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Best of thoughtLEADERS 2014: Seriously Our Awesomest Stuff Yet

December 10, 2014/0 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 in 2014. Welcome to the 2014 edition of The Figgies (our SIXTH of em! Wow!) which are the awards we give ourselves for writing awesome blog content (here are the 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 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 One Piece of Paper: The Simple Approach to Powerful Personal Leadership (especially if you’re looking for last-minute holiday gifts for bosses, team members, or your mom – she’ll love it). I talk a lot about the book because I’m evangelical about the topic. Buy it. Read it. In the words of Roland Smith (former CEO of Wendy’s/Arby’s) “It 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.

Thanks for your incredible support in ’14 and best wishes for ’15! We hope to be a part of your future success! Now on to the best of list!

11 Commandments of Outstanding Client Service

December 3, 2014/2 Comments/in Career, Communications, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

If you’re looking to run a successful business that takes great care of its clients, you’d do well to read the following commandments of client service.

These are values, beliefs, and rules I’ve picked up in over a decade of running a client-facing organization. And I serve some pretty outstanding (and demanding) clients!

Lately I’ve had a lot of friends and colleagues ask for advice on things they should do or think of as they get ready to strike out on their own and start their own businesses. Since I’m getting tired of saying the same thing on the phone every single time, I figure I’ll get efficient, write it here once, then refer anyone else who asks to this blog post. Being an entrepreneur is all about being efficient.

1. Never keep a client waiting. Honestly, if you show up late, don’t expect them to stay a client very long. Sure this means spending a lot of time in waiting areas because you got somewhere early. Bring a book. Read a blog. Collect your thoughts before the meeting. Heck – I actually started writing this very blog post while I sat waiting for a client to arrive. Just do not be late. Ever. You would be shocked and appalled at how many people violate this all the time. No. It’s not all right to do so.

2. The client is always right unless they’re wrong. Clients aren’t always right. Many times they are. Sometimes you’re both right. Ask yourself if it’s worth falling on your sword to be right. If not, shut up. But if they are wrong and being wrong is going to be harmful to them, see the next commandment. Don’t always tell the client what they want to hear. Tell them what they need to hear.

10 Things that Took Me 10 Years to Learn

August 27, 2014/5 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Career, Communications, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Sales, Social Media, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

Happy Birthday to me! No, it’s not my birthday (although you can send me gifts if you like). It’s thoughtLEADERS‘ birthday and the firm just turned 10. 10 years old. Mind-boggling.

In those 10 years I’ve had ups and downs. I’ve learned a great deal as an entrepreneur, an executive, a leader, and a person. Good times, bad times, y’know I’ve had my share… (yes… Zeppelin). I’d like to share some of those things I’ve learned with all of you. My hope in sharing these things is that you’ll avoid mistakes I’ve made, be more successful than I’ve been, and enjoy your life more.

Before I launch into that top 10 list, I’d like to thank everyone around me who has helped me succeed with this business. My wonderful clients who make it all possible. The awesome participants in my classes (except that one guy that one time… you know who you are). The fantastic colleagues who do such amazing work. My friends and professional contacts who recommend me and my work. My family members who have supported me throughout this crazy ride. Without all of you, thoughtLEADERS is just a cool website. Thank you for everything from the bottom of my heart.

Shutting up now. Time to drop the knowledge. Within each of these tips is a link to another post I’ve written on that topic so if you want to learn more about that particular topic, click on through to the other side (Jim Morrison… kinda).

10. Jump in with both feet. If you’re considering starting your own business (or you’re taking on a major new project or role), you have to go all-in if you want it to succeed. You can’t be half-pregnant. When I first started the business, I ran it part time while I held a full-time job. I reasoned I would go full-time with thoughtLEADERS when I had a big, stable, predictable client base. Hey idiot – you won’t have a big, stable, predictable client base until you do it full time. I have another venture I ran part time while running thoughtLEADERS. It’s not doing so well. You’d think I would learn… Commit. Dive in. You can be an entrepreneur with zero risk.

How to Emotionally Jazz Up Your Technical Presentations

August 25, 2014/0 Comments/in Books, Communications, Guest Blogger, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Dr. Vikas Jhingran, author of EMOTE: Using Emotions to Make Your Message Memorable (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

‘The Crime Scene’. My first slide, certainly not the norm for a technical paper on Vortex-Induced Vibrations. I could see the confusion and surprise on the faces of the audience. This was going to be very interesting.

A few years ago, I was presenting a technical paper at an international conference. The paper was about experiments that had been performed by our group, and the results had been rather surprising. After months of work, our team had come up with a controversial explanation – one that most researchers would not have intuitively guessed. My paper that day was about those experiments and the unusual results.

I wanted to introduce a story into my presentation and after some thought, decided to relate the presentation as a Sherlock Holmes mystery case. This controversial and hugely popular character seemed a good fit.

I planned my presentation like a Sherlock Holmes case and it began at the crime scene, which was our lab. The data that we collected was the evidence. In my presentation, I shared our struggles to find a solution, which were eerily similar to what Mr. Holmes goes through in his cases. Finally, the famous quote associated with Sherlock Holmes, “Once you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth,” provided the perfect setup to introduce the controversial and unexpected hypothesis proposed to explain the experimental data. Like all Sherlock Holmes cases, once the observations were explained, it seemed obvious.

Scientific presentations, especially those that involve data, are difficult to present in an interesting manner. Among the sea of good research and interesting ideas, only a few stand out as memorable. Why do some technical presentations stand out? How do people bring a technical presentation to life?

Here are four suggestions that will help bring your data-rich presentation to life.

10-minute Leadership Lessons – One Story at a Time

August 20, 2014/2 Comments/in Books, Communications, Guest Blogger, Leadership, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Paul Smith, thoughtLEADERS instructor and bestselling author of Lead With a Story.

You’re busy as a leader. You don’t always have time to invest in learning a great new leadership story to help you build your skills. I recognize that and I’m here to help. I’ve distilled down 6 great stories into easy-to-digest 10 minute podcasts for your listening pleasure.

These podcasts are based on interviews with 100 executives and leaders at dozens of companies around the world as they learned their most important leadership lessons – sometimes the hard way. They feature stories from executives at Proctor & Gamble, Dollar General, Hewlett Packard, Kellogg’s, Dun & Bradstreet, Saatchi & Saatchi, Verizon, and many more. Each episode brings you an important leadership lesson through a single compelling story.

These first 6 episodes will help you grow sales, gain your organization’s commitment to your goals, help your employees find passion for their work, enable you to lead change more effectively, create a more diverse environment in your organization, and learn how to find world-class customer service stories in your company.

Episode 1: A customer-service story gone horribly right

The Importance of Diversifying Your Business

July 2, 2014/0 Comments/in Entrepreneur, Sales, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

I had a great conversation with a friend of mine. He was bemoaning the fact that his company was almost completely dependent upon one huge customer. He saw the inherent risks in that relationship but confessed his organization had a bad habit they couldn’t kick. They had succumbed to the addiction of predictability and comfort.

Is your business overly-reliant on one key customer? Is your organization tied closely to one key client or partner or supplier? If that customer went away, would your world come to a crashing screeching halt? The rule of thumb I’ve always heard is no customer should be more than 25% of your business (and the same holds true for your suppliers or partners).

We always hear about diversification but usually it’s in the context of our stock portfolios. If your 401k became a 200.5k in the past few years, you know what I’m talking about. It’s easy to do the diversification thing in a portfolio – sell a few stocks, buy a few stocks and presto! you’re done. Diversifying your customer base is much harder to do.

If you’ve never thought much about this topic (or even if you have) you need to understand the true risks involved in not diversifying, understand why it’s hard to diversify, and use some practical methods to achieve the diversification goal.

3 Keys to Cultivating High-Return Relationships

May 26, 2014/0 Comments/in Communications, Guest Blogger, Leadership, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Gary Polsky, author of Selling Healthcare (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

If you’re reading this, odds are you’re looking to take it to the next level in interacting with customers and colleagues (which includes just about everything except cyber crime). I’m convinced you will experience greater professional success—and happiness—if you cultivate mutually fulfilling relationships. I know this not only from my own 30-plus years in healthcare—from my tenure as a hospital administrator to my calling as a hospice pioneer—but from recognizing this same core component for success in the stories of my idols, peers and employees.

Those who excel in business and in life are masters at grooming and growing the key connections that I like to call High-Return Relationships.

High-Return Relationships are pre-qualified connections elevated beyond the professional level by a genuine desire to connect as individuals, with shared goals and passions and a long-term outlook.

A Five-Pronged Approach to Relationship Building

In Selling Healthcare, I explore the five strategies I’ve identified for forging High-Return Relationships:

How to Avoid the Transparency Trap

May 21, 2014/0 Comments/in Communications, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Victor Prince, one of our thoughtLEADERS instructors.

“Transparency” has become a hot buzzword over the last several years among business leaders and consultants. We have all probably heard something like this from someone with a big job title – “We have got to be more transparent!” Fast forward through a ton of meetings, reams of slide decks and maybe even some significant consulting fees that ensue and what do you have to show for your efforts? If all you can point to is a bunch of shiny new pretty pictures and paragraphs about your business on your website but no meaningful business results, you have probably been the victim of the Transparency Trap.

The Transparency Trap is what happens when you do transparency for transparency’s sake, not for your customers’ stake. You talk about what you want to talk about instead of answering the questions your customers care about.

As the big transparency initiative rolls down through your organization, employees will translate it into a “let me show you how complex and hard it is to do my job so you are impressed.” You end up putting up a cloud of information that is interesting to your staff but irrelevant to your customers. Your website is now stuffed with lots of nice pictures and profiles of your people – that nobody outside your walls ever clicks on.

Best case, you have burned a lot of organizational calories without any benefit. Worst case, you have frustrated your customers who cannot find the answers to the few key pieces of information they need. They just wanted to know what they would get, when they would get it, and how much it would cost them. You couldn’t tell them that, but somehow you had time to make a snazzy video of your production line. If they wanted that, they would have asked for a tour. It makes your organization seem like an out of touch narcissist with too much time on its hands.

Is your business ready to expand overseas?

May 12, 2014/0 Comments/in Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Sales, Strategy /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Sloan McKinney who has a passion for helping companies expand their global footprint.

Introducing a business to a new country is very much like starting from scratch with a brand new company. Though a company may have experienced wild success on a much smaller level, the array of factors that could make – or break – an expansion make the process far more daunting than many are comfortable admitting.

Taking time to contemplate the advantages and disadvantages of expanding is easy. Contemplating the logistics of expansion are a different matter entirely.

Before you take the plunge and decide to establish an international presence, it’s vital to consider every possible expense and to create contingency plans that can account for anything that goes wrong. Deciding if you expand to reach new markets is a process in and of itself. When a business expands to cover new markets, a great deal of stress is put on the company.

Where is the highest demand for my product?

If that isn’t abundantly clear, then consider where the demand can be highest. Check out competitors and their respective products in the areas, and compare it to what your company has to offer.

Consider the average income of citizens in the targeted country. Can the citizens in the target country afford to purchase what you have to offer? Understanding the structure of the community, and the targeted audience in the country you are bringing your product are crucial aspects of the planning process.

Can your company adapt its product to the particular wants and needs in the targeted country?

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Using Emotions to Craft a Memorable Speech

April 21, 2014/3 Comments/in Communications, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Leadership, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by Dr. Vikas Jhingran, author of EMOTE: Using Emotions to Make Your Message Memorable (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

More than decade ago, my wife and I witnessed a stunning incident near the Pier 39 waterfront in San Francisco. On a balmy day, with sea lions and seals soaking sun all around the pier, we noticed a man sitting quietly in a corner with a leafy branch in his hand. When an unsuspecting tourist walked by, he would jump up and shout “Boo!” The reactions of the surprised tourists were incredibly funny and being enjoyed by a vociferous crowd.

This went on for a while until the prankster tried his trick on a tall, strong man with muscles bulging everywhere. The prank worked to perfection and this giant got the jolt of his life, spilled half his popcorn on the floor, and looked remarkably funny for a few seconds. The laughs from the crowd were loud and exaggerated. This did not sit well with the huge man who went after the prankster. Seeing this hulk tower over the prankster, my wife and I were sure that the seals around the pier were going to get something different to eat that day. It took a lot of people and some time to calm our huge friend down but the prankster had learned his lesson and made his way out of there.

It has been over ten years since that trip, but my wife and I still remember the story and have talked about it with our friends. It intrigues us that we remember this event after such a long time. The question is what makes this and a few other events more memorable?

Years later I found the answer in the phenomenon called Emotional Memory Enhancement (EME).

Collateral Value is the Key to Your Business’ Success

April 7, 2014/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Today’s post is by John Cameron, author of ROCK SOLID – How to Strengthen Your Company (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

What is collateral value and more to the point, why is it important? It’s easier to understand this concept by contrasting it with direct value. Direct value is what your customers actually pay for. Collateral value is what happens around the transaction.

When you get new tires on your vehicle you pay for the tires and the technician’s time to install them. That’s direct value. What you don’t directly pay for is the expert advice or the friendliness of the staff. You also don’t directly pay for the nicely laid out showroom with a good selection of tires on display. That’s an example of collateral value.

It’s important to define the concept because the small business world is naturally competitive on the direct value front. There is always somebody, somewhere who does what you do. To compete and win business on direct value alone you have to provide more for less. That erodes your profits – unless you have a structural cost advantage over your competition.

I know a real estate agent who has built a very profitable career. He makes everyone he meets feel important by giving them his full attention. It doesn’t matter where it’s at, a restaurant, a golf course or at a community meeting. That’s his collateral value. He rarely talks about real estate unless you bring it up, but when people need real estate advice they regularly go to him first. It works.

How to Instantly Lose Credibility Like a Guru Ninja

February 12, 2014/3 Comments/in Career, Communications, Entrepreneur, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Titles matter. A lot. So do email addresses and signature blocks. As unfortunate and as shallow as it is, people make a first impression snap decision about you and your business in an instant. If that instant includes your title it can make or break your business opportunity.

Yes, CxO, Vice President, Director, Manager, Analyst, and other vanilla titles are boring. They’re not edgy. They don’t have panache. That said, they quickly convey a certain level of skill and experience that the majority of the business population can interpret. Your contact isn’t left scratching their head wondering what the heck you do.

Then there’s the other end of the title spectrum: Guru, Ninja, Overlord, Grand Poobah, Super Hero. They sound wicked awesome. They get people’s attention. But you have to realize not all attention is good.

On top of that, these titles are usually paired with a cool signature block quote or catch phrase and they have sweet email addresses too. Unfortunately all of these things can undermine your credibility and cost you business. Here are a few of the biggest mistakes I see people make when it comes to the arena of titles and personal branding:

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