So you want to be a District Manager!? Really? Are you sure? The first step is to understand the position and what it really entails. Spend some time discussing the job with your District Manager. I know you think you get it but… you only see a small portion of what the District Manager actually [Continue]

How hard is it to say THANK YOU? These are the two most underused words in retail. There are a lot of reasons: too busy; “it’s their job” mentality; “they are getting paid for it” mindset; don’t care what you think; just plain poor leadership. All of these reasons and more are just plain unacceptable. [Continue]

One on one calls are important! They make the relationship work between you and your team. These calls keep dialog and trust open. When the conversation is constant with weekly calls, big nasty problems can be averted. I was great at this earlier in my career and know that I somehow got away from it [Continue]

  Check out this article by Angela Elder (I worked with her on a Customer Service Certification project for the NRF) on the power of DECA. I worked with Mike Marchetti at Champs Sports and he is a top notch leader and mentor. Many of you have worked with DECA through the years. Take another [Continue]

What if you could never fire another employee? Many of your actions would be impacted by that policy beginning with better hiring decisions from the start. This is how we should approach our business. People management is the single biggest responsibility that we have as retail leaders. Your team truly determines your success. These are [Continue]

If the next great managers walked into your store with an application, would you even know it? Does that question scare you? It should. Great people walk into stores every day with applications and resumes. The question is where does it end up? Who takes the paperwork? Who interacts with the candidate? Anybody at all? [Continue]

One of the principles of “Fierce Conversations” by Susan Scott is to interrogate reality. Getting a true assessment of what is going on in your world can be tricky. For one thing it is certainly not constant. This is even more good reason to interrogate your reality.     Fierce conversations are critical to getting [Continue]

So you need to have a fierce conversation and confront a problem. “Fierce Conversations” by Susan Scott presents a model that will assist in making the conversation productive for all. You will be more prepared for the conversation when following this model which will reduce your anxiety and stress. Three steps to conflict resolution! [Continue]

Is there anyone you need to have a FIERCE CONVERSATION with? And how long have you avoided this conversation? Seriously?! I get it. Needed fierce conversations can be highly emotional, draining, gut wrenching and just plain not fun. But you must! You can not pretend that the problem does not exist forever. One of the [Continue]

People. Your greatest asset. Your biggest headache. Your constant challenge. Your passion. It is all about the people…. Which means you are always interviewing for the best talent in the market. Are you an accomplished interviewer? An interviewing tactic that you should consider adding to your format is a CURVEBALL QUESTION. I have used these [Continue]

Who are these underachievers? What is their story? Do I need to waste my time and energy on them? YES! The underachievers can be categorized as: COASTERS, LIFERS, PEDDLERS, SPACE CADETS, SUCCESS-PHOBES, and WISE GUYS. You know all of them and have probably worked with them at some point. COASTERS They come to work and [Continue]

Underachievers! They are everywhere. All teams have one or two or more and they are a drain on the entire team. They come in all shapes and sizes with all levels of experience and skills. They could be new to the team or very tenured. The bottom line is they are underachieving what you believe [Continue]

APOLO OHNO IS VERY FAST!  THE GUY CAN FLAT MOVE. What about Billy and Sue? And what about Mary?  Do they move fast? Have you every wanted to push a salesperson to get them moving?  As a manager or a customer?  You know ——-  just a nudge.  Are you doing laps around the people you [Continue]

Here’s a short course in Human Resources. The most important words:  I admit that I was wrong. How hard is that to say?  Practice…. it is not that hard.  The leader, manager, boss does not always have to be right but they do need to recognize when they are wrong and own it. Your people [Continue]

How do you feel when you receive a personal note? What if it said: “You were a rockstar last week!  I am so proud to have you on my team.  Teresa” or “Your contributions at the meeting last week were amazing.  Thank you for the great work!  Teresa” or “I have noticed your improved results. [Continue]

Do you want to have an amazing year? Do you want to have reduced stress? Do you want to promote from within your stores? Do you want to have abundant customer compliments? Do you want great results? YOU CAN HAVE ALL OF THAT! With the right people doing the right jobs at the right time [Continue]

That time of year again.  Say it isn’t so!  I hear everyone groaning but why?  If you have been an effective leader through the year, it really should not cause you such distress.  Here are some performance review nuggets that may help: 1.  Block the white time needed to complete effective reviews. I know this [Continue]

Have you ever wondered why someone did what they did when clearly that’s not what you said or asked for?  Hmmmm….  well maybe you did.  Seriously, you get what you ask for.  Most people do not get up in the morning and think “I am going to be awful at work today and disregard all [Continue]