It's a puzzle.

Succeeding in business today is like solving a living jigsaw puzzle.
It is massively complex and complicated.
You can approach the challenge in one of two ways.
Employ a “top-down” design.
Start with an image of what the solved puzzle should look like.
Then use that image to decide which pieces to add.
And, more importantly, which to ignore.
That was Steve Jobs’ approach.
He had a very clear picture of the future.
And of how he was going to create it.
He carefully arranged each and every piece of the Apple puzzle to bring that picture to life in a powerful and believable way.
Others take a bottom-up approach.
They have a vague idea of the future.
So they look at every puzzle piece that gets tossed in front of them.
And try to force fit those pieces to create something of value.
Before they run out of money and passion.
Einstein said that it is the theory that decides what can be observed.
Henry Ford wrote that his cars were “concrete evidence of the working out of a theory of business.”
What’s your theory of the marketplace and your unique place in it?
Sure, you can stay busy creating new “stuff.”
Rearranging what you see in an attempt to stand out.
Or you can start with a theory.
One colored by a deep empathy for the people you hope to serve.
Then you’ll see the marketplace with new eyes.
And those new eyes will guide you and your people to a new future.

Is your organization at peace?

Someone wrote, “Peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. 
It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.”
And the best way to assure that sense of calm in today’s chaotic world of business?
Have a clear and viable vision of the future.
Understand the connection between your work and that vision.
Be passionate about that work.
And unleash creativity to bring your business to life and help improve people’s lives.
Successful organizations are at peace.
They create peace by ceaselessly sharing their vision.
By encouraging risk-taking.
And by celebrating success, no matter how small.
They’re led by humble and hopeful leaders.
Human beings who seek to learn and grow.
Enthusiastic people who work side-by-side with their people.
Coaches who teach and inspire.
Rabbi Dr. Edwin Friedman wrote, “Leadership can be thought of as a capacity to define oneself to others in a way that clarifies and expands a vision of the future.”
Is your organization at peace?
If not, your vision of the future, and everyone’s role in getting you there, needs clarification and expansion.
What are you waiting for?

The meaning of your message.

Why do most messages fail to engage us?
Why are we so reluctant to believe what we see and hear?
“The meaning of your message is the response it elicits.”
Have you ever heard that expression?
It suggests that a message means what the receiver thinks it means.
And increasingly, what most messages mean is apparent to us.
We sense that most are designed to sell their stuff.
To promote their cause.
To advance their agendas.
Yes, effective communication is one of the most important aspects of a leader’s job.
But it’s effective only if there is a resultant influence on people’s beliefs.
And behavior.
We can talk, blog, tweet, blast out press releases, and advertise until we’re blue in the face.
But unless people take some kind of action, it’s all for naught.
And now for my point, albeit a counterintuitive one.
Today, what you say and how you say it are the least significant components of your communication.
Because our sophisticated marketplace is bursting at the seams with masterful content.
And stunning delivery.
Slick and technically proficient communication is now the norm.
It’s virtually impossible to discern the Fortune 100 from the one-man show.
But technique doesn’t win hearts and minds.
Intent does.
Whether it’s an advertisement, a sales talk, a speech, or a presentation to your Board.
Being design-savvy, grammatical and logical is woefully inadequate.
Ours is an age of disillusionment and distrust.
You must do something different to win hearts and commitment.
Something many have lost focus of during their pursuit of wealth, reputation and power.
You must sincerely care.
And you must be willing to take a stance and make choices to demonstrate to us that you care. 
And if you don’t care, please don’t be surprised by the response your message elicits.
The meaning of your message will become apparent.
First to us.
And eventually to you. 

What's next?

We’ve mastered quality.
Squeezed every drop out of efficiency.
Saturated the marketplace with innovation.
And we’re now employing advanced information and communication technologies.
Trying to reshape the very fabric of our marketplace concepts and relations.
We’ve been through economic growth stages driven by agriculture.
Followed by a boon through manufacturing.
And most recently information technology.
We have the seeds, plants, and processes.
Data, information and knowledge.
So what’s next?
What’s next are ideas and creative execution.
Ideas about how to bring products and services to life in meaningful ways.
Ways that benefit our employees, customers and our community. 
What’s next are ideas about how to add excitement and happiness to people’s lives.
Ideas about how to connect people and organizations.
What’s next are imaginative vision and inspired action.
Welcome to the idea economy.

Likeable and valuable.

A few weeks ago I made a provocative statement.
At least it was viewed that way.
It was during a keynote speech to leaders of nonprofit organizations.
First I asked a rhetorical question.
“Is being likable a component of value?”
And then I answered it.
“No, it is not.”
I could almost hear my words ricochet off of their walls.
Those mental barriers erected to reject new ideas.
Especially ones that are antithetical to one’s identity and beliefs.
I’m sure it made them uncomfortable.
But I wasn’t there to make them feel good.
I was there to help them see the world differently.
So I revealed the reality of today’s marketplace.
By breaking it down into distinct and progressive steps.
The first one is engagement, where the brand connects with the feeling mind.
Through a look and feel that says, “I understand you.”
Being likable helps with this step.
It draws the audience in, so they’ll take a closer look.
That’s why advertising tries so hard to be likable.
Unfortunately, that’s the end of that step.
At the next step people are looking for value.
Not kind, funny, or friendly.
Professional, personalized, and pain-free.
They want to know specifically what’s in it for them.
It’s the harsh reality of our egocentric system.
And seldom revealed in today’s socially connected marketplace.
Where everyone wants to be “liked” by everyone else.
But it’s not reality.
The real marketplace is driven by people’s desires.
And those who succeed do the really hard work of identifying those hungers.
And uniquely feeding them.
You don’t have to like that it’s this way (I don’t).
But I urge you to accept it.
And to then get on with producing the goods.
Because there are a lot of people trying to be likable.
Just like there are a lot of trees in the woods.
But it’s only the ones that bear fruit who get the necessary attention.
And the care and feeding which allows them to grow.

Speed is the enemy.

Speed is the enemy of quality.
Not necessarily of output.
Robots are fast and precise.
Rather of our attitude towards our work.
Of our intention.
Of caring, creativity and connection
Consider the sorry state of healthcare.
Just about everyone in “the system” is extremely busy.
Rushing through his or her work.
Doctors and nurses charge through their rounds and appointments.
Administrators hurry through phone calls and meetings.
Insurance providers push to be even more efficient with their procedures.
And no one can see the answers.
And that’s because no one is slowing down and contemplating the overall process.
Sure, the patient is living longer.
But at what expense?
The same is true with other businesses.
We can’t rethink what we see.
Because we’re committed to our way of seeing.
We can’t rediscover as we go.
Because we’re moving too quickly.
We value our present course of action.
This can’t be fixed by consultants, by outside observers.
Because it’s the people closest to the problem with the facility to discover the clues.
And uncover the real answers.
And, sadly, they’re just too damn busy.

My kingdom for attention!

I am not suggesting that attention is unimportant.
But I am suggesting that our obsession with attention is misplaced, at best. 
And the fact that major industries have evolved to feed this obsession, simply adds to the problem. 
Don’t be drawn in by the illusion.
Sure, if something pops into view, people will be compelled to look at it.
But spending money to force it to pop repeatedly into view is a flawed approach. 
Like the buzz of mosquitoes, the annoyance will ultimately be ignored or brushed off. 
Instead, attention must be infused with value.
So that people get drawn into it, talk about it, and return to it.
What you are really after is sustained attention.
And creating and conveying value to gain sustained attention is not a marketing afterthought. 
It’s not something that you paint on.
Or something that you purchase, outsource or glean from focus groups.
It’s strategic.
As Michael Porter makes clear, “Strategy is about being different.
It means deliberately choosing a different set of activities to deliver a unique mix of value.
Otherwise, a strategy is nothing more than a marketing slogan.”
Today’s marketplace is polluted with marketing slogans.
The proliferation of low cost digital channels encourages dumping.
And so many businesses have traded their kingdoms for the fleeting attention of fickle consumers.
Don’t make the same mistake.  
Attention matters. 
But value matters more.
Because value creates sustained attention.
And gaining sustained attention is hard work.
It must be earned each and every day.

Is your brand broken?

Two researchers once argued that rampant crime in a city is the inevitable result of disorder.
If a window is broken and left unrepaired, people walking by will conclude that no one cares.
And that no one is in charge. 
One unrepaired window is an invitation to break more windows.
And then lawlessness spreads outward.
From buildings to streets to entire communities.
The same thing happens with brands.
A broken brand is a business that has no idea where it’s going.
And therefore cannot align its activities nor inspire its people.
It’s in disorder.
And this disorder leads to people walking around concluding that no one cares.
And that no one is in charge.
Employees see problems and opportunities.
But they stop complaining and suggesting ideas.
They’re convinced management can’t do anything.
Or won’t.
This lawlessness ends up spreading from employee to employee.
And from employee to customer.
Before long, the organization is hardened with passionless team members.
Uninspired customers.
Layoffs.
Accounting scandals.
Dilbertesque cynicism.
A vicious, and totally avoidable, downward spiral.
It’s time for leaders to end the lawlessness.
To put the brand back at the heart of the organization.
It will instill confidence and give people permission to act.
And prevent the disorderly behavior that inevitably breaks even the biggest and best intentioned brands.

Who controls your brand?

Joe Frazier was the first prizefighter to defeat “The Greatest.”
But he did more than beat Muhammad Ali.
He was instrumental in the creation of Ali’s brand.
Through their epic trilogy of bouts in the 1970s.
And likewise, Ali helped create the brand “Smokin’ Joe.”
Neither man was “in control” of his brand.
The boxing relationships were mutual, not causal.
Everyone was in it together, for themselves.
The fighters, the fans, the reporters (Cosell), the promoters, the networks.
In the same way, organizations are not in control of their brands.
And neither are consumers.
No one is in control.
The idea of being in control implies that the future is predictable.
But future events are not passive to past events.
The future unfolds like an improvisational performance.
You can play a part, but you don’t write the plot.
Great leaders understand this critical distinction.
They embrace change.
They accept the uncertainty of the future.
They trust people and help them live their dreams.
And by giving up the idea of control, they end up with the kind of relationships they really want.
Trusting and mutually beneficial ones.

Charles F. Keating wrote, “A problem well stated is a problem half solved.”

Who controls the brand? isn’t a problem well stated.
In fact, it isn’t a problem at all.
For inquisitive types, it’s a rhetorical question.
One that helps them ponder the nature of success in today’s chaotic marketplace.
For everyone else, it’s a distraction.
Business and work are not situations to be controlled and problems to be solved.
They’re integral parts of our evolving lives.
Success is not knowing how everything happens and then attempting to control it.
Success is being inspired by something inside of you.
And then flat out doing it.

Audacious belief.

I’m always wondering why people do what they do.
I think it’s in my DNA.
My mind was recently roused by a young guy at the gym.
He was punishing his body with a tortuous exercise.
So I asked him what he was up to.
He explained that he hated doing that exercise.
But he had to.
He’s an aspiring bodybuilder.
And there’s a professional who has used that exercise to create a unique aesthetic.
A muscular look that makes him stand out and win competitions.
So now every bodybuilder must have that look.
The judges expect it.
And the only way to create it (so far) is to struggle through that painful routine.
His answer made me think about today’s ridiculously competitive marketplace.
Consumers are our judges.
And their expectations have changed.
Because innovators keep raising the bar.
By doing things that create a unique look and feel (a.k.a. brand).
Unorthodox activities that others were reluctant to do.
Now all brands, all businesses, must follow suit.
Whether they want to or not.
But the pain of change holds most people back.
They rationalize that they don’t need to change (or change that much or that quickly).
They believe that their strengths outweigh their weaknesses.
They assume that their customers are rational and loyal and not drawn to new brands.
They discount the changes as superficial and short-lived.
Or they tell themselves that they’re too old and set in their ways.
And so they start to lose.
First their customers.
Then their reputations.
And finally their passion.
But there is a way out of the downward spiral.
Audacious belief.
Not in something outside yourself.
Belief in yourself.
Belief in your spirit and purpose.
Belief in the hard work of change.
Belief in creating a unique and compelling experience.
Belief in building a brand that provides new value in new ways.
It’s easy to talk yourself out of change (I talked myself out of that tortuous exercise).
But please don’t kid yourself.
You’re not really saving yourself from pain.
You’re slowly killing yourself with comfort.
As Bob Dylan said, “Behind every beautiful thing, there’s some kind of pain.”