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by Rick Baker
On Nov 24, 2010
Sales Tweet #93 Apes and monkeys solve problems for the fun of it. If they enjoy solving problems then so can we.
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
Of course, I can not prove this from first-hand experience…although; I have always been very fond of monkeys. The point: problem solving is a key to small things and things as big as civilization. We might as well approach it as enthusiastically as the other primates. Let’s not forget the tough time Charlton Heston had to go through in those Planet of the Apes movies. And relax - we human beings have a leg up on the lower primates. We have P=2S+O!
by Rick Baker
On Nov 15, 2010
Sales Tweet #86 Free up some time by having a pre-set process for dealing with problems. See P=2S+O www.activestor.ca
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
Another piece of free up some time advice…
Many people waste a huge amount of time worrying about and even agonizing over problems.
Business life is laced with problems…some small, some not-so-small.
So, it makes sense to have a ready-to-use system for addressing problems.
This provides many benefits…but, here, we will only mention 3:
• It ensures time is not wasted thinking about how to go about addressing the problem
• It forces a solution orientation…i.e., positivity trumps worry
• It builds confidence
That’s why we created P=2S+O©
by Rick Baker
On Oct 21, 2010
The first two, equally-important, Rules of Procrastination For Success are:
- You must minimize, with a view to totally eliminating, the annoyance factor
- for others and
- for yourself
- You must set aside the common wisdom of the time-management gurus and give yourself a fair 60-day trial period [including the time you feel you need to cover your procrastination].
Why these Rules of Procrastination For Success?
To Procrastinate For Success
- You must not over-promise and under-deliver...that's poor form...that annoys other people and, because you have pride in your performance, it causes you to annoy yourself with anxiety or worry.
- You can not stress yourself because that reduces your ability to be effective...you are a procrastinator or else you wouldn't be reading this. So, procrastination aligns with the natural state of your character and your talents. Don't fight procrastination. Make the most of it.
How does one go about Procrastinating For Success?
Action Steps to Procrastinate For Success
- First, spend some time every day telling yourself you Procrastinate For Success. Make that a daily affirmation...write it on a mirror, repeat it at least twice a day, say it, sing it with emotion, scream it from an open window - I procrastinate for success, I procrastinate for success, I procrastinate for success…
- Next, tell other people you procrastinate for success....tell your boss, tell your co-workers, tell your Clients...and explain to them how your acceptance of this fact will benefit one and all.
- Once you have completed those first 2 set-up-for-action steps Take Action. Take Action as follows:
- First, immediately, drop every thing you are doing and finalize your To Do List:
- Ensure your To Do List is complete
- Force-rank your Most-Important work items: as you do the force-ranking consider the urgency of the work, consider the time required for each item, and set the limit for your total available time at 8 hours/week. This step creates your work plan.
- Next, immediately following the setting of your work plan – Do Absolutely No Work…do nothing. This is a critical step. This is the procrastination step.
- Then, when you hit the point where you must do the work under your procrastination plan, do that work at lightning speed, with laser-like focus, and with genius-like concentration.
Benefits of Procrastinating For Success
- It builds trust. And, trust is right up there with time - a truly precious commodity. Trust begins to build immediately because you will no longer feel the need to tell fibs about getting stuff done under unrealistic time lines. Since you will be comfortable talking with others about your procrastination, your over-promising will stop, your on-time delivery will increase, and trust will build all around you.
- You will be aligned with rather than fight against (Pareto's) 80/20 Rule. Knowing and accepting 80% of your production must happen in 20% of your time, you will stop wasting the remaining 80% of your time thinking about, worrying about, and fighting the natural laws of the human condition, i.e., you will not struggle with procrastination. You will be a comfortable procrastinator and you will make the most of it.
- You will free up a huge amount of time. Embracing (Pareto’s) 80/20 Rule you will free up 32 hours of prime time per week. And, this freed-up time will be devoid of the problems linked to having to be productive.
- You will never complain about being too busy to do this or to do that because:
- 80% of the time you will not be busy at all and everyone will know it so you will be very reluctant to claim otherwise
- the other 20% of the time you will be far too busy to complain and everyone will know it so they will not lay trivial requests on you
On top of this, you will reduce your overall stress and, all else being equal, that will prolong your life so you will have even more time to Procrastinate For Success.
by Rick Baker
On Sep 23, 2010
Recently, at a sales-training session, one fellow said people should spend more time thinking before they act. Another fellow said he was too busy and did not have any extra time.
I bet most of us have been in these sorts of conversations.
Most of us are well aware of the stresses of fire-fighting throughout the work day. Sometimes it seems we fight fires all day, everyday. And, we interact with people who are also fighting fires….we see them fixing drive-thru errors, replacing damaged goods, fixing poor paint jobs, and repairing blown tires…
Most of us also understand we could do better if we spent more time thinking before speaking and taking action. If we could measure twice then we could cut once. And, we could keep our feet out of our mouths. We could get it right the first time. We could have fewer problems. We know we could be more efficient, make fewer errors, speak more clearly, and reduce our stress levels…
We could define the time we spend on Problems as Ptime.
Ptime takes up a big part of our lives.
Ptime will continue to be a big part of our lives.
So, it makes sense to step back every once in a while and decide how we want to use our Ptime.
We can use our Ptime2 ways:
- We can use our Ptime to fight fires. We can use our Ptime to work on Problems that to some degree catch us by surprise when they ignite around us.
- We can use our Ptime to think about Problems that may visit us some day and determine solutions to those Problems well in advance.
Most of us must accept we can not totally remove #1. All of us must fight Problem fires.
When it comes to #2, we have a choice. We can choose the amount of time we spend thinking about Problems before they visit us. We can consider different ways of solving those problems. And, we can be prepared to act quickly and effectively if/when those Problems visit us.
And, that’s about Ptime well spent.
Footnotes
- We have a philosophy called P=2S+O …for every Problem we should find at least 2 Solutions and we will, from time to time, find Opportunities linked to Problems.
- As we use our Ptime wisely we should keep our minds open for Opportunities.
by Rick Baker
On Sep 14, 2010
According to experts most people suffer from Knowledge Overconfidence.
That is, most people think they are more knowledgeable than they really are.
As individuals we think we are smarter than we really are.
As members of groups we think we are smarter than we really are.
Put another way – in general, when it comes to knowledge most people have an inflated self-image.
One often-cited example of proof goes like this:
- Experts [psychologists etc.] pick a random group of people
- A problem is presented to the group of people and they are asked to come up with solutions
- The people are split into groups and the groups brainstorm to come up with as many viable solutions as possible
- The solutions from all the groups are compiled
- All the people get to see all the solutions and they select the best solutions
- Then the group of people are asked to assess how well it did creating viable solutions to the problem…for example, rating its solutions on a scale of 1-to-10
- Typically, the group of people scores its solutions high, say 8-out-of-10
In a separate process people who are considered to be experts in the problem area are asked to create solutions to the same problem.
Then the experts’ solutions are compared against the solutions created by the random group.
And, it is confirmed the experts’ solutions are much better than the solutions created by the random group. The experts have a broader range of solutions and the experts have better quality solutions.
These sorts of experiments are interpreted as proof people have knowledge overconfidence.
I don’t believe everything I read. However, when things I read catch my attention as this knowledge overconfidence concept did I find myself thinking…
So, I have been thinking about knowledge overconfidence.
How might knowledge overconfidence show up in day-to-day life?
To the extent people suffer from knowledge overconfidence, they probably tend to:
- Be intolerant toward other people’s ideas
- Listen poorly
- Stop seeking solutions too early
- Bulldoze over other people
- Have a win-lose attitude in competitive situations
- Under-estimate the value of expert advice
Now, I don’t think I suffer from any of these things. On the other hand, isn’t that exactly what we would expect a person with knowledge overconfidence to believe?
by Rick Baker
On Sep 8, 2010
‘Obvious Adams’ is a curious little book, roughly 6,000 words placed on 50 pages. The book, first published by Robert R. Updegraff in 1916, can be read in a lunch hour…or quick readers can finish it in a coffee break.
It is the story of a successful business fellow – Obvious Adams – who is able to see through the fog of the details around problems and find excellent solutions in the obvious. Obvious Adams sees the obvious while others do not.
The little book is a great introduction to marketing and problem solving.
I will write more about Obvious Adams, Seeking Simple, and Making It Stick in the near future.
Today, I am introducing more of Updegraff’s thinking…
In 1953, almost 40 years after he first published ‘Obvious Adams’, Updegraff added a section describing the “Five Tests of Obviousness”.
Updegraff’s Five Tests of Obviousness
Test One: The problem when solved will be simple. The obvious is nearly always simple--so simple that sometimes a whole generation of men and women have looked at it without even seeing it.
Test Two: Does it check with human nature? If you feel comfortable in explaining your idea or plan to your mother, wife, relative, neighbours, your barber and anyone else you know, it's obvious. If you don't feel comfortable, it probably is not obvious.
Test Three: Put it on paper. Write out your idea, plan or project in words of one or two syllables, as though you were explaining it to a child. If you can't do this in two or three short paragraphs and the explanation becomes long, involved or ingenious--then very likely it is not obvious.
Test Four: Does it explode in people's minds? If, when you have presented your plan, project or program, do people say, "Now why didn't we think of that before?" You can feel encouraged. Obvious ideas are very apt to produce this "explosive" mental reaction.
Test Five: Is the time ripe? Many ideas and plans are obvious in themselves, but just as obviously "out of time." Checking time lines is often just as important as checking the idea or plan itself.
PS: I am fortunate to own an original printing of Obvious Adams, complete with a touching hand-written father-to-son note that reads”
John
A tip here, boy, towards Success.
Dad
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