PD Strategies Blog

Every organization has a culture. Your organization has a culture too. Question is whether your culture is creating the outcomes you want. If it is not, then it is time to change the culture. Attitudes drive culture. I love what Zig Ziglar said, “Your attitude determines your altitude.” The fact is that people do not put enough emphasis on how attitude affects performance. If you are the leader of the organization your attitude affects the culture of your organization and, ultimately, its performance. An organization that has a positive vision and values, and that has leadership that lives and promotes those values is creating a positive culture. But if there is a negative attitude at the top the culture of the organization is doomed. There is a strong link between attitude and performance. Let’s start with defining what attitude means in this context. An attitude is a pattern of thought. These...

Values are more important than anything else when selecting team members. While having different skills and ideas brings strength to a team, it is imperative that the team shares the same values. Are you clear about what you value? If you know your core values and stand behind them, you can set goals with confidence. Your values will help you with your WHY. Moreover, your why is much more important than your how. How many businesses can say why they are in business or articulate their basic business foundation? You might be surprised at how few really can. Any successful business needs to have vision—that is what the business will look like when it is successful. Your vision is your dream. You must have a dream if you want to have a dream to come true. Your core values are of greater importance than vision. These are the ideals that you...

It is important that a business clearly define its values and work with those who share those values. Unfortunately, many businesses still need to clearly define their core values so that there is no question where they stand. For that matter, how many businesses can say why they are in business or articulate their basic business foundation? You might be surprised at how few really can. Any successful business needs to have vision—that is what the business will look like when it is successful. You must have a dream if you want to have a dream come true. Your core values are of greater importance than vision. These are your ideals you live by. These are your non-negotiables. If you know why you are in business, if you have a vision, and you have values you may then build your marketing plan and you will know how to make the right...

Many people start a business and develop a plan to market and sell their product and service.   But if that is all they have, in my opinion, there is a key ingredient missing.   Your need vision if your business is to survive and thrive.   And you also need values.   They should make it perfectly clear what type of company you are.   Surprisingly, many businesses cannot say why they are in business nor can they articulate their basic business foundation and founding principles.   Why you are running the business is more important than how you run it.   If you find that statement hard to believe then read on. Any successful business needs to have vision—that is what the business will look like when it is successful.   Your vision is your dream and as Walt Disney said, you must have a dream if you want...

Knowing your core values and standing behind them will lead to success in your business and personal life. Unfortunately, many people cannot articulate their vision or their core values. Your values will help you with your WHY. Moreover, your why is much more important than the how. How many businesses can say why they are in business or articulate their basic business foundation? You might be surprised at how few really can. If you find that statement hard to believe then read on. Any successful business needs to have vision—that is what the business will look like when it is successful. Your vision is your dream and as Walt Disney said, “you have to have a dream if you want to have a dream to come true.” Your core values are of greater importance than vision. These are you ideals you live by. These are your non negotiables. If you know...

Are you reading one page of a book but your staff is on a different page? Worse than that, are they even reading the same book? In other words, are you taking a course of action, asking your staff to follow then turning and finding no one there? The best way to see that this does not happen is to make sure that you are a focused leader , that you empower your engaged employees, that they will in turn create loyal customers leading to growth and success. Focused Leader - You may be the owner, the manager, or CEO but that does not mean you are seen as the leader. You appoint yourself CEO but your team will follow you if you are the leader.   As manager you can influence the process through which people recognize your leadership. You do this by creating an environment where people will join your...

Do you manage your time or does time manage you? I speak to many executives in Westchester County who tell me that their biggest challenge is managing their time. In fact some report feeling overwhelmed. When that happens things seem to spin out of control, leaving everyone feeling overworked, overloaded, and overwhelmed.   Having a system in place will not alone solve the problem because time management is really not a time management issue. No you first need to know your purpose. So here are some tips on surviving being overwhelmed. 1. Know Your Purpose. Know your vision, your goals, and your plans because these help you set priorities. Each day, identify the tasks you must accomplish and prioritize them. Also, set aside time to invest in your future. If you have yet to write out your life priorities, then take time to do this. It could be the most important hour...

Your core values guide you in your journey through your business and personal life. It is similar to a compass or a GPS.   In a previous post I have talked about the why being more important than the how. Much of your “why” is derived from your core values. These are your non negotiables—the ideals you live by. Your compass or your GPS tells you the direction to go and how to get to your destination. But the GPS will send you to the destination based on your preferences for type of highway and the like. It won’t take you on a narrow road if you have a preference for main highways. Your core values operate much the same way. It is important to define your core values. That way you and others will know what you stand for. If you run and company and you hire people you should only...

Your core values guide you in your journey through your business and personal life. It is similar to a compass or a GPS.   In a previous post I have talked about the why being more important than the how. Much of your “why” is derived from your core values. These are your non negotiables—the ideals you live by. Your compass or your GPS tells you the direction to go and how to get to your destination. But the GPS will send you to the destination based on your preferences for type of highway and the like. It won’t take you on a narrow road if you have a preference for main highways. Your core values operate much the same way. It is important to define your core values. That way you and others will know what you stand for. If you run and company and you hire people you should only...

Do you know why you are in the business or career you are in? Does it really matter? Many of us recognize the Nike tag line “Just do it!” While I certainly believe that is great advice it is not true universally. I was recently working with a Westchester County NY coaching client on his business development. He was struggling with his growth and was having trouble getting his team on board. He was having a hard time accomplishing the objectives that we have worked on together in his plan. These were the goals that he had established in previous sessions. After failing to complete some of the tasks we had outlined from our previous meetings over several weeks, I asked him these questions, “Why did you set these goals and if was important why have you not begun to execute on what you set out to do?” He responded that...

  Many people start a business and develop a plan to market and sell their product and service.  But if that is all they have, in my opinion, two key ingredients are missing--vision and values.   Surprisingly, many businesses can not say why they are in business nor can they articulate their basic business foundation and founding principles.  Why you are running the business is more important than how you run it.  If you find that statement hard to believe then read on. Any successful business needs to have vision—that is what the business will look like when it is successful.  Your vision is your dream and as Walt Disney said, you have to have a dream if you want to have a dream to come true.  Of perhaps greater importance are your values.  These are you ideals you live by.  These are your non negotiables.  If you know why you...