Its now an economic and statistical reality that we’re living in a recessionary environment. With large corporations recruitment departments shrinking and some even making redundancies, career prospects have never looked so bleak.
This is why Leadership is becoming such an important skill for job seekers to have. Leadership is the key driving force that keeps businesses alive and even profitable during economic turmoil. Great leaders increase motivation of workers, encourage free flow of ideas, and improve the atmosphere of the working environment. The effect of a phenomenal business leader can be felt right from shop floor workers up to the board. Its an incredibly desirable trait in any employee. So here are 3 ways to boost your leadership skills for a potential employer.
1. Take opportunities to lead teams. Leadership isn’t a characteristic you can simply claim to have, and hope nobody will call your bluff. It is such a self-evident trait, that a veteran interviewer will be able to smell it on you when you walk through the door. You need to gain experience as a leader, so grab every opportunity you can to direct, coach and lead teams in your organisation or in local clubs and societies. I suggest you have 5 varied experiences to talk about confidently with an interviewer, where you demonstrated the skill of leadership.
2. Read leadership literature. Books are commonly put-down as a ‘useless’ resource for personal development simply because you don’t gain practical experience. This is such a mis-conception. Some of the greatest leadership minds of this century have put their ideas and beliefs on paper, and they have served generation after generation for inspiring and giving new people the courage to lead. Leadership books generate useful ideas that you can implement practically in your day-to-day experiences. So you see, leadership literature is a brilliant companion to your actual work, and will help improve the effectiveness of the techniques you use. I suggest reading ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ by Dale Carnegie to start. This is one of the most popular books of all time, and delivers brilliant advice on how to handle all types of people in life.
3. Just say yes. More often than not, people take the safe option and say ‘no’ to choices that perhaps look to only carry mediocre benefits and plenty of risk of embarrassment or humiliation. What also is often the case however, is what these people are actually doing is instantly sensing the risk, and then not bothering to really see the inherent bonuses that could come from completing such a task. Next time you’re presented with a public speaking opportunity for instance, or a chance to organise a charity event within the office. For your career’s sake, say yes. The benefits to your CV will more than justify the risk of embarrassment.
So there you have it. If you make sure you incorporate these 3 tips into your working life, you will boost your leadership skills and be able to present these effortlessly to an impressed employer. I wish you every success in your future carrer.

In this short article I am sharing with you some valuable pointers & advice I’ve accumulated over the last few months on the subject title.  And if this is nothing new to you, at the very least it will be a good refresher!

Firstly, five fundamentals to success in business – common points mentioned by the majority of top earners I’ve met up with:-

Secondly, further advice I gleaned on the imperative to provide real, tangible VALUE to prospects and customers:

The more VALUE you offer your team or your prospects in your conversations or when they visit your website, the more likely they are to sign up or buy in to your proposition! Here are some Value-generating scenario’s:

 Personal coaching Value: 

Offer free and unbiased advice and coaching to your prospects well before you talk about product. This builds credibility and ‘warms’ them up to you. You have maybe been through the situation yourself or know of a similar situation that you can map to and offer a replicated solution. You can now position as a ‘consultant’ & you can offer advice on how to effectively manage through the problem or situation. This makes you a person of interest and Value to your  prospects!

Support Value: 

People want choices and they also want to know they have all the support they need, when they need it – especially in the online, virtual world. There is nothing more frustrating than not being able to pick up a phone and speak with a real, live human-being when you have an issue that FAQ pages do not address! Let your customers know you are always there for them. Offering your availability constitutes VALUE to your prospects & customers!

Access to the best Tools and Resources:  

Make sure you can offer appropriate access to not only online/website tools and processes but also to executives and professionals, with well-honed Product positioning skills, customer communications skills and Leadership skills. Your prospects & customers WANT to be LEAD with respect to your products and solutions. This access and interaction is of VALUE to them!

 ‘Permission Marketing’ Value: 

Obtaining permission from your prospect to send him/her some information, ANY information, is essential. Ask for Permission first!  NEVER send anything unless you have their permission first to do so. Sending anything without permission is SPAM and is unwelcome.

 Conclusion:

YOU MAKE MORE MONEY, GET MORE SALES, FASTER, AND BUILD STRONGER RELATIONSHIPS IF YOU ARE SEEN AS A CREDIBLE PERSON WITH SOMETHING OF VALUE TO OFFER!    

If you are looking for a way to be successful in whatever you do, you may be struggling to find the best formula to help you do so. The truth is that it takes two main components in order to be a success in anything.
The first component is motivation and the second is goal setting. In order to be successful, you need to have a balance of these two components.
Without one, the other is useless. There are many people who are great at setting goals and then follow up with no motivation. They tend to get confused when they rarely meet their goals.
It can be difficult to have the right balance. If you are someone who wants to be a success but will continue to get lost along the way, read more to figure out what you can do to get on the right track.
Finding Motivation:
Motivation is a difficult thing to stir up on your own. We are often motivated naturally to do things. For instance, when we are hungry, we are motivated to find a place to eat. When someone says they lack motivation, they are not being honest with themselves.
Everyone has motivation inside of them. The difficult part may be funneling your natural motivation supply to specific goals you have in mind. Once you know how to motivate yourself, you will find it easier to stay on task.
Each person can be motivated in a different way. Some people work great on a reward motivation system. In this system the participants reward themselves each time they meet a goal.
If you are trying to lose weight, then you can reward yourself with a new outfit each time you meet a goal in your plan. If you are trying to spend less, you can reward yourself with a night out each month you follow your budget exactly.
Many people respond well to this type of reward system, especially if they were raised in a home that practiced the same system.
Setting Goals:
Along with finding your motivation, the other equally important aspect of being a success is learning to set goals.
The most important thing to remember when setting goals is that you should always set realistic goals. Be aware of your capabilities.
It is fine to push yourself a little, but if you create goals that are not realistic, then you will likely give up trying to meet them. Often people who set unrealistic goals are capable of the goal itself, but are exhausted at trying to reach it all at once.
With many goals, like weight loss goals, you should break them up into smaller goals. You can work on part of the goal at a time.
For instance, if you want to lose 100 pounds, it can be difficult to stay motivated with that huge number in mind, especially when the average person can lose a few pounds a week. Try setting a weekly goal of losing two pounds. If you exceed that goal then you can celebrate, but you may find that each goal is right on target.
The less pressure you put on yourself to succeed, the easier it will come.
When you do set a goal, make sure that you are constantly reminded of your goal. You can tell those around you of your goal so you will feel accountable for following through.
You can also create notes to post around your home, office, or car in order to help you keep on track. No matter what your goal is, it must be remembered each day. As creatures of habit, we can easily train ourselves to be successful and meet our goals.
When we are constantly focused on the goal at hand, we will be better able to do so.
When you put 50% motivation and 50% goal setting into something you can guarantee you will succeed. Remember that everyone has the ability to be motivated.
Each person may require a different technique, but we can all be motivated just the same. Also, be sure to set goals often.
Reasonable goals are those that you are capable of meeting. Never push yourself too hard with your goal or you might risk getting burned-out and quitting.
Creating a balance between motivation and goal setting is the key to all success however, so keep trying and you will get it right!

Like many personal development innovations, NLP – which stands for neuro-linguistic programming – is a product of the 1970’s when the idea of cognitive patterns creating a subjective form of reality that by virtue of its ability to be manipulated, could be slated into personal development tools.
The goal is to align perceptions – usually of the individual self – with desired outcomes, such as behavioral changes. A large number of proponents of NLP have come forward with an array of techniques and theories which all sought to put this new tool into the proper service of the individual desiring a shift in personal self image and a boost to personal
development.
Of course, no theory will remain unchallenged for long and soon an equally dedicated number of opponents to this new tool were quite vociferous in their allegations that NLP was an unworkable concept that oversimplified rather complex processes within the human mind.
Whatever the case may be, NLP is here to stay. Noted motivational speakers, such as Tony Robbins, have subscribed to the tenets of NLP and thus introduced them to the eager mainstream.
People visiting these seminars or purchasing the materials being sold there are always on the lookout for working concepts, and it seems that NLP fits the bill.
Just like many other innovative ideas in the field of personal development, this one – too – was soon embraced and taken further by many noted authorities in the field who found many new approaches to the subject.
Of course, the application of NLP principles is a highly subjective field of study and application, and it has often been shown that what will work for one person may not actually have any results – beneficial or otherwise – for another.
Thus, many critics have chalked up this tool to the New Age craze of the 1970s, while others have instead opted to integrate its precepts and techniques into their self-help curricula and publications.
The goal for many a person using the tools and techniques is to overcome performance diminishing aspects of their own characters, such as fear of failure, fear of speaking before groups, or simply a lack of self esteem.
All these are viewed as being in direct opposition to the character traits that must be possessed by someone who will succeed in business, and anything that will help a person to get rid of these performance busters is considered well worth its cost.
If you take the time to visit the self help section of any bookstore, or if you simply veer off and visit the professional development section, you will find copious books that employ NLP techniques and tools in order to help the interested reader to overcome a large number of issues themselves, without the need for professional intervention.
Who knows, it might be well worth your time to take a closer look!