Elvis Presley meets Usain Bolt: Do You Use THIS the Way They Do?

Helloo0O Ladies and Gentlemen!

Welcome back to Graceland Ontario for another week linking the success lessons of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll back home to YOU. Today, we’ll be returning to the final episode of this Olympic series to explore how YOUR support (and the support of those rooting for you) helps you, and others, perform at a higher level.

At the beginning of the London 2012 Olympics, I recall seeing an advertisement essentially saying “They work harder when you’re there”. The idea was to boost views for the Olympics which would lead to more advertising money and souvenirs and so on, like any sports advertisement. But the advertisers had a point − Olympians do perform better when you’re watching.

Look at Usain Bolt, the Olympic (and World) record holder and gold medalist of the 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay athletic events. After the Olympic trials, everyone thought Bolt was going to be beaten by his team-mate, Yohan Blake, who’d runner faster than he had. But, given the real event, the power was pulsing, the crowd was singing and this all gets to Bolt. The extra energy from the crowd is what made him reclaim his gold medal − their support shaves off those last few milliseconds.

Bolt’s a showman and hero to his country − and so was Elvis. Elvis did some good recordings but they rarely matched the passion and energy he showed live. In fact, one of his three Grammys was collected for a live recording of “How Great Thou Art” in 1974. The crowd’s support got to him, too, and pumped him up to that next level, like Usain Bolt, so Elvis could break his records for the quality of his music.

For these great performers, the added crowd, the added support, inspires them to go further than they have before, work harder than they thought possible. Their responsibility and love for you, the listener/watcher, makes them want to do better. Because however scary it is getting on the line for the 100m, they’d rather take it and go as fast as possible than disappoint their fans with a losing performance. I mean, you don’t see Elvis sing “He Gave Me a Mountain” while watching his designer boots. He was there to give a gift to you, the gift of his voice, and he was going to do a good job, too.

So, what’s the lesson in this for you? Well, like Bolt and Elvis, use the energy given to you by your customers’s support to work harder for them and break your own records.

“But I work in an office and don’t see anybody all day?”

Yea… but the people you work for will still be impacted by your work. Do it for them, or better your family. Imagine they’re sitting next to you watching you − you don’t want to disappoint your kids do you? Give it your all so that when you look back at your day, you can smile at the extra swing you gave your work.

“But I work in Wal-Mart and no one cares what cashiers say there anyways…”

Wrong! People do care how Wal-Mart/McDonald's/local petrol station workers react to them. When they’re excited to see you, you can feel that energy. It’s like when you meet someone serving you at the store and you go, “Wow, that’s one awesome gal− I wonder what she’s doing working here…” She’s pushing her limits in doing her best for you, and you like it. On the other hand, the people who lack energy come across as snobs. And they don’t win your business. You know who I mean…

So, push your limits for your customers, family, or any other crowd you serve. After all, you “work harder when [they’re] watching”, when you have their support. And they are watching… not in the creepy, Big Brother way that sounded, but they do care how you react to them. When it’s dead and below level, they don’t want to support you (and that includes paying your salary by giving you business). When you break records, like Bolt or Elvis, they want to help you, you get their business, your boss pats you on the back, the sun shines a bit brighter and you feel fantabulous. I mean, what can you lose?

Elvis’s Lessons:

Be aware of the crowd that’s ‘watching’ you. When you use the energy from their support, as Elvis and Usain Bolt did and do, you perform that bit harder and push to the next level. This is a great technique to win your customers over and earn their business. And when you earn their business they pay you, and isn’t that just the greatest thing!?

P.S. If you want to see Usain Bolt reclaiming his 100m Olympic title, here he is on that fateful day in London.

P.P.S. Remember to leave a comment − love to hear from you!

They’re Exceptional − And YOU Can Be, Too!

Helloo0O Ladies and Gentlemen!

Welcome back to Graceland Ontario, your one stop zone for analyzing the success lessons of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll and seeing how to implement them into YOUR life. Today we’ll be returning to our series on the Olympics, which will wrap up tomorrow in London England − namely on the athletes preparation.

Anybody seen Elvis: That’s the Way it Is? It’s the 1970 documentary film showing Elvis in preparation and later playing a series of shows at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. In it, it’s interesting to notice the songs at the beginning compared to the end. At the beginning, Elvis and his band go through a song once. They’re good, but they make mistakes. A thousand practices later (which they don’t show you − you’d get bored) you see Big E and the band at the end of the movie, polished and complete with Elvis’s signature choreography.

Essentially, they had to prepare long hours beforehand to get that good. Why bother? Because people expect their money’s worth. When something’s good, they feel they’ve spent their money well and will want to continue spending it on you, therefore getting the same value. When things are poorly done, they feel their money’s been ill spent. And people who feel they’ve been ripped off don’t give their money to the person who didn’t deliver again. In other words, you don’t give them what they pay for (and more), they don’t pay you (at least ever again), you’re business (or career) gets broiled in a crock pot. You do the opposite, they’ll want to go back to you because they trust you. They tell their friends you’re what you say you are and your business or career grows.

It’s commonsense really… in a way, we’re all rehearsing for that big casino show. We’ve got to put the hours in with our band, our team, to make sure things go smooth. We practice our choreography and lines, our pitch, and, when we practice hard enough, it’s good enough to be in a movie.

But many people want to get by the hard work. They don’t practice and don’t put time in and expect above average results. It doesn’t make sense. And they lose every time because of it.

This is when the Olympic athlete comes in; other than the singer or showman, like Elvis, no one puts in more time fine tuning their act than an Olympic athlete. They’ve got a show to put on, too, in front of millions of people, many of them fellow countrymen. And if they don’t do a good job, the backlash is huge. They’re under extreme pressure to do well. The plus side is when they do well and win gold everyone loves them. Someone like Michael Phelps, Andy Murray or, in my country of Canada, Rosie MacLennan becomes a national hero.

These Olympians work hard for years to get into peak shape so they can compete internationally. And when they’re guaranteed a spot in the Olympics, they have to keep training or risk the embarrassment we talked about. But they do it because they love their sport; the long hours aren’t always fun, but they wouldn’t want to do anything else. They’re exceptional in their preparation and dedication and because of that some of them get the greatest honour they feel possible − international recognition of their greatness.

So, what’s the point? Expecting something for nothing won’t get you anywhere. It doesn’t make sense − you have to work for what you earn. But putting in the hours or preparation will. It’s what Elvis did to run the series of highly successful shows shown in That’s the Way it Is and it’s what Olympians like Rosie MacLennan do to earn a gold medal and international respect for their abilities. You, too, need to learn to prepare whether it’s for a presentation or simply educating yourself on your products. Even if you’re naturally talented (as many Olympians are), preparation is what you need get that extra mile and grab a gold. It’s easy to say and it makes sense, but it’s hard. Make it your goal to be exceptional and prepare − the success you earn will be payment enough for it.

Elvis’s Lessons:

Both Elvis and Olympians put in lots of preparation beforehand for their respective ‘shows’ − it’s the best way they can guarantee winning in the end. But many ‘ordinary’ people don’t think they need to prepare and, as a result, lose milestones that could’ve been theirs with some work put in beforehand. When you’re exceptional and put the work in beforehand, like an Olympian, you’re boosting your chances of doing well the first time an opportunity presents itself. And the more opportunities you pull through with, the more successful you’ll be. It’s a pleasant kind of equation.

P.S. Remember to leave a comment below or email me at alexghilson@gmail.com - I'd love to hear from you.

P.P.S. If you'd like to see Elvis singing from That's the Way it Is, here he is on Youtube with "One Night".