This current period of uncertainty was unforeseen. The layering of serious worries about health and economy is simply overwhelming. To make matters worse, none of us have a playbook to use during these times. We should not live in denial, but we must also believe that each one of us has what it takes to overcome and come out strong. To get out of the current state of shock it is important to first get into a positive and constructive mindset. (Of course, that is easier said than done). There are five evolving stages that we all must go through. This will get us ready to win big when things start becoming normal. These are just thought starters, and each of us should add our own ideas to make the perfect personal road-map. I request all of you to commit to ONE action at the end: Please reach out to a few people and help them to get through this period. It will make a big difference. I know, if you sent me any thoughts, advice, or a note; that will pump me up. The 5 stages: WORRIED & ANXIOUS: This is where most of us have been when the crisis began. It is natural to feel overwhelmed in the middle of a major uncertainty. Staying here will not help us and we need to find a way out of this. FIND SELF BELIEF: The first step out of worries and anxiety must be driven by mental strength. We must look back and think of all the difficult situations in life we have navigated through. Being proud of every past accomplishment will make us realize that all those past wins got us ready for this big challenge. It starts with believing that we will survive through this and commit to doing whatever it takes to come out a winner. When I need a little boost, I love to listen to this rendering of Pete Seeger - We shall overcome. I may be a little dated and my Facebook friends shared two more recent songs IAMLXGEND and Macklemore’s Glorious START A ROUTINE: Routines are the easiest way to get into an action mode and remain there. Our daily routine during this period should be purposeful and focused to make us best prepared for BIG success when this is over. Once we start to act regularly, the momentum will tip in each of our favor. COME OUT STRONG: When the world reopens, we must be ready to come out of the gates running. There will be a lot of competition at that point, and those who are most prepared to get a jump start, will have odds in their favor to start winning immediately. We must remember that it will take the strongest boldest effort from each one of us, but nothing to worry about as we all have it inside of us. This is my personal cheer song that gives me goosebumps every time I listen to this Des’ree song CONTINUE TO ACCELERATE: A good start is what it will take at the beginning, but that will not be enough. We will need to keep accelerating to build the momentum and sustain our wins. Once we are aware of these 5 stages, here are the three questions each one of us must answer: Which stage am I in? What one action can I take to get to the next stage? Who all can I help to move ahead in their journey?   SHARING WITH GRATITUDE: Each one of you have been amazing friends and collaborators. I am grateful to each of you for every connection, help, advice, and guidance. To celebrate our connection, I am sharing with you some ideas and resources that you might find useful and fun during this period. Thank you! PERSONAL BRANDING FREE WEBINAR (More details to come): Each one of you is a brand! It is your perception that defines you. If you do not manage your perception, external factors will manage it for you. In this 90-minute webinar, you will leave with three things you need to unleash your personal brand: A MINDSET CHANGE to see the value and benefits A FRAMEWORK to add your content and be purposeful A PROCESS to build and sustain HOW TO LOOK PROFESSIONAL ON A WEB CONFERENCE CALL: This LinkedIn post is a simple game to 'Discover the Difference'. It will open your mind to things you can do to create a professional image in your next virtual meeting. Please check the video of how Late Night hosts are taking their show virtual. RESTAURANT TAKE-OUT: 7 Ways to make your take-out offering more relevant in current times. HOW TO CORONAVIRUS-PROOF YOUR HOME By Scottie Andrew, CNN: I found this to be a very useful resource to print and share with neighbors.   JOIN TO STAY UPDATED There is no selling, just cool insights every month. Our Privacy Policy: We do not share or sell email addresses....

I had ordered catered lunch from a national fast casual chain for a business meeting. At exactly 11:30 AM Tamesha walked and immediately started setting up the catering chafing dishes for the hot food. She lit the burners and picked up a container full of water. In my effort to be helpful I said “Next time, you can fill the water from here; that way you do not have to carry the water with you.” Tamesha said “No sir, this is not just any water. This is hot water. With hot water, the hot food stays hot. Otherwise the cold water will get hot as the hot food gets cold.” It took me a second to realize that what she said was brilliant. I was in total admiration for her and the restaurant chain. Once I realized how far this restaurant would go to keep the food hot, I asked myself, “What else will they do to that is impressive?”   What Is Your Equivalent Of Hot Water? When a business creates a WOW moment for the smallest area of guest experience, it creates a positive halo for the brand. If that WOW happens early, the rest of the experience automatically gets uplifted. Imagine on a hot summer day, when the temperature is 110 degrees, you are picking up a rental car. As you leave the rental counter, they offer you a chilled bottle of water. Next you check into your hotel, and you find a personal welcome card with some refreshments. Finally, you get to a department store looking for an item and realize they do not have it in stock. But their service desk offers to get it delivered to your hotel room in an hour. In each of these three cases, the businesses going above and beyond will create WOW moments for you and create a positive halo for the brand. The opposite of this can drop the brand’s perception in your mind. If you get into your rental car and see that it was not clean; or you drag your suitcases to your room in the hotel to realize the keys do not work; or the department store asks you to call the other locations to check if they have the item in stock; each of them are a negative way to start the experience. It is very tough for a business to recover from that. Hence, WOW moments early in the experience is essential to create positive brand experience.   Steps To Find Your WOW Moment: SEE every experience element from your customer’s P.O.V. UNDERSTAND the role of each element in the total experience DEVELOP a plan for each element to optimized FOCUS on consistently delivering every element of the experience ...

On Super Bowl Sunday at 8:00 pm, with the 49ers down by 4 points and attempting a comeback, something strange happened on my TV screen. The screen froze, it had stopped streaming. I waited for a few minutes and then called my internet provider. Jack got all my information and then informed me that Sundays at 8:00 pm they often have "routine maintenance shut down". Really, on Super Bowl night? “I guess someone forgot to adjust for that” was Jack’s answer. He said sorry, but it did not matter as I missed the last few minutes of one of the most exciting Super Bowl games because someone “forgot to adjust”. I completely understand that Sunday evenings is a perfect time for routine maintenance. But, with nearly 50% of the population now moved to live streaming, shouldn’t they adjust downtime for all major live events like the Super Bowl, Oscars, Grammys, and other high demand events? Shouldn’t the internet providers understand that we are putting our entire trust on them?   When Is The Right Time For Maintenance? Any business must have a clear idea what role they play in the life of the customer. In the case of internet providers, they are becoming the main artery for communication and live entertainment. That puts them at a much higher level of responsibility. Before, when they were only offering online communication services, they could do routine maintenance on Sunday evening. Now, with businesses evolving, they need to find new time slots for maintenance when customers do not need them. This is true for all businesses. Retail store employees trying to take care of inventory 15 minutes before closing may be efficient, but not customer centric. Instead, they need to look out for customers who rushed to beat the closing time and assist them. Restaurant staff starting to vacuum the floors with customers still dining is another example of that. In all cases, attending to the needs of the customer comes first and all maintenance should happen when they do not need the brand. 3 Steps To Planning Downtime (Maintenance): Have clarity on WHY customers need us Clearly identify WHEN customers need us Finally, schedule maintenance during customer downtime (when they do not need us) ...

What is the equivalent of the doggy bowl in your business? What is the one thing that will make customers feel “These are the kind of people I want to do business with.”?...