In the industry that I work in salespeople have an environment choice.  They work on commission only and so unlike any other industry there are always jobs available in real estate, it is just a matter of where and who with.  In business leaders have a certain degree of attraction and people join individuals first, but they also look at the environment around them – where are they going to be spending the majority of their working hours and how will it impact on their ability to maximise their own personal productivity?  I see many real estate offices, a better description would be real estate office environments.  Some are very good, some are average and some are tired and lack energy.

If you can make an environmental change to your business it can be done in such a small way, positive livery, ensuring significant light into your work areas and having where possible a reception area that reflects the standards of your business.  I thought about this because recently I was in a real estate office that was tired and a customer came in and was looking at the displays and you could see them looking around and making a visual judgement on this business, then they walked out.  The environment of that real estate office was not friendly and was due for a business environmental change.

What small changes can you make in your business to make it environmentally attractive and productive?

Last weekend I heard a story regarding a new match official who was in a position of having to use knowledge and experience against a backdrop of potential consequences.  This was the situation.  It was this match official’s second game that he had refereed; it was the second half with approximately 20 minutes to go and the score was 12/10.  A scrum was packed and a player was left injured on the ground with an unknown but significant enough injury to stop the game on the basis that it could have been a serious neck or back injury. On to the field come well-meaning managers, who want to pick him up and take him out of play so the game can continue. The match official, who had recently attended a duty of care seminar, said that they were not to move him and that he would phone for an ambulance,  which he did, but the ambulance would be at least 20 minutes.  Do you move the player knowing the risk?  If there were no other players around you wouldn’t move him but there were cries of “let’s continue the game.”   The game was more important to the players than the player was. The managers started to move the player; the match official told them that if they physically moved the player that he would leave the ground.  Consequently he called off the game and left the ground.  The ambulance arrived; the player was taken to hospital for observation and it was discovered that he had sustained a back injury.

We all have a duty of care to not only know the circumstances but also the consequences.  When you make decisions based on a duty of care then the consequences will have far less exposure to risk.

The match official did the right thing, as he was the only one who showed a duty of care.  It is not only paramount in business but in all walks of life. The consequences of not respecting duty of care could have been quite dire for this particular player.

I also find myself with an opportunity to walk the streets of a new destination in the City previously unknown to me. I was up and away early this morning on a walk that was first searched on Google – seemed appropriate to do that considering it has been the most discussed topic here. What is San Francisco famous for? – The Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. Could I potentially see both at the same time? San Francisco has some of the steepest streets in the world so what did I search? “List of the steepest streets to see Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge”. It came up with the 10 steepest streets in San Francisco.  I chose the 5^th steepest.

A quick insight in the Golden Gate Bridge that we heard yesterday by the host of Inman – When the bridge was built the men knew there was a safety net below they stated that the ‘safety net’ increased productivity but 30%. It also has the highest rate of suicide in the world one person every week. With no safety net the consequences are known.

The street I walked up was steep in any language – and as I climb it was thinking about the view that hopefully I would see from the top. My slow steps however were a testament of the climb to the top it was hard work. I made it – The view from the top was exhilarating. The Golden Gate Bridge to my right and Alcatraz straight ahead. I reflected. The view at the top is much different to the few even 10 steps before. You must make the top to achieve the view. But I then began to wonder about the No 1 steepest street. A flash of ‘think again’ came over me. Why would you necessary get the best view at the steepest street in San Francisco? Maybe the highest but that doesn’t mean the steepest.

The business I lead is No 2 in the industry. I do not get to see the view from the top in our business or industry. I am surrounded by those who do. The language at the top is different to the language I use. The business leaders at the top have walked up the hill. They know the you go down quicker when you are the top than when you are still on the climb.

We could do this – We must do this.

We should do this – We will do this.

The dream position must be to reach your capacity but be forever testing it and create room to take another step up the hill of momentum.

The climb must never stop.

This is due to be published in The Independent next week.

What are the best/worst airports – and why?
Auckland – based on the fact that I know it; the short-cuts, check-in counters and Customs.  Delhi airport is the worst – there is no APEC; it’s ciaos as you come through and baggage takes at least half an hour.  I do know however that they are building a new airport which is understood to be the biggest in the world, hence why it probably isn’t so great now.

What is the best/worst hotel/accommodation – and why?
The Westin in Shanghai.  It’s centrally located but one of the few hotels that actually has an area around it, which is unusual in such a heavily populated city.

Your best/worst hotel experience? (eg. Did you ever get stuck in a lift for 12 hours, or find your hotel was actually a brothel, or have your best wool suit shrunk by the laundry service?)
The worst hotel was a capsule hotel I had to stay in because of a plan diversion into Hong Kong. A very unusual experience – I probably know how a morgue feels.  It had a very claustrophobic feeling to it.

Best/worst airline for service – and why?
Emirates.  The feeling is very calm on their flights; unobtrusive service and they seem to rely on the passenger to be the best judge of their behaviour.
The worst airline is Dragon Air.  Two reasons for me personally; firstly, I don’t understand Chinese and secondly the age of their planes seemed to be more dated than most other airlines.

Which is the best airline on the Tasman (NZ-Australia) route?
Air New Zealand is the best airline for the Tasman.  They have a number of services which makes flying easier and the process quicker.  They have very much lifted their processing points across the Tasman route to now be the best.

Which domestic airline do you rate best?
Air New Zealand is the best domestic airline.  The introduction of the e-tag Fast Bag and their valet parking services takes them to the top of the list.

Top tip for arriving fresh and ready to go on long-haul flights – or for avoiding meltdown later in the week if you are flying to Australia and back in a day
A top tip on long-haul flights is to set your watch to the destination time straight away and begin to act in the time zone you are going to. To avoid a meltdown if travelling to Australia in one day I would recommend you turn left instead of right when you board.

Favourite New Zealand destination – and why? Which destination do you hate most?
The Southern Lakes region.  The scenery is spectacular, it’s always a welcoming destination and there is a definite sense they understand the travelling process.  There is probably not a destination that I hate as such.  The more difficult destinations are those that are remote which tend to be on the extreme East Coast and extreme West Coast – you can’t link your travel.

Favourite international destination – and why? And which one do you hate most?
Shanghai simply because of the diversification in culture, the transformation of the city over the last 15 years, the defining points between the old and the new, and the world-class financial district.  Again, I don’t hate any locations as such but Delhi would rank as being the most difficult just because of the sheer number of people and lack of infrastructure.  You need to be patient as it takes time to get from place to place and that ultimately puts pressure on you as a business traveller.

Favourite New Zealand bar/eatery?
Home.  I also like Orbit because of the view of Auckland.

Favourite overseas bar/eatery?
On the Huangpu River in Shanghai there is an area called 3 On The Bun.  This is an extraordinary experience of different places to eat. There is an eatery called Slice which is a teppanyaki experience.  Right next door to this is a brewery (see photo) where they actually pour the beers from the vat and I had never seen such a large range of beers before.

Worst/most interesting meal(s)/food you’ve had on an overseas trip (did you enjoy fried grasshoppers, or find yourself next to the cast of Friends, or have to get through a 6-hour, 12-course Asian banquet after a 24-hour flight)
The most interesting experience of a meal was in a restaurant called The Black Cafe in Shanghai.  It is run by blind people and you order downstairs and then go upstairs into a completely black room.  You cannot see anything and you are led to your table.   It is so you experience life (in a short window) as a blind person.  You can’t see the food they serve you and you end up eating with your hands.  You are aware that there are people around you but you can’t see them.  It is the most unusual experience.

Packing tips – anything unusual/useful you pack that you’d recommend other people take?
I always have a toiletries bag that is permanently left in my bag together with power leads then I never have to worry about those.  I also have a copy of my passport and a copy of my credit card numbers.

Do you work on the plane? – Why/ why not?
Depends on the length of the trip but it is a good time to completely clean out emails and to also work on bigger thinking projects.

What are the best/worst aspects of long-haul flights?
The best aspect is being able to watch a movie which I rarely do and the other one is having a longer period to be able to read. 

What is the most interesting/horrifying/dramatic thing that’s ever happened to you on a flight?
I was on a flight where the plane was diverted due to cyclonic conditions going into Hong Kong – I was quite nervous.  The only other one was when I was flying to Tauranga and they couldn’t get the landing gear down.  It was quite a small plane but eventually they did get it to work which was quite a relief at the time.

Most interesting/horrific fellow passenger/person sitting next to you on a flight?
There was one guy on a long-haul flight who kept his light on because he was scared of the dark.  This was both interesting and horrific.  People who snore are a problem.  The only other one was during a flight to Sydney we landed and there was a potential H1N1 passenger at the back of the plane and we were quarantined for 5 hours.  Fortunately I wasn’t sitting next to them.

If you didn’t live in New Zealand, where in the world would you choose to live – and why?
Sydney.  It’s a world class city now.  I also have a number of friends and family in Sydney.

Best travel experience?
My honeymoon on Waiheke.  We rented a small batch right on the beachfront in Palm Beach. The weather was great, there was plenty to do and the location was perfect.

Worst travel experience?
I had missed a flight between Auckland and Gisborne and had to do auctions.  The only way was to get a flight to Napier which landed at 10am and the auctions in Gisborne started at 12noon.  It was a 2 hour 15 minute drive.  Unfortunately they only had a Ford Focus available.  I won’t tell you what time I arrived but the Ford Focus seemed to be a bit overheated.

Any tips for getting upgraded? Any good upgrade stories?
I think upgrades are a thing of the past.  Airlines have a more defining relationship with their passengers now and it seems that upgrades occur from time-to-time but that is usually when the flight is overbooked more than any requests you can make.

Our business has grown progressively over the last 15 years.  We have taken doubled our marketshare to new record highs through our current membership and organic growth.  The business we are in has had an has a lot of competitors.  Over the years different competitors have had varying degrees of success with their model.  Some of our competitors are no longer here. 

When you get to a certain level in business (generally leadership) you must look for opportunity.  It is part of growth and the way a business evolves.  When you look for opportunity, you have to talk to people within your own company and those in other companies and in doing so respect of the information that you have learned for your own benefit is of the utmost importance. Ice and thin ice.

Recently I became aware of another company who have passed information onto their members about a commercially sensitive discussion and for the second time in my career I find myself questioning some of those who are at the leadership level of business.  The best companies build their reputation through their leaders.  The key leadership qualities that are known are trust, confidence and the ability to see the big picture.  A couple of questions arise for me when I deal with people in regards to opportunities.  Firstly, can I trust them?  Secondly, do I have confidence in their ability to focus on opportunity rather than gain? And, do I know that they can look beyond the deal to see the growth? 

Across the world of business those who can fit these categories will take their companies from good to great.  Those who don’t understand trust, confidence and commercial sensitivity will find their businesses losing opportunity and amongst those that are dropping in marketshare because when it all comes down to it, it doesn’t matter what the colours are or what the brand is, the leader reflects the business.