Want a good decision and an accepted decision? Then you are smart to ask this question and smart to watch this 4-minute video.
My husband is developing a fondness for moss. After several years of trying to get grass to grow where moss thrives, he is finally learning to respect and welcome the moss. Why anyone would ever expect grass to be a universal solution for yards is beyond me, but that is the American way and it can be hard to shake these preconceived notions for how things should be done and how they should look. Grass simply can’t be expected to thrive in every possible situation. Preconceived notions do not just drive ludicrous lawn longings. They also drive daily business habits. Where are you trying to fill a round hole with a square peg? Where are you insisting on consistency for the sake of consistency? Where are your expectations for employees causing nothing more than frustration for them and you? Where are you striving for “green lawn” goals that aren’t really very important? Where are you hoping practice will make perfect despite no progress? If something isn’t working, stop doing it! Reexamine both the goal and your approach. If only moss will grow in your shady, sandy yard, learn to love the moss!
“The Secret to Great Meetings that Every Employee Should Know” was published in the UK. I didn’t want you to miss it! It’s includes some great advice.
To celebrate the arrival of winter in New England (now that it is March), I took to the slopes of a local ski area where they have installed an electronic ticket system. Each skier gets a plastic access card to slip into a pocket. Instead of waiting in line to buy tickets, you can charge your card online. When you arrive at the hill, you simply put on your skis and go. At the lift, you slide through a turnstile that lets you pass after reading the card in your pocket. At the end of the day, there are no sticky tickets or wires to remove. Furthermore, if you are interested, you can log in and see how many runs and vertical feet you skied. The ski area benefits too by reducing staff at the ticket window and no longer paying ticket checkers at the lift lines. They can also collect great market data. They know exactly who is buying tickets, when they arrive, when they leave, how many runs they take, how fast they ski, and which lifts they ride. Sound great? In many ways it is, for both customers and the business. By using existing technology and applying it to a new situation, the company providing this new system created great value. But they missed one critical step.
The bad news? One twelfth of the year is gone already. The good news? You’re not alone, you’ve got eleven more months to achieve your goals, and I’ve got some tips to help you out: Are your goals specific and measurable? In other words, do you know what success will look and feel like? Do you know how you will know when you are done? If not, develop a clear picture of success ASAP. Are your goals broken down into manageable parts so you can start feeling some success soon? Try writing a series of statements something like this:”I will {feel good} when I’ve achieved {this tangible outcome} by {this date}.(Work backwards to set the dates.) If those intermediate tangible outcomes add up to success, you’ve got a great plan and the ability to see and celebrate your progress.
Find the reason to smile in every lesson and opportunity that you encounter in 2012 and you will have a more successful and joyful year.
“There seems to be some perverse human characteristic that likes to make easy things difficult.” Warren Buffett
Skill, knowledge, insight, brains, experience – these are all important, however: “He or she wins who gets more done, and he or she gets more done who passionately wants to get to the next level of accomplishment.” David H. Maister from Strategy and the Fat Smoker Decide what is important, set priorities, and learn how to master yourself to accomplish those priorities.
If you are interrupted too often, figure out why. Are you: Too slow to close your door, forward your phone, and turn off email? Withholding information from others? Failing to develop and empower others? Inserting yourself into too many processes? Insisting on perfection? Discouraging the decisions and initiative of others? Unclear in establishing objectives and priorities? Sloppy in delegation? Letting others interrupt repeatedly without thinking first? Unsure of your own priorities? Biting off more than you can chew? Afraid you may be extraneous? You are not indispensable. So why are others acting as if you are? What are you doing to cause your own interruptions?
“Once upon a midnight dreary” – actually, let’s make that a December afternoon. Might have been dreary; I can’t remember. Almost a year ago. That is when I swore to utter two phrases nevermore! Too much to do Not enough time These are victim words. “Poor me!” Of course there is too much to do! How could there not be? And we all have 24 hours in a day. Period. Bemoaning the fact accomplishes nothing. Furthermore, these are cop out words. To utter them is to abdicate responsibility for making the tough decisions about priorities. Since consciously dropping them from my vocabulary, I have been happier, less frustrated, and more productive. I have also felt less guilt about the things I can’t get to. In the meantime, my business has soared.