You will have probably heard the saying 'If you want something done properly, then do it yourself'. This is not featuring in our selection of favourite quotes in this newsletter!

At Go MAD our contention is that the greater the difference you want to make, then the greater the potential for involving other people.

The intention of this article is to expand your thinking about how you might involve others in achieving your goals and plans. I find that many people when thinking of involving other people in their plans, most often consider the people closest to them; family, friends and the immediate team at work. However, by thinking laterally their possibilities are much much wider than this. Their family, friends and immediate team at work are all people who might help, however they are likely to represent only a small cross-section of their circle of friends and acquaintances. Extending their thinking to consider who else might possibly be able to help them achieve their goals will greatly increase their likelihood of success.

You will possibly have heard of the theory of the six degrees of separation. This theory suggests that each of us is only 6 contacts away from anyone else in the world, which is an awful lot of contacts! Proving or disproving this theory is probably not worth my while, but I do know that I am only 2 contacts away from Tony Blair and Imelda Marcos. That makes me only 3 contacts away from all the other world leaders that Tony Blair knows, which is an impressive start. Now, these may not be the people I need to involve in my plans. However this demonstrates, by thinking about who is known to people you personally know, how you can widen the list about who might be able to help you.

Considering friends of friends isn't the only way you can make use of the strengths of people that you don't yet know. The internet is another excellent way of involving others. Just today a question appeared in an email to an e-group that I subscribe to, asking about a cheap and reliable way of accessing the internet whilst in France. Within a couple of hours about 10 answers were posted from complete strangers, all willing to help as best as they were able. By reading an article or looking at a website you are involving others. You are making use of their knowledge, expertise and thinking even though they aren't someone you know or have even met.

We can also gain inspiration or practical help from people who are no longer alive, whether or not we knew them. My first manager after leaving university, who sadly passed away at far too young an age about 18 months ago, was outstanding in the way he would ask questions and manage certain situations. Over 20 years since working with him, I still look to him for inspiration or put myself in his shoes and ask myself how he might have solved the situation.

As for people we never knew, then there is no end of information available that is still relevant to what we do today that could either help us solve a problem or inspire us in some way. I use numerous examples from history, such as Nelson, Churchill and Walt Disney when talking about leadership, and I am sure that most children still learn Pythagoras' theorem, even 2000 years after his death!

There is yet another category of 'people' that can be involved – ones that never existed! By modeling yourself on a fictional character, or wondering how a particular superhero might deal with an issue, then you are involving them. I know I'm not the only one around who draws on movie clips and characters to emphasise points in presentations.

I was discussing this lateral thinking theory on involving others recently at a seminar, when someone commented, "Surely we wouldn't want to involve too many people as we wouldn't be able to handle it!" I was able to relate back to something said by Pete Goss, an around-the-world sailor who came to fame after rescuing a fellow competitor in the Vendée Globe, who gave a presentation just before me. He talked about looking for sponsorship for the world's biggest trimaran that he was building. He'd set up a website showing the progress in his hangar and opened the building to the public. The website attracted over 2 million visitors. Inspired by the website, a Father took his children to see the boat under construction on a rainy afternoon, and from that visit Pete Goss obtained his major sponsor, Philips. I pointed out that Pete didn't complain about 'handling' over 2 million others since he achieved his goal of sponsorship!

You might choose to consider when you last really thought logically and laterally about who you might involve to help you achieve your personal or business goals.

Focus on something you specifically want to achieve and ask yourself the following 11 questions about involving others. To get full value from these questions it will be helpful to write down your answers.

This month to coincide with this newsletter we have a special offer on the Go MAD
e-book 'How to get others on your side'. For only £1.00 you can download this e-book for a quick and easy guide on involving others to achieve your goals.

Order Your Copy Now

Due to re-branding we have a number of publications we wish to offer you fantastic discounts on. There is 50%-70% off the regular price on the books listed below. These great savings are only available for 14 days, so hurry whilst stocks last!

'Go To Work On Your Career' – Was £12.99 NOW ONLY £3.97 save 70%
256 pages of practical tips, tools and techniques to help individuals successfully manage and develop their career. With case-studies and lots of exercises, this book is a must read for anyone wanting to make a difference to their career.

'Contagious Customer Care' – Was £9.99 NOW ONLY £3.97 save 60%
How do organisations and individuals provide excellent customer care? We set out to answer this question and, after 12 months of research, published the results of our findings. With easy to read case-studies and practical tips, this book provides an insight into some of the best customer care practices in the UK.

'59 Minutes to a Calmer Life' – Was £9.99 NOW ONLY £3.97 save 60%
A practical, easy to read book full of good humour and helpful insights to help you reduce stress in your professional and personal life.

'How to make a difference by managing organisation change effectively' – Was £4.99 NOW ONLY £2.47 save 50%
Based on over 10 years' research and consultation with over 100 organisations, this booklet gives practical advice and clear explanations for managers to help themselves and others make a difference by effectively handling people's reaction to organisational change.

'How to make a difference by transforming managers into leaders' – Was £4.99 NOW ONLY £2.47 save 50%
If you have ever wondered what the difference is between managers and leaders or want a few ideas to develop your leadership ability, then look no further. This booklet contains 255 practical tips and ideas contributed by 60 senior HR and Operational Professionals from 42 organisations.

'How to make a difference by managing meetings effectively' – Was £4.99 NOW ONLY £2.47 save 50%
A handy tips booklet that provides practical ideas about applying the Go MAD Framework to preparing and running meetings. Guaranteed to save time and provide focus.

To place an order simply visit our online shop

For bulk orders over 50 copies please call the
Go MAD Team on 01509 891313.

Remember this offer is only available for 14 days whilst stocks last!

Call Centre & Customer Services Summit – Great Success!

In our last newsletter we mentioned that Go MAD were represented at this event on the 20th & 21st March. The event runs every year, organised by Forum Events, and can be described as 'Speed Dating for Business!' Approximately 30 suppliers and 70 delegates attend from many different organisations.

Prior to the summit the delegates are asked whom they would like to meet with over the two days. Forum Events contacted us to let us know they had been inundated with requests from delegates to see us and could we take an additional Thinking Engineer to help conduct the meetings to ensure as many delegate requests were satisfied as possible. Forum Events mentioned they had never seen such interest in one supplier in the 5 years they have run this summit.

Great news for us! In total we had 40 meetings with people from many different sectors: finance organisations, travel companies and the public sector to name but a few.

Delegates were mainly senior operational roles within their contact centre's and had a range of forthcoming projects which included team leader and management development, retention and motivation of agents, performance improvement, coaching programmes, planned and unplanned change including move of physical location, growth plans and new teams.

Are you interested in learning more about how Go MAD can help you with your contact centre?

We are running Call Centre Discovery Days for delegates from the summit where we will demonstrate tools and techniques unique to Go MAD and we are pleased to be able to extend an invitation to you to attend one of these events which are held at our head office in Leicestershire. We will share possible ways to apply Go MAD Solution Focused Thinking to make a difference to contact centres at different levels for varying projects. Demand for places at these Discovery Days is high so we have added an additional date later this year.

Wednesday 24th May
Tuesday 18th July

To book your place please call the Go MAD Team on 01509 891313.

Due to a high number of requests, Go MAD Thinking is coming to London to deliver an inspirational Business Improvement Programme with a difference:

If you answered 'Yes' to any of these questions you will benefit from the programme. To register your interest please email pritesh@gomadthinking.com by the 28th April to receive further details about the programme and to book your places.

This tremendous opportunity is the first of its kind and is being held in London during July. As an e-zine subscriber we are giving you 2 weeks advance notice of this event, before our target marketing begins on 28th April and the clamour for the 12 available places begins!

If you have any questions or would like more detail about the information in this issue please contact the Go MAD team.

Best wishes from,
The Go MAD Team
http://www.gomadthinking.com/

If you have any comments, tips or favourite quotes we would like to hear from you. Send them to info@gomadthinking.com.
and you will receive a free gift from our online shop.