Marketing and management are at war

By Derrick Daye  Article

Are You Left-Brained Or Right-Brained?

“Marketing and management are at war in today’s boardrooms.

The reason for the war is that marketing and management don’t understand each other. The reason they don’t understand each other is that their brains are different.

Management people tend to be left-brain thinkers: they are verbal, logical and analytical.

Marketing people tend to be right-brain thinkers: they are visual, intuitive and holistic. Which one are you? Are you Left-Brained or Right-Brained?

This short quiz will reveal the answer, giving you a better sense of ‘where you are’ in the room.”

Insidious lies

By Scott Anthony  Article

Combating Four Innovation Lies

“Innovators have to deal with particularly insidious lies — things that people say that they believe are true, but actually aren’t.

Lie #1: Target customer, “Of course I’ll buy that.”

Innovators working on new ideas often show early versions to customers to assess “purchase intent.” But customers do a poor job of reporting what they’ll do in the future, particularly if they’re responding to a novel idea. One company that I worked with found that the accuracy of market forecasts for new-to-the-world ideas was roughly equivalent to using the results of a random number generator.

Instead, trust actions over statements. Don’t look at what people say they will do. Look at what they are already doing. If they aren’t spending money or time solving a problem today, they might not spend money or time to solve that problem tomorrow. Alternatively, consider a way to get a customer to pay for an early version of a product. …

Lie #2: Product developer, “We’ll be ready to ship in six months.”

There’s a great term in the psychology literature called the “planning fallacy.” Basically, human beings are really terrible at estimating the amount of time or money it will take to accomplish a task, even when they have previous experience with the task. Product developers have every intention of finishing development on time, but invariably things take longer and cost more than people projected. There’s one project I’ve been watching that has literally been three months away from shipping for 18 months now.

The easiest way to address this lie is to change the development paradigm. Borrow from the Agile software development movement and push for many rapid development cycles instead of a single long cycle. Don’t try to put everything into the first release of a new offering, start with what Steve Blank calls a “Minimal Viable Product.” ….”

Boss-zilla

By Rick Spence   Article

It pays to flatten the pyramid

““Boss-zilla,” as Salzberg calls his first manager, taught him all he needed to know about leadership done wrong. “Right then I knew the kind of leader I never want to be, the kind who gives orders, not encouragement.” Today, he says, “You never know where the best ideas will come from. If you build a supportive environment where everyone is expected to contribute, you’ll get synergies and creative ideas you never imagined were possible.”

How do you create an environment of innovation, collaboration and trust? You must turn the org chart upside down and recognize that senior management exists to help their staff become more successful – not the other way round. And that consultation, delegation and admitting you don’t know everything are powerful development tools for leaders to use every day – not signs of personal weakness.

Here are a few ways to flatten your pyramid to create a more dynamic, effective organization: ….”

No organization cares about you

Be Seth Godin   Source

Caring

“No organization cares about you. Organizations aren’t capable of this.

Your bank, certainly, doesn’t care. Neither does your HMO or even your car dealer. It’s amazing to me that people are surprised to discover this fact.

People, on the other hand, are perfectly capable of caring. It’s part of being a human. It’s only when organizational demands and regulations get in the way that the caring fades.

If you want to build a caring organization, you need to fill it with caring people and then get out of their way. When your organization punishes people for caring, don’t be surprised when people stop caring.

When you free your employees to act like people (as opposed to cogs in a profit-maximizing efficient machine) then the caring can’t help but happen.”

True and unbelievable

By Washingtons Blog   Article

Congressional Research Service Confirms Big Banks Borrowed Cash For Next To Nothing, Then Lent It Back to the Federal Government at Much Higher Rates

“Because the US government is lending money to the big banks at near-zero interest rates. And the banks are then turning around and lending that money back to the US government at 3%-4% interest rates, making 3%+ on the spread. What’s more, the banks are leveraging this trade, borrowing at least $10 for every $1 of equity capital they have, to increase the size of their bets. Which means the banks can turn relatively small amounts of equity into huge profits–by borrowing from the taxpayer and then lending back to the taxpayer.

The government’s zero-interest-rate policy, in other words, is the biggest Wall Street subsidy yet. So far, it has done little to increase the supply of credit in the real economy. But it has hosed responsible people who lived within their means and are now earning next-to-nothing on their savings. It has also allowed the big Wall Street banks to print money to offset all the dumb bets that brought the financial system to the brink of collapse two years ago. And it has fattened Wall Street bonus pools to record levels again.”

20 Proven Things All Great Leaders Always Do

By Dan Rockwell   Article

“Consistently do these 20 things and you’ll be a great leader.

1. Tell the truth.
2. Demand the truth.
3. Act in the best interest of their organization.
4. Get results through others.
5. Celebrate the success of others.
6. Challenge the status quo.
7. Press into the future while honoring the past.
8. Try.
9. Receive criticism.
10. Learn.
11. Inspire.
12. Improve.
13. Encourage.
14. Listen more than speak.
15. Take responsibility.
16. Show gratitude.
17. Pursue clarity and specificity.
18. Engage in self-reflection.
19. Act in alignment with who they are.
20. Rest.”

Forecasting Your Future

by FFF Team  Article

“We don’t know what the future holds for us in most regards.  We can plan and speculate.  We can work hard, take risks, and rebound positively from setbacks.  Yet there are so many variables and factors we cannot control, that the probability of our predictions being accurate is low.  However, there are two factors we can control.  Our character and how we demonstrate our character in our daily lives.  We have that ability. …

Life is full of temptations, which continually present us with choices.  Temptations to cut honesty corners.  Temptations to take shortcuts or make short-sighted decisions.  Temptations to put our self interest ahead of the greater good.   Temptations to compromise what we want most for what we want at the moment.  Temptations to prove we are right instead of solving problems or doing the right thing.  Temptations to sacrifice relationships for the sake of making a point.  Our choices, especially when we encounter these temptations, reflect our character and who we truly are.”

We should do this more often!

From ArcaMax   Source

“Should We Expect More of This Sort of Thing? At a good-bye luncheon for an old and dear coworker who was being laid off due to “downsizing,” our manager commented cheerfully, “This is fun. We should do this more often!”

Not a word was spoken. We all just looked at each other with that deer-in-the-headlights stare.”

No sale

By Liz Wendling   Article

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Sales process = sales success

“Closing sales is essential to building any successful business. Every sale – and I mean every sale – involves a process of defined steps, and skipping a step or going out of order typically results in a lost sale.  The word “process” comes from the Latin word “procedure” meaning to proceed, and is a series of operations or stages that lead to an end product or outcome.

Regardless of what you sell, the sales process is like a production line and it must follow a specific sequence. No sequence + no process = no sale. Always! If you are using that formula, you can guarantee your sales efforts will be a big waste of precious time, money and energy.

There are many moving parts to the sales process: creating rapport, creating trust, asking impactful questions, talking about budgets, handling objections, gaining commitment, all the way to closing the sale. To be successful in selling you should be able to move through each step with precision; any diversion from the process will result in a lost sale.

Think about it – everything is a process. Lifting an airplane off the ground, driving a car, baking cookies, brushing your teeth, getting ready in the morning, learning a foreign language…you get the point. All involve a process of steps that lead to the desired goal. Why would anyone set out to sell anything without a formal process that could almost guarantee increased sales? It is like trying to build your dream house without blueprints.

When businesses and salespeople use a sales process, they have more consistent success with their sales performance. Why so many fail to develop or identify their process is a mystery. The evidence is so compelling for having one.”

Plan B

From the “Heart of Innovation” Blog   Source

“The most successful people are those who are good at Plan B.”

- James York

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The “chair man”

From ArcaMax.com  Article

Expressions Explained

“In the late 1700s, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from the wall, and was used for dining. The “head of the household” always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting on the floor. Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would be invited to sit in this chair during a meal. To sit in the chair meant you were important and in charge. They called the one sitting in the chair the “chair man.” Today in business, we use the expression or title “Chairman” or “Chairman of the Board.”"

The top 5 regrets people make on their deathbeds

by Courtney Boyd Myers   Article

“When Ms. Bonnie Ware, a nurse who worked for years with the dying, posted her list of the top 5 regrets people say aloud on their deathbed, we teared up a little bit here at TNW. …

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people have had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made. …

2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.

This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. Women also spoke of this regret. But as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence. …

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result. …

4. I wish ….”

The Optimism Bias

By Tali Sharot   Article

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“We like to think of ourselves as rational creatures. We watch our backs, weigh the odds, pack an umbrella. But both neuroscience and social science suggest that we are more optimistic than realistic. On average, we expect things to turn out better than they wind up being. People hugely underestimate their chances of getting divorced, losing their job or being diagnosed with cancer; expect their children to be extraordinarily gifted; envision themselves achieving more than their peers; and overestimate their likely life span (sometimes by 20 years or more).

The belief that the future will be much better than the past and present is known as the optimism bias. It abides in every race, region and socioeconomic bracket. Schoolchildren playing when-I-grow-up are rampant optimists, but so are grownups: a 2005 study found that adults over 60 are just as likely to see the glass half full as young adults.

You might expect optimism to erode under the tide of news about violent conflicts, high unemployment, tornadoes and floods and all the threats and failures that shape human life. Collectively we can grow pessimistic — about the direction of our country or the ability of our leaders to improve education and reduce crime. But private optimism, about our personal future, remains incredibly resilient. A survey conducted in 2007 found that while 70% thought families in general were less successful than in their parents’ day, 76% of respondents were optimistic about the future of their own family. …

Overly positive assumptions can lead to disastrous miscalculations — make us less likely to get health checkups, apply sunscreen or open a savings account, and more likely to bet the farm on a bad investment. But the bias also protects and inspires us: it keeps us moving forward rather than to the nearest high-rise ledge. Without optimism, our ancestors might never have ventured far from their tribes and we might all be cave dwellers, still huddled together and dreaming of light and heat. …

Even if that better future is often an illusion, optimism has clear benefits in the present. Hope keeps our minds at ease, lowers stress and improves physical health. Researchers studying heart-disease patients found that optimists were more likely than nonoptimistic patients to take vitamins, eat low-fat diets and exercise, thereby reducing their overall coronary risk. A study of cancer patients revealed that pessimistic patients under the age of 60 were more likely to die within eight months than nonpessimistic patients of the same initial health, status and age.”

Analysis paralysis drives me f-ing bonkers

by Mark Suster   Article

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“I have often said that what separates real entrepreneurs from pundits and bystanders is a bias towards getting things done versus over analyzing things. My credo has always been JFDI. It’s the hardest thing to teach people who come out of big companies, out of conservative jobs. At the big consulting firms, investment banks and established large technology companies we’re taught to produce long reports, make sure that every document is perfect quality and that every possible bit of diligence has been done. Good enough isn’t. And so things operate on a CYA basis. That doesn’t work in a startup.

There’s a certain cadence that you can feel when you spend time hanging any well-run startup company. The management team has to have a bias toward making decisions. They know that a 70% accurate decision made quickly and based on sound principles is better than a 90% decision made after careful consideration. The startup entrepreneur knows that they’re going to be wrong often. They’re flexible and willing to admit when they’re wrong. …

In fact, analysis paralysis drives me fucking bonkers. It is not uncommon in a meeting for me to say, “There are three choices: A, B, C. My gut tells me that we ought to do B. But let’s decide as a group. I don’t care if my view isn’t selected. Let’s make a decision and move on.” Many people find this uncomfortable. The world is filled with people who don’t like having to put their neck on the line and say what they think. I don’t really care if I’m wrong as long as I’m not dogmatic if evidence later shows we need to change course.”

Three sides to every question: your side, my side, and the truth

by Derrick Daye   Article

Bill Bernbach: Facts Are Not Enough

“INSTINCTS AND REASON

Whatever little tendency toward reasonableness I have was first tapped by a history professor. I shall never forget him for his wisdom. Of the many things I learned from him the most memorable was a remark that stopped in its tracks my young, mindless intellectual arrogance. I am sure I haven’t completely conquered that arrogance. Hopefully it is no longer mindless.

What he said was: “There are 3 sides to every question: your side, my side, and the truth.”

What he was really saying is that no man can be really objective in the position he takes on anything. All sorts of things are involved in the taking of that position. All the forces that played upon and shaped his personality: his background, his experiences, his environment and the very genes his parents mixed to create him. And the most powerful influence of all were those dominating instincts that are almost automatically triggered to insure his survival. I guess God or Nature or whoever made the grand plan implanted those instincts in us so that the species wouldn’t be wiped out, so that it would survive. We want, more than anything else, to stay alive.

“Scientific thinking,” said Szent-Gyorgyi, the great biochemist, “means that if we are faced with a problem, we approach it without preconceived ideas and sentiments like fear, greed and hatred. We approach it with a cool head and collect data which we eventually try to fit together. This is all there is to it. It may sound simple and easy. What makes it difficult is the fact that our brain is not made to search for truth; it is but another organ of survival, like fangs, or claws. So the brain does not search for truth, but for advantage, and it tries to make us accept as truth what is only self-interest allowing our thoughts to be dominated by our desires.”

Looking for the right excuse

By Seth Godin  Source

“This is the first warning sign that a project is in trouble. Sometimes it even begins before the project does. Quietly, our subconscious starts looking around for an excuse, deniability and someone to blame. It gives us confidence and peace of mind. [It's much easier to be calm when the police car appears in your rear view mirror if you have an excuse handy.]

Amazingly, we often look for the excuse before we even accept the project. We say to ourselves, “well, I can start this, and if it doesn’t work perfectly, I can point out it was the …” Then, as the team ramps up, bosses appear and events occur (or not), we continually add to and refine our excuse list, reminding ourselves of all the factors that were out of our control. Decades ago, when I used to sell by phone, I often found myself describing why I was unable to close this particular sale–and realized I was articulating these reasons while the phone was still ringing.

People who have a built-in all-purpose excuse (middle child syndrom, wrong astrology sign, some slight at the hands of the system long ago) often end up failing–they have an excuse ready to go, so it’s easier to back off when the going is rough.

Here’s an alternative to the excuse-driven life: What happens if you relentlessly avoid looking for excuses at all? Instead of seeking excuses, the successful project is filled with people who are obsessed with avoiding excuses. If you relentlessly work to avoid opportunities to use your ability to blame, you may never actually need to blame anyone. If you’re not pulled over by the cop, no need to blame the speedometer, right?”

I’m not telling you it is going to be easy

Source

In pursuit of a better boss

by Linda Hill & Kent Lineback   Article

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“Would you like a better boss? A boss who helps you obtain valuable information, win needed resources, and secure important support for your group and for you personally — in short, a boss who’s a real ally and partner? If your boss provides these benefits, you’re lucky. We hear far more complaints than praise from people about their bosses. If you’re unlucky, this blog is for you, and its message is simple — your relationship with your boss is less a matter of luck than you think.

When we talk to managers with complaints, we find they usually assume the relationship rests entirely in the hands of the boss. It is what the boss makes it, and there’s little they can do to change it.

Do you assume that it’s your boss who sets the tone in your relationship? If so, test that assumption. Almost certainly, you have more ability than you think to shape how you work together. After all, it’s a relationship of mutual dependence. You each need the other to succeed. Unless your boss is a psychopath or truly irrational, this interdependence is a foundation on which you can take steps to build something mutually beneficial.

Start by taking some responsibility for the relationship and asking yourself some basic questions: …”

Two ways to guarantee mediocrity

From “First Friday Book Synopsis”   Article

“I have spent 13 years reading business books and presenting synopses of these books to folks ready and willing to learn.  … there are 2 ways to guarantee mediocrity (if not outright failure): …

#1:  Have a poor work ethic.
The sources are too many, but let’s start with the 10,000 hour rule (popularized by Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers).  I summarize it this way in my presentation:

…centerpiece to this book is the 10,000 hour rule… — with much intentional practice!
“Practicing:  that is, purposefully and single-mindedly playing their instruments with the intent to get better”  (Outliers).

Or, to put it another way, putting in 10,000 hours does not guarantee that you will reach the pinnacle of success; but, not putting in the time practically guarantees that you won’t reach that pinnacle.

In other words, to remind us all of the obvious, it takes work, hard work, to be successful.

#2:  Don’t have regular (team, management, executive team) meetings.

…
Mastering the Daily and Weekly Executive Meeting
(Structure meetings to enhance executive team performance).
• meetings overview:
• daily & weekly – execution
• monthly – learning
• quarterly and annual – setting strategy“

Problem solving is satisficing, Innovation is …

by DennisStauffer  Article

Mindset Comes Before Innovation

“Problem solving typically prompts us to do something that Nobel Laureate Herbert Simon called satisficing, it’s a reaction to some challenge or deficit or unmet goal. It requires that we find a way to correct the deficit or reach the goal but not necessarily anything more. When our focus is only on solving the problem at hand, we’re limiting the scope of our thinking to those things that may address that problem. We’re also limiting the times when we apply our creativity to those occasions when we have a problem to solve. ….

While innovation may be prompted by some problem, it need not be and when it is, it entails something more than a simple solution. If the brakes on a car are wearing out, I can replace the brake pads (problems solving) or I can design an improved longer lasting brake pad (innovation) or I can design a different kind of brake that uses electrical resistance instead of friction (more innovative), or I can design a hover craft that has no wheels in need of slowing down. (breakthrough innovation) or I can design teleportation and eliminate any need for a vehicle, and so on. Innovation may render the initial problem trivial or irrelevant. If we ever invent teleportation, it will solve the problem of brake pads wearing out, but I doubt that anyone will argue that that problem will have been the reason for such a dramatic invention.

Strictly speaking all of these innovations are solutions to a problem but what distinguishes innovation is that it goes beyond that basic requirement in a way that is qualitatively different. It’s the desire and ability to do more than just solve a problem, by rethinking the nature of the problem itself, or inventing some enhancement that has no underlying problem to solve. Innovators don’t wait for a problem to be identified to begin seeking improvements. When a problem happens to be the incident cause, I’m arguing that in a very real sense there may be a different and additional activity – a kind of meta problem solving occurring that deserves its own definition, and the one I would give it is: innovation.”

Certainty, probability, and possibility

By Jason Burnham  Article

New keys to mastering consumer perception and behavior

“Recently, it has been scientifically proven that certainty, probability, and possibility are the three most fundamental thoughts humans can conceive. These three cognitive forces determine how we think, what we believe, what will motivate us, and how we make decisions. Although human cognition includes all three thinking perspectives, individuals differ in the degree to which they utilize each – differences that can now be measured and quantified. This is the basis for all communication, learning, and relationship building. It is the blend of these three forces that drive individual needs, perception, and behavior (source: MindTime Inc.).

As a species, we’ve evolved the ability to imagine future possibilities and outcomes, to recall past experiences and learn from them, or to come up with strategies for managing things in the present. This is known as a person’s time perspective. …

Some people are past thinkers — they want verification, they place a high value on customer testimonials, a proven track record, credentials, or the research that went into creating something. As a result of the ability to conceptualize a historical past, people are able to reference, consciously or unconsciously, the storehouse of information that exists in their memories, and collect and analyze new information as needed in order to inform behavior and decision-making.

Other people are present thinkers — they’re interested in how a product or service can help them solve or manage a problem they’re dealing with now. The ability to conceptualize what we think of as the present, individuals are able to develop action plans, structure our environment, and organize resources to execute those plans.

Some people tend to be future thinkers — they look at a product or service and imagine the possibilities it opens up, and how it might impact their life moving forward. As a result of the ability to conceptualize a future that has yet to occur, people are able to imagine an infinite set of future possibilities and engage in creative and innovative speculation that allows them to adapt to ever-changing environmental circumstances.”

Fixing LeBron James’ swimming

By Mary Ellen Slayter  Article

Source

Sonar6′s Mike Carden, in defense of performance reviews

“What do you think is the biggest mistake CEOs and other executives make when it comes to performance reviews?

I think the biggest mistake that people make is that they feel that the purpose of a performance review is to find something wrong with an employee and then try to fix it — which is really only ever the case with a company’s poorest performers. Sure, if you have a salesperson who is call-reluctant, fix it. If you have a star performer, you should spend your effort, and your performance review, working out ways to stretch them and leverage their strengths.

The example I often use is that if you gave a 12-year-old LeBron James to anyone in his right mind, that person would focus on making him a great basketball player. However, if you gave him to your average people manager, that person would ignore the basketball and try to fix his swimming.”

The truth hurts

by Jessica Hagy  Source