A Success Mindset: Are You Thinking Bee?

My boys love watching the “Bee Movie,” an animated film staring the voice of Jerry Seinfeld. At risk of spoiling the movie, one of the messages is around how bees have their own unique way of thinking; a language which only a bee can tap into, with concentrated effort. Once a bee learns to “think bee,” they begin to have insights into exactly what they should do in order to achieve success.

As a business owner or executive, are you trying to form a success mindset?

During an event I spoke at this past week in Phoenix, we discussed how some of the most successful entrepreneurs and business owners think. Those that are highly successful think big. Greg, a client and friend, has successfully built his father’s business from $5 million in annual sales to now over $150 million in annual sales in just under thirteen years. The business is still privately held, and he is still the CEO and main shareholder.

Through discussions with Greg, I’ve determined that there are several key practices that he has used in order to think big and achieve the levels of success he has achieved.

1. Audacious Goals: The goals that Greg set early on for growing his business were not small. He didn’t focus on annual incremental growth, but set extremely high revenue targets that seemed impossible.

2. Support Network: Greg surrounded himself with people who were highly successful. He sought out these individuals by networking at industry events and joining a peer advisory group. Greg attributes highly successful people as a key ingredient in helping him realize what was possible.

3. Focus on Your Strengths: Having known Greg for fifteen years, I can tell you that he is a natural-born seller. The cliché that Greg could sell ice to Eskimos comes to mind. Early in the business, Greg hired people to take on the areas he realized weren’t his strengths, allowing him to focus on what he was good at – sales.

4. Outsource Sweating: Greg is not a detail-oriented person by nature, although he can be if necessary. It’s for that reason that Greg delegated the small details to others – he didn’t sweat the small stuff, but kept his mind de-cluttered to allow him to focus on bigger and more ambitious opportunities.

From my experience, the most successful business owners and executives all have a similar way of thinking. You can form a success mindset by incorporating the ideas above into your own business. So are you Thinking Bee, or just buzzing around?

© Shawn Casemore 2015. All rights reserved.