Solutions

One of the things I remember most from my days training with the Dale Carnegie organization is that you have to earn the right to work with your customer.

Basically, this means you need to do your homework to learn as much about your customer or audience, the product, and the subject matter as possible.  If you know it inside and out, no one’s time is wasted and you can solve a problem for your customer. People love solutions and will listen if you have one.

I was on a flight from Chicago to Newark. The flight, like most these days, was full. The boarding agent was trying to board people as quickly as possible so the flight could leave on time and the flight attendants were doing their part inside the plane to help people find their seats.

I was one of the first people on the plane, so I had a ringside seat for the show. We had about 10 minutes to go before departure and the overhead bins were all full. Customers had to start taking their bags off the plane and checking them to their final destination. Then the flight attendant and gate agent began to squabble about people having their coats in the overheads.

Suddenly the gate agent began randomly taking coats out of the overheads and throwing them into the center aisle of the plane, not even asking whose coat was whose. Then the passengers began to get irritated and argue. Soon, 10-15 people were screaming at each other with no solution in sight.

About that time, a flight attendant from the back of the plane began to move forward picking up coats and quietly returning them to the customers. Within five minutes she had the situation under control. The difference between her and the others -- she presented a solution and took action to move the situation in a positive direction.

 Click here for radio interview

Skill vs. Will

Sometimes watching kids gives us a window into helping adults learn something new.

Have you ever seen a 6-year old try to tie his shoes and become so frustrated by bunny ears that he tears off the shoes and tosses them across the room? This is an issue of skill.

At 6, a child probably has the dexterity to tie his shoes. He just hasn’t had proper coaching or enough practice to master the skill. If he is shown, in a patient manner, how exactly the process works (over and over). He will eventually be able to pick up the new skill. Velcro shoes can be banned from the closet!

That same child may be asked (repeatedly) by his parents to eat his peas (or corn, or carrots, or broccoli) for dinner, to no avail.  Everyone is aware that he knows how to put food on a fork or spoon and put it in his mouth….what he is lacking is the WILL to eat vegetables or to try something new.

Much frustration can happen when we confuse issues of SKILL and WILL. Many people will make up excuses when they don’t have the skill to do something, or avoid it entirely because they are not confident. Unfortunately, they may then be treated with discipline, annoyance or intolerance from their coach or instructor.

Taking our cues from how we want to treat kids, we should treat a lack of skill with positive coaching and encouragement which can lead to persistent practice (making perfect bunny ears). Finally, the skill will be mastered, confidence high and momentum will push us forward.

Turns out patience IS a virtue.

118 Years Later

The first official Labor Day in 1894 was all about working conditions in a era where many Americans (some as young as 6 or 7) worked 12-14 hour days for meager wages. Now, 118 years later, many also see the holiday as a way to celebrate the end of summer.

Over those 118 years many things have changed, but some things remain. In the late 1800s many workers were employed in manufacturing and industrial type jobs, but even then they were searching for a common purpose, a feeling of unity, communication from their managers, equality, fair wages and respect. 

Working conditions then were so horrible that workers began organizing strikes and rallies to protest poor conditions and compel employers to renegotiate hours and pay. On September 5, 1882, 10,000 workers took unpaid time off to march from City Hall to Union Square in New York City, holding the first Labor Day parade in U.S. history.  
But, it was not until 12 years later, in the wake of a strike by the workers of the Pullman Palace Car Company in Chicago that created massive unrest; that Congress attempted to repair ties with American workers and passed an act making Labor Day a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and all the territories. 

As you end summer with a Labor Day celebration, reflect on the history of American workers  -- we've come a long way, but improving your relationship with your people, or helping your people improve is still at the heart of what makes businesses excel. If you need assistance. We can help!



 

Great Moments

Watching some of the best athletes in world push out every ounce of courage, strength and determination in these XXX Olympic Games, it is easy to rejoice with the winners.

But the heartbreaks sometimes make more of an impact. Because many of these competitors do not let a loss break them down. They have a drive inside to be the best and that shows on the outside.

Some of the most memorable comebacks in history have happened during the Olympic Games. In 1980, the U.S. Hockey team trailed 3-2 against the Soviet Union going into the third period, but they came back, took the lead and won gold. A movie was made about that team, Miracle featuring Kurt Russell as Coach Brooks. If you haven’t seen it or heard the famed pep talk, it is definitely worth watching.

More recently, gymnast Kerri Strugg pressed forward in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta as she vaulted on an injured ankle to help her team win gold.

Speed skater Dan Jansen had a catastrophic performance in the 1988 Olympics when he fell twice after learning of the death of his sister, but he did not quit. He came back in 1992, four years older, but determined to win, and he did…a gold medal!

These athletes are extraordinary in their sports. But, inside they are just like the rest of us, they need a mission, a purpose and vision of how to get there. Like us, they are using what is on the inside to build excellence on the outside.

That is what we want for your company, your career and your life.

We'll Listen

This week's news that Marissa Mayer left her post as VP at Google, to take the helm at Yahoo, left me wondering if her job at Google made her happy. Why would she leave to join the competition?

It’s a question as old as time. What is the key to happiness? Some would say money, power, fame or love perhaps.

Love in the workplace is translated to a feeling of belonging, working toward a common purpose, feeling like part of a family. The lack of it is one of the reasons people often leave a "dream job", or feel lackluster after a few years with a company and begin to just put in their time.

What makes a person happy with their job is different in every case. They might want personal and professional development, more money, more time off, casual Fridays, an office with a window, recognition for a job well done or a host of other things to numerous to mention.

When you get down to it, you have to listen to find out what people want and figure out how to make it happen. Keeping good employees content, happy and coming back for more is the dream of every manager. Need help? Drop us a line, we’ll listen. info@chadcarden.com

“Ways to make 2012 your BEST year yet!”

Define what success means to you and make sure you have a plan to get there. Write it down and carry it with you so you can review it from time to time. If you have already done this make sure you are still on the right track.

Make sure that you have the right attitude. To have the right attitude to improve you must answer “yes” to these four questions. Do I need to? Do I want to? Can I? Will I? Ask yourself these four questions and when you can answer yes to all four of them you are ready to move forward.

Plan your work and work your plan. Make any midcourse adjustments if you find yourself off track.

Recommit to your career, a relationship, a new start, and get excited again by setting goals, thinking about your long-term vision and where you truly want to end up to reach your definition of success, it is amazing what you can accomplish.

Continue to ask yourself, “Is what I am doing right now, being busy or being productive?”

Remember, today is the only day you have. Yesterday is gone, and tomorrow is not here yet. Make the most of today by focusing on what is right, not what is wrong.

Deal with your setbacks. Everyone has them, but letting them steal your confidence, and plan for the long-term is not the answer, you must continue to persist through setbacks.

Be patient and stay the course as you move in the direction of your success. Remember “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

Reward yourself when you achieve one of your goals or meet a deadline.

Don’t worry what other people think about you. They are so wrapped up in their own lives that they are not thinking about you.

Be thankful for what you have and for what you have achieved.

Make sure that the people you hang around with have your best interest at heart. If they don’t find some new people to hang around with.

Block out all the noise and concentrate on the things that you can control.

Make sure that you stay organized so that important matters don’t fall through the cracks.

Do the most important and hardest tasks first. They are easier to accomplish when you are fresh and rested.

Work at staying healthy. Without your health nothing else really matters.

Don’t live in the past, just learn from it. Don’t live in the future, just prepare for it. If you do either of these you will miss out on all the great things that are happening today.

Keep a smile on your face. It is great for your attitude and takes a lot less work than it does to frown.

Being Realistic

People and companies want instant gratification. We have little patience. That is why employees feel as if everything is the flavor of the month. Earlier we discussed how a company starts an initiative. This same scenario works when it comes to patience. We want things to happen now, and set unrealistic timeframes. I am just as guilty. As CCG grows I want things to happen fast. Sometimes I need to consciously remind myself of my expected timeframes. Remember my analogy about how a company starts an initiative, and the plan on paper is a great plan? What most companies underestimate is how long the plan will take to work. We used a football field earlier so let’s stay on the same field. A company starts on the 5 yard line with the goal being; get to the other end zone 95 yards away. The initiative gets to the 50 yard line and the company begins to ask why aren’t things working (i.e. why aren’t we in the end zone yet)? We lose patience, scrap that plan and start with a new plan back at the five yard line (new flavor). What companies should look at is the progress that has been made, and what needs to happen to move progress along faster. Once again, it is about mindset. Choosing to look at things in a different way allows us to see things through different eyes. Even the slightest change in the way we look at something and giving it the proper patience can have a huge impact on the outcomes.

To see something from start to finish these days is rare, but when done right the results can be unbelievable. I see that all the time. Companies want instant gratification and at first their excitement level for change is very high, but over time something happens. Their excitement level begins to fade and people forget about their commitments to “changing the culture/ fabric/DNA”, and amazingly when this happens things go right back to normal. Again, you have flavor of the month! Remember we discussed Jim Winner’s four phases of attitude? People get bored quickly and begin the looking phase. Stay the course and be patient. Good things will begin to happen when we build good habits and create profitable action. When we want true change, we must stay focused on the prize or goal and not the price. It takes very strong leadership from within an organization to allow change to happen over time and without strong leadership; it becomes almost impossible for change to happen.

Patience is a quality most great leaders possess, and we must possess it too. We must stay lock step with the end goal and “center the needle” daily reminding ourselves of the prize. Setting and resetting the vision and crystal clear expectations must be an ongoing “to do” daily, weekly and monthly to get the true change we are looking for. Most people and companies truly underestimate what it takes to be world class.