enjoy your lifes journey along the way. Gratitude helps you fully enjoy the experience of attaining that which you desire. By being grateful for that which you have, you pause to reflect on the happiness, joy, love, peace and other positive things that what you are grateful for bring to your life. This allows you to be present for your own happiness, instead of letting challenges and unimportant distractions steal your experience of these positive things away from you.

I also subscribe to the philosophy that what we focus on expands. So, if I spend my time focused on what is wrong in my life, that which I am focused on by default takes a larger role in my daily experience, simply because it is where I put my attention. I also believe that if I spend most of my time thinking about what I dont have, I will be reinforcing that who I am is the person that lacks these things that I want or need. The more I define myself as that person who is lacking, the more I become that person.

Instead, I practice one of many gratitude exercises I have learned over the years that helps remind me of all I have to be thankful for in this life. The main point of all of these gratitude exercises are to move you to the emotional place where you can be present for the happiness, love, joy, peace or other positive emotion that these people, places, things or concepts brings to you.

Gratitude Exercises
Some people will write down in their journal everything they are grateful for as it happens throughout their day, so that they pause and become present for that special moment.

Some people will write what they are most grateful for in a journal at the beginning of the day, to start their day off in a positive way and remind them that no matter what challenges life sends, they have many things to be grateful for.

Others replay in their minds what happened in their day right before they go to sleep and relive the feelings and express their gratitude in the form of a prayer, or they capture it in a journal.

I am sure there are many other methods, as well. People need to choose the one that works the best for them. I just suggest taking time to cultivate some sort of gratitude practice. It will help you bring more into your life to be grateful for and help you enjoy that which is already going so well, even more!

Do you have a practice, comment or suggestion you would like to share? Please post it on my Facebook Fan Page!

Looking for testimonials and referrals? Here is one of the fastest ways to get them when you are new on the scene and no one knows anything about you or your business.

Try to connect with people who have a strong network in the community that you want to generate leads from. Offer your services or products for free or a significant discount. In return, ask for their commitment to provide you with a testimonial and act as a reference for you once they have received the promised benefit(s) from your organization.

Of course, be sure that you deliver to them an experience with your products or services that are what you want this person to say about you. If you run into a problem while delivering your goods, resolve it efficiently and get back on track. In many studies, loyalty is stronger among customers that experience a problem and have it resolved to their liking than customers who never have any issues that need resolution. And no, I am not suggesting creating a problem to drive stronger loyalty, just know that issues with service during this process do not have to be deal breakers.

Make sure you and your customer track the benefits they experience from working with you. While you are reviewing the improvements in profits, sales, productivity, or wherever the impact has happened is also a great time to ask the client to provide the agreed upon testimonial; just by putting a pen to paper confirming the great things you have achieved together.

Checking back regularly once you have delivered your services or products will help you stay in the loop for upcoming opportunities and allow you to seek referrals to people in the clients network, based on their experience with you.

Consider the costs of providing these services or products at such a discount as an advertising expense. By the way, this is not a long term strategy – it is a product or company launching strategy.

Now, go get recognized for the value you bring to your customers and watch your business grow!

Do you happen to know someone that is willing to “do whatever it takes” to accomplish a goal? Being in the personal development field, I am fortunate to know many people that are willing to do so. However, I had a great example of this that I wanted to share.

For those of you who listen to my All Access Club calls, you may remember the one with my coach, Mack Newton, who has coached many famous baseball and NFL players. Well, one of those listeners took what was said on that call to heart. Not did he only take it to heart, but he decided to put it to the test.

Steven, an 18-year old from Western Pennsylvania, had found me through his cousin who suggested Steven read a book from the Rich Dad series. From that book, The ABCs of Building a Business Team that Wins! Steven signed up for the All Access Club call and listened to the 1st recording he found, which was the “Chat with Champions” call featuring Mack Newton.

Long story short: Steven was so moved by what he heard on that call, that he traveled 3.5 DAYS by train to take a class with Mack Newton and see if what was said on the call was what was delivered in person. I know this to be the case, because Steven came to the class I happened to be attending that day, so we got a chance to talk.

Steven explained that he chose to take a 3.5 day journey after listening to that call because, “I dont like where I am in life and Mack said a lot of things that were true and made sense. I came to see if he was all talk or if he was for real.” Now, this is an example of what I think taking action is: You hear about something that you believe can help you make a significant improvement in your life and decide to do “whatever it takes” to make that improvement!

Steven went on to describe his experience as: “I was in a room with very successful people and I have never been challenged that way before in my life. I liked it, but it was so painful, I did not know if I was going to be able to go on. But, I pushed through it just like everybody else. I did not even notice at first but my legs were shaking – it was like I was having seizure! But, I DID it!”

When asked how Steven found the strength to prevail, he recounts the words that were part of the lesson during the training that day from Mack: “You can throw up, you can faint, you can die… but you cannot give up!” Steven then went on to say, “I usually give up fairly easily. But Mack really holds you accountable. Now, I realize, I can’t just give up! Mack explained that there are no shortcuts in life, so, if I want something, I need to stay with it, not give up so easily.”

Steven stayed around long enough to grab something to eat and then boarded the train for his 3.5 day journey home with an experience that will last him a lifetime. He learned that even when it feels like you can’t do it, if it’s important to you, don’t give up – you can surprise even yourself and come out stronger and happier on the other side.

He plans to come back and visit Mack Newton’s gym again in the Spring, bringing his father with him. Until then, he’ll keep doing the workout Mack showed him and making himself stronger mentally and physically so he can prevail in life the way he did in Mack’s class that day.

If you would like help setting and reaching for your goals, download Champion Level Goal Setting Program by visiting: http://www.ChampionLevelGoalSetting.com.

For more tips on creating business success, follow me at: Facebook, Twitter or YouTube.

One of my team mates requested that I share this letter I sent to my team to my blog. She felt many of my readers would be interested in my experience of the dinner with President George W. Bush Jr. If you would like to share your comments, I invite you to post them on my facebook page. See letter below:

Team,

As a few of you know, last night Eileen and I had the honor of going to a dinner with former President George W. Bush at a fund raising event here in Phoenix. I was one of 32 people who were selected to attend a private reception with him, as well. It was quite an honor, regardless of your political affiliations. He was extremely personable, approachable, fun and funny and deeply confident…..and yes…. VERY articulate.

It was a bit of a reality check to be sitting literally 5 feet from a person who was at one time conceivably the most powerful leader on the planet! Yet, he came across like he was a great friend not someone aloof and distant.

He was promoted to be speaking on “faith-based Presidency.” I expected it to be very denominational, especially considering the fund raising was for Arizona Christian University. However, what I found was something much deeper.

In talking about faith, he was not talking necessarily about religion. He said as a leader you must have “crisp decision making” capability. He said that when there are so many things flowing at you simultaneously, you must have rock solid principles that are unwavering in order to be able to make those decisions.

So, in talking about “faith”, he was speaking about faith in a set of principles. For him it was principles that he learned from his family, his upbringing and his religion. He said that he admired Abraham Lincoln because he also was “principle based.”

Many times, we take the word “faith” and attach religious connotation to it. But what I took away, was as a leader, you must have a core of principles as your foundation and a faith in those principles as guiding lights toward how you address the world around you.

He said faith is hard. It requires discipline. And it requires tremendous patience. I agree.

As he recalled key moments in his Presidency, I began to see a different view of him. I began to understand that in spite of what people think about you, you have to have an eternal optimism about where you are going. An optimism that your set of principles that you have faith in, will take you and your team to the goal or to the “promised land.”

He said that America has a tendency to want to isolate and protect itself. He said that we have to resist that temptation, have faith in our founding principles and exercise extreme patience. He said freedom takes time to develop and grow. His global view was hugely optimistic.

I met one other President in my life and that was Clinton years ago. While the personalities of these two men are like night and day….the one thing I found in common with them both was their incredible optimism of the world we live in. Their global views and the way they sorted historical and current events made a person feel lucky to be alive.

While their views may have been different, they were both infectious with their ability to see the best in humanity and to arrange the evidence that we are all moving in the right direction…this gave me a new perspective on being a leader.

The President was right. You have to have faith in something bigger than you. A set of principles that is unwavering in the face of opposition. But a set of principles that sees the BEST in people. That sees principles such as freedom and equality as rock solid principles that will ultimately bring out the best in everyone.

He was right….it does take discipline and patience. If you let the drama of the moment alter your faith in the principles, you will never be an effective leader.

Eileen and I came away from the evening with a very warm feeling. A very different experience than what we expected. We were uplifted, we were included, we were emboldened, we were made to feel proud of who we are, what we stand for and where we are going, as did everyone present. That is what a leader does.

I also really got that if you are reading this…we are all in the right place at the right time with the right set of principles. We have to have faith in them and patience. We have to never forget to engage, include, be optimistic and personable. Our task is to foster freedom to live the dreams we and our communities were meant to realize. Our principles set out in our mission and Code of Honor have got to be rock solid.

You have your own principles as well, based upon your background. How much faith do you have in them? How much faith do you have in the consequences of adhering to those principles? Great questions to ask yourself. We all have pivotal moments in our lives. It is that foundational platform that you hold that determines the outcomes of those pivotal moments.

Like the President, I believe that these are the best of times and that we are all moving the right direction. It takes patience and discipline and faith.

It is an honor to be a part of all of you…

Be awesome!

Blair