Wednesday 30 December 2015

In search of excellence

On average I read a book a week and have done for 40 years. I admit to skimming a lot lately. A few books really grab me.

Normally over the break at this time of year I cherish reading several books, favourites, or something new my wife has given me as a gift. (she is very good at choosing one that's just right for the time)

I haven't yet got to a book these holidays because I came across this series of slides by one of my heroes Tom Peters. I've looked at 1000's of Tom's slides in the past couple of days, most of which I find boring in themselves, yet I'm captivated by the content. Thank You Tom!

Below are some of my favourites







Be remarkable.
Ian

Monday 28 December 2015

It's corny yet true - real leaders are readers


This time of the year is excellent for getting into (or back into) the habit of reading good books.

Here's my top 21 recommended business books to get you started.

Here's my full recommended list.

Be remarkable.
Ian

PS My favourite books (pictured) are right next to my desk. Where are yours?

PSS I read novels and watch movies too. You?

Saturday 26 December 2015

Fit for the future now

Every modification or change you need or want to make in your personal and business life is only ever one quantum leap away.


As you finalise being ready for making 2016 your best year yet, decide where you want to be, personally, and in your working life at the end of 2016, and then work backwards to the quantum leaps you will take in January, February and March. I find beginning with the end in mind and focusing on 90 days at a time is a great formula for long term success.

As you decide the quantum leaps you're going to take, reflect on where the people you live and work with are at. Maybe better alignment with where others are at should be one of your quantum leaps.

Carefully considering any mismatches, and correcting them, is a key to you being fit for the future now.

The following two screenshots are from Mary Meeker's annual Internet Trends. They highlight mismatches between laws and the current economy, and the views of managers and employees. What mismatches could you eliminate in 2016?




As Daniel Pink rightly asserted there's a mismatch between what science knows and business does. Don't make this mistake in your business. Are you up with the latest scientific discoveries and are you applying them in your own way?

I'm sure you've realised that tomorrow never arrives. There's only ever this moment. You can only ever be fit for the future now. 

These great insights from Eileen McDargh may help you. And if you've not yet devoured Eckhart Tolle's great book 'The Power of Now', start there.

A quantum leap is a shift to a different place. And just like a change of heart or a change of mind, can happen in a moment. 

Of course the impact takes longer. And sometimes our world changes while we're in the air! The good news is that how we respond to what happens to us is mostly our decision.

I wish you well on your journey ahead.

Be remarkable.
Ian

The best way to predict the future is to create it (now).
Abraham Lincoln or Peter Drucker? Brackets mine.

Wednesday 23 December 2015

Monday 21 December 2015

Thursday 17 December 2015

Complimentary ebook - Expect More From 2016



I'm thrilled to contribute for the tenth consecutive year to Gihan Perera's ebook.

I have no doubt that inside you'll find at least one great idea to act on that will help you to make 2016 your best year yet.

You can download this ebook here.

Be remarkable.
Ian

Monday 14 December 2015

The Sharing Economy, Shared-value, and Something Better

The following facts are routinely (almost boringly!) presented today by futurists and others:

- The world's largest retailer (Amazon) doesn’t own a single store.

- The world's largest provider of sleeping rooms (Airbnb) doesn’t own a single hotel.

- The world's largest provider of transportation (Uber) doesn’t own a single car.

- The world's biggest media owner (Facebook) creates no content.

- The world's most valuable retailer (Alibaba) has no inventory.

The above are evidence of 'The Sharing Economy' which is a key component of the new world of work.

At the heart of this new world is shared-value.


I was thrilled when I first read Porter's comment 5 years ago because the idea of shared-value has long been at the heart of my work with my clients and the fundamentals, as I have come to see them, of all remarkable businesses as illustrated below.


…the future face of capitalism, say authors John Gerzema and Michael D’Antonio in their book Spend Shift will be defined by delivering value and values.

We have all seen values displayed on walls and written in annual reports. The failure to live what is said and written is one of the biggest reasons for poor levels of employee and customer engagement, and so defining our values is not just about words, rather it is about defining the actual behaviours, living by them and being accountable.

In my experience when agreed behaviours are measured as part of performance leadership systems not only does greater accountability occur, the corresponding increases in engagement and therefore productivity, mean profound changes in the delivery of value to stakeholders.

None of this happens unless employees feel valued.

In the context of employees feeling valued, living values, delivering value, and sharing and creating shared value, I'll be producing a short and succinct video (less than 5 minutes) every Monday morning in 2016. Then I'll be conducting a People, Process, and Profit Monthly Intensive via web TV that will expand on the videos through candid and convivial conversations based on your questions and input. Through these conversations we'll be co-creating something better together for our personal and business lives.

The above will be complimentary and exclusive to those who register which you can do here.

All will be in the spirt of the following insights attributed to Bruce Lee, and wisdom from one of the great pioneers of leadership development Mary Parker Follett.




I look forward to you joining me on the journey in 2016.

Be remarkable.
Ian

Friday 11 December 2015

Same letters, different words, strong association

You've probably noticed that listen and silent are made up of the same letters. My thanks to my friend and client Rob Zadow from 360 Private for reminding me of this recently.

For me these two powerful words have strong association and are an awesome combination used by every successful leader I know.

Ordinary leaders rarely ask questions yet give the impression that they have all the answers.

Some leaders asks lots of questions and then confuse other people's answers with their own.

Remarkable leads ask great questions and have the common sense to be silent while listening to people as they give their answers.

Be remarkable.
Ian

Wednesday 9 December 2015

Is Your Business at Risk of Disruption? - guest post by Gihan Perera

This is a guest post by my friend and colleague Gihan Perera 


I've had my car for 10 years now, and it's time to get a new car. I mentioned to somebody that this might be the last car I ever buy, and she wondered whether I wasn't expecting to live very long!

Far from it. But I seriously believe this might be the last car I ever buy. Why? Because in another 10 years, we will probably all be using shared self-driving cars rather than owning - or driving - our own car.

This idea might seem inconceivable, especially when you look at how important cars are now in our daily lives.


But that's just our world now, and it will be vastly different ten years from now.

After all, here are six technologies that didn't exist just ten years ago:

If all of that has come into our life in just 10 years, imagine what the next 10 years will bring!

How do you prepare for this future?

In my presentations and consulting work, clients often want to know what's ahead for their industry and their future.

Broadly, the world is becoming "Fast, Flat and Free". In other words:

Everything is moving faster than ever before
We've broken down hierarchies and barriers
Things that used to cost a lot now cost a lot less

If you want to know what could disrupt your business, look at the opposite of Fast, Flat and Free: Slow, Bumpy and Expensive. If you do anything that's slow, bumpy or expensive, beware!

Here are some examples:

1. Slow

Danger words (potential weaknesses): technical, complex, service

If your product or service is technical or complex, computers will be able to do it soon. This is happening in financial planning, where "robo-advice" is a looming threat to the established way of delivering financial advice.

In fact, if it's a service at all, it will first be outsourced, and then possibly even fully automated. We've seen this happen with travel agents, mortgage brokers, customer service, and many other service businesses.

2. Bumpy

Danger words: regulated, licensed, controlled, mandated

These words have protected businesses in the past, but now they are barriers to progress. The taxi industry, of course, is a well-known example. For a long time, it has been heavily regulated and licensed, so it was inevitable that somebody like Uber would come along. In many jurisdictions, Uber's legality is a grey area, but it won't be long before legislation catches up (It's happened already in the ACT).

3. Expensive

Danger words: up-front fees, delayed results, boring

If you provide an expensive service, customers will look for a way to find a more affordable alternative. You might have survived until now because it wasn't easy for them to look elsewhere, but now your competition is just one Google search away. And they are not only doing it cheaper; they are doing it better.

There are many, many examples in healthcare. For example, patients with heart conditions used to have to go to specialists regularly for ECGs and other expensive and intrusive tests. Now, they can use Alivecor: a small device attached to their iPhone that lets them do their own ECG - for about $1 a test.

Could any of this affect your business?

I know some businesses and industries that are sticking their head in the sand, pretending some of these changes won't affect them. But they will!

If you really want to future-proof your business, ask yourself:

"What do we do that's slow, bumpy or expensive?"

Then fix it! Isn't it better to disrupt it yourself rather than wait for a competitor to do it for you?

More great articles from Gihan here.

Be remarkable.
Ian

Monday 7 December 2015

The Now Page Movement

Derek Sivers knows about movements so when I read his post here I got straight to it and created my own now page here.

Then I emailed Derek and now I'm here with lots of remarkable people.

Check out Twitter too here.


What are you doing now?

Be remarkable.
Ian

Friday 4 December 2015

Guaranteeing 2016 is your best year yet

A Unique Master-class

On Thursday February 4th 2016 I'm holding a one-of-a-kind in-person master-class. It's for you if want to achieve better business results in 2016 while at the same time improve the quality of your personal life.

Participation will enable you to:

do less but better

lift the capability of your team without reliance on you

follow a proven process in your own way, that means everyone is consistently bringing their very best to their work

Guaranteed High-Impact & High Value

You'll leave this master-class with a simple yet profound 90 day plan that when you execute, you'll guarantee that 2016 is your best year yet.

And, to help you to ensure that insights, inspiration and ideas translate into innovation, you'll have 24/7 access to my unique online resource centre as soon as you register, and for 90 days after the master-class, plus, we'll schedule a 1:1 online mentoring session for you at a time you decide most appropriate within the 90 days. The value of this 1:1 session alone will far exceed your investment.

Ian is a rare gem. In the ever increasing complexity of today’s modern world, Ian is always there - personally as an incredible supporter, encourager and also as a wonderful navigator of possibility.

In addition, Ian has presented for us on a number of occasions at various team events, providing memorable and immediately actionable insights for us to better our personal and business lives.

Peter Merrett Head of Customer Experience Property and Asset Management - Jones Lang LaSalle Australia

In this master-class I'll be sharing my learning from working with more than 1000 leaders, women and men, in over 40 countries since 1991.

My promise is that this master-class with Challenge Your Mind, Warm Your Heart, and inspire you to do what you've never done before.

Based on What's Proven to Work

We'll be going on a special journey together using my tried, tested and proven framework pictured below that is based on my work with salt of the earth leaders who work bloody hard and are always wanting to increase and sustain momentum.

We spoke about your presentation afterwards and the overwhelming view is that it was the best presentation, in terms of style and content, that we have ever had for our group.

Craig Walden, CEO, Australian Public Service Benevolent Society Ltd and Member The CEO Institute

Places for this master-class are limited. You can register here.

I'm holding this master-class in Ballarat, my place of birth as a small yet significant way of celebrating the beginning of my 25th year as a business and strategic adviser/mentor and professional speaker.

I welcome your telephone call to +61 (0) 418 807 898 if you'd like to discuss any aspect of this master-class or the follow-through resources and mentoring package.

Be remarkable.
Ian

Wednesday 2 December 2015

As a general rule - leadership is proactive and management reactive

For me leadership is fundamentally about inspiring and influencing people. Therefore leadership is by nature proactive.

Modern management is about processes, policies, procedures, practices, and systems, and whether or not such mean it's simple for people to bring their very best to their actions. Modern management is often reactive because we're making adjustments to how things work after the fact.


To increase momentum in your business improve your leadership.

To maintain momentum improve management.

Be remarkable.
Ian