Big businesses in the U.S. are receiving bailout funds. Whether they “deserve” this or not is something many of us question. I for one am always loathe for dollars to be thrown to who yells the loudest or can harm the most, rather than those positioned to add the most value. Ok. It’s done.

So what?! Lots of things happen “just because” and we can whine about it, or we can make our own success. Every action is our choice.

We choose to keep adding value with what we’ve got… We are sticking to it! We are confident, accountable .. and we trust that our journey is adding value, including to those in our company.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: This Wow! goes to Abrige & C-Secure team members who are doing all they can with the resources at hand today…knowing there is a better tomorrow and that we control that. The prize is near from this entrepreneurial journey. You know who you are, because you are here. You exhibit confidence, trust and accountability. We are sticking together.

Why is this “wow!”? Choosing to stick when pay or perks become more tightly linked to performance requires confidence, trust and accountability. One must have the confidence in themselves that they can complete what was started. There must be trust that the leader will steer the company well if all the crew are doing what they are supposed to do. And accountability is required to meet promises to reach a long term goal, which may require more effort with less reward in the short term. We will remain strong because we have confidence, trust and accountability. (more…)

You may have some idea how much I hate missing a deadline.  Well, I just missed mine; I didn’t send out the Wow! this weekend. The good news is that it is not because there are no Wows! to give; there are plenty!  This team continues to impress me every day. Typically I write the Wow! email after a long walk during which I get the pleasure of thinking about, and appreciating, all the great actions during the past week.  This week I missed that walk due to a minor health issue, and it seems I mentally connected the Wow! email so closely with that long walk that I failed to send the email!  So let’s get this out …now!

This week’s “Wow!” goes to ———- for his continued diligence in making a frustrating commute to perform the warranty work on the hardware located in our Bellingham, WA USA office.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: I am sending to you a “WOW!” as a person who is making a grand effort to keep C-Secure going when we realize it would be so easy to just not go to the trouble.  It is worth it, and in the long run there will be even greater benefit realized for every one sticking with C-Secure.

(more…)

This week’s “Wow!” goes to a person who is brand new to our team and in fact we’ve only held one one-on-one conversation.  So, this email is one of several fast actions taken because of what was triggered during this call.  The nature of that call is worth sharing and that is why it earns a place as this week’s “Wow!”  The person on the other end of that call was ———-.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: “WOW!” , adding value was on your mind when we talked, and although we couldn’t know where the conversation would lead when we started, as there was no real agenda other than some questions about our agreement, your aim was served…and C-Secure Systems will be stronger because of it.

Why is this “wow!”? Without giving too many details but to answer the questions of those of you who are now thinking “What happened on that call?!” …  We discussed each of our company’s purposes and markets so that we could determine if there was any conflict in our working together and, if not, then what type of non-disclosure agreement would best suit.  But what happened then is more than the signing of an NDA.

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I set a new precedence in my last email by extending a “Wow!” to actions that did not necessarily happen by the preceding week, but triggered during the week in my mind (usually during a long fast walk!) and worth broadcasting.  This week’s “Wow!” follows this same trend.  Another similarity is that this week’s entry has to do with learning.  The difference, though, is that last week it was about someone who has greatly helped my learning.  This time it is about a team member who is truly giving his best effort to learn and build his value to the team.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: “WOW!” , you are proving your strength of character as you step back from a lead role and take on projects for which you have introduced to us your peers and subject experts … all in a selfless drive to make sure Abrige & C-Secure get the final product we need.

Why is this “wow!”? You and your team brought back DISCOVERY (after it did not accept operating system upgrades well) when others before you had failed.  You simply took one step at a time…and did it!

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Some of you have heard a lot about our company officer ——— and are unsure what his role is.  Here’s the deal: other than being extraordinary (which is a characteristic and not a role), he is a professional and personal mentor to me.  He has vast experience in leading and mentoring. He offers a fabulous mix of bedside manner and discipline that has served me and our company well.  He also “gets” both of the businesses we run, Abrige and C-Secure Systems, and continuously networks to uncover market needs and generate leads.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: “WOW!”, for not only introducing us into the market… I give a resounding thank you for helping me to become a better leader and to keep our company aligned with its vision without falling out of line with our strong values.

Why is this “wow!”? The company leadership sets the tone and direction for all.  As we grow and become visible it can be so appealing to try and do everything and to say “yes” to other leaders and so-called experts that, if listening to intuition, this intuition (a gut feeling that “knows” our values and purpose) is screaming “no.”

(more…)

We are positioning ourselves to great improvement in visibility, our front line theme, thanks for ——–.

Here’s our “wow” for this week: “WOW!”, for so quickly building a sales team for C-Secure Systems!!!

Why is this “wow!”? Not only has he continued to seek connections with new prospective customers and improve our message as targeted to those customers, he also has attracted to C-Secure one other senior- and two junior- sales professionals.

Why is it important? We have an unmatched turn-key tailored solution for monitoring, managing, securing and gaining intelligence from and about machines (and vehicles, structures, etc.)…yet we are almost invisible.  Yes, we have a website.  We waited too long to get it optimized so we are contacted infrequently (good news: when we do get calls they are highly qualified already).  Although we are fixing this now, the clock is ticking!   In fact we need to be well locked-in with customers f-a-s-t…before we become well-known to competitors.  I have confidence in him.  He and his growing team will better find, engage and close deals.

Congrats!

-Lori

P.S.S  The mix of people provided in the first “Wow” email has changed!  Some gone, several added.  The newest ones are not seeing this yet, and they will be introduced soon. In every case I see improvement.  This is what having themes (ours are Stability! And Visibility!) can do for a company, especially when themes are also aligned with our purpose and mission/values.  They are.  And so are our people.  For those of you seeing this email, I am thrilled to have you here.  Please continue to find us great people as we grow!