The Car Wash Factor - Optimism Abounds

I wrote in an earlier post, early in the financial crisis (May 2008 to be exact) of the "Car Wash Factor". The premise being that the car wash at a local convenience store (Weigels) was a leading indicator of the financial health of the economy. Today, to my amazement given recent news on plant closings in our area, the car wash was six and seven cars deep while I passed by. I have to declare, based on my earlier surmise, that optimism is rebounding and that the economic recovery is underway. This may be more based on my own hopes for the future, but, like all predictions, time will tell. Welcome back to the American consumer.

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A Good Meeting - Pace and Tempo

Many, many things have been written about meetings, lots of bad material and lots of good material. My take is simple. The meeting must be set to accomplish something and they must have pace and tempo.

Pace is speed at which a meeting is conducted and is a tough balancing act for the moderator. Endless discussion must be channeled. It is important to have everyone have input, but endless loops must be avoided or eliminated. The opposite is also truth, though. The meeting cannot be a dictatorial, marching-orders type meeting, with the expectation that everyone will be on board. These types of meetings are sure to produce either outright or passive resistance.

The second characteristic is tempo. Meetings generally fall into three categories; one-time ad-hoc, multiple ad-hoc or repeating meetings. It is important that multiple ad-hoc and repeating meetings have a good tempo. Too fast and nothing gets done between meetings. Too slow, or worse, no follow-through, and the meeting object does not get accomplished. The tempo set by the moderator is crucial, especially during startup. Participants look to see the level of seriousness of a meeting by the effort which the moderator or principles are putting into the meeting subject (including the meeting itself). Lack of follow-through is the quickest way to lose the participants.

When the situation is ambiguous, do the right thing

When the situation is ambiguous, do what's right. This is one of my absolute favorite sayings, because it embodies the basic essence of a leader. First, recognize the situation that you are in. Second, recognize what is right, in the eyes of the customer first, the business and employees second. Then make a decision and act.

There are many ambiguous situations in the business world (and in the world in general). They consist of situations where it is easy to to bury one's head and let an issue roll on by. They consist of issues where you are not given any direction from your boss or employer. They consist of times when extra work is called for, to satisfy a distraught or angry customer. Like Jack Johnson's "Situation Number 3", all too often it is the situation that no one sees.

The right thing to do, on the other hand, is usually clear. Through issue ownership and leadership, the right thing to can be accomplished. Even where the right thing is not clear, any action to address a situation is usually far better than no action. The key is to make a decision and act.

When the situation is ambiguous, do the right thing. A call to leadership is a company.