22 March 2010
Unfair, irresponsible and out of order
But who? According to Unite the union representing British Airways cabin crew, it's BA. According to the wider public they seem to have said "right back at ya'". The Unite union members are so convinced that their case is 'right' that they are prepared to bring down their employer to make their point.
Nobody likes a smart-arse
'I told you so' doesn't endear anybody. Yet it's hard not to point the finger and say just that when the arrogant and belligerent ignore every bit of sensible advice, and do whatever they want anyway. The BBC have to be scrupulously fair. They've set up a page to solicit feedback from real people about the BA/Unite situation (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8580121.stm). All they have asked for is the experience of travelers but of course what they are getting is a commentary on the perception of the protagonists. Perception is the only reality.
What would peole say about your business if the BBC happened to focus their attention on you?
There are times when everyone gets a bee in their bonnet: The customer who takes being right too far; the employee who takes more than the biscuit or the contractor who promises the earth and delivers a pile of dirt. Whatever is grinding your gears, don't let emotion get the better of common sense. Simpy start with the end in mind. whatever you are thinking of doing, you know it will play-out; all you have to do is figure out 'how'.
Here's three simple rules:
1 Consider the worst case ending before you begin
2 Listen to interested parties , even if you have to filter what they say
3 Admit your emotions and the just do what is right for the business - even if you don't like doing it
Don't let being 'right' ruin your business. keep your eye on the goal and do whatever you have to do to get closer to it.
If you are a business owner who wants to thrive rather than survive, I recommend joining the ‘Business Success Strategies’ monthly audio coaching programme from BusinessCoaching.co.uk . They are offering £800 of FREE material just to take a RISK FREE trial. Take a look at http://tinyurl.com/yhh6zjb
15 March 2010
We inhabit a world (or so it would seem in the UK) where the straightforward is routinely made complicated and difficult
The function of a health service is to heal the sick. Headlines today suggest that in the UK health service, up to 20,000 people a year die needlessly because live saving (or life extending) treatments are denied due to lack of funds. At the same time £21 billion (yes, billion) was wasted by them on failed schemes to tackle 'inequality'. They are reportedly spending upwards of £260,000 a day on consultants while people are dying for the sake of cash to help them. Clearly the leaders of this organisation are not guided by the simplest, yet most effective question; “Is what we’re doing taking us closer or further away from our ultimate goal?” If their goal is healing the sick then undoubtedly what they are doing is not. Unfortunately it is common to get caught up with similar diversions in any business; when complications get in the way, or priorities appear to compete, then clarity of the true goal has been lost.
Sam is a Tiler
He actually does more than that because he can also plaster, do some plumbing and decoration. While not a fully fledged builder, he is a skilled tradesman with lots of experience. Sam knows what he wants from his business; his goal seems to be to have a steady, sustainable pipeline of profitable jobs, all within his (and his assistants) capabilities. His business plan is simple: Find the work, fill the diary, charge the right price and get on with the job. Knowing that most of his work came from referrals (because he does do a great job), it was an obvious leap for Sam to set up a facebook ‘fan’ page (see
http://tinyurl.com/ye7mgbc) . It’s got lots of before and after pictures and tells you what you need to know. It’s nothing fancy but by golly it works! He now has a thriving business. Because of how the referrals are structured it should continue that way. By keeping it simple and focusing on his core activity Sam has managed to do what bigger businesses struggle to achieve; keep their eye on the ball.
Could Sam get sidetracked with ‘good ideas’?
...(supposed) best practice, spending his time at breakfast meetings, spending money on local adverts or whatever? Of course. It would be easy. But, if he remembers to keep true to his simple goal, and just ask himself; “Is what I’m about to do taking me closer or further away from what I set out to do?” Then he’ll stay on track and continue to do very well.
It’s not that smart and detailed business plans aren’t useful
They can be. It’s not that network meetings don’t produce results. They can. It’s not that best practice won’t lead to performance improvements. They might. It’s just that when they get in the way of the primary goal; when they interfere with the simplest and most effective path to success; then they are a nonsense.
Maybe the £260,000 a day on fees can be justified
In the same way that clever business plans, smart network meetings and lauded best practice can be; but it won’t save any lives.
So what are you doing in your business that might look or sound like it should be helpful, but in reality is stopping you from achieving your real goals?
If you are a business owner who wants to thrive rather than survive, I recommend joining the ‘Business Success Strategies’ monthly audio coaching programme from BusinessCoaching.co.uk . They are offering £800 of FREE material just to take a RISK FREE trial. Take a look at http://tinyurl.com/yhh6zjb
14 March 2010
Did we ever have it so good?
The people of the United Kingdom; and by that I mean everyone who lives here wherever they came from, enjoy a standard of living that the majority of the world’s population envy. Yet it seems the more we have, the more we find ways to suck the joy out of it and turn a silk purse into a sow’s ear.
What is going on?
The press this week made unfortunate reading:
The UK’s largest airline is unable to mage industrial relations without their employees union preparing to strike; and far from celebrating their great good fortune to work with a stable company with a good future, the employees choose instead to sabotage it and their future.
Young people, now described as ‘generation Y’ are variously labelled in the press as divas in the workplace or as wanting every benefit with minimal or no effort. So even those fortunate enough to get a job are making themselves unemployable because of their appalling attitude.
The Government then announced this week that it is considering a 10% ‘death tax’ across the board on everyone’s estate (on top of the death duties already payable). The message is clear; don’t be prudent during your lifetime because those who are profligate will be rewarded and those who are not, penalised.
I defy anyone to stand back and not feel at least slightly embarrassed
...to belong to a society that is so obviously damaged by selfishness, personal greed and a nasty case of ‘scarcity attitude’. It is however understandable even if somewhat depressing: It’s easy to get caught up in a situation and find your parameters defined by your immediate experience rather than the big wide world it sits in.
Businesses suffer from this fate in the same way as our society
I know of a number of business owners who, having got used to trading with their customers for services rendered at a certain rate, got most upset when the customer wanted to renegotiate. Often the customer was lost to a competitor because of a reluctance to do what was necessary to keep the business. I’ve even heard owners say ‘I’d rather not have the business than reduce my rates to that level’. Yet I happen to know these same business owners were negotiating with new customers to supply at the same rates they refused to accept from those they’d been used to trading with.
I know of many employee groups who’ve responded just like the aggrieved BA staff and who have lived to regret it. It’s easy to take the good for granted when it’s there. In more than a decade of interviewing employees of all levels in all sorts of organisations, the number one response by a long, long way to the question ‘What do you like most about your job and organisation?’ is the good relationship between colleagues and a happy working environment. It’s also the most requested change when it’s not there. Creating those relationships and that environment isn’t easy and should not be underestimated. As soon as a company starts to wobble, fears a takeover or getting out-sourced, it starts to go.
I know of business directors who’ve become so complacent that they impose charge upon charge to their loyal customers. The inevitable result is that the customer eventually has enough and looks elsewhere.
These mistakes come about because we fail to FRAME problems
...in the context of the real world, and instead think about them in the much narrower frame of our current circumstances. Don’t let that happen in your business. Always place any problem in the context of the bigger picture; a pragmatic and realistic approach will give you the best chance of hanging on to your silk purse and avoiding that sow’s ear!
Let’s hope we eventually get leaders who start to think this way about our society too!
If you are a business owner who wants to thrive rather than survive, I recommend joining the ‘Business Success Strategies’ monthly audio coaching programme from BusinessCoaching.co.uk . They are offering £800 of FREE material just to take a RISK FREE trial. Take a look at http://tinyurl.com/yhh6zjb
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