Saturday, August 24, 2013

9 Things Successful People Do In The First Few Weeks Of A New Job

This post is important if you are starting a new job. This post is even more important if you are starting a new job after having spent several years at a firm where everyone thought you were a rockstar.

People who change jobs are in a way "warriors". They know they need to get in there and quickly prove their "worth" and show that they have it in him/her to succeed here. Here is an interesting article for you to read.

The article rightly says that from the first day, you need to be on your game.The first three months of any new job are an extension of the interview process

Here are what the most successful people do that first week in a new job

1.Be a geek about introducing yourself.
2.Befriend a veteran who can help you navigate politics (and find the pencils).
3. Set expectations with your boss and employees.
4.Learning where the coffee is will always be a good strategy for success. It's also important to    figure out the unwritten rules of the office that, if violated, make people go ballistic.
5.Whatever you sold them on in interview, make it your mission to demonstrate that you're going to do it
6.Get organized to set good habits - It is important to update your title across your own social media platforms and also start following your new company and colleagues
7.Once you're officially on the job, it's important to update your title across your own social media platforms and also start following your new company and colleagues
8.Reconnect with former colleagues - Go back and reconnect with people at your old company, and ask for LinkedIn recommendations
9.Find your go-to pharmacy and take-out lunch spot.

Rate your you

I finished reading the book - Little Red Book of Selling: 12.5 Principles of Sales Greatness 
by Jeffrey Gitomer. It is a nice book that lets one pick up the habits that great salesman have. There is a small self-evaluation that you could do to test your 'You'. I have copied them

Rate your you. Here are 10.5 things that make "youstrong enough to make a sale. Rate yourself in each category from one (poor) to ten (the greatest) -- and see how great "you" are. Put your rating in the box.
____1. Your image. How you look affects the way you are perceived. How do you look?
____2. Your ability to speak. Your ability to convey the message. Are you a member of toastmasters?
____3. Your ability to establish rapport. Making the prospect feel at ease, and developing some common ground as a basis to move forward. Do you make the scene warm?
____4. Your attitude. Your enthusiasm combined with your state of internal happiness. Not what you say, but how you say it. Are you positive plus?
____5. Your product knowledge. Your convincebility. Do you know it cold? 
____ 6. Your desire to help. Desire to help shows through, so does greed. Does your help side outweigh your greed side?
____7. Your preparedness. A confidence builder if you are, or destroyer if you aren't. Do you prepare for every call?
____8. Your humor. Nothing builds good feelings like good humor and a good laugh. Can you make others laugh?
____9. Your sincerity. Shows through either way. Are you genuine?
____10. Your reputation (or the reputation that precedes you). If you are well known in the community, or in your field, you may walk in with a slight advantage. How's your reputation?
____10.5 Your glue. The way you handle your total package. Your Stature. The way you carry yourself. The way you put it all together. The character of you is what leads to the credibility of what you sell. How well are you "put together"?


How'd you score? Perfect score is 110.
If you scored from 100-110 you are a great you with a great success story to tell, and are setting a great example for others.
  • 90-99 Pretty darn good you. Climbing the ladder, and making daily progress.
  • 70-89 You ain't as hot as you think. You're in need of a 20 minute personal daily workout.
  • 50-69 You're mediocre at sales, and so is your success to date. You have a decision to make. Stay and get better every day, or get out before you're fired, and blame someone else for all that's wrong with you.
  • 30-49 You stink. Go to the nearest bookstore, buy Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People. Don't leave home until you read it.



Few Important Rules of Networking



From the 'Little Red Book of Selling',

1. To make the most of a networking event, spend 75% of your time with people you don't know
2. Networking works best well when you employ the two-word secret: SHOW UP
3. Networking works best when you employ the three-word secret: SHOW UP PREPARED


Why Top Talent Leave Their Jobs

A great infographic by LifeHack that explains why top talent leave their jobs. No surprises that the top of the list is a bad boss. I heard someone last week leave the firm because of "lack of recognition". Politics becomes an important aspect when things go wrong. Lack of empowerment is a limiting factor for folks who are on the accelerated path. And if a company is not doing well, nobody wants to be a part of the story. Resumes from RIM were flooding the market in recent times.



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Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Power Point Presentations

The big problem with business presentations is not boredom but rather confusion.
A few important points
1. Stick to one main point or idea per slide. The top of the slide should carry a headline, much like those in a newspaper, which summarizes the takeaway message. The body of the slide should be a visual that illustrates the point you are making
2. You need to rehearse your talk, practising it out loud. It might feel foolish, but it’s the only way to be sure the presentation flows and to head off any confusing moments.

Read the article here:

Disruptive Innovation - Did you see it coming?

Disruptive Innovation

Monday, August 19, 2013

Climbing the five steps to leadership

Climbing the five steps to leadership


1. Position : People follow you because they have to

2. Permission: People follow you because they want to.

3.Production: People follow you because of what you have done for the organization

4.People development: People follow you because of what you have done for them.

“Leaders become great not because of their power but because of their ability to empower others,” Mr. Maxwell advises

5.Pinnacle: People follow you because of who you are and what you represent.

Read the article here

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Customer Service

The three most common contributors to poor customer service are 
1. Organizational culture
2 Business processes 
3. Technology

Read the article here