The Problem with Business Growth
The problem with growth in business is that it can make many issues inside the firm highlighted or appear. Growing slow is easy. Growing fast can be challenging, especially when you don’t have an appropriate service model, processes, and/or the right staff in place. Many wish for this “problem,” but when you run into it, it is like a surprise party you absolutely did not want. I have seen firms truly feel that they were prepared,
Refuse to Be Forgotten by Refusing Generic Answers
When someone asks you, “how are you doing?” or, “how was your weekend?” how often do you reply with a generic one word answer like “good,” “fine,” or “nice?”
If you find yourself constantly resorting to generic answers when people ask you questions about yourself, it may be time to rethink your approach. So often we drift through our day, not even seeing the opportunities we have in conversations with others. A critical question we so often shy away from answering in a powerful way and one that can open doors to a world of opportunity is: “What do you do?”
I have heard even the most seasoned professionals use the old standard,
How Important is Your Team?
Is your business a team sport? Do you regularly give credit to your team for the success of your business? Or do you view your success as all your own?
How important is your team? Take some time to consider this question. If you feel you couldn’t do it without the team behind you, how do you give credit to them and show appreciation?
Jordan Spieth, in a post-Masters interview regarding his spectacular Green Jacket win,
Positioning for the Win
The Wall Street Journal recently ran an article on how one college basketball team, Kentucky, prepares for its opponents (“NCAA Tournament: Why Kentucky Hardly Bothers With Film Study”). They don’t spend much time studying game tapes of their opponents like most other basketball teams. They may have decided that their talent supersedes their preparation. And for most of the year it worked – but did it cost them? Would the outcome be any different if they focused more on preparation to position themselves for the win?
Let’s Talk: The Glue of Great Relationships
LOL, EOD, BRB, TY, and YW might be key elements of the way we communicate in a texting, emailing, social media-obsessed world, but they don’t make for high quality communication or conversation. With communication becoming more and more diluted by technology, there is a higher than ever importance of valuing great conversation—an essential element in building strong, mutually beneficial, and profitable relationships for financial professionals.
Conversations are the building blocks of relationships. Without them,