Are You Prepared for Crisis?

All of us at some point in life go through crisis, and our businesses are no different: some times it is an identity crisis and you have to rebrand, some times a culture crisis and you have to rethink and adjust, some times it is a financial crisis, and you have to re strategize, innovate, find funds, make it profitable again.

Fact is, very few of us really prepare for crisis – we hope that they don’t happen and when they do (we are not surprised, just in denial) we are not ready, we do not have a game plan, don’t know what to do.

It is much easier to go through a crisis, or to get out of it if you prepared yourself even for the unknown.

I am not saying that you will know exactly what to do every time you face crisis – otherwise you would probably be able to avoid them – but if you have your game plan, you can adjust it according to the actual core of the crisis, with the resources you have available or can make available at the time.

Here are some insights to prepare and get to the other side of the crisis quickly and stronger:

1-    Identify the core of the crisis – some times the real reason for the crisis is not what it immediately appears. Make sure to be able to know all the whys and hows.

2-    Keep control: if you are not able to keep control when facing crisis, you might make it even stronger: good morale and balance will help all your team go through it.

3-    Communicate: your team deserves to know what is going on. When you convey the reasons for the crisis and your game plan right after, you will make your employees feel more confident and focused to work towards the solution.

4-    Brainstorm: even if you have a game plan, it is important to brainstorm with your team, first because they might have insights, see the crisis with different eyes, and second because they will feel included and valued, and again, morale will help keep their focus and balance.

5-    Don’t rush to a permanent solution: some times you need to patch the holes before rebuilding the whole wall. Also, using some quick temporary fixes, and celebrating the small achievements trigger the perception of progress, of giving a step in the right direction.

6-    Be positive: attitude is everything, or if it is not, is definitely contagious, and keeping the spirit up will only help to see the glass half full.

7-    Keep a routine: you might have to do some “emergency fixes”, to change gears, to consider different angles, but you should still keep your teams’ routine – it will give them the perception of normality and security. Everyone knows the company is in crisis, but it is still there and can snap out of it – it is amazing what a motivated, committed and loyal team can do for your company.

8-    Show your loyalty: your team needs to know that despite the crisis, you are there for them and with them – you will not be the captain abandoning the ship!

9-    Can’t find your way of the crisis (despite of all the prep plan you had)? Seek external help, bring an expert (and let your team know about your new plans).

10- Do not let your internal crisis reflect on your customers: they were the core of your business and you will need them during and after the transition.  Your customers should always be untouchable.

Crisis come and go and are basically part of the business life. Prepare for it, be positive about the process and turn crisis into opportunities.

Rahm Emanuel, the 55^th Mayor of Chicago once said: “You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before”.

And that is so very true: adversity can create lots of opportunities, challenges can bring the best in every person and positive attitude can trigger positive results.

 

Rewarding Your Employees Without Breaking the Bank

In today’s economy, more than ever it is vital for the success of your company that you spot, hire, develop, motivate and keep the best people, the amazing employees. It is simply critical.

And it is sure not easy. But let’s say that after a lot of time and work, you found competent, capable, motivated, committed and passionate people.

You hired them, developed and coached them. They are just great. They are the difference between your company’s success and failure. And when everything seems perfect you get the bad news: they are leaving you. Yep, leaving. Gone. That’s it. And you do not have a clue why…

One of the points that I always like to highlight is: a great employee wants and NEEDS to be valued. Period. It is almost as important than the paycheck coming every two weeks.

They obviously want the recognition (yes, they do like the public recognition too), the “thank you”, their name on the wall as the “top performer of the month”. They want to feel and know that you are looking at their contribution and that you are loudly letting everyone in the company know too.

If you value your employee you most definitely have to show it. And listen to this: it is not all about money.

There are, however, perks that will not clean your bank account and will make them feel rewarded for their dedication, commitment and loyalty. For their efforts and mainly, for the amazing results that they brought to your company.

When talking to several direct reports during the last 3 years, here are some ideas that I gathered (coming straight from the employees):

1-    Early dismissal Friday: I know it does not seem much, but such a small thing can make them so happy! Getting home early, having the chance to pick up the kids at school, or simply do nothing at home. Yes, they really like it.

2-    Mani & Pedi: OMG, the girls really like this one. Once, because we were top of sales for the quarter, one of the companies I have worked for decided rewarding us for that, so we had a mani-pedi party. The company made a deal with a local nail place and they closed later on a Sunday, so the 12 women in my division could all have their mani-pedi (can’t forget that there was so really good wine too…)

3-    Catered breakfast or lunch: it is just 30 minutes that you are going to compromise so you can have your top performers together, and it is as simple as having a great fruit-coffee-muffins or an informal salad-sandwich-dessert time. But it is recognition: everyone wished they could be there…

4-    Just to keep a fun environment: board games in the break room! Once I have heard this idea from an executive and loved it: he put a square table in the center of his break room with a 2000 piece puzzle. Each one that would take a break, would try to fit one or two pieces. When they finished, they would mount it in a frame and hang on the wall. Everyone loved it!

5-    Weekend getaway: no, it does not need to be an expensive trip to a resort in Bora-Bora. Lots of travel companies have amazing deals for weekends. Or, work directly with a small hotel or charming cottage at the beach. And you can make it fun and engaging: make your employees vote for the “Superstar of the quarter”- they will love to receive a prize that was actually awarded by peers.

And so much more: bring a yoga instructor once a week, give movie tickets to the best performer of the week, give them the VIP parking space for a month, free soda and coffee every day, have a nap room, a craft room, a “bring your dog” day. Use your creativity and most importantly, ask them what they would like, what would matter to them.

By rewarding your great employees and also promoting a culture of personal value you will motivate, engage and build loyalty among your employees. You will cultivate a healthy and happy relationship with people to will work not only for their success, but for your company’s as well.

10 Effective Ways to Kill Your Employees’ Enthusiasm

I frequently have conversations with managers/leaders about employee motivation and engagement, and how to make them “own the projects”, develop that flame, that desire to succeed. And as frequently I hear how difficult of a task that is.

Being in management for over 15 years, I can say that it might take a good strategy and quite a bit of effort to get to know your employees individually and lead them to be good and motivated performers, but it takes very little effort to kill their enthusiasm.

Here are some of the very frequent and easy ways that managers/leaders can kill their employees’ enthusiasm and make sure that they become mediocre average performers: 

1-   Tell them they are “too creative”: sounds surprising, but I experienced this myself. I worked for a  corporation once and from day one decided that I wanted to make a difference, that I wanted to give very relevant contribution in any way I could: I have always delivered all my projects on time, took some of the work home so I could do the visual piece of the project using my Mac (which I just feel more comfortable with and am more familiar with the tools), bought a cable which could connect my iPad to the large screen in the conference room and presented ideas that would not only improve the customer experience and loyalty and therefore increase revenue, but would save a significant amount of money for the company: the ideas were great, the data was solid. Seemed a good presentation. When I asked for feedback, I heard from one of the executives that I was “too creative” and my ideas too innovative. I had never thought of that as a bad thing, but it is needless to say that it was a very effective way to kill my enthusiasm.

2-   Steal their ideas: unfortunately, more usual than we think…you go to your boss with that fabulous idea, show her/him the details and feel that you even deserve a promotion for that! And when your boss takes the idea to the next level…he/she just forgets to mention the idea was yours…

3-   Do never reward them for going the extra mile: Maria does her job. She does it well. She gets an ok review. Gets her paycheck and enjoys her life out of work. Sounds like the average employee, right? But you want to be different, so you put a lot of effort in finding a way to wow your customer, to amaze your boss. You go the extra mile. What do you get? NOTHING! Not even a simple acknowledgement. Way to go, boss, on killing the enthusiasm again…

4-   Micromanage them: one of the traits of my personality that I am most proud of is responsibility. I am committed, responsible, I always do my best and deliver my projects on time. It is a personal thing – it feels good to be responsible, to know that other people trust me to do things well and on time. And even though my performance is pristine (according to my boss feedback), my manager decides to breath on my neck, to suffocate me and I cannot give a step forward without communicating it to her/him. Micromanaging is lack of trust, insecurity and need to use authority. Another great way to kill someone’s enthusiasm…

5-   Forget they have a personal life: huh? Personal life? But they work here, they work for ME, they must be available 24/7. Boo. Employees want and need to have a personal life. And you know what? They want their leaders, managers, bosses to know it.

6-   Manipulate reviews: many corporations will use monthly, quarterly and annual reviews to evaluate employees’ performances and rewards, such as bonuses and pay raises. Another really effective way to kill your employees’ enthusiasm is “manipulating these reviews”: I remember one of my jobs where I really didn’t care for the reviews because I had to “self evaluate” also. Turns out that I was much harder on myself than my boss was: I had outstanding monthly reviews. I was expecting to be rewarded for my efforts and great performance. Well, somehow my annual review was “meets expectations”…after all outstanding and above expectations monthly reviews…hmmm…could it be more effective to kill my enthusiasm? Who to blame? I don’t know…it is really confidential, isn’t it?

7-   Never smile. I believe in a positive, happy work environment. Mainly when you have to work facing customers (internal or external – that would not apply if you work alone in a cavern, I guess…). To me it is very natural to greet people when you see them (many times even if I don’t really know them), to smile, to lead by example – how can we expect our associates to smile to the customers if we never smile to them? Well, guess what – once I saw myself in a pretty hostile environment and that bothered me a lot. I spoke to the director of the division defending my point that I thought it was really odd to expect our associates to have a type of behavior with our customers that we did not have with them. And I heard: “you do not expect me to say good morning every day, do you?”. Heck yes!

8-   Make it boring! Do not promote any fun in your workplace. Never laugh, never let people talk, never allow them to take a social break. And kill their enthusiasm once for all!

9-   Be impersonal: do you know anything about your employees’ lives? (some managers would surprise me by only knowing their names…). It is important to – people want to know they matter. They want you to ask about their son’s graduation, or the sick dog, or even their vacation trip.

10-   Always assign the small projects. That is a killer. If you cannot trust them to work on an important project, why have you hired them?

These are only some, from the top of my head. Bottom line – stop concerning and focusing exclusively on how to motivate them – employees give you a million chances and clues on how to motivate each one individually – you just have to be attentive and open for the tips. Just stop killing their enthusiasm!

 

Can your team manage your customers’ frustrations?

We all want to please our customers and be their first choice always: we coach our teams on building rapport, getting to know them individually, tailoring our message to their specific needs, finding the right product/service to fulfill their needs, going the extra mile to make them feel special. And even doing all this, some times, it does not go exactly the way we expect and our customer comes back with an issue, lots of frustration and disappointment.

That might be (unfortunately) more common that we realize and we feel the need to coach our associates and peers to give first time resolution – we don’t really want (or need) our customer to come 3 times with the same issue because we were not able to resolve it.The fact is that it might not be so easy to solve the issue in the first attempt and it might take more effort that some of us were willing to make. And that is the beginning of our real problem.

In the perfect world all of our associates would absolutely love their jobs and be committed to be extraordinary, and our customers would be the happiest ever!

Well, we do not live in the perfect world, so we have to coach, to help our associates to promote that outstanding customer experience so we can get ahead of our competition and captivate a very loyal clientele.

Understanding the process (the customer + the issue) can position your team in a vantage point and allow them to resolve the issue once for all and manage your customers frustrations successfully. What your associates should master:

1- Listen to your customer: when customers comes back with an issue, they usually are already upset, unhappy and some quite fired up. They might even feel hurt because they trusted you (and your company) to sell them the right product or to provide them an effective service and somehow you failed – or at least that’s how they see it. It is almost as if you have to help them to start a “healing” process by fixing the matter, and that starts with talking, conveying their frustration and disappointment, venting. No matter how you call it, they have to speak up. And you must listen: at this point, it is not a discussion (because it will become an argument), you are not touching basis or giving your opinion. You must listen. And that will, not only provide certain relief to the customers by making them feel that you care, but will give you the chance to understand the actual cause of the frustration and disappointment – you will realize that many the customers might not really know what did upset them so much…, and if you understand them, your chances of coming up with the solution are much higher.

2- Be sympathetic and genuinely caring. When the customers feel that you really care and is willing to help them, they usually put their guard down, lower that wall that they built between the two of you. Give them signs of your sympathy: say things that comfort them (as simple as “I understand why you feel upset and will do everything in my power to solve it”), nod showing that you agree with one point or another, try to “relate” to the frustration they are feeling. No, I am not saying that you have to do whatever they want, but to show them that you are willing to try all you can.

3- Don’t be confrontational. That never really works. Even if you do not agree with them or cannot give them all they want, go the extra mile to do the best you can. Never cut them when they are speaking or be loud or make faces that show disbelief in what they are saying.

4- Ask them what they expect you to do, or how they expect you to solve the issue – some times they do not expect anything miraculous and you can solve it quite easily. If, on the other hand they expect a miracle, you can calmly explain why you cannot  do it that way and give them an alternative.

5- Prepare to be creative and accommodating. It sounds difficult to put these two things together but with a little bit of effort, you might surprise yourself! When you understand the customers’ frustrations it is easier to accommodate their needs: the cake for tonight’s party won’t be ready at the time you promised to your customer? They just need to have the cake there…deliver it! the decor came in the wrong color? Offer to add some details around the party so it will look nice!

6- Make sure you know all your possibilities and come up with plan B and C…just in case plan A does not work.

7- Follow up and thank the customer: the vast majority of times, we solve the problem the best way we can and that’s it – we consider our jobs done. Prove that you really want them as customers and follow-up: send them a thank you card and tell them how grateful you are because they were so understanding; if the issue was more serious, add a gift card to your thank you note and invite them to come back. Give them a call a few days after and ask if the solution was effective, if it is working out. Ask for feedback – you want to know from them how to be better next time!

I do not know if “the customer is always right”, but all customers deserve to get what they were promised, to have a great experience and to feel valued: that is the reason why they trust you, why they choose you and ultimately the reason why they will come back.

Are we developing thinkers or dummies?

When I start talking about leadership, my first always is: “ are leaders born or made”?

I have gone back and forth with different answers, but over the years, I believe I came to the conclusion that some of leadership skills are innate, however, some of them can be taught and developed.

I remember that in my very early years at school I could not really figure out why I was always chosen to be the captain of the team, whether by the coach, teacher or my peers. Some times I thought it was because I was probably taller than the majority of the girls, some times because I was stronger, some times I even felt smarter…and that one came when I played sports with the boys (which were naturally taller and stronger than me) and yet was chosen to be the captain not that at the time it really mattered… I was chosen and that was awesome!

I have always enjoyed the fact that I had to come up with strategies, assign the right role to each team member, assign tasks and keep them accountable to the team, and even somehow had to “campaign” so we would have people cheering for our team!

Thinking back to that time, I believe some of the skills innate to me were: team building – I have always been a good listener and good motivator, and that alone made players want to be in my team; confidence – my team would trust my strategies; personable – even for a kid, leadership can go to your head, and I did not let that happen – I tried to praise everyone, hug the team, celebrate the victories, and even share some tears once in a while…

I did have though, at that time, an unforgettable coach: one that took the time to know me deeply, identified my strengths and opportunities, encouraged me to think and find my own solutions, to develop my own “team management strategies”, and relationship skills – someone that allowed me to have initiative, calculate risks, be conservative enough to keep everyone’s ground, but bold enough to bring innovative tactics and ideas.

And then came the “real world” and my question is: ‘ are we, as leaders, developing thinkers or dummies”?

Are we identifying the innate leadership skills in our team members and developing them to be thinkers? Or are we simply telling them what to do and making them simply copy solutions and behaviors?

Everyone is not the same, do not learn the same way or at the same speed. That said, I believe that we have to be able to individualize our coaching to each of our team members: not all of them will be independent, confident and innovative. Not all of them will have initiative or analytical thinking. But if we think about it…those that do not have these skills, are probably not tailored to be leaders. Absolutely nothing wrong with that, we should still develop them, however for a different role.

I recruited some really strong teams during my career and have always enjoyed developing them for different roles, helping them to find their path to a role which they could be really successful in, that they were passionate about.

Once I had a very diverse team, and diverse I mean, really diverse: they were from different parts of the world, coming from different backgrounds, grew up in different cultures and even spoke different languages, what meant very different accents. But what could be challenging, became one of the richest experiences of my life. I had to understand them individually, yet assess them as a team. I had to develop them separately, yet lead the team work that led to business success.

I remember once, one of the potential leaders was encharged of ordering supplies – put into the system, make sure the supply list was complete and accurate, and fit it into budget. It was my day off and this associate got lost somewhere in time and could not do it. She called me asking to walk her through the process. I could have done that, it would not take 10 minutes. However, I would be training her to depend on me all the time and to have the answer ready for her. Instead, I simply told her where to research. It probably took her longer to complete the task than if I had just given her the steps, but she understood that to be a leader, she will have to look for resources, to search for answers and do not depend on someone else to complete her assignments. As I said before, I could develop the 3 of the potential leaders the same way, but guess what? They are all successful leaders nowadays. And I am very proud of them.

My point is, we should develop leaders to think, not to copy. Yes, leaders come with an innate set of skills, but yes, we can develop them into not only leaders, but great leaders. We can coach them on how to use the innate skills.

And if we are great leaders, we will develop the non-leaders into different but very successful roles. No matter what, I believe in developing thinkers!

 

RBF – “New” Capital Gladiator

In today’s investment arena, finding an investor for your start up or growing business is much like the gladiators in arenas of old; only this time you are the poor, inexperienced sap who is “fed” to the gladiators much to the delight of the crowd.  Your chances of success are minimal, the outcome all but certain and the bloodbath that will soon stain the ground will be widespread and deep.

The traditional gladiators (banks, venture capital, angel investment vehicles, private placements, etc.) have their pick of the litter and are no longer taking risks based on potential; instead, they want sure opportunities with proven track records or enough capital of their own to make such an investment safer and more secure.  When they do take a risk, they do so with the intent of taking over and/or becoming majority partner in a business whose idea they did not invent.

There is a solution – a little known player that has been around, but is just gaining prominence as a “savior” of sorts for businesses that cannot qualify for more traditional forms of investment; enter Revenue Based Finance (RBF) – the “New” Capital Gladiator.

RBF will advance money to a company in exchange for an assigned percentage of the revenues of that company at a pre-set percentage over a defined term.   Many businesses are suitable for RBF. This is especially true of start-ups, companies in need of a turnaround, businesses based on intangible or intellectual property or for companies that, for whatever reason, cannot issue traditional equity, take on debt or need project specific financing.  Qualifying for RBF does not rely on the credit of the business or its officers, nor is dependent on a valuation of the business as with a traditional placement of equity. Rather, RBF relies on the quality of historic, current or projected revenues. This means that the communication and accuracy of your plan and projections is paramount to successfully accessing RBF.  Having a separate business definition focused on RBF will help investors complete their due diligence and make the right decision.  If you do not have experience with creating such a tailored business definition, seek out those with experience in the arena to help develop the documentation; this will pay for itself many times over!

Traditionally, Oil & Gas, Motion Pictures and the Music industries have used RBF. However, when the credit markets collapsed and with the recent advent of more restrictive underwriting requirements for credit, the RBF market has taken up its position at the top of the gladiatorial ranks, providing what the other combatants can’t or won’t; a potential solution that may provide victory and glory instead of defeat and failure upon the sands of the business arena.

RBF providers include Angel Investors, private equity funds dedicated to providing revenue based finance and some trade partners.  The royalty rate can vary from a few points to a blanket royalty of near 100%. The term will vary depending on the royalty rate and total required return; returns can range from 12% to 25% generally. It is more expensive than bank debt but less expensive than venture capital.  The key is to pick the RBF providers that most closely match your business characteristics.

RBF Instruments are not traditionally debt; however some providers require a standby promissory note which is an underlying note executed in case the revenues to repay the investment do not materialize or are not sufficient to meet the royalty payments as anticipated and agreed. Some providers offer equity revenue based finance which does not have a note or contingent liability to mitigate the investment risks. Typically, an interest in the revenues of the company is evidenced by a Revenue Royalty Certificate and/or a Royalty Agreement.  In addition to the traditional due diligence conducted by all investment groups, RBF providers will specifically focus on the accuracy of revenues and anticipated margins before proposing potential terms and accepting a new business for funding.

Royalties are designed to fit within the margins of the business and will vary accordingly. This is a key component of RBF as the success of the business becomes the vehicle for the investor to make money.  In other words, if RBF hamstrings the business, it will be unable to operate and everyone will lose, so it benefits RBF investors to help ensure business objectives are met/exceeded and to not take a greater percentage of ongoing business revenue than can be realistically absorbed.

So, instead of turning tail and leaving the arena completely or facing the gladiatorial ranks with little more than your fists and some cunning, why not try focusing on developing a business model that will allow yourself to align with an RBF provider; they just might equip your business with what it needs to fight and win, attaining lasting glory on the sands of the Business Arena.

By:

Dave Seligsohn

A2O Consulting LLC, founder and CEO

member firm of XSELLIX.NET LLC.

Win-win outcomes: the basics of negotiation

One of the best professional decisions that I made was to get certified as a mediator, not only because I believe people should really try to exhaust their options before getting into any kind of litigation, but because it helped me to learn a lot about negotiation.

Negotiation is part of our daily lives, it is part of relationships – personal or professional, it is part of human nature.

We learn to negotiate early in life: you say it is time for bed, your kid asks for “10 more minutes”, and you settle on 5…that’s negotiation ( really simple, right? Don’t raise your hopes too high…). Something that your kid cannot even define, but is already doing.

And we will negotiate with them all the time, about chores, homework, food, video games…it is endless. But…really important, because we will negotiate for the rest of our lives, so, the sooner we all (including our kids) learn to negotiate for win-win situations, the most we can avoid serious conflicts and losses.

Don’t take make wrong – a good dose of conflict is absolutely positive, but as important is to learn that we can try to get into agreements, that we can work towards outcomes that make both sides happy, or at least outcomes that are easily acceptable and tolerable for both sides.

It is no different when we are talking about jobs colleagues and workplace. Disagreement, difference on opinions, cultures and values, difference in personalities and goals, all of it will make us face situations where we have to negotiate.

So how do we get to “win-win” outcomes?

In my experience, some basics of negotiation are:

1- Be certain that what you are trying to negotiate is actually negotiable – in many situations, there might be some points that are simply not negotiable, at least for one of the parties. For example, if one steals something from the company and the company even got him on video, that will sure get the person fired: stealing is a non-negotiable term.

2- Know what your counterpart wants. Understand the implications of what he wants: financial, emotional, intellectual. All of it. When you do, you can anticipate objections and obstacles and propose options.

3- Be honest on which points of the negotiation you can compromise: which points can be managed if you get half way, or if you even give in (on that one thing)? Not all the points that we are negotiating are equally important, and knowing the ones which you can be more flexible about will make it easier to show to the other side that you are willing to compromise.

4- Do not narrow your options from the beginning: negotiation is about options, about finding solutions that can satisfy the needs of both parties. One might think he has the best solution ever, but the other might consider it inappropriate. When you cross several options, you might find one that fits more easily the needs of the parties. If you limit the options right at the beginning you limit also the possibilities of agreement.

5- It is not all about the law. Of course the law is a huge factor and it is important to keep it in the very bottom of the discussion, however, you are trying to get to an agreement with the other party, we are trying for that “win-win” situation. As long as your options are not illegal or unethical, bring them to the table. When not considering exclusively the law, the parties can come with some creative solutions that might lead them to a deal.

6- Treat the other party as you would like to be treated: if you want him to be open to your ideas, be open to his; if you want him to listen to you, start by listening to him. If you want him to show flexibility, be flexible yourself.

7- Create a neutral zone for the negotiation: first, find a neutral place, where none of the parties might feel any kind of pressure or intimidation. Then, create a peaceful and open environment, where both parties feel comfortable expressing their ideas, and saying “no” to the ones they do not believe in. For example: sitting across from one another might naturally create the perfect “tug-of-war” scenario – it might be better to sit side by side, or by the corner of the table.

8- Separate the issue from the person: make sure that you are discussing, pondering and looking solutions for situations, not for the person involved. When any of the parties feel “personally attacked” they put themselves in a very defensive position and negotiation becomes much harder.

9- Commit and honor it. If you are able to commit on anything, honor your promises. Make sure that you lay out the deal based on what you can do.

10- Say no if you need to. Do not settle for a deal that you do not believe can work, that will not be good for you, that will not make you feel like you have won something with it. If you don’t believe, say no. And bring different ideas to the table. Be creative, open and collaborative, but settle for a solution you believe in. And remember, the other party can and might do the same.

Negotiation is not always easy and no one is saying that if you do all the above, you will guarantee 100% of “win-win” outcomes.

You might need to negotiate with your peers, your supervisor, employee, vendor or customer. Negotiation will come in different forms and shapes. Preparing for the negotiation and understanding the benefit of having the “win-win” outcome can however increase the loyalty of your counterpart, since they do not feel that all you want is to take advantage of them. Negotiating win-win situation also helps your reputation which will reflect on new relationships and deals to come.

Do you label your employees?

I have a silly interest in people watching: I like to see how they dress, how they behave, what is unique in them, their gestures and interactions.

At the end I always catch myself thinking if I could change something so they would look more professional, or teach them some manners so they would speak softer and the whole subway station would not know about “how mad they are with the cable company”, or even tell them to give their seat to the elderly woman that is standing just beside them and can barely hold herself while the subway crowd rushes in and out in each station.

When we observe people we immediately judge them based on how they look, speak, move, and then… and stick a label on them.

Going a little deeper on this thought, I remember several years ago, when one of my friends was simply devastated after talking to our high school counselor.

She was an average “C student” and did not really care about school, however, she had dreams for herself, she wanted to become a business advisor one day.

In talking to the counselor, she heard that she’d be better trying to be a greeter somewhere (no offense to the profession) because she did not have what it took to go to college (yeah…the counselor even tried to make it sound better by acknowledging her “people skills”).

On a different case, Walt Disney was told he was not creative enough to make a career in commercial art, and Shaquille O’Neal was told (at 13) that he was “too big, too slow and too clumsy” to pursue his dream of playing basketball.

Those are excellent examples of how people can be “labeled” by others and end up giving up before even trying to go after what they really want and love. The ones that succeed, do so because they are strong enough to change their labels.

It is so common that it happens, that many times, we end up labeling ourselves!

We develop the thought that we cannot be successful because we are not competent enough, because we stop believing that “WE CAN DO IT”.

Now…are we labeling our employees? Or are we making sure that we motivate them to grow?

Are we holding them back because they are too quiet or too loud; too fast or too slow, because they blend too much or stand out too much?

What kind of opportunities are we giving our employees to show us what they can really do, how they can really perform?

Here are some takes from my experience:

1-  Do not judge appearances: yes, at some degree one’s wardrobe reflects one’s personality, however there are other factors that make one dress in a way or another such as confidence, interest, budget.  Instead you can observe if one follows dress code – that will tell you that they accept rules and can adapt to business needs.

2-  Don’t’ confuse kindness for weakness: some people are just naturally kind and caring and that does not mean that they are weak, or not able to perform, be firm and be held accountable ( or on a different not, hold others accountable).

3-  Do not take silence for ignorance: if one does not speak out during meetings it does not necessarily mean that they do not have knowledge of the subject. It might only mean that one is shy.

4-  Snapping might be a sign that you are managing them way to close (super micro managing), breathing down their neck…

5-   Be attentive for cultural differences: gestures, words, expressions might shy away some of your employees that are from other parts of the world. For example: the sign made with “circle made with the indicator finger and thumb” that is interpreted in the US as “ok sign”, in Venezuela, giving that sign might be interpreted as if you are saying that person is homosexual, and in Brazil…well, a really bad thing…

The list goes on and on, but what I really mean is: look for the real strengths in each member of your team, motivate them to work hard for what they like and want to do, give them tools to grow and shine, and remember that putting the wrong label on someone, is not only lack of responsibility, but really bad leadership!

8 Simple Tips for a Happier Workplace

The work environment is likely a reflection of the company’s culture, the nature of the service or product offered, even the size of the workplace.

We all spend a lot of our time in the workplace, and sometimes it can be pretty challenging because you are grouping people from different cultures and believes, different personalities, different goals and ambitions, different habits – oh well, we are grouping different human beings.

We obviously want to work in a stress-free pleasant environment, where we can balance work/life, be productive and yet have fun.

Whether the environment where we work is formal, informal, small or large, quiet or chaotic, there are ways to reduce the natural stress that comes with our job responsibilities and actually build an enjoyable workplace.

How would we describe this “enjoyable workplace”?

Many of us deal with a huge amount of pressure, deadlines, goals, and conflict on a daily basis. Not all of us absolutely love what we do. But there we are, at least 8 hours every day confined in a place that almost feels like our second home – or at least it should…

Having that “sense of happy satisfaction or enjoyment” in the workplace is possible, even though different things trigger different feelings in different people.

Some of the tips that I gathered over the years were:

1- Encouragement – people have personal lives and they are not problem-free. People have different personalities and not all of them are super-confident. Many times they will need a little encouragement, some kind of motivation to keep going. “You can do it” sounds a little dorky but it is very appreciated.

2- Good work conditions: are you giving your employees the materials and the equipment that they need to perform their job int he best of their abilities? I remember, in several different situations, hearing complaints from customers because they “associate took a really long time” to check them out (in a retail store). Turns out though, that the company’s system was slow and obsolete – there was nothing that the associates could really do. They actually felt very frustrated because the customer would provide feedback during the “exit survey” and they would “lose points” for something that they could not control. So, make sure your employees have what they need to be top performers.

3- Be community minded: yes, it is so important to cultivate a happy environment. If you are not “naturally happy”, hire happy personalities! Saying “good morning”, smiling, stopping by for some small talk? Absolutely! I remember once I questioned my supervisor about how I believed the behavior of associates and managers would reflect negatively in their interaction with the customers (there was absolutely NO interaction among employees/managers/employees) and what I heard was – “you do not really expect me to say good morning every day, right?” Heck yes, I do expect that!

4- Get social: promote something different once in a while, something that will encourage employees to interact with each other – have a pot luck, promote a “breakfast for charity”, make a “Carve your pumpkin” contest. Use your imagination, ask your teams for ideas…

5- Trust your people: micro managing can be a huge turn-off for most of your employees. If you hired them, it should mean that you trust they will do a good job. Empower. Delegate.

6- Praise and say “thank you”: this goes a long way. Don’t wait for the end of a big project to praise – praise the small progresses, the small victories too. Thank them for their commitment, for their loyalty.

7- Develop their skills, celebrate their attitude: they made a mistake by using the wrong forms? Train them. They can’t figure out that spreadsheet? Train them. They have a positive attitude, are dedicated and love your company? Celebrate them!

8- Put family first: Make sure that your employees know that family is a priority for you and for the company – that reduces stress and keeps them more centered.

The truth is that a happy work environment starts with us, the leaders. We should always lead by example, be the ambassadors of the company culture, focus on a happy workplace. Only then, we can expect our employees to do the same.

Flying the INNOVATION itinerary…

It’s well-known that flying is not an easy experience to everyone: some (like my daughter) can sleep through the whole flight, like if they were blinking their eyes and waking up some place else.

Some are simply terrified of flying and either do not fly at all, or have to take some serious pills to knock them out.

Some (like me) have a little trouble here and there, and are determined to fight the fear in order to achieve their goal of being some place else in a reasonable amount of time.

I see managing a business almost the same way: some leaders are fearless and innovative, some are conservative and act cautiously, implementing change gradually and steadily, and some are – using the same analogy as the flight one-  totally paralyzed and stuck on time, as innovation frightens them too much.

Innovation and change are necessary in almost any business scenario that I can think of, but how you incorporate change in the business you manage is really up to you.

Take as an example all the discussion on the “work from home” matter: CEOs all over are expressing their opinions and practices. Some like the idea, some do not want it – I guess it is a good thing that not all the companies operate in the exact same way…Marissa Mayer decided bring Yahoo’s employees back to the office, Trump agreed with her, while Branson (Virgin Group) wrote in a blog that her decision was “a backwards step in an age when remote working is easier and more effective than ever.”

One one side, remote work is considered an innovation and on the other, some think working in the office boosts collaboration, the face-to-face contact is needed.

How do you determine how much change you need or how will you bring “change” to your company ( or the company you manage)?

I have had this conversation with peers and friends who manage companies and here are some of my takes and insights:

1- Define very clearly your company culture: it can be really tricky to change or innovate something that you cannot define. For example: if your company values the opinions of all levels of employees, you could run a survey, decide the changes that need to be done and implement them with the help of your employees (recruit employees that want to “own” certain projects or phases of the implementation).

2- Throw out some ideas and try to analyze your teams’ reactions to decide on an implementation timeline ( if most of your crew is terrified of flying, you will know that either you will take longer to implement change or you will need to find some key players who can help you launch it more aggressively).

3- Use the staff already in place the most you can – innovation is not only bringing new talents, but having the ability to involve and motivate your own crew in the process: if your employees understand what need to be changed and why, and how they will be part of it, they tend to embrace innovation more easily.

4- Keep your team”s mind focused on what matters, or what they are least afraid of (focus on something’s that will not change, and relate innovation with the improvement of old processes): once I received some pretty interesting advice from a stranger that clearly saw how uncomfortable I was during my flight… He asked in which kind of environment ( or element) I thought I belonged: air, water or earth. I told him that I was really comfortable on my jet ski, in the water. So he said: whenever you are flying and feel frightened because of turbulence, picture yourself in the environment where you feel safe (so there I was picturing myself speeding against some amazing turbulent waters…). I know it sounds dorky, but it worked!

5- Be open-minded: innovation might shake your business structure and you might deal with a quite high level of fear and anxiety. Listen to your people and remember that innovation and change might not come in the perfect package and you might need to be flexible.

6- Prepare your staff to explain the great innovative changes to your customers: they might be used to your old modus operandi and might feel the hit.

No matter what kind of crew you are leading or loyal clientele that you captivated, be open to listen to them, be quick to change what did not work as expected quickly and do not be afraid of admitting that mistakes will also come with the changes.

Innovation is supposed to help your business; change is supposed to address the failures and lead you to success: if they are not doing it, rethink – fly high and adjust the itinerary, but fly towards your goals!