If you are of a certain age you may remember a WWII movie starring Audie Murphy, my Dad's hero, "TO HELL AND BACK". Hombre, 2008 was HELL and mostly now back, but not so sure even now.....See prior post on my brother Roberto's double lung transplant and eventual 8 month hospital vacation fighting for his life; then my 24 yr. old son assaulted and stabbed in Wilmington by a crack-head - the miracle is that they are both in good shape. The bad news is that my nerves are shot to "Hell". It started w/ an anxiety attack when Roberto was a few days out of surgery and then became darkness about the time Thomas was attacked.
Winston Churchill would call it the "Black dog" and shoo it away with scotch; me I just keep pushing that 1 hr. drive to and back from DC and the 11 hours in between - three years now - toughest assignment of my life. There was a time when I thought of myself as a change-agent,and invincible - very clear on my purpose; then I encountered the mother of all organizational challenges. I just transpired through one of those lifetime events: late Oct/Nov I was visited by the "Black Dog" and he would not leave, not fun sleeping 2 hours a night for a month plus - the mind begins to do things....I found people who were protecting me and I also found some that wanted to annihilate me; glad to forgive, tough to forget. I am myself again, mostly, ready to take us up in 2009 - 25 yrs. riding this horse, I plan on charging into the mass and laying waste and destruction on the competition, but first things first.....I hate to tell you this, but not everyone wants you or your team to succeed, not your fault how they feel, just a reality on the darker side of the envious, the small, the irrelevant. Funny how most people choose their lot through their behaviors - we know this as the leadership model, people will not act inconsistent with their beliefs, then a result is produced, and sometimes it is a negative result - pity.
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Pain.....
Sometimes it just RAINS!
Pain and suffering - but it will be overcome
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL
Pain and suffering - but it will be overcome
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The end of suffering....
It has now been one year since my brother Roberto received his double-lung transplant, a miracle unto itself. He has been in the hospital now nearly 7 months beyond initial rehab due to complications too numerous to name, yet he lives. My mother and sister are his most constant companions as the rest of us live states away. The pain, the anxiety of any new development, coupled with the daily living issues associated with work, family, time....I am so grateful to my wife Debbie and my children for providing solace in the storm. My own self-doubt, my own "little faith" with God's will, my fear - these have been my companions this past year. It is very difficult to compartmentalize your life, for me anyway. So the entire experience of Roberto's suffering, my own struggles, and the realization that life is short and unhappiness can not be long-term; they all congregate (to quote Harry Truman)to "fall on you like the earth, the sun and all the stars". All of this will pass and where tomorrrow leads.....BUT, we will push and drive and persevere, because that is what got us here! Gracias Papi, we remember you on your 14th anniversary this Monday - Costa Rica's Independence Day, he showed us how!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Teaching is Learning
The anxiety, the elation, the preparation, the organization, the last-minute off-the-cuff change that makes it GO! It is very interesting teaching - maybe the word is facilitating - a gathering of 30 very interested and knowledgeable professionals. Some already know what you know, some know more than what you know about the subject matter and are simply verifying their positions. The best method is to encourage the "team" to contribute to the material as it is presented, even to refute it with empirical evidence, so that the "team" can learn beyond the awareness and ability of the teacher. Humility of not knowing it ALL, and true enthusiasm for the subject matter are key attributes that gain the interest of the team members in active participation. By the way, even outside the classroom, people are learning by what they see you do. LGLOBO
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Jeff Gitomer's Formula for Sales Success
Tx. Jim for sharing
Here are the 12.5 elements in the formula…
1. Your attitude. The key to your success. Get CDs now. Listen two hours a day for six months. Stop doing or listening to negative things.
2. Your goals. Set them today. Read the 6.5 steps in the Post-it Note section again (page 47). Use the Post-it Notes beginning right now.
3. Your networking. Find out where your best customers and prospects meet (trade association, chamber, club). Begin attending every meeting you can. It is imperative that you attend regularly.
4. Your power questions. Write ’em. Learn ’em. Use ’em.
5. Your power statements. Write ’em. Learn ’em. Use ’em.
6. Your sales tools. Figure out what tools you need and get ’em.
7. Your sales knowledge. Get sales skills CDs and listen to them. Alternate with the attitude CDs. Use the idea as soon as you hear it. Read every chapter in this book twice. One chapter per day.
8. Your preparedness. Are you truly ready to sell? If you are, you will. If you’re not, you won’t. The opposite of preparedness is failure.
9. Your follow-up. Tenacious, creative persistence that leads to a sale.
10. Your sales numbers. Making yourself see the numbers you need to build your pipeline and keep it full. Find your formula and use it.
11. Your prospect pipeline. Seeing the proper number of people a day who are qualified to buy builds your pipeline. The key to double income is having the right number of prospects ready to buy.
12. Your commitment. Write it to yourself. Tell others who will help you. Your commitment is your personal promise to yourself. Keep it at all costs.
12.5 Your self-discipline. Your determination and ability to achieve your goals and live up to your commitments.
There is a sales adage that says, “Your chances for success increase in proportion to the number of sales calls you make.” It’s amazing how the truth can be so simple. If it’s so simple, why don’t you do it?
Here are the 12.5 elements in the formula…
1. Your attitude. The key to your success. Get CDs now. Listen two hours a day for six months. Stop doing or listening to negative things.
2. Your goals. Set them today. Read the 6.5 steps in the Post-it Note section again (page 47). Use the Post-it Notes beginning right now.
3. Your networking. Find out where your best customers and prospects meet (trade association, chamber, club). Begin attending every meeting you can. It is imperative that you attend regularly.
4. Your power questions. Write ’em. Learn ’em. Use ’em.
5. Your power statements. Write ’em. Learn ’em. Use ’em.
6. Your sales tools. Figure out what tools you need and get ’em.
7. Your sales knowledge. Get sales skills CDs and listen to them. Alternate with the attitude CDs. Use the idea as soon as you hear it. Read every chapter in this book twice. One chapter per day.
8. Your preparedness. Are you truly ready to sell? If you are, you will. If you’re not, you won’t. The opposite of preparedness is failure.
9. Your follow-up. Tenacious, creative persistence that leads to a sale.
10. Your sales numbers. Making yourself see the numbers you need to build your pipeline and keep it full. Find your formula and use it.
11. Your prospect pipeline. Seeing the proper number of people a day who are qualified to buy builds your pipeline. The key to double income is having the right number of prospects ready to buy.
12. Your commitment. Write it to yourself. Tell others who will help you. Your commitment is your personal promise to yourself. Keep it at all costs.
12.5 Your self-discipline. Your determination and ability to achieve your goals and live up to your commitments.
There is a sales adage that says, “Your chances for success increase in proportion to the number of sales calls you make.” It’s amazing how the truth can be so simple. If it’s so simple, why don’t you do it?
Sunday, May 11, 2008
People do what they see the Leader do.....
Good leaders are aware that others do what they do. And they always keep in mind that:
1. Followers are Always Watching What Leaders Do
If you are a parent, you have probably already realized that your children are always watching what you do. And just as children watch their parents and emulate their behavior, so do employees who are watching their bosses. If the bosses come in late, then employees feel like they can, too. If the boss cuts corners, employees cut corners. People do what people see.
Followers may doubt what their leaders say, but they usually believe what they do. And they imitate it. Former U.S. Army General and Secretary of State Colin Powell observed, "You can issue all the memos and give all the motivational speeches you want, but if the rest of the people in your organization don't see you putting forth your very best effort every single day, they won't either."
2. It's Easier to Teach What's Right than to Do What's Right
Mark Twain quipped, "To do what is right is wonderful. To teach what is right is even more wonderful—and much easier." That's one of the reasons why many parents (and bosses) say, "Do as I say, not as I do."
One of my earliest challenges as a leader was to raise my living to the level of my teaching. I can still remember the day I decided that I would not teach anything I did not try to live out myself. That was a tough decision, but as a young leader I was learning to embrace the Law of the Picture. Norman Vincent Peale said, "Nothing is more confusing than people who give good advice but set a bad example." I say, "Nothing is more convincing than people who give good advice and set a good example."
3. We Should Work on Changing Ourselves Before Trying to Improve Others
Leaders are responsible for the performance of their people. The buck stops with them. Accordingly, they monitor their people's progress, give them direction, and hold them accountable. And to improve the performance of the team, leaders must act as change agents. However, a great danger to good leadership is the temptation to try to change others without first making changes to yourself.
As a leader, the first person I need to lead is me. The first person that I should try to change is me. My standards of excellence should be higher for myself than those I set for others. To remain a credible leader, I must always work first, hardest, and longest on changing myself. This is neither easy nor natural, but it is essential.
4. The Most Valuable Gift a Leader Can Give is Being a Good Example
A survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. for Ajilon Finance asked American workers to select the one trait that was most important for a person to lead them. Ranked No. 1, with 26% of votes, was leading by example. Second, at 19%, was strong ethics or morals. More than anything else, employees want leaders whose beliefs and actions line up.
Leadership is more caught than taught. How does one "catch" leadership? By watching good leaders in action!
So as you approach the end of the calendar year and start thinking about the performance of the people you lead, stop for a moment of honest reflection and ask yourself this question: What kind of example am I setting? If you're setting a high standard for integrity, competence, work ethic, and professional growth, if you're being all that you desire your people to be, then you're setting up yourself, your people, and your organization for success. If not, you need to make some changes.
John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, and author who has sold over 13 million books. His organizations have trained more than 2 million business, government, and military leaders worldwide. Dr. Maxwell writed My Leadership Perspective for BusinessWeek.com/Managing once a month.
1. Followers are Always Watching What Leaders Do
If you are a parent, you have probably already realized that your children are always watching what you do. And just as children watch their parents and emulate their behavior, so do employees who are watching their bosses. If the bosses come in late, then employees feel like they can, too. If the boss cuts corners, employees cut corners. People do what people see.
Followers may doubt what their leaders say, but they usually believe what they do. And they imitate it. Former U.S. Army General and Secretary of State Colin Powell observed, "You can issue all the memos and give all the motivational speeches you want, but if the rest of the people in your organization don't see you putting forth your very best effort every single day, they won't either."
2. It's Easier to Teach What's Right than to Do What's Right
Mark Twain quipped, "To do what is right is wonderful. To teach what is right is even more wonderful—and much easier." That's one of the reasons why many parents (and bosses) say, "Do as I say, not as I do."
One of my earliest challenges as a leader was to raise my living to the level of my teaching. I can still remember the day I decided that I would not teach anything I did not try to live out myself. That was a tough decision, but as a young leader I was learning to embrace the Law of the Picture. Norman Vincent Peale said, "Nothing is more confusing than people who give good advice but set a bad example." I say, "Nothing is more convincing than people who give good advice and set a good example."
3. We Should Work on Changing Ourselves Before Trying to Improve Others
Leaders are responsible for the performance of their people. The buck stops with them. Accordingly, they monitor their people's progress, give them direction, and hold them accountable. And to improve the performance of the team, leaders must act as change agents. However, a great danger to good leadership is the temptation to try to change others without first making changes to yourself.
As a leader, the first person I need to lead is me. The first person that I should try to change is me. My standards of excellence should be higher for myself than those I set for others. To remain a credible leader, I must always work first, hardest, and longest on changing myself. This is neither easy nor natural, but it is essential.
4. The Most Valuable Gift a Leader Can Give is Being a Good Example
A survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. for Ajilon Finance asked American workers to select the one trait that was most important for a person to lead them. Ranked No. 1, with 26% of votes, was leading by example. Second, at 19%, was strong ethics or morals. More than anything else, employees want leaders whose beliefs and actions line up.
Leadership is more caught than taught. How does one "catch" leadership? By watching good leaders in action!
So as you approach the end of the calendar year and start thinking about the performance of the people you lead, stop for a moment of honest reflection and ask yourself this question: What kind of example am I setting? If you're setting a high standard for integrity, competence, work ethic, and professional growth, if you're being all that you desire your people to be, then you're setting up yourself, your people, and your organization for success. If not, you need to make some changes.
John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, and author who has sold over 13 million books. His organizations have trained more than 2 million business, government, and military leaders worldwide. Dr. Maxwell writed My Leadership Perspective for BusinessWeek.com/Managing once a month.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Attitude: Jerry’s Story
Jerry was the kind of guy you love to “hate.” He was always in a good mood, and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, “If I were any better, I would be twins!”
He was a unique food service manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because he was such a powerful motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went to Jerry and asked him, “I don’t get it. You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?” Jerry replied, Each morning, I wake up and say to myself, ‘Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.’ I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept the complaining or I can point out the positive side of life.”
“Yeah, right. It’s not that easy,” I protested. “Yes, it is,” Jerry said. “Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how to react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or a bad mood. The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live your life.”
I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in the restaurant business—he left the back door open one morning and was held up by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18 hours of surgery, and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.
I saw Jerry about six months after the incident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, “If I were any better, I’d be twins! Wanna see my scars?” I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place. “The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back
door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered I had two choices. I could choose to live or I could choose not to live.” “Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?” I asked. Jerry continued, “The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But, when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. I realized that I had to take action.” “What did you do?” I asked. “Well, there was this big, burley nurse shouting questions at me,” said Jerry. “She asked if I was allergic to anything. ‘Yes,’ I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. . . I took a deep breath and replied, ‘Bullets!’ Over their laughter, I told them, ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’”
Jerry lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him, that very day, we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything!
He was a unique food service manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because he was such a powerful motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went to Jerry and asked him, “I don’t get it. You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?” Jerry replied, Each morning, I wake up and say to myself, ‘Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.’ I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept the complaining or I can point out the positive side of life.”
“Yeah, right. It’s not that easy,” I protested. “Yes, it is,” Jerry said. “Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how to react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or a bad mood. The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live your life.”
I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in the restaurant business—he left the back door open one morning and was held up by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18 hours of surgery, and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.
I saw Jerry about six months after the incident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, “If I were any better, I’d be twins! Wanna see my scars?” I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place. “The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back
door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered I had two choices. I could choose to live or I could choose not to live.” “Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?” I asked. Jerry continued, “The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But, when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. I realized that I had to take action.” “What did you do?” I asked. “Well, there was this big, burley nurse shouting questions at me,” said Jerry. “She asked if I was allergic to anything. ‘Yes,’ I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. . . I took a deep breath and replied, ‘Bullets!’ Over their laughter, I told them, ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’”
Jerry lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him, that very day, we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything!
Sunday, April 06, 2008
You ARE Good Enough!
You ARE good enough! Last week several peers and I attended a seminar on High Performance Thinking, notably how to act/react to events that require very good decision making. It is interesting how we are negatively "TRIGGERED" by a comment or question that pushes our "NOT GOOD ENOUGH DRIVER" , which is a BIG FAT LIE, but which we are subject to hold in our script of "BEING PERFECT, BEING RESPONSIBLE, and BEING GOOD ENOUGH". Thus, we should react with the "Nurturing parent" and not the "Critical parent", which causes much better responses and leads to productive dialogue and not CONFLICT, which is destructive. I have allowed myself to fall into this trap since last summer with negative emotional responses in the NGED world which are just now settling down from a high anxiety state, emotions are not rational, but they are real.Push away from the NGED lie and your focus and results, and LIFE, will be much better! Remember, there are no mistakes or failures, simply lessons.
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL
Saturday, February 09, 2008
The basic human truth....
"When power leads man towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses. For art establishes the basic human truth which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment".
Robert Frost
John F. Kennedy's Speech at Amherst College upon receiving an Honorary Degree on October 26, 1963
Robert Frost
John F. Kennedy's Speech at Amherst College upon receiving an Honorary Degree on October 26, 1963
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
DAY ONE
Happy New Year! It is new year everyday, but given our need for structure and timelines we call this DAY ONE. We can look back and review our efforts, challenges, and accomplishments. It is the efforts in the face of the challenges where the seeds of potential are planted. The accomplishments are merely the conclusions or near-conclusions of efforts/challenges. Regardless, today we sort of start with a blank slate even as there is always carryover from past efforts, decisions and again, challenges.
The stage is set in many ways, the right leadership has been in place overall. YOUR enthusiasm and clear discernment of potential drives expectations and results. Lead by example, deploy all potential resources. Sometimes, it is the "little things" that matter to clients and team mates - a congratulatory telecall or note, a kind word. Regardless, leadership is about helping team mates maintain focus on the behaviors that will cause their success. It is the COACH noting the good, the not good and what can be - only INTEGRITY gains followership.
Breathe easier, stick to the plan, do your best; that is all anyone can do.
The stage is set in many ways, the right leadership has been in place overall. YOUR enthusiasm and clear discernment of potential drives expectations and results. Lead by example, deploy all potential resources. Sometimes, it is the "little things" that matter to clients and team mates - a congratulatory telecall or note, a kind word. Regardless, leadership is about helping team mates maintain focus on the behaviors that will cause their success. It is the COACH noting the good, the not good and what can be - only INTEGRITY gains followership.
Breathe easier, stick to the plan, do your best; that is all anyone can do.
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