I’m just back from an outstanding meeting with my mastermind group.  One of our members, Rob Nixon, a very successful entrepreneur in the accounting industry, has developed a tool for mapping the success firms in Australia where he is headquartered.  After we got a look at this very detailed map, the rest of us in the group began considering how brilliant it is -to show people precisely the steps they must take to be successful in any profession or industry. 

You don’t have to be perfect to be successful; you simply have to do a lot of things well, and do the important things better than your competitors.  Our group leader, Alan Weiss, is fond of saying “Success, not perfection.”  Do it well, do it better than others and then move.  “80% done, out it out the door, says Alan.  ”The last 20% of anything you do has minimal value and will never be noticed by the client.”

So success really about being measurably better.  Striving for improvement where it matters.  This is where the map comes in.  What was good enough at one stage of your career or one phase of your business will not take you to the next stage.  Rob’s idea of mapping success is so obvious and that’s why it is powerful.  You focus on the skills and strategies that really truly matter.  His clients’ results prove the point - firms that participate in his Coaching Circles and follow the roadmap outperform the average accounting firm nationally by several multiples.

I’m currently working on a success map for executive coaching and welcome your comments.  What do top executives in your industry absolutely have to do very well, better than others, in order to rise to the top?  Yes, I know, there are millions of articles and hundreds of books on the topic, but right now I’m looking for your opinion.  Look around at the executives you admire most, and tell me what do they do better than just about anybody?  Why is that important to their success?

I have my ideas and welcome yours.  Hit the leave a reply button and let me know what you think.

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