A note from Jim Sirbasku, CEO – Profiles International

Times of change present many challenges for organizations, particularly for front-line managers whose people will be responsible for implementing the change. Pressure to perform is high, as are emotions, and everyone is expected to do more with less.

The times when you need your managers to perform at their very best are the times they are most likely to fail.

This got us thinking: Why do front-line managers fail and what can be done to avoid failure? The June issue of Profiles Advantage offers keen insight on this topic.

• Heard of functional silos and the people who operate behind silo walls? You likely have some of them in your organization. If you do, you will want to read what our CEO Jim Sirbasku says about bringing those silo walls down.

• In “Dare to be Different,” from their book 40 Strategies for Winning in Business, Bud Haney and Jim Sirbasku define Profiles’ culture and detail the duo’s focus on exploiting what makes the organization unique. This is a “must read” for firms trying to find their niche and for managers who resist change because they believe it threatens their existence. One important note, say the authors and founders of Profiles, is to constantly differentiate yourself from the competition.

• Our Product Focus explores two assessments that will get your managers out of their silos and back onto the team at large:CheckPoint 360™ and Profiles Team Analysis™. Our example focuses on the fictional employee with not-so-fictional manager weaknesses, and illustrates how a manager can use Profiles’ products to develop a key worker.

• Are your employees resisting change? Read our Case Study to see common symptoms of this fear, and see how one leader in a large healthcare organization determined a way to make necessary cultural changes using the multipurpose reports of ProfileXT®.

• In our June quiz, adapted from Profiles’ “Five Critical Management Derailers: Symptoms and Remedies,” learn how better training can help at-risk managers perform at top levels. Specific problems and solutions are also offered.

Let us show you how constant evaluation and maintenance will help keep your organization on the success track.

Click here to get the profiles advantage!

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Profiles International

Last night my wife and I had another couple over for dinner . . . we were going to grill out.

After realizing we were out of propane my buddy and I went to our local convenient store to exchange our empty tank for a new one.   We returned and fired it up.   The grill was full with a New York Strip, Cheddarwursts, hamburgers, and salmon.    Soon after we started I realized the Cheddarwurst were done . . . almost burnt so I quickly removed them from the fire.   Next my wife told me that I needed to put the salmon in tin foil . . . never grilling salmon before this was news to me.  I went back out, put the two pieces of salmon in the tin foil and placed them back on the grill.

As time went on the fire continued to get bigger and bigger.  We were doing our best to move the meat around, flip it, and move it the higher rack to distance it from the fire.   Thankfully there were only a few casualties in this process.   The food was removed from the grill and the grill was turned of . . . the only problem was the fire was still blazing.   We figured it would just go down and eventually out, but it did just the opposite, it kept growing.    We then noticed the fire had spread under the grill and the hose that connected the grill to the propane take was now on fire and burning like a wick.

THIS IS NOT GOOD!

I instantly go in to fight or flight . . . I chose fight.   I ran in side and grabbed my cup of water.   As I am running out . . . THANKFULLY my wife and buddy are like “NO . . . water . . . grease”  having a “duh” moment right there I turned back around and grabbed the baking soda out of the freezer.  I dumped what was left in the box on the fire and it didn’t phase it.  Umm . . . plan B!   We knew we needed a fire extinguisher and I started looking for one, but I had no clue where it was . . . AHH.   One of our guest suggested throwing flour on the fire.  I grabbed the flour and started dumping it on the fire . . . it seemed to be making it worse.  OH ****!    I look at the grill and it is still in flames, the entire under-surface is burning, and by now the fire burned through the the hose.

Picture this . . .

One part of the hose is hanging from the grill and is burning like a wick and the other part of the hose is hanging from the propane tank and burning like a wick.   I wasn’t sure what was going to happen if the fire made it to the propane tank . . . and I didn’t want to find out.  FINALLY we remembered we had a fire extinguisher in our camper.   I sprint out to the camper and grab it.  On my way there all I can think about is that I am going to hear an explosion.  THANKFULLY that didn’t happen.   By the time I made it back to the grill my wife had found another box of baking soda and got most of the fire on the grill out.   Using the extinguisher I was able to put the rest of that fire out, as well the fire that was just a an inch or two away from the propane tank.   Again, I don’t know what would have happened if the fire reached the tank.  I don’t know if there are safety measure put in place where the tank is protected from fire OR if the tank would have just exploded.  Had this happened our house would have been toast and people at minimum would have gotten hurt.   Thankfully that didn’t happen.

This all happened in a span of three of four minutes.   The fire was burning at an emergency pace, we knew what result we wanted, but we soon realized that our failure to create a plan and prepare a head of time held us back from putting the fire out in the first minute.

• We had never talked about the “what if” a fire like that happened.
• We didn’t have fire extinguisher in place to handle it if it did.
• Because we didn’t have plan “A” we didn’t have plan “B” in place in case the fire extinguisher wasn’t working.
  
• Because we weren’t prepared I reacted with emotion and instinct . . . I grabbed water which could have made the fire worse.

What I experienced in four minutes last night is what people and businesses deal with every single day.   The difference is the fires of a small business can burn for weeks, months, and years before they are ever noticed . . . some never get noticed until one day it is an emergency.

Take some time to sit back and think about your life or business.

• What fires are burning right now?
  
• What fires are burning that you aren’t paying attention to because they don’t appear to be big?
  
• Really, what are you risking by ignoring these issues?
  
• What needs to happen for these fires to be put out?
• What needs to happen so fires can be anticipated and strategies can be put in place to A) Avoid them or B) Handle them in an effiecient manner.

There are many talented people and wonderful businesses in this world who will never reach their potential because of a failure to prepare for fires.   This is what I do with my clients:

• leadership
• strategy
• process management
  

These three things will help you be prepared, proactive, and profitable . . . and most importantly, you won’t get burnt or burnt out!

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership

Where do you live?

We live in such a fast paced world where information is coming at us none stop.   We as a society are arguably out of control.   We are struggling in each major area of life. (Health, Finances, Relationship, & Careers).

What are you doing to gain control?

• Mentally
• Emotionally
• Physically

Control just doesn’t happen.  It’s something that each of have the ability to create for ourselves, but very few people know how . . . because we haven’t been taught.   We’ve always been told what to do, but few people have been taught how to think.

I try to simplify this never ending battle with two words.   Chaos and Control.

Flickr by Focal Intent

Chaos is defined as:

• Insecurity
• Instability
• Confused
• Fear
• Lack of confidence
• Frustration
• Anger
• Emergency
• Now Focused
• Selfish

Control is:

• Confident
• Organized (Physically, Mentally, Emotionally)
• Calm
• Strategic
• Aware
• Future Focused

Take a minute to think about yourself.   Think about the people around.   Think about the children in your life.

Flickr photo by law_keven

Do you see chaos or control?

I see a few people who understand control.  I see more that don’t.

Control is simply our management of emotions.   It’s about having awareness and recognizing when we are feeling different, disconnected, insecure, or stressed in ANY situation we face.

When we experience chaos we are not capable at functioning at our highest levels . . . Chaos is like poison in our system and until we remove the feeling, it will continue to hold us back.   Also . . . chaos does not mean life altering disaster . . . chaos is anything that takes us out of our game.

Chaos is everywhere:

• Homes
• Schools
• Businesses

When parents are living in chaos they aren’t able to give their children 100% on a consistent bases.   When teachers are living in chaos they ability to reach our children are limited.  When children live in chaos they aren’t able to focus on school and achievement.  When we experience chaos in our work place, we aren’t able to be 100% engaged in our work.  We aren’t able to be the leaders the people counting on us deserve.

Chaos is something that is internal and just appears . . . the only way we can fight it and eliminate it is to take a stand . . . it doesn’t “JUST HAPPEN”.

People who understand this are more effective and productive in life . . . they live more fulfilled.  People who understand this recognize the benefits and are able to help others gain greater control as well.  They are difference makers!

So .  .  . I’ll ask you again.

Where do you live?

If you would like to discuss ways you can gain greater control and reduce or eliminate chaos feel free to contact me.   The first consultation is always free.

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Personal Leadership

Flickr photo by Nesster

As it is extremely important to pay attention to all the great things small business owners do that lead them to success, I feel it can be equally beneficial to understand the reasons businesses fail.

I came across a piece by Patricia Schaefer on the website BusinessKnowHow.com that gives 7 reasons businesses fail.

1. You Start Your Business for the Wrong Reasons
2. Poor Management
3. Insufficient Capital
4. Location, Location, Location
5. Lack of Planning
6. Over Expansion
7. No Website

In a world where we can get pulled in hundreds of different directions, it’s important to know how we can fail as much as it is to know how we can succeed.

To read the entire article with in depth explanation of all seven reasons click here!

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Jason Kiesau Business Leadership Add new tag

Flickr photo by *L*u*z*a*

I’ve casually started flipping through a book that was given to me last year titled “Your Body’s Many Cries for Water” by F. Batmanghelidij, M.D.

This book talks about how many of the health issues we deal with today are a result of lack of water.  The back cover says:

” . . . lack of water in the body — chronic dehydration—is the root cause of many painful degenerative diseases, asthma, allergies, hypertension, excess body weight, and some emotional problems including depression.”

I have been in a never ending battle with water consumption for years . . . it just doesn’t taste that great all the time . . . especially when you compare it to everything else available.   When I was completing my undergrad I almost conditioned myself to zone in on my assignement only if I had a Diet Mt. Dew in hand.  No kidding . . . when I sit down to study or do homework I instantly feel this type of anxiety and thirst that water just hasn’t been able to fulfill, however I will admit . . . I could probably try harder.

So, what if this is the case with water?  What if our lack of water consumption are one of the root cause of all major things wrong with our health?   With out getting too far into the book, my first reaction is that it makes perfect sense to me.   If you look at Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs the number one most basic needs are physiological . . . air, water, food, sleep etc.    We all know what happens when people don’t get enough sleep.   They become grumpy, irritable, and sometimes difficult to be around and this can lead to stress and depression.    How many people do you know that continue to push themselves to the limit and not get enough sleep.   How is water any different?

As I am thinking about water I am telling myself . . . it’s so basic . . . it’s so easy . . . why do we struggle?  WHY DO I STRUGGLE?   Then I start thinking about the business world and water.   I ask myself:

“If water . . . the most basic substance we can put in our bodies could be the key to living healthier lives . . . is there something super basic that we forget about in our professional lives as well?”

In a world that is so fast paced as the one we live in it is very easy to get distracted and focus on other things.  Other things that are appealing and make us feel good, but really don’t help us reach our goals.    Maybe in sales its moving all the other stuff out of the way, picking up the phone and talking to people.   As a manager maybe it’s getting to know your people better.

Some of us do a wonderful job of muddying perfectly clear, pure, and basic water.    What if we didn’t?

What is the water of your business and why aren’t you drinking it?

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Personal Leadership

Recently I read a book by Marshall Goldsmith titled – “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There!

The book is about 20 habits that can lead to great success, but in the end can prevent us from ultimate success and fulfillment.    When I first read the book I believe I was just relating the information to business.  After reviewing the list again, these are great principals for life.

Enjoy!

20.  An Excessive need to be yourself.

19.  Passing the Buck

18.  Punishing the Messenger

17.  Failure to Express Gratitude

16.  Not Listening

15.  Refusing to Express Regret

14.  Playing Favorites

13.  Clinging to the Past

12.  Making Excuses

11.  Claiming Credit We Don’t Deserve

10.  Failing to Give Proper Recognition

9.  Withholding of Information

8.  Negativity 0r – “Let Me Explain Why That Won’t Work”

7.  Speaking When Angry

6.  Telling the World How Smart We Are

5.  Starting with “No”, “But, or “However”

4.  Making Destructive Comments

3.  Passing Judgement

2.  Adding Too Much Value

1.  Winning Too Much

There you have it.   Don’t do any of these things and chances are you will experience an amazing amount of success!

You can purchase this book right now at Amazon.com by clicking here.

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Careers, Personal Leadership, Relationships

I just visited the website for Adam McFarland – Musings of a Balding 26 Year Old Entrepreneur and stumbled upon one of the best videos I have ever seen.  It’s . . .

• Impactful
• Fast Paced
• Inspiring
• Exciting

I had to repost this here.   This might be something I watch every morning as I am preparing myself for the day.  This is another great reminder of the many possibilities life has to offer!

Watch this and ask yourself what needs to happen for you to be the entrepreneur of your most important business . . . your life!

Enjoy!

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Personal Leadership

Since I started my business almost one year ago I have been fairly aggressive in the networking arena.   Even in sales jobs previously I was never a huge networker.   I perceived a lot of the networking opportunities as rubbing elbows with people you don’t know simply to get a sale . . . which is not me at all.  I am all about the relationship.

As I have networked and met some great people I have changed my tune quite a bit and see great value in meeting people and creating genuine relationships.   As I was turning up my activity with physically going to networking events, I started doing the same with social networking sites via the internet.   Four areas of social media and social networking avenues I focused quite a bit of attention on were:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Blogging

Flickr Photo by woodleywonderworks

The biggest realization I experienced that allowed me to open up to this new way of connecting was the validity behind both physical and digital methods of networking.   It’s the new way of building relationships, both personal and business, but some people don’t see the potential yet.

Recently someone pretty close to me was teasing me about the number of  “Friends” I have on Facebook.  Saying that I don’t really know all of my contacts, so what’s the point?  In addition to that I have heard many people make comments about people trying to connect to them that don’t know them or they use to either go to school with or work with and with attitude they would say:

“I wasn’t really friends with them then . . . why would I want to be now?”

Have you ever heard a phrase that goes something like this:

“Jocks be nice to the nerds, because one day they might be your boss!”

The point is . . . you never know what the future is going to hold.  You never know where this little connection will serve to be beneficial for you or them.    Networking is not just about business . . . it’s about life.   It’s about being a resource for those around you, as well creating a network of resources for yourself.   I feel that having a chip on your shoulder and imposing barriers is a very unproductive way to live.

In the book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” Stephen Covey outlines three levels of maturity in life.

• Dependence
• Independence
• Interdependence

Dependence is where we are dependent upon the people, environment, and circumstances around us for our successes or failures.   We don’t give ourselves enough credit OR even worse we blame the world for our problems.   We take very little personal responsibility for anything that is happening.  A VERY unproductive way to live.

Independence we are in control of our future and we don’t need anything from anyone.  We are almost self centered in our approach.   We don’t depend on anyone for anything and that’s the way we like it.  When we live like this we take responsibility for the positives and negatives that happen to us, in fact we might take too much credit OR not hold other people accountable like they should be.  It’s all on our shoulders.  Though this is more productive than being dependent this way of living is ignoring greater opportunity.

Interdependence is the highest of the three levels of living.   When we live like this we understand the impact that we can have on the world around us.  We understand what we are ultimately responsible for what happens to us.  But, MOST IMPORTANTLY we understand that our best chances for success is to be smart about what we have control over and what we don’t.   What we can do and what we can’t.   We know that people working together is the most productive way to accomplish things.   Being productive at this level takes heightened people skills.

• We have to be able to communicate effectively with others.
• We need to be able to adapt to different situations.
• We need to be able to react in a productive manner even when we don’t agree.
• We need to be able to recognize the goal of the group.
• We need to be confident that we can bring value to other people.

Networking is about how everyone can work together to accomplish their goals.    Social networking sites are no different.  Again, you don’t know what the future hold.   This person that wants to connect with you today might hold the key to your success tomorrow.

Don’t throw future possibilities away!

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Personal Leadership

This morning I was bouncing around YouTube watching videos of successful speakers.   Earlier this week, social media expert Mike Sansone recommended that I watch videos of Guy Kawasaki as he is a great speaker and has done a great job at branding himself and his business.   So I hop on YouTube, do a search for Guy Kawasaki, and a number of his videos come up.   The first one I clicked on was a 3 minute clip of a session he did at Stanford University.

He was talking about entrepreneurship and his message resonated not only with me and what I am trying to do in my business, but a perspective I am trying to help my clients gain as I work with them.

Guy’s message was:  Make Meaning, than Make Money!

“My naive and romantic belief is that if you make meaning, you’ll probably make money.  But, if you set out to make money, you’ll probably not make meaning AND you won’t make money.”

He says the core reason you should start a company is to Make Meaning.

I say the core reason you should live your life is to make meaning.   Guy continues to give three ways entrepreneurs can make meaning when they are starting a business.  I think the same could be said for each of us living our lives.

1. Increase Quality of Life.
   
   Live to increase the quality of life, for not only yourself, but everyone around you.  Be motivated to change the world!
   -
2. Right a Wrong
   -
   There is so much BS in the world that we don’t need to add to it.   Help change something, help prevent something, or at minimum don’t create more BS.   Understand what is important to you and live accordingly!
   -
3. Prevent the End of Something Good
   -
   Life is so fast paced that great things come and go, as do not so good things, but what if the good things never left.   Look around you and recognize all the good that is happening and do your part to ensure they continue.

If you read the papers, websites, or watch television it doesn’t take very long to see opportunities for change.   But, what are you doing about it?  Average people like to play ‘Monday Morning Quarterback’.  Average people like to piss and moan about things like they know what they are talking about, but they don’t get off their butts to help create change.

What are you doing to make meaning?

Don’t be average. Make Meaning.

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Careers, Employee Engagement, Personal Leadership

Two weeks ago I did a lunch presentation for our local chamber on Junior Leadership and Attracting Young Workers.

Why?

At the beginning of my presentation I threw out the question:

Why is this such a big deal today?

We briefly talked about two issues:

1. Boomers retiring and leaving the workforce.
2. Personality challenges and differences between older workers and younger workers.  Older workers don’t know why Gen Y does the things they do and Gen Y doesn’t understand their superiors very well either.

I asked them to elaborate on point # 2 and I heard:

• Work starts at 8:00 NOT 8:05
• Work finishes at 5:00 NOT 4:55
• Cell phones need to stay in pockets or not come in to work at all.
• No Social Media . . . Facebook, Twitter, MySpace etc.

There is clearly a gap between both younger and older workers, but who is responsible?   The answer is obviously both, but I think it’s important for younger workers to understand the dynamics of the world they are entering into after college.

• Most people you interview with and work for are going to be older.  So if you want a job, you better be able to adapt.

I heard a story of a kid who interviewed for an IT position who told the person interviewing him that if he can’t check his Facebook at work he is not willing to work for them.

What do you think happened?

SEE YA!

• The fact that you are a college graduate really doesn’t make you that special.   Take a look around and see how many other people are getting college degrees.  You’ve got some competition . . . how are you different the other kids you graduated with?

I was 21 when I got my associates degree.  Up to that point the entire world painted a the picture that my life was going to dramatically change . . . the opportunities would be endless . . . and money was going to come easy.    Wow did I have a rude awakening!

• Unless you are truly amazing . . . which means you aren’t average . . . which means you are doing things different than most other people . . . the real world isn’t terribly interested in your story.   The real world . . . the companies you are sending your resume to really want to know three things:
  • You are focused!
  • You are stable!
    
  • You are profitable!

They don’t care how you grew up, what challenges you have had to over come, what school you went to, or who your parents are.    This stuff might get you in the door, but again if you’re not focused on their business and products . . . if you’re not stable and dependable, this means you do what you are supposed to do and do what you say you’re going to do . . . if you’re not profitable . . . if you don’t know how to make them money . . . you won’t be around very long.

I see and talk to so many young people who have been sold this dream of how life is supposed to be like if you follow the plan only to discover it’s very different than what they were promised.

They feel disrespected, disengaged, and unfulfilled and that’s not doing anyone any good.

If we don’t start preparing younger workers for the realities of the world they’re about to enter how are we ever going to overcome these challenges?   After all . . . these people are going to fill a significant void in years to come.   We need them:

• Focused
• Stable
• Profitable

If we don’t take action things won’t change and everyone (young and old) will be throwing their hands in the air asking . . . WHY?

Jason Kiesau Business Leadership, Careers, Personal Leadership