Tom Peters’
EXCELLENCEXCELLENCE. ALWAYS.E. ALWAYS.AIM/Adelaide/05 September 2006
Slides* at …
tompeters.com
*also “long”
The Irreducible209+/Sales122/60TIBs
Tom Peters/0607.2006
1. Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)2. Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)3. MBWA.4. Appreciation. (“Motivator” #1.) (Can’t be faked. Good.)5. Decency.6. Hurry.7. Time out.8. One matters. 9. Big change. Short time. (Alt not work.)10. Excellence. Always.11. Passion. Energy. Hustle. Enthusiasm. Exuberance. (Move mountains. No alt.)12. You must care.13. Emotion.14. Hard is soft. (Soft is hard.)
EXCELLENCE.
ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW.
2255
ExecutionExecution. (Discipline.)Accountability.Accountability.
Action, a Bias for.Action, a Bias for. (S.A.V./R.F.A.)Relentless.Relentless.
Experimentation.Experimentation. (“Innovate or Die.” “He who makes …”)Adaptability.Adaptability. (Plan B; “We eat …”)
“In the moment.”“In the moment.” (Bertolucci.)Senility.Senility.
Exuberance.Exuberance.Fun.Fun.
Technicolor. Wow!Wow! (Extreme Language.)Quest-Adventure.Quest-Adventure.
By Invitation.By Invitation.Talent. Roster.Talent. Roster. ($21M.)
Weird.Weird. (Hangin’ Out + Bottlenecks.)D-squared/“Dramatic Difference.”Dramatic Difference.”
Up-Up-Up the “VA Ladder.”Up-Up-Up the “VA Ladder.” Trifecta: Wow Projects-Brand You-PSF.Trifecta: Wow Projects-Brand You-PSF. (No Option.)
Design.Design.Women.Women.
4-404-40/D.E.A.615. (60TIBs; IRR209.)EXCELLENCE.EXCELLENCE.
That’s a Big Number ….
That’s a
BigBig Number
….
THREE BILLION NEW CAPITALISTS
—Clyde Prestowitz
“There is no job that
is America’s God-given
right anymore.”
—Carly Fiorina/HP/January2004
“Deutsche Bank Moves Half of Its Back-office Jobs to India”/
headline/FT/0327 (500 of 900
Research)
EXCELLENCE.
THE GENERAL’S STORY.DARWIN’S STORY.FORBES’ STORY.PAUL’S SRORY.
JMY STORY.
““If you don’t If you don’t like change, like change,
you’re going to you’re going to like like irrelevanceirrelevance even less.”even less.” —General Eric
Shinseki, Chief of Staff. U. S. Army
“It is not the strongest of the
species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most
responsive to change.” —Charles Darwin
“Forbes100” from 1917 to 1987: 39 members of the Class of ’17 were alive
in ’87; 18 in ’87 F100; 18 F100 “survivors” significantly
underperformed the market;
just 2 (2%), GE & Kodak, outperformed the market from
1917 to 1987.
S&P 500 from 1957 to 1997: 74 members of the Class of ’57 were alive in
’97; 12 (2.4%) of 500 outperformed the market from 1957 to 1997.
Source: Dick Foster & Sarah Kaplan, Creative Destruction: Why Companies That Are Built to Last Underperform the Market
(Practical) ImplicationImplication?
“Go for it!”“Go for it!” (Why not—
alternative is slow death, at best)
Keep Austin Weird
(Kirk Watson)
““We are in a We are in a brawl with no brawl with no
rules.”rules.” —Paul Allaire
S.A.V.
Joe J. Jones Joe J. Jones 1942 – 2006 1942 – 2006
HE WOULDA DONE SOME HE WOULDA DONE SOME
REALLY COOL STUFF REALLY COOL STUFF
BUT …BUT …
HIS BOSS WOULDN’T LET HIM! HIS BOSS WOULDN’T LET HIM!
EXCELLENCE. STARTERS.HORRORS.
Radio City Music HallSeptember 2005
Franchise Lost!
TP: “How many of you [600] really
cravecrave a new Chevy?”
“Ford, GM and Chrysler do not just make cars expensively … they make bad
cars expensively.” —
Investec analyst, International Herald, 0805.06
“Not long ago, I heard one studio chief utter the
unthinkable: ‘What would happen if I made a movie I actually looked forward to
seeing?’” —Peter Bart, Editor in Chief, Variety; former
Paramount exec, “Hollywood’s Model Doesn’t Produce Art, or Much Profit” (NYT/0721.06)
Did one of ’em ever turn to the other and say: “Wow,
I wonder what unimaginable new
tools, otherwise not possible, will be
brought forth for my daughter Alice, age
17, because of this deal?”
EXCELLENCE. STARTERS.
BASICS.
P.P.E.E.R.R.E.
People.Product.
Execution.Enthusiasm.Relentless.Re-invent.Excellence.
People.Product.
Execution.Enthusiasm.
Relentless.Re-invent.Excellence.
People.Product.
Execution.Enthusiasm.Relentless.Re-invent.Excellence.
Senility.
Wanted* ** : Corporate Senility!
*Desperately!** “The problem is never how to get new, innovative thoughts into your mind, but how to get the old ones out.” —Dee Hock
Forget>“Learn”
“The problem is never how to get new,
innovative thoughts into
your mind, but how to get the old ones
out.” —Dee Hock
EXCELLENCE. THE WORD.
Synonyms
PurityTranscendence
VirtueEleganceMajesty
Antonyms
Mediocrity
EXCELLENCE.
GAMECHANGER.
Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action2. Close to the Customer3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship4. Productivity Through People5. Hands On, Value-Driven6. Stick to the Knitting7. Simple Form, Lean Staff8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”
ExIn*: 1982-2002/Forbes.com
DJIA: $10,000 yields $85,000 EI: $10,000 yields $140,050
*Forbes/Excellence Index /Basket of 32 publicly traded stocks
EXCELLENCE.
GAMECHANGER.(MAYBE.)
Hardball: Are You Playing to Play or Playing to Win? by George Stalk & Rob Lachenauer/HBS Press
“The winners in business have always played hardball.” “Unleash massive and overwhelming force.” “Exploit
anomalies.” “Threaten your competitor’s profit sanctuaries.” “Entice your competitor into retreat.”
Approximately 640 Index entries: Customer/s
(service, retention, loyalty), 4. People (employees, motivation, morale,
worker/s), 0. Innovation (product development, research &
development, new products), 0.
Them-UsTom Peters/0624.2006
“Them” “Us”
Strategy EXECUTIONPlanning ActionMarketing Selling/SalesMarkets CustomersCustomers ClientsMicro-segmentation Big Stuff (Women, Boomers)Cost minimization Revenue maximizationSynergy/“Efficiencies” Decentralization“Strategic” supplier Pioneering supplierProcess ProjectEffectiveness ExcellenceMen WomenLeadership Management + LeadershipStandardization Exceptionalism (53 = 53)Big clients COOL clientsPrestigious Board INTERESTING Board
good words.Bad words.
Words that may NOT be used in my presence:
“Motivate”
“In the end, management doesn’t
change culture. Management
invites
the workforce itself to change the culture.”
—Lou Gerstner
Words that may NOT be used in my presence:
“Market”
SellSellSellSellSellSell
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
““Why in the Why in the world did world did you go to you go to SSiberiaiberia?”?”
The Peters Principles: Enthusiasm.
Emotion. Excellence. Energy. Excitement. Service. Growth.
Creativity. Imagination. Vitality. Joy. Surprise. Independence. Spirit. Community. Limitless human potential. Diversity. Profit. Innovation. Design.
Quality. Entrepreneurialism. Wow.
Business* ** (*at its best): An emotional, vital, innovative, joyful,
creative, entrepreneurial endeavor that elicits
maximum concerted human potential in the
wholehearted service of others.***
**Excellence. Always.***Employees, Customers, Suppliers, Communities, Owners, Temporary partners
EXCELLENCE.
DEFINED.
Great Companies … SET THE
AGENDA.*
(PERIOD.)
* “disturb the sleep of …
AGENDA SETTERS: “Set the Table”/ Pioneers/ Questors/ Adventurers
US Steel … Ford … Toyota … Sears … GM … ITT … The Gap … Limited …
Wal*Mart … Tesco … P&G … 3M … Intel … IBM … Apple … Nokia …
Cisco … Dell … MCI … Sun … Microsoft … Google … Enron …
Schwab … GE … Laker … Southwest … People Express … Ogilvy … Virgin
… eBay … Amazon … Sony … Amgen … BMW … CNN … Nike
TP#1*:
Netscape!
*Where would you rather have worked for those 5 years, Netscape or IBM-HP-Microsoft-Oracle? (Where, 25 years from now, would you
rather to be able to tell someone—e.g., grandchild—that you worked?)
Built to Last vs Built for Impact
“But what if [former head of strategic planning at Royal Dutch Shell] Arie De Geus is wrong in suggesting, in The
Living Company, that firms should aspire to live forever? Greatness is fleeting and, for corporations, it
will become ever more fleeting. The ultimate aim of a business organization, an artist, an athlete or a stockbroker may be to explode in a dramatic frenzy of value creation during a
short space of time, rather than to live forever.” —Kjell Nordström and Jonas Ridderstråle, Funky Business
EXCELLENCE.
YOU & ME.
“The First step in a ‘dramatic’
‘organizational change program’ is obvious—
dramatic personal change!” —RG
“Work on me
first.” —Kerry Patterson,
Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler/Crucial Conversations
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#1#1
EXCELLENCE.
REVENUE.MATTERS.
MOST.
“Analysts … preferred cost cutting, as long as they could see two or three years of EPS growth. I
preached revenue and the analysts’ eyes would glaze over. Now revenue is ‘in’ because so many got caught, and
earnings went to hell. They said, ‘Oh my gosh, you need revenues to
grow earnings over time.’
Well, Duh!” —Dick Kovacevich, Wells
Fargo
EXCELLENCE.
SELL. SELL.SELL.
. “Everyone lives by selling
something.”
– Robert Louis Stevenson
SellSellSellSellSellSell
CRO*
*Chief Revenue Officer
Incidentally …Incidentally …
“TAKE THIS QUICK QUIZ: Who manages more things at once? Who puts more effort into their appearance? Who usually takes care of the
details? Who finds it easier to meet new people? Who asks more questions in a
conversation? Who is a better listener? Who has more interest in communication skills? Who is more inclined to get involved? Who encourages harmony and agreement? Who
has better intuition? Who works with a longer ‘to do’ list? Who enjoys a recap to the day’s events? Who is better at keeping in touch
with others?”
Source: Selling Is a Woman’s Game: 15 Powerful Reasons Why Women Can Outsell Men, Nicki Joy & Susan Kane-Benson
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#2#2
EXCELLENCE. DRAMATIC.
DIFFERENCE.DOABLE.
EXCELLENCE.
WANTING.
This is not a “mature
category.”
This is an “undistinguishe
d category.”
EXCELLENCE. DRAMATIC.
DIFFERENCE.DOABLE.
$798
$415/SqFt/Wal*Mart$798/SqFt/Whole
Foods
#1/100
“Best Companies to
Work for”/2005
Wegmans
“It’s simple, really, Tom. Hire for s,
and, above all, promote for s.”
—Starbucks middle manager/field
EXCELLENCE.
#1.
Donnelly’s Donnelly’s Weatherstrip Weatherstrip
ServiceService
Weymouth MA
EXCELLENCE.
#1T.
Jim’s GroupJim’s Group
Jim Penman/“Empire Builders”/MT Jan/Feb 2006
The “Missing 900M”
Will the Boat Sink the Water: The Life of China’s Peasants
—Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao
EXCELLENCE. NO EXCUSES.
Summary:
WallopWal*Mart16*
*Or: Why it’s so absurdly easy to beat a GIANT Company
The “Small Guys” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16
*Niche-aimed. (Never, ever “all things for all people,” a “mini-Wal*Mart.)
*Never attack the monsters head on! (Instead steal niche business and lukewarm customers.)
*“Dramatically Different” (La Difference ... within our community,
our industry regionally, etc … is as obvious as the end of one’s nose!) (THIS IS WHERE MOST MIDGETS COME UP SHORT.)
*Compete on value/experience/intimacy, not price. (You ain’t gonna beat the behemoths on cost-price in 9.99 out of 10 cases.)
*Emotional bond with Clients, Vendors. (BEAT THE BIGGIES ON EMOTION/CONNECTION!!)
What I’ve Learned about
“Small Business”
Tom Peters
Passion for PRODUCT.OBSESSION With Product.
LOVE The Product.Aim To Be “ONLY ONES WHO DO WHAT WE DO.”
Keep ADDIN’ Stuff.Invest “UNWISELY” in R&D.
Reside Permanently In The DISCOMFORT Zone.“Unhealthy” PARANOIA Is A Good Thing.
Add Clients That PUSH-PULL.SELL. SELL. SELL. SELL.
Go For Broke: CUSTOMER CONTACT PEOPLE.PERFECTION: Customer Contact People.
Hire for ATTITUDE.INVITE On An Adventure. GREAT CFO/Biz Guy-Gal. NASTY CFO/Biz Guy-Gal.
QUADRANGULAR LEADERSHIP: Visionary-Talent Fanatic-Project Manager-I.P.M. (I.P.M. = Inspired Profit Mechanic)
Small Giants: Companies That
Choose To Be Great Instead Of
Big —by Bo Burlingham
The Small*Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses Are Beating Local
Competition —Michael Shuman
I [“Bacteria Man”] HEREBY PLEDGE:
When asked, “What are some examples of companies stepping up to today’s
challenges?” … I will … NEVER NEVER AGAINAGAIN … offer an example of a Giant Company; instead I’ll refer to
Cirque du Soleil, Donnelly’s Weatherstrip Service, 3K tanning salons, 10.6M women-owned businesses (or the
typically/95+% female recipients of micro-lending) …*
*There is more to Biz Life than Giant Cos … LOTS MORE … that “hidden 99%”
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#3#3
EXCELLENCE.
VALUE ADDED.UP THE LADDER.
EXCELLENCE I.
SOLVE IT.
$55$55BB
“Big Brown’s New Bag: UPS
Aims to Be the Traffic Manager for Corporate
America” —Headline/BW/2004
MasterCard Advisors
Gamechangging “Solutions”: Bet-the-Company
IBMIBMUPSUPS
XeroxXeroxMasterCardMasterCard
GEGE
BestBuyBestBuy
I. LAN Installation Co. (3%)
II. Geek Squad. (30%.)
III. Acquired by BestBuy.
IV. Flagship of BestBuy Wholesale “Solutions” Strategy Makeover.
Huge: Customer Satisfaction versus
Customer
Success
EXCELLENCE.NECESSITY.
OPPORTUNITY.
“ ‘Disintermediation’ is overrated. Those who fear disintermediation should in fact be afraid of
irrelevance—disintermediation is just another way
of saying that … you’ve become
irrelevant to your
customers.”
—John Battelle/Point/Advertising Age/07.05
Chicago:
HRMAC
“support function” / “cost
center”/ “overhead”
or …
Are you … “Rock Stars of the
Age of Talent”
EXCELLENCE.
SOLVE IT. NO OPTION.PSF. (PSF++)
Department Head
to …
Managing
Partner, IS [HR, R&D, etc.] Inc.
Answer:
PSF
Core Mechanism:“Game-changing Solutions”
PSF (Professional Service Firm “model”/The Organizing Principle)
+
Brand You(“Distinct” or “Extinct”/The Talent)
+
Wow! Projects (“Different” vs “Better”/The Work)
The New Enterprise Value-Added Equation/Mark2006
(1) 100% “WOW PROJECTS” (New Org “DNA”/“The Work”)
+ (2) Incredible “TALENT” Transformed into (3) Entrepreneurial “BRAND YOUs” and
(4) Launched on Awesome “QUESTS FOR EXCELLENCE”
= (5) Internal “Rockin’ PSFs” (Staff Depts. Morphed into Wildly
Innovative Professional Service Firms) … (6) Which Coalesce to Transform the FEVP/Fundamental Enterprise
Value Proposition from “Superior Products & Services” to “ENCOMPASSING SOLUTIONS” &
“GAME-CHANGING CLIENT SUCCESS”
The “PSF35”: Thirty-Five
Professional Service Firm Marks of Excellence
The PSF35: The Work & The Legacy
1. CRYSTAL CLEAR POINT OF VIEW (E very Practice Group: “If you can’t explain your position in eight words or less, you don’t have a position”—Seth Godin)2. DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE (“We are the only ones who do what we do”—Jerry Garcia)3. Stretch Is Routine (“Never bite off less than you can chew”—anon.)4. Eye-Appetite for Game-changer Projects (Excellence at Assembling “Best Team”—Fast) 5. “Playful” Clients (Adventurous folks who unfailingly Aim to Change the World)6. Small “Uneconomic” Clients with Big Aims7. Life Is Too Short to Work with Jerks (Fire lousy clients)8. OBSESSED WITH LEGACY (Practice Group and Individual: “Dent the Universe”—Steve Jobs)9. Fire-on-the-spot Anyone Who Says, “Law/Architecture/Consulting/ I-banking/ Accounting/PR/Etc. has become a ‘commodity’ ”10. Consistent with #9 above … DO NOT SHY AWAY FROM THE WORD (IDEA) “RADICAL”
Pointed Point of View!
EXCELLENCE.
ATTITUDE.TRANSFORMATION.
PSF.
“Purchasing Officer” Thrust #1: Cost (at All Costs*) Minimization
Professional? Or/to: Full Partner-Leader in Lifetime
Value-added Maximization?
(*Lopez: “Arguably ‘Villain #1’ in GM tragedy”/Anon VSE-Spain)
HCare CIO: “Technology Executive” (workin’ in a hospital)
Or/to: Full-scale, Accountable (life or death)
Member-Partner of XYZ Hospital’s Senior Healing-Services Team (who happens to be a techie)
PSF Transformation: Credit Department/Trek
Was Is
Credit Dept Financial Services
Hammer on dealers until Make dealers successful so theythey pay CAN pay
AR sold to 3rd party Trek is the commercial financialcommercial co. Company
23 employees 12 employees
Oversee peak AR of $70M Oversee peak AR of $160M
Identify risky dealers Identify opportunities
Cost Center Profit Center
No products Products: Consulting, MC/Visa, Stored value of gift cards, Gift card peripherals, Online payments
Source: John Burke/0330.06
Up, Up, Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/Stuff ‘n’ Things
Goods Raw Materials
The Value-added Ladder/Stuff & Transactions
ServicesGoods
Raw Materials
The Value-added Ladder/Opportunity-seeking
Gamechanging Gamechanging SolutionsSolutions
ServicesGoods
Raw Materials
EXCELLENCE II. EXPERIENCE IT.
“Experiences are as distinct
from services as services are from
goods.” —Joe Pine & Jim Gilmore, The Experience Economy:
Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage
“The [Starbucks] Fix” Is on …
“We have identified a
‘third place.’ And I
really believe that sets us apart. The third place is that place that’s not work or home. It’s the place our customers
come for refuge.”
Nancy Orsolini, District Manager
Up, Up, Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/Memorable Connection
Spellbinding Spellbinding ExperiencesExperiences
Gamechanging SolutionsServicesGoods
Raw Materials
CCXXOO**Chief eXperience Officer
EXCELLENCE III.
DREAM IT.
Furniture vs. Dreams
“We do not sell ‘furniture’ at
Domain. We sell dreams. This is
accomplished by addressing the half-formed needs in our
customers’ heads. By uncovering these needs, we, in essence, fill in the blanks. We
convert ‘needs’ into ‘dreams.’ Sales are the
inevitable result.” — Judy George,
Domain Home Fashions
DREAM: “A dream is a complete moment in the life
of a client. Important experiences that tempt the client to commit substantial resources. The essence of
the desires of the consumer. The opportunity to help
clients become what they want to be.”
—Gian Luigi Longinotti-Buitoni
Up, Up, Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/Emotion
Dreams Come Dreams Come TrueTrue
Spellbinding Experiences Gamechanging Solutions
ServicesGoods
Raw Materials
CCDMDM*
*Chief Dream Merchant
Big Blue
EXCELLENCE.
WHAT MATTERS.
“What Isn’t Matter Is
What Matters” —section title, Branded Nation: The Marketing of
Megachurch, College Inc., and Museumworld, James Twitchell
VA “Teaching Moment”
““Andy pointed to Andy pointed to a molding, about a molding, about halfway up the halfway up the
wall …”wall …”
Relationship to the
China Syndrome?*
*Think “London 1977”
EXCELLENCE IV.
LOVE IT.
“Brands have run out
of juice. They’re
dead.” —Kevin Roberts/Saatchi &
Saatchi
Kevin Roberts:
Lovemarks!
Tattoo Brand: What % of users would tattoo the brand name on their
body?
Top 10 “Tattoo Brands”*
Harley .… 18.9%Disney .... 14.8
Coke …. 7.7Google .... 6.6Pepsi .... 6.1Rolex …. 5.6Nike …. 4.6
Adidas …. 3.1Absolut …. 2.6
Nintendo …. 1.5
*BRANDsense: Build Powerful Brands through Touch, Taste, Smell, Sight, and Sound, Martin Lindstrom
Up, Up, Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
Lovemark Dreams Come True
Spellbinding ExperiencesGamechanging Solutions
ServicesGoods
Raw Materials
Damn it …
Lovemark: IBMUPSPSF
Logistics “Department”HR “Department”
CCLL OO*
*Chief Lovemark Officer
Up, Up, Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
Ladder2006: 4 of 7!
Lovemark Dreams Come True
Spellbinding ExperiencesGamechanging Solutions
ServicesGoods
Raw Materials
“Andy pointed to a molding, about halfway up the
wall …”
EXCELLENCE.
SOUL I.THE STORY.
“Storytelling
is the core of culture.”
—Branded Nation: The Marketing of Megachurch, College Inc., and Museumworld, James Twitchell
Market Power = Story Power
CCSTSTOO*
*Chief Storytelling Officer
EXCELLENCE.
SOUL II.DESIGN.
All Equal Except …
“At Sony we assume that all products of our competitors
have basically the same technology, price, performance
and features. DesiDesiggn is the n is the onlonlyy thin thingg that that
differentiates one differentiates one pproduct from another roduct from another in the marketin the marketpplacelace.”.” —
Norio Ohga
“Design is
treated like treated like a religiona religion at
BMW.” —Fortune
“We don’t have a good language to talk about this kind of thing. In
most people’s vocabularies, design means veneer. … But to me, nothing could be further from the meaning
of design. Design is the Design is the fundamentalfundamental soulsoul
of a man-made of a man-made creation.”creation.” —Steve Jobs
CCDDOO**Chief Design Officer
EXCELLENCE. EVERYWHERE.
New ZealandSpain
PortugalItaly
IrelandSingapore
TaiwanThailandMalaysia
SINGAPORE Philippines
UAEOmanChile
Romania
Better By Design: A National Strategy
NZ = Design
Excellence
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#4#4
EXCELLENCE.
NEW MARKETS.ENORMOUS.
OPPORTUNITIES.
“Idiot” is too kind a
word.
“That’s a very diverse* team.”
—Patrick Cescau, CEO, Unilever**
*1 of 14 Board of Directors members is a woman (not an exec); 2 of 7 Exec Team members are … Indians. (Source: FT/24-25 June.)
**Approximately 85% of Unilever’s
products are purchased by … women.
“That’s a
VERY diverse team.”
—Patrick Cescau, CEO, Unilever* **
*1 of 14 Board of Directors members is a woman (not an exec); 2 of 7 Exec Team members are … Indians. (Source: FT/24-25 June.)
**Approximately 85% of Unilever’s products are purchased by … women.
“That’s a
VERYVERY sick
man.”
—Tom Peters
EXCELLENCE.
FOUND.DUH.
“To be a leader in consumer
products, it’s critical to have
leaders who represent the population we
serve.” —Steve Reinemund/PepsiCo
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
“Women are the
majority market”
—Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse
USA/F.Stats: Short ’n (Very) Sweet
>50% of stock ownership, $13T total wealth (2X in 15 years)
>$7T consumer & biz spending (>50% GDP; > Japan GDP); >80% consumer spdg (Consumer = 70% all spdg)
57% BA degrees (2002); = ed & social strata, no wage gap
60% Internet users; >50% primary users of electronic equipment
>50% biz trips
WimBiz: Employees > F500; 10M+: 33% all US Biz
Pay from 62% in 1980 to 80% today; equal if education, social status, etc are equal
60% work; 46M (divorced, widowed, never married)
Source: Fara Warner, The Power of the Purse
The Perfect Answer
Jill and Jack buy slacks in black…
1. Men and women are different.2. Very different.3. VERY, VERY DIFFERENT.4. Women & Men have a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y nothing in common.5. Women buy lotsa stuff.
6. WOMEN BUY A-L-L THE STUFF.7. Women’s Market = Opportunity No. 1.8. Men are (STILL) in charge.9. MEN ARE … TOTALLY, HOPELESSLY CLUELESS ABOUT WOMEN.
10. Women’s Market =
Opportunity No. 1.
Cases!McDonald’s (“mom-centered” to “majority consumer”;
not via kids)
Home Depot (“Do it [everything!] Herself”)
P&G (more than “house cleaner”)
DeBeers (“right-hand rings”/$4B)
AXA FinancialKodak (women = “emotional centers of the household”)
Nike (> jock endorsements; new def sports; majority consumer)
AvonBratz (young girls want “friends,” not a blond stereotype)
Source: Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse
“Goldman Sachs in Tokyo has developed an index of 115
companies poised to benefit from women’s increased purchasing
power; over the past decade the value of shares in Goldman’s
basket has risen by 96%, against the Tokyo stockmarket’s rise of
13%.” —Economist, April 15
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
10.6
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
2000-2010 Stats
18-44: -1%
55+: +21%(55-64: +47% )
44-65: “New Customer Majority” *
*45% larger than 18-43; 60% larger by 2010Source: Ageless Marketing, David Wolfe & Robert Snyder
“The New Customer Majority is the only adult
market with realistic prospects for significant
sales growth in dozens of product lines for thousands of companies.” —David Wolfe & Robert Snyder,
Ageless Marketing
“Baby-boomer Women: The Sweetest of
Sweet Spots for Marketers” —David Wolfe and
Robert Snyder, Ageless Marketing
“Sixty Is the New Thirty”
—Cover/AARP/11.03
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
Fastest growing demographic:
Single-person Households (>50% in
London, Stockholm, etc)
Source: Richard Scase
% of homes purchased by single women: 1981, 10%;
2005, 20%
% of homes purchased by single men: 1981, 10%;
2005, 9%
Source: USA Today/02.15.06
Women.Women.Women business owners.Women business owners.
Boomers-Geezers.Boomers-Geezers.Single-person HHs (Urban)Single-person HHs (Urban)
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
10 UNASSAILABLE REASONS WOMEN RULE10 UNASSAILABLE REASONS WOMEN RULE
WomenWomen make [all] the financial decisions. make [all] the financial decisions.WomenWomen control [all] the wealth. control [all] the wealth.WomenWomen [substantially] outlive men. [substantially] outlive men.WomenWomen start most of the new businesses. start most of the new businesses.Women’sWomen’s work force participation rates have work force participation rates have soared worldwide.soared worldwide.WomenWomen are closing in on “same pay for same are closing in on “same pay for same job.”job.”WomenWomen are penetrating senior ranks rapidly are penetrating senior ranks rapidly [even if the pace is slow for the corner [even if the pace is slow for the corner office per se].office per se].Women’s Women’s leadership strengths are exceptionally wellleadership strengths are exceptionally well aligned with new organizational effectivenessaligned with new organizational effectiveness imperatives.imperatives.WomenWomen are better salespersons than men. are better salespersons than men.WomenWomen buy [almost] everything—commercial buy [almost] everything—commercial as well as consumer goods.as well as consumer goods.
So what exactly is the economic point of men?So what exactly is the economic point of men?
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#5#5
EXCELLENCE.
INNOVATE. OR. DIE.
“A focus on cost-cutting and efficiency has helped many organizations weather the
downturn, but this approach will ultimately
render them obsolete. Only the constant pursuit of
innovation can ensure long-term
success.” —Daniel Muzyka, Dean, Sauder School of Business,
Univ of British Columbia (FT/09.17.04)
“Acquisitions are about buying market share.
Our challenge is to create
markets. There is a big difference.” —Peter Job, CEO, Reuters
Pathetic!
“Forbes100” from 1917 to 1987: 39 members of the Class of ’17 were
alive in ’87; 18 in ’87 F100; 18 F100 “survivors” underperformed the
market by 20%; just 2 (2%), GE &
Kodak, outperformed the market 1917 to 1987.
S&P 500 from 1957 to 1997: 74 members of the Class of ’57 were alive in ’97; 12 (2.4%) of 500 outperformed the market from
1957 to 1997.
Source: Dick Foster & Sarah Kaplan, Creative Destruction: Why Companies That Are Built to Last Underperform the Market
“I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs seeking escape from life within huge corporate structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for myself?’ The
answer seems obvious: Buy a very large one and just wait.”
—Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail: Evolution, Extinction and Economics
Sluggish + Obese + Unimaginative + More
Sluggish + More Obese + More Unimaginative + Even More Sluggish + Even More
Obese + Even More
Unimaginative = NISSAN + RENAULT + GM = Innovative Challenger for
Toyota????
??????????????
Crappy Management (GM) + Arrogant-Overstretched
Management (Carlos G) = Great Management
More than $$$$
#1 R&D
spending, last 25 years?
GM
“I don’t believe in
economies of scale. You don’t get better by being bigger. You get worse.” —
Dick Kovacevich/Wells Fargo/Forbes/08.04 (ROA: Wells, 1.7%; Citi, 1.5%; BofA, 1.3%;
J.P. Morgan Chase, 0.9%)
Scale?
“Microsoft’s Struggle With
Scale” —Headline, FT, 09.2005
“Troubling Exits at Microsoft” —Cover Story, BW, 09.2005
“Too Big to Move Fast?” —Headline, BW, 09.2005
EXCELLENCE. INNOVATION.
THE REAL STORY.
World Innovation Forum
EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW
ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG
Tom Peters/New York/0524.2006/Inno.new.LIST.0527
What “We” Know “For Sure” About Innovation
Big mergers [by & large] don’t workScale is over-rated
Strategic planning is the last refuge of scoundrelsFocus groups are counter-productive“Built to last” is a chimera (stupid)
Success kills“Forgetting” is impossible
Re-imagine is a charming idea“Orderly innovation process” is an oxymoronic phrase
(= Believed only by morons with ox-like brains)“Tipping points” are easy to identify … long after they will do you any good
“Facts” aren’tAll information making it to the top is filtered
to the point of danger and hilarity“Success stories” are the illusions of egomaniacs (and “gurus”)
If you believe the memoirs of CEOs you should be institutionalized“Herd behavior” (XYZ is “hot”) is ubiquitous
… and amusing“Top teams” are “Dittoheads”
CEOs have little effect on performance“Expert” prediction is rarely better than rolling the dice
MESS.RULES.
The Mess Is the Message! Period!An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution
of the United States —Charles Beard (1913)
The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger —Marc Levinson
Tube: The Invention of Television —David & Marshall Fisher
Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World —Jill Jonnes
The Soul of a New Machine —Tracy Kidder
Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA —Brenda Maddox
The Blitzkrieg Myth —John Mosier
“A man of great mediocrity.” —General George Patton about General Omar Bradley …… “A third-rate
general. He never did anything or won any battle that any other general could not have won as well or better.” —General Omar Bradley
about Sir Bernard Montgomery …… “If you want to end the war in any reasonable time, you will
have to remove Ike’s hand from the control of the land battle.” —Sir Bernard Montgomery about General Dwight Eisenhower …… “One thing that
might help win this war is to get someone to shoot King.” —General Dwight Eisenhower about Admiral Ernest King …… “Eisenhower, though
supposed to be running the land war, is on the golf links at Rhiems—entirely detached and
taking practically no part in running the war.” —Sir Alan Brooke …… “If the unhelpful British
attitude continues, then I shall go home.” —General Dwight Eisenhower
Source: David Irving, The War Between the Generals: Inside the Allied High Command
MINTZBERG.
“Recently I asked three corporate executives what decisions they had made in the last year that would not have been
made were it not for their corporate plans. All had difficulty identifying one such decision. Since all of the plans are marked ‘secret’ or ‘confidential,’ I asked
them how their competitors might benefit from possession of their plans. Each
answered with embarrassment that their competitors would not benefit.”
—Russell Ackoff (from Henry Mintzberg, The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning)
Christensen
“Good management was the most powerful reason [leading firms] failed to
stay atop their industries. Precisely because these firms listened to their customers, invested aggressively in
technologies that would provide their customers more and better products of the
sort they wanted, and because they carefully studied market trends and
systematically allocated investment capital to innovations that promised the best
returns, they lost their positions of leadership.”
—Clayton Christensen, The Innovator’s Dilemma
Inno64: Innovation Strategies & Tactics
Parallel universe /Exec Ed v res MBAEnd run regnant powers/JKCFind done deals-practicing mavericks/Stone-ReGoBell curves2016 in 2006Non-industry benchmarkingEverything = PortfolioV.C.s all!Hot language/Wow-Astonish me-Insanely great-immortal-Make something greatLead customers/PW-EmbraerLead suppliers /Top decile R&DWeird alliancesMottos/Paul Arden (“Whatever You Think Think the Opposite”)Hire freaks/Enough weird people?Weird Boards!!!
InnoTacs
We become who we hang
out with!
Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality
StaffConsultants
VendorsOut-sourcing Partners (#, Quality)
Innovation Alliance PartnersCustomers
Competitors (who we “benchmark” against)
Strategic Initiatives Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap)
IS/IT ProjectsHQ Location
Lunch MatesLanguage
Board
futuremark
“Don’t benchmark, futuremark!
” Impetus: “The future is already here; it’s just
not evenly distributed” —William Gibson
Find ’em!
“Somewhere in your organization, groups of
people are already doing things differently and
better. To create lasting change, find these areas of positive deviance and
fan the flames.”
—Richard Pascale & Jerry Sternin, “Your Company’s Secret Change Agents,” HBR
“Some people look for things that went wrong and try to fix
them. I look for things that went right, and try to
build off them.” —Bob Stone
(Mr ReGo)
Demos!Demos! Heroes! Heroes! Stories!Stories!
Parallel universe!
“SkunkWorks”/ “ParallelUniverse”
“the 1%
solution”Source: Scott Bedbury (Others: 3M, Google, Shell, NAVFAC)
“Venture” fund: Gerstner/Amex, Dow/Marriott, Grove/Intel,
Bedbury/Starbucks
Build a “School on top of a school” (The Parallel
Universe Strategy)
HEART OF STRATEGY
“Under his former boss, Jack Welch, the skills GE prized above all others were cost-cutting, efficiency and deal-making. What mattered was the continual improvement of operations, and that mindset helped the $152 billion industrial and finance behemoth become a marvel of
earnings consistency. Immelt hasn’t turned his back on
the old ways. But in his GE, the new imperatives are
risk-taking, sophisticated
marketing and, above all, innovation.” —BW/2005
Conscious measurement
Innovation Index: How many of your Top 5 Strategic
Initiatives/Key Projects score 8 or higher [out of 10] on a
“Weird”/ “Profound”/ “Wow”/“Game- changer”
Scale?
Clarity
JackWorld/1@T: (1) Neutron
Jack. (Banish bureaucracy.) (2) “1, 2 or out” Jack. (Lead or leave.) (3) “Workout”
Jack. (Empowerment, GE style.) (4) 6-Sigma Jack. (5) Internet Jack.
(1-5/Throughout) TALENT JACK!
ACTION “culture”
Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action2. Close to the Customer3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship4. Productivity Through People5. Hands On, Value-Driven6. Stick to the Knitting7. Simple Form, Lean Staff8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”
tolerate [encourage?]
failure
““FAIL, FAIL FAIL, FAIL AGAIN. FAIL AGAIN. FAIL BETTER.”BETTER.”
—Samuel Beckett
““Fail . Forward. Fail . Forward. Fast.”Fast.”
High Tech CEO, Pennsylvania
“Fail faster. “Fail faster. Succeed Succeed Sooner.”Sooner.”
David Kelley/IDEO
““RewardReward excellent failures.
PunishPunish mediocre
successes.”Phil Daniels, Sydney exec
Sam’s Sam’s Secret Secret
#1!#1!
Read This!
Richard Farson & Ralph Keyes:
Whoever Makes the Most Mistakes Wins: The Paradox
of Innovation
Inno64: Innovation Strategies & Tactics
Parallel universe /Exec Ed v res MBAEnd run regnant powers/JKCFind done deals-practicing mavericks/Stone-ReGoBell curves2016 in 2006Non-industry benchmarkingEverything = PortfolioV.C.s all!Hot language/Wow-Astonish me-Insanely great-immortal-Make something greatLead customers/PW-EmbraerLead suppliers /Top decile R&DWeird alliancesMottos/Paul Arden (“Whatever You Think Think the Opposite”)Hire freaks/Enough weird people?Weird Boards!!!
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#6#6
EXCELLENCE. INNOVATION. REVOLUTION.
ORGANIZATION.
Excellence: The SE22:
“Origins of Sustainable
Entrepreneurship”
SE22/Origins of Sustainable Entrepreneurship1. Genetically disposed to Innovations that upset apple carts (3M, Apple,
FedEx, Virgin, BMW, Sony, Nike, Schwab, Starbucks, Oracle, Sun, Fox, Stanford University, MIT)
2. Perpetually determined to outdo oneself, even to the detriment of today’s $$$ winners (Apple, Cirque du Soleil, Nokia, FedEx)
3. Treat History as the Enemy (GE)
4. Love the Great Leap/Enjoy the Hunt (Apple, Oracle, Intel, Nokia, Sony)
5. Use “Strategic Thrust Overlays” to Attack Monster Problems (Sysco, GSK, GE, Microsoft)
6. Establish a “Be on the COOL Team” Ethos. (Most PSFs, Microsoft)
7. Encourage Vigorous Dissent/Genetically “Noisy” (Intel, Apple, Microsoft, CitiGroup, PepsiCo)
8. “Culturally” as well as organizationally Decentralized
(GE, J&J, Omnicom)
9. Multi-entrepreneurship/Many Independent-minded Stars (GE, PepsiCo)
“HOW THE COAST GUARD GETS IT RIGHT” —Headline, Time, 10.31.2005
*Autonomy*Flexibility*“Perhaps the most important distinction of the Coast Guard is that it trusts itself”
Itinerant. Potential. Machines.
POTENTIAL MACHINES-ORGANISMS. Don’t know what’s
coming next. But are ready to jump at opportunities, especially those that
challenge-overturn our own “way of doing things.”
“ORGANIZATION” = STRATEGY: THE
GUERRILLA ADVANTAGETom Peters/04August2006
Small units … agile … lethal … invisible … guerrilla …
network warfare … distributed … dispersed … mobile .. Flat [hierarchy] …
improvisational … etc.
“Crazy Times Call for Crazy
Organizations” —Subtitle, The Tom Peters Seminar (1993)
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#7#7
EXCELLENCE.
4/40.
4/40
De-cent-ral-iz-a-tion!
“‘Decentralization’ is not a piece of paper. It’s not me. It’s either in
your heart, or not.”
—Brian Joffe/BIDvest
Ex-e-cu-
tion!
“Execution is the job of
the business leader.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram
Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“Execution is a
systematic process of rigorously
discussing hows and whats, tenaciously following through, and
ensuring accountability.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
Ac-count-a-bil-ity!
“GE has set a standard of candor.
… There is no puffery. … There isn’t an ounce of
denial in the place.” —
Kevin Sharer, CEO Amgen, on the “GE mystique” (Fortune)
6:15A.M.
????????
Work Hard > Work Smart
A man approached JP Morgan, held up an envelope, and said, “Sir, in my hand I hold a guaranteed formula for success, which I will
gladly sell you for $25,000.”
“Sir,” JP Morgan replied, “I do not know what is in the envelope, however if you show me, and I like it, I give you my word as a
gentleman that I will pay you what you ask.”
The man agreed to the terms, and handed over the envelope.JP Morgan opened it, and extracted a single sheet of paper.
He gave it one look, a mere glance, then handed the piece of paper back to the gent.
And paid him the agreed-upon $25,000 …
1. Every morning, write a list of the things that need to be done that day.
2. Do them. Source: Hugh MacLeod/tompeters.com/NPR
DECENTRALIZATION.EXECUTION.
ACCOUTABILITY.6:15A.M.
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#7A#7A
EXCELLENCE.
ACTION.ROOTS.
GRANTNELSON
BOYDBOSSIDYPEROT+
PETERS-WATERMANHAMLET+
11 August 2006
GRANT
“The only way to whip an army is to go out and fight it.” —Grant
Source: John Mosier, Grant
“recognized the value of momentum … throw
[opponent] off balance … blitzkrieg … traveling light
… headquarters in the saddle” —Jean Edward Smith/GRANT
"The art of war is simple enough. Find out where
your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike at him as hard as you can and as often as you can,
and keep moving on." —Grant, courtesy Richard Cauley at tompeters.com
(original source unknown)
“One of my superstitions had always been when I
started to go anywhere or to do anything, not to turn
back, or stop, until the thing intended was accomplished.” —Grant
NELSON
The Nelson Baker’s Dozen
1. Simple-clear scheme (“Plan”) (Not wildly imaginative) (Patton: “A good plan executed with vigor right now tops a ‘perfect’ plan executed next week.”)2. SOARING/BOLD/CLEAR/UNEQUIVOCAL/WORTHY/NOBLE/INSPIRING “GOAL”/“MISSION”/“PURPOSE”/“QUEST”3. “Conversation”: Engagement of All Leaders4. Leeway for Leaders: Select the Best/Dip Deep/Initiative demanded/Accountability swift/Micromanagement absent5. LED BY “LOVE” (Lambert), NOT “AUTHORITY” (Identify with sailors!)6. Instinct/Seize the Moment/“Impetuosity” (Boyd’s “OODA Loops”: React more quickly than opponent, destroy his “world view”)7. VIGOR! (Zander: leader as “Dispenser of Enthusiasm”)8. Peerless Basic Skills/Mastery of Craft (Seamanship)9. Workaholic! (“Duty” first, second, and third)10. LEAD BY CONFIDENT & DETERMINED & CONTINUOUS & VISIBLE EXAMPLE (In Harm’s Way) 11. Genius (“Transform the world to conform to their ideas,” “Triumph over rules”) (Gandhi, Lee-Singapore) , not Greatness (“Make the most of their world”) 12. Luck! (Right time, right place; survivor) (“Lucky Eagle” vs “Bold Eagle”)13. Others principal shortcoming: “ADMIRALS MORE FRIGHTENED OF LOSING THAN ANXIOUS TO WIN”
Source: Andrew Lambert, Nelson: Britannia’s God of War
On NELSON: “[other] admirals more frightened of losing than
anxious to win”
BOYD
He who has the quickest
“O.O.D.A. Loops”* wins!
*Observe. Orient. Decide. Act. /Col. John Boyd
“Blitzkrieg is far more than lightning thrusts that most people think of when they hear the term; rather it was all
about high operational tempo and the rapid exploitation of opportunity.” —Robert Coram, Boyd
“Re-arrange the mind of the enemy” —T.E. Lawrence
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” —Ali
BOYD: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed
the Art of War (Robert Coram)
BOSSIDY
“Execution is the job of the
business leader.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram
Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
PEROT+
READY.FIRE!AIM.
Ross Perot (vs “Aim! Aim! Aim!” /EDS vs GM/1985)
“We have a ‘strategic plan.’ It’s
called doing things.” — Herb Kelleher
“This is so simple it sounds stupid, but it is amazing how few oil people really
understand that you only find oil if you drill wells. You may
think you’re finding it when you’re drawing maps and
studying logs, but you have to drill.”
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
You only find oil if
you drill wells.
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
PETERS-WATERMAN+
In Search of Excellence/1982/The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action
2. Close to the Customer3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship4. Productivity Through People5. Hands On, Value-Driven6. Stick to the Knitting7. Simple Form, Lean Staff8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”
“Do it. Fix it. Try it.”
Tom Peters/Business Week/07.1978 (Principal #1/first anticipation of “Excellence”)
PETERS: THE “ACT. THINK.”CHRONICLES
“Think”vs
“Do”
A>Bvs
B>A
CK Chesterton: “How do I know what I think until I see what I say?”
Reporter: “Mr Drucker, why are you still giving speeches at 90?” PD: “How else can I figure out what I’m thinking?”
TP: No plan, total accountability
TK: Perfect plan, no accountability*
*LG & IBM
“Experiment fearlessly”
Source: BW0821.06, Type A Organization Strategies/ “How to Hit a Moving Target”—Tactic #1
“We made mistakes, of course. Most of them were omissions we didn’t think of when we
initially wrote the software. We fixed them by doing it over and over, again and again. We
do the same today. While our competitors are still sucking their thumbs trying to make the design perfect, we’re already on prototype
version No. 5. By the time our rivals are ready with wires and screws, we are on
version No. 10. It gets back to planning versus acting: We act from day one; others plan how to plan—for months.” —Bloomberg by
Bloomberg
HAMLET+
“By indirections
find directions out.” —Hamlet, II. i
“My only goal is to have no goals. The goal, every time, is that film, that very moment.” —Bernardo Bertolucci
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#8#8
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.PURPOSE.
“People want to be part of something larger
than themselves. They want to be part of
something they’re really proud of, that they’ll
fight for, sacrifice for , trust.” —Howard Schultz, Starbucks
(IBD/09.05)
“Management has a lot to do with answers. Leadership is a function of questions. And the
first question for a leader always
is: ‘Who do we intend to be?’ Not ‘What are we going to do?’
but ‘Who do we intend to be?’” —Max De Pree, Herman Miller
Ah, kids: “What is your vision for the future?” “What have you accomplished since your first book?” “Close your eyes and imagine me immediately doing something about what
you’ve just said. What would it be?” “Do you feel you have an obligation to ‘Make the world a
better place’?”
EXCELLENCE.ENTHUSIASM.
ENERGY. PASSION.
“Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“Enthusiasm, the ultimate
virus.”
“Most important,
he upped the energy level at Motorola.” —Fortune on Ed Zander/08.05
Q: “If it were your $50K [life’s savings] and my $50K, what sort of Waiters would we look for?”
A:
“Enthusiasts!”
EXCELLENCE.
DETERMINATION.
DE-TERM-IN-A-TION
BLOOD-Y-MIND-ED-
NESS
Bloodyminded: Unreasonably
stubborn
Source: The Random House Dictionary of the English Language
“It is no use saying ‘We are doing our best.’ You have got to succeed in
doing what is necessary.” —WSC
““Whenever anything is Whenever anything is being accomplished, I being accomplished, I
have learned, it is being have learned, it is being done by a monomaniac done by a monomaniac
with a mission.”with a mission.” —Peter Drucker
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#9#9
motivational stuff
“Do one thing every day that scares you.”
—Eleanor Roosevelt
“ARE YOU BEING REASONABLE? Most
people are reasonable; that’s why they only do
reasonably well.”
Source: Paul Arden, Whatever You Think Think the Opposite
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The
unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to
himself. Therefore, all progress depends upon the unreasonable man.” —GB Shaw,
Man and Superman: The Revolutionists' Handbook.
“If it’s not fun you’re not doing
it right.”—Fran Tarkenton
“The [Union senior] officers rode past the Confederates smugly without any sign of recognition except by one. ‘When
General Grant reached the line of ragged, filthy, bloody, despairing
prisoners strung out on each side of the bridge, he lifted his hat and held it over his head until he passed the last man of that living funeral cortege. He was the only officer in that whole train
who recognized us as being on the face of the earth.’*”
*quote within a quote from diary of a Confederate soldier
Stop Doing
It!
“The one thing you need to know about sustained individual
success: Discover what you don’t like
doing and stop doing it.” —Marcus Buckingham, The One Thing You Need to Know
Start Doing
It!
“A year from A year from nownow
you may wish you may wish You had You had
started today.”started today.” —Karen Lamb
ONE WORD+
ONE WORD+
Drill more wellsDrill more wellsR.F.A.R.F.A.
AccountabilityAccountabilityRealismRealism
DecentralizationDecentralizationExecutionExecution
Action biasAction biasMost mistakes winsMost mistakes wins
6:15am6:15amEnergyEnergy
EnthusiasmEnthusiasmDo>PlanDo>Plan
Act>ThinkAct>ThinkBehavior>AttitudeBehavior>Attitude
PassionPassion
ONE WORD+
EmotionEmotionIntuitionIntuition
SellSellO.O.D.A.O.O.D.A.IntegrityIntegrity
WeirdWeirdAppreciateAppreciateCelebrateCelebrateRespectRespectListenListen
WanderWanderCalendar rulesCalendar rules
Calendar doesn’t lieCalendar doesn’t lie““To don’tTo don’t
Max priorities = 3Max priorities = 3
ONE WORD+
5 min/5,000 miles5 min/5,000 milesWomenWomenDecencyDecency
GraceGraceInnovate or DieInnovate or Die
Re-imagineRe-imagineFight irrelevanceFight irrelevance
Just Do ItJust Do ItCare (You Must)Care (You Must)
Flowers (Say It With)Flowers (Say It With)I’m sorryI’m sorry
Thank YouThank YouInsanely GreatInsanely Great
SilenceSilence2-cent candy2-cent candy
ONE WORD+
MBWAMBWAWhy?Why?PSFPSF
Wow!Wow!! (red)! (red)
Buy a MirrorBuy a MirrorKnow thyselfKnow thyself
InviteInviteQuestQuest
AdventureAdventureTalentTalent
Brand YouBrand YouLovemarkLovemark
ExperienceExperienceDreamketingDreamketing
ONE WORD+
Gasp-worthyGasp-worthyInsanely greatInsanely great
Different>betterDifferent>betterImpact>longevityImpact>longevity
Dramatic DifferenceDramatic DifferenceOnly ones do what we doOnly ones do what we do
SmileSmile$798$7987-7-77-7-7
Design rulesDesign rulesBeautiful SystemsBeautiful Systems
450/8450/8VP S.O.U.B.VP S.O.U.B.
Women buy allWomen buy allWomen lead betterWomen lead better
ONE WORD+
Boomers-geezers own allBoomers-geezers own all2.6/212.6/21
25252525
3,000,000,0003,000,000,000(900,000,000)(900,000,000)
26 minutes26 minutes43 hours43 hours
Perception Is All There IsPerception Is All There IsEnthusiasm: The Ultimate VirusEnthusiasm: The Ultimate Virus
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#10#10
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.TALENT.
Brand Brand = =
Talent.Talent.
Organizing Genius / Warren Bennis and Patricia Ward Biederman
“Groups become great only when everyone in them, leaders and
members alike, is free to do his or her absolute best.”
“The best thing a leader can do for a
Great Group is to allow its members to discover their
greatness.”
Leadership’s Mt Everest/Mt Excellence
“free to do his or her absolute best” …
“allow its members to discover their
greatness.”
“The role of the Director is to create a
space where the actor or actress can become more than they’ve ever been before, more than
they’ve dreamed of being.” —Robert Altman, Oscar
acceptance
CCRROO*
*Chief Recruitment Officer
CRO/Chief Recruiting Officer: #1 strategic issue in
“commoditized” world, enormous financial services
company. Agent turnover.
15% retention after 4 years. (Industry average is 11% … “because that’s
the way it is” )
CCQQOO*
*Chief quest-meister
“We are a ‘life
Success Company”’
founder, RE/MAX
“No matter what the situation, [the great manager’s]
first response is always to think about the individual concerned and how things can be arranged to help
that individual experience success.” —Marcus Buckingham,
The One Thing You Need to Know
“The key difference between checkers and
chess is that in checkers the pieces all move the same way, whereas in
chess all the pieces move differently. … Discover
what is unique about each person and capitalize on
it.” —Marcus Buckingham,
The One Thing You Need to Know
Our Mission
To develop and manage talent;
to apply that talent,throughout the world,
for the benefit of clients;to do so in partnership;
to do so with profit.
WPP
“Leaders
‘do’ people.
Period.” —Anon.
Les Wexner: From sweaters to …
people!
“The leaders of Great Groups love talent and
know where to find it. They revel in
the talent of others.” —Warren
Bennis & Patricia Ward Biederman, Organizing Genius
PARC’s Bob Taylor:
“Connoisseur
of Talent”
Hire very good
people!
“We believe companies can increase their market cap 50 percent in 3 years. Steve Macadam at Georgia-
Pacific changed 20 of his 40 box plant managers to put more talented, higher paid
managers in charge. He
increased profitability from $25 million to $80
million in 2 years.” —Ed Michaels, War for Talent
DDDD$21M$21M
A review of Jack and Suzy Welch’s Winning claims there are but two key differentiators that set GE “culture” apart from the herd:
First: Separating financial forecasting and performance measurement. Performance measurement based, as it usually is, on budgeting leads to an epidemic of gaming the system. GE’s performance measurement is divorced from budgeting—and instead reflects how you do relative to your past performance and relative to competitors’ performance; i.e., it’s about how you actually do in the context of what happened in the real world, not as compared to a gamed-abstract plan developed last year.
Second: Putting HR on a par with finance and marketing.
A Few Lessons from the Arts
Each hired and developed and evaluated in unique ways (23 contributors; 23 unique contributions; 23 pathways; 23 personalities; 23 sets of
motivators)
Attitude/Enthusiasm/Energy paramountRe-lent-less!
“Practice is cool” (G Leonard/Mastery)
Team and individual Aspire to EXCELLENCE = Obvious
Ex-e-cu-tionTalent = Brand = Duh“The Project” rulesEmotional language
Bit players. No.B.I.W. (everything)
Delta events = Delta rosters (incl leader/s)
Re-imaginePeople Power:
The Talent50
50. Talent = Brand.
EXCELLENCE. BY
INVITATION.
“In the end, management doesn’t
change culture. Management
invites
the workforce itself to change the culture.”
—Lou Gerstner
“If I could have chosen not to tackle the IBM culture head-on, I probably wouldn’t
have. My bias coming in was toward strategy, analysis and measurement. In comparison, changing the attitude and behaviors of hundreds of thousands of
people is very, very hard. [Yet] I came to see in my time at IBM that
culture isn’t just one aspect of the game—it is the game.” —Lou Gerstner, Who
Says Elephants Can’t Dance
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED #10A#10A
EXCELLENCE. WOMEN.
RULE.
“AS LEADERS, WOMEN
RULE: New Studies find that
female managers outshine their male counterparts in almost every measure”
Title, Special Report/BusinessWeek
Women’s Negotiating Strengths
*Ability to put themselves in their counterparties’ shoes*Comprehensive, attentive and detailed communication style*Empathy that facilitates trust-building*Curious and attentive listening*Less competitive attitude*Strong sense of fairness and ability to persuade*Proactive risk manager*Collaborative decision-making
Source: Horacio Falcao, Cover story/May 2006, World Business, “Say It Like a Woman: Why the 21st-century negotiator will need the female touch”
“TAKE THIS QUICK QUIZ: Who manages more things at once? Who puts more effort into their appearance? Who usually takes care of the
details? Who finds it easier to meet new people? Who asks more questions in a
conversation? Who is a better listener? Who has more interest in communication skills? Who is more inclined to get involved? Who encourages harmony and agreement? Who
has better intuition? Who works with a longer ‘to do’ list? Who enjoys a recap to the day’s events? Who is better at keeping in touch
with others?”
Source: Selling Is a Woman’s Game: 15 Powerful Reasons Why Women Can Outsell Men, Nicki Joy & Susan Kane-Benson
Women
Dominate Economic Growth.
“Forget China, India and the
Internet: Economic Growth Is Driven
by Women.” —Headline, Economist,
April 15, 2006, Leader, page 14
Impact! Add It Up!
Primary markets/Everything (“Men
buy things that other men will buy for women. I buy things that women want.”—successful jeweler/F. “Women are the majority market” —Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse. Women as Purchasing Officers, CIOs, etc.)
Greater global workforce participation rate (“bigger contributor to GDP
growth than technology, China, India”—Economist)
Higher wages (more seniority, promotions—even if not
to CEO; greater pay equity—even if not equal)
Business “decision makers” (more
seniority, promotions—even if not to CEO)
Women-owned businesses (answer to
the Glass Ceiling—10.6M in USA; recipients of “micro-lending”—developing world)
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED #10B#10B
EXCELLENCE. INDIVIDUAL.BRAND YOU.
“If there is nothing very special about
your work, no matter how hard
you apply yourself you won’t get noticed, and that
increasingly means you won’t get paid much either.” —Michael Goldhaber, Wired
New Work SurvivalKit.2006
1. Mastery! (Best/Absurdly Good at Something!)2. “Manage” to Legacy (All Work = “Memorable”/“Braggable” WOW Projects!)3. A “USP”/Unique Selling Proposition (R.POV8: Remarkable Point of View … captured in 8 or less words) 4. Rolodex Obsession (From vertical/hierarchy/“suck up” loyalty to horizontal/“colleague”/“mate” loyalty)5. Entrepreneurial Instinct (A sleepless … Eye for Opportunity! E.g.: Small Opp for Independent Action beats faceless part of Monster Project)6. CEO/Leader/Businessperson/Closer (CEO, Me Inc. Period! 24/7!)7. Master of Improv (Play a dozen parts simultaneously, from Chief Strategist to Chief Toilet Scrubber)8. Sense of Humor (A willingness to Screw Up & Move On)9. Comfortable with Your Skin (Bring “interesting you” to work!)10. Intense Appetite for Technology (E.g.: How Cool-Active is your Web site? Do you Blog?)11. Embrace “Marketing” (Your own CSO/Chief Storytelling Officer)12. Passion for Renewal (Your own CLO/Chief Learning Officer) 13. Execution Excellence! (Show up on time! Leave last!)
DistinctDistinct … or
… ExtinctExtinct
“To Be somebody or
to Do something”
BOYD: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War (Robert Coram)
“You are the storyteller of your own life, and you can create your own legend or
not.” —Isabel Allende
“It’s always
showtime.”
—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare
“In Tom’s world, it’s always better to try
a swan dive and deliver a colossal belly flop than to
step timidly off the board while holding
your nose.” —Fast Company
/October2003
“Life is not a journey to the grave with the
intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body—but
rather a skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and
loudly proclaiming, ‘Wow, what
a ride!’ ” —anon.
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#11#11
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.SELF-
MANAGEMENT.
X.Step #1:Buy a Mirror!
“You must
be the
change you wish to see in the
world.”Gandhi
“Before you can inspire with emotion, you must be swamped with it yourself. Before you can move their tears, your own must flow.
To convince them, you must yourself believe.” —
Winston Churchill
“To change minds effectively, leaders make
particular use of two tools: the stories
that they tell and the lives that they lead.” —
Howard Gardner, Changing Minds
MBWAMBWA**HS/25+
You = Your calendar*
*Calendars NEVER lie!!
Mark McCormack: 5,000 5,000 milesmiles for a 5 for a 5
minmin. meeting. meeting!!
Getting to WOW Through Mastery of …
The Sales25.
Getting Things Done: The
Power &
Implementation34.
Presentation Excellence: The
PresX56
The Interviewing Excellence: The IntX31
VALUE ADDED
#12
EXCELLENCE.
LEADING.
Leadership23
Leadership23/ML
1. Enthusiasm. Energy. Exuberance.2. Action. Execution.3. Tempo. Metabolism.4. Relentless.5. Master of Plan B.6. Accountability.7. Meritocracy.8. Leaders “do” people. Mentor. (“Success creation business.”)9. Women. Diversity.10. Integrity. Credibility. Humanity. Grace.11. Realism.12. Cause. Adventures. Quests.
Leadership23/ML
13. Legacy.14. Best story wins.15. On the edge. (“Wildest chimera of a moonstruck mind.”)16. “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”17. Different > Better. (“Only ones who do what we do.”)18. MBWA. Customer MBWA.19. Laughs.20. Repot. Curiosity. Why?21. You = Calendar. “To Don’t.” Two.22. Excellence. Always.23. Nelsonian! (“Other admirals more afraid of losing than anxious to win.”)
EnthusiasmEnergy
ExuberanceVoracious Curiosity
Irritability/Dis-satisfactionRelentlessnessSelf-reliance
“Closer” (Execution)excellence
EnthusiasmEnergy
ExuberanceVoracious Curiosityartistic inclination
Irritability/Dis-satisfactionRelentlessnessSelf-reliance
“Closer” (Execution)engagementexcellence
Kevin Roberts’ Credo
1. Ready. Fire! Aim.2. If it ain’t broke ... Break it!3. Hire crazies.4. Ask dumb questions.5. Pursue failure.6. Lead, follow ... or get out of the way!7. Spread confusion.8. Ditch your office.9. Read odd stuff.
10. Avoid moderation!
Sir Richard’s Rules:
Follow your passions.Keep it simple.
Get the best people to help you.
Re-create yourself.Play.
Source: Fortune on Branson
Let Us March
Tom Peters/0523.06
“In classical times when Cicero had finished
speaking, the people said, ‘How well he spoke,’ but when Demosthenes had finished speaking,
they said, ‘Let us march.’” —Adlai Stevenson
Let us Let us marchmarch.
Message clarity = CALENDAR + MBWA + Language + Perceived
INTENSITY/ENTHUSIASM/ ENERGY + Concrete-Visible
support + Prototypes + Tolerance for Failure/“Good
losses” + Promotions + Tempo + Resilience + Celebration +
Perceived RELENTLESSNESS + Training
EXCELLENCE.
STRETCH.
The greatest dangerfor most of us
is not that our aim istoo high
and we miss it,but that it is
too lowand we reach it.
Michelangelo
EXCELLENCE.
KABOOM.
“Beware of the tyranny of making
Small Changes to Small
Things. Rather,
make BiBigg Changes
to BiBigg Things.”
—Roger Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo
Five MYTHS About Changing Behavior
*Crisis is a powerful impetus for change*Change is motivated by fear*The facts will set us free
*Small, gradual changes are always easier to make and sustain*We can’t change because our brains become “hardwired” early in life
Source: Fast Company/05.2005
EXCELLENCE.
OFFENSE.
Nelson’s secret:
“[Other] admirals more frightened of losing than
anxious to win”
EXCELLENCE.
THRILLS.TRANSCENDENCE.
WOW. NOW.!
Radically Thrilling Language!
““Radically Radically Thrilling.”Thrilling.”
—BMW Z4 (ad)
CCTTOO**Chief Thrills Officer
Synonyms
PurityTranscendence
VirtueEleganceMajesty
Antonyms
Mediocrity
CCTTOO**Chief Transcendence Officer
“It’s always showtime.”
—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare
CCWWOO**Chief WOW Officer
C!O*Chief ! Officer
““A year from nowA year from now you may wish you may wish
You had You had started today.”started today.”
—Karen Lamb
EXEXCELLE CELLE ALWALWAYSAYS..
You only find oil if you drill
wells. —T he Hunters, by John Masters,
Canadian O & G wildcatter
EXCELLE ALWAYS.
VALUE VALUE ADDED ADDED
#13#13
The Irreducible209+/Sales122/60TIBs
Tom Peters/0607.2006
The Irreducible20
9
A frustrated participant at a seminar for investment bankers in Mauritius listened impatiently to my explanation of differences of opinion among me, Mike Porter,
Gary Hamel, Jim Collins, etc. Finally, he’d had enough. “What, if anything,” he asked,
“do you believe ‘for sure’?” I mumbled something, but his query started rumbling
around in my mind. Three days later, wandering on a Sunday in London, the idea of “the irreducibles” occurred to
me—and I started jotting down notes on stuff I do indeed believe “for sure.” Before
I knew it, a few days later, the list had grown to 209 items. Hence “The Irreducible209” that follows.
Tom Peters
1. Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)2. Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)3. MBWA.4. Appreciation. (“Motivator” #1.) (Can’t be faked. Good.)5. Decency.6. Hurry.7. Time out.8. One matters. 9. Big change. Short time. (Alt not work.)10. Excellence. Always.11. Passion. Energy. Hustle. Enthusiasm. Exuberance. (Move mountains. No alt.)12. You must care.13. Emotion.14. Hard is soft. (Soft is hard.)
15. Men. Women. Different. Contend. Connect.16. Women. Buy. All. (RU listening?)17. Quality. (“Mind-blowing.” Beyond 6-Sigma.)18. Re-invent. Re-pot. (Required.)19. Jaywalk.20. Big change. Small # of people. (Always.)21. Experiment. Now.22. Failure. Normal. 23. Most failures, most success. (Fail. Forward. Fast.) 24. “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”25. Women leaders. (Altered times.) 26. Extremism. (Good business. Bad politics.)27. Innovation source. Only. Extreme irritation.28. Smile.
29. You must care.30. Mentor. (Highest ROI.)31. Best “roster” wins.32. Wow. (Okay in biz.)33. We all have customers. (Biz. Personal.)34. All contacts = Experiences.35. Cirque du Soleil. (Peerless.)36. Leaders create space for growth.37. Quests. (Only.)38. High aspirations, “high” results. (Self-fulfilling prophecy.)39. Attitude 1, Skills 0. (Mostly.) (Attitude 1, Skill 0.3?)40. Sometimes: Skill 1, Attitude 0.1.41. Must “love,” not “like.”42. Wegmans.” (No excuses. “Mere” groceries.)43. Less than your best. Cheating.
44. Brand You. (No alt.)45. Self-sufficiency. (Biggest LT turn-on.)46. In the moment.47. The moment wins.48. Tomorrow = Never. 49. Action 1, Plan 0.1.50. “Execution” can be a “system.”51. Realism.52. Own up. Move on.53. Accountability.54. Work hard > Work smart. (Mostly.)55. Feedback. Necessary. Fast. (R.F.A. in “RFA times.”)56. Customers. Listen. Lead. (Paradox.)57. “On stage.” Always. (GW, FDR, RG = Supreme actors.)
58. Master statistical analysis.59. Excellence = Set the table.60. Legacy. (Will it have mattered?)61. “Great.” (Why not?)62. Radicals rule. (Think … Olympics.)63. !!! = Good.64. Red 1, Brown 0. (Red times.)65. Talk. Listen. (“Big 2.” Master.)66. Politics. (Normal-inevitable state of affairs. Master.)67. Student. Forever.68. “Why?” (Question #1.)69. Don’t belittle.70. Respect.71. All we have: this moment. (“Moments matter most”?) 72. Now. (Procrastination. Death.)
73. Exercise.74. Paint. (Leader. Portraits of Excellence.)75. Best story wins.76. “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”77. Two “big ones.” Max. (Priorities.)78. No “I” in Team. (“I” in Win.)79. “I” in Win. (No “I” in Team.)80. Different 1, Better 0. (Better = 0.1)81. Imitation = Mistake. (Learn, from who?)82. Choose/battle the “right” competitor.83. Schools. Creativity. Entrepreneurship. (Not.)84. MBAs. Creativity. Entrepreneurship. Leadership. (Not.)85. Design. Under-rated. Wildly. (Still.) (Everything.)
86. You = Calendar. (Calendar. Never. Lies.)87. Laugh.88. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)89. Don’t fold your hands in front of your
chest. Ever. (Never.)90. Grace. (“Works” in biz.)91. Weird. Wins. (Weird times.)92. Crazy times. Crazy orgs.93. Internet. All.94. Women. Boomers-Geezers. Market. All.95. Passion. (Repeat. So what?)96. Energy. (Repeat. So what?)97. Hustle. (Repeat. So what?)98. Enthusiasm. (Repeat. So what?)99. Exuberance. (Repeat. So what?)100. Smile. (Repeat. So what?)101. Care. (Repeat. So what?)
102. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience. Bloody- mindedness. Visible optimism. (Success.) 103. Act. (Repeat. So what?) 104. Appreciate. (Repeat. So what?)105. Fun. (Biz. Why not?)106. Joy. (Biz. Why not?)107. Sales = Life.108. Marketing = Life.109. Long-term. “Top line.”110. Great company = Creates the most individual success stories. (RE/MAX)111. Talent first, performance byproduct.112. Sustained Wow* 1, “Shareholder value,” 0.2 (*Product, People.)113. Commitment, by invitation only.114. Creativity, by invitation only. 115. HR = #1. (Ought to.)116. Face-to-face. (5K miles, 5 minutes.)
117. Negotiation. Make all winners. (Save face.)118. Grace makes enemies friends.119. Network.120. Invest in relationships. (Think ROIR. Return On Investment in Relationships.)118. Relationship investment. Forethought. Calendar item. Intensity.119. Innovation. Easy. (Hang out with weird.)120. Weird = Win. (Weird times.)121. “The bottleneck is at the top of the bottle.”122. Good Board = Weird Board. (At least, surprising.)123. No contention, no progress.
124. “Crucial conversations.” “Crucial confrontations.” (Study. Learn. Do.)125. Honest feedback.126. Gaspworthy. Yes. 127. “Insanely great.”128. “Astonish me.”129. “Make it immortal.”130. “Will you remember it in 20 years?”131. No small opportunities. (Reframe.)132. One playmate, one playpen = Enough.133. End run. Sensible.134. Allies are there for the finding.135. Find successes. Build on successes. (Pos > Neg. Encourage > Fix.)136. Somebody’s doing it today. Find ’em.137. Someone is living 2016 in 2006. (Find ’em. Study ’em.)
138. Don’t “benchmark,” “futuremark.” (2016. Happening. Somewhere.)139. “PMA.” It works.140. There are no experts. (You are the expert.)141. Life is short. 142. “Sustained success.” Fat chance. Make today matter. (“Sustained.” Ha.)143. Collaborate. (Networked world.)144. Go solo. (Individual. Unit of Intellectual Capital.)145. There are no “perfect” plans. (Do. Wins.)146. Plans motivate. (Right or wrong. Sense of purpose.)147. Never rest.148. Get some sleep.149. Winning = Embracing paradox.150. Ambiguity = Opportunity.
151. Resilience.152. Relentless-ness.153. None. Above. Comeuppance. (GM. Sears. U.S. Steel. DEC.)154. Be yourself. Period.155. Never work with jerks. Including customers. (Life. Too short.)156. Under-promise, over-deliver.157. Talent. (Powerful word.)158. “Customer = Anyone whose actions affect your results.”159. Competition stinks. (Seek the soft spots where you can dominate.)160. K.I.S.S./Keep It Simple, Stupid.161. Beauty. (Good biz word.)162. “See the beauty in a hamburger bun.” (Go. Ray.)
163. Own up. Quick. ( Denial. Cancer.)164. Celebrate. Often.165. 78 people = 78 approaches. (Each. Unique.)166. Weed. Ceaselessly. (Prune. Stupid. Rules. Non-stop.)167. Get out of the way. (You = The problem.)168. Smile. Sunny. Optimism. (If it kills you.)169. Flowers. (Cheery workplace.)170. Enjoy. (Or get the hell.)171. Be intolerant of “sour.” (1 = Major pollution)172. No “quick trigger” on promotion. (Too important.)173. Evaluation = Lots of study-time.174. Evaluation = “Life or death” to evaluee.175. “360” evaluation. No fad.176. Exit when you’re done. (Done. Sooner than you think.)
177. Today. Now. My Project. Am. Is. I. Period.178. “Beautiful” systems. (Good biz phrase. Not oxymoron.)179. Build on strengths > Fix weaknesses.180. “To don’t” = “To do.” (“To don’t” > “To do” ?)181. Leaders “Do” People. (Period.)182. Leaders enjoy leading.183. Serious leadership training = Serious.184. Priorities. Obvious. (Or else.)185. 5 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities. (3 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities?)186. People. First. Last. Always.187. It. Is. Always. The. People.
188. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)189. Don’t fold your hands in front of your chest. Ever. (Never.)190. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience. Bloody-mindedness. Visible optimism. (Success.) (Repeat.)191. Employee Entrance = Guest Entrance.192. Put the customer SECOND. (Thanks, Hal.)193. Flowers. (Or did I say that before? No matter if I did.)194. Big Mergers don’t work. Small acquisitions can/do work—if you don’t screw with their energy.
195. Instinctively “head for the front line.” (In all contexts.)196. Success = DDMMPR/"D-squared, M-squared, PR” = DramDiff + Money-Financial Acumen + Good “Marketing” Instincts + Stellar People + Resilience (The “fab five”: What. Every. Small. Biz. Needs.) (Big too.)197. Core Mechanism (“Game-changing Solutions”): PSF (Professional Service Firm “model”) + Wow! Projects (“Different” vs “Better”) + Brand You (“Distinct” or “Extinct”)198. 2011/2016 has already happened. Find it.
199. Kids “know” kids. Oldies “know” oldies. Women “know” women. (Staff accordingly.)200. Everybody is my customer.201. Cosset “vendors.”202. I want to run a Housekeeping department. (And you?)203. The military doesn’t follow the “military model.” (Initiative = Excellence.)204. No such thing as “going to absurd lengths” to serve the Customer. (HSM & Lefties.)205. Forget the “customer.” All = “Clients.”206. It takes decades to get over “sleights.” (So don’t sleight.)207. Don’t “dumb down.” Ever.
208. NO LESS THAN EXCELLENCE. EVER.209. EXCELLENCE. ALWAYS.
Work In Progress
XXX. One size fits. One. Only. (Evaluations. Period.)XXX. Teaching. Individualized. Only. (6 billion people = 6 billion learning trajectories.) (Montessori.)XXX. First impression. Matters. Shapes all that comes. Hard to overcome. (Understatement.)XXX. Jerks. Don’t work with. (Life = Too short.)XXX. Manage [the hell out of] first impressions.XXX. Last impression. Matters. Dominates memory. Hard to overcome. (Understatement.)XXX. Manage [the hell out of] last impressions.XXX. Plain English.XXX. K.I.S.S. (450/8.)XXX. $798. $55,000,000,000. 3,000,000,000. 7AM-7PM. 6:15AM.XXX. Donnelly Weatherstrip rules.XXX. Managers do things right. Leaders do the right thing. NOT.
GE (more or less):
The Sales122: 122 Ridiculously Obvious Thoughts About Selling Stuff
Tom Peters/0402.2006
This list was first prepared for GE Energy sales & marketing people in January. It
started with a half-dozen items, and grew like Topsy. Possibly, given its origins, it’s a little tilted toward complex, engineering-
based sales. In any event, it makes a perfect companion to “The Irreducibles209.” This, too, is effectively a list of “irreducibles.”
Tom Peters
1. “Strategy” overrated, simply “doin’ stuff” underrated. See Kelleher and Bossidy: “We have a ‘strategic plan,’ it’s called doing things.”—Herb Kelleher. “Execution is a systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done. Action has its own logic—ask Genghis Khan, Rommel, COL John Boyd, U.S. Grant, Patton, W.T. Sherman.2. What are you personally great at? (Key word: “great.”) Play to strengths! “Distinct or Extinct.” You should aim to be “outrageously good”/B.I.W. at a niche area (or more).3. Are you a “personality,” a de facto “brand” in the industry? The Dr Phil of ...4. Opportunism (with a little forethought) mostly wins. (“Successful people are the ones who are good at Plan B.”)5. Little starts can lead to big wins. Most true winners—think search & Google—start as something small. Many big deals—Disney & Pixar—could have been done as little-er deals if you’d had the guts to jump before the value became obvious.
6. Non-obvious targets have great potential. Among many other things, everybody goes after the obvious ones. Also, the “non-obvious” are often good Partners for technology experiments.7. The best relationships are often (usually?) not “top to top”! (Often the best: hungry division GMs eager to make a mark.)8. IT’S RELATIONSHIPS, STUPID—DEEP AND FROM MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS.9. In any public-sector business, you must become an avid student of “the politics,” the incentives and constraints, mostly non-economic, facing all of the players. Politicians are usually incredibly logical—if you (deeply!) understand the matrix in which they exist.10. Relationships from within our firm are as important—often more important—as those from outside—again broad is as important as deep. Allies—avid supporters!—within and from non-obvious places may be more important than relationships at the Client organization. Goal: an “insanely unfair ‘market share’” of insiders’ time devoted to your projects!
“Everyone lives by
selling something.”
—Robert Louis Stevenson
11. Interesting outsiders are essential to innovative proposal and sales teams. An “exciting” sales-proposal team is as important as a prestigious one.12. Is the proposal-sales team weird enough—weirdos come up with the most interesting, game-changer ideas. Period.13. Lunch with at least one weirdo per month. (Goal: always on the prowl for interesting new stuff.)14. Gratuitous comment: Lunches with good friends are typically a waste of (professional) time. 15. Don’t short-change (time, money, depth) the proposal process. Miss one tiny nuance, one potential incentive that “makes my day” for a key Client player—and watch the whole gig be torpedoed. 16. “Sticking with it” sometimes pays, sometimes not—it takes a lot of tries to forge the best path in. Sometimes you never do, after a literal lifetime. (Ah, life.)17. WOMEN ARE SIMPLY BETTER AT RELATIONSHIPS—don’t get hung up—particularly in tech firms—on what industries-countries “women can’t do.” (Or some such bullshit.)
18. Work incessantly on your “story”—most economic value springs from a good story (think Perrier)! In sensitive public or quasi-public negotiations, a compelling story is of immense value—politics is about the tension among competing stories. (If you don’t believe me, ask Karl Rove or James Carville.) (“Storytelling is the core of culture.” —Branded Nation: The Marketing of Megachurch, College Inc., and Museumworld, James Twitchell)19. Call this 18A, or 18 repeat: Become a first-rate Storyteller! (“A key – perhaps the key – to leadership is the effective communication of a story.”—Howard Gardner, Leading Minds: An Anatomy of Leadership)20. Risk Assessment & Risk Management is more about stories than advanced math—i.e., brilliant scenario construction.21. Good listeners are good sales people. Period.22. Lousy listeners are lousy sales people. Period. 23. GREAT LISTENERS ARE GREAT SALES PEOPLE. (Listening “skills” are hard to learn and subject to immense effort in pursuit of Mastery. A virtuoso “listener” is as rare as a virtuoso cello player.) (“If you don’t listen, you don’t sell anything.”—Carolyn Marland/MD/Guardian Group)
24. Things that are funny to me (American) are often-mostly not funny to those in other cultures. (Humor is as fine-edged as it gets, and rarely travels.)25. You don’t know Jack Squat about other peoples’ cultures—especially if you are a typically myopic American. (Like me.)26. Are you a great interviewer? It’s a make or break skill. (Think Barbara Walters’ skill at extracting unwanted truths from pros in persona-protection ... in front of 10s of millions of people.27. Are you a great (not merely “good”) presenter? Mastering presentation skills is a life’s work—with stupendous payoff.28. Work like hell on the Big 2: LISTENING/INTERVIEWING, PRESENTING. These are “the essence of [sales] life”—and usually picked-up in an amateurish fashion. Mistake! (Become a “professional student” of these two areas, achieve Mastery.)29. Are you good at flowers? Think: FLOWER POWER! (see Harvey Mackay’s “Mackay 66”—what you should know about a Client; e.g., birthdays & anniversaries.) (My “flowers budget” is out of control. Hooray for me.)30. You can’t do it all—be clear at what you are good at, bad at, indifferent at. Hubris sucks.
“If you don’t listen,
you don’t sellanything.”
—Carolyn Marland/Managing Director/
Guardian Group
31. The point is not to “prove yourself.” (That’s ego-talk.) Let the best person present to the Client—perhaps a “lower level” geek. (“Control freaks” get their just desserts in the long haul—or sooner.)32. The numbers will more or less take care of themselves over the long haul—if the relationship/s is/are solid gold.33. The Gold Standard in selling: INDISPENSABLE to the Client. No other goal is worthy.34. Never stop growing-broadening-deepening the relationship. The key to “indispensability” is to get the Client more and more … and more … and then more … imbedded in “our” web. Hence the so-called “selling process” is only the first step!35. USE THE WORD “WE” … CONSTANTLY & RELIGIOUSLY! (E.g.: “We”—the Client & me—“are going to change the world with this service.”)36. Don’t waste your time on jerks—it’ll rarely work out in the mid- to long-term.37. Genius is walking away from lousy “scores” (deals)—and accepting the attendant heat. Big Business is the premier home to Big Egos overpaying by a factor of 2 to 22 with billion$$$$ at stake. (Think Jerry Levin and AOL Time Warner.)
38. You haven’t a clue as to how this situation will actually play out—be prepared to move fast in a different direction.39. Keep your word.40. KEEP YOUR WORD.41. Underpromise (i.e., don’t over-promise; i.e., cut yourself a little slack) even if it costs you business—winning is a long-term affair. Over-promising is Sign #1 of a lack of integrity. You will pay the piper. 42. There is such a thing as a “good loss”—if you’ve tested something new and developed good relationships. A half-dozen honorable, ingenious losses over a two-year period can pave the way for a Big Victory in a New Space in year 3.43. It’s a competitive world out there. New, innovative products are harder to sell than old stand-bys. Nonetheless, you will be a long-term star to the extent that you are willing to push the harder-to-sell-at-the-moment Innovative Products that cement long-term Client success (Indispensability!) —even if it means a #s hit this quarter. PART OF YOUR JOB: TAKE CLIENTS ON AN ADVENTURE THAT PUTS THEM AHEAD OF THE GAME CALLED (GAMECHANGING—hopefully) COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE!
44. Think “legacy”—what the hell is all this really about for you and the world? (“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” —Mary Oliver)45. THERE ARE NO “MODERATES” IN THE HISTORY BOOKS! 46. Keep it simple! (Damn it!) No matter how “sophisticated” the product. If you can’t explain it in a phrase, a page, or to your 14-year-old ... you haven’t got it right yet.47. Know more than the next guy. Homework pays. (of course it’s obvious—but in my work it is too often honored in the breach.)48. Regardless of project size, winning or losing invariably hinges on a raft of “little stuff.” Little stuff is and always has been everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!—or, “one man’s little stuff is another man’s 7.6 Richter deal-breaker.”49. In public settings in particular, face saving is all. When something changes, allow the other guy to come out looking like a winner, especially if he has lost. (Even if you must accept the egg on your face—he will always remember you!)50. Don’t hold grudges. (It is the ultimate in small mindedness—and incredibly wasteful and ineffective. There’s always tomorrow.)
51. IT’S ALWAYS “THE POLITICS”—wee private-sector deal or giant public sector deal. (Every player, small or large, is angling for something. Master the calculus of advantage.)52. To beat the “turnover problem” in key Client posts amidst long negotiations, invest outrageous amounts of time building a wide & deep set of relationships with mid-level (& lower!!) “plodding” “careerists.” The invisible careerists are the bedrock upon which repeated success is built! (My “Capitol Hill Axiom”: It’s the 24-year-old LA who in the end briefs the Senator right before she goes to the Floor to vote.)53. Speaking of “she”: Gender differences are Enormous—dealing with a woman and dealing with a man are different kettles of fish—you must become an A+ student of gender differences. (E.g.: Men are typically more interested in the short-term “score.” Women are more interested in the long-term consequences.) 54. “LITTLE PEOPLE” OFTEN HAVE BIG FRIENDS.55. This is not war, damn it. All parties can win (or not lose, anyway). And losing bidders can walk away from a deal with increased respect for you and your team.
56. Never, ever dump on a competitor—the Tom Watson IBM glory-days mantra.57. Never forget the “Law of Cousins!” In developing nations in particular, power brokers at all levels are at least cousins! Consideration for a second cousin can pay off big time.58. Speaking of “favors,” jail sucks.59. Work hard beats work smart. (Mostly.)60. REPEAT: HE/SHE WHO HAS THE MOST-BEST RELATIONSHIPS WINS. RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE ESSENCE OF THE WORK OF THE SALESPERSON. THE HARD ... AND LONG ... WORK OF THE SALESPERSON. 61. Mano v mano “hardball” is seldom the answer—end runs based and patient multi-level relationship building via deeper-wider networks win. 62. If the deal is wired from below, truly wired, than the so-called “big negotiations” are essentially irrelevant.63. If every quarter is a “little better” than the prior quarter—then you are not taking any serious risks. 64. Phones beat email.
“Nothing is so
contagious asenthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
65. A THREE-MINUTE CALL TODAY CAN AVOID A GAME-LOSER OF A FIASCO NEXT MONTH. There was always a time when a little thing could have been addressed that headed off a subsequent big thing. As to avoiding that call, didn’t someone say, “Pride goeth before the fall”?66. Be hyper-organized about relationship management—you are in the anthropology business. Study the great pols! Brilliant NRM (network relationship management) is not accidental! It is not catch-as-catch can. (Football analogies are cute—but deep political understanding pays the private-school tuition.)67. Obsess on ROIR (Return On Investment In Relationships).68. “THANK YOU” NOTES: World’s highest-return investment!!69. The way to anyone’s heart: Doing a nice thing for their kid. (But, gawd, does this take a gentle touch.)70. Scoring off other people is stupid. Winners are always in the business of creating the maximum # of winners—among adversaries at least as much as among “partners.”71. Your colleagues’ successes are your successes. Period. (Trust me, my greatest personal success—financially as well as artistically—has been creating a bigger pond in which everyone wins, even if my “market share” is down.)
72. Lend a helping hand, especially when you don’t have the time. E.g. share relationships—the more you give away the more you get in return (just like they say in church). 73. Listen up: “It was much later that I realized Dad’s secret. He gained respect by giving it. He talked and listened to the fourth-grade kids in Spring Valley who shined shoes the same way he talked and listened to a bishop or a college president. He was seriously interested in who you were and what you had to say.” —Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Respect. (I.e., Respect is Cool.)74. Mentoring is a thrill—and the practical payoff is enormous. The best mentors have the whole world working its buns off for them!75. Hire for enthusiasm. Promote for enthusiasm. Cherish enthusiasm. REMOVE NON-ENTHUSIASTS—THEY ARE CANCERS. (“Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm.”—Samuel Taylor Coleridge. “A man without a smiling face must not open a shop.”—Chinese Proverb.)76. IT’S ALWAYS YOUR PROBLEM—you sold it to them.
77. It’s never over: While there may be an excellent service activity in your company, the “relationship” belongs to You! Hence the “aftersales” “moments of truth” are at least as—if not more than*--important to the Continuing Relationship as the sale “transaction” itself. (*I vote for “more than.”) You’ll get your biggest “points” with the Client for being an effective after-the-fact go-between with your company.78. Don’t get too hung up on “systems integration”—first & foremost, the individual bits have got to work.79. For God’s sake don’t over promise on “systems integration”—it’s nigh on impossible to deliver.80. On the other hand … winners clamber Up the Value-added Ladder, and offer ever so much more than “mere” product. ALL SUCCESSFUL SALES PEOPLE ARE IN THE “SOLUTIONS BUSINESS”—no matter how jargony that may sound.
81. “Systems” / “Solutions” selling means grappling directly with “culture change” in Client organizations. (“The business of selling is not just about matching viable solutions to the customers that require them. It’s equally about managing the change process the customer will need to go through to implement the solution and achieve the value promised by the solution”—Jeff Thull, The Prime Solution: Close the Value Gap, Increase Margins, and Win the Complex Sale) 82. Shit happens. That’s what they pay you for.83. This is not a “GE” or “Ben & Jerry’s” sale—it is a Joe Jones/Jane Jones sale. YOU ARE THE “BRAND” THE CLIENT BUYS—especially over the long haul.84. Duh: You make money, the company makes money—on repeat business.85. Master—yes, you—the “PR” Game. “Word of Mouth” is not accidental! You want Word of Mouth? Make it happen! 86. GOAL #1: MAKE YOUR CLIENT A HERO—YOU ARE NOT THERE TO GET CREDIT. (“Taking credit” is for egomaniacs. And losers.)87. “Decent margins,” over the mid- to long-term, are a product of better relationships, not better “negotiating skill.” (Mostly.)
“You can’t behavein a calm, rationalmanner. You’ve
got to be out there on
the lunatic fringe.”
—Jack Welch
88. In the immortal words of ex-GE Vice Chairman Larry Bossidy, more or less, “Realism rocks.” (“Bullshit artist” and “great salesperson,” contrary to conventional wisdom, are Diametric Opposites. “Truthteller” and Great Salesperson is more like it.)89. Be the first to tell the Client bad news (e.g., slipped delivery); his intelligence sources will tell him fast—you want to be there first with your story and to enhance your rep as Truthteller!90. Work like hell to get a reputation as a valued industry expert, to become an industry resource.91. Work the Trade Association angle for all its worth—it may take a decade to pay off—e.g., when you become an officer or are on an important panel or testify Before Congress.92. PAY YOUR DUES IN THE CLIENT ORG AND IN YOUR OWN ORG!93. It’s all bloody tactics.94. You must ... LOVE .... the product! (Period.)95. YOU MUST LOVE THE PRODUCT!96. Don’t over-schedule. “Running late” is inexcusable at any level of seniority; it is the ultimate mark of self-importance mixed with contempt.
97. Women are better salespeople. (See Addendum.)98. Women alone understand Women.99. Actually, Women by and large understand Men better than Men understand Men.100.Women purchasers buy Stories and recommendations.101. Women take longer to become Loyal purchasers, but then stay Loyal.102. Men buy Stats.103. Men decide fast, but are fickle.104. Men & Women are … VERY, VERY … Different.105. Women buy most things. Consumer. Increasingly, professional goods and services.106. Women’s Market is Opportunity #1.107. Boomers. Many, many. Lots & lots & lots of … $$$.108. Boomers-Geezers are very different purchasers than those in other categories.
109. It takes time to get to know people. (DUH.)110. The very idea of “efficiency” in relationship development is ... STUPID.111. MBWA (still) rules.112. “Preparing the soil” is the “first 98 percent.” (Or more.)113. WORK THE PHONES!114. Rule 5K-5M: 5K miles for a 5-Minute meeting often makes sense. (Yes, often.) (Even with constrained travel budgets.) (Thanks, super-agent Mark McCormack.)115. Become a student! Study great salespeople! (Including Presidents.) (“Natural” is a little bit true—but then Naturals are always the ones who study hardest—e.g., Jerry Rice.)116. Become a student! Yes, you can study Relationship Building. So, study … 117. Beware complexifiers and complicators. (Truly “smart people” ... Simplify things.)
118. The smartest guy in the room rarely wins—alas, he usually is aware he’s the smartest guy. (And needn’t waste his time on that “soft relationship crap.”)119. Be kind. It works.120. Be especially kind when there are screw-ups. (There’s plenty of time later to Play the Great Accountability Game.)121. Presidents never tire of being treated like Presidents.
122. Luck matters. So: Good luck!
ADDENDUM: Women Rock … as Salespersons (From Item #98.)
And the answers are?
“TAKE THIS QUICK QUIZ: Who manages more things at once? Who puts more effort into their appearance? Who usually takes care of the details? Who finds it easier to meet new people? Who asks more questions in a conversation? Who is a better listener? Who has more interest in communication skills? Who is more inclined to get involved? Who encourages harmony and agreement? Who has better intuition? Who works with a longer ‘to do’ list? Who enjoys a recap to the day’s events? Who is better at keeping in touch with others?”
Source: Selling Is a Woman’s Game: 15 Powerful Reasons Why Women Can Outsell Men, Nicki Joy & Susan Kane-Benson
Tom’s
60TIBs**TIB = This I Believe
1. TECHNICOLOR RULES! (Passion Moves Mountains!)2. Audacity Matters!3. Revolution Now!4. Question Authority! (& Hire Disrespectful People.) 5. Disorganization Wins! (LOVE THE MESS!)
6. Think 3M: Markets Matter Most. ONLY EXTREME COMPETITION STAVES OFF STALENESS. (You can take the boy out of Silicon Valley, but you can’t take Silicon Valley out of the boy!)7. Three Hearty Cheers for Weirdos. (Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Scott McNealy, Craig Venter et al.) 8. Message 2003: Technology Change (Info-sciences, Biosciences) Is in Its Infancy! (WE AIN’T SEEN NOTHIN’ YET!)9. Everything Is Up For Grabs! Volatility Is Thy Name! (Forever & Ever. Amen.) RE-INVENT … OR DIE! 10. Big Sucks. (Mostly.) (VERY Mostly.)
11. “Permanence” Is a Snare & a Delusion. (Forget “Built to Last.” It’s Yesterday’s Idea.)12. Kaizen” (Continuous Improvement) Is … Dangerous.13. DESTRUCTION RULES!14. Forget It! (“Learning” = Easy. “Forgetting” = Nigh on Impossible.) 15. Innovation Is Easy: Hang Out with Freaks. (Employees, Board Members, Customers, Suppliers, Alliance Partners, Consultants.)
16. Boring Begets Boring. (Cool Begets Cool.)17. Think “Portfolio.” (We’re All V.C.s.)18. Perception Is All There Is. (“Insiders” … ALWAYS … overestimate the Radicalism of What They’re Up To.)19. Action … ALWAYS … Takes Precedence. Think: R.F!A./Ready. Fire! Aim. (REWARD SUCCESS. REWARD FAILURE. PUNISH … INACTION.) 20. He Who Makes & Tests the Quickest & Coolest Prototypes Reigns!
21. Haste Makes Waste. (SO GO WASTE!)22. Screw-ups are … the … Mark of Excellence. (“Do It Right the First Time” Is a Very Stupid Idea.) 23. Play Hard! Play Now! (Cherish Play!)24. TALENT TIME! (He/She Who Has the Best “Roster” Rules!)25. Re-do Education. Totally. (FOSTER CREATIVITY … NOT UNIFORMITY.) (THE NOISIEST CLASSROOM WINS.)
26. Diversity’s Hour Is Now!27. SHE … Is the Best Leader!28. MARKETING MANTRA: Embrace the “BIG THREE” Demographics. (1) SHE … is the Customer. (For everything.) (2) Rapidly Aging Boomers Have … ALL THE MONEY. (3) Green … Matters. (TRILLIONS OF $$$$$ Are at Stake.) (NOBODY … Gets It.) (Mere “Programs” Will Not Suffice.)29. Re-boot Healthcare. (UNDERSTATEMENT.)30. WHAT ARE WE SELLING? “Experiences” & “Solutions” > “Quality” & “Satisfaction.” (The Traditional Value-added Equation Is Being Set on Its Ear.)
31. DESIGN = New Seat of the Soul. 32. Branding Is for … EVERYONE. He Who Has the … BEST STORY … Takes Home the Marbles.33. DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE = Only Difference.34. WORDS/Language Matters … a Lot. (E.g.: Three Hearty Cheers for “Wow”!)35. WHAT MATTERS IS STUFF THAT MATTERS. (Query #1: “Are You Proud of It?”)
36. eALL. (IS/IT: Half-way = No Way.)37. DREAM … Big! DREAM … Enormous. DREAM … Gargantuan. (These Are XXXL Times.)38. THINK MIKE! (Michelangelo: “The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.”)39. There Is Only … ONE BIG ISSUE. Cross- functional Communication.40. Stop Doing Dumb Shit. (SYSTEMATIZE THE PROCESS OF “UN-DUMBING.”)
41. Beautiful Systems Are … BEAUTIFUL.42. The … WHITE-COLLAR REVOLUTION … Will Devour Everything in Its Path. 43. Take Charge of Your Destiny! BrandYou Moment! DISTINCT … OR EXTINCT!44. “Powerlessness” Is a State of Mind! Think: King. Gandhi. De Gaulle.45. Pursue Adventure … in Every Task.
46. EXCELLENCE … Is a State of Mind. (Excellence Takes a Minute.) (No Bull.)47. SHOW UP! (If You Care, You’re There.)48. YOUR CALENDAR KNOWS ALL. (You = Calendar.) (Mind Your “TO DON’T” List.)49. LIFE IS SALES. (The Rest Is Details.)50. Boss Mantra #1: “I DON’T KNOW.” (“I Don’t Know” = Permission to Explore.)
51. Management Role 1: GET OUT OF THE WAY. (Clear the Way.) (“Manager” = Hurdle Removal Professional.)52. Epitaph from Hell: “He Woulda Done Some Truly Cool Stuff … But His Boss Wouldn’t Let Him.”53. Change Takes However Long You Think It Takes. (Eschew … “Incrementalism.”)54. Respect! (Rule 1: Don’t Belittle!)55. “Thank You” Trumps All!
56. Integrity Matters! Integrity = Credibility. (Dennis K. Is a Jerk.)57. SOFT IS HARD. HARD IS SOFT. (Numbers Are Soft. People Are Not.)58. Try Sunny! (Sunny Begets Sunny. Gloomy Begets Gloomy.)59. DISPENSE ENTHUSIASM!60. FUN …Is Not a 4-Letter Word. So, too … JOY. (And … GRACE.)
EXCELLE ALWAYS.