If you’re dreaming and wishing for the good old days to come back, you’re dreaming and wishing an impossible dream. This is it. This is your new and real life. This is your new and real workplace.

Do you remember when money was floating around and your company was spending it just because it was available? Do you remember the perks and bonuses? Yeah! Life was wonderful, wasn’t it?

My advice to stop replaying the good old days in your head. You are actually creating undue stress for yourself. Let’s see…

Today, you are being asked, or even forced, to do more with less in spite of your lack of resources and a shrinking staff. It seems like most people are struggling with one thing or another. The news keeps telling you things it will get worse before it gets better.

Most people are frozen in their tracks hoping the good old days will surface again. Well, I have bad news for them. Those days they’re waiting for will never, EVER, come back to normal. I know. I know. As a professional keynote speaker that inspire and motivate others to be optimistic about the future, I shouldn’t be sharing the bad news with you.

The reality is, I’m trying to be real with you. I could easily tell you what you want to hear. But, it wouldn’t be good for your mental state. At some point, you and I have to face the reality that is present. Yes, we are disappointed with how things are turning out. But, we have to suck it up and move on.

This is the new normal world. Welcome to it! You might as well make yourself right at home. Whether you want it or not, things will continue to change. No one knows for sure what this world is going to be in tomorrow. I just know more disappointments are on the way. Just be ready and be bold to face what may come.

The futurists can only take a stab at the future. They are in the dark just like the rest of us. They thought they had it figured out until the economic tsunami swept the business world and caused major havoc. They didn’t see it coming just like we didn’t see it coming. Of course, they will tell you they knew it after the fact.

You see, there are events that are totally unpredictable. Those may be natural catastrophes, or falling regimes in the Middle East. The key is to learn to readjust and embrace change.

Your thought right now may be, “He is supposed to inspire me. But this is too negative.” What do you mean I’m being too negative? This is awesome news for you. This is my way of positively preparing you to win regardless of your circumstances. You see, we are living in the most exciting times EVER!

Your chances of striking it big have increased dramatically over the last few years. As I say to my audience members often, “Change Is A Gift! Embrace it now or you risk becoming unnecessary.”

If you stop fighting change and make it a friend, you can discover the opportunities that lies ahead. And it’s not hard to see them. Simply ask yourself the right questions.

Change your inner conversation. Have the right attitude. As simple as that may sound, that’s exactly what you need these days. You need the attitude that says, “I will make it work. I will do the best I can with what I have. I am ready for more change. I will win. I will be successful.”

Come back here and I’ll share some exciting tips, ideas and strategies with you. I’ll show you how to become indispensable and relevant in this new economy. I’ll give you the tools you need to create the kind of future you want to live in.

The last few months have been terrible for businesses. The economic crises have forced many big and small businesses to shut their doors. Others are downsizing, laying off, and operating with great uncertainty. Because of the tsunami of change in the economy, companies are forced to drive some kind of change just to survive.

As I travel the country, I talk to many company executives. The stories I’m hearing are not good at all. No one knows when this will turn around. What I’m essentially offering you here is a way for you to help your company boost sales, increase cash flow and stay profitable? Would that make you look really good? You bet! Okay, here is the secret…

Up Your Customer Service Now!

That’s right. You can double sales by simply upping and doubling customer service. However, I’m not talking about your typical everyday customer service. I this economy, if you want to ramp up sales, and render the competition irrelevant, you have to provide superior customer service. Let’s look at the main levels of customer service…

3 Levels of Customer Service

1. Meet Expectations. I’m assuming you know what your customers expect from you when they come to your business. Just so you know, everybody has expectations. They always expect something from you or your business. Your job is to uncover those expectations and meet them. Customers will leave you in a snap if their expectations are not met.
2. Exceed Expectations. This is where you as an employee start making progress on becoming a valuable asset to your company. Basically, you figure out the customer’s expectations. Then you deliver above those expectations. Any company that is not doing so is not growing.
3. WOW and Amaze Them. This is the vital one. You should put your entire focus on this one. It’s where the magic happens. It’s the one that makes you a fortune whether you are the boss or an employee. That’s when you totally render your competition irrelevant. That’s when price is never an issue.You and all the people in your company should have an obsession for WOW and amazing customer service. Every customer should walk away saying, “WOW! That was amazing!” If you can get that kind of reaction from your customers, your company can slice their marketing budget in half. Why?

Your Customers Will Now Do The Marketing For You!

When you and your team wow and amaze every customer, loyalty will skyrocket. Word of mouth and referrals will be an automatic. You will touch your customers at an emotional level. By the way, all business is emotion. Customers only use logic for justification. But they all buy based on emotions.

WOW and Amazing customer service is everything. Years ago, there was a restaurant chain in Atlanta by the name of Chop Chop Chinese To You. They showed up strong and blanketed the entire city with a huge advertising campaign.

They were so clever. They used the name Chop Chop because the Atlanta Braves were winning big time. I’m telling you. Their hook was so timely. In the middle of the games on radio and television their advertisings were blasting.

But there were several problems. The food was lousy. They didn’t give the customers enough to eat. And the service was average. Simply put, they were not meeting or exceeding expectations. And, they were not providing WOW and amazing customer service.

Well, you guess what happened to them, right? They went out of business REALLY fast even though they were operating in a booming economy. I bet the main reason they went out of business was because they were not providing WOW customer service.

Now, business owners will say they went out of business because of cash and a myriad of others reasons. The reality is, they were not generating enough WOW moments to make enough sales.

Have you ever wonder why the big companies that survived all kinds of recession or economic depressions continue to thrive in spite of their challenges? The answer is simple:

An Obsession For WOW Customer service.

When I worked as a doorman for the Renaissance Hotel that is now owned by the Marriott Corporation, I experimented with it. On any given day, I could double, triple or even quadruple my tips by simply upping the level of service I provided to WOW moments.

Here’s your assignment. Seat down with a pen and paper. Then, ask yourself, “What can I do to create wow moments for my customers?” Let your imagination run wild. Think outside of the box to come up with creative ideas to amaze your customers.

There you go. I just gave you the key to the vault to get the raises and promotions you deserve. Go WOW and amaze them.

Press on!

What you’re about to learn here will help you produce stunning results at work or in your personal life. It’s how I went from being a doorman at a hotel making $4.25 an hour living the American Dream. It’s how I blazed my way to the top of the speaking industry and rub shoulders with the giants.

The good news is, it has nothing to do with how smart and how educated you are. Personally, I have no college education and I didn’t even finish high school in my country. I didn’t speak any English when I arrived in the US. But the moment I decided to apply what you’ll learn here, my life drastically changed.

If you feel like you’ve struggling and things are not working out according to your expectations, here’s help for you. I want to introduce you to what is called CFS—Critical Success Factor. I call it the Slight Advantage. All right, what is CFS?

It’s a term successful companies use to identify their core competencies. They determine the vital few elements within the company. They focus intensely on improving them. Then they avoid what are considered to be distractions to their core competencies.

I highly encourage you the same if you want soar to new heights, be the best you can be, and reach superstar status.

Here Are 3 Steps to Effortlessly Help You Become a Superstar in Your Workplace:

1-Identify Your Critical Success Factors (CFS). Write down 5 to 7 areas in your field that are vital or critical to your success. Then grade yourself on them from a scale of 1 to 10. Maybe you’re not sure how to grade yourself.  Well, ask for feedback. Ask your boss, friends, or customers.

Say this to them, “I need your help. Please help me grade myself that I can improve. How am I doing on a scale of 1 to10 in the following areas…?” Also, ask them to be honest with you.  And in return, don’t take it personal. After all, you’re looking for opportunities to grow and be the very best in your field.

Often, you’ll discover those critical or vital success factors are the areas where you weak and not performing at your best. You tend to neglect them. You probably would get more results and make more money if you were really strong and over performing in the areas that are vital to your company.

2-Decide To Improve Upon Your CFS. Everyone at the top started at the bottom.  Right now and where you are,  set a goal to improve by only 10 percent every month in the areas you’re not performing well and that are critical to your success. In 12 months, you’ll be a force to reckon with in your field. You’ll exponentially explode your results.

It’s kind of like the penny study. If you double one penny every single day, in 30 days, you’d have over one million dollars. I couldn’t believe it either when my accountant said it to me. I had to run the numbers myself. My calculator told me it’s true. That goes to say, small improvements can yield big results.

By they very fact you decide to improve upon your weaknesses, you put yourself in a totally different category. You’re now in the driver’s seat. You’re on your way to becoming the best that commands respect and big paychecks in your field.

3-Burn The Midnight Oil. Becoming the best is an ongoing-do-it-yourself project. You must read books, listen to CDs, watch DVDs, read articles, and attend seminars to learn how to excel where you are weak. You have to immerse yourself in personal improvement.

It would also help to ask someone from the top to mentor you. Again, be open to honest feedback. In no time you will be unstoppable.

Now, go to work and make it happen. May you be the very best in field. May companies start a bidding war over you because you excel so much in the critical and vital areas that make them money.

Press on!

It’s basically a group of high-level executive officers within a company that have power and authority in their respective functions. Usually the offices are at the top floor. To me, they are an elite society within the corporation. I say elite because they often get together in a secret room to decide your fate and the future of your company.

Do you belong to that society?  Have you tried to get there? Maybe you feel like your job has become a dead-end. Sometimes you train others and in a short period of time, they make it to the C-suite level while you’re still in the same position.

Now, the question is, how do you take the elevator to the C-suite level? How do you get to be an executive within your company? What does it take? Well, there’s a secret to it. And I’m about to reveal it to you right now. It’s one simple word… Thinking!

Above all, this is the number one way to reach the top of your company. Let me share this with you: The highest paid activity you can engage in at work is not your actual position. It is thinking.

My friend and mentor Nido Qubein is one of the smartest people living today. He’s wealthy and owns several successful companies including Great Harvest Bread.

Nido told me the inheritance he wants to leave for his children is not his wealth. It’s the ability for them to accurately think. He said that wealth can be fleeting. But accurate thinking endures. Looking at Nido’s success, one has to conclude it’s his unique ability to think accurately that got him there.

Have you ever wonder why some people who are not half as smart as you get to be high-level executives? You look at them, but it’s hard for you to figure how they got into that position. Well, most likely, they got there because of their ability to think. They are problem solvers.

The bottom line is, if you want to elevate yourself to the C-suite level, you have to elevate your consciousness or awareness. And that happens through thinking different thoughts than what you are accustomed to. You have to think like a CEO.

Okay, how do you arrive at that level of thinking? How do you think like a CEO? Here’s how:

Ask Yourself Powerful Questions! The quality of your life is in direct proportion to the quality of questions you ask yourself on a consistent basis. Listen, your company love people that help them two things: Boost profits and reduce costs. Everything else is marginal.

Your primary job should be to help them get what they want. And it is your questions that can lead you to answers to help them get those two things.

Your job is to question every system, process and practice. Ask yourself, “How can this be done more efficiently, faster, and cost effective?”

I guarantee you, if you ask yourself those questions relentlessly, answers will come to you in unexpected hours. You will become indispensable.  You will make your way to the top really fast.

Here’s your assignment: Create a list of all the systems and processes in your workplace. Ask yourself how can they be better. Maybe, there are no systems in place. In that case, ask yourself how you can help your company systemize.

Finally, keep in mind, if you are not thinking, you are not solving problems. If you are not solving problems, you are irrelevant. So, do you want to get to the C-suite level? I just told you. Think!

Do whatever you can to help your company boost profits and reduce costs. You’ll become the talk of the town. They will love you!

See you at the C-suite level.

Press on!

Maybe you’re going through some tough changes right now in your workplace or personal life. You may be confused and frustrated. The future may seem very uncertain for you.

I know how difficult it can be to struggle through change and try to do more with less. All my life I dealt with change. I struggled to survive poverty and diseases in a tiny village in Haiti. I know what it’s like to be a position of lack.

I know change and uncertainty can impact you emotionally and physically. It can cause stress to choke the life out of you. I’ve been there, done that and even got the t-shirt to prove it.

I also know for sure the good old days will never, EVER come back again. If you’re mentally frozen and wishing for things to get back to normal, I have bad news. This is as normal as it’s going to be. This is it! Welcome to the new normal world. Don’t get mad. Deal with it.

The reality is, things will continue to change. As soon as you’re done dealing with one change, more violent changes are on the way. And yes, they will continue to ask you to do more with less.

All right, how do you survive all the changes that are happening? How do you thrive and succeed in spite of your current challenges?

Here Are 3 Tips To Help You:

1- Be Resilient. The people who are now thriving and succeeding in spite of the current challenges are not necessary people without problems. They are people who learn to solve their problems. They are the people who are resilient. They don’t give up.

The German philosopher, Goethe said, “That which does not kill you will make you stronger.” You see, the moment you give up, you stop seeing what’s possible for you in your current situation.

How do you become resilient? Well, I’m not sure I can really teach you in this quick article. Some people are born with it. Others had to learn to be resilient. The fastest way you can start being resilient is to drill yourself with the following statement:

Repeat over and over “I’m in it to win it. I will NOT quit.” Although it may sound simplistic, it can definitely help you deal with change with elegance and courage. The more you say it with conviction, the more answers you’ll get to solve your problems.

2-Be A Observer Of Your Circumstances. The secret here is to stop internalizing the events in your life. Here’s how to do so:

Instead, you start thinking of your current issue in your workplace or your life, look externally. Point your finger at it and speak to it. See it happening outside of you. You cannot be what you observe.

If you’re feeling stressed out, it’s because you’re being what’s happening. It’s because you are taking it personal. It’s because you’re thinking somebody is doing it to you.

You see, what’s happening has nothing to do with you. The world is changing rapidly. Everybody and every company must initiate some changes in order to survive and thrive. You, too, must initiate some changes in your life.

3-Stop Rehearsing The Past. Yes, it was nice to have a big budget and a large staff to get the work done. It was great the fact that things used to be a certain way. But, guess what? They are not anymore. Let’s move on.

Deal with the hand you have. Let me tell you this: your past is not supposed to be in front of you. It is supposed to be behind you. That’s why it’s called the past.

Fighting change and rehearsing the past is a way of avoiding responsibility for the future. The NOW—the present—is your unique opportunity to plan and design the future you want. It’s not a stage to rehearse the past.

I hope I gave you something to think about. Share it with your friends or co-workers. Let me know what action you’ll take based of what you just read. Remember this: Change is a gift—your gift.

Press on!

Take care!

I have shared these steps with countless people. They, too, went on to transform their lives in a powerful way. I promise you, they work. Apply them and your life will never be the same again! Are you ready? Great!

First, let me ask you…

What does the future look like to you? How do you see yourself in it? Are you struggling? Is it the same for you as it is right now? Are you living with regrets because you fail to live up to your full potentials? Or, do you see yourself living with excitement and passion? Is life good?

You see, today more than ever during these times of drastic change that are impacting your life in the workplace and in your personal life, you need a plan for the future. As they say, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.”

Here are 3 simple steps to help you plan:

1-Create Your Future Now. Write down your future 5 years from now. Describe it in vivid details and in the present tense. Example: “I’m the CEO of. I’m making 10 million dollars this year. I’m driving a Bentley GT. I’m feeding 5 million hungry kids around the world.” I don’t know what you want. But you need to bring it into existence on paper NOW…Not in the future. And, don’t limit yourself.

2-Create A Stop-doing List. Let’s face it, there are some things you have to stop doing in order to create the future you want! As they say, Insanity is doing the same things over and over then expecting different results. If you keep doing what you’re doing now, you’ll continue to live the life you’re living now.

3-Create A Start-doing List. Once you stop doing some things, you make room to START doing other things. When I decided to launch my speaking career, I had to stop wasting time wasting time on the phone having nonsense conversations and burn the midnight oil reading books and attending seminars.

How about you? What will you stop doing and start doing after today? What new skills will you start learning? What relationships you’ll stop having? Which ones will start cultivating?

Finally, as a result of what you just read, what action will you take now to create the future you want? Please share with me! Go ahead type your comment.

I wish you a spectacular future. Remember this, change is a gift… It’s your gift.

Take care!

If you run away and cower, you definitely will remain small. Your bigness is in the very thing you are trying to avoid. You gotta buckle up and face your issues and challenges.