Canada is different that the US in one major political structure way, and it's an interesting and important difference. Ours is a three party system, whereas south of the border, there are two. Of couse in both places, there are peripheral groups that would like to be considered proper political parties, but they aren't legitimate in the sense that they couldn't be elected to govern due to their geographic distribution or minority group specialization.
This third party provides a wealth of benefits for Canada - it provides for a greater likelihood of minority governments and therefore enhances the level of public debate in the country. Often, it provides for the actual opposition party on a national or provincial basis - as it stands right now. This takes place when one of the two dominant parties falters or fragments. Very occasionally, this third party is elected to govern. It's usually a disaster as while they have good intentions, the very nature of providing an ongoing critical eye of the governments' affairs doesn't qualify one to actually govern. They are missing the experience and awareness to do the job for real.
Nonetheless, the continued success of the third party in Canada is largely due to their leadership, which I'd like to characterize as the countries 'voice of compassion'. We've seen this in the form of the late leader - Jack Layton - who recently passed away while in office. Mourned disproportionately to his role, Mr. Layton embraced a set of values and virtues that was widely admired. He lived and did his job idealistically, with his focus fixed on the greater good. In an era of George Bush and Stephen Harper, Mr. Layton was celebrated for his humane character, something most politicos couldn't buy with any amount of money. There was an outpouring of public grief at his passing as we knew that one of the great ones was now gone. Jack Layton personified the best of what we think of ourselves, and his death sounded the bell tolling for political virtue.
I was thinking of Jack Layton today, and what kind of a national leader he may have become, and it struck me that there are other leaders in his party - past and present - that embody the same ideals. Bob Rae and the indefatigable Stephen Lewis. Both of these gentlemen embody what we consider to be the best parts of our national identity. They are selfless, empathetic, and champions of the little guy in situations where a fair deal isn't offered. Lewis is revered for his work in Africa battling Aids, and is probably Canada's most deserving recipient of knighthood - the acknowledgement of greatness that still holds sway in the Commonwealth.
What is it about this third party, these new democrats that attracts and develops national personalities that eloquently capture our spirit, and are the conscience of this country ? And why can't the major parties see the respect and admiration that Canada holds for this kind of leadership and try to emulate it more. Shallow, self-serving politicians with skeletons in their closets is the default expectation of many I fear.
We are lucky to have a respit from this political dreariness, and have the benefits of Layton's common sense, Lewis's humbleness and Rae's intellect. Mostly though we are fortunate in Canada to have three parties and a nurturing environment where idealism and a belief in fair play are equated as the qualities of those we select to lead us. Let's hope it never changes.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Saturday, December 17, 2011
How fast am I moving..?
I'm in a commercial airplane - travelling from here to there, west to east. I get up and walk from row 20 to row 2 going towards the front of the cabin. I'm moving at 2mph down the aisle. The aircraft is travelling over the earth at 500 mph.
How fast am I moving ?
The answer may be selected from the options below..
1) I'm moving at 2mph
2) I'm moving at 502 mph
3) I'm moving at 18mps (where s = seconds)
Which is it..?
Look down here once you select an answer..
The answer, which may surprise you is that all three answers are equally correct, and the answer you arrive at depends 100% on your perspective.
I am moving at 2mph down the aisle, and if in the cabin of the aircraft with me, that's the correct answer. To an observer on the ground, the aircraft is travelling overhead at 500mph, and if they knew I was moving in the same direction as the plane while onboard, they would conclude I was moving at 502mph. That's the correct answer from that position. To an observer standing on the Sun, (very warm feet) the movement I'm making and the aircraft too for that matter are a rounding error on the earth's rotation. To them, i'm moving at 18 miles per second. For them, that's the correct answer.
How can all answers be equally correct ? It's because I never stipulated where you were in asking the question. So you have to understand you are in any location. For that matter, there are other answers if we locate you in the Andromeda Galaxy and ask for the observations from there, and so on. I think you get the point though.
Perspective rules. Remember to acknowledge that.
How fast am I moving ?
The answer may be selected from the options below..
1) I'm moving at 2mph
2) I'm moving at 502 mph
3) I'm moving at 18mps (where s = seconds)
Which is it..?
Look down here once you select an answer..
The answer, which may surprise you is that all three answers are equally correct, and the answer you arrive at depends 100% on your perspective.
I am moving at 2mph down the aisle, and if in the cabin of the aircraft with me, that's the correct answer. To an observer on the ground, the aircraft is travelling overhead at 500mph, and if they knew I was moving in the same direction as the plane while onboard, they would conclude I was moving at 502mph. That's the correct answer from that position. To an observer standing on the Sun, (very warm feet) the movement I'm making and the aircraft too for that matter are a rounding error on the earth's rotation. To them, i'm moving at 18 miles per second. For them, that's the correct answer.
How can all answers be equally correct ? It's because I never stipulated where you were in asking the question. So you have to understand you are in any location. For that matter, there are other answers if we locate you in the Andromeda Galaxy and ask for the observations from there, and so on. I think you get the point though.
Perspective rules. Remember to acknowledge that.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Social Media - Size Matters
When we speak about online interactions - social CRM, we often refer to "communities". These are nice (small) groups of people with some common interest. We see them collaborate and contribute in the best examples.
Let's examine a word here though - community. It speaks to a group or area within a larger area or group of people - the community in the north-western part of the state, or the French community. It doesn't denote large however - large area are called regions or cities and large groups are often categorized into whatever holds them together - race, ethnicity, religion, language and so on.
Online communities don't seem to adhere to the size rule though. Facebook - doubtless the largest online community has more than 800 million active members. That's 800,000,000 people. That's not a community by any stretch of the word. That's a nation, or more precisely its the world's 3rd largest nation.
A few notes on this...active to Facebook means people logging in at least once in 30 days. That correlates to 'alive' I'd suggest in a direct population comparison to nations. Growth-wise, Facebook was at 250Million users in July 2009. In July 2010, it passed 500,000 and in this past summer, it crested 750 Million. At this growth rate, how long will it be before it eclipses India, then China ?
About this time next year. They really ought to get a flag.
The next level down - the Google+, Twitters and MySpace are all growing fast too, with undoubtedly some of the same users. Dual-citizens as it were.
This platform - any 'platform' that's geographically based, or ethnicity based or anything else that gets this large, ought to be reasonably held accountable in ways we hold nations accountable. Whether we elect to acknowledge it or not, there's huge amounts of influence at play here.
Let's examine a word here though - community. It speaks to a group or area within a larger area or group of people - the community in the north-western part of the state, or the French community. It doesn't denote large however - large area are called regions or cities and large groups are often categorized into whatever holds them together - race, ethnicity, religion, language and so on.
Online communities don't seem to adhere to the size rule though. Facebook - doubtless the largest online community has more than 800 million active members. That's 800,000,000 people. That's not a community by any stretch of the word. That's a nation, or more precisely its the world's 3rd largest nation.
A few notes on this...active to Facebook means people logging in at least once in 30 days. That correlates to 'alive' I'd suggest in a direct population comparison to nations. Growth-wise, Facebook was at 250Million users in July 2009. In July 2010, it passed 500,000 and in this past summer, it crested 750 Million. At this growth rate, how long will it be before it eclipses India, then China ?
About this time next year. They really ought to get a flag.
The next level down - the Google+, Twitters and MySpace are all growing fast too, with undoubtedly some of the same users. Dual-citizens as it were.
This platform - any 'platform' that's geographically based, or ethnicity based or anything else that gets this large, ought to be reasonably held accountable in ways we hold nations accountable. Whether we elect to acknowledge it or not, there's huge amounts of influence at play here.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
A Perspective a Day
Stand on your head.
Walk in another's shoes.
Volunteer your time.
Do something different today. Do something outside your own comfort zone to push another perspective - one you don't normally hold - onto yourself.
A perspective change is perhaps the cheapest and most effective lesson we can give ourselves. You will learn something.
Guaranteed.
Walk in another's shoes.
Volunteer your time.
Do something different today. Do something outside your own comfort zone to push another perspective - one you don't normally hold - onto yourself.
A perspective change is perhaps the cheapest and most effective lesson we can give ourselves. You will learn something.
Guaranteed.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Discipline, Our Self Image and Objective Setting
It's ok to read this without wearing leather - it's not that kind of discipline. I refer to the kind were we push ourselves hard when the going is getting tough. Where we persevere and keep moving, and keep our desire to quit whatever it is we're doing in check. It's the stuff character is made of - at least that's what Vince Lombardi would have said.
Discipline is required as we diet, or embark on an exercise program. It's required if we elect to go to medical school, or take on another physical or intellectual stretch activity for ourselves. It's required when building a business, or changing course in one. Discipline's required to put in Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours as in his hypothesis in Outliers suggests - the time at violin practice, the gymnastics mat or the midnight hours spent at the university library. Discipline is what keeps us going back, especially when we don't want to.
Discipline works and is reinforced when we make recognizable gains towards our goal. Long periods of time with no perceptible movement towards our goal taxes our discipline and make us question the effort involved. And it is important to recall that progress is measured a few ways.
Let's say we're in school, taking a course that's difficult for us. The attendance in class, completion of homework and measure of our results in assignments and tests are what happens, but the discipline involved is to keep attending, keep doing the needed work. The passing of each day being us a little closer to completion. Now, compare this to a goal to lose 10 pounds/kilos. That goal isn't time bound, it will be achieved when it's achieved. The fastest though not the smartest path to success is to chop off an arm. That gives you instant weight loss, though is admittedly quite counter-productive. The goal more precisely should be - to lose 10 pounds/kilos of fat, and reduce your BMI to X% and become healthier overall. Spending five weeks on a diet as the only goal statement is no more realistic than electing to go to class only until you feel smart enough in the topic being covered.
So why does this matter ? Why the remedial overview of discipline..
Because discipline and realistic goal setting should go hand in hand, with an awareness of what's involved, and I'll suggest that too often it doesn't.
We forget to make goals time-bound, or acknowledge the unimportance of time. We overlook the commitment required to achieve a goal, or too often under-acknowledge it. The problem arises when we try to push ourselves to maintain that sense of disincline, when the goal isn't achievable or realistic. And then when we fail, when we fall short of the goal, our self image about our ability to maintain discipline in our lives is rocked and very disturbed.
I'd put forth that one's ability to maintain discipline in our lives is core feature of how we view ourselves. We integrate that into our perspective on others as well. Homeless people are 'too lazy to work' and obese people and 'too lazy to do something about it' is often heard. Not you ? Think about that next time you pass the person with cup in hand on the sidewalk, or have a smug salad for lunch. Our self-image of discipline is integral to our view of ourselves in the world, and when we fail our own discipline yard-stick, we affect our own view of the world dramatically. If we fail at something, we lump ourselves into that 'lazy' camp - and that's not a very nice place to be.
So what can we do about this. The first thing I'd suggest is to be careful about how you set goals, and define your objectives. Rather than being a proverbial Don Quixote tilting at your windmills, be very careful and invest as much thought into the goal setting phase, as in the thought about what it will take to achieve that goal. Aim to push yourself by all means, but do so realistically. Take into account not simply the achievement of the goal - to learn to speak Spanish for example, but how you might maintain that skill going forward. Where will you be able to practice, and apply what you've invested time into.
Discipline is a wonderful thing, and leads to great feelings of accomplishment and pride - but remember it has a mirror image too, and if you set yourself up for failure you have only yourself to hold accountable for that.
Discipline is required as we diet, or embark on an exercise program. It's required if we elect to go to medical school, or take on another physical or intellectual stretch activity for ourselves. It's required when building a business, or changing course in one. Discipline's required to put in Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours as in his hypothesis in Outliers suggests - the time at violin practice, the gymnastics mat or the midnight hours spent at the university library. Discipline is what keeps us going back, especially when we don't want to.
Discipline works and is reinforced when we make recognizable gains towards our goal. Long periods of time with no perceptible movement towards our goal taxes our discipline and make us question the effort involved. And it is important to recall that progress is measured a few ways.
Let's say we're in school, taking a course that's difficult for us. The attendance in class, completion of homework and measure of our results in assignments and tests are what happens, but the discipline involved is to keep attending, keep doing the needed work. The passing of each day being us a little closer to completion. Now, compare this to a goal to lose 10 pounds/kilos. That goal isn't time bound, it will be achieved when it's achieved. The fastest though not the smartest path to success is to chop off an arm. That gives you instant weight loss, though is admittedly quite counter-productive. The goal more precisely should be - to lose 10 pounds/kilos of fat, and reduce your BMI to X% and become healthier overall. Spending five weeks on a diet as the only goal statement is no more realistic than electing to go to class only until you feel smart enough in the topic being covered.
So why does this matter ? Why the remedial overview of discipline..
Because discipline and realistic goal setting should go hand in hand, with an awareness of what's involved, and I'll suggest that too often it doesn't.
We forget to make goals time-bound, or acknowledge the unimportance of time. We overlook the commitment required to achieve a goal, or too often under-acknowledge it. The problem arises when we try to push ourselves to maintain that sense of disincline, when the goal isn't achievable or realistic. And then when we fail, when we fall short of the goal, our self image about our ability to maintain discipline in our lives is rocked and very disturbed.
I'd put forth that one's ability to maintain discipline in our lives is core feature of how we view ourselves. We integrate that into our perspective on others as well. Homeless people are 'too lazy to work' and obese people and 'too lazy to do something about it' is often heard. Not you ? Think about that next time you pass the person with cup in hand on the sidewalk, or have a smug salad for lunch. Our self-image of discipline is integral to our view of ourselves in the world, and when we fail our own discipline yard-stick, we affect our own view of the world dramatically. If we fail at something, we lump ourselves into that 'lazy' camp - and that's not a very nice place to be.
So what can we do about this. The first thing I'd suggest is to be careful about how you set goals, and define your objectives. Rather than being a proverbial Don Quixote tilting at your windmills, be very careful and invest as much thought into the goal setting phase, as in the thought about what it will take to achieve that goal. Aim to push yourself by all means, but do so realistically. Take into account not simply the achievement of the goal - to learn to speak Spanish for example, but how you might maintain that skill going forward. Where will you be able to practice, and apply what you've invested time into.
Discipline is a wonderful thing, and leads to great feelings of accomplishment and pride - but remember it has a mirror image too, and if you set yourself up for failure you have only yourself to hold accountable for that.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Deceptive Pricing
I'm not a fan of this. Sadly it's becoming rampant.
Charge me for the services I buy/use and don't include many spurious add-ons as if they're value enhancements in some way. Airlines do this with fuel surcharges and other hidden fees, and still have the gall to try to get the public excited about $129 airfares that really cost $500. The local toll road I use occasionally charges an account fee and toll collection fees on top of usage. Just make the unit-fee larger - it's what you're asking for in the end anyway. The natural gas providers break out all manner of add-ons that result in $35 in gas usage really costing $110.
I'm not arguing about the (total) prices here - I'm suggesting transparency in the charging principles and treating your customers like they're intelligent people rather than idiots.
In all cases above, I elect to buy these services - and their prices are not an indicator of what it costs, and that's just wrong.
It makes me want to buy elsewhere.
Charge me for the services I buy/use and don't include many spurious add-ons as if they're value enhancements in some way. Airlines do this with fuel surcharges and other hidden fees, and still have the gall to try to get the public excited about $129 airfares that really cost $500. The local toll road I use occasionally charges an account fee and toll collection fees on top of usage. Just make the unit-fee larger - it's what you're asking for in the end anyway. The natural gas providers break out all manner of add-ons that result in $35 in gas usage really costing $110.
I'm not arguing about the (total) prices here - I'm suggesting transparency in the charging principles and treating your customers like they're intelligent people rather than idiots.
In all cases above, I elect to buy these services - and their prices are not an indicator of what it costs, and that's just wrong.
It makes me want to buy elsewhere.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
I wish I was as Perceptive as my Car
I have a new car, and it has some wonderful features on it, really clever stuff to make driving safer and easier. You've probably seen some of these types of new offerings - the cars that park themselves and have all kinds of new voice-activated functionality and push-button starts.
While all that is interesting, my new car has one specific feature that I wish I possessed, and specifically, I wish I had it for my sales career. That's an odd statement to be sure - that a car knows how to sell. It'd put fear into the hearts of used-car salespeople all over. Obviously the feature it has isn't designed to for selling, rather it's designed to see things that the operator doesn't. The car has a blind-spot, side-looking radar capability. It tells the driver visually and audibly when it isn't safe to change lanes, and this very handy especially when the driver doesn't see the other vehicle.
The car uses technology to gain a perception advantage over what people can see, and perception is pretty important when you're driving. I'd suggest it's also important in sales. When we sell we tend to focus on what we know, or need to find out. There are times when we don't see the other things going on around us, and our focus is a disservice to our skills. If you don't think this is true, take this little test - I certainly failed the first time I saw it, and I'm guessing you may as well.
So why don't we see what should be obvious ? The answers are many, but I'll put forth that in a sales campaign what we're doing is moving as quickly as we feel comfortable towards an outcome that favours us. We don't take our eyes off of the players and issues we've identified as important, and see what is really going on.
There is good news here though - and it also comes in the form of assistive technology. While the automobile offers blind-spot radar to help me drive, in a sales sense I can use something like the TAS Group's Dealmaker, and invoke the Coach Me functionality. I've been around this software for almost six years, and it doesn't 'teach me' to sell, but it still helps me see the aspects in my sales campaign that I'm not overtly paying attention to - I can proactively deal with issues before they kill me. It highlights vulnerabilities and I know that I can move faster and safer with Dealmaker to accomplish what needs to be done.
The nature of my work is to help companies deploy this solution to enhance their own sales efforts and in the very many engagements I've had, I have never come across a single individual that possesses this 360 degree perception in sales - but, that's to be expected. After all, none of us come with blind-spot radar as standard equipment.
While all that is interesting, my new car has one specific feature that I wish I possessed, and specifically, I wish I had it for my sales career. That's an odd statement to be sure - that a car knows how to sell. It'd put fear into the hearts of used-car salespeople all over. Obviously the feature it has isn't designed to for selling, rather it's designed to see things that the operator doesn't. The car has a blind-spot, side-looking radar capability. It tells the driver visually and audibly when it isn't safe to change lanes, and this very handy especially when the driver doesn't see the other vehicle.
The car uses technology to gain a perception advantage over what people can see, and perception is pretty important when you're driving. I'd suggest it's also important in sales. When we sell we tend to focus on what we know, or need to find out. There are times when we don't see the other things going on around us, and our focus is a disservice to our skills. If you don't think this is true, take this little test - I certainly failed the first time I saw it, and I'm guessing you may as well.
So why don't we see what should be obvious ? The answers are many, but I'll put forth that in a sales campaign what we're doing is moving as quickly as we feel comfortable towards an outcome that favours us. We don't take our eyes off of the players and issues we've identified as important, and see what is really going on.
There is good news here though - and it also comes in the form of assistive technology. While the automobile offers blind-spot radar to help me drive, in a sales sense I can use something like the TAS Group's Dealmaker, and invoke the Coach Me functionality. I've been around this software for almost six years, and it doesn't 'teach me' to sell, but it still helps me see the aspects in my sales campaign that I'm not overtly paying attention to - I can proactively deal with issues before they kill me. It highlights vulnerabilities and I know that I can move faster and safer with Dealmaker to accomplish what needs to be done.
The nature of my work is to help companies deploy this solution to enhance their own sales efforts and in the very many engagements I've had, I have never come across a single individual that possesses this 360 degree perception in sales - but, that's to be expected. After all, none of us come with blind-spot radar as standard equipment.
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