The former CEO of Best Buy, Hubert Joly, made a recent comment that everyone in business should heed:
“Status quo is not an option.”
As reported by Fortune, Joly said the pandemic presented all businesses with, “a health crisis, an economic crisis, a societal crisis, a racial crisis, an environmental crisis.” This means that none of us – from those selling electronics from big box stores to one-person entrepreneurial start-ups – can justify “we’ve always done it that way” anymore.
My friend, Joe Calloway, has what I think is the all-time best definition of “success.” It means, he says: “You know what used to work.”
You may have read in one of my previous books that I question an entire generation of management training and thinking. Right now, you can graduate from a prestigious institution with a Masters in Business Administration– yet not have completed a single course on customers (for example, how to deliver a customer experience, the value of customer retention, steps to leading higher levels of customer service, etc.) – much less be thoroughly educated on customer lifetime value’s impact on the bottom line.
Joly echoes my concern when he said, “So much of what I learned in business school is either wrong, dated, or at best incomplete.”
Some people are calling it the “new normal.” My pal, Randy Pennington, has a better terminology: “The New Next.” Whatever you decide to name it, we are in a different marketplace than ever before.
Stop trying to circle the wagons around the way you’ve always done it. The status quo is no longer an option.
If you’d like to create distinction and break free from the status quo, consider membership in our Iconic Inner Circle. There’s no risk – your first month is free and you can cancel at any time. Check out all the benefits at: https://IconicInnerCircle.com
Somewhere along the way, we seem to have lost the perspective that what we do impacts the lives of others.
It seems we live in a time of character assassination for mere sport. Anonymous online haters who don’t know the facts – or don’t care – irresponsibly attack others to draw attention to themselves. They connect imaginary “dots” that exist only in their own minds, without concern about the consequences to the victims of their venom.
And, it becomes so common that many of us just shrug our shoulders and say, “Haters gonna hate!” and move on – never imagining that we could someday be an unfortunate target.
Maybe we would all be better off if we remember the wisdom that my grandmother used to share with me:
“It doesn’t make you a bigger person to make someone else smaller. It just makes certain you stay less than they are.”
It’s impossible for me to describe how popular my father was back home. Suffice it to say that if I were elected President, my hometown news would proclaim, “Dallas McKain’s Son Wins!”
Our family owned a grocery in Crothersville, Indiana. The way my Dad treated people and served customers not only helped us survive when a supermarket came to town – we thrived to the point that the larger retailer closed.
The McKain’s had a country music band — Dad sang and played lead guitar, with brothers on bass and rhythm. (And, for several years in my teens – me on drums!) We played just about every local dance, wedding, and event you could imagine. We opened concerts for Hall of Fame performers – and in some of the worst clubs you could imagine.
Regardless of the size of the venue, status of the audience, or condition of the crowd, I saw Dad engage every person with respect, giving attention to anyone who wanted his time.
When Dad passed, his obituary was the front page of the local newspaper.
Dallas McKain’s best advice was that his life taught me that the highest calling is to serve – and demonstrate that you care about – others.
I was playing drums in a family band that opened for the country star at a concert at the little high school I attended.
After the first of two shows, Jim Ed approached me and said, “I’m looking for a new drummer — and I’d like it to be you!”
I couldn’t believe it — a country star and Grand Ole Opry member wanted me in his band? Jim Ed — even though he probably didn’t realize it — forced me to make a decision: I had to choose if I wanted to be a drummer…or if I wanted something else in my life.
I was hit with the thought that it’s one thing to PLAY drums…it’s another to BE a drummer. One is participation…the other iscommitment.
After I had thought about it for a while, I was literally shaking from anxiety as I told him that I was sorry, but I couldn’t accept his generous offer.
He smiled and said, “Whatever you do in life…do it as well as you play those drums.”
I only talked to him a couple of times after that…but, I’ll never forget the wonderful opportunity he provided, or his sincere kindness. I often think of how different my life would have turned out if I had taken him up on the job. And, I always thank him that he moved me to prioritize what was REALLY important in my life…even in my teens.
Jim Ed passed away from lung cancer at the age of 81. My friends, the Oak Ridge Boys, sang at his service. All reflected on this gentle man’s elegance and legacy.
You may never know the impact that you have on someone else’s life.
What can you do today to make someone’s life better?
In my book, “Create Distinction,” I write about a phenomenon I called “The Ebert Effect.” It’s based upon a powerful lesson I learned from the famed movie critic, Roger Ebert, who passed away at age 70 after an extraordinarily valiant battle with cancer.
As I relate in the book, Roger asked me how many movies I was viewing in any given week — then, he told me he would watch three to five per DAY. In his wisdom, he commented, “That’s why quirky, offbeat films often receive rave reviews.
When one is overwhelmed with similarity, you begin to perceive that DIFFERENT IS SUPERIOR.
That is the basis of my work on distinction and the customer experience.
We’ve been overwhelmed with similarity, and we — as customers — are bored. We don’t see any meaningful differentiation between competitors in any given marketplace. When something different or even moderately unique comes along, we immediately begin to perceive it as a superior offering because of the effect Roger so eloquently described. It’s “The Ebert Effect.”
When Werner Herzog called me and asked me to play the “bad guy” in his film, “Stroszek,” I was honored beyond description. The only thing that topped that thrill was seeing the extraordinary review my meager attempt at the art form received from Roger Ebert, the reviewer I respected the most.
Then, when he featured the film and my performance in his first book on “Great Films” on his fifty favorite movies of all time, I was astounded… and grateful.
Roger took such delight at being the one who reunited Herzog and me after thirty years at his “Ebertfest” on the campus of the University of Illinois. He couldn’t contain his joy… and was scribbling notes as fast as he could to tell us how much he loved bringing us back together.
“I believe that if, at the end, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do.”
As we are almost one week into the New Year, it’s a great
time to take a look at what you can do to make 2020 into your “Year of
Distinction.”
If you haven’t already seen them, you may want to take a
look on social media or YouTube at a video series I’ve done on this topic. Each
video will provide you a few ideas on the specific steps you can take regarding
these ideas.
Here are four steps you can take for the coming year:
ONE — Don’t make New Year’s Resolutions – set goals for achievement
New Year’s resolutions tend to be generic (“lose weight,”
“save money”) and are easily forgotten in the typical crush of life and
business.
Goals, however, are specific, realistic, and written. When
you create a goal, you also delineate the precise steps you need to take to
achieve your objective.
TWO — Get uncomfortable
Growth never happens in your comfort zone. Yet, that’s where
most of us spend most of our time. If you want to grow in 2020, you’ve got to
be willing to be uncomfortable. Start now and plan for where you’re willing to
experience discomfort – because that’s where you’re going to grow.
THREE — Be positive
Let’s face it, we are surrounded by negativity in today’s
social media-driven, interconnected world. Therefore, it’s easy to become just
as sarcastic and unconstructive. For 2020 to become your “Year of Distinction,”
you cannot allow this negativity to unduly influence your actions and
reactions. Positivity is a choice. And, it’s a selection of approach that will
serve you well in the coming year.
FOUR – Continue to learn
We now have more access to extraordinary information and
insight than ever before. You need to become the Dean of your Personal
University. It means your car can become your four-wheel college as you drive
and listen to audio-based learning. You can develop your personal curriculum
for growth and development. Committing to learn is your most valuable step to
going from where you are to where you want to be.
These four ideas are all simple – which means that most
won’t execute these approaches. It’s so easy to keep doing what you’ve always
done, which translates into little to no advancement from your current
situation.
If you want this coming year to be all you desire, start
with these four ideas.
