TipsForSuccess

TipsForSuccess: How to Become a Leader

How to Become a Leader

According to October's TipsForSuccess survey, 72% of those who completed the survey want more information on how to be a leader.

Becoming the leader of a project, group or business is very thrilling. You get to make the decisions, help more people, earn more pay and have more fun. The technology described in this article outlines exactly how you can do this.

"THE K-R-C TRIANGLE"

"The points are K for KNOWLEDGE, R for RESPONSIBILITY and C for CONTROL."

"It is difficult to be responsible for something or control something unless you have KNOWLEDGE of it."

"It is folly to try to control something or even know something without RESPONSIBILITY."

"It is hard to fully know something or be responsible for something over which you have no CONTROL, otherwise the result can be an overwhelm."

"Little by little one can make anything go right by

"INCREASING KNOWLEDGE . . . ,"

"INCREASING RESPONSIBILITY . . . ,"

"INCREASING CONTROL . . . ."

"If one sorts out any situation one finds oneself in on this basis, he will generally succeed."

"By inching up each corner of the KRC triangle bit by bit, ignoring the losses and making the wins firm, a being at length discovers his power and command of life." -- L. Ron Hubbard

Examples

Terry and Joe work for Dan's Auto Repair. They both want to succeed, but Terry uses the KRC Triangle.

For example, when Joe makes a mistake, he hits the car part with his tool. When Terry makes a mistake, he slows down, adjusts the tool and carefully does the work again. He increases his control.

At 5:00 each night, Joe puts down his tools and walks out the door to get a beer. Terry cleans up his area, oils his tools and puts them away. He increases his responsibility.

During the weekends, Joe watches football while Terry reads auto repair magazines and shop manuals. He increases his knowledge.

Joe gets frustrated when he can't pay his bills, can't get along with his wife and can't get ahead at his job. He complains about all the losses he has had in life to his buddies at the bar every night.

Terry also gets frustrated, but he ignores the losses and rarely talks about them. Instead, he makes his wins firm by sharing them with his family and friends and looks for new ways to succeed.

When Dan, the owner of the shop, decides to add a partner to his business, who does he choose?

Who are the most successful people you personally know? How much knowledge, responsibility and control do they have in their fields?

How often do they increase their knowledge? Their responsibility? Their control?

Do they talk about their failures or their successes?

To become a leader and achieve success, just remember these five things: increase knowledge, increase responsibility, increase control, ignore losses and solidify wins.

Recommendations

Raise your KRC for the activity faster and more thoroughly than anyone else and you will become the leader.

1. Decide on the group or project that you want lead. If you are not yet a part of that activity, take a small position in that group or project.

2. Increase your knowledge: Learn more about the activity than anyone. Do more research than anyone. Figure out more innovative solutions than anyone.

3. Increase your responsibility: Be a great supporter to the current leader. Volunteer to do extra work and take on extra duties with no pay. Consider the success of the project or group to be your personal responsibility.

4. Control: Invest more time and interest in the activity than anyone else. Take control of every aspect of the project or group, when the opportunity presents itself.

5. Losses: Do not dwell on any failures, regrets or mistakes you encounter. Fix them, when possible, but otherwise, ignore them.

6. Wins: Focus on your successes each day. Write them down, think about them and talk about them. Make them a permanent part of your life.

7. Because you have the most knowledge and responsibility for the success of the project, an opportunity to take control of the project or group will eventually appear. When this happens, do not hesitate. Take the reins!

For permission to copy, print or post this article, go to www.tipsforsuccess.org/reprint_info.htm or click here.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: How to Prevent Catastrohphes

How to Prevent Catastrophes

One of the most stressful aspects of managing your life, job or business are those darn SURPRISES.

For example, you are going along, believing everything is fine, then WHAM! Your son gets arrested. Your neighbor cuts down your tree. Your car is stolen.

Any job can include surprising catastrophes. You get demoted or transferred. Your co-worker falsely accuses you of theft. Your boss screams at you.

Management surprises can be the most stressful of all. A key employee suddenly quits. A government agent walks in to do an inspection. Some crazy guy screams at your receptionist and won't leave.

Odds are good you will get hit with several surprises in your life. As a result, your forward progress can be stopped. Your production can be blocked. Your success can be ruined.

Even worse, the more successful you are, or the bigger your business becomes, the more often you might be hit with surprises.

Bad Solutions

You might be so afraid of catastrophes that you take them too seriously. You decide to stop succeeding. To earn less money. To be less aggressive, less intense or less passionate.

You believe that if you are small and insignificant, people will leave you alone. But of course, they just hunt you down.

Another bad approach is to get upset when a catastrophe occurs. You act like a victim or a coward. Yet this often makes the problem even worse. You seem to attract even more surprises.

Getting numb is another bad solution. You might want to use drugs or alcohol to deaden your feelings. You try to turn off the world. But this hurts your success as you need to perceive and think with clarity if you wish to succeed.

Constantly worrying makes your life miserable. You spend so much time thinking about problems and potential catastrophes that you are blind to the opportunities that surround you.

Luckily, you can reduce your stress and worry by planning ahead.

Surprise Insurance

"A catastrophe occurs by lack of prediction of a possible circumstance. Those things planned for do not become catastrophes." -- L. Ron Hubbard

Your best insurance is to predict and plan for catastrophes IN ADVANCE. Once you have a plan for handling every conceivable surprise, you can relax.

When you have a plan for a disaster, you are ready for it. Instead of reacting to the problem, while upset and prone to making mistakes, you take command of the situation. You resolve it with your plan. Your prosperity continues.

For example, as a boss, you learn a former employee is suing you. If you planned for this possibility in advance, you would know exactly what to do. Your paperwork would be filed and organized. Your lawyer would send a copy of your paperwork to the employee's attorney. The employee's attorney would see you had done everything right and drop the case.

As another example, you can't sleep because you MUST get to work on time to give a presentation. So instead of tossing and turning in your bed, you turn on the lights. You write down every reason you might be late. You plan how to handle each. You set two alarm clocks and a wind-up alarm in case the power goes out. You figure out another way to get to work in case your car won't start. You lay out your clothes and set up your coffee maker. You are now prepared! You get in bed and instantly fall asleep.

The same principle works on a personal level. For example, Joe is worried his wife will be angry when she finds out he quit his job. He plans a way to explain it to her so she can understand his reasons. He also plans on how to respond to anything she says to him. Joe stops worrying and goes home. When he first gives her the news, he is ready for a bad reaction, but she is fine. Because he planned for a catastrophe, it does not happen. They discuss their finances and make plans for his job search.

Recommendations

1. Make a list of all the catastrophes you expect may happen to you. Include everything that makes you worry. Small things, big things, anything you can think of.

2. Next to each item on your list, write up a plan to handle it. Some potential catastrophes require a single preparation step. Others need a detailed, 20-step plan.

3. As you do this exercise, you may feel uncomfortable and nervous. Just keep working on it. As you plan out more solutions and get prepared, you will feel more relaxed and confident than ever before. You become ready for anything!

4. After you finish, you will probably think of more things to add to your list. So keep it handy.

5. Each time you feel stressed or worried about a potential problem, add the potential surprise to your list. If it's already on the list, simply add more preparation steps until you are no longer worried.

6. Review the list every few months. When you review old solutions, you think of new preventive steps and better solutions.

Biggest Benefit

"A catastrophe occurs by lack of prediction of a possible circumstance. Those things planned for do not become catastrophes." -- L. Ron Hubbard

That's right! Because you have planned for the surprises on your list, they won't happen to you. Most people don't believe this is true. However, write down your plans and see for yourself.

For permission to copy, print or post this article, go to www.tipsforsuccess.org/reprint_info.htm or click here.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: Get Anything You Want with ARC: Part 3

Get Whatever You Want with ARC Affinity, Reality and Communication (ARC)

"The ARC Triangle is the keystone of living associations." -- L. Ron Hubbard

Affinity: how well you like or love a person
Reality: how much agreement you have with a person; what you agree to be real
Communication: your exchange of information and ideas
Understanding: The result of combining affinity, reality and communication

Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 1
Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 2

Part 3: How to Use ARC to Form New Relationships

Wouldn't it be great if you could become fast friends with nearly everyone you met? If you could make people like you right away? If you could earn the support from everyone you wished to have support from?

For example, you could get strangers to agree with you within a few minutes. You could get the leaders in your field to listen to you and give you whatever you needed. You could earn respect from your coworkers, staff, colleagues, friends and family.

You can do all of these things with ARC. You start by using communication. Simply follow two steps:

"The way to talk to a man, then, would be to find something to like about him and to discuss something with which he can agree." -- L. Ron Hubbard (from The Problems of Work)

For example, you want to form a business relationship with a business owner. You invite him to lunch. Where do you start?

1. Find something you like about the owner. You look him over and decide he has a nice smile and good looking shoes. You have some affinity for him. This step is done.

2. Discuss something with which he can agree. He mentions that he hates the hot weather outside. You say, "I can't stand the heat either, but my wife loves it." He says, "My wife likes it too. Something is wrong with them." You both laugh.

You can also ask questions to find something with which to agree. What has he been doing lately? How is his business going? What does he like about his field? What does he do for fun? Does he have any children?

Maybe you learn he loves to play tennis, has trouble with a government regulation and worries about his father's health. You also have trouble with the same government regulation and so you discuss it. Your ARC with the business owner goes up.

As another example, you are waiting for your flight to Chicago at an airport. You decide to establish ARC with the business woman sitting next to you. First you find something you like about her, perhaps her red-leather briefcase.

So you say, "Nice briefcase!" She smiles and nods. Your affinity is established. You then find something with which she can agree. "Are you from Chicago?" She starts to communicate. You find points of agreement. You have ARC and perhaps a new business relationship.

If you are single and want to meet someone new, these two steps are great for breaking the ice with the opposite sex, even if you feel shy. For example, you notice someone you want to meet in a bookstore. He or she is looking at magazines. You do the first step and find something you like, such as this person's hair, shoes and voice. You suddenly feel less shy. You then find something with which you can agree. "I need a good magazines. Which ones do you like best?" "I see you like gardening magazines. Me too. Have you seen this one?"

You can use this formula to form relationships with people who are difficult for you to understand. Say you get on that airplane for a long flight to Chicago and are assigned to sit next to a body-pierced, tattooed, pimply-faced teenager with McDonalds Big Mac breath. You follow the formula and find something to like about him: he has a beautiful sunset picture on his t-shirt. You feel a little better about the fellow. You find something with which he can agree. "Where did you get that great shirt?" "What do you like to do after school?" "That is quite a tattoo you have." Before long, you have enough ARC with this teenager to enjoy sitting next to him for the flight.

Recommendations

1. List all the people or types of people with whom you want to form a relationship.

2. Work out a way to use the two steps with each of them:

"The way to talk to a man, then, would be to find something to like about him and to discuss something with which he can agree." -- L. Ron Hubbard (from The Problems of Work)

Give it a try!

The Problems of Work is available at www.tipsforsuccess.org/bookstore.htm and www.bridgepub.com.
Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 1
Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 2

For permission to copy, print or post this article, go to www.tipsforsuccess.org/reprint_info.htm or click here.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: The Number One Fear of Executives

The Number One Fear of Executives

The one thing that scares more business owners, executives and managers than anything else: delegating power to employees who might fail.

Only courageous leaders are able to pass down authority, decision-making power and responsibility to those below them. They do this despite the incompetence, inability and inexperience of their people.

History is filled with leaders who could not lead. L. Ron Hubbard uses a South American leader, Simon Bolivar, as an example of how extraordinary people can fail as executives.

Simon Bolivar successfully won the South American revolutionary war against Spain during the 1800's. After the war he was the richest, most powerful man in South America, but only for a brief period. Because of his mistakes, he was soon kicked out of his country and eventually, died broke.

Bolivar made the same huge mistake most failed executives make. He could not delegate power. It cost him everything.

"Brave beyond any general in history on the battlefield, the Andes or in torrential rivers, he [Simon Bolivar] did not really have the bravery needed to trust inferior minds and stand by their often shocking blunders. He feared their blunders. So he did not dare unleash his many willing hounds.

"He could lead men, make men feel wonderful, make men fight and lay down their lives after hardships no army elsewhere in the world had ever faced before or since. But he could not use men even when they were begging to be used."

"If you have power, use it or delegate it or you sure won't have it long." -- L. Ron Hubbard

After winning the revolution against Spain, Bolivar took over and tried to do everything himself. He felt he had to be in charge of everything and make all the decisions.

For example, after the war, some of the richest gold, silver and copper mines in the world were abandoned by the Spanish owners. Bolivar did not allow anyone to take over these mines, even though his officers and troops were sitting around with nothing to do.

He did not assign anyone to take over the justice system, the education system, the roads or the cities. He was afraid that new powerful leaders would hurt the country.

The same thing happens in governments, businesses and groups today.

For example, John has ten smart employees, but he makes all the decisions and does all the important work himself. His staff watch him work very hard. They are not allowed to make decisions, so they wait for John to tell them what to do. His company does not grow and John starts to burn out.

Finally, he gets enough courage to give some authority to his best employee, Jill. "You are now in charge of the all of the work schedules. Sort out the shifts and vacations."

Jill is happy to take over and posts a new schedule . . . but John gets scared. He worries she will upset the other secretaries. He feels anxiety about her new schedule.

If John is a stupid executive, he will change the schedule. If John is a smart executive, he will leave the schedule alone.

John succeeds as an executive when he delegates entire jobs and lets his people get on with it. He gives staff members room to make mistakes, fix their mistakes and learn from their mistakes. He supports them and leaves them alone.

Recommendations for Business Owners, Executives, Managers and Bosses

1. Make a list of every job you are currently doing yourself.

2. Rate each job according to difficulty. For example, put a 1 by the easiest jobs and a 5 by the hardest jobs. Rate every job from 1-5.

3. Decide who can take over which jobs. Put their name next to the job you will be delegating. You will delegate the easiest jobs first. If you do not currently have a person to take over some of your jobs, use "future" names, such as "Future Marketing Director" or "Future Executive Director."

4. Delegate each job as fast as possible. Train them, apprentice them and help them succeed. As soon as they know what they are doing and are getting results, leave them alone.

5. With your free time, focus on the big picture; new goals, new territory, new operations and greater success for you and your organization.

Ten Benefits of Delegating Power

1. You can spend more time working on the things you do best.

2. You help others become more competent.

3. You can focus on increasing the productivity and income for your group.

4. People like to work for you as you give them new challenges and new opportunities.

5. You get more done with less effort.

6. Everyone in your group shows more responsibility.

7. Your income goes up.

8 The members of your group earn more pay.

9. Your group grows and expands.

10. You reach your goals and your group's goals in less time.

If You are Not Yet An Executive . . .

. . . you soon will be if you do the following:

1. Look for opportunities to take on more responsibility. Grab every bit you can. Do not worry about extra pay at this point.

2. When you get a duty assigned to you, get the entire duty assigned. "So if I take on this job, can I make all the related decisions? If I want to try a new approach, can I just go ahead? How should I report my progress to you?"

3. If your boss tries to take back some of the responsibility, bring it up as soon as possible. "Am I still in charge of this duty? If you want to take it back, that is fine with me, I just need to know. If you are really delegating it to me, I'll need to have full authority over it which means you won't step in without talking to me first. Is that okay?"

4. As soon as you can, start to delegate duties to people below you so you can take on even more responsibility.

5. You are now an executive! Follow the five recommendations above for executives.

For permission to copy, print or post this article, go to www.tipsforsuccess.org/reprint_info.htm or click here.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 2

Get Anything You Want with ARC
(Affinity, Reality and Communication)

"Without affinity, there is no reality or communication. Without reality, there is no affinity or communication. Without communication, there is neither affinity nor reality. Now, these are sweeping statements, but are nevertheless very valuable and are true." -- L. Ron Hubbard

Affinity: how well you like or love a person
Reality: how much agreement you have with a person; what you agree to be real
Communication: your exchange of information and ideas
Understanding: The result of combining affinity, reality and communication

By using ARC, you can significantly improve your relationships at work and at home, find new friends, make more sales, negotiate better deals, lead your group more effectively and help more people. You will be selected as the best person for a date, for promotions at work, big contracts for your business or whatever you want most from life. Using this tool gives you more self-confidence, greater peace of mind and an improved view of yourself.

Part 1 in this series explains how the ARC Triangle works and how you can increase the amount of ARC you have with someone. You can read Part 1 by going to www.tipsforsuccess.org/ARC1. Part 2 explains how you can repair upsets you have with others.

Part 2: Breaks in the ARC Triangle

Whenever you feel upset with someone, you have a broken triangle or an "ARC break." Every argument, fight or break up includes an ARC break. Everyone who once liked you and now seeks revenge against you, tries to get even with you or hopes you fail has an ARC break with you.

"The ARC break will vanish magically when the source is found." -- L. Ron Hubbard

You simply find and restore the broken point of the triangle. When did the upset begin? Which point of the triangle had a sudden drop?

Did you suddenly dislike the person (A)?

Did you have a disagreement (R)?

Did you have a communication problem (C)?

Once you spot the problem, you can repair it. If you fix the right problem, the sun shines, the birds sing and everything goes back to normal.

Example: Your accountant calls and says, "I'm sorry to tell you this, but I made a mistake. You need $10,000 by the end of the week to pay your taxes or you'll get a $5000 penalty."

You say, "You idiot! I don't have that kind of money. How could you do this to me!" You hang up. You feel betrayed. You decide the accountant is an enemy and that you should not talk to him again.

Later, you still feel upset. You try to feel better, but you cannot. So you examine the problem to determine if the break in the ARC triangle is A, R or C.

You realize the problem is not that you dislike the accountant, but that your reality is shaken. You disagree with this new reality of owing taxes. This break in the R point of the triangle makes you want less communication. Of course, the A or Affinity point is therefore dropped as well.

Now that you know the problem is a break in reality, you calm down and decide to handle it. You call and say, "Sorry I hung up on you Peter, but the news was a shock to me. You need to explain this as it's so unreal to me." Within seconds, you and your accountant work out a solution.

When People Get Upset with You

When someone gets upset with you, you can use your knowledge of the ARC triangle to resolve the problem. For example, Fred, an old friend of yours, is acting odd on the phone. He doesn't say much and won't talk to you. You think back and try to determine if the problem is with A, R or C.

You ask yourself, "Did we suddenly dislike each other? No. Did we disagree about something? No. Did we have a communication problem?"

You realize you forgot to return Fred's call last month (a break in communication) so you say, "I'm really sorry I didn't call you back last month." Fred suddenly says, "Yeah! Call me when I leave a message so I don't have to come over there and throw eggs at you, okay?" You both laugh.

As another example, you have been negotiating a contract with Pam and your last offer made her so mad she broke off the meeting and stormed out. Without your knowledge of ARC you might give up on the deal or start using intermediaries.

Instead, you look over the situation and evaluate the ARC. Which point is the most damaged? You realize the R or reality point went bad as no one can agree. How can you repair this break in reality?

You could raise the communication point by trying to call, but that does not seem appropriate. You could send a cheerful greeting card to increase the affinity, but that doesn't sound right either. You want Pam to realize there are more points of agreement than disagreement.

So you fax her a list that describes all the many points of agreement already established along with a request that she calls you when ready to complete the negotiation.

Your telephone rings 10 minutes later. Pam starts the conversation with an apology.

Exercise

1. Are you currently upset with anyone?

2. If so, which of the three points of the ARC triangle do you think is broken? Is it broken because you dislike the person? Because you disagree with the person? Because you failed to communicate with the person?

3. How could you repair the break? What steps could you take?

4. Take those steps today!

5. Repeat the above four steps for other people you may be upset with.

6. Repeat with anyone who may be upset with you.

7. Repeat with anyone in your past with whom you wish to rekindle a relationship.

You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Learn more about ARC in The Problems of Work available at www.tipsforsuccess.org/bookstore.htm and http://www.bridgepub.com.

For permission to copy, print or post this article, go to www.tipsforsuccess.org/reprint_info.htm or click here.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: How to Become a Leader

TipsForSuccess: How to Prevent Catastrohphes

TipsForSuccess: Get Anything You Want with ARC: Part 3

TipsForSuccess: The Number One Fear of Executives

TipsForSuccess: Get Anything You Want with ARC, Part 2

Blog Archive