June 2024 | Dropinceo

Playing to Positivity vs Pain Will Win Every Time

June 26, 2024

Been there, done that! I’ve fallen victim to pain sells. I’ve been conditioned by all the social media that if you identify a pain point and convince your audience they are a victim, they will seek the quick fix that is promised. The problem with that is it fails to build brand loyalty. The product or service looks enticing to begin with, but unless someone is willing to buy, the marketing scheme doesn’t work. For those that believe in the quick fix; they are often disappointed with the result. Why? because they’ve not addressed the root cause of their pain.

Which leads me to an important discovery for myself and a potential pivot in my marketing that may be valuable for you as well. I can market my solutions to a target audience, but unless they’re willing to invest in either themselves or the business, nothing is going to connect. The endless hours & months to create 7+ touch points with the ideal client are empty promises unless the buyer has made the decision to buy.

So why do buyers wait to invest in themselves or the business? Could it be fear they’ve failed and they’ve decided to muscle through with current resources? Is it, they’ve not realized the problem could be their mindset? Could it be, they don’t know how to justify the need to leverage skills outside their domain? What ever the root cause is, it’s for the buyer, manager, leader, founder, CEO to figure out for themselves. I will share my book, The CEO’s Compass as a tool to figure out it may be you that’s holding yourself back and the playbook that has made you successful no longer works. Until the buyer can sort through why they don’t invest, no amount of marketing to them is going to work. That’s my conclusion for which I now have to pivot.

The Drop In CEO is different and I’m a proponent that insights and inspiration sell; or at least build trust faster than pain. I believe by providing you content that is playing to one’s strengths and positivity, will resonate faster. While it may take a long time to be in service, it’s one that will be an easy sell once that individual (or you) wants to invest in support. So let me send some positive vibes your way…

I see you! I know how you’re feeling; a little frustrated. You’ve been an amazing leader up to this point and while the landscape has changed, please know you are still valued and can do amazing work. It may be a small course correction in your playbook or your mindset or the environment, know that you are still valued. Most of you are highly aware of how you feel and the need for a change. Let me be a sounding board for you to talk through your frustration so we can move you back to positivity that has rewarded you for so many years.

I’ve spoken to so many people; Quality, Operations, VP’s, Directors, C-Suite Leaders and every time we meet for 30 minutes, I’m able to impart some insight that makes them feel valued. Could that be you? Taking a few minutes for yourself may be the best 30 minutes to move you from a place of doubt to a place of being the leader you are or were meant to be. I’m hear for you because I believe in you.

So that’s my insight for you! Playing to positivity vs pain will win every time.

The universe must be speaking to me, because I found a similar article on LI on the same topic; check it out!

Wishing you all well and much success!

-Deb

Leadership Through Crisis Can Cause More Chaos

June 22, 2024

When sales are down or complaints are up and leaders are given an urgent mandate to turn things around, often they make things worse in the process of trying to do good. Sound familiar?

Yes, there are power points that describe Why there is a sense of urgency, but behaviors such as rapid firing emails and assigning owners in such a short amount of time to show something is being done shows a lack of discipline.

In the process, you have disrupted the organization without consideration of current workload of the tapped resources and you’ve elevated the emotions of those you need to focus on the issue at hand.

What should have been taken care of all along because the issue is most like not a surprise. The waiting to pull the trigger and realize that things are going bad fast should elevate a different set of behaviors in an organization.

So I suggest leaders take a stern look at themselves and ask could the crisis could have been avoided. Also, could you have approached the crisis that you caused a bit differently?

Navigating with calm is the key to chaos management

Now, I could have called this crisis management, but there’s a distinction that I need to make. The drop in sales or the increase in complaints is the crisis that was caused due to lack of earlier action. The effect is amplified because you’ve imparted chaos on top of crisis, making what you are doing less effective.

Is there a better way?

As a leader, you are paid well and have the responsibility to instill confidence in the direction and in the people you lead. Bring them along in conversation so the engagement is two way vs. top down. When people are part of the conversation, their level of understanding is much deeper, you lessen the emotional whiplash and you share the action plan collectively.

Top down directives are the worse way to wear your team out in the process. You may prevail through the crisis and the chaos you created, but your team will think twice if they want to stay in such an environment.

Is this a real scenario that I’ve lived through? Yup! Too many times, so the issue needed to be raised.

While I wrote this in a tone directed to you, it was intentional to get your attention.

If you are one of those leaders, let me partner with you on a calm approach to mitigate crisis and instill confidence without the chaos.

If you know someone who is behaving this way, you have some tools to provide kind feedback to change their approach.

If you are someone who has experienced such an event, you are wiser now because when you are faced with a crisis, you can navigate with confidence and be the leader others will follow.

If you want to vent because of a bad experience, let’s talk. I’m a great listening partner and in the process, you learn the secrets of the C-Suite and become the next “CEO”.

Until we speak, be well

-Deb

‘We were afraid you would be like most other consultants…’

June 12, 2024

I’m laughing inside as a recent client of mine commented during our debrief, ‘We were afraid you would be like most other consultants…’ to which I am grateful I was excluded from that demographic!

As the Drop In CEO, I don’t come in to cause chaos, but to take a business through the crisis scale from Crisis->Chaos->Control->Continuous Improvement->Competitive Advantage, while elevating their team’s capabilities for a lasting impact.

Then I wonder why so may (not all) consulting experiences leave a bad taste in ones’ mouth? Don’t blame it on the consultant; they were just doing their job. Could it be how they were introduced to the organization and how they were deployed? It goes to leadership practiced that could be responsible for the havoc they cause an organization. It could be how we set the expectation for what we want consultants to do. Is it to achieve a business transaction and / or is it to bring people along for a change? Again, go ask leadership what the expectation should be.

To avoid creating chaos for you, I’m offering a few tips to help you navigate the changing landscape for you and your team:

Ask what do we hope to achieve?

If we want to implement a new system for better efficiency, that is the wrong answer. A better outcome statement may be: want to help our people realize efficiency gains while making they’re lives easier. With a better outcome in mind, the consultants might create a workstream that engages the people in how best to deploy the new platform. Simply deploying a new platform will bring an organization to a screeching halt if the people don’t realize the gains.

How do we prepare the team for a consultant?

Often, they show up on your doorstep with little notice leaving a very awkward moment when the consultant starts reaching out to people. Your team does not have context nor know their role in the change you are hoping for. Leadership needs to communicate in advance why is the change needed, how the change will impact them and how they consultant will engage with them. Oh, most important during this period is to let people know how much their valued and maintain constant communications. An information void will damage what you are trying to achieve.

Find the right consultant; they’re not all created equal.

I propose you find someone who becomes integrated into the day to day operations of your business and is seen as a business partner. When they become one with your team while on a mission, people will trust the resources more and move as one. When you hire someone that promises a result and then complains how the team is not supporting the work, you may have mis-represented what you wanted from the consultant. It always goes back to leadership to set the expectations. Some consultants are just think tanks and want to give you their expertise and simply execute. They are note as interested in working with the teams from a change management perspective. The want to get in and get out. You then have to determine if you have the capacity for change management or do you want to hire someone that has both the technical and change experience?

The choice is yours. If the consultant fails at the outcome, you may want to look inside and see what it was you asked for.

Shameless plug here, I’m the Drop In CEO and I drop into organizations and partner with you to assess what is needed in the changing landscape and also elevate the people in the process. I love that work and would love to be “that consultant” who is memorable.