Well, they’re at it again at GM (Government Motors). They’re grasping for straws as they’ve apparently tried everything else. They’re obviously running out of options.

The Board of Directions announced December 2 that they were accepting the resignation of new CEO Fritz Henderson. Polite translation means they dumped him and the reason readily emerged as they stated it was unhappy with the pace of the Detroit automaker’s turnaround since emerging from bankruptcy. Ed Whitacre, the company’s chairman, takes on the role of chief executive while GM searches for a new president and CEO.

The Associated Press created major headlines claiming that “New CEO Seeks Change in Culture at GM.” Apparently Whitacre, the former CEO of AT&T, Inc., announced that GM would be required to dump its stodgy hierarchical approach to decision making. He told employees that the bureaucracy needs to end, and they can take reasonable risks without the fear of being fired. “We want you to step up. We don’t want any bureaucracy. We’re not going to make it if you won’t take a risk.”

Personally, I think he’s right on the money. Who could possibly argue with that philosophy? However, I also think GM is a little late with this revelation. I’ve been doing supervisory training for this automotive giant on and off for the past 30 years and have grown to know the culture intimately. Trying to generate a culture change at this late date will be more challenging for GM than trying to turn around the proverbial battleship in a bathtub! While it looks great in print and sounds like a sound strategy, it should have been implemented decades ago. Bureaucracy is so embedded in this culture that it has become a way of life for GM leadership as well as the front-line employees who despise it!

Is there a lesson here for us? Absolutely! In today’s chaotic and unpredictable business environment, anyone who seeks survival, success and growth had better adapt an attitude and strategy of being much more open to the fine art of risk-taking. Those who can’t or choose not to will find themselves falling behind in no uncertain terms.

Can GM pull it off in these late stages? We can only hope so at this point for the remaining 266,000 employees who remain on the payroll for the time being.

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.

Henry Ford was, indeed, a very unusual man. Volumes have been written about him both pro and con. However, there one’s particular story that makes a strong case for determination and persistence. In the early 1930s. Ford was determined to create a powerful single casting V-8 engine for his cars. This was something that experts worldwide said was impossible. One could easily surmise that these declarations were a driving force to achieve Ford’s unrealistic goal.

He called together his top engineering group, explained exactly what he wanted accompanied with a deadline. In a very short time, the chief engineer shared the group’s finding with Ford. It simply couldn’t be done. Ford voiced his disappointment and proceeded to fire the engineers involved.

He promptly hired a new group of engineers, explained his goal, shared the findings of the previous team, and sent them off with high expectations. The new team of engineers soon returned to share the identical findings of the first. It simply could not be done. Again, the esteemed automaker thanked the team for their efforts, voiced his dismay, and released them from their contracts.

Still determined, Henry hired a third group of engineers and proceeded to repeat the process of explaining his high expectations and conviction to reach them.

This group was a little more intense in evaluating the “big picture.” They reviewed the consequences given to the first two groups for failing to achieve Ford’s vision, reviewed the findings of both groups, developed new approaches and possibilities and in early 1932 introduced the first powerful single casting V-8 engine to an eager automotive industry and a large audience of intrigued car buyers.

The moral of this story is quite obvious. If not for the dogged perseverance of Henry Ford and the rare ability of the third engineering group to foresee their undeniable consequences should they fail their assigned task, we might still find ourselves sitting behind a 6 cylinder vehicle today.

Do you possess that dogged determination to achieve your chosen goals? It could make all the difference. The choice is yours!

Henry Ford was well-known for his common sense philosophy. He often said: “Whether you THINK YOU CAN or think you can’t, you’re right!”

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.

While the economic scene continues to be reported as bleak at best, that’s not necessarily so for everyone. Take retail for instance. The retail industry has reported more store closings from coast to coast in the past two years than ever before. However, 7-Eleven, the world’s largest chain store with 35,900 stores in 17 countries, has announced plans to open an additional 200 stores in the U.S. this year. By the way, to give an idea of how large it is—McDonald’s has only 31,062 stores.

Ironically, the two largest areas of expansion will be California (a state in financial chaos from border to border) and the New York metropolitan area (which is very competitive at all times).

One might question this growth strategy at a time when the entire country appears to have fallen victim to recessionary madness. However, consequences of this madness aren’t all negative for all parties. Falling real-estate values have made long-term leases very attractive to landlords, and many have been eager to strike bargains with 7-Eleven and other similar retailers.

While 7-Eleven actually charges more than most grocery stores, convenience obviously means even more to many consumers who try to save money by under-buying during their visits to the market. You won’t find gigantic shopping carts or massive displays of product stacked to the ceiling at a 7-Eleven … thus less impulse purchases.

7-Eleven stores are appealing to New Yorkers because its quality control ensures that the stores are clean and well-run, in stark contrast to many of the corner delis that currently function as the city’s informal food-distribution network.

7-Eleven isn’t alone in its strategy to use the recession as a tool for broadening its reach. Bargain-priced department store Kohl’s is on track to open 50 new stores next year, and Swedish fashion chain H&M (Hennes & Mauritz) says it plans to open 225 new stores this year.

Dollar General has announced plans to open 450 new stores in 35 states while Big Lots has 45 new stores on the drawing board for the coming year. The target for all of these retailers: price-conscious, bargain-hunting shoppers forced to live within a strict budget as the national media warns of greater challenges on every front.

Adversity is fertile soil for creativity and action!

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.

You may know this man as one of the nation’s most successful country music artists of the 20th century. He also enjoyed great popularity in early Rock & Roll, R & B, and Pop music. Until the year 2000, he held the record for the most Number One singles of any country act, with 55 Number One chart hits! Others know him not only as a singer and entertainer, but also as a songwriter and producer.

He will certainly hold a cherished spot in musical history with his 55 number one hits, 110 albums, record-breaking concert attendance, and countless awards in a variety of musical categories.

Although he had many hits, he’s best known for “It’s Only Make Believe” and “Hello, Darling” … two cross-over hits which are still played regularly on Oldies stations from coast to coast.

Of course, I’m talking about Harold Lloyd Jenkins who passed away in 1993 at the age of 60. Doesn’t ring a bell? If not, that’s understandable as Harold didn’t record under his real name. He didn’t think it was marketable … and he was probably right. However, he struggled to come up with what he felt would be marketable. He received many suggestions but few, if any, which he approved of.

Legend has it that he decided to let fate settle his dilemma. He stood before a wall map of the United States, closed his eyes, and tossed two darts at random. One landed on Twitty, Texas, while the other sought out Conway, Arkansas. At that moment, Conway Twitty was born, and that unique name went on to find its coveted place in music history.

Creativity at its best can sometimes be random. Dare to give it a shot!

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.

I’m constantly amazed at the fact that someone will make an enormous investment of time and money to obtain a college education but then refuse to take advantage of the many valuable lessons we find in real life almost daily!

Don’t misunderstand … I value and respect a college education and recommend it to everyone who wants to be successful in today’s competitive, chaotic environment. However, consider the monumental investment.

I recently read an article that the average annual price for a college education, tuition and fees, at an average private four-year school has reached close to $35,000! Of course, that means about $140,000 for a basic four-year degree. Or does it?

Another article in the Boston Globe describes what it calls “the four-year college myth,” the idealized view that college students graduate from high school and go directly to a college campus, study full-time, and finish in four years. The author of that article states that his rough calculations using federal data would indicate that fewer than 10 percent of adults who have a Bachelor’s degree earned that degree in four years or less. Roughly 85% of today’s college students are older, work, and often study part-time. In short, we’re looking at an even greater stake of both time and money. However, you can’t argue the potential value of that education.

Consider the advantages of earning that college degree AND then continuing to invest in life-long learning by merely tapping the potential we so often take for granted … that of radio, television, books, magazines, newspapers, and the ever-growing power of the Internet. Thomas L. Friedman, author of The World Is Flat, says: “Never before in the history of the planet have so many people—on their own—had the ability to find so much information about so many things and about so many other people.”

However, having the ability doesn’t necessarily mean we take advantage of it. Again, we face the challenge of closing the knowing-doing gap. It’s really quite simple to continue our journey of life-long learning—it takes nothing more than an effort to observe what’s happening around us. Using today’s many technologies, simply look, listen, search, observe and evaluate daily occurrences in search of the lessons so often available to us. Invest the time and effort and the benefits will soon become quite evident.

In this new blog feature, we’ll be sharing many of the life lessons that occur daily but are often missed by those who don’t have the time, energy, or desire to seek them out. It is our hope that you’ll find value that can be utilized to solve problems, increase productivity and profitability, and simply enhance your continuous effort to succeed.

Another Example from Wal-Mart

Well, Wal-Mart has done it again. Many will simply overlook this valuable lesson because they disapprove of Wal-Mart. I’ve seen it happen with Bill Gates, General Motors, Jack Welch, IBM and the list goes on and on. Previous history, personal dislike, poor decisions … these are just some of the reasons why people make the decision to ignore a valuable lesson, a good example, creativity, or innovation as it emerges in world of business. We must set aside personal feelings and maintain an open mind as we search for life’s lessons.

Let’s look closer at what Wal-Mart has come up with this time.

The world’s #1 retailer is testing a new concept to add to its U.S. portfolio—a Hispanic-oriented grocery store designed to tap into this potentially lucrative and ever-growing market segment.

Wal-Mart is calling it Supermercado de Walmart, and it recently opened a store in Phoenix after successfully launching a store in Houston in late April. However, Wal-Mart is entering an intensely competitive marketplace. Hispanics, frequent grocery shoppers, carry with them an estimated $1 trillion in buying power, and Wal-Mart competitors have already noticed that spending power.

“It’s an evolution of what we’ve been doing,” Wal-Mart spokeswoman Amy Wyatt-Moore said, noting that Wal-Mart already operates about 500 stores in areas with large Hispanic populations.

Inside the brightly colored 39,000-square-foot store, a well-stocked produce section has mangoes, limes and papayas displayed in bins. The meat market has tripe and pigs feet.

Traditional Hispanic fare can be had at a small eating area, where tacos and tortas can be bought and chicken mole is a specialty. A seating area with a salsa bar is close by. Signs are in English and Spanish, and customers shop amid a background of Hispanic music coming over the speaker system.

The growth of the Hispanic population has been headlining our newspapers and newscasts for the past several years. How many companies have put forth an effort to capitalize on that growing market segment? This is a prime example of why Wal-Mart continues to grow, succeed, and profit at a time when so many others suffer or even become distinct. Wal-Mart continues to find a need and fill it!

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.