Special Report Motivation Secrets Published by Negan Richards
How To Motivate Yourself and Others
to Produce Peak Performance
10 Proven Techniques - 10 Steps To Success
You'll All Get More Done Faster, With Less Effort and Resistance
by Dr. Rob Gilbert
Introduction
What do Lee Iaccoca, Michael Jordan, Mary Kay, Martina Navratilova and Dan
Gable have in common? They are all extremely motivated individuals.
How motivated are you? How enthused is your staff?
Do you practice what you preach? You know the importance of being motivated,
getting psyched, and having that burning desire. But, are you and your staff motivated,
action-oriented, high-achieving individuals?
In the world of athletics, we know how to increase strength, endurance and
flexibility. But, we think that an individual's level of motivation is innate.
Not true. You can learn the skills and techniques necessary to motivate yourself or
anyone else.
Wait! Before you think that this is going to be just a rehash of the old fashioned
positive thinking pep-talks -- read on. In this Special Report, you will find the 10 most
powerful ways motivate yourself, your staff, your teams and your family.
Do these techniques work? Yes! I guarantee it. But they will only work if you
work them. Remember, if you keep doing things the same way you have always done them
-- you will get the same results you have always gotten.
Technique #1
Goal Setting
If you do not know where you are going, how are you ever going to get there? If
you want to motivate yourself or anyone else, the first step is to have a goal. Oh, I
know...you've heard this before. Probably. But, have you done this before? Have you ever
actually put your goals down on paper?
Right now, get paper and pen and write down three career goals. Be specific. Put
down exactly what you want to be, the things you want to do or what you want to have.
For example, do not write that you want to have a successful athletic program. That's too
general. Be specific. Write down that you want your teams to win 80% of their games.
Now write down three things you want to accomplish in the next 12 months. These
are your one-year goals. Next put down three goals for the next month. Then three weekly
goals and finally six things you want to accomplish tomorrow.
See if there is a "domino" effect. Reaching your daily goals should lead you closer
to your weekly goals. Accomplishing your weekly goals will help you reach your monthly
goals, etc.
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Set your own personal goals. Have your staff and teams set goals. Once you know
where you are going, it is more likely that you will get there.
Remember, everyone has dreams. Only the real achievers set goals.
Special Tip: Before you leave your office this afternoon, write down six things you
want to accomplish tomorrow. Be specific. Put them in priority order. Tomorrow
morning start with number 1. DO NOT DO ANY OTHER TASK OR PROJECT UNTIL
YOU FINISH THE LIST. Stubbornly refuse to let anything get you off track. Plan your
work then work your plan. When you finish #6, I guarantee you will feel more productive
and more motivated.
Technique #2
Outrageous Goals
Goals become even more motivational as they increase in size. For example,
imagine that you weighed 600 pounds and went to a nutritionist who put you on a diet and
guaranteed that you would lose 20 pounds in the next year. This is an improvement but it
isn't too exciting.
Now what if the nutritionist guaranteed that you would lose 420 pounds in the next
12 months, wouldn't you be more motivated about going on that diet?
Set outrageously high goals. I know that you are probably thinking that if you do
not reach a goal you will be discouraged. Not necessarily. Just remember, "If you shoot
for the moon and miss, at least you will be one of the stars."
In my workshops, I reinforce this point about setting outrageously high goals with
the following story...
There are two salesmen who go to a seminar on goal setting and decide to set goals
for the next year. One man writes down his goal of $50,000 and seals it in an envelope.
The second salesman puts down his goal of $1,000,000. A year later, they get together to
evaluate their results. The first man excitedly opens his envelope and says that he earned
$50,000 and met his goal. The second man shows his friend his prediction and says "I only
made it one-half way to my goal."
The salesman who set an outrageously high goal earned 10 times as much money as
the man who set a more realistic goal.
Special Tip: Advertise Your Goals. Notice how many ads you see everyday. The
same incredibly powerful techniques that are used by major corporations to motivate
consumers to purchase their products can be used by you to motivate yourself. This
technique is simple and powerful. Simply write down your goals on an index card, keep
the card with you and read the card three times each day -- morning, noon, and night.
Technique #3
Time off
That's right. Take a break. Often major companies reward their outstanding sales
people with paid vacations.
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Reward yourself with a vacation or even a day off. A feature of our culture is that
we are given sick days. How about taking a well day before you get sick. Practice a little
preventive medicine.
At almost every educational conference where I have spoken in the last five years,
there has been a session on burn-out. As human beings we are designed to be on a
work/rest schedule. In other words, WE HAVE TO REST. When I used to coach
wrestling, I used an incredibly powerful strategy -- I gave my kids plenty of rest toward the
end of the season. The result was that we always did exceptionally well in the tournaments.
Plan ways how you can reward your people with rest and breaks. You will be
killing the proverbial two birds with one stone.
Special Tip: A great way you can combat burn out in your job is to be around
people in your profession who are motivated. This is an effective way to recharge your
battery. Where do you find these motivated professionals? At conventions, conferences,
clinics, and seminars. So take a working vacation. And if you are too busy to attend a
professional meeting -- you are too busy.
Technique #4
Creative Crisis
Crises used correctly and creatively can produce amazing results. Remember when
Bear Bryant threw Joe Namath off the team just before the 1964 Sugar Bowl game? The
Bear knew how to motivate a football game.
In the movie "Hoosiers," Gene Hackman, playing the basketball coach, got himself
thrown out of the game in order to motivate his team. Remind you a little of the ploys that
Bobby Knight uses?
As college professor, I create crises with exams, quizzes, and deadlines. I know that
without them, many of my students would never get their work done. I'm sure you get very
motivated when your boss needs that report immediately.
Create crises and use deadlines to produce results. Many people will only produce
results when under pressure. Look at what happens each year on April 14 -- everyone
becomes an accountant.
Special Tip: This is a very effective strategy to use on a group or a team. Research
in social psychology has shown that when groups are threatened from without they tend to
become more cohesive from within.
Technique #5
Elephant Eating
One of the most de-motivating experiences is to have too big a task to tackle. How
do you make a mountain into a molehill? Break it down into smaller parts. Anything can
be accomplished if it is broken down into smaller pieces. This is called "elephant eating."
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. How do you run a marathon? One step at
a time.
This "one day at a time" philosophy is also used by Alcoholics Anonymous. They
know that getting off alcohol has to be done in small parts. It is a "one-day-at-a-time"
proposition.
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Take any task and break it down. And then do a small part. After you experience
this small victory you will be more motivated to take the next step.
"Inch by inch anything is a cinch -- yard by yard it might be hard."
Special Tip: Take an especially distasteful task that you have been putting off and
break it into small pieces. And then fully concentrate all your energy on doing one at a
time. The secret is in getting started. "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single
step."
Technique #6
Threaten Loss
For many individuals, the threat of loss is more motivating than the possibility of
gain. Let me explain...
Suppose I call you at 4:00 in the morning and tell you that I am in your
neighborhood and that I have four brand new tires for your car that I want to bring over and
give you. You would probably hang up after uttering several obscenities. But...what if a
neighbor called you at 4:00 am and told you that he saw someone slashing the tires on your
car? You would probably swing into action and run outside to protect your car.
The rule is that many people are more motivated by the threat of loss than by the
possibility of gain.
How can you use this technique? It is amazing the behavior change that can result
when someone realizes that their job, their bonus, their perks or even some special privilege
is in jeopardy.
Many of my college students become super-productive during the week of final
exams. The fear of getting an "F" becomes so great that things that were put off for three
months get done literally overnight.
Technique #7
Positive Feedback
As an administrator, you are an evaluator. With all the legal threats of liability, you
probably have become very problem oriented. You are very aware when things are being
done wrong. But, how often do you catch people doing things right?
We all love recognition. Don't you crave a pat on the back? This type of positive
feedback becomes even more meaningful when you praise someone in public, especially in
front of his or her peers. Remember how great you felt when your name was posted on the
honor roll list at school for everyone to see? And I'll bet that you still have those
newspaper clippings that proclaimed your athletic heroics to the world.
Unfortunately, probably the last time you received a compliment was when you
accidentally overheard someone saying something nice about you. Make the positive
feedback that you give your subordinates a planned for event -- not a chance happening.
Make a practice of catching people doing something right and tell them about it.
Special Tip: Our culture has it all backwards. Most people probably will receive
more accolades at their retirement dinners than they will throughout their entire careers. If
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you publicly praise people while they are working for you -- you will see something
remarkable happen. These people will become more motivated and more productive.
Give a special recognition day, a man or a woman of the year award, or even a
good-natured roast. Don't wait 25 years until you reward good work.
Technique #8
Go on a Mental Diet
That's right -- feed your mind. The media will feed you all the negatives. You have
to take responsibility for motivating yourself. No one else will.
Don't forget the 10 most important two-letter words: "If it is to be it is up to me."
Attitudes develop by choice not by chance. You can choose to have a winning
attitude. Your mind is like a garden. In a garden, what the soil produces depends upon
what you plant. If you plant corn -- you will get corn. If you plant peas -- you will get
peas.
In your mind, if you "plant" positive thoughts, you will grow a positive attitude.
Here are my 10 favorite motivational thoughts
Let them grow in your mind...
"Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out."
"Good, better, best...never ever rest until your good gets better and your better gets
best."
"Success is not getting there but earning the right to be there."
"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary."
"Only the mediocre are at their best at all times."
"Don't complain, don't explain."
"No one ever drowned in sweat."
"Others can stop you temporarily. You are the only one who can do it permanently."
"The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win."
"Nothing real was ever accomplished without enthusiasm."
Other products you can use to get instant motivation...
There are a lot of superb motivational books out there. My favorites are: The Sky's
The Limit by Dr. Wayne Dyer, The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz, See You at
the Top by Zig Ziglar, The Miracle Man by Morris Goodman, and Gilbert on Greatness by
yours truly.
You can start every day with a pep-talk by getting in the practice of listening to
motivational audio-cassette tapes in your car on the way to work. The best resource for
motivational tapes is the Nightingale Corporation, 7300 North Leigh Avenue, Chicago, IL
60648 (800-323-5552). I recommend tapes by Zig Ziglar, Denis Waitley, Brian Tracy and
Tom Peters.
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Special Tip: For your own personal psych-up message, call my own SUCCESS
HOTLINE at (201) 743-4690. This telephone hotline is available to you 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. I'll get you psyched up!
Technique #9
Become a Master Motivator
Great motivators are made and not born. All the information is out there for you to
use. If you're serious about motivating yourself and others, start by reading The Greatest
Management Principle in the World by Dr. Michael LeBoeuf. Follow that up with
Unlimited Power by Tony Robbins. After you finish these two, give me a call (201-743-
4428), and I'll give you additional resources.
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done. To make sure this does
not happen to you, I have saved the most important motivational strategy for last...
Technique #10
GOYA
To help you get yourself motivated, I want you to remember the one most
motivational word that will keep you action-oriented -- GOYA. GOYA is an acronym for
"Get Off Your...Backside." In other words -- GO FOR IT!
Why don't you GOYA? The first reason you don't GOYA is that you have a big
but. I don't mean your gluteus but the word "but." How often do you let yourself
procrastinate by saying things to yourself like "I was going to work on that report today
BUT..." If you want to get things done -- get rid of your big buts.
The second reason you do not GOYA is because you "try." There is no such thing
as "trying." As Yoda told Luke in "Star Wars," "Do or do not -- there is no try." When I
coached, I noticed that the athletes who said they were going to "try" to go to practice,
never showed up.
Do not misunderstand me. The words "but" and "try" are in the dictionary.
However, they are NOT part of the vocabulary of motivated, action-oriented administrators.
Special Tip: "Do it! Do it right! Do it right now!"
Resource Box
Dr. Rob Gilbert is a nationally known expert in Sport Psychology as well as applying
workable techniques from the world of sports to the world of business and success. He is
the author of the book Gilbert on Greatness: How Sport Psychology Can Make You A
Champion. This book helps business executives and success oriented individuals as well
as coaches and athletes to conquer the problems of choking, a poor attitude and lack of
concentration. It is available for $15.00 from Dr. Rob Gilbert, The Center for Sports
Success, 91 Belleville Ave., Suite 7, Bloomfield, NJ 07003. (201) 743-4428. Inquire how
your school or organization can raise $2,000 by sponsoring Dr. Gilberts highly-acclaimed
one-day Winners Workshop.
SUCCESS HOTLINE: Call Dr. Gilberts Success Hotline at (201) 743-4690. The message
changes each and every day!!!
