Dr. Zimmerman's Tuesday's Tip Tip: “Never forget ... people are always impressed or depressed by you.”

Dr. Zimmerman’s Tuesday Tip
January 13, 2009
Issue #448

Tip: “Never forget ... people are always impressed or depressed by you.”

What Dr. Alan Zimmerman Has To Say:

As wave after wave of scandal emerges from corporate America, it's clear that many business leaders have shelved their ethics and integrity for the sake of profit. "It's truly a problem of ethic proportions," says D.J. Eagle Bear Vanas, author of "The Tiny Warrior: A Path To Personal Discovery and Achievement."

I agree. Our businesses, our governments, and even our very lives are in jeopardy because of the ethical problems of a few, so-called, despicable leaders.

Oh, I understand the source of these ethical problems. I understand the pressures on today's leaders ... pressures for higher profit margins, faster production times, and bigger market shares ... pressures that push ethics to the sidelines. As we saw with Enron and World Com, and now with the housing crisis and the financial markets, the leader's ethics and integrity took second seat to the demand for staggering performance reports and a free lunch.

I understand these pressures, but they DO NOT excuse anyone from unethical behavior. To lead a family, a church, a small business, or a large corporation, nothing trumps integrity. It is the very bedrock of effective leadership, enthusiastic followership, and win-win prosperity.

So what can you do to make sure you live a life and work a job filled with ethics and integrity? I've found these things work.

1. Remember your ethics are always on display.

Whether you're in a leadership position or a support position, you will be seen. Make no mistake about it. People are watching you.

If, for example, you're a manager, do you think there's anything your people don't know about you right this minute? As author Jim Rohn asks, "If you haven't been totally aboveboard and honest with them, do you really think you've gotten away with it? Not too likely."

2. Remember your ethics ... or lack of them ... always affect others.

Too many people think a few lies here or a dishonest action there are simply the rules of business these days. They fail to realize that even the smallest breech of ethics can have dire consequences.

For example, when we watched the space shuttle Challenger explode into a fireball in 1986, the U.S. public learned it was a "technical failure" in the infamous O-ring. More than a technical failure, that tragedy was a failure of integrity.

Under incredible pressure to launch, the O-ring manufacturer, Morton Thiokol, did not want to be the one to recommend a mission abort. They knew the O-rings may not work. But instead of risking the heat of criticism, they concurred with the launch decision, and tragedy followed. The O-rings were a "little thing" that led to catastrophic failure.

Yes, your ethics always affect others. So ask yourself, "What could happen if I do this?" Play the scenario out in your mind. Otherwise, you can do something in a moment of thoughtlessness that causes major negative consequences. Ask yourself, "Is this decision and action strengthening or weakening my integrity?"

3. Establish clear ethical guidelines BEFORE you have to.

In one of my programs with leaders and managers, I ask the participants to identify their organization's values ... values they expect their ideal employees to follow. Working in small groups, they quickly list about two dozen key words or phrases that describe their values.

And then I ask them to go back and identify the values that they would fire someone for not having. It always slows down the discussion. But inevitably, these groups settle on two or three things like "honesty," "commitment," and "integrity."

The strange thing is ... it's only then that they begin to realize that they've never had detailed discussions about ethics with their employees. They haven't provided any guidelines to deal with the many common ethical dilemmas that come up in their line of work.

It's then that I let them know that the best time to make a decision about ethical behavior is BEFORE they have to ... before there is a question or temptation. It's the best way of making sure they won't go astray.



4. Walk your ethical talk ... even if it requires sacrifice.

Remember, if you're a leader of some sort, people are always watching you. And one of the key reasons employees fail to conform to an organization's stated values is because their leaders fail to "walk their talk."

I'll never forget one pharmaceutical company I worked with. The CEO simply announced one day there would be a mentoring program on site, and he arbitrarily and immediately assigned a mentor to each of several high-potential leaders. The CEO then ordered them to get to work and meet once a week. That was that.

Later, when the CEO supposed his program was well under way, he surveyed the high-potential leaders to see how well the mentoring program was working. He was very upset to discover that most of the mentor-mentee pairs had not met in six months.

As the CEO was about to reprimand the pairs who were not moving forward, he suddenly realized that he himself had not yet met with his own mentee. He was not walking his talk ... because it required some sacrifice ... namely his time.

Being a person of integrity requires discipline. Discipline is doing the right thing ... even when you don't feel like it. And with discipline, you're willing to surrender some short-term ease to keep your long-term integrity.

Finally, if you do make an ethical error ...

5. Admit your mistakes.

Being ethical doesn't mean you won't make a mistake. It does mean, however, that you're the first one to admit your mistake. You learn from it, fix it, and apologize for it ... if appropriate.

Do not play the blame game. Do not try to cover up or lie about your mistake. And do not tell others, "do as I say and not as I do." Those are pathetic ploys that will do nothing but further damage your integrity.

Just admit it. As CEO Larry Bossidy of the Honeywell Corporation said, "Ego containment is crucial. The bigger the ego, the less willing you are to admit mistakes."

But you've got to do it. As Bossidy concluded, "Humility is an important feature in being successful."

Action:

Where are you tempted to "cut corners" or "tell little white lies?" Be on the lookout for the ethical temptations in your personal and professional life. And if you're aware of them, you have a better chance of avoiding them.
Make it a great week!
Dr. Alan Zimmerman

©Dr. Alan R. Zimmerman, 20550 Lake Ridge Drive, Prior Lake, MN 55372. Reprinted with permission from Dr. Zimmerman's "Tuesday Tip," a weekly Internet newsletter. For your own personal subscription, go to http://www.drzimmerman.com/
Contact: Alan@DrZimmerman.com
Telephone: (800) 621-7881
web site: www.DrZimmerman.com

I don't care what everyone is saying 2009 is going to be GREAT!

Well now more than ever I've got to get the online buisnesses going. Yes business. I'm working on a new web site and I'll post it here when it is ready. My other things are growing and doing well.

The job I've had is closing down and everyone is out of a job as of next Monday. Luckely I'm going to take up a job as a manager of Sonic, and hopefully that will go well. I'm depending on the online buisness to add to what Sonic is doing and get through the next little while.

I know the economy is going down, but winners and champions seem to take the moment and run with it. That is what I hope to do with all of this.

Till next time.

Dean

Tip: “Don't measure yourself by what you've accomplished, but rather by what you should have accomplished with your abilities.” – John Wooden, basket

Dr. Zimmerman’s Tuesday Tip

January 6, 2009 Issue #447


What Dr. Alan Zimmerman Has To Say:

One of my friends is Lee Labrada, the former bodybuilding IFBB Mr. Universe. He was and is a champion in every sense of the word.

But what does the word "champion" mean? In the dictionary, it says a champion is "one who wins first place or first prize in a competition." I disagree. That's the definition of a winner. A champion is so much more than a person who comes in first place.

Labrada clarifies the distinction. He says, "A champion is not something you become by winning a major bodybuilding title or any other athletic event. A champion is somebody you become through a process of self-improvement, sacrifice, service, and yes, the attainment of goals normally out of reach of all except those willing to pay the price.

"Well, in my speaking business, I'm basically hired by organizations who want me to teach their people how to be champions. After all, to compete in today's crazy world, you're not going to make it if you have a workplace filled with just-get-by, good-enough employees. You need a workforce where everyone is a champion.

That being the case, what does a champion look like? What do they do? And how do they behave? Here's my list for starters. Read through the list and see how well you stack up in each of the categories.

1. A champion focuses on goals.

He knows what he wants, and he focuses his efforts on achieving those things. And he knows, as Charles C. Noble pointed out, "You must have long-range goals to keep you from being frustrated by short-range failures."

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2. A champion takes action.

She knows she'll never become a champion by waiting for it to happen. She takes action. As Conrad Hilton, the founder of the Hilton Hotel chain said, "Achievement seems to be connected with action. Successful men and women keep moving."

Another way of putting it, champions are starters and doers. Joe Sabah said it best. He noted, "You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great." Champions know a little secret. They know that "I must do something" will always solve more problems than "Something needs to be done.

"Champions don't get sidetracked. They don't procrastinate. They work on the goals and projects that are important, And they don't allow those projects to sit until the last minute. They're proactive ... not just busy.

3. A champion does what needs to be done.

In fact, one of the main reasons a champion is a champion is ... he does what most people don't feel like doing. He does the things that need to be done, not just the things he likes to do.

Many years ago, I was asked, "Alan, do you like pleasing habits or pleasing results?" As I pondered that probing question, and squirmed in my chair like a worm at the end of a hook, I knew I had been doing it all wrong.

A few moments later, I answered, "I like pleasing results." From that moment on ... my life changed. I began to do the things that needed to be done ... whether or not I felt like it.

What about you? One mark of maturity, one characteristic of a champion, is when you live by your commitments and not by your feelings.

Take a look at your actions. Take a look at the way you use time. As journalist Arthur Brisbane said in the early 1900's, "People who are constantly killing time are really killing their own chances in life."

4. A champion moves with enthusiasm.

She knows that her attitude is her most important asset. It doesn't cost her anything to get it, and it doesn't cost her anything to use it or maintain it.

Simply put, she knows a good attitude brings good results, and a bad attitude brings bad results. Nothing on this planet has a greater influence on who you become or the success you achieve than your attitude.What about you? Are you filled with enthusiasm ... for your company, your products, your services, your job, your family, and your goals? Many people aren't. Many people die when they're 30 and get buried when they're 75.

5. A champion overcomes obstacles.

He knows there are very few if any "overnight successes." Instead, he perseveres. He relentlessly pursues his goals, endures hardship, walks away from distractions and temptations, and doggedly maintains his focus on the things he desires.

Booker T. Washington, a former slave and later a prominent educator, knew about that. He wrote, "I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has had to overcome while trying to succeed."

A few years later, the great inventor Thomas Edison echoed the same sentiment. He said, "Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."I've been through many trials in life. But I've learned that success is not how high and fast you reach the top ... but how high and fast you bounce back when you hit the bottom.

6. A champion likes him/herself.

You see ... championship status involves a lot more than getting some stuff. It's also about becoming somebody you like.The book, "Each Day A New Beginning" said it well. "The kind of person we become is just as important as what we accomplish in the world around us." In other words, there's no way you can consider yourself a champion if you don't have inner peace and self-respect.Lee Labrada talks about that. He says, "To be a champion, you must achieve something of value. But the world is full of men and women who have achieved fame and fortune, yet are bankrupt as human beings."

How good is your self-esteem? If you made a list of your favorite people, would you on the list?As novelist Doris Mortman asserts, "Until you make peace with who you are, you will never be content with what you have."
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7. A champion does it now.

George Sheehan commented on that. He noted, "There are those of us who are always about to live. We are waiting until things change, until there is more time, until we are less tired, until we get a promotion, until we settle down -- until, until, until. It always seems as if there is some major event that must occur in our lives before we begin living.

"In reality, Sheehan gave a great description of a non-champion. Non-champions are afflicted with the "soon-as" disease. "Soon-as" certain things happen, they'll get to work on their goals.

By contrast, champions do it now. They know some moments are better than others for action, but there is never a perfect moment. So they do it ... NOW ... if at all possible ... and if at all sensible.Mark Twain, the great American novelist, knew about the importance of doing it now. He said, "Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

8. A champion holds himself accountable.

When he wins, he gives himself credit for his successes. And when he loses, he takes responsibility for his failures.The champion doesn't blame others for his shortcomings, and he doesn't make excuses for his setbacks. Instead, he looks inside himself for ways to improve ... learning from his failures.At Hearth and Home Technologies, one of my clients, they go so far as to include "Accountability" as one of the top ten characteristics of a professional salesperson. In their words, a champion salesperson "holds himself accountable for COMMITMENTS and RESULTS."

Lee Labrada even takes it a step further ... saying champions are accountable to the world, not just themselves. In no uncertain terms, Labrada declares, "A champion lives his life correctly, knowing that others will be watching and emulating him. The world is full of superstar athletes that live lives of debauchery and excess. They are not to be confused for champions. If it weren't for their God-given talent, they would be losers."

Being a champion has nothing to do with winning an athletic contest. Being a champion has everything to do with how you approach life and work. So I challenge you to become a champion ... if you aren't already. And if you are a champion, stay on the path, and keep on doing the 8 things I've covered today.

Action:

Rank order the 8 items from 1 to 8 ... 1 being the item you are best at and 8 the one that needs the most improvement. And then make up a plan for what you will do this year to address number 8 on your list.

Make it a great week!
Dr. Alan Zimmerman

©Dr. Alan R. Zimmerman, 20550 Lake Ridge Drive, Prior Lake, MN 55372. Reprinted with permission from Dr. Zimmerman's "Tuesday Tip," a weekly Internet newsletter. For your own personal subscription, go to http://www.drzimmerman.com/
Contact: Alan@DrZimmerman.com
Telephone: (800) 621-7881
web site: www.DrZimmerman.com