Personal Note From Anne:

From Birdseed to Seed Money

Birdseed. Imagine if someone asked you how much money you could make selling birdseed. Seems to be a limited market doesn't it? I mean imagine the retail space you need to rent and the amount per square foot you would need to generate in order to make it profitable.

The only way it will work is with one magic ingredient-one that costs no money. Jim Carpenter knew what that ingredient was so he took the risk and launched his business. This "little" business now does $120 million dollars a year in revenue s Wild Birds Unlimited.

Seems to be amazing, especially when you consider how much business he did BEFORE the internet took off. He had to get all bird lovers in an area to come to his physical store and he did it with his secret ingredient.

You, too, can have his secret ingredient if you tap in to the right part of you. He had passion for birds. He loved all aspects of them and he wanted to share that passion with other bird lovers. That is how he started his store.

His passion drove people to come to his store to buy birdseed as well as to learn about birds.

Other companies have had this magic formula and they went away from it in order to have more efficiency and profit. Think of Sears.In the tool department, they used to hire men that loved to build things. You knew you could go to Sears to find a hammer and get a lesson on the nails and other equipment you need to build the proper deck. Most of the men in a neighborhood bought Craftsman tools.

Then Sears when to building center kiosk for selling and hired high school kids to man their floors. Suddenly the "extra" you went to Sears for was no longer there. See they didn't GO for the Craftsman tools- they went for the information and passion that came free with the Craftsman tools. The use value a person got from that experienced salesman on the floor is what made them fork over the money to buy the tools.

So here is your take action:

1. Define what you are passionate about.
2. Figure out how to let others see and feel it so it has a "use value" to them.

When they feel the "use value" that causes them to want to do more business with you, work closer as a colleague with you or to follow you as a leader.

-Anne

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Quotable Quotes

“Good things might come to those who wait, but only those things left over by those who hustle.”

- Abraham Lincoln

Outcome Focus^® Solution

How to interview as the best candidate for the job

Situation:

Dear Anne, I am looking for a job and wanted to know if you have any advice for interviewing. I tend to get nervous when interviewing and then I ramble on. I am very qualified for the job, maybe too qualified. I have 6 years experience and this job requires just one year. I really want the job though because it will give me greater stability with my family and it fits my interest best. How do I convey that to them?

Outcome Desired:

You want them to see you as the best candidate for the job so they hire you.

HOW TO HANDLE:

The biggest problem most people run in to with interviewing is that they see it as "will they like what they see?" This leads you to view the interview as a judgment session rather than a "let's get to know each other" session.

Here are some quick steps when interviewing:

1. Pretend you are just out to coffee with this person. Your goal is to show this person how you can add value to his organization while at the same time finding out more about him and his company.
2. Don't just answer the question asked- think of what they are trying to find out with that question and answer that. For example, if they say, "give me an example of a conflict you're faced with a co-worker and how you solved it" what they are really wanting to know is "will your temperament and leadership style fit in our organization and will you handle our clients properly." If they ask you, "How do you view teamwork" they really want to know if you will fit in their team.
   
   Now, do you notice a problem there? Many questions you can't correctly answer unless you know how to read the other person and you flush out the question by asking them a few of your own. For example, the interviewer says, "how do you view teamwork?" You would say, "Teamwork can be vital to a company's success. I really love self motivated work as well as working on a team because they each challenge different leadership styles. Is this job one that you see requires a lot of teamwork and if so, is it teamwork across departments or within one department?"
   
   Then LISTEN to their answer! It will tell you which direction you should take in completing your answer to their question- should you focus on teamwork within a department or teamwork across departments.
   
   FOCUS is the key to your answers.
3. Practice your interview in to a tape recorder AND a camcorder. You will be surprised at your fidget signs, your eye contact, and how you answer questions you are not prepared for. Have a friend sit across from you and pepper you with questions to see how you do.
4. DON'T SCRIPT out your answers. Remember this is a dialogue between you and another person. If you script your brain will stumble over words, go in to remote robotic mode, and if they word it slightly different than you practiced, your brain will try to shut down on you.
5. REMEMBER to tie your personal self and professional self together. So many people try to just talk about their work accomplishments but in reality they want the whole you. Tastefully weave in dialogue that shows you as a full person are the best one for the job.
6. Lastly, in your particular case, you mentioned that you thought they might see you as over qualified for the job. What that means is that they might see you as "here today but gone tomorrow because the job won't keep you satisfied." It is your job to tell them why you want this job.

For example, "As you can see from my resume I have 6 years in this area which is even more than the requirement for the job. I am really excited about this opportunity because I know, based on my experience, that I can hit the ground running for you. It will also mean less travel for me which my family will value as well. I would love to work for Capital City Company as your Project liaison."

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Outcome Focus^® Guest Column
Lighting your way with new perspectives!

The "Good" People You're Looking For Could Be Right Under Your Nose

by Dave Anderson

The quest to find "good people" has become a proverb. We complain there's a shortage of "good people" and that the people we have just aren't cutting it. But more often than we want to admit, the good people we seek are right under our nose. Here are a few questions to help you detect the hidden gold currently on your payroll.

Do you have your people lined up with the right job? Often times, poor performers are good people cast in the wrong role. Not everyone has potential for every job. If their talents are a mismatch for the job at hand, quit trying to fix the person and fix the casting error by transferring them to a job requiring their gifts.

Is your environment motivating? People, regardless of how skilled, will rarely perform well in an oppressive workplace. Too many rules, the inability to make decisions, lack of vision, mission and meaning in their work, criticism without coaching, negative superiors, inconsistency and dishonesty from management and tolerating poor performers are just a short list of de-motivators that keep good people down. Clean up your environment or no one will ever stay motivated for long.

Do you know what motivates the person? Most managers try to motivate everyone the same way without regard to the individual's motivational trigger. Poor performers are often the fault of management because managers haven’t taken the time to discover the motivations of each employee and to treat him or her as a unique individual. Stop your generic approach to motivating others and find what makes each person "tick."

Do you give feedback often and quickly? People need to know how they're doing. When they do good work they need to have their performance reinforced quickly. And when they're off track they must be redirected just as quickly. Deficiencies in feedback are one of the prime causes of poor performance. When coaching people, "no news" is not good news.

Are your expectations clear and high enough? Most people will work hard to hit a standard if they understand it. Too often, managers never explain enough about what is expected or by when: performance targets, skill development goals and the like. And expectations that are spelled out are often too low. High expectations create focus and urgency. They fight off complacency and cause people to stretch. People cannot be aggressive when they're confused. Specify clearly what you expect, by when and make sure what you're asking for is high enough to cause others to stretch and don't induce them to coast or nap.

People are not disposable. They are the most valuable assets in your business and often it is management's failure to address these five areas that narrows their vision, shrinks their thinking and conditions them to mediocrity. Assume your responsibility as a leader and fix these areas before you condemn others as "non-performers." The good people you seek for your business may already be on your payroll.

Dave Anderson is the author of over 50 sales and management training programs and the book, Selling Above The Crowd: 365 Strategies For Sales Excellence. He writes a monthly leadership column for Dealer Magazine and publishes the newsletter, Leading At The Next Level. Dave is president of the Dave Anderson Corporation, and LearntoLead.com, a sales and leadership training organization.