What your mouth just said about you!

When you speak freely you expose yourself and others, to what you actually believe. Unless you force yourself to speak otherwise what your mouth will say is what is in your heart. If you speak words of criticism and hate, your are not strong inside with love towards others. If you speak words of positive thoughts and love, its a pretty good signal about how you feel about others also. Politicians train themselves to use this knowledge to their advantage. (Yep! That is what I truly believe!)

Now you cannot see what is in somebody elses mind or heart, HOWEVER,  by listening to what they say when they speak freely you will know what is inside of them. When someone else is putting on an act, or onstage so to speak, they can say anthing and not really mean it. But in times of pressure and stress people usually don't think before they speak so what they truly believe will come out. That is why the spin handlers of politicians hate it when the candidate goes "off script" and speak freely. That is usually when they tell what they truly think and believe.   Other folks go through life not thinking ever before they speak, and we usually don't care much about what THEY think!

I'm always interesting in what I can learn from those others around us. That is another reason to surround yourself with folks you admire, like, and know are educated and strong thinkers - that helps you to grow and improve yourself.  If you hang around with bums and shallow thinkers then  you become a bum and slack thinker. If we allow ourselves to be around great folks and we open our minds to the ideas, experiences and suggestions of others it is amazing what we can learn. I have learned, especially in the business world, that I can't possible know everything so it is critical, in my opinion, to listen to and consider the thoughts and ideas of others. You may choose to accept or reject their thinking, but I believe you owe it to yourself to at the very least listen openly and consider their thoughts before you decide.

Now this thought isn't intended to condemn us but rather to wake us all up to reality - that is when you speak openly and freely be aware that you will naturally tend to speak what you believe.  To me, that is a good thing, and that is why I generally feel that people tend to tell it straight and honestly unless they force themselves to speak dishonestly, or maybe have a media spin master writing their speeches. When they do that there are always telltale signs that they aren't speaking honestly and again that too is a good thing if you can pick up on those signs and signals.

These are my thoughts on this subject, what are yours?
Steve

YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW.

CIRCUMSTANCES

Many times in our lives it seems that circumstances are absolutely piled high against or sometimes in favor of us. We all wonder sometimes if we have any personal control of our destiny at all.  Many in the Christian Religion believe that it is at times like this we relied on our FAITH and TRUST in God to get thru this circumstances.

I suggest that there are 3 different choices you can make when faced with circumstances no matter which side of the board, (positive or negative) those circumstances are stacked.

     1. YOU CAN CHOOSE TO ACCEPT THE PAST AND REMAIN THERE.
     2. YOU CAN CHOOSE TO EMBRACE THE PRESENT AND BE THERE.
     3. YOU CAN CHOOSE TO LOOK EXPECTANTLY TOWARDS THE FUTURE.

Now I know which of these 3 I try to always choose, but let's look at each choice and see the reasoning behind the choices.

•       If you choose the accept and remain in the past you are saying that nothing you or anyone else can do will change what has happened and you will forget all of your goals, dreams, and desires for life and wallow in your own self pity. 
•      If you embrace the present and fully be there and stay there then you see no chance of improving your situation and you don't even want to consider playing the "WHAT IF" game. You realize the past is gone and forgotten but you discount how you can improve your future.
•      If you choose to look expectantly towards the future then even when you make mistakes today or have made them in the past, you are still free to choose to change your situation and improve your possibilities for tomorrow. You can live life to the fullest possible potential. Even when you make more mistakes or stumble you still know that you control your destiny tomorrow and that your future is still able to happen as you want it.

My plan is to trust my past as experience, live in the present, but always commit to looking expectantly towards the future. Every day I experience the joy of watching how my future plans are coming along and how my past experiences are valuable in helping me correct my path forward. Even in the toughest times, I know that I enjoy that life transforming miracle of tomorrow. What about you?  How do you choose to live YOUR LIFE?  You do have a choice you know.

These are my thoughts on this subject, what are yours?
Steve

Changing Landscape of Business

Before the current recession it was fairly easy to go into business and stay profitable in business (and actually stay in business) due to the amount of money flowing within our economy.  Since 2006/2007 that situation has changed dramatically. In my business, (ceramic tile and stone business) our market has dropped 39% overall. In markets like Georgia it is bad, but unfortunately, it is even worse in some other markets.  I just saw a report this past week that said in Georgia the ceramic tile and stone business lost 33.6% of our contractor businesses and another 31% of our dealer/distributor businesses.

Think for a moment about the food industry, how many restaurants have come and gone in the past few years?  Many of those had excellent food taste and great service, yet they are gone. That is a business that has a very low cost of entry and raw materials are very inexpensive yet making a profit is almost impossible in these times between labor costs, energy costs, and the loss of disposable income for the potential customers.  In most home goods the technology improvements have absolutely killed all the profit margins for businesses.  Folks find something they like, want, or need and then shop the Internet to get to the absolute bottom price, usually doesn't include shipping costs, and the local business that started the process either has to make no money on selling their inventory or they lose the sale - either way they lose.

So what is the answer?  Folks a lot smarter than I am will have to come back with thoughts on that but I can tell you that I'm thankful that (A) I'm not in the retail business today, (B) I have a good job and available income to spend on my families wants/needs, and (C) most days I seem more likely to spend just slightly more to purchase something locally and maybe pay very slightly more, but seem to feel in my mind that I receive MUCH more value for my money then shipping it off via the Internet. I find myself using the local hardware store more today than ever before because when I consider the very small price difference I find the value of the education I receive from the folks working at the hardware store to teach me about the product I'm considering is worth far more than the price I'm paying.  Same with my insurance and my bank - local agent/branch seems to be worth it to me.  Am I alone in this?

Please do some comparison shopping this week and let me know your thoughts on this issue.
Steve

Remembering the Past

Today, September 11th is one of those days when many Americans stop and remember the past. Most of us can recall exactly where we were and what we were doing when the attacks happened.

As a private pilot I've heard many stories about others who were flying that day and ordered to land at the nearest field, no matter how close or far they were from their intended destination.  Some didn't have their radio's tuned into Air Traffic Control and those lucky few were met by military fighter jets who got their attention very quickly and helped motivate them to land with hand signals.

I was down at the Georgia Pacific HQ building in downtown Atlanta getting a few last minute things together for my trip at 11 am to New York City for a trade show.  As I left my office nothing seemed amiss, however at the front lobby desk the security had shut down the building and as I approached dragging my luggage they asked where I was intending on going.  I told them and they ordered me to return to my office upstairs and await further instructions. WOW! Never happened at GP before!  I wondered what I had done wrong.  As I approached the elevators I heard several friends discussing the situation and by the time I'd returned upstairs to my office everyone was gathered around very small TVs watching the events unfold.  I saw the second plane hit the second tower on TV.  SILENCE and complete STUNNED reaction from the 50-60 of us gathered around the TV.  Soon the telephones rang and everyone was ordered to evacuate the building, we heard at that same time on TV that all tall buildings in Atlanta were ordered to evacuate.

Driving back to my home in Peachtree Corners I called my wife and they were watching in her office also and she said they too were leaving shortly - as you can imagine the highways were packed but everyone was driving extremely courteously which for Atlanta traffic was also very different. The next several days passed in a blur, very few folks went to work, everyone was glued to the TV for more details and to see and try to understand this situation.  Today, 11 years later, we are still trying to understand this situation!

Oh, how our lives have changed, yet somehow, even if a little bit, the American Spirit grew even stronger because of this sad event.  Just as other national disaster events like Pearl Harbor have changed us as a country we still grew stronger and September 11th I'm sure will be no different.

Today, for a moment, please stop and remember the past, remember the event, remember who we are as a people and a country. And above all else, please Count Your Blessings.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

20 Minutes

Can such a small amount of time as 20 minutes make a difference in anything? 

I've been pondering this question for more than a week now and I need help making up my mind about this. We all seem to receive the exact same amount of time in a day, 1440 minutes, yet some folks seem to accomplish so much more that I do with their time.  What really baffles me is they seem so relaxed and calm while accomplishing piles more than I do.  How do they do it?

As I lived in the past several weeks I keep getting hints about 20 minutes:
- The preacher at church service last Sunday morning suggested I spend the FIRST 20 minutes of each day in prayer and quiet time with God.  Now I absolutely KNOW that this is great quality time and it makes a difference in my life, but really? Only 20 minutes?
- A time management expert was being interviewed and talked about dividing every task into 20 minute segments to accomplish it. Focusing on any subject for 20 solid uninterrupted minutes will guarantee you accomplishment he claimed. Gee, every time management course or goal setting course I've taken always talked about the longer the time frame the more certain the outcome.  If you plan short you accomplish short - now this is saying exactly the opposite.
- A friend was talking about how he has changed his outlook on life by looking at 20 minute time segments, that is, if something won't matter 20 minutes from now why should you bother having it matter right now?  Live fully in the minute you are in he said,  but always be aware of the important things that you want to accomplish in life and ask if this 20 minutes is adding to that goal.
- The opposite discussion on the radio,  was about how 20 minutes can completely change your life from pleasure to sadness or sorrow. Heart attack, car accident, etc.

I even attempted to ponder this seemliness unanswerable question for 20 straight minutes and discovered that I fell asleep while quietly thinking.........

This is one of those times I don't believe I have the answer and need YOUR help to think through this question - What difference can or has 20 minutes made in your life? 

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Strength

John Maxwell has an inspirational Word of the Day video that he sends via email daily and one of the words that he has yet to discuss is STRENGTH.  I've sent him an email asking him for his thoughts on this word, but while we wait to see where John takes it I thought I'd give it a shot.

Webster's defines Strength, when used as a noun as "The state or quality of being strong; force; power."  They go on to list toughness, durability, potency, concentration, intensity and force.

Webster's Thesaurus gives us Synonyms for Strength such as: vigor, brawn, energy, vitality, stoutness, toughness, sturdiness, soundness, and tenacity.  The Antonyms include: Weakness, feebleness, loss or lack of energy.

Now many of those positive qualities impress upon me the correct thoughts when I hear the word Strength, but I really like that Tenacity term.  Tenacity and perseverance are both favorites of mine whenever I think about finishing something in a strong manner.  Starting strong is always important, but unless you finish strong you may never get noticed.

At work, USG, we are revising a marketing slogan and a full marketing plan around the tag line that USG has used for years with our Durock Cement Backer Board - i.e., "STRENGTH BENEATH THE SURFACE!"  While working on this campaign I've become even more of a fan of that work STRENGTH and the many ways you can express it.  How about the level of support behind the product in the research, marketing, production, sales, service, and other support services that make not only a product but also a company a leader!  It's often been said that you can have a fantastic product but if nobody knows about it or can purchase it, then you've wasted your time creating it.  Opposite side of that coin is the hype marketing you see so often on late night TV pushing a truly terrible product in such a great marketing campaign that you throw your money away on it.

I believe that STRENGTH is one of those multi-faceted words that opens the imagination and allows you vast space to attach meanings. 

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

What is YOUR Job #1?

Remember the old Ford media campaign about "Quality is Job 1?"  Ford ran that when times were the toughest for the American Auto Industry and it seemed to work.  Maybe you should think right now (since times still aren't so great) about how you are viewing quality in everything you do.

When I was VP of Sales for a large flooring distributor we had a banner hanging across our customer service area that read: "If you don't have the time to do the job right currently, where will you find the time to redo it and correct your mistakes?"  I loved that banner and just seeing it boldly on the wall our customer service folks lowered their mistake level significantly. 

I currently involved in bringing a new product to market for USG.  Everyone on the team wanted this new product to be introduced by early LAST spring - didn't happen.  By Mid-year - didn't happen!  Why? Because we all care about quality, and without meeting the quality standards that we set for this product during our planning of the product we just don't feel we want to bring it out until it is right.  I my opinion, it is far worse to delay an introduction than it is to introduce a product and then have to pull it off the market and rework it and then try to again convince those same customers that THIS TIME we've gotten it right!!

Yes it does take a little more time, and a lot more effort, to comply with your stated goals and standards, whether they are for Quality or anything else, but in the long term relationship of supplier/customer I believe it pays huge dividends to do it correctly the first time.

On my computer monitor, right on top of my list of activities that are shown, is the warning "KEEP THE MAIN THING AS THE MAIN THING!" under that I have another list of: CHOICES, INFLUENCES, HABITS, QUESTIONS.  Those 4 items help me to focus on the important items for my role.  Nothing original, but necessary for me to insure that I keep my #1 job as my #1 job every day. 

One final hint, under the QUESTIONS headline I have the old standby of: WHO? WHAT? WHEN? WHERE? WHY? and SO WHAT?   Those qualifiers help me really understand more deeply the issues that I'm dealing with so that I can produce Quality as MY JOB 1 in whatever I'm doing that day.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Customer Service or Lack thereof.....

Many articles have been written about how to do great customer service no matter what segment of business you are engaged in, however, last Saturday I experienced a service provider that completely missed all the articles and yet believe they have fantastic customer service.  Allow me to explain and hopefully keep someone else from losing a customer.

We have a dog and visit a vet on an annual basis, nothing unusual so far, but our vet finally decided to retire and he sold his practice to a group of two new, just out of school, vet's.  They completely disregarded all the principles and everything our Doctor had built his practice around.  They quickly got rid of the long time office staff, who made the visits more pleasant as well as ran the office quickly and efficiently.  Then when those two failed (about 8 months) they again sold the practice to several new doctors, who again are recently out of vet school, and they not only didn't return to the standards of before but actually made the practice much more user friendly - for themselves - forgetting completely about the customers and our needs, like Saturday visits for those of us who both work.

As I usually preach to everyone else, I chose to vote with my feet and we got our record from the past 6 years of visits and found a new vet.  During this search process we decided since we spend so many weekends up at our Lake house we would use a vet up in that area.  We asked several local friends who they used and it turns out they most all recommended the same vet clinic.  In fact, one of our friends are very close neighbors to the vet and we've even had dinner together once. Seems like a perfect choice doesn't it.

Here's where the story gets sticky. My wife called not only this clinic but 3 others up in that general area just to check out the prices and levels of service, plus be sure that they in fact did have Saturday hours - and all did. We went to the highly recommended clinic and we were impressed when we walked in that only 3 other clients were ahead of us. Our old vet in Norcross, on a Saturday morning, usually had 20 + waiting and it took him about an hour and a half to get to us.  We were thrilled!   Our joy turned sour after the first hour passed and only 1 person in the waiting room was seen.  At about the 2 hour point I stood up and announced that I'd had enough of this rudeness and was ready to leave and go somewhere else. At that point in time the person behind the counter quickly found a way to get us into the exam room.  Where we waited another 30+ minutes. 

How does this all tie into customer service?  Well while we were sitting there waiting at least 5 others, obviously friends of the staff of the clinic, walked right in, never sat down, just walked back into the back and had their pets taken care of and then left.  No, the clinic doesn't take appointments. No these weren't emergencies (unless you consider trimming nails an emergency) and finally, no the vet who has the great reputation wasn't the one in the clinic.  It seems he too has decided that to better improve his practice he brings in a young, recent vet school grad, do you notice a pattern developing here,  to work on Saturdays so he can enjoy his weekend.

So here is my punchline - we will continue our search for a more consumer friendly vet clinic where the customers are treated well, but that "SPECIAL" customers are treated the same as the rest of the customers. It's not much money involved, we only spent about $200 but rest assured someone else will be the recipients of my money on the next visit. What if they are treating 100 other clients this same way?   Is this happening in your business?  Are you forgetting about keeping the new customer pipeline filled while pampering your existing customers? Maybe on day, just for fun, you stop what you are doing and walk out into your waiting room to ask the customers you haven't yet seen how they feel about your customer service rating!!!!  Maybe provide a feedback card like the fast food places do so your customers can tell you without disclosing who they are.  I assure you any cost is cheaper than losing a customer you should have had for life.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Happy Birthday Christy

Today is my lovely, wonderful wife, Christy's birthday. She is alway reminding me that she is much younger than I am, by 15 months, however she doesn't seem to respect her elders when it comes to that small amount of time! Birthdays are unusual events in themselves. When you are a young child they are wonderful, very special, events that result in presents and ice cream/cake treats. That seems to slowly go away as you reach your teen years when the event seems to take forever to arrive because you KNOW that you are ready to be a full adult with all of those privilege's. The 20's and 30's seem to go by quickly and birthdays for YOU get lost in the activities of getting married and having a family. Yep, I remember that milestone 21st birthday, mine took place in the Army in Germany after I already had the privilege of visiting exotic Vietnam, but after 21 I hardly remember another birthday until I hit 40! I wonder now if those 19 actually should count! 40 starts an entirely new phase of life. You are considered by the young to be old, and by the old to be young. What's up with that? At 50 you've actually made it to "OLD" and yet you still believe you're young, even on those few days you don't feel so young anymore as things start hurting the day after certain activities. Then suddenly, very quickly, much faster tan desired, 60 arrives. Now you're absolutely locked into old but still mentally in "just middle aged"! Who lives to be 120 these days? Maybe Bibilical times weren't so bad after all if you could live to 400+ years! After pondering this subject for some time now, and with my perspective of over 60, I've come to the absolute conclusion that God has it worked out right. These "Birthday year" phases are exactly right for us. Our eyes grow dimmer yet our clarity of vision on life and important issues seems to grow much stronger to balance those things out. After all, it does seem like life is mostly about balance doesn't it? Well, anyway, Happy 59th birthday to my wife Christy. Enjoy this LAST short year before your "OLD age" is securely locked in. Now please honey, get my walker and help me up from this chair so I can eat my fiber and prunes! These are my thoughts, what are yours? Steve

Thank you Stephen Covey

The news just came across the computer, Stephen Covey has passed away at age 79.  What a remarkable life he had on this earth, and I'm certain will continue in Heaven. 
As most folks know him he was an author - many can tell you the name of at least one of his books - The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (can YOU name ANY or ALL of those 7 habits?)  - but his real contribution to this world was far greater than most folks realize.  He is responsible for creating thousands of jobs, responsible for creating thousands of possibility thinking minds by changing the way people think and react. He also lived his life as a great example for others to see and follow, without having to shout or scream about how great he was - others will say that for him - Stephen Covey just quietly went about living his moral, ethical, life as a quiet example of what to say and do plus MOST IMPORTANTLY,  how to think and how to live a meaningful life being a Blessing to others.
  In honor of the memory of Stephen Covey please take a few minutes and research the story of his life.
What better epitath could anyone ask for? 
Steve

TWO SET'S OF EYES

It has always amazed me how two people can look at the same thing and see it so differently.  I was again reminded of this earlier this week as another person and I were driving past the skyline of the city of Atlanta.  Whenever I see this beautiful sight I get excited and think about all the opportunities that either exist or are about to be created in this city.  My friend, seeing the exact same view as I did, thought about all the crime, poverty, and all the awful things you hear about in big cities.  WOW!!

Aren't the annual political races exactly the same way? We have multiple parties running for office because folks see things differently.  We have one candidate, usually the officeholder, claiming everything is great and wonderful and he/she deserves another term, while the other candidate tells everyone just how awful and dreadful everything is and how it must be improved or the world will end in disaster quickly. Usually when the dust of the race settles we the public find out both sides slightly exaggerated their viewpoints and things continue forward, maybe not to the liking of everyone, but certainly to the pleasure of some. I become amused when someone claims to be TOTALLY COMMITTED to one party or another - in my findings I seem to see a lot of good and awful in both sides of most political issues, after all, that is part of the nature of politic's. Compromise.

Think about businesses that you know, some accommodate all the changes we face daily in life and make new opportunites, while the other seems to oppose all change and continue to want to do business as it always has. One company is aggressive, fast, and opportunistic; while the other is time-bound, filled with archaic systems and structures, and is either blind to, or refuses to, accept or reconize new opportunites for growth.

I'm certainly not avocating that ALL change is good, but change certainly is a part of our daily lives and we all must learn to accept change and adapt to newer and mostly better ways of accomplishing the same tasks we were before.  Typewriters gave way to desktop computers, which have evolved to laptops, which now are moving towards tablets.  It seem constant, yet is actually driven by our own demands. All the social media in the world can't take the place of a personal visit with a friend. Some things seemingly won't change, and I believe it is because the good things don't need changing.

Yesterday I watched a video of my old high school being torn down earlier this year - sadness filled my heart as I remembered all the good times of my life in that building, yet I also saw pictures of the new school built next door and am thrilled for all the young folks who will have a much better facility in which to learn their education. 

Yep, two set's of eyes, sometimes even within one person.  All will be well with the world.........

How to Handle Stress

How to Handle Stress

     I did not write this story, just received it from a friend and thought it worthy to pass along to everyone reading my blog.  I had intended on writing about vacations, seems like many are interested in that subject right now, but my take was going to be on those who avoid vacations and seem to wear that like a badge of honor - that they don't take a vacation.  Well, it just isn't healthy and it is really not good for your company!  They provide vacation time for a reason - I believe this below story very well points out that exact reason! 
A young lady confidently walked around the room while explaining stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone was sure she was going to ask the ultimate question: 'Half empty or half full?' However, she fooled them all.

"How heavy is this glass of water?" she inquired with a smile.

Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. To 20 oz.

She replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance. In each case it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."

She continued, "That's the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."

"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden -- holding stress longer and better each time. So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them through the evening and into the night.... Pick them up tomorrow.

"Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment. Relax; pick them up later after you've rested. Life is short. Enjoy it and the now 'supposed' stress that you've conquered!"

Relax today - stop and smell the roses and other flowers you pass so often without notice.
Steve

Control Yourself! Really?

What can you really control?  In today's fast paced world it seems like very little is under our direct control anymore.  Frustration is rampant everywhere.  It is widely accepted that the two main things you can control is your ATTITUDE and your ACTIONS.  Now I totally agree with that statement but believe there may be a few more things you really can control.  How about your PRIDE and your EGO? Both of those items seem to cause huge problems also.  Are you able to think of other things that you can actually control? 

What I like about the ATTITUDE and ACTIONS part is that those two items cover about 95% of everything that you need to be concerned about in life.  Actually when you boil it down to essentials, you discover that PRIDE and EGO are both pretty much covered in ATTITUDE and ACTIONS also.  If you watch your attitude you won't end up with either excessive pride or ego!  If you watch your actions you won't end up with unwanted or unintended consequences either. Those unwanted consequences cause the majority of pain in most folks lives in my opinion, so controlling your actions and your attitude will also remove much pain from your daily living.

Controlling your attitude and actions requires that you have a moral and ethical values set that you can use to guide yourself and your actions accordingly.  How or where do you obtain such values?  I suggest they are available all around you but it requires you to think about them and see which values are most important to you personally.  My values may be different than yours, yet yours work for you just as well as mine work for me.  May I suggest that you take some time today to exercise your most important muscle (your brain) today, right now,  and think about your values.  Write them down if you don't have them written already and use them to be a valuable aid to guiding your attitude and actions!

When you are in control of your ATTITUDE and ACTIONS then life seems just a little bit sweeter and certainly easier.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Hug and Kiss your family today

I'm saddened this week by the news of another friend of mine losing his teen aged son.  The Dad is obviously heartbroken not only by the loss of his son but also because he never had the chance to tell him one last time how much he loved him. 

STOP whatever you are doing today and reach out to all your family members and hug them, kiss them, and tell them how much you love them and how much they mean to you by being in your life.  Tomorrow isn't guaranteed and you may regret the opportunity for the rest of your life. 

I want to also tell each of you, reading this, how much you mean to me in my life.  I write this blog as a release but I completely enjoy hearing from those of you who read it that it sometimes touches you and helps you make yourself a better person.  For that I'm grateful and it makes me very happy.  I fully love my life and the friends that surround me in this life.  Yes, we all have sadness like this occasionally, but for the most part I don't want to change anything about my life as it stands - except to continue to try and improve on my shortcomings.  Thanks for being my friends.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Veterans

This week I'm on vacation but working hard because my vacation is helping our daughter and son-in-law take care of their new baby, our second grandchild and first grand boy.  My son-in-law is in the Army stationed at Ft. Polk and therefore we are surrounded by soldiers and veterans. I've heard yes sir and yes mam all day long showing respect for everyone they come into contact with. It's not just verbal respect that I'm seeing either, they also hold doors open for people, give space in traffic and generally behave in a complete manner that shows their respect for other people.

What strikes me the most about how the Army has changed since I was in it (1969-1972) is how much more professional the soldiers have become. As usual my mind has wandered to business, and how great these soldiers will be as future employees in the business world.  From my observations I believe this next generation of employees will be fantastic.  They are disciplined, dedicated, well trained, flexible in their mission and certainly willing and able to obey orders.  These young men and women are accustomed to working within a system and to helping to improve that system when and where they see the opportunity, yet they never show disrespect or disobedience.

As I observe these soldiers I feel a great sense of peace knowing that they are currently guarding our freedom in this great country of ours as well as a sense of peace knowing that our future leaders will come from within these ranks and our way of life will continue.  As they rejoin the civilian population they will be productive and valuable to whatever position they end up working in back in their communities. 

I feel very confident and excited about the future today.  How do you feel?

These are my thoughts, what are yours?

Steve

Happy Memorial Day

Are you able to unplug from work? 

Many of us who are so involved in business have difficulty in unplugging from work, even for a holiday weekend.  Today with everyone using smart phones and staying constantly in touch it becomes even more difficult to disconnect and enjoy the personal activities that make a holiday weekend so enjoyable.

Now my wife has already asked me if all of this is true then WHY am I writing a blog on the weekend?  Well, the truth is I find this activity both enjoyable and relaxing so I don't consider this work.  When I ponder that thought process further I find that what I do to earn a living I also find enjoyable and relaxing so in fact, for me, work isn't really work.  Maybe that's why I find it so difficult to unplug for vacations or holiday weekends.  Just a thought - enjoy yourself this weekend, no matter what you choose to do!

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Mutual Mystification

What's the goal?

 So many times we end up with folks either not knowing or forgetting the goal we are trying to reach. Once when our children were little we decided to drive across our great country so they could see this great country and have a lifelong love of travel. Well, somehow along the way everyone seemed to forget that goal and everyone just started going off in different directions and being unhappy about what we were doing! The kids couldn't wait for the trip to be over and my wife learned she dislikes traveling! Quite a change from our starting goal!

It happens at work sometimes when the leader believes he's clearly explained the desired goal and everyone on the team either didn't understand what was wanted or had their own thoughts/ideas of what the goal was. Either way nobody is one the same path towards the same goal! Sometimes, during the pursuit of the goal, in all the activities, we just forget what the original goal was. That's where having the goal clearly written down and posted or shared helps to remind everyone. Below are several other ideas that may help also.

 So how do you solve the "Mutual Mysticification" situation? The most obvious way is to clearly state the desired goal and then have others use different words to tell you back what they believe they heard. It also helps if you go several layers deeper and explain "Why" the goal is important. Others may believe it is because you want one thing and that may not be involved at all, it may be a completely different reason for wanting the goal reached.

 One thing is for certain, if mutual Mysticification takes place, for whatever reason, problems will soon follow and the goal, if ever reached at all, will be tremendously more difficult to obtain.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Are you happy?

Are you happy today?  Today I want to take some time to think about what makes someone happy.  I've found that sometimes the things that make me happy are things that I had no idea would affect me at all.  Other times I have to actively think about and seek out things that make me happy.  Maybe I'm over thinking everything. Maybe I'm expecting too much.
Right now I feel happy, but why do I feel that way? Is it because I'm doing what I want to do (thinking and writing) and have not one but two dogs laying near me, both very content and happy, while at my lake house with part of my family around me? Or is it just something that happens cosmically and today is my time?
Are there things going wrong around me today? Yep, as they always do and will, but why allow those minor items to change your personal level of happy?  I believe that "happy" is a state of mind and it can be (maybe should be) completely apart from events happening around you. Those dog's are a great example for me as to how to be happy.  All it takes is - nothing - yep, nothing, for the dogs to be content and happy.  I've watched my dog be happy inside or outside, with us or alone, dry or wet, etc.  Somehow God made dogs happy no matter what is going on around them.  My dog also never seems to worry about things either.  She has nothing new to wear, and sometimes goes long periods of time without food, yet she never seems to be bothered by those circumstances. One thing for sure, when she see's me or another member of her family that she knows and loves she surely does get happy - so happy her tail is about to knock her off her feet from wagging so much!  I don't ever remember beings quite so happy my tail wags - I wonder if I should consider that too?
Maybe that is the key to my being happy also.  Just stop worrying and stressing about circumstances and decide that no matter what happens (or doesn't happen) according to my desires or wishes, I will still be happy with my life.  WOW!  I feel better already. Now to go power wash the house, cut the grass,  and wait for the A/C repairman to show up and fix the problems with cooling............

These are my thoughts on Happiness, what are yours?
Steve

Never Stop Learning

Lately I've spent more time learning than teaching.  It is a different role for me, but one that I very much enjoy. I thought I knew everything I needed to know about cement but have discovered (once again) just how little I really know about yet another subject. Besides the fact that the cement business, like every other business, keeps growing and changing so you MUST keep on learning, I've also discovered that also like many other things, even the word "CEMENT" means something different than I thought it did! 

A "Cement" is a binder - a substance that sets and hardens independently and binds other materials together.  This is not to be confused with "Concrete", which is made of cement and aggregates. 

On top of that, there are different types of "CEMENT" - Hydraulic and Non-Hydraulic.  The first cures and hardens because of hydration - that is a chemical reaction with the mixing water. The Non-Hydraulic cement must be kept dry to develop their strength.

There is even an organization devoted entirely to cement - http://www.cement.org/
Wow! I had no idea how little I knew (and still don't know) about cement.  I suppose I better go back to working and start learning more so I can share more about my newly found knowledge.

As most of you already know, I like quotes and several pop into my mind today:

     It's what you don't know, that you don't know, that will hurt you!  and:

     It's what you learn after you know it all that really counts!   I'm heading back to school now!

Steve

3 Things for sure!

There are certain absolutes in life, Death, paying taxes, and having some gas engine powered time saving device that won't start as advertised! Yea, I know, push the priming bulb 3 times, set the throttle/choke to start and then pull the starting cord. 900 times! Again and Again until you're ready to cuss and kick or throw the thing, then it finally starts. By then I'm too worn out to do whatever job it was I needed! Remember the communists always have said they will take over our country by not firing a shot, well in spite of certain actions by groups involved in running our government, I'm now convinced it will happen when everyone in the country gets a gas powered tool and try's to start them on the same day! Yesterday it was the lawn mower, but could just as easily have been the trimmer or blower. We are doomed! These are my thoughts, what are your? Happy Mothers Day to all the Moms out there. Steve

MultiTasking

In today's business climate it seems like the term Multi Tasking is all the rage. Everyone wants everyone else to respond/reply almost instantly and even at work the company may request/require that you multitask. 
I have found in my world that sometimes multitasking is a good thing and like so many other items, sometimes it isn't.  Driving to work this week I saw a women who provided an excellent point for the positive view of multitasking.  She was (A) walking her child to the local school, while (B) also walking the dog along with them, while (C) swinging her arms and getting her morning exercise workout.  Now that is creative use of time and multitasking.  In the next block I observed a driver (I won't reveal male or female) that was driving one handed while attempting to work on what appeared to be a BlackBerry phone, and, read the paper stuck up on the steering wheel. This was DRIVING, or maybe I should say swerving around, and not stopped at a traffic light!  Bad choice there just waiting to start an accident.
Now my wife, and many female friends, argue that women are far superior to multitasking than men - and there is at least one famous college study (by a woman of course) that documents several reasons for this claim.

• Women's brains are programmed to think and work differently than men's.
• Women are intellectually superior to men.
• Women from an early age are given multi dimensional tasks while men seem to prefer focused tasks with single focus activities.
• Women just practice this more than men do.

Now I'm not at all agreeing with this theory, but just reporting it as one of the reasons that women seem so much more inclined to multitasking activities than most men are.
One thing I feel very sure of: Multitasking, as with most other activities can, when used to excess or at the wrong times, and result in terrible results and actually hurt your situation more than help you to gain that time you are attempting to save by doing different things at the same time.
As for me, I feel comfortable reporting that I can occasionally multitask without a problem, like walking and chewing gum, or drinking beer and watching a sporting event, but if you get much more complicated than that my tired old brain seems to rebel and I find that I seem to do a very poor job of all of the tasks I am attempting to combine and accomplish. 
These are my thoughts today, what are yours?
Steve

Top Down or Bottom Up?

One day I heard a man give a personal testimony saying "I thought of myself as being a self made man and I worshiped my maker."  Now that level of Pride and Ego will get you in trouble for sure! 

If you're convinced that you know all and have all you need, and that you earned it all by yourself, then get ready for a really big learning lesson that is sure to come your way soon.  I know HUMBLE and how difficult it is to learn and live with, but I promise you (having been on both sides of this particular issue) that the Pride and Ego side is also extremely difficult.

Somehow we have to find a middle ground - that grey area - that path that allows both sides to live in Peace and Harmony most of the time, and then firmly plant our feel and ideas there to sprout and grow in that fertile ground.

I watched it happen when I was involved in manufacturing. When decisions which affect the assembly line are made in the boardroom they seldom work and are always resented. The quality of work diminishes and production stalls.

I watched it happen when I was in sales. When procedures are handed down as edicts, without including the input of salespeople, morale is damaged, which ultimately has a negative impact on sales.

In several churches I’ve been involved with I’ve realized it also happens in churches. When the pastor, or a body of senior leaders, makes a decision that impacts the children’s ministry, for example, without the input of people who are actually doing children’s ministry, resentment builds, momentum stalls, and people resist the changes.

Be careful making decisions from “the Ivory Tower”. Many leaders lead with a top down approach, passing down decisions without consulting with those who have to live with them. It’s easy in leadership to forget that real people have to implement your decisions.

Don’t stand in the tower. Get out among the people you work with on your team.

Great leaders build decisions from the ground up, not from the top down.

Want people on your team to buy-in to your decisions? Then allow the people having to implement them be a part of the team making the decision. You may just be amazed at how little you know and how much you can learn.

How is your organization making decisions?

Ambition

Everyone has some ambition I suppose, the problem I see is that many folks set their sights too low for fear of failure. Why is that? Why do we fear failure so much?
Thomas Edison led the way in product failures, and BECAUSE of that also led the way in product innovations!
Look at baseball, our all time strikeout king is one of the best remembered players!
I've spent a majority of my work time lately working on and thinking about new product development because my company, USG, wants to be the leader in every industry we are involved with. Not top 10 or top 5, THE LEADER! Without ambition that goal would be impossible.
Like most other things in life, balance is healthy and required, but ambition, like ego and pride, in appropriate balance, is a great and necessary item in making this a better world to live in. Have we experienced setbacks and failures during our efforts? ABSOLUTELY! But because of clearly stated focus on our ambition goals, those failures don't become permanent failures, but only minor roadblocks and setbacks that are then overcome.
Where do you stand on ego, pride, and ambition? Do you spend time deeply thinking about those traits? Do you only see those 3 as evil or bad? Why not take a few minutes today to think about how you can use ambition, ego, and pride to improve yourself and the world around you.
Happy Easter to you and your family! Be sure to take time during these next 3 days to reflect on the meaning of this holy time.
Steve

I'm Sorry, I was WRONG!

We rarely hear those words in the business world!  Why do you think that is?  It seems that pride and ego just will not allow us to confess any mistakes to others, even when they are obvious.  I suppose it starts at the top - when the President of the country blames others for everything gone wrong, why shouldn't the president of a company or the Governor of a state also not admit any mistakes or blame someone else for the situation?
What benefit could you possibly receive from telling someone (or everyone) that you were wrong about something and that you are sorry?  Well, for one thing your own peace of mind that no matter how wrong you were you are at least honest!  Another benefit is making the other person feel better about themselves. Contrary to most claims, becoming a humble person is extremely difficult, and does cost you a price that is almost "PRICELESS." Another benefit will be that you will become much more popular when you are willing to admit your mistakes and others correctness in situations.

Now I'm not suggesting you go thru the rest of your life being a doormat for everyone, quite the opposite. What I'm suggesting here is that you focus your efforts on thinking about what action you are about to take (words or actions) before you actually do that mistake.   Take time to study and ponder (I love that word) before reacting and having to say "I'm Sorry" so often. It also helps when you take the time to study as much as possible within the field of business that you are engaged with, but a caution here, when you do that just remember that you are still prone to making mistakes unless you preface your comments with a qualifier type statement like :"In my opinion" or "I believe" and "I have found." These statements help others understand that you aren't attempting to present yourself as the ultimate authority, but rather sharing your thoughts and opinions  based on your experiences or studies.

 I may be the absolute worlds worst at actually doing this, but I continue to work on it daily and however slowly I do see myself making progress. I am attempting to hang out with folks that I absolutely KNOW are much smarter than I am, and therefore am completely comfortable in listening more than talking - and that helps me reduce my mistakes also!

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Girl Scouts versus stupid drunks!

This week I was in Savannah, Ga for a trade show and convention down on the Riverfront area and got to witness two completely different ends of the human spectrum.

The Girl Scouts were celebrating their 100th anniversary by being almost everywhere doing their good deeds and kindness.  If you think of the Girl Scouts as only sellers of cookies then you are missing the huge amount of greatness that these young women, and their leaders, accomplish in our world.

At the opposite end of the range of humans activities I saw many folks, arriving early for the annual drunken fest called St. Patrick's Day Celebration and already being successful at getting completely out of control. These humans, I hesitate to even call them people, were drunk and completely out of control by 10 am in the mornings and after passing out, sometimes in the public parks, and resting slightly, recovered slightly and joined back into the drinking to repeat the process.  I'm sure the good people who live in and around Savannah just can't wait until this weekend when well over 1 million additional folks are expected to arrive and participate.

This may actually be the reason and the cause for the caution:
    
        BEWARE: THE IDES OF MARCH! 

Busy! Busy! Busy!

If you're like me you find yourself extremely busy these days, much more to accomplish each day than you have time for.  I was pondering why that seems to be when I decided to actually track the amount of time I spent for different activities. What a surprise!  I found I have been so busy because I become so distracted about worrying about things that I have absolutely no control over or that may never happen. Does this happen to you also?
I tend to go way beyond what would be normal levels of "preparation" into harmful levels of worrying about many things that I either can't control anyway, or that I imagine MAY or MIGHT happen and then they never do and I've wasted valuable time. Confusion is one of my more frustrating states of mind. Not seeing clearly, not being able to perceive fully, and not being able to understand leave me feeling silly or stupid.


SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?  In my world it means I end up very busy when that just isn't necessary!  I'm not suggesting here that I need to completely ignore valuable thoughts/pondering/preparations but when I find myself taking this to the extreme I tend to actually slow myself down and become far more BUSY than necessary. 
 
I watched a TV show recently called "Doomsday Preppers" - now these folks all spend much valuable time, efforts and money being prepared for survival when the emergency they feel will happen happens.  I find myself agreeing with much of the shows premise but again some folks tend to take it way too far (unless you feel owning 4 old school buses loaded with supplies and staged at various hiding points along a preplanned escape route normal). One family featured was spending all their free time stockpiling supplies in a remote location to the point they had enough supplies to last 10 years, for 24 people (4 in the family)  but had absolutely NO LIFE right now!

I believe BALANCE is the word that best describes what I am looking for in my life - not lazy, not busy, but balanced.  I plan to focus on balanced and let the world spin as it will. 

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

TCNA Handbook Question.

We had a situation come up this past week at USG that resulted in the below email reply that I thought would be of interest, and a great learning opportunity.

It involves a tile wall assembly and the directions to have a movement joint designed by a design professional. Now most folks usually believe that movement joints are only for floors – that is not true and reading the section on movement joints explains in great detail when and where to use movement joints. The purpose of that statement in the TCNA Handbook is that labor (contractors) are tired of buying failed jobs when the customer either won’t pay for or don’t like the looks of a movement joint in their tile work. Contractors don’t want to be the ones to design the joints so it is now in writing that they can show the customer exactly what has to be done to make the job work.

I took a look this morning at the 2011 TCNA Handbook and the wall assembly – w231/w241-11 on page 241 and saw the directions about the movement joints according to EJ171. When you go to that page (274/275) you see two wall assemblies showing movement joints – both at the bottom of the wall and that is what they are directing folks to pay attention to in those wall assemblies. It is the same concept as the corner movement joint requirements as any time you change direction (corner or floor) you need a soft joint to allow movement without breaking the tile. You should also completely read the explanation section on movement joints starting on page 271 that tells what materials to use and how/when/where to use them.

If you don't already own a copy of the TCNA Tile Handbook you can get one online from:
WWW.Tileusa.com or drop me an email: Srausch@usg.com and I will have one of our field reps drop a copy off to you. If you're in the tile business you MUST HAVE this book.

Steve

What a week!

Have you ever had one of "THOSE" weeks? I have had it this past week. I started out making a sales call, something I don't do much of on a regular basis these days. I had almost forgotten that famous line: "YOUR PRICE IS JUST TOO HIGH! I AM BUYING IT CHEAPER!"

Now remember the role of the sales person is to sell and that the customer is always right, not always honest, but always right, from their point of view. I asked this person what basis they were using to determine that my price was too high. They looked at me like I just fell off the boat, then with all the patience they could muster, replied - I'm paying my current supplier XX amount less than your price. Really I replied? And everything else is exactly the same? Well, after a few more questions we did determine that there were several differences in the materials that we were trying to compare.

Then I asked the "KILLER QUESTION": What is the VALUE or true cost of what you are purchasing? Let's think here for a moment about buying gasoline for your car, that way we can ALL AGREE that the price is way too high. Or is it? What if you just refused to purchase? Can you get around in your life without gas for your car? What would that cost you in time and other inconvenience? A friend of mine is currently on an extended visit to Europe for several months, and she has no car. So even going grocery shopping takes on an entire new challenge for her - how can she buy what she needs and then walk back to her apartment without a car and carry everything? She walks from her apartment to the bus, from the bus to the train, from the train to the grocery, then after shopping must repeat that process. She would gladly pay the current $4.00 a gallon right now if she could. And it wouldn't seem like she was paying too much considering what she currently has to do just to get groceries. PLUS she has to repeat this process several times every week.

Bottom line here is that the price someone invoices you for goods purchased may not represent the true VALUE or true COST of what it is you just bought. Think about that for awhile and then see if you don't agree. By the way, I overpaid for my airline ticket this week also, but arrived safely on both flights ( that is certainly worth any amount of money to me) and I got upgraded to first class on both flights - all at once my ticket didn't seem quite so high.

I suppose I am suggesting that both the sales person as well as the purchasing agent may want to consider many factors in doing business together before either one determines that a price is too high or too low. Maybe somehow the value of a great business relationship can figure into that pricing equation.

These are my thoughts what are yours?
Steve

Asking Questions Again?????

I've talked a lot about asking questions, but in my humble opinion, it is absolutely the most critical life skill that we have. You certainly don't have to be in a sales role to need this skill, but you almost CAN'T be in a sales role without it.

The basic questions are really quite simple:
WHO? WHAT? WHEN? WHERE? WHY? SO WHAT?
I submit that you almost always need to know these basis answers before you can accomplish much of anything - especially that SO WHAT part. You can't answer the SO WHAT part without asking those other 5 questions first, at least not accurately.

Take any subject matter you wish, then apply these 6 questions and I believe you will have found the handle to the situation in almost every case. I also suggest that if you skip these questions then what you are doing is making a guess (possibly an educated guess but still a guess) based upon your personal beliefs or bias. To find TRUTH and ACCURATE information requires the information be recovered before forming your decision.

Can you think of a single situation where asking questions isn't the answer?

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Can you see your Reflection?

Have you walked by a glass storefront lately and seen your reflection? I did recently and I discovered that my image provided more questions than answers for me.
Did your reflection accurately show who you are? Mine didn't.
Did it show what your values represent? Mine didn't
Does it show your vision or mission? Nope mine didn't either.
In fact, did it even accurately reflect how you look or was that image even slightly distorted? Mine was.

Why the questions? If you can't accurately see what you want to show others in a glass reflection how will others know what it is you are trying to communicate? Many times we believe that we are clearly communicating things but in reality we are confusing the situation rather than communicating clarity. Are you comfortable with ambiguity? Are others any more comfortable than you are? If you feel the answers are no to those questions, what are you going to do today to stop it? How do you handle it?

Unlike my usual posts, where I attempt to provide all the answers to the questions I ask, today I'm requesting that YOU provide me with the answers. I found myself using what I thought was clear and accurate words to communicate my thoughts to others, and discovered that nobody accurately understood what I was attempting to say. I Completely miscommunicated my message without realizing I was doing it. I thought I was very accurately reflecting my thoughts and intentions to others, yet that image was reflected distorted. Since I always preach self responsibility for your actions, then I must accept that I did something wrong here. I talked but nobody understood - that isn't communications, it is just noise.

So here is my request. The folks who take the time to read this message (YES. YOU!) have all experienced this from one side or the other, so please reply to this and share your answers with me and others as to how you have learned to overcome this challenge.

We'll all be waiting to hear from YOU! I NEED to hear from you!
Steve

What can I do to help?

Have you ever heard of Ephraim Wales Bull? He is buried in a cemetery in Boston. This is the man who created Concord grapes - yet he never profited from the grapes because he died before they were marketed and used in jellies and jams. The reason I share this story about Ephraim Wales Bull is because the epitaph on his grave marker reads, "He Sowed, Others Reaped."

I've spent this week at our USG Research and Innovation center near Chicago, IL and was privileged to witness this attitude from almost everyone I came into contact with. What a refreshing and enjoyable attitude to receive as a gift from others. People providing help without expecting anything in return except the pleasure they received from helping others grow and live better lives.

I've been on the receiving end of the opposite attitude - and it is quite painful. I've witnessed folks who only care about themselves and what's in it for them! That doesn't make a good working relationship. Rick Warren started his best seller book, "Purpose Driven Life." with a chapter 1 title of "It's not about You!" We should all be required to read this and understand the true meaning behind it.

What about you? What attitude do you consistently show toward others? Do you actively attempt to provide help to others without expecting anything in return? May I suggest you try it for the rest of this week and see how it improves YOUR life?

Please let me know what I can do to help you this week!

Steve

Sharpen the saw!

Stephen Covey is a wonderful person and a great author. I like his habits book but like most books the materials only work when we apply them to our lives.
Last week I did the sharpen the saw exercise by taking a short cruise to think, reflect, and relax before the very difficult spring that I have ahead of me at work. I was actually expecting that I would not be able to relax and put work behind me - but was very pleasantly surprised how easily that did in fact happen.
Another great discovery - my ability to think clearly has improved dramatically. No I'm not now among the great thinkers of our times, but I do find that the issues that were un-resolved before I took the time away were now able to be thought about and viewed much differently. In fact, I've mentally resolved most of them to my satisfaction.
Now I'm not suggesting that this method will work for everybody on absolutely everything that you have on your mind, but at least in my case it has worked beautifully.
You may want to consider trying the process. It doesn't have to be a cruise or even a week long vacation - it could simply be one or two extra days off around a weekend that you completely unplug and disconnect from the rest of the world so your mind can relax and recharge.
Try it - you may like it. I know I did and I plan to take a day or two off on a regular basis during 2012 to keep the sharpening project going for me.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve

Motivation/Follow-Through with Check Lists

Life is like an untraveled trail with some very complex twists and turns. Many activities are detours that lead back to that pit of quicksand and mire. My mind easily turns to muddled thinking and disorganization. Just as an example, take the New Years Resolutions.
Are you trying to keep your New Years Resolutions and finding that some are already slipping? I doubt motivation is your issue - most likely, (at least for me) it tends to be my follow through, or lack of the same. My intentions are great, but somehow between getting out of bed and back into bed again, traveling that complex train, I just seem to "forget" the great list of resolutions and the priorities I wanted to accomplish them.

In walks the most humble of all Quality Control devices - the dreaded Check List!

Now as a pilot I know and use my checklist to fly the airplane without fail - it's not that I don't know or remember how to fly or what order to accomplish things in - its just that when my mind is working on keeping the aircraft flying sometimes I miss or forget something that should be routine and simple. Turning off the fuel pump after take-off is a prime example. It doesn't "hurt" anything, it just gets overlooked sometimes while I look for traffic. The same thing happens in my daily life which is why I find I must use a check list for most of the things I routinely do, even on a daily basis, or else small, simple things just don't get accomplished. In aviation the small things generally lead to major failures somewhere down the line.

I see the checklist used not only in aviation, but also medicine, design and construction projects, investing.......... There are even books written to convince us to use a checklist:

18 Minutes to Find your Focus, Master Distraction, and get the Right Things done by Peter Bregman. And of course, the best one: The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande - a doctor who proves to you beyond a shadow of a doubt why it is absolutely mandatory to use a checklist.

But you reply - I'm in the tile and flooring business! Why would I need a checklist? Trust me, after nearly 40 years in that industry I find it absolutely mandatory in that business too. Here is an example of a checklist that maybe would make sense when putting your installers out the door in the morning:

• What do you understand this job priorities to be?


• What concerns or ideas do you have that we haven't discussed already?


• What are your key next steps and what is your timetable for accomplishment?


• What else do you need from me to make this job a success?


• Are there any contingencies we need to think about or plan for now?


• When will you check in on your progress and issues?


• Who else needs to know our game plan? How do we communicate that to them? When?

Does it take time to go through the checklist? Sure - maybe 5 minutes. But compare that to the hours saved in frustration and stress when the job is screwed up!

So a checklist not only reduces mistakes, saves stress, and frustration (on all sides) it also will absolutely save time.

Try using your own version of a checklist for just ONE WEEK - see if I'm wrong here.

Steve

Where are you headed in 2012?

There's a story about a man riding a horse, galloping quickly. It appears he's headed somewhere very important. A man standing on the side of the road shouts, "Where are you headed?" The rider replies, "I don't know, ask the horse!"
Is this your story? Are you riding the "horse" of your habits with no idea where you are headed? Maybe it's time right now to take control of the reins, and start moving your life in the direction YOU want to go. I mean, REALLY WANT to go!
The choice is YOURS. You control your thoughts, which should control your actions. If you have no clue or idea where you are heading in 2012 then now is the time to stop, THINK about it, and decide.
You are able to do whatever YOU decide you want to do. It is truly up to YOU.
If you truly don't believe you know HOW to do this, either call me or email me and I will point you in the correct path so you can learn.
No judgement from me, just help if you request it.
Steve