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PR 101
Stop the March madness; get back on the ball
Most people give up their personal and business New Year's resolutions by March. Here's how you can get back on track.
In December, FranklinCovey Products published the results of its annual New Year's resolution survey for 2009. Given the current economic environment, it's not surprising that the No. 1 pledge is to "eliminate debt or save more money." The more cliche answers of "lose weight" and "develop a healthy habit" round out the top three.
Although the resolutions are not particularly surprising, some stats about how well we keep the promises we make to ourselves are especially interesting. Of the 527 respondents, FranklinCovey estimates that one-third will drop their resolution by the end of January and more than 75 percent will give up by March. Why? According to past respondents, they "have too many other important things to do."
Well, it's March. How are you doing with your New Year's resolutions? Are you saving more, weighing less, or exercising more? More importantly, how true are you adhering to your business resolutions? If you are anything like the respondents in this survey, chances are you may be a little side-tracked. That's OK, it's normal, but it's time to get back on the ball.
March is the perfect time to give your business that long overdue kick in the pants. This month, winter gradually loosens its grip on our hemisphere as the days grow a little longer and a little warmer (unless you live in Chicago, in which case, you have to wait until June). The changing of the seasons puts a noticeable "spring" in everyone's step, but the most exciting event, no doubt, belongs to the world of sports. In just a few days, 64 collegiate basketball teams take center stage in quest of a common goal; a National Championship. I'm talking, of course, about March Madness.
Success on the basketball floor and success in the business world require talent, determination, strong bonds, and a lot of hard work. And at the heart must be solid communication. In the spirit of the championship season, let's rethink, restructure, and reapply some winning communication strategies. Following are some tips to keep your business on track:
Develop a strong communication play book
College basketball teams never go into a game without a plan. Chances are that you drafted a communication strategy before the start of the New Year. Just as coaches and players review game film to assess their team's strengths and weaknesses, you need to constantly ask, "Are we working the plan and is the plan working for us?" If a new offense is needed, make a change. If your competition is killing you under the basket, change the line-up. A fresh strategy may surprise your customers, your competition, and even yourself.
If your team just never got around to spelling out a 2009 plan before the New Year, it's never too late to put a plan into action. Commit resources to advertising, marketing, media relations, internal communication, community events, trade shows, social networking, or a mix of all to reach the right customers to score success.
Don't be afraid to fail Rarely does a team go undefeated in the regular season and end up winning the national championship.
Be a coach
As the leader of your company, you are the ultimate decision maker, but a good coach never says that he or she solely was responsible for the success of the team. Credit goes to the players and the coaching staff. Make certain the people closest to you are on board with your communication calendar and be open-minded to their suggestions. Sometimes an assistant sees opportunities you miss.
Not only are you the final decision maker, you also are the leader. The most important role of a coach is to motivate the team. A good coach keeps the team motivated during those tough times knowing the momentum can change in an instant.
In order to be effective, you are going to need a lot of help, and not just from the people inside your organization. Unselfish coaches know sharing information, philosophies and drills serves the greater good. It makes competition stronger, it makes their players better, and it makes the game far more exciting for the fans. Build alliances with others in your industry who are willing to talk, then pick their brains. Reach out to other business sectors to see if their success lessons can boost your win-loss record. Listen to their advice. It's amazing how fresh perspectives can totally change your thinking.
Build your team
A solid management staff is integral to any company's success, but coaches alone won't win the game. You need players to put your communication strategy into action. In the basketball world, teams generally include guards, forwards and centers. Understand those roles and find the people in your company who share their traits.
Guards, by nature, are an unselfish bunch and natural leaders. Remedial tasks do not excite them. Though they are not glory hogs, they thrive when they feel their work adds value to the team. If you think there are some potential guards roaming your hallways, test them with a project and put them in leadership role. The good ones will ensure that the rest of the team is on point and given every opportunity to succeed.
Centers excel at a handful of tasks and do those things better than anyone else. They like a routine and work best when they know what is expected of them. Don't take these people out of their element. You wouldn't ask Shaquille O'Neal to shoot free throws, so don't put your team members in positions to fail. If some employees are struggling to find their niche, give them a variety of projects and the opportunity to find their stride.
Because the guards and the centers are the tactical members of the team, forwards are expected to be creative. People who fit this profile may not demonstrate the foresight to manage a team the way a guard does or the bruiser mentality of a center, but they bring an arsenal of skills to the table and typically can do anything you ask of them with talent. Unlike centers, forwards lose interest in performing the same tasks over and over. They like variety and an opportunity to put all of their skills to work. These people are not a dime a dozen. If you find a couple of forwards in your ranks, consider yourself lucky.
Find out who these people are in your organization and play to their strengths, but don't focus entirely on your top performers. Even the best athletes can't play every minute of every game. Each member of the team must be on board so when one of your stars goes down or needs a break, you can make a seamless substitution.
Gini Dietrich is chief executive officer of Arment Dietrich Public Relations in Chicago. Gini can be reached at gdietrich@armentdietrich.com or 312-787-7249.
Don't be afraid to fail
Rarely does a team go undefeated in the regular season and end up winning the national championship. In our highly competitive society, failure is an unavoidable step on the road to success. Even the best communication strategy is not immune to hiccups. The difference between being merely a player and being a champion is that champions bounce right back after an upset.
Coming back from a devastating loss is easier said than done, but that's the choice of winners. It's natural human nature to want to curl up and hide after a failure. Obviously, it is going to take a little time to reflect and recover. But don't get stuck. Communicate openly and with all the members of your team to get back on point as soon as possible and use disappointment as opportunity to refocus and motivate your squad. Great basketball teams come back after a loss with a renewed sense of purpose. People in the business world are no different, so take advantage. Championship teams are never defined by their failures, but by their successes. Consistent communication, even if it's bad news, keeps your team on point.
Focus on the big picture
Too often we expect to see immediate results from the communication plans that we put in place (trust me, I'm the least patient person on earth).
But life, business, and basketball don't work that way. The Big Dance is a marathon. When building your communication strategy, include short-term and long-term goals. Focus on the big picture, but celebrate the little things to boost morale.
Success is measured by different people in different ways. For some, just getting the opportunity to play on this stage is a victory. For others, anything short of a championship is a failure. Be wary of the latter. Every team overcomes obstacles along the way and enjoys a series of small successes to make it this far. Don't forget to celebrate the small victories in your communication strategy on the road to your own championship.
Each team begins the season with a goal, a resolution if you will. And like them, you made a resolution for the 2009 business season. Things inevitably come up that you can't plan. It's OK. It happens. Unfortunate as it is to deviate from your plan for a while, the true crime is never returning to it.
Redeploy your communication strategy, design it, work it, believe in it, and live it. Your ticket to the Big Dance in 2009 may just depend on it.
