Deep Focus
How do you spell success?
By Barry Farber
Entrepreneur magazine - October 2001
Successful people have many common characteristics. However, one trait—or,
rather, combination of traits—seems to stand out. When it comes to success
strategies, entrepreneurs have the ability to FOCUS:
"F" is for foresight and faith.
Before you can take any effective action, you must have a clear idea of where
you want to go and believe you're going to get there. You need to visualize your
dreams and believe they can come true. Great entrepreneurs have the combination
of foresight and faith that creates a strong vision and a belief that they will
make their dreams come true.
"O" is for organization.
Foresight and faith can take you a long way, but your dreams will have no
foundation in reality unless you set them down as goals and break them down into
small, tangible steps you can achieve one at a time.
"C" is for concentrated effort
and courage. Once you create a clear vision of where you want to go and the
step-by-step goals to get there, the real work begins. Nothing happens until we
take each small step and put all of our effort into it. It takes courage to go
after dreams, to move forward against obstacles, failures and setbacks. Great
entrepreneurs have the courage to do the things that other people won't do, and
that's what makes them stand out from the pack.
"U" is for understanding. High
achievers have a passion for reading and investing in new ideas. They gather all
the information they can about their businesses and their industries. They
constantly learn new skills and develop new talents. Understanding builds your
confidence, which strengthens your faith. Understanding also tells you where you
need to concentrate your efforts and what steps you need to take next to achieve
your goals.
"S" is for seeding and
service. The most successful people constantly plant seeds for the future. You
should always be widening your circle of contacts, because you never know which
of the seeds you plant will bear the most fruit. Service is giving back to
others. The true key to living a successful life is to turn the focus from "How
can I help myself?" to "What can I do for others?" The more you impact others'
lives for the better, the greater your success becomes.
Bestselling author Barry Farber (www.barryfarber.com)
is the nation’s top-rated speaker on sales, management and motivation.
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