What's not going just great?

A very simple question that I now routinely ask in every department meeting is: What project or situation that you're dealing with is not going right?

It's an awkwardly worded question, I admit, but it works. It's so critical to know what is bothering people, what is worrying them or what is that nagging doubt in the back of their mind.

I love to talk about the future and great opportunities, but those fun things are never going to happen if we have a lot of other problems going on. So now I focus on the issues first and help people solve them. Then, it's on to the fun stuff.

Barry LaBov
LABOV Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

Get ahead of it

It's funny—when things are going wrong, most good people jump in and figure out what to do to save the day. It often works out and the day is saved, but it takes a lot of energy and emotion.

What we overlook is that we should have gotten ahead of the issue and never allowed it to happen in the first place. That, of course, takes planning and preparation.

You either get ahead of it or it runs you over.

Barry LaBov
LABOV Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

Every brand has a story

My wife and I once did a series of wine tastings in Napa and Sonoma. I had no idea how wine was made or what the difference was between a great wine and a good one. Little did I know that for me, and I think most of us, learning the story behind the wine makes it taste even better.

Brands and products all have a story. If we merely present them as being basically the same as the others, then we shortchange ourselves. Every great brand, from Harley-Davidson to Apple, has a story, a reason that the product was created or how it endured against the odds. To connect with a brand, we need that story, because we need to be told why something is unique in order to appreciate it. And once we know the story, it becomes part of us and it actually enhances our experience. If a product has a good story behind it and a company communicates that story in an engaging way, I’m much more likely to choose that product over one that has no story or character surrounding it.

Barry LaBov
LABOV Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

Move up?

Every business book I've read, it seems, says that people want to move up, they want to grow to the next level. That means a leader needs to be ready for this and give opportunities to those individuals. It's pretty exciting. Except for the fact that it isn't reality.

Truth is, most of us don't want to "move up." We are comfortable where we are and want to stay that way as long we get more money from time to time. Now, for the record, I don't think that is bad, wrong or weak, at all. It's reality and if you understand that, you can be a better leader.

So, as I've I learned this, I have adapted to it. I do the following:
1) I do not assume the person wants to move up and never talk assumptively as if they do.
2) I do not hold out advancement as a carrot.
3) I do not guide or mentor a person unless they ask me to.
4) I do fall prey to someone saying they want to move up, I only get interested after see them act in that manner.
5) I enjoy what the person does do and find value in that, period.

Barry LaBov
LABOV Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

You won't know till you get there

Bless the hearts of all of us who have a plan or vision and expect things to go that way and feel the way we think they will. Usually that isn't reality.

The person who divorces and expects to be happy, may not be.
The company that changes its product design to capture a market may lose sales.
The person who buys the new car or vacation house may soon be bored to tears.

Vision and plans and well-thought-through ideas are great and many times result in wondrous things—just not what we expected or on the timeframe we laid out.

Barry LaBov
LABOV Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com