Brutal Facts; Fast or Right?; Collins’ 7 Questions; Milosi Core Values

"...insights for scaleups"

HEADLINES:

Confront the Brutal Facts -- take this weekend (Thanksgiving holiday in US) to think about the brutal facts facing your firm/position and what measurable thing you need to accomplish the last month of 2016 and/or first quarter of 2017. End the year strong; start the year strong. For Gazelles, we've been focused (themed) on building out our underlying technological platform in 2016 and it is time to complete 3 key projects by Dec 31.

Faith and Facts -- notes Jim Collins, author of Good to Great:

Productive change begins when you confront the brutal facts. Every good-to-great company embraced what we came to call "The Stockdale Paradox": you must maintain unwavering faith that you can and will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties, and at the same time, have the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.

Go to this Concepts link on Jim Collins' website, scroll down, and click on the "Confronting the Brutal Facts" link. There is a 41 second video by Jim which is worth watching (and showing at your next planning session).

Getting to the Heart of the Matter -- continuing with a Collins theme, this Tennessee-based "elite landscape company" Milosi took six months to get their core values right and then uses them to drive selection, training, and day-to-day decisions - not just post them on a wall! Notes landscaper Chris Williams:

Working with and saying the Core Values daily, changed me on the inside. For me, Milosi's Core Values started showing up everywhere - in my parenting, in my spiritual life. The more I said them, the more I thought about them. Suddenly, it wasn't just Milosi's Core Values, they were MY Core Values. They were ingrained in me.

Please take 1 minute to scan down through this article on how Milosi keeps their core values front and center in all they do. Are you doing this?

Fast or Right -- do you want it done fast or right? According to this HBR article, exceptional leaders require both. Yet to accomplish this, 7 factors (out of 49 measured) must exist:

1.     Provide clear strategic perspective

2.     Set stretch goals and maintain high standards

3.     Communicate powerfully

4.     Have the courage to change

5.     Consider external perspectives

6.     Inspire and motivate others

7.     Innovate

Please take 2 minutes to read the details for each - most of which align with the Rockefeller Habits. Faith and facts - key to the list above.

Jim Collins 7 Questions (save $150k) -- and for those with a long weekend, take 47 minutes to watch/listen to Jim's talk at the Global Leadership Summit -- or show at your next monthly management meeting or brown bag luncheon. It's divided into 7 short sections you can watch individually based on one of the 7 questions Jim addresses in the talk. It would cost $150k to book Jim to give this talk to your company which you can access for free. I've heard variations of this talk several times and it never gets old.

COACHING:

Have you ever wondered if working with a coach might accelerate your company's growth, exponentially? Do you have what it takes to move the dial from good to great? Click here to watch Gazelles International President Keith Cupp describes the four most important attributes of successful clients. Contact us at [email protected] for more information.

And if you're interested in becoming a world-class certified Gazelles International coach, please go to gicoaches.com/becomeacoach for more information. If you determine that we're a fit and wish to join our premier organization, we invite you to contact our Dir. of Coach Engagement at [email protected] or 877.217.2253 ext.700.

TECHNOLOGY:

Align Software puts everyone on the Same Page - Literally! See, in real time every person in your organization and how they are progressing on their priorities - alongside how they Align to the Company Priorities! Scale Up your Rockefeller Habits implementation with www.alignwithgazelles.com - on your computer and on your phone.

Better Book Club -- What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.