The Advisor’s Corner

Talent is overrated – so we all can win

July 21, 2014/in Nuggets and Encouragement Regarding Strategy and Focus/by Tom Doescher

The title for this post is from Geoff Colvin’s book, “Talent is Overrated.” As you would imagine, the title really grabbed our attention. Based on significant research, Colvin concludes that having talent is helpful, but what distinguishes the good performers from the great is what he labels “Deliberate Practice.” In other words, you want to get to the point where you’re good at something, then practice the right stuff with the guidance of a knowledgeable coach. Unfortunately, Colvin uses mostly accomplished athletes — like Tiger Woods — to demonstrate his point. Tiger may have some natural talent, but he started playing golf at age 2 — and, since he has been a professional golfer, he has changed his swing three times as he has worked to get even better.

As we read the book, two Plante Moran partners came to mind almost immediately: Ed Parks and John Sirhal. Many would describe them as being really smart, and they probably are. But we think the secret to their amazing client service is the “Deliberate Practice” Colvin referred to. Both men are voracious readers. When they meet with a client, they are prepared. They know what is going to be discussed, and they do their homework. They anticipate different scenarios. They are very client-focused and look at the issues from many different angles. We have always thought, “Can you imagine what it feels like to be their client?”

So why are we talking about this subject? We are currently assisting a few young executives and helping them to improve certain leadership skills. We believe — and we have told them — that they can, in fact, be better if they want to and if they are willing to put in the “Deliberate Practice.”

Here is the challenge. Do you have associates whom you would like to see improve in a particular skill? Think about what Tiger, Ed, or John would do, then design some specific activities for them to practice (i.e., conducting the next important meeting with your key customer). Make sure they have an opportunity to practice these activities in a situation where you or others will be able to give them feedback — and watch for the results!

Do you listen to your team and get the “right” strategy?

July 7, 2014/in Nuggets and Encouragement Regarding Strategy and Focus/by Tom Doescher

We have added Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter, by Liz Wiseman, to our Top Picks (Recommendations) Book List and would highly encourage you to read it.

You may wonder why we’ve classified this blog as Strategy and Focus. Well, that’s a good question. As we were reading the book, I (Tom) began to reminisce back to a strategic planning meeting where my successor and I had designed an agenda for the annual strategic planning session of our industry leadership team. Both of us believed quite strongly that there was no need to spend any time on one subject in particular. We added it to the agenda, but our plan was to spend just a few minutes on it. When the item came up during the meeting, we expressed our thoughts — and assumed everyone would then move on to the next matter on the agenda. To our surprise, a number of younger colleagues dug in and expressed their concern that this area needed more resources and attention, not less. For once, I was able to keep my defensiveness to myself and listen. Their points of view were compelling. They were right. Wow, we had missed it. So we changed our position and allocated more resources to this initiative.

Are you a multiplier or a diminisher with your team when you’re setting the direction of the company? What would your team say?

BTW, we often wonder how many times we did not “hear” our team, and ended up heading in the wrong direction.

Selling? Me?

June 23, 2014/in Nuggets and Encouragement Regarding Strategy and Focus/by Tom Doescher

We have always believed that every team member has a sales aspect to their job, be it internal or external. Unfortunately, when we say “sales,” it often conjures up negative thoughts and feelings. In his latest book, To Sell Is Human, Daniel Pink (author of Drive) — once again sighting some pretty compelling research — makes several surprising statements about those people who are most successful in sales. The following are a few of his findings:

Thirty-five separate studies involving more than 3,800 salespeople found that the correlation between extroversion and sales was essentially nonexistent. In fact, the most successful salespeople are ambiverts — which is someone who, on the extroversion/introversion scale, falls in the middle.
The most common thread in the people who are really good at selling is humility. Consider reading our March 29, 2012, Food for Thought article, which talks about the importance of humility for leaders and references a Patrick Lencioni article you may want to read.
Asking good questions and problem-finding is more important than problem-solving. Use the “Five Whys” — ask why five times, and you’ll be surprised what you will uncover. However, do not interrogate!
Listen, listen, listen. When others speak, we typically divide our attention between what they’re saying now and what we’re going to say next, and we end up doing a mediocre job of both.
Make it personal. In this high-tech, global economy, we often neglect the human element and adopt a stance that’s abstract and distant. In the long run, relationships still matter.

Hopefully you’ve picked up a tip or two and, at a minimum, you have a different attitude about selling. If you want more, we would recommend reading Daniel Pink’s book.

Talent is overrated – so we all can win

Do you listen to your team and get the “right” strategy?

Selling? Me?

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