VLC
I hope you all had an amazing weekend and got out to enjoy the sun a bit! We had our kids over for my daughter’s 17th birthday and I heard a story from my stepson, Jack. He mentioned that a person in their community was ranting about how horses should be the only ones allowed on the local trails and that mountain bikers and hikers should not use them.
This actually reminded me of the second training I did with VLC: 2 Minutes with Ham. Our automatic reactions start with our past. Our past dictates how we see things, and any stimulus we don’t want is automatically rejected…like bikes and hikers on trails.
If we decide that we want to change, our subconscious reminds us that it wants control by causing fear, anxiety, anger, and doubt.
I bring this up because we are moving ahead with several trainings that we have been discussing. At some point during these trainings, there will be frustration, anxiety, and doubt. At some point, people may want to just keep things the way they are. Here’s another reminder: Our subconscious prefers to keep things the same.
Fear not, we are not going to turn everything on end. But, we owe it to the success of VLC to evaluate how we function, so that we can improve how we function.
What areas of learning do you automatically reject?
In what ways does your subconscious mind guide you toward your comfort zone?
Incidentally, my wife and I were walking in Empire Mine on Sunday and we viewed a mountain biker stop his bike when he saw several horses approaching. They thanked him but said their horses were used to bikes. He said “Have a great ride!” and they mirrored his sentiment.
Sometimes holding onto old habits and preconceived notions gets in the way of positive steps forward.
Have a great week!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
VLC
Each year in February, VLC conducts a kickoff meeting to set the stage for upcoming goals and initiatives. Elite level customer service is our focus. Because of this, we guide our actions through the lens of our core values: Committed, Connecting, Caring, and Capable.
This year’s kickoff will take a close look at where we have been. This allows us to see where we currently are, and where we wish to go with our organization. Building on our past ideas of Improved Mindset and “Extreme Ownership”, we are now moving toward organizing our company to prepare for the growth we see ahead.
This year we will be implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) as a way to more clearly organize our company’s structure. The EOS system encourages using the company’s vision as a path to strategic planning. These concepts, introduced in the books Rocket Fuel and Traction, provide a springboard for moving all employees in the same direction, allowing increased transparency, accountability, and focus.
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Fleet and Driver Compliance | Fleet Tracking Software
VLC
Last week, I talked a little about the idea that being great is a matter of choice, of making the decision to be so. But, what exactly is “great?” One of the best examples of a person taking their job to the great level is Fred from the book The Fred Factor. The book was written by Mark Sanborn in 2004, but the idea of being great is still as real and wonderful and rare as it was back then.
Fred was a postman who went beyond in many ways. He knew every family on his route and offered extraordinary service to them all. For example, when Fred realized Sanborn’s job required extensive travel, he came up with a plan to keep the mail safe until his return. What’s more is that this was not some isolated occurrence. Fred delivered (no pun intended) day in and day out…week after week, year after year.
Here are just a few of the great things I have seen from you:
- Working longer than contract hours to complete work.
- Making sure your work is mistake free
- Striving to lower work order numbers
- Responding in a positive way to a tough situation
- Learning from mistakes and taking steps to not make them again
That said, greatness is not a one and done act. It comes from consistently going beyond “good enough.” Truly, we all have room for improvement. “Extreme Ownership” and “Relentlessly pursuing our client’s goals” are just synonyms for great. They are 2 of the ways VLC employees can achieve great. So go after it…be a Fred!
What are two areas in which you work to be great consistently every day?
What are two areas you feel you are good, but not great? What would it take to make those areas great?
Remember, moving the needle just a little in the right direction is still movement.
Let’s have a great week!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
“They themselves are makers of themselves.” James Allen
VLC
As a leader, dealing with issues is a daily occurrence. There are always fires. Some of them are large and some of them are small. Sometimes your reactions are near perfect. After you handle something well, you may be looking around for someone to high-five (or at least elbow in COVID times)! But, there are other times where you want to climb into a hole after you handled something completely wrong.
People can say that “business is not personal” all they want. But as long as there are people conducting business, it actually IS personal. And that certainly applies to leaders.
What are you carrying around right now that will affect your decisions later today? Did you take some time this past weekend to burn off some steam or center your thinking? Or, did you re-run your concerns from last week over and over in your head, leading to increased confusion instead of clarity?
Ultimately, your frame of mind is going to have a major impact on the next issue that comes across your desk. When people react poorly to a situation, it is usually not because of that particular situation. It is a response to something that happened days, months or even years ago that is dredged up in this current event.
The solution? Deal with the pain when the pain happens. Don’t let it simmer only to explode at a later date. Only then can you make your response less personal, and more objective.
Compare the times you have responded well to times you have not. What were the key differences?
What kind of situations do you find it hard to let go of?
What can you do to deal with those situations in a thoughtful, positive way before they build?
Be well!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
VLC
One of the things I love most about living in a rural setting is having access to firewood to heat our house. My routine every morning is to get the fire going before I do anything else. But the process of getting the wood has several steps.
1) If there is not a downed tree on my property, I ask around
2) Once I find a downed tree (preferably oak), I bring the chainsaw and load up my trailer.
3) Then splitting
4) Then stacking
5) Then making sure it stays dry.
There are many surface level tasks I need to accomplish before I get to the real task of heating the house. Even that can be broken down further into different tasks: lowering my electric bill and keeping my family warm.
Almost every task you do has one or more tasks that are not readily apparent but are very important. Most of the tasks within VLC come down to taking care of customers. The more we do an exceptional job completing each surface level task, the greater the chance of our customers being exceptionally satisfied with the results. And of course that can be broken down even further into the task of attracting new customers who want exceptional results.
What steps can you take to increase your task completion toward exceptional?
Which tasks involve connection with customers, creating an opportunity to leave them exceptionally satisfied with the results?
Have a great week!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
“They themselves are makers of themselves.” James Allen
VLC
I was driving with my wife in the car on Friday, after taking a hike outside of Nevada City. Yes, we were still in quarantine. But we had to get out of the house, so we went hiking…we even wore masks while hiking just to be extra careful!
On the way home, I started to explain to her how excited I am. I’m going to let you in on a little secret…I’m kind of like a little kid. I get excited at seemingly insignificant things. Going running in the rain. Building a fire. Making breakfast for my family. Blowing off the driveway. Reading a book. Sitting quietly early in the morning. Why do I get excited about these things? Because I choose to.
2020 seemed to drain the excitement out of many things for one reason or another. But it is important to understand that excitement and joy and gratitude are all created inside of each of us. A difficult year, a tough day on the job, or an angry person can’t take excitement, joy, or gratitude from you. If they disappear from you, it is because you let them go.
Don’t get me wrong. There are times when negative emotions like sadness, fear, and nervousness are appropriate and therapeutic. But for the most part, the changes and challenges that we experience day in and day out are judged by something that we have almost complete control over: Our Perspective.
Welcome to 2021! It may be more or less challenging than 2020, but you get to decide if it is better or worse.
Be well!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
“They themselves are makers of themselves.” James Allen
