The Big Picture of Business – Fine Wine, Aged Cheese and Valuable Antiques: Part II

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StrategyDriven Big Picture of Business ArticleThe successful professional person takes the time and appropriates the resources to develop a Body of Work, rather than just hold jobs. Business is approached as a lifetime track record of accomplishments. This sophisticated and vital category includes:

  • Building a clear, cohesive, operational Vision for the individual.
  • Conceptualizing a specific action plan to be effective on all branches of the tree.
  • Facilitating programs where progress is measured and maintained.
  • Attentiveness to company obligations.
  • Maintaining a well-earned reputation.
  • Contributing much to the economy and communities in which one lives and works.
  • Taking concepts (quality management, ethics, outside-the-box thinking) out of the esoteric and into daily operation.
  • Recommending new ideas and business practices which surpass the niches of others.

The Big Picture provides leadership for progress, rather than following along. The successful person develops and champions the tools to change. The quest is to manage change, rather than falling the victim of it.

Body of Work encompasses leadership development, mentoring and creative ways of re-treading old knowledge to enable executives to master change, rather than feel as they’re victims of it.

Executives’ value to organizations, employees, customers, influential constituencies and ascendancy to management is a direct reflection of mastering the life skills.

Organizations are populated with individuals who possess a plethora of education, skills and talents. Companies are comprised of human beings, who bring their culturalization (or lack of it) to the job. Thus, they set the pace for the tree (company) in question.

Business professionals are the sum of their life experiences. People, like organizations, develop, grow and thrive. If not, they are of little market value in a career.

Core Values Worksheet: Criteria for Basing Your Professional Vision

  1. Core Industry… The Business You’re In.
  2. Rendering the Service… Administering Your Work.
  3. Accountability… Qualities with Which You Work.
  4. Your Relationships-Contributions to Other People… Colleagues, Stakeholders.
  5. Professional-Leadership Development… Your Path to the Future.
  6. Your Contributions to the Organization’s Overall Goals… Your Place in its Big Picture.
  7. Body of Work… Your Accomplishments to Date vs. Anticipated Future Output.

Characteristics of a Top Professional:

  • Understands that careers evolve.
  • Prepares for the unexpected turns and benefit from them, rather than becoming the victim of them.
  • Realizes there are no quick fixes.
  • Finds a truthful blend of perception and reality… with sturdy emphasis upon substance, rather than style.
  • Has grown as a person and as a professional… and quests for more enlightenment.
  • Has succeeded and failed… and has learned from both.
  • Was a good ‘will be,’ taking enough time in early career years to steadily blossom… realizing that ‘fine wine’ status wouldn’t come quickly.
  • Has paid dues… and knows that, as the years go by, one’s dues paying accelerates, rather than decreases.

Rising Stars

Here are some characteristics of young people (rising stars) will make it as professionals and business leaders:

  • Act as though they will one day be management.
  • Think as a manager, not as a worker.
  • Learn and do the things it will take to assume management responsibility.
  • Be mentored by others.
  • Act as a mentor to still others.
  • Don’t expect status overnight.
  • Measure their output and expect to be measured as a profit center to the company.
  • Learn to pace…and be in the chosen career for the longrun.
  • Don’t expect that someone else will be the rescuer or enable you to cut corners in the path toward artificial success.
  • Learn from failures, reframing them as opportunities.
  • Learn to expect, predict, understand and relish success.
  • Behave as a gracious winner.
  • Acquire visionary perception.
  • Study and utilize marketing and business development techniques.
  • Contribute to the bottom line… directly and indirectly.
  • Offer value-added service.
  • Never stop paying dues… and see this continuum as ‘continuous quality improvement.’
  • Study and comprehend the subtleties of life.
  • Never stop learning, growing and doing. In short, never stop!

And, If They Don’t…

Here are characteristics of ‘wanna-be’s’ who do not choose to view their apprenticeships as a mode to grow, viewing it as a burden or unnecessary time. They think the dues paying process is for others, never themselves. Such persons will undoubtedly become stuck in the land of ‘never-gonna-be’ because they:

  • Perennially want the status that others have.
  • Will not go the distance or see their career as a longterm set of challenges.
  • Seek to become a carbon copy of someone else.
  • Fail to do adequate research into their industry and its business challenges.
  • Fail to pay sufficient dues.
  • Want a job, not a career.
  • Have poor people skills… and fail to improve them.
  • Show an unwillingness to learn beyond just the sheepskin on the wall.
  • Fail to show proper respect to their elders.
  • Assume they’re a senior member of the profession when they never mastered being an effective junior, let alone mastering the middle career years.
  • Constantly whine and say they are trying when they are not.
  • Use, abuse and knowingly waste the time of others.
  • Always have an excuse.
  • Skillfully learn to cover tracks and justify excuses.
  • Contend that it’s always someone else’s fault.
  • Maintain that ‘I can do that’ mentality… challenging seasoned professionals.
  • Don’t learn how to be a joiner.
  • Cannot ascend as a leader.
  • Always looking somewhere else, without appreciating the opportunities at hand.

Differences Between a Career and a Job

  • Possession and nurturing of a dream.
  • An interest in pursuing and achieving, versus just doing something.
  • 20 hours a week.
  • Not knowing what a coffee break is.
  • Working smarter hours, not necessarily longer.
  • A career is not something that one retires from or puts on the shelf temporarily.
  • Thinking like the boss, whether or not you are it at this present position.
  • Money is not the dominant driving influence.
  • Training and professional development are rewards… not punishments.
  • The more you know, the more you realize what you don’t know…and proceed to learn.

Truisms of a Career… and Life:

  • Whatever measure you give will be the measure that you get back.
  • There are no free lunches in life.
  • The joy is in the journey, not in the final destination.
  • The best destinations are not pre-determined in the beginning, but they evolve out of circumstances.
  • Circumstances can be strategized, for maximum effectiveness.
  • You gotta give to get.
  • Getting and having are not the same thing.
  • One cannot live entirely through work.
  • One doesn’t just work to live.
  • As an integrated process of life skills, career has its place.
  • A body of work doesn’t just happen. It’s the culmination of a thoughtful, dedicated process… carefully strategized from some point forward.
  • The objective is to begin that strategizing point sooner rather than later.

The Moment of Truth

There comes a point when the pieces fit. One becomes fully actualized and is able to approach their life’s Body of Work. That moment comes after years of trial and error, experiences, insights, successes and failures.

Young people think that they can ‘have it all’ overnight. They don’t know how much they don’t know. Many aren’t willing to pay sufficient dues to ‘get there.’

As one matures, survives, life becomes a giant reflection. We appreciate the journey because we understand it much better. We know where we’ve gone because we know the twists and turns in the road there. Nobody, including ourselves, could have predicted every curve along the way.

However, some basic tenets charted our course. To understand those tenets is to make full value out of the years ahead. The best is usually yet to come.

Your output should be greater than the sum of your inputs. This is accomplished by reviewing the lessons of life, their contexts, their significances, their accountabilities, their shortcomings and their path in charting your future.

Alas, all of us practice Futurism. It is not an esoteric concept. It is a potpourri of where we’ve been, why we’ve done well and what we’re going to do about the lessons learned. That’s the wholistic, common-sense approach to Futurism.

About the Author

Hank Moore has advised 5,000+ client organizations worldwide (including 100 of the Fortune 500, public sector agencies, small businesses and non-profit organizations). He has advised two U.S. Presidents and spoke at five Economic Summits. He guides companies through growth strategies, visioning, strategic planning, executive leadership development, Futurism and Big Picture issues which profoundly affect the business climate. He conducts company evaluations, creates the big ideas and anchors the enterprise to its next tier. The Business Tree™ is his trademarked approach to growing, strengthening and evolving business, while mastering change. To read Hank’s complete biography, click here.

StrategyDriven Communications Forum

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Information flow is the lifeblood of every organization, whether passing verbally, electronically, or via hard copy. The clarity, accuracy, and conciseness of information passed as well as the quality of understanding by the intended receiver(s) determine, in part, the effectiveness of transference by the overall communications network. The fluidity of the system, formal and informal, composed of people, applications, hardware, and paper, serves as the remaining factor in the organization’s communications effectiveness.

While critically important to every organization’s success, variations between individual knowledge, experience, and motivation, creates differences in perception that makes all communications difficult. Similarly, differences between the organization’s computer applications and hardware systems employed challenge the smooth, unaltered passage of data and information.

Focus of the Communications Forum

Materials within the Communications Forum focus on those principles and best practices implemented at leading organizations to ensure consistent, fluid transfer of information between individuals. The following articles, podcasts, documents, and resources cover those topics critical to an exceptional internal and external organizational communications.

Articles

Principles

Best Practices

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor Articles

StrategyDriven Podcasts

StrategyDriven Podcast – Special Edition

Human Performance Management Best Practice 1a – Demonstrative Self Checking

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StrategyDriven Human Performance Management Best Practice ArticleEven the most well-intentioned and dedicated humans are fallible. Therefore, the challenge becomes one of minimizing human error.

While use of the STAR self checking technique can significantly reduce the rate of individual errors (See StrategyDriven Human Performance Management Best Practice 1 – Self Checking), demonstrative engagement in the process further enhances its effectiveness.

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Is Email Taking Over Your Life? 7 ways to get your life back

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During a recent film shoot in Tucson, Arizona for a new Internet project, I woke up at 4am unable to sleep. So as millions do when our sleep is interrupted, I got up and started wading through my cluttered email inbox.

Email consumes enormous amounts of time (some studies indicate that 40% of a typical employee’s day is spent sending and receiving email).

Yet we rarely think about strategies to use it more effectively. In addition, research shows that a significant amount of email is misinterpreted, leading to embarrassment and sometimes being fired. A few simple guidelines can keep you from wasting enormous time, and protect you from humiliation, frustration, and even legal issues. So try out these ideas and see if you can begin to gain some ground in the daily email war:

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About the Author

Phil Cooke is a television producer and media consultant at Cooke Pictures in Burbank, California. His new book is ‘Jolt! Get the Jump on a World That’s Constantly Changing.‘. Find out more at philcooke.com.

The Big Picture of Business – Fine Wine, Aged Cheese and Valuable Antiques: Part I

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StrategyDriven Big Picture of Business ArticleA professional’s career and their collected Body of Work encompass time, energy, resources, perseverance and lots of commitment in order to produce. This holds true for any company, institution and for any person.

The multiple parts of a successful company require care, attention, grooming and benchmarking. All branches must interact and contribute to the base of the organization. The base waters and feeds every part of the tree.

There are three key ingredients in developing deep leadership roots. Long-term success for the company and a healthy career for the individual are attributable to:

  1. The manner in which an organization or professional lives and conducts business on a daily basis. I symbolize this with the analogy Fine Wine.
  2. The evolution, education, enrichment, professional development, training and life experiences that one amasses. This continuum is symbolized by the analogy Aged Cheese.
  3. What of value is really accomplished and left behind. This shows that the business or person actually existed and contributed meaningfully to society, rather than just filling time and space on this earth. This is symbolized by the analogy Valuable Antiques.

Wine

Just because it is a bottled alcoholic beverage doesn’t mean that it contains great wine. In the marketplace, there exist large quantities of fair wine, some bad wine and some good wine. There’s very little great wine.

Defining what is ‘good’ is a matter of judgment, perspective and prejudice. When one assigns the term ‘great,’ then the wine (used as an analogy for one’s daily process of living and working) takes on rare proportions.

The general public is not exposed to the wine vineyard process and, thus, is not familiar with the characteristics of that special reserve:

  • A good crop of grapes from which to draw.
  • Skilled processes in picking and processing the grapes.
  • Knowledge in the making of wine.
  • Care for the industry, the product and the process (a defined Vision).
  • Skilled technicians, who transfer the intent of the wine maker into the bottle.
  • Packaging, distribution and marketing of the product.
  • Reputation of the winery, steadily built and carefully preserved.
  • An informed clientele, with the ability to appreciate and enjoy the wine.
  • The right settings in which to showcase the product.
  • A body of pleasurable and memorable experiences from which customers will build brand loyalty.
  • A reinforced manufacturing process that assures consistency in all areas.
  • Stated, refined strategies for the winery to remain in business, producing a quality product and maintaining clientele appreciation.

Cheese

We all eat and enjoy cheese, in some form. If it’s a brand or flavor we recognize, we think it’s good. When cheese is part of a favorite recipe, then it’s an essential ingredient, though we might not eat it by itself.

The process of creating and curing the cheese (used as an analogy for the process of sharpening and amassing life and professional skills) is both an art and a science.

When it comes to cheese, people generally uphold these constants:

  • Cheese is made from milk.
  • It is manufactured in various places, utilizing various processes.
  • Some sources of cheese making (Switzerland, Wisconsin) are acknowledged for their expertise.
  • Cheese is wrapped and packaged in various forms: sliced, chunks, rounds, barrels.
  • Sometimes, cheese is processed, liquified, smoked, whipped, grated or otherwise reconfigured.
  • Cheese is bought in stores where we regularly trade.
  • It comes from packages that are neatly wrapped and arranged for eye appeal in a clean, well-lit and suitably refrigerated dairy case.
  • Price is often a deciding factor in buying. Most people buy the cheapest brands.
  • The flavor of cheese we buy depends upon the use we have for it…be it as an appetizer, as an ingredient in an ensemble dish, as a salad enhancer or just to munch on.
  • Most often, we mix the cheese with something else.
  • Various styles of cheese are often served at a time, or mixed into recipes.
  • If it tastes good, we consume it again. If not, we will not likely give that flavor or brand another try.
  • If guests like it, we will serve it again. If not, their preferences will influence ours, and, thus, the cheese will not reappear.
  • If it is really good, we refer it to others…sometimes giving it as a gift.
  • The better it appears to be (marketing, wrapping, price, place of purchase) affects our viewpoint on its quality.
  • It is often served with wine, sometimes on antique trays or dishes.

Antiques

Antiques are rare, interesting, fanciful and out of the ordinary. They tend to stimulate affection, admiration and appreciation. They are generally thought of as joyful, artistic and quality-reflecting possessions which are in rare supply.

Everyone owns and buys possessions, including clothing, equipment, furniture and household items. A small percentage of the public views unique versions of these same items as antiques, creating a preferred place for them in their lives.

Antiques are perceived in different manners. The substance of antiques (used as an analogy for what one does-accomplishes with his-her life and organization) is that of the creator, not the seller or the collector.

Among the truisms of antiques are:

  • Their quality and workmanship is set by the creator, with inspiration from diverse sources.
  • Their market value is set by the seller, who often is an appreciator or, at the least, has a profit motive.
  • Their purchase price is set by the buyer, who also believes that getting a bargain enhances the value of the antique.
  • The collector appreciates collectibles as a whole and their own specialties in particular.
  • The collector appreciates those who appreciate.
  • As one attaches value to the unique, one finds value in other things around them.
  • Appreciation for value becomes a quality of life ingredient.
  • Definitions of antiques vary from collector to collector, depending upon interest. To one, it may be a rare painting. To another, it is custom-made furniture. To still another, it may be a Roy Rogers wristwatch, one of Elvis Presley’s scarves or a Partridge Family lunchbox.
  • Seeking out new and unique places to find antiques is great fun, and one seeks to include friends in the quest.
  • The hunt is worth as much or more than the actual find.
  • As friends take up sub-specialties in collecting and preserving, we support their passions and interests.
  • Once one gets acclimated toward antiques, one does not ‘go back.’ As an interest, it becomes a ‘way of life.’
  • The nature of value continually changes and evolves.

Nourishing a Body of Work (Antique)

No company or individual sets out to create an antique (lifelong Body of Work). It just works out that way, depending upon such factors as:

  • The crafting artist, as a person and a professional.
  • The arsenal of tools which the creator has at hand.
  • Combinations of experiences, training and assimilation which were gleaned by the artist.
  • Unexpected twists, turns and situations which the craftor saw and seized upon.
  • Vision for the project, from concept through execution.
  • Sets of standards, with mediocrity not a rung on the ladder.
  • An innate sense of perspective, with the reality that no such thing as perfection exists.
  • Marketplace sensitive considered in the overall project, but not pandored to.
  • Applications for the concept and durability of the product for the long-run.

The phenomena of people liking and admiring antiques, years after their creation, is like a successful wine and cheese party. But, this isn’t why the wine and cheese were made.

There are many forces and outside influences who set standards for quality. Normally, it’s the marketplace. Who should be the arbitrator and benchmark? You should. Your company will. Your family must.

7 Plateaus of Professionalism:

  1. Learning and Growing. Develop resources, skills and talents.
  2. Early Accomplishments. Learn what works and why. Incorporate your own successes into the organization’s portfolio of achievements.
  3. Observe Lack of Professionalism in Others. Commit to sets of standards as to role, job, responsibilities, relationships. Take stands against mediocrity, sloppiness, poor work and low quality. Learn about the culture and mission of organizations.
  4. Commitment to Career. Learn what constitutes excellence, and pursue it for the long-term. Enjoy well earned successes, sharing professional techniques with others.
  5. Seasoning. Refining career with several levels of achievement, honors, recognition. Learn about planning, tactics, organizational development, systems improvement. Active decision maker, able to take risks.
  6. Mentor-Leader-Advocate-Motivator. Finely develop skills in every aspect of the organization, beyond the scope of professional training. Amplify upon philosophies of others. Mentoring, creating and leading have become the primary emphasis for your career.
  7. Beyond the Level of Professional. Never stop paying dues, learning and growing professionally. Develop and share own philosophies. Long-term track record, unlike anything accomplished by any other individual…all contributing toward organizational philosophy, purpose, vision, quality of life, ethics, long-term growth.

Criteria for Assessing and Nurturing Professionalism

Fine Wine

  1. Core Values
    • Ethics
    • Professionalism
    • Quality
  2. Work with Colleagues
    • People Skills
    • Executive-Leadership Abilities
    • Collaborative Team Experience
    • References

Aged Cheese

  1. Expertise
    • Talents, Skills
    • Education and Training
    • Resume
    • Industries Served
  2. Business
    • Marketplace Understanding
    • Business Savvy

Valuable Antiques

  1. Track Record, Experience
    • Accomplishments
    • Case Studies
    • Professional Reputation
  2. Body of Knowledge
    • Original Ideas, Concepts
    • Self-Created Expertise
    • Published Materials
  3. Vision
    • Uniqueness
    • Creativity
    • Value-Added Contributions
    • Substance

Continue to part 2…

About the Author

Hank Moore has advised 5,000+ client organizations worldwide (including 100 of the Fortune 500, public sector agencies, small businesses and non-profit organizations). He has advised two U.S. Presidents and spoke at five Economic Summits. He guides companies through growth strategies, visioning, strategic planning, executive leadership development, Futurism and Big Picture issues which profoundly affect the business climate. He conducts company evaluations, creates the big ideas and anchors the enterprise to its next tier. The Business Tree™ is his trademarked approach to growing, strengthening and evolving business, while mastering change. To read Hank’s complete biography, click here.