Category Archives: small business owner

The Top Ten Sins Mosr Managers Make and How To Avoid Them

brian smith-pld, Coaching, Dealing with Difficult People, Entrepreneurship, Leadership Development, Management, Management Training, Mentorship, Personal Development, Professional development, Reformed Control Freak, Self-Help, small business owner, Soft-Skills Training, Teacher, Uncategorized • Tags: , , , ,

We all start our management careers by making certain assumptions based on our perception of what a manager or leader should be, but we know our assumptions can be wrong. And I’m no exception. I’ve committed each one of these top ten sins at one time or another in my 40-plus-year career as general manager of a major retailer, an award-winning entrepreneur and a college professor. You can decide what kind of manager or leader you want to be. I hope you don’t make the same mistakes I did.

1 – There is no such thing as common sense. Don’t rely on common sense as part of your training program. If you haven’t taught someone how to complete a task the way you want it done, don’t assume they know how. Common sense is not common practice.

2 – You can’t motivate people. You can’t motivate people to do anything they don’t want to do. However, you can create an environment where they want to motivate themselves. If you know what they want and help them get theirs, more than likely, you’ll get yours.

3 – You ruin good people by promoting them. Just because someone is good at what they do, it doesn’t mean they will be good at doing something else. Not everyone has what it takes to manage or lead others. Promote someone who likes to work with and hang around with people. They must be teachers first and technically competent second.

4 – You don’t have to know everything. Admitting you don’t have all the answers is ok. What’s important is you know where to go to get them. Always be honest and upfront with your people. Don’t make shit up.

5 – You’re not the most important person in the conversation. Communication is everything. If the other person doesn’t receive the message as intended, then whatever you say will mean absolutely nothing. Ask open-ended questions to make sure they understand what you said.

6 – Park your ego at the door; it’s not about being right. We both know there are several ways to complete the task. It doesn’t have to be just your way. Solicit their import and build collaborative teams. The more you involve them in the process, the more likely they will want to come along.

7 – You can’t control everything all of the time. Your job as a manager or leader to teach someone what they need to know. You aren’t doing that if you aren’t sharing some of your responsibilities with the people around you. Resist the urge to micromanage them. If you don’t delegate, you rob them of their growth opportunities.

8 – You can’t demand respect; respect is reciprocal. You’ve got to give it to get it. Gaining someone’s respect is a three-step process. The first step is establishing rapport and then developing a relationship that will eventually lead to mutual respect. They won’t trust anyone they don’t respect first.

9 – People hear what they see, not what you say. You must lead by example. It’s not what you say that’s important. It’s how you go about doing it that matters most. If you look and act like one, people will believe you’re a pro.

10 – There aren’t any negatives; everything is positive. Your attitude and how you react to any situation are the only thing you can control 100 percent of the time. Bad things will happen. You need to learn the lesson and move forward. People want to follow winners, not whiners.

Copyright 2024. Brian Smith – Power Link Dynamics. Not to be reproduced without permission. Are you searching for a keynote speaker for your next event or planning an in-house training session. Brian works with people who want to learn how to communicate and interact more effectively, build collaborative teams or resolve conflict. To learn more about Brian and what he can do for you and your organization, visit his website. https;//briansmithpld.com.

You Can’t Suck and Blow In The Same Breath

brian smith-pld, Coaching, Customer Service, Entrepreneurship, Leadership Development, Management, Management Training, Personal Development, Professional development, Reformed Control Freak, Self-Help, small business owner, Soft-Skills Training, Teacher, Uncategorized • Tags: , , , ,

You can’t suck and blow in the same breath. You can do one thing or the other, but it’s impossible to do both at the same time. I have a soft spot for service providers, having spent a 30-year career as general manager for a major retailer and an award-winning entrepreneur. Profit and being profitable is not a dirty word. When a small business goes out of business, the whole community suffers. You have a choice to make. You can pay lower prices for the goods and services you purchase or have exceptional customer service. But you can’t have both.

Change is inevitable, and it will happen with or without you.

I remember, yes, I’m that old when my local bank installed an ATM – Automatic Teller Machine along the side of the building. You had to stand outside – sometimes in inclement weather to use it. Customers had a choice to make. You could go inside the bank, stand in the lineup, wait your turn to get served by the teller or learn to use the machine. Initially, there was a great deal of pushback from customers who refused to use the device. If you want the bank to hold the line on what they charge you for the services, something has to give. Either they must increase the price of those services to afford to hire more tellers or install ATMs because they can’t afford to do both.

Change is constant, and you can do nothing to stop it.

I know many customers are upset with retailers who have installed banks of self-serve checkouts. Some are going so far as to boycott those stores. As a former retailer, I understand the challenges they face. Their margins continue to be squeezed. The cost of doing business continues to go up. Small business owners pay more for the goods they sell, utilities they use, and the equipment they lease or buy. You have a choice to make. If you want exceptional customer service, you’ll have to be willing to pay more for the merchandise you purchase. Most small businesses can’t afford to offer you low prices and exceptional customer service.

Change or get left behind – it’s your choice.

I love the touch-screen machines at fast food outlets. You have a choice to make: You can either embrace the newest way of ordering food and paying for your purchase or stand in line and do it the old-fashioned way. Contactless service is here to stay. Handling cash is almost becoming a thing of the past. Traditional brick-and-mortar retailers are experimenting with various ways to try and keep costs down by not providing bags and having you bag your purchases, having multi drive-through lanes, ordering and paying for your purchases from your smartphone or laptop and having them delivered to your door or pick it up at curbside or a dedicated location in the store. I’ll go out on a limb here and bet if you have to choose between paying lower prices or having exceptional customer service – like me, most would pick low prices. You can’t suck and blow in the same breath.

Copyright 2024. Brian Smith – Power Link Dynamics. This article was written by Brian without AI Assistance and must not be reproduced without permission. Are you searching for a training provider for yourself or your management team. Brian specializes in soft skills training and leadership development. To learn about Brian and what he can do for you, your team and your organization, visit his website – https;//briansmithpld.com.

Celebrating Emotional Intelligence Month

brian smith-pld, Coaching, Entrepreneurship, Leadership Development, Management, Management Training, Mentorship, Personal Development, Professional development, Reformed Control Freak, Self-Help, small business owner, Soft-Skills Training, Teacher, Uncategorized • Tags: , , , ,

EQ – Emotional Quotient – emotional intelligence or soft skills is the ability to understand, use, and positively manage your emotions to reduce stress, communicate more effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflicts. Daniel Goleman said it best in his groundbreaking book- Working With Emotional Intelligence. ‘A new yardstick is judging us; not just how smart we are, or by our training and expertise, but also how well we handle ourselves and each other.’ Sixty-seven percent of the competencies needed to manage and lead others are emotional-based. If you can’t make an emotional connection and establish a relationship with those on your team, you will be an ineffective manager or leader. To retain and attack talent, you must up your leadership EQ.

One of the most important things about being a good manager or leader is to rule with a heart. You have to know the business, but you also have to know what is at the heart of the business – and that’s people. – Oprah.

We live in a hi-tech world, but your soft skills – empathy, patience, flexibility, open-mindedness, and the ability to communicate and interact with others- will play a more significant role in your success. For the first time in our lives, we have the potential to work with four different generations at the same time. Each generation – Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and the newest generation – Gen Z; communicates, interacts with others, manages and prefers to be managed differently. Each generation has different wants and needs. The successful manager or leader will be the one who can adapt their management or leadership style to build those all-important relationships and work with others the way they like.

Soft skills won’t guarantee a promotion, but not having them puts you at risk of not getting the offer. – Brian Smith.

Research conducted by McClelland, Goleman, Kouzes and others tells a compelling story about the link between an organization’s success and its leaders. Emotional intelligence / soft skills are the magic ingredient that separates the so-so from the exceptional companies. Senior managers and leaders with a high EQ component were 20 percent more profitable and had less staff turnover. People like to work with people who make them feel respected. People want to work with organizations that make them feel accepted and valued as an essential part of the team. How often do you leave your office and have a friendly conversation? How frequently do you sit in the lunch room talking with people and getting to know them better for more than just the work they do. If you want to build a collaborative team and retain and attack talent, up your leadership EQ.

Copyright 2024. Brian Smith – Power Link Dynamics. This article was written by Brian without the assistance of AI and cannot be reproduced without permission.

Are you searching for a training provider or keynote speaker for your next event? To learn more about Brian and what he can do for you and your team, visit his website at https;//briansmithpld.com or email him at brian@briansmithpld.com.

Four Leadership Skills That Will Drive Team Performance

brian smith-pld, Coaching, Entrepreneurship, Leadership Development, Management, Management Training, Mentorship, Personal Development, Professional development, Reformed Control Freak, Self-Help, small business owner, Soft-Skills Training, Teacher, Uncategorized • Tags: , , , ,

Whether you are in a management position or want to be promoted into a leadership role in your organization, the challenges remain the same. New leadership skills are required for an ever-changing, multi-generational, diverse workplace. Today’s new crop of potential managers and leaders must have exceptional people skills and master the ability to connect with others to build collaborative teams, communicate in a way that everyone will understand, educate them on what they need to know, and help others grow by delegating often.

Worth Remembering – If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t design tasks that work for them; instead, teach them to long for the immensity of the sea. – Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

Connecting. Exceptional managers and leaders can make an emotional connection. They understand that if you can’t make an emotional connection, you stand little chance of capturing their heads, hearts, and hands. Your success and the success of your organization hinge on your ability to bring people together and build a collaborative team.

Communicating. Exceptional managers and leaders know that communication is everything. They realize that they are not the most important person in the conversation. If you can’t send the message in a way that everyone will understand, then whatever you say will mean absolutely nothing. You need to get everyone on the same page.

Educating. Exceptional managers and leaders can teach others what they need to know to complete the task and reach individual and team goals. They understand that not everyone learns the same way. The key to teaching someone is to find out how they like to learn and teach them in their preferred style.

Delegating. Exceptional managers and leaders understand that they can’t do it alone. They understand that you must give up control to get control. They know that if they don’t delegate some of their responsibility to those around them, they rob them of their opportunity to grow. Successful managers and leaders resist the urge to micromanage.

Worth Remembering – To each, there comes a moment when they are offered a chance that’s fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if, at that moment, finds them prepared or unqualified. – Sir Winston Churchill.

Are you looking to become an exceptional manager or leader? Develop these four skills. Learn to connect with others, communicate in a way your team likes, educate them on what they need to know and grow your people by delegating often.

Copyright 2024. Brian Smith – Power Link Dynamics. Not to be reproduced without permission. This article was written without AI Assistance. Brian specializes in helping others communicate and interact more effectively, resolve conflict, build collaborative teams and motivate others to perform at their best. Brian’s programs can be delivered virtually, online or in person, including one-on-one coaching.