Contextual Framing

CONTEXTUAL FRAMING

Definition: the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or idea, and in terms of which it can be fully understood.

One could say, the more space you have to think in, the bigger the idea or the greater the understanding.

One of the factors of the HPT-Transformation training is the directness.

The confrontational manner in which the training is presented shocks some people at the very start. After a while they take the loud, direct, powerful and confrontational manner of the training to be the norm.  They don't get 'used' to it...they simply accept it as 'that's how it is'. 

I have always believed that the training has to be that way.  It has always had that element of confrontation, wherever and to whoever I have presented it. A Seminar room with paying attendees or within a maximum security prison, the format is ALWAYS the same, because it works.

It is a wake up call and there must be a shock to the system to jolt the recipient of the training into change, reaction, self questioning and accountability.  The context of the training program, indeed the context of the training environment we create (in essence, the space for HPT to be completely effective) is a strict regime.

This in itself is unusual as it puts a group of people into an environment where the contextual frame and content is far removed from what they are used to on a quotidian basis.

One of the things that struck me very early on in the formation of the Transformation Program was the contextual frame from which the training took place in comparison to the contextual frame the attendees were used to.  It became apparent to me and my team that context is a major factor in growth, experience and usuality.

Most people work from within a contextual framework. Unfortunately, this frame is too limiting for them on a long term basis.  Like a comfort zone, unless it is stretched and widened, no growth can take place or be achieved.

Life begins where your comfort zone ends!

When some people see an accident on the motorway where people die horribly and one can see the blood and mangled car and, in some cases the people, some of the people looking at that scenario will faint. Unfortunately, human nature means that people in other cars will slow down to have a look at the accident because they don't want to miss any experience.  In truth, they are just nosey.  They feel entitled to see.  The excitement takes over but then another feeling kicks in for many of them, they feel faint, nauseous and they pass out.

Anyone watching surgery for the first time will likely as not faint.  Anyone watching any medical procedure, from an autopsy to a minor operation, will feel, or may indeed, faint.

The reason is because the scene they are witnessing sits outside of the contextual framework they live in.

A surgeon, a traffic cop, a paramedic...they see this every single day, so it is WITHIN their quotidian Contextual Framework.

The HPT Training is not unusual to us because it sits within our contextual frame, but to the attendees...wow!  Some of the questions, presentations, directness, and even the training process itself is so far outside the context of the people taking the training it allows us to cut through the barriers, obstructions and masks that people wear on a daily basis.

We speak to the real person.  Not who they are at the time, or who they think they are.  We talk to who they REALLY are, behind all the masks and stuff that hides that.

Our authenticity is our contextual framework.  We sit outside their context and then we enter their framework and THIS allows us to strip them Back to Nothing, speak to the real them, and help them Transform.

"This is all about becoming the person you were DESTINED to be!   You need to release the REAL you!  That's right! The REAL you, the one that you were, the one that all this useless 'stuff' is hiding.......We need to strip you back. Back to NOTHING...so that the person you were meant to be recognizes the person you really are, and takes you into a future of endless possibility!" ~ Dave Moore

IDEA!

IT IS NOW 1984!

"Psssssttt!  Keep your voice down...someone may overhear us....listen.....

 I have a great idea I want to share with you.  Listen carefully.  Tell no one about this as I want YOU to be part of this.  I have a plan…

I have designed something so GREAT that I reckon it will sell millions.  This is it.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. 
Well?  Great idea huh?
These turtles are big, human size.
They carry backpacks instead of shells and they keep all manner of stuff in them.
They are named after Italian Renaissance painters.
They wear blindfolds so nobody recognises them (!).
Their boss is a RAT!
They live in the sewers.
They ONLY eat Pizza.
They do Kung Fu.
They fight crime.
All I need is $20,000…are you IN???"

I have a pretty good idea what most people would say.  ‘What? Are you nuts? $20K??’

Do you know who said ‘NO’ to that idea?  Every major toy manufacturer including Hasbro; the largest toy manufacturer at the time.  (They later changed their mind when they had become successful and they took over the merchandising.)

That stupid idea was seen as a great idea by a small visionary toy manufacturer called Playmates Toys and marketed.  The rest is history, to the tune of all manner of merchandise, TV series, movies, records and millions of dollars.

Napoleon Hill wrote, "You will never have a definite purpose in life; you will never have self confidence; you will never have initiative and leadership unless you first create these qualities in your imagination and see yourself in possession of them." He went on to say, "... imagination is the most marvellous, miraculous, inconceivably powerful force the world has ever known."

SOMETIMES we read or see something that resonates more than anything else before.

A lot of the time people walk around on autopilot, with nothing going on upstairs.  They travel to work by car, bus or train and when they get there they have no recollection of the journey as they have been in an altered state. 

"If everyone said exactly what was on their mind right now,

most people would be speechless!"

An image in your mind is the first stage of the creative process in life. From your imagination your visions and plans arise.

There is a concept called "Fantasy - Theory - Fact." The premise underlying this concept is that everything has its origination in the form of Fantasy, which some adventurous souls dare turn into a theory and then boldly turn into fact. Give this serious thought for a moment.

The idea of moon landings, communicating by email, traveling on jets, cellular phones or wearing synthetic garments was a very short time ago, sheer fantasy. Today, they are considered commonplace. The individuals who were responsible for the conception and creation of the email, cell phones and any of the thousands of modern conveniences we enjoy today had a highly developed imagination.

As Leaders, we realise that there is infinite possibility in our imagination.  No idea too big.  No idea too outrageous. Leaders have Vision. 

Some people have an ability that others don’t.  They have the ability to see opportunity and possibility in the most outrageous ideas.  A Leader needs a mindset of Can-Do, Anything is possible, opportunity is all around…

There is no such thing as a bad idea…only an idea that isn’t investigated and acted upon correctly.  If you, as a leader, are presented with, or have your own, wild idea you have to be able to see the big picture and realise that by rationalising and expanding a great idea or a stupid idea you could have a lifechanging success. 

If you don’t believe that then think of these two words…Spongebob Squarepants!  Would you have given me $20,000 for THAT one?

BITE!

I really wish that a company would take a bite out of Apple because I have never known a company that could not care less about its customers!

I am certain that many people reading this will disagree and hail Apple as the all seeing all knowing life enhancing company that it probably is on many counts but as far as a cell phone service provider they are seriously lacking in customer service and customer care.

The iStore is totally inaccessible in the UK via your iPhone.  Only by looking online will you find that out.  One person has posted at the Apple Forum saying that they went into an Apple store and found that they had no way of connecting either.  So if Apple can't connect to themselves, how are they going to fix it?

A call made to the help desk found them to be completely UNAWARE that there was a problem. They then put people on hold for ages while finding a reason, which in the end turned out to be 'We are looking into it'.

In other words, while they 'look into it' we, the consumer, can only 'look at it' as most of the apps that now say they need updating won't update nor work correctly.

Some users, unaware that Apple was down, even restored their phones to Factory Settings.  Surely a text message to all phones could have been sent, in this day and age, considering you claim so often to know where every iPhone is located: you must know who your customers are?

Here's one message online...
"Just spoken to Apple customer services UK and the agent was unaware of the issue until I told her to pick up her own phone and attempt to download an app. She said “Oh, yes I seem to be having the same error” and put me on hold. She then came back and said “We are aware of an outage but I don’t know how long it’s going to take, please try again in about an hour”…

Update 7:  We’re continuing to try to contact Apple but at this point we’ve received no reply to our emails and no one’s picking up the phone.

Update 8: Apple has updated its developer status page but iTunes isn’t on it. The support status page still shows iTunes working fine and dandy.

I called the helpdesk and the lady there also said she was unaware also that there was an issue with the iPhone and iTunes after the latest IOS update, so I asked her to test it with her own cell phone.  The response I got was 'Oh I haven't got an iPhone, I have a BlackBerry!!'

So have I Apple, so have I, and I am reaching for it now, or the Samsung, or the Nokia...

Oh and there's just one more thing...Dear Apple,
If you are going to compensate users for the loss of services on their iPhones can you please NOT insult us with a free U2 album. Bono is enough to tip us over the edge!

A Million Pound/Dollar/Euro Lesson

“Always carry a notebook”:

Aristotle Onassis.

Why? Simple. You try and remember everything you see and hear on a daily basis. There are so many ideas, bits of information, names, words, slogans, websites and people that pass through your mind that you will never remember them. If you see as many people as I do, and speak to as many people as I do, on a daily basis then you would realize that a Journal or notebook is invaluable.


I don't mean a computer or iPad either. I mean a Journal or Notebook that you write in by hand.

This is the single most valuable piece of advice I have ever had.

I carry a black moleskin notebook at all times and I always have a small black moleskin notebook in a jacket pocket. Sometimes it's an A4 size legal notebook with perforated pages that can be torn out and filed.  I always carry a pen but if you want to, go into any betting shop or catalogue showroom that has those little pens for customers use, grab a handful and put one in the pocket of every jacket you own.

I then read what I have written at the end of the day or week, or if I am taking a break or being driven somewhere in the car and all the stuff I think I need to keep I transfer into an A4 size Journal.

I have about 20 of those...full.

Not only did Onassis live by this belief but so too does Richard Branson. (Click his name to read his thoughts on notetaking!)  Everywhere he goes he carries a notebook.  It is IMPOSSIBLE to remember EVERYTHING you think and read and hear.

You can watch something, listen to something or experience something but if you WRITE IT DOWN it becomes hardwired into your brain. What's more...you start to understand it a lot better if you write it down.

I went and saw my friend Ross Jeffries one day in London when he was presenting a training program and he wanted to chat over Lunch. I had taken with me, in my bag, one of my journals from four years earlier when he had spoken to a group before and I had been there.

(I make a hell of a lot of notes)

During the afternoon session he started to tell the group of a poem he had written many years ago, a funny one about Speed Seduction and NLP techniques...but he couldn't remember it!

Out came the journal and he was amazed to see it written there from four years ago. Afterwards he told me 'Jeez, that journal is impressive'.

I was impressed he could read my handwriting!!!

The point is this. If you get an idea, write it down. If you hear a remark and think it's interesting, write it down.

Whenever you engage in any form of interaction, if you use persuasion, speed seduction, embedded commands, language patterns, sales pitches...write down everything.

What do I mean?

1. Where you were. If you went to a coffee shop write down 'went to coffee shop'!!!

2. Name of person you spoke to.

3. What you said.

4. responses.

5. Outcome.

Then...yes, you read it back and analyse it.

"When you meet someone, write down everything you know about them. That way you know how much time to give them next time."
- Aristotle Onassis
Write down everything. Phone numbers, web addresses, names, tips, ideas, plans, phrases….
I guarantee that if you don’t write it down you will try to remember it later and that’s all you will do, ‘try’.
Believe me, 'try' is a very bad word and you need to eliminate it from your vocabulary.

You won’t remember it if you haven't written it down. If, by some miracle you do manage to remember what you wanted to remember, I also guarantee that something else will drop out of your memory to make way for it.

Want to risk it? No, I didn't think you would!

One Direction

- Updated

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the cat.
“I don’t much care where…” said Alice.
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the cat.
Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll

The cat was right.

If you don't know where you are going you may as well stay where you are.

Some people don't know where they ARE let alone where they want to go.

A compass has 360 degrees or points, and if you do not know where you are, you have 359 chances out of 360 to go where you didn't want to be in the first place.

So if you are at a point in your life that you can build upon that will impel you towards your goal or target then great. But what if you are not?

You need to focus on what you want. Your destination.

You need a road map!

Nobody says 'let's go on holiday' and then gets in the car drives off and waits to see where they end up.

If I asked you to meet me in London and you were in Manchester, there is a big chance that you might look at a map or turn on your Sat-Nav .

You must start with the destination in mind. You have to have a clear defined and resolute goal or target and then you must aim at it. If not, you are going to drift through life and end up as one of the masses. You will have wasted your life, wasted your potential, wasted your dreams and aspirations.

The UK at the moment is made up of some startling facts and figures...

• 100% of the population want to be successful
• 80% of families didn’t buy or read a book last year
• 75% of teenagers want to be famous but have no idea what for
• 70% of adults haven’t been to a bookshop in 5 years
• 60% of all paperbacks sold are romance
• 58% of graduates never read another book after graduating
• 50% of hardback books bought are never read past page 22
• 48% of all hardbacks sold are romance
• 40% of all men don’t read anything except at work
• 32% of men read nothing but newspaper sports pages

Out of 100 people who started work at the age of 18, by the age of 65....

• 1 is a millionaire
• 3 are still working
• 4 have adequate capital to retire
• 29 are dead
• 63 are dependent on social security, friends, relatives or charity

Only 5% of the adult population can comfortably retire at 65.

The other 95% are dead, broke, or dead broke!

But...when you consider the resources around us right now...

IN A WORLD WHERE ONE THIRD OF THE POPULATION IS STILL A TWO-DAY WALK FROM A TELEPHONE...YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE FOR NOT BEING SUCCESSFUL!

Remember that compass I mentioned? ...

Those 360 points on the compass? ...

What's YOUR point?

All aboard the Leader-Ship!

Leader- Ship!

* Do you have a crew?
* Who is in your Crew?
* Do you know who
your passengers are?
* Where do you get your passengers from?
* Are you the Captain of your Leader Ship?

WHO IS ON BOARD YOUR LEADER-SHIP?

Have you ever been on board a ship? It really doesn’t matter whether it’s a large cruise liner or a cross channel ferry. The principle is always the same.

The Captain.The captain or master is the ship's highest responsible officer, acting on behalf of the ship's owner. The captain is legally responsible for the day to day affairs of the ship as he is in command. It is his responsibility to ensure that all the departments under him perform legally to the requirements of the ships owner. The Captain represents the owner, or could also BE the owner.

The Chief Officer. He is the head of the deck and second-in-command after the ship's Captain. The chief Officers primary responsibilities are the vessel's cargo operations, its stability, and supervising the deck crew. The Chief Officer is responsible for the safety and security of the ship, as well as the welfare of the crew on board. The chief Officer typically stands the navigation watch with an eye on the horizon. Additional duties include maintenance of the ship. The Chief Officer also trains the crew on various aspects like safety, firefighting, search and rescue, and various other contingencies. The chief officer assumes command of the whole ship in the absence of the Captain.

The Second Officer. The second officer is usually in charge of navigation and is the next licensed position above third officer and below chief officer as third-in-command. The second officer is typically the navigation officer aboard a ship.

Third Officer.The third officer is primarily charged the safety of the ship and crew. The third officer is the next license position on board the Ship, being fourth-in-command after the captain, first officer, and second officer.

Now let’s look at this in a different way.

Let’s imagine we are not talking about a Ship.Let’s talk about a company.Your Company.

You have a Ship/Company that you want to sail.You launch it and its full steam ahead.Your passengers are your Customers.If they enjoy the trip, and the customer service is excellent then they will book again.

The Captain is YOU! 
You are the Leader, the CEO. You are the one in overall command of the Ship/Company. You are the one that decides direction and destination.Your Crew/Team will come to you with ideas to make the cruise more enjoyable for the passengers/customers, and will run ideas past you as to new and exciting destinations for you to steer towards. You need a great crew/team and your ability to recruit, mentor, promote and empower your people is the reason your ship/company will be successful.They are the driving force, the lifeblood of your business.

The Chief Officer is your Director.
They have the day to day running of the company in mind.The navigation, the speed, the training of your staff, the planning…yes, you are the overall person in charge but you have mentored and coached this person in such a way that when you ‘go ashore’ you are confident that what you would have done if you had been on board is being done while you are not on board.

The Second Officer is your Manager.
They maintain and steer your company on the course set by you and your Director.They ensure that you arrive at the relevant port on schedule (your company hits target) and that the seas are navigated in a safe way (your customers have a smooth ride) while keeping an eye out for icebergs (challenges, roadblocks and complaints).They report back regularly and advise you and your Director of the potential difficulties (competition activities, current trends, feedback from customers).They also manage your team directly and monitor their performance.They have targets to reach, staff levels to maintain and results to achieve.

The Third Officer is your HR or Compliance Officer.
They are in charge of the safety and compliance with the law of your company and its entire staff.They ensure that the documentation, contracts, employment law and entitlements of all of your staff, and you, are adhered to in a manner that is conducive to all.

The Crew is your team.
All of them from the engine room to client facing are signed up and ready to provide the experience that your passengers have not only paid for, but expect.  This can only come from you and your officers by example.When your crew feel safe, feel they can approach you, listen to you, admire you, know that you are decisive and that you are willing to listen to them AND include them because you consider their opinions and ideas relevant, you can sail any sea.

A Captain is usually someone who has started out as a sailor and worked their way up through the ranks to Captain.In doing so, they have a great understanding of how each section, from the Bridge to the Engine Room, works and they could, at any time, step in if disaster happens in ANY of those areas.

A great leader is also someone who can step in at any level because, not only do they have a deep understanding of what the business is and how it runs but they spend time walking around, talking, getting involved and relating to people at all of those levels.

If your Ship is called ‘Leader’ then the only way to ensure your ‘Leader-Ship’ is sailing on calm waters, fully crewed with full capacity of passengers at all times is to not only have a crew that you trust, but to have a crew that trusts you! You are confident that when you 'step ashore' the ship is running EXACTLY as it would if you were on the bridge.

Your Passengers are your customers and clients.
They will book a voyage on your Leader Ship in full knowledge that they have peace of mind.  Whatever happens, however rough the seas, when the storms hit, you and your officers and crew will navigate them through to calmer seas.

Bon Voyage!

Don't Quote Me On That, But...

Sometimes I get a Bright Idea!

"It is just as if I plug myself into myself and I light up!" was how someone described this process once....

When working on a presentation I have been known to say things that are a complete surprise to me, not just because it's the first time I have heard them too, they sometimes come up to the surface of my memory, but because I think 'Hmm. that's a keeper' and they go in the file of 'To be used again at the relevant moment!'

Lately, during a seminar, some tweetchats (#HPTTransformation and #PeopleSkills) and a couple of HOA's things came up and it happened again....

Bad leadership is self-serving - Great leadership is serving others.

I don't say this to impress you, I say this to impress upon you that.......you can do this too

Don't sell the means; people buy the end!!!

This may be the crack in the wall through which you will see the world.

If you are going to go fishing, bait your hook with something the fish likes and not YOUR favourite food.

Don't 'assume' your client is as clued up as you...think about it...it's your job to know what it does, it's their job to use it.

When people believe they can do something, or if they believe they can't, they are right on both occasions.

I don't need to be your friend for you to trust what I say will work.

You don't need to be my friend for me to make you more successful.

You don't need to be my friend for me to change your life for the better.

People don't get stuck in what happened to them, they get stuck in the significance of that event.

There are certain things you can only know by creating them yourself.

We are in a society where we are looking around for leaders, When in fact we should be looking for the leaders within ourselves.

Irrespective of conditions or outside influence, transformation can happen at any time. People have the ability to Transform.

It’s not what you think that changes your life; it is the space in which that thinking takes place.

Common Sense isn't all that common.

You have to live your life in a ‘you AND me’ world and not a ‘you OR me’ world.

The majority of people are motivated by the avoidance of what they don’t want rather than the attainment of what they do want.

If you create a context of well being in your life, the circumstances in your life will reflect that.

You are living in the past at today’s prices.

The trouble with talking too fast or talking a lot is you may say something you haven’t thought of yet!  If that's the case, write it down!

This is why I keep hammering home the point about always keeping a notebook! ;-)
The NOTEBOOK post

(Thanks to +Angela Goodeve for the artwork in this image)

Don't Try This At Home, I Am A Professional

I have just 'repaired' the printer in my office by using the 'Gucci Shoe method'.

The Possessed Printer

Its very technical and not something I would recommend you attempt. You need to call in a professional like me

Basically, you open various sections of the printer and peer inside looking for evidence of a problem. Then you take the toner cartridge out, shake it, and put it back in. Then you take the cartridge out again, shake it harder (like that will make a difference) and then ram it back in so it makes a loud crashing sound in the hope that the force and noise of this will make the printer wake up.

You then close all of the various panels and flaps that you opened. You switch the power off and on and then stare at it.

Finally you take your shoe off and whack it a few times until you beat it into submission. Works every time....

...It also amazes me how some people keep pressing print when nothing comes out and then complain that the printer is broke only to find no paper in it. Then when they put the paper in 45 copies of what they wanted comes out and they moan about that!!

That's when you take your shoe off and whack THEM over the head.

I have also found that a laser printer can be bought for less than the cost of a laser toner cartridge.

I bought a laser printer and it came with a toner in it AND a spare toner.

The printer was £80 including 2 toner cartridges.
The toner cartridges are £90 if bought on their own!!!!

I now have two laser printers gathering dust in the stock cupboard as its more cost effective, when the toner runs out, to buy a new printer.

THE WORLD HAS GONE MAD!!!!