Posted: September 19, 2017 | Categories: Leadership, Self-Improvement

Early in my coaching career I developed an hypothesis: There is no leadership growth without an improvement in listening skills.  So far, this theory has served me well.

If someone challenged me to come up with a  list of people I thought were truly good listeners, I would only be able to think of a handful.  No, I wouldn’t be on that list (unless my wife wasn’t reading it!).Read More…

Posted: September 15, 2017 | Categories: Sales, Self-Improvement

Anyone in Law enforcement will tell you that the most dangerous situation they can encounter is interfering in a domestic squabble. They approach such situations with extreme caution.

In sales, we can run in to the same type of situation. While it may not be life-threatening like a domestic quarrel, how we handle ourselves could easily make the difference between weathering the storm rather than losing an account.  Read More…

Posted: September 1, 2017 | Categories: Presentation skills, Sales, Self-Improvement

How long do first impressions last? I get a variety of answers when I ask that question. I have heard some say that first impressions last forever. Let’s see if we can improve on that:

Experts tell us that when we meet someone for the first time, we form a first impression in 4 seconds. The good news is that this first impression, like quick-drying cement, is not solidified until 30 seconds have passed. That means we have 26 seconds to recover. Once that 30 seconds is up, the impression is locked in, and we now look for things to validate the impression.Read More…

Posted: August 22, 2017 | Categories: Leadership, Management, Team Building

About 15 years ago, I was working in a key position for a worldwide training company. The owners decided to hire a new training director. She was from a large corporation and brought a new flavor to the team. The flavor she brought did not taste good. Sylvia was what is commonly referred to as a “body tripper”.

At first, Sylvia was friendly and gracious to everyone on the team. Then, once she got situated in her position, she began to change. She became aloof, ignored people, wouldn’t listen to anyone, and it wasn’t long before virtually everyone resented her. I said, “virtually”. There were a few people she was very nice too. They were all in top management. She had them snookered. Top management didn’t see what we saw.
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Posted: August 16, 2017 | Categories: Self-Improvement, Team Building

Many years ago I was talking with a client who owned a very successful bond trading business.  He was talking about how fast bond deals were processed.  He said, “In Italy, it can take as long as 30 days.  In France it would take several days.  London can turn a deal within 24 hours, but in the United States the average turnaround time is about an hour.”  I asked him why it is only an hour in the US.  He said, “Because in this country we want what we want fast and we want it now.“  So true.Read More…