Business & Professional CAREER COACH E TIPS This, TO"N H ave you ever heard the ancient folktale about King Solomon, who attempted to humble one of his most trusted min- isters by sending him on a search for a magic ring that did not exist? As legend tells it, Solomon told his minister the ring had powers. If a happy man looks at it, he becomes sad; if a sad man looks at it, he becomes happy. The minister searched and searched and searched and, in the end, he came up empty handed. Along the way, how- ever, a jeweler — know- ing no such ring existed — inscribed a gold ring for the minister to give to King Solomon with the Hebrew expression, "Gam zeh ya'avor," or "This too shall pass." A surprised Solomon read the inscription, immediately realizing all his wisdom, wealth and tremendous power were fleeting things because one day he would be nothing but dust. The message of this tale is quite poignant today and we should keep in the back of our minds every day that "this too shall pass." These are new times that present new chal- lenges and no one knows what to expect. We don't know how long it will take or how bad things may get, but the economy will turn around and things will get better. I've written it before, but I must repeat it now. It is time to get into survival mode. There is no time to sit around and watch things get worse. Just do something now to get the business back later. You can staff up when things turn around. Don't waste your energy feeling sorry for your- self. Instead, take positive steps to prepare for an increasingly volatile business climate. Times of great loss present unusu- al opportunity. Go out and seek these opportunities, whatever they may be. Keep a laser focus on what your customers really need and make sure you continue to run a tight core business. Revise pricing to reflect the state of the economy and stay close to your customers. You must always C8 March 19 • 2009 ass be in sales mode. Stay focused and lead from a posi- tion of reality. Look for growth pros- pects and new business. Kick up that positive attitude because it can, and it will, go a long way. Please don't complain and certainly don't whine. No one wants to hear it. Find something good in the face of adversity. Step up the network- ing a notch. Get in touch with old friends through letters, e-mails or phone calls. Meet for coffee. The Internet makes it easier than ever to network. Try to reach out to others through the latest online social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedln. Start a blog focusing on your business expertise and send it out to your online network. When one door closes, another one always opens — if you are there to walk in. Stay and make it happen. Seize the moment. While we can- not predict this economic downturn's impact, we can take positive steps to prepare for an increasingly volatile business climate. Focus on short-term goals, reward yourself for hard work and find the entrance to your next big break. Often people look for excuses as to why things are the way they are. They procrastinate. If you think you cannot do some- thing and take on that mindset, it could become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Remember, action is a better out- look on life. Do something every day and don't wallow in self-pity. If you want to be someone, only you can make it happen. Yes, "this too shall pass. 3, — Robert Sher, CPA, is a certified execu- tive coach and former CFO and partner for Schostak Brothers & Company, Southfield. He has been a delegate from the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants to the National Future Forum working on the CPA "Vision" Project. He serves on the boards of numerous charitable and professional organizations. His e-mail address is: info@bobshercom. T oo many companies, large and small, struggle with a major gap between goals and results. They come up with great ideas and bold plans, but then noth- ing turns out the way their leaders predict. Why does that happen? How can execu- tives learn to make realistic strategies and then turn them into reality? The problem starts because business people aren't taught to think about execution as a discipline, one that includes much more than simple tactics. Over the 25-plus years of my own career, I have found that execution is the most important job of any leader, from a CEO to a department head. Any leader who views his or her job as setting a vision that others must implement is sure to face an execu- tion gap. The difficult part of all this is to • develop a culture in which everyone gets used to vigorous questioning, tough- minded analysis and relentless follow-up. Leaders at such companies are deeply and passionately engaged and don't duck the hard ques- tions when things go wrong. They put a pre- mium on intellectual honesty, realism and accountability. They know the difference between being hands-on and micromanaging. And they know that if the people who work for them can't embrace an execution culture, they might be better off working somewhere else. So what are the key elements in this process? No surprise: People are the big key. We all have people, but the right people who understand and do the right things is key. I was taught very early in my career to have a thick skin, to be hon- est, to tell it like it is and to focus on the customer — and to be ready to go toe to toe with people to be sure what- ever you look at or do keeps the right focus on the customer and executing to perfection. • People. The job of selecting and appraising people is one that no leader should ever delegate. When all is said and done, it will be people that either under- stand and buy in or refuse to make changes or imple- ment the changes needed. It is key, then, to get the right people and make sure you maintain the right people. Tools that allow for first- round testing, normally to get a sense of personality, may be useful, but strong leaders also need to get that "feel" first hand to deter- mine if a person fits the team. Never delegate that. • Strategy. A great strategy comes together block by block, following vigorous debate among key leaders who should never defer to the boss when they have reasonable objections. What seems to have become a norm in many companies is the idea that you are a team player if you show up at the meeting, listen and then just go back to your office cube or whatever. No way! If you really want to execute, there has to be strong, healthy debate on why are we doing this. Are there alternatives? The key is debate. A respectful discussion makes the plan better and makes it work. • Operations. Once you have the right people and an overall strategy, the next step is creating a realistic operating plan with specific pro- grams, actions and clear accountabil- ity. Such a plan breaks down the long- term goals into short-term targets that will force hard decisions to be made across the organization. ID A great strategy comes together block by block, after vigorous debate. F Kevin Browett is chief operating officer of Jewish Renaissance Media, parent com- pany of the Detroit Jewish News. He is a former vice president of Kmart Corp. and a past small-business founder and officer.