THE BRIDGE TO BETTER INTERACTION

I love the concept in today’s work place referred to as the bridge.  It is a metaphor on joining.  The bridge is a joining of knowledge, ideas, and sharing information.  When I received the phone message from Phillip (name changed to protect all) I was excited to hear about Bridge Calls used in his company.

The first thing mentioned in his message was how similar the Bridge Call is to Napoleon Hill’s concept of the Master Mind (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e_KTQBoctQ.)  He then spoke of the success his company was experiencing with the concept as they served their Internet customers’ software problems.  Phillip’s company provides software solutions to their customer companies.  What was troubling him and the reason for the call was why the technicians assigned to the bridge to trouble shoot and solve technical issues used the bridge solution less than twenty percent of the time.  When I asked why, his two responses were:

1. The Support engineers often seem to think they are just a few minutes away from a fix.  Then 10 minutes passes, followed by another 20 minutes and before you know it, an hour has gone by with still no fix.  This becomes a matter of pride not to open a bridge call with other technical experts to collaborate.  However, we should be providing World-Class Support to every customer, and when we have not quickly applied our best resources, we have not achieved our goal.
2. The Company is a collection of unsophisticated people.  We have fairly good technical skills, but our overall problem solving abilities are not that great.  I typically get blank stares when I explain the concepts of synergy, the power of collaboration, and the Master Mind philosophy.  I can think of only one person within Customer Support that I would ever dream of inviting to a Master Mind group.  Overall, I don’t find that individuals here are very open minded.

As a user of the Master Mind process for more than 40 years I am a strong believer in its power.  The main reason I love the process of Master Mind is that frequently I am the weakest minded person in the room.  Collaboration, synergy, and Master Mind go nicely together making all players stronger.  Here are some additional thoughts on why so few people use this concept:

1. They are afraid to share credit with others.
2. They are too important to need someone else’s help.
3. They are afraid superiors, subordinates will think them incompetent.
4. They do not need anyone.  They are independent thinkers who should be able to solve these problems.
5. They have gotten to this place by themselves.  They think that they can solve their problems on their own.

So what to do to encourage more interaction and participation:

• Ask questions around what are the rewards for participation.
• List the benefits of creating bridges.
• Demonstrate time availability to create quick success.

As you read this you might want to assign blame to the employees or management for avoiding the use of such a valuable tool within their company.  I would suggest a  little time for reflection and pause.  Fear and comfort play into this process.  The fear of changing and the comfort of doing the process the same as we have always done becomes the process.  Ten percent of our employees are leaders, many who are willing to change, synergize, and collaborate.  The remainder of our work force are followers, rarely wanting to change.  When the leaders can demonstrate how employees and customers can create winning relationships by articulating rewards, benefits, and create success they will have a combination for company growth.

 

Gerry Rose runs INTEGRITY Networking Solutions in Oceanside, CA.  He works with people in business who want to attract the right prospects and generate more referrals.  More than 10,000 businesses have been presented the INTEGRITY Networking Solutions system in San Diego, Los Angeles, Riverside, and Orange Counties.

Gerry’s stimulating presentation Unlimited Prospects, Unlimited Referrals is ideally suited for small business owners, home-based businesses, and independent professionals who want clearer direction and want to attract more prospects, develop dynamic systems, and strengthen their companies’ accountability.  Gerry does one on one consulting, conducts a range of keynote speeches from thirty minutes to full-day education workshops.  His book series, Unlimited Prospects, Unlimited Referrals, are available on the website, www.integritysd.com.

Gerry has more than 20 years’ experience directing business owners how to grow their businesses.  He is a networking dynamo.  Those who know him will assure you that he does a great job of bringing people together—which is why he started INTEGRITY.

Involved with networking organizations since 1984, Gerry is a Distinguished Toastmaster, a member of Toastmaster International, and has chaired numerous chambers of commerce and non-profit organizations.

Are you truly committed to attracting the right prospects and generate more referrals?  If so then contact INTEGRITY Networking Solutions for availability and information.  You can contact Gerry by mail at 1610 Quiet Hills Drive, Oceanside, CA 92056.  Direct dial (760) 439-4623; e-mail to gerry@integritysd.com.  For more information, go to www.integritysd.com

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