While enjoying a little R&R at the Rio Casino in Las Vegas I watched as a woman showed up for a job interview to be a dealer in the poker room at the Rio. She spoke well, was dressed properly and had years of experience as a dealer; however, it was her one accessory that made the interviewer fold that job interview faster than a 7/2 off-suit: Her drink.
Yes, this woman showed up for her job interview holding and sipping a bourbon drink at roughly 10am! After she was quickly dismissed, the poker room manager and I just looked at each other in disbelief. The poker room manager then tells me, "That's what's available in the workforce these days." Only if you are standing by and waiting.
Jump across the country with me to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. You are sitting in an upscale restaurant and your wait staff is marginal at best. Then you notice the waiter three tables over delivering drinks, offering incredible service, incredible task efficiency and being very personable without being overbearing. Here is someone who understands serving people. Do you admire from afar, or do you take action?
Constantly scout for talent
The responsibility of keeping a file of great prospects is the key to rapidly filling open jobs. Corporate executives need to be talent scouts at all times. Whenever you find yourself being served with great people skills, take note of the name and location of this person. If your business is in the service industry, you need to be looking for people people. Task related skills can be easily taught through effective training programs, but teaching someone to change their ways in their interaction with people can be a laborious and monumental task.
Anticipate job openings
In the early days of my career the company I worked with had what we called "spare help." A few extra people on the payroll filled in for open positions, and allowed the organization to cross-train their better workers in anticipation of future needs. The down-sizing craze in the late 80's eliminated these positions permanently. It's time to rethink that. Even in today's economy.
One important aspect of a job the younger generations of workers are looking for is a constant learning opportunity. To keep them you need to constantly teach them thereby strengthening your staff in the process. If your staff is better trained to handle multiple functions, you are prepared for potential job openings and your staff and customers never see a blip. Having a couple of "spare help" allows you to develop your workforce, keep them longer, and create more consistency through times of illness and vacations. Your bottom line will benefit as well as your customers.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (Part III)
During challenging times people tend to want to brush by the not so pretty issues, but the only way to make significant improvements is to look at yourself and your business in the mirror and unabashedly evaluate your situation. This is the third of a three part series looking at Focus, Products and Services, and Customer Analysis.
Customer analysis
If the only time your customer hears from you is when you are trying to sell something, I'm betting they are not returning your calls these days. Customer relationships are critical to lasting involvement. All organizations are facing a challenging environment and people prefer not to solve problems on their own. They want someone to partner with them and they want that person to be someone trusted and close. If you've developed those kind of working relationships them you want to capitalize on having that relationship and talk about the new year. The challenges that are ahead are best addressed with the two organizations working together to solve problems and each organization will be stronger as a result of this collaboration.
Because customer relationships are critical you need to ask the mirror, mirror on the wall about customer relationships.
How do our customers see us?
Begin by listing all of your customers in rank from most active to least active. Give yourself a scale to work from 1 representing we have a minimal relationship to 5 representing they are virtually a vertical extension of our organization. Once you've completed that analysis, using the same scale, list where you'd like that relationship to be. Not everyone is going to be a 5. In fact, some you might even want to be less because you can become too reliant on one customer. Make action plans according to the development you want with each customer.
I also suggest you offer some form of anonymous response customer survey with regular frequency to give them the opportunity for suggestions and honest feedback.
When you hold your business up for reflection in the mirror refrain from wanting to shatter the mirror. Chances are that mirror is in the form of a consultant or a managerial meeting retreat.
Chewing out the mirror and claiming it's an inaccurate reflection or getting so nuts as to want to shatter the mirror doesn't solve problems, doesn't make the issues go away. The only gain you get from breaking the mirror is 7 years bad luck and if you think your employees don't like walking on eggshells imagine how they are going to feel walking on broken glass.
Customer analysis
If the only time your customer hears from you is when you are trying to sell something, I'm betting they are not returning your calls these days. Customer relationships are critical to lasting involvement. All organizations are facing a challenging environment and people prefer not to solve problems on their own. They want someone to partner with them and they want that person to be someone trusted and close. If you've developed those kind of working relationships them you want to capitalize on having that relationship and talk about the new year. The challenges that are ahead are best addressed with the two organizations working together to solve problems and each organization will be stronger as a result of this collaboration.
Because customer relationships are critical you need to ask the mirror, mirror on the wall about customer relationships.
How do our customers see us?
Begin by listing all of your customers in rank from most active to least active. Give yourself a scale to work from 1 representing we have a minimal relationship to 5 representing they are virtually a vertical extension of our organization. Once you've completed that analysis, using the same scale, list where you'd like that relationship to be. Not everyone is going to be a 5. In fact, some you might even want to be less because you can become too reliant on one customer. Make action plans according to the development you want with each customer.
I also suggest you offer some form of anonymous response customer survey with regular frequency to give them the opportunity for suggestions and honest feedback.
When you hold your business up for reflection in the mirror refrain from wanting to shatter the mirror. Chances are that mirror is in the form of a consultant or a managerial meeting retreat.
Chewing out the mirror and claiming it's an inaccurate reflection or getting so nuts as to want to shatter the mirror doesn't solve problems, doesn't make the issues go away. The only gain you get from breaking the mirror is 7 years bad luck and if you think your employees don't like walking on eggshells imagine how they are going to feel walking on broken glass.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (Part II)
During challenging times people tend to want to brush by the not so pretty issues, but the only way to make significant improvements is to look at yourself and your business in the mirror and unabashedly evaluate your situation. This is the second of a three part series looking at Focus, Products and Services, and Customer Analysis.
Products and Services
Starbucks created the market for a $4.00 cup of coffee. The brought back the age of the chic coffee shops and went gangbusters around the world with them until they built so many locations as the comedian Lewis Black notes he found the end of the world when he was standing on a street corner and there was a Starbucks directly across the street from a…Starbucks. In 2008 Starbucks had their bubble burst and found themselves in uncharted territory of shrinking sales. How did they handle it?
They invited customers to offer suggestions on new products they wished Starbucks offered! They heard from thousands of customers online offering ideas on how to make them a better organization. Possessing those ideas along with an active R&D, Starbucks began debuting many new offerings from protein drinks to low fat food offerings to their highest selling new product of the year -- oatmeal. Yes, the most basic of foods available in every grocery store is their new big selling idea!
This just proves you don't have to create the newest and greatest wizbang idea under the sun to get customers to beat a path to your door. You just have to offer the products and services your customers want.
Look in the mirror and ask these questions:
What are my best selling products and services and what emerging markets do I need to target for these?
What products and services are my most profitable and how can I repackage them to gain a wider market share?
What are the products and services my customer would love to have that I am not currently offering? (Pssst, ask them!)
What are the products and services I need to eliminate, have a fire sale for, or otherwise quietly discontinue because they waste my employees time, are low sellers, and don't make much profit for me anyhow.
Remember, just like the economy, times are changing for you and they are impacting your customers. What are the products and services that will best suit their changing needs? Just because you have a big expensive high profit top product to sell doesn’t mean your customers want to hear about it. Think Hummer. You can't give those away right now because the manufacturer is out of step with the customer climate.
Products and Services
Starbucks created the market for a $4.00 cup of coffee. The brought back the age of the chic coffee shops and went gangbusters around the world with them until they built so many locations as the comedian Lewis Black notes he found the end of the world when he was standing on a street corner and there was a Starbucks directly across the street from a…Starbucks. In 2008 Starbucks had their bubble burst and found themselves in uncharted territory of shrinking sales. How did they handle it?
They invited customers to offer suggestions on new products they wished Starbucks offered! They heard from thousands of customers online offering ideas on how to make them a better organization. Possessing those ideas along with an active R&D, Starbucks began debuting many new offerings from protein drinks to low fat food offerings to their highest selling new product of the year -- oatmeal. Yes, the most basic of foods available in every grocery store is their new big selling idea!
This just proves you don't have to create the newest and greatest wizbang idea under the sun to get customers to beat a path to your door. You just have to offer the products and services your customers want.
Look in the mirror and ask these questions:
What are my best selling products and services and what emerging markets do I need to target for these?
What products and services are my most profitable and how can I repackage them to gain a wider market share?
What are the products and services my customer would love to have that I am not currently offering? (Pssst, ask them!)
What are the products and services I need to eliminate, have a fire sale for, or otherwise quietly discontinue because they waste my employees time, are low sellers, and don't make much profit for me anyhow.
Remember, just like the economy, times are changing for you and they are impacting your customers. What are the products and services that will best suit their changing needs? Just because you have a big expensive high profit top product to sell doesn’t mean your customers want to hear about it. Think Hummer. You can't give those away right now because the manufacturer is out of step with the customer climate.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (Part I)
During challenging times people tend to want to brush by the not so pretty issues, but the only way to make significant improvements is to look at yourself and your business in the mirror and unabashedly evaluate your situation. This is the first of a three part series looking at Focus, Products and Services, and Customer Analysis.
A. Focus
The pace of business is so fast these days we often lose focus of the important because of the screams of the urgent and we lose focus of what are the right things to do in order to be successful. Recently, I watched a neighbor's dog running in circles chasing its tail repeatedly until it tired. I see business people do that as well and it's not near as funny to watch. Why do we chase our tails? Because we get caught up in the moment and forget what it is we should be focusing on.
To regain your focus for your business, ask the mirror, mirror the following questions:
Who are we?
Sounds silly I know, but General Motors forgot this on many levels to use an example of lost focus and if a large well-establish long-term company can lose focus, think how easy it is for a small business. Define your company. Define what the purpose of why your organization exists. Define how you measure success. Define the employee behaviors you recognize and reward. Define how your customers see you, treat you and respond to you. Once you honestly answer these questions, ask yourself the next question.
Where did the majority of our time and efforts focus get dedicated in the last year?
Now you see the mismatch. As a football team gets sidetracked by penalties and turnovers, businesses get sidetrack by fighting mistakes and wasted efforts. Your sales team spends what percentage of their time prospecting? On client maintenance? Developing new opportunities? Filling out paperwork? In meetings creating excuses to answer questions?
What about management? Are they developing and coaching new employees to strengthen the team? Are they looking to refine the processes of the employee's they manage?
Are they jumping from handling one problem to another and never getting much time to focus on the important company-progressing opportunities? Identify the "penalties and turnovers" that are sidetracking your efforts from being progressive and reaching the goals necessary to win.
Who do you want to be?
Great leaders whether they are from the world of sports or from government or from the business arena know where they want to get to. Realistically setting goals and targets is as important to getting great focus for your organization as reviewing the previous year's efforts. I've heard executives tell me their focus is "to just make it to 2010." Such a pessimistic approach will only infect a workforce into doing bare minimums and constantly acting out of a position of weakness.
Take your current analysis of the finished year and set realistic targets and goals for the coming year that have some reach! Tell your staff what the organizational success is going to look like. Get buy in, develop momentum and get everyone prepared to work hard. It is a given business will have to work harder to get the same results than they have in the past. Is there any other option to doing what it takes to be successful? No. Tough times provide the opportunity for the best to shine. With a good focus on where you are, where you want to be and a plan on how to get there everyone should have clarity of understanding of the focus of the organization.
A. Focus
The pace of business is so fast these days we often lose focus of the important because of the screams of the urgent and we lose focus of what are the right things to do in order to be successful. Recently, I watched a neighbor's dog running in circles chasing its tail repeatedly until it tired. I see business people do that as well and it's not near as funny to watch. Why do we chase our tails? Because we get caught up in the moment and forget what it is we should be focusing on.
To regain your focus for your business, ask the mirror, mirror the following questions:
Who are we?
Sounds silly I know, but General Motors forgot this on many levels to use an example of lost focus and if a large well-establish long-term company can lose focus, think how easy it is for a small business. Define your company. Define what the purpose of why your organization exists. Define how you measure success. Define the employee behaviors you recognize and reward. Define how your customers see you, treat you and respond to you. Once you honestly answer these questions, ask yourself the next question.
Where did the majority of our time and efforts focus get dedicated in the last year?
Now you see the mismatch. As a football team gets sidetracked by penalties and turnovers, businesses get sidetrack by fighting mistakes and wasted efforts. Your sales team spends what percentage of their time prospecting? On client maintenance? Developing new opportunities? Filling out paperwork? In meetings creating excuses to answer questions?
What about management? Are they developing and coaching new employees to strengthen the team? Are they looking to refine the processes of the employee's they manage?
Are they jumping from handling one problem to another and never getting much time to focus on the important company-progressing opportunities? Identify the "penalties and turnovers" that are sidetracking your efforts from being progressive and reaching the goals necessary to win.
Who do you want to be?
Great leaders whether they are from the world of sports or from government or from the business arena know where they want to get to. Realistically setting goals and targets is as important to getting great focus for your organization as reviewing the previous year's efforts. I've heard executives tell me their focus is "to just make it to 2010." Such a pessimistic approach will only infect a workforce into doing bare minimums and constantly acting out of a position of weakness.
Take your current analysis of the finished year and set realistic targets and goals for the coming year that have some reach! Tell your staff what the organizational success is going to look like. Get buy in, develop momentum and get everyone prepared to work hard. It is a given business will have to work harder to get the same results than they have in the past. Is there any other option to doing what it takes to be successful? No. Tough times provide the opportunity for the best to shine. With a good focus on where you are, where you want to be and a plan on how to get there everyone should have clarity of understanding of the focus of the organization.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Today is Kick Ass Friday -- 10 Q's for U
To make sure you drive into the weekend and not use today to coast, ask your self these 10 questions and don't simply make your business go, make it grow!
1. Because Plan A doesn't work every time, how well defined is your Plan B?
2. How linear is your thinking? What steps are you taking that aren't getting you to where you want to go?
3. Who is your current mentor and how are they inspiring you today?
4. If you could recreate your business how would you do it? How could you reinvent what you have?
5. What one sporting event in history would you like to have attended? Why? What could you learn from the winners of that event?
6. What does fame mean to you? How famous do you want to be?
7. Would you rather be known as a great orator or writer? How do you best communicate?
8. How do you communicate with those who have the opposite communication style you do?
9. What is the most unusual thing you've done as a leader? What was the reaction?
10. Would you rather be recognized by many, or have close relationships with a few?
1. Because Plan A doesn't work every time, how well defined is your Plan B?
2. How linear is your thinking? What steps are you taking that aren't getting you to where you want to go?
3. Who is your current mentor and how are they inspiring you today?
4. If you could recreate your business how would you do it? How could you reinvent what you have?
5. What one sporting event in history would you like to have attended? Why? What could you learn from the winners of that event?
6. What does fame mean to you? How famous do you want to be?
7. Would you rather be known as a great orator or writer? How do you best communicate?
8. How do you communicate with those who have the opposite communication style you do?
9. What is the most unusual thing you've done as a leader? What was the reaction?
10. Would you rather be recognized by many, or have close relationships with a few?
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The 4 Rules of Hard Core Growth
No stories today. No rah rah today. Just hard core facts about four rules you have to have in place if you want real growth in your organization. The sooner you have these in place the sooner you will be able to control, drive and monitor growth. Remove the excuses, cut to the chase and make things happen.
1. Any business activity that can't be measured objectively is a waste of resources
For example, employee evaluations that are subjective are not effective and are a waste of time both, for the management who creates the fiction on the evaluations and for the employee who knows subjective evaluations are beauty contests. How much time is wasted on information that is purely subjective in your organization? Did your last marketing campaign work? If the audience you were targeting bought the product you were profiling then you got measured results. If your TV ad on local cable to talk nice about your company in general gave you a warm fuzzy but had no measurable impact, was it worth the cost?
If it's important find a way to objectively measure it. If you can't measure it, then forget about it because it's a waste of time to even consider worrying about something you can't or won't measure. You want quality customer service? Measure it. You want cross selling? Measure it. You want fewer mistakes? Measure it!
2. Forget core values and mission statements, the reason you are in business is to make money
Amazingly, executives and boards of directors still give a care about wordsmithing core values and mission statements and will waste hours on it. You want to grow? Make profits. Every measurement in an organization MUST have some contribution to growing profits for your company otherwise its wasted effort and off focus. Speaking of wasting time core values are unnecessary if you fully understand the goal is to make long-term growth and improved profits; therefore, no need for core values such as ethics and putting the customer first. Those are a given if you want sustainable growth in any organization! Cut out the fluff and get to the core -- making money and growing the business.
3. Everyone's compensation should be tied to their ability to generate profitable revenue
If you want performance you need to tie it to something that impacts the employee. Performance-based compensation is the key to getting people interested and involved in making a profitable difference. Every employee needs to understand how they impact the bottom line and their compensation needs to reflect their personal impact.
What if you can't figure out how to measure someone's job impact on the bottom line, like the janitor for example? Every job you employee needs to have a measurable link to the profits and growth you are trying to create, if you can't measure it, do something else with it. In the janitor's case, outsource that job so you don't need a measurement. Remember the first point of this information -- everything has to be measured.
4, Employees who object to being measured objectively are not doing their jobs
Your best performers will crave the opportunity to have measurement-based compensation because they know they can do what is asked of them. Those coasting, poor performers who are sucking you dry for a paycheck and benefits will whine like you put their privates in a vice. And figuratively, you did. Good for you! It's time to get your organization out of the hands of the coasting whiners and let your performers lead your growth.
Oh, and tell HR to get interviews lined up because there is a wealth of laid off talent who are hungry to make a difference, so now is the best time to restaff and clean house of warm bodies and replace them with people who care enough to make a difference.
Sound hard core? Give each fired employee a pack of tissues on the way out the door. Who says I don't have a heart.
1. Any business activity that can't be measured objectively is a waste of resources
For example, employee evaluations that are subjective are not effective and are a waste of time both, for the management who creates the fiction on the evaluations and for the employee who knows subjective evaluations are beauty contests. How much time is wasted on information that is purely subjective in your organization? Did your last marketing campaign work? If the audience you were targeting bought the product you were profiling then you got measured results. If your TV ad on local cable to talk nice about your company in general gave you a warm fuzzy but had no measurable impact, was it worth the cost?
If it's important find a way to objectively measure it. If you can't measure it, then forget about it because it's a waste of time to even consider worrying about something you can't or won't measure. You want quality customer service? Measure it. You want cross selling? Measure it. You want fewer mistakes? Measure it!
2. Forget core values and mission statements, the reason you are in business is to make money
Amazingly, executives and boards of directors still give a care about wordsmithing core values and mission statements and will waste hours on it. You want to grow? Make profits. Every measurement in an organization MUST have some contribution to growing profits for your company otherwise its wasted effort and off focus. Speaking of wasting time core values are unnecessary if you fully understand the goal is to make long-term growth and improved profits; therefore, no need for core values such as ethics and putting the customer first. Those are a given if you want sustainable growth in any organization! Cut out the fluff and get to the core -- making money and growing the business.
3. Everyone's compensation should be tied to their ability to generate profitable revenue
If you want performance you need to tie it to something that impacts the employee. Performance-based compensation is the key to getting people interested and involved in making a profitable difference. Every employee needs to understand how they impact the bottom line and their compensation needs to reflect their personal impact.
What if you can't figure out how to measure someone's job impact on the bottom line, like the janitor for example? Every job you employee needs to have a measurable link to the profits and growth you are trying to create, if you can't measure it, do something else with it. In the janitor's case, outsource that job so you don't need a measurement. Remember the first point of this information -- everything has to be measured.
4, Employees who object to being measured objectively are not doing their jobs
Your best performers will crave the opportunity to have measurement-based compensation because they know they can do what is asked of them. Those coasting, poor performers who are sucking you dry for a paycheck and benefits will whine like you put their privates in a vice. And figuratively, you did. Good for you! It's time to get your organization out of the hands of the coasting whiners and let your performers lead your growth.
Oh, and tell HR to get interviews lined up because there is a wealth of laid off talent who are hungry to make a difference, so now is the best time to restaff and clean house of warm bodies and replace them with people who care enough to make a difference.
Sound hard core? Give each fired employee a pack of tissues on the way out the door. Who says I don't have a heart.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Hustle -- What Does Your Daily Serving Look Like?
I hear people tell me how they have been laid off and in the same sentence tell me about the round of golf they played on Monday afternoon.
I hear people talk about how sales are off, budgets are tight and no one is buying out there right now.
I hear business owners complain about losing money and slow customer traffic.
What I am not hearing is how these people are investing 12 to 14 hours a day to find a job, close a sale and get more customers. Wow did we get lazy in the glory years. We expected profit growth to just happen every year (and it did), we expected our investments to grow just by watching them (and they did) and we sat back and enjoyed the view and the rewards. We justified that behavior by telling ourselves that finally all that hard work in the early years was finally paying off. No longer did we need to work hard because we had set up businesses and investments to run successfully on their own.
Hustle is for the Hungry
The game changed and those of us sitting back enjoying the view suddenly find ourselves out of shape for the effort required to make a difference. Now is the time to break out the hustle mentality and get digging, grinding and sacrificing to get back on top once again. As a twitter friend wrote recently, "HUSTLE is shoe leather and elbow grease and sweat and skipping breakfast and missing lunch."
Let the competition sit and whine about what happened to the good ole days and you regain your daily dose of hustle and blow them away. The fact is, people are hiring, sales are being closed, and customers are buying. Make sure you are the one who is in growth mode by being the one who doubles up on his or her daily dose of hustle.
If you start doubling your daily dose of hustle starting today; in six months you will be back in the hustle groove and you will be back in growth mode. Guaranteed. No magic bullet. No quick fix. Just hard work, focus and moving with purpose all day long.
I hear people talk about how sales are off, budgets are tight and no one is buying out there right now.
I hear business owners complain about losing money and slow customer traffic.
What I am not hearing is how these people are investing 12 to 14 hours a day to find a job, close a sale and get more customers. Wow did we get lazy in the glory years. We expected profit growth to just happen every year (and it did), we expected our investments to grow just by watching them (and they did) and we sat back and enjoyed the view and the rewards. We justified that behavior by telling ourselves that finally all that hard work in the early years was finally paying off. No longer did we need to work hard because we had set up businesses and investments to run successfully on their own.
Hustle is for the Hungry
The game changed and those of us sitting back enjoying the view suddenly find ourselves out of shape for the effort required to make a difference. Now is the time to break out the hustle mentality and get digging, grinding and sacrificing to get back on top once again. As a twitter friend wrote recently, "HUSTLE is shoe leather and elbow grease and sweat and skipping breakfast and missing lunch."
Let the competition sit and whine about what happened to the good ole days and you regain your daily dose of hustle and blow them away. The fact is, people are hiring, sales are being closed, and customers are buying. Make sure you are the one who is in growth mode by being the one who doubles up on his or her daily dose of hustle.
If you start doubling your daily dose of hustle starting today; in six months you will be back in the hustle groove and you will be back in growth mode. Guaranteed. No magic bullet. No quick fix. Just hard work, focus and moving with purpose all day long.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Kick Ass Friday: 10 Ways to be a Better You
1. Insecurities are costing you plenty. Take action starting today on one of your insecurities.
2. Define the meaning of your life. Not what it should be or could be, what it is now. If you aren't happy with that meaning, work to change it.
3. Where does your happy come from? How much happy are you putting into those people around you. Spread around some happy in your workplace today.
4.Passion is doing something because you love doing it. Demonstrate your passion at work. If you can't, get another job.
5. Play to win instead of not to lose. Prevent defenses only work when you have a huge lead and limited clock. There is no clock in business you always have to play to win.
6. Work on a long-term strategy today and forget the short-sightedness for an afternoon (for starters.)
7. Pick a lane. Do you want to be in the lane of safety and security or adventure and uncertainty? Make a choice.
8. Apply yourself in a project you've been avoiding lately.
9. Do something ridiculous, fun and cool at work today. How did that feel?
10. Book a dinner date for Saturday night with someone important to you. Make it a place you've never been to before. Eat something you never have eaten before. Feel your self grow.
2. Define the meaning of your life. Not what it should be or could be, what it is now. If you aren't happy with that meaning, work to change it.
3. Where does your happy come from? How much happy are you putting into those people around you. Spread around some happy in your workplace today.
4.Passion is doing something because you love doing it. Demonstrate your passion at work. If you can't, get another job.
5. Play to win instead of not to lose. Prevent defenses only work when you have a huge lead and limited clock. There is no clock in business you always have to play to win.
6. Work on a long-term strategy today and forget the short-sightedness for an afternoon (for starters.)
7. Pick a lane. Do you want to be in the lane of safety and security or adventure and uncertainty? Make a choice.
8. Apply yourself in a project you've been avoiding lately.
9. Do something ridiculous, fun and cool at work today. How did that feel?
10. Book a dinner date for Saturday night with someone important to you. Make it a place you've never been to before. Eat something you never have eaten before. Feel your self grow.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
The Learning Trap
To hear executives, never has a budding workforce been so unprepared for work. How can this be? Today's high school graduates are more technologically savvy than any generation prior, they have the capacity to receive information faster than ever before and they can process that knowledge faster than ever before. The gap isn't in the preparedness of this generation; it's the unwillingness of business to work on bridging that gap.
Apprenticeship is an old school idea of preparing people for their careers by allowing them to work under the tutelage of a seasoned veteran of the trade. Giving them the time to grow in their skills and eventually assume the role of the retiring employee. In management we used to have such titles as assistant plant manager, assistant branch manager, and assistant vice president -- grooming positions for the long-term stability of the company.
Black Monday of 1987 dramatically shifted corporate focus on preparation. Suddenly business was more concerned with showing short-term profits than long-term stability and the word "downsizing" became a common loathsome term. No one was concerned with employee learning and all of those "soft" positions were eliminated. Survival mode occupied the corner offices and semi-panic rippled through businesses. How much can we get out of the people we have left was the concern. Who had the money for training? Who was even hiring new people? It was a time to hunker down and weather the storm.
The rebirth following that storm was a strong one. Add in the speed of emerging computer technology to the robust 90's economy where profit-taking was as easy as picking a peach from a tree, and companies were suddenly short-staffed and orders were piling up! Employees were overwhelmed with the expected work loads placed upon them. Who has time for learning and development? The motto was, "Teach the bare basics as fast as possible" and let the new employees learn on the fly, because we have orders to get out, profits to make, and shareholders to satisfy.
This is how business created the Learning Trap. Companies vacillated between not having enough money to teach and then not having enough time to teach. Business is now bipolar when it comes to employee development. We have stripped all of the learning slots from companies and now place people in positions where they have to learn on the go in order to succeed without an opportunity for failure. Any wonder why we have such a large number of obesity, diabetes, and other stress related illnesses. Businesses are placing everyone in high stress situations and telling them "Don’t screw up!" There is a better way.
Relax, breathe, and get a grip. It's time for executives to reclaim their work environments from the stockholders and the accountants and return it to the profit makers -- the employees and the customers.
1. Start by asking yourself: Who are the key people if lost tomorrow would cripple your success?
Key players are not always in the highest profile of positions. Everyone in touch with their organization can quickly name these individuals. Next ask yourself: Who are the successors with time, learning and development could step into those positions to not only maintain our progress but make it better? Creating learning opportunities or positions for these people isn't a needless expense as your CFO's are telling you; it's an investment in your organization's future. It's part of your legacy in creating a lasting company.
2. Identify your workhorses
Who are the key players in your organization that have their tongues hanging to the floor in near exhaustion trying to give you what you want even though you've not given them what they need? First of all, write each of them a hand written note thanking them for all they do. Secondly, ask them what skills they want to learn to improve and what training they want to give to their employees to achieve even greater success.
The reason 78% of the American workforce is unhappy is because they want to succeed but aren’t being given the opportunity. Job hoping today has less to do with chasing money than it does with chasing opportunity, chasing better work environments, and looking for belonging in a corporate setting.
Mr. Executive, do you want to create an environment for success and profits as well as a satisfied motivated workforce? Lock the door on your CFO's office and create a work environment where knowledge is fresh and excitement abounds because people actually have the tools to work with they need. Make learning a cornerstone of your organization. You will attract the best a generation has to offer because they want to learn. You will attract the best customers because people buy from those like themselves, and you will create profits because your efficiency and ability to perform will far outgrow the investment you made in educating your employees.
Apprenticeship is an old school idea of preparing people for their careers by allowing them to work under the tutelage of a seasoned veteran of the trade. Giving them the time to grow in their skills and eventually assume the role of the retiring employee. In management we used to have such titles as assistant plant manager, assistant branch manager, and assistant vice president -- grooming positions for the long-term stability of the company.
Black Monday of 1987 dramatically shifted corporate focus on preparation. Suddenly business was more concerned with showing short-term profits than long-term stability and the word "downsizing" became a common loathsome term. No one was concerned with employee learning and all of those "soft" positions were eliminated. Survival mode occupied the corner offices and semi-panic rippled through businesses. How much can we get out of the people we have left was the concern. Who had the money for training? Who was even hiring new people? It was a time to hunker down and weather the storm.
The rebirth following that storm was a strong one. Add in the speed of emerging computer technology to the robust 90's economy where profit-taking was as easy as picking a peach from a tree, and companies were suddenly short-staffed and orders were piling up! Employees were overwhelmed with the expected work loads placed upon them. Who has time for learning and development? The motto was, "Teach the bare basics as fast as possible" and let the new employees learn on the fly, because we have orders to get out, profits to make, and shareholders to satisfy.
This is how business created the Learning Trap. Companies vacillated between not having enough money to teach and then not having enough time to teach. Business is now bipolar when it comes to employee development. We have stripped all of the learning slots from companies and now place people in positions where they have to learn on the go in order to succeed without an opportunity for failure. Any wonder why we have such a large number of obesity, diabetes, and other stress related illnesses. Businesses are placing everyone in high stress situations and telling them "Don’t screw up!" There is a better way.
Relax, breathe, and get a grip. It's time for executives to reclaim their work environments from the stockholders and the accountants and return it to the profit makers -- the employees and the customers.
1. Start by asking yourself: Who are the key people if lost tomorrow would cripple your success?
Key players are not always in the highest profile of positions. Everyone in touch with their organization can quickly name these individuals. Next ask yourself: Who are the successors with time, learning and development could step into those positions to not only maintain our progress but make it better? Creating learning opportunities or positions for these people isn't a needless expense as your CFO's are telling you; it's an investment in your organization's future. It's part of your legacy in creating a lasting company.
2. Identify your workhorses
Who are the key players in your organization that have their tongues hanging to the floor in near exhaustion trying to give you what you want even though you've not given them what they need? First of all, write each of them a hand written note thanking them for all they do. Secondly, ask them what skills they want to learn to improve and what training they want to give to their employees to achieve even greater success.
The reason 78% of the American workforce is unhappy is because they want to succeed but aren’t being given the opportunity. Job hoping today has less to do with chasing money than it does with chasing opportunity, chasing better work environments, and looking for belonging in a corporate setting.
Mr. Executive, do you want to create an environment for success and profits as well as a satisfied motivated workforce? Lock the door on your CFO's office and create a work environment where knowledge is fresh and excitement abounds because people actually have the tools to work with they need. Make learning a cornerstone of your organization. You will attract the best a generation has to offer because they want to learn. You will attract the best customers because people buy from those like themselves, and you will create profits because your efficiency and ability to perform will far outgrow the investment you made in educating your employees.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
I Think Therefore I Am -- More Than You Know
Most of the players on the PGA Tour have convinced themselves they can't beat Tiger Woods when he is playing his best. Frequently, companies announce well in advance they are about to file for bankruptcy as a negotiation tactic, but the mindset they create all but ensures it will happen. If investors are convinced the market is failing, they dump stocks, create a run on the market and cause the self-fulfilling prophecy of a Bear market.
Can anyone disagree with these facts? Hardly. In fact, I'm sure you can think of many more personal and professional situations where the expected outcome can to be a reality.
Rene Descartes is quoted with the phrase, "I think, therefore I am." In his philosophical analysis he used that quote to prove his existence, but I think he missed the second powerful message: What I think is what I am.
For example, if you think you are creative, you'll put yourself in situations to use creative thinking, look for opportunity to take risks, and challenge yourself for new ideas. But if you are convinced you aren't a creative person, you don't respect the ideas you come up with and you fear taking risks, thereby proving you are not creative and you find solace in the routine, even if you hate being there.
I love music and can't help moving my body to it, but in high school I convinced myself I couldn't dance. I completely talked myself into believing everyone was watching me and laughing and I talked myself right off the floor -- for decades! It became a self-created obstacle completely of my own mind's making!
Ever work with someone like this? Constantly reaffirming a negative thought until that negative thought became a reality? Perhaps you can even look in the mirror and see this person?
This type of thinking, if nothing else, can teach us the lesson of what we think is what we become. There is no doubting this fact and every one of us has examples of it. So, if this can be seen easily in all of our lives, then that means the reverse of the negative thinking must also have the same self-fulfilling results.
What about in your business? What are the projects, ideas or departments we are convinced will fail before they even get started? What in your career are you accepting a routine because you have convinced yourself you can do no better?
Think of the powerful opportunity you have to reverse that thinking. You have treasures, glory and greatness awaiting you if you only start believing you are worthy of it and believe you can make it happen. Believing in itself isn't enough, of course. You have to develop skills, work at making these things happen, but if you never think they can occur no matter how hard you work, it will not become a reality until you are sure it's the outcome you deserve.
For those that really want to be better than they are right now.
Define the opportunity
Have a focus on the success you want in your life and define it, paint a picture of it, make it become more of a reality. Whether it's the promotion you are looking for, the end of the month targets exceeded, or running 5 miles in under an hour, you want to envision the opportunity.
Action Step: Write it down in as much detail as you can think of. Imagine you are writing a book and you want the reader to see what it is you are describing.
Can anyone disagree with these facts? Hardly. In fact, I'm sure you can think of many more personal and professional situations where the expected outcome can to be a reality.
Rene Descartes is quoted with the phrase, "I think, therefore I am." In his philosophical analysis he used that quote to prove his existence, but I think he missed the second powerful message: What I think is what I am.
For example, if you think you are creative, you'll put yourself in situations to use creative thinking, look for opportunity to take risks, and challenge yourself for new ideas. But if you are convinced you aren't a creative person, you don't respect the ideas you come up with and you fear taking risks, thereby proving you are not creative and you find solace in the routine, even if you hate being there.
I love music and can't help moving my body to it, but in high school I convinced myself I couldn't dance. I completely talked myself into believing everyone was watching me and laughing and I talked myself right off the floor -- for decades! It became a self-created obstacle completely of my own mind's making!
Ever work with someone like this? Constantly reaffirming a negative thought until that negative thought became a reality? Perhaps you can even look in the mirror and see this person?
This type of thinking, if nothing else, can teach us the lesson of what we think is what we become. There is no doubting this fact and every one of us has examples of it. So, if this can be seen easily in all of our lives, then that means the reverse of the negative thinking must also have the same self-fulfilling results.
What about in your business? What are the projects, ideas or departments we are convinced will fail before they even get started? What in your career are you accepting a routine because you have convinced yourself you can do no better?
Think of the powerful opportunity you have to reverse that thinking. You have treasures, glory and greatness awaiting you if you only start believing you are worthy of it and believe you can make it happen. Believing in itself isn't enough, of course. You have to develop skills, work at making these things happen, but if you never think they can occur no matter how hard you work, it will not become a reality until you are sure it's the outcome you deserve.
For those that really want to be better than they are right now.
Define the opportunity
Have a focus on the success you want in your life and define it, paint a picture of it, make it become more of a reality. Whether it's the promotion you are looking for, the end of the month targets exceeded, or running 5 miles in under an hour, you want to envision the opportunity.
Action Step: Write it down in as much detail as you can think of. Imagine you are writing a book and you want the reader to see what it is you are describing.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
5 Best Practices for Retaining Your Top Talent
Companies have a tradition of luring away top executive talent from the competition. Free agency has changed the entire landscape of professional athletics as teams constantly fight for talent. The talent wars are now reaching the trenches, and companies are taking off the gloves and aggressively going after top talent at all levels, regardless of who they are currently employed by.
Because employees now know they are potential free agents, they are looking for the best package, not just more money. Who are the people you would hate to lose? It's time to use these five best practices for retaining your top talent so they aren't as eager to see if the money is greener on the other side of the fence.
1. Give them a quality team.
Top talent wants to work with other top talent. The best talent wants to be part of a team awash in great talent. Why? Because they know they will be challenged to improve, they know the best coworkers understand how to pull their own weight, and they will respect those they work with.
Your top talent is looking for more top talent, and so should you be, if you want to keep what you currently have.
2. Provide perks they value.
The best expect to be treated that way. Top talent expects to be treated like they matter to an organization. Google is on the fast track, and they know without top talent they can't stay the course. They offer their employees free car washes and oil changes in the parking lot while they are working. Other top talent organizations frequently offer exercise facilities free for use during working hours. They know it keeps the employees alert and fresh and demonstrates that employee health is important.
One executive in one of my audiences told me he provides a break room for his employees. In fact, he proudly offered, "It is a profit center for my company!" I challenged him to consider offering break room contents for free so more profits could appear on the bottom line and not the break room line item. Take care of the people taking care of you!
When I work with Duke University and stay at their R. David Thomas Business Center, I know at the end of the hall is a break room filled with snacks ranging from coffee, to granola bars, to Dove bars in the freezer -- free of charge. It is not abused or raided, but it is appreciated and almost expected. When you are the best, you expect to be treated as such.
3. Keep the job exciting.
This is the biggest challenge for business leaders because it has never been as important to keeping good talent as it is now. Not only are competitors better at making job opportunities sound fantastic, but we are becoming a society where everyone is A.D.D. We constantly are looking for the excitement, the adrenaline rush, or the thrill in our entertainment and our personal lives. Television programs shift the camera angle every 3.4 seconds, on average. Cruise lines now offer constant activities such as rock wall climbing rather than just lounging by the pool. Sporting events fill breaks in the action at stadiums with music, cheerleader routines or on field-entertainment. If every part of our lives is filled with this stimulation, why should work be any different?
Leaders need to share their excitement for work. If the manager is downtrodden, the workforce will reflect that and the top talent will be looking for the exit door. Exciting leaders encourage excitement in others and create work environments that buzz with excitement. Top talent thrives in top working environments. Great sales people love the excitement of "fresh meat." Give them new clients to work with, new elephant prospects to try to land, keep them in the field and out of meetings. Ask your best people: What adds excitement to your work day? They will let you know how to create a work environment that will keep them.
4. Challenge them regularly.
When I talk about creating challenges I am not referring to constantly giving them higher quotas, or being a manager who is very "challenging" to work with. In fact, those two ways are sure to drive off top talent.
To challenge your top talent, get them involved with problem solving. Not reaching the market share you desired? Ask them what they are seeing in the field. Not maximizing your line efficiency? Don’t ask the engineers to study it -- ask your top operators how to achieve that maximization. Your best people enjoy the challenge of finding answers and want the opportunity to offer ideas and suggestions. When their input is used for innovations, they take ownership and pride and become more linked to your organization as a result.
Another way to challenge your best talent is let them play on pet projects with pay. Top talent is usually thinking many steps ahead, so why not let them do that for you. 3M allows some of their employs to play on projects that are different from their day to day assignments. PostIt Notes, a result of a pet project, became the company’s top selling product. What could your talent be doing for your organization this way?
5. Morph jobs.
Once upon a time people tried to hire employees to fit a pre-molded job description. Today you need to be molding the job to the talent, and let your talent run free!
In front of an audience full of sales people, I asked them what was the worst part of their jobs. Almost as if rehearsed in unison, I heard: Paperwork!
Why do top sales people hate paperwork? Because sales people are people-oriented people, not task-oriented people, and they don't like sitting in a cube. They would rather be in the field bringing down big game than sitting in the office on Fridays pushing papers. Companies are essentially benching their best talent for 20 percent of the week! Hire paper pushers so your top talent goes out and do what they do best -- sell. Morph the job so the company and the employee get the best from their day.
Retaining top talent is critically important in these predatory times. Be sure you are doing what it takes to have them hang up on those trying to poach your people.
Because employees now know they are potential free agents, they are looking for the best package, not just more money. Who are the people you would hate to lose? It's time to use these five best practices for retaining your top talent so they aren't as eager to see if the money is greener on the other side of the fence.
1. Give them a quality team.
Top talent wants to work with other top talent. The best talent wants to be part of a team awash in great talent. Why? Because they know they will be challenged to improve, they know the best coworkers understand how to pull their own weight, and they will respect those they work with.
Your top talent is looking for more top talent, and so should you be, if you want to keep what you currently have.
2. Provide perks they value.
The best expect to be treated that way. Top talent expects to be treated like they matter to an organization. Google is on the fast track, and they know without top talent they can't stay the course. They offer their employees free car washes and oil changes in the parking lot while they are working. Other top talent organizations frequently offer exercise facilities free for use during working hours. They know it keeps the employees alert and fresh and demonstrates that employee health is important.
One executive in one of my audiences told me he provides a break room for his employees. In fact, he proudly offered, "It is a profit center for my company!" I challenged him to consider offering break room contents for free so more profits could appear on the bottom line and not the break room line item. Take care of the people taking care of you!
When I work with Duke University and stay at their R. David Thomas Business Center, I know at the end of the hall is a break room filled with snacks ranging from coffee, to granola bars, to Dove bars in the freezer -- free of charge. It is not abused or raided, but it is appreciated and almost expected. When you are the best, you expect to be treated as such.
3. Keep the job exciting.
This is the biggest challenge for business leaders because it has never been as important to keeping good talent as it is now. Not only are competitors better at making job opportunities sound fantastic, but we are becoming a society where everyone is A.D.D. We constantly are looking for the excitement, the adrenaline rush, or the thrill in our entertainment and our personal lives. Television programs shift the camera angle every 3.4 seconds, on average. Cruise lines now offer constant activities such as rock wall climbing rather than just lounging by the pool. Sporting events fill breaks in the action at stadiums with music, cheerleader routines or on field-entertainment. If every part of our lives is filled with this stimulation, why should work be any different?
Leaders need to share their excitement for work. If the manager is downtrodden, the workforce will reflect that and the top talent will be looking for the exit door. Exciting leaders encourage excitement in others and create work environments that buzz with excitement. Top talent thrives in top working environments. Great sales people love the excitement of "fresh meat." Give them new clients to work with, new elephant prospects to try to land, keep them in the field and out of meetings. Ask your best people: What adds excitement to your work day? They will let you know how to create a work environment that will keep them.
4. Challenge them regularly.
When I talk about creating challenges I am not referring to constantly giving them higher quotas, or being a manager who is very "challenging" to work with. In fact, those two ways are sure to drive off top talent.
To challenge your top talent, get them involved with problem solving. Not reaching the market share you desired? Ask them what they are seeing in the field. Not maximizing your line efficiency? Don’t ask the engineers to study it -- ask your top operators how to achieve that maximization. Your best people enjoy the challenge of finding answers and want the opportunity to offer ideas and suggestions. When their input is used for innovations, they take ownership and pride and become more linked to your organization as a result.
Another way to challenge your best talent is let them play on pet projects with pay. Top talent is usually thinking many steps ahead, so why not let them do that for you. 3M allows some of their employs to play on projects that are different from their day to day assignments. PostIt Notes, a result of a pet project, became the company’s top selling product. What could your talent be doing for your organization this way?
5. Morph jobs.
Once upon a time people tried to hire employees to fit a pre-molded job description. Today you need to be molding the job to the talent, and let your talent run free!
In front of an audience full of sales people, I asked them what was the worst part of their jobs. Almost as if rehearsed in unison, I heard: Paperwork!
Why do top sales people hate paperwork? Because sales people are people-oriented people, not task-oriented people, and they don't like sitting in a cube. They would rather be in the field bringing down big game than sitting in the office on Fridays pushing papers. Companies are essentially benching their best talent for 20 percent of the week! Hire paper pushers so your top talent goes out and do what they do best -- sell. Morph the job so the company and the employee get the best from their day.
Retaining top talent is critically important in these predatory times. Be sure you are doing what it takes to have them hang up on those trying to poach your people.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Rabble Rouser -- Friend or Foe?
Rabble rouser. Pot stirrer. Fly in the ointment. These are some terms used to describe the person in the organization that brings some benefit to the team but by far their disruption to the team far outweighs the benefit they offer. Often times executives want someone to stir the pot and keep people on edge. But are these disruptive forces actually adding to the health of your organization?
This is the person that can be passive-aggressive in meetings, send along flaming emails in the barely veiled disguise of humor, and looks to be the demonstrative non-participant in management team functions. How do you deal with this negative influence?
1. Put it on the table
Flowery language, working through someone else or heaven forbid in a memo are many of the ways people try to avoid having the actual sit down discussion -- and they are all only making things worse for all parties involved. It's best to lay it on the table and put some light on it.
In most cases this individual is having issues with another member of the management team and is trying to cause problems to elevate himself by comparison, is threatened by this other person or is miserable and looking for company. As the leader you need to terminate this disruption and the rippling damage it's doing. One of the unfortunate parts of leadership is the "Hard Talk," and this is the time for a Hard Talk.
Don't mince words, maintain professionalism and talk openly about your point of view. Don't expect the offender to comply. He will squirm, deflect and rationalize. Make it a short conversation stating you are aware of what is going on, site specifics and let him know it doesn’t fit your team. Short and to the point.
2. Act fast
By the time a situation like this reaches the eyes or ears of the executive significant damage has been going on for months. This is why you need to take fast action. The lasting damage cause by a manager that is disruptive to the team is done to the reputation of his boss. Everyone aware of the situation wonders why nothing is being done. I hear employees talk about these situations they witness and ask aloud, "How is this being left to go on?" This is why you must act now to stop further damage not only to the team but to your own reputation.
I know the pace of business, the downsizing that has occurred and the time crunch or every day can all be oppressive to you finding time to deal with this seemingly minor issue. Commonsense says deal with this while it's a minor issue before it gets to be a full-blown crisis. Not to mention, saving the continued disruption you might not even be noticing, but have faith it is there. Waiting for the right time to solve this problem is like waiting for the right time to get back into an exercise program -- there never is a right time other than right now.
3. Keep track of situations
Alone they never seem to amount to much of anything as we all are known to throw a silly comment or a back-handed compliment as a tease. The key to look for is the pattern to the verbal jabs and disruption. "The Kid (who is 32)" "I have underwear older than him" "I've forgotten more than he knows" "I learned through experience, not in the classroom" and, "Guess you learned a lesson from that mistake didn't ya sonnyboy." These pattern over the course of weeks directed to a specific target, and without noting them they might slide by or be brushed off as "He's always that way," unless you are jotting them down when they come up.
With such diverse workforces in every workplace there is plenty of room for misunderstandings, cross words and potential lawsuits caused by these individuals. If you value your team and your career then I encourage you to be looking for the person that is trying to keep your team from being as cohesive as you want them to be.
This is the person that can be passive-aggressive in meetings, send along flaming emails in the barely veiled disguise of humor, and looks to be the demonstrative non-participant in management team functions. How do you deal with this negative influence?
1. Put it on the table
Flowery language, working through someone else or heaven forbid in a memo are many of the ways people try to avoid having the actual sit down discussion -- and they are all only making things worse for all parties involved. It's best to lay it on the table and put some light on it.
In most cases this individual is having issues with another member of the management team and is trying to cause problems to elevate himself by comparison, is threatened by this other person or is miserable and looking for company. As the leader you need to terminate this disruption and the rippling damage it's doing. One of the unfortunate parts of leadership is the "Hard Talk," and this is the time for a Hard Talk.
Don't mince words, maintain professionalism and talk openly about your point of view. Don't expect the offender to comply. He will squirm, deflect and rationalize. Make it a short conversation stating you are aware of what is going on, site specifics and let him know it doesn’t fit your team. Short and to the point.
2. Act fast
By the time a situation like this reaches the eyes or ears of the executive significant damage has been going on for months. This is why you need to take fast action. The lasting damage cause by a manager that is disruptive to the team is done to the reputation of his boss. Everyone aware of the situation wonders why nothing is being done. I hear employees talk about these situations they witness and ask aloud, "How is this being left to go on?" This is why you must act now to stop further damage not only to the team but to your own reputation.
I know the pace of business, the downsizing that has occurred and the time crunch or every day can all be oppressive to you finding time to deal with this seemingly minor issue. Commonsense says deal with this while it's a minor issue before it gets to be a full-blown crisis. Not to mention, saving the continued disruption you might not even be noticing, but have faith it is there. Waiting for the right time to solve this problem is like waiting for the right time to get back into an exercise program -- there never is a right time other than right now.
3. Keep track of situations
Alone they never seem to amount to much of anything as we all are known to throw a silly comment or a back-handed compliment as a tease. The key to look for is the pattern to the verbal jabs and disruption. "The Kid (who is 32)" "I have underwear older than him" "I've forgotten more than he knows" "I learned through experience, not in the classroom" and, "Guess you learned a lesson from that mistake didn't ya sonnyboy." These pattern over the course of weeks directed to a specific target, and without noting them they might slide by or be brushed off as "He's always that way," unless you are jotting them down when they come up.
With such diverse workforces in every workplace there is plenty of room for misunderstandings, cross words and potential lawsuits caused by these individuals. If you value your team and your career then I encourage you to be looking for the person that is trying to keep your team from being as cohesive as you want them to be.
Friday, April 10, 2009
10 Questions to Answer to Make Today a Kick Ass Friday
1. What are the threats in your mind that are holding you back from your potential? (What must you do to control those thoughts?)
2. Who have you mentored today?
3. What motivates the motivator? (That's you!)
4. If you had unlimited resources for your business how would you spend them? (What can you do in those same areas with the resources you have?)
5. What lessons did you learn in your first year as a manager that you never forgot? (Teach them to the people reporting to you.)
6. Who brings the most value to your life? (Tell them and thank them.)
7. What about you is the "differentiator?"
8. What is the source of your fears? (What are you doing to remove those?)
9. What price are you paying for lost effort?
10. What questions should you be asking to grow your business?
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Solve the Problem Not the Symptom
Two mistakes most people make in trying to solve problems:
1. Throwing money at it
2. Trying multiple solutions all at the same time
Executives need to consider the wide-ranging impact of their decisions, as well as, the long-term effects and consequences of those decisions. We find our country in a financial mess because decisions were made years ago without regard to the impact of those choices.
1. Throwing money at a problem doesn't solve the problem
Throwing money at a problem will not solve the cause of the problem. At best, it will only cover up the problem by trying to minimize the impact or money puts a fresh coat of paint on the problem just to make it appear to be better. For years in this country broken business models have been throwing money at the problem and this recession became their "margin call."
Take the auto companies as an example. Instead of figuring out the cars to make for the American public with a cost effective process, they threw money at interruption advertising (that doesn't work) and threw money at a labor force in hopes of making the best vehicle on the road (they aren't.) Now, because of poor business practices they expect the government to throw money at them to solve their problems. Will they ever learn money doesn't fix decision problems? How much will the long term impact of government actions be felt by future generations?
Because of the pace of business executives have to make decisions faster than ever before and the speed with which the business climate is moving makes those decisions have much great impact both long-term and wide ranging.
2. Trying multiple solutions all at the same time won't prevent the problem again.
Ever been in a situation when a panicky boss was breathing down your neck to get a problem fixed in a hurry and you threw everything you know at it just to get him off your back? Fortunately for you, the problem was corrected. Unfortunately for you the problem wasn't solved and will return leaving you to wonder what to do the next time.
In our haste to post positive numbers we have become more focused on fixing the symptoms of the problem and not the cause of the problem. Every time an executive makes the decision for a quick fix, solving the root cause of the problem creation gets buried under the pile of solutions thrown at it simultaneously, and the problem is sure to return. What was learned? What is the long-term impact of the hasty decision? How wide is the impact from not truly solving the problem?
Imagine your high school aged son gets in trouble with the law for marijuana possession. Instead of taking the time to have meaningful conversations with him trying to understand why he felt the need to be involved with that drug and what his decision-making errors were, fear sets in and you want his problem solved once and for all. So, you let him experience some "tough love" jail time, then enroll him in a drug addiction recovery program, set psychologist appointments and have medication prescribed for him to stop him from going down that path again. Get a sense of overkill here? Any idea what "solution" worked? Could you still face a poor decision-making problem down the road since the real cause of the problem was actually missed?
Solving problems means finding the solution that actually prevents the problem from returning. Consider the long-term effect and wide-range impact of your impulse decisions when faced with a problem. You don't want to create bigger problems with your "solutions."
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
3 Ways to Stop Hoarding in the Workplace
When I worked in textiles back in the 80s all the mechanics had a secret stash of parts for the machines they were responsible for. When the Just in Time (JIT) inventory process was implemented, all the mechanics had to clean out their toolbox parts stashes and returned to the main inventory control. Unfortunately, the main inventory was never just in time; in fact, it was rarely in control, and standing equipment was cannibalized for parts.
Because of this scarcity, when inventory arrived mechanics began stashing it again. The result of this mentality was cannibalized equipment that needed almost completely rebuilt to get back in production and inventory was always cleaned out by mechanics and shift supervisors wanting to control their own unofficial inventories.
Whenever there is a shortage of resources, a hoarding mentality takes over. Admin people stash pens, thumb drives and note pads. Mechanics stash parts to keep "their" machines running. Executives hoard bonuses. Banks hoard money to refill their reserves before they want to start lending again. The tale is always the same in the hoarding game.
How do you stop the hoarding?
You stop the hording mentality by stopping the scarcity mentality. When executives' first reaction to recessionary times is to cut staff, expenses, and inventory holdings, everyone gets the impression of scarcity and then adopt an "every man for himself" approach to survival. The negativity runs like a wind-fueled fire through a forest, taking no prisoners and causing tremendous damage.
1. Executives need to find different approaches to dealing with financial instability. Instead of shutting off expenses, they should actually be spending more in the areas of research and cutting-edge marketing approaches.
2. Business leaders not to roll up their sleeves and look for better ways and improved methods to produce instead of having a bean counter under the green eyeshade arbitrarily slashing across-the-board expenses.
3. Give employees something to believe in. If all the executives are demonstrating their impersonation of Chicken Little they will create panic throughout the organization. Panic breeds a mentality of "Me first." "Me First" breeds hoarding. Hoarding breeds even more scarcity that fuels even more panic. Executives need to avoid the spin control whitewashing of bad news with a solid, accurate positive belief and plan in how to face the obstacles brought on by this economy. Pure and simple: Actually be a leader, not just a person in a position of authority.
One of the lasting legacies of this extended recession will be the distrust people have of optimistic trend projections. Although most everyone will welcome positive news, in the back of people's minds who have experienced scarcity, there is always a doubt that will be fed by some level of hoarding. We must handle financial obstacles in businesses with a direct approach that examines all sides. The impact of our decisions are wide ranging and longer-term then is usually considered.
In fact, in tomorrow's blog I will address that very issue.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Living in Beta Times
Gmail turned 5 years old yesterday (and still considered to be in beta testing.)
On September 26, 2006 Facebook was opened to everyone of ages 13 and older with a valid e-mail address. In less than 3 years it now has 175 million users.
Twitter was opened to the public in March of 2006 and is currently growing at 1382%.
The Blackberry smartphone was released in 2002 and now has 21 million subscribers.
Technology is changing how we interact as a society, how we process information and how we think. In other words, we are a completely different society than we were on September 10, 2001. That's not even including the social trauma impact we felt in this country the next day. I'm just looking at the technological impact.
Where are you in the transition of society?
When I hear employers talking about having to adjust to employees having "cell phones" I cringe at how slow they are adopting to the changes going on around them. I have witnessed technology speakers asking their audience members to turn off phones and laptops during their presentations. I see savvy business leaders refusing to blog, get involved in social media online and claim to be cutting edge because they have a static page on LinkedIn.
Business executives in this country need to be using the technology available to them to revamp, retool and reposition their businesses in these dormant economic times. Instead of wring hands and gnashing teeth wondering where the next order is coming from, focus on what this time is presenting you with: the best opportunity to recreate your business without losing significant market share.
Traditionalists moan and wail over the loss of how things were.
People leading organizations at the top of their industries resist change because the are the best at the old rules.
Innovators always create and embrace change because they believe life should never settle into a rut.
It was brought to my attention from a twitter colleague that Gmail is still considered to be in beta testing five years into the process. It got me thinking; as rapid as life is changing, aren't we living in a state of constant beta? With Gmail, facebook and twitter all less than five years old, what changes do the next 5 years have in store for us? Life in beta indeed. Lead the charge to new technology applications or lose customers to those who are.
My view on living is I'd rather have life in beta than life in boring. You can quote me on that.
On September 26, 2006 Facebook was opened to everyone of ages 13 and older with a valid e-mail address. In less than 3 years it now has 175 million users.
Twitter was opened to the public in March of 2006 and is currently growing at 1382%.
The Blackberry smartphone was released in 2002 and now has 21 million subscribers.
Technology is changing how we interact as a society, how we process information and how we think. In other words, we are a completely different society than we were on September 10, 2001. That's not even including the social trauma impact we felt in this country the next day. I'm just looking at the technological impact.
Where are you in the transition of society?
When I hear employers talking about having to adjust to employees having "cell phones" I cringe at how slow they are adopting to the changes going on around them. I have witnessed technology speakers asking their audience members to turn off phones and laptops during their presentations. I see savvy business leaders refusing to blog, get involved in social media online and claim to be cutting edge because they have a static page on LinkedIn.
Business executives in this country need to be using the technology available to them to revamp, retool and reposition their businesses in these dormant economic times. Instead of wring hands and gnashing teeth wondering where the next order is coming from, focus on what this time is presenting you with: the best opportunity to recreate your business without losing significant market share.
Traditionalists moan and wail over the loss of how things were.
People leading organizations at the top of their industries resist change because the are the best at the old rules.
Innovators always create and embrace change because they believe life should never settle into a rut.
It was brought to my attention from a twitter colleague that Gmail is still considered to be in beta testing five years into the process. It got me thinking; as rapid as life is changing, aren't we living in a state of constant beta? With Gmail, facebook and twitter all less than five years old, what changes do the next 5 years have in store for us? Life in beta indeed. Lead the charge to new technology applications or lose customers to those who are.
My view on living is I'd rather have life in beta than life in boring. You can quote me on that.
Monday, April 6, 2009
It's Time for Information Marketing
The NEW economy will bring drastic shifts in marketing. Are you preparing for the new business model? Your competition is and you are the one who should be setting the standard for others to follow. Get in front of the curve.
Permission marketing is replacing the outdated mode of interruption marketing. Interruption marketing are radio, TV and print media ads that interrupt what you are listening, watching and reading. The effectiveness of such ads are reducing, and technology is offering ways around them. The cost has always been prohibitive for the small business owner but online informational marketing is the perfect fit of information and price.
Online is driving the permission marketing model and in the online world we live in, businesses need to be jumping at the opportunities to create space for themselves in the "netiverse".
Be the Informant
The buying public has reached overload on spin control commercials and news. Cynicism is the default setting all information must filter through. At the first sign of disingenuous information, that information is filed in the Spam folder and long forgotten. Be the distributor of information they learn to trust, respect and desire. You become their informant on the narrow slice of your expertise.
Then what information gets through to the consumer is information that is rich in content, sincerity and has something of value for the reader. When you create a steady source of this information, consumers give you the permission to send it to them, thus turning interruption marketing to permission marketing. No longer are they rejecting what they receive from you but welcoming it. To be honest they aren't going to read everything you send either, but at least you know something is getting through.
Start your blog today
As dated as this may sound to some readers; business owners, CEOs and presidents need to be blogging on the focus of their businesses. If you run a bank, blog on lending. Write about how customers can get loans approved, increase their credit scores and manage debt. If you own an equipment rental store, write about creative uses for the equipment you rent, have how to's to make difficult jobs easier, and what are the best tools for the best jobs. Whatever business you run or own, take a narrow slice and blog your brain dry on that topic. Then research to refill your brain for more information to share with consumers of your products. You want to be who they come back to time and time again.
People want to be informed without the spin or over sell and they are going to do business with who knows what they are talking about. Forget the interruption ads, and get with establishing an information conduit that can be trusted. That's the marketing model for the NEW economy.
Permission marketing is replacing the outdated mode of interruption marketing. Interruption marketing are radio, TV and print media ads that interrupt what you are listening, watching and reading. The effectiveness of such ads are reducing, and technology is offering ways around them. The cost has always been prohibitive for the small business owner but online informational marketing is the perfect fit of information and price.
Online is driving the permission marketing model and in the online world we live in, businesses need to be jumping at the opportunities to create space for themselves in the "netiverse".
Be the Informant
The buying public has reached overload on spin control commercials and news. Cynicism is the default setting all information must filter through. At the first sign of disingenuous information, that information is filed in the Spam folder and long forgotten. Be the distributor of information they learn to trust, respect and desire. You become their informant on the narrow slice of your expertise.
Then what information gets through to the consumer is information that is rich in content, sincerity and has something of value for the reader. When you create a steady source of this information, consumers give you the permission to send it to them, thus turning interruption marketing to permission marketing. No longer are they rejecting what they receive from you but welcoming it. To be honest they aren't going to read everything you send either, but at least you know something is getting through.
Start your blog today
As dated as this may sound to some readers; business owners, CEOs and presidents need to be blogging on the focus of their businesses. If you run a bank, blog on lending. Write about how customers can get loans approved, increase their credit scores and manage debt. If you own an equipment rental store, write about creative uses for the equipment you rent, have how to's to make difficult jobs easier, and what are the best tools for the best jobs. Whatever business you run or own, take a narrow slice and blog your brain dry on that topic. Then research to refill your brain for more information to share with consumers of your products. You want to be who they come back to time and time again.
People want to be informed without the spin or over sell and they are going to do business with who knows what they are talking about. Forget the interruption ads, and get with establishing an information conduit that can be trusted. That's the marketing model for the NEW economy.
Friday, April 3, 2009
10 Things to Do to Make Today Kick Ass Friday
1. Take action on something that has been sitting on your desk all week. Make it happen!
2. You know that crap that is piling up on your desk? File it, delegate it or throw it away.
3. Write one Job Well Done (JWD) note to an employee and mail the handwritten note to their home address. You will make their week next week, I promise.
4. Set one Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) to get done by the end of this quarter. I mean BIG!
5. Call your buddies and plan a cookout for Saturday night and party like there is no tomorrow.
6. Now you have a party to look forward to. Get your ass back to work and focus -- HARD!
7. Pick one employee to energize. Ask them insightful questions about their career and show you care, and want to help them succeed.
8. Forget a heavy lunch today. Take a brisk walk for an hour then eat an apple with peanut butter at your desk.
9. Notice you missed your post-lunch coma? Great! Be more productive than you thought possible on a Friday afternoon.
10. Call a customer or client just to wish them a great weekend and let them know how pumped you are about your job.
2. You know that crap that is piling up on your desk? File it, delegate it or throw it away.
3. Write one Job Well Done (JWD) note to an employee and mail the handwritten note to their home address. You will make their week next week, I promise.
4. Set one Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) to get done by the end of this quarter. I mean BIG!
5. Call your buddies and plan a cookout for Saturday night and party like there is no tomorrow.
6. Now you have a party to look forward to. Get your ass back to work and focus -- HARD!
7. Pick one employee to energize. Ask them insightful questions about their career and show you care, and want to help them succeed.
8. Forget a heavy lunch today. Take a brisk walk for an hour then eat an apple with peanut butter at your desk.
9. Notice you missed your post-lunch coma? Great! Be more productive than you thought possible on a Friday afternoon.
10. Call a customer or client just to wish them a great weekend and let them know how pumped you are about your job.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Someone Didn't Just Move My Cheese, They Stole It!
On a rainy day between speaking trips I try to catch up on my backlog of business books. Some are to reread and refresh my mind on the material and others are ones I've been meaning to get to. This morning I realized while surfing through the stack, some of these books that were written five years ago read like they were written 20 years ago.
Knowing how to pitch stories to get into newspapers...
Networking ideas that don't include social media...
Information becomes out dated so quickly these days that someone didn't just move my cheese, they stole it!
To keep up with the pace of business you need to be in constant contact with resources for news, information and current ideology for the workplace. The question used to be, "How many books do you read a year?" More importantly, how many books, blogs and online articles are you reading weekly? This is the only way to stay current on your leadership and executive knowledge and information.
Favorites
You need to be bookmarking blogs (like this one) and websites that you find to be a continuous flow of good information. Better yet set up an RSS feed so that information comes directly to you. Weekly, you need to set aside an hour to explore new information avenues to find even more places to add to your online favorites. Keeping up with the flow of information is the key to knowing where the world is turning and how you need to be proactive to such changes. They say once it's in the news its already happened but that news item can give you insight on the next proactive step.
Groups and social media
Every Monday evening I participate in a group gathering to talk about the meeting industry and how things are changing and how we should structure our businesses based on those new trends. This is a multi-national online meeting and approaches the industry from all angles. Imagine a business after hours cocktail hour every Monday evening with an international feel. The information flows, new contacts are made and serious topics are handled. This is fresh information live.
I've become a twitter addict (add me @GrowthSolutions) and every other week, those people locally I tweet with, gather for a lunch to talk about social media. This information exchange always has a specific topic of discussion and it always surrounds how we make emerging technology work for our businesses. Every lunch I am able to strengthen relationships with very knowledgeable people whose information helps my business.
It's time to amp the learning curve to take it active, to take it daily, to take it serious. Leadership must be well informed to be able to lead.
Knowing how to pitch stories to get into newspapers...
Networking ideas that don't include social media...
Information becomes out dated so quickly these days that someone didn't just move my cheese, they stole it!
To keep up with the pace of business you need to be in constant contact with resources for news, information and current ideology for the workplace. The question used to be, "How many books do you read a year?" More importantly, how many books, blogs and online articles are you reading weekly? This is the only way to stay current on your leadership and executive knowledge and information.
Favorites
You need to be bookmarking blogs (like this one) and websites that you find to be a continuous flow of good information. Better yet set up an RSS feed so that information comes directly to you. Weekly, you need to set aside an hour to explore new information avenues to find even more places to add to your online favorites. Keeping up with the flow of information is the key to knowing where the world is turning and how you need to be proactive to such changes. They say once it's in the news its already happened but that news item can give you insight on the next proactive step.
Groups and social media
Every Monday evening I participate in a group gathering to talk about the meeting industry and how things are changing and how we should structure our businesses based on those new trends. This is a multi-national online meeting and approaches the industry from all angles. Imagine a business after hours cocktail hour every Monday evening with an international feel. The information flows, new contacts are made and serious topics are handled. This is fresh information live.
I've become a twitter addict (add me @GrowthSolutions) and every other week, those people locally I tweet with, gather for a lunch to talk about social media. This information exchange always has a specific topic of discussion and it always surrounds how we make emerging technology work for our businesses. Every lunch I am able to strengthen relationships with very knowledgeable people whose information helps my business.
It's time to amp the learning curve to take it active, to take it daily, to take it serious. Leadership must be well informed to be able to lead.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Strap on the Horse Blinders
The good thing is we can have access to all the information available in the world through internet technology. The bad thing is we can have all the information available in the world through internet technology.
How do you focus? We are like a 10 year old in a toy store with a moving van and unlimited cash -- we want to grab all we can. For some it's the personal stuff like gaming, self help and chatrooms. For others its sports pools, polls, fantasy updates and instant news as if you could almost smell the locker room. Then you have the news junkies, the TV/movie junkies, the foodies, well you get the drift.
To use this wonderful tool without letting it take us off task, derail our momentum or cost us productivity we have to focus like never before. Set up a few rules for yourself.
1. Avoid Bright Shiny Objects
It is so easy to find the new and cool and chase those bright shiny objects that will take you far off course. If you see something in your internet travels that really grabs your attention bookmark it for a later visit. Set up your bookmark folders for personal and work related distractions but, don't forget they are all distractions from the task at hand.
2. Social Networking
The growth of sites such as facebook and twitter and all the apps that can overwhelm your desktop can keep you in a constant stream of information and updates from friends and followers, not to mention the links to stories and related information. As much as I love these tools, I find myself losing hours at a stretch when I get sucked into online conversations and threads of discussions. Either find the discipline to participate only on a work related level or turn it off until you have recreation time to participate. For home-based businesses I see these sites as killing productivity under the guise of business networking. Monitor your social networking time.
3. Email monitoring
With my blackberry, google groups, twitter and facebook activities I am getting roughly 300 emails a day. This becomes an overwhelming flow of information that makes it impossible to focus if I feel each new email must be checked. Set aside times to check in to monitor your email. If it is that critical for an immediate response you would've received a phone call. Email can sit until you finish your train of thought, project or meeting.
I have no issue being disconnected while delivering a program for a client because I know my presentation would be awful if I kept stopping to check email, respond to a tweet or post something on facebook. The flow of work at your job is just the same. Work to build momentum, and if need be, put on horse blinders so you can focus and really get meaningful work accomplished.
How do you focus? We are like a 10 year old in a toy store with a moving van and unlimited cash -- we want to grab all we can. For some it's the personal stuff like gaming, self help and chatrooms. For others its sports pools, polls, fantasy updates and instant news as if you could almost smell the locker room. Then you have the news junkies, the TV/movie junkies, the foodies, well you get the drift.
To use this wonderful tool without letting it take us off task, derail our momentum or cost us productivity we have to focus like never before. Set up a few rules for yourself.
1. Avoid Bright Shiny Objects
It is so easy to find the new and cool and chase those bright shiny objects that will take you far off course. If you see something in your internet travels that really grabs your attention bookmark it for a later visit. Set up your bookmark folders for personal and work related distractions but, don't forget they are all distractions from the task at hand.
2. Social Networking
The growth of sites such as facebook and twitter and all the apps that can overwhelm your desktop can keep you in a constant stream of information and updates from friends and followers, not to mention the links to stories and related information. As much as I love these tools, I find myself losing hours at a stretch when I get sucked into online conversations and threads of discussions. Either find the discipline to participate only on a work related level or turn it off until you have recreation time to participate. For home-based businesses I see these sites as killing productivity under the guise of business networking. Monitor your social networking time.
3. Email monitoring
With my blackberry, google groups, twitter and facebook activities I am getting roughly 300 emails a day. This becomes an overwhelming flow of information that makes it impossible to focus if I feel each new email must be checked. Set aside times to check in to monitor your email. If it is that critical for an immediate response you would've received a phone call. Email can sit until you finish your train of thought, project or meeting.
I have no issue being disconnected while delivering a program for a client because I know my presentation would be awful if I kept stopping to check email, respond to a tweet or post something on facebook. The flow of work at your job is just the same. Work to build momentum, and if need be, put on horse blinders so you can focus and really get meaningful work accomplished.
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