What's Your Dream?

Cheryl — not her real name, but she told me I could relate our conversation — was talking to me because her friend strongly recommended she do so. It can be very difficult to find a qualified individual to discuss your business with and know that you can get the answers you want. Referrals come because you have earned someone's trust.

"So what's going on?" I asked and that's all it took for Cheryl to start talking. Her story is familiar.

• "I started this business because I was good at what I did and I really enjoy doing it. But I'm working 60 hours a week or more."
• "I seem to have hit a plateau about 2 years ago and I just can't seem to get beyond it. I'm so frustrated."
• "Vacation? I think I took two days off last year . . . I don't know. It feels like forever since I could get away from it. If I'm not there, it would all go to pieces."
• "I'm afraid of anyone finding out what's really going on or they'll stop doing business with me. And I need to stay in business or I can't pay my bills."
• "I'm so tired."
• "I think I need to do more marketing. But that means more business and I'm not sure I can handle that. It feels like a Catch 22."

The sound of the coffee makers, the aroma of an exotic light roast from a distant land, and the casual conversations around us seemed surreal. Cheryl's voice hushed and her eyes watered up. "Would you like to buy my business?" She gave a weak smile. If someone came along and offered her the right amount, she'd snatch it up quick. But who would want to buy a job that offered stagnated growth and 60-plus hours a week? 

The conversation paused and she waited. 

"Cheryl," I interjected, "When was the last time you gave yourself permission to dream?"

*****

Dream. Remember the day you walked out on the skinny limb armed with nothing but a great idea, lots of energy, a simple plan and the support of friends and family? You didn't know everything but you knew you could do it. The world was an empty canvas and you were ready to make a splash.

Then one day the alarm went off. You woke up and discovered that the stuff you didn't know was following you very closely and all of a sudden overtook you. 

• How do you separate yourself from your business? Can you? Should you? 
• How do you hire the right people? The ones who share your vision, values and passion? The people who are skilled and committed . . . and actually come to work to work?
• How do you develop a realistic plan with measurable results?
• How do you sift through the trends and big ideas and find the stuff that will guarantee results?
• How do you make lots of money, keep your happiness running in fifth gear, and leave the world a better place?

What if you could break away long enough to dream again? And in the process get a better grip on what's really going on in your business and life? 

*****

Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born.
Dr. Dale E. Turner

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined.
Henry David Thoreau

The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want.
Ben Stein

*****

It is my privilege to help business owners in the Minneapolis / St Paul metro area to dream again and take their businesses to a better level.

Zip Line

The open bed truck hauling a dozen tourists and half a dozen "Tico" guides lurched and bounced along the rocky mountain road. Dust from the road settled on the tropical vegetation on the driver's side and hung in open space on the other side like a cartoon character waiting for the inevitable fall. The passenger side boasted the cliche drop off into a deep jungle ravine.

I was told that there are only two tropical dry forests in the world. I have not been able to verify that information; but I can say that this was certainly tropical and dry.

The truck rumbled under the shade of a tree occupied with howling monkeys.

Grinding to a stop at the top of a mountain overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the lean Tico guides leapt to the ground offering their assistance to the anxious tourists. Cameras snapped pictures. My wife asked about the holes in the ground. Tarantula holes. She backed away.

We hiked several hundred yards to a higher point. Rocks slipped under our feet and the sun reminded us to be thankful that we were not shoveling snow in Minnesota. VERY thankful.

At the top an 800 foot cable stretched across a deep ravine swallowed up by trees in the distance. One of the tourists said, "I'm not going. No way." Another said, "So cool." Another was just silent. Cameras snapped, monkeys howled, spiders hid, tourists pondered falling and the guides strapped harnesses onto our dust covered bodies.

Brief instructions were given with enough hints of danger to make the adrenalin do warm up exercises. A guide hooked himself onto the cable and pushed off into the vast expanse calling out to the vultures flying BELOW him.

One by one we were launched. The show-offs, the nervous Nellies, the screamer, the coolies, the President of the Argentinian Safe Company, . . . until it was my turn.

Strapped in and hooked up I looked at a makeshift sign nailed to a tree: "No turning back now." Guess not. A strong Tico hand gave me a push and the next thing I knew I was airborne soaring hundreds of feet over forest tree tops.

Nice.

We zipped sixteen sections of cable for a total of over 5 miles. By the time we were attached to the fifth cable the Screamer was no longer screaming; instead she was bragging about keeping her eyes open and flapping her arms like a bird. A new found level of comfort.

The Argentinian Safe Company president was "double zipping" with his wife.

The show-off got stuck in the middle and had to be rescued. LOL.

Everyone was laughing, comparing "Did you see?" moments, trying new techniques . . . having fun.

Boy, it feels good to laugh. All the stress and concerns and to-dos had fallen off into the jungle somewhere below us. We made new friends. The wind blew off the dust. We shed our clothes to jump into a jungle river. We swapped zip line stories like we had all gone on separate trips. A guide jumped out from a hiding place wearing a gorilla mask. We screamed and laughed and punched each other.

That evening sitting on the balcony listening to the sounds of creatures without faces I sipped a Costa Rican iced tea and thanked the Maker of Jungles that life is a whole lot more than making the next sale, organizing the next file, and answering the next call.

I mean, did you go into business to get trapped by it and ruin your fun? Probably not. So who's in charge? You or your business?

If it's been awhile since you took a leap just for fun, what's holding you back?

Get refreshed. Get recharged. The office can wait.

Drifting Away from Success

I was snorkeling about 100 yards off shore in the Caribbean. Having dived before I made a note of where I was in relation to my spot on the beach.

The water was warm, the sun was shining, the ocean was calm and the scenery was remarkable. Taking in the beauty of underwater scenery is a great way to spend a day. My snorkeling buddy was nearby and together we pointed out the cool stuff.

After what seemed like a short time we popped our heads above water and talked about heading back to shore and getting a bite to eat. That's when we noticed that our spot on the beach was gone! We were so "into" what was going on underwater that we failed to keep an eye out for where we really were. We had drifted several hundred yards from our original spot.

*****
Recently I sat down for a one-on-one coaching session with a gentleman who had hired me to help him become more strategic in his career. Those first sessions were very engrossing as we discussed crucial concerns that he had never really focused on previously.

We had a little hiatus over the holidays and then met again after the things settled down a little. He was all excited because someone had given him a motivational book to read for Christmas. He was encouraged to identify ten things he wanted and then to read them aloud every day for several weeks. In this way, he was told, he would keep his goals in front of mind and would get the things he wanted.

Something had changed since we had met last. Just a few months previous he had identified goals and desires that were not materialistic in the slightest. Now his list of pursuits included things like a bigger home, new cars, exotic vacations, and similar luxurious things. The contrast was striking. So I asked him about his previous list of pursuits that did not include any of these new things. "What happened?"

The response was equally striking — a classic deer caught in the headlights moment. It was like he had popped up out of the water and took a look around and realized that he had drifted. He needed to get back to where he wanted to be.

*****
The Growth Coach process emphasizes a 90-day refocusing because we all drift. When the minutae of daily "to-dos" and the tyranny of the urgent take the reins of our business and personal life, the current carries us away from where we really want to be.

The answer is not to let the current decide where we go. The answer is to take charge and make strategic choices. The answer is to take a periodic retreat. Pop your head up out of the water and reassess where you are at and where you want to be. To work ON your business and life instead of getting caught up IN the pull of the current.

It seems so simple that we are tempted to think we can do it on our own. The reality is that we all need someone who can keep us accountable and ask the right questions. Knowing that someone objective is going to be asking you the questions that get pushed aside incentivizes us to pay attention and give ourselves to doing the important things.

When you engage in this kind of coaching process, the results are truly awe-inspiring!

Life in the Fast Lane

Doug moves fast.

In the past year he has been promoted three times. With each move there is more responsibility and new challenges. A lot can change in 12 months!

• Now he goes into work before breakfast with coffee in hand and comes home well after dinner.
• Lunch breaks are fast and furious. If he takes one at all.
• Calls to family are "while on the run," stuck in traffic, or walking to and from a destination.
• Calls about work can occur any time of the day interrupting any activity.
• The paperwork on his desk gets deeper.

He is being promoted again to oversee a dozen systems. He only knows three of them. Doug will be hiring a team to work under him. 

That's when I got the phone call. 

I anticipated a discussion about time management or priority management. But that was not the question. Wish I had his energy and drive! Doug's question was about how to get ready for this promotion and how to go about learning nine new systems. To top it off, he called while driving to a quick lunch with his wife — I could hear the wind and the open car door "ringing" in the phone. 

In the space between the words I could hear Doug's gears turning and trying to grind out a solution. He wanted to take on the responsibility of his entire team and master the 12 systems himself.

The underlying question was about what it means to lead.

 

*******

No one can play all the positions in a team. Each player must play his position well.

No business leader should do everyone's job.

Leadership is not being the jack-of-all-trades or the hands-on micromanager. 

Identify what needs to be done.

Define what each player is to do.

Find the players with the right skill set to play each part.

Back off and let them do their work.

Lead by casting the vision. 

Lead by defining the boundaries, obligations and responsibilities.

Lead by empowering employee choices.

Hold employees accountable for performance.

*******

Text message at 8:21 a.m. "Thanks for your help yesterday. You sparked a lot of ideas for me. I know what I need to do now. You have helped me look at life a lot differently." 

Maybe we'll get around to time management and priority management next week. Time permitting.

What new responsibilities have you taken on in the past year?

Strategic Marketing Referral Ladder

Who does not like referrals? 


Our approach to getting more referrals needs to have a clearly understood objective. This diagram helps to give clarity to a strategic marketing referral approach.


The Five-Fold Objective of a Strategic Marketing Strategy are:
1. Turn Prospects into First Time Buyers.
2. Turn First Time Buyers into Repeat Buyers.
3. Turn Repeat Buyers into Members of our unique community.
4. Turn Members into Advocates for our products or services.
5. Turn Advocates into Raving Fans who can't stop talking about our products or services.


Your Raving Fans are those businesses or individuals that generate referrals for your business. Develop a plan that accomplishes the following for your Raving Fans:
1. Decide to contact them on a regular basis (once a month, once every 6 weeks)
2. Add value to your relationship
3. Affirm your relationship
4. Educate them on how to spot a good referral.
5. Decide how to treat all referrals with excellence
6. Show appreciation to your Raving Fan!


Your Advocates are one step away from becoming Raving Fans. Take time to think about what will move them into that new level of professional relationship. The key is two fold: 1. continue to exceed their expectations and 2. make them conscious of ways they can help you (for example, a testimonial, a review, a referral).


Members are loyal to you but are not motivated to advocate for your goods or services. What should your strategy for Members include? Show how you value their loyalty with the following strategies:
1. Listen to their feedback
2. Meet their expectations
3. Take one step beyond their expectations.


These top three rungs of the Strategic Marketing Referral Ladder are the most important and where you should be focusing your energy. Take a few minutes right now and identify who is on each rung. Make some action steps to start an upward movement on your Referral Ladder.
*****
Perhaps you need to schedule some time to break away and give some focused attention to your Referral Ladder. To help expedite your strategic thinking process, contact your Twin Cities Growth Coach serving Minneapolis, St. Paul and surrounding metro communities.

Beginning with the End in Mind

Today is the last day of 2010. By now you have looked forward and looked backward for the purpose of making significant decisions either professionally or personally.

I bet that on your list of goals some of these Top Ten Resolutions appear:

• Spend More Time with Friends and Family
• Lose Weight (or Get Fit)
• Enjoy Life More
• Quit Smoking (or quit some other substance abuse/overuse)
• Get Out of Debt
• Learn Something New
• Help Others
• Get Organized
• Do Something You Love to Do 

It's like we have all been attending the same school and listening to the same professors. Our collective mantra somehow says, "Yesterday was good; Tomorrow will be better yet!"

And all the people said, "Amen!"

**********

My career path has had me interact with the elderly. What I learn from those who have gone before me is like looking at a dirty GPS screen: I know the future is coming but it is not all that clear to me yet.

For example, I have heard many times how wonderful it is to be a grandparent. This year I get to find out for the first time for myself. It will not be someone else's story; I will own it. The GPS screen will get a little clearer.

We are all heading somewhere. As years fade away the playing field will level out dramatically regardless of money in the bank, letters behind the name, titles before the name, achievements and awards, and the number of pages in our experience journal.

Here are some of the things that I have gleaned from listening to those who have gone before . . . lessons that will be left standing when other things fade away in importance:

• Loving and caring relationships will always be important
• Contentment is great gain
• "Do as you would be done by" is still a curriculum to master
• Showing gratitude opens doors
• "No matter how much things change, some things never change." Happy are the people who know what things never change and respect them
• Pity is reserved for those who let faith die 
• The right word at the right time by the right person can accomplish so much
• Accumulated money rots without generosity of heart

Steven Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, talks about the importance to "begin with the end in mind." "To begin with the end in mind is to start with a clear understanding of your destination. It means to know where you are going so that you better understand where you are now and so that the steps you take are always in the right direction. It's incredibly easy to get caught up in an activity trap, in the busy-ness of life, to work harder and harder at climbing the ladder of success only to discover it's leaning against the wrong wall."

*******

We are all heading into the future ready or not! 

Here is a prediction for 2011: The goals on your list that most closely align with your true values will be accomplished.

Happy New Year!

Benton Clyde Clark

The innate desire to be somehow noteworthy, memorable or at least noticed has motivated people to do . . . well, noteworthy, memorable or noticeable things.

Consider what it must be like to be one of ten children. How do you get noticed when so many are living under the same roof? My neighbor has multiple children who I cannot name. They range in ages from toddler to college grad. Large families cause me to imagine all kinds of things. When my mother got upset she would run down the list of her kids' names — first and middle names — until she got to the one she was after. Me. So it sounded something like this: Jeffrey Laurence Paul Frederick Alan Jack. What must that be like in a family with ten children?

I can only imagine.

Benton, however, did not have to imagine what it would be like. He had nine siblings. Growing up on the Mississippi farm meant they all had plenty to do. I suppose if a chore did not get done on the farm, it was not long before someone noticed. Stuff piles up pretty quickly on a farm.

All the chores could not keep Benton from eventually wondering if there was something more for him than farm life. It was an inner calling to do something noteworthy. At the tender adult age of 18 he left the farm to go work for his older brother at his jewelry store in Texas. Under his brother's professional care, Benton learned about jewelry and watch repair.

The desire to strike out and pave his own destiny kept Benton looking and listening. Stories of fortunes being made up north in Indian Territory intrigued him. His dreams of money and adventure propelled him to leave his brother's store and hop a train towards Chickasa in the Indian Territory with fifty dollars in his pocket.

Pulling to a stop in Purcell, Benton went to purchase a ticket for the remainder of the trip to Chickasa only to discover that his wallet was gone! Penniless and in a town where he knew no one, Benton was nowhere near noteworthy, memorable or even noticeable. A man of weaker resolve might have begged his way back home with his ego bruised to live a life unnoticed in the shadows of the familiar. The 23 year old son of a Mississippi farmer decided that going back was not an option.

Some might call it fate and others might call it Providence when Benton met up with a familiar face from Texas. A gentleman from down South had opened a racket store (a forerunner to the five and dime store) in Purcell and permitted Benton to set up a corner where he could fix watches. It was an opportunity.

Benton hung up a shingle proudly announcing his service.

The town of Purcell was a regular stop for trains from the North Division and the South Division. Railroads required all company watches to be inspected every fifteen days! Benton the watch repairman became a noteworthy stop for railroad employees and a business that moved out of the five and dime into a store of his own.

Within a few years a watch engraved with his name had the reputation of fine quality sought after by railroad employees.

Benton weathered severe economic times by diversifying what he offered in his store. He sold phonographs, player pianos, the first General Electric refrigerators and even cars. Even though jewelry and watch repair remained his core business, it became known that this father of six was resourceful and determined. It was his good business sense in responding to the needs of his market and his creative solutions that kept his business growing while many others shuttered their doors.

Benton's commitment to customer service, superior quality, resourceful and entrepreneurial spirit engraved his name in the territory we now call Oklahoma. A memorable and noteworthy business. A true American success story. Most people do not know this old family story when they pass by one of three jewelry stores that bear Benton's name in Oklahoma City today. Most shoppers are unaware that the fine store was the idea of a Mississippi farm boy.

Ask anyone on the streets of Oklahoma City about Benton Clyde Clark the jeweler and you might get a puzzled look in return. "You mean B. C. Clark?" followed by a warm smile.

B. C. Clark, the business that is known for it's Christmas jingle. A jingle so familiar and so endearing to Oklahoma that Christmas would not be Christmas without it. A jingle that has been sung every year since 1956.

I bet you'd like to hear it for yourself . . . the jingle that is so noteworthy, so memorable, so noticed that young and old alike sing it with a smile on their faces . . .

The familiar jingle

Made famous on Jay Leno

Danced to

Played by

Sung by

And Sung by

Noteworthy. Memorable. Noticed.