At the time of designing an upcoming workshop entitled “Uncovering the Secrets of Sustainable Performance” for ambitious business executives in Calgary we started to think about the group we would be working with on the day. This raised a question for us: why do some of us choose to invest our time, and in certain cases our hard earned cash, in personal development and growth, while others choose not to?
A way of looking at this was to consider those qualities observed among business executives that we have experience working with. These are executives who have provided us with information about themselves and their business, as part of a research process, have attended workshops and conferences associated with our work, and have invested in their own programme of personal and organisational development.
In working with these individuals we began to debate the common qualities they possess and here is what emerged for us:
- Open minds: they are always open to new ideas, ways of thinking, and discovering the unexpected.
- Ambition: they are by their very nature ambitious. They are keen to achieve in all areas, to push the boundaries of their own capabilities, to set themselves goals that others would consider daunting.
- Accepting of challenge: they are keen to debate, to learn from and understand the views of others. They will not automatically presume that their way is the best.
- Future-focused: they are focused on what can be achieved, not on what can’t. This does not mean an ignorance of the past, but rather a desire for a better future.
- Make mistakes: they make mistakes, plenty of them! They are willing to experiment and practice, and learn from what emerges. They believe that every situation provides an opportunity to learn.
- Success ? sales: they are clear on what success is to them, and they see success emerging from satisfying a range of needs, not just their ego. Beyond economic gain, they also want to feel fulfilled, and satisfy the needs/wants of others.
- Create space: they create time for themselves and for their business. They work on themselves and their business, in a strategic capacity, and aim to create distance between themselves and the ‘day-to-day’.
- Persistence: they never give up; they are tenacious, and action-oriented, focused on progress.
These are just some of our views…and we are keen to hear yours, so why not share your views with us through the Results Twitter Page, or by emailing us direct to andrea.kenna@unleashresults.com.
We will be debating this further at the upcoming event Uncovering the Secrets of Sustainable Performance to be held on the afternoon of January 26th at Fort Calgary. Click here to find out more and to register, as space is limited!
Article by: Simon Raby & Tim O’Connor
