I don’t know if you’ve ever been on a cruise, but let me tell you, it’s a surreal experience. There’s something utterly magical about being out on the waves of an endless ocean surrounded by more luxurious amenities than you could possibly imagine. But I tend to bring some pretty high expectations when it comes to things like cruises.

I’ve been blessed to travel the world learning from some of the best leaders and have attended the most elaborate events. I’ve seen a lot of beautiful things. From the spectacle that was Cavalia to a behind the scenes tour of one of the most popular television stations in the country, I’ve had my expectations set at unbelievable levels.

Oasis of the Seas, wildly exceeded all of them.

I could write a book about the experience, but the thing I want to tell you about most was their steadfast commitment that “one size does not fit all.”

From the moment you stepped on that Royal Caribbean ship it was crystal clear that everyone was about to have an experience custom-tailored to their unique needs. You’d expect parents and adults to be catered to, but the children’s experience was amazing too. They had their own events and activities galore. Teenagers had their own area and specially-designed environment. It was impossible as a teen to feel like you’d been dragged on a vacation with mom and dad when you realized the Oasis of the Seas had been designed with you in mind.

Every inch, every detail about the ship told everyone on it that they mattered. That they were important. That the staff and the designers had been waiting for all of us to board.

It was a challenging experience to say the least. As a member of a company that serves millions of people each week, I took away lots of lessons. The one I’d like to leave you with which I mentioned earlier, the one I hope sticks is this:

“One size does not fit all.”

No one likes being thought of as a number or a target audience. People want to be treated individually and offered an increasing amount of customization options. I don’t know what this means for your business. It might mean getting out of the board room and going to one of your stores. It might mean sitting in with a customer services representative and listening to your customers. It might mean taking a cruise so you can have your own eureka moment. (Don’t we all hope that’s the answer!)

I’m still working through everything I learned, but I promise you this, the next time you come inside a Chick-fil-A, I hope you walk out feeling important. Because you’re not a number to us. You’re not a target audience. You’re a mom or a dad or a student. And when we refill your sweet tea or escort you out to the car with an umbrella if it’s raining, I think you’ll know that one size does not fit all.

Although we’re used to the concept of big retail stores now, years ago, that wasn’t the case. Small stores, strip malls, mid-sized retail outlets, those are what dominated the shopping landscape for decades. But then Bernie Marcus and Sam Walton came along.

If you’re from Atlanta like me, you’re familiar with the name Bernie Marcus. Along with his partner Arthur Blank, he reshaped this city and the world of home improvement with the invention of The Home Depot. And Sam Walton? Is there another name more associated with retail success than Sam Walton? The founder of Wal-Mart, he virtually reinvented shopping as we know it.

But what a lot of people don’t know is that Sam and Bernie made a practice of listening to each other. Recognizing that few people could relate to the challenges and opportunities of growing such a large chain of stores, Bernie and Sam sought each other out. More than just big brand lore, Bernie told me countless stories of his visits with Sam. Every now and then, Sam would walk through a Wal-Mart with Bernie.

With the eye of an expert Sam would point out innovations and updates they had made to Wal-Mart. And Bernie would listen. He’d soak it all in to understand ways he might incorporate some of the same lessons at The Home Depot. Then, they’d flip the tables and Bernie would ask questions in Sam’s store. They would challenge assumptions. They’d look for new improvements. Above all they would listen.

Then they’d head to The Home Depot and the process would switch.

They didn’t have to do this. Each man was brilliant in their own way and could have run the company without this unique type of input. But what they gained from each other was invaluable. What they gained from listening was extraordinary. It was like an MBA in retailing. And the difference it made was immeasurable.

Which brings us back to the primary questions we ask about listening:
1. Who are you listening to?
2. Who is listening to you?

Better put, who is the Sam Walton in your life? Who is wise and generous and actively speaking into your day? Who are you being Bernie Marcus for? Whose life are you investing in with questions and encouragement? Whose stores are you walking?

Don’t let the size of the names in this story fool you. You don’t have to be a titan of industry to benefit from this powerful listening exercise.

Keeping things personal is one of my biggest jobs as a member of the Chick-fil-A leadership team. As fast and as full as life gets sometimes, it’s tempting to break things down to “just business.” It’s a lot less messy to deal in Excel spreadsheets and categorize employees and customers as numbers. They’re just data. You just need to get XX amount of employees to serve XX amount of customers XX amount of food each day. End of story.

But that’s not true. Those employees aren’t numbers. They’re not just data. They’re moms and dads. They’re college students with dreams. They’re high school kids learning the value of hard work. They’re people just like me with hopes and fears and goals and friends and family. Same with the customers.

The customers are never numbers. They are dads taking their daughters out to dinner on date night at Chick-fil-A. They are moms who need a playground and a healthy meal for kids on the go. They are friends who camp out with me overnight for the grand opening of a new Chick-fil-A.

There are a lot of ways you can keep things personal at your business, but my favorite is to get out from my behind my desk. I like to be behind the counter. I like to serve someone a sandwich or help an employee make a milkshake. I find that dirty hands make it hard to see people as just numbers.

If you’re looking for me on most days, you’ll find me at a Chick-fil-A. Because it’s not just business. It’s not just data.

It’s personal. It’s all personal.

Instead of just doing the traditional giveaway which involves a coupon and a quick trip through the drive-thru, we tried something different:

We actually invited people to our restaurants.

We helped them make reservations for their free Spicy Chicken Sandwich. We gave them white glove service in a completely unexpected way. We reminded them that whether we’re rolling out new recipes or opening new stores, the lifeblood of Chick-fil-A are the fans. And the fans deserve special treatment.

Reservations took more work than coupons. They cost more time and were more complicated than doing a mass marketing coupon campaign. But for us, the chance to have friends over for a celebration, the opportunity to have people feel waited on and important, was simply too important to pass up.

We hope you got a chance to be our guest this last week. And if not, we hope you’ll be our guest real soon.

In 50 years?

In 100 years?

These are the kind of questions I think about everyday. As a member of the leadership team I want to help us prepare a future of leadership that carries the company for decades to come. One thing I have learned in the midst of doing this is that there’s a difference between “locating leaders” and “cultivating leaders.”

The traditional path companies take is to locate leaders. They hold interviews. They attend conferences. They search internally and externally for new sources of leadership. They try to find the new leaders they need.

Cultivating leaders is a little different. It takes a little longer. It’s more intense and you have to invest more, but the results are worth it.

When you cultivate leaders, you commit to helping young leaders grow. You don’t just try to find new talent, you try to foster it. You train good minds to be great. You help people in your community stretch to extraordinary new heights. Which is exactly why we partnered with Morehouse College.

Located in Atlanta, GA, Morehouse College is an internationally recognized center of learning. With a long, proud history of creating next generation leaders and a gaze toward continuing that mission in the future, Morehouse College has become the perfect place for us to cultivate leaders. In addition to providing us with talented young leaders, working with Morehouse College also gives Chick-fil-A the chance to pour back into Atlanta.

It’s easy to look for leaders. It’s easy to request resumes and try to find leaders. But in the long run, if you really want the very best in leadership, don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty. Plug into your city. Roll up your sleeves and commit to cultivating leaders. I promise you’ll be surprised by the results.

With his latest book however, he’s also becoming an expert on failure or as the title suggests, “How the Mighty Fall.” Unfortunately, Collins has ample source material to choose from as we collectively try to pick up the pieces of an economy that has been deeply wounded by out of control corporations and ill-advised business decisions.

In his speech, Jim succinctly laid out the five stages companies go through as they march toward collapse.

Stage 1 – Hubris born of success.
In the first stage, a deep sort of arrogance and false sense of invincibility sets in. A success lends inappropriate levels of confidence to your organization and you start to believe things that simply aren’t true about your own greatness.

Stage 2 – Undisciplined pursuit of more.
Collins says that great companies leave “growth on the table.” Room for future expansion or opportunities they simply are not ready for. Companies headed toward tragedy retire the word “enough” and keep thinking they need to grab one more piece of the puzzle.

Stage 3 – Denial of risk and peril.
This stage reminds me a little of the Emperor’s clothes. Even as deals fall through and competition springs up, there is no clear admission of the risks. We’re successful and powerful and reaching for more, what could possibly go wrong?

Stage 4 – Grasping for salvation.
When risk finally does become real, companies in this stage tend to swing for the fences. Fearing collapse, only a home run will do. Only a lottery ticket size prize will suffice to save all hope. And the next project or next opportunity must provide not just money, but rescue.

Stage 5 – Capitulation to irrelevance or death.
I find it appropriate that Collins uses the word “death” here instead of something simple like “quitting” or “closing.” Something has died. A culture that was once thriving and alive and hopeful has expired. Hundreds, maybe thousands of lives, have been impacted as the first four warning stages were not heeded.

It’s difficult to summarize the wisdom and research of Jim Collins in a quick blog post, but that represents a high level look at “How the Mighty Fall.” I strongly encourage you to get the book. And above that, I implore you to ask honest questions of yourself and your team using the five stages as a true north.

Is your company somewhere in one of those stages? And if so, how can the solutions Collins provides in his book be applied to you?

Why? Simply put, because leaders take care of leaders.

Catalyst is a leadership conference. Held in both Atlanta and Los Angeles, it’s a chance for influencers like Malcolm Gladwell, Seth Godin and Andy Stanley to impact the next generation of leaders. It’s a three-day event that offers the chance to grow and strengthen leadership at churches and organizations around the world.

And that’s why Chick-fil-A loves to be a part of it. You see leadership isn’t a one-way street. It doesn’t travel in a single direction. Despite what we may all think sometimes, it’s not a ladder you climb straight up. Not at all. Leadership, real leadership, is multidirectional. You have to help and serve people in front of you and behind you and beside you. And above all, you have to find ways to give to the people in your circle.

You have to mentor and carry burdens and share. Sometimes you even have to buy a few thousand people lunch because leaders take care of leaders.

Is there someone in your life that helped make you a better leader? A friend or colleague that helped you grow as a leader? I know there’s a list of people that have filled that role for me. They’ve given me more than I can ever repay. So when opportunities like Catalyst or even just a cup of coffee with a young man come up, it’s hard to say no.

Say yes to another leader today. Lend a hand or maybe a lunch. You don’t have to treat an entire conference to a chicken sandwich to change someone’s day.

Serve a leader and I promise you’ll be surprised at how much the experience changes you.

Sometimes, it’s easy to think about receipts. Finances, profits, bank account slips, those things are built on data. Black and white numbers that are straight forward and concrete. Relationships are messier. They move slowly and get tangled with feelings and emotions. It’s tempting to spend all our time on the “receipts of life.” To think that the numbers we control matter more than the relationships we participate in. Lately though, I’ve seen what can happen when you focus on both.

Buy one get one free. Half off Fridays. Bring in a friend, get a free meal. There’s no shortage of one time promotions your business can run. And the truth is, that more than likely, doing one of those will drive higher receipts for you that day. Maybe even that whole week. It’s really hard though to drive a long term relationship though with a receipt. It’s a great instant boost, but once the dust clears, things haven’t really changed.

That’s why, instead of spending much time and energy on short term receipt promotions, we’ve learned to do things like daddy daughter date night. Just like it sounds, that’s simply a special night when we invite dads and daughters to join us at Chick-fil-A on a date. And although it might not drive the instant sales and receipts as other promotions, you should see the relationships it builds. You should see how dressed up those daughters get. You should see how proud those dads are. You should see the long term impact a simple event like that has on Chick-fil-A.

Each day we have the chance to choose between relationships and receipts. I hope today you’ll pause long enough to explore which option might be best for your vision and your company for the years to come.

*Note: The image comes from a recent Daddy Daughter Date Night at a Chick-fil-A in Olathe Pointe.  That smile says it all.

On Tuesday night, we talked about what it means to LIVE. LOVE. LEAD. We talked about health and how to eat for energy. We shared ways to slow down and nurture the most important relationships. We discussed ideas about growing character and leadership skills.

Thursday night, I got to do something I’ve always wanted to do. I got to share the stage with four of my family members.   For the first time ever, Truett, Jeannette, Bubba and Trudy sat beside me with an open microphone and a fun crowd.  We shared stories of hardships and triumphs that have shaped us.   We got to share how and why Chick-fil-A became the company it is today (hint: mainly through the leadership and stewardship of my father, Truett Cathy).

Both nights left me incredibly humbled and excited for what happens next. When the event ended, the real story was just beginning: the story of attendees who choose to LIVE. LOVE. LEAD.

How are you living, loving, and leading in your life?

The Cows Made a Surprise Visit on Stage

Todd Fields and band provided music for the night

Giftbags for Attendees with Resource Materials on LIVE. LOVE. LEAD.

From Left: Bubba, Trudy, Truett, and Jeannette Cathy on stage together for the first time

Over 5,000 people attended the events

]]> http://www.dantcathy.com/2009/11/live-love-lead-orlando/feed/ 2 http://www.dantcathy.com/2009/10/a-bag-a-boat-a-beginning/ http://www.dantcathy.com/2009/10/a-bag-a-boat-a-beginning/#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:26:10 +0000 Dan Cathy http://www.dantcathy.com/?p=3 You don’t expect these things to happen at the airport. You go to the terminal thinking about your flight, seat assignment, luggage or a million other little things you’ve got on your mind. You never imagine you’ll learn about a bag and a boat, but life is funny sometimes.

That’s what I had to remember when a mother in the San Diego airport showed me what she had carried with her from Atlanta. Inside her bag, inside the small knapsack she had held in her lap during a journey across the country, was something I never expected to see. Nestled gently in that carry on were three Chick-fil-A sandwiches.

But they weren’t just sandwiches, these three items represented something bigger. They were pieces of home. A beloved son was stationed on a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. When duty called, it had called him thousands of miles away from his home in Georgia. And day after day, warm wave after warm wave, he sat on that boat thinking about his family. And his friends and a place that came to represent the small town he missed.

So when his mom came to see him in San Diego she brought him something that would take him back. Something that would return him to the place where he was from, the place where he grew up, the place where he was known.

She brought him love in the form of three Chick-fil-A sandwiches.

Those are the kind of stories you can’t make up. Those are the kind of tales that make us all smile and celebrate the fun adventure we’ve all gone on together over the years. And starting today, those stories have a new home.

This blog is about you and me and Chick-fil-A. It’s about a journey that started decades ago and is still going strong. It’s a chance to get your questions answered and your stories heard. A home to relive old memories and start new ones.

It’s a place to talk and laugh and learn together.

Are you ready to get started?