Author Archives: JoelFleischman.com

TOP TEN BOOK LIST

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Team, this one took me an extra day to prepare.  A top 10 book list.  To bleed blue, these are the best 10 books we came up with.  Beth Pautsch and Keith Batenhorst helped me compile the list.  They are two of the largest readers in our company; they inspire me to read more.  It is no coincidence they are also two of the people that have shown the most personal and business growth in the last five years.

I can think of NO BETTER way to learn than read.  It is the single most powerful source in the universe to make yourself better.

“But Joel, I’m not much of a reader.”

That’s fine.  Read one book a year.  Read one page a day.  Read one page 3 times a day until you understand it.  You will get better at retaining information… reading one great book a year and understanding it is impactful.

“Joel ,I don’t have time to read!”

We all have 24 hours.  Currently you are choosing to do something else.  Reading can be done while you eat, before you sleep, when the TV is on, even during a Packer game, while you wait for an appointment.  5 minutes a day adds up!

“Joel, what should I read?”

Whatever interests you!  Deer hunting?  Shopping?  Biographies?  Nature?  Self improvement?  Crisis?  Business skills?  You name it, it’s been written!  Read for a stress relief or read to sharpen your skills…

If you don’t know where to start, here is our MUST READ list.  It’s a must read to understand what makes Drexel tick, what others at Drexel expect from you, and no matter what:

IT WILL IMPROVE YOU IN ALL FACETS OF YOUR LIFE.

Ready?

The Bible.  This is #1 by a long shot and worthy of it’s own list.  The good book was written THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO, yet is nearly 100% completely relevant today (not the part about sacrificing sheep) but it will speak TO YOU personally in a unique way at just the time you need it.   An easy way to stay up on your Bible is a daily app you can put on your phone.  Who says technology is devil’s work?

The top 10.  I’d read them in just the order I put them in.  They all build on each other.

  1.  Fish
  2. The Carpenter (Energy Bus gets a mention here)
  3. Unbroken
  4. Who Moved my Cheese
  5. Delivering Happiness
  6. Raving Fans
  7. Tuesdays with Morrie
  8. The Starbucks Experience
  9. Setting the Table
  10. Burn your Goals
  • All the Dale Carnegie Books are worthy of a mention in this space.  They are there own subset and I hope each of you get to take that course sometime if you wish.

Challenge:  If you would like: do this as a challenge.  I’ll give you a year to complete it.  I’ll work with you on a bonus wager if you finish it!  Just reach out to me and we will discuss what’s the right bonus for you.  A few rules:  1. I’ll buy you the books.  2. In each book you must write what you took away on the back inside cover.  3. Then you must pass the book on, unless you plan on reading again.  Books are meant to be shared.

And yes I have a degree in English and wanted to coach basketball and teach English when I grew up (after my NBA career dreams faded).  My life has led me to both in a unique way… all while pursuing the 1% better at Drexel Building Supply.  Life is amazing!

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

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TGIM!

Happy Monday!

Handling a tough situation distinguishes the average from the elite.

But how do you do it?

The first thing is to handle your emotions.  See this link on emotional bandwidth where we covered that.

Learn to handle the HEAT.  Learn more about an UPSET customer here.

Now to really break it down, we created a step by step guide we want you to use going forward.  This can be used in almost any “sticky” situation.

CONFLICT RESOLUTION:

Stage 1 Initiation

Handling this situation poorly can affect your reputation.  Your reputation is like a tree.  It takes years to grow, but can be taken down with a swing of an ax!

Be honest, be transparent, and as blunt as possible.

Make yourself available- Chain of critical communication- face to face- phone- email- text.

Give them a commitment for a resolution deadline.

Must have a concise answer on how to resolve.  No wiggle room!

Stage 2 Emotion

H E A T   Hear Them Out — Empathize — Ask Questions — Take responsibility.

HEAR THEM OUT!  Let them say everything they need to.  No interrupting.  Let them DUMP!

Help the customer cope.  Statements like, “That would be a difficult situation.”

Refuse to be emotional about it.  This is business… JUST THE FACTS!

Let them express their wants and needs.  “How do you feel we can resolved the issue””

Stage 3 Escalation

Team Member — Coach/Store Leader — Joel.   Escalate as far as needed and quickly!

Avoid a large burden and the stress placed on one individual.

Poise and calmness are contagious from the top down.

Store Leader involvement, they have the ability to enhance the situation and our experts in this with past history of similar situations.

Ownership decision-  used where this is a large $ value or relationship value at stake or when it involves future business.
In this business, FIRES WILL HAPPEN.  Let’s be prepared when they do.

Turn every fire into an opportunity to WOW our customers and make them HAPPIER.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

 

 

THIS THING IS ALL ABOUT YOU

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TGIT?!!!?

THANK GOD’S IT’S TUESDAY!???!!!

Team,

This is about YOU.  NO!  NOT YOU AS A “WHOLE” BUT YOU AS AN INDIVIDUAL.

How can I personally help you?

Huh?

Ok, my life, my job is to serve people.  Doug and I are going out to North Carolina the rest of the week to get Drexel better.

But really that’s about making YOUR job better, or you better at YOUR job, or BOTH.

Hopefully you don’t see me as leading from afar.   As it says in the GOOD BOOK, the sheperd must herd his flock in the fields right with his sheep, not by remote control or something (ok, it doesn’t exactly say that).

Anyways, if you have ANYTHING anything at all that can help YOU in some way, ALWAYS LET ME KNOW.

I am not as good as you might think.  I can’t sense when you need help.  Processes we put in place years ago, might suck currently.  I’m not great at sensing all of that and with currently 230 team members… I can’t put my finger on every situation.

Big or small, I can help you!  Please just ask me.

If you have something you want me to address at the roundtable this week or something for you personally 5 years from now, I would be forever grateful.

Helping YOU, makes ME feel better.  And it makes ALL OF US BETTER.

If I am not helping you… I’m not doing my job very well.

SO HOW CAN I HELP YOU?

 

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

 

 

 

 

TENACITY – ALL DAY

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GUEST BLOGGER- JUSTIN SPUDA, MILLWORK LEGEND IN THE MAKING, BROOKFIELD

TGIM!

GOOD FOOTBALL GAMES COME DOWN TO THE 4TH QUARTER.  GREAT FOOTBALL GAMES COME DOWN TO THE LAST DRIVE.

It seems as though the first series in a NFL game is played the hardest, the fastest, and with the most tenacity. The big boys up front get tired after the first series, they slow down, their speed to the ball fades.

your first quote, order, or selections meeting of the day is tackled with tenacity, you’re in it and you are in the zone.

I’ve noticed my tenacity fades closer to 4-5pm. something I’ve recognized as a self-growing opportunity. I wanted to share this because I am working hard to close the day with the same tenacity, same intensity as 7 in the morning..

I know this is a rant and some may just delete (who is this guy), but let’s close hard, speed to the ball, we’re in this together…

 

 

 

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

QUALITIES NECESSARY FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE

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TGIM!

All of you are leaders.  Even if you just started here you can be a leader.  Many of you have taken leadership roles and many of you aspire to have greater leadership as we grow.  A few of you recruit and hire for leaders.  Let this be our guide as we move forward.

This page from “Spiritual Leadership” from J. Oswold teaches us a  few things:

1. What to look for in a leader.

2. How to improve as a leader and

3. How to train others to be leader.

Montgomery was an allied hero in World War II; a leader for the allied forces.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

Buffalo Wild Wings… (Buffalo Waiting Wings)

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Guest Blogger: Nick Whitty, Store Leader Wrightstown

Emily (Nick’s Wife) and I had some errands to run last night and we stopped at Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner.

 

Everyone knows the story with this place – Great food, great atmosphere, good time right?

The restaurant wasn’t packed but there were plenty of people there. Obnoxious cubs fans, 1 kids birthday party, and then your standard Tuesday night out for dinner folks like Em and I.
We went because baby Whitty wanted wings. All you dads out there know how that goes, baby gets what the baby wants. Sat down to order at 6:20. Waitress came over right away and she was very nice. We both ordered the boneless wings that BWW is so famous for. All things were pointing to a great meal.

6:55 rolls around and I’m on my 3rd glass of water, Emily was getting that crazy pregnant woman look in her eyes, the 2 tables next to us were starting to get restless, haven’t heard a word from the waitress.

7:00 she comes over and says, “I know you’re going to think I forgot to put your order in but I didn’t. It got stuck behind a big order and your food will be right out.”

When the food finally came at 7:05 we were so frustrated and the experience had lost it’s shine that both of us ate as fast as we could and didn’t say a word to each other. I mean we ordered wings right? How does it take that long at a place that has “Wings” in their name? And to be honest, I didn’t think they tasted as good as usual. They probably were the exact same wings I’ve had before, made the exact same way, with the exact same sauce but they were different.

You all know where I’m going with this by now… It’s about the experience and setting expectations. If the waitress would have told us “just so you know there’s a big group of people in front of you who’s order just went in, I’ll check and see how long it’s going to be for your food and let you know” we would have been fine. We weren’t in a rush, didn’t have anywhere to be, but in our heads a 15 minute wait for wings would have been ok. Not 40.

In our day to day roles our version of wings are 2×4’s and bundles of shingles. Or maybe a new vanity in a bathroom or a whole new kitchen. Or possibly an invoice or credit that a customer is looking for. We aren’t doctors or surgeons or lawyers, it’s not life or death, but we can really make someones day in a hurry. We can put that feeling of comfort and pride in someone when we help them through their project and they see the finished product. It’s not about the wings or the shingles, it never is. How do we supply happiness to someone today? We might have a delivery that doesn’t get to a jobsite on time, there will probably be a crooked stud or two that leaves here, we’ll have a door that laminates and a window crank that just doesn’t work. How do we clear these obstacles?

Set clear dead lines, meet them. Be comfortable with your price, stand to it. Understand customer expectations fully, exceed them. And smile for god’s sake. If issues come up, meet them head on and get it taken care of. Get your teammates involved. Use our core values as a cornerstone.

We’ve moved mountains folks. But we’re not done yet, we’re just getting started. Be the best!

YOUR GOALS ARE HOLDING YOU BACK

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TGIM!!!

Team,

Joshua Medcalf reminded me this week:

OUR GOALS ARE HOLDING US BACK.

We come up with so many excuses why we didn’t hit our goal, it’s almost easy to predict failure.

We have a monthly margin, OTIF (on time and in full), and a  sales goals.  An entire book could be written on why we don’t always hit these goals.

A MISSION HAS NO EXCUSES.

Drexel’s mission:  To be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

You can’t make a reasonable excuse to not every minute of every day do this.

 

goals

So quit kicking yourself in the Butt… instead find your personal mission.

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

WHAT WE THINK MATTERS

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tgim!

 

Also last night many of us witnessed the blood moon lunar eclipse.  It reminded me of a few things:

  1.  We are small and here for only a short time.
  2. If we pause and look around, the universe is amazing.
  3. When we are here… we might as well be awesome.
  4. Yet with how small we are, we still can CHANGE THE WORLD that we live  in.
  5. If earth is this marvelous… what heaven must look like…
  6. It really helps if its a clear night to view this.  So often things happen randomly.  If it’s cloudy… it goes unnoticed.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.

 

DON’T BE THAT SALESMAN

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TGIM!

by guest blogger: Beth Pautsch, Vice President of Cabinetry Sales

My salesman story of the week:
Wednesday a cabinetry rep stopped in Brookfield to get us to sell his product. Someone on the Brookfield team said he needed to talk to me but I was at Berlin. He drove to Berlin without calling and expected me to stop and meet with him. He was surprised when I told him no. He left me brochures and asked for my card. I envision him talking with his boss on how great it was that he stopped at TWO Drexel locations. He talked with me about his product, left me some info, and got my business card. On paper that sounds like a successful sales call. The reality is that he not only didn’t value my time, but his either. I find it difficult to take someone seriously who wastes 4 hours in one day to drive around without doing his homework. Once again we can learn so much from these people. Research your target customers. Make appointments. Bring value and don’t waste their time.

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BONUS CONTENT!

Below is a real e-mail I got last week from a “newer” but “awesomer” trade partner Metrie trying to meet with us.  I thought this was super impactful, appreciating his time and ours.   You can learn a lot from everything around you.  This is an idea you might want to use yourself.

Good afternoon gentlemen. I have a bit of an impromptu trip to your neck of the woods Thursday evening and will be staying up there for the night. I was hoping to stop in to see you for a few minutes on Friday morning. Call it a wellness checkup! Any chance you or anyone else who may have questions, comments, concerns or needs will be available? I don’t expect to take up too much of your time, unless of course you need the time. Also, if you need anything such as literature, sample pieces, etc. please let me know and I’ll bring what I can.

Thanks men.

Stosh Stolarek
Account Representative, Metrie

 

WHAT IS TGIM?

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TGIM!

Weekly on Mondays I write this.  I’ve been doing it so long I forget that many of you might not know what this means.

TGIM– THANK GOD IT’S MONDAY!

It’s a MINDSET.

WE GET, not have to, DO THIS!

WE GET TO WORK.

WE GET TO HAVE FUN.

WE GET TO MAKE MONEY FOR OUR FAMILIES.

WE GET TO CHANGE THE WORLD.

I got this idea from E.T. Eric Thomas, one of the most motivated people in the world!

This is what TGIM means to him.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Our purpose since 1985 is to be a supplier of other people’s happiness.