Page 22 - February 2018 | Catalyst Magazine

CHAKISSE NEWTON’SNEWTON’S LAWS OF INFLUENCEwhat the woMen’s world cuP can teach S you (and your Business) aBout successometimes, the di erence between are the fundamental qualities or attributes winning and losing comes down to one required to achieve your goals? In market-word: fundamentals. In the case of Japan’s upset World Cup victory over Team USA, those fundamentals were penalty kicks.In your business, the fundamentals may be marketing, communication skills or customer follow up. In your personal life, it may be developing your personal brand.First, let’s set the stage. In 25 previous matches, the US dominated with a re- cord of 23-0-3. While these stats weren’t room for complacency with so much on the line, they were at least cause for opti- mism. en came the World Cup Finals. e match began with a clear US lead, but both teams were tied at the end of regula- tion play. en the match went to overtime and culminated in a penalty shoot out or PSO. e rules are simple: whoever scores the most wins*. Although the US clearly dominated early parts of the match, Japan won the PSO. And, in the end, that was all that mattered.No matter who you are or what you do, you can learn from Japan’s win in the Women’s World Cup and use mastery of fundamen- tals to your advantage. Here’s how.1. identiFy your oBJectives: What do you want to achieve? Even if you think your goals are clear, it’s good to review them from time to time. But, make sure your goals are speci c. Without clear, spe- ci c, goals you can’t put the right plan in place or evaluate how well you’re doing.2. identiFy the “FundaMentals”: What 22 CityLight.orging, the fundamentals include identifying and understanding your audience, creat- ing the right solutions and nding the right delivery vehicles to reach that audi- ence. What do you need to do and/or be good at to be successful?3. evaluate your PerForMance: How good are you at the fundamental steps re- quired to achieve your goal? Do you have a process in place to continue to improve your skills? Using the previous market- ing example, do you have a regular re- view where you identify trends a ecting your target market and how their business needs may be changing? Where possible, use objective evidence to evaluate your re- sults. For example, look at the number of leads from your marketing campaigns in- stead of relying on “gut feel” alone.4. Practice. Practice. Practice. If you don’t have a plan in place to work on the fundamentals for your industry, do it now. en practice. Actress Joan Littlewood said, “Rehearsal is the work. Performance is the relaxation.” is is why basketball teams practice free throw shots, relay rac- ers practice the baton pass and, yes, why soccer players practice penalty kicks. So that in the moment you have to perform, you can act instinctively and perform well. Sometimes the most successful person or company isn’t always the most talented. Sometimes, it’s simply the person who has mastered the fundamentals better. Make sure that person is you.february 2018