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Enjoying the competition

This last week I enjoyed watching the National Basketball Association (NBA) finals between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks. Having lived 25 plus years in Miami, I wanted to cheer for the Heat, but I love to compete against anyone, so I found a friend who loves the Heat and we decided to wager a small supper on the winner of the best of seven series.

As my wife said, “Larry- you don’t really want the Mav’s to win, you just love the thrill of competing.”

You know- she is right. I just love to compete, and sometimes I really don’t care if I win. I just want to compete, and sure it is fun to have my friend pay for supper.

Three weeks ago I was up in Ohio for a nieces wedding. The younger boys were out shooting some baskets in the back yard. I went out and stood around until they finally said- “hey “old man” -do you want to play?” Did I want to play? Like asking a child if he wants candy…

I started playing with all my heart, and there came a point, while I was winning that I just started laughing while I was guarding one of the guys. Laughing really loud because I was having the time of my life once again while competing. Why? Because I know I will never have this moment again. And that causes me to pause right now and ask the question-

Do you enjoy competing? Or has having to win taken the joy out of doing your best? Today I choose to enjoy the competition that business brings, do I want to win- of course, but I want to compete even more.

Oh, and in case you were wondering… yes, this “old man” won at every game of basketball we played that night.

Enjoy life my friends.

 

Do people trust you? Well, how fast do you talk?

Researchers recently released a study that shows how our rate of speech is a significant factor for convincing people to do things. The study found that those who spoke moderately fast, around 3 and 1/2 words per second, were much more successful at persuasion than people who talked very slow or very fast.

The researchers looked at many factors — speech rates, fluency, and pitch –and analyzed which variables were important with successfully convincing people to participate in the survey. The findings seem to have confirmed the obvious. People who talk really fast are viewed as not trustworthy and the people who talk really slow are very smart. 

This week, listen to yourself, how fast are you talking? You may want to slow down, just a little.

 

How to make wise decisions.

Several times I have been asked – “Larry, what do I need to do to make wise decisions?”

Many times in life we find ourselves at the point where we need to make a decision. It can range from a business decision to a relationship decision. Many times our judgment can be clouded by our emotions, or we might even find ourselves trying to make a decision we are not qualified to make. And we try to make the right decisions, but we just don’t bother to ask anyone for advice, or if we do we ask the wrong people.

Over the years, the worst decisions I have ever made, were those that I never asked for help on. Many of those decisions have cost me personally as well as the company’s hard earned monies. All because of pride, or because I knew what others would think – and I knew I wouldn’t want to hear what they may say. So how do we make wise decisions?

Here are a few tips to making wise decisions:

• Choose someone to ask advice of who has nothing to lose by telling you the truth.
• Choose someone who is where you want to be in life.
• If possible, ask more than one person.
• Choose someone you know and someone you don’t know.
• Go into the conversation ready to listen.
• And then ask the question- “What do you think the wise thing to do is?”

You see, at the end of the day, none of us is as smart as all of us. So seek answers, seek opinions. Make sure those you ask meet the criteria above, and listen. The larger your decision, the more people you need to involve in your decision.

So let me ask you-  “Did you ask anyone about this?”

 

The key to choosing your future boss

A few days ago I received the following letter from a dear friend of mine. I have changed the names and some details as his discussion is ongoing. I hope my answer can help you if you are deciding between two employers.

Larry,

I have a question for you. Maybe something for you to blog about...

As you know, I am talking to Company A and Company B, and although nothing is concrete yet, my mind can't stop comparing both companies as future career possibilities for me. So far, I see the following picture:

Company A - positive

1. It is the coolest company
2. It involves a large territory, more than my own country
3. It is a company always thinking the future
4. People are cool

Company A - negative

1. Lack of focus: they want everything for everything
2. The business is not implemented in the territory and nobody really knows when it will be.
3. It is an engineering company. The business side seems to be tolerated sometimes.
4. People are very individualistic, even though bonded as a group
5. Too worried if you are cool and could fit "the group" - this goes too close to "You are your job and not yourself"

Company B - positive

1. It is a corporation and commercial company. Efficiency comes before coolness
2. Absolutely focused. It is very clear what they want from you
3. They are opening up in my country offering a blue ocean for their first employees
4. Direct International and closer supervision
5. Company B is a lot more about my passion than Company A

Company B – negative

1. Very arrogant company
2. Obsessed about corporate information
3. It will not be much international... Really focused on my country
4. Offers less space for developing your own strategies, less freedom

Larry, this is basically how I see things after two relevant interviews at Company A and one at Company B. But there is one thing... I really connected with the Company B guy. I liked his style, his style of leadership (so far) and how he keeps his personality in the Company B world.

At Company A, I liked my possible future boss, but I honestly felt him more distant. There was no natural feeling that we would make a good team except that we would be cool as "Company A men".

But my question: How much should the chemistry you may have with your future boss play a role in a job taking decision? A good boss on a not so good company is better than a not so good boss on a good company?

What are your thoughts on this?

 ________________________________________________________

My friend-

As I was reading through I was thinking back about my last time when I was debating between my own Company A versus Thomas Nelson (Company B) decision. One where I would have great security and be comfortable- or to Thomas Nelson giving up "power" to work under my current boss and salvage a company and possibly get capital for expansion.

It all came down to the same question you ask-

Sitting in a breakfast chat at Company A with my wife Ruth, we realized how really "Company A” people were - we walked out of there and Ruth said- "You will be secure here Larry, fulfill many of your dreams- but you would be miserable- they just don’t laugh here..."

I knew immediately that I would work for Thomas Nelson- and frankly it was a time when there were work force reductions, and Company A was sure to remind me of that. But all the Nelson corporate issues went out the window for me- knowing that I would laugh at work with Tod Shuttleworth more than once. Even today, after more than 6 years, we still laugh and joke about ourselves or some distant memory.

So my short answer-

I would go for working relationship. Why? Because you will spend an exorbitant amount of time- more than you know right now- eating, traveling and planning with this person- who do you want to spend that time with?

Make the decision without regrets- life is short - enjoy it.

 

30 seconds to better sales

You have 30 seconds to tell me who you are and what your business’s objectives are.

It’s basically a 30 second commercial that needs to stick, to grab me, your client’s attention and differentiate you. I know it’s hard to put it all into 30 seconds, but in a fast paced world that is screaming for attention, you must stand out and stand out fast.

In those 30 seconds you need to cover:

• Who you are: You personally, your name and position if necessary.
• Who your company is: Name of the company, be clear about this.
• Tell what you and your company do: Be creative here with a catchy one-liner.
• Ask a leading question: Find out what the needs are you can respond to, or else the client really doesn’t need you.
• Make a short statement explaining how you can meet the need: Be sure and listen for what the need is and respond appropriately.
• Create a call to action: Close the sale. Why should they act now?

Now before you ask the leading question of your customer, be sure you understand what you are looking for from them. An example of a leading question could be:

Lead Question: How long does it take for you to usually receive your order from your suppliers?

Customer Answer: Usually about one week.

Your Statement: We can guarantee you will receive your order in 3 days!

Be sure the question you ask is something that is important to the client and you are sure you can fulfill and be better than the competition.

Here’s to better selling!

 

Focus, excellence, and mediocrity.

The other day I was thinking on just how much can I do and how much can each one on my team do. We have all been stretched over the last few years to do more with fewer personnel. Many times we overcome the challenges and we accomplish the goals, but that has been the exception, not the norm. I would venture to say that may be the case for you as well.

We tend to add responsibilities because:

• We can’t say no.
• We think it will look bad on us for the future.
• If we don’t do it, no one else will.

What happens most of the time is we end up taking our focus off what we do well. In doing so we cannot give our best to any single project- they all suffer. We may be able to pull them off, but at what cost to people and quality?

In order to better focus and give your best, we need to learn to say no to some requests. And in saying no:

• We align our priorities and meet deadlines.
• We give our best.
• We are honest with our employer and with ourselves.

As an employer, we should understand this and recognize that we may need to shift priorities as well. If I have a person who I want on this- I need to transfer their responsibilities in other projects away. This will allow them to say yes- and give their best.

As employees or leaders, when we learn to say no, we don’t risk being unemployed, we choose to not settle for mediocrity. 

Starting strong.

I can still remember a poster that could be found in our college basketball locker room. It was actually in one of the smaller rooms where we would go to get our ankles or knees taped up for practice and games. This poster was not of a superstar basketball player. It wasn’t even of a sports icon or legend. So, why do I remember this poster out of the many posters that I have seen over the years? Because of what it said in a few simple words beneath a cartoon sketch of a young boy still tying his shoe at the start line of a race after the gun had signaled the start.

Those who start slow, seldom catch up.

We start our fiscal year in April. For us this means that we need to have a strong 1^st quarter (April, May, and June). A strong 1^st quarter will help us secure the rest of the year for us. Here are a few reasons why starting strong is important.

• You expend twice as much energy catching up as you do leading.
• Creates a winning mindset with the team.
• Marketing becomes easier.
• Back office becomes easier.
• Sales become easier.
• In a word… momentum.

That’s what it does, it creates momentum. You can’t buy momentum, but you can give it every chance to be on your side. Set yourself up for momentum. Start strong.

Dependency, control, and your future.

When people start to talk about the future, do you feel trapped? Do you think that the future is for others and not yourself? Here are a couple of quick questions for you.

• Do you believe your future is dependent on others?
• Do you blame others for your current position?
• Are you afraid of what might happen if you are in control of your future?

Here are a couple of phrases that may help you identify and answer the questions we just read. This is not a complete list, just a list of things I used to say, have heard others say, or have read. See if you hear yourself in these statements, or if you finish the sentence automatically.

• If only my boss would ____________.
• If only the market was ______________.
• If only I had the ability to _______________.
• If my customers would just __________________.
• If my co-worker would stop ___________________.
• If I was _____________, then I could ____________________.

If you heard yourself in any of these lines, you are blaming others. It’s time to stop making excuses, time to stop waiting on others, and simply start walking down the road to your dream.

See you on the road to success.

 

Three steps to making decisions.

Many times I hear people say that they just don’t have enough time to do everything. I have said it as well; “I don’t have time to do everything”. But at the heart of it is the ability to make decisions. It’s always one of three reasons. We either we don’t know how to make decisions, or we want to delay the decision, or we don’t have the authority and don’t want to push it up line. In each case we end up adding to our own inbox.

I may not be able to help you with the 2^nd and third reason, but here are 3 quick steps to help you make decisions.

1. Seek input. Ask others for their opinion. Don’t just automatically go with what your initial reaction is.
2. Ask Questions. Get all the facts. Challenge to get the right answers and dig deeper. Make sure you are asking the right questions and not just delaying making your decision.
3. Decide. Make the decision. Understand that you may be wrong, and if you are, learn from it. But make your decision.  Your team will honor you for that.

The decisions you make today will define who you and your team are tomorrow.

 

The keys to creation of great ideas.

Where do great ideas come from? They come from “ideators”. An “ideator” is that special individual who seems to always come up with great ideas that blossom and bear fruit for the organization. I believe there are a couple of key elements that great “ideators” all have in common.

• “Ideators” are not afraid to be ridiculed. They allow themselves to be vulnerable. They know that there are no stupid ideas, and that the only way one looks stupid is by not opening their mouth and expressing themselves.
• “Ideators” are always alert. They listen and feed off the ideas of others. They know that one shared idea has the possibility to become a hundred sparks for new ideas. They believe in exponential idea growth.
• “Ideators” are also self-critical. They understand that many bad ideas will and should die a quick death. Many times they will kill their own idea for the opportunity of a better one.

Today I choose to join the ranks of the “ideators”.