September 30, 2009 - Is Short Term or Long Term More Important?

Main Idea

What were you thinking when you got engaged?  Was the time period the next 60 days or did you think about the rest of your life?  When you started your current job or started your business, was your time horizon two weeks or ten years? 

Expansion of Idea

The current economy dictates that we watch the business and legal environment very carefully.  We have to manage carefully cash and debt and receivables and a lot of different things that are very short term focused.  The main problem is that we can be consumed with the tyranny of the urgent.  We lose sight of where we are going.  Or we lose sight of our employees or customers.  We have to balance our short-term focus with a long-term view. 

Last fall there were a number of fashion shops that cut their prices and probably forever destroyed their brand.  Yet, Giorgio Armani completed a brand new store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.  This store probably cost $40,000,000 to complete on one of the most expensive retail locations in the world.  This was also in a town that was decimated by the stock market crash.  Mr. Armani might be completely nuts, but he was quoted “An entrepreneur shows his true colors in a period of crisis, not in a period when everybody is having success.  Understand that the investments that I made in this store I will probably not get back for twenty to twenty-five years.”    He was 74 at the time.  This might be an extremely long-term view. 

How many companies cut employees and then training budgets when faced with cash flow problems.  Employees are expected to handle more without the right training.  Major companies cut research and development in these times.  What they really have cut is their future.  With all of the upheaval in business, you are determining your future right now.

Start by Asking Yourself these Questions:

1. What is critical for you to do now to insure your future?

2. Do you have a plan for investing in the future?

3. Have you cut service levels? 

4. Should you add service?

September 23, 2009 - Are You Serving Your Employees?

Main Idea

How far should a serving leader go to please their employees? What do your employees want? When was the last time you asked them if their needs were being met? Happy employees are more productive, profitable, employees.

Expansion of Idea

The majority of leaders in companies feel like the employees should be serving the leader’s needs. After all, you’re the boss, right? Well, it’s been proven that companies that align the needs of their employees with the company’s needs have a better retention rate of both employees and customers than those companies that do not. Southwest Airlines has shown this continually by putting their workers first. Employees of the airline are given freedom to work in groups without supervision, and their personal uniqueness and sense of humor is highly valued. Because of this, the airline has been profitable every year since 1972. They have also received numerous awards on the quality of their customer service. Happy employees make happy customers. By focusing on the employees and their needs, the company has helped cement customer loyalty. 

What do your people want? Every person, regardless of position, wants to be valued and to have their voice heard. Maybe a certain strength, passion, or talent is being left untapped. There could be many simple ways to meet your employee’s needs that could improve your company culture, but you won’t know for sure how well you are doing so unless you ask them.

Start by Asking Yourself these Questions:

1. How often do you ask if employee’s needs are being met?

2. Do your employees have the tools they need to do the job?

3. Do your employees have the training they need to do the job?

September 16, 2009 - Are You Serving Your Business?

Main Idea

What is the purpose of a leader?  When was the last time you saw a leader really serve his followers and organization?  Or do the followers exist to serve the leader?

Expansion of Idea

I was watching a Fox News program the other day regarding the situation in Honduras.  They were interviewing the interim president about his role.  The previous president was deposed by their Supreme Court and military because he was trying to become like Chavez in Venezuela.  He was going to be president for life.  This went against the Honduras constitution and therefore he was forcibly kicked out of the country.  They have a rule that the president can only serve for one term because they know that there is a tendency to embrace the power.  The key point here is that the leader should be there to serve the country instead of the country there to serve him. 

The same is true for business.  Have you ever worked for someone who focused on helping you with your job and your life?  You probably worked harder, were more effective and were much happier with your life.  Everyone wins.  The problem is that life gets in the way and leaders have a hard time staying focused on helping their coworkers.  It takes a constant reminder about what we are supposed to be doing and why are we doing that.  This is also true about our responsibilities to our coworkers and bosses.  We can be servant leaders to our bosses and to our fellow workers.  This is not about just helping those who report to us.  This is a mindset for how to live our lives.  Remember “Power Corrupts.  Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.” 

Start by Asking Yourself One Question:

ARE YOU A SERVANT LEADER OR A SELF-SERVING LEADER?

September 2, 2009 - What Are Your Priorities?

Main Idea

Do you have a clear idea of what you need to get done every day to succeed?  What do you have to focus on?  What are the critical areas that you need to work on but don’t have the time?  Have you gotten away from your core responsibilities because life has gotten in the way?

Expansion of Idea

My first job in high school was working in an Italian restaurant named “Luigi’s”.  There were four locations and they had the best pizza.  (Yes, it was thin crust.)  This was a normal restaurant that even had a huge banquet facility.  It was always busy, especially on Friday and Saturday.  The owner never really associated himself with any part of the operations because he had people to handle those things.  I remember a few times such as New Year’s Eve where the kitchen would get really backed up.  On those rare occasions when things were really a mess, he would come down from the office and help the pizza line.  I always thought it was strange that would be his focus. In reality, it made perfect sense.  That was his signature dish.  He could survive if the steaks were bad.  He could survive if the lasagna was bad.  He could not survive if the pizza quality and times were not outstanding.  He always checked with Willie the Pizza Guy whenever he came into the building.  His priorities always reverted to the pizza line.  He had a great business for many years because of the laser like focus on his number one priority.  (Ultimately, he failed because he got on the wrong side of the IRS and the Department of Labor.  Not a good combination.) 

Most of us get sidetracked by life and we tend to lose sight of what is important in our businesses.  This leads to a gradual deterioration in the business.  What do you need to do to get those back in your consciousness? 

Start by Asking Yourself these Questions:

1. What are my priorities in business?

2. Are you focused on the priorities?

3. What do you need to do differently today to get back in alignment?

August 26, 20090 - Do You Have Enough Resources?

Main Idea

Who wonders if they have enough resources to survive the current economy?  Where do you get new leads for business?  How do you fix some of the problems in your businesses?  Do you look outside your business for the solutions?

Expansion of Idea

Do you remember the TV show “MacGyver”?  If you have never seen it, MacGyver gets stuck in life and death situations in every episode.  There is no possible way of getting out of the problem.  You or I would die.  But MacGyver takes a look at the situation and sees what he does have.  He then saves the day with what he does have.  He does not worry about his lack of resources. 

I was reminded of this recently and I thought it would apply to us.  All of us have different issues in our workplaces.  Our old models may not work today.  Or we may not have enough resources to try to get new customers.  Or we may not know how to find the new customers.  But we do have:

• Our existing customers and employees. 

• Our experience. 

• Friends and family members to bounce ideas off. 

• Knowledge of the business.

• Potential customers that are more open to new ways

• American ingenuity.  (Throw in apple pie, mom and Chevrolet.

We have been incredibly blessed and we need to focus on the blessings and not on the shortfalls.  

 “If you can keep your wits about you while all others are losing theirs, and blaming you. . . . The world will be yours and everything in it, what's more, you'll be a man, my son.”  By Rudyard Kipling

Start by Asking Yourself these Questions:

1. What do you have that is working?

2. What did you do when you were getting started in business that you are no longer doing?

3. What is the number one thing you should be working on that you are not working on?

August 5, 2009 - Have You Asked the Extra Question?

Main Idea

Have you ever played Monopoly?  Have you ever spent your last $400 on a property and then on the next turn another player puts up hotels in an area that you are going to go through?  Would you have wiped out your cash if you knew that they were going to do that?

Expansion of Idea

Information is power.  Making informed decisions is the key to helping our businesses move forward.  We can never know the future.  But we can try to know the facts as they exist now.  The main question to consider is how are you making decisions?  What information is being used by you in adjusting your pricing, evaluating employees, or deciding on business strategy?  How accurate is it?  Is it the best source for making the decisions? 

More information will continue to come out about the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme.  But already we have seen some investors who chose not to invest with him and others who chose to put their life savings with him.  What is the difference between the two?   There are sophisticated investors who didn’t invest and sophisticated investors who did.  The key difference between the two is probably the extra question or extra step in evaluating the information.  The investors who did not invest probably learned enough to realize that there were no controls on Madoff.  They decided that if they could not be sure of the information, they did not want to make the investment.  That saved them a lot of time, money and aggravation. 

The current business environment requires that we reevaluate how we make our decisions and also what information is being used.  It is critical that we go back to basics and look at the information to make sure it is accurate, appropriate and timely.

Areas to Start:

1. Make a list of your key pieces of information.

2. Test it and make sure it is accurate

3. Brainstorm with your team to see if it is measuring what you need.

July 16, 2009 - Are You Afraid to Have Honest Conversations?

Main Idea

Do you like asking uncomfortable questions?  Are you afraid of telling someone that they may be wrong?  What was your reaction the last time someone who worked with you asked you a potentially embarrassing question?

Expansion of Idea

I was reading an article last night and a phrase that was used really stuck with me.  The phrase was “a culture of courageous conversations.”  Most of us do not do well with criticism or suggestions on how to improve.  Yet in the current environment, we have to constantly look for ways to improve.  A critical way of doing that is to create a culture where people can speak and not be afraid of repercussions.  How much business are we losing because someone identified a problem or a better way of doing things but was afraid of telling a boss or coworker? 

Sometimes it can be difficult to confront an employee who is doing something wrong. Or maybe you do not want to stick your neck out with an off the wall idea that might be a much better way of doing something.  Bigger companies have huge political problems with everyone trying to not offend anyone higher than them.  But this affects smaller companies in much the same way.  You may like your coworker, but the fact that they are chewing gum when they talk to customers creates problems with customers.  Creating a culture of courageous conversations can overcome a lot of performance issues because they can be identified and fixed.  People can learn to help others with everyone knowing that we are just trying to create a great organization.

Areas to Start:

1. Call a team meeting and see if they feel they can talk openly about problems. 

2. Apologize for your handling of situations in the past and ask for ways to improve the handling of problems in the future. 

3. Focus strictly on the culture.  The problem solving will come later.  Look for systems that can help the identification of problems and suggestions.

July 1, 2009 - Happy Mutual Interdependence Day!!

Main Idea

Is Independence Day a good idea?  Do you truly want to be completely independent and not rely on anyone else?  Can you have a business when you are the sales person, the production person, the bookkeeper, the janitor and the customer service person?  What happens when you are sick?

Expansion of Idea

On July 4th, we celebrate our nation’s independence.  That is a great thing.  Most of us are proud to be Americans.  We are not perfect but we try to do the right thing.  It is good that we have our freedom to worship God in the manner that we would like.  We have freedom of speech.  We have a truly great theoretical system.  (The actual system is less than perfect, but no system is perfect.)  But independence should not be the end goal of our society. 

Five years ago, through a series of coincidences, mismanagement on my part and just plain bad timing, I was left at my office with one employee (Stacey) and she primarily worked during tax season.  This left a two to three-month period where I was the only one in the office.  I was independent, but for some reason I felt more tied down than at any other time being in business for myself.  I was in control but it was hard getting work done.  It wasn’t much fun.  And I did not have a business.  Instead I had a job.  I now have a much better team that helps me service clients.  Or is it that I help them service clients?  I am dependent on them, but they are dependent on me. 

Mutual interdependence is where we should actually aim.  We are social creatures and we need social interaction.  Businesses do not need 20 isolated employees but a finely tuned team of 20 people that can work together to serve their customers.  We can accomplish so much more when we use our individual gifts and abilities in conjunction with our coworkers to really help our customers or society.  HAPPY MUTUAL INTERDEPENDENCE DAY!!!! 

Areas to Look At

1. Make a list of who is dependent on you

2. Make a list of who you are dependent on.

3. Make notes on how you can strengthen those relationships and the systems

4. Read Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, especially the 4th, 5th, and 6th habits. 

June 10, 2009 - Do You Have an Action Plan?

Main Idea

Does your organization have a business plan?  Is it something your banker required or you put together when you started the company?  Or is it a living, breathing action plan that helps guide you and your decisions?  Has it changed in the recent economy? How prepared were you for the recession?

Expansion of Idea

Most companies draft a business plan when they start or when they are required to by their bank.  They are a laborious chore that only an obsessive- compulsive, anal accountant could love.  As a result, most people miss the big benefit of the plan.  It is an outline of what you are going to do.  It summarizes your reason for being, your goals, your operations and how you will determine if you get there.  Having the plan keeps everyone focused on the big picture and how their job fits in.  By having a plan, everyone can see what is needed to achieve the organizational goals. 

A business plan generally consists of the following plans: strategic, operational, management, employee, marketing, financial, technology and production plan.  Obviously, each business is different and some of these pieces are not as important as others and there are some additional pieces in some organizations.  A solid business plan contains reachable goals and the steps to get there. It should be adjusted once a year to include new goals. Your company’s plan must be based on core values and your mission statement. Use the vision and enthusiasm you had when starting your company to prepare your business and employees to get it there.

The most important thing to do once your plan is in place is to make it happen. Just do something. The government had a plan to turn around the economy. Whether you agree or disagree with the choices, they are following through. Your points of action may or may not always work, but it is important to continue to reach for the goals. Envision what your company will become in 5 or 10 years and set the stage appropriately for that vision to become reality. The business plan helps you get started on the right direction and periodically redirects you back to the right direction. 

Areas to Start:

1. Revisit your old, dusty business plan.

2. Evaluate what part is working.

3. Brainstorm on what isn’t working.

4. Convert the formal business plan into an action plan with specific, reachable goals.

May 20, 2009 - Do You Have a Culture of Trust and Honesty?

Main Idea

Has your trust in institutions been rattled over the last year? Do you still have trust in your bank? Do your employees trust that you are making good decisions? Are you being transparent in order to earn your employees trust?

Expansion of Idea

As humans, we are born as trusting beings. We rely heavily on our parents as small infants to protect us and provide us the necessities to grow. In the same light, your employees rely on you to provide direction, feedback, and security. In the past year, millions of Americans have weathered lay-offs, scandals, and bankruptcy. There’s no question that those people have lost trust.

As business owners, it is your responsibility to strengthen the trust relationship between yourself and your clients, employees, and vendors. Your business cannot survive if your motives and priorities are questioned by those that deal with you regularly. If you develop a reputation for being honest, you will be setting the example for your employees, especially those not holding a management position.

Typically, the people working on the front lines have information about customer or process problems that executives may not see. But if those people do not feel they can be honest and upfront, the problems will continue to go unnoticed-at least to upper management.

To avoid this scenario, executives need to be especially transparent. Admitting your mistakes to your team will encourage them to do so as well. Allow your company to have an open line of communication so that employees do not feel that their job is in jeopardy if they mess up. If you are approached by someone who confesses to making a mistake, show empathy for their courage to speak up and thank them.

Creating a culture of honesty can, at times, prove to be a challenge. Prepare yourself and management for unpleasant conversations that may come up. Being transparent in business can be difficult, but also rewarding, as the people surround you improve their working relationships.

Areas to Start:

1. Tell the truth!

2. Encourage employees to be honest.

3. Read Crucial Conversations to learn how to deal with uncomfortable situations.

April 22, 2009 - Do You Need a "Timeout"?

Main Idea

Have you ever seen a two year old child completely out of control?  Have you seen small business owners out of control?  Are decisions being made clearly based on the best information available.

Expansion of Idea

When life is out of control, it is hard to make good decisions.  When a toddler is out of control, the only thing that really works is for them to be by themselves in “timeout”.  They may scream and cry for a while, but they normally get themselves back under control in a fairly short period of time.  Why is that?  I am not going to pretend to be a child psychologist, but I think kids need time by themselves without external influences. 

As adults, we are not much different.  We need to have time to plan and digest information.  Steven Covey calls this time Quadrant II.  This is time spent on important but not urgent matters.  This could be strategic planning, customer analysis, or employee coaching.  The agenda for the first time should be to develop ideas to follow up on in future timeouts. We tend to avoid this type of time because we focus on urgent.  In fact, in the current economic times, the urgent hijacks our time, energy and money.  A lot of small business owners are not much different than a two year-old.  We are trying to run our businesses, but are completely out of control emotionally because we do not have a practice of “TIMEOUT”. 

Area to Start

1. Schedule time for you and yourself to meet. Put it on the calendar.

2. Set follow up meetings to insure that this becomes a habit.

3. Set time to meet with key management members or advisors.

January 21, 2009 - What is Your Vision?

"Alice:. thank you, but- but I just wanted to ask you which way I ought to go.
Cheshire Cat: Well, that depends on where you want to get to.
Alice: Oh, it really doesn't matter,
Cheshire Cat: Then it really doesn't matter which way you go!"

From Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Main Idea

Do you need glasses for your business?  Can you see where your business needs to go?  Or are you in the middle of Interstate 55 in central Illinois in the middle of a snowstorm?  Why was Barack Obama elected versus John McCain?

Expansion of Idea

Vision is critical for us to see and explore the world.  When we can’t see properly the world is fuzzy and if not corrected ultimately leads to mistakes and problems because we stumble over an obstacle.  There is more to it than just seeing clearly.  When untreated, we can get headaches and other illnesses because some part of our body isn’t working right. 

The same is true for our businesses.  When we can’t see the future and where we are going, our whole organization can suffer.  Right now, it is incredibly hard to imagine what is going to happen in the business environment.  But that does not mean that we should not have a vision of how we want our businesses to operate.  Too many of us are like Alice.  We have not clearly thought through where we want our businesses to be.  By clearly identifying where we want to go, our path there and how we will operate, we are well on our way.  Too many of us have our heads down with the current economy and are just dodging issues instead of focusing on the bigger picture and determining if there are better opportunities.  Whenever there are major changes in the business environment, there are huge opportunities.  It doesn’t mean that they will pay off immediately, but it does mean that we can run better businesses. 

Suggested Areas to Start

1. Describe how you see your business or your part of the business to a coworker, partner, spouse, customer or anyone off the street.

2. Ask for feedback.  Is it clear? 

3. Keep redoing the above steps until you have a clear vision.  Then communicate it.

January 14, 2009 - Harrison the Hedgehog

Main Idea

Does your company have a mascot? If it did, what would be chosen to symbolize your organization? What are some characteristics of your business that could be represented by an animal? Why do you suppose our firm chose a hedgehog to join our team and be a symbol of our business?

Expansion of Idea

Jim Collins, Author of Good to Great, has popularized a principle called “The Hedgehog Concept”. This concept explains how companies, who were good solid companies, transformed themselves to great companies.  All of the companies that he researched established this strategy which clearly identified three areas.  Those areas are what they can be the best in the world at, what they are passionate about, and what drives their economic engine. Jim Collins based his concept on the ideas of Sir Isaiah Berlin who wrote an essay titled, “The Hedgehog and the Fox”, which tells a story of a cunning fox, who day in and day out stalks the hedgehog just waiting for the right time to pounce. He attempts many different strategies, but no matter what he tries, the simple hedgehog has only one defense to protect himself. He curls up into a ball and points his spikes in all directions, at which time the fox realizes he cannot win. Berlin based his essay on the ancient Greek parable, “The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.” Princeton professor Marvin Bressler pointed out the power of the hedgehog when he said, “You want to know what separates those who make the biggest impact from all the others who are just as smart? They’re hedgehogs.”

You may have seen changes in FitzGerald & FitzGerald over the past five years.  We are getting closer and closer to our hedgehog concept.  (I hope.) The key point is that as you get closer to that point, you will be providing better and better service and you should be running a significantly improved business.  We are not chasing every piece of business.  We are focused on the customers that we can really help.

Suggested Areas to Start

1. Email Heather to see a picture of Harrison the hedgehog.  Or, stop by to see him in person.

2. Read the book “Good to Great” (I know I have recommended this before.)

3. Schedule a planning retreat to discover your hedgehog concept.

4. Analyze your business with your team to determine what your true strengths are, what you are passionate about and where you are making money.

January 7, 2009 - What is Your Strategy?

Main Idea

What are you good at?  Can your business or organization be the best in the world at something?  What is it?  Or do you just need to survive?  Should you sell anything at any price just to make a couple of dollars?  What do you think about a company like Macy’s?  What is it, a department store or a discounter? 

Expansion of Idea

Over the holidays, I went into Macy’s at West County Mall to return some clothes for my son.  The number of people in the mall and in Macy’s was overwhelming.  I do not normally go through the newspaper ads and I did not realize that they were having sales at such low prices.  It seemed like all of the clothing displays had signs saying 50-70% off.  And I think there were some additional savings if you used the Macy’s card.  The store has gone from a place where you could get nice things at a reasonable price to a pure discounter.  It seems like most stores have not figured out where they add value and, therefore, they can only compete on price.  Unless you are Wal-Mart and are set up to compete on price, this is a doomed strategy. 

Most of us have not done the hard work in evaluating our businesses and determining the key areas to focus on.  Until we get this right, we are going to continually lose market share, profits will evaporate, and we will see problems creep up in unusual places.  We need to ask ourselves what we can be the best at in the world.  What changes need to happen to accomplish that?  (Next week I will introduce a couple of other things to consider as you move down this path.)

Suggested Areas to Start

1. Ask yourself these questions:

   • What is your business?

   • Who are you serving?

   • Are you really good or just average?

   • Can you improve?

2. Read the book “Good to Great”

December 3, 2008 - What are Your Company's Inconsistencies?

Main Idea

How often have you gone into a supposedly nice restaurant that has paper placemats?  Or have you gone into a home improvement store that does not have some basic things like normal light bulbs?  Or you call a company that allegedly has great customer service and you have to wait 15 minutes on hold?

Expansion of Idea

All of us have seen instances where there is a huge disconnect between the business’ stated policies or marketing brand and the reality of the business.  You have probably gone into businesses that have a formal mission statement on the wall in the entrance area.  It says that the purpose is to serve the customer and then you have to wait 25 minutes for your appointment.  (At least you have plenty of time to read the mission statement.) 

I recently decided to clean up my own firm by eliminating audit services. This was a remnant of being a compliance-oriented CPA firm.  The core of my business is to help clients with financial statements, tax returns, and information systems for decision making. The audits were inconsistent with providing the consulting and advisory services that compose the majority of my business.    It sent the wrong messages to my team and to my customers.  I want my team to focus on helping small business clients. 

Only when we truly specialize can we really serve our clients.  The problem is that we tend to hold onto the past.  This prevents us from embracing the future.  Spend some time looking for inconsistencies in your business.  Decide what you can change and then do it.

Action Items

1. Ask your spouse.  You will get an honest answer.

2. Ask your team.

3. Ask your customers.

4. Observe how you do business.

November 20, 2008 - Activity Brings Results

Main Idea

How often does business just appear on your doorstep? Do people come looking for your services? Do your clients pay you before you bill them? When is the last time you contacted your clients, just to check in? Do you think touching base might create the result of more business?

Expansion of Idea

Activity brings results. Depending on the activity, the results may or may not be what you had intended. In 1982, a man named Larry strapped himself to a lawn chair with 45 weather balloons attached with the intent of floating 30 feet above ground, whereupon, his plan was to use his pellet gun to deflate the balloons to slowly descent back to Earth. After his buddies untied the lawn chair, Larry shot up to 16,000 feet, beer and sandwiches in hand, right in the line of planes landing at Los Angeles airport. Larry was stuck for 14 hours before he gained the courage to shoot the balloons. On his way down he was tangled in power lines. He eventually made it back down safely, at which point, he was arrested. Probably not the result he was aiming for, but his activity sure brought forth a consequence. In all of his stupidity, Larry was correct about one thing, “A man can’t just sit around.”

Could your business be accused of being stagnant? Put forth the effort of a positive business activity and you will reap the benefits of positive consumer results. We recently hosted a seminar at our office for our personal tax clients on Estate Planning. The day after the seminar, our phones (which are usually quiet once tax season is over), were ringing off the hook. What sort of things could your business do to create a wave of interest from customers?

Action Items

1. Call a customer

2. Call a supplier

3. Brainstorm with your team

4. Try something

November 13, 2008 - How Do You Implement Changes?

Main Idea

You have changes in your mind that need to happen.  You have the know-how to implement them.  You have the determination and guts to face the problems.  However, no one else in your organization thinks that they need to change.  What do you do?  Where do you start?  Have you tried to implement changes and after a couple of years, you are back to where you started?

Expansion of Idea

As Peter Drucker said “To thrive in the new millennium, managers must do more than adapt to change: they have to lead it.”  The job of a leader is to facilitate change before it is too late.  The question is how to do it.  The first thing you must do is to establish a sense of urgency.  Sometimes that is easy, such as our nation’s financial crisis.  It is more difficult when your organization is having a good year.  Complacency is a real tough enemy of change.  Sometimes you have to find problems inside your organization.  Some leaders have had to manufacture the problems so that the importance is felt by all.  When life is running smoothly, what incentive do you have to change?

A perfect example of this most everyone can relate to is weight loss. What motivates you to lose 20 pounds? What if your doctor told you that you would eventually die if you didn’t lose those 20 pounds? What if the time period was shortened from eventually to 6 months from now? That need would create inspiration to exercise and make more nutritious food choices.

Without the urgency to make a change, your business may drop a little in revenue.  It may not even be a noticeable difference at first, but you are no longer growing and improving.  The following year it slides a little more.  Then the downward spiral hits and you can’t stop it.  You need to figure out what needs to change, set a timetable, communicate the changes and timetable and then implement the changes, before it is too late.  And when the changes work, you need to celebrate all wins, no matter how big or small (20 pounds, or just 2).  Your team needs to know that they are on the right track.

Action Items

1. Evaluate the necessary changes and determine if a crisis is present.

2. If a crisis is not present, then determine if one should be manufactured.

3. Communicate the changes and the urgency for making changes.

4. Celebrate the wins.

November 6, 2008 - What Do You Need to Change?

Main Idea

Does your organization suffer from the same issues time and time again? How do you handle these problems? As Benjamin Franklin put it, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.” Are you insane? Are you ready to change the way you handle issues? Are you ready for a different outcome?

Expansion of Idea

Over the past few months, you’ve been drowning in political propaganda. Via your television, radio, newspaper, yard signs, and bumper stickers, politics have been the main topic surrounding our nation. Regardless of your political persuasion, or which circle you darkened at the voting poll, it is undeniable that Barack Obama was elected to office because the majority of America longs for change.

Several years ago, a client of ours had a pretty nice business that was suffering because they kept doing what was successful in the past.  They were no longer successful and were starting to get into some severe financial conditions.  The owners still would not adjust what they were doing.  They kept thinking that they could continue doing what they used to do.  They thought that they could do it a little better and that would fix the problems.  We walked away from the client because it was obvious that the end was coming and would be painful. 

Sometimes you need to break what is working so you can be better.  A perfect example of this is what Tiger Woods did in 2004.  He was at the top of the golf kingdom.  And then he completely wrecks his swing and starts over so that he can be better.  That takes guts to bet it all like that.  Do you have the guts to change what needs to be changed?  

Action Items

1. Ask yourself if you are achieving your goals?

2. Do it again and don’t lie about it.

3. What is holding you back?

October 30, 2008 - Celebrate!!!

Main Idea

How often does your organization do fun things for the employees? Does your team under-estimate the value of “service with a smile”? Ever wonder how you could add a little spice to your boring meetings to keep your co-workers from snoring? Having fun at work doesn’t mean sacrificing productivity, in fact, quite the opposite is true. Enabling your employees to be creative and allowing laughter in the office is the perfect way to boost morale, which in turn, will positively affect your company’s productivity, not to mention employee retention! But how, you may be wondering?

Expansion of Idea

Celebrate anything and everything that is important to you, your company, or the employees that work so hard for you. Birthdays, anniversaries, company-wide achievements, personal goals met, and new employees are all great reasons (excuses…) to eat cake! Company parties and gatherings don’t have to be dreaded, and they certainly don’t have to pertain to business. Getting your team to have fun together is a perfect team-building activity and what better way to get everyone to relax than to have a party together? If a celebratory bash is just too much for busy employer to handle, start small. Hang balloons around your office before a meeting, add a colorful tablecloth to the break room, or simply use quirky visuals or toys in your training sessions. Implement a funny-quote-of-the-day e-mail, or pass out candy randomly to your top customer service champs. It doesn’t take much to entice a little competition to provide the best service or the highest productivity. Even Charles Schwab understood this concept when he said,

“The man who does not work for the love of work but only for money is not likely to make money nor find much fun in life.”

If a laid-back atmosphere makes you feel a little uneasy at first, think of it this way:

If clients see your employees having a good time and enjoying their job, they will want more interaction with your company.

Where to begin?

1. LIGHTEN UP! Make a priority of smiling and laughing, even if you are stressed on the inside. Set the example for everyone.

2. Appreciation – Give employees positive re-enforcements to keep up the good work.

3. Get to know the people you’re surrounded by daily. What will get them fired up about coming to work each day?

October 2, 2008 - Do You Know Your Core Values?

Main Idea

Have you considered what your core values are for you and for your business?  What would be the core value for a “Wall Street” firm?  What would it be for your church?  What would it be for the St. Louis Rams?  Is this even important?

Expansion of the Idea

You cannot turn on the television, look at the internet, or read a paper without reading about the financial crisis and how it is George Bush’s problem and how he created it.  This is garbage.  Yes, government could have done some things differently.  However, the real problem is the culture of the Wall Street firms.  The movie Wall Street was filmed 20 years ago and the film clearly pointed out the underlying concept of Wall Street.  Obviously, greed has been and will probably be a fixture there.  It is a core value whether they want it or not.  Risk management is given lip service but they obviously do not give it the same level of respect as greed. 

Core values are the boundaries that define our businesses.   They are who we are.  They may or may not be who we want to be.  Problems occur when our core values are not aligned with our customer or team member expectations.  Problems also occur when we stray from the core values.  George Merck said “Medicine is for people, and not for profits.  If you remember that, profits will follow.”  What has happened in the last 10 years is that Merck started managing the business for profits.  They strayed from their core and have created a lot of problems. 

Identifying core values is not just for minimizing problems.  Once they are identified, clearly expressed and all systems are aligned, then the business can run full steam ahead.   Core values can be a lot of things.  They can be innovative service delivery.  They could be integrity in products and services.  Others could be service, teamwork, respect, technological innovations.  There are no right or wrong answers.  My core values may not work for you.  But it is critical that you identify them and own them.

Action Items

1. Make a list of what you think are your core values

2. Ask your team to make a list.

3. Ask some customers what your core values are.

4. Follow up on differences.