In 2012, Sai Constantine was voted the most valuable employee to Melbourne IT. Today, Constantine is a joint director of the Institute for Digital Marketing New Zealand and founder of Digital New Zealand. These two companies have changed the way an entire country understands the digital landscape and has influenced some of the largest businesses in New Zealand.
Constantine (29) is diligent, magnanimous, reserved, and his success can be boiled down to his quiet but conscious care for the people who work for and with his companies. In today’s media, we often hear reports of success attributed to those who hustle the hardest, work the longest, and forgo everything else to become the best. Constantine may do these things and make these same sacrifices from time to time, but he attributes the majority of his success to caring and helping others achieve their goals before achieving your own.
Here are the two principles that have helped Constantine educate the landscape of an entire nation and its perception of all things digital.
1. Collaborate; Don’t Compete
Most people believe life is here to serve them. Life is not about serving you it is about serving each other with the tools you need to succeed. Most people will undercut, double cross, compete and bicker with each other until they both have nothing left.
All of us though, are highly dependent on other people to do what we do.
Only people who want to be truly wealthy in both finances and relationships recognize this and act on this with humility. By knowing you need other people to help you get ahead in life, you will ultimately set yourself up for long-term success.
This is a tactic that Constantine has implemented in his own career, from sales to scaling a company. His first consideration before working with a company or an individual is:
“Why do you need to work with me to get the goals you need?”
As a salesperson, employer, or individual, we need to understand why people are doing what they are doing. Most people do not want more money; most people want the outcomes that more money brings. Whether this is spending time with family, playing golf, writing a novel, or simply being able to explore the world, Constantine explores the emotional drivers behind the goal of the individuals and companies he works with.
When you understand what people want and explore the fundamentals of their goals, you become someone who is invested in helping them achieve their success.
“A key to helping the client comes from making sure that the passion they have for their goals isn’t just tied to a metric but something that will drive them past the hiccups and setbacks. When I work with people and companies, I make sure I understand those motives and integrate myself in those goals on an emotional and financial level,” said Constantine.
This type of thinking not only makes success enjoyable for the client but also for you, as a provider of that success. Care for people and collaborate with them on their goals past the financial success because it will bring satisfaction and better quality to both your work and relationship with those you work with.
2. Forgo Shiny Objects To Find Your Vision
Most of us are distracted. We find drama at every turn, whether it is the news we read, the tweet we translate, or the email that escalates our temper. We’re all looking for the next thing to drag us away from focusing on what is actually important.
What is important is knowing what is personally important to you.
Constantine is not any different from you and me in his success. He just knows that he had to forgo many other things to attain the success he has now by saying no to the things that don’t matter. All of us have the same twenty-four hours, but by saying no to temptations, we place ourselves in rarefied company because it’s easier to get involved, get distracted, and get lost.
“My secret to success is my vision, my purpose, and sacrificing where others won’t. Cut the temptations of life, tunnel vision to your vision. Align yourself with others that see eye to eye with your purpose. Aspire to inspire others, and it will make the journey easier but also more enjoyable,” said Constantine.
We’ve all been there when we’ve decided that we want praise before putting in the work. The thing with success is that sacrifice must always come first, and that means looking past the shiny objects that grab our attention and time.
Constantine is doing work that most of us won’t hear about for the Institute for Digital Marketing New Zealand and Digital New Zealand, but he is largely responsible for shaping how an entire country understands the ever-growing digital landscape. Sure, some people might have trouble telling you much about him – but his success has come from helping others and saying no to the things that don’t matter.
The credit for all this hard work? Who cares.
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