DW's Blog

Good or Bad?

by DW Green — March 28, 2018

But thinking makes it so…

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” —Bill Shakespeare HamletI have always found this notion perplexing. Seems true enough. What do you think? Ah the think word!Are you having a good day or a bad day, today? How do you know?There is no such thing as good or bad. They are comparisons to our expectations. They are not grounded in any objective standards and they are always relative – sometimes just in time. Is it bad, then, to get laid off? What if you hate your job but the fear of the unknown compels you to stay put. If you get laid off you may feel a weight off your back and be given the opportunity to explore new things. Is it good to get a job, then? Not if you end up working for people you don’t like, doing work that you don’t find fulfilling. I understand the realities of the world require us to make practical decisions, like making a living, but let us not judge the decisions we make or the experiences we have as good or bad. Lets just consider them all good.If you have a colleague who you think is doing bad work, before you go tell them what is bad, think of one thing that you GENUINELY think is good. Now consider everything else an opportun...

by DW Green — March 21, 2018

Choose to Serve.

I’d like to acknowledge Adam for his incredible blog posts. His topics are always interesting, informative and relevant. He has a real gift of expressing his thoughts in a simple and easy-to-understand way with the ever present, comfortable undercurrent of humor. So, thank you Adam for your contribution to myself and readers of our weekly blog.On the other hand, I tend to get caught up in the less fashionable world of Self. Of Spirit. Each morning I spend 30 minutes in mediation. I end that time of silent reflection with a short prayer. A line from that prayer is “I dedicate my life to the service of God.” What does that mean? God is an imposing, intimidating, concept. To me, serving God means serving Life in all of its expressions…people, plants, animals, bugs, insects, trees, flowers, rocks, dirt, seashells, the universe! Well, it means to be of service to everything (including ourselves).I often share words of writers who are more articulate and expressive on the topic of Self than I am. In his weekly blog, my favorite leadership writer, Scott Mabry, writes the following, entitled A Minimalist Leadership Post (60 Words).

by DW Green — March 14, 2018

In the light of your awareness…

“Rather than being your thoughts and emotions, be the awareness behind them.”
-Eckhart TolleLifelong, set-in-stone thinking keeps you stuck… often without your even realizing that you’re stuck! Since this type of mental activity can’t lead you in a new direction, becoming aware must be the first step to getting rid of your excuses forever.When awareness is your reality, you don’t need to explain your shortcomings or missed opportunities. Instead, you transcend the pull of ego and move into a totally new dimension of higher consciousness. To put it simply and bluntly: if you don’t realize that you no longer have to be stuck in your old thinking habits, then the habits will prevail and persist.Breaking old habits requires noticing that you’re creating impediments in your life, and that these impediments have become excuses for so-called limitations. For example, if you’re averse to risk taking and tend to choose the safe or easy path, this has caused you to erect mental barriers. Such barriers are what I’m calling “excuses,” and they give you a way out. So when it’s time to try something new-or to take a step that might result in failing, becoming the butt of criticism,...

by DW Green — March 7, 2018

The times, they are a-changin’.

Dorothy Lane Market in Dayton Ohio is one of my favorite companies. They are an excellent retailer, one of the very best in America. It’s an honor to know them. I hold the entire organization in high esteem. In fact, they are celebrating their 70^th Anniversary this year, which in itself, speaks to their enduring ability to maintain relevancy in the ever changing, fast paced supermarket industry. Dorothy Lane is a premier leader in customer loyalty marketing. They have stayed the course and have improved and deepened their knowledge and expertise in rewarding, valuing and understanding their best customers. Being relevant in the marketplace is huge for any business. But knowing and doing are two different things. Staying relevant means acknowledging past successes and failures but leaving them in the past and focusing on the present. What do my customers want and need today? And how can we better satisfy those desires today?In this week’s “Club Deals” email blast Dorothy Lane features their “Rainbow Roll”, 9 count package for $10.99. Their Rainbow Roll “uses a California base of krab, cucumber, and avocadoes topped with tuna, salmon, red snapper, shrimp, and more avocado for a...

by DW Green — February 28, 2018

And that hymn is what we call purpose.

Trust is perhaps the most important currency in business, and big ideas may be the only true source of competitive advantage. Lack of trust is a form of tax. And that tax rate has increased over the years. Customers simply don’t trust institutions as much today. Particularly large businesses. The main reason is that we now live in an “information everywhere” and more transparent world. Every customer has a camera in their cell phone, a Facebook in their pocket and Twitter at their fingertips. This means we hear and see evidence of businesses not walking their talk. Their products don’t match their promise. In order to regain this trust you must simply make sure that all your products, your merchandising, your advertising, your people and the totality of your touch points with consumers sing from the same hymn. And that hymn is what we call purpose. Some people call it vision. Others call it focus. It is the same thing. It is source of your promise. It answers the question: Why are you here?

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by DW Green — February 21, 2018

Leaders who get in the way cause friction.

Many of us, on occasion, find ourselves micromanaging a project—either intentionally or unintentionally. Why? Because we can, or because we feel we know better or we’re more qualified than our staff. All that may be true. Or not. Sometimes micromanaging causes more problems than it solves. At best we should refrain from micromanaging but at least we should be aware of when we choose to do so.I enjoy reading author Scott Mabry. He has amazing insight on leadership. I highly recommend reading his blog, Soul To Work, life-affirming work experiences that make a positive impact on the world. https://soul2work.com/author/mabryosm/The following is from his February 6, 2018 blog, dealing with micromanaging.5 REASONS FOR LEADERS TO GET OUT OF THE WAY—SCOTT MABRY“Leaders who get in the way create friction.
Leaders who get out of the way create space.”Think about some of your favorite leaders. Were they in the way? Did people have to go through or around them to get things done? Did they try to control people or outcomes? Were they micromanagers?My guess is they were more or less the opposit...

by DW Green — February 14, 2018

Living with integrity requires an ever-present awareness.

I read a great article in Harvard Business Review this week. Ban These 5 Words From Your Corporate Values Statement, by Denise Lee Yohn.Denise writes, “Practically every organization today has a set of core values that ideally function as the ‘operating instructions’ of the company. The goal of articulating the essential and enduring principles of your organization is to inform, inspire, and instruct the day-to-day behaviors of everyone who works at your company. But this rarely happens, because most core values statements don’t get at what’s unique about the firm.”Denise bans the following five terms from every core values list she works on:Ethical (or integrity), Teamwork, Authentic, Fun and Customer-oriented. She writes, “Not only are these concepts mere table stakes for any business that wants to be competitive in today’s environment, they also don’t specify what is distinctive or uniquely valuable about your organization.”I agree with her overall premise and four of the five terms she believes should be banned. The one I question is Ethical (or integrity). According to Denise, “every company should operate ethically and...

by DW Green — February 7, 2018

Take care of customers you already have

I had an unpleasant experience at the ole auto dealership last month. I’ve leased five cars at that dealership over the past seven years. The car looks good, runs great and a heck of a value! So when my lease was up, I went to the dealer to lease a new one, same model and color. I was told they didn’t have the color I wanted in that particular model. I asked if they could get the car from another dealer? I was told that there wasn’t one in the state of Arizona. My options were to either purchase one in a color I didn’t want or drive to Nevada or California to buy the one I wanted. I wasn’t pleased with either option so I bought a different brand of car from a different dealer.Later when scheduling an inspection for the car I was returning, I was told by the national car manufacture that I could extend my lease payments for up to six months so I could order the car I wanted. Well, it was too late by then, as I had already purchased a different car. When I returned the leased car to the dealer, I explained the situation to the sales manager, telling him there was a third option, in case someone else visited the dealership with a similar situation to mine. The sales manager didn’t listen, was arrogant and ...

by DW Green — January 31, 2018

Less is more. “Acceptance is the great healer of strife, conflict, and upset. It also corrects major imbalances of perception and precludes the dominance of negative feelings. Everything serves a purpose. Humility means that we will not understand all events or occurrences. Acceptance is not passivity, but non-positionionality.” – David Hawkins