Alton Brown is Smarter Than Most CEOs and TV Personalities

My father will tell me over and over, 'If you always do what you always did, you always get what you always got.'

That goes for:

• falling off skateboard ramps
• talking to girls
• spending / saving money
• buying cars
• work & my career in just about every aspect.

Every time you change something, you impact the end result.  In business, we decide we are moving to quickly to look at WHAT we changed that made the difference and more concerned with fixing the fallout or basking in the adulation of the win. 

It is time to explore the use of a scientific tool in the business world with all the data already sitting in a corner waiting to be tapped. We have experiments, we just don't document them and often, people are not honest about the variables, effort and thus results.

So where can we look to for examples and variations?  The news is now digital, there are plenty of business articles & books out there and of course there are blogs, us spewing our minds from the perspective of what we have experienced.  With that in mind, I am going to make an effort to add more retrospective views on situations and the point I think they changed direction, the variable.  This is loose on the scientific part since the variables are plenty in daily life and we are focusing more on the research.

What is the scientific method at its core?

A seven step process to getting where you want to be.

1. Question; build your 'what if'.
2. Research; utilize what others already have learned/experienced.
3. Hypothesize; If we <insert change here> then <result> will happen.
4. Test; In business this is more of an implement/take risk idea.
5. Analyse and Conclude; Determine if your change got the desired result.
6. Proclaim the result; If your hypothesis was true state 'I knew it all along' or, conversely, 'Here is what I learned'. Don't take the easy way out and say I would have been right but something else made it happen different.
7. Report on it; Who cares if you learned something, add to the greater good of the knowledge that exists in this world.

Want a more detailed, simplified, actual version of the Scientific Method, check out ScienceBuddies to occupy a little more space in your brain. I was inspired that this method does apply to the office by a great research project that was done involving personal happiness and giving people envelopes of money covered on Ted.com.

Here is how the steps can apply more to business life and not just the IT guys in the corner, although some of them can use a refresher on the scientific method. (I'm talking to you Mr. 'we are going to have to re-image your laptop' for any damn problem.)

Step 1 Question Development

This is the day to day decision making we do at work. What if...

• we hire a less skilled member and train them instead of paying for a sales-pitched expert?
• send the team home early every so often?
• do just enough testing instead of being thurough?

You have these questions coming at you every part of the day, these are not the problem. It is identifying the one you want to learn & teach from and tracking it, documenting it and growing from it.

Step 2 Research

You have the internet right? So fire up your modem (anybody else hearing 9600 baud sounds in your head) and start typing away. Do the research on your phone while waiting for a train, sitting in the meeting nobody is on time for, whatever. Searching on what you would use as the headline for your report would be a good starting point. "Is it worth developing a skill instead of hiring it in?' might bring a few decent results from your search engine of choice... I tried it, it does... go ahead, verify it, I'll wait.

Satisfied, ok on to...

Step 3 Hypothesize

This is where you take your question, stack your research on top of it and proclaim you are going to use your environment to determine just how genius you are. So from the ones above I would have:

• IF I hire a less expensive, semi-skilled employee and train them then I will have a productive worker that cost less in the first 2 years than hiring that skill set in.
• IF the team leaves early on slow days and let them work remotely then I can increase morale and get more out of them on a regular basis.
• IF we test basic functionality then the additional, rarely used features will go unconfirmed but we would save time.

That seems pretty straight forward so on to the next item.

Step 4 Test

In the business world, this would mostly consist of implementing the change or observing what happens AS the decision has been implemented.  Your organizations is rarely going to let you set up a control group and a hypothesis group of employees to do the same job.  This is where we are going to be questioned by the scientific community on the validity of our results but this is the best measure we have right now or implementing change so we roll with it.

Step 5 Analyse & Conclude

Look back at your belief at the beginning, look at what happened, OK, now look at it again and be honest with yourself.  You are likely clouding your judgement so go ask somebody else to confirm they saw what you saw.  This is the point you have to be honest with yourself and say, 'meh, that didn't work', without giving yourself the option to dismiss it because of another variable.

Step 6 Proclaim Your Result

This may be a personal proclamation as in an email to yourself or a note stating a recognized behavior or a discussion at a team meeting.

Step 7 Report It

Figure out how you are going to do this during these experiments / learning exercises / growth opportunities.  It may be as simple as writing a blog entry or journal page about it or something as formal as a report to a superior or colleagues for their understanding.  This will give you some sense of finality to it and a growth for next time.

Cost to Business of the Scientific Method


To perform true experiments inside of a business structure would be significantly costly and not tolerated by stakeholders, executives and clients; that is what colleges are for. What I am proposing is use a similar approach, acknowledge the multiple variables but don't dismiss every problem as NOT MY FAULT. At the end of every corporate experiment do some documentation so you, and maybe others can learn from it.

Book Review: The Hamster Revolution

The Hamster revolution by Song, Halsey & Burress

I want to say something good about this book, about how I have taken some of the core concepts to heart or maybe that it inspired me to start writing better emails but I can't. Heck, I would even like to tell you this book (being the 3rd of this kind I have read) was not the one that convinced me I do not need to read any more of these professional improvement books that boarder on manipulating story rather than conversation about the topic.

Here are the details in a nut-shell:

• Lead by example, write better emails and people will follow
• Kindly correct your colleague's emails, make subjects clearer and summarize their points
• Drop the crap, no more 'It would be our department's utmost pleasure to assist you' and other political crap. You know it is crap when you get it, others know the same. Help me be productive or you are really just a barrier towards my goals for the day.
• Provide & encourage private feedback on emails and pre-reading of drafts by an extra set of eyes.

This isn't world changing news, get the rose sunglasses off, realize the people you interact with would rather have things happen properly and efficiently than get their egos stroked. If there is a meeting at 2 PM tomorrow to discuss process improvement in our department that is all you need to say. I do not need to hear the inspirational essay that you want to base the new direction on or the epiphany you had that revealed all things wrong while vacationing with your family in some lake resort town 4 hours away. I need:

2 PM tomorrow we have a brainstorming meeting where we will identify:

1. Hindering processes that prevent us from being the best
   
2. New opportunities to serve our customers
3. Time frames for removal, change or implementation of these new processes.
4. Individual responsibility for driving each of these within the group.

Now onto the story format for professional books.

I can easily appreciate that you need to stand out in the market and being just another boring dead tree with page after page of a)fact b) discussion of fact is not going to get you written up as a breath of fresh air but these are getting goofy. I was with them on the concept of the newly hired executive because I always wondered what went on in those conversations at the top levels of management. I dug the idea of the film student, inspired by his craft, to reshape meetings. (If you do not know what books I am talking about, I will get the reviews out if they are not hear already.) But a stinkin' hamster walks into office? The is more an opening to a sad, politically correct joke to replace the 'A walks into a bar' of my father's generation than a motivational texts opening. Completely ridiculous and screams 'buy me and take me home, I am more than a book to scan at your local Borders while sipping your latte.' I almost want to do the library I borrowed this from a favor and use it to start my next bonfire with it. Three author's and this is the best opening they came up with? I hope your other works are better.

Money Magazine Corporate Ladder Quiz

1. You've just taken a new job in an unfamiliar organization and are anxious to make a good impression and rise quickly. The best way to do this is to:

Results: The best answer is b, because people who solve problems get noticed for all the right reasons. Ignoring the political climate altogether as in c, is unwise, because you'll never be able to anticipate an enemy you don't see. Meanwhile, a is even riskier. Become too embroiled in office intrigue and you tend to overlook a crucial fact: The people who have clout now may not have it later, or vice versa. Why choose sides now?

2. You've come up with a great idea for cutting costs, boosting efficiency, or improving customer satisfaction, but you've described it to your boss, and she just doesn't seem interested in pursuing it. You:

Results: The best answer is c -- not only is it the most likely to persuade your immediate boss, but even if she tries the idea and it flops, the approach makes her an ally you could keep for life. Don't go with b; it's just an excellent way to shoot yourself in the foot. And a shouldn't even cross your mind: Power is never achieved without a quality Reardon calls "relentlessness" -- an unwillingness ever to take "no" for a final answer.

3. A manager one level above you does you a very big favor--for example, saves you from a layoff or puts in a good word for you that helps you get your dream job. Your response is to:

Results: If you chose b, you're well on your way to understanding the secret handshake: People in power rarely get there, or stay there, by losing sight of who helped them along the way. That's why a is just not sufficient. As for c, it's downright dangerous: Never let anyone pressure you into returning a favor, even a very big favor, if it involves an ethical or moral lapse or could otherwise damage your career or reputation.

4. In a meeting with several of your peers and a few people more influential than you are, someone makes a pointed remark that might--or might not--be construed as a significant criticism of your work. You:

Results: By far the most effective way to handle this is b, but make sure to keep the conversation brief, brisk, and businesslike, and listen carefully without getting whiny or defensive. The only way c will help is if your peers know more than you do about what's going on and whose stock is up or down -- and if they do, that's a bad sign right there. And, to be frank, a is for losers.

5. You're a middle manager now, but you hope someday to be CEO. Your natural inclination is to base your decisions on the consensus of the group. In order to prepare yourself to move up, you:

Results: The best answer here is a, followed by b. In her book, Reardon identifies and describes in detail four distinct leadership styles, with most managers having some characteristics of each. In some companies, she writes, "the most effective leader is one who doesn't appear to be leading at all." Figure out what is the most widely respected style in your particular organization -- and, if the people at the top approach leadership in a radically different way than you do, consider moving to another company. Square pegs do occasionally fit into round holes, but the higher you go, the less likely that becomes.

Top 10 "Boss Gifts"

* Let friendship develop, don't force it

* allow employees to demonstrate reliability without oversight

* address conflict

* remain modest

* be decisive

* reflect before making decisions

* delegate

* maintain steady energy level

* be open to influence

* be professional

Then emphasize how many of the traits on the surveyed employees' "wish" list that your boss does possess:

* Trust in one's employees

* Honesty/authenticity

* Great team-building skills

* Effective coaching skills

* The ability to say "no"

* A broader perspective

* Patience

* Decision-making skills

Career Advancement Without Experience

Published:	August 9, 2006
Author:	Julia Hanna

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5471.html

Stretch work strategies

The researchers identified four successful tactics for obtaining stretch work that were common to both groups:

• Differentiate competence. Anyone hoping to advance must distinguish his or her performance on the job. This is particularly true, however, for contract workers—because they are paid for each short-term job, their employers are likely to subject their work to close, frequent evaluation.
• Acquire referrals. Because high-tech contractors tend to work with a number of clients, brokers, and fellow contractors, they enjoy a broader social network from which to draw referrals than most permanent employees. In the film industry—where most hiring is done based on a production manager's previous experience with an individual—referrals are a vital aspect of getting any job, particularly if it stretches a worker in a new direction.
• Framing and bluffing. "This is one of the most creative attributes for obtaining stretch work," O'Mahony notes. "People who are good at presenting their prior experience in a way that allows for an easy translation to the desired job can narrow the gap between their past experience and future capabilities." Adopting a hybrid job title to identify oneself—"director-screenwriter," for example—can also help establish authority in more than one area.
• Discounting. Accepting pay below the market rate is a temporary disadvantage some contract workers are willing to accept, if it means gaining the experience and exposure that will lead to a new position. One technical writer put it this way: "I turned down solid offers from three companies, all paying over $100K a year…I would take a job at $55K if they're using a totally new technology so I learn something…It's like playing pool…You hit the green ball with the white ball, and the point is to place the white ball to get the next shot. So I take that job in order to learn skills for my next project."

Creating a Positive Professional Image

Q&A with:

Laura Roberts

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/4860.html

Q: What are the steps individuals should take to manage their professional image?

A: First, you must realize that if you aren't managing your own professional image, someone else is. People are constantly observing your behavior and forming theories about your competence, character, and commitment, which are rapidly disseminated throughout your workplace. It is only wise to add your voice in framing others' theories about who you are and what you can accomplish.

Be the author of your own identity. Take a strategic, proactive approach to managing your image:

Identify your ideal state.

• What are the core competencies and character traits you want people to associate with you?
• Which of your social identities do you want to emphasize and incorporate into your workplace interactions, and which would you rather minimize?

Assess your current image, culture, and audience.

• What are the expectations for professionalism?
• How do others currently perceive you?

Conduct a cost-benefit analysis for image change.

• Do you care about others' perceptions of you?
• Are you capable of changing your image?
• Are the benefits worth the costs? (Cognitive, psychological, emotional, physical effort)

Use strategic self-presentation to manage impressions and change your image.

• Employ appropriate traditional and social identity-based impression management strategies.
• Pay attention to the balancing act—build credibility while maintaining authenticity.

Manage the effort you invest in the process.

• Monitoring others' perceptions of you
• Monitoring your own behavior
• Strategic self-disclosure
• Preoccupation with proving worth and legitimacy

PM Network Vol 20 Notes

PM Network Vol 20, 4: April 2006 p. 24

Behavioral interview

- ‘past behavior is the best predictor of future success’

- Themes like success failure and focus on topics such as persuasion, conflict management and interpersonal relations.

- Create story around accomplishments

- Beginning (restatement of prob) middle (actions you took) and end (result)

Panel interview

- Prioritization and demands

- Answer in order

- ‘I’d be happy to answer but if you don’t mind, I’d like to answer this other question first.’

- Expect follow up questions

Case interview

- Analyze business problem, hypothetical

- Define problem and explain process for solving it

PM Network Vol 20, 4: April 2006 p. 39

More persuasive	They’re able to argue and convince others of a particular viewpoint
More outgoing	They’re more talkative and noisy
More innovative	They’re ready with lots of ideas
More achieving	They set higher goals for themselves
Less modest	They’re ready to talk up their own achievements
Less conventional	They want to do things differently.

PM Network Vol 20, 4: April 2006 p. 46

Change Management activities

Quantitatively benchmark the assumptions so that progress made toward setting realistic expectations can be measured. Rate the problems by strongly disagree to strongly agree

_ the implementation will be difficult

_ my job will be easier after the implementation

_ the project change will make my job more secure

_ I expect a few problems in the first few weeks

_ consumers will see the change’s benefit almost immediately

_ we will not have to work as much overtime

_ we will be more confident that stock is available when we take an order

_ the changes have nothing to do with me

PM Network Vol 20, 4: April 2006 p. 64

Inverted pyramid style of communications for update

Punch line: Most critical concern is stated, “Eighty five percent of the testing worked”

Current status: “The project is 10 days behind”

Next steps: tell not only the problem but the solution. “We can recover three days of the delay but not all five if Bill Smith works overtime for a week.”

Explanation: “We did the tests but it didn’t work as planned.

PM Network Vol 20, 4: April 2006 p. 66

Ask the right questions in beginning or evaluating a project

- What specific corporate strategy or business initiative is the project linked to?

- What value does the project provide?

- What are the measures for quantifying the success of the project?

- What are the shutdown conditions of the project?

- What are the implications of doing nothing?

PM Network, Vol 20, 5: May 2006 p. 20

Building a better relationship with authority

- Listen to your leader’s heartbeat; hallway conversations & dreams personally and professionally.

- Know your leader’s priorities

- Catch your leader’s enthusiasm; promote their dreams and visions

- Connect with their interests

- Understand their personality; opposite opinion is OK as long as goals and values match up.

- Earn their trust; positives fund the account, negatives detract.

- Work with their weaknesses; identify these and provide a balance to them.

PM Network, Vol 20, 5: May 2006

Risk management

Is it financially stable and secure? Look at balance sheet for risk tolerance.

Can current business operations continue alongside forward-looking project work without substantial disruptions to either? Evaluate project on impact to other projects and ongoing operations.

What are the to-level execs tolerance for risk and commitment to completion? Support of sponsors who are likely not to leave or strong, multi-exec support.

PM Network, Vol 20, 5: May 2006 p. 76

Leader of the Pack

1. How do you interact with people on a regular basis?
2. Are you negative or critical?
3. Do you empower others or try to micromanage and control?
4. Do you try to develop and support people?

Book Review: Brag!: The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn without Blowing It

Brag!: The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn without Blowing It by Peggy Klaus

OK, a book with a few hints and tips that helps you refine your elevator speach and reminds you that every conversation is a pitch or ad requesting interest. Really, not that bad of a thing.

Any office hall way, any two people, the first says, 'how's it going?' as they cross in the hall. Possible responses...

grunt : Person is having a bad day, or does not care much about the day.

'hi' : I have seen you before but your name escapes me.

'hey naaammmeee' : I know who you are but have nothing interesting to tell you.

'super day!' : To excited to be trusted.

'Exciting, new movement means the project is expanding, looking up to the new challenge. You?' : Damn straight I know what is going on here, where I am needed and where I can help & grow. Can you play the game or waste my time with little hallway chat?

That is the value of "Brag!", you learn techniques for when you find yourself on the elevator with the CEO and every other a-hole tells him/her about the weather. This also serves in developing your opener at parties and building the intro other people use for you.

In my classification of books this is a 'Library' class book. Worth the cash, maybe, but you want to know where to get it when you want it... like your local library.

Book Summary: How to Become a Rainmaker

How to Become a Rainmaker: The Rules for getting and keeping customers and clients by Jeffrey J. Fox.

Rainmaker’s Credo
• Cherish customers at all times
• Treat customers as you would your best friend
• Listen to customers and decipher their needs
• Make or give customers what they need
• Price your product to its dollarized value
• Show customers the dollarized value of what they will get
• Teach customers to want what they need
• Make your product the way customers want it
• Get your product to your customers when they want it
• Give your customers a little extra, more than they expect
• Remind customers of the dollarized value they received
• Thank each customer sincerely and often
• Help customers pay you, so they won’t be embarrassed to go elsewhere
• Ask to do it again

Killer Questions
1. Do you have your appointment book handy?
2. Will you look at the facts and decide for yourself if they make sense?
3. Would you like to know our differences? (when discussing competitors)
4. We can give you a demonstration, is there anything else inhibiting you from going ahead? (unresolved customer issues or leads to a closing)
5. Why don’t you give it a try? (try, dependant, see benefit)
6. What questions should I be asking that I am not asking? (give them chance to voice concerns)

“Don’t waste your time trying to convince dairy farmers to by horseshoes.”

Rainmakers sell money, not windows or software or shoes.
Dining: Your back to the wall, do not let the customer be distracted during the meeting.
Objections: Welcome them because they are how customers express their desires.
Preparation: Always taste the wine before the wine tasting. Confirm any variable possible.
Ask dumb questions to understand their functionality
Investment return analysis: Prepare this so the customer can sell the product within their organization. There are usually 8-12 decision makers behind the scenes.
Customers do not care about what is making it hard to do your job.
Break the ice at the end of a meeting, ensure time for business.
Show the chain, sell the first link. (explain the process to the customer, get them into the first step)
Be the best dressed person you meet today. No coffee before a meeting.

NEVER
• You are never in a meeting – resolving a customer’s issue
• You are never sick, you are traveling
• Vacation – traveling
• Left for the day – out of the office
• Out to lunch – meeting with a client
• Not in the office yet – at a breakfast meeting

Negotiation:
• Give a sample, get an agreement to test
• Give a demo, get agreement to buy if works as claimed
• Give a brochure, get an appointment
• Give a discount, get more volume
• Give a free drink, get a dinner meeting
• Give a favor, get a due bill
• Give a solution, get paid

Point system (strive for 4 pts per day)
1. lead referral intro
2. appointment to meet decision maker
3. face-to-face meeting
4. commitment to close or action toward close

Voicemail
• Prepare it in writing
• Use third-party reference where you can
• Practice your message
• Be ready for a pick-up
• Speak slowly, clearly
• Introduce yourself first
• State how long message will be
• Purpose of your call (dollarized opportunity)
• Benefit and dollared value
• Suggest a meeting time
• Telephone number AREA CODE 815 888 3333, then repeat
• Thank them and advice you will follow up
• The beauty of voice mail is they will listen to it at their leisure and with their full attention.

10 things to do today to get business
1. Send a handwritten note
2. Clip and send an article of interest.
3. Talk to a satisfied client and ask who else you might help
4. Send a thank-you give to someone who referred you.
5. Give your business card to someone with influence.
6. Send a letter to the editor of a magazine your customers read.
7. Add 15 people to your mailing list
8. Leave a compelling voice mail.
9. Make an appointment
10. Call a client you haven’t talk to in 2 years

Recognize a Rainmaker
• Is organized
• Calls only on decision makers
• Does detailed pre-call planning
• Always has a written sales call objective
• Asks preplanned questions
• Listens
• Is empathetic with customers
• Encourages and appreciates objections
• Always dollarizes the value of a product
• Asks for customer commitments

How to Dollarize
1. Determine the competition price
2. State benefit
3. Quantify that benefit
4. Dollarize the benefit overall (avoided warranty claim x cost per claim = overall cost saved)
5. Reduce benefit to per unit (total savings / # units = savings per unit)
6. Demonstrate the true net cost of your products (price – savings per unit = true price per unit)

Book Review: The Effective Executive

The most important thing I can say is read this book with an open mind. Yes, the examples are outdated but they are significant, not to mention it is nice to read about events we have seen the ongoing impact of. Yes, the beginning sounds like a pep speech to daily office workers but where do you think the speakers pulled their content from? Yes, he is overly liberal in defining executive.

These two alone almost caused me to put the book down but I picked up a highlighter, more as a bookmark, and read on. I do not thing I have ever highlighted more of a book than I have here. I have found that texts follow a divergent, convergent pattern and it is the convergent literature that is concise and most time tested. This text encompasses what we know about business and productivity, avoiding reading multiple volumes on each topic.

This book is part practical advice, part motivational fluff for Drucker’s knowledge worker that encompasses many educated people and those skilled in intangibles. This is significant, as we see products all around us which are made by somebody and when people ask what we do our response is somewhere around ‘computer stuff’. It is the final chapter that solidified my belief in the motivational fluff, it discusses why managers should encourage their staff to read it. The problem with discounting fluff is it is the cornerstone of reawakening the driving spirit in the intellectually skilled, which need to be reminded of the answer to, ‘Why do I do this every day anyway?’

My father-in-law can drive around Chicago, point out buildings telling everybody he helped build them, I have been in the car enough now that I can give this tour… It seems like human nature that we want to leave a legacy that will outlive us and we are grappling with this as knowledge workers. There are significant planning guidelines and recommendations in this text and now more highlighting than most any book I own.

This has now been added into my rotation of gift/career cycle books:
Fresh out of school / new focus: how to Win Friends and Influence People
Feeling a lull in life / need meaning to your career: The Effective Executive
Need to identify the change needed: What Color is Your Parachute
Recovering from unplanned change: Who Moved My Cheese

Book Review: Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity

One of the biggest contributions from this book is the context prioritization. I have updated my organizer to include categories of office, home, anywhere, car that way I can be productive at any point. Big picture wise, the weekly planning helps you remember things you really want to do and refocus your efforts. Finally, I swear by his concept of 'always have something to read'. There are times when we are waiting for people to get to a meeting, a few minutes inbetween eating dinner and my son waking up or sitting in a doctor's waiting room that having something I want to read handy is beneficial.

Great book on organization, much easier than the Franklin Covey planning system... and cheaper. check out www.davidco.com for related planning documents.