The Buzz Forge

jeff September 2nd, 2009

I wonder how many great coaches were great players.  I’m not one to follow any player, team or sport closely enough to answer this. In football I can list a few who I believe were some of the greatest coaches; Lombardi, Shula, Landry, perhaps Walsh and Parcells. I’m sure there are more but my question is Where are the any stars as players?

Here’s a key point for up and coming managers to remember…Great managers are rarely excellent at the things they manage.

My first management opportunity came at 30. I stunk. By age 32 I was above average. At age 35 I had become a decent manager, at least I believe so. The key came when I accepted the fact that I could not do everything. I was not good at everything and was not the best at most things.

I am far better handling 10 things at a time than one. There are too many details to deal with in the one. I learned and accepted that my detail abilities were not my greatest talent. One of my soccer coaches once told me “You’re not the best player we have but you see the field and how the game is developing quickly and can put the ball where it needs to be better than the others.”

Once I accepted my limitations and focused on my talents it all came together. I surround myself with detail people, those who love to handle the i dotting and t crossing.

If you are the star seller in an organization and have aspirations for management think about your skills and your managers skills. Look at what your manager deals with day to day. Are they the things you enjoy?

We often see VP of Marketing or VP of Finance people elevated to President or CEO only to crash. We forget that they are the VP of Marketing because they are excellent at Marketing and relating to the people in the Marketing department. They don’t relate to penny pinchers. They don’t handle HR or company PR well.

Great coaches, great managers, generally are not star players. They have broad talents rather than highly focused ones. They have high assist numbers and low scoring stats. They relate to teammates better than cameras.

Great managers are rarely excellent at the things they manage.

Thanks for coming back to thebuzzforge. Feel free to leave a comment or shoot us a note.Great Managers

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bigbuzz August 28th, 2009

Survey: Women More Pessimistic Than Men on the Economy

Does that surprise anyone?

According to the survey results, 55% of women expect to spend less in the next 60 days, vs. 37% of men. And 41% of women expect to spend less on household essentials in that time period, up from 34% in April.

The recent survey by Performics I believe states something we all recognize. As marketers we often want to spend money on surveys to justify our positions to clients or make our point more prominent when all we have to do is look at out own household and that of our friends. It’s the same way many of us go about marketing our clients products, telling the public that they need more-bigger-better when in actuality we, as consumers, as a nation, need less.

That will surely piss a few people off, perhaps some of my clients, but it’s true. The consumer economy we have experienced has brought us to a point of drastically needed change. We won’t become the industrial giant that built the country but the consumer economy has run it’s course and the times they are a changing. Marketers and clients alike must realize this and adapt now or die.

What are we looking at here? As I see it we have begun a consumerism reversal. People are less secure in their jobs and are cutting back. They drive less, are more interested in fuel efficient vehicles, are spending more economically in their food choices, clothing travel and accessories.  Businesses who realize this and start providing goods and services that help people save will prosper. Those who continue to offer Keep Up With The Jones products will find themselves wondering what happened (the exception is ultra lavish targeted to the ultra wealthy. We’ll address that another day).

The marketers who speak to consumers in a truthful manor presenting a valuable product, will find themselves inundated with client request.

The fog is lifting  and consumers are now recognizing the difference between a want and need. And even though wants will exist they have changed.

Consumer confidence will change. It is changing but it’s leading us down a new path…an old path, one we’ve seen recycled over and over in history. Be aware of that direction and lead the way. This will not only produce a profitable company but a stronger economy.

Consumerism Reversal; Keys to A Profitable Company and Stronger Economy

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