Goal Accountability

We all set goals for ourselves. Whether personal or professional, setting measurable goals is what helps propel us to greater heights. We may even write these down so we can look at them from time to time. The real risk is in getting others involved in our goals. Telling someone about our goals is one thing. Asking them to hold us accountable is another. When we ask someone to hold us accountable that adds a whole new dimension to our determination to achieve those goals. Yes, we have to expect they are going to chide us when they know we're not making progress. Yet there is power that comes from the desire to show them we can do it when they question us and when they cheer us on! The key is telling the right people.

Carefully choose who you want on your "coaching and feedback" team. You may want everyone to know what your goals are. However, you want the right people tracking your progress and coaching you for performance breakthroughs.

For example: I set a goal about 30 days ago to get in shape. Now, I don't mean just lose a few pounds and exercise a couple times per week. I'm talking serious body fat loss and extreme conditioning! This means working out 6 days a week in both cardio and strength training which is a huge commitment of time. So the first thing I did was get my wife and kids involved. They are my cheering section. I needed their commitment and support so I would not feel guilty about having to be gone at the gym. Also, I know if I reach for the junk food around them they're going to give me a hard time.


Next, I needed someone to not just tell me what I wanted to hear, but tell me what I needed to hear. I also wanted someone who understands the plight of the "mid-lifer". So, I found the right trainer. Like me, he is a former Marine, so I know he has a certain sadistic side, which means "more pain more gain" or lets me know my "back is not straight" and I'm taking it a little too easy. He's also ready to guide and teach me new things to enhance my work outs, as well as tracking my progress.

I know by telling you all this I'm putting myself at risk. Now I have to keep going because when we see each other (I know many of you) you will probably either ask me how I'm doing or at least thinking..."I wonder how he's doing?" Peer pressure can be a good thing.

So, set your goals- write them down- tell someone about them- and then choose the right people to coach you and give you feedback.

P.S. I'm happy to report that things are going well and I'm on track...

To Your Success!
Rod

How Stress, Worry and Physical Wellness are connected

A while back I was experiencing severe pain in my upper jaw accompanied by neck pain and headaches. At first I blew it off thinking it was my allergies or a virus. As time went on the pain did not go away and I was losing a lot of sleep. I was going through a period of high stress and I felt as if my life was out of control. There was so much on my mind! My job, my family, my commitments to church and Scouting. I was worried about everything. Finally, all of the stress and worry caught up with me and I was experiencing what I would consider anxiety attacks at night. About that same time, a very close friend of mine had a heart attack and would have died had he not been at the hospital in the presence of a cardiology team. After the sixth "shock" with the defibrillator paddles, he was revived and thankfully, is still with us. It hit me then that what was happening to me was my wake up call and a chance to make changes before it was too late. I knew that if I didn't immediately change how I was dealing with the stress in my life, I was going to end up my like my friend, or worse, leave my wife and children without a husband and father. I made the decision to put my stress and worry in to perspective. I live in "day-tight" compartments once again and even though I still have to give a little bit of myself to the daily worries and stresses in my life, I am now very intentional about just how much I give. It's ironic that once I made that decision and started dealing with my stress instead of reacting to it, my jaw loosened up and my chronic neck pain and headaches went away. My good friend John Dickson says "we don't recieve stress, we create it". Don't wait until you are in a hospital bed surrounded by a cardiology team. Learn how to start dealing with your stress and worry now. Go to http://www.dalecarnegie.com/golden_book.jsp and download your free copy of Dale Carnegie's Principles for reducing stress and worry. By employing these simple ideas you will get a new pespective and possibly save your life. To Your Success- and Health!

Rod

So, what do you do?

Virtually everyone we meet (or someone that person knows) is a potential prospect for our products and services. In that respect, we must always be prepared to explain our value to whomever we meet in a very short period of time! The key to success is a great "elevator speech."

An elevator speech is a clear, concise statement of: Who you are, what you do, and the unique value that your company brings to the marketplace. It's called an elevator speech because it's so concise that you could use it during an elevator ride and still generate interest! We have approximately 30 seconds to provide clarity and build interest, and that is no easy task.

Goals of the speech:
The goal of the elevator speech is to immediately gain the interest of the person to whom you are speaking, to make them curious enough to want to know more. A well-rehearsed and genuine elevator speech can be used in any setting. Social gatherings, Networking Events, impromptu meetings and yes, the elevator ride are all places for potential use.

Key Elements:
An elevator speech can be a response to a general inquiry from another person asking what you do, or could be interwoven in a conversation. In either case, to be effective, four key elements must be considered:
1. Who we are?
2. What we do?
3. Client Credibility Statement
4. Transition

Here is an example of what we are talking about:

(WHO WE ARE) "My name is Rod Price and I am a performance consultant with Dale Carnegie. (WHAT WE DO) For 95 years we have been in the business of improving the performance of companies by improving the performance of their people. (CLIENT CREDIBILITY) For example, "ABC Company" wanted to increase their production efficiency and reduce their labor percentage. After working with a team of their production managers, in less than 10 weeks they were able to boost production $20,000 a day above their projection and reduced labor costs from 13 to 6.5%. This resulted in a direct ROI of $250,000 for the company. (TRANSITION) Is increasing your production capacity a factor at XYZ Company?

Many people think that having rehearsed scripts is not genuine. When you think about it, if you asked someone what they do, wouldn't you want them to be able to quickly sum it up for you in a clear and concise manner?

Being a Contributing Team Member

In today's workplace, people are expected to be contributing team players, usually on several teams at once. Your ability to be seen as a contributing, valuable member of these teams could have a significant impact on achieving your career goals. Gaining a reputation as a valuable team member impacts your current work goals, your relationships at work, your opportunities for team leadership, and the degree of satisfaction and motivation you feel in your job.
Contributing team members must have the following characteristics:

Focused Listening Skills

Cooperative and supportive attitude

Consistency in preparation and performance

Skilled in planning, organizing and time management

Knowledgeable and/or experienced

Not everyone will posses all of these characteristics. Teams which have members who do have most of these skills will be stronger and able to function at higher levels of success in their organizations.

1. Focused Listening Skills: When we listen from the other person's perspective and can identify the content and emotion that the sender is expressing we are listening to understand rather than to respond. This is empathetic listening and one of the most valuable skills a team member can posses.

2. Cooperative and Supportive Attitude: The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it. Sound familiar? Maintaining a friendly, positive and enthusiastic outlook to team objectives creates energy needed to tackle complicated projects. A true contributing team member will try to see things from multiple points of view and work to build up team members.

3. Consistency in Preparation and Performance: External awareness is key to being prepared. Contributing team members keep up to date with issues that affect responsibility. Whether it's market trends, trade practices or lean thinking, the ability to be informed and prepared can save your team valuable time and resources when executing on a project.

4. Planning, Organizing & Time Management: Everyone is challenged with accomplishing more with less- Less time, less money and less people. The balance of organizing tasks, people and resources to deliver on projects effectively is an art form which requires continual skill and habit development.

5. Knowledge and Experience: Knowledgeable and experienced team members are a requirement to a successful team, yet they can sometimes be the most resistant to change. Winning their cooperation is critical and not impossible. It may take some time to build trust but once you have their trust you then can capitalize on their experience.

Highly successful teams continually assess themselves and integrate new skills and fundamentals to stay focused on success.

Creating a Positive Work Environment

A little while back I was talking with a corporate client about how things were going inside their company. She told me that sales were way up and they were very busy filling all of the new orders. However, she also explained that even though business was great there seemed to be a lot of negativity in their operation. This was probably due she thought to the additional amount of stress caused by the increased demand for products - and deadlines which had been moved up! Her question to me was "how do I get these people to stop being negative and change their attitude?". Great question... How do we deal with the "Nay-Sayers", "Immovables", "Violinists" and "Blamers"? Well, before we as leaders can answer that question we first have to answer the these questions:

• Why does my job exist?


• Am I negative?


• Am I resistant to change?


• Do I blame others for my mistakes?

As leaders, isn't it our mission to build our teams through motivation and inspiration? Are we the example? Is our negative attitude contagious? Who are we most negative with? Do we embrace change or run from it? How easy is it to point the finger to someone else instead of looking at ourselves first?

Welcome to leadership folks. I have a secret for you... You're being watched! Your employees, children, spouse, friends, bosses are all watching you. You are the example. How can we help replace negativity in situations or other people before we change it in ourselves?

Maintaining a positive attitude is important in every area of replacing negativity with enthusiasm, but nowhere is it more critical than in our attitude toward ourselves. Most of us, even the most seemingly successful, carry around a mental suitcase full of negative messages about ourselves. They may have come from parents, teachers, bosses, colleagues, or even our own imaginations, but we have the capacity to re-color those messages and make positive beliefs our conscious choice. Eleanor Roosevelt was often quoted as saying, "No one can make you feel inferior with out your permission."

A few years ago I learned a variation of the "Serenity Prayer" which relates to changes with in myself and it goes like this: "God grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change - The courage to change the one I can - and the wisdom to know that person is...me"

Here a few of Dale Carnegie's Principles from the Golden Book which can help us deal with personal negativity and negative people"

• Don't criticize, condemn, or complain


• Give honest sincere appreciation


• Smile


• Talk in terms of the other person's interests


• Show respect for the other person's opinion. Never say "You're wrong"


• If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically


• Begin in a friendly way


• Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view


• Appeal to the person's nobler motives


• Call attention to people's mistakes indirectly


• Talk about your own mistakes before criticizing the other person


• Ask questions instead of giving direct orders

Think of a relationship or situation in which you are experiencing negativity and want to improve. Ask yourself these questions:

• What are the causes of this negativity?


• What challenges will I face?


• What of the 12 Principles listed above will I use to overcome these challenges?


• How will I measure progress?


• What is the first step I will take?

I would really love to hear your stories in dealing with negativity! Please feel free to send them to me to post here.

To Your Success!

Rod

Leading through Innovation

Continuous Improvement seems to be the hot topic and "buzz-phrase" in every industry today. I hear this phrase used many times every week in every environment. "We must continue to improve", or "Continuous improvement will get us there". Where? Doesn't it seem like every business has to continually improve or die? In his book "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman, it is constantly pointed out to the reader that many countries are no longer bound by by their geographic "fences", cultural differences or limited education. In fact, many countries are providing higher education to their young people at a much greater rate than the U.S. -Globalization has exploded with the Internet and cell phones and allowed a whole generation of worldwide entrepreneurs to compete for your business. So, will "continuous improvement" help us compete in this new world economy? Or, does it require "breakthrough leaps" in innovation on the part of every single person in your company?



How long has it been since your company has conducted what is called Green-Light Thinking? This is a meeting where ANY idea goes. No idea is put down or tossed away - As opposed to "Red-Light Thinking", which comes later in the innovation process. How about assembling a task force representing all levels and positions in your company, division or department and asking them to start giving you input on ways to innovate a product, process or service? Remember, any idea is added to the list. Sometimes what may seem like a crazy idea actually becomes the one thing that gives an organization that breakthrough. I'll bet some of our greatest inventors and innovators spent a lot of time in "Green-Light Thinking" mode. It wasn't too long ago a very famous (and now wealthy) innovator stated that his vision was to have a computer in every home and office. Many laughed at the time. I don't know about you, but I have three in my home. Who's laughing now?

Green-Light Thinking: This is the thought process which is most conducive to the generating of new ideas. In this part of the process, it's the quantity not the quality that counts. People are far more creative than they realize. It's just that most of our educational processes and systems have been devoted to developing the judicial thinking function (decision making, comparison, evaluating situations, etc.) We still have the creative process - it just needs to be coached and developed by visionary leaders.

Just ask the companies that have embraced Kai zen - Lean - Six Sigma. These companies learned from Toyota's example that by bringing the employees in to the innovation process they made the leap from just a continuous improvement philosophy to radical changes that led to new discoveries, decreased costs and improved performance. These are the key issues in today's competitive business environment.

It's time to follow Dale Carnegie's principle "cooperate with the inevitable" and get used to the fact we are competing on a global level against very educated, driven and focused people. Whether you are a small business owner or a CEO at a large corporation, continuous improvement is just about the same as kissing your sister any more when it comes to keeping your competitive edge. The new business environment requires that we no longer accept - "we've always done it this way" - and constantly work toward breakthrough leaps through our most valuable asset - our people. The following is an anonymous quote which I believe sums up this article:

"More important than change itself is the speed of change we face today. The amount of time it takes to double our knowledge in many fields has gone from being measured by centuries to being measured in months." (From the Dale Carnegie Leadership Training Manual)

To Your Success
Rod

Do you REALLY know your clients?

I was having coffee with a friend today and he told me about a very successful sales person he knew that was actually invited to his clients functions. Baseball games, picnics, parties and the like. Most of us think in terms of us entertaining our clients but, what must it be like to be the invited guest and the invitation comes from the people we sell to? Having that deeper connection with our clients does not come by accidentally. We have to be willing to step outside of our comfort zone and create an environment that encourages the baring of one's soul. How else will we get to know our clients true values and needs? Asking the right questions at the right time and then actively listening will bring more value to the relationship than just rushing in to make the sale. Do you know what questions to ask? The following is an excerpt from the Dale Carnegie Training on the "Innerview" to use for building relationships:

The first set of questions are facutal and are typically conversational in nature. Examples of factual questions are:

• Where did you grow up?
• What kind of activities were you involved with as a child?
• What were your interests in school?
• How long have you worked here?
• Tell me about your family.
• What do you do for recreation?

Causative questions are questions to determine the motives or causative factors behind some of the answers to the factual questions. These are typically "why" and "what" questions. Examples of causative questions are:

• Why did you pick that particular school?
• What caused you to major in...?
• What caused you to pursue that profession?
• How did you happen to come to work for this company?
• How did you get involved with that particular hobby?

Value based questions are questions that help connect us to a person's value system. They are designed to help a person hear the worth the other person places on things. These are questions people rarely ask but give a greater view of the inner person. Examples of value-based questions are:

• Tell me about a person that had a major impact on your life.
• If you had to do it over again, what, if anything would you do differently?
• It is obvious from our discussions that you have many accomplishments. Tell me about a turning point.

Is it tough to ask these types of questions? You bet! Does this type of relationship building take time? Absolutely! However, if we can step outside of our comfort zone and deepen our understanding of those we serve we will become the invited guest and it no longer becomes a matter of selling but a matter of partnership. Practice these questions with a partner you are comfortable with. Then go stretch your comfort zone and increase your business!

To your success!