The conversations occur everywhere. At networking events, church socials, Chamber of Commerce lunches, and telephone calls with others. Everywhere people struggle with the daily grind and toil of life. There is something you can do, that will make you unforgettable to those in your world.Do a nice deed for them. Then walk away. Don’t stick around for accolades, or the compliment, the expression of gratitude and thanks. Just walk away. The result is incalculable. For example. Enter the Godfather. A slice of dialog out of the movie when a petitioner approaches the Godfather to ask for some injustice to be
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Posts by Kordell Norton
Advanced Leadership – Is Chick-fil-a really THAT much better?
Driving by a Chick-fil-a restaurant, my spouse pointed out the consistently long line in the drive up window. The food is clean, good tasting, but is it really something that is so deserving as the rabid fans they seem to draw? Or is it their service, and the moral and ethical stance. Can chicken be moral and ethical? There is a “Flavor of the month” mentality on leadership, sales and customer service results which often looks like chasing ones tail. Throw in a pickle, a fish, or some other factor, and you can dress up the basics of trust, respect,
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United Airlines – One Culture that needs Tinkerbell's Fairy Dust
As soon as I clicked, I suspected I had made a mistake. Yep. I had a parking pass for Disneyland in California. But I was going to Florida. I mentally set in for a defensive fight to get the massive Disney machine to refund the California parking. In less than an hour I had an email from Disney telling me that the refund had been issued and they were sorry about the mix up. When the customer has issues, and you are on your heels in retreat the real mission and intent comes out. Is it about the business
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It is all in Your Head . . . Why negotiation outcomes are determined before you even open your mouth
Apple continues to be the most popular laptop, even with a premium price. Ride a roller coaster and you will pay ten times more for the experience at Disney, than to the local amusement park. Having a Harley-Davidson logo on your motorcycles gas tank can cost ten thousand dollars more, than a competitors product. None of the above three examples really negotiate their prices. Well, maybe a little on motorcycles. For the most part, they have a value in the mind of the customer that allows for above average pricing. When your value is in question, or negotiable, then
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People Gotta Talk – – Know-It-Alls Need Not Apply How Today's Leader Needs to Facilitate More Dialog
People gotta talk! The internet was originally an electronic brochure. With the rise of Facebook, blogs, and various “testimonials websites” (Angie’s List, Rotten Tomatoes) this society EXPECTS, in fact demands to be involved in dialog. Organizations, especially associations, are struggling with the issue of getting the Millennials to join, or get involved. Yet they also struggle with getting and understanding feedback and dialog. People gotta talk! The old “show-up-and-throw-up” sales pitches in the past are going the way of pet rocks. Today the imperative is the trusted advisor who listens TO THE CUSTOMER. (What a novel idea). Prescription without diagnoses
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The Death of the Funeral Business
What happens when you take a former executive who ran Disney’s Epcot Center and you put him in charge of a major purveyor of funerals and cemeteries? The death business is finding new life. As the trend continues to move away from burial plots and caskets, instead savvy funeral businesses are moving into the entertainment business. Gone are the showrooms of caskets (depressing to clients). Now the family can pick those from an electronic catalog. But in place of that, the new trend is a multisensory room that is jam packed with electronic audio and video capabilities. The family
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Is the Twinkie Charismatic?
It is official. The Twinkie is here to stay. In fact, Hostess Brands LLC, in an effort to make sure their product can be profitable has changed the recipe on this soft yellow calorie laden snack so that it has a shelf life of 2 months. WALL-E’s cockroach robot would be so proud. Behind the new changes is a learning experience for Hostess Brands. They have tried changing the recipe in the past when shortages of certain ingredients became constrained, only to hear of revolt in their customer set because of the change to the texture. The comeback of
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Emails Guidlines to Prospects
Subject Line suggestions Anything about you in the subject line will move you to the trash! Use the name of the association they are involved with. “X Tips for [Pain Point]'” Government/regulatory entity they deal with. Idea for [topic/issue that they care about] Named event/date that they know about. A competitor or competing offer. “Hi [name], [question]?” “[person they respect] suggested I connect with you” Strategies for Your Email Content Strategy #1 – Your expertise is reflected New research is showing . . . The regulations affecting . . . 4 missing codes that are result in the greatest losses
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4 Industry Trends for Construction – Why Making Your Business more Charismatic is a Must
In a recent blog by Rachel Burger of Capterra, (http://blog.capterra.com/the-top-6-construction-trends-for-2016/) she talks about the 6 trends for the construction industry in the coming year. Based on her research and input from sources as diverse as Zillow and the Wall Street Journal, you can see that 4 of the 6 are all about Business Charisma. Get ready to pay your workers more. Capterra points out that in the construction industry that pay is lagging behind. Other research hints that pay is not as powerful as other factors. In Daniel Pinks book titled Drive, he points out that what motivates us more
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Who cares if the Handwriting is Horrible? – Thank You card from absolutely no one
You know the envelope. It has “that” shape. This Thank You card, arrived in the mail, complete with mass produced envelope with snazzy logo, and warm colors of ink on the return address. Upon opening the card, there on the inside were four signatures. One replete with it’s own smiley face :-). These were from people that I never even met. Why? The minor surgical “procedure” that was done while under anesthesia made it so if I met these ladies, I was probably drugged into total vacancy. Still the card arrived. “What a nice gesture,” I thought. In my
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