Archive for October, 2009

• Business
• Self Development

The habits are to be addressed in their specific order. The first three habits are character habits and the next three are personality habits. It is important to build a strong foundation in our character before we progress to our personality.

The method to the seventh habit is Learn it, Do it and then Teach it.

Instead of continuing to cut a tree down with a blunt saw it would make sense to stop cutting and take the time sharpen the saw before continuing. In the same vein, habit seven is about taking the time to preserve and enhance our assets of physical, spiritual, mental and emotional well being instead of continuing blindly on our current paths.

He compares the principles in the book to a lighthouse in that they don’t move either. There is a part in the book where the captain of a large ship is signalling an approaching boat to move (It turns out the approaching boat is actually a lighthouse),

YES

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• Business
• Self Development

The book is split into eight sections:

The Challenge of ideas, Understanding our creativity, Engaging with reality, Blind, Opening our eyes, Frozen, Interested and Integrated.

There is a section on the Myers Briggs personality test (That allows us to roughly gauge our personality) which gives some insight into our potential biases in relation to our profiles. The development of different areas of our personality can also influence our levels of acceptance.

At the back of the book Miller provides a table that allows us to compare the ideas we liked best (within each section) against her favourites. Our personal favourites will depend on our different personalities, experience and ideas.

One of my favourites was the fact that even the likes of Edison and Archimedes didn’t have plain sailing in their creative paths. The fact the Archimedes was in the bath before is well known inspiration surfaced gives some insight into this.

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• Business
• Marketing

The meatball in the title is the previous mass marketing of everyday products to people. The sundae (with its various options for additions) is just like the new marketing opportunities (blogs etc).

Old style marketers think they can just bolt on the new marketing to the old products, hence the disjointed image of a meatball with a sundae on top.

He is not advocating against selling average products to average people he is just indicating that this will not provide enough growth.

Previous marketing was about suppliers capitalizing on the products they already had, this is not enough now and synchronizing the product with the marketing (and our client’s requirements) is the way ahead.

He uses the comparison of a book publisher (who is always seeking new readers for new writers) and a magazine editor (who is seeking new articles for his existing readers) to bring home one of the differences between old and new marketing.

The main body of the book is split into 14 current trends (trends that we must monitor if we wish to continue to grow as an organization).

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• Business
• Time Management

If the first action (Your personal frog eating) that you complete each day is your worst possible task, any further tasks you undertake will seem easy.

The frog is an analogy for each individual’s event (that they are procrastinating about) and each individual must identify their own specific frog before they can eat it.

Goal setting is an important practice for time management and we are told that we need clarity and definition in what we are trying to achieve to help us proceed.

We are advised that just like any skill that we wish to develop, time management must be practised regularly.

As time management is about efficiency (more done in less time) it is of no surprise that there is a section on the 80 / 20 rule.

Starting the day with high value tasks until this becomes a habit is also a useful tip.

The strategies provided are very much in the vein of a Nike “Just do it” attitude.

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During his visit he reflects on his previous time in England.

The bulk of the story covers his military service including his second world war bombing missions from England.

During the war he spent his limited downtime in the company of an elderly lady who taught him the principles of success.

The lessons she taught him were based on the teachings of the likes of Napoleon hill and other such mentors that she called her friends in high places. 

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• Business
• Self Development

As we work through the book we find that the primary requirement is to adopt the following five skill sets:   

1.     A solution centred mindset, consisting of Aligning goals to passions, Cultivating optimism, Seeking knowledge relentlessly, Experimenting persistently and Pursuing objectivity.

2.     Kaleidoscopic thinking, consisting of Maintaining a Notebook, Practicing Ideaphoria, Discerning patterns, Expressing ideas visually and Exploring the roads not taken.

3.     Full spectrum engagement, consisting of Intensity and relaxation, Seriousness and playfulness, Sharing and protecting, Complexity and simplicity, Solitude and Team.

4.     Master mind collaboration, consisting of Recruiting, Designing, Inspiring, Rewarding and Networking.

5.     Super value creation, consisting of Linking to market trends, Tuning in to the target audience, Applying the right business model, Understanding scale of effects and Creating an unforgettable brand.

Each of the skill sets is explained in detail and we are even encouraged to learn to juggle to increase our grey matter.

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• Business
• Customer Service

There is a separate section on customer feedback that teaches staff how to decide whether it is personal criticism (on their performance ) or targeted at the company

The philosophy of the book is about providing quality service delivery, utilizing the complaints of customers to improve services and maintain customers

We are provided an eight step formula for customer satisfaction

1 Say thank you,2 Explain why you appreciate the complainant’s feedback,3 Apologize for the mistake, 4 Promise to do something about the problem immediately (and accept responsibility),5 Ask for the necessary information, 6 correct the mistake promptly,7 check that you have achieved customer satisfaction, 8 Prevent future mistakes.

If companies are sending response letters they are advised not to just send a generic blurb response but to actually address the customer’s specific complaints.

In today’s information era the best way to utilize this philosophy on the internet is to engage customers in real conversations (blogs are ideal tools in this area).

When addressing feedback on the internet, even automated responses (as customers post complaints) need to have a personal feel.  Responses such as “While we can’t get back to you personally we value your input” don’t give the impression that the complaint will be actioned. We should provide a personal email that addresses their problem and is signed with a real person’s name.

As we read the book a lot of the suggestions seem common sense but as we are advised that since it was first published over ten years ago there is still sub standard service out there, it is apparently not so common.

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• Self Development
• Finance

There are seven rules to the acquisition of money (I have changed some of the words):

1. Start by filling your wallet, 2. Control your expenditure, 3. Use your cash to earn more cash, 4. Protect your assets, 5. Choose the house you purchase wisely, 6. Ensure your future income, 7 increase your ability to earn.

Within the chapters the seven rules are further broken down with guides for us to achieve the required results. We are given Seven Cures for a lean purse (To help with rule 1) and the five laws of gold (to help us with rule 3).

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• Business
• Personal Development

Kiyosaki talks about the fact that it wasn’t until he and his wife set the plan to retire young and rich. If we intend to retire young and rich we need to plan.

Anyone can reach these goals if they adopt the following six habits: Hire A book keeper, Build a winning team, Constantly expand your content & context, Keep growing up, Be willing to fail more and Listen to yourself.

In order to achieve great wealth, either in real estate, paper assets or some other area, we need to build an asset base.

Although the tax breaks info is specific to the US market he does advise readers to consult a professional financial adviser and the ratios discussed are generic worldwide.

The invention of government pensions and other safety nets was to supply the very needy in the industrial age, in today’s current information age we need to be more self reliant.

The focus like some of the other Rich Dad books is leverage.

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• Business
• Personal Development

We are told that “our current money blueprints will determine our financial success”; the good thing is that we can reprogram our money blueprints.

Our financial blueprints are set by the information we have been exposed to along the way. Invariably our parent’s and other influential people in our lives have ingrained their own views of money in us.

Our subconscious mind determines our blueprints and as these strongly ingrained beliefs can override logic, actions are required to train the subconscious.The book has a four step process to this training: Awareness, Understanding, Disassociation and Declaration.

We are provided affirmations (Called declarations in the book) and they are accompanied by the actions of touching your head and your heart whilst speaking them. By physical activity as well as saying the words it provides more emphasis.

He talks about the fact that certain people may not believe in these theories, because they can’t physically see the millionaire mindset. People pay their electricity bills even though they can only see the results of the electricity and not the electricity itself.

We are advised to have five accounts for our finances, 10% Long Term Savings, 10% Investing, 10% Education, 10% Play & 50% Necessities. The mathematicians amongst us will have noticed we have only accounted for 90%, the last 10% is to be given away to a good cause.

YES

Eker’s definition of an entrepreneur being: “someone who solves problems for people for a profit”

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