Foto Finish Friday

Panda de osados, originally uploaded by miabuelanoloentiende .com.

Hope everyone is having a great Friday. Enjoy your weekend!

Yesterday's Home Runs

Sir Albert hits a homer
Originally uploaded by mark174us

"Yesterday's home runs don't win today's games." ~ Babe Ruth

If we're not careful, we can all fall into the trap of celebrating yesterday's home runs a little more than we should. I know I have in times past and I am sure you can look into your own life and see times when you were guilty of it too.

Here's the potential trap: It's a great feeling to accomplish something of great importance. It is nice when you get the job done. It's wonderful when you create something brilliant, help someone in need of some assistance, or simply do a good deed. Naturally, we will look back on those home runs with fondness.

Here's the truth: Past accomplishments do not excuse inaction or failure today.

Here's the point: There is nothing wrong with putting your past accomplishments out there from time to time. We all have a story to tell. However, your story also includes today and your future. Don't get hamstrung by always going back to that home run you hit years ago. It doesn't really matter much when it comes to today's game.

Why Do You Like The IHOP?

Hmmm...
Originally uploaded by drewmaniac

"Hey buddy, I like the IHOP!" ~ Jim Gaffigan

Too many of us are just takin' what we're given. Call it what you will. Mindlessness, apathy, or a simple lack of imagination. Many of us just take what we're given and don't ask questions. We tell ourselves it's always been that way, how could it be different? It is what it is. Everyone else likes it. Everyone else is doing it.

Why not, right?

What if Thomas Edison had decided after failing a couple of times (the exact number of times is debatable) that the light bulb was impossible. It would have been easy for him to say, "It is what it is", and move on to the next invention.

Radio, the television, even the Internet thrive on telling you and I just exactly what it is we should like. Have you ever stopped and asked yourself why you listen to the music you do? Or what about those books you're reading? What is their purpose in your life? You see, it's good to stop and reflect from time to time. Just taking what everyone else is throwing your way may not be the best thing for you. In fact, I'll go so far to say it usually isn't good for you.

Sidenote: There was a brief period of time in 1994 when everyone thought Ace of Base was the best thing since sliced bread. They weren't. They weren't even close. I'm just sayin'.

News reports have been wrong. The Internet is full of false information. Some would say the President was wrong this week because he didn't check all the facts (by his own admission) before he formed his opinion and spoke his mind. Scientists have been wrong in the past. The makers of the "unsinkable" Titanic were wrong. This list could go on and on.

I think you and I would do well to stop and reflect as often as we can. Ask a few questions. Check the facts. Be willing to believe the status quo isn't the only way. Stop and examine the road you are traveling down.

You can like the IHOP. Just don't like it because it seems like the only option.

Foto Finish Friday

Warm Springs, OR, originally uploaded by kevin russ.

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

Building Your Friend Base

oye
Originally uploaded by miabuelanoloentiende .com

Those who are best at networking don’t network. They make friends.

When you're friendly, when you serve, when you're focused on being the very best you end up with more than just a sell. You have more than just another customer. You have a friend.

Focus on the relationship with the customer, serving them, and building trust with them, you gain a friend who will tell their friends.

I don't know a single spammer who can make that claim.

Foto Finish Friday

, originally uploaded by antoniodiu.

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

Vision

Originally uploaded by Lá caitlin

“Where there is no vision, the people perish.” ~ Proverbs 29:18

You can’t say you have a vision just because you have some short term goals. You need those short term goals along the way, but where are you going? What is your long term vision?

In our lives, if we have no clear vision we tend to wander. In a home with no clear vision, the children have no clear direction. In a church with no vision, the members become stagnant and indifferent. In a business with no clear vision, the employees go through the motions and morale suffers.

It should be clear. If the organization you are leading has no clear vision, your organization will suffer and stumble along. People want to have something to work for. They want to have a reason for coming in everyday besides simply making another dollar. Providing goals are an important part of that equation, but at some point as a leader you must provide a vision and it must be clear.

Are you providing a vision for your employees for those you are leading? If not, when do you expect to start?

"The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision." ~ Helen Keller

Keeping Your Employees Informed

12/52 - My Generation
Originally uploaded by Little Thoughts

Providing your employees with just enough information to do their job isn’t enough. It will enable them to push paper and enter data, but it won't encourage them to excel. Nor will they feel like they have an investment in your business.

Why not provide your employees with information on your vision for the future? Lay out clear goals and when they are accomplished, let everyone know. I hate to use a phrase that is being beat to death in the social media and political world, but be transparent. Let your employees know where they stand in the grand scheme of things. If times are tough, don't lock down and shut up. Tell them and lay out a vision for changing the trend.

Consider this: If you don't, the rumor mill will.

Don't use information as power, but use information to empower your employees. Provide your employees with the right tools, such as information, and watch them take ownership of the vision. In hard economic times, it seems to me this would be even more important.

Foto Finish Friday

, originally uploaded by Breath of Life.

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

What If You Had the Best Employee Service?

It's raining here without you
Originally uploaded by aknacer

Let’s pretend for a moment you have one of the best customer service records in the professional world. Consider for a moment the relationship you would have with your customers.

• You go out of your way to make them comfortable.
• The customer is always right.
  
• You do everything you can to serve them.
• The customer enjoys their experience when doing business with you.
• The customer sings your praises to their friends, providing you that coveted word of mouth advantage over your competitors.
• You ask for and listen to their input.
• You act on their input and suggestions.
• The customer trusts you.
  
• You strive to make sure every customer leaves you satisfied.

Now, imagine you took those same points and replaced the word customer with employee.

What if you went out of your way to make your employees comfortable? What if your employees were always right? What if you did everything you could to serve them? What if your employees enjoyed the experience of working for you? What if your employees sang the praises of your business, telling their friends about how great it was to work for you? What if you asked for and listened to your employee's input and suggestions? What if you acted on your employee's suggestions from time to time? What if your employees trusted you? What if you were striving to make sure every employee went home feeling satisfied after a day of work for you?

If you believed your employees are your first customers, much of this would already be happening. The best part? Your employees would pass it on to your customers.

Someone Else Will Do It

Leon
Originally uploaded by panic-embryo

The fallacy in thinking someone else will do it, is someone else may not.

It really doesn't matter what the situation is. It can be at church. It can be at work. It can be in a meeting. It can be an idea. It can be in your personal life. Anything.

You know when those moments arise. You know when you should speak up. You know when you should take action. When you start trying to convince yourself someone else will say it or do it, resist the urge to be idle. Don't wait for someone else speak up or take action.

Pastor Martin Niemoller lived in Nazi Germany and in the beginning he supported Hitler's rise to power. The poem, First they came... is widely attributed to Niemoller. I think it sums up apathy and the dangers of thinking someone else will take action or speak up much better than I.

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

Then they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
I did not protest;
I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out for me.

Foto Finish Friday

Empire State Building, New York, originally uploaded by Joep R..

*Each Friday an interesting photo is selected to end the week on.

Focus Less on Risk & Fear

Frustration
Originally uploaded by Little Thoughts

No matter what you set out to do, there will always be someone who thinks it's too difficult. There will almost always be a detractor. Someone who thinks you shouldn't, who thinks you can't, or thinks you won't. Some will simply be afraid for you.

As long as I can remember I've been writing something. When I was younger I was always writing. My mom used to tell me (with the best of intentions), "You shouldn't write. If you do, people will take your words and hold them against you, no matter how you mean them." She would then tell me that her father used to tell her the same and that he rarely wrote much because of that fear. While I understand where my mother and grandfather's fears were coming from, today I am glad I chose to note them, but continue writing.

The thing is, when it comes to most things in life there is usually some risk. There is usually something that you can come up with to fear about your decision.

The first time you get in the water as a kid, it's a little scary. You could drown. You probably won't float. The first day at school is a little scary. You won't have your parents around. You may not know many people. The first time you speak publicly is nerve racking. You could say the wrong thing. You might forget what it is you have to say. The first time you drive a car is a little scary. You might not keep it between the lines. You might get in a wreck.

Everything is a little scary at first. Some will be afraid for you. Some will encourage you not to go through with it. If you focus on those things though, you will never act. You will be held hostage to the fear of risk and what might happen. While it is important to consider risk, your focus shouldn't be on the risk or fear. It should be on whether or not the endeavor, decision, or goal is worth while in the long run.