Diversity

You’ll never find a better sparring partner than adversity.” Golda Meir

Stephen Dawson, DSL

I was beaten on as a kid more than once. I was small in stature and not as smart as most kids. The worst of the beatings was the verbal abuse. It took me longer to put on substantial muscles when serving in the infantry, but I caught up and surpassed many in my unit. Later, it took me longer to get through my undergraduate degree from not having a solid academic starting point. I look back and remember those who helped me advance amid abuse. It was, always, someone who was of different skin color than I, or who came from another birthplace, or who had more strength of servant character than I do today. Adversity became livable for me. I owe each of them a debt I will never be able to repay.

I heard these words from them many times: “You need to prepare.” Often, I would get a call later from many of them asking me how things went as an outcome of my preparation efforts. Many of these wonderful people were at or below the economic poverty level, but they were wealthy beyond measure in building relationships.

I shared recently we only see if we look, and we only look by choice. I shared last week learning can continue on any topic. I see people, not combinations of demographics or psychographics. There is no…them…in my book. I made the point in past columns that a people problem is not a skills problem. People need to be nameless and faceless to be related to effectively. I hold this position for one simple reason: I was nameless and faceless for years, but people related to me in many healthy ways. No one can thrive without a name, a place, and a purpose. Resolving the people problem effectively consists of more than you looking for your desired destination using your planned strategy. It all comes together by way of the people you need to fulfill the strategy you need to be planned. So, let’s talk about some of the options you have to address your people problem.

People or colored objects?

If people are a part of your organization, then you must care for them as a whole person. If this is something you cannot do, then you would do well to either separate them from your organization or stop leading your organization. There is no one-size-fits-all for this decision point. Take the actions to communicate the separation milestone, deliver any severance, handle public relations, handle any litigation, say goodbye, and move on. This recommendation goes for both the person you are separating from your organization and yourself whenever you stop leading.

Let me be clear. I endorse, without hesitation, putting a person into a role by their skills in combination with the espoused morality of their worldview found in their ethics. There is little value in doing anything to meet the demands of anyone who has no interest in you. Yes, there are times when codified mandates exist contrary to your position. However, you are still faced with a whole person to either have or not have as a part of your organization. Let’s dig deeper into the reality of having the whole person in your organization.

MICROPROCESSORS

There is somewhat of a new obstacle in current events claiming there is a recent shortage of microprocessors. Imagine trying to run your organization without all of the resources that use microprocessors. Ford had to cut production of their F-150 recently due to semiconductor chip shortages. The F-150 is noted for sales achievements. Bindiya Vakil and Tom Linton described this situation from the global perspective. Let’s use this microprocessor topic to help address the people change problem you have in getting your strategy planned.

DIVERSITY

Please, stop and read the definitions for diverse and diversity before reading further. Then, take a read through diversity in the context of business. I urge you to step through the historical overview of equal employment opportunity and affirmative action.

No alt text provided for this image

David Daniels, a noted diversity and inclusion (D & I) professional I work with during management consulting efforts, told me his initial approach to the people part of our collective work. “There are so many different definitions out there when it comes to D & I, and I always work with each individual organization to frame it around their vision, mission, and values.” He shared with me some of his wisdom. “The analogy that has always stuck with me to succinctly describe D & I is this: Diversity = you were invited to the dance; Inclusion means you were asked to dance all night.” His analogy makes quite a bit of sense to me. I encourage you to read David’s Reflections article to understand more of his insight.

If fame is a skill, then you are staffing a role based on a fleeting skill. How long will such fame last? This question must be answered to assign meaningful present value and calculate the probable future value of the work delivered from this skill. Fame has a bit of energy to it, but it is similar to eating sugar. Sugar is fleeting energy, not lasting energy. If you need quick energy added to your organization, then fame is a way to get it. However, fame pushes those who are not famous aside and disables some of their ability to deliver productive work output to you. Now, let’s use the communicating-preparing-pursue plan I experienced as a child to see how it can help you with your identified people problem.

COMMUNICATING

Building the understanding of what another person has going on in their head to know how they can contribute best to your organization is a constant action. These conditions change from what Chesterton shared, so they must be measured frequently. It is the intersection of demographics and psychographics for each person combined with knowing where they fit into your organization based on how the other folks in your organization are doing at the time. It is going from nameless and faceless to a name with an identity to form a purpose, to determine their place in your organization. This purpose and place combination is not static. It is likely to change, knowing people have good and bad times, as do organizations comprised of the people you serve as their leader. The needs and wants combination for everyone will change accordingly. Communicating with your people is the only way to know these answers first hand.

PREPARING

It is unlikely you will be able to resolve the identified people problem with a single decision criterion. I make this statement as people are much more complicated than either a machine or a microprocessor, though both have features and benefits. Preparing has both an exact checklist of actions for the work at hand combined with actions specific to each person. We measure by outcomes, so the preparation matching the outcomes is only varied by the preparation’s execution actions. I am talking much more than Monday Morning Quarterbacking. I am talking about measuring outcomes without bias.

PURSUE

The follow-through of planning and doing is then pursuing understanding the outcome of the doing. The phone calls I would receive from loved ones looking out for my best interests had a combination of encouragement, recommendations, and a bit of tough love correction. You as the leader must, I repeat…must…use a similar formula in fixing your people problem. Why must you do this? Because you have a whole person in your organization for now. You are trying to decide if you need to move them to other work assignments in your organization or say goodbye to them as their leader.

WIND UP

Okay, getting back to the microprocessor illustration I spoke of earlier in this writing. Think about small devices as you consider how you select people to be a part of your organization. Think about the diversities combined in the technologies to make a device you use as you think about how you value the diversity of people to do the work you need and want to be accomplished. Then, take some time to watch the following short film.

I saw the film Most about a dozen years ago. It gripped me with the reality I was not viewing people then as I do today. I was limiting my view of people to those who I knew personally. Your selection of people to be a part of your organization most likely will mean you do not know every one of them as well as you do your close friends. Take the time this next week and watch this short film without interruption. It is 32-minutes long. I recommend you prepare your schedule to watch it uninterrupted. I hope it will help you measure your willingness today to see people as a whole, especially the part about them being nameless and faceless, to decide what you need to change about your people seeing willingness going forward. We will talk about how your viewing experience of this short film went for you during our time together next week. I anticipate you will be both shocked and irritated at the realities you experience from this film. I was when I watched it. I remember to this day how I felt at the end of the film: ashamed to find my unknown willingness not to see a whole person, but enabled to change for the better.

Link to Short Film

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our Blog!

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

The Return of Inflation Market Commentary – March 15th, 2021

Inflation is not dead. It is not gone. It has not been tamed. I know it seems like it, especially after the past few decades which generated in many an “inflation-complacency” that feels justified. After all, following the 2008 Financial Panic, many predicted Quantitative Easing would cause hyper-inflation.

When the Fed boosted the Monetary Base by more than $3 trillion dollars during Quantitative Easing 1, 2 & 3, and the federal budget moved to a huge deficit, gold and silver commercials proliferated. So did predictions of a collapsing dollar. But inflation never came. Since the end of the 2008-09 financial panic, the Consumer Price Index has increased by an average of just 1.7% per year, falling short of the Fed’s 2% target.

During the 2020 COVID-induced round of Fed money printing, instead of using QE to put reserves in the banking system, the Fed financed government programs to fund loans to businesses and direct payments to individuals. As a result, the money supply as measured by M2 has grown 26.3% in the past year, the fastest annual growth I can find in US history, and roughly double the pace of M2 growth the US experienced during the 1970s.

According to those who believe in Modern Monetary Theory – (which isn’t all that modern, btw), and is just vaguely a theory – the US can increase real output enough to absorb it. In other words, they say that while inflation is “too much money chasing too few goods” – they expect the output of goods to increase enough to keep inflation low.

I find this impossible to believe. In fact, I think many are living in denial. Inflation is already on the rise. In the past six months, the Consumer Price Index is up 3.6% at an annual rate and if it rises a modest 0.2% per month between January and May, it will be up 3.4% over 12 months. Part of this is because COVID shutdowns led to weak inflation in early 2020, but I expect inflation to move higher in 2021.

But, in addition to M2 growth, incomes and savings have increased, while production has not. Demand is exceeding supply. All personal income combined – wages & salaries, employee benefits, small business income, rents, interest, dividends, and transfer payments – was up 6.3% in 2020 versus 2019. Total after-tax income was up 7.2% in 2020, the most for any year since 2000.

Combined, Americans saved about $2.9 trillion in 2020, more than doubling the previous record high of $1.2 trillion in 2018. As of the third quarter of 2020, the amount Americans held in checking accounts, savings accounts, time deposits, and money market funds was up $2.8 trillion from the year prior. Add another $1.9 trillion in federal government stimulus spending (borrowing from the future, to spend today) and the US is awash in cash.

Unfortunately, in spite of a strong recovery in output, industrial production is 3.3% below pre-COVID levels, while real GDP is 2.5% below. In other words, demand is OK, it is supply that’s still hurting – a perfect recipe for inflation.

All this money printing threatens to eventually create a sugar high in equities. We aren’t there yet, but markets are floating on a sea of new money. Inflation hedges (real estate, commodities, materials companies) will do well. Traditional fixed income (long-term bonds) is at risk. The return of inflation is a very real threat to the long-term health of the US economy, and something you will hear me talking about more in the months ahead..

Integrated Financial Group

Kevin Garrett – Integrated Financial Group

My firm specializes in working with people that experience what we call “Sudden Income.” Typically the income came from one of these events:
1) Accessing and Managing Retirement Assets
2) A Performance Contract (Typically a Sports or Entertainment Contract)
3) Divorce Settlement
4) Inheritance or Insurance Payout
5) Sale of a Business or Stock Options
6) A Personal Injury Settlement

I believe the unique nature of these events requires specialized professional experience, empathy, and communication to deal with both the financial changes and the life changes that inevitably come with them.

My clients value my ability to simplify complex strategies into an actionable plan. They also appreciate that I am open, non-judging, and easy to talk to about their dreams and fears. Each client defines financial success differently and my goal is to guide them from where they are now to where they want to be. As my client’s advisor, my goal is to provide them with a lifetime income stream, improving returns, protecting their funds, and managing taxes.

Firm Specialties:

    • Retirement Planning For Business Owners & Executives
    • Woman’s Unique Financial Planning Needs
    • Professional Athletes
    • Investment/Asset Allocation Advice
    • Estate Planning
    • Risk Management
    • Strategic Planning

Kevin was listed in The Wall Street Journal as “One of the Financial Advisors In The Southeast That You Need To Know”

Kevin was listed in Forbes Magazine’s Annual Financial Edition as a Five Star Financial Advisor

Kevin has been awarded the Five Star Professional Wealth Manager in Atlanta Magazine in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,2018, and 2019.

Award based on 10 objective criteria associated with providing quality services to clients such as credentials, experience, and assets under management among other factors. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers.

KEVIN GARRETT, AWMA, CFS
Integrated Financial Group
200 Ashford Center North, Ste. 400 | Atlanta, GA 30338
Phone | 770.353.6311
Email | kgarrett@intfingroup.com
Website | kevingarrettifg.com

 

Marketing Research is Simple… But Not Easy!

Marketing Research is Not Easy!

Figure 1Marketing Research is Simple…

As a marketing researcher for over 30 years, I would like to think that I’ve learned a few things.  So, I am going to dedicate my blogs to areas where I’ve had the benefit of experience, to share some of that experience with you.

For the first blog in the series, I thought I would write about a basic conundrum of the marketing research profession: what constitutes “good” marketing research.

First, what is the purpose of Marketing Research? The purpose can be summed up as gathering data and information from the marketplace, from consumers and/or customers about a problem or an issue facing an organization that provides insights to help make better decisions.

To accomplish this, you only need to do 3 things:

    • Ask the “Right” Questions…
    • Of the “Right” People…
    • At the “Right” Time.

Simple, right?

Well, perhaps simple, but not easy.

As my colleagues understand, meeting each of these three criteria can be a difficult challenge. Especially, in today’s high-tech, rapidly moving, “need-an-answer-now” environment, everyone is looking for shortcuts.  Many businesspeople believe marketing research is so easy that just about anyone can do it.  They believe that all you need is to:

    • Ask Questions…
    • Of People…
    • Whenever.

The keyword missing in the above shortcut scenario is “RIGHT”; meaning correct, relevant, valid, and effective.

Additionally, all three components must be present and work together, to result in effective research.  You cannot ask the “Right” questions of the “Wrong” people or ask the “Wrong” questions of the “Right” people and expect the get actionable insights to make better decisions.  And if the timing isn’t “Right”, if you are not able to provide the insights when they are needed, then your research is worthless.

Let’s take a simple hypothetical case.  Assume that your company provides a consumer service, and the company is experiencing a high degree of churn, i.e., customers dropping your service for the competition.  The “Right” questions would include measures such as overall satisfaction, satisfaction with key attributes, likelihood to renew a subscription, reasons for switching, etc.  However, if you ask these questions only of your current customers, you will only tell half of the story.  The “Right” people are your current customers AND the people who have recently become ex-customers.  Questioning only your current customers will provide a picture of those who are loyal and will not identify all the issues leading to churn.  Recently lost customers provide the contrasting information that will generate the actionable insights needed to address the problem.

Conversely, if you select a valid sample of current and recently churned customers, but ask irrelevant or biased questions, your results will lead to invalid conclusions.  For example, if all competitors require a service contract, asking questions about whether a service contract is a problem, is at least a waste of time and could lead to misinterpretations.  Also, if you ask biased questions, such as “How excellent was your experience with our customer service team”, your results can be positively skewed and could conceal real problems.

Finally, the timing must be “Right”.  With every day that goes by, your company’s churn problem continues.  If it takes three months to complete the research, it may be too late.   Though you don’t want to take shortcuts in your research, you must plan and execute as quickly and as efficiently as possible to provide the insights necessary to resolve their problems in a timely manner.

I’ll address each of these three components of “good” research in greater detail in future blogs, with examples and case studies.  For now, keep in mind that there are no shortcuts to “good” research; Ask the “Right” Questions, of the “Right” People, at the “Right” Time.

 

Carl Fusco

Carl Fusco is a Marketing Research and Consulting Executive skilled at directing the application of research techniques and insights to solve problems and support data-based business decisions. Over his 35-year career, Carl has built a reputation for quality, integrity, and creativity by establishing trust, credibility, and acceptance with clients and associates. He has built a proven track record of success in organizational management and leadership, research design and implementation, and analytic rigor and impact.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

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Why own this IT Services franchise? Find out…

Businesses and consumers cannot be without their technology systems and devices working properly. If you are interested in having your own business in a high-demand industry then join me…

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To your success,
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Leslie Kuban
Franchise Consultant | Franchise Owner | Best Selling Author | Speaker

Leslie Kuban, CFE
FranNet
Mobile: 404.236.9115
Office: 770-579-3726
Learn how I help my clients – watch here

Looking

Men differ LITTLE on what things they will call EVIL. They differ GREATLY on what evil they will call EXCUSABLE.” G. K. Chesterton

Stephen Dawson, DSL

We only see if we look. We only look by choice. We may glance at or skim through what we read, but neither of these actions results in seeing.

G. K. Chesterton made a point about humanity in his observation of men and how they differ. I understand that Chesterton uses the term man in his statement as mankind, the human species. I interpret one of his unstated points as this: a little evil brings great inexcusability. I wonder what a lot of evil would bring. I choose not to look for more evil. Chesterton did not make it clear what evil is and is not. I wonder how many people today care to look into what he meant.

I got new eyeglasses last year, the kind that reminds me I am not a kid who did not need eyeglasses. They look good on me. I see better with them. I do not like to wear them. I only wear them when necessary. Additionally, I am unable to discern evil with them.

I shared last week about being scared. I used this condition in the context of you being unsure of the strategy you propose to plan. We were going to talk next time about making people changes to your strategy work. Let’s have this talk now.

Making changes to the work assigned to your followers, your people means one of two things. Either they do not have the time to do the work, or they do not have the skills to do the work. If they are not interested in the work of their role, then that is another matter. It is part of my work to help my customers discern between these conditions. We look at the facts, then we call it for what it is. Many of my customers are afraid they will be calling their people evil when their people do not get their assigned work completed. A common term used today is optics. It is a subjective term. It is a horrible term, from what I see. Facts are facts. They are absolute. Nothing absolute needs perspective to understand the fact. We need to understand the repercussions of facts to know their value, and those repercussions require various perspectives to comprehend the complexities of their collective impact. Facts are not subjective. Hence, the difficulty in assessing the people productivity part of strategy work.

LOOKING

Looking at anything displeasing can be difficult. Looking at evil, for me, is displeasing. I cannot say a person is evil, as I do not believe it is possible. I can say their actions are or are not evil. I make this determination based on the espoused morality of my worldview found in my ethics. Meaning, my definition of evil is not necessarily the same as anyone else’s. I do not consider evil when I look at the research. I look for facts. Helping my customers do the same involves many prior discussions to learn their abilities, perspectives, and positions to comprehend their research abilities. It is not a quick look, a glance, or a skim of the research we accomplish to evaluate either the facts of their strategy or the work of their people to plan their strategy. It is a series of discussions.

No alt text provided for this image

SEEING

Seeing an opinion unsupported by facts, to me, is a form of evil. I am allowing the person to share their opinions with me to convince me without relevant supporting evidence. Sure, there are times when this scenario is necessary for my best interests. HEY STEPHEN, GET DOWN! I confess that hearing these words, regardless of vocal tone, would at least put my head down. I would, once I am sure it is safe to raise up again, either thank them or ask them why they told me to get down. This simple example is to help you see how much time you could be wasting looking at work accomplished by your people but not seeing enough value from it. The intentional circular effort I shared about last week is what I am describing here. If you do not see value in your people’s work, then you either have a communication problem or a worker skills problem. I set aside the possibility of a worker not having time to do their assigned work because you already took care of that problem earlier…didn’t you? I cannot imagine you would have miscommunicated with your workers, as you have a written plan to accomplish work assignments…don’t you? Did you talk with them, or did you send them an emoji hoping they understood what you intended to say to them?

What is your intended message?

INTERPRETING

If your people have the time and skills to do their assigned work, then the work will be accomplished as planned. If your strategy work is not progressing as communicated in your plan, then you have a people problem. It is not a technology problem. If it were, then you are executing the wrong plan. It is not a workplace problem. If it were, then you are executing the wrong plan. I could go on presenting examples here, but Pilita Clark explains it pretty well.

So, we have a people problem. Is it their fault they do not have the technology they need? Is it their fault they do not have the workplace they need? No, these are your problems as their leader. Perhaps they do not have the skills to use the technology. Perhaps they cannot get to the workplace. These are their problems. They will have to solve them to remain employed with you. It is not a matter of evil versus good, fair versus unfair, or happy versus sad. They are the facts you face while attempting to complete your strategy work. If the work must be accomplished, and your workers cannot complete the work as planned, then you must get other workers assigned to the strategy you need to have planned.

I tell you, from the position of both a professor and as a management consultant, the problem I just described to you is widespread today. We have not prepared today’s students with enough skills to do the work in many roles involving strategy development. We have provided them pieces of education in the form of shorter degree program course durations with the expectation they will assemble these skills effectively into pertinent credentials. An outcome of these conditions over the past three decades is a student’s inability to absorb the lesson material deep enough to achieve the transformational experience of education. This change occurred about the time microcomputers showed up in commonality. There is a direct connection between increased access to learning and learning deficiency caused by information overload. It is a realization of analysis paralysis. Meaning, many degree programs in the past few decades do not have enough analysis instruction contained within them. Those who experienced high achievement did so outside of a single degree path. See if the article by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and Becky Frankiewicz rings a bell with you for how you look at your workers’ circumstances. I recommend you get to the point of interpreting it.

Next week, we will begin to talk about how diversity, inclusion, and what Chesterton talked about with the human species will help you get out of the circumstances hindering your strategic planning work. Specifically, how to go about staffing your organization to do the work you need to be accomplished. We will approach the balance of emotion and logic by considerations of needs and wants.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

Scared – A New Post on Strategic Planning from Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Fear is nothing more than an acronym: False-Evidence-Appearing-Real.” Unknown

A friend of mine passed a week ago. He worked himself to death, literally. He worked 80 to 90 hour weeks intermittently for the past 15 years. He was quite good at what he did, but he overdid it to the point of costing him his life. His passing helped me remember to not work so hard but to work smarter each day so I can work less overall.

I shared last week about the concept of spending time to gain the required perspective to go about the necessary work you have at hand. I thought more over the past few days about the fear I saw in 2020 held by many folks both near and far and how it often played out into anger by acting as a defense mechanism. I put down fear decades ago by learning from the wisdom held by one of my first mentors. “Fear is nothing more than an acronym: False-Evidence-Appearing-Real.” Fear occurs during a state of confusion about facts. Fear is not scared, nor is it anxiety. Anxiety can cause confusion, but scared alone is not anxiety. Scared is known by the paralysis it causes in someone who is scared. Anxiety is a slow wear on the whole person. Meaning, scared is a present tense term.

Anxiety

I saw an episode in a situation comedy television show years ago that grips me to this day. Frankly, it scared me stiff. It scared me because I saw how accomplishing all of the work conceivable to be wise does not assure success. My friend who died recently was one of my mentors. He helped guide me through my graduate and postgraduate years. He was a wise man. A coach is not a mentor. Suffice it to say, one has to succeed in receiving mentoring first to succeed in receiving coaching. I prefer mentoring over coaching, for many reasons. We can cover the differences between coaching and mentoring in a future column.

I received comments regarding the column last week that matched the next healthy step in the strategic planning work. The step we are at now is knowing the defined strategy that needs to be planned. There is an intentional circular effort in strategy where an idea is formed and research occurs to support developing the idea. The strategy is then refined, perhaps redefined, then planned, then perhaps refined and redefined again, to its final planning, and then executed by way of strategy process realization. This circular effort is not unique to strategy. There is a research condition known as analysis paralysis. Essentially, too much analysis is occurring to the point the research is stalled by figurative paralysis. There is much work occurring to accomplish the strategy effort, perhaps with good intentions. However, the collective work effort is not advancing by realizing clear and healthy organizational growth. Things are stuck. This research condition is not unique to strategy. The best action to resolve analysis paralysis is to stop the research work. Take inventory of where the work stands, determine the clear facts held, and assess if the work is worth continuing at the time with the people assigned to the work.

We realized earlier we were going to an unknown destination, deciding we did not like that address. We took some time and breathed, gaining the necessary focus to begin the planning work. You wonder if the idea outlining your proposed strategy has merit. What exactly is the strategy we are to plan out for others to follow? You now do not know the defined strategy that needs to be planned. You cannot proceed to the intentional circular effort in strategy. We have come to the realization you are now scared, as you are unsure of your idea forming your strategy. Hence, fear pushes this person to be scared. How do I know you are scared? I know because you do not have the research to support planning your strategy. If you did, then you would not be reading this column.

I view there are three options available to resolve this matter.

QUITTING

The act of quitting can be called regrouping. I call this equivalence a falsehood. Quitting is quitting, and regrouping is regrouping. If one does not want to develop a strategy, then say it. The decision to quit is not about some type of size or power. It is about being unwilling to look at the problem and resolve it productively. Move on, do something else. If shame or embarrassment go with quitting, then that is part of the package. Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own said it well. “It’s supposed to be hard…The hard is what makes it great.”

DENYING

The thought of not having a strategy to fulfill a goal is an excellent means to have followers walk away from their leader. These followers do not know what work they should be accomplishing, how they will benefit from whatever work they do, guess what they should do next, believe their leader has a plan, and wonder why their leader cannot communicate the unknown plan being executed. They deny the reality their leader is not leading by believing they are executing a plan they have not been given to follow. This condition is where the credibility loss for the leader occurs and ends their time in leadership.

Denying

FACING

If bravery is doing what is necessary when afraid, then strategy work is an act of bravery. I have not known a successful leader either first-hand or by distance who has not been afraid at some point in their leadership work. Afraid is not fear. Afraid is a healthy response to danger. A crucial success factor for the strategist I defined as successful was their not letting fear be a part of their work. False-Evidence-Appearing-Real. Those leaders worked to gain facts by eliminating opinions not supported by facts. If a tree is known by its fruit, then a tree is a good example of work productivity. Be the proverbial tree you were meant to be by putting down roots and taking the time to do the work needed to grow your harvest.

It is probable a person or organization new to strategic planning needs help with their work. I encourage you not to be either fearful or afraid of this need. I recommend you gain the help of a qualified strategist. Review their credentials, interview the credentials they provide to confirm their work, and select a strategist to help you.

What to buy, what to sell, what to change, are the easy parts of a strategy. They are easy because the accomplished research used to define your strategy reveals what to buy, sell, and change. The hard part of the strategy is knowing you know, for certain, what strategy first to form and then to execute. I say it is hard because of False-Evidence-Appearing-Real getting in the way of going about the strategy work. Looking back, you will be amazed at how simple your strategy is once it is defined. It is a matter of setting aside fear with each action you take.

I intentionally did not state the obvious point that many people are involved in any strategy formation shy of a person who lives alone. I set aside those living in solitude for the final point I bring to you for consideration this week. It is probable your analysis paralysis means you have someone, perhaps several people, working on your strategy effort who do not hold the required qualifications to do the collective work you need to accomplish. Does this scare you? It should. It means you are not willing to stay paralyzed. Scared is known by the paralysis it causes in someone who is scared. Meaning, scared is a present tense term. We will talk next week about making people changes to your strategy work. Forget the realities of male versus female, older versus young, and skin color. Look at people from the perspective of the skills they hold to help accomplish their part of your strategy effort. Try to work through the thoughts of what it will take for you as their leader to separate the unproductive people assigned to your strategy work from the work you need to accomplish. There is no need to be fearful.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

Great Careers – The BENG April 13 ZOOM Meeting Featuring Jim Weber

Jim Weber is inviting you to the April 13 Zoom Meeting of Great Careers – The BENG.

Great Careers – The BENG provides mid-to senior-level professionals with a platform to enhance their networking activities and skills.

 Members in-transition benefit from tools to accelerate their job search (including opportunities for networking), targeted employment information, and emotional support.

 Employed and self-employed members benefit from a platform to network and cultivate relationships with community leaders and professionals interested in expanding business.

We rely upon the generosity and cooperation of our members – whether in-transition, employed or self-employed – to accomplish the mission of “Members Helping Members.”

For more information about Great Careers – The BENG, Click Here!

Jim Will present:  How to Craft a Resume that Gets Results.

You should attend this meeting to learn how to improve your resume so that you get more interviews and shorten your job search.

You will learn

    • The Importance of Positioning Yourself and How to do so.
    • How to Identify and Present Your Unique Selling Proposition.
    • How to Tell Your Story in an Interesting and Compelling Way.

About Jim Weber

Jim Weber – Managing Partner, ITB Partners

Prior to forming New Century Dynamics Executive Search in 1999, Jim Weber spent 22 years with Fortune 500 companies in the Food Retailing Industry where he developed a broad-based portfolio of “hands-on” line and staff experience in growth and turnaround situations. A proven executive with exceptional leadership skills, Jim has a strong financial background and heavy operations experience in specialty retail stores, quick-service restaurants, manufacturing, and distribution.

 

 

Core Competencies

      • Executive search
      • Career Coach
      • Business development
      • Strategic Analysis
      • Start-ups and turnarounds

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86093676531?pwd=bzE0N093NEJmdFBoUGRzZGdSK1Z1Zz09

Meeting ID: 860 9367 6531
Passcode: 448365

Webinar: In-Home Care – Franchise Brand with a clear Competitive Advantage

Did you know….??

  • 10,000 people turn 65 every day.
  • This “silver tsunami” will continue for the next 40 years.
  • 95% of Seniors want to age in their own home.
  • More than half of Seniors over 85 need help with daily living.

COVID-19 has driven even more demand for safe, reputable in-home senior care services as families fear for their loved ones’ safety inside senior living facilities. While the $300Billion in-home care industry keeps growing, it is also very competitive. If you are going to enter this industry, you must align with a differentiated business model.

When

Sign-up here to join me on Wednesday, February 17th at Noon ET. I’m hosting a 20-minute spotlight about an in-home care franchise brand with a clear competitive advantage.

Need more reasons to tune-in?

    • Truly an “essential service.”
    • Truly a “recession-resistant service.”
    • Very scalable with a modest investment.
    • Strong earnings potential.
    • Technological advancements enable longer in-home living for more Seniors.
    • Feel proud to own a business helping others in your community.
    • Even if you can’t make the live event, sign-up anyway and you’ll be emailed the replay.

More events coming up:

Building Wealth through Franchise Ownership
(During & Beyond COVID-19)
Hosted by SCORE ($20 workshop fee)
Thursday, February 18th
12:00 PM Eastern (60 minutes + Q&A)
Learn more and sign-up

Technology Services Franchise – one of a kind….
Online spotlight, hosted by Leslie Kuban, FranNet (no cost)
Wednesday, March 10th
12:00 pm ET (20 minutes + Q&A)
SAVE THE DATE – registration opens soon

Please forward this invitation to your client, colleagues, or friends seeking career and/or business investment opportunities.

Want to chat with me now? Please use my scheduling link to choose a time to take my call: https://calendly.com/leslie_kuban

To your success,
Leslie

Leslie Kuban
Franchise Consultant | Franchise Owner | Best Selling Author | Speaker

Leslie Kuban, CFE
Market President
FranNet
Mobile: 404.236.9115
Office: 770.579.3726

 

Great Careers – The BENG Atlanta Chapter March 9 Meeting Via ZOOM – Featuring Kelly Trim

Great Careers – The BENG provides mid-to senior-level professionals with a platform to enhance their networking activities and skills.

 Members in-transition benefit from tools to accelerate their job search (including opportunities for networking), targeted employment information, and emotional support.

 Employed and self-employed members benefit from a platform to network and cultivate relationships with community leaders and professionals interested in expanding business.

We rely upon the generosity and cooperation of our members – whether in-transition, employed or self-employed – to accomplish the mission of “Members Helping Members.”

For more information about Great Careers – The BENG, Click Here!

Our Featured Speaker is Kelly Trim who will present:

Strengthen your Personal Brand Through LinkedIn Publishing

 

Kelly Trim

Kelly Trim is Vice President of Franchise Development at Premium Service Brands, the leader in home services franchise opportunities. Kelly is a long-time BENG member, frequent guest speaker, Crossroads Career Network volunteer, and Certified Social Marketer. When she’s not helping entrepreneurial hopefuls diversify through successful franchise ownership in the home services sector, Kelly enjoys helping independent consultants and small business owners build their digital brand through the LinkedIn Publishing platform.

Reach out to Kelly to learn more about franchise opportunities with the Premium Service Brands including Maid Right, 360 Painting, ProLift Garage Doors, Handman Pro, Kitchen Wise and Renew Crew.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84516109138?pwd=c0VtWVFzdjE5NDNDVGVqcHdTc1RqQT09

Meeting ID: 845 1610 9138

Passcode: 393716

Key Items I’m Watching This Year Market Commentary – January 17, 2021

Now that we are a few weeks into the new year, I wanted to look forward a bit and briefly discuss some of the things I’m questioning and watching this year. I like to go through this process each year to force a review of my thinking and the strategies that come from those thoughts that I pass along to you.

Will stock concentration continue?
Five stocks represent a quarter of the S&P 500, which is the largest weighting for five stocks since the early 1970s. It’s hard seeing this continue, but it’s harder to come up with a reason why it won’t.

Will value come back?
Over the last 5 years, the Russell 1000 Value Index has grown by 9% a year. Not bad, except when you compare it to its growth counterpart, which has grown at 21% a year. Maybe we should be talking less about value being dead and more about growth being impossible to keep up with.

One of the reasons for the discrepancy in returns has to do with the difference in sector weights. Value has 29% fewer technology stocks and 26% more financials, industrials, and energy. The spread between value and growth on fundamental factors is as wide as it has been since 1999, and on some metrics, it’s even wider. But is it different this time? You cannot rule it out.

Will the stocks that benefited the most from Covid continue to outperform?
The world looks different today than it did a year ago. People are working from home, and they are wearing masks in the street. Some parts of our lives and some parts of the economy are changed forever. The question is, has the market already discounted all the change and then some?

Zoom, Peloton, Docusign, Teladoc, Shopify, and Wayfair gained an additional $300 billion in market cap this year. For comparison, that’s twice as much as the combined value of Delta, Las Vegas Sands, Marriott, Royal Caribbean, and Simon Property.

Again, the Covid beneficiaries added twice as much in market cap this year as the combined value of the badly hurt names by the virus. Did the market get this right? Does the gap narrow this year, or does it continue to widen?

Irrational Behavior
Investors went a little crazy this year. And I don’t mean in the way that Zoom gained $100 billion in market cap. That might be justified. But what investors did after Apple and Tesla announced that they were splitting their stocks was absolutely insane.

Apple announced a stock split on July 30th. On July 31st, the stock gained 10.5%. That was its second-best performing day of the last decade. $172 billion in additional market cap was added one day because investors were getting four shares for every 1 they had previously, with the price of their shares getting cut by 75%. In theory, this shouldn’t impact the value of a company. In reality, it really it did!

Will investors continue to ignore things like common sense? Investor behavior is impossible to predict, but I’m really looking forward to seeing whether or not 2021 is a continuation of what feels like irrational behavior because often such behavior ends badly.

Where does the Dollar Go? 
Maybe all that money printing is finally catching up with us. For the first time in a long time, the mighty dollar is starting to show signs of weakness. This has implications for the global economy and implications for U.S. investors.

A weaker dollar is good for gold and good for non-hedged foreign stocks. Gold quietly made an all-time high earlier in the year, and international stocks are showing signs of life, after doing a whole lot of nothing over the last decade.
International developed stocks (EFA), think Japan, United Kingdom, have only outperformed U.S. stocks once in the last 8 years. This is another one of those things that shouldn’t continue forever, but it’s hard to make the case why it wouldn’t.

Will we see more institutional adoption of Bitcoin/Cryptocurrencies?
Speaking of dollars, it has been a wild year for Bitcoin. Until recently, Grayscale’s Bitcoin was the only way for U.S. investors to access bitcoin in a listed fund. But recently, competition is showing up, providing investors more options.

Until now, Bitcoin/cryptocurrencies have been mostly a fringe asset and has not had a place in the portfolio of 99% of investors. What happens if institutional investors start to get involved?

Will the yield curve continue to steepen?
The yield curve, historically one of the most predictive economic indicators, went negative in 2019. That got a ton of attention at the time. Once again, it preceded a recession, albeit one that had nothing to do with the underlying economy. Be that as it may, right now it is at a 3-year high and I see few people talking about it.

A steeper yield curve, again, in theory, is good for economic growth and rising inflation expectations. With the Fed committed to keeping short-term rates low for the next few years, this may continue to widen, and maybe longer-term bonds start to outpace inflation.

And What About SPACs?
What Is a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC)? It is a company with no commercial operations that are formed strictly to raise capital through an initial public offering (IPO) for the purpose of acquiring an existing company.

Also known as “blank check companies,” SPACs have been around for decades. In recent years, they’ve become more popular, attracting big-name underwriters and investors and raising a record amount of IPO money in 2019. In 2020 SPACs raised $64 billion. And they’re just getting started.

According to Goldman Sachs, $61 billion in SPAC IPO proceeds are currently searching for acquisition targets. I cannot wait to see this. There are going to be some spectacularly bad deals come through.

It’s always hard to see things changing. And then along comes a year like 2020. Nobody had any of this on their list at the end of 2019. 2021 is sure to deliver some surprises, and unlike the last dreadful year, hopefully, those surprises will be for the better.

Content in this material is for general information only and not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly. The economic forecasts set forth in this material may not develop as predicted and no strategy assures success or protects against loss. Investing involves risk including loss of principal.

 

Integrated Financial Group

Kevin Garrett – Integrated Financial Group

My firm specializes in working with people that experience what we call “Sudden Income.” Typically the income came from one of these events:

1) Accessing and Managing Retirement Assets

2) A Performance Contract (Typically a Sports or Entertainment Contract)

3) Divorce Settlement

4) Inheritance or Insurance Payout

5) Sale of a Business or Stock Options

6) A Personal Injury Settlement

I believe the unique nature of these events requires specialized professional experience, empathy, and communication to deal with both the financial changes and the life changes that inevitably come with them.

My clients value my ability to simplify complex strategies into an actionable plan. They also appreciate that I am open, non-judging, and easy to talk to about their dreams and fears. Each client defines financial success differently and my goal is to guide them from where they are now to where they want to be. As my client’s advisor, my goal is to provide them with a lifetime income stream, improving returns, protecting their funds, and managing taxes.

Firm Specialties:

    • Retirement Planning For Business Owners & Executives
    • Woman’s Unique Financial Planning Needs
    • Professional Athletes
    • Investment/Asset Allocation Advice
    • Estate Planning
    • Risk Management
    • Strategic Planning

Kevin was listed in The Wall Street Journal as “One of the Financial Advisors In The Southeast That You Need To Know”

Kevin was listed in Forbes Magazine’s Annual Financial Edition as a Five Star Financial Advisor

Kevin has been awarded the Five Star Professional Wealth Manager in Atlanta Magazine in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,2018, and 2019.

Award based on 10 objective criteria associated with providing quality services to clients such as credentials, experience, and assets under management among other factors. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers.

KEVIN GARRETT, AWMA, CFS

Integrated Financial Group

200 Ashford Center North, Ste. 400 | Atlanta, GA 30338

Phone | 770.353.6311

Email | kgarrett@intfingroup.com

Website | kevingarrettifg.com