Hard Work? Just Lucky...or Just Networking?

 

Over the years I have befriended some fairly successful people and nearly every one of them throws the same old adage at me for their success.

"Hard work.  That's how I became successful.  I worked harder than everyone else. If you're competition is working 12 hours a day, you have to work 15!"

But that can't be the only reason.  Seriously?  We all work hard, but in order to be more successful than others, certain things need to happen.  Is it luck?  People resent the idea that luck played any part in their success.  Why?  

"It's insulting for you to say that I was lucky.  I wasn't lucky.  It was my hard work that led to success."

Really? I don't think so... it isn't all about just the hard work. Often it's about who you know and your contacts. And it also depends upon where you're born. I live in a very nice area of Los Angeles and I see my friends setting up their children to be successful by putting them in front of the right people.  It's what you do if you're looking out for your kids.  But how successful would these young people be in a different environment?  How well off would they be if they lived in Gardena, Huntington Park, or Fontana? Hard work or just born in the right area and lucky to have great parents? Maybe all three?

Our nation is oddly divided, but the majority of us are in the same boat.  We aren't ultra rich but many of us wished we were.  We all don't have a great job, but we wish we did.  Many of us are struggling just to survive in a corporate world that rewards those on the top and villifies those on the bottom.  Last year I was at a national training meeting and the president of corporate sales opened the conference with this line, "If you're not first you're last. Nobody cares who comes in second. If you're second then you're a loser...I love me some Ricky Bobby."  So do I, but it's a movie and it's a comedy. It's not reality!

So how do we get to be number one?  How do we climb the corporate ladder?  Is it really hard work?  Yes and no.  If you want to move up quickly start by working hard and finish by kissing some major ass with everybody at the corporate office.  From the people at the front desk to the people sweeping the floors, you need to speak to anyone and everyone that will listen to your story.  Here's five quick tips on how to move up.

•  Be Uber Positive - Corporate people love it when you give positive feedback.  In fact, one question I received during an interview for a management position was, "How do you implement a corporate directive that you don't agree with?"  Initially, I thought to say, "I don't. I call bullshit when I see it." But you can't do that if you want to move up.  If you're a corporate climber, tell the higher ups they're doing the right thing and try to find a silver lining amidst the messaging. 
• Ask For Mentorship - People who are in positions of power, lover to be admired. And if you show deference and ask for career guidance, they will love you for it!  The quickest way to get promoted is to become a "mini-me" of someone in a leadership position.  As long as you produce, you're bound to move up...even if you're a bit of a f#$% up.
• Promote Yourself - I have seen people who aren't very good at their jobs fall upwards because whenever they did do something right, they let everyone know about it.  Early in my career at Cintas, there was one service manager who always had great ideas, but never had great numbers.  So how did he get promoted to GM...self promotion.  Anytime he had an idea, he reached out to the area vice president, and suddenly we were all following his lead.  Even though his performance wasn't great, he was promoted to general manager long before people who were much more deserving.
• Become A Drinking Buddy - I am not a big drinker.  I enjoy beer and wine, but I cannot hang out with people all night and drink.  I have a tendency to fall asleep.  Consequently, I never buddied up to the bar with some of the senior leaders who could consume more alcohol than a hand sanitizer factory.  However, some of my friends discovered if they hung out with the corporate hierarchy, they could leverage those late nights into fast promotions.  Belly up to the bar, and you might be hungover but you can still climb over a few sober people to get that promotion!
• Suck Up, Suck Up, Move Up - In 6 years, I saw someone go from an intern to regional manager at a major healthcare company, and he hadn't yet turned 30.  How?  He basically sucked up to everyone in the corporate offices who could influence his career.  He only had one good year, just one, but because he was kissing everyone's butt, when a promotion came up, he was on the short list.  Keep in mind, he wasn't ready for a leadership role, but he got it because he networked with marketing, contracting, R&D, and anyone who would listen.  No one is going to promote you, if they don't know you, no matter how hard you work.

These tips are not a guarantee of success, but they'll help put you in a better position for that next step in your career.  

-SFTD

5 Signs Your Boss Should Not Be Trusted

Throughout my career, I have had many wonderful bosses.  People who mentored me, and showed me what it's like to be supportive and yet firm.  They motivated people, and help foster many careers.  However there have been a few times where I have had terrible bosses.  People who weren't ready to lead and who tried to control each aspect of your professional life.  Managers who were inexperienced but thought they could bullshit there way through every day and get promoted again in the process.  Most of them failed and inevitably got demoted or fired.  However in many instances they're still out there managing and screwing up people's lives. 

A recent study from the Harvard Kennedy School, outlines traits that make a good manager and being vocal, outspoken, and wanting to be in charge are not traits which are suited to the role.  In fact, the study emphasizes having good interpersonal skills and making people feel psychologically safe, while having analytical abilities as well are what makes a manager successful.  Often those two skills cannot be found in the same person, but you can develop into a good manager, through understanding and practice. 

I have had too many managers who self promoted themselves into a position which they were not ready for, and they "learned by doing", but in the process they destroyed careers and ruined lives.  These individuals launched PR campaigns within the organization and secured managerial roles which other people were much better suited to fulfill. 

It's sad but there is a lot of professional fallout from allowing people to "suck up and move up".  In one case, I saw a general manager burn through 16 of his managers before someone pointed out he might be the problem and subsequently he was fired.  And yet those managers the company let go were never invited to return to their old jobs. Essentially their careers with that corporation were derailed by one individual riding a public relations train straight into a sea of inefficiency. 

I trusted all of my managers to start, but as we worked together, little signs would crop up that would tell me some of them weren't to be trusted.  Invariably, they would reveal their true intentions and I would be forced to navigate through the miasma from a fetid work environment they created.  Be on the look out if your manager starts showing these signs, because not only do they stink as leaders, they "sit on a throne of lies."

5. They Can't Admit When They're Wrong - Working with different people over a 20 year career, my former bosses came in many different types. Whenever I work with someone who can't admit to making a mistake, I am immediately put on alert. Once, I was in a meeting and pointed out to my general manager he might have made an error in forecasting and following the meeting he called me into his office and said, "I don't make mistakes. Don't ever call me out again." If your boss can't admit they make mistakes chances are if they do make one, you're going to get blamed. Gaslighting takes on many forms in the corporate world.

4. They Trash Talk Your Fellow Employees - I began working with a new boss and she immediately asked me for my opinion about another employee.  Because I had management experience, she thought it was okay to open up and share. She asked, "well what would you do?"  I answered honestly, "I don't know exactly what's going on with this person, but maybe you should talk to her first?" She said, "The time for talk is over." In six months, that employee's career was over.  I started looking for a new gig shortly thereafter.

3. They Stir The Pot- I partnered with one manager who thought he was a college football coach.  He would tell us that he wanted to "stir the pot to make the environment more competitive." In meetings he would pit employees against each other, and in private he would make comments.  "Why can't you be more like Martha.  She's got my back.  Why don't you?"  I wanted to respond, "Because you're an idiot?"  But instead, I just transferred to another division in the company, working with a boss who had an IQ above 80.

2. "They Have Ulterior Motives" - Have you ever had a boss you worked for that you wondered why they were helping you?  Some bosses just do things so they can look good even though it seems like they're trying to help you.  They always have some type ulterior motive to what they do and it's mostly to make themselves look good.  For example, I had a boss who asked me to create a new way of processing our service sales people during check in and he told everyone what a great job I was doing. Yet after I had perfected the process and documented it, he took all the credit.  I thought I was going to be promoted, but instead I got shafted.    

1. "They Create A 'Game Of Thrones' Work Environment" - Once, I worked for a boss who was eerily similar to the character Littlefinger in "Game of Thrones".  He had spies everywhere and during our one on one meetings he would tell me what his little birds had discovered about me.  

"I understand you think I made a mistake in this year's projections?"

"I never said that."

"That's not what I heard."

"What did you hear exactly?'

"Benny told me during your service meeting that you said my projections were off."

"No. I said I wasn't here during the projection process so I can't say how they arrived at the numbers. And I also said we need to hit our goals regardless. They are set high for a reason."

"Well it came across to the team that you said I was wrong."

"By the team do you mean Benny?  Who already resents me for being in this position?"

"Yes he and Fred think you're undermining me."

" Well let's bring them in and settle this so we can move forward.  I don't want there to be a perception I am not supportive of everything we're trying to achieve. I have your back."

" Bring them in? Why? So you can yell at them? And twist things around?"

" When have I ever yelled at anybody? Twist things around?", I actually laughed. "I thought you brought me here because you said I'm direct, and I don't lie."

" I never said that. I don't know if I feel comfortable with you saying that."

" You're right and now I don't feel comfortable either.  Instead of listening to your little minions you might want to start listening to the rest of the staff.  Ask anyone out there besides those two individuals if I am undermining you and if they think I'm not a team player. If anyone else says so, I'll gladly transfer."

" I'll do that, and I'll hold you to that."

I already knew we were making progress as a team, and I loved the efforts of everyone, including the minions.  But we were not going to be successful in an environment where people were stabbing each other in the back.  My boss asked around and discovered that the rest of the team thought I was not only supportive of him, but that they were grateful I had come aboard. 

Unfortunately this made things worse because now he became extremely insecure.  The environment festered and was intolerable, so I left. 

All relationships start with trust and if you can't trust your boss than it's best to find one you can trust.

-SFTD

Remember...Family Always Comes First

Photo courtesy of 123rf

This post is for people who have a family, and by family it could be kids, uncles, pets, or anyone you consider to be part of your life in a familial way.

When you have a family, it is always difficult to achieve some sort of "work life balance".  By the way, I have no idea what that means, because work always tends to take away from family, so I'm not sure there's really any balance.  In fact, I would argue 95% of people working have an imbalance and those who don't probably aren't working.  Or at least not working in the conventional sense.  Regardless, there are always managers who want you to devote your entire life to the company...even in death.  Read on and you'll see what I mean.

My wife related a story to me about a horrible experience with a regional manager for a diabetes pump company, who appeared devoid of compassion or feelings with regards to business.  Keep in mind, there are considerable number of these managers out there, ruining the lives of their employees because they want to get ahead.  It's pretty pathetic, and tragic as well.

About 10 years ago, my wife's mother passed away and she had been grieving for about two weeks. Naturally, she was compelled to cancel all her speaking engagements, because she was depressed about losing her mom. She called the company's regional sales manager, who had set up the engagement, and was surprised by the reaction. I have paraphrased the phone conversation but it went something like this:

"Hello_______. Unfortunately,  I'm calling to let you know that I don't think I'll be able to make my speaking engagement at the end of this month.  I'm so sorry that I can't make it. My mother recently passed away and I feel I need to be home to help my family through this difficult time."

"Oh really?  I'm so sorry, when did she pass away?"

"Uh...About two weeks ago.  My family is still grieving. And I think I need to be here for my father and the rest of the family.  I'm sure you understand."

"Two weeks ago?  The conference is in 3 weeks.  You don't think you'll be over it by then? You see we don't have a back up speaker for this conference."

My wife almost dropped the phone, "Excuse me.  I must not have heard you correctly.  Did you say, don't you think you'll be over it? Over it?  You do realize my mother died.  You're not serious?"

"Oh right, right. I'm just concerned we don't have a speaker to replace you, and this puts us in a bind. Can you recommend anyone?"

"I have to say, I'm still a bit shocked by your lack of compassion.  Have you ever lost a parent?"

"No. No I haven't. But I did lose my grandmother last year, and I understand it takes a bit of time. But that'll be five weeks, are you sure you can't make it?  I'm in a bit of a bind here."

At this point my wife lost her composure. "I can't believe what I'm hearing!  I did say my mother died.  Did you hear that part? And no, I don't think I'll be able to MAKE  IT! And I won't be recommending anyone or speaking for your company ever again.  Unbelievable! Goodbye."

"Wait I didn't...."

My wife hung up the phone and threw it into the couch cushions.  It immediately started ringing again, she picked it up, looked at it.  Dropped it and began sobbing.  Through her tears she mumbled.

"Family always comes first...always. How could she not know that? How could she not care?"

My response, "Some people are selfish."

Her response, "Some people are assholes."

Touche...


SFTD

Are You Authentic?

Recently, I sat through a national Sales Meeting and watched as a sales leader claimed to be authentic on more than 4 occasions during the opening remarks of the meeting.  I received a text from someone else who was auditing the call, and she shared this thought, "If you say your authentic 4 times during your portion of the opening remarks, you sound like you're trying to convince YOURSELF that you're authentic. And by the way, you're probably not authentic."

As the meeting continued virtually, I monitored the chat because this is really where you get feedback on the true nature of how people are feeling about the experience.  I saw the word "authentic" appear through the feed 25 times.  25 times!  And I'm sure the leader thought that their message got through to the team, but in reality, I think that most of those posts to the chat were meant to be sarcastic or funny.  How did I know?  

"Hey I'm authentic?"

"I'm authentic too?"

"Authentic...that's new?"

"We're all authentic."

"Authentic. Hey that's great..."

If you're a leader than lead by example, don't characterize yourself, just be authentic.  Whenever I have led a team, I believed it was more important to be there to support my employees, rather than tell my employees how I will support them.  Don't say you're authentic, just be authentic. Otherwise, you're just full of shit.     

"I Love Me Some Me"

I start with that infamous or famous quote from Terrell Owens because it reminded me of an interview I conducted years ago while working at Cintas. We were on campus recruiting for a management trainee position and we found a lot of great candidates.  However, one candidate stood out to me in particular.  He didn't go to one of the Ivy League schools or have the best grades.  He had worked all through college and put himself through by paying along the way and he had little to no debt.  He could barely make the interview time we set because of a work scheduling issue, and he wasn't wearing a fancy suit or an expensive watch.  I liked him best out of all the candidates.

We sat down to discuss which trainees we'd like the most and which would possibly "bleed blue". Which is what we would call devoted Cintas employees. Trainees had to work long hours and were on salary which was tough, but if they made it through the training, they were well on their way to earning a Cintas MBA.  Simply put, you learned as you earned how to run a business. 

"I know why you like this guy.", one of the Sales Manager piped in.  "He's you!"

"No he's not." , I responded a bit embarrassed.

"Yes he is!  Well spoken but not terribly well dressed or polished.  Working class back ground but seems pretty smart.  This guy is just like you.", she added and then looked down at my shoes which needed a polish.  She snickered. 

"He's nothing like me, and that's not why I like him.  He worked all the way through college and he paid for it himself.  No help from any one else.  He seems to know the value of a dollar."

"Yeah, just like you did." my boss added his two cents. "You like him because he's similar to you.  But that doesn't mean he's going to turn out like you."

"Why not?", I asked.

"When you interview candidates don't fall in love with yourself, because you're going to manage a lot of different personalities and not everyone is the same.  It's almost better if you don't hire some one just like you, because then you have some diversity of thought.", my boss added.  He was a pretty smart dude.

"Fine. But we can at least put him through to the next round of interviews and see if makes it through.", I said, secretly hoping my clone would make it as a trainee.

"Can we all agree to passing him along?", my boss asked, and the rest of the managers agreed.

Two weeks later our regional recruiter let us know that my candidate had not made it through the next round of interviews.  I asked why.

"Everyone agreed that he was like the 2.0 version of you, but he argued with nearly everyone who interviewed him.  We all agreed he would be a handful to try and manage and he would get frustrated as a trainee." 

"But I didn't argue with everyone, and I made it through the trainee program?"

"Exactly.  YOU made it through.  But he ISN'T you. That's why we passed."

As a manager it's best to look for the most qualified candidate and not a mini version of yourself.  You may "love me some me", but it might also come back to haunt you in the future. 

SFTD

The Two Californias : The Covid Crisis Is Different For The Working Class

Copyright: <a href='https://www.123rf.com/profile_ilexx'>Tatiana Shepeleva</a>

During this COVID crisis, many people have suffered financially.  No one more than bar and restaurant owners with a few exceptions.  It seems that national companies seem to be hanging in there but local owners are either struggling to stay afloat or sadly closing their doors.  There seems to be talk of layoffs all across America and over 20 million people have filed for unemployment, and the economic crisis seems to be impacting everyone, but no one more so than the working class.

California is a state which exhibits the glaring disparity between the working class or blue collar workers and the white collar workers who are able to work remotely from home.  I am one of those people who is fortunate enough to stay home for the most part and work via Zoom, phone, and email.  But I remember when I grew up working in warehouses, and as a driver when I wasn't able to stay home.  If I was out there in the middle of the COVID maelstrom, I most certainly would have been exposed to the virus.  I don't think enough of us appreciate our position and even worse we don't help out those who are really making a difference for us, the essential workers.  

I will give you a perfect example of how this has impacted me directly.  I have an old acquaintance who was working in the music industry for years as a stage hand and set designer.  He had a great career working in this field but when all the music venues stopped conducting shows he was out of a job.  No more Coachella, no more Stage Coach, and no more work.  He went back to work as a foreman in construction, because believe it or not, people apparently still need luxury homes built during this crisis.  It's important to have priorities...right? 

He was thankful for the work, but many of his fellow workers were not following the company protocol regarding COVID on the job.  Some would remove their masks, some would show up to work sick, because they needed the money, and low and behold there was a break out on the job sight.  My former friend contracted COVID and after a month in the hospital he died. A terrible tragedy, especially since it could have been avoided if he hadn't needed to work.  There are so many people who contact the disease because they work out of necessity and many of them get sick and unfortunately some of them have passed away.  

Everyone sees California as a land of fruits and nuts, but really this state was founded on the backs of the working class and it still is run by those types of people.  The rest of the country sees a bunch of rich Silicon Valley billionaires and think that people here don't work, but I'm here to tell you that is simply not true.  Most of the people living, working, and dying are hard working Californians who must leave home out of necessity to provide for their families.  That is the real California, and they support the rest of us.

In contrast, where I live, you wouldn't think that the COVID crisis has affected anyone.  It's seriously a bunch of wealthy assholes and fortunately or unfortunately I am in the middle of them.  I guess that makes me an asshole too.  However this crisis has really brought the difference in the two Californias home to me.  My neighbor, while being very nice and sweet to my family, is more concerned that she hasn't been able to shop or get her nails done, or a massage once a week,  When my wife told me that's what she's upset about, her lack of amenities, I nearly lost it and went over to berate her about what really matters.  But I stopped myself because she was my wife's friend, but also because I felt like my tirade would fall on deaf ears.  People do not want to hear about other people's problems.  They are more concerned about their own.  I get it...but then again I don't.  

I asked my wife, "Why doesn't she take that money for massages and donate to a relief fund for people out of work?"  

My wife, taking the lead, did ask her that exact question, and the response she received, "Well that money would just be wasted on some homeless bum or something."

"As opposed to a massage which is putting it to good use?" was my wife's response.

"Touche honey, touche!", I thought. 

Two different economic states within one state.  The real California. 

10 Sales Tips During The Pandemic

Photo courtesy of 123rf.com

 

All of us are running around our houses trying to sell remotely and it's difficult. Zoom calls, Microsoft Teams calls, and conference calls. Our kids are in our faces daily asking for help with school work, or needing help with wi-fi connections. How the hell are we supposed to sell? Remote selling?  Virtual Sales? Selling PPE out of our garage? 

It's all very confusing, and now it seems that all of us are on the phone or conducting meetings via a computer.  Suddenly we are a different breed of sales reps.  For many of you inside sales reps this is nothing new, but many of us are used to being directly in front of people.  And not being there is driving us crazy.  Here are a few tips on how to manage this ever changing world of sales, and guess what? It's really not that much different. 

1. Go Old School: "To Do" List - Since the pandemic started, I have been getting asked a lot about how to manage a sales team that's sitting at home.  People are so used to being out at appointments, or traveling to appointments, but that's completely changed for a great many people.  So what are reps supposed to do with their days? Start by making a list of things to do each morning, just like you would if you were going to conduct a day in the field.  A simple to do list will get you started at least and then you can plan your day around your list. Stay focused on a list that makes you money, not one that makes you eat, like a grocery list. 

2. Get Acquainted With Technology - I have many older friends who have no idea how to handle a Zoom meeting or can even conduct a FaceTime call.  They're what I call "technology deniers".  I speak to them about how they need to get more familiar with the new ways of communicating and I hear the same thing over and over. "I do best when I'm in front of a customer!"  Well that's not going to happen very often during this pandemic...UNLESS you learn how to use technology to get in front of your customers. The virus isn't going away for quite a while so we had all better learn to use the latest apps to communicate our message otherwise you won't be selling very much. 

3. Keep Your Pants On - If you're conducting online meetings, it's real easy to get comfortable, and forget to put on your clothes.  A lot of people conduct calls in their pajamas and for me this is a bit too informal, considering that your laptop camera could be working and you don't even know it.  Yes we're all dealing with kids, dogs, and daily chores but let's keep it at least a little bit professional.  Get dressed up like you're conducting a meeting in person. Besides, no one wants to see your underwear during a Teams meeting. . 

4. Buy A Camera - The first thing I did when I couldn't visit with customers was buy an HD camera for my laptop.  It was great for filming webinars and conducting calls because I could switch between my laptop camera to my HD pretty seamlessly.   If you have to do product demos this little tool is invaluable.  It helps bring clarity and professionalism to your presentations.  And it you have your pants on then you won't have to worry about switching to different camera angles. 

5. Learn Phone Techniques - If you're not comfortable on the phone, than you're not going to be successful during the pandemic.  And by comfortable, I don't mean you can multi-task using apps and texting, or that you're proficient at playing games on your mobile device.  You need to actually speak to people.  What?  You mean I have to talk to someone.  Yep! There are a number of free webinars on YouTube that talk about call reluctance and phone blocking.  Watch them and pick up some tips to improve your skills on the phone.

6. If Meeting In Person: Wear A Mask - I was recently at an appointment with 7 people in a conference room and everyone was wearing a mask.  However as the meeting wore on, one of the participants said he was going to take his off, so he could speak.  Oh boy was that a mistake! The person running the meeting nearly lost it.  She told him that if he wanted to take it off he should excuse himself from the meeting and think about the message it was sending to everyone else in the room.  He was another vendor so I didn't care if he left the meeting, or that he was reprimanded. He was sending more business my way! 

7. Keep Setting Appointments - It is very easy to get out of your routine during this pandemic.  Try your level best not to get sucked into watching television, the news is terrifying right now and it can be very depressing.  Modify your day but keep trying to set appointments.  It's difficult, but if you attempt to inject some normalcy into your day it will go a lot faster and you'll feel much better about yourself and your job. 

8. Try And Stay Sane - If you're a sales person staying in lock down is probably driving you nuts..  In fact, even if you're not a sales person it's probably driving you crazy.  It's difficult because most of us are social animals.  We want to be interacting with people on a regular basis, so being cooped up inside our houses is extremely taxing.  Do anything you can to try and stay sane.  I find myself reading a lot of books right now and the first thing I did when we went into lock down was reorganize my garage.  It took a while but it kept my minding off of the pandemic and kept me out of harms way.  Find anything and everything to keep your attitude positive and your outlook bright. 

9. Stay In Touch With Friends - The most difficult thing about this pandemic is that it has put many friendships at risk.  My family is very cautious about interacting with other people because many of them work in healthcare.  As a result, it is very difficult to interact, so it puts a strain on relationships.  We all want to be safe, so maybe FaceTime, or phone calls are better options to keep your friends in touch without actually touching them. 

10. Focus On Your Goals - I remember when all this started, a few partners immediately told me, "We're screwed!  We can't visit our customers so we're going to lose a lot business."  My first thoughts were the opposite.  I thought that our competitors were dealing with the same issues, so this was an opportunity to show our customers we could deliver our services even in the face of a pandemic.  We stayed focus on our sales goals for the year and it helped keep everyone on the right track.  Unfortunately, many people have lost their jobs and the lock down didn't help, but if you're still in business try to stay focused on your goals.

I know we are all going through a terrible time, but I hope that all of you are staying sane and staying safe. 

SFTD

The Wrong Corona Virus Message

Last Friday, I had the privilege of attending an online meeting, where the President of Sales for a healthcare organization announced that he wanted reps to stay home unless it was absolutely necessary for them to enter a hospital.  A great message during these difficult times.  He explained the rational, that unless it was a life or death situation, it wasn't worth the rep endangering themselves, or the hospital personnel by being in the hospital.  A very clear and simple message, which was a compliment to the same message being put forth by hospitals to their vendors.  Clear, concise, and to the point.  Excellent!

However, 1 hour later his VP of Sales sent an email stating that there were only 12 days left in the quarter and that the reps needed to be in their accounts trying to promote products and services.  That the goal in the first quarter was to grow 10% and the team was very close to achieving their goal.  I saw the email and I was a bit shocked.  Had he not received the message an hour earlier?  Or was he just an idiot, who was more concerned about the money in his pocket rather than the safety of his employees.

It is difficult enough having to deal with the panic, the fear, and the potential dangers of the COVID-19 virus, but to have your employer ask you to go into a "hot zone" for an extra buck is unforgivable.

Be safe out there and take care of one another.

SFTD

What Your Manager Doesn't Know...

After being a manager for some 20 plus years in business I realized one thing...we don't know a damn thing about what our sales reps are doing.  Everyone else in the organization seems to know if a rep is slacking, being lazy, or generally not working, but we have NO CLUE.

I was at a recent dinner following a meeting and everyone was having a great time when one of the sales reps starting talking about her former husband.  She had a few too many cocktails and decided to describe certain parts of his anatomy when her regional manager cut her off.

"That's not appropriate. You need to stop."

The rep laughed, "You don't know what's appropriate.  Half your reps are being inappropriate, but you're not paying attention!  I'm outta here!"  And she excused herself and went up to her room.

It was a weird end to a very good evening but I couldn't figure out what had transpired, so the next morning I found the regional manager and sat down with him at breakfast before the meeting started.

"What the heck happened with your rep last night.  Too much to drink?"

"Not really.  I talked to her this morning, and she explained that she feels like I'm harder on her than some of the other reps.  She says that I'm always on her, but I told her I try to be consistent with how I treat everyone. And then she started to explain why she felt that way."

"What did she say?"

"She was upset because I have been very sympathetic towards ______ who has been ill during this meeting, and that it turned out _____ was just upstairs ordering room service and watching television. That rep isn't even sick. In addition, another rep was sick but it was really a hangover."

"My response was simple.  How would I know that?  I can't discipline them because I don't know what's going on. She knew because obviously the reps shared things with her, but I had know idea they were flaking on the meeting."

"So she was mad at you for playing favorites when you had no clue what the other reps were doing when they were supposedly sick?", I restated the obvious as a question.

"Exactly!  How can I discipline someone, when I have know idea what they're doing and I can't prove it?"

"And everyone on your team knows these people were lying?"

"Apparently.  And they all resent me for it!"

"That's tough."

"No shit."

It's difficult to manage people in the first place, but if you don't have a clue what they're doing it's even more difficult.  So as a manager, how do you avoid this problem?  You try to hire the right people to begin with, and hope they're being honest with both you and themselves.  Otherwise, you end up with a group of sales reps who don't trust anyone, including you.  And that in business terms is called, a "clusterf#$k". 

Good luck and good selling.

5 Holiday Gifts You Won't Like...

During this holiday season, it's important for bosses, managers, supervisors, and alike to recognize their employees, especially those who have made them successful.  Some people give home made gifts like cookies, or sweaters.  Yes, I heard of a woman who knitted sweaters for her small team, and by small I mean just 3 people.  Still, that's a lot of knitting!  Have you ever knitted a sweater before?  It's a lot of work!

The holidays is a great time to show your appreciation for one another, but please if you're an employee or a manager make sure the gift is thoughtful and appropriate.  In the past, I have received some awful gifts and I listed just five of those below:

5. Company Products - I once worked for a company in college, and my manager would wrap up company products and give them to his employees.  Granted some of us liked the products but that didn't mean we wanted them for a present!  Nothing says "Happy Holidays" better than a free T Shirt which you've been wrapping and shipping to customers all year long.  Not to mention it cost him exactly $0 to give to us. Seriously?  Put a little thought into it boss.

4. Gag Gifts/White Elephants - It's okay for the office to have a White Elephant party, but if you're the boss and you give out gag gifts or white elephants, than you're clueless. I remember one year while I was working in the service industry one service manager gave out joke gifts to all his drivers.  Happy holidays here's your dribble glass and wax teeth.  He must have thought they were all 6 years old.  Wtf dude!  Grow up!

3. Scratchers or Lottery Tickets - A lot of bosses like these gifts because they're cheap, and the pay off for the recipient could be amazing!  But keep in mind the first part of the sentence, they're CHEAP.  Just like the boss who gave them to you.  I had a boss give each of his 10 employees 3 scratchers from the California lottery.  He was making about $200,000 a year, and he spent $30 TOTAL, on all his employees who probably earned him a bonus of $25,000.  "
Yeah that's so thoughtful boss that you went to the convenience store at lunch time and bought us these... I think I would rather you brought me a six pack of beer."

2. Coffee Mugs - I don't know about you, but I have at least a dozen coffee mugs from various companies that I have worked for or worked with, and I never use them....ever.  What happens is they end up in the garage and then we sell them or give them away to charity.  Yes, even the fancy coffee mugs from YETI and other brand names, still tell your employees, "I didn't think a whole lot about this gift, but I hope you like it!"  The worst are the ones that have company logos or a picture of your boss on the mug.  Seriously, do I want to look at my boss in the morning while sipping on coffee.  Hell no!

1. NOTHING - I have received this gift many times over the years and I have always resented my boss.  It costs little, and takes no time to send to your employees.  It also tells everyone that you're a complete a##hole of a manager.  Thanks for nothing boss!  Crappy Holidays!

SFTD

Free Your Mind-A Message To Hiring Managers

Yesterday, I was sitting with a hiring manager who had just finished with a candidate and was reviewing his notes.  I looked at his list of dislikes and he had written, "previous position farmer".

Naturally I was inclined to ask, "Why is that a dislike for you?"

He answered, "Oh I had that job and it's not really a hunting mentality.  I don't like people from that background."

"So what you're saying is that you wouldn't hire yourself?"

"Wait.  Huh?  No that's not what I'm saying.  I'm saying he seems like a farmer and that job is all farmers."

"But you came from that background right?  I'm confused.  Can't people be both hunters and farmers? Does it have to be one or the other?"

"Well in that position it's all farmers.  So I don't think I'm going to hire him."

"I think you're limiting your scope, and remember you came from the same position. I'm not saying you're wrong.  I'm saying maybe you should not based your decision solely upon his previous job."

"I think he'd have a hard time adjusting to this position given his background."

"How well do you adjust to this position given you came from the same job."

"Well that's different.  He's not me. "

"Really?  Well what if someone had never given you a shot? Where would you be today?"

He sat that and thought about it for a while. "Maybe I'll have him interview with another manager just to see if he's a viable candidate.  You seem to be pushing me in that direction."

I laughed, "I'm not pushing, I'm advising, and a lot of times we get these preconceived notions of what we think will work in a job, and they might cloud our judgment. You could be right but it's best to confirm your decision."

"Okay, okay.  Dot our i's and cross our t's.  I get it."

"I just think we sometimes don't free our minds to the possibilities in a candidate.  We're too busy trying to find something wrong with them, rather than looking for something right.  One of the best sales people I ever hired was a substitute teacher. "

"No way.  Really?  You took a chance on a substitute teacher?  With no sales experience?"

"Yep.  No sales experience whatsoever, but I could see he had potential. And we trained him right.  Now he's a regional manager."

"Damn.  I guess I do need to free my mind."

"Just look for the potential and don't be detrimental."

SFTD 

Enough With The Machismo Stuff!

When I was a Service Manager at Cintas, and even when I was starting out as an Assistant Manager at Wells Fargo Financial, I was always told I had to be "tough".  That I had to make those hard decisions and fire people even when I thought it was wrong.  Why? I didn't understand why it was bad for me to disagree with my manager regarding hiring and firing.  I wasn't in the armed forces and I didn't need to obey direct orders.  I just didn't get it. Why couldn't I disagree with a decision about someone's future?  Maybe that's why I don't play well in the corporate environment.  There's too much machismo for my taste.

I'll give you an example.  Recently, I heard that a District Manager with a healthcare company for 35 years was being let go, just 2 years from retirement.  2 years from retirement!  WTF?!!!!  What type of message does that send to your people?  And is the person who made that decision really "tough"?

35 years in sales for the same company nowadays is unheard of, but to let a person go just 2 years from retirement is ridiculously stupid. And some of you members of the Jerkstore Management Team might actually defend the firing of a 35 year veteran:

"Same standards for everybody.  No one gets a pass."

My response, "You're a moron. If he's been performing for 35 years and has one bad year, he'll figure it out the next year.  He's been doing it for a long time, he knows the consequences. He's in sales."

The Jerkstore MT response, "We're paid for performance.  Not for tenure."

My response, "Absolutely, and he's been performing for 35 years so again, he'll figure it out."

What the Jerkstore MT doesn't understand is that this message tells all your up and coming young people that no matter how loyal you are, and no matter how hard you work, that the company doesn't give a damn.  I asked a friend who works at the company exactly who fired this 35 year veteran, and sure enough it was a Regional Manager with less than 2 years on the job.  Not only that, my friend told me she got the position because she was the BFF of the Vice President.  In addition, I was told that the VP said of this regional manager, "she's got bigger balls than most of the guys on my team.  No one else had the guts to fire him."

What a surprise...not.  Too often VP's promote someone who they think is exactly like them, and then they mold them to be little foot soldiers.  However, this only breeds monotony, stifles creativity and ensures resentment from those people who aren't in the "club".   Apparently it also creates a woman with big balls?  What does that even mean? 

Personally the only big balls I want to see are beach balls, and I definitely don't want to see big balls in the conference room.  Leave that machismo stuff out of the office.

-SFTD

Tracking Reps Activity Will Not Lead To More Sales

Photo courtesy of 123rf

First of all I would like to apologize for the overuse of capital letters in this post.

Yesterday, my friend called me to complain that her company was now asking her to log her calls at her accounts directly from inside the office she was visiting.  What?  Now keep in mind this is a rep who's above her quota, but they're making all the reps follow this plan.  ALL THE REPS! And guess what?  This is happening at a lot of company's in the medical field!  Company's are trying to use sabermetrics to improve performance.  Hello!  This isn't frigging baseball, you morons, it's sales.

"We need to keep track of reps and how they're managing their time!", said her confused CEO. And the marketing manager had the audacity to tell her that this is exactly what he said.

I'm sorry but this does not work.  All you get is a bunch of reps driving around to please management and the same people who don't perform will continue to under perform, and your peak performers will continue to do the same.  In fact, all the reps below quota, will probably become Uber or Lyft drivers to supplement their income. And why not make extra cash, if you're driving around all day to check a management box. They'll have to buy extra bottles of water at Costco and install air fresheners in their vehicle to please their new passengers. However the only difference is that management won't be able to judge performance based on their activities.  Because every rep's activity will look the same!

I understand that management is trying to control even the tiniest aspects of performance, but this isn't a physical sport.  It's sales!!!!  I studied econometrics and statistics while at university, but  activity does not lead to more sales.  For years, I thought the opposite.  At Cintas we tracked activity liked no other company in our industry.  But honestly, it didn't lead to better reps or more volume.  Instead reps simply lied on their reports.  Once, I figured this out, my focus was on training them to make the best use of that activity and not focus on the activity itself.  And I was very successful.

Here's a good analogy.  If you're playing any sport, and I mean any sport.  Basketball, football, soccer, or baseball.  There are some people who no matter how many reps they get, will just not get any better.  They can kick a soccer ball a hundred times at a goal but if they don't focus on improving their technique, or if they don't have the physical tools,  they'll never get better.  NEVER!

Shaq would take hundreds of free throws a day, but he never changed his shooting style, so no matter how much he practiced he still sucked at free throws.  Same theory here; you can track activity all day long, but if your reps technique is terrible, they'll never make quota. NEVER!

Think about what really matters...and if I have to explain it, you've got more problems than I do. 

SFTD

"Hey Boss! I'm Down Here!!!"

Copyright: mihtiander / 123RF Stock Photo

As I've mentioned too many times, I have won a lot of awards as a sales rep, as a manager, and even as a general manager. And each time usually there is a phone call or interaction to thank me for my wonderful efforts.  The conversations are casually dotted with compliments.

"You're a wonderful asset to our team!  Thanks for your super human efforts."

"3 times in the last 4 years, you're a great utility man.", I still don't understand that one.

"You are the best employee I have working with me!  Thanks so much for all the time you dedicate to your job.  Your wife must hate you.", again really inspiring? WTF?

And the next year when my goals or quotas are so far out of reach that it would take a Herculean effort to achieve them, I would find myself at the bottom of the Key Performance Indicator list.  Would I ever get a call then?  Heck no!  And to be honest, that's when I would need a call the most.

A lot of sales reps get down right lucky.  I'll admit it.  My first year in medical sales, I got lucky.  I inherited a territory with a lot of promise and the previous rep was a complete buffoon, so it was easy for me to make President's Club.  All I had to do was show up everyday and work half as hard as I did as a manager.  It was pretty easy, I have to say.  I received all kinds of texts and phone calls, and the president of our division even rode with me, just to see what a great job I was doing.  I was honored with all kinds of awards; rookie of the year, best newcomer, President's Club Winner, Rep of the Year.

But the next year, they DOUBLED my quota.  I laughed when I got it, and told my boss.

"There's no way I'm going to hit that goal.", and naturally I tried but only got to 90% of goal. I was more proud of that achievement than all the others.  Why?  Because it was much harder to get to that 90% than the 160% from the previous year.  Do you think the division president called me?  Mmmm, actually she did.  To find out what I was doing wrong?  Why was I failing so miserably.  Thanks boss?

I needed a bit of encouragement more than the previous year, but it didn't happen.  Why not?  Because managers have a tendency to focus only on your successes and not your failures. And when you fail poor leaders don't try to help you, they just fire you.

As a leader, when I had a good employee, I strove hard to keep them when they were struggling, because I knew it would pay off in the long run. People at the bottom may in fact need more encouragement than people at the top.

When you're running a marathon and you know you're not going to win, if you see someone struggling, do you help them up?  Or do you push them off the course?  If you help them up then you'll both finish the race. 

SFTD

In A Funk?

Copyright: michaeljung / 123RF Stock Photo

I am in a funk.  I am a bit sick of dealing with people, and it's funny because that's what I do for a living.  I literally just spent a week on vacation and I came back to the same old crap.  Customers who are complaining that their results are not what they expected, and people being overly critical of the language and scope of some of my presentations.  And I'm supposed to turn it around and provide them with some pearls of wisdom to motivate them, to get them back on track, when I know their problems are their own and not mine.  What I'd like to tell them is "piss off!"

But I can't do that, unless I want to go broke.

So what do we do when confronted with a funk?

I thought about this long and hard, because that's what you do when you're in funk, you think about how to get out of it, and then I realized it's my preconceived notions of how these interactions will turn out, that is getting in the way.  I need to take a big eraser and wipe clean this blackboard of inevitability that is written in my head.  And here's brief outline of exactly how you can do the same.

Visualize The Best Outcome(s): - A lot of people might think your setting yourself up for failure if you visualize the best, but what's the alternative.  Worrying about the worst possible outcome and curling up in a little ball on the floor?  What's going to inspire you to move forward?

Visualize The Worst Outcome(s) - Wait a second? What? That's right. You should know what you're getting yourself into, and understand what is the worst outcome for your situation.  Here's a tip; if the worst possible outcome involves death or prison...your choice should be pretty easy.  Don't do it!

Risks versus Rewards : If the rewards outweigh the risk then your decision is easy. Move forward.  If the risks outweigh the rewards than don't.  It's a pretty simple guide to getting out of a funk.

Note this simple example:  I had a client who was a pain in the ass. Therefore, I considered the risk in telling them they're a pain in the ass, and giving in to their often absurd requests.  Well, I weighed the options and the best possible outcome in keeping them on as a customer was that they would somehow stop being abusive to my staff and myself.  However, I could see by the level of Emotional Intelligence, or rather lack thereof, that this wasn't going to be a viable option for my team. Subsequently, I advised them to seek other avenues to train their staff.  I simply stated that we had other customers and I couldn't allocate my entire team to just their account.  It wasn't possible.  Naturally, they didn't understand, but it worked out much better for us in the long run. 

This is a short and sweet example but always consider the outcomes, the risks, and the rewards.  But the worst thing you can do is nothing.

SFTD

The One Employee I Will Always Remember

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As a manager, you have all different types of employees, from all different backgrounds.  Employees who come from wealth, and those whose background is less fortunate.  Working class people, and highly educated engineers, lawyers, and IT professionals.  People from various walks of life, can at one time. all have worked for you, or rather with you, in some capacity.

I've written about one of my best employees that I found running a food truck years ago.  And back then it was called a "break truck", because the truck would always show up at break time so employees could buy food or a drink.  Maybe it's still called a break truck, I have no idea.  But that employee was one of the best people I have ever worked with, and I still consider him a good friend today, even though we haven't seen each other in years.

Yet of all the employees I've worked with, I remember only a select few because of the personal impact they had on my life.  I'm sure that many people think that owners, or managers are soulless human beings who care only about the numbers, but if you manage in this way you'll never get the best out of yourself or your people.  You have to care, and sometimes when you care...it hurts.

I met Eddie when I was a young service manager, and he was looking for any type of work to help support himself.  He was a happy, overly gregarious guy, who was very likable right from the start. He was born in the US but he spoke with a broken English that was mixed with Spanish, and it seemed to work.  Eddie spoke so fast that it almost sounded like pidgin, and sometimes fellow employees would just look at me after he spoke with a confused expression.

"Is he speaking English?", they would ask, and my response would always be, "Yes but a higher form of English. Probably old English.", followed by a smile and a laugh.

He wasn't highly educated, but he did have his GED.  He had grown up in Pacoima, which if you live in Los Angeles, you understand it's in the San Fernando Valley and Pacoima is not well known for yacht clubs and dinner parties.  It's a tough neighborhood.  There are still plenty of gangs in the neighborhood and the average crime rate is 45% higher than the national average.

Eddie grew up with gangs his whole life, and he struggled to get away from that life.  Occasionally some questionable characters would show up at our offices and meet him out in the parking lot.  In one instance I had to call him aside and speak to him because it was making some of his fellow employees nervous.

"Eddie, you can't invite people to meet you in the parking lot.  Especially people who aren't your family or employees."

"I didn't invite them boss.  They just showed up."

"Why would they just show up? Do you owe them money or something?"

"No they're old friends from the neighborhood, wanting to see how I'm doing."

"Nothing personal Eddie, but please meet them outside of work, I know they're friends but they were making the other employees nervous. They look like gang members."

"That's because they are gang members boss. I can't really tell them where to go or what to do."

"Well if they show up again, I'll tell them."

"Boss, I know you think you're tough and shit, but you don't wanna mess with those dudes.", he said and he looked me straight in the eye, like he was telling me not to get involved.  I backed off.

"Alright Eddie, but you have to use your head. They can't be coming here.  Okay? And if they do next time we'll call the cops."

"They won't be back boss don't worry.  You do what you gotta do. I get it. Sorry about that, but like I said, they just showed up."

"Are you in trouble?"

"No, no. Nothing like that, they just wanted to see now that I was out, how I was doing, and if there was a chance for them to get on here."

"Out? Were you in prison? It didn't show up on your records."

"No boss.  Outta the gang life, that kinda shit. "

"You were in a gang? "

"Boss everybody in my neighborhood was in a gang.  It's how you got by. "

"Jesus! Okay well I didn't know that, but I'm glad your not doing that any more."

"Nah boss.  I got this job, now.  Gotta girl, it's all good.  I can't be doing that anymore."

"Okay good.  I'm glad to here it.  Just please tell your friends to meet you outside of work.  Please."

"You got it boss."

And that was it.  I never saw those guys on the lot again.

Eddie was a very hard worker.  If I asked him to do something, I knew it was going to get done.  It didn't matter how hard the job was either.  Washing trucks, moving product, or rolling mats, he was the person I went to when I knew something had to get done.  He was awesome! 

Naturally, I rewarded him for his efforts.  Slowly, he moved up the production chain, and eventually became a driver's assistant.  He would load the truck, help the driver with all of our biggest accounts, and basically work as a "grunt". It was very hard work. As he ran the route, he befriended everyone, and I mean everyone.  From the administrative assistant, to the CEO, to the CFO, to the janitor.  Everyone loved Eddie! And after 2 years of helping our best route driver, I called him into my office.

"Eddie, I've been talking to Ray, and he seems to think you're ready for a route. What do you think?"

"Oh shit.  What? Really? Oh shit? Really?" , he was so excited, it was the first time Eddie seemed speechless.  

" Well?  You think you're ready?"

" Hells to the yeah!  I'm ready boss.  For sure! Oh man this is so great! ", he looked at me and he was beaming.

"Congratulations Eddie.  We're starting a new route and it's a growth route so you're going to have to turn in sales leads, promote product and really sell the shit out of it out there."

" You can count on me boss!  Damn I'll sell to everybody.  I'll get guys at 7-11 to buy some stuff. You can  count on me boss.  For sure.  I won't let you down. I promise."  

" Hey dude.  You've earned it.  Don't worry about letting me down.  Don't let yourself down.  You've come way to far Eddie.  Just keep up the great work. "

I said this and I looked up at him and he had tears in his eyes, "Ah shit.  Look at me all blubbering like a big baby.  I'm sorry boss, but you're the only one who ever believed in me.  You're the only one who gave a damn.  I told my wife, I got something here.  I don't wanna blow it, and you wouldn't let me boss.  Ah damn.  I'm sorry."

I felt myself getting emotional but I pushed it down, "Eddie, thank you.", and I held out my hand.

He grabbed it and pulled me close to him and gave me a hug. "No thank you boss.  Thank you."

For a year, Eddie didn't let me down, he didn't let anyone down, but more importantly he didn't let himself down.  He worked hard, and when I was promoted there was no one happier for me.  I'd finally made it to a General Manager position, but unfortunately I had to transfer to a different facility.  The office had a big party for me on my last day, and when everyone in the office was leaving, Eddie came in to say his goodbyes.

"Thanks for everything boss.  I don't know what I would've done without you. Hell I don't know what I'm gonna do when you're gone."

"You'll be fine.  You're a great person, and a hard worker.  The only way for you is up Eddie.  Maybe supervisor next. "

"Hells yeah.  I already got my new uniform picked out!", he said and we both laughed.

"Take care of yourself and don't let yourself down Eddie.  Remember that. ", I said and held out my hand which he just shook this time. No hug, but very warm and professional.

"I won't boss.  Don't worry.  I won't. I'm done with all that."

Two years later, while I was running my new branch, I received a call from one of my former management trainees who was now doing my old job.  He was Eddie's service manager.

"Hey I don't know if you heard.... but Eddie's dead."

"What? Stop messing with me!  How could Eddie be dead.  Isn't he still running his route?"

"No.  He got busted selling drugs on the route two days ago.  Didn't Rob tell you?"

"No he didn't.  What the hell dude?!  How is he dead?  What the hell happened?"

"He got busted.  He was in prison for a day, and some gang killed him while he was in there.  I didn't want to tell you because I knew you thought a lot him.  Sorry."

"Jesus Christ!  Jesus Christ! This is so messed up. Okay, thanks for the call.  Thanks.", I said in complete shock. As I put the receiver down, I stood up, closed my door, sat down in my chair, and started to process what I had just heard.  I thought about how hard Eddie had worked, and all he had been through.  And then I just started to cry.  I don't cry very often, but I cried that day.

"You let yourself down Eddie.  You let yourself down.", I mumbled between the tears. 

SFTD

Integrity...It's Such A Lonely Word

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I have read the book "Integrity Selling", and if you haven't, you should check it out!  But I lived it before Ron Willingham even wrote a word. I have been selling for years and my integrity is honestly all I have to sell since there are so many wonderful "systems" in the sales training market.  It is a great book, and wonderfully written, but if you aren't selling with integrity already, you are not a good sales person... Do I really need to add a few more periods?

This week, I had a new CEO contact me regarding a new account which had just signed a service agreement. It was late in the evening but regardless of the time, he called me on my cell phone to break the bad news.

"We don't need your services.  We'll pay youbecause of the contract, but I think what you're selling is way off of what we are trying to do here.  I like the older training systems better. Your system is just too new for me and your company is not really a proven entity." 

And then he hung up the phone.  Didn't even give me a chance to reply. Now if I was a greedy bastard, I would have said,

"Okay fine.  Pay me...we have a contract." 

But all I have is my integrity and he was a bit insulting so I called him back immediately.

"I don't care if you pay us one way or the other, but I think you're missing the picture here.  Did anyone on your staff explain why they chose us? Or how simple our system is to use and how it's much easier to apply in the field?"

"They don't have to explain it.  I read your marketing materials.  Why would I let the reps take control of the selling process. That's a bit stupid.  It'll be anarchy."

Obviously he had not read any of the materials or the follow up process after the initial training.  I doubt he knew anything about our systems.

"Well, it may seem like that at first but why don't we meet. I can explain it and if you don't like what you hear, you can kick my ass out of your office." 

"Does that line actually work with someone in the C suite?"

"I don't know yet.  This is the first time I've tried it on a CEO."

I heard a muted laugh, "Okay, you can come and talk to me but on one condition..."

This time I chuckled a bit. "What's the condition?"

"If I don't like what I hear, we don't pay you."

I was quiet for a long time, "Okay.  That's not really fair, but I feel like you're questioning the integrity of our systems and I feel strongly about maintaining that integrity.  So I can agree to those terms." 

"Is your company's integrity worth that much money?"

"Believe it or not, yes it is.  Can we meet on Friday at 2 pm?"

"Oh you know I'll be in a good mood on Friday afternoon. I get it.  Sure I'll meet with you Friday. You better bring that integrity and your A game."

"Always. Thank you and I'll see you then."

And I hung up the phone. 

Currently it's Tuesday so I don't know if that was a stupid move, but I guess I'll find out.  Wish me luck!

-SFTD

" Hey Boss: Mean It, When You Say It! "

Copyright: alphaspirit / 123RF Stock Photo

In the corporate environment, I have been to the top of the sales mountain quite often.  In addition, I've been recognized as a top manager as well.  Yet I don't know how many times, I was forced to stand on a stage and take a picture with someone who could care less about who I was or why I was standing beside them.  There was no sincerity in their voice, and no genuine feelings in their handshake or their smile. Once the CEO even call me by a different name, than the one displayed on the prompter in front of him.  Every handshake and smile felt fake.  Now, that could be me being extra sensitive or perhaps them being very poor actors. As a leader, one thing I tried to avoid was sounding like a phony.  Everyone can see through that BS.

Once when I was sales rep of the year, or rookie of the year, or something like that, I took the stage and the VP turned, shook my hand and said to me, "Thank you for sharing this moment with us."

Naturally, I was a bit confused by his remark. I didn't ask them to bring me on stage. My response was:
"Uh okay. Sure. You're welcome?" And then I smiled and took the picture with him and the other suit on stage. I think it was the CEO or somebody important.

Afterward, my boss came up to me and said, "Hey Doug didn't like the way you dissed him on stage."
I responded both dazed and confused, "What do you mean...dissed him?"

"Well you didn't thank him after he said thank you for sharing this moment."

" I said you're welcome, but you're absolutely right I didn't thank him.  For what?  He didn't mean it.  All he had to do was say thank you, take the picture and that was it."

"Well it was rude.  What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I didn't think I was being rude.  I didn't know what to say. Besides he sounded fake and insincere.  I didn't call him out, it was just an odd thing for him to say. I didn't know what to say in response."

"Why is that odd?"

"He said thank you for SHARING this moment with us."

"Again, why is that odd. You three were sharing a moment?"

"First of all, that sounds like a scene from some bad romantic comedy, and secondly I never asked him to share the moment. I'm not sure I wanted to SHARE the moment or even have the moment. They should just recognize us and send us on my way. I don't want to stand their and take a picture that I'll never get a copy of."

"What? What romantic comedy? Wait, the picture on stage? I'm sure you'll get a copy of the picture I'm one hundred percent certain you'll get a copy of that picture."

" Really? I've been to President's Club 3 times and I've never seen a picture of me on stage.  Have you?"

He stood there and looked perplex, as if he was trying to recall some distant memory of when he was a rep and he had won an award.

"Now that I think about it.  I don't think I have. That's so weird."

"See what I mean?  What do they do with all those pictures? Where do they go?"

"Huh? Who cares about the pictures.  Just apologize for being rude. He wants you to come and talk to him later...At the after party."

"Oh that'll be good for my career.  I'll be drinking and I'm certain I will say something stupid."

"Well that's on you, not on him."

"No it's on him.  I won't be talking to him after he's also been drinking...that will just make things even more awkward and weird."

"Well he just wants you to explain yourself."

"I don't need to explain myself after he's had three Moscow Mules.  He'll barely be able to stand up. And then he'll try to put me in my place and the whole thing will be blown out of proportion."

"You'd better talk to him. He feels slighted."

"I'll talk to him tomorrow.  After all those drinks he won't even remember what happened. I'm going to celebrate with our team and then go to bed."

"I think that's a bad idea."

"Do you want to know what I think is a bad idea? Reprimanding me for something I said on stage that meant nothing when I just won President's Club for the 4th time. Shouldn't we be celebrating?"

"Oh yeah.  Congratulations.  Now enjoy it and don't forget to explain yourself."

" Gee thanks?", I said and then just started laughing.  It all seemed so silly that I was having to discuss something that happened on stage an hour ago, because the ego of the VP couldn't let it go.
My boss gave me a pat on the back of my suit coat.

"Don't be a dick. Make sure you apologize.", he said and then began to turn and walk off.

"Sure. Sure.  First chance I get.", I said, being just as insincere as the VP had been on stage.  Instead I went over to our team, had a drink with all of them and then headed back to my room.  I didn't want any drama so I thought it best to wait til the morning, and then speak to Doug.

When I woke up, I went down for breakfast and looked around for him, but he was no where to be found.  I checked each table, and after the break my boss came over to me. I assumed he wanted to check on whether or not I had spoken to Doug.

"Hey I couldn't find Doug last night so I didn't get a chance to speak to him.", I said.

"Oh yeah don't worry about it.  Doug got fired last night for groping more than a few of the female reps."

"What?  Are you freaking kidding me?"

"Nope! Apparently he was pretty drunk and grabbing asses all night.  Well he grabbed the wrong ass and it turned out to be the head of HR. "

I just started to laugh. "I feel bad for those reps, but I'm glad it wasn't my ass he was grabbing."

He laughed as well, "No kidding.  Some guys just think with the wrong head."

"That's true.  Well he got what he deserved if you ask me. You still want me to apologize to him?"

"F you!", he said, and I believed he was definitely being sincere.

-SFTD

"A" Personality Stands For....Aggressive, Achiever, or A##hole?

Copyright: jayfish / 123RF Stock Photo

I can remember vividly every time someone has told me "I am your proto-typical A type personality."

Instinctively I think, "Oh you're an asshole and you're letting me know you're an asshole." Which might be a bit harsh in judgment but when people tell me up front they're an A personality type, I tend to cringe...

I've worked with a lot of assholes.  In fact, I've probably worked with more assholes than a Costco size pack of toilet paper.  The problem is that these people don't know they are assholes.  I always felt it was my "duty" to point this out to them, which more often than not, led to frequent shouting matches, hurt feelings, and me ending up in a lot of trouble.  Once I learned how to be a little more diplomatic with my approach to "calling them out", I had much more success in making converts of them and turning them into mere asses instead of assholes.

One thing that I've noticed about these "A" type of people is that they have a slew of opinions.  Opinions about how people should dress, how people should act, how people should talk, and even how many kids their employees should have.  Yes I've had a manager tell me a woman had too many kids to perform her job to his standards. They have so many opinions it's hard for them to keep them straight.  I had a general manager who literally thought that anytime there was an attractive single woman on the staff they were sleeping with someone on the team.  Really?  As if they had to sleep with someone to spurn their career forward?  He was an idiot.  At one point he thought everyone on my team was sleeping with one of my reps and the reasoning behind his bias...was his own libido!

I remember an instance where his over active imagination got the best of him and me.  We were having our weekly one on one in the conference room and he started in on me about one of my female reps.

"Someone on your team has to be screwing that Natalie. If I wasn't married I'd bang her.", he said to me.

"Mark. No one is 'bangin' her.  She's engaged and she's made it very clear she's engaged.", was my response.

"You're saving her for yourself. Eh? You're bangin her.  I know you're bangin her.  I'd bang her."

"Can you please stop using the word bangin.  What are we ten years old?  I am not involved at all with her and you need to stop thinking all the reps are out to sleep with her.  She's made it very clear that she's here to do her job and nothing else. And please stop talking about her like she's not a person."

"Oh listen to Mr. Sensitive! You've got the hots for your rep.  Don't you?"

"Actually no I don't. And even if I did, I wouldn't share it with everyone. Which is kinda what you're doing right now." 

"There's nobody here but the two of us, and you're soft.  You won't tell anybody.  I know you, and I know you're hitting that." , and as he said this, the woman in question, Natalie,  walked by the conference room and we could see her through the large glass windows which allowed a full view of the office. She was wearing a short skirt, blouse, and modestly high heels. I could literally feel Mark's eyes popping out of his head.

"No I'm not.  Now can we please just focus on the numbers so I can get out of this awkward situation.", naturally he ignored what I had just said.

"I can't get over how hot she is.  Where did you find her?A modeling agency?"

"USC. Really?  Is this meeting going to be all about Natalie?"

"Is she hitting her quota?"

"Yep.  She's right there. 99% right now. She'll make it by the end of the year."

"Good.  Very good.  Oh I bet she's hitting it. Maybe I should have a one on one with her, just to let her know who's in charge around here."

"Uh. Why?  She know's you're the GM.  How many other reps have you had a one on one with?"

"Just Mike. Oh... and Todd. But they've both gone to President's Club a few times so I had to meet with them.  But I think I can make some time for Natalie."

"Dude, you're kind of being gross right now.  I think you need to put your libido in check. "

"I'm not doing anything except offering to help mentor your sales rep. Just trying to show her some aspects of our culture.  You got a problem with that?"

And as he said this he smiled and I could see it was kind of a veiled threat.  This is where the A type personality came crawling out.  To me it was simply a front for a little man with a lot of insecurities.

"Remember, I'm in charge here not you.  And really, I kind of inherited you, I didn't hire you, so don't think you're in any position to do anything at this point.  You're on your way up here, don't blow it over a silly one on one with your rep." He looked me straight in the eye as he said this, as if he wanted me to back down.

"I just want to make sure she stays on after your meeting."

"What is that supposed to mean?  I'm not going to do anything but mentor her.", and as he said this he had a creepy look in his eye and he gave me that odd smile.

"I would recommend you have the one on one right here in the conference room.  That would probably be best.  Show her that you hold all the cards.", I said, but I actually wanted to make sure their meeting was conducted in full view of everyone in the office.

"Good idea.  Show her who's in charge of her career.  Who has the power.", and as he said this he rubbed his hands together as if he was cold and seated by a camp fire.  It was odd.

"Yeah that's all about you buddy. You're in charge Mark.  We all know that."

"Are you making fun of me?"

"Nope. I'm just stating the obvious.  You're in charge.  I'll send her in after we finish here."

"You do that.  For sure.  Let's wrap this up quickly so I can prepare for my little one on one with Natalie."

"Okay." I said with no inflection in my voice at all, as if I were bored with the whole conversation. I had moved on to business.

For the next 30 minutes we reviewed our sales numbers, projections, and forecasts.  We had tracked each rep's progress over the last 6 months, and measured their activity.  I provided field reports and ride along reports and each time we touched on Natalie's progress, my boss would get this glassy look in his eyes.  He paid attention for a time, but every time Natalie would walk by the office or I would mention her name he would lose his focus.  Finally, our meeting ended and I had someone page Natalie to report to the conference room.

I thought long and hard about letting her take the meeting, but I also knew that it would be in full view of the rest of the people in the office.  As Natalie walked into the conference room she tousled her hair and smiled at both of us.  At that moment, I knew who was in charge and it wasn't Mark.  That tousle of hair left him with his tongue hanging out, and at that point she could have got him to do anything she wanted, but she wasn't that type of person.  She was driven and she was career oriented.  She was all about her career, and I certainly recognized that first time I recruited her at USC. She was focused.

I introduced her, "Mark you remember Natalie."

"I sure do!", and he tried to give her a hug but she stuck out her hand for him to shake, which he did so sheepishly.

"Natalie, a lot of what we do here is predicated on Mark's leadership...so he wanted to meet with you just to see how you're doing and to discuss your future." 

She simply smiled and nodded her head. "That would be great."

"Yeah and I just wanted to give you an idea of how you'll fit in and how I can help you with your career.", added Mark.

"Well I'll leave you two.", I said and started gathering my reports.

"I can take it from here.", Mark said  and pointed for Natalie to sit, as if it were her duty.  I watched as he pulled up a chair right next to her instead of across from here, which I immediately thought would be trouble...for both of them.  I waved a hand in the air and left.

As I was walking to my office, I wondered how long it would take for him to screw that situation up.  He was relatively new to the GM role, and his inexperience was obvious.  His "A" type personality was about to get him in trouble.  I got to my office, sat down, and turned on a timer that we had been using for presentations.  I set it for 35 minutes.  I was a bit nervous, and at 33 minutes our head of HR, Grace, came running into my office.  She looked a bit flustered, and I already knew what had happened.

"We have a situation.  Can you come to my office?"

"Yep. Let me guess Mark and Natalie? "

"Yes, how did you know?"

"I saw that kettle boiling for the last month.  What happened?"

"She kicked him in the balls."

"She what? Wait can you say balls?"

"What do you want me to say? Groin? She's in my office now."

"Did anyone see what happened?"

"We all saw what happened.  The conference room is in full view of the office. He kept putting his hand on her thigh.  3 girls in the office saw it all go down. "

"Did you call the Jim?"

"Yep.  He's on his way here now.  I guess we'll both be here all night."

"I told Mark to not be an idiot."

"Well that's the problem.  Mark's not an idiot, he's an asshole."

"That's true."

" He'll soon be an unemployed asshole if it's up to me. "

"That is also true."

"And you're an asshole for letting this happen."

"Why am I an asshole?  I didn't tell him to put his hand on her thigh."

"Well, we'll see if your responsible for any of this when we talk to Natalie. You'd better hope she's alright."

Fortunately for me, she was fine.  A bit flustered, but still not completely traumatized by the event.  She said it had happened before at different jobs and she knew how to handle someone like Mark. So after a suspension, and an investigation Mark was fired. It turns out he had tried this before, but people were afraid to come forward.  For my part, I was found culpable but not responsible.  I guess there are different forms of assholes, and I was just one of them.  Lesson learned...

SFTD