More on Story Telling

As I mentioned in a previous blog, I have been focusing more and more on the art of story telling. It takes time to refine the story to the point where you have the key points and can concisely tell the story. I ran across this from another blog and thought it was very powerful and worth sharing…

 

Tell a Story in Six Words?

An American master in the art of storytelling was Ernest Hemingway. His best work, as he once said, was a story he wrote in just six words:

‘For sale: baby shoes, never worn.’

A story does what facts and statistics never can: it inspires and it motivates. That’s why expert storytellers are such effective communicators. They translate complex ideas into practical examples – and they know how to make emotional connections with their audience. Their message gets through because everyone can relate to a good story.

No matter your business, you’ll benefit from learning how to tell a concise story that packs a meaningful punch.

via Tell a Story in Six Words? (Can you?) | LinkedIn.

Mike Fesler

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Consistent Excellence

What is it that makes it so hard to consistently perform at an excellent level?  Our family was just watching the Baltimore Ravens play the Arizona Cardinals and it was a tale of two halves.  The Ravens were heavily favored and even had people suggesting they were one of the top couple of teams in the NFL this year.  The fans were expecting a big bounce back from a poor game last week, with many predicting a big blowout.  Well the game did not turn out as expected, with Arizona dominating most aspects of the first half and building a 24 to 6 lead.  It is fair to say that Baltimore was not operating at an excellent level.  They did come back and win with a field goal as time expired to win 30 to 27, but they were definitely not consistent.  So what makes consistent excellence so elusive?

I suggest that there are five keys to consistent excellence.  First is thorough preparation.  Planning for the primary game plan and then planning for every contingency.  This planning allows a team to come out attacking the competition and taking advantage of their strengths.  When the primary plan stalls, the contingency planning allows the team to adjust and alter their attack.

Second is having the right personnel.  High level competition requires having people who are talented, trained and motivated.  This applies to the starters, but also the backup & role players.  The players are the ones on the field and success fully depends upon their being able to do their job.
The third key is play calling – or game management.  Are we running the right plays at the right time?  Are we using the right “technology” to execute our game plan and press our advantage at the right times?  Is management putting the players in position to succeed?

The fourth key is performance.  This is probably the most obvious, because it is the one that is most visible.  We can watch the players execute on the field for each play.  Each person has to operate at their highest level and is responsible for getting their job done.  If one person falls down, the entire team becomes vulnerable.

The fifth, and final, key to consistent excellence is points!  These are the metrics we use to keep score.  The things we assign points to are the things that matter, so our metrics should reflect what is important.  Yards gained mean nothing if we cannot score points.  Metrics give us feedback for how things are going and allow us to adjust early enough to influence the outcome.

While the analogy is oriented around football, the principles apply to most things in life and in business.  We need to make sure all of these keys are in place to ensure consistent excellence.

Telling an Impactful Story

As a frequent presenter, I am always looking for ways to improve my message.  I came across this TED presentation which I found to be very thought provoking.  It is about 20 minutes or so, but is worth it.  Simon Sinek is very compelling.  The TED site is pretty worthwhile and I would highly recommend it.

Vocation Sweet Spot

I am frequently asked for advice about jobs and careers, so this makes a good topic for this first blog.  I believe that there are certain ideal jobs for each of us, however, most people do not find them.  Most of us find a job at a good company, working with good people and we nestle in and dedicate ourselves to that job.  While this works and can lead to happy and contented lives, it may not be leading to true fulfillment.  I believe that there is a simple concept that can help us find the “right” job.  It requires honest and thoughtful introspection, but if followed, will lead to real enjoyment and satisfaction.  The concept is an adaptation of the principles outlined in Jim Collins’ book “Good to Great”.  We should go through the process of identifying three circles, and then look for careers at the intersection of those circles.

The first key step is to identify what we are good at – what are our talents?  Each of us has at least one and probably several strong talents.  These are the things that we are really good at; the things that come easily to us.  The second step is to understand our passions.  We need to identify the things that we feel strongly about.  What gets us excited and energizes us?  The third step is to identify the needs of the market we want to be in, or the needs of the company we want to work for.  If we identify careers that allow us to work in an area where we have passion, using the talents that we possess, fulfilling the needs of others, then we will be energized, achieve success and be fully satisfied.

We can all think of people that can say “I always wanted to be a …”  They move into that career and enjoy great success.  For me, my father comes to mind.  When he was young, his older sister was very sick.  When the doctor came and administered a new medicine to restore her health, my father said “When I grow up, I am going to be a doctor.”  He has the passion for healing others.  He is very intelligent and very skilled as a surgeon.  His patients had a need for healing and he has been able to meet those needs.  He found his “calling” in the intersection of his talents, his passion and the needs of others.  This led to his becoming a renowned surgeon who has helped many patients.