How to Stand Out, Earn More and Be More Fulfilled

Let’s consider the question: How to stand out more, earn more, and be more fulfilled?

How to lift yourself up is a question I am asked a lot. In the professional speaking world many of my colleagues say, “Why do you spend so much money on personal and professional development?”

My joking answer is, “I need a lot of help”.

I often got that same question in the corporate world about lifting myself up as well. People would often ask, “Why are you always going to classes? You’re always trying to get a certification to do something.”

Here is the reason I started doing personal and professional development in the year 2000. I was making a major career shift into a full-time and high demanding IT career. I was anxious about it and I didn't know what I needed to know to be as successful as I wanted to be.

Bottomline: I did not know what I needed to know to be as successful as I wanted to be.

So, I walked myself through a little three-part framework that I'm going to share with you to make sure that I'm evaluating and making choices every year to develop myself professionally and personally so I'm always earning more, I'm always standing out from the crowd, and I'm always hopefully even more fulfilled. Let me walk you through the framework I call it the three As of mastery.

The first A is very simple; it is AWARENESS. The awareness is driving the awareness question around. Where do I need some help to get some more skills or to be become more valuable for those I serve? Awareness is divided into two different sub buckets: professional and personal.

Every year I step back and I ask myself could I use some development this year in my personal life? What area do I want to improve? This has ranged over the years from everything from health to mind to marriage.

I've hired a strength coach. I have a hired a meditation coach to help me go deeper into my meditation practice. I believe that is the gateway right now to really be able to achieve more in my life. I have hired a relationship coach for my wife and me, when the strain of starting a business was creating some relationship tension. I felt like we needed it and we both agreed that we needed to invest in ourselves to become stronger. We had a good relationship, but it was not perfect; it never is.

The second A is ADVANTAGE. That is finding that resource that you need, then going and investing in it if it. If you invest time and money you need to make sure you are actually finding an advantage. Maybe it's a coach, maybe it's a book, or maybe it's a course or seminar or certification. What advantage can you give yourself to get that information you need and have the support to make sure that you do the last A, to take action, which is the hardest.

The third A is ACTION. That means to consistently start applying some of the ideas you've learned in the class or certification training or whatever. This means making sure that you're getting real return on your investment. Then start to shine the light and make others aware in your organization of what you've been doing to develop yourself. or in your personal life it rubs off and people start seeing that like “awesome you know, I got a book on home I need to start re-reading that. I need to start doing that again.”

Taking action really inspires others in your life to step up, get educated, take control, and invest in themselves. It reminds me of the adage: “A rising tide lifts all boats.” Your efforts to lift yourself up with the three As will lift others as well.

To learn more about my 9 Vertical Lessons for Leading with Impact check out my new book Reaching Your Next Summit!

Your climb to excellence is never easy. The human drive within calls us to what is possible. The principles shared in this book will renew your commitment and inspire your quest for excellence. You will realize more of your potential as you sharpen your focus, act with courage, and generate momentum in reaching your next summit—and beyond.