How to Be a Successful Business Leader Instead of a Turkey this Thanksgiving

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As our Canadian Thanksgiving is next week (I know our neighbors in the States don’t celebrate for some time yet), I thought it appropriate to give thanks to you – our dedicated and loyal followers with my top five leadership tips.

Don’t be a turkey this holiday season, be the leader your people want to impress and follow, by deploying these tidbits in your business.

1. Open Doors Create Open Communications

The biggest challenge in every office is getting everyone to simply talk to each other. Everyone from the janitor to the CEO gets so caught up in their own thing, they fail to take – no – make – time to talk to others.

Your door should always be open – except when you’re in a meeting or really can’t be disturbed – so that your teams feel comfortable approaching you when they want.

Leaders that sit behind closed and locked doors shut out their people, and remember, everyone follows your lead. If you are a closed mind, your teams will be closed minds too.

And you don’t want that – so always keep your door open.

2. Create an Open Dialogue with Your Teams

Building on the previous tip, having an open door is just part of the communications solution, as the leader, you have to set the example and the tone. TELL every single person you work with – whether they report to you or not – that your door is always open. Invite everyone you work with to come and see you for anything – no matter how silly or small.

Encourage your people to be just as approachable with each other. Reward those who follow through, and demonstrate their openness to other team members. Mentor those that aren't being open, they may be shy, or just need a little inspiration to get going.

3. Get Out of Your Office

Last one on communications – I promise! Having an open door policy and encouraging people to be approachable again is only part of the communications solution. You need to get out of your office and make cubicle visits.

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Throughout the week, randomly walk amongst your team members, asking them how they are. Ask them about their work. Tell them you are here to help – ask how you can help them – then do whatever you can to help.

Be it assigning another resource to a project, re-evaluating a project's budget, even rolling up your sleeves and taking on some of the work – that’ll really impress your team, because it’ll show them how helpful you are, and that you really are in their corner.

4. Reward Don’t Punish

To err is to be human, we all make mistakes. The best leaders reward those who do good, the poor leaders punish those who don’t.

When I worked for American Express, our leader would publicly humiliate, chastise, and ridicule anyone that screwed up during our project meetings. She was demeaning and cruel, and everyone feared and hated her.

No one gave her their best effort, and the projects – and ultimately the company – suffered because of it.

Don’t be a tyrant and a bully like my former vice-president at Amex

.

Even you make mistakes – yes you do.

How would you like it if someone yelled, cursed, hissed, and angrily stared you down publicly in a room of 50 or more of your co-workers?

Sometimes, I swear I saw gobs of spit spewing out of that horrid American Express leader. How she got to be in charge of anything bigger than a broom closet, for the third largest credit card company in the world, is beyond me . . .

Reward those who do amazing, wonderful things.

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Reward those that do good too – everyone should be made to feel successful and on the right track – no matter how big or small their contribution is to your team.

And when someone messes up, don’t get your up against the wall and punish them. The best leaders teach, instruct and inspire their staff to do good. Show them how they can do better, and guide them through it.

5. Share the Spotlight with Your Team

At a party full of people, there is always that one person that naturally attracts others to him or her. They are the ones making everyone laugh and smile. They are the ones telling the greatest stories, getting into the best conversations, having the biggest laughs, the most smiles. They own that room, even if they aren’t the host.

Ever wonder how that one person somehow manages to attract everyone?

Here’s the secret – although they appear to be the centre of attention, actually they aren’t. They are sharing the spotlight with everyone around them.

They laugh and smile invitingly to everyone that is in on the joke. They are extremely observant, and draw people in by noticing the little things about those around them, and then showing a genuine interest in those little things.

It’s like they bring their own spotlight, stand in the middle, and anyone that walks by, they engage on such a personal level, that passersby naturally wander into the spotlight, and share in its warm glow.

Share the spotlight with your team. Be the person that everyone wants to be around, by simply being engaging, inviting, interesting, and above all else – genuinely interested in everyone around you.

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People respond when you show a genuine interest in them and their well-being.

Combine that interest, affection and sense of fun with the other tips above, and whether the people on your team stay with you forever, or move on in their career, they’ll always fondly think of you as the best boss they ever had.

As a leader, you want that. You want that bad.

Is Every Business Idea Gold? Maybe You Have Entrepreneurial ESP.

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Some people have the gift of the gab. They can talk about anything on the spur of the moment.

Others are walking calculators – quick – what’s the square root of 87? (It’s +/- 9.32739 for us mathematically challenged types).

Then there are those that have the amazing ability to take an idea out of thin air, and somehow turn it into a successful business.

Steve Jobs not only did this for Apple, but also helped create the magic of Pixar – their initial blockbuster film “Toy Story” was largely his doing.

Steve Jobs’ legacy continues to this day – Apple is building a mega-huge facility that looks like a round spaceship – which was designed by the late Apple founder. This spaceship campus eliminates internal barriers, supposedly to house a more creative space where software and hardware engineers can freely walk over to each other’s desk, to inspire innovative technologies.

Elon Musk shook up the automotive world, by launching the first high-performance electric car – the Tesla Roadster – which looked like a supercar, but was powered exclusively by electricity. That formed the basis for the Tesla Model S, which became the first luxury all electric car. And, despite tackling the very tight automotive sector, his company recently released the Tesla Model X, the first all electric cross-over vehicle.

You don’t have to be a big name entrepreneur to have “the gift.”

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If every business idea you’ve ever had turns to gold, maybe you have entrepreneurial ESP?

ESP – extrasensory perception – has never been something that I’ve really believed in.

The ability to read another person’s mind has no basis in science. Nor has any of the other claims from those who say they have a form of ESP, such as moving objects with their mind, or predicting the future.

However, perhaps ESP isn’t so much a mysterious mental ability and really is just a heightened sense of cognitive awareness.

Case in point, those of us with the gift of the gab are probably just more linguistically and socially aware, those of us who are walking calculators are more numerically and logically aware, and those of us that can turn an idea into a profitable business are more entrepreneurial aware.

This heightened awareness isn’t some special power, it’s based on our own experiences drawn from life.

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Perhaps those who have the ability to turn an idea into a successful business have Entrepreneurial ESP – but it’s no mystery where they get their mental abilities from.

They learn how to tell which ideas would make good business ventures, and which ones would not, from doing.

Because ultimately, the most successful entrepreneurs take action on their ideas.

Entrepreneurial ESP is like all skills, it is something developed over time, from learning from one’s mistakes, and successes.

Which means, those who appear to have Entrepreneurial ESP probably made some mistakes along the way – not all their ideas turned into successful ventures.

It is a learned response, just like riding a bicycle or eating with chop sticks – which I still occasionally need a bib for to catch the bits that slip through.

So, if you want to develop your Entrepreneurial ESP – or any special skill – get out there and do it.

Practice makes perfect – or at least – creates the perception of perfection.

And isn’t that what ESP really is?

Isn’t Social Media Just Shameless Self-Promotion – YES IT IS – That’s Why You Need to Be Using It to Shamelessly Self-Promote Your Business

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We live in a very anti-social, social media world.

No, that’s not a typo – social media is anything BUT social.

Think about it – how many “friends” do you have on Twitter that you actually know? And by know, I’m not talking about sharing tweets.

Let’s put it this way, how many “friends” do you have on Twitter that you’d invite into your home for dinner? Not a coffee shop, not some sleazy bar, or worse – street corner – your own private residence.

Asking myself that same question, I currently have 4,376 followers on Twitter. Of those amazingly awesome folks following me, I’d guess I probably really only know a couple hundred, when you consider friends, family and business associates.

Of those 200 people, I really only know about 50 that I know well enough to invite into my own, personal, private, living space.

So, out of over 4,000 “friends” on Twitter, I really know about 50 of them. Do the math – I only really know 1.25 percent of my Twitter followers.

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According to statistics, that’s about right. Studies show the average Twitter user only really knows between one to two percent of those who follow them.

One to two percent – that means, on average, 98 to 99 percent of those happy smiling faces that follow you on Twitter are complete strangers.

Doesn’t sound all that social at all.

Twitter is just like walking down a busy street, yelling: “look at me.”

BINGO!

Social media is just shameless self-promotion, that’s why you need to be using it to shamelessly self-promote your business.

If everyone is using Twitter, facebook, YouTube, Google Plus, Vimeo, Pinterest, Instagram, even Linkedin to shamelessly promote themselves – then you need to be doing that too.

I know – that’s not very social. Walking down a busy street, yelling: “look at me” is hardly the behavior that’ll win you long lasting friends you can count on when you really need them.

But that’s the new world order, thanks to smart phones, tablets, free WiFi, and coffee shops filled with people, none of whom talk to each other -- even at the same table!

Talking?

That’s old school.

Besides, no one cares about you.

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They are too busy taking selfies to show off their new hat, tweeting about what they had for lunch, or posting a really nasty review about the waiter that kept putting his finger in everything he brought to the table.

No one cares about you.

They are busy shamelessly self-promoting their own self interest.

However, the smart social media entrepreneur knows that social media isn’t about making friends, fans and followers.

No.

It’s about doing something that gets you noticed by the most self-absorbed generation since – well okay – there never has been another generation so interested in themselves, that they will walk into on-coming traffic, because they were eyes-down, self-absorbed into their mobile device.

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You have to use social media as a business person to get into the eyeballs of your customers, so in their own self-interest, they share your posts with their friends. And their friends share it with their friends, and so on, and . . .

That’s the real power of social media in business.

Despite it being wrongly named “social” – it really should be called “self interested media” or “anti social media” or anything but social.

Social media is just shameless self-promotion, but that’s why you need to be using it to shamelessly self-promote your business.

Just Because You Run a Small Business Doesn’t Mean You Should Answer the Phone Like Your Kid

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Entrepreneurs come in all shapes and sizes, much as their businesses do.

Sometimes you’ll never know they run a small business unless you actually meet them.

Then, there are others, that have the telltale signs of being a small business:

• Their email address is a Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail or some other free one.
• Their email address is firstname@companyname.com
• Their web address is some free-hosted site.
• When you call them, they answer the phone as your kid does when you’re calling him downstairs for dinner.

Seriously, I’ve been talking to a handful of small business owners recently, and more than just a few answered the phone in such an unprofessional manner, I had to double check to see if I dialed the wrong number.

“Yo,” is not an acceptable way to answer your phone if you want to be taken seriously as a professional.

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Neither is: “Hey, how ya doin’?”

Nor does: “What?” inspire great things when calling someone you might be looking to hire.

How you answer the phone makes a big difference, even if you’re running a small business.

You’d think this would be common sense, however, as with most things in life, common sense doesn’t seem to be all that common.

When you answer your work line as above, you instantly put your potential customers on edge.

“Does this bozo really think I’m going to pay him for his services?”

How can you trust someone with your money, if they can’t answer the phone like an adult?

Unless I’m calling a stand-up comic, or someone that works in a business where light-hearted fun is the business, anything as the above tells me I’ll be looking elsewhere to spend my cash.

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So, how should you be answering your work phone?

A good rule of thumb is to simply say your first and last name as the introduction: “John Smith.”

That works in the mega-huge faceless corporate world, so it also works in a small business.

Though adding some personality and customer service isn’t a bad idea: “Hi, this is John Smith, how can I help you?”

Want to sound like a big company? Use the company name in your greeting: “Thanks for calling XYZ Inc., this is John, how can I help you?”

We’ve all heard the saying, you never have a second chance to make a first impression – that is very true on the phone, especially if this is the person’s first time calling you and your business.

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If you don’t sound like a reputable, professional person, you won’t get that person’s business.

Competition in all fields is immense these days, so you really don’t have a second chance to make that all important first impression.

So, unless you’re a Sylvester Stallone impersonator, answering your business phone: “Yo” just doesn’t cut it.

Once you’ve established a rapport with someone, and know the number, then perhaps you could answer slightly less formal.

However, that’ll never happen, if you scare off potential customers by answering your phone like your kid.

So, until that time, always answer the phone like a business person – unless of course, you don’t want to be in business.

Never Toss Anyone Under The Bus

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Years ago, when I worked in the corporate world, I remember sitting in on a project meeting that still to this day sends a cold chill down my spine.

My team was designing a new learning platform for one of the big automakers, and this was just one of our regular project meetings to update the client on our progress.

As we showed off our latest developments, one of the team leads for the client scoffed at one of the images used in the application.

Immediately – and probably without thinking – one of my team’s project leads said: “Oh, that’s what happens when designers use clip art, sometimes they just toss any ol’ thing in there – we’ll change that right away!”

The problem, that wasn’t clip art, it was a painstakingly hand-drawn graphic, by one of our top designers – who happened to be sitting in on this meeting -- and it was specifically requested and approved by the client months ago.

I saw the poor designer turn ghostly pale and sink into her chair.

She didn’t want to be in that room.

And after her silent tears turned into audible sobbing, neither did anyone else.

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I suggested we take a five-minute break, and you could almost see the vapour trails as most raced out of that room, leaving just me and the sobbing designer.

Luckily, I was able to turn things around, and I even managed to get her laughing and joking with me about the silliness of the situation.

However, my discussion later with the person who threw her under the bus was not so jovial.

He didn’t have anything personally against the graphic designer, he just did what unfortunately a lot of people still do in business – kiss the client’s butt.

My problem with people that think butt-kissing is the best way to build and foster client relations, is that they won’t hesitate for a second to blame themselves, or a member of the team to satisfy a client’s complaint – no matter how ridiculous – as in this situation, where the offending art was actually requested and already approved by the client.

Never throw anyone on your team under the bus.

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Blame doesn’t get you any further in business – or anything else in life.

All blame does is create unnecessary frustration and anger with those the blame is directed at. Hardly an efficient or effective way to solve a problem.

That’s what the team lead should have done – suggest a solution to the problem.

As a team lead, he should have known that the artwork in question was already signed-off by the client.

He should have NEVER blamed anyone on any team.

I’m just glad he didn’t blame our client for approving artwork they didn’t like – that would have been a bigger fire to put out.

Never throw anyone on your team, or anyone’s team, under the bus.

I have never seen a personal or professional problem resolved by blame.

Blame is just a way to pass the buck. It shifts the attention away from working towards a solution, by pointing a finger at someone, and saying: “this is your fault!”

Blame is a huge problem in offices around the world. It creates hostile workplaces, where no one wants to be, because you never know if one day, you’ll be the one taking the blame.

Don’t blame people on your team, in your office, or in your company for anything ever.

Blame is bad for those you blame.

Blame is bad for those who blame you.

Blame is bad for the entire corporate culture, as it creates an environment of fear and angst.

Blame is bad – period.

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Next time you feel the urge to blame someone, go punch a pillow, to relieve the stress, and then work out a solution that does not assign blame.

Because any solution that blames someone else isn’t a solution, it’s just another way of saying: “not my problem.”

As part of the team, every problem is yours – that’s the whole point of being on a team.

But that’s another rant, for another day.

Having Trouble Keeping Customers? Maybe You’re Not Giving Them What You’re Selling Them

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Computer programmers know all too well what “vapourware” is.

Vapourware, is when the sales guys get so caught up in the sale, they tell a potential customer that your software product does “X” – when in fact, it doesn’t.

“X” is something that particular customer has always wanted done.

So, naturally, they buy.

Next day, the head programmer is freaking out, because he’s been told to make the software product do “X” within an unreasonably short amount of time.

Because software development usually takes more time than less, the sales guys keep stalling the new customer, to buy time for the developers to create the feature which never existed in the first place.

Hence the term, “vapourware” because the software to do “X” never existed before – but was sold as if it was.

Vapourware occurs in all industries and sectors, not just ones based on software.

Anytime a company makes a claim about their products or services which is NOT true – that’s a form of vapourware.

For the company, it’s a seemingly great way to steal customers from the competition.

Internet Service Providers are a great example of this – each one promises faster, more reliable service than their competition.

The second they have a disruption in their service, which causes a massive slowdown or shutdown, all those customers that were falsely promised faster, more reliable service, call to complain.

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It’s why so many of us have jumped back and forth from one Internet Service Provider to another, and even back again.

Why?

There is a misconception in business, that constantly bringing in new customers sustains a business. This misconception starts at the top, and flows down throughout all levels of a business.

When this misconception reaches the marketing and sales teams, they figure they can say or do anything to convince a potential customer to become a new customer, because it's the new customers which sustain the business.

Why is that a misconception?

Here are the latest stats from some of the business world’s best sources:

1.     A customer is four times more likely to defect to a competitor if the problem is service-related than price- or product-related – Bain & Company.

2.     The probability of selling to an existing customer is 60% to 70%. The probability of selling to a new prospect is 5% to 20% -- Marketing Metrics.

3.     For every customer complaint there are 26 other unhappy customers who have remained silent – Lee Resource.

4.     96% of unhappy customers don’t complain, however 91% of those will simply leave and never come back – 1Financial Training services.

5.     A dissatisfied customer will tell between 9-15 people about their experience. Around 13% of dissatisfied customers tell more than 20 people. – White House Office of Consumer Affairs.

6.     70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated – McKinsey.

7.     55% of customers would pay extra to guarantee a better service – Defaqto research.

8.     It takes 12 positive experiences to make up for one unresolved negative experience –“Understanding Customers” by Ruby Newell-Legner.

9.     A 5% reduction in the customer defection rate can increase profits by 5% to 95% – Bain & Company.

10.  It costs 6 to 7 times more to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one – Bain & Company.

So what can we learn from this?

Constantly bringing in new customers is important to any business, however, it is far more important to take care of your current customers, because keeping them happy is what drives your business.

What’s all this have to do with “vapourware” and selling products and services that don’t exist?

It’s the broken promises we make to our customers which cause the biggest headaches, and lead to the highest customer turn-over.

Sell your customers on the Sun, the Moon and everything in between, but if you can’t deliver that, then when they find out – and they always find out – that customer will drop you like a hot potato.

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Leaving you with one less customer – or a hundred, or a thousand, or even a million fewer customers – because the more you promise but don’t deliver, the quicker your customers will come and go.

Like a revolving door of customers.

Consider this, there is a high end coffee shop in one of the poorest parts of Toronto. They sell exceptional coffees, lattes, teas, fancy drinks and gourmet baked goods, at high-end prices. They provide up-scale service too – if you get anything from them that’s not just right, they’ll immediately take it back and replace it free, without any questions. Your satisfaction is their top priority.

Yet, this high end coffee shop, is in one of the poorest areas Toronto.

How do they stay in business?

The people in the area can’t afford a $5 cup of coffee every day.

The answer – they have regular, repeat customers. The coffee shop has been in business over twenty years, and over that time, has built a large following of people that will come from all over the city, to munch on a $4 cookie, while sipping a $5 hot caffeinated beverage.

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Years ago, the area was more prosperous, and those living there were well to do. As the neighborhood changed, the wealthy customers left the neighborhood.

Had this coffee shop relied on attracting new customers to sustain itself, it would have gone out of business a long time ago. However, they've constantly delivered what they promised – exceptional foods, drinks and service.

So their customers keep coming back. Despite no longer living or working in the area.

Do you tell your customers one thing, but deliver another?

Do you have issues retaining customers?

Perhaps you should look at your products and services, to make sure they deliver what you are telling your customers they deliver.

Because it’s easier to keep current customers, rather than replace them with new ones.

Want to Run a Successful Business? Be There for Your Customers

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Just this weekend, the girlfriend and I were discussing where we wanted to go for dinner. We had a pleasant day out and about, and wanted to close it out with a nice big meal.

Problem – it was about 10:30pm.

I figured we could go to a local bar – part of a chain of bars – and grab a nice meal. Bars are open late, especially on a Saturday night. It’s date night – Saturday night.

I called the bar to double check.

“Sorry, the kitchen is already closing, but we’re open for another hour,” said the voice on the phone.

What? Closing before last call? Last call here is not until 1:30am.

We called around to a bunch of places, bars, restaurants – most were already closed, or closing.

Finally, we ended up going to Pizza Hut. Pizza places are always open.

Not the most romantic dinner for two, but still a very enjoyable experience. Good food, prompt service, and they were there when we needed them.

Perhaps it is the never-ending recession we’ve been in, but I remember a time when restaurants and bars were open late on Friday and Saturday nights, because those were the night's people went out.

All the places we called previously lost our business, simply because they weren’t open.

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Want to run a successful business, here’s a tip – be there for your customers.

It’s not rocket science, just be there when your customers are most likely to be looking for you.

This goes for ALL companies, big and small alike. You don’t have to be on call 24-seven, just be there when your customers are most likely to be.

That’s it.

Nothing complex.

No fancy, deep thinking, mind blowing strategy.

Just be open for business when your customers are in need of your services.

You’d think bars, restaurants and clubs would be open until the wee hours of the morning on Friday and Saturday nights.

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When I was a kid in university, Thursday night was bar night – and nothing ever closed until last call.

I'd like to think I'm not THAT old, and times haven't changed that much that people don't go out anymore.

And it's not like we were in a third-world country, or living in the back woods of a small town either.

My girlfriend and I were shocked and bewildered by the lack of places to grab a nice meal and some drinks in one of the largest and most cosmopolitan cities of the world – Toronto.

Toronto, is like New York -- only smaller, cleaner and safer. 

No, it wasn’t busy in the Pizza Hut. But it wasn’t deathly quiet either – there were a couple of young families with their kids, some teenagers, and us.

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When you’re in business, any business is good business.

So it pays to be there for your customers.

Sure, have a skeleton staff, close off a section, or even tell customers that you might take a little longer to get something done, because it’s late.

That’s fine – we’ll understand.

Just don’t leave us stranded with nowhere to go.

That’s far worse customer service than not being there at all.

Because if you want to run a successful business, you have to be there for your customers.