Making DO! a best seller?

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Kevin Kelly

So we are finally coming to the end of an amazing journey of writing my new book “Do! The thinking behind exceptional execution.”
I guess the best analogy I can give of the journey is like the best interior designers in the world visit, and completely change what you thought was a lovely home! And more amazingly, even though they have changed a lot, and it was quiet painful; you still admire and like them for their fantastic work.
A quote by Kahlil Gibran also sums up the journey well “pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding.”
Well the shell has been broke and here’s what happened.
1. I have learned about the power of focus in the context of books. Don’t try to be all things to all men – it just won’t work. Do try to be a fantastic resource for a specific audience. I now realise that even though my last book “Basics before Buzz” was an excellent publication full of great ideas, it was ill focused. It neither totally catered for the startup/SME or the multinational – it got caught somewhere in the middle.
My new book focuses specifically on Startups/SME’s and though I have no doubt it will have a long tail in the context of it’s appeal, this is the number 1 target audience.
2. Having a brilliant team around you is so much better than going it alone. Under the Net Minds approach, I got the opportunity to speak to a selection of editors, project managers, designers and then chose who I wanted to work with. The information I gleaned from the interviews alone made the process worthwhile. You can’t but benefit from working with the best minds in the business.
3. I selected my Editor, Project manager and Designer for two reasons, well actually three.
a) They needed to be talented at what they did b) as this book project mirrors a company set up , they had to work with the culture of the new group and finally c) they had to have the confidence to argue their opinions, challenge me and not be a “yes” person!
Adam Wren, Gary Percy and Ute Christopher ticked all the boxes.
4. I have again seen first hand the power of believing everybody can be your teacher, in addition to my long held belief that the best people on the planet are the most accessible. The Xceptionalists ie those owners who live and breathe the exceptional execution vibe are some of the most talented people on the planet. It was a brilliant experience getting to understand their thinking.
5. Do things differently – very soon I will be rolling out our marketing strategy which will aim to get this book and the team that created it, the accolade it deserves – a spot on one of the best sellers list in the USA ie New York Times, Wall Street Journal or Inc. An ambitious but in my humble opinion doable goal.
Remember in 1996, I wrote into my first book that our aim was to create a best seller even though I had never written a book in my life and had only managed a poor D grade in all my English exams. The book was a mega best seller.
So begins the journey again. I would be thrilled to get your help along the way.

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off

The search for significance

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Kevin Kelly

Deep down inside of us, we all search for signficance- doing something that makes a difference – something that leaves a legacy. The challenge is for companies to connect with this yearning.

A very interesting study was conducted by Wharton’s Adam Grant at a university fundraising organization which illustrates the point.
A sample of employees read stories from other employees describing what they perceived were the personal benefits of the job, including financial and the skills development. . Another group read stories from the beneficiaries of the fundraising, who described how the scholarships they obtained from the organization had a positive impact on their lives. A third group of employees did not read any stories. Employees were told not to talk about or share what they had read with any other callers.
The results -employees in the Personal Benefit and Control groups secured the same number of pledges and raised the same amount of money as they had before the intervention.
Meanwhile employees in the Task Significance Group earned more than twice the number of weekly pledges and more than twice the amount of weekly donation money (from an average of $1,288 to an average of $3,130).
All Medtronic employees know that ‘every 4 seconds, the life of someone, somewhere in the world is improved by a Medtronic product or therapy. So, every Medtronic employee is in no doubt that what he or she does at work every day makes a real, positive difference.
Wikipedia and the Olympics movement have also tapped into to one of most people’s strongest values – ie to make a difference, to be significant. Thousands of unpaid volunteers have built Wikipedia, arguably one of the greatest collection of knowledge and information ever assembled. Interestingly the leader CEO Jimmy Wales appears to walk the talk when he said in an interview with the Sunday Times that he wasn’t interested in cash “it’s a lot less interesting than having an impact on the world.”
Another example is how Danny Boyle inspired a team of over 70,000 volunteers to create one of the greatest shows on earth ie the Olympics.
Is this the difference that makes the difference in a person’s motivation?

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Comments Off

2013 – the year for personal leadership

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Kevin Kelly

Over the past few years, we have seen the demise of many of the previously viewed “pillars of society” – politics, the church, media …all failing to provide positive leadership in these challenging times.

Accepting this, people need to wrestle back control of their destinies, take responsibility for where they are at today, and lead by example. Is there any other viable alternative?

Here are four actions for 2013 that can have a huge impact on outcomes:

1. Dare to dream again!
Yes! Set a compelling vision – one underpinned by values. The proverb says “without a vision, a man shall perish,” logic tells us you can’t reach a destination if you don’t know where you are going; yet the majority of us don’t know or maybe couldn’t care about where we are going in life, and end up nowhere as a result. The important thing is that the vision is underpinned by your most important values.

For an insight into your values answer the following:
What would you like to see written on your gravestone? When you have experienced emotional peaks in the past, what values were being violated or satisfied? When your vision is underpinned by values, you will never have motivation challenges.

2. Commit to becoming the best you can be in a chosen discipline
Don’t try to be good at everything and a master at nothing!
Regardless of whether you are unemployed, or looking for a promotion; a commitment must be made to ongoing learning. Now at your fingertips you have a virtual encyclopedia of every topic available for free – from blogs to Google alerts/ youtube – the information is out there. The question is- are you willing to invest the time?

Research claims that you can achieve expert status if you are willing to invest 10,000 hours – that is equivalent to three hours a day for ten years. My instincts tell me that even if you invested half the time, you would become an expert in your field. Expert status will have an obvious knock on effect on your job prospects, entrepreneurial potential and future earnings.
Today if you have a talent in a given area, you can now showcase to the world at minimal cost. Your target market isn’t 4.5m it could be billions!

Furthermore be open – teachers are everywhere that can act as signposts/facilitators to your vision. Only your ego stops you from tapping into these teachers. In the real world zero degrees of separation exist between you and a potential teacher.

3. Become the gatekeeper to your mind
Switch off radio / tv programmes and stop reading papers that carry an “M” rating the– yes Moan lines and the likes. Switch onto the only thing that can help at this moment, positive empowering how to advice. Our minds work similar to computers – garbage in, garbage out. There is a proliferation of garbage out there, and we need to delete it at source. Similarly surround yourself with an empowering reference group – if this isn’t possible, be careful who you listen to!

4. Pay it forward
Look beyond yourself – see how you can contribute to your community in a positive meaningful way. Based on 23 years of research, you can expect a positive outcome in other aspects of your life as you pay it forward. Indeed link in to the power of Meitheal – where people at a community level work together to make things in happen. In my own community here in Galway we have just got all the subcontractors and tradespeople together at zero cost to work on building a much needed Youth Venue for the area. There is an opportunity in every community to cash in on this goodwill for the common good.

If people start looking at what they can do to improve their lives and those of their community as opposed to waiting for the “Usual suspects” to make things happen, they will notice a measurable change in their outcomes for the better.

Have a great 2013!

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

WRONG FLIGHT, RIGHT SEAT – make your own luck in business!

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

In 1998, eight years after starting a business consultancy and twelve months after publishing my first book, my trusted intuition, was promoting a most challenging plan i.e. to turn my back on my lucrative career as a successful, very well-paid Marketing Consultant, say goodbye to my six figure turnover and follow my new found bliss – motivation/personal development training with a focus on making a real difference in people’s lives.
Intuitive promptings, hunches, inner whispers, divine guidance, call it what you like, certainly didn’t come complete with pension plan!Within months, I went from high income to less than the average industrial wage.In an effort to repay my crippling debt, I re-mortgaged my house and left for the USA. After three very challenging months, I came back to Ireland for a short break. Getting a return flight to San Francisco was more difficult than I thought it would be. Monday was my preferred day to travel. No joy. Okay, Tuesday would do. No joy. At a pinch, Wednesday would suffice. Nothing doing. Finally I got a flight out Thursday. On the Dublin to London leg of the flight, I sat beside a very pleasant woman who engaged me in conversation. In economy note! She was head of the training department of one of Fortune 500’s top ten companies. Half way through the conversation, she committed herself to opening up the US market for me. A case of being on the right seat on the right plane at the right time!A week later, honouring her commitment, she booked me for a very important engagement with her trainers. Considering the situation, this was a “blow away” bonus in every sense of the word. This appointment would open up the whole market for my training package if it was successful. In this business as in most, the first question decision-makers posed was “Who have you worked for in the past?” I hadn’t much of an answer and needed ‘the start’ as they say in Ireland. Afraid of making any mistakes, the week before the event, I asked my contact for an idea of an appropriate price to charge. My poker face almost slipped at the figure she mentioned. This was going to be the most lucrative assignment in my career to date. I was blown away. To put it in context, my “lucky seat” had just delivered close to the equivalent of a year’s turnover! A lot less would have done me! Living your mission is the ultimate authentic life and guarantees a life of magic and adventure! Enjoy the trip!

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Comments Off

The real truth about Colombia

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

So a little test – I would like you to list the things that come to mind, either physically or mentally when I mention the word….Colombia.

It is probably likely some of the following came to mind: Drugs, Coffee, Pablo Escobar, Dangerous, FARC, Medellin Cartel….

Was I correct?

Well at least that was my impression based on what I had learned from our very “uniformed media sources.”

Indeed when offered the keynote, I jumped at the potential opportunity based on the perceived adventure/danger more than anything else! Remember death threats, bomb scares and more have followed me around the globe!

However what I found as with so many other countries, the truth on the ground was so far away from the reality painted by the media.

If you asked me now what comes to mind when I think of Colombia, here are some of the things in order of importance:

1. Possibly one of the friendliest, fun nations in the world. This friendliness is a way of life – even when I went into shops, browsed and came out “purchase less” the customer service staff were friendly, courteous and gracious. There was no sense that their courtesy was delivered based on potential purchase like we find in many stores around the globe. Indeed it is no surprise that Colombia boasts many successful contact/customer service centres for many big brands – there is a natural fit between their personality and the demands of this business. (It was their representative body that got me to speak www.acdecc.org.)*Colombia rank number 6 in the Happy Planet Index.
2. In the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá (49 km north of Bogota), at 2.652 m Altitude, Colombia has one of the most amazing visitor attractions in the world. In essence this is an amazing Cathedral located approx 200m under ground – before reaching it, you are mesmerised by the 14 stations of the cross, each of which have been sculptured/carved from the rockface. The Cathedral boasts the largest cross in the world. But it wasn’t the amazing physical structures that took my breath away, it was the place itself – you sensed something special, amazing there. At the entrance the sign describes it as “spiritual… inspirational” which is hard to imagine when you are visiting what appears to be an old mine. It doesn’t take long before I certainly sensed that their description wasn’t misleading.
However one warning to the Colombian people – this is a special place, don’t drown it in commercialism. Similar to my experience in the Lotus Temple in Delhi, all you really wanted to do was sit and be – in the cathedral this was impossible because of an adjoining small retail area, a chamber which was the location for a kids dance party, a soon to be opened new emerald city, and the collective noise of school tours. Again it reminded me of my journey to the Church of the holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The place was like a circus and the sound of “Changeamoney” was my only memory from the place. A spiritual journey will never co-exist with an adjoining shopping centre and disco!
3. Colombians love their food! Bogota is filled with superb restaurants that will delight your taste buds!
4. Traffic and politics. Like with many developing and indeed developed countries, the traffic and smog was a problem. Nothing unusual with that! Attempts have been made to alleviate the problem with a rather unique system which clearly hasn’t worked as well as most residents would like. Every second day, only cars with an even number at the end of their number plate are allowed in the city during morning and evening peak hours. Obviously cars with odds numbers travel on the other days during peak hours. The problem is of course the richer people have bought two cars (odd and even) to overcome the problem!I have been informed that the traffic was completely unbearable before the system was put in place.
An even bigger issue is that there is the potential to build a route that will help ease the congestion in this urban jungle that houses 10m people but politics appears to be the major stumbling block.
5. Going that extra mile! Over the space of a day and a half, I travelled the length and breadth of Bogota and some special places outside the city in the company of my translator and friend Camilo Perez. It appears that I always end up talking about drivers – in Sorrento, it was Luigi with his love of technology and motorbikes; in Nairobi it was Joseph who got me into places untouched by past “White boys” – muzungus! On this occasion, Camilo commissioned to do a four hour tour so immersed himself in the journey, that the four hours turned in 18! He went beyond the call of duty and was indeed an Xceptional host and driver. Camilo also informed me that on his visits to Germany and the Netherlands; on both occassions when he mentioned where he was from, he was immediately hasstled for drugs.
6. Finally, I believe that Colombia is a hidden treasure, when the real truth about Colombia gets out that it is a safe and cool place to visit, you will see continued and increased growth here. Enjoy the trip!

For more details: Kevin Kelly

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

ASK your audience to gain a competitive edge.

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

More and more companies are asking visitors to pitch them their ideas. For many this represents the ultimate dream! Many successful websites and online businesses have been built on the vibrancy of their audience providing content. Think eBay, YouTube, Wikipedia and the hundreds of thousands of blogs and forums on every topic under the sun!
As a keynote Marketing speaker I am often asked the keys to generating ideas – certainly one of them is to ask the audience because it has been shown that People create profits.
Probably one of the great examples of this was cited in the book Wikiconomics.
Goldcorp, a US mining company posted all its proprietary information on the internet and invited the public’s interpretations (with cash incentives) of where the ore was located. The process brought the company from $100m in revenue to $9bn.
Transparency – trust not secrecy – is the way forward.
How can you ask?
Why not have your own RENTACROWD session to generate new ideas for your business? This involves inviting a small group from diverse backgrounds to brainstorm new ideas, potential improvements etc.
The rules of engagement are simple: every idea and opinion is noted and honoured regardless of how ridiculous it may seem.
This allows free flow and potential association.
Based on my own experience, I have found that the most creative ideas came from some weird and wonderful suggestions from my advisors.
Remember creativity happens where different ideas meet.
The Apple Genius Bar came from Steve Jobs’ question ‘how do we create a store that has the friendliness of a Four Seasons hotel?’ The Four Seasons had been identified by a focus group as a place where you get the best service. The answer was ‘put a bar in our shops, but not an alcohol bar – an advice bar!’
Business Week wrote this idea off before it even began and said ‘Sorry Steve, Here’s why Apple stores wont work’ but Jobs persisted with his vision of “a buying experience as good as our products,’ and in 2006 Apple had the highest annual sales per square foot ($4032) with Tiffany’s trailing behind at $2,666
At a basic level, every company should host an internal forum/blog where employees can share and co-create new ideas for the business.
If your search is for new product ideas, why not incentivise it by giving employees a share of the revenue if their idea is implemented?
Any modern thinking keynote marketing speaker will extol the virtues of thinking outside the book and coming up with creative ways of finding that killer idea – that killer incremental improvement that may give you the competitive edge within the marketplace.
For more details visit here : Motivational Inspirational Books | Sales Motivational Speaker

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Xceptionalize your Business – we need you!

Posted on September 3, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

Welcome back after the Summer Break!

What a fantastic Summer it was for Sport – plenty of role models out there to inspire and push us on to make a difference in our lives. Our very own Olympic Champion Katie Taylor is a case in point. Ok I am biased – I am Irish!!

It was also a fantastic Summer for business thankfully – Net Minds Publishers have bought the rights to publish my New book “Xceptionalize your Business” worldwide. Launch date – end of first quarter 2013.

Book Overview:Change is pervasive but one fact is indisputable, if you focus is on exceptional execution of the three P’s in Business (Xceptionalizing your Business) , you will excel
regardless of the circumstances:

1. P –The promote/culture creator… the key ingredient in the business cocktail
2. P- The People – internal and external customers ….incredibly complicated or so they say boasting
10bn brain cells; but unbelievably predictable!
3. P- Process – creating world class processes.

Target audience – Start ups/SME’s

So why do we need you?
We would love to hear from anyone who has an Xceptional example of a small or medium size company. It may be about how innovative they are in terms of how they deal with customers/employees – how different they are in terms of their customer interface strategy or the unique way they recruit – or indeed how the Leader/Promoter has creatively developed a very empowering culture.
If you have any case studies from any part of the globe, we would love to hear about it.

You can email Kevin at kevin@kevinkellyunlimited.com
or you can join the conversation on twitter or facebook on
www.facebook.com/Xceptionalize
www.twitter.com/Xceptionalize

We will be shortly lauching our new website www.Xceptionalize.com

So please be Xceptional and join our team – we believe there are zero degrees of seperation between people, potential teachers and partners so we look forward to your contribution which will be acknowledged in the book.

Thanks in advance.
For more details visit here : Motivational Conference Speaker | Motivational Sales Speaker

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Leave a comment

Xceptional Customer Service: from the effectively simple to the ridiculous!

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

On a recent holiday to Kilkee, in the picturesque county of Clare on the southwest coast of Ireland, I enjoyed a wonderful dining experience in The Pantry.

Xceptional Customer Experience: is elegantly simple, real and human

Why did it catch my imagination? Well, in addition to the beautiful food, the service was simply excellent. I watched in awe as the waitresses took time to chat to all the customers in a friendly and intimate way, inquiring about how their holiday was progressing, where they were from and the usual chit chat.

Nothing extraordinary about that you might say. Well, to me it was Xceptional in its own right, but if I was to tell you the place was absolutely full at 12.45pm and we had to queue for a table, would you be impressed then? Every staff member from the girl serving the food, to cleaning the tables, to taking your money were warm and engaging. I had to know more!

It turns out that some of the staff were students and this was only their second year working there. Wow I thought what a superb culture – superb leadership that got the best of even temporary employees.

One of the girls was studying Irish and Media, again a very bubbly, friendly person. After my little boy enjoyed a portion of Sticky Toffee Pudding, she said jokingly, “you have to get Daddy to buy you a whole one for yourself from our shop!” – what a power upsell, if there were ever one!

Not surprisingly, as we left the building we noticed a queue into the adjoining building which housed their bakery and shop!

Most definitely an Xceptional Customer Experience….and didn’t I need it after what had happened earlier in the day.

Sub-par Customer Service: no excuse for it and unacceptable

We needed to buy a mattress from the biggest furniture retailer in Kilrush. When I entered the premises, I struggled to find anyone to deal with me. Finally one of the owners arrived, followed by a customer.

When my time came, I asked about the various prices of the different models – so far so good. The owner questioned my dimensions, so I took his mobile number, and told him he could expect a phone call within the hour when I had confirmed the details. Twenty minutes later, I called him on his phone – no response. Thirty minutes later, I called him on his phone leaving a voice message – still no reply. Note I needed the mattress for that night as it was holiday accommodation so I needed to seal the deal. One hour later I rang again and yet again no response. I found this unbelievable to put it mildly.
“Did he want the business at all?,” I pondered.

Finally, I decided to make the trip of shame – drive back to his premises to find again no one to be seen. Within a few minutes, his van appeared. As he entered the building, I said in a frustrated…. relieved…. irritated voice “God, you are some man – I have never had to work as hard to give someone some business!” He grunted.

“I rang you three times,” I sighed. He strolled over to his phone and noticed his missed calls and what followed was what I expected – no comment, apology, nothing. Again, I reiterate I had no choice but to buy the mattress – if I had a choice, I would have walked out and told him it is time you learned how to deal with customers.

Unfortunately I paid for it and asked him what time could I expect delivery – reluctantly he committed to a time-frame.
Ten minutes past the appointed hour he arrived. He took the mattress from his van and on my direction left it at the door – no further words were spoken – the guy’s business card tells me he is one of the owners of the company.

I need another mattress now for the second room. If I had to walk with one from Galway city on my back to country Clare I would rather do that, rather than deal with someone like that again.

I don’t expect The Pantry standard of Xceptional customer service all the time, but I do expect a minimum of courtesy, respect and gratitude for my business from everyone I deal with. Is this too much to ask for?

Remember, business is ultimately about human interaction and relating. Keep it real, keep it human and you have an Xceptional business on your hands destined for success!

For more details visit here : University Keynote Speaker | Professional Motivational Speaker

Posted in Leadership | Leave a comment

Secret to retail excellence!

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

I enjoyed the buzz and challenge of addressing Ireland’s top retailers at the Retail Excellence Conference recently –here are some of the thoughts I shared:

The Leader is the culture creator – one that empowers or disempowers internal or external customers – thus real progress starts at the top.

In the current attention deficit society in which we reside, not forgetting of course the more challenging times; we need to move from the old transaction model of sales to an emotional interchange – make it memorable or watch your message get lost in space.

Leaders need to think differently on how to build sustainable long term relationships pondering such questions as “How can I get business for my client?”

There is no room for lack of engagement or passengers in the new selling organisation.

We need to be able to deal with a buyer’s best friend – their mobile phone!

The secret to engagement is in a persons DNA – Do Need Attention.

It is ironic how we spend so much money attracting clients to our premises and then underwhelm them with our levels of customer service while there.

For more details visit here : Exceptional Execution | Corporate Motivational Speaker

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Leave a comment

No need for crying in Argentina!

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Kevin Kelly

Nothing excites me more than a keynote in a new country – in this case Argentina….little did I know just how exciting it would be!

Having arrived on Tuesday morning; my first pre programmed thought was to visit the venue in advance of the Opening keynote on Wednesday morning. This was to prove difficult as we were to learn that a bomb had been found in the Grand Rex theatre in Buenos Aires that day. A police bomb squad subsequently found and disarmed it – it was due to be detonated by mobile phone at 4.30 pm which would have been the start of ex President of Columbia, Alvaro Uribe’s contribution.

The story went viral around the world featuring on everything from the Telegraph in the UK to the New York Times. Bad news was big news so to speak!

Also on the bill was Manuel Estiartes sharing the story of Pepe Guardiola and Guy Caron, ex creative Director of Cirque de Soleil.

Though the conference due to heightened security was delayed for over an hour the following day; I enjoyed working with a very receptive and warm Latin American audience. Indeed it reaffirmed in me my opinion of the great marketing opportunity in South America on the basis that the culture very much mirrored the Irish experience – people were warm and friendly.

At the Leadership conference, my focus was on sharing how you could Xceptionalize your business. The following key points were shared:

- You are the culture creator – a culture that empowers or disempowers. Start with developing yourself if you want to develop a winning culture.

- The sales model can completely changed – it can no longer be a transaction – it must be an emotional exchange. Be memorable or be gone!

- Leaders need to be able to see clearly before they can solve the challenges of the day.

- The secret to build rapport with internal and external customers is in our DNA – Do Need Attention.

- A Vision underpinned by values is critical to unleashing your potential.
- Smart perseverance is a winning strategy

- Ensure that your moments of truth/ touch points with customers are World class.

After the conference, I took time to wander through Recoleta and the amazing cemetery where you will find the remains of Eva Peron; the must visit Boca and Caminito, San Telmo and much much more in the Home of the Tango.

May I extend my appreciation to our fantastic host Mr Julio Kuperman and his team.
Looking forward already to my next visit!

For more details visit here : Motivational Speakers | Sales Motivational Speaker

Posted in Kevin's Insights | Leave a comment