The Reasons Why People Fail

Have you ever wondered why people fail? Here are the 10 most common reasons I have found during my career. Make sure you're not making any of these mistakes:

1. The misunderstanding or ignorance of the universal law behind success of any kind, which is, simply, that you have to give before you can expect to get; and you will receive in direct proportion to how much of yourself that you give. Your rewards will be in exact proportion to your service. Some may not like this universal law, but that doesn't change it. If you want to increase your income, you must increase your service to others.

2. The inability to concentrate on what is really important and what isn't. Give the great majority of your attention to the really important matters, delegate the details, and use your spare time for things that you enjoy.

3. The lack of organization. Make certain you know exactly where you're going, and plan to work to get the most out of your time and abilities.

4. One of the greatest causes of failure is thinking you can ever stop learning and trying new and better methods. Would you buy stock in a company that closed its research and development department? Of course not. Your continuing education is your own personal research and development, without it, you can't expect to grow.

5. The loss of faith in what you're doing, or in yourself. If you do not sincerely believe in what you're doing, if you lack faith in it, get out of it and into something that you can throw all your heart, talents and abilities.

6. Clinging to the status quo. Many people try to hang on to what they have and don't realize that the only thing upon which they can definitely count on is change. The world is changing every day, and more rapidly than at any time in its history. Welcome change, because it brings with it new opportunities for growth and expansion.

7. Forgetting who the boss really is, don't ever forget that throughout your working life, no matter what job you have, your boss is always the customer. The customer is king. Customers will continue to spend their money on the products and services you deliver if you earn and continue to earn their confidence and respect. You won't get one cent from a customer if you fail to earn it. That is the way it should be.

8. Another great cause of failure is thinking you should do just what you absolutely have to and no more. It doesn't work. You have to do more than you're being paid to do. Go the extra mile in everything you do.

9. A lack of understanding. At regular intervals, you need to take stock of your strengths and weaknesses, and work to strengthen both.

10. Giving up too soon. Never give up; persistence is still the most important ingredient for achievement.

Ten reasons for failure: For every one of them, there are a hundred ways to succeed by sticking with the universal rules. Success is really nothing more than knowing where you're going and making the best possible use of what you have.

Assessing Management Potential

We live in a new age of identity in which your employees, customers, investors and stakeholders care about what your company really is.

Good management always makes a difference. It can turn a company around and positively impact the entire organization.

What should you look for in younger people coming into the business world when it comes to management potential? A college degree or even an MBA in business management is really the least of the qualifications you should be looking for.

Here are 13 variables to management potential:

Personal Impact: Forcefulness. How forceful an early impression does he or she make? Consider the impression he or she made on you.

Oral Communications Skills: How effectively does the person express himself or herself? Consider ease of expression, correct use of English, vocabulary, precision in explaining views, vocal clarity and tonal quality.

Human Relations Skills: How well can this person get people to perform effectively by good human-relations techniques? Sincerity is very important.

Personal Impact and Likability: How likable an early impression does he or she make? Consider the impression he or she made on you. Did you tend to like or dislike him or her?

Behavior Flexibility: How readily can the person when motivated, modify his or her behavior to reach a goal? Consider tendencies to persevere and frequency with which he or she has adapted to change circumstances.

Need Approval of Superiors: To what extent does the person seek approval of persons in authority over him or her? Consider his or her dependence on superiors for help and guidance, as well as tendencies to solicit praise and support for them.

Tolerance of Uncertainty: To what extent will his or her work performance stand up under certain or unstructured conditions? Consider person's need for structure and the impact of lack of structure on his or her behavior.

Inner Work Standards: To what extent will he or she want to do a good job even if less is acceptable.

Primacy of Work: To what extent will he or she find satisfactions from work more important than satisfaction from other areas of life?

Energy: How continuously can he or she sustain a high level of work activity?

Goal Flexibility: To what extent will he or she be able to change his or her life goals in accordance with reality's opportunities? Consider what the person says are his or her goals and his or her commitment to them.

Other points to look for are; what is the person's need for advancement, need for security, social objectivity that is how free is the person from prejudices against racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, educational and other kinds of groups? Does the person have the ability to delay gratification?

Finally, what is the person's range of interests? To what extent is he or she interested in a variety of fields of human activity such as science, politics, sports, music, art, etc? Consider his or her leisure time activities, hobbies, reading habits and community activities.

Whether you're interviewing for a managerial job or you are the one looking for a management position, you should take note. Each of these 13 variables together is critical for great management. If just one is missing you do not have management potential.