Author Archives: JoelFleischman.com

THE SECRET OF BUSYNESS AND STRESS – DON’T BE A REPTILE

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Are you busy?  Really busy?  Stressed?  Really Stressed?

It’s good right, I mean, you got this?.  You want to be busy, both at home and at work.  It’s how life should be!

Deep down you know… NOT REALLY… THIS ISN’T THE REAL ME…

Do you feel like you don’t have time to better yourself and read this…

IT MIGHT BE TOO LATE FOR YOU…

FOR 3 MINUTES PLEASE READ THIS… BEFORE IT REALLY IS TOO LATE…

How Stress Impacts Your Ability to Learn

The human brain looks for stress.  It’s a safety mechanism.  You might even say that safety is our number one concern. From an evolutionary standpoint, that makes a lot of sense.

But in the modern world, the tendency of the brain to be constantly on the lookout for danger is not so helpful. That’s because, whenever the brain identifies something it perceives as dangerous– tough customers, high self expectations, critical work situations, busyness… it creates stress.

Stress hormones are produced in a portion of the brain that is frequently called the lizard, or reptilian brain.

Unfortunately, when the reptilian brain is activated, the forebrain or neocortex is shut down.

When you are in “stressed mode” you become an animal.  I’ve been there. It’s not pretty.

When you are stressed your brain goes into reptile mode.

Ok, what does reptile mode mean?

Think of an alligator.  They don’t have relationships.  They survive.

Some of the traits associated with the reptile brain are:  aggression, dominance, rigidity, aloofness, greed.

Think of an alligator defending it’s territory.  Now think of a stressed out co-worker, friend or family.  See the resemblance?

Traits of the neocortex: Logic, creative thinking, communication skills, controls emotions.

You can survive without the neocortex working well but you are an ANIMAL to those around you.

If we make time to invest in our relationships and spent quality time with our family, friends and colleagues we would dramatically improve the quality of our lives and careers.   We slow down.  We are less stressed and busy.

We feed what Jon Gordon calls the positive dog.

Yet, too often busyness and stress cause us to focus on what is urgent instead of what matters most.

We focus on our to-do list instead of people and our own survival instead of building thriving relationships.

Busyness and stress are the enemies of great marriages, teamwork, relationships, and customer service. Busyness and stress keep us from caring about the people and things we are supposed to care about.  It feeds the reptile.

In many ways it’s not our fault. Science tells us that when we feel busy and stressed we activate the reptilian part of our brain. If you know anything about reptiles they will never love you. Reptiles want to eat you. They are all about survival. And so are we when we feel busy and stressed. Creating meaningful relationships is the last thing on our mind when we are stressed. Instead our reptilian brain is thinking about how to just make it through the day and it will eat anyone for lunch that gets in its way.

The good news, however, is that we have another part of the brain called the neocortex. We activate it when we love, care, pray, and practice gratitude. In any moment we can override the reptile with the positive dog.

We can choose to love people instead of ignoring them.

We can choose to slow down instead of rushing.

And we can choose to be thankful instead of stressed.

In fact, the research shows we can’t be stressed and thankful at the same time. So anytime we are feeling busy and stressed we can pause, take some deep breaths, focus on gratitude, pray, and change how we approach the day and the people in our life.

I know how and why busyness and stress can sabotage my joy and relationships. I know the antidote to busyness and stress is a positive thought away. I know that in each moment of my busy life I can override the reptile and focus on my relationships. And I know that when I make relationships my top priority everything in my life is better.

Thank you for reading this post.  Grateful you took the time.  Kill that reptile in your brain.  Feed the positive dog.

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

*** Excerpts directly from Jon Gordon’s Blog.  Thank you Jon.

LASER FOCUS – TGIM

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THANK GOD IT’S MONDAY. T.G.I.M.

Laser focus is great, unless the focus is off.

We are focused on creating the best customer experience they have EVER received.  We lean on core values to BE GREAT!  BETTER > BIGGER.

Store leaders:  You are the advocate for the customer.  Watch for opportunities to surprise and delight them!  Your role: coach, educate, support and encourage your team.

Coaches:  Help make decisions that are best for the customer, your team, and the company.  Help your team use the processes and procedures in place.  Be confident making good decisions based on the core values.  Escalate problems that you don’t feel comfortable making to the store leader.  Not so they can make the decision for you, but to HELP you make the best decision for your team.  Use core values to lead the way.  Communicate, change, grow and learn best practices to your team and beyond working with your team and others to grow.

Account managers, cabinetry and floor salespeople:  You drive the revenue and profits.  You are our internal customers, our goal is to make your life easier so you can sell more and see more customers’ EYEBALLS.  You hold the relationships and are the key ingredient to our customers.  Don’t ever take that lightly.  We need you to use the procedures and processes so you can get out and see customers and make everyone’s life easier.  Work on taking care of problems and escalate to store leaders not so they can decide for you, but to help you make the best decision.   Sell with price integrity. Sell with confidence.  Be humble and grateful for every order you get, they decided to buy from us!

Everybody (including me):  We make everything work.  We might not get the glory.  We are the guts.  The offensive lineman.  The grease.  Without us there is no Drexel.  It is up to us to BE GREAT or NOT.  It’s our choice every day if we are inspiring ourselves, our teammates, and our customers.  Be a beacon of positive energy, let others feed off your spirit.  Work on making procedures and processes a habit; that will help reduce mistakes and allow us to help others as we grow!   Make your internal customers (account managers, cabinet, and flooring people) happy.  If there is conflict or problem take to your coaches, or escalate to your store leader, or me and we can help you make the best decision.

99% of any breakdown in focus is due to lack of communication.  Communicate to be great!  Ask if you need help or don’t know your focus.

This is YOUR company, not mine.  We’ve all decided to be GREAT years ago; I can never thank you enough for that.

BE GREAT TEAM!  GO DREXEL.

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

 

 

 

PEOPLE BUY FROM EYEBALLS

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People buy from eyeballs.  Or the more common phrase is “people buy from people.”  I think quite often with the ease of communication (not the lack of, but the ease of) we forget this.  Especially when we are busy.

When we lose a job around here quite often I hear it is price.  Or more often I hear nothing… we just lost it.  And sometimes it was a customer that we thought was “loyal.”   And you know what?  Quite often WE get upset at the customer!  Shame on us, like they have to buy from us!  How we forget the customer gets to choose the relationship NOT US.

When you dig deeper you almost always find out the customer hasn’t seen their salesperson in a long time… a real long time.  They couldn’t SEE their EYEBALLS.  They will never tell you, “hey you need to be my friend.”  They will never say, “I need to see you.”  YOU need to make that happen.

Voice mails, phone calls, texts, and e-mails are all super for speed and efficiency.  And we think “hey, look at me, I am taking care of my guy whenever he calls.”  But you know what?  People buy from FRIENDS.  Not e-mails.

Be careful texts, phone calls, and e-mails can be a trap.  While the 1950’s three martini lunches are a thing of the past, building relationships might SOUND old school, but that is THE ONLY WAY to build and retain customers.  Giving your customer PRESENTS and just be there friend. Maybe a 3 martini lunch is EXACTLY what your client needs!  DOING THINGS WITH THEM THAT THEY LIKE TO DO  IS A GREAT WAY TO GET BUSINESS.  Actually, it’s the best way!  Take time to be with them.  And then look em in the eye ball.

So this week, go through your accounts and rank the last time you saw that person and had a good talk with that person face to face. Then start working at the bottom of the ranking. I don’t care how big or small  they are  but make a point to go look at them in the eyes.  Or I will bet you they will be looking at your competition’s eyes really soon and spending there money there.  Don’t be surprised when it happens if you haven’t taken the time to look ’em in the eye.

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Bonus tip:  If you are an outside sales person:  LEAVE THE OFFICE.  Your inside sales team and delivery team (or whatever team depends on you) depends on you for sales.   So leave.  Go.  Visit.  Look em in the eye. You think you are “helping” your inside team by not delegating and doing the work yourself.  WRONG.  They are counting on you TO LAND JOBS.  Or they themselves might be out of a job.  They WANT you to leave and make revenue for the company.

Being on a bidders list is NOT THE GOAL.  Sending over more quotes to people YOU WOULDN’T KNOW IF YOU SAW THEM IN CHURCH is WRONG.

Try this: At 3:30 or 4:30 or whenever you are wrapping up your day instead of saying, man I work hard, I am going home to mow the lawn or make dinner or work out or dang just chill, make ONE MORE PHONE CALL for the NEXT day.  Schedule your NEXT DAY, TODAY.  And make it for someone you haven’t seen in awhile, make it for a face to face meeting: breakfast works great!  I am 100% confident your sales and quote to order ratios will improve significantly!

***

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

 

 

 

 

DREXEL’S CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

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A MESSAGE TO OUR CUSTOMERS

BIG IS FINE- BEST IS BETTER

BETTER > BIGGER

Our chemical composition:  Who is Drexel Building Supply

Okay so we doubled our sales from 2003-2009 and doubled again from 2009-2013.  However, as our customer, you aren’t looking for a bigger supplier; you’re looking for a better one… no you are looking for THE BEST ONE.

You are looking for one you can trust and treats you like a friend; makes you feel important and special, because you are.  You are looking for one that will deliver value by delivering you the right information and products, to the right place, at the right price, at the right time.  And one that works with you to increase your sales, reduce your cost and improve your productivity.   One that saves you:

TIME, STRESS, AND MONEY.

Because without YOU their isn’t US, we can never stay stagnant we can never quit getting better.  We work to improve you and your clients EXPERIENCE with us every time.

Our goal is to be the BEST supplier and subcontractor on your job.  Not among our competition, but the BEST you have ever worked with regardless of industry.

That’s a lofty vision; but that is what every team member understands when they begin the journey with us.  No problems, only solutions.

We were founded in 1985 by Albert Fleischman as a TEAM based on the work ethic, pride, and truthfulness of the Wisconsin immigrant German farmers.  Those farmers that surround our small town of Campbellsport, WI and where Albert has deep roots.  Another aspect of what we do is to HAVE FUN which follows the tradition of these hard working German immigrants as well.   We serve builders and their clients, industrial customers, agricultural communities, interior designers, commercial contractors and weekend warriors.

Our servant leadership style currently serves 6 locations with over 220 team members.  Drexel makes deliveries daily to all parts of Wisconsin at an ON TIME AND IF FULL RATIO OF 92.2% COMPLETE AS OF THIS WRITING– primarily South Eastern, Central, and East Central Wisconsin.  It our customers request we can deliver ANYWHERE… and have delivered to over 25 states and growing.

We are here to help you achieve your goals, be it for one small deck to a 100 million dollar a year new construction company.

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– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

BE YOUR OWN MOVIE

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Today Joe Rogan (thank you John Klein for passing on) is not the funny guy but the inspiring guy:

 

You WILL BE the person 5 years from now, on what you focus on today.

Junk in, Junk out.  How are you living your life TODAY.  Not yesterday, not tomorrow.  TODAY.

If you are focused on fishing, you will be a better fisherman.  If you worked out today, you are now healthier.  If you gave your spouse an extra hug you are focusing more on your family.  Where is your time spent NOW…THAT’S THE FUTURE YOU ARE BUILDING.

Not many people will get this… maybe you will… and be your own Hero in your own Movie.

WHAT MOTIVATES ME

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Someone at Drexel just asked me a question (since we asked all of them at the annual personal development plan meeting).

So, everyone else in the company answered these questions and I am curious what your answers are. What motivates you and how do you like to be rewarded?

Here was my response:

Customers so happy they wouldn’t consider a new source.  They WON’T LET their friends and family shop anywhere else because of the value we brought to them. That absolutely INSPIRES ME.  RAVING FANS.

Team members that believe and live the above, and are driven, happy and focused to make it happen.

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Anything with our 10 core values I truly see live on is incredible.

Positive sale numbers with margins we need to make this all possible.

And above all…

If we do the above we can/will help the community, giving back gives me goosebumps, its why we exist…it’s my true calling.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

TO BE GREAT- GRIND

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TGIM!

Thank God it’s Monday!

Right now you are doing too much- too much planning- too much trying to be perfect.

Pick one thing.  You can only do one thing at a time anyway.

Do it deliberately.  Do it with passion.  Do it with every ounce of your energy.  AND GRIND.

If you think what you are doing right now is too small for your greatness…OR if you are frustrated by your current role because it doesn’t have a great job title.. OR because you are behind the scenes…OR you feel you are PAST the stages of GRINDING– YOU ARE WRONG.

Tiger Woods starts EVERY DAY before he golfs shooting four foot putts for 30 minutes.  Four foot putts. No one’s watching.  No one is making him do it.   He’s not earning anything by doing this.

GRIND.

Michael Jordan AFTER PRACTICE shot free throws every day.  He was the last one to leave the gym.  He is the 76th best free throw shooter ever.  Imagine a tough practice, you shower, you talk with the fellas, you get dressed you walk out and MJ is still shooting.  Not ridiculous 3 pointers or impossible dunks.  Free throws.  A 15′ set shot.  And he’s ALREADY  a better free throw shooter than you.

GRIND.

How did Mark Cuban, the BILLIONAIRE on shark tank, become “great”?  He was broke when he was 25, lived on a couch of a guy he knew, and  found his passion working at a software repair and sales company.  He didn’t know computers- he didn’t even own one- but at night he would read all the instruction manuals.  He assumed every one else did too.  Soon he was an expert in his industry ONLY BECAUSE HE READ THE MANUALS!  (No one else did, or probably still does, even though it was right in front of them.)

GRIND.

Practice your trade.  Have you been to model homes lately? Do you plan on going to parade of homes?  Do you read every trade article in our industry’s monthly magazines?  Do you read business books of how people became great?  Do you watch installation videos of your products?   Have you considered taking another accounting class?  When you deliver products to a builder, if you don’t know what it is, do you ask them what they use it for?

You want to be the best?  READ.  LEARN.  Have you went through every piece of literature in our showroom and read the information in it?  Why not?   Too much going on?  Then focus.  Quit doing what doesn’t matter and be great at what you want to achieve.  Not at what distracts you.

GRIND.

QUIT PLANNING.  QUIT TRYING TO BE PERFECT.

That’s what the mediocre do.  They are scared to start so they plan.  They say it needs tweaking and they are scared to launch what they have.  DO IT.  READY, FIRE, AIM.  How can you know if the gun will hit the bulls eye if you don’t know where it shoots.  Learn as you go.

My blogs are not well edited.  They are no where near perfect, but if i worried about that, I would never post anything.  THAT WOULD BE A FAIL.  I’ll take the B- in grammar, as long as I am getting connected.

GRIND.

And if you want to go deeper into the rabbit hole… hello to Mr. Motivation E.T.!

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

THE EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER OF BUILDING

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The high emotions of building.

Working with builders and their clients I can confirm one truth:  building new or remodeling your home is stressful.  (It’s also worth it.)

It will take a tremendous amount of your time.  This might seem obvious to some, but not everyone is ready for that.  It’s an interruption of your life.  The selection and change process is taxing.  Multiple meetings on multiple categories.  Kitchens are a project within a project and will require multiple meetings with your cabinet supplier alone.  You might be asked to pick a granite slab on the actual dock.  Most meetings with be during “work hours.”  You will have to get baby sitters and take off of work often.   Very cool… if you have the time!

You will have to trust your builder.  There are unforseen costs.  That are expensive.  It happens.  Discuss with your builder on how change orders will take place.  Feel comfortable with her answer or don’t build with them.  You BOTH will be happier.

There will be good days and bad days.  Weeks will go by and it will seem like there is no activity.  That is NORMAL.

If you and your builder can anticipate the ride it makes it a lot more enjoyable.

Have fun, it’s one of the largest purchases of your life and you will have to live with it.  That last sentence is both exhilarating and exhausting.  Yep, it’s a roller coaster.  Just like a roller coaster if you are not ready for it, it’s really hard to enjoy it.

 

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

WHAT YOU CAN LEARN FROM AUCTIONS

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I was about 10 years old at my first auction.  I was hooked from the first moment.  The energy in the air, the pulse, the beat, the roar of the sale is the greatest at an auction.  It’s the best sales game in the world!

I’ve been to some farm auctions, a few house auctions, and a couple that were antiques.  I’ve been to my grandpas, the last earthly items of the Fleischman homestead farm.   Mostly I’ve been to lumberyard auctions.  Ones that have closed their doors forever.

There are a lot of things you learn at an auction.  What the person hung on to.  What the person did right, and mostly what they did wrong.  It’s a learning lesson every time.  This blog hopefully will help you in your business.

1.  THROW “WE MIGHT NEED IT SOMEDAY” ITEMS AWAY

It will sell eventually.  It’s worth $500.  We have to keep it, look what we paid for it.  I will use it someday.  Or will you.  Probably not.  And once you start a pile, what’s a little more on top.  And whoever questions why it is there.  It’s a vicious cycle.

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2. LOOK AT IT AS THE FIRST TIME YOU EVER STEPPED FOOT INSIDE.

You get used to dust.  And clutter.  And messes.  So look at your store and your work area as someone has never saw it before.  Do that often.  What does it look like then?

3. DON’T STOCK SOMETHING BECAUSE YOU ALWAYS HAVE.

Be honest.  Spot trends.  Run reports.  If it’s not selling, it’s not selling.  The trend won’t come back… at least in your lifetime.  If it’s not profitable, dump it.  period.  Unless it TRULY adds to another sale.

4.  CLEAN THE CORNERS.

Dust and messes start in the corners.  Make sure your corners are clean.  If they are, your store will be too.

5.  TEACH OTHERS HOW TO “SEE” PROBLEM AREAS.

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This isn’t just the owners or store leaders job.  This is everyone’s job.

6.  DON’T BE EVERYTHING TO EVERYONE.

Have you ever went to a restaurant and thought man, I wish the menu was bigger?  I mean never right?   Same with your store.  People want less, don’t let the options confuse you.  Another restaurant story.  Most restaurants that have EVERYTHING, usually do NOTHING awesome.  Be great at something; become a true expert of one category, one brand and sell the crap out of that.

7.  TAKE THE HIT.

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Don’t play commission or accounting games.  A loss is a loss.  Get off the books when it happens.  My dad told me a million times when he was growing up with 9 brothers and sisters, “The first bath is the cleanest.”  Get it off your books and do not refuse ANY even remotely reasonable offers for your mistakes.

Ok, well that’s it for the overview.  You want to dig, deep, deep, deep into the rabbit hole.  Take an opportunity to learn from one of the legends in the lumber industry.   Here’s my dad giving his advice as we go through the last auction we had from a lumberyard that was in business for almost 150 years… that didn’t make it any longer.

** special notes to the drexel team: don’t ever keep a door slab.  They are worthless at an auction.  Same for a door frame.  Same for countertops.   Also take like items of lumber and make a medium size pile.  That sells the best.

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.

 

 

 

 

WORKING MAKES ME HAPPY

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I don’t really have any hobbies. I always felt odd about that, but now I feel confident about this.  It’s what makes me, me.

Here’s why: From an article on Inc. Magazine.

“For entrepreneurs, working means fun and relaxation. Contrary to popular belief, most entrepreneurs are not workaholics. I describe work as the things we have to do in order to do the things we want to do. Some people like to play sports or dance or do woodcraft as a hobby. Entrepreneurs love to build businesses. We get excited about opportunity, networking and product development. When I sit at a Yankees game, I amuse myself by calculating the per-attendee revenue and cost of services to figure out how much money is being made. When I run a 5K or kayak, my brain lets loose with creative ideas that can either improve my business or create something new from the resources I have.

I feel blessed that the things I love to do are also the things that make money and give me a sense of accomplishment. When I need to rest my brain and body, I do so. But very soon, I go back to doing what I love because I enjoy it and it makes me happy.”

*****

Yep in a nutshell that’s me.

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam.com).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.  He has provided solutions for builders and their clients since 1996 and a whole bunch of other stuff that you probably don’t care about.