Photo courtesy of Joi
But wait, wasn’t it: “Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick?”
Not anymore.
Teddy Roosevelt gave the greatest advice of the 20th century when he said his famous quote, but times have changed. Big sticks aren’t so big when you can’t control them. Big sticks aren’t so big when you can’t carry them.
Now, successful people realize, it’s not about how big your stick is, but about how well you manage it.
But, how can you start swinging a steady stick? How can you start improving your communication?
Confidence
When I started playing Texas Holdem poker, one of my biggest flaws was my inability to make a confident bluff. I would often bluff a hand by bringing my poker chips to the center and pulling it back at the last minute. I would rethink my decision and often make the bluff. Unfortunately, my pullback already told my opponent where I stood and he would call me out on it.
To swing a steady stick, you need to have confidence because you can’t complete a swing if you pull it back half-way through.
Here are a few things to think about while building confidence
- Research – Confident decisions require research
- Action – Confident decisions require you to act on research
- Pursue – Confident decisions require you to continue to act on research
Conviction
Have you ever started a sentence with “I think,” “In my opinion,” or “It is my understanding?”
Probably. I know I have.
Well, they are the three worst ways to start a sentence in business. They immediately take away from the credibility of what follows.
I remember when a co-worker asked me how the sales were doing in a specific region. I said, “I think they’re XXX.” His response was, “Well, let’s not think about it and be sure of it.”
In reality, I knew the sales were “XXX,” but I didn’t have the conviction to follow through with my thought.
As Denis Waitley once said, “You must stick to your conviction, but be ready to abandon your assumptions” and he was absolutely right. You can’t mistake your assumptions for conviction, but you should never make a conviction sound like an assumption.
Here are some things to think about while trying to develop your conviction:
- No Response – Sometimes “I don’t know” is better than “I think.”
- The Answer – If you know something, stand up and take accountability
Perseverance.
I started creating websites to earn money on the internet in 2005. Yet, if you read my about page, you may notice that I only have been earning a living off of the internet for 2 years.
The math doesn’t add up because my first year was a complete monetary failure. I created more than 5 websites and earned around 25 dollars on Adsense cumulatively.
I refused to give up and continued creating websites, researching topics, and establishing relationships. The result… a five figure yearly income in 2006, and a six figure yearly income in 2007.
Remember, there are people who never lose, but let me reassure you, there aren’t people who always win.
Do you want to know the secret on how to become the person who never loses? It’s easy. Keep on losing until you win and then talk about the win.
It seems trivial, but remember, all you need to do is win once to become a winner.
Here are some things to think about while developing perseverance:
- Persistence – Fail often, fail regularly, and continue to fail until you succeed once.
- Leverage – Succeed once and leverage it regularly
The Bottom Line
With Confidence, Conviction, and Perserverence, you will not only be able to have the courage to swing a steady stick, you will be able to follow through with it and influence other people to do the same.
Do you have any examples where any of the above three things influenced your decision making process?
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