Nine Things Successful People Do Differently (Courtesy of the Harvard Business Review blog)

Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson lists nine things ordinary people can do to become successful people. She points out that decades of research on achievement suggests that being successful is not not simply defined by who someone is, but more often because of what they do. We don't have to change who we are, just examine what we are doing to become successful.

The nine things successful people do differently according to Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson are:

Get Specific - When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible. "Lose 5 pounds" is a better goal than "lose some weight," because it gives you a clear idea of what success looks like. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve keeps you motivated until you get there.

Seize the moment to act on your goals. Given how busy most of us are, and how many goals we are juggling at once, it's not surprising that we routinely miss opportunities to act on a goal because we simply fail to notice them. Did you really have no time to work out today? No chance at any point to return that phone call? Achieving your goal means grabbing hold of these opportunities before they slip through your fingers.

Know exactly how far you have left to go. Achieving any goal also requires honest and regular monitoring of your progress — if not by others, then by you yourself. If you don't know how well you are doing, you can't adjust your behavior or your strategies accordingly. Check your progress frequently — weekly, or even daily, depending on the goal.

Continue reading the 9 steps on the HBR blog

Precision Tune Auto Care Navigates The Highway to Success With F9 Financial Reporting Software

CHALLENGE - Each month Tim Thielke, the Senior Staff Accountant at Precision Tune Auto Care was exporting the income and expenses for each corporate owned store by segment to an Excel spreadsheet. He then made changes to the reports using the Lookup and Replace function in Excel. This process approximately took 15 minutes per store.

SOLUTION - After understanding Precision Tune Auto Care’s reporting needs, Dennis Bock recommended F9 (Financial Reporting Software) to the employees at Precision Tune Auto Care because he knew the solution would save them time, meet their reporting needs and prove to be cost effective.

RESULTS - Six months after the implementation, Tim Thielke says, “F9 financial reporting software is better than we imagined! After the initial template setup we are now working with twice as many stores, doing the same things in 25% of the time or less!”

Download the F9 financial reporting software success story

Register for Thursday's Webinar: Maximize Your Return on Employee Investment With Sage Abra

Do you know the costs and impact associated with an employee leaving your corporation? The MetLife 9th Annual Study of Employee Benefit Trends released in March 2011 found that compared with previous surveys, the U.S. workforce has grown much more dissatisfied and that one out of three employees hopes to be working elsewhere in the next 12 months. 

The study revealed that employers are unaware of this potential flight risk and instead believe that their organizations have maintained strong levels of employee job satisfaction and loyalty. In companies where this kind of disconnect exists, employers may be unprepared for higher than expected turnover rates if the labor market continues to improve.  

Join us for 45 minutes on June 23, 2011 at 2pm ET (1pm CT/11am PT)  to discover: 

• How an HRMS system can reduce employee turnover 
• How an HRMS system can be used as an employee management tool 
• How Sage Abra HRMS is helping organizations maximize their return on employee investment 

About Arlie Skory - Arlie is passionate about helping and supporting HR Directors as they overcome the internal (IT issues, management issues, reporting issues, payroll issues) and external challenges (changing laws) they face every day !  Addressing the payroll challenge many HR departments face today, Arlie says, “a growing trend seen in many HR departments today is the added responsibility of managing payroll, or sharing software with the accounting department. I work as a "marriage counselor" to make sure the process is handled smoothly.”

Register For The HR Webinar Now

Welcome to Our New Clients

We are pleased to welcome our newest customers into our group, and want to extend a sincere "thanks" for the trust and confidence these clients have shown in us:

- Interstate Gourmet Coffee Roasters, Inc.  d/b/a Boston’s
Best Coffee

- Van Buren County in Paw Paw, Michigan, Sage Abra

Refer Us to Your Business Associates

Referrals from trusted partners and satisfied clients are fundamental to our marketing efforts. We have found that a prospective client who is referred to us is more prepared to appreciate the value that we can offer.

Our ideal clients are business owners or decision makers that are committed to improving their business processes. If one of your business contacts expresses frustration with their current business software or support, please consider referring us to them.

Contact us at the office today to find out more about our referral marketing strategy and rewards for our customers.

WAC Consulting, Inc. 367 West Main Street Northborough, MA 01532

Robert Distler rdis@wacinc.com