When you are shopping for something (could be a commodity, a company or anything in between) make sure you concentrate on the product and not the pitch.
Crap with a bow around it is still crap.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
As a leader, what is the one trait you want to known to possess?
Some leaders strive to be feared
Some leaders strive to be loved
Some leaders strive to be respected
Some leaders strive to be powerful
Some leaders strive to be wealthy
What one trait do YOU want to be known to possess?
I think if I had to choose just one, it would be “trusted”. How about you?
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Frequently people think of selling one of two type of things
1. Things people want
2. Things people need
These things might be products or services.
Trying to sell what people need has caused a lot of businesses to go bankrupt. People do NOT always act rationally nor do they always buy what they need.
Selling people what they want is much more successful (short term at least) but the problem is, many others are trying this same thing.
The third type of thing to sell is much more difficult, more time consuming and potentially much more profitable. This involves creating a product or service and then convincing people it’s what they want/need. This might seem very backwards but if you think about it, most true innovation is done this way.
People didn’t want/need a telephone before it was invented.
People didn’t want/need an iPod before it was invented.
People didn’t want a store where they could pay to shop there and then buy things in large quantities until Costco and Sam’s Club arrived.
Create a product and then create the need/want and the potential is HUGE
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Frequently we look at the existing power (emperor, defending champion, large company) and see what they used to be and possibly not what they are now. We “see” incredible power, great wealth, and no weaknesses.
If we take a closer look at these powers, we might see the reality. They might not be as strong as they used to be. They might have many more weaknesses than we ever would have guessed. They might not be what they used to be.
When you look at a power (or any opponent), make sure you are looking at what is really there and not what used to be there.
This also is true when others look at you. Are they seeing what you really are or what you used to be. Sometimes there are advantages to people seeing what you used to be. As an example, in college football, the name Notre Dame has been an intimidating opponent for many decades. The reality though is they haven’t been a top team for many years. A few years ago, Notre Dame beat some teams they probably shouldn’t have. They beat them not with talent, not with hard work but rather because they were NOTRE DAME. Then a couple of teams they normally would have beaten beat them. All of a sudden the mystique was gone and teams were beating them Teams started to realize this Notre Dame wasn’t the Notre Dame of old.
One problem powers of old sometimes face is they look at themselves and see what they used to be and not what they are now. They don’t see the chinks in their armor.
Make sure you are looking at your opposition and yourself with an open mind, otherwise you might not notice the emperors clothes are in shreds
Have a great day!
Lawrence
These two questions were mentioned on the Signals vs Noise blog and I thought they were worth posting here
1. What do you want to get better at?
2. What do you want to learn/
If you ask yourself these questions and give some serious thought to your answers it will help you go in the right direction
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Some people are born leaders.
Some people prefer to go it alone.
Many others are looking to be led.
If you, or someone doesn’t provide positive leadership to these people, they will find leaders elsewhere. Maybe the leaders they find will be positive leaders but too often they are negative leaders.
People forget there are negative leaders out there. Think about the class clown who is trying to get others to slack off. Think about the gang leader who will provide the support and leadership some of these followers are searching for. Think about Nazi Germany, people were looking for a leader and Hitler stepped into the role. Think about Jim Jones in British Guyana.
Be a positive leader because if you don’t, someone might step into that role and lead in a negative way
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Things are going well.
Business is up.
Profits are up.
You have done a great job of cutting costs and increasing revenues.
This is NOT the time to let up. It’s easy to relax and let things slide but when you have good momentum, keep it up. Don’t lower the bar because things are going well. If anything, raise it even higher!
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Schools have rivalries
Gangs have enemies
Organizations have competitors
Countries have bitter enemies
The question is, are you fighting battles you don’t understand? Do you know why you are supposed to hate the other people? Have they actually done anything to you or are you just behaving a certain way because you are expected to?
How many lost opportunities have their been, how many lost lives have their been, how many unfortunate opportunities have developed because of battles you shouldn’t be involved with?
Before you decide not to be involved with a certain group, ask yourself if there really is a good reason not to be involved with them or are you just perpetuating things you really don’t understand and shouldn’t be involved with.
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
There are a lot of people with the belief we should buy locally to support our local economies. I definitely fall within this group although I do tend to purchase certain things online (used books for example).
The one thing that is easy to forget (or easy to misunderstand) is that just because a company has a big name doesn’t mean it’s not local.
For example, there are many people who are boycotting BP gas stations. The thing they don’t realize (or maybe they don’t care about) is most BP stations are owned by individual owners. Many are locally owned and operated and they employ local people. BP might get a very small percentage but boycotting this type of business primarily hurts local people.
McDonalds is a large multi national conglomerate but most of the restaurants are owned by small business owners. They employ local people and help the local economy.
Even large stores such as WalMart, while they aren’t locally owned, they frequently are one of the largest employers in a community. These are your friends, your neighbors etc who are working there and benefiting from these jobs.
I’m not a big fan of chains but it’s important to understand just because a business is a chain, doesn’t mean it’s not locally owned and it almost always means local jobs.
Buy locally when you can and be open minded to what that really means.
Just something to think about
Have a great day!
Lawrence
“I got laid off because my boss was an idiot”
“I lost my house because the damn banks screwed me over”
“My life is a mess because the government is ruining my life”
How many excuses are people coming up with these days? At what point do people say “I need to take responsibility for my life”?
Stop blaming others, look within, see how you can find the many opportunities that are out there and take responsibility for your life
Have a GREAT day!
Lawrence
If there is one thing Lawrence Fine is most passionate about it's teaching. From sharing his knowledge about soccer as a soccer coach, he now shares his expertise in the field of human resources and the Internet. (More...)