Friday, May 25, 2012
Managing difficult people
If you want to be really good at managing difficult people, you need to learn and apply the magic of rapport. I say magic, because if you develop that skill, you will make your life so much easier.
Rapport is not just about speaking to other people; it’s about listening and understanding how the other person sees the situation. It’s also about being able to empathise and appreciate how others feel.
Everybody sees the world in a different way. The person with good rapport skills understands this and thinks about it when communicating with other people. Good rapport-building skills are about conveying to the other person that you see the world in the same way that they see it.
It’s not just about being creative
THE popularity of the American television programme Project Runway may lead people to believe that it is easy to transition into the fashion industry.
More individuals are jumping into the business without the benefit of a fashion education. While it is certainly possible to do so, the learning curve is bound to be significant.
Young designers should know it takes more than a great-looking garment to be a successful designer.
Time and time again, I see start-ups so focused on designing beautiful garments that they miss the bigger picture.
Before venturing out and launching a new collection, designers should be able to address the following issues:
1. Clearly and concisely identify your target audience
When speaking to young designers, the first question I ask is: “Who is your target audience, who is the customer you are selling to?”
Many respond with “I sell to everyone”, or they tell me a range of customers that span 20 years in age.
My response to that is: “If you try to be everything to everyone, you’re nothing to no one.”
If designers do not have a clear and specific target audience, it is going to be difficult for them to formulate a marketing message to reach their prospective customer.
2. Create the brand’s Unique Selling Proposition(USP)
There are thousands upon thousands of brands for consumers to choose from, so how are you going to stand out? What is your USP? Why do I want to buy from you?
Designers need to have a clear idea of what they have to offer to consumers with their apparel.
Maybe you offer exercise or yoga wear for the plus-size woman, office wear for very tall men, or shoes for people with wide feet.
The USP must also be conveyed in your marketing message.
3. Create a meaningful brand name that speaks to your customer
Al Reis and Jack Trout, the authors of Positioning, The Battle For Your Mind, identify a key issue: “In this positioning era, the single most important marketing decision you can make is what to name the product.”
I couldn’t agree more. Too often, new designers pick obscure or personal names because they think it is cute or cool.
They need to be thinking about the product and the target audience.
They should select a brand name that is memorable and appropriate to the product and target audience.
It also should easily translate to an available web domain name.
4. Develop the brand personality
Just as individuals have a name and a personality, so do brands.
The brand personality is something that should be created by the designer in the early stages of the brand development.
Brand personality can be conveyed to the consumer visually by the product design, in the store layout and something as simple as the brand font or corporate colours that represent the brand.
The closer you can get your brand personality to that of your target audience, the easier it is going to be to sell to them.
5. Establish the brand positioning
What is your product known for in the marketplace?
Volvo holds the position for being a safe family car, Tiffany’s is known for fine jewellery and McDonald’s is synonymous with fast food and happy kids.
Each designer should establish his brand position by writing a brand positioning statement.
The positioning statement takes into account the customer, the competition and what makes you unique in the marketplace.
6. Design a sales and marketing plan
In the movie Field of Dreams, Kevin Costner continually hears a voice from above telling him: “If you build it, they will come”. This only happens in the movie.
You must have a sales and marketing plan to create awareness for your brand and a means to continually promote the products to drive traffic to your store or website.
It is simple. No traffic, no sales.
Develop a sales and marketing strategy before you open your doors to the public.
7. Make sure your business hat is bigger than your designer hat
As the creative force behind the label, designers sometimes forget that they have a business to run.
There is a misconception that being a designer is all about creating beautiful garments and that very little time needs to be spent on the other less glamorous stuff.
Designers need to be savvy enough to know that there are times when they need to be working “in” the business and working “on” the business.
Running the business is a bigger hat to wear. If you are not prepared to wear this hat, look for assistance such as consultants or partners.
More individuals are jumping into the business without the benefit of a fashion education. While it is certainly possible to do so, the learning curve is bound to be significant.
Young designers should know it takes more than a great-looking garment to be a successful designer.
Time and time again, I see start-ups so focused on designing beautiful garments that they miss the bigger picture.
Before venturing out and launching a new collection, designers should be able to address the following issues:
1. Clearly and concisely identify your target audience
When speaking to young designers, the first question I ask is: “Who is your target audience, who is the customer you are selling to?”
Many respond with “I sell to everyone”, or they tell me a range of customers that span 20 years in age.
My response to that is: “If you try to be everything to everyone, you’re nothing to no one.”
If designers do not have a clear and specific target audience, it is going to be difficult for them to formulate a marketing message to reach their prospective customer.
2. Create the brand’s Unique Selling Proposition(USP)
There are thousands upon thousands of brands for consumers to choose from, so how are you going to stand out? What is your USP? Why do I want to buy from you?
Designers need to have a clear idea of what they have to offer to consumers with their apparel.
Maybe you offer exercise or yoga wear for the plus-size woman, office wear for very tall men, or shoes for people with wide feet.
The USP must also be conveyed in your marketing message.
3. Create a meaningful brand name that speaks to your customer
Al Reis and Jack Trout, the authors of Positioning, The Battle For Your Mind, identify a key issue: “In this positioning era, the single most important marketing decision you can make is what to name the product.”
I couldn’t agree more. Too often, new designers pick obscure or personal names because they think it is cute or cool.
They need to be thinking about the product and the target audience.
They should select a brand name that is memorable and appropriate to the product and target audience.
It also should easily translate to an available web domain name.
4. Develop the brand personality
Just as individuals have a name and a personality, so do brands.
The brand personality is something that should be created by the designer in the early stages of the brand development.
Brand personality can be conveyed to the consumer visually by the product design, in the store layout and something as simple as the brand font or corporate colours that represent the brand.
The closer you can get your brand personality to that of your target audience, the easier it is going to be to sell to them.
5. Establish the brand positioning
What is your product known for in the marketplace?
Volvo holds the position for being a safe family car, Tiffany’s is known for fine jewellery and McDonald’s is synonymous with fast food and happy kids.
Each designer should establish his brand position by writing a brand positioning statement.
The positioning statement takes into account the customer, the competition and what makes you unique in the marketplace.
6. Design a sales and marketing plan
In the movie Field of Dreams, Kevin Costner continually hears a voice from above telling him: “If you build it, they will come”. This only happens in the movie.
You must have a sales and marketing plan to create awareness for your brand and a means to continually promote the products to drive traffic to your store or website.
It is simple. No traffic, no sales.
Develop a sales and marketing strategy before you open your doors to the public.
7. Make sure your business hat is bigger than your designer hat
As the creative force behind the label, designers sometimes forget that they have a business to run.
There is a misconception that being a designer is all about creating beautiful garments and that very little time needs to be spent on the other less glamorous stuff.
Designers need to be savvy enough to know that there are times when they need to be working “in” the business and working “on” the business.
Running the business is a bigger hat to wear. If you are not prepared to wear this hat, look for assistance such as consultants or partners.
Count Your Blessings
Sometimes, I would find myself wishing I had more of this or maybe the skill of that. Then I would pause and realise that I should be grateful for everything and anything that I already have.
Great leaders always count their blessings and are grateful. When you start complaining and comparing, you begin to lose sight of the joy of pursuing life.
So, my advice to you :
Count your blessings for what you have and go on to pursue life!
Failures
All through life we’ve been taught that failures should be avoided. Yet, if you look back in history, all great achievers were born out of failures.
Walt Disney was once fired because he lacked creativity. The Beatles were rejected by several record companies. Thomas Edison’s teacher told him that he was too stupid. Michael Jordan failed to make it into his high school basketball team.
Failure is the starting point of success. When you fail, you learn. When you learn, you grow. When you grow, you succeed.
So, my advice to you :
Don’t worry when you fail. Keep chugging along as success is just around the bend!
The Kaizen Mindset
At Toyota, their employees believe in the "kaizen” mindset, which simply means that there is only one way to move - forward. To them, it is a crisis if they do not create improvement each day. Hiroshi Okuda, Toyota’s chairman, once proclaimed, "Failure to change is a vice.”
Kaizen, or the resolve to constantly improve, is what great people do. The best people in the world constantly change, grow, improve and innovate.
So, my advice to you :
If you want to become a great person, make a room to constantly grow and improve yourself. Keep moving forward!
Learn on the job
Most people believe that we learn best by attending classes and listening to teachers. Research however, shows that people learn best by seeing and doing. Not by listening. Classroom training really accounts for a mere 10% of real learning and growth. 70% of what a person learns is through experiences and 20% by observation and role modelling others
So, for you to keep learning and growing, you need to keep experiencing. Take on a new project, practice a new skill or just do something different that enables you to grow. It’s not complicated and you don’t need to go for expensive classes to learn. Everyone can learn.
So, my advice to you :
Go and experience something new! Leaders learn best when they Do
Leadership tips: Self Awareness
In my years of observing leaders, I discovered a key trait that all great leaders have – self-awareness.
Great leaders understand who they are – their strengths and development needs. They leverage on their strengths and know how to hide their weaknesses while working on developing them. Famous leaders like Jack Welch, Gandhi and Mother Theresa all had weaknesses. But they were aware of their weaknesses and focused on improving these areas. You can do the same.
So, my advice to you :
Spend time getting to know yourself more! Recognize your strengths and work on developing your weaknesses. You might just become the next great leader.
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