self enrichmentUp Your Reading Game
Want to read more? Try what serial entrepreneur, business author and general overachiever James Altucher does: Read about 30 pages of five books each day. Given the average American reads about 250 words a minute, or about a page a minute, that’s 2.3 hours. Don’t have that much time? How about 25 pages of three books? That’s little more time than it takes to watch an episode of the Kardashians.
EXPECTATIONSSet Clear Goals
According to a study cited in INC. magazine, 63 percent of employees reported that they wasted time at work because they weren’t aware of what work was a priority. As a leader, make sure staff knows what your key goals are heading into the holiday season: Is it to reach new customers, take really good care of your VIPs, hit aggressive new sales targets? No one should have any doubts.
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MOTIVATIONThe Power of Appreciation
Salespeople like performance-based pay incentives, but don’t overlook the power of appreciation, says Wharton professor Adam Grant. “Extrinsic motivators can stop having much meaning — your bonus gets spent, your raise in pay feels like your just due, your new title doesn’t sound so important once you have it,” he told The Wall Street Journal last year. “But the sense that other people appreciate what you do sticks with you.” So, give the people what they want, and what they want is compliments and pizza, he says.
HEALTHPrep a Flu Kit
Flu activity typically starts to pick up around now. This year, be prepared with a “wellness” box in the back of the store. The medicine kit at Toner Jewelers, an independent jeweler in Overland Park, KS, includes EmergenC, cough drops, vitamin C drops, pain medicine, alcohol wipes, Lysol and more. “Temperatures vary so much at this time of year that someone is always sick,” manager Alisha Moore told our sister magazine, INSTORE.
WISDOMDon’t Stop Moving
As one year ends, and you start to plan for the next, here’s an inspirational little nugget to consider from Will Rogers: “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”
MERCHANDISINGWe’re All Early Birds Now
With all the emphasis in recent years on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, consumers have learned that deals don’t get any better as the season progresses and the selection dwindles. What to do? Be ready for them now, says management consultant Kate Peterson of Performance Concepts, “with a system of refreshing bestsellers and calling attention to gift items through placement and signage.”
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PRODUCTIVITYPhysical Action Equals Results
You’ve got a thousand things to do at this time of year, but some just seem to elude completion. The problem could be that you’re not phrasing your tasks correctly, says productivity guru David Allen, author of Getting Things Done. A powerful anti-procrastination trick is to keep rephrasing a task until it involves the use of your limbs: “Pick up phone and call …,” “Open laptop and search for….”
MEETINGSMix It Up
Your sales meetings should be intensifying as you prepare for the holidays. Alexi Venneri, author of Balls: 6 Rules for Winning Today’s Business Game, suggests lightening the mood by having a bit of fun. For one meeting, you might ask staff members to bring in high-school yearbook photos. For another, bring in a guest speaker. Or have staff write down five or so of their favorite things … and let the others guess who created each list.
TIME OFFBreaking Good
Breaks are not a deviation from performance; they are part of performance, says Daniel Pink in When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. “And the most restorative breaks are social rather than solo, outside not inside, moving instead of stationary, and fully detached rather than semi-detached.”
