Leadership – Lessons from Nevada Head Football Coach Brian Polian

March 11, 2015March 11, 2015 / Josh Green / Leave a comment

Last week I had the privilege of attending a lecture on leadership by Nevada Head Football Coach Brian Polian. Becoming the 8^th youngest FCS head coach in the nation at age 38, Coach Polian has a unique view on being a leader. Growing up under the watch of NFL Hall of Fame Contributor, Bill Polian, Brian has gained many valuable insights that have led to his own style of leadership. While I found many connections to what Coach Polian does on the field and what I have learned in the business world, there were several key quotes I felt really stood out.

“Effort is the price of admission” – Bill Polian. This quote from Coach Polian’s dad sums up my opinion of what every sports movie captures. However, I don’t believe there is an industry in the world where this is not the case. Long-term success is built off of effort.

“Youth is no longer a reason you can’t lead. It is about your ability and production.” And, “don’t worry about your age in an interview. You are there, so they know who you are and saw your skills and potential.” This stood out to me for two reasons. The first is because I have seen this in my own career. The second is because I just wrote a blog about leading as a young professional.

“When you think you have arrived, there are always moments that will take you back a step.” Coach Polian shared a great story about his first college coaching job and bursting with confidence and cockiness, and then being taken down a few notches. I have certainly been in similar situations and truly believe you must have confidence, but also a healthy dose of humility.

“Bloom where you are planted.” Having worked in a previous job for six years, I feel there is something special about really getting to know one organization and growing within it. There may be jobs where you feel like you have to jump around a lot to advance, but there really is a benefit to sticking around and building something.

“Success demands grit.” Having perseverance is truly one of the most important qualities and another topic I recently discussed.

“To succeed, you constantly have to be trying to grow.” Coach Polian talked about his experience coming up as a coach; taking notes, talking to other coaches, listening and understanding what truly made a great leader. If you aren’t learning and making yourself better, you won’t get very far.

“Success demands courage. Are you ready to have uncomfortable conversations?” Whether it is leading those who are older or having to let someone go, if you are not able to have the uncomfortable conversations, positive change will not happen.

“There is no secret to success. There are no shortcuts. You have to be willing to pay the price.” While there are certainly people who we think violate this assumption, I believe that over the long-term everyone has to work hard to get where they want to be. For some, the hard work just seems easier.

“Be yourself.” I ended up having the only question at the end of the lecture and asked the Coach about the most valuable lesson he learned since starting at Nevada. He said it was needing to remember to be himself. You will end up going farther faster when you aren’t trying to be someone else. You can, and should, always try to be better, but being yourself is extremely important.

All of these quotes follow the idea of finding success as a leader. I will have to write another blog about the rest of his many excellent pieces of advice. What I primarily took away from listening to Coach Polian about leadership and success was that every lesson we have learned remains true – work hard, be dedicated, treat others well and, above all, be yourself. So now that you are pumped up with these inspirational quotes, take one and use it the next time you need a motivational shot in the arm. Image Credit

Failure – Just the Beginning

March 6, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 1 Comment

Throughout my life, I have learned from both my successes and failures; I state it right on the homepage. So, I can’t simply talk about success. As a normal function of taking classes, tests are given to measure your understanding and comprehension of the material covered. I am studious and have been rewarded for my efforts with high marks. However, I do not have an unblemished record. This week has been an example of that.

I took an exam in one of my classes and felt really good walking in the door. I had thoroughly covered the material and felt confident. During the exam, I was constantly checking the clock to make sure I had enough time to finish. I attacked the low hanging fruit first and then the ones taking more consideration. Afterwards, I walked out the door as confidently as a I had walked in.

The test was returned and I was surprised to see a portion of instructions encircled in red. One word stood out among all the rest – handwriting. My heart sank and the wind immediately left my sails. My knowledge and understanding of the content was no longer the issue. Embarrassed, I knew I had failed at something that should have been a non-issue; something learned in elementary school.

Rather than letting this failure get me down and affect my motivation, I am ready to learn and move on. Obviously, this has a simple solution – take more time writing my responses on the next exam. Beyond that, I asked myself how can I use this example to help prepare myself for larger failures that may, and likely will, come? Below are my 7 steps on how to effectively react to failures to do better in the future.

Accept the failure: It happened, now take a moment to get out the frustration and clear your mind.
Done yet? Double check to make sure there is no lingering negativity floating around.
Analyze: What happened? What were the circumstances leading to the failure?
Internal Review: How could I have avoided this? What was my internal systemic issue that allowed this to happen?
External Review : Without blaming, were there any external factors that could repeat, which I must consider for the future?
Fix it: Compile your thoughts and make real decisions that will help you avoid making the same mistake again.
Consider it a lesson learned: Once you have found the fix, find a way to remind yourself before the next time it could come up. If you don’t prepare adequately, you are bound to repeat.

Now, I am thinking about this as a reaction to a single test in a class, which is not something that will have a huge impact on my final grade (hopefully), my graduation, my career or my life. However, this same process to analyze and react appropriately should be used equally in your personal life and in business. Failure can be a good thing as long as you react in a manner that turns it into a learning experience; rather than the beginning of the end. Failures should be looked at as the opportunity for a new beginning.

After taking a moment to think about it, what are the best things you have taken away – learned – as a result of a failure? Please let me know in a comment below.

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Give and Take – Giving Works!

March 4, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 3 Comments

The idea of people being givers or takers is not a foreign concept to most of us. We think of Mother Teresa as a giver and Kenneth Lay as a taker. However, Mother Teresa’s form of giving is not what being a giver in business means. This was thoroughly laid out in Give and Take by Adam Grant, which I read recently for a management class. Grant’s key point came down to the idea that givers are the most successful people in the business world – and there is a vast amount of scientific evidence to back this up. However, they can also end up at the bottom, so understanding the reasons why are important.

So, what is a giver in business? The same general concept from Mother Teresa applies – someone who gives (time, resources, knowledge, advice, etc.) without any expectation of getting something in return. The important aspect to understand is that successful givers look out for themselves and prevent being taken advantage of; this group of givers is described as being “otherish.”

For me, the most important thing I took away from the book is that givers can be and are the most successful people. There are exceptions to every rule, but the evidence is clear. I would self-identify as a giver and was given an evaluation of 80% giver and 20% matcher through Grant’s evaluation tool. A matcher is someone who will give, but expects something of equal value in return.

The book is filled with evidence and stories of those who have found great success as a giver. There were several other concepts presented that stood out to me, which I have described below.

Chunking: By grouping together the time spent helping others, givers are able to focus on their own work more effectively. This could mean volunteering for six hours every other Saturday instead of an hour a day, or scheduling every Tuesday afternoon as the designated time to help others at work.
Meyer’s Code: This code comes from George Meyer, an accomplished comedic writer whose work is likely known to 99% of every person in the United States. He laid out four items as the giver’s code of honor. They are simple, but often rare qualities.

Show up • Work hard • Be kind • Take the high road

Grit: This simply means having passion and perseverance towards long-term goals. Grit is more important than raw talent when it comes to looking at what can be accomplish.
Reciprocity Ring: The idea behind the reciprocity ring is getting a group of people together and having each person ask for something from the group; such as a group of CEO’s or MBA students. People just start helping each other. The examples given in the book range from career advice to process improvements. This very powerful concept boils down to people helping people who otherwise may have not.

Feeling that I am a giver, this book – more than anything else – served as motivation that I am not destined to fulfill the idea that nice guys finish last. Being seen as a giver who takes care of himself at work is a good thing. So, there is no reason to hide that you are a giver – own it and live it.

This really was a great read and I would recommend that you check it out, which you can do by clicking here.

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Defining Your Values

March 1, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 4 Comments

Similar to creating a mission statement, defining your values is one of the crucial first steps when beginning a business venture. Why? Because when you face tough decisions, this is what you lean on as a guide. Those decisions are easier to make when you have given yourself permission to make the difficult call. The difference between a mission statement and core values is an important detail; your mission should forge the reason for the business to exist and vales define what you believe in.

When you take the time to set your core values and then define what they mean to the business/organization, you force yourself to evaluate how and why you do business. This means having to look at the suppliers you use, customers you target and product/service you sell. By doing this, you can look at your preferred outcomes and determine if they fall in line with your values. There are several good examples of companies with well-defined core values. In no particular order: Zappos, Southwest and Chevron.

I have listed several steps to help you focus in on the values most important to you. I believe the ideal number of values is between 3 and 7; any less and it won’t cover the full spectrum of your business, and with too many the message can get lost.

What are your personal values? Personal values almost always reflect the business decisions being made. Why set business values you would have a personal problem living up to?
How do you want others to define you? What would you want in a testimonial and what do those words mean to you?
Look at your competition. This is NOT to copy, but to see what drives them. Would you have the same values? If so, what would set you apart from them?
Get the entire team involved. With a small business/company, everyone can get involved. If you have too many people to fit in a room, find a way to let everyone’s voice be heard.
Lock them in and send them out! Once they are set, make an announcement. This doesn’t have to be over the top, but make sure people know what drives you and your business.

Once completed, you are off and running. Values are not a required piece of any business, which is why I feel they are so important – values will set you apart. Defining the values of your business will serve as an essential piece of the foundation that success is built upon. To close, here are a few words from Steve Jobs talking about using values when tough decisions need to be made.

To get you started, please share what you believe your three personal values are in the comment section below.

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Succeeding as a Young Professional

February 27, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 2 Comments

An aspect of my career that I have reflected upon heavily is how I am perceived as a young leader. My work has put me in contact with almost every age demographic; from 18-year-old college freshmen to 90-year-old retired CEOs. Because of this, I have learned a few things about how to put my best foot forward to gain respect for what I am able to accomplish and deliver, as opposed to how old I am.

As a young leader you have something to prove, especially when leading individuals who are older. It can be a challenge to win a team over and show them you deserve to be in that position. Below are a few topics to think about as a young leader that I have taken away from my experiences.

What would you want to see? Do a bit of self-reflection and think about what you would want to see in a great leader. Chances are others want to see the same things.
Be Yourself! Don’t try to act differently around those who are older and have been around the block – it will show. Being genuine will go a long way.
Ask for their opinions. As I said above, they have been around the block, so get their advice and make them feel like you value who and what they can contribute. Create a team environment!
Never preach from on high! If you want to make a team, then be a member of that team. I have never seen a dictatorship work well in a work environment, so I don’t believe that is the way to go.
Put in the hours. There is no slacking when it comes to being a leader. When people see you putting in the elbow grease to get a good job done, they will recognize and respect that.
Show your value. Your resume is meaningless to someone who has been in the business for years. So, take your time to review and understand what is going on in the workplace, get the team involved in setting goals and show them the value you bring to the table. Be it fresh ideas or a new way of doing things, let them see why you got the job and get their commitment for positive change.
Find your own style. Write down ideas, make lists, set calendar reminders. Do whatever it takes to keep the things you want to do as a leader in the forefront of your mind.

In addition to things you can do at work to improve your leadership skills at a young age, you can also go out into the community to get more experience. In almost every community in the US, there are opportunities for you to get out and head something up. If not, start one yourself! It could be a community service or philanthropic organization, a book club, alumni association, sports club, networking group, or whatever. Just get out there, join, learn what that organization does and volunteer for a leadership role. The more opportunities you have to lead, the more chances you have to try new things and learn from the experience. And, this can only benefit you in the workplace.

There are so many books on leadership, and everyone I have read is good. Rather than list them all, I will just tell you the last one I read – Give and Take by Adam Grant. This book has a real connection to this topic and it is a great read.

At the end of the day though, you ARE the leader. Someone hired YOU to get the job done. Each situation will be different and part of being a good leader is testing out your style and learning from your successes and failures. You will not find success at every turn, but it is how you learn and move forward that will truly define you as a leader.

Have something else to add? Please leave your thoughts below.

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Working Remotely – Friend or Foe?

February 21, 2015May 6, 2015 / Josh Green / 6 Comments

The idea of working remotely can seem like a dream – sleeping in, wearing sweatpants all day, avoiding traffic, no weather issues and not having to find parking. However, it can also turn into a disaster if you are not ready for the transition. It all depends on your personality and ability to self-motivate. Having worked remotely for over six years, I found it to be an amazing situation that ended up benefiting me and my employers.

This is where important aspects of personality come into play. To start, I have listed a few potential pitfalls and items to consider.

Salary vs. Hourly: Assuming the honor system is in place and working well, tracking your time should be easy. I believe working remotely is easier in a salaried position, but hourly can work just as well.
Trouble getting started: Getting started can be difficult. When you are at a physical office location, you have already traveled from home and are now fully aware of your changed surroundings. However, working remotely, you move from the bedroom to the couch, table or coffee shop – not a significant journey.
Distractions: TV, food, family, phone, internet, your bed, etc. This can be the linchpin of being able to work remotely. There has to be a balance and personal understanding of how you are going to work and what your expectations are for yourself.
No whistle at quitting time: Like Fred Flintstone at the end of the day, many office employees watch the second-hand tick to End O’clock and leave the office. When you work from home, when is the end of the day? Is 4:30 good enough? Does finishing one last thing turn into working until 6:00? It may change every day. You have to make the call.
No water-cooler and no boss: When at home, it is difficult to form meaningful professional relationships with your coworkers, which can be deeply important for networking and your career. And, you can’t just pop into your boss’s office to ask a question. Trying to get him or her on the phone can be a major challenge – I know from experience.

If any of the items above make you feel like an issue will arise, then perhaps working remotely isn’t for you. An honest discussion with your supervisor is always a good place to start. Now, if you can get the secret sauce just right, working remotely can become the most rewarding and professionally important time of your life. Here is why:

No commute: It saves time and money, limits stress and is a rare opportunity to actually create more time in the day.

Flexibility: Taking a break, running an errand or attending your kid’s baseball game, a remote office can make it easy to not miss out on important life events.
No interruptions = high productivity: Turn the phone over and work for hours without interruption. People will need to actually schedule time to connect with you. Remember though, this is important time you need to schedule to maintain positive professional interactions.
Go to the office when you want: Unless it is in a different city, you can head in for a day to change it up. If you schedule a meeting, plan to stay longer; make sure you talk to your coworkers, boss and others at work to keep relationships strong.

During my time working remotely, I found a great middle-ground that allowed me to produce high-quality work, surf almost every day and enjoy my job that much more. Working remotely isn’t for everyone, but if you can overcome the potential pitfalls, it can become as wonderful, mutually beneficial, work experience.

If you can think of other benefits or potential pitfalls, please let me know through a comment below.

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Mind, Body and Business

February 19, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 1 Comment

When looking at success, it is easy to focus on getting a good job, the big promotion or a new client. However, to me, success is built off of the idea of maintaining balance. Too often work and business are put at the forefront of our priorities, disregarding family and health. Without these, however, I don’t believe true business success can be obtained. And, over time, it is bound to catch up with you in a negative way.

In my opinion, without health, you truly have nothing. For that reason, it must be set as a top priority. What that doesn’t mean is that it has to take up a large amount of your time. Excuses are easy to come by regarding health – not enough time or not enough energy. For energy, I believe that is a matter of simply having the motivation to get started, but the longer you wait, the more difficult it becomes. For time, that usually comes from a lack of creativity. And, as someone once told me, “If you are too busy for your health, then you are just too busy.”

What I have found as the easiest and most time conserving workout program out there is You Are Your Own Gym by Mark Lauren. Developed as a strength training program for special operations forces, it is a simple guide that takes between 20 and 40 minutes from the comfort of your own home; 4 or 5 days a week. The book clearly lays out what exercises to do and how to do them. There are versions for both men and women. No commute time to the gym and each exercise can be completed with what you likely already have in your home.

If you need to actually go to a gym, then there are usually plenty to choose from in every city. And, chances are, you will pass one on the way to work. Or, you can simply go out and run; it’s free, easy and comes with a healthy dose of fresh air. Basically, it comes down to what will be easiest for you and can keep you motivated to stick with it.

Get up, work out and you will be energized for the day, plus feel fantastic from taking care of yourself. Research shows that exercise will make you more productive at work and improve cognitive performance. Combined with eating wisely and getting enough sleep, this can be one of the best decisions you make. These things aren’t dismissed because people don’t know it is important, it is simply a matter of making the choice to live better. That doesn’t mean having to be a triathlete, but feeling better today and potentially adding years to life is worth making the positive decisions to improve your health. And, it has the added benefit of improving your performance and abilities at work, which should help with getting the good job, big promotion or new client.

What would it take for you to get started? If you tweet at me (button below), I will follow-up and try to get you motivated!

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Your Mission – For Business and For Life

February 15, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 4 Comments

When starting a new business, there are many items that must be worked out, taken care of and secured. To me, one of the most important is defining your mission. Why? Simple – because the mission for your business should be the foundation you build everything upon and for making almost, if not, every decision.

The mission for a business will generally mirror those of the owner(s) because what drives them is what will drive the business. So, with that idea, the concept of defining a mission is a deeply personal endeavor. If you have already gotten your business started, or even been in business for years, the importance of creating a mission is just as high and can make just as much of an impact.

Long or short, the length (almost) doesn’t matter; just the content. As an example, energy company ConocoPhillips has a very short mission statement – Use our pioneering spirit to responsibly deliver energy to the world. This is short and straight to the point. People reading this, and even the company itself, can be reminded about what drives them. The reason I said that length “almost” doesn’t matter is because mission statements can be too long; such as H&R Block’s. The message can be lost if no one wants to read through it.

When looking to write your mission statement, there are a few points you should think about before you get started.

Be honest and write from the heart – The last thing you want is for people to read your mission and not believe it truly represents you or your business.
State your ideal situation – If you want to be the best, world-famous, put your customers first, grow to be the biggest company in your industry, then put that in there. This is as much about what you want to be, as it is how you want to be seen.
Don’t limit yourself – Your mission statement should remain the same throughout the life of your business. Therefore, if you only sell baked goods, but in the future you would like to expand into coffee, then don’t just state you want to be the best baker in the world.

If you need inspiration, I found www.missionstatements.com, which has a multitude of examples for almost every type of mission statement to get the creative juices flowing. Once you have put together your mission, get some feedback from those you trust and then start using it as your guide and post in for the world to see.

Finally, because the mission can be short and covers a broad level of what you do, other items can be created to help clarify who you are and what you are about, such as a vision and values, but I will save my thoughts on those for another time.

As a small push to get started, and if you are feeling brave, please write a one line personal mission statement in the comment section below.

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3 Key Steps for Finding Success

February 14, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / Leave a comment

There is no secret recipe for a successful future. Certain elements are usually required to get there; such as hard work, dedication and specific skills. However, there are easy to follow steps to help reduce the risks by taking the time upfront and focusing on what is most important. These steps hold true for all decisions; both personally and professionally.

Picking a Path

Starting is by far the most difficult part of any journey. And, that is why the most time should be spent on this stage. When deciding what big change you are going to make or is coming up in life, research and knowing the information that will lead you down the right path is crucial. Test your ideas and make sure you truly believe in your new path.

Plan – For Your Life

While on your journey, there are inevitably going to be hurdles that come up. So, it is important to make sure you have plans and backup options. You can never know exactly what is going to happen, but you can be prepared. What does that mean? It means saving your money, keeping your resume current, networking with as many people as possible, getting additional education or certifications. For business, it means also saving your money, investing in what will be the future of your business, constantly develop new customer relationships, do a SWOT analysis to see what could be your greatest threats and keep customer service as a main priority. You will not be able to know or plan for everything that comes along, but you can put yourself in the best possible position for when it does.

Define Your Success

Finally, you must define your goals and what success means to you. No one can tell you what success looks like. It is a deeply personal belief. Few people look at success in the same way. Someone may only look at success through the lens of fame, money, title or power. Others may simply see it as leaving work with a smile each day or having a customer do so. You must set your own bar for success. This will keep you motivated, push you to meet your own goals and allow you to find true happiness and job satisfaction.

• • •

Whether it is in your personal life or the business world, these are three key steps that should always be taken and can make success that much more likely.

Now, I believe there is a fourth step, which is also very important, but comes afterwards. Please leave a comment with what you feel is crucial to future success that happens after decisions are made and outcomes are known.

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Business Education in Action

February 7, 2015March 9, 2015 / Josh Green / 4 Comments

When thinking about going back to school, you have to know why you would be going and what your expectations are for the value you hope to receive. These were the questions that filled my thoughts in the not too distant past. I was contemplating going back to school and wanted to make sure I was making the right choice. The reason I am going back to school – I want to couple academic knowledge with the real world experiences I have had in my almost seven-year long career. I would also like to add real value to my resume that will allow me to get the jobs I want in the future. My expectations – walk away from each class with new, and valuable, information that will allow me to improve my ability to help others.

After embarking on my path, I decided to begin working towards receiving my Masters of Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Reno. The top two most important aspects of Nevada’s MBA Program, to me, are having AACSB accreditation and allowing me to pick 7 of the 10 non-core courses; meaning I get to focus my studies on what is important to me. Having left a job I held for six years to begin the next phase in my career, I was fortunate enough to be offered a graduate assistant position. The unique nature of this position is that I work as a business consultant within the Nevada Small Business Development Center (NSBDC); a statewide business assistance outreach program providing assistance to entrepreneurs in today’s dynamic business market. Each client is an opportunity to learn something new and expand my ability to help others in the future.

In starting this new adventure, I found that I am learning and growing as much as the clients who I work to assist. So, to push myself to continue to develop my skills and expand on the information I am learning in the classroom and applying at work, I have started this blog to give insight into what knowledge I am gaining and how I feel it can help others. This will include new ideas from within the classroom, research from the office and personal experiences that help improve my ability to get the most out of this adventure.

My goal is to reinforce what I am learning and start positive dialogue that can motivate others to start something new, make a change or just add an item to the tool belt. In doing so, I hope to provide the same value to others as I am receiving through my experiences. To get things going right from the start, and potentially prompt some new motivation, I restate the same question I raised above. Why would you want to go back to school – for anything – and what value would you expect to receive upon graduation?

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