Archive for August, 2007

Back in 2000 I wandered into a wonderful a site called thebrain.com that offered a tool to help one think in linking fashion. This is where one object, such as a word, document, picture, etc, can connect to another type of item creating a sense of continuity.

For example, you would type in the word HOUSE and then connect the words, REPAIR, INSURANCE and UTILITIES along with two urls and three documents. The spider effect then allowed you to do the same for each of these categories creating your own type of jumping program.

The tool could be used to set up a trip, work with clients, or manage your household information.

I thought it was so phenominal that I used to have a link to the page on our last edition of our site.

Then one day, for whatever reason, it was gone.

Just a week ago a friend suggested a thesaurus tool that was very similar in funcionality. Check out the link below.

Once again I decided to try www.thebrain.com so see if the company was up and running. To my surprise it was….being a little geeky I was very excited to see how the product had improved.

It’s well worth the time to review.

Beyond visible changes in nature, change begins in the mind when it comes to personal change. The human mind fires billions of neural impulses every second. Human thought cannot be halted, just as we cannot stop the change occuring in our everyday lives. In an era, no different than the past, we see change as faster than we are capable of working or experiencing. In the same vein, when a computer does not work fast enough or we are stuck in traffic, we do enjoy certain aspects of the change we experience. The new Darwinian adaptation will be who can make the balance out of the seemingly chaotic world.

“Change in and of itself means nothing. It’s the stories we build in our own minds that create the worry and frustration. If you’re tired of being pushed around, remember you always have the ability to create the next change yourself. No one is stopping you from taking control.”

(Written 1999 by DAG)

Change occurs in nature. Our very existence depends on change. Day becomes night. Plants bloom and fade with each passing season. Wind patterns redirect themselves and our weather moment by moment. There is nothing anyone can do to stop change. Inevitably we must accept that certain changes exist, and therefore, we must learn from nature’s lessons and adopt change as natural.

(Written in 1999 by DAG)

Change equals gain not loss. Change equals opportunity for success not probablity for failure. Change means the intentional was toward the new, not an abandomenent of the past. Most people groan at the the thought of change because they have yet to teach themseleves that change is the ultimate in life experiences. It takes mental power and a desire to grow to be able to snuff out the years of negative conditioning and then to develope new thought patterns.

(Wrttten in 1999 by DAG)

Barb’s challenge was simple, at least according to her; she needed help training and managing her rapidly-growing customer service department. This is a case of mis-directed energy, done so by a manager confusing activity with growth.

In this situation, think for a moment about what’s wrong with this challenge. “I need training and management help as our customer service department continues to add seats.”

First, this is not only one challenge, it is TWO: training and management. You can’t solve two things at once.

Second, training is a solution and not a problem.

Third, there’s something wrong with adding seats to a customer service center given that service centers field calls from customers needing help.

Yes, you’ve got it. Customer service centers do not grow when everything is working properly.

Here was my dialog.

Barb: “What do you recomend we do?”
David: “Before we move forward, you need to acknowlege you’ve got bigger issues.”
Barb: “What do you mean?”
David: “Let me give you a list of concerns…

1. You’re missing ship dates
2. Your sales people are not showing when needed.
3. Orders are being shipped incorrectly.
4. There are issues with your invoices and statements.
5. Customers are unsure of how to place reorders.
6. New prospects are confused.
7. The product is not always up to standards.
8. Marketing materials and support are lacking punch.
9. Employees are not getting back to customers.
10 ….

Barb: “How did you figure that out with just one question?”
David: “It’s easy. Customer service centers would shrink if everything was done perfectly. If marketing materials were complete, sales people did their jobs to perfection, orders were packaged and shipped on time, and accounting done accurately, no one would call you.”

This food service HR Manager confessed that many of the situations described were part of the company’s challenges. For example,, one issuesis the lack of support to new territories. When entering a new territory, the company can’t afford to run complete advertising campaigns due to the lack of penetration into the market. Therefore, the new customer, who’s selling the company’s turkey line, inevitably does not make the ROI expected, resulting in issues from the start.

Now imagine if Barb had continued down this path. She would have hired a trainer to help train new customer service people and possibly more management. When done, she’d have a larger payroll and more customers to fend off, creating a vicious cycle.

If she retargeted her energies into automated custoemer service counters, fixing the shipping, refocusing psychographic overlays for market penetration, improving the sales process, insuring accurate shipping, etc., her company would be much better off.

One of the hardest choices management has to make is what challenge to address first given that there are so many to choose from. In the world of decision making, making sure you address the right problem is the key to moving forward or backwards.

Just recently my family was sitting behind an older woman at a local function. When the lady stood up, Lorrie noticed that the print on her skirt, embedded in the design, said, “Slip it to me.” I know that in a million years the lady would never had picked up the skirt if she knew that right along her backside she’d be marketing such a slogan.

To us the image was very visable just as to you certain conditions are extremely visible. Just don’t believe that everyone has your same mind, and therefore, sees the same things. It’s a small lesson at the expense of a 60-year-old+ woman who was just trying to look nice for the event.