Archives for December 2011

Building a Culture of Entrepreneurship

 

If you are building an entrepreneurial company, you need to build an entrepreneurial culture to go with it.

One way to create a culture of entrepreneurship is to treat all the employees as co-owners.  Let them learn all the parts of a company and how it really runs.  Share some of the profits of the company with all employees. Give them the same level or responsibility and accountability that the owner has, too. Everyone will begin to be excited about growth.  Everyone will start to treat the company like they own it.

In 1986, when I was running one of my first companies, I came home from work one day and started to get upset, and my dad said, “What’s wrong?”  And I said, “All of my employees (who were also my friends) are starting to hate me.”  And he said, “Why are they hating you?”  And I said, “Well, they think I’m making too much profit.”  And he said, “Why do they think that?”  And I said, “Well we have these sales targets every month and we go chasing after these revenue goals, and I think they feel that that’s how much money I’m putting in my pocket.”  And he said, “Well don’t you show them your expenses?”  And I said, “No. If I showed them my expenses they’d know how much profit I’m making!”  He said, “Well they think you’re making more than you are.  So show them your expenses as well. Besides you aren’t making any profit yet so what can it hurt?”

I listened to my dad.

Right away, my employees started to see the business differently.  They no longer felt like I was taking advantage of them.  In fact, they were rather nervous that they might be out of jobs if the company didn’t start making more money fast. That impacted profitability and was tied to that cultural aspect of being an entrepreneurial company.

For more information on this topic, check out: Building a World Class Culture.

ONLY 2 Spots Left…

This is the third year where I’m selling 5 advertising spots on my laptop to 5 great brands (3 are already taken, only 2 left).

The 1st brand to grab a spot was Marquis Wine Cellars they have an awesome online ordering area, and free deliver for Vancouver customers too.  No more dreaded trips to the faceless liquor stores, endless isles of wine, mediocre service and never ending shelf tags claiming to profess the fountain of youth and 92 points for $20.00.  Marquis has AWESOME wines from around the world – I know – I drink a lot of them, and I get all my wine from Marquis as well.

The 2nd brand to grab a spot is CPUsage.  CPUsage harnesses the unused processing power of idle computers, using them to deliver an Infrastructure-as-a-Service for high throughput and high performance computing.  CPUsage compensates computer owners for their unused processing power through a point based reward system. Points can be redeemed for gift cards and other items in an online store.  Their customers use CPUsage for tasks such as web crawling, video transcoding, scientific analysis, or other transient workloads.

The 3rd is Nita Lake Lodge, advertising for a second year in a row, Whistler’s most exclusive luxury boutique hotel has perhaps the most privileged location of all Whistler luxury accommodations. Overlooking Nita Lake just steps from the base of Whistler Mountain, and with incredible food, luxury comes naturally at the Nita Lake Lodge.

***

If you want your company name & logo in front of thousands of entrepreneurs and business people throughout North America and occasionally globally along with these two early adopters this year, you gotta move fast.

Only 2 spots left.

I’ll be speaking at dozens of conferences again, flying business class on flights, and spending time in airport business lounges.  My MacBook Pro is with me and pretty much always out and being used.  I take it out in all my meetings regardless of who I’m working with.

And I’m also planning to post about it the companies sponsoring my laptop on my Blog, Twitter, FaceBook & LinkedIn.

If you sponsor my Laptop for 2012, your logo will be seen by tens of thousands of influential business people & CEOs.

You also get to write a guest blog post that highlights your company’s services.

The price for a spot is $2,500. That comes out to about $200 a month, or $50 a week. Your company logo will stay on my laptop all year, and you’ll “own” that piece of real estate on my laptop case.

If anyone asks about your sticker, I’ll send him or her to whatever website/email address you want. Want in? Email me – Cameron at BackPocketCOO dot com

How Are Baby Boomers Doing At Work?

There has been lots of talk over the last ten years about Gen Y in the workplace.  Lots of complaints etc., but Gen Y sure seems to be coming up to stride now…

I’m curious though, what do you think about Baby Boomers.  How are they doing at work ?  Love your thoughts on how they are doing, and where they need to improve…

For information on this topic, check out: Leadership at 100MPH.

10 GREAT Questions From A Vistage Webinar

Last week I did a Webinar for Vistage with approximately 500 CEOs…  At the end of the call, we had tons of unanswered questions.  So I asked them to email them to me, and I’d answer ten of the best for them…  Here they are…

  1. Q: What metrics can you show your leadership team to help them understand how important culture is to attracting the right talent?
    A: I think it’s less about metrics, and more about the buzz and energy you’ll feel when you do have a everyone buzzing the same way.  Read all the press about the top companies to work for in your city and region, and you’ll see what I mean.  They just have that ‘special something’ and they get extra special results.
  2. Q: What impact does having policies against personal calls, emails, texts and social media have on company culture?
    A: Worrying about these areas will not drive results.  Hire A level players.  Set clear roles, goals, and KPIs for each of them.  Support them in their roles.  And DON’T care about how or when they do their work.  So long as they get the results, let them do it in their own way, in their own time.
  3. Q: Is it better to recruit or to develop internal candidates?
    A: Neither.  It’s better to have A level players in all roles.  When you have people on your team, do EVERYTHING to help build their skills along they way.  But never compromise where they come from, for the results you need.
  4. Q: How to revive the morale within a company that is just tired from all the struggles in this economy.
    A: Ask them.  Seriously.  Ask your team, what they want you to do that will make this the best company to work for.  Then do it.
  5. Q: How to keep great employees in small business while they get bigger offers from big companies ?
    A: Make your company the BEST one to work for.  And they’ll never leave.  Seriously.
  6. Q: How do you reflect the company culture in through the hiring and interviewing process?
    A: Show videos.  Show photos.  Ensure your office and people rock.  And have your best culture people doing the interviews.
  7. Q: How do I hire the best people?
    A: Decide what you need the new hire to do over the next two years.  And ONLY hire people who are the best cultural fit, who’ve also DONE what you need them to do.  Theory is bullshit worthless.  Hire experience.
  8. Q: Once you have communicated your vision in detail to the team…who owns continue to communicate it and how often?
    A: The CEO owns culture.  Read chapter one of Double Double.
  9. Q: How do you convince your leadership that the Short Term pain of terminating a toxic employee will yield significant benefits in the longer term?
    A: The statistics say that the cost of keeping the wrong employee is 15x their annual salary.  You can’t afford to keep the wrong people working with you, not for a single day more.
  10. Q: How do you balance telling the staff what the picture will look like and information leaking out to your competition?
    A: Sharing the vision of the company, is not the same as giving them the plans you’ll use to make it happen.  Share your Vivid Vision (formerly Painted Picture) with the world.  They’ll help you make it come true.
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Meetings Suck: Turning One Of The Most Loathed Elements Of Business Into One Of The Most Valuable

We all know that meetings suck, right?

You hear it all the time. It’s the one thing that almost everyone in business can agree on.

Except it’s not actually true… 

Meetings don’t suck.

We just suck at running meetings.   

When done right, meetings not only work, they make people and companies better.

In Meetings Suck, world renowned business expert and growth guru Cameron Herold teaches you how to use focused, time effective meetings to help you and your company soar.

This book shows you immediately actionable, step-by-step systems that ensure that you and everyone in your organization improves your meetings, right away.

In the process, you’ll turn meetings that suck into meetings that work. 

In life, we always hear about people who’ve made huge decisions from their gut – without data.Today, I want you to make a decision, not only from your gut, but also from some data.  A decision that is only $12 per employee but will be priceless for your business.

Right now, your gut is telling you something is wrong with your company’s meetings.  You KNOW everyone complains about meetings.

People HATE going to them, they HATE running them, and they really have NO idea which meetings are truly necessary but they hold meetings simply because they think that is what they SHOULD do.

Even some of the smartest CEOs in the world complain about meetings – Elon Musk publicly told employees at Tesla & SpaceX to walk out of meetings if they weren’t being run properly.

I sent Elon a message saying that wasn’t going to fix anything – the key is to fix the root of the problem – NOT continue to ignore why meetings suck.

A Meeting is – Any phone call, video call or occasion where 2 or more people meet to discuss or work-through office topics.

Most employees on average spend 1-2 hours per day in meetings.

And likely, none of those employees – front-line staff or leaders – have had any training on how to attend meetings or participate in them, LET ALONE How to RUN THEM.

Consider this…

If the Average employee spends just 1 Hour per day in meetings – that’s 1/8th of their time.

If the Average employee earns $50,000 per year.

And they’re spending 1/8th of their time in meetings, that means you’re paying $6,250 dollars per year for just ONE employee to attend meetings.

The reality is, employees spend 1/8th of their time – and 1/8th of your company’s payroll – doing something they have literally NO idea how to do.

The Reality is…

95% of employees are booking & leading meetings – and they have NEVER been trained on how to run them.

95% of employees have had NO training on how to show up and participate in the meetings they attend daily.

And 95% of employees and companies have no idea what meetings are even necessary to hold.

Meetings CAN be hugely effective – IF you know how to run them

Meetings don’t SUCK, we just SUCK at running meetings. 

Investing $15 per employee – to help ensure the $50,000 a year you spend on them is an obvious and easy choice.

This could be the most impactful $15 you’ll ever spend and will save the company’s money, time and resources instantly.

Buying a copy of Meetings Suck for 100% of your employees and having them read it this month will have a huge impact on your company’s success.

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Free PR: How To Get Chased By The Press Without Hiring A PR Firm

Public relations has always been an essential part of doing business which is probably why you’re shelling out big money to an outside PR firm. But the truth is that you don’t need them. You already have all the necessary tools in-house to do as good a job as the so-called experts. 

Cameron Herold and Adrian Salamunovic have taught thousands of company execs how to exploit free media coverage and ditch these expensive, often ineffective outsiders. 

Cameron & Adrian have also built in-house PR teams, spent decades learning how to generate Free PR and how to leverage public relations to complement their sales and marketing strategy. 

In Free PR, you’ll learn how the media world operates while you gain invaluable insider knowledge and actionable advice on how to: 

  • Build your own in-house PR team
  • Provide effective interviews
  • Score great media coverage for free with just a few easy steps 

Landing public relations coverage for yourself and your company is a powerful tool to help elevate your personal brand. PR is easier to generate than marketing, PR is easier to leverage than marketing and PR is more cost effective than marketing. In other words, Public Relations is more critical than ever in growing your brand and your business. 

You’ve got more passion, commitment, a larger stake, and a deeper understanding of your business than any outside PR firm could ever have. So stop wasting money and take the reins yourself.  Learn the secrets to landing TONS of Free PR for your company.

What they’re saying:

“I think PR is the core for promoting any business. Public relations acquires customers! That’s what’s cool about this book.”

– Kevin O’Leary,  Shark on ABC’s Shark Tank

“The ultimate guidebook for those looking to get press, grow their brand, and get in front of the masses. Free PR is the roadmap you’ve been looking for.”

– Peter Shankman, Founder, Help a Reporter Out (HARO)

“Adrian and Cameron will show you the secrets of getting massive exposure for your business. This book is packed with actionable insights from two guys that actually know how to to do it.”

– Dan Martell,  Serial Entrepreneur & Investor (Intercom.io, Unbounce)

“I told Cameron to write the book on generating free PR. I’m excited to see that he’s finally sharing his secrets with the world. This is a must read for any entrepreneurial company and marketing team.”

– Verne Harnish, Founder of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) and author of Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)

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Vivid Vision: A Remarkable Tool For Aligning Your Business Around a Shared Vision of the Future

Many corporations have slick, flashy mission statements that ultimately do little to motivate employees and less to impress customers, investors, and partners. 

But there is a way to share your excitement for the future of your company in a clear, compelling, and powerful way and entrepreneur and business growth expert Cameron Herold can show you how. 

Vivid Vision is a revolutionary tool that will help owners, CEOs, and senior managers create inspirational, detailed, and actionable three-year mission statements for their companies. In this easy-to-follow guide, Herold walks organization leaders through the simple steps to creating their own Vivid Vision, from brainstorming to sharing the ideas to using the document to drive progress in the years to come. 

By focusing on mapping out how you see your company looking and feeling in every category of business, without getting bogged down by data and numbers or how it will happen, Vivid Vision creates a holistic road map to success that will get all of your teammates passionate about the big picture. 

Your company is your dream, one that you want to share with your staff, clients, and stakeholders. Vivid Vision is the tool you need to make that dream a reality.

miracle-morning

The Miracle Morning for
Entrepreneurs: Elevate Your SELF to
Elevate Your BUSINESS

READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.

READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

Hal Elrod’sThe Miracle Morning has helped redefine the mornings and the lives of millions of readers since 2012. Since then, careers have been launched, goals have been met, and dreams have been realized, all through the power of the Miracle Morning’s six Life S.A.V.E.R.S.

THESE SIX DAILY PRACTICES WILL FUEL YOUR EFFORTS TO CREATE AND SUSTAIN POSITIVE CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE.

Now The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs brings you these principles in a whole new light—alongside the Entrepreneurial Elevation Principles and the Entrepreneur’s Elevation Skills. These are essential skills that you need to create a successful business and personal life. Cameron Herold— Bestselling Author and a widely-respected expert on entrepreneurial mindset—brings his wisdom and insight to you using Hal Elrod’s powerful Miracle Morning framework.

DEVELOP A VISION FOR YOUR BUSINESS, AND BECOME THE INFLUENTIAL AND INSPIRING LEADER YOU WERE ALWAYS MEANT TO BE.

The principles and skills you’ll find in this book will help you to channel your passion and achieve balance in a remarkable new way. – Learn why mornings matter more than you think – Learn how to master your own self-leadership and accelerate your personal development – Learn how to manage your energy—physical, mental, and emotional – Learn how to implement Hal Elrod’s invaluable Life S.A.V.E.R.S. in your daily routine – And much more… You’re already an entrepreneur. Now discover how to take your success to the next level by first taking yourself to the next level. The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs is your roadmap to masterfully building an empire with a powerful vision, utilizing your areas of personal genius, with the right team at your side.

Start giving your business and your life the very best opportunities for success, right now.

A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.