Probably alternating between their summer homes and permanent residences.
This astute group got out just in time. They made their fortunes, were given Separation Agreements that contained several million dollars, and a legacy that will be forgotten after their first trip to their summer home. A successor wants to establish his/her own identity which hastens the process of the old guard never to be heard from again. Clearly, the old guard or yesterday’s leaders have one thing to worry about. Shareholder value isn’t number one on their list. Their stock portfolio is. Their stock portfolio, which at one time not long ago, showed consistent growth. Now, while their net worth remains at a staggering level, the hunger which becomes addictive is all consuming. The long hours and business expectations are no longer a concern. That chapter has been closed. But the question of where have all our leaders gone has become the number one subject at every board meeting. Do you think there might be a correlation between the great leaders getting out at the right time and the number of businesses that are struggling or have gone out of business? You can bet on it.
The old guard paid their dues. They learned how to be successful during good times as well as times similar to those we’re experiencing today. Can anyone see the difference? Does anyone want to accept the fact that there is a difference? To accept that there is a difference, to many, is an admission that the wrong successor was chosen. No one wants to be wrong; especially a board of directors.
If you are willing to accept the premise that leaders are not prepared for their responsibility or don’t know how to handle success or failure, then what does a struggling company do? Fire the CEO? Fire the board? The answer should be that simple. Unfortunately, it’s not. I once asked a member of the old guard who had come up from the lowest rung on the ladder, how he always seemed to be ahead of the curve. I was amazed at how he was always planning for tomorrow when most executives were enjoying the applause that came with meeting objectives. His answer was simple yet would never be found in a text book. He used the analogy of the American Indian putting his ear to the ground when wanting to know how far in the distance the enemy was. He was able to hear the rumble of footsteps from either soldiers or horses. Nonetheless, he may have heard excitement in the air that came from his tribe who had found a quiet and safe place to settle but wisdom taught him that resting on one’s laurels was the quickest way to bring success to its knees.
At first, I struggled with his analogy but I soon realized that was why he was the chief or in business terms; the President & CEO. If this story was told to a group of business executives, the messenger would be laughed out of the room. The truth of the matter is that the American Indian had more wisdom than many of today’s leaders. The significance is how we learn to lead. Some believe that leaders are born. I strongly disagree with that premise. Leaders are made. They are taught how to lead. Unfortunately, today we find ourselves on the horns of a dilemma. Leaders need to be taught, assuming they want to learn, but who are the people who are leaders that will do the teaching? To begin with, if a member of an organization moves swiftly through each step, many say it’s because he/she is bright. I don’t know what bright means. To move swiftly doesn’t mean that you have learned your craft at every stop. As a matter of fact, most who move swiftly garner the attitude that they don’t have to learn at every stop because they will be there for just a short time. After a few quick of moving ahead because you’ve been labeled bright, an individual finds himself/herself knocking at the corner office door. Given, the movement resembles a movie script, it is very natural that the door will open and you’ll have a new leader; a President & CEO who now will be responsible for leading by example when in fact, they don’t know where to begin. You know there will never be an admission that much was missed along the way. You know of the many forms of leadership some believe a strong hand and a strong and foul voice sets the tone that others will learn to fear. Imagine a new leader of a multimillion dollar company establishing as his/her moniker as one that brings fear to the hearts and minds of the most important asset belonging to a company: human capital. If this isn’t a formula for, unrest, turnover, and potential failure I don’t know what is; and we wonder why companies are struggling.
Where do we put the blame for business failure; our government and its policies. Get over it. It is what it is. You’re not going to change today and you are not going to have a perfect government. So, stop placing the blame on things that you can’t control. The government doesn’t layoff your labor force. You do because you haven’t learned how to grow the top line. You eliminate the most important asset and you have artificially met your net expectations. If you consider those results as quality corporate earnings you are wrong. You are trying to save your way to prosperity. It will catch up to you before to many more quarters. If you don’t know how to lead and don’t know how to show sustained top line growth, someone should take action. It will not be present but someone in the organization allowed it to happen so someone in the organization must make the tough decisions as well. If it’s not made and made swiftly, you will allow the disease to become more severe, camps will develop and you will have a bigger problem on your hand. My advice is two-fold. Move quickly and be honest. The rest will take care of itself unless you repeat the formula that put you in this position in the first place. My final, piece of wisdom to the board of directors is don’t make the same mistake when replacing your leadership. Find the person who can answer the tough questions. An Ivy League school, a high IQ or someone who you consider bright, isn’t always the best candidate. Some believe the same when it comes to choosing an accountant to become your President & CEO. Attention is primarily placed on numbers and not the value of people. What you want is a leader who knows where he/she is going, how to get there, and recognize that money, while it’s important not to be undercapitalized, isn’t as important as how your new leader intends to make use of his/her most important asset; human capital. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about how your selection is going to produce quality results during today’s economy. Be aware of the individual who wants time for the economy to change. As I said, get over it. It is what it is. Now that we’ve accepted that, you need to be convinced that your new selection is going to work through hard times as well as good times. It’s critical that you are satisfied with your question about how your new leader will prevent the future from sneaking up on him/her when they can’t act quickly and before you know it, the company is on a slippery slope. I’ve asked that question several times and I’ll share those that brought about the death knell. “I suppose you have to keep your eyes open”. “No one can really know until it happens”. “I have enough confidence that I’ll rally the troops and we’ll out last the downturns”. These were a few of the better answers. Of course none were acceptable.
Donato Marinari became the 3rd President & CEO over the span of National Telephone Directory’s history which began in 1950. His 26 year reign as President & CEO-Directory continued into 2000 when he officially retired from the company as the final merger with GTE was completed.
His career started as a salesman, and while holding every position every position available, his career had taken him the highest level in 2000. Donato Marinari served as a Board member with many companies and is credited with designing “Best Practices” utilized to bring his leadership to national prominence.
In 1985 Donato Marinari built a Directory Company that replaced the Rueben H. Donnelley Company in Pennsylvania and Delaware. This company consisted of 700 employees and was built within one year. The success of this sister company of National Telephone Directory Corporation was named Penn-Del Directory Co. where within a two year period had set sales records that far exceeded its predecessor. This major accomplishment gave National Telephone Directory Corporation a reputation that was followed in the years to come when it was later bought by Bell Atlantic who in the end merged with NYNEX and GTE.
In 1967 and again in 1976, Donato Marinari was credited with writing two books that were offered up for publishing. One was based on training using the finest techniques in existence and the other, a publication which was used as a tool to reduce volumes of time completing paperwork to an automated system that allowed for salespeople to spend more time doing what they did best. His innovative approach to sales brought his company to a level of success that made it an annual “Best in class” organization.
Donato Marinari can be contacted at donatomarinari@verizon.net
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New Article from Donato Marinari:
Defined by Age
by Donato Marinari
Although age discrimination is illegal it continues to exist as part of the hiring process.
The following observation has nothing to do with discrimination but all to do with a thought process that is headed down a slippery slope. As a consultant for several years covering a wide range of industries, there are many reasons our company is called in to turn around an organization. A primary reason is to assist companies that are experiencing a negative trend that appears to be impossible to reverse. The reasons for companies moving in a negative direction cover the entire spectrum. However, in all cases there are common threads that run through each organization…Continued - click here
The Common Denominator of Success - Part 1
'I've written about the top ten traits you need to run a successful home based business. I've written about incorporating time management into your life and making beginning steps. I've even wrote the other day about balance in your life.
It seems to me to be a good day to share "The Common Denominator of Success" written by Albert E. N. Gray. It is one of the best articles on what differentiates successful people from those who are not. It is an article that forces me to re-read it on a regular basis. It is one that gives me pause to think every time I do.
You can examine yourself, you can commit to working on acquiring new skills, you can create a workspace, and you can have the earnest desire to succeed. According to Gray, the secret to success does not lie in any of that. Nor is it a matter of just 'working hard' as most of us have been taught. Gray studied people who were successful and in doing so, formed a common fundamental element, a common denominator of success. This was: "The secret of success of every person who has ever been successful - lays in the fact that 'THEY FORMED THE HABIT OF DOING THINGS THAT FAILURES DON'T LIKE TO DO'".
I have come to believe what Gray said is true. In a keynote address on the subject, Gray asserted that "The things that 'failures' don't like to do are the things you and I and other human beings, including successful people, don't naturally like to do." Gray maintained that we had to realize from the start that successful people were the minority and success is "...therefore 'unnatural and not to be achieved by following our natural likes and dislikes, nor by being guided by our natural preferences and prejudices."
The one basic dislike common to everyone boils down to "We don't like to talk to people about something they might not want to talk about."
I find that conclusion to be magnificent! It seems to me, we live in fear that we do not have the right as fellow human beings to try to talk to others about things that could better their lives, change their approach to life, and even improve their standard of living. What is the worst thing they could/can say to us; "No". Moreover, in doing so we hear them rejecting us instead of our offer, our plan, and our advice. This is simply NOT the case! Gray ascertains that successful people are always able to overcome this and do things they don't like because, "Successful people are influenced by the desire for pleasing results. Failures are influenced by the desire for pleasing methods and are inclined to be satisfied with such results as can be obtained by doing things they like to do. One of the primary differences between successful and non-successful people in a business opportunity, home based, franchised, or not is that we settle with ourselves! We settle for good enough instead of great; we lower the bar to our comfort zone instead of coming right up to it, leaping over and surpassing it! Gray emphatically makes the case that successful people "form the habit of doing things they don't like to do in order to accomplish the purpose they want to accomplish."
Success is linked to the habit that is built on a purpose that is strong enough to make us leap over anything, including the things we don't like to do, to accomplish that purpose! Gray also maintains that the one will not "form the HABIT of making and keeping a promise (to one's self) until you link it with a definite purpose that can be accomplished by keeping it." Purpose - is a strong word. It is packed not only with intent, but also with determination and passion. It is not totally about cold, hard logic; it is about identifying something that you will derive the biggest 'pay back' from and that will reap you 'rewards' in terms of satisfaction of self, satisfaction of and for others, pride, honor, and respect. Per Gray again, "If it's a big purpose, you will be big in its accomplishment." By surrendering to the purpose, Gray, asserts we can achieve success and the will to overcome the things we don't like to do.
Gray was an executive with Prudential Insurance Company and wrote his address on this subject in 1940! Recently on the bestseller list, a book titled, "The Purpose Driven Life" has dominated for many weeks. Some consider it ironic; I however, in the context of the applicability to this business opportunity, consider it prophetic.
Tim Mckee is Senior Partner at Pathways Business Associates, PBA follows a simple goal setting program and has a mission to develop leaders, coaches and entrepreneurs through the shared values of passion, courage, service and Business Opportunity success.
We've all heard about the successful people of this world. We've heard of people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobbs, Richard Branson and so on.
We have also heard what it takes to be successful like these people. We heard you have to save, you have to start your own business, you have to own properties, you have to be prudent with your finances and so on.
While all these are true (they are time tested), there are other traits that I've noticed about many successful people. They are traits people don't notice. They are traits people don't talk about. Traits that make them succeed where many others have failed.
I'm going to share those traits with you today. Make sure you learn from them and more importantly act on them.
Trait One: Successful People Are Always Learning
I was at a seminar not too long ago and I was seated beside a fine gentleman. After the seminar, I gathered he was a multi millionaire that specializes in importing goods from China. I know a lot of people will wonder why someone who is worth over hundred million dollars will be doing in a seminar.
The truth is that most successful people are permanent learners. They always want to learn new things that will give them new ideas as well as new insights into how things are done.
Trait Two: Successful People Always Ask Questions
I've never met any successful person that claims to know it all yet I've met many average people who claim to be experts on all issues on the face of this planet.
Most successful people ask questions about many things. They don't pretend to know it all. In fact, they don't attempt to know it all. That is why they surround themselves with attorneys, accountants and so on.
Trait Three: Successful People Desire More Success
I've met many people that say they will stop working or stop trying to achieve things once they make a million dollars. Most successful people don't think like that. They are always looking for new challenges.
I bet we've all heard of poeple who sold their companies for millions and then start a new business from scratch. That is the spirit and that is why they seem to be forever successful.
I stongly believe these little tricks can help all of us move towards our dreams of becoming extremely successful. Let us make use of them.
We Can All Succeed!
Akin Alabi
Shared fundamental traits | SharedFundamentalTraits.com
