Did you every notice that whether you are looking at sports, entertainment, or business achievement, there is a fine difference between earning big bucks and standing in the unemployment line? In fact, you may be on the verge of a major shift in your business results at this very moment just by learning and practicing something new and different than what you have done before.
What is your competitive edge that can get you than extra inch when you need it? For thousands of business owners/CEOS, the collective genius of their peer advisory group, "The Alternative Board," (TAB), provides leaders that one little idea or burst of energy that can nose them ahead. What I call the TAB Collaborative Edge is a result of the energy that comes from meeting regularly with peer advisors in,
"The line between failure and success is so fine that we are often on the line and do not know it. How many a man has thrown up his hands at a time when a little more effort, a little more patience, would have achieved success. A little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure, may turn to glorious success."
-- Albert Hubbard
For you, finding that nose-making difference may not just about surrounding yourself with the right people. Perhaps it is doing just one thing a little bit better. Maybe it is trying just a little bit harder. If you are not into horses, then look to the boiling water metaphor popularized by S.L.Parker. At 211º water is
hot, but at 212º it boils. The boiling water results in steam. That steam can power a machine. So just applying that one extra degree of temperature to water means the difference between something that is simply very hot and something that can generate enough force to power a city!
"Triumph often is nearest when defeat seems inescapable."
—B.C. Forbes, Founder & publisher, Forbes magazine
How many opportunities have you missed because you were not aware of the possibilities that would occur if you applied a small amount of effort beyond what you normally do? Unfortunately, you have no thermometer to say you are close to your target of 212º.Resolve to consistently push your organization to make the extra effort in every important task, action, and effort undertaken. Continually remind your people that seemingly small things can make tremendous differences.
"Some men give up their designs when they have almost reached the goal; while others, on the contrary, obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more vigorous efforts than before."
—Polybius, Greek statesman & historian
Keep applying the heat to reap the exponential rewards that are possible by applying one extra degree of effort. You could be on the threshold of immediate and exponential results this very moment. Or, you may not realize the success until much further down the road. You will realize the benefits of your extra effort … it's just a matter of when.
"Many of life's failures are men who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up."
—Thomas Edison, American inventor
Unfortunately, maintaining this kind of intensity and drive is not easy. You need a strong support team who really cares about your success and keeps you focused and accountable. I see The Alternative Board is one of the best ways for business owners to get both the advice and support they need. Whether you have a peer advisory board or not you need something like TAB to give you the horse power to accelerate your business forward and work up that head of steam. Who are your trusted advisors that help you lunge forward and land the big prize?
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