Business Toolkit – Page 67 – thoughtLEADERS, LLC: Leadership Training for the Real World

Why Equilibrium is the Key to Achieving True Negotiating Success

May 22, 2017/0 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Communications, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Maintaining your cool and being in a state of equilibrium is a huge asset in a negotiation. When the other party loses it, you benefit by staying calm instead.

Today’s post is by Corey Kupfer, author of Authentic Negotiating (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

Most negotiating articles, books, training programs and other resources focus on techniques, tactics and counter-tactics. These, however, are often ineffective, manipulative and inauthentic and, even when good, are not the key to true negotiating success. Authentic negotiating is the secret to true negotiating success and there are three keys to authentic negotiating:

Clarity: Authentic negotiators know what will and won’t work for them on every significant term, and what their true bottom line is – from a place of clarity, not ego.

Detachment: Authentic negotiators can walk away from a negotiation with no hesitation – not from a place of anger or upset, but from a place of detachment with no judgment or hard feelings.

Equilibrium: Authentic negotiators don’t let emotions dictate their actions. Instead, they maintain equilibrium during the heat of tough negotiation to stay present and preserve their clarity and detachment.

Although each of the components of this CDE core framework are important, in this post, I am going to focus power of equilibrium – the third key to true negotiating success.

Several years ago, I received a telephone call from an attorney, Henry, who was representing clients on the other side of an unhappy split of a business partnership between three guys. I represented one of the three partners, and he represented the other two. Henry called me up, yelling and screaming and threatening my client with all sorts of dire consequences. My client happened to be a lawyer, although the business he was in with the other two was not related to the law. This bullying attorney was saying, “He’s going to lose his law license” and “He’s unethical,” neither of which was true. Henry was emotionally involved. He had lost his equilibrium.

It’s Called Brutal Prioritization for a Reason

April 26, 2017/1 Comment/in Balanced Lifestyle, Business Toolkit, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

During times of excessive work and crisis, something has to give. Sometimes brutal prioritization is the only way to make it through those challenging times with your sanity intact.

It happens to all of us. The Universe, in its infinite wisdom, determines this month, of all months, is the month to test your mettle.

It was a busy month to start. Multiple big project deadlines, a few social events, tax season, and some home repairs, all topped off with a few trips to other cities.

Then things blew up. New projects came in. Unforeseen issues on existing projects cropped up. Email went into tsunami mode. You got a nasty stomach flu. The IRS decided to audit you. Your cat died. Your got in a car accident and won’t have your car for a few weeks due to repairs.

It becomes tough to breathe. You feel swamped. There’s no way out and there’s no way to get everything done that you need to get done – at least not without pulling all-nighters and putting your sanity at risk. What do you do?

Preserve your sanity. Get some sleep. Go into brutal prioritization mode.

When a building you’re in is on fire, what do you do? Grab the kids. Grab the dog. Depending on how the kids behaved that week, maybe you grab the dog first. Grab your irreplaceable picture of Nana and Pop. Run for safety. You just brutally prioritized. There was a crisis and you were forced to choose. Some things got burned up. But you’re safe and sound.

Give yourself permission to treat your work the same way.

Set Priorities

How effective are you at pitching your ideas for approval?

April 20, 2017/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Leadership, Poll /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: How effective are you at pitching your ideas for approval?

– Extremely – My recommendations always get approved: 5%
– Very – Most recommendations get approved but not all: 59%
– Somewhat – I get many approved but could do much better: 26%
– Not very – I struggle to get my recommendations approved: 8%
– Not at all – I rarely get anyone to approve my ideas: 1%

Getting to Yes Can be Tough. In a world of scarce resources where everyone is competing for the same budgets, people, and time, the ability to clearly communicate a compelling recommendation is a true performance differentiator. Some people get ideas approved through brute force of personality. Others swamp their audience with data. Still others find dogged persistence is the key to approval. The real secret to getting ideas approved with minimal effort is understanding what your audience cares about and pushing their button. The more clearly you can connect your recommendation to their objectives, the easier it’ll be to get it approved. Spend less time crunching numbers and more effort on understanding your audience.

Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below!

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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Successful Leaders Do These 3 Things to Reach Outside Their Comfort Zones

March 20, 2017/0 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Career, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Reaching outside your comfort zone is critical for success in business and in life. If you want to be successful, follow these three tips.

Today’s post is by Andy Molinsky, author of Reach (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

If you play tennis, you’re probably familiar with the concept of a “second serve.” In tennis, you have two chances to serve the ball, so on the first you can really put everything into it, with little risk since you always have that second one to fall back on. The key is how you approach the second one.

When I was much younger, I learned that it was OK – critical even – to learn how to hit a powerful second serve – something that would be nearly as effective as the first – with lots of spin to it. But that took time and effort and many, many failed attempts – even in game-time situations.

The easy solution in the moment would have been to tap that second serve right in – risking little, but also not developing for the future. But I’m very glad I got the advice I did to risk it early on, and learn from experience and failure, because now I actually have a second serve I can use effectively – something that’s actually an asset –a weapon – and something I can use in real game time situations.

And, as I’ve learned from my own experience, as well as from the experiences interviewing managers, executives, and entrepreneurs for my new book Reach, having the courage to take a leap is just as important in business as it is on the tennis court.

So, what are the best practices for willing yourself to take that leap and do something you know will help you in the long run, but which feels risky, awkward, or uncomfortable in the short term?

Problem Solvers Make Great Leaders

February 27, 2017/0 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Communications, Guest Blogger, Innovation, Leadership, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Being a problem solver can help you stand out as a leader. Finding things that aren’t going well and coming up with ways to fix them can be a true differentiator.

Today’s post is by Suzanne Paling, author of The Sales Leader’s Problem Solver (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

Articles on the subject of leadership run the gamut, from the four essential qualities to the 30+ characteristics. Internet searches on the word leader offer up myriad choices including: integrity, passion, patience, delegation, clarity, creativity and fearlessness – valid and important traits all.

To my surprise, one trait seldom gets mentioned – problem solving. Think about it. Acknowledging and effectively dealing with an issue (especially if it’s caused difficulties for a prolonged period of time) showcases leadership abilities.

In my new book The Sales Leader’s Problem Solver; I take the reader through the process of solving 15 of the most common sales force conundrums. At the end of every chapter, I talk about how the act of solving a dilemma enhances the person’s leadership credentials.

While the problems featured in the book are sales specific, the process for solving a problem has applications for leaders in different departments throughout the company. I offer the following suggestions:

Gather Data

Take the time to speak with others in your organization about the issue. Once you have a better understanding of the issue, get away from anecdotal information. Seek out unbiased facts and figures.

Most of us tend to read and rely on a regular group of reports. Step out of your comfort zone. Ask people in different departments about their favorite reports. CFOs are often great sources of new information. Assemble data that backs up, shows the extent of; or reinforce people’s claims about the problem.

Solve It

How effective are you at aligning behaviors with goals you set?

February 16, 2017/4 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Leadership, Poll /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: How effective are you at aligning your team’s behaviors with goals you set?

– Very – Everyone knows the desired behaviors to hit our goals: 50%
– Kind of – I point out the most important behavior changes required: 42%
– Not very – I don’t often link behaviors to goals: 6%
– Not at all – I just set the goal, and they’ll figure it out: 2%

Behavior is Key. Goals are great but without specifying which behaviors need to change, your odds of hitting your goals are slim. Be sure to clearly spell out behavior changes required to hit goals. Tell your people what has to change and link it directly to achievement of the goal. If you leave it up to them, they may or may not change the desired behaviors. Why go through all the trouble of setting goals if you’re not going to invest the time in helping your team achieve them?

Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below!

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

An Easier and More Effective Way to Give Feedback

February 15, 2017/1 Comment/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Training /by Mike Figliuolo

Giving feedback can be difficult and emotionally-charged. But by following a simple model focused on facts and behaviors you’ll be giving more effective feedback more easily than you’ve given it before.

If we want people to change behaviors and improve their performance, we have to give them feedback. Giving feedback can be really difficult because we think to ourselves “Maybe I might hurt their feelings…” or “I have to have an uncomfortable conversation…”, or “I’m telling somebody who I really like and respect that they’re falling short in some regard…” So, we avoid feedback, but that’s a huge mistake especially as the leader of a high performing team.

There’s a simple process you can follow to take the sting and nausea out of giving feedback. I’d like to offer a feedback model that can remove the emotion from those conversations and help people focus on improving performance versus getting defensive.

I like to think of giving feedback as a tennis match. You serve the ball to them, they react to it and return it, and then you react to their reaction and so on. The model goes like this:

– First, you’ll ask for permission to give somebody feedback and ensure, at that moment, that they’re open to receiving it. Their head may not be in it. They may have come out of a tough meeting, or they’re in a rush to go to their next meeting. Making sure they’re ready to receive feedback is critical.

– Next, the feedback recipient should let you know that they are open to receiving feedback.

– The next step really matters a lot in terms of removing the emotion from the feedback process. Read more

Do you invest in training and conferences for your development?

February 9, 2017/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll, Training /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: Do you invest in training and conferences for your professional development?

– Yes – I invest a lot of time in these events: 34%
– Kind of – I invest time in these events occasionally: 47%
– Not really – I don’t go to training or conferences often: 15%
– No – I don’t have the time or the interest: 4%

A good 80/20. 80% of you are investing time in your development via training and conferences. For the 20% who aren’t, ask yourself if you’re happy with your career and your growth. If the answer is no, I’d suggest you start carving out time to develop yourself. Only so much growth happens via osmosis on the job. For any of you looking to invest your time, find programs where you’ll get a disproportionate amount of content and growth for the time you’ll spend. By being judicious about where you invest your time, you’ll tend to pay attention more during the program and therefore take away more information that you can apply.

Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below!

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

Why Pricing is the Biggest Lever You’re Not Pulling

January 25, 2017/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Entrepreneur, Sales, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

Pricing is a powerful lever but we don’t pull it often enough. Thinking through your price point as well as your pricing model can dramatically improve profitability.

Pricing is one of the most critical decisions an organization makes. A 1% difference on top-line price is worth a 10% profit increase on a business with a 10% gross margin. That’s huge! All too often we don’t think of pulling the pricing lever because it seems small. “Heck, it’s only 1% or 0.5%. Why bother?”

Why bother? I’ll tell you why to bother!

Pricing and Profits

By way of example, if you’re selling your product for $100, and you make $10 per unit, that’s a 10% margin. If you raise your price by 1%, and go from $100 to $101. That incremental dollar drops straight to the bottom line! Now you go from making $10 to $11. That’s a 10% improvement on the bottom for a 1% improvement on the top! Even with a 0.5% price increase you’re still increasing your profitability by 5%. Better yet – if you’re a publicly traded company, your stock price is based on a multiple of your earnings so that 5-10% profit improvement gets multiplied by your P/E ratio which boosts your stock price. Pricing just got compelling, didn’t it?

Pricing has a huge impact on your overall profitability. You need to understand how your product or service is priced. Is it a one-time fee? Is it a subscription model? Do you have a razor and blade model where you sell something really cheap, but the replacement parts are an ongoing stream of revenue? Do you sell accessories or extras with your core product? Do you offer additional services or warranties? Different prices for different customers and different markets and features are typical for most businesses. The better you understand your pricing model, the easier it is for you to increase prices without undercutting the volume of product you sell.

Cost-Plus versus Value-Based Pricing

Two common pricing approaches are cost-plus or value-based pricing. Depending on your industry, your product/service, and customer behavior, one of these models may be more appropriate than another. That said, just because you currently have one pricing model, that doesn’t mean you can’t change to another.

Let me explain the difference between a cost-plus pricing model and a value-based pricing model. Read more

3 Things You Must Get Right if You Want Happier Customers

January 23, 2017/0 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Customer loyalty takes just as much energy to build as new customer growth. Unfortunately companies spend too much time focusing on new customers and not taking care of the ones they already have.

Today’s post is by Noah Fleming, author of The Customer Loyalty Loop (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

Most executives I talk to feel like they’re drowning in data and yet anyone and everyone within the organization is telling them they need more and more data! Do you ever feel overwhelmed with all the things you need to worry about, let alone the collection of “big data” with the belief that data might help you generate better customer relations, or a more loyal customer?

I’m going to let you in on a big secret. The companies and clients that I work with who are at the top of their games, or continuously increasing revenue are only really placing a concerted effort on three key areas. I’m going to warn you, there’s nothing ground-breaking here that you don’t already know, but how these companies are focusing on these areas might surprise you.

I’ll tell you until the cows come home that most organizations are too focused on the new customer at the expense of their existing customers, but I’m also a realist. The current customer is the beating heart of any great business, but you need new customers to grow. Anybody who tells you otherwise should be thrown from your office. Today we’re going to about new and existing customers.

The first area that these companies excel in is their uncanny ability to sell to their existing customers more often. I said sell, not just “market to,” and not just putting offers in front of them, but selling. You need the same level of gravitas and effort that is put towards new customer acquisition, applied to selling more to your existing customer base. That requires a customer retention process. Most businesses have a sales process but not a retention process. The best companies do.

I once heard an author and marketer say that all great sales and marketing is just about sharing your message over and over again. He might have been half right, once. A decade ago, maybe a quarter right. Now, it’s more like a tenth.

If you want to sell to your prospects and existing customers either the first time or the sixth time, then you need to get three things right. But you need to get them right, all the time and every time.

Awareness

5 Tactics to Showcase Thought Leadership in Your Executive Resume

December 26, 2016/2 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Career, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Showcasing your soft skills on your resume is a challenging task. These five tactics will help you showcase thought leadership in your executive resume and land that job you deserve.

Today’s post is by Lisa Rangel, an Executive Resume Writer at ChameleonResumes.com.

How you include thought leadership in your executive resume is a key determinant of whether or not you’ll get the job. Oftentimes these are skills that have more to do with the identity and knowledge you have put out there as evidence that you have what a prospective job is seeking. This can make it difficult to put this thought leadership trait on paper.

Up until recently, companies sought after talent with hard skills that would get the firm to hit its bottom line goal. Now we know that thought leadership and soft skills are just as important when it comes to growing a company and hitting those goals. Thought leadership and soft skills are considered to be behaviors and traits such as knowledge transfer, critical thinking, mentorship, talent attraction and selection, likeability, time management, and so forth. Thought leadership has shifted from being perceived as solely academic to trend forecasting. Soft skills are those skills that are hard to measure but equally as important. How do you reflect them on a resume?

Check out these five ways to effectively and strategically incorporate thought leadership and soft skills in your executive resume.

Repeat soft skills mentioned in the job ad.

Job posting ads will, often times, have soft skills written into them. This will give you a clue as to what the employer is looking for in their next hired leader. For instance, one employer may emphasize that a candidate be “results oriented” while the other may prefer “strategic and trend forecaster.” Tell stories that showcase the actions emulating strategic responsibilities and demonstrating trend foresight.

Once you’ve identified the soft skills in the job ad make sure to incorporate them into your resume. This way you customize your resume for the position at hand. This technique is far more effective than sending everyone the same generic resume.

Provide solid thought leadership examples.

Best of thoughtLEADERS 2016: A Basket of Kickass

December 21, 2016/0 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Books, Business Toolkit, Career, Communications, Entrepreneur, Innovation, Leadership, Sales, Social Media, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

It’s time again for our annual year in review list of the BEST posts we’ve published over the last 12 months. Welcome to the 2016 edition of The Figgies (our EIGHTH YEAR of em! Wow!) which are the awards we give ourselves for writing awesome blog content (here are the 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 editions of those awards).

This is an annual event at the thoughtLEADERS Blog. This list is comprised of our most viewed, most forwarded, quirkiest, most provocative work. Enjoy. Share. We’ve loved writing them. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading them. I don’t ask a lot of you folks so I have two small requests as your holiday gift to me (you are getting me something, right?):

1. Invite all your coworkers, friends, and family to come check out the blog and become readers. The only way we all get better is by raising everyone’s game. I’m not asking a lot here. If you found this blog helpful at all this year, here’s your chance to return the favor for all our hard work. Just email folks and tell ’em to come take a look.

2. Pick up a copy of my books. They make great holiday gifts for the professionals in your life. The titles include:

One Piece of Paper: The Simple Approach to Powerful Personal Leadership. In the words of Roland Smith (former CEO of Wendy’s/Arby’s) “This book could change your life.” To get a sense for what the book is about, read this free ChangeThis Leadership Manifesto which is based on the book. If you like the manifesto, you’ll love the book.

Lead Inside the Box: How Smart Leaders Guide Their Teams to Exceptional Results. “Finally, a leadership book that cuts through all of the noise. This book needs to be on every leader’s desk!” – Andrea Procaccino, Chief Learning Officer, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

The Elegant Pitch: Create a Compelling Recommendation, Build Broad Support, and Get it Approved. If you’re looking to get to “yes” for your idea, this book will give you the method for doing so in an efficient and effective way.

Thanks for your incredible support in ’16 and best wishes for ’17! We hope to be a part of your future success! Now on to the best of list!