Social Media - Join the Party Web Conventions: Truth or Guidelines?
Oct 02

This week Merge was one of the sponsors at the Greenville Chamber’s CEO Connection. The keynote was given by Terry Bowden. Here’s what he says on Creating a Winning Business:

1. Want to be the best. It all starts here. The desire to be the best instills excellence across the organization. If you aren’t the best, don’t want to be the best or don’t believe you can be the best, then why are you in business? Winners, whether that’s a CEO, company or team strive to be the best.

2. Willing to pay the price. If you’re in business long enough, you know the piper will come calling eventually. Adversity, obstacles, crisis, etc. will come down the pike sooner are later. Are you going to fold or pay the price? Will your company do what it takes to be the best? There will be a price to pay.

One price to pay is the ever changing business landscape. Does your company change and adapt? Being in the web business, I get to see this every day. There are companies that are willing to adapt, and so they invest in their web site (they’re our clients). There are other companies that aren’t willing to pay the price-they want a cheap web site or the price is too high. They end up not adapting.

3. Work together as a team. It’s an abused quote, but Jim Collins says “Get the right people on the bus and in the right seats.” You can have the right people, but if they aren’t working as a team, forget about it. Remember the Dream Team that got blown out in the Olympics? You can want to be the best, you can be willing to pay the price, but if your company isn’t playing as a team, it’s all over.

4. Each member of the team must take responsibility. Terry told a great story about his offensive secretary at Auburn when they went undefeated. She meticulously prepared the playbook every Friday. When Auburn beat Alabama that year, she knew it was because of how she so neatly put that book together.

Terry says we have to use the “but for” logical approach, on an individual basis. But for my effort but for my ability but for my responsibility we succeed. Everyone’s participation-from the janitor to the secretary to the controller to the CEO is crucial to a company’s success. What if the offensive secretary decided to slack off that week? What if she decided the playbook could wait until Monday or that surely Terry didn’t want all of the plays in the playbook? But for…her effort, ability and responsibility, Auburn won.

Bottom Line: To succeed, you have to want to be the best, be willing to pay the price, work as a team and have each person do their part (take responsibility).

Thanks Terry. To have Terry Bowden speak at your event: http://www.terrybowden.com/public_speaking.html

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