Category: Vistage

It’s A Dream Until You Write It Down

January 20, 2013 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Today’s blog post is offered by guest blogger Rick Landuyt, Vistage member and CEO of RFIDeas, One of the Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Companies in America.

It’s a dream until you write it down, then it becomes a goal.

Stretch goals were explicitly designed to push people to think differently about the tasks at hand. Suppose your revenue in 2012 was 20 million. You want to grow it 10% to 22 million, you tweak your marketing ideas, try to get another big account etc… What if you decided to stretch your goal to 30 million – a 50% increase? How would you do it? As you begin to think about this, you will start to realize the benefits of “stretch goals”. It’s not the new revenue number, it’s the thought process.

An interesting side note, my wife and I had the pleasure of spending 10 days at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. There we were able to meet and talk with several ex-Gold medal winners. The one thing they all had in common was they had written goals that they carried with them every day.

Rick Landuydt, RFIDeas

Vistage Confidence Index: CEO Optimism Cools In Q4 2012

January 13, 2013 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

The quarterly Vistage Confidence Index is now available.

More than 1600 Vistage members surveyed in the Q4 Vistage CEO Confidence Index reported a continued slowdown in the pace of economic growth and anticipated overall economic conditions would remain subdued in the first half of 2013.

On the other hand, optimism among small business owners who took the WSJ/Vistage Small Business CEO Survey reversed last month’s decline as renewed economic growth offset concerns about political and economic uncertainty.

Below are some key highlights from the Q4 2012 Vistage CEO Confidence Index (all members surveyed):

63% of CEOs anticipated revenue growth during the year ahead in the fourth quarter survey, down from 73% last year.
49% of CEOs expected increased profits, down from 52% last quarter and 55% last year.
35% of CEOs at year end reported improving economic conditions, down from 60% at the start of 2012.
Combined 86% of CEOs said higher sales, new orders, and an improving economy were the most important influences on increasing the likelihood of hiring new employees.
Planned hiring fell to 45% in the fourth quarter of 2012, down from 55% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Do Titles Matter?

December 16, 2012 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Last week I had the chance to listen to Vistage speaker and futurist David Houle. David talked about coming changes, many of which are driven not only by technology, but by Millennials entering the workforce. We are already seeing flattening organizations and a move away from hierarchy and titles and offices and cubicles and all the stuff Baby Boomers and Generation Xers are comfortable with. In entrepreneurial companies, which make up the majority of our Vistage groups, hierarchies never existed. These companies pride themselves on being nimble and quick to respond to marketplace demands. The result is a competitive advantage, now more than ever, because these are the companies able to attract and retain Millennials. As Vistage companies grow, we Chairs encourage owners to build a leadership team so they can build a sustainable enterprise. Owners want experienced leaders to do this – In walks the boomers and Xers, accustomed to structure and ready to create that sustainable enterprise, and with their ability to create processes to support a sustainable enterprise, comes their comfort and desire for hierarchy, titles, offices, etc.

CLASH

Perhaps as David says, as the Millennials become leaders, this will all even out. In the meantime, here are my questions for Boomer and Generation X leaders and followers:

Is it time to pause and ask, how much of what I expect in terms of hierarchy, paying dues, etc. matters?
What recognition is truly important for me to feel successful in my organization?
When joining a new organization or taking on an assignment, what behaviors, rather than titles and trappings, should I be asking for from my leader that will set me up to succeed?

The Answer Is In The Question…

December 2, 2012 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

One of the life lessons I have learned, since becoming a Vistage Chair six years ago, is the answer is in the question. By asking better questions, we enable others to come to their own resolutions. Most of us in business are problem solvers, and often the answer to someone else’s problem or challenge seems obvious to us. Therefore, we rush in with advice, without stopping and asking questions. What I have learned, and continue to be reminded of daily, is that by asking more poignant questions, the resulting answer may not only be better, it may also be different than what we perceived as obvious before we asked.

Following is a quote from one of my CEO members that, to me, captures the essence:

“I had a very interesting life lesson yesterday. Another member was leading and that was probably a little difficult for me to have someone else in charge. Once I accepted my role and decided to listen instead of work hard to offer my opinion, my perception of how I could add value changed drastically. I remember that Elisa said, ‘work to ask questions and not just offer suggestions’. I struggle with that as I always want to solve other people’s problems for them. It’s like counseling, the counselor never seems to tell you your problem, they just keep asking questions until you have the realization and state it yourself. That always bugged me. I now realize that until someone deeply understands their own problem, they will not take action nor will they truly support any action that they do take based on another’s understanding. I think I got more value out of the meeting than any other person in the room. That value was directly linked to not talking”.

First To Market Or First In The Mind?

November 11, 2012February 2, 2023 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Recently, during one of my Vistage Key Executive meetings, we were discussing the book Great by Choice by Jim Collins. During our discussion, one of the members raised the question, how important is it to be first to market? Or is it best to be a “fast follower”. Jim Collins makes the case that the long march, as he calls it “the 20 Mile March” is one of the characteristics of companies that are great by choice.

My favorite marketing book 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries and Jack Trout (an oldie but goody) – describes it this way in Law #3 – The Law of the Mind. It is better to be first in the mind, than first in the marketplace. The iPad is a recent example. Apple owns over 70% of the tablet market. Not only were they not first, they weren’t even a fast follower. The first tablet was invented many years ago.

Google wasn’t the first browser, Facebook wasn’t the first social website, Apple (again) wasn’t the first smartphone. Yet, more books are written, businesses started, venture funds invested in “first movers”.

The question most are asking today is which is best? First Mover or Fast Follower?

For me the question is First to Market or First in the Mind? First in the Mind addresses timing as well as innovation. The best product or service idea, is only best when you have buyers. Timing therefore determines who wins.

What are your thoughts?

Leadership Quote: Those Who Win….

October 28, 2012 by Elisa Spain4 Comments

This month’s leadership quote: Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can. — Dr. Paul Tournier

Today’s blogpost is offered by guest blogger Mary Lore, Vistage speaker and author of Managing Thought.

Mary’s book and program are all about managing thought and getting the results we want.

In my experience, a lot of leaders think “positive thinking” is about thinking happy rah-rah or touchy-feely thoughts or re-framing a thought to make it sound positive, for example changing the word “sh—“ to “fertilizer.” Or they think of that Stuart Smalley character on Saturday Night Live who made positive affirmations in the mirror. (I don’t want to be that guy!)

That’s why I don’t use the term positive thinking,coined the term powerful thinking, and developed theManaging Thought® process. Because to me, positivity isn’t about getting rid of the negative thoughts we have and replacing them with positive thoughts. It is about being aware of the 60,000 thoughts our brains present to us every day – one a second – and choosing to hold thoughts that are in alignment with who we aspire to be and what we truly wish to create – as leaders and as organizations.

In my experience, most of our thoughts are based in fear, focused on what we don’t want vs. what we do want – and we don’t even know it.

When we think about the time we don’t have enough of, the opportunities we don’t have, the customer we lost, the payments we can’t afford, the sacrifices and cuts we have to make, cash we don’t have, customers who aren’t buying, banks who won’t lend, the decisions we are forced to make, and the competition we’re up against, we are not thinking powerfully.

When we think that we don’t want to be viewed as a commodity, the economy is bad, my organization isn’t innovative, my people aren’t engaged, or that I don’t like this or that about my employees or suppliers, again, we are not thinking powerfully.

When we think thoughts of fear, self-doubt, worry, criticism, judgment, anger, frustration, anxiety, negativity and other disempowering fight, flight or freeze thoughts, we are not thinking powerfully. And when we think about surviving, we are not thinking powerfully, because we want to thrive.

When we think powerfully, we are thinking thoughts of vision and purpose, wonder and possibility, focused on what we want, on what truly matters. Our thoughts are inspired, creative, and impactful.

Most of us have not thought about our thoughts. We have no idea what we are thinking in each moment. We have taught ourselves to turn our power to think and to create our reality over to our brains.

Yet we have the ability to pay attention to our thoughts. We always have a choice to focus on what matters and think in powerful ways which affects our ideas, our decisions, and our results. This awareness creates stillness in this fast-paced, ever-changing world and affects how we inspire others, how we lead, what we create from any situation, producing a distinct competitive advantage.

It is time for us to take back our power, to stop re-acting, and start choosing thoughts that serve us in our lives, our relationships, our organizations, our communities, and, through the ripple effect, the world.

How are you using your 60,000 thoughts today?

Great Leaders Shatter Expectations

October 21, 2012 by Elisa Spain2 Comments

Great leaders shatter expectations, so says Vistage speaker Michael Allosso. This is planning season for most companies. The time when leaders get together to begin strategic planning for 2013.

What will you do in 2013 to shatter the expectations of your leadership team and your customers?

Please share your thoughts/plans by commenting on this blog post.

Vistage Confidence Index: Q3 Results Dip Once Again

October 14, 2012 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

The quarterly Vistage Confidence Index is now available.

CEOs of small and medium businesses say their overall confidence is down due to a continued slowdown in economic growth and uncertainty over the future of U.S. politics. This is according to the Vistage CEO Confidence Index, which indicated a drop of nearly three percentage points from the second quarter and a 16 percent decrease since March.

Following are key highlights of the survey:

Economic Growth Slows: The continuing decline in optimism has been due to the slowdown in the pace of economic growth that is expected to continue though the start of 2013. Just 27 percent of all firms in the 3rd quarter survey reported that the economy had recently improved, down from 36 percent last quarter and less than half of the 60 percent recorded at the start of 2012. Moreover, the proportion fearing a renewed downturn in the year ahead jumped to 22 percent in the 3rd quarter, up from just 7 percent at the start of 2012. To be sure, the vast majority of firms do not anticipate a recession, but simply a slowdown due to inaction on fiscal policies.

Hiring Plans Remain Favorable: Hiring plans were unchanged from last quarter as half of all firms planned net increases in the number of their employees. Just 9 percent anticipate a net reduction, a clear sign that firms do not expect a downturn. One-in-five firms (19 percent) reported that the payroll tax holiday allowed them to expand their businesses, but fewer firms (12 percent) reported that they would hire more workers if the government offered them a $1,000 tax credit for each new hire.

Investment Plans Slip: Planned investments in new plant and equipment declined slightly, with the percent that planned increases falling to 36 percent in the 3rd quarter from 40 percent last quarter and 45 percent in the 1st quarter. Economic uncertainty has reduced investment plans to their lowest level since the start of 2010.

Revenue Prospects Remain Strong: Two-thirds of all firms anticipated revenue growth during the year ahead in the 3rd quarter survey, unchanged from last quarter. Retaining and attracting new customers was singled out as the biggest challenge by CEOs, with cutting costs their next biggest challenge since the majority of firms expected they could not increase the prices they charged for their products or services.

Stable Profits Expected: Higher profits were anticipated by 52 percent of all firms in the 3rd quarter, barely different from last quarter’s 53 percent but below the 1st quarter’s 60 percent. Although CEOs anticipated an even slower pace of economic growth than last quarter, firms were better prepared to offset the impact of the slowdown on their profits. The 14 percent of firms in the 3rd quarter 2012 survey that expected declines in their profits was slightly below last year’s 15 percent and less than half the peak of 36 percent in the closing quarter of 2008.

Leadership Quote: The Best Way To Predict The Future…

September 30, 2012 by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This month’s leadership quote: The best way to predict the future is to invent it — Peter Drucker.

Love this quote on so many levels. First and foremost it speaks to the importance of having a vision. When I presented this quote at my Vistage CEO meeting this month, one of my “inventor” members, just smiled. For him this sums up why he does, what he does.

For my Vistage Key Executive members, they heard it as a reminder that we do control our destiny, even though sometimes we think it is controlled by others.

What does this quote say to you?