"Connecting With Power" by Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM

Good relationships are all about connecting with others. How good are you at connecting with your family, your friends, and your team members at work?

Lady Jennie Jerome Churchill, the beautiful American mother of Winston Churchill, dined with two of England’s premier leaders, Benjamin Disraeli and his rival, William Gladstone, in the same week. 

A journalist asked, “Lady Churchill what was your first impressions of the two men?”

Lady Jenny Jerome Churchill replied: "When I left the dining room after sitting next to Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But when I sat next to Disraeli I left feeling that I was the cleverest woman."

Benjamin Disraeli on meeting the beautiful, Lady Jenny Churchill, wanted to know all about her. He asked her questions and listened intently to her replies. Disraeli wanted to connect with her and find common ground. Benjamin Disraeli said, “The greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches, but to reveal to him his own.”

William Gladstone, on the other hand, talked about how brilliant and important he was to Lady Jenny Churchill. He was not interested in connecting with anyone else.

Which leader would you rather sit next to at dinner Disraeli or Gladstone?

The greatest connectors find common ground and lift others higher just like Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli did for Winston Churchill’s mother Lady Jenny Jerome Churchill.

Michael Deaver was deputy chief of staff for Ronald Reagan for 30 years. Deaver said, “Ronald Reagan was one of the shyest men I’d ever met.” Deaver was asked, “Why Reagan had such rapport with the press corps?” he replied, “Well, Reagan basically liked people, whether they were part of the press corps or whether they were just ordinary people. That comes through.” It was said that President Reagan cared about people and it did not matter whether they were a gardener, a secretary, or someone on his team. He treated them the same. Reagan “enjoyed being with people” and connected with them. 

Deaver said, “Everyone liked being around Ronald Reagan because he loved people and connected with them. He understood that relationships were the glue that held his team members together- the more solid the relationship, the more cohesive his team.”

Dan Quiggle said, “Ronald Reagan spoke plainly and genuinely to the American people—from his heart and with genuine sincerity about what he believed was best for America and for the world.”

Benjamin Disraeli and Ronald Reagan understood about the importance of connecting with others. They cared about others, valued them, and wanted to know about them. They asked questions and listened attentively; wanting to find out answers and find common ground with the people they connected to.  Connecting is important at all levels of your life; with family members, friends, with other employees at work, or at school.

After two weeks of torrential rain and wind my family and I noticed cracks in the ceilings and several damp spots. When the rain finally stopped we called a friend and got a recommendation on a roofer he liked and trusted. We called the roofer and arranged an appointment in his busy schedule to show him the ceiling damage in the house to have our roof repaired.

My husband and I met the Roofer shook hands with him and showed him the ceiling damage in the house. He then asked us the following questions:

1  1)   How old is this roof?

    2)   How often have you had it checked and repaired?

    3)   Do you have extra shingles?

We answered the Roofer’s questions. He then went up his ladder on the roof and photographed, with his phone, pictures of what needed to be repaired. He then showed the pictures to us and explained what needed to be done.

The Roofer said, “Your roof is in pretty good shape considering how so many other roofs have faired in this wet stormy weather. We will need to replace all the tiles missing in the pictures and caulk around a few areas on the roof and repair a gable.” He called us a few days later, to tell us how much it would cost. His price seemed reasonable and we agreed to it. He told us what day he would repair it and we left the shingles outside for him to do the repairs.

The Roofer called us after he completed the roof and said, “It will be raining Tuesday or Wednesday. Let me know if we have gotten all the leaks.” This Roofer understood how to connect with others and did the work as promised.

On February 20, 2015, five hundred of us trained with Dr. John Maxwell to be certified to join his John Maxwell Team. One of the most important rules he taught us was his “The 30 Second Rule”. “Within 30 seconds of meeting someone give them the “Triple A Treatment” – your attention, affirmation, and appreciation”.

Two of my favorite books of Dr. Maxwell are “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect” and “Relationships 101” .

So what are the three things you can do today to connect with others?

1) Connecting begins when you take an interest in others by asking them questions just like Benjamin Disraeli, Ronald Reagan, and the Roofer did.

2) Listening carefully to their responses, shows that you care and want to know all about them, and how you can help them.

3) As you connect with others you are finding common ground and building a relationship.  Look for the best in others by saying positive things to them and lifting others up.  

Zig Ziglar says, “Strong people don’t put other people down….they lift them up.”  

 “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” This famous quote has been attributed to Teddy Roosevelt, Zig Ziglar and Dr. John Maxwell.

So begin today connecting with others just like President Reagan, Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, and the Roofer. (C) 2015 Madeline Frank

Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM is an Amazon.com Best Selling Author, John Maxwell Team Member, sought after speaker, business owner, motivational teacher, researcher, and concert artist. She helps businesses and organizations "Tune Up their Businesses". Her innovative observations show you the blue prints necessary to improve and keep your business successful. She writes a monthly newsletter "Madeline's Monthly article & Musical Tips Blog" and a monthly radio show "Madeline's One Minute Musical Radio Show". She has just published her new book "Leadership On A Shoestring Budget” available on Amazon or Kindle. Contact Madeline Frank for your next speaking engagement at mfrankviola@gmail.com

Outstanding Customer Service by Madeline Frank, Ph.D.

Is there a favorite restaurant where you, your family, and your friends like to eat lunch or dinner? How is the food and the customer service?

My family and friends have been going to a local Indian restaurant in Virginia for over eight years. It is a family owned restaurant and the older couple that managed the business were excellent at making their customers feel appreciated. They greeted their customers with a smile and were always neatly dressed. Their hair was combed. Their posture was straight. They were polite and helpful to their customers. Their wait staff was well- trained and the quality of the food was good. The restaurant was always filled with customers and a few people were always waiting for seats.

Two years ago, this older couple, were sent to another of their restaurants in Colorado that needed some help. In their place were sent a young man and young woman, relatives, who always greeted their customers with a smile, were always neatly dressed, their hair was combed, their posture was straight, and they were polite and helpful to their customers. They always made sure their customers were happy with what they ordered and would bring them another glass of ice tea or what ever they were drinking.

A week after they celebrated their 15th anniversary, the young man and young women, who were managing the restaurant departed and "two young angry men" were in charge of the restaurant. The few customers in the restaurant did not look very happy. The quality of the food was not up to its usual standard.

One of the "angry young men" came over and asked us, "Is everything OK?

We were afraid to say anything as he reminded us of an angry mobster. So we said, "Everything was OK!" We left feeling very depressed about this restaurant.

Five weeks later we returned to the Indian restaurant and the "two angry young men" were gone and in their place was the older couple that had just come back from Colorado to take over the restaurant in Virginia. We were so glad to see them and asked, "How is your restaurant in Colorado doing? They said, "It is doing very well thank you for asking! The restaurant was packed with customers smiling and having a good time with good food and excellent customer service once again. We told them before we left how glad we were to see them and have them back.

What are the 3 things you will want your employees to remember about excellent customer service?

1)  Your employees should always smile, be dressed for success with their hair combed, stand up straight, have a positive attitude, and be helpful and polite to their customers.

2) First impressions are fast impressions and last forever. Your customer should feel like an honored guest in your business and be treated with courtesy and respect in a polite and friendly manner.

3) Your employees want their customers to be happy with their excellent customer service, to give them good tips and be repeat customers, recommending their friends to come to your business.

Remember your employees are your first representatives of your business. They should be so proud of the excellent customer service they deliver that they are willing to give out their card with their name on it and the name of your business.

Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM, John Maxwell Team Member, and Certified World Class Speaking Coach is an Amazon.com Best Selling Author, sought after speaker, business owner, teacher, researcher, and concert artist. She helps businesses and organizations "Tune Up their Businesses". Her innovative observations show you the blue prints necessary to improve and keep your businesses successful. She writes a monthly newsletter "Madeline's Monthly Article & Musical Tips Blog" and a monthly radio show "Madeline's One Minute Musical Radio Show". She has just published her new book "Leadership On A Shoestring Budget" available in print or as an e-book. 

To contact Madeline for your next speaking engagement: mfrankviola@gmail.com

www.madelinefrank.com

Failure Your Stepping Stone to Success by Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM

Can being fired from your job be a stepping-stone for your success? Napoleon Hill said, “Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure.

In 1978 Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank were executives of “Handy Dan” part of Daylin, Inc. Their division, Handy Dan, was making lots of money, while Daylin, Inc. was going bankrupt. They were suddenly fired!

Before they were fired, Marcus and Blank, had been experimenting at Handy Dan’s by lowering the prices on some items. “They observed that when they marked down items, volume increased and costs as a percentage of sales decreased.” From this successful idea they developed their step-by-step plan of action. They decided on Atlanta as their store location. Then they located two large empty stores and put on the shelves 18,000 products from plumbing, hardware, electrical, paint, and lumber.

They charged close to 1/3 less for each item. Marcus and Blank selected and trained their employees to “deliver the best customer service”. They chose knowledgeable salespeople who knew about their products and were able to answer customer’s questions, and direct them to the best equipment for their needs. Their employees were able to tell customers how to do the work.

Their stores had everything that a homeowner or contractor needed ,under one roof, for the lowest price possible.

On the first day that they opened their store, Marcus and Blank gave their children $1 bills to give out to customers as a thank you for coming in. By evening, 5pm or 6pm, their children were in the parking lot giving out a $1 to each person they could convince to come into the store.

Blank said, “It was a crushing disappointment.”

Marcus said, “It looked like curtains for us. My wife wouldn’t let me shave for days. She didn’t want a razor in my hand.”

On the third day, “a satisfied customer returned” bring with her a thank you gift of “a bag of okra for Marcus” for helping her solve her problem.

She gave them hope and then “word of mouth” brought more customers into Marcus and Blank’s, “The Home Depot” store.

Today, The Home Depot has 371,000 employees’ worldwide. They sell hardware, plumbing, lumber, tools, home appliances, electrical supplies, paint, flooring, building materials, and gardening equipment and supplies. In 2014, Home Depot earned $78.812 billion in profit an increase of over $4 billion from 2013.

What are the three lessons you can learn from Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank about stepping-stones into success?

1) Remembering their successes with lowering the prices on certain items and saving in purchasing on volume, Marcus and Blank wrote up their step-by-step plan of action. They located two empty large buildings stores in Atlanta. On the shelves they put 18,000 products from plumbing, hardware, electrical, paint, and lumber. They charged close to 1/3 less for each item.

 2) Trained employees to “deliver the best customer service”. They chose knowledgeable sales people who knew their products and were able to answer customer’s questions, and direct them to the best equipment for their needs.

3) Their stores sold homeowners everything they needed in one store and their expert sales people told them how to repair it. Contractors were able to find everything they needed in one store for the lowest price possible. It was a “Do it yourself” store.

If Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank hadn’t been fired at “Handy Dan’s” they would never have created “The Home Depot” and employed 371,000 people worldwide, giving them good jobs to take care of themselves and their families. Their store was a how to do it store that housed all the products needed under one roof for homeowners and contractors. Their store filled a need!

 Napoleon Hill said, “Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure."

 Prime Minister Winston Churchill said, “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never—in nothing, great or small, large or petty—never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense.”

So the next time you fail at something, remember the failure of Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank and how they responded to failure by developing a new plan of action to develop their “Do it yourself” store - The Home Depot.

By the way, have you ever heard of “Handy Dan’s” before this article?

Don’t let any failure stand in your way, let it be your stepping-stone to success.

Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM, John Maxwell Team Member, and Certified World Class Speaking Coach is an Amazon.com Best Selling Author, sought after speaker, business owner, teacher, researcher, and concert artist. She helps businesses and organizations "Tune Up their Businesses". Her innovative observations show you the blue prints necessary to improve and keep your businesses successful. She writes a monthly newsletter "Madeline's Monthly Article & Musical Tips Blog" and a monthly radio show "Madeline's One Minute Musical Radio Show". She has just published her new book "Leadership On A Shoestring Budget" available in print or as an e-book. To contact Madeline for your next speaking engagement: mfrankviola@gmail.com