You Are Who You...

... spend the most time with. Do you buy that?

In my keynote entitled The Dirty Little Secret of Business, we talk about the importance of relationships. During the keynote I ask people in the audience: "How much does it matter who you spend time with? Why?"

Overwhelmingly the responses are that we are significantly impacted by the people we are surrounded by. Speaker and author Allan Holender says it this way: "You are the mean of the five people you spend the most time with."

As you look around your office, this might scare you. :)

This principle goes beyond just the workplace or even adults. A study released earlier this month found that kids with overweight friends tend to be overweight as well.

In the keynote I challenge people to be more intentional with whom they surround themselves. You may not be able to select the members of your team, but you do have control over who you go to lunch with, what podcasts you listen to, which books you read, and who you hang out with socially.

We talk about the importance of diversity in relationships and finding people who make you better, not tear you down... who take your further, not hold you back... who you can help as well as they can help you.

Andy Stanley says, "What and who you listen to will determine what you do." Even if this isn't completely true in every situation, I'm convinced from my own experience (as well as from coaching hundreds of executives), that much of your success will come down to who your greatest influencers are. And you are most influenced by those you spend the most time with.

Take a look around.

P.S. If you would like more information about our Dirty Little Secret of Business keynote, contact me for details. It's a perfect session for company or department meetings, offsite meetings, and conferences.

Labels: culture, influence, keynotes, leadership, listening, relationships

posted by Andy at 5:18 PM  

Join me at the Better Software Conference in June!

There are so many conferences to choose from yet so little travel budget to invest this year. If you're in the software business, which one do you focus on to get the maximum value for your investment?

I invite you to join me at this year's Better Software conference, June 8-12, 2009 at The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada. I'll be sharing my day long leadership session entitled The Leadership Tutorial. In addition, I'll be unveiling my newest keynote on relationships, entitled The Dirty Little Secret of Business. I'd love to see you there!

Now in its sixth year, Better Software delivers the latest trends, technologies, and strategies in the industry today. I invite you to join me and the other speakers at Better Software for networking opportunities and learning about the latest issues regarding agile development, project management, people & teams, software testing & QA, software requirements, process improvement, metrics, and design & architecture.

I've had the privilege of speaking at this conference for many years and it's always a highlight. You'll learn a lot and enjoy excellent networking with colleagues from around the world.

To check out the program, visit http://www.sqe.com/BetterSoftwareConf/Schedule/Default.aspx

Special Savings offer

Register using special promo code SKBS and save up to $300! Register by April 3rd to add the Early Bird Discount for up to $600 in total savings! Call the client support group at 888.268.8770 or register online at: https://www.sqe.com/BetterSoftwareConf/Register/SelectConference.aspx

See you in Vegas!

Labels: conferences, leadership, relationships

posted by Andy at 9:47 AM  

Why Social Networking Matters

If you didn't already get it in your inbox, make sure to check out our latest newsletter on why social networking matters.

Also, there are two free webcasts mentioned in the newsletter. You are invited to join!

Finally, don't miss the coupon code to get $50 USD off our e-learning on conflict management! Click here now to read the newsletter.

Labels: networking, relationships, social networking, webcasts

posted by Andy at 11:54 AM