by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 22, 2017 | Business, Entrepreneurship, Startup |
Your weaknesses could help you achieve better success if you know how to talk about them.
There are two common mistakes people make when asked this question about “What’s your weakness?”.
1. Replacing a weakness with a strength
People go outright and highlight a strength as a weakness. Eg. “My biggest weakness is that I’m a perfectionist”. Although you may think that you sounded smart, it increases the likelihood of appearing weaker than who you are to the other person.
2. Being too honest about it
On the contrary, if you say, “I’m really disorganized. And it’s really the thing that holds me back sometimes.”. This ultimately gives a wrong impression because literally, you are saying, don’t hire me.
A better and efficient way to put it is to put the weakness in the context of the balancing strength.
Here’s how:
“I do my best work in a team. There is nothing I love more than working with others, the back and forth of ideas. I love it. In contrast, you won’t get the best work out of me if I’m always on projects that require me to work alone.”
Broken down, it’s to highlight a strength (working in a team) first then saying the weakness (can’t work alone), you have virtually covered up your weakness.
Everything in the world is balanced. For every weakness we have, we have a strength that explains or provides context for that weakness.
Knowing how to talk about our weaknesses, it turns out, can be one of our greatest strengths.
by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 15, 2017 | Business, Entrepreneurship, Startup |
Since I made the decision to lose weight and become a better version of myself, I committed to working with Andrei. Andrei taught me a lot about healthy foods, and habits, and even some stuff business.
Andrei discovered a systematic way to lose weight and to change habits and introduce new habits into my life to eat healthily.
If you remember from one of my previous posts, I was sitting in Tony Robbins’ Seminar, and he told us “Decisions Shape Your Destiny”. It was indeed true.
So I had the desire to have a healthy body for myself, to be fit, to be an active person to my kids. But I was indecisive about going all-in.
Many-a-times, we know what to do, but we don’t do it because we are stuck in indecision. While a dream kick-started my achievement, I wasn’t able to move forward without the decision to work with a mentor and going all-in committed.
When I made the decision that I should lose weight, I did. In fact, over a year I lost over 18 kilos, and I was more energetic, healthy, and I felt active every single day.
+ Where do you lack commitment?
+ What decision is still pending in your life that you are fearful of?
+ What decision have you have been procrastinating about?
The decision that if you made a commitment to today, can bring significant change to your life, business, and finances? Think about it…
What can you go all-in on? Go ahead and make that decision now!
by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 8, 2017 | Business, Entrepreneurship, Startup |
In my last article in this series, I mentioned how I transformed my body from weighing 126 kilos to 105 kilos effectively.
I got help from a coach from Romania named Andrei. Andrei helped me change my behaviour and my eating habits. And the good thing is that I didn’t put back the weight like before. I was able to sustain the weight loss.
After working with Andrei for over a year, I had more energy, I felt more active; I felt awesome in general with my new found energy.
It was only possible because of Andrei. Before Andrei, I was trying all the tactics to lose weight without much strategizing on the core problem which is my habits.
Back then I used to have one can of coke (at least) a day. And my favorite food used to be a McDonald’s DOUBLE McSpicy Chicken Burger or the DOUBLE Quarter Pounder Burger with a LARGE Coke (32oz). So basically I had a 1566 kilo-calorie meal every time I went to McDonald‘s and that was almost every single day!
By working with Andrei (who used to be fat and then lost over 24 kilos through proper eating habits and exercise), I shortcut my way.
Because I didn’t have to make all the mistakes that Andrei had done. I didn’t have to experiment with stuff. I didn’t have to waste time.
Andrei gave me the exact strategies (change of habits) and tools that work and all I had to do is follow his instructions. It went great. I just trusted him blindly. It was a hell lot of patience, and work, but it DID work!
Coaches and mentors would be critical in helping you achieve great things. That doesn‘t mean that you have to spend 100s or 1000s of dollars to get coaches and mentors.
Coaching or mentorship could come in different forms: Books, Courses, 1-on-1 coaching, and Group Coaching.
Depending on how big the problem is and how deep your pocket is (how much money you can afford to spend), you can choose the right option. The more the money you spend, the more the level of support you get.
Action Step: Think what your goals are. Search Google or Amazon for a related book on your primary goal in life at the moment and start reading it now. It’s either cheap, or it’s completely free.
by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 7, 2017 | Business, Startup |
Key takeaways:
- The GAP between the #1 and the rest of the spots is Super big. Be #1 or don’t be in business. Don’t be mediocre. Be great!
- #1 spot is not something that everyone can achieve. The one who reaches #1 will go through the Dip.
- “In a free market, we reward the exceptional.”
- Each micro market (niche) still has a best…best in that world…
- There is surprising value in being #1. Of all of the various ice cream flavors, vanilla is the top-seller, and its sales are drastically higher than even the second most popular flavor, chocolate.
- You need to decide when you need to quit. Quitting is good for various reasons. People who reach #1 have quit many things strategically over time.
- To understand Dip, Seth has illustrated 3 different curves. 1. The Dip, 2. The Cul-de-Sac, 3. The Cliff
- Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.
- The Dip is the long slog between starting and mastery…that’s essentially a shortcut.
- Scarcity, as we’ve seen, is the secret to value. If there wasn’t a Dip, there’d be no scarcity among the best.
The Cliff (starts with high excitement and ends terribly) and The Cul-de-Sac (the dead end in French) leads you to failure over time. The other name of staying in Cul-De-Sac is staying mediocre. 
The Cliff like the bubble will bust over time. It’s like a gold rush or the stock market which keeps going higher and higher and busts at one time. 
This is the Dip Curve. You don’t become a success without going through The Dip. You will always need to go through the Dip before you achieve success. This principle applies to every part of life. When you lose weight, you need to go through the period where nothing works. When you stay in a career, you need to go through the period where you are not moving forward Nor moving backward. When you build a business, you need to go through the period where you need to sustain the business by taking risks and overcoming fear and anxiety. Seth says, this is what makes companies great and takes them to #1. 
Example of the Dip. This graph shows the number of people who quit the Boston Marathon. Nobody quits at mile 25. Most quit at the mile 20. Nobody quits when the finish line is in view. They quit during the chaos. People who sustain mile 20 are the ones who complete the marathon / eventually succeed. 
How vanilla (the #1 flavor) outnumbers its competition by being the #1 flavor.
by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 7, 2017 | Business, Startup |
- Have more Self Awareness – Learn what you do the best. Stay within your strengths and genius zone, find someone to do the stuff which is off your strengths zone. Outsource/Delegate those tasks that aren’t within your strengths zone. What’s your genius zone? Take the following tests to learn more about yourself and to figure out your genius zone and stuff you need to stop doing:
- Take the Genius Test at geniusu.com(FREE)
- Take the Gallup Top 5 Strengths Test ($) If you can afford to spend a little more, then take the 34 Strengths Test.
- Take the Gallup EP10 ($) – Special test for Entrepreneurs.
- Take the DISC assessment (FREE)
- Take the Myers-Briggs Assessment (FREE)
- Set Clear Goals – Get down to the minute details as possible. Clarity gives you better brain connections to give you better ideas to achieve them. Write down goals, break them down to smaller goals and objectives to be achieved over the next year, month, and week. Or if they are tasks, write down tasks, sub-tasks, and sub-sub-tasks.
- Visualize The Results of Your Goals – Run through the results of your goals as a movie in your mind’s visual stage. Feel as if you are achieving those goals in reality and feel every emotion that would ideally be experienced when you actually achieve those.
This is like a dress rehearsal for your goals. Makes you feel ready for the achievements to come. And builds connections in your brain. And tames your subconscious. You need to do this for 30-mins every day for at least 21 days to see results. (Reference: The New Psychocybernetics by Dan Kennedy & Dr. Maxwell Maltz)
- Start your day with intentions, and a small win instead of with a todo list. Your day should be planned with a lot of small wins. Such as starting an easy task like making your bed when you wake up or doing 3 situps when you wake up. It’s a mundane task for many of them, But when you start your day with a simple and easy win. A win releases a chemical called Endorphins in our body. Endorphins give us a positive feeling and keep us in peak performance. Overall your day should be a win if you succeed in managing your intentions. Nevertheless of whether you complete your todo list or not. Your to-do list shouldn’t be the factor that decides whether your day was a success or not.
E.g. I want to be cheerful, and show my best self in everything for today. If you were successful thoroughout the day in being cheerful and showing your best self, you’ve had a successful day. If you focus on finishing your to-do list, it’s hard to have a successful day and it could become a stressful day.
- Set goals for a 12 week period instead of a 12 month period. Effectiveness is a process. You should do things you could do within your control zone (circle of influence) that can move you towards your goals. And not do one off stuff. Time block the process activities in your calendar. (Reference: The 12 week year by Michael Masterson)
Eg. Going to the gym once in a blue moon is not going to help you lose weight. Consistency and regularity is key. You need to go at-least thrice a week. Time block those days and hours.
- Move / Walk / Cycle / Run More or do something that pumps your heart beat to the max for at-least 15 mins a day.
- Take breaks and recharge yourself. Learn to relax your body and mind. Time block your holidays. Time block your “me” time during the weekend. Do something for yourself, a disconnected time from your phone, emails, WhatsApp, SMS, etc. and recharge yourself. (Reference: The power of full engagement by Tony Schwartz)
- Bust your Fears. Primarily the Fear of Failure. Make decisions quickly. To Move forward, the only way is to make quick decisions. If it fails, then you Course correct. (Reference: Feel the fear and Do it anyway by Susan Jeffers)
- Sleep as much as you need. Everybody has a sweet spot. There is no standard because each of our bodies is different. Effective sleep time varies from 4 hours to 8 hours. Find your sweet spot and ensure that you get that much sleep. Sleep is a very important aspect to become successful in achieving our goals. (Reference: Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod)
- Eat good food & Drink lots of water. Avoid sugar and carbs filled junk food. Drink 4 to 6 litres of water every day. Start your day with warm lemon water.
by Ahmed Muzammil | Aug 7, 2017 | Business, Startup |
- Be a go-giver. Impact a million people, give a ton value to people, you will make a million dollars.
- The Law of Effection: the more you affect people’s lives (# of people affected), the richer you will become. It’s all about scale and magnitude.
More Value + More People = More Money
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The 5 Laws of Effection:
- Commandment of Need: Don’t invest in businesses that don’t solve problem or fulfil needs
- Commandment of Entry: Have something unique or an unfair advantage that prevents your competitors from entering the same market/niche.
- Commandment of Control: Don’t relinquish control. Be in full control of your business. If you depend on one manufacturer, one customer, one franchiser, an affiliate program, or another business that gives you business. You don’t have control. If you don’t have control in your business, you don’t have control over your finances. The one person that you depend on has all the control over your business and your finances.
- Commandment of Scale: Don’t trade time for money. Don’t operate on a small scale. Create something that can scale.
- Commandment of Time: Don’t let the startup be an event instead of a process.
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- If you’re not getting wealthy, then STOP doing what you’ve been doing.
- Don’t wait for 40 years, draw one paycheck, and become wealthy, to not being able to enjoy at 60. Do what makes you wealthy now. You won’t have the energy that you have now to enjoy or do good to others with the wealth that you will get in the future rather than if you get it now.
- Wealth is a process. Not an event. Wealth, like fitness, requires hard work, discipline, and delayed gratification. You have to keep trying and doing stuff even if it doesn’t pay off immediately. PATIENCE is the keyword. Being risk averse, quitting early, not putting in the hard work is not the way towards wealth.
- “By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day” — Robert Frost
- Create a money tree. i.e. Build a business system. Not just a business. e.g. Rentals, Software Products, Video Content, Distribution Systems, Franchise Systems. A system that makes money while you sleep.
- If you want extraordinary results, you need extraordinary thinking. Have a decision-making process for everything. Use the Worst Case Analysis (WCA) or the Weighted Average Decision Matrix (WADM) [Google them]
- Your time is finite and always decreasing — treat it as such. Focus on the right things.
- Focus on one thing at a time. One business at a time.
