Today is Wednesday, so this post is on outstanding performance.
You may have been seeing the ads for Patron Tequila lately. It’s branded as a super premium tequila. John Paul DeJoria is the mastermind behind Patron. By all accounts, Mr. DeJoria is a very successful businessman. Patron is one of 17 businesses he runs. John Paul Mitchell hair salon products was his first entrepreneurial success.
I saw an article about Mr. DeJoria in the Frontier Airlines inflight magazine. I was struck by a quote he uses in his motivational talks. “Successful people do all the things unsuccessful people don’t want to do.”
I agree. If you’re going to be an outstanding performer, you have to put in the time and effort. This means that you have to get to work earlier and work later than other people. It means that you have to be willing to take a risk and put your ideas forward. It means that you have to pay attention to detail. It means that you have to do things that go beyond what is expected.
Judith Glaser is a friend of mine. I mentioned her book, Creating We, in my post on Monday. Creating We was named as one of the 40 best business books of 2005 by Forbes Magazine. I once asked Judith how she fit in writing this book with her heavy consulting schedule. She told me that she got up at 4:00 every morning and wrote until 7:00 for several years before she found a publisher. Wow!
Not many people are willing to work from 4:00 to 7:00 every morning before they go to their day jobs to realize their dreams. Judith did, and now she’s a well known expert on organization effectiveness issues. She appears regularly on TV, commenting on the world of work.
You don’t have to get up at 4:00 everyday to become successful; but you do have to be willing to put in the time and effort necessary to become successful. Little things can make a big difference. Here’s an example. My nephew, Ron Bruno, works full time and is enrolled in an MBA program. Last Friday when his wife and other family members went to the movies, he stayed home and studied.
I know about going to school when you are working. For two years, I attended the University of Colorado at night when I working on my MA. I went to school from 5:30 – 10:30 Monday through Thursday for two years. This was a tough schedule, but I finished my degree in two years instead of the typical four that night students take.
Alex Greer is my virtual assistant. She lives in the UK. That means that she is seven hours ahead of me in Denver. I regularly get e mails from Alex at 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon in Denver; that’s 9:00 and 10:00 pm in England. Alex works late to make sure that we can communicate when it’s convenient for me, her customer. I’ve never asked her to do this, she just does it.
The common sense point here is simple; and a paraphrase of Mr. DeJoria. Do the common sense things that other people won’t do, and you’ll become an outstanding performer.
That’s it for today. Thanks for reading. Log on to my website www.BudBilanich.com for more common sense. Check out my other blog: www.SuccessCommonSense.com for common sense advice on becoming the career and life success you are meant to be and to get a copy of my new ebook Star Power: Common Sense Ideas for Career and Life Success.
I’ll see you around the web, and at Alex’s Lemonade Stand.
Bud
PS: Speaking of Alex’s Lemonade Stand – my fundraising page is still open. Please go to www.FirstGiving.com/TheCommonSenseGuy to read Alex’s inspiring story and to donate if you can.
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