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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.

 

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. 

Business Class, Hunger, and me.

Last week I was sitting in Business Class, some 35,000 feet in the air, headed for Madrid. At my fingertips, my choice of more than twenty movies with Bose head set to capture every little detail. Full size pillows, blankets and a 90% recline sleeper bed seat. The little care bag I received included little details everyone needs: Flight socks, sleep mask, lip balm, dental pack, pen, and sundry other little goodies that I would never use.

“Mr. Downs, for your main course tonight, would you like the fillet, the shrimp, or would you prefer the…”

I heard her, but I just didn’t want to look up, not yet. 

“Mr. Downs.” She touched my shoulder. “Mr. Downs?”

I quickly blotted my eyes and looked up from the book I was reading. “I’ll have the fillet please.” My look begged her not to ask me any more questions, just not now, and she obliged.

I quickly returned to my book…and read the pages again.

• Today, more than 26,500 children will die of preventable causes related to their poverty. And this will repeat itself tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that as well.
• Some 400 Million children will go to bed hungry tonight.
• Some 850 Million do not have enough food to sustain them today.
• 25,000 people will die today from hunger or hunger related diseases.
• In Africa, 1 of every 6 children will die before they celebrate their 5^th birthday.

These are thoughts and captions that are underlined in a book I had refused to publish. I had become calloused to the message. Those were other people’s problems, other people’s children.

It is also the only book where I recently asked the author to forgive me for my attitude toward his message and told him how pleased I am that we will publish it in Spanish next month. “The Hole in Our Gospel” by Dr. Richard Stearns, President of World Vision US, is by far the most powerful call to action book for social responsibility across the church I have ever read.

There I was sitting in Business Class, with all the quickly fading amenities of the privileged, while more than 10,000 children died during the course of my 10 hour flight.

The numbers are staggering – is there something we can do? Or have we become deaf to the cry of the hungry?

 

The creation of a dream.

What does it take to create a dream? Here are just a few steps and thoughts.

• Exposure to a need. Get out of your routine.
• Sensitivity to the need. Why is it that two people can experience the same thing, and one walks away with an idea and the other moves on?
• Desire to fill the need.
• Focus time. Get a way and think time over how it could happen.
• A mentor. Someone to listen and guide you.
• Preparation time. Get the resources and people in place.
• Executable timeline with launch dates.
• A time to evaluate. Correct course where needed and support areas.
• Passion to continue.

Start dreaming my friend.

 

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.

 

The premature death of a great idea.

I have an idea.

I kind of want to tell someone about it.

They might think my idea is stupid and laugh at me.

Yeah, it will never work.

I’ll just be quiet.

Courage: Taking a stand for what you believe

In business, just as in life, it is not always easy to do the right thing or make the tough choices. Just as in life, you need to know ahead of time what decisions you will make should circumstances arise. Anmd yes, it does take courage to follow through.

Here are 4 keys to building your courage:

• Be a person of principles and stick to them.
• Take a stand for allowing others to be different.
• Invest or divest on projects you work on.
• Listen to others, seek wise counsel. Don’t operate in a void.

Many times leadership is all about making decisions, driving a stake in the ground and standing firm. Such decisions require character, vision, and courage.

Lead on my brave friend.