Want to be a Better Leader in the Marketplace? Pt 2 of 5

Principle # 2 Enlist the AIM Advantage to Reach Seemingly Unreachable Goals.

by Aaron Schulman

Enlist your own AIM (Accountability In Missions) Group or relationship - This type of group is slightly different than a Mastermind, and actually focuses on setting specific goals and helping each other to be accountable to them for a greater return for the entire group. Though it can take on characteristics of a mastermind, each person in this group is coming in to seek accountability, unless a coach, chief facilitator or head is elected or promoted to do the coaching and accountability reinforcement to help the other members gain more out of life and business endeavors. As every person in any particular group has areas where he or she needs to improve, an AIM group can help be a great source of feedback, plan and goal submission, and the catalyst to a better future of increased growth and desired results through accountability coaching.

. . . an achiever performs best for his favorite cookies


It can also be a great incubator for leadership coaching, where self-motivated achievers desire to use constant feedback in the form of an integrity-based relationship or relationships in order to continually develop leadership skills. Using foundational behavior management concepts like a modified token system or behavioral modification system, where the trainee is allowed to set up his or her own system of rewards for goals achieved can be the most powerful system as it provides honest feedback, yet motivates the achiever with some of the most powerful, self-selected motivators. Self-selected motivators, or innate motivators can be very powerful. Dogs respond to them, misbehaving children respond well to them, and so do achievers. We are not stating that professionals are like dogs (though some behave unscrupulously and un-righteously like dogs). What we are saying is that, whether it be in sales, business, sports, or any other profession, an achiever performs best for his favorite cookies.

For example, a person in sales or marketing could develop a relationship with two other professionals who have the fortitude and integrity to help the achiever by enforcing accountability through the achiever’s self-professed (and written) sales behavioral goals and reinforcement scheme. Though this can be somewhat mechanistic at first, the sales or marketing professional is only using this relationship system at first to instill a more solid internal system of behavior and sales performance by using sources of strength outside of him or herself. The goal is never to remain in the same system or become dependent on the system, but to continually grow to new thresholds of sales and marketing achievement goals or, for the entrepreneur or CEO, better results for his or her team and business goals. The means is never a means in and of itself, but is only a means to more worthwhile achievement, and personal or professional growth that always includes serving others as the chief concern: and one cannot adequately serve others to the full if he or she does not have relationships of professional and personal accountability in place to incite him or her to better and higher ground. Ultimately, the goal has to be rooted in chief heart motivators, and the AIM coach has to have enough character and integrity to lovingly help the achiever not only realize his or her true motivating factors, but to maintain the higher ground in the relationship by sticking to the principles and having real salt. Failure can occur due to may factors, but the chief factors are perhaps lack of finding and implementing the foundational motivating factors, lack of real heart commitment from all involved, and lack of integrity in either party.

on to part 3 (coming soon)

About the Author

Aaron Schulman is a joint venture partner with Long on Life. He has a lovely wife Jennifer, and 2 wonderful daughters, Rachel and Linda Grace. He consults businesses in web and Internet Design, SEO and Marketing Strategies, Effective Copywriting, Advertising, Marketing and Lead Generation. He enjoys golf, relaxing with his family, and reading the Bible and books about copywriting, marketing, sales, and other books on effective leadership.