The post Exciting Announcement (and it isn’t about chickens) first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post Exciting Announcement (and it isn’t about chickens) appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

The post And to All, A Good Night! first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post And to All, A Good Night! appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

A few weeks ago, I was lamenting that our plans to climb South Sister in July were cancelled. This is the first summer in six years that l’m not training for some adventure. I’ve completed Hood to Coast and Cycle Oregon, climbed Mt. St. Helens and trained for the Camino Frances. But, due to COVID-19, I found myself adventure-free this summer. I’m sure this fact was on my mind when I was scrolling through Facebook and saw that a good friend of mine was competing in a local “virtual” triathlon. Without hesitation, I agreed to do it with her.  Of course, the fact that I hadn’t swum in over 10 years, biked in nearly two years, or run in six months seemed to have escaped my memory. (I do think the adult libation I was enjoying at the time might have been partly responsible.)

The next morning I realized the foolishness of my idea. I did commit to my friend, but there was another reason I didn’t back out. At the recommendation of another friend and colleague, I started reading Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. While this book has amazing application to business and leadership, the chapter about checking your ego and trying something you might fail at really resonated with me. I know intellectually that in order to reach my full potential, I have to go beyond my comfort zone. But applying this truth in my life isn’t something I embrace at the frequency that I should.  

So, I dug out my running shoes, dusted off my bike, and headed down to the lake with a few butterflies in my stomach. 

It felt so great to swim in the open water. The biking was great until the rain started. But we persevered and finished with a wet 3-mile run.

In the end, I was rewarded by meeting some great people, talking shop with another business owner, and pushing my body in a way I hadn’t done in quite some time.

Trying something at which you might fail doesn’t just apply to sports.  It is also necessary to see growth in your business, your career path or your relationships with others.  In a recent engagement with a mid-market company, the CEO realized that a key employee wasn’t performing at the level required in order to ensure successful implementation of the company’s turnaround plan.  His initial response was to ignore the problem.  But, as the Board pointed out, this approach had gotten the company into the current situation.  So, now, he had to make a choice: fire her, redeploy her or invest in her development.  He chose to invest in the employee and brought me in to coach the key employee.  The end result was a more engaged employee, $125,000 in annualized profitability increase and praise from the Board.  

Another client was in the process of assuming control of the company from her father.  The transition plan had been agreed to by all parties, but when it came to implement the plan, her father refused to follow the plan.  Imagine the stress, on both sides. If this wasn’t handled appropriately, the end result could be the degradation of the father/daughter relationship and instability in the company resulting in reduced business valuation.  I coached the daughter on how to address the situation, encouraging her to find the third solution, that elusive solution that we often overlook.  As we talked, she realized that while the transition plan was solid, her tactics needed to be modified.  She changed her stance, softened her approach and her father responded.  The transition was completed, the company was strengthened and the father/daughter relationship was preserved.

If you find that you are stagnating in business or personally, it may be time to push yourself. This means searching for solutions which don’t initially seem apparent, trying ideas that may seem unreachable or being open to feedback from previously unwelcome sources.  If you aren’t sure where to start, let’s connect.  One thing I’ve learned from my years in sports and business is that accountability is the driving force behind reaching one’s full potential.  

The post The Reward for Pushing Beyond Your “Perceived” Limits first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post The Reward for Pushing Beyond Your “Perceived” Limits appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

The post Enjoying the Small Moments first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post Enjoying the Small Moments appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

1. Be crystal clear on what you want to achieve. I was recently reading the book titled “Train Your Brain for Success.” If you tell your brain where you want to go, it will start working on how to get there. But if you aren’t clear, the brain will wait for further clarification. The analogy the book used was this: imagine telling your GPS you want to go to a bank. It will start searching for banks, but will wait for further instructions before it begins developing the route.  It is imperative that you tell your brain exactly what you want to achieve.  As soon as you do, it will get to work on making sure you achieve it.  This applies to individuals and to organizations. If your team isn’t sure about direction, they will stay on the same path until they feel comfortable that a new direction is set.

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   Instill the necessary discipline. I’m not big on having structure. I like the freedom to do what I want to do. But I know without the necessary structure, I won’t get to where I want to be. So I’ve been working on putting the framework together to ensure l’m completing the necessary activities to achieve my goals, without overburdening myself with too much structure. Ask yourself, what structure do I need to put in place to keep me on track? Be honest with yourself. Then build that structure into your weekly schedule and honor that structure.

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3. Don’t confuse activity with accomplishment. I think many of us get caught up in the busy-ness trap. But being busy doesn’t mean we are being productive. Do you know what you need to accomplish on a daily, weekly or monthly basis in order to achieve your goals? Most people don’t schedule time for those important things because they are busy doing the more fun and easy things. I recommend that you look at what you need to do in order to achieve your goals, and then schedule those first. Then fill in your time with the other, less important tasks.   My greatest gains come from the tasks described as “important but not urgent” in Stephen Covey’s book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Those tasks may require more thinking and less doing. But if you spend more time on them, your productivity will skyrocket.

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   Be open to new experiences and ideas. For years, I have heard about the value of meditation, but I kept pushing it off as a new age movement. As I found it harder and harder to focus, I started searching for ways to reduce the clutter in my brain. Turns out, meditation is a powerful technique that people have been using for thousands of years. Teaching my brain to be more present helped reduce stress, increased focus and provided more calm. After incorporating this into my life and enjoying the benefits, I realized there have been other areas in which I have been close-minded. So one of my goals for the past year was to try something new every month. This goal has helped me expand my mind and be open to new experiences.

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   Be aware of the limitations you place on yourself. Have you listened to the words you say to yourself? Negative thoughts impact what we believe we can achieve and what we are willing to attempt. If you want to reach your full potential, be mindful of this. Henry Ford said it best when he said, “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t—you’re right.”

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   Be authentic. When I hear the word authentic, I think of Brene Brown, but l‘ve also heard many other people talk about the importance of being authentic. This is something I’ve been working on as it isn’t something that comes naturally to me.  However, I do know that when I share my authentic self, I have the opportunity to connect more deeply with individuals around me, and I am continually reminded of just how precious those connections can be.

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   Take care of yourself. Let’s face it, we aren’t getting any younger, and we only get one body for this journey. Eat well, drink lots of water, exercise and sleep. You can’t perform at the level you desire if your body isn’t healthy. And remember, taking time to care for yourself isn’t selfish, it is essential if you want to love and support those around you.

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   Look beyond yourself. It is possible #7 and #8 are at odds but I don’t think so. If you care for yourself, then you’ll have the energy to look beyond yourself. And while I find myself to be very interesting (I mean, who doesn’t), I find helping and caring for others much more rewarding. Put yourself in another person’s shoes and try to see a situation from their perspective.  Then act in a way that acknowledges that you see them and value them: the personal reward will be priceless.

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   Never stop learning. My father turned 80 years old last year. He continues to expand his mind through reading, learning foreign languages and keeping up on the latest technology in his field. Together with my mother, he started a foundation that serves the underprivileged in Haiti; he also volunteers his time at a local free clinic and spends time with his family to help them reach their full potential.  He is a great role model for those of us who want to continue to grow and expand our mind.  What areas do you want to gain knowledge in? Those areas may not be related to your field of study, but they can help enrich your life.

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    Enjoy the journey. Not every day is going to be fun. There will be times, tasks and experiences that you won’t automatically enjoy. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find a way to enjoy them. In a book called The Highest Goal, author Michael Ray introduces “Live-Withs.” The idea is to find ways to make the most of things that you don’t enjoy. If you have a traffic-filled commute, how could you learn to enjoy the commute? For me, it would be to listen to a great podcast (Revisionist History) or practice my Spanish. But the idea is to find ways to bring enjoyment into areas that are lacking.  So, I’ll challenge you by thinking about how you can change your vantage point in order to “enhance the ride.”

Do you feel you have areas that need some strengthening in order to maximize your 2020 impact? Do you or your team need help becoming crystal clear on what you want to achieve in 2020? If so, give me a call or send me an email. In a short 90-minute meeting, we can outline your goals and identify the critical success factors to help you start this decade with a clear direction and a sense of purpose.

The post 10 Mind Altering Tips to Maximize Your Impact in 2020 first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post 10 Mind Altering Tips to Maximize Your Impact in 2020 appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

But, again, I’ve been busy with summer so it took me a few days to research how to handle aphids (soap and water), then a few days to order the pure Castile soap and a more than a few days to actually go up and spray the plant.  Well, the culmination of all of those days resulted in my plant being eaten alive.  These little tiny aphids killed my plant and they started on to my adjacent plants too. Fortunately, I sprayed all the remaining Brussel Sprout plants and as of a week later, they seemed to have survived.

I started thinking about how the same thing can happen to a business.  An unhappy employee left to fester can impact the employees around him and destroy the culture.  If you sense there is a problem with an employee, talk to the employee, understand the issue and take steps to address it.  Because if you don’t, the health of your employee, the surrounding employees and the company are at risk of being destroyed.  Whether you are growing a garden or cultivating your business, learning how to manage pests is a necessary skill for ongoing success.

The post Little Pests Grow into Big Problems first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post Little Pests Grow into Big Problems appeared first on Key Process Innovations.

But, as I finished my coffee, I started to feel sad.  Sad because the cup was almost empty, and I had no way to recreate this cup of coffee. As you non-coffee drinkers might not know, a perfect cup of coffee is a combination of optimally roasted coffee beans, the correct ratio of beans to water and water at the ideal brewing temperature.

I roasted these beans a few days earlier, and I was fairly certain that the beans were from Timor (I really should mark my containers better).
Since I was traveling this week, I didn’t have my scale, so I wasn’t sure exactly how much coffee I had put into my pour-over and I was using an electric kettle and I wasn’t sure what the temperature of the water was (but I know it was below boiling).  The only thing I knew for sure was the beans were roasted until just past second crack, which is my standard process when I roast my beans.

Without these vital data points, I am forced to work hard to try to recreate this perfect cup of coffee. And I still haven’t been able to do it.

As I considered my predicament this morning while enjoying my now sub-par cup of coffee, I started thinking about my clients and how often they find themselves in this situation.  Business was humming right along and then suddenly they find themselves in a situation where productivity is low, quality is lagging, or profitability is down.

That is usually the time when my clients reach out to me to get the business back on track, whether that means enhancing productivity, developing strategic plans or coaching the management team.

But, what if we took a more proactive approach and characterized the company during periods of prosperity? By identifying those key performance indicators (KPIs) that are contributing to the success of your organization and tracking those KPIs, action could be taken when shifts are seen. This could positively impact profitability, employee engagement and productivity – it would be like everyone in your organization just enjoyed the perfect cup of coffee – energized, excited and ready to take on the challenges of day.

Ready to enhance profitability in your business? Email Julie today to get it buzzing tomorrow.

The post The Relationship between Profitability and Making the Perfect Cup of Coffee first appeared on Key Process Innovations.

The post The Relationship between Profitability and Making the Perfect Cup of Coffee appeared first on Key Process Innovations.