Make It Happen

I am writing this as I'm sitting in an airport terminal, enjoying yet another flight delay. In particular, I am sitting in a seat where I can survey all of my fellow passengers. It is very rare that I find an entire three hours (and counting) where I can spend time thinking, writing, and preparing for meetings without interruption. When I need a break, my fellow passengers provide ample entertainment. They fit into several categories:

The angry ones: They pace back and forth, upset at the delay, scowling at the gate attendants, and often raising their voices in anger. Perhaps they haven't realized that weather delays are beyond anyone's control, and no amount of anger can make the incoming airplane land faster.

The time wasters: This group of people are spending their time playing computer games, staring into space, or catching a cat-nap. They haven't realized that once the time is gone, it can no longer be recaptured. And if you spend all of your time waiting, you'll have missed most of the journey.

The cell-phone complainers: This group uses the time to call friends, workmates, and family to complain about the delay. They haven't figured out that most people aren't interested in hearing about their complaints and problems.

The driven do-ers: This is the group that is either using the time to do work, read a journal to actually gain benefit, or spend time on the phone strengthening their relationships. There is a very fine line between this last group, and the first three. It is precisely this difference that determines your success on the job - and in your relationships.

This week's action item: When you are faced with an unexpected delay or a long line-up, how do you deal with it? Why not bring something with you, so that whenever you have the "opportunity" of unscheduled time, you can use it productively.

Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news to register.

Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news

Lester Thurow, one of last century's great economists, coined the phrase (and wrote a book) called "Zero Sum Society". In it, he described an economic system that had a finite limit, where one person's loss would precisely be another person's gain.

Unfortunately, many of us seem to use this mindset as we progress along our careers. Someone's promotion is our loss. Someone's injury is our gain.

Success, however, is absolutely not a zero sum game - it is additive. One of the most interesting examples comes from the automobile manufacturing business. Toyota is eclipsing the large American car companies on many different dimensions: product quality, market share, financial results, and so one. Nevertheless, several years ago Toyota sent teams of engineers to GM to help them improve their product quality. When asked why they did this, they responded that only strong competition will make them stronger.

Trainers and teachers often comment that they learn more when they teach their subject to others. When your mentor helps you with some key advice, both of you gain. And as the author of this tipsheet, I am not diminished by sharing it with tens of thousands of readers. Zero Sum Thinking doesn't work here either.

Zero Sum thinking has no place in our careers. When we see others' losses as our gain, we lose the opportunity to profit from their experience. And when they push towards excellence we are motivated to do so ourselves.

This week's action item: What are you doing to make your staff, colleagues, and manager stronger? Pick one person this week, and find one way to make them stronger. You will learn something when you do so, and they will return the favor later.

Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news to register.

Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news

Were you ever at a restaurant when the service was really terrible? You probably promised yourself that you would not go back. And when the service was absolutely top-notch? You probably rewarded the waiter or waitress with a big tip. Either way, if you were asked about the restaurant, you would have responded with your opinion, good or bad.

While you may not work in a restaurant (or even in a service business), it is a great paradigm for your workplace. In every relationship that you have, whether it be with your staff, peers, manager, suppliers, or customers, there is always a service relationship -- just like the waiter-customer relationship in the restaurant. You do something for somebody. Somebody does something for you. But unlike the restaurant, the quality of your "service" is not reflected in a tip, but in your reputation and market value.

We forget about this service relationship concept because it gets obscured by day-to-day pressures. And it gets further obscured by some of today's business terminology: partnerships, teams, task forces, etc.

To clarify your service relationships, trace your responsibilities through any intermediary roles, to the end customer. For example, a purchasing manager serves the warehouse manager, who ships the product to the customer. A research analyst serves the broker who serves the client. Tracing this service chain backwards allows you to identify (and quantify) your impact in terms of the ultimate end client. By defining the impact on those we serve, we can then describe this impact in our annual review - or in an interview.

This week's action item: When you are next given a task, confirm to yourself who the customer is, their expectations, and how you will exceed their expectations. When the task is done, make a note of your impact: add it to your career file and possibly your resume. When you always exceed expectations, your "customer" will always have something nice to say about you - and will always give you a great reference.

Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news to register.

Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.PersonalBalanceSheet.com/news