Closing the Gap between Thought and Action

In business, as in life, now it is becoming more and more critical to narrow the gap between thought and action. One of the real advantages of working in the information sharing business is that you have almost instant outcomes by being able to take your thoughts, type them onto a keyboard and get them to the world within a few minutes. It is simply amazing!

This ability to close the gap between the lead times of going from design to finishing projects is becoming more and more critical in traditional businesses. I’m always thinking about how we can do this more and more effectively and at the same time bringing our partners and colleagues along with the process.

Designing the Business that You Want

Designing the business that you want begins with having the right architecture in place.

In undertaking the business transformations in which I have been involved, I am convinced that the thought that has to go into the design, the architecture and the construction of them is absolutely critical in achieving the desired end results.

It all begins with having a vision of what can be accomplished. The next step is then creating the custom-made architecture of that business that supports the envisaged future we have in mind.

To be able to take your vision to successful completion is an amazing and fulfilling accomplishment. To take your passion and create a wonderful business that carries it and makes it manifest is most gratifying, at the deepest level of your being. I know - I have been there.

Compassion and Reason Make for Balanced Decisions in Business

This morning I was reflecting on the lives of two people who had a profound impact on me when I was much younger. Their influence continues today in the way I think about making effective decisions in business.

Both of those people had the combination of two wonderful attributes, namely high intellectual capacity and deep compassion. These attributes and the behaviors that flow from them are wonderful to witness.

In business, the art and the discipline of trying to exercise these two attributes in my own limited way seems to me to be the balance to strive for. Make the best-balanced decision, having engaged in rigorous thought, combined with and informed by taking into consideration its impact on others.

Having the Right Business Infrastructure to Support Innovation

A friend of mine recently returned from visiting overseas. He had an interesting time, but the thing that frightened him the most was the traffic on the roads. He said that people just drove wherever they liked to get to where they were going. They drove “like people possessed” is how he described it.

All the drivers were making up the rules as they went along. Surprisingly, he said there were only a few accidents that he noticed.

I was driving down the freeway yesterday, and I was reflecting on his experience and comparing it to the one I was having. I was hurtling along the road with ease and nothing scary was happening to me, and it occurred to me that this was the perfect example of having a great infrastructure, combined with and in perfect balance with the ‘self-organizing’ principles that my friend had experienced.

As long as you abide by the rules of the road, you can self-organize as much as you like and arrive safely at your destination.

In business, having the right infrastructure allows for freedom of thought and action. It delivers high performing outcomes and encourages innovation and adaptive behaviours that are instinctive, rapid and effortless.

Living in Keeping with my Highest Goals

The shaping of my inner life determines the positive contribution I can make to the kind of business I want to have. I reflect daily on my own inner world, being open to learning, reading good books, generating new thoughts, firing up my imagination with new ideas and insights. This reflection helps me find new ways of doing things that will benefit the people that I work with, the organizations I work in and those who are important to me. It gives me great satisfaction and keeps my world exciting. Every day becomes a new opportunity to grow and live in keeping with my goals.

Taking Responsibility

“I have a medical condition that precludes you from criticizing me.”

When someone turns up at your office and the first words out of his or her mouth are these, you know it is because there has been a blunder of some sort.

The person in question had been involved in a minor error of judgement and he was obviously preparing me for the worst. I was able to laugh of course, and suggest that he get a note from his doctor. Shifting the burden of responsibility to some ailment, even though conveyed as a joke, is indicative of how things seem to go in too many cases.

It got me thinking, though, that taking responsibility for my own actions need not be so difficult. I find that when I make a mistake, it is best to admit it, apologize for it, learn from it and move on. It’s the shortest and best way toward living a life of excellence.

Love the Power that Fires your Passion

I’ve always seen my work as a ‘calling’ or a ‘vocation’. It’s how I was raised I guess. I love my work, and I am passionate about what I do. I know that the primary determinant of a business culture is the business owner and his or her Vision and Values. The secondary factors are the structure, systems and processes that the business owner puts in place to carry this vision and these values. Being a business owner involves tremendous responsibilities to live up to our own ideals, but would you want it any other way? Love what you do, that’s what I reckon anyway.

Build your Self-awareness

I don’t know why people think they are the center of the universe. Poor old Copernicus would be rolling over in his grave - you know, the earth revolving around the sun, not the other way around.

I’m sometimes that self-centered little boy myself, putting up his hand, wanting to be noticed by the teacher. Sometimes in business, we don’t like someone else getting all the attention from the boss. I think a lot of this behavior is about proving our worth and our competence to others.

Doing a great job is the reward, in and of itself. Learning to value yourself and feeling good about who you are produces powerful results in our work relations and our own self esteem. Hope you are feeling good about yourself today, too.

20/20 Vision is Foresight in Business

“New worlds create new people” - David Weinberger.

I started imagining a new way of doing business with employees joined in a “hyperlinked” sort of way after reading a chapter of Weinberger’s book about the web this morning.

A group of us at the annual business planning retreat started thinking about it, brainstormed for about ten minutes and came up with a totally new vision for two of my teams. The Team Leaders were really excited by the prospect of partnerships and connections, shared functions, building on their strengths, working closer together and delivering better services to customers and clients with greater speed and agility. Just another step along the road to high performance.

The Power of Alignment

I was at the annual business planning retreat of my company over the last couple of days and someone said at some stage, “In a healthy organization all the people sing from the same song sheet”.

“That’s it,” I thought to myself. The purpose of aligning everything in your company: Vision, Strategy, Leadership Development, Common Issue Resolution Frameworks, Philosophical approaches etc, is that it enables all the people in the company to be on the same page, telling the same story in a way that makes sense to everyone inside as well as outside the business.

Seeing your business as a whole entity, and not just bits and pieces, gets it moving in the right direction. It’s a bit like aligning the wheels on your car to ensure a smooth ride.

Choose Your Future

I read this great quote today - “You either control your own destiny or let outside forces control it for you.” - Richard Smucker

I am always learning new insights about having inner freedom and gaining control over my own life, despite what outside forces might be dictating. The key to success seems almost simplistic. Get moving, get active, and take an initiative and in so doing, start to learn and see what happens.

I have found it astounding in recent times how this simple choice of “doing” something generates new opportunities for learning and leads to discovering something else. A snowballing effect is created that opens up ever-increasing possibilities by simply starting to move one step at a time.

Welcome

Welcome to the Essential Business Coach blog. Thanks for visiting and be sure to stop by often. I look forward to sharing my thoughts, insights and experiences on the road to high performance. I am excited to help you design and build the success that you want for yourself and your business. Talk to you again soon.