Caught Selling
February 8, 2009
As I was in the waiting room of an office, I could see the inevitable. A buyer and a seller were missing each other; the same script being played out. The professional seeking to sell his services is telling the buyer how great they are and what they have to offer. Read more
9 Percent Short
January 29, 2009
Do you know Roko Karanusic? He is one of the top 100 players in tennis. He is not number one. Arguably, he is 90% of Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal, both brand names and highly endorsed stars in the top five in the world. Becoming 99% of what those stars are creates a large gap not only in results, but also in rewards, recognition and rankings. Read more
A Resolution To Remember Your Customer
January 6, 2009
Happy New Year! It is a time of reflection and a time of looking forward. I know there are many who want to forget the last year and many also who have much to be grateful for. Whichever part of the economy you are in, there is still nothing which prevents you from going after your dreams.
I wanted to offer a resolution that is tangible and will benefit you greatly. You want more business and you want more relationships. We are living in the thick of the new economy. How we connect with each other is completely different than twenty years ago. How about having resolution to remember your customer. Here is how: Read more
Business Insanity
December 27, 2008
With a new year upon us, it is a natural time to reflect on the year in review and look ahead to the prospects of a new year. We live in an unprecedented and exciting era of change. As we, at AscendWorks, reflect on our perspective of business and the new economy, here are some observations we have made:
- Mindsets Are Everything: There are two prevailing mindsets we see. The growth mindset and the fixed mindset. The old economy played to the fixed mindset types of workers. Keep the status quo, build organizational structures and refine. It is not so today. The only true mindset which prevails is the growth mindset. It is the attribute of people who are on a continual journey of learning. Technology is now a commodity. The main factor now is utilizing talent and knowing how to put the ingredients for success together. Talent comes from people who have a growth mindset. Everyone else is pretending and scared. They are in the wake of the talented people making new rules and new pathways.
Defending Mediocrity
December 19, 2008
Customers today ignore boring products. Old brands which do not inspire passion or luster are not guaranteed to be around, for customers increasingly value what is novel and stands out rather than what was promoted to be safe, common, and routine.
Many of the institutions we see (yours may be one of them) are intrinsically designed to resist change. When they sense it from new technology and processes, they dig their heels in. They settle on mediocrity. They risk going extinct quickly.
Change is happening everywhere around us. From presidential elections to old models of corporations, others are getting ahead because they understand how the new economy works. The rest are hoping the 1980’s would return. Read more
When You Are A Stranger
December 12, 2008
When You Are A Stranger
Do you look forward to hearing your phone ring? If you are receiving a sale, the answer is, yes. If someone is trying to sell you, then you might not be so eager. We are all doing one of two things every day - buying or selling. Depending on which side of the equation we are engaged in, our posture changes.
There used to be days when the salesman would visit with their suitcase full of goods to a country home. They were welcomed with lemonade on the front porch and the seller and buyer would sit and talk. The stranger became a friend. That was under different circumstances: Read more
Desperate Times Do Not Call For Desperate Measures
December 5, 2008
In baseball, it is known that major league players, though they are at the highest echelon of their profession, always go through slumps. They may go through a drought of hitting whereas they had had streaks of success in the past. It is in those times that baseball players get back to the fundamentals. They start thinking through the micromovements of their swing, stance and approach. The fundamentals were what made them successful in the first place; they cannot violate natural laws for long without having to realign with them.
This is true for golfers, basketball shooters and business people. Yes, in the game of business and life, there will be slumps. Many are due to macro effects. Some are due to ability and talent. Read more
Productivity Glass Ceiling
November 14, 2008
I had the privilege of being in Germany when the Berlin wall fell. My father served 25 years in the military and 9 of those were in the Cold War era of then West Germany. At that time, West Germany was one of the most dynamic economies in the world. East Germany was a communist, economically struggling society. When the wall came down, hundreds of thousands of East Germans crossed into freedom.
One of the lighter sides of the whole ordeal was seeing the disparity between the two German peoples. I can remember traveling down the autobahn. There are no speed limits on the German autobahn. They were made for fast BMW’s and I would love to drive mine there for the pure speed thrill. That was what West Germans were like. Read more
Anyone Could Do That
November 7, 2008
Go to the grocery store and buy all the ingredients you will need. Next, go to Williams and Sonoma and get the best cookware and utensils. Sit in front of the television and take careful notes. Mimic the cook and see if your dinner dish comes out as succulent as you saw.
Are you now a world class cook? Now that you have all the required tools, accessories and instructions, can you serve in the finest restaurants? How about if you read the manual, a good cook book?
What makes a world class cook? If we break down all the elements to their sterile descriptions as we illustrated here, we get a picture, but not necessarily the essence of what it takes to be a gourmet chef. No, there is a much larger price to pay for such excellence that people praise and have demand for. Read more
Make Me Feel Important
October 30, 2008
Everyone has a deep need which they are seeking to fulfill. We all need to feel important. Watch anyone, and if you can identify what makes the person feel important, you will know what motivates the person.
Your customer, your boss, your family and your friends either have a good or bad relationship with you based on how you make them feel important. Otherwise, there is not a relationship. At best, there may be mutual exploitation and utility.
It should not shock me, but it still does. I am incredulous at how business people miss the obvious. They wonder why they lack business when it comes down to how they work with their prospects, the vendors or anyone they run into. We live in an ecosystem of relationships. When we do not do the things which makes the other person feel important, then a relationship is in jeopardy.
Here are they blockades of why people do not give this all important ingredient to making relationships and business opportunities work: Read more
