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Mastering Delegation, The Fire Hose of Productivity

April 24, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Master delegation and get ready for your productivity to take off.

Sadly, I did not coin the phrase “drinking from the fire hose” – that is, experiencing a pace of productivity so exhilarating and empowering yet potentially overwhelming unless you know how to control it.  Not surprisingly, though, I have a story about delegation that was both exhilarating and involved a fire hose. One of the more colorful jobs I recall from working myself through school was with a Fortune 100 manufacturer of construction equipment.  There, I was assigned to Cecille, the head of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Fix Your Processes, Right People, Right Processes Tagged With: , , , ,

Making Business Resolutions Happen

January 15, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Use Performance Factors to make resolutions stick and High Performance happen.

We are at an interesting time.  A struggling economy is forcing many businesses into creative action to improve their position right at the turn of the year, a time when many naturally resolve to improve and do better any way. While this double whammy of introspection still hasn’t inspired everyone to new levels of action and success, in my own practice, I have definitely noticed an uptick in leaders pulling out all stops and resolving to make 2009 a growth year despite conventional wisdom. So what are … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Accountability, Action Planning, Fix Your Processes, Issue Discovery, Performance Factors, Reboot Potential, Restore High Performance Tagged With: , , , ,

A Micromanager’s Guide to Trust, Teamwork, and Communication

October 7, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Trust, teamwork, and communication are key to making accountability happen.

The unavoidable truth is micromanagement makes us feel better and that’s why we do it.  Like the nicotine in a cigarette, it calms the nervous manager, providing information and visibility into situations where it would otherwise be lacking.  We gain our “hit” of easy information, our twitching eases, and we can move on to something else for a while. The problem is that just like the nicotine in cigarettes comes laden with a cadre of things that will kill you, micromanagement too carries a host of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Accountability, Fix Your Processes, Restore High Performance, Right People, Right Processes Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Sabotage Your Business in Ten Easy Steps

July 30, 2008 By 1 Comment
Businesses fail for common reasons. Learn how to avoid them.

The nice thing about cars is they’re predictable. Every model has its own quirks that tend to act up like clockwork, and any mechanic worth his salt can tell you what to look for.  I remember my 1987 Honda Accord (an otherwise exceptional vehicle) had a body joint below each tail light that, as if on cue, rusted out… right along with every other 1987 Honda Accord in the exact same spot. It’s the same with businesses.  Businesses tend to have very common cracks and crevices that expand and contract as the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Issue Discovery, Reboot Potential Tagged With: , , , , ,