Volkmar Völzke's BLOG

Here is a suggestion for the New Year, inspired by the Picture Gallery in Berlin: how do you leave a positive and lasting impression? What will you be remembered for?

Happy New Year!

So, now we've done it! The year 2018 is (almost) over. I hope you have achieved a lot and above all helped others to lead a better life and have more success.

In this sense I wish you a Happy New Year and that 2019 will be a wonderful year for you, your friends and your family.

Especially at this time of year, many thoughts revolve around how we can do good for others. That is good but should not be limited to specific periods and events.

What do I mean by that? Well, for example, I travel a lot by train and sometimes wonder how each one of us has made the life of some other person, the environment or the planet better in the hour we spend here together. Most, unfortunately, not at all.

This is my message: Instead of actions from time to time, you simply work on doing something valuable for others or yourself every hour. Ask yourself every hour, every day the question: "How have I made the lives of others a bit better today?" 

Here are three concrete areas to start with:

1. Contents. Create valuable content that helps others, and that promotes something positive. Don't wait for someone to give you permission, take responsibility.
2. Feeling. How do you make others feel? That can be as simple as a smile, a positive remark, a recognition, etc. Who should...

The true quality of a person can be measured by his or her behavior in these two situations: under extreme stress and when no one is looking.

In the first case, (to put it simply), our cerebellum takes control, and in the second case we have to "prove ourselves to no one." The problem: a strong and positive character only works in the presence of consistency. This means that you cannot be an outstanding person when you are in the limelight and an average person when you are stressed or alone.

Your character is constant and is only reinforced by situations. Why is this important? Well, if you want to achieve more (whatever that means for you), you need to consistently want it (and not just from time to time). And you also have to want it even when nobody is watching.

This is exactly why so many teams and people remain to be mediocre and often even frustrated and stagnate.

Here are three ideas on how you can change that for yourself and your team:

1. Your identity. Define your...

The other day I was looking for accommodation on Airbnb, and I briefly enquired with several providers. One answered my query within 3 minutes. Also, my further questions were answered in a few minutes quickly, but exhaustively. My action: I booked the accommodation.

I mention this again and again in my sales training: Speed is more important than many other factors. Why is that? Well, in addition to the significant gain in time, the speed of the sales process shows me, as a prospect, what I can expect later as a paying customer: provide quick answers to my questions.

My recommendation: Check your company or team (or yourself) for speed and accelerate! Here are three steps:

1. Mental work. Most people have not yet realized that speed is important in every customer interaction and the internal processes. Work on the mindset yourself and with your team: It's great to be fast. Period!
2. Behaviors. If you are fast, you will not only be more successful, but you will also get things off the...

There is ONE thing that is most important when you show up at your customers, in meetings, and even with your family and friends. I explain it in the video.

The other day when I was on a Swiss Airlines flight, I noticed the name tag "I'm a new cabin talent" on one of the flight attendant's lapel.

This not only attracted the attention of some of the passengers but it also led to pride in the eyes of the young team member.

You may think it's "just words" and it's just a marketing trick to increase motivation. Attention: There is rarely such a strong drive for happiness, fulfillment, and productivity as direct and unvarnished appreciation.

And, it makes a huge difference between "flight attendant" and "I am a new cabin talent." Words are important!

Here are three ideas about what you can do directly to increase self-esteem and thus pride, belonging and productivity in your work environment:

1. Imagine that everyone is running around with the inscription "make me important" on their forehead. Then you do something to make the person feel important. Precisely because he or she is. 
2. Titles are important - when they convey a positive...

Sometimes, everything seems to go against us. Even the most successful people sometimes have hard times (usually even more than average).

The main difference is how quickly we get out of a crisis. I had written about this some time ago.

Today I have three tips on what you can do immediately to turn a negative situation around - or at least alleviate it.

1. Focus. "Energy flows to where focus goes," is an old and true saying. You know this from skiing and any other movement: you will move to where you look. Therefore: consciously change your focus from problems to possible positive aspects or solutions. This is often difficult, but always possible.
2. State. Your personal physical and mental state reflects the external situation. By radically changing your state, you change your perception of the situation - at least partially. This could be, for example, changes in the environment, your posture and the people around you.
3. Action. We change our low energy state in negative situations by...

 "Nothing makes you more successful than success!" Perhaps you know this saying. Behind it lies the interesting phenomenon that you are often more successful when you have just had success.

Put simply, this is because of how our subconscious mind stores how success works; it repeats the same ways of thinking and behaving.

With the same mechanics, some companies and teams manage to build successes on top of each other, while others have to fight again and again for every single success. The former have success systems, while others fight for anecdotal success.

The big question now is: How do you get from anecdotal to systematic? I have just written an article about this for the business magazine Organisator (only in German; click here to request a copy).

Below are three brief ideas:

1. Strategy. In your strategy work, pay particular attention to your business model and your unique positioning in the market. Instead of "something more and so on", I miss a radical discussion about...

I am repeatedly asked which of all the success strategies I work on with leaders and teams are the most important. What are the ideas that will help you achieve the fastest positive results in the shortest possible time?

Well, although this depends on the individual starting position, there are "gaps" which I actually see again and again and which could be easily closed. The result: more productivity, more sales, more profit and much more.

So, if you don't know how best to start your journey to success, here are my top 3 "simple" strategies:

1. Attitude. Improve your attitude in the morning and how you affect others. Work on radiating positive energy. Look for solutions and opportunities. It all starts with your morning routine after waking up.
2. Growth. Make it a habit for yourself and your whole team to grow daily. At least one good book per month (better: per week), audio courses, video programs, conferences and much more are part of it. Make sure that you and your team have a...