Do You Want To Be Successful? Listen To These 9 DON’Ts (1 of 3)

There are many articles telling entrepreneurs what to do in order to be successful.

This article offers a different approach.

Do you want to be successful?

Listen to these 9 DON’Ts!

9 DON’Ts to put into practice if you want to be successful

1. DON’T leave things unfinished

Whether it’s a book, a project, an activity – don’t leave them unfinished. Get them done.

Read that book, finish that project, finish your training. If you encounter a problem you don’t know the solution to, take a break but get back to it and find a way to solve it.

It requires patience and resilience. It’s hard but the satisfaction you feel when you finish whatever you started makes up for everything! You feel better about yourself, you feel a sense of accomplishment which leads to a boost in self-confidence and self-worth. It’s psychological: the brain releases small amounts of dopamine that fuel us to get more done!

If you are looking for ways to get every activity on your agenda done, read 5 time management tips & tricks for entrepreneurs.

Successful people never walk away from a project. Even when things get tough, they see it through. You’ll never get anywhere if you get in the habit of giving up or walking away when things aren’t going as planned.

2. DON’T allow technology to distract you

Technology is a two-way street.

It can be a source of great opportunities, business success and personal development. But it can also negatively influence your mental health, self-confidence and work life.

Don’t allow technology to distract you!

Successful people don’t let things that are unimportant get in the way of their goals.

Turn off your smartphone notifications or schedule an hour a day for browsing your social media channels. Don’t let your smartphone overpower your day.

Being glued to your smartphone has been found to be the most damaging to your health. Mental health experts and organizations have done extensive research into this subject and reached alarming conclusions:

• While real-world social networks are positively associated with overall well-being, the use of Facebook is negatively associated with overall well-being;
• Facebook use in one year leads to a decrease in mental health in the following year;
• Liking others’ content and clicking links predicts a subsequent reduction in physical health, mental health, and life satisfaction;
• Well-being is closely linked to the quantity and the quality of social media platforms use.

That is why Facebook introduced last year tools that you can use to limit your time spent on Facebook and Instagram.

3. DON’T dismiss other people’s thoughts or opinions

Successful people don’t dismiss other people’s thoughts or opinions because they think they know better. They are always willing to listen.

Diversity is one of today’s secret of successful companies.

Rocio Lorenzo, management consultant and diversity researcher has found that organisations with women in management are more innovative. She discovered that innovation revenues rise as the share of female managers increases above 20%.

This means keeping an open mind to ideas coming from people from different backgrounds or different cultures. Your company can only benefit from diversity because diversity is one of the four recruiting trends revealed by LinkedIn in its 2018 study.

Diversity used to be a box that companies checked. But today, diversity is directly tied to company culture and financial performance. LinkedIn data shows that 78% of companies prioritize diversity to improve culture and 62% do so to boost financial performance.

Companies that didn’t adapt to changing demographics have realised their talent pools were shrinking. Evidence has shown the benefits of diverse teams: increased levels of productivity, innovation and engagement.

PwC has arrived at the same conclusion when it identified 5 megatrends which will influence the business environment in 2019.

Demographic change is one of the five megatrends. This change shows that businesses need to empower three categories of workers if they want to be successful: women, people aged over 65 and young people. Learn how to take advantage of this social and economic change.

This article will be continued with part 2.

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Top 10 Mistakes Marketers Make When Hiring Agencies

1. 1. Not choosing the right time to outsource. Timing is essential,just like every other business decision one makes. It has to be chosen carefully and with a lot of attention. When confronted with the idea of outsourcing a service or some competencies, the company’s representative must take in account first if its the right time to make that certain decision at that time,for the company, and, at the same time, what concluded to that decision.

      2. Spending too much time deciding if to make the move or not.  While it is very important to make sure the timing is right spending too much time going back and forth on the decision wouldn’t do you any good. You must be decisive and confident on your choices.

      3. Outsourcing the wrong activity / activities. If you hire someone outside of the office, you should give them the things they can do best. Always choose the best specialists or companies you can afford. Creating a company brand and marketing goals should be done inside your office, so make sure you discuss your culture code, style and requirements with the outsourced marketing partners before kicking off the project.

      4. Having unrealistic ROI expectations. When you entrust the marketing or communication activities of your company, you should set some realistic expectations. One of the biggest mistakes of many companies is that they think outsourcing all their problems will solve them at once and there will be no need for them to participate in marketing decisions, activities and so on. Do not forget that brand awareness, a firm customer base and long-term faithful relationship with customers take time. Results don’t appear over night,it takes a lot of effort both at an external,but also internal level to reach your goals.

      5. Forgetting that PR doesn’t sell per se. When looking for a PR partner outside your company make sure you first of all understand that PR doesn’t equal immediate sales. And no professional PR specialist will promise you that. That being said, a successful PR strategy will definitely affect your sales success indirectly through 3 factors: brand awareness & recall, credibility, as a secret marketing weapon.

      6. Not doing the right research before the pitch. One of the most important steps is doing your research about the agencies you are interested in. A simple Google /Linkedin / Facebook search will not help you in taking the best decision of which agencies to call on the pitch or for a presentation. Instead try looking at their portfolio, at the case studies, at the awards the won, the services they provide, etc. Talk to their current clients. Read their reviews and their blog. See if the media was interested in them or not. Does their language vibe with you? Do their clients remind you of your company? Do they have documented results similar to the ones you want?

      

      7. Asking more than 5 agencies in the pitch /presentation.  If you know what you want from your agency, and you should, you don’t need more than 5 agencies briefed. You save both their time and yours and you are closer to choosing the right partner for your business. A good research will help you make the right choices.

      8. Falling for shiny presentations. Make sure the very creative and crazy ideas presented to you, as beautiful and as interesting as they may sound or look like, are backed up by facts. The company or specialist you are hiring must be able to create and implement what presented to you. And most of all, bring results.

      9. Letting the price be the main criteria. Choosing the most expensive agency doesn’t guarantee you the best results, but basing your decision firstly on the amount of money you pay for the collaboration will prove to be a bad call. Cheap will be cheap no matter how you look around it.

      10. Not listening to your gut feeling. After years and years of experience, the instinct is very good and calibrated. We believe is very important to always have it with you and use it,when necessary.