Ric Payne's Blog

I recently read an article about U2′s soon-to-be-released re-issue of its Achtung Baby album.  These guys, or their business advisers, certainly know how to price and/or leverage all of their considerable talent and content.

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Popularity: 4% [?]

At 99 degrees water is merely hot, at 100 degrees it turns to steam and can move locomotives.  Just one degree—a one percent change—makes the difference.  This is a great metaphor for business.  It is always the little things, the small improvements, that yield big results.  Let’s take a look at the impact that small improvements in the key drivers of profitability have on the bottom line–you could have a conversation with your clients along these lines. Read more…

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I was shocked today to hear that a dear friend, and previous partner of mine when I was at Rutherfords, died suddenly last Friday. He was in the prime of his life. Read more…

Popularity: 16% [?]

I’m not sure whether this is myth or real but it’s interesting nontheless. When the US first got into space exploration and they launched people into space they discovered that ball point pens did not work in zero gravity so NASA approved a research project to find a solution.  The research was to take a decade and cost $120 million.  The outcome was a pen that could write in any conditions, on any surface, upside down, under water and in temperatures ranging from below freezing to 300 degrees C. Amazing innovation to say the least. Not long after the release of this incredible product NASA learned the Russians used a pencil.

Popularity: 10% [?]

I listened to an interview with Kevin Hall, the author of Aspire: Discovering Your Purpose Through the Power of Words, and a founding partner of Franklin Quest creators of the Franklin Day Planner.  As head of their Training and Sales group he noted that their top sales people earned more than $500,000 per year and their bottom people made less than $50,000.

He commissioned a study of the top 5% and the bottom 5% to determine what characteristics, if any, differentiated the two groups.  What the study revealed was a consistent difference between the two groups came down to two things: firstly, the top 5% exhibited much higher interpersonal astuteness i.e. they better understood, related to and empathized with people and secondly, the top 5% read at least 2 books per month!

Hall concluded that readers are leaders, leaders are readers, earners are learners, and learners are earners.  

The more you read the smarter you become.  The smarter you become the more valuable you become.  The more valuable you are the more opportunities you get.  The more opportunities you get the more you learn and the more you earn.  It’s as simple as that – earners are learners and learning projects you into a positive spiral of success.

Reading and writing are known to develop reasoning and thinking skills.  Reading is also the primary mechanism to develop your verbal communication skills which in turn increases your effectiveness in whatever you do.  The only way to expand your vocabulary and ability to structure ideas is to read.

I find it rather curious that knowledge is readily accessible at such a low cost and yet so many people claim they do not have time to read despite the fact that the vast majority of people who are in top leadership positions are avid readers.  Interestingly, they, like all of us, have 24 hours in each day some of which they choose to use for reading and reflection.

So with that in mid here’s a little challenge. How about you get up in the morning 1 hour earlier and you spend that hour reading something other than a professional technical journal.  That would give you nearly 30 hours per month of knowledge acquisition and 360 hours per year.  There is absolutely no doubt that your value to clients, the value to your team and the value to your family will dramatically increase … so too will your income and sense of accomplishment.

To get you started here are five books that I would put at the top of your reading list.  It would have been a lot easier to make a list of 50 books but I have chosen these because they are also books that you could recommend to any client who aspired to a better life through having a better business.  The entire library of five books has a total cost of less than $100 but mastering their content would yield a return of millions!

1. Stephen Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – this book needs to be studied not just read!  If you “read” it several years ago but you can’t recite the 7 habits, open it again and study it with a highlighter and a notebook by your side. It will change your life.
2. Ken Blanchard & Sheldon Bowles, Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach To Customer Service – I put this in my list because, in a disarmingly simple and highly readable way, it explains the essence of business—it’s primary purpose if you will: to attract and retain customers. It’s a classic as are all of Blanchard’s books.
3. Jack Canfield, The Success Principles – this title is on my list because I firmly believe that personal development comes before business development. Covey’s 7 Habits will give you a framework for success through greater effectiveness while Canfield’s book is packed full of anecdotal practical ideas that when applied to your daily life will change everything for you.  I would bracket Canfield’s book with Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, the book that really started the personal development industry, but Canfield’s book gets my nod because of its contemporary context.  
4. John Maxwell, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of leadership – I have added this to the list because I believe that sound leadership is a key to success in business and life and this book is the most “readable” and down to earth practical summary of 21 leadership principles that anyone can master.  There is no doubt that some people are born with a talent to lead but I believe it’s also true that all of us can develop better leadership skills and when we do our organization will be transformed.  
5. Michael E. Gerber, The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It – Gerber’s book is a must read if for no other reason than it reminds us that business is essentially a system and that anyone who approaches it in a systematic manner can master.  I have placed this selection at number 5 but if I were giving this reading list to a client I’d start with Gerber.  If the client was excited by what Gerber has to say then I’d know he/she is interested in creating a better business in which case the other books would have more relevance.

Popularity: 8% [?]

I took a look at this video this afternoon and it struck a cord with me.  I have believed for a long time that traditional education stifles creativity.  This view may have been influenced by the fact that I was expelled from primary (i.e. elementary) school for being disruptive and refusing to color within the lines. Read more…

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If you know me well you’ll probably know that I don’t have much time for benchmarking and never have.  I believe it encourages people to drift towards mediocrity and to aspire to being amongst the pack albeit at the better end of the pack perhaps. Read more…

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Here’s an extract from Knowledge@Wharton, an online magazine from The Wharton School of Business that I subscribe to.

After losing $60 billion in the last decade — and billions more recently when a cloud of volcanic ash grounded flights across Europe — airlines are looking to consolidate as a way to return to profitability amid continued struggles with high fuel prices, competition from low-cost carriers, and a limited customer pool that shriveled even more during the recession. But experts are skeptical about the “bigger is better” strategy. Many observers say the carriers have proved downright flighty at following through on making changes that improve operations and put the customer first.

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Popularity: 16% [?]

From his book Winning with People, John Maxwell (who I think is one of a small handful of people who really understand leadership) takes a look at some principles that address victory over self. Here’s one that I think is a gem:

Who we are determines how we see others. This principle says once we get our own act together, we will be able to help others get their acts together. It’s impossible, if I am an unhealthy leader, to have healthy followers. I have to fix myself. We don’t see others as they are; we see others as we are, because each of us has his or her own bent and that colors our view of everything. What is around us doesn’t determine what we see. What is within us does. For example, if I am an untrusting person, how you think I will see you? I will see you as untrustworthy. So anything that is unhealthy about me is going to spill onto you. That is what leaders have to understand. But as a leader, if I can get victory over myself, if I can fix John Maxwell, the odds are high I can help and fix others.

Popularity: 14% [?]

I do lots of presentations each year that might be best described as networking events. Given that professional service firms rely very heavily on referrals and given that your network of contacts is a potentially rich source of referrals I thought I’d share some thoughts on how to make the most of networking opportunities. Here goes:

1. Before you attend a networking event find out as much as you can about what the theme of the event is, who is likely to be there, give thought to who you would like to meet and what you would like to discover by attending. Do your research on the people (and their organization) who you expect to be there – when you get to meet them you will seem well-informed an on the ball. What better credential could you have as a representative of a professional service firm in the knowledge industry?
2. Never be late for the event. If necessary get up 30 minutes earlier that day! When you’re early you can scope out the room, learn the names of people, get comfortable with the group and decide where you want to sit and who you want to get to know.
3. Do NOT try to use the occasion to sell anything. Your purpose in being there is to meet people and to establish rapport through learning as much about them and their needs as you can. That means take your business cards by all means but do not take your brochures – if someone wants to learn more about you and your services, set up a later meeting (perhaps over a meal) and talk shop there.
4. Take a small pocket notebook to make a note of things your discover, people you meet, promises you made etc. On this point take note of Stephen Covey’s 5th Habit – seek first to understand before being understood: develop your listening skills rather than your talking skills. You’ll be amazed at how fruitful this turns out to be for developing strong relationships.
5. Never sit next to one of your associates. The purpose of attending the event is to meet people, why on earth would you want to sit next to someone you already know?
6. Dress appropriately for the event. What is appropriate should have been determined as part of your discovery process that I discussed in point 1 above. Need I add, comb your hair, brush your teeth, polish your shoes, change your shirt if necessary – sorry, am I sounding like your mother?
7. Follow up the people you met who you would like to form a relationship with.

Popularity: 13% [?]