Words of Wisdom From Brian Tracy

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7 Qualities of Visionary Leadership
Becoming the "captain of your fate."
By Brian Tracy

As a member of BNI, you are a leader in your field. Devoted to achieving a higher level of results, you set an example to everyone around you. Your job is to continue to grow as a leader in your work and personal life—always charging ahead to where you want to be tomorrow.

Over the years, there have been more than 33,000 studies into the qualities of top leaders. All conclude that "vision" is the most identifiable quality of a leader.

Leaders think about the future most of the time. They think about where they are going rather than where they have been. They think about the opportunities of tomorrow rather than focusing on the problems of the past.

Only about 10% of people have this ability to look forward. This small percentage includes all the movers, shakers, entrepreneurs, business builders, top sales people, artists, musicians, and creators of all kinds.

To think like a leader, you must practice "idealization" in each area of your life. Begin by imagining that you have no limitations at all on what you can be, do, or have.

Imagine for a moment that you have all the time and money that you need. You have all the education and knowledge. You have all the talent and experience. You have all the friends and contacts. You are a "no-limit" person who can do anything that you really put your mind to. You aren't afraid to answer the following questions:

• If you could wave a magic wand and create the perfect situation in every part of your life, what would it look like?
• If you were the very best professional salesperson that you could possibly be, what additional knowledge, skills, and abilities would you have developed to a high level?
• If you were the best in your business, what sort of products or services would you sell? And who would you sell them to?
• What kind of people skills would you have? What kind of management skills would you have? Especially, what kind of sales skills would you have?

When you begin the practice of idealization, you can then extend this exercise to your family, your finances, and your physical health.

When you begin to think like a leader you begin to engage in what is called "long-term thinking."

Leader of Your Life
Top people are long-term thinkers. Average thinkers think only about the present, and about immediate gratification. But leaders think about where they want to be in five and ten years, and what they have to do each hour of each day to make their desired future a reality.

1. Leaders inspire others because they are inspired themselves. They are excited about the possibility of creating an exciting future for themselves. They get up every morning and they see every effort they make as part of a great plan to accomplish something wonderful with their lives.
2. Leaders are optimistic. They see opportunities in everything that happens, positive or negative. They look for the good in every situation and in every person. They seek the valuable lessons contained in every problem or setback. They never experience "failures;" instead, they write them off as "learning experiences."
3. Leaders have a sense of meaning and purpose in each area of their lives. They have clear, written goals and plans they work on every day. Leaders are clear about where they are going and what they will have to do to get there. Their behavior is purposeful and goal-directed. As a result, they accomplish five and ten times as much as the average person who operates from day to day with little concern about the future.
4. Leaders accept personal responsibility. Leaders never complain, never explain. Instead of making excuses, they make progress. Whenever they have a set-back or difficulty, they repeat to themselves, "I am responsible! I am responsible! I am responsible!"
5. Leaders see themselves as victors over circumstances rather than victims of circumstances. They don't criticize or blame others when something goes wrong. Instead, they focus on the solution.
6. Leaders are action-oriented. They are constantly in motion. They try something, and then something else, and then something else again. They never give up.
7. Leaders have integrity. They tell the truth at all times. They live in truth with themselves, and they live in truth with others.

In the final analysis, you are the leader of your own life. You are the general in command of your own personal army. You are the president of your own personal services corporation. You are the "Captain of your fate and the master of your soul."

The acceptance of leadership is a great responsibility. It is both scary and exhilarating. Once you decide to become a leader in your life, you cast off the shackles of fear and dependency that hold most people back. With your own hands, you design your own future. You set yourself fully on the path to becoming everything you are capable of becoming.

Brian Tracy - Author - The 100 Absolutely Unbreakable Laws of Business Success.

About Brian Tracy:

Brian Tracy is Chairman and CEO of Brian Tracy International, a company specializing in the training and development of individuals and organizations.

Brian Tracy has consulted for more than 1,000 companies and addressed more than 4,000,000 people in 4,000 talks and seminars throughout the US, Canada and 46 other countries worldwide. As a keynote speaker and seminar leader, he addresses more than 250,000 people each year.

Brian has studied, researched, written and spoken for 30 years in the fields of sales, entrepreneurship, economics, history, business, philosophy and psychology. He is a top-selling author of 42 books that have been translated into 35 languages and which are sold in 52 countries.