Organizations like this are the future of work. Please, before showering me with contempt, go to Google and enter the words: equity investment firms, Silicon Valley.

Thus far, Elon Musk has taken on the insurmountable task of paving the way for an urgent need to transform our world to electric mobility.

10 Years folks. The tipping point of the impossible is taking place right now. Every auto manufacturer is converting to electric, and in its wake, the petrochemical cartel is, shall we say, “acting out?”

The world doesn’t need more armchair critics.

The world needs new workers. Problem solvers. Artisans of their own lives. The roles are infinite. Solutions and beauty. Lest there be any doubt about the urgency at hand, consider the fact that one of the first applications of the technology revolution is cleaning up after the filthy industrial revolution before it.

This helplessness thing does not suit us. Nor does responding to someone’s success with cynicism and contempt.

As for Elon Musk, I study him. Here is a man who didn’t “buy” Twitter. His success as an innovator is so thorough that his name alone financed that purchase.

The post Study Him appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Ralph’s has a superstore within 50 yards of our front door. The employees are hairy, sweaty, and the men are worse. Kidding aside, the place is so disengaged that customers feel like intrusions. Most of the cashiers don’t give eye contact to customers and many of them talk with other employees while practicing the mindless frenzy of entering barcodes into the system. The disengagement at the front of the store is matched by the back. The worst of it is bringing home meat, poultry, and produce that gets rotten in 24 hours.

We typically visit the store with “ingredient emergencies.” You know, guests are coming and we forgot to buy coffee. For every dollar we spend at the store next door, we spend ten dollars with the competition. We willingly drive a few miles just to find people who work with pride. Gelson’s and Whole Foods are far better. But, the best? Trader Joe’s.

But, for every dollar we spend there, we give another ten dollars towards Gelson’s, Whole Foods, or Trader Joe’s. Rather than walking 50 yards, we usually drive a few miles. Next door, asking for help is typically greeted with a blank stare, disinterest, or irritations. It is the only store where meat, poultry, and produce often get rotten in 24 hours.

At all of these locations, there is only one person responsible for the encounter:

The CEO or the business owner.

When a CEO or business owner places shareholder value and C-level income above the interest of customers and employees, mediocrity always prevails. The trance of disengagement begins at the top. But, as a neighbor and a consumer, grocery stores are special. The quality of these stores helps define our neighborhoods. A couple of months ago, I wrote a letter to the Chair of Yucaipa Companies, which owns Ralph’s as well as a number of other large chains. In the midst of writing this letter, it dawned on me that over the course of 30 years, I have not had one bad buying experience at Trader Joe’s. Here is a store that provides low prices, high-quality products and employees who treat customers as precious assets.

Joe Coulombe, the founder of Trader Joe’s, worked his way through Stanford by holding a part-time job at Rexall. After his graduation, Joe opened up a small chain of convenience stores. But, as the market changed, he saw an opportunity to build a business with unique value. His concept centered around two game-changers:

• Don’t sell other people’s stuff. Control the quality and profit through private labels.
• Develop the best talent in the grocery industry.

Today, Trader Joe’s is more than profitable, it is a cult brand with the kind of fanbase that brings in new members of the tribe every-single-day.

One the employee side, how successfully did Joe Coulombe meet the target?

Did you know the average tenure of a Trader Joe’s cashier is 19 years?

While I was writing The Workplace Engagement Solution, one of my advisors gave me this figure and it boggled my mind. But Joe built a talent philosophy that many stunted CEOs can’t seem to comprehend. The philosophy is common-sense. If you want to retain good workers give everyone a wage that allows them to meet the most basic living standards of the communities they live in. Even as the business grows, stay connected to them. For years, Joe visited every store and asked what they wanted and needed to be their best. Then, he gave it to them. Even the Hawaiian shirts came out of a conversation where employees brought up the notion of wearing fun and comfortable clothes.

I read quite a few stories about what it is like to work at Traders. But none of them summarized the culture better than one of our favorite cashiers, Jessica in Westwood. She’s always recognized us and called out to us by name. I told her about the book and asked how the company has produced such long-term loyalty. She flashed a radiant smile and said,

“19 years is for new people. I’ve been here for 24 years.”

I asked, “What do you attribute it to?”

The smile grew.

“The leadership of Trader Joe’s is amazing. Many of us call it a democracy because everyone is respected. No one pulls rank. Here’s an example. The other day, I was the second person who showed up before the doors opened. Our General Manager was already here. He was in the bathrooms mopping the floors and taking out the trash. We are a family! Everyone is expected to be generous. If I had been the first one in the door, I would have been scrubbing toilets.”

As I studied the Trader Joe’s culture, one of the words that kept coming up was generosity.

Since Joe retired, he has been succeeded by Theo Albrecht, Marc Benioff, and their current CEO, Dan Bane. Each has mirrored Joe’s ethics and values about employees and customers. There is a recent story about Dan with his decision to stop selling bananas in bunches and simply charge $.19 for one banana. They used to weigh the bananas by the pound and then package them at the warehouse. Dan watched an elderly woman walk around a pile of the bananas looking at most every package. But, she walked away without buying anything. He ran after her and asked,

“Why did you not buy any bananas?”

She said, “I’m so old I might not live long enough to eat the fifth banana.”

Trader Joe’s culture of generosity includes a story of one young man that was going through a particularly rough time in his personal life. The stress was beginning to show up at work. The manager walked up an aisle and asked that he join him behind the store. Of course, the guy assumed he was about to be reprimanded, perhaps even fired. But, the manager handed him two cartons of eggs and instructed him to throw eggs against the wall until he felt better. Every day when he worked, that manager greeted him with empathy and provided a safe place for him to live through his challenges.

I came across an article from Katherine Baker from Spoon University. She earned a graduate degree in behavioral science, found a good job in the field only to discover it made her feel stressed out and emotional all of the time. She felt she had lost the game with the “adulting thing.” She took a part-time job at Trader Joe’s to help catch up on student debt. Soon it was a full-time gig. One night, her sister asked if she liked her job at Traders. Surprisingly, she responded, “I think I do.” Katherine continued, “I found myself while mopping floors, preparing hummus samples, and putting jars of cookie butter on the shelf. I remembered who I was, got in touch with what I wanted in life, and learned how effing important it is to follow your dreams – or at the very least, find the things in life that make you happy and unapologetically pursue them.”

The most engaged workers are drawn to employers just like this. Our country’s greatest talent doesn’t take jobs where they have to smother their light just to walk through the front door. There isn’t anything elitist about giving every single worker and customer generosity.

As I finished the letter to the Chair of Yucaipa Companies, I thought of how he might respond. Within a few days, the manager of the local store called me. Panic was in her voice. She begged us to come back and gave us a gift certificate for $50.00. I asked what was she going to do to make the store a better experience. As she responded, it was clear she was not telling the truth. Perhaps she didn’t even realize that the promises coming out of her mouth were what she was supposed to tell us.

I thought of the last time I had any kind of a problem with Trader Joe’s. The only one was a problem of my own making. I have this pair of high-end sunglasses. Over the years, I’ve spent a small fortune in replacing expensive sunglasses that got lost or destroyed. I had waited until I felt I had the emotional stability to get a nice pair of glasses and keep them. One day, I left them somewhere in the Trader Joe’s store and ran to the manager’s station. They had not been turned in.

As I drove home, the phone rang. It was the manager. He said, “Mr. Harder, we just found your sunglasses! Please come back and I’ll give them to you personally.”

I laughed and said I had such low expectations at stores but that Trader Joe’s has become a special place for us.

He laughed and said, “We’re here to make everyone happy. Thank you for being such a valued customer.”

So, just what is the point?

Among my clients, there are a number of senior human capital executives. In many cases, my role is to help them find great opportunities and avoid the misery that comes from a bad fit. The two most common and vital questions include:

Who is the boss?

Does the CEO lead the culture?

If the CEO assigns culture to human resources, I suggest they either turn down the position or take it and keep their bags packed. Every single day, human capital executives are shown the door because the CEO didn’t want to be bothered with people. How can you possibly build an engaged workplace if the CEO is disengaged?

How does that work?

Has it ever worked?

Sure, I realize that is the norm.

But, how does it work?

If you have any doubts, go talk to a cashier at Trader Joe’s.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post Why Do Trader Joe’s Cashiers Stay for 19 Years? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Well, we are doing it in a trance. The numbers around employee engagement are so bad that odds are high many CEOs are also disengaged. People’s rank has absolutely nothing to do with whether they have succumbed to a trance. We witness the trance in executives who lazily cut expenses by laying people off or tell HR to “fix the engagement problem” and walk away.

What do we have to learn from CEOs running magnificent and magnetic cultures? While preparing my new book “The Workplace Engagement Solution,” I studied them. When we explore great cultures such as Southwest Airlines, Google, HBO and Trader Joe’s, we find CEOs that embrace many of the values that represent an “Engagement CEO.” When an executive goes about the business of building a category leader, talent moves to the front of the line in terms of the necessary characteristics within the CEO. Board members and investors would do well to find CEOs with these traits.

If you are considering joining an organization where you want to thrive, it is also smart to evaluate the CEO or business owner.

 An Engagement CEO

• Takes charge of the culture personally
• Develops a strong leadership brand as evidenced by their consistent behavior and message
• Walks the talk, leads by example and leans toward democracy over elitism in any form
• Expresses continuous, genuine and worthy praise to their employees
• Constantly seeks ways to keep their talent current and relevant
• Treats employees as the organization’s greatest asset instead of a potential liability
• Packages engagement as a profit source rather than an expense
• Effectively manages and educates all stakeholders in the need for effective people initiatives
• Moves the vision from short-term financial performance to long-term value, brand strength, and reputation
• Tells themselves and others the truth, especially about change
• Is resolutely and directly connected to the front line
• Is transparent and expects transparency throughout their organization
• Shows respect towards all employees and learns from all of them

Many will treat engagement as a sidebar activity, a perk provided to the employees. However, the purpose of engagement is far more rigorous than simply making employees feel better. Engagement is about being awake, interested, alert, invested and present. Real engagement moves an organization beyond the business targets.

Making the decision to lead business culture is one of the few competitive advances that are in control of the CEO. Alas, this basic truth doesn’t even cross the mind of many leaders who block the thought with, “I don’t have enough time” or, “Profit margins are too slim to give this attention.”

There are no shortcuts to success. We learn nothing of value through the study of dysfunction. Any CEO engaged in category leadership knows this. In the end, the quality of our talent is going to determine if we lead the market or continually run to keep up.

As I studied engagement CEOs, it also became clear they lead engagement for a series of business payoffs:

• A fully engaged culture and a superior employer brand.
• The best possible products and services, and excellence in everyone’s behavior.
• The organization makes the world a better place.
• The organization makes every attempt to fully engage with every customer.
• Recognizes there is simply no substitute for human decency, compassion, understanding, and pursuit for “the high road.”

On a practical level, here is one example:

We live next door to a huge Ralph’s Grocery Store. It is literally 100 yards from our front door to the store. And yet, we spend most of our shopping dollars elsewhere. The majority of employees are sullen, don’t look people in the eye. In the morning aisles are blocked because they are stocking shelves after the doors open. Disengagement isn’t limited to the customer experience, it also potentially impacts our health. We have had to either throw out or return spoiled produce and contaminated chicken.

I’ve often praised Trader Joe’s for its remarkable culture where the average tenure of cashiers is 19 years. There is a cashier that calls out our names. I asked her about the stories of the longevity and loyalty of their employees. She said, “Nineteen years? Those are the kids. I’ve been here for 26 years.” I asked her why. She responded, “We’re a family! Here’s an example. There have been many times when I come to work before the store opens. If the general manager is here first, I find him scrubbing and cleaning the bathrooms. No one pulls rank, we work together.”

The two organizations offer a remarkable contrast regarding CEO behavior. At Trader Joe’s, everyone knows their CEO, Dan Bane, because he regularly appears at the stores. As we returned rotten food to Ralph’s, I asked if they knew the name of their CEO. They didn’t know who he was. I also asked a couple of them if they knew anything about Yucaipa Companies. The response was, “Who are they?” Yucaipa owns Ralph’s.

One company has a CEO who visits, asks questions, listens, and strives to make Trader’s a better place to work.

The other one is a commodity. Everything feels and looks cheap. The employees give the consumer little attention.

Which company will be the first to convert to robotics and virtual check-outs?

There is the rub. Technology will not replace accountability, emotional interest, and problem-solving on behalf of their customers.

Dan Bane made it very clear that employees are the lynchpin for customer satisfaction and loyalty.

In the other company, employees don’t even know the CEO’s name.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post What is An Engagement CEO? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

The importance of American labor could be summarized in how we won World War II. Late to the fight, our workers played just as much of a role as soldiers by producing unprecedented quantities of ships, guns, planes, and vehicles. As the war concluded, workers had indeed, earned our deep respect.

In the 50s, we shifted our manufacturing capabilities by building the best cars and products in the world. We gave Veterans “first-in-line” access to jobs, and we created millions of homes at ridiculously low price-points. Through the sheer value of America’s talent, we became the world’s superpower.

In 1976, two famed economists at Harvard published a paper that would change virtually every aspect of running a public company. It is our collective illiteracy about this event that causes so many people to blame others without actually knowing how we got here. Michael Jensen and William Meckling published the now-legendary paper,

“Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs, and Ownership Structure.”

In it, they argued that corporations needed to align the interests of manage­ment and shareholders. To put this bluntly, they proposed the sole purpose of a corporation is to deliver and grow shareholder value.

For CEOs and shareholders, this was as healthy as leaving a ton of biscuits in a room with two dogs. For corporate executives, stock-based com­pensation became the alignment mechanism of choice. Consequently, their incomes skyrocketed. In the 1970s, CEOs of large, publicly traded companies earned less than $1 million in today’s dollars. Today, that average has grown to $11.4 million. The new model motivates CEOs to incessantly focus on stock value rather than enhancing the real, longer-term performance of the company.

During the past 40+ years, the entire investment market shifted from long-term investment in building organizations and markets to realizing as much out of stock value as possible and to reach that in the shortest period of time. Investment banking turned into a multi-trillion-dollar industry. CEOs and hedge fund leaders became the foundation for how we dealt with workers in large organizations. With stock value becoming the number-one pursuit, American businesses and CEOs traded the long view for volatility, thus shifting the dynamic interests between capital and labor. As providers of capital push CEOs for greater and quicker returns, cutting back on labor is now the easiest way to signal they are ad­dressing corporate financial performance.

Many workers were quite supportive of the American dream. But during the last 40 years, the average income has stagnated while hourly compensation dropped. Workers witness venture capitalists taking advantage of financial deregulation to buy companies, take out loans on the assets, and pay huge dividends to themselves. Many of these ac­quisitions went bankrupt as employees lost their jobs, health insurance, and pensions. These financial barons are often celebrated and admired, but it has also resulted in mass income inequality at an alarming trend. Was this done intentionally? I believe it was done blindly.

Many of America’s workers have watched their job, and financial security goes up in smoke. Anger, contempt, and cynicism turned into raging fires as they read stories of greedy CEOs backdating stock options and pushing the envelope to unethical, and sometimes illegal, degrees. But perhaps it was amorality that angered them the most. In many organi­zations, the underlying message was that when needed, workers mat­tered. However, the cycles of hiring and laying people off reached such dizzying heights that we now have a labor force that views work as a temporary assignment.

The single-minded pursuit of building shareholder value has weakened the strength of our country. There was a time when shareholders, employees, product quality, and customer satisfaction were equal. Sadly, by making shareholders primary winners of an organization’s profits, we now produce large quantities of cheap stuff. We often treat customers by examining how much irritation they will put up with before moving on.

As a post-war country, Cadillac was the “Standard of the World.” But after the Theory was embraced, GM began pulling every dime that could be turned over to management and shareholders. Materials infamously got cheaper. Instead of innovation, Cadillac built the Seville on a Chevy Nova frame and charged as much as an E-class Mercedes. Lee Iacocca famously revived Chrysler with the “K” car while his Pinto turned out to be more threatening than a hitman.

Everything became cheaper. The results can be experienced by sitting in any Cadillac model and then moving over to an Audi, BMW, Lexus or Mercedes. The late Lee Iacocca celebrated the fixation on shareholder value by building such notable products as the “K” car and the Pinto.

Today, our country faces a variety of significant challenges. Underemployment impacts half of our workers. Accelerating change is kicking far too many people to the curb. In the last 2 years, we have witnessed California’s utility companies cutting expenses so close to the bone that hundreds of people have lost their lives to fires. Even in the face of bankruptcy, they have paid their shareholders fortunes and kept millions in bonuses for themselves. The state’s governor Gavin Newsom is courting Warren Buffet to buy the land rights to our utilities. Perhaps this is a good time to understand that Warren never takes shortcuts. He rigorously upholds bringing integrity to every aspect of organizational practice.

I do not believe that change will come from anyone who is benefiting from the Theory. We will also not break out of the current state if most people don’t understand how we got here. Instead, But, I have great faith in our children and young people because they will not put up with this crap.

A few years ago, I flew into Calgary to deliver a keynote on employee engagement. My time in the flight was invested in reading the biographies of the CEOs and business owners attending the event. The vast majority of them were in petroleum. At the time, delays in the Keystone Pipeline and a downturn in the global market had turned Calgary into something of a ghost town.

At the beginning of my presentation, I said, “While flying into your beautiful city, I studied your backgrounds and your organizations. Since many of you are laying off thousands of employees, perhaps we could discuss self-change rather than employee engagement.”

The response was enthusiastic. Later, during Q & A, I suggested the possibility that many of the leaders in that conference would do well by investing in the future rather than waiting for the past to spring back to life. For example, we have many energy firms making that shift because they take the future seriously. But the room turned a bit dark when I said, If we don’t progress, our children will do it. Because they will not put up with this.”

Isn’t it time to declare Theory of the Firm a failure?

In terms of excellence, it has turned into a shortcut for reaching mediocrity.

Ironically, most of the people upholding and protecting the Theory of the Firm are in their 60s to 80s.

Perhaps our children actually are here to save the world.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post How Shareholder Fixation Built a Culture of Mediocrity appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Then, everything changed. Academics and business authors suggest that we get rid of them. But, the need for mid-managers is stronger than ever. It is the role of the manager that must be changed, transformed, and reimagined. Just be prepared for the pushback when you suggest this to a mid-manager. Most likely, their response will be, “I’m too busy.”

“But, the very future of your workers depends on your reinvention.”

“I’ll pencil it in over lunch…at my desk.”

Advancing technology is like a tornado from Oz blowing task work away. In its aftermath, we find entire categories of workers who need to change. This is why our managers must change, transform and reimagine their careers. As for employers, this is the time to carefully question if laying off the very people who know the most about your frontline is such a good idea. In reality, the mid-managers ought to be the first target for learning how to change and learning how to show others how to change as well.

As technology accelerates it is giving us freedom. The most cynical or contempt-filled reader will respond, “What, freedom from having an income?” But, it is giving us freedom from monotonous tasks, quotas, and other forms of mind-numbing work. The kinds of new work that is coming towards us are more interesting, visionary, and impactful in the world. The greatest social entrepreneurs are using technology to change the world. For example, Peter Diamandis says, “The best way to become a billionaire is to help a billion people.” Consider how lame that statement would have been just 20 years ago.

As the value of task work and its workers plummet, the work to be done is radically different. Instead of tasks, an endless stream of new jobs and roles is emerging. The new workplace will reward those with any or a group of these skills: Creativity, narrative, accountability, empathy, engagement, solving problems, influencing others, sales, and managing the “big picture.”

Robotics and software have been game-changers with blue-collar work. De-monetized services such as LinkedIn and Facebook are impacting millions of white-collar workers. But, Artificial Intelligence will cause disruption as we have never witnessed before. Wealth managers will need to become curators. Medical research will exponentially find more cures for disease. Higher education will be available without paying a cent.

The most valued middle managers will be the ones that are only too happy to let go of tasks so they can develop their employer’s greatest asset, its people. They will be responsible for helping others to embrace active learning, develop new life skills, and to use new forms of technology that exponentially grow personal productivity.

Don’t trust the senior executives, the academics, and the authors of self-help books to propose a solution. Even the Harvard Business Review, characterizes mid-managers as the most disengaged of all workers. They are overworked, undervalued, and the most at-risk during layoffs.

The rock stars are quite different. We recently finished an executive development project with one of the most brilliant scientists in the world. Until we met, his value as an individual contributor had received global recognition. But, in one promotion, he was responsible for hundreds of his company’s best and brightest scientists.

During our first meeting, I said,

“Up until today, you have been judged and promoted because you are a brilliant scientist. But, from this moment forward, your value will be measured in how you inspire hundreds of brilliant scientists to change the world.”

His eyes lit up. The new mission became the centerpiece in how he wanted to grow. Now, he engages with his direct reports with the central mission of rewarding high personal performance with breakthroughs in their careers. He is teaching his direct reports to harness the needs and expectations of their workers with growth, progress and other forms of success.

The greatest managers know the needs and expectations of every person that reports to them. They take the time to harness those needs into energy and action. A great manager will conspire to create a culture that people love because love pushes us to perform way outside of our comfort zones. Great managers teach active learning, influence, and help their highest performers connect with game-changing mentors. They not only make it safe to ask for help, they often reward employees who do.

Unfortunately, frenzy breeds thoughtlessness. In so many organizations, the CEO doesn’t think of the impact that disengaged managers have on their profits and customers. Many don’t realize that disengaged managers are actually dooming the CEOs future.

How do we get started? We begin by elevating the value of our time. After we deliver an engagement program to an intact team, most everyone wants to sustain the transformation. That happens when they use small rituals that produce mindfulness.

One of them is to answer a few questions at the beginning of each morning. Instead of reading e-mails and listening to voicemails, they take 5-minutes to answer a few questions that organizes their priorities.

Here is an example:

• Who most needs my attention and inspiration?
• What is the most valuable problem to solve today?
• Describe today’s ideal blend of tactical and strategic work.
• How can I best sell our ideas and solutions?
• How can I best take care of myself?
• What can I do to create greater engagement and effectiveness with our team?
• Describe one really valuable action that might require your courage.

It takes five minutes.

What is the point?

In the years ahead, technology isn’t taking away our value. It is up to us to make the kind of practical and visionary changes that elevate our value, the allow us to change the world, and to help the people around us.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post Mid-Managment, Engagements Final Frontier! appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Isn’t it ironic that the skills we always needed to be successful have been given this rather dismissive term called, “Soft Skills?” These are personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people.

For years, many people have run away from learning how to sell, influence others, build support systems, effectively pay attention to other people, and skillfully draw attention to themselves.

Why are these skills so important today? Many people only had to deal with networking and selling themselves just a few times in their careers. But, as change continues to accelerate, the cycles of having to sell ourselves also grow. As the world undergoes this huge restructuring of work, connectivity will determine who works at their full potential and who becomes part of the growing ranks of the underemployed.

For example, today’s average college graduate is going to change careers, not jobs, 4-6 times. But our schools are not giving them the skills to deal with such change. With half of our nation’s workforce in a state of underemployment, of course, we are going to have turmoil. Far too many workers are being kicked to the curb by change because we never taught them how to change! College graduates tend to be haunted by underemployment for about 10 years.

As the world speeds up, thriving literally depends on our building courage skills and the ability to connect far more effectively with the very people who can give us great jobs or projects, the mentors who can give us a clue, and the champions who can hold us accountable for waking up. Honestly, it would be far more straightforward to change the words soft skills to courage skills. This is because many of us have run away from developing these skills because of the discomfort of drawing attention to ourselves.

Many of us have this inside dialogue that if we draw attention to ourselves, someone is going to hurt us. And, the probability of getting hurt does grow when more people see us. But, the probability of starving grows as we become less visible. As a result, many of us draw just enough attention to ourselves to survive but not enough to thrive. Wouldn’t it be more healthy to not only learn how to draw healthy attention to ourselves as well as develop the skills to deal with the consequences of visibility?

What are courage skills?

Sales

Selling is a multi-fold skill. It includes the ability to make a quick pitch, one that captures the value of what we are selling and speaks to the needs and expectations of the buyer.

Consultative selling is the ability to ask the kinds of questions that prompt the buyer to tell us what they want and need. It can include questions that help the buyer define their needs for the first time. This is the most important form of selling and is far more comfortable than relying solely on pitches.

Influence

Here, we are so clearly connected to our gifts that our words, actions, and interests create understanding in the people we encounter. Real influence is rooted in our ability to pay attention, to listen to someone’s every word, to notice their facial expressions and body language, and to be interested.

Customized Support Systems

Many people don’t get what they want because they don’t define what they really want. Many people don’t define what they want because they believe, on some profound level, that the right people will not help them realize their vision. If this is the case, why bother defining a mission, vision, and purpose?

But, once we define exactly what we want, our success is almost purely based on our abilities to create a support system, perhaps even a community that brings our mission, vision, and purpose to life.

Social networking offers the greatest potential to build these support systems with mind-bending speed. But, usually, that potential isn’t realized because social media platforms are not teaching the ideal ways to connect with others. Sending out connection generic and bloodless connection requests do little to build communities. We have been teaching people how to use social media in ways that actually develop engaged relationships. It is how we rebuilt our organization after the great recession.

Presentation Skills

Anyone with the ability to make a presentation to a group or in public immediately gives themselves a 60% pay hike over people who don’t. But, the need to effectively present oneself is growing. Let’s be clear, presentation skills include connecting with people virtually, face-to-face in the flesh, and once in a while, on stage.

The National Speaker’s Association once conducted a poll which defines that over 80% of Americans would rather and literally die rather than make a presentation. That would indicate that developing courage could help them move forward. It doesn’t have to be earth-shaking? Anyone can walk down the block to a Toastmasters meeting and find other people who are equally afraid.

Summary

As the transactions around work speed up, connectivity becomes far more important. As task work falls away, developing courage skills gives us the option of pursuing the work that will bring happiness and freedom into our lives. The skills make it easier to select a job or business. as our work platform.

But, we recently had an experience that personifies just how much our country and our culture needs a seismic shift in what we emphasize in learning.

My colleague, Dr. Mary Campbell and I spoke to a large community organization about the need to teach these skills in all of our schools and within our families. The organization sponsors one of the country’s most successful charter schools. Right after our presentation, they gave out the “student of the month” award to a junior from the school. She was so afraid of the attention that she refused to walk up to the podium to accept her award!

How many parents are in the same boat?

As change in the workplace continues to accelerate, the need to interact effectively and harmoniously with others will continue to grow. Anyone who wants to have the options to do the work they most want to do ought to be elevating the need to learn the courage skills. And, just what is courage? It is the commitment to take the right action whether or not we are frightened.

Remember, that in today’s world, the single biggest reason for failure is isolation.

Building these skills requires commitment. Humans have long demonstrated that we first must instill a vision in why we are going through the discomfort. I always suggest picking the work that you would most love. Perhaps opt to become a better role model for your children. Afterward, invest in the training that will fulfill your vision. Find mentors who can help. Go home and tell your children, “You know what? I have been a lousy example of drawing attention from myself. I’ve been responding to the very idea with fear as if some boogie man is going to jump out from the shadows. Don’t do what I do, because, in the years ahead, your ability to make a living and be happy depends on learning the skills that allow you to effectively connect with others.

For all of us:

• Rather than putting up with that job you cannot stand in an industry that is shrinking, go have lunch at Toastmasters.
• Practice contrary action. Instead of putting down social networking, learn how to use the medium to build strongly engaged relationships.
• Set new expectations with your spouses, business colleagues, and friends. Make a commitment to learning how to draw attention to your work at a whole new level. It requires courage and you need their support in getting back on that horse until you ride comfortably and joyfully.
• Don’t discuss your challenges with anyone who is committed to hiding. They will quickly talk you out of the venture. In other words, hang out with people who succeed.
• When people notice you, thank them and praise them. When we praise someone and they respond, “Oh it was nothing,” we are actually telling them to not notice, evaluate and judge us.

In closing, the more skilled we become with courage skills, the more we connect with the world and the more we connect with ourselves.

Courage skills will help turn life into a grand adventure.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

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Think about it. If people are unable to think about something else for only 15-seconds, sales pitches don’t work and ordering people around will never produce employee engagement.

We are motivated by one outcome: Fulfilled Expectations.

When we become skilled in accessing the needs and expectations of our stakeholders, we are more able to help them succeed. When stakeholders candidly talk about our strengths and weaknesses, we are more able to change. In a rapidly changing workplace, the ability to connect with others skyrockets. When we are able to motivate our teams in genuine ways, that investment pays off.

We designed our first leadership program for one of the world’s biggest media companies. When I ran that curriculum past our internal partners, they had strong reactions.

“If our managers ask these questions directly, someone is going to get hurt.”

I came back with, “Why on earth would you want a manager who is averse to hearing the truth?”

Prior to designing customized interviews, we invest a great deal of time learning details about each significant stakeholder relationship and business issues. We probe interpersonal relationships. We look for current and desired future states. This information helps us develop strikingly specific and brilliantly good questions. For the executives, the immersive experience of asking these questions and respectfully listening to the answers tends to be a life-altering experience.

Why is masterful inquiry such an important skillset?

Asking and listening was always preferable behavior than giving people orders. Stakeholders are far more driven when we connect with the needs and expectations. Socrates believed that we get the truth by asking the right questions.

Connectivity, this ability to fluidly find the truth of our stakeholders becomes especially important during accelerating change. Today’s leaders have to make changes more frequently and often with significant disruption. Hanging on to the old motivation chestnuts such as, “Do this or else” or “You should be happy to have a job,” destroy productivity and buy-in. Far greater success takes place if our language speaks to their expectations. In other words, finding ways to honor our expectations as well as theirs produces far better results.

We ask our leadership clients to tell us when their executives are receiving their packages from Inspired Work. There are always a few calls that begin with, “You can’t be serious. You want me to ask these questions?” Our reply is always the same. “Yes. Please note that all of them have received letters telling them what to expect, to be candid, and if there is any kind of retaliation to call us. We have yet to receive such a call.

It has been said, “the truth will set us free but first, it will piss us off.”

Consider the impact of just two questions:

“What do I do that motivates or demotivates you?”

“What can I do to become a more effective leader?”

My interpretation of humility is simply to be open. Albert Einstein once said, “I want to know the thoughts of God. The rest are details.” We often confuse humility with humiliation. The smartest leaders that I know are always humble, open to suggestions, eager to improve, asking for help, and acutely listening to others.

The most impressive leaders that I know are absolutely clear on their mission, vision, and purpose. But, they demonstrate real humility and skill in making it safe, even compelling, to tell the truth, find the truth and live in the truth.

This is the kind of leader that connects and improves employee engagement.

This is the leader that lives in transparency. Why is this so important? Everywhere that we look, we find organizations and leaders being toppled by the transparency revolution. Technology has taken our culture to a place where nothing is private, very little can be hidden, and if we attempt to do just that, the results can be spectacularly awful.

There are many organizations and individuals that have been totally caught off guard by the new reality. The payoff from full transparency will be spectacularly good. In alignment with the value of truth, transparency will force us to change for the better.

Consider the lost opportunity and the missing truth when we send out a consultant to conduct 360s or we have employees go online and participate in a “confidential” 360. As the landscape around us continues to speed up, the truth becomes of our most valuable assets.

Transparency will force us to work with nothing to hide and run our organizations with nothing to hide.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post Just Why Do Leaders Need Truth? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Let’s start with the good news. Barra has made bold moves towards the future by investing in self-driving cars, electric vehicles and ride-sharing networks. In 2016, GM purchased Cruise Automation for $1billion, a start-up that has become one of the leading technology houses for autonomous cars. Today, that unit is valued at $14.6billion.

Mary Barra has led the company into the black posting profits of $4.6billion in the first half of 2018. Stock value was stronger, especially in comparison to Ford. But, compared to overseas competition, General Motors continues to carry forward the shortcomings that have blunted the American car industry. In terms of developing aspirational consumer or employer brands, Mary reveals her utter lack of imagination. Business journalists are applauding the company’s improvements in profit performance, but compared to what? Daimler Benz, Toyota, and BMW continue to outperform GM by wide margins.

In my book, The Workplace Engagement Solution (Career Press), research strongly indicates the vast differences in philosophy between the CEOs that develop category leadership and the CEOs running cultures of mediocrity. This is where Mary Barra’s lack of imagination is leading to more of the same from American car companies.

America almost lost its car manufacturing industry during the recession. In the years since, many of us have treated their comeback as a success story. However, those of us who read car magazines know that nothing has really changed in terms of producing cars that people aspire to own. Much of the problem emerges from a lack of commitment to brand as well as people. Quite simply, if it isn’t working out, throw out the garbage.

Most of us can instantly envision a Porsche 911, a Mercedes S class, a Toyota Camry or a BMW 3 series. That is because of the kind of pride that can only happen from continuous improvement. Auto journalists continue to rank GM products as deeply inferior to the overseas competition. Interiors are bean counted into mediocrity. And, if people are not buying the brand, simply get rid of it. For example, the Impala used to be a legendary name until Chevrolet demonstrated its lack of commitment by periodically plastering that name on cars that offered little pride at all. At times, the name was abandoned for years only to be thrown onto a car because of its poor market performance. This cynical view of the consumer is demonstrated the moment they open the door and sit in the car.

Mary Barra’s biggest failure of all is in GM’s commitment to employer brand. My greatest concern for America isn’t about lowering unemployment; it is about rapidly growing underemployment. Upwards of 48% of our country’s workers characterize themselves as underemployed. This means that about half of our workers are getting kicked to the curb by change.

But, in countries such as Germany, underemployment is a non-issue. As we blame technology for the loss of jobs, German auto manufacturers lead the world in the use of robotics. But, they don’t lay workers off, they train them to do new and more interesting work. The German government is an active partner to the auto industry. Government subsidies are provided for apprenticeship programs. BMW and Mercedes consistently rank amongst the best employers in the world while GM continually brings up the rear.

Many business journalists are applauding Mary Barra’s decision to ax cars and people as a commitment to the future. Let us be clear. Her strategy demonstrates her commitment to trucks. How will GM ever compete in the war for the world’s best talent? In our research, we cannot find one iota of information that it has even crossed her mind.

There-in lies the rub. GM will no longer make mediocre cars, it will provide big sports utilities and trucks, a place where consumers tend to be more forgiving on quality issues.

The most predominant aspect of GM’s employer brand is mediocrity as well. We see the results in the company’s disloyalty. But, the real failure is in pride. How would the world’s greatest designers and engineers aspire to become part of a culture where talent isn’t developed and employees are treated as a commodity on par with the cars? It is a bit like a top graduate student from Stanford trying to choose employment between Apple and Yahoo.

We learn nothing of value by studying dysfunction. General Motors ought to be emulating what is happening with the most profitable automobile manufacturers in the world. They could become enlightened about how to build better cars as well as more profitable cars. All the possibilities of why she wouldn’t study success have uneasy answers.

It has been said that “You don’t know what you don’t know.”

Unfortunately, yesterday’s debacle didn’t offer up the courage, to tell the truth, and make a commitment towards excellence.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2018, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post The Truth Behind Mary Barra’s Debacle appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

In 1990, I launched Inspired Work out of my condo in Malibu. I was excited, scared, proud, and resolute. Right after getting my corporation papers, I took off for my branch at First Interstate Bank. I remember walking through the door holding those papers as if they were first prize in a contest for personal change. The representative gave the paperwork a glance and with a dismissive sweep of her hands said I was missing a document and to come back. A few days later I did come back to shut down my accounts. In the next few years, First Interstate was swallowed up by Wells Fargo. I left because I didn’t want to be with a vendor that viewed me as just another task.

My accountant referred me into City National Bank and I have been there ever since. For consumers as well as employees, there couldn’t be a more stark contrast between the two.

This past week, Wells Fargo admitted that it improperly foreclosed on 40% more borrowers than first reported. But, to put the latest scandal into sharp focus, let’s review the organization’s behavior over the last two years:

2016

• Regulators fine Wells Fargo $185 for creating as many as 2 million fake accounts to juice the bank’s books. The bank dismisses 5,300 employees who were acting under the orders of the divisional head. None of the transcripts reveal who was pressuring such a large number of workers to commit fraud.

2017

• It is revealed that Wells Fargo retaliated against workers who tried to blow the whistle on the fake account practice.
• New allegations are lodged that the bank modified thousand of home mortgages without getting authorizations from the customers.
• The bank admits it charged 570,000 customers for auto insurance they did not need.
• A class-actions lawsuit is filed in behalf of small business owners for overcharges on credit card transactions.
• The year closes with a new scandel. Thousands of mortgage holders were fined for missing deadlines. And yet, the notices were purposely delayed to orchestrate even more income.

2018

The Federal Reserve makes an announcement that Wells Fargo will not be allowed to grow its assets until it cleans up its act.

Consider the pact with the devil that employees of Wells Fargo have had to embrace in order to work there. Perhaps the single biggest blow to the shareholders of this organization is that premium talent will no longer consider Wells Fargo as a premium employer.

The Contrast

The first time I became aware of City National Bank was in reading about the kidnapping of Frank Sintra, Jr. The criminals contacted his father and refused to return the young man unless he brought them $240,000. The bank’s first CEO got out of bed and personally counted out the money in their headquarter’s vault.

I’ve been with the bank for 28 years and have never had a hiccup. Everyone that I know who is with City National has this kind of fierce loyalty and I can only wonder, why do banks such as Wells Fargo even have clients?

The entire ethos of City National Bank’s consumer and employer brands is reflected in one employee. I was her favorite customer.

For years, Jennifer was A.J. Kroener’s assistant at the Century City Office. Whenever I walked in the door, she would call out, “David, how are you?” She always made it clear that if I had any problem, she would take care of it. Trust me, I was not their wealthiest client. But, she treated me as if all valuables in their vaults were in my name. After years of hard work, I was able to order a new BMW convertible. Jennifer took care of all the paperwork. At the time, I was single and spending a lot of time on the road. Jennifer became the person that actually celebrated the purchase. The day it was delivered, I dropped by the bank to make a deposit. I remember walking in the door and Jennifer yelled out, “Did you get it? Is it here? Take me on a ride.”

She took a break and walked out to the garage. I put down the roof, cranked up the stereo and took off. Her hair was flying as she held her hands in the hair yelling, “Woo hoo!” I thanked her for being so kind in helping me get the car. She laughed, “Help? You’re my favorite customer.”

A few days later, I walked in the door and Jennifer wasn’t there. The energy was off and I asked what was going on. Jennifer had a heart attack and passed away.

Hundreds of people showed up to her funeral.

Most of us were customers. Some of us walked up to the podium and declared we were her best customer.

The thing is, many of the customers and employers are still there and we recount how her enthusiasm and kindness changed our lives.

Here is what I propose. If you are a business leader and you are trying to develop a strategy for making real money, compare the two stories.

Which one would you emulate?

The post Does Your Bank Love You or View You as an Easy Mark? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

However, once we define what we want to accomplish, our success is purely based on the quality of the people we get to help us.

People from all walks of life come through our programs because a Socratic (question-driven) curriculum that produces life-changing and unique outcomes for everyone.

I cannot count the number of entrepreneurs that have come through our programs who have reached a point in their success only to hit a wall that requires they surrender the behavior and outlook that got them to that point-in-time. The turning point usually requires bringing in new support systems and finding talent that will elevate the business as well as their lives. This is one of the most frightening moments within early entrepreneurial success because it means surrendering the behavior that worked really well…to a point.

Elon Musk is possibly in the biggest crisis of his life. Tesla has revolutionized the world. His vision has moved his company to a certain level of success. His hard work has created advances in electrical infrastructure and battery technology that has set the stage for a quantum leap with electric-based transportation. However, manufacturing challenges in quality control, speed, efficiency and production costs have turned into a nightmare for the founder. By extension, Tesla is facing its biggest crisis even without its production challenges. Because, Volkswagen Group, BMW, Mercedes, Volvo, GM, and Jaguar are all releasing entire lines of electrically propelled transportation. Most of them have superb commitments to quality with the resources to deliver it.

Before continuing with Elon, an anecdote from our own graduate base can crystallize the challenge. Everyone signs confidentiality agreements in our programs and when we share an anecdote, it is with their permission. This one included the caveat that we would not share her name.

We were leading a large Inspired Work Program at LAX. Our meeting room looked out on planes taking off and landing. Regardless of the number of people, they tend to go inward quickly and they craft their own ideal vision, mission, and purpose. The curriculum gently leads them into recognizing the life skills they need to become successful with that vision. Let’s be candid, there is almost always a certain degree of discomfort about looking at obstacles.

We had a well-known entrepreneur in the room. She was a spectacular leader in her industry. At the first break, she navigated her way over to me and said, “This has been wonderful. You have exceeded all of my expectations and I’m going to go home now.” I’ve found that the more uncomfortable someone becomes, the bigger the breakthrough. I managed to get her to stay. By the second day, some of us were envisioning her taking a chair, breaking a window, dropping a rope down the side of the building and making a run for it. Then, it happened. She became distraught and started a disclosure. Her father was the single most influential role model in her life. He taught her that if you want to get something done right, do it yourself. This outlook had worked at first, but now her success had become a trap. She was working late into the night, hadn’t taken a vacation in years and was constantly exhausted.

Sound familiar?

After this insight, she cleaned up and customized her entire support system. I ran into her a few years later and asked how she was doing. She smiled and said, “Surrendered.” Not long afterward, the business was sold for a bloody fortune.

Elon Musk is, by all accounts, encountering an emergency riddled with the theme of someone who is, in the end, fully human. Trapped in the all too common notion that only he can solve the problem is potentially killing him as well as the extraordinary innovation he has introduced to the world.

In strikingly rapid progression, Elon interviewed with the New York Times and told the world he is in the most difficult and painful year of his life. He revealed he sleeps at the company and is taking large doses of Ambien in an attempt to control his sleep. Not long after that interview, he typed out a shocking Tweet, “Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured.”

A few days later, he appeared on a podcast with one of my favorite comics, Joe Rogan. I love Joe and have seen him live many, many times. But, Elon Musk, CEO of a public company and Joe? They smoke dope together on a podcast.

In less than one month after it all began, the SEC is ready to file charges against him for securities fraud.

If I was his advisor, here is what I would do:

• Have the Board and the Chief People Officer create a task force that manages Mr. Musk for the time being. Pull him out of the public eye and help him sort through this rather dreadful pothole. He is one of the world’s great innovators and yet he is human and has a very human crisis.
• Hire one of the best reputation management firms to take charge of his messaging.
• Get Elon off of all forms of sleep medication. Do I know of what I speak? In my internist’s office, there is a file. On the cover, in large block felt-tipped letters are the words, “If David Harder asks for sleep medication, shoot him.” Unfortunately, the body quickly habituates to sleep medication requiring larger doses just to sleep for short periods of time. When it reaches this state, we have no way of knowing if he even remembers sending that crazy Tweet.
• Take contrary action to his statement that he is, “Trying to recruit Sheryl Sandberg” to fix his production challenges. That one statement revealed the weakness of his talent plan. Offer a “too big to resist” bounty to recruit a production chief from a leading German or Japanese auto manufacturer.
• Call a Board Meeting to perform the intervention. I’m serious. With personality types such as his, the ones with the delusion they can fix everything, can and will bring down the company.

I am a big, big fan of Elon Musk. But I am painfully familiar with the signs of a meltdown that can kill off a company or an individual. The guy deserves every chance in the book. But, right now, he needs a new support system customized to help him with his health, to objectively solve Tesla’s production challenges, and help him learn that the right people will help him, if he asks or if he allows it.

The question is just how will his ego make room for that?

The answer will be more critical than anyone can imagine.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2018, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post How Can Elon Musk Be Saved? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.