Career Comeraderie

Matrix Key:  Relationships - Staff and Colleagues

"Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success." - Henry Ford

Some of the most undervalued and overlooked relationships people have are with their colleagues or staff at work.  Because we are all thrown together in an environment outside our personal lives, we tend to not view these interactions so much as relationships but rather as necessary tasks.  Over the past several years, companies have come to recognize the importance of nurturing relationship between co-workers.  Business owners realize that an investment in team building and communication pays off in higher productivity and commitment to success.

High performance teams prioritize working relationships that are built on:

1. Respect
2. Accountability and Responsibility
3. Common Interests
4. Communication

Like everything else in the WholeLife Matrix, you must invest time and energy into these concepts in order to reap the rewards.  If you are a business owner, make sure you schedule events outside of work for employees to have fun together and get to know one another.  If you are an employee, ask a close colleague to lunch so that you can find out what motivates him or her.  The more you have invested in each other, the more likely you are to succeed.

Are you ready to win? 

The Production & Delivery Team

Matrix Key:  Financial Viability - Production and Delivery - Team

"Individuals don't win in business, teams do." - Sam Walton

Sam Walton knew a thing or two about building a viable business.  Whether your business is a small mom-and-pop operation or the next WalMart, it will not succeed without a production and delivery team that is committed to winning the game.  Take a look at how this shows up in the WholeLife Matrix.  It's not just a matter of hiring the right people and stepping back.  Business owners and managers have a responsibility to consistently coach their teams to perform effectively on the playing field.

Successful production and delivery teams depend on four key components:

1. They have a common goal.
2. They are committed to a high level of performance.
3. They can easily define and align on their purpose.
4. They have a plan and know how to execute it.

Putting together a high performance team that can deliver on the company's goals over time is a huge part of a manager's job.  Motivating your team is an ongoing and necessary process, but it is one that will pay tremendous dividends in the long run.  If your team is unskilled and uninspired, your business will fail.  Better to devote some resources to creating teams that can win the game.

Are You Ready to Win?

Opportunities For Sales

Matrix Key:  Financial Viability - Marketing and Sales - Opportunities For Sales

"Ability is of little account without opportunity." - Napoleon Bonaparte

We talk a lot about sales because sales is the heartbeat of every business. On the WholeLife Matrix, sales is a key component of Financial Viability. It doesn't matter if you make widgets or provide services, you must focus on getting people to buy.  Sales don't just show up on your doorstep.  In order to create sales, you must know how and where to create opportunities for sales, and you must consistently take action to create those opportunities.

Here are the four best ways to create opportunities for sales:

1. Referrals
2. Social Networking
3. Upselling Current Customers
4. Re-engaging Prior Customers

Sales is a process of having conversations with people who have a need for your product or service.  The more conversations you have, the more sales you have.  If you put together a plan for creating sales and use these four tools for finding opportunities, you will soon have a wealth of possibilities for winning in a competitive marketplace.

Are you ready to win?