| Lorne Rubis

Can You and I Light a Flame For BETTER Character?

201329 Jan
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Posted inCharacter Triangle

Key Point: The answer to the title is a resounding, “YES.”

Take a few scenarios from the news over the past week as examples. First, the Lance Armstrong doping saga, then the bizarre Manti Te’o scandal. We see character breakdown on the big public stage everyday. An athlete cheats and does not take full responsibility. Politicians attack each other instead of the issues. An investment advisor greedily steals from his clients.

We also see the other side. This week I was inspired by the story of Spanish runner, Ivan Fernandez Anaya, who gave up victory to let a deserving opponent win after they accidentally stopped short of the finish line.

There are a number of other stories like the Anaya story. An athlete wins clean and overcomes adversity in doing so. Politicians meet and respectfully connect for greater good. High profile people do show incredible generosity.

We can do little to influence the behavior of others, but we do have control over how we act in our own sphere of influence. Most of us touch and interact with many. We certainly impact them. Sometimes, and more often than we think, we even inspire them by what we say and do. When we constantly work at improving ourselves and our character it moves us forward. That is enormously rewarding.

That’s why I’ve made it my purpose in life to reinforce the values of self-accountability, respect and abundance. They are not the beginning or the end of what defines character. Obviously traits like integrity, perseverance, will, and others make up the entire spectrum. Research tells us that these values are foundational and have extraordinary impact when connected.

With this in mind, I love it when I come across inspiring stories of great sportsmanship and character. I like to share them when I see them. These small incremental wins are oxygen for the character flame.

Character Move:

Think about what stories about character have inspired you lately. Please share them with me and others if you can!

Light a flame in the Triangle,

Lorne

Do You ‘Upsell’ or ‘Upserve?’

201325 Jan
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Posted inBe Respectful

Key Point: Upselling is essentially getting people to do more for your benefit. Upserving is elevating what you can do for others. I promised you more from Dan Pink‘s new book, To Sell is Human, so here it goes:

One of the more dehumanizing terms in business is “upsell.” In my role as a leader I have mindlessly used this term often. For years it has been standard fare in most sales processes and training manuals. But, think about how we feel when we’re on the other side of “upselling.” When we go to buy a retail product, we often have to fend off getting sucked into purchasing accessories and warranties we don’t want or need. A lot of times, post transaction, we get bit by that dreaded bug we all know as “buyer’s remorse.” It can literally make us feel sick to our stomach.

What would happen if in a buy/sell transaction, the focus of the seller was to upserve? This would involve the seller elevating what they could do for the buyer and seeing the buyer as a highly valued friend. We would want to enrich, not diminish the relationship.

Pink suggests always asking two questions to guide us in a buy/sell relationship and in doing so, it reinforces the concept of upserving:

A. If the person you’re selling to agrees to buy, will their lives improve?

B. When your transaction is over, will the world be a better place than when you began?

Now this may seem soft headed and naive for those who cling to old sales models of maximizing margin on every transaction… “Buyer beware,” right? But in today’s world of mega choice and mobility, buyers are too smart and savvy to repeat one sided buy/sell relationships. The person who really needs to beware is the seller.

Character Moves:

Recognize that when we are asking or persuading others to give something of value (including time and focus) for something we have, we are “in sales.” New research suggests that we all spend much of our time “in sales” each day.
Become more proficient helping others move themselves to a better state of being. This is really the new and desired skill of selling.
Most importantly, enter a transaction from the viewpoint of upserving. This involves a genuine care for the benefit of the others involved. It does NOT mean servitude or suppressing one’s individual needs (like making money in a commercial transaction). But it is a different angle and approach that sincerely drives the seller and buyer to reach the “BETTER” for all involved.

Upserving in the Triangle,

Lorne

What Does MLK Mean to You and Work?

201321 Jan
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Posted inCharacter Triangle

Key Point: This past Friday, in honor of Martin Luther King Day in the U.S., our 5-year-old grandson and his kindergarten class went on a short freedom march. What a great, early metaphor for understanding the importance of moving forward. It reminded me that we should all be marching towards BETTER, and sometimes we forget that. Often MLK Day passes by and I don’t give it a lot of thought. Many of us see this is a worthy celebration of a very inspirational and impactful man. And most of us associate Dr. King with his courage and influence during the civil rights movement in the U.S. However, if one does a search on MLK’s quotes, and reads a little more about his grace and insight, we are reminded that few historical leaders have ever been able to use the power of words to stop us in our tracks, and in paradox, propel us forward.

As you know I mostly write about leadership and character in the context of work. Today, it is an honor to connect a little of MLK to those themes. (Yes I know, some of you will point to MLK flaws… He wasn’t a perfect human… Neither are you, I or any person… As an example, Mother Teresa was a notorious “sour puss,” but that does not diminish her contribution).

Character Move:

Reflect on the MLK statements below. What do they mean to you personally and people you work with? If we individually and collectively worked with a vision to make things BETTER for OTHERS, came to really know and understand each other, had the courage to do what was right and to speak and listen to each other with grace and understanding, we would accelerate the progress of organizations everywhere. We could all benefit from some MLK inspiration:

“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.”

“Men often hate each other because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they can not communicate; they can not communicate because they are separated.”

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

”On some positions, cowardice asks the question, is it expedient? And then expedience comes along and asks the question, is it politic? Vanity asks the question, is it popular? Conscience asks the question, is it right?”

A little MLK in The Triangle,

Lorne

Do You Take It Personally?

201318 Jan
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Posted inBe Respectful

Key Point: We are ALL sales people… Get over it. It’s a great thing! Exceptional sales people connect solutions to problems. They love to make things better for others. Those who know me have heard me introduce myself as a salesman, regardless of the formal positions I’ve had, whether it be CEO, COO, VP Quality, teacher, CPO, founder, etc… I’m proud to be a salesman… I don’t mean the pressure-packing guy with white loafers, wanting to manipulate you… I mean the “solution” person that finds your pain point and relieves it.

I deeply respect Dan Pink. His work as a researcher and author has had a profound impact on me. His book Drive, is a reference for my strategy on compensation and motivation. And now his latest book, To Sell is Human, provides additional perspectives that are significant to both individuals and organizations. Why? He connects research to insight and sends us on fresh and important paths. I will blog on a number of key findings from this book over the next few months.

Essentially, sales is a service function. But for the best sales people, this is a deep commitment to make peoples’ lives better. Dan Pink shows us research on this, and highlights two principles that reinforce a dedication to serve others. 1. Make it personal and 2. Make it purposeful. Let’s focus on the first.

My wife rented out a house to a wonderful couple in their late 70′s. As you would expect, age and life had made them bent over and fragile. One day when we visited with them, they showed us pictures of their time, long ago, in Iraq. They stood next to the British Ambassador and his wife; it was a black tie affair. They looked Hollywood glamorous in the photograph, (movie star beautiful… All of them). I always looked at our tenants differently after that. In Pink’s book, he cites a study about radiologists who were much more precise and comprehensive in their findings when they saw photos of the people attached to x-rays they examined. The “pictures” made their diagnosis much more personal, and ultimately effective.

Character Moves:

Personally connect with the people you’re trying to serve. Whether it’s your boss, teammate, partner, customer or whoever you are trying to impact. Do everything to see the humanness of the other person. Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon, ensures that there is an empty chair in every meeting he attends. That empty chair represents the customer and it is the responsibility of Amazonians to recognize the customer has a face, and a life. We need to be able to fully comprehend and fill that “empty chair” in our world with deep understanding. We must care. And you can’t fake it.
Put yourself personally behind what you’re selling. If you don’t give your customers, clients, teammates, partners, your 24/7 availability to warranty what you stand for… Forget it. Then you’re not serious about your commitment to serve. I’m not saying we shouldn’t have protected private time, but I am saying if you are in the service business, it has to be personal… Both ways!

More lessons to connect with Dan Pink to come!

Make it personal in The Triangle,

Lorne

Character Triangle

Our character is exclusively ours. We define it by how we think and what we do. I believe that acting with Character is driven by what I call the Character Triangle.

What, exactly, is the Character Triangle (CT)?

The CT describes and emphasizes three distinct but interdependent values:

Be Accountable: first person action to make things better, avoiding blame.
Be Respectful: being present, listening, looking again, focusing on the process.
Be Abundant: generous in spirit, moving forward, minimizing the lack of.