Every Monday I throw out a challenge to readers, something that is timely and of the moment, and pushes people in certain directions. This week: Take care of number one. This is the crunch time. It’s when business is really cranking. Thanksgiving is over, Christmas is around the corner, people are getting that frantic look Read More…
Category: Personal development
What being remarkable really means
There is no goal other than to be remarkable at what you do. Everything else falls into place after that. Yes, there are highs and lows, unexpected roadblocks and accidentals holes you step in. That’s called being human. But if you are remarkable, the highs, lows, roadblocks, and holes don’t impact you as much as Read More…
Monday Challenge: Ask for help
Every Monday I throw out a challenge to put readers into a position of growth, which can sometimes be uncomfortable at first. This week: Ask for help. We are not wired instinctively to ask for help. Some people, by virtue of whom they work for, are downright terrified to ask for help, thinking it will Read More…
Practice does make perfect
There is no short cut around practice. Simple as that. Does U2 just jump up on stage one day and pull off a perfect show? No way. Does an olympic swimmer casually decide to just swim really fast for that week? Of course not. Does a great restaurant built on customer experience just assume the new Read More…
Do you know …
… what you are doing every day of the upcoming week? … who you need to reach out to, listed in an easy format to check them off? … which wines you need to concentrate on, make sure you know the details of, and know a good story to tell about each one? … who Read More…
Welcome to the maze
Everybody has items that fall off the list. Everybody has items that suddenly show up on the list. Everybody has prospects that look oh so good, feel oh so good, seem to be oh so good, and never buy as a customer or perform as an employee. Everybody has shit that comes up out of Read More…
Who can judge your true potential?
Who is best situated to judge your true potential? A simple question to consider, but one that can have deep impact. One hint: it’s not you. The worst judge of your true potential is yourself. This is why it’s imperative that you work with, around, and for people that want to see you succeed, grow, Read More…
Monday Challenge: 60 day sprint ahead, be ready!
Every Monday I throw out a challenge to readers. Something to keep everybody on the right track toward accomplishing the right goals and moving your wine career forward. This week: the 60 day sprint and how to be ready for it. ### Welcome to October 31st and happiest of Halloweens! A favorite holiday around our Read More…
He said, She said, They said
Chatter is a problem, and the rumor mills that have been built via instant communication and social media are pretty staggering. More so than ever, you have to be careful about what you hear, what you say, and what you choose to tell others. Golden rules: Don’t start rumors. Don’t propagate rumors. Don’t buy into Read More…
Hiring Great Wine People
How do you hire the top performers for your wholesale operation, restaurant, or retail shop? How do you find the wine energized people out there, the ones that can do their job extremely well without thinking the wine world revolves around them? (Which is a monumental problem in the wine business.) How do you, as Read More…
What’s the goal?
What are you REALLY trying to achieve? If it’s simply “more money” and “more sales” then guess what … that’s how you come across. It’s a bit desperate and people see through it. It’s not a bad thing to go after the dollar, but true growth can only happen when the purpose is higher. Here’s a Read More…
Why are THEY so much better than YOU?
Every organization, especially those based on sales and/or hospitality has them. The superstar. The one for whom everything comes easy. They take on more work, they execute flawlessly. They are happy and they build forward momentum. Sometimes it’s the new kid in the organization. Sometimes a veteran with thirty years experience. Age has nothing to Read More…
Monday Challenge: Write your own contract
Every Monday I throw out a challenge to readers, sometimes small and simple and sometimes larger and more involved. This one is more large and involved, but the results can be life changing. The Nobel Prize for Economic Science was just released, and it went to Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmström, two scientists who have studied Read More…
You’re writing a story
Every interaction you have with your customers is another chapter in the story. And the more chapters there are in the story, the more complex and intimate and important it can be. But don’t forget it’s an evolving narrative, that should pick up where the previous chapter left off. Each interaction (chapter) is not a Read More…
Be the one to point out the obvious
I live in a city of a quarter million people, the capital of my state, in a metro area of three million. I live in a peacefully urban area laid out in the early 1900’s with alleys and grid streets. Ask most people in the country what day is “trash day” in their neighborhood and Read More…
Identifying Doctor No
Every organization seems to have one. The curmudgeon, the naysayer, the one who resists change with every atom in their body. They don’t want the new software. They don’t want more training. They don’t want more accounts. They don’t see the value in group effort. They are Doctor No. Maybe they don’t say no to Read More…
I can’t do that
I don’t have the time. I don’t have the skill set. It’s out of my pay grade. I’m busy enough already. I don’t see how that would benefit me. I can’t do that. When you get in the habit of saying no, are you doing it for the right reasons, or are you making excuses? Read More…
Once it’s gone, it’s gone
There is only one thing you can’t replace in your life. Only one thing that gets spent continuously and no app, innovation, planning, savings, or checkbook can bring it back. And that’s yesterday. Time spent. Once time is gone, it’s gone. What happened yesterday can’t be changed. The only things that can change are today Read More…
Minimum needed knowledge
Is it better to know a lot about a few things, or a little about a lot of things? It depends on who you are and what you do. A server or bartender at a restaurant better know a little bit about all the wines by the glass. It’s an easy quiz to give them. Read More…
Monday challenge: Breaking from the normal
Every Monday I throw out a challenge to the readers, something to give a concentrated nudge in a certain direction. This week: breaking from the normal. The normal is a staff training where you hold up a bottle and talk about it. The normal is the parade of sales reps waiting in line at the Read More…
How to be a Wine Leader
There are very few Wine Leaders out there. There are a ton of wine managers, and in the scope of this idea a wine manager is defined as somebody who controls, regulates, checks on, and makes happen the flow of wine through the commercial transactions of our business. Most wholesale reps, retail buyers, restaurant buyers, Read More…
What is you real goal?
What is your real goal in life? If you had to pick one goal, what would it be? To me, it’s simple: be happy. Happiness involves lots of factors, but since that is my core goal, I always work toward it. Some ways I move closer to my goal everyday: 1) I choose to not deal Read More…
Canoes vs. Speedboats
Both will get you there, but in two very different ways. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Both are fun, but not for everybody. Both have a purpose. You can’t combine a canoe and a speedboat. It doesn’t work that way. Yet some try to, fail miserably, then oddly try to do it again. Figure Read More…
Polo, Sailboats, and Top Level Wine
Briefly think about these three worlds: professional polo, recreational sailboat racing, and the upper crust of the wine world (I’m talking Grand Cru Burgundy, first growth Bordeaux, Cult California Cabernets). What do they have in common? They have a tiny audience. I’m not just talking about a small audience. This is not the 1%. This is Read More…
Percentage growth, Exponential growth, and a cool little math trick
“I’m going to help you grow your business 6% per year!” Okay, honestly, how many of us can do the math on that one? And what does it really mean in the end? If your business is bringing in $100,000 a year it’s relatively easy math for the next two or three cycles. $106K, then $113K or so, Read More…
The three types of vacation time
Vacation time is something more and more important as you have deeper commitments in the world, especially if you work in a creative industry or in sales. The battery recharge truly helps your performance when you return. But it does beg the question: what does “vacation time” mean? To me there are three types of Read More…
Stay healthy with your wine
The wine business is full of tasting opportunity, gatherings with wine friends, and intense blind tastings and discussion for those working toward sommelier certification. In other words, there is A TON of wine to taste on any given week. Be careful. Too much wine can creep into your system. Before you know it, the edges Read More…
Time counts down, not up
You never know how much time is left. (Sorry to sound dire. Sorry to also speak the truth.) This doesn’t mean you have to work like there’s no tomorrow, because as far as you know there is always a tomorrow (until there is not). What this does mean, however, is that you need to always remind Read More…
How to deal with “it”
There are only four ways to deal with it. No more. You can ignore it. If it’s something important it will come back to haunt you and you will have to deal with it then, but until that point you can kick it down the curb. You can defer it to another person. If you Read More…
Monday Challenge: Setting the right goals, the right way
Every Monday I throw out a weekly challenge. Sometimes it’s geared only toward one part of the industry (wholesale, retail, restaurant, or winery/brands) but this week’s challenge can apply to anybody. “Goal setting” is a pleasantly active term that gets bantered about a bit too easily. At a Friday wholesale rep meeting it’s easy for Read More…
Make a NOT to do list
Grab that pen and paper, close your eyes, clear your mind. Deep breath. Now think about your wine work life. What are the deepest negatives? The people, places, things, and experiences that suck the soul out of you, ruin your confidence, and instigate frustration to the point that you think about leaving the industry. What Read More…
If you always do what you have always done …
… then you’ll always get what you’ve always got. Mix it up. Challenge yourself. Find a peer group that will help you grow creatively. Pick three people in your industry that you know and trust, meet them for coffee once a month, and push each other to grow. Become accountable to them. Always think about Read More…
Daily Practice and the modern wine professional
An article in the New York Times about James Alutcher caught my eye. His story is pretty dramatic, and though I disagree with several key things he espouses, I found myself drawn toward his idea of the Daily Practice. As covered by the New York Times: A key tenet of the book is the Daily Read More…
Do first what you fear most
Sales reps all have their own personality quirks. For years one of mine was actively avoiding things I feared the most. I was great at avoiding the tough conversations and the difficult phone calls. Many of us are. Fear is powerful stuff. “Fear” brings up images ahead of the interaction. Images of high pressure, intense Read More…
Pain vs. Fear (and who do you work for?)
This post is about you reflecting on who you work for. It’s an important question. Who you work for might not define who you are, but it often shapes who you become. A bad workplace can sap years of life energy from you, proven by the stories of people who have left bad jobs and Read More…