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LEADERS & SUCCESS

Be Like The Marines To Improvise, Adapt And Overcome

MICHAEL MINK 01:53 PM ET 09/15/2015

A Marine Corps motto is "Improvise, Adapt and Overcome." Similarly, organizations that can quickly spot a challenge or
opportunity faster than their competitors and respond effectively are likelier to deliver results, says Pamela Meyer, author
of "The Agility Shift." She notes that Gap (GPS), the established clothing firm, is closing 175 stores in North America, while
Zara, "its more agile counterpart, is thriving."

Bill Jensen, author of "Future Strong," adds that 40% of today's Fortune 500 companies will not exist in 10 years.

Tips on adapting your company and people to challenges:

• Deputize employees. Agile leaders, teams and organizations do not miss opportunities or slow their response time
because "they are waiting on approval, or for someone with the correct job description to become available," Meyer
emphasized. Effective executives hire and coach others to lead and respond to opportunities and challenges as they arise.

• Cross-train them. A solid way leaders at all levels become more agile, Meyer said, is to regularly seek out new
opportunities and assignments: "UPS (UPS) and many other organizations have a recruit-from-within policy that is
designed to ensure their leaders rotate through a wide range of experiences, from package delivery to leading a team in
another country. Such experiences build competence and capacity to be effective when things don't go as planned."

• Get smarter. Meyer suggests creating a web of relationships and resources to respond to unexpected challenges. When
they arise, "there is not always time to gather and analyze complex data," she said. "It is through their relational web that
agile people tap their wider resources, knowledge and expertise to respond effectively. The time to discover and build this
relational web is not in the midst of crisis, but through their day-to-day interactions."
Meyer adds that outfits of all sizes employ resources ranging from Google (GOOGL) groups to corporate social networks.
These help the firms' people tap their relational web and access the skills, knowledge and talent they need.

• Recognize. When evaluating performance, value and reward agility and learning, as they go a long way toward
reinforcing winning behavior, says Meyer.

• Jump outside comfort zones. To realize your firm's limitless capacity, "you must disrupt and reimagine those systems,
long before best practices are established or all the risks have been mitigated — that takes leadership courage," Jensen said.

He notes that multinational management consulting giant Accenture (ACN) is eliminating its formal yearly review process
for its 330,000 people, with CEO Pierre Nanterme making that leap so that his company can select the right person rather
than solely measuring and evaluating people by numbers or statistics.

• Shoot for the moon. When your company has a problem or anticipates a challenge, apply what Google calls Moonshot
Thinking, says Jensen. The title is gleaned from JFK's call to do the impossible and land a man on the moon.

Push your team to solve a massive problem. This could result in doing something cheaper and faster. Regardless of the
outcome, your people could make a big difference.

• Learn from your workforce. Jensen suggests putting together a three-month task force to call out the top 10 things that
should be blown up and changed by 2020.

His prediction: "Be prepared to embrace at least seven or eight of their top 10 recommendations."
WISDOM TO LIVE BY

Inspirational Quotes: Will Rogers, Erma Bombeck, Reuben Mark

And Others

STEVE WATKINS 08:00 AM ET 02/24/2020

R ead inspirational quotes about enduring difficulty on the path to success, utilizing your talents and taking chances in
your life.

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Will Rogers On Risk

You've got to go out on a limb sometimes because that's where the fruit is.

Will Rogers, actor

Sophocles On Adversity

There is no success without hardship.

Sophocles, poet

Erma Bombeck On Effort

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, "I
used everything you gave me."

Erma Bombeck, author

Reuben Mark On Integrity

Stand up for what's right, in small matters and large ones, and always do what you promise.

Reuben Mark, retired Colgate-Palmolive CEO

Booker T. Washington On Confidence

Few things can help an individual more than to place responsibility on him and to let him know that you trust him.

Booker T. Washington, educator

Like These Inspirational Quotes? Get More

Inspirational quotes from leaders in business, finance, the arts and other pursuits can give you the lift you need to achieve
more. And just a few words from a great leader can inspire you to look at a problem in a new way. A dose of inspiration may
be all you need to see an obstacle as a temporary challenge you simply need to overcome.

Investor's Business Daily understands the power of inspiration. And we search for the very best quotations and make them
available to you each week. You'll find how innovative thinking from successful people can help you approach your work in
new ways.

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LEADERS & SUCCESS

Work Hard Even After You've Hit Your Goal

 Jon Gordon (left photo by Jeff Harrington) and Steve Arneson (right) offer tips on
how to work hard after hitting your goal.

STEVE WATKINS 08:00 AM ET 02/21/2020

H ard work is vital to the success of any company and leader. But it's easy to sit back and rest after you've achieved a
certain level. That won't get you to the top. You must keep pushing.
Look at sports stars like New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. After he won his first Super Bowl, he only worked
harder. Eighteen years and five more Super Bowl victories later, he's still playing.

"Tom Brady is famous for being the first guy in the building and the last guy out," Steve Arneson, Boulder, Colo.-based
leadership consultant and author of "What Your Boss Really Wants From You," told Investor's Business Daily. "He sets a
great example, and that gives him the authority to bark at someone who isn't working hard."

Here's how to develop that kind of work ethic within your team:

Hard Work: Emphasize Its Importance

The first step to keep working hard? Realize that business is hard work and the stakes are high. Set the example for others.

"As soon as you stand still, the others will pass you by," Arneson said. "You have to be the hardest-working, hardest-
charging person, or things are going to fall apart. You have to be seen as having your nose to the grindstone."

Build a strong work ethic into your company's culture by talking about the role of hard work in your group's success and
reinforcing it, Jon Gordon, a Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.-based author and leadership expert, tells leaders. Tell stories about
how extra effort paid off in a big sale or completion of a project. Make it one of the firm's core values, too.
"Every good coach I know has said hard work was a key to their team's success," Gordon said.

Give People A Reason To Work Hard

When legendary tenor Luciano Pavarotti talked about his remarkable discipline, he said it wasn't discipline but devotion.
He loved what he did so much he didn't have to make himself practice; he enjoyed it. People will naturally work hard if they
have something to believe in.

"It's all about purpose," Gordon said. "If people love it and believe in it, they're going to work harder toward it."

It's easy to fall prey to complacency once you feel you've reached the top. Sure, you've worked hard to get there, but do you
really need to put in that last hour during the week to wrap up a project?

Gordon tells leaders to avoid that kind of attitude by thinking about the consequences of slacking off.

"The minute you think you have arrived, (complacency) gets slammed in your face," Gordon said.

Give Your Team New Challenges

New challenges keep top performers motivated. And they can also help to coach or mentor younger people in your
organization.

"Helping others climb the ladder can be very motivating," Arneson said. "You've got to find that spark that will keep you
going."

Have a coach or mentor push you, too.

"It's important to stay humble and hungry," Arneson said. "I call it the 1% rule. Focus on getting just a little better."

Keep Learning

Reading expands your knowledge and helps you pick up new ideas. It's also motivating to share what you're reading.
"I liked it when a leader said, 'I just read this book and have an idea for you,'" Arneson said. "I realized he's working nights
and weekends. Maybe I better work then, too."

Reward people who go the extra mile. Offer incentives and reinforce the hard work you want to see. And call out people in
front of the company for their extra effort.

"People want to be recognized," Gordon said.

Arneson suggests looking at production stats. But if that's not easily measured, look at how much time people spend
working. Encourage people who go the extra mile.

"If you don't reward a strong work ethic, you're going to get what you pay for, which is mediocrity," he said.

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