And some of you are not maximizers.  You don’t know it, but you often leave an awful lot of your life and work underutilized.

Regardless of where you fall naturally, now is a great time to consider areas where you take advantage of how much resource you already have.

Instead of working to build something from scratch, cold calling your way into the sales winners circle or looking for something new to bring energy to your work….consider mining the following potential gold mines laying right at your feet.

1 – Technology you already own or use. What software, hardware, gadgets, etc. do you already own that you are either letting sit, or are hardly using?  What things have you invested in that you are only utilizing at a 10% rate?  Get your technology to do more of your work…that’s why it was designed.

2 – Relationships you already have established. Is it easier to get more business, help or ideas from a stranger or from a friend?  So, how could you invest more in those relationships you already have?

3 – Organizations where you are already known or a member. You pay your dues and occasionally go to the meetings…would you like to make your membership pay off?  How could you participate in a different way or start to use the services they already advertise.  Hint: revisit those organizations sites to see what features they are selling to potential members—then use them.

4 – Places where you will be already traveling. Take a look at the travel on your calendar for the next year and ask: What else could I be doing while I’m in Denver, Singapore, Tampa, etc.  What other colleagues, customers, competitors or potential clients could you be calling on?

5 – Things you’ve already created. What processes, products or projects have been started or even finished, but are not yet in use?  Scour your business for work that has already been done, that just needs to be scheduled or implemented.

6 – People you have already hired. This sounds a little odd, but I’m suggesting you remember the potential you were thinking of when you first hired that person…have you since forgotten some of the things you were hoping they would bring to or do for your business?  Have a simple, specific conversation with your people:  How could we make better use of your talents and skills?

7 – Stuff you’ve already learned. You’re smart.  There is so much  you already know about what choices to make and how to be successful.  You’ve probably even been learning from what you read and from your years of experience.  So the simple question is: what do you already know that you are not taking advantage of?  Fill in the blank: I know it would be good for my business if I _____________.  Now…do it.

Bottom Line: Make better use of the things you already have and you’ll give yourself an edge for which you’ve already paid.

(This post was previously published in the March 2011 issue of Business Leader http://www.businessleader.bz/ )

And instead, get more excited about your life and your work by making sure you do those things that bring you joy, and engage your passions and mission, first. Then, and only then, will you have the energy to tackle your remaining and perhaps less enticing responsibilities that you’re…supposed to do.

This idea is for you who find yourself carrying around several lists of important things you are “supposed to do” in order to get your work going, improve your relationship, get ahead, slow down, build your business, lead your team, etc.

Few things are more pitiful than talented and smart people going around aspiring and whining at the same time.

You can’t begin to run while dragging your feet…which is what you’re doing when you think about, talk about, struggle with and plod along with those things you somehow believe you’re supposed to do. (And haven’t yet done)

The best thing to get yourself going: drop the stuff you’re supposed to do, and start with the stuff you are eager or excited to do.

Don’t want to go for a run? Don’t   Don’t want to empty your email inbox? Don’t

Don’t want to read that report? Don’t

But…find something important and productive you DO want to do, and get at it.

Then do another, and another, and another.

You might find yourself so charged up that suddenly you find yourself skimming through that report after all.

Or you might be on such a roll that at the end of the day, a run is just what you…want to do.

Bottom Line: You will never “should” or “ought to” yourself into happiness or achievement at work. You will experience joy and make great contributions when you find and accomplish enough want to do’s. And with that momentum, you’ll probably be motivated to take care of the rest too.

(This post was previously published in the August 2009 issue of Business Leader http://www.businessleader.bz/ )

But you have to be willing to be (as author Seth Godin puts it)…remarkable.

I offer you three powerful ideas for serving your customers better and translating your creativity into growth:

1)    Create features that distinguish. If everybody has the basics covered, you have an opportunity to create an additional feature that makes you STAND OUT.  It might have nothing to do with the fundamentals of what you offer, but it might be something that gets people talking about your product.  Think of a place for a flower vase on the VW Beetle dashboard or the egg-shell blue color of a Tiffany’s box.  What could you add to your product or service that will cause us to smile and talk about you?

2)    Offer experiences that wow! People want to have amazing, positive experiences.  What can you do to elicit a “wow” from your customers when they experience your service?  Maybe you offer more than was expected.  Maybe you have a human where we were expecting a computer.  Or maybe you under-promise and over-deliver in an economy where everyone else is doing the opposite?  I even ask clients:  “What could we do that would make you say ‘wow’?  They always have an answer.

Perhaps the greatest opportunity you have to make me say wow is what you do when things go wrong.  If you maintain a good attitude, are proactive, and eager to make things right in the face of potential disaster…you not only distinguish yourself, but show me I can count on you in the future.  This leads to lifelong clients.

3)    Design your company to model and lead. People want to do business with leaders and innovators.  Be different in the way you run your organization:  For example, be transparent with your financials when everyone else is not.  Or give away a product or service that everyone else is charging for.  Or be generous with your profits and bold in your philanthropy.  All of these make you stand out in your field and potential customers DO notice.

What can you create to force us to talk about you?  Indeed, it might be the only thing that can really assure you the kind of edge you hope for and the extraordinary growth you’ve always wanted.

(This post was previously published the July 2009 issue of Business Leader http://www.businessleader.bz/ )