5 Reasons to Avoid Majoring in the Minors

Last night while watching my team lose its third straight game it was the look on my favorite player's face that said it all. He had been knocked down, was lying on the floor with a grimace, and seemingly waiting for the referee to make a call in his favor.  That one look reminded me that sometimes we all get diverted from our desired results by majoring in the minors.  

When you are majoring in the minors, you are focused on the minutia ("he hit me too hard"), what others are doing that isn't right or not working ("the referee should have called him on that"), and you get stuck in a place too long ("stay down versus jump right up"). It's so easy to let others draw us into majoring in the minors. Majoring in the minors prevents you from "being your B.E.S.T." and subsequently you don't achieve your desired outcomes. Winning and succeeding requires us to avoid majoring in the minors.

Here are 5 reasons why you want to avoid majoring in the minors.

#1 When you spend too much time focusing on what's not working, it becomes the center of your focus. Subsequently, you are no longer focused on your desired results. Do you spend 10 minutes obsessing over the mistake? or Do you recognize the mistake, move on, and focus on what you can do, need to do so that you can accomplish your goals? Move on!


 #2 When you get mired in the negative, your attitude becomes negative and you can't see solutions. Attitude does determine altitude. Once you begin to see things with a negative lens, your thinking becomes negative, and both (your views and thoughts) prevent you from seizing opportunities that are right in your view. Stay positive!

#3 When your energy is zapped, you can't be productive. Whining, complaining, and blaming zaps energy. You become dissatisfied. When you are dissatisfied and others are dissatisfied too, you don't have the energy you need to do what is necessary. Getting results requires lots of energy!

#4 Wasting time by spending more time than is necessary on the things that don't count versus spending time on the things that do count toward your goal. We have limited time and must use it wisely. Where we spend our time usually is an indicator of what we will achieve. Invest your time in what matters to you achieving your goals!

#5 Blaming others takes your focus away from you. You can't control what others do but you can control what you do. You do need to recognize how others behaviors are impacting you and then you have to switch the focus to you. What can you do to influence them? What can you do to avoid getting in the same situation again? Stay focused on you!


Getting results- it's up to YOU.  Avoid majoring in the minors!

A Student Being His B.E.S.T.

On Tuesday, my high school student intern arrived. Uncertain about what to expect, I was impressed right from the start. He was on time, dressed professionally- dress pants, shirt and tie, and had his cooler in hand in preparation for our nine hours together. Since this was our first meeting, I thought we might begin by introducing ourselves. Immediately we found connections: love of the beach, sun, and blue skies; both grew up in resort locations, only children, and pet owners. Among his list of potential colleges was my undergraduate alma mater. Now I began to look at him as a potential freshman on my college campus. Then in my true outcomes fashion, the conversation turned to focusing on the desired outcomes of the internship. After reviewing my outcomes for him (understanding the benefits of being in business, roles and responsibilities of a business owner and understanding my company's mission, structure, clients, services and products),  he added two: gaining a better understanding of the working world and some help in deciding his major. I liked that he had given thought to what he wanted from the experience. He was prepared and we were off to a great start.

Over our next twenty-three hours together, my student intern eagerly completed assignments, asked pertinent questions, provided meaningful feedback about OMG's products, thoughtfully engaged in conversations with my business partner and colleague, and showed me how to be more savvy when tweeting. His favorable impression on my business partner opened the door to a summer job opportunity. And I was on the phone with the Assistant Admissions Director trying to see how we could get him admitted to my alma mater.

As the experience came to a close, I asked him to make three video messages- one about the internship experience, one about the impact of the experience on his college decision, and one about the company's B.E.S.T. model. Through his video messages, it was apparent that he had a better understanding of the working world, knew that he was interested in business, had identified courses that he wanted to take when he got to college, and recognized that relationships are important if you want to be successful.

Just before leaving, he expressed his gratitude for the experience and then asked if I could make it to his graduation. While our desired outcomes had been realized, a new bond had been formed and on Sunday I look forward to being at his graduation, cheering him on and feeling a sense of pride in knowing that he will go forth and continue to "be his B.E.S.T."