Read an Excerpt
You Can't Send a Duck to Eagle School
And Other Simple Truths of Leadership
By Mac Anderson Sourcebooks, Inc.
Copyright © 2006 Mac Anderson
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3052-4
CHAPTER 1
Leadership Would Be Easy, If It Wasn't for People
There is one question that every employee will love to have you ask: What can I do to help? So many times as leaders, we assume we're doing all we can do; however, these six words — What can I do to help? — will usually prove your assumptions are dead wrong. The question should address three areas:
1. What can I do to help you serve the customer better?
2. What can I do to make your working environment more pleasant?
3. What can I do to help you better balance your work and family life?
Obviously, it's important to let them know up front that you may not be able to help with everything they ask, but you'll do what you can. In other words, a chauffeur to and from work is probably out of the question.
You'll usually be amazed to hear about a few small things that will cost you next to nothing. You may find their chair is uncomfortable or they need a new file cabinet, flex hours one day a week, a new headset for the phone, or a small space heater in the winter months. The truth is, the fact that you've taken the time to listen to their personal concerns is far more important in their eyes than what you'll do for them. Gallup polled over one million employees who thought they had a great boss and asked them one question: Why? You got it! The number one reason was the boss was willing to listen to what they had to say. Never forget: it's the little things, not the big ones, that will earn the respect of your people.
"Listening is wanting to hear."
— Jim Cathcart
Change Is Good ... You Go First
A while back Tom Feltenstein said, "Mac, we should write a book together, and the title could be Change Is Good ... You Go First." I immediately loved the idea, and we added the subtitle "21 Ways to Inspire Change."
Change is the key that unlocks the door to growth and excitement in any organization. The leader's ability to inspire a culture of change can make or break their success. Tomorrow comes at us with lightning speed, and our competitive advantage is a fleeting thing. Bill Gates puts it this way: "In three years, every product my company makes will be obsolete. The only question is whether we will make them obsolete or somebody else will." Peter Drucker reinforced what Gates said by saying, "Every three years, each product and process should be put on trial for its life; otherwise, the competition will pass you by." Drucker also says that most companies find it easier to come up with new ideas than to let go of old ones.
Have you ever watched a fly bouncing off a window pane, even with an open door a few feet away? Many times the fly keeps crashing into the glass until it finally dies. There are many companies in today's world doing exactly the same thing. They continue down today's path, wearing blinders to the possibility of change — until they die.
Keeping change and continuous improvements on the front burner is never easy. We are so focused on today's problems that we put off planning for tomorrow's opportunities.
Keeping change alive starts with rewarding innovation, risk taking, and creativity. In fact, you need to fail quickly and fail often to stay ahead of the competition. T. S. Eliot said it best: "Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go."
"In the end, it is important to remember that we cannot become what we need to be by remaining who we are."
— Max De Pree
Accept Your Limitations and You'll Expand Your Potential
One of the biggest reasons many leaders fail is their unwillingness to accept their limitations. Ego gets in the way. They feel they're smart enough to do it all and mistakenly feel that what they don't know can be learned on the fly. So many times it's a recipe for disaster, especially for entrepreneurs.
Walt Disney failed many times early in his career. He had brilliant ideas, but his ability to execute them was painfully lacking. He also, believe it or not, was a lousy artist. After the third failure, Disney was finally convinced that, to succeed, he must surround himself with great artists who could bring his animation ideas to life. He also needed his brother, Roy, to handle the financial side of the business. These two moves made all the difference and freed Walt up to do what he did best — using his imagination to plan their future.
I can definitely relate to the Disney story. From 1991 to 1993, we were on a roll at Successories. We had gone from $5 million to $45 million in three years. Then came 1994, and Murphy's Law hit us like a ton of bricks. We had grown too fast and no longer had the right people or infrastructure to handle it. Early in 1995, I realized that I had to make significant changes. After a lot of soul searching, I realized my strengths were people skills and creativity; however, my weaknesses were operations and accounting. To grow the business and rebuild the infrastructure, I had to hire good people who had been there and done that, people who could complement what I did best. This was a very painful wake-up call, but I learned some of the most valuable lessons of my life.
I once heard a quote that offers every manager and entrepreneur food for thought:
"If your company mission is to climb a tree, which would you rather do: hire a squirrel or train a horse?"
Forget Real Good ... Remember Feel Good
I met Tom Asacker at a conference in Hawaii where we both spoke. There was one thing he said that I never forgot. He said as leaders we need to "forget real good and remember feel good."
Today, he said, there are billions of web pages and more going up every day. He once saw eighty-nine brands of shampoo at Walgreens!
Customers are stressed out from information overload and conflicting information. More and more they are relying on their gut — and their feelings — to make decisions.
In fact, he said, it really doesn't matter how customers feel about you and your business. What makes a difference is how your products make them feel about themselves and their decisions. Every psychologist and smart marketer knows that if people do something and it feels good, they'll do it again; if it feels bad, they won't.
Far too many companies are focused on the product and not the experience. We need to replace our brain with our heart, because that's often how people make decisions. Studies have proven that the essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action and reason leads to conclusions.
What do you want? Do you want action, or do you want people to think?
The question you need to ask is "How am I making my customers feel?"
Am I making them compare or care? There's a big difference. Caring and feelings drive action; the other stuff is just a tool. The bottom line is that the really hard stuff is the soft stuff: it's the feelings of your employees and customers.
That, in the end, is your competitive advantage.
"If you throw your heart over the fence, the rest will follow."
— Anonymous
Attitude Isn't Everything, but It's Pretty Darn Close
When hiring someone, start with the premise that attitudes are contagious. Then ask yourself one question: Is theirs worth catching?
I've been in business for over thirty years, and I've come to realize the difference in success and failure is not how you look, not how you dress, not how much you're educated, but how you think!
In my business life, I've watched many very intelligent people fail miserably because they have a negative attitude, and I've also observed just as many people with average intelligence soar to success because of positive attitudes.
Southwest Airlines's vice president of people is often asked the question "How do you get your people to be so nice?" Her answer is always the same: "We hire nice people."
It sounds almost too simple to feel important, but hiring nice people has been the cornerstone of their amazing success in a highly competitive industry. They understand their competitors may be able to match their price and copy their business model; however, they feel that the spirit and the attitude of their employees will be extremely difficult to replicate. Never forget: great customer service is only delivered by nice, passionate, caring employees. There is no other way it can happen.
"Customer service is not a department. It's an attitude."
— Anonymous
The Road to Success Is Not Always a Road
One of my favorite books is Paper Airplane, written by my good friend Michael McMillan, whom I consider a creative genius — and I rarely use the G word. Michael has the unique ability to bring simple ideas to life in an unforgettable way.
The subtitle, "A Lesson for Flying Outside the Box," is something very difficult for most leaders to do. However, history proves that creative breakthroughs in science, technology, and business only occur when people challenge the accepted norm and take action. Innovation comes from leaving the proven map behind to explore new territories.
In Paper Airplane, Michael shares how his sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Hackett, spent the entire week teaching the class aerodynamics. To complete the lesson, she organized a paper airplane contest. The kids were given a sheet of construction paper and fifteen minutes to build a winning plane.
They all went to work carefully folding their paper, hoping to create a plane that would travel the farthest. Before long, everyone was ready to go outside to start the contest ...or nearly everyone. Jeff, a unique young man who marched to the beat of a different drum, hadn't made one fold in his paper. He was staring out the window, thinking. To give him a little more time, Mrs. Hackett told Jeff he could go last.
The contest was interesting on many levels. Some of the planes barely flew five feet while others did surprisingly well. One thing was certain — the line was thinning down, and Jeff was still holding a flat piece of construction paper.
Before long, Jeff was the only remaining contestant. With great anticipation, the class watched as Jeff approached with his craft hidden behind his back. Then he stepped to the line and exposed his masterpiece — a flat sheet of paper. As the class started to snicker, Jeff confidently wadded up the paper into a ball and threw it farther than the leading plane had flown. The crowd went wild!
Michael explains that Jeff demonstrated a new way of interpreting a problem and had the courage to act on his vision. He's never said, but I've always suspected Jeff's real name might be Michael.
One of my favorite quotes that hangs on my office wall is: "You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore."
You Only Get One Chance to Make a Good Impression
Some years ago I had dinner with a friend and met his wife, Terri, for the first time. Our dinner conversation led to the fact that I had started McCord Travel, and she said, "I can't believe it! I used to work for McCord." She then said, "I have wonderful memories of my time at McCord, and I'll never forget how they treated me my first day on the job."
I sold McCord in 1985, and my friend, Bruce Black, stayed on to run the company for the new owner, so I can take no credit for Terri's special memory.
Terri said, "There was something different happening from the moment I walked through the front door, more energy and more smiles than I was used to at other jobs. I was greeted by a very nice young lady who said she was going to be my mentor during the first week, and if I had any questions, she'd be happy to answer them. She introduced me to the people in each department. At lunch she presented me with a gift of personalized stationery. They all went the extra mile to make me feel at home ... and I'll never forget it."
Robert W. Baird, an employee-owned investment company from Milwaukee, was listed by Forbes Magazine as one of the hundred best companies to work for. They believe in the personal touch. New hires are greeted with flowers on their desk, and they also meet with the CEO for a new associates event. The company understands that little things can make a big difference.
Another first impression idea is to send a note and a small gift to the employee's home, welcoming them on board. This way, the employee's spouse (if they're married) is left with a good first impression as well.
Most leaders grossly underestimate the power of a first impression, not only of their employees, but also of their customers. For example, Marj Webber was my assistant at Successories. Among other duties, Marj was responsible for dealing with the various photography companies we used for our prints, cards, etc. One day she came into my office and said, "I've been doing this for a long time, but this is the nicest letter I've ever received." She said she had just placed an order with Alaska Stock Images and received this letter a few days later. Here's what it said:
Dear Marjorie,
Thank you for your recent purchase. We appreciate the opportunity to serve you and look forward to working with you again. We hope you'll enjoy the enclosed gift.
Satisfied customers are our best advertisement, so I encourage you to give us feedback on how we're doing. If we ever disappoint you, I hope you'll let us know; we'll do everything we can to make things right.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or require assistance, please feel free to contact us.
Thank you again for selecting us. It is our privilege to work with you.
Sincerely, Laurie Campbell, Alaska Stock Images
Now, tell me: How long did it take to write this letter and send a small gift? The answer is not long! But the impact was powerful and lasting. It immediately separated this vendor from the competition.
Never forget: with every new employee and every new customer, you have only one chance — just one — to make a great first impression. Plan it. Make it all it can be!
"Giving people a little more than they expect is a good way to get back a lot more than you'd expect."
— Robert Half
Eat That Frog
There's an old saying that says, "If the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning is eat a live frog, then nothing worse can happen for the rest of the day!" Well, I don't know about you, but I think that's a pretty safe assumption.
Brian Tracy, in his book Eat That Frog, says that your "frog" should be the most difficult item on your to-do list, the one where you're most likely to procrastinate, because if you eat that first, it'll give you energy and momentum for the rest of the day. But if you don't, and you let him sit there on the plate and stare at you while you do a hundred unimportant things, it can drain your energy and you won't even know it.
So here's your assignment: for the next thirty days, take a look at your list, circle the frog, and eat that first.
You'll thank me for it.
"PROCRASTINATION is attitude's natural assassin. There's nothing so fatiguing as an uncompleted task."
— William James
Less Is Almost Always More
Two of the all-time greatest coaches in sports history were Red Auerbach, who coached the great Boston Celtics basketball team in the 1950s and '60s, and Vince Lombardi, the legendary football coach for the Green Bay Packers. When I read their biographies, what struck me most was their keep-it-simple philosophy. While other coaches were teaching complicated offense and defense, both Lombardi and Auerbach only had a few plays, but this was the key — they executed the plays to perfection.
Someone once asked Auerbach what magic formula he had for winning games. He laughed and said, "Our secret to success is what I would call 'effective simplicity.' Nothing complicated. In fact, we only have seven different plays, and Bill Russell touched the ball on every one of them."
Under Auerbach's effective simplicity philosophy, the Boston Celtics won every championship from 1959 through 1966 — eight years in a row, a record unmatched since.
Lombardi's coaching philosophy was strikingly similar, and he had only five running plays in his offense but, like Auerbach, executed every play to perfection. He'd often say, "We really don't fool anyone. The opposition knows what's coming, but they rarely stop us because every player knows his assignment, and we've practiced it a thousand times."
Lombardi was fanatical when it came to teaching and reinforcing the basic fundamentals of the game. In his mind, blocking and tackling were the keys to winning football games. In fact, to make his point on fundamentals, every year he would begin his training camp by saying, "Gentlemen, this is a football."
(Continues...)
Excerpted from You Can't Send a Duck to Eagle School by Mac Anderson. Copyright © 2006 Mac Anderson. Excerpted by permission of Sourcebooks, Inc..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
