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You’ve never dreamt of owning your own business, but that doesn’t mean you don’t fantasize about getting ahead and earning that big corner office. There’s a reason those impassioned entrepreneurs seem to be so good at turning their big dreams into realities: they have an entrepreneurial mindset. They’re confident and driven, and they thrive on the challenges that sometimes keep others from even trying. Embracing and maintaining an entrepreneurial mindset can help you do your job better, allowing you to reach your goals faster, whatever they may be. So, no matter where your career is today, think like someone who rules the world, and someday, you just might.
1. Take Action: Entrepreneurs don’t just talk about the things they want; they go after them. Instead of waiting for fortune to turn your way, find ways to influence what you can in order to encourage the results you want. Being a go getter can help you rise through the ranks faster, and it proves that you’re someone who can be trusted to get a job done.
2. Be Resourceful: Don’t let a limited budget stand in your way. Entrepreneurs find ways to make due and produce incredible results with what they have, and they’re clever about negotiating favors and freebees. Developing skills like these are crucial no matter the job, and finding ways to save the boss money is a great way to earn positive attention from those with the power to help you get ahead.
3. Recognize Opportunities: When entrepreneurs see an opening, they pounce on it. This way of thinking will help you choose the projects that can catapult your career by teaming you up with the right influencers or by demonstrating your ability to take the lead. Paying attention to the opportunities around you could also help you identify the perfect moment to ask for a promotion or a raise.
4. Be Fearless: Don’t let potential obstacles or rejection stop you, and don’t let a “no” scare you off. Entrepreneurs take risks and put themselves out there, which gives them an edge when it comes to sales, pitching ideas, and asking for better tools or more resources. Learning to stand your ground at the negotiating table is a skill that is critical to almost any business transaction.
5. Get Comfortable with Change: Fear of change is something that plagues many professionals, and it can prevent them from taking on new responsibilities, trying for a promotion, or applying for a new job. But don’t let fear of the unknown stop you. Instead, think like an entrepreneur, and decide to thrive on change. Accept being out of your comfort zone as a natural part of growth. Being at ease with uncertainty will empower you to say yes when others say no, helping you find the shortest possible route to success.
6. Love a Challenge: Entrepreneurs think adversity is exciting. Instead of choosing the easy road, point at the highest peak in sight and say, “l’ll conquer that one!” Priding yourself on winning in the face of extreme obstacles can be a major advantage whether you’re an intern, a new business owner, or a department head.
7. Know How to Delegate: Stay focused on the important things, and don’t be afraid to relinquish control to allow others to help lighten your load. Entrepreneurs learn that they must share responsibility and accept help when it’s available. Embracing collaboration can assist you in meeting deadlines and preventing burnout to keep you at the top of your game.
8. Be a Lifelong Learner: Entrepreneurs constantly strive to be better, smarter, and more efficient. Learn to maintain a student mentality, and your hunger for information will help you shine at work by keeping you up-to-date on industry knowledge, critical technical skills, and relevant news you can apply to help your employer outwit the competition.
9. Think Big: Entrepreneurs set challenging goals and are constantly striving to improve themselves. Even if you never hope to run your own company, aiming high is a great way to discover how much you can achieve. Thinking about the future can be an excellent way to stay motivated. Push yourself to think about where you might like your career to be in a year, five years, and beyond, and you just might surprise yourself.
10. Trust Your Instincts: Don’t spend a lot of time doubting yourself. Leading entrepreneurs know that negative thinking gets them nowhere. Trust your decisions, and be confident you will figure it out along the way. A great, entrepreneurial attitude will be your secret weapon against self-doubt, and it will help to remind you that you deserve the opportunity to succeed even when others casts doubts on your potential.
Thinking like an entrepreneur keeps you focused on your goals no matter where you are in your career path. It lends purpose to all the hard work you do, allowing you to set aside fear and ego to get the job done. It can help you remember that it will all pay off in the end. Adopt an entrepreneurial mindset, and the only person who will determine how successful you can be is you.
Cydcor has previously written about Toxic Employee Traits That Can Slow Progress, but it's also important to mention how to continue career progress. You will never advance simply by sitting at your desk, answering emails, and filing reports. A promotion is earned. Achieving a promotion isn’t an impossible goal. But to get there you need a good plan. The following suggestions are your starting points for success.
Evaluate Your Skills
You wouldn’t have been hired if you weren’t good at your job. But are you producing enough positive results to earn a promotion? Before you request a promotion, evaluate your job performance. Ask yourself the hard questions—face your fear.
It’s Not All About You
You will never achieve success by yourself. Your colleagues are an important part of your advancement. Study what they do. Understand their pain points. Improving their productivity is a leadership skill and contributes to your chance for promotion.
Write Your Future
Write the story of your career. Imagine where it will lead. This exercise provides a private place to draft new possibilities for your work life. It’s a safe place to practice taking risks. Don’t waste time creating a fantasy about wealth and power. Your career is serious work.
Become the Resident Optimist
Don’t get distracted by the inevitable complaints you hear during the day. Is it hard to do? Yes, sometimes it is. Everyone has bad days. But remember this: negative is easy, positive is hard. Don’t complain—explain. Don’t spread rumors—educate. Build a reputation for being constructive, informed, and open-minded.
Your Evaluation Happens Every Day
Do you ever feel invisible when your workload is building up? During these times remember that your supervisors are taking note of how you manage stress while you reach your goals. If you feel stuck in a negative take time for a mental stretch. Many corporate leaders find insight and get reenergized when they meditate.
Ask For Help
Sometimes you’ll come across a problem you can’t figure out. You need to be brave enough to ask for help. Find a mentor. Build a resource team from various departments. Share the problem. You will be remembered solving problems with creative strategy. Never ignore the wealth of institutional experience at work.
Find out more about Cydcor and our latest company updates by following us on Twitter @Cydcor.
Cydcor review by: Gail Michalak, Chief Marketing Officer at Cydcor
Book: Talent Masters by Bill Conaty and Ram Charan
Description: This book is a description of how to judge exceptional talent within organizations and how to leverage that talent into success for the business. Bill Conaty has worked closely with legendary CEO Jack Welsh of General Electric and Ram Charan is a consultant that has worked for large corporations all over the world. Both authors contend that smart leaders put their people first, which leads to better revenue and company culture. Much like Talent Wars, the previous Cydcor Review, Talent Masters details an effective system for managing talented team members and getting the best results.
Why people should read Talent Masters: Leaders should read this book to learn ways to move talent from the lower rungs up the corporate ladder. This is the best way to assure teams perform at their top level. Entry-level employees should read this to take notice of what traits to embody and how to prepare for success at a higher level. Any professional can benefit from this book by learning how to think about running a team or an organization more effectively. The book is also a good reminder that top performers at one level won’t necessarily perform the best at all levels.
My favorite part: Differentiation breeds meritocracy, sameness breeds mediocrity. This is a good way to summarize the idea of celebrating the individual talents of employees and how to capitalize on their strengths. It is also important to remember that recruiting people from other companies is often a good way of bring fresh ideas and more energy to a position, as long as the new person can assimilate into company culture.
Interested in more from Cydcor? Don't forget to Like us on Facebook or follow Cydcor on Twitter.
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., March 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Cydcor, the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams, announced the promotion of Kyle Fried to director of operations.
As director of operations, Fried is responsible for managing quality assurance, vendor relations, program quality and compliance, developing infrastructure of new programs and coordinating reporting to meet retail client and merchant needs.
"Kyle has contributed to the company in numerous outstanding ways while modeling true development and collaboration, key behaviors we value," said Cydcor Senior Vice President of Sales Operations Vera Quinn. In his new role, Fried will play a vital role in ensuring operational excellence, which will help fuel the company's planned growth.
A graduate of Vanderbilt University in economics, Fried first distinguished himself as campaign support manager in 2005, before quickly moving through the ranks, providing input to every program implemented at Cydcor. In 2007, Fried was named supervisor of the data management department which oversees the complex processing of customer orders and payments for the company's client base of Fortune 500 and emerging companies.
Some of his many accomplishments include streamlining back-end processes, enhancing internal systems to meet client and field needs, managing day-to-day reporting with the field and clients, weekly payments to reps in the field and retail stores, vendor relationship and process development, as well as managing a team of 17.
About Cydcor, Inc.
Cydcor, Inc. is the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams to a diverse client base of companies in a range of industries, including telecommunications, office products, retail, energy, and financial services. Cydcor works with a network of independently owned corporate licensee (ICL) Cydcor sales offices providing clients with access to more than 2,700 sales professionals and nearly 200 offices in North America. The privately held company is based in Westlake Village, California. For more information about Cydcor, log on to www.cydcor.com.
SOURCE Cydcor
Cydcor, the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams, announced the promotion of Vera Quinn to senior vice president of operations.
In this expanded role, Quinn leads the newly established campaign management and field solutions teams. These departments determine what tools, technology, systems and processes are needed to run more efficient and profitable sales campaigns for Cydcor, its network of independent sales offices and its clients. In addition, Quinn directs the company’s data management, quality assurance and vendor management departments.
While overseeing daily operations at Cydcor’s North American Headquarters, Quinn also works closely with Cydcor’s nearly 200 independent sales offices, senior field leadership and business development teams, as well as the company’s Fortune 500 client roster.
“Vera has made the most significant individual contribution to Cydcor,” CEO Gary Polson said. “Her passion for the field, commitment to our clients and dedication to our people and business is a driving force behind Cydcor’s overall success and positions us well for the future.”
“I take great pride in the role Cydcor plays helping our clients and sales offices reach their business goals,” said Quinn. “Ultimately, we will achieve great results for both through a spirit of partnership and added value.”
Beginning her career more than a decade ago at Cydcor’s former headquarters in Toronto, Canada, Quinn knows the business inside and out. She developed a passion for direct sales early on – successfully building door-to-door, commission-based sales teams for a variety of client campaigns, in nearly 25 independent sales offices. Using her operational expertise, Quinn then ran her own bookkeeping and consulting business, serving the needs of 15 offices in Cydcor’s network of small businesses. In 2000, she took her extensive field knowledge to Cydcor’s corporate office in California where she helped the company grow by 300%. She was named vice president of operations for Cydcor in 2005, and senior vice president in 2008.
Quinn’s accomplishments include evolving Cydcor’s operational processes from manual to automated, establishing a team of campaign experts to assist Cydcor clients and independent offices, leading the development of operational systems and technologies to make Cydcor more efficient and playing a vital role in the ongoing expansion of Cydcor’s face-to-face sales business.
About Cydcor Inc.
Cydcor Inc., is the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams to a diverse client base of companies in a range of industries, including telecommunications, office products, retail energy and financial services. Cydcor works with a network of independently owned corporate licensee sales offices providing clients with access to more than 3,000 sales professionals and 200+ offices in North America. The privately held company is based in Westlake Village, Calif.
Cydcor
Gail Michalak
818-706-9500
Cydcor, a leading global provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams, announced the promotion of Vera Uzelac to Vice President of Operations. Prior to her promotion to vice president, Uzelac held the position of Cydcor director of operations.
“Vera has contributed to Cydcor in countless ways,” CEO Gary Polson said. “Her ability to meet the demands of our company and satisfy the needs of our clients, the independent offices, internal operations, and key leaders in the organization demonstrate the vital role she plays at Cydcor.”
Uzelac’s accomplishments include evolving Cydcor’s operational processes from manual to automated, establishing a team of campaign experts to assist Cydcor clients and independent offices, leading the development of operational systems and technologies to make Cydcor more efficient, and playing a vital role in the ongoing expansion of Cydcor’s face-to-face sales business.
Uzelac was named director of operations for Cydcor in 2001. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and History from the University of Toronto, Canada.
About Cydcor Inc.
Cydcor Inc., is the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams to a diverse client base of companies in a range of industries, including telecommunications, office products, retail energy and financial services. Cydcor works with a network of independently owned corporate licensee sales offices providing clients with access to more than 3,000 sales professionals and 200+ offices in North America. The privately held company is based in Westlake Village, Calif.
Gail Michalak
Cydcor
(818) 706-9500