How many times have you ever said about someone you either work with or were served by, "That guy could sure use an attitude adjustment?"
I've said it. You've said it and I am choosing to make it my mission to instill that attitude adjustment in as many people as I can over the next few years. Now before you go and get all bent out of shape about it, think about what an attitude adjustment really is. It is nothing more than a revelation that what you are doing isn't working and to stop doing what doesn't work and start doing what does work.
When you change your attitude, you change your mind. When you change your mind you change your behaviour and consequently change your results. Simple no?
I have been delivering attitude adjustments for the past ten years and I have written my newest book on attitude. I completed writing it over the summer and my editor/publisher Gwen has it right now. The forthcoming book (my seventh book) is titled, "Go Ahead. Give Me Attitude!"
It will be coming out (hopefully) before Christmas in both paperback and hard cover. There will be an audio compendium as well (sort of a book on CD). Watch for it. I will make a lot of noise just before it comes out ... trust me on that one.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Sweet Summer Sweat
Yes I know it's been some time since I wrote. That doesn't mean I haven't been thinking ... or doing ... or planning ... or making changes. The summer was actually quite busy.
In April, I had the opportunity to address Health Expo West in Vancouver. There was a professional photographer at the event who fired off several photos. I was rewarded with these shots by email one day. Nice dark background, great lighting, excellent photo contrast and there I was, being shot from below and my face looked like it was the size of a pumpkin... just a little less orange. My first thought was, “Where the hell did my neck go?”
Jeez, I don't remember getting that fat. Wow, sometimes it takes a moment of honesty to really see the true picture. The picture, or pictures, I did not like. Something had to be done and had to be done quickly. I needed to give myself an Attitude Adjustment.
My friend and fellow speaker, Ken Larson, thinks I'm an “all or nothing” kind of guy so it was no surprise to the fitness freaking, health-drink swilling, king of the gym (that would be Ken), that I would embark on a fitness program that promised the following: “You will not sit on a couple of little machines and magically lose weight. You will work. You will hurt. You will sweat!”
I started the ninety-day program July 15. This past weekend, sixty days into the program, I am happy to report I have lost twenty pounds so far. I have not sat upon any machines. I have done more push ups, pull ups, chin-ups, jump-ups and wind-ups than I can even count. No pharmaceuticals. No starve-oneself diet and no sugar. Just real wholesome food and a little simple math (calories in versus calories out – need to have more calories expended than what I take in – see, simple math).
It will probably be another thirty to sixty days before I'm down to my fighting weight. Once that happens, I'm coming after you to give you an attitude adjustment. Don't make me do that.
In April, I had the opportunity to address Health Expo West in Vancouver. There was a professional photographer at the event who fired off several photos. I was rewarded with these shots by email one day. Nice dark background, great lighting, excellent photo contrast and there I was, being shot from below and my face looked like it was the size of a pumpkin... just a little less orange. My first thought was, “Where the hell did my neck go?”
Jeez, I don't remember getting that fat. Wow, sometimes it takes a moment of honesty to really see the true picture. The picture, or pictures, I did not like. Something had to be done and had to be done quickly. I needed to give myself an Attitude Adjustment.
My friend and fellow speaker, Ken Larson, thinks I'm an “all or nothing” kind of guy so it was no surprise to the fitness freaking, health-drink swilling, king of the gym (that would be Ken), that I would embark on a fitness program that promised the following: “You will not sit on a couple of little machines and magically lose weight. You will work. You will hurt. You will sweat!”
I started the ninety-day program July 15. This past weekend, sixty days into the program, I am happy to report I have lost twenty pounds so far. I have not sat upon any machines. I have done more push ups, pull ups, chin-ups, jump-ups and wind-ups than I can even count. No pharmaceuticals. No starve-oneself diet and no sugar. Just real wholesome food and a little simple math (calories in versus calories out – need to have more calories expended than what I take in – see, simple math).
It will probably be another thirty to sixty days before I'm down to my fighting weight. Once that happens, I'm coming after you to give you an attitude adjustment. Don't make me do that.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Employee Tip # 6 - Productivity Is More Important Than Attitude
Many employees don't understand one simple rule: each employee has a responsibility to ensure that their personal crap doesn't get in the way of someone who is doing a good job. It impedes those who want to move forward and is completely disrespectful. It's like saying "My bad attitude is more important than your good work."
How incredibly selfish it is when someone who has nothing good to say about their job, spews their verbal vomit all over everyone else in the hopes of getting someone to agree with them. Once someone agrees with their assessment of the job, they are simply encouraged to continue their bad behaviour.
As an employee, you have a simple responsibility: to keep your end of the bargain. You are being paid for your work - so work. When you stop working, the company has the right to stop paying you. See that was the understanding between you - work for pay.
However, you do not have the right to infect or affect the other people who happen to like their work with your bad attitude about the job. That is selfish. That is disrespectful. That is simply mean. You are welcome to have your opinions about the job and if you have positive suggestions, take them up with the boss - not the rest of the staff (who couldn't change things anyway).
As for the rest of the staff - when there is someone like this working with you, you have one expectation: do not let anything interfere with you keeping your agreement with the company. It's up to you to stop your fellow co-workers who impede your personal progress and attitude. You must speak up. If not to the offender directly, then to his or her supervisor. But one way or another you are responsible for putting a stop to this.
Left unchecked, someone's else's bad attitude can affect your paycheck. Speaking up also sends a message to the rest of the staff: "I will not let you rob me of my time, my productivity and my space. I am here to do a job and your opinions and bad attitude will not get in the way of my productivity."
Trust me, you will be respected for putting a stop to it. But sadly, you will likely forget or choose to ignore this. And you will pay.
How incredibly selfish it is when someone who has nothing good to say about their job, spews their verbal vomit all over everyone else in the hopes of getting someone to agree with them. Once someone agrees with their assessment of the job, they are simply encouraged to continue their bad behaviour.
As an employee, you have a simple responsibility: to keep your end of the bargain. You are being paid for your work - so work. When you stop working, the company has the right to stop paying you. See that was the understanding between you - work for pay.
However, you do not have the right to infect or affect the other people who happen to like their work with your bad attitude about the job. That is selfish. That is disrespectful. That is simply mean. You are welcome to have your opinions about the job and if you have positive suggestions, take them up with the boss - not the rest of the staff (who couldn't change things anyway).
As for the rest of the staff - when there is someone like this working with you, you have one expectation: do not let anything interfere with you keeping your agreement with the company. It's up to you to stop your fellow co-workers who impede your personal progress and attitude. You must speak up. If not to the offender directly, then to his or her supervisor. But one way or another you are responsible for putting a stop to this.
Left unchecked, someone's else's bad attitude can affect your paycheck. Speaking up also sends a message to the rest of the staff: "I will not let you rob me of my time, my productivity and my space. I am here to do a job and your opinions and bad attitude will not get in the way of my productivity."
Trust me, you will be respected for putting a stop to it. But sadly, you will likely forget or choose to ignore this. And you will pay.
Boss Tip #12 - Pruning The Garden Without Spraying Chemicals
For those of you who have never had a garden, this may seem completely incomprehensible but play along with me would you please?
In the park across the street from my house is perhaps one of the world's largest dandelion plantations. Now to choose between herbicides in a public park and weeding out a few dandelions a week in my yard is a simple decision for me: weeding is easy enough and better for the rest of us. With that being said, let me tell you that we have a good sized garden in our backyard. Strawberries, raspberries, peas, beans, carrots, zucchini and herbs are all up. So is the crop of chickweeed, quackgrass, dandelions and other assorted weeds.
The biggest job in the garden, after planting, is pruning - getting rid of the plants that suck moisture and nurients from the earth that the garden plants need.
This whole pruning concept is not much different for bosses: weeding out the people who suck the motivation and ethic from your good workers and kicking their butts to the curb. In the same way you wouldn't put weeds into a compost bin (you're just replanting the weed seeds in the compost), don't try to find another place in the company for the cynics, the ne'er-do-wellers, the negative Nellies, the slackers and the armchair CEO's (those who think they have all the answers and could do a better job than you). That's like pulling a weed and replanting it in a different part of the garden. By placing them in another department, you are simply encouraging their bad behaviour.
Don't think that a blanket policy is going to fix everything either. That's like spraying chemicals across the whole garden. Everything in the path of the spray will be affected. Do the hard work, the dirty work and get your hands dirty. Pull each weed by hand leaving the rest of the garden untouched and unaffected.
Weeds are not welcome in your department. As a boss, it is your responsibility to ensure that your good plants produce the fruits of their labours without being impeded by weeds.
Get my meaning here? Get it done ... today.
In the park across the street from my house is perhaps one of the world's largest dandelion plantations. Now to choose between herbicides in a public park and weeding out a few dandelions a week in my yard is a simple decision for me: weeding is easy enough and better for the rest of us. With that being said, let me tell you that we have a good sized garden in our backyard. Strawberries, raspberries, peas, beans, carrots, zucchini and herbs are all up. So is the crop of chickweeed, quackgrass, dandelions and other assorted weeds.
The biggest job in the garden, after planting, is pruning - getting rid of the plants that suck moisture and nurients from the earth that the garden plants need.
This whole pruning concept is not much different for bosses: weeding out the people who suck the motivation and ethic from your good workers and kicking their butts to the curb. In the same way you wouldn't put weeds into a compost bin (you're just replanting the weed seeds in the compost), don't try to find another place in the company for the cynics, the ne'er-do-wellers, the negative Nellies, the slackers and the armchair CEO's (those who think they have all the answers and could do a better job than you). That's like pulling a weed and replanting it in a different part of the garden. By placing them in another department, you are simply encouraging their bad behaviour.
Don't think that a blanket policy is going to fix everything either. That's like spraying chemicals across the whole garden. Everything in the path of the spray will be affected. Do the hard work, the dirty work and get your hands dirty. Pull each weed by hand leaving the rest of the garden untouched and unaffected.
Weeds are not welcome in your department. As a boss, it is your responsibility to ensure that your good plants produce the fruits of their labours without being impeded by weeds.
Get my meaning here? Get it done ... today.
What To Do With Found $20 Follow-up
Hi all, Meghan here (with Kevin's blessing). I want to give you an update on Kevin's article from June 20th What To Do With a Found $20 Bill?
We had an overwhelming response of comments on Kevin's Blog (http://www.kevburns.com/2007/06/what-to-do-with-found-20-bill.html). There were a ton of ideas from giving to charity to letting Meghan keep the money, from trying to return the money to taking the family to Dairy Queen, from giving it away again to having our readers (you) match dollar for dollar to charity. There were a lot of things to consider and now we have an idea that involves you.
The first thing Kevin did was call the restaurant and then Direct Cash to see if there was any way of tracking down the person before him that used that particular ATM. Finding the rightful owner seemed appropriate. We can all rest easy today knowing that Direct Cash ATMs do not keep any financial records (name, bank name or number) in their machines. In today's world and with privacy concerns, these are for obvious security reasons. So, Kevin and I both sat here for quite a while wondering what to do next. We wanted to include as many of your ideas as possible, but how do we do that with only a $20 bill? One suggestion came in to give the money to me (thank you!) and let me choose where it goes. So we have decided to do just that - and then I decided to incorporate as many of the other ideas as possible all in one (with the exception of the trip to Dairy Queen for ice cream - sorry).
Now I've always been taught to do due diligence when it comes to making donations. Now I'm not skeptical about the foster parent industry, but if I'm sending my hard earned money, it had better be going to someone who needs it. After a lot of research, I believe very strongly that the Plan International does send the money and catalogue items to the child and his or her family. Hey, I'm Kevin's daughter, I'm no sucker.
So, with that being said, there goes Kevin's $20. He has stepped up and has donated his found $20 to Regan and his family. But now, Kevin and I would like to ask you to help us. On this page, you will see a "Make A Donation" link below. All you have to do to help purchase many useful things for Regan and his family (and the rest of his village if we do this right) is to click the link and donate a buck - $1. One measly dollar - less than a cup of coffee and together we can make a difference. Of course you may donate as much as you like and all you would have to do is change the amount when you click the link, and from the bottom of my heart I would thank you for that. But let's think big!
(OK, let me digress here for a moment. Here's what I've learned from my Dad: you get what you give. If you want to improve the chances of good fortune coming to you, you give good fortune to someone else. The Karmic wheel spins perfectly every time. Think about it, and then click the link.)
Kevin and I will keep all of you updated on what's being purchased and how much money has been raised. And so I can guilt you into pressing the button, attached is a picture of little Regan. So for all of you that have ever found a dollar (or twenty) on the road, pay it forward. The universe will then re-pay you. So my question now is, what are you going to do to change the world a little today?
Meghan
Jimmy Mac
Last Thursday's news was tough for me: in the paper was a news story of the death of my friend Jimmy Mac. He had died in a car accident Canada Day at the age of 46 - a month and a day older than I. Had I not read the paper I would have completely missed the traditional Irish wake of which 300 others attended that very night. It was a grand affair - and it had "Jimmy" written all over it. Music, drinks, partying and the remembrances of the wee man from Northern Ireland who touched so many of us in such a short time. His wife Barb, his son Simon and daughter Sarah all attended the wake for him as well.
The next day was Jimmy's funeral - in the largest church in Central Alberta. Good thing too as they needed the room. The parade of uniforms of fellow firefighters, the parade of the Royal Canadian Legion Honour Guard and the musical tributes at the funeral were heartwarming and gut-wrenching. We laughed. We cried. We thought and we remembered. The funeral lasted an hour and forty-five minutes and we were all sad to see it end.
Unannounced, Jimmy's father George, who had made the trip from Portadown in Northern Ireland to bury his son, took the stage. George said that he never really knew his son's friends nor did they ever really talk much about them on the phone. But then he said, "As I look over this church here today, I had no idea that this many people loved my son." There was not a dry eye left in the house.
It was a fitting affair for the man who left so many of us with a smile and a place in our hearts. But to try and describe Jimmy in a few words is difficult. Suffice it to say - he will be remembered.
I am proud to have known him. Rest well Jimmy. We'll do our best to live life the way you did - as though it all ends tomorrow.
Sadly, it did for Jimmy.
The next day was Jimmy's funeral - in the largest church in Central Alberta. Good thing too as they needed the room. The parade of uniforms of fellow firefighters, the parade of the Royal Canadian Legion Honour Guard and the musical tributes at the funeral were heartwarming and gut-wrenching. We laughed. We cried. We thought and we remembered. The funeral lasted an hour and forty-five minutes and we were all sad to see it end.
Unannounced, Jimmy's father George, who had made the trip from Portadown in Northern Ireland to bury his son, took the stage. George said that he never really knew his son's friends nor did they ever really talk much about them on the phone. But then he said, "As I look over this church here today, I had no idea that this many people loved my son." There was not a dry eye left in the house.
It was a fitting affair for the man who left so many of us with a smile and a place in our hearts. But to try and describe Jimmy in a few words is difficult. Suffice it to say - he will be remembered.
I am proud to have known him. Rest well Jimmy. We'll do our best to live life the way you did - as though it all ends tomorrow.
Sadly, it did for Jimmy.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
What To Do With a Found $20 Bill?
My friend Ken and I went for supper last night. As we walked into the restaurant, there was an ATM right by the front door. Now since Ken is 6'9" tall and I am ... well ... not, I am able to see things closer to the ground. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something that caught my attention: a $20 bill in the tray of the ATM.
I picked up the bill, held it up to Ken and the two of us immediately looked around. No one was even near the ATM nor did anyone look like they had visited it recently. What was I to do with the $20 bill. Ken wouldn't even let me buy part of supper with it.
This morning as I awoke, I saw the $20 bill and brought it with me into the office. I asked some of the staff in the office if they knew what to do with a found $20 bill, superstitions or otherwise. No one seemed to have an answer. No let me re-phrase that: many had an answer that simply said, "give it to me" or a variation thereof.
I went on-line looking for the "protocol" of found money. There is nothing on-line. So what I have come up with is to give a portion of it to a charity and spend a portion on a lottery ticket or something like that.
What is your suggestion? I will hang onto the $20 for the time being and wait to hear your suggestions. Spend it as you wish. What should I do?
Click Here To Make Your Comment!
I picked up the bill, held it up to Ken and the two of us immediately looked around. No one was even near the ATM nor did anyone look like they had visited it recently. What was I to do with the $20 bill. Ken wouldn't even let me buy part of supper with it.
This morning as I awoke, I saw the $20 bill and brought it with me into the office. I asked some of the staff in the office if they knew what to do with a found $20 bill, superstitions or otherwise. No one seemed to have an answer. No let me re-phrase that: many had an answer that simply said, "give it to me" or a variation thereof.
I went on-line looking for the "protocol" of found money. There is nothing on-line. So what I have come up with is to give a portion of it to a charity and spend a portion on a lottery ticket or something like that.
What is your suggestion? I will hang onto the $20 for the time being and wait to hear your suggestions. Spend it as you wish. What should I do?
Click Here To Make Your Comment!
Monday, June 11, 2007
It Just Takes A Little Effort
I have just finished my breakfast at the Halifax Airport. As I stood in front of the trash containers with my leftover garbage, I was met with bins displaying four choices:
Refundables - for those items which can get one a refund (bottles, cans, etc)
Recyclables - for those items which can be recycled but perhaps may not be able to get a refund on a deposit (plastics, cardboard, etc)
Organics - for those items which will break down in the environment (unprocessed foods, paper, etc)
Garbage - for all of the other items which would not fall into any of the other categories.
I really had to think for a moment about which bins I would use. Then I realized the magic of this system: I was forced to think consciously about my trash. There was no choice to act unconsciously.
Congratulations Halifax. You forced me to make a conscious decision on the environment today. Well done.
Now about your harbour...
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
Refundables - for those items which can get one a refund (bottles, cans, etc)
Recyclables - for those items which can be recycled but perhaps may not be able to get a refund on a deposit (plastics, cardboard, etc)
Organics - for those items which will break down in the environment (unprocessed foods, paper, etc)
Garbage - for all of the other items which would not fall into any of the other categories.
I really had to think for a moment about which bins I would use. Then I realized the magic of this system: I was forced to think consciously about my trash. There was no choice to act unconsciously.
Congratulations Halifax. You forced me to make a conscious decision on the environment today. Well done.
Now about your harbour...
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Read/Comment on Kevin's Blog http://www.kevburns.com/blog.html
Winnipeg Ridiculous
The following is a recollection of events which actually occured last week in my desperate attempt to watch the final game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs as it was being broadcast.
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As I and a band of hearty Canadians prepared to board a Regina-bound flight out of Winnipeg, we were stunned in silence that the Winnipeg Airport Authority (WAA) refused to broadcast, what turned out to be the last game of the season, the Ottawa Senators-Anaheim Ducks hockey game on the television sets in the boarding area, even after being asked repeatedly by the passengers awaiting their flight.
We asked the security guard to help us out at which point he offered up a phone number to the Data Centre - the obvious only ones working during the game. The Data Centre fed us some cock-and-bull story about the WAA not being in possession of licensing rights to broadcast a transmission from our public broadcaster. However, they are able to provide a scintilating program of political pundits on the future of the Liberal Party in Canada. I'm sure you yourself missed that one as you were likely watching the game.
To make matters worse, the Tim Horton's in the boarding area was closed. I'm sure the staff were home watching the game since they couldn't get the game in the terminal. .
When I attempted to stream the game to my Blackberry from cbc.ca, the message filling my Blackberry screen was, "We are sorry but this game can only be broadcast in Canada."
When did Winnipeg leave Canada? No hockey game? No Tim's? No kidding! How can Winnipeg say it will support another shot in the "Bigs" when you can't watch the game in the airport while having a hot cup of Horton's - the brew of a former NHL'er himself.
Is this stuff for real or did the entire plane full of passengers have a simultaneous bad dream.
How can a bar in the airport broadcast the game to their patrons (the sight of thirty people gathered around a 21 inch screen is something to marvel at - hockey die-hards for sure), yet the airport itself says it can't broadcast the game because it hasn't purchased the rights. The game was being brodcast on our public broadcaster - which just happens to be funded by the same people who wanted to watch the game.
This , by the way is the same airport in which many of those same players will be travelling should Winnipeg ever be granted another NHL franchise. Things will have to change then.
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Hmmm, in reading this, I perhaps got caught up in the heat of the moment. Maybe it's a good thing hockey is done for the season. Now I can focus my attention on other issues of importance. Sorry for my ramblings. It's hockey. I'm a man. I am Canadian. 'Nuff said.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Read/Comment on Kevin's Blog http://www.kevburns.com/blog.html
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Boss Tip #11 - There's No Such Thing As Teambuilding
OK. So I imagine the headline has piqued your curiosity. So here it comes: there are no such things as teams which means any money you have spent or are spending on teambuilding, teamwork and team-player attitudes is being wasted.
Let me explain. If you, as the boss, were to walk into the office tomorrow and make one announcement to the entire staff, you would see that you really don't have a team. Here's the announcement you would make: "Three people from this department need to go. Three people are being laid off. Which three? You decide. I want your answer by the end of the day."
And now pandemonium ensues.
For all the work you may have put into building a "team" you would have to agree that this announcement would pit one personality against the other. You would have to come to the realization that there really aren't any teams, but there are a bunch of individuals all pointed towards a common goal. That is not a team.
Take a look at any professional sports team and you will see the same thing: there just a bunch of players who have each given a commitment to achieve a common goal. Does that make them a team? No it does not. Because when it comes right down to it, each person is, at the end of the day, looking out for his or her own best interests.
Is that wrong? Of course not. But please understand that in the same way people will compete for a job, compete for a promotion or compete for that corner office, they will also compete to keep their jobs too. If that means pointing out the weaknesses of others, justifying why they should stay or agressively stabbing someone else in the back, they will do it.
I doubt that there are many people who, when faced with the above-noted situation, would say, "I am the weakest link in this department so for the good of the team, I will go."
A good coach understands that in order to get the best performance out of each player, he has got to figure out where the players' "hot-buttons" are and find a way to push them. Each player will respond to different stimuli. A blanket approach to coaching a team can be a lesson in futility. Each players needs to be coached differently. Each player needs to buy into the common goal and each will do so in their own way.
Each player has a different set of values, strengths and attitudes. Therefore each player needs to be coached separately. The same rules apply at work.
If you're the boss, you're the coach. You had better understand that in order to make your department function at peak performance. At no time can you expect everyone to be on the same page, to bring the same skill-sets or contribute equally with the same strengths as the rest of your people. It's not possible.
You don't have a team. You have a group of individuals all pointed in the same direction each with differing talents and each with different roles. Stop training them as all equal and coach their individual strengths instead. Their performance will improve and so will your bottom-line.
As for the trainers who think they offer teambuilding workshops? Think again.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Read/Comment on Kevin's Blog http://www.kevburns.com/blog.html
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Employee Tip #5 - Steer Clear Of Cynical Co-workers
Robert is in a management position. As much as I know of him, he seems to have his head and heart in the right place. He just seems to want the best for his people and does his best to get them give their best. That would seem to me to be the "win-win" attitude at work.
"It isn't always easy," he admits. "Sometimes there are one or two who become a little jaded and that can spell trouble for the rest of the staff."
Truer words were never spoken. Once a small group of employees decide that they would rather sit back and be cynical and view the world and their jobs with the "stink-eye," it requires either a firm commitment from the jaded ones to commit to improving themselves and their attitudes or it's up to management to surgically remove the cancer begore it spreads through the rest of the staff. If that happens, rest assured demands of the staff will increase and productivity will plummet.
In the same way that it is your responsibility to stay physically healthy to be able to fulfill your responsibilities, you are just as responsible for keeping mentally healthy and steering clear of the cynics and those with a seriously negative attitude.
The more time you spend around the complainers, the more you will desensitize to their points of view. Your defenses begin to drop in the same way unhealthy eating and lifestyle choices make you more succeptible to colds and flus. Cynicism, suspicion and negativity are as contagious as flu bugs. Just like you can build up defenses to germs, you can build an immunity to cynicism and negativity.
You see, if you only subscribe to a cynical point of view, you will become cynical. If, however, you constantly put yourself on a diet of self-improvement, you will constantly improve and so will your thoughts, your decisions and naturally, your results.
The better you get, the more you begin to see how petty, meaningless and sad a cynic's life really is and how dangerous that attitude is to others. You owe it to yourself to defend yourself from these cancers. Do whatever it takes to make sure cynicism, suspicion and negativity never invade your workplace.
If, however, you are the cynic, prepare yourself. The sooner you're fired, the better it is for company productivity, customer service and for you to finally get the message that we don't want your kind where we work.
Bottom-line: it is your responsibility to not become jaded nor take on the cynicism of others.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Read/Comment on Kevin's Blog http://www.kevburns.com/blog.html
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Change Your Mind
Brian approached me after my presentation today. He gently pulled me aside as it looked like he had something important to say.
"I was a police officer for twenty-five years," he began. "Your story about the September 11 Firefighter made me think about something I want to share with you. Maybe you could use it in your presentation."
He paused for a moment.
"Isn't it funny that before September eleventh, police officers were called pigs, and after September eleventh they were heroes?
What an interesting observation. Have you changed your mind about how you percieve those people who choose to make their livings keeping the rest of us safe?
Thanks Brian. It's about time we finally recognized every profession for the good they do and stopped calling names. Change your mind.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
http://www.kevburns.com
1-877-BURNS-11
Would You Tell The Truth?
I checked into another hotel today. It's something I've done hundreds of times. How many times have I filled in my address, my car make, model and licence plate number?
Chelsey handed me my room key and said, "You can park in front of the hotel and if I were you I'd take that elevator over there to get to your room," as she pointed past the first elevator.
Something seemed strange in the use of the "if I were you" part. I was curious.
"If I were you? What does that mean?" I questioned laughing.
She started giggling. "Well you can take the other elevator but honestly, it's pretty slow and smells funny. But it's up to you."
I don't think I have ever been warned about a hotel elevator while checking into a hotel. This was a new experience and it was nice to be served by someone who cares about the comfort of guests.
Would you offer your customers the truth about your company even if you had to admit your product smelled funny?
Honestly? It's kind of refreshing to be served that way. Think about it.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
Chelsey handed me my room key and said, "You can park in front of the hotel and if I were you I'd take that elevator over there to get to your room," as she pointed past the first elevator.
Something seemed strange in the use of the "if I were you" part. I was curious.
"If I were you? What does that mean?" I questioned laughing.
She started giggling. "Well you can take the other elevator but honestly, it's pretty slow and smells funny. But it's up to you."
I don't think I have ever been warned about a hotel elevator while checking into a hotel. This was a new experience and it was nice to be served by someone who cares about the comfort of guests.
Would you offer your customers the truth about your company even if you had to admit your product smelled funny?
Honestly? It's kind of refreshing to be served that way. Think about it.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
You're Being Watched
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a column on people who drive company vehicles with advertising splashed all over the vehicle. Some of these people drive like idiots and can ruin a lifetime of goodwill that a company may have established with their customers. I encouraged you to pick up the phone and tell these businesses how their people are doing when it comes to representing their employers. Well wouldn't you know it, this past week, I had to make one of those phone calls.
As I attempted to merge onto a four-lane highway, a large semi-truck pulling two trailers behind it was coming up the left lane. He saw me for a long while as I attempted to ramp up to speed and be able to merge into traffic seamlessly. There was no traffic in the right lane beside the trucker yet he refused to pull over to the left lane - which would have been the courteous thing to do. Instead, he increased his speed to allow himself to cut me off from merging onto the highway and had I not had my wits about me, I would have ended up tangled in the guard rail. Only after forcing me to a near full-stop, did he move over to the left lane.
As I followed a fair distance behind this trucker for several miles, he did not move out of the left lane. As a matter of fact he forced all vehicles behind him to move over to the right lane to pass him. In my mind, his actions were not acceptable.
As I drove past his truck in the right lane, I took note of the name of the trucking company, as well as a phone number, and placed a call to the number on the side of the truck. A woman answered and after I related my story of what just happened, as well as the driver not giving up the left lane, she asked me to hold for a moment. When she came back, she informed me that the actions of the driver were unacceptable. She had informed the driver's dispatcher who was, as we spoke, giving him "what for" on the phone. Just then I looked into my rear view mirror and watched the truck move out of the left lane and into the right lane and severely reduced his speed. Busted - eight hundred kilometers from home.
I believe that no one should even hesitate to correct the actions of idiots especially when personal safety is challenged. You owe it to yourself to be mindful of others. Keep your eyes open and report those things that you know are wrong. People who choose to act like idiots shall be treated in kind.
And also keep in mind that while you're out there driving yourself, remember, you are being watched too.
As I attempted to merge onto a four-lane highway, a large semi-truck pulling two trailers behind it was coming up the left lane. He saw me for a long while as I attempted to ramp up to speed and be able to merge into traffic seamlessly. There was no traffic in the right lane beside the trucker yet he refused to pull over to the left lane - which would have been the courteous thing to do. Instead, he increased his speed to allow himself to cut me off from merging onto the highway and had I not had my wits about me, I would have ended up tangled in the guard rail. Only after forcing me to a near full-stop, did he move over to the left lane.
As I followed a fair distance behind this trucker for several miles, he did not move out of the left lane. As a matter of fact he forced all vehicles behind him to move over to the right lane to pass him. In my mind, his actions were not acceptable.
As I drove past his truck in the right lane, I took note of the name of the trucking company, as well as a phone number, and placed a call to the number on the side of the truck. A woman answered and after I related my story of what just happened, as well as the driver not giving up the left lane, she asked me to hold for a moment. When she came back, she informed me that the actions of the driver were unacceptable. She had informed the driver's dispatcher who was, as we spoke, giving him "what for" on the phone. Just then I looked into my rear view mirror and watched the truck move out of the left lane and into the right lane and severely reduced his speed. Busted - eight hundred kilometers from home.
I believe that no one should even hesitate to correct the actions of idiots especially when personal safety is challenged. You owe it to yourself to be mindful of others. Keep your eyes open and report those things that you know are wrong. People who choose to act like idiots shall be treated in kind.
And also keep in mind that while you're out there driving yourself, remember, you are being watched too.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Employee Tip #4 - Job Satisfaction Isn't The Company's Job
The job will only be as good as the person doing the job. With that said, for there to be a marked improvement in the satisfaction of the job, the person doing the job has to show a marked improvement first.
At some point, you had better come to the realization that the job doesn't get any better, if you don't get any better. Your sales will get better when your sales skills get better. Customer service will get better when you get better at delivering customer service. Your results on the job will get better as you get better.
Every single person in every single job needs to understand that it is not up to the employer to make you better as an employee. Oh no. As a matter of fact, it is your responsibility to improve so that the company can improve. Once the company improves, they are in a better position to pay you more and to reward you more often. But if you’re waiting for the company to fall all over themselves to make you better so you can do a better job for the company, then you have your priorities backwards my friend. You will be sentenced to a lifetime of mediocre and unsatisfying jobs. The performance of an individual on the job is not the responsibility of the organization but in fact is the responsibility of the individual on the job.
The better you get, the better the job gets. It's such a simple philosophy that it escapes most people. You may want to believe that it's harder than that because as long as you believe that it’s harder than that, you have an excuse for not doing any more than you have to. Once you finally understand that it’s up to you to make your job better then you can't complain about it not being your responsibility. It's called being accountable. And my experience is that people just like you don't want to accept the blame (or the responsibility) for their own lousy performance.
But now here’s the real truth: better people offer better service, make better sales, get along better, communicate better, manage better and overall, make your organization better as a whole. But in order for that to happen, you have to be responsible for yourself, your work and the results of your work.
The moment you improve, life (including the job) improves.
When you improve yourself, you improve your thinking, which improves your decision-making, which will improve your choices, which will, by default, improve your results. Once you improve your results consistently you improve your circumstances. Anyone who works this plan at just fifteen minutes a day, one single coffee-break, sees outstanding results at the end of just one year. I guarantee it.
So this doing just enough to not get fired is a no-win plan. As a matter of fact, doing just enough to not get fired is enough in my books to justify getting fired. If you won’t take the initiative to improve yourself and your performance, then why should the company keep you around? You’re a boat-anchor. Think about that as you dust off your résumé.
Boss Tip #10 - Stop Training The Old Way
There's a new breed of worker upon us these days. Colleges and Universities have emptied out for the summer, many of these students have graduated and are about to begin banging on your door looking for work. But there are some things you need to know before you hire them and train them.
The way the new breed of today's workers operate is completely different than from a generation ago. The new generation entering the workforce do not have the same values as the baby-boomer's leaving the workforce. They don't have the same values, appreciation, loyalty, social skills or even work ethic as those who are close to retirement today. So why then, are you using the same training techniques you used years ago?
What worked for the last generation is lost on today's generation. If the new workers aren't even on the same page as the old workers, forget about training them the same way. They don't respond to the same stimuli, the same perks, dress-code or even calling people by Mr. or Mrs. They don't know (or even care about) your last name unless it's written on your office door. They know you by your first name and will call you that. Even Grade 1 students call their friends' parents by their first names. Visit a schoolyard and see what I mean.
Whining about today's generation doesn't fix the difference in the generations. It just makes you look old to the new generation of workers. Training them the same way you trained "lifers" who are retiring now is a complete and utter waste of your money. You don't have that kind of money to throw around.
Today's generation of workers is better-versed in soft-skills training. This is the group of workers whose parents had "Oprah" on in the afternoon and chatted about it over supper. This is the generation of worker who has never seen, let alone can comprehend, corporal punishment in the school system nor will they respond well to threats. This is the same generation who got moved ahead in school for fear that a failing grade might affect their self-esteem. It is a new generation of worker out there. And employers and bosses who want to get the best of the best of this generation better understand what and how they think.
Piercings, tattoos, earings and shaved heads used to be thought of for bikers. But have a look at the colleges and universities these days. This is the new "norm." Today's worker has fewer social skills face-to-face and a greater propensity for using computers, text messaging, cell phones and working alone. Don't even think of trying to appeal to these people with the age-old technical training programs of the past.
The new worker is "self-centered." That is not a bad thing unless you want to count them as nothing more than a number. But if you want the new worker to get you results, you had better be prepared to train them in the soft skills first and let them bring the newly-acquired soft skills across to the technical aspects of work.
For their whole lives, they've been getting things done alone - or at least it seems that way. They know how to use technology at mind-dizzying speeds. This is the video-game playing, MTV-watching, text-messaging, You-Tubing, MSN'ing and skater generation. They bring something to the table you've probably never seen before. Their values are different but their ability is not. They just may do the job differently. Don't try to train them the same way as you've done in past and don't try to make them fit into a tidy little package. They don't work that way.
Respect their talents - because you probably don't have them.
The way the new breed of today's workers operate is completely different than from a generation ago. The new generation entering the workforce do not have the same values as the baby-boomer's leaving the workforce. They don't have the same values, appreciation, loyalty, social skills or even work ethic as those who are close to retirement today. So why then, are you using the same training techniques you used years ago?
What worked for the last generation is lost on today's generation. If the new workers aren't even on the same page as the old workers, forget about training them the same way. They don't respond to the same stimuli, the same perks, dress-code or even calling people by Mr. or Mrs. They don't know (or even care about) your last name unless it's written on your office door. They know you by your first name and will call you that. Even Grade 1 students call their friends' parents by their first names. Visit a schoolyard and see what I mean.
Whining about today's generation doesn't fix the difference in the generations. It just makes you look old to the new generation of workers. Training them the same way you trained "lifers" who are retiring now is a complete and utter waste of your money. You don't have that kind of money to throw around.
Today's generation of workers is better-versed in soft-skills training. This is the group of workers whose parents had "Oprah" on in the afternoon and chatted about it over supper. This is the generation of worker who has never seen, let alone can comprehend, corporal punishment in the school system nor will they respond well to threats. This is the same generation who got moved ahead in school for fear that a failing grade might affect their self-esteem. It is a new generation of worker out there. And employers and bosses who want to get the best of the best of this generation better understand what and how they think.
Piercings, tattoos, earings and shaved heads used to be thought of for bikers. But have a look at the colleges and universities these days. This is the new "norm." Today's worker has fewer social skills face-to-face and a greater propensity for using computers, text messaging, cell phones and working alone. Don't even think of trying to appeal to these people with the age-old technical training programs of the past.
The new worker is "self-centered." That is not a bad thing unless you want to count them as nothing more than a number. But if you want the new worker to get you results, you had better be prepared to train them in the soft skills first and let them bring the newly-acquired soft skills across to the technical aspects of work.
For their whole lives, they've been getting things done alone - or at least it seems that way. They know how to use technology at mind-dizzying speeds. This is the video-game playing, MTV-watching, text-messaging, You-Tubing, MSN'ing and skater generation. They bring something to the table you've probably never seen before. Their values are different but their ability is not. They just may do the job differently. Don't try to train them the same way as you've done in past and don't try to make them fit into a tidy little package. They don't work that way.
Respect their talents - because you probably don't have them.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Employee Tip #3 - You'd Better Own The Corporate Values
"How's my driving?"
How many times have you seen a bumper sticker or small sign reading that on the back of a vehicle? You read it but do you ever make a note of the phone number that follows it? I do. And I use those numbers. I tell companies how their drivers are doing - unfortunately most times they're not doing so well.
There are just too many of you in the workforce right now with an "I could care less" attitude. Maybe it's because for your whole life, everything has just been handed to you or you hand it to your kids and expect it should also be handed to you. You think that the company owes you a car, or they owe you for you doing your job or you're entitled to bonuses because you're "special." (Maybe "special" in an Olympic sort of way).
I watch you taking advantage of your employer every day. You sit behind the wheel of a vehicle the company has provided you, you place your materials (brief case, brochures, tools, whatever you got as part of the job) on the seat beside you or on the floor, check the gas gauge of the vehicle to make sure you don't need more (which the company either pays for or reimburses you) then you put the vehicle in "Drive" and drive like an idiot - with the company logo all over everything around you. What's wrong with you? Millions of dollars spent advertising to customers that the company cares about them, and one time being an idiot behind the wheel, one time flipping the bird in traffic, one time making a flippant comment to a customer can undo millions of dollars in advertising and the years of honest and genuine effort from your co-workers.
I sure see more of an "entitlement" mentality today don't you? People think they deserve cars, and to have their expenses paid, and to be catered to and to have everything just handed to them. And when the company hands it all to them to make the job easier for them, they act like a jerk and a prima-donna as though there isn't supposed to be any "work" in going to work. Honestly, most small companies just try to make enough of a buck so they can keep their people around with a job everyday. And then those same people, some of you, go and treat your employers with disrespect because you figure you're owed what you're given. Just because the company gave you something once doesn't mean that they're required to keep giving it to you. Just because someone does something nice for you once doesn't mean you're entitled to have it that way all the time.
Corporations can have values and many do. Most of those values revolve around providing an excellent product at a fair price to solve a problem consumers have and make a profit at the same time. But then there are the jerks that think they are entitled to their jobs and everything that comes with it. It's no longer a privilege to have the job but a right. It's no longer a privilege to serve a customer but instead a customer's privilege to be served by you. It's no longer a privilege to be paid exceptionally well for your work but an expectation. If that's you in any way, then listen up: when the attitude of entitlement runs through the heart of an employee, it's time someone gets a "Gratitude Adjustment."
Gratitude should be not just a personal value, but a corporate value as well. You'd better own that value.
How many times have you seen a bumper sticker or small sign reading that on the back of a vehicle? You read it but do you ever make a note of the phone number that follows it? I do. And I use those numbers. I tell companies how their drivers are doing - unfortunately most times they're not doing so well.
There are just too many of you in the workforce right now with an "I could care less" attitude. Maybe it's because for your whole life, everything has just been handed to you or you hand it to your kids and expect it should also be handed to you. You think that the company owes you a car, or they owe you for you doing your job or you're entitled to bonuses because you're "special." (Maybe "special" in an Olympic sort of way).
I watch you taking advantage of your employer every day. You sit behind the wheel of a vehicle the company has provided you, you place your materials (brief case, brochures, tools, whatever you got as part of the job) on the seat beside you or on the floor, check the gas gauge of the vehicle to make sure you don't need more (which the company either pays for or reimburses you) then you put the vehicle in "Drive" and drive like an idiot - with the company logo all over everything around you. What's wrong with you? Millions of dollars spent advertising to customers that the company cares about them, and one time being an idiot behind the wheel, one time flipping the bird in traffic, one time making a flippant comment to a customer can undo millions of dollars in advertising and the years of honest and genuine effort from your co-workers.
I sure see more of an "entitlement" mentality today don't you? People think they deserve cars, and to have their expenses paid, and to be catered to and to have everything just handed to them. And when the company hands it all to them to make the job easier for them, they act like a jerk and a prima-donna as though there isn't supposed to be any "work" in going to work. Honestly, most small companies just try to make enough of a buck so they can keep their people around with a job everyday. And then those same people, some of you, go and treat your employers with disrespect because you figure you're owed what you're given. Just because the company gave you something once doesn't mean that they're required to keep giving it to you. Just because someone does something nice for you once doesn't mean you're entitled to have it that way all the time.
Corporations can have values and many do. Most of those values revolve around providing an excellent product at a fair price to solve a problem consumers have and make a profit at the same time. But then there are the jerks that think they are entitled to their jobs and everything that comes with it. It's no longer a privilege to have the job but a right. It's no longer a privilege to serve a customer but instead a customer's privilege to be served by you. It's no longer a privilege to be paid exceptionally well for your work but an expectation. If that's you in any way, then listen up: when the attitude of entitlement runs through the heart of an employee, it's time someone gets a "Gratitude Adjustment."
Gratitude should be not just a personal value, but a corporate value as well. You'd better own that value.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Disney Recycles Part 2
So I spoke with Dave today. Dave is the General Manager of the resort hotel I stayed at in Disneyworld last week. It only took me being on "hold" four times to reach the guy at the very top.
"How can I help you today?" He asked cheerily.
"I stayed at your hotel last week for a whole week. It was my first trip to Disney ever," I started.
"Really! Your first trip? How did we do?" He asked right away.
"Actually, pretty good. As a matter of fact, last Wednesday, we spent the day at Epcot and caught a rather interesting film: The Circle Of Life Eco-film."
"Yes I know the one you mean," he added.
"Well, after the film I noticed all of the recycling bins for bottles and cans at the theme parks, but none at the Disney Resort Hotel. Why is that?" I asked.
"Ahh, well we used to recycle here but it didn't work out real well. People would shove half-eaten burgers, popsicles and even used diapers through the holes meant for bottles and cans, which meant that our staff would have to go through all of the "stuff" to get the recyclables. That was one very messy job and incredibly time-consuming. So we chose to end it."
"So what about small blue or green box bins in the rooms?" I asked. "After all, you deliver USA Today to every room every day. That's a lot of newspapers not being recycled. Bottles, cans and newspapers could go into the bins in the rooms. People like me would bring our recyclables back to the room to be recycled if there weren't bins by the pool for example."
All was quiet for a moment.
Dave spoke again. "You mean put a little plastic tub like those tubs for recycling office paper in offices?"
"Something is better than nothing," I added.
Dave paused, then said, "That's a simple idea that could work. And you're right. We deliver a lot of newspapers everyday."
Before we hung up the phone, Dave committed to making this idea a priority. He took my phone number and vowed to touch base with me in a few days to keep me updated.
Hmm, pretty easy to make a difference when you speak up isn't it?
More as it becomes available.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Friday, May 04, 2007
Not Global Warming - But Still Important
I watched an environmental film this week. It's hard to swing a plastic grocery bag full of used plastic grocery bags these days without hitting onto another film about the environment. But here I was, captured in an audience while a short film played about the hazards of not conserving, the dangers of polluting and the costs of not recycling.
Here's the rub though: the film was made by Disney. Usually that's not a problem. However, after leaving the Disney theme park and returning to the Disney Resort where we were staying, we found absolutely no recycling at the hotel. There was no blue box in the room for newspapers, no plastic/can recycling bins on the grounds and when I asked where I should put the plastic bottle that I was charged a five cent recycling fee, a staffer said, "put it in the garbage."
"You guys don't recycle?" I asked incredulously.
She simply shrugged her shoulders and walked away.
Sorry Disney, but you can't preach to save the planet and then do the opposite. I'll admit that being environmentally conscious is pretty trendy right now. But being "trendy" is not leadership. Leadership is about actions matching words.
I refused to put plastic bottles and aluminum cans in the trash. Instead, I placed them beside trash cans where recycling bins would normally be found. Sorry but it's just not in me to throw recyclables in the trash. I'm not physically (OK maybe mentally) capable of throwing recyclables away.
After I made my protest statement of not using the trash can (it was probably nothing more than a mere annoyance to a staffer to pick up a recyclable and toss it out), I told you and hopefully, together, we can express our desire to make the big players do something so effortless and make their actions match their words.
I will send an email to Disney to express my concerns as soon as I'm back in the office. Feel free to check out your own company's environmental policy and suggest a correction if it falls a little short.
P
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
Here's the rub though: the film was made by Disney. Usually that's not a problem. However, after leaving the Disney theme park and returning to the Disney Resort where we were staying, we found absolutely no recycling at the hotel. There was no blue box in the room for newspapers, no plastic/can recycling bins on the grounds and when I asked where I should put the plastic bottle that I was charged a five cent recycling fee, a staffer said, "put it in the garbage."
"You guys don't recycle?" I asked incredulously.
She simply shrugged her shoulders and walked away.
Sorry Disney, but you can't preach to save the planet and then do the opposite. I'll admit that being environmentally conscious is pretty trendy right now. But being "trendy" is not leadership. Leadership is about actions matching words.
I refused to put plastic bottles and aluminum cans in the trash. Instead, I placed them beside trash cans where recycling bins would normally be found. Sorry but it's just not in me to throw recyclables in the trash. I'm not physically (OK maybe mentally) capable of throwing recyclables away.
After I made my protest statement of not using the trash can (it was probably nothing more than a mere annoyance to a staffer to pick up a recyclable and toss it out), I told you and hopefully, together, we can express our desire to make the big players do something so effortless and make their actions match their words.
I will send an email to Disney to express my concerns as soon as I'm back in the office. Feel free to check out your own company's environmental policy and suggest a correction if it falls a little short.
P
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Your History Is Up To You
"I am not a crook."
Those are the words made famous by former US President Richard Nixon after being suspected of being involved in the Watergate scandal in United States history. I am told that he made that speech on stage at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
I stood upon that same stage this week addressing a group of association Chapter volunteers. These folks assembled from many different parts of the world in an effort to better thremselves in their volunteer work with their home Chapter organizations.
Now although my words weren't used to claim innocence of a wrongdoing, I did encourage the attendees to continue to better their respective communities through their volunteer work as well as making an commitment to themselves through on-going personal development.
This got me to thinking.
If these people can travel from the four corners of the world in an effort to better themselves personally and professionally, how hard could it possibly be for the rest of us to pick up a book or listen to a learning CD once in a while?
You decide what your history will be by what you do today. Let me know if I'm going too fast here.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
Those are the words made famous by former US President Richard Nixon after being suspected of being involved in the Watergate scandal in United States history. I am told that he made that speech on stage at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
I stood upon that same stage this week addressing a group of association Chapter volunteers. These folks assembled from many different parts of the world in an effort to better thremselves in their volunteer work with their home Chapter organizations.
Now although my words weren't used to claim innocence of a wrongdoing, I did encourage the attendees to continue to better their respective communities through their volunteer work as well as making an commitment to themselves through on-going personal development.
This got me to thinking.
If these people can travel from the four corners of the world in an effort to better themselves personally and professionally, how hard could it possibly be for the rest of us to pick up a book or listen to a learning CD once in a while?
You decide what your history will be by what you do today. Let me know if I'm going too fast here.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Friday, April 27, 2007
Need A Taxi?
I don't know about you, but with as many cities as I travel to in a year, inevitably, I will need a taxi to get to the airport, to rush around in the city on some sort of an errand or perhaps a late-night hunt for a Tim Horton's steeped tea. Well, if you've ever needed a taxi when you're in a strange city, WestJet's "Up!" Magazine features an article this month on one number to remember to get a taxi in any city: 310-TAXI.
That's the number to remember for a taxi anywhere in Canada - oh, except Manitoba where you need to call 1-800-310-TAXI.
I haven't had the opportunity to call the number yet, as I am in the USA as I write this. But as soon as I get home, I'm game for giving it a try.
Taxi!!!
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
http://www.kevburns.com
1-877-BURNS-11
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Boss Tip #9 - Recognize Your Stars
It's the easiest job in the world to dump all over your people or simply ignore effort out of the ordinary. Anyone can find the negative. You don't need to be in charge to do that. Want proof? Listen in to what your people are saying about you. See. It's easy to be negative.
The trick is in looking through all of the expectations, all of the process and all of the mundane, ordinary effort to find the gems. Look to see someone who has outperformed his or her co-workers. It's easy to find it. All you have to do is stick your head out of your office on occassion. You just have to go looking for it. The difficulty will always be in summoning up the honesty to say something out loud when you do see it.
I addressed a group of supervisory personel this week. These guys, all guys, have an easy time pointing out the mistakes of others. As I said, anyone can do that. It requires zero skill. I helped them see the real responsibility of their positions: recognizing and encouraging outstanding behaviours and results. I want to now recognize these fellows, they see their responsibility now. Good job to all of you.
If as a boss, you have a difficult time recognizing the positive contributions of your people, let me explain it another way.
Your job, as boss, is that of a team sports coach. (Pick your favourite team sport and substitute with my hockey analogy). At the end of each and every game, there is an announcement of the Three Stars of the game. Even though it is a team sport, and there is a winning team and a losing team, the outstanding contributions of a few individuals are recognized and publicly announced.
It is that simple. Every day on the job is game day. Every day there is a star player. Recognize your stars publicly and in front of the rest of your team. Do it publicly and do it often. Just make sure you look around for the contributions of all of the team. Don't play favourites. That will backfire.
Gretzky wasn't always chosen as a game star. Sometimes the rookies made it to star status. Recognize the efforts of all of your players and watch their contributions change.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Employee Tip #2 - Simple Responsibilities
The way I see it, there only two responsibilities that employees have and everything else is simply an offshoot of either of these responsibilities.
The first responsibility for any employee is to honor your agreements, especially the big one, the one that got you here. Your employer has honestly agreed to pay you for an honest day's work. So as I see it, so long as the company continues to uphold their end of the bargain (think of them giving you a paycheck) then you should be upholding your end of the deal (Hint: That would be the work part).
Stretching breaks and lunches, doing personal stuff on company time and showing up late and checking out early is not upholding your end of the deal. But the company is still expected to uphold theirs aren't they? It just doesn't seem fair that the company must keep their word but you don't have to keep yours, does it?
Perhaps things would be different if it was OK for the company to shave a few dollars here and there from your paycheck whenever they felt like they weren't getting their full value. Things would be different if they could stop paying you every time they caught you not keeping your part of the deal.
The second responsibility you have as an employee is to ensure that you rested, relaxed and ready (100%) to take on the tasks assigned to you. That means not being drunk, hungover, high or otherwise distracted. Hey, if I'm your customer, I want you to be fully present, aware and ready to keep your word let alone remember what you said you would do.
In writing here today, I realized that there is one more responsibility that needs to be mentioned. If there are people on your staff guilty of not keeping either of the first two responsibilities, then it becomes the responsibility of the rest of the staff to address the issue with the offender right away. The offender needs to know that they will not be allowed to abuse the company or impact the workload of the rest of the staff. Trust me on this, if the other staff members confronted the offender en masse, I'll bet it never happens again. If it does, plan to visit the boss and have him surgically remove the cancer from the job.
If someone has already had this discussion with you and you still want to take issue with any or all of these responsibilities, well then you've got a big problem. Good luck with that.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
1-877-BURNS-11
Friday, April 06, 2007
Oh And One More Thing
Meghan, my VP Everything, also figures that I need to come into the new techbology easier and with a little less kicking and screaming. So she convinced me to go Blackberry.
This column is written and uploaded on the new technology. I guess there's no reason to not keep in touch anymore is there?
I'm sure I'll get better at it soon.
Kevin Burns - The Chief Instigation Officer of Laugh-Long Learning!
http://www.kevburns.com
1-877-BURNS-11
All The New Changes 'Round Here ...
I know I've been out of touch for some time, about a month actually. Well, lots has been happening 'round here and I wanted to keep you up to date on what has been going on.
After much deliberation and a lot of soul-searching, we've moved our operation and offices to Calgary over the past few weeks. To say it's been hectic would be an understatement. I've been commuting to Calgary several times each week in perhaps the worst spring weather Alberta has seen in a long time, not to mention all of the increased traffic on the highways (perhaps the best economy in the world right now has packed the highways full of trucks and other drivers).
I've partnered up with two other fine gentlemen, Ken Larson and Marty Park and the three of us are all operating our speaking businesses out of the same office. I will tell you more about these other gentlemen at a later date.
Meanwhile, Meghan has jumped into the chair, grabbed the bull by the horns and has surprised everyone as to how fast she has taken over running the day-to-day operations of the business. She has a new title: VP Everything. Boy that's suitable.
For example, in addition to getting up to speed on roles and responsibilities, Meghan is heading up the "New Video" project. There will be a new video available to potential clients and on-line in very short order. (Talk to Meghan if your group wants one).
She has also taken over the "New Website" project and has taken on the responsibility of making the new website friendlier, easier to navigate, cleaner and faster loading.
She has set up a far-superior contact management system to anything I had before and is also making sure each of the guys has the proper materials to be marketed. She rides us pretty hard to keep on top of these things. That's a good thing.
In addition, Meghan and Leanne (Marty's Assistant) have been doing their own training in setting up new process within the office, in addition to answering phone calls, co-ordinating the schedules of three speakers and finding time to run to Starbucks for a grande London Fog (Leanne) and grande Coconut Latte (Meghan).
The new contact info to reach us now is:
Kevin Burns Corporation
Suite 203 - 1414 Kensington Road NW
Calgary, Alberta Canada
T2N 3P9
Toll-free 1-877-BURNS-11 (1-877-287-6711)
Local in Calgary 403-283-8357
Local in San Antonio Texas 210-787-1047
Meghan has managed to pull so much stuff off of my desk, that in past was cluttering my desk, that I now have more time to do what I need to do: namely write more books and another speech. Stay tuned. They are in progress right now.
Oh, and one final note. About 5 and a half years ago, Meghan approached me telling me that she wanted to run my business one day - she was simply planting the seed. Well, five and a half years later, she is running the show for not just me but for two other speakers as well. She has been around the speaking business her whole teenage and adult life. She knows it as well as I do and perhaps better than some who are in it. Meghan is my daughter. And today her Dad is very proud.
After much deliberation and a lot of soul-searching, we've moved our operation and offices to Calgary over the past few weeks. To say it's been hectic would be an understatement. I've been commuting to Calgary several times each week in perhaps the worst spring weather Alberta has seen in a long time, not to mention all of the increased traffic on the highways (perhaps the best economy in the world right now has packed the highways full of trucks and other drivers).
I've partnered up with two other fine gentlemen, Ken Larson and Marty Park and the three of us are all operating our speaking businesses out of the same office. I will tell you more about these other gentlemen at a later date.
Meanwhile, Meghan has jumped into the chair, grabbed the bull by the horns and has surprised everyone as to how fast she has taken over running the day-to-day operations of the business. She has a new title: VP Everything. Boy that's suitable.
For example, in addition to getting up to speed on roles and responsibilities, Meghan is heading up the "New Video" project. There will be a new video available to potential clients and on-line in very short order. (Talk to Meghan if your group wants one).
She has also taken over the "New Website" project and has taken on the responsibility of making the new website friendlier, easier to navigate, cleaner and faster loading.
She has set up a far-superior contact management system to anything I had before and is also making sure each of the guys has the proper materials to be marketed. She rides us pretty hard to keep on top of these things. That's a good thing.
In addition, Meghan and Leanne (Marty's Assistant) have been doing their own training in setting up new process within the office, in addition to answering phone calls, co-ordinating the schedules of three speakers and finding time to run to Starbucks for a grande London Fog (Leanne) and grande Coconut Latte (Meghan).
The new contact info to reach us now is:
Kevin Burns Corporation
Suite 203 - 1414 Kensington Road NW
Calgary, Alberta Canada
T2N 3P9
Toll-free 1-877-BURNS-11 (1-877-287-6711)
Local in Calgary 403-283-8357
Local in San Antonio Texas 210-787-1047
Meghan has managed to pull so much stuff off of my desk, that in past was cluttering my desk, that I now have more time to do what I need to do: namely write more books and another speech. Stay tuned. They are in progress right now.
Oh, and one final note. About 5 and a half years ago, Meghan approached me telling me that she wanted to run my business one day - she was simply planting the seed. Well, five and a half years later, she is running the show for not just me but for two other speakers as well. She has been around the speaking business her whole teenage and adult life. She knows it as well as I do and perhaps better than some who are in it. Meghan is my daughter. And today her Dad is very proud.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Tips For Employees #1 - If Your Job Sucks
Back in 1902, James Allen published a book titled, “As A Man Thinketh.” In that little book of about 70 pages, Allen’s simple philosophy was that whatever we think about is exactly what we create. It has been a philosophy that has proven itself over and over again since 1902. That simple little book, along with other classics like Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (1937), helped build the self-help industry that inundates us today.
But Allen, Hill and a host of others had it right: whatever you think about you bring about. If your perception about others in your office is negative, you will find that your experiences with them are negative in nature. If you think your boss is a graduate of the Jerk-Boss School (I’m actually pretty sure that I once had a boss who actually displayed his Jerk-Boss School diploma on the wall), then your boss will end up being a jerk. You will hate your job because your boss is a jerk and most of the people you work with are jerks, and your customers are jerks and guess what? You hate your job. You’re getting just what you expect.
Barbara is not a happy woman. In her mind, the only way for her to find happiness at work is once she finds a new job. Now let me describe Barbara to you: she doesn’t smile, she closes her mind to any possibility of someone actually changing her mind about her work, she sits with legs crossed and arms folded protecting herself and no matter how much you may point out to her that she is resisting every opportunity to examine her own participation in her level of expectations, she will not change her mind. She will only be happy once she finds a new job.
There’s no sense helping her to see that the one common denominator of every bad job she’s ever had is actually her. She refuses to see it. “Don’t confuse me with facts, I’ve got my mind made up,” I can almost hear her saying to herself.
So it’s really no surprise that she hates her job. She hates the people she works with. She hates her boss. She hates her hours. She hates getting to work and having to put up with traffic. And I can only imagine how much the rest of the staff hate having her work there.
Is her solution to this predicament to find out why she hates her work? Will she work on finding out why her outlook on her job sucks? Will she even recognize that her attitude towards her work is brutal? No she will not. She will say she will finally be happy when she finds another job.
God help the poor soul who hires her because I will guarantee that at first it may be better for her, but over time her new job will be to blame for every bad thing in her life.
“But Kevin, you don’t understand,” I can hear some of you whining. You’re right. I don’t understand. I don’t want to understand. It’s not my problem it’s yours. I don’t burden you with my problems and it’s likely your co-workers don’t burden you with theirs. Get over yourself.
You choose to go to work each day. No one forces you (it IS a choice you make everyday – stop whining that you need the money to pay bills) to show up everyday. You can stop going any day you want. Stop making life so crappy for the others in your office. You’re making it tough for the rest of us.
As you think, so it is. If your job sucks, well maybe it’s not the job that sucks.
But Allen, Hill and a host of others had it right: whatever you think about you bring about. If your perception about others in your office is negative, you will find that your experiences with them are negative in nature. If you think your boss is a graduate of the Jerk-Boss School (I’m actually pretty sure that I once had a boss who actually displayed his Jerk-Boss School diploma on the wall), then your boss will end up being a jerk. You will hate your job because your boss is a jerk and most of the people you work with are jerks, and your customers are jerks and guess what? You hate your job. You’re getting just what you expect.
Barbara is not a happy woman. In her mind, the only way for her to find happiness at work is once she finds a new job. Now let me describe Barbara to you: she doesn’t smile, she closes her mind to any possibility of someone actually changing her mind about her work, she sits with legs crossed and arms folded protecting herself and no matter how much you may point out to her that she is resisting every opportunity to examine her own participation in her level of expectations, she will not change her mind. She will only be happy once she finds a new job.
There’s no sense helping her to see that the one common denominator of every bad job she’s ever had is actually her. She refuses to see it. “Don’t confuse me with facts, I’ve got my mind made up,” I can almost hear her saying to herself.
So it’s really no surprise that she hates her job. She hates the people she works with. She hates her boss. She hates her hours. She hates getting to work and having to put up with traffic. And I can only imagine how much the rest of the staff hate having her work there.
Is her solution to this predicament to find out why she hates her work? Will she work on finding out why her outlook on her job sucks? Will she even recognize that her attitude towards her work is brutal? No she will not. She will say she will finally be happy when she finds another job.
God help the poor soul who hires her because I will guarantee that at first it may be better for her, but over time her new job will be to blame for every bad thing in her life.
“But Kevin, you don’t understand,” I can hear some of you whining. You’re right. I don’t understand. I don’t want to understand. It’s not my problem it’s yours. I don’t burden you with my problems and it’s likely your co-workers don’t burden you with theirs. Get over yourself.
You choose to go to work each day. No one forces you (it IS a choice you make everyday – stop whining that you need the money to pay bills) to show up everyday. You can stop going any day you want. Stop making life so crappy for the others in your office. You’re making it tough for the rest of us.
As you think, so it is. If your job sucks, well maybe it’s not the job that sucks.
Monday, February 19, 2007
New Columns Coming
OK. So last week, on a phone call with a friend who shall remain Bev, it was explained to me that there was a need for not just Tips for Bosses which I have been writing lately, but Bev also explained about the need for Tips for Employees.
“But that’s just a given,” I pleaded. “People should already know what’s expected of them as employees.”
Apparently not. Bev explained a couple of things to me and now I see the need for Tips for Employees. So here it is. It’s the first in a series of Employee Tips to make life on the job a little better and a little smoother. We will take a break from Tips for Bosses this week and focus on the employees instead.
Looks like I have a juggling act ahead of me. I will see how easy it is to juggle back and forth between stuff for bosses (which should be required reading for employees to set a standard within their job for others, including their bosses, to rise to) and stuff for employees (which should be required reading for bosses as they too are employees of the company and set the standard for conduct).
Stay tuned. New columns are coming.
“But that’s just a given,” I pleaded. “People should already know what’s expected of them as employees.”
Apparently not. Bev explained a couple of things to me and now I see the need for Tips for Employees. So here it is. It’s the first in a series of Employee Tips to make life on the job a little better and a little smoother. We will take a break from Tips for Bosses this week and focus on the employees instead.
Looks like I have a juggling act ahead of me. I will see how easy it is to juggle back and forth between stuff for bosses (which should be required reading for employees to set a standard within their job for others, including their bosses, to rise to) and stuff for employees (which should be required reading for bosses as they too are employees of the company and set the standard for conduct).
Stay tuned. New columns are coming.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Standing In Line
About 30 days ago, the US Government made it mandatory that anyone traveling to the USA would require a passport to gain admittance. Now, I don't begrudge the Americans for this new law, after all, every other country in the world requires a passport to gain entry into the USA. What my problem is, is the timing of it.
Now I know that we were given fair warning (over a full year as I recall), but that hasn't helped those who still leave it to the last minute. OK I'm one of them too. My old passport expired and frankly I just never got around to getting a new one. But I did get to experience one thing that I'm sure no one expected: lining up for hours in the outdoor elements waiting for entry into the passport office. Three times I lined up in the past three weeks, first alone then twice with Michelle as we needed some extra documentation for our paperwork on the second visit.
Longest time in line was 2 hours 45 minutes just to gain entry to the inside of the office and another 45 minutes inside before the application was processed. I can tell you this, lining up in July would have been far better than lining up in February.
But I left it to the last minute and this is my result. I just wish more people had it together so I didn't have to (that's a joke ... I get the "accountability" thing).
However, I made some friends in line, heard some great stories and found out where everyone else seems to be traveling to.
As only Canadians can do, we accept things without much fuss and make no excuses for leaving things to the last minute. But try to butt in line after waiting for almost three hours and somebody could get hurt. Don't push a Canadian waiting in the cold. We're polite but to a point.
Now I know that we were given fair warning (over a full year as I recall), but that hasn't helped those who still leave it to the last minute. OK I'm one of them too. My old passport expired and frankly I just never got around to getting a new one. But I did get to experience one thing that I'm sure no one expected: lining up for hours in the outdoor elements waiting for entry into the passport office. Three times I lined up in the past three weeks, first alone then twice with Michelle as we needed some extra documentation for our paperwork on the second visit.
Longest time in line was 2 hours 45 minutes just to gain entry to the inside of the office and another 45 minutes inside before the application was processed. I can tell you this, lining up in July would have been far better than lining up in February.
But I left it to the last minute and this is my result. I just wish more people had it together so I didn't have to (that's a joke ... I get the "accountability" thing).
However, I made some friends in line, heard some great stories and found out where everyone else seems to be traveling to.
As only Canadians can do, we accept things without much fuss and make no excuses for leaving things to the last minute. But try to butt in line after waiting for almost three hours and somebody could get hurt. Don't push a Canadian waiting in the cold. We're polite but to a point.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Boss Tip #8 - The Credit Score
Is this column about financial background checks and credit scores? Well, not in the way you might think. This column is about credit scores but not about qualifying for credit as a consumer. It’s about how much credit you give as a boss.
Take a survey of your people and ask them what they want from their work and their boss and you will find this answer in the Top 5 every single time: recognition. People want to be acknowledged for the work they do – not just when they need to be raked over the coals for a screw-up.
People want to be recognized for their contribution, their diligence and the quality of their work. If the only time you talk to your people about the quality of their work is when you dump on them, well then you’re the village idiot aren’t you? Don’t believe me? Just ask your people. No better yet, secretly listen to what they’re saying about you in the coffee room.
Just because you’re the boss, don’t believe for one second that your people are doing everything in their power to make you look good. That’s just not true. People are doing a great job likely because of the personal satisfaction they get from doing a great job. If you overlook this fact, and regularly steal the credit for a job well done, you will be spending more of your time training new people to replace the people who left than you will on having the spotlight shone on you.
If you want the spotlight and the credit, then take the credit for attrition numbers being on the rise, training budgets being escalated because you have to train more new people and also poor morale.
Nothing knocks the morale out of people faster than stealing the credit from them after they poured their heart out on a project. People want a reason to take personal pride in their work and if you’re going to steal it when they do go above and beyond for you, or at the very least not acknowledge their effort, you are going to be a very lonely boss working by yourself.
If you work by yourself, well then you’re really not the boss are you? You’re just an employee who no one wants to work with. And that would be no surprise either. You brought it on yourself.
Are you giving someone credit for their work daily? I’m not referring to just a “Good job” in the hallway, but something public and heartfelt. The more you let your people know they will get the credit for a job well done, the more you will have a job well done from your people. What goes around comes around.
Publicly acknowledge and privately criticize. Make sure the rest of the staff know when someone has done a good job. Don’t play favorites and don’t blame someone else for a shortcoming in your department. More on that next time.
Take a survey of your people and ask them what they want from their work and their boss and you will find this answer in the Top 5 every single time: recognition. People want to be acknowledged for the work they do – not just when they need to be raked over the coals for a screw-up.
People want to be recognized for their contribution, their diligence and the quality of their work. If the only time you talk to your people about the quality of their work is when you dump on them, well then you’re the village idiot aren’t you? Don’t believe me? Just ask your people. No better yet, secretly listen to what they’re saying about you in the coffee room.
Just because you’re the boss, don’t believe for one second that your people are doing everything in their power to make you look good. That’s just not true. People are doing a great job likely because of the personal satisfaction they get from doing a great job. If you overlook this fact, and regularly steal the credit for a job well done, you will be spending more of your time training new people to replace the people who left than you will on having the spotlight shone on you.
If you want the spotlight and the credit, then take the credit for attrition numbers being on the rise, training budgets being escalated because you have to train more new people and also poor morale.
Nothing knocks the morale out of people faster than stealing the credit from them after they poured their heart out on a project. People want a reason to take personal pride in their work and if you’re going to steal it when they do go above and beyond for you, or at the very least not acknowledge their effort, you are going to be a very lonely boss working by yourself.
If you work by yourself, well then you’re really not the boss are you? You’re just an employee who no one wants to work with. And that would be no surprise either. You brought it on yourself.
Are you giving someone credit for their work daily? I’m not referring to just a “Good job” in the hallway, but something public and heartfelt. The more you let your people know they will get the credit for a job well done, the more you will have a job well done from your people. What goes around comes around.
Publicly acknowledge and privately criticize. Make sure the rest of the staff know when someone has done a good job. Don’t play favorites and don’t blame someone else for a shortcoming in your department. More on that next time.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Pursuit Of Excellence
About eleven years ago, at a time when I had lost my Dad and my marriage, I was searching for something. I'm not sure what it was I was searching for but I was damn sure I didn't have it.
At the time I was selling photocopiers and fax machines (because faxes were the "in" thing at the time). It was an honorable profession and one that I learned how to hone my sales skills in very quickly. Honorable profession but tough.
I had been invited to attend an introductory session of a personal development course in January that year and after the one-hour introduction, I spent eight months resisting what it might do for me. Why? Honestly, I gave a lot of reasons but the truth was I didn't have the money and was afraid to admit it. Then someone invited me barbecue. About 40 people attended and I knew probably half of them. These forty or so people were all graduates of the same course I was resisting. They seemed to have what I wanted - some kind of sense of purpose and a joy of life. Within thirty days I was in the course.
Over the next few years I took other courses in the series and even chose to be a team assistant at many of these same courses. I lost touch for a few years but never lost the tools I developed.
Last weekend, I went back to sharpen the tools I had gotten those years earlier. It's true what they say about this course - "You will learn something new every time you go back." And I did this past weekend.
I'm feeling a little more peaceful and a little less stressed today. I recognize the things that have made me successful and the little areas I need to improve on. I know I am on track with my life today and know where I am going. A lot of questions got answered in a long-weekend.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention the name of the course. It's called The Pursuit of Excellence. Curious? Click here.
At the time I was selling photocopiers and fax machines (because faxes were the "in" thing at the time). It was an honorable profession and one that I learned how to hone my sales skills in very quickly. Honorable profession but tough.
I had been invited to attend an introductory session of a personal development course in January that year and after the one-hour introduction, I spent eight months resisting what it might do for me. Why? Honestly, I gave a lot of reasons but the truth was I didn't have the money and was afraid to admit it. Then someone invited me barbecue. About 40 people attended and I knew probably half of them. These forty or so people were all graduates of the same course I was resisting. They seemed to have what I wanted - some kind of sense of purpose and a joy of life. Within thirty days I was in the course.
Over the next few years I took other courses in the series and even chose to be a team assistant at many of these same courses. I lost touch for a few years but never lost the tools I developed.
Last weekend, I went back to sharpen the tools I had gotten those years earlier. It's true what they say about this course - "You will learn something new every time you go back." And I did this past weekend.
I'm feeling a little more peaceful and a little less stressed today. I recognize the things that have made me successful and the little areas I need to improve on. I know I am on track with my life today and know where I am going. A lot of questions got answered in a long-weekend.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention the name of the course. It's called The Pursuit of Excellence. Curious? Click here.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Boss Tip #7 - Uncross Your Fingers
Dr. Phil said it best: “Don’t let your mouth write checks that your ass can’t cash.”
That’s a more straightforward way of saying if you’re going to make a promise you’d better be prepared to keep it. But the problem here is that although we all know that in a supervisory position, your word must be golden, still one in four bosses today don’t keep the promises they make.
I know you’re thinking, that isn’t possible that a quarter of all bosses openly lie to their people, but a survey from the University of Florida Business School says it’s true. One in four bosses on the job today don’t keep their promises. Jeez, there are politicians with better records than that.
Bosses, you can’t afford to tell lies, even little white lies (I’m not sure what constitutes a white lie and what constitutes a big whopper of a black lie. A lie is a lie right?) If you tell that new hire today that in three months they’ll have an increase in salary, then in three months it better be an increase and not just a review to increase. There’s a huge difference between the two. Keeping your word brings trust from the employee. Bending the truth creates mistrust and you know how volatile people can be when there’s mistrust from management on down.
Also, you get what you give. If you’ve attended any of my instigational keynote sessions, you know I present that notion. If you’re surrounded by employees who don’t keep their word, then it’s likely you don’t keep your word. You get what you give.
If your people openly lie to you, likely you openly lie to your people. You get what you give.
If your people don’t tell you the full truth, likely you don’t tell them the full truth. You get what you give.
If you ever want your people to openly accept you as their leader, then you have got to lead by example. Keep your word and they’ll keep theirs. You get what you give.
Stop standing in front of them and promising while secretly holding a hand behind your back with your fingers crossed. We’re not in Grade School anymore. We’re in the real world where bosses need to keep their promises if they ever have any chance of keeping the trust of their employees.
C’mon. Really. It’s not that hard. Stop trying so hard to be liked by your staff and instead start trying to be respected.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Automobiles, Shuttles, Planes, Buses and Ferries
The airline ticket showed me arriving in Prince Rupert, British Columbia at 7:20 pm. According to my watch and the words from the Captain of the little "Buddy Holly" aircraft we were flying, we were going to be on-time. It had already been a long travel day to get to Prince Rupert, which is only 45 kilometers away from Ketchikan, Alaska. Don't believe me? Check a map.
I was seated next to a lawyer for the two-hour flight north. Chris was not just any lawyer, but a Crown Prosecutor based out of Prince Rupert. He, if you can believe this, has the good fortune of visiting the Queen Charlotte Islands (some 120 km offshore in the Pacific Ocean) every month for a week at a time. He gets there by single-engine float plane. Life changes when you live in remote communities.
Anyway, back to my story.
Chris told me we would be landing on an island. In my mind, I pictured a cute little island and a cute little bridge that would carry us to the mainland in a few short minutes once we landed at Prince Rupert. I didn't ask anymore questions. I should have.
At 7:20 pm we landed and everyone got off the plane. Last flight of the day coming into Prince Rupert and last flight leaving. The airline has a schedule to keep so once our bags were offloaded onto baggage carts, the outbound bags were loaded onto the plane before we got ours. Not much you can do with only ONE baggage handler.
After the plane was loaded up with the outbound bags and passengers, a large steel door opened and we watched our bags come down the "baggage carousel." It wasn't a carousel. It was really a very wide stainless steel slide that looked more like a deli counter than a baggage centre.
Once I got my bag, I walked with it for about twenty feet when I handed the bag to a bus driver who loaded it on the bus (the only way in or out of the airport). We each took our seats on the bus, including airport staff (last flight of the day and everyone goes home).
We drove for about 5 minutes until we came to the ocean and a ferry awaiting our arrival. We could feel the gale-force winds coming off the ocean. Two large motor coaches were loaded on the ferry as well as a one-ton cube van. Then we settled in for the twenty-minute ferry ride to the mainland and the town of Prince Rupert. That ferry ride was a little more fun with waves smacking the sides of the ferry and splashing over top like a Hollywood movie. Once to the other side, the bus drove up the ramp and a few more miles to the center of town where we offloaded the bus. A short shuttle drive to my hotel and I looked at my watch: 9:15 pm. It took almost two hours between landing and arriving at the hotel. The distance? No more than 5 or 6 miles. Was I in Toronto?
Once the sun came up the next morning, I saw the reason for the airport on Digby Island: it's the only flat piece of land as far as the eye can see. The Prince Rupert airport was an adventure for sure. But once in Prince Rupert, I found that this is one of those places that everyone must see at least once.
When you do visit Prince Rupert, do yourself a favour and stay at the Crest Hotel - a four-star hotel overlooking the ocean from almost every room. Fabulous facility, incredible food and breathtaking views. Hotel Manager Scott Farwell and owners Steve and Tina Smith have assembled an incredible staff of people who get the big picture - it's all about the guests. (That’s why they hire speakers to come and speak to their staff and improve their guest-service experience).
You will not be disappointed. And you'll get to tell your own story about getting to and from the Prince Rupert airport. Trust me, people won't believe you.
I was seated next to a lawyer for the two-hour flight north. Chris was not just any lawyer, but a Crown Prosecutor based out of Prince Rupert. He, if you can believe this, has the good fortune of visiting the Queen Charlotte Islands (some 120 km offshore in the Pacific Ocean) every month for a week at a time. He gets there by single-engine float plane. Life changes when you live in remote communities.
Anyway, back to my story.
Chris told me we would be landing on an island. In my mind, I pictured a cute little island and a cute little bridge that would carry us to the mainland in a few short minutes once we landed at Prince Rupert. I didn't ask anymore questions. I should have.
At 7:20 pm we landed and everyone got off the plane. Last flight of the day coming into Prince Rupert and last flight leaving. The airline has a schedule to keep so once our bags were offloaded onto baggage carts, the outbound bags were loaded onto the plane before we got ours. Not much you can do with only ONE baggage handler.
After the plane was loaded up with the outbound bags and passengers, a large steel door opened and we watched our bags come down the "baggage carousel." It wasn't a carousel. It was really a very wide stainless steel slide that looked more like a deli counter than a baggage centre.
Once I got my bag, I walked with it for about twenty feet when I handed the bag to a bus driver who loaded it on the bus (the only way in or out of the airport). We each took our seats on the bus, including airport staff (last flight of the day and everyone goes home).
We drove for about 5 minutes until we came to the ocean and a ferry awaiting our arrival. We could feel the gale-force winds coming off the ocean. Two large motor coaches were loaded on the ferry as well as a one-ton cube van. Then we settled in for the twenty-minute ferry ride to the mainland and the town of Prince Rupert. That ferry ride was a little more fun with waves smacking the sides of the ferry and splashing over top like a Hollywood movie. Once to the other side, the bus drove up the ramp and a few more miles to the center of town where we offloaded the bus. A short shuttle drive to my hotel and I looked at my watch: 9:15 pm. It took almost two hours between landing and arriving at the hotel. The distance? No more than 5 or 6 miles. Was I in Toronto?
Once the sun came up the next morning, I saw the reason for the airport on Digby Island: it's the only flat piece of land as far as the eye can see. The Prince Rupert airport was an adventure for sure. But once in Prince Rupert, I found that this is one of those places that everyone must see at least once.
When you do visit Prince Rupert, do yourself a favour and stay at the Crest Hotel - a four-star hotel overlooking the ocean from almost every room. Fabulous facility, incredible food and breathtaking views. Hotel Manager Scott Farwell and owners Steve and Tina Smith have assembled an incredible staff of people who get the big picture - it's all about the guests. (That’s why they hire speakers to come and speak to their staff and improve their guest-service experience).
You will not be disappointed. And you'll get to tell your own story about getting to and from the Prince Rupert airport. Trust me, people won't believe you.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Boss Tip #6 - Keep Your Mouth Shut
Over the Christmas holidays, I ran across an article in the Winnipeg Free Press that claimed that 27% of employees said that their bosses made negative comments about them to other employees and other managers.
Now just picture this: lining up 100 bosses in a row, having 27 of them step forward and accusing them of talking about their employees to other employees behind their backs. How incredibly juvenile and malicious is this, really?
I couldn’t believe what I read. It was sourced from the College of Business at Florida Sate University who surveyed some 700 people in a variety of jobs. This was only one of their findings. But this is the one that surprised me the most. Bosses? Talking badly about employees to other employees? Jeez are we still in high school?
It’s time for these bosses to start growing up. What possible good can come from talking to employees about the performance of other employees? You can only hope, as a boss, that the person you’re telling doesn’t clue in that in five minutes you may be talking to someone else about him or her. Gossip is one of the most demoralizing factors in any office. And when that gossiper is in a supervisory position, the company is in big trouble.
Employee morale drops. Performance numbers fall. Attrition rises dramatically. Training budgets become stretched to the max from having to hire so many new people. The company will have a bad reputation with its employees. And once it becomes part of the corporate culture, good luck finding qualified people willing to work there.
If this gossiper sounds like your boss, risk the loss of your job by going over their heads and demanding a change. The boss that talks about their people to other employees needs to be fired today. If their immediate supervisors are reluctant to do something about it, they should be fired too.
And if you can’t find a way to make senior management do something about the problem, then plan your exit strategy and perhaps consider doing what they do: talk to others behind their backs – others like the media.
Nothing solves a problem quicker than the watchful eye of the general public and a subsequent drop in business. No business can afford to keep loose-lipped bosses in their ranks. Business, be prepared to take your lumps if you choose to keep these poor excuses for mentors on-board. There is no excuse for this kind of behavior from anyone in a supervisory capacity. Doing nothing condones the behavior and actually fosters more.
Make sure your supervisors are skilled in the art of tact, confidentiality and diplomacy. If you don’t, you’ll pay – one way or another.Thursday, December 14, 2006
Boss Tip #5 - Lunch Menu Leadership Test
There have been a lot of questions this past week on what the Lunch Menu Leadership Test is all about. No one, it seems, is able to find any reference to it on-line anywhere. That’s because it’s MY test. So stop looking. This is the only place you will find that information.
So whom is the test meant for? The test is applicable if ever you are in the position, or even on a selection committee, to hire for any of the following positions: CEO, CO, Mr. Big, VIP, administration, administrator, baron, big brother, big cheese, big man, big wheel, boss, brass, businessman, chief, commander, director, directorate, don, entrepreneur, exec, godfather, government, governor, head, head honcho, head man, heavyweight, hierarchy, high priest, higher-up, industrialist, key player, kingfish, kingpin, leader, leadership dude, management, manager, meal ticket, number one, officer, official, point man, skipper, supervisor, top, top brass, tycoon or any other position in the upstairs upper echelon.
The test is relatively simple. Hey, it would have to be. I thought of it.
Take your management/leadership candidate for lunch, nothing really fancy just a place where the menu wouldn’t be too foreign to an average Joe. Once seated, either your host/hostess or a server will swing by with menus and say something like this: “Good afternoon and welcome to the Monkey Bar & Grill. My name is Peter and I will be your server today. Can I start you folks with a couple of beverages before I tell you about our fantastic luncheon specials today?”
(Jeez, did you order a story? I don’t remember ordering a story.)
Anyway, back to the test. Once Peter drops the menus on the table and rattles off the luncheon specials for the day, once he turns his back and runs to fetch your beverages, start the clock and say nothing more. Simply open your menu, pretend you’re looking at it and observe what transpires next. This IS the test.
If the candidate closes his/her menu in under sixty seconds with a decision made for lunch, you have a winner. Here’s my thinking, if someone about to be moved into a leadership position can not make a decision for themselves in under sixty seconds, a simple decision about what to eat, then how in the world would they be able to make far more important decisions affecting the entire organization?
The key to the Lunch Menu Leadership Test is the following philosophy: How we do one thing is how we do everything.
If the candidate can make quick decisions on unimportant stuff, then he/she can likely make quick decisions on important stuff.
If the candidate takes more than sixty seconds with a simple luncheon menu, you’re going to have problems with him/her.
If the candidate says, “I’ve never eaten here before, what’s good?” I hear, “I’m not comfortable with new surroundings. I might be able to become comfortable with a little help from someone who’s experienced this before, but right now, I don’t know what to do (have).”
“Hmm, I’m not sure what to have. What are you having?” means I will be making the vast majority of my decisions based on consensus. That means I will be polling people so I can decide what I should do next.
Studying the menu and flipping pages back and forth several times means they can’t decide. They are indecisive.
During the meal if I hear “Maybe I should have ordered what you did,” he/she spends too much time on second guessing their decisions. Likely, direction will change like the wind.
There are many more things that can be translated from the test but the key here is if you are going to place someone in a position of leadership, they had better be able to stand on their own two feet, accepting the results of their decisions and not afraid to make them.
This test never fails, unless the candidate knows about the test in advance and knew where they were going to be eating.
Want to find out what your boss is really like? Take them for lunch. You’ll see what I mean.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
A Motivational Speakers Convention?
Did you know that there is an association of motivational speakers? Can you imagine what it would be like to attend the annual convention of motivational speakers? Well, sorry but you missed it. It was last weekend.
OK, to be fair, it not actually called the motivational speakers association. It is an association of professional speakers. They met in Vancouver this past weekend. I didn’t attend for two reasons: 1) I actually had an audience to speak to while everyone else was at the conference, and 2) well, I’m not actually a member of the association.
I used to be a member. Over the time that I was an active member of the association, I learned that there are some practices of the association that I am in opposition with at a values and principles level. I had a difference of opinion, so I left.
In the association, every member is welcome to work toward his or her CSP - Certified Speaking Professional designation. (It really carries no weight when you’re being considered for a job – trust me.) It is possible to become a Certified Speaking Professional within the first six years of ever being a speaker. All you have to do is make enough money over five years ($250,000-$675,000) doing enough presentations over five years (100-250) and have had enough clients over five years (25-100). Then you do the normal stuff: attend the convention every year (32 Continuing Education Credits), pay your membership dues every year for six consecutive years ($400/yr), get 20 clients to write you nice letters about how good you were (over 5 years) and pay a $375.00 US application fee. That’s pretty much it in a nutshell. Pass that criteria and you can be a CSP. (Honestly, for the speaker who is doing this full-time, the criteria is pretty simple).
Even though there is a committee who supposedly watches the speakers in action, and even though there is a questionnaire that is sent to clients hiring the speaker asking them to rate the speaker on preparation, delivery, thoroughness and professionalism, nowhere will the speaker ever be asked for what kind of results the client received. And that is where I take issue with a certification of any kind: where the certification is based on everything except the results the attendees experienced.
When I say results, here’s what I mean: if you’re a sales trainer, after you finished your seminar, how much did sales increase? If you’re a productivity trainer, how did productivity increase as a result of your session? If you’re a motivational speaker, how well did your session inspire the attendees to reduce the number of sick days over the next year?
Those are results. Results are what tell the story of whether or not a speaker should be certified as a professional – not how much money they make. Money is a lousy way to keep score.
And it shouldn’t be other speakers who sit on the selection committee for certification standards, it should be the meeting planners who hire speakers who should determine who is certified professional and who is not. (There is an organization called MPI – Meeting Planners International. These are the folks who should be handing out the hardware.)
If you’re half ways decent in marketing, can live with $1000 per speaking presentation (unbelievably low price for a professional speaker – more like a starting speaker), you could find yourself doing 50 presentations per year to charitable organizations and community groups. Do it for five years and you’ve made $250,000 speaking to 250 separate clients and organizations. You ought to be able to get at least 4 nice letters per year from clients and several who say that you were professional. You could do this part-time and still become a Certified Professional. You don’t even have to be very good. And that’s my issue.
Don’t even get me started on becoming a member of the speaking Hall of Fame. That’s an award given by your peers when they think you’re at the peak of your game, even if you’re not. After you get the Hall of Fame, there’s nothing left to earn.
Personally, I think the speaking industry is in too big a hurry to congratulate themselves on a job well done – even if it isn’t well done. Oh, and that thing about getting results for the attendees? Don’t mention that. They’re a little touchy on that one.
Monday, December 11, 2006
Boss Tip #4 - Monkey See, Monkey Do
Over the last couple of weeks I have received a few emails that have been fodder for future Tips for Bosses. Today’s tip encompasses several of those emails. Remember, if you're not a boss, then send this to your boss. If you are a boss - listen up.
Look at the title again – Monkey See Monkey Do! What more do you need to know? Your people learn from your example. Get it? That’s it. That’s all that needs saying.
However, there are too many bosses out there who are apparently too thick to get this one in a sentence or two, so here comes the rest of the explanation.
Are you in some sort of advisory situation, like a manager, supervisor, Vice President, you know, some kind of power position? If so, name a book on leadership you read in the last ninety days? And that, in one simple question, will illustrate the difference between managers and leaders.
Leaders lead by example. Leaders know that if they want their people to improve, they themselves have to set the bar by leading by example. Leaders will make time to read and improve themselves and show their people that although they too have busy days, there is always enough time for self-improvement.
Managers, however, are so busy making sure that they are needed in their position, that they will spend the better part of their days justifying their position. In other words, they will look like they’re busy, make decisions (when someone else could have made them just as easily) and keep the paperwork flying across their desks (after all, a cluttered desk looks so much busier than an empty desk don’t you think?). Because managers are doing all of these things, there is no time to read – besides, reading at a desk would make a manager look like he or she has nothing to do – their bosses might think so too and replace them with someone who “looks” busier.
So the message that managers send to their people is “look” busy and your job is safe. Not much wonder managers have a hard time inspiring their people to do better.
The message that leaders send to their people is that everyone could stand to improve him or herself - and that includes leaders too.
Now here’s a problem that managers have when they spend so much time trying to justify their position by “looking” busy: they get so caught up in their own heavy workload that they have no time to inspect what’s happening outside their office door (and yes I know managers never come out of their office, they expect people to bring stuff to them). If there’s no time to inspect what happening in the office, then they become less informed of what needs doing and completely ignorant of who’s doing what. At that point, they are no longer leading the team. They are simply a figurehead in-charge.
If this is your office, fire your manager immediately and replace him or her with a leader. Do not subject your entire team to this kind of irresponsible lack of direction and expect your people to perform. Monkey see, monkey do.
There are people on your team who care very deeply for the place they work. A “manager” is only going to mess things up. A manager who is only interested in making sure he or she looks busy is going to sabotage your organization.
When you want to replace your manager, ask this of those in line to replace him or her – “List the books you’ve read on leadership in the last ninety days and give me your brief summarization on each.” You’ll find a suitable and very capable leader within your own organization in short order.
Instigationally,
Kevin
Next Tip For Bosses - The Lunch-Menu Leadership Test
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Boss Tip #3 - Never Be Missed
(Here's another one to pass on to your boss. If you are the boss, I hope you get the big picture of this one. If you're not the boss, take these tips to heart and you will be one day.)
What would happen if today, you, as the boss, went out for lunch and made a decision to not return to the office for the rest of today and several days as well and didn’t bother to phoning in to tell people you were taking time off? Think about that question for a moment.
What would happen if you just stopped showing up for a few days and didn’t tell anyone where you were? Would your people mildly begin to panic about who would make decisions in your absence? Would the foundation of the office start to fall apart because no one was there to take charge? Would there be a great deal of unease around the office wondering where you were and when you would be returning?
Do you even know the answer to that question? In your mind, would the place fall apart? In the minds of your staff, would they welcome your departure?
The difference between a manager and a leader is that a manager will tend to need to have his or her fingers in everything that is going on in the office. That need to have some form of control is usually the result of a deep-rooted and well-hidden insecurity. A manager who feels the need to control every decision and/or needs to have his/her input made prior to a decision being made, well that person has a control problem. Control issues stem from insecurities.
If you’re worried about one day being replaced as the person in charge, then you don’t get the whole concept of leadership – you are, in fact, a manager.
You will never be a leader so long as you are worried about someone else doing a better job of running the place than you do. You will never be a leader if you let your fear of being shown up stand in the way of bringing out the best in the people who work for you. You will never be a leader if you need to be in the spotlight and need to make sure that everyone knows you are the leader. If you need any of these, you may be the person in charge but you are no leader.
A leader will ensure that he/she has surrounded himself with competent people: perhaps even people who are smarter and better at managing. That same leader will ask his/her people to stretch themselves and make decisions – decisions that affect the company. That same leader will also understand that so long as people feel that they are valued for their contributions, that they get the opportunity to make valuable contributions and that they also take responsibility for their actions, they will not be trying to knock off the guy at the top. The leader’s job is safe because everyone is in charge – in charge of his or her own areas of responsibility.
Think you’d be missed as a leader if this were you? Not a chance. Enjoy your vacation.
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