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The “I bought a boat” Theory of Taking Action One Step at a Time
I once heard a terrific story that illustrates the power of taking action one step at a time. It came from a general manager of a yacht sales dealer. His typical customer would purchase new yachts and other boats for $1 million dollars or more.
He tells the story this way:
One morning, several of the sales people were standing around, and they were having some fun razzing the newest sales person, a young woman who didn’t really fit the part of a wizened “boater” like most of them did. Into the showroom walked a couple who also didn’t really fit the part – they weren’t dressed very nicely, and they appeared to be young and probably not quite ready for a $1 million dollar investment in a new yacht. So, they all “offered” to have the newest sales person talk with the couple – since they didn’t think it would amount to anything.
After quite a while, it became obvious that the couple was serious, and that they planned to purchase a yacht that day. However, the husband confessed that they hadn’t come prepared to purchase and didn’t have a credit card or much cash to make a down payment. The new sales person, undaunted, asked them what they did have? “We only have $100.” So, the sales person took the cash, and shook their hands. The couple left the showroom with a huge smile on their faces.
When the new sales person came back to the group of sales people, she was the laughingstock of the group. The group exclaimed, “You took a $100 deposit on a $1 million dollar boat? That’s ridiculous!” But the general manager knew better. He celebrated the sale with the new sales person and responded back to the sales team with this (now famous) conclusion:
“You may think that they didn’t actually buy anything, and you are right that $100 isn’t much of a deposit on a $1 million new yacht. BUT, what do you think is the first thing that couple did when they left the dealership? When they saw people they knew? They said, “We bought a boat today.” Now they didn’t really buy a boat – they only put down a $100 deposit on that boat. But once they told everybody they knew about that new yacht, do you really think they weren’t going to follow through on the rest of the sale?”
Since I first heard that story, I have reflected on the lessons from it many times. Let’s see if you agree that these are the lessons learned from the “bought a boat” theory.
- Any action taken towards a goal will get you a step closer to actually achieving the goal itself
- Just START on your way to the goal – step by step, you’ll get there
- Once you say your goal out loud to those around you, you are much more likely to follow through
- Stating your goal as if you are already there, as in, “we bought a boat today” helps you to take action and keep moving toward your goal. (Note: When was the last time you said your goal out loud as a way to keep yourself motivated?)
- And, not everyone looks like they can purchase a $1 million dollar yacht, but looks can be deceiving!
What “boat” are you trying to buy? What goals are eluding you this year? Make the commitment today to take a step – “buy that boat” – and then take another step tomorrow. Step by step, you WILL get there.
A Winning Team
As children and teenagers most of us have played on a sports team. Can you remember what it felt like to be part of a winning team or a losing team? Remember the elation you felt when your team won a big game and the despair of losing the big game or championship? It is something special to experience being part of something bigger then yourself.
In my experience the concept of a “team based culture” is something a lot of entrepreneurs, business owners and executives want but find very difficult to achieve. The difficulty begins with the definition. Plato said that wisdom begins with the definition of terms. So what does Webster’s Dictionary have to say about teams: “a number of persons associated together in work or activity”. Webster’s goes on to describe teamwork as: “work done by several associates with each doing a part but all subordinating personal prominence to the efficiency of the whole”. This is a good start but does not give us enough practical detail and guidance in the business world. Steven Yelen a New York based Business Coach with over 20 years experience in supporting organizations and teams give us some guidance with his ideas on fundamental principles and behaviors that work.
Fundamental Principles of a Successful Team:
-Common Purpose
-Clear and mutually agreed to working approach
-Appropriate balance of task focus and relationship focus
-Agreement on Measurements and Aligned Rewards
Behaviors that support Successful Teams:
-Push for high quality communications
-Help create a climate of trust
-Play your position and bring talent to the team
-Help drive discipline into the team
-Be prepared to sacrifice for the team-be a good sport
-Help new members make the entry
-Strengthen the leader through good followership
-Play down yourself and build up others
Why Teams fail to deliver results?
The biggest root cause of team failures in business can often traced to the lack of establishment of clear purpose, goals, measurements and rewards. Without these foundation pillars in place trust is often the first casualty followed by a lack of energy and sense of helplessness. Finally, if the leadership is not walking the talk then you can expect cynicism to spread quickly and undermine any opportunity for success.
Final Thought:
There are many examples of organizations that have achieved excellence and delivered exceptional results by creating a team based culture. Some examples include GE, Motorola, McKinsey and Pall Corporation. Do your research and look at the top players in your industry and you will often find a team based approach separating the leaders from the followers.
A great resource for helping you understand and build high performance teams can be found in the book “The Wisdom of Teams” by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith.
The Formula For Success
STRIVING. PERFORMING. ACHIEVING. Those three words say a lot. When you STRIVE, you work hard and exert yourself, often against the tide of conventional opinion, competition, and your own complacency, doubts and fears. When you PERFORM, you are using your skills and abilities to do something…to execute and to get results. Ultimately, when you ACHIEVE, you are living a purposeful life. You reach a level of performance that is indicative of true success: you’re achieving your goals and dreams!
We understand that success is a journey and a way of living purposefully, not a destination. The foundation of our business coaching work is represented by The Formula for Success:
A ( S + K ) + G = PBC IR (O, P)
Attitudes plus Skills & Knowledge directed by Goals delivers Positive Behavior Change which yields Improved Results, both Organizationally and Personally.
Let’s look at each component of the Formula, working from right to left…
IR
The first thing we look for is how our clients define success. We start out by asking what improved results (IR) our clients want to achieve in their organization or in their personal lives, and how that will be tracked and measured. The importance of a thoughtful definition of success is that it provides a target toward which everyone can aim. Everything else we do is specifically geared around achieving those results.
PBC
Wouldn’t you agree that if that target is different than where you are today, then you must do something (behave) differently to get there? PBC represents positive behavior change. A definition of insanity is doing the things you’ve always done, but expecting different outcomes.
G
G represents goals. Goals provide focus, otherwise there is no direction. Doesn’t it make sense that if people had goals on which to focus their energy, it would be easier to change their behavior in a way that can be sustained? Goal setting is the tool that generates the activity necessary to turn ideas into strategy, strategy into plans, and plans into reality.
S+K
S+K represent the necessary skills (the how to do something) and knowledge (the where and when to do something). Our process focuses on development of behavioral management skills, meaningful communications, influencing or selling skills, problem solving, decision making, organizing time, disciplining, developing subordinates, delegating authority, motivating others, appraising performance, etc. Everyone needs to be very competent in these areas, but especially in the workplace, where more than 50% of any manager’s job involves using these skills.
A
The A stands for attitude (the want to). Our coaching approach is based on a result-oriented philosophy that first involves developing a goal-oriented attitude among people. Attitude is more of a multiplier of skills and knowledge that will directly influence the goals they set and achieve. People will directly determine in many cases whether they turn a problem into an opportunity, or succumb to it; whether they behave in ways that benefit the entire organization or maintain fiefdoms; whether they expand the client base and services provided or allow atrophy to set in; and whether they diligently look for continuous improvement, or remain satisfied with the status quo.
The results we get depend upon our behavior and attitudes toward the people or events involved, and toward ourselves. If attitudes are basically negative, goals will be set low, and it will be difficult to progress. Growth and promotion will be all but impossible until a positive mindset is developed.
There are many ways and opportunities for individuals and organizations to better focus on results, attitudes and behaviors, skills and knowledge, goal setting and achievement. If you are interested in taking an important first step, let’s chat.
How Many Partners Do You Have?
“I want to take my business to the next level. We need to grow by 40% this year and 150% over the next 3 years. But…”
I heard this from a business owner just last week. His “but” was his concern that his staff wasn’t prepared to get it done. They didn’t follow procedures, spent time on unimportant tasks, didn’t think out of the box and looked to him for all of the important answers. With those issues, taking his business to the next level will be difficult if not impossible.
What he needs are some partners. When I say “partners”, I don’t mean legal partners with a financial investment in the business. I mean people who have an emotional investment in the business. He needs to find ways to make people feel like owners even though they’re not. As the true owner of the business, he may never have a team that’s a passionate as him about growing the business. However, there are things he can do to dramatically increase his team’s level of ownership and passion. By doing this, he can create a team that feels ownership, even if they’re not true owners.
Here are some ways to make that happen:
1. Conduct Joint Planning & Goal Setting – Typically, goals are set by leaders and passed down to the “rank and file”. Since the team had no hand in setting these goals, there’s never total buy-in. What’s worse, when goals aren’t met, the team blames unrealistic goals, rather than their own performance. Leaders should give their team enough information (company goals, historical performance, strategic objectives, etc.) to set their own goals. Of course, leaders should still be responsible for approving all goals; challenging those goals that are either too aggressive or not aggressive enough.
2. Help Employees Understand the WIIFM – Most leaders try to motivate by rallying the troops around what’s important to the company. That’s important…but there’s something much more important. People are more motivated by What’s In It For Me (WIIFM). It’s not that they’re selfish, it’s just human nature. Work with your team members to understand how they’re personally impacted by the business goals that have been set. Notice I didn’t recommend you tell them how they’re impacted. Everyone is different. You (and/or your leadership team) need to work with each team member to find their own unique “why”.
3. Don’t Have All The Answers – Don’t let your ego get the best of you. Stop dictating decisions to your team and ask your team for advice. This doesn’t mean “management by consensus”. Ultimately, as a leader, you need to make the final decision, but it’s critical to make your team part of the process. Even if you think you know the answer, ask your team what they think first, before dictating a decision.
4. Encourage Conflict – Does your team get along great? Do you always seem to agree with each other? Do you have trouble remembering your last major team conflict? This may seem strange, but if you answered yes to these questions…you’ve got problems. A team needs conflict to evolve. Think of it as Darwin’s theory of evolution for business. If good ideas don’t crush bad ideas, and great ideas don’t crush good ideas, a business (and its employees) will grow stagnant and die.
Implementing these ideas will certainly allow business owners to do a great deal more than just increase revenues. Having additional “partners” in a business will also increase productivity, improve morale, enhance customer loyalty, increase margins and maybe most important of all, reduce stress.
How are you cultivating partners in your business?
How Do My Goals Contribute To The Strategy?
Strategy and goals should influence everyone’s behavior in the organization!
The work at the top of the organization in creating strategy and goals is intended to influence behavior that drives results. Unfortunately, it’s not unusual for the primary impact of the work to remain at the senior management level. It’s kind of like having a car with an engine and no wheels. Despite the importance of driving the strategy and goals deeper into the organization, the messages as to how the strategy relates to execution typically become unclear and confusing the further down they go.
Passing goals down without creating meaning causes frustration…
The responsibility for creating clarity around what the strategy means at the business unit, team and individual levels, and for ensuring that the strategy is executed is a shared management responsibility.
There are many dynamics within fast paced changing organizations that contribute to the lack of alignment. However, the biggest obstacle appears to be “a lack of understanding.” Why is this? Repeating the company strategy is easy enough, but without translating strategy into relatable actions with those who are expected to execute at every level of the organization, has limited impact. When managers involve people and teams they lead in these discussions, SMART goals can be written that connect everyone’s contributions to the strategy. It also improves sustained commitment through the ability to measure ongoing results.
Planning backwards focuses on results…
Managers can facilitate the process by asking three questions:
- How does the strategy affect our unit?
- What must we accomplish?
- How will we accomplish it?
Through this process a shared language and framework for how to think and talk about alignment occurs among the team/department enabling them to match their behavior to a set of commonly understood goals and actions. To create focus on the truly critical goals to your team and the company, apply the following questions as a litmus test to each of the existing goals:
- What is its economic impact? – How will this goal contribute to company performance?
- Is it aligned with the company’s strategy?
- How will it satisfy stakeholders?
- What is my level of passion, talent, and energy for it?
- Do we have the resources?
If people in the organization don’t understand how the company is supposed to be different and what opportunities they are to pursue, how can they make the tough choices that they have to make every day? (Porter, 1980)
