Leadership on Speed

why reinvent the wheel?

A friend of mine contacted me the other day.  She has been at home with the kids for a while and the time has come for her to get back into the job market.  She and her husband have some household objectives and the extra income would make things easier....

As we spoke, she mentioned that she was not getting many nibbles on her resume so I offered to take a look (why did I do that?).  She sends me the resume and needless to say the format was a bit antiquated and the content was weak.  I have had great success in helping my clients develop winning resumes and since she is a friend, I sent her a template that I thought would work well for her along with a list of recommendations to make the resume more appealing and adequately convey her information...

Now, I don't make it a habit to give templates but when I do, I invariably tell the recipient that they should utilize the template exactly as it is.  Why?  Simple.  Because it works. 

I'm sure you can guess what happened, right?

Yes, that's right.  She decided to be creative..to make it her own. 

I have nothing against a little well-placed creativity but sometimes you just need to follow the formula...

What she sent back to me was in some ways worse than the original resume!

By then of course, I was feeling responsible for her resume success and wanted her to get it right (which we did) but here's the point of my telling you this story...

When you utilize a professional to review your work or give you input on a project, take the advice. 

Why reinvent the wheel especially when what you are doing isn't working?

One of the basic tenants of growing a new business is finding a successful working model and then following it!

If you decided to purchase a franchise because they have a blueprint for success, chances are you wouldn't suddenly try to change the model two days into ownership.

Do what works.

You get to have more fun and focus you're energy on effective creativity!

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

i'm paying for the experience

I was speaking with a colleague the other day and we began to discuss marketing.  He is the CEO of an executive search firm which specializes in diversity and as he was explaining what he is "selling" to his organizational clients.  He discussed that conceptually his company was redefining the landscape of an organization with talent that would not only significantly contribute to the organization but also make a difference in the community but "packaged" as diverse executive talent.

As it turns out, he had been in a conversation with an associate earlier in the day having the discussion as a by-product of an article he had read noting that Starbucks is selling "an experience" and McDonald's is selling real estate.  After all, one can purchase a cup of coffee at a gas station for $1.00 or make it oneself for pennies on the dollar.  We go to Starbucks and pay $4 - $6 for a cup of coffee for the experience.

Well, I'm here to tell you that I'm posting this from a Starbucks and the experience I'm getting isn't worth the 5 bucks.  I'm the only one relaxing though customers are coming and going constantly.  It's quiet today and I happen to be here during shift change.  Girl #2 (coming on shift) is complaining to, arguing with, fussing at Girl #1 (coming off shift) because there are some things she hasn't gotten to yet.  They fuss.  Attitudes are flying. 

Oh, did I forget to mention that I'm well within visual range of them and that my table is less than 5 feet from the service counter?

Customer with bad attitude arrives.  Admittedly, the guy was clearly having a bad day but Girl #2 tells Girl #1 that she needs to deal with him otherwise.... (she threatens bodily harm).

Customer with good attitude arrives and makes the mistake of asking about her day (all 15 minutes of it so far).  She decides to tell him the truth and proceeds to suck all of the air out of the room.....  Time for me to go.

Now don't get me wrong.  We are all entitled to have a bad day but when I go into Starbucks, I AM looking for a good experience.

If you have a customer service team and you're wondering why your sales are declining, you might want to just sit nearby and take a listen one day.  It might be quite enlightening.

Do you have a customer service horror story?

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

because freedom isn't free

As a war and an Army veteran, today I pay homage to the men and women who have served and who continue to serve this great nation of ours because we sometimes forget that freedom isn't free.  THANK YOU.

It occurs to me that many no longer remember the history of Veterans Day so I thought I would include this brief overview....

In 1918, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day in the eleventh month, the world rejoiced and celebrated. After four years of bitter war, an armistice was signed. The "war to end all wars" was over.

November 11, 1919 was set aside as Armistice Day in the United States, to remember the sacrifices that men and women made during World War I in order to ensure a lasting peace. On Armistice Day, soldiers who survived the war marched in a parade through their home towns. Politicians and veteran officers gave speeches and held ceremonies of thanks for the peace they had won. Click here to continue reading.

We are blessed to live in a country where anything is possible and with focus, guidance and determination, we truly can achieve anything we choose.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

congratulations! you've got the job.....now what?

I had the privilege last week of spending time with Jason Alba over at JibberJobber.  As his expert guest on his weekly radio show, I had a great time discussing one of my all time favorite topics - tips and strategies to get off to the best start in a new company during the first 90 days!!

Most professionals in the career space (be they career coaches, recruiters or outplacement agencies) focus their time on one primary task - getting the client a job.  Clearly, that's a great goal but all too often those same candidates find themselves back in the job market within 12 to 18 months stressed, tired and disillusioned. 

So what the heck happened? 

These are smart, bright, capable people who thought they had found the perfect company and the perfect job. They thought this was the company they would be with for a while.  Maybe even make their mark on...

Where did it all go wrong?

Well, it's possible that things began to go wrong within the first 90 days.  If you are new to your company or know someone who is, CLICK HERE to listen to my show with Jason.  After you have had a chance to check it out, stop back by and give me some feedback.  I would love to hear your thoughts!

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

leadership lessons from colin powell

"Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off."

Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group, which means that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions.  According to Colin Powell, it's inevitable if you're honorable. 

Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: you'll avoid the tough decisions, you'll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted and you'll avoid offering differential rewards based on differential performance because some people might get upset.

At the end of the day, by trying to be the nice guy and treat everyone equally, you'll eventually end up angering your best talent who may choose to go to work for someone who isn't "just" a nice guy.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

love or money

I have found LinkedIn to be a great professional tool for both reconnecting to old friends and colleagues and utilizing those connections for networking. 

One of the features I enjoy is the Q&A.  Sometimes the Q&A is self-serving but often it seems that folks are simply trying to find solutions to their professional challenges.

I recently responded to a question that I think is appropriate for you so I decided to post it here for your benefit as well.

The question basically asked if one had a choice between working at a job you love versus working at one one that paid twice as much money, what would you choose?

My response:

I just had a client that made this very decision yesterday. Her choice? The job she loved.

As a coach, I would tell you that this question may seem pretty cut and dried to many folks. If you're a free spirit type, the answer may be go for the job you love. If you're a corporate type or driven by higher pay or title, you may say go for the money. Quite frankly, it may also boil down to what your bills look like! The thing is, there isn't a wrong answer.

The question in my mind is - what is your strategy? All too often I see people who choose one answer or the other just for the sake of either fun or money with no real career strategy. Consider the company, your colleagues and most of all, your career objectives.

Sometimes, it may be the right career strategy to choose a company or environment that is less desirable if, in the long run, it will give you the experience that takes you closer to your long-term goal. Same holds true for less paying jobs that are more fun. My client made the choice because the lower paying position puts her in an industry she has always wanted to be in and gives her the opportunity to play a bigger game where her career is concerned.

Choices like these are not always easy. You have to have some idea of what you want your career to look like down the road and make the sometimes difficult choices that are going to get you there.

What do you think?  Would you choose love or would you choose money?

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

PS.  If you're in the neighborhood, feel free to join my network!

the manifestation of possibility

Perhaps one of the best aspects of the work that I do is getting to be a "possibility beacon" for my clients.  My clients come to me with a variety of hopes, dreams and aspirations and I get to be the voice of hope and the strategy to achieve. 

I get to be the one that says, "You can create anything you choose". 

Sometimes...they actually believe me.

But not often enough.

Inwardly they say, "I'll believe it when I see it."

I say, "See it and then believe it."

Better yet, "See it then create it."

As I awoke this morning to all of the excitement and commentary on this presidential race and the historical fact that the United States of America will now have her first President of African-American descent, it is my hope that not only does this get to be a banner day in politics but this gets to be an example and reminder to us all of what is possible.

What do you aspire to that you haven't believed you could do (until now)?  The journey may be long.  The journey may be bumpy.  Along the way, many may tell you that you can't do it. 

Don't believe the hype.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

if you don't like it, don't buy it

I have a pet peeve.

If you don't like the way someone does business, don't do business with them.

It sounds simple doesn't it?

I was listening to Clark Howard one day and a guest called in because the bank they did business with had begun to charge them $4.00 for an ATM transaction.

The caller was outraged!  Couldn't something be done?  Couldn't someone file a complaint with someone?

The funny thing is, Clarks response was the same as mine...

If you don't like the policy, don't do business with that bank!

We often complain about the way others operate or do business but we continue to do business with them and we continue to complain....

In a free society, the way we show our disapproval is to make choices that honor our integrity.  The market respnds to our actions...

How often do you complain about something without taking action to make it better?

Your voice makes a difference.

Your actions make a difference.

You can operate in integrity with your beliefs.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!