Posts Tagged ‘good to great’

Do “Just A Bit More”

Thursday, September 23rd, 2010

There is a terrific short book from Sam Parker titled, 212: The Extra Degree (click here to see the inspirational movie). In it, he says, “At 211 degrees, water is hot. At 212 degrees, it boils. And with boiling water comes steam. And steam can power a locomotive. One extra degree makes all the difference… And the one extra degree of effort in business and life, separates the good from the great.”

Ken Blanchard of Raving Fans fame calls it +1; chef Emeril Lagasse calls it BAM! The point is they realize that achieving greatness in life is by playing to what you are good at and whenever possible, doing just a bit more – kicking it up – doing the stand out – committing to greatness.

In business, studies show that customers are more loyal when employees get things right and, whenever possible, do the extras – they do just a bit more.

Relationships soar when both sides do their best to add just a bit more to relationship, showing the other person how valuable and cared for he/she is.

At work, we improve our performance, achievement and impact when we do what is expected, then a just a bit more.

So, in what environments can you do just a bit more – how can you be a little more loving, forgiving, encouraging, supportive, disciplined, personal, caring, strategic, or innovative? How can you be a little more available, responsive, thinking, committed, kind, interested and flexible? You choose.

What you get when you do just a bit more?

o A look of love and appreciation from a spouse or partner.
o Applause from a colleague or friend.
o Greater achievement, performance and impact.
o A deeper relationship, purpose or significance.

I am motivated to always do “just a bit more” when I see the impact my writing and speaking can have on the lives of others. For you, it may be in how you make others feel, how you challenge your personal performance, or in visualizing the impact you intend to make in the world. The motivation is personal.
So, look at your life. Align yourself to things that play to your talents and passions – this helps you be good. Then, whenever possible, do just a bit more. This helps you move from good to great. And our world could definitely use more of us doing “just a bit more…”

Please pass this on to someone who will benefit from it, and watch for my new book, due out in 2 week – The Greatness Zone – Know Yourself, Find Your Fit, Transform the World. It is a tool to help you discover and live in your greatness zone. Sign up for all the events at www.TheGreatnessZone.com.

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Posted in For Employees, For Individuals, For Managers | No Comments »

Make the Good, Great

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

Okay, I am an avid Starbucks coffee lover so I thought I would use Starbucks to make a point.

At the core of the “Starbucks experience” is a good cup of coffee. To make it great, you can add an extra shot, a sweetener, milk, cream, soy, caramel, chocolate, spice, whipped cream or a host of other things. Good coffee is still at the core – the other things move the experience to great by customizing and personalizing. We want things our way; we want things that match our tastes and preferences.

Now to the workplace. At the core is a good employee well suited to his or her job. But to help move the good employee to a great employee, you must customize and personalize the job.

Here’s why. What activates our best (good to great) performance is the emotional connection we have to what we do; when our passions are activated, we perform better (see research presented in Human Sigma by Dr. John Fleming). And each of us have a unique combination of things that fire us up – that activate our passions.

Great management in today’s intellectual workplace must first hire the core (great) employee (the great cup of coffee). Then, to make the experience exceptional (because this activates performance), the manager must know the employee well enough to know how to customize and personalize the job around the employee’s talents, values, interests and passions. This is what inspires the best performance.

Some examples:
o A salesman who loves to teach could create new product education for employees and customers.
o A customer service employee who is great at connecting to others may be interested in creating employee spirit events for the company.
o A company employee may be very socially aware and want to engage the team or department in Habitat for Humanity, work in a soup kitchen or in an animal shelter.

Start with good employees and move them to great by customizing and personalizing their jobs. Activate their passion for performance.

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Posted in For Managers | No Comments »