Tag Archives: staying focused

Stirring Your Leadership With Half & Half

By Peter Jeff
The Leadership Mints Guy
Here’s an idea to inspire more collaboration. Reading time: 4:14

This was a tough nut to crack,” the leader declared in launching her staff meeting to celebrate the successful product launch on time and under budget.

“In fact, this was such a tough nut, I thought we should have some fun this afternoon cracking a few nuts to celebrate your achievement.”

Her staff seemed perplexed if not confused.

The team leader then passed out a bowl of unshelled nuts to each of her seven team members. Then she distributed a nutcracker –the metal vice-like hand tool—to each staff member.

The staff looked quizzically to each other. They wondered if their team leader had cracked under all the pressure.

But then the leader led by example. She began cracking the whole nuts. There were almonds, brazil nuts, hazlenuts, pecans and walnuts. And with all that nut-cracking, the staff meeting room erupted into a cacophony of snaps, crackles and pops. Continue reading

Roads Scholars: Playing Smarter On Their Turf

By Peter Jeff
The Leadership Mints Guy

Here’s an idea to help you stay focused and heighten your performance. Reading time: 2:29.

You just lost your home court advantage. Your client now wants to meet on their turf. And you’re frustrated. Now you won’t have as liberal access to subject-matter experts and top management to help you hold your client’s hand.

Well hold on Sales Sensation! Your loss of venue could be your gain in revenue. You could make the sale even more effectively playing an “away” game.

Chances are you’ll focus even harder on the client’s needs in much the same way a magnifying glass can narrow sunlight and broaden its capability to start a fire. That added focus could help you win that sale more productively and profitably in an “away” game.

At least that’s how pro basketball super star scoring sensation Michael Jordan assessed the added focus required to win an “away” game. And he should know.

Jordan’s Chicago Bulls became the first team in National Basketball Association to win the first two games -away -en route winning their third straight NBA Finals Championship against the Phoenix Suns in 1993.

“On the road our focus is better because the odds are not in our favor,” said Jordan , whose Chicago Bulls won a total of three games on the road in Phoenix including the Championship Final. “We focus better whenever we have to face bad odds (on the road).”

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