Tecoris

I remember a lesson I learned when I was first starting to rock- climb back in the sixties.  My buddy laid a 2 X 4 on the ground on it’s flat side and said, “Walk this 2 x 4 as fast as you can.”  Of course I walked it without incident and thought nothing of it.  ”What would happen if we put this up about ten feet between two ladders?  Could you still do it?  What if we put it between two cliffs and you had a thousand or two thousand feet between you and the ground?”

The point was well taken.  Nothing had changed.  It was still a 2 x 4 on its flat side and still easily maneuvered.  What had changed was the exposure.  If I fell off the 2 x 4 on the ground there was absolutely no consequence.  If I fell when it was ten feet off the ground, there was a small consequence.  If I fell two thousand feet I would die.  The nature of the task hadn’t changed.  I was easily able to walk the plank on the ground, and so should have been able to do so at any altitude.  But in order to do so, I would have to have complete control over my emotions — focusing on the task, not the consequence.

It’s the same in the stock market today (and in businesses in all their forms.)  Stocks go up and they go down, then they go back up again.  If you can’t control your emotions when the exposure is high, (“Oh no!  I’m losing my entire savings!) you’ll sell on the way down and cut your own throat.  If you can take the emotion out of it you’ll be concerned, but are more likely react in a level-headed way, and not out of fear.  Fear is an enemy to success.  Fear makes you do things you would never ordinarily do — unwise things.

I think of the serenity prayer — God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to chage the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.   By controlling your emotions during times of stress, you’ll make good decisions.  By letting fear rule your heart you’ll make bad ones.  Be wise about overcoming your emotions.  When the price is low, you buy.  When the price is high, you sell.  That’s the task.  The ups and downs provide the differences in exposure.  Don’t let the exposure change the task.

Like you, I marvel at the stupid things people do.   (Sometimes I marvel at the stupid things I do, as well.)  As I watch others in the public eye, I think about the worst thing you can do is go off half-cocked.  You know what I’m talkng about.  Someone stands up with the air of authority and says something that is absolutely the craziest thing you’ve ever heard.  Usually those things are said off the cuff in an attempt to impress or garner support.  When that happens, those types of statements have just the opposite effect.

Be wise about what you say, how you say it, and whom, you say it to (especially online, where it will never die.)  People judge you, your character, your intelligence and wisdom (yes, they’re different,) and your problem-solving ability by what you say.  Avoid the temptation to say something that sounds really good if you’re not sure of your facts.  Done correctly you could sound like a hero.  Going off half-cocked will make you sound uneducated, uninformed, and unwise.  Be careful what you say!

I know a young woman who works in a family business.  The business started out small, but has grown over the years.  There are now many employees (most of whom are not family.)  As often happens in a family business, there are times (sad as it may be,) when family members get perks or opportunities non-family members don’t. 

To deal with this issue, we need to look at both sides.  From the employer’s side, it’s their business and they can do with it what they want.  Any wise employer is going to consider the impact of placing family first, but I’ve heard many owners of family businesses say that’s exactly why they got into business in the first place — to be able to bless the lives of their families.  On the other hand, if you’re an employee, it can be extremely disheartening to be passed over for a well-deserved promotion or perk, or displaced out of a position you love by a member of the owner’s family.

I guess from the owner’s perspective, you have two choices:  you can let everyone compete on an equal footing (in which case the employees are still going to scream “nepotism” every time you turn around,) or you can be open and tell people from the outset that you are going to put family first, and employees can figure out what they want to do from there.  But at the end of the day, you have to ask yourself two questions:  Does favoring family members take you where you want to go as a business?  Are you willing to put up with the downside?  If you are, giddy up.  If not, you’d better re-think how you’re going to get where you want to go.

From an employee’s perspective, you have to decide what it is you want out of life.   Make a list,  Be sure it’s complete.  Now you have to ask yourself if staying in the family business will get you where you want to go? If the answer is yes, you have to ask yourself if you can live with the family politics?  If the answer to that question is yes, then stay.  If the answer to either question is no, move on — now.  

Don’t wait and see how things go.  If you can’t get where you want to go from here, then this is no place to stay.  If you don’t think you can live with the politics you’ll just drive yourself (and everyone around you) crazy by staying any longer than is absolutely necessary.  It gets harder every day to leave your job.  Don’t wait.  Get something else lined up now and jump.  If decide you’re going to stay, don’t look back.  This is the route you’ve chosen.  Don’t get caught up in the complaining or the pity parties.  There’s no value there.  If you’re going to stay, be positive and make the best of it.

Because after all, if they’re keeping it all in the family, and you’re not part of the family, you might have a tough road.

I have a good friend who recently engaged in negotiations to help put a severely under-performing (read failing) resort hotel back on track.  They reviewed his credentials, were confident he could solve their problems, and were excited to see him come.  Then came the part we all love — the negotiation of price.  Of course my friend should have told them what his daily rate was right up front, but he waited for them to tell him what they were willing to pay.  Needless to say, it was ridiculously low.  It amounted to about 2 – 3 hours of the hotel’s revenues for two to three weeks of his time (more if you consider the work he would do off-site.)

I ask you this:  if you had gotten your business into a near-fatal financial situation, what would you pay to get it straightened out?  One day’s revenues?  Three days?  A week?  A month?  Only you can decide that, I suppose, but here’s the way I see it.  The new manager of the hotel (yes, of course they got rid of the old manager for nearly taking the property under,) didn’t have any “cash” to work with.  She was hoping my friend would be willing to atone for the sins of the previous manager.  He wasn’t, as you would imagine.)  So here she sits with no cash, a property that’s failing, and nobody to help set it right.  She’s never worked the accounting and finance side of the business, so she doesn’t even realize how dire the situation is.

What should she do?

My experience is, the businesses that need the help the most can least afford to pay for the help they so desperately need.  At the end of the day, if you don’t get your business turned around it’s going to go under and take all the employees and management with it.  Certainly you don’t want that.  On the other hand, if you bring in the right consultant things could quickly be back on track, making it easy to pay for what our new manager deemed to be “exorbitant fees.”

My good friend, in the story above, was willing to help this manager put her business back on track for what amounts to a little more than half a day’s revenues.  Does that sound like a big number to you?  There’s no question he has exactly what this manager needs, and that he would have turned the property around in a few short weeks.   As of today, this property still doesn’t have a consultant, and it continues to dwindle and languish under the new manager’s leadership (and will continue to, until she gets some help.)  

The difference between what that manager wanted to pay a consultant and what my friend was willing to work for was three measly hours of the hotel’s revenue.  She saved that three hours at a time when she “didn’t have the money to spend.”  But by doing so has almost certainly doomed the business.  The old cliche would tell you she’s stepping over the dollars to pick up the pennies.  But then again, I guess we have to go back to the original question. . .   What’s the value of a turnaround?  I hope if your business is in trouble, you won’t let it go down the drain for a mere three hours revenue.

I remember walking into the office of a company owner I was working with years ago to see him going through his phone messages and sending each one an email.  When I asked him why he was doing that he responded, “If I send an email, I can respond in 20 seconds.  If I make a phone call, I’ll be on the phone with each person for 30 minutes.  Right now, I can spare 20 seconds, but I don’t have 30 minutes.

If you’re younger than 30 years old, you’re probably saying, “Duh……”  If you’re over 40 you’re probably saying, “Hey, that’s a great idea.”  At any rate, you have only so many minutes in each day.  Make sure you make the most of each one.  I know I’m going to.  So if there’s anything you need, just call and I’ll . . . well, I’ll send you an email.

Mothers seem to have a sense about how things will work best.  That’s why they started teaching us things like the golden rule from a very young age.  They knew that if we were kind to each other, not only would her life be better, ours would too.

That’s true in business as well.  We all want to work in an environment that is fun, challenging and free of contention.  We want to work around people who are positive and optimistic and who treat others with dignity and respect.

A close friend sent me these comments yesterday, and I thought they were worth passing along:

Proven Ways to Get Along Better With EVERYONE

1.     Before you say anything to anyone, ask yourself 3 things:

1.     Is it true?

2.     Is it kind?

3.     Is it necessary?

2.     Make promises sparingly and keep them faithfully.

3.     Never miss the opportunity to compliment or say something encouraging to someone.

4.     Refuse to talk negatively about others; don’t gossip and don’t listen to gossip.

5.     Have a forgiving view of people. Believe that most people are doing the best they can.

6.     Keep an open mind; discuss, but don’t argue. (It is possible to disagree without being disagreeable.)

7.     Forget about counting to 10. Count to 1,000 before doing or saying anything that could make matters worse.

8.     Let your virtues speak for themselves.

9.     If someone criticizes you, see if there is any TRUTH to what he is saying; if so, make changes. If there is no truth to the criticism, ignore it and live so that no one will believe the negative remark.

10.    Cultivate your sense of humor; laughter is the shortest distance between two people.

11.     Do not seek so much to be consoled, as to console; do not seek so much to be understood, as to understand; do not seek so much to be loved as to love.

[ Author Unknown -- from 'Aiken Drum' ]

The recent collapse of Washington Mutual Bank and the near collapse of the entire financial infrastructure in the country has underscored the need to be prepared in every way.  Obviously, you should be minimizing your debt, maximizing savings and setting some food and money aside to ride out the coming hard times.  Most economists believe the bailout (whatever that turns out to look like) will have little effect, and that it is just delaying the inevitable.  I agree.

Now is the time to line up your ducks.  You’ve had plenty of warning of impending financial disaster.  What have you done to prepare?  I know many of you have done nothing.  Just like the people in Texas this year and Louisiana last year who knew there was a calamity coming and did nothing to prepare.  Those who were prepared, took appropriate measures and heeded the warnings came through able to move forward as they e emerged from the other end of the disaster.  Others lost everything.  What will you do?

Following this link to the Harvard Business Review post by Umair Haque entitled “How To Build A Next Gen Business.”  This is tightly written and very insightful.  It’s worth your time and consideration.

I heard part of an interview the other day with a woman (I wish I knew her name, but I came into the interview late and left early) speaking about generation Y and the their view of how the work environment ought to be.  She indicated they want a fun environment that is flexible in terms of when they work and what they do.  They want to be valued and they want to be recognized for their accomplishments. (I believe the term she used was high-maintenance.)  She indicated that if those conditions weren’t quickly met, the gen y employee would leave.  With the baby boomer generation and gen x’ers nearing retirement, meeting the demands of the rising gen y workforce will be critical in the coming few years.

I have stewed on that since I listened.  It was engaging, intrigueing, and made me wonder just exactly how a lot of today’s companies would deal with that.  Then I started to think about how I personally would deal with it.  That leads me to today’s post.  

FIrst, I’d say all those things are within the realm of possibility with me.  It all sounds good.  I’d love to work in an environment like that.  But I guess if I’m the boss I’m asking what’s in it for me?  I see what’s in it for you, but what do I get out of it?

I’d have to say if you’re willing to work hard (I don’t mean just put in your hours, but really work hard and move the company forward) while you’re here, I’d be amenable to letting you take time off pretty much whenever you need it.  I also agree totally with celebrating your accomplishments (of course I’m talking about legitimate accomplishments that moved the business forward and not just celebrating because it’s the third Tuesday of the month.)  I’d love to have a fun work environment, and I’d say whether we have fun is pretty much up to you.  If you are doing your job, doing it well, there’s no reason we can’t laugh, play practical jokes, listen to music, have video game competitions, wear shorts to work, etc., etc.  But if you don’t get things done, I have no choice to assume those things are distracting you and I’ll have to set them aside until we regain our focus.

So for me, it all comes down to you.  If you make the world go around, you can write your own ticket with me.  It’s a give and take world.  If that’s what it takes from me to have you rock my world, count me in.  But that knife cuts both ways.  If I’m going to turn things upside down (at least at it relates to the “traditional” way of doing business, whatever that means,) you have to meet me at least half way.

So at the end of the day, I’m willing to provide just about any environment you want if we can still realize the goals and objectives of the business.  What it all comes down to is this:  I know what you want.  What I don’t know is what are you willing to sacrifice to get it?

I marvel at the lengths our government will go to on most things.  This whole financial institution bailout has really got my motor running.  Here’s how I see it.  The banks, seeing real estate prices skyrocketing wanted their piece of the action.  In order to compete with other banks, they lowered rates, relaxed age-old lending practices and basically lost their minds.  Wall street retirements funds, seeing all the money banks were making, made much of their money available as well (after all, if it was a choice between putting it in real estate and seeing gargantuan returns or leaving it elsewhere for minimscule returns when everyone else was cutting the fat calf, what would you do?)

Then real estate, which was wildly (some would say ridiculously) over-inflated, hit the wall and prices started dropping like a stone.  All those people who bought way more house than they needed — and way more than they could afford —  all in the spirit of, “We’ll sell this in a few years and make enough to retire,” got left holding a bag that was too big for them to hold.  The banks, whose rapidly growing wealth had made them giddy, began to see all those people (who went in knowing unequivocally they couldn’t afford to legitimately repay the loan) start to default.  The ripple effect continued through the hedge funds and into the markets themselves until now the whole financial infrastructure in the country is in danger of collapse.

That leads us to today.  The government is going to let people who were responsible enough to live within their means pick up the entire tab for those who weren’t.  Plain and simple.  That’s right.  You’ll be paying for everyone else’s excess.  It would appear that you were stupid to live within your means when everyone else was living the life of Riley, all with no consequence.  Next time I hope you’ll be smarter than that!  

(CLARIFICATION:  Of course I’m being facetious here.  I have always advocated that everyone live in a financially responsible way, and that will never change.  I’m just bitter that — because I’m responsible — I get to bear the burdens of the irresponsible.)

The thing that really sets me off is what would happen if you made some horribly irresponsible business decisions in your business?  That’s exactly right.  You would go under in a heartbeat.  And nobody would give a rats.  They would say, “How could he have been so stupid.  He deserves to be broke.”  But when CEO’s who are making tens of millions a year do exactly the same irresponsible things they say, “The government should save his life.”  In my opinion, intead of saving their lives, they ought to be prosecuting them for malfeasance, misuse of the public’s money, and violation of the trust of the people.  Why are they being rewarded (with a bailout) so they can be free to go do it again?!?!?!?!?

To conclude, if you want to know who I vote for in this upcoming election, it’s NOBODY!  These people are all a bunch of self-serving, incompetent followers.  Nodoby has the cojones to stand up and say, “This is bad.  But if we bail them out, we’re only perpetuating the problem.”  No, we absolutely don’t need more government oversight or guidelines (and since the government is investing hundreds of billions in the bailout that’s exactly what they’re going to want to do) — far from it.  We need the law of natural selection to teach these bankers what they already knew: when you lend to people who can’t afford to repay, they will default on the loan.  Letting the chips fall where they fall and letting the natural consequences take over will teach the banks infinitely more than all the government oversight in the world could teach them.

Like the saying goes, you can choose your actions, but you can’t choose the consequence of that action — that is unless you have immunity from stupidity.  In which case nobody learns anything and we’re doomed to continue making the same mistakes over and over.