Trusted Advisory

Overcoming Resistance to Change

Working toward creating, and  then  empowering, new objectives during a recession is  a multidimensional challenge.

The unknown frightens many people and causes some to freeze in making decisions at all. Greece may present the most vivid demonstration of tragic delays, poor planning and incompetent leadership in the face of change. (Photo Feb 2001 Greek riots.)

In working toward creating a predictable and sustainable socio-economic direction, here in Newport, Rhode Island, I've been fortunate to work with some very intelligent people who understand the importance of integrated efforts, long-range thinking, and the virtue in seeking outside advice.

Regardless of these positives, the main challenge appears to be initiating such ideas into popular public sentiment. Understanding others' points of views, empathy, helps identify common ground for change and for those we resist change and cling to what they understand.

The article below is useful to reach an understanding of others sense of logical and emotional resistance to change. I hope it is as useful for you as it's been for me.

Overcoming Resistance to Change: Top Ten Reasons for Change Resistanceby A. J. Schuler, Psy. D.

  article link via www.schulersolutions.com

One more thing: Making friends and making change may be
inconsistent objectives.  Choose one.

Making Knowledge Pay - Investors.com

Every group, institution or business has internal and external influences and constituencies for which is requires PR, management and financial planning.

Consultants get paid to come in from the outside and help companies solve problems and improve processes. In addition, firms often go inside the organization for such advice. Whether you're working externally or internally, you might implement these ideas.

Article via www.investors.com

All the coaching and study in the world cannot beat simple, regular tasks.

*And it saves you a lot of money to use for what you really should be doing. Another great "basics" from IBD.

Careful: 'Cute' Green Tech Won't Solve Energy Crisis, Gates

In our initial conversations with our clients, we stress scalability. Renewable sources of energy have their own process cycles. The trouble
is, few are as large-scale and consistent as oil has been. Gates sees this. He also sees the need to envision where you're going--and the path to (hopefully) get there efficiently.

The scalability discussion raises the level of conversation inside the poltitical & economic environment. Right now, the global nature of the 'state' and capitalism are at a point where science-based challenges, like energy solutions, and education are highly complementary. India and China are each demonstrating this point.

There are two reasons why this education needs to be universal within each community.

First, the capability of an informed and intelligent populus is needed asap to understand and support proposed processes and systems.

Second, for the near term future--the path to applying advanced science and creating proper structures is supported academically by STEM curricula (science-tech-engineering-math).

With STEM focused curricula bright individuals, young and old, experiment, determine, and refine practical solutions. In some cases, the students' ideas may reach application before they complete their studies!

What Gates sees from his unique POV is the need to think bigger, sure, but also to think, deeply, beyond current limitations, and move fast!

Microsoft founder Bill Gates on Tuesday warned rich nations of the limitations of "cute" energy-efficient technologies, like individual solar panels, and advised spending more money on R&D to make energy cheaper for developing countries.

via www.pcmag.com

What's Driving Gas Prices, From An Energy Insider : NPR

Many green colleagues of mine are skeptical about working with business people. Especially in the petroleum business. It has always been a mistake to be so exclusionary when it comes to alternative energy and long term solutions.

Stranger bedfellows exist than green businesspeople. In fact, it may be our greatest social advance.

This story fascinated me because of the common ground it illustrates. For those if us who have desired saner energy and environmental policies for decades!!! this story represents a sea-change. Individuals who are familiar with the inside business who are seeking to create workable solutions for the globe. All initiated by education and collaboration, rather than adversarial positioning.

Listen and learn. (Click the logo)
CEA Reading List on this subject:
http://www.citizensforaffordableenergy.org/books.html

Copyright © 2011 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.

via www.npr.org

Don't bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals. David Ogilvy

Which Results Do YOU Expect?

As much as I enjoy speedy technology, I have faced a harsh truth:
There is no back button in real life. 

Computers will continue to embolden our paths. But their fuctions cannot disguise our frailties. Garbage in. Garbage out.

I talk about non-traditional assets, such as Amex points and barter values. It is easier for us to remember that we can make better choices, than to make them.

The closest equivalent to a life back-button is to relate with the right people and make better choices.

Timeless Vigor: The Serena Williams Factor vs National Donut Day

We should be happy about change. Then again, it doesn't always  move in our favor.

As an author, it has been interesting to realize that I think like a
behavioral economist. That is, I am curious about what people DO, rather than what they MIGHT do.  This is immensely useful as a thought process if you invest, run a business, or order coffee in a public place.

As I write this Serena Williams (and Roger Federer) have each
lost their French Open matches and are now OUT of the running. They are upset and professional. They will go back and address how their fates have been changed by errors.

There are numerous contrary examples of responsible behavior that
extends well beyond National Donut Day!

The President and Congress have passed landmark legislation
influencing healthcare costs (but probably not the quality of
healthcare.)  You would think they'd work on getting better at
their work, too. But from the photos, they don't look so happy,
even though they wanted change.Three ideas to shift your
thinking to keep more time and waste less money when you
embrace change with vigor.

Watch out for the Side Effects
1. The Obamacare program has a side feature; the hiring of
12,000 new IRS agents to audit your taxes, ostensibly to make
sure you and I have health insurance.  I'll bet there'll be more
that watching out for out health. What do you think?

Intent: Fairer healthcare.    + ++
Time: Preparation and discussion about our health care, yah!,
with non-medical professionals.
Cost: Accountant fees and/or tax support services.
Solution: Read my book. Well, ok.  There are other things
you can do too. Mainly, do what I say in my book. Hire a
team that will cooperate on challenges you raise relative
to your plan. It's interesting so they will do it. It also gets
them extra business, and you great service and protection.

Listen to Ayn Rand, Be Selfish 
2. If you run a business, it is likely you gave invested a
lot of money on computers, information and computer security.
Along comes cloud computing (Google and many other companies)
with products which are potentially faster and more secure, for a
fraction of what you have invested.

How to Build Business With the Habit Most People Forget to Develop

Warren Buffett is known for not sharing his specific strategies; and yet his knowledge is so desirable that a  dozen or more authors have written about what they think he does. By Buffett's own admission, the best book about him is called The Essays of Warren Buffett, by Professor Lawrence Cunningham. The book carries a series of articles explaining why Mr. Buffet invests as he does, and how he manages risk and opportunity.

People want to know what works. We like to be connected to the action.And more often than not the action is around the money. This will give you the outline for having and enjoying real wealth.

Several very wealthy people openly share their observations about investment. Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki cared enough to write a book about the importance of investing as a wealthy person, called "Why We Want You to Be Rich"; perhaps not the classiest title, but their direct approach is refreshing, and their advice extremely useful.

The saying "the rich get richer" negates the opportunities available and the type of work that makes one wealthy. Kiyosaki and Trump have evolved themselves into teachers. And they begin by encouraging a different approach to money-that is their job #1. That is their key advice. It is difficult to overlook Donald Trump's role as an educator. After all, Trump's television program, "The Apprentice," provided MBA-level lessons on business decision-making.

Another book on the subject of becoming rich is, "How to Get Rich", by Felix Dennis. Dennis is a publisher behind such diverse publications as Maxim and The Week. He is also a very talented poet. Dennis' stories are both pointed and funny, and they have much in common with Kiyosaki and Trump. For one, he's really made a lot of money. What's more important, though, is a sense of the humility necessary to really "make it.

"Get rich quick? Maybe. If you are very, very lucky, yes, you can. You can also lose it pretty darn quick, something I regret being experienced in. One needs to know how to dissect the challenge and know what to keep and what to chuck.

Read the complete article

Choose One: Avoidance or Opportunity

I was away...
We're too busy....
I know all about it!

We are geniuses at avoidance. Have you ever missed an opportunity sitting right beside you?

Les Brown tells the story of a time he was feeling all important flying First Class! on a coast-to-coast flight. All important. All pumped up about himself.

As he left the plane, walking at a distance behind the older gentleman he'd sat next to silently during the trip, someone tapped his arm. "Wow!" said the attractive woman, "you must have had a great conversation with Dr. Deming."

Brown did a double take. "W. Edwards Deming, the management GENIUS?" In an instant Brown realized he had sat beside one of the greatest managerial minds of all time. Not once did he take advantage of the opportunity to learn from the great man.

There are no figures about the income lost because of avoidance.

There is only the vaguest of recognition, and denial, that the opportunity missed might have held the answer we most needed.

And we just weren't conscious enough to accept the gift.

rb

Is there money for "sustainable" projects? (Was there money for Woodstock II?)

I was one of a handful of producers at Woodstock II, in Saugerties in 1994. My piece of the turf  was the EcoVillage. The experience probably had as much to do with coloring my view of the world (and my current business) as any other experience I've ever had.

Actually, the EcoVillage was more like paradox village. Planned for solar powered lighting and filled with "green" exhibits, the tents and the so-called "3rd stage" (there was also music there!) were allocated a fraction of the electrical power required to project the sounds of Bob Dylan, Aerosmith, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Johnny Cash, The Cranberries, Santana... and about 40 other bands.

As it turned out, solar power proved insufficient to power even the EcoVillage's needs. As the clouds brought the inclement weather to Saugerties, they snuffed out the power source. Much of my time was spent diverting even 15 amps(!) to give us backup power for the "green" exhibitors. Fifteen amps is  about what a competent electrician allocates for a home refrigerator.