LW 53 Hurry up and wait?

 

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MEMORABLE PRESENTERS ARE sure that the message of their presentation is clear.

They remember the three objectives of most presentations::

• Inform
• Inspire, or
• Persuade

 

AS A MEMORABLE PRESENTER ensure your next presentation has a clear “Call to Action,” and that this follows the question and answer session. 

Speech is a mirror of the soul: as a man speaks, so is he.

Publius Syrus
(c 42 BC)Roman slave

 

“A first-rate organizer is never in a hurry. He is never late. He always keeps up his sleeve a margin for the unexpected.” - Arnold Bennett

 

And now on to Leading Ways…..   Hurry up and Wait

Really, there is no need to do that… it is time to move your business forward onto the next growth phase

North America over the past few months has not only been troubled by the economic slump, but for those that could afford it, it has been summer holiday-vacation time.

For those in Australasia, in addition to the slow-down, people have hunkered down for winter.

For many businesses and businesses these pressures have not all been bad.  These pressures enabled prudent cost control and cash management.  The goal now is to ensure that the changes made towards greater profitability become embedded in the culture of your business.

Apart from a more general “hunkering-down” some remembered the expression “carpe diem” ----- size the day and place no trust in tomorrow!  These are the ones who have been out there every day doing their “face time” enhancing existing customer relationships, and targeting on new prospects.

Now is the time for managed regrowth!

If we are seeking increased engagement and productivity it starts through having a clear believable Vision for you team, or your business.  That Vision can be easily developed by answering these questions ::

• Where are we?
• Where do we want to go? [Direction]
• Why do we want to go there? [Does it fit our core business?]
• How are we going to get there?

 

Vision is the platform from which Engaging Leadership is developed and nurtured.

1.         Do you have the other attributes of an engaging leader?

• Recognize that the whole person shows up for work -- providing flexibility when adverse events occur in a person’s life.
• Offer opportunities for growth and development – not only training, but work experiences.
• Differentiate employee performance – put time into your stars.
• Get rid of command and control [that is what transaction leaders do] by exploring the options your team members bring up, and then putting their workable solutions into practice.
• Provide flexible working arrangements – particularly when the person is faced with adverse personal situations.
• Never portray themselves as perfect – celebrate your screw-ups.
• See performance review as a regular/daily activity – stop it being just a forced annual event.
• Find ways to find challenging work for their employees – no matter how repetitive their work is you can always pepper that work with special projects.

 

A clear objective to build, motivate and maintain the strongest team.

2.         Top Performing Businesses Also Focus On Differentiation

-  What makes us unique in the eyes of the customer/client and prospect?

Less than 25% of the Fortune 500 companies existing twenty years ago still exist.  Not only have there been mergers and acquisitions, but many lost their competitive advantage and went out of business.

Being the cheapest is not a competitive advantage.  Customers will come on price, and leave just as quickly when they find a better offer.

What are you doing to differentiate your products or services?

3.         Perhaps It Is Time To Drive A Managed Sales And Marketing Plan

You have heard me before.  There are 35+ marketing and sales action items.  Regardless of the number they fall into three broad categories

1. CRE [Customer Relationship Enhancement] – This always involves three questions – Are they wedded to our business, or are we vulnerable to their loss; Fully cross-sold on all products/services appropriate to their situation, and; Developed as a source of referrals for others in need of our product or service.
2. Visibility – this includes such activities as writing articles, developing newsletters or blogs; seminar or workshop delivery and active membership in targeted organizations.
3. Targeting – this may include targeting on new prospects directly, or building a wider base of referral contacts.

 

“Do not be in a hurry to succeed. What would you have to live for afterwards? Better make the horizon your goal; it will always be ahead of you.” - William M Thackeray

 

These are concurrent activities in a monthly managed plan.  Apart from having a rolling monthly plan I suggest that, regardless of how busy you get you designate and commit to a given number of hours each month.  In my case the monthly average effort is 15-20 hours.

4.         Accurate monthly Gross Profit and Cashflow Planning

Discounting during the slowdown has hurt the GP margins of many businesses.  By a clear re-focus away from commodity items to value-add or differentiated products/services you will be able to slowly, but methodically restore your margins.

Need I remind us all?  Cashflow is King!  Expenses are easy to forecast.  On the sales side [Cashflow from sales] I usually have a “worst case” month by month cashflow plan, projecting out eighteen months.  The second forecast is a “target” one, and something to aspire to.

As this plan is updated monthly, and based on actual results you are always in the position of having the time to make mid-course corrections if you fall short of even your worst case.

 

Do you have trouble with plans falling short, because you get side-tracked?

The remember the 3 F’s

• Focus
• Follow-through, and
• Face-time

 

An example in relation to follow-through is in prospecting for new business.  In this context I use the ‘Rule-of-7.’ 

It will take six or seven contacts before someone maybe likes you, maybe trusts you and then wants to test you to see if you can add value to their business through your product or service.

Most of us get impatient after the third or fourth call and just give up, and yet that is the point where they are getting to like and trust you. 

If they are a prospect, not a suspect (just cross-checking on their current vendor) invest time in those additional face-to-face contacts.  It may take the full six or seven contacts or more, but you will be delighted at how your closing ratio improves.

 

 

-Tenacity/Resilience  - Do you have a demonstrated history of not stopping when barriers appear?  Do you work through the challenges and keep going?

Another way to define Tenacity/Resilience is the expression, GRIT.

In recent years, psychologists have come up with a term to describe this mental trait: Yes it is grit.

 

“Remember, you only have to succeed the last time.’ - Brian Tracy

 

 

Although the idea itself isn’t new - “Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration,”   Grit isn’t simply about the willingness to work hard.

Instead, it’s about setting a specific long-term goal and doing whatever it takes until the goal has been reached.

It’s always much easier to give up, but people with grit keep going.

P-E-R-S-I-S-T and you will achieve your goals …..

 

                               
Kind regards

Denis Orme

027-472-8610
www.leader-success.com

p.s., One of the best ways to find inspiration in business is to take advice from people that have made it. I've found that successful business people are usually always willing to share their experiences, you just have to ask.

1. Goals are the first step to business success. Jim Rohn believes that "If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us."
2. Action should follow your goals. "Don't be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment." says Ralph Waldo Emerson.
3. Good questions will keep you on the right track say Anthony Robbins.. "Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers."
4. Luck and timing will ensure success, so be prepared for luck. "I feel that luck is preparation meeting opportunity." Oprah Winfrey
5. Success comes when everyone profits. "I have found no greater satisfaction than achieving success through honest dealing and strict adherence to the view that, for you to gain, those you deal with should gain as well." Alan Greenspan.