Small Business Leadership and Sales Blog

Each year there is big hype surrounding "Draft Day" in professional sports. And long before a team chooses a player, there is extensive evaluation that has been conducted. Interviews are conducted with former coaches, teachers, teammates, neighbors, friends, relatives - you name it. Workouts are conducted that will assist the team in their decision making process.

Ultimately, at the end of this process, there are 3 questions that must be answered in order for the team owners to be comfortable with their selection.

1. Do they have the ability?
2. Will they do the job?
3. Are they a good fit?

Most CEO's, Small business owners and managers reading this article already KNOW THIS.

However, the RAMPANT PROBLEM IN SMALL COMPANIES is that they make hiring decisions without embracing these 3 critical questions. (Yes, I have made the same mistake of hiring based on a "feeling" instead of using a sound process that reveals accurate answers to these 3 key questions)

Realize Small Business people that:

1. Everyday is "Draft Day" for us. (meaning we always need to be evaluating new talent)
2. Your next hire can be vital to your team for many years to come so take the time to "Interview" those that have lived and worked with your prospective team member.
3. You may want to consider a "Workout" for them. (Can they shadow a high performing team member prior to you making a final hiring decision?)

So for your business:

Do they have the ability? Having the ability to play at the next level by meeting or exceeding your expectations is important to consider. Carefully evaluate the candidate's abilities and compare those abilities to your business requirements for the job. If they do not match, look for someone that has the right abilities.

Will they do the job? Ability is one thing, but having the will or desire to perform the job is another. Ask hard questions about your candidate's willingness to perform at the level you need. There is will, and there is skill - for small business development you will need both.

Can they fit? A great superstar who is ready and willing to take on the work can still be a bad choice if they cannot fit into your current business environment. Examine personality and behavior traits to see if there are some glaring issues that could cause conflicts or problems down the road. You do not just need an outstanding player - you also need a coachable team member.

Don't get discouraged. You can climb this hill!

If you need a helping hand as you climb, let's set up a 15 minute "Virtual" cup of coffee. It will be then that you can use these 3 Key Questions to decide if you should "Draft" me to work with your team as you strive to reach Marvelous Performance.

What do you think? 

Use the COMMENTS section below to share your advice, insights and experiences on this topic...

Welcome back Marvelous Performers!

Today I am honored to have Frank C. “Chip” Etier contribute his unique views and insights – “Come Hell or High Water”. Chip is a father, husband, photographer, high school football official, author and frequent contributor at the popular Examiner.com. Chip has “been there and done that” and reinvented himself several times. Enjoy his opinions here and make sure we hear YOURS. As always, we love your feedback. It’s the very essence of why blogging is so popular.

Peace, Love and Gumbo!
Marvin LeBlanc

During the mid to late seventies, I knew a man for whom I had a great deal of respect. He suffered a personal and business disaster when a close friend suddenly turned on him and the business eventually closed. In the depths of a quagmire that would be the undoing of many, he bounced back and within a month was busy building a new business with new partners.

"How did you manage such a timely and dramatic turnaround?" I asked him.

Roy Tauzin, who was at the time, my father-in-law (and is now deceased), said without hesitation, “The worst possible thing that could happen to you, might turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to you -- if you don’t let it get you down.” It didn't get him down, and I've never forgotten.

In 1984, a young man came to work for a sales company with me and made quite an impression.

Never had I met anyone with such a strong desire to succeed.

Never had I met anyone with such a focused obsession for persistence.

Come Hell or High Water is Marvin LeBlanc's book that tells his story of how hurricane Katrina might have been the worst possible thing that could happen for him, his family, and his career. It is also the story of how he refused to allow that to happen.

Never have I seen such a fine example of Mr. Tauzin's comment played out.

By mid 1988, Marvin and I had gone our separate ways and continued our careers. He was a rapidly rising star with State Farm Insurance in St. Bernard Parish, near New Orleans. His career was on the verge of a quantum leap into sales stardom when Katrina hit.

One of the traits that Marvin LeBlanc has, that makes him such a great salesman, is the ability to get his listeners to experience the same emotions he has had, while maintaining control of his own. His clients trust him. His team is loyal. Together, since Katrina, they have achieved the coveted Chairman's Circle twice at State Farm.

Readers will find LeBlanc's book to be not only emotional and informative, but inspirational as well. When bad things happen to you, you can overcome them as well. LeBlanc shows you how. Photographs by Joshua Lee accompany the text and depict scenes of the destruction as well as the reactions of the survivors.

Come Hell or High Water is available on this site, and from Amazon as a paperback or Kindle version.

Book review written by Chip Etier.  For more infomation about Chip please click here. 

For all businesses, employee performance is the integral factor and perhaps the building block that leads to their success. Employee performance can be greatly improved with the right kind of leadership. Here are the 5 fundamentals I believe are essential for building performance. All leaders must practice the following fundamentals with unyielding determination:

• Commitment to showing other the due respect. Leaders always value the opinions of their teams and followers. Why? The answer is that it gives them a sense of contribution and a feeling that they are important members of any team.

• All successful leaders put in hard work and long hours more so than everybody else because they have a greater calling i.e. a responsibility to make sure everyone is on the right path and working towards goal achievement. The leadership goals to effectively manage a team like, planning, organizing, directing, controlling, and administration take a lot of perseverance.

• Individual goals take a backseat in relevance with the goals of the team because it is only through teamwork i.e. cooperation and co-ordination can organizational goals be achieved. The basic goal of a leader is to ensure that everyone is working in harmony towards the achievement of the organizational goals rather than individual tasks.

• A leader never slacks off. Leaders never make excuses not to do a work or for not having to fulfill an objective. They work relentlessly day in day out until they have achieved what they had set out to do. And that is the key to successful leadership. Not giving up and ascertaining goal achievement is bred into the minds of leaders.

• Leaders take full responsibility of whatever they direct their teams to do and however they plan to carry out tasks for goal achievement. They are willing to be held accountable for any consequence of the actions that they prompt, and that in fact is what inspires their team to follow them unquestioningly.

Hello Marvelous People!  Please enjoy this guest blog from Chip Etier. 

It Happens Every Home Game

“Let’s go watch the band march in.”
We had just about wrapped up our tailgate party (circa September 1981) and were relaxing waiting for time to go to our seats, when my neighbor, Mike (not the Tiger), made that suggestion. We had our kids with us and everyone enjoys a parade, right?

This isn’t officially a parade, but it might as well be one.

About an hour or so before kickoff, the Golden Band from Tigerland assembles outside the band hall, near the Greek Theater on Dalrymple Drive. Their march carries them to Field House Drive and finally a right turn onto North Stadium. That turn is situated at the top of a hill known to Tiger fans as “Victory Hill.”

Thousands of fans line North Stadium Road and watch for activity at the top of the hill. As soon as the drum cadence can be heard, the cheers begin. We were waiting with the crowd and I put my son up on my shoulders so he could see better. The human version of LSU’s mascot, “Mike the Tiger” leads the procession with the Golden Girls right behind. The color guard is next followed by the drums and the rest of the band.

Anticipation is about to peak.

The entourage stops when the drumline reaches the bottom of the hill so that most of the band is on the hillside. The cadence stops and the crowd awaits eagerly.

Cymbals crash, snare drums rattle and are quickly joined by the entire drumline. The band raises their instruments, do a quarter turn to the left and fulfill the crowds desire with the most famous four notes in college football -- “HOLD THAT TIE-GAH!”

A half-turn back and it’s repeated to the right side of the street. By now, the cheers are so loud and continuous, it’s hard to hear the 325 member band. A quick segue into “Touchdown for LSU” and the band begins to run in tempo down the hill and to their entrance into Tiger Stadium.

Some SEC schools have well known two-word slogans but only LSU has those famous four notes. Their sound sends shivers down spines and motivates the faithful.

The Earthquake Game

Prior to the 2011 season, it was rare that the margin of victory in the annual regular season game between LSU and Auburn would be more than a touchdown. More often than not, it was even less. One, two, and three point games were common place. Most games between these rivals were -- and still are memorable.

And so it was in 1988. LSU trailed 6 - 0 when Tommy Hodson threw a touchdown pass to Eddie Fuller with barely a minute left in the game. LSU converted on the extra point and held on to win 7 - 6.

The Louisiana Geological Survey had a seismograph set up in the geology department near Tiger Stadium. The morning after the game, it was discovered, that the crowd’s reaction had registered on the Richter scale.

I was there.

I’ll never forget the “earthquake game.”

Eric Reid's incredible interception against Alabama

This play is most likely the key play (in an undefeated season) that is responsible for LSU being in the BCS National Championship Game. It was reviewed by the instant re-play official. The call on the field was not reversed. LSU eventually won. Reid’s interception was chosen by several pundits as “The Play of the Year” for 2011.

Had Eric Reid not made this interception, maybe Alabama would have scored a touchdown and perhaps won the regular season game between these two long-time rivals. Who knows what MIGHT have happened?

All we can say for sure is what DID happen. LSU earned their way in to the title game with an undefeated season and consensus number one rating by all the raters. Alabama got into the game because two other teams lost.

Many football fans around the country aren’t happy that two teams from the same conference are in the title game.

SEC diehards are happy with a sixth consecutive national title for their conference.

Many LSU fans remember what Nick Saban said when he was head coach of LSU, “Any team that cannot win their own conference has no business playing for the national title.”

Alabama didn’t win their own division within their conference this season.

It is what it is. Monday night, January 9, 2012, we’ll see what shapes up to be another great game.

That football ain’t round, and it takes some crazy bounces. It could be that one of those crazy bounces determines the outcome.

Geaux Tigers!

Hello Marvelous People,

Today's message focuses on a subject that comes up too frequently in our Marvelous Performance Schools and teleseminars. So many team members are struggling with their personal relationships with their loved ones. Unstable relationships, sickness, and dealing with disabled family members all can impede an employees’ ability to perform well when they get to work.

The problem: balancing my home drama and challenges with my work obligations and responsibilities.

Eight possible solutions:

The following tips are from eight different team members from five different states that have shared with me how they commit and recommit to good work in spite of things being bad at home.

My sincere desire is for these eight tips to provide inspiration for you to overcome the “bad at home syndrome”.

Their comments include:

1. “I actually look forward to work because I'm more appreciated there than at home”.
2. “I just made a decision one day that when I leave the driveway, I turn off my “home drama” and focus on what I need to do at work”.
3. “When I get to the back door of the office, I sometimes will pretend that I'm happy, and usually I can get in a better mood as I get moving”.
4. “I have a friend(s) at work that know(s) me well. They will cover for me if I'm having a really "sucky" day and I'll do the same for them”.
5. “I owe it to my boss/company, because not only do I want and like my job, but I need my job”.
6. "We're always busy at work, so I need to do my part, especially on Mondays. Everybody needs to show up on Mondays at our company".
7. "I cross the Mississippi River everyday. I leave my home problems on the “home side” and the work problems on the “work side”.
8. "My boss made me mad when it became company policy that we could only be on our cell phones at lunch. After a week, my family finally quit calling me and interrupting me during the day. Guess what, the world didn't end, and I actually liked it. Yay me!"

Today’s Call To Action:

These are the thoughts of 8 team members and how they overcome the “bad at home” syndrome and make it a great day at work.

Ask yourself: What “1” idea will you use “right now”?

“Nothing will happen differently if you don’t do something differently”.

Be sure to leave your feedback so that others can benefit from your stories and opinions. You matter!

As always, you can drop me an email at Marvin@MarvinLeBlanc.com if you would like to have a 15 minute confidential phone chat or if you simply have a thought or observation you’d like to share. What other subjects might you like me to cover?

If you’ve not read, “Come Hell or High Water” (Life Lessons From Hurricane Katrina) you can pick up a copy at MarvinLeBlanc.com - Inside its covers I reveal the secrets & techniques I used after my home and office were destroyed in Katrina. It’s a fast read. Ladies, even your husbands will read it because it has some great pictures for them. 

When I entered the Ear/Nose/Throat specialist office in Metairie Louisiana, one of the most important questions on my mind was “will I be able to continue to speak effectively with my motivational business after this surgery?”

The doctor was explaining the surgery process and how the pre-cancer cells on my tongue will be removed.  When I asked the doctor the question about my motivational business and speaking, he hesitated and then responded with “Marvin, you will just have to learn to use what you have.”

How often in life are we dealt with a challenge that could seemingly take us completely out of the game? What if we lost one of our greatest strengths?  How many of us would give up, and how many of us would find a way to pick ourselves up and move on?

I chose the path to move on and keep my  speaking business going. 

In life it is critical to persist and overcome obstacles – no matter how great they may seem.  All of us have strengths as well as weaknesses.  And we should all commit to working on them regularly.  Follow these tips to help you capitalize on strengths for small business success:

• Take a pencil and paper and then list your strengths.  Everyone will have more than one strength, just as everyone has more than one weakness.  For this exercise it is important to focus on your strengths.  Your strengths may include positive attitude, health, dedicated family, good relationships, or solid partnerships with your coworkers.  Make sure you list more than one strength, and feel free to add to this list at any time.

• Pick one strength from your list each day and stay conscious of that strength throughout the day. Find ways to use your strength in some form.  It could be to mentor someone else, to make a winning sales pitch, or to simply finish that task that has been sitting on your to-do pile.

• Each night before going to sleep, make it a habit to review how you used your strengths during that day.  Think positively and try to avoid the negative thoughts like “I should have…” that can often creep in and corrupt our ability to succeed.  Do not dwell on what you did not accomplish.  Instead look closely at what you did accomplish and how your strengths played a part in that success.

• Paste a note on your bathroom mirror as a reminder to focus on the strengths that I have TODAY. By cultivating your strengths and building them to be even greater, you can achieve success in many areas of your life.

Strategic Coach’s Dan Sullivan once said “if all you do is focus on strengthening your weaknesses, at the end of your life all you will have is a list of strong weaknesses.”  This is an important message when so many of us are bombarded with negative attitudes and weak thoughts.  It is not easy for many of us to realize our full potential because we are held down mentally by so many obstacles and challenges.  Treat those challenges as opportunities to shine and prosper.   Focus on your strengths – use what you have – for your life and small business success.

Peace, Love & Gumbo - Marvin 

Remember, “Marvelous Performance is always intentional. Marvelous Performance is never accidental.”

Feel free to send me your opinions, comments and feedback. We encourage you to inquire how our systems will help inspire you, your team, group or association to measurable Marvelous Performance.  Email me at Marvin@MarvinLeBlanc.com

We are all in sales. We sell something everyday. Some of us won’t admit it. Some of us have less than a favorable view of sales as a profession. But we’re all selling. It may just be ourselves and our abilities. It could be our writing skills, our opinion, or [gasp] a product.

Much of the everyday fabric of our lives contains patterns and connections. In his first book, Split Second Choice: The Power of Attitude, Jim Winner (yes, that’s his real name) identifies significant patterns that influence every aspect of our lives. These patterns eventually become habits for us and often are followed with no conscious thought. They are interwoven into our daily routines and our personalities. Winner, a professional trainer for over thirty years, helps us to become aware of these patterns, take control of the behavior they cause, and find connections to the solutions that make these patterns work for us instead of against us. Winner is a man of dreams and goals, someone who has learned to deal with fear, and a mentor whose amazing career is convincing evidence that what he offers in this book is effective.

Philosopher William James proposed that when we see a bear approaching, we run. He says (and this is simplified) that we feel fear because we run, not just because we saw a bear. Winner builds his success pattern on a derivative of James’ bear theory – we can alter our lives by altering our attitudes of mind. Winner writes, “Many authors have written about how attitude makes the difference…” but that “…they leave us on our own for the most difficult part…” and “…they don’t really tell us how to control our attitude.” Split Second Choice explores the power of attitude and our personal obligation to control our own emotions. Winner encourages us to learn how to identify the decision point, make the right choice, and be successful in all our endeavors; then make a habit of the process.

Ninety-six pages long, written in workbook format, Split Second Choice takes barely more than an hour to read. It could be a reference that you consult for years to come which is why I wish it was available in hardcover. My own experiences in the self-help field have taught me that you cannot learn to ride a bicycle by reading a book, listening to a tape, or watching a video or webinar or podcast online. You learn to do by doing and this book is the recipe. The book, filled with flow charts, diagrams, and inspirational stories concludes with an indispensable chapter on dealing with frustration, something Winner says is as inevitable as ants at a picnic.

Split Second Choice is now available as an e-book and paperback at: Amazon.
James L. Winner lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his wife, Margaret, and family. He is still active as a professional trainer and is also involved in real estate.

FCEtier, aka "Chip"

Chip is a husband, father, grandfather, pharmacist, photographer, high school football official and freelance writer. He's currently in the 10th year of a long term "news fast" -- so for him, everything is history. 

Welcome back Marvelous Performers!
Today, our special guest blogger is the great Inbound Marketing and Social Media Expert, David Newman.  David is the owner of Do It Marketing. More importantly, (at least to me) David is a friend and one of my trusted advisors on my MasterMind Advisory Board.

And today, appropriately, he is going to show YOU how to DO IT!!

How to DO the important stuff and FINISH by 3pm! (I'm not kidding)  Here's David!

Peace, Love and Gumbo 

Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF CNP

I had a high-output day today after hearing my friend, personal productivity and goal achievement expert Michael Gidlewski present a seminar yesterday.

By the time you're done reading this post, you will get the secrets to create your OWN high-payoff productivity burst any time you wish.

But it takes more than wishing - it takes resolve and action.

One hint - It is simple but not easy.

Back to today. What made it so special? Imagine having a day where...

• You get IMPORTANT stuff done
• You have more FOCUS 
• You FEEL better about what you accomplished
• And you accomplish more of what really matters to you and your business

In fact, it's very possible I accomplished more today (Friday) than in the four prior days this week combined.

After Michael's executive workshop, I got a better handle on what my key high-payoff activities TRULY were. I then put them on my calendar in specific time slots. And the screen that was under my nose all day was my CALENDAR, not my email INBOX.

Quick tips for you:

1. Plan your day - what MUST get done and WHEN?

2. Chunk your day down into blocks and assign specific tasks to those blocks - Phone calls, emails, client tasks, whatever it is YOU want to do that will move you closer to your GOALS.

3. Keep that damn calendar under your nose. All day. Make it your default screen. Hide, minimize or (gasp) close your email until "check email" pops up on your calendar.

4. Make note of COMPLETING your high-payoff activities. Check them off your task list or change their color on your calendar so you have a visual roadmap of achievement for your day.

So what's the big deal? What did I get done?

• Coaching call with one of my awesome clients in Canada
• Answered LinkedIn request for conversation with new prospect **
• Followed up with FIVE key prospects who were in various stages of follow-up mode by sending high-value article on referrals
• Wrote this blog post
• Connected with my 2 co-presenters for the Magnetic Marketing Seminar on 6/21 (if you're near Philadelphia, you're invited to register and join us - it's FREE.)
• Followed up with an editor of a financial publication about doing a podcast and speaking at several of their banking conferences over the coming year. 
• Took care of some financial nonsense which I've been procrastinating on for 2 weeks. (I hate that stuff, thus keeping my bookkeeper and my accountant profitably busy!)
• Made one important prospecting phone call (the only thing I hate more than financial detail work is using the phone.)
• Connected with my Vistage Chair to ask him an important favor. 
• Got a solid No from a prospect on the phone and ended the prospecting/sales process with her on a strong positive note. (Did I mention how much I hate the damn phone? Gotta use it, though...) 

All together, I had EIGHT high-payoff activities on my calendar and knocked all of them out before 3pm. Changed their colors, made follow-up notes, and felt great about the results of the day.

** NOTE: You may have noticed that my second item was to respond to a LinkedIn request that came in via email. The reason I was able to do that was because of point #5 in this post - I did a "Money Pass" through my email inbox and the new prospect inquiry from LinkedIn QUALIFIED as a high-payoff activity so I proactively added it to my day in real-time.

The short lesson is: Live Out of Your Calendar and NOT Out of Your Inbox!!

p.s. For a smart support system and specific tools on HOW to do precisely that, check out my pal Marsha Egan's awesome program called INBOX DETOX.

Please share this blog with your friends, colleagues and network.  I love feedback and comments and welcome the opportunity to work with your group!

We are almost to the middle of summer and the height of vacation season.  A fellow NSA colleague Kimberly Medlock shares this great information about not taking mental baggage with you on vacation.  Enjoy! 

There is something mysterious that often kicks in for many on “the day before vacation.” That long tedious list of random tasks that you have been able to successfully suppress for weeks (or months!) suddenly overwhelms you with an urge of almost irrational determination to get done. You simply must clean out the refrigerator, empty your inbox, return all borrowed items and dust your houseplants before you leave for vacation! (It’s not just me, right?)

I agree with the theory that suggests that subconsciously you are desperate to de-clutter your mind and shed the excessive “baggage” that comes from all of those loose-ends, procrastinated tasks and unfinished projects. You know that unless you do, you will have a difficult time transitioning into vacation mode and really experiencing the proven benefits that time-off has to offer.

So, in planning for your time away, my advice is to also plan for a few unscheduled hours/days for wrapping-up things on “your to-do list” before you leave. Doing so can allow you to be fully present while away from the office and be rid of any unnecessary worry, guilt or fear that an important project, expectation or customer was left neglected. Wouldn’t that be a nice change?

Here are a few tips to help you feel good about leaving the office for an extended time and reducing your mental baggage:

•  Avoid starting anything new that you can’t properly finish. Depending on what your job is, prior to leaving, avoid the usual “over-packing” of your calendar with new tasks, projects and commitments.

• Clean out your email inbox. A quick and effective way to do this is to sort your inbox by “sender” so you can review and delete large blocks of related e-mails.

• Clear your desk. Eliminate the piles on your desk by starting with a quick sort. Quickly dividing all of your papers into three piles – one for action items (things that require a specific follow-up action on your part), one for reference papers (items to be filed, support and a “someday/maybe” pile – things you might get back to in the future. Focus on taking care of your action items first. (If you have the time to file the non-action items, great - but if not at least you leave knowing that you took care of all known commitments.)

•  Let your important clients and colleagues know you will be out of the office. Send an email, set-up your email auto-responder and record a new voice mail greeting telling them of the dates you will be away and who they can contact should that they need immediate help.

•  Finish, delegate or at least bring up-to-date all incomplete projects.

Tip: Avoid hard-scheduling at least the first full day or two back on the job for reviewing your e-mails, processing new papers and being brought up to speed on any new issues.
Warning: With this laser-like focus and plan prior to leaving, you just might be so amazed at how much you actually completed and accomplished that you (and your boss) may realize the answer for improved productivity is actually to schedule more vacation time!

Lastly, remember it is just work. Work will always be there. Enjoy your family and have fun!

Want to improve your personal, team or company’s productivity?

Kimberly Medlock CPO® and Certified Microsoft Outlook Specialist is a speaker, trainer, author and coach for Productive Matters. She shares with enthusiasm how to achieve greater productivity and improved peace of mind for busy people. www.kimberlymedlock.com

"The future's so bright I gotta wear shades" is a great saying for people who are surrounded with positive energy and filled with real momentum to be successful. For your small business success, it is important to know that there are two primary types of people in the world. These people include givers, and then there are people who can be labeled as takers.

Before you finish your gumbo at lunch tomorrow, you can become a happier person by recognizing the givers and takers in your life.

Givers are people who will take the time to contribute positively to you on a personal and on a business level. Givers can be those loyal customers who will stick by you even when times are tough. Or the givers may be your mentor who lends comforting advice and guidance when it is needed. Another type of giver is simply a spouse, a friend, or a family member who will let you lean on them and will carry you through challenges or obstacles that you might face in your daily life.

Takers, on the other hand, do almost the exact opposite. Some takers are pessimists that always find the down side to any direction or decision. Other takers are needy people who are constantly down and out and require a lot of nurturing on your part. Still other takers are those who are out to take advantage or find the deal or steal of the day. These types of people can wear even the most hardy of us down.

Remember in school when your teacher assigned homework? Today's homework is for you to list ten people in your life, and then categorize those people as either givers or takers. No one is in-between. As you might have guessed, if you have just a few takers and mostly givers, you are more than likely a much happier person.

Your goal should be to find more people who are willing to be givers, and back away from those people who are your takers to achieve small business success. Once you find the right mix of people you will be able to lead a happier life - and that could happen as soon as you finish your gumbo at lunch tomorrow if you desire!

We all have a date with destiny. Along that journey, why not make it a little more pleasant by surrounding yourself with more positive people and more positive energy. For small business success this is key.

Please share this article with your friends, famiy and co-workers who could use a dose of positive energy!