Richard Ian Selby Townsend

What do you do when the job applicant doesn’t fit the job description?

2018-10-13T17:37:00.000-07:00

You’ve advertised for a new staff member to replace someone who is leaving your organisation. As part of the ad you have listed a reasonably detailed list of skills you require based on the past on the tasks completed by the current incumbent. You decide to interview the top ten applicants based on their resumes and references and include a couple who don’t have the full list of skills you require based on other strengths they appear to have.

After the interviews you realise the most outstanding prospect is shot in two skill areas you require. In spite of that you realise this patron would make an outstanding employee and a dd great value to your organisation. So what do you do? Do you 1) pass up on all that potential and accept a lesser person because they have all your listed skills or 2) would it be better to redesign the job scope and find another way to fill the skills gap?

For my money, number two will always be the better option.

The Four Most Prevalent Forms of Bad Customer Service

2016-10-01T14:47:00.000-07:00

Chris Smith of 4BC speaks with Justin Herald, Managing Director of “Major Motivation” about why we have bad customer service in Australia.

“Ninja Service”… like Marcel Marceau they say nothing, no engagement you know they are there but like Ninja’s you can’t see them

“Skelton Service”… no cashiers open… then three people stand around to send you to the self service checkout

“Fools Gold Customer Service”… Ring hear about how they love you but you wait on hold for forty five minutes

“One Size Fits All”… hello how are you, hello how are you, hello how are you… said to everyone… but no real interest shown… sales service is apathetic

Recorded Program… on demand 2GB. http://www.2gb.com/audioplayer/206961 Well worth a listen!

Empire Avenue and Career Success

2014-08-24T02:14:00.001-07:00

It may be hard to see a link between career success and Empire Avenue however there can be a strong link which I will hopefully explain.

'Social networking can be an integral part of your career building, if you use it correctly. If you don't, even information you consider private could cost you your job and damage your career.' (abbreviated) - Alison Doyle - Job Expert

"Social media has made it easy and acceptable for you to advertise your skills and to connect with others who may be interested in your professional services. If you're not using it you could be missing out on opportunities to advance your career interests." - Corinne Mills is managing director of Personal Career Management and is author of several best-selling career books.

Self promotion, if done correctly, is an essential part of any personal career management plan or career success formula. Being published or even curating valuable information that relates to your expertise or industry is a great way to impress both your customers and your employers alike. As a young supervisor I was asked to write an article on behalf of my employer on equipment leasing for a prestigious accounting magazine. The article was then republished in both government guides and other professional publications. Within six months I was promoted to the department manager and within two years was managing one of the companies largest branches. Sure you still have to perform your tasks well however if no one notices you then you don't get offered the opportunities to excel.

That brings me to Empire Avenue's potential to enhance your career success prospects.

When recently asked, a number of experienced players described what they liked best about being members of Empire Avenue. The messages that stuck out where:

"The People you interact with, and learning different ways to leverage social media."

"For me, EA has been a school of social media along with making connections; both locally and globally!"

"Excellent place to find other's content and draw attention to your own content ....and you meet some great (and influential) social media people."

Finally as another current player put it:

Empire Avenue lets you amplify your content and social awareness. It taps you into a network of other creators, curators and community moderators with a similar goal; to increase their social worth. By investing in others, like a social stock exchange, and by completing missions or requests on your time, you are able to earn virtual I.O.U. points which can be saved up and traded in when you have some content or profiles of your own that needs a boost.

Another perspective from friend Lynn O'Connell

"How does all this help your career? Simple. When you connect with people on Empire Avenue who share your interests, they aren't just random people. They are people who are active and influential in social media. So, when you write an important article, they can help you stand out in the (very) crowded online space. Instead of disappearing into the online void, your article -- or your pages or your Twitter feed -- are seen and shared by more people, which validates your expertise and your influence. You can use that to raise your own profile within your profession or to help your employer. Of course, you'll need to create or curate good content, and you need to nurture your Empire Avenue relationships. When you do both, the results truly ARE social media rocket fuel."

Can your career success be influenced by Empire Avenue participation? YES

Why your Managers should join Rotary

2013-12-12T15:51:00.000-08:00

Misconceptions about Rotary

Rotary is an organisation principally made up of successful professionals. Many non Rotarians seem to think of it as purely a networking organisation or a do-gooders club. Obviously doing good things for your community, country and even world wide is facet of Rotary and a basic part of the reason for its existence. As for networking, well of course, again as with any group you join, the crucial personal success factor of networking is part of the deal.

From a business owners point of view however, Rotary is much more valuable!

I often read articles claiming there is currently a shortage of business soft skills, particularly in our younger workers.

Over my 30 years in Rotary and looking at it from a business persons perspective I have found that the organisation has an important benefit not often mentioned in its literature. Rotary represents possibly the cheapest and most effective staff "soft skills" development tool available to organisations both private and public.

Although a British example from the "National Careers Service" here is a list of essential soft skills they published that I believe also fairly represent the skills requirements/problems employers also face in Australia and many other countries.

They state: "…[essential] soft skills, which tend to be either personal characteristics or skills that have been fine-tuned over a period of time are:"

Communicating; Making decisions; Showing commitment; Flexibility; Time management; Leadership skills; Creativity and problem-solving skills; Being a team player; Accepting responsibility; Ability to work under pressure

"When you look at that list and how valuable these skills can be to organisations, it’s a wonder they call them ‘soft skills’, because they are very important and hard to learn!"

ref: https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/aboutus/newsarticles/Pages/Spotlight-SoftSkills.aspx

Again from "career-advice.monster.com"

Six Soft Skills Everyone Needs

Communication Skills: written and real, persuasion, presentation and succinct explanations

Teamwork and Collaboration: Working with others, leading and following, monitoring progress, meeting deadlines, sharing a common goal and working across department cultures

Adaptability: "Understand the need to have a passion for continuous learning and the ability to continue to grow and stretch skills to adapt to the changing needs of the organisation,"

Problem Solving: "What to do, how approach a problem, how to involve others to help and how to assess the outcome in real, measurable results."

Critical Observation 'Collect and manipulate data and importantly analyse and interpret it.' Understand what questions are raised and assess what the data tells us about the next steps to take.'

Conflict Resolution: The ability to persuade, negotiate and resolve conflicts is crucial at all organisational levels. "Wherever people gather there will be politics", personality differences and competing agendas.

Can Staff "Learn Soft Skills"?

"The good news is that, like any skill, soft skills can be learned. The better news? Boosting your staffs soft skills not only prepares them for a promotion or taking on more responsibility, it will also have obvious applications in all areas of a person's life, both professional and personal."

OBVIOUSLY BETTER SKILL LEVELS WILL IMPROVE STAFF PERFORMANCE AND THEREFORE YOUR BUSINESS

What are the options?

'Offer staff a training or an academic course': Sure however that can be expensive. Example: A well know leadership course in Australia costs $2,100.00 for two days of training (ref: Blanchard)

"Seek Mentors": A great option however as the boss do you have the time and/or do your senior managers have the skills to be mentors? Wouldn't it be great to get some 'free' outside help?

"Volunteer: Working with nonprofit organisations gives participants the opportunity to build soft skills." Aha here comes Rotary.

ref http://career-advice.monster.com/career-development/getting-promoted/six-soft-skills-everyone-needs-hot-jobs/article.aspx

From the Rotary Club of Sydney's 'Why Join Rotary Page'

"Team building, fundraising, public speaking, planning, organisation, and communication are just a sampling of the leadership skills that club members can exercise and enhance. Being a Rotary leader provides further experience in learning how to inspire and guide [manage] others."

Well that's a start however it's pretty much an unsubstantiated claim… where's the proof.

Lets look at a few skills and see how being a Rotary member helps

Firstly I should point out that Rotary gives it's elected officers power. The important point is that the power comes without any legitimate authority. Because it is an organisation of volunteers even as the president you cannot insist on anything. You must convince the board and members that doing what you ask of them is in the best interests of all concerned. Not an easy task at times. From a business owners point of view it is better for managers to learn how to do that in a volunteer organisation than having them destroy the morale of your workers though the misuse of their legitimate authority at work.

A FEW OF THE MANY SKILLS GAINED THROUGH ROTARY

Communication. There are many opportunities to speak in meetings. As a member individuals will be called upon to introduce or thank guest speakers. As a director individuals will be asked to present/report on what their committee is doing regarding projects you are involved in. If you act as club sergeant you will need to tell stories about other members for which they will pay a small 'fine'. In this role you will also learn how to develop a little comic relief into your public speaking. As you progress you will need to do presentations to the wider public.

Making Decisions. This critical business skill will be developed through involvement in club, district or global projects. As with any organisation money is involved and other peoples money at that, so well considered actions and an understanding of desired outcomes is essential. Example: Your club is offered the parking duties at a local event in return for gaining permission to hold out a gold coin donation bucket. You will have to assess, will the funds to be raised warrant the manpower needed. Is the organisation running the project legitimate and capable of making it a success? Does your club have the levels of manpower required or will you need to negotiate a joint venture with another group in order to do the job properly. What other resources such as shelter, refreshments, signs, money collection procedures, safety procedures, to mention just a few, do you need? What support for the workers must you provide and how will the work be divided up?

Showing Commitment. What can I say. Those that are not committed in Rotary even have their own anagram, they are called RINOs, Rotarians in Name Only. They are the one's that come late, eat and leave early. They are the one's who never volunteer and when they do tend to stand around and watch other members work. They are the one's that see Rotary only as a place to sell their wares. The social pressure that results from other members usually sees them out of the club pretty quickly. If however an individual shows commitment to the clubs goals they become a great ambassador for your business.

Teamwork. I guess I don't have to go into the theory of teamwork however, as I have run effective teamwork courses for major global companies over many years throughout Asia I believe I understand what is important for effective teamwork to exist. A few quick requirements. Individuals must be able to:

(a) Communicate: Provide clear and accurate information, Listen effectively, Ask questions, Acknowledge requests for information, Openly share ideas, Attend to non-verbal behaviours

(b) Manage Interpersonal Relations and Share the Work: Seek mutually agreeable solutions, Consider different ways of doing things, Manage/Influence disputes

(c) Be involved in Group Decision Making/Planning Identify problems: Gather information, Evaluate information, Share information, Understand decisions, Set goals

(d) Develop skills of Adaptability/Flexibility: Provide assistance, Reallocate tasks, Provide/Accept feedback, Monitor/Adjust performance

I have only mentioned a few of the benefits of being a Rotarian here, however if you want to develop the leaders of your organisation I state again Rotary represents a great opportunity for your organisation to do that and in a cost effective manner.

AN EXAMPLE OF TEAMWORK IN ROTARY

A personal story.

Some years ago I was involved in a project in the western suburbs of Brisbane to improve the facilities at a school for aphasic children. The project called the raising of the school on higher stumps and the building of three classrooms under the raised building Construction required everything from architectural design & engineering to the manufacture and fitting of walls, windows & doors, plastering, painting, pluming and electrical. New paths, stairs and balconies where also required. Two Rotary clubs collaborated on the project. The time to do the project was six months and required fairly constant work. The technical skills were drawn from club members. money was raised through grants and Rotary fundraising activities.

Thinking about the team skills mentioned above obviously they all came into play. The team that did the work were not contractors but Rotarians themselves. I still remember sitting on a trestle next to a 70 year old GP while we chatted and painted outside walls of the building. They guys and girls in the team included, architects, insurance company and bank managers, a plumber, a service station proprietor, doctors, a car dealer, a grocery wholesaler, solicitors, retail managers just to mention a few. All the mentioned effective teamwork skills came into play and I learnt valuable lessons for life. All were volunteers so no one had the authority to boss other around however through their demonstrated human relations skills they bossed us around plenty… I mean they effectively elicited our eager cooperation and we all learned a lot about ourselves and how to work with others across a broad spectrum of society. By the way the 70 year GP was a pretty lousy painter… then again I wasn't that good at it myself.

THE INVESTMENT

So will you nominate one of your managers with high potential in your organisation to become a Rotarian AND make the monetary investment as well? Oh… how much will it be for all these staff development benefits? Best estimate: Membership $280 p.a., Meals $25.00 X 26 a year $650, Meals $10 X 12 a year $120 and Events $35 X 5 a year $175. Total $1225. Time the (paid or unpaid) staff member will need to invest 156 hours or 6.5 days. No that large an amount to invest when you consider the training cost for just 2 days of leadership training only I mentioned above. This is easy surely to justify for any successful business.

SO HOW DO I CONVINCE THE STAFF TO JOIN

Well you know better than I how that needs to be done. In my case my boss Chris Fletcher called all the senior executives of the finance company together at a small ceremony and said: "congratulations on being appointed to Manager of our third biggest branch at Parramatta, you are the youngest manager we have ever appointed, I am sure you will do a great job and of course enjoy your TIME IN ROTARY". "What" I said "I don't want to hang around with all those ancient old blokes". To which he replied, "do you want the promotion Richard". "YES" I said… and the deed was done… and now thirty years later I am glad he insisted.

Richard Townsend

President - The Rotary Club of Maleny

December 2013

http://www.orglearn.org

http://www.malenyrotary.org

Three More Quick Communication Tips

2013-10-20T00:37:00.001-07:00

Is your fuzz killing the buzz

One of the biggest communication errors I constantly encounter is the using of industry buzzwords, jargon and acronyms. This practice can and usually does, create annoyance, at best and misunderstandings at its worst. My advice is work hard to get the fuzz out of your communication style. Oh and often the lister will just see you as someone who is trying to show off.

Check for understanding

Can everyone define exactly what you mean from what you say. No some concepts can be hard to explain so you must periodically check the listener knows what you are on about. The are two ways to do that. You can ask do you have any questions which is OK however its better to seek a explanation from your listener. That can be difficult however the best way to do that is to ask the listener this question: "To ensure I have conveyed my meaning well do you mind putting what I am saying into your own words so we perfectly understand each other." Note: Never ask the question "do you understand".

Don't waffle, be succinct

Another common complaint I hear is that many people waffle on or go round in circles rather than getting to the point. Use short and well considered sentences and words to convey your message. Get to the point of your communication early, don't go into a long winded wind up. If the lister wants background they will usually ask for it, or you can ask if they need more information.

Three Quick Communication Tips

2013-10-06T18:53:00.002-07:00

Mean what you say and say what you mean

Is the meaning of your message clear? A great opening to any communication is "I want to discuss xyz because…. followed by "whatever" after the opening. If you use this phrase you alert the listener to the topic and importantly your motivation for the discussion. People can't guess what you're thinking. you have to let them know.

Keep it simple

Are the words you are using appropriate to the listener? Avoid big words they can confuse the listener. Avoid jargon at all costs.. its just dumber than mud.

Is your attitude betraying your purpose

The tone and pitch of your voice will have a great effect on your listener. Keep it calm an even so you are not destroying the ability to listen for the other party. A big problem I find is page… slow it down give the listener a chance to absorb what you are saying. Speaking too quickly will convey impatience and even the other person's belief in what you are saying. If you rush you can jeopardise the empathy the listener will have for both you and your message

More at http://www.orglearn.org

Social Media Activity is 'Personal'

2013-08-17T02:35:00.000-07:00

Here's the proof that social media activity needs to be personal and cannot be automated.

Read it carefully and you will understand why most of the Eave players were dumber than mud.

Also see more from Ric at orglearn.org

The Power of Social Media… Myth?

2013-04-28T04:56:00.000-07:00

Is the power of social media overrated? I keep hearing mainstream media talking about "the power of social media". It is my contention that social media has no power in itself, it just facilitates the power of ideas… good or bad, at a much faster rate than in the past. Social media has no power itself. The "Arab Spring" (as an example), was a powerful idea, not a powerful social media event.

When desperate senior executives of confused corporations hear about this social media power I am sure in many cases they race out of their offices and demand an instant social media policy, or better still the instant hiring of a social media 'guru'. The thinking of course must be… 'we need professional and effective access to this fundamental new source of power'.

Sure social media is a great communication channel, or perhaps more correctly a series of communication channels however the power comes from the power of their brand or the message their brand delivers when it is well matched to their ability to communicate… not as many seem to think… the channel access itself.

In two instances recently organisations have discussed with me the need to set up or get involved with social media. "We need 'to improve the market penetration" and 'customer touch points' is the common catch cry.

The problem both these organisations have is I suspect similar to that of many others … they don't know what to set up let alone how to operate what they set up. The social media power problem is two fold. The second problem is most don't understand that the power comes from the passion created by their fundamental message rather than the level of activity undertaken on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or any other social media platform.

The first issue in many cases is badly handled as the need to carry on a sensible conversation on an organisation's social media channels seems difficult, if not impossible for many. Social media operations are time consuming, expensive, labour intensive and potentially dangerous. The second problem is if you have a boring product or a boring message social media will not help you, in fact it may just make the world more aware of how boring your organisation and its product's or services really are.

So remember if you are wanting 'the power' get your message right as well as how it is delivered and be prepared for a long ongoing conversation with your customers. It's all about form and substance and you need to handle both extremely well to be successful in the social media world.

Richard Townsend - orglearn - 'planning is everything, plans are nothing'

The Divided Brain and Society

2013-01-09T15:15:00.001-08:00

Richard Townsend Richard Townsend - orglearn - Management tips, free blank resume form, fill in the blank resume sections online.
What managers need to do & the issues to consider in the soft skills area of their role. Articles on behavior, motivation, selling, competence, teamwork, EQi & leadership. Blank resume form with positive examples, handy self-analysis to evaluate the commercial realities of what you have to offer employers.

Why Bloggers Need Triberr

2012-10-30T23:03:00.000-07:00

Perhaps the heading of this post should actually be… "Why Bloggers, Tweeters, Google+'ers and Social Media Buffs in General Need Triberr"

I recently asked a bunch of Facebook friends if they used Triberr. Here are some of their responses:

Sarah: I tried to get on, got confused, have not pursued it. Have been invited to join a few [tribes] - got confused again. And, while my confusion may be my problem, I am not generally easily confused or thwarted. IMO, it needs interface work.  

Laura: I joined a while ago, when I was joining everything in sight. Have never really used it. :>)  

Laurens: Too difficult, even for me. BTW I don't like the "Triberr FB-Bombs" by certain Triberr Members, but the content is great!

Leia: I'm not using it although I have an account.

  Joanne: I love Triberr! 

So what are the Triberr positives?

Mark Schaefer of "Grow Blog" says in a post that he liked Triberr because it provided four things: "Fresh voices… who are delivering AMAZING content". "Meaningful traffic" that has "boosted my [his] blog visitors by about 7 percent". "Feedback…"Triberr provides some nice analytics about how your posts perform in the blogosphere". Finally he states: "It solves a problem. There is a chronic unfairness about the blogosphere. Many bloggers are popular simply because they were there first" and I assume it gives him a chance to compete.

Now I agree Triberr can be a bit confusing to start with and if you are committed it also means you need to share others post in the hope of having them reciprocate. Here however are a few more reasons, if you are a blogger, why you should be involved.

It sets you up to be a very effective at content curation.and although good authors will perhaps always take the lead as the video below explains 'good curators serve an important and perhaps even a taste maker: role'. http://mashable.com/2012/05/25/content-authors-curators/

Finding others that blog on your topics can be arduous however Triberr's search makes it quite easy so you can have access to pertinent content to share with your audience.

Thirdly from a social aspect you can make great contacts in the field you are interested in with others who share your passion.

Ric http://www.orglearn.org

Social Media Success It's About TRUST

2012-09-25T21:29:00.003-07:00

It's not only about Trust in Social Media it's about the real economy and life itself!

So what are you doing about building a sound reputation for the wired world? How you behave it will effect everything from your ability to get a job to being able to borrow money.

Social Media Engagers Connectors Bludgers and Grubs

2012-09-06T22:39:00.000-07:00

If you are involved in social media you will come across many characters who see themselves as leaders, at least in their apparent circle of 'influence'. Unfortunately many social media 'leaders' are not so social.

The appropriate dictionary definition of social in the context of social media is: "Attitudes, orientations, or behaviours which take the interests, intentions, or needs of other people into account (in contrast to anti-social behaviour)." - Wikipedia

Obviously if you are using say Twitter to distribute information or ideas the reality is; once you get above a few dozen or so connections it will be extremely hard, or too time consuming to constantly interact with everyone.

One social media platform that describes itself as "social media rocket" fuel however almost demands by its design and style of operation a level of intimacy, co-operation, trust and reciprocation that is higher than most other platforms. If you are interested to take a look… it is:

http://www.empireavenue.com/RICTOWNSEND

One of the unique features of this social media platform is that you can offer rewards through missions to those that will help you achieve goals in other areas such as Facebook, Twitter Goolge+ etc. This is where the true individuals show their colours. Here is a recent mission I offered:

I won't mention individual players by name however my heading mentions four characters. In reverse order:

Grubs: They are types that sponge off others, (e.g. in EAve. don't complete missions and just take the reward and run). This group also wants you to everything for them, share boring crap, help them become more notorious by voting them up silly competitions, offer nothing of value… other than that they see themselves as some sort of star or as "giants in their own lunch boxes". These characters often move away from what makes them popular in the first place and expect us love them for who they are rather than for the information they offer. I even saw one guy who offered tech advice do a video scolding his audience for asking what he considered dumb questions. He then started doing personal life videos and wondered why no one wanted to watch.

Bludgers: Well they sort of do stuff however always the minimum. They, in the case of EAve. as an example will do a few likes on a page that you want promoted however thats it. I even did a mission and gave away a large reward for doing nothing, just for being a shareholder and what did a get, a couple of guys didn't even leave a thank you note. These are not my idea of desirable social media types.

Connectors: Well they are numbers freaks. They want to have the most of everything, the most followers, the most accolades, the last word in every exchange and the biggest you know what on the planet. They spam, they manipulate, they just want bigger numbers. Often these types will have in their message or agenda a great idea you just must get involved in and they will flog it to death. These types see you as a potential customer and someone that can help get them what they want.

Engagers: These are the people we all seek. They believe in working for mutual benefit, they'll swap information and advice. They will complete task you want done as they understand the value of mutual leverage. They communicate and they are great to deal with. Many of these characters I believe would be great to meet face to face. These people without knowing it almost compel you to help them through their shear strength of character and demonstrated high levels of personal ethics.

So think about how you appear to others. What do your social media actions reveal bout you? Where you fit? I hope its in the social media engagers category.

Dreaming of the perfect Twitter un-follow app

2012-09-01T04:01:00.001-07:00

Yes for some time I followed everyone back… I saw it as polite, however now I need to cull so the app I want looks like this…!

It would automatically un-follow anyone that used the word "I" in their profile and even perhaps send a rude tweet to those that used it more than once.

It would throw out male tweeters who's profile pic showed them shirtless.

It would reject those females that have a profile pic which is 90% cleavage.

I would trash anyone with an animated avatar …kaboom!

It would send off into the centre of the earth any profile that asked me to visit something or worse still, buy their great product or money making scheme!

It would un-follow those that I inadvertently followed not realising they spoke a different language.

It would weed out anyone that mentioned the words God, Jesus, Allah, Christian, Bible, Koran or any other spiritual affiliation.

It would get rid of those that use such terms as husband of, wife of, mother of, father of… who gives a damn we are all (mostly) one of those.

Some people just don't get it… or is it me…!?

Can someone invent it please!!! Just for fun… :-)

"Many a true word is said in jest."

Any particular peeves you have... you may wish to comment,,,,,!

ps: Just list your topic,,, thats what we readers make our choices on, we mostly don't care about your coffee drinking habits, where you are visiting or problems with your health.

Don’t be a Misery Maker!

2012-08-06T22:50:00.001-07:00

In any company it is a good idea to review work processes and tasks to make sure what is being done is a “value adder” rather than just an “energy sucker”. In life I believe it’s wise to do the same thing with ‘friends’ and acquaintances.

Example one:

I have a friend who bought a supposedly tame and loveable dog from a breeder that turned out to be quite vicious towards other dogs. On the first morning he took it out to his unfenced front yard for a quick toilet break… unfortunately a passer by (an unusual occurrence in his short lane in the gated estate where he lives) happen buy with her dog. Bang his dog takes off, attacks the ‘intruder’ and knocks the owner over. My friend is old and quite blind however managed to separate the dogs and apologizes to its owner and says that he will pay for the vet bills. The ‘intruding’ dog needed stitches.

The response from friends was basically one of support as the level of grief, sorrow and stress in my friend was very high and he was at one point going have his do put down. Issues of legal blame or fault aside, one person didn’t help matters.

“Knowing her she’ll likely sue you” says one neighbor. Now this is stating the possible worst outcome for my friend who is obviously aware of the potential downside of his situation. We are all aware of this potential problem however my friend needed positive support rather than an in your face stress building comment on the morning after the incident as he hadn’t slept all night out of worry.

My friend rang me and said he would need to get the dog put down. I reluctantly offered to take the dog to the vet to get it put down, as I know from past experience how hard that is to do, particularly with a dog you have bonded with. As it turned out the other owner was quite understanding and forgiving, the dog was not put down and was eventually returned to the breeder.

About three weeks later my, by then dog-less friend, his wife and I where at the commenting neighbor’s house for dinner. After dinner the wife of the original commenter pipes up and says… “I saw Mrs. xyz today and she’s complaining of a saw hip from her fall… no I really don’t think she’ll be doing anything against you though… no surely she wouldn’t do that… no it’ll be all right”. I could see my friend was again visibly shaken. Why say anything it’s mean, it’s manipulative, its nasty and its just energy sucking, worry inducing and misery spreading rubbish of no value.

Example two:

Just watched the movie “The King’s Speech” again. In the scene before the king gives his 1^st wartime speech he is under enormous stress and the Archbishop of Canterbury is part of a group to be present in the next room as he gives his radio address to the nation. The Archbishop (a dumb nasty bit of work in my estimation) says to the stressed king something along the lines of “a very important historic moment”. The king knows that and the actor successfully portrays the king’s instant rise in his level of stress, sheer energy sucking nastiness on behalf of the Archbishop.

Churchill, a noted speaker is there also and says to the king… ‘I have a speech impediment, had it for years, wanted to operate on me, tongue tied for years… I’ve turned it into an asset’. Now there’s a value adder!

So be a Churchill “value adder” and not an “energy sucking” archbishop for your friends. Most importantly if you have negative friends, acquaintances or archbishops in your life… sever your relationship… they will just bring you down.

Ric-orglearn

Avatars and Social Media Success

2012-07-29T14:59:00.001-07:00

Social media success ia about presenting a positive public face to the world.

I am astonished how many don't get the idea and have written about this topic before.

Here are some examples of the some great avatars mixed with some that just don't give you a friendly feeling.

So who would you rather deal with mr anonymous in the blue gear, the dog, the 'standard'... I didn't put an effort in mr smiley, one of the guys hiding their head, someone in dark glasses, the cartoon chicken or one of the others.

Its all about building trust.

Ric http://www.orglearn.org

rictownsend on Twylah, see whats trending!

2012-07-19T23:37:00.001-07:00

Ric on Twylah

rictownsend Twitter | rictownsend Trending

Careers. Success. "orgearn". Management. Leadership and Social Media

Career Articles Resume Samples

When Two Men Meet - Imagine

2012-07-17T01:22:00.003-07:00

History shows when two men meet often as not they will come into conflict and one will die.

When men grow families and they meet other families often the two will feud and one will be obliterated or else the next generation will seek revenge.

When extended families form clans these greater groups will clash over females, livestock and land. Just take a look at Syria and Afghanistan to name but two.

When clans grow to groups that form villages, towns or cities, plunder and pillage will follow… again proven by history and strongly reinforced by current events.

When states or countries are formed national boundaries and integrity must be protected, so nations will attack each other and often neighbouring countries or even the rest of world can be drawn into the conflict. Now men and of course women and children die in vast numbers.

When men create religious divisions within societies… so called civilisations clash. Today’s rash of crazy religions based of irrational thought and fear of reality is creating a great deal of disastrous behaviour for individuals the world over. Religion is often at the centre of culture and I was taught, ‘no culture is bad just different’. I have grown to believe that that is rubbish, some cultures need to be stomped on as they are based on past realities and despicable practices and traditions.

An unfortunate fact: All conflict is limited by reach and today reach from a global perspective and through the wonders of modern technology is almost unlimited.

So how do we at least begin to stop the ever growing madness fuelled by those with immense power needs who are given succour and ‘legitimacy’ by large numbers of ignorant followers that demonstrate extremely low levels of emotional intelligence.

A possible start:

When men and women form a world conflict theoretically could only occur, given what I have said above, with other worlds. As, at least for the foreseeable future, other worlds are so far are out of reach that no conflict could occur.

Conclusion: Best for humanity to think about how to form a world and forget self, family, clan, city, country, religion and parochial cultures.

Yes I know it’s almost impossible, however…. IMAGINE

All You Can Be & Greatness

2012-06-21T21:17:00.000-07:00

A new twist on "being all you can be" and greatness!

Thanks to Meetu Singhal

A couple of more thoughts on greatness.

All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that which he partakes in common with all around him, will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity. - James F. Cooper

The greatest people I have encountered are those with a strong vision of the future who possess the self belief, tenacity and strength of character to carry out their personal mission. In some respects they have also been both the most uplifting elements and dangerous individuals in the lives of those around them. - Ric Townsend

www.orglearn.org - career success

5 Top Social Media Success Rules

2012-06-18T18:02:00.002-07:00

Number 5. Engage its social

If you have a large following it is impossible to talk to everyone however if you have a core inner circle at least talk to them. When you do communicate make sure you use their name and thank them for anything they do for you! Secondly write to your audience on the topics they are interested in and stick to your core message. I saw a leadership writer tweet "if you don't like what I tweet now, use the un-follow button". He was upset because of criticism he received when overnight he started to put lots of unrelated trivia in his preciously serious twitter stream.

Number 4. Stay away from the "Fluff"

"Empire Avenue" describes itself as a social media rocket fuel and maybe it is. Players ask you to do missions for a reward and often you uncover some great information you can pass on, Often as not however you get to see volumes of fluff… volume for volumes sake!` There is nothing less dissatisfying than going to someones facebook page and seeing lots of photos that you've seen on the last five pages you've visited… the cute cats, loveable dogs, their pretty kids and amazing landscapes… over and over again. It's the old substance trumps form every time. I understand a few human touches are good and the occasional 'personal' stuff doesn't hurt however, not all of the time, you'll end up with a page that is like fairy floss. Very little sugar with lots of volume... not very satisfying,

Number 3. Don't lose heart it takes time and constant effort

If you want to build a reputation on the web you need to keep at it and do at least a little each day or your followers will lose interest. As I said before stick to your core purpose and if you can't come up with new and interesting stuff of your own at least curate good information from others that is pertinent to your topic or topics. As the video says… be consistent!

Number 2. When asking for help from your followers give them something worthwhile supporting

Again using Empire Avenue as an example you get people asking you to share their information around your networks. Well sharing has two purposes, one the specific message you want to get out and secondly to build your reputation (or brand) generally. Asking someone to tell their network to say happy birthday to your grandmother isn't going to make it. Trying to get others to retweet about your upcoming seminar on how to breed Llamas isn't going to wash with a diverse readership. So if you want someone to share stuff about you make the information your distribute something of interest to a broad audience.

Number 1. Forget "you" in your social media communications

Some social media gurus or divas even refer to themselves as gurus and divas, gimme a break. I heard on the radio today how social media is feeding the natural narcissistic tendencies that a lot of people have today. Me, Me, Me… no its about them, them, them so its not "me and you", its "you and I" or better still "us". I know one notable player again on Empire Avenue who gained some notoriety by answering technical questions (web stuff) who posted a video on you tube scolding his audience for asking dumb questions. He then made it worse by posting videos of himself shopping, eating driving etc… and then complained that some people didn't want to do his missions… he had become his own topic and his narcissistic rants were just plain boring.

5 'Rules' for Successful Social Media Operation

2012-06-08T17:48:00.000-07:00

1. Many companies treat their social media accounts as if they were billboards and they are not… you must engage… or don't get involved at all.

2. Often individuals treat their social media accounts as a chance to be outrageous… its a bad policy and will bite you in the ass down the track so resist the temptation to do it!

3. It seems to be common practice for organisations to just use their company name rather than that of a person… not good, pick a name… make it fictitious if you must however people like to deal with people so give an individuals name.

This is basic even when I worked for a finance company 30 years ago we had a "Mister Brown" campaign… XYZ Co… just won't cut it in the social media space. We were all Mr Brown if someone called us and asked for him or we said MR Brown is with another customer, hi I'm Ric and I can help you! It's not rocket science!

4. Fix your avatar and make it consistent across all platforms… get rid of the cartoons, cats, pics of your kids and pics of your favourite toy!

5. Don't just broadcast, you need to invest the time and money to interact… hire me to do it for you or dedicate staff number who is competent and be prepared to take the good with the bad.

Bonus Number 6. Don't just talk about your product… talk about your town, city or industry!

Bonus Number 7. Lighten up a bit.. I know you are fighting a terrible disease or uncovering and outrageous injustice however if you want others to share your stuff on their networks (to get attention for your Facebook page or whatever) you have to give them something that "their network" will be interested in.

Social Media Tips on Presenting Yourself

2012-05-29T22:50:00.001-07:00

I see a lot of funny things as I cruise around my social media sites and interact with others. I thought I 'd just do a few tips on how we need to present ourselves to others. Lets face it, attracting followers is like trying to draw bees to a flower!

1st your AVATAR. A well photographed picture of yourself standing at a slight angle to the camera is best. No straight on mugshots, you'll look like a criminal. You need to smile! Don't look down at the camera you'll look like you are arrogant. Forget the finger pointing or weird gestures and of course be constant across all profiles.

2nd EMPIRE AVE. If you aren't involved in Empire Avenue as yet you should take a look at it as it can be a great help to those that are serious about social media.

Here also there are some "not too bright behaviours". Players can launch missions to get support for their various accounts. A couple of tips a) Don't ask people to RT to their followers happy birthday messages to your relatives, If you want to get re-tweets, post on a topic that will be interesting to a broad audience. Wise sayings will suffice if you are lost for what to post. b) If you want someone to answer a question on Facebook or Google plus give the specific post link! I've messed this up myself so I wasted other's time and the "funny money" called eaves. c) Thank people for their missions… its called interacting and its essential.

3rd GOOGLE PLUS Take the time and make the effort to change your background image. Google now allows you to add your own G+ cover pic so don't just use the boring old:

Now that's a bit of hopping around cover various platforms however I hope you find these tips go some way in helping you succeed in social media. More social media tips and management articles can be found at orglearn. Also remember your social media image these days forms a critical part of your resume.

Social Media and How To Build Trust

2012-05-11T21:45:00.002-07:00

Trust Rule 1: Don't start out your social media communication with "have I got a deal for you!". You find this a lot with Twitter users in their introductory message and its just a no no!

Trust Rule 2: Resolve issues that arise or solve problems through direct communication with person causing the difficulty, don’t bring in others and never get involved in a "flaming campaign". One to one in private is always best.

Trust Rule 3: In your communications be specific and direct. With written communication, being long winded can lead to disinterest very quickly.

Trust Rule 4: Be real, don't play act or adopt another persona and use a picture of yourself rather than some phoney avatar!

Trust Rule 5: Use a calm and logical approach to your communication and avoid abruptness and always use 'correct' greetings and culturally sensitive language. e.g I am told USA citizens prefer "thank you" rather than "thanks"!

Trust Rule 6: Share credit with those that assisted in the wins you have had, even go to the point of slightly overstating their contribution or as someone said “when in doubt, share”. If you are involved in platforms such as Empire Avenue this is particularly important. Even with Twitter you need to acknowledge the source of your information.

Trust Rule 7: If you make a commitment stick to it!

Trust Rule 8: Don't cheat... Again Empire Avenue is a good example… people issue missions for the games currency and some just take the money and run, not a good tactic for success that must be built on trust.

Trust Rule 9: As in the physical world it is un productive to ask loaded or rhetorical questions, ask only “non-assumptive” questions without couching them in any “spin” or as a way to push some secret agenda. This happened to me recently with a Facebook connection and in the end when he wouldn't desist I had to block him.

Trust Rule 10: Make only promises you can keep and if events overtake you admit it, don’t ever avoid the issues or ignore those seeking an explanation of a situation from you.

Trust Rule 11: Don’t scoff at another’s opinions or efforts and add support to those in difficulty.

Trust Rule 12: Have enough self-control (and demonstrate it) to overcome immediate or short-term feelings in the interests of maintaining ongoing and long term associations.

Public communication and behaviour are a small tip of the very large personal "iceberg" of our values and beliefs. Perhaps it wise to be willing on occasions to question our belief system to grow as a person. Dogmatically sticking to what we were indoctrinated with as a youngster is a sign of immaturity and low levels of emotional intelligence. Wisdom comes from being willing to change our perspective.

The following is a list of words that others need to be using when they describe you if you are to gain and maintain their trust;

"communicative, committed, confident, fearless, predictable, reliable, correct, forgiving, clear, factual, unbiased, respectful, reasonable, confidential, contributing, even (as in even handed), defining, accountable, interested, calm, resolute, tactful, sincere, frank, listener, patient, answering, sharing, fair, timely, honest, decisive, neutral, competent, consistent, explicit, responsible, transparent, close (near), willing, collaborative, accurate, graceful, helpful"

Now that's one hell of a list however all those words are what are required of you if you are truly to be seen as trustworthy.

More from Ric can be found on http://www.orglearn.org

Personal Branding the What and How

2012-05-02T19:44:00.000-07:00

There is lots of talk today about personal branding. Personal branding is also inextricably linked to social media.

First a few facts!

FACT: Your personal brand will (and must) be a reflection of your personality.

FACT: Your personal brand should focus on highlighting expertise.

FACT: Your personal brand needs to be specific so you must stick to your message rather than tryig to be all things to all people.

FACT: You need to constantly manage your personal brand and protect, or at least counter the negatives that others may say about you,

FACT: it takes time to build your personal and your choice of methods of distribution (social media) count.

FACT: The best place to centre your brand (at least at this stage) is a blog.

FACT: All other social media activities need to point back to your blog which needs to provide useful content based on your passion. If you try to fudge it by doing something you think just may sell, you will run out of steam and do more harm than good.

Social media choices are vast and it can be a bit daunting in a busy work life to figure out to where to concentrate your efforts however, a concentrated effort using the 'right' media is essential!

Can I suggest a four pronged approach!

1) Write a blog. Warning writing a blog is lots of work and if you can't consistently write on a topic you're passionate about don't start. As a bare minimum you will need to post one 600 word article once a week. Again you can use Google to do your research. For you blog Wordpress seems to have a little more credibility however Blogger can have ads (a little income) and activity can be monitored through Google stats.

2) Start a Facebook page that is separate from your personal account. Form relationships through groups that discuss work/business issues you are interested in. If you are in marketing for example find an appropriate group to join. Do some research and add value to the group by posting useful articles to your timeline.

3) Start a Twitter stream and only tweet on your professional interest. Be careful with the name you set up with. If you are say a graphic designer, try to get that fact in your Twitter name. e.g. BillsGraphicDesign For research on your topics you can use "Google Alerts", this can take much of the hard work out of the research for your tweets.

4) Build your profile on Linkedin and again join discussion groups and befriend others in your area of expertise or in similar careers.

You can automatically link/publish both your blogs and twitter streams to Facebook and your Linkedin profiles.

Personal branding is virtually a must for any modern career oriented individual with reportedly over sixty percent of companies now looking at your social media presence before hiring. Best get on with building your brand.

More career success articles can be found at orglearn

20 Rules of Delegation

2012-04-14T16:23:00.001-07:00

Delegation Rule 1: Only do it if you want to develop your staff not to just dump work.

Delegation Rule 2: Trust them first, train & test for competence before you delegate,

Delegation Rule 3: Clearly define the tasks that must be done and limits of authority attached.

Delegation Rule 4: Explain what's in it for the one you are delegating to.

Delegation Rule 5: Inform the team of your reasons for delegating the task to a particular person.

Delegation Rule 6: Answer all questions from the individual you are delegating to and others in the team or others that the decision impacts on.

Delegation Rule 7: Define clearly the importance of the task in terms of desired outcomes.

Delegation Rule 8: Mentor the person you have delegated to particularly in the early stages.

Delegation Rule 9: Maintain your responsibility for the task while handing over authority to act to the person delegated to.

Delegation Rule 10: Ensure the resources needed to the task are supplied to the individual undertaking the task.

Delegation Rule 11: Explain how the delegated task fits into the overall work flow, give the big picture.

Delegation Rule 12: Ensure that the person you delegate to is prepared to take ownership of the task.

Delegation Rule 13: Clearly explain the reason for the task and why it must be done.

Delegation Rule 14: Explain what measurements will be used to define successful completion of the task.

Delegation Rule 15: Get agreement on timeline and deadlines and include timing for status reports.

Delegation Rule 16: Don't constantly ask for update or hound the person you have delegated to.

Delegation Rule 17: Confirm understanding by getting the person you have delegated to, to explain in their own words what you want them to do.

Delegating Rule 18: Ensure support is agreed from other team members and recipients of the work and other stakeholders.

Delegation Rule 19: Insist that all feedback on success or otherwise of the delegation comes to you directly.

Delegation Rule 20: If the delegation fails be sure you accept the responsibility and if it succeeds share the glory.

No one delegates well where you work? Need to change jobs here's some resume help

The Trivia of Management

2012-03-28T16:51:00.003-07:00

So why not have a little fun... just to see how many of us can easily recall all that learning we did when we were studying to become managers.... here's a few questions....

ANSWER ANY TWO in the comments section!!! Results/comments will be released/published on Sunday Evening the 1st of April 2012

What is Maslow's Hierarchy and what are the levels from top to bottom?

What is the Johari Window and why is called the Johari Window?

Are you a Theory X or Theory Y person and what does that mean?

What is the main reason for poor communication?

Can you motivate others and if so how... or if not why not?

What is the difference between leadership and management?

Can leaders be trained to lead or is it a natural instinct only that is found in some individuals?

Hope you enjoy the quick game of Trivia based around career issues!

Some information can be found at http://www.orglearn.org or you may just jump onto Google. Thanks for playing!