Category Archives: Uncategorized

IT’S CONTAGIOUS AND IT’S REAL

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TGIM!

Winning Attitude and Teamwork- It’s not just funny business, it works!

SPECIAL BLOGGER POST: SCOT “WOJO” WOJCIK, FLOORING SALES, FLOORING TEAM LEADER, AND ASST STORE LEADER

Teamwork: (noun) the combined action of a group of people, especially when effective and efficient.

Value #4 Winning Attitude: Have a can-do attitude. Be positive, upbeat and stay focused. We are winners.

Team-
This word, TEAMWORK, and this value, WINNING ATTITUDE, mean more to me than almost anything when it comes to my work life and business. I know it’s hard to live these things every minute of your day, believe me, I have felt beaten down on more than one occasion. I am working on that. Do you feel like you need to work on it, too? It’s okay if you do. We’re supposed to work on things. we’re supposed to strive to get better. Maybe a reminder of what these things mean to us in a busy day is what we all need. Break down these words listed above and really see if we’re doing what we know needs to be done.

Let’s start with teamwork. We are not individual islands, doing things just for ourselves. We are a group of people, every one of us together from one end of the department to the other including Aaron, Bobby, Andy, Barb, Bronco, Scott, Diane, Ryan, Courtney, Robin and Adam. This dynamic group can do anything the flooring industry can dish out. We can do it effectively and efficiently, as long as we pull on the same side of the rope! I don’t just believe that, guys. I KNOW that. I’ve witnessed it. When a teammate is under the gun for a bid or a project, someone steps in or steps up, offering a hand. Right? Did you do that today? Yesterday? Will you tomorrow? Or, have you been head down both figuritively and literally? Let’s be more heads up, all of us, myself included. Let’s all remember that we are, in fact, a team. Sure, we’re made up of individuals, but our individuals are better than theirs. Our team is better than theirs.

Now, winning attitude. Wow this is a tough one some days, right? I know I struggle with it at times. But, this following statement is true: If you think like a winner, you will become a winner. This is more true in a team setting as group think. If we can think as a group of winners, then even if one of us is having a bad day, the TEAM still wins. Can-do attitude. What does that mean exactly? Well, one thing I know is, it doesn’t include the word “but”. As in; “I can do that, but (insert excuse).” It’s a positive statement only! “I can do that, when do you need it by?” “I can do that, how can I help?” “I can do that, where are you in the process?” I challenge every one of us to try this for one day. Use only positive, upbeat statements. Do it here and then go home and do it! I did it. When my kids looked at me like, “Who are you and what did you do with my dad?” I knew I had an issue. Here’s the other thing about it though, that’s even tougher. Say it with conviction and sincerity. I don’t know about you, but my bullshit detector is pretty finely tuned. I know when you don’t mean it. So does your teammate, your account, your retail customer. Try it, I urge you! No more sniping, no more sarcasm, no more complaining for one day. See what happens. I’m going to do it as often as possible and I want you all to join me.

This may sound ridiculous to you guys, but you know me by now. You’re not just co-workers. You’re my team, my work family, my sisters and brothers, my sons and daughters. I care about you as I would any family member. I believe in you and this team. I believe we can grow and capture even more market share and expand further and further. I believe in teamwork and I believe in a winning attitude. So do you or you wouldn’t be here. We are winners. We are Drexel. Go out there and be Blue!

SIMPLE IS NOT EASY

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TGIM!

In my experiences… we sometimes forget simple doesn’t mean easy.

We also forget that if it is easy to do, it is also easy not to do.

Doing the ordinary extraordinarily well IS the difference maker over time.

Do the simple things perfect every time.

Follow your checklist (or create one if you need too).  Recommit to your routines.

That is not a boring job.  That is a challenging career few are willing to take.

Make the effort to be the best you can on a regular basis.  According to Coach John Wooden, “If you make your effort to do the best you can regularly, the results will be about what they should be, not necessarily what you’d want them to be, but they’ll be about what they should, and only you will know whether you could do that … and that’s what I wanted from them more than anything else.”

It’s all our customers beg for.  It’s what your teammates crave.  Can you take this simple task and do it perfectly 100 times out of 100?

– Joel Fleischman.  Joel is Head Coach of the solution providers for Drexel Building Supply.  (drexelteam).   You can follow him on twitter:  @JoelmFleischman.   Since 1985, our business success has come from building others UP.

 

 

I KNOW A RUNNER

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If you live with a runner or work with one or know one or are one… this is AWESOME.

 

 

 

 

–Joel

9 Ways to be a GREAT TEAM MEMBER

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TGIM!—

 

 

 

Amazing how all the core values are used in this newsletter!

9 WAYS TO BE A GREAT TEAM MEMBER

BY JON GORDON VIA HIS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER (3/23/2015)

9 Ways to Be a Great Team Member
While watching the Oscars I noticed that almost every award winner said they couldn’t have done it without their team, family, and the support of others. The fact is no one achieves success alone. We all need a great team to accomplish great things. We are at our best when we are surrounded by those who want the best for us and when we are bringing out the best in others. In this spirit I want to share 9 ways to be a great team member.

1. Set the Example – Instead of worrying about the lack of performance, productivity and commitment of others you simply decide to set the example and show your team members what hard work, passion and commitment looks like. Focus on being your best every day. When you do this you’ll raise the standards and performance of everyone around you.
2. Use Your Strengths to Help the Team – The most powerful way you can contribute to your team is to use your gifts and talents to contribute to the team’s vision and goals. Without your effort, focus, talent and growth the team won’t accomplish its mission. This means you have an obligation to improve so you can improve your team. You are meant to develop your strengths to make a stronger team. Be selfish by developing you and unselfish by making sure your strengths serve the team.
3. Share Positive Contagious Energy – Research shows emotions are contagious and each day you are infecting your team with either positive energy or negative energy. You can be a germ or a big dose a Vitamin C. When you share positive energy you infectiously enhance the mood, morale and performance of your team. Remember, negativity is toxic. Energy Vampires sabotage teams and complaining is like vomiting. Afterwards you feel better but everyone around you feels sick.
4. Know and Live the Magic Ratio – High performing teams have more positive interactions than negative interactions. 3:1 is the ratio to remember. Teams that experience interactions at a ratio equal or greater than 3:1 are more productive and higher performing than those with a ratio of less than 3:1. Teams that have a ratio of 2:1, 1:1 or more negative interactions than positive interactions become stagnant and unproductive. This means you can be a great team member by being a 3 to 1’er. Create more positive interactions. Praise more. Encourage more. Appreciate more. Smile more. High-five more. Recognize more. Energize more.
5. Put the Team First – Great team players always put the team first. They work hard for the team. They develop themselves for the team. They serve the team. Their motto is whatever it takes to make the team better. They don’t take credit. They give credit to the team. To be a great team member your ego must be subservient to the mission and purpose of the team. It’s a challenge to keep our ego in check. It’s something most of us struggle with because we have our own goals and desires. But if we monitor our ego and put the team first we’ll make the team better and our servant approach will make us better.
6. Build Relationships – Relationships are the foundation upon which winning teams are built and great team members take the time to connect, communicate and care to build strong bonds and relationships with all their team members. You can be the smartest person in the room but if you don’t connect with others you will fail as a team member. (Tweet This) It’s important to take the time to get to know your team members. Listen to them. Eat with them. Learn about them. Know what inspires them and show them you care about them.
7. Trust and Be Trusted – You can’t have a strong team without strong relationships. And you can’t have strong relationships without trust. Great team members trust their teammates and most of all their team members trust them. Trust is earned through integrity, consistency, honesty, transparency, vulnerability and dependability. If you can’t be trusted you can’t be a great team member. Trust is everything.
8. Hold Them Accountable – Sometimes our team members fall short of the team’s expectations. Sometimes they make mistakes. Sometimes they need a little tough love. Great team members hold each other accountable. They push, challenge and stretch each other to be their best. Don’t be afraid to hold your team members accountable. But remember to be effective you must built trust and a relationship with your team members. If they know you care about them, they will allow you to challenge them and hold them accountable. Tough love works when love comes first. Love tough.
9. Be Humble – Great team members are humble. They are willing to learn, improve and get better. They are open to their team member’s feedback and suggestions and don’t let their ego get in the way of their growth or the team’s growth. I learned the power of being humble in my marriage. My wife had some criticism for me one day and instead of being defensive and prideful, I simply said, “Make me better. I’m open. Tell me how I can improve.” Saying this diffused the tension and the conversation was a game changer. If we’re not humble we won’t allow ourselves to be held accountable. We won’t grow. We won’t build strong relationships and we won’t put the team first. There’s tremendous power in humility that makes us and our team better.
In addition here are a few of my favorite sayings about being a great team member.

Your team doesn’t care if you are a superstar. They care if you are a super team member.

You have to work as hard to be a great teammate as you to do be a great player.

Many teams communicate but the great ones connect. Great teams form bonds of trust that strengthen relationships and the team.

SELF LEADERSHIP IS A CORE VALUE

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Accountability I believe is the single most important thing our team needs to work on.  I am not even sure if we all even understand it yet.  Please read below.  – Joel
From BIG BUILDER MAGAZINE, thank you Raina for the tip!

Accountability: The Center of a Healthy Culture

By:

“The vast possibilities of our great future will become realities only if we make ourselves responsible for that future.” –Gifford Pinchot

Social influence is a powerful thing—whether for good or for evil. As a big believer in positivity, I’d like to see it used for good—promoting a culture of self-improvement, positive attitudes, and accountability. Accountability is about committing ourselves to stay above circumstances, both in how we think and in what we do. A culture of individual accountability creates a good kind of social pressure that recognizes each person’s responsibility and ability to be part of reaching a higher standard.

You know you have a culture of personal accountability when team members and leaders actively follow these guidelines:

1. They take personal ownership of performance and outcomes.

Growing up, my dad never let me blame anyone or anything. He said, “When you point a finger at someone else, there are three fingers pointing back at you!” Adopting a mindset of total ownership is crucial to succeeding, no matter the market conditions. People’s reactions to falling short demonstrate whether they blame or claim. Looking first at our own behaviors and mindsets demonstrates personal accountability, while blaming circumstances demonstrates a victim mindset.

2. They proactively pursue solutions.

The victim mindset also leads to waiting for instructions at an impasse rather than taking charge and proactively seeking the information needed to make a decision. Rules can provide an excuse to remain complacent. When team members are willing to challenge the “rules” (or standard procedures) as well as their own assumptions, you have a climate of accountability.

As uncomfortable as it is to think of the willingness to break rules as a good thing, it is true. Team members must feel the freedom to challenge the rules to best support the team. What you really need is individuals who will take ownership over finding solutions.

Without conflict, there is no change. Doing what’s uncomfortable helps us become the best version of ourselves, pushing us outside of our comfort zones.

3. They see the connection between their effort and results.

When the social influence tends toward the belief that the future is what you make it, you have cultural accountability. Success is linear—rising and falling with effort. Productive thinking says, “What I am currently doing equals what I am currently getting. If I improve what I am currently doing, then I will improve what I am getting.”

The opposite is the belief that efforts don’t matter and success is up to the gods—who either shine down on you or don’t. We’d never identify ourselves that way, but some-times, we operate with that mindset—with underlying beliefs that say it’s not up to us. We say things like, “Good luck” or “I got lucky.” We also make excuses when we fail.

4. They plan ahead.

Executives hold entire meetings just to plan for the next quarter or for upcoming years and events. This is expected, not extraordinary. But you know you have cultural ac-countability when team members at every level think ahead instead of just reacting to their current day’s or week’s situation.

A salesperson saying, “I sold 20 units this year and I’m gonna sell 30 next year,” isn’t extraordinary. On the other hand, an employee with a well-thought out plan in place to reach that goal demonstrates personal accountability. They’ll go beyond saying they’ll make two sales in January and four in March because “it’s seasonal” or “the market is better.” They’ll think through a plan for driving traffic when it’s low and reaching out to realtors.

Similarly, they think through the resources available for an effort. They know they are accountable for their own performance and aren’t going to just jump in and pick the first option.

Planning is about being realistic, working out a plan, and examining options before act-ing.

5. They take responsibility for how their actions impact others.

Ted Terry, CEO for Crescent Homes, says that in order to have an “unleavable” culture, there must be a team mentality. “Instead of being micro-managed,” he says, the environment must demonstrate that “we need everyone’s ideas to make our team better.”

The team mindset also leads to the understanding that, for better or for worse, every-thing we do affects others. This goes for the obvious things (like whether or not we fol-low through on commitments) as well as for those that have unintended consequences.

Many of us pride ourselves at being proactive and doing what needs to be done, whether it’s our responsibility or not. If it seems like the right thing to do or what the client or company needs, then we’ll step in. This is often a good thing.

The problem is that taking initiative to do someone else’s job can end up crippling that person. They may end up removing the task from their mental to-do list and perpetuating the cycle of someone else picking up the slack.

They may also end up defensive, thinking, “What was wrong with the way I was doing it?” They may perceive the support as negative feedback or even feel misjudged because they simply had not had a chance to do the job yet. When this happens, they feel that their effort does not count, which lessens the chances that they will take accountability for their work in the future.

A well-intentioned action may have a negative effect on someone else’s performance. The person who is accountable must have clear expectations and feedback on the timing and quality of their job. This is much more productive than someone taking over their responsibilities.

Accountability means making choices, approaching work, or accepting decisions that support other people’s accountability and what is best for the team.

The bottom line is that sometimes, taking charge means stepping back and getting out of someone else’s way.

6. They govern themselves.

At every level of the company, employees spend very little time getting direction from their boss. Most of the time, they direct their own work and are responsible for de-termining how things get done. We’re our own leader – and the only leader available to us most of the time.

Accountability is about each individual maintaining that leadership position. It’s self-leadership. The person in charge of you most of the time is you. Our success, while it may be influenced by many other factors, is really up to each of us. In fact, looking to someone else for direction leaves us rather vulnerable.

A culture of accountability doesn’t get leadership off the hook. After he finished the grueling work required to be a contestant on the weight loss show The Biggest Los-er, Erik Chopin got a lot of advice he judged as silly. He’d just kicked butt to lose 200 pounds and thought he’d learned what he needed to learn. “Beyond the finish line, I’d heard from so many people [that] maintenance is the hardest thing,” Chopin said. “[I used to think,] ‘Try losing 200 pounds!’ But maintenance really is a lifetime.” Even after building a culture of accountability, employees need support and leadership if they are going to have sustainable success.

ENCOURAGEMENT

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TGIM!  THANK GOD IT’S MONDAY!

en·cour·age·ment

enˈkərijmənt/
noun
  1. the action of giving someone support, confidence, or hope.
    Recently I took a kick boxing class (Try new things, CHANGE!) and I realized again the POWER of encouragement.
    Bill, our instructor, had an entire class of “first timers” that were a bit worried about this new adventure.
    And we were awful.  I am sure of it.  Yet he said it over and over.
    “You got it.”
    “That’s perfect.”
    “That’s spot on.”
    “Yep, that’s exactly right.”
    When he did give a correction it was SO POWERFUL because of all the honest praise.  It really wanted me to do well.  “Joel, just open your hips up a little for more power.  There you go.  You got it.”  I could feel my spirits soar.
    The best thing he did:  One student was really struggling.  She said “I don’t think I can do this.”  She was overwhelmed.  Bill joyously and calmly said, “You are doing fine.  You know what, I will do this WITH YOU.”  And that segment he did with that person.  She did great!  He helped her one on one get over her own fears.
    Even though deep down I was thinking, “Holy Cow I suck.  I must look like an idiot.”  Bill, made me think “Wow, maybe I CAN do this.  Maybe he seems something in me that I don’t see.”
    After class he said with a smile, “Boy, you guys did great.  I was surprised how high you could kick.”   He didn’t mention the 1,000 things I need to work on.  Heck, I know I need a ton of work.  He could of said, “boy we got a long ways to go,” and we would of dragged our tired feet and spirits out of the gym.  But he made us feel like champs just with those bits of encouragement; I am confident most of us will be coming back for more.
    It wasn’t false flattery.  He found the things we were doing RIGHT, instead of the 1,000 things we were doing wrong.
     ***
    Hopefully we all can learn from Bill.
    My friend Ken Wilbanks preaches the golden rule:  A 10 to 1 ratio of positive encouragement for each correction. 10-1!
    Think about the word’s definition:
    THE ACTION OF GIVING SUPPORT, CONFIDENCE, HOPE.
     What an incredible way to live your life!
     And if they are really struggling simply say, Hey I believe in you, LET ME DO IT WITH YOU.  How powerful our actions are if we do it WITH THEM.

    Hebrews 10:24-25

    “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another.”

     

     – Joel Fleischman.  Joel is 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.

How to Help a Very Tough Customer

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If you are in the business of helping people and selling products you have probably been there, THE VERY VERY UPSET CUSTOMER.

If it hasn’t happened to you, no matter your reputation or what you think you do great, you simply don’t have enough customers yet.  (For instance my children have never had complaints on their lemonade stand.)  A very upset customer, a very tough situation, is going to happen.

So what do you do?

I believe there is a learned process, just like learning a sales process, to handle these steps.  Experience of course helps, but so does knowledge.  I have worked with a lot of people with years of experience that still handle these problems very poorly.

When we handle these poorly, it of course hurts your reputation (and it’s important to note, these upset customers may never LOVE you, but maybe they will at least understand or respect your business) and it is also stressful and often really wears on you.  Yes, handling it badly can really affect YOU and THE CUSTOMER and YOUR BUSINESS.

So, let’s get to it, what’s the process?

One that Drexel account manager Chris Reilly loves to use is H.E.A.T.  (NO it’s not a Lebron throwdown.  But a way to help customers.)   He keeps it taped to his monitor.

H.  Hear them out.  Really listen.  A person yells and is loud because they feel they are not being listened to.  They will start to calm down if they feel you are listening.  So pay attention.  Listen actively – take notes.  Nod your head.  Look at the person and pay attention.  Say “Uh huh” , “Oh, I see”, “Yes, I understand”, etc.

E.  Empathize – it’s not our jobs to be judgmental about whether or not this person deserves to be mad.  They are upset, and we have to help them through it.  Using statements like “That would be a difficult situation” and focusing on using a caring tone of voice will help a lot.

A. Ask Questions – our customers don’t know our buzz-words, jargon or processes.  Make sure you clarify exactly what the problem is so you can work towards fixing it.

T. Take Responsibility – our customers look at government like a huge big black hole. It’s mysterious to most and downright scary to some.  If you build a bridge to an upset customer they will calm down.  Saying something like “I understand your concerns.  My name is Wendi (use your own name).  I’ve helped people in this situation before.  Don’t worry, we’ll get through this together” will help set a customer’s mind at ease.

That’s awesome.  Just a few things I will add.

“Be quick, but don’t hurry.”– John Wooden     To truly help a customer, try to come up with a few possible solutions and then present them to the customer.  Do this as quickly as possible.  Delaying in this will only make the matter worse than it already is.  Douse the flames!   But don’t hurry for a response, let the person consult with others (many will) and some just need time to figure out you are not a big corporate rat trying to screw them.

Do “it” as a team.  Involve as many people as possible from your organization.  It’s a great learning lesson for newbies, seeing it from many views helps, and working as a team vs. solo shares the burden and stress, we can lean on each others. If there are third, four party, businesses related to this, now is the time to include them too for their unique perspective.

Be as honest, transparent, and blunt as possible.  Now is not the time to sugarcoat, save face, or down right lie.  If the customer’s expectation was too high (that’s still your fault, for making it that high!) explain that to them.  If you screwed up admit it.

Never throw anyone under the bus or pass the baton.  There usually is no reason to do this.  If it truly is not your fault, don’t pass the buck. Hand the problem personally to that person.  I didn’t say this was easy, just the best way.  Remember the customer doesn’t want who is responsible, it wants the problem fixed.  Finding who to blame is not solving anything.

It’s NOT EASY.  But if you are in sales, management, or ownership YOU DID SIGN UP FOR IT AND IT IS PART OF YOUR JOB.  It will never go away so be ready for it.  It’s like expecting it will never rain again and then when it does, you lose sleep over it.  Don’t be that guy!

Don’t threaten or sue or go to mediation.  No one wins but lawyers.  Even they admit that.

Suck it up and move on.  Seriously.

DO NOT LET EMOTIONS get into it.  This is business.  When you take it personally (I thought we were friends, I put so much time into it, I didn’t even charge that much, why aren’t they upset about “X” instead) you will get emotional, confrontational and much worse.  Refuse to get emotional.  Just the facts maam.  Just the facts.

Thank them.  OVER AND OVER.  This is not easy for them.  They didn’t want this either.  Somewhere a customer is EVEN MADDER than this customer and they never called you.  That’s worse right?  So, thank them.

Whatever you put in an email, pretend and assume it will be forwarded and put on your facebook page, or on their facebook page.  Read it and if you are proud of what it says and can stand by it, send it.  If you can’t, fix your wording.

Speaking of e-mails…Chain of critical communication goes like this:

face to face

phone

e-mail

text

You wouldn’t get a text if your mom dies.  You wouldn’t have to meet face to face to schedule coffee with a friend.

Handle it and assume you will run into them weekly at church and they will be sitting behind you.  That will help you think of them as a person and not “a customer.”

I don’t have people sign off that “they will never bad mouth me again.”  What, are you really going to sue them?  Is this a professional way to end? I can’t see any reason to do it, but to annoy the customer one final time.

If you think you have a lot of these people, maybe you do.  Start tracking them and learn from them.  Maybe IT IS YOU.  Maybe you are doing awesome, but that ONE PERSON is making you re-think everything.  Look back is this an isolated case or something you are doing wrong.  If you decide isolated, MOVE ON AND go take care of your current customers, they are waiting…

Hope this helps.  I am not perfect either.  But we can always get better, even at tough tasks like this.

– – 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 FOR LIFE

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It’s one thing to say I like the company I work at.  Or even to say “I love my job.  I love working here.”

And it’s typically really incredible as a customer when you work with a representative of a company that is really long term committed “to the cause.”  You can tell right away when that happens.  “You are in good hands” as All State says.

Getting a tattoo of the company logo takes it to a whole really cool level.

And today we (Team Drexel)  announce our first (hopefully more on the way!)  team members so into it, that they put in into their skin.

IMG_20131023_085804

Ryan Stone one of our finest flooring specialist just got one.  And it looks awesome.  You bet Drexel foot the bill, and if any one else ever wants one we will do it gladly again!   Ryan has been with our company for less than two years but has really been “true blue.”   His client base is growing daily ,his co- team members rave about him, and he is just one of those “neat guys” in the world.  Ryan has a passion for the Duke Blue Devils and loves coaching soccer, enjoys his dogs, and loves good motivational quotes.

Thanks Ryan, this was a really special cool thing.  And made my day!

IMG_20131023_085918

In his honor, here are some recent quotes I came across.

“Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.” – Dan Gable

“A good team should always be striving to become a GREAT team.”

“The secret to winning is constant, consistent management.”– Tom Landry

“Dream big. Work hard. Stay humble.”

“Good ideas have no value because the world already has too many.The market rewards execution,not ideas. Concentrate on ideas you can execute.” – Buzz Williams

“Enabled players kill a culture of accountability. Great players want to be coached hard.”

Drexel for Life

 

– – Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & solution provider 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 I learned at the Hanley Wood Convention

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Sept 26- 2013
(On a train bound to nowhere… um back from Chicago to Milwaukee)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj4nJ1YEAp4

For the last two days I spent my time at a convention in Chicago put on by Hanley Wood for the marketing leaders for manufacturers of building supplies. Here is what I learned and my thoughts there.

It was called Future Forward, Hanley Wood 2013 foundations. #hwfoundations for you twitter freaks, more on that later!

If you are still reading this…you must be in the trades. And welcome!

First, thank you for Pro Sales and Hanley Wood asking me to be on a panel discussion group. They paid for my stay at the Ritz-Carlton as well as a round trip train ticket. Man, I love the train. Get a ton of work done, relax. The ONLY way to travel Mke to Chi in my opinion!

Ok, on to the goods.

The first two speakers were economists and strategists and they focus on the numbers and data of the United States building economy.

Here’s the stats you need to know:

Building index up 11 of 12 months

Increased activity for 6 consecutive quarters

Phoenix is hot.

Good lots are hard to find. The “surplus” of lots is misleading. Good lots are going, going, GONE, in most markets.

Mortgage rates will stay historically low, and even if they go up they will not effect the market until it hits over 12%! That’s splendid news.

Housing recovery is still in its infancy a lot of growth is COMING!

Here’s a good quote/joke and funny: THE MARKET IS SO BAD I CANT SLEEP AT NIGHT, I SLEEP LIKE A BABY I WAKE UP EVERY 2 HOURS AND CRY!

2014 best year since 2007, total spending perspective (residential spending)

2011, spending on construction, falling more than 1/2

Remodeling bigger than new construction

2014 forecasting stronger than this … a year to two year… to surpass…
maintenance sector is growing, and new con finding gas

New home prices up 22%.

Investors helped get rid of homes… % of investor buying slowing so remodeling coming back up.

12%of those surveyed believe we need to be worried about mortgage rates according to hanley wood!

life drives housing NOT the fed
51% change in household size
39% favorable interest rates, gone up prior to this ?
31% simply tired of current home, best indicator of pent up demand 22% said increase in income
NOT your median person

Gen y, rental market strong. gen yers expecting rent to go up 4.2% , they don’t care, they love it and will continue to rent are they planiing to rent or buy? looking to staying rent. they don’t expect to change

24% of the future new home demand is baby boomers, 24%!

baby boomers…
plunking down a lot of cash! active adult community. 75% cash up to all ca$h.

bougie– new catch phrase (what?)
anything upscale, latte instead of coffee it’s so bougie much more upscale buyer

#bougie

quality is #1 issue when building ! QUALITY, materials significant!

get lucky
share of the largest builders in the country is growing
responsible for over 1/2 of the homes builders
200 largest builders to the 60%! woah.

more for land, means most expensive homes. since land is more, house has to be more.

cost material labor has not kept pace, builders are more profitable.

dealer economic look out. 68% market would be up. 2013 would 81% up up 24%, 83% up over 10%.

location matters… above average madison HOT our market orange (2nd best)

red hot in our areas!

1 mil can’t hold us!
1.16 mil starts 23%
538 new home sales 22%
remodels 7%
600bil 31%

Thank you!
data insights
brad hunter, jonathan spoke

what inning are we in…
better metaphor, a indy race.
2012-13 straightaway
hairpin turn
a skill driver knows to brake during the turn how you manage in the turn will be how you come out

15-20% in a year for home prices cost… fast!

Going to slow next year, competition from more affordable existing homes

Affordabilty WILL suffer

Real up turn in mortgage rate

Entry level, banks loosening up, but down payments coming low (school debt big factor) new kind of g.i. financing…generous in laws

Buying a bigger house now than last time around. Despite all what is happening hasn’t effected volume or home prices…
the haves or our society.

entry level is MISSING yet… kb homes sales are down…because they sell to entry level buyer and home prices up 22%. whew.

how do they deal with mortage rates that are invetible. will they pay less for home? sure…but really what they will rely on …drive til you qualify….

lack of development loans, lot shortages will resolve as funds become available

private builders going public or being acquired. more public builders

the fed has spoken!
the punchbowl is being topped off again, they will not be reducing purchase of bonds. the feds going to taper… no taper. seems like they decided they are too addicted to the financing of America.

Inventories are very very tight in many parts of the country

don’t want to go to 2005 levels. sensible level. 1.5 or 1.6 starts maybe 3 years away

Supply vacant new homes industry spiking. supply was too high.

leading indicator…. was supply

lot supply…. coming down and in fact, lot shortages. 100 months of supply to 45 months supply.

running out of lots…having to buy lots back to peak prices… in some parts of the country

a and b sub markets, lot shortage… most of the supply is spoken for in some markets

lots are being developed. 161k lots to be built, down from a peak of 1mil in 2006. future lot count is 700k

where is it occuring …texas booming phoenix booming.. reno is dead, worst

where is the market headed in 2014?

#hwfoundations2013

2/3 of clients think up only 14% look at slow down

builders

luxury homes going up up up

kitchen big opportunity, than bath

architects really got their butt kicked

decidedly they are more optimistic, building index on arch is up 11 consecutive months

more optimistic is office stuff, bread and butter. 28-34% up ward trends

31% of people want to buy a house, tired of house in, means they delayed gratification, means they will REMODEL

sense that homeowners delayed doing something happier place for their family ready to move ahead

2014. residential remodeling, see the big JUMP in custom housing.
small dealers still go to local banks. those banks were regulatory backed away. beginning to rebound, architects are aware of that.

bldg product manufacturer= dealer. contractors architects and builders and contractors every day. optimistic. busy again. busy getting busier. dealers beginning to create inventory again,

200 top builders in the us, 60% of the activity of the usa. 60% closing this year was of the 200 builders.

Big opportunity, double anything else, WINDOWS!

best housing markets, fl, salt lake city, phx, sc, al, dc, nc, co, tx, az (hot!)

remodeling markets
nc, buffalo, stx, tx, tx, tx, tx, nc, ny, ok

least optimistic group is the manufacturers

i am here with the manufacturers

HOUSING RECESSION IS OVER AND IT’S GONNA GET BETTER OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS

pain is a stressor. numbers may go 22% up in starts in 2014. D E F E N S E.
ADD LABOR! PAIN, DISORDER AND UNCERTAINTY, pain points into opportunities into solutions.

IMG_20130926_140238_061

*** social media ***
Day 2. Worked out, had some coffee, you know the usual hotel routine. Didn’t find a wing man the night before, in bed by 10.

@cryswashington gave a really high energy, informative, presentation on how to use social media.

b2c
emotional ties
b2b
expert insight

How can my brand connect with key decision makers in this space each network has a culture linked in business facebook, community, emotional Triggers, most social of social facebook is to build relationships with people twitter culture is real time information and adding value. Youtube feeds the other social networks, connect with things that are visual VIDEO IS KING FOR CONTENT

1. gather intellegince
* sales research
* listening
2. get found
* keywords
* profiles
3. compliment trade show/magazine ads/purchased media

“filetype search…. xls” home builder association filetype:.xls

go to linked in and ask for introduction via email.
32-49 year olds lives on email.
linkedin message, gen y. social media platforms.
baby boomers gonna have to call em.

use technology to be more efficient, not less

facebook graph or email on google, find their phone number
if you know there first and last name
“joel fleischman” “*@drexelteam.com ”

LISTENING
active listening campaigns on social media

news breaks first on twitter good or bad

tweetbeep.com

googlealerts (basically free tool track when someone mentions drexel) tweet beep specifically

use both

actively listen to thank people!!! – USE YOUR PERSONAL NAME WHEN USING YOUR BUSINESS FACEBOOK PAGE, ADD THAT TOUCH! (thanks for the message about your windows. – Joel)

GATHER INTELLIGENCE

social media GET FOUND, low hanging fruit. SHOW UP

concept of key words, linked in runs of key words as well

wonderful to build BACK TO WEBSITE, that’s the hub.
like sending a limo to going to website for a shack.

form partnerships as well.

post testimonials… from contractors MOST EFFECTIVE
installers! installers! installers! ultra lightweight all purpose
joint compound for examples

don’t get caught up in the numbers
b2b numbers smaller, that is ok…

testimonial booth at the expo… ???….!!!!

build and reinforce brand

attach your name. as you post. a really good connection, listen, thanks and use your first name.

measure results

how to do it. SEND MONTHLY SNAP SHOT comments, shares…wonderful and a guage, not sales click throughs, coming from facebook and twitter, etc!
mirror pages, promo or something
promotion redemption
email list growth, track it. own the data.
SALES
leads that turn into sales, track it, track it, track it. in house sales, pretty simple, to do spreadsheet on metrics!

****

taylor made golf guy…. the CEO Mark KING OF GREEN BAY! was next on
sales enablement

good company in future, new bright smart talent and keep it.

when you are trying to move your organization, what gets in way of success, difference speed of which it is changing. managing a business, uncertainty makes it more difficult, lots of pressure.

what is driving successful companies today: CREATIVITY he says the world will never look like it did before.

13 years incredible journey
revenue went up, what did they do to break thru???

fall of 199, he is given the job, parent company adidas i need a 3 year strategic business plan they told him.

300 mil losing money by 2002 we will be in the black. not good enough1

if the leaders of the company say it’s ok to be mediocre, who are we to be.

he said why don’t we become the best performance golf brand in the world.
an environment wants to work in our company… that’s a lot sexier plan

double size of company and be profitable

story 2 reasons:
a lot of it happened. we wouldn’t of done it. gosh, we are going to be great. people starting to be excited about thinking about doing things if you want to drive creativity into your organization. create a gap between aspiration and resource.

CREATE A GAP BETWEEN ASPIRATION AND RESOURCE.

from that gap comes all of that new thinking, trying to push the envelope.

any company should not be afraid to aspire to do great things. mark king

“not gonna work” …. “my bat. my ball. my game.”
change the rules of the game

i really think that every industry is waiting to be reinvented. how do i do better, faster, and less expensive.

if you don’t do it differently you are not going to succeed.

stuck at 700mil… so then what, how did they stay on top…

most leaders face this all the time. that’s why you see them rise and fall…
he said the reason the speed of change in market place. legacy systems, if it’s not always in transformative state, going to lose its space.
vision strategy from the top, then execute. great way to control, NOT COOL.
flexibility and speed and new thinking!

DISTRIBUTE LEADERSHIP

where every team member takes control of creating the future. it’s my job to make the company better.

really a difference of command and control. tip it upside down.
THINK! THINK! THINK!

EVERY FRIDAY MORNING, category managers come in.
instead of painting metal with black why don’t we paint them white.
i said, because bill has really stupid ideas.

market share went from 35 to 52% with one decision.

without his ability to raise hand it never would of happened…

BETTER CHEAPER FASTER AND MORE FUN
2014 GOAL- DREXEL BUILDING SUPPLY

Innovation can come anywhere…it doesn’t have to be technology!

Don’t accept follow the gender trend. break thru.

Find your white paint. (Taylor Made’s white drivers.) You find it by asking more people to think about it!

think about things … think!

if you want to grow your business,,, there are only 2 ways, steal market share or come up with something different or follow trend.

great companies ARE GREAT because the people that work there are inspired to do great things. #GOOSEBUMPS

unleash the potential!

cant’ be done… do it!

i truly believe… EXTRORDINARY THINGS HAPPEN because leaders have the courage to do it. willing to create a new lense.

distribute leadership, their ideas not your ideas. and takes courage.

He was told by her oldest daughter an over achiever:

Our greatest fear is that we are powerful to beyond measure.

success of the month. an online show and bring people in every month.

huge online social network, start an idea and join in…

more touring professionals play our equip than the other 5 combined.

john daly, i love her a little bit more than i hate her.

take risks, push the envelope. we don’t penalize failure.

That’s the random notes.  Thanks for sticking with me.

– – Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & solution provider 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.

 

Sent from my iPad

My mini Mike Matheny Manifesto for Smaller kids (and their Parents)

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Inspired by the Mike Matheny manifesto I sent my parents a mini one after a few bitter losses (66-8 in three games).  It’s a smaller version, not as intense, we are a 8-10 midget team, not an inspiring little league traveling team or anything.

Did it work?  We have played two games since and won one, and actually the team threw a no hitter in that one.  The parents have been AWESOME, and were on the verge of being a mutiny before.  Also, the kids run in from the outfield now like I am holding the keys to the Willie Wonka factory.

I share this with the world because…if I can help one coach or one parent or one kid, I have done my job!  Feel free to copy and paste or tweak as if your own if you are in need of one of these.  Works for any sport.  With any kids.

Image

Pictured: My dad, two of my nephews, and my two kids. Grandpa passed down his lack of ball skills to me and then these youth. But he also passed down the traits to try hard and have fun. I say, that’s a win every time!

Here it is…

Team,

 A little info on the team…from me the assistant to the assistant coach… (am I not even worthy of that title!- I am no baseball genius.)

Only 18 days left and baseball is over. 

 We have a great bunch of kids.  They never get down on each other, are supportive of each other, and are having fun.  They try really hard.   My favorite moment of the year so far is when Nick got a double (ok, a 2 base error some would say) when we were down 16-0 last game.  Those kids cheered like it was a walk off homer for Nick.  Cool stuff. 

They have fun and are learning more every chance we get to teach them.  Why are we losing games?  It’s not because they don’t care or try hard.  They put a ton of pressure on themselves to succeed.   We had 4 players get emotional in the dugout just last game.  Sometimes bad things happen to good kids. “It’s not how many times you get knocked down; it’s how many times you get back up.”

 Hopefully they win the rest of their games, we are trying to win, but we can’t always control that.  Some teams are older, some have played in quite a few tourneys– but heck we will  try hard and have fun to beat em.  Trying hard and having fun are two things we can control.  No doubt these players will do just that.  Hopefully the teams we play will say, “those kids and those parents were having so much fun, I wonder what is wrong with them!”   😉

 You all know baseball is a mentally tough sport.  A lot going on.  These players got so many thoughts in their heads.  As for me, I try to keep them to a few thoughts and make sure I see em smile- I often have to remind them of that. 

 During practice and when they are on the bench we try to give them instructions on the game of baseball, Coach Chad and Coach Jim are really good at that. 

 Of course we only have 3 practices left and just a few games left; these 8, 9, and 10 year olds will make a bunch of mistakes.  That I guarantee.   And I know, I wil make some mistakes as a coach too.  Not that we want to, but we will.

 I have observed Coach Chad and Coach Jim do a fantastic job of teaching them baseball, these dudes are smart guys, but it’s hard to teach them all the nuances of the game in a few short weeks together, those 90 minute practices go so quick!

 Hopefully these last few weeks will continue to be a fun and learning experience for the kids and the players and you the parents. 

 I’ve enjoyed spending a little time with each of them, you all should be proud of the little dudes you are raising.

 Go K-town White!  Go Team!  Thanks for every thing you do as parents, hope to see you Sunday night at practice!

– – Joel Fleischman.  Joel is the president & solution provider 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.