I’ve been sitting in my office pondering the back of our “Corporate Identity” card, the one with our name/logo on the front, and our mission, vision, and values on the back.

Our first value is Put People First. It occurred to me that we may have left a word out: Other. Can you guess where it would go?

In 2010 America, our culture bombards us with images of People Who Have It All Together. Depending on what’s being sold, they alternately are rich, smart, desirable, powerful, or all the above. The temptation to emulate them overwhelms us. Individually, and as a society, we focus on molding ourselves into the best composite Person With Most of It Together that we can manage. And that’s OK. As human beings we are vain by nature.

But the by-product of this incessant media blitz is a culture of self-absorption. Increasingly missing is a concern for others, for the broader good, and yes, for our relative individual insignificance. As our communities have splintered our sense of belonging to a group of people that we care about—and that cares about us—has diminished. How do I look? What will I make? What’s required of me? I have to do what?

Our business and government institutions—for the last hundred years the envy of the world—have lost their collective sense of responsibility to others. Shamefully profligate, our nation, and our government, spend like there is no tomorrow. Instead of prudently laying a financial foundation for the next generation, Americans demand to spend what they don’t make. Gimmee, gimmee, gimmee … how sad!

There is a better way. Put Other People First. In your personal and business lives, put other people first. Re-order your thought sequence. What works for the other person? Can that work for me? Can I accommodate them and still achieve my objectives? Are my objectives too high? Should I meet the other person’s objectives and lower my own? How can I approach my work in a way that makes it easiest on those I deal with? Consistent with maintaining the integrity of our processes and relationships, what can I do to better support my customers? Put Other People First.

Throughout history, those meeting the most needs of the most people have been the greatest service providers—the greatest winners—in their industries … and guess what? We’re in the SERVICE BUSINESS. Whatever your job description, YOU are a service provider to others, either inside or outside Envoy.
By putting others first you approach your customers from the right perspective. Your needs initially are ignored; they are off the table. What does my customer need? Do I understand their needs fully? How can I best serve them in this situation? Does this solution work inside our normal way of doing business? If so, your needs are met. If not, can your needs be reduced so that the customer can be served best?

Every one of us loves to deal with a person who is concerned about and accommodates our individual needs, whether the matter is business or personal. If you’re an originator, you want to be known as the SERVICE KING or QUEEN. Put your needs aside and watch your referrals grow. This is not to be confused with letting your customers walk all over you; your needs are legitimate, and important! But by re-ordering when and how they get considered, your customer service index will increase dramatically.

And it could be that my (or your) personal needs are too high. Perhaps I can get by with less; less money, less getting my own way, less everything. Perhaps I can find joy in being of outstanding personal service to someone else. Could that be the way I am meant to live?

Put Other People First. They (and you) will enjoy it!

Rick

Video – Think & Grow Rich – a visit with Napoleon Hill – Part 8

If I like it, I clip it…       Let me know what you think.  Also, let me know if you find some good articles so I can pass them along here. 

14 Essential Leadership Traits –

Justice: Be a square shooter. Don’t play favorites. Keep anger and emotion out of your decisions. Be objective. Give every one of your people the opportunity to prove themselves.
Judgment: This comes with time and experience. Simply weigh the facts in a given situation to make a considered decision or sensible conclusion.
Decisiveness: Be able to make tough decisions quickly and accurately. This is especially important under stressful conditions. “Better to do something imperfectly than do nothing flawlessly.”- Robert H. Schuller
Integrity: Being honest with yourself and your people. Have and exhibit strong unwavering principles. This instills trust and confidence. People can accept mistakes but they will never forgive lying, cheating, or stealing. Without trust what else is there?
Dependability: Be unfailing in your reliability. Your people are counting on you to be there for them EVERY time. You can share responsibility but never accountability. After all, you are responsible for all your people do or fail to do.
Tact: The ability to use the appropriate force necessary to handle a situation. It is just as important to exercise tact with your subordinates as it is with your peers, leaders, or customers.
Initiative: If something needs to be done don’t wait to be told. Act. Take charge. You know what your mission is. Make an executive decision and drive on.
Enthusiasm: It’s absolutely contagious. Enthusiasm in everything you do. People naturally are attracted to and want to follow leaders with a positive mental attitude. Remember, this must be genuine. It can’t be faked. Your people will see through it and begin to doubt your sincerity or worse, your integrity.
Bearing: Encompasses the way you move, stand, behave, and comport yourself. Bearing is key to the establishment of your legitimacy as a leader. Equanimity. The ability to maintain a calm demeanor especially under stressful conditions. Exhibiting composure and evenness of temper you earn your people’s trust and confidence.
Unselfishness: Share your people’s hardships. Get the best equipment, tools, and training you can for them, all the time. Even if you, personally, have to do without the latest and greatest gadgets. You’re there to support them. By making their jobs and lives easier you’re enabling them perform more efficiently and effectively. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel said, “The best form of welfare for the troops is first-class training, for this saves unnecessary casualties.“ Take care of your people and they will take care of you.
Courage: Demonstrate courage by gaining control of your fears and insecurities. Harness them to stimulate you to action. Courage builds with action. Stand up for what’s right regardless of the risk to you. Do the right thing even though it may not popular. With the benefit of title and position comes great responsibility.
Knowledge: Know your profession. Set the example by technically and tactically proficient. As the leader you are in the business of knowing. If you don’t know something admit it. NEVER bullshit them! You will instantly lose credibility.
Loyalty: It’s a two way street. It goes all the way up and down the chain of command. As a leader every word, every deed, must reflect loyalty. Back up your people when they’re right. Correct them when they’re wrong. Pass along directives as though they are yours. Relying on the position or title of a superior who told you to do a job is to weaken your own position. NEVER criticize your company, your superiors, or your peers in the presence of your people. Never dress down a subordinate in front of their peers. Pull them aside and address the issue privately.
Endurance: Your people look to you for guidance and to pull them through. Keep yourself physically strong, mentally sharp, and morally fit. Show them strength of character through your ability to take stress and difficulties in stride.

The mortgage broker-share of home loan originations hit a new low of 12.9 percent in the third quarter, according to an exclusive survey from National Mortgage News.   The publication said loan originators funded a total of $443 billion in the third quarter, with retail lenders grabbing 48.3 percent of the market share and correspondent lenders accounting for 38.8 percent.    more…  

  THE WORD ON LOAN BROKERS: "A lot of firms have no interest in our broker research," said David Olson who runs Access Research of Columbia, Md. Earlier in the year Access was called Wholesale Access and you can pretty much figure out why he removed the word ‘Wholesale’ from the firm’s name. In an interview with National Mortgage News Mr. Olson said the only large bank wholesaler that still believes in brokers is Wells Fargo. "We’ve been having a debate with Wells," he said. "They think the channel is coming back."  more…  National Mortgage News Online

Hindsight is 20/20, and yet few people take advantage of this wisdom as a regular part of their business practice. So much of our work is cyclical, with yearly national conferences, quarterly workshops and seminars and weekly meetings.  How often do we take the time to do a thorough debrief of an event?
The immediate value of your newly gained insights disappears if it is not documented in right away. Research shows details are forgotten after just five- to six days. Many people don’t do a debrief session with their team because they are already busy working on the next event.
The purpose of the debrief is to find better ways of doing things by identifying mistakes and clarifying objectives. Two important outcomes of this process are to learn and hold onto what works, and to share and teach best practices for future success.

Here are four topics to address during a debrief session with your team/staff:1. What worked especially well? What parts would we want to repeat if/when we do this event again? What other factors worked to our favor?

2. What aspects did not work? Did we miss something entirely?  What assumptions did we make that backfired? What areas needed more support than we expected? What took more time than we budgeted? What lessons did we learn? Where was there confusion?

3. What were the biggest risks we took? Did they turn out as we expected? Were they worth it? Did we take enough risks? Were there surprises we didn’t anticipate? How well did we handle them? How could we better prepare for the “surprise factor” in the future?

4. If money, time and resources were not a factor, what would we do differently? What features, benefits or “goodies” would we add to the event? Describe in vivid detail this ideal scene in terms of wild success and flawless execution.

By making the debrief session part of the complete process, you add an effective planning tool to your management ability and to your organization’s future. Using your group’s understanding and appreciation for what has taken place is essential to the success of future events.

Stop the cycle of repeating the same mistakes over and over again. Don’t buy into “crisis management.” Most crises can be anticipated and avoided with the right planning and attention. After an event, seminar or meeting, take a few moments to analyze these important questions.  They will help ensure future success.  

JASON W. WOMACK, MEd, MA and JODI WOMACK, MA founded a professional development company that helps people with their time, technology and training needs.  Web site: www.WomackCompany.com