O.D.  or  D.O.A. ?

When O.D. (Organizational Development) fails to resuscitate a dying enterprise, there are seldom more than two options to pursue. The first, and most prevalent, is to simply roll the victim organization over and declare it D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival).

The second is more challenging and sings to the accompanyment of opportunities: It’s called O.R. (Organizational Rebirth) and is cornerstoned by an massive infusion of E.L. (Entrepreneurial Leadership).

Every size and type of organization —profit AND nonprofit— comes face-to-face with life-threatening problems at some point (and at least once) in it’s lifetime. Most often, it appears that the malignancy stems from some form of poor management, and more often than not appears to evidence itself as an issue of financial shortcoming.

Example: You can’t run a nonprofit organization that’s not conducting ONGOING fundraising and grant procurement efforts. Regardless of good intentions, without money there’s nothing to run.

When the principals who are involved decide that it’s time  to overhaul, restructure, refurbish, rearrange, rebuild, reinvent . . . go for it! BUT, call it something that organization people can relate to, feel positive about, commit to and enthusiastically support. Ask THEM to brand the project with a name and identity.

It’s the leader’s job to determine the purpose, intent, mission, goals/objectives, strategy, and tactics. It’s the leader’s job to “rally the troops,” motivate and guide, to solicit feedback, to listen 80% of the time. Make-believe leaders push. Real leaders pull!

Remember leaders can delegate authority,

but not responsibility.

When it’s time to choose to fold up or buckle up, don’t choose to make it hard. Don’t choose to make it daunting. Don’t choose to make it more stressful than it may be. Don’t choose to make it overwhelming. Don’t be a drama queen. Don’t be overbearing. Choose instead to think like a leader and act like an entrepreneur.

Reinventing yourself as a person or as an organization doesn’t have to be drudgery or negative or threatening unless you choose it to be. Choose for it to be fun! Choose for it to be easy! Choose for it to be positive! Choose to go with the flow instead of over-analyzing what went wrong.

Choose to keep EVERYTHING

in the “here and now”!

Reality: It’s a far deeper process than changing facepaint. The reinventing-survival experience is rarely a simple one, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun and easy. Simply choose –and constantly REchoose to reinforce– for it to be easy and fun. With vigilance, the challenges can turn into opportunities in a blink.

Oh, yes, and it’s okay to blink.

 # # #

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Hal@Businessworks.US

THANK YOU, “BREEZY”! [Hal’s 3 year-old Cavachon]

THANK YOU Friends, Family,

Readers, Followers, Connections, 

. . . and Kathy, I’ll miss you forever.

SPECIAL THANK YOUs to Jonena,

Valerie & Pegi for all the positives

each of you have brought to my life!

And Thank You, Dear Readers, For These

WONDERFUL Book Reviews:

This is blog post number 1,181 and many of you have been with me since day one (April 24, 2008). I am so grateful to each of you! The AMAZON book reviews that follow (for my just-released first novel) are awesome, and I thank each of you as well. Please urge others to read and review, to join you on this list! There cannot be too many favorable reviews on the best-seller path!

I am staggered by the kind and exciting comments about my book, and by the generosity of your time and effort. I consider myself blessed. In the spirit of this season of giving thanks, I am truly appreciative.

For those who haven’t seen the reviews, here are a few:

AMAZON High Tide Reader Reviews

*****

By Dan Duffy (Massachusetts)

“An engaging mystery story set at the Jersey Shore. Enjoyed everything about High Tide…The Jersey Shore setting was quite realistic and engaged me throughout the story. I also enjoyed how Hal incorporated the story within a college environment. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book like it.”

*****

By Patrat

“VERY Exciting! Great read! Kept me in suspense the whole time. Sorry to see the story end. I am anxiously awaiting Mr. Alpiar’s next book.”

****

By Marie A Drayer (Maryland)

“YOU’LL BE HOOKED! As soon as you begin to read HIGH TIDE, you’ll be hooked! The characters really come to life as the fast-paced mystery unfolds. This is a great read!” 

*****

By Beverly Marsh (New Jersey)

“Jersey Shore Whodunit! Couldn’t ask for a better plot and humor (always a key). ! Can’t wait for the sequel with the Professor, Hal!”

*****

By Kelly Trombino (California)

“Loved High Tide! Brought me right back to the early 80s. Professor Rick was a hoot. Loved the romance and the intrigue with the drug dealers. Wasn’t sure how he was going to get out of this mess with those Jersey bad guys.”

*****

By Suresh Kodlikar(Delaware)

“Just finished reading High Tide. The book is absolutely amazing! It deserves to go on New York’s Best Seller list! You have done a terrific job of researching the topics, maintaining suspense and presenting it in an enviable style of writing. We are proud to have such an accomplished writer in our midst! I am already looking forward to the sequel!”

****

By Jo (California)

“High Tide is a riveting story that took me back to my college days where professors looked more like their students and engaged their students like Professor Rick Maddigan, the main character. I was pulled into the story from page one and couldn’t put the book down. With just his first novel, Alpiar showed us his successful transition from writing non-fiction to fiction.” 

*****

By Jim Hall (Delaware)

“Hal’s ability to sketch characters and scenes is outstanding. The book grabbed me from the start and wouldn’t let go until I finished it. Great writing job! And Windy’s Mom thanks you for the exciting diversion into the professor’s life while she was recuperating from her knee surgery. It was wonderful (:”

****

By Sara G. Kraft (Delaware)

“Just finished High Tide and enjoyed it. I had a slow start but plowed through the ending with all kinds of excitement on the edge of my seat – Loved it!”

*****

By Jim Jordan (New Jersey)

“HIGH TIDE appeals to me for a number of reasons. It is about the area where I live, and it was fascinating to see the story unfolding in the NJ marshes of Little Egg Harbor. The Author raises the level of suspense with each drug deal and manages to discreetly work in some tasteful and amusing sexual fun. He skillfully outlines Professor Maddigan’s relationships and the “smoking faze” of that era. I enjoyed the plot and writing style. Both are outstanding. Hal is a wonderful storyteller and an excellent researcher. I wish him continued success with his future adventures.”

*****

By Susan (Delaware)

“Love the Shore, Loved the book! If you like exciting stories and have memories of your favorite beach town, this book is for you. The characters are colorful and stay with you long after the last page is turned. You’ll be asking for the next installment to come soon…as I did.” 

*****

By M Slosberg (New York City)

“THE HIGHEST OF TIDES. Mr. Alpiar has the ability to pull his reader much as a rip-tide drags a swimmer. I may have lost a night of sleep finishing HIGH TIDE, but I gained HIGH REGARD for a powerful new novelist.”

*****

By Bob Wainwright (New Jersey)

“High Tide is spirited adventure and a real page-turner. This story is a throwback to the Jersey Shore –in the easy living 80’s– when life was experienced by doing things, not just keyboarding them.  A brilliant, blackmailed, pot-smoking professor, soulless gangsters, and an adoring student lover make for an exciting mix in this high seas adventure.  Definitely a must-read book!”

*****

By Bo and Lois Wood (Delaware)

“We are both from the Jersey Shore & this book took us back to our roots. We love the action & story line. Great Book!”

*****

By King of La De Dah (Maryland)

“HIGH TIDE is a fast-paced action-filled adventure with interesting characters, unique plot twists, and tongue-in-cheek humor, all wrapped around a “down the shore” love story. With unique turns of phrase and word play liberally sprinkled throughout, Mr. Alpiar has provided his readers with a rollicking journey that is not only fun and stimulating…it is also a book that is virtually impossible to put down. I just had to see what happened next! Mr. Alpiar is a true talent, and I am eager to get my hands on his next effort. I HIGHly recommend the TIDE.”

*****

By Tennant Barron (New Hampshire/Pennsylvania)

“If you’re looking for an intriguing, fast-paced, fact-based novel you’ll want to tell your friends about, HIGH TIDE is the book for you! It’s as gruesome as it is funny, as thought-provoking as it is flighty, and as romantic as it is mysterious. I’m definitely anxious for the sequel!”

*****

By Donna M. Powell (Maryland)

“Great read! There is suspense, humor, love, and wit in this book. I found it hard to put down. I can’t wait for the next book or even a sequel to see what Madigan will be up to next.”

****

By Kathy Mcnulty “Kathy M” (Delaware)

“Mr. Alpiar turned the fascinating events of his real life experience into an intriguing story that is sure to keep you wanting more. The attention to detail provides a clear image of life in the 80’s on the Jersey shore.”

*****

By Robin Standlee (Florida)

“I rarely read novels because a good one will keep me from doing anything else. High Tide did that. It’s based on a true story which makes it even more intriguing.”

*****

By Linda Fleetwood (Delaware)

        “I HATE the author! This book kept me up until three in the morning. I couldn’t put it down. A great read!”

*****

By Ken Peach (Florida)

“High praise for HIGH TIDE! What a fun story, and I also got a lot out of Professor Maddigan’s classroom lessons. In fact, I have a bunch of pages turned down for reference . . . now, that doesn’t happen often when reading fiction! I eagerly await the sequel.”

 # # #

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Hal@Businessworks.US

FACE SMASH

STOP thinking for a minute! STOP analyzing. STOP worrying. STOP strategizing. STOP getting to the bottom of things! It’s ridiculously easy to trip over our own feet the minute we lose touch with where we are. As soon as we start focusing on anything other than what’s right in front of us– where we want to be, for example (or worse, where we’ve already been), we run the risk of face smash!

Every great management leader, expert, book, course, and guru — and, for those with religious leanings, even the Bible– urges us to stay focused on HERE AND NOW as much of the time as possible. The minute we divert attention from that power saw or computer app or steering wheel we’re using, CHOP, CRACKLE, BOOM! Am I just imagining this? No, of course not. It’s reality.

Common sense, huh? But how many of us have the ability to exercise common sense once we’re absorbed with past or future issues which are not here, now, and are therefore actually make-believe? And how much of our “life is short” time gets wasted fantasizing? I’m not talking about dreaming. Every great leader makes time to be a dreamer, but great leaders stay in control. They use dreams.

So how — what steps can we use to prevent many of those lost opportunities? How do great leaders keep from falling on their faces? There are as many answers to this as there are great leaders (and there are many!). But all the contortions aside, it seems to me that it all reduces itself to: What is your trigger p0int?

In other words, what happens to you physically when you spin off into the clouds or fly off the handle or back quietly out the side door? Your stomach growls, you get a stiff neck, feel edgy, jiggle a foot, play with a flash drive, get a headache, or backache, or crave something sweet? Each of us is different. But each of us has a trigger. Talk to yourself about it.

When each of us can identify our own individual, unique trigger point and become aware of it when it surfaces, we immediately put ourselves on the path toward advanced leadership driven by present moment happenings. That’s a GIANT step in the self-control arena. And, guess what? the more you tune in to your SELF and what makes you tick (especially if you’re in sales — and who isn’t?), the happier and healthier you can be — and you won’t need special vitamins or skin products or addictive behaviors to stoke your euphoric fires.

What’s to lose? Give it a try. Start here with this quick 4-STEP life-saver and then move ahead to taking SELF inventory. It’s not just about what’s good for what ails you. It’s about preventing ailments. It’s about doing a better job of being a leader. Oh, and it doesn’t even cost anything! Have a great awakening!

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Hal@Businessworks.US

MASQUERADING AS 

SOMEONE YOU’RE NOT?

Think about it.  Are you representing your SELF in some way that’s not truly you?  Is it to make a sale? Get a date? Be accepted? Make points? Save yourself from losing face? Is it what you like to see other people do? No? So why pull the covers over the real you? Do you think others can’t see through the façade? Can’t you tell when someone else is faking it?

Authenticity isn’t a make-believe attribute that can be manipulated to suit the occasion. By its very definition, it means being genuine all the time. Authenticity, in other words, cannot exist on a parttime basis, or be in effect one minute and not the next. You either are who you represent yourself to be or you aren’t.

Yeah, some say, but there are always exceptions to everything. Not true! You either believe in God or you don’t. You either love someone or you don’t. You are either real or you’re not. There are no two ways about it. You can’t use Bcc emails to have someone else (or others) know your “secret ” communications and then pretend you are sending someone a private message.

Integrity is often defined as doing the right thing even when no one is looking.

As stampeding technology sweeps us all into lower levels of sociability — actually redefines sociability to be global instead of personal– we can often find ourselves distancing ourselves from others who are physically and emotionally close, in favor of socializing with total strangers who may seem less threatening and who may be more conveniently available to be in contact.

Is this behavior in our best interests career-wise? Possibly. In terms of personal growth and development as a human being who wants to make a difference in the world? Not likely. Performance track-record and familiarity breed trust. People accept and buy from one another (including health services, by the way) because of trust more than any other factor, including price!

How do we take the first step toward becoming more authentic? By recognizing that it is a choice, and then by choosing to live more honorably, and finally by setting up support systems to help ensure continuation of that practice. Is that difficult? If you choose to make it difficult, yes. But, YES,  you can choose to make it easy. Behavior is a choice.

# # #

Hal@BusinessWorks.US  931.854.0474

Healthcare Management Problems

Go Far Beyond Technology Tangles

Thanks to what many doctors regard as excessive and medically-uninformed government intervention, excessive and medically-uninformed insurance company intrusion, and financially inept hospital consolidations, America’s private and hospital-based medical practices are suffering from excessive (and medically-unacknowledged) stress.

Doctors and Staffs find themselves having to be caught up with power-play control battles instead of with innovating and nurturing methodologies for improved case management and patient care. This is not a condemnation of medical technology advances by any means. It is in fact an endorsement for more tech exploration while simultaneously getting back to basics.

Positive stress enables healthcare managers to answer the wake-up call for effective practice management to realistically occur on two fronts at the same time. EMR and EHR systems and skills represent focal point one. Case management, patient care, and patient family care, focal point two.

But negative stress (or “dis-stress”) surfaces when one of these (like, for example, the current fad for dedicated insistence on “lean” healthcare) enslaves the other.

Relentless interruptions of non medically-trained government and insurance regulators who seek to satisfy their self-importance at the expense of doctor, staff, and patient stress levels, have the same effect as throwing gasoline on a fire.

Whether rulings require doctors to spend just 12 minutes per patient (likely headed toward 8 minutes!), or to conduct patient gun ownership surveys, the result is negative stress.

Negative stress feeds medical errors. It takes its toll on the lives of trained professionals and their families. Often, patients and patient families suffer needlessly because of mixed or contradictory signals lost in busy day-to-day clouds of smoke.

Even monster teaching hospitals, including the highest-rated in the country, fail miserably at basic communication skill levels. Doctors don’t talk with one another. They are too pressured to take the time to advocate on behalf of the very patients they serve.  And –worst of all– they fail to communicate with their patients and patient families meaningfully and consistently.

Practice Managers get the short end of the stick.

My best guess: Most Practice Managers end up absorbing 3/4 of all the stress generated by the madness of keeping Herculean time schedules, by catering to the administrative needs of the doctors they serve, by managing the daily barrage of staff, task and insurance management issues, and by having to deliver “customer service psychotherapy” to patients and families.

There are solutions, but they are not one-dimensional. Healthcare can never have universal value unless those charged as providers can have the freedom they need to function without constant government interference and insurance company strangleholds.

The first step to fixing a leak is to stop the leak. This means making extraordinary efforts to channel stress productively and to commit to implementing improved personal communications.  CHECK OUT  Medical Practice Managers

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Hal@Businessworks.US

ENTREPRENEURIAL

LEADERSHIP MEANS…

Being passionate about your ideas and making them work with the help of others. This means, of course, being emotionally committed to what you’re doing 24/7. By doing that, odds are you’ll never have to solicit and recruit others to your crusade. They will see a place for themselves and gravitate there on their own.

When that happens, others’ commitments will be more solid and grounded than if you had gone out hunting for them and then had to talk them into joining forces. It’s a fact: When people make their own decisions about what they want to do, they are happier and more dedicated to achieving results!

Often acting first and planning second. This does NOT mean rashly jumping from the frying pan into the fire. It instead suggests that over-indulgence in evaluating, assessing, diagnosing, and long-term planning (I call it “analysis paralysis”) wastes time, money, energy, and opportunities.

Entrepreneurial leaders take action, make adjustments, act again, make adjustments, and act again. Except for formal loan and investor-required formal business plans, they limit their planning to the short term — hour, day, week, month. And even those plans are temporary and flexible. Watching the finish line causes stumbling and falls.

Always responding instead of reacting. A key ingredient in the success of this pursuit is stress management. Bottom line: If you always respond instead of react, you can never over-react. If you never over-react, you will be faithfully followed. Built snugly into this thinking is this important awareness:

HOW you respond to someone who

or something that is out of control

. . . IS WITHIN YOUR CONTROL.

And we know this because? Because every behavior — yours, your employees’, your customers and prospects — is a CHOICE. It’s just as easy to choose to make a situation easy as it is to choose to make it hard. It may require some conscious stress management effort but, in the end, leadership is measured by ability to gain results through control and responsiveness!

Learning as much as you can about yourself –your SELF– may be the single most important determinant of entrepreneurial leadership because it is the foundation, the cornerstone, of each of the above criteria, and of any others you might add to the list. Without knowing what makes you tick, you cannot pretend to understand others enough to be a true leader. TALK TO YOUR SELF. Oh, and remember to listen!

Hands-on specifics? Keep a journal. Date every entry every day. Separate facing pages into “What Happened” on the left and “How I felt” on the right. This discipline helps sharpen your skills to separate fact and observation from opinion and feelings. Write, draw, diagram, paste photos, spit, whatever floats your boat. It’s YOUR journal.

Attend group and individual “personal and professional growth and development”-type discussion and counseling sessions. Take advantage of local adult education programs that focus on self-expression — from giving speeches and stand-up presentations to writing or painting or photography or music or handicraft courses. DISCOVER YOUR SELF!

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WANT TO BE MORE OF A LEADER?

TALK AND WRITE LIKE A LEADER.

Over 30 years of writing and training business, industry,

healthcare, and academic leadership have taught me

some important words I now share with you . . .

People who regularly incorporate the use of the following kinds of words in their daily conversations and written messages stand tall among the most successful of worldclass leaders.

This magic pack of words is just for openers. You need to be willing to raise your own consciousness about whether the words you use every day are helping you perform to the best of your own leadership ability. This list can, in other words,  get you started. But only you can decide what works best for you and your personal leadership comfort zone.

The point is: Take a couple of minutes to review this list, think about it and assess yourself. If you can change some words you may presently be emphasizing that are not helping you perform, change them! It’s your choice.

Opportunity. Becoming. Challenge. Team. Can. Forward. Focus. Here and Now. Let’s. How? What will it take? Go! Do I understand you correctly to mean . . .? Us. We. Our. Fun. Enjoy! Together. For example. Passion. Try. Enthusiasm. Empathy. Customer. Diagram.  Innovation. Client. Partner. Listening. Self-esteem. Service. Needs. Desires. Learning. Facts. Exciting. God. Illuminating. Choice. Value. Timing.  Self-confidence. Trust. Authenticity. Genuineness. Objectives. Goals. Strategies. Tactics. Specific.  Flexible. Realistic. Ignite. Timeline. Activate. Boost. Stimulate. Care. Compassion. Spark. Consistency. Measure. Hustle. Effort. Reward. Share. Accurate. Recognition. Implement. Respond. Energy. Responsive. Responsible. Behavior. Spirit. Assist. Invigorate. Results. Invest. Humility. Grace. Please. Thank you. Respect.  Grow. Patient. Happiness. Family.

# # #

When Followers Lead Leaders

You think only a weak leader would step aside when followers close rank and try to take over? Maybe you’ve seen too many wild-eyed-pirate-and-rats-desertion-of-sinking-ship themed movies. You may want to revisit your thinking because in a lot more than some cases, stepping aside is an indication of truly superior and truly successful leadership!

There are probably as many avenues to leadership roles as there are leaders, yet none of them reflects the inherent strength-of-leadership qualities of authenticity and transparency as –like raising world-class children— being able to move confidently out of the way when followers (or your kids) take up the flag and charge forward with it.

No one ever said that being a parent or playing a parental role in business and professional practice development would be easy. In fact, parenting of any kind may well be among the hardest of life challenges. On the heels of committing to the ongoing practice of nurturing and investing in self-responsibility, personal and career parenting is certainly job one.

Why would self-development come first? Because if you cannot be true to yourself, you cannot be true to others. If you don’t know and aren’t continually searching out what makes you tick, you can’t possibly be in a position or mindset to lead others. If you don’t value your self and appreciate your own strengths and weaknesses, how can you measure and guide others?

When followers lead leaders, it may be because the leaders have faltered or it may be because the leaders have thrived on showing the way, on lighting the path, on motivating others to see that light AND the path, and on stepping out and onto it.

Weak leaders work at keeping followers following.

Truly great leaders

inspire followers to become leaders.

Which are you? Which are you becoming? Where are you aiming? What’s your target? Your goal? Your objective? How will you get there? The more you help others to grow as leaders, the more you grow as a leader. And since all of this swirls around what you think and how you behave, it’s worth remembering that thoughts and behaviors are a choice.

# # #

Yada, Yada, Yada,

 Blah, Blah, Blah…

Odds are that your best leadership response to other people’s yackity-yack is probably NOT:  yeah, yeah, yeah!

When someone who follows your lead is being busy saying nothing (hmmm, sound familiar?), try taking the person off to the side — or into a private setting — and explain that you want to share the value of some of what you’ve learned from successful sales leaders.

Start by noting that virtually EVERY exchange we have with others EVERY day –both on the job and off– constitutes an attempt to sell SOME thing.

Yes, “EVERY” and yes, “SOME.”

Think about it before jumping down my throat with some condemnation for using “ALL OR NOTHING” language. Before you throw exceptions at me, take a minute to dissect them. Odds are you’ll discover that at least one individual in every interaction has a mission to sell her or his self, or ideas, or products or services, or brands, or affections, or . . .

Here’s what the world’s most successful salespeople know and practice: LISTEN 80% of the time and TALK 20% of the time. Maybe not easy, but it IS simple. And it works! This behavior breeds success in all walks of life with all kinds of circumstances where we seek to make a sale or an impression or gain trust or show understanding.

By disciplining ourselves to listen more carefully to those we are charged with the responsibility to lead, and by being more selective and economical with what we have to say to others, we are also becoming more productive with time and energy spent.

When we can save time and energy by communicating more accurately and productively, we are getting a better handle on what others want and need and suggest, and we are saving on wasted time and energy costs and lost opportunities.

But don’t stop there!

Talking less and listening more does NOT mean talking less and HEARING more. Active listening is an acquired skill that involves open body language (no arms, legs, ankles, wrists, hands, fingers crossed and no peering over the top of your glasses), paraphrasing and asking for examples and diagrams, and nonverbal (e.g., head nodding) as well as verbal acknowledgements.

It means paying attention, staying focused, not allowing distractions. Easy stuff? No. Hardly ever is it easy. Active-listening communication is more work and it takes longer. Ah, but you simply can’t compare the success-level results you’ll get with the productivity (or lack of) that accompanies the typical 80% talking communications that surround our daily lives.

# # #

Your PEOPLE are your

  most important asset.

Do you think your organization’s product or service inventories are the most valuable assets to protect and nurture? You may want to re-visit where you and your organization/business/professional practice/group/ department/team would be without those who comprise the entity that makes you a leader:  your followers, your people.

Failure to recognize this truism is at your own peril.

Often those who work for and with us can –by virtue of the choices they make– unwittingly draw us into the flames they ignite. And leaders often end up compounding issues that arise by adding more bad choices –like throwing gasoline onto the fire. Victims of circumstance? Rarely.

Victims of failure to nurture and challenge and publically reward and frequently appreciate and reassure is more like it. Laziness and slacking off is more like it. So too is getting too big for one’s leadership britches!

Leadership is a fulltime function and minimizing bad choices is job one.

When leaders fully appreciate and frequently celebrate the performances of those who follow, they are ensuring renewal and continuance of loyalty and perseverance. This is the stuff that has built empires and won wars. The world’s most successful leaders know that the single most important craving that human beings have is for recognition, reassurance, and trust.

Seeking recognition, reassurance and trust is the conscious or unconscious pursuit of practically all human beings in virtually every circumstance of life, and –in addition to employees, associates, staffs, and teammates– this includes the vast majority of all physician and healthcare service patients — even those who go to emergency rooms!

It is our nature as people to look for ongoing approval, reassurance, and trust — a sense that we are performing okay, that we are okay, and that we will be okay.

This does not translate to everyone being neurotic or for leaders having to be shrinks, or having to pat everyone on the head and love every follower. Great leadership is not always transparent!

It translates to the need for leaders to appreciate basic human instincts and directly address them with actions and words by communicating directly, with authenticity and genuineness — instead of ignoring, patronizing or pandering, and beating around the bush. Remember poison ivy often grows around bushes!

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