Cooksey Connects

Archive for the ‘Personal Performance’ Category

Last week, I had the distinct honor of presenting to a community bank in Oklahoma for their officers and personal bankers.  A bank with over 108 years of history had invited me in to deliver a motivational speech about change- a topic they have placed an emphasis on for the past several months.  Over the past few months, multiple trainers and consultants have delivered their material to many of the same people.  This time, however, something was different.  There was a CONNECTION.

By being introduced as a nationally known consultant with a 14+ year career in banking and financial services, my audience decided before I had spoken a word that I was “one of them”.

Throughout the presentation, I was able to share real stories of overcoming tradition, change, and unexpected challenges to find success.  I connected with some of the very pain their organization is experiencing today, and left with them some very specific NEXT STEPS they could put into action by the end of that day to set them on a course to success!

Think back to a time when you were in an audience and felt as though YOU truly connected with a presenter. Or, more powerfully, think of a time when you presented to an audience/your team/organization with which you sensed a noticeable, positive, connected energy.  What was it that made it so magical?

When I teach on leadership, I often say the two most important ingredients for achieving success are DESIRE and KNOW-HOW.  Following the feedback of last week’s presentation, however, I believe there is one more: INSPIRATION.

EXERCISE: This week, write down the names of three people who inspire you.  Next, write down as many descriptive terms about those people, being specific to focus on their observable actions and behaviors you admire most. Finally, consider how you can begin to make changes to your own actions and behaviors others see when they observe you.

By taking on the above challenge, the leader within you will begin to emerge in an entirely new way.

Cooksey’s Challenge:  Reach out to the people you listed in the exercise above and share with them what you admire most.

As 2009 rolls to an end, I have to say I’m pretty impressed. Looking ahead to 2010, I’m even MORE optimistic than I imagined just a few short months ago. It is times like these that opportunities are seized by the astute, leaders rise from the ranks of “the people”, and those who are on the verge of greatness are lining up their next remarkable move.

Early in my professional career, a supervisor once described me as “always seeming to be getting ready to get ready”. Every time since when I have felt like my career was stalling, I hear her voice echoing those painfully honest words in my head and it fires me up to take action.

During the 4th quarter of this year, I’ve been working on a project for one of my largest clients delivering job search skills to out of work people of a very large county in Southern California where the unemployment rate is nearly 15%! From PhD’s to a few folks re-entering the workforce after incarceration and every kind of person in between, I have met some amazing people. No matter their background, nationality, education level, or tax bracket, this project has reminded me of some fundamentals of success that will always exist:

1. Attitude determines opportunity.
2. Opportunity is all around us each day.
3. Each day brings another day for us to adjust our actions (and attitude).

Please don’t think I mean to suggest change is easy…it isn’t. However, in each of the boot camps I have heard stories of attendees who took specific action as result of the conversations we had in class. Something convinced them to change their behaviors and perspective on how to find a job. In at least two cases, those who took immediate action by implementing some new techniques secured a firm job opportunity BEFORE THE END OF THE FOUR DAY BOOT CAMP!

When you know deep down it is time to try something new and break away from old habits that aren’t bringing the success you desire, don’t wait until you are “100% ready” to take action. A good friend once told me, “When you are 80% ready, try something new. You can’t make necessary adjustments or try a second time until you have done it once, first!”

During this holiday season, take some time to enjoy what you enjoy in your life today, and I challenge you to consider making some bold moves in the year to come and unlock the remarkable success you really deserve! You won’t regret it.

Want to be held accountable? Post 1-3 goals you WILL ACHIEVE in 2010 as a comment to this post. We’ll follow up with ya!

This past week, I continued to CONNECT with people, leading classes of a Job Skills Boot Camp in Riverside, CA.  We covered stress management tips, resume tricks, and interviewing techniques for interviewees to help them stand out in this employers market.







How ready are YOU for unexpected change in your own career?  Will you land on your feet?  Stay connected by signing up on our website!  (It’s that fancy box on the left….and, it’s FREE!)

You’ve heard me say time and again how much “success” is such a subjective term. Perception is a powerful aspect of how we as people and professionals (as if those are two different things) are viewed, it is amazing to me how many of us still miss the point from time to time.

Just this week, I was invited to visit a networking event with one of my clients, whom I have networked with for years. My travel schedule makes it tough for me to be a regular member of a group that meets weekly, but I figured it could be a fun way to meet some new people. When it came time for my 60-second commercial (as a guest I was granted 120-seconds), I glanced down at a few notes I’d scribbled on an index card and just started talking. They laughed. They smiled. We connected. Isn’t that the goal? At the end of the meeting, several people in the group requested the opportunity to meet one-on-one over coffee to learn more, and one fellow even handed me a referral AT THE MEETING!

Here are a few tips to get the most out of any networking opportunity. Try these the next time you walk into a room full of strangers. You never know where your next opportunity or client will come from:

1. BE CONFIDENT – You are who you say you are, if your actions are confident. You are a subject matter expert for what you do…ACT LIKE ONE! [Need help in this department? Visit a local Toastmasters club!]
2. TELL A QUICK STORY – Which do you think is more memorable: a) “Hello, my name is ______ and I work for _________.” or b) “**insert a quick 30-45 second story about how you solved someone else’s problem**:..
3. LET THEM KNOW HOW TO GET MORE INFO ABOUT YOU – Two great ways to do this are: a) direct them to YOUR website (ask them to connect with you on a professional, social networking site like “LinkedIn” or if your organization has a “Fan Page” on Facebook, direct them there or b) Tell the audience to ask the person who invited you to the meeting to tell them how you successfully worked with them! What’s better than a live, word-of-mouth success story from a CLIENT!?

Above all…If you don’t have any business cards (hey, sometimes we forget them or run out)…make sure to get one from everyone in the room and make it a point to follow up with each one directly! Anyone remember the hand-written note? It works! Now…get out there a find some business!

I had a chance to see the “Get Motivated” tour in Tulsa, last year, at the BOk Center. I’ve seen a lot of tweets today from you about the “GM” stop in Oklahoma City.

Please leave your thoughts and comments below. I’m planning to follow up, myself, but want to hear your comments first!

Yeah, I’m of the age that first remembers Ben Stein as the teacher who droned over and over while calling roll in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – one of my favorite teen movies of all times.

Well, here’s a recent clip he delivered for CBS on what President Obama REALLY meant about meetings…something I REALLY care about, since I’m a corporate trainer and speaking professional.

What do you think? Watch the video and reply with your thoughts. I’d like to hear your opinions. Go ahead!

Watch CBS Videos Online

It’s been a short hiatus since my last post, but I assure you a LOT is happening these days!

Earlier this year, I challenged myself to run a 10k Race before the summer. Yesterday, I made good on that personal goal. In 1 hour 3 minutes and 43 seconds, I finished! My personal goal had been 1 hour 10 min-and I beat it by 6 minutes!

The Remember the Ten 10k event was started three years ago in honor of a group of 10 amazing men affiliated with the Oklahoma State University basketball program who perished in a plane crash on January 21, 2001. As a graduate of OSU, this event held a particular place in my heart.

During college, I was president of a group of basketball “superfans” known as the “Young Guns”. After each game, we always picked our VIP of the game award, and announced it at center court in front of the radio broadcast crew. On that fateful night in 2001, we lost Bill Teegins, the “Voice of the Cowboys”.

A good friend of mine in school lost his brother, Jarred Weiberg. And my current workout partner lost a friend he used to play basketball against in high school, Pat Noyes. Each of the others each hold a special place in the hearts of the Cowboy Faithful as well, and for all ten of of you… I ran this year. Thanks to each of you for the continued inspiration you give to me and all 1200 of this year’s registered runners in the 10k, 5k, and 1 mile fun run!

This year, as each of you think about how to make every day count, and define your own success, you are encouraged to pick out a tough challenge for yourself and DO IT!

If you know very many people at all, you probably know a firefighter (or someone who knows one). These people provide an extremely important job to the communities they serve, often putting themselves in considerable danger to do so. Despite the facts and danger required by the job, firefighters really don’t earn that much money (on average), according to Salary.com.

Firefighters, however, are often very entrepreneurial people. That really isn’t much of surprise. Entrepreneurs are risk takers, creative problem solvers, and people who react well to rapidly changing environments. Where do you think the work-phrase “I’ve been putting out fires all day” comes from?

The next time you have occasion to visit with a firefighter, ask them, “So, what’s your OTHER job?” I’m willing to bet 90+% of the time, they will have one.

The firefighters I have known over the years don’t sit still very well. Their work schedule typically consists of a multiple, full (read: 24 hour) days in a row of being “on” followed by several days of being “off”. With three or four days at a time available to commit to another project, job, or task, why not take advantage of it?

One of my good friends was recently laid off from a six-figure job, and he’s been having a tough time finding a satisfying job to occupy his time and help take care of his family. Despite his many years of experience and impressive network of colleagues and friends, many of the people he knows “can’t really afford to pay him what he’s worth”.

I reminded him, “Yes. That’s true. IF they are hiring you for a 40+ hour per week spot.”

My friend paused, then said, “What do you mean?”

I suggested that he “think like a firefighter”, telling him, “If you’re worth $70,000 a year, but the employer can only pay you $30,000 per year, ask them if you can work for them on the three busiest days of the week and look for something else to do the other 4 days.”

Certainly, we all can’t work 7 days a week, every week, but the idea is the same. Today’s economy is challenging, but also loaded with opportunity in three easy steps:

1. Embrace the idea of being a “Free Agent“,
2. Open your eyes to the opportunities all around you, and
3. THINK LIKE A FIREFIGHTER!

In my presentation “Embracing the Employeepreneur”, the message is about allowing your employees the opportunity to take some ownership. I’m a HUGE fan of Southwest Airlines, and this video is a great example of why. How do YOUR employees let your customers know how much they enjoy their jobs?

Fitness continues to be a major part of my life. Over the past (nearly) year and a half, commitment to a regular exercise plan and paying more attention to what and how I eat has helped me shed 40 pounds (net -meaning I’ve put on lean muscle and dropped even more bulk fat) (Special thanks to the training staff at Fitness Together-Kingspoint Village). When you combine that with a renewed sense of center in my spiritual life (read: I found an amazing church home that really suits me), and (since we made it “official” by posting it to Facebook today) a new girlfriend.

It is no wonder I started out 2009 with two of the most financially successful months I’ve had in over a year and continue to ride the wave of good fortune and success as new opportunities are presented to me each day. Maybe there is something to this Power of Attraction stuff after all!

I’m on a bit of a “runners high” as I write this blog tonight. By settling in at a comfortable (read: slow) pace, I found a rhythm tonight that probably would have let me run twice as far as my typical run. Using the tools at logyourrun.com, I mapped out the route I ran tonight and thought I’d share the route here on the blog.

It’s not that I expect you’ll want to come on over and run the route with me sometime, rather, it serves as yet another subtle way to share the tools we use to find success each day with others around us on in this increasingly negatively influenced world.

SO, here are your three steps for fitness success today:

1) Turn off the television. You will be AMAZED at just how much the negative sensationalism is fed into your brain every day by the mainstream media. Television is powered by one thing: ratings. Fact: Info-tainment scores higher ratings than pure news. It’s just a fact.
2) Feed your head with positive energy: Seek out books, people, time for quiet reflection and open your mind to a spiritual way of thinking. I’m not saying you have to become a monk or a “bible-thumper” or anything any more extreme than just stepping outside yourself to view your life from about 40,000 feet and understand how significant a positive spiritual influence can be for you.
3) Get off your butt. Continuing to talk about what you “should be doing” about your lack of fitness isn’t going to fix the problem. I don’t care if you hire a trainer, go for a walk, participate in a cycling event (Registration opened today for the Tulsa Tough 2009 rides, including the spandex-free Townie Ride- borrow a helmet, dust off that bike and join us!) , or email me at scott@cookseyconnects.com and tell me what day you want to come over and run the route below with me. Need to walk it? Okay! If that’s the push you need, I’m going to help you get that ball rolling. Come on over, and we’ll get a success “high”, together!