Awakening…after 40 years! An individual called as a member referral. He heard that I was connected with business guys and contacted me for help finding a board member or two. I interviewed him and his board and told them that as a coach/chair, my job is not to tell members what to do but to help extract the knowledge they have and help them execute a plan based on it. He was skeptical that Convene could do anything for him, but his pain was getting too high to mess around any longer. He agreed to give Convene a chance. I emailed the board some of the tools I use (One Page Plan, Skittle KPI chart) and scheduled a Candidate Breakfast for him and the team members.
The breakfast and testimonies convinced him (as usual!) AND HE SHOWED UP HAVING ALREADY FILLED OUT HIS DASHBOARD FOR THE PREVIOUS YEAR! He showed me the red color on the chart and said, “You don’t have to convince me that I have pain…look at this. The pain is in the red-colored boxes!”
In his first Forum Day he heard a challenging speaker presentation and participated well. When I got to his first One-to-One, he had his Dashboard completed, had partially completed his One Page Business Plan, had his 1-1 Worksheet done AND had also written a three-page report to his board about all he had learned at the Forum Day and what resulting actions they needed to take as a team. He also had his team members fill out an Expectations Questionnaire and hand it in to him. Incredible!
Did I mention that this member is over 70 years old? Today at his second One-to-One, he had it all laid out again for us to go over. Looking me soberly in the eye, he said quietly, “Jeff, next month I will have owned this business for 40 years…and I have NEVER been as energized and excited about running and improving my business as I am now. It’s all because of Convene. I always wanted to do better, but it’s like I wanted to make furniture but I didn’t have a table saw. NOW I HAVE THE TOOLS TO BUILD AN EXCELLENT BUSINESS! And I have Convene to thank for it. This One Page Business Plan will help me finally penetrate the hardened hearts of my partners and get their ownership in the process. And I couldn’t be happier.”
Every once in a while, God will give me the gift of someone who totally shifts the balance of how hard it can be to help people discover their potential. Today was that day for me. (Did I mention this member is over 70 years old?)