Mornings Are Better Than Afternoons

Mornings Are Better Than Afternoons! – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

I know this Tip may cause some of you to disagree with me, and that’s okay, you have been wrong before! While I am joking about that, I have discovered something that I wish I had known a long time ago. When it comes to doing business with other people, mornings are better than afternoons. I have noticed that people are more alert in the morning because they have not yet had their day filled with negative encounters. Most people begin to get worn down after several hours of things going wrong in their day.

I have seen people make unwise decisions or say things they later regretted because they were tired. Usually, this is not the case in the morning. Some people wake up more slowly than others, but by the time they get to work or start their daily routine, they usually have a little extra lift in their step. By late afternoon, however, this extra “step” is gone. People just want to go home and be finished with all the aggravation they faced throughout the day.

Each day I have a long list of things I need to get accomplished, so I jot them down on my daily “To Do” sheet. Although I would prefer to sit at my desk in a nice, quiet environment for several hours early in the morning, I have found that is not the best way to have a successful day. When I take care of most, if not all, of my business first thing in the morning, I have discovered that I do not have to deal with a bunch of negative, critical, tired people later in the day.

My banker is happier, my lawyer is more alert, my accountant is in a better mood, and the salespeople I meet in general seem nicer at almost every location I enter. It is much easier to deal with happy, upbeat, positive people than with beaten down, unhappy, miserable people.

I wish we lived in a world where everyone could experience perfect, enjoyable interaction with everyone they meet all day long. Unfortunately, that is not reality or what I have experienced. But the best way for me to have more pleasant interactions with others is to get up early and get started on a positive note. If I am the first one in line, whether it be at the bank, the grocery store, the department store, or any other store, I usually am greeted with a smile and a “Good morning.” If I am the last customer of the day, I am often greeted with an attitude along the lines of, “Oh, brother! Will customers ever quit coming into the store?”

I have also had the opportunity to observe court proceedings on a few occasions. Let me encourage you to get a morning court date if you are ever involved in any kind of legal dispute! By the afternoon, the judge is completely out of patience with everyone. In the morning, he or she has a different demeanor. I hope you never have to be in that situation, but if you are, go for the morning. You will be glad that you did.

This Tip is not meant to be negative, and I do not think that afternoons are bad. I have just seen that the old saying is true: “The early bird gets the worm!”

I also realize we live in a world where you can get things done almost twenty-four hours a day. Online banking, online bill paying, all-night grocery stores, bank teller machines, and post office drop boxes all make opportunities available around the clock for us to take care of business. However, most of the world still operates from 9 to 5, and if you are going to get into that world, I would encourage you to go for the mornings as far as interacting with the public goes. There is nothing like a good morning to start a day right!

Tip: Mornings are better than afternoons!

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Build A Winning Corporate Culture

Build A Winning Corporate Culture – Harvey Mackay ~ / ~

Twenty monkeys wearing shock collars were placed in a room.  In the middle of the room was a pole with bananas on top. Every time a monkey climbed up the pole to grab a banana, it received an electric shock. Soon the monkeys stopped climbing the pole.

Then a new monkey without a shock collar was introduced to the cage, and one of the original monkeys was removed. The new monkey immediately climbed up the pole to grab a banana, but the other 19 monkeys pulled it down numerous times until it got the message that the bananas were off limits. This experiment went on until all 20 monkeys were swapped out from the original ones. They all collectively knew the bananas were forbidden, even though none were shocked. They had created a culture of fear.

One of the hottest words for leaders today is culture. Culture affects perception. It influences behavior, and it shapes our personalities. Creating culture is a concentrated, conscious choice.

Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, said, “If you get the culture right, most of the other stuff will just take care of itself.”

He makes it sound so easy.

Creating a positive, high-performing, people-focused, result-oriented environment does not just happen. It takes a tremendous amount of work and soul-searching and cannot happen without both. It is what separates the highest performing organizations.

Every company has a culture, whether it is intentional or unintentional, desirable or undesirable. Managers and leaders influence culture by the attention they give it. Those who focus on culture tend to create a vibrant environment, while those who ignore culture end up with a struggling and confused workplace.

Hence, leaders must make creating a positive culture a priority. Employees recognize the difference between a workplace where they want to come to work, feel valued, and know what the company stands for. Customers notice as well. 

Leadership author Glenn Van Ekeren observes: “Culture is movable, fluctuating, shifting. It requires continual attention, nurturing, direction and adjustments. Culture doesn’t function well on automatic pilot. It flourishes when leadership is continually passionate about infusing culture with their influence.”

Van Ekeren said you have to be there for people and demonstrate that you have their back and best interests at heart. He mentioned the conversation between Winnie the Pooh and his dear friend Piglet. Piglet crept up to Pooh from behind and said, “Pooh?”

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing,” said Piglet. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

In an organization with a healthy culture, employees should never have to ask to be sure. You cannot build a culture if you are disconnected from your people.

Culture at a company is everyone’s responsibility, but leadership is heavily responsible for its development. Employees and middle managers will learn what their bosses permit and reward and will enforce it on each other. And if management fails at any point, it requires immediate proactive effort to mitigate the damage.

So how does an organization develop a desirable culture? I can tell you what I did when I started my company, and we continue to do six decades later.

Know why you are in business. What is your purpose? Set goals, and make them known throughout the company, so your employees understand what’s important to your business.

Hire thoughtfully and carefully. Ask questions during interviews and make your position regarding expectations crystal clear. I believe in being completely upfront about what we need, because I don’t want to waste my time or theirs training someone who isn’t a team player. And I don’t hesitate to fire an employee who won’t comply.

Lead by example. Staff should look forward to coming to work and doing a stellar job. Recognize and reward people for their efforts. Give credit where it is due. And absolutely be the first to admit when you’ve messed up. Then let folks know how you are going to fix it.

Love what you do. I know I may sound like a broken record, but if you don’t love what you do, you will have a hard time doing it well. Your attitude will show whether you are just in it for the money, or if you really want to make a difference.

Back to the monkeys. Why have a bunch of bananas if no one can ever have one? Your corporate culture will only thrive if the rewards are not only visible but attainable. 

Mackay’s Moral: A team culture is a living organism. Feed it and watch it grow.

Encourage People and Manage The Job

Encourage People and Manage The Job! – – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

It has been said that a successful manager is one who works himself out of a job. Have you ever thought about what that actually means? If I were your employee and you were able to teach me how to do my job with excellence, then I would no longer need you to oversee me or “manage” me on a daily basis. That would free you up to move on to bigger and better things. In other words, you would have managed yourself right out of that particular aspect of your job. However, you would not need to worry about job security! If you can successfully train people to become proficient in their job because of your coaching or managing skills, there will always be a whole host of job advancements and opportunities waiting for you! Cream always rises to the top!

Being a good manager also requires a person to understand personality information. Learning to “get along” with people is paramount in any profession. Training someone to be proficient in a skill set is important. However, each one of us works with other individuals, and that requires people skills. If people do not rise to the occasion in their interpersonal skills. there will be trouble in relationships and job performance. No one can be truly productive for long in a hostile, toxic environment. However, the job still needs to be done. That is where a cooperative spirit comes into play.

I know of a situation where an individual was very proficient in her job, but she could not work effectively with anyone. She isolated herself and would not communicate with the other team members.

Her skill set was proficient, but her people skills were so poor that no one wanted to work with her. She created an environment of mistrust and hostility. She is no longer employed by that company.

As a teenager, I worked with a construction crew. My particular job that summer was to cut blocks that would be used as decorative trim pieces on the outside of the buildings. One of the carpenters spent about an hour teaching me how to do it and then another hour watching me do it and correcting my mistakes until I no longer needed him to oversee me. I now understand that he was managing the job, not the person. Soon he was able to move on to another task that required more expertise than I possessed. As far as working with me was concerned, he worked himself right out of a job! Before he quit training me, however, he also said, “Doing your job will help us all get along better and will help us complete this task faster. Don’t make us beg you to do your job!” That is a simple little illustration, but it communicates what I am trying to say. It was a good experience, and I will always be grateful for it.

However, my ability to work with the rest of the construction crew was up to me. I had a newfound skill set. Then I learned how to work with others in a daily job situation. That took more time!

I realize personality conflicts are real. People do have a challenge in “getting along” with one another. Relationships are important, and being cordial and cooperative with co-workers can make or break any environment. However, even when managing a job, you can still be friendly and congenial toward other people rather than being disconnected.

As a business owner, leader, and manager, it has taken me a long time to see this finer distinction. By nature, I am very people-oriented. But, when it comes to running a business or being involved in other businesses, I must focus on the task and that often puts the burden back on me. Have I been clear in my expectations? Have I gone over the job details or requirements and the expected outcomes? Have I created SOPs to help the employee know how to get the job done correctly? Have I communicated in a friendly manner, answering questions and explaining personal expectations? This requires a lot of thought, experience, and wisdom!

I have discovered that when I do all that, it makes relationships much better. If there is an issue, I will say to the person involved, “This has nothing to do with you personally, but it has everything to do with the job we are trying to accomplish. Let’s stay focused on how to succeed at the task at hand so both of us will enjoy what we are doing more.”

Remembering to manage both the task at hand as well as the people involved has produced excellent results for me, and I am confident that it will for you, too.

Tip: Encourage people and manage the job!

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Building Quality Relationships and Successful Sales Depends Upon You

Building Quality Relationships and Successful Sales Depends Upon You! – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

We all want to have healthy, happy relationships with the people we know and love and meet every day. We all want to be successful in whatever we promote or sell each day. Whether we realize it or not, we are all constantly doing presentations to everyone we meet.

Building strong connections can be hard work. I have come to see that if I desire to have a quality relationship or a good influence on someone, the majority of the responsibility will be mine. That does not totally relieve other people from their part. But, if I really want an interaction to succeed, I have to approach it and work at it as though everything depends upon me. Maybe an illustration will help.

When I am driving a car, there are other people all around me who are driving their cars, too. The other drivers are not primarily focused on me. They are focused on their own transportation needs. However, as far as the safety and progress of my own trip goes, it largely depends upon me. If I am alert and careful in traffic, I will have a better chance of being safe and moving forward to my desired destination. I cannot expect other people around me to make my trip successful.

The same is true in the world of sales. You cannot determine how you go about selling on the basis of how you are feeling at the moment or what a potential prospect says or does not say. W. Clement Stone, author and one of the gurus of the PMA movement (Positive Mental Attitude) once said, “Sales are dependent upon the attitude of the salesperson – not the attitude of the prospect.”

Again, that puts the burden back on me to work as though everything depends upon me. Oftentimes it will.

This is very similar to a relationship. As you are moving along in your relationships, you must approach the journey as though it depends upon you. How you act, what you say, your thoughtfulness, your kindness, your words of encouragement, and your attitude, all go into the process of making a relationship succeed or fail. I don’t know about you, but I want to be the kind of person that others are happy to see come, sad to see go, and excited about having back. Wouldn’t that be a great thing for someone to say about you? That would be a commentary worth all of us having!

Naturally there are different levels of closeness ranging from the casual acquaintance to that with a mate or family member. This week, why not step back and take a look at your relationships and the way you go about trying to connect with people? It might be a good idea to make a list and even break it down into two categories: close relationships and casual acquaintances. If you do not take the time and effort to determine who you want to be close with, I can assure you that it will never happen by accident.

As I said earlier, close, warm, intimate relationships and friendships require time, effort and hard work. So do successful sales. The more you let your customer know you genuinely care about them the better off you will be. The old saying is still true: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care!”

Good connections with family, friend and business associates are painful at times but they are also very rewarding. If you want to have quality relationships in your life, put the burden back on yourself because that is the only area you can completely control.

Start taking the necessary steps to say, act and do what it takes to connect in a healthy manner with other people. After all, in the end, connecting successfully with other people is what life is truly all about.

Tip: Building quality relationships and successful sales depends upon you!

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Confrontation Can Clean The Air

Confrontation Can Clean The Air – Harvey Mackay ~ / ~

Lucy is chasing Charlie Brown in a “Peanuts” cartoon yelling, “It’s no use running! I’ll get you! I’ll knock your block off!”

Charlie then turns around and says, “Wait a minute! Hold everything! We can’t carry on like this! We have no right to act this way … The world is filled with problems …. People hurting other people … people not understanding other people … Now, if we as children can’t solve what are relative minor problems, how can we ever expect to …”

In the next frame Lucy punches Charlie Brown and explains to her friend, “I had to hit him quick … he was beginning to make sense!”

Unlike most of us, Lucy clearly is not afraid of confrontation. I suspect that most would prefer to avoid confrontation. It is more in our nature to get out of the way.

NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw, who saw his share of confrontation on the field, said, “I don’t like confrontation.” He’s on Team Charlie Brown.

But NFL coaching great Bill Parcells disagreed, saying, “I think confrontation is healthy, because it clears the air very quickly.” Score one for Team Lucy.

Confrontations can be difficult but are a very essential aspect of relationships. The most essential aspect of confrontation is honest communication, clarity and confession.

When confrontation is handled properly, it establishes clear lines of communication. It should never be about punishing or humiliating people. You want to express yourself without blaming others.

Duke University basketball Hall-of-Famer Mike Krzyzewski said, “Confrontation simply means meeting the truth head on.”

It starts with overcoming your fear of confrontation. Most of us think of confrontation in negative terms – people who are assertive, aggressive, hostile and so on. We’re focused on the outcome instead of the issues. One of the best ways to overcome your fear of confrontation is to prepare for it. What do you want to say? Think about what you want to accomplish from the conversation. What is your goal? Do you want to make a specific point?

If you enter any confrontation in attack mode, chances are you’re not going to get a satisfactory result.

Glenn Van Ekeren in his book “Little Leadership Lessons” outlines some simple yet profound considerations he has found useful that I would like to expound on.

Be factual. Do you have the complete story, including the other side? If not, ask and then listen. Avoid rumors and perceptions.

Be fair. Confrontation is not a ticket for personal attack. It should always be about the issues. Accept responsibility if you were in the wrong. Don’t make it into a competition. Look for solutions together. Keep in control of your emotions.

Be firm and honest. Too often people hide their feelings and bite their tongue because they don’t want to offend anyone. Wrong approach. Tell it as you see it – with tact and compassion. People will appreciate your honesty.

Be respectful and polite. Be approachable, pleasant and non-argumentative. Let people know you appreciate and care about them. Be calm. Don’t lose your cool. I repeat, don’t make it personal.

If all else fails and the other person isn’t willing to have a constructive conversation, it’s ok to simply walk away and revisit things at a later time when both parties have had time to mull things over.

Of course, there are occasions when immediate action is required, as illustrated by this popular legend of the radio transmission between the British and the Irish off the coast of Kerry:

IRISH: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the South, to avoid a collision.

BRITISH: Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision.

IRISH: Negative. You will have to divert your course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.

BRITISH: This is the Captain of a British navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.

IRISH: Negative. I say again. You will have to divert YOUR course.

BRITISH: THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER HMS BRITANNIA, THE SECOND LARGEST SHIP IN THE BRITISH ATLANTIC FLEET. WE ARE ACCOMPANIED BY THREE DESTROYERS, THREE CRUISERS, AND NUMEROUS SUPPORT VESSELS. I DEMAND THAT YOU CHANGE YOUR COURSE 15 DEGREES NORTH, I SAY AGAIN, THAT IS 15 DEGREES NORTH, OR COUNTER-MEASURES WILL BE UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THIS SHIP.

IRISH: We are a lighthouse. Your call.

Mackay’s Moral: You can’t change what you refuse to confront.

Listen

Listen! – – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

I once saw a Dennis the Menace cartoon in the newspaper. As Dennis and Margaret were talking to each other, she was holding up a doll. Evidently she had just told him that it was her new “talking” doll. In the caption under the next frame Dennis said, “Margaret, you don’t need a doll that can talk. You need a doll that can listen!” Of course, Dennis was inferring Margaret was a chatterbox.

Over the years I have come to believe that listening is one of the most difficult, gut-wrenching, challenging skills for any person to develop. I am a professional public speaker by vocation. Having been one who talks more than he listens, I have been painfully aware that learning to listen to other people is hard work and requires focus and a lot of self-discipline. However, it pays rich rewards, both personally and financially. Let me explain.

When I am talking with someone in my family or to a close friend, I have noticed that listening is the most important aspect of the conversation that I can provide for them. I have come to realize that very few people want my advice or my “profound wisdom.” Most people just want to express themselves and to be heard.

Being quiet and attentive while someone is speaking to me is of paramount importance. It is equally important to let them know I am actually listening while they are speaking by occasionally injecting something like, “Mmm,” or “Wow!” or “Really?” That lets them know that I am not daydreaming, but rather that I am paying attention to what they are saying.

There is another aspect of listening that is part of the process as well and that is asking questions. Asking questions lets the other person know of your interest in what he or she has to say.

Questions like, “How did that make you feel?” or, “Is there anything else?” or, “What else happened?” often causes the person to provide more details or information. This process can be extremely hard, time consuming and sometimes painful. If you are anything like me, you may feel as though you have all the answers and want to tell the person what they need to do to fix their situation immediately. But, again, that is not what listening is about.

Listening is opening your heart in order to receive what another person is trying to communicate to you. This is where real connection takes place in relationships. If the other person wants your counsel or wisdom, they will ask for it. If you have listened long enough, you will have earned their trust and have the right to actually give them your counsel. And, because you have given them the time and attention they needed to fully process everything that was on their mind, they will know that you are truly speaking from the depths of your heart and soul.

The reason this is important from a business prospective is because, if you listen to your client long enough and carefully enough, they will usually tell you exactly what it is that they want. Then you will be in a much better position to offer the goods and services that your client needs. You may never discover that specific need if all you are interested in doing is telling them about what you have to offer. I have learned that listening to a client and finding their deepest needs, puts me in a position to offer them my best services. I cannot possibly know what my client’s needs are if I am not willing to carefully listen to them. As a matter of fact, when I am on the phone with someone, I even take notes as they are talking to me so that I do not miss anything. I have discovered that most sales are lost because someone did not pay attention to the needs of a client.

I have spoken to many people who are speech/communication majors. I often ask how many courses they have had in public speaking. Most of them answer by saying, “Many.” I then ask them how many courses they had in listening. Their look says, “What?” That is because they had NO COURSES in listening! It really is an art and science and very few of us know very much about it. Think about it…we have two ears and one mouth. That should be a pretty important object lesson!

I am not writing this Tip as an authority on this subject. I am writing it as a learner and someone who is on the journey with you. All I can say is that I have seen it pay some of the richest dividends in my life, both personally and professionally.

If you think you are a great listener, why not ask two or three of your closest friends what they think? You may be surprised (or get your feelings hurt) by their answer. Years ago someone said to me, “You are the worst listener I have ever met in my life!” Sometimes it takes a comment like that to wake us up to the reality that we need to develop the skill of listening. Again, I have not arrived, but I am grateful to say that I am on the journey. I want to be known as a good listener! Do you? I have learned you can’t listen and talk at the same time. Hold your tongue and watch amazing things happen!

As you think about this Tips, and if you feel that it has any value for you, I would encourage you to apply it. It will be one of the wisest decisions you ever made.

Tip: Listen!

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Life Is A Game

Life Is A Game – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

Most of us learned to play games when we were children. I remember learning how to play a game called Clue. There were three objects to the game: first, to discover who committed the crime; next, to guess in which room the crime was committed; and finally, determine which instrument was used to commit the crime. I was given a little check sheet and through deductive reasoning, I narrowed down my choices until I thought I had finally guessed the three correct answers by using the “clues” I learned throughout the game. I remember how much I enjoyed it and, yes, I still play Clue to this very day. I also recall learning how to play Monopoly as well. It was a little more complicated and lasted much longer but it was still a lot of fun. There is also board game by the name of Life and while that game is fun too, I believe we are all involved in a different kind of game called “life.” The more we learn how to play it, the more we will succeed at our daily endeavors. The less we know how life works, the more we are going to suffer for it. I really believe there are four areas that we must focus on in order to have a successful life. Let’s take a brief look at each of the four.   Our physical life – When we eat right and get the proper rest and exercise, our body will respond more efficiently. When I was growing up someone told me, “If you eat fat, greasy foods, you will become a fat, greasy dude!” That made sense to me so I keep my “fat, greasy foods” to a bare minimum. I do not think we should be obsessed with good health, but neither do I think we should be careless in our habits. After all, the body that we now live in is the only one we are going to get. The more we feed it correctly, exercise it and rest it, the better it will respond to our daily needs. I am still on this journey with you! And it is often challenging!   Our finances – The more we understand how money works, the better money will work for us. If we make wise investments, practice delayed gratification and save for a “rainy day”, the more prepared we will be when the unexpected circumstances of life arise. If we do not understand the principles of money, we will surely suffer for it. Money is a great indicator of how self-controlled and self-disciplined we are. There is hardly a day that goes by that is not affected by every financial decision we make. The more we understand how money works the more we will be rewarded for taking the time to correctly play the “game” involving finances in our life. Money isn’t everything, but it is pretty close to oxygen!   Our relationships – It is so true that relationships are what life is all about. Understanding personality types and how other people feel, think and act will positively affect our relationships. The more we speak words of life and encouragement into others, the better our relationships will be. If we speak negative words and criticize other people then our relationships will suffer. That is a fundamental rule in the game of life. When we understand how to play that game, the better our relationships will be whether that is in our family or business life.   Our spiritual life – What each person believes spiritually is their personal choice. However, because I believe that I will be dead much longer than I will be alive, I have taken the necessary time, effort and energy to study this carefully in order to be at peace with my future and with my spiritual beliefs. In my estimation, how I play this aspect of the game and where I place my faith is important and will have long-term ramifications. I have said it before but think it bears repeating, eternity is the wrong thing to be wrong about.   Let me encourage you to take a good, close look at how you are playing the game of life in each of these four areas. You may be doing well in one or two of them but perhaps a couple of the other areas could use some attention. If you understand how to play the game, your reward will be greater. The older I get, the more I see that the people who are successful in any area of life are successful for one reason, namely, they have followed the principles in that specific area and have been rewarded for it. If you believe you need to grow in a particular area, why not read a good book on that same subject? Or, why not talk to someone you respect who is older and wiser than you and who has some personal experience in your particular area of interest? In other words, you may not be fully aware of how to play life’s game in a particular area, but you can learn! Mentors and life coaches are wonderful helpers if you can find a good one. The beautiful thing is that all of us can learn and grow in these four areas of life in order to become all that we were meant to be and to experience all that life has for us. Taking a personal inventory of how you are doing in these four areas may be the wisest thing you have ever done. After all, in the end, it may be fun to win when playing the game Clue or Monopoly, but it is much more important and real to win in the game of life! Tip: Life is a game. Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm