from Mark Thompson and Brian Tracy
Now Build a Great Business!

Visit the iTunes App Store to download this app for FREE! 
http://tinyurl.com/NBAGBapp

Executive Coach Mark Thompson shares lessons from America’s most successful executives on how to gracefully survive a professional drubbing.

When it became clear this spring that Alan Mulally, Ford’s CEO, wasn’t going to be selected for the top spot at Microsoft, the software company’s stock took a hit. You might think Mulally’s ego would take one too. As it happens, he took it in stride. (Ford showed their love by awarding him another $14 million in stock for the company’s prior year’s performance. And now that he’s announced his retirement this summer, there’s an epic line of companies hungry to recruit him.)Mulally wasn’t always in so much demand or as sanguine in the face of rejection. When Mulally was Boeing’s president, it was widely expected that he would be made CEO after a decade of successes at the company. He led the development of the 777 and shepherded the aircraft maker through a vibrant recovery from the financial wounds inflicted by 9/11 (the terrorists used Boeing 757s and 767s in the attack).

Mulally admits that when Boeing passed him over for the job, he was briefly devastated. But he quickly recovered because, he says, “a bad attitude simply erases everyone else’s memory of the incredible progress achieved.” He did not want to tarnish all “the great progress we had made” by becoming that bitter guy. He chose, instead, to remain a proud and gifted leader – albeit one who had suffered a professional setback. He was promptly recruited by Ford to re-ignite another iconic American manufacturer.

Legendary leaders like Mulally have three coping mechanisms that help them get through times when criticism, failure or disappointment threaten to rob the mojo that made them successful in the first place.  (more…)

Read the rest of Mark’s column on Inc.com:
http://www.inc.com/mark-thompson/how-to-survive-criticism.html

“This life, this experience is our one time to be ourselves.
It’s amazing. It’s such an incredible gift.”
– Maya Angelou

Several years ago, Maya Angelou reluctantly invited me to her home for a public broadcasting interview. I say “reluctantly” because at the time, I was the executive producer of Schwab.com and the Schwab CEO series, so Dr. Angelou’s office wondered aloud why a business geek like me wanted to get a front-row seat with Maya to discuss her life and existential poetry. I had been broadcasting interviews with billionaires like Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, and it was time to break out of my comfort zone to interview this remarkable literary pioneer and leader.

On the day I arrived in Wake Forest, NC – Maya had cancelled all her meetings because she wasn’t feeling well. Since I had already made the trip, I told her office that I’d be happy to sit outside her home on that blustery fall day and wait – and if she were feeling well enough anytime that day, that I’d be there and she could allow me the interview if she wanted to. Finally, her assistant took pity and let me wait in her living room, where I could smell freshly-baked cookies, coffee and comfort food. She had a 12-foot picture window looking out to the fall trees, where brilliant yellow, orange and red leaves swirled as though in an aquarium.

An hour later, I looked up to see Maya – a majestic six-foot Amazon – enter the room. She shook my hand and settled into her favorite chair to chat. We talked about kids and love and life, and the 20-minute interview slot turned into four hours of laughter, deeply moving conversation, and lessons that I’d never forget. I think we healed each other that day.

The resulting program was called “Seven Sacred Promises”, and if you’d like to listen to the interview or read a copy of the transcript – you can find one of the chapters at http://www.markcthompson.com/register.php

Here’s an excerpt from our conversation: “This experience, this life, is our one time to be ourselves. It’s amazing. It’s such an incredible gift. The present is a present; it is a gift. To not try to live fully is to say to the creator, ‘I really don’t appreciate this incredible cornucopia. I’m not going to enjoy color, music, or order, or disorder. I just refuse.’ It’s amazing that the creator doesn’t just bump you into being a non-entity.”

“By the time my son was 7, I taught him that there was a place inside himself, so sacred, that no one had the right to walk in there. Nobody. No mother, father, no wife, husband, no child. Because that maybe the place that you go to meet God when you die. That place must be pristine. And it is your responsibility to keep it pristine. So if you don’t, if you allow any brut to come in trashing that place, what happens to you? Where do you go for solace inside yourself? Can’t do that. There is something so sacred in each of us.”

Maya told me that there were customers who would come into her Grandmother’s store and complain about everything. “When that person would leave, she would call me. ‘There are people all over the world, white and black, rich and poor, going to sleep when that person went to sleep. They will never wake again. Their beds have become their cooling boards, their blankets have become their winding sheets and they would give ANYTHING for just 5 minutes of what that person was complaining about.’”

What I wouldn’t give for 5 more minutes with the late, great Maya Angelou. I’m so thankful for the gift of the time I shared with her – and her spirit will live on in her words for the ages. Rest in Peace Maya.

Listen to the rest of Mark’s interview with Maya Angelou:
http://www.markcthompson.com/register.php

BECOMING A VALUED PLAYER: A TOOLKIT FOR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS

Executive Coach, Keynote Speaker and NY Times bestselling leadership guru Mark Thompson and NYT Bestselling Author Bonita Thompson delivered this free American Management Association Webinar, that included a Q&A with Sir Richard Branson.
Originally recorded on April 16, 2014.

http://www.amanet.org/training/webcasts/Becoming-a-Valued-Player.aspx

Follow Mark on Twitter @SuccessMatters

BECOMING THE MOST VALUABLE PLAYER FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION

If you could ask Sir Richard Branson any question…what would you ask? Here’s your chance to ask Sir Richard Branson your best question about life and work.

If your question is selected, you’ll get a free book from Richard and Keynote Speaker & New York Times bestselling leadership guru Mark Thompson—who’s hosting the free American Management Association Webinar on April 16 @ Noon EST.

Send your questions to Mark on Twitter @SuccessMatters by April 3 to win your free book!

Sign up for the Free Webinar on the AMA website: http://playbook.amanet.org/well-know-richard-branson/

What You Will Learn
Practical Tips and Tactics for Becoming an MVP at Work and in Your Personal Life

With the growing trend of distraction and dysfunction in the workplace, more people are seeking to be the valued team member they feel they should be. Consultants and authors Mark Thompson and Bonita Buell-Thompson, along with researcher Clifford Nass, have assembled new, clear strategies for anyone wanting to become a truly valued contributor both at work and in their personal lives. This webcast will present recent study data and lay out the tactical, practical steps required for this type of change.

Sir Richard Branson will be a special guest on this program, answering questions program registrants have submitted in advance. Topics to be covered include:

• The Myth of Multitasking
• The Power of Reciprocity
• Removing the Distractions

Sign up for the Free Webinar on the AMA website: http://playbook.amanet.org/well-know-richard-branson/

Watching Ford CEO Alan Mulally on CBS This Morning talking about his greener, stronger truck reminds me of a rare intimate interview I had with Alan in his Detroit office. He shares a valuable insight at the end of this two minute clip from our interview: …”the purpose of our success is to serve others because that’s the ultimate reward. The purpose of life is to love and be loved…”

That’s not the first thing you would have expected to hear in the corner office of one of the world’s largest companies, but a great way to remember why we do what we do!

Mark’s Interview with Alan Mulally on Leadership and Service: http://tinyurl.com/lm5lwsj.

A note Mark received from Alan Mulally after the Colbert interview:

:))) … thank you Mark!!
Alan

PS – Ford fun for you!

“Colbert was terrifying!!…..:))))”
– Alan Mulally on with Steven Colbert
– Wonderful history of Mustang with Jay Leno!!

Landing in Brazil this week, I peered out the window at the world’s largest river—the Amazon.  It’s home to the planet’s most diverse ecosystem and the greatest single source of oxygen and fresh water known to mankind. As I thought about my upcoming keynote at the International Forum of Management Strategy and Innovation, I remembered my late night interview with Jeff Bezos as snow fell outside in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum.  Bezos wanted to create the world’s biggest and best supermarket, and the massive Amazon River was the only word that could even start to embody the size and scope of his ambitions to re-invent the retail world as we know it.

You’re a Cause AND a Company

“You can’t ‘persuade’ people to believe in you. You have to prove it with actual results. Sounds obvious, perhaps, but too often brands because they think they can just market your way to a real reputation. It’s steak AND sizzle, isn’t it!”  Bezos let out his trademark laugh/guffaw, and slapped his hand on the table.

That’s why Amazon was unprofitable for the first 5 years, and even though the investors were screaming for an exit, Bezos stayed the course and remained devoted to his vision. “It took us awhile to figure out how to get every detail right, and once you think you’re good at it, check again!  You’re dead if you think others around you aren’t getting better at it too!  We’re still figuring that out now with fresh groceries.”

This practice is a mix of “Fanatic Discipline” and “Productive Paranoia”.  I’d never suggest becoming so paranoid as to abandon your ambitions, but what our research showed about the most Admired, fastest growing companies is that they never took success for granted–their paranoia led them to be productive with daily improvements in a fanatically disciplined way.

As Bezos told me, “Amazon had to invent our brand for the first time. (And we’ve never stopped reinventing it!) In the beginning, we had to demonstrate we could actually beat (or match) conventional stores in three ways that you can’t fake.”

“Think about it, this was a time when people still doubted the safety of online purchases,” Bezos giggled. “Can you imagine a day when customers said, you do NOT have to provide these 3 essentials for long term success?

1) higher quality AND selection
2) faster delivery
3) greater value as the customer defines it — which is not always the cheapest product — but the one that meets or exceeds your expectations.”

“People don’t say: I wish you’d deliver slower and charge more!” Bezos smiled.

I celebrated Jeff Bezos’ never-ending ambitions — from Amazon’s start as an online bookstore to becoming the world’s largest retailer — during my keynote at an Expo2020 Innovation event in Dubai this week. I was honored to be there with my clients from Schwab, Coca Cola, Cisco, Hershey’s, Virgin, Rolls Royce and others.

One of the most critical distinctions between growth companies like these and other companies is the difference that their leaders make in creating and sustaining a growth culture. Jeff Bezos did it with humor, consistency and an undying devotion to learning from customers that continues to drive Amazon’s growth today. In contrast, Steve Jobs lead with the inspiring brilliance of an inventor and the intimidating emotional demeanor of a mad scientist! No two organizations or leaders will have exactly the same recipe for success, but those who encourage productive paranoia and build a culture of listening to and learning from customers are able to sustain growth and achieve lasting success.

For more insights, tune in to the podcast of Mark’s Oct. 22^nd interview on the Dubai Eye “Business Breakfast” radio news show. http://www.dubaieye1038.com/business-breakfast-podcasts/

Four key traits are common to all of the Most Admired Organizations from our study of over 27,000 organizations in 110 countries –a commitment to “fanatic discipline”, “productive paranoia”, creativity, and ambition were essential to long term organizational success.

First, and most importantly, Most Admired organizations exhibit “fanatic discipline”. Jim Collins describes fanatic discipline as a consistency of action and a willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve a great outcome. In Most Admired organizations, this discipline is applied to achieving a deep level of customer intimacy – where you understand not only how your products are used, but truly how they integrate into the lives of the people who use them. Steve Jobs didn’t invent the PC, the mp3 player or smart phones – rather, he reinvented these ideas and made them accessible in new ways. He created products that became a “compelling lifestyle experience” by continually asking, “How are we going to become a part of our customers’ lives?”

The second trait is “Productive Paranoia”. This is not a paranoia based on fear or hiding from reality – instead it is the willingness to look at your competitors and what they are doing right. It is essential to know that while you don’t want to be your competitor, you must understand what draws some of the market to choose your competitors. In most industries, billions of dollars are being spent among a number of competitors and it is imperative to understand what your competitors have going for them as well as their potential weaknesses.

Creativity – it is a given, almost a cliché, that every employee in a Most Admired company is expected to innovate and be creative – but in this case, I’m talking about ‘empirical creativity’. What is empirical creativity and how do you achieve it? Gaining an intimate understanding about your customers leads to developing more creative solutions for them. You can’t be afraid to ask – to admit that you don’t already know everything. You have to allow your customers into the innovation process with you. You have to understand their definition of success as well as your own. The humility to ask and listen leads to greater understanding of your customers, more creative solutions, and longer relationships. The organizations that know more about their customers win their customers’ loyalty.

Finally, another key factor is ambition – a continued sense of “staying hungry” even after achieving great success. Ambition in this sense is key to what Jim Collins calls “Level 5 Leadership”.  Level 5 leaders are those who reject the “Tyranny of the OR” and embrace the “Genius of the AND”. The Most Admired leaders are AND thinkers. What can we do to grow AND increase quality? What can we do to be ambitious about our brand AND be humble enough to listen? The Most Admired leaders know that long term success requires both ambition and humility.

Organizations that continue to think this way – who are disciplined, assertive and continually set “Big Hairy Audacious Goals” are the ones who go on to become #1 in their industries. They don’t rest on their laurels after achieving their goals, they set new ones. Those that don’t continue to set new BHAG’s to accelerate growth lose their mojo and their leadership positions. In the thousands of organizations that we studied, the companies that didn’t set new goals and tried to coast were out of the pole position within 3-5 years, and often out of business in 10 years. “Accelerating growth” turns out to be a critical core competency of the 10X and Most Admired organizations.

Fanatic discipline enables you to continue to deliver great products of high quality and productive paranoia keeps you aware of the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. Ambition ensures that you continue to innovate and not rest on your laurels. Humility allows you to listen and develop a deep level of customer intimacy where customers feel more like partners knowing that you are committed to their success as well as your own. A commitment to all four of these key factors of Most Admired organizations leads to 10X performance and long term success.