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Organizational Development

Jul 12

Am I The Only One?

By Organizational Development, Personal Development

Are you the only pink flamingo in your work group? My friend Pete retired about a month ago from a thirty-five year career as a “wholesaler” in the financial services industry. He enjoyed his work, his colleagues, and most of all the end users of his offering – the financial advisors he served. His vocation offered a great living for he and his family and is now providing a very comfortable retirement life-style. I answered a phone call from him last week with a typical “hello”. My greeting was countered by hearty laughter on his end of the line, followed by,…

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Oct 06

Heroes Among Us – The 1000 Year Flood

By Organizational Development, Personal Development No Comments

It’s been heartwarming and humbling for me to witness the heroism of friends, neighbors and total strangers as a frontline participant to what many are referring to as the “The 1000 Year Flood”. To stand beside a neighbor that I barely know and hear him talk about rescuing two other neighbors neither he nor I knew, is surreal (see attached video).  These poor souls I’m referring to were clinging for their lives to the entrance of our subdivision gate after a surge from a local dam break released millions of gallons of water down-stream, immediately creating whitewater rapids that swept through parts of…

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Sep 23

How to Tell if You’re For Real

By Book Briefs, Organizational Development

What do Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, BMW, Zippo, Harley Davidson, and LL Bean have in common? They are all “authentic brands” says Michael Beverland, professor of marketing at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia, a brand marketing researcher and author of the book Building Brand Authenticity – 7 Habits of Iconic Brands.  So just what makes a brand authentic? Beverland says authenticity is synonymous with truth.  One way tell if a brand is truthful or not is to look at the marketing efforts of a company.  Traditional marketers want to control the consumer with a top down approach.  Beverland says they try to manage consumers’…

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Sep 15

How To Improve Your Business IQ By Watching TV

By Organizational Development No Comments

Want to improve your business practice, increase revenues and widen margins? Then watch more TV. Not just anything on TV, specifically The Profit. The Profit falls on a continuum somewhere between a historical reenactment and a Harvard Business School Case Study. For those of us who prefer a text book with a story line, this 1-hour show that airs on CNBC is a must. Its great viewing for the business leader of a large corporation, all the way down to the individual that’s just leading a small mom and pop enterprise. The show’s star is Marcus Lemonis. In each episode,…

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Sep 02

Book Brief: “Zero to One”

By Book Briefs, Organizational Development

This week’s “Book Brief” of “Zero to One” highlights the unconventional thoughts of Peter Thiel, the 47 year old entrepreneur, venture capitalist and hedge fund manager.  Peter and his friends Max Levchin and Elon Musk founded PayPal, and Thiel was the first outside investor in Facebook in 2004, one of his many ventures that has helped him amass over $2 billion in net worth. Who should read this book:  Anyone starting a business or anyone who is wanting to take their business to the next level. But read the book only if you’re interested in going from “Zero to One”….

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Aug 06

Book Brief: “The Secret of Teams”

By Book Briefs, Organizational Development

In my former role as a Director of a wealth management services group for Merrill Lynch, I had the opportunity to help build and work along side financial advisor teams.  This position gave me the unique opportunity to see what made the best teams gel and what made the wannabes come up short.  What I saw in the best advisor teams is what Mark Miller, Vice President of Training and Development at Chick-fil-A, outlines in “The Secret of Teams”. Miller started researching top performing teams over twenty years ago and he shares the lessons he learned in this book.  He…

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Jul 28

The Dyslexic Billionaire

By Organizational Development, Personal Development No Comments

Last week Sir Richard Branson, English businessman and investor, turned the ripe old age of sixty-five.  Self-described as adventurous, curious and fun-loving, the terms “ripe” and “old” are not in his vocabulary.  As you’ll notice in the picture below, he’s still exercising his “brand”, the infectious smile of his youth. Is he’s smiling because he’s worth $4.9 billion?  Prior to yesterday, I would have believed the money had a lot to do with it.  But I’ve changed my mind since having the opportunity to see him in person this week be interviewed by Soledad O’Brien, former CNN anchor.  I believe he’s smiling…

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Jul 20

Want to Accomplish More?…Then Do Less!

By Organizational Development, Personal Development

“ODWOYCD”….  No, this is not Swahili nor a typo.  This string of alphabets represents the best advice I’ve ever received when it comes to playing to my strengths as a leader.  It stands for “Only Do What Only You Can Do.” One of my favorite leaders, Andy Stanley, shared this concept in a presentation at the Catalyst West 2010 Conference.  In this 3 minute and 15 second video clip you’ll hear about the 2 best kept secrets of leadership that could take you to a whole new level in your career and you’re effectiveness: “The 2 Best Kept Secrets Of…

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Jul 15

Book Brief: “Thinking Fast And Slow”

By Book Briefs, Organizational Development, Personal Development

If Malcolm Gladwell’s one word is “blink”, then Daniel Kahneman’s one word is “think”.  In “Thinking Fast and Slow”, Kahneman, a professor emeritus at Princeton University and the only non-economist to win The Nobel Peace Prize in Economics, explains how our mind works “fast and slow,” and how our “two selves” shape our viewpoint.  This book combines psychology and economics and is consistently on the New York Times Bestseller list in the business category, garnishing rave reviews far and wide. Kahneman’s aim for the book?  “To improve the ability to identify and understand error of judgment and choice, in others and eventually in ourselves, by providing a rich and more precise language…

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Jul 02

How To Get a 240% Boost in Performance-Related Business Outcomes

By Organizational Development

Imagine boarding a Boeing 707 in Los Angeles with your final destination being Chicago, when midway into your flight, somewhere over Colorado, you hear music that sounds like a live band coming from the cockpit.  You get up from your seat and walk toward the front of the plane to get a better perspective.  You open the cockpit door only to find the captain engaging his trumpet skills with a jazz ensemble, when he should have been engaged in flying the plane.  Perhaps you remember this absurd scene that’s featured in the 1980, slapstick motion picture, “Airplane”. While this scene…

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