There is an old saying: “Most people aim at nothing in life . . . and hit it with amazing accuracy.” It is a sad commentary about people, but it is true. It is the striving for and the attainment of goals that makes life meaningful. People who have no goals feel emotionally, socially, spiritually,… Read More
Most People Aim At Nothing In Life… And Hit It With Amazing Accuracy
There is an old saying: “Most people aim at nothing in life . . . and hit it with amazing accuracy.” It is a sad commentary about people, but it is true. It is the striving for and the attainment of goals that makes life meaningful. People who have no goals feel emotionally, socially, spiritually,… Read More
Motivating Employees: Money Isn’t the Solution
Many employers believe that money is the most effective motivator. The problem is that this method gets expensive and doesn’t work as well as positive, non‑monetary motivators. There are other positive motivators that excite many employees even more than money, such as recognition, prestige, achievement, sincere appreciation, pride in a job well done, a voice… Read More
NEGOTIATING TIPS
When you give something up, try to get something in return. When you give something for nothing, there is a tendency for people to want more. In all fairness to you and your prospect, therefore, you should balance what you give and receive. For example, “I’ll lower the price if you pay in full within… Read More
Positive Motivation
What motivates your employees? Many employers believe that money is the most effective motivator. The problem is that this method gets expensive and doesn’t work as well as positive, non‑monetary motivators. There are other positive motivators that excite many employees even more than money: recognition, prestige, achievement, sincere appreciation, pride in a job well done,… Read More
Remember the famous TV show, “All in the Family?”
“Edith do you know why I can’t communicate? Because I’m talking in English and you’re listening in dingbat!” Well, maybe Archie Bunker could benefit from learning how to communicate in “dingbat”! Then, he could mentally change places with Edith to understand her expectations instead of just his own. Every day I face the potential for… Read More
Romance and The Four DISC Styles
How does understanding DISC Styles help you with your spouse or significant other? The concept of DISC represents four distinct, identifiable, predictable behavioral patterns or Styles – the Dominant Style (‘D’), the Influencing Style (‘I’), the Steady Style (‘S’) and the Conscientious Style (‘C’). ‘D’ Styles try to shape their environment to overcome obstacles on… Read More
SMART Goals
Striving for and attaining goals makes life meaningful. Goals create drive but only if you set yourself to achieving them in the proper way. I’ve found that the letters in the word SMART are very useful in articulating goals. SMART reminds me that my goals must be Specific, Measurable, Action Oriented, Realistic, and Time Bound…. Read More
Stairs of Customer Loyalty
Many companies and salespeople follow the same formulas for bringing them closer to what they think their customers really want. Concepts like “customer focus” and “customer satisfaction” are warmly embraced. Today, who isn’t focusing on satisfying customers? However, in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace, if you’re doing what for companies and salespeople to set themselves apart from… Read More
Street Smarts
According to Dr. Robert Sternberg of Yale, “street smarts” is a far better predictor of managerial success than academic performance. They even said a very high I.Q. could be a detriment to managerial success. His theory of intelligence went beyond the traditional notion of I.Q. He believes there are three facets to intelligence: abstract intelligence⎯the… Read More
Telephone Skills 5 Page eReport
The telephone is the lifeline of your business. It’s the preferred choice of most customers for contacting your company. Imagine trying to do business without your telephone. It’s your single most powerful business tool. Most businesses receive more phone calls than any other form of contact. If that’s the case, let’s see if we can… Read More
Ten Commandments of Powerful Listening
Rules for being a good listener involve courtesy and common sense. Often, you don’t mean to be rude, but your enthusiasm for a subject and your own desire to hear yourself talk make you forget courtesy. At other times, you are so intent with expressing your own viewpoint that you forget to listen to the… Read More
Ten Tips for Effective Listening
You’ll listen better and be listened to if you practice these TIPS from Tony: Let others tell their own stories first. By letting them speak first, you save time. When their interests are revealed you can tailor your discussion to their particular needs, goals, and objectives stop wasting time volleying of sentences that takes much… Read More
The Art of Asking Questions eReport
The world is full of questions – good questions, silly questions, important questions, offensive questions. Questions can build rapport and trust or foster suspicion and dislike. Questions can open up a conversation or slam it closed. Ques-tions can generate information or send the con-versation shooting off on a tangent. Questions are the heart of communication…… Read More
The Five C’s of Effective Execution
Now that we have taken our ideas from our head and created a clearly written set of SMART goals, we are now challenged to execute the plan and stay on the path to our desired outcomes. Many books are now dedicated to the subject of effective execution, but a company called GoalCentrix – http://www.goalcentrix.com/ –… Read More
The Stairs of Customer Loyalty
Many companies follow the same formulas for bringing them closer to what they think their customers really want. Concepts like “customer focus” and “customer satisfaction” are warmly embraced. Today, who isn’t focusing on satisfying customers? However, in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace, if you are doing what everybody else is, you will never get to where you… Read More
THIRTEEN WAYS TO ASSURE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Since your customers are your career, you should let them know how special they are. There are many ways you can accomplish this. Not all may apply to you, but think creatively on how you can adapt most of these ideas to ensure customer satisfaction: Show your customers you think of them. Once a month… Read More
Time Management
Time is nature’s greatest “force.” Nothing can stop it, nothing can alter it. Unlike the wind, it cannot be felt. Unlike the sun, it cannot be seen. Yet, of all nature’s forces, time has the most profound effect on us. Time remains constant, but our perception of it changes. When we focus on it, it… Read More
TYPES OF DECISION-MAKERS – Understanding the Cast of Characters
ROLE DESCRIPTION Users – As the name implies, these are people who will use the product. User’s influence may range anywhere from inconsequential to extremely important on the purchase decision. In some cases, the users initiate the purchase by requesting the product. They may even develop the product specifications. Gatekeepers – Gatekeepers control information to… Read More
Using Disc Styles To Build Teams That Work
“Round up the usual suspects,” the gendarme ordered in the famous line from the movie Casablanca. And frequently, that is how executives think when they create teams, committees, or task forces. The boss says or thinks something like, “Let’s appoint anyone who might know something about this issue.” Or, even more likely, “Grab anybody who’s got… Read More
Virtual Training: A Modern Business Imperative
Three thousand business owners were surveyed about their training practices and asked to relate those practices to productivity. They found that education produces twice the gain in productivity and efficiency than money spent on tools and machinery. This explains why corporations shell out billions of dollars each year on education and training. However, the costs… Read More
What is Genius?
Paul MacCready is a writer and inventor who has carefully studied genius and the ways people understand that concept. MacCready has evolved several categories of what genius seems to mean, and these can be useful starting point for defining what genius really is. In the first category is what Paul MacCready calls the “everyone agrees”… Read More
What is Your Competitive Advantage?
How many times have you been in a selling situation where the customer’s sole focus was on price? Anytime your customers can’t tell the difference between your product or service and your competitor’s product or service, the customer will buy based on price. You must be able to differentiate your company, your product, your quality,… Read More
Winston Churchill – Communication Genius
Winston Churchill was hugely accomplished as a statesman, an historian, and a writer. But when people think of Churchill, it’s his speeches that are remembered. It’s the sound of his voice. That voice is still unforgettable today, even in scratchy old recordings. Try to imagine how it must have sounded over the radio in 1940,… Read More