In my prior post about doing the unexpected, I talked about a recent school issue with one my kids, and I posed the question: Would it work in the work place? It was a rhetorical

question, I absolutely believe that work is the perfect environment for

doing the unexpected.

Lets take a look at this from a customer perspective. You live in Arizona and your on the way to your local body shop to…

Continue

People selling think they are in control. I would argue the opposite is true, the buyers are in control. They are the ones that are asking the questions and if your the one asking the

questions you are in control of the conversation. The internet has

changed the game, and the customer now has the advantage. Why do they

have the advantage? They are ones driving the conversation. I was

recently at a car dealership…

Continue

I recently received an email from my son’s 4th grade teacher expressing her concern over my son’s behavior that day at school. My first reaction was pretty typical, I was disappointed in his choices

and how he represented the family. I wanted to fire back an email to

his teacher and leave her with an impression that we would take care of

it and it would never happen again. Fortunately, it was pretty late

when I read the email…

Continue

I recently read this blog post http://b2l.me/a6hh23 about accountability and it really resonated with me. I use to argue this point all the time with my key staff, and it was a challenge for

me to express my view point around “not needing” accountability. I use

to say to them that accountability was B.S. and all we have to do is

provide the right environment that will facilitate our…

Continue

I was reading through my various blogs this morning and Seth Godin had a very simple post http://bit.ly/afYMiX that basically sums up the collision repair industry. I see the industry as a whole chasing old problems year after year and it amazes

me that…

Continue

By understanding the things that bog you down, it provides clarity on the barriers that are inhibiting progress. Some might view their constraints as a pain in the butt, but others view them as a blessing,

a blessing that creates focus. If you know the problem, then the

solution is typically a few dollars and some time away from resolution.

Don’t settle or dump your constraint on: That’s the…

Continue

Everyday I ask myself: Have I created the right structure that will influence my behavior to achieve my desired goals and ultimately fulfill my vision? I think you have to constantly challenge yourself, your business, your team in that way in order to keep progress in motion. Progress is a huge motivator, and once it becomes stagnant, so does the motivation within people. It is much easier to keep the ball moving then it is to get the ball… Continue

According to POGO it is US...There is a lot of truth to this. People in general typically find an excuse for everything: I don't feel good, I don't enough money, There just isn't enough time in the day, I don't

have a college degree.....the list goes on. It is easy to find a reason

or justify not doing something, why not do the opposite? Find a reason

or justification to do something, create an…

Continue

I took a road trip and decided to plug in the audio book " The 5th Discipline" by Peter Senge, and he spends a fair amount of time talking about "dialogue" and "discussion." He states that in order to have true dialogue you have to have 3 elements present: 1) Suspend your assumption, 2) Agree that the participants are colleagues, and 3) Have a moderator present to keep the spirit of 1&2 in check. Discussion on the other hand is more like ping pong, it is point counter point with assumptions… Continue

Is how you get customers. What are you doing?

How do you:

1) Attract customers: If you are the fisherman it is important to have the right bait, the attractive lure, and you should be fishing when the fish are hungry.

Are you being attractive or are you hunting and making your customers run from you?

2) Engage: Once you have their attention, what are you doing to keep it? How do you get your customers to hang…

Continue

Most companies focus on what doesn't work. They print off reports that display results that are out of "spec," they send emails out that demand change, and they spend hours in meetings discussing what isn't

working. Now that may sound like corporate America, but it can easily

be distilled down to the small business owner as well. Lets face it, we

are conditioned to operate this way since birth. Parents do it, schools

do it, so business does it.

Put your focus and…

Continue

If you want to better understand your company, you need to understand the fundamental values of the people that work in the company. This is actually pretty easy to do, and it can be done in a casual conversation setting. Here are a few questions you can ask your employees that will provide some insight to their core values:



1) What are you proud of?

2) What tics you off?

3) Why do you get angry?

4) What is a principle without which life would not be worth… Continue

I had a great conversation the other day with one of my mentors, and as usual, it was very animated. I love arguing with that guy:) He really makes me think...Anyways, our conversation was around the concept of being a professional and what that meant. It was a series of point/counterpoint and the net was summed up in a simple statement. Here it is: Professionals have autonomy and workers have competency.

Thoughts?

Make it a great day!

I think the idea of settings goals is a little over rated. Overrated in the sense that people seem to focus on the "goal statement" rather than the process that is required to arrive at the "goal statement." I think the more valuable part of establishing goals is the process you go through to create the goal. By Challenging yourself or your team to discover what is important, create the discussion around that and the interaction between people and groups creates the connections for success. The… Continue

I was at my sons football game last weekend and I saw the opposing teams "Branded" t-shirts and on the back it said: "winners train and losers complain." I thought to myself how fundamental that it is, however, at first glance it seems like it's all about the game, but in reality it's about behavior. Regardless if the score is in your favor or not a winner leaves the game and looks forward to the training ahead and the loser leaves the game and complains about the circumstances of the loss.… Continue