Chance favors the well prepared – Aaron W. Smith

Personal effectiveness is not doing what is expected. It is being at the top of one’s game, producing the best outcomes, or delivering excellent work.

Have you ever watched an accomplished pianist at work? Their fingers fly across the keys sending beautiful notes of music into the air. The audience is enraptured and when the music ends, break into applause! To produce such quality, did the pianist just sit to play the piano that day? What goes into such effectiveness?

1. Excellent work ethic: All of us are born with talents but these fail where there are no systems to ensure effective deployment. For example, a talented singer without vocal lessons, the right diet and exercise, tuning, and other vital elements, will sound average.

2. Consistent Practice: Confidence is important if you are to be effective but only comes from working on your talent. The better practiced you are, the higher your probability of success. Sure, it might take a little longer to work your talent, but success is surer.

3. Eagerness to Learn: The quickest way to learn is to hang out with those who know; people who already have what you seek – teachers, coaches, mentors, associates, and even friends. The quality of your social and professional circle determines how much you can learn. Thus, a good network is indispensable to personal effectiveness.

4. Attention to Detail: Use technology like organizers, day planners, and notes to keep track of your goals and dreams. A number of these are available on cell phones and computers. Learn to make full use of these to free yourself from having to remember unnecessary information. Even a simple tool like the alarm clock can help increase your efficiency by ensuring that you are on time for appointments.

The more effective you are, the more successful.