Month: October 2020

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Act World Famous

Act World Famous

True, caring leaders act world famous. Phillip Kane
St. Elmo Steak House. Indianapolis, IN

October 30, 2020

For years and years, first with my father, then with my wife, I would come to Indianapolis for Indy 500s and then Brickyards. No trip was ever complete without going to St. Elmo’s. Their cocktail sauce has become a staple in our home. Grabbing a bottle this week, I noticed two small green words on the label: “World Famous.”  I don’t doubt it  The stuff is incredible. When you put the words, “World Famous” on your label, it better be. When you put the words, “World Famous” on your label, you better act like it. 

And that’s the point for the week. 



Whether St. Elmo’s cocktail sauce is world famous or America famous or Indiana famous doesn’t matter as much as they believe they are world famous.  See, they put it right on the bottle. Because they do, it changes how they think about who they are and the kind of product they deliver. We are world famous y’all. Get ready for something spectacular.

Contrast that way of thinking with someone not so special. We’re not famous, y’all…we’re nobodies…get ready for something mediocre.

To me, life is a self fulfilling prophecy. St. Elmo’s is world famous because they believe they are world famous. Because they wake up every day intent on being world famous, they are, and it’s reflected in the product they put out each and every day. 

This company is world famous. 

Without a doubt there are people from all around the world who have heard of us.  By that definition, we are world famous. We should act like it. 

Everything we do, every decision we make, every person we hire, every dollar we spend and every word that comes out of our mouths should come from a place where being world famous is top of mind. 

Before doing anything. Before making any decision. Before making any hire. Before spending a thin dime. Before uttering a syllable. We should ask ourselves, will what I’m about to do add to the goal of making this company world famous?

Remember, we already are. We should act like it. 

We should put it on our invoices. On our trucks. On our uniforms. On our business cards. “World Famous Truck Service & Maintenance.”

How would you act then?  

I want to challenge you to act like you’re world famous. Because you are. Act like everything you do has to be done in such a way as to maintain that fame. Because it does. 

When we all choose to behave like we are world famous (because we are), something astounding will happen. Mediocrity, indifference, slow pace, missed steps, or poor attitudes will never be tolerated ever again. Because there’s no room for any of that on world famous teams. There’s only room for outright excellence, an obsession with safety, a fascination with speed, and an absolute dedication to exceeding the customer’s expectations every single time. Because that’s what being world famous is all about. 

So act like you’re world famous (because you are).

And win.

If you like the blog, you’ll love the book. To purchase a copy of Phillip’s book, The Not So Subtle Art of Caring: Letters on Leadership, from John Hunt Publishing, London, please follow this LINK. “Letters” is based on 85 story-backed lessons Phillip used while leading actual teams to accomplish extraordinary things. It is an outstanding resource for those who wish to commit to becoming the sort of leader that people WANT to follow.

To learn more about Phillip, please click HERE.

 

Categories
Stand in the Gap

Stand in the Gap

True, caring leaders stand in the gap. Phillip Kane

October 23, 2020

Last Thursday, in the midst of all of the other good things that are going on in this business, we had what occurred to some to be a miss on our part.  In the communication chain in regard to this situation, one of our associate used language which could only be described as derogatory in regard to our company and their teammates.  Before all of the facts were known, part of our team decided in the electronic presence of the customer to cast aspersions on their own team. 

Then Saturday, a college football team near to our hearts suffered a loss when, after the team put 49 points on the board, their place kicker missed a game-winning field goal with 19 seconds left on the clock. After returning to the sidelines, the kicker, Daniel Obarski, clearly and understandable distraught, was confronted by a bench-warming quarterback whose words for Obarski resulted in a post-game shoving match between the two.  What the squad team quarterback and our internal critic clearly fail to grasp is that when one publicly denigrates part of the team, they aren’t helping the cause, they aren’t making themselves look better in the eyes of the customer or the fans. 

On the contrary, those who publicly criticize their own team only reinforce what those on the outside were thinking anyway, and they prove for everyone involved, that they have a loyalty problem.

And that’s the point for the week.



A hallmark of successful teams is unity.  They win together and they lose together.  They ride the ups together, and the downs.  Winning is never the result of one part or person.  Likewise losing is never the result of one part or person.  That UCF lost that football game was not Daniel Obarski’s fault alone; the defense allowed a whopping 50 points; the offense scored one touchdown too few; the holder could have put the ball down a tad quicker.  In 60 minutes, many things could have happened to have changed the outcome of that game.  That it came down to Obarski’s foot was just the way it went.  And for someone who never stepped onto the playing field to confront him said a whole lot more about the person doing the confronting than the person who was confronted.

On any team, breakdowns and missed opportunities will occur.  When they do, each member of the team will face a series of choices.  A choice to realize that every part of the team has opportunities to improve and to personally recommit to doing so.  A choice to talk good about our team regardless of our own disappointment.  A choice to build up rather than tear down.  And a choice to stand in the gap as opposed to sidestepping personal responsibility.  See, a team is only seen as strong until a weak link identifies itself.  It’s only viewed positively until one negative comment is uttered from within.  And it’s only seen as unified until one member goes off the reservation.

When we fail to support the team that feeds, clothes and shelters us, we completely lose sight of what matters.  We mistakenly assume that we are somehow bolstering our personal credibility by joining those who are besmirching this team.  But guess what?  That couldn’t be further from the truth.  When we make the mistake of joining a chorus of boos, we tell our teammates, customers and whoever else is watching that we cannot be trusted.  Our customers leave, our competitors prosper, and those in the trade have ready ammunition to speak negatively about our company, because they have all they need to know on good authority.  But when each and every one of us stands by our team, through thick and through thin, bonds of trust form which enable us to withstand any difficulty.  Missed field goals, missed items during QC, or missed phone calls go from huge, credibility-robbing events to simple learning experiences on the way to winning over and over again.

It all begins with a simple choice…to fully commit to your team…and to talk good about Dickinson always, in all ways.So stand in the gap. 

And win.

If you like the blog, you’ll love the book. To purchase a copy of Phillip’s book, The Not So Subtle Art of Caring: Letters on Leadership, from John Hunt Publishing, London, please follow this LINK. “Letters” is based on 85 story-backed lessons Phillip used while leading actual teams to accomplish extraordinary things. It is an outstanding resource for those who wish to commit to becoming the sort of leader that people WANT to follow.

To learn more about Phillip, please click HERE.

Categories
Alignment Process

Align Around Process

True, caring leaders align around process. Phillip Kane

October 2, 2020


Last night, both presidential candidates participated in town-hall style events at the same time on different television networks.  What I continue to be struck by, and what these two events laid bare, was the degree to which the same issue with the same fundamental facts, can be viewed so differently by two different people. Even long held truths have become points of debate. One party’s wet is the other party’s dry. One’s up is the other’s down. Left…right. Day…night. Two people, looking at the same issue – even one that seems cut and dried – can come away with dramatically different reactions. It’s not a matter of common sense. It’s a matter of humanity. People are different. And for different people to see things the same way and do things the same way they need to learn, believe in, act around, personally invest in and be willing to fight for a common process.

And that’s the point for the week. 



What this political season has made clear is that it is impossible to assume that people will collectively act a certain way even when something seems self-evident. Leaders cannot simply assume that because something seems obvious to them that others will act a certain way. There is no one right way to think about anything. People approach issues and tasks from a myriad of backgrounds, biases, and points of view. And it’s not just in politics. It happens in every walk of life. Different people view the same things differently. 

So assuming that groups of people will automatically act a certain way because it seems to be a matter of common sense is a mistake. But rather when people are helped to understand how they should view an issue, why, and what, in doing so, will change in their lives, they can collectively rally around a new idea or process and begin to act as a unit. Process matters for this reason. Without process, people are left to their own devices, to conjure up on their own how to think about or act upon any issue that confronts them throughout the day. This variability opens the door to mistakes, customer dissatisfaction, waste and ultimately unhappy associates who simply want someone to tell them what the heck to do. 

But when there are processes and rules for how we should think about and act on things something rather incredible starts to happen. The entire collective energy of the organization begins to focus, on doing the right things, together, and with force. We are able to accomplish more because we waste less. We delight our customers more of the time. We have far fewer disagreements amongst ourselves. And we steam past our competitors who haven’t figured out that the key to winning is the absolute alignment of people. Best of all, our shops moreover become even better places to work, because every person in them has and understands their purpose for being there – which is ultimately to win and to improve the lives of the people who work here.  

So align around current and future processes.

And win. 

If you like the blog, you’ll love the book. To purchase a copy of Phillip’s book, The Not So Subtle Art of Caring: Letters on Leadership, from John Hunt Publishing, London, please follow this LINK. “Letters” is based on 85 story-backed lessons Phillip used while leading actual teams to accomplish extraordinary things. It is an outstanding resource for those who wish to commit to becoming the sort of leader that people WANT to follow.

To learn more about Phillip, please click HERE.