HOW TO TRANSITION FROM IDEAS TO EXECUTION

When I look at agencies, the reason some sputter or plateau is a performance gap. This is the gap between what we know and what we actually do. If I were to draw it, it would look like two mountains with a valley in the middle. But unlike the valleys found in nature, which take thousands of years to form, the performance gaps I see in agencies develop almost instantaneously.

What causes these gaps? And why do so many agencies and producers fail to execute? Some of the main reasons are:

• Lack of a meaningful, achievable goal. Most agencies really have no end in mind. If you were to ask them, “Where do you want to be in three years?” they wouldn’t have a clear answer, because they haven’t taken the time to think about it. Instead, they just sort of wander.
• Lack of consistent, purposeful behaviors. How often have you started something for a couple of weeks and then moved on to something else because you lost...

Beliefs Drive Behaviors

In this week's ProFit Tip, Brent Kelly goes over the four types of beliefs that are absolutely critical to your agency's success.

Are your behaviors aligned with your goals, or are you lacking in true beliefs that are holding yourself, and your agency back?

Access Brent Kelly's new ProFit Tip video and podcast episode on these four key beliefs to drive agency results now.

The Agent Leader podcast, is available on iTunes, Stitcher or Soundcloud

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Top Leaders Adhere to Core Commitments

There are literally scores of strategies and behaviors that agencies can implement in their quest to achieve great results. However, I’ve found that the greatest results come from focusing on a few selected strategies. The opposite is also true: The more things you chase, the fewer things you catch!

Chasing too many strategies certainly doesn’t provide clarity and focus for your team. Too often what they’re chasing becomes the “flavor of the week,” prompting the staff to think, “Don’t worry, this too shall pass,” because they know you won’t stick with it.

During a private presentation to a group of agency principals recently, I was asked to identify the traits I see in the best agency leaders. Because it’s such an extensive list and because I believe that less is more, I narrowed it down to the Key Core Commitments of great agency leaders. In case you’re wondering, my definition...

Typical wrong behaviors

Here are some of the things I’ve seen people do over the years that are absolutely wrong.

Focusing on Multiple Activities vs. Results. What you focus on, you will experience; so if you’re focused on the wrong things, your experience will yield the wrong results. What are you focusing on, and is it really what you want?

For example, are you focused on activities vs. results? Are you wasting time complaining? Do you spend way too much time staring at your cell phone or computer monitor vs. actually talking to people? Is your focus scattered in many different directions?

Researchers have discovered (and are proving) that multi-tasking is a myth and creates up to a 28% loss of productivity. Their studies show that the idea of being able to do many things (adequately) at once is a lie. You might be able to tackle several projects simultaneously, but it’s doubtful you’ll accomplish much of anything unless you address each task individually.

Left to our own devices, most of us often end up doing the wrong things.

Otherwise, we’d all be super successful, healthy, happy and wise, right? These wrong things prevent us from getting optimum results, so why do we do them?

Perhaps it’s because we don’t have to do the right things. After all, the independent agency is a great business model that allows the wrong things to still generate pretty good results. During our training programs, I often ask: “How many of you are making more money than you thought you’d ever make?” And, “How many of you are making way more than your friends and siblings?” And finally, “How many are making more money than you’d make if you had a real job?”

Every time I ask that last question, everyone in the room always cracks up! People realize that in just about any other business, they wouldn’t have the opportunities they have now. The reality is that most of us would be fired if we...