Kenny Chapman: Change your mindset to achieve your goals

I hope 2019 is off to a great start for you and your company. Regardless whether it’s going the way you want it to or not, I want you to think about what it would truly take to make the rest of 2019 the best year of your life. And as you examine that, don’t just think about how you are going to make that happen — think about who will help you get there.

The good news is you are completely in control of your actions and responses all year long. You might not be able to control others or be involved in how all decisions and choices are made around you, but you have complete control when it comes to your responses.

Change your thought processes

To have your best year ever, I encourage you to change your thought processes a little bit. Well, depending on your perspective, it could actually need to be challenged quite a bit, but I promise you it’ll be worth it.

Most of us were brought up being told to figure out how to do things. How do I become successful? How to I get my plumbing license? How do I install a new panel for an upgrade? How do I make more money? What got you here won’t get you there, my friend, and you will change your entire life when you begin focusing on who more than how.

There is more than one “who” I’m talking about here, and the very first “who” is you. Until you get crystal clear about who you are, you will continuously struggle to find quality people to support your mission. You cannot live someone else’s life, goals or vision. It must become yours.

This can feel a bit selfish to some people, but I assure you, nothing is more selfless than doing the heavy lifting to figure out who you truly are — and who you want to move forward with, personally and professionally.

Align yourself with like-minded people

You’ve certainly heard about the importance of your peer group, the colleagues you hang with, and the acquaintances who surround you. Then there are the statistics that reveal most people earn within $3,000-$5,000 per year of their five closest friends. You know there are certain people who help you move forward and support your goals, and there are some who aren’t a great influence on your life. Your mother wouldn’t have wanted you hanging out with me as a child; I might have been considered one of those “bad influences,” but I digress.

It seems like once we left the playground, we forgot that lesson — certain people are good influences and some are not. Who you are at your core and who you want to be in this life matters. It not only matters, but it’s paramount to your success, fulfillment and happiness. Not to mention how much more money you’ll make when you have clarity and surround yourself with the exact right people in your life.

Once you know who you are and want to be, it becomes much easier to begin aligning yourself with like-minded, driven thought leaders like you. This is where your impact, influence, income and freedom really start ramping up.

I’ve been through many challenges and changes with the nine companies I’ve owned in five different industries, and one common denominator remains true: How important a few key people are to your success.

Certainly I’m not undermining the newest apprentice beginning their career with you and saying they are not a key player. Rather, I’m hoping to help you realize that you and two or three key people can run your organization very effectively regardless of size.

It’s been said that no more than six people run any company, regardless of size or industry. When it comes to essential team members running divisions, departments or projects, it doesn’t matter if a business is $200,000 per year or $200 million per year. Think about this rather than dismissing it as something that doesn’t impact you. If you want different and better results, start breaking down who can help you achieve the things you want.

First, decide who you are and who you want to become, as a person and business leader. Next, take a good, hard look at the people you interact with every day. It even helps to write down these key people and their roles in your life and/or business. Are they truly a good fit for that role, or do they need to be repositioned or removed?

Protect your mindset

I’ve seen it happen many times where business leaders keep people in key positions in their companies who aren’t a great fit for that position. It’s not necessarily that they are a negative person; they just aren’t being utilized as effectively as possible or their true abilities aren’t what is needed.

I’ve also learned many times in my companies that some people just aren’t good managers. Sometimes I wanted them to grow into a role they didn’t want to grow into, and were happy doing just what they were doing. Always be careful not to force someone into a role because you think they are the “logical” answer. You also have to take into account their personality, motivations and mindset.

Occasionally, you simply need to hire outside the company instead of promoting from within, even though it can seem like more of a hassle. Heck, sometimes it even works to hire somebody outside of our industry who has great potential. The bottom line is to make sure the right people are in the right place, and if there isn’t a right place for them, it might be time to part ways.

I’ve even had to “fire” friends in the past who had become negative influences in my life. It’s not an easy thing to do, but you have to protect your own sanity and positive mindset. You see, it’s not always how you are going to get to where you want to go in life — it’s also who is going to help you get there.

If you want to make more money this year than you’ve ever made before, ask yourself questions like these:

• Who are your two or three key team members?

• Who is going to take on more responsibility as your company grows?

• Who is going to help train your salespeople and onboard new team members?

• To whom can you delegate certain tasks?

• Who can help you become a better, more effective leader?

• Who are your industry peers you can reach out to when you need support?

Hopefully these questions give you a little jump start. Of course, you still need to understand how to do things, but not as many things as you might think when you surround yourself with the right people. For example, if you want to have better training for your techs, it’s not as much about how you are going to do it as who is going to help you with it. Sometimes the how actually comes after the who.

Commit to growing yourself and your support system like never before. Decide who needs to be added, shifted, trained or even replaced and you will be better positioned to reach (and hopefully exceed) all your goals.