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How To Build Character

When I was younger, I was told that “character” is what you do when no one is watching. This snippet of advice was given with context so I understood it: I could choose to do the right thing, even if I didn’t get noticed for it.

As I’ve grown older, I’ve heard different versions of this and it’s been burned into my brain. How you carry yourself when nobody is around is who you really are. It’s impossible to keep a facade going forever. Eventually, the truth is revealed.

The strengthening of your character (in private) is something few of us probably think about. Yet, the wisest among us advise this regularly. And the in private part is important. If you’re just doing “character-building” exercises for people to see, you’re not building character, you’re showing off. That’s ego, and it’s dangerous.

So how does one “build” character, even when nobody is around see?

Here’s a few thoughts:

The Responsibility of an Entrepreneur

Problem-Solvers

I am problem solver. I identify problems, break them down, and create solutions. Sometimes, that means helping a neighbor or connecting two friends. Other times, that problem solving translates to profits.

There are lots of problem solvers out there. They see a need and they come up with a solution. These solutions often manifest in the form of businesses. Consequently, we know many of these problem-solvers by the labels “entrepreneur” and “business owner.”

These people have a few qualities that make them stand out.

Education Reform Could Be Crucial

The System

For the longest time I felt that the education system in which I was raised failed me. I was taught to take tests, not question authority, follow rules, and fit in.

It was only later in life, much after high school, I realized that tests weren’t multiple choice. That those who questioned authority were the people who were most successful. That following the rules isn’t always what’s right. And that I have no desire to fit in.

Our education system is dated. There are tons of arguments, blogs, and videos about this sprinkled across the internet. There are numerous musings about why our education system has been so static and theories on why Americans haven’t demanded change. My favorite compilation of thoughts are here (and a manifesto here) from one of my favorite authors, Mr. Seth Godin.

Talent Begets Talent

Sprints

It was a scorching Friday afternoon. The sun beat down on our backs and sweat drenched what little clothes we were still wearing. Ross, Hannah, and I had been at the gym for two hours already, but nobody was going home. Not this close to the finish line. A few more four hundred meter sprints were the only thing between us and tacos.

Ross and I walked the allotted hundred meters of rest in between sprints with our hands on our hips. We squinted into the afternoon sun and we spoke in short snippets while trying to regulate our breathe. We discussed how neither of us would be there without the others. We agreed that our daily competition with each other was motivating.

Enabling Your Team For Customer Service Success

People Smoke In Vegas

I stood in line attempting to check into Harrah’s Las Vegas. I’d come late to the conference because I needed to be with my dad at a doctor’s appointment earlier that day in Florida. I rushed straight from his appointment to the airport, traveled nine and a half hours to get to the last thirty minutes of a company happy hour, then came here.

Because I hadn’t checked in the day prior, like I originally planned, they booked my room. Fair enough. They can’t let a vacant room go to waste during a conference. But, I knew that would happen and I’d already tried to call as well as fix this issue online. As they say in Vegas, no dice. And now, no room.

Be Your Sales Team’s Biggest Cheerleader

SalesHacker

Conferences are exciting experiences.

You’re with people who share a similar mindset, dynamic speakers are teaching you neat things, and the energy is impossible to contain! You take notes feverishly on your iPad, typing as fast as the flat-screen keyboard will let you, trying to capture every bit of information you can. You leave exhausted. Exhausted, but rejuvenated.

That’s exactly how I felt after attending SalesHacker Conference in Spring of 2015. I was pumped to get home and start selling services for the company I was working for at the time, SOUTH.

Not everything at SalesHacker was applicable to my job, but many things caught my attention. One of them went something like this:

“You have to be your sales team’s biggest cheerleader.”

I had previously managed sales teams and trained sales people so the idea of cheerleading for them wasn’t foreign. I understood that the sales manager/team leader needed to bring energy. I understood that sales people got down and that someone had to keep them positive. I understood it from a management standpoint. I understood all that on paper, at least.

Instead of…

Instead of having time cards, incentive people to show up and be productive.

Instead of micromanaging, put in the effort up-front to set clear expectations.

Instead of doing it all yourself, delegate.

Instead of clutching onto information, share it.

Instead of motivating via intimidation, motivate by empowerment.

Of course that means you have to do the work of hiring good people. And even harder, setting a great example to make them want to stay.

Sell Out : Buy In

You have to sell out before you can buy in. You can’t buy into something if you’re already invested in something else. In order to fill a cup, it must first be empty. You cannot start with a full cup, then make it more fuller. It – being our time, focus, and attention – has finite capacity.

This might be in relationships – buying into one group of friends means selling out another. It could be in your career – there’s only so many hours in a day and you (with few exceptions) can’t work full time in two places. It could be a big commitment – selling out a lover to buy into another. Or it could be relatively minor – selling out a gym membership so you can commit to another.

Selling out isn’t a bad thing, it’s showing commitment. You can’t commit to one thing unless you de-commit from everything else. Wherever you’re thinking about buying in, remember that you’ll first have to sell out somewhere else. Selling out is a fundamental part of the process of buying in.

And nobody says you have to buy in immediately after you sell out. In fact, I’d argue that you shouldn’t. Just like it’s good to be single for a while to figure out who you are, sometimes we need to search for something to buy into. It makes us evaluate why, exactly, we want to buy in in the first place. And when you know your why, your commitment is made stronger.

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