The Top Three
This week I'm giving you one of my top secrets. Well, it isn't really a secret but it is so profound it should be. I'm one of those people that will tell you everything I know and learn, then go play innovator and learner to formulate new secrets to give away. Its what makes me so endearing.
While giving me advise on my company my boss/client/colleague/mentor (mentor being the most important adjective because everyone should have a mentor) told me that I need to find help and that he wasn't successful until he got help from people that had skills he didn't. We can't do it all all alone because we don't have the personalities, discipline or skills to do it all. This is a guy that heads a multi-million dollar company so he should know what he is talking about. He told me that every business should have 3 types of people in executive positions for an organization to be successful: a finder, minder and grinder.
The finder: The "used car salesman" of the company that over promises and under delivers but is so charming you don't care.
The minder: The planning person that makes sure everything behind the scenes run according to plan, takes care of everything and never takes any credit.
The grinder: The person that is in the battlefield of making sure the actual work that is promised clients gets done.
I'm a minder. Are you surprised? I didn't think so. I'm that person that makes everything run behind the scenes, worries about the little things, solves problems effortlessly, plans out every detail, takes care of clients' needs and makes everyone accountable for sticking to the plan. I think that we all have traits of the other positions but have one dominate position (just like those personality tests we take to get some crazy insight about ourselves - I love those things) and need to find others that have the traits we do not possess. Me? Currently, I'm on the hunt for a finder and a grinder. I need one of those business development people that can generate leads and close them and one of those analytical types that likes to write and can put my vision on paper and help put it into action. I haven't found them but I don't want just anyone, they have to fit into my rockstar personality about business (reference to Transparency as a Strategy blog post last week - shameless plug). But at least I know what I need and if you know any of them please let me know.
I want to know what you are? Are you a finder, minder or grinder?