Author: louis

With our first Manager’s Camp of 2014 kicking off tomorrow I thought it would be great to blog on leadership.  Below are just a few traits that make great leaders. Have an awesome week everybody!  – Kim

L-E-A-D-E-R-S-H-I-P :

L istening

Strong communication skills always rank high on the list of desired traits in a leader. We were each given two ears and only one mouth. Someone once suggested that we should listen twice as much as we talk. Hearing what others around you have to say is an important trait of good leaders.

E motional Intelligence

Sometimes referred to as EQ (as opposed to IQ ), this qualitative factor encompasses traits like one’s self-awareness as an individual, ability to work well with others, and how others perceive and relate to you. It is not about being smart, but rather about having compassion for others.  This is hard to fake.

A uthenticity

One of our favorite leadership characteristics, authenticity refers to how others perceive your intentions and motivations. Being genuine in your approach to people, and consistent in your behaviors as a leader, will allow others to view you as being the real deal.

D edication

This may be one of the more obvious traits of successful leaders, as few who are not dedicated to their craft and organization will make it to the top. But dedication often means going beyond the obvious level of hard work, however, make sure not to mistake activity with achievement. It is leading by example, so that if you expect everyone to show up on a weekend for a meeting, you are also there.

E nergy and Enthusiasm

It takes a lot of energy and enthusiasm to lead an organization. Few successful and respected leaders can gather real support without being highly visible to their followers.  This takes a great deal of time and effort, but others will notice, and enthusiasm is contagious.

R espect

This is not just about earning respect for yourself, but also respecting others. When a leader’s behavior exhibits a loss of self-respect or respect for others, it is almost always the beginning of the end of their time at the top.

S uccession

One of the biggest challenges facing all organizations today, whether yours is a small community organization or a large multinational institution, is the issue of leadership succession. Good leaders consistently focus on developing the next generation of talent, and make succession planning an ongoing organizational focus.

H onorable

People need to trust their leaders. If you say you are going to do something you had better do it. Keeping your word with others sets the tone for how your followers are expected to behave when representing the team.

I ntegrity

This is probably the most important characteristic we look for in a leader. If being honorable means being true to your word, then your integrity sets the standard for ethical behaviors and best practices across the organization. The highest compliment anyone has ever given to us is to say that we have a lot of integrity in our organization.

P ersistence

Leaders can’t cave in at the first sign of resistance to what is right or necessary for success. While there are surely times to reverse course in life, having a “stick-with-it” attitude is critical. People need to see their leaders driving forward and persisting when the going gets tough. This is how breakthroughs occur.

Did you know that over 40% of our waking hours are spent at work?

There are 24 hours in a day and 365 days in a year that equals 8760 hours.

On an average we sleep 8 hours a day X 365 days equals 2920 hours in a year.

That leaves us with 5840 waking hours. Of those waking hour we are at work approximately 9 hours a day. That equals 2340 hours at work in a year. That leaves us with 3500 hours away from work a year.

Since we spend 40% of our time at work the work environment is critical to being a successful store. I am sure you have noticed the environment when you walk into a business. Your first impressions or feeling you get sets the tone for your visit into that business. You can tell whether the people working are upbeat and positive or down and negative.

The work environment is what you make it. Ask yourself these questions.

In your stores do you find: “Debbie Downer”, “Negative Nancy”, “Whining Whitney” or ”Lazy Lucy” or do your find “Positive Patsy” , “Motivated Monica”, “Cheerful Chelsey” or “Smiling Samantha”?

We each decide each day what we will bring to the work place. So it is up to each one of us to set the tone for our stores. A positive and energetic work environment breeds success into a store.  On the other hand, a negative and no since of urgency breeds a poor work environment and in turn poor performance.

Challenge yourself each day to make that 40% of your time a positive one.

Do you “Whistle While You Work”?

Tommy

As Luke mentioned on Monday, we held our P&L review with our management team Monday morning.  We each deemed the meeting a success.  We were able to celebrate several victories as well as identify some opportunities for improvement.

Over the next two days the district managers will be holding P&L reviews with their respective districts.  As you go into these meetings I encourage you to approach the meetings looking for the same two things:

1. Reasons to celebrate.

2. Opportunities for improvement.

Good luck to everyone in their meetings!

Louis

  Not only in the Accounting Department is Teamwork a necessity but in every business MEI owns it should take top priority.  Focus on being a great “Team Player” today and every day.  Ask yourself how you can contribute to your team more every day.  Below are a few key traits of a GREAT “Team Player”.

 Demonstrates reliability

You can count on a reliable team member who gets work done and does his fair share to work hard and meet commitments. He or she follows through on assignments. Consistency is key. You can count on him or her to deliver good performance all the time, not just some of the time.

Communicates constructively

Teams need people who speak up and express their thoughts and ideas clearly, directly, honestly, and with respect for others and for the work of the team. That’s what it means to communicate constructively. Such a team member does not shy away from making a point but makes it in the best way possible — in a positive, confident, and respectful manner.

Listens actively

Good listeners are essential for teams to function effectively. Teams need team players who can absorb, understand, and consider ideas and points of view from other people without debating and arguing every point.

Functions as an active participant

Good team players are active participants. They come prepared for team meetings and listen and speak up in discussions. They’re fully engaged in the work of the team

Shares openly and willingly

Good team players share. They’re willing to share information, knowledge, and experience. They take the initiative to keep other team members informed.

Cooperates and pitches in to help

Cooperation is the act of working with others and acting together to accomplish a job. Effective team players work this way by second nature.

 Exhibits flexibility

Good team players roll with the punches; they adapt to ever-changing situations.

 Shows commitment to the team

Strong team players care about their work, the team, and the team’s work. They show up every day with this care and commitment up front. They want to give a good effort, and they want other team members to do the same.

Works as a problem-solver

Good team players are willing to deal with all kinds of problems in a solutions-oriented manner. They’re problem-solvers.

 Treats others in a respectful and supportive manner

Team players treat fellow team members with courtesy and consideration — not just some of the time but consistently.

“If we are together nothing is impossible.  If we are divided all will fail.” —Winston Churchill

Rachel

Here are the five things that you need to do in order to be extremely successful and happy in life. If you practice these daily it will make a positive impact in your life and a change for the better.

1) Know what you are worth and never settle for less.

2) Refuse to believe those who put you down.

3) Believe in yourself.

4) Be Brave.

5) Keep trying and learning.

Think about each one of these and how you can customize them to your life. Have a great day!

Meredith

DEDICATION

“Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.”

– Albert Einstein

EXCELLENCE

“It’s a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.”

– W. Somerset Maugham

WISDOM

“Wisdom lies not in possessing knowledge
— which quickly becomes outdated —
but in perpetually seeking it.”

— Paul Johnson

CHARACTER

“Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behavior. Keep your behavior positive because your behavior becomes your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.”

– Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

Have a wonderful Wednesday! – Kim

I was reading LaTessa’s blog about change yesterday and I thought it was very accurate. Change can be very difficult for people who aren’t very adaptable. Our own adaptability can be improved through our attitudes. I found this article about adaptability and wanted to share it. For those of you that don’t have time to read the entire article, I have listed five positive and negative characteristics of change from the article.

http://www.success.com/article/do-you-have-adaptability

Negative Characteristics

Rigidity—“It’s my way or the highway”

Discontent—“No, I don’t like it this way. Why can’t we…”

Unapproachable—“Don’t bother me unless it’s worth my time and you agree with me”

Bluntness—“That’s a stupid idea!”

Resistance—“This is the way we’ve always done it”

Positive Characteristics

Confidence -means that you believe in yourself; you trust your own judgment and resourcefulness.

Tolerance – That means you’re open to accepting opinions and practices different from your own

Empathy – “I feel what you feel. I can put myself in your shoes.”

Positivity – A positive attitude leads to positive events in your life.

Respect for others – This is the sincere desire to understand and consider other people’s choices, commitments and needs in relation to yours.

“If at first a new idea doesn’t seem ridiculous, then there is no hope for it.” –Albert Einstein

“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often” -Winston Churchill

Will

Webster’s Dictionary defines change as to:

1. become or make different: to become different, or make something or somebody different
2. substitute or replace something: to exchange, substitute, or replace something
3. pass from one state to another: to pass or make something pass from one state or stage to another

Have you ever thought about what you think of change? As humans, we typical all cringe when we hear the word change.  That’s because for the majority of us, it is something new, and with anything new we tend to fear it rather than taking the opportunity to completely embrace it.   Last month we as a company implemented a new budget/bonus program in order to strive to become an even stronger and more prosperous company than we already are.  It was a wonderful opportunity for us to see how truly awesome our employees are.  It was so great to see our offices meet the challenge head on and not shy away.  So give yourselves a pat on the back and let us continue to keep meeting the challenge and keep moving forward.

This is one of my favorite quotes about change and moving forward.  Enjoy and have a great Monday!

Latessa

There has been a lot of focus on our Vision and Values statement as we have started 2014.  Much of the discussion has centered around making sure we are living by our values on a daily basis in everything we do with Montgomery Enterprises.

I spent last Thursday sitting in on P&L reviews with Janna in all district one offices.  There was one value that stood out that every office was living by.  Cleanliness- Out of respect for our customers and ourselves, our locations will be shining examples of cleanliness and attention to detail.  All of the offices were neat, organized, had no trash in the parking lot, and signage was updated and displayed in a professional manner.  Great job district one on living this value!

A large part of virtue consists in good habits.-William Paley

Have a productive day….Louis

To improve performance most would think, you must be focused on areas where employees are doing things wrong. It is not to say that we must overlook areas that need improvement, but there is another way to improve performance.

Instead of always looking for someone doing something wrong, find someone doing something right. By recognizing someone doing something right you are promoting the behavior you expect. When someone is noticed doing something right others take notice. Ask yourself have you ever seen someone other than yourself being recognized for their performance? How did it make you feel? Most would say I want to be recognized too.  In turn those not recognized will begin to alter their behavior to fit those that were.

Over the last few weeks I have been able to find people doing things right:

Christie and Susan in Fayette – they both have been helping out the Hamilton store. They have offered their time and effort to help a store in need. They both have been training a new hire, again offering their time and effort. Doing something right!

Tracie from Kim’s area – She also has been helping out in Hamilton. She has offered her support and time to help the store get back to where it should be. Doing something right!

Stephanie and Kelly – Both of these ladies have given their time and effort to help out in Camden and Greensboro. They have taken time away from their store to help others. They are also going to be training a new hire for the next few weeks. Doing something right!

Tracy – A customer came into the Tuscaloosa store needing a title loan, his car was in the shop across the street. She found a way to do the loan instead of a way not too. She spoke to the mechanic and he was more than eager to help. She was able to do the loan, and has begun to develop a new business relationship for the store. Doing something right!

Finding someone doing something right is rewarding not only to those that receive the recognition, but also for those that have observed it.

Tommy