Thursday 31 March 2011

Great service costs nothing - wooing and wowing is another matter

I had to get up at 3.30 am this morning in order to catch a flight in Auckland New Zealand so that I could make a meeting in Melbourne Australia, so last night I had an early dinner at Vapor’s Holiday Inn near Auckland Airport. Helen who served me did a great job and I told her so and also mentioned her name when I filled out the service questionnaire that is left on everyone’s table.

When I got to the airport Virgin Pacific’s computers were down however all their staff were great and handled a manual check-in well and we left on time. Great service costs nothing except a little effort!

Wooing and wowing however is another matter and it is not yet normal. What Helen from Holiday Inn and the folk at Virgin Pacific did is normal.

My colleague Paul Dunn is known internationally as ‘The Wizard of Wow.’ Paul will feature in this years changing what’s normal program.

In the Hong Kong intensive that kicks-off the program Paul will be exploring

how to link passion to your business so that your business truly 'radiates' and attracts people to it like a high-powered magnet.

how to set your business apart in stunningly simple ways so that you become the 'go-to' business — the one that most customers choose — in your category and broad location.

why what you do or even how you do what you do are increasingly irrelevant in today's ever fast-paced market.

Why it’s never about a business plan!

Why on the day you started your business, you made a crucial choice — one that might just be harming and hindering you each day.

why bad customers drive out good ones and how to prevent that happening.

how to add buzz, excitement and purpose to your business so that it builds. Effortlessly and simply.

the 6 'must-communicate' things post-GFC (and not one of them is price)

why 'normal' is the worst thing you can be

how to connect to new (and existing customers) in a way that makes them stick with you and spread the word about you

Please enjoy 20 minutes from Paul:



Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

Friday 25 March 2011

When profit is a reason we confuse what with why and therefore our how’s are at best fuzzy!

I well remember the moment 20 years ago when I said publicly for the first time, profit is not a reason for being in business, profit is a result of being good at business.

I was speaking to a group of Chief Executives and although no-one laughed out loud there were plenty of smirks and internal chuckles!

20 years ago I was stating a notion I had. Today it is a firm conviction that I have seen to be true 100s of times over.

Now let me be crystal clear. I am not saying profit is bad or that we shouldn’t make a profit. Profit is good and if you aren’t making one in your business then something is seriously wrong with how you do business.

What I am saying is that profit is a result of being good at business not a reason for being in business. And to be confused about this means we get very fuzzy about how to’s and the consequence is we fail to perform at optimum levels. Paradoxically profits are less than they should be and therefore we are unable to reinvest appropriately in our business nor do what we really could for society.

In a groundbreaking book Start With Why Simon Sinek says: People don’t buy WHAT we do, they buy WHY we do it.

The philosophy Friedrich Nietzsche said: When we understand the WHY the HOW is easy!

Hear this: When our WHY's become clear, our HOW's become easy!

If you are not achieving the results you want in your business right now, more than likely you are not really clear about why you are in business. So Start With Why.

Here are some questions to answer that will help you get clear on why you are in business:

What gets you out of bed in the morning?
What difference are you making to the communities in which your business operates?
What drives you?
What kind of legacy will you leave?
What is the purpose of your life?
What do you really care about?
How could you thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time?

I am in business to change what’s normal because I believe the status quo no longer serves humanity well. I’m with Seth Godin:
The status quo is no longer something we want at work or in politics or in any organization we care about.

Why are you in business?

If you are not really clear please consider joining my unique executive development program, a year of changing what’s normal.


Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

Wednesday 23 March 2011

Living in a revolution

In another great talk here Sir Ken Robinson says we are living in a revolution particularly because of what is happening in technology, culture, and with resources.

He refers to a David Attenborough program on the BBC that asks and answers the question - how many people can our planet sustain? I was intrigued by the answers - 15 billion if we live like most people do in Rwanda and 1.2 billion if we live like most people do in North America!

Sir Ken also refers to a great website The Peaceful Planet.

What could you do today, this week, this month, this quarter, this year, to be more revolutionary and make a greater contribution to the sustainability of your world?

And what will you do?

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here of a year of changing what’s normal and get in touch with me without delay.

Sunday 20 March 2011

What would you do if you ran the world?

Cindy Gallop founded ifwerantheworld.com

She says The single biggest pool of untapped natural resource in this world, is human good intentions that never translate into action.

You can read a short version of Cindy’s story and 49 other great differencemaking stories in SXSW Pokes a free ebook from Seth Godin and the folks at The Domino Project.

Please download it here.

What have you intended that you haven’t yet acted on?

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here of a year of changing what’s normal and get in touch with me without delay.

Thursday 17 March 2011

Missions matter - mission statements don’t

I came across a brilliant blog via a discussion on LinkedIn group Association & Convention Innovators. The blog by Dan Pallotta in Harvard Business Review Do You Have a Mission Statement, or Are you on a Mission? hits the target on why some organisations are thriving, others are barely surviving, and some are going South at a rapid rate, namely talk and no action.

You can read Dan’s blog here.

Here are my thoughts on the pointlessness of vision, mission, and value statements unless they are lived.



In The Culting of Brands Douglas Atkin asks:
What’s your cause?
What do you want to have happen? If you’re not out to cause anything then you might as well go back to bed.


What’s your cause, your mission?
and, did you leap out of bed today with it at the forefront of your mind?
and, are you living it, every minute, of every day?


Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here of a year of changing what’s normal and get in touch with me without delay.

Monday 14 March 2011

Are you turning waste into wealth?

I have been back many times to learn from Fast Company’s
list of their top 50 most innovative companies in the world today.

The 14th ranked company Kosaka in Japan is thriving by turning old cell phones into gold mines.

What waste are you turning into wealth?

Years ago I spent less than an hour in a clients factory and noticed theft and waste were rife and leaders seemingly oblivious. I got their accountant to do a cost benefit analysis. Very soon the company saved 4 million dollars!

There are probably things right under your nose that you haven’t noticed that are costing you big time.

Do a regular check of how wisely you are spending your time, your energy, and your money. And ensure you have systems and processes in place that mean you know exactly (and they do too) how well your employees are spending their time, energy, and money.

My guess is that by doing this you will soon turn a lot of waste into wealth.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here of a year of changing what’s normal and get in touch with me without delay.

Thursday 10 March 2011

“Global ‘family’ of rescuers ready at a moment’s notice”

I only buy newspapers at the weekend preferring instead to receive the headlines of most major newspapers worldwide via feeds to my computer. I also admit I am tired of the bias towards one political party or another in most newspapers (I am tired of politics period!) and the general lack of good news stories.

Today I caught up on two weeks worth of newspaper reading and the headline Global ‘family’ of rescuers ready at a moment’s notice caught my attention.

I then read the story by Weekend Australian journalist Nicolas Perptich. You can read it here.

Nicolas’s story is a fascinating read about urban search and rescue teams (USAR) and how they are always read to step in and serve at a moments notice, in this case to quickly get to New Zealand and help out with rescue efforts following the devastating earthquake in Christchurch.

I particularly like the fact that USAR teams around the world refer to each other as family. They can also be completely self-sufficient for a signicificant period of time.

This story got me thinking. Would am I ready to serve at a moments notice? And who do I regard as family?

Your answers to these questions I am certain will help you get really clear on who you are serving and knowing this precisely is a key to living your best life and building your best business.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here of a year of changing what's normal and get in touch with me without delay.

Tuesday 8 March 2011

Gail Kelly - common sense and civility

Today is the 100th International Women’s Day.

One woman amongst the many making their mark is Gail Kelly, the Chief Executive of Westpac, one of Australia’s 4 biggest banks. She was recently ranked as the most powerful woman in the Asia-Pacific by Forbes.

You can find out more about Gail here and here.

It has not been Gail Kelly’s fame, fortune or standing that has made me sit up and take notice however, rather the common sense and civility she displayed on the ABC television show Q & A on 7th March.

You can watch the full episode here.

What place do common sense and civility have in your business?

I think they are vital for success and sadly they are lacking all over the world.

I salute Gail Kelly for daring to be different.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details of my year of changing what's normal program here and get in touch with me without delay.

Monday 7 March 2011

Emerging Leaders Report by Alicia Curtis

Differencemakers Community member Alicia Curtis has recently made available her Emerging Leaders Report 2011. You can download here. It is brilliant and very insightful.

Adopt the recommendations in her report and I have no doubt you will better engage and retain the next generation of your leaders.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time

then please review all the details here of my year of changing what's normal program.

Thursday 3 March 2011

a year of changing what’s normal

This year is my 20th year of working with passionate and enlightened business leaders to change what’s normal for the good of yourself, other people, our planet, and for profit.

To celebrate I am leading a once in a life-time experience for 50 people.

This unique personal and business development program begins with a 3 day intensive in the “city of life”, Hong Kong, June 23rd through June 26th, where I will be joined by 6 of the best business and relationship builders I know, Keith Abraham, Matt Church, Paul Dunn, Amanda Gore, Allan Parker, and Kwai Yu.

Following Hong Kong I will be spending a day in each participant’s business, providing mentoring monthly on the telephone, or skype, plus each person will have 24/7 access to a leading people engagement system (compatible with whatever you currently do to lead and manage performance) that you will be able to embed into your organisation in your own way.

If you have a deep hunger to:

make a real difference
leave a legacy
do something pioneering, breathtaking, and truly innovative
do well by doing good i.e. thrive in your business and solve a problem in your world at the same time
then please review all the details here and get in touch with me without delay.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community
The Change Master™ - catalyst for changing what’s normal inside corporations for the good of people, our planet, and for profit

Tuesday 1 March 2011

Are you a card carrying member of Generation G?

I read a lot online about Generation C (folk born after 1990) - connected, communicating, computerized.

I don’t believe for a minute however that 24/7 access to digital devices, as great as this is, means we are connected or good at communication, in fact the opposite can be the case.

We are in danger of losing both the art of real human connection and real communication, as well as the big C is my view, compassion!

While I accept the rise and influence of Generation C, I feel the rise of Generation G, where the G stands for generosity, will be a greater influence on the future of the world.

You can find out more about Generation G in an excellent post here by Trendwatching.com

One practical way to embrace Generation G is to become a member, like me via differencemakers community, of Buy1Give1. See how here.

…the future face of capitalism, say authors John Gerzema and Michael D’Antonio in their new book Spend Shift will be defined by delivering value and values. I have been saying this and helping my clients to actually do this for two decades, so it is nothing new, however what could be new is that the masses embrace this new kind of capitalism.

Are you a card carrying member of Generation G?

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community
The Change Master™ - catalyst for changing what’s normal inside corporations for the good of people, our planet, and for profit