Managers and organizations

I have noticed something now for many years regarding managers and organizations.
The going paradigm is that people who work together are not open to sharing ideas, dilemmas and feelings in any big way because they need to "work" and are fearful that others might take advantage of "their weakness".
You know what I have noticed and experienced?
It's a myth!
It's a myth that people have because they are being led by their FEAR- fear of losing control, fear of not knowing, fear of being criticized and so on… do you think FEAR is a good leader?
I think it is a lousy one!
It is good to have some fear around so you can assess risks and actions but that is a LONG way from what you see so frequently in organizations… and that is precisely why I very much believe in bringing a facilitated mastermind to organizations, management teams, so to facilitate business-driven support instead of fear-driven politics.
In my mind, "people who learn to share together learn to succeed together"-it is at the core of the mastermind approach- idealistic  you might say?
Perhaps, but that is where innovation comes from anyway.
I know I can prove that managers who learn to talk to each other out of respect, listen to each other without agendas, question each other without fear---these managers will bring better and bigger business to their organizations.
Quite passionate on this, actually … what do you think?

Here is a cool video clip from TED, you may have seen it as thousands have already…
http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html

Differences are here to stay- great!

How often do are we REALLY aware of differences among people, things, goals,etc.? I think it is a constant challenge to do so as so much of our education is focused on "flattening out", "patterning", copy and past... the mastermind approach that I follow and facilitate is one that LEVERAGES differences in order to gain insights, wisdom and support...

Here is a post from a super-blogger whom you probably know- Seth Godin- have a look- what do you think? I like the way he has put this post together...

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Different people differently

Don't teach your students as if they are a monolithic population of learners. They learn differently, they have different goals, different skills, different backgrounds.

Don't sell to your customers as if they are a fungible commodity, a walking ATM waiting for you to punch. Six of one are not like half a dozen of the other. They tell themselves different stories, have different needs and demand something different from you.

Different voters, different donors, different employees--we have the choice to treat them as individuals. Not only do they need different things, but they offer differing amounts of value to you and to your project. The moment your policy interferes with their uniqueness, the policy has cost you something.

We used to have no choice. There was only one set of data for the student body, one way to put things on the shelf of the local market, one opportunity to talk to the entire audience...

One of the biggest unfilled promises of the digital age is the opportunity to go beyond demographics and census data. Personalization wasn't supposed to be a cleverly veiled way to chase prospects around the web, showing them the same spammy ad for the same lame stuff as everyone else sees. No, it is a chance to differentiate at a human scale, to use behavior as the most important clue about what people want and more important, what they need.

It's a no-brainer to treat the quarterback of the football team differently from the head of the chess club. We treat our bank's biggest investor with more care than someone who merely wants to trade in a bag of pennies. Instead of reserving this special treatment for a few outliers, though, we ought to consider what happens if we offer it to all of those we value.

The long tail of everything means that there's something for everyone--a blog to read, a charity to donate to, a skill to learn. When you send everyone the same email, demand everyone learn from the same lesson plan or try to sell everyone the same service, you've missed it.

A very long time ago, shoe salespeople realized that shoes that don't fit are difficult to sell, regardless of what you've got in stock. Today, the people you serve are coming to realize that like their shoe size, their needs are different, regardless of what your urgent agenda might be.

Posted by Seth Godin on January 27, 2014

Who says you can't find work after the age of 45?

We have all been hearing this mantra for quite a while here in Israel and I assume that it is quite the same wherever you go. Is it true? Well, yes, I think it is…to a great extent, BUT, definitely, definitely not impossible!
I am proud to share my own experience as a coach- about 80% of those who are out of a job and come to work with me as a coach- at least over the last 2 years- have found themselves in a new income-earning situation.
That is a nice statistic, I am proud of it, but I also know that to a great degree it is always a trial and error process and luck does have something to do with it…but not everything.

I have found that it is all about VALUE- showing it, believing in it, knowing how to live it.
I have found that what depresses so many "over 45 and in the job market" is suddenly finding themselves without a "good story", a story about their value, a "story" that sticks.
And it is always there somewhere, it is a matter of getting into that mindset that says "I have skills and experience that can help you" rather than "I am an electrical engineer with 20 years experience". And, of course, this is the opposite of the way we have been trained to talk.

A recent client of mine ,45, was dealt a huge blow when he was dismissed from work after 5 years in a hi-tech company- 6 months at home totally blew his mind, blew his confidence and obviously impacted how he interacted.
In the end he found work quite quickly- yes, he had to "reinvent" how he spoke about himself and experience, but after doing that it went quite well- after less than two months of coaching he was offered a great job and he is already there!
But it was not easy mainly because his mindset was not there. Others were less fortunate.

I would sum up and say that while it is not terribly attractive to try and sell yourself into a position when you are over 45, the first person you have to sell yourself to is….YOU- that is the key but also the hardest client. You definitely, definitely need to build that story that will value yourself and show your value.

What has your experience been with the over-45 crowd in hi-tech companies?

From the Mastermind meeting

In a recent mastermind meeting that I facilitated, one owner of a family- based import company shared the difficulty he had in managing his younger brother who he also employs in his company.
The brother was not living up to the owner's expectations of how to deal with customers, not showing up to work on time, not going after the goals with the vim and vigor that he expected.
Firing the brother was not an option and there were things that the brother did which were to his liking.
The group discussed how one can manage a family member, along with other employees who were not family.
 As can be expected, views and perspectives differed.
This prompted a question in my mind that I have coached around many times for different clients: can and should one consider doing business (or going into business) with a family member or a friend for that matter?
We all know that this is "explosive territory", but on the other hand since trust is such a major component of working with someone, does it not make more sense to work with someone close to you- like a friend or relative- then to engage with someone whom you know less well and are apt to trust less to begin with.
What do you think?

SELLING…

I must admit that for many years I have had a lot of ambivalence around this subject, even though for 15 years or so it was part of what I did (along with marketing and business development).

On the one hand, to my mind there is NO business entity without sales, if you don't want sales then don't be in business. 
Sales to my mind is always the number one indicator if a business is doing its job, of course not the only one, but without sales you ain't going nowhere buddy…

On the other hand, selling has for many years been seen, and even today while the sales function is more complex and differentiated, as a center for "manipulation and technique" in getting others to part with their money… and give it to you!
Yes, I know there is lots of talk and effort about making sales "a match between needs", "education- based marketing", and many other more palatable concepts… but is it really?
Remember that phrase that "he can sell ice to an eskimo"? In Israel, this phrase is still quite common- what exactly does it mean?
That he is so skillful at selling that he can sell people things that they don’t need…like ice for an eskimo?
So, I wonder, how do you see people selling to you, you selling to them, and does this issue resonate with you?

The Global Mastermind for Business and Life (GMBL)

The Global Mastermind for Business and Life (GMBL) is here, I am pleased to say, it has been a long time in coming and…  it has arrived!

I guess it just needed to find the right timing and the right "home"…
Welcome to this group and please do bring your authentic self only, we have little to no interest in "chewing the fat", or for efforts aimed at "looking good" and "sounding important".
We have all the interest and passion in the world for those who are searching to discover, develop and share ideas, methods, insights, dilemmas and philosophies that can lead to better solutions, exciting ideas and break-through concepts and relationships.

The mind is what makes us tick, the heart is what drives us forward and allows us empathy and support for the other… together we aim for collective wisdom, self-improvement---a global mastermind that will have our feet on the ground, our minds in the clouds and our hearts with and together with others.

We value questions and listening as the major tools of use- and let the rest come as it will!
May we all gain and share wisdom and insights up ahead for many days to come!
Let her rip!!

Are you Listening? Are you Understanding?

"We do not see through our eyes alone."- David Ulrich

What a profound thing to note AND what a practical one!
From my experience as a coach, facilitator, manager, marketer and just as a simple human being: we tend to trivialize what is meant by "seeing".
To "see" someone, in my view, is to "experience" someone, it is not a technical process of vision but a process in which we gain information on many levels.
In many, many cases, we are not really listening at all, busier with our own "rebuttal" of what is being said, "checking in" with our own knowledge, values, "safety- comfort zone"- perhaps our own "ego"- to make sure that what is being said is matching up with how we view the world, the business, the issue at hand. 
Yet, to me understanding is a much deeper experience than only seeing (ie, vision) and what is really lacking is more an understanding of what is happening to the other person, less obsessing in what is happening to us.
Can you imagine what our organizations would look like if we listened better, understood more and actually became adept at "seeing" ?