intrapreneur

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Asynchronous Work, also known as Async Work, is a fast-growing and popular way to engage your teams and workforce. As you listen, it may initially sound like this change won’t work for your business, but give it a chance - we think we’ll help change your mind. Async, which has elements of LEAN and AGILE methodologies is a great new process of workflow for career success and business growth - and how about them Moo’s!

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Synchronous vs Asynchronous work examples

* How texting and on-line forums changed our work-flow

* Why an old episode of the US TV show ‘I Love Lucy’ nails it!

* An easy way to test if async work can work for you

* A great example of an Async Work document from GitLab  

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

Async work is more than possible, it may be essential as we adapt to the changes from Covid. Asynchronous work is preferred by the new generation of employees and if you don’t know enough about Async work, it a good idea to explore it. 

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

• I Love Lucy clip Lucy and the Chocolate Factory https://youtu.be/NkQ58I53mjk
• Gitlab: How to Embrace Async Communications: https://about.gitlab.com/company/culture/all-remote/asynchronous/
• HBR Remote Work Should Be (Mostly) Asynchronous: https://hbr.org/2021/12/remote-work-should-be-mostly-asynchronous

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An entrepreneur and intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. 

HOW TO WORK WITH US

Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve, AND you like to play to win in business or soar to new heights in your personal career success - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? The SPIFF - is it an Incentive to fail? SPIFF, SPIF, or SPIV are all the same form of a short-term bonus paid to employees that may be used inadvertently to cover up a bigger problem. SPIFFs can be distracting to your leadership career success and business growth. On this podcast episode, we have two stories to tell that are all about that SPIFF and a suggestion for an alternative.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* We thank listener Jared for his question about the purpose behind the SPIFF.

* What is the definition of a SPIFF, SPIF or SPIV and what does it stand for?

* Are SPIFFs really as useful and effective as they’re made out to be?

* The negative effects of SPIFFs on long-term behavior and business growth.

* A story about the “Distracting Injury” and how it relates to SPIFFs.

* A Good SPIFF example.

* The law and IRS issues behind the SPIFF.

* Alternatives to consider.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

SPIFFs are often used to try to correct a bigger problem and they often fail to help. Instead, look more closely for the root of the problem and correct that. 

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

We mentioned a quote from NATHAN BONILLA-WARFORD, OD, here: https://www.reviewob.com/research-says-spiffs-incentives-dont-work-are-you-using-them/

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An entrepreneur and intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. 

HOW TO WORK WITH US

Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve, AND you like to play to win in business or soar to new heights in your personal career success - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Workplace Bullying. It’s a growing problem in business that often hides in plain sight and is more than just an employee problem. We share a troubling story about this, discuss the current state of the employment laws, and offer some unique suggestions and resources to help mitigate bullying in the workplace.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Remember when bullying was just a kid’s thing?

* Some troubling statistics on Bullying in the workplace

* We tell a story of a friend’s encounter with upper management bullying

* Introduce the Workplace Bullying Institute as an excellent resource

* Expose how “bullying” is not necessarily “harassment”, per se

* We discuss the laws - or lack thereof - on workplace bullying

* Offer a new step in the chain to help businesses avoid problems with bullying

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY? 

Workplace bullying is reported more and more by employees of businesses of all sizes. Currently, organizations, in general, are not prepared for the effects of this troubling trend called workplace bullying. We provide some resources and tips to help with this often elusive form of employee harassment.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

• How to Identify and Manage Workplace Bullying at Healthline: https://www.healthline.com/health/workplace-bullying
• Wikipedia definition https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workplace_bullying
• Workplace Bullying Institute site: https://workplacebullying.org/
• WBI Healthy Workplace Bill draft https://healthyworkplacebill.org/
• Massachusetts Bill S.2448 on Workplace Bullying https://malegislature.gov/Bills/190/S2448
• Puerto Rico Anti-Bullying Law https://www.stopbullying.gov/resources/laws/puerto-rico
• US Civil Rights Act https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/civil-rights-center/statutes/civil-rights-act-of-1964#:~:text=The%20Civil%20Rights%20Act%20of%201964%20prohibits%20discrimination%20on%20the,hiring%2C%20promoting%2C%20and%20firing
• My Job Here Is Done podcast on Work-Life Balance https://www.myjobhereisdone.com/work-life-balance-im-not-in-the-mood/

These books were referenced or mentioned in this episode and are worth checking out: Please note: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you, so thank you!

• BullyProof Yourself At Work (DoubleDoc Press, 1999) Gary and Ruth Namie Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3vXyJ6u
• The Bully At Work (Sourcebooks, 2009) Gary and Ruth Namie
  Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3OQBZZS
• The Bully-Free Workplace (Wiley, 2011) Gary and Ruth Namie, et. al
  Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3LFq92J
• The Complete Guide to Understanding, Controlling and Stopping Bullies & Bullying at Work A Guide for Managers, Supervisors, and Co-Workers by Margaret R. Kohut MSW
  Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3vBko0t

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve AND you like to play to win in business or soar to new heights in your personal career success - click here  to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Overusing tools like PowerPoint in your presentations. Most people use these tools as a crutch thinking that it helps the presentation. Sometimes they do, but often they distract from the message. Career success and business growth rely on you being YOU! You are the star of the show, and you don’t always need Mother’s Little Helper to shine through. We show you a few ways to break your addiction.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* We DON’T cover tips on how to use PowerPoint better!

* We DO talk about the ways PowerPoint can be used effectively.

* Use the Rolling Stones's song Mother’s Little Helper to illustrate our point.

* But we emphasize how to avoid using PowerPoint as a crutch

* Examples of how you can shine without using a slideshow

* Break the addiction of using a presentation tool in a sales pitch

* Show you a real-life example of a non-slideshow presentation.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY? PowerPoint and other slideshow tools can be significant assets - sometimes. But more often than not, they’re not needed. They distract from your message, dilute your brand, and bore the audience. You can change that and be a better presenter by breaking the addiction.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

We mentioned these resources in the podcast:

Microsoft PowerPoint  https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/powerpoint

Wikipedia Mothers Little Helper song by the Rolling Stones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother%27s_Little_Helper

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Work-Life Balance - what is it exactly? Is the word “balance” confusing us into thinking that the hours we spend working and the other hours we spend in life should equal each other? Yes, many people believe that, and unfortunately, it’s not that easy. In fact, the math doesn’t work out at all. You can’t have a work-life balance if you try to calculate a formula for it, but you can have a work-life balance if you work to change your mood in life. 

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* When did we start to worry about work-life balance?

* We do the work-life math calculation - and it doesn’t work out.

* Work is essential for life; you usually spend most of your time working

* Work-Life balance is not a math formula - it’s a mood you feel.

* Employers need to enable work-life balance programs. We offer some tips.

* How can you change the mood your employees feel about working?

* How can you use mood-altering methods to achieve a genuine work-life balance?

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY? You only have so much time in a week to devote to everything in your life - including your need to work. For most of us, work will always consume the majority of our available time. Even so, being in a state of happiness at work and at home is possible if you can be in the right mood for both. If you achieve that mood - you forget about and don’t recognize an imbalance.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

Alicia Nortje, Ph.D. Work-Life Balance in Psychology: 12 Examples and Theories. Alicia Nortje, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Psychology at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. https://positivepsychology.com/what-is-work-life-balance/

We mentioned these resources in the podcast:

Glassdoor https://www.glassdoor.com/

Fairygodboss https://fairygodboss.com

Careerbliss https://www.careerbliss.com

Here is a draft position statement for a company Ombudsmen, as we discussed in the podcast:

NAME OF PERSON - is Acme’s Ombudsman and reports directly to the CEO. The role of the Ombudsman at Acme is to have a confidential and impartial teammate available to anyone who has a deep concern about the organization. Concerns could be centered around a policy, a practice, or a person at any level in our business. The guarantee of the Ombudsman is confidentiality and approachability for all, in an informal setting and as an advocate for fairness and equity. The only advice we offer on when it’s proper to use the Ombudsman over talking to your manager or HR first is when you alone feel those other options are not your best choice.

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Listening to your inner voice. Do you ever get a hunch? Sure you do - everyone does. It’s that intuition-like sensation deep inside of you that tries to sway your decision … and then the hunch you had was right! Maybe you’ve said … I have a bad feeling about this … and got out of trouble in the nick of time  - that’s also a hunch. Hunches are not guesses, they are rooted in fact and should be taken seriously.  Listen to this podcast episode as we look at hunches, what causes them, and the power that 5-second decisions can have on career success and business growth.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* The 5-second‘ food rule’ (ya, that’s just for fun)

* The trouble with squirrels (oh yes, they have big problems!)

* Intuition - hunches - are not just a guess.

* There is scientific evidence that hunches are rooted in subconscious facts

* Trust your gut feelings to make important business or career decisions

* Follow Mel Robbins’ 5 Second Rule and win more

* A cool 5-second tool you can use today - The 5 Second Test website

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

We believe strongly in trusting your instincts - going with your gut reaction - letting hunches guide your important decisions, especially when time is of the essence, or you have to make an instant decision to survive. Your professional development and career growth in business take on a new and huge advantage when you use the power of hunches. 

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

- Hodgkinson GP, Langan-Fox J, Sadler-Smith E. Intuition: a fundamental bridging construct in the behavioural sciences. Br J Psychol. 2008 Feb;99(Pt 1):1-27. doi: 10.1348/000712607X216666. PMID: 17559716.

- University of Leeds. (2008, March 6). Go With Your Gut -- Intuition Is More Than Just A Hunch, Says New Research. ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 7, 2022 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080305144210.htm

1 - The 5 Second Rule, by Mel Robbins

Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon https://amzn.to/3rdqOjY
Please note: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you, so thank you!

Mel Robbins is one of the leading voices in personal development and transformation and a New York Times Bestselling author. Her work includes "The High 5 Habit," "The 5 Second Rule," four #1 bestselling audiobooks, the #1 podcast on Audible, as well as signature online courses that have changed the lives of more than half a million students worldwide.

2 - The 5 Second Test Website

https://usabilityhub.com/product/five-second-tests

Five second tests are suitable for determining if users' first impressions of your page are on point.  This includes answering questions like:

What is the purpose of the page?
What are the main elements you can recall?
Who do you think the intended audience is?
Did the design/brand appear trustworthy?
What was your impression of the design?

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? We go letter by letter through the CRM. If you work with customers in sales, support, or literally in any fashion, you likely use a CRM, and as your business grows you’ll depend on ‘C’ - the Customer data portion of the system. You also rely on the ‘M’ for Management of the information stored, producing reports, and reminding you of important customer-related events. But your career success and advancement depend on knowing that the ‘R’ in CRM - means Revenue! 

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Define the role of the CRM in business

* You know that most businesses that use a CRM are wasting 80% of its power?

* A story about how a CRM could have cost $2.6 million dollars in valuation loss!

* What does the C mean?

* What does the M mean?

* And the star of the show  - we define the R - it means Revenue.

* We give real examples of how adding more R to the CRM drives success.

* And of course, we know that the R stands for Relationship, but do you?

* How to make the relationship come alive and make you more Revenue.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

We think that most CRM investments are largely wasted because we don’t spend enough time perfecting the R part of the system.  We highlight the problems and the fixes to help you make more revenue.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

Salesforce CRM https://www.salesforce.com

Microsoft Dymanics https://dynamics.microsoft.com/en-us/

SAP CRM https://www.sap.com/products/crm.html

Oracle CRM https://www.oracle.com/cx/what-is-crm/

Zoho CRM https://www.zoho.com/crm/

Hubspot CRM https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm

Sugar CRM https://www.sugarcrm.com

Pipedrive CRM https://www.pipedrive.com

Cloze CRM https://www.cloze.com

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

Here's a sampling of some of the highlights we have on the business success and career propelling podcast My Job Here Is Done. This Sneak Pique (clever?) is all about getting new listeners to know us better. We have a memorable way of telling stories about business growth and bringing forward solid career advice for those climbing the career ladder of success. 

We hope you'll subscribe so you don't miss a thing! You can listen to My Job Here Is Done everywhere podcasts are available. You can listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Goodpods or your favorite app. You can also hear us on your SmartSpeaker - just say Hey Siri | Hey Google | or "Alexa, play the latest episode of the podcast My Job Here Is Done."

You can find our official website here, and we're all over social media, just search for myjobpodcast.

Thanks for listening!

Dave and Kelli

Hi - We're Dave and Kelli and both of us are excited to introduce you to the podcast My Job Here Is Done™.

Our podcast is all about career success through entertaining storytelling. Our stories are all about people who grew their careers from watching others make good, or incredibly bad decisions. As your hosts, we often have contrasting views due to our different career paths, but we both are driven, ambitious, and committed to success which makes for lively, fun, and informative listening.  

Many of our stories come first-hand from Dave's decades of experience starting and running businesses, including his journey of taking one of his companies public. Kelli, on the other hand, clawed her way through a quagmire of career politics while raising a family and then earning her MBA after her kids went off to college themselves. 

So, if you are an intrapreneur, that ambitious employee looking to advance your career, or an entrepreneur who is growing their own company and you're not quite in the "1 percent club" - My Job Here Is Done is for you!

The content is not like classroom teaching or showing the “steps", it’s about provoking A-HA and WTF moments; those new ideas where you can almost see that light bulb flip on over your head. 

VERY IMPORTANT MUST-READ NOTE: This podcast does not have Kumbaya moments. There will be no hugging, hand-holding or everyone deserves a trophy stuff -- we keep it real. The fact is we succeed only if you grab a pearl of wisdom or a solid idea that you or someone you know can use during each episode. When that happens - and it will - then My Job Here Is Done!

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Friends buy from friends, and we’re not just talking about buying or selling something tangible to one another. Doing business with someone else is not just transactional; it’s both emotional and humanistic. To quickly get to that special tipping point where a business transaction is even possible, we believe creating a casual friendship is the first foundation you need to establish. Friendship trumps salesmanship, we show you how to make it work for you.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Our thesis is that, in the end, friends buy from friends.

* How do you, as a buyer, make friends with the salesperson to your advantage?

* How do you, as a salesperson, leverage friendship to make more sales?

* Tips on how to create a casual friendship that is genuine.

* A short story on buying a triple yellow Ford Mustang.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

You will sell more if you’re in sales. You will buy with more confidence if you're purchasing something of value. Plus, in business you will keep customers longer, have a better culture, and you’ll make more profit if you embrace the concept of friendship in your business.

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? Curiosity! Did curiosity really kill the cat - or does curiosity attract the cat? In your own career or your business’ growth, success relies on piquing and holding interest with your customers and the people you work for and with. In this podcast episode, we show you how to use the power of curiosity to your advantage. Our short guest segment called “Just One Question” invites marketing guru Patrick Byers to look at curiosity and its effect on emotional decision-making and persuasion. 

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* What makes the sensation of curiosity so powerful yet so underused.

* You can rephrase a statement using curious terms and get better results.

* Effective marketing is simply creating curiosity in everything you do.

* Learn about Puffery and Factsplaining.

* We show you ways to lead customers and prospects through your CTA journey.

* Our guest Patrick Byers talks about cynicism and its effects on decision making.

* Want a raise? A promotion? - we show you a better way to approach the issue. 

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

After you listen to this episode, we hope you’ll appreciate the real benefits of working with a focus on creating curiosity in everything you do. Creating curiosity will help you grow your business, it will help you climb the career ladder of success, and it’s fun to create. 

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

Wikipedia on the origin of the idiom 'Curiosity Killed the Cat’ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curiosity_killed_the_cat

A little about John Wanamaker https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wanamaker

Thanks to our special guest and friend Patrick Byers, marketing guru and founder of Outsource Marketing - also known as Outmark - near Seattle, Washington, USA. https://www.outsourcemarketing.com - Patrick mentioned these two books in this episode:

1 - The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon https://amzn.to/3uiNG1R

2 - Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything by Stephen M.R. Covey Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon  https://amzn.to/3tyEese

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you, so thank you for clicking on the links to purchase these great products!

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes differently. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? On this podcast episode of My Job Here Is Done - we buckle in and take a virtual ride on your company’s Customer Journey Pipeline and Sales Process. As we line up for the ride, we ask - does your potential prospect feel like they’re on a wild roller coaster ride as they try to become your valued customer? Too often the answer is, yes, and it’s not a fun ride at all. You’re losing customers through a shake, rattle, and roll experience, of which you may not even be aware. So climb aboard - this podcast will help you smooth out the drama and get you more customers.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* The emotions a prospect can feel and discern about your business lead funnel.

* We dive into a typical Customer Journey and point out bad experiences.

* Kelli and Dave ride along while telling a marketing story that is humorously sad.

* We take you on the Customer Journey roller coaster to see how it feels.

* Tips on reducing the angst and confusion of a bad customer journey. 

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

To attract prospects to your great products and services, they need to be led along a lead journey that is super clear and provides them with constant curiosity. By doing that well, the prospect in your lead funnel will always want to take the next step. 

Then, once that prospect has gained enough trust and confidence to take the next steps into your selling process, the excellent marketing that got them to this point must convert to an equally excellent selling process. It needs to be smooth and free of distractions. This Customer Journey shouldn't feel like they’re on a wild roller coaster ride, but it often turns out that way. 

You lose customers on that ride! Career success and business growth depend on maximizing the marketing and selling process. We tell a story in this episode that we hope will make you think more about the importance of the Customer Journey.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

Salesforce.com:  Customer Journey Mapping

https://www.salesforce.com/uk/blog/2016/03/customer-journey-mapping-explained.html

Survey Money: Take a walk in the customer’s shoes.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/map-customer-journey-keep-customers-happy/

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY? On this podcast episode, we see you’re a bit distressed! It seems you suddenly had a valued employee resign. It’s a big surprise and an even bigger hit to your team and your plans. We’re pretty sure that employee asked themselves, should I stay or should I go before they made the decisions. But we wonder, did company leadership do everything they could to prevent them from leaving? We think not!

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Good reasons why good employees leave and why you should celebrate!

* Good reasons why good employees leave and why you caused it!

* Bad reasons to leave your job, and how to correct it.

* The reasons why companies should invest in employee retention but don’t.

* Ways to create employee retention programs that work

* A story about Keys To Success and Stars of the Show

* We present a retention program called “Team R&R” (Reconnaissance and Reward)

* Kelli and Dave try to make a singing career work, Greg plays gee-tar, they “Clash” a bit.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

If good employees are leaving your organization, AND this is too often a surprise to you - it most surely is an internal and widespread company problem that may be hiding in plain sight from you as a leader. 

Too often, companies disproportionally invest more in recruiting new talent than they do in retention of current, trained, and loyal talent. The mistake here is thinking that all is - good in the hood.

Good employees can suddenly leave for really only two reasons: Reason #1 It’s simply the right time for them to leave, and reason #2 they tolerated a workplace that was not fulfilling, to the point where they just had to leave. You can fix #2 … you should be celebrating #1.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

• Indeed:  How Long should you stay at a job
• ​​Bureau of Labor Statistics Employee Tenure in 2020
• ADP Calculating the true cost to hire employees

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY?

On this episode of the My Job Here Is Done business and career success podcast, we talk about the old school of thought that you, a motivated professional, need to decide before starting your career whether you will go to college or accept a lower-paying job that does not require a degree. Conversely, as a manager, leader, or business owner, is requiring a college degree for most of your open positions really worth it? Are you getting better employees? We believe there are a lot of options in between.  

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* You don't need to decide before starting your career whether you will go to college or accept a lower-paying job that does not require a degree.

* We discuss the Opportunity@Work "Navigating with the STARs" report - (link below, read it!)

* You can choose to be a STAR (Skilled Through Alternative Routes) and utilize a gateway job, gateway learning, and gateway education to advance your career prior to entering college if you end up needing a college degree at all!

* There are a variety of options for adult learning outside of the traditional college experience. These college-level programs are designed to be very specific in nature and tailored to the fact that the attendees are already working for a living. Employers can grow and develop their workforce by embracing these alternative options called Executive Education.

* Dave and Kelli share real-life stories about their personal, educational experiences and why they chose them. Education should come at the right time and in the right form for you - not necessarily on some false schedule just because that is the way it's always been done.

* You are never too old to go back and continue your education - Kelli did, but just by the skin of her teeth :-)

WHAT'S THE TAKE-AWAY?

Consider all the options available before starting your career or hiring your next employee. There are many credible paths people can take on their way to success. They can choose to go to college and get a degree or be a STAR (Skilled Through Alternative Routes). Employers should embrace and value employees' skills without focusing on how they obtain them. (Mic drop)

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

• Opportunity@Work "Navigating with the STARs" report
• Elon Musk on college at BusinessInsider
• LinkedIn Learning courses - these courses are great.
• Definition of Executive Education from Wikipedia
• Executive Education at Rutgers
• Executive Education at Northwestern University Kellogg
• Executive Education at Villanova
• Executive Education at Southern New Hampshire University

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, 'preneurial' chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who "worked for the man like a dog for decades," and Dave, who "started or ran businesses all of his life," quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The "My Job Here Is Done" Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you're either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY?

On this episode of the My Job Here Is Done business and career success podcast, we ask and answer the question - Is there a difference between running a business and running a company? 

Spoiler Alert … YES! 

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Dave and Kelli tell the real-life story about their Dads’ career journey and how both took a different path in life, one running a business and the other running a company.

* A business is a labor of love that requires the owner’s constant attention and effort. Why?

* A company is a self-sustaining system of - people who efficiently contribute, leaders who plan and guide, and processes and systems that feed the system information on a daily basis. Tell me more!

* For the entrepreneur, understanding that difference and knowing how to tweak business drivers early on could help you make the right choice on how to achieve your long-term income stream.

* For the intrapreneur looking for a challenge and opportunity to help grow your career, you need to know the difference between a business and a company so you can select the right environment in which to work and hone your leadership skills.

* There are a few important business and company fundamentals that we discuss, including the importance and meaning of the Mission Statement. The need for well-known and written Values to help guide everyone, and then you need Goals to help everyone know when they are winners.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

Know the difference between a Business and a Company.

If you, as the owner, stop coming to work in the “Business,” even for a short period of time, your income stops, and you might be on the verge of failure.

However, you, again the owner, could leave for six months straight, turn off your cell and never check email, and when you returned to your “Company,” it would be flourishing. Your income never stops while you are gone.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

1 - We love the book “Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant by Robert T Kiyosaki
Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon https://amzn.to/36hmJ6q

2 - And Kiyosaki’s classic Rich Dad Poor Dad
Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon https://amzn.to/3hbcpit

3 - We think Understanding ESOPs, 2020 Update Paperback by Corey Rosen and Scott Rodrick is an excellent reference and guide to Employee Stock Option Programs.
Here’s our affiliate link to it on Amazon https://amzn.to/3Ib48Hl

Please note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you, so thank you!

We referenced a previous episode of the My Job Here Is Done podcast; here’s a link to it, called “When I look in the Mirror I see Elon Musk”

You can also find the career success and business growth podcast My Job Here Is Done all over social media. Here are a few links to get you started - we appreciate any love you can give us.

LinkedIn
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Quora
Youtube
 

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

The My Job Here Is Done™ podcast, and these show notes are (c) 2022 2PointOh LLC.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TODAY?

We’re talking about improving your success rate - in a big way. Did you ever have an unusual amount of trouble completing a big and important project at work? As a manager, have you ever been disappointed in your employees’ ability to get things done on their own?

In today’s episode of the My Job Here Is Done podcast, we discuss how your success in completing a project or task heavily depends on a balance between what we call ‘Span of Responsibility and Span of Control.’ What does that mean? We answer that today as we discuss our definitions, ways to achieve an outstanding balance of both, and how to mitigate an imbalance between those two ideals.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* Our definitions around the terms Span of Responsibility and Span of Control and show examples of each

* Reasons why Span of Responsibility and Span of Control must be in balance at the beginning of a project to ensure success

* The importance of Span of Control, which is often missing in the balanced formula

* These steps to help plan for a balanced Span of Responsibility and Span of Control:

1. Define the task or project in one paragraph
2. Select the leader of the project 
3. Make sure that the leader has the time and desire to take on the project 
4. Send them the project description paragraph that you wrote
5. Have a one-on-one verbal discussion to flesh out the details
6. Ask what resources they need to be successful 
7. Define any hard limits and get them on the table
8. Discuss the what-if scenarios. Make sure you both understand the points where things could take a turn in the wrong direction.
9. And lastly, make sure the leader of the project knows they can come to you at any time for any reason

* Ways to rebalance a failing project where the Span of Responsibility and Span of Control are out of whack

* A really good book by Steven Poole on the origin and definitions around tones of business buzzwords - just for fun.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

You can be 100% more successful if you adopt our notion that the Span of Responsibility has to be in balance with the Span of Control. In our experience, a Span of Responsibility with a misaligned Span of Control is the number 1 and most significant reason why projects fail to achieve expected results. Leadership must provide both an outline of the responsibilities associated with a project, grant authority to make decisions, and provide the tools and resources needed for success. You can’t have one without the other and expect great results.

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

• Span of Control on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Span_of_control
• Our Affiliate Link to Who Touched Base In My Thought Shower https://amzn.to/35Zksg4 By Steven Poole
  Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sceptre | ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1444781839 | ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1444781830

Please note: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you, so thank you!

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in their stories about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve and believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

In today’s episode of the My Job Here Is Done podcast, we discuss the awful situation of having to fire someone. We also float some Pro Tips on how to make terminations expected, if required, and not a surprise event for the employee.

WHAT TOPICS DO WE COVER?

* The differences and proper uses of the terms You’re Fired - We’re Letting You Go, and We’re Laying You Off.

* Ideas on how to make careful but quick hiring decisions that merge naturally into a defined Orientation Period.

* How to watch for early patterns of concerning behavior and advice on bidding a fast farewell, if necessary

* How does employee termination affect your team, and what happens when you don’t communicate well.

* The difference between progressive discipline and performance improvement plans.

* A story about how local government employees handle the “new guy boss” and literally change jobs, culture, and priorities every election cycle, and what we can learn from that. 

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY?

Firing or letting go of employees is just a horrible event for everyone - nobody wins. We think you can minimize these events, grow a better workforce, and have an incredible culture of employee professional development if we add a bit of extra process and procedure. We’d love your feedback. 

WE USED THESE RESOURCES:

Besides our experiences that directly relate to this topic, we found the following resources very helpful in preparing for this episode:

From Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2020/03/firing-with-compassion

From INC Magazine: https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/how-to-fire-an-employee.html

From our previous episode "Toss THIS Salad Out" https://www.myjobhereisdone.com/toss-this-salad-out/

WHO ARE DAVE AND KELLI?

An Entrepreneur and Intrapreneur duo with street smarts, ‘preneurial’ chops, and a penchant for storytelling.

Dave and Kelli met as teenagers and have a life-long story of their own. They took separate and very contrasting career paths, both struggling with challenges and celebrating their career successes in very different ways. 

Over the years, they noticed similarities in the stories they shared about their work, the people they interacted with, and how business was conducted. Kelli, who “worked for the man like a dog for decades,” and Dave, who “started or ran businesses all of his life,” quickly realized there is substantial value for others in those combined experiences. 

The “My Job Here Is Done” Podcast is the result. Ultimately, you’re either building a great business or moving up the career ladder of success, and we absolutely know we can help!

HOW TO WORK WITH US

If you like what you hear in the podcast, we have more to share with companies that we work with. 

With the foundation of business experience from Dave and Kelli as a team, in concert with subject matter experts from the rich roster of smart people in our network, we have put these goals, culture themes, and operational processes you hear on the podcast to the test - and they work. 

If you have a complicated problem to solve, and if you believe in the balanced approach that the needs of the business must be aligned with the needs of employees - AND you like to play to win - click here to learn how you can work with us.

In this podcast episode of My Job Here Is Done we talk about survivor bias where the tendency is to study successful businesses, leaders, or outcomes and ignore the accompanying failures. However, analyzing the failures is where you will find the data you need to consider as you try to grow your own company or ascend the career success ladder. 

We had planned to do a podcast on failure analysis but we didn’t have a great hook or story to tie into it. Out of the blue, our good friend and listener David Yanoshik suggested that we look at Abraham Wald’s work during WWII and how he likely saved hundreds of pilots' lives and uncountable amounts of money for the US during the war.

Well, co-host Dave is a pilot, and sure enough, that caught his attention, especially after co-host Kelli wrote the episode notes and brought the story to life. So thanks David Yanoshik, we tell you what you won for helping us at the beginning of the episode. Spoiler Alert - don’t hold your breath.

Abraham Wald, a statistician who worked in New York city was helping with the war effort during World War II, and he was on assignment with the military. 

Many of the United States military bomber planes were being shot down on missions over Germany.  The naval researchers knew they needed data to reduce the number of planes and pilots lost so they began to analyze the damage done to planes that safely returned from missions.  

They painstakingly reviewed and diagramed the bullet holes on these planes and began to see a pattern.  You can see a picture of the data used for this, here.

Most of the damage on the planes that were safely returned was done to the wings and body so the naval researchers at the time concluded that reinforcing those areas with armor would improve the likelihood of a safe return, so they began putting reinforced steel armor on those areas.

Side note: You might wonder … why not just reinforce the entire airplane? The answer is you can’t - aircraft fly by a carefully balanced equation of weight and center of gravity. Add too much overall weight and it won’t fly, and add even a little extra weight, but placed in the wrong areas, and it won’t fly.   

The naval researchers we’re thrilled with their scientific work, study, and solving of the problem. Until Wald stopped the process cold in its tracks after he was brought in to double-check the researcher’s theory.

He immediately pointed out the error in that thinking. 

The researchers only looked at the planes that returned from missions, not the ones that were shot down.  He looked at the data in a different way by analyzing both the planes that were shot down, and the ones that were not, and he came up with another solution - the successful solution.  

Since the returning planes, the ones who survived, did not have damage to the places like the cockpit, the engines, and parts of the tail - he concluded those areas should be reinforced - not where the bullet holes were found on the planes that safely returned and were not shot down.  

Brilliant - and it worked - and Survivorship Bias theory was born.

My Job Here Is Done takes a look at how survivor bias relates to business and why we don’t often look at and deeply analyze failure. We notice it’s too inconvenient to study because the data is often hidden and hard to find.  But we also highlight how important it is to create the elusive and hard to define mixture of success we all call secret sauce.

Co-host Kelli offers some sobering advice in this episode: “If you’re not constantly troubled by the data you’re getting, you are looking at the wrong data.”

Most businesses and leaders that have failed, either suffered a single identifiable major mistake that is easy to find, or they succumbed to Death by a Thousand Paper Cuts - history shows failures are almost always at those two extremes.

To succeed, to grow, to maintain that competitive edge, you must always be reinventing. Think how important that thought is when you look at companies long loved and now forgotten. Toys R Us, Palm Pilot, Pan Am, Woolworth’s, Howard Johnsons, Radio Shack. All of these companies could have survived - actually should have survived - but they didn’t - ask why? 

Here are some other links on the subject -  Bullet Holes & Bias: The Story of Abraham Wald Survivorship Bias - The tale of Forgotten Failures. and for the more technical minded - The Mathematician Who Helped Win WWII

Here is a more in-depth article: Why do we misjudge groups by only looking at specific group members?

Visit the My Job Here Is Done website to listen to all of the episodes and learn how you can work with us if you like our thoughts and ideas.

On this podcast episode of My Job Here Is Done, we trash conventional performance reviews and have a lot of fun doing it!

Why? Because of the way most companies and leaders do them, they suck for everyone involved and do little if any good. We’ll tell you our reasoning for this opinion in the program.

There are articles out there that lean toward not doing Performance Reviews at all. We think they have an important place, and although a common theme is “we do them just because,” performance reviews are not a cavalier “check a box” item. 

People’s careers and growth depend on good feedback through performance reviews. In this podcast episode, we ponder this and come up with alternative ways to help with career success and business growth by suggesting ways to make performance reviews worthy of everybody’s time and effort. 

We find that there are five basic forms of classic performance reviews, they are:

1. The Autobiographical Review - this is where the employee writes a review of themselves. Really? All this can do is cause an argument with your manager.
2. The Biographical Review - this is where the manager writes a review of the employee. And by reverse osmosis, this too can create an argument scenario.
3. The 1 through 5 Review - the team member is pigeon-holed into a class between exceptional and brilliant - a 5 - down to worthless and waste of protoplasm - a 1 - and likely neither, but somewhere in between.
4. The ScoreBoard Review - this ridiculous review considers everyone to be average and then the employee is placed above, or below average compared to the rest of the team. How is this helpful?
5. The Everybody-Gets-A-Whack-At-Me Review - this is also known more commonly (but less humorously) as the 360 or full circle review. Here the employee hopes all the people he pissed off at the last meeting won’t remember and will give him wonderful kudos on the review.

There are other methods of performance reviews, but they all - except one - take a page from the playbooks of those just mentioned.

The one different approach, and you can have a lot of variations to it, is the continuous review process. We talk about it in this My Job Here Is Done podcast episode. 

Continuous performance reviews have no schedule. They’re not done yearly, quarterly or monthly. They are not supposed to be tied to salary or merit increases, and especially not to discipline - that’s the job of the performance improvement plan. Continuous performance reviews are done as needed, as often (or not), as required. They are, in essence, check-in agreements. The agreement part is that the manager and the employee are in full agreement with the current performance and near-term expectations.

We read a lot of articles as we prepared for this episode, but this one stood out

Visit the My Job Here Is Done website to listen to all of the episodes and learn how you can work with us if you like our thoughts and ideas.

On this podcast episode of My Job Here Is Done, Dave and Kelli scan the plethora of business superhero books to see if they’re worth reading. Well, the answer is maybe - but only at the right time, and when you’re in the right mindset. 

Books like Steve Jobs, by Steve Jobs - Autobiography, Andrew Carnegie - Thrive, Arianna Huffington, or Losing My Virginity by Richard Branson are all exceptional. We love hearing about these great leaders - or, more appropriately - these great unicorns!

As you know, a unicorn is defined as a mythical icon typically represented as a horse with a single straight horn projecting from its forehead. Unicorns in the business world are rare, and you’ll likely never see one in person or become one.

As entrepreneurs or intrapreneurs, we tend to idolize, heroize, even affectionately adore a few strangers, those celebrity business people who are just so exceptional (or lucky) that we call them “Business Unicorns.” 

People like Buffet, Sandberg, Rockefeller, Zuckerberg, and Gurley-Flynn are rockstars with personalities as large as their fortunes. The trouble we illustrate in this episode is that sometimes we read about them in their books or see their movies, we then try to emulate them, or want to be just like them! We think that’s a bad thing to do.

Well, the truth is it's not going to happen. You won’t be ‘just like them,’ and you can’t and shouldn’t try to be like them. (We're  pretty sure Elon Musk would tell you that same thing to your face.)  We’ve seen good people hurt themselves professionally by mimicking or acting like these unicorns during the ascending stage of their careers.

This episode offers alternate suggestions that have worked for enthusiastic and driven people climbing the career ladder or running their businesses. We talk about starting local, visiting three successful companies in your hometown that have been operating for a while, and meeting the owners for a chat.  They have stories you need to hear, and they are relatable to you at the right time in your career trajectory. They are likely not in the One Percent Club, they probably don’t own a jet, and they work each day just like you. Lots and lots to learn here.

Kelli and Dave offer some general suggestions on reading to learn more about doing business well, but they focus on broad topics instead of people. 

Kelli’s favorite book is Sydney Finkelstein’s, “Why Smart Executives Fail (and what you can learn from their mistakes).” Amazon has it, here.

Dave recommends a classic Dale Carnegie’s, “How to Win Friends and Influence People,” also on Amazon, here  

(Note: these are affiliate links, at no extra charge to you, we will earn a small commission) 

The show finishes with some words of encouragement and which are hopefully inspiring enough for you to give the advice a try. 

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