The last time he spoke in Singapore, Unicity's ex-CEO turned top Diamond-rank distributor Aaron Webber urged us to "Don't Worry, Be Good, Work Hard".
This time, he exhorted us to "Take Charge, Dream Big, Play Tall".
"Big dreams get you out of bed in the mornings. Big dreams will see you through down times. They give you the strength to get through the winter till the spring."
"My dream is to lead the transformation of the industry. The industry is in its adolescence. Just like teenagers, an industry in its adolescence do stupid things ... We have everything we need to lead the industry: the product, the people. We just need to believe that and believe in ourselves. I believe in you."
The following are highlights of some of the ideas that Aaron shared with business associates in three separate sessions from Friday, Feb 15th to Saturday, Feb 16th. Great stuff, all, if you're trying to build a business for yourself. Read on.
Re-invent yourself to stay relevant
Thinking that we have a Blue Ocean strategy, with no competition to speak off, may lull people into complacency, Aaron fears. The competition is watching all the time, and at some point in time, the competition will also find a way to sail into the Blue Ocean, and before you know it, the blue waters will turn purple and then, red.
It is important that while we have the advantage of a Blue Ocean strategy, we should make sure that we constantly reinvent ourselves to stay ahead and stay relevant.
Aaron, which confesses to subscribing somewhat to a "chaos model", said he has seen too many leaders stagnate in the business and then go into control mode. They start coming out with Franchise Manuals, checklists, scripts. If you were to follow these closely, you will lose your personality, he warned.
"Don't lose your personality," he advises. "In the case of McDonald's, if you were to take the pickle out of the Big Mac, you will lose your franchise." In our case, we're welcome to take the oickle out if we think it doesn't suit our market.
While duplication (duplicate what works) helps the business moves along, we ought to allow people room to apply their personalities to their business. They should be welcome to test out new ideas of their own - subject to their staying true to the basics, the core values and the principles. Believe in what you do. Do it naturally - not in a stiff, scripted way.
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Simple solution to any problem - in 3 words
If we are not watchful, our business may grow and then degenerate, as they often do in three stages: Growth => Excuses => Blame. To prevent this degeneration, remember this 3-word advice: GROW YOUR BUSINESS.
At the risk of over-simplifying, think of any problem or excuse that people can have for not doing well in the business, and you can work around it by growing the business. Growing our business is the best answer to every problem, challenge or difficulty.
So, how does one go about "growing the business"?
1. Take Charge, take ownership. Think like an entrepreneur, get to work. "This is your business - not the company's, nor your upline's nor your big leader's." Beyond the products and the cheques, don't depend too much on the company or your uplines to do things for you. Leaders should build and encourage independence; not breed dependence.
2. Work Hard. Aaron said his personal experience proves that "hard work can compensate for a lack of skills". Keep doing whatever it takes to grow the business. Don't go into management mode. We need leaders to be productively engaged. That's been "all that's missing".
To get a harvest (and harvests are never immediate), we must continue to plough and plant. Even if the weather is harsh, we must get out to plough and plant. To get a bigger harvest, we must reinvest part of the previous harvest.
3. "Play tall." Aaron shared his learning experience playing in a basketball team made up of a lot of particularly short people. He remembers the team being intimidated by the prospects of playing teams that are much taller and bigger than them. And what did the coach tell them? Play tall. Act the way you want to be. It did work.
4. Work at being attractive. "We have to make ourselves attractive," Aaron shared. One way is to Be Good, and among many things, being good means doing what you said you would. Be honest, remembering that one is either honest or not. There's no such thing as being "kind of honest". You are either honest or you are not.
Think ROI - and that's not "returns on investments". It is RELATIONSHIPS OVERRIDE INCOME. Treat people as people, not as transactions. Adopt Hard Rock Cafe's motto: Love All, Serve All.
5. Live thankfully. "Be thankful for the latest goodies in the Singapore Budget," said Aaron as he addressed a full house at the company's Chinese New Year Open House on 16 Feb 2008. Be thankful for all the good that comes from living life in Singapore - a great city that many other cities want to emulate. It is easy to forget your blessings when you live in the midst of them every day.
Be thankful for the times that we live in, the opportunity that we have to build a business with the kind of products that we have. Be thankful even for your challenges. They test us and make us stronger and better. "Count your blessings .. We have everything we need to lead the industry: the product, the people. We just need to believe in ourselves. I believe in you. Do you?"
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212 for Breakthrough
What is the significance of the number 212, Aaron asked. 212 on the Fahrenheit scale (equivalent to 100 degree Celsius) is the boiling point of water. "In my view, we're at 209-210. Please don't get to 211, get scared and flinch. Keep going."
We may be very close, only a few degrees away from breakthrough.
