If you chase two rabbits – you will not catch either one : Russian Proverb
Hi , I’m Coach Rob Opie , and the subject of this week’s COACHING NEWSLETTER is
The One Thing
We go inside the game plans of Business greats like Bill Gates , Elon Musk and others – to explore one of life’s most thought prevoking questions :
What’s the secret to life ? What’s the SECRET TO SUCCESS in life ?
What would your answer be ?
Let’s explore what the great champions believe it to be – and what they do .
Here’s one of my favourite scenes from a movie called ”City Slickers” .
Take a quick view as its crammed full of some potent cowboy wisdom………..
Curly : Do you know what the secret to life is ?
Mitch : No ,What ?
Curly : This ( He holds up his one finger )
Mitch : Your finger ?
Curly : The One Thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and everything else doesn’t mean sh*t !”
Mitch : That’s Great , but what is the one thing?
Curly : That’s what you have got to figure out.
Great companies. Great Individuals – figure out – and stick to their ONE THING .
They know what they are great at . They become expert. And great expertise is shared.
Conventional business school wisdom says that you must stick to your knitting .
Of the top twenty brands in the world today ,nineteen ply a well defined trade……..
Coke does soft drinks . Nike does sport. Samsung does electronics .
And then along comes a highly successful brand like VIRGIN. Diversified across many different industries .
Are they breaking the mould – or not ?
Richard Branson knows it’s not about airlines trains , holidays , phones , financials ,internet ,media , health care , gyms . magazines , students etc etc
His ONE THING is clearly defined in his mind .
It’s about finding new ways to help people to have A GOOD TIME – ideally in places were they are least expecting it.
Contrary to appearances, Virgin is a highly focussed business.
Then how about South African born clean energy technology entrepreneur, Elon Musk.
He’s involved in so many different industries that his ONE THING may appear vague .
What drives him ? What’s is his ONE THING ? What sets him apart ?
Consider his own words :
Find out what is going to affect mankind the most in the foreseeable future. Find out what is not working. And go and fix it – Elon Musk
Elon Musk is a fixer par excellence. He is on a focussed quest to :
elevate humanity.
Then , how about Brian Joffe, who built the diversified Bidvest industrial conglomerate .
And became hugely successful.
What ‘s his ONE THING ?
Well , if you look at his recent move to launch LONG4Life and the first acquisiation in that new stable , namely Sorbet – his one thing is clear .
Taking SERVICE BUSINESSES to the next level.
With LONG4LIfe he’s made that even more focussed – with his intent to buy into lifestyle service businesses.
Personally, I’m a big fan of Gary Keller’s version of “The Secret to Life,” which he reveals in his book
The One Thing: The surprisingly simple truth behind extraordinary results.
He believes “The One Thing” is the best approach to getting what one really wants in life.
In order to get more, one must have less on one’s plate.
Focus, Focus and Focus more
Success begets success when one narrows one’s concentration to one thing.
HAVE A GO AT WRITING DOWN YOUR VERY OWN ONE THING ?
What are you great at ?
Have you got it nailed ?
Look at the bigger picture in your professional and personal life .
For many years in my corporate career, I toggled between marketing and sales positions , and it took me many years to realise that for me it was not all about marketing or sales per se , but rather :
to help teams and individuals to achieve their greatest potential
My second half career is now focused as a performance coach .
Nothing has really changed.
Here’s a story about two of the most successful people on this planet .
At a dinner hosted by William H Gates, father of same Microsoft founder Bill Gates, for a number of hand-picked business champions, he asked them to write down on a piece of paper ONE WORD which they believed was THE ONE THING that determined their success – in business and in life.
Two guests wrote down the same word.
And they also happen to be the two richest people on this planet.
They were his own son Bill Gates – and Warren Buffet.
And that one word was :
FOCUS
The most important thing I have learnt in life is to focus my energy on what is important in life – Bill Gates
Practical Tip for the week :
Success is commonly determined and driven by how narrow one can make one’s focus.
Doing too many things, both personally and professionally , will weaken your position.
Less is often more in the lives of the great champions.
Focus , Focus, Focus
You will become expert at what you do .
And when someone shares that which one is expert at , great value gets imparted on this world .
SOME READING :
Gary Keller’s book THE ONE THING is a great read:
The One Thing: The surprisingly simple truth behind extraordinary results.
THE GAME CHANGERS – ROB OPIE , foreword by John Robbie
How to achieve your greatest potential in your professional and personal life
This book is not published yet, but it will be yours on 1st December for Mahala . I will be taking all the feedback I get from this online programme and bolstering the book .Please do be my ghost writer, by sending me any of your stories Insight , Innovation and Inspiration.
In his latest book , Rob suggests that everyone can find the key to real achievement in life. Finding real purpose need not be random. It is an awesome proposal and one that must be investigated by anyone who fears being ordinary – John Robbie.
GO GREAT . AND PLEASE REMEMBER THE FREE ADDED VALUE AVAILABLE TO YOU ON THIS 11 WEEK PROGRAMME :
I’M COACHING LIVE BY EMAIL :
If you need any help , please email me any of your coaching questions – and I will get back to you by email.
All emails are 100 % confidential.
GET IN TOUCH . robopie@thegameplan.co.za
Till next week , when we take an inside look at : GAME CHANGER NUMBER FIVE : CONQUER . NEVER FIGHT – when we explore what the great champions of EVEREST, and others can teach us :
THANK YOU CELL C : A special thank you to Jose and Doug at Team Cell C for their continued support of our GROWING SOUTH AFRICANS GREAT initiative at THE GAME PLAN .
Rob Opie is a Brand Strategist , Entrepreneur ,Speaker, Author and Performance Coach.
He helps teams and individuals to achieve their greatest potential in life.
TO BOOK ROB TO TALK AT YOUR NEXT CORPORATE TEAM EVENT , email me personally at :
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You can either book a TWO HOUR one-on- one coaching session( dependent on your location and my travel plans ), or a two ONE HOUR phone coaching sessions.(or skype audio): Cost R1000.00.
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THE GAME CHANGERS . POWER UP YOUR GAME .POWER UP YOUR SALES
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