Motivation - An Important Key to Success

"Excellence is not an act, but a habit"

I have been a marketing professional for the past 30 years (hard to believe that fact myself), and was very fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn and teach others many aspects of marketing over this time. During the 14 years as a Marketing Manager in the Hosiery Division at International Playtex, I developed and implemented marketing training programs to assist our sales team in product knowledge, positioning, customer interaction, and more. After an organizational restructuring in 1995, I left Playtex and joined a major software company, again in the marketing area. This strategic move was made because at that time it was believed that technology was destined to be the catalyst of change for our future.


It's coming up on my 16th anniversary with this software company and feel so lucky to be with such a great organization. The company allows it's employees to be innovative thinkers, recognizing that best practices are developed through shared experiences and the people I work with are more like friends than co-workers.


That brings us to the topic at hand, motivation. I just got back from attending a seminar in San Diego that was focused on real estate investing (which is something I'm also interested in). I was surprised to find myself sitting among 200+ real estate professionals only to be welcomed by a motivational speaker. I thought this was a bit strange since the agenda indicated we were going to be listening to a famous real estate investor providing tips on how to find great property deals and turn them around in this challenging economy. The speaker started by saying that before anyone tackles any venture, whether it's financially-related or just deciding on what to do that day, motivation is one of the keys to success.


Some of the points that I took away from the presentation on how to achieve your goals are below.

* Passion is Unstoppable. So make sure you bring that in everything you do.


* Research is an important element. When it comes to anything you're interested in or want to learn more about, you have to do the research on it to become better acquainted with it. So read as many things you can find (blogs, reports, articles) and even see if you can find any videos or webcasts that you can view. All of this will help to determine some 'best practices' and 'lessons learned' and provide a foundation from which you can build upon. (You will be able to leverage all of the information that you can uncover by making better, informed decisions on your next steps.)


* Goal Setting. Set a "SMART" goal for each week or month and create a plan with key tasks on what you need to do to achieve that goal. "SMART" goals are ones that are Specific, Measureable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time bound.(Don't make any goals that are crazy difficult or unachievable.)


* Time Management - Keep in mind that when working on your plan, time management is very important. Stay focused and stick to the plan.


* Accomplished Tasks = Success. Remember that as you check off each task, you'll be closer to reaching your goal.


Here's To Your Success!