The Tides Blog

Defining the Requirements for Training Meaningful Leadership

2008-04-17T17:11:00.009-04:00

As much as businesses needed education on e-commerce and the Internet economy in the 1990s, businesses today now need to focus on their core businesses and set strategies that will lead them back to sustained performance. Training vendors and their clients will increasingly demand leadership training to impact the performance of the nearly 14 million workers in the United States in leadership roles.

Research reveals the following key findings:

Companies tend to neglect the development of leadership competencies in all but the smallest percentage of potential leaders.
Training Consultants must demonstrate the impact of leadership training on behavior, and skeptics will even demand the demonstration of improved business performance.
Training Consultants must build analytic tools into the management methods or training they provide to assess impact of the learned knowledge gained in sessions on both leader behavior and organizational performance.

In a world where individuals too often feel uninspired on the job, leadership that fails to invigorate their work environment and not empower their employees is nothing short of incomplete.

Corporate training solutions and programs are needed that give the guidance and tools to management and employees that they need to invest individuals, fellow workers, and the entire organization with the essential sense of purpose, commitment, and fulfillment.

When you seek a leadership training program, seek a team who sees beyond the bottom-line effects.

What are your thoughts?

A Great Tool - Useful to get Team Communications Started

2008-02-26T17:35:00.004-05:00

I would like to highly recommend that you and your teams get the book Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham. The book is all about helping people recognize their strengths. By focusing on your strengths, you will always yield better results than trying to improve your weaknesses.

We did this as a team building event at my company because one of our many goals this year is to create a strengths-focused team that creates greater value and personal satisfaction for all. It was really great to hear each others strengths and talk about how we can work together better. It is a true conversation starter.

I believe when you look at great teams you have been associated with, you will find that a core element is that they focused on leveraging their shared and individual strengths. This doesn�??t mean they didn�??t work on their collective weaknesses as needed. It basically means they spent the majority of their time finding ways to use and further develop their strengths.

At the heart of Now, Discover Your Strengths is the Internet-based StrengthsFinder® Profile, which identifies the most prevalent human strengths. The program introduces 34 dominant "themes" with numerous possible combinations, and reveals how they can best be translated into personal and career success. Once you know which themes you lead with, you can leverage them for powerful results for personal development, for management success, and for the success of the firm.

I personally found value in the book and am excited to share it with you. I look forward to sharing this together as well as you and your teams sharing this exercise.

So, I would like to ask three things of you:

Buy the book at Amazon (or store of your choice)
Read the jacket of the book and skim the table of contents to see if it appeals to you and if so read on.
Take the assessment and share it with me and your teammates.

In the spirit of sharing, I have attached my Signature Themes �?? my 5 most dominant themes. The book and the assessment report detail these themes more and provide explanations for each of the 34 themes. This is just a summary.

The Signature Themes report below displays my five most dominant themes of talent.

MY SIGNATURE THEMES:

Relator: People who are strong in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal.
Command: People strong in the Command theme have presence. They can take control of a situation and make decisions.
Connectedness: People strong in the Connectedness theme have faith in the links between all things. They believe there are few coincidences and that almost every event has a reason.
Individualization: People strong in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how people who are different can work together productively.
Learner: People strong in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.

Do you need data sharing in a "Discovery" Phase?

2007-10-26T14:49:00.001-04:00

Many consultants suggest that before they can help you, they need to "discover" the underpinning causes by interviewing, collecting, and analyzing. This is typically a great starting point in any consultative relationship - it introduces all the players to each other and the consultant may also see issues that are higher priority or have greater impact than those who live in the situation.

Data from systems, reports, and meeting notes is optimal but not necessary for a Discovery Project. Recommendations can be based upon staff and executive interviews and personal insight. As long as you have an experienced consultant, their best practices and expertise will guide the action plans as is.

In no way is lacking data a show-stopper to most discovery projects. It is in fact an incredible finding and one that targets a consultant on where you are and what is next to do. The path is clear with this finding �?? the team is in the initial stage of Maturity. Usually upon hearing the team�??s history, there are good reasons for being in this stage. Again, a good consultant will recommend that instead of looking to the past, you drive a stake in the ground and move forward with good decisions and action plans to accomplish the goals quickly.

Typically when the staff cannot produce data, it means that people are managing and working from intuition and �??gut feel�??. This can be tactically effective for a short time as long as no one leaves the organization. As soon as someone leaves, the continuity is lost and there is a long term of ad-hoc in order to catch-up.

There are three main components of an organization�??s Operational Capacity �?? Process, People, and Tools. With documentation and data not collected, part of the Discovery Finding is that there are no resources to compile and/or collect data for decision-making projects/strategies.

Top Ten Lessons Learned - #9: Chillax about your Career

2007-08-15T16:57:00.000-04:00

Chillax - 1. To chill and relax simultaneously.2. To loosen or reduce the level of stress by employing a more relaxed and groovy outlook.

Career - 1. A chosen pursuit; a profession or occupation, 2. The general course or progression of one's working life or one's professional achievements

Nowadays there's too much pressure to make the "perfect" career choice. From your first job cutting your neighbor's lawn to picking your high school courses to choosing the "right" college to stressing over your first job, it seems we are overwhelmed with our decisions around our careers thoughtout our lives.

Here's a thought: even if you are 65 years old, you're still young in terms of career choices. With the wealth of experience and training you gained over your past 40-45 years, don't you think that is valuable in various areas? And what about your hobbies? Now you might have some concentrated time to become a celebrated Elvis string artist and sell your wares.

While you ought to show interest in your career before you are 65, give yourself plenty of time to chart your own course. After all, current studies show that adults will change careers (not jobs) 5 to 7 times in a lifetime. We all have multiple gifts and talents that need to be honored and expressed and most of the time we cannot express them all at once.

The choices you make today will grow and evolve over time, so don't worry. Think of your career as a long-term portfolio of jobs that will express the fullness of who you are. There are no perfect choices.

Top Ten Lessons Learned - #10: Stay Connected

2007-08-06T08:14:00.000-04:00

Today's world is a rush of activity. Does anything stay the same? While I use my connection to technology, email and instant messaging to the fullest to keep on top of changes and tasks during the day, these will never replace my personal connections with those I work with and care for.

Technology is a blessing and a curse. Too often I've seen technology draw a wedge between teams and expanded teams. Sometimes I fall into an email rut and make the excuse that I don't have time to call or visit. A week or so later, I realize that I feel extremely disconnected from my team. Did Mark buy that car he was talking about two weeks ago? Did Tina solve the pricing model issue she had last week? Make sure you are using technology to connect you to job efficiency but not at the expense of your connections with people around you.

Advice: Every now and then pick up the phone and call a colleague or your mentor. Visit a vendor or a client rather than send an email or an instant message. Stand up from your desk and walk around the office. Make eye contact. Talk with people you see. I have seen people emailing their teammates who sat right next to them (truth be told, I've actually done this. Shame, shame...). While I am a firm believer in email trails, unless you are emailing news to several people who are both near and far or you need a time/date stamp on the information you are sending and receiving, stand up and talk with your teammates if they are sitting close to you. It will also make your email adminstrator happy by not cluttering data storage with non-essential emails.

If you are working from home or a field office, you need to make more of an effort to create a personal connection with your clients, co-workers and/or management. Emailing will not tie you to your colleagues if you don't follow-up with a phone call or a walk-in visit.

Does anyone write personal notes anymore using pen and paper? I had to fill out an application the other day and found that holding a pen felt odd. My once beautiful penmenship was hard to invoke. I made a vow to write a note once a week to a friend or a colleague to maintain my handwriting skills and to connect a little more personally with the people I care about.

Always remember that it's the people closest to us who will watch our backs and help us during tough times. That matters more than the time savings of IMing on the fly to keep in touch.

Thinking outside the Box - but what does the inside look like?

2007-08-05T11:09:00.000-04:00

My business partner read my last blog entry and when he got to the last paragraph, he called me. He surprised me with something I had not thought about - "Before you think "outside the box", do you have to know what your "box" looks like?"

What a fantastic question! And knowing what our "boxes" are is something we all ought to understand before we spend too much time trying to think outside of it.

I like to think of "inside the box" as another term for "comfort zone". We all have our standard way of doing things - something tried and true, comfortable, fits our personality, and usually doesn't require too much brain-power. When unmotivated, stressed, or exhausted we quickly move into that zone because we don't have to use precious energy. It is easy because that zone is who we are - part of our being.

Sometimes our zone isn't what a project or a company needs in order to move forward or create momentum. We are asked to "pump it up", get creative, and step outside of our typical ideas or ways of doing things. It isn't easy. This process usually creates stress and exhaustion which makes us want to quickly revert back to our "box".

The good news is that if you are aware of who you are, what makes you tick, and what causes you anxiety, there are techniques that help relieve stress and encourages you to spend more time thinking outside of your comfort zone. We'll talk about these in the months to come.

The more you step out of your "box", the better and more comfortable you get and that new feeling eventually becomes you new "box"! Then the whole process starts over again. What? You didn't think you would ever be finished growing and developing, did you? Come on!

Resume hints for "Consultative Employees"

2007-08-03T09:13:00.001-04:00

My resume has always been a problem with recruiters and hiring managers. I have purposefully created a career that will situate me as an expert in all areas of a company - from strategy to product management to development engineering to marketing to sales to project management to operations to customer service. My intention has been and is to learn all aspects of a company in order to be an effective and efficient corporate leader. I truly believe that hands-on experience hones your skills to manage teams in a variety of situations and with assorted personalities.

This type of career development has lead me to be a "generalist" or what I call a "consultative employee".

It is very hard for a company to know how to hire a consultative employee (CE) and facilitate that career path. First, when a company wants a specific role filled, they typically want a professional who has picked that role as their career and dedicated themselves to pursuing that expertise. Second, once hired, as the CE proves success for the area they hired, the company doesn't want to move the CE to another department to share and expand talents and knowledge. Companies like stability - rightfully so. They want you to continue managing a department you have been successful in so they don't have to worry about it and can concentrate on other problem areas.

There are the rare companies who have understood that advantage of taking a successful CE change agent and moving them around to other areas to continue to solve the company problems like they have proven with the first department. These are typically start-ups and small boutique firms.

Unfortunately, the CE career strategy does create a neat resume problem. :) There cannot be a singular job purpose because of the consultative nature of the career path. As we know, consultants do anything and everything in the needs spectrum. Statistics show that employers will only spend about 15 seconds initially reviewing your resume. If the information they want to see doesn�??t fly off the page in that short amount of time or meet the criteria of their optical scanning software, you�??re out of the race. It is very difficult to show a widely diverse background effectively in 15 seconds.

I vastly prefer one verses multiple resumes. As a consultative employee, my resume needs to clearly define my career the way I planned it. My story is one that conveys my expertise in multiple areas, my flexibility to any and all needs a company has, and my willingness to jump into any role and perform it with gusto.

Most CEs enjoy fixing problems - setting up new departments and successfully maturing them, creating new processes for competitive advantage, managing an existing troubled team and turning it around to the most effective and efficient team in the organization, and/or defining and managing a multi-faceted project. How this is different from other kinds of employees is that consultative employees do that all at the same time. What CEs need to convey is how a company can hire them for one thing and also get the advantage of a total package leader who can assist in various areas of a company.

Resumes have a typical format - professional summary, professional background, education, certifications/awards, and training. For CEs, how this is written will be different than how others write theirs. For instance, the summary may be more like an executive summary - a little longer than normal to describe work philosophies and advantages of hiring a consultative employee. The professional background may make the resume longer than the traditional one-two page resume.

Stepping out the of box is what we do every day so don't be afraid of doing that when writing your resume.

The Karpman Triangle - how to NOT play the office games

2007-07-16T18:16:00.000-04:00

People often ask me what was the best business advice ever given to me. I never even have to think about it. The best advice was given to me almost 5 years ago. It changed my outlook on office politics forever and has made my career much more enjoyable and less stressful.

When I was having extreme difficulties with a vice president at a company, one of my trusted mentors mentioned that there was an argument triangle (victim, rescuer, and persecutor) called the Karpman Drama Triangle. In this theory, when you play office politics, you play at least one of the roles at all times - maybe all three in one discussion. Really talented players will pick their role and force others to play the other two roles through defensive or passive aggressive means.

I was getting pulled into drama situations constantly with this one boss so much that I wanted to pull my hair out. I would be brought into the VPs office and be told I was a hero or a villain or a poor soul that needed protection several times a day. None of this was accurate and I felt like I was defending my life everyday. Essentially, I felt like a yo-yo.

After a couple of months of this, my mentor asked me what was wrong. I was nervous, worried, stressed, and concerned about every element of a project that was going great. I broke the silence and told her my issues with my boss. My mentor sat back and nodded her head - this was a perfect example of Karpman.

Then she said something awe-inspiring and powerful: the only way to win is to not play the game. Not play the game? Was that an option?

I never thought to not play the games in the office until that day. I believe that was one of the most brilliant and usable pieces of advice I have heard �?? and I use the advice a lot when working around difficult office politics.

Here are some details and additional sites to research.

Start with this link: www.coachingsupervisionacademy.com/our_approach/karpman_drama_triangle.phtml

Another view of it is: www.ta-tutor.com/!dratri/xdrallp.html

A Glass of Wine: POW! The Tides Springs Forth!

2007-07-11T14:40:00.000-04:00

My business partner and I have been friends for almost 20 years �?? since meeting each other through mutual friends at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. After college, while going in different directions and to different states, mentally we always came back to the roots of our friendship. Keeping in touch over the years, we finally were located in the same space and time six years ago for a College Friends Retreat in Luray, Virginia. Conversation ensued, personal dreams and professional goals were expressed, fishing at a local pond brought peace, and relaxing over a glass of wine became the basis of our future business discussions.

You are probably asking, �??How does wine become a basis for business discussion?�??

We decided, at the retreat, that we are dedicated to making every aspect of life vital and full. Out motto is: Live, Do, Be. Friends, who are in the grind, wandering through life with little to excite them, and wishing for more inspiration, surround us. Harley and I looked around us at the retreat and decided to do something about it. We started to talk about how to create a business that would excite our friends, our families, the business world, and us.

With a bottle of our new favorite wine in hand (Torrontes from Crios de Susana Balbo) we designed the outline of our business �?? The Tides. The Tides explores, excavates and expounds upon the essential principles of Business Leadership and Corporate Change through an analogous look at the depths and bountiful life of the Ocean, which it provides through cyclical events and its many cherished secrets. We conduct research, produce publications, and provide a variety of educational programs and products to leaders and organizations in the public, corporate, educational, and nonprofit sectors. Through our programs, we will reach out to leaders and organizations worldwide. The Tides will serve as a clearinghouse for ideas on leadership, management, employee development, and global corporate service and will regularly convene conferences to share this information with all who are interested.

We ultimately provide guidance, structure, and tools to deeply energize and renew the Corporate Culture to increase Corporate Energy.

All of that from a bottle of wine? Well, yes and no. It also had to do with great music, delicious cooking, true friendship, and obviously, our ultimate desire to mingle all of our past business experiences into helping leaders look deeper into their decisions and corporate changes. But wine was an essential ingredient.

Wine helped bring us together and our thoughts alive. As we have built our consultancy, it has been an important aspect of The Tides to have a kindred community, share great food and wine, and fully share our thoughts and experiences.

Action for today: buy a nice bottle of wine, call a dear friend, and sit for hours with each other talking and laughing over a glass of cheer. You will be amazed with what you will come up with that will turn your life around.

A Round Table Org Chart?

2007-07-10T08:50:00.000-04:00

The best organizational chart I have ever read about is, crazy as it seems, the Round Table in King Arthur�??s Court. The circle represents unity, equality, continuity, evolution, strength, and eternal life. Most companies strive to find these qualities yet fall short.

As long as employees, management and non-management have an avenue to give feedback, discuss their issues, and remove themselves from the command-and-control methods of the past, I think most problems could be resolved in an orderly manner and within a reasonable time frame. A round table forum would initiate communication through organizational layers, therefore, making layers redundant.

King Arthur (granted a fictional character developed from the persona's and achievements of many real people) created a peaceful nation by seriously listening to people when they voiced their concerns. He trusted his knights to keep England safe. He helped lead them to victory time and time again by setting workable strategies, communicating the orders, listening to the advise of the scouts, changing the strategy if necessary, and finally charging towards the thick of the battle.

Most importantly, he walked in the shoes of his knights daily because he never forgot he was one of them. He was a leader. He was a manager. King Arthur's realm was a well-structured organization.

Okay, the love triangle didn�??t help much, but corporate romance is another post!

Steps to Organizational Success - Goal Setting

2007-07-10T08:32:00.000-04:00

After much thought (and a little help from various articles and books), I have finally released my Steps to Organizational Success. Every person in an organization should:

Be able to trust the people above and below them,

Establish challenging yet workable goals,

Communicate the business needs and common goals,

Focus on the goals,

Commit to achieving those goals in the most efficient and productive way possible,

Be willing to change or even abandon set goals, and

Take responsibility for the end results.

I believe that if you take any of these steps out, or if anyone does not subscribe to the steps, the organization will not be as productive or effective as it could.

Success

2007-07-09T09:58:00.000-04:00

To laugh often and much,
to win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children,
To earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends,
To appreciate beauty,
To find the best in others,
To leave the world a bit better
whether by a healthy child, a garden patch
or a redeemed social condition,
To know even one life has breathed easier
because you have lived;
This is to have succeeded.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

How To Deal with a Project Behind Schedule

2007-07-08T20:20:00.000-04:00

Because of some over-optimistic scheduling and inadequate tracking, a project that you have just taken over as manager is running some eight weeks behind schedule. Here are some ideas on how to overcome this situation:

Step 1 - collect all of the facts (the history/background, the approvals, the original assumptions, the known risks, the uncovered risks, the people who have been involved with the project, the management who approved the original schedule, etc)

Step 2 - get the internal (non-customer) project owners together in a meeting to explain the situation.

Step 3 - have the project owners decide on a remediation plan and new schedule

Step 4 - get buy-in from all of the project participants; assign a very dependable Project Manager with AUTHORITY to get the project back on track

Step 5 - have the project owners prepare a customer presentation to go over the history, the schedule, the delay, and the remediation plan

Step 6 - have a small, but executive team, present to the customer and take ownership of the failure and of the remediation plan. Executive visibility and ownership will go a long way with the customer. The higher the better.

Step 7 - make sure that an executive takes ownership of communicating to the customer at regular intervals - once a week or once a month (depending on the timeline) or at important milestones.

Do not expect that the project to be completed in the time frame that was originally quoted. It all depends on how "optimistic" the schedule was. You just have to bite the bullet and be honest with the customer. If you lose the customer, it is an important lesson to learn - don't be optimistic, be realistic.

In the future, PLANNING is the most important phase of project management. If the project isn't planned, it will fail.

Time Management Techniques for Business School Students

2007-07-08T19:44:00.000-04:00

I am asked by many business school students about time management. Here is some common advice I give.

I highly recommend learning a proven Time Management methodology such as FranklinCovey. Nothing beats a good day timer - for now and the future.

Prioritization is key. What is required for today? Tomorrow? What can wait until the weekend? Remember, you have many hours during Sat and Sun to do more focused reading and follow-up research. What absolutely needs to be done each day? Is there a test coming up?

Pre-planning is important, too. If you know that a paper is due in three weeks about a specific topic, start collecting information weeks in advance so compiling the paper isn't a rush job that takes your total concentration away from your other classes.

And don't put socialization down on the priority list. One of the major lessons you will carry away with you from college is how you lived with and what you learned from your dorm mates and classmates. Make the most of the dining hall, the quad gathering area, dinner lectures, and other social events. DO NOT waste away in a library or your dorm room. Studying is important but your future depends on communication and human interaction. Study and apply your social skills as you would study and apply yourself to a term paper.

You will learn to pick you class schedule better as you go forward. You will also learn what time of day you are best for studying. Don't pick 4 heavy reading classes together. Don't pick all morning classes if you can't study in the afternoons. Just keep aware of what you are doing well and not well. Journal your best studying habits as compared to best test scores.

Oh, and most important... if your course of study is more of a burden than a learning experience, you might want to consider a different major or direction. Remember, if you don't like learning something, you will not want to do it as a career.

These are the lessons you learn in freshman year along with dozens others. Don't be afraid to talk with upper classmates. Ask them how they do it. They have tactical experience with your current and upcoming professors. Use their knowledge as much as possible.

All of these tactics will also be great experience for your first job in an office. Learning your college campus, dealing with professors and classmates, and completing a term paper aren�??t much different than working towards a project deadline in an office.

Kina'Ole - "flawlessness"

2007-07-02T14:58:00.000-04:00

In ancient Hawaii, if you were skilled, trained or a professional in any line of work or service, the specific tasks or activities that you engaged in were expected to be performed without defect or flaw. If you were in the skilled trades, or an artist, public official, priest, or merchant -- anything less than flawlessness was not acceptable.

This concept was known as KINA'OLE, or "flawlessness." The traditional definition of kina'ole is:

"Doing the right thing
in the right way,
at the right time,
in the right place,

to the right person,
for the right reason,
with the right feeling,
the first time."

I brought this philosophy back with me from Hawaii. I went there for a conference about 3 years ago and found a little postcard with Kina�??Ole on it - nothing else. Flawless. I have read some other accounts of how Kina'Ole is being used by consultants and small businesses. The best is below and something I will work on achieving:

My team and I have been talking about how to incorporate this into our business. We believe it is a powerful philosophy to adopt into life, and into our workplace. It's based on constantly rising standards ... and as you do your best, you make improvements and positive changes to work towards flawless performance. We can challenge ourselves to value and be guided by kina'ole because it will always stimulate our desire to be the very best we are capable of, not only for ourselves but for everyone we work and play with. This attitude ensures superior customer service for those we serve -- our customers and partners and everyone we touch in our community.

Thoughts?

Trying to learn how to breathe

2007-07-02T09:52:00.000-04:00

I belong to a Retreat group which consists of a small group of people who are interested in a time for self-care, nurturing creativity, reflecting in solitude and community, and listening for movements of the spirit. We withdraw for a few days and nights to a different environment�??one that is expressly set aside as a place for healing, solitude, reflection, and clarity.

I highly recommend starting or joining a retreat group - whether for personal or business purposes. It flings in you into in-depth self journey that goes beyond the retreat weekend.

Right after our last Retreat, I took some serious time to think about and understand what I am all about �?? get some perspective and quiet thought time. I quickly realized that I was not really in tune with my dreams, wishes, and desires - I was embedded in opinions, stances, and preconceptions.

I have been in a wicked rut �?? one of non-discovery, unused skills and very little celebration about myself. It is hard to celebrate in general when you don't fully recognize the joy in yourself. I started to realize and feel that my relationships were hollow because while I was trying desperately to appreciate others, I was not really appreciating me.

Our Retreat conversations, as always, were enlightening and really made me think about who I want to be in life �?? not only with others but with myself. And the more I thought, ironically, the deeper the rut got. I think it was a defense mechanism to become more rigid. Finally, it was clear that I needed to truly start over. Clear out the clutter and start new. Drastic �?? maybe. Cathartic, definitely.

Since the retreat, I have been working towards my dreams, not my opinions. I think I am slowly getting there - focusing on thoughtful work and starting to relax about just "doing" things. The focus is much more on purposeful work, not lots of work. This is a huge difference in my life. I have also eased up on myself about finances and possessions.

I�??ve let it go �?? another huge step �?? and everything seems to be working out fine without stressing out about it.

Still so much more to do, think, and feel. A never-ending journey!

Gateways to a Beautiful Life

2007-07-02T09:18:00.000-04:00

I receive a lot of "advice" emails from people in and out of my network. I like clean, short, and bulleted lists which I can expand for my own purposes. This is one of my most favorite "how to be successful" lists.

How to take action on these blurbs: Personally apply them to your business philosophy and then mold them to your daily tactical activities.

1. The main work of every human being is inner work.
2. See your life as a fantastic growth school.
3. Be true to yourself - the best life is an authentic life.
4. Remember that we collect what we project.
5. We see the world not as it is but as we are.
6. Live in your heart - its wisdom never lies.
7. Stand in curiosity of your life.
8. Care for yourself.
9. Build human connections.
10. Leave a legacy. *

My favorite is "Leave a Legacy". However, you really can't do that unless you do the other 9 things. :)

* From: The Saint, The Surfer and The CEO by Robin Sharma (The Bestselling author of The Monk Who Sold his Ferrari), Hay House Inc.,2003...... Wonderful books by a wonderful author. If you need help on how to apply these concepts to your life, the book expands on each.

Poetry and Business

2007-07-02T08:23:00.000-04:00

"I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I�??
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."
�?? Robert Frost

One of my favorite poems is �??The Road Less Traveled" by Robert Frost.

At the beginning of the poem, the writer laments that he can't take both paths �?? sad that he isn't on vacation but instead on a serious mission. He also knows that once he makes a decision, the probability of returning to take that other way is slim at best. Basically, he has to put a stake in the sand and make an irreversible decision without knowing all the facts. I think we can all appreciate how tough that is. It ought to be the primary metaphor for starting a new business.

The end of the poem says that the choice of road the writer took made all the difference. What I appreciate about this statement is that it doesn't claim positive or negative. Most people assume, when reading this poem, that it was a positive difference but I always wonder - maybe it wasn't. A choice makes a "difference".... while we hope for a good difference, it has the chance of being a bad one, too. This is the struggle we all have when we are at cross-roads. You can�??t go back in time and place �?? thus you have to go forward and appreciate the freedom of being able to have choices, meanwhile taking your lumps and bruises along the way.

This poem signifies to me the internal struggle and complexity of making decisions and knowing that there are consequences to all choices. People say that "life shouldn't be hard". I, however, disagree since I take life seriously and weigh choices in a serious manner. I take business doubly seriously since it affects more people than me. In business, I am not a sole journeyer and that responsibility I take personally and deeply to heart.

In terms of a client/consultant relationship, I believe that the road both ought to travel together should be exciting and make a �??difference�??. We have all seen that relationship at work and the important thing is to completely acknowledge it. Most of our clients have taken a road less traveled. We both understand the difficulties of that adventure. That is why we gravitate to each other �?? it is recognition of a kindred spirit.

New Project - If I Won The Lottery...

2007-07-01T19:23:00.000-04:00

As a grand opening for my new blog, I have decided upon a book project which requires assistance from a vast and diverse group. What better use of a blog community? And you will get acknowledged in a book if you participate!

For years, I have been toying with writing a book - something in the way of a non-fiction business parable. Sounds exciting, right? Well, I think it is about time to start.

My idea is to build upon the limitless ideas that pop into mind when people ask the question, "what would you do if you won the lottery?" Beyond paying off debt, helping family members, and buying a house and a car, I am always interested in the expanded uses the lottery money would bring to start new businesses, uplift communities, and possibly change the world.

Whenever I dream of what I would do with $50-100 million, I typically ask myself why I couldn't do some part of my idea without the lottery money. Maybe it is a business idea. Maybe it is a non-profit foundation concept.

These ideas, the viability of them, and the potential long term costs of the ideas would be what the book project would explore.

Sound interesting?