© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

Last week I arrived at the Colman Dock ferry terminal in Seattle to head back across Puget Sound for home. My iPhone was at 9% power, so I thought I’d plug in and power up since I had a 30 minute wait for the next ferry. I searched and searched for an outlet. I was surprised that I couldn’t easily find one, so I thought I must simply be “blind.” I stopped over to the employees and asked where the outlets were. “No outlets,” was the response. I couldn’t believe my ears.I asked why and she quickly gave me the two reason. The first was that someone had plugged their laptop into an outlet, and some power malfunction ruined it. The other was that people would “hog” the outlets. The terminals simple solution? Avoid it all and just remove them. This is crazy. The ferries have outlets all over, yet the terminals eschew them because of fear and that people might actually use them! In today’s highly digital world, they do a disservice to their customers for selfish reasons.

Do we ever do that? Do we ever make decisions for our own self-interest and in so doing, do a disservice to our customers? Consider some of the kooky phone systems that require you to select from 7 different options, which leads you to another 4 options, which lead you to an outdated voice mail or a disconnection. Or how about arriving for a doctors appointment only to find that the office has double booked and you will be lucky to be seen sometime in the same day as your appointment? Sound familiar?

Make it easy for people to do business with you. Give them the power. You do this by making contact with you easy; access to you and your products simple; and a level of courteousness that might just overwhelm them with delight. Or, maybe you can at least provide an outlet for their phone…

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

This week’s quote -
“A vision without execution is merely an illusion.”
- Ron Karlberg

Dan Weedin

Hey all my faithful readers of my monthly column for the Kitsap Business Journal, I want your help!

My column for June is due on Monday and I am planning on writing it tomorrow (Sunday). I’ve received many kind words from you over the past couple of months and I am grateful. Now I would like you t respond before the column! Here is what I want…

I want you to tell me what topic you want me to write about. What’s your burning question, your biggest challenge, your most pressing issue? What do you want to read about next month when your Kitsap Business Journal hits your mailbox, or you read my copy on this blog or on social media? I am asking for your input right now.

Here is what you do. Send me your choice via a comment on this blog, a comment on Facebook/Linked In/Twitter/Google+, email (dan@danweedin), or a really fast homing pigeon. I need it by noon Pacific time tomorrow. I know it’s the weekend, but that’s how it works. Hopefully a few of you read this and give me some suggestions. Here are a few topics to get your brain thinking…

• Change Management
• Executive Leadership
• Motivating Employees
• Increasing Sales/Revenue
• Marketing & Branding
• Something else….

Give me a topic and an issue right away. If I choose your topic, you will get a free 20-minute coaching session with me. Hurry up…I need to start writing!

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

Thankful to Alan Weiss for this new testimonial…

© 2-13 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

Transitions  

Today is the day my mother moves out of our home and into a memory care/skilled facility. After 2 years of living with us at our home, Barb and I knew the time was now to transition. Her care was about to exceed our pay grade. It will be best for her from a comfort, care, and mobility outlook. It will also be a relief for Barb and me.

Transitions can be bittersweet. They often involve tough decisions and a commitment to the benefit of the most. They also involve consequences. For us, a “hidden” consequence is that the dogs have come to love her and I know they will miss her. They did when she was recovering from a hospital stay. But dogs are resilient and they move on with transitions often better than humans do.

Your career has probably seen transitions. Even if it didn’t entail a job change, your position changes in order to grow, develop, and reward you. It also creates its own “hidden” consequences that you might see right away, or may not manifest themselves for years. That’s part of living and transitioning.

Don’t fear transitions. Most times they are to ultimately change and reward you. You just have to be open to that change and willing to burst through that door.

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

This week’s quote -
“When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That’s relativity.”
- Albert Einstein

Don’t accept unsolicited advice. As my professional mentor, Alan Weiss reminded us at his Seattle event last week, unsolicited advice is for the giver of the advice, not the recipient. Only accept advice from people who you want to gain advice from. As a member in Toastmasters, I accept advice from fellow members because it’s implicit in my membership. I don’t accept advice from someone I don’t know after walking off the platform when I speak. I accept advice from my mastermind group because I value and respect their opinions and it’s again implicit as part of that group. I don’t accept advice or comments through the internet where someone is anonymously hiding behind an avatar (see electronic comments on newspaper articles).  Choose wisely who you take suggestions and advice from. They need to have gained your trust and respect in whatever it is they are mentoring or coaching you on (or even simply giving advice).

One additional note. Don’t get angry by people’s comments or “advice” on social media sites like Facebook. If you posted something, you have given the right to everyone seeing it to weigh in. It has now become “solicited!” I am constantly amused by people who are agitated by other’s comments on their life when they put themselves out there. If you don’t want to take comments on your life or business, don’t post on Facebook, Twitter, or Linked In. If you are looking to be provocative and edgy, be ready to take the heat. Unless of course the heat comes form someone you don’t know hiding behind a green Martian’s face…

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

This week’s quote -
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”
- Mark Twain

This year, things are different. The police have already started preparations and are sure not to be caught flat-footed again. In addition, businesses are being much smarter. I just saw a push notification on my phone indicating that US Bank in downtown Seattle was closing up shop at 3 pm due to the expected protests. They made a decision in the best interest of their customers and employees. While they might not be able to prevent damage to their building, they do have control over the people  they serve and employ. While it might be a slight disruption for customers, my guess is that it pales in comparison to anyone being injured.

The lesson for you as a business owner is this…

You need to learn from history. I can’t tell you how many times in my years as an insurance agent and consultant, where I have seen business owners ignore history and trends to their detriment. For example, if you have a fleet of cars that continually racks up rear-end accidents, and you take no preventative action to educate and/or discipline your drivers, you will fall victim to larger self insurance costs, higher premiums, and loss of production and revenue. In this case today, US bank knows it’s located right in the heart of the rally. They know that banks are a target. They saw what happened last year. They made a decision to avoid calamity in the places they can control. Kudos to them.

You need to be skilled at spotting trends. If you have a strong, professional relationship with your insurance agent, they should help you. This is an area that consultants are invaluable. The net result of learning from history is that you don’t repeat the bad stuff; only the good stuff! At least one business in downtown Seattle has figured it out. Have you in your business?

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

Captain Jack

I admit to being an NFL geek. I watched the NFL Draft on Saturday as the Seahawks had about a gazillion picks to make. It was worth it when I heard former NFL head coach and ESPN Monday Night Football announcer, Jon Gruden tell a rookie quarterback…

“If the dog hadn’t stopped to take a crap, he would have caught the rabbit.”

Now, THAT is wisdom!

Here’s why. The dog takes off on a mission to catch the rabbit. The rabbit himself is fast and tough to catch to begin with. The dog stops to do his duty and the rabbit speeds on. The dog misses out on the rabbit and the rewards of catching the rabbit.

You start off on a new mission/objective/goal/initiative/dream (you pick one). The objective is going to be tough to attain to begin with. You are going fast and then something distracts or stops you. Seems like it’s important at the time. By the time you get going back again, you’ve lost momentum; lost passion; lost direction; and ultimately lost your rabbit and reward.

You, in your professional and personal life, are constantly setting goals and objectives. Too bad you’re allowing things to distract you and keep you from reaching them. More often than not, these distractions are of your own doing. It doesn’t have to be that way. You have control, you just need to be resilient, focused, and passionate. There’s always time to ‘um…”take a crap” later!

Go catch that rabbit!

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

This week’s quote -
“It is even harder for the average ape to believe that he has descended from man.”
– H. L. Mencken

Aaron Murphy turned to me to help his practice and business flourish. How can I help you do the same?

Contact me to find out how we can work together to accelerate your growth both professionally and personally.

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

Last week was a bad week in this country…

First we had the tragic bombing at the Boston Marathon and subsequent events that killed 4 people, injured hundreds, and altered thousands of lives. A few days later, the explosion at a fertilizer plant killed 12 people (most of them first responders) and again injuring and affecting hundreds. Throw in a couple of earthquakes outside the United States and it was a crisis filled and emotional week.

One thing is absolutely certain, however, and it was proven again this week. We are a resilient people. We care, we sacrifice, we take care of each other. Hundreds of marathon runners kept running past the finish line to donate blood; bystanders put themselves in harm’s way to aid injured people; and as Boston showed, a city completely shut down in an effort to protect its people and seek justice. Regardless of who we are, where we come from, our political point of view, or our age, we are resilient and know what to do in the face of crisis. We band together for the greater good, lick our wounds, care for those who have lost, and keep moving forward.

One final thought. My great-grandfather was a police officer in Seattle in the early 1900′s. He was killed on the Seattle streets in the line of duty (and eventually had a street named after him). We saw in Boston and in Waco that law enforcement, fire fighters, medical staff, and other professionals who are first responders put their lives on the line every day for our protection and safety. Thanks to all of you who bravely put your life on the line for us…

© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved

This week’s quote -
“It is easier to be wise for others than for ourselves.”
-  Francois De La Rochefoucauld