Tom Borg Consulting

May you always be blessed
with the gift of dissatisfaction and divine discontent.

May you have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge
and an appetite for self improvement that knows no satisfaction.

May you always consider life as you greatest gift and living nobly your finest art.

May you think your best, live your noblest and may you love your fullest.

And may your hinges of friendship never rust and your wings of love never lose a feather.

May your sacred devotion to your purpose in life grow deeper each year and not be uprooted for as long as you live,

Have faith in your God, faith in your family, faith in your country and above all, faith in yourself.
-   Cavett Robert

For more good ideas on leadership visit our website. www.TomBorgConsulting.com

Don’t reward incompetence within your small business. Listen in on this Small Business Association of MI Radio interview as I discuss this point and many more on how to make you business more profitable in 2012 and beyond.

Listen in to this Small Business Association of Michigan radio interview with Tom Borg and learn some practical techniques that can grow your small business.

Have you ever noticed how some people seem to be more productive in the morning, others in the afternoon, and still others late into the evening hours? People have a time of day that they are generally the most productive. Online Clock reports that “According to research there is no exact time of day where every single person is more or less productive, but on average the majority of humans are more productive during morning hours.”

It makes sense, that once you know when you are most productive, you adjust your daily activity to reflect that time period. Knowing your most productive part of the day is important when it comes to choosing the right kind of construction job. If possible choose a company that is flexible with work hours and will take into account your specific work productivity cycle.

If it is not possible, you will need to make some adjustments on your end so that you can optimize your own productivity abilities. These changes on your part can take the form of the time you go to bed, the quality of sleep you experience, how much exercise you get on a regular basis, your diet, and how much television you watch.

Let’s start with the time you go to bed. If you are like most people, you are the least productive before you go to bed. Typically this time is used for recreational activities, doing nothing of real importance, and things like reading, watching television, and telephone conversations with friends. This is the best block of time to adjust. Usually, if you cut your sleep time down, it will result in a feeling of being tired and drowsy the next day at work. To remedy the lack of sleep you are getting, go to bed earlier. This will allow you to get the extra sleep time that will allow for a full night’s sleep and be more productive the next day at work.

Getting a good night’s sleep can be prevented if your spouse or partner is watching television in the bedroom while you are trying to get to sleep. Many experts recommend  that for you to get the proper rest you need, not to have a television in your bedroom. Light that comes from windows can also deprive you of a deep, sound sleep pattern. And as I mentioned in an earlier blog, make sure you have dark blinds, and if necessary, wear a sleep mask that blocks the light from your closed eyes.

Getting regular exercise will help maintain your body’s fitness level and keep it more balanced. Having a balanced body will allow you to get a full night’s sleep on a regular basis. Eating the right kind of diet will keep your body tuned up and running right. Avoid caffeine, sugar and junk foods. Often times these kinds of body fuel serve only to disrupt its’ pattern of working smoothly.

Finally, avoid too much television. The visual and auditory stimulation can often times disrupt your brain’s thought patterns and images. Too much stimulation in the form of violence and drama can cause your brain to go on overdrive and prevent it from cycling down before bedtime.

To learn more about how to be grow your small business please visit our website at:

www.tomborgconsulitng.com

Television is a wonderful way to be entertained. However, when used too much, it can be a terrible waste of time. To begin with, it provides 24/7 broadcasting. It never sleeps. The two major themes on television today are fighting and fleeing. These are basic survival instincts that the TV producers know will attract viewers. Of course someone has to pay for the broadcasts and that is where the advertisers come in. It seems the TV commercials are as incessant as sharks; each advertiser wanting a piece of your credit card, and striking at the first scent of blood.

What has this to do with you and the development of your small business or professional career? Plenty! In order to develop your potential it is critical that you invest at least one hour per day building up your knowledge base. With the world changing at lightening fast rate, it becomes clear that there is little time to waste on activities that only put your brain into neutral and sap precious hours from your day.

Many people who are looking to build their company or advance their career, complain of the lack of opportunity, yet all they  need do is increase their intellectual value and the opportunities for them expand exponentially.

There are many sources to acquire additional knowledge and skill sets. A few on my list include: the internet, ezine.com, Google, Amazon, the websites of professional speakers and consultants and there is always you trusty local library.

One of the keys to acquiring relevant information is to set up a daily system for absorbing that information. If it is listening to an Mp3 download or a CD, you can do it while exercising or driving in your car. Incidentally, one of the world’s largest sources for high content and interesting information from the brightest minds on the planet is Nightingale Conant Corporation (www.nightingale.com).

When you go to the internet have a specific topic in mind and set a time limit for finding what you need and download it or simply read it when you find it.

If you are reading books that you have purchased, use a yellow highlighter pen. If you find something you can use right away write it down on a small sheet of paper or post it note and put it where it can remind you to use the information.

In summary, break the habit of watching too much television and start investing your time in building up your usable knowledge base. You will be glad you did and so will your bank account. To learn more ideas about how to grow your business visit our website at: www.tomborgconsulting.com

Every organization has meetings. Whether they be conducted in a meeting room, a hallway or in the form of a teleconference or video conference, they usually happen on a regular basis. Some of the things that a business leader or department head can do that will minimize the effectiveness of a business meeting and make them non-productive are included in this article.

Avoiding Responsibility
When it comes to decision making, meetings can be used to avoid responsibility. One person not wanting to make a critical decision alone can hide behind the guise of having a group of people come to a consensus to make a decision.

By bringing several people together it can gather much needed input and direction yet, unless the good input is utilized, it will have a tendency to create ill will and feeling of non importance among the meeting participants.  The importance and value of future meeting participation will be jeopardized by this type of leadership.

I once worked for a company where the owner consistently held meetings and rarely acted upon the input that was being offered by his independent contractors. He would imply that he would take action and 99% of the time wouldn’t. It wasn’t long before people only attended the meetings to stay on good terms with him. They knew it was really a meaningless use of their time and added to their frustration levels with the organization.

Poor Communication
Hidden agendas are another way to sabotage meetings. When the people participating are not up front and honest about their reasons for pursuing a particular agenda item, more non productivity and office politics can be the result. This form of miscommunication can be very unproductive and should be avoided.

Meeting Productivity
When you count up the amount of hours a meeting lasts and multiply it times the number of people in the meeting, it adds up to a significant amount of man hours. Being guilty of using any of the above practices can lead to wasteful meetings and will tie up valuable time of the attendees that can be used else wise more productively. It is up to the business leaders or department head to do his or her best not to let this happen.

Tom Borg is president of Tom Borg Consulting, LLC. He is a business consultant, speaker, trainer, coach and author. He works with small and mid-size businesses and organizations in the area of management and employee development. For more information on his services please call our office at 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com

One of the best ways to get your company on the road to success and profitability is to hold a meeting, and ask your employees and managers three questions. These three questions, when honestly answered and acted upon, can have an immediate effect on the bottom line of your organization.

Start Doing
The first question is, “What should we start doing?” The answers you receive from your staff will give you immediate insight to what they have been thinking, and your customers have been saying. Too often business owners and managers ignore the ideas that should be implemented because of preconceived notions of it being too difficult to change.  When you have your staff making the recommendations, it becomes their idea and not yours, and a funny thing happens; the ideas get implemented.

Stop Doing
The second question is, “What should we stop doing?” Many times the way things are being done are for outdated reasons. Today, technology has changed, or the customer’s preferences are different and, as result, these practices are no longer applicable. Holding on to doing things the same old way, is one of the surest ways to extinction.  Roger Jansen, the CEO of Thinkwise, an on demand talent management and leadership development company based in Grand Rapids, MI,  puts it this way, “if you still think you need to be driving a horse and buggy, you are probably not going to make it to work on time.”

Keep Doing
The final question is, “What should we continue doing?” Every company needs to keep doing what is still working effectively. It would not make sense to change the strategies that are current and successful, just for the sake of change. This approach also brings some stability to the organization, and reassures the managers and employees, that part of what is being done is justified and necessary.

So my recommendation to get your company moving towards an even more profitable 2011 is to ask these three questions at your next company meeting, and start taking action on the ideas generated.

Tom Borg is president of Tom Borg Consulting, LLC. He is a business consultant, speaker, coach and author. He helps companies and organization become more profitable by showing them how to attract and retain their clients. To learn how he can help your organization please contact us at 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com

Have you ever considered the idea of letting your employees take charge of doing a job the way the way they think it should be done? Let them put their creative talents to work. Most people use only a fraction of their potential brain power. Why not give your employees a chance to use more of theirs?

Avoid the philosophy, “We’ve done it this way for years, so why change a good thing?” That’s “dead end” thinking and often leads to frustration and complacency. With a reasonable amount of structure, your employees should be able to use their creative talents quite well. Of course, you will have to be somewhat flexible, and from time to time live with a few mistakes, but the increased productivity can be worth it. The key here is good communication. Ask your employees to share the idea with you before they try using it. Ask your other employees what they think of the idea. If it sounds like it has some real potential, try it.

What if we had stubbornly resisted Thomas Edison and his idea of the electric light bulb? Why, we would all be sitting around watching television in the dark! All kidding aside, many times our employees will figure out a better way to do the job than it has been done in the past.

Giving your employees the freedom to do the job as they think it should be done communicates your trust in them. People in general like to be trusted. It bolsters their self-confidence. Trusting and believing in your employees allows them to believe in themselves. Remember, when you concentrate on building your people, you will build your business.

Do you know anyone who has a “High D” behavioral style? Some of the words that would describe this kind of individual is someone who very direct and impatient. They typically have a short fuse and are very results oriented. They tend to be extroverted and impatient.  They also tend to raise their voice or yell a lot.

Anyone come to mind yet? If you are like most of us you know at least two or three people like this. One person could be your boss; another could be your spouse or significant other. Many times this type of person is misunderstood. It is easy to take this person’s assertive response personally. They seem to over react to situations that could be handled more calmly.

Typically, when most people disagree with this type of person, they will not confront the high D behavioral style, for fear of an explosive response.

Communication
Let me share with you five ways to communicate with this sort of behavioral style. First, you need to be direct with this type of person; not overbearing but firm. You need to be clear, specific and to the point. The high D behavior style appreciates this approach since it matches their style.

Next, don’t try to build the relationship; stick to business with this person, otherwise it could be perceived as patronizing and they will resent it.

Plan out what you will say to this person and present the facts logically. Don’t be fuzzy or unclear in what you are communicating as it could provoke their ire.

Next, don’t ask rhetorical questions or ineffective ones. Ask specific questions. This will put you on level ground with this individual and they will respect you for it.

Create a Win-Win Situation
And finally, if you find yourself disagreeing with this individual, take issue with the facts, not the person. This allows both of you to save face and separate the discussion from personal feelings.

You can communicate effectively with a high D behavioral style by remembering to use these five basic strategies. The benefits are that you can create a more harmonious, less stressful and productive business or social relationship.

Tom Borg is president of Tom Borg Consulting, LLC. He is a business consultant, speaker, coach and author. He helps companies and organization become more profitable by increasing their value and lowering their costs through the professional development of their managers and employees for more information visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com

In this final section of this white paper we will discuss how you can use the action group process to develop two-way communication and support from the parents and community in which the school district resides.

Far too often the only people that attend school board meetings are the individuals who have complaints or criticisms. Concerns about current issues or millage proposals usually create far more negative publicity than all the good that is accomplished by the public school Educators, Administrators and Board of Education. One way to circumvent this type of negative public mindset is to create a two-way communication process that can leverage the power of the community in a proactive manner.

By providing this kind of a communication vehicle for parents, business owners, and community members at large that live or work within the school district boundaries, you can create a structure for communal support. Building backing for your school district in this manner not only creates corroboration but a positive marketing vehicle for promotion of your public school system.

When people become empowered to participate, they will support the solutions they helped create. As we mentioned earlier in this paper, “people don’t argue with their own data.” By getting and keeping these stakeholders involved, you have the advantage of tapping their problem solving resources and capabilities as well as their psychological and potential financial support.

It is recommended that when using a public action group, that you employ a neutral “outsider” to facilitate the meetings. By doing so you will create a more open and interactive discussion about how things can be improved. The facilitator should include in the ground rules, that the action group is to be used for proactive discussion that supports action to create solutions to the issues that have been identified. It is not to be used for undocumented complaints that are not accompanied by possible suggestions for improvement.

The ultimate outcome of the organized action group process is threefold:

First, it can be used to advise and make recommendations to the district’s Board of Education regarding future decisions the board makes.
Second, it can develop specific strategies that will enhance the curriculum delivery within the school district.
Third, the group can develop an action plan to work alongside other community entities to promote the school district efforts.

By employing a community-based Action Group, it is possible to identify the facts behind the issues and explore potential solutions to the obstacles of keeping the schools and the community progressive, vital and strong in an economically challenging time.

We have found that with our work with public school clients, employing a continuously supported Community Action Group approach always creates positive long term results. We’ve witnessed the kind of powerful results that can offset the “bad press” invariably created by the media, recalcitrant parents, and community members at large. Proactive involvement at all levels yields unprecedented support and successes.

In summary, the four concepts, processes, and strategies we have discussed in this part, as well as the first three of this white paper, just scratch the surface of the many ways administrators, teachers, transportation, food service personnel, school board members and community can bring about the necessary changes to help their school district survive and thrive in the 21st century. The key thought to remember is that a school district must create and implement a continual and flexible action plan that addresses the interests of all of the stakeholders in this process. For the program to succeed, it is crucial to develop an organized and traceable process designed to change with the times and address new issues as they arise. When you build your system with an approach that works the best for your district’s operations, success with positive change is inevitable!

Tom Borg Consulting, LLC., is a consulting group that specializes in outside the box strategic planning, marketing, leadership training, team building, and customer culture transformation, for public school systems in Michigan and the United States. For a free 30 minute consulting session or for more information please call 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.TomBorgConsulting.com