The “pain” created by the spread of the virus on our family, friends, businesses and economies is horrible and largely out of our control and influence. The “suffering” (human condition) and its’ duration is largely in our control and influence.
When your mindset is we are powerless or unable to move, we are really creating a “pass” for our own procrastination and choosing to be incarcerated in our own mental jail. That is a choice and an unspoken truth.
A qualified corporate adviser is able to
That may sound simple but it rarely is when mutually-exploring a relationship.
Is it you (entrepreneur/executive), who is unclear about your desired outcomes or the adviser, who insists on taking you through a convoluted tour of his or her methodology, to arrive at point where you conceptually agree it makes sense to work together or end the conversation? In 87% of conversations, where I have brought together two parties, it is the latter. The reasons are largely about the adviser’s (lack of) expertise, knowledge (absence of a recent track record of success) and their own self-worth (need to justify their fees vs. value delivered i.e endless “needs” assessment).
If you are the best-in-class art dealer, racehorse trainer, or headmistress, they possess an “eye” for their ideal prospect, move at a comfortable pace and don’t fear turning away unsuitable candidates. Why would a corporate adviser not possess the same skills, behaviours and expertise? Perhaps they are revealing their unsuitability and poor “fit” with your needs.
There are commodity businesses (discount airlines, railways, minicabs), whose whole business model is about price extraction commensurate with the utility of the product or service in the customer’s mind. “Corporate dentists” (Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary). Someone with few friends, and those who do befriend them strike a “compromise of convenience” (utility of the product vs. minimal time, money and energy).
Building and leveraging “market power” is the currency of their business.
I have always thought it stupid complaining about their service, rather like whining about an errant boyfriend, who has led a life of non-commitment. What did you really expect?
When financial services and professional services firms (banks, wealth managers, insurance brokers, travel agents etc.) try the same pricing tactic (ancillary admin fees), and sell us on their relevance, premium brand and perceived value, it is “price extortion”. It is comical.
These are businesses run by fools, treating us as fools, nothing more.
Symbolic: a brand re-fresh but no discernible change in the operating beliefs, attitudes or behaviour of the firm’s leadership.
Meaningful: a new brand or umbrella brand that is manifest in a discernible change in the operating beliefs, attitudes and behaviour of the organisation’s leadership that results in improved conditions for customers, shareholders, employees, business partners and so on.
Which category exemplifies your organisation?
I have to laugh the number of times a new brand is triumphantly launched, only to witness a President, CEO or Managing Director, fail to return calls or emails in a timely manner, drums up weak excuses, berate his or her subordinates and press me for new business growth opportunities. “People love our new brand, you know!”
I am all for treating mature adults as I find them when private investments are offered among business acquaintances, friends and family into a new business of mutual interest, particularly startups or highly fragile investments. My question is if it all blows up, which is highly likely, is the financial loss worth the loss of “relationship capital”? The former is a finite and a readily quantifiable risk, the latter long-tailed and very hard to re-build.
How do you risk manage and profitably underwrite cyber attacks in the home when so many variables are almost impossible to predict, not least the human behaviour of the attacker and the victim? The answer right now, is you don’t, you simply pass the financial risk to society.
I get predictive modelling and the use of artificial intelligence for “mediocre risks”, credit card or expense fraud etc. but not low probability/high impact cyber attacks.
From first hand experience, I have watched intelligent people manipulated by a regular phone call into opening their bank accounts, sharing personal details, spending money on spurious computer security systems, and their bank account and credit cards charged thousands of pounds. The response is nearly always a version of “they were so believable”. The planting into the mind of the victim that they are under attack from an aggressive third party, clever images and the “friendly voice” (man in the middle) that is here to protect them. Misplaced trust, nothing more.
Criminal agencies awash with competing priorities on their time, money and energy rarely respond or catch the villains. If they do the complexity and time taken to report a crime, is much greater and longer than the crime itself. It is a disincentive. We all pay for it through higher insurance premiums, bank charges and taxes and worsening mental health.
Until such time that there is serious “pushback” (electorate and politicians), the quality of our lives will come at an ever increasing personal and business cost.
Some entrepreneurs wildly believe the fear of missing out (“FOMO”), the gravity of the problem that they are solving or the huge excitement they have for their technology, will immediately parlay into investors, and conduits to them, agreeing to meet. It won’t on 90%+ occasions
I cannot motivate you to take my call, and you cannot motivate me. You can frame the opportunity in an alluring way (trust, excitement, priority) that might motivate an investor to act. That is where expertise and experience kicks in.
Above all give them absolute clarity on how they are going to be dramatically improved after they are done with the meeting. There are no guarantees.
In an act of stupidity on New Year’s Eve, I managed to hold the wrong end of a small powerful cigar lighter and burn my hand. After an uncomfortable dinner the immediate pain eased, and after a couple of days of applying a healing Thai tiger balm, the burn in the palm of my hand blistered. Gradually, being replaced by healthier skin.
The same thought crossed my mind when we try to create some perspective on current events in our political structures, businesses and lives. Things are rarely as bad as we might imagine, and never as great as others might lead us to believe.
We can listen to news and social media using alarmist tactics to grab our eyeballs (lockdown, mob rule, racism), feel “frozen” by government restrictions on the way that we lead our lives (mindset) or we can focus on those things in our control and influence, right now, on a personal level, and take warmth and gratification from pursuing them (family, career, interests and investments). That is a simple choice in front of us.
Nancy Pelosi and her fellow Democrat Senators pursue a course of Impeachment proceedings if the 25th Amendment fails. Pure symbolism without the requisite votes.
Joe Biden responds to a reporter on Friday in Wilmington asking if that should be his priority. He responds that his priority is he and his VP taking office in 12 days time, and tackling government’s response to the pandemic. Nothing more. Meaningful leadership.
If you need to encapsulate why the US electorate is so fed up with their politicians on both sides, and their ability to put their own self-interest ahead of the electorate’s, witness Pelosi’s behaviour. Why waste time, money and energy that could be more productively focused on huge issues the electorate actually voted the incoming government to tackle fast?
If you were to compare your effectiveness and efficiency in closing and terminating business agreements (discipline, focus, organisation, speed, outcomes), which would you score more highly?
Why is that? (your business “mechanics” – policies, procedures, processes and/or the “people doing the work” – emotional or psychological issues)
Is that performance appropriate for the reality that you now operate in, and will do so over the next 12 months (risk to your business and personal wealth)?
What areas of improvement and immediate business must you immediately start working on today, and tomorrow?
Where do you need “expert” help to dramatically and pragmatically improve?
