ALL ABOARD!? Not Necessarily

In the book Good To Great they talk about making sure you have the right people "ON THE BUS" with you. That's easier said than done. Finding the RIGHT people, no matter what you are doing, is not an easy thing to do but ultimately your success, in any particular endeavor, depends on it. No one is successful by themselves. No matter what they say, there is ALWAYS someone or some people that contributed to that success.

So how do you get the RIGHT people "ON THE BUS" with you? That's the Million Dollar question. I think it starts with your immediate law of associations. Understanding that what you focus on expands, if your immediate group of friends, family and acquaintances (these are the people you spend the most time with, which means that these are the people you FOCUS on) are not the right people for your BUS, it is almost impossible to attract a different type of person to put on your bus. Even if you did happen to get one of the RIGHT people on your bus, they probably won't stay on there because they will feel out of place and uncomfortable. So I think the first step toward getting the RIGHT people on your bus is probably to unload the wrong people off of your bus first.

This may also be harder than it sounds because you may really like some of the people that are currently on your bus but how you feel about someone and how they are going to affect your end result are two totally different things. This is a very hard lesson to learn and an even harder lesson to teach. People easily become offended when you imply that they may need to evaluate who they are spending most of their time with. I have had many people just come right out and tell me..."I am not giving up my friends for this!". Well you don't have to, you just have to pay attention to who is getting your time and are those people a part of the "BUILDING CREW" or the "WRECKING CREW" when it comes to what you want to accomplish? Let's face it people, your "FRIENDS" have changed your whole life. You have different friends now than you had at your last JOB, in College, High School, Middle School and Grade School. I know that you may still have a few that are long time friends from Grade school but really, come on, for the most part, all new people over the years. So why in the world would anyone think that when you changed your focus to do something different that you could possibly do it without changing your influences? You can't and that is the simple bottom line answer. In "The 17 Essential Qualities Of A Team Player" it says when it comes to building a championship team and the people on that team, you will have to "TRAIN THEM OR TRADE FOR THEM". We see that and accept that everyday in professional sports. Doesn't it just make sense to apply that same PHILOSOPHY to the CHAMPIONSHIP team you are putting together to insure your success?

Although the wheels on the bus may go round and round, just because your moving doesn't mean you are getting any closer to you destination. Just like the wheels, you may also be going ROUND AND ROUND. It's like a multi-person row boat. If you have the RIGHT people on one side rowing and the WRONG people on the other side rowing and they are not in sync with each other, you will still be moving but not toward the finish line. I think this is an example that most people can understand.

So, take inventory of the people you currently have on your bus. Is there a Synergy among them? Do they feed off of each other and make each other better or do they pull against each other? I heard one time that the way to kill a snake is to cut off its head. Find the source of the issue you are encountering and remove it. Escort those people off of your bus and then begin to fill those seats with new, energetic, team oriented people and off in to the sunset you will go!

Stay Focused and Feel Good!