Tweet

Ian Berry Articles

Guest post by: Ian Berry

Change management is an oxymoron - Click To Read Article
Change management in my view, like strategic planning, is an oxymoron. Change initiatives are highly successful when leadership (both as something we do for other people as well as for ourselves) and management, are thought about and acted on in partnership rather than as the one discipline. Confuse change and management or think about the two at the same time and likely that you want to change, won't.

Where are you hanging out even though you perceive there is no value in doing so? - Click To Read Article
I never quite got the hang of Facebook. I joined initially because everyone else was and so I thought there might be something in it. I gave a lot of value I think. Return on investment of time and energy (admittedly I didn’t spend a lot of either) zilch, zero, nothing. LinkedIn on the other hand very glad to belong and contribute. I left Facebook on 21st April.

How skillful are you are letting go when you need to and being persistent when you need to be? - Click To Read Article
How skillful are you are letting go when you need to and being persistent when you need to be? "In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins - not through strength, but through persistence." Buddhist saying How persistent are you? More however: do you know the difference between persistence and stubbornness or futility? There are situations where we simply need to turn off our persistence tap and move on. There are situations where we need to keep at it.

Human beings are not resources, assets or capital. Please stop treating them as such! - Click To Read Article
Get the point of this article and live it in your own way and you will begin to stop the status quo from derailing you and costing you in more ways than one. You have probably heard the talk about humans being your most valuable resources or assets. Human capital is also a commonly used expression, sadly in my view. You might even be using this kind of talk. Stop please. Here’s what I think: I think such talk is trash.

Is candor the new competitive edge? - Click To Read Article
I have been working and meeting people in Dubai in the past two weeks. I enjoyed the people from many diverse places of birth immensely, particularly their candor - “the quality of being open and honest.” Is candor the new competitive edge? My answer is candor is definitely a key component of competitive advantage. Like you, I suspect, I am sick and tired of spin, BS, and double talk. I embrace candor with vigour and enthusiasm. My approach is reciprocated. The rewards are massive.

Interconnectedness, Bridge-building, Values living and growing your business - Click To Read Article
Look for ways where your products/services build bridges between divides and disconnects. There is differentiation in doing so. Look for ways where your products/services remove recklessness and increase responsibility and accountability. There is differentiation in doing so. Are your values virtues? i.e. Are what you stand for and believe in, mirrored in your actions? And are you bringing these things to your markets? There is differentiation in doing so.

Are you building bridges or walls? - Click To Read Article
The mantra of successful leaders and managers is “let’s find a way forward together.” The mantra of unsuccessful leaders and managers is “my way is the only way.” Successful leaders build bridges. Unsuccessful leaders build walls? Are you building bridges or walls?

Real leadership is the only solution to any leadership crisis - Click To Read Article
There is a lack of real leadership everywhere. Politicians are in general the worst examples of leadership. Real leaders build bridges between opposing forces so that both work together for the good of all. Real leaders are authentic, transparent and trustworthy. We are compelled to follow real leaders because they tell a compelling, believable story that rings true in our hearts and minds. Real leaders are the Kings and Queens of both/and. Like never before we must stand against the tyranny of either/or and be the difference we want to see in the world. Be a real leader, please. We need to move on from the frauds who claim to lead us and build the bridges to our new world.

The seven essential willabilities of real leadership - Click To Read Article
I have been convinced for some time that many people have the skills of real leadership and yet very few have the will. Skill without will is a ship without a rudder. Competency (ability) is useless without commitment (will). By combining them together in remarkable ways we bring our true character to everything we do and demonstrate our true capability. I call this willability. In preparation for some upcoming mentoring assignments I created the concept of willability in order to emphasise for my clients that commitment is really what makes competency worthwhile. There are seven essential willabilities of real leadership.

Avoiding the dis-empowerment traps - Click To Read Article
Stupidity and idiocy are the great dis-empowerment traps. Ensure you don't get caught in either in 2012.

Are we allowing social media to ruin our real relationships? - Click To Read Article
I estimate the total number of different people that I am connected to online is more than 3000 people. I am a minnow of course. I can’t imagine life for those with more than a million twitter followers! The key for me is that I have real relationships with about 150 people. Significantly Robin Dunbar’s number has been the constant for me pre and post social media. I believe we are allowing social media to ruin our real relationships when we are doing or not doing certain things.

Innovation or problem solving? is a great question to ask often - Click To Read Article
The problem with solving a problem means that mostly that means a return to the status quo. Innovation on the other hand, changes what’s normal.

When gratitude precedes gratification - Click To Read Article
I meet a lot of people who are always focused on getting and having more. The many are focused on gratification. The few focus on gratitude. Are you one of the many or one of the few?

The spirit of the 21st century is partly about laying to rest the ghosts of the 20th century - Click To Read Article
My Grandparents did not foresee spaceships, computers, cell phones or the Internet. My Grandparents would not have foreseen the scale of population growth either. When my Grandfathers were entering their teenage years in 1911 there was under 2 billion people on earth. Now just 100 years later there is around 7 billion! 2 billion was sustainable. 7 billion is not, let alone the 10 billion predicted for 2050. Today around a third of the world’s people live in poverty. We made great and arguably unprecedented progress in the 20th century. So far we have failed to manage the associated risks and in many ways we are like a runaway train running out of track very quickly. We must change our ways before it is too late.

My 5 personal and lasting lessons from 9/11 - Click To Read Article
However long we live, we leave a legacy. Every life matters. Everyone leaves a legacy. The question we must all answer with our lives: Is the legacy I am leaving the one that I truly want to leave?

Are you providing what people want or are you trying to provide what you think people need? - Click To Read Article
The Australian Government is currently and desperately trying to make law what they think people need in immigration, dealing with climate change, gambling, and in a host of other areas. They are failing miserably because they do not listen to what stakeholders actually want. I am staggered by the amount of business owners I meet who try and build a business around what they think people need, rather than providing what people want.

What we all really want - Click To Read Article
“A company today owes its employees one of the most rewarding experiences in their lifetimes, a chance to realize their quest to grow, to achieve, and to make a difference in the world. Nothing more, nothing less.” John Sculley wrote the above in 1987. It was a revolutionary idea then and for most still is. It is what we all want. The key is to make this happen for others first.

13 key reasons why most change programs fail - Click To Read Article
The main focus of my business for 20 years has been partnering with passionate people to stop the status quo from sucking the life out of us and to turn possibility into reality. I conclude that most change programs fail for 13 key reasons. There is great news. Address these 13, and pioneering, breathtaking, truly innovative, measurable change, people can actually believe in and make happen, is at your doorstep.

Let’s not let the status quo sink society - Click To Read Article
There is a lot of stupidity going on in the world today (and some idiocy!). In many ways the status quo is sinking society. What we all need to do is not be stupid or idiotic ourselves, rather claim our specialness and step-up to our significance.

Thriving in a low confidence-high anxiety world - Click To Read Article
Some people are describing the status quo in much of the world right now as low confidence-high anxiety and I certainly sense this. In my 20 years as a business owner I have never known it to be so tough. Much of what used to work, doesn’t work anymore. I am not in any way depressed however, rather I am excited by the possibilities and results of changing what’s normal. Here are five of my key actions that can lead to thriving in your business no matter what seems to be status quo

Being comfortable and uncomfortable in our own skin - a thank you to Steve Jobs - Click To Read Article
Steve Jobs changed what's normal and will forever therefore be a hero of mine. What are you changing that's normal, that no longer serves you and the world?

Changing What's Normal Conversations - Click To Read Article
Two trends I like in professional speaking are that presenters are more and more catalysts for conversation and there is an audience expectation of the speaker to engage in conversation. I love these trends as they are a personal preference. Conversations of meaning are a challenge for most people particularly in the age of all things digital. Here are my top twelve tips for engaging in meaningful conversations:

Not all the best things in life are free - Click To Read Article
The explosion that is social media has led to many believing in the old adage, the best things in life are free. I don’t buy it for a second, if you will pardon my pun! People will always pay for what they perceive is valuable.

Writing and sharing what we write is great for business - Click To Read Article
Do you write your feelings and thoughts down and share them with others? I would highly recommend that you do so frequently. Writing is a valuable action for leaders for five key reasons. Writing can lead us to clarity, content, communication, community, and creativity:

Leadership fails without management - Click To Read Article
Could you achieve better harmony between your leadership and your management? We all lead and manage. It is a matter mostly of getting the harmony between the two right for us.

Sustainability is an outcome of intention, heart and mind set, and action - Click To Read Article
All outcomes are preceded by process. A key process for any outcome is intention, feeling, thinking, and action. Achieving sustainability is no different to any other outcome.

Community precedes culture change - Click To Read Article
The cultural change talk inside organisations is again alive and well. I have observed this happens in tough times and leaders are searching for ways to gain competitive advantage or strategic positioning. Most of the talk never leads anywhere. When good times return it mostly disappears from the boardrooms and corridors of most organisations. If you are or want to be on the leading edge, change must always be top of mind, regardless of situation or circumstance. Change is both evolution and revolution and usually at the same time. In addition to all change being personal first, followed by change in relationships, there are three critical factors we must embrace to ensure that we thrive on the challenges of change. These are community, culture, and creativity.

Is the imagination genie out of the bottle at your place? - Click To Read Article
How we solve problems and meet our challenges is a great way to ensure imagination is alive and well. A typical scenario is this: We recognise a problem, and solve it. What has happened 9 times out of 10 is that what we have done is reinstated the status quo and haven’t really removed the cause of the problem in the first place! Every problem and challenge we have is a gift, for it is an opportunity for innovation, to change what’s normal.

When people need your help is your process simple, quick, and easy? - Click To Read Article
It is common sense to me, due to the power of technology, that when people need our help, the process of getting help from us should be simple, let alone quick and easy. In the past week I have been upgrading/changing many things to coincide with the launch of my changing what's normal book. I have had many technological challenges and have had to call for help from many service providers. I have been largely disappointed. How simple, quick and easy is it for people to contact you when they need your help?

Receiving and Giving - how much is enough? - Click To Read Article
When I hear or see that a child has died somewhere in the world from hunger or a preventable/curable disease (as 27000 will today) I feel an emptiness I cannot describe. I have always felt this way. Sometimes when confronted with this appaulling news I stare for a few minutes without a single thought crossing my mind. When I return to normal I am renewed once more to do my bit to make poverty history.

Thriving on the challenges of change - Click To Read Article
How to engage and retain your best employees in difficult times The fallout from the financial crisis has been loss of face, wealth, homes, jobs, and/or businesses for many people. What disturbs me is that the financial crisis is not the root problem, the attitudes that caused it are. Greed, lack of accountability, stupid business practices, and poor legislation in some countries are no longer acceptable. In my view they never were. People engagement is one way to create the appropriate attitudes.

The Rise and Rise of Difference Makers - Click To Read Article
Difference makers are bobbing up everywhere, everyday. They are famous people, and non famous people, just like you and me. To me at least, it seems, that difference makers are making themselves known at an ever increasing rate.

Lead measures matter much more than lag measures - Click To Read Article
I am always slightly amused when economic growth figures and the like are released usually followed by fanfare. I amused because we won’t know March quarter figures until June! as an example. It's too late then! These kind of numbers are measurements of the past, often called lag measures. They tell us where we have been, not where we are going. I for one am much more interested in where I am going than where I’ve been. The past is done, over, finished. We can’t change the past. All we can do is learn from it.

The Social Entrepreneur as CEO/Business Leader - Click To Read Article
Towards the end of my corporate career almost 20 years ago there was much talk about how human resources executives would soon be the new breed of CEO’s. This hasn’t eventuated! Accountants, lawyers, and engineers still dominate CEO ranks. In many cases this means logic overrides intuition, in personal and organisational decision making, rather than the ability and willingness to find the relationship harmony point between logic and intuition. Could a change be in the air? Human resources executives will probably still not become the new breed of CEO, however my sense is that Social Entrepreneurs will.

Beyond Belief - Click To Read Article
What we believe is one thing. What we do is what really matters.

Is it time to be unreasonable? - Click To Read Article
Are you a co-builder of our new world or are you hanging onto the old one by your fingertips? Is it time to be unreasonable?

Are you a sparkenationist? - Click To Read Article
A sparkenation is a word I created to denote: a spark that ignites passion that leads to action that changes what’s normal. The world needs sparkenationists like never before. Are you are a sparkenationist?

The Pull of Positioning - Click To Read Article
What areas of your broad expertise do you specialise in? Are your specialisations unique, different, or better than other people who operate in the same broad space? If you can answer yes to these questions you have positioning. If not, do your work because positioning is the best way I know to pull rather than push in our businesses.

Put People Before Profits and make more money! - Click To Read Article
My solid conclusion after thirty five years in business, twenty of which have been as a advisor, educator, mentor and speaker, is that leader/managers and business owners who genuinely put their people before profits make more money and are therefore able to make a greater contribution to the world, locally, nationally and internationally, in a myriad of ways. Putting people first is a key strategy and is one of nine essential ingredients in my view for success in business in the modern world.

Stop trying to manage people - Click To Read Article
“I hate managing people” was my client’s opening comment, before we had greeted one another in our usual friendly manner. “Great. Time to stop trying.” was my reply. My client gave me an out of character blank look. “People cannot be managed.” I said. Another blank look. I meet so many people negatively stressed by their perceived inability to solve so called people problems. After many years of observing and interacting with people I am led to several conclusions.

Values, Valued, and Value - Click To Read Article
Do you live your values? Are they written on your heart? Do you know and measure how your values are lived? Do you value yourself and everything uniquely remarkable that you bring to the world? We cannot truly value others until we really and honestly value the one-of-kind beings that we are. Does your organization really provide value? What would you be paid if your customers/clients could decide your value?

The 20 Foundations of Real Leadership - Click To Read Article
I have often reflected on my time as a corporate manager and executive during the 70’s and 80’s. My summary would be this was a period when we over managed and under led. Today I believe there is a tendency by many to under manage and over lead. There is so much focus on leadership I sense many of us have forgotten about management.

Try a little kindness - Click To Read Article
The kinder we are to others the happier we are, and the better life treats us. We can all be kinder. Here are some actions I have taken and others have taken with me that have struck me as valuable:

Internal Customers Must Be Raving Fans Too - Click To Read Article
If I came to your workplace and asked your work mates about your service to them would I hear unreserved raves? Here are 9 ways to ensure I would.

Now is the only time that matters - Click To Read Article
There is no doubt in my mind that if we pay undue attention to our past or our future, we severely inhibit our performance in the present. In my observation the people who consistently perform at high levels at those folk who are experts at focusing in the now. Elite athletes describe this as being in the zone. Wayne Dyer stated the obvious when he said “you can’t change the past.”, yet for many of us the past has a hold over us. We can’t do much about the future either, expect to be ready for it.

Life/work balance is nonsense - Click To Read Article
I hear a lot of talk about life/work balance and I think most of it is nonsense. The word balance for me implies equal. I prefer the word harmony, therefore life/work harmony. My personal and business life are not equal or in balance and are never likely to be. They are in harmony with one another, that is, they work together like a symphony, two sides of the same coin.

A pathway to possibility Part One - Click To Read Article
A formula I use for life is principle before passion; passion before purpose; passion and purpose during practice = possibility. In this article I explore principle.

A pathway to possibility Part Two - Click To Read Article
A formula I use for life is principle before passion; passion before purpose; passion and purpose during practice = possibility. In this article I explore passion.

A pathway to possibility Part Three - Click To Read Article
A formula I use for life is principle before passion; passion before purpose; passion and purpose during practice = possibility. In this article I explore purpose.

A pathway to possibility Part Four - Click To Read Article
A formula I use for life is principle before passion; passion before purpose; passion and purpose during practice = possibility. In this article I explore practice.

Every leadermanager™ is responsible for succession planning - Click To Read Article
Succession planning concerns every role. As I share with my audiences “succession planning is not just about executives, it is about every role in your organization.” As a financial services branch manager in the 70’s two files in the bottom right hand side of my desk played a vital role in my success, one was my employee bank and the other contained the minutes of my weekly meetings with my staff. Do you have an employee bank? Do you have weekly meetings with your staff?

The great questions real leaders often ask themselves - Click To Read Article
It is relatively easy to ask other people questions. It is much harder to ask ourselves questions, and even harder to answer them and take action.

The five pursuits that turn possibility into reality - Click To Read Article
We each live by our philosophies however what we pursue is the game-changer.

The world we share - Click To Read Article
We live in three worlds; the world in here, the world out there, and the world we share. In here our views are just that, out there are other people’s views. In the world we share are the views we agree on. In any successful relationship the world we share is the critical one. I trust that today and every day you will resolve to build more of the world we share and be less precious about the world in here or the world out there.

We have all the time in the world - Click To Read Article
12 time enhancing strategies, I guarantee will give you all the time in the world.

Good People Aren't Hard To Find - Click To Read Article
14 ways to see the good in people and be a good person yourself

Creating Value Based On Our Values - Click To Read Article
All organizations have a primary reason for existing; to create value. Regardless of our products or services our success has to do with how much value we create in the minds of our clients or customers. This is perceived value. It is why people buy from us or not. A formula for creating high perceived value that may help you deliver greater value, IV + EV x PF = PV.

The problem with taking taking sides is it usually means winners and losers - Click To Read Article
Business could be the last bastion for creating a world where everyone has equity of opportunity and this can be accomplished through creating shared value.

Is your slogan authenticated by your story? - Click To Read Article
When stories don’t match slogans brand value suffers. It is all very well to be aspirational, as determined to be different is, however being aspirational when it comes to our slogans, tag lines, or value propositions, is for me a dangerous practice. Of course when our one line positioning statement is actual and present tense, and we don’t deliver, we are in even more trouble!

Wanting and getting and having and giving - Click To Read Article
It has been said that there are two broad kinds of people in the world - givers and takers. The givers ask what's in me for you? The takers ask what's in it for me? I think we are all givers and takers. Intention is what differentiates. The poet Gita Bellin says "Success depends on where intention is." I couldn't agree more.

Real leadership means others are influenced in remarkable ways - Click To Read Article
Best selling author John Maxwell says “leadership is about influence, nothing more, nothing less.” I certainly believe that an outcome of real leadership is people are influenced in remarkable ways. For me there are 5 keys to achieving such outcomes.

Are you standing out or blending in? - Click To Read Article
Broadly speaking I meet three kinds of people; the happy being miserable, the happy being mediocre, and the happy being magnificent. Only the happy being magnificent stand out and make a difference.

The 9 Great Questions Real Leaders Often Ask - Click To Read Article
Real Leadership boils down to 5 actions: Questioning, Visioning, Engaging, Inspiring and Mentoring. For optimum performance to occur these must be balanced with 5 Real Management actions: Focusing, Systemizing, Following, Measuring and Coaching

Insightpreneurs and Differencemakers - leaders of our new world - Click To Read Article
For the longest time there were landowners and farm workers. For a couple of hundred years they were largely replaced by industrialists and factory workers. For less than a hundred years information experts and knowledge workers have led us. Their rule is over now because today we live in an age, largely due to the internet, where information is abundant and mostly cheap or free, yet time consuming and often energy sapping to access.

Are you paying people to update their Facebook profile? - Click To Read Article
What is your strategy for using social media to grow your business? Most people when I ask them this question can't answer it because they don't have a strategy!

The Leadership of Giving - Click To Read Article
One action that sets a leader apart from those who claim to be a leader is their giving. Real leaders give without attachment to getting back. Fake leaders just take or give with an attachment to getting back.

Beware of The Barrier of Busyness - Click To Read Article
Busyness mistaken for productivity saps our energy and means we achieve less than we are capable of. Here are 10 tips to ensure you are not bound by the barrier of busyness.

Profit is not a reason for being in business - Click To Read Article
One of the most profound statements of our time was made by The President of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development Bjorn Stigson, "Business cannot survive in societies that fail." Currently society is failing many of it's citizens. 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus says in his excellent book ‘Creating a world without poverty', "Half of the world's population lives on two dollars a day. Over one billion people live on less than a dollar a day."

Balance the art of leadership with the science of management and watch your profits soar - Click To Read Article
Sadly leadership has become a buzz word and despite all the fuss about it very few people get it. Of equal concern is the spin-off; many people have forgotten about management. Real leadership needs real management if it is to be of real benefit.

Can you describe the strategy for your business growth in 6 words? - Click To Read Article
Most strategies fail to get executed because the folk charged with execution don't understand the strategy or it has not been personalised sufficiently for them to take appropriate action. Being able to describe our strategy succinctly increases the likelihood of buy-in and personalisation.

Letting go of our rule books - Click To Read Article
We all have rules. A key question is do they treat us well or do they actually hinder our progress?

Innovation – the successful implementation of an idea - Click To Read Article
Here are 3 simple steps to ensure true innovation.

Do you do things every day that amaze you? - Click To Read Article
I very much enjoyed a seminar recently with a colleague Paul Dunn who is known internationally as ‘the wizard of wow’. I also love getting emails from Paul who often signs off with “be sure to keep on doing things that amaze you.” In this article are 5 ways you can do things everyday that will amaze you.

Spin and Story, two different things entirely - Click To Read Article
Having a compelling story is the first of my eight critical factors for success in modern business. Your story must be authentic and compelling without spin.





Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

••••••>SEO Tip Of The Day: HTML Validation

Providing Feedback

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.