| “Never wish that life were easier, wish that you were better.” – Jim Rohn
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Posts Tagged ‘value’
Wish your life were easier?
Monday, October 31st, 2011Problems vs. Solutions
Wednesday, July 6th, 2011Last night at dinner, I placed a bunch of broccoli on my daughter’s plate. Her immediate response, was the same as always – “That’s too much, I could never eat all that broccoli!”
I countered with my classic – “I have a lot of faith in you Corinne, you can do anything you chose.”
I’m OK with my daughter seeing a plate full of broccoli and seeing a problem with no possible solution – she’s 4 years old. However, at some point ( I think I’ll wait until her 5th birthday) I want her to change the way she thinks and recognize that she is responsible for finding a solution to life’s challenges.
Unfortunately, most people still approach problems like my 4 year old. They see every difficulty as an insurmountable challenge and instead of looking for the solution they spend all of the energy putting together a list of excuses why they won’t be successful.
The simple truth is that there are two types of people in this world – those that find problems and those that find solutions.
Guess which one makes more money and has more success?
Which one are you?
CJ McClanahan is the Founder of reachmore, which teaches small business owners how to build a business that runs without them. For more resources on business leadership, please visit reachmore’s seminars
What will be your example in life?
Tuesday, May 31st, 2011| “True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” – Arthur Ashe | |
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Value
Wednesday, April 27th, 2011How much is a Starbucks™ cup of coffee (up to $6) worth? How about an iPod Nano® ($149) ? What about a new pair of Nike® Lebron James 8PS ($150)
The answer depends 100% on who is providing it.
Obviously, it doesn’t cost Starbucks® $6 to make a cup of coffee (regardless of the amount of caramel), Apple $149 to make an mp3 player the size of a stamp, or Nike $150 to make a pair of shoes in a third world company sweat shop.
So, why do we pay these prices when there are comparable alternatives at a much lower cost?
Anyone in an entry level marketing class can tell you that we pay these prices because of the way the products make us feel.
What emotion does the marketplace associate with your product or service?
CJ McClanahan is the Founder of reachmore, which teaches small business owners how to build a business that runs without them. For more resources on business leadership, please visit reachmore’s seminars
Knowledge is Power
Monday, April 11th, 2011I had lunch with an extremely talented CEO the other day.
It was the first time that we had met and as I often do in these meetings, I asked him about his background, both personal and professional.
Throughout our conversation, he talked about a handful of lessons that had shaped his career and led to his success. These lessons often came from a mentor or a good book.
What I found interesting (and typical for most of the highly successful people I have met) is that he attributed most of his success to a handful of very simple lessons that he had learned over a 30-year career. It was these “turning points” in life that provided him with the knowledge and confidence to achieve his dreams.
The same is true for each of us. Our success if is a direct result of the decisions that we make and the decisions we make are based upon our knowledge and experience. Thus, the better your knowledge, the better your decisions and ultimately your results.
Unfortunately, most people undervalue learning. As you probably know, the average adult reads less than one non-fiction book per year.
As a society, we have convinced ourselves that we are too busy to learn.
I would argue that our ability to process and interpret information is a key competitive advantage in a commoditized world.
What are you doing to improve yourself?
Creating Value
Tuesday, July 13th, 2010Last week, I ate at Paradise Café. As usual, I ordered a salad and soda. The cashier asked the following brilliant question as they took my credit card – “You get a free cookie with your salad. Which one would you like?”
Now, you don’t need an MBA to realize that this isn’t a free cookie. The cost is built into the nearly $11 I pay for a very average salad and Diet Coke. I’m no dummy.
Then why do I keep going back?
Believe it or not, I think it’s the “free cookie”. At some unconscious level deep in my brain, I am under the belief that the nice people at Paradise treat me to a FREE desert every single time I visit.
They have created perceived value (for about $.10 in costs) in a hyper competitive marketplace for lunchtime choices.
What can you do in your business to create some value?
The Rule
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010I have a “to do” list. It is related to my quarterly goals which are a subset of my 2012 objectives.
Like most, I get off track from time to time and wonder if I set the wrong goals.
Maybe.
However, when all is said and done, what is real reason that I set out to accomplish these daily to-do’s?
That is the question. In fact it may be the only question that matters.
Is my goal to have more checks on my “to-do” list than anyone else? Is it to make more money? Have more clients?
Something tells me that you probably face the same questions on a daily basis.
And if you answer is that you want more money, more clients and more stuff that is OK. As long as these things provide fulfillment to your question (What is the reason I do what I do?).
However, experience tells me that it is unlikely that the acquisition of more money, clients and things will lead to any satisfaction.
So, what will?
I am certain that it is different for everyone. Nevertheless, this week I would like to suggest that you try an experiment.
This week, let the following question guide your daily activity – “How can I make a positive contribution in the life of someone else?”
Give it a week, I promise you won’t regret the investment of putting the needs of others before your own.
Making “Great Customer Service” a Solid Business Strategy
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010I am always skeptical when I hear a business owner say that they are going to differentiate themselves by providing “great customer service”. Yes, there are plenty of companies with bad customer service, whose customers are aching for better treatment. At the same time, you do not see those customers leaving the company that treats them poorly for one with “great customer service”, do you?
Example – How many times have you or a friend complained about AT&T’s incredibly poor customer service? Yet, have you given up your iPhone or switched to Comcast Business Class? Nope. And, that’s because “great customer service” alone is not going to attract new customers – it will just help you keep the ones that you have, and improve the quality of your word of mouth marketing.
So, the strategy isn’t in attracting clients through “great customer service”; it’s keeping your clients and slowly building a great reputation of value through service.
A store with consistently “great customer service” is Whole Foods. Every time I am in that place, there is someone on the lookout for a face that resembles sheer overwhelmed hysteria. The moment I look like I am searching for something, or have no clue what Taboule is, there is a happy attendant in hemp clothing ready to show me the way to healthy eating. I have literally seen the grocers there look depressed when they are not able to find what I need.
Here are two great examples of Whole Foods ability to delight their clients and improve their word of mouth marketing.
One day I was looking for non-dairy cheese. I found the guy in the gourmet cheese section, asked him about the cheese that I wanted, and he looked through all of the gourmet cheese to find me what I needed. He was so helpful, I almost had to pry him off of me like a girlfriend that I just broken up with. He left crushed when he realized that he didn’t have what I needed.
I walked away feeling satisfied that the grocery store attendant did everything that he could to find me the non-dairy cheese. With the rap music thumping through my blackberry headphones, I went to the other side of the store to pick up some bread for soy burgers. Not more than a moment into trying to decide between whole grain and onion buns, a woman taps me on the shoulder and says, “You’re looking for non-dairy cheese? Follow me…”
Both the male and female grocer had come back together, and worked feverishly to find me what I needed. She led me to the rice and almond cheese, and the man walked away with a smile on his face – satisfied that he was able to go above and beyond to find me what I needed.
Speaking of Taboule earlier, something similar happened to Jenna at Whole Foods on Saturday. She couldn’t find the small size that she wanted, so they just gave her the large size Taboule for free. She came home so excited! I’m sure that she is going to be a Whole Food’s customer for a long time, and tell the story about getting free food to a lot of people.
That said; I wouldn’t go to a new retailer just because they advertised having great customer service, but I would certainly stay with a retailer and tell others about it because of how they serve me.
What are you doing for your clients to retain them, and improve your word of mouth marketing?
Jamar Cobb-Dennard is the Vice President of Business Development for reachmore, which provides leadership coaching for small business and executives. Email Jamar at jamar@goreachmore.com for the latest on reachmore’s newest seminar, Launch.
Value
Tuesday, September 8th, 2009Do have a coworker/employee that is constantly telling everyone how many hours they worked?
Of course you do.
These individuals would like to wear bright orange badge on their shirt that provides a running total so that we could all stand in awe and marvel at their hours logged.
Would you like to stump this super worker? The next time they begin to tout their latest 14 hr day, ask them the following question – “How much value did you deliver?”
Unless you are paid hourly, the number of hours worked means absolutely nothing.
Who cares that you came in at 7am and worked through dinner? Nobody but you.
Your contribution to your company is all about the value you create.
Did you move the needle?
In other words, did you improve a process, cut costs, provide a new idea or close a big deal?
Did you add value? That’s all that matters.
I have frequently told my staff that I don’t care if you come in at 9am and leave at 3pm as long as you exceed my expectations (add value).
The day they stop adding value is the day I start checking my watch when they enter and leave the office.
How are you going to add value today?
Are you better today than you were yesterday?
Thursday, June 25th, 2009Are you better today than you were yesterday?
Let me ask the question differently – Have you learned something valuable in the past 24 hrs that will help you in the future?
When I ask this question, I almost always get a look of confusion followed by a timid – “I don’t think so.”
That’s crazy!
Unless you were in a coma you definitely learned something.
It may be small, but there is no doubt in my mind that you had at least 1 experience that provided a bit of education.
For example, in the past 24 hrs I have already learned (or in my case relearned – that still counts!) a bunch of stuff including:
· When there is a heat advisory I had better bring my running clothes to work because my wife won’t let me run outside.
· My clients don’t always respond to my advice the way I want them to.
· Relationships with fellow church members are extremely important to me
That’s after no more than 60 seconds of brainstorming.
Every day is filled with multiple opportunities to learn and improve. You just need to keep your eyes open and recognize these opportunities.
What did you learn today?