A Glimpse Into Kathy Ireland–Business Mogul

Of all the world-class contributors to The Power of Professionalism, Kathy Ireland is the person I’m most frequently asked about.  This post is a glimpse into Kathy the business mogul.      

As the ‘presenter’ of Kathy Ireland at a prestigious awards ceremony in Nov 2011 (Kathy was the recipient of the John F Kennedy Laureate award) I stated that Kathy was as “intelligent as she was beautiful”.

The recent article on Kathy that appeared in the Feb 13, 2012 issue of Forbes reinforces that point.

Here’s the article that appeared in Forbes.

Here’s the video that compliments the article.

Enjoy.

Good Meeting? Bad Meeting? Look In The Mirror!

Have you ever been in a meeting when:

***the group’s enthusiasm gets squashed due to a few individuals negativity?

***the group gets stuck in the weeds

***constructive discussion turns into contention as people’s passion spills over

***the group’s energy gets drained upon the announcement of an unpopular decision

***apathy prevails when a less-popular colleague leads the meeting

***a normally rock-solid colleague uncharacteristically belly-flops on a vital presentation

Because negative energy feeds on itself, it’s easy to get sucked into a downward spiral in these types of situations.  Meetings of this sort are painful, often becoming the grist for Dilbert’s mill.  That’s why MS #6 (getting a hold of your emotions) is all-important here.

It’s almost guaranteed that, absent an intervention, the meeting will be a negative experience. For the professional, it’s recovery time. As easy as it might be to join the majority who enjoy whining about the meeting, the professional is unwilling to settle.  The professional asks themselves, “what can I do to help get this meeting back on track?” (consistent with MS #1…’having a bias for results’)

Thus, in responding to the situations above:

***the professional offers a contrarian point of view—one that offers a healthy dose of optimism

***the professional interjects a question or comment that gets the meeting re-focused.

***the professional points out that the meeting has become unproductive and asks the group, “Given  our situation, what do we need to do as professionals to get this meeting back on track?”

***the professional reminds the group of a similar situation years earlier—one in which people’s fears were never realized.

***the professional tactfully points out the group’s dysfunction, reminds them of the big picture, and challenges them to do better.

***the professional who draws the group’s focus to themselves—stalling for time—all the while enabling their flustered colleague to compose themselves and ultimately recover.

To be clear, the professional isn’t being a ‘yes man’, isn’t being pollyannish about issues of substance,  isn’t playing politics.  Rather, they are attempting to make the best out of a sometimes poor situation—in an objective, yet optimistic way. Professionals know that a good meeting—first and foremost–starts with them.

 

 

 

How Mind-Set Three Aids Fledgling Entrepreneurs In Venture Funding

I recently attended a chapter meeting of the Keiretsu Forum.  The Keiretsu Forum provides a medium for young, high-potential companies needing venture funding to meet potential investors.  The companies need the funding to sustain their current operations or, more typically, take their business to the next level.  Obtaining that  funding is critical!  For some, the lack of additional venture funding can mean languishing in mediocrity or worse.

The investors can be a tough bunch…and well they should.  Many of these enterprises must overcome long odds to succeed.  Investors need to be both thoughtful and  prudent. They routinely scrutinize balance sheets, market strategies, and the like. But often their greatest scrutiny is of the entrepreneur’s themselves.  It’s, arguably, the most important factor to get right.

Investors love “coachable entrepreneurs”. Why? Because entrepreneurs who can’t learn ‘on the fly’ will likely fail.  And investors–who typically were once successful entrepreneurs themselves—often become the source of deep insights for the fledgling entrepreneur-leader. Often the investors are the entrepreneur’s best source of advice.

Know-it-all entrepreneurs usually have a short business life-span. The fast and furious start-up experience has too many moving parts –each of which requires specialized expertise–for people not to ask for advice.

On the other hand, entrepreneurs who are constantly asking questions (because they realize there’s so much they don’t know) have a much better shot at flourishing. These are people who have a mind-set that suggests that ‘things get better when they get better’  (mind-set #3).  They plan, execute, evaluate and learn….then repeat the process until they get it right.

When an investor comes to the conclusion that the entrepreneur is uncoachable…it usually signals the beginning of the end.  It doesn’t matter how smart or creative the person is. Without the ‘coachable’ trait the entrepreneur is unlikely to get funded.The investor, who is all-too-aware of how difficult the uncoachable entrepreneur can be,   opts out.  He keeps his financial powder dry, patiently awaiting the next potential deal.

This attribute of personal leadership (being uncoachable) often makes or breaks people very quickly in the entrepreneurial world. Investors simply won’t put up with it.  In the ‘corporate world’ it’s another story.  Uncoachable people in mainstream corporate environments ‘flame out’ much later–at least comparatively.  There’s lots of reasons why…but it doesn’t change the ‘drag’ the person typically has on the organization. Imagine if the corporate ‘uncoachables’ were forced to justify their funding each year by a rough-and-tumble investor.  Boy, how things would change!

Lessons From Baseball’s Playoffs

Baseball’s playoffs are upon us. The teams are all exceptionally talented. With rare exception, it’s tough to differentiate one team from another–at least in terms of their respective capabilities. Often the difference between a winning and losing playoff team are a lot of little things….things that some would dismiss as merely ‘intangible’. But those intangibles often make all the difference…they build commitment by infusing energy into the team.

Consider:

  • the hustling outfielder who makes a brilliant highlight-reel catch, saving an important run….this despite risking a head-long crash into the wall.  (consistent with Mind-Sets 1 & 2)
  • the pitcher who methodically mixes up his arsenal of pitches, playing havoc with the hitter’s most precious commodity (his timing) and guaranteeing himself an early shower due to a high pitch count. (consistent with Mind-Sets 1 & 2)
  • the light-hitting journeyman who consistently and methodically works elite pitchers to full counts—frustrating the pitchers, sapping the life out of their arms, and shortening their all-important ‘innings pitched’—all the while putting his own numbers at risk. (consistent with Mind-Sets 1 & 2)

These, admittedly, are little things. But they are the types of things that help win championships. They are emblematic of the Mind-Sets held by the finest professionals among us. And when these mind-sets are predominate within an organization–the organization wins.

Want your organization to win its own championship? The Mind-Sets are often the secret ingredient!

Changing Your Tune

“Cheryl is the best project manager we have—her integrity is beyond reproach.”  “Suzanne is one of the finest people you’d ever want to work with—she’s simply a star.”
“Charlie was my best boss ever—fair-minded, respectful, insightful–he’s the real deal.”

The people expressing their admiration for these people based their views on years of personal experience working with them. But isn’t it funny how we’re prone to change our tune when things don’t quite go our way:

  • You change your tune about Cheryl after she reassigns you to a lower-profile project.
  • You change your tune about Suzanne after she respectfully, but vehemently, disagrees with you in front of the boss on a key strategic issue.
  • You change your tune about Charlie after he doesn’t hire you for a job you desperately sought.

If these people were good before, they should be good after. Your view shouldn’t change just because an isolated situation doesn’t go your way. Changing your tune in such circumstances makes you look petty…makes you look small…puts you fifty yards south of showing up as a professional would.

When Sacrifice Isn’t

A wide receiver throws a great block, springing his running back teammate around the corner for a 15 yard gain. The announcer in the booth (a former wide receiver himself) sings the wide-out’s praises–finally paying him the ultimate compliment by commending him for how he ‘sacrificed himself’.

Huh?  Last time I checked football was a team sport.  Suggesting that the wide receiver (a ‘skill’ player) was ‘sacrificing himself’ by performing a skill with less prestige (blocking)…or by suggesting that he did it begrudgingly (because he dislikes it)…or by suggesting it’s especially admirable because it’s out of his comfort zone is myopic. It’s a team sport. People are expected to do what’s required to achieve the desired result. He’s not sacrificing himself, he’s attempting to help his team win!

I’ve noticed that managers are sometimes like the announcer…they think that when one of their ‘skill players’ performs a ‘lesser skill’ (something ‘beneath them’) they consider the ‘skill player’ to be making a sacrifice. Regretfully, these managers haven’t caught the vision of mind-set #2 – being a part of something bigger than yourself.

Consider:

  • the busy rainmaker at the law firm who takes their precious time and shares their considerable influence to open an important door for a colleague.
  • the mechanical foreman who takes 20 minutes out their day to provide encouragement and technical advice to a second-year apprentice who has run into a particularly vexing problem.
  • the theme park GM who– one day a month–works ‘the front lines’.
  • the Marketing VP who willingly gives up 5% of their departmental budget to R&D as a result of an unexpected new research breakthrough.

Neither the rainmaker, the foreman, the GM, nor the VP, consider themselves to be ‘sacrificing’. They, like the wide-receiver, realize they’re a part of something bigger than themselves. They’re a part of a team – they do what is required for the team to succeed.

People on winning teams constantly do things that may be out of the norm or that stretches them but they are rarely seen as a ‘sacrifice’. It’s just not how they see things.

Real Artists Ship

Today’s post was inspired by a colleague friend of mine–Sally Helgesen–a gifted author and management consultant.

Sally was reminiscing that her favorite Steve Jobs quote was “ Real Artists Ship”.   I can’t help but relate this quote to Mind-Set #1–Professionals Have A Bias For Results.

By ‘ship’, Jobs means produce…get your stuff to market….get people to try your stuff, weigh-in on it…all the while taking a risk.  Of course, your stuff may well be a product, but also could be a service–doesn’t matter.

Big ideas are fine…partially-designed  products on a drawing board may temporarily inspire…but until you ‘ship’, it’s all theory.  Results begin with ‘shipping’.

Do it and you’ll show the world why you matter–just as Jobs did!

Hiring Professionals

During a recent Soundview webinar that was highlighting The Power of Professionalism, I was asked by a caller “what are some questions one might ask during the new hire process that might reveal someone’s level of professionalism?”  I indicated I’d respond in greater detail in a subsequent blog.  Here goes….

Certainly the question is a good one…and is an important piece of the puzzle in determining whether you’re dealing with someone who would ‘show up’ as a professional would.

When people think ‘professionalism’, they often equate it almost exclusively with character or by how the individual deals with other people. Fair enough…as that’s where so many people fall short on the ‘professionalism test’.  But don’t forget that both competence (does the person know what they’re doing?) and judgment (can the person separate the essential from the trivial?) are critical too.  Chapter four (page 73) in The Power of Professionalism outlines this in great detail.

Also keep in mind your (and others) experience with the candidate during the pre-employment process will naturally tell you a lot about how professional the candidate is.  Did they keep their commitments?  Were they on time? Were they forthcoming to questions they were asked? How personable were they? How respectful to others?  How did they treat people who couldn’t do anything for them?  Were their mind-sets consistent with the organization’s culture?  Were their mind-sets something that might improve the organization’s culture?

Questions for the candidate during the formal interview process that help reveal how they handle disagreements (or interpersonal conflict) are often revealing.  Consider asking questions like:

“Tell me about a time in which you had a disagreement with your boss. How did you handle it?  Specifically, what did you do?”

“Tell me about the person that raised your blood pressure the most in your last organization.  Why did that person raise your blood pressure so? Specifically, what did you do to work effectively with that person?”

“Amongst your own personal values…which ones, when violated, ‘tick you off’ the most?”

”What attributes do you bring to the table that will help make us be an even more professional organization?  How have you demonstrated those attributes in the past? Be specific.”

“What’s worse: to be considered unprofessional or be considered incompetent?  Why?”

These are just a few possible examples.  Lastly, you can consider asking the candidate to rate themselves on a scale of 1 (low) to ten (high) on each of the seven mind-sets.  Before the candidate actually rates themselves, let them know that you’ll be asking their references (preferably their prior bosses) the exact same question.  In other words, you’ll be asking the candidate’s references to rate the candidate on each of the seven mind-sets as well.  You’ll want to see 8’s, 9’s and 10’s come from this process.  Consider 7’s neutral….anything less is bad news. (NOTE: this numeric assessment process is based on the cutting-edge work of Geoff Smart and Randy Street, authors of Who:The  A Method For Hiring. Smart and Street use this same numeric process for assessing the candidate’s capabilities, strengths and weaknesses–not for their level of professionalism, per se.)

Remember, any of us can be fooled by a candidate.  After all, the candidate is going to tend to tell us what they think we want to hear.  That’s why doing reference checks is so important.  It’s just a great reality check….and part of one’s process in the due diligence of hiring someone.  Don’t hire without doing reference checks.

Point being:  don’t base the decision on a new hire exclusively on the results from the interview with the candidate. It’s a data point…hopefully, one of several.  You’ll find more professionals that way.

Naiveté or Professionalism

Professionals know that things get better, when they get better (Mind-Set #3). That means the professional is constantly learning and improving…then learning and improving some more. The process  never stops. That mind-set, in part, is what makes them a professional.

Seth Godin, one of the world’s most respected marketers and the world’s most popular bloggers, recently wrote about this very thing.  Here’s a link to his post:  http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/07/naive-or-professional.html Seth, who received an Advanced Readers Copy of The Power of Professionalism, spoke passionately about how ‘professionals’ were making such a big difference in Kenyan farming practices. When Seth says ‘professionals’ he doesn’t mean a hired gun (think: professor) from a prestigious ag school that comes in to save the day.  He means that the real farmer—you know, the overall clad guy who works the fields from sun up to sun down.

Seth’s biggest take-away? It wasn’t about teaching the farmer the technical stuff.  Rather, it was about the importance of helping cultivate the farmers identity as a professional before teaching the technical stuff. He concluded that a lot of things naturally fall into place once you’re dealing with professionals.

This is precisely what we advocated in The Power of Professionalism. As Seth points out, it isn’t always  easy to help someone become a professional . Yet it is essential for changing the mind-set of (what Seth calls) the naïve—someone who fails to take responsibility and fails to learn.

This is an important lesson for managers and leaders to remember. Before the change initiative, before the new product development, before the reorganization, before the technical stuff…cultivating professionalism in your people will make a challenging process naturally go much better.

Dear ‘Ol Dad

Gary Meneghin, a former client of mine, is now retired and restores classic bicycles in his spare time. His restored bicycles are sought out by Hollywood producers and other like-minded people who appreciate the work of a true artisan. In other words, they recognize excellence when they see it. ‘Passionate guy’ is one way to describe Gary. And he calls ‘em like he sees ‘em….even when it hurts. After reading The Power of Professionalism he had a revelation about his father who had passed away years earlier.Continue reading