I’m on Forbes.com Now

Yup, starting today, you’ll find my blog at:

http://blogs.forbes.com/geoffloftus

Same high quality bloviating you’ve grown to know and love, but now on a high quality, well respected platform.  (Hard to imagine that will last long . . . .)

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No blog today – look for me on Forbes.com soon

Actually, look for me on Wednesday, September 29th. I’m debuting with a piece called “Lead Like Winston.”

More details (like a link to my Forbes blog) will follow on Wednesday. I’ll also tweet them and post on LinkedIn and Facebook. How socially media conscious can you get?

To be completely honest, I still loathe and detest Twitter, and I think that an awful lot of people suffer from acute TMI syndrome on Facebook. (TMI? Too much information. Usually of a personal nature. Ugh.) Anyway, more on all my loathing and detesting some other time.

See you Wednesday on Forbes.com.

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I’m Not Quitting – I’m Moving

I’ve been invited to become a regular blogger at Forbes.com, and as you might imagine, I was thrilled to say “Yes.” So, next week, this blog will “move” to Forbes.com with a new piece called, Lead Like Winston, all about the astounding and successful leadership of the man who saved Britain from the Nazis. (As a friend of mine once said about an Indiana Jones movie: “If the bad guys are Nazis, count me in!”) Complete details on the move will follow next week.

In the meantime, if you like, you can see what I’ve been doing on the Forbes site as a guest blogger since February:

Lead Like George Washington
When 13 American colonies wanted to become the United States, one man showed the way again and again, through both his commitment and his willingness to say goodbye.

Lead Like Patton
When the American troops surrounded by Germans in the Battle of the Bulge needed a Christmas miracle, George Patton delivered one with great leadership and sheer aggression.

Lead Like Spruance In The Battle Of Midway
On the brink of annihilation, Adm. Raymond Spruance kept his head, stayed aggressive and won the biggest naval fight of World War II.

Lead Like Chet—Make the Most of the Recovery
After Pearl Harbor, Chester Nimitz used his head, took calculated risks and led the U.S. Navy to its greatest victory.

Lead Like Bob in the Battle of the Recession
Times are tough, but smart executives don’t panic. They do grab opportunity.

Lead Like Ike in the Battle of the Bulge
When it looked like the enemy was sure to win, the great general refused to panic and seized opportunity.

“We’re spending a lot of money . . . “

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve heard the words “we’re spending a lot of money” used twice in regard to one of metro New York’s public transportation systems, the Long Island Railroad, lovingly known as the “LIRR”. Both times the phrase was used in a news story on news radio.

The first story was about cuts in service because the LIRR, like many organizations since the recession started in 2007, is desperately attempting to save money. The man who was recorded as bemoaning the amount of money paid to the railroad seemed to feel that the pre-cut service wasn’t good enough to justify the amount being paid — and no way in hell is it justified by cuts in service.

The second story was about the LIRR shutting down after 2 tornadoes and multiple near-tornadoes rampaged through Brooklyn, Queens and Nassau County last week. The angry man quoted in this story seemed to feel that the amount of money he paid should guarantee service no matter what the weather conditions.

I have a simple question for both these gentlemen: “What the hell are you talking about?”

To Commuter No. 1: Haven’t you heard about the recession? Everyone and every organization are cutting back. The amount of money you pay as an individual has almost nothing to do with the overall viability of the LIRR.

To Commuter No. 2: What is with you? Do you seriously believe that your money somehow immunizes you and your railroad from the devastation of tornadoes? Maybe you should cancel your commutation ticket and use the money saved to see a shrink. You are in serious need of a reality adjustment.

The problem with both of these gentlemen is simple: Their expectations are ridiculous. They feel that the money they spend is the overriding factor in the equation.

What should organizations do about outlandish expectations from their customers? Employees? Stakeholders?

Communicate, and then follow up with more communication, and then return with even more communication. People, as the above examples show, can be incredibly dense. You need to be communicating constantly and redundantly.

And you need to accept a harsh reality: No matter what you do or say, there will always be some people who won’t get the message. Some people who think that their money means tornadoes don’t shut down the railroad. Customers who think non-working products are for other people. Employees who feel they are overworked and underpaid. Stakeholders who feel unappreciated, no matter what the return on stock or how much community service you do.

If you’re reaching a solid majority of the people you’re communicating with, pat yourself on the back, have another cup of coffee, then restart your efforts toward the people who just don’t get it. It’s a vicious cycle, but you’re stuck with it. After all, you never know when the next tornado is coming.

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Publicity Stunt: Crazy Pastor Wants to Burn the Koran

UPDATE: September 10.

A few hours after the blog below was published, President Obama asked Pastor Jones to listen to his “better angels” and not burn the Koran. He went on to label the burning a “stunt.” Then Defence Secretary Robert Gates called Jones and asked him not to go through with his plan since it would endanger American forces around the world.

The international press covered both communications, and then went into a frenzy when he had talks with a Florida Muslim, who Jones claimed to represent the Muslims who are planning to build the Cordoba Islamic Center near Ground Zero. According to Jones, the Florida man told him that the New Yorkers were on board with moving the Center. Jones canceled the book burning, only to change his tune and say he had only suspended it when the Cordoba team said it was not moving.

(Never one to shun publicity, apparently Donald Trump made an offer to buy the Cordoba site to help the Muslims move elsewhere. Cordoba characterized it as a cheap “stunt.”)

In the meanwhile, Pastor Jones with his ridiculous facial hair and faulty theology continues to grab worldwide attention for his little bit of the lunatic fringe. No matter how this turns out, he’s clearly the winner.

ORIGINAL POST:

By now you’ve probably heard that Terry Jones, the pastor of a tiny Christian church in Florida, plans to honor the 9/11 dead by burning copies of the Koran in a bonfire.

Muslims around the world have made it known they are furious over the planned pyrotechnics. Hard to blame them — and does America really need 1 billion people worldwide to be angry with us because this wingnut is, well, a wingnut?

The largest association of evangelical churches in America has called for Jones not to go through with it.

The Attorney General of the United States, Eric Holder, has called the burning “idiotic.”

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has stated that this will harm U.S. interests around the world.

And, most importantly, Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan has said this will threaten the safety of his forces there.

Is this clown listening? Will he call it off? Yeah, sure. Why would he do that? Here’s a guy with a tiny following, various news accounts say his parish is anywhere from 30 to 50 people, and he’s getting global attention. All because he says he’s going to do one stupid, ugly thing. He’s got nothing to lose and stands to gain an increased following of people as deranged as he is.

What’s really worrisome is this: What happens if this turns out well for Jones? What if he doubles or triples the size of his congregation? What if he gets interviewed by CNN and Fox News? What does he do for an encore next year?

There are a couple of lessons here for the rest of us:

1) Just because a guy shouts, “Here I am! Look at me!” doesn’t mean we have to look.

2) If you’re pushing a cause or a product or a service or whatever, you need more than an empty publicity stunt to be a success. You have to have something valuable to push.

On Vacation

If you haven’t taken a break yet for this summer, be sure you do. Even in the midst of fighting with the Nazis, Ike always made sure that his men, from generals to privates, got as much time off as possible. Whatever you’re trying to do, it’s easier when you’re properly rested.

I’m taking my own advice — leaving on vacation for the rest of the month. Among other things, this means no blogs for the rest of August. (I doubt anyone will find that tragic.) If Ike’s concern over time off isn’t enough to convince you, maybe a few pictures of my vacation spot (Block Island) will:

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Take My Advice: Shut Up

I’m in my seventh month of blogging twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays. I’ve never missed a column, but I have found myself with nothing to say once before. And today, embarrassing as this is to admit, I’ve got nothing again.

Now, being as full of blarney as the next person of Hibernian descent, I could spin a fantastical web of words and pretend I have something significant to say. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve lived by the axiom that “if you can’t dazzle ’em with brilliance, baffle ’em with bullshit.”

But I’m going to live by a different bit of advice I heard long ago (source forgotten): If you don’t know what you’re talking about, shut up. If you can’t stop yourself from talking, talk positively and with absolute authority — maybe everyone listening will assume you know what you’re saying.

Today, I’m going to take the first part of that advice and shut up. I would recommend that to anyone and everyone, whether you don’t know what you’re talking about in business or life.

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