Business Management Skills

For months now, my little three-year-old has been fighting a battle between her will to keep wearing diapers and her will to become a ‘big girl.’ Danica, my wife, felt this reluctance had gone on too long and she made it her mission to train this kid. All she needed was a week and $75. The $75 is to clean the carpets when the training is over!

First, Danica took away all her princess dresses. This kid LOVES dressing up like a princess. “If you go poddy in the big girl poddy I’ll give you a dress back!” Danica promised. She then had her live with no bottoms until the three-year-old became extremely uncomfortable. Oh, she still resisted but at least we got her attention. It wasn’t until the candy jar came into play that a favorable outcome was achieved.

Every positive event was rewarded with a piece of candy. Aria, our three-year-old, would run to the candy jar after taking care of business. She even called me on the phone filling me in on her victories and requesting more candy be put in the jar. That’s when I realized, EVERYBODY WANTS MORE CANDY IN THE JAR!

The jar is our life, the candy represents the people and opportunities life has to offer. Most employees want to feel a part of the success of the company. They want to know that what they do makes a difference. They also want to know, “Is this all there is? Is this a dead end job?”

It’s so important to challenge the people you lead to be their best. Every one of us has enormous room for growth. The leader is often busy and can too easily take a driven associate for granted. I’ve heard Jack Welch say, “We typically spend 90% of our time with 10% of the employees who are the problem. One should spend 90% of their time with the 10% who are the stars.”

Don’t forget to spend time with your star performers. Understand their dreams and desires. Continually add candy in their jar and the payoff will be tremendous!

By Joe Kiedinger

Joe KiedingerLevel: PlatinumJoe Kiedinger began his marketing career in the mid-90s. He became an independent advisor in 2002 when he opened J. Kiedinger Advertising. The Agency has …

Joe Kiedinger is Brander in Chief of Prophit Marketing, a unique and vision-driven marketing organization that helps small to medium-sized business succeed by adhereing to the Prophit Marketing System. The Prophit Marketing System is a process based approach that combines corporate culture with strategy and finally advertising. The emphasis starts with leadership and flows from there. Joe’s message has been heard by many through his unique Prophit Marketing Road Show, an entertaining informative presentation that leaves audiences with an action plan for success. Joe also authors Wisdom on Wednesday, a weekly email newlsetter which will enlighten and challenge you to get the most out of your marketing efforts. Visit http://ProphitMarketing.com/ to learn more about the Prophit Marketing system or http://WisdomonWednesday.com/ to subscibe to Joe’s weekly email newsletter.

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