Yesterday while my step-dad was in the Dr’s Office I sat in my van and listened to a CD I recently received.

My van is my mobile University. Let me share with you my thoughts…

Leadership Is All About Replacing Yourself

There is a huge shortage of leaders in the world…

both in the private sector
http://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/stories/2008/02/18/daily13.html

and the non-profit sector
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/buggs/4714442.html

In light of that you can make a difference; by setting yourself up as
a leader now. Today!

If you have not yet put one person on your team you’re still a leader. How can I say that? You decided to take charge of your life
and do something about it by starting your home-based business.

Leadership is a journey and a journey worth taking!

What can you do today to begin your journey?

Find a running buddy. One who you feel comfortable with but will also challenge you. The feelings should be mutual. Do you have a team-mate you connect with? Begin a dialog together and make plans together.

For example, you’re going to make 20 phones call a night and be accountable to your running buddy.

You’re going to post 3 video’s a week and be accountable to your running buddy.

You’re going to take 30 minutes a week and visit the social networking sites and make 10 new friends; comment on their video’s or their blogs and be accountable to your running buddy.

Now you can’t be a softy with your running buddy…this is a no excuses relationship. Share your plans with them for the week and vice versa…if they come up with excuses…don’t say it’s o.k. we’ll start again next week. There is an accountability here and that brings results.

A leader does what needs to be done with you telling them that it needs to be done!

Are you afraid of failure? Get over it.

Do you know a baby will fall an average of 999 times before they learn to walk?

Imagine if they never got back up again! We’d have a world of adults still crawling around on their knees…

But wait…do you still crawl on your knees when it comes to your business? Or have you taken charge and become accountable and are you running the marathon?

Or are you still taking baby steps after weeks or months?

Do you have to ask:

What is the team site?
What night’s are the trainings?
How do I log in to my site?
What is the phone # to the home office?

Do you have the same tools that your team leader has?

A team site? A team co-op?

What do you have to do to qualify? Ask them.

Team Trainings? In most cases the answer to the above would be a YES!

The reason some are still taking baby steps is not that they haven’t been given the tools.

It’s because they are afraid to fail…and we all know what FEAR is!

False Evidence Appearing Real

So you make a mistake…it’s O.K. So get up and make your first mistake today and move on. If you make another one as long as it’s not the same as the first you’re learning.

I am on a constant journey to find what works in my business. Does it mean that I flit from one thing to another?

No, it means that I am willing to do whatever it takes to find what works. And most of the time what works is NOT any one process it’s a series of processes worked together.

There are leaders that swear by:

cold calling
buying leads
Web 2.0 social networking
article marketing
blogs
opportunity meetings
passing out fliers
offline social events
offline advertising
online advertising
warm market contacts

I say do a combination of the above and don’t just try it ONE or TWO times and say o.k. that didn’t work!

I incorporate a number of the above in my weekly (NOT weakly) activities.

If you get anything from this I hope you’re hearing this:

Stop taking baby steps! Run the marathon!

The journey is well worth it.

We all need help to build our leadership skills!

O.K. not what you really want to hear from your sponsor right? Well, I can probably get away with it because I’m not your sponsor; oh and if you’re one of my team mates…sorry…just a little bit “kick ass” talk here.

Someone told me recently and I paraphrase…”Holly, you gotta take the n$%^$ple” out of your team’s…” well you get the picture. Did I get mad? Nope, because he’s was right… I have a tendency to babysit my team…

Well, I USED to anyway. See, we have a team website, a team social network, team training both for beginners and advanced, a team chat room open 24/7 and yet I would still find myself answering ”baby questions”. Questions where the answers are found on any one of the above resources…so I’ve weaned my team

In other words I had to get over myself already and I’m encouraging you to do the same…

So where am I headed with this? I can assure you this post is not random ramblings…at least I don’t think so YET!

If you have a thin skin you may want to stop reading…I’m on a role.

O.K. here goes! Unless you approach your warm market and at least tell them about your opportunity you are NOT going to make money your first week in any business! This may seem like a contradiction to what I teach…don’t bug your family and friends…but it’s NOT really.

See, you have to let the one’s you know what you’re doing or else somebody else will. But just tell them ONCE! Don’t bug them everyday or weekly to join your business. Let them see your success and trust me they will approach you.

And if you haven’t at least told your close associates what you’re doing don’t be mad when they call you and say, “Hey buddy, I have something I want you to look at…” How sad that would be for you.

So now, you’ve decided that you’re going to make the list and at least tell your associates at least once! I’m proud of you…BUT you still need to get over yourself already!

Here’s what else I teach…I teach my team how to market online so they can generate their own leads…BUT generating quality leads through online methods takes time…yup it took me at least 12 weeks to generate my first lead…through consistent DAILY activity…

I had someone email me and say I’m on day 3 of your training and I’m still not generating any leads… Day 3! That is too funny! I’m on day 2190! Most folks won’t last 90…

So what do you do in the meantime? You get out there and build your business using Social Media. You work your tail off to generate leads!

And while some of you may do that…here is what you WON’T do…

You refuse to pick up that 1,000 pound black snake (the phone) and make  those dials. So what if the leads suck…it good practice for when you start to generate quality leads.

If You Want The Things You Do Not Have

You Gotta Do The Things You Have Not Done!

So get over yourself already and have some cheese and crackers to go with the “whine”. Whining about not knowing how to market, or not knowing how to generate leads, or not knowing how to post a blog, or not knowing how to set up a myspace page, or whine, whine, whine… If you haven’t been online at least 5 years…just do what you’re told and stop surfing for the next big thing. You can build your business on a shoestring budget but ask anyone of my team mates who does it…it does NOT happen overnight.

I get approached at least once a day from team mates who haven’t even completed their training with the next best big thing! I have one guy who is NOT on my team who emails me at least once a week with yet another up and coming lifetime opportunity! Man, enough already. He needs to get over himself already!

So what is my schedule? Do I practice what I preach? You betcha! Most folks won’t do one hour of what it takes to generate leads on a budget…or one hour of what I do on a daily basis…will you?

Monday thorugh Thursday 7-9 Calling leads and follow ups–no exceptions!!!

9 PM 11 PM Work

Monday’s Blogs and Articles and Press Releases

Tuesday’s Videos

Wednesday’s Social Networks

Thursday’s Updating My Websites

My brain works overtime with stuff I like to share so I have a file that I add to almost weekly with ideas. Will I get to them all? Probably not, but i write them down anyway and you should too.

I’m guilty…yes I’m a computer “geek” and I have to STOP my brainstorming efforts for generating traffic and I too have to take the time and pick up the phone to call leads.

So get over yourself already and pick up the damn phone!

Don’t’ waste your time with dream stealer’s…NEVER, EVER, EVER, EVER LET ANYBODY STEAL YOUR DREAMS! Be the doer! Be the leader! Be the ‘go-to’ person! Learn all you need to learn today and your dreams will take you to the top.

Stop and re-condition your mindset and your way of working. Develop strong leadership skills. Don’t’ wait for someone to GIVE you permission to stand out! Don’t just stand out…stand up and step out and be NOTICED!

Today, make the decision to do whatever it takes to make the kind of money up until you’ve ONLY dreamed about! Stop following the “old school” methods of building your business. It is your day to SHINE!

Here is a COLD HARD FACT! If you don’t give yourself permission to be successful; you NEVER will be a SUCCESS! Huh? That’s right. You must give yourself permission to be successful.

Only then will you be able to “clean out the ingrained mindset” you grew up with. Remember, when you were younger and you dreamed all the things you’d accomplish when you got older? Why did you stop dreaming?

Because, somebody and the sad but true facts are it was probably a parent or someone you respected—even a teacher–told you that you would NEVER amount to anything…or you can never….ever…well write all that negative down and then take it outside and burn the piece of paper it’s written on.

Go ahead, I’ll wait! I’m not kidding! Do this exercise….write all the negative things you were ever told in your life and go outside and burn it!

This exercise is your Cleansing Fire! Just as fire serves the forest by cleansing and renewing; you too should write down those “old hurts” and go outside and “burn” them! You may find yourself doing this several times a year!

As soon as you’ve burned or cleansed those “old hurts” begin your “New Leadership Journey”. Your mindset or your brain will let you start to think as a leader. Then go and start on a nice clean white sheet of paper the “My New Leadership Journey!”.

Oh, you thought I was going to tell you what to write! Sorry, that’ part your job as a leader. Think of the type of person you want to be! Not a dictator, not a babysitter; but a leader and write your journey down.

Think of people who have had a significant impact on your life. Think of your past POSITIVE experiences (not the burned ones) that have molded you. Those are the thoughts that will help you recondition yourself as a true “Leader”.

Call this your “Bank of Life Repository”. Add to it daily, weekly, monthly. Then go out and be the LEADER starting TODAY!

Let’s get straight to the point! I’ve taken the gloves off and we’re going to play it like it is. If you want to be seen as a “LEADER” in your current MLM or company then you must to regurgitate and puke out the “junk” in your life! Huh? Now, stay with me….and read on…

You are going to have to re-program your thinking. If you’re used to being the follower; and you don’t change your mindset you’ll NEVER be a Leader! OK, I might have just made some of you mad.

I don’t mean you CAN’T ever be a leader; it’s just going to take some reprogramming. You must think like a leader. What if your upline leader quit your company? Would you be lost? Or would you be able to carry on and work your business?

Now, your upline leader may be the hardest working person you’ve met…but do they teach you the skills you need? Or are they keeping it all to themselves?

Another question, are you developing the skills you need to be a leader? Or are you going to stay the follower forever? I’m urging you to quit being the “follower” and volunteer to be a “leader”. Put yourself out there and volunteer your time to do some training. What better way to learn your business than to actually have to teach it?

Do you know your back office systems? Do you know how to reach the home office? Do you know the “tools” of the trade? Do you know how to answer the “simplest” of questions that you may receive from your prospects? If you don’t—then learn it—now! Instead of calling your upline leader EVERY TIME you have a question—look for the answer yourself FIRST! Then if you can’t find the answer call your upline leader.

If you’ll take the time to do the research you’ll retain the answer. You’ll know the next time someone calls you how to do something in the backoffice. You won’t have to call your upline…thus “creating” the perception (fake it til you make it) that you’re the true leader.

Here’s another mistake that people make. They don’t’ act like leaders from the FIRST person they put on their team. They let their upline “take care of their downline”. Instead, I challenge you from today forward to call your downline and keep in touch with them on a weekly (not weakly) basis.

Stop wasting your time on tasks that don’t make you money. If you develop leaders from the first day they join your team; eventually you’ll have a WHOLE downline built on strength and leadership.

We posted Gavin’s site earlier; however, we want to expand a little on the method.

Just as we have created a relationship with Gavin Mountford over at MLM10WeekChallenge you should be expanding your online relationships. If they have a blog ask them to feature you in one of their blogs. You too could return the favor.

Another way to do this is to write up a “review” of a fellow bloggers blog. They in turn receive precious backlinks. Down the road they can and probably will return the favor.

So go out and connect with some fellow bloggers and don’t be afraid to feature them and/or a recent post of theirs. You give added value to your subscribers and your relationships with fellow bloggers gets stronger.

Do not be afraid to ask. After you might just get a yes, I’d love to do that.

Head on over to Gavin’s blog. You’ll be glad you did.