ATTITUDE – The new Edge in Business and Life !

Unfortunately, the attitude of many managers, directors and the CEO’s leaves a lot to be desired.

So who do your call and who do you go to when the attitude of your staff, senior and junior management is broken?

If you want to have a boss with a great attitude, be an employee with a great attitude!

Imagine suspending all marketing, advertising, promotions, meetings, events, facility refurbishments, etc.  and investing the entire budget on your people, their attitudes and states of mind!

SO HOW IMPORTANT IS ATTITUDE

When looking at companies, analysts use the word sentiment to predict, analyse or review them.  The word sentiment means; “a thought, opinion or attitude.  A deeply felt emotion and mental attitude”.

Attitude is one of the concepts that are spoken about at nearly every meeting, conference or occasion. Because of this we know that people, for the most part, understand its relevance, but do they understand how important it really is?

Attitude has become one of those nice payoff lines people like to throw into conversations and presentations without fully understanding it or how to achieve and sustain it.

Attitude is almost more important than anything else and the benefits of an organisation or person with a fantastic attitude are unbelievable, almost magical.

If a machine breaks we call a technician, if the books don’t balance we call the accountant, if sales are down we contact the ad agency.  It seems that there is a go-to-guy for almost every eventuality in business.

So who do you call and who do you go to when the attitude of your staff, senior and junior management is broken?”

Rudyard Kipling said, I kept six honest hard-working men and they served me well.  Their names were “Who, What, Why, When, Where and How”!  Let’s see if we can explore attitude using the Kipling model. 

WHAT IS ATTITUDE AND WHY IS IT KEY?

Attitude, said William Clement Stone, will determine your altitude.  Attitude he went on to say, is the difference in people.  The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.

Attitude begins with a person’s basic intention.  Intention is purpose and reason.  The why!  This is very important Nietzsche said, “If you know the why, you will endure any “how”!  (Or something like that).  Once we have a clear vision, purpose, a reason, we have a motive for action.

If you combine the words motive and action and drop the e and c you will have — motivation.  A motive or reason to take action.  A strong enough or clear enough motivation will automatically change and sustain attitude.  That’s the long technical explanation for the intellectuals.  For the rest of us…. Attitude is like fuel for your car or food for your body.  It nourishes and gives energy.  However this energy needs to be constantly refilled.  The yearly conference is just not enough.

• Attitude is contagious
• Customer service is attitude
• Attitude comes from how we feel about ourselves
• Attitude is about our personal character.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF ATTITUDE?

• Attitude is the thing that persuades people.
• Attitude changes the bottom line.  Profitability increases.
• Attitude will and does determine the success or failure of a company.
• Attitude makes people go the extra mile.
• Attitude from the top filters down, from the bottom it rises up and from the middle it spreads up, down and around.
• Attitude creates staff retention and reduces absenteeism.
• Attitude equals more sales.
• Attitude is a turn on.  The biggest sex organ is the brain with attitude.
• Attitude is attractive and makes things look attractive.  It’s a marketing tool.  People are attracted to attitude.  Customers will come in and come back.  Attitude wants to serve the customer and guarantees the customer will come back.
• Teamwork is an attitude.
• By changing your attitude to the world, the world’s attitude changes.
• Attitude makes the work experience pleasurable, desirable and bearable.
• Caring is an attitude.
• Attitude wants to succeed.
• Attitude wants to learn, be trained and develop new skills.
• Attitude wants to do and achieve more.

We are constantly looking for something different, the X factor, for that one thing that cannot be replicated.  In a world where only outstanding will do and brand experience is what creates word of mouth advertising and clients for life attitude is the answer, the mechanism, the silver bullet, the secret.

If Attitude has no many benefits how come is it then that so little done within organisations to work on, change, and nurture attitude?

WHO?

Attitude is the responsibility of absolutely everyone in the organisation or family.  It starts  at the top and percolates down.  Unfortunately, the attitude of many managers, directors and the CEO’s leaves a lot to be desired.  It’s probably the reason why many companies – “leaders”, don’t like to have positive people or attitude adjusters around.

It’s probably the reason why an attitude audit is the scariest audit a manager can have and the reason why they are never done.  It’s a hard fact.  The poor attitude of people in business today is generally set, accepted and imitated from management.  This is one of those wonderful things that can and does infect upwards, sideways and basically all it touches.

HOW?

• Employ the attitude and train the skill.
• Attitude needs an action plan to sustain it.
• Attitude needs a canvas and openness to be expressed.
• Attitude needs an environment that for the most part is set by the leader.  Are you that leader?
• Attitude is contagious and all it takes is one voice that never gives up.  Be the voice.
• Attitude is the candle in the darkness that brings light to many.  Be the candle.
• Attitude is an all-the-time thing, not a sometimes thing.  It is not on and off.  It is always on!
• If you want to have a boss with a great attitude, be an employee with a great attitude!
• If you want to have an employee with a great attitude, be a boss with a great attitude!
• Attitude should be at every touch point (interactions) with clients, with staff, with colleagues, with superiors.

ATTITUDE ACTIONS

• Companies should focus on attitude as the number one priority, key objective and focus area.
• Immediately contract in an attitude adjuster.  A professional whose key focus area is attitude and how to alter, maintain and improve the attitude of your team.
• Set up without fail, once a month, attitude adjusting sessions for groups or individuals.
• Set up an office or area in your organisation for your attitude adjusting sessions.
• Have an attitude adjuster on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Set up measurement tools to measure the improved performance and results achieved after every quarter of attitude adjusting.
• Set yourself a goal to be the most positive person in the company or your family within 30 days.  Notice how your world, your results and people around you magnificently change for the better.
• Google has designed an entire office park with attitude in mind.  Make small changes in your environment to improve the attitude of people and witness for yourself the improved performance and results.
• With immediate effect have a check-up from the neck up.  If your attitude is not correct, in line with your brand values and positive, you are part of the problem.
• Call today for an attitude audit, to identify the problem people and areas.
• Imagine suspending all marketing, advertising, promotions, meetings, events, facility refurbishments etc. and investing the entire budget on your people, their attitudes and states of mind!

Attitude is mostly about rethinking your thinking.  Have a rethink and make attitude your focus for the next 30 days and be amazed by the results.