I knew a jeweler who attended a Dale Carnegie management training program with me  and returned to his business a changed man.  Suddenly, mall security guards started arresting thieves in his store.

When he remarked to one of the security guards that it seemed that crime was increasing in the mall, the security replied that the crime rate hadn’t changed – the guards had simply started intervening and arresting thieves, whereas before, they had turned a blind eye. They were rewarding my friend for his change in attitude towards them. But I digress…

What REALLY Motivates Employees

In his book, “Persuasion IQ”, Kurt W. Mortensen discusses a working paper by Kenneth A. Kovack of George Mason University, Fairfax, VA. Kovack researched the differences between what motivates employees and what managers think motivates employees. Here’s the data:

What Motivates Employees as Ranked by Employees

1. Interesting work
2. Appreciation of work done
3. Being well informed
4. Job security
5. Compensation
6. Growth and promotion opportunities
7. Good working conditions
8. Personal loyalty to employees
9. Tactful discipline
10. Help with personal problems

What Motivates Employees as Ranked by Managers

1. Compensation
2. Job security
3. Growth and promotion opportunities
4. Good working conditions
5. Interesting work
6. Personal loyalty to employees
7. Tactful discipline
8. Appreciation of work done
9. Help with personal problems
10. Being well informed

“Shared Ownership”

One thing that I believe will cover many of these requirements is “Shared Ownership”. I’m not talking about giving your staff shares in your company.  I’m talking about profit-sharing Joint Ventures, where employees get compensated in direct proportion to the value they add as measured in profit.

Front line employees are often to privy to information of which management is blissfully unaware, and many times by design. Empowering your employees by partnering with them:

• gives them an “ownership mentality”.
• reduces absenteeism, laziness, and shoddy work.
• increasing motivation, loyalty, productivity, interest, enthusiasm, and innovation.

Managing the Potential Downside

Opening opportunities to your staff has its downside and risks, and therefore should be carefully managed, watched, and controlled, while allowing enough freedom and accepting enough damage through honest mistakes and inexperience to remove fear and hesitation.

Clearly defined boundaries, regular, open communication, and quick feedback, and awareness of the power of operant conditioning, with it’s requisite fast reinforcement, is essential.

As “partners” (without legal implications, please), most of the above motivational factors (we should also be cognizant of Hertzberg’s Hygiene Factors here) will be more than adequately addressed, indeed enhanced, and your bottom line will see the results.

In our society, people tend to blame their tools when they don’t succeed. Right, now, socialists and collectivists are blaming the bad economy on the capitalist system, which is ridiculous.

Losers blame the wind; winners adjust their sails.

You Gotta Have Staying Power

People who attend our Joint Venture Broker Bootcamps and don’t consistently implement the ideas and systems they learned, fail, and guess what? They blame the Bootcamp (and me.)

The fact that they don’t have the intelligence, or the motivation, or the staying power to persist until they succeed is too hard for them to accept, so they blame the system, while others, who attended the same Bootcamp, make a lot of money in the same economy with the same system, but with a different attitude.

Now’s the Perfect Time to Position Yourself!

The Joint Venture Broker systems we teach work, and we have abundant evidence to prove it. The capitalist system works, and just because some people abused it, doesn’t mean it isn’t still the best system in the world.

The looters and parasites will use the recession to try and undermine capitalism, redistribute wealth, and sabotage the success of the western world, but you can’t keep a good man down for long, and I have absolutely no doubt that the economy will rebound magnificently – the spring always follows the winter, and smart people will position themselves to take full advantage of this fact.

• Now is the time to become the best Joint Venture Broker you can be, because the world is full of great opportunities offered by this recession.
• Now is the time to grab hold of the opportunities available to you through DollarMakers and get wealthy.

Seize the day – the window of opportunity is wide open for capitalists who understand the power of Joint Ventures. DollarMakers is an idea whose time has come, and I invite you to join us as we ride this wonderful wave to Treasure Island.

Here’s a great book which I recommend:

“End of Prosperity – How Higher Taxes Will Doom the Economy -If We Let It Happen.”  by Steve Moore

“At a time when economies around the world are going wobbly, this insightful and timely book reminds us of the principles and the policies which America will need to employ to restore stability and prosperity.”

- Lady Thatcher, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1979-1990

“Fair warning! No one can say, ‘No one told us this would happen.’ Art Laffer, Steve Moore, and Peter Tanous have done just that with this brilliantly insightful book. Read it — and act!”

- Steve Forbes

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘press on’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”
- Calvin Coolidge

You can’t teach someone persistence. People will become sufficiently persistent to succeed only when their desire for their goal exceeds the pain and discomfort they have to endure in order to reach it. It’s simply a matter of comparison: the pain of living without your objective has to exceed the pain of paying the price to accomplish that goal. Which pain is greater?

What’s Your Motivation Level

Everyone is motivated. Motivation means “A motive for action”. Some people are motivated to lie in the gutter with a cigarette and bottle of liquor. That’s what they want to do, that’s why they’re doing it. Others live mediocre lives, because they don’t want real success badly enough to pay the price to obtain it.

When Success is Guaranteed

How do we guarantee success? DESIRE. When you want something badly enough, when you are prepared to do whatever it takes to get it, you will become persistent. And when that happens, success is guaranteed.

When to Not Bother

On a scale of one to ten, one being “It doesn’t matter” and ten being “Nothing will stop me”, how badly do you want to reach your objective? If it’s anything less than a twelve, don’t bother. FIND something that you want more than anything else. That desire will burn away fear, slothfulness, excuses, lack of attention, distraction, compromise, mediocrity and even fatigue. People who are seriously motivated are persistent and dedicated. They set extremely high standards and will pay the price. They LOVE their objective.

Persistence is…

Persistence is the result of finding your true purpose and the result of persistence is massive success. To find your purpose, it’s good to spend time with others who already know what their purpose is. Those people will inspire you and their energy will start to invigorate you. You will seek what they have, which is purpose. And what you honestly and sincerely seek, you will surely find.

“They who lack talent expect things to happen without effort. They ascribe failure to a lack of inspiration or ability, or to misfortune, rather than to insufficient application. At the core of every true talent there is an awareness of the difficulties inherent in any achievement, and the confidence that by persistence and patience something worthwhile will be realized. Thus talent is a species of vigour.”

- Eric Hoffer

We are all leaders; in our families, churches, temples, lodges, clubs, businesses and fraternal organizations.

Manager vs. Leader

Have you ever heard of a Cult Manager? What about a Religious Manager. Of course not!  Yet, where have we ever seen more loyalty, commitment and blind obedience? They’re leaders and there’s a huge difference between management and leadership. “Semantics”, you say. Well, when I went to Hotel School and was taught how to be a Hotel Manager I found that I had to become a Leader in order to gain the loyalty and commitment of my staff.

How I Created Loyalty as My Staff Tested Me

When I first arrived to work as a manager in a hotel in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, the staff did the usual hotel staff things to test me. The cashier would mix up the cash register, and see if I could sort out the problem. The night chefs would stay home, and see if I could handle the kitchen at night and prepare the breakfast. I had to prove myself. How does a manager cope with that, as opposed to a leader?

I was called in to a meeting of my management peers and they told me to fire a certain Functions Manager. He was a rebel and no good, they said. Lazy. Obstinate. Get rid of him!

His name was Oral and as I watched him at work I saw his staff of waiters set up the conferences and do all the work perfectly while he sat outside, smoking.

I called Oral into my office and fired him. Then I said, “Oral, I’ve done what everyone here wanted me to do. I fired you. Now, I’m rehiring you on my terms. Here are my terms: You can sit outside and smoke all day. You never have to enter the hotel. As long as the job gets done to my satisfaction, I’m happy. If not, we will talk.   How’s that?”  Oral beamed.

He thanked me profusely. He was happy. He did a great job. I was happy. And one day he saved me from being badly beaten up. Oral, you see, was a natural leader. He understood leadership.  Suffice is to say that after a while I had a loyal following instead of an obedient staff.

A Leader Understands

A leader understands that she is leading personalities with value systems, goals, fears, hopes and dreams. She knows that she can get people to work 24/7/365 when she pushes the right buttons. Never run, raise his voice or panic.

Creating Real Motivation

When I was 17 I was drafted into the army. I saw what leadership was and I saw what psychopaths did. The psychopathic, racist South African army officers got people to do things by force. They achieved very little. The true leaders in the army got a lot more done, without fear, manipulation or force. They got soldiers volunteering for things. When your people are motivated and have a vision and a goal, they will achieve their goals and your goals together. Without pay, if necessary. Financial rewards and incentives are not the most powerful there are.

Questions You Should Ask the People You Intend to Lead:

1. What is your greatest fear and your greatest dream? Why is that your fear? Why is that your dream?
2. If you had a million dollars and lots of time and energy, what would you be doing right now?
3. What feelings do you want to experience, and what feelings do you want to avoid in your life?
4. What’s the best book/movie you ever read/saw?
5. What are you most proud of about yourself? What is you greatest skill? What do you do best?
6. What are you weakest at?
7. If you could have any job, what would it be, and why?
8. What is your greatest worry?
9. How do you feel about…?
10. What would you change about this business/organization?

Ask open ended questions; draw them out. “Tell me more? What do you mean by that, exactly? Why do you say that? And? Yes?”

Characteristic of a Phenomenal Leader

The true leader knows that she has to know a lot about the people she wants to lead.

• Empathize and care.
• Show them how to measure their progress.
• Treat them fairly and be consistent in how you lead.  Regularity, honesty and consistency is important.
• And there must be clear guidelines, consequences and reasons for what happens. Everyone must understand why they are to do what they do, what the outcome is supposed to be, the consequences for failing to do the right thing and the BIG PICTURE. The vision, the overall strategy, should be understood by everyone concerned.
• Most of all, each team member should know that, by reaching the company or organization’s goals, they will reach their personal goals as well. They should have a vested interest in the success of the venture. This is vitally important.

Mortimer Adler was quoted in Time Magazine in 1974 as saying, “In Aristotelian terms, the good leader must have ethos, pathos and logos. The ethos is his moral character, the source of his ability to persuade. The pathos is his ability to touch feelings, to move people emotionally. The logos is his ability to give reasons for an action, to move people intellectually.”

Very few managers know how to lead. It’s never too late to change. Leaders are firm, flexible, value-driven and honest. They have Magnificent Obsessions, driving goals and clear action plans. Their followers feel loved, secure, cared for and lucky. Together, we can do amazing things.

I heard a story on the radio recently about two interesting men. One was the king and was extremely obese. He ate continually and was so fat that he couldn’t even get through a door. He was deposed by the second man, who had a room built around the former king, with normal windows and a door that wasn’t locked. He told the large man that he could leave anytime he wished, but at the same time he supplied him with four huge meals every day. Of course, the fatty couldn’t resist the food, so he never escaped his own prison.

Is Your Captivation Enriching or Depleting You?

In our world today of “Sugar and Spice and Everything Thrice”, self-discipline and frugality are seldom found. We complicate our lives, create prisons of debt and illness and miss out on the finer things of life. My wife Rika, and I were walking along the beach at Indian Arm on a lovely summer day when we saw some kids lying on a huge blanket, playing with their hand-held Game Boy computer games. They could have been talking, swimming, boating, fishing, playing ball or just enjoying nature’s incredible beauty. The Game Boys captivated them.

Set Yourself Free

My prison guard could be television, food, drugs… but it is my own choice to be in jail.

• Simplify, cut back and get back to basics, lean and mean, sober and clean. Anything that you think you NEED, controls you and imprisons you.
• Set yourself free.
• Use your resources to create a happy, healthy and contributing lifestyle.
• Take stock of your choices and project the consequences. Enough small choices lead to great consequences. Enough spider webs can be as strong as steel cables.
• We always have a choice, and it’s never too late to change.

Try This:

Set a goal to get up 20 minutes earlier every day and exercise, read a self development book, pray, meditate, or just take a brisk walk. In a few weeks you will see a difference. Create success habits.

Norman Lear said,

“Life is made up of small pleasures. Happiness is made up of those tiny successes. The big ones come too infrequently. And if you don’t collect all these tiny successes, the big ones don’t really mean anything.”

I talked recently with a fellow who has a staff of eighty-five people that are not his sales team. He wants to increase his sales, so I suggested he consider turning these employees into salespeople. “But that’s not their job!” he protested.

Exactly. And that’s why most business owners overlook their greatest underutilized asset – their non sales employees. I got very excited when I realized that there were 85 people who could help increase his sales with no cost or risk!

The Unrealized Value of Your Employees

Every person on earth wants to feel important, recognized and appreciated. We want to feel that our contribution is important and that our ideas and suggestions are valued. Plus, we want to feel that we get rewarded for any value that we create. I have found that our employees at the coalface often know more about our businesses than we do. Their suggestions are based on real life, real experience and real opinions. They have insights and recommendations which could radically improve our bottom line profits, if we only gave them a reason to share those ideas, listened, and rewarded them accordingly.

Unleash Massive Sales!

Your employees want to feel a part of the business. They want to feel that they have secure jobs and that they can increase their income without moonlighting and arriving at your business half asleep. By listening to their ideas and providing them non-threatening and easy to use, understandable sales tools with a system to measure and reward results, you can unleash massive sales! When we understand that our businesses provide products and services that relieve pain and create value, we can train our employees to perceive “sales” differently. Use this massive, neglected resource – the cost is miniscule and the results are extraordinary – improved productivity and loyalty, decreased employee and customer attrition and increased sales and profits, innovation and motivation.

Give your employees what they want and the sky’s the limit

Zig Ziglar said, “You can get anything out of life, if you’re prepared to give enough other people what they want.” Most employees dread going to work and we can change that. Give your employees what they want: a voice, an ear, an opportunity, security, self esteem, reward, motivation, purpose and recognition, get your ego out of the way, and the sky’s the limit.

How workers ranked what they considered important, starting with the most important:

1. Appreciation for good work,
2. Feeling “in” on things,
3. Help with personal problems,
4. Job security,
5. Good wages,
6. Interesting work,
7. Possibility for promotion,
8. Loyalty of Management to workers,
9. Good working conditions,
10. Tactful discipline.

Apply this knowledge to your management systems and win!

The words of a champion become his deeds and his legacy.  Enjoy the words of someone who believed in himself and made his dreams come true, namely Muhammad Ali:

• “I’ve seen George Foreman shadow boxing and the shadow won.”
• “The fight is won or lost far away from the witnesses, behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road; long before I dance under those lights.”
• “Silence is golden when you can’t think of a good answer.”
• “I’m so fast that, last night, I turned off the light switch in my hotel room and was in bed before the room was dark.”
• “Inside of a ring or out, ain’t nothing wrong with going down. It’s staying down that’s wrong.”
• “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”
• “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”

These are LOSER sayings:

• “I’ll TRY”
• “IF I can”
• “I HOPE so.”
• “More or less”
• “I GUESS”
• “I’ll do my best”
• “It wasn’t my fault – I couldn’t help it”

5 Step Recipe for Success

Winners take responsibility and make their dreams come true. Here is Paul J. Meyer’s recipe for success:

#1 — Crystallize Your Thinking
Determine what specific goals you want to achieve: short range, long range, tangible and intangible. Writing crystallizes thought, and thought motivates action. When your goals are clear and vivid, they act as a magnet that draws you to them.
#2 — Develop Your Plan
Develop a working plan for achieving your goal and a deadline for its attainment.
#3 — Create Sincere Desire
Create within yourself a sincere desire for the things you want in life. A burning desire is unquestionably the greatest motivator of every human action.
#4 — Develop Supreme Confidence
Develop supreme confidence in yourself and your abilities. Confidence helps you deal honestly with your shortcomings and compels you to make needed corrections. Successful people never give mental recognition to the possibility of failure.
#5 — Choose Dogged Determination
Dogged determination is a choice, so choose to follow through on your plan regardless of circumstances, obstacles, criticism, or what other people say, think, or do. It matters little what the past has been except for the lessons we have learned from it. Our prime concern should be the necessary changes we must make to create a happy and successful future. Change brings with it a compelling motivation to create something new, to reach for a shining star, no matter how elusive it may be. In addition to a willingness to change, develop an “I will not be denied” philosophy.

If you do what you love:

• You will be good at it.
• You’ll be able to work for longer periods of time.
• You will be happy.
• You’ll get better results.

If you do what you’re not good at:

• You’ll do a poor job.
• You’ll get tired easily.

Good managers delegate to strength, not to weakness. Smart entrepreneurs do only what they’re good at and subcontract or delegate that which they don’t do well themselves. Adlai Stevenson said,

“It’s hard to lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a horse.”

Likewise with Relationships

If you don’t like someone, your business with that person won’t go well. The relationship will be weak, flawed, and subject to communication blocks, misunderstandings, and stress. Games will be played and excuses made, respect lost and objectives sacrificed in the name of peace. Work ONLY with people whom you like, trust, and respect. Those strong relationships will carry you to your goals faster. Albert Einstein said,

“Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.”

Awareness Requires Introspection

In order to accomplish the above two objectives, doing only what you’re good at and working with people you like, trust, and respect, one has to do some introspection, some self-analysis, some gazing at a mirror and examining of the past.  What didn’t work in the past, and what did? When you objectively review your past performance, you will see the above two success criteria becoming blazingly obvious. Be aware of your strengths and weaknesses, and of whom you’re working with, and adjust your battle plan accordingly.

Time Reveals Ones’ True Nature

Also, realize that people change. They either reveal who they really are over time (the mask slips, and you realize that the jolly old friend is an evil old fiend) or they change their attitude and choices as their true nature starts finding a way out. One can only behave contrary to ones’ real self for a period of time; the act wears thin. Rika says,

“When someone shows you who he really is, believe him.”

When you see that people are not who you thought they were, or that they have changed, remove them from your life as soon as possible, or suffer the consequences. Replace losers with winners. Herbert Swope said,

“I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure: which is: Try to please everybody.”

Your first responsibility is your objective, not making losers feel good.

Where Are You Headed?

With the above in mind, perhaps it’s time to look at what your business will be like in a few months’ time.

1. What do you love doing and do really well? That’s all you should be doing; the rest should be delegated, subcontracted, or removed from the picture.
2. Who do you really enjoy working with, people you like, trust, respect, and can rely on to do exactly what they promise, when they promise to do it, and much more? Who goes the extra mile, and doesn’t need constant motivation, managing, and manipulation? These people should be rewarded and protected from the underperformers. and parasites. High maintenance people become a real pain in the neck and slow your progress.
3. What is the ideal picture with the most benefits and profit, along with the least risk and frustration?

Good leaders constantly reevaluate and adjust their action plans and tactics in order to achieve their objectives. The know themselves, and they’re very realistic about their fellow soldiers. Study Churchill, Montgomery, and Patton, and you will see master strategists at work. They’re not addicted to their tactics, and they are strongly committed to their objectives. As the leader of your business, success is not an option; it’s a responsibility for the sake of yourself and your good people. Churchill told us, “The price of greatness is responsibility.”