Wim GE De Vos

Small businesses with a BIG impact

The power of context

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tipping point

The key to getting people to change their behaviour sometimes lies with the smallest details of their immediate situation. The Power of Context says that human beings are a lot more sensitive to their environment than they may seem. It also says that small changes can have a big impact. Just like a business…

Studies on juvenile delinquency and drop-outs have proven that a child is better of in a good neighbourhood and a troubled family compared to a bad neighbourhood and a good family. This is another example of the power of context.

Pretty powerful and counter-intuitive to many of us. In ways we do not necessarily appreciate, our inner states are the result fo our outer circumstances.

We are powerfully shaped by our external environment. And features of our immediate social and physical world – the streets we walk down, the people we encounter – play a huge role in shaping who we are and how we act.

Now I ask you.

How do you use the Power of Context to shape behaviour of your team, clients and partners?

recommended reading: Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point

Start with the end in mind 🏁

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Start with the end in mind.
Visualising where to go.

“If your ladder is not leaning against the right wall, then every step gets you to the wrong place faster.”

Seems obvious, but what are we doing about it?

Start with who you want to be, what you want to achieve, where you want to end up. Not just in life, but every year, month, week and even every day. Even for a single meeting or negotiation.

Start with the end in mind. And then work your way back to the start. This is how objectives are achieved. How dreams  become reality.

It helps to keep your eyes 👀 on the ball 🎱. To keep perspective. To be focussed.

Reserve a few minutes every day to reflect. To visualise things. Because everything is created twice. A mental version (first) and a physical version (second).

So start with the end in mind. 🏁 And stay on track.

Recommended reading: Steven Covey – 7 habits of highly effective people.

Who should you fire?

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Integrity is essential
Feel the Force

Who should you fire from your company? Even if you let them go easy, who should you let go for sure.

In order of urgency (and includes a kind suggestion on how to go about).

Someone who lacks integrity. 

Integrity is the foundation of everything. Without integrity things break down. They rot. It is misery. So get rid of it. Yesterday.

To let this person go I suggest you do 2 things.

Internally, burn 🔥 dishonest people on a stake. So the message is clear. Dishonest = game over. Period.
Publicly, complete silence 😶. People will smell dishonesty from a mile away. Rotten apples may ask for a recommendation letter on the way out if. Never ever consider this.

Rotten apples leave stains on the good fruit. So get rid of them and avoid being attached to them in any way possible.

Possibly they will even join or become your competition. Relaaaaaaax. They can fuck things up there instead.

Someone who lacks energy. 

High energy is crucial in a start up. It is about getting things done. It is about moving forward no matter what. It is about not giving up.

To let this person go I suggest you do 2 things.

Internally, don´t blame them for not making the cut. Rather praise the team for being high energy. Often it is not the persons fault. It is how they are. Give the person some time to find something new if possible.
Publicly, help this person to find a spot in a big structured organisation (not necessarily a company). Praise their skills when asked by such an organisation.

NOTE: Do NOT FIRE someone who merely lacks results

You should not fire honest high energy people who lack results. Work with them, stand in their shoes, ask yourself and others why. Figure out how to fix it.

Because honest & high energy is hard to find. And often a tweak or a twitch can make things click.

 

Recruit high energy ⚡ optimists

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high energy
optimist

Small businesses looking to have a big impact rely greatly on their teams. The people on the bus. They are instrumental to your success.

And I believe high energy optimists are who you need. Much more than experience, skillsets from a curriculum or realists. Supercharged dreamers.

Optimists are people who see things that can be. And that is exactly what is always in short supply when building a small business.

High energy is required to cut through the crap and keep moving forward. To make stuff happen. And even when there are stretches where it feels you are running in the sand they have what it takes to keep going.

Do not consider anybody else to get on the bus. High energy optimists are the jedis we need.