9 Keys to Success
I’ve read my fair share of business books and articles over the last few years including; Mavericks at Work, What Would Google Do?, The Tipping Point, etc. These scribes inspired me to write my own keys to success, or rather more accurately put; to record the things they said that resonated with me the most. Drumroll please.
Passion
If we don’t have passion for what we do, no amount of other chicanery is going to make up for this fatal shortcoming. Without passion we’re just phoning it in and somebody else that actually does have passion is going to kick our butt doing whatever we do, but better.
Confidence
Confidence in oneself is crucial to success… even to the point of being over-confident, but tread carefully; there is a fine line between over-confidence and delusion.
Weaknesses
It may seem an odd characteristic to follow confidence, but remaining cognizant of our weaknesses is vital to our success. Misplaced delusions of grandeur serve only to provide an express ticket to failure. We all have weaknesses to go with our strengths. We must embrace those weaknesses so that we can avoid their inherent pitfalls.
Honesty
While dishonest people can succeed, being a straight-shooter makes success easier to attain. That, and I like to believe that karma eventually serves the liars their just due.
Principals
Our core beliefs provide the necessary foundation for our life-long success. Without a solid set of principals our lives meander like San Francisco’s Lombard Street.
Calculated Risks
Risk is a core function of life. The keyword here is the calculated before the risk. If there is quantifiable data to be measured, success thrives on taking the time to do the measuring. The calculated risks work out more often than the hunches. When those calculated risks fail, that’s okay. We can take that data and apply it in the future. When a hunch turns sour, we have nobody to blame but our lazy selves.
Failure
We can not be afraid to fail otherwise we won’t ever achieve anything of merit. Failure means we have discovered one more way that doesn’t succeed. Failure means we have set our sights high enough that success on the first try isn’t a given.
Never Give Up
This is a simple one isn’t it? Without perseverance, nothing else matters. We must set our goals and unabashedly pursue them.
Customers First
Our customers are our most important and valuable form of marketing. No amount of money spent advertising a company is as effective as positive word of mouth and referrals. Consequently, a poor customer experience is more detrimental to a business than any marketing dollar can overcome. The proof of the pudding is in the eating; I just ran our marketing numbers for 2009 and Auction Flex added more new customers via referral than any other single marketing channel.