Are You Good or Lucky?

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Are you good or lucky?Do you ever drive down the freeway and see people driving at 60 miles per hour or more with less than three car lengths ahead of them? Not a day goes by that I don’t see this many times over. And, there are typically a number of people driving in blind spots. It is surprising that there aren’t more accidents. The reality is, there is not enough room to stop at that speed and that distance should the need arise. The drivers are lucky, not good. But, they think they are good drivers due to the absence of accidents.

Do you have this situation in your business? Is the measure of success the lack of something bad happening? If so, it is time to take a step back and look at the risk factors in your business. High performing companies know their risk factors and they know the levers in the business to pull at the appropriate times. Their measures of success are positive measures of their performance. How are you making sure you are good, not lucky.

Your pace will determines your success

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Your pace will determine your successLots of good ideas and good people exist in the world. The ability to turn them into a product or service that is valued and sought after in the marketplace is many times a function of pace. Pace, speed, sense of urgency. It’s all pretty much the same thing. It is what sets high performing companies apart from average or below average performers.

So what is pace? It is the ability to make decisions quickly and the ability to adjust to changing market conditions before the competition. It is a workforce that knows the goal and starts shifting before being asked because conditions have changed. You see it walking around- people move quickly, conversations are focused and action oriented, you feel the energy and buzz just by walking in the room.

Companies that have figured out how to move quickly have a better chance of success than those that don’t. How are you picking up the pace?

Was figuring it out worth it?

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is it worth figuring outHas this ever happened to you? You get asked a question and think “I need to find the answer to that,” or you start a puzzle and just have to figure it out. It takes longer than you thought it would. Much longer. After hours dinking around trying to figure it out, you realize you just burned valuable time. It just wasn’t worth the amount of time you spent trying to figure it out.

Before you get stuck in this trap at work, ask yourself:

  • Is figuring this out worth it?
  • Am I the right person to figure it out?
  • Would you pay the amount of money out of your own pocket that the time costs?
  • If the right person is someone else, is it worth disrupting their efforts to figure it out?
  • What is the real value to figuring it out?
  • Can it lead to innovations in your business?

Sometimes figuring it out has significant value. Many times it doesn’t. How do you assess whether it is worth it to figure it out?

The Aha Moment

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the aha momentIt is funny how topics seem to come up in swarms. This week the subject of the Aha moment popped up several times. Each conversation had remarkable similarities to the others. Each was a story teaching a new concept. Sometimes the explanations for the change came in multiple forms and forums. At some point, the light goes on and people get it.

People learn in different ways and in different forms. Some do better seeing the information in writing. Others prefer hearing information. Change takes repetition, and lots of it. People need to understand why the change is happening and what is in it for them. At some point – and you won’t know when it will happen – people will get it. How are you helping people in your business reach the aha moment?

What got you here isn’t going to get you there

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what got you here won't get you thereOver the last few weeks, I’ve had conversations with a variety of people through different groups, all of whom have a different focus. The commonality is, each person is looking to take themselves or their organizations to the next level. They have all done well in the past, but to get to that next level, new skills are needed.

It’s a pretty basic concept, but one that isn’t always considered. It requires reflection, asking questions, self-assessments, and perspectives from others. The key is to identify what is needed to be successful in the future. What are the skills needed? What is that unique perspective that makes a successful business or leader? What skills and perspectives do you or your business possess today? What do you need to do to bridge that gap to where you want to be?

You’re a natural!

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you're a naturalIt was one of those flattering moments when a peer said I was a natural. The reality is, I’m not. It had taken hard work over years to get to the point where I was ok. But it was a good reminder of a conversation I had years ago. I was speaking with a gentleman who was responsible for investor relations for our mutual employer. He was incredible to watch! He always greeted people warmly with their name and was solely focused on them. He was welcoming, always in command of facts, and never seemed to be ruffled. One day I asked him if he came by it naturally or if he had to work at it. He shared openly how hard he had worked over the years to develop his skills. Once he developed the skills and made them habit, it then became easy to continue them.

The reality is operating a business well is the same way. It takes a lot of hard work to make things look natural and easy, pleasing customers, partners and employees. Once the hard work of getting to where things work well and become habit, it is then easy to maintain and becomes second nature. What steps are you taking to make things look natural in your business?

The Missed Turn

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consistent excellenceYou’ve seen it. More than once, maybe everyday.   Today, I observed it twice. The car sitting on the shoulder between the lanes of traffic and the off ramp with a flustered driver behind the wheel trying to figure out how they are going to merge into traffic at freeway speed from a dead stop. Rather than taking the next exit and circling back, the driver made the decision to create two hazards – one by slowing down quickly to get to the shoulder, and the second to re-enter traffic suddenly, many times without a turn signal. In both cases, it requires others to be observant and adjust quickly to avoid an accident.

Being clear about your purpose and objectives in business indicates to your investors, customers and people what you are about and how you will behave. They know you will innovate and create value. They may not know the exact details, but they know they will be delighted. There is no erratic behavior. There are no missed turns that create hazards for others. There is consistent excellence. How are you creating consistent excellence in your business?

The silent message

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the silent messageHave you ever walked into a mission critical meeting? Things need to change in the business to course correct to be successful long term. You go there thinking that decisions are going to be made to drive progress. To get that many senior people in the room says that this is important, right? And then it happens. Everyone walks in, sits down and pulls out a computer, a mobile device, or both. Fingers begin pounding away on whatever the topic of the minute is. There you have it. The silent message that says we are required to be here for this meeting. The topic is not really that important.

Meetings happen in business, sometimes way too often. Study after study concludes that multi-tasking is not effective. Sitting in a meeting and doing something else degrades the effectiveness of both. Meetings should have a specific purpose – the bulk should be for action and decision making. Information should be sent in advance to allow for debate and conclusion with a path forward. Leaders should agree that the focus of the meeting is the focus, and other sidebar activities should be handled outside of the meeting. By setting the tone by example, the entire culture will change. If the meetings are not effective, that should be resolved such that meeting quantity declines and meeting quality increases. How are you driving the meeting culture in your business?

Can two opposing perspectives both be true at the same time?

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different perspectiveI was recently speaking with a neighbor about a local grocery store. It is a fantastic store, has a massive produce section, high quality foods, etc. She agreed with my perspective of the store. Her next comment though, differed from mine. She said it is really expensive. That wasn’t my experience. It wasn’t just a factor of family size. It was the foods we buy. For some items like fruits and vegetables, the quality and pricing is the best around. But in other areas, the pricing is higher than at other stores. There are a number of reasons for that like quality, but just on its face, the pricing is higher. It was apparent that how we experience and use the store is very different. Both perspectives were true based on how we shop.

In the business world, it is easy to dismiss perspectives as true or not without understanding what is driving the perspectives. Whether it is employees, customers or suppliers, each will have a different perspective based on the environment, how products or services are used, and daily interactions. The trick is to understand what is driving the perspectives and if that aligns with that is the experience you want people to have. How are you getting feedback on varying perspectives and making course corrections if needed?

How well do you see around corners?

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see around cornersDuring the recent snow storm, huge amounts of snow sat on trees for a week weighing down the limbs. At one corner, the limbs were so heavy, they drooped across a fence and sidewalk blocking the view. That would not normally be a major issue, except the road curved just before the fence making it impossible to see if cars were coming if you were trying to turn at this particular intersection. A slow creep into the street would either reveal a clear road or a car racing toward you. At that point, your choice was either to wait or punch the gas. There are no mirrors like you see in buildings or parking structures to let you know what is coming. Rather, it is up to your skill, timing and luck.

In uncertain times, the ability to see around corners will let you outpace your competition or be left behind. Developing the signals to let you know what is coming, such as the mirrors in a parking garage, will give you insight into when to take action and when not to. Additionally, developing the skills to react quickly when it is time to move will allow you to outpace your competition. How are you developing the tools and skills to see around corners and move quickly?