In his book, Start with Why, Simon Sinek provides clear definitions for repeat and loyal customers: . There is a big difference between repeat business and loyalty. Repeat business is when people do business with you multiple times. Loyalty is when people are willing to turn down a better product or a better price to […]
The Shelf Life of Objectivity
An interesting thing about house guests…they always see the smallest details. You may have lived someplace for years without noticing that crack in the corner, spot on the carpet, or dent in the door. But a guest walks in and sees them all at first glance. (When I was in college, it didn”t matter how […]
Develop your brand, no matter your size.
If you drank a Coca-Cola over the past few weeks, you probably noticed a major difference with the can. In a partnership with the World Wildlife Fund, Coke has been served in all white cans in an attempt to increase consumer focus on the protection of the habitat of polar bears. However, this week, Coke […]
The Little Things
It’s easy to ignore them. A typo that most people won’t notice. One sign that is slightly confusing. A camera operator who is always just a bit out of focus. None of them make that much of a difference…by themselves. There are two reasons why the little things should be dealt with like big things: […]
Paradigm > Policy
The common organizational reaction to any mishap is simple… “We need a rule to keep that from happening again.” And while this may seem reasonable in the moment, the culmination of this type of decision-making results in a spider web of red tape that is cumbersome for even the most tenured employee to navigate. . […]
The 80% Rule
The other day, I was catching up with an old friend and mentor who pastors a quickly growing church. Recognizing this growth, he has been challenged by some to offer an additional service based on the “80% rule”. Consultants and church leaders reference this rule quite a bit, suggesting that when a church auditorium nears […]
What are you afraid of?
Every year, October 31 is dedicated to the celebration of fear; odd considering that our initial reaction to the concept of fear is negative. Why would we celebrate such an unwelcome thing? It’s true that many fears are not worth our celebration. For example… . Fears that stabilize. If we launch that new project, we […]
Simply functional.
. . People generally complain about a product for one of two reasons: “It’s too complicated to use.” (Lacks simplicity) “It doesn’t do what I want it to.” (Lacks functionality) The tension between simplicity and functionality exists within every organization. And when not intentionally balanced, the two become enemies of one another. We hear it […]
Why the ropes course didn’t work.
No one can deny the value of unity to a team. There is a level of excellence and productivity that just cannot be achieved without it. When everyone is on the same page sharing the same objectives, coordination and collaboration reach their peaks. And so understandably, many leaders work to create unity among team members. We […]
The first step toward organizational simplicity.
Within many leadership teams, the concept of simplification is equated with the concept of “cutting”. [Cut programs. Cut classes. Cut ministries. Cut something.] With this understanding, simplification is often resisted, based on the fear that one’s activities might meet the axe. But the process of simplification does not have to begin with program cuts. And […]