By Eberhard Niklaus

Take Control of Your Life: Key Lessons for Success and Productivity

Taking Control of Your Life

1.       Know and Understand Yourself

It all starts with knowing and understanding yourself. Earlier we mentioned that it is challenging to find direction if your life is in disarray. But first, you need to know where you are going before you can find direction.

Where are you going? Do you have goals for yourself? Are they written down? If not, write them down now, or continue to flounder! More importantly, know, or find, your life purpose.

2.     Take Control of Your Thoughts

Next, take control of your thoughts! Everything begins with a thought. If you believe you are weak, you will act weak. To act confidently, choose thoughts that reinforce your self-worth. For instance, if you are a salesperson, visualise yourself closing the sale even before you arrive at the sales call.

3.     Use Questions to Control Conversations

A technique that is very useful in taking control when you are in a confrontational situation is to make effective use of questions. Questions control the conversation. If your approach is to “attack” with your “so-called” facts, it will usually be met with a similar rebuttal, sending the situation into a downward spiral. Instead, ask smart questions. A smart question is one that will point the conversation in a predetermined direction, with the result already clear in your mind.

The purpose of this technique is not to “win the argument,” but to offer the other person the opportunity of understanding your point of view (and as Stephen Covey suggests in his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, seek first to understand the other person’s point of view as well, which is also accomplished by asking questions).

4.    The Power of Good Questions

Questions are the answer. In many situations, using intelligent questions really helps with being in control, so get good at it.

For instance, if a customer is very unhappy with you, even to the point of being abusive, one of the best ways to take control of the situation is to ask questions. Asking questions enables you to take control of the conversation, including emotional aspects of the situation. Good questions have the potential to empower you to resolve the situation.

The Benefits of Control in Your Life

Think about it: it is an enjoyable experience when you feel in control of your life. The opposite is true when you feel that certain aspects of your life are not under control.

For example, how do you feel when the following scenarios are relevant?

• Your tax return is behind schedule
• Important relationships in your life are undergoing stress
• A work or study deadline is looming, and you have not even started
• Your finances are all over the place
• Repairs around the house should have been done weeks ago
• Your health goals are not being met
• You last phoned your mom, who lives on her own, three weeks ago

It is not a comfortable feeling when things are out of control in your life. Now, imagine the opposite of the above scenarios being true. How do you feel now?

Conclusion: The Reward of Taking Control

It certainly is worth the effort to take the necessary actions (initiated by the appropriate thoughts) to be in control of all aspects of your life. It takes some effort, but once the habit is ingrained in a person, it is no longer an effort, and the rewards are well worth it, wouldn’t you agree? (Right there, I am taking some control by asking you to agree with me… Smile).

(Eberhard Niklaus is an author, speaker, facilitator, business coach, and trainer. His business coaching program “Developing the Art of Crafting a Winning Team” has helped many sales and business teams maximize performance, productivity, and profitability.)

Call to Action

Ready to Unlock Your Potential?
Contact Eberhard TODAY for your FREE 30-minute Zoom CONSULTATION to discover how to accelerate your results and achieve your goals. Don’t wait—start unlocking your success now!

Join the Conversation:
Connect with us on Linkedin and share your thoughts on sales myths and what drives true performance. Let’s keep the discussion going!

Get in Touch:
Email Eberhard at  welcome@eberhardniklaus.co.za for more information or to schedule your consultation.

Your success story starts here—take the first step today!

#SalesSuccess #SalesPerformance #SalesTips #BusinessGrowth #CahrlDuToit #eberhardniklaus #TheSuccessAcademy #LeadershipInSales #EffectiveSalesManagement #AchieveExtraordinaryResults #Transformative Coaching #LeadershipCoaching #BusinessInnovation #StrengthsCoaching #ProfessionalDevelopment #LeadershipExcellence #StrategicThinking #EmpowermentThroughStrengths #BusinessLeadershipTraining #SuccessThroughStrengths #DriveExcellence #BusinessPotentialUnlocked #PersonalTransformation