OSCAR Winning TEAM Formula

If you watched the 2016 Oscars®, it was another night to celebrate the underdog.

That night, Hollywood’s biggest and brightest took to the stage to accept their Bronze statuettes, a mark of the highest achievement anyone in the film industry can receive.

But as I watched cast of ‘Spotlight’ receive their award, another thought crossed my mind. As the director and producers of the film came onstage, they were not alone. They were joined by an entire line of actors and team members who shared warm hugs and tears of joy. They ‘buzzed’ with the excitement of what they were able to accomplish—not alone, but together.

Prior to that, Alejandro Iñarritú had just received his Oscar® for Best Director of the film ‘The Revenant’, second year in a row he has won such a prestigious award.

For me the night had so many wonderful take-aways. But one which stands out most is Team Work.

You don’t have to be an award winning director to apply Spotlight’s or have Alejandro Iñarritú’s teamwork model to achieve ground-breaking business success today. 

You see, the casts of 'Spotlight' and ‘Birdman’ seemed to realize something other teams may fail to realize: 

If you want to receive the highest honor in any industry, 

you have to understand the Power of the Team.

No Oscar-winning movie would be complete without the best sound effects, music scores, direction, make-up, actors, scriptwriters, or special effects. Every detail has to be right to achieve the award-winning results we all want to see in our business.

Alejandro Iñarritú understood the Power of the Team and used that knowledge to build an award-winning cast and film. He knew how to organize a team that is creative, innovative, and achieves award-winning results.

Is your team ready for ‘Birdman’-worthy fame? Are you capitalizing on the teamwork power Alejandro used to gain the highest honor in his field?

Your company’s award might not come in a form of a statue, but it will come in the way of satisfied customers, excellent products and services, community involvement and improved branding for you and your company.

Are you ready to make your business and TEAM ‘Oscar-Ready’?

If so, I have the Oscar Formula you need for ultimate success.

You might have thought, “I already have a plan in place.” Or, “I’m not sure if I’m ready to try something new.”

The truth is, change is hard. Even scary. But I have some good news for you. All you have to do is take the first step. I will take care of the rest.

Here are 2 Oscar- Worthy Tips that are guaranteed to increase productivity and profitability in your business, regardless of the industry you’re in.

1.  EMPOWER your team members in a way that helps them grow.

Now, you might be thinking,

I’m already empowering my team members. But are you doing it in a way that motivates them to use their gifts and abilities to the max?

Are you empowering your time to perform at their utmost level of potential?

2.  DELIVER messages that are positive and motivating.

Are you speaking to your team members in a way that is both powerful and reassuring? Are you using the type of language in your everyday interactions that

inspires hard work and dedication?

Or are your words causing your employees to doubt or

second-guess their contributions?

The words we use matter. If you want to change the words you use to create powerful and profitable change in your company, you can start now.

Contact me today to create the type of award-winning success Alejandro Iñarritú created to win Oscar fame. You can reach me at coachluis@luisvicentegarcia.com or visit my web pageswww.luisvicentegarcia.com and www.coachluisvgarcia.com

And believe you can always do it, 

if you set your mind to it!

Luis Vicente

Sales Go To The Most Prepared – Are You Doing These Things?

This principle is so simple that it is often overlooked. The hallmark of the true professional is thorough preparation, reviewing every detail, before every sales meeting. The very best salespeople are those who review their presentations and study the details of their products and their sales materials repeatedly prior to every new sales contact.

You cannot imagine a top athlete who did not train regularly and warm up thoroughly before every competition. In fact, the period of training for an athlete consumes far, far more time than the actual competition itself. When you think of a crack military force, like the U.S. Marines or the Israeli Commandos, you think immediately of rigorous, disciplined training. In every field of endeavor, it is the most thoroughly trained and dedicated professionals who rise to the top.

It is relatively easy to get into selling with little experience. But that is where the easy part ends. 

It is relatively easy to get into selling with little experience. But that is where the easy part ends. From then onward, hard, hard work and continuous training and preparation are essential for success. If you want to be the best, and get the results that the best people get, you have to do the same things they do. And this means to prepare and prepare and then to over-prepare.

The first corollary of the Law of Preparation says: “The salesperson with the best knowledge of the real situation of the customer will be the one most likely to make the sale.”

The more time you take to thoroughly understand your prospective customer and your prospective customer’s situation, the more likely it is that you will be in a position to sell at the critical moment.

The second corollary of the Law of Preparation says: “Sales professionals plan their questions in advance.”

To continue reading this and other interesting article, please visit my FocalPoint Newsletter

Business Owners: Tell your Story!

As entrepreneurs and business owners many of us work day in and day out doing what we enjoy, learning, empowering others and engaging with positive change. Well, at least that is part of what we do. The other part is, traditionally, working on our goals and following our dreams – or the other way around which will take us eventually to the same place. In a way, it will all feel very much like ‘doing what we enjoy, learning along the way, empowering others and engaging with positive change’, again and again.

Entrepreneurs are those amazing individuals that dare to take chances; that are creative while adapting and being flexible. And in the process, we need to understand that to many other people we can be a source of inspiration and motivation. This is why we need to tell our story; to show others that no matter what: ‘Yes! We have done it and you and they can do it as well; and even much better.’

Sharing our story is like giving a part of our ideas to other people, teaching them how to improve, explaining them how we began, or how many times we have done it. Yes I know we do not talk about it but we come up short sometimes; we fail in some cases; but the growing process is actually learning from all of those experiences. So get out there and tell people how we did it, and how we are constantly improving.

And in doing so, we need to go back to our beginnings. Usually we all have an entrepreneurial mind hidden some place until it wakes up. This entrepreneurial mind is the one that keeps us awake, that generates questions that need answers; that make us dream in many cases. When did it start? How did it start? Probably there is no concrete or specific answer as it may have been an evolution process; or maybe, as it happens to many other people, you know exactly when it all started.

For me, well, I started selling t-shirts and clothes after my travels; then it was a hot-dog stand and then a second one. I was working in corporate finance but doing other things on the side. And then the first big entrepreneurial move came, as I was the founder of a sandwich shop that grew into a 9-store fast casual hamburger chain. I started learning about franchising and about business management, plans, goals and the many interesting topics I work on today. And over the years, while having a successful career in the corporate world, I was also an entrepreneur.

Today as a business performance coach, I have the opportunity to share my story, my adventures, my journeys. And I invite you to do that as well. Share what you did and what you do; teach what you have learned, what you are doing and how you have improved. After all, we are here to teach and mentor others and what a better way to do it than through your very own story telling.

Dare to do it and inspire others along the way!!!

Luis Vicente Garcia

@lvgarciag

The Bryce Harper Effect, When Greatness Comes Out of Left Field

When many of us think about the summer, images of going to the beach or grilling out fill our minds. For some of you summer really only means one thing, and that’s baseball. If you’ve been paying any attention, you’ll probably know who Bryce Harper is.

But, for those of you who aren’t familiar with the name, Bryce Harper is an outfielder for the Washington Nationals. In the 2014 season he played left field, hence the pun.

Aside from being an outstanding player, Harper has an interesting take on life and business. It can be described by two words:

Keep Pushing.

What makes Bryce Harper so great is not just the fact that he is insanely talented, (at 16 he decorated Sports Illustrated’s cover with the title “Baseball’s Chosen One” and was drafted into the MLB by the Washington Nationals at 19), but the fact that he pushes himself to the limit in everything he does, and then some. He’s not one to rest on his laurels either. Even with his insane talent he is always looking for things that he can improve.

This got me thinking, what does a Bryce Harper attitude look like for business? How do we keep pushing?

We have to stay hungry, and remember what it was we set out to do. Accept nothing but the best from yourself, and your business will flourish. But get comfortable and lazy and you’ll get left behind.

What any organizational leader or manager MUST know how to do is build a sense of urgency in their organization.

Even if you’re doing everything in your power to make more sales and create a positive customer experience, it is your team who is on the front lines, keeping the engines running.  Creating a sense of urgency and embedding it into your company culture is the ONLY way you can ensure that your team is performing at their highest levels each and every day. A sense of urgency is the only way to make sure your company stays above the curve.

No matter what industry, or what stage of the game you’re in, I can help you define and identify the changes you need to build a culture of urgency in your business and create real results today.  I can coach you to implement the strategies you need to create unparalleled success and ensure your business makes a Grand Slam in the coming Quarter.

If you’re ready to transform yourself and your business in order to gain the type of award-winning success Bryce Harper created to garner national attention, contact me today. You can reach me at coachluis@luisvicentegarcia.com.

And believe you can always do it if you set your mind to it!

To Your Success,


Luis Vicente Garcia

Leadership Under Uncertainty

Being a leader is difficult in any circumstance.  However, becoming a successful leader in a constantly changing environment requires that you posses exceptional characteristics that flourish when times get tough. Change and uncertainty increase the challenges that a leader has to face, and it is not always easy. We live in a world that is constantly changing, where uncertainty is always certain.

We live in a world with an unclear and constantly changing set of rules, laws, and procedures, which affects the way people behave or run their businesses; potentially working under the effects of large economic swings, with lower growth, higher inflation or unemployment rates, a legal system that does not promote free trade or real competition, not to mention the difficult political situations that exists in several countries.

Today, leaders have to excel in uncertainty. These leaders have strong qualities and values, with an optimist’s approach to life. They have the characteristics of a strong performer, always working under pressure, having to demonstrate a sense of urgency.

In my best selling book ‘The Ultimate Success Guide’ I talk all about leadership in uncertainty.   In part, I talk about the 10 characteristics that I believe a great leader has to have in uncertain times.  These 10 characteristics are:

1. Commitment – The leader has a commitment to one’s people and co-workers in order to continuously demonstrate their presence with them in their own terrain, showing responsibility above all.

2. Understanding – A leader is capable and needs to listen, watch and understand all changing and uncertain circumstances, even when all of the information is not present. A leader is in touch with the people and understands their necessities by heart.

3. Connectivity - A leader is able to communicate effectively, creating alliances and relationships with all kinds of people. The leader is in touch with the people on a daily basis, in order to explain the ideas, tasks, responsibilities and challenges to others.

4. Vision - Leaders have a strong and profound vision.  They believe in their own objectives, but they are also willing to look at areas where other people see problems as opportunities. 

5. Values – A true leader believes that the best way to lead the people is by example.  They live by the true values and principles that guide them, maintaining their human and spiritual qualities.

6. Knowledge – A leader is constantly looking for knowledge.  They understand the needs of the society and following the path of continuous education and learning.

7. Creativity and Imagination – Leaders are always implementing creative actions, breaking the rules of traditional schemes. They anticipate the moment, armed with better ideas and solutions in their back pocket. 

8. Motivation – A leader continues to motivate themself as well as others. A leader inspires the ones that need guidance through speech and actions.

9. Competitive Attitude – A leader is armed with a positive attitude and with the motivation to achieve the impossible. They organize a better view of the future and unify their followers.

10. Take Action – Now knowing all these qualities that make a real leader, you need to take action; to decide, make opinions, to go ahead under real conditions, to be the best all the time, to bring out the best in all others, and to show the people what you are made of.  In some instances, you will need to deliver under the most difficult circumstances, and this is what will make you a complete and a true leader.

My father once summed it up excellently writing “leaders are always people who see beyond the moment, they are likely to excel in the midst of serious problems, creating a vision and motivating people to achieve it”.

Now "it is up to you to become that Great New Leader!"

 

Luis Vicente Garcia  

www.luisvicentegarcia.com

@lvarciag