The Advisor’s Corner

Purpose & Passion

August 15, 2022/in Nuggets and Encouragement Regarding Strategy and Focus/by Tom Doescher

Tom Doescher

In 2009, The Purpose Linked Organization was published by Alaina Love and Marc Cugnon, two consultants/authors. It deals with an issue that I’m passionate about — call it purpose, your why, your mission, your reason to exist, or whatever works for you. Especially in light of the aftermath of Covid and the Great Resignation, it may be something you want to read. One of the authors, Love, tells an amazing story of how she overcame the challenges of being a Black female in the business world to become the top HR executive at Merck & Co., a major global pharmaceutical firm — and then, at 36 years old, she left to pursue her purpose. Wow!

Those of you who have met me know that my response to your “How are you doing?” is “Living the dream.” You also know that I’m fond of calling myself the Lucky Guy, which I’ve used in the title of the four books that I’ve published. As I read Love’s story, it helped me understand “why” I feel that way. Today, my life is the most integrated it has ever been (i.e., everything I do seems to connect), and I’m clearly focused on my strengths and passions. These include my expanding family, advising business owners, and my philanthropic activities in my new adopted hometown, Flint.

I mentioned the authors were consultants — so, you guessed it, they’ve developed an online assessment tool, the Passion Profiler. If you decide to purchase a copy of their book, it includes a complimentary assessment code. Again, because they’re consultants, they’ve developed their own list of 10 Passion Profiles: Builder, Conceiver, Connector, Creator, Discoverer, Processor, Transformer, Altruist, Healer, and Teacher.

Yes, I completed the assessment (a 15-minute exercise) and my results were Altruist, Healer, and Builder. Actually, this process wasn’t life-changing, but it provided me with some additional insights about myself.

I wouldn’t recommend this book to everyone, but if you’re evaluating or re-evaluating your life, the Passion Profiler may provide you with some fresh ideas.

BTW, if you purchase the book, I would highly recommend you take the assessment first. Then you’ll only need to review those sections of the book that apply to you.

Now That’s a Great Recruiting Idea for Key Staff

July 18, 2022/in Ideas to help you build a solid team/by Tom Doescher

Tom Doescher

The other day I was meeting with a client who had recently acquired a new company in another city (an airplane flight away). The client plans to spend one week per month at the business location, and to manage it remotely from his office the rest of the month.

One of the key positions in any business is the CFO/controller, but in this case, in light of the owner’s three-week absences from the new company offices, this role is even more critical. Using Indeed, the owner identified qualified candidates, interviewed them, and selected a finalist.

Although the owner had included a salary range in the Indeed notice, he still asked the finalist, “What compensation are you looking for?” The wise candidate quoted the published range.

The owner added $5,000 to the top end of the range and said, “How does that sound?”

Put yourself in this scene and pretend you’re the finalist and you hear that. What’s your reaction?

It turns out the candidate is even better than the owner thought he would be. I’m sure his nice salary doesn’t hurt. The owner has actually received unsolicited comments from other company employees about how much they enjoy working with and for the new CFO.

Maybe some of you have done this yourselves. Good for you! I don’t recall ever offering more or hearing of anyone offering more.

That’s why I love what I do. I learn something new from my clients every day.

Gratitude

June 13, 2022/in Ideas to help you build a solid team/by Tom Doescher

Tom Doescher

I’ve read so many books and articles that recommend adopting a spirit of gratefulness. It’s better for your personal health, both physical and mental; for your relationships, including your marriage; for your business; for your athletic teammates; and on and on. Most of what I’ve read is written by what I’ll call the soft-skill folks — which could include me, by the way.

I just finished Leading with Gratitude by Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton, who make a very compelling case that the use of gratitude (providing positive written and verbal feedback to subordinates, peers, and leaders) in the workplace is very good for profits. So if you want to increase your profits, I’d highly recommend getting the book.

Here are my takeaways:

Leading with Gratitude is a very easy, almost fun read. If you read it and you agree with me, I’d suggest having all your leaders read it, and possibly everyone in your company.
It’s well-written (i.e., no extra words and no big consulting words). Your average Tom would understand it.
It’s data-based, not opinion-based. The authors reference many studies from prominent sources.
The authors quote many familiar, famous business executives, like Alan Mulally.
The authors discuss the seven myths about feedback, like the theory that fear is the best motivator. That’s not true, according to the experts.
You’ll read lots of practical, real-world stories about things you experience almost every day.
The authors reference many great books. You may want to purchase some of them to dig deeper into a particular subject.
Near the end of the book, Gostick and Elton get a little prescriptive (i.e., they’re consultants). I would avoid getting too mechanical or systematizing the promoting of gratitude.
At the end of the book, the authors offer a spot-on list of suggestions for ways busy owners and executives can express their gratitude at home.

Actually, I challenge everyone reading this post (I realize you have no time and a stack of unread books) to purchase the book and read it (probably in just a few hours). I just checked and it’s also available on Audible Audiobook for free — that way, you can listen to it in your vehicle or at the gym.

I’d love to hear some success stories!

Purpose & Passion

Tom Doescher

Now That’s a Great Recruiting Idea for Key Staff

Tom Doescher

Gratitude

Tom Doescher

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