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The Surprising Secret To Sustained Business Growth

dominos“I don’t understand it,” this first-time CEO said to me, shaking his head in dismay.

“We have one of the best products on the market, and sales at first were strong. But now it’s become a disaster.”

He explained to me how his company had grown rapidly in the last year, hiring more people than ever before and promoting others into management positions. They had invested heavily in this expansion and leveraged much of the assets of the company to do so.

Then nothing. Or next to nothing for their return on investment.

So he did the typical things. Spent more money on marketing. Pushed the sales force even harder. Held a company-wide “come to Jesus” meeting. Still no improvement.

Meeting with me was almost a last resort. And while I’ve built my professional reputation  helping small and mid-size companies get turned around through more productive sales and marketing, that’s never my starting point. My starting point is The Leadership-Profit Chain. Continue reading…

Filed Under: Leadership
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Are You a Window Person or a Mirror Person?

mirror-on-faceA window and a mirror are both made of glass, have a frame around them, and are used for seeing things.

But they have two totally different functions. You look through a window to the world outside, and you look into a mirror at yourself.

I have found that there are two totally different kinds of people when it comes to life and leadership . There are externally focused people, window people, who look outside at others passing them by; and there are internally focused people, mirror people, who look inside themselves for the solutions they need to move forward.

Which of these two are you? Answer the following four questions: Continue reading…

Filed Under: Leadership
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How to Make the Most of Every Week in 60 Minutes or Less

Image courtesy Fred via Compfight

 Imagine waking up tomorrow morning, taking a shower, getting ready for work, and walking out the door–briefcase in hand–to your car.

Instead of getting in the front seat, however, you get in the back seat because there’s a person already sitting at the steering wheel of your car. “Great,” you say to yourself, “someone’s going to drive me to work. It’s about time!”

But instead of heading in the direction of your office, the driver takes you in the complete opposite direction, like a bat out of hell, leaving you clinging to the upholstery for dear life.

Thirty minutes later, the car comes to screeching stop. The driver jumps out and another driver gets behind the wheel and that driver, too, speeds off in a random direction.

This happens a dozen times throughout the day, and you return home late for dinner. Alive, yes, but exhausted and frustrated. The work you were planning to do in your day will now have to get done in the evening.

You wake up the next morning, and, like a scene out of Groundhog Day, the event repeats itself again. Day after day, week after week. Continue reading…

Filed Under: Personal Productivity
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How to Avoid the BP-Effect with Your People

bpYour boss walks into your office, closes the door, and wants to talk.

What do you experience in that moment?

A racing pulse? Cold sweats? Thoughts spinning out of control? You’re not alone, because that’s what most people experience when their boss shows up unannounced wanting “to talk”.

And that’s what people experience when you do the same with them.

What’s a leader to do?

We’re being told to get out of our office and get more in touch with our people. We’re being told to talk with others on their turf and not make them come to us. And we’re being told to do all that in person, not by memo, email, or Skype.

And what we’re being told is true. It’s just the doing of it that gets in the way, the context and not the content. Continue reading…

Filed Under: Employee Engagement
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Three Zones of Leadership: Which One Are You In?

Image courtesy Ken Douglas via Compfight

Your world is ever changing.

Like the tide, it’s in constant motion. Sometimes with a dramatic surge, other times with more subtle shifts in the sand.

This is true in the world of leadership as well. So it’s imperative that you stop every once in awhile and ask yourself if you are changing with the times.

One of the best ways to do that is to look at each of the following three zones and ask yourself which one you’re living in right now.

ZONE ONE: The Comfort Zone

The first zone that leaders find themselves in is the comfort zone. It’s the zone where we are safe and secure. This is a zone we think we want to live in (Who doesn’t want to be safe and secure?), but one that’s not in our best interests long term. Continue reading…

Filed Under: Leadership
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Stop the Meeting Madness: 3 Choices for Smart Leaders

Just 3-4%. That’s all, just 3-4% of their time is spent on long-term strategy and 60% of their time is spent in meetings.

That’s what Harvard Business School recently discovered in a research project on the way CEO’s spend their time.

The report found that CEO’s are hardworking and diligent, serving their firms tirelessly. No surprise, right? What was surprising was this: The area where CEO’s spent most of their time, over 60% of it, was in meetings, with only 3-4% of their time being spent on long-term strategy.

Neither of these percentages are encouraging.

Whether you’re a CEO nor not, if you’re in business, you’re probably sick of sitting in meetings. They don’t need to be a necessary evil, however. Smart leaders handle meetings differently. Here’s how: Continue reading…

Filed Under: Leadership, Personal Productivity
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