High School Sweethearts…

Fall; Autumn; October … I love this time of the year.  I love the colors and smells of October.  October reminds me of high school; football; dating.  Do you remember your first high school sweetheart? 

High school is a very special and memorable time for teenagers; it certainly was for me.  (Still is.)  It was a different time; an innocent time.  I always enjoyed the month of October when I was in high school – Homecoming; Halloween; dating; parties (most chaperoned, a few not). 

Fifty three years ago, this very time of the year, I went to a party at Glenn Vician parents’ house.  It was at that party where I hung out with the prettiest girl in my high school.  It was there that I asked her out on a first date.  I guess both events went well enough because here we are fifty three years later we are still together.  I’m still awe-struck by the glow of her beauty.

I hope you enjoy this opening to Chapter XII True North of my book, The Peace & Power of a Positive Perspective © as much I enjoyed writing it and as much as I still enjoy re-reading it every October: 

Dedicated to… a crisp night in October; with a slight breeze blowing through bare trees – waiting for the coming winter.   Close your eyes.  Can you smell remnants of autumn leaves burning? 

To winning the homecoming football game.  To being carefree. To a Saturday night party at the teenager’s house whose parents are away.  Can you hear the kids having fun in the kitchen; the basement; and the backyard, all to the beat of the Rolling Stones? 

To couches, blue jeans and sweaters.  To the floor lamp reflecting on her blond hair making it shimmer with silvery streaks of light.  To the nervous small talk of a teenage boy in the presence of a varsity Pom-Pom Team member.  To the patience of the teenage girl sitting on the couch with the captain of the varsity basketball team.  Can you remember when you could actually hear your heart throbbing? 

To throw pillows, which come in handy when the small talk runs out – what else can a young boy do?  And to playful pillow fights; which lead to gentle wrestling and ultimately to that first kiss. Remember how delicate she felt in your arms – the hint of her perfume – the taste of her lips? 

To first dates – dinner and a movie.  To the movie Catch 22 and the Oriental Theatre in downtown Chicago.  To dating the prettiest girl in your high school; to falling in love; to asking her father’s permission for her hand in marriage.  Were you ever so nervous? 

To the tears welling up in my eyes even as I write this short memoire.  To all those emotions; all the happiness; all those hopes and all those dreams; some fulfilled, some yet to be; and all that I can remember today as if it just happened yesterday – that I will remember every day, as long as I live.  How can someone be so lucky? 

To 1970 - and that Saturday night in October in Elmhurst where I kissed Debbie for the very first time.  And to the friend’s house whose parents were out – to their couch, their floor lamp, to their throw pillows; and to the Rolling Stones music.  Can you imagine being so young, so infatuated, and so in love? 

I still am. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective. 

Giving our best…

Football is my favorite sport.  A bit ironic I suppose, because football is the epitome of a time in my life that I did not give my best.  Actually, it was worse than that.  It was the one time in all my competitive pursuits (athletics or in business) that I quit.  I’ve lost many times; won my share too.  Quit?  Once.

I quit my high school football team two weeks into the start of my junior year season.  It was the only time in my life that my Mom told me I disappointed her.  I can remember going into the head coach’s office to quit as if it was yesterday.  Totally ironic, because after being a starter and co-captain my freshman and sophomore years, I was not even planning to play my junior year.  I planned to focus on basketball. 

Over the summer the coach called and asked me to reconsider.  I agreed, but when I showed up I wasn’t prepared to give my best.  He and his coaches weren’t prepared to coach me up either.  At the age of sixteen, I decided that quitting was my only escape.  I’ve regretted it to this day.  It’s not the not-playing that I regret; it’s the not giving my best.

I bet there have been special coaches and mentors who have had a positive impact on your life.  Coaches come in all shapes and sizes and use a wide variety of styles and techniques.  Some coaches resonate with us; others don’t. 

Here’s a 5+ minute movie clip about high school, an underdog team, and their coach’s expectation about giving one's best: Facing the Giants

Probably not a technique that transfers into the business world today - but the message does, true?  Yes, the sporting world is different than the business world.  Nonetheless, we don’t have to go it alone.  Even the best-of-the-best have coaches.

In business, our favorite, Unknown Sage offers this:

Common misconceptions about coaching in the marketplace: 

“Coaching is primarily for correcting behavior” - If we only coach people when they do something wrong, we have missed the point.  It’s about building not fixing. 

“Coaching requires giving up power and control” – The manager relies more on influence. The person is still accountable. 

“Coaching takes too much time” – Coaching takes too much time if you don’t do enough of it and you don’t do it correctly.

“Coaching is soft stuff” – The manager who avoids soft stuff usually does so because it is so hard.  The work is easy; people are difficult. 

“Coaching is laissez-faire management” – Freedom in the workplace, actually just about anywhere, is rooted in strict discipline. 

“Coaching is simply being a good cheerleader” – A good manager has the courage and inner strength when needed to tell people the truth. 

“Coaching is like therapy” – To be a good manager and coach one does need a basic understanding of human behavior and motivation, but therapy has no place in your relationship with the people you are leading.

Coaches enjoy occasional accolades, too.  The best I ever heard was a tribute to Bum Phillips, former head coach of the then, Houston Oilers.  It was once said of Bum:

He could take his and beat yours - and then he could take yours and beat his. 

As a coach, he was able to get his players to give their best; they had no quit.  Imagine – what could we accomplish if we committed to giving our best? 

GAP

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

“D” words…

I was chatting with a friend of mine a recently.  He’s a Vice President of Sales at Oracle Corporation.  Oracle, like many technology companies, found themselves in an “over-hired” position earlier this year and went through a “reduction in force”.  Now, he’s working to restore morale.  It’s a difficult job: 

As one IT Professional put it; “We've been reorganized, restructured, re-engineered, right-sized, down-sized, up-sized, TQM'ed, and MBO'ed, and if I hear the word empowered once more, I swear I'm gonna scream!" 

Geoffrey James 

Maybe his company referred to it as downsizing; in the sales profession it’s called “cutting heads”.  Too morbid?  (Not for those fired with rent coming due.)  My friend’s unit was not spared; over a dozen heads.  He said they were lucky; it could have been worse. (Probably not for the departed.) 

Thankfully, this wasn’t the main topic of our conversation; we were at the other end of the head count.  We discussed his interaction with two reps that had just completed a successful sales year.  They don’t report to my friend, but they approached him in the office because he is the only sales executive still coming into the office.  They wanted to express their displeasure. 

There he was, shortly after cutting heads and these two asked if they could “speak openly” with him.  They had achieved quota but didn’t receive a pay raise as in the previous years.  They felt disrespected.  (Ah yes, there’s a fashionable “D” word.) 

Well, from these sales reps’ perspective, they were in a job; exceeded quota; and therefore deserved a raise.  Ah, “deserve” another popular “D” word.  Even though the company had missed their revenue target; even though the company had just gone through a downsizing; even though this VP had just lost several sales reps from his group; these two felt disrespected and deserved more.  (Reminds me of the movie Unforgiven and Clint Eastwood’s line, “… deserves got nothin’ to do with it…”) 

He listened patiently and they vented for 30 minutes.  He didn’t try to cut them off.  He could have, but he didn’t.  Perhaps he employed John L. Beckley’s leadership advice: 

Leadership strategy: 

When you are presenting an idea and are outlining its benefits, if the person stops you and brings up an argument or shows resistance, let it ride.  Don't respond for a moment.  And even then, don’t respond directly. 

Too many people seem to be in a too big a hurry to answer questions and overcome resistances.  Instead of making a case, we shift our focus and lose momentum by directly answering objections.  We forget that we are there to give a coherent, complete presentation. 

But maybe if we weren't in such hurry to answer the questions, our audience would find that the full presentation of facts covers the objections and the question would not come up again. 

Of course, a time comes when you must handle the resistance, and handle it once and for all.  But that time is always the second time, never the first. 

Leadership entails lots of… well… another “D” word… dimensions.  One minute, you’re having the “tough conversation” with those who have to be fired.  The next, you’re patiently listening to, and encouraging those who you’re wanting to stay; trying to motivate; relying on to continue their success so more heads won’t be cut.

In a leadership career, dimensions are a necessity for success.  My friend is… my favorite “D” word… darn good at it. 

                                                            GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Credible, but…

I attended an SMM webinar recently, “The Secrets of Sales Credibility: The Trust Accelerator” by C. Lee Smith.  He is the CEO of Sales Fuel and author of SalesCred: How Buyers Qualify Sellers ©.  (If you’ve never attended, SMM is an excellent leading practices resource.) 

Much is said in sales circles these days about “qualifying the buyer”.  I liked Lee’s perspective on how buyers qualify the seller with an emphasis on credibility.  The first part of C. Lee Smith’s webinar title addressed this: 

In sales, credibility is being thought of as someone who knows what they’re talking about and knows how to help.

I love that phrase, “…knows what they’re talking about”.  I also appreciated the market research Lee offered from his company Sales Fuel.  Market research is always a good compliment to sales coaching; makes it more credible, true?  Here are two examples: 

Only 1 in 4 Americans views salespeople as credible in what they say and do [American State of Credibility]             

44% of millennials prefer no sales rep interaction at all in a B2B setting [Gartner] 

Those darn millennials; always looking for a mobile, on-demand, self-service solution, HaHa!  I describe this B2B buying phenomenon as, “Isn’t there an App for that?”  It’s not just the millennials, though.  Today’s Modern Buyer wants a salesperson who is easy to deal with; “knows how to help”.  That’s where credibility comes in: 

Sales Credibility: 

It’s what gets you through to high-level decision-makers that can transform your business.  Credible people want to do business with credible people. 

I love that phrase; “Credible people want to do business with credible people”.  The “you” in the “transform your business” part is referring to the salesperson’s business.  Credibility increases sales performance – I’m in total alignment with that perspective. 

OK then, so why did I include the “but” in the title of my post?  Because it was the second half of Lee’s webinar title that I’m not in alignment with; “The Trust Accelerator”.  In my opinion, that’s an overreach.  He suggests: 

The goal of most professional salespeople is to become a ‘trusted advisor’ to their customer. 

Ah yes, the old “Trusted Advisor” status.  Spoken of often – by salespeople!  I can’t remember a single time in my entire selling career when a prospect said to me, “Gary, what I’m looking for is a trusted advisor”.  Not once. 

I’ve researched, written about, and continue to coach salespeople on “Credibility” vs. “Trusted Advisor”.  In The Speed of Trust © written by Stephen M.R. Covey he offers research and coaching on how to attain a trust status.  I particularly enjoyed this research example: 

I don’t think you have a full trusting relationship until you are actually at the point that you deliver success repeatedly.  When one of my major suppliers says we want to have a trusting relationship, I think, “What a lot of rubbish that is!”  I turn around and say, “I don’t trust you.  I am not going to trust you until you repeatedly deliver success to me.” 

Peter Lowe 

I love this anecdote.  The reality is prospective customers don’t trust us – yet.   For me; I’m satisfied with being perceived by the Modern Buyer as credible; knowing what I’m talking about; knowing how to get things done for them.

However, if we insist on earning a position of “Trusted Advisor” then we must produce “…until you repeatedly deliver success to me”.  Trust doesn’t beget results for us or our customers – it’s just the opposite. 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

How’s your day been?

It was six years ago yesterday.  I was in an earthquake in Mexico City; a 7.1.  How do you work that into casual conversation? 

September 19, 2017 at 1:15 pm local time, a powerful earthquake shook the bejeezus out of my training class; our lunch break; my colleagues; and me!  Thankfully, no one in our group was hurt. 

Unfortunately, there were many in Mexico City and surrounding states that did get hurt; over 200 people killed; hundreds perhaps thousands injured.  According to The Guardian ©; 

It was the second major earthquake to hit Mexico in two weeks and came on the anniversary of the 1985 quake that devastated Mexico City, killing 5,000 people and destroying 10,000 homes. 

In fact, because of that 32^nd anniversary; commemorating the devastation; we actually had an emergency evacuation drill at 11am in 2017; about 2 hours before the real thing hit again! 

During the episode, I was conscious of the fact I was experiencing an earthquake – on the 19^th floor of a hotel no less.  What started out feeling like a freight train passing by causing the table to vibrate, quickly erupted into what seemed like a prolonged period of ferocious shaking.  I could not keep my feet. 

Those much braver than I were calling out; directing us towards the archway leading into the room.  Firmly they instructed us to move away from the windows; calmly, they reassured us that we will be alright.  Ultimately, we filed out onto the streets joining tens of thousands of others.

I remember looking out the window and seeing the glass buildings across the plaza actually swaying.  It was surreal.  It reminded me of the scene in movie The Matrix where a helicopter crash caused the façade of a glass office tower to ripple. 

So many had invested so much before the earthquake hit – and after.  Gustavo Moussalli, our Latin American Division Director and the executive sponsor for the class had made a huge commitment to his local partners; coordinating a 3-day enablement class to support their success. 

Gerardo Diez Martinez, our local Channel Manager arranged the meeting rooms and set-up; AV equipment; food and beverage; Gerardo spared no expense to insure we had everything we needed for his partners. 

My colleague Susanna Lagtapon sacrificed time away from her daughter’s 13^th birthday; traveling instead to join us for the class.  Our colleague, Tony Caporal, with cooler head and bravery, prevailed following the earthquake.  He helped us retrieve our laptops and luggage.  (Even stopping at the lobby bar to grab a free beer on his way out of the hotel.) 

Our VP, Brian Enright, was our “home base”; coordinating flights out of town; hotel reservations; and anything else he could do to support us from afar. 

And especially Hector Garcia from our long-time partner NetSoft.  Hector insisted on personally driving us to the airport; would not hear of us taking a taxi or a bus.  He would navigate us through the city streets; on constant vigil for our safety.  Three hours to drive us 12 kilometers.  Three hours in the opposite direction from his own home and family – taking us in his care. 

As with all disasters, there were many heroes – named and unnamed.  But that was 2017; Mexico City; and an earthquake.  Today, it’s another crisis; another natural disaster; another conflict. 

We are all thankful for so many first responders and other heroes – named and unnamed.  May God bless them all. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Dates never forgotten…

This is the week September 11, 2001 comes up - we remember.  What dates are never forgotten for you?  

In the novel, A Tale of Two Cities © is the contrast, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…” both occurring at the same time.  For many Americans, 9/11/2001 seems like a demarcation point between the best of times before that morning and the worst of times after.  That’s when terrorism literally collided into freedom.

Do you remember where you were when news and the images of the planes crashing into the World Trade Centers in New York City were broadcast?  I always will.  In a flash Americans were once again going to be tested on what we can endure during the worst of times. 

December 7, 1945 tested my parent’s generation; October 29, 1929 tested my grandparents’.  On a more personal level April 20, 1999 was the worst of times in my town. 

It’s amazing what we can accomplish during the best of times; and what we must endure during the worst of times.  And “must” we must.  The bad times help us appreciate and enjoy the good times.  Here’s what Ernest Hemingway said: 

Life breaks us.  And when we heal, we’re stronger on the broken parts. 

Our ability to gain strength from adversity should come as no surprise, though.  Our ancestry is made of up generations who were broken; endured; and then grew stronger. Is today’s adversity caused by gun violence, racial injustice, and other calamities akin? 

For those who did not suffer a direct loss of loved ones from the recent Covid pandemic, our hardships still come in the form of inconvenience and economics.  It’s more arduous today to keep up; we continue to hear "supply chain disruptions"; housing prices are almost unreachable.  Things we once dreamed of seem further from our grasp than ever.  Our available resources are nearing the breaking point. 

But for America, that’s nothing new.  Our country has been near the breaking point; on the brink; and healed back stronger for as long as we have been a country.  Was the suffering from the Revolution; Civil War; Korea; Viet Nam; the Civil Rights Movement, or any other national, local, family, or personal crisis less hard? 

We are again facing threats to our way of life; and indeed many of our life’s ways need to change.  We are strong enough to face these threats because we come from generations of strength - families who struggled to make for this country, for their loved ones, and for themselves the best of times.  Like past generations, Americans today will have to re-earn the better things in life.  Perhaps we should start by re-learning what those better things are: 

To really enjoy the better things in life, one must first have experienced the things they are better than. 

Oscar Holmolka 

We’re better off remembering the better things like the day an American walked on the moon, or the night the men's Olympic hockey team won the gold medal to Al Michaels’ famous words, “Do you believe in miracles?”  Our favorite Unknown Sage reminds us: 

The First Rule of Life: 

The best things in life aren't things.                    

America endured and grew stronger by overcoming those life-changing events known as 9/11; Black Tuesday; Pearl Harbor; Columbine; and others.  Today once again American must endeavor to endure; overcome; and re-unite. 

We will succeed, too… because we have never forgotten.                               

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Technology; past, present and future…

I attended a seminar recently co-sponsored by EPAM and Appian entitled, “Navigating Economic Uncertainty: AI, Robotics & Automation”.  It was a very interesting discussion with a big emphasis on Artificial Intelligence.  

We see a great deal of emphasis on A.I. these days, true?  (Or is it AI with no periods?  Confusing to us humans.)  There are lots of descriptions bandied about; “Generative AI”, “Responsible AI”, “Last Invention”, “Terminal”, “Cool”. 

All this reminds me of a presentation by David Smith, a futurist, who was putting then-present technology in perspective – I guess – way back in April of 2012.  I know, the Dark Ages! 

I suspect one of the reasons why presentations by futurists are so popular is they are provocative.  Part of their “WOW Factor” is all the speculation and prognostications they make.  Here are a few examples the state of the then-current and future of technology David made 11 years ago: 

• Today’s technology, we can record everything – and everything is a lot!
• Among the 5 most appreciated technologies of the past 100 years – the microwave oven topped the list (followed very closely by - the garage door opener). 
• 90% of the computer chips manufactured today don’t go into computers; automobiles and household appliances are common chip destinations. 
• 70% of the Internet traffic does not involve a person; it’s machines “talking to” machines, posing as humans. 

(How do we know if those Tweets or Xs are coming from a person or a toaster-oven?)

David Smith concluded his presentation with “shock and awe” statements about the future impacts of technology on mankind. 

I wonder how many of the provocative statements made today about AI will hold true eleven years from now?  That’s 2034.  Will that be the rise of the machines; the end of Social Security?  Will “X” still be “X”?  Will we still love our microwave ovens and garage door openers? 

As the person who trademarked, Dark Ages Computing ® in the 1990’s, it won’t come as a surprise that I’m a bit cynical about today’s continual hype on technology, technology, TECHNOLOGY!  I mean sliced bread was one thing back in the day; but today: 

Just because something is technically feasible doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. 

                   Gary A. Pokorn 

I’d like to argue with futurists and AI but I know 3 reasons why it would be futile: 

1. The machines and futurists don’t have the same sense of humor when it comes to the over-hype of technology as I do.  Futurists gets paid to prognosticate about what will happen “someday” (with a fair bit of vagueness on the “when”, I might add).  The end game for AI is still a bit vague.  Me?  I actually have to make a living selling this stuff.   Yet, I’m the one with the sense of humor!
2. Then it dawned on me that you really can’t argue with a futurist – his position is based on events that haven’t taken place yet, so we don’t know if he is accurate.  (Although our Sales Managers still argue about the accuracy of our sales forecasts, true?)  As for AI, do you set up ChatGBT to argue with yourself?  Hmmm
3. The idea of arguing with technologists, futurists, machines, or AI reminds me of our favorite, Unknown Sage: 

Arguing with an engineer is like wrestling a pig in the mud. After a few hours you realize, the pig likes it.             

OK, I have to go now – my refrigerator texted me. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.