Shafik Hirani has won the awards of National Division Director of the Year and National T.O.P. Leader for two years in a row, an unprecedented achievement. As the Division Director of Calgary South, Shafik credits his success to motivating his team and not having limiting beliefs. He believes anyone can succeed with the right mindset. Shafik works to share his success with his division and believes the members deserve most of the credit for achieving goals. He emphasizes developing self-awareness and an internal locus of control to take responsibility for one's successes.

1. IG MAGAZINE >
18 MAY 2008
2007 peak performers
It’s not often that the awards for National Division Director of
the Year and National T.O.P. Leader go to the same person;
and it’s almost unheard of for both awards to go to the same
person two years running, but Shafik Hirani has managed both
those feats in one remarkable year. In fact, for Shafik, winning
these awards in 2006 only encouraged him to thrive harder the
following year.
“I felt a tremendous honour,” says Shafik, Division Director of
Calgary South.“I felt a purpose and from that purpose I tried to
motivate and inspire my division.”
Shafik has been inspiring Consultants in his division since he
took on the role of Division Director in 1999 after four years as
a Consultant. He credits his success to the belief that anyone can
accomplish what they set their minds to.“Anyone can build a
successful business if they don’t have self-imposed limiting
beliefs. It’s the mindset and lack of imagination that put the
brakes on us.”
Shafik is also quick to share his success with the members of his
division.“Like the coach of a good team I can’t let it get to my
head,” he explains.“I am the leader of a team that truly
accomplished the goal. It’s the players on the field that are most
deserving of the credit.”
So how does he motivate his team to achieve? To be successful in
this line of work, Shafik believes that Consultants need to have a
certain amount of self-awareness and he explains that to excel in
business, we sometimes have to let go of our egos.
“In my opinion,” states Shafik,“The number one thing that
helps people attain a higher standard is self-awareness. Often we
distort the world we see to suit our fragile egos and we have
defense mechanisms that reinforce our belief set.” Shafik affirms
that forcing ourselves to think in different ways can be
beneficial, not only in business, but in all aspects of our lives.
When asked if he has advice for others, Shafik shares his unique
outlook on life and work.“Basically, many people have an
external locus of control. This is a term most often used by
psychologists to describe people who believe they will be happy
or successful if something outside their control happens.”
Shafik, on the other hand, believes that to be successful in life,
we have to switch our thinking.“We must make the shift to an
internal locus of control. Only then can we fully take
responsibility and accountability of our successes.”
This technique has worked well for Shafik. In 2004 he qualified
for President’s Club as a Consultant and as a result of his
personal business, he qualified for President’s Elite in 2005 and
2007. While he is a great leader for his team, he also focuses on
building his own practice. He has over 800 clients and finished
2007 with the highest T.O.P points nationally at 617,282.
But Shafik knows that he did not reach this success without help.
He purposely decided not to thank anyone in his acceptance
speech as there are so many people who have influenced him.“It
goes without saying that you can’t accomplish something without
a good relationship with your Regional Director,” he says.“Brian
Mennis and I have a mutual respect for each other.
“I am the leader of a team that truly
accomplished the goal.
It’s the players on the field that are
most deserving of the credit.”
—Shafik Hirani—
Shafik Hirani accepts two awards at once from the Leaders Forum stage –
the National Division Director of the Year and the National T.O.P. Leader.

2. IG MAGAZINE >
MAY 2008 19
national division director of the year
and national t.o.p. leader
A
“There is also such a talented pool of Regional Directors across the
country. Brian Mennis, Ray Massa, Bill Charles, Babis Chronopoulos,
Tom Van Tighem, Rob Bisson and Brad Campbell have all been
inspirational,” Shafik adds.“They have shaped me.”
Shafik also acknowledges the leadership he receives
from head office.“It’s a thankless job always giving
away the awards and never receiving one. I would
like to take this opportunity to thank Mark Kinzel
for his leadership. I sincerely appreciate his
sincerity, his candor and his vision.”
But overall, Shafik is pleased torecognize and
thank the people he works with everyday.
“My peers in my division and on my
team are the key to our success,” he
concludes.“A strong culture is
unstoppable – it fuels itself,
it’s self-sustaining, and it
even spreads.”
“Anyone can build a successful business if they
don’t have self-imposed limiting beliefs.”
—Shafik Hirani—
Shafik Hirani,
Division Director, Calgary South
back-to-back
performance
for Shafik Hirani