Communications – Page 50 – thoughtLEADERS, LLC: Leadership Training for the Real World

You Call Them Business Partners But Your Contract Says Otherwise

August 10, 2009/5 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Entrepreneur /by Mike Figliuolo

Your legal department is screwing up. Royally.

You work hard to build relationships with other businesses. How many hours do you invest getting closer to partners, customers, and suppliers? And then that wonderful handshake happens and it’s time to hammer out the agreements. That’s when Larry the Litigator takes over.

Larry’s a generally good guy. He’s a great corporate attorney. His main mission in life is to protect your organization from litigation. Sometimes he even generates real bottom-line value with the way he constructs contracts. The problem is, he’s gotten so aggressive in constructing legal agreements that he’s negatively impacting all those relationships you worked so hard to build.

I’m not writing this to berate Larry – I’m writing it to make YOU aware of the impact Larry is having on your relationships. If you’re not careful, he’ll do things like I mention below. When he does, he can sour a relationship right from the start.

Shame on you if you’ve let the following happen to your contracts:

Hey Nelly – Must Be The Money? Not When Attracting Talent

August 3, 2009/3 Comments/in Career, Communications, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

If you could see me now, you’d crack up. I’m writing this post with my head nodding to the tune of Nelly blasting “Must Be The Money” in the background (and I must confess it’s semi-righteous). But Nelly had it wrong when it comes to attracting talent to your organization: it isn’t always the money.

If you’re looking to attract the right kind of talent I’d argue the talent you attract that is only focused on the money is the worst kind of talent you can get (can I get a shout out for Mr. Vick?). Talent that focuses solely on money will be the first talent to depart when a better offer arrives. When that happens, you’ll incur another round of recruiting costs, training costs, and hiring costs.

The good news in this economy for businesses large and small is it isn’t always the money. You can attract fantastic talent without having to drop bling (I’m saying that right, aren’t I?) on their resume when they walk in for their interview.

Organizations of all sizes from Fortune 500’s to small entrepreneurial ventures can benefit both their hiring and their bottom line by nailing two aspects of attracting talent.

Three Keys to Getting CASH for Your Project or Business

July 13, 2009/3 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Entrepreneur, Project Management, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

Money is tight these days. Whether you’re an entrepreneur seeking capital to grow your business or you work at a major corporation and you’re looking for capital to fund your project, you have a big challenge in front of you: how do you get someone to give you their money?

Yes, it’s their money. For entrepreneurs, you’re trying to pry it away from banks, angel investors, and venture capitalists. For corporate types, you’re asking for it from shareholders, senior executives, and profit-generating business units (for the purposes of this post, I’ll refer to all of these groups as “investors” for the balance of the article).

But gone are the days of easy money based on loosey goosey “business plans.” In this environment it’s much harder to get that check written.

So how can you pry open the pocketbook, get the capital you need, and grow your business or fund your project? You have to be sure to tell the people with the cash three key things before they’ll even consider giving you a dime.

Stop Isolating Your Business: Two Ways You’re Ruining Opportunities

July 6, 2009/3 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Entrepreneur, Sales, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

This post is dedicated to all the paranoid businesspeople out there who are terrified of their competitors. You know, the people who run businesses centered around “consulting” who view any other “consulting” firm as a competitor. You can insert whatever industry you like in the quotes and this perspective will apply.

Knock it off – you’re limiting your business and isolating yourself from opportunities to grow. You’re effectively placing yourself on a deserted island in the ocean of business opportunities.

Not only are you limiting opportunities, you’re building a brand of naivete, immaturity and narrow thinking. The following also applies whether you’re a one-person shop or a multimillion dollar firm. Unless you’re Coke & Pepsi or some other similar truly competitive pairing of companies, you need to pay attention.

Those of you who know me know I network. A lot. That networking gets me in front of many other business owners and executives who play in a space similar to my firm.

I run a leadership development training firm. We have a specific business model. We focus on a few key knowledge areas where we have deep expertise. We deliver that knowledge through one-day training sessions with some focused coaching support afterward.

Networking gets “interesting” when I meet others who work in the leadership development coaching and training arena. During those meetings I’ve seen two destructive dynamics play out on occasion.

Are You Slowly Destroying Your Network?

June 22, 2009/13 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Communications, Social Media /by Mike Figliuolo

Web 2.0. Social networking. LinkedInPlaxoTwitterbarf. Blogaroni and cheese. Some people would have you believe we’ve entered a new era of business where the rules have fundamentally changed. I’d submit that the rules are the same and the way we’re behaving is self-defeating.

One of the most valuable resources you have as a professional is your network. All the people you meet in your professional and personal life enter that interconnected web of relationships.

But your network is only worth what you put into maintaining it. And many of us are destroying that resource. All this interwebz garbage makes us lazy. It provides an easy out. It enables us to expand our reach beyond our ability to control or maintain meaningful relationships. Admission is the first step to remission – there are two behaviors you need to stop right now.

Grow Your Business and Career by Asking for Help

June 15, 2009/1 Comment/in Books, Business Toolkit, Career, Communications /by Mike Figliuolo

It’s hard asking for help. Getting rejected stings. But by not asking, you’re probably missing out on some great opportunities.

I don’t know about you, but when I was growing up I was a little bit of a dork. Okay, okay… a HUGE dork. I sold comic books (and incidentally made 100x what my contemporaries made in allowance but that didn’t stop them from teasing me). I weighed 98 pounds and my nose was 11 of it.

What came along with this dorkiness (aside from therapy bills I still pay today) was a fear of rejection. If you ask out enough girls and get laughed at enough times, you become conditioned not to ask for things in the purest form of Pavlovian conditioning a young man can endure.

While request avoidance as a mechanism for pain avoidance is wholly appropriate as a skinny pimply teenager, it can destroy business opportunities as an adult. As I was launching thoughtLEADERS, I had this fear of asking people for favors or for help. Why? I don’t exactly know. It was a combination of not wanting to impose upon people and not wanting to hear “no” or be rejected.

“So what?” you say? “So you didn’t ask for help. No big deal, right?” Wrong.

Stop Thinking! Make a Decision! The 4 D’s of Decision Making

June 1, 2009/3 Comments/in Communications, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

I see it all the time – people and teams suffering from analysis paralysis. They’re unable to make a decision and instead their organization languishes in purgatory for seemingly endless eons.

People are afraid to make decisions (especially in this economy). They sometimes believe (erroneously for the most part) they’re better off making no decision than making an incorrect one. By not making a decision, they think they can’t be canned for being wrong.

The problem is they’re supposed to be leaders. And leaders have to lead. When decisions aren’t made, organizations stagnate and eventually go down the tubes (and that’s when the really hard decisions have to be made… General Motors anyone?).

Deciding to not make a decision is still a decision (and often a bad one). Deciding to do more analysis rather than acting is still a decision (again, often a bad one). Indecision is only a good thing when it’s on The Colbert Report.

I’m not advocating making decisions absent data. One of my favorite sayings is “In God we trust. All others bring data.” What I am advocating is making a decision, acknowledging you might be wrong, and either maintaining course if the decision was correct or changing course if you get new information that indicates a better path.

So how can you break out of analysis paralysis? There are a few critical behaviors you can adopt. Allow me to introduce the 4 D’s of decision making (sorry… it’s not the 5 D’s of Dodgeball which, admittedly, would be really fun).

It’s NOT About You: 3 Steps for Avoiding the Sales FAIL

May 18, 2009/5 Comments/in Communications, Entrepreneur, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Sales is a difficult job, especially in this economy. It’s easy to forget good sales principles when you get focused on the numbers. The sales goal can become an anvil that knocks the focus on the prospect out of your noggin.

When that happens, you’re at high risk for the sales FAIL. That’s that interaction that not only costs you the sale but leads the prospect to tell other people how bad your organization is (in a blog like this one perhaps…).

This post isn’t just for salespeople. If you’re involved in sales, marketing, strategy, or business development there are some important lessons here. If you’re not involved in those functions, might as well read anyway because I know you’re looking for an excuse not to work on that PowerPoint deck and you can claim you’re doing “professional development” instead.

I recently had a head-scratcher of an interaction with a business-to-business cold caller. First I’ll detail some of the agonizing points of those calls then lay out three principles for not getting a “DON’T ANSWER” entry in my caller ID (yes, I’ll explain that point).

Simple Words Are Good Especially When News Is Bad

April 13, 2009/4 Comments/in Communications, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

I know I’m guilty of occasionally waxing loquacious and using polysyllabic words to create an aura of intelligence around my posts. More likely than not I’m doing this to overcompensate for watching too many cartoons every day. For a blog, those word choices can be fine (although Brian Clark at Copyblogger would kick my butt for saying that). Other times, flowery or evasive words are the WORST ones you can use as a leader.

I read an article in Fortune the other day where they laid out some snippets of spin from companies going through difficult times. Many of these companies are laying people off. That’s understandable and acceptable. I actually salute leaders who have the intestinal fortitude to make difficult choices like that.

It gets problematic though when the spin doctors are brought in. Bad things happen.

Have you ever been in the difficult role of telling people they’re being laid off? Or that something bad has happened at your company? It’s incredibly hard to do.

The aforementioned Fortune article discussed one solution. Some of the companies profiled brought in “corporate communication specialists” to “craft the message” (I’m not kidding). Instead of “firing people” the companies were “simplifying their business” or “streamlining their operations.” One even said they were “boosting their ability to compete.”

Pardon me while I barf in my socks.

The Poor Man’s CRM System

March 9, 2009/11 Comments/in Career, Communications, Social Media /by Mike Figliuolo

There’s nothing more valuable than your network. It leads to sales, new partnerships, friendships, and career opportunities. For your network to be useful, however, you have to actively maintain it.

There are plenty of expensive ways to do so (like buying a CRM system from a vendor who promises to double your sales) as well as manually intensive ways (like keeping stacks of business cards in your wallet so it resembles George Costanza’s on that episode of Seinfeld).

Me? I like traveling light but I have a large network of clients, friends, partners, and contacts to keep up with. If I let my wallet get too fat with business cards, my sciatic nerve gets pinched and I’m laid up in bed for days. Fortunately I’ve found a solution.

For your network to be useful, it has to be current, categorized, and connected (Wow! I’m using alliteration first thing on a Monday morning. My 12th grade English teacher Mrs. Morgan would be proud). Sorry. Enough rambling. On to how you can maintain your network and keep it healthy.

Get Jacked Up on Caribou! 3 Key Networking Tactics

March 2, 2009/11 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Communications, Social Media /by Mike Figliuolo

If you’ve read this blog for more than a week, you’ve probably figured out I’m usually jacked up and hyper-caffeinated. As Texas Ranger says in Talladega Nights “I’m all jacked up on Mountain Dew!” While it makes me more productive, it’s also a key to networking success. In my case it’s not Mountain Dew though – it’s coffee so I guess I’d have to say “I’m all jacked up on Caribou!”

People sometimes overcomplicate networking or view it as something mysterious. It’s not. The best kind of networking is simple and personal. I won’t go into the value of networking (aside from pointing out the best business and career opportunities come from having a strong network). Instead, I’m going to elaborate on three simple networking tactics that can help you advance your business or career agenda.

These ideas aren’t new. They’re not revolutionary. I’m going to ask you one question though: when is the last time you did these things? If the answer is “it’s been a while” then get cracking.

“Expert?” Um, I Don’t Think So…

February 2, 2009/21 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Customer Service, Leadership, Social Media /by Mike Figliuolo

Warning: this post is a bit of a rant (but does have a story and some practical advice). Does it seem like every day there’s a new pile of “experts” cropping up on every subject imaginable? Social media expert. Blogging expert. Communications expert. Strategy expert. Wingdings font expert. It’s enough to make me gag. Sorry but having a bunch of twitter followers or being at the top of the twitter elite for a podunk little town doesn’t make you a “social media expert.”

Even worse than the seemingly-viral proliferation of these “experts” are the egregious rates they expect for their services. Just because you call yourself an “expert” it doesn’t mean you’re entitled to the fee levels “real experts” charge (then again, if you’re the individual hiring an “expert” and paying them ridiculous fees, I can’t save you from your own insipidness).

Lastly, the worst aspect of these “experts” is the damage they can do to your organization. In some cases I’d love to sue some of these folks for malpractice of the trade they proclaim they’re an expert in.

So how can you as a leader of your organization protect yourself from the damage false experts can cause and how can you find the real experts among that mess? How can you ensure the expert isn’t like the false tailor and you end up like an emperor with no clothes?

It all boils down to asking the right questions.

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