Customer Reviews

Outstanding!: 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional

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I don't go to work to be part of a losing team, to make policies and procedures that confound progress and productivity. I don't want to sit around and watch our country get deeper in debt, yoked to the burdens of irresponsible lawmakers.

I am not striking out "on my own" to start a consulting firm that does not succeed. I don't lead my family, so we can be average, just get by, merely survive.

In each of these endeavors, I want to excel, to be outstanding, to win. What does it mean to "win"? I think a leader's vision is the answer to that question. Vision is what gives us hope each day, the motivation to work hard, because I have a mental image of the outcome, whether that is at the end of the day, week, year, or lifetime. But it's more than that, because if no one buys into the vision, than a leader has no followers, so "winning" is a team's shared outlook.

I've read John's other two books, QBQ and Flipping the Switch, and now this one. In all three, he writes with concise clarity. By that, I mean that he explains and illustrates each principal in just a few short pages.

This is the essence of Multiplying Leadership with atoms--small, fundamental principles that exist independently, building blocks. In this case, they are building blocks of organizational excellence. I didn't need to read the whole book to walk away with one actionable idea. In fact, I can absorb a whole chapter that stands alone, an introduction to an idea that has endless possibilities for application that I can easily imagine, in the time it takes to read four pages.

Who should read it? Anyone who feels they are accountable, in some degree, for the excellence of their organization or team or family or relationship.

What is it about? 47 concepts you can implement today...that take a lifetime to master--ideas to help you accept responsibility for and achieve an exceptional organizational culture.

When? It doesn't matter where you are in your journey of leadership or what level your at in the company org chart--don't wait until you are in a position of leadership. Read it now--you can finish in one weekend.

Where can you get it? Amazon is cheapest: Outstanding! 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional (affiliate link). But it is available at any bookstore or the author's website [...]. John is very friendly and real, and he even answered my email within minutes. You can follow him on twitter @qbqguy or facebook/theqbq.

John Miller's book, OUTSTANDING!: 47 WAYS TO MAKE YOUR ORGANIZATION EXCEPTIONAL, is, well, ... OUTSTANDING! The author of QBQ and Flipping the Switch, may have written his best book ever. Quite often authors put out a book that is little more than a regurgitation of their earlier books. Not so, here.

Each of Miller's 47 points are given a chapter. Each one is valuable in its' own way. In Chapter 3, I realized why some of my training initiatives fail. I don't always put purpose first. If people don't have a good understanding of why it is necessary for them to do things a certain way, they are much less likely to adopt it as their own. This one little piece of knowledge and understanding on my part will totally change how I develop and delivery new initiatives.

In Chapter 5, I learned the true definition of a customer. A customer is anyone who has a legitimate expectation of you. This opens up a whole new realm and an entirely new dynamic on how we view people. Customers are not just people who buy from us, they are our vendors, supervisors, family members, co-workers, etc. If we treat these relationships with the same respect and regard as we give our "paying customers", imagine the results we will see.

Chapter 44 is a refresher course in doing the little things that will make a difference for customers. These are just a few things you'll find here. There are tips of doing a better job of coaching, the importance of encouragement, even ways to hire better people.

As I read Chapter 12, aptly titled "Value Ideas Over Politics", I kept remembering Ronald Reagan when he said, "It's amazing what can be accomplished when we don't care who gets the credit."

This should become required reading for anyone at the corporate level. I'm giving this one my highest recommendation. As always, Miller writes clearly with direct points and succinct summaries. QBQ set a pretty high bar for Miller, but he may have succeeded in surpassing that bar with Outstanding!

John Miller is an accomplished author and consultant in the business world. His previous book "QBQ" was an exceptional work on identifying empowerment thinking. He continues the linage of thought provoking and insightful works in this text. The book identifies the 47 ways to make an organization better. This book is packed with helpful information. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on the ever increasing literature in the business culture, one can buy this book for the best of the latest ideas. The book also highlights some of the latest and trendy "foolish" ideas that would never work. The author shows these ideas to be lacking. Instead of having to read all of the material out there searching for the best practices, the author has done this for you. This book will provide a framework for any church, club, or business. There is not a single wasted page. For a journey in the best ideas for an organization, pick up this title.

Reading Outstanding! is like enjoying a Thanksgiving meal with family and friends with a wide spread of delectable food. At first, your inclination is to voraciously get through the meal because of your hunger and long-time anticipation of the meal; yet, you slow down and linger, not wanting to rush through the experience of food and fellowship. It is easy to read this book quickly, but that will not satisfy you quite as well as taking a few days or a week between chapters and thoughtfully pondering each one.

For myself, I was granted approval (as I'm not the Big Cheese in the meeting) and injected a chapter reading at the end of each bi-weekly administrative meeting. There were principles in the book, if implemented, that I knew would help our organization become outstanding. At this point, I am just trying to affect thinking and paradigms; however, when we finish - and as Miller recommends - I would like to go back and tackle various chapters and really put an emphasis on implementation. I am not a supervisor myself, but I am in a position of influence with other supervisors.

In our administrative meeting readings, it has been uncanny at the relevance these chapters have had to our particular situation at that time. I believe it is because of the universal practicality of his material. Though there were a few nuggets of new thought, the majority of the book looks at common topics organizations face and how to reshape ones thinking about them. You may be tempted to think, "Oh, there's nothing new? I'll pass." I didn't quite say that - there were a handful of new profound nuggets for me (worth the price of the book); however, the brilliance of this book is in its *repetition* (just like one reading of the Bible will not make the reader a biblical expert). Because organizations grow and fluctuate over time, you'll appreciate various chapters more at different stages of your organization's then-present circumstances.

I encourage you to read Outstanding! and inject it into your weekly meetings - help to shape company thought and paradigms. Companies would do well to purchase a copy for each meeting participant so they can follow along and then have a reference to implement the principles with their team members. This book can be a powerful culture changer in your organization - what are you waiting for?

Whether you Lead a Team of 10,000 or a Team of 1 (yourself) this is without a doubt one of my very favorite leadership/management books. If you don't think you need the help in your journey, just think you don't have the time, or simply hate reading, this book is for you. It has quick to the point chapters with lots of substance and stories that can literally be read in 4 minutes or less. Definitely, Definitely a must read for Management, Entrepreneurs, and Aspiring Leaders.

Any fool can make something complex and confusing. It takes real skill to present powerful ideas in ways that make you feel like you already knew them. At least "knew" them until you tried explaining them yourself.

John's skill as a writer and insights as a leader powerfully come together in Outstanding: 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional. It's a joy to read and reread.

It's the type of book you should read through and then put on the bed stand (or some other prominent place you frequent) so you can pick it up for a pick-me-up.

Chapters include:

"Be Flexible: Put People Before Policies." That sounds completely obvious. However, many organizations are mired in ineffective, inefficient policies and procedures that serve the organization rather than the people.

"Coach, Moment to Moment." How many employees long to improve their skills so they can make meaningful contributions. However, many organizations believe telling someone to do something equals enabling them to do it. Who wouldn't love to be coached to successes by a skillful manager?

Chapter after chapter, John presents leadership principles so clearly that he leaves us without excuse. He lets us know if we take responsibility we can be Outstanding.

Additionally, I love the colorful illustrations John uses. Each one opens a window of enlightenment. The "cake" illustration in the chapter titled "Be Humble" takes something you might think silly and turns it into a powerful lesson.

I suggest you buy this book and a few others to give to your friends. Whatever you do, don't give it to your competitors.

Kudos to John G. Miller for consistently adding value to the leadership community.

As a supervisor for a small Customer Service group, I am constantly looking for information that will encourage and motivate my employees to provide the best in service to our customers. With little to no budget in which to meet our training needs, I have made it a personal priority to seek out books, articles, free online training, etc., materials that will benefit my staff members both in their personal lives as well as their professional careers. I had the great fortune to find John G. Miller's book, "Outstanding -- 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional" in a local bookstore. What a find! Mr. Miller has a fabulous ability to draw the reader into each detailed description of his personal customer service experiences. As book that is difficult to put down, I feel as if a dear friend is recounting each of the experiences. The stories are his experiences of the kind of outstanding service someone with the right attitude provides regardless of their circumstances or surroundings. Without the entitlement mentality weighing them down, there are "gems" remaining in our society who continue to shine brightly and give us hope that outstanding customer service can and does exist! An absolute joyful reading! Thank you, Mr John!

I bought the audiotape of John Miller's book "Outstanding", and play it often when I am driving in my car. John provides lots of practical and applicable words of wisdom along with real world examples of companies that do outstanding things for their customers. I recommend this book to any business owner or company manager who wants to develop his or her plan for making their business stand out from the crowd. There is no reason to be an also ran or someone in the middle of the pack of mediocre service providers when you can read or listen to advice that can be easily applied to almost any business situation.

I have been using QBQ for years with my clients. There are very few texts that are as easy to read, understand and implement than the information in QBQ, and I always wondered if John could step his game up a notch. He did so in Flipping the Switch, but knocked it out of the part with Outstanding.

Here is why I am such a fan of John's. In simple, direct language, he gives 47 ways to make any organization better. Each one stands on its own. In fact, most of the chapters could be expanded into their own books, if John was academically inclined. But he resists the temptation to be self important. His stories are simple, but elegant, and the brilliance is in their simplicity. He takes the stories from his everyday experience, from his family and from his many years on the road working with his groups.

In particular, here are some of the chapters I really found poignant and readily usable.

Chapter 3--Keeping the Mission Top of Mind. Great story about his dad, and nice way he wove it into the message.

Chapter 11--Don't Speak in Code. If you are going to call someone a teammate, or call your employees teammates, mean it! Why do we use euphemisms to change minds if the behaviors underlying the words aren't matched up?

Chapter 25--Manage! One of the best descriptions of the need to manage rather than lead. I have been caught up in "Leadership 101" with my clients, and now I understand why it hasn't been working!

Chapter 47--Try, Risk Grow. Wow. Something I have to remind myself of every day. If you aren't growing, you are dying. Thanks, John, for the great story about Tasha.

Thanks so much for sharing your family with us, and helping your readers make each day "Outstanding".

I have found a new book to send to my clients!

I've been a student of all John Miller's books and they all have exceeded my expectations. I read Outstanding when it first came out and turned around and read it again. A simple read with a powerful message! Everyone should read this book, if they want to improve and grow both professionally and personally. The ideas shared are easily identified, exist in most organizations and are so simple to fix. You only have one question to ask yourself. Do you want to be Outstanding? If you answer that with a yes, buy this book, you won't be disappointed!