Category Archives: leadership
Boss vs. Leader in 1 Picture
This is the sad picture we can see in many companies with many boss.
As a leader, my best advice would be to apply the principles of Situational Leadership.
The principle is that leaders must use different leadership styles depending on the situation.
The model allows you to analyze the needs of the situation you’re in, and then use the most appropriate leadership style.
If you want to read more about this, go HERE
Leave your Comfort Zone / Sortir de sa Zone de Confort … [Trends Tendance]
One image to summarize this artcile in tne Belgian Business Magzine “Trends Tendance” (Oct 2012) about my journey …
Click on the artilce below to enlarge this article (in French)
I explain also in this article how Karate inspires me so much in Business. You can read more HERE.
5 Creativity Exercises to Find Your Passion, via @davidmerzel’s BLOG
5 Creativity Exercises to Find Your Passion
Exercise 1 – Revisit your childhood. What did you love to do?
Exercise 2 – Make a “creativity board.”
Exercise 3 – Make a list of people who are where you want to be.
Exercise 4 – Start doing what you love, even without a business plan
Exercise 5 – Take a break from business thinking.
Look at original artcile HERE
5 Traits of Highly Successful Salesmen
Great article from Inc.
Highly successful salespeople cultivate the following five emotional traits:
1. Assertiveness
This allows you to move a sales situation forward without offending or frustrating the customer. Think of it as being located halfway between passivity and aggressiveness. For example, suppose a customer is delaying a decision. There are at least three basic responses:
Passive: “Could you give me a call when you’ve made a decision?”
Aggressive: “If you don’t buy right now, the offer is off the table.”
Assertive: “Can you give me a specific time and date when you’ll make your final decision?”
2. Self-Awareness
You need to be able to identify your own emotions, understand how they work, and then use them to help you build stronger customer relationships. This is a four-step process:
- Identify the emotions that you’re feeling,
- Based on experience, predict how those emotions will affect your sales effort.
- Compensate for negative emotions that might hinder the sale.
- Expand your positive emotions that might help you make the sale.
For example, suppose you feel furious that an important customer stood you up. You might take a break before your next meeting in order to remind yourself of all the times you’ve succeeded in the face of challenges. Or you might, as an ice-breaker, tell your second customer that you’re having a tough day and why.
3. Empathy
This entails adapting your behavior to the customer’s moods and emotions. It begins with listening and observing, but simply knowing what the customer might be feeling is not enough. You must be able to feel what the customer is likely to be feeling.
Suppose, during a sales call, you discover that the customer’s firm just announced major layoffs. You could ignore the news and proceed with the sales call as if nothing had changed, or you could focus on your own desire to make the sale and ask your contact who will have buying authority after the layoffs are over.
4. Problem Solving
The desire to solve a problem helps you create new ways to satisfy the customer’s needs, both financial (the ROI of your offering) and emotional–such as the customer’s need to be convinced that your and your firm are reputable and reliable. Problem solving is a four step process:
- See the customer situation as it really is. (Never try to solve a problem before you fully understand it.)
- Help the customer visualize a more desirable situation.
- Devise a way to move the customer from the ways things are today to the way the customer would like them to be.
- Communicate that solution in a way that makes it easy for the customer to make a decision.
While those steps might seem obvious, they’re the exact opposite of old-school salesmanship, where selling entails “giving a great sales pitch.”
5. Optimism
Optimism helps you maintain a sense of balance when things go awry. It proceeds directly from the (often unspoken) rules that you use to interpret daily events. For example, if the first sales call of the day goes poorly, your performance for the rest of the day will be different if you have this rule…
A bad first call means that I’m off my game this will be a bad day.
… rather than this rule:
Every sales call is different, so the next will probably be better.
Note that both rules are arbitrary responses to the same event, and neither is more “realistic” than the other. Even so, if you automatically jump to the first rule, rather than the second, it will be difficult for you to remain happy.
This principle works on bigger events, too. I’ve run into about a dozen top salespeople who saw the weak economy as an opportunity to sell even more,and did so, while their colleagues were busy hand-wringing.
In future columns, I’ll explain how to cultivate these traits in your day to day life, so stay tuned.
Message from Bill Gates and Barack Obama to Steve Jobs, via @davidmerzel’s BLOG
Message from Bill Gates and Barack Obama to Steve Jobs,
I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work. Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives. The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come. For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely. Bill.
See original Message on The Facebook Page from Bill gates.
Quote of the day from Barack Obama : “The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented.” —President Obama tonight on the passing of Steve Jobs
See original Message on The Facebook Page from Barack Obama.
The 3 Things That Motivate People [video], via @davidmerzel’s BLOG
Excellent video showing the surprising truth about what motivates us.
As a leader, it’s important to have good ideas, but if you want to do something great with those ideas, you must be able to influence others to join forces with you. You need to be able to convince people to share your vision. You can use a tasty carrot or sharp stick — both have their place — but I think it’s better to have a keener understanding of human nature and what it is that motivates us.
In this Video, Daniel Pink explains the three things he believes are the greatest motivators of all:
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Autonomy.
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Higher purpose.
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Mastery.
So, it’s not about money 
More details here-below,
Pink’s conclusions contradict what most of us probably think about motivation.
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Autonomy:
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No one wants someone always looking over his or her shoulder.
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Good leaders lead by providing direction, not by pushing from behind.
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Higher purpose:
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Sure, the primary goal of every business is to earn a profit and make the highest return on invested capital, but that surely isn’t what will drive our motivation.
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That’s why we talk more about solving our customers’ problems and making their lives better — we help them feel secure, maintain privacy, lower energy costs, and darken rooms so their babies sleep longer.
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Being able to donate money to the less fortunate in our community as a result of our success, is another motivator.
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Mastery:
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Many people leave their jobs because they feel stagnant.
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When there is an opportunity for promotions and for people to learn new skills — even without a title change — they’ll still feel like they’re moving up. When people have higher skill levels, their value goes up and they’re in a better position to get raises, or at the very least, they’re equipped to handle new jobs at other companies.
8 Ways to Communicate Your Strategy More Effectively, via @davidmerzel’s BLOG
Interesting reading from HBR
Here-below, you will find a few communications approaches that will help you effectively reach your employees and encourage behaviors that advance your strategy and improve your results.
- Keep the message simple, but deep in meaning.
- Build behavior based on market and customer insights
- Use the discipline of a framework : Inspire, Educate, Reinforce.
- Think broader than the typical CEO-delivered message. And don’t disappear.
- Put on your “real person” hat.
- Tell a story.
- Use 21st-century media and be unexpected.
- Make the necessary investment.
Here-below, the detail.
1. Keep the message simple, but deep in meaning.
Most organizations have a deeper meaning as to why they exist. This tends to influence strategy, decision-making and behaviors at executive levels, but often isn’t well articulated for employees. What you call it doesn’t matter, your purpose, your why, your core belief, your center. What does matter is that you establish its relevance with employees in a way that makes them care more about the company and about the job they do. It should be at the core of all of your communications, a simple and inspiring message that is easy to relate to and understand. Strategy-specific messages linked to your purpose become tools to help employees connect their day-to-day efforts with the aspiration of the company.
2. Build behavior based on market and customer insights
For employees to fully understand how your strategy is different and better than the competition they need to be in touch with market realities. The challenge is in how to effectively convey those realities so that your people can act on them. By building internal campaigns based on market and customer insights, you bring your strategy to life for your employees through this important lens. Package your content so that it can be shared broadly with all departments in your organization, but in a hands-on way. Expose managers first then provide them with easy-to-implement formats for bringing their teams together, with toolkits that include all the materials they’ll need. The purpose is to encourage their teams to develop department-specific responses, and to generate new ideas and new behaviors based on what they’ve learned.
3. Use the discipline of a framework.
Not all messages are created equal. They need to be prioritized and sequenced based on their purpose. I suggest using an Inspire/Educate/Reinforce framework to map and deliver messages on an annual basis.
- Inspire. Messages that inspire are particularly important when you are sharing a significant accomplishment or introducing a new initiative that relates to your strategy. The content should demonstrate progress against goals, showcase benefits to customers, and be presented in a way that gets attention and signals importance. The medium is less important than the impression that you want to leave with employees about the company. Whether you’re looking to build optimism, change focus, instill curiosity, or prepare them for future decisions, you’ll have more impact if you stir some emotion and create a lasting memory.
- Educate. Once you’ve energized your team with inspiring messages, your explanations of the company’s strategic decisions and your plans for implementing them should carry more weight. To educate your teams most effectively on the validity of your strategy and their role in successful execution, make sure you provide job-specific tools with detailed data that they can customize and apply in their day-to-day responsibilities. It is most important for these messages to be delivered through dialogues rather than monologues, in smaller group sessions where employees can build to their own conclusions and feel ownership in how to implement.
- Reinforce. It isn’t enough to explain the connection between your company’s purpose and its strategy — and between that strategy and its execution — once. You’ll need to repeat the message in order to increase understanding, instill belief and lead to true change overtime. These reinforcing messages need to come in a variety of tactics, channels, and experiences and I’ve highlighted some approaches below. Ultimately, they serve to immerse employees in important content and give them the knowledge to confidently connect to the strategy. You’ll also want to integrate these messages with your training and your human resource initiatives to connect them with employee development & performance metrics. Recognize and reward individuals and teams who come up with smart solutions and positive change.
4. Think broader than the typical CEO-delivered message. And don’t disappear.
Often corporate communications has a strictly top-down approach. I’ve found that dialogue at the grassroots is just as important, if not more so. Employees are more likely to believe what leaders say when they hear similar arguments from their peers, and conversations can be more persuasive and engaging than one-way presentations. Designate a team of employees to serve as ambassadors responsible for delivering important messages at all levels. Rotate this group annually to get more people involved in being able to represent the strategy inside the company. And when the message comes from leadership, make sure it’s from your most visible, well-regarded leaders. Another mistake is the “big launch event and disappear” approach. Instead, integrate regular communications into employee’s daily routines through detailed planning against the messages mapped in your Inspire/Educate/Reinforce framework.
5. Put on your “real person” hat.
And take off your “corporate person/executive” hat. The fact is, not many people are deeply inspired by the pieces of communication that their companies put out. Much of it ignores one of the most important truths of communication — and especially communication in the early 21st century: be real. “Corporate speak” comes off hollow and lacking in meaning. Authentic messages from you will help employees see the challenges and opportunities as you see them and understand and care about the direction in which you’re trying to take the company.
6. Tell a story.
Facts and figures won’t be remembered. Stories and experiences will. Use storytelling as much as possible to bring humanity to the company and to help employees understand the relevance of your strategy and real-life examples of progress and shortfalls against it. Ask employees to share stories as well, and use these as the foundation for dialogues that foster greater understanding of the behaviors that you want to encourage and enhance versus those that pose risks. Collectively these stories and conversations will be a strong influence on positive culture-building behavior that relates to your core purpose and strategic goals.
7. Use 21st-century media and be unexpected.
The delivery mechanism is as important and makes as much of a statement as the content itself. Most corporate communications have not been seriously dusted off in a while, and the fact is, the way people communicate has changed tremendously in the past five years. Consider the roles of social media, networking, blogs, and games to get the word out in ways that your employees are used to engaging in. Where your message shows up also says a lot. Aim to catch people somewhere that they would least expect it. Is it in the restroom? The stairwell? On their mobile phone?
8. Make the necessary investment.
Most executives recognize how important their employee audience is. They are the largest expense to the company. They often communicate directly with your customers. They single-handedly control most perceptions that consumers have about the brand. So if this is a given, why are we so reluctant to fund internal communication campaigns? I suggest asking this question: What am I willing to invest per employee to help them internalize our strategy and based on that understanding, determine what they need to do to create a differentiated market experience for our customers? Do the math and set your hoped-for ROI high whether it is financial performance or positive shifts in behavior and culture. If you choose not to invest be certain of the risk. If you don’t win over employees first, you certainly won’t succeed in winning with customers, as they ultimately hold that relationship in their hands.
10 Things Great Managers Do, via @davidmerzel’s BLOG
Interesting list.
You will find the original article HERE
10 Things Great Managers Do.
- Maintain your cool and sense of humor, especially during a crisis.
- Tell subordinates when they’re shooting themselves in the foot.
- Be the boss, but behave like a peer.
- Let your guard down and really be yourself outside of work.
- Make big bets on and stand behind people you believe in.
- Complement your subordinate’s weaknesses.
- Compliment your employee’s strengths.
- Teach the toughest, most painful lessons you’ve ever learned.
- Do the right thing.
- Do what has to be done, no matter what.
Life is too short not to do something that matters [slides] @davidmerzel BLOG
Great and motivating presentation and food for thought.
Life is a journey.
Life is too short not to do something that matters.
Therefore, ask yourself these three questions…
WHAT DO I REALLY ENJOY DOING ?
WHO DO I WANT TO BE AROUND ?
HOW CAN I MAKE A DIFFERENCE ?
The 99 Best Business Books [list] @davidmerzel BLOG
Here-below, an interesting recommended reading list of 99 BOOKS, by Josh Kaufman.
I would add following great books that I personally enjoy reading :
- The Dip, by Seth Godin
- Switch, by Chip and Dan Heath
- One Minute Manager, by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
- So What ? by Marc Magnacca
- Good to Great, by Jim Collins
- The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey
- Our Iceberg is smelting, by John Kotter
- Purple Cow, by Seth Godin
- Enchantment, by Guy Kawasaki
- The Top distinctions between Winners and Whiners, by Keith Cameron Smith
- The Leadership Pill by Ken Blanchard, Marc Muchnick
- FISH!, byStephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul, John Christensen
- I forget to mention some …
Do you see other books missing in this list ?
Still some books to read …I will put some of them on my shopping list.
The other option is to read The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business (Josh Kaufman) which is supposed to summarize the the most important concepts in business .
The full list of the 99 books here-below
Productivity & Effectiveness
- 10 Days to Faster Reading by Abby Marks-Beale (summary, review)
- StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath (summary, review)
- Getting Things Done by David Allen (summary, review)
- The Power of Less by Leo Babauta (summary, review)
- The 80/20 Principle by Richard Koch (summary, review)
- Bit Literacy by Mark Hurst (summary, review)
- The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr & Tony Schwartz (summary, review)
The Human Mind
- Brain Rules by John Medina (summary, review)
- Making Sense of Behavior by William T. Powers (summary, review)
- Driven by Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria (summary, review)
- Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales (review)
Communication
- On Writing Well by William Zinsser (review)
- Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds (review)
- Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath (review)
- The Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly (review)
- Show Me The Numbers by Stephen Few (review)
Influence
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (review)
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini (review)
- Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson et al (review)
- The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene (review)
Decision-Making
- Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions by Gary Klein (review)
- Smart Choices by John S. Hammond et al (review)
- The Path of Least Resistance by Robert Fritz (review)
- Ethics for the Real World by Ronald Howard & Clinton Korver (review)
Creativity & Innovation
- The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp (review)
- Myths of Innovation by Scott Berkun (review)
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship by Peter F. Drucker (review)
Project Management
- Making Things Happen by Scott Berkun (review)
- Results Without Authority by Tom Kendrick (review)
Opportunity Identification
- Four Steps to the Epiphany by Steve Blank (review)
- The New Business Road Test by John Mullins (review)
- How to Make Millions with Your Ideas by Dan Kennedy (review)
Entrepreneurship
- Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson (review)
- The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki (review)
- The Knack by Norm Brodsky & Bo Burlingham (review)
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss (review)
- Escape from Cubicle Nation by Pamela Slim (review)
- Bankable Business Plans by Edward Rogoff (review)
Value-Creation & Design
- Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson (review)
- The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman (review)
- Universal Principles of Design by William Lidwell et al (review)
Marketing
- All Marketers Are Liars by Seth Godin (review)
- Permission Marketing by Seth Godin (review)
- The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries & Jack Trout (review)
- Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got by Jay Abraham (review)
Sales
- The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes (review)
- Value-Based Fees by Alan Weiss (review)
- SPIN Selling by Neil Rackham (review)
- The Sales Bible by Jeffrey Gitomer (review)
Value-Delivery
- Indispensable by Joe Calloway (review)
- The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt (review)
- Lean Thinking by James Womack and Daniel Jones (review)
Negotiation
- Bargaining For Advantage by G. Richard Shell (review)
- 3-D Negotiation by David A. Lax and James K. Sebenius (review)
- The Partnership Charter by David Gage (review)
Management
- First, Break All The Rules by Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman (review)
- 12: The Elements of Great Managing by Rodd Wagner & James Harter (review)
- Growing Great Employees by Erika Andersen (review)
- Hiring Smart by Pierre Mornell (review)
- The Essential Drucker by Peter F. Drucker (review)
Leadership
- Tribes by Seth Godin (review)
- Total Leadership by Stewart Friedman (review)
- What Got You Here Won’t Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith (review)
- The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan by George Bradt et al (review)
- The Halo Effect by Phil Rosenzweig (review)
Finance & Accounting
- Accounting Made Simple by Mike Piper (review)
- Essentials of Accounting by Robert N. Anthony and Leslie K. Breitner (review)
- The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Course in Finance by Robert A. Cooke (review)
- How to Read a Financial Report by John A. Tracy (review)
Systems
- Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows (review)
- Work the System by Sam Carpenter (review)
- Learning from the Future by Liam Fahey & Robert Randall (review)
Analysis
- Turning Numbers Into Knowledge by Jonathan Koomey (review)
- Marketing Metrics by Paul W. Farris et al (review)
- Web Analytics: An Hour a Day by Avinash Kaushik (review)
- The Economist Numbers Guide by Richard Stuteley (review)
Statistics
- How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff (review)
- Principles of Statistics by M.G. Bulmer (review)
Corporate Skills
- The Unwritten Laws of Business by W.J. King (review)
- The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker (review)
- The Simplicity Survival Handbook by Bill Jensen (review)
Corporate Strategy
- Purpose: The Starting Point of Great Companies by Nikos Mourkogiannis (review)
- Competitive Strategy by Michael Porter (review)
- Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne (review)
- Green to Gold by Daniel Esty & Andrew Winston (review)
- Seeing What’s Next by Clayton M. Christensen et al (review)
Consulting
- Getting Started in Consulting by Alan Weiss (review)
- Secrets of Consulting by Gerald M. Weinberg (review)
Personal Finance
- Your Money or Your Life by Joel Dominguez & Vicki Robin (review)
- I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi (review)
- The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley & William Danko (review)
- Fail-Safe Investing by Harry Browne (review)
- It’s Not About The Money by Brent Kessel (review)
- Work Less, Live More by Bob Clyatt (review)
Personal Development
- Self-Directed Behavior by David L. Watson & Roland G. Tharp (review)
- Personal Development for Smart People by Steve Pavlina (review)
- Re-Create Your Life by Morty Lefkoe (review)
- Lead the Field by Earl Nightingale (review)
- The Art of Exceptional Living by Jim Rohn (review)
Microsoft Belgium moves back to the first place in the Employer of the year !
Best Workplaces rankings are part of the largest study of workplace excellence and people management practices in Europe, reflecting the workplace experience of over 1.1 million employees across Europe.
According to the organizers a “great place to work” is one in which you “trust the people you work for, have pride in what you do, and enjoy the people you work with.” Co-founder Robert Levering put forth this definition in his 1988 book, A Great Place to Work: What makes some employers so good – and most so bad, based on interviews with hundreds of employees at dozens of companies. Twenty-three years later the same definition holds true.
Microsoft Belgium has been in the list since 2003 (except 2005/6 when we didn’t participate) and we’ve been able to maintain a top position in the list for all these years.
These are the 2011 laureates and winners:
Fewer than 500 employees
1 Microsoft
2 SAS Institute
3 Accent Jobs For People
4 AE
5 Mars Belgium
6 Grünenthal
7 Amgen
8 CTG Belgium
9 Secretary Plus Management Support
10 Plus Uitzendkrachten
More than 500 employees
1 Schoenen Torfs
2 Randstad
3 KBC
4 McDonald’s Belgium
5 FedEx Express
6 Dow Corning
7 Carglass
8 Partena Ziekenfonds & Partners
9 Cisco Systems Belgium
10 CenterParcs De Vossemeren & Erperheide
The jury rapport says this “Microsoft pays particular attention to ‘the New Way of Working’. The central idea behind the ‘New World of Work’ is that Microsoft focuses its business philosophy on the freedom to work whenever and wherever you want. This is based on core values such as management by values, flexibility, a culture of trust and empowerment. Microsoft does this to tackle the mobility problems and the expectations of new and current generation of employees on work/life balance. Microsoft was one of the parties that was responsible for launching the first national homeworking day in 2010.”
Full Great Places to work press release in NL en FR.
Nice coverstory in Vacature/Références on Best Employer.
http://www.vacature.com/magazines/2011-03-19
http://www.references.be/magazine
Source : http://lucvdv.wordpress.com/2011/03/18/microsoft-belgium-wins-best-employer-2011-award/
The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds and Actions [infographic]
Great book from Guy Kawasaki.
To be honest, still on my shopping list but I really like this infographic !
Look also at this interview of Guy Kawasaki by Brian Solis.
Source : http://www.theharteofmarketing.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/enchantment-infographic.jpg
Which Countries Are Best for Women in Business? [video]
The first thing we learn in Jess3′s Film is who’s the best and who’s the worst when it comes to empowering women economically.
Interesting to see that Belgium is #2.
See below the countries at the top and at the bottom.
Top 10 Mistakes in Behavior Change [slides]
Great & Practical presentation about behavior change.
I like personnaly the #8 : Focusing on abstract goals more than concrete behaviors.
This is in line with what we can read in Switch http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6570502-switch
What Leads to Success ? [video & slides]
What Leads to Success ?
Some inspiring reading and Video & Slides, from Richard St.John.
This is Food for Thought
This is based on 500 interviews and 7 years of research.
Here-below, also the Slides
The Little Book of Leadership [slides]
I like this small book with food for though. Very short and inspiring reading.
Source : Phil Dourado
Be happy in 2011 !
For 2011
We wish you Health … So you may enjoy each day in comfort.
We wish you the Love of friends and family … And Peace within your heart.
We wish you Wisdom to choose priorities … For those things that really matter in life.
We wish you Generosity so you may share … All good things that come to you.
We wish you the best of everything … That you so well deserve.
We wish you to be simply HAPPY !
To be Happy, focus on the most important things for YOU
Here-below, things people say they are grateful for having in their lives.
Source : http://netspaze.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/thankful-infographic.jpg
