Lessons from last week’s X-Factor

Success Tips from the X Factor

Well, what a week and for fear of repeating myself, I think the biggest lesson was for Cheryl – do not wear that dress! I mean, what was it….

On a more serious note, I think that the lesson I learnt was how fickle we, the general public can be. One day you are in and the next day you are out, that is the name of the game. Just when we thought Rachel was safe, out she goes. Just when we thought Danyl was going, he stays.

Success can be fleeting and if you want to climb the ladder you had better be resilient.

Danyl did a very poor job of showing us that he is resilient. Yes, he has had some bad press but he is a grown man and should be able to deal with it by now, surely! I was totally shocked that the public voted him in; he should be out for trying the sympathy vote if you ask me! We want successful people to prove they can conquer setbacks and get through them. We want to see them bounce back from the depths to prove that they are stronger but we don’t want them to bounce back with too much gusto, hence Rachel leaving. We want humble and we want resilience in the people we look up to. So if you want to be a success you had better get both.

The Influencer

Another lesson I think I learned was the value of an influential person by you side. And there is no one with as much power as the mighty Cowell. Danyl got into the bottom two and everyone rallied around. People who previously said they liked working with John and Edward suddenly thought they were difficult and a few very damming press stories hit the news about them, perhaps in an attempt to take the pressure away from Danyl. So never underestimate the power of an influential person and what they will do to save themselves.

Let’s see what this Saturday beings…..

Lessons from last week’s X-Factor

OK so this is very late I know but since I have still to watch the X-Factor on catch up I guess it is OK. I can convince my self.

Lesson learnt from the X Factor

OK, I hate to say I was right, but I did predict that Danyl was in trouble and in the past two posts I talked about likeability and how important it was for success and how he just did not have it. While Rachael has managed to turn around her fate, Danyl has not and I think will be unable to be “liked” by the public. With fresh rumours hitting the press about him bullying Stacy.I doubt this will help his cause. And even though Miss Frank (whom I was very sad to see leave) have spoken up on his behalf, I am just not sure we really believe that he is what they say he is.

Also I have noticed a subtle shift in the support of Stacy. I have written in a few posts that her little girl act is wearing thin. I have stated we need her to step up and we need to be able to trust her and from the comments I am reading I think the public are growing weary. Lots of people just think she would waste the opportunity and she did seem mightily uncomfortable on Saturday. Stacy come in, is your time up?

So what can we take away from last week’s X Factor? One simple success rule I think.

The customer/audience is King……..

Yes, we as the general public do have power and you had better listen to us or we will vote with our feet….or our phones in this case.

Dear Simon, you underestimated us. ….

Simon’s protégé found himself in the bottom two and I for one was so disappointed he stayed. Simon was said to think it was a joke ….but it looks like people are turning their backs, with the bookies lowering massively the odds for him to win.

But why was everyone so shocked? With crisis talks and busts-up back stage why did it come as a surprise? Were they really watching public opinion, were they so self-obsessed to think it did not matter? The clues were there; even I wrote about it and lets face it, I know nothing about what it takes to be a music star but knew that Danyl was not connecting with the audience. It doesn’t matter how well he sings if we don’t get him. To me this is a classic case of them being too far removed from their audience. The customer/audience is king; you have to have your finger on the pulse, listen to what they are saying and act accordingly. You have to be quick and timely….not close the stable door after the horse has bolted. I really did think that this year’s X Factor had its finger on the pulse a bit more but it appears not……so the big lesson is, however successful or famous you become, don’t forget who put you there…….they always come first.

Oh, and a PS for Simon

Speaking on The Xtra Factor last night, Cowell announced: “I think I’m going to have to get to the bottom of lots of the stories that are going around” People are saying that he is bullying them, etc. I don’t believe them, but I think that they have an effect and we’re going to have to clear that up.
“People just don’t seem to like him. There have been stories written about him that people are not getting on with him, and he is going to have to put his side of the story across.”

Simon, where were you when the twins were being bullied? Oh, and well done Louis for fighting their corner………and while we are at it…

Twins, love them or hate then looks like they will be here for a long time yet, with reports leaking that they topped the vote by a massive margin

…..showing that really, we just all want to be entertained…..and we want a bit of fun

And why do we love them so much? I think Graziella put it really well.

Speaking about her time with the Grimes brothers inside the X Factor house, she added: “Their outlook to life is so different to everyone else. They just live in this happy land, where no person can touch their innocent vibe they have. It’s the sort of thing only children can have. I’m kind of jealous of them because I wish I could be so free.”

Lessons from last week’s X-Factor

Success Tips from the X Factor

Yes, yes I know I am a little late this week but it is still relevant ( just) .

1. Take risks

We all like to see people taking a risk and doing something outside their comfort zone. I think a lot of the acts struggled this week with their performances. The two that stuck out for me were Olly and Jamie, who decided to get up to the Diva game and go there and do something not expected of them. And similarly, Lloyd and Rocky did the same, but not as successfully. Could this be something to do with youth versus wisdom? Not sure, however when we see someone taking a risk we warm to them, we respect them and we want to see more. Taking risks is all part of becoming a success; sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, but you need to take risks.

Read more

Lesson learned from this week’s X Factor

Success Tips from the X Factor

I think there is a lot we can learn from the X Factor, if we look beyond just the singing. There are great lessons here about what it takes to be a success – lessons that we all, and particularly youth, can learn from. And for anyone who works with them, it can give you great insights into how the world is working nowadays.

1. Integrity

There has much been said about how the next generation demand authenticity in all they do. The fall of Kandy Rain is a lesson in integrity. Do we really care they had very few clothes on? Well, yes I did, but then that is just me and I think the general public at large did not. I think what we do care about is saying one thing and doing another. And for all Simon’s ranting at Cheryl, what she was saying was right. You cannot on one hand say one thing and then do another.

Success demands integrity to get there – once you are there it may be a different matter, but people want your thoughts and actions to complement each other on the way up.

Read more