ABOUT THE HOST
The host for Changing Lives Selling Knives is also the Western Region Manager for Cutco/Vector Marketing. Dan is a 7-time National Champion manager in Cutco/Vector, and has developed at least 12 other National Champions at various positions in the business. He has been known for building powerful and dynamic team cultures and helping many others to do so. This episode details the epic story of Dan’s summer Branch Office back in 1991, and some quick lessons that arose from that experience.
IN THIS EPISODE
Dan begins by sharing the detailed story of his Branch Manager experience, a story that has seldom been heard outside of Dan’s office and the Western Region.
- One year of preparation went into this Summer experience.
- The goal was to be #1 in the company.
- An office in Wisconsin took the lead at the outset and held it throughout the Summer.
- Dan’s office roared back from an almost insurmountable deficit.
- The dramatic details of the final week and epic last moments of the race.
LESSONS LEARNED
- This job is not about the knives. If you immerse yourself in aspects like competition, striving to improve, and giving to your people, you will be far more successful.
- People will do more for a team than they will do for themselves. The question is how you can promote team visions that your people will buy into.
- CULTURE WINS ALL! It’s not winning that leads to culture. It’s culture that leads to winning.
DEFINITION OF CULTURE
- The most significant ATTITUDES that permeate a team, and the CONSISTENT BEHAVIORS that result.
DAN’S KEY ELEMENTS OF CULTURE
- TRUST, built on INTEGRITY TO YOUR WORD
- INTEGRITY TO YOUR WORD is more than just honesty. It’s openness, transparency, and most importantly, doing what you say you will do. This creates a feeling of trust within an organization or group, and trust is the foundation of all great human relationships.
- A SPIRIT OF COOPERATION
- A SPIRIT OF COOPERATION is founded upon a sincere interest in others, a desire to help others succeed, and an abundance mentality — that there’s plenty of success to go around for all of us.
- WORK ETHIC / Greatness In The Moment
- WORK ETHIC isn’t about working 80-hour weeks, though sometimes that can be necessary. It’s about a willingness to do what it takes to stay on track for mutually determined objectives. When everyone has ownership of the goals, they are less likely to pass the buck to someone else and more likely to step up when more is required.
- A POSITIVE FOCUS
- A POSITIVE FOCUS is rooted in the belief that we can determine the meaning of anything that happens in our lives. Successful people learn, over time, to choose empowering meanings for any circumstance that arises in their life or business.
- CONSISTENT PERSONAL GROWTH
- As you grow yourself as a leader, commit to helping your people with their lives, not just their jobs.