"Influence and Intention"
by Robert Middleton

Do you sometimes hear yourself saying this?

"Why does that other InfoGuru get so many appointments and get her prospects to pay her more? Why does she make more money and have a more successful business? Why does she have more energy and seem more fulfilled?"

But if you brush this off as just luck, experience, timing or connections, etc, then you're not not looking deeply enough.

Last week I talked about the fact that you'll have little chance to influence if you get upset when you get rejected. If you can't get past that, you'll never influence.

The next lesson on influence is just as important:

To influence you must have intention. But few very people actually know what intention is. It's extraordinarily powerful and it's a tool you can learn, master, and apply to your whole career.

But first, you need to know what lack of intention looks like.

You're trying to make something happen. You're trying to influence someone or trying to accomplish something you haven't done before. You'd like to get a result.

You put some time in, some work, but the results just don't come. Ultimately you quit in frustration or you just let it go gradually with some excuse such as, "It wasn't the right time."

Bull Crap.

You didn't get results because you did not apply real intention to getting those results.

• Big Intention = Impressive Results
• Low Intention = Average Results
• No intention = No Results

We all think we have intention. But we don't. We are unfocused, weak willed, unclear, and are willing to settle for the reasons why we didn't get the results instead of getting the actual results.

This is called being reasonable. It's not very fulfilling.

Intention is completely unreasonable.

I sometimes have this conversation with clients who are struggling to get something done. They say they want to get a new client in a certain period of time. I ask them if they are willing to "bet their car" they'll get a new client.

It's hard for them to understand. Sure, they'll work hard and try the best they can, but, heck, how can you promise results? No, they will not bet their car.

Real intention is the willingness to bet your car because you absolutely know you can be counted on to produce a result, no matter what the conditions are.

Now I'm not talking about insanity here. "OK, I have the unreasonable intention to fly to the moon tomorrow." No, that's just nuts. And you know it. It's just a smokescreen.

Unreasonable intentions are not impossible. They are simply commitments made beyond our comfort zone. Instead, we keep setting reasonable goals within our comfort zone. Not a lot of intention needed there.

OK, so how do you create an intention?

1. Get crystal clear about something that you want in your business. Also know the reason why you want it. If it's to make a certain amount of money every month, you need to have a reason. No reason or desired reward, no intention.
2. Get very clear about the cost of not achieving that goal. Look the fear and the pain and the loss right in the face. If you don't get this goal, there are consequences. Know what they are.
3. Now imagine it actually happening. You can visualize it or write it down or do a mind map or talk to a friend about it. Or anything else that makes it real. If it's not absolutely real to you, if you can't see it happening, it's not a real intention.
4. Create a plan. This can start with a quick sketch or some ideas written down. Perhaps you need some help with this - some coaching or consulting. You need to come up with a real, doable plan here. No hoping. Intentions are real, not imaginary.
5. Commit. This is where you make your bet, take your risk. This is when you forsake any alternative to success. You are "all in" and ready to move. Your intention is like a white-hot laser beam and you are ready to do whatever it takes.
6. Take action - any action in your plan that's going in the direction you want to go. No excuses, no reasons, no hesitation. You are now riding on the extraordinary energy of intention. You are unstoppable.

Know why most intentions just end up as good ideas that didn't work out for you? You did a little bit of number 1 and tried a little bit of number 6. You got an idea, took some steps and then gave it up as a bad job. Too hard, too difficult, too time consuming.

A perfect formula for a mediocre life - and business.

On the other hand, is there something you really, really want? Then follow the above six steps and expect miracles.

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Written by Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing. Please visit Robert's web site at www.actionplan.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for professional service businesses.
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Goin' and Growin'

The photo of the duckling to the left is Alex. That was the baby duckling I lost, last year, after the Great Rescue. The toy beside him is very, very small.

I received quite a few emails last week regarding my duck stories. Here are just a few of my favorite ones ...

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You know jl, I'm really enjoying the duckling stories every week, but is there any way you can post some pics? I'd LOVE to see them, and I'm sure there's more suckers like me that hang on your every word each week! :-)

Oh yeah, and the business stuff is still good too! lol

Vicki Haddon
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I have a very busy, hectic life right now. When I want to smile and laugh, I seek out one of your emails. I just love you.

I hope one day to get permission from you to publish your stories in my paper. Others need to hear them. I live in Helena, Montana. Folks here would appreciate you, as I do... Thanks!

Bobbette Madonna
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Hi jl -- Loved the story about Dora and her new family. I was literally laughing out loud as I read, "Finally, I swear, I thought I saw ol' Cody sigh. Then, he swam over to her and led her out."

You describe everything so beautifully -- it's almost as good as seeing it with our own eyes. (Although, I do tend to superimpose your happenings on a pond I used to have when I lived in Vermont. It was geese then, for me.)

Thank you for sharing these adventures.

Ron Rink
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I certainly agree about the photos. Unfortunately, until now, I've never seen the need for a camera phone. I did see the need for a digital camera, at one time - and I bought one.

But, I'm such a techno-idiot, I couldn't figure out how to use it. Not to mention you need a magnifying glass to read the damn directions!

I'll get the regular photos online as soon as I can.

Meanwhile, the ducklings are (as of Friday, May 14th) thriving. We lost one to a cat the first night Dora took her babies back to her nest. She hasn't returned there, and 14 ducklings are still running all over the place. Excellent retention for 10 days old!

They come to eat at the edge of my patio. I'm feeding them the starter food to help them grow fast and be strong. I have the food and water in large, nearly flat containers, and they just tumble back and forth - in and out of them.

Mama stands guard while they eat and drink and fight and play. She even watches the sky. Where'd she learn that?

So far, I'm the only person she'll allow near them. If she sees anyone else, she heads for the water. The little ones accept my presence so close to them and are losing their fear of me. A couple of them already come right up to me. I don't touch them, yet, though.

It's almost as if a light bulb went on in Adorable Dora's head. She's a fabulous mama this year. Poor thing's a bit thin but, then, aren't we all while we're chasing rug rats!

She has her own bowl of corn by the babies feeding area, but she only grabs a few bites. Too busy watching. I also see her standing up at all times of the night doing guard duty.

Early in the morning, after their first feeding, she'll finally lie down with them all around her on the lake bank right in front of my door. (They're already too big to fit under her.) But, as near as I can see, she only gets naps.

The rest of her flock are still helping. They stand guard in the afternoon in a shaded area on the other side of the lake while she naps.

She's a little annoyed when she can't go out foraging with them. I saw her teaching the little ones to forage this morning on the bank of the lake. I dread the day when she takes them away from the water.

I do have one funny story to tell ...

One morning, the boys were all out foraging a rather longer time than usual. I happened to be on the patio when they came back. Dora had been looking all around for them, and I think she was getting nervous.

When she suddenly saw them swimming across the lake toward her, she got so excited, she launched herself right into the air and flew out to greet them. The babies were only about three days old, and she left them alone at the edge of the water - in turtle country.

Without thinking, I hollered, “Dora! Get your a** back to those babies! What the hell are you thinking?”

Her head went up at her name, and she seemed to realize what she'd done. She swerved off immediately and headed back to her brood. You'd swear she understood what I said.

The guy next door was outside, and he laughed out loud. He now calls me the “Duck Whisperer.”

So, that's it for this week. The 14 ducklings are growing like weeds - the mallards are still making a nuisance of themselves - and Cody is still protecting Dora from them.

No - I haven't named any of the babies, yet. We still have a long way to go, and I'm trying not to get too attached to any of them, at this point. We'll also need to see their personalities before names can be chosen.

I can tell them apart, though. Three will look like Dora - two will be black and look like Jake - Five are gray and will look like Leroy - and four will look like mallards. As near as I can tell the lineage. But, easy to tell apart.

You Get a Gift as We Celebrate

Remember when I promised you a huge “freebie?” Then, I had to put it off for a bit? Later today, you'll receive an email containing that information. Be sure to look for it. You won't want to miss this one!

And, by the way - it will NOT be put on the blog for the public. This is for iCop members and Trade Journal subscribers ONLY!

Here's Another Terrific Resource

“Device Doctor" is a freeware Windows application that scans your computer hardware and checks to see if there are new driver updates available for your devices. It also locates drivers for "unidentified devices" in the Windows Device Manager.

This tool was designed to be very simple and easy to use.

Just click on 'Begin Scan' to detect your hardware; Device Doctor queries a manufacturer driver database and immediately fetches the correct driver files for your computer.”

www.devicedoctor.com

Have a fabulous week, and ... Keep on Keepin' On!

     jl

Join me on Twitter - twitter.com/jlscott_iCop

"Advice from Curtis & Leroy"

Limit all U.S. politicians to two terms:

* One in office

* One in prison

Louisiana already does this.

Thanks to Kent Butler, Puzzlemaster
www.Personal-Puzzles.com