Jan 16th: Another powerful monthly Vistage meeting. Action promises that will change companies and change lives were recorded with appropriate emphasis.

The meeting also yielded it’s usual trove of humorous bits as the cabal of abused CEOs gathered again to solve each other’s problems, vent and pickup some wisdom along the way. The foot-stomping and fist-pounding often yields quotations that beg to be memorialized. Now, because our group credo is “what happens in the room, stays in the room,” the names of the CEOs and their companies have been replaced with brief descriptors.

MOTIVATION:
“If I was any lazier, I’d slip into a coma”
– The guy who manages peoples retirement

INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS:
“Words on f*ing paper don’t seem to mean to these guys what they mean to us.”
– The guy selling his software company to a buyer in a foreign country

NOTE: The above CEO is also a master communicator who consistently demonstrates that the f-bomb can be used in a dizzying array of grammatical combinations. My favorite is starting every sentence with “F!” and the take a deep breath before getting to the point.

CHANGING PRIORITIES:
“I don’t have a big issue to report, but I will pause to announce that being single again is great – I am getting laid like crazy and I’m happy about it.”
– The guy with a software company that makes waiting for things in life less time consuming – such as the line of men outside his ex-wife’s bedroom.

COMMANDING RESPECT:
“Then he said to me, HEY, I don’t work for you! So, how do I respond to that?”
– The guy who founded an IT reseller

PAYING FOR VALUE:
“He is used to $250K/$300K. What I am trying to do is get him for $120K. Any suggestions?”
– The guy who runs a manufacturing company

MOTIVATING THE TEAM TO EXECUTE:
“I told him, it’s the right thing to do, he just doesn’t want to work. Dammit!”
– The guy who built a new communications solution

MANAGING THE BOARD:
“I don’t know – Do I tell them to f-off and stuff it? C’mon guys, I’m new to this!”
– The guy who founded a new power company

February should bring more world-changing wisdom from the group…

• Jan-17-2014
• Vistage