Win With Consistency--Sacrifice

Win with consistency. Be consistent on your free day. Be consistent on your catch up day. Be consistent on your get ahead day, even when doing something fun or easy is more alluring. There will always be time for that later.

Be consistent on your difficult day. Be consistent on your make time anyway day. Be consistent on your sacrifice something else to make time for this day. Be consistent on your don't fall behind today day.

Win with consistency. It's hardest to be consistent on the really good and really bad days. Be consistent when you are pulled out of your groove! Get back in as soon as you begin to be pulled out. Consistency wins the day.

Shane MeLaugh training. Stay in your area of expertise. If you are going to add a task or priority, you need to decide what you are going to take out of your day or routine.

Make a list of priorities. Put half of them on the "I'm not going to get this done this year" list. Work like a bandit on the list that is left.

When bed time comes, don't change your priorities. Say "NO!" to reshuffling your priorities at the moment when they become relevant. Go to bed. Or consciously change your priorities and realize this is not important to me. If you have your priorities straight, it will be clear that sleep really is more important than whatever "priority" it is that you are trying to replace it with.

Be consistent. Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, decade-ly, life-ly. If you have truly prioritized, why would you let anything take you away from your plan!?

Be consistent...or be non-relevant and inept....

Be consistent!

No More Rabbit Holes

I ran down a rabbit hole to save ~$150 this week. I'm sure I lost out on much more cash. As my brother says, I was "tripping over nickles to pick up pennies".

My phone power button broke off from the circuit board. I thought I'm sure I can just solder that thing back on! So I borrowed Norman's (my father-in-law) soldering iron on Christmas and wasted 2 days shopping for the proper tools (which are surprisingly difficult to find) and attempting to solder the button back on. I'm sure for a pro, this is a 20 minute or less job. But the button is so close to the processors that I just couldn't get it to go right. 2 days missing from my online course prep.

I was going to try to launch the course by the end of the year and probably could have made several thousand dollars in the time I wasted. I was talking with Kaylee (an employee) about doing the things you are passionate about and delegating the rest when it became instantly clear that I should have been working on the course and ordered a new phone right away (the old one is 4 years old already anyway). I can learn to solder better and order the proper tools online later when I have a little more free time. Maybe the kids will get a 4 year old smart phone one day.

This is such an alluring rabbit hole for me. "I'll just try welding it on for a few minutes" I say to myself. Then I pop the back and don't have the right Torx bit. So off to the store (one of my least favorite things). I get everything opened and try to solder and make a mess of it, decide I'll use solder paste instead. Off to the store the next day (I don't want to take a few days to order the right stuff online...I need this fixed now, right!?). Unfortunately the store doesn't carry de-solder wicks. So I come home with a bag full of stuff I can't use yet: flux, butane, solder paste. Do I order the wicks, now I'm in $40 in equipment and several hours of time...a new phone is only $120. It's not like I have a super nice one.

Alas, when I upgrade the phone, they will auto-update my plan and I will pay $5 more each month. An increase from $10 to $15. Whatever will I do. That's another $60 per year! Ack. I'll make more than the cost of the phone and increase in plan if I just get the course "shipped" and sell a single copy. Let alone the recurring $20/month subscription. So focussed on the wrong thing. I probably shouldn't mess with it even if it only did take an hour. But this is a rabbit hole, my friend. It starts with 5 minutes, then never ends!

The Million Dollar Lesson to be learned here: Stay on task! Even when there is an intriguing rascally rabbit that just jumped down a whole. The phone is inconvenient. Don't let it ruin the whole week. Get back to your area of expertise!

You Can Make Money Doing Anything Part 2

My niece has apparently started collecting coins. Not ridiculously expensive ones, from what I know just the 2007-2015 Presidential Dollar Coin set. I'm pretty sure that these coins are not old enough, rare enough, or cool enough to really be worth more than one dollar each. But my wife paid $2.69 each to have two of them shipped to our house for my niece's birthday.

Now lest anyone thinks ill of my wife for spending 2.69 times the worth of each coin to get them. I submit to you the following:

As a customer we got:
1. Convenience (of reciept) - the coins were delivered directly to our door and ordered from our couch. In order for us to do this on our own we would have the hassle of going to the bank, ordering a roll, bag or something of $1 coins, sorting through the coins and returning the unneeded coins back to the bank (or spending them). We would have to repeat the process until the two coins we were looking for were obtained.
2. Selection - both the coins were immediately available and in stock. So no return trips to the bank and no sorting.
3. Convenience (of time) - I'm sure it did not take my wife more then a few minutes to peruse and order. The bank method, assuming we found the right coins on the first pass, would likely take 30 minutes to drive to and from the bank twice (or I suppose you could sort them in the lobby) and sort the coins and return the uncollected coins.

2 coins @ $2.69 per coin = $5.38 USD
minus 2 coins @ $1 each = $3.38 USD = cost of transaction
$3.38 * 2 (sets of 30 minutes) = $6.76 per hour.
Even at the median hourly wage in the USA in 2014 of $17.09 per hour, this is a no brainer!

So just how much should a $1 Presidential Coin be worth? Well, if we paid an "average" American to get two coins for us in the above parameters, it would cost $5.27 per coin. Of course this does not factor in gas, car maintenance, taxes, FICA, healthcare, paid leave, vacation, retirement, time for payroll, hiring, firing, theft etc.

Obviously al51ny (the gracious guy on e-bay who sold us the coins at an apparent loss to him) is dealing in large numbers of coins and likely enjoys sifting through thousands of coins to find the diamonds in the rough. He is probably a major collector who is sifting through coins anyway and doesn't mind categorizing them, packaging them, and shipping them. He probably thinks my wife is a dolt for buying $1 coins for 2 dollars and 69 cents. Clearly she is buying them at a loss...

But it is to his gain. Win - Win. The best kind of commerce. We are buying birthday happiness for our niece at $1.69 loss per coin. He is shipping junk in a small envelope for probably just under $1 in profit and likely doesn't waste much time in the process. If he does a large enough scale he could become very wealthy at this. Simultaneously the paper company sold two envelopes and two coin holders, the office supply store sold printer ink, a printer, a pen and 6 staples, the post office sold a stamp, e-bay got some commissions, and you got to read this post. So, Win - win - win - win - win - win - win. The bank lost the battle, but will win the war and the government won all the battles and will the war (taxes on each party and huge margins on the dollar in the first place--fodder for another day).

I love business. Thank you al51ny for enriching my life a little on the cheap. When open markets win, we all win!

Desperate vs. Driven

There is a certain edge to people who are violently pursuing something. We give several names to people like this to differentiate them from the rest of the population, but we seldom separate them into distinct categories. We call them motivated, inspiring, active, exciting, stimulating, driven, crazy, busy, crazy-busy, intense, committed. Sometimes they are forceful, compelling, desperate, workaholic, work horses and they put themselves or force others to put their nose to the grindstone. The main similarity is that they are actively pursuing a goal. They get stuff done. My brother would say that without these people nothing would ever get done. He might be right. But I'd like to categorize these people into four groups.

Desperate and running from something (DeRF)     | Desperate and running toward something (DeRT)
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Driven and running from something (DriRF)         | Driven and running toward something (DriRT)

Driven vs. Desperate

Both have something that wakes them up early. Both have something that keeps them up late. Both are consumed with improving beyond what is "normal". Both are putting forth tremendous effort to make things move, to win, to achieve, to leave a mark. Driven is effortfulness, trying to win the game and improve so you can win the next one regardless of the outcome of this one. Desperate is effortfulness, trying not to lose the game then training harder so you don't lose the next one. They both get results, but one cannot be sustained forever, it is draining. The other gets stronger over time and finds new energy in the challenge. Driven is ahead of the curve. Desperate is behind the 8 ball.

Any day of the week you'd rather be driven. But sometimes desperation is just what you need to get the ball rolling. It's much better than complacency or indifference after all!

Desperate people have a goal, but it's often an anti-goal (e.g. I will not lose this house/game/account/etc.) or a negative goal (e.g. I will show him.). Other times it's a good goal gone bad but the ship is sinking. They are looking for a win but often are repelling the very people who can help them make it happen for them because of the frenetic energy that they display. No bones about it though, they are going to move heaven and earth to make it happen or burn out trying. This can be a good short term state to be in (because you get things done that need done gettin'), but long-term it is unhealthy.

DeRF's tend to be have the anti-goals. They are obsessed about some impending doom and can't stop to think about anything else. In the corporate world they are often middle managers and self-employed (because they don't want to work for someone else or the business is on the verge of failure and they are on the treadmill). They are driven to complete a project but only because they don't want to lose their job or the status they have attached to owning their own company. Occasionally they are courageous people stuck in a bad circumstance. This can be dangerous like a caged tiger it can spur them to action to solve problems in new ways or move on from untenable situations, but it can also lead to unethical behavior at times through the "desperate times call for desperate measures" mentality.

I was a DeRF when I was a student. I was working two jobs. One was a night shift where I would go to class on Thursday, then to work all night and straight back to class on Friday. I was running from bills and didn't have the wherewithal to make more money some other way, but was too prideful to let my mother help any more than she already was (running from feelings of inadequacy).

DeRT's tend to be the type with good goals gone bad or sudden difficult situations. They are either in a field they used to like with current circumstances they don't like, or they are in a field they don't like and are running to a temporary endpoint (all I have to do is put in one more year and there will be a big payout, if I can just sell 100 more X's we'll at least break even). Many single mothers are in this class. They are desperate for a temporary goal of paying for Johnnie's College etc.. DeRT's are unstable like DeRF's, but there is usually an endgame in sight. There is light at the end of the tunnel and it's not an oncoming train.

I was a DeRT when I was paying off my student debt. I was in a job I didn't love, but I was putting in extra hours whenever I could because I believed in my endgame. I was up early not because I couldn't wait to get to work, but because I was running toward a future I believed in. My job was a temporary means to an end. It payed more than the job I wanted to do.

Driven people have a goal, an endgame. They enjoy the challenge of being the best and competing at the highest level in their field. They are ahead of the field because they are planning and working it that way. They are winning and they are constantly looking for ways of winning by a bigger margin. They are way ahead in a big game and their starters are still on the field. It's about more than just this game. We love them, but we hate them. But only because of our own insecurity or when we find ourselves on the opposite team.

DriRF's are the workaholics. High powered execs who are at work because they are avoiding some other part of their lives or dreams. But they are extremely good at what they do and often do enjoy work. They are at the top of their game in that one area of life and they will only get better as long as whatever they are running from doesn't catch up.

Michael Jordan - Yes, he loved the game. Yes, he was a winner. Yes, he was the best. Yes, he is a class act. But you can't deny he'd rather have been playing baseball.

DriRT's work long hours like DriRF's, but they aren't working to avoid anything. They are working because they love what they do. They would do it even if they didn't get paid. They would do it even if they could get paid more doing something else. It resonates with their soul and in turn they touch those around them. Working brings more energy and ideas to the table so there is a sustainable longevity to what they do. They do things better, longer and seemingly effortlessly despite the long hours and hard work.

John Wooden - He loved the game. He loved the sport. He loved the men who played under him. Each year was better than the last. He was on a different level because he had different goals. Winning was important, but there was something more. Something he was running towards.

Running/driving toward a greater goal. That is where we all function at the highest of the highest level. That should be our goal. Work in our area of magnificence. Let's be Driven!

Using Other People Power and Working in Quadrant II

Fridays are my business days. My wife takes the kids to their grandparents' house and I work on my business. Usually these are what Jennifer White calls "support days" in her book Work Less Make More. I work on getting my ducks in a row and putting out fires and scrambling to meed deadlines and work on the mountain of things on my plate. Today I am having half a "laser day" for 2 reasons.

1. Other People Power (team): My banker is working on writing up a loan. My realtor is working on negotiating a letter of intent to lease a space. I talked with my business adviser this morning to review the initial loan agreement and letter of intent mentioned above. My equipment provider will receive a list of equipment this afternoon and begin working on pricing and invoicing. My contractor is waiting for all the above to come through so he can get to work. My insurance providers will be working on some numbers next week. I am the axle and there are connections out to the wheels via the spokes who are specialists in their given field. Eventually I will build my team such that each axle will be a team reaching out to the spokes (ie. my business manager will be working with my realtor and my finance clerk will be contacting the bank.) All this frees me up to write this blog post and work on laser day things.

2. I've finally gotten out of the trap of working in Stephen Covey's (7 Habits of Highly Effective People) Quadrants III and IV (Unimportant and Urgent, and Unimportant and Not Urgent), I've delegated most of quadrant I for the moment (Important and Urgent) leaving me to work in quadrant IV (Important and Not Urgent). This is what Jennifer White calls a "laser day". This is where the best ideas for future products, services and activities come from. This is where much of the personal and business growth comes from. This is where you can anticipate fires before they start and improve upon products and services and dream to launch bigger and better things to change your life and our world. It's been a long time coming. At first it was a little unsettling--there's nothing urgent and important today...what do I put on my do list? I hope to see more laser days in the days to come!

Exceeding Customer Expectations and Perceived Value--Under Promise and Over Perform

Value...what do we value? What's more important, actual value or perceived value? Is there such a thing as too much value? Jennifer White in her excellent book Work Less, Make More argues that we can add too much value into our companies and products or services. At some point, there is so much value that we "don't count" parts of it. Two things come into play: 1. What I call supposed value, and 2. What Mrs. White calls perceived value.

1. Supposed value is when we provide a bunch of stuff that our customers don't really want, or want but "don't count". We suppose that they need these things and it leads to frustration because we count them and our customers do not. I'll give you a few examples and you'll quickly understand what I mean. 

1. A. Supposed value that customers don't really want.--Eliminate all these quickly.

Our Playstation 3 will play region 2 DVD's. For those of you who don't know what that is, here's a synopsis. The media world is divided geographically into 6 regions. Region 1 is the US and Canada. Region 3 is Japan, Europe, South Africa and the Middle East. Discs from regions other than your own have coding that prevents players in other regions from playing them. Often tourists are annoyed that DVD'd they buy in Europe don't play in the US.

My wife is happy that our Playstation will play her foreign videos. I suspect that she is one of a small percentage of customers who were thrilled by this news. In fact, it's likely that most people with Playstation consoles don't know what this means and don't care. Listen to that--They payed extra money for value that they don't care about. Sony got smart in latter releases of the same console--they lowered the price and eliminated this hardware. Now the blue-ray player we do value. 

1. B. Supposed value that customers don't count.--Gently help your customers count these.

A friend of mine grew up on a large dairy farm. His father worked very hard to keep everything running well, but at the end of a hard day's work he always made it home on time. One day his father got stuck out on a job and came home over an hour late. When he arrived at home his wife was very upset that he was late and hadn't called. She thought the worst. He was never late, so he must be dead or injured. He was surprised that she was so upset...after all, he's never late. She should cut him some slack for this one occurrence, he thought. 

They are both right. This is supposed value that this farmer provides every day. He counts it. and supposes that she will too. He works hard to come home on time. He leaves farm jobs unfinished to make his family a priority. She takes it for granted. She doesn't "count it"...unless it's missing. This is a case where "we don't realize what we have until it's gone". 

Parents and children often have this problem of unperceived value. It can be very damaging to a relationship and happens frequently in close relationships. One party overvalues something, the other takes it for granted They are suddenly offended when things don't go as usual. 

My wife and I often nip this one in the bud when one of us starts complaining that something didn't go as expected instead of saying, "I can't believe you didn't take out the garbage!!" we'll say, "Thank you for taking out the garbage all the other times.". 

This is dangerous territory because we need to distinguish between what our customers don't want and what they do want, but are not counting so we can eliminate the things they don't need or want, and gently help them "perceive" the value of what they just aren't counting. Pray that you don't accidentally eliminate something they really do want but aren't counting. It can be tough to know the difference. 

2. Perceived Value is that bunch of things that you provide that your customers love...they "perceive" or count the value even if it doesn't really exist. There are two categories. 

2. A. Perceived value that customers don't really need, but value anyway.--You will want to eliminate anything that falls into this category that costs you more money than it brings in. Double down on anything that brings you more money than it costs (hype, fads, brands and one hit wonders fall into this category). These are what make rabid customers, but it can be fickle. 

Beanie Babies. Need I say more? They are merely tiny stuffed animals, but when there was a shortage, people got injured at the mall trying to get their hands on one and were willing to brave weather, long lines and threats of death to get one. Just know that all good fads come to an end. For some reason customers perceived value where there really was none. 

Black Pearls (Tahitian pearls). In the 1970's black pearls were considered inferior to white pearls (never mind that pearls are just parasites covered in layers of calcium carbonate-what antacids are made from). In the mid 1970's Salvador James Assael a pearl manufacturer if you could call him that, brought several black pearls to jeweler Harry Winston in New York and had them set in extravagant settings and placed them in the window next to expensive stones. This piece of sheer marketing genius created for these junk pearls a perceived value far greater than that of white pearls. This perception remains true today. Starbucks did the same thing with gourmet coffee.

2. B. Perceived value that customers need and love.--Run with these. It's your bread and butter. These are what create consistent customers. 

What do you get at McDonald's that doesn't fall under the heading of hype from above? A consistent size, shape, look and taste (not to mention quality of meat, at least in cleanliness) to everything on the menu anywhere in the world. And you get it fast, to boot. Start messing with quality and customers will run for the hills. 

How can you increase perceived value? Some ideas: 

Find ways to gently point it out. I read a book once that said if you come in early and leave late, send your boss an early morning e-mail periodically so he might notice your sacrifice.

Under promise and over perform. I recently failed at this when I told my banker I'd email a document within the hour and then didn't get it sent for several hours. Now I look like a slacker. How much better to have said I'd have it by the end of the day and then send it in several hours instead?

Figure out what your customer wants and give it to them.

Surprise them. Front loading special bonuses makes a customer feel like you only have a bonus because you want a sale. Back loading special bonuses make a customer feel important or valued. They value you in return. Zappos routinely sends flowers with their shoes. 

Inexpensive ways: remember names (of customers, kids, grand kids), use names, send a thank you email or note with specific information from a prior meeting, smile, say thank you, make a special offer for each customer group "just for people like you (new customer, old customer, young customer, etc.), communicate well, remember birthdays, remember special events (and mention them), point out features, refer out when you can't meet needs (keep a list of professionals handy).

The possibilities are endless. Get out there and exceed customer expectations and create perceived value. 

Method for Improvement

I'm not sure where I picked this up, but I think it was likely several books and possibly a few research articles. The one that stands out in my mind is Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People. Some audio book I've listened to recently must have brought it again to my attention. If I run into anything I've read on this subject again I'll try to add a reference here, or you can add it in the comments section.

So here it is: any situation you have, you need to think through it ahead of time and answer the following questions.

Before:
B1. What outcome do I want to have from this (meeting, conversation, negotiation, etc.)?
B2. What will I do to cause this to be the outcome?

During the situation you need to ask yourself the following.

During:
D1. Are my actions causing my desired outcome to be more or less likely?
D2. What can I change now (in my approach, method, tactics, tone, mood, etc.) to make my desired outcome more likely?

Then after the situation ask yourself and answer the following.

After
A1. Did I get the outcome I desired?
A2. Why did I or why didn't I get the outcome I desired?
A3. What will I change next time I have a similar situation?

Carnegie suggests that a businessman he associated with stated that he reviewed his business and personal dealings every week. This weekly review was the single most important thing he did to bring about positive change in his businesses and life.

Here's the rub. If you don't go into a situation with an expected outcome, you have no measuring stick. How will you know if you did well or poorly? How will you know if you got what you expected? How will you know what to do in the future to avoid reliving bad outcomes and keep getting good ones?

Practical application: My 4 year old is not going to brush her teeth to get ready for bed.

Me: What would you rather have happen? You can complain here for ten minutes and not get a bedtime book, or you can quickly go brush your teeth and you might have time for two chapters of your bedtime book?
(Read: B1. Which outcome do you want? Extra book time. B2. What do you need to do to get it? Get ready for bed quickly. )

Child: Erg. Two chapters!

Me: Then why are you standing here complaining? That's not going to get you what you want! Go get your toothbrush!
(Read: D1. Are your actions (complaining) causing you to get your desired outcome? No. D2. What should you be doing to get your desired outcome? Quickly get your teeth brushed.)

Child: (runs to get toothbrush)

Me: Good Job! You got ready so fast we have some extra time for TWO WHOLE CHAPTERS tonight! You should do this every night!
(Read: A1. You got your desired outcome--two chapters. A2. You got your outcome (book chapters) because you got ready for bed quickly (action). A3. What will you do next time? You can have this every night if you just get ready for bed quickly instead of complaining.)

Simple. If you're having trouble remembering, notice that it's the same thing three times. 1. Outcome.
2. Action. It's that simple.

Now my 4 year old child is already savvy enough to know that sometimes she doesn't want to do the action that leads to the outcome. My only answer to this is "When you want it badly enough, you will do what you need to do to get the outcome." My old therapy mentor used to say, "Some people just aren't hurt badly enough to get better yet."

There was an old rat poison commercial where a lady saw a mouse and screamed, "I hate you!" Then a guy in a giant mouse/rat suit standing in her kitchen takes a bite out of some food and says, "Prove it."

You wanna lose weight? Quit smoking? Learn Spanish? Change careers? Open a business?...Prove it. 1. Outcome. 2. Action. It's that simple.

"You Are on a 0 Day Streak"...Fail. Your Simple 3 Step Plan to Stop Failing.

I have begun learning Spanish. I took Spanish in Jr. High and High School, but pretty much purged what little Spanish I did know one year after high school when I learned Mongolian to a high level of fluency and spent nearly two years in Outer Mongolia. Since knowing Spanish may connect me with another 470 million native speakers and Mongolian only connects me with 5.7 million speakers at best including many dialects that I doubtless would not understand, I figured now might be a good time to take the plunge. Next on my list will be Chinese.

Anyway, I got a Duolingo account and began learning. The first few sections were enjoyable and easy as I relearned the most basic "Hola" etc. Then I had to buckle down and start learning. After a few weeks of sporadic efforts at best, I decided that I really was going to put in the effort, so I busted out a 52 day streak. Then Halloween happened. 

I worked late and went straight to my sister-in-law's party, then went straight home arriving some time after midnight and Kabaam! Now I have a 0 day streak. Lame. As in, I am lame. 

So the question is when did I lose my 52 day streak?

Answer: The day before Halloween when I did not foresee the fact that I usually study in the evening and likely would not get that opportunity on Halloween, duh. 

And the moral of the story is...we all need to do a better job of planning ahead. 

Other times we "plan to fail because we fail to plan", then make excuses as to why it wasn't our fault even though it really was:

Waiting until the last minute to buy gifts for a birthday, anniversary, Christmas, or other holiday. "I can't believe every store was out of _____." (They weren't out 3 weeks ago when you should have ordered it.)

Waiting until the last minute to get ready to go to your event, party, meeting, date, job interview etc. "Traffic is never that bad" (Yes it is...every day...you should have left 20 minutes earlier and you would have been on time...and you should know how long it really takes yourself to get ready by now.)

Eating all that junk at work, that party, home. "Cravings happen, and I just had to try _____. (No, they don't just happen and no, you didn't have to try it. You know what sets off your cravings and you should have a healthy snack ready.)

Smoking, drinking, snorting, or otherwise participating in ______. "I just can't help myself." (Yes, you can. But maybe not in that moment. If you had planned ahead, you could have because you would have had a plan for just that moment, situation and/or scenario.)

Recent research has shown that you may be right. You may not be thinking straight in the moment of temptation or neglect. That is precisely why we need to plan ahead when we are level headed. We need to have a "pre-mortem".

In a situation where things could go wrong or have gone wrong in the past do the following:

1. Ask yourself, "If this was going to fail, why would it have?" in other words, "If tomorrow I wake up and I have failed, in what way did I fail and what could I have done differently so I would not have?" 

2. Make a plan that fixes or prevents that failure (kills the excuses).

3. Follow your plan no matter what.

So, when Thanksgiving and Christmas and Kwanzaa and New Year's come around I will:

1. Ask myself the day before. "Adam, how will I lose my __ day streak on Duolingo tomorrow?"

2. I need to do my Spanish in the morning so I don't forget to do it after dinner when I'm "Trippin' on Tryptophan". I think I'll set an alarm for the morning so I wake up on time and schedule a phone reminder to ring in at noon in case I forget in the morning. Also, I think I'll plan my outfit and pack the diaper bag tonight so I'm not late even after getting stuck in that horrible holiday traffic. Then, when that delicious pumpkin pie comes my way I'm going to reward myself for having done my Duolingo by eating three slices with an extra helping of whipped cream--can't win them all, right?

3. Wake up on time. Do my Duolingo. Eat my pie! 365 day streak here I come.

You can make money doing anything...especially moving garbage!

Fortune 400 list makers include people in oil (which really seems cool, but think about how uncool it is too), lumber, as well as real estate, hedge funds etc. A while back I listened to the audio book "All the Money in the World: How the Forbes 400 Make--and Spend--Their Fortunes" by Peter W. Bernstein. He details the myriad ways that the richest among us make and spend their cash.

Since listening to this (and before too) I would often look at the variety of shops as my wife and I drive down business districts in local towns and I gawk at the assortment of businesses in each town (yet another way I overwhelm her that this blog might ease).

More recently I have been thinking that in order to make money, you either have to improve many people's lives in a small way, or improve several people's lives in a very profound way. There are only a few out there who touch many people's lives in a profound way. I've noticed that those who manage this usually do it in a nearly imperceptible, but ubiquitous way. They often are not the inventors of a technology, but bring it to the masses packaged in a convenient, predictable way. Examples are all around us. Some well known, others obscure:

German brothers Wilhelm and Georg Shaeffler developed a new way to make ball bearings and grew the company they founded in 1946 to be one of the worlds largest manufacturers of ball bearings making loads of cash in the process. Tiny balls helping billions of people (drawers, cars, wheels...lets just leave it at that. If you use anything with wheels, you've probably used several of their tiny balls).

Ray Croc--you may not agree with McDonalds, but you probably have heard the story of how he brought burgers to the masses. In fact, you've probably had one of his burgers. He didn't invent the burger or McDonalds. He just brought it to the world helping you fill your hunger in a convenient (drive through, short wait), predictable (same every time--same amount, same size, same cooking procedure delivered by a 16 year old exactly the same every time) way.

I recently heard a local story of Harold E. LeMay of Tacoma, WA. I had previously noticed that we use LeMay Recycling at work and heard that we were saving bundles over the previous company we used...and it was more convenient (there's that word again) too. I had also seen the Lemay America's Car Museum as we drive down I-5 in Tacoma (more on crazy ways to spend your millions in another post). I learned his story from one of my patients.

Out of high school, Harold partnered in an automotive business. As my patient put it, one day he won a garbage truck in a car auction. He had trouble selling it, so he looked into the trash collection business. He began Spanaway Garbage Collection Company with one truck. Soon he had more trash than he could handle so he bought another truck. The rest is history. His company became Harold LeMay Enterprises after WW II. He also owned Lucky Towing, HELM Trucking, Lucky Sales and Services and the list goes on. While building his empire on garbage, he also gathered the world's largest collection of autos, motorcycles, trucks and other vehicles and memorabilia (over 3,000 vehicles). Each summer Harold and his wife Nancy would open their estate for the annual LeMay Car Show. After his death most of his vehicles were donated to Tacoma for the museum.

In 1991 he was elected to the National Solid Waste Association Hall of Fame (who knew that existed!?)

In 2011 Harold and Nancy LeMay were inducted into the Washington State Hot Rod Hall of Fame

The moral of the story is threefold:

1. Sometimes your fortune is right under your nose. You just have to see it and seize it. See Acres of Diamonds by Russell Conwell

2. You build your fortune on your failures. Lemay could not sell that truck. If someone else had bought it, it could have been the Someone Else America's Car Museum.

3. Before you can get inducted into the "Hall of Awesome", you have to wade through the "Hall of Garbage" and help out millions of people in a very profound way. Before you can collect cars, you have to collect heaps and heaps of garbage. Imagine a nation without garbage collection and recycling services.

Your Customers Are Not You

I've been doing a lot of research on advertising and marketing. In the process a friend of mine from LDS Business College's Self Reliance "Starting and Growing My Business" class suggested I take a "free advertising class" and take a close look at all the mail that comes to my house and dissect the strategies of the advertisers that have targeted me.

What are they doing well?

Which pieces of mail am I likely to open?

Why am I drawn to some parcels and not to others?

Which mail do I look at right away and which go on "the stack"?

I have also been checking out the newspaper advertisements, billboards, TV ads, want ads, garage sale signs, other signs etc. There is an old phrase, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." I have learned much about good and bad advertising. One of the main principles is that your customer does not care about you. They do not think like you. They do not know what you know. They do not have the same needs, wants and desires as you. But if you can draw their attention and let them know that you can give them what they need, want and/or desire, you will never go hungry again!...I digress.

A graduate student named Elizabeth Newton at Stanford University performed a study in 1990 about tappers and listeners which I think applies. Try this at home!

Ms. Newton divided a group of human guinea pigs into two groups "tappers" and "listeners". She asked to tappers to choose a familiar song and tap out the rhythm on a table for the listeners to guess. Before the listeners guessed, she asked the tappers to predict the probability that the listeners would correctly guess their song. Out of 120 tapped songs, listeners guessed only three correctly (2.5%). Tappers had predicted a success rate of 50%.

Think of that! The tappers conveyed their message effectively 1/40 times, but guessed that they would convey their message 1/2 times! Does this every happen when we are marketing?

We hear the tune of how awesome our product or service is. We think about all the time and work we put into thinking of a name, a jingle, a meme. We think of all the ways we have made ourselves better than the competition. Then we tap out our message and the customer does not understand or care.

When we advertise we need to make sure that we are not being like the tappers. We should not play the message we have chosen. Instead we need to tune into the song our customers are tapping and fill those needs--not the needs we think they need filled, not our needs. Then we will be able to create simple, effective marketing strategies and campaigns that reverberate with our customers and highlight the ways our products and services meet their needs. Not what we think they should need, and especially not what we need or want.

If we play the game of tapping out our marketing message, we will likely have a success rate similar to Newton's tappers about 2.5%. If we instead tune into what our customers want. We will be tapping out a song they already hear and our success rate can be much higher than 50% with our target market.

Try the game this way. Have a listener hum a song, then begin tapping out that song on the table. See if the hummer can figure out what you are tapping. What do you think the success rate will be now? Let's play tappers and hummers. In this game everybody wins!

Now go figure out what your customers want and advertise that! Listen to them and they will hear and understand your message loud and clear!

Addendum: While I was in the processes of writing this post my (Italian) wife told me that McDonald's had run an ad in Italy stating that Italian kids like Happy Meals more than pizza. While this may be true, it's not a song that they want to hear!

Quiz: Recently in preparing an exercise class I heard some statistics that the class can help elderly people avoid falls. This is a measurable fact. We may even hear an old person say they don't want to fall and are fearful of falling (the class also decreases fear of falling). Should I run an ad that says "ATTENTION OLD PEOPLE: come to my exercise class so you can avoid falling!"?

No! That is not the song they are singing. If it is, it's not the song they want to hear. They don't want to be called old, they don't want to exercise and they don't want to be reminded that they might fall.

How 'bout this: "Mature adults come try this new class! You can stay independent and healthy while meeting new people!"

I'm sure you can come up with an even better message. Leave your comment below to improve the above advertisement!

100 Things To Do On a Free Day

100 Things to do on a free day in no particular order, repeats allowed:
1. Pre school
2. Play with my kids
3. Science experiments
4. Take my wife on a shopping spree
5. Learn to fish
6. Go golfing
7. Fly to my brother's house and go golfing with him/them
8. Learn to fly an airplane
9. Learn to fly a helicopter
10. Sail
11. Learn Spanish
12. Learn Chinese
13. Read a fiction book
14. Read to my kids
15. Have my kids read to me
16. Rent/buy rollerblades and go rollerblading
17. Miniature golf
18. Cook lunch
19. Cook dinner
20. Do laundry...is that a free day thing...I don't get around to these things on other days-Support day?
21. Learn to Sail
22. Play the song Sail while sailing
23. Go sailing with my wife's grandmother and say "look I'm sailing...I sail"
24. Watch What About Bob on a boat even though I think I like it about as little as my wife's G-ma
25. Play guitar
26. Have my wife teach me to crochet
27. Go to the zoo
28. Go to the temple
29. Have a picnic
30. Fly to NC and play a board game with old friends (not old ones, but old ones you know?)
31. Learn to scuba dive
32. Plan a vacation for another free day (or is that a support day or delegate thing?)
33. Read
34. Sleep in
35. Breakfast in bed
36. Kiss my wife
37. Give my wife a massage
38. Get kissed by my wife
39. Go for a long walk
40. Eat cake
41. Go get a maple bar and a slurpee and figure out how to mail them to NC
42. Read the newspaper
43. Go to an estate sale
44. Go to an auction
45. Play football
46. Play soccer
47. Play basketball
48. Play volleyball on a real beach
49. Go to the beach with my kids
50. Build sandcastles
51. Lie on the beach
52. Learn to surf
53. Surf
54. Go someplace warm and exotic and surf
55. Go visit my cousin in NY and surf in cold water
56. Surf in the surf tee hee.
57. Visit a rainforest
58. Visit a national park
59. Visit a state park
60. Learn Dvorak (typing)
61. Lean Dvorak song on piano
62. Learn to play piano
63. Learn a piano concerto and duet with my wife and teach my oldest child a song on piano and invite people over for a concert with brownies
64. Make brownies with my son
65. Help my mother clean out her basement
66. Ride a horse
67. Ride my brother's horse
68. Golf
69. Eat delicious food
70. Eat delicious food in Italy
71. Hang glide
72. Climb cliffs
73. Go spelunking
74. Write a book
75. Do a crossword puzzle start to finish
76. Make a crossword puzzle with fun words like spelunking and galoshes
77. Write a song
78. Write a song and play and sing with guitar/piano with high school best friend
79. Eat Pringles
80. Go on a campout without pre-planning (prob with my kids) a la my high school self with two besties (not with my kids then..)
81. Row
82. Explore an island
83. Draw with sidewalk chalk
84. Golf with my Father-in-law and Brothers-in-law
85. Learn to fish
86. Shoot a gun
87. Get really good at archery
88. Take up fencing again
89. Poke someone with a sword (with safety gear)
90. Plan a bank heist scenario
91. Write an action novel with a bank heist scenario
92. Shoot the bull
93. Camp in a tee-pee
94. Make (have made) cowboy and Indian costumes and get laser tag equipment and play cowboys and Indians on real horseback
95. Before doing above research if laser tag equipment could harm horses. If so, do above with broomstick horses with kids instead of adults
96. Plan and act out zombie scenario for my brother-in-law's birthday
97. Watch Bones with my wife--all day
98. Pick a new show to watch with my wife
99. Play video games including retro ones
100. Watch old timey horrer movies with bro-in-law

Idea from Work Less, Make More: Stop Working So Hard and Create the Life You Really Want by Jennifer White

Today Matters--The Daily Dozen

I have developed the habit of listening to audiobooks on my commute. Since my commute is only about 20 minutes each way, I get less than an hour of "reading" in each day which usually is not enough time to finish a book in the 21 days I have before the library calls the audiobook due (I rent books on my smart phone from OverDrive). So I have gotten into the habit of listening while I do the dishes. This gives me extra listening time soI can finish a few books a month (somehow my wife and kids dirty a lot of dishes while I am at work:)). While I think this annoyed my wife at first because she was not always interested in my book, now I think she appreciates only having to do the dishes occasionally and has moved into the other room while I listen and clean. Now I only annoy her with conversations about the books...we can't win them all.

As an aside: according to Tom Corley http://richhabits.net/?s=read+non+fiction 63% of wealthy people listen to audio books during commute to work vs. 5% for poor people... I must be one of the 5% :) I wonder if when I become wealthy I'll pull the wealthy up to 64% and the poor people will drop to 4%...

I recently finished listening to a book Today Matters: 12 Daily Practices to Guarantee Tomorrow's Success by John C. Maxwell. I really liked how he discussed how each practice affected him in each decade of his life. This sort of showed me a timeline of how practicing each of his "Daily Dozen" principles could affect my life if I start living them now. As a physical therapist I recognize how small changes in behavior can make large changes over time, but it's easy to give up before you see the fruits of your labor. Almost like a farmer giving up on his seeds because he doesn't see them germinating underground. Many times it takes a long time to see progress and it can be difficult to recognize the progress as it comes slowly. I often tell my patients that they may not notice the changes just like a child cannot see their growth in height day by day, but it is significant if measured against a standard scale every 6 months or year.

Maxwell recommends ranking the daily dozen from 1-12 with #1 your strongest and #12 your weakest. Then discuss your ranking with a friend. Then spending 60 days working on two practices from your top 6 and one from your bottom 6. I had trouble ranking them 1-12, but dividing them into top 6 and bottom 6 was easier. Below see the list of "daily dozen" in the order he covers them in the book. I am starting by working on #'s 2, 4, and 5. However, I find that they all are connected and I can't help but be working on others simultaneously. As part of #5 and in an attempt to not overly annoy my wife with random babblings about the books I am listening to, I will begin posting more frequently in this blog. I also feel that this will show my progress in much the same way Maxwell demonstrated his. Without further ado, the daily dozen:

1. Attitude --> Possibilities
2. Priorities --> Focus
3. Health --> Strength
4. Family --> Stability
5. Thinking --> Advantage
6. Commitment --> Tenacity
7. Finances --> Options
8. Faith --> Peace
9. Relationships --> Fulfillment
10. Generosity --> Significance
11. Values --> Direction
12. Growth --> Potential

Now get out there and live them every day...because Today Matters!

Winning in the Margins--50 cents = $434,124

Winning in the Margins!! 

Richard Paul Evans wrote the book The Five Lessons a Millionare Taught Me. Lesson four is "Winning in the Margins". It's been several years since I read his book and I don't truly remember how he explained the principle, but this principle is one that has stuck with me and somewhat haunted me. Though this isn't exactly how he meant it, if I remember correctly, I'm beginning to see that we need to "win in the margins" of every part of our life and business. Said another way, it's the great magnitude of little things.

 

I’m convinced that this is the primary reason for business success or failure. Success in business finances and personal finances isn't a matter of doubling income, it's a matter of doubling net profits! This can be done in several ways. A failing business and successful business are usually not that far apart. Understand that if I make $4,000/month and I am saving $400/month. I only need to make $4,400 and save the extra $400 to DOUBLE my retirement income. In other words an increase of 10% in salary can increase your retirement savings by 200%! And if we take the same principle into retirement things get even better! If you can retire on 100% of you retirement savings (and I hope you can, otherwise you probably should think three times about retiring, and then keep working instead) then you can blow the extra on whatever floats your boat (how 'bout buy a boat and then buy what floats it to the little island that you also will own one day) or retire a lot sooner! Or realize that your time is freed up to make some real money and make a real difference in the world and your world.

 

All the little things matter a ton! It’s the last little push that makes all the difference. Your salary pushes you up the hill, the margin pushes you the last 3 feet so you can coast down the other side. Once you've paid for all of your expenses, every dollar you earn goes in your pocket (after Uncle Sam picks your pocket of course).The little things--the extra dollar you earn (Richard Paul Evans' mentor's meaning), the extra dollar you don't spend, the extra smidgen of a percentage point added to a loan, the extra smile you give your customer, the extra perk you give to over-perform, the extra flair you give your marketing, the extra thanks you give your employee, the extra few dollars negotiated in a business contract, the extra $1/hour you negotiate in your salary which equals $2080 if you work full time. If you can’t get an extra dollar try an extra 50 cents for $1040, or even 25 cents for $520. Ask your boss for an extra 25 cents when you are negotiating your salary--who can say no to that?--and you get yourself a nice Christmas bonus of $520. You may even get a Christmas bonus from work too!

 

In addition to skills and attitude (much of which depends on your upbringing and social construct and much of which depends on what you are willing to work for), I bet this largely accounts for the disparity between classes--at least between low and upper middle class. If you and I both live on $50,000 to pay all our bills and you make $50,000 and I make $55,000 and invest the extra $5,000 at 7% per year interest in a Roth IRA from age 20-65 (check out bankrate.com for many easy financial calculators). I will have over $1.5 million dollars when I retire and you will have $0. If I want to double my retirement to over $3 million, I need only make $60,000 per year instead of $55,000. Or perhaps I ask for an extra 25 cents/hour when we get hired and I make $50,520 per year. That 25 cents ($520/year) invested = $158,991 in retirement. You could go on a SWEET 25 cent vacation for $158,991 even factoring in inflation. Or blow it on Christmas for the next 45 years, that works for me too. If you can make an extra 1% (8% instead of 7%) on your interest, you get an extra $58,071. Two simple tiny changes: 25 cents and 8% = $217,062. May as well ask for a dollar, you may get 50 cents and then you’re well on your way to half a million!

 

As a business owner, if you negotiated 25 cents lower, you could give out some sweet $520 bonuses to all your employees every year! Or if you are an owner of a company with 1924 employees, you could pocket an extra $1,000,000 a year. Of course you’d have to consider whether that extra 25 cents would lose you some good employees or morale which may cost you more. But most studies show there are better ways to say “thank you” to your employees than an extra 25 cents an hour...like saying "thank you"…though a $158,991 Christmas retirement check wouldn’t hurt either.

Just Gonna Be Popular

I've been reading an interesting book called Viral Loop, by Adam L. Penenberg. In a part of the book that doesn't seem to flow with the rest, but perhaps explains the rest of the book better than the rest of the book, Penenberg goes on a tangent about human nature and the societal and human need to be connected with others, and yet be special. It jives with some of my recent thinking about business and life. Here are a few questions to get you thinking:

Why does that 3-9 year old boy or girl that you've never met before come up to you at the park and yell, "Watch what I can do!"?

Who was the most popular girl or boy at your school? Why? Were they actually the most interesting person? Why did almost everyone want to be friends with them?

Why do lunchrooms/cafeterias in every circumstance have tables that are full and tables that are empty? Why do you sit at the table that you do (likely the full one in some circumstances, and the empty one in others)?

Are the most popular movie actors and actresses the best actors/actresses?

Why do some businesses with great ideas fail? And yet why do you know what a Snuggie is?

Why do you like certain people, companies, products, candidates?

Why do combat troops follow certain leaders into battle against all odds?

Why do some sports teams/athletes know they can win no matter what?

Why did you share that funny quip on facebook? Why did you talk about or share that app with your coworker or family member or friend?

Why have or haven't you used the incentive program from work that pays you money if you bring in a new employee?

Why is it hard to sell something you aren't excited about?

Why do you make more noise when someone walks in the room?

Why did you share your food at dinner stating, "This is delicious, try some!"? And why did you equally enthusiastically say, "Ugh! This is disgusting! Here, try some."?

Something awesome, new, wonderful, cool, exciting, hilarious, lame, stupid, thought provoking or touching, just isn't that great without someone to share it with.

Robert Kiyosaki (author of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series) talks about having the necessary business skills to succeed and building a BI triangle. He also states that every person and family and business all have a BI triangle that needs to be in balance to be a success.

Penenberg talks about the need for a product to be good, sharable, and easy to use in order to become a viral loop. You have to want to share it, or you won't...even if they pay you.

This is why incentive programs don't work well, but social media does. What matters in the equation is me...or you. How you touch your customer, friend, family member is more important than you or your product--because it includes them.

People repost that stupid facebook message because it makes them feel important and connected. People don't talk to strangers because they don't want to feel stupid (or get mugged). People sit alone at a table because sitting alone makes them feel safer than the chance of being rejected at the big table. People love to watch Brad Pitt because they wish they could bring him home for dinner. They watch Steve Buscemi because he's a great actor and happens to be in the film (how many of you had to look up who Steve is?). That little kid wants you to watch him, because an awesome trick isn't awesome unless someone can see how awesome it is. And because if no one watches him, he'll have to admit that he's not that awesome. Nobody wants that.

They say people can judge if they like a person in less than 5 seconds. The first impression is the most important impression because nobody likes changing their minds--they are usually right (or else they'd inherently be wrong...and once again Nobody wants that!). I think people can judge a business, or a website in the same amount of time. Only the cyber world functions much faster than the real world. This is both a blessing and a curse. You can become a success much faster, or a failure much faster. But you don't have as much time to make adjustments.

So, how do you make your business or yourself a success? You feed the need others have to be special and feel connected (this is often called customer service). You make yourself popular. The only problem is that I don't know the answer to the question: why was that boy/girl in school popular?

I'm convinced I'm going to have to watch all those horrible 90's chick flicks about high school girls becoming popular to understand.

Other thought provoking questions why does Pareto's law hold true in so many instances? Is the reverse also true?

When People Become Commodities

Stay with me on this one. It all comes together in the end.

In 1856, the Chicago Board of Trade enacted a system for grading corn. This was the introduction to the world of Number 2 Field Corn (for a more technical definition of field corn--if you like that sort of thing--please see the bottom of this post). No. 2 field corn is what most Americans (by "American" in this case, I mean citizen of the United States of America, as Canadians have not fully gone corny and can still buy a Coca Cola made with sugar which they shouldn't be drinking either) eat the most of every day. Think of high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, corn starch, modified corn starch, corn meal, corn chips, corn flakes etc. And that's just the list of ingredients and products where you will recognize that you are drinking or eating corn, there is also the list of things you won't recognize that are derivatives of corn: ethanol (yes, your car consumes No. 2 field corn too), ascorbic acid, baking powder, caramel color, calcium citrate, caramel, cellulose, citric acid, dextrin, maltodextrin, dextrose, lactic acid, malt, magnesium citrate, xylitol, and my personal favorite, xanthan gum, and the list goes on. 

So what's the point? Before 1856, if you wanted corn you would buy a bag of it with a seal or mark on it so you knew what farm it came from. If you didn't like it, you could "vote with your feet" or wallet and buy from another farmer. But you personally would vet the corn yourself. Different growers had different types of corn and growing methods that may yield a better or worse product, but you would get to decide what you liked best. Farmers did their best to produce the best corn at the cheapest prices.

After 1856, all corn that met the standard "No. 2 field corn" was brought to the granary and stored in one large pile to be processed together. Farmers did their best to produce corn that met the minimum standards (No. 2 field corn). As much of it as possible without regard to quality beyond the minimum "No. 2". Corn was officially a commodity. As such it became interchangeable with other corn meeting the minimum standard. Nobody cares where a commodity comes from. If gold comes out of the ground in South America or Africa it is interchangeable as long as it has the same number of carats. If your field corn tastes better than your neighbors, nobody will ever know, because by the time it reaches your table as corn flakes it has been mixed with all the other corn of the same grade and processed beyond recognition. The bottom line with commodities is that increased quality beyond the minimum standard is meaningless.

Earlier this year, I became a commodity. I began working for a healthcare staffing company. When a healthcare professional calls in sick unexpectedly, or has a baby two weeks early, or has a vacation that no one can cover, they call my company. My company sends a "No. 2 field healthcare worker". They send me. Or someone who is interchangeable with me and the person who we are replacing. We are commodities. We have the necessary degree, vaccinations, license and time available. I know of a healthcare professional who could not find a job after graduating (likely because of ageism). After interviewing at several companies with no success after the interviews, she took a job at a staffing company and then filled in for many of the people who were hired in her stead. The kicker--the companies had to pay almost double for her services (commodity prices rise during a shortage). 

The problem with becoming a commodity is that you are treated like one. Just like with corn, the people I work for aren't looking for the best replacement. They are looking for any viable replacement. Also, it doesn't really matter what quality of care they provide as long as it meets the minimum standards (nobody dies and nobody makes a scene). What is the number one question a prospective employer is asking? "What is your productivity percentage?" This is akin to asking a farmer, "what is your yield per acre?" It is assumed that the yield meets the minimum standard and no more thought is given to quality. Quality is no longer the goal, quantity is king.

The sad truth is that you can have the largest yield per acre and still be unprofitable. Likewise, you can have all your employees be highly "productive" as a healthcare facility and still be in the red. Productivity matters only so long as you are profitable. Not to mention that with healthcare we are talking about workers and patients who are people and not products like corn. It's a little scary what may happen in the future of healthcare quality, when productivity is the primary driver.

As a side note, if you are in a field where you are commoditized, you need to either differentiate or "de-commoditize" yourself by making yourself or your product special in some way so you can justify charging more for it. Or you need to out produce your competitors and become one of the biggest purveyors of your good or service so you have some control or ability to bargain over prices or control the supply line. If you are unable to get large enough, some industries have had some success establishing co-ops to gain collective bargaining power. If that term sounds familiar, it is because of the labor movement (commodity workers) establishing unions (co-op) demanding worker rights last century.

What is No. 2 Field Corn?

No. 2 field corn is a grade designation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Federal Grain Inspection Service. It is corn that has a minimum test weight of 54 pounds per bushel at 15.5% moisture. It has a maximum limit of 3% broken kernels and foreign material and cannot exceed 5% total damaged kernels. 

https://www.extension.org/pages/39109/what-is-no-2-field-corn#.U93EF0DOdP4 

Things To Act, and Things To Be Acted Upon

If you have no vision, you are blind.

Duh. In other words, you will not be able to see your path. Ultimately you will by necessity be led by someone with vision, or stumble around in the apparent darkness. Hopefully, you will stumble upon someone with a great vision and hitch your cart to their horse, otherwise the future is bleak indeed.

In nearly every philosophy or self improvement method or book I've read, there are a few concepts that crop up repeatedly. This one is usually near the beginning, because without it, you won't get far. The Bible says it this way, "Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18). If you don't know what you are about, how can you be about it? If you are not a thing to act, you are a thing to be acted upon by an actor. 

At work one day this week I was doing a 30 minute treatment on a wound on a bed bound elderly gentleman's bottom. He developed this wound because he is unable to reposition himself effectively enough to allow adequate blood flow to the skin tissues. Essentially his tissues are starved for blood and break down because he is unable to make large enough or frequent enough fidgets to allow blood flow to his buttocks and his caregivers did not adjust his position effectively enough. (I get called in when a wound such as this is has not been healing for over 30 days.) Non-healthcare professionals may assume that this is an unusual problem. They would be incorrect with this assumption. Millions of people nationwide, for one reason or another, are literally sitting themselves to death. This man, unfortunately, has become a person to be acted upon.

While performing this 30 minute treatment (while waiting for the machine to do it's thing) I documented his progress (after several treatments he is now healing) and completed some other notes, while listening to the afternoon news on his television. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that former President George H. W. Bush had gone sky diving to celebrate his 90th birthday. Despite his Parkinsonian symptoms, he is still acting on things and directing his life. 

Yes, former President Bush is now mostly chair bound (his jump was a tandem jump with a helper). Yes, he has more mental faculties and financial opportunities than my patient. Yes, he has more social support than my patient. But these are things he gained based on choices he made in his life. Now looking forward from my vantage point in my 30's, it is clear that my actions today will lead to my circumstances in my 60's, 70's, 80's, and hopefully 90's and beyond. Why not seize the day and choose to act. 

Of note, Mr. Bush also took a dive on his 75th, 80th and 85th birthdays. I'll be watching to see if he makes 95. But whether he does or does not, maybe I will...

http://www.pressherald.com/2014/06/12/birthday-parachute-jump-for-former-pres-g-h-w-bush-today/

You Are the Hero of Your Own Story

There are two principles here:

1. You are the hero of your own story. No one else is going to slay the dragon for you. If they do, it was their dragon and their book; not yours. If you want to be successful, YOU have to go out and make that happen. Sure, you can get some help along the way. There can be (and should be) well developed supporting characters that help you on your adventure--even The Lone Ranger had Tonto (as Dave Ramsey sometimes says). But, in the end, as one of my patients used to say, "you are the hero of your own story." What is your story going to be about?

2. If you are the hero of your own story, that means everybody else is the hero of their own stories too. In case you didn't quite catch it, that means that the best you will ever be in someone else's book, is a strong supporting actor. The worst you will be is the antagonist. Don't be someone's antagonist unless it is because you are just being awesome and they are being lame. In other words don't intentionally be antagonistic. In any exchange between two or more people, there are two or more books being written. No matter how awesome you are (or how lame they are), the other person's book is about them. Your book is about you. The best possible outcome is that you are both each others' strong supporting actors, or at least a good cameo.

Dale Carnegie puts it this way, "Remember that the people you are talking to are a hundred times more interested in themselves and their wants and problems than they are in you and your problems." (How to Win Friends & Influence People, Pocket Books paper back edition May 2010, p. 93)

In other words, it's not always about you...or is it? I guess in one book it always is about me...make it a good book!

Anyway, thanks for sharing this part of my book with me. Now it's a part of your book too. mwaa haa haa.

Delegation--if you don't do the process, the process is useless.

People are terrible at delegating and giving instruction. Not all people, but I do think that all of us could get better at it. I've been doing several online courses and have read several business books that discuss this very important detail of business and every-day life. Lately I've been listening to a book on improving families by Bruce Feiler, The Secrets of Happy Families, Improve Your Mornings, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smarter, Go Out and Play, and Much More. The book does not delve into delegating in and of itself, which is probably why it seemed to point out several things that people do poorly in relation to teaching/delegating--and if you think that these subjects are not related, you're severely mistaken. They're practically the same thing. Delegating is just teaching somebody how to do something, and what you expect them to do, and not do, in the process. Anyone needing a thorough retreading of delegation should read 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. He lays it out in too much detail, if that's possible, and yet we still miss the point.
How to Delegate:
1. Show them how you do it. Because they need to see and because you may be more particular than you think you are. e.g. Do you hang the toilet paper over, or under? Don't get frustrated that they don't do it like you would have done it, if you haven't shown them how you do it.
2. Tell them exactly what needs to be done and how the task relates to the big picture. People need to know that their job is relevant and appreciated, and affects people in very positive ways. In healthcare, the janitor may be the most important person in preventing spread of contagious diseases.
3. Instruct them on what resources they are allowed to use in completing the task. Don't complain if your employee builds a house out of straw when you wanted a house of bricks, if you did not tell them that you wanted a house of bricks.
4. Instruct them on what resources and steps they are NOT allowed to use while completing the task. This may seem redundant as you have already told them what they can use, but these are two very different things. e.g. "Lydia (my three year old daughter) please throw that paper in the garbage." She proceeds to writhe slowly along the floor. "I'm a fish and the floor is the water," she states. (she is allowed full reign on the method she uses to get that trash in the bin--this is where lots of the magic of delegation happens, they may do a better job than you and with more flare--but she is not allowed to take all day if we are rushing out the door. "You only have 10 seconds to get that paper in the garbage, or you will get a time out (see #5)." Lydia writhes much more quickly towards the garbage. Be very clear on what boundaries they have.
5. Be specific on how they will be graded, and follow up with grading their results. Give accountability--both for a job well done (often forgotten) and for what needs work (often overstated). (Key Results Areas (KRA's) in Dave Ramsey speak)
6. Give them the right amount of leash and get out of the way. (obviously you don't have to show them how to clean a toilet...or do you?) Why must we be taught every year that handwashing has the biggest influence on preventing spread of infections? because every year after the handwashing class, employees from food service workers to doctors don't do an adequate job, or don't do it at all! (think you're doing a good job? The next time you're washing consider the most commonly missed areas and see if you miss a spot: the base of one or both thumbs, the base of the "pinky" finger (where you would karate chop), and the finger tips. Not to mention under a ring or watch.) A wise tip--just pretend they are completely new at what they are doing and you have to teach them everything. Let out more leash as they demonstrate competency. Years of experience don't necessarily equate to years of good experience. If they know they are going to be checked on everything, they'll be more likely to ask questions and learn, and more likely to follow through. Be careful not to belittle, berate, or be condescending throughout the process.

The problem is that all this takes time; and if there's one thing you don't have much of while starting a new venture, it's time. The kicker is, if you instruct well in the beginning, you will save much more time and be much more effective in the future (as will your delegatee).

Causes of Delegation Failure:
1. Too little oversight and training - "...but the reason I hired this person is so I wouldn't have to do this anymore" I know, but even if the job title seems to scream that they should know how to do something, they still need training on your system--this also gives you ample opportunity to perfect your systems and processes by observing where people need more instruction and where less is more. You want your system to be so good that high schoolers could effectively do the work--that's why McDonald's is so successful.
2. No buy in on the importance of the task. - I know I'm just going down the list of what things you were supposed to have done. But that's just it--if you don't do the process, the process is useless. If they don't know it's important to someone, and who that someone is, and that the someone is watching and it affects them, why should they do it and/or do it well. If the teenager doling out meatballs onto your Subway sandwich gives you 6 meatballs instead of 5, it becomes very difficult to do inventory and very difficult to make a profit since the whole cost structure and ordering process is based on 5 meatballs. What happens when someone else works that shift? This is often where we've specialized ourselves into mindless work. We have to see the connectedness. How does what we do fit into the big picture?
3. Not knowing exactly what they are allowed to use. - How much time? How many other employees? How much money?
4. Not knowing the boundaries. - How has this project gone wrong in the past? What are the things that must not happen? There was a study done on school age children where they measured how far kids wandered from the middle of the playground when they had fences and did not have fences. It was found that the kids who had fences explored the full area of the playground while the kids who had no fences tended to huddle in the middle of the playground. We can't accept huddling in the middle of the business playground. Most employee problems are problems with our leadership. Few are actually due to employees that shouldn't be there. If there are a lot of those, it's still your fault because you should have done a better job of hiring!
5. No follow through - Accountability needs to be a positive word. People need recognition for what they are accomplishing. Don't believe this? Ask my nephew--he's 4 years old. Anything awesome in his life needs to be shared, and at top volume! Lay the praise on thick, but honestly. We're all really just 4 year olds at heart, no matter the age.
6. Micro-managing - How much leash do you give? Depends on the temperament of the dog! Now that I've offended all your employees, I'll say it again--it depends on the dog. You really have to know your employees. Some will need you to show them six times that the toilet paper goes on over the top and how to put it on there, then you'll have to watch them to it six more times, then check back tomorrow that they did it correctly or create a teachable moment where you finish off the roll and see what happens. Others will say "duh," and get the job done on the first try. But let them prove to you and themselves that they can and will do things properly under low stress situations before they have to do it in a high stress situation. Doctors call this a residency (even though that is high stress all along). I repeat: you need to know your team members individually, or you may as well do it yourself. Let your kid fall off a stool, but not a cliff. As Feiler writes, let your kid mess up with his $6 allowance so he won't mess up with his $60,000/ year salary or his $6 million dollar inheritance. One kid will be too stingy, another too spendthrift. Let them earn more leash, but when they do, let out that leash.
7. No single point of failure - this means that there are checks and balances. If John gets C. Difficile tomorrow because he didn't follow the handwashing advice above, Sally had better know how, when and why to change the toilet paper roll. Otherwise things are going to go very badly for you when you start getting the same symptoms because you didn't follow handwashing procedure either. Everyone makes mistakes sometime. How badly does a mistake affect you? That depends on your back up plan, and whether you change for the better because you made the mistake.

Bottom line: If you have a delegation problem, you have a you problem. What can you do better?

Do you need to be a mechanic to run a mechanic shop?

When I was a teenager and young adult (I'd like to think I'm still a young adult (but with more wisdom) and since I often work with 80 and 90 year olds, I am still a young adult by comparison) I used to stand around my parent's kitchen, leaning or sitting on the counter tops, listening to my family members discuss many topics. Since my father worked at Fidelity Investments conversations often revolved around investing and his customers who would call in for advice or to move money around buying and selling stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. I learned concepts such as "buy low, sell high", "invest early and often", "diversify", "the power of compounding interest", and to ask the question "why do you want to buy that mutual fund", as that was the most common beginning to most stories.
As I got older, my oldest brother ventured out into several businesses (some that I was a part of--lawn maintenance/landscaping, some that I wanted to be a part of but was not--real estate, and some that I did not want to be a part of but affected my world--bee keeping!). I was then introduced to a whole new world of concepts. I miss those days of staying up way past my bedtime soaking in the aspirations of my brother and learning about his and other people's successes and failures (from these alone, I could probably write a book). There are several ideas that I continue to come back to from time to time and expand upon as I gain new knowledge and understanding. One in particular still seems to haunt me.
I was probably in my late teens or early twenties and was interested in cars, especially about fixing them. My brother had a jeep and had rebuilt and improved several systems on it. I had seen the jeep in various phases of rebuild sitting under my parent's carport throughout my high school years, but had very little experience in fixing cars myself. I had an old Plymouth Horizon in high school that I had bought from another brother. I had replaced the door handle several times (poor design and huge muscles-ha), the wiper blades, the tires, mickey moused the exhaust system up with hangers, the brakes (mostly my best friend who later became a car mechanic did this one), and packed my wheel bearings once (thank goodness my older brother showed up while I was attempting this one with no prior training and went easy on me--but that is another story). In any case, I wanted to know more, but did not have a suitable mentor, so I began taking classes at the local applied technology center. I thought that being a car mechanic would be a good job to have to work on the side while I went to school for a bachelor's degree, rather than working at McDonald's.
One day while discussing business in the kitchen, my brother must have been trying to get something through my thick skull. Finally he asked, "could you run a car mechanic shop?" "No, I'm not a mechanic yet. But one day I will be able to run a shop." I replied. "Wrong! You don't need to be able to fix cars to run a mechanic shop!" he said. "But I'm learning how to fix cars" I protested. He must have been exasperated. It's a wonder he even tried to continue, but he explained that running a business and working in a business are two different skill sets altogether. I don't remember the specifics, but that phrase still haunts me while I think about running a business--any kind of business--"you don't need to be able to fix cars to run a mechanic shop". I don't think he even realized the full importance of his idea. Larry Miller is not a great basketball player. Michael Jordan is not a car manufacturer or car salesman. I'm not even sure that Ray Crock could make a cheeseburger.
Robert Kiyosaki, author of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad book series and associated products makes the distinction between a small business or specialist "S" and a big business "B". Small business owners own a job. Big business owners own an asset. S jobs: dentist, lawyer, accountant, doctor, etc. B jobs: business owner of a system. I was stuck in my mentality of becoming a specialist--a car mechanic--then becoming an owner of a mom and pop mechanic shop (an "S" or owner of a job). While he was trying to take me to the mentality of going straight to a "B" (owner of Jiffy Lube chain).
What I find interesting at the moment is that I have become a more highly paid "S"--a physical therapist--and am about to open a clinic (where I will own the job). I guess I am still working on elevating my mentality. What is also interesting, is that my lawyer says that my wife cannot be a part owner in the business because she is not a physical therapist. Professional companies (pllc, pcorp) cannot be owned by anyone outside the profession, supposedly to protect the public from greedy business people and ensure proper services (you can sue the whole company and individual professional for malpractice etc. because they are all members of the same profession). So I am forced to be an owner of an "S". Interestingly this also affects taxation. A work around seen throughout the professional world is to have another company own proprietary information and service marks and real estate and rent or lease this to the underlying professional company. In other words a "B" company can own what makes the "S" company go 'round, but cannot own the "S" company. The "S" company is never a true asset because it cannot be easily sold (small market--only the professionals in the particular category--in this case only a physical therapist would be interested in buying a PT clinic, because it could not legally be bought or run by anyone else), or bequeathed, and cannot legally be divided into shares for an IPO. In essence, all the "S" company does, is allow you to own a job. It's a "B" company that holds all the magic. 

Travelogue to Success

So I was going to call this blog "Travelogue to Success". I then promptly had to make sure my spelling of both travelogue, and success were correct--they were (how else would you spell them? travel-log (if you're not French), sucks-cess (a tribute to building your successes on your failures and right in line with a conversation I had today with a patient about how a fly vomits on its food to liquify it prior to sucking it up--yum, yum (I'm afraid I just lost my only reader--yuck!).
Side note--I heard that most radio hosts have one thing in common: they are able to jump from one random subject to another and tie them together some how. My mother would call this "scatter-brained". Since I plan on working in radio one day, I call this "talented".
So, "Travelogue to Success" sounded so presumptuous, since I'm probably not really that successful according to most people, although by definition I may already be successful because I am an achiever of many of my aims (https://www.google.com/search?biw=1177&bih=721&q=define+succeed&sa=X&psj=1&psj=1&psj=1&ei=lYQuU8TtMcODogTe-YGABA&ved=0CEIQgCswAA 1. the accomplishment of an aim or purpose, 2. the attainment of popularity or profit, 3. a person or thing that achieves desired aims or attains prosperity, 4. the outcome of an undertaking, specified as achieving or failing to achieve its aims.) This blog seems like something someone would write after being successful--but then it would be a book, not a blog. So calling my blog that now seems presumptuous, but calling it that later seems counterproductive.
Of note--the word success comes from the same root as the word succeed (as in succeed someone to the throne), succedere, which means "to come close after". Jon Acuff in his book Quitter discusses the idea of defining success so you know when you've reached it (and can stop endlessly searching after it and ruining all that is good in your life in the process). This may be a good idea since the word itself implies coming close to your goal "after" (after what?). Success to many people may mean attaining popularity or prosperity. I think the process of drawing close to a goal is more important than what comes after (though the after may be more posh). The important part is the struggle and learning process that comes while going through the "Nebraska" phase (Acuff again), or the ____ phase (Outliers and the Beatles). Though once you've muddled through your own Nebraska phase the world will finally notice you and *snap* you're an "over-night success". This time there will be evidence of the process (or I'll die penniless and no one will ever read this, or they will read it and know what not to do :)). --double smile.
The patient from above also said today that he thinks the most important ingredient to success is confidence and getting rid of ego (seemingly a contradiction...but give it some thought). Anyway, I'm so confident in my future success that I'm presumptuous (full of boldness and anticipation...or arrogance...or audacity (if you're a fan of Pres. Obama...or whatever). Bottom line is--
I'm going to be Wildly Successful, and Happy--maybe I should get that blog name now...hmm. naw. I'll never reach success anyway--only come close to it. Shoot! now it's not the bottom line. I already need that editor.