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Why Did He Do That?!

Ah, motivations make the world go around! Understand a person’s motivations and you can create permanent change. Have you ever worked with someone who did something that truly puzzled you? You saw it as weird, inconsistent or untrustworthy? The truth is we have a bundle of nerves in our brains that we inherited from our parents. With our most intimate relationships, these nerves can sometimes kick into gear when we are stressed out or tired. Have you ever seen your boyfriend, girlfriend or spouse freak out at times? Do something that just isn’t them? Creepy!

Don’t fear … we all have our quirks. That’s the name society has given to explain these odd and unexpected behaviors. I call our key motivations “our kids.” We carry them with us wherever we go. We take them on vacation, to work and out to eat with friends. They never leave us. When others support these kids of ours, we like them. When someone violates or upsets one of our kids, we push away. I’ve discovered a way for all of us to show each other our kids. After all, just like you’re proud to show off your real children, wouldn’t it be cool to share with someone your motivational kids? That’s the About Me Card! I discovered it quite accidentally. Usually it takes several years to understand what motivates a person—now you can find out in 60 seconds! Check it out at www.aboutmecard.com

Are you a motivator? Do you want to be?

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Download our About Me Card white paper at www.aboutmecard.com! Chat soon.

Right Place at the Right Time

I get a kick out of the saying, “I was at the right place at the right time!” It’s spot on accurate, but I find that the people who make this claim tend to be at all places all the time. They are always making an effort to be in the right place at the right time. You see, 90% of success is just showing up. Do you realize only a small percentage of people have the guts to show up in the first place? Why the intimidation? Don’t get me wrong … I’ve had my moments of being intimidated by being in the presence of potential clients.

Are you tired of being intimidated? We are all human. Be yourself and make the call. Reach out to those people who could change your life forever and just be yourself. Share your beliefs and your product with them. Give them a chance to say no! The time is now to make new friends. Stop lollygagging!

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Pick up that 100-pound phone and call your next best friend!

Did you notice that?

There is something unusual about this Wisdom wouldn’t you say? What is it? How many of you took notice? It’s Thursday! Today you are receiving Wisdom on Thursday. No, this is not a publicity stunt—I simply goofed up. However, this does have a lesson involved regarding consistency. Some of you (perhaps most) knew right away that there was an inconsistency with the timing of this message. There is a double-edged sword here when it comes to consistency. There is the rule of thumb that says, “If you’re going to serve a bad cup of coffee, always serve a bad cup of coffee. Because as soon as you serve a good cup, people will notice a difference.” Then there is the camp that says, “It’s OK to surprise them once in awhile.” Which camp do you prefer? Perhaps it all depends on the situation.

I’ve heard of the Four Seasons hotels switching it up for their customers. The first time you visit, they ask what you prefer to drink after a day of travel: water, soda, diet soda, what brand, and so on. Then, a few minutes after you arrive, they deliver your beverage to your room on ice. They keep your choice on record so the drink will be waiting for you in your room the next time you visit.

For frequent visitors, the Four Seasons has a system where it intentionally leaves the wrong soda behind. Ten minutes after arriving, these frequent guests hear a knock on the door. Each guest opens the door to find a staff member holding a bucket of ice with that guest’s preferred soda . The staff member then apologizes for the “error” and leaves.

The Four Seasons’ strategy is to make sure the guest doesn’t take the soda for granted. What do you think? Is this smart or is it insincere? Regardless, one thing is for sure: Consistency is king with everything from marketing to relationships to raising kids.

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Where do you need more consistency in your life?

You ARE in control!

I’ve realized that when you surrender to events and situations that are not necessarily in your control it actually puts you in control. The feeling of control is simply a control of your emotions. When you get frustrated, you feel out of control. When you feel relaxed and focused, you feel in control. It is strange that by surrendering to situations you actually feel more in control about them.

Let’s try something. Find a sheet of paper. On the left side, write five disappointments that you had in 2010. Then write down some of the achievements that you experienced on the right side. Take a look at each group and draw a line or connect the disappointments to the achievements. You should see direct correlations. For example, you may have noted something like “I’m disappointed that I was ignored for that home mortgage.” However, a positive was finding a gain in the market with the money you were going to use as a down payment for the home.

Write these down and see how your disappointments actually are a part of the journey for your successes.

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Pull out the paper!

Explore the Opposites—They’re Important!

I received a new iPad for Christmas and I LOVE IT! The ability to touch a screen and interact with text is very gratifying. I am now exploring the world of apps. I admit I am downloading a few games. I can see how this can become quite addicting. However, another app I downloaded is called Creative Whack. It helps you think of things differently, and I can see it being very beneficial in a brainstorm. I would like to share with you today’s “Whack of the Day.”

It reads, “Explore the Opposite: It is disease that makes health pleasant, hunger that makes fullness good, and weariness that makes rest sweet.” Related to this, I love the saying, “You need to explore the valleys before you can reach the mountaintop.” Many people fear the valleys, but it is there where we can reach enlightenment the quickest. We truly don’t fully appreciate anything in life until we’ve experienced its opposite. Makes sense to me. What glory is there in building a successful business without having some turbulence to overcome? Have you ever noticed when a successful CEO gives a speech that it often includes an “oh no” story—such as a market crash or some other daunting challenge that was later overcome, which is where the glory lies.

So how do we explore these opposites? Well, as one possibility according to the Whack, suppose you were a chef and were forced to use mediocre ingredients. What would you need to do to offset this handicap to sustain your business? Perhaps your attention would go to customer experience, such as how guests are greeted when entering your restaurant. Or perhaps you might focus on a new or updated atmosphere. Whatever you ultimately choose to do, your brain will begin to answer in a way that grows your business by concentrating on areas other than food quality.

I like the Creative Whack and I may be sharing other insights from my iPad in the future. I remember what life was like when I didn’t have my iPad and I must say it’s a little bit better!

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Answer this question: How might looking at the opposite enable you to reach your objective?

Merry Christmas to all of my supportive readers!

What a year! When I look at some of the archived Wisdoms this past year, I see a change toward caring. I met a lot of people and invested a lot of time in exploring happiness, joy, respect and caring. This is what it’s all about. I’ve been affected positively by my wonderful family and friends and by all of your feedback throughout the year. Notice I didn’t add business colleagues. I don’t feel right calling my friends colleagues. It’s just that simple. We do business with friends, not colleagues. Friendship is what helps fuel our imaginations and aspirations.

Friendship is so often downplayed in business. We do business with people we like, and the people we like naturally turn into friends.

Merry Christmas to all of you, my friends!

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Soak it all in. Life is good.

Where do you relate?

Our new About Me Card system is up and running, and the feedback we’ve been given is fantastic. The About Me Card is powered by respect. It gives you, in 11 simple statements, the rules for how to treat a person. If you would like to be sent an About Me Card request, simply send an email to INFO@ABOUTMECARD.COM  The system has a feature that reveals information about what makes you great.

We all have talents that make us great. We also have rules of how we like to be treated when interacting with others. The About Me Card reveals these talents and rules. When we are supported with these motivations, we are empowered to do great things! There are four rules of thought on how we think. I will explain them, and I want you to consider how you might relate to them.

1 – The WHAT people. These are folks who drive initiatives and keep asking what’s next or “What are we going to accomplish?”

2 – The HOW people. These folks are wonderful at detail and they complement the WHAT people by being able to show how to do something.

3 – The WHY people. These people are wonderful at taking the HOW people’s plan and finding efficiencies to make it run more smoothly.

4 – The WHY NOT people. They are free spirited in throwing themselves into projects that many might think “can’t be done” and they respond with WHY NOT?

Have a great week and remember to focus on your strengths, not your weaknesses.

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Please reach out for a chance to try our new About Me Card program powered by RESPECT!

The Magic of Belief

Our kids introduced us to a new tradition this year: St. Nick’s. It all started when our seven-year-old daughter came home from school and told us about a tradition that her friend’s family does every St. Nick’s night. She heard that if you put a shoe outside your bedroom door and a stocking by the fireplace that St. Nick will fill them with candy. I couldn’t believe it. My wife was sure it was simply a hoax or an old wives’ tale. Well, sure enough, on the morning of St. Nick’s Day three little shoes were filled with candy right outside their respective doors. Who knew!?

Believing without seeing is so healthy for a child’s development. It teaches faith and hope. Believing without seeing is also at the heart of purpose. What’s my purpose? We humans debate this constantly. Our drive is the hope that our efforts will make some sort of difference. It’s what we can’t see but can see in our mind’s eye. This sense of purpose is crucial for associates to grow and become great. Do you have a shared vision in your organization? What is your organization’s purpose? What is your purpose?

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Plan with purpose today.

Traditions

I hope many of you fill your lives with rich traditions. Aside from our annual holiday traditions, we have small family rituals that have become very special. Cheese and crackers when daddy gets home, nighttime stories and regular “mystery trips” with the kids. My mom and dad introduced me to mystery trips. When you package an outing as a mystery trip, for some reason when you get there you realize that picking cherries, hunting for golf balls or some other random activity is kind of fun. If you simply tell kids where they are going, there is almost always a protester in the group.

Traditions are important for company employees as well. Our holiday party is coming up this Saturday. One tradition we’ve started is the annual Wassail. Wassail is a song that I used to sing at Madrigal Dinners during my college years. We have 14 Prophiteers who I celebrate in song. There are 14 verses to the song and each verse celebrates a Prophiteer. I will be writing this after I finish up this Wisdom.

Traditions help bring a culture along. I had the privilege recently of interviewing Matt Umentum, owner of Rol-Tec. Every day at 9:00 a.m. and again in the afternoon, his associates take 10 minutes to play Ping Pong. It’s a way to have a little competitive play, and by creating some fun to look forward to it helps build camaraderie.

What traditions will you start at your company? Remember, your people spend more waking hours with you than they do with their own family. Make it special and show you care.

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: Start some simple traditions that are unique to your company or your department.

Thanksgiving message…

I always take a break from W.O.W. Thanksgiving week. I will leave you with this weeks Servant Leadership e-mail that I send every Monday to leaders engaged in our Culture building program. I hope you enjoy it and have a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Well, the holidays are officially upon us! This Thursday most of us will be gathering with family around the table to celebrate Thanksgiving. But before you leave the office, prepared to fill up on turkey, take a moment to express some gratitude. That’s what Thanksgiving is all about…giving thanks!
 
As we all know, it becomes so easy to take others for granted when we see them day-in and day-out. That’s why it’s important to occasionally pull ourselves out of “auto-pilot” and think about all the people who affect our lives. As you make your way through the day, make a conscious effort to recognize all the people around you. As you’re about to head out the door, thank your spouse and kids for one small thing they do. When you pick up your coffee on the way to the office, express a bit of gratitude to your barista. As you walk into the office, tell the administrative personnel how they are appreciated. And continue this throughout the day. Not only will you make each person’s day, but you’ll make your own day!
 
A little bit of gratitude goes a long way!