I had lunch recently with a great friend, Roger Rhoades, who has 30-plus year’s experience as a relationship counselor. Somehow we got on the subject of the difference between people who are spectators of life versus people on the field in the game, and the song “Centerfield” by John Fogerty came up. The chorus is amazingly insightful to me, as an advisor who works with a lot of CEOs and pastors, to help them build great organizations that stay relevant to the worlds they’re trying to connect with. I know Fogerty didn’t write it for that purpose, but here’s the chorus:
“Oh, put me in, coach—I’m ready to play today (2x);
Look at me, I can be centerfield.”

The chorus illustrates four great principles that separate dreamers from success stories:

1) Power of the Ask (Put me in, coach!)

Over the years I’ve marveled at the people who appear less talented, less qualified, less “voted most likely to ____”, yet they got the job, got the TV show, got the dream girl, got the book deal, fulfilled the dream. The difference: At some point, they realized they’d have to be bold, strike the fine balance between humility and confidence, and say “Put me in, coach!” Notice a critical, subtle key word: ‘coach.’

Are you asking the right person—the person in authority over your opportunity—for the chance to be put in? Telling your friends, complaining to co-workers, asking the wrong people for feedback does no good. At some point, you’ve got to recognize the power of knowing your rights; ask the right person for the right opportunity at the right time for the right motives. This also means asking for the opportunity, confidently, knowing you may get a “no.” It’s your future, your dream, your life. Wanna have it?

2) Power of Preparation (I’m ready to play!)

David had to practice throwing a rock with a slingshot for days, months, years…before he got to throw it at Goliath one time. When the call came, he was ready, and his entire life changed in 24 hours. Olympians spend every day of their life trying to shave the 1/100th off their time to make the difference between bronze and silver medals. Before your door of opportunity finally opens, are you preparing your gifts and talents in private in preparation for them to be on display publicly?

3) Power of Priorities (Today!)…

I don’t advocate being a workaholic, nor am I suggesting everything happens overnight. However, there are moments we have to recognize that a door is opened, and be keenly aware of its closeability. All doors close eventually—that’s why they’re on hinges. What matters most is what side you’re on when it does close. When the door opens today, what’s your excuse for waiting until tomorrow to charge through it with a sense of urgency? “Oh, it’ll be there tomorrow…I have all these emails to catch up on before I make the call…I can’t possibly pick up and fly to New York just for a lunch…” Well? Why not today? What guarantee do you have the door will be open tomorrow? After all, why would God open it today, if you weren’t supposed to move toward it today?

4) Power of knowing who you are vs. what you do (I can BE centerfield!).

The amazing part of that lyric (the part I always thought was bad grammar), an awkward ending to a chorus…I never caught it in 20-plus years until now…he said “be” instead of “play” centerfield.

Your gift, the thing inside you that’s uniquely you and opens doors of opportunity for your future—is in you because of who you are, not what you do. Great jobs, relationships, and other opportunities rarely come to you as a result of what you do, they usually come to you because of who you are.

He knew he loved baseball, and could play a lot of positions. But the one he was born for—was centerfield. Middle of the action. The one that required the guy with the best speed, the best arm, the best sense of the game to be counted on to cover the most ground and save the day the most times up against the wall.

Great success stories are great because they didn’t ask for any job, they asked for a chance at “the” job. The relationship. The internship. The chance. They asked for it because they knew it was in them, it was what they were born to do, and it was who they were.

If you haven’t followed the story of Alvin Greene, you should. In essence, the story goes like this: Greene filed as a Democratic candidate for DeMint’s seat in the U.S. Senate. He bought no yard signs, he showed up on no TV commercials. He didn’t campaign, stump or otherwise even appear in public. (Although he apparently WAS doing some type of person-to-person meet and greets, thus his felony charge.)

Still, he beat his opponent with 59 percent of the vote.

What does this mean for you? Well, whether you are a large corporation or a small business, it should tell you one thing:

If you aren’t marketing yourself, and marketing yourself well, you could very easily be beat by a nobody.

Okay, so maybe “nobody” is a harsh term here, but the truth is that many businesses eschew a marketing and PR plan because “money’s tight” or “it’s the easiest thing to cut.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard those — and many other—excuses. Many companies think themselves so far ahead of competition, or maybe even exempt from it, that marketing is the first cut. Advertising? Gone. Strategy? Gone. Social media presence? Takes too much time. Website? We’ll do it later.

Well guess what? While you are fading off into the noise, the general public (who now doesn’t know you from the next guy) is not getting a Top-of-Mind *ping* on your company when they need your product. Nope, they are simply picking up the phone book and dialing the first name on the list.

So, unless your name starts with an “A”, I’d suggest you re-evaluate where you are going.

You’ve probably heard it said that seeds produce after their own kind. In other words, apple seeds don’t produce cucumbers, they produce apples. Acorns produce oak trees. A seed produces what’s in it.

At the top of most organizations and/or divisions, there’s generally one of two types of leaders: Reproducers or Producers.

Reproducers, generally, are reproducers because they reproduce reproducers. It’s what they’re wired to do.

Producers, if given a leadership position, typically produce producers.

Stick with me, and think about your current team, and who falls in which category: recognizing what kind of leader you are (a reproducer or a producer), and recognizing what kind of leaders you have in your organization, can go a long way in eliminating frustration and setting realistic expectations. It will also help you in determining who should be championing what, and why you should hand off responsibility of cultivating a leader to a reproducer, versus handing off the responsibility of executing a project to a producer.

A reproducer is wired to reproduce reproducers, and gifted at spotting them quickly. In other words, inside him/her is the capacity to identify, develop and release other leaders who can exponentially reproduce other leaders so you as an organization can expand capacity, add other services and products, a lot faster. A sign of an organization led by a reproducer is rapid horizontal growth. New division rollouts, more risk taken to penetrate new markets, etc.

Producers, however, if put in a leadership position, will typically raise up other producers. A producer in a leadership position can typically build a strong unit of production capacity, and continue to find opportunities for efficiency, savings, and increase output capacity. A sign of an organization with a producer at the helm tends to be laser-beam focused in a single discipline and vertically competitive (multiple layers of experience and depth within a single market space). However, don’t place a false expectation that out of that unit will come your organization’s next reproducers.

Every organization needs both. Just make sure the right one is in the right seat on the bus.

Thanks to Jake Hayes, from InSource Executives, for his eye-opening session on The Greatest Idea Ever and other beliefs that kill business. What an amazing half an hour!

The Greatest Idea Ever. We all have great ideas, but do we have the business to back up our idea? It’s dangerous to have the greatest idea ever, because if you think about it, you don’t need to do market research. It sells itself! It’s the greatest idea ever! Is this realistic?We look around us and all we see is products. iPods. It’s the business that makes these products successful, not the idea itself. Apple took the mundane product of an mp3, and innovation and commitment to their brand lead the iPod to where it is today.

When you have the greatest idea ever, the idea itself is sacred. So…if that’s the case, you can’t innovate. You can’t enhance it. There’s no room for improvement. When you have the greatest idea ever, what’s the right price for it? If you drop the price, what if the quality drops?

Follow your passions. If everyone in the world starting off by pursuing their passion, we’d have a world full of actors, astronauts, and athletes. Passion and talent aren’t necessary linked. Just because we’re passionate about something doesn’t mean we’re good at it. Think about a football game. A stadium is full of fans watching a sport that they are immensely passionate about. If they passionate about football, shouldn’t they be out on the field playing?

We don’t want to tell people to follow their passion. We’re not in a country of finishers. We start things and we don’t finish them. If what you’re doing today is a bad idea, then stop doing it! Finish what you started, absolutely, but know when to quit.

Finish what you have started. When you are starting a business, you can’t afford to throw away your trash. The biggest pieces of wastes we see in small business is our contacts and our needs. If your business can’t provide the services that the customer needs, find out who can, bring them in, and make a difference. Does your trash consist of lost contacts, lost projects, etc.? How you use this trash can make the difference between profitability and just making it.

The competition is your best chance of success. Being there will make us push to improve our business model and our product. There’s room for mutual success, and you just have to find it.

If I only had more money. Money doesn’t solve problems, it’s the universal accelerator. We’re looking at the wrong gages. Accounts receivable is not how much money you’re going to get. Sales are irrelevant if your costs are astronomical.

As we look out at launching Greenville and taking small business to the next rung, we have to sit down and look at our beliefs. We have to know when to use what we know. When is it important to be motivated, and when is it important to be realistic? We have to have a plan, and abandon these beliefs that are killing our business.

Thanks to Trey Pennington for enlightening us on how to change our perspective, and capitalize on our opportunities. And a huge thank you to Enterprise Launch for getting Launch Greenville in motion and making it the success it is today!

LAUNCH Greenville 2010 is underway, and we are so excited to be here (like, really excited!). We have three enticing keynote speakers this morning and then a marketing, sales, and business owner panel this afternoon! The Marketing Pro. The Sales Guru. The Small Business Fanatic. Key Business Connections….We have a lot of stuff to cover. Stick with us, and you’ll be quite amazed at what we’ll show you (And don’t forget to check us out on Twitter, Facebook, and ….)

2009 was tough, right? So how do we move from the struggle of the previous year to making a change in 2010? It’s about changing your perspective. The age of opportunity awaits us, and we have to be optimistic. When we learn that we are in control of our own destiny, then we can move to the next level.

In order to change our perspective, Trey offered these ideas:

1) Having a mentality of just letting things go. We have to natural tendency to build fences around and guard our assets rather than letting them go. Why not let your gurad down, take risks?

2) Maximizing Sales—Purposely giving things away. The purpose of business is to maximize shareholder wealth, not just making money.

3) Pursuing your passion—Be bold to start something, even if you don’t know the end. There’s wisdom in planning, but it restrains us from taking that first step.

4) Listen, and take the message in— What about listening, instead of getting your message out there? It’s transformative, and it could change the way you do business.

Barriers to changing your perspective: FEAR of the unknown—You have to be willing to make a choice that you’re ok with uncertainty, and that you’re ok with being totally responsible for the outcome. Pursue your passion, put yourself out there, and ignite those passions towards the goal.

Eight Be attitudes to seize these opportunities:
1. Be alert
2. Be quiet
3. Be available
4. Be responsive
5. Be visible
6. Be generous
7. Be helpful
8. Be quiet (humility).

At the end of the day, what’s that point? It’s about creating value for other people. We need to create value for our customer, and not worry about making a buck today. The joy we can obtain from creating joy for other people is endless. Choose to act.

(Yeah, we said GIVEAWAY!)

Business Black Box is giving away FOUR free tickets to this weekend’s Launch Greenville event, at the Carolina First Center!!!

If you don’t know about the event, visit www.launchgreenville.com.(But you’re also in trouble, because it means you haven’t been reading your emails!)

Here’s how you can win:
1. Send us an email at jordana@insideblackbox.com.

2. Put CONTEST in the subject line. (This is important! You don’t want to get overlooked!)

3.Then, give us one reason why you need to go to Launch Greenville. Is it because you need a better sales process? Need to know about marketing yourself? Or you’re just a start-up or small business and need to figure out what you’re doing in the first place?

4.Include your Name, Company, Title, Phone number and Email address. This info MUST be present to win!!

Listen, now, this is important: Deadline is 8 a.m. TOMORROW, Wednesday, April 14. No exceptions! We’ll take the best responses and pick four to attend.

Yes, it’s that simple. So send us an email NOW to get a free ticket ($149 value!)

See you there!

The NextStart community is looking for innovative entrepreneurs dedicated to creating a successful business but lack the experience, connections, and money necessary to start their venture. The NextStart program offers participants the advantage of seed money combined with intense entrepreneurially focused workshops and work space in a unique community rich with innovative spirit and experienced business leaders.

The NextStart program is designed to provide founders of new ventures the tools necessary to start and grow a successful business. Selected companies will be given up to $10,000 in seed capital and participate in our twelve-week program that encompasses mentoring in addition to various learning opportunities, resources, and assistance. The program will provide participants with housing and office space in the vibrantly entrepreneurial community of Greenville, SC. This community has a multitude of both small and international business enterprises, a technology oriented and entrepreneurial focused research university, and a pool of retired CEOs and young executives giving participants the opportunity to create a valuable network of experienced mentors from which they can draw knowledge. Upon graduating the program, participants are expected to use these lessons and their newly expanded network to advance their business plans.

NextStart will also provide participants the opportunity to pitch their company to an audience of qualified investors for additional funding at the end of the program. Applications are due April 15.

Candidates may apply online. Please click here for an application. For more information concerning the NextStart program, please visit www.nextstart.org or contact Jessica Blair.

I had a baseball coach in high school who, when he saw any of us standing around, would shout, “Get moving, you’re not here to kill grass and make my turf brown!”

People who stay in one place too long, get offended, or refuse to recognize their own pride usually get their toes stepped on by those following a leader’s vision. For a vision to be fulfilled, leaders need people willing to constantly be moving, growing, changing, challenging “the way we always did things” and carving out new ground of opportunity and new turf. Those who complain about their toes getting stepped on are usually spending far too much time attaching their self-worth to the turf they’ve firmly planted their own feet on.

Problem is, when leaders cast vision, those called to the leader respond by blazing trails to fulfill the vision. The only way new ground gets plowed is by digging up old turf. Progressive, growing organizations have leaders who are constantly willing to allow people to take risks, challenge old paradigms and build new bridges to the future. But you can’t build two sets of bridges simultaneously, in opposite directions. It drains too many resources, zaps too much energy and sucks too much life and joy out of the journey.

In large organizations especially, when teams begin building bridges to the future, the hope is that everyone will cross the bridge. In reality, not everyone will. As a leader, the easiest way to figure out who’s on board, who has their own agenda and who can’t go with you is to see who’s trying to build a bridge between where you are and where you used to be. In other words, they’re building a second bridge to create a path—a way for them to stay the way they are and not work with those you’ve brought in to effect change. You can’t afford two crews, so make a decision which crew to pull, and give everyone the opportunity to get on the same bridge-building project.

As a leader, you aren’t responsible for the feelings and frustrations of those who feel their toes are being stepped on, if you’ve clearly articulated the vision and given them every opportunity to get off the old turf and start building toward the future. You are, however, responsible for recognizing who’s complaining about their toes getting stepped on, and helping them see that, in reality, they are getting their toes stepped on by the very people you’ve put in place to bring the organization to the place you envision.

The other responsibility you have, to them and to the team, is to give them only one choice, and give it to them with compassion: They can stay if they get their toes out of the way, off of the turf they think is theirs, and get their feet moving on the new bridge. If not, that’s okay. There will always be people assigned to different stages of your vision who helped you get here, but can’t help you get there.

People who stay in one place too long are the people who get their toes stepped on because they’re standing idle, pointed in the wrong direction, and a vision only waits so long. For the vision to be fulfilled, the people who have the resources and the drive will make it happen and be there when the final bell sounds.

“Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.

“Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind, and greed—you mark my words—will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other
malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A.”

The above was said by Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas) to shareholders of Teldar Paper in a very famous scene of the movie “Wall Street” (1987). We have become Gordon Gekko as a global economic society and are suffering the consequences. Life preservers are being thrown out in the form of articles, books, congressional hearings and the media about leadership, who’s to blame, and how to fix the mess. From the presidents of nations to the entrepreneurs running a one-man shop, true leadership in adversity needs to be sealed with a K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid).

Greed Is Not Good

Whenever there is an approaching hurricane, the local price of building material, gas, and other necessities go up 10 times. There are countless articles about all the unfair business practices after Hurricane Katrina where a number of companies were fined for this behavior. In the short run, companies that exploit a natural tragedy may profit financially, but in the long-term, negative consequences are significant. Credit card companies are notorious for this behavior, with limited laws to protect the customer. The very high interest rates charged and the changes in customer fees with no warning are all in the defense of competitiveness. This short-term gain and long term pain is not consistent with good leadership. There will be more damage to the company and the people due to poor self-regulation which leads to federal oversight. It is amazing how many leaders forget the very idea of why they are in business:
provide a reliable product to better the lives of people at a fair price.

Walk The Talk

Today the media is full of news of companies reducing their labor forces, freezing/lowering salaries,or cutting back on spending. If a company or an individual is required to cut back, modify behavior, or hold to the promises that were made, then so also should the leadership. This raises the issue of ethics associated with leaders who expect and retain exorbitant compensation packages and astronomical bonuses. First, you should not take it, and if you did, give it back. Never make a promise you can’t deliver. If some unusual circumstances do come up, you may have to break the promise; but in most cases, you should have the moral duty to be true to your word. A leader has an obligation to tell the truth and be honest with their stakeholders that directly affect the enterprise.

Know What You Are Selling

One of the primary reasons for the current economic conditions that started in the U.S. and infected the globe was the exuberance of investors to buy and sell financial products whose complexity they didn’t fully understand. It is unimaginable that “experts” were involved in thousands of transactions with so much at stake. And, at the same time, these experts were ignorant about what they were buying or selling. Due to the fact that huge amounts of money were being made, no one questioned the deals or had the fortitude to raise the issues to investors, board members, or the public. Product knowledge is no small detail for doing business. It is a responsibility you owe to your customers, board members, and your investors.

Protect Your Assets

We all know the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would wish them do unto you.” People are your assets, whether they are your employees, vendors, customers, or investors. That’s what makes or breaks a business. When a leader can foresee that a decision is likely to do harm and he makes it anyway, he is being irresponsible. The continuing pursuit to be No.1 can give a myopic view of what is really important; respect for others. Look at what the sub-prime mortgage lenders did; they manipulated people into borrowing money that had a high probability of default, and enriched themselves at the expense of others. A good leader recognizes that avoiding harm to people and company is responsible business policy.

I Made A Mistake

How many times have you heard the words transparency, accountability, and oversight in the past 12 months from people that were not in leadership positions. Classic obfuscation was seen during the dot com bust. Enron (Ken Lay), WorldCom (Bernie Ebers), Tyco (Dennis Kozlowski) are examples of never admitting, “I made a mistake” due to blind greed and arrogance. All three were sentenced to jail, although unfortunately, Lay died of a heart attack during his trial. Now we are going through the same cycle, except this time it is the financial sectors and on a much grander scale. If something goes wrong on “your watch,” it is you who is responsible to fix the problem. When a business leader makes a mistake that has an adverse effect on the enterprise, they must apologize to the investors and do what is necessary to rectify the situation. This is part of the business culture in Japan and other Asian nations, from which leaders in America can learn.

Passion is what drives any business. It is also what causes it to fail when it transforms into an obsession. As Peter Drucker stated, “it is not enough to do things right; we must also do the right things.”

I was asked to speak at a small business event about Entrepreneurship: Are You Ready? My experience in working with Small Business Development organizations and projects and doing consulting and training for Woman/Minority Owned Businesses has shown me that when people talk about becoming (or being) an entrepreneur they primarily mean they want to start a business (or have one).
With that in mind, I prepared a list of important questions for my audience to ask themselves. Below are those questions along with the supplementary questions and points. Definition of Entrepreneur (according to Wikepedia): Term applied to the type of personality who is willing to take upon herself or himself a new venture or enterprise and accepts full responsibility for the outcome.
Here are some important questions to ask yourself whether you have a business, are starting one or are thinking about starting one.

Why do I want to start this business? (Or why did I start it?)
• Needs to be more than: “I didn’t want to work for someone else anymore.”
• If X can do it, so can I, may or may not be true.
• Remember having a passion for something is not enough.
• Be careful of: “So I can be at home with my children” or “So I will have more control of my time”.

Do I know what my product or service is (will be)?
• Be sure you are clear.
• Don’t try to be too much.
• Don’t group things that are different.
• Too much and too different make you look as if you’re not good enough at something specific.
• Can you translate your product or service into a benefit.

Who are my customers, clients, prospects?
• If this is not clear you will be wasting time, effort and money marketing and selling.
• Everyone or anybody are not good answers.
• Banks say this is the number one question loan seekers cannot answer.
• It takes research to truly answer this.

Do I understand what makes my prospects spend money?
• Your product/service doesn’t make them spend money; their need or desire does.
• It takes research to know what makes them spend money.
• Not understanding this will cause you to waste a lot of time and money and possibly to fail.

Does it matter to my prospects that my business is Small or Minority/Woman Owned?
• They must have a reason.
• Typical reasons are social consciousness or money.
• If they do not care, use another marketing angle.
• Research is necessary to know this.

Am I prepared to spend the time and money necessary to market/sell my products and services?
• Because research is necessary, you must do it or have it done to be successful.
• Marketing and sales must be done whether you like it or not
• You must do it or pay someone to do it.

Where will I get money to start/run my business?
• First, do you know how much you need?
• If you plan to start part-time or on a shoestring, be sure you can be successful.
• If you go to a bank you must address the other questions in this list.
• Remember that with investors of any kind you lose some control.
• Passion and Good Ideas are not financed, potential profit is financed.
• Do not expect to receive grants to start or run your business – they do not exist.

Do I understand the difference between should and will?
• Just because prospects, banks, investors, employees, etc. should doesn’t mean they will.
• Believing that people will because they should sets you up for failure or at the least disappointment and frustration.
• Research is vital to know if prospects and banks/investors will do what you think they should.

Who are my competitors and how many of them are out there? Are they succeeding? How many have started and closed in the last 5 years?
• Don’t start a business in a field that is already crowded unless you have something very unique.
• Don’t start a business in a field where people are not succeeding unless you know why they are not succeeding and you know (not think) you can do better.
• If you do not know your competition how will you compete?
• Be sure you have enough money, time and people to compete.
• Research is necessary to understand the competition.

Do I have enough time, energy and money to run a business?
• A good question is “Do I have the stomach for it”
• Another good question is “Do I have the stamina?”
• You must do the research, understand the situation and develop the plans so that you know what it will take to start and run a business.
• The research will also help you put passion and expectations in perspective.

Do I have a clear understanding of the obstacles and pitfalls of starting and running my business? Do I have a plan to deal with them?
• This is very important, but is specific to your business type and your situation.
• The need for this understanding is why research is vital.
• The need for planning is why you hear “Do you have a Business Plan?” all the time.

How thick is my skin? (Or how sensitive am I to these words: “NO”, “You’re too small/new”, “We already have a supplier.”)
• Can you hear these words and move on to the next loan officer or prospect?
• Can you use these words to help you decide if you need to modify, redirect or fold your tent?
• Can you take these words as opportunities and not obstacles?

How prepared are you to follow direction and jump through hoops?
• If a prospect has a process can you accept the fact that you must follow it, will you allocate the time to do so?
• Do you understand that the directions or hoops are part of the “test”?
• Do you recognize that the directions or hoops do not have to make sense to you?
• Remember that the customer is always right!

Janet Christy is President of Leverage & Development, LLC, and can be reached at janet@leverageanddevelopment.com.