opportunity

Inspired!

I believe that inspiration is all around us and it seems to hit us when we’re not even looking for it.

 How many times have you seen a sign at a restaurant, read an article in a magazine, or met a person who just made you stop in your tracks and think, “Wow! I’ve never thought of it that way before.”? I think we’ve all had those moments of clarity when we sort of re-evaluate our lives and walk away feeling a little taller, a little wiser, and a lot more inspired.

 Here’s a quote I ran across that might inspire you:

 ”The adventure of life is to learn. The purpose of life is to grow. The nature of life is to change. The challenge of life is to overcome. The essence of life is to care. The opportunity of life is to serve. The secret of life is to dare. The spice of life is to befriend. The beauty of life is to give.”

~ William Arthur Ward

This quote just screams “Servant Leadership” to me: learning, growing, changing, overcoming challenges. Caring about, serving, and giving to others. That’s what it’s all about! I’m feeling inspired, how about you?

Joe Kiedinger

 Action Plan: Be inspired to do something for someone else today!

My eyes are opening!

My Servant Leadership journey has been a powerful one, this past week especially. On Friday I had the opportunity to spend the day with about 85 of the staff at Silver Lake College in Manitowoc, Wis. This small private Catholic college blew me away as we started the day-long convocation. Fifteen of their staff members led the group in a Servant Leadership reflection, which had my eyes welling up as I stepped up on stage. The reflection lasted only 15 minutes but the quotes and sharing were powerful. I thought I would share some of the quotes that I heard.

Lau Tzu:

 ”A leader is best when people barely know he exists. When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: We did it ourselves.”

 John Quincy Adams:

 ”If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are the leader.”

 Fr. Keith Clark:

 ”Next to the words ‘thank you,’ we believe the words ‘what do you think?’ are the most empowering words a leader can speak.”

 Joseph P. Chinnici, O.F.M.:

 ”I believe that when we can see all of this in the same field—then we will catch the ‘bug’… of being a Franciscan intellectual, and we will discover a voice, and we will learn to treasure – in a profound way – each other’s voice; because, no matter what the language, I sit and learn and teach and that way we become brothers and sisters together.”

 Although my presence there was to share the VOICE we all have as unique individuals through the lens of Servant Leadership, I left feeling, in the presence of those Servant Leaders, that I gained more than I had to give.

 Joe Kiedinger

 ACTION PLAN: Use “what do you think” in your conversations at least five times this week.

A funny thing happened over Thanksgiving!

I hope you enjoy this story. 

 Background: Danica and I purchased a commercial building over a year ago and have our office on the second floor. The first floor has two tenants who lease from us: a restaurant and a hair salon.

 What happened: Over the Thanksgiving holiday, our salon tenant abandoned his lease obligations, took his computer, and sent a text to me saying he was done! There were two stylists still working at the salon. Danica and I immediately reached out to them, and we all met at the salon the Saturday evening of Thanksgiving weekend to discuss the situation.

 As you can imagine, these two individuals, Travis and Rossemary, were beside themselves. They were on the verge of panicking. First, their schedule was in the computer that the owner removed. Second, they didn’t know if they still had jobs! Danica and I told them we would take over the salon. We decided to rename it and create a Servant Leadership experience for all its current and future stylists as well as its current and future customers. So that’s what we’re doing. Thank goodness we own a marketing firm! In three days, we renamed it Salon Fifty Four (based partly on its address: 154 N. Broadway, Green Bay), changed the sign and got things moving.

 However, through the transition of trying to find existing clients and dealing with the phone change, we are still trying to reach out to let people know that Rossemary and Travis are still in business! I’m hoping you can help me. I would take it as a personal favor if you would be so kind as to schedule one hair cut, color and styling, keratin treatment, or eyebrow waxing or threading. You can call either Rossemary or Travis at 920-432-0601. Bring in this Wisdom and receive 20% off any treatment as a THANK YOU!

 I hope you don’t mind this plug. It literally happened so fast but I believe things happen for a reason. We’re excited about this new adventure, and I feel that we’ll be successful in our efforts at making Salon Fifty Four Green Bay’s premier location for talent and experience. Danica is loving it! What’s thrilling for me is that this is an opportunity to take our system and insert it into a hospitality business that we control. Lot’s of fun! 

Here’s to the many adventures you will experience in 2012. Remember, with every situation there is an opportunity. Seize them!

 Joe Kiedinger

 ACTION PLAN: Consider liking us on Facebook at facebook/salonfiftyfourgb

Through a different lens

My wife and teenager were away for an evening which left me the opportunity to plan an appropriate activity with my three little girls, Joey’s Angels! I love impromptu planning. I decided I was going to take them to the new movie Dolphin Tale. The movie was playing in two theaters. Because I had to pick up my middle girl from a birthday party, we had to choose the later showing that was playing at 7:05 p.m. We entered the building, paid the obscene ticket price, and as we were walking away from the cashier the greeter said, “Oh, don’t forget your 3D glasses.” 3D? I thought. Cool! I was hoping my youngest would tolerate watching the movie with the ‘50s-style, black-rimmed glasses. I took a picture of the girls in the theater and sent it to Danica. It was a really cute sight.

The movie was touching and I recommend it, but what I really wish to share with you is the actual 3D experience. If you’ve never seen a 3D movie, the picture itself looks quite blurry if you are not wearing the special glasses. However once you put on the glasses and peer through the lenses, the picture appears vibrant and rich. This is the perfect analogy for how we view people. When we come across people who are not like us, we immediately begin to point out what is wrong with them because they “appear blurry.” It’s no different than if you had entered that movie not knowing it was 3D. If you had no previous experiences with 3D technology, you would jump to the conclusion that something is wrong with the projector or the film. I have developed the About Me Card program to remove the blur by offering what is in effect a pair of 3D glasses for viewing people for who they are and not the blurry, skewed view based on our past experiences and biases. Servant Leadership is getting out of your own way, stepping outside of yourself to serve and understand others.

There are a lot of perks that come with understanding people better. Would you believe it if I told you that my stress level has gone way down? Would you believe it if I told you my blood pressure has dropped? The anxiety of misinterpreting people is exhausting and bad for your health. I don’t waste my time anymore. I’ve replaced judgment with curiosity. Oh, I slip back to my old self once in a while, but I’m getting better. I encourage you to step out of yourself for awhile and view people through a different lens. It can help you, and you’ll love it!

Joe Kiedinger

Where Have All the Sales People Gone?

Do you remember the good ol’ days when sales people would approach you as you shopped a store? You still see it in commissioned structures like car dealerships and some furniture stores. Do you remember when this commissioned structure was widely used, and how, at times, you would feel pressured by the sales force? I miss it. I mean it—I really miss it.

I was wanting to purchase a Mac Book Pro and a video camera yesterday at an unnamed retail store that thinks they’re the BEST… oopsy! In making my way through the store to the computer section, I spotted a sales associate who was working with a couple in the Mac area. The couple left for a moment, and seeing my opportunity I began asking the sales associate some simple questions to verify that this was the model I wanted. The couple then came back and the sales associate pushed me off to nobody. All I wanted was for him to get me the computer so I could leave. I knew what I wanted.

I looked around the store and all five sales people that I could see were with customers (this was probably a 70,000-square-foot store). I felt abandoned and alone. I finally cornered a guy who told me he knew nothing about cameras and a little about computers. “I’ll take it!” I thought. I grabbed what I thought I needed, and left!  I hated it.

Like most things, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. The great thing about commissioned sales people is that they’re motivated to cross-train themselves on multiple products and departments. The more they know, the more they sell, the more they make.

When Danica and I went to Sears about a year ago to buy a flat screen TV and a refrigerator, the sales team knew their stuff. It was refreshing to be treated like we were important. Yes, indeed, I miss commissioned sales people. From now on, I’m going where professional sales people are making money based on what they know and how they treat me.

Joe Kiedinger

ACTION PLAN: What messages are your associates sending that you may not be aware of?

Share our time and talents

 Have you ever heard that quote by George Carlin? Paraphrasing somewhat, he once said, “Life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting…‘holy [cow]…what a ride!’” Now, I don’t know about you, but that’s how I want to live my life! It worries me to see folks these days who are afraid to try new things, share their opinions, and rock the boat a little. It seems that society has taught us to fly beneath the radar and go unnoticed because it’s safer to not take risks. But what kind of life is that?

 I go by the philosophy that we should be open and honest with everyone and share our ideas; that we harness the greatest creative power when we all work together. And being a Servant Leader sometimes means we need to step outside our comfort zone in order to serve others and contribute to the greater good. We need to share our time and talents in as many ways as possible, even if that means being slightly uncomfortable from time to time when trying new things.

 That’s why I started sharing my thoughts through the Prophit Marketing Road Show years back. I knew I had some fresh new ideas that were worth sharing with others so I jumped out onto the stage and shared them. If I hadn’t, I might really regret missing that opportunity.

 Personally, when I slide into the grave I want to know that I’ve enriched the lives of others and loved deeply those in my care.

 Joe Kiedinger

Action Plan: What risks are you willing to take?