Be more productive. Get healthier. Raise perceptions about you. Have more energy.

It's been a while since I have posted, and for all the best reasons. I've taken on a few new roles. One as a volunteer with the Arts & Business Council of Philadelphia, and another as a public speaker. As you might guess it has left me with a paucity of time, but a wealth of great experiences and a host of new acquaintances from which to draw inspiration from.

On to today's thought. How can one change allow someone to "be", "get", "raise", and "have" all of the above?

Easy.

Walk faster.

Every where.

It struck me the other day as I was going from place to place with a "make a hole" attitude screaming in my head that I generally move quickly when going from place to place. I used to think it's because I'm a native New Yorker and that's how we roll, but more recently I have been paying attention to the practice and have come up with some conclusions which have became the title of this entry.

Be more productive
Can there be an argument about this? You will get to places faster and that will allow for more doing and thus more getting done. Besides, if you look like you are on a mission it's less likely folks will want to stop you for a chat, which helps keep you on task and on course.

Get healthier
I can't verify this claim with clinical evidence (yet) but it seems like if you move quickly, cardio functions also rise as well. If you have a sedentary job, this might be the only "exercise" you get all day. use the time to pump things up!

Raise perceptions
Alright, I'm not advocating walking around quickly simply to look busy - you actually have to have somewhere to go and something to do - perhaps I should say instead of "walk faster" to "walk purposefully". Being on the move gets you noticed and perceptions are usually that you are doing something important...unless you only do it once in a while. Then it just looks like you have to pee. In fact, bio-breaks are the one time I don't want you to walk fast. This is a behavior that needs to be consistently applied so folks understand that you have plans, are going places, and you need to get there pronto. And that isn't the bathroom. Please, everywhere but, OK?

Have more energy
It doesn't matter how tired I am, walking purposefully encourages my brain to pick up the pace and I get "in flow". By the time I reach my destination my I'm charged up and ready mentally & physically.

Give it a shot & let me know if I'm on to something, I'd like to hear from you!

Cheers,
John

Failure Is Not An Option, It's A Choice

Following are sure-fire ways to self-sabotage:

• Fail to listen
• Fail to deliver
• Fail to do what you said you would do
• Fail to follow up
• Fail to see what the competition is doing
• Fail to speak up
• Fail to do the right thing
• Fail to share information
• Fail to consider alternatives
• Fail to consider others
• Fail to try your ideas
• Fail to recognize you may not know everything, or be the smartest person in the room
• Fail to improve your own skills
• Fail to properly socialize ideas
• Fail to give credit
• Fail to give thanks
• Fail to pull the plug
• Fail to move forward
• Fail to make hard choices
• Fail to deliver a tough message
• Fail to make decisions
• Fail to focus on outcomes
• Fail to provide value
• Fail to admit when you are wrong
• Fail to realize not everything deserves a response
• Fail to take a chance
• Fail to meet your obligations
• Fail to embrace change

Any missing? Let me know!

Want improved innovation? Get more water coolers!

The big buzz for companies today is to espouse their desire to be innovative. By the way they tell it, everything – from slumping sales to anemic product offerings – can be revived through innovation. Yet, innovation seems a tricky thing to define. To some, it’s the big idea; have a grand idea and that is being innovative. But is it really? Everyone has ideas each day and yet no one seems to be swimming in profits. Ever have one of those moments when you think of a creative solution, only to see an ad for that very thing just moments later? Sure, we all have. And in that is the difference. Where many have ideas, few actually do something about it. People who take the idea and do something about it. To me, that’s where innovation happens.

Sure, but what’s that have to do with water coolers?

Most large companies have been busily down-sizing, right-sizing and off-shoring for years in an attempt to stay viable and competitive. In so doing, workloads have increased on staff and reduced the amount of “free” time during the workday. Being social at work, or at least the water cooler conversation, seems to have become a thing of the past. And that could be what’s killing innovation. No longer is there the ability to have casual conversation with co-workers, to talk about work, express ideas, and share in a way that builds connection and trust. And it’s these things; cross-pollination, communication, connectedness and trust that are the foundation for innovations.

So what’s a business to do?

The short answer is foster an environment of information sharing. For too long, businesses have focused on being efficient. Frivolity like off-topic conversations, information sharing or casual conversation, have been left to lunch-and-learn programs with most too busy or too burned out to attend. An investment must be made – during business hours – to stimulate activities that permit people to see over their cubicle wall and achieve the “Ah-Ha” moment when dots become connected in a new way. Interactions should be live; face to face events where people can connect, share, and communicate directly. No Web-Ex, no CBT’s, no dialing in. e-Communication is not communication and last I checked, my computer dislikes water!

How do you think companies can stimulate innovation?

Note: As an object lesson, apparently yours truly isn't the first to think of this! http://bit.ly/fjcOXo

Vanilla Ice Got It Right

Really, did I just say that? Yup, I did. When it comes to communication & problem solving in relationships – working or otherwise – Robert Matthew Van Winkle hit the nail on the head in, “Ice, Ice, Baby” with the salient prose, “Stop, Collaborate & Listen.” Allow me to interpret this classic masterpiece; reordered for maximum effect.

STOP

With so many demands your attention – the interruption of email, text messages, IM’s, phone calls, and people dropping by or stopping you in the hallway. The passive attention grabbers of the internet, social media sites, personal tasks, social commitments or wondering what day it is since you have a report due on Thursday at noon…it’s a wonder anything gets done under these conditions. The fix? Stop. Just stop doing anything that doesn’t relate to what is currently happening. It’s time to focus. Stop everything else. Make the physical gesture of silencing the noise and make the mental effort to pay attention. Stop.

LISTEN

People have a heard time just sitting back and listening. Devote all of that focus we created above to really hear what is being said. Turn off your mental detective who is trying to jump to a solution; silence the inner lawyer working to dismantle, rebut or defend against what it is hearing. Instead, put yourself in the speakers’ shoes, see through their eyes, and feel their feelings for a few moments.

COLLABORATE

Once everything is on the table, now is the time to open up communications by asking open-ended questions. This is not the time to deliver any counterpoints – we silenced the lawyer, remember? It’s time to ask questions that provide you with a deeper understanding of the speakers’ feelings and point of view. Open-ended questions expand the discussion because they can’t be answered with a simple, “yes” or “no”. They require more information to be provided. For instance, “How do you know when the job is complete”, “What defines success”, and “What could be done differently next time” are all excellent examples of questions that require the speaker to add specific information into the conversation. Having that meaning means that a richer understanding and leads to the best possible solutions.

Once you have followed these steps, lather, rinse and repeat or, follow the steps over and over until you have come to a solution.

Once you have it, celebrate! Perhaps with a guilty pleasure?

Cheers,

John

Cold calls suck

Picking up a phone and calling a stranger. Getting that person to subsequently do or commit to something. That’s hard. Sometimes that’s scary. And I don’t know anyone who likes cold calling. Instead, try warm calling. Warm calling involves taking the time to plan the call. Always plan your calls. The process is easy:

• Write it down
• How will you say it
• Find something to connect to

Write It Down

I don’t care how long the call will be, take notes. If you’re like most people you’ll get nervous and forget where you want the call to go, or leave out important details. Save yourself the agony and just write down your objectives and important details.

How Will You Say It

Now take a look at what you wrote. How does it sound? When you practice it – and yes, you will practice it – how does it come across? Are you using negative phrases like “I don’t know about you but…” or “We might not be the best in the market but…” While you’re taking out the negatives, take out the “but’s” too. I hit on those last year and it still applies.

Find Something To Connect To

Lastly, find something you like about the person & can relate to. Again, do it ahead of time by doing some research on the internet or LinkedIn. If you are looking to build a relationship that closes sales, do the work and know a little something about your prospect. If nothing is available then “like” the sound of their voice, their greeting, or their Southern drawl. I don’t actually care if you actually like it; do it because the enthusiasm and energy it creates will come across in your discussion that way and bring you that much closer to success. Now who wouldn’t want that?

So tell me, what do you think about the warm call?

Project Management Made Easy

It seems everyone I know these days is a project manager of some stripe. May be they have their PMP (Project Management Professional certification) and maybe they don't. Sometimes they use excel to keep track of things and other times it's a FileMaker or Access database. The pros run straight to Microsoft Project and get their Gantt chart on.

It all comes down to simple moves really:

1. Have a plan.
2. Confirm the details & document.
3. Build a realistic time line of activities.
4. Kick off your project with all stakeholders involved.
   

Then:

1. Hold people accountable for their part(s).
2. Report on status regularly.
3. Make sure what is being done are the right things. Do that by asking a lot of questions.
4. Ask more questions. Make sure you understand all of the "whys".
   
5. Use problem solving & facilitation skills to ensure progress.
6. Celebrate when finished.
7. Thank everyone involved personally & specifically.

That's it. Sure, we could discuss scope expansion and other things that might blow up the project, but really it's all handled the same way - communicate. Get the details, assess the impact, get approval (or not) and add the new information into your plan (or not).

And for me, when all else fails, I remind myself of the right moves by going to the men and women with the "Right Stuff," NASA because let's face it, I don't need to reinvent the wheel - I got projects to do!

News & Information

Whenever I find an interesting piece of information, like a PDF that I'll want to refer to later, or a news article I think a colleague will find useful I stick it into a draft email called, "News & Information." There is no frequency of delivery, or mandate on subject matter, it's just things I believe will be useful and I'll want to retain and share. Once the email fills up, I shoot it off to folks who have expressed interest. And yes, they always can opt out!

I find this is a great way to share information among colleagues and is also an easy way to file away those tid-bits I have curated into my sent email!

How do you share information? Would you find something like this annoying? Drop a line and let me know!