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Be the Best at What Matters Most: The Only Strategy You will Ever Need

Name: Be the Best at What Matters Most: The Only Strategy You will Ever Need
Author: Joe Calloway
ISBN: 9781118569870

by Joe Calloway

March 2013

Beginner

210 pages

2h 46m

English

Wiley

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Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 1: The Only Strategy You Will Ever Need
Building Business at Bill's Burgers“Amaze” and “Delight”Moruga Scorpion PeppersWhat If He Made a Better Hamburger?What Do You Think?An Undeniable PremiseWe Make It Too ComplexThat's the ProblemIt Ends Up Being about the CustomerYou're Spread Too ThinThe Three or Four ThingsYou Don't Need GimmicksIf You Win on the Basics, You Win It AllThere Are No Silver Bullets; There's Just the Bomb
Chapter 2: It's Really Not That Complicated
Build Better Cars. Imagine That
Chapter 3: So Good at the Basics That You're Cutting Edge
Substance, Not FlashA Powerful Lesson
Chapter 4: Deciding What Matters Most
Defining the ProblemSomebody's Got to BuyThe Main Thing
Chapter 5: Different Answers—All of Them Right
Wide Open ChoicesJoe CallowayBenjamin Franklin PlumbingWine to WaterPinnacle Financial PartnersSouthwest AirlinesAn Advertising Agency That I Read about Many Years AgoSomebody at Citi CardsWhat Fits Us Best?It's Worth Doing Wrong
Chapter 6: Relevance, Innovation, and Constant Improvement
A Moving TargetBetter Tomorrow Than You Were TodayLip ServiceImprove Constantly and Forever

Chapter 7: Culture, Focus, and More Focus: Memphis Invest
A Little Company with Powerful LessonsGet the Fundamentals RightThe Culture BookA Handful of NumbersAbsolute Intention and FocusClarity about ExpectationsMeetings as OpportunitiesRelationships That Wow
Chapter 8: Working in the Business
Thinking When You Should Be Working“When It Is Time to Work in Your Business,” by Dr. Jeff Cornwall
Chapter 9: Three Is the Magic Number: Smile Brands
These Three ThingsPick a LaneThe G3 ApproachThe Power of SimplicityThe Ultimate SophisticationSo Much Less Effort
Chapter 10: Winning and Losing Inside the Box
There Aren't Any ShortcutsDeliver on Your Promise Every TimeThey've Taken Their Eyes Off the BallIf You Win on the Basics, You Win It AllBarneys versus NordstromIt's a Sucker's GameI'll Happily Take the DoughnutYour “Table Stakes” Aren't WorkingBells and Whistles Wear OffGlitz or Profit?
Chapter 11: Random versus Consistent
What a Wonderful Story!That's the TrapRegular, Everyday CustomersIf You Lose Inside the Box
Chapter 12: Simplicity and the Blue-Tip Flame
You Can Move MountainsWhat You Need Is a Force MultiplierGet Your Thinking Clean EnoughBlue-Tip Flame
Chapter 13: The Trap: Let's Do More
Better Is BetterLost in Trying to Be the BestFor Alabama Football, It's ProcessTreating Patients Like CustomersWhen Patients Talk BackThe Patients' Lists
Chapter 14: Clarity, Process, and Profit: bytes of knowledge
How They Did ItThe First Order of BusinessThey Are a Business PartnerThey Could Be Doing BetterDefining Their CultureThe Monday Morning BoostPlug the Holes in the BucketWorkflow and Time TrackingGet a ChecklistEverything Tracked through the SystemEducating the Employees and Getting Buy-InHow to Run a BusinessThe Coffee Shop Generation
Chapter 15: What Matters Most to Your Team
Understanding Employees Matters, TooUnderstanding
Chapter 16: Culture Drives Results
That's a ShameBy Accident or Intentional?Everything in AlignmentMaking Culture Mean SomethingYou Have to Fire ThemWho Would Stay? Who Would Go?True North
Chapter 17: How Brands Win
Consistently Better at the BasicsAmazonCoca-ColaFedExAppleTargetFordStarbucksSouthwest AirlinesNordstromIt Works
Chapter 18: How the Internet Is Killing Hype
Why You Bought the ChutneyConsumers Aren't ShyThey're Talking about YouPalm Trees, Azure Blue Skies, and . . . Cockroaches“I Would Like to Apologize”Do What You Say You'll Do
Chapter 19: Leadership: Grunder Landscaping Company
The Kid Was the BestThe Responsibility of LeadershipGetting Buy-InSpider-Man, Doughnuts, and Thank-You NotesYou Can't Just Put These Things on a Piece of PaperTalk about It and Live It All the TimeHe Is True North
Chapter 20: When Everything Is Pursued, the Important Is Neglected
Too Much PressureSister Bear's NightmareExecuting in the Game They Are InPurpose versus Panic
Chapter 21: The Rules You Can Break
“Fortunately, We Don't Know Any of Them”Visions and Missions Are Great—and OptionalOne Size Does Not Fit AllChanging the World . . . Maybe“We Make Great Carburetors”A Purpose That Took Morale LowerYou're Kidding, Right?It's Just Supposed to Be Effective
Chapter 22: Focus 3 Ninety
What Matters Most Right Now?A New Approach to Focus?Where Do We Improve Right Now?Make It LastGet Absolute ClarityWhat You'll Learn
Chapter 23: It's 11:30
Taking ActionThe Obstacle of Not KnowingTake Out the TrashSomeone Busier Than You Is RunningIt's 11:30
Chapter 24: Ideas That Matter Most
Chapter 25: More Resources
Index

Content preview from Be the Best at What Matters Most: The Only Strategy You will Ever Need

More Resources

There truly are no secrets of success. Everything you need to know about how to make your business more successful is already out there. I've listed just a handful of resources that I find valuable and that I recommend to you.

Elizabeth Crook of Orchard Advisors is a genius at helping companies get focused. Orchard Advisors is at orchardadvisors.com. Elizabeth's new book is The Yippee Index: Live The Life YOU Love At Work

Risky Is the New Safe, by Randy Gage

The Outstanding Organization: Generate Business Results by Eliminating Chaos and Building the Foundation for Everyday Excellence, by Karen Martin

The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, by Atul Gawande

Making It Happen: Turning Good Ideas into Great Results, by Peter Sheahan

Michael Heard is a principal of 3 Big Questions, a consultancy that “helps organizations triage, stabilize, and prioritize action plans through facilitation and conflict resolution services.” Michael can be reached at michael@3bigquestions.com.

Marty Grunder's not only a great business leader but also a great speaker. You can reach Marty at MartyGrunder.com.

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Be the Best at What Matters Most: The Only Strategy You will Ever Need

by Joe Calloway

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.